Jump to content

Dramatic Irony: Difference between revisions

Dramatic Irony (view source)

Revision as of 04:25, 8 April 2014

500 bytes removed ,  10 years ago
m
Mass update links
VisualWikitext
m (categories and general cleanup)
m (Mass update links)
Line 16:
Classic theatre usually favours tense or comedic use of dramatic irony. Modern media is more likely to employ the "cringe factor" variation, which walks the line between tragedy and comedy.
 
A character's [[Hidden Depths]] are often a source of Dramatic Irony. A favorite trick of time-travel or historical works; see [[It Will Never Catch On]]. [[Foregone Conclusion]] or [[Doomed Byby Canon]] may crank it [[Up to Eleven]]. May end with an [[Internal Reveal]]. The opposite is [[Tomato Surprise]], when the ''characters'' know something that the ''audience'' doesn't know.
 
A type of [[Irony]].
Line 37:
* Played up for all its worth on ''[[Code Geass]]'', which came to its head in episode 16 (the one before all [[The Masquerade]] started to unravel). That episode featured a conversation between Princesses Cornelia and Euphemia about how much Prince Clovis cared about his [[Dead Little Sister]] and brother and how capturing Zero would avenge the deaths of all three of their siblings Clovis, Lelouch, and Nunnally. Not only are the latter two still alive, but Lelouch IS Zero - and worst of all, Euphemia's reactions in previous episodes show that not only is the audience aware of the irony, but she's catching on to it, too. It also saw Kallen saying she has no interest whatsoever in him, though she is infatuated with Zero, who is arguably more the real Lelouch than Lelouch is. But the highest amount of irony had to do with the interaction between Lelouch and Suzaku which saw the two of them teaming up to defeat Mao and save Nunnally, they said they trusted each other completely and agreed to help protect each other completely unaware of the others [[Secret Identity]].
* The "audience is in on the joke" type is present in one scene of the ''[[Gunslinger Girl]]'' anime and manga. Franca, a bombmaker working for the terrorist group Padania, accidentally bumps into Henrietta, one of the titular cyborg assassins assigned to eliminate her group. Neither is aware of what the other is, and after the encounter Franca is briefly reflects on how glad she is that one of her allies' plans to bomb that area was thwarted, because "protecting children like her is what Padania is all about."
* In ''[[Mobile Suit Gundam 00]]'', the character Allejuah has an evil split personality which was implanted in him as a child. One episode has a flashback of him as a child, showing his first meeting with his childhood sweetheart who comments on her efforts to communicate with him even though she was essentially being kept catatonic previous to that. He makes a comment on how it must have worked, as he heard her voice in his head. The audience realizes that wasn't actually ''her'' voice, but rather the beginnings of the split personality.
* ''[[Fullmetal Alchemist]]'' fulfills this trope from very early on -- as in ''Scar's first appearance'' early. Another big one is {{spoiler|Ed and Winry talking about Lt. Colonel Hughes right after his death}}.
* Played for [[Tear Jerker|brutal tragedy]] in ''[[Rah XephonRahXephon]]'' when Ayato gives a [[I Will Definitely Protect You]] to {{spoiler|Asahina}} as he goes off to defeat a Dolem. What he doesn't know is that {{spoiler|the Dolem is in sync with Asahina so everything he does to the Dolem hurts Asahina in the same fashion}}. And it twists the knife even further {{spoiler|he does this while she's trying to confess her feelings to him. Worse yet, everything she writes shows up in every electronic screen in the area. Ayato fails to notice this until he delivered a killing blow, and turned to see her final message on a building and realized what he had just done.}}
* Used in ''[[Claymore]]'', when Raki finds himself [[Did We Just Have Tea Withwith Cthulhu?|rooming with Isley and Priscilla]]. He hasn't heard the names, but the readers have.
* A rare examples of this being applied to the bad guys: in ''[[Naruto]]'', Kakashi managed to track down Sasori and Deidara using a piece of clothe Kankuro managed to yank from Sasori. When they hear Kakashi's team is approaching Sasori [[Never My Fault|immediately says this must have been Deidara's fault.]]
** And then done to Naruto and Sasuke when, in a flashback, their mothers talk, figure out that Naruto (who wasn't born yet) and Sasuke will be in the same grade, and they hope that the boys will be friends.
* Done for suspense in [[One Piece (Manga)|One Piece]] when the readers are made aware of {{spoiler|Ace's capture and planned execution}} while Luffy blindly dodges newspapers with information on it.
* [[Scryed|S-CRYCry-ed]] has an interesting variation, in that the irony's never really brought up until it's rectified; there's really nothing to tell the audience that {{spoiler|Kanami doesn't know Kazuma's an alter user}}, but the pieces definitely fall into place once it's revealed.
* In ''[[Fist of the North Star]]'', Juza, one of the guardians of the Last General of Nanto, dies while fighting Raoh after refusing to divulge the General's identity. However, it's Juza's very sacrifice that causes Raoh to realize the General's true identity.
* In ''[[Sailor Moon]] Sailor Stars'', Usagi writes many letters to Mamoru--who she believes is studying in America--and sometimes the letters even provide narration for the episode. However, the audience has known that Mamoru was dead from the moment it happened.
