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{{trope}}
Sometimes, a good joke has a great punchline, but none of the characters are witty enough to know it, or a story can't move forward since none of the characters know some crucial skill or fact. What's an author to do? [[Out -of -Character Moment|Toss them]] the Smart Ball!
 
Characters who catch the Smart Ball become knowledgeable regarding some trivia or discipline needed to deliver a punchline, discover clues, or implement a [[Batman Gambit|foolproof solution]] to whatever problem they face when [[Fawlty Towers Plot|normally such attempts fail]]. They may also become far better at [[Poor Communication Kills|effectively communicating]] information, allowing several character to put their clues together to discover the villain's [[Evil Plan]].
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Mind, excessive use of this trope can be considered negatively if an author has to resort to this sort of thing too often, using it essentially as a [[Deus Ex Machina]] to get the heroes out of a tight spot or to [[Railroading|railroad]] a plot in a given direction. If it's a comedy though, no one minds thanks to the [[Rule of Funny]].
 
Compare [[Informed Ability]], when someones is ''said'' to have the Smart Ball in terms of a certain field, but it's rarely demonstrated, or [[Good Withwith Numbers]], when a character is suddenly endowed with math skills. Contrast [[Hidden Depths]], which is what this often comes across as. See also [[Dumbass Has a Point]], for what can be a reaction to this. When a character consistently picks the ball up when it comes to specific subjects, he's a [[Genius Ditz]]. If the ball is limited to crises or combat situations, he's a [[Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass]]. This trope is a relative of [[Sanity Ball]], [[Snark Ball]] (which is about wit rather than intellect), and the [[Opposite Tropes|opposite]] of [[Idiot Ball]]. [[Advantage Ball]] is a distant cousin. See also [[Bat Deduction]].
{{examples}}
 
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== Fan Fiction ==
* Used and lampshaded in [[Lisa Is Pregnant (Fanfic)|Lisa Is Pregnant]] when, having "noticed for once" that something isn't right, Homer asks why Lisa was in the mountains, where Bart froze to death keeping her warm. She doesn't remember, though.
 
 
== Film ==
* In ''[[Evolution (Filmfilm)|Evolution]]'', the scientist heroes figure out that the life forms are weak to Selenium, but can't think of a ready source they can use. Then [[Those Two Guys|Deke and Danny]], the resident meatheads, pipe up that <s>the anti-dandruff shampoo they use</s> [[Product Placement|Head & Shoulders]] contains Selenium Sulfide, going on to point out their shiny, flake-free hair. [[MST3K Mantra|It's just that kind of movie.]]
** At least the writers had the decency to [[Lampshade]] it. "How can you know that? You two don't know ''anything''!"
*** To which the idiots reply that they read it off the bottles. "It's right on the ingredients list..."
* In ''[[Deep Rising]]'', a [[Jerkass]] who works for the cruise line spontaneously rattles off a theory as to the man-eating worms' origins, and [[Improbable Taxonomy Skills|displays such expertise that you'd think designing computer networks for ships requires an advanced degree in marine invertebrate paleontology]]. He turns out to be totally wrong. The "creatures" ''aren't'' worms. In fact, they {{spoiler|aren't even individual creatures. They're the tentacles belonging to a monstrous octopus-like creature.}}
* [[Firefly (TV)|Mal]] in ''[[Serenity (Film)|Serenity]]'', after he exhibits a working knowledge of [[Samuel Taylor Coleridge]]:
{{quote| '''Mal:''' Yes, I've read a poem. Try not to faint.}}
** Another example: The Operative went by the popular misconception that the albatross was sign of bad luck. (For background, in the poem the misfortunes of the eponymous Mariner comes about because he killed the albatross; it is literally a weight around his neck because his fellow shipmates tie it there as punishment for killing a bird which was both a good omen and which could have led them to shore)
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== Literature ==
* In the third [[Artemis Fowl (Literature)|Artemis Fowl]] book, two of Spiro's [[Stupid Evil|nigh-brainless]] [[Those Two Bad Guys|henchmen]] "cleverly" come up with the idea to use {{spoiler|the stolen Cube computer}} to take down a rival of Spiro's company. Spiro finds this sudden brain activity a bit suspicious, but he can't deny it's a good idea. {{spoiler|Of course, the henchmen were hypnotized into suggesting this, because it's [[The Chessmaster|exactly what Artemis wanted Spiro to do]].}}
* [[Discworld (Literature)/Unseen Academicals|Unseen Academicals]] has the loveably [[Book Dumb]] Trev Likely informing the [[Only Sane Man|Only Sane Woman]] Glenda on the difference between talons and pounces. And, after a brief moment of awkwardness, attempt to justify his knowing this with "you pick stuff up, ok?"
 
