Tropescilloscope: Central Theme

A philosophy, message, idea, or question at a story's core. (read more at tvtropes.org)

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