Insignificant Little Blue Planet/Playing With
Basic Trope: Earth just isn't important in the grand scheme of things.
- Straight: In galactic politics, Earth is seen as the planetary equivalent of a backwater hick town at best.
- Exaggerated: Earth is scheduled for demolition because no one in galactic politics would notice.
- Justified: Earth is just one insignificant planet amongst millions and has not contributed anything.
- There are countless planets. Few of them have real importance, so it's unlikely our planet is that important. Alternatively, EVERY planet is insignificant
- Inverted: Earth Is the Center of the Universe.
- Subverted: Earth is just one planet amongst millions, until they discover this is where the Precursors buried their planet-busting superweapon.
- Double Subverted: Turns out, they put these on countless worlds because they could mass produce them.
- Zig Zagged: Then it turns out the one on Earth is the Super Prototype that puts the rest to shame.
- Parodied: After thwarting an Alien Invasion, creating a galactic empire, and becoming the precursors for various other species, Earth is still thought of as inconsequential.
- Deconstructed: Earth being insignificant makes humanity feel less than special, to the point we retreat into ourselves and don't leave the solar system.
- Supremacist elements decide to put Earth on the galactic radar by any means necessary, including force if need be.
- Reconstructed: ... only to come back out a few centuries later with something we can really be proud of, and make a name for ourselves in galactic culture.
- Averted: Earth is a major player (if not the most important because Humans Are Special).
- Enforced: Well, we picked a galaxy where the Fermi Paradox has it full of interesting aliens. We could make humans super-dee-duper, but then the aliens would be little more than talking animals.
- Lampshaded: "Earth? That hick planet?"
- Invoked: The human delegate in the Galactic UN likes to open his addresses by reminding everyone else he's from a simple backwater planet, much to the collective groans of every other species.
- Defied: Humanity knew before exploring space for life we would need to have a very respectable resume to stack up against other species (even friendly ones) so we bootstrap the planet into Crystal Spires and Togas well before setting out.
- Discussed: "Geez, the core world aliens are such elitist snobs. Well, if you can't join 'em, I guess we can form a Confederacy of Independent Systems with the other "backwater" planets, maybe even make a droid army! That'll show 'em!"
- Conversed: "Y'know, every alien on TV is either out to kill us or sneer at us about being backward savages. It's like we're Space Indians and they're Space Europeans come to colonize."
- Played For Laughs: "Your planet is an insignificant little blue dot." "Which justifies eating an entire cake."
Back to your Insignificant Little Blue Planet, tailless ape!