21 People Shared The Worst Plot Tropes, And I Don't Know How To Feel Because I Love A Good Love Triangle
During my daily Twitter doom scroll, I came across a tweet by @itszaeok asking the Twitter-sphere what the worst plot trope is.
what's the worst plot trope and why is it memory loss
— zae (@itszaeok) May 12, 2023
Twitter: @itszaeok
I concur with memory loss being quite literally horrible.
Naturally, this question — albeit rhetorical — had lots of people joining in on the conversation.
wrong, the angst of remembering and the angst of those that are forgotten is so good. not to mention constant anticipation and the character development that comes with it 🤌🏻 it allows for so much nuance in the writing https://t.co/xSI4K9GKJd
— bobbi 🌼 (@ukieyeongie) May 14, 2023
Twitter: @ukieyeongie
OK, this tweet actually shifted my feelings on the amnesia trope just a teeny tiny bit.
With over 45 million views and more than 9,000 replies, people had a lot to say about the common tropes we see in TV, movies, and books. While some were defending the memory loss trope, others were weighing in on what the actual worst plot trope is. Here are some of the best contenders:
1. The love triangle trope (because we just have to start with this one):
the worst is love triangle when is not even a competition and is only person A being completely in love with person B but not being able to fully be with them because they feel guilty for not loving person C https://t.co/Z6e05CftSx
— laly (@getawayeverlark) May 13, 2023
Twitter: @getawayeverlark
2. The suspiciously perfect suburban town/neighborhood trope:
https://t.co/Bmeo2V04Ft pic.twitter.com/wCKaN00WUE
— Justin Whang 🐙 (@JustinWhang) May 18, 2023
Instagram: @JustinWhang
3. The "you're totally not getting this happy ending even though you deserve it" trope:
a character being so close to their happy ending after years of experiencing trauma and getting killed off instead https://t.co/n0Ks61ARw2
— maria (@marstaylcr) May 18, 2023
Twitter: @marstaylcr
4. The time travel trope:
Using time travel to resurrect dead characters or undo major events that happened earlier in the story.Definitely one of the worst plot tropes IMO https://t.co/z7wjqp0hCh
— Pax Tube (@MioHondaFan) May 16, 2023
Twitter: @MioHondaFan
5. The forgotten birthday trope:
The forgotten birthday.Whether it's a joke or the characters genuinely forget, it makes me so sad for the character whose birthday it is. Forgetting someone's birthday is already bad, but doing it as a joke or as a setup to a surprise party sucks https://t.co/R0dUq23i9R
— spoon/ofélia!🚌🪐♎️ (@spooniestars) May 19, 2023
Twitter: @spooniestars
6. The unappreciative and regretful student trope:
Character doesn’t appreciate the loving mentor’s advice because they’re immature, this typically culminates in a scene where the protagonist verbally blows up on the mentor before running off, Then the mentor dies and the protagonist blames themself. https://t.co/QgxieglDFY
— MaceAhWindu (@MaceAhWindu) May 15, 2023
Twitter: @MaceAhWindu
7. The "not believing children" trope:
I always hated the “children who warn of impending danger and the adults don’t listen to the them because they’re children” because my kids can say the most gibberish made up nonsense lie and I’ll be like “whoa whoa whoa bro say that again, what door under the bed which bed??” https://t.co/OC2BmxqKhV
— SlumRNA_GoyimExploder (@SlumRNA_Dog) May 17, 2023
Twitter: @SlumRNA_Dog
8. The disbandment of a found family trope:
When you spend the ENTIRE story building a found family and then they just go their separate ways in the end????? https://t.co/1wHBvtbkut
— Wolfy🌈 (@WolfyTheWitch) May 15, 2023
Twitter: @WolfyTheWitch
9. The death fake-out trope:
