TVTropes Now available in the app store!
Open

Follow TV Tropes

Following

Trope Idea Sounding Board

Go To

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

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
#2526: Jul 31st 2021 at 9:17:06 AM

[up][up] We didn’t have that already? Damn.

Works That Require Cleanup of Complaining | Troper Wall
Malady (X-Troper)
#2527: Jul 31st 2021 at 9:45:49 AM

The links to ScienceFair don't indicate any volcanoes?

Disambig Needed: Help with those issues! tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=13324299140A37493800&page=24#comment-576
Synchronicity (4 Score & 7 Years Ago)
#2528: Jul 31st 2021 at 11:32:10 AM

It's mentioned as part of the stock depiction of Science Fair.

Inevitably, someone will build a volcano, which tends to erupt and make a mess of the auditorium, or a model of the solar system.

mightymewtron Word Up from New New York Since: Oct, 2012 Relationship Status: THIS CONCEPT OF 'WUV' CONFUSES AND INFURIATES US!
Word Up
#2529: Jul 31st 2021 at 11:54:26 AM

Feels worthy of a distinct subtrope if we can find enough examples of Science Fair that don't involve volcanoes.

I do some cleanup and then I enjoy shows you probably think are cringe.
Merseyuser1 Since: Sep, 2011
#2530: Jul 31st 2021 at 5:01:49 PM

The idea for it being a subtrope came from School Tropes as an index, and also because it could work as a standalone trope in itself, due to the amount of parodies it gets.

Should it count as a Discredited Trope or Dead Horse Trope now, since modern settings probably won't use it as much?

Not sure how common it was in Real Life, IIRC, my school never did such a thing, we just had to draw volcano diagrams in our textbooks (much more mundane, but then again... the British system is different).

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
#2531: Jul 31st 2021 at 8:11:22 PM

I once had a science fair in elementary school in Toronto and none of them involved volcanoes.

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)
#2532: Jul 31st 2021 at 8:12:16 PM

My science fair was a totally casual "make what you want" thing. I did everything from train my hamster to run a small maze, to a project about optical illusions. Some people did the volcano thing, but even back then it was considered cliche.

Working on: Author Appeal | Sandbox | Troper Wall
nrjxll Since: Nov, 2010 Relationship Status: Not war
#2533: Jul 31st 2021 at 11:47:06 PM

The "science fair volcano" is something I've only ever heard of in fiction, to the point that I was genuinely surprised when your original post described reasons it had fallen out of favor in real life which imply it had been a real thing once.

mightymewtron Word Up from New New York Since: Oct, 2012 Relationship Status: THIS CONCEPT OF 'WUV' CONFUSES AND INFURIATES US!
Word Up
#2534: Aug 1st 2021 at 12:26:41 AM

So in short, definitely sounds worth a draft. We can see if it's distinct enough from Science Fair in there.

I do some cleanup and then I enjoy shows you probably think are cringe.
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
#2536: Aug 1st 2021 at 4:44:20 AM

I have an idea for a trope where non-humans are confused by the concept of clothes, thinking that they're part of humans' bodies. Off the top of my head, the bears in Seekers think that clothes are humans' "pelts", and Elfangor in Animorphs: The Andalite Chronicles thought that Loren's clothes were part of her skin and freaked out when she took off one of her "hooves" (shoes). It could be called something like, Confused by Clothing.

SirHandel3 Since: Jan, 2015
#2537: Aug 1st 2021 at 1:20:39 PM

I've got something I think might be a good trope, but I'm not sure.

Nolanization Imagine you’re a comic book fan and Steven Ulysses Perihero a.k.a. Grass Man is your favorite. You hear the bigwigs in Hollywood are planning a Grass Man series of movies. You’re initially ecstatic, but then you realize that there’s no way anyone but you would take Grass Man seriously. He wears a bright green costume, drives a bright green van, and makes grass-themed puns. Not to mention “Grass Man” isn’t a very impressive name. You convince yourself that no one but you will like the movies because of it.

Then you go see it. Wait, what’s that?! Grass Man’s driving his iconic van, and it looks awesome! What’s that? It’s a weedkiller van?! That makes total sense! And oh. My. God. Is that his iconic costume?! But somehow it doesn’t look silly! The green isn’t garishly bright! Huh. Green is the color of Grass Man’s weedkilling agency. Okay yeah, they’re being a little silly with it, no wait! His weedkilling agency’s a cover for him to patrol his suburban neighborhood?! YES! That makes so much sense! Okay, but there’s no way he’ll make any grass puns. That’d be too ridiculous.

