Fridge Logic: Difference between revisions

{{tropeUseful Notes}}

{{quote|''"I can't believe it took me eight months to realize this, but the mom there can't be giving the engines all she's got! She's on the BRIDGE. She needs to be in ENGINEERING!"''|'''[[YouTube]]''' Commenter Darthkoolguy on a Burger King Star Trek tie-in commercial}}

Half an hour after the show is over, [[Meaningful Name|A. Random Viewer]] is staring into his refrigerator, vaguely bemused by the fact that his six-pack of beer has somehow become a two-pack of beer. Rather than work out how this might have happened, it occurs to him to wonder how in the hell [[Alias (TV series)|Sydney Bristow]] went from Hungary to Melbourne, Australia, then to LA, all within 24 hours.

[['''Fridge Logic]]''' has been the writer's-room term for these little [[Internal Consistency]] issues for a good while, as in "Don't sweat the [[Fridge Logic]], we've got bigger fish to fry. We've only got 20 minutes left to work in three costume changes, a foreign language, and a weird wig." It refers to some illogical or implausible plot point that the audience doesn't realize during the show, but only long afterwards. This naming is highly subjective, since not every person follows the same train of thought. Some people will never even realise there was a problem, while others will call it a [[Plot Hole]], since they already noticed the problem during the show.

* In science fiction circles, this is also known as a "[[Jellybean Moment]]". This refers to a story by [[Harlan Ellison]] titled ''"Repent, Harlequin!" Said the Ticktockman'', where the climax of the story involves gumming up the works of the society with the application of jellybeans. It's only after the story has been read that the average reader thinks "Where the heck did he get the jellybeans?" This phrase is at the core of [http://en.[wikipedia.org/wiki/:Talk:Harlan_EllisonHarlan Ellison/Archive_2Archive 2#The_The .22Jelly_Bean22Jelly Bean.22_Incident22 Incident|a famous story involving Ellison at a Worldcon]].

* On the commentary track for the ''[[Hot Fuzz]]'' DVD, the filmmakers refer to this as "popcorn[[Popcorn logicLogic]]." It's five minutes after the movie ends, you're walking out of the theater, finishing off your popcorn, and--''wait a tick!''

* The writer David Gerrold refers to this as the "refrigerator[[Refrigerator doorDoor questionQuestion]]" in his book on writing, ''Worlds of Wonder''. He also gives an example: In the movie ''[[ETE.T. the Extraterrestrial (Film)Extra-Terrestrial|ET the Extraterrestrial]]'', if E.T. can make the bicycle fly at the end, why doesn't he use it in the beginning of the film to avoid pursuit?

Ronald D. Moore talks about [['''Fridge Logic]]''' extensively on the commentary to ''[[Battlestar Galactica Reimagined (2004 TV series)|Battlestar Galactica]]'' episode (2.02) "Valley of Darkness," likening it to the type of logic used to figure out whether the light in the fridge stays on when the door is closed.

Stories with a [[Tomato Surprise]] may ''count'' on this phenomenon to prevent you from questioning oddities in what appears to be happening. By the time the [['''Fridge Logic]]''' would have hit the audience, they've explained what was really going on, and those problems are explained to be clues that something was up.

See also [[Fridge Brilliance]] for when there's actually a really good explanation when you think about it, and [[Fridge Horror]] when something is incredibly [[Nightmare Fuel|nightmarish]] when you think about it. Sometimes [['''Fridge Logic]]''' can turn an otherwise happy ending into a [[Bittersweet Ending]] or outright [[Downer Ending]]; for this, see [[Esoteric Happy Ending]]. This is also related to the [[MST3K Mantra]], which allows you to just go along for the ride and not sweat the details. When fans notice these ''during'' the show, it's a plain old [[Plot Hole]]. Not related to [[Stuffed Into the Fridge]]. Also not to be confused with the un-tasty [[Oven Logic]], [http[wikipedia://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Begriffsschrift |Frege logic]] or Bathroom Logic. If the characters themselves fail to ask questions about a given plot development or device, then it's because [[Apathy Killed the Cat]].

'''By the way, {{Noexamples|we have whole ''sections'' of [[This Wiki]] dedicated to these issues. This article just defines a term.''' It neither needs nor wants any examples. To discuss [['''Fridge Logic]]''' issues that bug you -- whichyou—which can be a lot of fun -- seefun—see [[It Just Bugs MeHeadscratchers]], or any of our fine [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/topics.php Forums], or the "Fridge" tab on a work's page. If what occurred to you later was a wild theory, see [[Wild Mass Guessing]].}}

[[Category:F RidgeFridge]]