Lighter and Softer: Difference between revisions
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{{trope}}
[[File:Diablo1-
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The [[Different As Night and Day]] twin of [[Darker and Edgier]], when something is [[Tone Shift
In video games, it can lead to [[It's Easy, So It Sucks]]. Also in video games, there is the genre [[Cute'Em Up]], which can manage to be this trope [[Surprise Difficulty|without any loss in difficulty]].
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== Anime & Manga ==
* The three [[OAV
* ''[[Pokémon (anime)|Pokémon]]'' is considerably lighter and softer than the games, which are slowly growing [[Cerebus Syndrome|darker and darker]] as they go on. Some dark elements still show up on occasion though, especially in the movies. In the show itself, they just don't stick very long.
** Example A: Team Galactic, a ''very'' dark, sinister villain group from the video game, show up in the ''Diamond/Pearl'' series....in just 10 episodes out of ''191''.
** Example B: Due to [[Too Soon|trauma stasis]], the two episodes involving [[Pokémon Black and White|Team Plasma]] fighting Team Rocket and creating mass destruction in Castelia City remain in [[Development Hell]]. Then again, ''Black and White'' is still young, so the possibility of them airing remains.
* The anime adaptation of the original ''[[Slayers]]'' novels has its fair share of emotional turmoil and grisly moments (enough to be [[Executive Meddling|denied the right to air on the old Fox Kids network]] back in the late 90's, believe it or not), but in general it is much lighter in tone and sillier (replacing the female protagonist's [[First-Person Smartass]] humor from the novels to slapstick). Also, the character [[
** Most of the manga and video games that followed are also this trope.
* ''[[Sailor Moon]]'' played this straight for ''[[Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon]]''. Some elements were toned down in the anime compared to the manga, but it wasn't lighter. For instance, in the first story arc, only Usagi dies (from using the crystal's full power) and Mamoru revives her with a kiss; whereas the anime version had everyone brutally die in pure [[Nightmare Fuel]]. Then again, Usagi was less of a "bunny" in the anime version.
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** The original manga was filled with [[Tear Jerker|some heartbreaking scenes]], [[Diabolus Ex Machina|horrible events happening for no reason]], [[Downer Ending|and one of the most infamous endings to a shonen manga ever.]] As for the anime series? It still edges into some pretty sad territory, but things don't self-destruct this time around.
* ''[[Neon Genesis Evangelion: Angelic Days|Neon Genesis Evangelion Angelic Days]]'' is set in an alternate [[Neon Genesis Evangelion]] universe, the major difference from the original being that everyone involved has substantially better [[There Are No Therapists|mental health]]. Because the original cast of ''Eva'' was a [[Dysfunction Junction|collection of horribly, horribly damaged souls]], this turns everything on its head.
** It's still fairly dark, though. That it manages to qualify as
** ''Girlfriend of Steel'' does this too, obviously. Everyone seems to be alive and flourishing. Rei is a [[Genki Girl]]. Yikes. Oddly enough despite that {{spoiler|Rei has ''the exact same backstory.''}}
** ''[[Parallel Trouble Adventure Dual]]'' takes the general
** ''[[Rebuild of Evangelion]]'' is apparently slated to go this way. ''Anything'' not ''[[Grave of the Fireflies]]'' is softer than the original.
** ''[[Argento Soma]]'', another [[Take That]] series, is still fairly grim, and its heroes are still full of issues, but overall seem to cope pretty well, up to making the half of the cast [[Warrior Therapist
** Probably the best example in EVA spin-off, is ''Evangelion @ School'' (or ''Petit Eva''), where there are chibis of '''MASS-PRODUCED EVAS!'''
* The ''[[Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Pitch]]'' anime is a lot more child-friendly than the original manga. No cannibalizing of one's own [[Quirky Miniboss Squad]], for one.
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* ''[[Full Metal Panic!]]? Fumoffu''. The primary mech is a ridiculously cute mascot character named Bonta-kun, which can only "speak" by squeaking a high-pitched "Fumoffu!" Sandwiched between the original, serious series and the [[Darker and Edgier]] The Second Raid, it makes the differences all the more pronounced.
** The fluffy Bonta-kun suit is also quite literally both lighter and softer than the huge metal mechas from the original and "The Second Raid."
** Even in ''The Second Raid'', Sousuke shows his trust towards Kaname by letting her cut his hair. Let's review it: a teenage [[Child Soldiers|Child Soldier]] conditioned to perceive everyone as a potential enemy is letting another person handle scissors near his head and behind his back (falling asleep in the process). More so, he actually gets aroused by her proximity even though he is [[The Stoic]]. It doesn't make him any less of a [[Badass
* ''[[Tekkaman Blade]]'' OVA sequel was much softer, D-Boy's mental wounds have healed up (And kicking ass), [[Everybody Lives]] in general and it also has quite the [[Hotter and Sexier]] makeover (more female transformations than male transformations.)
* ''[[Death Note]]'' certainly had more comedic moments while Light was {{spoiler|[[Heel Face Turn|no longer Kira]] as the result of a [[Memory Gambit]]}}, mostly because of [[The Ditz|Misa]] and [[Butt Monkey|Matsuda]]. Compared to the rest of the series only one named character was killed {{spoiler|and he was a minor antagonist, and it was offscreen}} and the Kira Investigation Unit's base gave everything a sort of sitcom vibe.
* ''[[SD Gundam Force]]''. It's [[Gundam]], but all the characters are chibis, everything is completely light-hearted, and hardly anyone ever dies. {{spoiler|Though it can have it's nightmare fuel-like moments}}.
** ''[[Model Suit Gunpla Builders Beginning G]]'', an [[OVA]] that celebrates [[Merchandise-Driven|over 30 years of Gundam models,]] also qualifies. To be fair, [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z0QJgEpc-nA it's a fitting thank you gift] to the fans who support one of the most legendary mecha series of all time.
** Though in reality it's only slightly
** Both ''[[Mobile Fighter G Gundam|G Gundam]]'' and ''[[Mobile Suit Gundam ZZ|Gundam ZZ]]'' were created intentionally this way as lighthearted breaks from their grim predecessors ''[[Zeta Gundam]]'' and ''[[Mobile Suit Victory Gundam|Victory Gundam]]''.
