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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.
    • Wrong: Big Bad: Of the first season.
    • Right: Big Bad: The heroes have to defeat the Mushroom Man lest the entirety of Candy Land's caramel supply be turned into fungus.
  • A character name is not an explanation.


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. We don't discuss Complete Monster or Magnificent Bastard examples; please don't bring them up.

Edited by SeptimusHeap on Jul 17th 2025 at 8:59:01 PM

bwburke94 I am mad scientist! It's so cool! from 1.048596% (Y2: Electric Boogaloo) Relationship Status: She does the things you do, but she is an IBM
I am mad scientist! It's so cool!
#34026: Feb 14th 2025 at 5:48:46 PM

(deliberate page topper)

Still need a response here, on a misused example of The Danza.

2025: the year it all ends?
holygrail24 Shadow Ranger from Toronto Since: Aug, 2022 Relationship Status: Desperate
Shadow Ranger
#34027: Feb 14th 2025 at 6:37:43 PM

From Fan Works folder on Hijacked by Ganon:

Just asking if these are correct examples or some changes needed?

  • All Worlds Alliance: The Big Bad Chikage Tachibana does this on a constant basis whenever he appears in some Missions stories, often being confronted last by Chizuru Tachibana.
    • Interestingly Downplayed in All Worlds Alliance Missions - Madoka Magica, where Chikage makes his first appearance, but as it turns out the Apostles themselves played a hand in the Hollows invasion, not just the Witches, in Mitakihara. However, Chikage hijacks the plot from Kyuubey when he kills the Incubator, but Chikage himself is knocked down to a peg when Walpurgisnacht becomes the Final Boss. He still gets the last laugh at the end, however.
    • Downplayed in All Worlds Alliance Missions - Rainbow Rocks. The Dazzlings themselves are the Big Bad Triumvirate of their own story, until it is revealed that Chikage has given them the needed information about Equestrian magic and the needs to attack Canterlot High, the Mane Seven and the AWA there, thus revealing that he has hijacked the plot from the shadows, but is not fought as a Final Boss like the above example.
    • All Worlds Alliance Missions - Friendship Games has the Big Bad Ensemble Midnight Sparkle and Abacus Cinch who, at first, are the threats that the AWA and the Mane Seven will be facing. Then comes Chapter 10 where they are hijacked by the real Big Bad Chikage himself, who disguises himself as Chandler Cheesecake, revealing to be behind Maricar Funabori's rampage as he intentionally awakens Discord inside of her. He is also the Final Boss and fittingly fights off against Chizuru Tachibana.
    • All Worlds Alliance Missions - High School DxD has Chikage and the Apostles hijacking the plot from the rogue devil antagonists including Riser Phoenix, when the former is revealed to be behind the minion threats in the previous chapters. And perfectly fitting enough, Chikage is yet fought off as the Final Boss.
    • All Worlds Alliance Missions - Undefeated Bahamut Chronicle has Fugil Arcadia, who is seemingly yet another major threat for the AWA heroes to face and especially his rival and brother Lux Arcadia. But it is revealed that Chikage hijacks the plot, when he is responsible for the Apostles' attack and knocks Fugil out to a peg, becoming the Final Boss again.
    • All Worlds Alliance Missions - CROSSOVERDOSE has a Downplayed example. He isn't the main instigator of that story's plot, but the Void itself. However, he does hijack the rest of the plot near the finale when he becomes the final opponent of the story, which fittingly enough it is against him and Chizuru Tachibana within the Void.
    • All Worlds Alliance Missions - The Isle of Lost Light is a Subversion. The hostile creatures within the island, who started as territorial first and attacking the AWA at any opportunity as they rescue the slaves in the eponymous island. But rather than being Chikage himself who hijacks the plot, it is instead hijacked by a very unrelated old villain: Doctor Silas Moron, the Arc Villain of AWA Stories' Chapter 50 and the foe that Marcus McGee, Jean Kirstein and Eddy Skipper McGee faced off inside his ship. Doctor Moron is eventualy revealed to be the cause of the creatures' violent, aggressive behaviour due to his mind-controlling device and had little to do with Chikage whatsoever. And Doctor Moron is entirely unknown to Chizuru and his group.

