History Main / AreYouSureYouWantToDoThat

* Many [=RPGs=] allow characters to acquire a trait called "common sense" (intended for use by players who lack the trait), which obligates the game master to ask this very question from time to time.

* Happened on WhoseLineIsItAnyway during a game a Greatest Hits. Drew asked the audience for a European city you would go to to have a good time, and got back Paris and Amsterdam and had to make a decision.

* TropeNamer is Atticus Finch of ToKillAMockingbird as mentioned above. He uses it several times in Scouts earlier years before the story as a warning during chess matches that she was about to make a mistake: Scout never took the warning and always got trounced when she ignored it. The second time uses it for drama in a climactic moment that displays Atticus's bravery as he faces down a lynch mob, and, after asking them what they are here for, asks the titular question. It is not this that disperses the crowd however...

Being asked this is a red flag that you are dealing with a {{Trickster}}. If you're being asked it while under said tricksters wing, that makes the character a TricksterMentor as well, the kind of [[{{Mentors}} mentor]] who prefers to let his or her students make their own mistakes and naturally smooth out the rough edges before teaching them the final touches... but they can't help themselves from issuing a subtle warning that they know the bold or chronically indecisive are ultimately going to ignore. (Its fun to watch them fluster over the choice before getting it wrong anyway after all, and a mentor has to have fun, right?) It's also the favorite disclaimer of the LiteralGenie.

It doesn't have to be those exact words. Any question of this type that is on the surface a neutral call for confirmation but is loaded with implied danger if the speaker gets the answer wrong falls under this trope. The speaker is giving whoever is about to make the error a chance to back away from the edge of a precipice before they plummet over into the abyss.

* A well designed (modern) computer program will do this before a action that is hard/impossible to reverse, or just plain dangerous/destructive, as a way to make sure you don't accidentally preform said action. Given that computers are the embodiment of a {{Literal Genie}}, this is a good thing.

* ''StarTrek'', "The Trouble with Tribbles:"

* happened on WhoseLineIsItAnyway during a game a Greatest Hits. Drew asked the audience for a European city you would go to to have a good time, and got back Paris and Amsterdam and had to make a decision.

** Depending on how often this is encountered, people would get annoyed by this to the point of disabling it. Even if it meant your computer was now open to being destroyed by users being stupid.

* A well designed (modern) computer program will do this before a action that is hard/impossible to reverse, or just plain dangerous/destructive, as a way to make sure you don't accidentally preform said action. Given that computers are the embodiment of a {{Literal Genie}}, this is a good thing.

* In the first ''PiratesOfTheCarribean'' movie, when Barbossa is about to slit Will's throat and undo the curse:

* In the first [[PiratesoftheCarribean]] movie, when Barbosa is about to slit Will's throat and undo the curse:

* In ApolloJustice, Gavin asks [[spoiler: Pheonix Wright]] if he really wants to embarrass himself with [[spoiler:the falsified evidence he is about to present.]] It seems at the time to be simply arrogant taunting, and [[spoiler:Pheonix]] does it anyway.
* In Fallout New Vegas this occurs upon first meeting Benny where [[spoiler:a female character with the black widow perk can sleep with Benny]], but only if the player is willing to confirm the action through around a dozen utterances of this trope by Benny. Some of the dialog gets a bit creepy.

* In the first PiratesoftheCarribean movie, when Barbosa is about to slit Will's throat and undo the curse:

Barbossa: ...no, I really think I do.

* TropeNamer is Atticus Finch of ToKillAMockingbird as mentioned above. He uses it several times in Scouts earlier years before the story as a warning during chess matches that she was about to make a mistake: Scout never took the warning and always got trounced when she ignored it. The second time uses it for drama in a climactic moment that displays Atticus's bravery as he faces down a lynch mob, and, after asking them what they are here for, asks the titular question. It is not this that disperses the crowd however...

