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* During an insult contest between Ed and Pinako in ''[[Fullmetal Alchemist]]'', one of Ed's is "You're so short you're two-dimensional!"
* America has one of these moments in ''[[Axis Powers Hetalia]]''.
{{quote| '''America:''' I'm not stepping out of the house until spring comes around!<br />
''(the light goes out)''<br />
'''America:''' And the light bulb burns out as soon as I say that?! What is this, a comedy movie?! }}
* Happens in episode 9 of [[Darker Than Black]]: Ryuusei no Gemini: the episode begins with [[Plucky Comic Relief|Kiko Kayanuma]] making her first appearance of the season. As she and a friend board a train, they are discussing their apparent disgust at how a certain unnamed director added a pointless "gag character" to an otherwise [[Darker and Edgier|"Dark and Serious"]] movie.
** As an anime fangirl/cosplay enthusiast, she does this a lot. For instance, when she and Gai end up in possession of an (even more) will-less Yin, they try to figure out where to hide her while everyone's out looking for her. Kiko suggests [[Hot Springs Episode|the hot springs]], because you have to go at least once; then she looks at the audience and says, "Kiko is doing her best!"
* The last words spoken during the anime version of ''[[Death Note]]'' indicate Ryuk is [[Leaning on the Fourth Wall]]. They're spoken by Ryuk as {{spoiler|he kills Light}}, but the words of farewell ring on for the series, reminding everyone that all this time, the whole purpose of everything that's gone on from beginning to end was for Ryuk's entertainment.
{{quote| '''Ryuk:''' {{spoiler|It was good while it lasted. We eased each other's boredom for quite a while. Well, Light, it's been interesting.}}}}
* The English dub of ''[[Suzumiya Haruhi]]'' has a very clever one in episode six: While Kyon is narrating, the beginning credits are shown. Just as he asks "[[Who Writes This Crap?|Who wrote this scenario, anyway?]]" the current credit is "Series Composition: Haruhi and her friends".
* In [[Sayonara, Zetsubou-sensei]], the characters all constantly point out that Kaere is only there as a [[Fan Service]] character.
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** In "The Last Lord of El Dorado", Scrooge's response to [[As You Know|a bit of exposition]] from Donald is "I know all that! What are you, a recap caption in some silly comic book?"
* ''[[FoxTrot]]'' does this occasionally, usually to make comments about his own writing/drawing process. One example is a strip that was released around the time that ''Star Wars Episode I'' was released; Jason goes to see the movie, and when he gets home, Paige asks how he liked it:
{{quote| '''Jason:''' Come on, Paige, what are the odds of a geek like me saying anything negative?<br />
'''Paige:''' I'd say something like the chances of George Lucas letting a cartoonist see the movie early so he could write about it in more than vague, noncommittal terms.<br />
'''Jason:''' ...Well, I wouldn't go THAT far.<br />
'''Paige:''' Okay, so there's a TINY chance that you didn't like it. }}
* ''[[Y: The Last Man]]'': When Agent 355 asks Yorick why he has "Fuck Communism" engraved on his lighter, he explains it's truly from a [[Preacher (Comic Book)|comic]]. "They can say 'fuck' in comic books?"
* There's a truly hilarious scene in ''[[Ultimate Spider-Man]]'' in which the title character lampshades many of the common trends in his life and how difficult it makes things for him. It fits the character since he just broke up with MJ due to [[It's Not You, It's My Enemies]] and recovering from {{spoiler|Gwen's death}}, but it plays very much like he's actually angry at [[Cosmic Plaything|the writer's devotion to making his life a living hell]].
{{quote| "What else was I supposed to do? [[It's Not You, It's My Enemies|She was going to get killed because she's Spider-Man's girlfriend]] and, frankly, [[Distress Ball|she's too stupid to stay out of trouble when I tell her to.]] Maybe I- Maybe I should talk to her about this. Maybe in a couple of months she'll figure out how to be smarter about being with me and I won't have to- no. [[Genre Savvy|NO! NO!]] [[Recycled Script|She almost got killed six times out of the last twelve big Spider-Man adventures.]] There is no way I'm putting her in danger because I don't have anything to do on Friday nights. No. [[I Want My Beloved to Be Happy|No, leave her alone.]] [...] So I break up with her, which had to be done, but now I have to sit next to her for... [[Comic Book Time|what year is it?]] [[Vague Age|What am I? A sophomore? Tenth Grade?]] Well that means I only have a couple of years left to sit and feel her not look at me as I don't look at her. [...] She'll be making out with [[Jerk Jock|Flash Thompson]] and I'll be NOT making out with anyone ever again because [[Being Good Sucks|I CAN'T HAVE A GIRLFRIEND BECAUSE I'M SPIDER-MAN AND WITH GREAT POWER MUST COME NOT MAKING OUT WITH MY GIRLFRIEND EVER AGAIN!"]]}}
* In one ''[[Lucky Luke]]'' album, Rantanplan (after having eaten [[Extreme Omnivore|a piece of soap]]) wonders whether he's the only one making [[Speech Bubbles|bubbles]].
* Done in ''[[Quantum and Woody]]'' when Woody reads the "Dark Kitty" comic book, an [[Expy]] of [[Marvel Comics]]' [[Black Panther]] (also written by Christopher Priest at the time). Woody [[Who Writes This Crap?|badmouths the book]] [[Self-Deprecation|with criticisms that are entirely applicable]] to ''[[Quantum and Woody]]''...
{{quote| "The story is told all out of order -- you can't follow the damned thing... God, they just let any idiot write this stuff, don't they..."}}
* The ''[[Asterix]]'' book ''Asterix and the Roman Agent'' has a few panels where Impedimenta laments that Asterix received a valuable vase from a Roman for being "the most important man in the village." When Vitalstatisix mutters that he's the most important, she retorts, "If anyone was fool enough to write down the story of our village, they won't be calling it The Adventures of Vitalstatistix the Gaul!"
** In a similar fashion, in ''Asterix and the Soothsayer'', when the soothsayer offers to "read" the entrails of Dogmatix, Obelix retorts "No one has ever read us, and no one will!"
