Too Dumb to Live: Difference between revisions

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[[File:rsz_safety-death_3126.jpg|link=Scary Movie (Film)|frame|Ummmmmm... do I [[Take a Third Option|get a third choice]]?]]
[[File:rsz safety-death 3126.jpg|link=Scary Movie|frame|Ummmmmm... do I [[Take a Third Option|get a third choice]]?]]


{{quote|''"When your life has been directly threatened by your boss and there's already been one unsolved murder in your office building, [[Sarcasm Mode|always work late and alone!]]"''|'''Noah "[[The Spoony Experiment|The Spoony One"]] Antwiler,''' ''Let's Play [[Phantasmagoria 2]]''}}
{{quote|''"When your life has been directly threatened by your boss and there's already been one unsolved murder in your office building, [[Sarcasm Mode|always work late and alone!]]"''|'''Noah "[[The Spoony Experiment|The Spoony One"]] Antwiler,''' ''Let's Play [[Phantasmagoria 2]]''}}


The character who puts life and limb at risk by [[What an Idiot!|doing things that no sane human being would do]]. Walking down the alley alone to tell his friend about the [[Serial Killer]]. Telling her best friend [[Have You Told Anyone Else?|not to tell anybody]], but she has a crush on somebody. Walking through [[Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV)|the streets of Sunnydale]]. Being [[Smallville|Lana Lang]]. [[Let's Split Up, Gang!|Splitting]] [[Never Split the Party|the party]]. [[Curiosity Killed the Cast|Being curious.]] [[Ransacked Room|Searching the hero's room in such a manner that no one could miss that you did it.]] Telling everybody in earshot he has vital evidence that he'll be taking to the authorities very shortly. [[Youth Is Wasted On the Dumb|Visiting a known dangerous area.]] [[Poor Communication Kills|Not telling the rest of the heroes about the upcoming trap laid out for them.]] [[Bullying a Dragon]]. Not only possessing [[Genre Blindness]], but putting [[The Hitchhikers Guide to The Galaxy|Zaphod Beeblebrox's]] [[Horrible Judge of Character|Peril-Sensitive Sunglasses on over it]]. Even close friends have to [[Face Palm]] upon hearing of his or her exploits. (Though it never [[Fearless Fool|penetrates their own heads]].) This trope is, surprisingly, [[Truth in Television]], as many people can attest to.
The character who puts life and limb at risk by [[What an Idiot!|doing things that no sane human being would do]]. Walking down the alley alone to tell his friend about the [[Serial Killer]]. Telling her best friend [[Have You Told Anyone Else?|not to tell anybody]], but she has a crush on somebody. Walking through [[Buffy the Vampire Slayer|the streets of Sunnydale]]. Being [[Smallville|Lana Lang]]. [[Let's Split Up, Gang!|Splitting]] [[Never Split the Party|the party]]. [[Curiosity Killed the Cast|Being curious.]] [[Ransacked Room|Searching the hero's room in such a manner that no one could miss that you did it.]] Telling everybody in earshot he has vital evidence that he'll be taking to the authorities very shortly. [[Youth Is Wasted on the Dumb|Visiting a known dangerous area.]] [[Poor Communication Kills|Not telling the rest of the heroes about the upcoming trap laid out for them.]] [[Bullying a Dragon]]. Not only possessing [[Genre Blindness]], but putting [[The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy|Zaphod Beeblebrox's]] [[Horrible Judge of Character|Peril-Sensitive Sunglasses on over it]]. Even close friends have to [[Face Palm]] upon hearing of his or her exploits. (Though it never [[Fearless Fool|penetrates their own heads]].) This trope is, surprisingly, [[Truth in Television]], as many people can attest to.


If a character is stupid, but does not put himself at an obvious risk of harm, it is not an example of this; see instead [[What an Idiot!]], [[The Ditz]], or [[Idiot Ball]]. Compare [[Artificial Stupidity]], the videogame equivalent of this which is a result of AI rather than the script being against them. Contrast [[Death By Pragmatism]] and [[Let's Get Dangerous]]. Not to be confused with [[Evilutionary Biologist]] or [[The Social Darwinist]], although [[Values Dissonance|they generally consider it a]] [[Moral Event Horizon]] [[Values Dissonance|to not murder the dumb in cold blood]].
If a character is stupid, but does not put himself at an obvious risk of harm, it is not an example of this; see instead [[What an Idiot!]], [[The Ditz]], or [[Idiot Ball]]. Compare [[Artificial Stupidity]], the videogame equivalent of this which is a result of AI rather than the script being against them. Contrast [[Death By Pragmatism]] and [[Let's Get Dangerous]]. Not to be confused with [[Evilutionary Biologist]] or [[The Social Darwinist]], although [[Values Dissonance|they generally consider it a]] [[Moral Event Horizon]] [[Values Dissonance|to not murder the dumb in cold blood]].
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'''Note:''' This trope has been subject to some [[Trope Decay|misuse]]. If you see any examples or [[Pothole|pot holes]] to this page in which the character's stupidity does not pose any threat to his physical wellbeing, please remove them or point them to one of the alternative idiocy tropes.
'''Note:''' This trope has been subject to some [[Trope Decay|misuse]]. If you see any examples or [[Pothole|pot holes]] to this page in which the character's stupidity does not pose any threat to his physical wellbeing, please remove them or point them to one of the alternative idiocy tropes.


