Melodrama: Difference between revisions

 

 

It's usually associated with [[World of Ham|everyone acting like a]] [[Large Ham]], but it's actually about specific emphasis on any dramatic situation. This is done by amping up the perceived scale and emotional response on everything. Basically, every little hurdle becomes a mountain, every setback a [[Tragedy]] of Greek proportions, and the official couple will be [[Star-Crossed Lovers]] over the tiniest things, usually thanks to outside interference and [[Poor Communication Kills]].

Note that this isn't the same as stage actors [[No Indoor Voice|speaking loudly]] and [[Milking the Giant Cow|making broad movements]]. That's just a necessity of stage acting. This is when the actors portray the characters (or the characters are written as) being akin to teenager with a very small, [[Soap Opera]] scale world. Every success, kiss, and snub will carry the sting of a legendary story. Essentially, what to us would be a pinprick gains the pathos of a rending wound.

 

 

A [[Sub-Trope]] of [[Rule of Drama]].

 

Contrast [[Dull Surprise]].

 

== [[Anime]] and [[Manga]] ==

* The anime version of ''Heidi'' fall easily into this.

* A lot of [[Shojo]] series, from the 70's to today, have these in spades. In fact, it would be easier to list those [[Shojo]] anime/manga titles in which melodrama ''isn't'' a central element of it. Some examples:

** ''[[Rose of Versailles]]'' is loaded with this. In one scene based on historical events, [[Marie Antoinette]] just had to say a few words to Madame DuBarry, and [http://www.flickr.com/photos/9530120@N08/3040810570/sizes/o/ Marie then runs away in tears], and even tosses her [[Pretty in Mink|Ermine]] [[Pimped-Out Cape|Cape]] behind her [[Rule of Symbolism|to show the princess is beaten]]. Episode 03 of ''[[Rose of Versailles Abridged]]'' discusses the importance of this and [[Rule of Drama]].

** ''[[Candy Candy]]''.

** ''[[Peach Girl]]''.

* ''[[Saint Seiya]]'', considering the action-to-drama ratio.

* ''[[Code Geass]]''. It wouldn't be half as awesome if it weren't.

* The works of [[Leiji Matsumoto]] have melodrama written all over it.

* Melodrama plays a vital role in most [[Yuri Genre]] anime. As with most shojo anime and manga, it would be easier and shorter to list those Yuri Genre shows which ''aren't'' all about melodrama.

 

== [[Comic Books]] ==

* Any big-screen adaptation of a stage play (or in the case of ''[[The Producers]]'', film adaptation of a play adaptation of a movie).

* ''[[Titanic]]'', especially the second half.

* The ''[[Star Wars]]'' movies are adventure melodramas.

* [[The Room|Johnny]] would like you to know that "[[Memetic Mutation|you are TEARING me APART, Lisa]]!" It's amazing how much drama Wiseau attempts to put into the minimal amount of things that actually happen.

* Douglas Sirk did other films, but his most well known are his 1950s Hollywood melodramas, featuring titles such as ''All That Heaven Allows, Written on the Wind,'' and ''Imitation of Life.''

 

== [[Literature]] ==

** The standard [[Romance Novel]] is purely and unabashedly melodrama by design.

* Hwang Sun-won's 1959 short story ''Sonagi'' (''Rain Shower'' in English) is an enduringly popular melodrama in Korea that is often referenced in contemporary Korean culture, which is a culture that is very fond of melodrama.

* ''Sisterhood'' series by [[Fern Michaels]]: Used quite a lot. For the most part, it's done right. On occasion, it does fall into [[Narm]].

* More than a few plot lines in ''[[Stationery Voyagers]]'' could have been avoided for heroes and villains alike, if they'd stopped to think of a rational solution instead of acting on seething hatred. If Astrabolo weren't in such a mad rush to [[Kick the Dog]] [[Villain Ball|every chance he gets]], his plans could have been ''even more'' successful. Same goes for Liquidon's incessant [[Heroic Self-Deprecation]] over how his killing Astriliad doomed the Whiteout race. Astrabolo probably would've developed his genocidal plans happened anyway, and for a lesser reason, had Liquidon simply done nothing at all. Katrina's [[Pre-Mortem One-Liner]] and [[Bond One-Liner]] moments show that she enjoys her [[Roaring Rampage of Revenge]] ''[[Anti-Hero|a bit too much]]''.

 

== [[Live Action TV]] ==

* [[Lifetime Movie of the Week|Lifetime Movies of the Week]] are these in spades.

** There was one, called ''Her Married Lover'', which is actually a [[Deconstruction]] of those melodramatic movies.

* There was a ''[[Saturday Night Live]]'' sketch from the early 1990s, "Those Proud Pattersons", where everybody was an overdramatic actor.

* ''[[The Colbert Report]]'' is already [[Gut Feeling|very emotional]] [[Large Ham|about everything]], but occasionally it [http://www.colbertnation.com/the-colbert-report-videos/217061/january-27-2009/omar-returns ramps it up to eleven]. Even ''[[The Daily Show]]'' [http://www.thedailyshow.com/video/index.jhtml?videoId=127296&title=Another-World did it once].

** Reality shows in general are a gold mine for this trope. For example, ''My Kitchen Rules'' makes putting on a dinner party look like an epic tale of love, hate, war and [[Buffy-Speak|other things.]]

* A commercial for mail-order eye contacts had an "overly-dramatic recreation" ("But Mary, our eyes are ''different!''").

 

 

 

== [[Theater]] ==

* [[Takarazuka]] productions.

* ''[[The Phantom of the Opera]]'' and its sequel ''[[Love Never Dies]]''.

 

== [[Video Games]] ==

* One of ''[[Metal Gear]]'''s claims to fame/notoriety (along with the [[Quirky Miniboss Squad|weird bosses]], [[Painting the Fourth Wall|playing with]] [[No Fourth Wall|the fourth wall]], [[Estrogen Brigade Bait|beef]][[Even the Guys Want Him|cake]], [[Ho Yay|homoeroticism]], [[Mind Screw|the creator's desire to mess with players' heads]] and [[Exposition Break|lots of]] [[Final Speech|talking]]). The first ''[[Metal Gear Solid]]'' alone features several tragic death scenes, conversations about the nature of love, and a [[Big Bad]] who turns out to be a vengeful, hitherto unknown relative of the protagonist.

* A significant number of [[Visual Novel|visual novels]] appear to have no purpose other than to make the player (reader?) [[Tear Jerker|cry uncontrollably]]. See [[Utsuge]] for details.

 

== [[Western Animation]] ==

 

{{reflist}}

[[Category:Drama Tropes]]

[[Category:Rule of Drama]]