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