Sarcasm Blind: Difference between revisions

[[File:egs-missedpoint.gif|link=El Goonish Shive (Webcomic)|rightframe]]

{{quote|'''Leonard:''' For God's sake, Sheldon, do I have to hold up a sarcasm sign every time I open my mouth?<br />

'''Sheldon:''' You have a sarcasm sign?|''[[The Big Bang Theory (TV)|The Big Bang Theory]]''}}

A common trait among characters who have [[No Social Skills]] due to an offbeat background, also [[The Spock]], and those who are just that [[The Comically Serious|Comically Serious]]. These characters do not understand sarcasm. Although characters like this are also often [[Literal -Minded]], some aren't. Sarcasm is tricky for someone to understand, because while "That's great," sometimes does mean that something is great, other times it doesn't. Everything depends on [[I Do Not Speak Nonverbal|tone and gestures]].

* In ''[[Scott Pilgrim (Comic Book)|Scott Pilgrim's Finest Hour]]'', when Gideon sarcastically says that Scott Pilgrim and Ramona Flowers clearly have no problems with their relationship, a random guy points out that they were having a fight.

{{quote| '''Gideon:''' You two are adorable. I can see that your relationship is really working.<br />

* [[Ultimate Spider -Man|Ultimate]] [[Moon Knight]]:

{{quote| '''Spider-Man''': Don't mind me, I'm just here for the chicken wings.<br />

{{quote| '''Raditz:''' Now, disregarding the Namekian...<br />

'''Goku:''' Nu-uh, the Yoshi.<br />

'''Piccolo:''' I'm not a goddamn Yoshi!<br />

'''Goku:''' But you said you were?<br />

'''Piccolo:''' It's called Sarcasm!!<br />

'''Goku:''' [[Is It Something You Eat?|What's that taste like?]]<br />

* ''[[Death Note (Manga)|Death Note]]'' fanfic [http://www.fanfiction.net/s/7292991/1/Xanatos Xanatos] gives us Linda,<ref>You know, that girl from Wammy's House who appeared in a panel the size of a postage stamp</ref>, who, while not ''totally'' ignorant of it, at least needs to be told when someone is being facetious. [[Rule of Funny|Naturally]], she interacts a lot with [[Deadpan Snarker|Matt]].

{{quote| '''Lampy:''' I think he was laughing at us.<br />

'''AC:''' You know something, you're a real bright little lamp.<br />

* Pumbaa from ''[[The Lion King (Disney)|The Lion King]]'' trilogy:

{{quote| '''Timon:''' Well, ''that'' worked like a dream.<br />

'''Pumbaa:''' It did?<br />

* ''[[Home On the Range (Disney)|Home Onon the Range]]'':

{{quote| '''Maggie:''' I got it! Why don't we go nab that Alameda Slim and use the reward money to save the farm?<br />

'''Mrs. Calloway:''' Oh, that ''is'' a sensible idea.<br />

'''Maggie:''' I knew you'd love it!<br />

* A sketch in ''[[Monty PythonsPython's theThe Meaning of Life]]'' has an Army drill sergeant barking at his men that they're going to spend the day "marching up and down the square... that is, unless any of you got anything better to do." When the soldiers begin mentioning such things (being at home with the wife and kids, reading a book, practicing the piano), the nonplussed sergeant dismisses them.

{{quote| '''Police Chief:''' We have figured out a plan. We are going to wait for another MurderDeathKill and then we will pounce on him.<br />

'''Spartan:''' Good plan.<br />

{{quote| '''Phoenix:''' Look at you, in your nice shiny uniforms... oooh, I'm SO scared... what, you people don't have sarcasm anymore?<br />

{{quote| '''Roxanne:''' Nobody had a coat?<br />

'''C.D.:''' I thought you said you didn't want a coat.<br />

'''Roxanne:''' Why would I not want a coat?<br />

'''C.D.:''' You ''said'' you didn't want a coat.<br />

'''Roxanne:''' I was being [[Irony|ironic]].<br />

{{quote| '''C-3PO:''' Captain Solo, it would appear that this asteroid is not entirely stable.<br />

'''Han:''' "Not entirely stable"? I'm glad you're here to tell us these things!<br />

* ''[[The HitchhikersHitchhiker's Guide to Thethe Galaxy (Literaturefranchise)|The HitchhikersHitchhiker's Guide to Thethe Galaxy]]''

** Leading to a moment in ''[[The Hitchhiker's Guide to Thethe Galaxy (Franchise)/Mostly Harmless|Mostly Harmless]]'', when he responds to a huge rant about the Guide from Arthur ("I can hardly wait to find out which are the most interesting spaceports to get bored hanging around in!") with a genuinely perplexed "This is that thing you call sarcasm, isn't it?"

