10 Worst Tropes in Science Fiction
- Jenna Moreci
- Nov 18
- 6 min read
HelloOoOo everybody!
You guys have been requesting this topic a lot, so I felt it was only logical to indulge. Today, I'm listing the ten sci-fi tropes that I find illogical. Many of you know that sci-fi is one of my preferred genres for reading, writing, TV, and movies. And I may or may not have a nostalgic love for a very popular sci-fi series. Take a wild guess what it is… (Star Trek) That doesn't mean that I think the genre, or even sci-fi stories that I love, are flawless. There are a lot of tropes that don't make any damn sense, and we're gonna talk about them.
This video is sponsored by Skillshare. As always, all opinions are my own.
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Number 1: Born Sexy Yesterday
A humanoid creature or robot is born or created in a laboratory. It's got the mental capacity of a child. It finds wonder and mystery in the most basic concepts. It's also a super hot woman, because what else would it be? You rarely see this trope done with men. The only example I can think of is The Rocky Horror Picture Show. That's because dumb men are fucking annoying.
So are dumb women, but the only way our Joe Schmoe lead is going to get laid is if a robot woman with the IQ of a sock thinks he's amazing, because he's the only human being she's ever come into contact with. Breathing? Amazing! Sentient? Amazing! You know, you could just write a compelling male lead who would reasonably earn the affection of a woman with basic intelligence. Just saying.
Number 2: Homogeneous Aliens
Your characters land on a planet with an advanced alien species that could easily rival the intelligence of humanity. Except they all look the same, they talk the same, they act the same, they are the same. They wear the same clothes, they speak the same language, they even believe the same religion—globally.
How is it possible for an entire globe to be this homogenized? Look at humans: we've got different skin colors, different sexualities, different heights, different politics, different social norms. The only way a homogenous alien species makes sense is if that is specifically the point. The writer is drawing attention to the fact that “Wow, this whole species is a monolith. Isn't that weird?” If you're going for hive mentality, great! Otherwise, not so great.
Number 3: Too Much Tech
I understand that technology is a part of science fiction. These books take place in the future, and as technology advances over time, it's relevant. But I'm reading these books for the characters, the aliens and creatures, the adventures. I do not care about the make or model of your spacecraft, or how its anti-gravity feature works. I also don't care about your complex computer system. Best believe I am skipping that info dump entirely. It's fine to explain your tech; your reader probably needs a basic understanding of it. So provide that basic understanding and move on.
Number 4: Lack of Research
Science fiction has a keyword in there: science. That means at least some of what you're presenting needs to be rooted in fact, or at least the possibility of it being factual. If a facet of your novel revolves around biology, it needs to be accurate to biology. If it's not accurate, there needs to be some plot-related development or event that makes this biological impossibility possible.
Number 5: Teens in Charge
Why is the captain of the spaceship sixteen years old? Why is the entire crew sixteen years old? Did they all band together to escape their parents? What happened here?
What I see most often are child soldiers. Fifteen-year-olds who have been trained in intergalactic battle. You realize this is a form of slavery, right? Why are you making children risk their lives to protect civilization? And why would an advanced society choose children, of all people, to defend them?
Don't get me wrong, I'm sure there are a bunch of teenage bodybuilders out there who could beat the shit out of an alien, but I'm guessing they're in the minority. Wouldn’t the world prefer super soldiers who weren't going through puberty? I'm just saying.
Number 6: The Lone Woman
I've talked about this chick before, and the sci-fi genre is where she most often pops up. She's the only woman in the book. Of course, she is. She's usually the hero's love interest, possibly a sci-fi version of the damsel in distress. If the author fancies themselves woke, she might be a doctor or a scientist, or something else that's smart and progressive, but still leaves her defenseless in the face of danger.
“Shaft Dangerzone, save me! My intellect is no match for these killer robots.”
Just write another woman or two, or ten. We make up more than half of the population, so it's not exactly a stretch.
“But Jennaaa, women don't read science fiction. It's for men!”
Do not step to me with your illogical bullshit.
Number 7: “I Swear It’s Not Star Trek”
A lot of space operas follow a league of people from different planets who come together to explore the galaxy, and boldly go where no man has gone before, and—oh my gosh, does this sound familiar? I will be the first to say that all stories have been done before, ad nauseam. But the regurgitation of Star Trek and Star Wars is rampant and prevalent.
You don't have to duplicate these stories to be successful. What made these stories so popular in the first place was that they were so original, at the time. Shit ain’t original anymore. That's not to say that you can't write about space explorers, but make ‘em your own. You're also welcome to write a satire of Star Trek or Star Wars. But satire and mimicry aren't the same thing.
Number 8: “Yay, Colonialism…”
“Let’s go to an alien planet and teach them our ways! We'll share our customs and religions. We’ll colonize their society and civilize them. What could possibly go wrong? Certainly not genocide.”
Writers, I beg you, open a history book. Colonizing isn't a good thing. It's got very bad repercussions like violence, disease, and the destruction of entire civilizations. Your characters are not heroes for barging onto another planet and changing its entire way of life. If your character looks a little bit like Christopher Columbus, he's actually the villain.
Number 9: The Space Cowboy
He's an arrogant, drunk douchebag who moseys from planet to planet, banging aliens and shooting bad guys. And he's our leading man. Why is this guy the main character in every genre of fiction? He's the worst! Captain Kirk, I'm looking at you. There's nothing new I can say about this character that I haven't already said in every other trope video, because this guy is literally everywhere. Just write someone new, I'm begging you.
Number 10: Sexy Aliens
I don't mind aliens that are aesthetically pleasing. In fact, I prefer them over the ugly motherfuckers. What I don't understand are aliens that are created for sexy time purposes, since you know, they're not human. Is it having sex with an alien beastiality? Inquiring minds want to know.
How do these aliens from an entirely different planet have the exact genitalia for humans to fit into? Creatures from a different galaxy have penises and vaginas? Sounds normal. I see you’ve written an alien woman with enormous titties. Am I to assume the species breastfeeds, or do you just like titties? We all like titties, but something's gotta give. If you wanna make your aliens pretty, go for it. But sexualizing the crap out of them is gonna make me question your kinks, just a little bit.
So that's all I've got for you today!
Sci-fi is fun and exciting, and filled with garbage tropes that get on my nerves. If there are any other genres you want me to pick apart, or genres you want me to gush over, comment them below, because I'm a people pleaser, and I'll probably do it.
A huge thank you to Skillshare for sponsoring this video. Their support makes it so much easier for me to release regular content, to hold giveaways, and to pay my bills and not die. If you wanna check out my class on Skillshare or any of their other classes. Now is the perfect time to do it because right now Skillshare is offering two months of Skillshare Premium for free to the first 500 people who click the activation link right here. I don't know about you, but if it's free, it's for me. I’m all about saving money, so do yourself a solid and click the link.
*This post is sponsored by Skillshare. As always, all opinions are my own.
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