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