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All-Purpose Policy and Meta discussion: Administrivia.Trope Repair Shop

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Before making or posting in a thread, read the Trope Repairing Guidelines to see whether a thread you're considering making actually should be made, as well as what is and isn't allowed in an open thread.

This thread is a metathread for Trope Repair Shop discussion. Things like TRS policy, what is needed in a TRS opening post, questions about whether a certain topic is TRS-worthy and questions about why a thread wasn't opened go here.

Some guidelines for when/whether to use TRS:

  • If the trope is fine, but has some bad examples, feel free to clean them up or to start a cleanup project at Projects: Short-Term. Trope Repair Shop is for when cleaning isn't sufficient.
  • If you think there's something wrong with the trope that systematically attracts improper examples, start a discussion at Trope Talk. Use a Wick Check to see whether there's an issue present (and if there is, what the issue is). The following methods are two possible ways to do a wick check (though not necessarily the only ways):
    • You can go ahead with the Wick Check without a discussion if you know what you're looking for. While it's not mandatory, feel free to ask someone for help confirming that you got the issue and the numbers correct.
    • Consult the Wick Check Project thread to collect evidence if you need help.
  • Depending on a trope (or non-trope) in question, a wick check may be determined to not be required, such as for tropes that are not thriving (per the standards for trope health listed on the Wick page). However, there is no problem if you want to do one anyway.

For a more detailed introduction to this forum, click here.

For related projects, see Wick Cleaning Projects and the Wick Check Project.

For a list of wiki pages related to thread outcomes, see the following:

Edited by GastonRabbit on Aug 12th 2025 at 11:35:13 AM

Berrenta Bejeweled (she/her) (Ten years in the joint) Relationship Status: I made a point to burn all of the photographs
Bejeweled (she/her)
#2251: Aug 20th 2021 at 8:49:13 PM

And that's done, so we got a slot opened up.

FernandoLemon Since: Aug, 2015
#2252: Aug 20th 2021 at 9:11:03 PM

I'll let Serac take it, he wanted to make a thread.

Berrenta Bejeweled (she/her) (Ten years in the joint) Relationship Status: I made a point to burn all of the photographs
Bejeweled (she/her)
#2253: Aug 20th 2021 at 9:15:34 PM

Alrighty.

Pinging ~Serac just in case.

Serac she/her (Troper Knight) Relationship Status: Oh my word! I'm gay!
she/her
#2254: Aug 20th 2021 at 10:48:01 PM

Thank you for the ping! It's posted.

Also, I'm a she.

Edited by Serac on Aug 20th 2021 at 12:54:00 PM

Malady (X-Troper)
#2255: Aug 21st 2021 at 3:56:41 PM

Holding It For A Friend should close after Epitaph is made... So yeah...

Disambig Needed: Help with those issues! tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=13324299140A37493800&page=24#comment-576
Berrenta Bejeweled (she/her) (Ten years in the joint) Relationship Status: I made a point to burn all of the photographs
Bejeweled (she/her)
#2256: Aug 21st 2021 at 4:13:06 PM

Epitaph added and slot opened.

Piterpicher Veteran Editor IV from Poland, for real (Series 2) Relationship Status: Armed with the Power of Love
Veteran Editor IV
#2257: Aug 21st 2021 at 4:18:05 PM

Taken now. I haven't seen anyone particularly going after a slot right now, plus it's both a duplicate trope and a not thriving issue.

Currently mostly inactive. An incremental game I tested: https://galaxy.click/play/176 (Gods of Incremental)
Vandagyre I think I just got AC team loyalty from Dacardia (Fifth Year at Tropey's) Relationship Status: Wishfully thinking
I think I just got AC team loyalty
#2258: Aug 22nd 2021 at 4:23:37 PM

Author Usurpation is on Tropes Needing TRS for having an unclear name and being a duplicate of One-Hit Wonder. Is a wick check needed for tropes that are duplicates, and if so how would it differ from the average wick check?

Cave Johnson, we're done here.
WarJay77 It's NaNo, Bay-beeee! (8,356/50,000) from My Writing Cave (Troper Knight) Relationship Status: Armed with the Power of Love
It's NaNo, Bay-beeee! (8,356/50,000)
#2259: Aug 22nd 2021 at 4:25:18 PM

At least in my experience, this would entail having folders for examples that could be moved to the other trope(s) with nothing lost. You can also check for overlap between the tropes with one of the Itty Bitty Wiki Tools, or just manually checking for both tropes.

