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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

sgamer82 Since: Jan, 2001
#8951: Jun 18th 2019 at 9:35:33 AM

In that case, add that context and I think you'll be okay, as it gets the description of "a line of dialogue that radically alters a scene". As it stands they're just randomly turning their radios off.

rjd1922 Best robot boy | he/him | Image Pickin' regular, from the United States Since: May, 2013 Relationship Status: Love is for the living, Sal
Best robot boy | he/him | Image Pickin' regular,
#8952: Jun 18th 2019 at 9:40:45 AM

tropower re-added a pothole to Macekre in the note under Kirby of the Stars on Kodomomuke after I removed it because that dub was pretty loyal by 4Kids standards, with their reason being "Among other things, the final three episodes were released as a 'movie' that doesn't exist in Japan."

Keet cleanup
Yinyang107 from the True North (Decatroper) Relationship Status: Tongue-tied
#8953: Jun 18th 2019 at 9:44:39 AM

They're turning the radios on, actually. Anyways I guess I have to figure out how to phrase it properly now. How is this?

  • Come from Away, a musical about the town of Gander on 9/11, opens with "Welcome To The Rock", an upbeat song establishing the daily lives of the locals, such as the veterinarian Bonnie and the teachers Annette and Beulah. Then, partway through the song, they hear the news on the morning of September 11th, 2001.
    Bonnie: So I take just one second for myself and I'm sitting in my car
    Annette: I'm in the library
    Beulah: I'm in the staff room
    All three: And I turn on the radio.

sgamer82 Since: Jan, 2001
#8954: Jun 18th 2019 at 9:46:44 AM

Ah, my bad. I misread. I'd still say that's a handy bit of context since they're still randomly doing it either way.

Maybe rather than the full quote, just quote the "I turned my radio on" lyric and describe that's when they hear the news.

Pichu-kun ... Since: Jan, 2001
...
#8955: Jun 18th 2019 at 11:44:53 AM

Disney Live-Action Remakes

  • Society Marches On: The changes in the scenarios often have to do with this, and more specifically with the evolution of women condition. This time, Cinderella do not stay because she is weak and submissive, but because of her resilience and concern for her parents's house. Belle tries to escape sooner than expected and is a Gadgeteer Genius. Milly in Dumbo wants to be a scientist, and Jasmine to be the effective sovereign of Agrabah, which she manages to become in the end.

Calling Cinderella "weak and submissive" is patronizing at worst and a misunderstanding of the original film at best. BATB and Aladdin aren't even 30 yet, so I doubt they fall into Society Marches On.

Edited by Pichu-kun on Jun 18th 2019 at 1:54:12 AM

Drakos25 Since: Nov, 2017 Relationship Status: I wanna know about these strangers like me
#8956: Jun 18th 2019 at 12:47:35 PM

So, for Underwear of Power, would it count if the character was only in their underwear and nothing else, instead of it just being "costume that makes it look like you're wearing no pants/it looks like you're wearing your underwear on the outside"?

Edited by Drakos25 on Jun 21st 2019 at 4:23:25 AM

rjd1922 Best robot boy | he/him | Image Pickin' regular, from the United States Since: May, 2013 Relationship Status: Love is for the living, Sal
Best robot boy | he/him | Image Pickin' regular,
#8957: Jun 18th 2019 at 1:29:01 PM

[up][up]The original Cinderella wasn't "weak and submissive"; she stayed in that situation because her Evil Stepmother conditioned her since childhood to act as a servant, so she saw no way out.

Keet cleanup
WhirlRX Since: Jan, 2015
#8958: Jun 18th 2019 at 4:10:04 PM

From Characters.Glow 2017 for Arthie Premkumar.

Bi The Way:Her comments about falling for Yolanda seem to suggest that she didn't realize she could be into girls and had considered herself straight before.

Suddenly Sexuality: Over the course of Season 2 she falls in love with Yolanda, and is indicated to have started dating her in the finale.

The tropes dont do a good job of conveying the trope. Also through out the show her sexuality were low key and unknown other then a pool party for guys that the girls went.

