Properly Paranoid: Difference between revisions

Line 12:

If this doesn't make John look crazy or paranoid, it might overlap with [[Crazy Prepared]].

Also, if John is ever wrong, if he's paranoid enough, [[Self Fulfilling Prophecy|he will soon be right]].

Also, if John is ever wrong, if he's paranoid enough, [[Self-Fulfilling Prophecy|he will soon be right]].

See also [[Cassandra Truth]] and [[You Have to Believe Me]]. Sometimes overlaps uncomfortably with [[Omniscient Morality License]] when this character is the hero. Contrast with [[The Complainer Is Always Wrong]].

== Anime & Manga ==

Line 25:

* Most of the Exorcists in ''[[D Gray Man]]'' are like this. Since Akuma look completely normal until they fill you full of [[More Dakka|bullets]] that [[Body Horror|dissolve you into a cloud of toxic dust]], it's kind of understandable that they're a little on edge.

* Subverted in ''[[Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni]]''. {{spoiler|If it seems like people are trying to kill you, it's usually [[Hate Plague|hallucinations]]. Regardless, becoming like this will only make things worse.}}

* In ''[[Durarara]]'', Shizuo maintains that 99% of all the weird crap that goes down in Ikebukuro is completely and utterly Izaya's fault, whether it be a gang wars or hordes of knife-wielding zombies. [[Lies Damned Lies and Statistics|Made-up-on-the-spot statistics aside]], he's more or less right.

* In ''[[Durarara]]'', Shizuo maintains that 99% of all the weird crap that goes down in Ikebukuro is completely and utterly Izaya's fault, whether it be a gang wars or hordes of knife-wielding zombies. [[Lies, Damned Lies, and Statistics|Made-up-on-the-spot statistics aside]], he's more or less right.

* The world of ''[[Pokémon]]'' may be okay with [[Free Range Children|letting kids run around unsupervised]], but, in ''[[Pokémon Special]]'', Sir Berlitz hired a pair of bodyguards to accompany his [[The Ojou|daughter]] on her journey to Mt. Coronet. Good thing too, as she becomes the target of kidnapping and winds up in the battle against Team Galactic. Too bad due to a mishap she got a pair of aspiring comedians instead.

* The world of ''[[Pokémon]]'' may be okay with [[Free-Range Children|letting kids run around unsupervised]], but, in ''[[Pokémon Special]]'', Sir Berlitz hired a pair of bodyguards to accompany his [[The Ojou|daughter]] on her journey to Mt. Coronet. Good thing too, as she becomes the target of kidnapping and winds up in the battle against Team Galactic. Too bad due to a mishap she got a pair of aspiring comedians instead.

* In ''[[Bleach]]'', Toshiro Hitsugaya is wondering if Aizen's death was forged and thinks that there's a traitor among them. {{spoiler|Look who was the villain for six years.}}

Line 56:

* Bryan Mills from ''[[Taken (Film)|Taken]]'' looks like a stock [[Overprotective Dad]] until his warnings turn out to be too true.

* In ''[[Bowfinger]]'', a movie star prone to paranoia is driven to even wilder hysteria when a small film crew shoots a dramatic movie starring him without his knowledge. His Scientology-like counselors fruitlessly try to calm him down until they discover the film crew and note "Well, I guess it's true; it's not paranoia when someone's really after you."

* In ''[[Ferris ~~Buellers~~ Day Off (Film)|Ferris Buellers Day Off]]'', Cameron doesn't want to leave his dad's prized [[Cool Car|Ferrari]] at a garage in the care of a sleazy-looking attendant. He does so only after some persuasion by Ferris. It turns out his worries were absolutely justified as the attendant and his friend take the car on a joyride only seconds after they leave, adding dozens of miles onto the car.

* In ''[[Ferris Bueller's Day Off (Film)|Ferris Buellers Day Off]]'', Cameron doesn't want to leave his dad's prized [[Cool Car|Ferrari]] at a garage in the care of a sleazy-looking attendant. He does so only after some persuasion by Ferris. It turns out his worries were absolutely justified as the attendant and his friend take the car on a joyride only seconds after they leave, adding dozens of miles onto the car.

* ''[[The Game (Film)|The Game]]''. The movie starring Michael Douglas, a billionaire who's grown bored and weary of his life... so he hires a company to help him play a little game, after being referred there by his brother.

