Tropescilloscope: Animal Motifs

The use of an animal/animals to underline a theme or make a statement about a character. (read more at tvtropes.org)

More Tropes Insane Troll Logic Distracted by the Sexy Damsel in Distress From Nobody to Nightmare Red Oni, Blue Oni Television Movie Index Pyrrhic Victory Arranged Marriage Naked People Are Funny Badass Normal Hypocritical Humor Coming-of-Age Story Chekhov's Gun Married to the Job Fantastic Racism Naïve Newcomer Closed Circle Implacable Man Humans Are Bastards Aside Glance Intrepid Reporter Here We Go Again! No Antagonist Together in Death Red Shirt Dressing as the Enemy Empathic Environment Card-Carrying Villain Alliterative Name Evil Plan Black and Gray Morality Unwitting Instigator of Doom All for Nothing Jerkass Has a Point Red Herring Ambiguous Disorder Adaptational Attractiveness Mugging the Monster Not So Stoic Historical-Domain Character Race Against the Clock It Can Think Tempting Fate Yandere Reality Is Unrealistic Off-into-the-Distance Ending Only in It for the Money Maybe Ever After Brutal Honesty Retirony An Aesop The Alleged Car Nothing Is Scarier Title Drop Very Loosely Based on a True Story Hidden Depths Leaning on the Fourth Wall Guns Akimbo Blatant Lies "Awesome McCool" Name Continuity Nod Thriller Exact Words Evil Is Hammy War Is Hell Dark Reprise Woobie, Destroyer of Worlds Determinator aka: The Determinator Spiteful Spit Darkest Hour The Great Depression Dirty Old Man Ragtag Bunch of Misfits Pretty Little Headshots Scenery Gorn Scary Black Man Insistent Terminology Shout-Out Stalker with a Crush folderlabel Evil Is Petty Affably Evil The '60s Screw the Rules, I Have Money! Sports Stories Bond One-Liner Whole Plot Reference Mama Bear Pimped-Out Dress Setting Update Heroic BSoD Fire-Forged Friends Took a Level in Jerkass Historical Hero Upgrade Cool Old Lady Hong Kong Films An Arm and a Leg An Axe to Grind Unusually Uninteresting Sight Creator Cameo Politically Incorrect Villain Posthumous Character Sealed Evil in a Can Meet Cute Serious Business Curse Cut Short Evil-Detecting Dog Book-Ends Extremely Short Timespan Bitch in Sheep's Clothing Hollywood Law Eye Scream Dropped a Bridge on Him No Good Deed Goes Unpunished The Smurfette Principle Really Gets Around Evil Laugh The Ace Accidental Murder Sir Swears-a-Lot Actually Pretty Funny Guile Hero Worthy Opponent Star-Crossed Lovers Femme Fatale Visual Pun Retcon Dull Surprise Department of Redundancy Department Refuge in Audacity Manly Tears Neck Snap Artistic License – Law Cassandra Truth Room Full of Crazy Badass Longcoat '80s Hair Villain with Good Publicity Disney Death Informed Ability I Did What I Had to Do The Reveal Based on a True Story All Girls Want Bad Boys Revenge Names to Run Away from Really Fast Deliberate Values Dissonance All Just a Dream You Have Outlived Your Usefulness Car Fu Villain Opening Scene Death by Irony Slashed Throat Broken Bird Corpsing Bound and Gagged The Bad Guy Wins Black Dude Dies First Chewing the Scenery My Beloved Smother Mundane Made Awesome Greater-Scope Villain Danny Peary Cult Movies List Why Did It Have to Be Snakes? Apocalypse How From Bad to Worse The Stoic Left the Background Music On Blood from the Mouth One-Man Army Rewatch Bonus Fourth Date Marriage Bullying a Dragon Stepford Smiler The Quiet One Lock and Load Montage Undying Loyalty Would Hit a Girl Even Evil Has Standards No OSHA Compliance Italian Films Sequel Escalation Eureka Moment Dogged Nice Guy Adult Fear Tagline It's All About Me Adaptation