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** While Phoenix and Pinkie are investigating, she starts to hum ''[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wq1jknZp0ic Pursuit ~ Cornered]'', one of ''Ace Attorney's'' most iconic themes. Phoenix comments that the tune sounds quite familiar to him.
* A rather gory ''Fan Fic'' of ''Digimon'', ''[[Fan Fic/The Interloper|The Interloper]]'', has [[Original Character|Christopher Van Numen]] regarding what had happened in that very day and how it all felt too perfect to be just a simple coincidence, all the while he infiltrates the DSI's R&D Wing, his thought process eventually goes into:
{{quote| ''"Were they nothing more but characters, whose capacities for self-determination were undermined by an unfeeling writer—an omnipotent author that had nothing better to do except enthused prostitution to the ideals of entertainment and fame?"''}}
 
 
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** The "film" even shakes during one of these, to the point where you can see the guide track at the edges.
* In ''[[The View Askewniverse|Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back]]'', Holden delivers a monologue about becoming tired of writing ''Bluntman and Chronic'' comics. ("I mean, you gotta grow, man.") During the speech, he indicates that he knows that Silent Bob, played by writer/director Kevin Smith, knows what he's talking about.
{{quote| '''Holden:''' "Think about it. A ''Jay and Silent Bob movie?'' Who'd pay to see '''that?'''"<br />
'''Jay:''' *''wink at camera''*<br />
'''Bob:''' *''whole thumb-up and grin at camera''* }}
** Hell, that's not the only 4th wall nod in that movie. As they break into the movie studio, they run onto the set of ''Good Will Hunting 2: Hunting Season''; and get to stand around as extras during filming, only for Ben Affleck to comment that this was the sort of movie you did because you're friends with the director, with [[Aside Glance|a nod to the camera]].
{{quote| '''Willenholly:''' "Someone let a whole mess of animals out of their cages, sir."<br />
'''Cop:''' "We believe that was just a diversionary tactic used to call attention away from the real heist over here at the Diamond Exchange."<br />
'''Willenholly:''' "Yeah, right. That's a believable scenario. Sounds like something out of a bad movie." *both turn to the camera and shrug* }}
* At the end of ''[[Shanghai Knights]]'', Roy suggests to Chon Wang (played by Jackie Chan) that they go to California to act in "moving pictures", particularly kung-fu action films.
* ''[[Top Secret (film)|Top Secret]]'' leans on the Fourth Wall, [[Breaking the Fourth Wall|which promptly shatters]]:
{{quote| '''Nick:''' "Look, I'm not the first guy who fell in love with a girl he met in a restaurant who turned out to be the daughter of a kidnapped scientist only to lose her to a childhood lover who she'd last seen on a deserted island and who turned out fifteen years later to be the leader of the French underground."<br />
'''Hillary:''' "I know, it ... it all sounds like some bad movie."<br />
''[[Aside Glance|(Nick and Hillary both look at the camera.)]]'' }}
* A similar thing happened on ''[[Scary Movie]]'' except it's about how [[Dawson Casting|teenagers are played by mature actors]].
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* In ''[[His Girl Friday]]'' editor Walter Burns describes Bruce Baldwin as "He looks like that fellow in the movies - Ralph Bellamy"; Baldwin is being played by Ralph Bellamy.
** ''[[The Seven Year Itch]]'' has a similar bit about [[Marilyn Monroe|The Girl]]:
{{quote| '''Tom:''' What blonde in the kitchen?<br />
'''Richard:''' Wouldn't you like to know! Maybe it's Marilyn Monroe! }}
* In ''[[Jeepers Creepers]],'' our heroes have just decided to go back and see if the creepy guy was really hiding a body. The sister comments to her brother, "You know the part in scary movies when somebody does something really stupid, and everybody hates them for it? This is it."
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* The main character of Peter David's ''[[Sir Apropos of Nothing]]'' has the epiphany early on that he's a supporting character in the storybook world around him. He's not pleased and sets out to change this.
* At one point in ''[[The Illuminatus Trilogy]]'', a character pens a scathing review of a book that seems strikingly similar to ''[[Illuminatus]]'' itself:
{{quote| It's a dreadfully long monster of a book, and I certainly won't have time to read it, but I'm giving it a thorough skimming. The authors are utterly incompetent -- no sense of style or structure at all. It starts out as a detective story, switches to science-fiction, then goes off into the supernatural, and is full of the most detailed information of dozens of ghastly boring subjects. And the time sequence is all out of order in a very pretentious imitation of Faulkner and Joyce. Worst yet, it has the most raunchy sex scenes, thrown in just to make it sell, I'm sure, and the authors -- whom I've never heard of -- have the supreme bad taste to introduce real political figures into this mishmash and pretend to be exposing a real conspiracy. You can be sure I won't waste time reading such rubbish.}}
** Of course, since this is [[Mind Screw|The Illuminatus Trilogy]], it's entirely possible he's reviewing the book he's in.
* [[Harry Turtledove]] has a tendency in his alternate history novels to have characters talk about the absurdity of things like the US winning the Civil War (in his Southern Victory series) or an explosive-metal bomb bursting over Nagasaki (in [[Worldwar]]).
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* The ''[[Doctor Who]] [[Eighth Doctor Adventures]]'' novel ''The Blue Angel'' has the Doctor start complaining about the [[Series Hiatus]]. In-story, his concern is that, being lost in some tunnels, he's afraid his story is over, but it spills over into a [[Meta Guy]]-type ramble about stories. The story contains [[Four Lines, All Waiting|three plotlines]]; one deals with an alternate Doctor who's an [[Through the Eyes of Madness|insane]] human. He frequently refers to his "episodes", which are in fact psychotic episodes, the content of which is quite a bit like episodes of the TV series. The whole book is just very, very meta.
** On p229 (of 280) in the deeply [[Mind Screw]]-y ''The Infinity Doctors'', the Doctor, confronted with a book of infinite pages, says:
{{quote| "The best thing about a book is that you can always tell when you're getting to the end. No matter how tricky the situation the hero's in, you hold the book in your hand and say 'Hang on, I'm two hundred and twenty-nine pages in, with only another fifty-one to go. It started slow, but it's building to a climax.'"}}
* In ''Atlantis Found'' from the [[NUMA Series]], a character looks into Dirk Pitt and reports that his background looks like a series of adventure novels.