* ''[[Stitch!]]'', the anime adaptation of ''[[Lilo and Stitch (Disney film)|Liloand Stitch]]'' and ''[[Lilo and Stitch: The Series]]'', is not just more lighthearted than the originals, but also replaced the human characters, and is possibly an alternate version of the series entirely.
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** Also, fantasy violence (physically impossible for real people to do) is considered to be more acceptable than more mundane violence, and as the series goes on, martial arts give way to [[Ki Attacks]].
* In the original ''[[Yu-Gi-Oh (anime)|Yu-Gi-Oh]]'' manga, Yugi once had someone who had a gun to his face set himself on fire and kill himself. Joey (Jonouchi) was involved in a vicious street gang, that beat the crap out of him, and almost murdered him and Yugi. Tea (Anzu) was almost blown up by a terrorist. People got into vicious fights. People got offed now and then. In later adaptations of the franchise, everybody just [[Serious Business|plays cards]].
** ''[[Yu-Gi-Oh! GX (anime)|Yu-Gi-Oh GX]]'' is
* ''[[Fate/kaleid liner Prisma Illya|Fate Kaleid Liner Prisma Illya]]'' is a ''[[Magical Girl]]'' manga set in an [[Alternate Universe]] ''[[Fate/stay night]]'', a universe where none of the main characters have surviving parents, siblings often attempt to murder each other out of jealousy, and Ilya {{spoiler|is a [[Not Growing Up Sucks|nineteen year old homonculus who looks ten]], and will die of [[Clone Degeneration]] before she is twenty}}. She also has an odd sorta sexual/mostly familial relationship with her stepbrother Shirou. In ''[[Fate/kaleid liner Prisma Illya|Fate Kaleid Liner Prisma Illya]]'', everybody's parents are still alive, Ilya is a normal thirteen year old with the expected life span, and evil is defeated by turning into [[Magical Girl|magical girls]] using Zelretch's Kaleidostick. Incidentally, Ilya still has an odd sorta sexual/maybe family relationship with her stepbrother Shirou. [[Chick Magnet|This is probably Shirou's own fault.]]
** Not quite to the same degree, but the manga adaptation of ''[[Fate/stay night]]'' itself is leaning in this direction. It was already focusing mostly on the 'Fate' route of the visual novel, which is notable for being the most idealistic of the three routes, but then went even further by {{spoiler|removing the multiple rapes and other trauma in Sakura's backstory, and humanizing and sparing the life of Shinji.}}
** Meanwhile, ''[[Fate/hollow ataraxia|Fate Hollow Ataraxia]]'' acknowledges that all the [[Fate/stay night]] stuff happened. It just doesn't dwell on it.
** And now we have ''[[Carnival Phantasm]]'', which is a straight-up [[Gag Series]].
* As both series are intended to be comedies to the core, it would be inaccurate to claim that either version of ''[[Ranma ½]]'' is [[Darker and Edgier]] then the other. The anime version can still be seen as
* ''[[Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha ViVid|Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha Vi Vid]]'', which is in sharp contrast with the [[Darker and Edgier]] ''[[Nanoha Force]]'', the other Season 4 manga of ''Nanoha''. To start with, there are no villains after two volumes, with the closest one being Einhart Stratos, who quickly became a more friendly rival after her first appearance ended with her getting [[Defeat Means Friendship|befriended]]. No looming threat to [[The Multiverse]], no undercurrents of a [[Government Conspiracy]], just Vivio having fun with her friends, joining a magical combat sports tournament, and maybe rekindling a [[Reincarnation Romance]] [[Girls Love|with Einhart]].
* The first manga adaptation of ''[[Darker Than Black]]'' has much more stylized and less detailed art, a significantly less dark storyline, and does not share the original's [[Deconstructor Fleet|determination to find every trope it can and kill it]]. The [[Properly Paranoid]], [[Stoic]], [[Badass]] [[Anti-Hero]] lets someone who knows who he is go back to her everyday life even though his survival hinges on maintaining his secret identity, the [[Differently-Powered Individual|superpowered]] [[Lack of Empathy|sociopaths]] are less involved in the plot than a former test subject with normal emotions and no [[Power At a Price|remuneration]] whose main motivation is love, [[Generic Cuteness]] is in effect to such a degree that some characters are hard to recognize, and male characters who were [[Mr. Fanservice|already attractive]] were turned into [[Bishonen]]. Somebody coming to the main series or [[Interquel|second manga]] from this is going to be ''[[Jack Bauer Interrogation Technique|v]][[No-Holds-Barred Beatdown|e]][[Mook Horror Show|r]][[Combat Pragmatist|y]]'' [[Dark and Troubled Past|s]][[Child Soldiers|u]][[The Corps Is Mother|r]][[Phlebotinum War|p]][[The Man Behind the Man|r]][[Punch Clock Villain|i]][[Gray and Grey Morality|s]][[A World Half Full|e]][[Overly Long Gag|d]].
* Japanese fans of ''[[Lupin III]]'' were quite nonplussed when ''[[The Castle of Cagliostro|The Castleof Cagliostro]]'' hit theaters, as Miyazaki had made the normally-obnoxious Lupin and his cohorts unrecognizably ''nice''. The film originally flopped at the box office. It took the passage of years, and fans who were able to see the movie on its own merits, for it to gain the popularity and critical acclaim it has today.
* The ''[[Getter Robo]]'' 70's anime series removes the batshit insane elements the original manga had. Ryouma becomes a virtuous, [[Hot-Blooded]] straightforward hero, while Hayato becomes the archetypical 'cool guy' loner... all in high school setting. They're still [[Hot-Blooded]], though. But just try to compare that version to the latter closer-to-manga versions (Shin vs Neo, Armageddon, NEW)... where they're both [[Ax Crazy]] [[Sociopathic Hero
* The 1972 anime adaptation of ''[[Devilman]]'' was considerably
* ''[[Soul Eater]]'''s sidestory manga from the same mangaka ''[[Soul Eater Not]]'' appears to be a twist of this from the first three chapters. It is focused on a period prior to Sid becoming a zombie (an event from Chapter 1 of the manga) and looks at how new normal academy students (instead of how badass seniors) fit in. Along with how students can raise money, waste money, get their names (Eternal Feather for example) and live in academy quarters.
