So this is a place for people who are interested in helping out, or getting help with, wick checks. Maybe you just want people to double-check your work before you submit it to the TRS, or maybe you have a big project in mind and can't tackle it on your own. Either way, you've come to the right place!
Remember to check out How to Do a Wick Check for a run down, and feel free to browse Tropes Needing TRS if you need ideas for what trope to do a wick-check for.
For the list of current and completed projects, see Wick Check Project. Once your wick check is done and ready to go to a TRS thread, see the TRS Queue.
Edited by WarJay77 on Nov 4th 2022 at 11:55:13 AM
Discarded and Feeling Blue
I'll create a sandbox soon.
The Jester isn't about characters who like to joke and fool around. It's specifically about characters who joke and fool around and act like idiots, in order to be able to deliver social and political commentary without being punished for it. They're beneath the radar and people don't take them seriously and they use that to their advantage.
It's a character archetype popularized by real-life jesters, not about goofing around.
Edited by WarJay77 on Jun 2nd 2020 at 4:08:03 AM
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
Very Spooky
Here's my wicks checked for The Jester:
- Canon Foreigner: Several characters in As You Like It (which was Shakespeare's adaptation of the Thomas Lodge novel Rosalynde), most importantly Touchstone and Jacques (of "All the world's a stage" fame). The rest of the Canon Foreigners in the story are all related to them in some way: Jacques, being a cynical philosopher, gets a scene where he plays off the idealistic, music-loving "Amiens", while Touchstone's subplot necessitates the inclusion of his love interest, "Audrey, a country wench", a country priest named "Oliver Mar-Text", and "William", Audrey's ex-boyfriend. Pothole; lacks context.
- Offing the Mouth: King Scrofula utterly loathes his Fool for his Brutal Honesty and (well-earned) abuse, but is bound by protocol not to retaliate... until he has an excuse to name the Fool disloyal and execute
him on the spot.
"You have performed your duties all too well. You have vexed and belittled me and made me despise you... So you've given me what I always wanted, fool: cause to be rid of you." Pothole; can't tell the context in which this is used. - Characters.Dissidia Final Fantasy Warriors Of Chaos I To VI: Appearances aside, he has no qualms of mocking his fellow Warriors of Chaos compatriots in addition to the Warriors of Cosmos. He even lampshades the trope when fighting the Emperor in Dissidia 012:
Kefka: Look at who I get to mess with next! Seems like "jesters exist".
- Characters.Chernobyl: An angry, yet quite measured one. Naked truth delivered to power with a carefully crafted sting they'd look the fool for punishing him for? A masterpiece. I believe this is correct usage.
- Characters.Senran Kagura New Wave: Her shinobi turnover is based off this. Lacking in context, but the way it’s written makes me think this is “jesters exist”.
- Lelouch of the Wings of Rebellion: Mao/Medjed's Persona is Momus, the god of satire and mockery from Classical Mythology, and looks like a demonic jester. Pothole; unsure if this is correct or not, considering that according to Wikipedia, Momus was apparently initially used how this trope was supposed to be used, but was later used for light-hearted comedy.
- 7 Zwerge: When questioned by the castle guard, Brummboss announces that he's there to bring freedom back to the land, defeat the false Queen, and free Snow White. The guard assumes he's applying for Court Jester and lets him in. Pothole; can't tell the usage here.
- Realm of the Elderlings: The Farseer court at Buckkeep is as standard as it gets, with — most of the time — a King, his Queen, the King-in-Waiting (or Queen-in-Waiting, but the books are dominated by the male members of the Farseer line), princes, a royal bastard — hello, Fitz — , The Spymaster doing double duty as the chancellor, the Fool, various nobles and their hanger-ons, the King's/Queen's Guards, the normal guards and a vast array of servants. Pothole; seems like it's being used in the context of "character is silly".
- The Reynard Cycle: Duke Nobel's fool, Pierrot. He's an odd man, and speaks entirely in the form of Aesops. Seems to be correct usage.
- Recap.Blakes Seven S 2 E 12 The Keeper: The Charl has a Fool but his tricks are old hat, so Gola decides that Vila would make a good replacement. Fortunately Vila knows enough sleight-of-hand tricks to keep him amused. Probably "jesters exist".
- SchmuckBait.Video Games: The Jester. If the Jester is lynched, they win and kill one person that voted guilty on them that night. Voting guilty on a suspected Jester is therefore Schmuck Bait. Yes, vote for the guy refusing to give a role and generally being obnoxious. It totally won't get you killed. Character page for Town of Salem says that the Jester is a "crazed lunatic", so this is just "jesters exist".
- Russell Howard's Good News: Russell uses comedy to spread awareness of problems and injustices. I believe this is correct usage.
- Lure of the Temptress: Diermot escapes prison with Ratpouch, who had been trying to make a living telling jokes before he was locked up. He's dressed accordingly. Seems to be “jesters exist”.
