A Rare Sentence: Difference between revisions

{{trope}}

 

This is when [[It Makes Sense in Context|odd conditions]] prompt someone to say something utterly crazy-sounding, and someone else (usually the local [[Deadpan Snarker]]) comments that "I doubt that's ever been said before" or "Now there's a sentence that doesn't get used much", or similar. Essentially a [[Stock Phrase]], but hard to name as such since it can be formulated in a ton of different ways.

 

Contrast [[I Would Say If I Could Say]], when an ordinary expression is factually inapplicable. Compare [[I Can't Believe I'm Saying This]]. Usually involves [[It Makes Sense in Context]] or even [[Makes Just as Much Sense in Context]].

{{examples}}

 

* In ''[[Shaun of the Dead]]'', a reporter reminisces on the advice he gave earlier in the film on how to handle the unfolding [[Zombie Apocalypse]]:

 

* [[Charlie Brooker]], in his "Screen Burn" column: "Downright heartwarming. That's a phrase I don't use very often. I don't have a heart." Also comes up after a description of something absurdly weird on TV "... which is a sentence I never thought I'd write."

* Played with in ''[[The Dresden Files]]''. During ''White Night'', Dresden is explaining how he managed to get Thomas into the Deeps on Raith Manor. Paraphrased:

'''Molly:''' Oh. ''([[Beat]])'' Continue. }}

* ''The Power of Babel'' has the statement, which [[Makes Sense in Context]], "Languages are chock-full of Charlie Brown heads", and lampshades it with a [[Footnote Fever|footnote]]: "Never again will that sequence of words be used in the English language."

* One of the Top 10 Lists in [[David Letterman]]'s first book of them has rarely used adjectives, including "owl-flavored" and "Hitleriffic."

* The [[Stephen King]] memoir/writing guide ''On Writing'' notes that any noun and any verb, put together, make a legitimate sentence. This includes even the strangest ones, his example being "Plums deify" (which becomes a [[Running Gag]]).

 

* ''[[Mystery Science Theater 3000]]'', "Santa Claus vs. The Martians":

'''Joel:''' Do you realize what you just said. }}

* ''[[Coupling]]'':

'''Patrick:''' Now there's a sentence that can't come up too often. }}

* ''[[Friends]]''

** "The One with the Holiday Armadillo"

::: The title of the episode would also seem to count.

* ''[[Have I Got News for You]]'':

* From the ''[[iCarly]]'' episode "iGive Away a Car":

'''Carly:''' That's not something you hear every day. }}

* ''[[QI]]''

** In the "Health and Safety" episode (The answer, in case you're wondering, is {{spoiler|to cure hiccups}}.):

* In ''[[Top Gear]]'':

'''Hammond:''' Nobody's ever said that before. }}

'''Hammond:''' No, I don't suppose they have. }}

'''Lee Mack:''' No one has ever said that before in the history of the world. }}

* ''[[A Bit of Fry and Laurie]]'': [[Character Filibuster|"... Our language, tiger, our language, hundreds of thousands of available words, frillions of possible legitimate new ideas, so that I can say this sentence and be confident it has never been uttered before in the history of human communication:]] ''Hold the newsreader's nose squarely, waiter, or friendly milk will countermand my trousers.''"

* From ''[[Wings (TV series)|Wings]]'', after the gang has learned that [[Cloudcuckoolander]] Lowell's family possesses a huge family trust which all Mathers get a huge payout from upon turning 31 1/2 years old:

'''Joe:''' Now there's something you don't hear every day. }}

* In an episode of ''[[Murphy Brown]]'', the FYI crew is forced to work in a cheesy dating show. At one point, Murphy complains about having to say the word "Smooch-o-meter" which "is third in the list of things I would never say, right after 'How much for that Neil Diamond CD?' and 'I, Murphy, take you, Newt.'"

