20 Popular TV Tropes That Have Aged Badly
Tropes permeate all forms of storytelling — television included. From plot devices and character personalities to twists and cliffhangers, writers and showrunners employ these strategies to evoke emotion and connect with audiences.
American families have gathered around small screens since the 1950s, and many of the same conventions seen in our parents’ favorite programs have found new life in modern media. But what audiences loved one-half century ago may not appease viewers in 2024.
As society evolves, tastes change, and perspectives shift; tropes are stale and unfunny at best and annoying and upsetting at worst. While most viewers suspend their disbelief for the 20-odd minutes they’re tuning in, these 24 tired and timeworn tropes ruin the magic for even the most loyal television lovers.
1. Airport Professions of Love
Protagonists have been running through airports to reach love interests for decades. Perhaps the most-cited example is from Friends’ series finale, when Phoebe drives a frazzled Ross to confess his love to Rachel and stop her from boarding her flight to Paris. Much has changed in airport protocol since the early 2000s, and a frantic run to a terminal would likely land Ross on a no-fly list. What started as an exciting, romantic expression of love has become a trite and tiresome stereotype. Viewers can watch more mad dashes to departing flights in JAG, ER, and Fleabag, among countless others.
2. Simple Miscommunications
Many shows, like Bridgerton, rely on misunderstandings among characters to drive plot lines. 1970s sitcom Three’s Company kept Mr. Furley constantly out of the loop, a perpetual victim to overheard conversations and no-context phone calls. In other shows, characters’ miscalculations often lead to greater chaos — napping people thought to be deceased, ketchup spills that resemble bodily fluids, or characters falling into compromising positions, shocking onlookers until the lead assures them that “it isn’t what it looks like.”
3. Clip Shows
Clip shows were exciting when American audiences lived and died by what was on cable. These compilations allowed viewers to rewatch some of their favorite moments again, and refresh their memories ahead of new episodes. Today, short-form media like TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube videos connect people to their favorite snippets quicker than ever. While streaming services sometimes offer users recaps ahead of new episodes, they’re often skippable.
4. Slapping People Sober
Freakouts, breakdowns, and moments when characters “snap” are common throughout television regardless of time period or genre. This trope, seen in The Carol Burnett Show, The Twilight Zone, and many others, follows scenes where the main character sees or hears something shocking. These slaps effectively pull back people from spiraling out of control, usually paired with a “pull yourself together” from a nearby buddy.
5. Very Special Episodes
Many lighthearted family shows often include one profound episode to teach audiences a valuable lesson. 1990s sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air aired a few, including when odd-couple duo Will and Carlton ended up behind bars. These sobering episodes contrast programs’ otherwise lighthearted themes and sometimes exclude laugh tracks, theme music, or title cards to set the tone.
6. Amnesia Storylines
Amnesia is not nearly as common as TV writers would have you believe. Head injuries resulting in amnesia were staples of many beloved programs, from zany animated comedies like Tom and Jerry to sappy soap operas and sitcoms. Lapses in memory often lead other characters to help restore their faculties by playing music, showing pictures, or even duplicating the same head injury to cancel out the first (The Munsters). When Married… With Children matriarch Peg Bundy bumps her head, Al convinces her she’s a top-notch homemaker.
7. Innocent Peeping Toms
Male characters in older shows frequently watched women or girls undress from a distance. In the adult animated comedy King of the Hill, young neighbor Joseph Gribble hopes to glimpse at Bobby Hill’s older cousin, Luanne. Other programs with instances of accidental or intentional voyeurism include The Nanny, Malcolm in the Middle, and Eight is Enough.
8. Game Show Hosts Kissing Women
Not a trope in the traditional sense, but game show hosts’ smooches in the 1970s secured their spot among other relentless on-screen behaviors. Contestant-kisser Richard Dawson is the poster child, inspiring the animated comedy Family Guy to spoof his actions more than once.
9. Spousal Abuse Jokes
Ralph frequently and famously promised Alice “trips to the moon” in The Honeymooners. While the show’s devotees assert he’d never lay a finger on his wife, most modern programs avoid trivialized spousal abuse. Some modern mentions of abuse appear in context-providing flashbacks (BoJack Horseman), dramatic conflict (Roseanne), or even scenes of revenge (Breaking Bad and The Walking Dead).