Name Change Freudian Excuse No-Holds-Barred Beatdown Bolivian Army Ending Noodle Incident No Ending Flipping the Bird The Casanova Aluminum Christmas Trees Expy Punny Name Index of Film Westerns Artistic License – Physics Fingore Mind Screw Broken Aesop Throwing Your Sword Always Works Not Even Bothering with the Accent Composite Character Kubrick Stare Hero of Another Story Neck Lift Not Quite Dead Spared by the Adaptation And the Adventure Continues Slasher Smile Crapsack World The Ditz How We Got Here Hell Is That Noise Nice Guy The Stoner Bilingual Bonus The Bully B-Movie Took a Level in Badass Action Girl Bare Your Midriff Ass Shove Karma Houdini Properly Paranoid Annoying Younger Sibling Abusive Parents Flashback Pretty in Mink Credits Gag Big Fancy House Large Ham Evil Brit Framing Device Rousing Speech La Résistance Babies Ever After Bad Boss Gold Digger Dark Action Girl Superhero Evil Cannot Comprehend Good Horror Films Butt-Monkey Dramatic Gun Cock Parental Incest Playing Gertrude Beard of Evil The Stinger Adorkable Science Fiction Films Mr. Fanservice Fish out of Water Mexican Standoff Genre Shift Batman Gambit The Vamp Breaking the Fourth Wall Actor Allusion Show Within a Show Screw This, I'm Outta Here! Bloodier and Gorier Red Right Hand Precision F-Strike Ooh, Me Accent's Slipping Suddenly SHOUTING! Catch-Phrase Well-Intentioned Extremist In the Back MacGuffin Ominous Latin Chanting Improvised Weapon Only One Name Shoot the Shaggy Dog Alpha Bitch Friend to All Children Deliberately Monochrome Only Known by Their Nickname Psycho for Hire Pre-Mortem One-Liner "Well Done, Son!" Guy Mighty Whitey Stylistic Suck All Men Are Perverts Police Brutality Rape Is a Special Kind of Evil Improbable Aiming Skills Anyone Can Die She's Got Legs Film Noir Index Blood Knight Unresolved Sexual Tension Suspiciously Specific Denial Dramedy Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking Nice Job Fixing It, Villain! Police are Useless Toplessness from the Back Manchild Dumb Blonde Jump Scare Expository Hairstyle Change Our Vampires Are Different Accidental Misnaming Lampshade Hanging Brick Joke Colour-Coded for Your Convenience aka: Color Coded For Your Convenience Fat Bastard Hope Spot Jack Bauer Interrogation Technique Ripped from the Headlines Bland-Name Product Action Prologue Running Gag Random Events Plot The '80s Gilligan Cut My God, What Have I Done? Outrun the Fireball Easily Forgiven Training Montage Jerkass Costume Porn Ambiguous Ending Break the Haughty The '70s Those Wacky Nazis Reality Has No Subtitles Public Domain Feature Films Everyone Has Standards One Steve Limit Ax-Crazy Everyone Calls Him "Barkeep" Put on a Bus Same Language Dub Reality Ensues Double Entendre Camp Gay Country Matters Sliding Scale of Idealism vs. Cynicism Real Life Writes the Plot "Where Are They Now?" Epilogue Sanity Slippage Your Head A-Splode Heroic Sacrifice Death of a Child Bi the Way Epic Movie Novelization Amusing Injuries More Dakka The '50s May–December Romance Earn Your Happy Ending Maybe Magic, Maybe Mundane Psychopathic Manchild Woman Scorned You Have Failed Me Covers Always Lie The Un-Reveal Captain Obvious Music Stories 20 Minutes into the Future Rasputinian Death Lighter and Softer The Cavalry Those Two Bad Guys Works Set in World War II The Voiceless Determinator Australian Movies Demoted to Extra Chiaroscuro Drugs Are Bad Driven to Suicide Poor Communication Kills Logo Joke Creative Closing Credits Cloudcuckoolander You Have Got to Be Kidding Me! Grey