You Do NOT Want to Know: Difference between revisions
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{{trope}}
[[File:YouDoNOTWantToKnow 4783.jpg|link=Exterminatus Now|
{{quote|''"Trust me on this: you don't wanna know. Audrey? Don't tell him. You shouldn't've told ''me,'' but you did, and now I'm telling you, ''you don't wanna know!''"''
|'''Joshua Sweet''' on Mole's past in ''[[Atlantis: The Lost Empire]]''}}
Some secret about Character A is mentioned, either by the character himself, or by somebody else. When queried, someone replies "You ''don't'' want to know. [[Take Our Word for It|Just trust me on this]]." Or words to that effect. Whether ''we'' actually find out what it is varies - if we don't, it can turn into a [[Noodle Incident]], and might be set up for one or more [[The Un-Reveal|un-reveals]]. The characters who ''do'' know will usually try to avoid talking about it. More often than not, this phrase can just end up as [[Schmuck Bait]].
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And sometimes, it's just [[Too Much Information]].
Other stock phrases include "I don't want to know, but at the same time, I ''really'' want to know...", "That means you do ''not'' want to know, trust me.", and "[[Don't Ask
If said by [[Mentors|a mentor]], it is likely to be an [[Awful Truth]]. If they experience enough such events, leads to a character who has [[Seen It All]].
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See also [[Take Our Word for It]], [[I Have My Ways]].
{{examples}}▼
▲{{examples}}
== Anime and Manga ==
* In ''[[One Piece]]''. the closest the Straw Hats came to learning what Gol D. Roger's eponymous treasure was or where it is came during the Sabaody Archipelago Arc when Usopp tried to ask Silvers Rayleigh about it. Luffy angrily interrupted, indicating that he ''did not'' under ''any'' circumstances want to simply be told about it, stating that such knowledge would defeat their purpose. It seems likely that someone will ''eventually'' find out what One Piece is, but it won't be that easy.
==
* Duncan, the protagonist of ''[[Fire Breather]]'', is [[Improbable Species Compatibility| the son of a human woman and the king of the Kaiju]]. Yep. [[How Is That Even Possible?]] Duncan doesn't know, Duncan does not ''want'' to know.
== Fan Works ==
* ''[[The Man With No Name (fanfic)|The Man With No Name]]'' has this:
{{quote|'''Mal''': Kaylee, find something for the doc to do. He don't need to be fussin' the whole time we're gone.▼
▲'''Mal''': Kaylee, find something for the doc to do. He don't need to be fussin' the whole time we're gone.
'''Kaylee''': He and I can–
'''Mal''': I don't want to know. Some things I really, really don't need to hear, little Kaylee.
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'''Egg Shen''': ''"Lo-Pan's spy. What it sees, Lo-Pan knows!"''
'''Jack Burton''': ''"I said, 'don't tell me!'"'' }}
* Used as a joke in ''[[UHF (film)|UHF]]:''
{{quote|'''Stanley''': Hey, George, is something wrong?
'''George''': Stanley, you don't want to know.
'''Stanley''': (Scratches head in confusion) Then why'd I ask? }}
* An exchange in ''[[Free Enterprise]]'' has an imaginary William Shatner talking with a young version of Robert, one of the main characters, during a fight he got into while wearing a TOS gold uniform. When prompted Young Robert reveals it was he that started the fight.
{{quote|'''Young Robert:''' Well... it was something he said.
'''William Shatner:''' What'd he say?
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== Literature ==
* The novelisation of ''[[V (TV series)||V: The Final Battle]]'' doesn't have the scene where the [[Les Collaborateurs|nasty young human collaborator]] Daniel Bernstein gets dragged off to "[[To Serve Man|serve us better]]" after being framed by [[La Résistance]], but it does have Eleanor Dupres asking what happened to him and being told by a Visitor: "Believe me, you wouldn't want to know!"
* In the ''Wraith Squadron'' books of the ''[[X Wing Series]]'', Imperial agent Gara Petothel caused the deaths of every member of Myn Donos's squadron, [[My Greatest Failure|which sent him into]] a [[Heroic BSOD]]. Later Gara Petothel [[The Mole|joined his new squadron]] with plans to destroy this one as well, but she began to [[Becoming the Mask|enjoy her life in the squadron as "Lara Nostil"]] [[Heel Face Turn|and decided to become a member for real]]. She and Donos started falling in love with each other, but she knew it could only end badly as she was only going to be able to hide the secret for so long.
