| rdfs:comment | - Sometimes, The Hero will discover an incredibly powerful weapon, tool, or piece of information, that was once made out to be a big deal; maybe it's a big secret, maybe it does something that had been thought to be impossible, like kill an unkillable enemy, and it usually requires a whole lot of effort to obtain. In any case, having it is an ace up the Hero's sleeve. The weapon/tool/resource is hyped up as a be-all, end-all game-changer. But immediately after it is used for the first time, it keeps appearing. Constantly. And not just in the hands of the Hero, not at all. If it is a weapon, other people find a way to make a replica with the same effect. If it's a tidbit of previously Classified Information, suddenly every villain and their grandma are aware of it. Everyone suddenly remembers
|
| abstract | - Sometimes, The Hero will discover an incredibly powerful weapon, tool, or piece of information, that was once made out to be a big deal; maybe it's a big secret, maybe it does something that had been thought to be impossible, like kill an unkillable enemy, and it usually requires a whole lot of effort to obtain. In any case, having it is an ace up the Hero's sleeve. The weapon/tool/resource is hyped up as a be-all, end-all game-changer. But immediately after it is used for the first time, it keeps appearing. Constantly. And not just in the hands of the Hero, not at all. If it is a weapon, other people find a way to make a replica with the same effect. If it's a tidbit of previously Classified Information, suddenly every villain and their grandma are aware of it. Everyone suddenly remembers the secret of what was supposed to be a long-lost Infinity+1 Sword, with no visible effort on their part; once the Hero has gone to all the trouble of obtaining it, other characters seem to pull their own versions out of thin air. Everyone Has A Power Ring does not diminish the effectiveness of the weapon, but it does destroys the hype that was built up around it by filling the story with other such items capable of all the same things. The item in question can serve a dual role for the Hero as a Sword of Plot Advancement, but the drama surrounding it does not dissipate until it is actually shown that Everyone Has A Power Ring. This drama can reoccur if it's also the Achilles Heel of a major villain. This may be that rare moment where the Super Prototype wasn't affected by No Plans, No Prototype, No Backup. Everyone Has a Power Ring differs from the Sword of Plot Advancement because a broad range of characters have sudden and complete access to the item. See also Kryptonite Is Everywhere, Infinity+1 Sword, Sword of Plot Advancement. Compare and contrast So Last Season and Continuity Drift. For the character counterparts, see The Worf Effect, The Chosen Many, and Everyone Is a Super. In video games, the opposite of this is Commonplace Rare. Examples of Everyone Has a Power Ring include:
|
