You Said You Would Let Them Go: Difference between revisions

{{quote|'''Darth Vader:''' Calrissian. Take the princess and the Wookiee to my ship.

'''Lando Calrissian:''' You said they'd be left at the city under my supervision.

 

Standard response to a bad guy going back on a promise that he had no intention of keeping.

 

When the villain follows through with the [[Exact Words|Exact Wording]] of this agreement, it's either [[Unhand Them, Villain!]] or [[False Reassurance]]. This is one case when the bad guy is exempt from [[Villains Never Lie]] - revelations may be true. Promises may not. Compare/Contrast: [[I Will Punish Your Friend for Your Failure]].

{{examples}}

== Anime and Manga ==

* Played with in ''[[Bloody Monday]]''—the villainess releases the heroes' sister after he does what she wants, then immediately turns around and kidnaps her again. She believes this will make him think she keeps her word.

* In ''[[Chrono Crusade]]'', Azmaria promises to go with a demon as long as Chrono and Rosette aren't hurt. Of course, he happily takes her—then sends a blast of energy towards them in an attempt to kill them anyway. Azmaria's horrified response is, of course, "No, YOU PROMISED!"

* In ''[[One Piece]]'', as the Straw Hats came to rescue Nico Robin in Enies Lobby, [[Smug Snake]] Spandam gloats that Luffy charged headfirst into the island and the 10,000-strong forces of the island and those forces have captured or killed him by now. The following lines ensue.

{{quote|'''Robin:''' Wait... this isn't what you promised!! My terms for cooperating with you were that you let them escape safely!!!

** Arlong promises to free Nami's village if she gives him 100 million Berries. She gets close to that amount, but Nezumi, a corrupt Navy Captain, comes to confiscate Nami's money hoard, and accidentally reveals that Arlong sent him by [[Saying Too Much|mentioning the specific amount]]. Nami confronts Arlong, who feigns ignorance and tells her to start again.

* In ''[[Pandora Hearts]]'', Vincent promises to give Break the antidote to the poison killing Sharon (who was poisoned by Vincent) if Break destroys Alice's memories (it sounds more complicated than it is). When Break destroys the memories, Vincent drops the antidote off the balcony.

 

== Comic Books ==

* Happens in ''[[Judge Dredd]]'', when a man helps the other three Dark Judges (y'know, the ones dedicated to extinguishing all life?) free Judge Death on the condition they don't kill his wife. Naturally, "WE LIED!"

* In one [[Carl Barks]] comic, Magica DeSpell turns [[Donald Duck]] and his nephews into animals (well... [[Furry Confusion|non-anthropomorphic animals...]]) and says that she'll only turn them back if Scrooge gives her his [[Number One Dime|dime]]. Naturally, she doesn't.

** Well, usually they don't ''really'' trust him. They're just too terrified to say "no".

* From ''[[Usagi Yojimbo]]'':

* Both invoked and inverted in an early issue of ''[[The Transformers (Marvel Comics)||The Transformers]]'', where Ratchet does a deal with Megatron whereby Ratchet will help Megatron takes back control of the Decepticons from Shockwave in return for him surrendering control of the ''Ark'', where most of the other Autobots lie deactivated. In the end, Ratchet (falsely) tells Megatron he's fulfilled his side of the bargain, Megatron reveals he has no intention of fulfilling ''his'' and Ratchet reveals he's already prepared for that and has the Dinobots waiting in ambush.

* ''[[Mad]]'''s parody of ''[[The Godfather]] Part II'' has Michael promise his sister that he'll never kill their brother Fredo, despite Fredo's treachery, while their mother is alive. Then he tells his consigliere to "put out a contract on Mom." Well, he didn't lie.

 

== Film ==

* In ''[[Wall Street]]'', Bud Fox says to [[Corrupt Corporate Executive|Gordon Gekko]]: "You told me you were going to turn Bluestar around, not upside down. You used me." Or, to put it another way (since the sale of Bluestar will cause Bud's father's union workers to be fired), "You said you would let them stay!"