{{quote|"I could say twelve words, and when I was done, the least you'd do is turn away and leave me alone forever."
He could tell that she was speaking the truth, and the fact that she had the power to do this, to send him away, dismayed him. "Then don't say them." }}
{{quote|'''Myn Donos''': "I want to make you smile with something [[Deadpan Snarker|other than a wisecrack]]. I want to know who you really are."
Her laugh, sudden and hard, startled him. "Oh, no, you don't." }}
{{quote|'''Wedge''': "Any of you understand that? Her mood swing?"
'''Tycho''': "I think I'd shoot myself before getting involved in this conversation."
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* ''The Outcast of [[Redwall]]'' features a hare nicknamed Jodd. His [[Overly Long Name|full name]] results in this trope, and in the end we only hear ''part'' of it. {{spoiler|According to the official website's "Ask Brian" feature, it's ""Wilthurio Longbarrow Sackfirth Toxophola Fedlric Fritillary Wilfrand Hurdleframe Longarrow Leawelt Pugnacio Cinnabar Hillwether Jodrellio".}}
* ''The Golden Globe'' by [[John Varley]] averts [[Forbidden Fruit]] in this regard: to show that you don't want to know how Charonians have sex, you're given a description of their coming-of-age ceremony. For context, Charonians [[Good Thing You Can Heal|regenerate quickly]] and worship pain, and the ceremony itself is either [[Narm]] or [[Nausea Fuel]].
* ''[[Discworld]]'':
** Used in ''[[
** In ''[[
{{quote|'''Anghammarad''': "Neither Deluge Nor Ice Storm Nor The Black Silence Of The Netherhells Shall Stay These Messengers About Their Sacred Business. Do Not Ask Us About Sabre-Tooth Tigers, Tar Pits, Big Green Things With Teeth Or The Goddess Czol." [...]
'''Moist''': "The goddess Czol?"
'''Anghammarad''': "Do Not Ask." }}
* Subverted and inverted early on in [[The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy]], when Arthur takes the precaution of asking Ford, "if I were to ask you where the hell we were, would I regret it?" Ford cuts to the chase and tells him where they are. Arthur was probably happier when he didn't know.
* Used in a decidedly non-comedic fashion in ''[[Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn]]'', when [[Shell Shocked Senior]] Camaris refuses to tell the protagonists about his mysterious past that led to a [[Heroic BSOD]], on the grounds that it's too shameful. He does confess it twice, once to a priest and once to [[The Wise Prince|Prince Josua]], and both emerge from the experience wishing they hadn't been told. At the end, it's revealed that he's {{spoiler|[[Luke, I Am Your Father|Josua's father]]}}, and lived his life afterwards in misery over his weakness and the subsequent [[Death by Childbirth]] of the woman in question.
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** Repeated with the medical pinwheel thing. Apparently they have recreational uses. Molly used to hang out with a ''weird'' crowd. Harry decides to not pursue that line of reasoning.
** Harry tells a bunch of his friends this about the magical world. Eventually, he gives them the option to learn anyway and stand with him. They each take it.
== Live Action TV ==
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** Similarly, in "Mr. Monk Is On The Run: Part 1", after Monk arrives back at Natalie's house with a strange overcoat, he said a homeless person gave it to him in exchange for something else in return. When questioned by Natalie about what that thing was that Monk had to do, Monk can only respond with "I'd rather not talk about it..."
* ''[[Person of Interest]]:'' in the episode "Cura Te Ipsum"
{{quote|'''Reese:''' Doctor has [[Crazy Prepared|everything she needs]] to erase Benton for good.▼
▲'''Reese:''' Doctor has [[Crazy Prepared|everything she needs]] to erase Benton for good.
'''Finch:''' What do you mean, "erase"?
'''Reese:''' Eight pounds of lye, heated to 300 degrees. Body will dissolve in three hours, give or take.
'''Finch:''' I will refrain from asking how you know that.}}
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{{quote|'''Liz:''' Where'd he get the bucket of cherry syrup?
'''Jon:''' Some things are better left unknown... }}
* ''[[FoxTrot]]'' had Roger telling Andy this about how doped up she was from her allergy medication upon being asked after going off it.
