Like Gwen Cooper in Torchwood: Miracle Day? I hated that too.
What tropes in science fiction annoy you?
- Thread starter Gingerbread Demon
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Like Gwen Cooper in Torchwood: Miracle Day? I hated that too.
I don't like the mantra, mostly in comic books/fantasy but I think also sci fi, that if a hero kills one villain they become totally evil, unworthy of any respect, no better than the villains.
Even if there's something to that (there is) going so far feels very condescending if not outright pretentious, trying to make some profound statement of something that largely is actually mostly a commercial restriction on the stories rather than an artistic decision. Plus most of the time it's just really unconvincing and so extreme it feels like a disingenuous response to the dilemma.
Even if there's something to that (there is) going so far feels very condescending if not outright pretentious, trying to make some profound statement of something that largely is actually mostly a commercial restriction on the stories rather than an artistic decision. Plus most of the time it's just really unconvincing and so extreme it feels like a disingenuous response to the dilemma.
Corollary to that - our hero has just killed a couple of dozen henchmen, but when he's got the main villain in his sights, someone says "Don't do it - if you kill him, you'll be no better than him!" Um, but it was okay to slaughter his gang??
Nobody thinks of the evil henchmen's families.to be fair, most of the henchmen didn't even have names, so were they really even people?
Things that work or won't work a certain way because if it did, then it's be too much of an advantage/disadvantage for plot reasons.
Example: Star Trek, Ships can't use weapons when cloaked.
Example: Star Trek, Ships can't use weapons when cloaked.
That reminds me of this bit from the Superboy TV series.
Really? The world goes to hell just because Superboy killed Luthor? How the HELL does that work?
Hah!
To be fair, though, the "Don't do it! moment often comes after the villain has been defeated, when he's at the hero's mercy. Said henchmen are usually killed in battle before the good guys win and when the outcome is still in doubt.
It's usually not a case of "Well, let's spare the ringleader, but slaughter all his henchmen even though they've already surrendered . . .. "
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I think it was "The World is Not Enough."
Turns out there's a correlation between technological development and kinky alien nudism!
I think there's an ebb & flow to it. Regional cultural differences may become less pronounced but we've already seen the internet bring about a splintering of what we consider "pop" culture. Sub-cultures will probably become more pronounced. Predicting the rise of a monolithic culture certainly seems counterintuitive in an age where every day people are writing thinkpieces about how "We're more divided than ever!"
I'm not even sure you can refer to Americans as being culturally "American." In my experience, the U.S. is really more like 5 separate countries that are just kinda tied together politically.
As for the rapidly aging kid trope, I like the extreme example of Connor on Angel where he went from infant to surly teenager within the span of a few episodes thanks to a Hell Dimension. It seemed like a pisstake on the whole concept.
And there was another TV trope that Connor embodied after he left at the end of Season 4-- A regular character leaves and is never mentioned again, as if no one else even remembers he ever existed. In this case, it was literal. Except for Angel, everyone's memories of Connor were completely erased.
Buffy did the opposite with Dawn in Season 5-- A new character joins the regular cast and everyone acts as if she's always been there. Again, it was literal. Everyone's memories were literally altered thanks to magic.
And there was another TV trope that Connor embodied after he left at the end of Season 4-- A regular character leaves and is never mentioned again, as if no one else even remembers he ever existed. In this case, it was literal. Except for Angel, everyone's memories of Connor were completely erased.
Buffy did the opposite with Dawn in Season 5-- A new character joins the regular cast and everyone acts as if she's always been there. Again, it was literal. Everyone's memories were literally altered thanks to magic.
Heck, you can get different sub-cultures within the same region. Just drive from a big college town to a small rural community (or vise versa) and you can feel the difference sometimes.
Turns out there's a correlation between technological development and kinky alien nudism!
Ah. Since "Lifeforce" is on Amazon Prime that reminds me. Mathilda May. YOW!
Alien's that arrive on earth to procreate. Usually they start off naked and some homeless person is the first one to suffer the consequences.
Yeah I rolled my eyes at Spectre
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