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Merchandise-Driven

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Basic Trope: A show was made specifically to advertise a product.

  • Straight: The Legends of Lara was made only to sell the toys that the show is based on.
  • Exaggerated: The Legends of Lara has no plot, the show is entirely composed of advertisements for the toy line.
  • Downplayed: The show was based on a toy line, but the show itself never shills to it. Entertainment value is the priority.
  • Justified:
    • The toy line was already popular, so the show was made to ride off of that fame.
    • People loved the toy line so much, they demanded a TV show fully dedicated to its advertisement.
  • Inverted: The show predates the merchandise, with the merchandise being made to advertise the show.
  • Subverted:
    • The show is based on a toy line but is filled with anti-capitalist messages.
    • While the show is based on a toyline, the toyline has been off the shelves for decades.
  • Double Subverted:
    • The producers eventually Sell-Out to the toy corporation and the anti-capitalistic episodes were taken off of air.
    • The show was successful in renewing interest in the toyline for a relaunch.
    • (from inverted) While the merchandise was originally made to support the show, nowadays the show is made to promote the merchandise.
  • Parodied: The show has blaring stock music, the main character is a Stepford Consumer, there is a pricetag constantly on screen, and you have to buy the toy of a character for them to appear in the show.
  • Zig-Zagged: The show is only loosely based on the toyline.
  • Averted: The show has nothing to do with any product.
  • Lampshaded: "Hey guys, have you noticed that instead of doing fun things, we just tell the viewer to buy toys?"
  • Invoked: Bob makes a show based off of the toys he makes in order to draw in more customers.
  • Exploited: The heroes get funds for their adventure by demanding royalties from the toy company.
  • Deconstructed: The show was originally going to have a well-written plot with relatable central themes, but the higher ups changed the story so as to fully advertise the toy line to get more riches.
  • Reconstructed: However, the fans of the toy line didn’t want a story that is too complex for them to fully comprehend, especially for a simple toy line made for children.
  • Defied: The toyline was cancelled in order to stop the show from selling out to the toys.
  • Discussed: "This show is just a 20 minute ad."
  • Conversed: "That show was so trash, it kept shilling for the product instead of actually developing the plot."

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