'''[[No Real Life Examples, Please]]'''. See the ''[[Darwin Awards]]'' and ''[[What the Fuck Is Wrong With You (Web Video)|What the Fuck Is Wrong With You]]'' for those.
{{noreallife|See the ''[[Darwin Awards]]'' and ''[[What The Fuck Is Wrong With You?]]'' for those.}}


{{deathtrope}}
{{deathtrope}}


{{examples}}
{{examples on subpages}}
* [[Too Dumb to Live/Advertising|Advertising]]
* [[Too Dumb to Live/Animated Films|Animated Films]]
* [[Too Dumb to Live/Anime And Manga|Anime And Manga]]
* [[Too Dumb to Live/Comic Books|Comic Books]]
* [[Too Dumb to Live/Fan Works|Fan Works]]
* [[Too Dumb to Live/Film|Film]]
* [[Too Dumb to Live/Literature|Literature]]
* [[Too Dumb to Live/Live Action TV|Live Action TV]]
* [[Too Dumb to Live/Music|Music]]
* [[Too Dumb to Live/Myths And Religion|Myths And Religion]]
* [[Too Dumb to Live/Oral Tradition|Oral Tradition]]
* [[Too Dumb to Live/Pro Wrestling|Pro Wrestling]]
* [[Too Dumb to Live/Stand Up Comedy|Stand Up Comedy]]
* [[Too Dumb to Live/Tabletop Games|Tabletop Games]]
* [[Too Dumb to Live/Theatre|Theatre]]
* [[Too Dumb to Live/Video Games|Video Games]]
* [[Too Dumb to Live/Webcomics|Webcomics]]
* [[Too Dumb to Live/Web Original|Web Original]]
* [[Too Dumb to Live/Western Animation|Western Animation]]

{{reflist}}
{{reflist}}
[[Category:No Real Life Examples Please]]
[[Category:{{PAGENAME}}]]
[[Category:Death Tropes]]
[[Category:Death Tropes]]
[[Category:Tropes of Legend]]
[[Category:Tropes of Legend]]
[[Category:Characters As Device]]
[[Category:Characters As Device]]
[[Category:Character Flaw Index]]
[[Category:Character Flaw Index]]
[[Category:Orphaned/Sandbox/Depressing Tropes]]
[[Category:Truth in Television]]
[[Category:Truth in Television]]
[[Category:Contrived Stupidity Tropes]]
[[Category:Contrived Stupidity Tropes]]
[[Category:Stupidity Tropes]]
[[Category:Stupidity Tropes]]
[[Category:index]]
[[Category:Depressing Tropes]]
[[Category:Too Dumb To Live]]

Latest revision as of 12:59, 8 October 2021

Ummmmmm... do I get a third choice?
"When your life has been directly threatened by your boss and there's already been one unsolved murder in your office building, always work late and alone!"
—Noah "The Spoony One" Antwiler, Let's Play Phantasmagoria 2

The character who puts life and limb at risk by doing things that no sane human being would do. Walking down the alley alone to tell his friend about the Serial Killer. Telling her best friend not to tell anybody, but she has a crush on somebody. Walking through the streets of Sunnydale. Being Lana Lang. Splitting the party. Being curious. Searching the hero's room in such a manner that no one could miss that you did it. Telling everybody in earshot he has vital evidence that he'll be taking to the authorities very shortly. Visiting a known dangerous area. Not telling the rest of the heroes about the upcoming trap laid out for them. Bullying a Dragon. Not only possessing Genre Blindness, but putting Zaphod Beeblebrox's Peril-Sensitive Sunglasses on over it. Even close friends have to Face Palm upon hearing of his or her exploits. (Though it never penetrates their own heads.) This trope is, surprisingly, Truth in Television, as many people can attest to.

If a character is stupid, but does not put himself at an obvious risk of harm, it is not an example of this; see instead What an Idiot!, The Ditz, or Idiot Ball. Compare Artificial Stupidity, the videogame equivalent of this which is a result of AI rather than the script being against them. Contrast Death By Pragmatism and Let's Get Dangerous. Not to be confused with Evilutionary Biologist or The Social Darwinist, although they generally consider it a Moral Event Horizon to not murder the dumb in cold blood.

Note: This trope has been subject to some misuse. If you see any examples or pot holes to this page in which the character's stupidity does not pose any threat to his physical wellbeing, please remove them or point them to one of the alternative idiocy tropes.

No real life examples, please; See the Darwin Awards and What The Fuck Is Wrong With You? for those.

As a Death Trope, Spoilers ahead may be unmarked. Beware.

Examples of Too Dumb to Live are listed on these subpages:
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