Overshadowed by Controversy has several examples, particularly under the Fan Works, Webcomics, and Web Original folders, that don't fit the trope as described. The controversy is supposed to overshadow the work, so if it doesn't do that it shouldn't count as a valid example.
The media folders, such as Anime or Western Animation, could also use a look, as some entries deal with shows, while others deal with actors, fans, or creators. Additionally, some of the entries are not controversial anymore or are not known enough to overshadow the show completely, and others seem closer to Never Live It Down.
Some examples even point out that the controversy was debunked or died down eventually, which doesn't fit the trope, as well as examples saying things like "time will tell if [x] can recover." I originally tried the Real-Life cleanup section, and then a TRS thread, but I hope this is the right section to help us clean up this trope's examples. ^^
MOD NOTE: For something to be overshadowed by controversy; it has to have a significant, arguably overwhelming impact on that work/creator/thing that’s provable by pointing to actual evidence beyond social media likes or a news report. The controversy has to be bigger than the thing for it to overshadow the thing.
For a work, did it bomb directly due to the controversy? Was it pulled from shelves or streaming services? Nothing like this? Then it most likely doesn’t count.
For a creator, did they lose their job/get banned or lose all of their sponsorships or are unable to get any work directly due to the controversy? Did they at least retire directly because of the controversy? Nothing like this? Then it most likely doesn’t count.
Valid examples would be people like Gina Carano or Louie CK. As they were both fired and black listed for their controversies. Or Johnny Depp and Amber Heard are now more known for those controversies than their actual careers. Clearly being overshadowed by it.
If only chronically online people like us are going to be aware of something, it definitely doesn’t count. The controversy has to be so big that even people who are rarely online or know very little about something, would still have heard of the controversy.
Edited by kory on Oct 4th 2025 at 10:21:54 AM
Apologies for the double posting, but spotted this entry under Web Original and I'm wondering if it can be cut for not being in the one year timeframe? (It was added just today)
The Dark Id was a very popular creator on Something Awful's Let's Play board and something of a Fandom VIP for the NIER and Drakengard series, with one of his post reaching Yoko Taro himself. While mostly quiet about his private life, The Dark Id slipped in bits and pieces about his cancer-stricken daughter (who supposedly died in 2019) and his exciting but dangerous job, framing himself as a hardcore mercenary / superspy with an equally dangerous ex-millitary wife. In March 2024, after The Dark ID claimed to be dying of terminal cancer, big-name let's player Slowbeefposted an expose of The Dark ID's inconsistent tale tales and his fabrications, including using sockpuppets to boost his Something Awful threads and social media profiles. With him going low since then, the expose of his lies and how he used them to milk sympathy and admiration has cast a permanent shadow over his work.
Indeed — though I'll note I haven't heard of this person.
I don't think either Genshin counts, the game is so massively popular that IDK if it can be overshadowed. Also this entry IDK if it counts since the videos were intentionally controversial.
- Very few people know anything about comedienne Nicole Arbour other than her making controversial videos to attract viewers, her most infamous being "Dear Fat People" and her This Is America parody This is Women, which many have viewed as a tone-deaf white feminist mockery of the original, and her abuse of Matthew Santoro when the two were in a relationship.
Does the controversy regarding the abuse overshadow everything else she does? That is, has the public opinion of her changed that much that the only thing people will talk about is that controversy?
Again, the controversy needs to overshadow the work itself. The presence of controversy alone does not qualify it for this page.
Edited by fireheart on Aug 26th 2024 at 5:00:54 AM
Apologies if this was mentioned in the thread already; IDK how to search right in it.
So OBC has an entry for Paper Mario Sticker Star on the game's page:
- Overshadowed by Controversy: Even with the backlash against the game, it probably wouldn't have been seen as that bad if it wasn't for one thing: the Magnum Opus Dissonance on Nintendo's behalf that is leading them to stick with the same style of game. It doesn't help that the general reception of Sticker Star means that Paper Mario fans aren't really interested in discussing anything about the game itself, instead preferring to talk about the impact it had on the franchise.
This entry, however, is not crosswicked on the videogame OBC page, as it was removed in 2021 for the following reason: "I've seen plenty of people talk still talk about Sticker Star's flaws, like the lack of EXP points and numerous Guide Dang It moments."
Even more confusingly though is that it _does_ have an entry on Color Splash, which is not on that game's page and never was:
- Paper Mario: Color Splash was hit with controversy before it was even released, due to being a sequel (gameplay-wise) to the universally disliked Paper Mario: Sticker Star. While many of the developers attempted to assure fans that it would address the shortcomings of Sticker Star, unfortunately for them, an interview with one of its producers, Risa Tabata, gave the impression that the heads of the creative team saw the Mario & Luigi franchise as the premier "Mario RPG franchise" (that also happens to diverge from its RPG roots in favor of gimmicks and setpieces as of Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam) and that the Paper Mario franchise would instead focus more on humor and puzzles. All this ended up overshadowing the game itself, where it was released to reception better than Sticker Star but still otherwise divisive.