* ''[[Phoebe and Her Unicorn]]'' has points of resemblance to ''Calvin and Hobbes'', so it's not surprising when Marigold the unicorn explains that she and Phoebe became best friends after Phoebe hit her in the face with a rock, and Phoebe's maybe-[[Frenemy]] Dakota replies, "I'm sure there's more to that, and I don't wanna know it."
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'''Guybrush:''' Okay, then...
}}
* In ''[[Saints Row the Third]]'', the player character asks Shaundi what a "Feel Boss" is. She simply responds with: "You DON'T wanna know."
* In ''[[Fallen London]]'', you ''seriously'' don't want to be Seeking Mr. Eaton's Name, or for that matter, you don't want to know ''anything'' about him. Period. Take the eponymous quest and the game will frequently tell you it's a bad idea that will doom your character, up to the part where it's not possible to turn back.
== Web Animation ==
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'''El Disgusto''': Don't! Just don't.
}}
* From ''[[SCP Foundation]]''; you seriously don't want to know how [https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-1903 SCP-1903] was turned into a monsterous version of a [[Playboy Bunny]], because as even she will warn you, finding out how it happened will turn you into a creature like her. Unfortunately, [[Curiosity Killed the Cast| a lot of Researchers just won't listen...]]
== Webcomics ==
* [http://sluggy.com/daily.php?date=020419 Toyed with] by fan favorite Sasha in ''[[Sluggy Freelance]]'': "Part of me wants to say 'I don't want to know', but I ''do''! I really, ''really do''!"
** Also [http://www.sluggy.com/comics/archives/daily/20040824 here]:
{{quote|
'''Spike''': How did you get a Sacagawea dollar to penetrate your front grill and lodge itself in your carburetor?
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'''Leo''': I don't want to tell you.
}}
* ''[[Schlock Mercenary]]'', on the subject of [
{{quote|
'''Breya''': I... I really want to know, but I think I'm afraid to ''ask''.
'''Tagon''': That's a good sign that you don't really want to know. }}
** Also [[Inverted Trope|inverted]] - [
{{quote|
'''Elf''': I don't want to know.
'''Aardman''': Yes you do. You just don't want to admit it. }}
** Admiral Tebbir would feel better [
** A belated realization from a retired (and hired by another party) military intelligence analyst (amazingly, they discuss not an assassination, but something ostensibly innocent):
{{quote|'''Trevor''': ...the sergeant can make his merry way to any one of these locations and do his thing. Whatever "his thing" is.
'''Kathryn''': "His thing" is one of those "the less you know about it the happier you'll be" things.
'''Trevor''': I'm unhappy just knowing those things exist.}}
** [[Iron Woobie|Captain Haley Sorlie]] is a [
{{quote|'''Breya''': There are going to be many interesting things for you to see.
'''Sorlie''': Will I want to un-see any of them?
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'''Dora''': Probably not.
}}
** Marten [//www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=573 catches himself] asking a question he doesn't really want answered.
* ''[[Freefall]]'' uses a [http://freefall.purrsia.com/ff100/fv00036.htm variation on this].
** [http://freefall.purrsia.com/ff2700/fc02688.htm Not if you want to sleep], at least.
* ''[[Nodwick]]'' [https://web.archive.org/web/20100814074224/http://nodwick.humor.gamespy.com/gamespyarchive/index.php?date=2006-10-18 theology] has this effect:
{{quote|'''Artax''': The ''more'' i learn about gods, the ''less'' i want to know.}}
* ''[[The Order of the Stick]]'' has [http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0170.html this]:
{{quote|'''Roy''': Part of me wants to know a story behind that, while the other, smarter part of me knows it's better off in ignorance.}}
* [[Faux Pas]]
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* ''[[Vexxarr]]'', on [http://www.vexxarr.com/archive.php?seldate=051013 subject] of the protagonist personally starting a war:
{{quote|'''Scavenger Captainbot''': There is now literally no question I could imagine asking you that I am not in mortal terror of finding the answer to.}}
* ''[[8-Bit Theater]]'' with [http://www.nuklearpower.com/2010/01/26/episode-1214-the-shark-of-the-sea/ one of Fighter's predictably silly ideas]:
{{quote|'''Black Mage''': ''Don't'' ask him. He'll ''tell'' us.}}
== Western Animation ==
* Seen in ''[[Futurama]]'', "The Sting".