Working on: Author Appeal | Sandbox | Troper Wall
GastonRabbit C'est la vie. (he/him) from Robinson, Illinois, USA (General of TV Troops) Relationship Status: I'm just a poor boy, nobody loves me
C'est la vie. (he/him)
#2260: Aug 24th 2021 at 8:34:33 AM

I finished the work for Redshirt Reporter and the thread was locked not long after, so if anyone needs a slot, now's your time to grab it.

I got a rock for Halloween.
GastonRabbit C'est la vie. (he/him) from Robinson, Illinois, USA (General of TV Troops) Relationship Status: I'm just a poor boy, nobody loves me
C'est la vie. (he/him)
#2261: Aug 24th 2021 at 8:53:39 AM

Sorry for the double post, but the slot was grabbed by a thread for Asexuality that lacks a wick check, unlike the since-concluded threads for Bi The Way and Transgender. The "Complaining" tag is also being misused to mean "I have a complaint about this trope" instead of "This trope attracts complaining."

Edited by GastonRabbit on Aug 24th 2021 at 10:55:06 AM

I got a rock for Halloween.
Synchronicity (4 Score & 7 Years Ago)
#2262: Aug 24th 2021 at 8:57:35 AM

~Nukeli: Most folks who agreed to detrope Bi The Way and Transgender agreed Asexuality probably has the same issue — both Transgender and Asexuality were mentioned early on in the Bi The Way thread — but both of these pages still needed proof (ie. A wick check).

Edited by Synchronicity on Aug 24th 2021 at 10:58:17 AM

GoldenCityBird from the UK Since: Oct, 2018
#2263: Aug 24th 2021 at 9:32:47 AM

Would it be OK for me to post my Five-Man Band post now that a spot seems to be open? I have a draft saved in my sandbox, so it's no problem if I have to wait, but I would definitely like to get it over and done with soon.

TRS Wick Cleaning
Piterpicher Veteran Editor IV from Poland, for real (Series 2) Relationship Status: Armed with the Power of Love
Veteran Editor IV
#2264: Aug 24th 2021 at 10:12:10 AM

Sure, why noT.

Currently mostly inactive. An incremental game I tested: https://galaxy.click/play/176 (Gods of Incremental)
Nukeli Since: Aug, 2018
#2265: Aug 24th 2021 at 11:37:12 AM

[up]x4

Other people have also complained about it.

[up]x3

The wick check. Insane lenght.

I read a part of them, but among other things Dead Unicorn Trope's entry on Doctor Who uses asexuality as an adjective rather than referring to sexual orientation and talks about "asexual innocence".

Gender Is No Object's fanfic folder also doesn't seem to understand what asexuality is. I might be missing something because i'm not familiar with the source material though.

Dance of Romance calls Sherlock Holmes from the bbc Sherlock show asexual, but it's not canon and if i remember correctly the writer or director specifically denied the idea of Sherlock being asexual.

Good People Have Good Sex also claims Ozymandias from Watchmen comic to be asexual as if it was a fact, but it's also nor canon.

And that's only a fraction. Using asexuality as an adjective not referring to real asexuality, asexuality the sexual orientation, seems to be common from the small sample i've seen. Besides the fact sexual orientation is not a trope.

And Personality Disorders brings up asexuality randomly and for no reason in the Schizoid Personality Disorder folder.

Edited by Nukeli on Aug 24th 2021 at 9:46:10 PM

~*bleh*~
WarJay77 It's NaNo, Bay-beeee! (8,356/50,000) from My Writing Cave (Troper Knight) Relationship Status: Armed with the Power of Love
It's NaNo, Bay-beeee! (8,356/50,000)
#2266: Aug 24th 2021 at 11:39:38 AM

See How to Do a Wick Check, Nukeli. You only need about 50 wicks in most cases. Also see the link in my signature where we do wick checks collaboratively.

Edited by WarJay77 on Aug 24th 2021 at 2:40:02 PM

Working on: Author Appeal | Sandbox | Troper Wall
GastonRabbit C'est la vie. (he/him) from Robinson, Illinois, USA (General of TV Troops) Relationship Status: I'm just a poor boy, nobody loves me
C'est la vie. (he/him)
#2267: Aug 24th 2021 at 12:27:22 PM

[up][up]I probably should have been clearer (and less blunt) when explaining what the "Complaining" tag is for. That tag is for when examples of a trope are written with a negative tone. Threads that deal with "tropes" that are not actually tropes use the "Not Tropeworthy" tag.

