Category:So bad, it's good

Once in a while, a work turns out to be so bad, it creates a disruption in the badness continuum, and wraps right around to good. Rather than it unintentionally Breaking the Fourth Wall like usual, something about the specifics of the work in question instead cause an enjoyable, though equally unintended, emotional response in the viewing public. Maybe the hubcap-on-a-wire flying saucers are cute, or the spontaneous brothel scene goes on for so long it's hilarious, or the technically oriented find humor in the way the hacker can suborn the traffic lights of New York with no perceptible effort.

Whatever the reason, a truly horrid piece of work can become an unintentional riot and even get its own fandom for its very lack of quality. This can well be an ongoing process as attitudes change, budgets grow, and cynicism increases.

Keep in mind that even when something is So Bad, It's Good, it's still  bad. For most (if not all) entries on this list, there will be an almost unanimous opinion that they fail entirely at having the sort of appeal they intended. Far  less  unanimous will be the opinion that they have a sort of appeal that is unintentional. Where the line lies between simply bad, this effect, and So Bad, It's Horrible, is also controversial. In general, among the very large reserve of things that can be classified as "bad," works that get labeled So Bad It's Good tend to be loaded with unintended Narm and ludicrously crazy factors, while So Bad, It's Horrible is the place for works whose badness only makes them boring or offensive; or even their unintentional suckiness or Stylistic Suck fails to charm and falls flat as comedy.

The difference between the three is essentially a bad movie is painful to watch but at least you can try to get into the story because there's something that's keeping you watching; a So Bad It's Good movie is one that's so bad that you can't suspend your disbelief enough to not laugh at it so you watch it just to riff on it and laugh at it; So Bad, It's Horrible is where not only is suspending your disbelief impossible, but it's not even fun to laugh at and merely watching it, even just to riff on it, is painful. Nonetheless, don't be surprised when you come across some items that wind up on both lists, such as  Big Rigs: Over the Road Racing  or Soulja Boy's song, "Anime." On occasion, the writers may  intentionally  try to pull off this trope. Of course, this almost  never  actually results in something that fits because it's hard not to "wink at the camera", so to speak — though it's often still funny. Sometimes a work may fall on the line between bad and so bad it's good; most of these are box-office bombs with a strong cult following.

Something which is So Bad It's Good has a high probability of becoming a Cult Classic and, in this day and age, a Fountain of Memes. Many are heavy on Camp, therefore falling far onto the silly side of the Sliding Scale of Silliness vs. Seriousness, and are often considered Guilty Pleasures, although neither is necessary. See Narm Charm. This is also often seen in Memetic Mutation, when people combine two or more horrible things (or pieces thereof) into something good. Leeroy Jenkins, for example.

If someone just keeps on churning out work that's considered So Bad It's Good, said person or people are probably Giftedly Bad. Of course, this could also be a result of Springtime for Hitler.

Compare Stylistic Suck and So Unfunny, It's Funny, which play this trope for laughs. Contrast So Bad, It's Horrible, though both tropes tend to overlap  a lot. Not to be confused with Bad Is Good and Good Is Bad.