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Meaningful Name/Live-Action TV: Difference between revisions
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* ''[[
** Also, Buffy's surname is a nod to Scott Summers from the X-Men comics, so says [[Word of God]]. Buffy itself was meant to be a name that couldn't be taken seriously, and thus ironically unfit for someone destined to kill vampires and generally kick ass.
** Glory (or Glorificus), a Hellgod who was named and worshipped (shamelessly) by her many minions.
* On ''[[
** And Gwen Raiden, named for the Japanese god of lightning. [[Shock and Awe|Guess what ability she has.]]
** Angel, named because his sister though he'd returned to her from the dead as an angel. Historical volumes describe him as "the one with the angelic face" and "the demon with the face of an angel".
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* [[Xena: Warrior Princess]] had Eve, who was destined to bring about the "Twilight of the Gods". ''Eve''ning and ''Twilight'' are both times of day. Or... night I suppose...
** This is more of an out of universe example, as In Universe, Eve was named by her {{spoiler|dead older brother, who was completely unaware of Eve's destiny}}, during one of [[To Hell and Back|Xena and Gabrielle's many day-trips to the Underworld.]]
* ''[[Arrested Development (TV series)|Arrested Development]]'' had George Michael's love interest Maeby, who was his [[Incest Is Relative|cousin]]... ''maybe.'' (By the end of the series, {{spoiler|we know they're not blood related}}.)
* Livia from ''[[The Sopranos]]'' actions reflect the actions of the [[I, Claudius|historical Livia,]] [[Evil Matriarch|wife of Augustus Caesar]].
* The main character in ''The New Statesman'' was named Alan B'Stard. Guess what kind of personality he had?
* Adele Channing in ''[[The L Word]]'' has the same surname as the main character in ''All About Eve'' and her storyline is clearly inspired by that film
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** In "Smith And Jones", Dr. Stoker is the first victim of what we later learn to be a blood-sucking alien called a Plasmavore. Bram Stoker is the famous author of "Dracula", and "Plasmavore" is a [[Meaningful Name]] in itself.
** In "Battlefield", Brigadier Bambera was given the forename "Winifred" to evoke Guinevere. Inevitably, she ends up engaged to Ancelyn, whose name is a variation on "Lancelot".
** And, of course, there's [[The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
** There is also Donna Noble. She was one of the most accepting of her role as the Doctor's conscience (keeping him "noble") and after she became {{spoiler|the Doctor-Donna}}, she married Shawn Temple, making her name Donna Temple-Noble, which can be roughly translated to "Woman Time Lord."
** Terry Nation named several planets using this trope in his Dalek stories. Skaro is ''scarred'' by terrible wars; Aridius is a huge desert; Mechanus is the home of the Mechanoids; Desperus is a penal colony...
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** Amy Pond gives {{spoiler|her daughter}} the name "Melody". {{spoiler|Replace ''Melody'' and ''Pond'' for different terms that mean almost the same thing and switch the two around, and you get ''River Song''}}
** [[Mad Scientist]] Professor Lazarus built a machine to hold back death. [[Lampshade Hanging|Lampshaded in the episode]].
* Officer Don notices that the three male character of ''[[3rd Rock
* Jeannie in ''[[I
* ''[[Power Rangers]]'' has taken to doing this in recent years.
** Wild Force had an [[Anti-Villain]] named Zen-Aku (good-evil) who would [[Kick the Dog]] one minute and [[Pet the Dog]] the next for his own reasons.
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** ''SPD'''s aliens are frequently named after the animal they resemble, such as doglike Anubis "Doggie" Kruger of Sirius, catlike Kat Manx and Dr. Felix, apelike Sgt. Silverback, and birdlike Fowler Birdy. With humans it's not quite as gimmicky: ''Blue'' Ranger Sky has a flying [[Humongous Mecha|Zord]], Jack was once a thief, etc.
*** A-Squad was given the honor of being named by the fandom. The name for A-Squad Blue? [http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/powerrangers/images/thumb/5/5b/SPD_ASquad_Blue.png/220px-SPD_ASquad_Blue.png Beevor.]