** To make things even worse, Rei's last words to Usagi are that she "still has Mamoru".
* ''[[Mobile Suit Gundam 0080 War in The Pocket]]'' milks this trope for every drop it's worth. The series has a cute romance brewing between [[Cool Big Sis|Christina]] and [[Big Brother Mentor|Bernie]], neither of whom knows that they're enemy soldiers ''or'' that Chris is test-piloting the Gundam that Bernie's team has been ordered to destroy at all costs. Turns absolutely gut-wrenching in the final episode, where each of them asks their mutual friend Alfred to say "goodbye" to the other for them; at this point Al is in on the secret, having witnessed Bernie destroy the Gundam (badly injuring Chris in the process) at the cost of his own life.
* There's a nice example in ''[[Turn a Gundam (Anime)|Turn a Gundam]]'' where one of the excavation teams digging through one of the silos discovers a rack of torpedo-shaped objects with the radioactive trefoil symbol on it. The audience obviously realizes they're nuclear bombs, but the characters have no idea what the symbol means. Cue lots of squirming as the characters repeatedly drop and otherwise shock the bombs.
 
== Comics ==
* Triumph was also involved in a positively brutal incident of dramatic irony in the mainstream DCU. After his life falls apart, Triumph considers consummating a [[Deal Withwith the Devil]] to get the years of his life he lost back. Instead of signing a contract or anything like that, all Triumph has to do is light a specific candle the devil had given him. Despite the fact that Triumph had been kind of a dick lately (or, you know, always), Ray and Gypsy show up in the nick of time to tell him how important he is to them, not knowing about the candle. Triumph, touched, decides not to sell his soul and flies off, leaving Ray and Gypsy to admire the statue of fallen teammate Mystek Triumph had made during his deliberation. Then Ray finds the candle, and they notice that it fits perfectly into Mystek's arms. Of course, Ray decides to light it as a tribute to Mystek.
* The Atlantis Chronicles get a lots of mileage out of the fact that the text-boxes are directly from the Atlantis Chronicles, but the events on-panel are what actually happened. This is generally played for laughs, but it turns horrific at the end of one volume, where the chronicler notes that the princess was reportedly frigid on her wedding night, and chalks it up to nerves (it being her first time and all). The reader, however, knows that she had been raped the previous night.
 
== Fan Fiction ==
* In ''[[Kyon: Big Damn Hero (Fanfic)|Kyon Big Damn Hero]]'' Kyon feels guilty for kissing all the girls in the SOS Brigade through the fic because, even if he cares about them, he feels he's disrespecting them. {{spoiler|The girls in the SOS Brigade are aiming for a Kyon-centered Type 2 [[Tenchi Solution]] by strenghtening their relationship as [[True Companions]].}}
* Amusingly used in ''[[Travels Through Azeroth and Outland (Fanfic)|Travels through Azeroth and Outland]]'', where the narrator makes a few statements that most ''[[WoW]]'' players would know to be incorrect.
* In the ''[[Disgaea]]'' fic, ''[[Fail to The King (Fanfic)|Fail To Thethe King!]]'', one of the [[Anti-Villain|antagonists]] is searching for the killer of his lover. Any reader who finished ''Disgaea 2'' is well aware that {{spoiler|Rozalin is both Zenon, the Overlord that he is hunting for revenge... ''and'' the little girl from the Snow Village that he almost gave up his quest to become a father for.}} He isn't.
* The ''[[Star Wars]]'' fic ''[http://boards.theforce.net/the_saga/b10476/22761239/p1/?0 The Sith Lord Who Brought Life Day]'' is about an Imperial officer who [[The Bet|loses a bet]] and has to give a [[You Mean "Xmas"|Life Day]] present to Lord Vader. The reader has a far better understanding of what the present ends up meaning to Vader than the character does.
* [[Past Sins (Fanfic)|Past Sins]] takes this trope and shatters the characters' souls with it. Repeatedly.
* ''[http://www.fictionalley.org/authors/leslie_smart/GWATHOS.html Ginny Weasley and the Heir of Slytherin]'', which tells ''[[Harry Potter (Franchise)/Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets|Harry Potter]]'' from [[POV Sequel|Ginny's perspective]], has several ironic [[Call Forward|Call Forwards]]. For example, Percy scolds Ginny for using the word "bitch", saying "Ginny, language! What d'you think your mother would think if she were here? Do you think ''she'' would ever [[Harry Potter (Franchise)/Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows|use a word like 'bitch']]?"
* In ''[[Hunting the Unicorn (Fanfic)|Hunting the Unicorn]]'', the canon portrayal of Blaine is [[Deconstruction Fic|hit with a sledgehammer.]] Klaine's [[But Not Too Gay|lack of sex]] turns out to be because {{spoiler|Blaine lost his virginity at ''[[A Man Is Always Eager|sixteen]]'' out of a belief that [[Sex Equals Love]].}} It then turns out that the guy ''was never Blaine's boyfriend'', and that Blaine {{spoiler|tried to ''invoke'' [[Sex Equals Love]]}} because his family's [[Dysfunction Junction]] was setting in and he was [[Lonely Rich Kid|really, really lonely]]. One year later, Blaine is now Kurt's [[Relationship Sue|painfully considerate boyfriend]]... because he's petrified not only of hurting Kurt the same way, but of ''getting'' hurt again.
Line 90:
'''Brown:''' ''Ronald Reagan''???! The actor??! HA! Who's Vice-President, [[Jerry Lewis]]???<ref>"I suppose Jane Wyman is the first lady, and Jack Benny, his Secretary of the Treasury! I've had enough jokes for one evening! Good day future boy!"</ref> }}
** Also consider the scene where Goldie Wilson, the black busboy in 1955 declares he will make something of himself, and Marty, coming from the present, er, future, declares that indeed he will make something of himself. Specifically in about 30 years he'll be the mayor. What's hilarious, is that initially, even the future mayor himself is stunned to hear it.
