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So Bad It's Horrible Cleanup

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So Bad, It's Horrible is one of the more flame-bait-y parts of the site, so a cleanup thread is needed to ensure that works aren't added simply because someone doesn't like them.

If you want to list a work under this, keep the following in mind:

  • The work must have very few fans or defenders (both genuine and ironic). It should fail to appeal to any type of audience.
  • Being offensive in its subject matter isn't enough.
  • It isn't horrible just because a certain critic disliked it, though their reviews can be used as sources and citations.
  • The work should have notably poor reviews (e.g., less than 3/10 on IMDb, or single digit scores on Rotten Tomatoes)
  • For a Moral Substitute to qualify, it cannot even appeal to its target demographic.
  • Please be polite while writing and as much as possible, avoid falling into Complaining About Shows You Don't Like. Instead, focus on explaining why the work is horrible.

In addition, per No Recent Examples, Please!, a work must be at least one month old before it can be added, to prevent knee-jerk reactions.

Edited by GastonRabbit on Oct 6th 2024 at 3:34:45 AM

mightymewtron Word Up from New New York Since: Oct, 2012 Relationship Status: THIS CONCEPT OF 'WUV' CONFUSES AND INFURIATES US!
Word Up
#5901: Aug 4th 2023 at 3:58:37 PM

For what it's worth, Doug himself has taken the backlash about The Wall in stride and admitted that it was a failed experiment, and the social media and Fenneh have both made jokes about the backlash. I do think that CTC controversy (not objectively "being a terrible person") did more damage, but most people who stuck through that stuck through The Wall too. They just also agreed it sucked.

I do some cleanup and then I enjoy shows you probably think are cringe.
kablammin45 art lizer from Cleese's Battle Circuit (4 Score & 7 Years Ago)
art lizer
#5902: Aug 5th 2023 at 11:11:37 AM

So I stumbled across the history of the fast-food chain Rax Roast Beef and how the last thing they were able to do in any capacity before totally falling off the fast-food map was introduce a mascot character named "Mr. Delicious" to sell their food (a character that customers unanimously rejected despite Rax's best efforts), as described in this video:

Is this campaign Horrible-worthy? Based on the research I made, it seems that Rax was already in huge trouble beforehand (due to company mismanagement and a menu that ran on "throw it at the wall and see if it sticks"), but the Mr. Delicious campaign was just the final nail in the coffin for the chain, and they filed for bankruptcy mere months later.

Edited by kablammin45 on Aug 5th 2023 at 11:12:43 AM

"Hey, least I didn't lose all my artistic talent when I crash landed in the arena here."
FernandoLemon Since: Aug, 2015
#5903: Aug 5th 2023 at 11:13:52 AM

[up] Your explanation is leaving out a crucial detail: why was this character/campaign so hated?

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)
#5904: Aug 5th 2023 at 11:14:42 AM

Right, I'm trying to get that too (without having to watch a video for context). What made the campaign bad? Did people actually hate it or did it just not catch on?

Working on: Author Appeal | Sandbox | Troper Wall
kablammin45 art lizer from Cleese's Battle Circuit (4 Score & 7 Years Ago)
art lizer
#5905: Aug 5th 2023 at 11:49:37 AM

Oh, whoops, I'm a dummy. Hang on.

Okay, based on the further research I'm not able to find sufficient proof that customers hated Mr. Delicious and it seems more like he just didn't catch on.

So, uh, disregard all this then unless we find more substantial proof that people legitimately hated Mr. Delicious.

"Hey, least I didn't lose all my artistic talent when I crash landed in the arena here."
SpongeBat1 We stan Clippy in this house from Quittersville, Failuretown, and Loserburg (Y2: Electric Boogaloo) Relationship Status: It's a god-awful small affair
We stan Clippy in this house
#5906: Aug 5th 2023 at 12:37:05 PM

Yeah, Mr. Delicious just sounds like a case of an ad campaign that didn't click released at a bad time.

Came for the tropes, stayed for the cleanup.
AlmightyKingPrawn I can chase the wind, I can race the rain from Down at Fraggle Rock *clap clap* Since: Oct, 2019 Relationship Status: I love you for psychological reasons
I can chase the wind, I can race the rain
#5907: Aug 5th 2023 at 3:29:20 PM

We actually had Mr. Delicious, but I cut it for having a cult following that finds it So Bad It's Good.

