Story tropes that you never get tired of

[Anacybele]

46 minutes ago, vanguard333 said:

By the way, have either of you seen the show Violet Evergarden? The titular character is also a great example, and the show itself is a great show.

No, I've never heard of it.

But if you'd like an autistic character that's done well, I'll point you to Julia, one of the newest characters on Sesame Street. The show made her to increase awareness about autism and she's really cute.

[Ottservia]

49 minutes ago, vanguard333 said:

By the way, have either of you seen the show Violet Evergarden? The titular character is also a great example, and the show itself is a great show.

Personally I only really watched one episode with a friend. I enjoyed what I did watch just never got around to continuing it. That anime is gorgeous though, then again anything made by Kyoto animation is gonna have some amazing production values behind it. Shame what happened to the studio earlier this year. I hope they’ve been able to recover. Though dragon maid season 2 is coming out soon so that’s pretty awesome.

[vanguard333]

19 minutes ago, Dragoncat said:

Yeah, this is a thing. I don't mind those tropes as much because him and Fiora are just the sweetest thing I've ever seen and they get the best kiss scene omg. I also haven't played many RPGs besides Pokemon and FE.

Well, I said RPG, but both of those tropes aren't really restricted to RPGs; they're basically in anything where the developers either think, "Let's add some wish fulfillment by having every girl have a crush on the young male protagonist" or they think, "Hm, we're writing a teenage romance, so we need it to be a love triangle, since that's what all teenage romances are, right?" 

 

10 minutes ago, Anacybele said:

But if you'd like an autistic character that's done well, I'll point you to Julia, one of the newest characters on Sesame Street. The show made her to increase awareness about autism and she's really cute.

Interesting. I don't really watch Sesame Street, but it's cool that they're doing that. 

10 minutes ago, Anacybele said:

No, I've never heard of it.

It's a really good show. Basically, it's about Violet Evergarden: a young girl who was made into a living weapon during the fictional continent's equivalent of WW1 due to her supernatural combat prowess. As the war's over, she has to integrate into civilian life; something she's never known. She decides to become a ghostwriter in the hopes of truly understanding her Major's last words to her: "Live, and be free. From the bottom of my heart, I love you."

It's a very emotionally-charged show, so a fair warning: if you are able to cry, I suggest that you have a box of tissue next to you when you watch the show, especially during some of the later episodes...

 

1 minute ago, Ottservia said:

Personally I only really watched one episode with a friend. I enjoyed what I did watch just never got around to continuing it. That anime is gorgeous though, then again anything made by Kyoto animation is gonna have some amazing production values behind it. Shame what happened to the studio earlier this year. I hope they’ve been able to recover. Though dragon maid season 2 is coming out soon so that’s pretty awesome.

Interesting. Yeah; I agree that the show is gorgeous. And yeah; it is a real shame what happened to the studio. 😢

[Hawkwing]

Reconstructions: They have the benefits of deconstructions (which I also tend to enjoy, although it heavily depends on the work) while showing why certain tropes, character archetypes, and stories work so well in the first place.

Pragmatic Villains:  A villain that won't do something horribly evil not because it's wrong, but because they know they won't it won't benefit them in anyway. Likewise, they'll do something noble not because it's right, but because it furthers their plans. These kind of villians tend to be cunning, savvy, and intelligent, avoiding common traps other bad guys fall into, and it's not uncommon for them to have even failure benefit them in some way. They can the right thing for the wrong reason and the wrong thing for a good one, is a great contrast, to the nobler heroes, and it is engaging to see how the protagonists will ultimately succeed against them.

Celibate Heroes: I enjoy them partially due to finding them relatable, and partially because they are an easy way out of avoiding or subverting romance and/or sex tropes.

Savvy Guy, Energetic Girl: An easy and efficient way to have two conflicting personalities work together and bounce off one another in a way that's entertaining to watch and makes for a nice contrast. It helps that both personality types have a high amount of variance in how the trope can be utilized, so two differing works can use this trope in a familiar yet distinct way.

Gentleman and a Scholar (and an Officer): Kindness, intelligence, and social competency don't have to be mutually exclusive. Add in the officer bit and they're also good in a fight.

Synchronized Fights: Seeing two or more characters be in sync with each others actions in a fight scene (or other activity) leads to awesome choreography and is an excellent way to show the strength of the bonds between characters.

