Pointy-Haired Boss: Difference between revisions
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{{trope}}
[[File:Dilbert_204.jpg|link=Dilbert (
{{quote|'''Pointy-haired boss:''' I saw the code for your computer program yesterday. It looked easy. It's just a bunch of typing. And half of the words were spelled wrong. And don't get me started on your overuse of colons.<br />
'''Dilbert:''' [[Stealth Insult|They remind me of you, sir]].|''[[
The living embodiment of [[The Peter Principle]]. This is a person who has been promoted way beyond his level of competency. He or she may have had a clue at some point, but has since then misplaced it. Sometimes it is a [[Modern Major-General]].
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== Comic Strips ==
* The [[Trope Namers]] comes from the original [http://www.unitedmedia.com/comics/dilbert/the_characters/ Pointy-Haired Boss] in the daily comic strip and former animated TV series ''[[
** According to Scott Adams's 1996 book ''The Dilbert Principle'', the truly Pointy-Haired Boss is a reflection of the ''abandonment'' of the aforementioned Peter Principle. In the past, competent people were promoted until they reached a position just barely overreaching their talents; now, however, the ''absolutely'' incompetent are ''immediately'' [[Kicked Upstairs]] -- where, kept out of contact with the customer base and daily work load, they will do the least harm.
** Adams draws just about ''every'' manager with pointy hair. A minimum of 99% of them are lesser reflections of the original. Interestingly the PHB was originally a unnamed balding manager who was more [[Characterization Marches On|cruel than stupid]]. Then one day Adams accidentally drew the hair on the sides of his head slightly pointy and thought the resemblance to devil horns to be eerily appropriate. Then he started making him gradually more stupid while his hair kept getting pointier. And the rest is history. There's been the odd strip that actually ''sympathizes'' with the PHB and have him getting angry or frustrated for good reason. Presumably such instances come from the occasions when Adams solicits ideas from his readers, and a boss or manager was the one who got his attention.
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** Adams himself, when running a restaurant, realized that he was becoming a [[Pointy-Haired Boss]] himself, albeit a relatively benign one.
* In ''[[Retail]]'', just about anybody at the level of store manager or higher is portrayed as a PHB.
* Ralph, Sally's original boss in ''[[
* Rose Trellis (at least most of the time) in ''[[
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* Several of the officers in ''[[Sharpe]]''.
* [[Historical Domain Character|Vice-Chancellor Nesselrode]] is portrayed as this in ''[[The Death of the Vazir Mukhtar]]''.
* Hamnpork, leader of the Clan in ''[[Discworld
* George O. Smith's first "Venus Equilateral" story has a particularly memorable example... or at least a particularly memorable screwup by a PHB. The guy arrives, starts screwing things up and annoying people, tensions run higher and higher until there are pointless fights almost constantly... then an engineer swears, runs up to the center of the rotating station to get his bearings, then runs to the air plant - then runs to scream out the PHB. When the PHB arrived on the station, he'd done an inspection tour, and been confused by the air plant; he'd been expecting some manner of machine, but all he'd found was a big plot of sawgrass, '''''so he had some workmen clear it out...'''''
* ''[[The Phantom of the Opera]]'': Deconstructed with Opera managers Richard and Moncharmin in the original book: Everybody knows they get their jobs [[Screw the Rules, I Have Connections|thanks to their connections]], [[Evil Is Petty|that they play petty politics with the singers instead of recognizing their true talent, and they solve any problem firing those employees involved…]] [[Screw the Rules, I Have Connections|except those who can defend themselves]]. [[Stealth Insult|Nobody really respects them and they are accustomed to cruel pranks]], and that is the cause they never take seriously the Phantom’s menaces and think that Debienne and Poligny’s warnings are just a [[Practical Joke]]… until the [[Falling Chandelier of Doom]] incident.
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== Live-Action TV ==
* ''[[M*A*S*H
** Lieutenant Colonel Henry Blake exhibited signs of this, as he was a good doctor but an almost criminally incompetent administrator. Radar practically ran the unit, only requiring Blake to sign off on documents. One time he got Blake to sign ''blank'' pieces of paper even as Blake railed about not knowing what he's signing.
** Blake was also completely aware that he was totally inept when it came to running the unit. He was completely competent when it came to make serious medical decisions (i.e. in the OR, or anything to do with patient care), but realized he didn't know what he was doing when it came to other administrative matters. To that end, he was completely happy to let Radar run things.
** The few times [[Jerkass|Frank]] [[The Neidermeyer|Burns]] was put in charge, he was literally a criminally incompetent leader (as well as a doctor, but that's another trope there), bordering on [[Bad Boss]] turf.
** Hawkeye himself, while regarded as the best surgeon, did not do well when put in charge of the unit. Anytime that situation presented itself, his friends would have reactions in the realm of "oh god NOOOOO"
* Lieutenant Brass comes off very much as an incompetent and biased boss in the first episode of ''[[
* ''[[Homicide
** Detective Gharty is incompetent both as a beat cop ''and'' as the head of IAD, but turns out to be proficient when he finally lands as a homicide detective. When he is finally re-promoted to head the homicide division in the finale movie, he loses some of his competence again, becoming a shill for the department brass. It is noted that he's not entirely incompetent in the role, but in Giardello has some pretty big shoes to fill -- and many of the other detectives note that "he ain't no Gee." Gharty is treated as a rather sympathetic case. While he is intelligent and capable, it has been shown on multiple occasions that he really isn't suited for the rough life of a Baltimore police officer and should have retired years ago (he has earned two citations for Bravery in the past). Gharty also seems painfully aware of how unsuited he is but still helps the main characters and tries to protect them from Gaffney.