 
== Live-Action TV ==
* In the ''[[Doctor Who (TV)|Doctor Who]]'' serial "The Moonbase," Ben Jackson suddenly has considerable knowledge of chemistry, physics, and medicine that he never displays again.
* Larry, Darryl, and Darryl (of ''Newhart'') frequently catch this.
* Sheriff Carter of ''[[Eureka]]'' often solves the problem of the episode despite the fact that he's in a town full of geniuses and the viewers have already figured it out.
** Usually because for all their genius, the populace has little common sense. Also, often don't think about things outside of their field of expertise. Such as the poultry breeder who fed her ''cloned chickens'' a nutrient that was "organic" (and thus, in her opinion, good for you) and not consider that it ''degenerates your brain''.
*** A bit of [[Truth in Television]] in this. A lot of people do believe [[All -Natural Snake Oil|organic/natural = good]].
* In the final episode of ''[[Black AdderBlackadder]] the Third'', the three main characters are trying to come up with a plan to get the Prince Regent out of a duel he's sure to lose, when the plan comes up of Blackadder and the Prince switching places so that Blackadder can fight instead. When the Prince notes that it will never work, because "my portrait hangs on every wall", Baldrick - who thought to solve the problem of his mother's low roof by cutting off her head - offers up this gem:
{{quote| '''Baldrick:''' Well, my cousin Bert Baldrick, Mr. Gainsborough's butler's dogsbody, says that all portraits look the same nowadays since they're painted to a romantic ideal rather than as a true depiction of the idiosyncratic facial qualities of the person in question.<br />
'''Blackadder''': Well, your cousin Bert obviously has a larger vocabulary than you, Baldrick. }}
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{{quote| ''"That's assuming time is linear."''}}
* Suzanne and Charlene would occasionally make remarkably insightful comments or unexpectedly understand some abstruse comment on ''[[Designing Women]]''.
* An episode of ''[[Stargate SG -1]]'' has the team going to a planet where an eclipse is going to darken the sky enough to allow observation of a black hole using an observatory they set up there. After the smart people in the room talk about how cool the spinning mass of...mass getting sucked into the black hole will look, Jack O'Neill correctly identifies it as the accretion disc. Carter and Jackson look at him funny, and his response is that the telescope on his roof isn't just for spying on his neighbors. Of course, many characters state that O'Neill is [[Obfuscating Stupidity|a hell of a lot smarter than he lets on]], but he still tries to explain all advanced technology as magnets.
** It's called [[Obfuscating Stupidity]]. By acting like a black ops idiot savant, he can get away with a desk full of paperwork and not being [[Kicked Upstairs]]. It eventually fails, though.
* On ''[[Night Court]],'' this happened often enough that an incidental character lampshaded it.
* In ''[[ItsIt's Always Sunny in Philadelphia]],'' Mac, Dee, and Dennis play hot potato with the smart ball, taking turns being the reasonable one in different episodes.
* On ''[[Friends]]'', Joey picked up the ball to deliver a bit of obscure info about Trump Towers, prompting Chandler's reaction: "What kind of stuff do you ''know''?"
** In another episode he takes forever to finish reading a very short poem, but instantly grasps what its symbolism is about.
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== Videogames ==
* Emiya Shirou of ''[[Fate/stay Stay Nightnight]]'' is not the sharpest knife in the drawer for the Fate route and most of the Unlimited Blade Works route. {{spoiler|Then he has an [[Eureka Moment]], figures out how to turn into a [[Reality Warper]] [[Awesomeness By Analysis|entirely by watching Archer,]] and never drops the [[Smart Ball]] again.}} It's almost a little jarring seeing how quick on the uptake he is in Heaven's Feel.
* The ''Judge'' is given the Smart Ball in case 3-5 of ''[[Phoenix Wright]]''. It's even lampshaded:
{{quote| '''The Judge''': {{spoiler|But no one could have predicted lightning hitting the bridge}}<br />
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== Webcomics ==
* [[The Ditz|Fighter]] of ''[[Eight 8-Bit Theater (Webcomic)|Eight Bit Theater]]'' often catches the [[Smart Ball]] when Black Mage says something stupid (or isn't around to [[Lampshade Hanging|lampshade]] whatever stupidity has happened today), [http://www.nuklearpower.com/2004/08/05/episode-449-speak-friend-and-enter or whenever it] [http://www.nuklearpower.com/2004/08/07/episode-450-knot-my-problem would be funny.]
** Double subverted [http://www.nuklearpower.com/2006/10/05/episode-752-its-all-fun-and-games-until-everything-dies/ here.]
** A common answer to a question about out-of-character moments on the forums (started by the author and continued by his fans) is that all characters are as smart as they need to be for a joke.
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** At the beginning of another episode, he predicts that a meteor heading for Springfield will probably shrink to the size of a small chihuahua. At the end of the episode, it gets lampshaded. "Dad was right!" "I know, kids. I'm scared, too."
