Tropescilloscope: Manic Pixie Dream Girl

An upbeat young woman whose love gives the brooding male hero a new lease on life. (read more at tvtropes.org)

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