Food as Bribe: Difference between revisions

No edit summary
(→‎Western Animation: Added Example)
(8 intermediate revisions by 3 users not shown)
Line 21:
* Hana of ''[[My Heavenly Hockey Club]]''. Just about any food will work, if there's enough of it.
 
== [[Film]] - Animated ==
* The protagonist of ''[[Kung Fu Panda]]'' is motivated to do great deeds and work his butt off in training ... for food.
 
== [[Film]] - Live-Action ==
* ''[[Home Alone|Home Alone 3]]'': The brother's parrot only plays along with the scheme if you have ''two'' crackers.
{{quote|"''Double, or nothing''"}}
Line 30 ⟶ 28:
 
== [[Literature]] ==
* ''[[The Dresden Files|]]'': Harry Dresden]] is known to secure the loyalty of the Wildfae with pizza. It started as a simple quid pro quo: Pizza for information. Now they're his own [[PunA Worldwide Punomenon|little]] personal volunteer army.
** Not a literal bribe, but dealing with the Eldest Gruff could well be considered this.
* ''[[Discworld]]'':
** In the ''[[Discworld]]''Night novelWatch ''[[(Discworld/Night Watch)|Night Watch]]'', the narration mentions that Sam Vimes, the main character, does not take bribes at all, except those of [[Donut Mess with a Cop|donuts]] and beer.
*** Well, the Watch has been reformed so that they don't take bribes other than donuts and beer. Vimes doesn't take the beer, as he's a recovering alcoholic.
** In ''[[Discworld/Unseen Academicals|Unseen Academicals]]'' Glenda Sugarbean gets in to see Vetinari ''twice'' by doing this to the palace guards.
*** Though they had been instructed to take all bribes offered, bring the people in question to a waiting room, and then lock it until Lord Vetinari decides what to do with them. Unfortunately they also dispose of any food bribes afterwards in fear of poison, which in this case even Lord Vetinari considered a crime against good cooking.
* [[Stephanie Plum]] is often bribed by her mother by food. Seeing as how she is a very good cook and Steph is often broke, it is a very powerful motivator. When regular food just won't do, [[I Was Told There Would Be Cake|cake]] will usually seal the deal.
Line 44 ⟶ 43:
* Kel on ''[[Kenan and Kel]]'' would do it for a bottle of orange soda.
* Used with Schultz on ''[[Hogan's Heroes]]'' regularly.
* ''[[Power Rangers]]'':
** ''[[Power Rangers RPM]]'': In "...And Action", the cast gives the viewers a behind-the-scenes look at the show without actually breaking character. Ziggy has to [[Genius' Sweet Tooth|offer Doctor K sweets]] to get her involved.
** In ''[[Power Rangers SPD]]'' . Piggy is an alien tipster who accepts food as payment (from both the good guys ''and'' bad guys) but it has to be the type he likes - food that is spoiled, rancid, and/or rotten.
* ''[[The Amanda Show]]'': Amanda's stalker Penelope Taynt tries to bribe Barney the security guard so she can sneak into Amanda's show. After failing to bribe him with money and jewels, Barney finally gives in when Penelope gives him a Pizza. A very nice slice of Pizza.
* In ''[[Seinfeld]]'', one surefire way to get Newman to shut up and/or go away is to give him a [[Trademark Favorite Food| Little Debbie coffee cake.]]
 
== [[Tabletop Games]] ==
Line 69 ⟶ 71:
* ''[[Scooby Doo]]'': Perhaps the [[Trope Codifier]]. Scooby Snacks have been used in nearly all incarnations of the show to motivate Shaggy and Scooby into going into some creepy places.
** Parodied in ''[[Futurama]]'', where Bender retracts his limbs and head into his body. Leela tries to coax him out with a beer. "Would you do it for a Bender-snack?"
** In one of the movies, Shaggy and Scooby think ahead and bring their own Scooby Snacks so Fred can't bribe them - unfortunately, Fred also brought milk, and points out they don't have any of that to go with them.
* ''[[Johnny Test]]'': Dookie will do anything for steak.
* On ''[[South Park]]'' when those evil Canadians came to take Ike back from the Broflovskis after rescinding the adoption he refused to get in their car, until they offered him [[Everything's Better with Chocolate|chocolate]].
Line 76 ⟶ 79:
* In ''[[Recess]]'', the main six try to bribe Brittany A. to give her sister, Ashley A.'s diary back, by using candy. It doesn't work.
** In another episode, the Ashleys bribe T.J. with candy to get him to hang out with them after realizing her found a $100 bill.
* In the ''[[Adventures of the Gummi Bears]]'' episode, "My Kingdom For Pie", Duke Igthorn tries to bribe [[Big Eater|Tummi]] with a feast in order to find Gummi Glen.
* From ''[[Animaniacs]]''; once [[Pablo Picasso]] realizes that the Warner sibs' painting actually sell, he hires them to paint them by giving them frankfurters. ([[PunA Worldwide Punomenon| "We get paid in Franks,"]] says Yakko.)
* In the pilot episode of ''[[Amphibia (TV series)|Amphibia]]'', Sprig is able to get past his little sister by giving her candy, and two episodes later, Anne's offer of Earth-candy sways her in a heartbeat. Justified, of course, as she's a toddler.
* In an episode of ''[[Beware the Batman]]'', Gordon gets information from a tough looking ex-con by giving him chocolate.
 
== [[Real Life]] ==
* [[Fancy Dinner]]s have long been a way to smooth the waters of diplomacy. In fact in the British Diplomatic service it used to be a requirement to have a high tolerance for liquor . At times expensive food or drink was used as a bribe. A wine bottle might save face, for instance, when money is insulting. After all the spy you want might be a traitor, but he wants to be known as a [[Man of Wealth and Taste|cultured]] traitor.
* Cory Montieth mentioned that the choreographer for ''[[Glee]]'' uses candy as a bribe so that they can keep working.
* Napoleon supposedly once faced an enemy army that was ill-supplied. He promised them food if they joined his army. It worked!
* Animal trainers are fond of using this trope.
* One bizarre example, in 1986, George L. Belair, Minneapolis city council candidate, tried to bribe seniors into voting for him by giving away free Twinkies, Ho-Hos, and other Hostess snacks. He was actually arrested on charges of violating the Fair Campaign Practices Act, and his defense was ”I had no intention of bribing anybody with Twinkies and Ho Ho's and a cup of coffee." While he didn't win the election, he was acquitted of wrongdoing, seeing as legally speaking, it's harder to clarify that food is intended as a bribe (rather than generosity) than it is when it's money or other valuables.
 
{{reflist}}
[[Category:{{PAGENAME}}]]
[[Category:Food Tropes]]
[[Category:Motivation Index]]
[[Category:{{PAGENAME}}]]
[[Category:Bargain Tropes]]