** ''Mystic Force'' is somewhat sneakier: Water-powered Madison shares a name with the mermaid in ''Splash'' (as well as sharing Tomoyo's name in the ''[[
** In ''Overdrive'', Mackenzie "Mack" Hartford's [[Humongous Mecha]] is based on a dump truck, and the Pink Ranger's name is Rose. {{spoiler|Mack's name may also be a play on the computer company, since he is ultimately revealed to be a robot.}}
** [[Power Rangers Turbo|Turbo's]] lead villainess was named ''Diva''tox.
* The only two of ''[[
** Sportacus is a corny, but appropriate, name for a athletic but not super-powered hero.
** Trixie, the mischievous tomboy is, well, tricksy.
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** Villain Robbie Rotten actually isn't quite as rotten as he thinks he is, usually behaving in a manner closer to bratty than evil.
* ''[[Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide]]'' has a bully named Billy Loomer, a [[Alpha Bitch|mean girl]] named Missy Meany, and a woodshop teacher named Dusty Chopsaw. Any questions?
* ''[[Heroes (TV series)|Heroes]]'' has a few examples as well:
** Villain Sylar's real name is Gabriel Gray, "Gabriel" being a nod to his obviously Catholic background (and additionally, Maya at one point describes him as "Just like the angel."), and "Gray" meaning dull or ordinary which he lamented being prior to his finding out he had superpowers. Alternatively, one could take Gray to mean [[Brain Food|Gray Matter.]] It's also possible to interpret it in such a way that 'Gray' signifies having the [[Color Coded for Your Convenience|whiteness]] of the angel Gabriel darkened...in other words, turned evil.
*** With a slight spelling change, it could even be an ''[[
** Then again, for a show with a character actually named Hiro (meaning he's a "hero", plus the in-show reason was he was named after "Hiroshima", thus giving poignancy to his quest to stop New York from being destroyed by a nuclear bomb), Sylar's pretty subtle.
** And as Sylar's good counterpart, we have Peter (a saint and angel just as Gabriel) who [[Peter Pan|can fly]]. Angela Petrelli subverts this only in the fact that she isn't an angel.
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* ''[[Brothers and Sisters]]'': [[Blonde Republican Sex Kitten|Katherine "Kitty" Walker]]
* ''[[Star Trek]]''
** Hoshi Sato of ''[[Star Trek: Enterprise]]'': "''hoshi''" is Japanese for "star", "''sato''" can be read as "at home" -- her name essentially means "at home by the stars".
** And in the original series, Uhura is very close to the Swahili "uhoro", meaning "freedom" -- one of the Federation's ideals at the time. Her full name is "Nyota Uhura", which means "Star Freedom".
** Captain James ''Tiberius'' Kirk was named in part after a character created by Gene Roddenberry for a previous television show, but the history behind the name Tiberius is probably why it was given specifically to Kirk. (Ironically, the Emperor Tiberius was one of Rome's weakest emperors and one of its most unpleasant, if Tacitus's stories about his pedophilia are to be believed. And while Tacitus ''is'' known to let his own biases color his accounts, he's generally considered to have left the most reliable records of the Roman Empire.)
** Miles O'Brien is introduced in ''[[Star Trek:
** William T. Riker's middle name was the subject of speculation for the first few seasons, until it was set to be "Thomas" in the 6th Season episode "Second Chances." "Thomas" means "twin," which is exactly what Riker discovered he was in this episode thanks to a transporter accident.
** An inadvertent [[Meaningful Name]] is that of Elim Garak. The character is constantly putting on an act, so one would think his surname was a reference to the great English actor, David Garrick. Yet he was named after one of the writer's prior characters. (Garak shares his first name with a rather strict Mennonite sect. The fact that his mother's first name is the reverse of his is, according to the writers, intentional -- but his character was created first.)
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** Then there's [[Robot Buddy|Data]] and his brother Lore, which is doubly meaningful, as Lore, the more emotional android, has a name that is a somewhat more emotionally charged word for the same thing.
