History SelfDemonstrating / TheGrinch

* AmbiguousDisorder: Second movie me apparently had some pretty. Deep. Trauma. And I mean, WOW did he have it bad. One look at Christmas and he almost passed out! Is it any wonder he wanted to steal it?

* BerserkButton: I. HATE. CHRISTMAS! But, I hate [[WesternAnimation/TheGrinchGrinchesTheCatInTheHat being called "Mr. Greenface" EVEN MORE]]!

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* SlasherSmile: Well, when I get, let's say, a wonderful idea. A wonderful, awful idea, boy do I give out such a grin! Not for the faint of heart. Especially since I've got termites in my smile! Or creepy crawlies.....

[[caption-width-right:350: My very ''handsome'' mug in a happy moment. Just ''don't get on my bad side.'']]

* RedemptionPromotion: I was never a weak guy, but having a bigger heart gave me a lot more strength than I thought. TAKE THAT SUPERMAN! HOW DO YA LIKE ME NOW?!

* BadassBookworm: Yes, [[SuddenlyShouting I READ!!!]] Seriously, no one can still Christmas in one night and not expect to have some book smarts!

* PaperThinDisguise: Ehh. That kinda depends on what ya hear. 2-D me stuck out like a sore thumb. Live action me recognized that, so I just hid behind anything that wouldn't give it away. 3-D me at least bothered to put on a beard. Though you'd think we would have heard of hair dye.

--> '''The Grinch''': Of course they are. That's what it's all about, isn't it? That's what it's '''always''' been about! Gifts. Gifts. Gifts-gifts-gifts-gifts-gifts-gifts! Do you know what happens to your gifts? They all come to me. In your garbage. You see what I'm saying? In. Your. GARBAGE! I could hang myself with all the bad Christmas neckties I found at the dump! And the avarice... the avarice never ends! "I want golf clubs!" "I want diamonds!" "I want a pony so I can ride it twice, get bored, and sell it to make GLUE!" Look, I don't wanna make waves, but this whole Christmas season is... stupid! Stupid! Stupid! ''(looks up to and advances towards Martha May Whovier)'' There is, however, one teeny-tiny Christmas tradition I find... quite... meaningful. ''(snatches the mistletoe off the ring box and holds it over his head)'' Mistletoe. ''(Holds the Mistletoe over his behind)'' Now pucker up and kiss it, Whoville! Boiiiiiiiiinggggg!

''(For best effect, read this in the voices of Creator/BorisKarloff, Creator/JimCarrey, or Creator/BenedictCumberbatch)''

* TheHermit: Okay, so you people [[TVTropesWillRuinYourLife reading this site]] are obviously getting on my nerves, so the fact I haven't done anything monstrous means you've clearly got [[NervesOfSteel some sense of bravery]]. But I ''hate'' company. I ''loathe'' it. So I live alone with just me and Max. No one else. Not a one!

Oh, before I get started, I'm just gonna make this easy for ya. There's a lot of me to go around, so, when I'm talking about [[WesternAnimation/HowTheGrinchStoleChristmas cartoon Grinch]], that's 2-D me. If it's [[Film/HowTheGrinchStoleChristmas movie Grinch]], that's live action me. If it's [[WesternAnimation/TheGrinch2018 animated movie Grinch]], that's 3-D me. Now, ACTION!

* BadPeopleAbuseAnimals: WHAT? I DO NOT! MAX! DID YOU POST THOSE BLATANT LIES ON THIS PAGE! I'LL...uh...heh, heh. Pretend you didn't hear that. Well, 3-D me didn't do this! That's all I'm saying!

''But the Grinch, who lived just North of [=WhoVille=], did not.''

''Now, please don't ask why; no one quite knows the reason.''

''It could be that his head wasn't screwed on just right.''

** He also threw a tree across a room when he was ''eight''.

Nothing? Seriously? Come on Grinch, you must be losing your nerve or something!

Every Who down in [=WhoVille=] liked Christmas a lot.
But the Grinch, who lived just North of [=WhoVille]=, did not.
The Grinch hated Christmas, the whole Christmas season.
Now, please don't ask why; no one quite knows the reason.
It could be perhaps that his shoes were too tight.
It could be his head wasn't screwed on just right.
But I think that the most likely reason of all
May have been that his--

It could be perhaps that his shoes were too tight.
It could be his head wasn't screwed on just right.
But I think that the most likely reason of all

* BadPeopleAbuseAnimals: He treats Max very badly in the 1966 special and the 2000 film. Averted in 2018 film, where Max and [[CanonForeigner Fred]] are the only creatures that he ''doesn't'' act like a {{Jerkass}} towards.

* BewareTheSillyOnes: The Grinch may be energetic, immature and [[LargeHam over-the-top hammy]], but goes on an absolute rampage when Augustus pulls that cruel joke on him. He also isn't afraid to call out the Whos on their selfishness in his famous TheReasonYouSuckSpeech.
* ButtMonkey: Both films have the Grinch being the victim of slapstick mayhem, though it's more true for Carrey's version.