* These ''[[Star Trek (Franchise)|Star Trek]]'' examples:
** In the 2009 ''[[Star Trek (Filmfilm)|Star Trek]]'' film, Kirk and McCoy meet Spock for the first time. In the original continuity, McCoy was the id of the [[Power Trio]] that opposed logical Vulcan Superego Spock and on times called him a pointy eared, green blooded bastard. Now:
{{quote| '''Kirk''': Who was that pointy-eared bastard?<br />
'''McCoy''': I don't know, but I like him. }}
*** Of course, McCoy is much less friendly and respectful towards Spock after he sentences his best friend to become [[Always a Bigger Fish|monster food]] on Delta Vega. The green-blooded hobgoblin insults start from here on out.
** ''[[Star Trek: First Contact (Film)|Star Trek First Contact]]'' (again a [[Time Travel]] story) - Two examples
*** Cochrane constantly snickers at all the things Riker says will happen in the future, when it's ''his'' work that will cause it to happen.
*** During the historic flight of the ''Phoenix'', Cochrane orders Riker and LaForge to go to warp by saying [[Catch Phrase|Engage!]]. Both Riker and LaForge silently chuckle, as does the audience.
* In ''[[In Bruges]]'', [[Hitman Withwith a Heart|Ray]]'s boss, Harry, {{spoiler|orders Ray's death because he killed a child, albeit accidentally.}} At the end (and this is a major spoiler!) {{spoiler|Harry believes he's killed a child, and shows himself to be a [[Even Evil Has Standards|man of principle]] by committing suicide. In fact, he's killed a midget, but he's dead before Ray can inform him of this.}}
* The first ''[[Spider-Man (Filmfilm)|Spider-Man]]'' movie has a scene near the end where {{spoiler|Harry Osborn tells his best friend, Peter Parker, about how much he wants to kill Spider-Man to avenge the murder of his father, Norman Osborn.}} Does this one need any more explanation?
* Of ''[[Deep Blue Sea]]'', it is often joked that the super Sharks know what this is, because {{spoiler|one of them kills [[Samuel L. Jackson]] [[Sedgwick Speech|in mid speech]] about what they're going to do to get through it.}}
* Virtually the entire first ''[[Halloween (Filmfilm)|Halloween]]'' film, and much of the later ones, is simply "Hey! The killer is in the background! And the characters can't see him! [[Oh Crap]]!"
* The ''[[Halloween (Filmfilm)|Halloween]]'' example pops up later in ''[[Scream (Filmfilm)|Scream]]'' when Randy is watching the infamous scene with Laurie on the TV and he says "turn around, Jamie, he's right behind you". Yes of course the killer is behind him as well. Bonus points in that the actor's name is also Jamie.
* Happens repeatedly for tension in ''[[No Country for Old Men]]''. Much of the movie is just simply watching what will happen to the characters as they walk into a situation, oblivious to what the audience already knows. And then it subverts the trope by getting those characters out with a hidden ace the audience ''didn't see''.
* The whole prequel-trilogy of [[Star Wars]]. You know that everyone with the exception of Obi-Wan is (probably) going to be killed anyway (by their own clone forces!) and that Anakin is going to go evil, so you really have a hard time empathizing with Anakin.
Line 113:
== Literature ==
* [[Tamora Pierce]] uses a very gentle, but rather sad, type of dramatic irony in ''[[Tortall Universe|Protector of the Small]].'' The heroine, Keladry, develops a crush on her best friend Neal, that he remains totally oblivious to her. ''He'' develops a crush on a noble lady...and anxiously asks Kel if she approves of the lady in question, since he values her opinion as a friend.
* At the end of [[Vernor Vinge]]'s ''[[AZones Deepness in The Skyof (Literature)Thought|A Deepness in The Sky]]'', Pham Nuwen {{spoiler|decides to head for the center of the galaxy, to discover the origin of the alien technology found on Arachna}}. If you've read ''[[AZones Fire Upon the Deepof (Literature)Thought|A Fire Upon the Deep]]'', to which this is a prequel, you know what the problem is -- {{spoiler|he's going the wrong way and ends up in the Unthinking Depths}}. The unawareness of the Zones of Thought on the part of all the characters leads to multiple examples of this.
** Indeed, it can be thought of as one extended episode of dramatic irony; while no hint of this appears in the book itself, the whole story revolves around ways to sidestep the limitations of the Slow Zone (Focus is an attempt to get around the lack of AI; the Qeng Ho are an attempt to circumvent the inevitable rise and fall of isolated, planetbound cultures), and everyone just assumes that those limits are universal. [http://www.scifi.com/sfw/issue101/excess.html John Clute wrote a good essay on this.]
* In [[Dan Abnett]]'s [[Ravenor]] novel ''Ravenor Returns'', Belknap takes Inquisitor Ravenor and his retinue for criminals and desperately tries to free Zael from their clutches and a life of crime.
* ''[[Warrior Cats (Literature)|Warrior Cats]]'': Jayfeather is unable to understand why Leafpool and Crowfeather act so weird around each other, but any reader who has read the second series would know that what he is detecting is pure [[Unresolved Sexual Tension]].
