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TagBug's Life (film 1998) and Liar Revealed trope

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Storytelling: The Liar is Revealed! But Does Anyone Still Care?

Stories where the central character lies about something important often waste audience time without building tension

If there was one storytelling device (trope) I would call the bane of all good writing and a general waste of everyone’s time, it’s The Liar Revealed. With that trope, the dramatic tension is driven by the fact that the central character (the protagonist) is not who or what the others suppose. Pretty much every other trope can be made to work properly with the proper setup. But if a writer chooses to go with this cliché, just expect the movie to stop until the trope is finished playing out. Everything is on pause until the truth is revealed. What is the Liar Revealed? Well, as a trope, it’s not just whenever a character lies. The lies are not really Read More ›