Now with a sandbox!
It appears that many Nightmare Fuel pages have problems, including:
1. Listing non-scary things that made the viewer feel slightly uncomfortable at worst.
2. Having spoiler tags on them (which is against the page's guidelines).
3. Listing Fridge Horror and fan theories.
And much more!
On a few occasions, people from outside the site's community have pointed out our overly lax usage of Nightmare Fuel to make fun of us, meaning that it can legitimately harm our reputation to let this go unchecked.
The TRS thread
meant for redefining Nightmare Fuel started to become a place for cleaning up Nightmare Fuel pages in general, so we may as well move these discussions to Long Term Projects where they belong.
Here are the guidelines to determine whether something is Nightmare Fuel or not.
- This is a page whose name is intended to be taken more literally than most. It's not enough for material to be scary; to truly qualify, it has to be frightening enough to legitimately unnerve/disturb the viewer, with actually being nightmare-inducing as the ultimate endpoint.
- Good signs that something IS Nightmare Fuel include if:
- It left you feeling shaken even after the credits had rolled, you turned the last page, or are otherwise done with the work.
- You have a hard time falling asleep if you think about it at night, or have a literal nightmare about it.
- You dread that episode, scene, level, chapter, or song during re-watches, and consider skipping it.
- With that said, don't add something just because it happens to be your personal phobia. For example, spiders can be scary and many people have arachnophobia, but just because a spider happens to be in the work, it does not make a Nightmare Fuel entry. It needs to reasonably be scary to someone without the phobia.
- Don't confuse tension with fear. If the hero is in trouble, but you know he'll make it out okay at the end, it's probably not Nightmare Fuel unless the threat is especially disturbing.
- Good signs that something IS Nightmare Fuel include if:
- Explain WHY the entry scared you. Try to convey your sense of fear to your readers. Avoid putting up Zero-Context Examples.
- Remember that Weblinks Are Not Examples, and neither are quotes on their own. You should explain the horror in your own words, rather than rely on others to do so.
- Don't add things that might have scared someone. If it didn't scare you, and you don't personally know anyone else who was scared, you shouldn't be adding it to Nightmare Fuel.
- Nightmare Fuel should stick to you even after you're done with the work.
- If something is initially presented as scary but turns out to be harmless, it's most likely not Nightmare Fuel since The Reveal makes the scariness vanish.
- Jump Scares are a good source of Nightmare Fuel, but not all of them automatically qualify: being startled is not the same as being scared.
- Hypotheticals are not Nightmare Fuel:
- Remember that Trailers Always Lie: a scene that is presented as scary in the trailer could very well turn out to be inoffensive in the finished work. Only add examples from unreleased works if they were especially terrifying in the previews.
- Fan theories do not belong on the Nightmare Fuel page under any circumstance. No matter how much evidence they have to support them, don't add them until they've been officially confirmed. In the meanwhile, take them to Wild Mass Guessing.
- Fridge Horror goes on the Fridge page, not Nightmare Fuel. Don't add it unless it's Ascended Fridge Horror.
- Keep in mind the work's intended audience when considering whether or not something is Nightmare Fuel.
- If something is normal or expected in the genre, it does not automatically qualify. Violence in a Fighting Series or gore in a horror movie must be especially disturbing or gruesome by the work's standards to be Nightmare Fuel.
- Remember that Kids Shouldn't Watch Horror Films. If a work is rated PG-13 or higher but would only be scary to young children, it's not Nightmare Fuel.
- The standards on what qualifies as Nightmare Fuel are especially stringent on works aimed at children and pre-teens: kids have hyperactive imaginations, so even something benign can give them nightmares.
- Spoiler tags do not belong on Nightmare Fuel pages. Much of what scares us comes from inherently spoilery stuff such as death and the unknown, so finding spoilers on these pages should be expected.
- Nightmare Fuel is an Audience Reaction, so it needs to be scary for the audience. Describing how the characters react to something scary isn't needed. Just because something scares them, that doesn't mean it scares us as well.
- Nightmare Fuel is a No Real Life Examples, Please! page. Meta-examples involving the actors, production, or behind-the-scenes incidents are not allowed.