* ''[[Inuyasha]]'': In the manga, [[Master Poisoner|Mukotsu]] [[Attempted Rape|attempts to rape]] [[The Heroine|Kagome]]. The anime tones this down by having Mukotsu attempt to force Kagome into a marriage with him.
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* ''Spidey Super-Stories'', a Marvel book for the younger set, inexplicably [http://notthebeastmaster.typepad.com/weblog/2004/03/hey_kids_death.html featured Thanos] at one point. Yes, the [[Thanos]] with a hard-on for Death, the one who killed half of everyone in the universe in an attempt to impress her. In a book for little kids. They must have just made him into a big purple guy.
** [http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2010/06/14/i-lova-ya-but-youre-strange-2/ He has a helicopter with his name on it. And he gets arrested by the police in the end. It's awesome.]
* [[Batman]] himself traditionally comes in two flavors, [[Darker and Edgier]] and
* The original 1980s version of ''[[Power Pack]]'', while not nearly as angsty as Marvel's other works, took itself seriously and attempted to be a serious, but not ''as'' serious as usual, comic about [[Kid Hero|kid heroes]], with a fair amount of characterization, intelligent plots, and good quality storytelling. It actually tries to realistically portray what children who find themselves with superpowers might actually go through, but still falls short of stereotypical comic angst. The 2000s remake is aimed squarely at a quite young audience and has much cuter art and simpler storytelling.
* [[Tiny Titans]] is an even lighter version of [[Teen Titans (Comic Book)|Teen Titans]] compared to [[Teen Titans (animation)|the TV show]]. It takes places in a bright happy world where some of the worst things the elementary school Titans need to worry about are: embarrassingly loving father Trigon, grumpy lunch lady Darkseid, and stern principal Slade. In both versions of Teen Titans, Trigon wishes to conquer Earth and turn it into a literal hell, [[Darkseid]] is out to conquer ''all'' life, and Slade is an amoral mercenary and assassin.
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* [[Decks Fall, Everyone Dies|Decks Fall Everyone Dies]], a Film Fic of ''Moulin Rouge!'' using the ''Yu-Gi-Oh: The Abridged Series'' characters, tones down the Duke's character (and the depression of rest of the plot) considerably.
* ''[[South Park Monogatari]]'' tones down the swearing slightly and has little to no innuendos whatsoever.
* The [http://archiveofourown.org/series/9224 "Daycare 'Verse"], a series of [[Alternate Universe]] modern-setting ''[[X-Men: First Class|X Men First Class]]'' [[Slash Fic
* ''[http://www.fanfiction.net/s/6933825/1/Pony_Space Pony Space]'' A ''[[My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic|My Little Pony Friendship Is Magic]]'' and ''[[Dead Space (series)|Dead Space]]'' crossover, while it does have much of ''Dead Space'''s horror and the psychological effects of the Marker, Necromorphs rarely show up (twice as of 14 chapters), and it keeps much of MLP's light hearted tone.
* In the ''[[Death Note]]'' [[Crack Fic]] ''[[All You Need Is Love]]'', [[Sadist Show|basically Death Note the]] [[Sitcom]], there are much fewer deaths of series regulars and Light/Kira is much more mentally stable in this ficverse "sticking to a diet of murderers and rapists" and doesn't [[Jumping Off the Slippery Slope|jump off the slippery slope]].
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* This was done well in ''[[Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home]]''. [[Executive Meddling]] ensured the next film would be light-hearted as well. Suffice it to say that it didn't work quite as well the second time.
* ''[[Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade]]'', following the [[Darker and Edgier]] ''[[Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom]]''.
* ''[[Star Wars]]: [[Return of the Jedi]]'', also produced by [[George Lucas]], was more kid-oriented than the well-received and [[Darker and Edgier]] ''[[The Empire Strikes Back]]'', the previous film in the original trilogy. Interestingly enough, Lucas, who didn't direct either film, wanted ''The Empire Strikes Back'' to be
** Arguably, [[The Scrappy|the Ewoks]] and their antics are mostly responsible for the lighter tone. The scenes that don't involve them (Jabba's palace, the Emperor, etc) are still pretty dark.
** In the prequel trilogy, ''[[The Phantom Menace]]'' and ''[[Attack of the Clones]]'' are noticeably lighter in tone, particularly the former. In contrast, ''[[Revenge of the Sith]]'' was substantially [[Darker and Edgier]]. (For comparison: In Episode I, Anakin is a kid; in Episode III ''he murders several kids''.)
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* ''[[The Warriors (film)|The Warriors]]'': The book the movie is based on is considerably [[Darker and Edgier]]. Just for starters, the Warriors brutally gang rape and abandon a random girl. In the movie, Mercy, who is based on the girl in the novel, ends up pseudo-girlfriend to Swan.
** Well a Warriors remake is currently in the works, so those elements might be seen in the remake-especially considering that Tony Scott is slated to direct it.
* ''[[Oliver!]]'', the 1968 musical adaptation of ''[[Oliver Twist]]''. Granted, most musicals are
** Yeah, but by all accounts it's not saying much. Nancy is still killed-fairly graphically for a kids' movie.
* While they were still R-rated, each ''[[A Nightmare on Elm Street]]'' was more surreal and comedic than the one before it, peaking with ''[[Freddys Dead the Final Nightmare]]'', which has Freddy doing a Wicked Witch of the West impression ("I'll get you my pretty, and your little soul too!") during the first few minutes.
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* [[John Carpenter]]'s ''[[Big Trouble in Little China]]'', [[Halloween (film)|compared]] [[The Thing (film)|to]] [[Escape from New York|his]] [[Prince of Darkness|other]] [[They Live!|works]].
* ''[[Spider-Man (film)|Spider-Man]] 2'' toned down some of the violence of the first film and was given a PG by the British Board of Film Classification. This was after the first ''Spider-Man'' film was given a 12 rating by the BBFC and described it as one of the most violent films ever aimed at young children, saying that some scenes even warranted a 15. Many councils (who have the final word on film censorship in the UK) boycotted this decision, releasing it as PG or PG-12, but Spider-Man stayed in cinemas long enough for young children to be admitted more widely (under adult supervision) following the introduction of the 12A rating.
