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{{trope}}
{{quote|'''Will Graham''': I thought you might enjoy the challenge. Find out if you're smarter than the person I'm looking for.
'''Hannibal [[Spell My Name with an "S"|Lecktor]]''': Then, by implication, you think you're smarter than I am, since it was you who caught me.
'''Will Graham''': No, I know I'm not smarter than you.
'''Hannibal Lecktor''': Then how did you catch me?
'''Will Graham''': You had... disadvantages.
'''Hannibal Lecktor''': What disadvantages?
'''Will Graham''': [[You're Insane!|You're insane]].
|''Manhunter'' and again in the [[Remake]], ''Red Dragon''}}
[[The Hero]] (or another important character) is cornered by the [[Ax Crazy]] villain, and there's no possible way out, except... this guy is crazy. Sometimes he will simply let the hero go, sometimes make an absurd mistake based on whatever his problem is. Somehow, he never does this to characters without [[Contractual Immortality]].
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On those rare occasions when an [[Ax Crazy]] villain becomes [[Bored with Insanity]] and turns sane again, the new-found sanity may throw our heroes for a loop when they make their plans...
Compare [[Not Worth Killing]] and [[The Blofeld Ploy]]. Contrast [[Power Born of Madness]], where insanity has its advantages too
{{examples}}
▲== Anime & Manga ==
* ''[[Cowboy Bebop]]'': Spike is cornered by [[Nigh Invulnerable]] Mad Pierrot, but is saved by Mad Pierrot's paralyzing [[Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?|fear of]] {{spoiler|cats}}.
* A so-called [[Useless Useful Spell|"invincible technique"]] in ''[[Ranma ½]]'', the Cat Fist, induces an [[Unstoppable Rage]] in its user that boosts speed and reflexes, as well as giving "ki claws" that can cut through just about anything... but since he acts and thinks like a kitten, he can be distracted by toys and games. Even [[Too Dumb to Live|Kuno]] figured out this weakness within seconds of witnessing the Cat Fist in action. Not only that, it takes considerable time for Ranma's fear to reach the necessary level, which means he (or she, as the case may be) is simply running around, completely open, unable to fight back until it kicks in... a perfect target for anyone who is aware of what's happening and has the skill to capitalize on it. In fact, the only time that the Cat Fist has been an actual advantage in [[Ranma ½]] is the climax of the Phoenix Pill saga, where Ranma uses it to catch Cologne off-guard: most likely, as an [[Old Master]] who may well have been one of the people who proclaimed the Nekoken to be [[Harmful to Minors]], she doubted anyone would be stupid enough to teach it in this day and age, nevermind the trainee actually being willing to use that training.
** It's notable that teaching this technique involves covering the student in fish and throwing them in a hole with a buttload of cats. The book in which Genma found the technique even points out that the technique is effectively useless (because of all the reasons above) and was only included as a historical curiosity. If only Genma'd turned the page and read that part...
*** Not sure about the anime, but in the manga the page with the insanity warning and how useless the Cat Fist is was stuck to another page, keeping Genma from noticing it.
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** Not exactly "effective", since she's easily distracted by a room full of unarmed, surrendering people, and won't stop until she killed ''everyone'' in her path, no matter what. Ruthless, yes, but a waste of ammunition and time while at the same time attracting unneeded attention, which is the reason Dutch calls her out on it.
** And when [[Meido|Roberta]] loses it, she's [[Implacable Man|even more unstoppable than before.]]
* In ''[[Bleach]]'', after Aizen fuses with the Hogyoku, he proclaims [[A God Am I]] and throws away [[Master of Illusion|all]] [[Flaw Exploitation|the]] [[Batman Gambit|tactics]] that had previously served him so well in favor of relying on raw power to crush his enemies. This trope comes into play when {{spoiler|he finally comes across someone more powerful than he is- Ichigo after his latest bout of [[Training
== Comic Books ==
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* In one early ''[[Spirou and Fantasio]]'' adventure, they have to stop a [[Mad Scientist]] from launching a device that will [[The End of the World as We Know It|set fire to the Earth's atmosphere]]. They fail. They say their goodbyes... only to discover that the [[Mad Scientist]] was, well, [[Exactly What It Says on the Tin|mad]] and his doomsday device was mostly made out of old shoes.