** [[Character Development]] in ''[[The Hitchhiker's Guide to Thethe Galaxy (Franchise)/And Another Thing|And Another Thing]]'':

{{quote| '''Arthur:''' I don't suppose you have a bomb-proof towel.<br />

'''Ford:''' Sure, I have a bomb-proof towel and an antimatter pillowcase.<br />

* ''[[Discworld (Literature)|Discworld]]''

** Carrot Ironfoundersson, due to his upbringing by the [[Literal -Minded]] dwarves. He gets better at recognizing it, even if he still doesn't really understand it. Though some wonder, in-story, if Carrot [[Obfuscating Stupidity|isn't as oblivious as he seems]].

** Sergeant Colon as well, who thinks "irony" means "sort of like iron." When he's made Captain in ''[[Discworld (Literature)/The Fifth Elephant|The Fifth Elephant]]'', Vetinari's barbed comments just bounce straight off, no matter how blatant he tries to make them.

** Cohen the Barbarian ''does'' understand sarcasm, in a vague sense, but he has a little more trouble with metaphor and hyperbole. Several Agatean nobles commit suicide in ''[[Discworld (Literature)/Interesting Times|Interesting Times]]'' by telling him they'd rather die than see him on the throne.

* The Eighth Doctor, in the ''[[Doctor Who]]'' [[Eighth Doctor Adventures]] books. He's more of a genuine [[Cloudcuckoolander]] than the Doctor [[Obfuscating Stupidity|usually is]]. Why he has one or two [[Deadpan Snarker|Deadpan Snarkers]]s traveling with him basically at all times is something of a mystery.

{{quote| "Well. They could've been muggers, I suppose."<br />

"I'm so, so sorry."<br />

"Why, did you put them up to it?"<br />

* Hephaestus in ''[[The Heroes of Olympus (Literature)|The Heroes of Olympus]]''. As the god of the forge, he's not too smart dealing with organic life forms.

{{quote| '''Hephaestus:''' That was sarcasm, wasn't it? Machines don't have sarcasm, usually.}}

{{quote| '''Bill:''' ''(sees his neighbor's car covered in tree branches the morning after a storm)'' Morning George! Camouflaging your car, I see!<br />

* On a ''[[Saturday Night Live]]'' hosted by [[Kevin Spacey]], he played the "inventor" of sarcasm. He said things like "I love this party" meaning he hated it, but no-one got it because no-one else knew of sarcasm. Until they all understood he was being ''ironic'', became extremely hurt, and burned him at the stake.

* ''[[The Big Bang Theory (TV)|The Big Bang Theory]]''

* ''[[Supernatural (TV series)|Supernatural]]''

{{quote| '''Castiel:''' [God] isn't in Heaven. He has to be somewhere.<br />

'''Dean:''' Try New Mexico! I hear he's on a tortilla.<br />

{{quote| '''Jo:''' Hey, ever heard of door handles?<br />

{{quote| '''Castiel:''' You're right. Pardon me for highlighting their crippling and dangerous empathetic response with "sarcasm."}}

{{quote| '''Bennett:''' You used the company jet to abduct the programmer of a rival house?<br />

'''Adelle:''' I'm certain I'll be kicking myself come holiday bonus time.<br />

* Virtually everyone in ''[[Black AdderBlackadder]]'' except the title character takes turns at failing to understand his sarcasm, especially in the fourth series.

{{quote| '''Blackadder:''' Baldrick, do you have any idea what irony is?<br />

{{quote| '''Laura:''' You see, we were all standing outside the ambulance waving goodbye to Mr. Petrov, and Mr. Brittas was saying "Where are we going to find an internationally famous pianist in the next half hour?" and I said, "Hey kids, why don't we do the show ourselves?"<br />

'''Helen:''' Oh, you didn't...<br />

{{quote| '''Cafe Proprietor:''' 35 p please.<br />

'''Mr Pither:''' Ah... oh, I have only a fifty. You have change?<br />

'''Cafe Proprietor:''' Well, I'll have a look, but I may have to go to the bank.<br />

* In the ''[[House (TV series)|House]]'' episode "Family Practice", the [[Patient of the Week]] is Cuddy's mother, played by Candice Bergen. After going through the usual incorrect diagnoses of what's wrong with her (her hypochondria didn't exactly help things much), House makes a blatantly sarcastic remark about how much he ''loves'' a certain famous baseball player, then asks her if he really meant what he just said. Her inability to detect his sarcasm confirms his suspicions, allowing him and his team to proceed finally in the right direction.