* Johann Schmidt (aka "[[Red Skull]]") also did this trope in the beginning of ''[[Captain America: The First Avenger]]'' to locate the Tesseract.

 

== Literature ==

* Done in ''[[The Dresden Files]]'' twice. First to Thomas in Grave Peril {{spoiler|Harry's White Court vampire half brother, who, until the relationship is explained in Blood Rites, is inexplicably helpful}} who betrays Michael and Harry to get Justine back, she being the love of his life and someone who had turned down Bianca, the [[Big Bad]], so being in serious trouble. He explains it as he wanted to get her back then double cross Bianca. All that stops Harry and Michael killing him on the spot when he turns up again is the fact he has Amoracchius {{spoiler|/Excalibur}} undamaged. He later helps Harry by holding off Lea with Michael.

** Later after Harry's duel with Duchess Arianna in Changes, when the Red King double crosses him on a technicality, something of an irony, as Harry is a [[Guile Hero]] and pulls this on assorted villains.

** The standard was set even earlier when {{spoiler|Snape}} tries to make Voldemort promise not to kill {{spoiler|Lily Potter}}. He [[Genre Savvy|is seemingly aware]] that Voldemort will not likely keep his word and as a back-up plan {{spoiler|goes to Dumbledore to help save her}}. In the end, alas, Voldemort manages to anyway.

* In ''[[A Song of Ice and Fire]]'', [[Magnificent Bastard]] Petyr Baelish, after apparently having tried to cheat on his wife Lysa with Sansa, promises he will never leave Lysa for as long as she lives. {{spoiler|Then he immediately kills her.}}

"If ''you'' had. So [[What the Hell, Hero?|the blame was yours]]."

"Indirectly. But I didn't kill her. They did." }}

* {{spoiler|Casetti}}, alias Ratchett, from ''[[Hercule Poirot|Murder on the Orient Express]]'' had kidnapped a child for ransom. Some time after the money had been paid, the child's remains were found, and the rest of the family died one by one. And {{spoiler|Casetti}} [[Karma Houdini|skipped the country]]. {{spoiler|The surviving relatives and the servants tracked him down and conspired to kill him, and [[Asshole Victim|no one shed any tears]], least of all Poirot}}.

* In ''[[The Guardians]]'', {{spoiler|Deacon}} makes a [[Deal with the Devil]] to protect his [[I Have Your Wife|hostage lovers]]. The demon does return them afterwards, but [[Jackass Genie|he never promised]] he'd return them ''alive''.

* In Angie Sage's ''[[Septimus Heap]]'' book ''Darke'', Linda goes to do this to the lovebirds, after one brought back Jenna in return for its mate. The Witch Mother stops her because a witch must not renege on a Darke agreement—it isn't good for her.

* Variation in the first Malus Darkblade book. The titular character, a Druichi slaver, has a hold full of hostages. In order to spread the word of his raid, he offers to let any one of them, as chosen by the rest, go free unharmed. The prisoners unanimously vote to have the only woman aboard freed. She then offers anything in order to have her betrothed freed as well, an offer which Malus takes up. The anything, in this case, being a combination of brutal rape and slow, careful torture. The man to which this unfortunate girl was betrothed is then brought up on deck, and informed that the deal was to let the girl go unharmed. She's no longer unharmed, therefore the deal is off. There is a bright side, though, as Malus has a present for the poor present boy. "After all these exquisite tortures, she did recant, but by then it was too late, she was harmed. I did save you a token though, to remember her by". Malus then holds out the preserved face of the girl, removed from her corpse and dried with salt. Then, according to the best Joker traditions, Malus hoists the peasant boy up and throws him overboard, letting him off the ship into the siren-filled waters below

 

== Live-Action TV ==

{{spoiler|'''Matt''': Yeah, well... Guess there is still a little of you left inside me. Because I lied. Enjoy hell. (He disappears from Sylar's mind, leaving him ''scared''. He then starts to mure Sylar's body in his basement.)}} }}

** Subverted in Volume 1 of ''Heroes''. DL Hawkins manages to pay off the debts to Linderman and give them to Linderman's [[Amoral Attorney]], but then the Attorney implies that Linderman had altered the amount and takes the money. A later episode reveals that Linderman ordered a hit on that same attorney for stealing the money to buy diamonds for himself, implying that Linderman fully intended to uphold the deal.