* ''[[Zot]]'s'' archenemy, Dekko the [[Cybernetics Eat Your Soul|cyborg]] [[Mad Artist]], tends to get beaten by his own self-destructing insanity at least as much as by the hero's actual efforts.
== Literature ==
* The page quote is a near-exact adaptation of a scene from ''Red Dragon'', although Graham's original explanation is "Passion. And you're insane." Lecter abruptly changes the subject.
* This is what allows Tavi in ''[[Codex Alera]]'' to defeat an [[Ax Crazy]] but vastly superior opponent. He uses her name and reputation to start [[Warrior Therapist|psychoanalyzing her]] in the middle of their [[Duel to the Death]], and watches her reactions to give a [[Hannibal Lecture]] that drives her into making a mistake due to screaming, psychotic rage.
* In ''[[Jonathan Strange
* In ''Brisingr'' of [[The Inheritance Cycle]], Brom hints to Eragon in a memory that Galbatorix's insanity is something that he should use to his advantage when it finally comes time to face him. "Whatever you do, you must remain nimble in your thinking. Do not become so attached to any one belief that you cannot see past it to another possibility. Galbatorix is mad and therefore unpredictable, but he also has gaps in his reasoning that an ordinary person would not. If you can find those, Eragon, then perhaps you and Saphira can defeat him."
* In the backstory of the ''[[Vorkosigan Saga]]'', [[The Caligula|Mad Emperor Yuri]] decided that his relatives were plotting to overthrow him, so he ordered the assassinations of anyone with enough [[Royal Blood]] to claim the throne. This meant he ordered the maternal side of Aral Vorkosigan's family assassinated, but since the Vorkoisigan side didn't have a strong claim to the empire, ''he left them alive''. If he'd been sane, it might have occurred to him that Aral's father (Who happened to be the most talented general on the planet) would be upset about his wife and children being brutally murdered. This leads directly to Yuri's overthrow, making his fear a [[Self-Fulfilling Prophecy]].
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* Played with in the [[Poirot]] book, ''Lord Edgeware Dies'', in which Poirot admits that what he really needs to catch criminals is a sane [[The Watson|partner]], so he can observe what conclusions the criminal expected a sane man would draw from his misdirection.
* In ''[[The Belgariad]]'' the king of Cthol Murgos is mentioned as having been a great warrior once, but by the time he appears his insanity had grown to the point that when he meets his arch enemy in battle he's so focused on killing him that he doesn't bother defending himself. He dies still screaming for the man to come back and fight him.
== Live-Action TV ==
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** Special mention should go to the Master, who is probably the reason the Doctor can predict the reactions of the [[Mad Scientist]] or [[Omnicidal Maniac]] of the week.
** And Davros, of course.
* Clearly, this is why Kirk and Spock were able to defeat Garth in the ''[[Star Trek: The Original Series]]'' episode "Whom Gods Destroy". Garth was a madman, and the fact that he flew into rage on more than one occasion when he was frustrated (such as when he realized he needed to know a countersign in order to board The Enterprise) showed that his madness was hindering him greatly. Garth's attempt to intimidate Kirk by murdering his lover with the super-powerful bomb he created does nothing more than prove to Kirk — and the viewers, most likely — that he was a lunatic, and when he thinks he'll have more luck with Spock due to Spock being a "very logical man", Spock's logical thinking is, in fact, what leads to Garth's final defeat.
* ''[[Kamen Rider Ryuki]]'': Asakura Takeshi (Ouja) is raving mad and prone to crazy, suicidal behaviour. Once he starves his [[Mons|bound monsters]] until they threaten to eat him. Once, after [[Antagonist in Mourning|failing to kill a long-running enemy]], he charges a bunch of armed policemen without even using his powers. {{spoiler|That last one does not end well.}}
* ''[[Deadliest Warrior]]'' has two, according to the experts.
