# Cliches you'd like to see subverted **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 4, 2017, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-youd-like-to-see-subverted/776339 "2017-01-04T22:41:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![zamboniracer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e9a140/32.png) [@zamboniracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zamboniracer)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2017, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-youd-like-to-see-subverted/776339/101 "2017-01-08T03:34:59Z")
While I’d like to see the cliche about the severely bickering couple ending up making out with each other (eg, Sam & Diane, Buffy & Spike, etc) i don’t see how to subvert it without it becoming a domestic violence case. ---
**Author:** ![Green\_Bean](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/green_bean/32/1760_2.png) [@Green\_Bean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Green_Bean)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2017, 6:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-youd-like-to-see-subverted/776339/102 "2017-01-08T06:29:47Z")
> [@zamboniracer](#): > > While I’d like to see the cliche about the severely bickering couple ending up making out with each other (eg, Sam & Diane, Buffy & Spike, etc) i don’t see how to subvert it without it becoming a domestic violence case. Sorry, but that would be AWESOME! Diane: “Blah blah blah blah…” Sam: “Gaaah!” _ **POW** _ \< cut to scene of Sam being led away in handcuffs \> I guess that would be the end of a series, but it would be worth it. ---
**Author:** ![MaxTheVool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc29f/32.png) [@MaxTheVool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MaxTheVool)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2017, 8:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-youd-like-to-see-subverted/776339/103 "2017-01-09T08:37:02Z")
I’d love to see a scene where someone tries to bully their way past some security checkpoint and goes for the usual “don’t you know who I am? The general is going to be so upset if you waste his time!!!” kind of nonsense, and the sentry just adamantly refuses to break protocol. There are a bunch of other similar things. For instance, a baddie is held prisoner and suddenly starts having a seizure. So the guards rush in… but only after summoning backup just in case it’s a ruse. Etc. I also strongly agree with “the rogue hero has a theory that everyone poo-poos, but he doggedly pursues it, regulations be damned… and it turns out that he’s totally wrong”, and the related “the rogue hero comes up with a plan to save the day that is ‘too risky’ for those stuffed shirts at HQ… but he tries it out all on his own, and it fails spectacularly and kills a lot of innocent people”. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2017, 10:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-youd-like-to-see-subverted/776339/104 "2017-01-09T10:25:07Z")
> [@Green\_Bean](#): > > Sorry, but that would be AWESOME! > > Diane: “Blah blah blah blah…” > Sam: “Gaaah!” _ **POW** _ > > \< cut to scene of Sam being led away in handcuffs \> > > I guess that would be the end of a series, but it would be worth it. Ralph Kramden finally decked Alice in an episode of\*\*\* Family Guy\*\*\*. ---
**Author:** ![RikWriter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/49beb7/32.png) [@RikWriter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RikWriter)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2017, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-youd-like-to-see-subverted/776339/105 "2017-01-09T12:36:54Z")
> [@MaxTheVool](#): > > There are a bunch of other similar things. For instance, a baddie is held prisoner and suddenly starts having a seizure. So the guards rush in… but only after summoning backup just in case it’s a ruse. Etc. “Wait. It’s a trick. Get an axe.” From Army of Darkness. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2017, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-youd-like-to-see-subverted/776339/106 "2017-01-09T13:27:11Z")
> [@MaxTheVool](#): > > I’d love to see a scene where someone tries to bully their way past some security checkpoint and goes for the usual “don’t you know who I am? The general is going to be so upset if you waste his time!!!” kind of nonsense, and the sentry just adamantly refuses to break protocol. > > There are a bunch of other similar things. For instance, a baddie is held prisoner and suddenly starts having a seizure. So the guards rush in… but only after summoning backup just in case it’s a ruse. Etc. Things grind to a halt in SO I MARRIED AN AXE MURDERER, when a bona fide cop pulls over a car and announces that he’s commandeering the vehicle – only to get told that, no, as it happens, I know you don’t actually have the right to do that. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2017, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-youd-like-to-see-subverted/776339/107 "2017-01-09T15:55:03Z")