Guidelines when proposing cleanup of a page:
- Some rules are pretty objective. If you see a Zero-Context Example, Fridge Horror, Real Life example, speculation, In-Universe reaction that isn't scary to the viewers, examples that explicitly describe themselves as not being very scary (including "mildly creepy", "somewhat unnerving", and other synonymous phrases), or examples that are just scene summaries without going into detail about why it's so scary, you can (and should) remove them immediately without coming here to ask.
- You should also strip all spoiler tags from the page. Itty Bitty Wiki Tools has a tool for that, but it can cause problems, so if you use it be sure to preview the page and thoroughly look it over.
- Once you've fixed the objective issues with the page, bring it here so we can look at the more subjective problems, such as examples that may not be scary enough to qualify. If a consensus is reached that a certain entry does not qualify, it can be removed.
Edited by Zuxtron on Aug 1st 2020 at 9:40:30 AM
Big Catch, Sparkle Edition
Y'know, honestly I'm wondering if making an exception for something like arachnophobia makes sense. I mean, that's one of the most common fears in the world. As long as the example isn't just "there was a spider in the scene", I'd be inclined to keep it.
...That example, however, is a ZCE.
Current Project: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
Angry babby
While not utterly scary, the spider is clearly meant to be creepy
◊, at least by kids' show standards.
And yeah, the reason we say "no phobia-specific stuff" is to avoid, like Absurd Phobia things, but spiders are a common fear that works often deliberately try to trigger — including in this case, even if it was more watching a character be freaked out and cringing at his fear.
Edited by mightymewtron on Sep 2nd 2021 at 8:00:10 AM
I do some cleanup and then I enjoy shows you probably think are cringe.
Berserk Button: misusing Nightmare Fuel
![[up]](https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/smiles/arrow_up.png "[up]"){kind=icon}
Right, arachnophobia is much closer to a Primal Fear than an Absurd Phobia. Spiders intentionally Played for Horror will make the vast majority of people feel disturbed. If something is only scary to very severe arachnophobes (e.g. "When Bob is cleaning his room, he sweeps away a spiderweb with a spider in it."), then that'd be worth considering removal.
Big Catch, Sparkle Edition
Heck, I'm not even an arachnophobe myself, but I had a dream that scared the shit out of me because it featured a massive spider. Spiders are scary. Everything about their biology serves to creep people the fuck out.
Current Project: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
I'd like to bring up two entries from NightmareFuel.Advertising:
- And then there's the 2016 Winter Ad. A girl is sitting on a dock in a lake in full ice skating gear, with a fisherman not far away. Then it shows there are some Ice Hockey players waiting a little further down the shore. Then in come the Audi fleet, freezing in their path. The kids laugh and dive onto the lake as it freezes solid. Cute, right? Until you see them skate past the fisherman pushing against the ice, trying to free his legs.
- And then there's the 2016 Winter Ad
This seems like Fridge Horror, since the ad's going for whimsical. Up until a few hours ago, there was also a line mentioning that the fisherman "looks as if he's screaming", which I removed since it was completely false. Even as written, it's still misleading - he's clearly just stunned by the frozen lake and not struggling to break free or anything like that.
This whole entry feels especially forced to me considering it's the second bullet from another ad with a giant spider. That ad was intentionally scary, and this one doesn't have anywhere near the same tone.
- Old Spice's "Momsong"/"Dadsong" ad campaign runs on the principle that Freud was right, featuring tearful mothers stalking their teenage sons as they go on dates and fathers rejoicing at having the competition out of the house, singing all the while. If this Oedipal nightmare weren't creepy enough on its own, at the end of the Dadsong spot where one mother's arms extend snakily over her husband's shoulders, across the living room floor, and up the wall to stroke a picture of her son. The visuals combined with the theme will make you want a shower (and not with Old Spice). See Mom Song here and Dad Song here. In the bright side, the ads are pretty hilarious.
First off, eww, no. It's about parents being empty nesters. Moms miss their baby boys and dads are happy to have more space. It's an old stereotype. Even if you want to charitably give credit to this interpretation, that's still Fridge. The only thing left is the mom's arms stretching, which could maybe be scary, but it's nowhere near enough for the entry. Also, if the entry feels the need to justify how funny the ads are, they're probably not that scary.
kiby :]
That second example reminds me of the "incesty subtext" behind that Folgers commercial...which I don't get at all.
(Don't) take me home.
I at least understood that, since there was no narrative reason for them to be siblings and they just acted like "generic saccharine commercial couple". The Momsong entry feels like some world-class reaching to me, and is extra gross since it implies this is the only correct interpretation.