Edited by holygrail24 on Feb 14th 2025 at 9:42:11 AM

The Metro series fan! Steam Account: Randum
NotGonnaDoALot4 Man in the Yellow Hat from God knows. Since: Feb, 2018 Relationship Status: Shipping fictional characters
Man in the Yellow Hat
#34028: Feb 15th 2025 at 10:47:50 AM

I initially added this example to Lying Creator from Project: Eden's Garden. It was then removed by Beastmode99 with the edit reason "This isn't a trope that exclusively happens in the Danganronpa games.", but I'm fairly certain it does count as Lying Creator due to the circumstances being "creators say that they will not use twists and formulas repeatedly present in Danganronpa, then use twists and formulas repeatedly present in Danganronpa". Is it safe to re-add?

There's so much I wish I could take back.
holygrail24 Shadow Ranger from Toronto Since: Aug, 2022 Relationship Status: Desperate
Shadow Ranger
#34029: Feb 15th 2025 at 12:58:38 PM

bump

The Metro series fan! Steam Account: Randum
k410ren Since: Jan, 2016
#34030: Feb 15th 2025 at 4:42:30 PM

With He Knows Too Much, can it count if characters in-story believe that someone was killed because he or she knew about a secret others wanted kept hidden, even if the author hasn't specifically revealed whether or not this trope happened?

Edited by k410ren on Feb 15th 2025 at 7:48:14 AM

"I'll show you the Dark Side." CM actors and kills
ToonAbby Have a Death-End Thanksgiving, y'all! from Gamindustri Since: Jan, 2022 Relationship Status: [TOP SECRET]
Have a Death-End Thanksgiving, y'all!
#34031: Feb 15th 2025 at 5:58:42 PM

[up] Maybe


Question: Does What Could Have Been cover instances of Early-Installment Weirdness (and its sub-tropes, Early Installment Character-Design Difference, Characterization Marches On, and Artifact Title) if a work's discarded or altered content leaks over early in the work's run? One that comes to mind is the original Hyperdimension Neptunia, which was originally a typical fantasy JRPG before switching mid-development to a Console Wars-based sci-fi fantasy JRPG the franchise would become known for, but elements of the former concept was still in the first game and shown through Noire, Blanc and Vert's medieval designs which would be carried over in later titles where every other character would get a design to match their personified console making the original trio artifacts.

"It's requested that your death ends here, now!" - Sayaka, Death end re;Quest Code Z.
k410ren Since: Jan, 2016
#34032: Feb 15th 2025 at 6:05:16 PM

This one came from Ask the Tropers who told me to post this here:

On the page for House of the Dragon - Others, in the folder for Lyman Beesbury, there's listed an entry each for Dying Moment of Awesome and Undignified Death. The tropes seem mutually exclusive since Undignified Death seems to be about horrific deaths that are ridiculous, embarrassing, and even comedic. I haven't seen the show, so which trope fits better?

  • Dying Moment of Awesome: Beesbury dies defending the rights of Rhaenyra, the daughter of his longtime friend Viserys, calling out the Green Council for their plans to seize the throne and stating plainly that the king had 20 years to name Aegon as his heir, and a deathbed confession heard only by Aegon's mother is hardly watertight evidence.
  • Undignified Death: He served two kings for most of his life as a very effective financial administrator only to die protesting a coup by getting his head slammed into his own marble of office hard enough to crack it, following which his body is left to cool and leak blood all over the table whilst the remaining Small Council members finalise their plans. A very unfitting end for such a noble servant of the Realm.

"I'll show you the Dark Side." CM actors and kills
bwburke94 I am mad scientist! It's so cool! from 1.048596% (Y2: Electric Boogaloo) Relationship Status: She does the things you do, but she is an IBM
I am mad scientist! It's so cool!
#34033: Feb 15th 2025 at 6:14:04 PM

[up][up] Neptunia being intended as a fantasy JRPG could fall into What Could Have Been, with the non-Neptune CPUs' designs noted as evidence, but it isn't Early Installment Character-Design Difference et al because they keep those designs throughout the series.