“Help, Grass Man! That snake’s taken my daughter and gone into the woods! They could be anywhere!” “Don’t worry, I placed a tracker on him. It’ll weed him out sooner or later.” Ohmygod. Grass Man made a grass pun, and no one laughed! The actor actually made it sound kinda cool! And they even got in an allusion to his archenemy Garden Snake!

You leave the theater and hear everyone talking about how much they liked the movie, and you feel happy that others have finally witnessed the awesomeness that is Grass Man. Now he’s a household name and everyone’s buying his comics. You’re so happy. What could possibly have gone so right?

Nolanization is when a creative team takes an unrealistic or fantastical premise and portrays it in a realistic, down-to-earth way so as to make it plausible in the real world. Every unrealistic element, whether obvious like superpowers, the equipment, or the setting, or even not-so-obvious elements like why the characters would be a part of this setting, is given sound reasoning behind it. If done well, it can bolster the audience’s suspension of disbelief to such heights that questioning the work’s internal logic breeds eye-rolls and reminders of the MST 3 K Mantra, and make the brand popular with people who previously never would’ve given it a chance. If done poorly, it can make the work look ashamed of its source material, as if it’s trying to distance itself from it, to the consternation of fans.

Nolanization is similar to but ultimately different from reconstruction. The difference between the two can be subtle, as both involve making what would be hard to take seriously in real life believable, but there are some distinct differences: like reconstruction, Nolanization involves modifying a trope into a form that resembles a straight example but would still work in reality, but it’s specifically about making something feel grounded and down-to-earth, and doesn’t require anything to be deconstructed first while reconstruction is specifically about fixing the flaws of a trope regardless of whether the trope is realistic or fantastical. The difference is certainly subtle and can be hard to spot, but they’re not necessarily mutually exclusive; some Nolanizations reconstruct, but not all reconstructions Nolanize.

Named after Christopher Nolan, director of The Dark Knight Trilogy which has since become the Trope Codifier. May also involve Reimagining the Artifact.

Alternative Name: Adaptational Groundedness

Examples

Comic Books:

• All-Star Batman Nolanizes one of the most ridiculed aspects of the 1960s Batman movie in its second issue: Batman’s fighting King Shark and shoots him with darts containing a foul-smelling chemical compound that Killer Croc refers to as “shark repellent.” The most laughed-at meme in all of Batman, and Scott Snyder makes it perfectly plausible.

• Batman: RIP: The Batman of Zur-En-Arrh was originally a man named Tlano who lived on a planet where Batman gained Superman-like powers. In 2008, Grant Morrison revived the idea by making the Batman of Zur-En-Arrh an alternate personality stored with Bruce Wayne’s subconscious in case his enemies ever attacked his mind.

• Batman: Rebirth: Before Tom King came along, Kite Man was a forgotten D-list supervillain with a kite theme, who readers today would see as a dork. King’s story “The Ballad of Kite Man” explains why he chose the kite theme: Charles Brown used to fly kites with his son until his son was poisoned by the Riddler. His son would often say “hell yeah!” which his father would tell him not to say. His son’s love of kites and tendency to say “hell yeah!” would inspire Charles to create a kite-themed costume and take the phrase “hell yeah!” for his own. He’s still seen as a joke in-universe because of his theme, but between his catchphrase and sympathetic origin, Kite Man would most certainly not be seen as a dork today.

Films – Live Action:

The Dark Knight Trilogy: • Batman Begins:

o Batman’s iconic pointy ears were originally just to convey the bat theme. In the movie, they contain communication equipment for him to speak with Alfred in the Batcave.

o The Batmobile. Previous iterations of Batman’s signature car portrayed it as either a regular car with some bat styling or a fully customized car. But neither of those could necessarily outrun the police, right? This movie gives us the Tumbler, a prototype vehicle for the military capable of jumping over rivers and accelerating into a ramp-less jump. As a cross between a Lamborghini and a tank, it’s perfect for outrunning the police, which Batman eventually has to use it for.

The Dark Knight:

o The Joker’s MO. In the comics, he uses a deadly neurotoxin to induce risus sardonicus, a spasm of the facial muscles that produces grinning, in his victims. In the movie, he kills them with more grounded methods and cuts their cheeks to give them Glasgow smiles to achieve the same effect.

o The Joker himself too. In the comics, he’s over the top and performative with no clear goal. The movies instead portray him as an agent of chaos while retaining his intelligence and audacity, and his goal is to prove to Batman, Commissioner Gordon, and the people of Gotham City that humans are inherently amoral beings who will throw away their moral codes if they feel threatened enough.