Edited by WhirlRX on Jun 18th 2019 at 7:10:41 AM

crazysamaritan NaNo 4328 / 50,000 from Lupin III Since: Apr, 2010
NaNo 4328 / 50,000
#8959: Jun 18th 2019 at 7:46:18 PM

Repeating my earlier question: Is the following a proper example for The Professor? Is there additional context needed or is there something about the trope that Seldon fails to fulfill?


New question, since I want to make sure I'm not shoehorning this trope as it was subtle enough (from the perspective of 2019) that I didn't realize it until recently.

Link to TRS threads in project mode here.
Darkaros Since: Jul, 2009
#8960: Jun 19th 2019 at 8:01:27 AM

[up] Exty Years from Now: I think it fits the trope somehow but it takes a while to get to the meat of it.

Why not try:

  • Exty Years from Now: Published in 1988, Prelude to Foundation is the first chronological story in the series to feature Hari Sheldon as The Protagonist, and his birth year is 11988 G.E. This is actually an Inverted Trope since his birthdate was chosen by Dr. Asimov when publishing Foundation (1951) (1951), so choosing to publish the prequel in 1988 is a deliberate evocation of the trope despite Galactic Era not technically being compatible with Anno Domini (Year 1 G.E. is thousands of years in the future).

I'm not 100% sure if it's an inversion so the second sentence is very loose, but it takes a while to even establish a direct link between the birth year and the publication date per the trope description with your current wording. At the very least you can say that it's some deliberate usage of the trope and then add details after the first sentence.

Edited by Darkaros on Jun 19th 2019 at 10:04:18 AM

crazysamaritan NaNo 4328 / 50,000 from Lupin III Since: Apr, 2010
NaNo 4328 / 50,000
#8961: Jun 19th 2019 at 8:02:46 AM

Yes, much better! Thank you.

Link to TRS threads in project mode here.
Ferot_Dreadnaught Since: Mar, 2015
#8962: Jun 19th 2019 at 12:05:07 PM

YMMV.Harriet The Spy

  • What An Idiot: When Harriet's notebook is discovered by her classmates, they are unsurprisingly hurt by her less than flattering notes, and form a spy catchers club bent on making Harriet's life miserable.
    You'd Expect: Harriet would just apologize for her notes (which she later does as newspaper editor), and then maybe they would all forgive her (Sport and Janie would for sure.)
    Instead: She decides to get back at them all by playing harmful pranks or embarrassing them. It makes them even angrier. It doesn't occur to Harriet because she is Brutally Honest, and Ole Golly in a letter has to spell it out for her.
    • It would be idiotic for an adult. Eleven year olds however often don't have the proper perspective to resolve major problems such as their friends turning on them. While not wise, it is pretty accurate to the general understanding of child development.

The last part was cut for Natter, but does What An Idiot apply if it's from someone we'd expect this level of unintelligence as it argued? How's it different than Idiot Ball if so? Is there any trope the last point falls under?

Edited by Ferot_Dreadnaught on Jun 19th 2019 at 12:05:47 PM

Anddrix Since: Oct, 2014
#8963: Jun 19th 2019 at 12:17:09 PM

A few examples from Hellboy (2019):

Is the following a notable aversion?:

  • Hide Your Children: Sickeningly averted in Baba Yaga's infamous chicken-walking hut where the corpses of several butchered children are shown hanging from meat hooks in her larder.

And are the following examples being used correctly?:

  • The Man Behind the Monsters: Though aided by some human cultists, Nimue has an army of monsters at her back and call to unleash havok upon the world.
  • Ms. Fanservice: Milla Jovovich as Nimue is sporting some serious Absolute Cleavage in her look. Justified since she is apparently trying to seduce Hellboy to her side.

Wyldchyld (Old as dirt)
#8964: Jun 19th 2019 at 1:55:14 PM

Is the following an example of Troubled Production? I have two concerns about it:

  1. The entry appears to be about the company's employment conditions, which doesn't seem to be what the trope is about.
  2. After reading the entry's link, this appears to be an employment dispute that has gone public on the Internet. Regardless of whether or not it's true, isn't this importing drama?