[Ottservia]

10 minutes ago, Hawkwing said:

Synchronized Fights: Seeing two or more characters be in sync with each others actions in a fight scene (or other activity) leads to awesome choreography and is an excellent way to show the strength of the bonds between characters.

This all of this. It’s the primary reason I absolutely love Naruto and Sasuke vs Momoshiki. (It starts at about the 40 second mark)

 
on the topic of Naruto. Another trope I absolutely love is one where Rivals or unlikely allies(like hero and villain) team up against a common enemy and they actually work really well together.

Edited February 6, 2020 by Ottservia

[Harb1ng3r]

I'm a huge fan of the "antagonist who isn't really a bad guy deep down" absolutely snapping and pulling from their deepest well of anger to protect those they love, becoming good guys in the process. Darth Vader and FE4's Ares are some of my favorites in the trope. There's something that makes me feel giddy when the dark knight flips, and I generally like happy endings, so I love it when those two are combined.

[Anacybele]

On 2/5/2020 at 8:36 PM, vanguard333 said:

Interesting. I don't really watch Sesame Street, but it's cool that they're doing that. 

Not sure why I never saw this post of yours before since you quoted me... But better late than never, I guess. 😛 Anyway, yeah, it is cool that Sesame Street did this. I don't watch the show myself, but I did decide to check out some clips of Julia because she's autistic like me and as I said, I think she's real cute and done excellently. What pleased me the most is that she is sensitive to loud noise like I am. Not all autistic people or people with Asperger's have sensitive hearing, but I do, and I haven't met any other autistic people with that issue. So to see that Julia shares this problem with me makes me feel less discouraged by it and tells me it might not be as uncommon among people like me as I think.

[vanguard333]

3 hours ago, Anacybele said:

Not sure why I never saw this post of yours before since you quoted me... But better late than never, I guess. 😛 Anyway, yeah, it is cool that Sesame Street did this. I don't watch the show myself, but I did decide to check out some clips of Julia because she's autistic like me and as I said, I think she's real cute and done excellently. What pleased me the most is that she is sensitive to loud noise like I am. Not all autistic people or people with Asperger's have sensitive hearing, but I do, and I haven't met any other autistic people with that issue. So to see that Julia shares this problem with me makes me feel less discouraged by it and tells me it might not be as uncommon among people like me as I think.

Sensitive hearing? Huh; I have that as well, but I don't think I ever thought that it was from my autism. Hey; another thing we have in common. How does it affect you? For me, it makes it that I find certain sounds literally painful to hear. The chorus to Frozen's "Let it go" was torture for me when my mother and my sister made me watch that movie. 

 

Back on topic: another trope I don't get tired of is the Mage Killer: in a world full of people with magical powers, this is a character, usually a Badass Normal (another trope I don't get tired of), that is very well-suited to bringing them down. It's extremely cool to see someone non-magic establish how tough they are by bringing down the magical elite, and it's a very simple, yet effective method of establishing how badass a character is. My favourite examples of this include the following:

General Grievous (Star Wars: Clone Wars): Not The Clone Wars: the 2008 CGI cartoon; I'm talking about the original Clone Wars: the 2D Micro-Series created by Genndy Tartakovsky. In the micro-series, General Grievous earns the name "Knightslayer". In his first appearance, he corners 7 Jedi on a battlefield before deciding to give them "a warrior's death" by taking them on himself. He isolates and kills two before taking on the remaining five; treating the fight more like a hunt. Using a combination of pragmatism and psychological warfare to keep the Jedi from using the Force against him, he defeats them all and kills all but three before Clone reinforcements arrive and rescue them. It is one of the most downright terrifying moments in all of Star Wars.
In every scene he's in, he is an utter badass, and his ability to bring down Jedi is earned: Dooku teaches him to use "Surprise, fear and Intimidation" and to break the Jedi before engaging them. The one time he doesn't follow this happens during his escape during the Battle of Coruscant: as he's getting away with Chancellor Palpatine, Mace Windu shows up. Grievous turns around to face him, and Windu Force-Crushes Grievous' chest; crippling him and giving him the cough that he has in Revenge of the Sith. This version of Grievous is so badass that he actually makes ROTS Grievous more badass by making it that Grievous put up a good fight against Obi-Wan while still crippled. I was truly disappointed when I later saw The Clone Wars retcon Grievous as having always been an incompetent coward. 

