The TVTropes Trope Finder is where you can come to ask questions like "Do we have this one?" and "What's the trope about...?" Trying to rediscover a long lost show or other medium but need a little help? Head to Media Finder and try your luck there. Want to propose a new trope? You should be over at You Know, That Thing Where.
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openIt's Old, So It's Okay
A work provides a viewpoint (or simply makes a statement) that is now considered highly offensive, but it's accepted because people recognize the perspective was different when the work was created. Probably a YMMV trope.
openReboot Immunity Film
By definition, a film reboot typically means that all of the returning characters are recast with new actors. However, in a few rare cases, one (and seemingly only one) actor is brought back to reprise their role from the previous continuity.
Examples: Judi Dench (M to two different James Bond actors), James Earl Jones (Mufasa in The Lion King and the 2019 remake), and J.K. Simmons (J. Jonah Jameson for the Raimi films and now the MCU).
Edited by Doc_Brownopen"Politician starved for Votes" Western Animation
Is there a trope for a stereotypical politician (usually a small-town mayor) who is obsessed with voters to the point where it's all he mentions? Like, an alien spaceship shows up and he says "I hope they're registered voters", or his wife finds him in bed with another woman, she's dumping him, and he asks "But I still have your vote, right?"
openI'm telling you people, the earth revolves around the sun!
In a middle ages context, someone says something based on science. The moral guardians shout "blasphemy!" and refuse to hear a word.
openPlan Parasite
Alice has some kind of evil plot or gives a morally-ambiguous order. Bob finds out about it, and rather than reporting it or blackmailing Alice, uses it for his own benefit for completely different, often self-serving reasons. Alice is rarely happy that she's being used like this even if Bob's actions don't affect her or that actions she deems harsh but necessary are being exploited for criminal gain. If confronted about it, Bob might justify himself by pointing out that his actions are on a far smaller scale than Alice's.
Something like Unwitting Pawn, but there's no manipulation of Alice by Bob (and Alice is often far more powerful than Bob).
- In the Brother Cadfael story "One Corpse Too Many", King Stephen conquers a castle and, after all negotiations fail, has all of its defenders executed by hanging to send a strong message to the other faction. Cadfael discovers the titular corpse too many, and informs the king someone got rid of a personal enemy by using the king's command to shield themselves. Stephen is very unhappy that someone would essentially use him as a murder tool and orders his men to help find the murderer.
- In one Inspector Canardo story, a big oil tanker is prevented from going into a harbor, and plans to purge its reservoirs at sea (causing a pollution disaster) if it isn't let through. As time goes by, the tanker is surrounded by smaller, privately-owned boats planning to do the same thing once the tanker starts (cheaper than doing it cleanly in the harbor facilities) gather around the anchored tanker, reasoning that the tanker will get all the blame. The Corrupt Corporate Executives are infuriated that someone will profit from their evil actions, even though they don't lose any money from it.
openMisidentified Weapons, but for low-tech ones
The page description of Misidentified Weapons specifies it's about firearms. What's the equivalent for older weapons (swords, polearms, etc.)?
openMismatched job responsibilities
A trope where the protagonist, intentionally or not, is performing duties he wouldn't be expected to perform at his office or rank. It could be unintentional, like a writer somehow assuming "A Colonel does guard duty like a typical infantry man, because they're both soldiers", or intentional ala "corporate CEO still likes doing sales pitches face to face from time to time because he enjoys that part after all those years."
openNamed Vehicles
Do we have a trope for giving personal names to vehicles, especially those of the non-Animate Inanimate Object (at least at first)? This has been done in real life for seafaring vessels since many centuries ago and is still a modern tradition around the world, and in fiction it's not only extended to spacefaring ships (as opposed to shuttlecraft and, more often than not, fightercraft), but also to sufficiently large or famous land vehicles (e.g. Baneblades in Warhammer 40,000). It does not appear that Named Weapons covers this, for the record.
Edited by MarqFJAopenCatchphrase Gag
A character's catchphrase is used as or is the setup of a joke. For example, in the OK K.O.! Let's Be Heroes episode "Crossover Nexus", Weasel shouts his catchphrase "I am Weasel!" Festro then responds with "how's it going?", not knowing that Weasel wasn't trying to introduce himself.
Edited by Crossover-EnthusiastopenMad Scientist in a Mecha
Where's that page that covers the tendency of Mad Scientist Big Bads to fight in heavily-armed vehicles or mecha, such as Dr. Wily or Dr. Robotnik? I can't remember the title.
Edited by Unnerving_PosterioropenA picture for the Fridge
Parents hang their kids pictures on the fridge. Self-explanatory.
openNoodle Limbs
A character's limbs are very skinny and/or seem to have no bones when being swung wildly.
openSelfishness Reveal
A character does something extreme, and their motivation is thought to be that they were doing it for somebody else (Love Makes You Crazy, etc.) In the end, it turns out they were doing it for themselves all along. Often The Reveal for The Sociopath.
openWandering Signs
A character drifting on their own, often in rebellion, is seen surrounded by floating signs that show where he's been.
openLong-Lived Equals Few Children
What was the trope about how beings with very long lives tend to have low fertility?
openTargeted Mass Killing
Is there a trope for when the murder of one person/a few people is disguised as part of a larger massacre, usually to throw off suspicion? Such as sabotaging a particular person's flight so everyone thinks they simply died in a plane crash.
openShadow Realization
Is there a trope in which a character comes to realize their flaws by seeing their Shadow Archetype? Let's say, a sympatetic thief with a penchant for shinies meets a warlord who plundered half the kingdom for loot and swears not to become like him. Would such a situation be adequately described by any existing trope?
openHandsome Homer Simpson plus three
The name of Captain Marvel & The Carol Corps: a group that is so blatantly "this character and other people", that it's even named that way.
openopposite of voodoo shark
What's the opposite of Voodoo Shark, i.e the creator tries to explain a plot hole or other mystery and the explanation actually makes sense.
I know, the title makes no sense. Couldn't figure out what else to put.
Describes a character who is not the protagonist, but has a classically heroic, justice-seeking personality that the protagonist lacks. As such, they are often called a hero by other characters, and are perhaps even referred to as the "true" hero.
Examples:
- Elliot Nightray from PandoraHearts
- Undyne from Undertale
Edited by CyokieRevott