_La La Land_ subverts several of the cliches of a Hollywood musical – the “meet cute” and the happy ending most notably. ---
**Author:** ![Stanislaus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stanislaus/32/3391_2.png) [@Stanislaus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stanislaus)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2017, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-youd-like-to-see-subverted/776339/108 "2017-01-09T17:19:39Z")
Mexican stand off. Two enemies pointing guns at each other’s faces at point-blank range. Until one makes some fairly obvious conclusions about human reaction time compared to estimated flight time of a bullet over c. 15cm and just pulls his trigger. “That’s crazy, it’ll never work! You’ll burn it out if you overload the power!” “Dammit, Ash! You number-crunchers in the lab don’t get what it’s like out here in the field. We don’t get the luxury of running calculations, we just have to go with our gut!” _Goes with gut. Sparks fly. “It” burns out due to power overload_ ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2017, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-youd-like-to-see-subverted/776339/109 "2017-01-09T17:32:23Z")
Homely girl lets her hair down takes off her glasses, and is still homely. “Here’s my phone number- it’s 381…” Guy collapses. Cop rushes over to him, puts his finger on his neck for 0.3 seconds and says “he’s dead”. EMT shoves cop away, starts CPR, and the guy survives. Detective shows up for work on his last day. He finishes up his paperwork, goes out to lunch, and nothing much happens the rest of the day and he retires in peace. ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2017, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-youd-like-to-see-subverted/776339/110 "2017-01-09T18:56:29Z")
> [@AK84](#): > > Just for once could the petite “martial artist” get their ass handed to them by the hulking guard. Combat sports are segregated by weight. There is a reason Mayweather never fought Danny Williams. In 1997 Darth Ennis wrote a four-issue miniseries for DC’s Vertigo title updating the story of the Unknown Solider. At one point CIA agent Clyde delivers a judo chop to the neck of a hulking assailant- who doesn’t even blink. Clyde (narrating in flashback) says something like the following “If you study martial arts, there’s something your sensei ought to tell you: no matter how good you are, if your opponent is a head taller and a hundred pounds heavier than you, you’re going to lose.” ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2017, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-youd-like-to-see-subverted/776339/111 "2017-01-09T18:57:46Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > Detective shows up for work on his last day. He finishes up his paperwork, goes out to lunch, and nothing much happens the rest of the day and he retires in peace. No, what would be even funnier is if the entire day “Final Destination”-type accidents keep happening but he somehow dodges them all. ---
**Author:** ![Scarecrow\_s\_Brain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecae2f/32.png) [@Scarecrow\_s\_Brain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scarecrow_s_Brain)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2017, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-youd-like-to-see-subverted/776339/112 "2017-01-09T20:58:12Z")
“Knock out gas” pumped into the ventilation system. I came across this most recently playing Grand Theft Auto V, but I’ve seen this in TV shows and other media. It turns out there’s a reason anesthesiologists exist. Too little anesthesia and you won’t be unconscious, too much and you’ll be dead. Tolerances vary from person to person. For a real-life version of this trope with real-life consequences, read about the 2002 Moscow Hostage Crisis. (Short summary: Russian Spetnaz units pumped an unknown sedative into the theater and 140 hostages died from adverse affects of the gas.) > **[Moscow theater hostage crisis](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moscow_theater_hostage_crisis)** > > The Moscow theater hostage crisis (also known as the 2002 Nord-Ost siege) was the seizure of the crowded Dubrovka Theater by Chechen terrorists on 23 October 2002, which involved 850 hostages and ended with Russian security services killing or causing the death of at least 170 people. The attackers, led by Movsar Barayev, claimed allegiance to the Islamist separatist movement in Chechnya. They demanded the withdrawal of Russian forces from Chechnya and an end to the Second Chechen