I'm pretty confident that I can just chop that entry off. Any opinions on the first?
Going through a bit of a Big City Greens phase, so I decided to take a look at its Nightmare Fuel page. While it's certainly better than some other NF pages, it still needs a bit of cleanup.
- In "Blue Tater", Cricket tries to explain to Bill to dispose of the blue potato, believing what Gramma told him about the curse that his skin will melt, his eyeballs will fall out, and his blood will curdle into cheese. Of course, this never ends up happening, but it's not a pleasant thought. Certainly sounds scary, but considering it doesn't happen, I'm not too sure about whether to keep or delete.
- Bill is missing the tip of his right index finger. He mentions on "Welcome Home" that he lost it in a hay baler accident, and is self-conscious of it. Although it hasn't been brought up again in the series yet, it is still clearly visible throughout the show, and is not hard to imagine that every time Bill looks at it, it reminds him of what was likely the most terrifying moment of his life. The hay baler accident sounds scary, but it's never really elaborated on. Delete.
- On "Welcome Home", Cricket talks to a stranger on the bus wearing a hoodie. Suddenly the hoodie starts stirring and the stranger is revealed to be a swarm of rats hidden inside. Cricket is rightfully horrified. Debatable.
Cricket: Rats! Rats! He's made of rats!
- At the end, the Greens finally make it to Gramma's house only to find her collapsed on the floor, seemingly dead. Happily, it turns out she was playing a prank on them. I mean, it's a little jarring, but I can't imagine someone getting scared by it.
Gramma: That'll teach ya to be late! I could have died! Now give me a hug. - The Fish Fusion restaurant in "Fill Bill" serving live, uncooked octopi to customers. At the very least it would've earned them a health citation. Although, in some countries like Korea, they do serve live octopi. The only danger is the choking hazard as the tentacles' suction cups can stick to your mouth and throat if you don't chew them. Not scary, and the part with Korea is just natter.
- Bill being nearly killed by falling toilets in "DIY Guys". ZCE and doesn't sound very scary.
- In "Swimming Fool", as Cricket tries for the first time to dive off the community pool's high dive despite how terrified he is, he feels he has no choice but to make the and dives into the pool like a meteorite, and afterwards discovers to his horror that he hit the water so hard that his body has broken into several pieces*. Of course, this was just in Cricket's imagination, but still. Debatable.
- In "Family Legacy", during the flashback episode, one of Alice’s aunts, who was a pilot, releases a swarm of ladybugs upon the aphids that were eating up the crops. Moments later the audience is treated to a close up of an aphid being devoured by a ladybug with a rather scary look. Keep.
- During the city noise scene in "Gridlocked", as when the noise had worsened, the sky became black and the city buildings curled up while Bill holds onto his hat looking horribly pressured, looking like he's having an anxiety attack. Sounds tense, but not scary.
- In the same episode, Cricket thinks he has provoked a trucker with a hook hand after the trucker gave Cricket what Cricket thought was a menacing look when the trucker wouldn't honk back at the Greens' truck, resulting in Cricket thinking the trucker means to attack him and fleeing through the stopped traffic. Although the trucker ultimately means no harm in the end, the resulting chase sequence plays out like a scene from I Know What You Did Last Summer. Again, sounds tense, but not scary.
- In addition to that, there is Cricket's Imagine Spot of being chained to the front of the trucker's truck, complete with the trucker letting out an Evil Laugh and Cricket screaming in fear. Keep, I can definitely imagine this scaring someone.
- There is also a bit of Surprise Creepy when Tilly washes a very dirty car while traffic is stopped and afterward the car "says": "Thank you for washing me, Tilly! Now I can TAKE OVER THE HUMAN RACE!". Tilly's nonchalant response of "Okay, have fun with that!" barely mitigates it. A bit jarring? Yes. Scary? No.
- In the same episode, Cricket thinks he has provoked a trucker with a hook hand after the trucker gave Cricket what Cricket thought was a menacing look when the trucker wouldn't honk back at the Greens' truck, resulting in Cricket thinking the trucker means to attack him and fleeing through the stopped traffic. Although the trucker ultimately means no harm in the end, the resulting chase sequence plays out like a scene from I Know What You Did Last Summer. Again, sounds tense, but not scary.
