About: Designated Protagonist Syndrome   Sponge Permalink

An Entity of Type : owl:Thing, within Data Space : 134.155.108.49:8890 associated with source dataset(s)

The downside to having a phenomenal ensemble cast. This Trope is when, compared to the many compelling supporting characters, the character who's point of view we have to look through is seen as boring, or even downright annoying. This can cause the side plots (those involving the supporting cast) to be seen as more interesting than the main storyline, and every time the main character appears on screen, the audience wants them to hurry up and leave. Not to be confused with Designated Hero, which is a character who the story plays up as being heroic, but comes off as distinctly... not.

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  • Designated Protagonist Syndrome
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  • The downside to having a phenomenal ensemble cast. This Trope is when, compared to the many compelling supporting characters, the character who's point of view we have to look through is seen as boring, or even downright annoying. This can cause the side plots (those involving the supporting cast) to be seen as more interesting than the main storyline, and every time the main character appears on screen, the audience wants them to hurry up and leave. Not to be confused with Designated Hero, which is a character who the story plays up as being heroic, but comes off as distinctly... not.
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  • The downside to having a phenomenal ensemble cast. This Trope is when, compared to the many compelling supporting characters, the character who's point of view we have to look through is seen as boring, or even downright annoying. This can cause the side plots (those involving the supporting cast) to be seen as more interesting than the main storyline, and every time the main character appears on screen, the audience wants them to hurry up and leave. This trope is when it seems like the entire cast (other than the lead) has become more popular because the audience likes them more than the supposed main character. This is the result of Fan Dumb as often as it is the fault of bad characterization or writing. Standardized Leader is a Sub-Trope, and the two often overlap. Contrast First-Person Peripheral Narrator and Supporting Protagonist. Another cause of this can be Loads and Loads of Characters - each individual member of the ensemble may not have lots of fans, but taken together a significant part of the fanbase prefers other people to the lead, even if they can't agree on who exactly it is that should have more time in focus. It sometimes happens as a result of making the protagonist an Audience Surrogate or Every Man. They're generic to help the audience identify with them, but this means that there isn't anything particularly special about them. A Pinball Protagonist may also result in this trope--the poor guy/gal is simply dragged around the plot by stronger characters that s/he encounters. Note this can sometimes be the view of the Vocal Minority of viewers, and giving the character less screen time because of that is often more Pandering to the Base than actually pleasing the majority of viewers. Just a warning. Not to be confused with Designated Hero, which is a character who the story plays up as being heroic, but comes off as distinctly... not. Examples:
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