We all know the everlasting common tropes in TV/movies (Chekov’s Gun, Lampshading, Dues ex machina, etc) but what are some that were common for a while and then just… disappeared?

One I happened to notice recently was the “quiet drama or intense moment interrupted by someone’s ridiculous ringtone” trope. You just don’t see that anymore, but it used to be everywhere. I think the last time I saw it was in Thor 2 with Jane’s ringtone. The first two times it played the trope straight but became a Chekov’s Gun the third time.

I think it was most common in the early to late 2000s when custom ringtones were in their heyday and maybe a little after. Nowadays, IRL, most people have their phone on vibrate or just use the default sounds and current shows are reflecting that trend.

What other tropes can you think of that disappeared just as fast as they arrived?

  • Kraiden@piefed.socialEnglish
    4·
    6 days ago

    I don’t know if I’d consider Chekov’s Gun or Deus Ex Machina to be tropes. A trope is a commonly recurring motif, theme, character type, or plot device. Chekov’s gun is just a principle that says don’t add unnecessary crap if it’s not important to the story, and a deus ex machina is usually just lazy/poor writing. “It was all a dream” is a trope in itself, but also an example of a deus ex machina. So is the military/cavalry/Rohirrim showing up to save the day.