{{quote|'''Farnsworth''': This is no ordinary honey. It's produced by vicious space bees. A single sting of their hideous neuro-toxin can cause instant death!▼
▲'''Farnsworth''': This is no ordinary honey. It's produced by vicious space bees. A single sting of their hideous neuro-toxin can cause instant death!
'''Hermes''' (happily): And that's if you're not allergic! You don't wanna know what happens then. Oh no, no. God no!
'''Farnsworth''': Your insides will boil out of your eye sockets like a science fair volcano!
'''Hermes''' (sobbing): I didn't want to know!}}
▲** And you really don't want to know whose behind {{spoiler|Slurm}} comes out of. Same episode, the same is said of where toothpaste comes from.
* In ''[[Transformers Animated]]'' when {{spoiler|Starscream finds out that [[Me's a Crowd|each of his clones represent a different part of his personality]] and he asks which part an ''[[Opposite Gender Clone]]'' represents}}, her response is "Don't ask!"
** Funnily enough, [[Word of God]] [[Shrug of God|states]] [http://community.livejournal.com/tf_animated/271043.html pretty much the same thing]. The smell of [[Unfortunate Implications]] is really strong here.
** In an earlier episode, [[Ninja|Prowl]], [[Kid Appeal Character|Bumblebee]] and [[Tagalong Kid|Sari]] go on a camping trip, and the latter two bring all manner of gadgets. Prowl, unimpressed, asks Bee where he found room for all of it in his vehicle mode. "[[Shy Finger-Twiddling|I'd...rather not say]]".
* In an episode of ''[[Justice League]]'', having just captured
** Also, in the [[Forced Prize Fight]] episode "Grudge Match", Hawkgirl's reaction after being snapped out of mind control
{{quote|"I don't think I want to know."
"We're all in a cage match fighting to the death."
"Yeah, see?" }}
* In the ''[[Ben 10]]'' episode "Ken 10" Ken rejects adding an alien called 'Toepick' to the Omnitrix, saying "He even grosses me out!". The pop-up edition plays this up by having the pop-up say "You don't want to know".
* In ''[[Invader Zim]]'
* In ''[[The Real Ghostbusters]]'', the episode 'Knock, Knock' has Egon look into the room that holds the door to Doomsday. When asks what he sees, he replies 'you don't want to know' in his usual calm, dull tone of voice.
* ''[[Kim Possible]]'', in a scene involving a "gravy ghost" spelling words in the high-school cafeteria gravy;
{{quote|'''Wade:''' I don't know what to tell you Kim. After watching the cafeteria security tape, I can't explain what happened either.▼
▲'''Wade:''' I don't know what to tell you Kim. After watching the cafeteria security tape, I can't explain what happened either.
'''Kim:''' Did you analyze the gravy sample?
'''Wade:''' Yup.
'''Monique:''' And?
'''Wade:''' You don't want to know. ''([[Beat]]'') Not till after graduation. ''([[Beat]]'') From college.
'''Monique:''' I say we trust him on the gravy.}}
▲** Another example, when "Miss Go" (Shego [[Mirror Morality Machine|temporarily turned good]]) arrives to teach one of Kim's classes:
{{quote|
'''Mr. Barkin:''' And don't let them tell you that they're supposed to have class outside! We put a stop to that after the jellyfish episode.
'''Miss Go:''' Oh, that's so sweet! You took the class to the beach!
'''Mr. Barkin:''' No beach. Just jellyfish... ''[shudders]'' Don't ask.}}
* In the ''[[Strawberry Shortcake]] Berryfest Princess Movie'', Blueberry Muffin walks in on Strawberry Shortcake [[It Makes Sense in Context|doing a bunnyhop and sorting mixed nuts]] with Plum Pudding at Orange Blossom's general store and comments, "Do I wanna know?" A little while later, after reading a map has been added to Strawberry's tasks, Orange returns, also commenting, "Do I wanna know?" "That's what I said," Blueberry tells her.
* In ''[[My Little Pony:
** Also Rainbow Dash says it after Twilight wonders what Dash meant by "At least I haven't been replaced by turnips"
* ''[[The Simpsons (animation)|The Simpsons]]''
** In
{{quote|
'''Lisa:''' But what if he wants to hold hands?
