Not Actually the Ultimate Question: Difference between revisions

{{trope}}

Holmes sighs. "Watson, you idiot. I deduce that ''someone has stolen our tent.''"|''[http://www.richardwiseman.com/LaughLab/second.html Runner-up in a "Funniest Joke In The World" competition]''}}

 

Mostly seen as the first lines of the first scene or a new scene. This can also be used as an [[Mr. Exposition|exposition]] shortcut.

 

{{examples}}

'''Yui''': I don't think she was hoping for a philosophical answer. }}

 

* [[Lampshaded]] in [[The DCU]] [[Alternate Continuity|Elseworlds]] ''JLA - Secret Society of Super Heroes'':

'''Bruce Wayne''': In a visiting-you way. }}

* Used in ''[[Green Lantern]]: Agent Orange.'' Hal Jordan has been stuck with a blue ring, which is messing with his green ring, and keeps asking, "What do you hope for?"

'''Blue Ring''': SINCERITY DETECTED. RING POWER CHARGE: 210% }}

* ''[[Calvin and Hobbes]]'' uses this in one strip to contrast between Calvin's tendency to think philosophically and Hobbe's to think more literally:

'''Hobbes''': ''(exasperated)'' I will, thank you. }}

 

* Used in ''[[Field of Dreams]]'':

'''Terrence Mann''': Oh. Dog and a beer. }}

* In the film ''[[Dunston Checks In]]'', an orangutan gets loose in the Majestic Hotel.

'''Robert (Manager)''': ''I think she means'', "How did it get into the hotel?" }}

* In [[Airplane!]] II: The Sequel:

'''Jacobs''': Well, let's see. First the earth cooled. [[Somewhere a Palaeontologist Is Crying|And then the dinosaurs came, but they got too big and fat, so they all died and they turned into oil]]. And then the Arabs came and they bought Mercedes Benzes. And Prince Charles started wearing all of Lady Di's clothes. I couldn't believe it. }}

* A [[Running Gag]] in ''[[The Muppet Movie]]''.

'''Kermit:''' Have you tried Hare Krishna? }}

* From Michael Leigh's ''Naked'':

'''Johnny:''' Well, basically, there was this little dot, right? And the dot went bang and the bang expanded. Energy formed into matter, matter cooled, matter lived, the amoeba to fish, to fish to fowl, to [[Somewhere a Palaeontologist Is Crying|fowl to frog]], to frog to mammal, the mammal to monkey, to monkey to man, [[Altum Videtur|amo amas amat, quid pro quo, memento mori, ad infinitum]], sprinkle on a little bit of grated cheese and leave under the grill till Doomsday. }}

* ''[[Chinatown]]''

Gittes: Isn't everybody? }}

* In the 1968 version of ''[[The Love Bug]]'', when Jim and Carole find out that the VW Bug has a mind of its own, and it won't let either of them exit the car, Carole tries to call for help from some hippies in the van parked next to them:

'''Hippy:''' We ''all'' prisoners, chickee-baby. We all locked in. }}

The police station makes me nervous. }}

 

* This is very common in the [[Discworld]] books.

{{smallcaps| "It's been very quiet."}} }}

* This happens in a serious and plot-relevant way in [[Gene Wolfe]]'s [[Book of the New Sun]] series. The protagonist asks for "directions to the garden," which is misinterpreted as a request for ultimate enlightenment by an entity capable of obliging.

 

* An episode of ''[[Goodness Gracious Me]]'' had two teenagers in a Hindu temple, one of whom asked the other "why are we here?" After the second gave a long philosophical speech the first asked "No, why are we ''here''? We're Sikhs."

* In a ''[[Monty Python's Flying Circus]]'' sketch, Dennis Moore, who robs from the rich and gives to the poor, is asked by his latest victims "What do you want? Why are you here?" He takes this as a philosophical question despite the fact that he just swung into their window to steal their possessions for the third time.

