TV Tropes: Love 'em or Loathe 'em

[galax-arena]

I saw the Scorpion pilot at San Diego Comic Con, and that made me realize just how much I loathe the Insufferable Genius trope. I’ll put up with it on a show if there’s something else compelling enough to keep me watching, or if the Insufferable Genius isn’t allowed to get away with his insufferability (e.g. Elementary – “Because couching it in scientific terms totally negates the misogyny!”).

 

It looks like I’m going to have to shelve Scorpion with other generic Insufferable Genius fodder; there's way too much emphasis on the main character’s IQ and how he’s such a super special snowflake and the smartest man in the room so you’ll have to forgive him for being such a quirky eccentric (asshole) because he’s a genius and did I mention how high his IQ is? Katherine McPhee’s character is meant to be a foil to the IG cadre - yes, there's an entire group of them - but unfortunately that doesn’t seem to consist of calling them out on their bullshit. I know it’s a pilot and pilots are often rough, but I was done with the show when the main character said that most people with high IQs have low EQs as justification for being an asshole.

 

Disclaimer: I take no responsibility if this thread causes you to fall down the rabbit hole that is tvtropes.org.

Edited July 15, 2019 by Drogo
This topic has been merged with TV Tropes You Love.

[Cobalt Stargazer]

Ooh, ooh, I'm next!

 

A direct relation to the Insufferable Genius is the Bad Boy Woobie, which has ruined more shows for me than anything else. Whether his name is Sawyer or Damon or Spike or Logan, they're all the same - assholes who think they're allowed to do whatever they want, and the worst thing is, they usually have some enabling woman proving them right. Elena, Buffy, Veronica, I'm looking at you. I don't know when the BBW became a 'thing', all I know is that I loathe it and wish it would stop.

[ganesh]

Love triangle. Hands down, the *worst* writing hack ever invented on tv, cf., every show ever. 

[ABay]

You beat me to it, @ganesh. Triangles are second only to will-they-won't-they.

Edited August 4, 2014 by ABay

[DittyDotDot]

I might hate "Tough Guy With A Heart Of Gold And Really Good With Children" a bit more than "Will They/Won't They". Oh, who am I kidding, I hate them all with the passion of 10,000 fiery nuns. ;)

[ganesh]

I can stomach will they/won't they once and a while if it's campy. There's never been a circumstance where the triangle was even remotely watchable. Also it's never happened for real in the known universe. 

[MaryMitch]

I hate "people with glasses are smart". And its corollary "Women can take off their glasses and instantly are beautiful" (and can apparently see just fine.)

[ganesh]

If a character on a show is paying for an escort, he will inevitably "fall" for her and "want to take her away from all this". Because sex workers can't be just people.

Edited August 4, 2014 by ganesh

[RubyWoo72]

Smart-ass kids/ teens with clueless dads and sexpot moms.

The Neighbors Who Never Knock.

[braziliangirl]

The girls who make everyone fall in love with them, are amazing in anything they try, the most special snowflakes ever even tough I as a viewer find them annoying, onedimensional and eyerolling. Thinking of you, Joey Potter.

[Cobalt Stargazer]

And Lana Lang.

[Shannon L.]

I hate that every comedy has to have someone so stupid it's a surprise that person survived as long as they did. 

[spaceytraci1208]

I hate emotional moments in the rain...that goes for TV and films

[RubyWoo72]

I hate emotional moments in the rain...that goes for TV and films

What??? You mean you don't like when someone drops to his/ her knees and calls out to the heavens with arms raised, in slow motion, with an entire string section playing? That's not corny at all.

[RubyWoo72]

Also, assigning a certain sexual prowess/ temperament to a particular ethnicity, a lá the Hot ___________ or the Quick-Tempered __________. That one gets old real quick.

[walnutqueen]

I hate emotional moments in the rain...that goes for TV and films

 

Good thing you didn't grow up in the Pacific Northwest, emotionally stunted, like me!

[AntiBeeSpray]

You beat me to it, @ganesh. Triangles are second only to will-they-won't-they.

Heck... I hate that too! It's so ridiculous. And it can only go on for so long,

 

Add in spinning kiss scenes. Those are just silly :P.

[kathyk24]

I hate Hoyay with a passion. Two people of the same sex can be close friends without being potential lovers.