* ''[[The Presidents Analyst]]'', soon after taking the title job, worries for his own mental health when he thinks he's seeing Men In Black following him everywhere, and has a nightmare that his girlfriend is a spy. Turns out he's right on both counts.

Line 143:

** What Suzanne Modeski tells the Lone Gunmen could be the series' motto: "No matter how paranoid you are, you're not paranoid enough." (I think that takes paranoia to the point of kitsch.)

* In the ''[[Doctor Who (TV)|Doctor Who]]'' episode "Rose", Clive has spent years collecting information about the Doctor and building theories about him, most of which are right. Rose ignores his warning that death is the Doctor's constant companion. Within hours, aliens have attacked Rose and are killing people all over London, including Clive.

** Which just goes to show shows that spending too much time [[In ~~Harms~~ Way]] is an good way to be ''[[No Good Deed Goes Unpunished|mistaken for the cause of said Harm]]''.

** Which just goes to show shows that spending too much time [[In Harm's Way]] is an good way to be ''[[No Good Deed Goes Unpunished|mistaken for the cause of said Harm]]''.

* A second season episode of ''[[Forever Knight (TV)|Forever Knight]]'' starts out with a teen delivering groceries to the world champion of paranoia: barricaded in a house with the garden constantly lighted up like madison square garden, wild-eyed, unshaven, sweaty, clinging to his shotgun, very highly strung but, after the initial shock, almost a nice guy. {{spoiler|When Mr. Paranoia steps out of doors in a fit of anger just once, he isn't outside for a minute before something nasty gets him.}}

* On ''[[The Invisible Man (TV)|The Invisible Man]]'' Bobby Hobbes' paranoid delusions sometimes (not always) turn out to be right. To quote his partner Darien,

Line 195:

* As might be guessed by the name, the same is true of ''[[Paranoia]]''.

* [[Chaotic Evil]] creatures in ''[[Dungeons and Dragons]]'' -- as well as anyone living close to them -- usually are leery to the extreme.

** The Drow are justifiably paranoid about their enemies and as such tend to get killed by their friends. [[~~Mortons~~ Fork|Conversely]], if one spends too many time looking over the shoulder at one's allies... according to Drizzt Do'urden, "Those who watch their backs meet death from the front." Even technically [[Chaotic Good]] followers of Eilistraee tend to be very jumpy, as most of them are ex-Lolthites and know what to expect all too well. And of course any non-disguised Drow outside of their territory--above ground or below--usually are attacked on sight, [[Van Helsing Hate Crimes|without asking for their purpose or something]], by almost anyone else not too busy running away, which usually is a [[Properly Paranoid]] reaction as well.

** The Drow are justifiably paranoid about their enemies and as such tend to get killed by their friends. [[Morton's Fork|Conversely]], if one spends too many time looking over the shoulder at one's allies... according to Drizzt Do'urden, "Those who watch their backs meet death from the front." Even technically [[Chaotic Good]] followers of Eilistraee tend to be very jumpy, as most of them are ex-Lolthites and know what to expect all too well. And of course any non-disguised Drow outside of their territory--above ground or below--usually are attacked on sight, [[Van Helsing Hate Crimes|without asking for their purpose or something]], by almost anyone else not too busy running away, which usually is a [[Properly Paranoid]] reaction as well.

* A way of life (or perhaps the ''only'' way of life) for the Mages of [[Mage: The Awakening]]. Personal information can be used as an ingredient for more powerful spellcasting, so Mages take great pains to make sure that they leave no hairs anywhere, that their old clothing is either properly disposed of or burned, and that no one ever, ''under any circumstances'', discovers their real name.

Line 269:

* [[Whateley Universe|Whateley Academy]] is actively trying to instill a form of this attitude in its students. As staff members have been heard to state outright, the point of the school isn't so much to produce superheroes or - villains - or even provide a formal education (though it does that, too) as to train young mutants to survive in a world in which many people ''are'' out to get them.

** Phase is paranoid, and rightly so. He grew up in an ultra-wealthy family, and so has spent his whole life watching for conmen, hucksters, golddiggers, false friends, you name it. He bought a high-end utility belt after only a couple weeks at Whateley Academy. The one time he wasn't wearing it (because the powers testing guys insisted on experimenting on it) he really, really needed it.

