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