* In ''[[Cryptonomicon]]'', Rudy von Hacklheber mentions that "there are certain old family connections" between him and Enoch Root, but that "the connections make a very long story. I would have to write a whole fucking book." That book would be the Baroque Cycle--which is in fact three volumes and can be described as "a fucking book" if anything can.
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== Live Action TV ==
* Late in the 11th and last season of ''[[Cheers]]'', some of the gang go to an old drive-in theater and see a [[Godzilla]] movie. Cliff notices that the lead actress in this edition of the Godzilla series has been recast. Cue the following bit of dialogue:
{{quote| '''Norm''': She left halfway through the Godzilla series.<br />
'''Woody''': [http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1912597_1912596_1912583,00.html I don't understand, why would an actress leave right in the middle of a successful series?] }}
* There's a dialogue like this at the end of Season 2 in ''[[Lois and Clark]]'':
{{quote| '''Perry White:''' It's like we're supporting characters in some TV show that's only about them.<br />
'''Jimmy Olsen:''' Yeah! It's like all we do is advance their plots.<br />
'''Perry:''' To tell you the truth, I'm sick of it. }}
* ''[[Scrubs]]'' is fond of this:
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** One episode plays with this in the beginning. Three times it seems that JD is addressing the audience directly, but it turns out [[Fourth Wall Psych|he's addressing someone in the room standing]] [[Behind the Black|behind the camera.]] Except for the third and last time, when someone wonders [[Lampshade Hanging|who he's talking to]].
** At the end of the same episode, we get this:
{{quote| '''JD:''':Come on, I know it's tempting to just mail it in, but there's still a lot of people who rely on us week to week. I think we owe it to them to be as inspired as we were our first few years. Now I know we never do great come medical awards season, except for [[Monk|Dr. Shalhoub]], he wins everything, but I still think we're as good as anybody else out there.<br />
'''Turk:''' The Nielsens beg to differ.<br />
(cut to shot of unhappy looking couple.)<br />
'''JD:''' Oh, they're just upset because their insurance won't cover a private room. }}
** Again in one episode where Turk and JD are driving away in a car, and the following conversation can be heard as a voiceover.
{{quote| '''JD:''' Hey, don't you hate it in films and stuff where people will drive away in a car and even though the car's moving away you can still hear the characters talking?<br />
'''Turk:''' Yeah, I hate that. }}
** Another episode had J.D. imagine that his life was a sitcom, which turns out to be a more clichéd one with a [[Laugh Track]]. Yet another episode featured a [[Clip Show]] in which J.D. remarks that his memories are coming back to him like on a TV show.
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* Michael Bluth from ''[[Arrested Development (TV series)|Arrested Development]]'' gives a speech at a dinner party about why the Bluths are such an unlikeable family, and about how they might not deserve to be saved from their fate. This was in one of the show's last episodes before cancellation, and the speech was also clearly about the fate of the show itself.
** Earlier in the same episode, Michael has a conversation with his father about where to get some financial support from. At the time there had been talk about continuing the show on another channel.
{{quote| '''George:''' HBO? <br />
'''Michael:''' No, I don't think the Home Buyers' Association is going to want us. <br />
'''George:''' Well then, it's Showtime. }}
** [[Lampshaded]] when Michael talks about how the family can't afford to act proud any more and they'll beg for help if that's what it takes.
{{quote| '''Narrator:''' [[End of Series Awareness|Please tell your friends about this show.]]}}
** When the series ended there was a similar moment when Maeby was pitching her TV series (based on her family life, making it essentially ''[[Arrested Development (TV series)|Arrested Development]]''), to none other than Ron Howard, the show's director and narrator. He replies, "I don't see it as a TV show. Maybe a movie..."
* In the finale of ''[[Star Trek: The Next Generation]],'' [[Trickster Archetype|Q]] talks about "putting an end to your little trek through the stars".
** Near the end of "Ship in a Bottle", [[The Captain|Picard]], ''just short'' of smirking, muses about their reality:
{{quote| '''Picard:''' "All this might just be an elaborate simulation running in a little device sitting on someone's table."<br />
''Everyone leaves except Lt. Barclay, who looks contemplative''<br />
'''Barclay:''' "Computer... End Program?"<br />
''Credits Roll'' }}
** In another episode, Deanna remarked about how the ship's constant malfunctioning could be seen as humorous from an outside perspective, were someone watching.
{{quote| '''Deanna''': "In another time and place, this could be funny..."}}
* The ''[[Star Trek: Deep Space Nine]]'' episode "Far Beyond the Stars" has Captain Benjamin Sisko hallucinating/having a vision that he's a science fiction writer from the 1950s who ''actually writes about Deep Space Nine itself''. At the end of the episode, when the whole thing was revealed to have been a dream (vision, whatever), he wonders if life aboard the station is the illusion.
* The ''[[Stargate SG-1]]'' episode "200" almost in its entirety, and to a lesser extent, "Wormhole X-Treme". In the instance below, the characters are actually talking about a movie spin-off of a [[Show Within a Show]] based on the "real" Stargate Command. (Ironically, O'Neill's "surprise" appearance really made it into the commercial for that episode.)
{{quote| '''Martin''': I'm talking about a twist; something nobody's expecting! <br />
'''O'Neill''': ''[walks in]'' You mean something like this? <br />
'''Vala''': I don't think anybody will see that coming. <br />
'''Daniel''': Nope, there'll be spoilers. <br />
'''Carter''': Are you kidding? It'll be in the commercial. }}
** In addition, the episode "Secrets". Daniel Jackson admitted that he had not succeeded in his original mission, but promises to continue, though he fears that it may take many seasons.
* When [[Stephen Colbert]] [[Intoxication Ensues|accidentally dropped acid]], the ensuing existential crisis could be taken two ways -- either the character worrying about his insecurities and whether he's lying to himself, or the character briefly [[Tomato in the Mirror|realizing that he ''is'' just a character.]] This was mostly to clue in new viewers to the [[Alter Ego Acting]] thing, since the show had just gone global.
{{quote| "Where does this Stephen end and that Stephen begin?"}}
* ''[[Battlestar Galactica Reimagined]]'': When Roslin finally {{spoiler|tells Adama she loves him}}, his response is "[[UST|'Bout time.]]"