War. > Due to... sb ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2017, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-youd-like-to-see-subverted/776339/113 "2017-01-09T21:27:32Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > Homely girl lets her hair down takes off her glasses, and is still homely. > > “Here’s my phone number- it’s 381…” > > Guy collapses. Cop rushes over to him, puts his finger on his neck for 0.3 seconds and says “he’s dead”. EMT shoves cop away, starts CPR, and the guy survives. > > Detective shows up for work on his last day. He finishes up his paperwork, goes out to lunch, and nothing much happens the rest of the day and he retires in peace. The 1990 movie _The Adventures of Ford Fairlane_: Ford Fairlane: Hey, look. Write down my number: 555-6321 Got it? Twin Club Girl: Yeah. Wait a minute. 555 is not a real number. They only use that in the movies. Ford Fairlane: No shit, honey. What do you think this is? Real life? ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2017, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-youd-like-to-see-subverted/776339/114 "2017-01-09T22:36:42Z")
An anxious black cat descends warily down a creaky staircase into a dark basement and is startled by the sudden appearance of a human with a flashlight. ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2017, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-youd-like-to-see-subverted/776339/115 "2017-01-09T22:56:11Z")
The brave handsome hero rescues the beautiful, desirable damsel in distress. At the end of the movie she politely thanks him and they go their separate ways. ---
**Author:** ![Marlonius](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/838e76/32.png) [@Marlonius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marlonius)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2017, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-youd-like-to-see-subverted/776339/116 "2017-01-09T23:21:15Z")
Characters fail to outrun explosion in slow motion and are not killed outright, but permanently disfigured. Intermittent mechanical problem with hero’s car does not manifest during critical time near the climax of the movie. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2017, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-youd-like-to-see-subverted/776339/117 "2017-01-09T23:46:58Z")
> [@MaxTheVool](#): > > I’d love to see a scene where someone tries to bully their way past some security checkpoint and goes for the usual “don’t you know who I am? The general is going to be so upset if you waste his time!!!” kind of nonsense, and the sentry just adamantly refuses to break protocol. Possibly the only good scene in the animated _Titan A.E._: _Heroes are trying to sneak past a guard in disguise._ “Wait a minute. You’re too tall to be a \, this robe is the completely wrong shade of red, and I’m pretty sure _that_ guy’s a hum-” \ “An intelligent guard. Who’d have guessed?” ---
**Author:** ![furryman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/furryman/32/99_2.png) [@furryman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/furryman)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2017, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-youd-like-to-see-subverted/776339/118 "2017-01-09T23:56:36Z")
> [@Superdude](#): > > The 1990 movie _The Adventures of Ford Fairlane_: > > Ford Fairlane: Hey, look. Write down my number: 555-6321 Got it? > Twin Club Girl: Yeah. Wait a minute. 555 is not a real number. They only use that in the movies. > Ford Fairlane: No shit, honey. What do you think this is? Real life? _The Last Action Hero_ “How can everyone’s phone number start with 555?” “Area codes.” ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2017, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-youd-like-to-see-subverted/776339/119 "2017-01-10T00:00:08Z")
> [@Lumpy](#): > > The brave handsome hero rescues the beautiful, desirable damsel in distress. At the end of the movie she politely thanks him and they go their separate ways. Why did you spoil the ending of Casablanca?!?! :mad: 😉 ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2017, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-youd-like-to-see-subverted/776339/120 "2017-01-10T00:31:45Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > Homely girl lets her hair down takes off her glasses, and is still homely… The gay teenager is a jock with no interest in theatre/fashion/etc, isn’t a girl’s GBF, and is just as much of a horny hormone crazed pervert has his straight teammates. Also have the cheerleaders be brainy, active in student government, & NHS members. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-youd-like-to-see-subverted/776339.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-youd-like-to-see-subverted/776339.md?page=7)