What is the number one cliche that sticks out in your mind in a movie, book, TV show or video game?

Mine is the one in horror movies where the group is picked off one by one because they are doing something really stupid like asking "hello" when they hear something and then go investigate by them selves, and end up getting killed. Every. Single. Time.

"The Chosen One."

"Hey! I just bought this house, it has had millions of people murdered here, violent demon possessions and there's 50 axe murdering hobos in the basemant!"

This so much.

The damsel in distress that needs a man to save her.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFgE6pqvcxE

Oh man, I hate this one. Especially when the damsel was shown to be as strong or even stronger than the guy saving her.

An ancient evil reawakened.

Definitely that. Why can't I just be some random person blundering about for once? I can still make a difference, and it's not like I could be any less important than the "so you're The Saviour of Everything? Whatevs." that you get in TES and everything else.

I felt Fallout 2 was the only game that made it work. Where you could go around the game world telling everyone you're the Chosen One and they all look at you like you're an idiot.

But in regards to films:

1. Two people meet.

2. They have the time of their lives together.

3. They end up having a fallout.

4. Sad montage of them walking around sad. Very sad.

5. Spontaneous event brings them together and restores their relationship. Happy happy joy joy ending.

Usually this typical plot template is found in [censored] comedies (buddy comedies) and romance comedies (meaning all of them) so its easy to detect when its going to happen. But it's the first thing that comes to mind when I stumble across one.

How about the Word "Cliche"

Now for some music for this thread

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D5yZORjWxbo

It was'nt the assassination of JFK, the invention of the atomic bomb, finding the magnet in the cornfield that caused all

the problems. It was not assassinating JFK, not inventing the atomic bomb, not finding the magnet in the cornfield that

caused all the problems.

Skyrim was the game where the NPCs knew more about it than I did. I missed the dialogue about me being their saviour because I was out of earshot raiding a dragon's skeleton at the time and ran straight back to the castle. It was very confusing when people started calling me the dragonborn. I just assumed Bethesda had dumbed down the plot so much that they weren't even bothering to offer an exposition any more.

Black guy dies first. It is too damn ridiculous, the predictability is comical at this point.

In order to be "Horror", giant spiders must produce some ridiculous screams (something between pig about to be sacrificed and angry cat hissing).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aSMBFGrD8E0

I have some video game additions:

the [censored] water tropes

can't swim in water

water hurts you

water kills you instantly

can't run, can't shoot, can't do [censored] in water for reasons

level scaling,

get a glass weapon-> glass weapons everywhere

went from hitting 30 to 90, no worries, everyone tripled their HP and attack damage too.

Let's see:

I just want to be a normal {insert gender here}, I didn't ask for these powers.

I'm the chosen one.

Good guy almost always wins.

One dimensional villains.

Female character starts off disliking a male lead but will get together by the end of the movie or show.

Good guys always finish last (in movies and in real life).

Just watch Tron Legacy. The entire script is just one massive, horrific cliche. (very pretty with superb soundtrack, however)

Obvious pure good vs evil.

Damsel in distress- and for some reason the damsel in distress is almost always held captive by a male villain.

Humans are the most important species ever trope.

Humans becoming something other than human is virtually ALWAYS portrayed as a bad thing.

Whenever humans are downtrodden or marginalized the chances of you having to play as one go up enormously.

Orcs are evil and elves are good (for some reason?).

Even if a game has lizard people, zombies, cat people, zombie people/etc/ for some reason you still usually have to be a human dwarf or elf anyways. When it comes to bipedal animal people, often the females of the species look more humanoid (The Elder Scrolls series avoids this trope though).

The storyline always has to have epic stakes, where the villains reign is always a global or multi planet issue.

Even though the protagonist may have amazing superpowers, the villains tend to usually be depicted as having more powerful weapons. (With I suppose Batman/Iron Man being the few exceptions).

People with glowing eyes, scars and spikes are far more likely to be depicted as villains.

The vast majority of zombie fiction is humans vs zombies, instead of the imo much more fascinating robots vs zombies or aliens vs zombies or werewolves vs zombies.

That's all just off the top of my head.

hating clichés is definitely one lol

Sooner or later your best ally betrays you. In fact, you now realize he/she was never your ally, just a spy for the enemy. Only until he/she saves you at the last moment, because it was all an act, to protect you.

Cliché horror theme: A bunch of teenagers in an old abandoned house, castle, structure, etc.

Teenagers who all look like they're pushing 30.

No amount of make up can hide the fact that the "16" year old can grow a full beard and is older than their parents.