* In Mike Lee's [[Warhammer 40000]] [[Horus Heresy]] novel ''Fallen Angels'', Lion and his Dark Angels fight and take substantial casualties to keep siege engines from traitor forces. At the very end, he is talking with Perturabo and handing over the engines. As this is the [[Backstory]] to the [[Warhammer 40000]] universe, we know that Perturabo will take them directly to Horus.
* Sue Townsend uses this a lot in her ''[[Adrian Mole]]'' books, to great (mostly) comedic effect. Particularly remarkable in that the books are ''diaries''...
* This pops up frequently in ''[[The Wheel of Time (Literature)|The Wheel of Time]]'' series. Played for laughs in early books, such as how at various times, each of the three male main protagonists would each find themselves in a socially awkward situation and wish one of the other two were there, because they know how to talk to women better. Later, different protagonists each captured one of the [[Quirky Miniboss Squad|Forsaken]] so they could learn long-lost methods of using the One Power. They both tried to keep it a secret, and both worried about someone finding out long after the respective Forsaken were out of the picture - even though by now, no one would care.
* In the climactic battle at the end of ''[[The Hunchback of Notre Dame (Literaturenovel)|The Hunchback of Notre Dame]]'', there are two main forces: the gypsies, and Frollo's men. They're both after Esmeralda<ref>hope I'm remembering this right; if not, please correct</ref>. Frollo's men want to take her and kill her; the gypsies want to free her. Quasimodo, unfortunately, has their roles exactly backwards in his head, so he's busy "protecting" his beloved Esmeralda by ''helping'' the bad guys and ''hindering'' the good guys. And, of course, we all know this isn't the Disney version, [[Downer Ending|so]]...
* Happens quite a lot in ''[[Buddenbrooks (Literature)|Buddenbrooks]]''. For example, if Sesemi wishes people good luck or happiness, they always tend to become unlucky and unhappy in their lives.
* Double layered in [[Iain M Banks]]' ''[[The Culture|Look To Windward]]'': Masaq' Qrbital and its inhabitants welcome the Chelgrin Major Quilan as a guest, even though {{spoiler|his story in flashbacks unfolds his mission to destroy the Orbital}}. Meanwhile, any familiarity with the Culture and its sharper ends means the reader {{spoiler|thinks that they must have seen the Chelgrin plot coming miles away, and he surely doesn't stand a chance.}}
* George R. R. Martin uses dramatic irony a fair amount in ''[[A Song of Ice and Fire]]''. One notable example occurs in book two, ''A Clash of Kings'', when Arya Stark, in the guise of Nan, Roose Bolton's cupbearer, tells Elmar Frey that she hopes that the princess to whom he is betrothed will die. Both of them are oblivious to the fact that she herself is the princess in question.
** In the first chapters of both ''[[A Feast for Crows]]'' and ''[[A Dance With Dragons]]'', several characters make decisions and assumptions based on the belief Tywin Lannister is alive and in charge. Readers already know from the end of ''[[A Storm of Swords]]'' that that is not the case. Justified, in that news of Tywin's death would realistically take time to reach the parts of Westeros further from Kings Landing.
* A major plot device throughout [[William Golding|William Golding's]] novel, ''Rites Of Passage''. Said novel features passages from Reverend Colley's diary, who believes that he has made a great friend out of Talbot and the crewmen. In reality, we are made aware from the beginning that Talbot can't stand him. Further more, it is fairly obvious to the readers that Colley is a closet homosexual, yet poor Colley lacks the self-awareness to realise this before it [[Kick the Dog|gets him]] [[Heroic BSOD|into serious trouble]].
* This crops up in the [[Honor Harrington (Literature)|Honorverse]] a bit.
** In the first book, Honor is persuing a {{spoiler|Havanite Q-ship}} she believes is trying to summon an invasion force. They're actually trying to call off the invasion.
** Combined with [[The Cavalry]] in the 2nd book.
{{quote| {{spoiler|Dear God. She doesn't know we're here}}}}
* This is what makes Weed from [[The Legendary Moonlight Sculptor (Literature)|The Legendary Moonlight Sculptor]] so funny
* ''[[Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows]]:'' At the very end, Harry explains that he is the true {{spoiler|owner of the Elder Wand}}. Voldemort doesn't believe him, which creates a brief moment of [[Dramatic Irony]] between the revelation and Voldemort's death.
* ''[[The Dresden Files (Literature)|The Dresden Files]], Blood Rites:'' [[Subverted]]. Harry constructs a counterspell spanning the whole building he's in, and when one of the villains confronts him, he and the reader are feeling pretty smug, because the other villains are about to launch the spell, and get it sent back in their faces. Then he's told the counterspell has already been dismantled. [[Oh Crap|Crap]].
 
 
== Live Action Television ==
* ''[[Twenty Four|24]]'' loves this. A good example is the first season when Senator Palmer's aides and CTU both tell him that they believe Jack Bauer is a threat to him and his family and he's convinced Bauer holds him responsible for the deaths of his men in a mission some years ago; when in fact, Jack Bauer and his family are going through holy hell because Bauer is trying to ''keep him safe''.
** To add to the irony, it turns out Bauer wasn't even aware of Palmer's involvement in said mission.
** Also in Season 1, Jack takes aside Jamie and Nina as "They're the only ones he can trust." They're ''both'' Moles and (at the time) the only ones who were.