2025: the year it all ends?
gjjones Musician/Composer from South Wales, New York Since: Jul, 2016
Musician/Composer
#34034: Feb 15th 2025 at 7:58:20 PM

This was just added to Manga.Elfen Lied:

  • Incompetence, Inc.: The Diclonius research facility and its assorted government agents just reek of this in the Anime. Aside of all the unethical and utterly disgusting experiments and atrocities that are done towards the Diclonius children, their security measures leave a lot to be desired (like making it apparently pretty easy for former personnel like Kakuzawa junior to hack them and help Lucy escape), and its personnel appears pretty often either out of their element or outright stupid, considering that they're studying and jailing them for years and have dealt with escape attempts before. There are numerous examples of scientists, security guards and SAT units citing procedures and countermeasures to handle the extremely dangerous Diclonii only to either apparently forget immediatedly what they just said or hesitating in critical moments to go through with it, like the security guards in the opening scene not backing off immediatedly and maybe regrouping with better weaponry when Lucy SLOWLY closes in on them, despite themselves noting that they are safe from her vectors as long as they keep their distance, instead just standing around after being out of ammo and getting slaughtered like cattle. While some of it can be handwaved away with the (supposedly) male Diclonius Director's callous disregard for human lives leading to not putting much priority on guaranteeing the safety of his employees or irrational but rather natural Fear-Induced Idiocy, their supposedly battle-hardened and better equipped SAT agents often just stand around and rather comment on when Lucy is going to engage them, instead of just shooting her or trying to spread out and keep her out of range, which is especially jarring when they're later significantly better briefed on what they're up against. Not to mention having hilariously bad reaction time and aim, even when using armor-piercing rounds that can't be deflected so easily with vectors.

Does this example fit?

He/His/Him. No matter who you are, always Be Yourself.
Ayumi-chan 3rd happiest man in Connecticut from Iacon City (Experienced Trainee) Relationship Status: I like big bots and I can not lie
3rd happiest man in Connecticut
#34035: Feb 15th 2025 at 10:28:47 PM

I found this on Characters.Slow Damage Main Characters, which I'm unsure of:

  • Roaring Rampage of Revenge: Zigzagged. Madarame claims when he says that he's not after the Takasato-gumi out of a desire for vengeance; however, there are small but discernible hints throughout his route that he is nevertheless affected to some degree by Kaga's death, as shown in how he targets mainly Toono (who killed Kaga) and Sakaki (who wanted Toono to prove his loyalty to him by killing Kaga).

She/Her | Currently cleaning: N/A
king15 Have Faun Since: Mar, 2024
Have Faun
#34036: Feb 16th 2025 at 3:12:24 AM

[up][up][up][up]I'm not 100% sure which one fits better. The moment before he dies is 'awesome', whilst his death itself is undignified. The scene in question is that Lyman stands up to the Green Council, defending Rhaenyra's claim to the throne and accusing them of killing Viserys, which is 'awesome'. This enrages Criston who forces him to sit down, but does it so hard that he cracks his head on the table, with his body being left there for the whole meeting as they can't let anyone leave until they figure out how to deal with the succession, which is very 'undignified'. So it's maybe both? I suppose it's not necessarily a dying moment of awesome, as Lyman probably didn't know he was going to die (and Criston didn't actually intend to kill him). I think Undignified Death fits, but I do think there is an argument that Dying Moment of Awesome also fits.


For some more House of the Dragon examples, under Rhaenyra's folder in House of the Dragon - Blacks is this Hypocrite example:
  • Rhaenyra rightfully rejects Criston Cole's proposal to elope together due to her strong feelings of duty to the realm and the smear it would leave on her reputation if she ran away from it all. However, she's shown to be perfectly willing to risk it all for Daemon, and even proposes he take her to Dragonstone to marry her at her own wedding feast to Laenor.
Perhaps I'm interpreting it wrong, but that's not how I saw that scene. Whilst Rhaenyra loves Daemon and there might well be a part of her wanting him to take her away, the way she says it makes it sound more like she's calling his bluff - basically saying 'you clearly want me, so just try to take me away from here'. She brings up that he'd have to cut through all of Viserys' men. She doesn't actually expect, or in this situation, want Daemon to do that, she seems to just be teasing him.

