Tropescilloscope: Kick the Dog

A gratuitously cruel action serves to darken a character. (read more at tvtropes.org)

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