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. 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
Can the "Humans Are Bastards" and "Humans Are Morons" tropes play together or not? And why?
They can apply together because I don't see why wouldn't they, they describe different aspects.
TroperWall / WikiMagic CleanupThey can overlap, why not. Do you have a specific example in mind or...?
SPY×FAMILY, Donovan Desmond:
- Big Bad: Being the primary target of Operation Strix, becoming close to him is Twilight's ultimate goal. However, he does point out that killing him is not the end goal of the operation, as it would be much easier to arrange than Twilight's fake family mission. Instead, Twilight must become socially accepted by Desmond's inner circle without arousing suspicion, in order for the next phase of the operation to proceed, with the final goal being to achieve lasting peace between their countries. It's worth noting that Desmond hasn't actually done anything overtly evil thus far, fitting with his reclusive nature and difficult-to-discern intentions, so whether or not he's even a villain or a Well-Intentioned Extremist is something both Twilight and the reader are unaware of.
Edited by Amonimus on Dec 25th 2022 at 8:16:16 PM
TroperWall / WikiMagic CleanupSo Phil Lord has declared WesternAnimation.Spider Man Into The Spider Verse a Christmas movie on Twitter. Should we add it to the Christmas Movie index?
Edited by BigBadShadow25 on Dec 25th 2022 at 1:11:16 PM
You’re Gonna Carry That Weight.![]()
I agree. For Donovan to be the Big Bad, The Reveal would need to happen, which hasn't happened yet, so I think it can be cut.
It's Die Hard also listed in Christmas Movie index?
Edited by SoyValdo7 on Dec 25th 2022 at 12:37:46 PM
ValdoSoy Valdo 7, An example I haven't added yet to Big Mouth (2022). The protagonist communicates with a mysterious character called "Big Mouse" through tarot cards in prison.
Uncanny Valley Hot Babes in Your Area Are Looking To Know YOU! Click Here to Sign Up for FREE! | Not quite back tbh. Don't expect much.This has been added to the WhamLine.Web Animation page. It's actually been removed from the page once before in 2018 for being Wham misuse. Can I remove it again?
- RWBY: In Uncovered, the team has asked Jinn what Ozpin is hiding from them. In response, she begins telling them a story.
Jinn: Once upon a time, there stood a lonely tower that sheltered a lonely girl. [A beautiful young woman is shown] Named...Salem.
Reason for misuse: This is a Cliffhanger, where the episode ends as soon as Jinn makes that statement. The statement itself doesn't change the direction of the scene, the episode or the show. The episode (and the entire previous volume) has been building up the increasing mistrust the heroes have towards the Big Good's secret-keeping, the episode has been building up to the confrontation, and the genie has been summoned specifically to reveal what he's hiding. The "beautiful young woman" has even been shown in the intro sequence (gazing at a statue of the Big Good) for two episodes, so her identity had already been predicted by a lot of fans before this episode even aired. I think it can be salvaged as a Cliffhanger example. It might also be a Shocking Moments example? (Although plenty of fans predicted it, Jinn's identity reveal did shock others.)
Edited by Wyldchyld on Dec 25th 2022 at 7:17:48 PM
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.There is a disagreement on Carmilla over the following example:
- Aristocrats Are Evil: Downplayed with Laura's father and his associates. They aren't outright villainous, nor are they aristocrats themselves, but while they're nominally sympathetic to the "illness" sweeping through the local peasantry, they aren't actually concerned about it until Carmilla's predations start showing their effects on the daughters of landed men.
I have pm'ed the original contributor about the discussion I openend on the discussion page, but they have not come back, and only one other troper has replied. If one or two more voices would weigh in, that'd be great.
Edited by LordGro on Dec 25th 2022 at 8:08:04 PM
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So the main character in Big Mouth (2022) just gets the tarot card? Does he send it too? Do they have something written on it, or is it just a tarot card? This all sounds similar to Mysterious Note.
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I agree, but I don't think Cliffhanger or Shocking Moments would work as substitutes.
I agree with everything you say. Gnome Titan is right, for Aristocrats Are Evil the characters have to at least be Affably Evil, and these aren't even come close. This also seems like an Edit War, better report on Ask the tropers
and see what they say about it.
Edited by SoyValdo7 on Dec 25th 2022 at 2:21:35 PM
ValdoReposting from the previous page
so it doesn't get lost.