- Stronghold: One of these goes around entertaining/annoying your people in Stronghold and Stronghold Crusader. At one point in the military campaign between missions your jester sings a song about your victory over the Rat's troops to the tune of Greensleeves. In Stronghold 2, you have to build a minstrel's guild if you want one in your castle. Jesters exist.
- Potatoes and Dragons: Riri is the castle's jester. He is also in love with Princess Melodine. Just a ZCE.
Edited by jandn2014 on Jun 21st 2020 at 3:31:17 PM
back lol
(she/her)
Oh I get it now. So that example is misuse then. I think I will post my wick check tomorrow.
Although this trope seems to shaping up as being heavily misused so far.
Macron's notes
Discarded and Feeling Blue
The Jester Wick Check sandbox is up.
And Piter, that wick check for Phone Booth looks good.
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
Veteran Editor IV
Glad to hear that this works. Your wick check sandbox also looks good right now, and I must applaud telling people to actually put examples in alphabetical order (I don't need to since mine is complete, but still).
If I wick check another page, I'll go for Free the Frogs.
Edited by Piterpicher on Jun 2nd 2020 at 12:13:29 PM
Currently mostly inactive. An incremental game I tested: https://galaxy.click/play/176 (Gods of Incremental)
(she/her)
Should the current projects list on the header post be updated to include Phone Booth and The Jester?
Macron's notes
Veteran Editor IV
Maybe? I mean, Phone Booth is already done (except for the thread), while The Jester is in progress. I'd certainly add The Jester, not sure about Phone Booth. I'll let WJ decide.
Currently mostly inactive. An incremental game I tested: https://galaxy.click/play/176 (Gods of Incremental)
Discarded and Feeling Blue
![[up]](https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/smiles/arrow_up.png "[up]"){kind=icon}
Yeah, and I'll add Free the Frogs too.
Edit: I added Phone Booth just 'cuz, though I could remove it if it's unnecessary. Maybe I'll make a "completed projects" list instead.
Edited by WarJay77 on Jun 2nd 2020 at 6:23:04 AM
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
(she/her)
Is this misuse? From Anime.Shounen Hollywood
- The Jester: The mascot from the amusement park seems to be one of these, at least in recent years. He's known for his "acid tongue" and often makes quips and snipes at others that are perfectly acceptable because of his crude character. He even manages to get the boys to finish their photoshoot by mocking them and forcing them to admit the things that were eating at them.
And is this correct?
- The Jester: Larsen mockingly compares Van Weyden to one, and though the Ghost plainly isn't a royal court, it fits. Despite being a clear subordinate, Van Weyden is one of the only people who can speak to Larsen as an equal, within reason, in large part because his intellect and naivety make him both interesting and amusing for Larsen. Though this doesn't spare him from Larsen's violent temper.
Edited by MacronNotes on Jun 3rd 2020 at 6:10:56 AM
Macron's notes
Discarded and Feeling Blue
I think both of those are correct usage, actually.
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
(she/her)
I will file them under correct then. I was confused about connecting with the trope but they seem to fit
Macron's notes
I'm doing a few wick checks on Bishōnen and Pretty Boy, for two main reasons:
1: To check how bad the ZCE issue is with these tropes, and
2: To check the language used in these tropes to see how differently Tropers treat them.
If anyone wants to help, here's a link. I've checked approximately 25 wicks for both tropes so far.
TRS Wick Cleaning
Discarded and Feeling Blue
Cool, I'll see if I can jump in.
I tried tro do a wick check for Bat Family Crossover, but I have come to the conclusion that they are not worth my time, can anyone help?
![[down]](https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/smiles/arrow_down.png "[down]"){kind=icon}
Why would I be here if they didn’t?
Edited by GeneralGigan817 on Jun 15th 2020 at 11:23:28 AM
Discarded and Feeling Blue
I mean, we can help check some of the wicks, but...idk, this really rubs me the wrong way. Of course they take a while. No actual cleanup work on the wiki is quick and easy. You need to be willing to buckle down and take some time to do something if you want things to get done.
What usually works here for larger wick checks is that we split up the wick check into smaller individual checks. We could do that here, but I'd like if you'd pitch in.
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
i haven't had time to get back to Sandbox.Gender Flip Wick Check since i burned out on it. i will attempt to do some more, but if anyone else wants to help out id appreciate it
Discarded and Feeling Blue
I'll add it to the projects.
Discarded and Feeling Blue
- Form-Fitting Wardrobe: "In YuYu Hakusho, whenever Yusuke is shown wearing blue jeans, they always look far too tight to be comfortable. This combines with some serious Clothing Damage to create a sizable female fanbase (with a little help from Kurama). ZCE pothole
- Characters.Aka Seka Baku Country: "Mr. Fanservice: Given the game's Cast Full of Pretty Boys, he stands out as one of the sexier ones. If Mitsuhide is a Mr Fanservice of the Bishōnen type, he is one of the Hunk type." Context-lacking wick referring to a different character.