THIS CHARACTER IS TOTALLY DEAD GUYS. IT'S SO SAD.... OH WAIT THEY'RE ALIVE HAHA https://t.co/V8gXZPpCPQ
— joshscorcher (@joshscorcher) May 14, 2023
Twitter: @joshscorcher
10. The bullying trope:
bullying episodesbasically episodes where the main plot is just fucking up the protagonist for no good reason at all, I hate them SO damn much https://t.co/xky47TtbGi pic.twitter.com/Pw0aP6PQYE
— Aizakku (@ItsAizakku) May 15, 2023
Twitter: @ItsAizakku / Nickelodeon / Cartoon Network
11. The "suddenly we have morals" trope:
the “we can’t kill the horrible villian or we’re just like him after spending yearss on this journey” trope https://t.co/s0mW00k2Iw
— 𝒦🩰 (@sollana13) May 12, 2023
Twitter: @sollana13
12. The unnecessary blame trope:
I always HATED plots where a character is blamed for something they didn't do (either by circumstance or by another character lying), and then their "friends" instantly believe the accusations and the character gets undeserved hatred for a prolonged period. https://t.co/iAW4ZMio5o
— Bup Man (@StanTheToadMan) May 14, 2023
Twitter: @StanTheToadMan
13. The public shaming trope:
Good intentioned main character is reviled by the public for failing to convince them of an impending threat https://t.co/aoz13ryiDD pic.twitter.com/02QLx1DH8Z
— Xploshi (@Xploshi) May 15, 2023
Twitter: @Xploshi / Disney / 20th Century Studios / Columbia / Ralph Nelson/Universal Pictures
14. The misunderstanding trope:
Oh boy everyone it's time for the act 3 misunderstanding! Watch in awe as a character overhears something from the other side of a door with no context! Or maybe a male character is seen speaking to a woman who isn't the main romantic lead! https://t.co/2gIFPCniCC
— Zane Schacht - Voice Goblin 🐀 (@VoicesByZane) May 15, 2023
Twitter: @VoicesbyZane
15. The shunned character trope:
Nah it’s when the main character is hated by the whole town/colony so they go bust their ass to seek approval, only to get hated on AGAIN in the middle of the film then finally everyone believes in them towards the end https://t.co/Z0xCPJgpNO pic.twitter.com/EfdaNpprrZ
— 💫AstralWingz💫 (@Zhane_Star) May 14, 2023
Twitter: @Zhane_Star / Disney
16. The horrible friend group trope:
Nah the worst trope by far Is when a new clearly evil character gets introduced and starts bullying another character when they’re alone but then acts like the victim when other characters are around and for some reason their friends believe the new guy over their friend https://t.co/uqfwQrrFie
— Supoko (@BasedSupoko) May 13, 2023
Twitter: @BasedSupoko
17. The undeserved forgiveness trope:
when an abusive parent gets forgiven because "well, you're my family after all." https://t.co/U8rVpiSm0H
— ★ trøffel (@constantinnenn) May 15, 2023
Twitter: @constantinnenn
18. The forced lovers-to-friends trope:
Forced romantic subplots between characters who could have just remained friends 🙄 THERE’S NOTHING WRONG WITH PLATONIC LOVE YALL!! https://t.co/PQtvcoSxcS
— Lamard Cher-Aimé (They/Them) (@LamardCherAime) May 13, 2023
Twitter: @LamardCherAime
19. The entitled friend trope:
when a character has a secret and their friend gets mad at them for not telling them their secret and they're like "aren't we friends? why don't you trust me?" kinda selfish and manipulative behaviour tbh https://t.co/2S49S1YJCB
— Jason🐇 (@constellor) May 14, 2023
Twitter: @constellor
20. The makeover trope:
ugly duckling gets a makeover ; shy girl loses the glasses, puts on a bit of make up, gets a new haircut, and suddenly becomes the most desired or popular girl in town its so cringe https://t.co/Z78dHZnlVo
— fiza (@timt1stan) May 13, 2023
Twitter: @tim1stan
And of course, this banger of a trope:
21. The "nothing was real" trope:
“it was all a dream” https://t.co/nG6GjIurqC
— gbae⋆lola (@gbennylola) May 13, 2023
Twitter: @gbennylola