The edit that removed the Sticker Star entry said they were unsure if Color Splash fit, so it was kept.
The reasons for both of these entries clearly follow the logic of "the premise and setpieces are unappealing to longtime fans of the series", but then something like Metroid Other M would also qualify, which has no such entry on either its page or the OBC page. And that's not like Federation Force which does have a veritable controversy associated with it, so I feel like both of these should go.
Any other thoughts?
I'd be fine with both Paper Mario entries going as they're currently written (both read more like stealth complaining when it was trendy to bash them both). Even though it's a YMMV trope and I definitely do recall the controversy around the genre shift, there really needs to be a better way to write those neutrally.
If we wanted to keep the Paper Mario entries up, the best I could imagine is citing the VGC interview where Kensuke Tanabe discusses why the later entries are the way they are, seeing as how they spurred discussion about the so-called "Mario Mandates", but I still doubt that'd be enough. Had it actually impacted the sales of Origami King maybe, but that didn't happen.
I'll go ahead and cut these then.
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Semi-related but didn't Origami King receive praise as a return to form (or at least was a Surprisingly Improved Sequel)? I haven't seen it get anywhere near the same vitriol as the previous two games so it at least avoided the same stigma they were (and still are) held to.
I saw that the JonTron entry was deleted recently with the following reason: "Misuse of the page/link - literally mentioned in the example that the controversy does not overshadow the work."
For the record, the entry contained the following:
- While JonTron (real name Jon Jafari) is still a famous and beloved online comedian known for pioneering the absurdist comedy style of media reviewing and for his stint as the original co-host of Game Grumps, he is also known for getting his voicework removed from Yooka-Laylee after expressing statements that were viewed as racist and nativist on Twitter and during a livestreamed debate with well-known streamer Destiny. He has since apologized and if the views and comments on his two videos when he returned in August 2017 are any indication, it appears many of his fans have since forgiven him. However, outside of his core fanbase, the Destiny debate and its repercussions still continue to affect public perception of him.
True in a literal sense, but as the entry also notes, the controversy has managed to dog him outside of his most hardcore fans to a point where it always gets brought up in conjunction with his name, even if he's still successful - in effect it kind of does overshadow his work. Incidentally it's also become increasingly common to hear that those who can stomach his political opinions just don't care for him as much as they used to and that his newer videos suffer from Seasonal Rot, particularly after he stopped focusing on video games, meaning that said hardcore fanbase may be shrinking. Would mention of this be a valid update that would also make it more compliant?
Edited by AlleyOop on Aug 30th 2024 at 2:20:01 AM
Some questionable additions to OvershadowedByControversy.Western Animation:
- Any chance Oggy and the Cockroaches had at becoming popular in the US was crushed when the show attracted controversy over a brief appearance of a naked woman in the episode "(Un)Happy Camper!", which led Nickelodeon to quietly drop the series. While the show certainly has its fans, many people only know the show by this incident. Might be valid, but first I've heard of it.
- Most Americans remember Angela Anaconda only for the special Digimon: The Movie tie-in short that preceded said movie in theatres, which was unanimously panned and decried as pointless Filler, to the point of having an infamous 4chan greentext based around it. Many kids got their first (if not only) exposure to the show through this, and for them the short would immediately overshadow any of the series' other merits. Same as above.
- The Daily Wire cartoon Chip Chilla immediately became controversial for being essentially a conservative rip-off of Bluey, which is considered a Sacred Cow by its fans young and old, especially those living in its native Australia. Notably, the show's art style and character designs were originally supposed to be very different, and the eventual switch to a Bluey-influenced style did not go unnoticed. It has also been accused of potentially teaching harmful lessons to children, and the show's Troubled Production hasn't gone unnoticed either. Misuse as just controversy, not what's being unfairly overshadowed.
- It's been difficult to talk about Final Space without bringing up how the show became subject to a tax write-off by Warner Bros. that resulted in the show getting taken off all official channels in 2022. Incident overlaps with Audience-Alienating Ending, entry seems separate enough but double checking.
- The Princes negative portrayal of the Royal family, especially with Prince George and Queen Elizabeth II, is probably more known than what goes on in the series itself. Many people found it inappropriate to portray a real life young child and an elderly ruler as self-absorbed jerkasses, so when the trailers for the show were released, the show started gaining criticism, to the point where the criticism had even received news coverage for its portrayals of such members, with some people considering it insulting or bullying. Aside from the representations, the show is also known for its premiere's delay due to Prince Philip's death on April 2021 at the age of 99, which occurred just as the show was about to broadcast. Seems like too big a part of the work to say overshadowed.
Edited by Ferot_Dreadnaught on Sep 1st 2024 at 12:03:37 PM
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Regarding the The Prince example, it seems more like Audience-Alienating Premise which the work already lists. Cut it.

(Also of note - the controversy needs to still overshadow the work after a year. It's not simply "this controversy happened a year ago but now nobody cares." Not saying it's the case here, just clarifying why we have the waiting period.)