** The [[Arc Words]] "All of this has happened before, and will happen again" seem awfully appropriate for a remake.
* In the second episode of the fifth season of ''[[Angel]]'', Lorne says this about [[Love Triangle|Angel and Spike's mutual love for Buffy]]:
{{quote| '''Lorne:''' The [[Buffy the Vampire Slayer|vampire slayer]] that both men loved, both men lost. Oh, I could sell that to a studio in a heartbeat. I'm seeing [Johnny] Depp and [Orlando] Bloom. Then again, I see them a lot. ''(He notices Wesley giving him a strange look.)'' Sorry, I need to get out more--I've been spending so much time running Wolfram & Hart's entertainment division.}}
** Also in ''[[Angel]]'', in the first season, one episode begins with a woman being hunted by a gang of vampires. The vampires suddenly turn around, and one of them says, "You." The camera then shows us the person who has surprised them, starting with the feet and panning upward: black boots, a [[Badass Longcoat|long black trenchcoat]], a sword... and then we get to the face, which is that of a young black man (Charles Gunn) we've never seen before. He smiles and says, "You were expecting somebody else?"
* ''[[NCIS]]'':
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* On the subject of Dr. [[House (TV series)|House]]... Cuddy: "You come in with a case like this 24 times a year!"
** House: [On his penchant for Eureka moments occur at highly convenient times]
{{quote| I'll go talk to Wilson about something completely unrelated and see what happens."}}
** Similar moment to this when House is suddenly distracted by a eureka moment and Wilson says "You're about to get up and leave without saying anything, aren't you?"
** Dunno if the example fits here, but here goes: House questions a drug-dealer about his business, since he suspects that an undercover cop has been exposed to the drugs in question. First he says, calmly, "I need the drugs." The dealer says "I don't deal in drugs."
{{quote| ''House:'': (pause) "''I NEED THE DRUGS!''" (pause) "Huh. Works better when [[24|Jack Bauer]] does it." (Bear in mind, gentle reader, that {{spoiler|[[Don't Explain the Joke|both House and 24 are on FOX]]}})}}
** In the finale episode of Season 2, House initially thinks that he might be hallucinating {{spoiler|(he is)}} because he begins noticing the scene breaks.
* In the episode "Dual and Duality" of ''[[Blackadder]] the Third'', Edmund contemplates his legacy:
{{quote| '''Edmund:''' Yes, I'm afraid my ambitions stretch a little further than professional idiocy in West London. I want books written about me. I want songs sung about me. And then, hundreds of years from now, I want episodes from my life to be played out weekly at half past nine by some great heroic actor of the age.<br />
'''Baldrick:''' (smiling) Yeah, and I could be played by some tiny tit in a beard. }}
** A less extreme example, from earlier in the same series:
{{quote| '''Dr Johnson:''' Sir, I hope you are not using the first English dictionary to look up rude words!<br />
'''Blackadder:''' I wouldn't be too hopeful. ''[Looks into camera]'' That's what all the other ones will be used for. }}
* The title character of ''[[Chuck]]'' thanks Casey for saving his life "at least once a week".
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** In season 5, Tara talks about ''[[The Hunchback of Notre Dame (novel)|The Hunchback of Notre Dame]]'': "But he's not really good. He has no moral compass. The only reason he does good things is to win the love of this woman who could never love him back. That's how you know it can't end well..." Gosh, who else could that be referring to?
** During [[Musical Episode|"Once More with Feeling"]], Buffy famously alludes to her namesake show's timeslot with the following remark:
{{quote| '''Buffy:''' Dawn's in trouble. Must be Tuesday.}}
** In the episode "Get It Done", Buffy mentions the Hellmouth's tendency of "blowing in May". This alludes to the fact that apocalypses usually occur during season finales, which air during this month.
** Buffy saves Willow & Xander in the opening of the first episode of season 2. She then asks them "Missed me?" while looking straight at the camera.
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* That ''[[Will and Grace]]'' episode "No Sex 'N' The City" lampoons the show and sitcoms as a whole.
** During the series finale of Will & Grace this exchange occurs between the breakout characters Jack McFarland and Karen Walker:
{{quote| '''Karen''': Y'know, sometimes it seems like our sole purpose in life is just to serve Will and Grace.<br />
'''Jack''': Right. It's like all people see when they look at us are the supporting players on the Will & Grace show. }}
* In a season four episode of ''[[Psych]]'', Shawn boasts that he "solve[s] [[Once an Episode|a case every week]]... and usually [[Christmas Episode|one right around Christmas]]."
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* In the ''[[Firefly]]'' episode "Objects in Space", the character Wash expresses his disbelief that someone could be psychic: "That sounds like something out of [[Science Fiction]]." When his wife, Zoë, responds with, "[[Arbitrary Skepticism|We live in a spaceship]], dear," he says, "So?"
** [[Fridge Logic]]: please note that, from Wash's perspective, the conversation looked a lot like this:
{{quote| '''Walsh:''' "You're saying she's psychic? That sounds like something from [[Science Fiction]]."<br />
'''Zoe:''' "We're truckers, dear."<br />
'''Walsh:''' "So?" }}
** On the other hand, ''Firefly'' is set in the future of the real world, so we can assume science fiction about spaceships exists... it's just [[Technology Marches On|out of date]].
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** There's also an episode where John, wandering through a forest as usual, says "It's almost as if someone in their warm, cosy room typing at their computer sent us here for their own amusement."
* In an episode of ''[[Parker Lewis Can't Lose]]'', an early FOX hit, Parker encounters a student who has been in detention so long that he's lost track of the "outside world." The exchange went something like...
{{quote| "Dude...what do you see out there?"<br />
"Well, Batman is out, heavily-armored turtles are in, and..." (looks around, lowers voice) "...there's a ''fourth network''."<br />
"No ''way,'' dude!!" }}
* ''[[Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon]]'s'' DVD special act when {{spoiler|Mio}} became the [[Big Bad]]. She turns and smiles at the camera that's like she's asking to the viewer "Surprised I came back?"
* ''[[Boston Legal]]'' had a habit of doing this more and more as the series went on, with frequent references to the lead actors' previous roles as well as the show's own tropes and real-world issues, such as schedule changes.
