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Have an idea for a new trope, but don't know for sure if it's a good idea? Did Trope Finder give you similar concepts, but not exactly what you wanted? Are you just looking for a focus to a broader idea?

You've come to the right place!

On this thread, you can share your ideas with the masses before making that TLP draft, so if there's any lingering uncertainty about the validity of your idea or you just want some help pinning down a good idea, ask away and help others out, too!

A related sandbox I need to pitch is the Trope Idea Salvage Yard. If you've an idea but can't personally work on it, you can add it to the yard and let someone else create the draft. Or you can browse it yourself if you need more draft ideas, whether or not you feel they should be mentioned here first.

Got ideas for non-trope pages you need help with? Never fear, the New Page Workshop Thread is here!

With that out of the way: Let's discuss some ideas.

Edited by MacronNotes on Feb 27th 2022 at 1:49:11 PM

mightymewtron Word Up from New New York Since: Oct, 2012 Relationship Status: THIS CONCEPT OF 'WUV' CONFUSES AND INFURIATES US!
Word Up
#2476: Jul 22nd 2021 at 1:31:59 PM

I think they could both fit under the same umbrella. I've seen the ASPCA type of ads parodied before.

Though we do have Appeal to Pity, I just remembered. Does that work for this aspect or does the advertising angle work for its own thing?

I do some cleanup and then I enjoy shows you probably think are cringe.
themayorofsimpleton Short-Term Projects Herald | he/him from the Island of Koridai (Captain) Relationship Status: I won't say I'm in love
Short-Term Projects Herald | he/him
#2477: Jul 22nd 2021 at 1:32:07 PM

[up][up] Actually good point, the charity version might be a subtrope. Emotionally Manipulative Advertising does seem like a valid concept, I've heard of lots of ads that do that.

(If I ever get involved in the TLP, I still think I could pitch the charity version as a subtrope though.)

Edited by themayorofsimpleton on Jul 22nd 2021 at 4:32:14 AM

Works That Require Cleanup of Complaining | Troper Wall
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)
#2478: Jul 22nd 2021 at 1:33:13 PM

Well, if the Logical Fallacies TRS ever picks up steam again, Appeal to Pity may not be a separate page for much longer.

Working on: Author Appeal | Sandbox | Troper Wall
selkies TOO serious! from Guess, guess, guess Since: Jan, 2021 Relationship Status: Star-crossed
TOO serious!
#2479: Jul 22nd 2021 at 11:33:13 PM

Don't know if this is the right thread, but I'm trying to adopt the Clingy Child draft I found in the Trope Idea Salvage Yard, though I can only think of two detailed examples. It's one of these tropes where you know it exists but can't remember any full examples of it.

Uncanny Valley Hot Babes in Your Area Are Looking To Know YOU! Click Here to Sign Up for FREE! | Not quite back tbh. Don't expect much.
Akkun_K (They/them) Since: Jul, 2017 Relationship Status: Complex: I'm real, they are imaginary
(They/them)
#2480: Jul 22nd 2021 at 11:45:41 PM

I'm honestly surprised there's never been a Gemstone Motif page suggested before, I've been thinking of making one.

I promise I'll never let you go, baby. 🖤❗
magnumtropus Since: Aug, 2020
#2481: Jul 23rd 2021 at 12:23:59 AM

In a similar vein to Trend Killer, I was thinking of a trope to describe something that causes a partnership to break... a Partnership Breaker.

It may be caused by a work underperforming or a Role-Ending Misdemeanor. It sometimes (but not always) ends up as a Creator Killer or Franchise Killer.

themayorofsimpleton Short-Term Projects Herald | he/him from the Island of Koridai (Captain) Relationship Status: I won't say I'm in love
Short-Term Projects Herald | he/him
#2482: Jul 23rd 2021 at 4:38:38 AM

[up] That does not sound like it would have nearly as many examples as Trend Killer would. Trend Killer worked because it's a valid concept with lots of possible examples that could help catch Genre Killer misuse. Not sure if "Partnership Killer" would do the same.

Works That Require Cleanup of Complaining | Troper Wall
windleopard from Nigeria Since: Nov, 2014 Relationship Status: Non-Canon
#2483: Jul 23rd 2021 at 5:21:30 AM

I have an idea for a deity trope about gods whose domains are darkness/night and the moon. Should I make them one single trope or keep them separate?

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)
#2484: Jul 23rd 2021 at 10:59:01 AM

I say keep them separate but note the overlap.

Working on: Author Appeal | Sandbox | Troper Wall
Malady (X-Troper)
#2485: Jul 24th 2021 at 5:30:58 AM

Huh, I just realized... Zero Is First, like "Subject Zero" and "Patient Zero"... Is that a trope, because "First" is connected to the ordinal 1, but in this case, they use 0?

Or Number One Is Not The First, if some other number weirdness is going on?

Disambig Needed: Help with those issues! tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=13324299140A37493800&page=24#comment-576
HeavyMetalHermitCrab Since: Sep, 2018
#2486: Jul 24th 2021 at 6:49:31 AM

[up] "Patient Zero" and "Subject Zero" are variations on Ground Zero — "Ground Zero" being a term given to the exact site of a nuclear explosion (or, later on, any kind of similarly violent or dramatic event).

It's not a numbering convention, and it's no more a trope than the phrase "ground zero" is.

