Magic 8-Ball: Difference between revisions
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{{trope}}
A '''Magic 8-Ball''' is, in general, any tool that is used in order to gain advice or try to predict the future. It must be a prop or other physical object, since any characters would fall under [[Mentors]] or some other advice dispenser instead. It must be able to accept questions, and respond in turn.
In reality, a magic 8 ball is a classic toy. You would shake it and ask it a question, and a random response would come up in the window built into it. As a result, there are various uses of the possible responses involved, as well as of the 8 ball itself. [
See also [[Ouija Board]].
{{examples}}
== [[Film]] ==
* The 8-ball from ''[[Toy Story (franchise)|Toy Story]]''.
== [[Literature]] ==
* ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]'' parody ''[[Bored of the Rings]]''. The mallomar (its version of the palantir) looks and acts like one of these, including giving the answer "Reply Hazy, Ask Again Later".
* The Spell of the Eighth Sphere in the ''[[Ethshar]]'' series: A literally magical 8-Ball.
* In the [[John Bellairs]] novel ''The House With a Clock In Its Walls'', the protagonists use a Magic 8-Ball to find the titular clock. Wizard Jonathan and Witch Mrs. Zimmerman both try to use the 8-Ball without success. Eventually, Jonathan's nephew Lewis is able to get the 8-Ball to display the message "Basement." (Like any magical object, the 8-Ball only works for its owner).
* In George Alec Effinger's short story "The Great God Quay" from the ''[[Star Wars]]'' anthology ''[[Tales From
* Inspired by the then current Miss Cleo infotainment ads, ''[[The Funday Pawpet Show]]'''s Herbie started having interview guests "Ask a question of Magic 8-Ball" at the end of interviews.▼
== [[Live Action TV]] ==
* In an episode of ''[[Alfred Hitchcock Presents]]'' called "The Money", Hitch has a giant 8 Ball as a prop in the intro.
* In an episode of ''[[Seinfeld]]'', Patrick Warburton's character, Puddy, buys a jacket with a giant 8-Ball logo on the back.
{{quote|
'''Puddy:'''' ''[points at the back of his jacket]'' All signs point to yes. }}
* On ''[[Friends]]'' when Ross is faced with either divorce or cutting Rachel out of his life he resorts to consulting an 8-ball. His friends think the idea is ludicrous (except for Phoebe), but they can't come up with anything better. It keeps displaying the "ask again later" message.
* In an episode of ''[[
* An episode of ''[[Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide]]'' has Ned using a magic pyramid to figure out if he's going to fail a test or not. It gets smashed by the abrasive school counselor.
* In ''[[The Pretender]]'' episode "Past Sim", Jarod learns about the Magic 8-Ball, and near the end of the episode he leaves one for his pursuers, displaying the message "Don't count on it".
* In a ''[[Scrubs]]'' episode, J.D. has an [[Imagine Spot]] where Kelso uses Ted as a "human magic 8 ball"; he holds Ted's head between his hands, shakes it, then asks him a question.
* After [[The Big Bang Theory]] cast builds a battle robot, Raj suggests using it to cut open a magic eight ball to discover what is inside it.
* On [[The King of Queens]], the Mentalo toy from Doug's childhood (as well as its knockoff, Mental-Man) was a pull-string fortune-teller in a turban (or fez, respectively), but the character of its answers qualifies it as a variant of the eight-ball.
* Referenced in ''[[Big Wave
{{quote|
Dave: I did, it always came back "ask again later." }}
== [[Tabletop Games]] ==
* A [[Bland-Name Product|''Magic
== [[Web Comics]] ==
* Magic 8-Balls are in ''[[
** Vriska has an addiction to breaking actual Magic 8 Balls.
* An arc of ''[[Precocious (Webcomic)|Precocious]]'' parodied this with the "On Cue Ball," which didn't so much give advice as it [[Deadpan Snarker|ridiculed everything and everyone]].
* The Foolamancer from ''[[
* ''[[Knights of the Dinner Table]]'' #170 had an ad on page 74 for "ThinkGeek's [http://www.thinkgeek.com/geektoys/games/e1ee Magic d20 of Destiny]". It's shaped like a 20-sided die the size of your fist, and the messages it gives are appropriate for an RPG like ''[[Dungeons
* In [https://web.archive.org/web/20130927145154/http://adventurers.keenspot.com/d/0155.html this strip] of ''[[Adventurers
* ''[[Penny Arcade (Webcomic)|Penny Arcade]]'' has an interesting subversion in the Magic Hate Ball. See it [http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2001/01/17/ here.]
== [[Web Original]] ==
▲* Inspired by the then current Miss Cleo infotainment ads, ''[[The Funday Pawpet Show]]'''s Herbie started having interview guests "Ask a question of Magic 8-Ball" at the end of interviews.
== [[Western Animation]] ==
* [[
* On ''[[
* ''[[The Simpsons (
{{quote|
'''Milhouse:''' Yeah, you shake it up and it tells the future!<ref>Shaking the Magic 8-Ball is actually not recommended, as air bubbles can distort the answer that is displayed.</ref
'''Bart:''' Really?
'''Milhouse:''' Uh huh.
'''Bart:''' ''[takes it]'' Will I pass my English test? ''[shakes it, reads]'' "Outlook not so good." Wow, it '''does''' work! }}
* There's a minor background character on ''[[The Venture Brothers]]'' named Manic 8-Ball, with this as his power. He's an underling of Baron Underbheit.
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{{reflist}}
[[Category:Fate and Prophecy Tropes]]
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