[Joe]

Also, assigning a certain sexual prowess/ temperament to a particular ethnicity, a lá the Hot ___________ or the Quick-Tempered __________. That one gets old real quick.

The only one I use in my own writing is the firey redhead. But that's only because somewhat unbalanced characters are more fun to write than entirely level-headed ones.

[ABay]

Last night's Colbert Report segment with John Dean reminded me how much I hate, with the heat of a thousand burning nuns, flames on the side of my face, totally hate, use of the present tense when describing what happened in the past. It's the PAST, it's history, it already happened. English has a whole tense just for that. Use it!

 

Releated to that, but not on TV: I can't read books or fan fic  written in present tense. It feels like the author standing up and waving "look at me! Look at me! I'm an auteur!"

[ToxicUnicorn]

Heh.  It'd be fun to read you in the "Literally" thread, ABay.  Hope you can find a handy bucket of water.

 

I hate that in a show with a nearly all white cast plus two minority characters, the two minority characters hook up with ... each other.

 

I don't know if that's an actual trope, but I've seen it often enough that it really bothers me.

[Kel Varnsen]

I hate that every comedy has to have someone so stupid it's a surprise that person survived as long as they did. 

Most comedies also seem to have someone who is a complete and total man-whore who surprisingly has never contracted an STD and never gotten anyone pregnant. 

[Joe]

Last night's Colbert Report segment with John Dean reminded me how much I hate, with the heat of a thousand burning nuns, flames on the side of my face, totally hate, use of the present tense when describing what happened in the past. It's the PAST, it's history, it already happened. English has a whole tense just for that. Use it!

 

Releated to that, but not on TV: I can't read books or fan fic  written in present tense. It feels like the author standing up and waving "look at me! Look at me! I'm an auteur!"

Interesting. I usually lapse into present tense when telling a story. As for books, I'm not fussed about the tense if it's a good story. Charles Stross wrote two books second-person present tense and made them work.

[galax-arena]

I hate Hoyay with a passion. Two people of the same sex can be close friends without being potential lovers.

I’m more inclined to give this a pass. Yeah, two people of the same gender can be close platonic friends, but canon gay ships are still greatly lacking on screen (although of course it’s at a much better place compared to yesteryear), and for a lot of people hankering for some m/m or f/f, hoyay will be all they get.

 

I mean, two people of the opposite gender can be close friends without being potential lovers, too. But if you have a man and a woman on screen with UST, then chances are often relatively high that they will bone at some point on the show. Or at least much, much higher than they would be if the two people were of the same gender. I think I hate that a lot more than hoyay, actually, because it reinforces the idea that a man and a woman can't just be friends. 

[ganesh]

I think that captures the fundamental problem. I'm sure I'm not alone, but I have a good many opposite gender platonic friends and the chances of will they/won't they are 0%/100%. 

 

It's actually possible. Writers can't seem to actually write meaningful relationships without throwing in sex. That really destroyed the X Files for me. 

 

Hoyay like the scene on Penny Dreadful, like that? That stuff is great!

[Portia]

I'm tired of the beautiful woman who has no idea that her male best friend has fallen in love with her and/or who never even considers that her male friend(s) might get turned on if they see her naked.

[tennisgurl]

I am sick to death of the "precocious child who has all the answers" trope. You know, that sweet child who teaches the cynical adults about the "important" things in life? Its just painful at this point.

 

The parent of this child is often the "Dad who spends too much time at work, and not enough time with the wife/kids/puppy dog" type. He's clearly in the wrong for working hard and providing for his family, and is a heartless jerk for missing sweet precocious child's soccer game. So when the precocious child says how his Daddy is never around, the dad can feel all guilty, and NOT explain to the child that sometimes adults need to spend time at work, so they have the money to pay for the kids brand new soccer cleats. I seriously HATE this trope. Like...so much.

 

Also related? The wife of the cop/doctor/FBI agent who constantly complains about her spouses long hours at work. Like he's just hanging around the office, and not saving lives. And this is a huge shock to her, even though she knew she married a cop/doctor/FBI agent.

[GreekGeek]

I've never liked the "opposites attract" trope--the one where the two people have totally different world views, opinions, education levels, and personalities--and somehow are supposed to fall in love. And that arguing a lot means they're really attracted to each other. That goes double if one of the two is set to marry someone else with whom he or she is more compatible, and then dumps the person for the supposed soulmate.