- The scene in "Barry Cuda", where after Cricket has spent all evening trying to figure out which of the other Green family members was responsible for damaging Barry Cuda, it leads up to a scene where Bill uses a axe, then Gramma uses a frying pan, and Tilly uses a lawnmower to take turns destroying Barry Cuda further as Cricket looks on in horror. Not scary.
- In "Blood Moon", when the moon turns blood red as Gramma predicted, the farm animals turn from normal and docile to feral and vicious under the spell of the red moon. The episode is played completely seriously and everyone is in legitimate danger of getting seriously injured. Keep, I can imagine this scaring someone.
- In the short "Secret Cat", having to see Cricket being constantly mauled by a random cat underneath the sofa, while the title card shows red scratches which appears to show blood by the lines. Doesn't seem very scary.
- "Hiya Henry" is pretty much "Automatonophobia: The TV Episode". Cricket encounters a rather creepy ventriloquist dummy found by Tilly in the backyard shed, which everyone but him adores. Cricket's fear of Henry leads up to a Nightmare Sequence wherein he sees much of his family turned into dummies like Henry before Cricket himself turns into one as a giant nightmare version of Henry (shown in the current page image) taunts him. It doesn't help that Henry himself◊ isn't very pleasant to look at in the first place even when he isn't a nightmare-version of himself. Keep.
- Cricket as his mind degenerates by fear and paranoia of the dummy really is disturbing. Especially when he dismembers the dummy right in front of a horrified Tilly. Not sure about this, though.
- In "Cricket's Biscuits", after Bill tells his kids about how Alice only fixes her biscuits when a family member is injured, he mentions the hay baler incident and implies that he is willing to lose another finger (to the point of intentionally harming himself) just to have the biscuits; the scene cuts to Bill with a rather ominous expression as he holds up a knife to his other hand and mutters: "Surely I don't need ''all'' of them...". A little jarring and maybe a bit creepy, but not scary.
- Cricket’s "If I can’t have Christmas" song from "Green Christmas" qualifies. And while some of the stuff he does is kinda funny and/or harmless (Like sneaking hot sauce into hot chocolate), others are terrifying (Like stabbing snowmen and setting up tinsel to make it look like they’re bleeding out) not to mention that this all leads to the end of the song where Cricket overflows a fountain and it looks like blood and freezes in a horrifying position all while Tilly is visibly scared. I mean, most of Cricket's actions are Played for Laughs, but I could imagine it being creepy to others, so maybe it could be kept.
- "Reckoning Ball":
- Chip nearly destroying the Green House with a wrecking ball. Keys manages to stop him.
- The ending scene where Chip assumes full control of Wholesome Foods and begins to exact his complete revenge on the Greens with no interference from his retired father, complete with a full-on Nightmare Face in the mirror and ominous music. A Nightmare Face including a platinum filling. The Nightmare Face can be kept, not sure about all the other stuff.
- In "Impopstar," Cricket gets kidnapped by Amaryllis, Zillon Brax's Stalker with a Crush, and tries to keep him trapped inside a warehouse filled with headless mannequins. Where are the heads? Amaryllis used them to build her Stalker Shrine. Keep, but it could be expanded a little. Amaryllis' face when she says the below line could certainly count, so maybe that could be added.
Amaryllis: Now, now, Zillon... SAVE YOUR PIPES FOR THE DUET!!!
- Cricket's prank in "Shark Objects" goes horribly wrong when a lifeguard tries to kill him with a harpoon gun; it is to the point when Nancy gives herself a talking-to does Cricket realize the consequences, causing him to break down in tears and vow never to do it again. I don't know about this one.
- "Heat Beaters" has two cases of dangerous temperature extremes, with Cricket and Remy roasting in the Heat Wave and the other Greens freezing due to a malfunctioning air conditioner. The boys were uncomfortably close to dying of heat stroke by the time Officer Keys saved the day. Not scary.
- "Flimflammed": The scene where Gloria furiously parts the fence panels apart looks as if it came from a horror film. Just imagine yourself in Cricket's place, where a furious person with bulging eyes and open teeth trying to catch you, as if they want to kill you. How can you NOT be scared? Keep.
Gloria: Come here, Cricket!
- The librarians from "Quiet Please". They look less like humans and more like a cross between a snake and Ms. Bitters from Invader Zim. Keep with some expansion.