* Deconstructed in ''[[Babylon 5]]'', where the ''point'' is to ask these questions until [[Armor-Piercing Question|the questionee starts revealing things that are actually relevant]]:

'''G'Kar''': Wait! What do I want? The Centauri stripped my world. I want justice. }}

** And also inverted by the episode "Comes the Inquisitor", in which the titular inquisitor interrogates Delenn with questions of this type, responding to mundane answers with [[Electric Torture]]:

'''Sebastian:''' You've answered the wrong question! Why are you here now, ''in this place, in this life''? }}

* Shows up in the ''[[Angel]]'' episode "Sanctuary". Faith has agreed to stay with Angel and start [[The Atoner|atoning]] for her (many) sins:

'''Angel''': Uh... power level, time, start. Sure that popcorn is gonna be enough for you? }}

* The ''[[Friends]]'' episode "The One With The Two Parts":

Phoebe: Ooh! Bath salts would be nice. }}

* ''[[Leverage]]'' has a classic example:

'''Nate''': No no no, I meant, where are we at, finding the money? }}

'''George Smiley''': Quite right, Peter. I should have known better than to have asked. }}

'''Doctor:''' Then we're going to lunch. }}

** Also, in the Seventh Doctor story "Dragon Fire", the Doctor distracts a guard by engaging him in a philosophical discussion, until a second guard arrives, gun in hand:

'''Doctor''': Ah, an existentialist. }}

* Inverted in a comic scene from ''[[Xena: Warrior Princess]]'', in which [[Plucky Comic Relief]] Joxer is helping the heroines and [[Lovable Rogue|"king of thieves"]] Autolycus track down Joxer's long-lost brother Jett.

'''Autolycus''': No, in a larger sense... why is he ''here''? }}

* In the [[Firefly]] episode "Out of Gas", Mal tries to convince Zoe that [[The Alleged Car|Serenity]] is a decent ship:

'''Mal''': Oh, yeah, I guess something must've been living in here, just step around that. }}

* In the ''[[Mad Men]]'' episode "The Gypsy and the Hobo", Don and Betty take the kids trick-or-treating {{spoiler|following Don's confession of his past identity}}

* Inverted in ''[[Everybody Loves Raymond]]''. Ray's daughter Ally asks 'Where do babies come from?'. He responds with a typical, awkward birds and the bees talk, but it turns out she was wondering about the meaning of human existence.

* In ''Gene Roddenberry's [[Andromeda]]'': Trance has just inexplicably broken into Dylan's prison cell and offers him water. Dylan asks, "How?" Trance replies: "Well, when two hydrogen atoms love each other very much, they find an oxygen atom and..."

'''Mike''': During the Ice Age, glaciers moved through...oh, you mean recently. }}

* ''[[Space Cases]]'' has an example where Thelma gets asked the wrong question, and sure enough, ends up starting with the Big Bang...surprisingly enough, she gets to the end after a scene switch!

* In an episode of ''[[WKRP in Cincinnati]]'', Jennifer reluctantly became the host of a radio advice show. One exchange from her show:

'''Jennifer''': The cereal or the magazine? }}

* ''[[Lost]]''

[Charlie looks up... and his guitar is wrapped in vines on a cliff] }}

* ''[[The Suite Life of Zack and Cody]]:''

'''Zack:''' No, why are you ''here'', in the basement? }}

 

* An old musical joke:

'''Answer''': Practice. }}

** Alternately, if you live in NYC the answer is "Take the 'F' train to..."

** And one can get to [[Country Music|Nashville]] by singing through one's nose.

 

* Inverted in a ''[[Calvin and Hobbes]]'' strip.

'''Hobbes''': I will, thank you. }}

* Used in a ''[[FoxTrot]]'' strip, with Paige asking her father why they have fireworks for the Fourth of July. Roger muses on the celebratory symbolism behind the tradition before Paige corrects him; why do ''they'' have fireworks, as they duck an out-of-control rocket Jason had lit that zooms over their heads.

