My Least Favorite Tropes

Greetings, friends and enemies [hopefully not enemies, actually. Why would my enemies be reading my blog? Do they know I have a blog? Do I even have enemies?]. 

I don't hate tropes. Really. There are some that I love reading, and, even ones that I don't love, I can appreciate in the right story. After all, most people can't come up with a wholly original idea or a story without tropes. 

However, there are a few that I really dislike. Some of these I hate all the time, and some I can enjoy if they're done in a unique way, but, generally, I hate them. 

And, if this post is too negative for you, don't worry. I'm going to make a post with my favorite tropes soon.

#1: Love Triangles

I think I've met maybe one person who genuinely likes love triangles. And yet people are still writing them! 

Why? My main issue with love triangles is that they're incredibly formulaic. I have less of a problem with subversions. Most of them go something like this: 

There's a main character [our Archie, if you will]. Archie will be in love with two very different people: the sweet and innocent Betty and the Veronica, who is either a broody loner or mischievous and flirty. Both Betty and Veronica are interested in Archie, who just can't choose between them. 

And that's pretty much it. Change the names [and sometimes the gender] and that's it. It takes up a lot of time in the story, it makes all three characters seem like jerks and it's really unrealistic [I mean, really, who has two people in love with them at the same time?]. Can we please stop with this trope?

#2: Glorifying Abusive Relationships

I don't have a problem with abusive relationships in fiction, as long as they're well-written and clearly written as toxic and unhealthy. I can't stand when they're supposed to be healthy or presented as the ideal couple, but they're both so cruel to each other or they physically abuse each other or something like that. I loathe this. Loathe it. If I could brutally murder this trope, I would.

#3: Insta-love

Believe me, I understand that things need to move faster in fiction than in real life, and I completely get attraction at first sight or even getting a crush on someone from their first scene [not that I've ever done that, of course. *nervous laughter*]. Heck, I really like when people give characters a little bit of romantic chemistry from their first scene together. What I don't like is when two characters just look at each other and then decide they're in love and start a relationship right away. It's unrealistic, it's boring, and it's just plain lazy storytelling. Can we please kill this trope, too?

#4: Inconsistency

Actual footage of me reacting to inconsistency in fiction. 

Actually, this one isn't really a trope but I loathe it with a fiery passion, so I'm putting it here. I don't hate inconsistency if it's being used to show that a character is really indecisive or is just struggling with life, but most of the time it isn't, so then it just sucks. For example, don't have a couple break up and then have them get back together in the next episode and then never bring it up again. If they're going to get back together, wait, have them start to forgive each other, give them cute semi-romantic scenes that don't lead anywhere, have them realize that they still have feelings for said person [or maybe they always did. If so, show that], and then have them get back together. See, isn't that a much richer arc? And, trust me, it will feel even better when they finally kiss. And what about abandoned plots? For example, having someone brutally murdered in front of you is a deeply traumatic experience [or so I would imagine. Thankfully it's never happened to me], and you don't just get over it in a week! If you don't think you can handle too many plotlines just stick to a few. Your readers will thank you. 

A quinn-tessential example of abandoning a plotline. I mean, she rocks the pink hair, but still. 

#5: The Couple /Friends That Seems Like They Hate Each Other

Look, nobody's perfect. People who love each other very much can still argue, and that's not bad or wrong. 

And I looove banter as much as the next person, but there is a point where it stops being cute sarcastic comments and just starts being mean. Why are these people even together if they hate each other so much? I don't get it. And don't get me started on the characters who are supposedly friends but constantly bicker and argue with each other, and are just a jerk in general.

#6: One-Dimensional Characters

I actually don't mind one-dimensional characters that much if they're minor characters, but I don't like it when the main character starts out as a stereotype........and then stays that way. Of course, having a character who fits a stereotype in some way isn't a bad thing. Almost everyone fits at least one stereotype. However, most people aren't exclusively that stereotype. 

For example, maybe you set up a broody bad boy as a love interest, and, instead of having him become a nicer person or the girl realizing he's just too bad for her, he just stays a broody bad boy. 

Or introducing the rude not-like-other-girls heroine and instead of her learning to be nicer and less stabby, or learning that just because she doesn't like dresses, it doesn't make her better than everyone else, she doesn't. She just stays the same. Grrr. It's so frustrating. 

#7: Super-Unlikable Protagonists

Now, this one may confuse you. 

''But McKayla,'' you might be thinking.

''Don't you love anti-heroes?''

I do, but here's the thing: the word anti-hero still has the word hero in it. For me that means a character who's a little rough around the edges, who's more flawed than your traditional hero, and makes some.....questionable choices. And I think I like a fair amount of unlikable characters. However, there are some characters that are so bad even I can't love them. 

For example, the girls in Pretty Little Liars. Well, 4/5 of them [I think Emily was a little better than the rest? She still made some questionable decisions, but it was more understandable, and she was way less mean-spirited]. Granted, these books aren't super well-written, but the mystery was pretty intriguing, but the main characters were all so awful and mean that I had trouble reading it. I was literally cringing at some of the things they would say and do.

I've heard that the girls are more likable in the show, but I've never seen it, so I wouldn't know. 

#8: Any Form of Cheating

The only time I didn't hate this trope was in The Last Summer of the Garrett Girls, and that was mostly because the guy that Bea was cheating on her boyfriend with had no idea she was dating anyone and, when he found out, he stopped seeing her. I also don't really mind it as much if said character was in an abusive relationship. I mean, I don't like or endorse it, but I get it. 

However, I really hate it when a character cheats on their perfectly nice love interest or when they become secretly involved with their best friend's boyfriend/girlfriend. Just....no. I hate this trope. Can it die a slow and painful death please?

So these are the tropes that I really hate. I'm sure there are more, but I can't think of any at the moment. 

What are some tropes that you hate? Do you hate any [or all] of these?