* In the ''{{Lucifer}}'' one-shot ''Nirvana," the title character visits the demon Beruchapalimon for leads about the Silk Man's recent attack on himself. The demon assumes Lucifer intends to [[{{Whatevermancy}} read his entrails]] for clues and so has his {{Mook}}s attempt to restrain him while he prepares a magical assault. Lucifer says, "A threat display, demon? Have you thought this through?" Beruchapalimon doesn't take the hint, and proceeds to cast knives at him out of thin air, only for Lucifer effortlessly to turn the knives on the mooks. "I really was just looking for information," he tells the demon, holding a knife to his throat.

* Bob Barker did this occasionally on ''ThePriceIsRight'', if someone made a ''really'' bad bid, such as [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BMCFRElyaCc $250 000 on a regular showcase]].

--> Lucius Fox: "LetMeGetThisStraight - you think your client, one of the richest men in Gotham, is fighting crime by night as a masked vigilante - and your plan is to ''blackmail'' this man? ''Good luck.''"

* OrderOfTheStick: in response to Roy's question [[http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0331.html here]]

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Fast Eddie is a dictator! Rise up against the tyrant! -EA

[[Bong milk is good for the brain.:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/werewolf_9693_8856.jpg]]

But you can't tell your boyfriend about it! He'd freak out and leave you, or worse. But then, you can't keep it a secret forever, either. At some point, one of your supernatural incidents will inevitably happen exactly when you were having a romantic dinner. Or maybe your relationship has simply reached the next level, and you feel that you need to be completely honest with him.

So what now? How will he react? Well, it turns out he's perfectly okay (well, for the most part he's perfectly okay) and understanding with it! That's right, as a reward for your sacrifices, the PowersThatBe will make sure that you end up with a truly noble and loving soul who loves you for who you are and doesn't care what you are. So no worries!

This trope is a DoubleStandard, in that wives and girlfriends are pretty much automatically accepting of their ActionHero husband/boyfriend's actions, whereas the number of husbands/boyfriends who automatically accept that their significant other is an ActionGirl are pretty thin on the ground. For the guy who is a super and needs a girlfriend, his powers are often a plus for her (because AllGirlsWantBadBoys). For women, finding a guy who truly doesn't have a problem with dating someone with superpowers when he's a {{Muggle}} is the bigger issue, because, well, NoGuyWantsAnAmazon.

Compare ButYourWingsAreBeautiful, when a disguise forms part of the powers. Compare to ViolentlyProtectiveGirlfriend for the ActionGirl [[InvertedTrope variant.]] Compare and contrast BoyMeetsGhoul, for the guy/girl who is on the other end of this trope. See also TheMasqueradeWillKillYourDatingLife, which is an aversion of this trope.
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!!Examples:
[[AC:{{Anime}} and {{Manga}}]]
* The central premise of ''[[NogizakaHarukaNoHimitsu The Secrets of Haruka Nogizaka]]''. The titular girl is an otaku.
* Ditto with ''[[OreImo My Little Sister Can't Be This Cute]]''. Except that the guy is not a boyfriend, but the big brother... [[{{Squick}} yeah]].
* Austria from ''AxisPowersHetalia'', in regards to his VictoriousChildhoodFriend Hungary. While he's concerned for her well-being, in the end he knows that if she wants to fight, he better lets her... since she will go [[OneManArmy One Woman Army]] and destroy the enemy. Considering their childhood, [[LoveAtFirstPunch he knows it beforehand]]!
* [[ShamanKing Keiko Asakura]] had been dumped by ''every'' single boyfriend she had when they learnt she was able to see spirits. Until the last JerkAss left her and a penniless musician with similar abilities comforted her. That guy was Mikihisa, and she would marry him.
* Horribly deconstructed with [[spoiler: Shiso and Ceres]] in ''AyashiNoCeres''. [[spoiler: Shiso started like this, but being left helpless when he and Ceres got attacked [[IJustWantToBeSpecial made him very frustrated]], so he asked Ceres to give him a part of her powers [[IWillProtectHer so he wouldn't be a burden on her.]] But then, [[WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity said powers turned out to be too much to handle]], and ItGotWorse...]]