* ''[[Supernatural (TV series)|Supernatural]]'' loves this. For example, it's tough to sympathize with Whiny/Season 1 Sam when he calls Dean the perfect Golden Boy of the family when we see the last few episodes of Season One and see that John showed more outward concern for Sam than he ever did for Dean.
** ''Home'' is pretty much this as well. Missouri takes any chance she can to verbally beat Dean down while Sam is sniggering like a bratty little brother yet the tearful phone call beforehand (want to answer your phone once in a while, ''John''?) shows just how much this whole thing is upsetting him. Poor lamb.
** Used for tragic effect in ''In The Beginning''. It's heartbreaking seeing a teenage John Winchester who "still believes in happy endings" when you know how he ends up.
Line 146:
** Also, Sam's blood habit in season 4, which is shown onscreen and discussed with a couple other characters before Dean find out. When he does find out, he's not happy.
* Used and [[Lampshade Hanging|lampshaded]] in ''[[Park Bench]]'', episode 14.
* Another example of dramatic irony done for dramatic tension. In ''[[Star Trek: Enterprise (TV)|Star Trek Enterprise]]'' the Xindi are on a genocidal mission to wipe out humanity, due to them being told that in a few hundred years, humans will completely kill off all the Xindi. Thing is, it's a lie; the Xindi and the humans are actually going to join forces in the next few centuries and defeat their common foe, known as the Sphere Builders.
* While [[Superman]] has the legendary Superman/Lois Lane/Clark Kent love triangle in pretty much every incarnation, there is a very specific bit of [[Dramatic Irony]] in ''Lois And Clark'', the 1990s Superman TV series. Basically, Clark confesses to Lois that he's in love with her, but she turns him down. Later that episode, Lois confesses to ''Superman'' that she's in love with him, actually telling him that "I would love you if you didn't have superpowers and were just a regular guy."
** A better example of ''dramatic'' irony is from Smallville, where Clark, talking about his future plans, says something along the lines of 'I don't know what I want to do; I just don't want to put on a suit and fly around a lot'. Which is cool, because the ''audience'' knows full well what's going to happen.
* During the Minbari civil war arc of ''[[Babylon Five5]]'', Delenn is chastising the Warrior Caste for one of their own committing an attack on a high level Warrior Caste representative, while complimenting her own Caste. This is before a bunch of guys from her caste who not too long ago had poisoned the entire ship, and only Lennier acting quickly prevented it from killing them all.
** A better example from ''[[Babylon Five5]]'': G'Kar, the Narn Ambassador, has just received a message from the leader of his people's enemy, the Centauri Emperor, which is to the effect that the Emperor wants to publically apologise and make reparations for his people's actions. G'Kar runs into his frequent opponent, Londo, the Centauri Ambassador, and buys him a drink, toasting Londo's health and that of the Emperor. Unbeknownst to G'Kar, {{spoiler|Londo has just ordered an attack on a Narn colony, plunging their two races into war.}}
*** {{spoiler|This is doubly ironic in that Londo had no idea what the Emperor's plan was, and would probably not have ordered the attack had he known.}}
** Back in season 3, there's a comedic example in the episode "Sic Transit Vir". Ivanova's having nightmares about reporting to work in the nude. She talks about this with Sheridan while not getting specific about it. He suggests it's just her subconscious mind adjusting to the changing situation on the station. And then…
Line 167:
* In ''[[Eastenders]]'', when Ronnie Mitchell found out that her young employee Danielle Jones was single, broke and pregnant, she persuaded her to get an abortion. Ronnie had been haunted for twenty years by grief over giving her own daughter up for adpotion - in order to assuage Danielle's guilt, Ronnie tells her that she wished she'd aborted her own child all those years ago. Naturally, Danielle was the daughter that Ronnie had given up.
** The irony is further layered by the fact that after the abortion Ronnie acts very coldly towards Danielle. She only does this because she feels guilty about betraying the memory of her daughter (who she thinks is dead) by pretending that she'd wanted an abortion - so she ends up pushing away and really hurting Danielle, who ''is'' her daughter.
* A comedic example appears in a flashback episode of ''[[Angel (TV)|Angel]]'' set in 1942. 1942-Spike declares "I'm not going to be experimented on by the government!" and 1942-Angel replies "And I'm not going to get trapped at the bottom of the ocean!". Both of which make perfect sense in context (they're on a submarine), but are hilarious, because the viewer knows that about sixty years later, Spike will be experimented on by the US government and Angel will spend several months trapped underwater.
* The opening sequence of the first episode of ''[[Coupling]]'' is a rare [[Subverted Trope|subversion]] of such an elemental trope: we think we know more than the characters, but in fact we're being misled. Steve is heading to a meeting with his girlfriend and says he's planning to break up with her, and that she's probably expecting it. Susan is preparing for a meeting with her boyfriend, and says she has no idea what he wants (her friend guesses he's going to propose). We think Susan and Steve are meeting with each other, but they ain't.
* In a classic comedic case; when Morgan Grimes learns that there is a secret CIA base under their Buy More store AND that bad guys are preparing to blow it up, he gamely tries to convince ''[[Chuck]]'' Bartowski that they have to stop them. Chuck, who is the actual spy, who knows all of this beforehand, futilely tries to convince Morgan that they are in over their heads.
Line 181:
'''Leonard:''' Does that really need to be in the agreement?<br />
'''Sheldon:''' We might as well settle it now; it's gonna be on for years. }}
* In the ''[[Star Trek: theThe Next Generation (TV)|Star Trek the Next Generation]]'' episode "Conundrum", there's some ''real-time'' dramatic irony: We know Kieran MacDuff is out of place on the ''Enterprise'', but thanks to [[Laser-Guided Amnesia]], the crew does not.