 

I've had it with family "comedies" where everyone is rude and nasty to everyone else. It was refreshing and funny at first to see imperfect families; now it's just ugly.

 

This article from Cracked is about movies, but some of  the overused tropes could apply to TV too. http://www.cracked.com/article_18791_if-movie-characters-didnt-make-horrible-decisions.html

[AntiBeeSpray]

I think that captures the fundamental problem. I'm sure I'm not alone, but I have a good many opposite gender platonic friends and the chances of will they/won't they are 0%/100%. 

 

It's actually possible. Writers can't seem to actually write meaningful relationships without throwing in sex. That really destroyed the X Files for me. 

 

Hoyay like the scene on Penny Dreadful, like that? That stuff is great!

Yea it is kind of annoying sometimes.

 

Didn't mind it on the X-Files though, since they handled it as implied and not literal like on other shows.

 

But I am tired of the whole dancing around in regards to how it's handled every so often. Chris doesn't get it sometimes  

-_-. It doesn't mean that things have to be out in the open, but not EVERYTHING needs to be implied.

Edited August 5, 2014 by AntiBeeSpray

[ganesh]

For sci fi shows: the alien/human hybrid. 

I didn't like it on the X Files because there was no reason for it. It seemed pathetic to me. "Oh, you're the only person I really knew for the last 7 years, so I guess we should be together." It's just lazy. I never bought that Mulder would be with anyone.

 

I did like the last movie though, and I appreciate that both DD and GA are amicable about revisiting these characters from time to time. 

[Kel Varnsen]

For sci fi shows: the alien/human hybrid. 

 

That one is pretty bad, and shows how TV writers aren't so good when it comes to science. I mean humans and Chimps aren't able to procreate together and we share something like 98% of the same DNA. But yet on TV humans and people from other planets are able to reproduce together.

[ganesh]

ALL THE TIME. Aliens invented FTL travel but forgot to invent condoms. 

[TattleTeeny]

The girls who make everyone fall in love with them, are amazing in anything they try, the most special snowflakes ever even tough I as a viewer find them annoying, onedimensional and eyerolling. Thinking of you, Joey Potter.

 

UGH! I immediately thought of that simpering ass Jennifer Love Hewitt on that short-lived show of hers set in NY. Oddly enough, I so wish I could find it and watch it--even though it made me rage out like crazy.

[spaceytraci1208]

I hate that every comedy has to have someone so stupid it's a surprise that person survived as long as they did. 

 

 

Most comedies also seem to have someone who is a complete and total man-whore who surprisingly has never contracted an STD and never gotten anyone pregnant. 

 

Soooo...Joey Tribiani basically? :D

[MaryPatShelby]

It doesn't make me crazy or anything, but I've noticed that all neighbors and friends of sitcom families know where in the house the family is at any given time....so they know whether to come in/knock at the front door or the back door.

[Pickles Aplenty]

I hate it when unrelated characters grow up together and then own houses in the same neighborhood.  When does that ever happen in real life?  As much as I love King of the Hill, it bothered me that Hank, Bill, Dale, and Boomhauer somehow managed to buy houses right next to each other in adulthood.  That's the only show I can think of as an example, but I'm sure there have been others. 

[Kel Varnsen]

I hate it when unrelated characters grow up together and then own houses in the same neighborhood.  When does that ever happen in real life?  As much as I love King of the Hill, it bothered me that Hank, Bill, Dale, and Boomhauer somehow managed to buy houses right next to each other in adulthood.  That's the only show I can think of as an example, but I'm sure there have been others. 

Although looking back on that it kind of made sense. I mean those other three guys were so dependent on Hank for just about everything they needed to function in their lives  (especially Dale and Bill) that I can totally see when it came time for him to buy a house, they would move right next to him. Plus Hank hated change so much I could totally see that he would be totally fine with living next to the same people he grew up with.

[DittyDotDot]

I hate it when unrelated characters grow up together and then own houses in the same neighborhood.  When does that ever happen in real life?  As much as I love King of the Hill, it bothered me that Hank, Bill, Dale, and Boomhauer somehow managed to buy houses right next to each other in adulthood.  That's the only show I can think of as an example, but I'm sure there have been others. 