From Shido's section in Characters.Date A Live Main Character And Spirits:
- Arch-Enemy:
- Kurumi is his most reoccurring foe outside of Wescott and D.E.M., though their relationship isn't one fueled by hatred. At first, Shido's understandably afraid of her since she wants to kill him and take his spirit power, and witnessed firsthand just how far she'll go to accomplish that goal. But as the story goes on and Shido learns more about Kurumi and realizes she isn't the psychopathic monster he thought she was, he becomes more motivated to save her like he did with the other spirits.
- All of the problems in Shido's and his friends' lives can be traced back to the series' Big Bad, Isaac Wescott. The more Shido learns about Wescott's plans as the story goes on, the more determined he is to stop him.
Do these count as examples?
He/His/Him. No matter who you are, always Be Yourself.
Well, one thing that makes me obviously suspicious is that, as it describes, Wescott is the Big Bad and everybody's enemy - that doesn't necessarily imply the personal one-on-one relationship that Arch-Enemy normally involves.
Edited by nrjxll on Dec 25th 2022 at 3:15:19 AM
Does Awesome McCoolname, which was recently made In-Universe Examples Only apply when a character's name is described as "nice" or "beautiful"?
I'm mainly a fan of underrated media.Soy Valdo 7, "Big Mouse" sends them to the protagonist, but the protagonist sends a message written on a paper to "Big Mouse." It's not a one-time thing, nor it's done by a random, minor character like Mysterious Note suggests. I'm leaning toward adding it the more I discuss it with you.
Uncanny Valley Hot Babes in Your Area Are Looking To Know YOU! Click Here to Sign Up for FREE! | Not quite back tbh. Don't expect much.Found this in Tivia.Ys IX Monstrum Nox
- Sequel Gap: When placed within the narrative's chronological order, then it's ten years between Ys SEVEN and Ys IX.
Does Sequel Gap count if its like that (for reference, The Ys series games are typically told is non-chronological order (per here
)?
I'm wondering whether this example of mine would fit He Who Fights Monsters, Became Their Own Antithesis, or something else.
- BoBoiBoy: The Movie: In the exclusive prologue for the comic version of the film, the Kubulus species lived peacefully on planet Ata Ta Tiga before invaders attacked them for their advanced technology. The Kubulus invented Power Spheras to protect themselves, and succeeded in eliminating their enemies. However, after they recovered, the Kubulus became greedy and reprogrammed Power Spheras for destruction and conquest of other planets. The first Power Sphera, Klamkabot, uses his teleportation powers to send away the Power Spheras and the Floating Island containing the factory in which they were made.
Edit: Here's the prologue comic
if you'd like to check it out for yourself.
Edited by BlackFaithStar on Dec 26th 2022 at 2:16:32 AM
When you're alone I'm reaching out to let you know that you're far from strangers, like the savior- Disappointed by the Motive: Played with. The motives of many villainous Akuma for going on a rampage may be a huge example of "Evil Is Petty", but 1) barring a very small number of examples most of them did not had a choice about the matter and 2) they are all living weapons of mass destruction so it doesn't matters why they are doing it, they are all going to make Paris burn unless they're defeated. Understandably, this also makes many people do their damnedest to not make anybody angry and others like Chloe are borderline literal villain factories from how much they go out of their way to piss people off.
Are we sleep-deprived or is this example text clearly not talking about the trope?
Suddenly I'm... still rotating Fallen London in my mind even though I've stopped actively playing it.
I'm... not even sure what that is saying. All I see in that "example" is a mass of ill-defined and vague word salad. (Not unlike most of Miraculous, but that's my opinion) Definite cut I would say.
Edited by ForgoLight on Dec 25th 2022 at 8:43:55 AM
"Us weirdos have to stick together!"![]()
Just cut it. Even if it did actually describe the trope, Examples Are Not General.
Edited by CompletelyNormalGuy on Dec 25th 2022 at 9:56:47 AM
Bigotry will NEVER be welcome on TV Tropes.

Soy Valdo 7, No, it's not magical. Why does it particularly have to be magical? There's an example of cards in general being used for communication on the trope page.
![[up] [up]](https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/smiles/arrow_up.png)
It depends, is the character poor and just simply wants a higher social status, or are they obsessed with luxury and living like rich people? If it's the latter, then it's greed.
Uncanny Valley Hot Babes in Your Area Are Looking To Know YOU! Click Here to Sign Up for FREE! | Not quite back tbh. Don't expect much.