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