*** Not the same thing: Lore is stories pertaining to something's history (yes, usually invoking emotion). Data, however, simply refers to information that is usually of a scientific or mathematical nature. However the point is valid about the meaning of the names.
** In the ''[[Star Trek:
** In "All Our Yesterdays", the time-warping library on Sarpeidon is run by the [[Ancient Keeper]] Mr. Atoz ("A TO Z").
* The live action/CGI combined show ''[[Ace Lightning]]'' is packed with meaningful names (no surprise really, since the show's about a corny superhero videogame come to life): Ace Lightning (the hero, duh) Sparx (the spunky redhead sidekick) Lord Fear (bad guy) Lady Illusion (temptress), Anvil (the team muscle), Dirty Rat (exactly what it sounds like), Random Virus (guy with a good/evil complex of epic proportions).
** These meaningful names can also apply to the humans however: the teenage protagonist Mark Hollander's name is from the God, Mars, and relates to war and battle. The resident [[Geek]] is more commonly known as the rather comical Chuck (and has a habit of throwing up whenever stressed or disturbed). The nice, helpful Girlfriend and [[Girl Next Door]] Samantha Thompson's name means "listener" (which works for her) and it's quite obvious that the owner of the carnival wasn't named "Duff" accidentally.
* ''[[
** He was also something of a klutz, frequently getting "tripped up"
* "A Thing About Machines", an episode of ''[[The Twilight Zone]]'', tells the story of Bartlett Finchley. Lord Finchley was a technophobe in a poem by Hillaire Belloc.
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** The [[Ensemble Darkhorse]] male Doll who gets a happy ending was [[Theme Naming|codenamed]] Victor. The primary antagonist for most of the first season was Alpha.
** Topher Brink. Topher is a shortened version of Christopher, meaning "Christ-bearer". But with the "Christ" part removed, it's just "Bearer". {{spoiler|Topher's character is the bearer of knowledge and technology in the Dollhouse. He bears the technology to end the world, but he also bears a way to save the world (much like the story of St Christopher bearing an unusually heavy Christ child across a river-- sort of like when he has to haul the tech up in a backpack to the top of the building). He ends up bearing the world to the ``brink`` of destruction.}}
** The Dollhouse is run by Rossum Corporation. Late in the show, we meet the [[Big Bad]], who is ''not'' named "Rossum". He named the corporation as an homage to ''[[
* ''[[
** River herself is named after [[The Ophelia|Ophelia's river]], and Shepherd Book's name is, well, [[The Bible|pretty obvious.]]
* ''[[CSI]]''
** Sophia Curtis in season 5, a character who stands out for her knowledge and wisdom (Sophia) as well as her social savoir-faire and good manners (courtesy, geddit?). Eventually she is driven away by the [[Bunny Ears Lawyer|unchecked lunacy]] taken out on her by the regular cast.
** That [[CSI Verse|other character]] whose name is assonant with "Will Graham" (''[[Manhunter (
** Detective Brass who's name evokes the somewhat archaic term "the brass" as a reference to authority.
** The name Grissom sounds like "gruesome", which is the apt word for some of the crime scenes encountered on the show.
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** [[Kamen Rider Agito|Shouchi Tsugami.]] His first name means "First Call," and if you were attacked by an [[Monster of the Week|Unknown,]] [[Who You Gonna Call?|who would you call]]? Also, Makoto Hikawa's first name means "Truth" and he's a cop.
** [[Kamen Rider Ryuki]] has a couple:
*** Shinji Kido: "[[Wide
*** Ren (Akiyama): "[[Ironic Name|Gr]][[Ineffectual Loner|oup]]".
*** Shu(ichi) (Kitaoka): "[[Ill Boy|Tumor]]"
*** Jun (Shibaura): "[[Insufferable Genius|Genius]]"
* ''[[House (TV series)|House]] MD'' has House and Wilson instead of [[Sherlock Holmes|Holmes and Watson]].
** Also, the [[Bi the Way|token bisexual]] is named Remy ''Hadley'' -- Hadley being one town over from [[Gayborhood|Northampton, Mass]].