** Averted cynically with Roger Gaffney. He is shown as an incompetent detective, especially when compared to the main characters and is rerouted to a dead end department, but sleazes his way to a high end position and gets the Captain's spot Gee had earned. Given the show's cynical view of the bosses, Gaffney fits in perfectly among men with even less moral standing than himself and who happily abuse power for their own ends.
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* The laughably incompetent Colonel Klink of ''[[Hogan's Heroes]]''. It's been mentioned that he's from noble stock, so he most likely got the position through nepotism more than any real leadership ability. He confirms in one episode that his family pressured him into the military to get rid of him. However, he is also a career officer with decorations for bravery in [[WW 1]]; he used to be a pilot. It is almost certain he got promoted to his current position in an attempt to get rid of him, both as a bumbling fool and as a non-member of the Nazi party.
* Major Neuheim of ''[[Private Schulz]]'' is pretty much what Colonel Klink would be like if he was a die-hard Nazi.
* In ''[[30 Rock
{{quote| '''Jack:''' I've been reading up on humor, I found this hilarious strip called ''[[Dilbert]]'', and I want to know, can we do that?}}
* Captain Frank Hollister of ''[[
* The vacuous, hero-worshiping, management speak spouting Gus in ''[[Drop the Dead Donkey]]''. He would appear to be a living, breathing example of the Adams principle.
* Dougie in ''[[Enlightened]]'' is a sort of example. While he is actually rather good at programming, his people-management skills are horrible, and he is pretty socially inept.
* ISO Administrator Mike Goss in ''[[Defying Gravity]]'' is shaping up to be this, grinding subordinates faces in their mistakes while refusing to admit to or back away from his own.
* ''[[The Brittas Empire]]'' revolves around one of these running a previously ordinary leisure center. Gordon Brittas ([[Hey, It's That Guy!|played by]] [[Red Dwarf
* Arthur "Big Guy" Carlson, of ''[[WKRP in Cincinnati]]''.
* In ''[[Are You Being Served?
* ''[[The Wire]]'' has several outstanding examples, both in city government and the Baltimore Police Department, with almost all authority figures fitting in somewhere between [[Corrupt Corporate Executive]] and [[Pointy-Haired Boss]]. Special note has to given to Maj. Valchek, however, who is rewarded for his incompetence by {{spoiler|being made police commissioner}}.
* This is how Major Norton was portrayed in [[Disney]]'s ''[[Davy Crockett]]'' mini-series, though he may have just seemed this way against [[Badass|Davy]].
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== Tabletop Games ==
* Many [[RPG|RPGs]] with diversified point-buy systems have characters suffering from PHB syndrome, especially if rank is among the characteristics to be bought. You can create a character that uses 95 of their 100 points on their traits and 5 on (e.g. military, noble or clerical) rank ''or'' you can use 80 points on traits and 20 on rank. Guess which character will be more competent...
* ''[[Paranoia (
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* Department of Death Boss Don Copal in ''[[Grim Fandango]]'' might not have any actual hair, but if he did, it'd be pointy.
* Jeanne Frasoric, the head of the Bruma Mages Guild in ''[[The Elder Scrolls]]: [[The Elder Scrolls Four Oblivion|Oblivion]]''
* Cave Johnson from ''[[
== Web Comics ==
* The Magic School's Headmaster in ''[[Furmentation]]''.
* Lord Stanley the Tool from ''[[
* The head developer of ''Clichequest'', the satirically stereotypical MMORPG that ''[[The Noob]]'' is set in and around, is an idiot, [[Jerkass]] and [[Ted Baxter]] to boot.
* Mike in ''[[Between Failures]]'' is self-aware and trying not to be one of these, but his management training was inadequate to prepare him for the job, and those in charge of him have fobbed him off on one of the least important branch stores rather than trying to help him.
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* Horns, the ''[[Weapon Brown]]'' version of Dilbert's PHB is decidedly not like the original. For starters we're introduced to him as he's {{spoiler|''[[Klingon Promotion|murdering Mr. Dithers]]'' to take charge of The Syndicate}}. Then again {{spoiler|he forces the [[Mad Scientist]] version of Dilbert to rush CAL-v1.N and HOBS' awakening and ignores "Dilbert's" warnings that the two are unstable and uncontrollable}}.
* Mullet Boss from [[Basic Instructions]] fits this trope to a T
* Dr. Breign from ''[[
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== Western Animation ==
* The ''[[Dilbert (
* Mr. Larrity from ''[[Code Monkeys]]'' outdoes perhaps even the [[Trope Namers]]; the man has no clue how to run a video game company (other than knowing that Games = $$$), generally treats his staff like crap, displays unapologetic [[Stay in
* The [[Maurice
* ''[[Cat Dog]]'': Rancid Rabbit.
* Major Monogram from ''[[
* Zapp Brannigan from ''[[
{{reflist}}
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