NaNo 4328 / 50,000
A change in threat level is not the same as a Tone Shift.
Link to TRS threads in project mode here.
The definition is being too strict, then. "The tone of the work going darker or lighter" is a relative thing already.
We can never truly eradicate the coronavirus, but we can suppress its threat like influenza
Agreed.
A villain that shows up and greatly increases the stakes or forces a dark story turn by being magnitudes more evil and ruthless than the usual villains were up that point is definitely a trope.
Like the Demon Ahriman in Highlander showing up and being a literal Evil God and Satan Archetype in a show that was pretty free of major supernatural forces aside from Immortals themselves up to that point.
The first thing he does is trick Duncan into killing his own protege just to show how much of a complete monster he is.
Edited by CryptidProductions on Apr 18th 2019 at 12:00:33 PM
I do think Cerebus Syndrome and related tropes can apply to works that aren't pure comedy as long there is an obvious shift to the darker and dramatic. So a dramedy or goofy Monster of the Week action show that suddenly becomes more plot- and villain-driven could have a Knight of Cerebus.
If that trope was made, I think it would need to be YMMV. It's a lot easier to objectively describe the Tone Shift that comes with Cerebus Syndrome and related tropes- an increase in the action/drama to comedy ratio. "Threat level" is harder to quantify (although we do have Serial Escalation which largely covers the concept you're describing). Already often people misuse Knight of Cerebus to mean "really menacing villain" or "Complete Monster, but maybe not fitting all of the Complete Monster criteria" which tends to just lead to Gushing About Villains You Like. People already have a tendency to leave out the "tone shift" context with Knight of Cerebus, and this might be a problem with the split trope as well- I worry it would become a dumping ground for failed Complete Monsters.
"It's just a show; I should really just relax"
Definitely agree with making it YMMV for those exact reasons above.
Then again, I've noticed that this site seems to be trying to do away with YMMV anyway.
So, the original definition of Knight of Cerebus is: "A character that adds drama to a series that has been, until that point, pure comedy."
With the emphasis being that the series HAD to have been a comedy before the Knight's appearance. There seems to have been a mandate recently to keep the trope to this strict definition, but I've noticed alot of people using a more loose definition that I feel could potentially be it's own trope:
"A villain who's presence or appearence creates a NOTICABLE shift in the stakes and tone of a work."
As an example, a crime drama is not a comedic series (usually), however, if the majority of villains to start are petty crooks or theives with the occasional sympathetic murderer at worst, the introduction of a remorseless serial killer who begins offing cast members one by one would be a SIGNIFICANT jump in threat levels.