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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Dramatic Gun Cock The Lost Lenore Disney Death The Alleged Car It Can Think Scare Chord Scenery Gorn Covers Always Lie Annoying Younger Sibling Manic Pixie Dream Girl Villain Ball Bound and Gagged Skewed Priorities Creepy Child Call-Forward Time Skip The Mole Not What It Looks Like He Who Fights Monsters Epic Fail Genre Throwback Cool Old Guy Only in It for the Money Lock and Load Montage Wretched Hive Police are Useless Too Dumb to Live Daylight Horror The Great Depression Screw the Money, I Have Rules! Scary Black Man Psycho for Hire Bad Boss Eye Scream What You Are in the Dark Enemy Mine Let's Get Dangerous! Pre-Mortem One-Liner Gainax Ending Pimped-Out Dress Wrong Genre Savvy Not Even Bothering with the Accent Famous Last Words Curb-Stomp Battle Better to Die than Be Killed No Celebrities Were Harmed Screw the Rules, I'm Doing What's Right! Determinator aka: The Determinator All Girls Want Bad Boys Only Known by Their Nickname Authority Equals Asskicking The Brute Well-Intentioned Extremist Toplessness from the Back Horror Films BFG Agony of the Feet Improvised Weapon Arc Words Abhorrent Admirer She's Got Legs Visual Pun Historical In-Joke Music Stories Jerkass Has a Point Defiant to the End Car Fu Oh, Crap! Kids Are Cruel Fanservice Dressing as the Enemy Laser-Guided Karma The Chessmaster Broken Pedestal folderlabel Unresolved Sexual Tension Token Minority Ax-Crazy Advertised Extra Ugly Guy, Hot Wife More Dakka Pretty in Mink For Want of a Nail Anachronic Order Improbable Infant Survival aka: Infant Immortality Nice Guy Darkest Hour I Just Shot Marvin in the Face "Where Are They Now?" 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The '70s Big Applesauce Made of Explodium Logo Joke Neck Lift Informed Ability Break the Haughty Artistic License – Geography Room Full of Crazy Mood Whiplash Central Theme Face–Heel Turn Soft Glass Sadistic Choice Faux Affably Evil As Himself Unusually Uninteresting Sight One-Man Army Broken Bird Action Survivor Narrator Decoy Protagonist Index of Film Westerns Running Gag Berserk Button Bilingual Bonus How We Got Here Exact Words Chiaroscuro Sacrificial Lion Disguised in Drag Very Loosely Based on a True Story Evil Laugh Men Are the Expendable Gender No-Sell Genre Savvy Demonic Possession Vampire Fiction Show Within a Show Real Life Posthumous Character Catapult Nightmare Silent Movie The Starscream Beard of Evil Kill It with Fire The Voiceless Up to Eleven Offscreen Moment of Awesome Dissonant Serenity Four-Temperament Ensemble Spared by the Adaptation Diabolus ex Machina Extreme Doormat Mexican Standoff Bullying a Dragon No Good Deed Goes Unpunished True Companions Leitmotif The Power of Love Ms. Fanservice Brother–Sister Incest The Atoner Hero of Another Story The Hero Abusive Parents Freudian Excuse Mystery and Detective Films Fate Worse than Death The Oner Soundtrack Dissonance Everyone Has Standards Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking The '80s Homage Match Cut Butt-Monkey Gorn Bottomless Magazines Darker and Edgier Blackmail Unwitting Instigator of Doom Retcon Every Car Is a Pinto Spiritual Successor Took a Level in Jerkass Tempting Fate Shell-Shocked Veteran Artistic License – Law You Have Got to Be Kidding Me! 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Is a Crapshoot The Stoner Have a Gay Old Time Romantic Comedy Intrepid Reporter Call-Back Corrupt Corporate Executive Earn Your Happy Ending Adult Fear Self-Deprecation In Name Only All There in the Manual Mind Screw Redshirt Army I Want My Beloved to Be Happy Star-Crossed Lovers Breaking the Fourth Wall Historical-Domain Character Bavarian Fire Drill Noodle Incident Meaningful Background Event Mad Scientist The Faceless Grey and Gray Morality Hypocrite Grievous Bottley Harm Off-into-the-Distance Ending Early Installment Weirdness Outrun the Fireball Fingore Anguished Declaration of Love Romantic False Lead Chekhov's Gunman Moment Killer Shipper on Deck Sole Survivor Fainting Rule of Symbolism Race Lift Spiteful Spit Straight Gay Drugs Are Bad Bad "Bad Acting" Training Montage Freeze-Frame Bonus Crapsack World A God Am I German Films Pay Evil unto Evil Imagine Spot Back from the Dead Would Hit a Girl Adaptational Attractiveness Villainous Breakdown Based on a True Story The Smurfette Principle Dark Action Girl Mama Bear Ripped from the Headlines Recap / RiffTrax aka: Riff Trax Movies Red Shirt Age Lift Apocalypse How Crazy Jealous Guy Adults Are Useless Easily Forgiven Not Using the "Z" Word MacGuffin Make It Look Like an Accident Fan Disservice Disproportionate Retribution Japanese Films Big Bad Duumvirate Malevolent Masked Men Continuity Nod All Just a Dream Hollywood Darkness Bar Brawl Red Herring Black Dude Dies First Combat Pragmatist Those Two Bad Guys Chase Scene The Un-Favourite aka: The Un Favorite Corpsing The Bully Canon Foreigner Dark Is Not Evil Wounded Gazelle Gambit Suspiciously Similar Substitute Bi the Way Say My Name Did Not Get the Girl Same Language Dub 20 Minutes into the Future Fiery Redhead Manipulative Bastard Drowning My Sorrows Christmas Movies Index Children Are Innocent Cool Car Ghost Fiction Chekhov's Skill A Date with Rosie Palms Once More, with Clarity! Everyone Calls Him "Barkeep" Knight Templar Sassy Black Woman Heel Realization Blood Knight Catch-Phrase Flipping the Bird The Load Stepford Smiler Unspoken Plan Guarantee Here We Go Again! 