* ''[[The Hitchhiker's Guide to The Galaxy (film)|The Hitchhikers Guide to The Galaxy]]''
* ''[[The Expendables 2]]'', thanks to a combination of [[Chuck Norris]]' ego, Lionsgate's greed, and [[Sylvester Stallone]]'s compromising too fast, will be rated PG-13. This is especially bad in contrast to the original, which was a throwback to the bloody, violent action films of the 80s and 90s. This has quickly resulted in furor across the Internet, with many criticizing the move to appeal to an audience that just doesn't care about this kind of film.
== Literature ==
* The ''Dunk & Egg'' novels are a ''relatively''
* Most of the ''[[Warhammer 40000]]'' novels focusing on the Imperial Guard portrays them as actual humans rather than statistics to [[Zerg Rush]] with. Perhaps taken to extreme with the ''[[Ciaphas Cain]]'' novels, which are distinctly comedic against the ridiculously [[Darker and Edgier|GRIMDARK]] setting.
** Likewise, the ''[[Gaunt's Ghosts|Gaunts Ghosts]]'' novels, while still fairly dark, portrays the Imperium in general working order with a healthy dose ''optimism'' (a concept often [[Crapsack World|completely unheard of]] in the 40K universe).
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* ''[[Jeopardy!]]'', to a degree. Until about the 1990s, the clues were often straightforward, and host Alex Trebek was rather stuffy and formal. Over time, the clues have become more whimsical and punny, with occasional pop culture references and [[Getting Crap Past the Radar]] (arguably without dumbing the show down). Trebek has also loosened up in the 2000s, as he now smiles and laughs more, and gets in plenty of [[Deadpan Snarker]] moments.
* This, along with [[Reconstruction]], may explain the success behind ''[[Once Upon a Time]]''. After years of sexed-up comedy shows, reality TV, [[Darker and Edgier]] dramas with [[Black and Gray Morality]] conflicts, and grisly police/medical/lawyer procedural shows, a straight up battle between good and evil with an intriguing mystery at the core feels so refreshing to audiences in comparison.
* ''[[Legend of the Seeker]]'' compared to [[Sword of Truth|its source material]]. When your source material includes (among other things) [[The Big Bad]] brainwashing a kid then killing him by pouring molten metal down his throat, his [[The Dragon|Dragon]] being a serial child molester and murderer, institutionalized gang-rape by the enemy army, and a [[Serial Killer]] severing a woman's spinal cord onscreen and then killing her in a manner which made [[Vomiting Cop|a combat hardened general throw up]], a
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* The departure of Rodger Waters from [[Pink Floyd]] was followed by a classic Lightening and Softening. From mental breakdowns rendered into music and harsh lyrics condemning modern life, [[Pink Floyd]] moved to David Gilmour's gentle dreamy soundscapes. Lyrically, the later albums tend to unfocused expressions of good will and an earnest appreciation for life. The remaining angst now seemed more of pose: a mere colour on the palette, not a raw daub of blood.
** Interestingly, the Waters-lead era (beginning with ''[[The Dark Side of the Moon]]'') was itself a [[Darker and Edgier]] version Pink Floyd. Before this point, Floyd albums were known for being spacey and psychedelic rather than particularly dark. Indeed, their original Syd Barrett era was downright whimsical at times.
* In terms of singing style, In This Moment's second album ''The Dream'', which placed a lot more emphasis on clean vocals than the [[Metal Scream
* [[wikipedia:Devo 2.0|Devo 2.0]].
* One could make a case for this happening to Joy Division after they changed their name to New Order. Not that New Order doesn't have a certain edge to their brand of pop.
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* This happened to many pop-metal bands in the '70s and '80s as they gained commercial success. An example is [[REO Speedwagon]]. Their first album included tracks called "Five Men Were Killed Today" and "Dead At Last." Years later, they would have big hits with the power ballads "Keep On Lovin' You" and "Can't Fight This Feelin'."
* American Slang seems to be this for The Gaslight Anthem.
* The [[Velvet Underground]] have an interesting trajectory in this regard. Their first
* The first two albums by [[Motley Crue]], "Live Wire" and "Shout at the Devil", were dark and gritty [[Heavy Metal]] albums with lyrics that dealt with things like drug abuse and Satanism. Once they achieved mainstream popularity, however, they moved in a more MTV-friendly hard rock direction with rock anthems like "Girls, Girls, Girls" and ballads like "Home Sweet Home."
* In an intentional case of this trope, Prince's "Lovesexy" was released as a light and fluffy response to the zany, mean-spirited "Black Album," complete with a pink album cover with a flower on it.
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* A lot of Hip-Hop fans say this is what happened to mainstream rap music. The days of the weed smoking gangstas, and proud to be black Afrocentric political rappers with their gritty [[Justified Criminal|Justified crime tales]], and socio-political street knowledge were long gone. Only to be replaced (circa early 00's) by champagne sipping pimps, and playas, who love to rap about wealth, cheesy love songs, and club anthems.
** This is also common when leveled at ''SPECIFIC'' artists within the genre. Primarily [[Hardcore Hip Hop]] rappers and type 1 & 3 [[Gangsta Rap]] variants. A good example would be 50Cent whom ironically built his image around being the anti-Ja Rule (whom also turned lighter), which to some made fiddy hypocritical. Then there's others like [[Snoop Dogg]], [[3 Six Mafia|Three Six Mafia]], [[Jay-Z]], [[Nas]] (circa ''Nastradamus''), the later years of No Limit records, [[Bone Thugs-n-Harmony]] (fans thinking they're still trying to chase [[Black Sheep Hit|''Tha Crossroads'']], or at least the record label is), [[Wu-Tang Clan]] circa ''Wu-Tang Forever'' (RZA saying it was a record [[But Not Too Black|for white people]]). As far as the whole genre goes it mostly boils down to [[Money, Dear Boy]] (or to be fair [[Executive Meddling]] in addition to radio/MusicVideo censorship towards [[Hip Hop]] especially [[Gangsta Rap]], [[Political Rap]], and [[Conscious Hip Hop]])..for better or for worse.
* Synthpop duo Future Perfect's first album, ''Dirty Little Secrets'', is dark, [[
* ''[[Avenged Sevenfold]]'', although their music is still dark-and-edgy by general music standards.