** Except for Gunny Sergeant Bardue, whose behaviour is less [[Properly Paranoid]] and more simply [[Jerkass]]. He beats up a young student for demonstrating how his illusions work because the illusion, which was quite clearly only an illusion, resembled an antique pistol. He later hurls a car at a student that has no mutant ability, with the intent of forcing her latent mutation to manifest. Not only is the manifestation of a mutant power actually none of his concern, it may have been a life-destroying change for the student, such as if her power manifested by turning her permanently into a monstrous form. And that's assuming that she had a latent mutation that would react to, and be able to defend against, a car hurtling towards her. [[What an Idiot]]!

** Except for Gunny Sergeant Bardue, whose behaviour is less [[Properly Paranoid]] and more simply [[Jerkass]]. He beats up a young student for demonstrating how his illusions work because the illusion, which was quite clearly only an illusion, resembled an antique pistol. He later hurls a car at a student that has no mutant ability, with the intent of forcing her latent mutation to manifest. Not only is the manifestation of a mutant power actually none of his concern, it may have been a life-destroying change for the student, such as if her power manifested by turning her permanently into a monstrous form. And that's assuming that she had a latent mutation that would react to, and be able to defend against, a car hurtling towards her. [[What an Idiot!]]!

* In ''[[Marble Hornets]]'', Alex starts constantly filming himself midway through producing his student film. After J watches the tapes, he starts filming himself as well. What they find is disturbing, to say the least.

* [[Gaia Online]], true to form, has at least three known examples.

Line 282:

== Western Animation ==

* Mr. Crocker in ''[[Fairly Oddparents]]'' suspects that '''[[Catch Phrase|FAIRY GOD PARENTS!!]]''' are involved in every unusual situation, regardless of how minor. He is always correct, not that it helps.

* [[The Question]]'s appearances on ''[[Justice League Unlimited]]'' are filled with [[Conspiracy Theorist|wild ramblings about obscure plots]], but his crackpot theories seem a lot less crazy when you realize that he was right about Supergirl's disturbing dreams, Luthor triggering the apocalypse ''and'' [[Arson Murder and Jaywalking|Baskin-Robbins' 32nd flavor]].

* [[The Question]]'s appearances on ''[[Justice League Unlimited]]'' are filled with [[Conspiracy Theorist|wild ramblings about obscure plots]], but his crackpot theories seem a lot less crazy when you realize that he was right about Supergirl's disturbing dreams, Luthor triggering the apocalypse ''and'' [[Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking|Baskin-Robbins' 32nd flavor]].

* Tweek from ''[[South Park]]'', a 8-year-old boy, addicted to caffeine and suffering from ADD, is constantly twitching, jumping, screaming and pulling his hair out, because he sees the underpants gnomes. Unfortunately, ''they are real''. Another time when the boys try to steal Kenny's ashes from the McCormick's living room they tell Cartman his fear that there are robot guards is ridiculous. ''Of course'' there ''are'' robot guards.

* Parodied in ''[[The Simpsons]]'' which had the supervisor of a peanut factory forcing his employees to undergo hours of drilling to prepare for any potential elephant attacks. His efforts are all for naught, however... since in the middle of just such an attack, as he's bragging about his preparations, he gets flattened by an elephant.

Line 307:

** Stork built an impressive array of traps in the Condor, much to the consternation of the other crew members, but on the numerous occasions the ship has been boarded they are ''very'' useful, and the crew are glad to have them.

* ''[[Jimmy Two-Shoes]]'' has this with Beezy against the weavils.

** Also, Jimmy's [[Why Did It Have to Be Snakes|fear of pickles]] seems like the most absurd thing ever, but once you find out the true nature of [[Bitch in Sheep's Clothing|Mrs. Gerkin]], it doesn't seem so foolish.

** Also, Jimmy's [[Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?|fear of pickles]] seems like the most absurd thing ever, but once you find out the true nature of [[Bitch in Sheep's Clothing|Mrs. Gerkin]], it doesn't seem so foolish.

* ''[[Family Guy (Animation)|Family Guy]]:'' The psychotic Mayor [[Adam West]] tells Meg to "watch out for The Noid," the old Domino's Pizza mascot, because he's trying to ruin his pizza's freshness. Later The Noid actually appears and West snaps his neck and then takes a bite of his pizza remarking "Perhaps it is The Noid who should have avoided me." Then, of course, there's the Evil Monkey...