She/her. Profile pic is by Richard Michael Gomez @StarmansArt. Please watch Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock. https://youtu.be/Vm92JNgPbqk
AlmightyKingPrawn I can chase the wind, I can race the rain from Down at Fraggle Rock *clap clap* Since: Oct, 2019 Relationship Status: I love you for psychological reasons
I can chase the wind, I can race the rain
#5908: Aug 5th 2023 at 5:17:03 PM

I feel that we should cut Mallard Fillmore from Horrible.Comic Strips. The reason why is that the articles linked about the antisemitic and transphobic strips have comments sections full of people calling the comic genius and crying "CANCEL CULTURE!", which is... deeply concerning for the future, but besides that point proves an audience. Also, it's a Long Runner, and the entry outright says that the 10% of strips that aren't political are funny.

Edited by AlmightyKingPrawn on Aug 5th 2023 at 8:19:54 AM

She/her. Profile pic is by Richard Michael Gomez @StarmansArt. Please watch Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock. https://youtu.be/Vm92JNgPbqk
mightymewtron Word Up from New New York Since: Oct, 2012 Relationship Status: THIS CONCEPT OF 'WUV' CONFUSES AND INFURIATES US!
Word Up
#5909: Aug 5th 2023 at 6:52:45 PM

I honestly never thought the strip was SBIH given how long it lasted, as I do recognize it from when I was a kid, even if I had no idea what it was about, but I just assumed I wasn't old enough at the time to know how popular certain comic strips were. It ran for a long time in many mainstream papers, so it clearly was popular with its target audience of conservatives.

I do some cleanup and then I enjoy shows you probably think are cringe.
BocchiTheRock Since: Feb, 2023
#5910: Aug 5th 2023 at 10:05:13 PM

[up][up] Honestly I said earlier that I feel that none of the comic strip entries belong, as many of them are long running and thus can be assumed to have fanbases, its just that the type of people who are newspaper comic fans generally aren't so active on the internet. Even "Reply All" with its poorly drawn art is still running after over a decade. (and honestly at this point I think poorly drawn art is kept on purpose)

Nen_desharu Nintendo Fanatic Extraordinaire from Greater Smash Bros. Universe or Toronto Since: Aug, 2020 Relationship Status: Who needs love when you have waffles?
Nintendo Fanatic Extraordinaire
#5911: Aug 6th 2023 at 9:38:07 AM

Between Friends is also a long-runner and is still present in many newspapers' comic sections and is safe to remove as it implies that it still has a fanbase, albeit one that isn't actively discussed on the Internet.

There's a reason why Obscure Popularity is a trope.

Kirby is awesome.
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)
#5912: Aug 6th 2023 at 9:41:54 AM

For what it's worth, just googling "Mallard Filmore" also comes up with some non-political strips too, like one about stereotypical anime character design.

Working on: Author Appeal | Sandbox | Troper Wall
MurlocAggroB from the second-most ridiculous province of Canada Since: May, 2015
#5913: Aug 6th 2023 at 3:11:43 PM

Does Ben and Arthur belong on SBIH? It's known as "the LGBT version of The Room" and by my understanding it has a decent cult following. Hell, even RedLetterMedia's review starts with them saying that it's one of their favourite So Bad, It's Good movies.

regulation pigeon
TheLivingDrawing Lucas the Dreamer from The Town of Clayton Since: Apr, 2019 Relationship Status: Yes, I'm alone, but I'm alone and free
Lucas the Dreamer
#5914: Aug 6th 2023 at 3:14:33 PM

[up] Cynical Reviews claims it is as much of a failure of a movie you can make while still remembering to turn on the camera yet he kinda loves it and says it’s so bad its good.

Once Upon A Time.
Zuxtron Berserk Button: misusing Nightmare Fuel from Node 03 (On A Trope Odyssey)
#5915: Aug 6th 2023 at 3:48:43 PM

I've never heard of it before today, but that page definitely sounds more So Bad, It's Good (which is even listed on its YMMV page).