* Many thrash metal bands went in this direction around the time of the grunge explosion, partially to keep up with the times and partially because the bandmembers themselves were growing tired of the musical style they were playing. During the last decade, however, this has been subverted by many of these same bands.
** [[Testament]] subverted this trope after their "
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== Tabletop Games ==
* ''[[Magic: The Gathering|Magic the Gathering]]'' has "Lorwyn," a plane which by its design was meant to be
** Lorwyn was something of an inversion of the way worlds usually work in ''Magic: the Gathering''. Goblins and faeries were both the same as they always are, but the world is so much
* ''[[Wraith: The Oblivion]]'' was considered to be by far the darkest game of the [[Old World of Darkness]] line, which is ''really'' saying something. Characters spent their undead days in a decaying afterlife, trying to avoid the machinations of the power-hungry Hierarchy and [[Eldritch Abomination|the insatiable Oblivion]] while trying to hold on to their ties to life and fighting off [[Enemy Within|the dark voices in their head]]. Now comes the [[Spiritual Successor]], ''[[Geist: The Sin Eaters]]'', where the characters have [[Back From the Dead|returned from the brink of death]] with a ghostly passenger and superpowers, and a major component of their culture is celebrating another day of life.
** ''Geist'' also tends to be Lighter And Softer compared to the ''[[New World of Darkness]]'' in general. It's not exactly a bag of kittens, but it's generally
* ''[[Warhammer 40000]]''. During 3e , there were chaos cultists on Terra, the Imperium was losing worlds by the hundreds and High Lords did not care, in fact most of them had been driven insane by imperfect deageing treatments. This was before the Horus Heresy, before the Imperium's methods were justified by dozens of books. There was no [[Ciaphas Cain]], no likable or sane character to be found. The Sisters of Battle fielded suicide bomber cadres, the Space Marines were a shadow of their power in later editions, and more insane: imperfections in their half forgotten surgical techniques rendered 9 out of 10 recruits dead and the survivors deranged. The [[Religious Horror]] was at its peak, the artwork like of things that can barely be called human hugging and kissing undetonated artillery shells, begging the gods of war for salvation has never been reprinted, the forces of Chaos, later [[Ultimate Evil]], were simply presented as an alternate form of insanity to that of the Imperium's. By 5e, ''Warhammer'' shows an Age of War where humanity's survival hangs in the balance. 3e showed an Age of Insanity where the spirit of man was long dead. The reason for this is because Games Workshop realized that almost everyone saw the storyline as a huge joke because it was too [[Grimdark]].
** And then there's [http://www.mmogrindhouse.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/hello-kitty-40k.jpg this...] And [http://1d4chan.org/wiki/Brighthammer_40,000_%282nd_edition%29 Brighthammer 40000], which takes every race and makes them more sympathetic save the Tau, who conveniently are [[Complete Monster
* ''[[Little Fears]] Nightmare Edition'' as compared to the original. The constant pall of child abuse is gone, and it's actually fairly well-suited to running a relatively light-hearted Kids Vs. Monsters adventure in the vein of ''[[The Monster Squad]].'' It has suggested rules modifications for taking it even ''further'' in the
* ''[[Mutant Chronicles]]'' can be considered a lighter and softer take on ''[[Warhammer 40000]]''. There are a lot of similar elements and the feel is much the same, but in ''Mutant Chronicles'', human life is considered precious and humanity still has a fighting chance.
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== Videogames ==
* In ''[[American McGee's Grimm|American Mcgees Grimm]]'' the story of [[Little Red Riding Hood]] (save for a few curse words) actually manages to be slightly more tame in that the wolf was given a quick mercy killing via ax to the stomach. All in all this is a far better fate than say starving to death or having your belly get filled with rocks and drown like in some versions.
** If American McGee REALLY wanted to be [[Darker and Edgier]] then he should have stuck with the original ending: no friendly woodsman and Red and Granny don't get eaten ''whole.'' [[Lampshade Hanging|Lampshaded]] in the
* ''[[My Sims]]'' is a lighter and softer version of ''[[The Sims]]'' with chibis, no child-rearing or romance, and very few actual social aspects from ''The Sims''. It's a very fun game, but it is more like ''[[Animal Crossing]]'' for people who don't like being bossed about by a tanuki.
** In other words, if the only thing you liked about ''[[The Sims]]'' was [[Video Game Cruelty Potential|killing them in various and evil ways]]...''[[My Sims]]'' might not be for you. There are no swimming pools, eating is something that happens because they happen to encounter a table and chair, and you can't block doorways with furniture (and if you could, ''you'd'' be stuck until you removed it). The worst you can do is Be Mean, which seems to range from insults and hitting them with water balloons to stepping on their feet and getting into dust-ups, [[Big Ball of Violence|complete with dust cloud]]. If you were that kind of person, [[You Bastard|you don't deserve to have something marketed to you.]]
* Every ''[[Final Fantasy]]'' spinoff, excepting ''[[Final Fantasy Tactics|Tactics]]'', and apparently ''[[Final Fantasy XIII-2]]'', to varying extents. ''[[Final Fantasy IX]]'' is accused of this, but it only really applies to the visual style, especially as the plot focuses heavily on themes such as genocide.
** ''[[Final Fantasy Tactics]]'', a game about murder, betrayal, class warfare and [[Path of Inspiration|the evils of organized religion]] had a spinoff in ''[[Final Fantasy Tactics Advance]]'', a kid-friendly, if [[Anvilicious|poorly written]] aesop against escapism.
** Compared to its story and angst-heavy [[Final Fantasy IV|predecessor]] and [[Final Fantasy VI|successor]], ''[[Final Fantasy V]]'' can come off as humorous, even borderline [[Affectionate Parody|parodic]]; however, the theme of {{spoiler|planet-level destruction and [[Heroic Sacrifice
** ''[[Final Fantasy X-2]]'' is this, big time. The body count is almost non-existent. Everything is more cheerful. The music is upbeat. Hey, the end of ''[[Final Fantasy X]]'' {{spoiler|had an ultimate force of death and destruction wiped off the plane of existence}}, it's needed.