** Saddam Hussein defeated Pol Pot, despite the fact that both were classified as insane Saddam was still more sane than Pol Pot. They say that, like history shows, Saddam would use his violent insanity to his advantage [killing thousands of Kurds to prevent
** Hernan Cortes defeated Ivan. Cortes isn't classified as fully insane, just greedy and violent.
* This is likely the biggest reason why the Rangers managed to defeat the Psycho Rangers in ''[[Power Rangers in Space]]'', despite the fact that the Psycho Rangers were far stronger than they were. The Psycho Rangers were not only insane, they were obsessive, unwilling to co-operate with each other (something the real Rangers were rather good at) and too impatient to adhere to the careful strategies that Astronema laid out (while the true Rangers were very good at sticking to theirs). In fact, in retrospect, the villains may have been more trouble to Astronema than they were ever worth.
* In a heroic example, ''[[Monk]]'''s severe OCD [[Crazy Awesome|makes him the world's greatest detective]], but also makes him too unstable to be relied upon in desperate situations, as evidenced by the pilot in which his condition causes him to freak out and let the killer escape. This is why he's not been allowed back on the police force since the [[Heroic BSOD]] he had following his wife's death.
** Even in the depths of the seriousness of the series finale, the OCD comes shining through full force in an intentionally [[Level Breaker]] moment after Monk has been poisoned and told he will vomit first, then die. Cue awesome run-on gag of Monk focusing on the vomiting aspect and ignoring death.
{{quote|"Are you sure? Does the vomit really HAVE to be first?" }}
* River Tam in ''[[Firefly]]'' is unbelievably intelligent, combat-capable, and {{spoiler|psychic}}, but her usefulness in a number of situations is clouded by mental instability.
* When it comes down to it, this is the entire point of ''[[Criminal Minds]]'' (and similar [[Real Life]] organizations): Serial killers are rarely mentally stable. Therefore, they have patterns that can be predicted, flaws that can be exploited, and make mistakes that can be taken advantage of. If the criminals they hunted were actually [[Genre Savvy]], they wouldn't have lasted the first episode.
* The primary reason [[House MD|House]] has a team is to balance out his various manias.
== Oral Tradition, Folklore, Myths and Legends ==
* Trapped by a vampire? Throw some rice/beads/knotted bits of string at it! They ''have'' [[Weaksauce Weakness|to stop and count it]]. [[Sesame Street|Ah ah ah!]]▼
** Beautifully done in [[The Rashomon]] episode of ''[[The X-Files]]''.▼
** And subverted multiple times in [[Discworld]]'s ''[[
*** Of course, it's inverted right back when, under the stress of having their plan spontaneously collapse when {{spoiler|Granny Weatherwax ''"borrows" their blood''}}, the Magpyr's conditioning starts to fail. Since the Magpyr's conditioning involved knowing the root cause of every traditional weakness and countering that, the resulting collapse added a form of hypochondria of sorts. So, for example, they're no longer immune to religious symbols... and they've memorized so many that they see religious symbols everywhere.▼
** ''[[Charby the Vampirate]]'' subverts it in one early strip. He is compelled to count a handful of beans his intended victim throws at him, but does it by determining the average weight of a bean, weighing the pile, and extrapolating how many there are from that.▼
** Subverted in the sequel to Dracula 2001, when a vampire accurately counts thousands of grains of rice ''before they even hit the ground''.▼
** In ''[[Supernatural]]'', it's leprechauns that have this problem, not vampires. {{spoiler|In "Clap your hands if you believe", Sam gets knocked around by the leprechaun before pulling his container of salt out of his pocket and emptying it onto the ground, to a [[This Is Gonna Suck]] from his opponent. He then banishes it at his leisure.}}▼
{{quote|'''Sam:''' {{spoiler|[[Lampshade Hanging|I don't know why I didn't just do that in the first place]].}}}}▼
* Likewise, the ''kappa'' of Japanese folklore. Its [[Weaksauce Weakness]] is that its power is derived from a pool of water carried in a dent in the top of its head. Not only does it have to avoid spilling the water in an attack, but it is also ''supremely'' polite: if you bow to it, it will bow back to the same degree as you do. All a human victim has to do is bend over and offer a polite greeting, and the kappa will be obligated to return the salutation, despite the fact that it deliberately spills the water it requires.▼
== Tabletop Games ==
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* ''[[Betrayal at House on the Hill]]'' has the Sanity stat, which often determines whether or not your investigator will keep their wits about them... or simply stay alive.