* From BBC's series ''[[Merlin (TV series)|Merlin]]'', you could make a drinking game every time Arthur insults Merlin and calls him [[The Smart Guy|stupid]], [[Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass|cowardly]], and [[The Fettered|how little he understands being trapped by duty and destiny]].
* In the ''[[Doctor Who]]'' serial [[Doctor Who/Recap/S14 E3 The Deadly Assassin|"The Deadly Assassin"]], the Time Lord authorities make deductions from the Doctor's history that lead them to believe him far more knowledgable than he actually is.
** In many episodes, in fact, characters assume that the Doctor is in cahoots with some faction of wherever he landed. The reactions are predictable and all too often tragic.
Line 200:
* [[Tom Stoppard]]'s play ''Arcadia'' is a heartwrenching example of this, even though the play is pretty comedic. Due to it's narrative structure, the audience sees the events that happen in the 1800s that the modern-day researchers get wrong, and are also told by the modern-day characters what will ultimately happen to the characters in the 1800s. In the last scene of the play, the audience is already aware that Thomasina {{spoiler|will burn to death the night before her seventeenth birthday}} and that her tutor Septimus {{spoiler|will go insane and die a hermit, writing "reams of cabbalistic proofs that the world is coming to an end."}} Thomasina invites Septimus, who is in love with her, to come upstairs with her, but he declines, not wanting to ruin her reputation (he has just spent the play ruining lots of reputations and getting out of trouble on charm alone). Then, just to twist the knife a little bit deeper, Stoppard has Septimus hand Thomasina her essay on thermodynamics, light Thomasina's candle and tell her to be careful with the flame. Not a dry eye in the house.
* Rather tragically used in the musical version of ''Sunset Boulevard'''s [["I Want" Song|I Want Songs]] and the characters' uplifting wishes, since we already know that {{spoiler|Norma will fail to get back her career, and Joe will die.}}
* In the musical ''[[Jekyll and Hyde (Theatretheatre)|Jekyll and Hyde]]'', the powerful and uplifting number "This is the Moment" is made very ironic because we know that Dr. Jekyll is preparing to [[Professor Guinea Pig|test out the serum]] that will [[Jekyll and Hyde|transform him into the murderous Edward Hyde]].
* ''[[Wicked (Theatretheatre)|Wicked]]'' is just full of dramatic irony, since, even if the audience didn't already know the story of ''The Wizard of Oz'' and what happens to the green witch, the very first number of the musical fills us in. In particular, One Short Day is so full of hope and happiness in sharp contrast to everything after it.
** Also, both Elphaba and the Wizard mention a "celebration throughout Oz that's all to do with" her. We, as the audience, have already seen this celebration: Munchkinland is celebrating her death.
* The musical version of ''[[Reefer Madness (Film)|Reefer Madness]]'' has a hilariously dark [[Foreshadowing]] version of this in the song "[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFC9o87388c Romeo and Juliet]" with the two main characters singing: "We are just like Romeo and Juliet/We're happy, young and bubbling with love!/I can't wait to read the ending!/I can't either! But I'm sure it turns out real swell!"
Line 219:
 
== Video Games ==
* ''[[Ace Attorney (Visual Novel)|Ace Attorney]]:''
** The fourth game was able to pull this off surprisingly (and painfully) well: {{spoiler|When the MASON system is used in the final case to see the case that lost Phoenix his badge, it's obvious at one point the one piece you need to present, but the player knows the evidence is forged and will lose Phoenix his title and job. However, submitting anything else will fail, and you can't ''[[Mercy Kill]]'' yourself, either. You end up having to submit the forged piece, or just shut off your game. The result is cringing and painful to see play out.}}
** There's also multiple instances of the player actually ''seeing a cutscene of the guilty party incriminating himself'', but obviously the characters don't know until the end of the case.
Line 226:
** In ''Investigations'', the fourth case is a flashback to when Edgeworth was younger, and {{spoiler|still apprenticed to Manfred von Karma. It's a bit unsettling to watch Edgeworth being so obedient to Von Karma}}, if you've played the first game and therefore know that {{spoiler|Manfred von Karma killed Edgeworth's father}}. And it manages to be before 3-4, mentioned above, which was Edgeworth's court debut, so the audience also knows that the case Edgeworth is preparing for at the start of it is never going to go to court.
*** One scene with Miles Edgeworth and {{spoiler|Manfred von Karma}} in ''Investigations'' even doubles as [[Dramatic Irony]] and [[Foreshadowing]]. {{spoiler|Edgeworth says that no man is above the law. Von Karma disagrees, saying there are people like that. To the player who knows von Karma killed Edgeworth's father, the implication is that von Karma is referring to himself. However, the very next case in ''Investigations'' deals with a criminal who [[Diplomatic Impunity|hides behind his diplomatic immunity]], making him "above the law".}}
** Case 3 of ''Investigations 2'' takes this up even further, you get to play as Gregory Edgeworth during his last case, going up against Manfred von Karma. Of course, by now, most players will know {{spoiler|[[Doomed Byby Canon|just how this ends...]]}} It's made all the worst by the fact Gregory pretty much realizes von Karma is a [[Complete Monster]] the moment he meets him, {{spoiler|she just doesn't realize how much...}} Similar to the 4th game's example above, the final deduction you have to make in the past segment is one the player ''knows'' will have horrible consequences, but the game won't continue until you present it. In case it wasn't obvious by now, it's {{spoiler|"von Karma forged the autopsy report."}} And since von Karma still has his perfect record by the time of 1-4, you know Gregory won't be able to get the defendant cleared, and that the real killer will get away with it. {{spoiler|Fortunately, Miles manages to resolve everything when the case is re-opened in the present day.}}
* ''[[World of Warcraft]]'' plays with this trope in the cinematic introduction to the ''Wrath of the Lich King'' expansion, which features a retrospective voiceover by Arthas Menethil's father encouraging his young son to use his powers for good. The irony is that the voiceover plays over Arthas as the Lich King, commanding the vast undead armies of Northrend after [[Face Heel Turn|betraying his people]] and {{spoiler|[[Self-Made Orphan|killing his father]]}}.