* After the fanbase displeasure about the [[Darker and Edgier]] ''[[Prince of Persia]]: Warrior Within'', Ubisoft made ''The Two Thrones'' less immaturely outrageous, although still a M-rated game. The hero even [[Lampshade Hanging|apologizes for his foul mood in the previous game.]] The 2008 iteration dialed it back to a Teen rating, aiming for a fantastical, exotic, magical atmosphere reminiscent of ''Sands of Time''.
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* ''[[Diablo (series)|Diablo]] II'' comes off as significantly lighter and softer than its predecessor. This mostly has to do with the outside levels and there being a day/night cycle. A jungle (and a desert in all it's sun-baked brightness, for that matter) during the day is just not as creepy as an underground crypt or a perpetually night time village. On the other hand, Act 4 is more creepy then the original game.
** This trope is what some of the... [[Fan Dumb|more easily agitated fans]] feared Blizzard had done with ''Diablo 3''. Blizzard took the opportunity to [[Played for Laughs|play the accusations for laughs]], and made the image you see at the top of the page.
*** And then they made a
* ''[[Higurashi no Naku Koro ni|Higurashi Daybreak]]'', the doujin game that [[Word of Dante|the creators added to the canon]], has no murder or horror - just fun. Fun with baseball bats and billhooks, but not gory like the original series.
* After the unexpectedly dark ''[[The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask|Majora's Mask]]'', ''[[The Legend of Zelda]]'' series went significantly lighter and softer with ''[[The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker|Wind Waker]]'', sporting a colourful, cel-shaded look and humorous characters and dialogue. [[Broken Base]] ensued. {{spoiler|This hate has died out in recent years due in part to the shockingly dark backstory and actions that happen throughout the game.}}
** The portable games are all significantly
* ''[[Saints Row 2]]'' can be seen as a softer version of ''[[Grand Theft Auto]] 4'' with more [[Refuge in Audacity|over-the-top and braindead-stupid entertainment elements]]. The plot isn't any less softer but the game's overall theme is quite colourful and funny.
** While the ''Saints Row 2'' main character is ''much, much'' more cruel, vicious, and just plain evil than the latest GTA protagonists (CJ and Niko), the ways in which the SR2 guy (or girl) carries out his various murders are so over the top it's impossible to take any of it seriously: you get to be a cop and break up domestic disputes {{spoiler|with a chainsaw}}, or a bodyguard and remove annoying paparazzi {{spoiler|by stuffing them into a jet engine}}. It seems every single named character is in on the joke and lives only to see wanton ultraviolence, except the few sympathetic characters that get shot to pieces in short order.
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** ''[[God of War (series)|God of War]]'' has the same approach to [[Classical Mythology|the Greek gods]] as well; while Zeus is still a heinous bastard, he was far, far worse in numerous stories featuring him, and Ares, rather than working towards any specific goal, existed to [[War God|incite wars]] [[For the Evulz|for shits and giggles]].
* As the page quote indicates, ''[[Mega Man Star Force]]'' can't decide if it wants to be this or [[Darker and Edgier]] than its predecessor, ''[[Mega Man Battle Network]]''. This is especially bad in the [[The Anime of the Game|anime]], which adds disturbing scenes not in the game ({{spoiler|1=the plot arc suggesting Mega murdered Geo's father, the FMians' deaths}} ) but also adds typical overly-light-hearted anime [[Filler]].
** The ''[[Mega Man ZX]]'' series is
** ''[[Mega Man Powered Up]]'' could be considered a
* A well-received mod for the sombre [[World War III|nuclear war]] simulator ''[[DEFCON]]'' exchanged Mutually Assured Destruction for Christmas and Santa Claus: the silos become Christmas trees, the ICBMs are presents, the bombers are reindeer-pulled sleighs, and the megadeath casualties become millions of happy children.
* This is [http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2009/6/1/mean-ol-mr-sauron/ Tycho's opinion] of ''The Lord of the Rings: Aragorn's Quest''.
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** ''The Typing Of The Dead'' spoofs up the whole thing in ''The [[The House of the Dead (series)|House of the Dead]] 2'' to the extreme. After finishing the Emperor, you are asked about how you want to execute Goldman; depending on how you answer the questions, one of the three funny endings would be played.
** ''[[The House of the Dead (series)|House of the Dead]] Overkill'' was not only ''less'' [[Bloodier and Gorier]] (relative to previous entries in the franchise), it had loads of [[Camp]] elements and humour.
* ''Academy of Champions: Soccer'' is a kid-targeted soccer game for the Wii. It in itself is not a
* [[Wii Ware]] game ''[[Water Warfare]]'' is a
** Before that there was ''Nerf Arena'' on the PC, which played out like your average Deathmatch FPS, but with harmless Nerf weapons.
** One person on the [[GameFAQs]] forum for the game (about 6 days before the American release) said that "If Parodius is a [[Cute'Em Up]] then this game is... a first person cuter!"
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* [[Electronic Arts]]' [[First-Person Shooter]] games are the softer version of the current generation of shooters. ''Mercenaries'', ''[[Army of Two]]'', ''[[Battlefield: Bad Company]]'' all had comparatively "lighter and fluffier" storylines and endings. No [[Downer Ending]] to create a [[Sequel Hook]] for instance.
** [[Darker and Edgier|And then came the sequels...]] (though not so much ''Mercenaries 2'')
* ''[[Death Smiles]]'', a shooter by CAVE while not too dark, reduced a bit of its horror elements with a lighter style where the girls stops an evil Santa Claus to find several [[MacGuffin
* ''[[Godzilla]]'' for Game Boy features the title monster in a puzzle platformer game portraying Godzilla and the enemy monsters as mini-sized cutesy creatures. Godzilla in particular resembles the protagonists of ''[[Bubble Bobble]]''. [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zAxcuP6_RdQ It has to be seen to be believed].
* ''[[Tetris the Grand Master]] 4 - The Masters of Round'' is looking to drop the serious-looking backgrounds in favor of [http://am-show.sega.jp/jamma09/t_tgm.shtml flowers and prettiness].