and Gray Morality The Atoner Anachronism Stew Evil Sounds Deep Obstructive Bureaucrat Action Survivor Victoria's Secret Compartment Meaningful Echo Famous Last Words A.I. Is a Crapshoot Dutch Angle Time Skip Killed Mid-Sentence Idiot Ball Race Lift Plucky Comic Relief Drowning My Sorrows Video Credits Mercy Kill Japanese Films Soundtrack Dissonance Diabolus ex Machina Rated M for Manly Amoral Attorney Cain and Abel Chekhov's Gunman Curb-Stomp Battle Leitmotif The Dreaded Fatal Family Photo Screw the Money, I Have Rules! The Oner Slasher Movie Immune to Bullets Scare Chord Stuff Blowing Up Needs Wiki Magic Love Take That! Hair of Gold, Heart of Gold The Ghost Heel–Face Turn French Films Roaring Rampage of Revenge Woman in White Decoy Protagonist This Is Gonna Suck Disappeared Dad Almost Kiss Bottomless Magazines Adaptational Villainy Plot Hole Aww, Look! They Really Do Love Each Other Canadian Movies Dirty Coward Intergenerational Friendship Berserk Button Documentary Mistaken for Gay Calling the Old Man Out Big Bad Bond Villain Stupidity Not So Different Exactly What It Says on the Tin Shipper on Deck The Starscream Bring My Brown Pants Sadistic Choice Interrupted Suicide Casting Gag Author Appeal Ambiguously Gay The Chessmaster Conspicuous CG Ugly Guy, Hot Wife Alas, Poor Villain Morality Pet Vacation Films Sassy Black Woman Drives Like Crazy For Want of a Nail Mood Whiplash Pragmatic Villainy Straight Gay Moment Killer Motor Mouth Establishing Character Moment Henpecked Husband Male Gaze Sole Survivor Villain Protagonist Honor Before Reason Black Comedy Rape Toilet Humour aka: Toilet Humor Gone Horribly Right Beware the Nice Ones Foil Tranquil Fury Bavarian Fire Drill Love Triangle Fake Shemp I'm a Humanitarian Make It Look Like an Accident Bury Your Gays I Just Shot Marvin in the Face As Long as It Sounds Foreign Animal Title Index In Medias Res For the Evulz Unusual Euphemism The Mafia Not Using the "Z" Word Anti-Hero Final Girl Body Horror Pre-Asskicking One-Liner Kick the Son of a Bitch Horror Doesn't Settle for Simple Tuesday Token Minority Did Not Get the Girl Frame-Up Celebrity Paradox Due to the Dead Instant Death Bullet The Un-Favourite aka: The Un Favorite Recycled IN SPACE! Adaptational Heroism Death Seeker Fantasy Films Love at First Sight Martial Arts Movie Sudden Sequel Death Syndrome Antagonist Title Artistic License – History Cool Old Guy Cold-Blooded Torture Rich Bitch Important Haircut Vomit Indiscretion Shot Rule of Funny The Sociopath Spell My Name with an "S" Parental Abandonment Extreme Doormat Twist Ending Adaptation Dye-Job Fatal Flaw Demonic Possession Bad "Bad Acting" Kill 'em All Wicked Cultured Never Trust a Trailer aka: Trailers Always Lie Drill Sergeant Nasty Protagonist Title Riddle for the Ages Silence Is Golden Enemy Mine Genre Throwback Re-Cut The Smart Guy Facial Horror Sci-Fi Horror Wretched Hive And Starring Stealth Hi/Bye Manic Pixie Dream Girl Only Sane Man timeperiod Too Dumb to Live Groin Attack Funny Background Event Wham Shot Chekhov's Skill Light Is Not Good Early Installment Weirdness Central Theme Say My Name Villain Ball BFG Retired Badass Big-Bad Ensemble Anachronic Order The End... Or Is It? Dirty Cop Artistic License – Geography Disproportionate Retribution Dying Moment of Awesome Peek-a-Boo Corpse Storming the Castle Overly Long Gag Author Avatar Sequel Hook All There in the Script The Brute Punch-Clock Villain Comically Missing the Point Anguished Declaration of Love Evil Counterpart Skewed Priorities Happily