** This scene turns out to be doubly ironic when it's revealed that the soul of Terenas Menethil is trapped within Frostmourne along with every other soul consumed by the dread blade, and actually speaks to Arthas, chiding him for his poor decisions. To squeeze out the very final drop of irony, the concluding cinematic of the Icecrown Citadel dungeon features Terenas telling his dying son that it's now, finally, over, making this also an example of [[Book Ends]].
* ''[[Kingdom Hearts Birth By Sleep]]'': Near the end of Terra's story, he {{spoiler|makes Riku his successor, and promises to show the worlds outside Destiny Islands to him someday.}} Ten years later, he makes good on his promise {{spoiler|in the worst, most tragic way possible. Long story short, his heart got hijacked by Master Xehanort and ended up becoming Riku's [[Evil Mentor]] from the first game; Ansem, Seeker of Darkness.}}
* This is showcased heavily in the [[Metal Gear]] Solid games. Two series-spanning ones that cover the origin of Solid Snake and Metal Gear respectively are seen in [[Metal Gear Solid 3 Snake Eater]]:
** The one about Solid Snake's origins have the young Big Boss talk to his medical support member, Para-Medic who happens to specialize in the field of genetics, about the nature of human cloning and genetic engineering. She tells Big Boss that when the science behind genetics advance enough they will be able to isolate what genes are desirable, take those genes and not only enhance already living people but be able to clone a human being with those particular traits, and his genes will be in high demand one day. Big Boss denounces human cloning as immoral, saying that, "You can't mass-produce human beings.", and that he is sure the government would never do something like that to him. Big Boss is proved wrong, very wrong, when the Patriots later not only clone him but genetically alter soldiers with his DNA.
** The young Big Boss first learns of the origins of Metal Gear from a drunken Russian scientist who had lost out funding dollars for his project in place of the Shagohad, a similar but not as advanced mobile nuclear platform since it relies on rocket boosters and not its own movement speed to achieve what it does. This man Granin explains to Big Boss that artillery is too heavy to be mobile and infantry is mobile but not as heavily armored as artillery, so you need to find a way to combine the two, Metal Gear is that missing link because its mobility comes from giving it legs. Metal Gear has the firepower of artillery and the mobility of infantry allowing it to traverse any terrain and destroy the enemy with devastating fire power, not to mention its nuclear payload that can be fired from anywhere in the world. So why was a nuclear platform like the Shagohad chosen over Metal Gear? Metal Gear was simply so far ahead of its time that Granin's employer Volgin didn't have the technology needed to build Metal Gear and so it had to be abandoned, but Granin predicts very accurately that one day Russia will come to fear Metal Gear despite denying its funding now. Sigint Big Boss's technology expert denounces Metal Gear viewing it as an absurd idea that only a crackpot scientist would think of, citing that legs would reduce a tank's traction and make it a walking bulls eye since it would move too slow to avoid enemy fire. Ironically Metal Gear's technology is advanced enough that its legs make it very fast, far faster than any tank, and along with its nuclear payload every country on Earth gets into an arms race over who can make the best Metal Gear. Granin's prediction of his machine becoming desired and feared comes true. The icing on top of the irony cake is that Sigint ends up making a Metal Gear regardless of his earlier dismissal of the machine.
Line 251:
* ''[[Wapsi Square]]'' [http://wapsisquare.com/comic/laughing-her-ass-off/ She's probably laughing her ass off] -- [[Ocular Gushers]].
** It had been used even earlier [http://wapsisquare.com/comic/speakfreely/ here] with Luci talking to Jacqui about Shelly using the analogy of a tattoo, not knowing that Shelly had recently acquired a tattoo covering the entire front of her torso.
* In the Cocoon Academy arc of ''[[Brawl in The Family (Webcomic)|Brawl in Thethe Family]]'', [[The Legend of Zelda (Franchise)|Professor Dragmire]] tells his students that with his help, every one of them will become a hero. A reverse shot then shows that his class consists of [[Kirby|Dedede]], [[Super Mario Bros.|Bowser]], [[Pokémon (Animeanime)|Jessie]], [[Wario Land (Video Game)|Wario]], and [[Donkey Kong Country|K. Rool]].
* In ''[[Web Comics]]\Misfile'', Cassiel and James attempt [[Operation: Jealousy]] in the hopes of breaking up and reclaiming their exes, Ash and Rumisel. Neither of them knows that Ash is a boy who was [[Gender Bender]]'d by a [[Cosmic Retcon]], he finds the idea of "her" former relationship with James creepy and disgusting<ref>When he was male they were best friends; the relationship was a result of the parts of Ash's life pre-misfile being on "autopilot"</ref>, and that Rumisel (who's in on the whole thing) is just pretending to be Ash's boyfriend specifically to keep guys from chasing "her".
