Do you have trouble remembering the difference between Deathbringer the Adorable and Fluffy the Terrible?
Do you have trouble recognizing when you've written a Zero-Context Example?
Not sure if you really have a Badass Bookworm or just a guy who likes to read?
Well, this is the thread for you. We're here to help you will all the finer points of example writing. If you have any questions, we can answer them. Don't be afraid. We don't bite. We all just want to make the wiki a better place for everyone.
Useful Tips:
- Make sure that the example makes sense to both people who don't know the work AND don't know the trope.
- Wrong: The Mentor: Kevin is this to Bob in the first episode.
- Right: The Mentor: Kevin takes Bob under his wing in the first episode and teaches him the ropes of being a were-chinchilla.
- Never just put the trope title and leave it at that.
- Wrong: Badass Adorable
- Right: Badass Adorable: Xavier, the group's cute little mascot, defeats three raging elephants with both hands tied behind his back using only an uncooked spaghetti noodle.
- When is normally far less important than How.
- A character name is not an explanation.
- Wrong: Full Moon Silhouette: Diana
- Right: Full Moon Silhouette: At the end of her transformation sequence into Moon Princess Misty, Diana is shown flying across the full moon riding a rutabaga.
Other Resources:
For best results, please include why you think an example is iffy in your first post.
Also, many oft-misused tropes/topics have their own threads, such as Surprisingly Realistic Outcome (here
) and Fan-Preferred Couple (here). Tropers are better able to give feedback on examples you bring up to specific threads.
For cleaning up examples of Complete Monster and Magnificent Bastard, you must use their dedicated threads: Complete Monster Cleanup, Magnificent Bastard Cleanup.
Edited by Synchronicity on Sep 18th 2023 at 11:42:55 AM
I fix my examples all the time
Reposting this since it got bottom-paged.
I question this entry in the Character Perception Evolution page as it seems to argue against itself. Should it remain? Be cut? Or rewritten?
- Tommy Oliver of Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers, Power Rangers Zeo, Power Rangers Turbo and Power Rangers: Dino Thunder was insanely popular with kids back when the show was first airing, and his increased role and eventual leading of the team was because of this popularity. However, he has become a Base-Breaking Character as the years have gone by; many fans lamenting his frequent dominating of airtime, being ridiculously overpowered, how Kimberly and Kat often underwent Chickification just so he could look cool by saving them, and how often the franchise brings him back in comparison to other past rangers. There are also those who resent his actor for allegedly only becoming The Leader due to a strike breaking when the original cast were trying to negotiate for better pay and working conditions (which is what led to Austin St. John, Thuy Trang and Walter Jones walking off the set); suggesting that to also be a reason for Tommy's increased role. And finally, Jason David Frank arguably had the least acting talent of the original cast. Jason himself even admitted in interviews that he was hired for his martial arts abilities, and had little experience with acting before the show. Although Jason's untimely death in 2022 solidified Tommy as one of the best Power Rangers characters.
Goku Black
I Mean it's not wrong. As he later became divisive but it was completing undone by his actors death. Where now he's near universally considered one of the greatest rangers of all time.
It's Just way too weirdly written as is.
"That's right mortal. By channeling my divine rage into power, I have forged a new instrument in which to destroy you."
Any help for this one?
Found this on a RWBY character page for a race of beings known as "the People Pleasers". I've gone through all the indexed character archetypes and even the stock character index, too, and I can't find any character archetype that is being deconstructed here. Neither Easily Conquered World nor White Man's Burden are character archetypes, they're narrative tropes. Jaune is already an example of Heroic Wannabe for this example, which is on his own character page.
My thought is that this should really be an example of Deconstructed Trope (White Man's Burden), where it takes a straight example of the trope (the "white man" character (Jaune) waltzing into the natives' realm to successfully rescue them) and then explores just how harmful to the local population that behaviour really is.
Should I make the change and move this to the work's main page instead of the character pages?
- Deconstructed Character Archetype: Of the "hapless denizens who need a human hero to save them" peoples found in many portal fantasies. At first glance they seem like fragile, stupid children in constant danger who need Jaune to save them from accidentally killing themselves on a regular basis. However, it's revealed that Jaune is preventing them from Ascension due to projecting his own misunderstanding of it over their own knowledge, claiming that they're too stupid to know what's best for them and putting his own need to be the hero over their wants and needs. The constant accidents he "saves" them from are actually their attempts to escape from him, and once they succeed, he realizes that his "help" was hurting them.
I fix my examples all the time
![[up]](https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/smiles/arrow_up.png "[up]"){kind=icon}
The above example has nothing to do with white people or racial minorities, so it's misuse. Cut.
