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