[[AC:{{Comic Books}}]]
* [[NiceGuy Kong]] is this to [[XMen Kitty Pryde]] in UltimateMarvel, even going so far as to yell "You're welcome!" at AllOfTheOtherReindeer for not thanking her when she saves their lives.
* Back in the GoldenAge, Steve Trevor was this for WonderWoman (a remarkably progressive move for the times), and not at all threatened by the idea of getting rescued by or mooning over a woman who was twenty times stronger than him. The Silver and Bronze Age characterizations of him were...[[TooDumbToLive unfortunately]] [[JerkAss less so]], which probably led to him being deleted from continuity PostCrisis.
* In an old What If comic, Jimmy Olsen married Supergirl because of amnesia. Once she recovers and lets him know, he's totally fine with being married to Superman's cousin.

[[AC:{{Film}}]]
* In ''InnocentBlood'', FriendlyNeighborhoodVampire Marie has her understanding CopBoyfriend Joe.

[[AC:{{Literature}}]]
* Elend in Brandon Sanderson's ''{{Mistborn}}''. At least [[spoiler:until he gets superpowers himself.]]
* Seth in ''WickedLovely''. When Aislinn tells him that she can see faeries, he has exactly one moment of "Is this a joke?" before accepting it and trying to help her with her faery situation.

[[AC:{{Live Action TV}}]]
* The ''GhostWhisperer'' features Jim the Understanding Husband.
* Both [[SubvertedTrope subverted]] and played straight in ''{{Bewitched}}''. The original Darrin (Dick York) was less than understanding, to the point of being downright hostile to Samantha when she used her magic. TheOtherDarrin (Dick Sargeant), on the other hand, tried his hardest to be understanding, the point that it was more the fault of Endora and the rest of Samantha's family that TheOtherDarrin didn't get along with witches.
* Played with in the ''SabrinaTheTeenageWitch'' TV series. Harvey ''does'' leave Sabrina when he finds out she's a witch, not out of intolerance but because she'd been using magic to mess with his life for years. He eventually does come back to her, though, and says he never had a problem with her being a witch per se.
* Zack was the "gay best friend" equivalent of this in ''Series/{{Heroes}}'', at least until ExecutiveMeddling got in the way.
* Unless she's dating one of the undead, Buffy never got this on ''BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' (even Riley, who was himself a demon fighting super-soldier, had an inferiority complex due to dating a genuine superhero). It's Willow who hit the boyfriend jackpot with Oz; upon being told the truth about the supernatural world she runs in, he replies, "Actually, it explains a lot," and just goes with the flow from there.
* Tyler Ford in ''TheMiddleman'''s unaired season finale (released as a comic)...[[spoiler:at least, until MM pushes the ResetButton]].
* Allison's husband Joe on ''{{Medium}}'' believes in her powers and is understanding and accepting of them.
* In ''{{Series/Merlin}}'', 2x09. Merlin discovers [[spoiler: Freya turns into a bastet at night, but he isn´t afraid and stills takes care of her. He even pets her cat´s head...]]
[[AC:{{Webcomics}}]]
* [[LampshadeHanging Lampshaded]] in [[http://wapsisquare.com/comic/understanding/ this]] ''WapsiSquare'' comic. Also the page quote.
* {{Subverted}} (although this may be a retrospective way of seeing it) in ''SluggyFreelance''. Leo seems to be accepting of all the weird things Zoë tells about happening to her - but it turns out that was only because he thought she was lying. In the words of another jerk he hangs out with, "You've got to respect a girl who realizes romantic relationships are based on lies and goes to town with it!" As soon as Leo finds out it was all true, he feels betrayed, and they eventually break off.

[[AC:WesternAnimation]]
* [[PhineasAndFerb Candace]] seems to have this with Jeremy. Despite all of Candace's attempts to put a stop to PhineasAndFerb's projects, the guy never, ever seems to lose his cool, and they're still an item.
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* [[JojosBizarreAdventure ZA WARUDO!]]
* ''{{Sonic Adventure 2}}''.
* ''ShadowTheHedgehog''.
* ''Okami''.
* ''{{Onimusha}} 4'': Jubei Yagyu's special ability to slow down time.
* ''MegaManX 5'': When you use Dark Hold. And hence, TatsunokoVsCapcom.
* The Unknown from ''KingdomHearts: BirthBySleep'' will cast Stop on you and rewind time a few seconds to heal himself, with this effect.