Okay, I've cut the entry, thanks.
If my post doesn't mention a giant flying sperm whale with oversized teeth and lionfish fins for flippers, it just isn't worth reading.
I feel it’s too early to say if Tommy has been completely redeemed in the fandom’s eyes. It’s only barely been 6 months since Jason David Frank’s suicide and I feel people might be afraid to Speak Ill of the Dead with that bleeding into discussion about Tommy. While I doubt anybody is going to criticize Frank’s acting or actions again I don’t see that equating to Tommy regaining his Status as a Sacred Cow.
So should I just cut the last sentence, rewrite it so it’s only talking about JDF being redeemed, or leave it alone?
Edited by Mariofan99 on May 25th 2023 at 8:12:42 AM
The Enforcer
This example on "Take That!" Tit-for-Tat feels like it's a case of both "troping the actions of small groups of a social media site's userbase as though it's the whole thing" and also of treating disjointed groups on platforms as works. Is there evidence that (a) the response was retaliatory and (b) the specific group targeted made the response?
It's also troping the behaviors of real people who aren't specifically playing characters or telling a story, which a random meme on Reddit isn't.
- In 2020, some 4chan users made a CYOA◊ mocking Reddit and its userbase. Later that year, some Redditors clapped back by making another CYOA◊ mocking 4chan and its users.
Edited by NonexistentYeets on May 25th 2023 at 9:36:46 AM
they/them pronouns. Look at my Neocities.
He/Him
Could this be an example of Late-Arrival Spoiler and/or Walking Spoiler?
- Legion of Super-Heroes: In the mid-80s, the character of Sensor Girl was introduced, with her identity being a mystery, the only know fact being that Saturn Girl trusted her enough to make a case for her joining the Legion. She's later revealed to be classic Legionnaire, Princess Projectra, who had left the Legion after killing an enemy, now with augmented powers trough magic. Afterwards, Sensor Girl regularly takes her mask off, revealing herself to be Projectra, and is called Jeckie by her friends, a shortening of Projectra. After the Legion was rebooted in the 90s, the character was reintroduced with the hero name "Sensor", thus spoiling for any readers of the reboot the identity of Sensor Girl in the original legion, if they happen not to know.
Yeah, I’m not sure if those can count as “works” either, since the intention of the trope is about works, not the online arguments of people on different websites. I don’t care for the example either.
This was added to the character page for Dee from It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia:
- Rape as Backstory: A lot of her rapist tendencies can be attributed to growing up in an abusive family with zero boundaries (Dennis is possessive and Frank is a Pervert Dad to both of them) and thinking her only worth is sex.
I’ve watched the entire series so far, so did I somehow miss the part where Dee was sexually abused as a child? I know that this was the case for Dennis (SA’d by the school librarian), but not Dee. Dennis and Frank may have been a terrible brother and father respectively, but I don’t recall their abusiveness extending to SA. I don’t even recall Dee being told that sex was her only worth, on the contrary, she was told that she was ugly.
Edited by antenna_ears on May 26th 2023 at 12:19:51 PM
It's either real or it's a dream
On YMMV.Walking With Dinosaurs:
- Never Live It Down: You can't talk about this series without bringing up how they turned Liopleurodon into a 25-meter leviathan. note . Or how they showed Utahraptor living in Europe. note
Those are infamous errors often made fun of in online Dino-focused communities, but (according to its page description) Never Live It Down seems to only apply to what a character does, not what they are. Is that an accurate assessment?
Edited by harryhenry on May 26th 2023 at 9:03:36 PM
Yeah, that example can be removed for the reason you gave.
I still do not fully understand the difference between Senseless Sacrifice and Stupid Sacrifice. There is a character in Genocide Online called Anabelle, she's a maid who sacrificed herself to mc to buy time for her princess to escape through tunnels, since only they know true route to the kingdom. But that sacrifice proved completely pointless since the girl planted a fiber to the princess beforehand, so she knows how she went and will quickly catch her after dealing with Anabelle. The maid still decided to fight her even if she knows she'll die without saving princess too. Which sacrifice is it?
Going off what you said, I guess Stupid Sacrifice if she sacrifices herself even though it’s clear that it won’t save the princess.
I fix my examples all the time
Found these examples in Main.Chickification. Cut?
- Black Lagoon subverted this with a vengeance. While Rock and Revy wait together in a submarine full of corpses and relics, Rock tries to get Revy to open up and show there's a person who cares underneath her tough exterior. She reveals some of her past, and after she notices Rock's sympathy over it, she threatens him with death if he even hints at what he's seen, then goes on a rampage on the ship above. Not a Subversion because the character in question avoids vulnerability, which is not what the trope is about.