* As of the ''[[Star Trek: theThe Next Generation]]'' episode "Data's Day", Data can recognize sarcasm using logic, but can't quite grasp how to use it:

{{quote| '''Riker:''' ''(sarcastic)'' Charming woman.<br />

* In ''[[Community (TV)|Community]]'', Abed's inability to understand being "messed with" drives his and Troy's subplot for an episode. [[Lampshade Hanging|Lampshaded]]:

{{quote| '''Abed:''' Troy invented rap music, and he's related to Danny Glover, and President Obama.<br />

'''Troy:''' Hey man, that stuff I said this morning wasn't true, I was just messing with you.<br />

'''Abed:''' You were lying?<br />

'''Troy:''' Yeah, as a joke. You've never had somebody mess with you before?<br />

* Subverted with Chris Trager on ''[[Parks and Recreation (TV)|Parks and Recreation]]''. Due to his extremely positive, upbeat personality, one would expect that he wouldn't understand sarcasm. He does understand and recognize sarcasm; he just ignores the sarcasm because he believes there is a kernel of truth in sarcasm.

* In [["Weird Al" Yankovic (Music)|Weird Al Yankovic]]'s 11-minute epic "Albuquerque," he mentions an incident where he saw a co-worker struggling with some heavy boxes and asked if he wanted help. The co-worker responded "No, I want you to cut off my arms and legs with a chainsaw." [[Black Comedy|So he did.]]

* ''[[Dilbert (Comic Strip)|Dilbert]]''

{{quote| '''Boss:''' Was that sarcasm?<br />

* Dagwood of ''[[Blondie (Comiccomic Stripstrip)|Blondie]]''. Apparently even sarcasm [https://web.archive.org/web/20110602053431/http://www.blondie.com/strip.php?month=12&year=2005&comic=2005-12-4 can't penetrate "that thick skull of his"]. Made even funnier by the fact that his boss took some time to find this out.

* [[Calvin and Hobbes|Calvin]] can be a ''very'' sarcastic child, but it often takes him a while to recognize sarcasm from [[Cats Are Snarkers|Hobbes]]. [[Late to Thethe Punchline|Sometimes a very long while.]]

* Mical the Disciple in ''[[Star Wars]]'': ''[[Knights of the Old Republic (Videovideo Gamegame)|Knights of the Old Republic]] II''. When the player character receives a request to meet a shady character, alone, [[Deadpan Snarker|Atton Rand]] snarks, "Well, at least we know it isn't a trap," to which Mical earnestly replies, "No, Atton, I think it may ''be'' a trap!" Since her and Mical are an either/or pair, The Handmaiden fills this role for Male!Exile's party. "What are you talking about? It's obviously a trap."

{{quote| '''Mackenzie:''' Um, I'm Detective Mackenzie.<br />

'''Daisy:''' Oh, how cute. A detective.<br />

'''Mackenzie:''' Thanks...<br />

'''Daisy:''' Don't you understand sarcasm when you hear it?<br />

* Master Ilen displays this when approached about Iron Bark by a particularly Snarky!Hawke in ''[[Dragon Age II (Video Game)|Dragon Age II]]'':

{{quote| '''Hawke:''' ''(with a sarcastic tone)'' What could have happened to cause concern among such skilled warriors as the Dalish hunters?<br />

* During the Climax of ''[[Portal 2 (Video Game)|Portal 2]]'' as the second core transfer starts. Justified as it's a machine:

{{quote| '''Computer:''' Corrupt Core, are you ready for core transfer?<br />

{{spoiler|'''Wheatley:'''}}: What do you think?<br />

'''Computer:''' Interpreting vague answer as yes.<br />

* Caboose from ''[[Red vs. Blue (Machinima)|Red vs. Blue]]''. Of course, he doesn't understand [[Cloudcuckoolander|reality sometimes, either.]]

* ''[[The Order of the Stick (Webcomic)|The Order of the Stick]]'':

* As seen in the picture above, Agent Wolf of ''[[El Goonish Shive (Webcomic)|El Goonish Shive]]''.

* ''[[Homestuck (Webcomic)|Homestuck]]''

{{quote| '''EB:''' hey, can you hold on?<br />

'''EB:''' i'm getting trolled again.<br />

'''TG:''' oh man and if weve just concluded anything its that talking to those dbags should be priority number one so yeah go right ahead<br />

* Poor Tem Phica, of ''[[Schlock Mercenary (Webcomic)|Schlock Mercenary]]'', is so fearful that he takes even ridiculous threats on his life at face value.

