Lost in Space
We don't generally change trope titles because of Too Soon, although I'm willing to hear opinions from the overly-sensitive crowd.
"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
I think the Fish Slap redirect would be a better primary name. Not every martial arts or weapon related trope has to be "Fu".
Zzzzzzzzzz
I see no reason to rename. I hadn't even heard about that until you brought it up.
...if you don’t love you’re dead, and if you do, they’ll kill you for it.
dude! i knew a whale had killed its trainer, but it was shamu?! my world has come crumbling down. ;____;
anyway, i don't think it needs a rename, tbh. call me insensitive, but it wasn't the same circumstances, so i don't think people are going to immediately relate the real life event with the trope.
Geomancer
Don't see the real need for a rename. Besides, Shamu drowned the trainer, which the trope has nothing to do with.
You got some dirt on you. Here's some more!
so i don't think people are going to immediately relate the real life event with the trope.
Might Meophist's remark above BE a reason to rename all on its own...? Perhaps, perhaps not...
Zzzzzzzzzz
Only if you can present evidence that the current name is confusing or is being misused.
...if you don’t love you’re dead, and if you do, they’ll kill you for it.
Nostalgia
Yeah...I'm not sure what I was thinking when I made this. But Meophist does have a point. As well-known as Shamu is, there's no way you can guess what the trope is without prior knowledge.
The Other Troper
Well the trope is using a fish or fish-shaped creature as a club (otherwise it's covered by Grievous Harm with a Body.
I'm on the internet. My arguments are invalid.
Madrugada: That's what I was asking: is the fact that we already have at least one person on this thread with no idea who or what Shamu is a sign that the information is too generally obscure?
Perpetually Confused
The fact that someone doesn't know who Shamu is alone is not worth a rename. You need to prove that it is harming the trope. IE: The name is little known, the trope is not getting the wicks it deserves, of it is being used improperly.
Zzzzzzzzzz
Leaper, no, one person, or even several people, not knowing isn't grounds for a rename. There is nothing in this world that is so universally known that someone won't be able to honestly say "I don't know who/what/where that is."
...if you don’t love you’re dead, and if you do, they’ll kill you for it.
^ Well, if the trope was just named Fish Slap by default, such a question would never have been asked.
Pronounced YAK-you-luss
Maybe Fish Fu for the Added Alliterative Appeal?
What's precedent ever done for us?
I prefer Fish Slap as the official name. But not because of Tilikum drowning his trainer; rather, because it usually is a fish rather than a whale.
I'd also like to note the very famous Monty Python sketch 'Fish Slapping Dance', and the stock IRC message '/me slaps Soandso with a large trout'. Fish Slap is wittier, culturally relevant, clearer, and uh.. if I was looking for this I would look for Fish Slap, not Shamu Fu which is a bit nonsensical to me. That being said, I do tend to feel renames for the sake of renames need to stop around here, but switching Fish Slap to the main article and moving Shamu Fu to a redirect just seems... logical to me, personally.
On the subject of Shamu: Shamu is sort of a uh, marketing icon more than an actual whale. The orca in question was one of -many- whales that play the part of Shamu at Sea World. I understand this is somewhat of a hair-split thing, but it's the difference between saying an actor killed someone, or the character played by that actor killed someone, especially when the character is played by more than one actor (like say, James Bond).
edited 11th Oct '10 10:39:04 AM by savage
Want to rename a trope? Step one: if it ain't broke, don't fix it.
^ haha, i know. usually they have more than one orca in the park, though, so i had somehow figured it had been random orca #X instead of the current shamu. either way, it's a big stain on the shamu legacy. 
[/OT]
^^ Okay, fair enough, but I think even when they're putting on shows the trainers rotate the whale who is playing Shamu, maybe even during the same day, just to keep the whales from getting too tired. So the whale playing Shamu at 10:00 might be entirely different from the whale playing Shamu at 1:00.
...This has gotten a little sidetracked. I... am kind of ambivalent on this one. On the one hand I don't support renames 'just cause', but on the other hand I find Shamu Fu to be absolutely opaque. While I know it's no judge of a trope, from the name alone I'd assume this had something to do with marine mammals beating people up. Maybe we should check the wicks?
edited 12th Oct '10 11:00:35 AM by savage
Want to rename a trope? Step one: if it ain't broke, don't fix it.
Yes, I think it does. "Shamu" is a bit obscure outside San Diego, whereas Fish Slap, while not a witty reference, clearly explains the trope. Fish Fu? Fishslap Fu maybe?
This thread expired after 60 days of inactivity.
Shamu Fu is an adequate name for the trope: wielding a fish or aquatic mammal as a weapon.
However, Shamu killed a trainer earlier this year
. I know it might sound stupid at first glance, but I'd like to be on the absolute safest side.
It...just feels wrong to keep this title. Feel free to lock this if I'm just being overly dramatic.
edited 8th Oct '10 5:57:10 AM by AngryScientist