Married Catapult Nightmare Madness Mantra Leave the Camera Running Loophole Abuse Children Are Innocent Even Bad Men Love Their Mamas Made of Explodium The Dragon Broken Pedestal Depraved Bisexual As Himself Big Damn Heroes Break the Cutie Major Injury Underreaction Chase Scene Rape as Drama The Faceless Shower Scene Meaningful Name Papa Wolf Bar Brawl Romantic Comedy Rule of Cool Our Zombies Are Different Hair-Trigger Temper Eagleland Becoming the Mask Fate Worse than Death Screw the Rules, I'm Doing What's Right! World of Ham Arc Words Death by Sex Spiritual Successor Abhorrent Admirer One-Word Title Boom, Headshot! Badass Grandpa All There in the Manual Big Eater Taking the Bullet Good Is Not Nice It Will Never Catch On Heel Realization Let's Get Dangerous! Heroes Want Redheads Not What It Looks Like Black Comedy Gainax Ending Bowdlerise Older Than They Look Funny Foreigner Defrosting Ice Queen Zombie Stories Rule of Three Arch-Enemy Shut Up, Hannibal! Eyepatch of Power Cool Car A Father to His Men Never Trust a Trailer Take a Third Option Better to Die than Be Killed You Killed My Father Action Film, Quiet Drama Scene Laughing Mad Fun with Acronyms Never Found the Body Brother–Sister Incest Deadpan Snarker Every Car Is a Pinto Kill It with Fire Big Applesauce Faux Affably Evil Christmas Movies Index Hypocrite Offscreen Teleportation Even Evil Has Loved Ones Badass Bookworm Corrupt Corporate Executive Reasonable Authority Figure Narrator Fan Disservice Bunny-Ears Lawyer Obviously Evil No Name Given Obfuscating Stupidity Daylight Horror Shown Their Work Daddy's Girl Sexy Discretion Shot Asshole Victim Captain Ersatz Historical Villain Upgrade Sir Not-Appearing-in-This-Trailer Redshirt Army Agony of the Feet Rule of Symbolism Face Death with Dignity Knight Templar The Place True Companions Horror Comedy Grievous Bottley Harm Fanservice Camera Abuse Laser-Guided Karma N-Word Privileges Gory Discretion Shot Imagine Spot Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass Bittersweet Ending Recap / RiffTrax aka: Riff Trax Movies He Knows Too Much Cool Guns Sacrificial Lion Biopic Defiant to the End Dissonant Serenity Fainting Your Cheating Heart A Minor Kidroduction Non-Indicative Name Combat Pragmatist Ms. Fanservice Jitter Cam Chuck Cunningham Syndrome Villainous Breakdown Offscreen Moment of Awesome Foreshadowing Green-Eyed Monster Dark Is Not Evil Wounded Gazelle Gambit Deus ex Machina Pay Evil unto Evil And I Must Scream Cool Shades Bloody Hilarious Cat Scare Truth in Television Nice Hat Adaptation Expansion As the Good Book Says... Gender Flip Attempted Rape No Celebrities Were Harmed Foregone Conclusion Silent Movie Face–Heel Turn Does Not Like Shoes Downer Ending In Name Only Be Careful What You Wish For Black Best Friend Shirtless Scene What the Hell, Hero? Hate Sink Russian Films Artistic License – Gun Safety "The Reason You Suck" Speech Small Name, Big Ego Men Are the Expendable Gender Spanner in the Works Suspiciously Similar Substitute Didn't Think This Through Punctuated! For! Emphasis! Homage Get Out! No-Sell Deconstruction British Films NO INDOOR VOICE Freeze-Frame Bonus Belligerent Sexual Tension Vitriolic Best Buds Imperial Stormtrooper Marksmanship Academy Man on Fire Manipulative Bastard Character Development Military and Warfare Films Dark and Troubled Past Knife Nut Big "NO!" The Alcoholic The Big Guy Hoist by His Own Petard Destination Defenestration Irony I Want My Beloved to Be Happy Ironic Echo Translation Convention Stealth Pun It's