Edited by HeavyMetalHermitCrab on Jul 24th 2021 at 6:50:47 AM

Malady (X-Troper)
#2487: Jul 24th 2021 at 6:59:13 AM

[up] - Patient at least... Seems incorrect, unless you mean its use is following a trend?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Index_case#Term:

Patient zero [...] was based on a misunderstanding: in the 1984 study of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), one of the earliest recorded HIV-patients was code-named "patient O", which stands for "patient out of California". The letter O, however, was interpreted by some readers of the report as the numeral 0. The designation patient zero (for Gaëtan Dugas) was subsequently propagated by the San Francisco Chronicle journalist Randy Shilts [...]. William Darrow, behavioral scientist of CDC responsible to figure out why gay men in Los Angeles were dying of a strange illness, said: "That's correct. I never labeled him Patient Zero".[8]

Disambig Needed: Help with those issues! tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=13324299140A37493800&page=24#comment-576
HeavyMetalHermitCrab Since: Sep, 2018
#2488: Jul 24th 2021 at 7:37:06 AM

[up] Huh, you learn something new every day.

My argument was more that, over time, "_____ Zero" has developed into a catch-all term for the focal location (or first patient, etc.) of something catastrophic, be it an illness or a disaster.

Moreover, I don't think numbering conventions are generally tropeworthy — especially one that's a normal variation of numbering system. It's just counting from zero as opposed to counting from one. There's nothing particularly noteworthy about that.

mightymewtron Word Up from New New York Since: Oct, 2012 Relationship Status: THIS CONCEPT OF 'WUV' CONFUSES AND INFURIATES US!
Word Up
#2489: Jul 24th 2021 at 8:20:19 AM

Plus, Patient Zero is already a trope.

I do some cleanup and then I enjoy shows you probably think are cringe.
Malady (X-Troper)
#2490: Jul 24th 2021 at 8:56:55 AM

[up] - Whoops, I meant Zero Is First would be more of an Trope/Index, where, yeah, Patient Zero would be a Sub-Trope.

Along with Episode Zero: The Beginning...

Not really tied to making Zero Is First, I just realized that the pattern exists...

Disambig Needed: Help with those issues! tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=13324299140A37493800&page=24#comment-576
Merseyuser1 Since: Sep, 2011
#2491: Jul 25th 2021 at 5:58:01 AM

Possible new trope idea, derived from Anachronism Stew:

Perhaps with this image from WesternAnimation.The Pink Panther (1994 episode "Eric the Pink") of Horny Vikings eating pizza , hot dogs and popcorn would fit:

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/anachronism_stew_1.jpg
In their day, pizza wasn't their snack food of choice... oh wait, may be a time traveller brought it!

Edited by Merseyuser1 on Jul 25th 2021 at 2:00:27 PM

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
#2492: Jul 25th 2021 at 8:42:08 PM

[up]Civilization VI has leaders whose trade delegations bring anachronistic cuisine. For example, Jayavarman VII of the Khmer had a trade delegation with fried tarantulas, despite such delicacies existing only since the late 20th century, almost a millennium after Jayavarman VII's time. Likewise, Matthias Corvinus of Hungary mentioned that his trade delegation brought paprikash, despite the dish's key ingredient of paprika being completely absent in the Old World during his time as the peppers used to make paprika were only found in central Mexico, which was completely unknown to those in the Old World at the time.

Edited by Nen_desharu on Jul 25th 2021 at 11:46:09 AM

Kirby is awesome.
Merseyuser1 Since: Sep, 2011
#2493: Jul 26th 2021 at 1:15:24 AM

[up]Good entry, that's the sort of thing that fits the trope.

I'm sure this could be quite a large page that would need sub-pages.

Edited by Merseyuser1 on Jul 26th 2021 at 9:15:34 AM

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
#2494: Jul 26th 2021 at 7:57:07 PM

[up]No doubt about it.

The subpages can be by medium.

Kirby is awesome.
Malady (X-Troper)
#2495: Jul 26th 2021 at 7:59:58 PM

[up] - Unless they're too big, then we usually start going by work / series.[lol]

Disambig Needed: Help with those issues! tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=13324299140A37493800&page=24#comment-576
magnumtropus Since: Aug, 2020
#2496: Jul 26th 2021 at 9:24:16 PM

Is there a trope for when a TV shows intro (or any piece of media's credits sequence) consists of clips from the show/media.

Examples include the opening for Psych and Rick and Morty (kinda), or the Main on end credits sequence in Avengers: Endgame

Edited by magnumtropus on Jul 26th 2021 at 9:25:31 AM

NitroIndigo ♀ | Small ripples lead to big waves from West Midlands region, England Since: Jun, 2021 Relationship Status: Who needs love when you have waffles?
♀ | Small ripples lead to big waves
#2497: Jul 26th 2021 at 10:20:56 PM

[up] Title Montage

Edited by NitroIndigo on Jul 26th 2021 at 6:21:26 PM

Snowsky (Life not ruined yet)
#2498: Jul 28th 2021 at 4:50:28 AM

Idea for a new trope: Colored Creature Colored Egg, where a fictional animal's egg matches the color and pattern of the animal inside it. If anyone has a better idea for the trope title, please let me know.

NitroIndigo ♀ | Small ripples lead to big waves from West Midlands region, England Since: Jun, 2021 Relationship Status: Who needs love when you have waffles?
♀ | Small ripples lead to big waves
#2499: Jul 28th 2021 at 5:37:28 AM

[up] Pattern-Coded Eggs, maybe? Off the top of my head, the Pokemon anime used to have a unique egg design for each species, while Billy Hatcher and the Giant Egg and Temtem have a smaller number of egg designs that correspond to the Elemental Powers of the creatures inside of them.

Edited by NitroIndigo on Jul 28th 2021 at 1:37:50 PM

Malady (X-Troper)
#2500: Jul 28th 2021 at 6:21:04 AM

Color Coded For Convenience is related?

Or whatever that's called?


Thinking about an index for "Half" tropes, like:

See Mixed Ancestry?

Edited by Malady on Jul 28th 2021 at 6:22:23 AM

Disambig Needed: Help with those issues! tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=13324299140A37493800&page=24#comment-576

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