* EvilSoundsDeep: Played straight in the 1966 special, where he is voiced by Boris Karloff. The 2018 film has him voiced by Benedict Cumberbatch, who's no worse for wear.
* FreudianExcuse: Defied in the original story and 1966 special, where the narrator tells the audience that they shouldn't ask why the Grinch hates Christmas in the first place and the only explanation given is that his heart is two sizes too small. Played straight in both theatrical movies.
** The 2000 one was bullied by his classmates at school, especially when he tried to confess about his crush on Martha.
** The 2018 one grew up as a lonely, neglected orphan who never got to celebrate Christmas and, as a result, Christmas isn't just a nuisance for him — it's a straight-up TraumaButton.
* GadgeteerGenius: In the 2018 adaptation, the Grinch explicitly upgrades the sleigh he steals and designs all of his gadgets, but this trope is implied for the 1966 and 2000 versions of the character, who use some fancy gizmos themselves.

Every WhoVille liked Christmas a lot.
But the Grinch, who lived just North of WhoVille, did not.

* AdaptationalAttractiveness: ADAPTATIONAL! I've always been a...[[BlatantLies rather handsome kinda fella]]. But, I will admit, the [[Film/HowTheGrinchStoleChristmas fella in all that makeup]] and [[WesternAnimation/TheGrinch the other cartoon guy]] were a little bit more on the appealing side. Especially [[EnfantTerrible baby me]]! Eat your heart out [[Series/TheMandalorian Baby Yoda]]!

* AssholeVictim: Carrey's Grinch isn't the most pleasant fellow, which makes his pain and suffering inflicted upon him throughout and especially during the heist justified.

* GoMadFromTheIsolation: Really, there's traces of this in all the adaptations, since all he has is Max and an empty mountain for company. In particular, how else to sum up the Grinch's behavior in the 2000 version, where he's a ridiculously LargeHam even when talking to himself?
* {{Gonk}}: Between his goblin-esque appearance, crooked teeth and smile and creepy expressions, the Grinch is... not exactly what you would call "attractive". Downplayed in the 2018 film with his somewhat more palatable appearance.
* GoodEyesEvilEyes: In the 1966 special, he has yellow and red eyes for most of it, but after his HeelFaceTurn, they just become blue.
* GreenAndMean: Probably the most iconic example of this trope.
* GreenEyedMonster: Quite literally, as the 2018 version of the character has green eyes. In his backstory in the film, he was a lonely orphan, who grew up not being able to celebrate Christmas with anyone, and he grew envious of the Whos who could, and it eventually drove him to steal Christmas from the Whos.
* TheGrinch: An obvious TropeNamer.
* GrumpyOldMan: He is 53 at the youngest.
* HeelFaceTurn: [[ItWasHisSled As most people know]], his heart grows three sizes after he discovers the meaning of Christmas.
* TheHermit: The Grinch chooses to live alone in a mountaintop cave with only his dog for company.
* IronButtMonkey: Both film versions, ''especially'' the Jim Carrey incarnation, have him suffering an ungodly about of pain and humiliation, though they manage to come out of them no worse for wear.
* {{Jerkass}}: The Grinch is a cynical, grumpy man who abuses his dog (except for the 2018 movie where he's kind to Max), is completely okay with taking away the Christmas joy from everyone in Whoville and lies right into the face of a little girl.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: ...however, the fact that his heart grows three sizes after he sees the Whos celebrating even without presents and decorations shows that there is goodness in him.
** In the 2000 film, he becomes this after his HeelFaceTurn. [[spoiler:At the end, he decides that he wants to solve world hunger... but doesn't tell anyone.]]
** In the 2018 film, he is this from the very beginning. Sure, he acts like a jerk to all the Whos, but he genuinely loves and cares for [[MoralityPet Max]], and when [[spoiler:Fred wants to return to his mate and child, he lets him go without much complaining]].
* NoSocialSkills: At the end of the 2018 film, he's shown to be shy and awkward during a party, although faultlessly polite. Prior to this, he spent most of his time in Whoville actively avoiding the Whos, or just being a straight up rude jerk to them.
* PapaWolf: In the 2000 film, he lifted up his sleigh, which was sliding down the mountain, to save Cindy who had climbed on top of the sleigh.
* PaperThinDisguise: Played in various ways in each version.
** Played straight in the original story and 1966 version; a red coat and a red hat are all he needs to "look just like Saint Nick", despite being a green-furred goblinoid creature.
** Downplayed in the 2000 film; despite quoting the same line from the original, his suit is meant to offer a cover at a distance; a red-suited figure on the rooftop on Christmas Eve ''has'' to be Santa. When Cindy-Lou walks in on him making off with the tree, he makes sure to keep it between him and her so she doesn't get a good look at him.
** Also downplayed in the 2018 version; he makes sure to add a face-consuming beard to the ensemble to mask his visage, which makes for a much more convincing disguise. That being said, his fur still goes largely uncovered.
* RedemptionPromotion: He was hardly weak or incompetent before, but after his HeelFaceTurn, he becomes twelve times as strong as he was before.
* RedEyesTakeWarning: In the book and in the 1966 special.
* SuperStrength: Thanks to the power of Christmas, he lifts an enormous sleigh full of gifts over his head with ease, or as the narrator puts it "the Grinch found the strength of ten Grinches, plus two!"

* VillainProtagonist: Up until his HeelFaceTurn, that is.
* YellowEyesOfSneakiness: In the 1966 special and 2000 movie/video game.