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They Really Do Love Each Other Captain Obvious Crazy-Prepared Shout-Out Whole Plot Reference Gone Horribly Right Country Matters Framing Device Screw the Rules, I Have Money! Animal Title Index Alas, Poor Villain From Nobody to Nightmare Only One Name Fish out of Water Hong Kong Films Cowboy Cop Plot Hole He Knows Too Much Television Movie Index Artistic License – Gun Safety Rated M for Manly Gory Discretion Shot Idiot Ball Face Death with Dignity Only Sane Man Disney Villain Death Suddenly SHOUTING! Girl-on-Girl Is Hot Anti-Hero Suspiciously Specific Denial Death Seeker The Un-Reveal Batman Gambit No Name Given Redemption Equals Death Retired Badass Greater-Scope Villain Adaptational Badass Heroic BSoD Unusual Euphemism Biopic Funny Foreigner You Killed My Father Slasher Smile Handicapped Badass Hair-Trigger Temper And Starring Good Is Not Nice No Ending Reality Has No Subtitles Hollywood Law Author Avatar The '50s Red Eyes, Take Warning Worthy Opponent A Minor Kidroduction The Mafia Amusing Injuries Daddy's Girl The Big Guy Immune to Bullets Flashback Madness Mantra Taking You with Me No Antagonist I Need a Freaking Drink Alliterative Name Shut Up, Hannibal! 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Sealed Evil in a Can Those Two Guys Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass Retirony Adaptational Villainy Action Genre Hidden Depths Pet the Dog Badass Longcoat Honor Before Reason Jitter Cam All Men Are Perverts Why Did It Have to Be Snakes? Award-Bait Song Cat Fight Take That! The Remake Punctuated! For! Emphasis! 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Affectionate Parody Random Events Plot Bloodier and Gorier The Musical The Ace What the Hell, Hero? Belligerent Sexual Tension You Have Failed Me Stylistic Suck Nice Hat Needs Wiki Magic Love Adaptation Expansion Reality Is Unrealistic Names to Run Away from Really Fast The Stinger Damsel in Distress Reasonable Authority Figure Hooker with a Heart of Gold Lighter and Softer Department of Redundancy Department Evil Brit Humiliation Conga Blonde, Brunette, Redhead Guns Akimbo Killed Mid-Sentence Didn't Think This Through Adaptation Dye-Job Boom, Headshot! Refuge in Audacity Bland-Name Product Serial Killer British Films Shown Their Work Hope Spot Artistic License – Military Insistent Terminology Friend to All Children Final Girl Bald of Evil Actually Pretty Funny Ship Tease Demoted to Extra Mooks Reckless Gun Usage Non-Indicative Name Serious Business Totally Radical Be Careful What You Wish For Military and Warfare Films Dramatic Irony Comically Missing the Point Mythology Gag Meet Cute "Awesome McCool" Name Ironic Echo Ominous Latin Chanting Credits Gag I Have Your Wife Facial Horror Roger Ebert: Great Movies List Anachronism Stew Parental Substitute Captain Ersatz Light Is Not Good Deadpan Snarker Cloudcuckoolander Fat Bastard Brutal Honesty Happily Married It Will Never Catch On Dirty Cop Ambiguously Gay Taking the Bullet An Arm and a Leg Fourth Date Marriage Revenge Action Girl Love at First Sight The Ditz Truth in Television Intergenerational Friendship Australian Movies Rewatch Bonus Horror Comedy Foreshadowing Does Not Like Shoes Mugging the Monster Mistaken for Gay Kick the Dog Pyrrhic Victory Bunny-Ears Lawyer Take a Third Option Re-Cut Evil Sounds Deep All There in the Script Blood from the Mouth Obfuscating Stupidity The Ghost Jump Scare Not So Different Creative Closing Credits Sexy Discretion Shot Heel–Face Turn Even Bad Men Love Their Mamas World of Ham Throwing Your Sword Always Works Implacable Man Really Gets Around Mercy Kill Protagonist Title The Bad Guy Wins Ooh, Me Accent's Slipping Obstructive Bureaucrat One-Word Title Casting Gag The Smart Guy "Well Done, Son!" Guy Evil Is Hammy Ragtag Bunch of Misfits Colour-Coded for Your Convenience aka: Color Coded For Your Convenience Animal Motifs Heroes Want Redheads Our Zombies Are Different Curse Cut Short Off with His Head! Black Comedy Our Vampires Are Different Cassandra Truth My Beloved Smother Roaring Rampage of Revenge N-Word Privileges Coming-of-Age Story Ass Shove Anyone Can Die Rich Bitch Jerk Jock Never Trust a Trailer aka: Trailers Always Lie Leaning on the Fourth Wall Henpecked Husband Failed a Spot Check Eyepatch of Power Driven to Suicide Meaningful Name Dutch Angle Beware the Nice Ones Destination Defenestration "The Reason You Suck" Speech Stuff Blowing Up Aside Glance Eldritch Abomination Loophole Abuse Bittersweet Ending Market-Based Title Evil Plan Dual Wielding Green-Eyed Monster Drives Like Crazy Bolivian Army Ending Rape as Drama No OSHA Compliance Death by Sex Camp Gay Those Wacky Nazis Shower Scene