* ''[[Stargate SG-1]]'', "Moebius":

* From an episode of ''[[Spicks and Specks]]'':

 

* If [[YouTube]] gives you the option while watching a video with lots of talk, turn on CC, then watch how Transcribe "mishears" the words. [[Hilarity Ensues]], very frequently. You get the most laughs if you watch clips from TV-shows you love.

 

 

* From the quest description of the ''[[World of Warcraft]]'' quest "A Wolf in Bear's Clothing":

* ''[[Rhythm Heaven|Rhythm Heaven Fever's]]'' description of the "Tap Trial" minigame:

 

* ''[[Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney|Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney]]'' features an example of this in the third case. When talking to Gumshoe about the murder in court he says, "The basic outline is that the Steel Samurai murdered the Evil Magisrate using the samurai spear." to which Phoenix replies, "That's something I never thought I would hear uttered in a court..."

 

* ''[[The Order of the Stick]]'':

'''Wight #2:''' I think he did. Also, I think no one has ever asked that exact question in the history of civilization, so [[Bonus Points]] there. }}

* ''[[Dinosaur Comics]]''

** [http://www.qwantz.com/index.php?comic=824 This strip]:

'''God:''' IT HELPS }}

'''T-Rex:''' Utahraptor, please! That sentence is BASICALLY my daily affirmation. }}

* ''[[Irregular Webcomic]]''

** The comic joked about this in a rant that included the phrase, "Because I only have one radiation suit."

** See also under [[Web Original]], when he checked a number of other rare phrases (this was a blog entry, not a comic).

* From ''[[El Goonish Shive]]''

* Following an edit made to [http://nonadventures.com/2011/09/02/das-reboot/ this strip] of ''[[The Non-Adventures of Wonderella]]'', the author wrote:

* ''[[Homestuck]]'' gives us this meta-example from [[Andrew Hussie]]'s [https://twitter.com/#!/andrewhussie/status/195366116502142976 twitter]:

 

** [[That Dude in the Suede]] once described ''[[The Girl Who Leapt Through Time]]'' as "[[X Meets Y|Like]] ''[[Groundhog Day]]'' if Bill Murray was a teenage girl." Apparently it's #145 on the list of things he never thought he would say.

** ''[[The Spoony Experiment]]'': Spoony when he gets frustrated with Squall being [[The Stoic]] during the balcony scene with [[Hot Teacher|Quistis]].

'''Lupa:''' That's not a line you hear everyday. }}

'''Headline:''' Woman dies from sex with dog. }}

* ''[[The Agony Booth]]''

** From the recap of ''[[Zardoz]]'': "Then we cut to a naked May explaining Marxist philosophy while mathematical formulae are projected on her breasts. And you know, sometimes you type a sentence that makes you stop and ask yourself, did I really just type that?"

** A stand-out line in ''[[Overdrawn at the Memory Bank]]'': "Desirée! You could have gotten mustard all over his brain!"

* From a review of ''[[Trio the Punch]] - Never Forget Me'': "Colonel Sanders also has midget power. I hope to the gaming powers that be that this is the first time in the history of life that anyone has typed 'Colonel Sanders also has midget power'."

* The ''[[Xkcd]]'' blog had an [http://blog.xkcd.com/2008/12/03/some-lists/ entry] devoted to phrases that turned up no hits on Google ("ate a violin," "driver-side bidet") as well as phrases Randall had hoped would turn up no hits but actually did ("full-body glissando," "passenger-side bidet").

I bet you're the first ever person to say "i sure hope snow leopards have big cocks" }}

* [http://failblog.org/tag/autocomplete-me/ Autocomplete Me] is full of this.

