Luxury Prison Suite: Difference between revisions
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* When [[The Joker]] had his own short-lived series during the 1970s, he somehow had a miniature hide-out constructed beneath his cell in Arkham Asylum.
* The alternate continuity ''[[Punisher]]'' series, published under the ''Max'' imprint, subverts this in the storyline ''The Cell'. The five that fired the bullets that killed Frank's family are all in the same large cell in Riker's. It looks like any old regular cell, but the narration reveals that they can get whatever the hell they want (except women) and the guards will look the other way. It's implied they could just outright leave if they wanted to. Frank doesn't let them.
* In one [[Wonder Woman]] story [https://web.archive.org/web/20140421160558/http://superdickery.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=571:wonder-woman-goes-to-prison&catid=34:suffering-sappho-index&Itemid=39 Wonder Woman goes to a planet where prison is said to be incredibly pleasant, and everyone goes at 15].
* ''[[Mad Magazine]]'' often parodies the kind of prisons white collar criminals and celebrities get sent to.
* Spider-Man and Daredevil villain Hammerhead has one of these in a recent ''[[Daredevil]]'' arc.
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* In ''[[Skyrim]]'', Sibbi Black-briar is given an eight month sentence in a luxurious "cell"—an actual bed, gourmet food, etc. -- for committing ''murder''. This is thanks to his mother Maven being one of the most influential and powerful people in Skyrim. And he still has the gall to complain.
* During the introduction of ''[[Mass Effect 3]]'', Shepard half-jokes that being detained isn't so bad "once you get used to the hot food and soft beds." What little we see of Shepard's cell features floor-to-ceiling windows looking out on the city, and since nobody bats an eyelash at Shepard walking around unrestrained, we can assume s/he's been given freedom to move about.
* ''[[Portal 2]]'' starts the same way the first game did, with Chell waking up in a cell, but this time, the cell looks like a nice hotel room. Until, that is, she wakes up a second time and has to escape the power malfuction about to wreck the whole facility.
== Web Original ==
* In the ''[[SCP Foundation]]'', a lot of SCPs are contained this way, often because the only way to keep them contained is to
** [https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-082 SCP-082] (aka Fernand the Cannibal) [[Napoleon Delusion|believes he is the King of France]]. Because it seems impossible to kill him or hold him in any sort of restraint (and is very dangerous, especially if angered), the Foundation enforces this delusion. His spacious living accommodations have the appearance of a luxurious palace, he is given any amenities he desires (like television, movies, books, and gourmet food), and anyone who speaks to him (mostly D-classes) are instructed to address him as they would actual royalty.
** [https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-053 SCP-053] (“the Small Girl”) is a child suffering a curse that makes her [[Not Allowed to Grow Up|unable to grow older]], and inflicts a [[Hate Plague]] on anyone who touches her or stays near her for longer than 10 minutes. Her cell is more or less a comfortable child’s room, and she is given toys, books, and games typical of a five-year-old, with the food provided being prepared by her request.
** The Foundation is more cautious with [https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-166 SCP-166] (the “Teen Succubus”), but she is still given a suite with comfortable furnishings and provided with any requests she makes, within reason (such as a Bible, other books, rosary beads, and occasional use of a telephone to call the nuns at the convent who raised her as a child). She’s even allowed a furlough every month, although where she goes is marked [DATA EXPUNGED]. So long as only female researchers and doctors interact with her, there is little risk.
** With [https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-343 SCP-343], Foundation members are told to pretty much give him whatever he wants. He claims to be God (whether true or not is debatable, but he clearly has god-like powers), and [[Self-Restraint|could leave any time he wanted]] - nobody wants that, seeing as he's a font of wisdom who loves giving advice or moral support to anyone who asks. He's also used his considerable [[Reality Warper]] powers to refurnish his cell, making it [[Bigger on the Inside]], with expensive-looking furniture, art, and a working fireplace - despite no connecting chimney.