 

** And a few minutes later...

'''Arthur''': I mean in this cave. }}

'''Dougal:''' ''(laughing)'' Stolen the tent! That would be the funniest joke in the world, wouldn't it! }}

 

'''Garshask''': I dunno. Nice house, riches, power, the world crushed beneath my feet...same as everyone really. ...Oh, you meant with you? }}

* Played with in ''[[Penny Arcade (Webcomic)|Penny Arcade]]'', [http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2006/7/12/a-wider-perspective-on-flavor/ here].

* A variation appears in ''[[A Girl and Her Fed]]'' when the Fed asks, [http://www.agirlandherfed.com/1.675.html "Is that a human arm?"]

"No, no. Not why we are in this {{spoiler|bubble}} now. But why we all exist in the first place and why we all went on this adventure together." }}

* In ''[[Captain SNES]]'', [http://www.captainsnes.com/2011/03/16/648-occupational-choices-in-the-great-beyond/ The Eater of Dreams learns that "What are you doing here?"] may not be the best question to ask an angel of resurrection.

* In ''[[PHD]]'', the nameless guy's roommate asks him '[http://www.phdcomics.com/comics/archive.php?comicid=3 Why are we doing this?]' Nameless goes into an extended rant about how terrible grad school is and confesses he has no idea why he's there. The roommate says, 'No, I mean, why are we doing the problems from the wrong chapter?'

* In ''[[The Order of the Stick]]'', when Elan receives a flying carpet from {{spoiler|General Tarquin}}:

'''{{spoiler|Tarquin}}''': Or did you mean the carpet? Just pull on one of the tassels. }}

 

* The first episode of ''[[Red vs. Blue]]'' shows two characters on top of one of the [[Halo|Blood Gulch]] bases. One asks the other, "Do you ever wonder why we're here?". The other expectantly responds with a brief speech about whether or not we were created, or just popped into existence. What the asking character actually meant was "Why are we here in a box-canyon in the middle of nowhere?"

** And then it's played with and returned to in a later episode.

''"No. I never, '''ever''' wonder why we're here. [[Semper Fi]], [[This Is All The Tropes Bitch|bitch]]."'' }}

** And given a [[Double Subversion]], combined with a [[Call Back]] in ''Revelation'', Chapter 18. {{spoiler|Sarge asks each and every one of the remaining Reds and Blues why they are here. Grif begins reading his lines from Season One, when Sarge cuts him off and explains that he meant to ask an even more meaningful question - why are each of the Reds and Blues still in this group, when they could be off somewhere else? He then delivers a [[Rousing Speech]] that brings the both teams together and makes them ready to kick ass.}}

* Played with in the [[Bri TA Nick]] sketch ''[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WeKVM6lxGp4 Everything]'', in which Brian really ''does'' want to hear everything.

 

* ''[[The Real Ghostbusters]]'' episode ''Drool the Dog-Faced Goblin'' had this conversation:

'''Winston''': (making the timeout sign with his hands) No, Egon! Time! I meant, why are we in the Poconos? }}

* A minor running gag in ''[[House of Mouse]]'' is that Horace would respond to ''any'' question in such a manner, at least the first time. (He'd always use [[Rule of Three|three statements]], too.)

** The first episode had this:

'''Mickey''': No, I mean what's wrong ''in here''? }}

'''Ed''': Blame my parents, Eddy! }}

 

* In ''Normality'', when you are about to be captured later in the game, the [[Dialogue Tree]] allows you to respond to the question "Why are you here?" with "That is a question that has puzzled philosophers for thousands of years.".

 

* The story about how Che Guevara became Fidel Castro's right hand man goes like this: Che, Castro and a bunch of other people are having a dinner party, and one of them innocently asks Castro what he was doing in Argentina. Cut to five hours later where everybody but Che has left the table and Castro ''is still talking.''

* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eiz6F8qjK9Q Jay-Z misinterpreting Nardwuar the Human Serviette's "Who are you?"]

 

{{reflist}}

[[Category:Dialogue]]