Basic Trope: Someone sees a Rubik's Cube for the first time and the ensuing wonder of mystery and discovery is emphasized.
- Straight:
- Alien Alice finds a Rubik's Cube in a crashed human spaceship, she says "Ooh, shiny!" and sits down to experiment and puzzle over what it is. She finds out it's neither edible nor a creature's egg, and once she discovers how to shift the colors, she becomes addicted and loses track of time...
- In the distant future, Archaeologist Alice excavates a Rubik's Cube and excitedly calls a museum.
- Exaggerated: Alien Alice starts a Cargo Cult starring the Cube of Rubik, with the cheat sheets as holy texts.
- Downplayed: Alien Alice finds a Rubik's Cube in a crashed human spaceship, she says "Ooh, shiny!" but leaves it alone.
- Justified: ???
- Inverted: ???
- Subverted: Alien Alice picks up the Rubik's cube and stares at it quizzically for a few seconds... Then loses interest and casually chucks it over her shoulder.
- Double Subverted: "Ooh, a Rubik's Cube, I've Heard of That — What Is It?"
- Parodied: ???
- Zig-Zagged: ???
- Averted: Alice is apathetic towards Rubik's Cubes.
- Enforced: Product Placement in a setting unlikely to have Rubik's Cubes in the first place.
- Lampshaded: ???
- Invoked: Bob shows Alien Alice a Rubik's Cube.
- Exploited: Bob distracts Alien Alice with a Rubik's Cube to get her out of his hair for a few hours.
- Defied: Alice hands the Rubik's Cube to Bob and says "I need to finish my duties first. Until then, don't give this back to me No Matter How Much I Beg."
- Discussed: "Ooh, a Rubik's Cube, Is It Something You Eat?"
- Conversed: ???
- Implied: Alice finds a Rubik's Cube, says "Ooh, shiny!" and pockets it. She is hardly ever shown fiddling with it, but ever since that incident, she's been conspicuously absent from the mess hall, showing signs of sleep deprivation, and being late for meetings and "All hands on deck" calls.
- Played for Drama: The unsolved Rubik's Cube is Sealed Evil in a Can, and the cast must stop any Curious as a Monkey characters from solving it and unsealing the can.
- Played for Horror: Same as Played for Drama, but this time it's a Leaking Can of Evil — anyone who knows about it is infected with a compulsion — subtle but growing slowly stronger — to try and solve it. The guards undergo regular Laser-Guided Amnesia disinfections to reset the clock, but as soon as they learn what they're guarding and why, The Corruption is back.
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