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