** During a particularly complicated schedule change for the series, several of the characters appeared for a meeting during the cold open. When nobody else showed up for the meeting, the conversation went something like this:
{{quote| "Are we early? I thought we were on Tuesdays at 9."<br />
"Actually, we rescheduled. Now we're Wednesdays at 10."<br />
"So are we going to be Wednesdays at 10 every week?"<br />
"No, we're actually going to be Wednesday at 10 for a week, then take a week off, then we'll be Wednesdays at 9." }}
** In another episode, one of the lawyers was so ecstatic at being re-hired by the firm, that he burst into song. The song? [[Theme Tune Cameo|The ]]''[[Theme Tune Cameo|Boston Legal]]''[[Theme Tune Cameo|theme song]]. His performance was used in place of the usual opening credits sequence, with scenes of his gleeful singing inter-cut with the usual cast headshots.
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* In ''[[Black Books]]'', the three main characters are thinking about going to the cinema and look up what's showing. They find a film with a plot synopsis that sounds exactly like that of the show itself, but decide against seeing it [[Who Would Want to Watch Us?|because it sounds awful]].
* ''[[Charmed]]'', in an episode dealing with Lady Godiva.
{{quote| '''Piper''': Woman. Keep your clothes on, this is a family show. Really.}}
* During the last season of ''[[Mad About You]]'', Paul and Jamie are sitting quietly together, when Paul says, "It's the last season," and Jamie looks at him quizzically. Turns out he's talking about the MASH marathon he's been watching.
* In the ''[[Burn Notice]]'' episode "Sins of Omission", Michael starts the episode relating what had happened since he'd been blown up straight to the camera. It turns out that he was talking to Carla.
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* The [[Big Finish Doctor Who]] adventure ''Legend of the Cybermen'' has the Doctor and his companions Jamie and Zoe trapped in The Land of Fiction, where they are constantly being tricked into narrating their actions, with a segment where Jamie finds himself in a sound-studio, reading his dialogues from a script while a {{spoiler|Cyber}}man tells him to emote more.
** Also from that adventure:
{{quote| '''Zoe:''' None of this is real. This is all a wonderful children's adventure that adults adore.<br />
'''The Doctor:''' You are watching this from another level of consciousness, aren't you? }}
** ''A Death in the Family'' pits the Doctor against the Word Lord Nobody No-One, whom he finally traps in "The Hand of All", a universe entirely consisting of narratives, yet it seems just as real as the actual one. Nobody No-One calls the Doctor out:
{{quote| '''Nobody No-One:''' How do you know if you yourself haven't been travelling through a universe only consisting of written language and sound for decades?}}
 
 
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* In ''[[Dragon Age]]: Origins'', at the landing that leads to the Mage Tower, there are a pair of NPC's beyond a fence that are discussing how they're merely "in a play", prompting one to dismiss the idea that they're being watched by "beings" for amusement by pointing out that he has a boil on his big toe that [[Genre Blindness|proves the theory wrong]] - at which point he claims that anyone doing so are simply sick, twisted bastards.
* Used in ''[[Resident Evil|Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles,]]'' Game of Oblivion (which is a recreation of ''Code Veronica''). When walking up the stairs to fight Alfred Ashford, you are attacked by two zombies and Steve Burnside leans on the Fourth Wall here.
{{quote| '''Steve''': "Zombie, zombie, zombie, zombie! Ugh, it's like a damn video game!"}}
* In the ''[[Mega Man Battle Network]]'' series, installing the "Humor" program into Mega Man makes him do and say some nutty things. ''Battle Network 6'' gives us this conversation between him and Lan:
{{quote| '''Mega Man''': Lan, do you ever get the feeling that someone is operating you...Like you aren't in control of yourself?<br />
'''Lan''': What do you mean?<br />
'''Mega Man''': You operate me, right? Well, what if someone was operating you like some kind of game? What if you weren't really in control?<br />
'''Lan''': You mean someone is operating me!? I'm not a Navi, I'm a person!! Why would anyone operate me like I'm the star of a game? A game in its 6th hit installment perhaps... Are you feeling alright Mega Man?<br />
'''Mega Man''': Sorry...I'm just saying...What if? }}
* One level in ''[[Prince of Persia]]: The Sands of Time'' takes place in a library. During gameplay, the Prince's sidekick/love interest Farah will occasionally read excerpts from books, and eventually the Prince exclaims, "If you want to be useful, [[Pamphlet Shelf|try finding a book that'll tell us how to get out of here]]!" Farah replies with, "This isn't that kind of game", causing the Prince to mutter, "Game? [[This Is Reality|She thinks this is a game]]."
* In ''[[Portal (series)|Portal]]'s end song: ''[[Crowning Music of Awesome|Still Alive]]''
{{quote| '''GLaDOS''': And we're out of beta. We're releasing on time.}}
** In the sequel, a few of Wheatley's lines.
{{quote| '''Wheatley''': We can go anywhere! No rail to tell us where we can go! Now where do we go? ...Actually, just follow the rail.}}
* ''[[Super Mario Galaxy 2]]'' does this when Mario is low on lives or runs out and gets a [[Game Over]]. If you are low on lives, your big Luma friend suggests using the orange Luma (Player 2) to help you with the more difficult tasks and to have more fun. If you run out of lives, he will suggest to Mario to take a break.
* ''[[Fire Emblem]]: Path of Radiance'' has several conversations wherein a character is playing a war game and asks for strategic advice on a battle that just happens to be very similar to the battle you're about to play.
* While ''[[Sam and Max]]'' breaks the [[Fourth Wall]] regularly, sometimes they teasingly poke the glass, like lampshading their formulaic exchanges:
{{quote| '''Sam''': Random but innocuous comment.<br />
'''Max''': Irreverent reply which hints at mental instability!<br />
'''Sam''': You crack me up, little buddy. }}
** In the first episode of ''Season 2'', the Bad News headline reads "New S&M Season". If you examine it, though, Max says it's a shame Sam [[Funny Animal|(a dog)]] doesn't wear a collar since [[I Thought It Meant|the paper says they're in style]].
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* ''[[Silent Hill 3]]'': "Is this the end? Time to roll the credits."