- Cricket completely forgetting he's supposed to be quiet once he enjoys the graphic novel he unknowingly stumbles across, alerting the librarian; she begins to close in on him, and he doesn't even look up once or even notice her shadow. If it weren't for Bill intervening, Cricket would've been mauled and banned without even knowing it. Merge with the above bullet point.
- Chip's plan in "Chipwrecked" is finally falling into place. First, he buys Big Coffee, effectively putting Cricket and Gloria out of a job and he plans on expanding Wholesome Foods by dismantling the Greens' farmhouse. And just to rub it in Cricket's face, he tells him that if he hadn't "set him straight" and get into his father's good graces, none of this would have happened. Not really scary.
- Even before that, there's the set up of his plan. His father, not knowing what's really going on, gives Chip a call and he tells him he has a problem. His father responds by telling him to use the company to solve any problem. This gives Chip an idea. The first thing he does once he "gets his act together"? He fires his two henchmen and replaces them with a group of intimidating bouncers. Doesn't sound very scary.
- The ominous Ethereal Choir played over the background score in the final scene. It completely sets the mood for the Greens' worry. Not sure.
- The very last words of the episode, which shows Chip has won and the Greens are awaiting the inevitable if they don't fight back: Not scary. The sting is a bit jarring, but I don't think it would scare anyone.
Cricket: What the heck is going on?!? Chip can't win! It can't end like this!
Tilly: And yet... it just... did.
(Cut to To Be Continued as we hear a Sting and the choir sounds out) - And then the end credits roll — not set to the cheerful, upbeat "Do It All Again" with scenes of the Greens' house and their surroundings — but with a dark, ominous theme with a still shot of the now-closed Big Coffee that night. The image gets progressively darker as the credits near the end, followed by a Scare Chord as we cut to the end logo. Not sure about this. The Scare Chord could be jarring, but not scary.
- This all gets even worse as similar with "Reckoning Ball"'s situation, this was the last new episode of the year, with the continuation airing some time in January or February, leaving many fans shaking in fear at the fate of the Greens. This just seems like Natter.
- "Chipocalypse Now" might be even darker; initially when asked about any news, Shane Houghton claimed this on his Twitter: There are certainly parts of Chipocalypse Now that are scary, but the part with Shane's Twitter can be removed.
I mean, it's really epic. Maybe too epic! I don't think the world is ready to see it it's so epic! I'll tone the epicness down a bit, then the world should be able to handle it. I wouldn't want to want to injure anyone with how epic it is.
- Not only is the Greens' house is to be demolished, but Big Coffee and the Elkins Building as well. The expressions on all five Greens' faces says it all. Shocking, but not scary.
- Chip ominously saying Cricket's "bingo-bango." Not sure.
- When Chip's plans start falling apart and his true nature is revealed to all of Big City, resulting in him banned from the city for good, he finally snaps and tries to kill the Greens with a helicopter. Too bad for him that this gets himself launched out of town like how Cricket tried to launch a chicken into space. And gets his tooth chipped (again) in the process. Keep, but remove the last two sentences.
Chip Whistler: Cricket Green... you made a fool of me FOR THE LAST TIME! (Chip attempts to shred Cricket with the blades of his helicopter)
Tilly and Bill: CRICKET!!!
Cricket: (with sealed fate in his face) Oh, boy...THIS HAD BETTER WORK!!! (quickly jumps off the roof)- Bill seeing his son almost getting killed adds up to it; it's a good thing he managed to catch him while he was coming down (thanks to Cricket shouting that he needed help in return). Maybe keep, maybe delete. But if it's kept, merge with the above bullet point.
Cricket: SOMEBODY BETTER CATCH ME!!!!!!!
- Cricket was obviously crying as he was leaping off the roof and swinging from the banner, as if he doesn't want to meet his fate either by helicopter or fall, in fact, Chip narrowly misses Cricket, (he only missed, due the banner getting ripped by Cricket's weight) when he attempts to shred him for a second time. Not sure.
- Chip's swirling eyes before he attempts to take out the entire family with the blades of his helicopter looked like that of Judge Doom's for all but a second. Keep, but merge with the bullet point about Chip's Villainous Breakdown.
Chip Whistler: Now... I can get rid of all the Greens AT ONCE!!!!!!!!- All of the Greens plus their neighbors' sheer look of horror during the above counts, just before Cricket realizes a Fatal Flaw leading to his Pre Ass Kicking One Liner. Not sure about this.
