Being misused: It Only Works Once

It Only Works Once is a serial trope where a particular item/weapon used in one episode is either (a) never seen, mentioned, or thought of again, or (b) fails to work when it's used again.

However, we've got a number of wicks using it as Exactly What It Says on the Tin: Something that is contractually limited to one usage, like a Dangerous Forbidden Technique or Finishing Move.

An Ear Worm is like a Rickroll: It is never going to give you up.

I think this looks like a good candidate for a Trope Transplant then. Do we have a trope for things that are contractionally obligated to only work one time?

Reality is that, which when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away. -Philip K. Dick

A and B seem like totally different tropes to me.

Fight smart, not fair.

They do. We have three tropes here then. This sounds familiar, Deboss.

edited 24th Jan '11 1:16:24 PM by shimaspawn

Reality is that, which when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away. -Philip K. Dick

Last I checked there's currently a YKTTW under the horribly named title of "Treasure Card" which should be precisely that.

An Ear Worm is like a Rickroll: It is never going to give you up.

Well, considering the obvious name is taken for something unintuitive it makes sense that they'd get stuck for names. Maybe we could try to dig that out and co-opt at least the examples.

Reality is that, which when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away. -Philip K. Dick

Yeah, I gotta say when I think of my trope I think of someone killing themselves to accomplish something, like in Looney Tunes. Not a forgettable plot device only used for one episode. That's Only Used Once, not Only Works Once.