* ''[[Exalted]]'': most antagonists come with some form of insanity-related dysfunction which will lead them to make drastic, exploitably bad decisions. Examples include other Creation-based Exalts, who are usually blinded by the towering hubris of the Great Curse; the Yozis, who come with a heavy paradigm blindfold that leads to them interpreting nearly everything in terms of their own fundamental concepts; apostate Alchemicals, who are compelled by their condition to become less and less stable as time goes on until the killing starts; and ghosts and Deathlords, who naturally default to melodramatic passion plays rather than the organic behaviour of humans. (Should you be coming up against a high-Essence ''sane'' Alchemical, who will likely have a decent Clarity rating, you might actually have to invert this trope by making seemingly illogical moves to catch it unawares.)
* ''[[Dungeons & Dragons]]'':
** This trope is why the [[Order Versus Chaos]] Blood War between [[Lawful Evil| Devils]] and [[Chaotic Evil| Demons]] has been in stalemate [[Forever War| for Eons]], despite the fact that the [[Chaotic Evil| demons]] of the Abyss outnumber the armies of Hell by almost a hundred to one. The devils live and breathe discipline, planning, and strategy; while that of the hordes of the Abyss can be explained in three words: "Scream and charge". It's telling that the Abyss and its demons are functionally infinite, so its armies in the Blood War are only the rare few who overcame their chaotic nature to the point that they could scream and charge at the enemy.
** Also stated to be why the Drow aren't a bigger threat to the world above; cunning, powerful, and with demonic magic on their side, they'd be a force to be reckoned with... if their society wasn't built on [[Chronic Backstabbing Disorder]]. Drow spend more time plotting against each other than their enemies, with the happy endorsement of their goddess Lolth, who only intervenes so they don't [[The Starscream| starscream]] themselves into extinction.
** Similarly, Beholders are capable of destruction on a massive scale (they can disintegrate matter at will, control minds, kill with a glance, nullify any magic they look at, and more), but can barely even be said to have a society, due to their inherent madness. Every beholder is convinced it alone was created in the true image of their goddess — who abets the delusion by appearing in their form — and any beholders, even their offspring, who look even slightly different should be destroyed.
== Video Games ==
* ''[[Portal (series)|Portal]]'': Subverted by the Rat Man. He was a programmer who survived GLaDOS's takeover of Aperture Science by being a paranoid schizophrenic who believed that the computer was evil and planning to kill them all. The reason this is a subversion instead of inversion is that the rest of his team ''knew'' that she wanted to kill them all at every boot up but still [[Too Dumb to Live|gave her access to the neurotoxin emitters when she started playing nice]]. Thus, the crazy guy was the [[Only Sane Man]].
* In ''[[Fate/stay night]]'' the ''[[Power Born of Madness|Mad Enhancement]]'' skill, exclusive to [[The Berserker|Berserker]] class Servants, results in a [[Rank Inflation|increase]] of basic parameters ''but'' at the [[Power At a Price|cost]] of mental capacities as well as [[Signature Move|personal skills]].
** However, the Berserker of ''[[Fate/Zero]]'' has an ability called Eternal Arms Mastership that [[One Hero, Hold the Weaksauce|allows him to retain those skills]]. It's [[Superpower Lottery|exactly as broken as it sounds]].
* In ''[[A Miracle of Science]]'', a thorough understanding of [[Science-Related Memetic Disorder]] means that Vorstellen Police officers play their role correctly, ensuring a mad scientist will surrender once their illness takes its course.
* In the "Fire and Rain" arc of ''[[Sluggy Freelance]]'', Oasis comes ''very'' close to killing Zoe, but suffers a complete [[Villainous Breakdown]] and collapses in tears moments before delivering the fatal blow.
* [http://www.nuklearpower.com/2010/02/13/episode-1219-earthcake/ This] [[8-Bit Theater]] strip follows the same vein, as Black Mage reveals that he plans to help Chaos because by his (it's?) very nature he is just as likely to turn the world into cake as he is to destroy it.
== Web Original ==
▲== Web Originals ==
* The [[SCP Foundation]]'s acquisition of [http://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-668 SCP-668] was made significantly easier by the obsessive behavior of the [[Ax Crazy]] [[Serial Killer]] employing it in his killing spree. If he'd had the sense to move around more, the foundation would've had to resort to [[Death From Above|nuking the whole area]].