CompletelyNormalGuy Am I a weirdo? from a place where folks put cream cheese on hot dogs (Oldest One in the Book)
Am I a weirdo?
#5916: Aug 7th 2023 at 11:27:15 AM

I've watched it. The group consensus was that it was So Bad, It's Good.

Bigotry will NEVER be welcome on TV Tropes.
randomtroper89 from The Fire Nation Since: Nov, 2010
#5917: Aug 7th 2023 at 1:54:07 PM

So previously I moved That's Life to Video Game Generations: Fifth to Sixth and just recently I moved the Dom Mod compilations to Video Game Generations: First to Fourth. Is there any other examples at Game Mods that need to be moved?

Edited by randomtroper89 on Aug 7th 2023 at 3:58:34 AM

Someoneman Since: Nov, 2011
#5918: Aug 7th 2023 at 5:41:49 PM

That's all the mods that are eligible for Horrible status, but speaking of pages that are going to be cut, there's still the Plants vs. Zombies NES bootleg on Fan Games that was moved there after being originally listed in the Third Generation folder, since it was decided that games released on severely outdated consoles don't count as part of that console's generation. It looks like the bootleg was made in 2012, so it would go in either the 7th or 8th generation folder.

randomtroper89 from The Fire Nation Since: Nov, 2010
#5919: Aug 7th 2023 at 9:32:20 PM

I just put it in Seventh, if anyone wants it moved, we can discuss that.

Edited by randomtroper89 on Aug 7th 2023 at 11:47:58 AM

RWBYraikou888 The Undercover Troper from The Kingdom of Atlas Since: Aug, 2020 Relationship Status: Complex: I'm real, they are imaginary
The Undercover Troper
#5920: Aug 9th 2023 at 11:13:19 PM

I wanna see what you guys think. Would the SpongeBob SquarePants storyboard jam book Behind Closed Doors qualify for Horrible.Literature? It's one thing that the contents of the book are offensive in nature, but when it was uncovered last month, the backlash to it was enormous, to the point that multiple people have deemed it as both unethical and potentially ruining the show's sanctity.

Orcus on His Throne will always be my pet peeve.
SpongeBat1 We stan Clippy in this house from Quittersville, Failuretown, and Loserburg (Y2: Electric Boogaloo) Relationship Status: It's a god-awful small affair
We stan Clippy in this house
#5921: Aug 9th 2023 at 11:19:57 PM

Considering it was never meant to be released in the first place and has nothing going for it beyond shock value I'd say no.

Came for the tropes, stayed for the cleanup.
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)
#5922: Aug 9th 2023 at 11:21:09 PM

Yeah, something being offensive is not enough to count. Also, animators get bored sometimes, this was never meant to be a released product.

Working on: Author Appeal | Sandbox | Troper Wall
BocchiTheRock Since: Feb, 2023
#5923: Aug 10th 2023 at 12:19:23 AM

Also, the articles you cited it aren't really calling it horrible, they are more so saying it's so shocking since its Spongebob doing these things. Honestly even if it was somehow a sold product I wouldn't say its horrible from an art perspective (since the art is actually decent due to being done by actual animators), just merely (ok maybe not merely) a taste one, so thus it wouldn't qualify.

AlmightyKingPrawn I can chase the wind, I can race the rain from Down at Fraggle Rock *clap clap* Since: Oct, 2019 Relationship Status: I love you for psychological reasons
I can chase the wind, I can race the rain
#5924: Aug 10th 2023 at 6:00:09 AM

Most people find the storyboard jam horrifying. Horrifying =/= horrible. Also it's extremely NSFW so I don't know if it should even be linked to the wiki.

She/her. Profile pic is by Richard Michael Gomez @StarmansArt. Please watch Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock. https://youtu.be/Vm92JNgPbqk
mightymewtron Word Up from New New York Since: Oct, 2012 Relationship Status: THIS CONCEPT OF 'WUV' CONFUSES AND INFURIATES US!
Word Up
#5925: Aug 10th 2023 at 7:57:10 AM

Drawings of Spongebob's penis are not "unethical" and a TV show should not have "sanctity." Most people seem to find this amusingly disgusting, not Horrible.

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

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