** Possibly the most unfair example is [https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-056 SCP-056]; despite having murdered 17 SCP operatives and dozens of civilians while resisting their attempt to contain her (though they ultimately did) and despite being incredibly rude to the researchers and staff, she is given anything she wants other than weapons, communication devices, and internet, and her cell has things like a king-size waterbed, Jacuzzi, plus any food or entertainment she desires. The reason for this is simple - what makes her dangerous is the fact that [[Anything You Can Do I Can Do Better|Anything They Can Do, She Can Do Better]], literally. If she were to be punished, disciplined, or
** [https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-953 SCP-953] is another SCP who does not deserve it, as she has brutally murdered 10 Foundation operatives, dozens of civilians, and in one case, used her abilities of mind control to [[Moral Event Horizon| force a woman to murder, cook, and eat her own child]]. She is treated well out of necessity, as every time she escapes (as she has done seven times) she has brutally murdered any operative who abused her but spared anyone who showed kindness or generosity. If she behaves, her bed is regularly changed with clean sheets, she is allowed to have books, and given plumb wine and raw liver (''beef'' liver, not the human liver she prefers, but better than what most Keter-class SCPs are given). If she does ''not'' behave, however, her accommodations can be changed to iron shackles and prison gruel at a moment's notice - this system can at least dissuade her from acts of violence for ''a while'' at least.
** [https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-811 SCP-811]'s cell is a swamp-themed biosphere, a very nice place to live for anyone who is a swamp-dwelling [[Plant Person]] like she is. Plus the Foundation regularly releases small animals into the biosphere for her to hunt - it sates her aggression and keeps her from attacking Foundation members. D-Classes also give her a shampoo every other day, although that is more for health-related reasons.
== Western Animation ==
* In ''[[Megamind]]'', the
** He ''grew up'' in that prison. First he just landed there, but then the fucked-up logic of the setting meant that as a three-year-old participating in a prison break, he was sentenced to jail time instead of being put into the foster care system.
* ''[[Darkwing Duck]]'':
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* ''[[Ricochet Rabbit]]'' had one episode where he has to evict a cowboy prisoner who is quite happy right where he is, in the county prison. "Where else can I get a room and three square meals a day, for free?"
* Guitierrez in ''[[Freakazoid!]]'' gets away with this. Except for his toilet. He bullies the warden into giving him everything he wants, including an internet connection.
* ''[[The Simpsons (animation)|The Simpsons]]'',
*
** Another episode has Mayor Sideshow Bob sent to Minimum Security Prison for rigging his election. Per its name, it looks more like a college campus than a prison. Given that the local prison Harvard rowing team asked him to join up for a match against Princeton, its likely that the place is a prison for "white collar" criminals like corrupt business men or, in Bob's case, a corrupt politician. This is confirmed in "Sideshow Bob's Last Gleaming", where another inmate is 60% owner of Channel 6. ▼
▲* In ''[[The Simpsons (animation)|The Simpsons]]'', Homer, as a prison snitch, gets things like a plasma TV, a "Snitch Life" bling chain, and even a Segway from his "Mother".
▲** Another episode has Mayor Sideshow Bob sent to Minimum Security Prison for rigging his election. Per its name, it looks more like a college campus than a prison. Given that the local prison Harvard rowing team asked him to join up for a match against Princeton, its likely that the place is a prison for "white collar" criminals like corrupt business men or, in Bob's case, a corrupt politician.
** In another episode, when Kirk Van Houten was arrested, Chief Wiggum told him the cell he's going to wouldn't be so cold and damp as Van Houten's apartment. In fact, a normal prison cell felt like the trope for him.
* In ''[[Home Movies]]'', Brendon's class is taken on a field trip to a prison as part of a [[Scare'Em Straight]] program. However, they took them to a white collar prison, which the kids considered akin to this trope. Coach McGuirk even remarked that the cells were better than his apartment.
