Tropescilloscope: Damsel in Distress

A female character is kidnapped or otherwise in danger and in need of rescue. (read more at tvtropes.org)

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