The Dark Knight Rises:

o Catwoman’s ears, like Batman’s, are given a functional purpose: They’re actually goggles to cover her eyes. When they’re not in use though, they sit on top of her head, sticking up in a way that resembles cat ears.

o Bane. In the comics, his brute strength comes from injecting himself with a super-steroid that enlarges his muscles to oversized proportions. But since the obvious change in mass can’t be applied to live action, the movie instead has his strength come from wearing a mask that gives him a steady supply of analgesic gas, enabling him to push through any human limits his body would otherwise subject him to.

o Robin in the comics is usually under the age of eighteen who accompanies Batman on crimefighting missions. As this would be child endangerment in real life, the movie instead gives us adult policeman Robin John Blake, who inherits the Batcave at the end of the film.

Marvel Cinematic Universe:

• Before the MCU came around, the idea of superheroes wearing brightly-colored spandex outfits was considered laughable in movie form. The MCU proved audiences could accept the idea as long as they were functional.

o Captain America’s outfit in the comics features scale-like detailing on his upper torso. The movie instead gives him a standard soldier’s combat uniform with his classic colors being more muted. Justified in that he’s in a warzone and shouldn’t be too visible.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier:

• The Falcon. In the comics, he wears a red and white spandex number with wings. The MCU instead gives him an experimental jetpack from the military codenamed “Falcon” (in the comics, he gained it from his pet falcon Redwing).

o His connection to and control of Redwing. In the comics, Sam Wilson has telepathic and empathic control over birds. The MCU makes Redwing a mechanical drone programmed by Sam himself.

o The MCU also neatly explains how Sam could succeed Steve as Captain America. In the comics Steve trains Sam in martial arts. Captain America: The Winter Soldier goes a step further by making him a military veteran, which gives him the fighting chops someone would need as Captain America. The movie also makes Sam a grief counselor to give an additional reason why Steve would choose him to succeed him: Someone who can connect with people and guide them through their issues would have the compassion and empathy that anyone acting as Captain America should.

Black Panther:

• Killmonger’s name. In the comics it’s his actual name. The MCU changes his name to Eric Stevens to make it more believable, with “Killmonger” being a nickname acquired from his time in the military.

Spider-Man: Homecoming: • Adrian Toomes/The Vulture. In the comics he wears a goofy green vulture getup complete with wings. The movie makes him look more sinister by giving him a mechanical jetpack instead.

Avengers: Infinity War:

• Thanos wiping out half the universe’s population. In the comics, this was to impress Lady Death who was concerned about overpopulation. As the idea of Thanos being in love with a personification of death wouldn’t make much sense to moviegoers, the overpopulation angle was given to Thanos himself instead.

• The Infinity Gauntlet itself. In the comics it’s nothing more than an accessory for Thanos to hold the Stones in. In the MCU, the Stones are physically dangerous to touch with one’s bare hands, therefore the Gauntlet’s creation serves to give the Stones’ wielder a safe way to handle them (at least until they snap their fingers).

o Thanos’ Badass Fingersnap. In the comics, the Infinity Stones made Thanos capable of erasing half of all life with merely a thought, rendering the iconic finger snap merely performative. The MCU justifies the gesture by demonstrating that the Gauntlet’s wielder has to close their hand into a fist to use the Stones.

Spider-Man: Far From Home:

• Several elements of Mysterio are Nolanized in a way that doubles as Reimagining the Artifact:

o His name. It sounds like a typical run-of-the-mill comic book name (and it is). In the movie, the characters are in Italy; he’s referred to on a news broadcast as “Uomo de Misterio” (Italian for “man of mystery”).

o His gimmick as an illusionist and special effects artist. In the comics he’s a former Hollywood stuntman and special effects artist who saw himself in a dead-end job and decided his talents would make him great at crime. The movie instead makes him a former Stark Industries employee specializing in holographic technology, explaining how someone in his position could have the resources to create his illusions. What’s more, the movie also Nolanizes how he’s able to combat Peter despite the latter’s Spider-Sense: In the comics it’s because he has a gas capable of dulling it while in the movie Peter has yet to fully master it.

o The movie also makes the creation of Mysterio a team effort between Quentin Beck and several former Stark Industries employees, which makes sense as Beck’s goal would be hard to achieve by himself.