I got a rock for Halloween.
WarJay77 It's NaNo, Bay-beeee! (8,356/50,000) from My Writing Cave (Troper Knight) Relationship Status: Armed with the Power of Love
It's NaNo, Bay-beeee! (8,356/50,000)
#2268: Aug 24th 2021 at 12:28:23 PM

Right, "Complaining" isn't for complaining about the trope.

Every thread would need that tag otherwise.

Working on: Author Appeal | Sandbox | Troper Wall
Rikun Since: Oct, 2009
#2269: Aug 25th 2021 at 9:38:53 PM

Given that OCD is a real disorder that people suffer from and that casually describing characters as OCD could be seen as ablest, Could I suggest we rename Super OCD to Type A Personality?

The original thread to rename it was closed way back in 2017, and I feel like given how much cleanup has happened since then it's worth revisiting. Especially given the last person dismissed the OP's concern about mislabeling OCD.

Please let us know if this could be feasible, and how to best bring it up with the mods in charge.

Edited by Rikun on Aug 25th 2021 at 9:43:52 AM

RallyBot2 (Elder Troper) Relationship Status: I'm just a poor boy, nobody loves me
#2270: Aug 25th 2021 at 10:03:43 PM

The trope version of it is often described within the works themselves as OCD, even when it veers away from actual OCD.

It's not this wiki's mission to be prescriptivists about stuff like that; same reason we keep Magical Negro, Hot Gypsy Woman, Noble Savage, and so on. (Or, if you want to stick with the "mental" part of it, Idiot Savant, "L" Is for "Dyslexia", Attention Deficit... Ooh, Shiny!... the list goes on.)

mightymewtron Word Up from New New York Since: Oct, 2012 Relationship Status: THIS CONCEPT OF 'WUV' CONFUSES AND INFURIATES US!
Word Up
#2271: Aug 25th 2021 at 10:10:37 PM

As someone who probably does have OCD, I totally get why the trope's named that way. It's frustrating but it is how the works typically portray OCD, and the description even explains this. I think the only issue would be if it was misused for any character with actual OCD regardless of stereotyping.

Maybe we could use a Useful Notes page for the more accurate symptoms of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder?

Edited by mightymewtron on Aug 25th 2021 at 1:10:43 PM

I do some cleanup and then I enjoy shows you probably think are cringe.
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
#2272: Aug 25th 2021 at 10:31:23 PM

There's actually a different thread for this, but yes, the trope is about a specific portrayal of OCD in media, and the portrayal in question being ableist doesn't mean we should pretend that's not what they're doing.

Suddenly I'm... still rotating Fallen London in my mind even though I've stopped actively playing it.
Redmess Redmess from Netherlands Since: Feb, 2014
Redmess
#2273: Aug 25th 2021 at 11:24:41 PM

This does seem overly PC. I think adding a paragraph about how depictions in fiction differ from real OCD would be sufficient.

Hope shines brightest in the darkest times
Rikun Since: Oct, 2009
#2274: Aug 25th 2021 at 11:34:52 PM

That's all fair. I am curious then if Super OCD would just be an umbrella term for any character who has that Type A hyper organized, meticulous personality or if it should be saved for how OCD is often portrayed in media.

So for example: a character is super studious, takes a ridiculous amount of notes, and is hyper orderly about everything but doesn't actually have OCD. Would they fall under Super OCD anyways?

Maybe also redirect to other tropes that would point to similar character traits but the character in question explicitly does NOT have OCD.

Edited by Rikun on Aug 25th 2021 at 11:53:57 AM

mightymewtron Word Up from New New York Since: Oct, 2012 Relationship Status: THIS CONCEPT OF 'WUV' CONFUSES AND INFURIATES US!
Word Up
#2275: Aug 26th 2021 at 12:38:29 AM

I think adding a paragraph about how depictions in fiction differ from real OCD would be sufficient.

It has one. Actually, it has over two — one for OCD, and one for OCPD (which better fits this stereotypical portrayal).

I am curious then if Super OCD would just be an umbrella term for any character who has that Type A hyper organized, meticulous personality or if it should be saved for how OCD is often portrayed in media.

...Now that might actually warrant TRS, because the description is nearly entirely in the context of OCD, while examples tend to broadly refer to obsessive organizational behavior, whether the term OCD is used or not. The description does mention Schedule Fanatic and Neat Freak though.

Edited by mightymewtron on Aug 26th 2021 at 3:39:10 PM

I do some cleanup and then I enjoy shows you probably think are cringe.

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