Tropescilloscope: Sliding Scale of Idealism vs. Cynicism

Right Makes Might vs. Might Makes Right (read more at tvtropes.org)

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