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** In the episode "Where There's Smoke", Volcana was spared a regular prison and instead isolated on an island, where Superman brought her supplies (this was both for extenuating circumstances and for the protection of other inmates, given her powers); it seemed a tropical paradise, so long as she stayed put, but she clearly did not. She was later seen fighting Supergirl, and later sent to a high-security section of Stryker's Island Penitentiary.
** The Ultrahumanite has one of these in ''[[Justice League]]'', albeit a relatively small one. Gourmet food, classical music, TV, books, he has to be heavily bribed by Lex to even consider escaping. {{spoiler| And then he agrees to betray Lex and go back anyway in return for Batman doubling Luthor's price... in the form of a charitable "generous donation" to his favorite classical music television channel in the Humanite's name. [[Viewers Like You|The channel even thanks him for it on air]].}}
** Bizarro World is this for Bizarro. Superman figured that the easiest way to keep a dimwitted clone of himself out of trouble was to "appoint" him as a guardian of this planet - which is uninhabited. It's not exactly a nice place to live, but Bizarro seems happy regardless.
* ''[[She-Ra|She-Ra and the Princesses of Power]]'':
** {{spoiler|Because Brightmoon has never had any need for a prison - or even a stockade - Queen Angella has the captured Shadoweaver kept in a standard guest room. Eventually, she becomes slightly more trusted, given access to more areas of the palace (even starting a garden) becoming an [[Evil Mentor]] to both Adora and Glimmer.}}
** {{spoiler|Scorpia fares even better - while they do tie her up and keep her under guard, they actually let her use Queen Angella's bedroom, as "it's the only spare room we have" with Perfuma (despite Scorpia having stung her in the fight that leads to Scorpia being captured) making sure she is well-fed. The great irony (which is not lost of Scorpia) is that she is treated better as a prisoner by the heroes than she ever was as a high-ranking officer in the villains' employ.}}
* In an episode of ''[[The Real Ghostbusters]]'', the team finds themselves in Ghostworld, where they are caught by the [[Evil Counterpart| People Busters]] and jailed in a human-holding containment unit; the [[Hammerspace]] interior resembles a peaceful, idyllic meadow. One could fathom thus that ''their'' containment unit is a nice place for ghosts, seeing as Ghost World is a dark mirror image of Earth.
** The heroes themselves seem to believe this; in one episode, they encounter a ghost who has been woken up from its eternal slumber, and simply ''cannot stand'' noise. They quickly determine it would be happy in the containment unit, as it's pretty quiet in there. Of course, it's hard to negotiate with a ghost when even the sound of ''talking'' makes it angry...
** This is later confirmed by other parts of the franchise. The containment unit is apparently comparable to a Heaven-like afterlife or grand royal pharaoh's tomb. At least one supernatural entity has surrendered for that reason.
== Real Life ==
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* Despite having the reputation of a [[Tailor-Made Prison]], the famous Bastille in the pre-Revolutionary France was actually designed to be a prison made of this trope. It was next to impossible to escape, and the inmates' identities were a carefully guarded secret, but most of them were political prisoners and noblemen who had caused embarrassment to someone of higher status, most of whom could expect to be released when their families paid the right people. Some even arose to high positions in the government after their release, so the wardens were extra careful on how to treat prisoners who could one day become their immediate superiors.
* Brazilian former Judge Nicolau dos Santos Neto, who was arrested and convicted for embezzling funds from the building of a courtroom, is occasionally transferred from prison to house arrest on the pretence of treating a depression case.
* The infamous [https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/09/27/tren-aragua-nino-tocoron-venezuela/ Tocorón prison in Venezuela], due to be [[Might as Well Not Be in Prison At All|basically managed by the Tren de Aragua gang]], slowly but surely got transformed from an overcrowded penitentiary center to a full family resort via absorbing the surrounding area and nearby town to build amenities like a night club, a full size baseball diamond, a children play area, and even a small zoo with exotic animals among others. They also had tunnels for the inmates to get out, with came handy when the Venezuelan government finally raided the place in a semblance of taking control over it.
{{reflist}}
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