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* The ''[[Baldur's Gate|Baldurs Gate]]'' spinoff series ''Dark Alliance'' does this to the Harpers. In DA, they're a benevolent organization that genuinely seeks to protect the world, while in the actual ''[[Forgotten Realms]]'' series (including the original ''Baldur's Gate'' games), they're totalitarian, borderline-fascist [[Knight Templar]] who are more than willing to murder innocent people for what they believe to be the greater good.
** In the tabletop game setting the Harpers are described as good guys. On the other hand, there are always those in an organisation that want to go further than the others...
** The darker view of the Harpers usually comes from the schism, even then, they get along better with the "traitors" that left the Harpers to form their own organization than most other factions get along with other members of the same faction. On a superficial level, the Harpers sound like [[Knight Templar
* The twelfth ''[[Touhou]]'' game ''Undefined Fantastic Object'' was made with this trope, in an attempt to stop to [[Sliding Scale of Villain Threat|escalating villain threats]] of the previous several games. Considering the elements of [[Fantastic Racism]], it may not have been successful.
** The series in general moved this way. ''Embodiment of Scarlet Devil'' and ''Perfect Cherry Blossom'' were fairly dark, with the implication that the bosses were killed, and people getting eaten in the backstory. ''Imperishable Night'' lightened things a bit, with only the weak bosses talking about killing people. Then ZUN actually started writing the setting details, and established all the fights as non-lethal, the [[Mooks]] as having resurrective immortality, and people getting eaten as largely a thing of the past.
** As s whole, ''[[Touhou]]'' gives a
* ''[[Epic Mickey]]'' is admittedly [[Darker and Edgier]] for a [[Mickey Mouse]] game, but it's actually lighter and softer for a game by Warren Spector. As he put it, "I want people to smile when they’re playing, not get all scrunched up with adrenaline."
* ''[[Day of the Tentacle]]'' is more purely a comedy, as opposed to its predecessor, ''[[Maniac Mansion]]'', which was a horror/sci-fi game with some funny bits.
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* ''[[Skies of Arcadia]]'' compared to RPGs ''in general'' at the time of its release (originally in 2000 on the Dreamcast, then [[Updated Rerelease|ported in 2003]] for the [[Nintendo GameCube]]) was lighter and softer in its impossibly optimistic and clean-cut protagonist [[Determinator|Vyse]], as opposed to the more (at the time) recent cynical brooding heroes [[Final Fantasy VII|Cloud Strife]] and [[Final Fantasy VIII|Squall Leonhart]], a not-too-overly-complicated plot (it had its dark moments, but even so), and rather simplistic battle system. Because of the amounts of darkness and cynicism that began to dominate, however, this was well-received.
** Taken somewhat further in the U.S Dreamcast release when situations involving drunkenness and a particular near-rape scene involving one of the female protagonists was edited out.
* ''[[Kingdom Hearts coded]]'' is probably the cheeriest game in the entire series. The plot is light--"let's make a data-Sora and have a nostalgic romp through a bunch of worlds from the first game while he fixes some inconsistencies in Jiminy's Journal!"
* [[From Software]] developed the ''[[Armored Core]]'' series; a series of mecha games set in post-apocalyptic futures and generally being full of [[War Is Hell]], cynical rebellions, [[Real Is Brown]], and all the ensuing tragedy and horror. Then, in 2004, the developer decided to use ''Armored Core'''s engine and gameplay to make a [[Spiritual Successor]] robot game. Said game, called ''[[Metal Wolf Chaos]]'', is about the President of the United States using a [[Mini-Mecha]] to fight off a coup d'etat by his evil Vice President (who is also in a mecha), while sprouting phrases like "EAT MY FLAME OF JUSTICE!" and "Nothing is pointless! And the reason is: Because I'm the president of the Great United States of America! YEAH!". Needless to say it falls under this.
* ''[[Red Faction]]'' 1 and 2, despite being in the same series, barely resemble each other in many ways, especially overall tone. The first game mostly took place in Mars within many dark tunnels, and you're part of a miner rebellion to fight off an evil corporation. In short, it was ''[[Total Recall]]'' as a first person shooter. The following game? Yeah, you're part of a super solider squad overthrowing a Hitler Expy dictator, and yeah, it's still violent, but the game's direction is nowhere near as grim and desperate. When enemies nearly get shot dead on the first game, they're screaming for help. On the second one, they jokingly flee, saying they need to think of a new strategy. No, that part's not a joke.
* Against the ongoing tide of [[Mass Effect|Mature]] [[Dragon Age Origins|Dark]] [[Western Role Playing Game|Role Playing Games]], ''[[Divinity 2]]'' serves as being much notably lighter in tone and setting than most current [[Western RPG
* The endings in the ''[[Twisted Metal]]'' games made by 989 Studios (''Twisted Metal III'' and ''Twisted Metal 4'') tend to be much less darker and sometimes downright comedic when compared to their predecessors.
* ''[[Fallout 2]]'', is
** Oddly, the game is also horrifically dark compared to the old game. Genocide, prostitution, organized crime, corruption, political subversion, and slavery were far more prominent. In addition, the first time you see the {{spoiler|Enclave}}, they murder a family with a minigun over a perceived slight. The {{spoiler|Super Mutants}} in the first game never are shown to visibly do anything similar. Then again ''Fallout'' has always been a [[Black Comedy]], so its naturally the funniest of the games as well as one of the darkest.
* ''[[Drakengard 2]]'' might be considered pretty dark compared to other JRPGs, but it is ''incredibly'' lighter than its predecessor. The main character isn't a complete kill-happy sociopath, has a chance to have a love interest that ''doesn't'' end horribly, and the game actually includes [[Multiple Endings|one ending]] where the world and the main characters are ''not'' doomed to suffer and/or die in various terrible ways.
* ''[[Yoshi's Story]]'' is much
* ''[[Driver San Francisco]]'' is definitely a lot softer then its disastrous predecessor Driv3r.
* Bet you never thought you'd see the day ''[[Postal (video game series)|Postal 2]]'' got called
* [[Invoked Trope|Invoked]] in [[Mass Effect 3]]. [[Ax Crazy|Jack]] had become an instructor and no longer swears like she used to. In fact the worst she does is punch Shepard in the face, before kissing him if romanced. [[Lampshade Hanging|Lampshaded]] when she tells her students to cover their ears, before telling Joker [[Lost in Transmission|f...]]
