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