Stags (Spider Riders): If you haven't seen it (which is very likely), Spider Riders was an anime made jointly by two animation studios: one Japanese, the other Canadian. In the show, there's a magical subterranean world where the human civilizations are under threat from humanoid insect creatures called Invectids, so elite human warriors that ride giant armoured spiders and use magical weapons & armour protect the human societies. The protagonist: a human from our world named Hunter Steele and a complete newbie Spider Rider, ends up obtaining an artifact of power (called an Oracle Key) that enables him to easily beat Invectids that normally give him trouble. In the next episode, Stags shows up; demanding to duel Hunter 1-on-1 and see Hunter's power for himself.
Stags, by the way, is a powerfully-built humanoid Stag Beetle Invectid, and the greatest warrior in the entire Invectid army. Even with Hunter's new power, his fellow Spider Riders try to keep him away from Stags because they don't think he can win. Two experienced Spider Riders we've seen win against strong Invectids before try to fight Stags, and they barely escape with their lives. Ultimately, the duel happens, and Hunter, thanks to the Oracle Key, is the first ever to damage Stags at all by breaking off one of his horns. That's all his attack does, but Stags concedes defeat anyway in shock that it actually did something. 
Stags later returns in a major storyline and duels Hunter again. This time, Hunter has two Oracle Keys... and it isn't enough. Stags, in the time off-screen, trained rigorously to power up and ensure Hunter's first win would be just a fluke. This time, Stags nearly kills Hunter and his spider. It is only after obtaining a third power-up that Hunter Steele is able to narrowly beat him by breaking Stags' sword. Having lost twice to the same foe, Stags' "warrior spirit" is completely crushed, and he departs from the castle he was besieging (there's still an entire army within the castle, but still). 

Amon (Legend of Korra): I should preface that I only like Amon before his true backstory (and with it the true explanation for his powers) is revealed. In all the episodes before that one, Amon is easily the best character in LOK (though that's not saying much). I should also clarify that I do not like the show The Legend of Korra; I used to like it, but the more I actually thought back on the story and characters, the more disappointed with it I became. So, the fact that I still like pre-reveal Amon to this day should say something. 
Everything about his design was cool, and everything about him was downright scary: a masked non-bender who could go toe-to-toe with and beat experienced benders (including a firebender that knew how to bend lightning), take away someone's bending permanently, and stay eerily calm no matter what. At one point, he is inches away from being burned by a massive fire blast, and he doesn't even flinch. That's terrifying. When Korra challenges him to face her, he simply ambushes her, tells him that them fighting now is premature, and then doesn't take away her bending, as she would become a martyr when, at that time, she's almost nothing to him and his plans. That's cool.
Everything was going really well; I could have said that, as much as I disliked season 1 of Korra, its villains were good. And then, just after the show had already given us a blood-bending product-of-his-father's-vengeance villain that was trying to take over the city as part of that vengeance, the show turns around and reveals that the badass non-bending masked revolutionary... is actually just another blood-bending product-of-the-same-dad's-revenge villain. What?! Why?! He was so much cooler, more interesting, and more unique, as a non-bending Badass Normal Mage Killer. It was such a stupid decision; pro-tip to all writers: if your twist detracts from the story instead of enhancing it, don't have the twist! Not all stories need a twist to be interesting!

[Ottservia]

5 minutes ago, vanguard333 said:

Back on topic: another trope I don't get tired of is the Mage Killer: in a world full of people with magical powers, this is a character, usually a Badass Normal (another trope I don't get tired of), that is very well-suited to bringing them down. It's extremely cool to see someone non-magic establish how tough they are by bringing down the magical elite, and it's a very simple, yet effective method of establishing how badass a character is. My favourite examples of this include the following

“I want to prove that I can be a splendid ninja as well even if I can’t use ninjutsu or genjutsu! I want to prove it to the whole world!”

I love Rock Lee. One of the best characters of early Naruto and living breathing proof that hard work can beat out natural talent. Gaara vs Lee is still by and large one of the best fights in the series.

[Anacybele]

12 minutes ago, vanguard333 said:

Sensitive hearing? Huh; I have that as well, but I don't think I ever thought that it was from my autism. Hey; another thing we have in common. How does it affect you? For me, it makes it that I find certain sounds literally painful to hear. The chorus to Frozen's "Let it go" was torture for me when my mother and my sister made me watch that movie. 

