Tropescilloscope: Black and Gray Morality

Evil villain, flawed hero. (read more at tvtropes.org)

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