* ''[[Supernatural]]'' has Anna [[Paradise Lost|Milton]], a fallen angel.
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* Brandy from ''[[Noah's Arc]]'', who oscillates between [[Lady Drunk]] and [[Bottle Fairy]].
* In an episode of ''[[QI]]'', [[Stephen Fry]] mentions "nominative determinism," the social theory that if your name is meaningful its meaning will reflect in your career choice. David Mitchell: "That's why you run that caff."
* ''[[Strangers
* ''[[
** Less obvious, but rewarding if you speak Polish, is Kochanski. ''Kochac'' means "to love". What better person to be called Lover than Lister's girlfriend? According to ''[[Word of God]]'', however, it was not deliberate - it was the name of one of the creators' schoolfriends, as was Rimmer.
* Subversion: In ''[[Tokusou Sentai Dekaranger]]'', a [[Monster of the Week]] has a name that means "felony" and is of a species whose name means "villain". As the plot was one character's attempt to prove him innocent and the true culprit guilty, the names were an [[Anvilicious]] way of making him the obvious suspect (which he was anyway).
** Otherwise, [[Super Sentai]] has so many characters with Meaningful Names (and Meaningful [[Punny Name|Punny Names]] and [[Theme Naming]]) that adding them to this page would triple the length.
* The cringeworthy Icarus Base from ''[[
** What, ''Poseidon Adventure'' base, or ''Towering Inferno'' base were already taken? Or was it just a case of "Unsubtle allusion to hubris and haste that will end badly" base was too much of a mouthful to say?
** Arguably justifible in they were trying to 'fly higher than ever' in the sense of dialing the ninth chevron. Makes you wonder about the symbolism involved such that flying into suns stops them from dying... ([[Wild Mass Guessing|Then again isn't that a Greek myth? Maybe the Ancients had something to do with that?]] [[Up to Eleven|The terms for Destiny and Death are historically linked... to bad it was cancelled, maybe that was their plan all along!!!]])
** And from ''[[Stargate SG
** The names of the Tau'ri members of SG-1 with a [[Genius Bonus|subtle]] dig at Cameron Mitchell being the replacement to Jack O'Neill.
*** Jonathen 'Jack'= God has given
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*** Cameron= Crooked/bent nose
* May or may not be intentional, but consider ''[[
* In [[Russell T. Davies]]'s drama ''[[The Second Coming]]'', the protagonist was the son of God. His love interest is named Judy.
* "Wrangler" Jane, who runs the town's local general store in ''[[F Troop]]'', is Jane Angelica Thrift.
* When the producers of ''[[The Avengers (TV series)|The Avengers]]'' needed to replace actress Honor Blackman, the networks sent down word to make sure the character had "male appeal" Or as the network shorthand was written... "M appeal".
* ''[[Human Target]]'''s Guerrero, which is Spanish for "warrior". Though Guerrero comes across as laid-bad computer geek, you don't want to piss him off.
* [[Ultraman Leo|Gen Ootori]]''s last name usually means "phoenix" or "big bird". Seeing as [[Doomed Hometown|Alien Magma destroyed his home planet]], [[The Woobie|all the stuff he went through in the show]], and how he survived again and again to fight another battle, "phoenix" sounds about right.
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* NBC's brief 1993 [[Revival]] of ''[[Route 66]]'' starred James Wilder and Dan Cortese as Nick Lewis and Arthur Clark. Making the road wonderers....that's right....Lewis & Clark.
* In ''[[Lexx]]'', a character named Doctor Longbore talks, at great length, in a monotone voice. Prince, ruler of the planet Fire, is heavily implied to be Satan.
* The [[Big Bad]] of season two of the original ''[[Life On Mars]]''? [[The Wizard of Oz (
* A [[Yes-Man]] in an episode of ''[[
* The attractive middle-aged woman who attempts to seduce the eponymous protagonist in ''[[The Hard
* In ''[[Wizards of Waverly Place]]'', the principal's name is [[Bewitched
* Emma in ''[[Degrassi the Next Generation]]'' is a meta-example, being named after the Emmy Award ''[[Degrassi Junior High]]'' got for her mom's [[Teen Pregnancy]] storyline.