* ''[[World of Warcraft]]: Mists of Pandaria'' has received the ''[[Diablo (series)|Diablo 3]]'' treatment, with fanboy screams of "[[Care Bears]]", and the series being [[Ruined FOREVER]]. After [[Darker and Edgier|Cataclysm's]] [[Eldritch Abomination|Old God]] corrupted dragon attempting an [[Earthshattering Kaboom|Azeroth Shattering Kaboom]], it's a little hard to not come off as
* A rather bizarre example occurs with the video game adaptation of [[Adventures In Dinosaur City]]. The main characters of the film are fans of a cartoon series, of which we only see the intro, before being [[Trapped in TV Land|sucked into]] it's [[Darker and Edgier]] real version. However the game based it's asthetic more on said cartoon, thereby being
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* ''[[Sinfest]]'' is a webcomic that used to be extremely cynical and celebrated the sinful lives of the main characters. Nowadays, the overall tone of the strip is very optimistic and deals with how the very human characters deal with the temptation of sin while exploring the connections they have with each other. It's hard to point out exactly where the shift occurred, but consensus says it became official during the [[Love Redeems]] storyline between one of the succubi and the nerdy bookworm.
** [http://www.sinfest.net/archive_page.php?comicID=1808 Earlier, it had God rejecting the notion of toning down his art work for this.]
* ''[[Fluffy Bunny Domination]]'' lives and breaths a
* In ''[[Homestuck]]'', the alien trolls are [[Darker and Edgier|violent, amoral, and unstable]]. In their previous incarnation they were peaceful, kind, and {{spoiler|so weak they couldn't play the game that would create a new universe so they had to reboot it and be manipulated into something more aggressive}}.
* Parodied in ''[[Bob the Angry Flower]]'' - "[http://www.angryflower.com/611.html softening the brand]" will allow to reach "[[Lowest Common Denominator|a broader demo]]"... {{spoiler|Everyone dies. But ADORABLY!}}
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== Web Originals ==
* ''[[Neopets]]'' was made by, and for college kids when it first started. The early plots all were filled with [[Family-Unfriendly Violence|black comedy]], where the staff members (fictionally) were killed off one by one (the players got to vote on who died). The site was made kid friendly after two years, but the old pages from early plots still exist, which are all [[Nightmare Fuel]].
* This trope is parodied [http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/485797 here], with an attempt to make ''[[Watchmen (comics)|Watchmen]]''
** And, there's [http://envyskort.deviantart.com/art/G-Rated-Watchmen-Part-1-117642121 this comic]. Be sure to read the rest of the chapters as well!
* After the Incarnates arc in [[We Are Our Avatars (Roleplay)|We Are Our Avatars]], which is chockfull of [[Grimdark]], many of the Arcs started to get lighter, although many exceptions have applied.
* [[Tobuscus]] started out his vlogging career with a very gritty, profanity-laced style, clearly going for a [[All Girls Want Bad Boys|"bad boy"]] vibe. Around 2010, however, his popularity started to really grow, his [[Product Placement|sponsorships]] took off, and his [[So My Kids Can Watch|teenage niece, Ciara]], started appearing in his
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** "To be sure, this is a lighter incarnation, but it's certainly no less valid and true to the character's roots than the tortured avenger crying out for mommy and daddy."
** And it's '''still'' [[Darker and Edgier]] then 60's [[Batman (TV series)|Batman]] and [[Sarcasm Mode|that's hard to do]].
* ''Slimer! And the Real Ghostbusters'' was a
* ''[[Catscratch]]'' is an adaptation of a comic book. The original comic, called ''[[Gear]]'', centers on a war between anthropomorphic species, fought on giant robots, and doesn't shy away from depicting murders, genocide, body horror and torture. The cartoon not only didn't have one of the main characters, who died, but didn't let another character suffer his [[Fate Worse Than Death]].
* ''[[Beast Machines]]'' is about planetary genocide, religious fanaticism and unceasing, torrential whining. ''[[Transformers Robots in Disguise (anime)|Transformers Robots in Disguise]]'' is about the wacky adventures of a put-upon space shark and the delightful things he does. That's something of a simplification, but the fact remains: Transformers has never gotten quite so dark as Beast Machines since,
* The short lived cult series ''[[Cybersix]]'' was waaaay
* Although [[Nickelodeon]] isn't one for "dark" shows (except [[Invader Zim|ZIM]]) and [[Avatar: The Last Airbender]]), ''[[Chalk Zone]]'' seems to be Nick's attempt at making a very soft, light, and fluffy cartoon (most likely to recover younger viewers from the [[Nightmare Fuel]]-filled ''Invader Zim'' (already mentioned). Despite being adorable, [[Tastes Like Diabetes|it made many viewers sick]]. Well, that's what happens when you have too much sugar.
** Also, when Nickelodeon's CBS block featured non-Jr. shows from 2002-2005, due to having to comply to the E/I guidelines, the two most popular Nicktoons of the time, ''[[SpongeBob SquarePants]]'' and ''[[The Fairly Odd Parents]]'', were off-limits for the CBS block, therefore Nick had to rely on less-popular Nicktoons to fill the roster, like ''[[All Grown Up]]'', ''[[As Told by Ginger]]'', and the aforementioned ''[[Chalk Zone]]''.
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* The [[Image]] comic book [[Wild CATS]] is very violent, dark and cynical. By contrast, the [[Wild CATS]] cartoon is more standard superhero fare.
* The second season of ''[[Superjail]]'' at least compared to the first. Characters are more humanized and sympathetic and less wantonly cruel, and this includes the inmates. Make no mistake that it's still a [[Gorn]] series, but less randomly cruel than in the first season.
* ''[[The Problem Solverz]]'' was originally pitched to [[Adult Swim]] and was much more random and surreal than the [[Cartoon Network]] series. Now the show is quite toned down and focuses more on the episode plots instead of arbitrary [[BLAM
* ''[[Little Shop of Horrors]]'' had an animated series, where the killer, man-eating plant was now friendly and tried to help the main character, and the psychotic sadistic dentist was a school yard bully who stole lunch money and food from Seymour.
* ''[[Baby Looney Tunes]]'', being a [[Spinoff Babies]] version of ''[[Looney Tunes]]'', is built on this.
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