Diabolus Ex Machina: Difference between revisions

{{trope}}

 

'''Diabolus Ex Machina''' (''Demon from the machine''): the [[Evil Counterpart]] of [[Deus Ex Machina]], it's a(n often contrived) twist designed to ensure, if not a Downer Ending, then certainly an extension in the villain's favor. Do whatever it takes, as long as you make absolutely sure that things get much worse for the protagonists, much better for the villains, or both.

 

== Web Original ==

* In ''Sims Big Brother 5'', the main twist of the season was that there was a liar in the house. By "liar", I mean someone playing under a false identity. The Liar was revealed to be Logan, but not to the houseguests. One week, there was a double elimination week and Michael Goldsmith said they had to evict the Liar, or else they would lose a portion of the grand prize. (Which the Liar would receive) Knowing he was in trouble from the other alliance, Logan persuaded the majority and the floaters that the liar was Darby. Thus, the house cast their votes for Darby and Logan, and since Darby received more, she was evicted.

** Diablous ex Machina struck once before. In ''Sims Big Brother 2'', there was a week in which 6 people were taken into the Solitary chamber, making themselves immune from the vote during Public Voting Week (in which ''everyone'' was up on the block, sans the 6 in the chamber). However, the person who lost all of the challenges was more or less screwed. They couldn't use any of the luxuries, couldn't compete for Head of household, were automatically nominated for three weeks in a row, had to eat an instant meal diet, and if any of those rules were broken, they'd be expelled. Dora unfortunately lost....meaning she had many of the worst weeks of her life in the house. Is it any wonder that after becoming the Unlucky Houseguest, she [[Suicide by Cop|asked everyone to nominate her and vote her out?]]

 

== Real Life ==

* There has been at least one real life occurrence of a person who just won the lottery being run over by a car. On a positive note, he ''was'' 73.

* General George S. Patton, after serving through [[World War I]] ''and'' [[World War II]], and was the sort of fighting man who should've died on the battlefield or in old age, gets killed in a car accident in Germany two months after the end of the war and a day before he was to return to America.

* A certain stuntman who rode a barrel over Niagara Falls later died from slipping on an orange peel.

** He also tried to swim the Niagara river twice. He had to get rescued both times, but at least he survived those.

* "We knew a croc (or something) would get him". ''[[Crocodile Hunter]]'' Steve Irwin, after dodging death from crocs, snakes, sharks, etc. for years, was offed by one of the world's least aggressive toward humans creatures, a stingray.

** Moreover, contrary to popular assumption, Irwin was just swimming by it, rather than actively provoking it in any way. He was, in fact, there to save the stingrays.

** The stingrays, as a species, have tried their best to avert this by causing a statistically abnormal rash of deaths in the wake of Irwin.

*** Doesn't help people have been [[Too Dumb to Live|provoking them]] by trying to kill them in [[Completely Missing the Point|revenge for Steve's death.]]