10. Self-Harm Jokes
The controversial “edgy” humor of the aughts gave way to some seriously overdone self-harm bits. Viewers can grimace their way through the cringe-inducing bits seen in Family Guy, New Girl, Just Shoot Me!, and How I Met Your Mother, among numerous others. Audiences may still find a similar gag in more recent programs, but they’re few and far between.
11. The Town Drunk
Alcoholism is no joke, but baby boomer audiences remember chuckling at Otis Campbell, Mayberry’s resident lush in The Andy Griffith Show. Millennials likely imagine the self-loathing, pub-owning leads in It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. While these are both classics in their own right, some viewers prefer shows that approach addiction more realistically, like Netflix dramedy Flaked and CBS sitcom Mom.
12. The Town Creep
Urkel from Family Matters, Screech from Saved by the Bell, Roger from Sister, Sister — the “unrequited love” list goes on. Much to girls’ chagrin, these dorky but ultimately loveable guys desperately fought for female attention. But in 2010s cop comedy Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Detectives Rosa Diaz and Charles Boyle remain at odds until Boyle apologizes for his hostile behavior. The scene is cathartic for audience members annoyed by characters’ inability to accept a “no.”
13. Teacher-Student Romances
I shouldn’t have to explain exactly why this is weird, but shows continually employ this off-putting plot device. What’s more, is how often young adult programming — Riverdale, Degrassi: The Next Generation, Glee — incorporates these problematic themes. Thankfully, most shows depict these and other similar subplots as toxic and dangerous.
14. Quicksand
Comedian John Mulaney’s famous quicksand bit rings true for most media lovers. Like fake tunnels painted on rock formations, falling grand pianos, and roads that direct drivers off cliffs, I’ve yet to run into quicksand. But in the 1960s iteration of Batman, stars Adam West and Burt Ward weren’t so lucky.
15. Rattlesnakes
Like quicksand, most everyday Americans rarely, if ever, come toe-to-toe (or toe-to-rattle) with venomous critters. These dangerous creatures menacingly corner protagonists until they narrowly escape with their lives. Snakes are frequently baddies in action or fantasy programs.
16. Grappling Hooks
“Just in the nick of time,” goes the audience when superheroes or spies’ grappling hooks securely connect to a nearby ledge. Inspector Gadget, Kim Possible, Arrow, and other heroes always come equipped with projectile hooks in case they need to make a quick exit or chase a nearby ne’er-do-well.
17. Gay Panic
Sitcoms, even modern ones, instill “gay panic” in straight characters. Assumptions from passers-by, physical intimacy like hugs, or anything even resembling emotional or physical closeness pushes them to quickly set the record straight — literally. Popular 2010s comedy How I Met Your Mother leaned heavily into LGBTQ+ stereotypes, as did Friends. Some shows go the opposite direction, like the overtly intimate “bromance” between Turk and J.D. in Scrubs.
18. Gross Husbands With Hot Wives
King of Queens, Everybody Loves Raymond, Curb Your Enthusiasm — I’ve got all day if you’re available. The “trophy wife/average Joe” trope is as worn-out as most sitcom wives. AMC original Kevin Can Himself turns this on its head, shifting from multi-camera sitcom when husband Kevin schlubs around to single-camera drama when his wife attempts to escape her troubled marriage.
19. Husbands Who Hate Their Wives
Game of Thrones spinoff House of the Dragon is among the most topical examples of this misogynistic trope. In the on-screen adaptation, Rhea Royce and husband Daemon Targaryen coexist in an otherwise loveless marriage. However, the “old ball and chain” trope plagued televisions long before its network Home Box Office became Max.
20. Fat Jokes
Amid societal shifts toward body positivity and acceptance, distasteful jokes about body weight are harder to come by than they once were. How I Met Your Mother, Modern Family, Will & Grace, and many other sitcoms scored cheap laughs at the expense of cast and audience members in larger bodies. Media often depicts people with larger bodies as slovenly, lazy, and uneducated. Some of the most well-known examples include The Simpsons, Keeping Up Appearances, and The Office.