Mer Tropes

14 Following

Tropes about merfolk, the legendary half fish, half human people that live in the deep. Compare Elf Tropes and Fairy Tropes.

Look at these tropes, aren't they neat?

• Alchemic Elementals
  Merfolk and similar beings are sometimes portrayed as water elementals.
• Amabie
  Mermaid-like Yōkai with three tails.
• Amazing Technicolor Population
  Merfolk occasionally possess abnormal skin colors, normally blue or green.
• Awesome Underwater World
  When the undersea realm is depicted as awesome.
• Bathtub Mermaid
  Merfolk and other aquatic creatures kept in stationary tanks and other containers.
• Beautiful Singing Voice
  It's common for mermaids to have lovely singing voices.
• Captain Fishman
  Merfolk superheroes.
• Cthulhumanoid
  Some merfolk have cephalopod characteristics rather than fishlike ones.
• Ear Fins
  Fins instead of ears, common for merfolk and other aquatic characters
• Fish People
  People with a humanoid shape but fishy features.
• Inhumanly Beautiful Race
  Merfolk, mermaids in particular, are often very beautiful beyond human standards.
• Lord of the Ocean
  Gods of the ocean are often associated with mermaids.
• Mermaid Arc Emergence
  When mermaids surface, it is often with splendor.
• Mermaid in a Wheelchair
  Mermaids on land often use wheelchairs to get around.
• Mermaid Problem
  How merfolk sexual biology would interact with humans.
• Mermaiding Swimsuit
  Humans cosplaying as mermaids for show or for swimming.
• Mermanity Ensues
  A land-dwelling character is turned into a merperson or otherwise develops aquatic animal traits.
• Mobile Fishbowl
  Merfolk who can't breathe air bring water with them to interact with land-dwellers.
• Our Hippocamps Are Different
  Horses with mermaid-like fish tails, and potentially other piscine traits.
• Our Mermaids Are Different
  The varied kinds of merfolk.
• Pointy Ears
  Merfolk occasionally possess these.
• Prongs of Poseidon
  Merfolk often wield tridents as their main weapon.
• Seashell Bra
  Two seashells worn to cover the breasts.
• Selkies and Wereseals
  Human-seal shapeshifters.
• Shark Man
  Sharks with a humanoid shape, or vice versa.
• Sirens Are Mermaids
  The sirens of mythology portrayed as mermaids.
• Tailfin Walking
  Merfolk walking upright on their tailfins.
• Token Aquatic Race
  They're often merfolk.
• Underwater City
  Merfolk often live in these.
• Underwater Kiss
  Merfolk kissing either each other or a human while underwater.
• Unscaled Merfolk
  Merfolk that are aren't scaled fish below the waist.
• Unusual Ears
  Merfolk sometimes have non-standard ears, commonly either elfin ears or fin-/gill-like ears.
• Walking Shirtless Scene
  Almost universal for mermen, quite common for mermaids as well.
• Water-Breathing Humans
  Human beings who have the ability to live and breathe underwater.
• Water Is Womanly
  Water associated with femininity.