The Falcon and the Winter Soldier:

• In the comics, the Flag-Smasher is Karl Morgenthau, whose goal is to erase all national boundaries, which is impossible for one person to achieve on their own. The MCU instead has the Flag-Smashers, a group of revolutionaries-turned-extremists who want to return the world to the state it was in during the Blip, where countries banded together in solidarity to help each other survive. The world returning to where it was before the Blip resulted in those who survived Thanos’ snap suddenly having to fend for themselves, thus fleshing out Karli Morgenthau’s motivation for wanting to erase national boundaries.

• Sam’s decision to become Captain America. Rather than take up the mantle because Steve wanted him to, he takes it up for a much more important reason. Bucky introduces Sam to Isaiah Bradley, a Black Super-Solider created by the US government to fight after Steve disappeared in World War II, who fought the Winter Soldier during the Korean War, taking off half his arm. Instead of honoring him as a hero, the government instead imprisons and experiments on him for decades. By the time he gets out, his lover has passed away and the government has since covered up his existence. The message is clear: A Black man cannot be Captain America without there being a few problems. But this doesn’t slow Sam down because he knows the country’s made strides since then, so he takes up the mantle so that all those years of struggle wouldn’t be for nothing.

Can anyone tell me if this has potential or if this is just something that already exists but with a different name?

Edited by SirHandel3 on Aug 1st 2021 at 4:24:58 AM

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)
#2538: Aug 1st 2021 at 1:23:31 PM

Ummm, I'd love to help, but you really need to break that up into paragraphs first.

Working on: Author Appeal | Sandbox | Troper Wall
Malady (X-Troper)
#2539: Aug 1st 2021 at 1:23:44 PM

[up][up] - Ow. Wall of Text. Please format better? But lesse...

Sorta like Justified Trope-version of Comic-Book Movies Don't Use Codenames... But for everything about a Comic Book Movie?

Edited by Malady on Aug 1st 2021 at 1:24:27 AM

Disambig Needed: Help with those issues! tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=13324299140A37493800&page=24#comment-576
SirHandel3 Since: Jan, 2015
#2540: Aug 1st 2021 at 2:54:29 PM

Just reformatted it. Is this better?

AmourMitts Since: Jan, 2016
#2541: Aug 1st 2021 at 11:50:06 PM

What would make a perfect subtrope to Periphery Demographic — namely, where a work is targeted to adult audiences, but actually has a strong cult following among young children?

One infamous example of this would be Father of the Pride, which, while rated TV-14, instead attracted mostly children whose parents mainly mistook it as a kids show — possibly a reason why it flopped ratings-wise.

mightymewtron Word Up from New New York Since: Oct, 2012 Relationship Status: THIS CONCEPT OF 'WUV' CONFUSES AND INFURIATES US!
Word Up
#2542: Aug 2nd 2021 at 7:53:27 AM

Is that not covered by Periphery Demographic itself mixed with What Do You Mean, It's Not for Kids??

I do some cleanup and then I enjoy shows you probably think are cringe.
jandn2014 SMILE! from somewhere in Connecticut Since: Aug, 2017 Relationship Status: Hiding
SMILE!
#2543: Aug 2nd 2021 at 8:17:27 AM

"Young children like a show made for older people" is already covered by Periphery Demographic.

rjwut (Don’t ask) Relationship Status: They call me Baby Driver
#2544: Aug 2nd 2021 at 9:30:39 AM

I haven't been able to find a page that covers this RPG trope. I don't play a lot of RPGs so I've only been able to come up with one example, but I feel like there ought to be more.

EDIT: Added Super Smash Bros. as suggested by Nitro Indigo.

Pity Mechanic

Gods are capricious, and none more so than the Random Number God. A stubborn RNG is at the core of one of the Classic Video Game "Screw You"s: the Rare Random Drop that refuses to, well, drop. This can be particularly obnoxious for games with Loot Boxes, where even shelling out cold, hard cash does not guarantee that you'll get something good. It's downright rage-inducing if you need the drop to accomplish your objective, or if you aren't skilled enough to win without it.

Game developers who sympathize with the frustration of a merciless RNG may introduce a "pity mechanic" into the game, an Anti-Frustration Feature which guarantees a certain result with enough persistence. For example, say that killing particular Mooks has a 5% chance of dropping a rare item. On average, that item should drop once for every 20 kills. However, without a pity mechanic, there's no guarantee that it will drop, no matter how many mooks you kill. A particularly uncooperative RNG might not drop the item for a long time. To combat this, a pity mechanic could be put in place so that if you kill 49 mooks without the rare item dropping, it will guarantee the drop for the next one.