{{quote| '''Col. Pranger:''' They could also have suborned your climate engineers. Better watch out for clear-sky lightning out here in the open.<br />

'''Tem Phica:''' Good point. '''''Everybody back inside!'''''<br />

* A running gag in ''[[8-Bit Theater (Webcomic)|Eight Bit Theater]]'' is that Red Mage never understands Black Mage's sarcasm. Or [http://www.nuklearpower.com/2004/03/09/episode-392-enlightened-self-interest/ Thief's], if Black Mage is absent. Also, applies to Fighter in spades.

* ''[[Death to Thethe Extremist]]'': One displays sarcasm blindness in [http://dtecomic.com/?n=12/ this comic]{{Dead link}}.

* ThisIn ''[[Freefall]]'', this [http://freefall.purrsia.com/ff600/fv00556.htm seems to be a common problem] for robots in ''[[Freefall (Webcomic)|Freefall]]''.

* Too good to leave off: Shortly after the developer went out of business, Yahtzee did an episode of ''[[Zero Punctuation]]'' where he "reviewed" ''[[Duke Nukem Forever (Video Game)|Duke Nukem Forever]]'', touting it as the greatest game ever, bar none; he briefly descends into a horrible fantasy where the game was never released because the developer spent twelve years jerking off and rightly got sued into oblivion, but he's ''so glad'' we don't live in a world like that! The next week, after his normal review, he posts a "Letter of the Week" which he received from a fan who was ''so excited'' that the game had finally come out, he'd been waiting for years, and asks Yahtzee where he got his copy because he can't seem to find it anywhere. ([[Captain Obvious|This was, of course, years before DNF's actual release.]])

* [http://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-082 SCP-082] from the ''[[SCP Foundation (Wiki)|SCP Foundation]]'', a giant cannibalistic mutant who, among other delusions, doesn't grasp sarcasm, parody, or fiction in general (he has even expressed a desire to meet Hannibal Lecter).

* [httphttps://wwwweb.archive.org/web/20140327121812/http://qdb.us/249451 This] QDB.us quote:

{{quote| '''Tim333:''' You sound like a real winner<br />

'''rockstar111:''' is that a good thing<br />

'''Tim333:''' Have you ever heard of "sarcasm" or "irony," rockstar?<br />

'''rockstar111:''' what<br />

'''Tim333:''' Wow. It must be nice to be invulnerable to insult by means of incomprehension.<br />

* For a joke, [[The Nostalgia Chick (Web Video)|The Nostalgia Chick]] took her snarky woobie [[Sex Bot]]'s sarcastic suggestion to get to Nella through a wormhole in the sink totally seriously. And hey, it worked.

* ''[[FostersFoster's Home for Imaginary Friends]]''

{{quote| "Oh, yes, I'm sarcastic ''all the time.''"<br />

{{quote| '''Mr. Herriman:''' ''Yes'', could I ''be'' any more sarcastic?<br />

* ''[[Total Drama Island (Animation)|Total Drama Island]]''

** [[Brainless Beauty|Lindsay]], much to the chagrin of [[Deadpan Snarker|Deadpan Snarkers]]s like Gwen and Noah.

{{quote| '''Noah:''' Throwing balls, gee, another mentally challenging test.<br />

{{quote| '''Izzy:''' Noah, I'm counting on you for three gallons of diesel fuel.<br />

'''Noah:''' Sure thing. I'll just get my unicorn to deliver it.<br />

* Much of the cast in ''[[Daria (Animation)|Daria]]'' (aside from Daria and Jane, obviously), to much comic effect. Particularly the stupidest characters (Brittany, Kevin, Sandy/Quinn, Mr. O'Neil...).

* Used in the ''[[South Park (Animation)|South Park]]'' movie "Imaginationland". The military is interrogating Stan and Kyle, trying to find a way into Imaginationland, and a specialist accidentally lets slip that they have a secret portal there. The general shuts him up, sarcastically saying, "Why don't you just tell them everything about Project X?!" The specialist starts describing it until the general cuts him off by pointing out he was being sarcastic.

