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