** Have ''[[Silent Hill 2]]'' as an [[Old Save Bonus]] and you get a cutscene of Heather attempting to retrieve something from a toilet, before deciding it's too gross.
{{quote| (While looking directly at the camera) Who can even ''think'' about doing something so disgusting?}}
** At the end of the credits for [[Silent Hill: Shattered Memories]], Kaufman's analysis notes on the patient are directly referring to what he's deduced about ''you'' during the therapy sessions. Not the first game that's done this, until he ends the notes with "Lots of ground uncovered. Might be best to go back to the start and reexamine everything with the knowledge we have now. [[Macrogame|Think patient]] [[New Game+|will agree?]]"
* In ''[[Scratches]]'', Arthate's working notes contain his musings over whether the threat in his latest horror novel should turn out to be natural, supernatural, or [[Maybe Magic, Maybe Mundane]]. {{spoiler|This corresponds to the original ending of the game itself, and to each of the multiple endings of the Director's Cut version.}}
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** In ''[[Mass Effect 3]]'' the player meets with recurring character Conrad Verner once again. A well-known glitch in the second game was that Conrad would claim you had drawn a gun on him, even if you had not taken that option in the first game. Conrad apologizes for the mistake, saying he was really stressed out.
* In ''[[No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle]]'', after Travis kills Alice, the 2nd ranked assassin, he unleashes all his bottled rage due to [[Character Development]] at Sylvia. Except if you take the rant for yourself, [[You Bastard|it strikes]] ''[[You Bastard|really]]'' [[You Bastard|close to home.]]
{{quote| See that? Now THAT was a BATTLE! Look at this blood! We HUMANS are ALIVE! Even if we ARE assassins! Doesn't matter if it's a video game, movie, drama, anime, manga... We're ALIVE! People shed blood and die. This isn't a game! You can't selfishly use death as your tool! THIS is Alice's blood! I bet you've already forgotten she existed! Same way you would have forgotten me! And that's why I'm tearing down the UAA!}}
** Note that they're [[Leaning on the Fourth Wall]] in a game that [[No Fourth Wall|never had a fourth wall in the first place]]...
* This trope is brutally curb-stomped and tossed into oblivion in the ''[[Viewtiful Joe]]'' series. Almost justified in that they are in a movie ''[[Show Within a Show|in a game]]'', but Joe himself is just so damn [[Genre Savvy]] that rarely does a cutscene go by where this trope is not invoked.
* This trope is used often in ''[[Ace Attorney]]''. At one point in ''Trials and Tribulations'', presenting Maya with Phoenix's profile prompts the pair into a conversation over Phoenix's strange [[Anime Hair|anime style hair]]:
{{quote| "I mean, you normally only see hair like that in video games."}}
** This is also played in the first game when Dick Gumshoe referees to his constant use of "pal":
{{quote| "Hey! You can't just go around saying pal like that! That's ''my'' [[Charm Point|endearing character trait]]!"}}
** Also played in ''[[Ace Attorney Investigations|Investigations]]'' when you present a piece of evidence to the judge he will say that the Evidence has been added to the court record to which Edgeworth makes a reference to the first game in the series...
{{quote| "...I have a feeling his honor still thinks it's 2016..."}}
** Played again in ''Trials and Tribulations'': when presenting Gumshoe's profile to Gumshoe himself during a certain part of the game:
{{quote| '''Gumshoe:''' You know what's weird? Why do you have that goofy profile of me, pal? It's almost as if your court record only has enough space to store one in-detailed photo.<br />
'''Phoenix:''' (My court record is not a [[Game Boy Advance|game]] [[Nintendo DS|console]], detective...) }}
* In ''[[The Reconstruction]]'', whenever a character joins the guild's roster, there's a little fanfare that plays. When the starting cast joins in the beginning, [[Deadpan Snarker|Qual]][[Meta Guy|stio]] says "Is that nauseatingly cheerful music gonna play every time someone joins?" at one point. {{spoiler|Kulkumatz}} [[Brick Joke|also asks]] "What was that sound?" when he joins.
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* Ember does this in the ''[[Spyro the Dragon]]'' game, ''A Hero's Tail''. Her line goes "Don't take that bridge to the swamp, Spyro. If you do, I might never see you again". This both refers to the fact that it's dangerous, and she may not seem him again, and that she disappears from the game after you cross the bridge.
* The ''[[Disgaea]]'' series does this fairly regularly. For example, an optional conversation from the [[Disgaea Hour of Darkness|first game]]:
{{quote| '''Goleck:''' The Prinnies were talking about "[[Multiple Endings]]..."<br />
'''Laharl:''' ...Huh? Endings to what? }}
* In ''[[Starcraft II]]: Wings of Liberty'', just before the final mission if you click on Tychus he will comment that he is worried about the artifact they are using and that he fears it might shatter the entire space-time continuum. Raynor's response is to tell him that it's not science fiction.
* One of the many examples from ''[[Super Robot Wars Original Generations]]'':
{{quote| '''Sanger:''' Shut up! The Colossal Blade is the sword of my soul! As long as I have this I can still fight! This mech will inherit my soul! Behold the power of...<br />
'''*Giant writing on the screen*:''' Episode 30: Dygenguard!<br />
'''Vigagi:''' What was that!? And what does 'Episode 30' mean!? }}
** Tenzan, [[I Know Mortal Kombat|who learned how to pilot mechs entirely through video games]], constantly sees everything in video game terms. After he is defeated, he insists with his last breath that he'll just press Continue and try again with full HP. Which is something the player can actually do in case of a Game Over, but he can't.
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** ''[[As You Like It]]'': All the world's a stage and we are but players.
** From ''Julius Caesar'', immediately after Caesar's assasination:
{{quote| '''Cassius''': How many ages hence shall this our lofty scene be acted over in states unborn and accents yet unknown!}}
* Every ''[[Pantomime]]'' ever produced. It's a key part of the format that while one character will have [[No Fourth Wall]], the rest of the cast are only allowed to lean on it.
* [[Cyrano De Bergerac]]: This play is a blend of farce and drama, and his first act is placed at the Burgundy Theater. Cyrano has interrupted the [[Show Within a Show]] ''La Clorise''. The rest of the theater actors are rehearsing a new play, and Cyrano invites them to a [[Sword Fight]] [[One-Man Army|he will have with one hundred men]].
