Tropescilloscope: Sadistic Choice

Forced to make one of two terrible choices. Morton's Fork may ensue. Can't Take a Third Option. (read more at tvtropes.org)

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