Random Drops and loot boxes are the most straightforward applications of a pity mechanic, but any instance in which the programmers override the RNG in the player's favor as a reward for persistence counts. If a game unlocks a new, easier game mode in response to repeated player failure, that's Mercy Mode. If the game has a mechanic that allows you to directly influence the RNG at will rather than in response to it being stingy, that's Luck Manipulation Mechanic.

Examples:

  • Genshin Impact
    • The "Wish" gacha system consists of "banners" in which you can pay the game's premium currency (primogems) to get random items, or occasionally characters. Some banners feature increased odds of receiving certain pulls, but five-star pulls are still pretty rare. However, the game tracks how long you've gone without a four- or five-star pull. If you've done nine pulls without getting at least a four-star, the tenth is guaranteed to be at least four-star. If you go 89 pulls (or 79, depending on the banner) without getting a five-star, the next is guaranteed to be five-star. The game also increases the odds of getting a five-star pull when you're within 15 pulls of the hard mercy limit.
    • Each character banner has a featured five-star character. When you pull a five-star character, it has a 50% chance of being the featured character. If it's not, the next time you pull a five-star character is guaranteed to be the featured one. The weapon banner behaves similarly.
    • Version 2.0 adds the "Epitomized Path" mechanic to the weapons banner, which allows players to select a desired five-star weapon. When a player pulls a five-star weapon that isn't the one they want, they receive a "Fate Point." Receiving enough Fate Points guarantees their desired weapon on the next five-star pull.
  • Super Smash Bros.: Starting with Brawl, the "Pity Final Smash" mechanic can allow you to use the "Final Smash" ability right away if you die enough times.

Edited by rjwut on Aug 3rd 2021 at 10:52:40 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
#2545: Aug 2nd 2021 at 12:14:57 PM

[up]Super Smash Bros. Brawl and onward have a mechanic called the "pity Final Smash", where if you die enough times, you'll respawn with the ability to use a Final Smash (if they're enabled) straight away.

ImperialMajestyXO Since: Nov, 2015
#2546: Aug 2nd 2021 at 9:24:46 PM

Might something like "Same-Language Subtitles", for people whose spoken dialogue my be difficult to understand, be tropeworthy?

Crossover-Enthusiast from an abaondoned mall (Lucky 7) Relationship Status: Chocolate!
#2547: Aug 2nd 2021 at 11:50:28 PM

I have two ideas. Nearly 3:00 AM so excuse if I can't write this right:

  1. Ribs as accessories: exclusive to clothed skeleton and bone characters, the character's ribs are still visible and "cling" to the character's clothing, like the clothes were part of them. I can only think of it as an appearance trope, but it's an at least intriguing distinct one.
  2. Features in a menacing silhouette: A character is rendered in all black save for a certain feature, such as their eyes, the mouth, etc. Usually used to increase the danger/menace/factor, it can also be used to hide a character's design while still showing bits of them.

Jawbreakers on sale for 99¢
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
#2548: Aug 3rd 2021 at 1:19:09 AM

Mass Transformation Event A phenomenon causes a large number of people to be involuntarily and (usually) permanently transformed.

  • The premise of Ponies After People is that one day, all of humanity disappeared, and they slowly started returning as ponies and other magical beings.
  • In A New World, A New Way, Arceus decides that he's had enough with humanity, and transforms them all into Pokémon and sends them to another world so they don't repeat their past mistakes.

Any more examples?

Edited by NitroIndigo on Aug 3rd 2021 at 9:19:23 AM

Amonimus the "Retromancer" from <<|Wiki Talk|>> (Sergeant) Relationship Status: In another castle
the "Retromancer"
#2549: Aug 3rd 2021 at 1:39:17 AM

I feel like recalling that being the endgoal of a few Evilutionary Biologist, but don't recall it actually happening.

Edited by Amonimus on Aug 3rd 2021 at 11:42:23 AM

TroperWall / WikiMagic Cleanup
Merseyuser1 Since: Sep, 2011
#2550: Aug 3rd 2021 at 2:16:49 AM

Although possibly an Advertising Tropes trope, I'm sure there are examples of this:

House Mod Montage

When the interior of a house goes through several different designs over time, with colors and designs changing quickly; pot plants and piles of books coming and going, wall color changing etc., as seasons and years go by.

Not so much about DIY, but trends, a sort of Establishing Shot of era trends for home design etc.

Possibly can be used as a Characterization Trope to tell us the sorts of lifestyle a character leads.

I'm sure I've seen examples of this, not quite sure if I can remember them all.


Total posts: 11,344
Top