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 the Trope Launch Pad.
Find a Trope:
openFinger Bowl Faux Pas Film
Do we have a trope that would be for characters not understanding how to use a finger bowl at a restaurant? (where the intended purpose is to wash your hands a bit before eating)
Examples I can remember:
In Fresh Prince of Bel Air, Will mistakes it for a lemon soup: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4jPRD9zFsA
In Scarface during a meeting with a high-ranking Cartel member, Tony eats the lemon slice out of the bowl while his associate washes his hands properly.
In Shrek 2, Shrek mistakes the bowl for soup as well: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rmpFmJfEZXs
Happens in an episode of Hannah Montana as well.
Is this too specific, is there a more general 'etiquette faux pas from someone lower class' trope I can't find?
openCostumes spoiling the film's plot Film
Is there a trope where a clue is given to the audience/viewers in a character's clothing? In Valentine, David Boreanaz's character is first seen at a funeral and is the one person (minus a police detective who shows up a couple minutes later) who isn't wearing some form of black. Boreanaz is the killer and he isn't wearing black because he's the only one not mourning the deceased.
Edited by k410ren
It's like I'm in some kind of... TV Tropes...
openParts of one long clip are interspaced between other clips Film
During a montage, one particularly long clip is split up and the pieces are interspaced throughout the montage.
The only example I can think of off the top of my head is this
video, where, starting from 1:42, one long text is split up and spread throughout the rest of the video
openMad Scientist is called out for going "too far" Film
This happens in a lot Mad Scientist movies (significant overlap with an evil doctor doing unethical procedures). I've seen this in The Curse of Frankenstein, The Horror of Frankenstein, I Was a Teenage Werewolf, and The Brain That Wouldn't Die. Sometimes it's the Mad Scientist's assistant, sometimes the mentor, or could be someone else.
I know that any film with a Mad Scientist typically has a Science Is Bad message, typically, "performing scientific experiments irresponsibly and unethically is morally reprehensible and leads to disaster." If it's a religious message that science is "tampering in God's domain," then it probably falls under These Are Things Man Was Not Meant to Know. But often it's another scientist or a doctor who says they are going too far, and in The Brain That Wouldn't Die a doctor (and mentor to the Mad Scientist) argues that they should continue the medical experiments, but only in a legally sanctioned and ethical way (which of course the evil doctor does not do).
They Called Me Mad! might be the backstory version of this. Is there any other trope for a scene where a character on screen calls out the scientist for taking his experiments too far? A notable difference is that They Called Me Mad! describes a backstory for why the scientist became "mad" and moved to a secluded laboratory for secrecy. For what I'm seeing, this isn't backstory and happens on screen while the scientist is already engaged in their unethical experiment. So is it the same thing?
openCameras that are literally on/in eyes? Film
Not Eye Cam, which is where the camera is from the POV of an eye. I'm talking some kind of magical/technological thing where a camera literally replaces someone's eyes. Think the Engineer's eyes in Superman (2025) or that one weird episode of Doctor Who where eye mucus converted everyone's eyes into cameras, or stuff about 'contact lens cameras' you occasionally see in sci-fi or spy stories.
Edited by PhyrexianAjani95openAPP Goofy Movie fanfic trope inquiry Film
I’m in need of assistance to determine which trope would best fit this highlight from my fanfic story “Face Off with Principal Mazur”: PM: Ah yes. Mr. Goof. And the young man who incited that little riot at the assembly last year. G: Now see here. My Max is no juvenile delinquent and did not start a riot at all. PM: And how do you know that? (Roxanne then enters.) R: Because I saw what went on at that assembly. He wasn’t trying to incite any violence. All the other students were cheering for him and his Powerline performance because they loved it. And he and his dad also got to dance alongside the real Powerline himself at his concert in LA. My friends and I were watching, and they obviously impressed Powerline with their own dance moves, and he decided to make it part of his show without any objection. (Mazur just scoffs) PM: Another hijacking. Disrespect. That’s what’s wrong with today’s kids, don’t know when to stop making things miserable for others. Basically, what this implies is that rather than acknowledge Max and Goofy’s talent and apologize for his misleading exaggeration to Goofy, he just flippantly disregards their dance as “another hijacking” and how today’s kids don’t know when to stop making others miserable.
openMilk bath as indicative of a person's vanity Film
Do have a trope that uses the visual of a milk bath done to a character (usually female) that is indicative of their obsession with beauty and/or their vanity?
open"When do we start ?" Ending Film
At the ending of an Action/Spy movie, the heroes just saved the day. They get called in by the chief of the Government Agency of Fiction, who offers them a job in said agency and describes to them the kind of missions they would be working on.