 

It's not that uncommon in small towns at all.

[AntiBeeSpray]

For sci fi shows: the alien/human hybrid. 

I didn't like it on the X Files because there was no reason for it. It seemed pathetic to me. "Oh, you're the only person I really knew for the last 7 years, so I guess we should be together." It's just lazy. I never bought that Mulder would be with anyone.

 

I did like the last movie though, and I appreciate that both DD and GA are amicable about revisiting these characters from time to time. 

I did (to a point). He lost his sister so it makes some sense that he'd want to be with someone. It's only human.

 

Same. It wasn't perfect, but it was nice to see those two again :).

[ganesh]

That's the weird thing. In the last movie, I had zero issues with them together. On the show, I just didn't buy it for a second. 

 

Mulder didn't technically lose the sister because she did come back at one point too. 

[Shannon L.]

 

I hate it when unrelated characters grow up together and then own houses in the same neighborhood.  When does that ever happen in real life?  As much as I love King of the Hill, it bothered me that Hank, Bill, Dale, and Boomhauer somehow managed to buy houses right next to each other in adulthood.  That's the only show I can think of as an example, but I'm sure there have been others.

 

It's not that uncommon in small towns at all.

Yeah, I know a few people like this in the town I grew up in and the town my grandparents live in. 

[RubyWoo72]

The Antagonist with the Russian/ German/ British Accent While Trying to Foil the American Protagonist is old, already. Tired of that one.

[paulvdb]

That one is pretty bad, and shows how TV writers aren't so good when it comes to science. I mean humans and Chimps aren't able to procreate together and we share something like 98% of the same DNA. But yet on TV humans and people from other planets are able to reproduce together.

I don't mind the regular human/alien hybrid, but I really hate it when they add the rapid aging and special powers. How does that even happen when as far as we know both parents's species age at a normal rate and don't have special powers?

[Shannon L.]

I don't hate it yet, but I'm getting tired of the number of comedies these days that are done documentary style.  It was a neat idea at first, but it seems like more of a normal thing now (but, I don't watch a lot of comedies, so maybe I'm wrong...)

[Aquarius]

Grief sex.  It's done to death on soaps.  Pun intended.

[legaleagle53]

Last night's Colbert Report segment with John Dean reminded me how much I hate, with the heat of a thousand burning nuns, flames on the side of my face, totally hate, use of the present tense when describing what happened in the past. It's the PAST, it's history, it already happened. English has a whole tense just for that. Use it!

 

Releated to that, but not on TV: I can't read books or fan fic  written in present tense. It feels like the author standing up and waving "look at me! Look at me! I'm an auteur!"

 

That's actually a valid literary device.  It's called the "Historic Present," and its purpose is to make the narrative more vivid, in order to make the reader feel as though he or she really were there as an eyewitness to the events being related.  The Romans, for example, used it quite frequently in prose to great effect.

[ABay]

That's actually a valid literary device.  It's called the "Historic Present," and its purpose is to make the narrative more vivid, in order to make the reader feel as though he or she really were there as an eyewitness to the events being related.

Yes...none of this does anything to reduce the irritation level at its use. Indeed, it only saddens me that historians encourage a lack of imagination on the part of the viewer who is usually watching dramatic re-enactments of the events under discussion. And this:

 

 

The Romans, for example, used it quite frequently in prose to great effect.

just makes me glad they're all dead.

Edited August 7, 2014 by ABay

[Constantinople]

People, particularly adults, scared of clowns.

 

I don't ever recall being scared by clowns as a child, nor do I know anyone then or now who was.

 

Yet somehow the idea that large segments of the population are terrified by clowns popped-up 20 years ago, or possibly earlier.

 

Is John Wayne Gacy behind this?

Edited August 8, 2014 by Constantinople

[Joe]

I've heard it being put down to uncanny valley. They just look that little bit wrong.

[Popples]

People, particularly adults, scared of clowns.

 

I don't ever recall being scared by clowns as a child, nor do I know anyone then or now who was.

 

Yet somehow the idea that large segments of the population are terrified by clowns popped-up 20 years ago, or possibly earlier.

 

Is John Wayne Gacy behind this?

 

I believe that Stephen King's It is most likely the culprit.