Tropescilloscope: Shoot the Shaggy Dog

A tragic ending where the protagonist's efforts are All for Nothing. (read more at tvtropes.org)

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