- Rurouni Kenshin: Kaoru Kamiya is accused of this, but technically speaking her case is Overshadowed by Awesome or at most Faux Action Girl: with few exceptions, she still joins the guys in fights no matter what the results for her are. The only case in this anime/manga where this trope is played straight is Misanagi from the Black Knights arc. Complaining + insufficient context.
- The fanfic writer Of "Broken Love" does this to Hilda in her fics. Hilda is transformed into a perpetual rape victim, whether it be by Grimsley, N, or someone else. Hilda also constantly cries and angsts. (In fact, she also does this to characters from other franchises, such as Sakura Haruno.) Doesn't mention whether the character in question becomes less action oriented.
- Sea Change, based on the Netflix version of Aggretsuko, portrays Retsuko as an overly-emotional wimp who needs Haida's help to deal with anything and sees her job as "torture." Doesn't mention any change in character.
Need feedback for this post
.
Graffiti Wall
Angry babby
The IASIP example seems like misuse if Dee didn't suffer actual sexual assault (I don't think the scope covers verbal sexual harassment), and Freudian Excuse would fit better.
I do some cleanup and then I enjoy shows you probably think are cringe.
I agree with mewtron.
Discord: Waido X 255#1372 If you cant contact me on TV Tropes do it here.
Owl House / Infinity Train / Inside Job Fan
An example from YMMV.Alone In The Dark 2023:
- Hilarious in Hindsight: Over the years, people, particularly critics, have made comparisons between Jodie Comer and Emily Blunt. Here, Comer gets to play a character named Emily.
It’s… kinda weak, right?
The Owl House and Coyote Vs Acme are my Roman Empire.
Am I a weirdo?
The hindsight pages actually have their own dedicated thread. I'd agree that one is rather weak though.
Does Antagonist Title cover Hero Antagonists?
REALITY IS AN ILLUSION, THE UNIVERSE IS A HOLOGRAM, BUY GOLD BYEEEE! | She/Her
the Retromancer
Don't see why it wouldn't.
TroperWall / WikiMagic Cleanup
Back with another Draco in Leather Pants query, this time related to a recent addition on the Scream VI page.
- Draco in Leather Pants: Ethan has gotten some sympathy from people who genuinely liked the Adorkable personality he was first introduced as and thus, wish he was actually innocent - Some even going as far as to wish he was going to be the first Ghostface to pull a Heel–Face Turn .The fact that the reveal of him being one of the Ghostface comes off as an Ass Pull surely contribute to this sentiment.
While I may be wrong, I'm pretty sure this is misuse. I'm fairly certain that Draco in Leather Pants entries are supposed to cover how some fans tend to whitewash if not outright excuse a villain's actions in canon (e.g. putting the responsibility for all of Ethan's actions on his father's controlling influence, and/or unironically shipping Ethan, as he is in canon, with Chad or Tara), not detail how some fans were disappointed with how a character was written. Additionally, the Ass Pull mentioned in this entry has more to do with Ethan being revealed to be Richie's brother; it is outright acknowledged in-universe by the rest of the cast that Ethan is one of the most likely suspects to be one of the new killers.
ClueSweeper randomly generates suspects and their traits, so do these examples count? I guess they do since it's not decided by the Player, just the RNG?
- A Sinister Clue: Zig-zagged. Sometimes the murderer is left-handed, sometimes they're not.
Would this count as Weapon Specialization?
- Titan Quest: A player that chooses the Warfare Mastery is encouraged to use swords, axes, maces, and throwing weapons due to one of first skill options being the passive skill, "Weapon Training", which makes attacks with those weapons faster and more likely to achieve a Critical Hit.
Magic Versus Science is a trope about times in which magic and science are contrasted against one another. Guns Versus Swords is also a contrast trope, however this time focusing on whether guns or swords are superior. These two tropes aren't all that related except for the fact that they feature a contrast between two things. But nothing about them are opposites.
Similarly, Command Roster and The Squad are related ideas, in that they both deal with a group of people organized to fight, but they aren't opposites of one another. Nothing about one is inherently contradictory or in opposition to the other.
I saw your posts in ATT before this and I'll say in general, you are confusing trope similarity and trope opposition. Concepts can be "similar but different" without that difference being a complete contrast or 180. Though you can compare and contrast the similarities and differences between, say, Red Is Violent and Red Is Heroic, they aren't opposites since it is very possible to be both heroic and violent.
Edited by amathieu13 on May 25th 2023 at 6:51:50 AM