*** For added hilarity, the meteor even lands right next to a chihuahua for comparison.
* Bouncing Boy from the ''[[Legion of Super -Heroes]]'' cartoon suddenly reveals a master strategy to save an entire planet from storms ala [[The Chessmaster]]. Second Season, never mentioned again. Similarly, Shrinking Violet reveals a knowledge of advanced technology just in time for fixing LL's arm. Also never mentioned again.
* Similarly, Patrick from ''[[SpongebobSpongeBob SquarePants]]''.
* ''[[Storm Hawks]]'' usually gives Piper or Stork the Smart Ball in regards to finding the solution to a given episode's technobable or wilderness survival, respectively. In Piper's case, she's the resident specialist (as the opening credits helpfully remind us) and Stork is [[Crazy Survivalist|so paranoid]] he's usually [[Crazy Prepared]] with contingencies for most disasters.
* Waffle from ''[[Catscratch]]'' has about as much common sense as your average brick, but throughout the course of the show, he constantly defines words such as "imprinting", "fulcrum", and "caldera" the other characters, to the point of stopping the action dead just to launch into a spelling bee-esque delivery.
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** [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GNZD1ul0--U Video] (and presenting [http://forums.toonzone.net/showthread.php?t=162100&page=2 a dissenting opinion on the dub being an Ass Pull])
* Done [[Rule of Funny|for laughs]] in the [[Powerpuff Girls]] when Him tells the girls has the the Professor in "the place where it's boiling and freezing at the same time". The girls rack their brains trying to figure it out only for [[Cloudcuckoolander|the Mayor]] [[Big Lipped Alligator Moment|to appear out of nowhere]] and claim that converting the boiling and freezing points of water into geographical coordinates points to a Townsville street. "Or maybe [[Fridge Logic|there's an ice cream truck on fire]]".
* Happens fairly often in ''[[The Venture Brothers (Animation)|The Venture Brothers]]'', due to many characters being a [[Genius Ditz]] to some degree. Hank is one of the more consistently stupid characters, but occasionally pulls out a bit of obscure knowledge that the adults can't even fathom where he would have picked it up. [[Jerkass|Dermott]] also surprisingly once gave some very competent advice on relationships to the brothers, prompting amazement from them, as he usually doesn't know ''anything''.
* In ''[[Justice League]]'', the Flash is typically portrayed as just a goofball [[Plucky Comic Relief]], but he has instances of outwitting other villains, one of whom was an alternate version of Batman. Granted, the regular Batman admits that he could not predict the Flash either. He has another instance later in the same episode where he tries to convince the alternate [[Knight Templar]] Superman that killing him is something he would never do because how the death of his Flash hurt him. That, unfortunately, merely prompts the other Superman to reply "I've done [[Moral Event Horizon|a lot of things]] that I thought I'd never do these past two years. One more won't hurt."
** Justified in that in his "day job," the DCAU Wally West is a forensic scientist for the police. He just loves cartoons and immature jokes.
* In ''[[Ed, Edd 'n' Eddy]]'', in "High Heeled Ed", towards the end of the episode, Ed makes a comment along the lines of "Spending an extended period of time in the presence of females can be mentally disorienting and physically confusing." After Double-D and Eddy stop for a second to register this, Ed then proceeds to shout "HUG ME!" for no particular reason. In short, he grabbed the Smart Ball and held it for all of 2 seconds before smashing it on the ground.
** Edd guessed that it may have been because he was pantless at the time.
** In another episode, Ed pulled of a subversion of this of sorts. He figured out Eddy's brother's complicated treasure map like it was nothing (the map was supposed to be superimposed over Eddy's face at a certain angle). When Edd was baffled and asked him how he did it, (essentially) said it was because he and Eddy's brother were both brothers.
* [[Inspector Gadget]] has rightly earned his reputation as an imbecile many times over, but even he was perfectly capable of holding the [[Smart Ball]] if the plot required it. And not just in the "MAD Trap" episode, either-there are multiple instances throughout the show where Gadget saves himself and/or Penny and Brain quite deliberately...and that's not counting the times when his bumbling make him a [[Spanner in Thethe Works]] and enable Penny and Brain to save the day.
 
{{reflist}}
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