Trope Workshop:Predictable Countdown

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Character A is engaging in behavior that may seem odd to the audience but seems normal to Character B. Character B starts counting.

"Five... four... three... two... one..."

Hilarity Ensues, right on time. It can be stupid or odd, or plain funny.

The Predictable Countdown occurs when a character or event is so predictable that another character has it down to a science about when it will occur. They usually start at "five" but may go as low as "three" before counting down to one.

This can also happen as a result of a Groundhog Day Loop. In that case, the character already knows what's going to happen. They may be trying to break the loop, or has gotten resigned to it.

Examples of Predictable Countdown include:

Comic Books

• Watchmen has this Played for Drama in the climax. Rorscach and Nite-Owl II confront the "Mask-Killer", actually Adrian Veight, for his many crimes. They find out he wasn't wiping out former heroes, but starting a False Flag Operation that would unite the world against a common enemy, averting nuclear war. Nite-Owl II asks him when he would plan to do such a massacre. Adrian says that he's not a serial radio villain; he's telling them his plan because " I did it 35 minutes ago". Cue the clock hand moving, and him counting down silently...

Fan Works

• In the first chapter of the Sailor Moon fanfic Isekai by Moonlight, the protagonist thinks "Cue attacks from allies in three, two, one..." during the first combat he's in, immediately before said allies launch their attacks. This is a variant of the Groundhog Day Loop version of the trope, in that the protagonist is Trapped in Another World where he already knows the plot from having watched the anime previously.
• Makes an appearance in the epic-length 1990s-vintage Ranma ½-centric Mega Crossover fic A Tale of Two Wallets, when Yumi Kuonji, aunt of Ukyo, offhandedly mentions to Soun that Akane seems to have romantic intentions for Ukyo:

Yumi counted to three, then right on cue Soun rose up from the water and cried, "SHE'S DOING WHAT WITH MY AKANE???"

Film

• In Anastasia, Dmitri says, "Three, two, one" as he and Vladimir "convince" Anya to go along with them to Paris and find out if she is the Grand Duchess Anastasia, by walking away. Right on cue, she calls them and asks what's the harm in having Empress Marie identify her as Anastasia or not.
• Mary Poppins justifies this; Admiral Boom fires a cannon from Cherry Tree lane twice a day, at 8 AM and 5 PM. The Banks household goes to their "posts" while counting down to make sure the fine china and house trinkets don't get damaged from the backlash. Because of Admiral Boom's routine, the women have it down to a science.
• Surf's Up establishes this as a Chekhov's Gag. When Cody gets surfing lessons from Zeke, he makes the mistake of turning his back on the waves. Zeke sarcastically counts down before Cody wipes out, though Cody learns to count the rhythm of the waves to get revenge on Zeke. In the climax, Zeke and Cody use the same countdown when Cody ends up in the Boneyard, a dangerous skeleton zone for surfers, to ride on the waves without getting injured.
• Night at the Museum has Larry do this after he brings his son to see the nightshift; he counts down to when the tablet will bring all the museum exhibits to life, as he saw the previous two nights. Except they don't, because Cecil and the other janitors stole the tablet and plan to clean out the museum.

Live-Action TV

• Community:
  • Subverted in "For A Few Paintballs More". After saving the school from their rivals, Pierce announces he's leaving the study group. Thinking that this is more of Pierce's dramatics, as the guy was prone to Took a Level in Jerkass, Jeff counts down to when Pierce will come back and act like he didn't say anything. Pierce doesn't.
  • In season three's "Regional Holiday Music," the study group rolls their eyes at the Glee club's Christmas performance. Annie counts down to when they do their hip-hop remix, right before Jeff subtly reveals he shut the Glee Club down using the power of copyright law.
• Inverted in Victorious as a Character Tic for Jade; when someone does something she doesn't like, she threatens them with a countdown. Sinjin runs, Tori and Beck stop hugging, and so forth. Thus, when she threatens to break up with Beck in "The Worst Couple" using this countdown, it's a Wham! Episode when Beck refuses to leave with her at the count of ten.
• In Doctor Who, there are a couple of examples where River Song comments "Penny in the air!" just before another character has an epiphany. When realisation dawns, she follows it up with "The penny drops." Although not a literal countdown, it is timed and used like one.

Web Original

• Not Always Right has this in the story "Warning to All Travellers: British Seagulls Are No Joke". The OP's sister warns two tourists that if they eat outside, the seagulls can be "aggressive". While the wife wants to listen, the man just takes the food. OP's sister starts counting down to when seagulls divebomb the couple and steal their lunch. The woman comes in calling her husband an "idiot" and asking if they can eat inside.

Western Animation

• DuckTales has this in the episode "The House of the Lucky Gander." A luck vampire named Liu Hai has kidnapped Gladstone Gander to feed on his constant good luck, and only lets the guy win his freedom by having Donald challenge Gladstone in a footrace. Donald wins, so Scrooge convinces Liu Hai to take Donald instead as the "luckiest". Both Louie and Gladstone are horrified after Liu Hai boots them out of his magical casino, but Scrooge starts counting, "Three...two...one..." and steps aside for Donald to join them. Turns out Donald's luck is so bad that it starves Liu Hai and destroys him immediately.
• Superman: The Animated Series features this in the episode "Mxyzpilated". Mxyzptlk spends three months building a Killer Robot to take down Superman, ignoring his wife Gsptlsnz's desires to make love and spend time with him. Superman can banish Mxy if he tricks the little guy into saying or spelling his name backwards. When he finally goes back to Earth, she counts down "Five, four, three..." before he reappears going "NUTS, NUTS, NUTS!" We don't see what happened.
• In a The Ghost and Molly McGee episode where Jinx curses Scratch, she has to say his name three times to lift the bad luck. When Scratch tricks her into wearing his Councilman robes, laced with itching powder, he and Molly count down to when Jinx feels the effects.
• Danny Phantom has this happen in Danielle's debut episode; Danielle and Danny accidentally make a mess in the cafeteria, leaving Sam and Tucker to take the fall. They count down to when Mr. Lancer will come to investigate.

Real Life

• In April 2024, former Republican National Committee chairman Michael Steele described the likelihood of Donald Trump violating a court-imposed gag order as "So Donald Trump will violate this order in three, two, one..."