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'''Bart:''' I'm prepared to make that sacrifice.
'''Lisa:''' What if he wants to-
'''Bart:''' You don't want to know how far I'll go.}}
▲** A Simpsons TV Episode guide also used this phrase on the subject of how Kang and Kodos could tell each other's genders.
:* Overlapping with [[Too Much Information]] in "A Fish Called Selma":
▲** Another episode had Bart rubbing his ear industriously and acting sick so that when Marge took his temperature (through his ear) it would come out to 103 F and he could stay home. She says the only way to be sure was to use the rectal thermometer. It still came out to 103. When Lisa asked, Bart says she doesn't want to know.
{{quote|'''Legs:''' I thought you said Troy McClure was dead?
** In [[He-Man and the Masters of the Universe]] episode, "The Origin of The Sorceress": Teela-na, the future Sorceress, gets this line from a young town who had been watching the villain of the day and a alien race argue over things.▼
'''Fat Tony:''' No, what I said was he ''sleeps with the fishes''. You see...
'''Legs:''' Uh, [[Brain Bleach|Tony, please, no]]. I just [[Lost My Appetite| ate a whole plate of dingamagoo]]...}}
* ''[[He-Man and the Masters of the Universe]]''
▲** In
** The 2002 version does this twice, both times with Buzz-Off:
*** During season one, where Man-At-Arms is swallowed by Merman's giant shark-monster. (For the second time.) He-Man tries to rescue him by diving down the beast's throat, leading to this exchange:
{{quote|'''Ram-Man:''' Okay! So they're in! So, uh... How are they gettin' out?
'''Buzz-Off:'''' I don't even wanna know...}}
::* The second time was in season 2, after he and Stratos found that Webstor had gorged himself on ambrosia, turning himself into a monstrous, demonic spider. It got even worse when they found his lair and the captive Adreenans [[All Webbed Up]]... And eggshells lying on the ground, indicating that the villain had spawned a brood of young. (Webstor had been assumed to be male up to now.) When Stratos asked how this was possible, Buzz-Off again said, "I don't even wanna know."
* In an episode of the ongoing ''[[Hercules (1997 film)|Hercules]]'' series, the water of the Spring of Canathus turns Hercules, Icarus, Pegasus, Adonis, and Hades' minion Pain into infants, which results in Cassandra and Hades other minion Panic becoming [[Badly-Battered Babysitter]]s for the rest of the episode. When the curse is finally undone, Hades shows up, and at first, he asks why everyone is wearing diapers, but then he changes his mind and says he doesn't ''want'' to know, and leaves with his two servants. However, Hercules and his friends ''do'' want to know what happened, and after Cassandra tells them, they all beg and plead with her not to tell anyone.
* In an episode of ''[[The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy]]'', Grim gives Billy a gumball machine that yields a limitless amount of gum, but warns him never to swallow the gum. When asked what will happen if he does, Grim says, "Trust me, you don't wanna know. If I had skin, it would be crawling." {{spoiler|Billy eventually ignores this warning, and we find out that swallowing the gum causes "an unimaginably horrible rash from another dimension." Though Billy initially has bubbles and gum coming out of his body before it actually happens. The rash was what it said on the label.}}
* In the [[Tex Avery MGM Cartoon| Droopy cartoon]] "The Three Little Pups", Droopy is watching television with his two brothers in one scene; Wolfie tries to suck them up with a giant straw, only to grab the television instead (and end up with it lodged in his stomach). Two scenes later, Droopy and his brothers are watching television again, and Droopy [[Breaking the Fourth Wall| looks at the camera and says]], "Now don't ask us how we got the television set back..."
* In one [[Crossover]] episode of ''[[Static Shock]]'', a time-share Batman take-off villain accidentally sends Static into a future time, where he meets both Terry McGinnis (aka [[Batman Beyond]]) and the aged Bruce Wayne, along with his future self. At the end of the episode, he returns to his own time and is about to reveal to Batman what ''his'' future is like, but Batman interrupts him, saying that he'd "rather not know".
* Regarding [[Cute Is Evil| Niffty]]'s backstory in ''[[Hazbin Hotel]]'' (which unlike every other character, has not been touched upon even once), Husk advises against asking, claiming, "You don't wanna ''know'' what ''her'' deal is."
== Real Life ==
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