Under Rhaenys' folder in House of the Dragon - House Velaryon is this Hypocrite example:

  • She initially clashes with Corlys over Rhaenyra's clearly illegitimate sons inheriting Driftmark, preferring that her granddaughters who are clearly of Velaryon blood be the ones who succeed Corlys. But when she discovers the existence of Corlys's bastard sons, she calls him out for keeping them at a distance, even though their existence would be threatening her own children and grandchildren's succession, something that she was opposed to regarding Rhaenyra's sons.
There's a difference in these two situations. Rhaenyra is passing off her children as legitimate when they are, in fact, obviously not. So Rhaenyra's bastards would result in the Driftmark succession actively leaving the biological Velaryons. Because of this, Rhaenys would rather her granddaughters (the children of her recently deceased daughter) inherit Driftmark.

With Coryls' bastard sons, the key difference is that they aren't being passed of as legitimate. Corlys is completely ignoring them in general, keeping them in poverty. Rhaenys wants her husband to be open about any affairs he had and to treat his bastard children well. It'd been an issue if he was passing them of as legitimate, but there's a difference between acknowledging bastards and passing them of as legitimate. Whilst bastards can risk the succession, especially if it's contested like with Driftmark, there's still a massive difference between the risk acknowledged bastards pose and the risk bastards being passed of as legitimate pose.

Edited by king15 on Feb 16th 2025 at 3:52:43 PM

Malady (X-Troper)
#34037: Feb 16th 2025 at 8:16:49 AM

Absurdly Elderly Father? Characters.The Legend Of Zelda The Minish Cap:

King Daltus has a daughter that's approximately the same age as the grandson of Smith, who Daltus had a Friendly Rivalry with in their youths?

Disambig Needed: Help with those issues! tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=13324299140A37493800&page=24#comment-576
MinisterOfSinister From 'Ell's 'eart Oi stab at ye! from In the Hall of the Mountain King Since: Jan, 2014 Relationship Status: What is this thing you call love?
From 'Ell's 'eart Oi stab at ye!
#34038: Feb 16th 2025 at 9:09:45 AM

From page: Fallout 4: Brotherhood of Steel

    Example 

I really don't think this trope is applicable. This is straight-up Godwin's Law-ing in my eyes. Thoughts?

petersohn from Earth, Solar System (Long Runner) Relationship Status: Hiding
#34039: Feb 16th 2025 at 9:48:25 AM

[up]The example doesn't give enough context to be sure. Genocide is one of the signs that someone is A Nazi by Any Other Name, but in itself it might not be enough.

Fjón þvæ ég af mér fjanda minna rán og reiði ríkra manna.
WarJay77 It's NaNo, Bay-beeee! (10,238/50,000) from My Writing Cave (Troper Knight) Relationship Status: Armed with the Power of Love
It's NaNo, Bay-beeee! (10,238/50,000)
#34040: Feb 16th 2025 at 9:49:50 AM

It's actually been ruled multiple times at ATT that the Brotherhood doesn't qualify. That can be safely cut

Working on: Author Appeal | Sandbox | Troper Wall
SamCurt Since: Jan, 2001
#34042: Feb 16th 2025 at 10:06:52 AM

Separately, does it count as Perverse Sexual Lust if a character falls in love with a Virtual YouTuber...

  1. ... who has a completely human digital avatar? Example: Alice towards Awayuki in VTuber Legend.
  2. ... whose Digital Avatar is not quite human? For example, in My Best Friend (Who I Love) Fell Completely in Love with My VTuber Self, Sukoya falls in love with a "Taiga", who's a VTuber with a Little Bit Beastly, tiger-based beastman of a Digital Avatar.

Scientia et Libertas | Per Aspera ad Astra Nova
Amonimus the "Retromancer" from <<|Wiki Talk|>> (Sergeant) Relationship Status: In another castle
the "Retromancer"
#34043: Feb 16th 2025 at 11:24:45 AM

[up]

  1. The subject of Perverse Sexual Lust needs to be entirely fictional or portrayed by an actor (would never be able to respond). I don't think Alice's perversion counts to Yuki's either Awayuki or Shuwa personas, since she even talks to her directly.
  2. Subject being non-human is irrelevant. Otherwise, see the previous point.