{{quote| '''Cyrano:''' Come all—the Doctor, Isabel, Leander,<br />
Come, for you shall add, in a motley swarm,<br />
The ''farce'' Italian to this Spanish ''drama''! }}
* The 2011 revival of Company does this when Bobby and April are discussing Bobby's apartment. As the set was left to be as simplistic as possible, all of April's remarks about the (non-existent) decor ("That's darling!" "Isn't that tasteful and interesting!") were made in reference to the conductor and the audience (with [[Neil Patrick Harris|Bobby]] at one point even reaching out and [[Breaking the Fourth Wall|poking]] the conductor.
* In ''[[Arsenic and Old Lace]]'', the character Johnathan Brewster is described as looking like Boris Karloff. Guess who played Johnathan in the original production?
* In Eugene Ionesco's ''Rhinoceros'', we get this exchange:
{{quote| '''Jean:''' Instead of squandering all your spare money on drink, isn't it better to buy a ticket for an interesting play? Do you know anything about the avant-garde theatre there's so much talk about? Have you seen any of Ionesco's plays?<br />
'''Berenger:''' Unfortunately, no. I've only heard people talk about them. [...]<br />
'''Jean:''' There's one playing now. {{[[[Breaking the Fourth Wall]] both turn to stare at the audience}}] Take advantage of it. }}
 
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** In another strip PeeJee asks why everything seems to revolve around sex. Davan instantly replies "Bad writing", but he's not really listening, he's hating the novel he's reading.
* ''[[Gunnerkrigg Court]]'', page [http://www.gunnerkrigg.com/archive_page.php?comicID=499 499]:
{{quote| '''Coyote:''' How is ''that'' for an enigmatic answer?<br />
'''Ysengrin:''' Very enigmatic. [[Shrug of God|It barely answers anything at all.]]<br />
'''Antimony:''' In fact, [[Kudzu Plot|it raises more questions than before]].<br />
'''Coyote:''' Hahaha! Aw come on, I can't tell you ''everything'' right away! That would make for a boring story, don't you think? }}
* ''[[Schlock Mercenary]]'' [http://www.schlockmercenary.com/d/20040929.html features an amusing] [[Lampshade Hanging]]:
{{quote| '''Schlock:''' I think [the chin] looks cool. Kinda heroic, like it belongs in a comic book or something.<br />
'''Narrator:''' For the sake of the fourth wall, the chin's coming off. }}
* [http://girlyyy.com/go/760 This page] of [[Girly]]: "These dickweeds sure can't get enough of it, all this swirly pitch blackness..." "It's probably because [[Lazy Artist|it's so easy to draw]]... [''next panel''] [[Cue Card Pause|our attention with it]]."
* In ''[[The Order of the Stick]]'', Tarquin ([[Dangerously Genre Savvy]] already) calls out the readers when {{spoiler|Thog turns out to be the arena champion.}}
{{quote| '''Tarquin:''' It's weird no matter how many people he kills, the audience still thinks he's lovable.}}
* [http://wapsisquare.com/comic/like-a-fable/ This] strip of ''[[Wapsi Square]]'' starts with [[Conversational Troping]] between Shelly and Heather, and ends with Shelly asking who the audience is in this scenario while looking directly at the "camera."
* Discussed (sort of) in [http://www.qwantz.com/index.php?comic=1910/ this] ''[[Dinosaur Comics]]'' strip {{spoiler|wherein God notices the fact that time passes in panels and mentions it, then when questioned about what he meant, insists that he doesn't know and neither should T-Rex}}.
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* Nadine in ''[[Demolition Squad]]'' does this from time to time, pointing out that she has completed the SAME year in school three or four times over, that she is an unrelated teenager below the age of majority freeloading at the principal characters' apartment for no clearly explained reason, that he would do well not to mention this is a job interview, that she has been wearing the same outfit for several years, and so on.
* Happens early on in ''[[I Was Kidnapped by Lesbian Pirates from Outer Space]]''
{{quote| '''Susie:''' Lesbian pirates from outer space! Psh! Sounds like a comic book to me. One that I'd definitely read.}}
* The punchline of [[Xkcd]] [http://xkcd.com/1054/ #1054] depends entirely on you ''reading'' the speech bubbles instead of imagining them as spoken dialogue.
 
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* Near the end of Season 5 of ''[[Red vs. Blue]]'', Church expresses irritation at the fact that "something dramatic happens exactly every five minutes" (which is the length of a typical episode).
* The 3rd RP of ''[[Darwin's Soldiers]]'' gives us this little quote:
{{quote| '''Cpl. Thomas Stern:''' It's as if someone is watching us and giving us what we need in order to get through our problems. That's very odd. Too much like 'deus ex machina' for me. ]}}
* In the final chapter of ''[[Sailor Nothing]]'', one of the main villains gives a [[Hannibal Lecture]]/[[You Bastard]] speech that can be taken as him addressing either the characters or the audience.
* Done in an episode of ''[[Potter Puppet Pals]]'' where Harry says towards the end, "...leave a comment, or submit a video response. And remember to subscribe!" It is presumed he's saying it to the audience before the camera cuts to Ron and Hermione, who look very confused.
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** In "Beast with a Billion Backs", Amy, just after the wedding, says "This is just like a movie with this happening in it."
** The first ninety seconds of the new series are overloaded with this:
{{quote| '''Professor Farnsworth''': We plunged into a massive wormhole, never to be seen again!<br />
''(they disappear through the wormhole, the ending of the fourth movie, then suddenly reappear)''<br />
'''Bender''': Yeah, we're back.<br />
'''Hermes''': Sweet coincidence of Port-Au-Prince! We're back at Earth!<br />
'''Professor Farnsworth''': Of course! That was the Panama Wormhole, Earth's central channel for shipping!<br />
'''Zoidberg''': [[Annoying Laugh|Heh-heh-heh-heh-heh.]] How humourous.<br />
'''Professor Farnsworth''': Yes, it's sort of a [[Comedy Central|'Comedy' central]] channel. And we're on it now!<br />
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'''Amy''': ''(gasps)'' I get it! }}
** Leela has a wall-leanin' line at the end of the season six midseason premiere episode ''Neutopia'' when Planet Express is narrowly saved from going out of business by putting out a nude calendar of all their female employees.