- Characters.Bleach Thirteen Court Guard Squads 1 To 7: Two wicks, both in reference to the same character, but neither is explained. They just insist he is a Bishnonen. One of the uses is potholed as "girly" appearance.
- Characters.Rock Hard Gladiators: Trope-name only ZCE
- Manga.How To Keep A Mummy: "Tazuki is a pretty classic example." Commented-out ZCE
- Music.Hideto Matsumoto: "Often crossing into true androgyne better than even David Bowie, his inspiration for androgyny." I'll give it one thing; it's not really a ZCE since it at least explains something. Whether or not it's misuse is debatable.
- VisualNovel.Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney: "He has a baby face and an effeminate appearance that would be considered attractive by Bishōnen standards." Just kinda referencing the term, nothing else of note.
- WMG.Rio: "Nigel can't stand the idea that any bird could possibly be prettier than him. And given the fact that Roberto is pretty much the bird equivalent of a grade-A Bishōnen... well, you can see where this will go." Low-context wick, but it is WMG, so I wasn't setting my standards too high in the first place.
- Webcomic.The Way To Your Heart: "Well, of course." Yes, very helpful. I know so much more now. /s
- Wrestling.Rey Mysterio Jr: "Even the Guys Want Him: All of which crosses over into outright Bishōnen especially in the SmackDown intro video. There, he looks barely a teenager, the lighting really emphasizes his long eyelashes and eyes, and to top it off, the lighting combined with his mask also gives him bishie sparkles." Pretty well written by Bishonen standards, and it's not even meant to be a Bishonen example.
- Characters.Avengers Assemble Hydra: "Black Panther's Quest shows his face to look easy on the eyes, due to the Super Soldier Serum making him younger." Not a ZCE so much as just vague and under-written.
- Characters.Celtic Mythology: "A common trend in Celtic Mythology." ZCE and General, how nice.
- Characters.Cucumber Quest: "There are subtle changes in the way he's drawn after his armor upgrade, giving him a more handsome look. His expressions play a big part in it." If this isn't misuse or extremely downplayed, then the trope is just "somewhat handsome male character". Which...
- Characters.Realm Of The Elderlings: "While he's more stocky and more of a Hunk then Regal, he's also quite pretty, at one point jokingly wondering with Molly if he'd pass for a girl. The Fool mourns the loss of his pretty looks when they see each other again in Assassin's Quest." This one doesn't seem too bad.
- Characters.Teen Wolf Beacon Hills Residents: "Ryan Kelley is impressively attractive; this gets a mention in dialogue" More "attractive man" usage
- Film.King Of Kings: "As a result of Jeffrey Hunter's casting, Jesus is quite easy on the eyes." Attractive man
- Literature.Filth: "I Was Quite a Looker: Implied in the film. He's played by classic Pretty Boy actor James McAvoy, who had to put on weight to get into the role - it's implied that Bruce did the same thing in-universe after the divorce." Context-less wick describing a real person.
- RedDeadRedemption2.Tropes A To L: "Arthur doesn't take too kindly to being called "pretty boy" and almost beats a guy to death for it in Chapter 2.: Potholed and referencing the term itself.
- Series.Saba Dol: "Utamaro. Even the Nogizaka46 members Squee when they come across him, and are amazed that Mayu knows him." Attractive and popular man
- YMMV.Rise Of The Guardians: " For... reasons, people who like The Lorax also tend to like this movie, due to both featuring an iconic character, reimagined into a Pretty Boy who is Desperately Looking for a Purpose in Life and ends up giving up on everything he worked for, becoming a lonely soul in the process. Because of that, Jack/The Once-ler is almost rivalling Jelsa in terms of Crossover Ship popularity." Referencing the trope more than actually using it.
This post is in progress.
Edited by WarJay77 on Jun 16th 2020 at 4:04:40 AM
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
Discarded and Feeling Blue
~jandn2014, you coming back to finish The Jester's wicks, or can I add what you've done so far to the sandbox and finish up?
Currently Working On: Incorruptible Pure Pureness
Very Spooky
I’ll finish off the last few today.
Discarded and Feeling Blue
Thanks ![[tup]](https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Thumbs_up_emoticon_3268.png "[thumb up]"){kind=small}
Armoured Closet Gay might need a wick check to check for misuse; I just removed a bunch of wicks on Confirmed Bachelor that were being used for the broader Closet Gay concept (which apparently lacks a page).
(Is this the right place to post this, or is there a better place?)
Discarded and Feeling Blue
This is the right place.
Very Spooky
Finally got around to finishing up my wick check for The Jester.
back lol
so looking at The Jester's page, it seems to include "historical" and "modern" ones that arent literal jesters but fit the role. So the trope is character the trope for character the jester role and often fool around? I found this example while wick checking. Not sure where to put it or if it has sufficient context.
Characters.Solar Wind
And are we making a sandbox for the wick check?
Macron's notes