Tropescilloscope: Artistic License – Biology

Inaccuracies in biological fact in a work of fiction, in the service of the story. (read more at tvtropes.org)

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