Norman:I just don't want to be cliche! Chuck:It's not cliche, Norman, it's the formula, and it works! —Sidekick

There is one thing that you must keep in mind to retain your sanity here, and that is thatmany tropes are neithergood norbad in and of themselves, nor is it the case that including one in a particular work makes it "ruined."

If your favorite shows have long lists of tropes associated with them, well, so do everybody's. A show featuring anAction Girl or showing a characterkicking the dog is not a bad thing; the former is merely a reasonable type of character (badass character who is female) and the latter is a character action that happens plenty inReal Life.

That said, some trope entries are just highlights of common mistakes, and generallyare bad. For instance, a modern-day show where all the cops havelaser guns is probably just necessary lameness to appease censors (unlesssuperhero-tech from superhuman geniuses is a common part of the universe), and a writer that includesInstant Death Bullets probably justscrewed up. Still, even if a show includes always-bad and unjustified tropes, the harm is likely non-fatal.

Consider the following points before you label simply including a common story element or character type as a sign of creative failure:

There is nothing new under the sun. Including that very statement. And thebook from which it comes. Completely ignoring the possibility that one's favorite show just mightnot be hewn from the very essence of the universe by Thor himself and placed in the periodic table underOr for "Originalium" doesn't change the fact that itwasn't. And acknowledging that it isn't should not lessen its appeal, either.

Every story is influenced by what came before it—and storytellers (e.g., writers, directors, actors) are bound to show that influence, intentionally or not, in the process of telling. Just because something's been used before doesn't mean it's a cliché. That said, there certainly is such thing astoo derivative, but there's a difference between playing a trope straight and utterCliché Storm.

Fiction isn't necessarily supposed to be realistic. When your reader wants to escape from the tired drudgery of reality, you shouldn't be trying to indexically recreate it. Much fiction seeks to show not what is, but what could be, or what should be. A trope being unrealistic isn't necessarily a flaw, and is often covered byRule of Cool,Rule of Funny, orRule of Scary. Indeed, a trope, however unrealistic, can be a convenient shorthand when played straight; setting up aversions or subversions for it can be more wordy than is needed to get on with story.

Every trope has a silver lining. Just because there's a lot of bad,badMary Sues out there doesn't mean nobody could ever, or has ever,done it well. The much-reviledAll Just a Dream was, let's not forget, used in one of thebest series finales in the history of television, as well as one of thebest twist endings in any movie. While becomingDarker and Edgier isn't always a good thing, it's been used in one of thebest movie series in recent memory, and indeedthe biggest blockbuster of 2008. Remember, while this site is fairly snarky, most of the snark is directed towards shows whodon't use tropes well.

When someone points out a less-than-flattering trope in a less-than-flattering way, remember thatStar Trek fans have learned to live with and evenloveannoying characters, outbursts of "Khaaaaaaan!",Rubber Forehead Aliens,Green Skinned Space Babes, etc. Seriously, you can learn to love it while still acknowledging it.

Just because nobody points out a trope doesn't mean it isn't there.Tropes Will Ruin Your Life, one way or another. When you read a long and hilarious list of trope examples, and you know deep in your heart of hearts that your pet show belongs, save yourself the heartache and list it yourself—you'll probably befairer than someone who doesn't like the show. Itisthe only way, my friend, and you won't have to give up yourfan-club membership just because you acknowledged the truth. Be specific, be funny, and resist thatFan Boy temptation to add that prefixaverted orjustified.

"Justified Trope"doesn't mean what you think it means, anyway.

BeingTrope Overdosed isn't bad. Just because some shows have a ridiculous number of tropes associated with them doesn't make those shows bad. Overdosage is linked to how popular, well-recorded by our tropers,influential, andlong a work has run, not how good or bad it is. Let's face it, applying tropes to things is what this site is all about. It'sfun.This is our solemn duty.

The point of this wiki is that tropes arefun, and that there's no such thing asSerious Business. So think before sniping that example with aJustifying Edit, take a deep breath, and remember that Tropes Are Not Bad, and thatit's just a show, you should really just relax.

Of course,Tropes Are Not Good, either.Tropes Are Tools.

• Index of Exact Trope Titles
• Tropes Are Not Bad