* Standard for ''[[Power Rangers]]'' whenever the [[Five-Man Band|Rangers]] make a deal with the [[Big Bad|villain]].

* In the fourth season of ''[[24]]'', Mitch Anderson threatens an Air Force officer's family so that he will take him to his air base, enabling him to steal a fighter jet. When the officer does as he's told and asks to speak with his family, Anderson [[Moral Event Horizon|informs him that his family is dead and that he will be the next to die before shooting him]].

* Subverted in the ''[[Castle]]'' episode "Heartbreak Hotel": mafia boss kidnaps the girlfriend of a guy who accidentally stole 10 million dollars from the mob. Mafia boss promises if he returns the money, they'll return his girlfriend unharmed. Guy returns the money. Guy utters this line word for word. Mafia boss thinks for a moment, then... returns his girlfriend unharmed.

 

== Radio ==

* Inverted in the ''[[Big Finish Doctor Who]]'' audio play ''The Sirens of Time'': The Sixth Doctor threatens to release the Temperon if the Knights of Valeysha don't back off and release his fifth incarnation. They comply, at which point he releases him anyway.

 

* ''[[Half-Life 2]]'': Dr. Mossman says that to Dr. Breen after the [[La Résistance|Resistance]] leader's capture. She ends up doing a [[Heel Face Turn]] in the end, after the hero's [[Violation of Common Sense]].

* Played with in the first ''[[Golden Sun]]'' game, where the party trades the plot coupon for a hostage, only to be tricked by crafty wording. (To be fair, the villain only said he wouldn't hurt the hostage, her release was never mentioned.)

*** If you're referring to capturing Jenna and Kraden, they do admit they really did intend to let them go once the terms of the bargain were fulfilled—and then [[Oh Crap|the mountain they were in erupted]] before Isaac could hold up his end of things, and they chose to [[Moving the Goalposts|evacuate with the hostages]] rather than ''release them inside of an erupting volcano''.

* In ''[[Guild Wars]] Eye of the North'', the vanguard soldier Anton reveals that he provided information to the Charr in exchange for his village's safety (it went exactly the way you'd expect, with the bonus of his being caught and imprisoned for it). His quest line involves seeking out and eventually killing the Charr he made the deal with.

** Who, upon being defeated, attempts to strike another deal to save his skin. It doesn't work.

*** Worth noting that the charr being talked about here are the Flame Legion, the [[Evil Overlord|evil overlords]] who propagated a nutjob cult that worshipped false gods, but those gods were still powerful beings who kept most of the charr in line with the threat that those who were disobedient would either be brainwashed or killed. (This happened a few times.)

 

== Web Original ==

 

== Western Animation ==

* In the second one of [[Disney]]'s [[Peter Pan]] movies, Return to Neverland, Captain Hook states that he won't hurt a single hair on Peter Pan's head. When he captures Peter Pan he [[Exact Words|pulls out the one hair he won't hurt.]]

* In ''[[South Park]]'' episode "Fun With Veal", Cartman gets the job of negotiating with the FBI over the 23 stolen calves (which are treated exactly like a hostage situation). He offers the FBI negotiator one calf in return for weapons and ammunition. Stan and Kyle are uncertain about this, but when he gets them, he quickly finds a reason not to hand over any calves, and keeps bargaining for more.

 

== Real Life ==

 

{{reflist}}

[[Category:I Have Your Index]]

[[Category:Good Is Dumb]]

[[Category:Truth and Lies]]

[[Category:Betrayal Tropes]]