* Flaky might come across as being irrationally nervous and the character has a boatload of phobias in ''[[Happy Tree Friends]]'', but considering what usually ends up happening to the HTF gang, and the [[Everything Trying to Kill You|somewhat unusual delivery mechanisms of said fates,]] her fears seem rather justified... but unfortunately her caution rarely pays off due to [[~~Finagles~~ Law]] being in effect.

* Flaky might come across as being irrationally nervous and the character has a boatload of phobias in ''[[Happy Tree Friends]]'', but considering what usually ends up happening to the HTF gang, and the [[Everything Trying to Kill You|somewhat unusual delivery mechanisms of said fates,]] her fears seem rather justified... but unfortunately her caution rarely pays off due to [[Finagle's Law]] being in effect.

* Mallory from ''[[The Mighty Ducks (Animation)|The Mighty Ducks]]'' seemed rather disturbed that brainiac Tanya not only had a named code in the case of a random dinosaur attack but defense plans for just such an occasion. Of course dinosaurs are cousins to the race that twice conquered their planet and enslaved their people, so it's not as out there as the show makes it.

* The titular hero of ''[[Buzz Lightyear of Star Command]]'' theorizes that anything bad that happens in the universe is the work of his [[Arch Enemy]], the Evil Emperor Zurg. It was even [[Lampshade Hanging|lampshaded]] in the pilot movie.

{{quote| '''Warp Darkmatter''': What plot?! You think Zurg is behind every kitten stuck up a tree!<br />

'''Buzz''': The fiend! Why can't he leave kitty cats out of his nefarious schemes? }}

** The freakiest thing is he's usually right, as Zurg, being a classic [[Card Carrying Villain]], will do anything to cause chaos in the galaxy. Heck, there was even one episode completed devoted to this trope where Buzz (after working nonstop for weeks) captures a pen from one of Zurg's shuttles, believing it to be the key to one of his most devious plans. Everyone thinks he's been wound a bit too tight and force him to take a vacation and relax. It turns out though that Buzz was right as the pen was the firing trigger for Zurg's ''(with dramatic sting music)'' '''Hyper''' [[Death Ray]]!

** The freakiest thing is he's usually right, as Zurg, being a classic [[Card-Carrying Villain]], will do anything to cause chaos in the galaxy. Heck, there was even one episode completed devoted to this trope where Buzz (after working nonstop for weeks) captures a pen from one of Zurg's shuttles, believing it to be the key to one of his most devious plans. Everyone thinks he's been wound a bit too tight and force him to take a vacation and relax. It turns out though that Buzz was right as the pen was the firing trigger for Zurg's ''(with dramatic sting music)'' '''Hyper''' [[Death Ray]]!

* While being one of the most paranoid characters in the series, Ron Stoppable from ''[[Kim Possible]]'' has been accurate many times, such as when he claimed that swimming in the lake of Camp Wannaweep was a bad idea. Turns out, the lake had been polluted by one of the neighboring camps, which resulted in Ron's camp bully (who took to swimming in the lake all summer) becoming a mutant villain. Another episode features said enemy of Ron being supposed cured of his mutation and reformed. Ron, however, remained suspicious, despite even having most of people he told his claims to [[Produce Pelting|pelted him with rotten vegetables]]. Guess what? He was right again as his enemy wanted to become a mutant again and create an army of mutants. Also, in one episode where Ron's so-called irrational fear of monkeys was apparent, he claimed that the simian-wise archaeologist Monty Fiske was 'bad road'. Boy was he right big time as it turns out, he was a power-hungry Monkey Kung Fu expert who decreed that from now on, he'd be known as Monkey Fist. It was probably the fact that Ron suspected him from the get go that he's more of Ron's enemies than Kim's. In the [[Grand Finale]], Ron was worried that graduation from high school would bring about the end of everything (though he was referring to it more in terms of his relationship with Kim). Turns out his worry was more justified than he thought as an [[Alien Invasion]] struck the night of graduation, literally bringing about the end of the world. As Ron put it:

{{quote| '''Ron''': Oh, am I the only one who ''SAW THIS COMING?!''}}

Line 323:

* The Tribunal from ''[[Metalocalypse]]''. Seem like a bunch of crazy people, convinced that a metal band is going to fulfill some kind of prophecy, right? Wrong. As the seasons have gone on, Dethklok has been doing almost everything the The Tribunal has feared, and they aren't even aware of it. The Tribunal however is, and they're very worried about it.