* Inverted with [[Doctor Steel]]. "I mean, you can get away with pretty much ''anything'' if you're bonkers."
== Western Animation ==
* An episode of the Disney ''[[Aladdin (Disney film)|Aladdin]]'' series featured a (non-villainous, though the heroes did not realize that at the time) reality-altering ("more powerful than a palace full of genies") catlike creature who was the [[Anthropomorphic Personification]] of Chaos, who [[Incredible Shrinking Man|shrunk]] Jasmine and then changed her back just because nobody was expecting it.
* One episode of ''[[
* Played with on [[Darkwing Duck]], during Megavolt's introduction in 'Duck Blind'.
{{quote|'''Darkwing''': Fortunately, we have a psychological advantage.
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* In ''[[Avatar: The Last Airbender]]'' there was an [[Duel to the Death|Agni Kai]] between Zuko and Azula where Zuko intended to take an advantage of his sister's crumbling sanity.
* Phantom Limb from [[Venture Brothers]] spent the third season insane but becomes a true menace again once he regains his sanity and builds the Revenge Society into a true supervillain alliance.
* In ''[[Transformers Generation 1]]'', Megatron's transformation into Galvatron clearly drives him out of his gourd (not that he was completely lucid to begin with) making him erratic, unpredictable, and more a hindrance to the Decepticons than a benefit. In one episode, [[The Dragon| Cyclonus]] decides to subdue his boss and drag him to the Cybertronian equivalent of a psychiatrist; remarkably, the treatment works, making Galvatron far more lucid, far more competent a leader, and to the Autobots, ''far'' more dangerous.
▲* Trapped by a vampire? Throw some rice/beads/knotted bits of string at it! They ''have'' [[Weaksauce Weakness|to stop and count it]]. [[Sesame Street|Ah ah ah!]]
▲** Beautifully done in [[The Rashomon]] episode of ''[[The X-Files]]''.
▲** And subverted multiple times in [[Discworld]]'s ''[[Discworld/Carpe Jugulum|Carpe Jugulum]]'', where this is one of many traditional vampire weaknesses the Magpyr clan had overcome.
▲*** Of course, it's inverted right back when, under the stress of having their plan spontaneously collapse when {{spoiler|Granny Weatherwax ''"borrows" their blood''}}, the Magpyr's conditioning starts to fail. Since the Magpyr's conditioning involved knowing the root cause of every traditional weakness and countering that, the resulting collapse added a form of hypochondria of sorts. So, for example, they're no longer immune to religious symbols... and they've memorized so many that they see religious symbols everywhere.
▲** ''[[Charby the Vampirate]]'' subverts it in one early strip. He is compelled to count a handful of beans his intended victim throws at him, but does it by determining the average weight of a bean, weighing the pile, and extrapolating how many there are from that.
▲** Subverted in the sequel to Dracula 2001, when a vampire accurately counts thousands of grains of rice ''before they even hit the ground''.
▲** In ''[[Supernatural]]'', it's leprechauns that have this problem, not vampires. {{spoiler|In "Clap your hands if you believe", Sam gets knocked around by the leprechaun before pulling his container of salt out of his pocket and emptying it onto the ground, to a [[This Is Gonna Suck]] from his opponent. He then banishes it at his leisure.}}
▲{{quote|'''Sam:''' {{spoiler|[[Lampshade Hanging|I don't know why I didn't just do that in the first place]].}}}}
▲* Likewise, the ''kappa'' of Japanese folklore. Its [[Weaksauce Weakness]] is that its power is derived from a pool of water carried in a dent in the top of its head. Not only does it have to avoid spilling the water in an attack, but it is also ''supremely'' polite: if you bow to it, it will bow back to the same degree as you do. All a human victim has to do is bend over and offer a polite greeting, and the kappa will be obligated to return the salutation, despite the fact that it deliberately spills the water it requires.
== Real Life ==
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{{reflist}}
[[Category:{{PAGENAME}}]]
[[Category:Madness Tropes]]
[[Category:Stupidity Tropes]]
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