History Main / CowTools

* Any place where tools, spare parts or electronic equipment is stored will have a few of these. Slightly downplayed in that all of it clearly ''had'' a vital function at some point, but it hasn't been needed in quite some time, and chances are nobody can quite recall what it was originally used for. This is especially true in the case of business that involve manufacturing in small batches. They end up buying parts from a third party that are only sold in boxes of fifty, use five of them, and then the remainder get stuck on a storeroom shelf and forgotten until the next inventory audit, when someone who has no clue what the part is or why they ever needed it needs to verify that there are still forty-five of them left.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons''
** In "Homer vs. Patty and Selma", Homer has a dream where he's rich and successful after inventing some kind of device. Both Homer and the viewers are left equally clueless as to what the device is or what it does.

** [[https://i.imgur.com/1BFgxxo.jpg One version]] of [[Series/StarTrekVoyager B'Elanna's]] uniform had a front pocket with a row of Cow Tools poking out, as befits her role as [[WrenchWench Chief]] [[GadgeteerGenius Engineer]].

Well, chances are it isn't ''anything.'' While some of it may be a genuine bit of AppliedPhlebotinum [[ChekhovsGun put there as]] {{Foreshadowing}}, much of the time it's just Cow Tools: props or artwork that the designer of the scene threw in to [[NarrativeFiligree add to the color or atmosphere of the place.]] This doesn't stop the fans from [[EpilepticTrees wildly speculating about them,]] though.

* Subverted with the Shelves of Honor on ''Series/TheColbertReport''. The shelves full of apparently random junk that line one wall of the set might be expected to be Cow Tools, but just about everything on there has some significance. See [[https://web.archive.org/web/20091124165249/http://wikiality.wikia.com/Shelves_of_Honor Wikiality's detailed analysis.]]

* Subverted with the Shelves of Honor on ''Series/TheColbertReport''. The shelves full of apparently random junk that line one wall of the set might be expected to be Cow Tools, but just about everything on there has some significance. See [[http://www.wikiality.com/Shelves_of_Honor Wikiality's detailed analysis.]]

* Any place where tools, spare parts or electronic equipment is stored will have a few of these. Slightly downplayed in that all of it clearly ''had'' a vital function at some point, but it hasn't been needed in quite some time, and chances are nobody can quite recall what it was originally used for.

* Similarly, any business that involves manufacturing in small batches often finds themselves needing five of some part that can only be ordered in boxes of fifty, at which point the remainder get stuck on a storeroom shelf and forgotten until the next inventory audit, when someone who has no clue what the part is or why they have them needs to verify that there are still forty-five of them left.

Named for a notorious ''ComicStrip/TheFarSide'' [[https://web.archive.org/web/20191220052459/https://www.thefarside.com/2019/12/17/3 cartoon,]] showing a bipedal cow standing at a bench on which are laid out a set of primitive-looking and only vaguely recognisable implements, captioned simply "Cow tools". Creator Gary Larson, in a compilation book with a section dedicated to the screw-ups and controversial cartoons from his career, said it was the one cartoon he'd gotten the most enquiries about -- as people [[EpilepticTrees tried in vain to figure out what the hell they were for]]. (One letter wrote "What is the meaning of Cow Tools? What is the meaning of life?") In fact, Larson ''[[ShrugOfGod hadn't meant them to be anything, except strange]]''. He got the idea from an [[ToolsOfSapience anthropology class regarding animals using tools]], and just wondered what it would be like if cows had tools.[[note]](He believes his biggest mistake was [[GeniusBonus thinking this was funny]], which it was for different reasons than what he intended -- and he regretted making one of the objects look vaguely like a saw, thus implying the rest had real-world counterparts. On the other hand, the fact that there is NoSuchThingAsBadPublicity no doubt attracted more readers to the strip and boosted Larson's circulation. Go figure.)[[/note]]

* The three seashells from ''Film/DemolitionMan''. Much like the ''Far Side'' cartoon, it confused audiences into wondering how this futuristic toilet paper (three scallop shells lined up on a bathroom counter) was supposed to work. Many [[FanWank fan theories]] exist, including one by Creator/SandraBullock, who was still getting [[http://www.mtv.com/news/1715032/sandra-bullock-demolition-man-seashells/ questions about it twenty years later]].

*** Since the 2012 Christmas special, the console room (particularly [[http://doctorwhoone.deviantart.com/art/DW-2012-Tardis-Console-with-correct-info-350087669 the console itself]]) has returned to a more minimalistic and more clearly arranged design, generally less random/convoluted/whimsical than [[http://i.imgur.com/3FOsy.jpg the previous one]]. It's also [[{{Homage}} a lot closer to]] the similarly austere designs of the console room from the classic era of the show.

* The three seashells from ''Film/DemolitionMan''. Much like the ''Far Side'' cartoon, it confused audiences into wondering how this futuristic toilet paper was supposed to work. Many [[FanWank fan theories]] exist, including one by Creator/SandraBullock, who was still getting [[http://www.mtv.com/news/1715032/sandra-bullock-demolition-man-seashells/ questions about it twenty years later]].

* While only talked about and never seen, the three seashells from ''Film/DemolitionMan''. Much like the ''Far Side'' cartoon, it confused audiences into wondering how this futuristic toilet paper was supposed to work. Many [[FanWank fan theories]] exist, including one by Creator/SandraBullock, who was still getting [[http://www.mtv.com/news/1715032/sandra-bullock-demolition-man-seashells/ questions about it twenty years later]].

* A deleted scene from ''Film/GalaxyQuest'' has the aliens showing the cast of the eponymous ShowWithinAShow around the ship. When the Spock {{Expy}} looks in quarters, he sees some bizarre machine that looks like some kind of shielded power core with tubes and stirrups. For bonus points, this also falls under BizarreAlienBiology, as it's stated that it's supposed to be his fictional race's equivalent of a toilet.

* ''Film/InspectorGadget1999'' has Tinkertoys, a dead fish, garden hose and many other strange things alongside traditional operating tools. The 'autopsy' sequence shows that Gadget has ''full'' of apparently useless and unrelated Cow Tools.