* Ken Tremendous, guestblogging on ''[[Deadspin]]'', does this in the middle of [http://deadspin.com/#!5644755/little-man-gigantic-exaggeration-of-his-abilities a rant about how sportswriters overvalue David Eckstein]:

* [http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=84652.msg2271836#msg2271836 This poster] on the ''[[Dwarf Fortress]]'' forums is trying to save dwarves from bug-induced [[Spontaneous Human Combustion|spontaneous dwarven combustion]]<ref>If you turn off temperature and get your dwarves doused in magma or [[Breath Weapon|breathed on by a fire demon]], they'll burst into flames when you turn it back on.</ref> by dropping the afflicted dwarves into a pool of water, which, as pointed out, is pretty much the only time you'll hear a DF player use the phrase "plummeted to their salvation".

** , [http://www.cracked.com/article_19207_the-7-most-terrifyingly-huge-things-in-history-nature_p2.html The 7 Most Terrifyingly Huge Things in the History of Nature]

* Game Informer, in an [http://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2011/07/01/prepare-yourself-for-the-baconing.aspx online article announcing an upcoming game], stated: "The sequel will require [[Death Spank]] to enter the Fires of Bacon in order to bring peace back to Spanktopia. There's a sentence I never thought I would write."

* In his review of [[Batman: Arkham Asylum]], [[Zero Punctuation|Yahtzee]] starts a sentence with, "But once I'd mentally adjusted for Batman's underpants", and captions the screen, "I bet no-one's ever said this sentence before".

* From [http://szaleniec1000.livejournal.com/7471.html this sporking] of ''[[Deserving]]'':

* [[Let's Play|Letsplays]] in general often have this, especially if the game in question has something like an [[Audience-Alienating Premise]], like ''[[The Binding of Isaac]]''. Northernlion, well-known for having a 120+ video-long Letsplay of The Binding Of Isaac, sometimes says things like "Okay, as soon as I clear these flies, I'm going to shoot that screaming fetus." or "Suck it, Diglett!" (in reference to a type of very annoying burrowing enemy that resembles the Pokemon Diglett.) He often lampshades this.

 

* ''[[Phineas and Ferb]]''

** Phineas and Ferb's crazy plans and those of Dr. Doofenshmirtz can easily lead to this:

'''[[Mad Scientist's Beautiful Daughter|Vanessa]]:''' How did my life get to a point where that is not a strange sentence to me? }}

"I'm calling Mom... and I am ''not'' using the banana this time!" }}

** There's also this exchange from "I Was a Middle-Aged Robot", which sort of plays with the trope:

'''Phineas:''' Um... never? }}

'''Phineas:''' ''([[Beat]])'' You guys heard that, right? It ''wasn't'' just me? }}

'''Isabella''': OMG, coolest sentence ever! Somebody write that down. }}

* In the ''[[American Dad]]'' episode "Haylias", Hayley's [[Trigger Phrase]] is explicitly mentioned as being a combination of words that no-one in the world would ever say -- "I'm getting fed up with this orgasm!"

** ''[[Family Guy]]'' used a similar gag in "Spies Reminiscent of Us", with the phrase "[[Acceptable Targets|Boy, that Italian family at the next table sure is quiet.]]"

 

* Perhaps also "[[wikipedia:Buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo|Buffalo buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo...]]"

* ''[[British Newspapers|The Daily Telegraph]]'''s cartoonist Matt said that if he's not sure about a cartoon he can end up roaming the ''Telegraph'' office asking people things like "Does this chicken look worried about monetary union?"

* [http://www.zompist.com/thought.html This list] of unlikely phrases found in real phrasebooks. Useful if you ever need to say "Because I was out buying a pair of wooden shoes" in Vietnamese.

* Leo Rosten once decided to write an essay (reprinted in his book ''Passions and Prejudices'') about modern poetry and computers that wrote poetry. By (he said) writing down various forms of speech on slips of paper and then pulling the slips from various envelopes, he ended up creating odd short poems that would better be described as [[Word Salad]]. The crowning poem? ''Swish green albino dust/Through avatars unborn/And circumcise the circumscribed circumstance:/Juno stabbed the rooster.''

 

{{reflist}}

[[Category:Dialogue]]

[[Category:A Rare Sentence]]