{{quote| '''Leela''': Thank God most of our fans are huge perverts.}}
** In ''The Beast With A Billion Backs'':
{{quote| '''Harold Zoid''': I got a part in a fancy DVD-movie! It's only one line but I'm gonna ham it up like you wouldn't believe!}}
* ''[[The Simpsons]]'' is surprisingly shy with these, perhaps because creator [[Matt Groening]] was adamant about the show maintaining its own reality and not resorting to fourth wall gags. Still, a few nods slip through. In the first clip show, Bart abruptly sets up a clip of an Itchy and Scratchy episode, which has nothing to do with what is being talked about. After it plays, Marge asks Bart why he brought that up. Bart replies, "It was an amusing episode....''of our lives''."
** In the same episode, Grampa Simpsons described comas as such: "It's like one of those TV shows where they show a bunch of clips from old episodes."
** And when they think the family is cured of its dysfunction, Lisa muses "Could this be an end to our series ... of events?"
** When the family watches the "Mr. Plow commercial" on a bad channel in the graveyard time slot.
{{quote| '''Homer''': It may be on a lousy network, but The Simpsons are on the air!}}
** In one episode, they teased at showing a clip show when Homer briefly reminisces about jumping Springfield Gorge, only for Lisa to say "No, Dad, everyone's sick of that memory!" and the episode to resume normally
** Let's put things into perspective, first: Jay Sherman, a character from ''[[The Critic]]'', [[Crossover|crosses over]] with ''The Simpsons''. ''[[The Critic]]'' has him host a [[Show Within a Show]]. Marge knew of Jay because of this show within another show. The result? This exchange at the end, where the family is bidding farewell to Jay:
{{quote| '''Jay:''' And if you ever want to visit ''my'' show --<br />
'''Bart:''' Nah, we're not going to be doing that. }}
** There's a list of all of the meta-references on ''The Simpsons'' at SNPP: http://www.snpp.com/guides/meta.html
** In [[The Movie]], Homer complains about paying money to see the Itchy and Scratchy movie when they could have seen the same stuff on TV for free, and declares everyone in the theater to be a huge sucker. Especially... *points at the camera* you!
** Part 1 of ''Who Shot Mister Burns?'' ends with the following:
{{quote| '''Dr. Hibbert:''' "Well, I couldn't possibly solve this mystery. Can ''you''?" *points at camera*<br />
*[[Beat]], then camera pans to show that Hibbert is pointing at Chief Wiggum*<br />
'''Wiggum:''' "I guess I'll give it a shot. I mean, it's my job, right?" }}
* Happens in ''[[My Life as a Teenage Robot]]'', when Tuck, [[It Makes Sense in Context|convinced that he's indestructible]], decides to drive turbo-charged tricycle down a nearly vertical ramp, over City Hall, and into a pool of sharks. Jenny insists she won't save him this time.
{{quote| '''Jenny''': This is your last chance to back down, Tuck.<br />
'''Brad''': Yeah, once you [[Jumping the Shark|jump that shark]] the show's over. }}
* ''[[Family Guy]]'' does this ALL THE TIME, especially in earlier episodes where they would talk about being able to stay on their current network.
* ''[[Ben 10: Alien Force|Ben 10 Alien Force]]'' has an example which combines this with [[Development Gag]]<ref>"Hero Generation" was the working title for Alien Force</ref>
{{quote| '''Kevin''': This is the stupidest show ever.<br />
'''Ben''': This isn't a good one to start with. It's not Sumo Slammers Classic; it's Sumo Slammers: Hero Generation! It's a sequel to the original series, but they kinda messed it up. It's set five years in the future and the bad guy is friends with the good guy. }}
* Considering the length of the average ''[[SpongeBob SquarePants]]'' episode...
{{quote| '''[[Butt Monkey|Squidward]]''': Why must every 11 minutes of my life be filled with misery?}}
** How about this exchange between Squidward and Patrick:
{{quote| '''Squidward:''' Patrick, just how dumb are you?<br />
'''Patrick:''' [[Ping-Pong Naivete|It varies.]] }}
** And in "Not Normal", when Spongebob visits Squidward's house, he tells Squidward that he doesn't wear pants.
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* An episode of the 1990's ''[[Spider-Man: The Animated Series|Spider-Man]]'' cartoon had him say, "This is starting to sound like a bad comic book plot!" This was in reference to the show's adaptation of the much-reviled Clone Saga from the comics. The title of the episode was "I Really, Really Hate Clones."
** One of the episodes from the "Six Forgotten Warriors" arc has Spider-Man give us this wonderful line:
{{quote| "[[Take Over the World]], Kingpin? Now you're starting to sound like a Saturday-Morning '''cartoon''' villain!"}}
** Over in ''[[The Spectacular Spider-Man]]'', Doc Ock has tired of the [[You Fight Like a Cow]] quips and asks Spider-Man why he won't just shut up already. Spidey smartasses back that his fans "expect a certain amount of quippage every battle."
* Episode 19 of ''[[Scooby Doo Mystery Inc]]'' ends with the producer of a reality show wondering if he could make a show about four kids and their talking dog driving around in a van solving mysteries; the gang [[Who Would Want to Watch Us?|immediately reject the concept as being unwatchable]].
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* On ''[[Phineas and Ferb]]'', Doofenshmirtz engages in [[Conversational Troping]] by comparing the misunderstanding between him and his daughter to a crazy sitcom. Then he says, "This isn't a sitcom, this is real life!" He and Perry then [[Aside Glance|glance uncomfortably in the direction of the audience.]]
* Used once in ''[[Recess]]'' when Gretchen wins a NASA contest because of her essay, and thinks she's going to be going on the space shuttle. This comes to T.J.'s attention, who's life long dream is to go on one of those, so he puts her through "training". One part has her having to swing from a rope attatched to the top of the swing set while a group of other kids throw dodgeballs at her, and she starts fooling around before they do, prompting T.J. to say this:
{{quote| '''T.J.:''' Gretchen! You're an astronaut, not a cartoon character!}}
 
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