* In ''[[Babylon 5]]'', the exploration ship Captain Sheridan's wife was on was named ''Icarus''. Perhaps a bad idea.
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** Captain John Sheridan, who according to [[Word of God]], was a direct descendant of US Army General Phillip Henry Sheridan. Who is best known for fighting in the American Civil War.
** Delenn of the Family Mir, whose family name comes from the Russian word for "Peace".
* ''[[
* The TV series of ''[[The Walking Dead]]'' has a Centre for Disease Control scientist named Edwin Jenner. His namesake, Edward Jenner, was the first person to successfully and scientifically inoculate against smallpox. Subverted in that the Dr Jenner from the show has no idea how to go about curing the plague.
* Jazz piano player John "Johnny" Staccato in the eponymous [[wikipedia:Johnny Staccato|1959 noir drama]] - and yes, that's his real given name; he doesn't change it after becoming a [[Private Detective]].
* Kurt Hummel from the musical tv show ''[[Glee]]'' is named after Kurt Von Trap from the musical ''[[The Sound of Music]]''.
** Might count for some if not all of the other Glee-club members too. Rachel's full name is Rachel Barbra Berry. She is a huge Barbra Streisand fan. Quinn's name rhymes with Finn and sounds like Queen. Santana Lopez is probably be named after the guitarist Carlos Santana and the singer Jennifer Lopez. Brittany S. Pierce's name is already explained on Glee; Britney Spears. Also: Kurt rhymes with Burt. As of season two: coach Bieste, which is pronounced "beast" and fits with her manly personality. Puck's first name, Noah, is slightly ironic. Noah is a typical [[Nice Jewish Boy]] name and contrasts with Puck's bad-boy attitude.
* The witty writers of ''[[Barney Miller]]'' had a bit of fun with this. The [[Lovable Borderline Pedophile]] director of the Rainbow House children's home, which housed a disproportionate number of child prostitutes, was named [[
* Jeff Winger on ''[[
* ''The Fresh Beat Band'' is filled with these. Two band members are Twist and Shout. Their music teacher is Miss Piccolo. Their friend Reed owns a music store. Another friend is named Melody, and sings.
* On [[Black Books]], the three main characters all have [[Meaningful Name|meaningful surnames]]: Manny [[Bilingual Bonus|Bianco]] is a rather nice and happy person while Bernard Black is mean and cynical and hates almost everyone. [[Bottle Fairy|Fran's]] surname is Katzenjammer (German slang for "hangover").
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** The main character is called Tori.. vicTORIous?
** Vice Principal [[Jerkass|Dickers]] from "The Breakfast Bunch". His [[No Indoor Voice|loud]] talking, aggressive one-liners and some of his actions (including trying to make Tori pop an arm pimple) show that he's certainly worthy of that name.
* [[Wonder Woman (TV series)|Wonder Woman TV Series]]: Invoked by Hippolyte, Queen of the [[Hidden Elf Village]] Paradise Island:
{{quote| '''Queen Hippolyte:''' ''I named this island "Paradise" for an excellent reason. [[Lady Land|There are no men on it.]] [[Cultural Posturing|Thus, it is free from their wars, their greed, their hostility, their... barbaric... masculine... behavior]].'' [she bites her hand]}}
* The 1960s ''[[Batman (TV series)|Batman]]'' series had number of these: Lord Marmaduke F'''fog'''g, Mrs. Max '''Black, widow'''. Pat Pending, the richest inventor on Earth.
* One episode of ''[[Austin and Ally]]'' features the vile, unscrupulous music manager, '''Demonic'''a Dixon.
* ''[[Once Upon a Time (TV series)|Once Upon a Time]]'' lives and breathes this trope. Snow White is Mary Margaret ''Blanc''hard ("blanc" is French for white), Red Riding Hood is ''Ruby'', the Evil Queen is ''Regina'' Mills...
{{reflist}}
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