I can't really do things like concerts or parades or fireworks without some seriously good earplugs. Those events are just too damn loud otherwise, and my ears hurt bad.

[vanguard333]

2 minutes ago, Anacybele said:

I can't really do things like concerts or parades or fireworks without some seriously good earplugs. Those events are just too damn loud otherwise, and my ears hurt bad.

Huh. For me, it's more about pitch than loudness (although loudness can definitely make already painful sounds even worse). 

By the way, what did you think of the trope example I just posted (mage killer)?

[Anacybele]

1 minute ago, vanguard333 said:

Huh. For me, it's more about pitch than loudness (although loudness can definitely make already painful sounds even worse). 

By the way, what did you think of the trope example I just posted (mage killer)?

Huh, I see.

Well, I don't really think I've seen that trope before, honestly... Or if I have, I didn't realize it.

[vanguard333]

5 minutes ago, Anacybele said:

Huh, I see.

Well, I don't really think I've seen that trope before, honestly... Or if I have, I didn't realize it.

Huh. Well, some examples in Fire Emblem would be the Dread Fighter class in Shadows of Valentia, as well as Pegasus Knights in most FE games.

As for other examples you might recognize, hm... Well, there's Dark-Type Pokémon, as the type was literally created because Psychic-Type Pokémon were considered too OP in Gen 1, and the fact that they're more about underhanded tactics than actual darkness does lean them even further into being anti-magic. 

 

[Anacybele]

5 minutes ago, vanguard333 said:

Huh. Well, some examples in Fire Emblem would be the Dread Fighter class in Shadows of Valentia, as well as Pegasus Knights in most FE games.

As for other examples you might recognize, hm... Well, there's Dark-Type Pokémon, as the type was literally created because Psychic-Type Pokémon were considered too OP in Gen 1, and the fact that they're more about underhanded tactics than actual darkness does lean them even further into being anti-magic.

Well, seeing as the Dark type is called Evil type in Japan, that makes sense.

[vanguard333]

11 minutes ago, Anacybele said:

Well, seeing as the Dark type is called Evil type in Japan, that makes sense.

Indeed. 

I'm not sure if there are any other examples that you would recognize; mainly because I don't know what you've seen/read/played that has this trope other than those two examples.

Perhaps you're more familiar with the other trope I mentioned: Badass Normal? In a world where people can have all kinds of crazy supernatural powers and abilities, these characters have no such powers, but they still are able to keep up through skill, determination, cunning, and/or preparation. Notable examples would include Batman, Ike, Bandana Dee, etc. 

[Anacybele]

2 minutes ago, vanguard333 said:

Indeed. 

I'm not sure if there are any other examples that you would recognize; mainly because I don't know what you've seen/read/played that has this trope other than those two examples.

Perhaps you're more familiar with the other trope I mentioned: Badass Normal? In a world where people can have all kinds of crazy supernatural powers and abilities, these characters have no such powers, but they still are able to keep up through skill, determination, cunning, and/or preparation. Notable examples would include Batman, Ike, Bandana Dee, etc. 

Yeah, I think I'd be more familiar with that one. Robin in Teen Titans also counts, as he's the only one in the group who doesn't have superpowers, but he's the leader.

[Dragoncat]

8 minutes ago, vanguard333 said:

Notable examples would include Batman, Ike

If Ike counts for being a commoner, then yes, but Ragnell counts as a flashy power imo.

[vanguard333]

6 minutes ago, Anacybele said:

Yeah, I think I'd be more familiar with that one. Robin in Teen Titans also counts, as he's the only one in the group who doesn't have superpowers, but he's the leader.

True. I haven't actually seen that show. I saw one or two episodes as a kid, but I don't think it was on TV at a good time for me. Now, the only Teen Titans content I can find are the bad kids show Teen Titan's Go!, and the somehow even-worse overly-edgy Titans show. 

 

Just now, Dragoncat said:

If Ike counts for being a commoner, then yes, but Ragnell counts as a flashy power imo.

I would say Ike still counts because he only needs Ragnell to hurt the Black Knight, but yes. I would say Ike counts two-fold:

1. In Tellius: a continent of Knights and a Mad King, Mages, Laguz, etc., Ike is just a peasant guy with a sword. 

2. Among FE lords, he is the only peasant, and in particular is the only one with no magic-power-granting bloodline. Marth's bloodline grants him the Falchion, Alm and Celica are Brand-Bearers, Sigurd and Seliph have dragon blood, etc. Ike may have a magic sword, but anyone can theoretically use Ragnell, and Ike doesn't even keep it; he uses it to deal with the Black Knight, and he always hands it back to Begnion at the end of the story. 