* In [[Recess Schools Out]], TJ Dettwiler tries to tell everyone in town that there was suspicious activity going on at the school, yet his parents and the police never believed him, and even his friends felt doubtful at what happened after stealing one of their crates and Prickly apparently leaving the school ([[It Makes Sense in Context]]). Turns out, TJ was actually very sound in his suspicions, as the school had actually been taken over by an extremist group led by the former Secretary of Education and former principal of Third Street Elementary, Phllium Benedict, that was trying to eliminate Recess.

* [[Lovable Coward|Wade]] from ''[[Garfield and Friends]]'' comes off as this once he points out that local [[Reality Warper]] Orson keeps dragging Wade into [[Portal Book|dangerous stories]] via [[Dream Sequence|Dream Sequences]]. This is emphasized in one episode where Orson's reading causes Wade to be placed in a series of dangers, including a polar bear, a train, and a Tyrannosaurus Rex. [[What the Hell Hero|Suddenly it makes sense for Wade to be scared of everything.]]

* [[Lovable Coward|Wade]] from ''[[Garfield and Friends]]'' comes off as this once he points out that local [[Reality Warper]] Orson keeps dragging Wade into [[Portal Book|dangerous stories]] via [[Dream Sequence|Dream Sequences]]. This is emphasized in one episode where Orson's reading causes Wade to be placed in a series of dangers, including a polar bear, a train, and a Tyrannosaurus Rex. [[What the Hell, Hero?|Suddenly it makes sense for Wade to be scared of everything.]]

* Penny Proud in one episode of ''[[The Proud Family]]'' suspected that the reason why she was getting bad grades from her teacher despite having put much work into her paper was because her teacher hated her, to which her family members didn't believe her (Oscar initially thought that she gave her a bad grade because the teacher was republican [Penny wrote her paper on how Hillary Clinton inspired her]). Turns out, Penny was actually closer to the truth than even she realized: She did hate her in a way, although mostly because she was sore towards Suga Mama for winning a coin toss (well, cheating in the coin toss is a bit more accurate), and Penny is related to Suga Mama, being her granddaughter and all.

* A couple of ''[[Looney Tunes]]'' shorts had Sylvester as [[Porky Pig]]'s pet cat, who would be the only one who knew that, for instance, a sinister mob of mice were out to kill his master. Porky would catch Sylvester doing truly bizarre things to save both their skins and chalk his behavior up to cowardice, insanity or both.

Line 329:

== Real Life ==

* The [[Trope Codifier]] might well be [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golda_Meir former Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir], who is believed to have uttered the oft-quoted "Even a paranoid can have enemies" line to Henry Kissinger during the 1973 Sinai peace talks (in reference to her reluctance to give the Palestinians additional concessions). [[Beam Me Up Scotty|The line is sometimes attributed to Kissinger.]]

* The [[Trope Codifier]] might well be [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golda_Meir former Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir], who is believed to have uttered the oft-quoted "Even a paranoid can have enemies" line to Henry Kissinger during the 1973 Sinai peace talks (in reference to her reluctance to give the Palestinians additional concessions). [[Beam Me Up, Scotty|The line is sometimes attributed to Kissinger.]]

* Fidel Castro. The CIA actually tried to assassinate him ''over six hundred times''. The only reason he's still alive is because he's paranoid and because the CIA was really ''really'' incompetent about it. ''Exploding seashells?'' Drugging him with a chemical to make [[Badass Beard|his beard]] fall out? ''Seriously?''

* The Martha Mitchell effect, named for Martha Beall Mitchell. Mitchell told reporters that White House officials were committing criminal acts and that they once even went so far as to keep her sedated and imprisoned in a hotel room. It was leaked to the media that she had a drinking problem and most of her family abandoned her. Take a guess who was [[Richard Nixon|president...]].

Line 355:

[[Category:The Index Is Watching You]]

[[Category:Properly Paranoid]]

[[Category:Trope]]

[[Category:Trope]][[Category:Pages with comment tags]]