- Speaking of the neighbors, they aren't that far behind the Greens themselves. A lot of blood could've been shed. In case you don't know, among the neighbors there were children in the group (Andromeda and Kiki), animals (Daisy, Anoush), old people (Mr. Grigorian), and many adults. Did we mention Remy's parents, Maria Media, Officer Keys and Mayor Hansock were among the neighbors? Smells like Fridge Horror.
- And to think, Officer Keys does not do anything about it, and lets Chip go, despite the fact he would've gotten him in even more trouble for attempting murder, like he said in "Reckoning Ball". Fridge Horror.
- For even more points, Mr. Whistler never showed up. How would he feel if he saw his son completely defied him, on LIVE TV?? Fridge Horror.
- Bill seeing his son almost getting killed adds up to it; it's a good thing he managed to catch him while he was coming down (thanks to Cricket shouting that he needed help in return). Maybe keep, maybe delete. But if it's kept, merge with the above bullet point.
- "Bleeped": Bill going "full-dad mode" on the children to force them to stop cussing, using an even scarier version of his Comical Angry Face combined with Blank White Eyes, along with a Compelling Voice. A little creepy? Yes. Scary? No.
- "Sellouts" has Tilly try to form a "personal connection" with a woman named Angela, by staring and making eye contact for increased amounts of time. It is enough to even put her in a trance, complete with a hypnotic background and eerie music. Not sure about this whole section.
- Tilly's close-up shots during the aforementioned event makes it almost seem like she's hypnotizing the audience.
Did I do good with my judgement?
Edited by cheesythegreat on Apr 26th 2024 at 6:44:45 PM
(they/them)
I can chase the wind, I can race the rain
Does anyone have any more commentary to add on this post that I made? It seems discussion got a little derailed by me misremebering Taziator.
Haven't seen any of that show, but aside from that misremembering, I'd say the analysis sounds good
Berserk Button: misusing Berserk Button
Stumbled upon a small page that looks to be full of shoehorns.
Zuma is an Aztec styled game, so it is obviously scary at sometimes, but it more more than that. How is being Aztec-styled scary? Because the Beat Still, My Heart rituals are, to my knowledge, never brought up. Also, grammar errors. And we're not even on the actual content.
- The ominous music that plays when the balls are getting closer to the skull can sometimes give some players anxiety and paranoia. It doesn’t help with the fact that when the skull eats the balls, it sucks them in and the frog spins, getting brighter and then pops.Tense does not equal scary. Cut.
- You also see the skull open its maw wider and wider as the balls gradually get closer, and it's straight in the Uncanny Valley. Doesn't sound that scary to me, but I haven't played the game so I can't say.
- The game over chant sound effect is done in a creepy voice, and says that the narrator is the king. Again, doesn't sound that scary. Cut.
Narrator Gods: THEY CALL ME KING!
- Just at the start of the game, the skull might scare some people. Might- in other words, not scary to most people. Cut.
Specific to Zuma's Revenge
- When you defeat Kahtiki Khan, he tells you you broke his jaw forever. This sounds like its Played for Laughs, and I fail to see how its scary. Cut.
- When defeating Zhaka Mu in his shadow frog form, he fades away until all you see is his face glowing in the darkness. Brief moment, not scary enough. Cut.
Hi
As someone who played Zuma and its first sequel a lot when I was younger, those are all shoehorns the size of trench-digging equipment.
Edited by Willbyr on Sep 16th 2021 at 7:07:27 AM
From What If:
- Tony Stark and Clint Barton's deaths are terrifying for just how subtle they are. In the former, Pym shrinks down and sneaks into Tony's bloodstream via Fury's surprise injection of a drug intended to instantly sober the Powered Armor-wearing hero up. Shrunken down to microscopic size, Pym proceeds to kill Tony by cutting his heart into pieces from the inside out. With Clint, on the other hand, Pym just sneaks into Clint's skull cavity through his ear, carves up Clint's brain like a Christmas turkey, then leaves, all without anyone seeing or hearing anything.
- The showdown between Black Widow and Yellowjacket showcases just how badly even a memetically underwhelming power like that of the Sizeshifter can outclass a Badass Normal in a Surprisingly Realistic Outcome. For all her training and skill, Yellowjacket literally handles the Widow like a toy, smashing her against shelving, floor and ceiling until he has literally beaten her into a skin bag full of broken bones and pulped organs, before leaving her to bleed out and die on the floor. And even that is guesswork because we never actually see what was left of Widow after she was dragged off. All because she simply can't hope to hit somebody too small for her to see.