 
 
== Web Original ==
* In the fourth episode of the [[TV Tropes]] original webseries ''[[Echo Chamber (Web Video)|Echo Chamber]]'', Tom assumes he is the [[Dumbass Has a Point|dumbass who has a point]], when it is obvious to the audience that it is Zack who has a point, although they are both dumbasses.
* In ''[[Friendship Is Witchcraft]]'' Sweetie Belle, who is very obviously a robot, accuses Rarity of being one because of her heartlessness and her taking acting lessons.
* A big part of the fun with watching [[The Nostalgia Critic (Web Video)|The Nostalgia Critic]]'s self-hate for not having any power, is knowing he ''does''. The contributors might love humiliating him, but they've followed him willingly in every single anniversary. He just can't make that connection.
** His [[Once an Episode]] catchphrase is telling us about who he is and what he does. Seems simple enough, but factor in that he's a mess of insecurity regarding practically everything, and that catchphrase becomes self-reassurance.
 
Line 268:
** Also used in "Hunter's Moon." The Canmore family's vendetta against "the Demon" and their many attempts to kill her are particularly ironic in light of the fact that only Macbeth can kill her--a fact that only the Weird Sisters, the Manhattan Clan, and Macbeth and Demona themselves are aware of. (And the audience, of course.)
** And in "Revelations." Before infiltrating the [[Hell Hotel|Hotel Cabal]], Matt gives Goliath his key so that Goliath can escape. Then, when Mace is about to kill Goliath, Matt pushes him down an elevator shaft. Finally, an old acquaintance rewards his trickery by inducting him into the Illuminati, saying "Your job was to get Goliath to the Hotel Cabal. It's not your fault old Mace couldn't hold him."
* [[I Let Gwen Stacy Die|Gwen Stacy]] smacks of this whenever she appears in an adaptation; however, ''[[The Spectacular Spider -Man]]'' subverts this by not using that storyline (though being cancelled might have simply cut the series short ''before'' it could do so).
** [[Word of God]] says there were no plans to kill Gwen off.
* Near the climax of ''[[Shrek]] 2'', the Fairy Godmother sings a rousing rendition of "Holding Out For a Hero" as part of her cynical plan to get the sniveling Prince Charming to kiss Fiona, whom she thinks has been enchanted with a love potion. What she doesn't know is that the ''real'' hero, Shrek, is busy [[Storming the Castle]], making the song about as deliciously ironic as it comes.
Line 274:
{{quote| '''Dale:''' Joseph is turning into a real lady killer, just like his old man.}}
** Further, as you can probably guess from the above, Dale is a raging paranoid whose "trust list" is remarkably short...and of course, both his wife and Redcorn are on it[[hottip:*:It also helps that [[Mistaken for Gay|he thinks Redcorn is gay]]. The affair eventually ends largely because they start feeling guilty about betraying that trust.
* The ''[[Avatar: The Last Airbender (Animation)|Avatar: The Last Airbender]]'' episode "The Western Air Temple" revolves around this. The audience knows that Zuko [[Heel Realization|finally has his head on straight]], but the Gaang thinks that he's trying to trick them.
* At the end of the plot portion of season 3 finale of ''[[Western Animation]][[Re Boot]]'' a young copy of Enzo is created and after knocking Bob down he looks at Matrix, who the audience knows is a grown up version of Enzo, and asks "Hey! Who's the big ugly green guy?"
* In the ''[[Mega Man (Animationanimation)|Mega Man]]'' cartoon, Protoman and Wily reveal the former's faking being good about three minutes into "Bro Bots", but Mega and company don't find out until much later.
** In "Mega-Pinocchio", Roll spends the entirety of the episode wanting to fight Wily's bots. Instead she had to fight a mental battle against her own brother.
* In ''[[Total Drama World Tour]]'', we are treated to a confessional from DJ after he was the only person left on his team and [[Manipulative Bastard|Alejandro]] was trying to form an alliance with him. After we had seen him trick and betray Harold, Leshawna, and Bridgette, DJ says that he is a "trustworthy" ally.
* Done in a truly [[Tear Jerker|heartbreaking]] way in ''[[My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic (Animation)|My Little Pony Friendship Is Magic]]'' "The Return Of Harmony Part 1". After Discord gets to {{spoiler|Applejack}} we know what he's doing but none of the characters know, leaving us to watch helplessly as {{spoiler|he picks off, [[Break the Cutie|breaks]], and [[Mind Rape|Mind Rapes]] the Mane Cast one by one.}} Due to how well we know the characters, this makes for a major [[Player Punch]].
** {{spoiler|Discord himself is on the recieving end of this in the next episode. While we know that the gang has reunited and ''can'' defeat him now, he doesn't, which leads directly to his downfall. In this case, it makes the final showdown much more satisfying to watch.}}
** In the second half of the season 2 finale, the viewer knows that {{spoiler|Cadence is an impostor}}, but nopony except Twilight has figured this out. Everypony else goes ahead with the wedding, not knowing that anything is wrong. Including the [[Would Hurt a Child|Cutie Mark Crusaders]].
Retrieved from "https://allthetropes.org/wiki/Special:MobileDiff/882129"
Cookies help us deliver our services. By using our services, you agree to our use of cookies.
More information