{{quote| '''Charlie Brown:''' Thanks for the Christmas card you sent me!<br />

'''Violet:''' '''I''' didn't send you a Christmas card, Charlie Brown! ''(walks off)''<br />

{{quote| '''Lucius:''' Well, I hope you're happy, Two-Shoes.<br />

* ''[[The Simpsons (Animationanimation)|The Simpsons]]''

{{quote| '''Chief Wiggum:''' Just sit down and wait for "Detective Like I Give A Damn."<br />

'''Homer:''' Thank you so much.<br />

''([[Beat]])''<br />

'''Lisa:''' Dad?<br />

{{quote| '''Lisa:''' Maybe they're all reverse vampires and they have to get home before dark.<br />

{{quote| '''Barney:''' And I say England's greatest Prime Minister was Lord Palmerston!<br />

'''[[Useful Notes/Baseball|Wade Boggs:]]''' Pitt the Elder!<br />

'''Barney:''' LORD PALMERSTON!<br />

'''Boggs: ''[[Punctuated! forFor! Emphasis!|PITT! THE! ELDER!]]'''''<br />

'''Barney:''' Okay, you asked for it, Boggs! ''(punches out Boggs)''<br />

'''Moe:''' [[Sincerity Mode|Yeah, that's showin' 'im, Barn!]] ''[[Sarcasm Mode|"Pitt the Elder"...]]''<br />

* Most characters on ''[[Avatar: The Last Airbender (Animation)|Avatar: The Last Airbender]]'' are pretty quick on the uptake, but Aang, due to his optimism and shining idealism, demonstrates this characteristic at least once, when he is reluctant to kill the [[Big Bad]], but the rest of the Gang wants him to.

{{quote| '''Aang:''' Maybe we could make some big pots of glue, and then I could use gluebending to stick his arms and legs together so he can't bend anymore!<br />

'''Zuko:''' Yeah! And then you can show him his baby pictures and all those happy memories will make him good again!<br />

'''Aang:''' Do you really think that would work?<br />

* ''[[My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic (Animation)|My Little Pony Friendship Is Magic]]''

{{quote| '''Spike:''' Well, you're good at a lot of things. Just not nest making, ice skating, animal waking, snow clearing...<br />

'''Twilight Sparkle:''' Thanks a lot for making me feel ''so'' much better.<br />

{{quote| '''Pinkie Pie:''' (observing the frog conspicuously clinging to Twilight's head) Uh, Twilight, you got [[Understatement|a little something]] on your face there.<br />

'''Twilight Sparkle:''' Oh? Did your "Pinkie Sense" tell you that too?<br />

{{quote| '''Rainbow Dash:''' When we get to Appleoosa, you think we'll have to carry that heavy tree all the way from the train to the orchard?<br />

'''Pinkie Pie:''' What tree? You mean Bloomberg?<br />

'''Rainbow Dash:''' [sarcasm] No. Fluttershy.<br />

'''Pinkie Pie:''' Fluttershy's not a tree, silly.<br />

'''Twilight Sparkle:''' What's going on?<br />

'''Pinkie Pie:''' Rainbow Dash thinks Fluttershy's a tree.<br />

'''Rainbow Dash:''' I do ''not'' think she's a tree, I was just... <br />

'''Twilight Sparkle:''' Did you ''say'' she was a tree?<br />

'''Rainbow Dash:''' No... well, yes... but... not exactly ... <br />

'''Twilight Sparkle:''' You know she's not a tree, right?<br />

'''Pinkie Pie:''' She's not a tree, Dashie.<br />

{{quote| '''Pinkie Pie:''' I think this reception is gonna be perfect! Don't you?<br />

'''Princess Cadance:''' Perfect! ...if we were celebrating a six-year-old's birthday party.<br />

* Beavis from ''[[Beavis and Butthead (Animation)|Beavis and Butthead]]''. If told "Tell me something I don't know." he'll do exactly that. He thinks "Stick it where the sun doesn't shine." means "Put it under your pillow."

* In ''[[The Legend of Tarzan (Animation)|The Legend of Tarzan]]'', Terk gives Tantor a sarcastic compliment. When Tantor acts smug, she follows it up by saying that he's really good at detecting sarcasm, as well. Tantor continues acting smug.

* People with [[Aspergers Syndrome]] often do not get sarcasm, as they are very [[Literal -Minded]]. And even if they do realise you're being sarcastic, it can still make a conversation very complicated very quickly. Interestingly, some people with Asperger's can still ''be'' very sarcastic, even if they can't always recognise sarcasm themselves.

* The ''use'' of sarcasm and the ''recognition'' of sarcasm from someone else are two different things - this is why even a person who uses a lot of sarcasm might not pick up on it when used against them. The expressions and idioms we use are picked up from interaction with other people, so [[Sarcasm Blind]] people can sometimes use a sarcastic expression without recognizing it as sarcasm.