The team leader looks questioningly at his/her teammates who, after a few seconds, smile and nod at him/her, and confidently asks the chief "When do we start ?". Then :
Either A) The film ends, cue the credits. Or B) We see the heroes about to begin / right in the middle of an awesome but dangerous mission, right as they go Let's Get Dangerous!.
Thanks for your replies ! ^^
openAbsurdly Long Flight Film
I was watching Karate Kid: Legends, and Mr. Han flies from Beijing to New York, which is a 15.5 hour flight. He's in New York for barely a single conversation before flying to Los Angeles to meet with Daniel La Russo (a six hour flight) for another brief conversation, and then back to New York again. That's over a full day of flight time, not to mention time spent in the airport before/after the flight for maybe five combined minutes of conversation.
So it's kind of like Writers Can't Do Math or like, No Sense of Scale (a lot of people really don't recognize how massive the US is). I looked at all the flight related tropes I could find, but I didn't see anything that fit. Really any trope where travel times are dramatically underestimated.
open2010s series Film
It was a female lead . She is fresh out of prison hellbent on revenge. Modern day with a 50s vibe old cars and motorcycles. I want to say biker gang type thing but who knows I can’t remember. I thought it was Alison Brie. But it isn’t on IM Db. Please please help. I can’t remember
open"We are so getting sued" meta commentary Film
As a copyright nerd, this trope makes my eye twitch.
There's a sequence that's a parody of a well-known property. So someone will turn to the camera and make some meta comment like "we are so getting sued."
Or a character who's a parody of another character will point out the differences between them and the original, and say something like "our lawyers made us make these changes."
Or there'll be a vague approximate parody, and someone will remark that they couldn't afford to get closer.
It annoys me because this is not how copyright law works. All parody is protected by fair use, and th writers surely know this, or else the wouldn't do thos sorts of gags. I'm not trying to convince you to be as annoyed by as as I am, but this misunderstanding of copyright law is what all these meta comments have in common.
open"Movie superheroes are solo" Film
Do we have a trope for comic book movies starting from the premise that the protagonist is the only superhero in that world when large casts and/or teams of superheroes exist in comic canon?
openFatal product placement? Film
Is there a trope for when instances of Product Placement are relevant in such a way that they cause fatalities? I just got out of Jurassic World Rebirth a couple of hours ago, and the opening involves someone dropping a Snickers wrapper in such a way that it causes a door to jam and subsequently causes them to be eaten by a dinosaur. "You're dino chow when you're hungry. Snickers Satisifies!".
openWhen the “star” isn’t actually the one in the suit Film
Is there a trope name for when a character is billed as being played by a famous actor, but really they just dub the voice over another actor who physically plays their body in a suit/under heavy makeup? Like Darth Vader or the Henson Ninja Turtles.
openLong Opening Credits Film
In Modern Hollywood films, the title sequence is often short and may only show the name of the film or perhaps the names of the stars.
In older films, the opening title sequence was long and includes a lot of information typically shown in the closing credits, such as the name of every single actor who appears and what character they play.
Sometimes done intentionally in younger movies to give a Retraux feel.
Edited by naturalironistopenDamsel In Distress pretends to be charmed by villain Film
A Damsel in Distress is held captive in the villain's lair, and he makes lecherous advances towards her. She pretends to be charmed by his advances so he'll treat her less harshly, just to buy time for her rescue (Damsel Assist) or escape (Damsel out of Distress).
Is this just a specific application of Damsel Assist? I feel like I've seen this exact "play along with the seduction" thing play out several times, though, so I'm wondering if it's a trope that I just can't find.
openMisnamed location Film
A particular park, featuring animals many of which aren't from the Jurassic, is called Jurassic Park.

Do we have a trope for where in a prison or similar facility's control room, there is a Big Red Button that simultaneously opens all the cells and releases all the prisoners in a ready-made riot. Why all the door controls would be mapped to one button is unexplained and anyone that has that button is honestly Too Dumb to Live.
Is this trope different enough from "Big Red Button"?
Examples: The "System Purge" button from The Cabin in the Woods that releases all the monsters, I recall from the prison break sequence from Guardians of the Galaxy that there is a button that releases all the prisoners, and in Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, the dinosaurs have already broken out of their cells but cannot escape the underground lab by a door that is operated by a master button.