Your Most Hated Plot Device

Discussion in 'General Chat' started by Too Honest, May 14, 2017.

  1. Too Honest

    Too Honest Creature of Repressed Desires

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    What are yours?

    I hate time-travel with a passion.
    The sole reason why is, because how absurdly stupid the people who time-travel handle it.
    I have not seen or read anything with time-travel that has appropiate consequences.
    Doctor Who is probably the closest thing to be able to pull this off.(Even then, you can find flaws)

    Cause -> Effect -> Effect -> Effect-> until end of time
     
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  2. I Eat Monsanto

    I Eat Monsanto He who courts death

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  3. I Eat Monsanto

    I Eat Monsanto He who courts death

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    since time travel is intrinsically impossible and therefore fictional, I really can't complain about how authors do it. Essentially there is no right way to do time travel
     
  4. Bananana

    Bananana Barbaric Bob by day, bananana-man by night

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    Rape, they make entire groups of people rapist just to portray them as bad people. It's lazy writing.
    After that multiple lead characters. I can't keep up with so many POVs and I'll lose interest fast.
     
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  5. Netherlicht

    Netherlicht Well-Known Member

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    Dr.who has this annoying habit of doing something and then just act like things just work 'Cuz reasons'

    It annoys me and I just had to get that off my chest
     
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  6. SenjiQ

    SenjiQ [Wise, for a Bird]

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    I don't really have that much of a problem with time travel and ignoring causality. The so long as the actual mechanics of the time travel are defined and consistent, then its a fun thing to explore. That mostly due to there being no way to know how it would actually function in reality (since there is even some justification that the universe would correct changes)

    Time travel isn't intrinsically impossible (sort of), its fairly likely at a level of fundamental particles. Unlikely beyond reason for things with non-negligible mass, but not absolutely impossible.
     
  7. Odyssey

    Odyssey Well-Known Member

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    death of parents, specially when the MC has mega plot armor and is saved or has saved friends, lovers, and master/sect mates with ease but for some reason his parents have like zero plot armor defense. Then the mc either moves on or spends the next 1000+ chpts looking for a means of reviving them in the back of their minds.

    Close 2nd is the missing/unseen parent that the MC doesn't learn about til they reach a certain power level
     
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  8. LoneDK

    LoneDK Well-Known Member

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    Higher realms in xianxia. Most of the time it makes author lazy and give them an easy reset button on a story. The "higher realms" are almost exactly like the lower ones but the MC has to start from the bottom again.
     
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  9. congvthc

    congvthc Well-Known Member

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    Japan, Korea, China novels time/dimension travel logic, MC simply knows everything, like using MC was an engineer as an excuse for the mc to have knowledge about how to build huge ships, cannon, walls, etc. basically everything
     
  10. Elawn

    Elawn 『Binge Reader』

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    NTR. Just no.
     
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  11. WearyRain

    WearyRain Well-Known Member

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    Hmm, just one atm; random OP parents, something really annoys me when I see this plot element
     
  12. Nyeko

    Nyeko Well-Known Member

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    A lack of cats.
     
  13. Too Honest

    Too Honest Creature of Repressed Desires

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    I hate unsuccessful NTR. Like when the story builds up that ntr/rape so much, but the villain "hasnt gotten around to it" yet. Then ur all like, oh my god MC wtf have u been doing? Then all is fine, because MC saves her at the last second and takes her first time. Like the villain cant penetrate that chastity plot armour...
     
  14. congvthc

    congvthc Well-Known Member

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    most hated plot device?

    Japan, cowards mc who willing to risk the lives of the people he knows and spare his enemy.

    Korean and Chinese novels, peerless/jades/nationalwar beauty show up every corner that mc show up, they are like roaches. Same for those random shtty young master that show up to let MC show off and win over the beauty, so fcking over use and its like there is no mature young adults in novel.
     
  15. NoxDobber

    NoxDobber 『Resident Dark God』

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    Does japanese MC counts? the backless and terribly blind mc.
     
  16. MungMan

    MungMan Well-Known Member

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    Fake-out deaths. Blame Fairy Tail for making me hate it.
     
  17. Zomula

    Zomula Well-Known Member

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    Indestructible plot armor. I don't mind plot armor as a whole, but when they seem like they would be able to survive a nuke being dropped on them just because, it is going overboard.
     
  18. Penultimate

    Penultimate Sect Silkpants Prince

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    Women who's only purpose is to inspire conflict. Need a conflict in your story? Just add a fairly pretty woman, horny men and have the protagonist step in because he can't stand to see a woman get hit on!
     
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  19. norach212

    norach212 Unknown being

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    Luck.
    i just hate it when something that statistically impossible to happen, happened every time on a novel. I mean, it's okay if the MC was lucky once or twice. But if it's always happened, oh deer...
     
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  20. BlaszczeM

    BlaszczeM Well-Known Member

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    The thing I hate the most, ironically happens in a lot of Chinese novel, and that is MC separating from his love interest/lover. Either because the author simply can't write an extended romance, needs something to prolong the plot, or miraculously let the love interest catch up to MC, it always is stupid and unnecessary. Take the True Martial World for example. Spoiler Alert! He separates from his sister, AND the love interest. And while separating from his sis is something he couldn't help, but he separates from the love interest for no good reason. And behold - the next time he sees his sister, she became powerful all of a sudden. Or for example TTNH, where Chu Yang (I think it was his name) separates from Xiao Wu. Even though it would have been better if she stayed with him, she was sent back. I think the reason it happened was because the author needed a good reason to send the MC to middle three heavens.
     
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