The bolded parts are just speculation on what Hank did to to Tony, Clint, and Nat. While the rest of the Black Widow entry counts, I am not so sure about the Tony/Clint entry. If the bolded part can be removed, so can the mention of Clint.
Edited by magnumtropus on Sep 16th 2021 at 6:19:25 PM
Industrious Incisors
I'm a bit concerned about NightmareFuel.Deltarune. It's gotten long rather quickly, but especially the stuff in the Weird Route folder feels like it's repeating itself a lot. Now, that route is seriously messed up, but even then, does it need that much text to get the point across?
Also, at the very least this
This also makes everyone starting this chapter at LV 2 more disturbing, since LV clearly still has some relation to level of violence. Noelle had to kill people to raise hers, so what did they do?
feels fridgey.
SoundCloud
Berserk Button: misusing Nightmare Fuel
Yeah, I've seen the episode, and that's definitely speculative. I'm not opposed to keeping the deaths, but we shouldn't be inventing details to make them sound scarier than they are.
I actually tried moving the Weird Route stuff to its own folder yesterday, but it got reverted in what I assume was an expired edit lock override mistake. I tried contacting the other troper to ask if it's okay to make the folder again, but I haven't gotten a response.
I'm avoiding looking at details too closely because I want to do the route myself first (though unfortunately, I already know most of the gist of it).
EDIT: Just as I post this, I get a reply confirming that it was an accident and that it's okay to make a separate Weird Route folder.
Edited by Zuxtron on Sep 21st 2021 at 7:56:20 AM
A Serbian Film is locked and tropes are banned "because of its extreme graphic violence and disturbing content". If such is the case, shouldn't we also veto Nightmare Fuel examples on the film's YMMV tab?
I'd like to apologize for all this.
I can chase the wind, I can race the rain
why do we even have YMMV examples for that movie at all?
Beats me, but you got a point; which means this is now an issue for the P5 thread.
Came across NightmareFuel.The Legend Of Zelda Phantom Hourglass and wondering whether it has enough examples to warrant a page. (Pretty sure its image is a dupe of another page as well.) Wondering if other Zelda NF pages have the same problem too.
Edited by PurpleEyedGuma on Sep 23rd 2021 at 11:43:16 AM
Logic Girl
On YMMV.Daniel Tigers Neighborhood, Daniel wanting to hit his baby sister is listed as NF. While I admittedly found the scene to be a bit of a shock (and listed it under Shocking Moments), to me, it's still not Nightmare Fuel. Then again, it's a preschool show.
For every low there is a high.
Still my fave
I'm not sure... I guess it has enough examples for its own page? I can't really tell if they're all valid, though.
Yeah, doesn't look like NF to me, even if I try to think about it from a little kid's perspective.
NightmareFuel.Hiveswap Friendsim and NightmareFuel.Pesterquest are in serious need of cleanup. I guess both games came out episodically, so there's a lot of speculation ("Just how is the Reader remembering all this?" when, according to the main page, that's explained at the end of the game). There's also a ton of Fridge Horror and stuff that, I'm sorry, but it just isn't scary ("The Reader accidentally loses John's copy of Sburb. There are loads of consequences that could result from this, especially since the canon of Homestuck relies a lot on Stable Time Loops.") There are also entries that boil down to "This reminded me of something scary in canon!" ("The ending where the Reader takes her to Gamzee's hive to distract her from her issues comes off as this when you remember their Blackrom relationship in Homestuck.")
I could probably clean them up myself, but I stopped reading and keeping up with Homestuck in... 2015? 2016? Somewhere in there. So I've never played either game and don't know how well I could do it. Would anyone more familiar with the games be willing to work on them?
Fangs of the relentless thousand
Cut. Shocking =/= nightmarish.
[misread]
Edited by Twiddler on Sep 27th 2021 at 11:10:18 AM
Angry babby
I've only played bits of Friendsim so I can't help much, but that sounds like a lot can be moved to Fridge Horror.
Yeah, that's correct. As a severe arachnophobic I've never totally agreed with it, but OTOH I can see the argument that there's no clear line to be drawn would prevent people with extremely uncommon phobias adding examples along the lines of "there's a duck in this scene!"