Personal Air-Vent Passageway Insult Backfire "Shaggy Dog" Story Impaled with Extreme Prejudice The '90s Oh, Crap! Sinister Minister Up to Eleven I Have Your Wife Hero Antagonist Parental Substitute Half the Man He Used to Be Nice Job Breaking It, Hero! Product Placement Eiffel Tower Effect Beta Couple Soft Glass Darker and Edgier Eldritch Abomination Totally Radical Scenery Porn Off with His Head! Badass Boast Never My Fault The Lancer Once More, with Clarity! Trailers Always Spoil Dies Wide Open Mythology Gag Cat Fight Despair Event Horizon Cowboy Cop Adapted Out I Need a Freaking Drink Improbable Infant Survival aka: Infant Immortality Creepy Child My Greatest Failure He Who Fights Monsters Canon Foreigner Crucified Hero Shot Slap-Slap-Kiss Cluster F-Bomb Fanservice Extra Match Cut Pragmatic Adaptation Stock Footage Deal with the Devil Adaptation Distillation Artistic License – Biology Made of Iron Pun aka: Incredibly Lame Pun Would Hurt a Child As You Know Historical In-Joke Hollywood Darkness Redemption Equals Death Bait-and-Switch Mr. Exposition Smoking Is Cool Ship Tease Loads and Loads of Characters The Load The Musical Adults Are Useless The Mole A Date with Rosie Palms Overprotective Dad Self-Deprecation Paper-Thin Disguise O.O.C. Is Serious Business Red Eyes, Take Warning Handicapped Badass Tap on the Head Word of God Only a Flesh Wound Film Series Serial Killer Real Life Heterosexual Life-Partners Armor-Piercing Question The Cameo Psychological Thriller Call-Forward Dual Wielding Mystery and Detective Films Super Strength Jerk with a Heart of Gold Those Two Guys Authority Equals Asskicking Pet the Dog Mooks Big Bad Duumvirate Bloodless Carnage The Chick Genre Savvy The Film of the Book Contrived Coincidence Why Don't You Just Shoot Him? Getting Crap Past the Radar Call-Back Developing Doomed Characters Film Noir What You Are in the Dark There Is No Kill Like Overkill Gorn Crazy Jealous Guy Double-Meaning Title Blonde, Brunette, Redhead Villain Song Cruel and Unusual Death Death Glare Domestic Abuse Humiliation Conga Unreliable Narrator After the End Early-Bird Cameo Dramatic Irony Betty and Veronica Taking You with Me Gratuitous English Kick the Dog The Hero Artistic License – Military Monumental Damage Beauty Is Never Tarnished Ghost Fiction Girl-on-Girl Is Hot Smug Snake Vampire Fiction Blackmail Animated Credits Opening Awesome, but Impractical The X of Y The Hero Dies Market-Based Title Disney Villain Death German Films A God Am I Faking the Dead Epic Fail Crazy-Prepared The Remake The Dog Bites Back Five-Man Band Kids Are Cruel Bald of Evil Failed a Spot Check Four-Temperament Ensemble Action Genre Shell-Shocked Veteran Jerk Jock Missing Mom Auto Erotica Dwindling Party Animal Motifs Hooker with a Heart of Gold Adaptational Badass Big Brother Instinct Reckless Gun Usage Advertised Extra Line-of-Sight Name Disguised in Drag Parental Neglect Award-Bait Song Male Frontal Nudity The Lost Lenore Affectionate Parody Malevolent Masked Men Roger Ebert: Great Movies List What Happened to the Mouse? Age Lift The Power of Love Fiery Redhead Brainless Beauty Death by Adaptation She Cleans Up Nicely Meaningful Background Event Improbable Weapon User Mad Scientist Wham Line Not So Above It All Back from the Dead Last-Name Basis Evil vs. Evil Karmic Death Ascended Extra Does This Remind You of Anything? Have a Gay Old Time Vomit Discretion Shot Badass in a Nice Suit Ungrateful Bastard Anti-Villain Wrong Genre Savvy Romantic False Lead Unspoken Plan Guarantee