[Ottservia]

you know what I just really like shounen power up moments those are great

[vanguard333]

Just now, Ottservia said:

you know what I just really like shounen power up moments those are great

I'm not sure about power-up moments, but similar, "I'm not done yet!" moments in the few Shonen Anime I've seen are pretty cool. To clarify, by "I'm not done yet!" moments, I'm referring to moments when person A in the fight is soundly beating person B and even has them injured or otherwise on the ground, but eventually, person B gets up, keeps fighting, and usually wins through some ingenuity. 

My favourite example of this by far would be (Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood spoilers):

Spoiler

Colonel Mustang burning Lust after having been stabbed by her and left for dead. Him entering the room, revealing that he carved the Flame Alchemy matrix on his own hand while using Havoc's lighter to create the spark before cauterizing his stab-wound shut, and then proceeding to repeatedly burn Lust until her Philosopher's Stone completely depletes cemented Roy Mustang as one of the most badass anime characters I've ever seen. 

But really, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, and really a lot of Anime I've seen, is full of moments like these. 

[Morgan--Grandmaster]

The good old angry mob. You know some stuff's about to go down when they bring out the torches and pitchforks.

[Quillmonger]

Sweet, emotionally mature and perceptive women, who are just the best, but are also not weak pushovers. This is basically why I am so in love with Mercedes. 

[Hawkwing]

On 2/5/2020 at 10:02 PM, Ottservia said:

This all of this. It’s the primary reason I absolutely love Naruto and Sasuke vs Momoshiki. (It starts at about the 40 second mark)

 
on the topic of Naruto. Another trope I absolutely love is one where Rivals or unlikely allies(like hero and villain) team up against a common enemy and they actually work really well together.

Ah, Naruto fights. Where I have no idea what is going on, yet still find it fun as heck to watch.

Seriously, though, that's a cool fight. Thanks for sharing that.

***

Another trope I never get tired of is Competent Mooks, and not just ones that are cool in one scene and cannon fodder the rest. I mean enemies that are good in a fight, utilize tactics against their opponent, adopt to any new powers or strategies, and are savvy and threatening throughout the whole adventure. They help make the overall conflict far more engaging to watch and all the more satisfying to see the heroes overcome.

[Jason-SilverStarApple]

I like it when the hero is actually moral, and gets to do moral things.

[XRay]

I like the power of friendship/love. My eyes got a little moist during the climax of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 1. I think My Little Pony puts it best, Friendship is Magic. Overcoming obstacles with your friends and lovers sounds really bromantic and romantic. It gives me a warm fuzzy feeling.

I also like fanservice and seductive characters. The more the better. I like my fanservice to be as hot and spicy as possible, just like how I like my food to be as hot and spicy as possible. There is no such thing as something being too hot or spicy (if I am not reaching for a glass of milk or spoon of butter, it is not hot enough).

I love onee-chans who are super caring and nurturing, and they are often fanservice and seductive characters too, so that is a huge bonus. I love being coddled and spoiled.

I also like strong willed female leads, such as Lucina and especially Edelgard. If Edelgard commanded me to do something, I feel like would have much less hesitation doing things that I would otherwise hesitate doing. If Edelgard was my waifu, then I would probably have little hesitation lighting the whole world on fire if she asks of me. Not sure why, but I just feel really magnetically drawn to Edelgard, despite my head ringing huge alarm bells that she is kind of an asshole.

I am not sure if this is a trope, but I like it when media portrays cats accurately in terms of their embarrassing moments. There is an app called KleptoCats, and what made me download the game (I uninstalled now though since Heroes takes up a lot of space) was because it showed the cats licking their booty hole, like how my own does it. I also really liked the end credits scene in Captain Marvel where Goose threw up the Tesseract; it just looked so accurate. I am still waiting to see an accurate portrayal of cats strutting around with dingleberries on their furry butt cheeks.

I also like cheap jumpscares in horror movies. I find horror movies without any jump scares to be just boring. And yes, I got scared twice (or maybe it was thrice) when I saw Toy Story 4 in theaters. I know, I am a pansy.