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