[[AC:Other Coloured Indications of Timestop]]
* ''{{Persona 3}}'': The whole world is covered in a green filter during the Dark Hour
* ''DarkerThanBlack'': When Amber/February users her powers she and whoever else she chooses to affect turns gold and is able to move around while the rest of the world is tinted in a strange purple or blue color.
* ''[[{{Discworld}} The Thief Of Time]]'': The visual effects are described in a way that's [[ShownTheirWork actually sort of plausible]]: everything ahead of Lobsang is blue-shifted, while on the one occasion he glances behind him while moving the view is red-shifted to impenetrability.
* In ''PrinceOfPersia: The Forgotten Sands'', the timestopped world is simply darker.
* ''The Girl, The Gold Watch, and Everything'': Uses a red filter.
* ''ShakuganNoShana'': The sky becomes dark red.
* ''{{Bayonetta}}'': The Witch Time tints the world in dark blue.
* ''CardCaptorSakura'': Everything turns a shade of gold.
* ''{{Homestuck}}'': A red zodiac appears on the victim, who flashes red. [[http://mspaintadventures.com/?s=6&p=003664 As seen here]]. It doesn't seem to be in effect for all timestops though, just some.
* GhostTrick: The ghost world is basically the normal world with time stopped and a tinted filter over it, different ghosts receiving different colored filters.
* RedDeadRedemption has it's bullet time filtered in a sepia screen.
* In ''BunnyMustDie'', the world turns bluish when time stops, red when time is reversed, and yellow when time is slowed.
* In the non-fighting games of TouhouProject, the screen darkens when Sakuya stops time.
* The ''MegaManBattleNetwork'' and ''MegaManStarForce'' games have some chips/cards which freeze the action while they play out; these darken the screen.
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A phrase said by one character as a subtle warning to another character that their next proposed action is likely to be a big mistake. TropeNamer is Atticus Finch of ToKillAMockingbird.

It doesn't have to be those exact words. Any question of this type that is on the surface a neutral call for confirmation but is loaded with implied danger if the speaker gets the answer wrong falls under this trope. The speaker is giving whoever is about to make the error a chance to back away from the edge of a precipice before they plummet over into the abyss.

Being asked this is a red flag that you are dealing with a {{Trickster}}. If you're being asked it while under said tricksters wing, that makes the character a TricksterMentor as well, the kind of [[{{Mentors}} mentor]] who prefers to let his or her students make their own mistakes and naturally smooth out the rough edges before teaching them the final touches... but they can't help themselves from issuing a subtle warning that they know the bold or chronically indecisive are ultimately going to ignore. (Its fun to watch them fluster over the choice before getting it wrong anyway after all, and a mentor has to have fun, right?) It's also the favorite disclaimer of the LiteralGenie.

Of course, this may be used in a serious context later on when used on a villain who is about to [[SelfDisposingVillain make his own grave,]] ruin his own plan, or otherwise screw things up for team evil. This may also be used as a CallBack to the original question to the hero under tuition; all the more appropriate if the question comes from the student themselves. After once being played straight, it is sometimes used as a bluff to unnerve an opponent from making a good move.
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[[AC: ComicBooks]]

* In the ''{{Lucifer}}'' one-shot ''Nirvana," the title character visits the demon Beruchapalimon for leads about the Silk Man's recent attack on himself. The demon assumes Lucifer intends to [[{{Whatevermancy}} read his entrails]] for clues and so has his {{Mook}}s attempt to restrain him while he prepares a magical assault. Lucifer says, "A threat display, demon? Have you thought this through?" Beruchapalimon doesn't take the hint, and proceeds to cast knives at him out of thin air, only for Lucifer effortlessly to turn the knives on the mooks. "I really was just looking for information," he tells the demon, holding a knife to his throat.