TroperWall / WikiMagic Cleanup
Loneandlevel Troper, i.e. a Debaser of precious metals from Russian superborehole project (haunted) Since: Jun, 2023 Relationship Status: Mu
Troper, i.e. a Debaser of precious metals
#34044: Feb 16th 2025 at 11:41:10 AM

From Character Class System:

* Cyberpunk 2077 has this with the five different attributes and twelve different skill sets to specialize V in, including:
  • Reflexes, to specialize V in handguns, rifles and SMGs, and blades.
  • Cool, to specialize V in stealth/ninjutsu and the Cold-Blooded perk.
  • Body, to specialize V in blunt weapons, bare fists, LMGs and shotguns, and athletics.
  • Technical Ability, to specialize V in item-crafting, as well as smart and tech weapons and grenades.
  • Intelligence, to specialize V in quick-hacking as well as breach protocol.
Outdatedness aside (they cut it down to 5 skillsets), is this even a class system? You do have multiple archetypes to play as (Solo, Engineer, Netrunner, etc.) but they're more like suggestions than strict choices.

SO SOFTLY A SUPERGOD DIES
Malady (X-Troper)
#34045: Feb 16th 2025 at 12:28:17 PM

Good Bad Bugs: ClueSweeper: Resetting the game doesn't reset achievement progress for things like "Solve 3 / 7 murders in a row"

Disambig Needed: Help with those issues! tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=13324299140A37493800&page=24#comment-576
ascriptmaster Since: Apr, 2016 Relationship Status: RelationshipOutOfBoundsException: 1
#34046: Feb 16th 2025 at 2:23:34 PM

While there certainly is wordplay involved, I want to make sure this planned example for Superwomen in Love! is correct. Also, does it count a Visual Pun, or is it technically different because it isn't an image conveying a pun?

Rainbo6 Hey Painty!!! from wouldn’t you like to know? (Experienced, Not Yet Jaded) Relationship Status: Chocolate!
Hey Painty!!!
#34047: Feb 16th 2025 at 8:02:02 PM

Last week, I saw West Side Story with my choir. So naturally, I decided to check its pages on this wiki and found this on its YMMV page that I'm 87% sure is not an example:

  • Romantic Plot Tumor: Weirdly, many fans have expressed this sentiment with regards to the main plot line and leads themselves: go onto any internet comment section or discussion about the film and be prepared to find lamentations that Tony and Maria are uninteresting compared to Riff, Anita, Bernardo, and other supporting characters, that the two of them have no chemistry, and that the dance numbers that the Sharks and Jets do are much more entertaining than the romance itself. Doesn't help that, as Romeo and Juliet expies, Tony and Maria suffer from a severe case of Strangled by the Red String, making the relationship between Anita and Bernardo both more believable and funner to watch.

Working to help keep TV Tropes in tip-top shape (she/her).
petersohn from Earth, Solar System (Long Runner) Relationship Status: Hiding
#34048: Feb 16th 2025 at 11:22:45 PM

[up]There is the YMMV aspect of it that can fall under the aforementioned Strangled by the Red String or even They Wasted a Perfectly Good Character or whatever, but it's definitely not Romantic Plot Tumor, which is about a romance arc that doesn't fit well with the main plot. Since this romance arc is the main plot, the trope doesn't apply. It's YMMV because it's subjective whether a romantic side plot fits well with the story, but if the romance arc is the main plot, then it cannot be a Romantic Plot Tumor by definition.

Fjón þvæ ég af mér fjanda minna rán og reiði ríkra manna.
underCoverSailsman Peeks from Under Rocks from State of Flux Since: Jan, 2021 Relationship Status: [TOP SECRET]
Peeks from Under Rocks
#34049: Feb 16th 2025 at 11:26:55 PM

It's also misplaced. It's on the page for the play, but is talking about one of the film adaptations.

DoktorvonEurotrash Lex et Veritas from Not a place of honour (4 Score & 7 Years Ago)
#34050: Feb 17th 2025 at 4:39:51 AM

[up]x4: It feels weird to use Visual Pun about writing.

Possibly Bilingual Bonus, since it depends on knowing that the katakana looks like an X in the Latin alphabet?


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