Tired fictional tropes you hate

[Thudlow_Boink]

@echoreply

A story book my first grader was reading just now reminded me of this one, but the same trope exists in shows, movies, and books for adults.

One of the heroes comes up with a plan to overcome the problem or defeat the bad guy. The audience is told that there is a plan, but not what the plan is. This plan is hidden from the audience through unheard whispers, unseen documents, or a quick cut away from the exposition. The final act then consists of the heroes carrying out the clever plan, often with a surprise twist that would have been spoiled if the audience had heard it up front.

Quoted from an old thread:

@Thudlow_Boink

It was from Scooby-Doo that I learned an infallible law of narrative construction that has served me well ever since:

Whenever Our Heroes think up an elaborate scheme, if we are presented with an explanation of the way the scheme is supposed to work, something will go wrong so that it does not work as planned. However if the scheme is not explained ahead of time, it will work according to plan.

It’s pretty obvious why this is the case, but still, it has enabled me to predict with remarkable accuracy whether or not any scheme in any story is going to turn out to be successful.