[[AC: {{Film}}]]

* In ''HotFuzz'', ByTheBookCop Nicholas asks a culprit whether fighting him is what he "really, really wants". After confirming it, he quips "Suit yourself" and kicks his ass.
* In ''WarGames'', David Lightman logs on to the computer Joshua as Stephen Falken, who in his past liked to research war games. Joshua asks "Falken" if he would like to play a game, and David types in: "Love to. How about Global Thermonuclear War?" Joshua replies, "Wouldn't you prefer a nice game of chess?" As we learn later, the real Falken ''would'' prefer chess, but David insists on playing Global Thermonuclear War.

[[AC: {{Literature}}]]

* TropeNamer is Atticus Finch of ToKillAMockingbird as mentioned above. He uses it several times in Scouts earlier years before the story as a warning during chess matches that she was about to make a mistake: Scout never took the warning and always got trounced when she ignored it. The second time uses it for drama in a climactic moment that displays Atticus's bravery as he faces down a lynch mob, and, after asking them what they are here for, asks the titular question. It is not this that disperses the crowd however...

[[AC: LiveActionTelevision]]

* ''StarTrek'', "The Trouble with Tribbles:"
-->Korax: That saggy old rust bucket is designed like a garbage scow. Half the quadrant knows it. That's why they're learning to speak Klingonese.
-->Scotty: Laddy, don't you think you should rephrase that?
-->Korax: ''With Scottish accent'' You're right. I should. ''Drops accent'' I didn't mean to say that the Enterprise should be ''hauling'' garbage. I meant to say that it should be hauled away '''as''' garbage!

[[AC:TabletopRPG]]

* Classic ''{{Traveller}}'' supplement ''The Traveller Adventure''. If the {{PC}}s decide to get rid of the anolas, the game master is advised to ask them if they really want to do that. This represents the slight but growing hold the anolas have on the {{PC}}s' minds.
* Many [=RPGs=] allow characters to acquire a trait called "common sense" (intended for use by players who lack the trait), which obligates the game master to ask this very question from time to time.

[[AC: VideoGames]]

* In ApolloJustice, Gavin asks [[spoiler: Pheonix Wright]] if he really wants to embarrass himself with [[spoiler:the falsified evidence he is about to present.]] It seems at the time to be simply arrogant taunting, and [[spoiler:Pheonix]] does it anyway.
* In Fallout New Vegas this occurs upon first meeting Benny where [[spoiler:a female character with the black widow perk can sleep with Benny]], but only if the player is willing to confirm the action through around a dozen utterances of this trope by Benny. Some of the dialog gets a bit creepy.

[[AC: WebComics]]

* OrderOfTheStick: in response to Roy's question [[http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0331.html here]]
* In ''{{Collar 6}}'', Butterfly asks [[spoiler:Ginger]] this, when the latter confronts her.

[[AC: WebOriginal]]

* [[RedvsBlue Simmons]] tries to keep it as non-objective as possible: "Sir, wouldn't it be better if we didn't do that, instead of doing it?" As usually, he is ignored.


[[AC: RealLife]]
* If your GameMaster says this in a TabletopRPG, then you ''really'' might want to reconsider your chosen action.
* A well designed (modern) computer program will do this before a action that is hard/impossible to reverse, or just plain dangerous/destructive, as a way to make sure you don't accidentally preform said action. Given that computers are the embodiment of a {{Literal Genie}}, this is a good thing.

* From WarGames
-->'''Joshua:''' Shall we play a game?
-->'''David Lightman:''' Oh!
-->'''Jennifer:''' [giggles] I think it missed him.
-->'''David Lightman:''' Yeah. Weird isn't it?
-->'''Jennifer:''' Yeah.
-->'''David Lightman:''' [typing] Love to. How about Global Thermonuclear War?
-->'''Joshua:''' Wouldn't you prefer a nice game of chess?
-->[Jennifer laughs]
-->'''David Lightman:''' [typing] Later. Let's play Global Thermonuclear War.
-->'''Joshua:''' Fine.
** This is more of a subversion, because despite the obviously loaded nature of the question for an audience who knows what is going to happen, Joshua has no hidden meaning to his question. He just feels that Stephen Falken (who he thinks is typing to him while it is really David Lightman) would prefer chess. And as we learn about Falken later, Falken really would prefer chess (now that is, in his past he did like to research war games).