Edited by Wyldchyld on Jun 19th 2019 at 9:59:13 AM

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.
Malady (X-Troper)
#8965: Jun 19th 2019 at 2:02:47 PM

Supernatural Aid needs to be a gift? Or just supplied?

Fanfic.Dungeon Keeper Ami: Ami asks for assistance, and she gets magical rope.

Or, she makes a deal, where a stolen object was offered, but she gets to keep something she stole.

Disambig Needed: Help with those issues! tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=13324299140A37493800&page=24#comment-576
WhirlRX Since: Jan, 2015
#8966: Jun 19th 2019 at 2:16:07 PM

[up][up]Please link to the example page for reference. Trivia.RWBY.

The way its written is drama. Going by the trivia is written, there had to be trouble in actually making RWBY.

4tell0life4 Since: Mar, 2018 Relationship Status: Giving love a bad name
#8967: Jun 19th 2019 at 3:45:05 PM

Question: Can Sinister Switchblade count butterfly knives, boxcutters, or Swiss Army knives?

We can never truly eradicate the coronavirus, but we can suppress its threat like influenza
WhirlRX Since: Jan, 2015
#8968: Jun 19th 2019 at 3:47:41 PM

[up]I believe that go with Knife Nut in general.

Yinyang107 from the True North (Decatroper) Relationship Status: Tongue-tied
#8969: Jun 19th 2019 at 4:37:28 PM

[up]No, Knife Nut is the character holding the knife, not the knife itself.

lalalei2001 Since: Oct, 2009
#8970: Jun 19th 2019 at 8:20:04 PM

The YMMV, Nightmare Fuel, and character pages for Pokemon Go have a few What Do You Mean, It's Not for Kids? entries. I'm not sure how it's supposedly kid-unfriendly, especially since the Let's Go games were meant to introduce kids that played Go to the main series.

" What Do You Mean, It's Not for Kids?: An inversion of the usual case with Pokémon; the game is tailored to the tastes and lifestyles of mainstream adult smartphone users and is dangerous for some children (Pokémon's traditional demographic) to play on their own, but some children enjoy the game nonetheless and some parents play the game with their kids."

" If weren't for dark Pokédex entries, some Pokémon's updated sprite renditions might add some Nightmare Fuel to the hellfire of what's an already kid-unfriendly Augmented Reality Mobile Phone Game."

"While most Pokémon protagonists are kids or teens drawn in a big-eyed manga-like style, these Trainers appear to be even older teens or young adults drawn in a more realistic style. Understandable, since this game, unlike most other Pokémon games (barring other mobile Pokémon titles), is marketed towards adult users who are the main users of smartphones."

The Protomen enhanced my life.
crazysamaritan NaNo 4328 / 50,000 from Lupin III Since: Apr, 2010
NaNo 4328 / 50,000
#8971: Jun 19th 2019 at 8:56:12 PM

The What Do You Mean, It's Not for Kids? is clear misuse.

Link to TRS threads in project mode here.
4tell0life4 Since: Mar, 2018 Relationship Status: Giving love a bad name
#8972: Jun 20th 2019 at 6:08:50 AM

Weirdness Coupon has Out-of-Universe examples like CLAMP or Studio Gainax where it's the audience that treats someone (or, in this case, certain creators) being "usually weird".

Does that count, or is there a more fitting trope?

We can never truly eradicate the coronavirus, but we can suppress its threat like influenza
wingedcatgirl mys. minty from the silly dimension from lurking (Holding A Herring) Relationship Status: Oh my word! I'm gay!
mys. minty from the silly dimension
#8973: Jun 20th 2019 at 6:22:00 AM

First instinct is dislike. Second thought is — despite my dislike, I don't actually see a way I can claim it's contrary to the trope.

Suddenly I'm... still rotating Fallen London in my mind even though I've stopped actively playing it.
Pichu-kun ... Since: Jan, 2001
...
#8974: Jun 20th 2019 at 6:52:37 AM

Can shipping someone with a terminally ill character be Ghost Shipping, or must one character be outright dead?

WhirlRX Since: Jan, 2015

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