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Surveillance as the Plot Demands: Difference between revisions
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[[The Omniscient Council of Vagueness]] will often make heavy use of this trope—it's evidently how they keep the [[Xanatos Roulette]] up-to-date. It also has aspects of the [[Magical Security Cam]]. Heroes or antagonists savvy to this will give them a [[Poke in the Third Eye]] to escape detection.
The trope used to take its name from the Palantíri, the mostly-lost Seeing Stones from [[J. R. R.
See also [[Big Brother Is Watching]].
{{noreallife|Real Life is not scripted}}
{{examples}}
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== [[Literature]] ==
* ''[[Discworld]]'':
** Some of the wizards at Unseen University own small pocket crystal balls that can be used to observe a specific location, although sometimes reception is bad. And lampshaded: An Omniscope, one of the most powerful magical devices, can technically show ''anything'' ''anywhere'' in the universe; the tricky problem is getting it to show you the specific thing at the correct place and correct time that you want (it's easier now that Hex, the magical computer at Unseen University, can crunch the numbers for you). Some wizards just set the lens of the Omniscope to the dark of infinite space and use it as a shaving mirror. Recently (in ''[[
** This is the result of an accidental discovery Ponder Stibbons makes in ''[[
** In ''[[
* ''The Light of Other Days'' by [[Arthur C. Clarke]] and [[Stephen Baxter]]:
** The whole book is about the invention of a device that allows the user to look anywhere in the world they want; later on, the technology is discovered to be able to directly view events ''in the past''. The main focus of the novel is on how the world adapts to the fact that "privacy" literally has no meaning anymore, since you can be watched at any point in your life (and even things you've done in the past).
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* In the graphic novel ''Lucifer'' the title character once flies to the "Aleph Point" which seems to serve this exact function. Given the Norse mythological overtones the series has later on it's not unlikely the reference to Hlidskjalf is intentional.
== [[Tabletop
* ''[[Dungeons & Dragons]], Fourth Edition'': The cover illustration of the fourth edition ''Dungeon Masters Guide'' is a dragon spying on adventurers (from the cover of the ''Player's Handbook'') via a crystal ball in Palantir Ploy fashion.
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** Which was done again in ''[[Chrono Cross]]''. The {{spoiler|save points}} also acted as {{spoiler|subtle mind-control devices for FATE}}.
* In the first ''[[Rayman]]'' game, [[Meaningful Name|Mr. Dark]] spends most the game spying on the eponymous hero. Doesn't matter if Rayman's inside a cave or atop a mountain; Mr. Dark is always watching from that hill.
== [[Web Original]] ==▼
* On ''[[Homestar Runner]]'':▼
** The Cheat Commandos Thanksgiving episode featured a scene where hero Gunhaver was spying on evil Blue Laser's Thanksgiving dinner on the "main screen." In the words of the Blue Laser commander, "I'm not thankful for that guy with the camera!"▼
** In a short with the main characters, Strong Bad has satellite coverage of Homestar on the ice floe in the middle of nowhere that he's trapped on, but has no idea how he got said coverage ''or'' how Homestar ended up there!▼
* According to ''[[Yu-Gi-Oh!: The Abridged Series|Yu-Gi-Oh the Abridged Series]]'', Seto Kaiba has cameras all over Tokyo to stay aware of his enemy's every move. He is adamant that this includes shower rooms.▼
* A more low-key example, [[The Nostalgia Chick]] surreptitiously sets up cameras in her BFF Nella's parents' house. On the other side of the country. In Nella's bedroom. Without Nella's knowledge or consent. Repeatedly. Poked fun at, in that Nella is every bit as indignant about this as you'd expect.▼
* Somewhat averted at ''[[Whateley Universe|Whateley Academy]]'', where no one party (even Security) can claim to even come close to knowing everything that goes on on campus. On the other, at a school full of espers, wizards, gadgeteers, devisors, people who can talk to animals or computers, and not to forget good old-fashioned cameras and eyewitnesses it's kind of hard for anything to go ''completely'' unnoticed.▼
* Lex Luthor in [[The Randomverse]]. Lampshaded by Stark and Osborn.▼
{{quote|'''Stark''': How many cameras do you ''have''?▼
'''Osborn''': What, did you ''buy out'' Google Earth? }}▼
== [[Web Comics]] ==
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'''drone cam''': Conclusion: AVOID. }}
** The arms race required making them not only with [https://web.archive.org/web/20140209173910/http://sinfest.net/archive_page.php?comicID=4451 better self-preservation], but [https://web.archive.org/web/20140209190501/http://sinfest.net/archive_page.php?comicID=4428 zen-proof] and [http://www.sinfest.net/view.php?date=2014-04-24 cupid-proof]. They still [https://web.archive.org/web/20140209181419/http://sinfest.net/archive_page.php?comicID=4676 aren't immune to inanity], though.
▲== [[Web Original]] ==
▲* On ''[[Homestar Runner]]'':
▲** The Cheat Commandos Thanksgiving episode featured a scene where hero Gunhaver was spying on evil Blue Laser's Thanksgiving dinner on the "main screen." In the words of the Blue Laser commander, "I'm not thankful for that guy with the camera!"
▲** In a short with the main characters, Strong Bad has satellite coverage of Homestar on the ice floe in the middle of nowhere that he's trapped on, but has no idea how he got said coverage ''or'' how Homestar ended up there!
▲* According to ''[[Yu-Gi-Oh!: The Abridged Series|Yu-Gi-Oh the Abridged Series]]'', Seto Kaiba has cameras all over Tokyo to stay aware of his enemy's every move. He is adamant that this includes shower rooms.
▲* A more low-key example, [[The Nostalgia Chick]] surreptitiously sets up cameras in her BFF Nella's parents' house. On the other side of the country. In Nella's bedroom. Without Nella's knowledge or consent. Repeatedly. Poked fun at, in that Nella is every bit as indignant about this as you'd expect.
▲* Somewhat averted at ''[[Whateley Universe|Whateley Academy]]'', where no one party (even Security) can claim to even come close to knowing everything that goes on on campus. On the other, at a school full of espers, wizards, gadgeteers, devisors, people who can talk to animals or computers, and not to forget good old-fashioned cameras and eyewitnesses it's kind of hard for anything to go ''completely'' unnoticed.
▲* Lex Luthor in [[The Randomverse]]. Lampshaded by Stark and Osborn.
▲{{quote|'''Stark''': How many cameras do you ''have''?
▲'''Osborn''': What, did you ''buy out'' Google Earth? }}
== [[Western Animation]] ==
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{{reflist}}
[[Category:
[[Category:Action Adventure Tropes]]
[[Category:The Index Is Watching You]]
[[Category:The Plot Demanded This Index]]
▲[[Category:{{PAGENAME}}]]
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