Phlebotinum Analogy: Difference between revisions

** Subverted in ''[[Stargate SG-1]]''. A member of a super advanced humans planet tries to explain a piece of their technology to Daniel, and Daniel thinks he's talking about the "folding the universe to jump anywhere" theory, so he finishes the other guy's sentence to show that he understands. And the other guy looks at him deeply disapointed and says "no, absolutely not".

*** Well, to be fair, Omoc is doing the exact same analogy as the previous examples but with a twig. Sam might have understood, but Daniel's only an archaeologist.

 

 

** For that matter, almost any abnormality of the Stargate system is explained in terms of telephones; dialing your own gate gives you a "busy signal", etc.

*** At one point Jackson starts to make one of these telephone analogies, realizes he's talking to Teal'c, and turns to General Hammond.

{{quote|'''Daniel excitedly turns to Teal'c:''' What do you get when you dial your own phone number?

[[Beat|*Teal'c stares blankly at him*]] <br />

When Zelenka does come up with an analogy, Sheppard proudly says "I understand that" only to be told that the analogy isn't at all an accurate depiction of what he's doing. }}

** Fails in the episode that introduced the Tollan. When Daniel takes Omoc outside to send a FTL transmission to the [[Technical Pacifist|Nox]], he asks Omoc to explain how his message can cross interstellar distances in an instant. At first reluctant (due to the Tollan rule about not giving technology to younger races), Omoc takes a branch and bends it, so that the ends touch, explaining that the distances seem to be far away, until you merge the points together (paraphrasing). Daniel assumes he's talking about space folding, causing Omoc to shake his head in disappointment and shut up on the subject.

{{quote|'''Cat''': What is it?

'''Rimmer''': It's a rent in the space-time continuum.

{{quote|'''House''': We think you have a tumour, easily removed surgically. We're going to poke it with a stick.}}

** This was parodied in ''[[Dead Ringers (TV series)|Dead Ringers]]'', in which House asks his [[Insistent Terminology|Entourage of Improbably Attractive Sidekicks]] to first describe a medical problem in an impenetrably [[Techno Babble]] way, and then to come out with an overly emotive [[Phlebotinum Analogy]]. "...''His brain is literally eating itself!!''"

* ''[[Farscape]]'' does this on occasion, hindered (sometimes hilariously) by mutual cross-cultural ignorance.

* In ''[[Lost]]'', Ben tells Locke that there is a "box on this island that can contain anything you want." And when Locke takes it [[Sidetracked by the Analogy|a little too literally]], Ben states outright "the box is a metaphor, John." Hilariously, later we do see something that can be described as a magic box. Locke asks Ben "[[Call Back|Is that the box]]?" Ben is confused for a moment, but quickly answers "no."

 

== [[Web Comics]] ==

{{quote|'''Drecker''': We gave the ball of death a giant cavity and now it's past the enamel! There! Fine! Okay?

[[Beat Panel|(pause)]]<br />