History Main / DoNotDoThisCoolThing

* ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'', especially the older versions of it, is rather clear in its "fascist totalitarianism is bad" message with the [[TheEmpire Imperium]] [[HumansAreTheRealMonsters of Man]] serving as an example of [[FascistButInefficient a dysfunctional fascist regime]]. But this aesop is watered down by how 1) the Imperium [[VillainProtagonist is the POV faction]] [[SpotlightStealingSquad for most material]] (Even getting [[Literature/HorusHeresy a hundred books long series about their backstory]]) to the detriment of other factions who aren't given as much SympatheticPOV stories, 2) The Imperium's enemies are never really presented as being better than it ([[BlackAndGrayMorality at most they will be just as bad but will often be shown as worse than it]]), and 3) the Imperium just plain looks ''[[EvilIsCool cool]]'' and draws a lot of its imagery from Crusades-era Europe and 20th-century dictatorships. As a result, it's no surprise that a fair amount of ''40k'' fans are RootingForTheEmpire (and some even have a MisaimedFandom towards it). It got to the point that Games Workshop had to make an [[https://www.warhammer-community.com/2021/11/19/the-imperium-is-driven-by-hate-warhammer-is-not/ official statement]] in November 2021 that they are not to be admired.

* Invoked in [[http://somethingpositive.net/sp08312004.shtml this]] ''Webcomic/SomethingPositive'' with Davan's response to a gang of ''Film/TheRockyHorrorPictureShow'' fans protesting a stage-play adaptation of ''Film/ShockTreatment''. "Think of every movie or video game someone else protested that you immediately went to check out. Now you're doing that for us."

* ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'', especially the older versions of it, is rather clear in it's "fascist totalitarianism is bad" message with the [[TheEmpire Imperium]] [[HumansAreTheRealMonsters of Man]] serving as an example of [[FascistButInefficient a dysfunctional fascist regime]]. But this aesop is watered down by how 1) the Imperium [[VillainProtagonist is the POV faction]] [[SpotlightStealingSquad for most material]] (Even getting [[Literature/HorusHeresy a hundred books long series about their backstory]]) to the detriment of other factions who aren't given as much SympatheticPOV stories, 2) The Imperium's enemies are never really presented as being better than it ([[BlackAndGrayMorality at most they will be just as bad but will often be shown as worse than it]]), and 3) the Imperium just plain looks ''[[EvilIsCool cool]]'' and draws a lot of its imagery from Crusades-era Europe and 20th-century dictatorships. As a result, it's no surprise that a fair amount of ''40k'' fans are RootingForTheEmpire (and some even have a MisaimedFandom towards it). It got to the point that Games Workshop had to make an [[https://www.warhammer-community.com/2021/11/19/the-imperium-is-driven-by-hate-warhammer-is-not/ official statement]] in November 2021 that they are not to be admired.

* [[DrugsAreBad Anti-drug ads]] tend to fall victim to this, especially the ones aimed at kids and teens. In general they have the same problem as {{Stealth Cigarette Commercial}}s. That is, the ads are considered so stupid and lame and insulting to one's intelligence, that people who watch them will want go use drugs simply out of spite. This is far from their only problem, however.

* Creator/JonBois, in his history of the career of baseball player Lonnie Smith, notes that baseball in the 80s had something of a cocaine epidemic (explaining that baseball in general is known for substance abuse, due to its slow pace providing lots of room for breaks). He notes that it was an OpenSecret that at least three of the 1982 St. Louis Cardinals were snorting cocaine practically daily: Lonnie Smith, Keith Hernandez, and Joaquin Andujar. Curious, he decides to look up the stats of the players at the time... and realizes that Smith and Hernandez were the best batters on the Cardinals, and Andujar was their best pitcher. And then he recalls that the 1982 Cardinals ''won the World Series''. He then has to go into a lengthy aside to explain that DrugsAreBad, snorting cocaine does not make you better at baseball, and he refuses to take responsibility if someone assumes that it does. Fortunately, he manages to recover, explaining that Lonnie went on repeated benders that made him violent and reckless and that he eventually went into rehab.

* ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'', especially the older versions of it, is rather clear in it's "fascist totalitarianism is bad" message with the [[TheEmpire Imperium]] [[HumansAreTheRealMonsters of Man]] serving as an example of [[FascistButInefficient a dysfunctional fascist regime]]. But this aesop is watered down by how 1) the Imperium [[VillainProtagonist is the POV faction]] [[SpotlightStealingSquad for most material]] to the detriment of other factions who aren't given as much SympatheticPOV stories, 2) The Imperium's enemies [[BlackAndGrayMorality are often presented as just as bad if not worse than it]], and 3) the Imperium just plain looks ''[[EvilIsCool cool]]'' and draws a lot of its imagery from Crusades-era Europe and 20th-century dictatorships. As a result, a fair amount of ''40k'' fans are RootingForTheEmpire (and some even have a MisaimedFandom towards it). It got to the point that Games Workshop had to make an [[https://www.warhammer-community.com/2021/11/19/the-imperium-is-driven-by-hate-warhammer-is-not/ official statement]] in November 2021 that they are not to be admired.

* ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'', especially the older versions of it, is rather clear in it's "fascist totalitarianism is bad" message with the [[TheEmpire Imperium]] [[HumansAreTheRealMonsters of Man]] serving as an example of [[FascistButInefficient a dysfunctional fascist regime]]. But this aesop is watered down by how 1) the Imperium [[VillainProtagonist is the POV faction]] [[SpotlightStealingSquad for most material]] to the detriment of other factions who aren't given as much SympatheticPOV stories, 2) The Imperium's enemies [[BlackAndGrayMorality are often presented as just as bad if not worse than it]], and 3) the Imperium just plain looks ''[[EvilIsCool cool]]'' and draws a lot of its imagery from Crusades-era Europe and 20th-century dictatorships. As a result, a fair amount of ''40k'' fans are RootingForTheEmpire (and some even have a MisaimedFandom towards it). It got to the point that Games Workshop had to make an [[https://www.warhammer-community.com/2021/11/19/the-imperium-is-driven-by-hate-warhammer-is-not/ official statement]] that they are not to be admired.

* ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'', especially the older versions of it, is rather clear in it's "fascist totalitarianism is bad" message with the [[TheEmpire Imperium]] [[HumansAreTheRealMonsters of Man]] serving as an example of [[FascistButInefficient a dysfunctional fascist regime]]. In fact, Games Workshop had to make an [[https://www.warhammer-community.com/2021/11/19/the-imperium-is-driven-by-hate-warhammer-is-not/ official statement]] that they are not to be admired. But this aesop is watered down by how 1) the Imperium [[VillainProtagonist is the POV faction]] [[SpotlightStealingSquad for most material]] to the detriment of other factions who aren't given as much SympatheticPOV stories, 2) The Imperium's enemies [[BlackAndGrayMorality are often presented as just as bad if not worse than it]], and 3) the Imperium just plain looks ''[[EvilIsCool cool]]'' and draws a lot of its imagery from Crusades-era Europe and 20th-century dictatorships. As a result, a fair amount of ''40k'' fans are RootingForTheEmpire (and some even have a MisaimedFandom towards it).
** It got to the point where, in November 2021, Games Workshop had to put out [[https://www.polygon.com/22791668/games-workshop-warhammer-40k-hate-groups-imperium-imagery-statement a PSA]] reminding players that the Imperium of Man were not meant to be seen as heroes.

* ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'', especially the older versions of it, is rather clear in it's "fascist totalitarianism is bad" message with the [[TheEmpire Imperium]] [[HumansAreTheRealMonsters of Man]] serving as an example of [[FascistButInefficient a dysfunctional fascist regime]] [[https://www.warhammer-community.com/2021/11/19/the-imperium-is-driven-by-hate-warhammer-is-not/ Up to Games Workshop themselves making an official statement that they are not to be admired]]. But this aesop is watered down by how 1) the Imperium [[VillainProtagonist is the POV faction]] [[SpotlightStealingSquad for most material]] to the detriment of all other factions who aren't given anywhere near the many SympatheticPOV stories the Imperium gets, which results in: 2) The Imperium's enemies [[BlackAndGrayMorality being presented as equally as bad (at best) if not worse (the majority of the cases) than it]], and 3) the Imperium just plain looks ''[[EvilIsCool cool]]'' and draws a lot of its imagery from Nazism and Catholicism. As a result, a fair amount of ''40k'' fans are RootingForTheEmpire (and many actual Nazis and fascists are drawn to the hobby).

* ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'', especially the older versions of it, is rather clear in it's "fascist totalitarianism is bad" message with the [[TheEmpire Imperium]] [[HumansAreTheRealMonsters of Man]] serving as an example of [[FascistButInefficient a dysfunctional fascist regime]]. But this aesop is watered down by how 1) the Imperium [[VillainProtagonist is the POV faction for most material]] to the detriment of all other factions, 2) The Imperium's enemies [[BlackAndGrayMorality are presented as genuinely just as bad (at best) if not worse (more often) than it]], and 3) the Imperium just plain looks ''[[EvilIsCool cool]]'' and draws a lot of its imagery from Nazism and Catholicism. As a result, a fair amount of ''40k'' fans are RootingForTheEmpire (and many actual Nazis and fascists are drawn to the hobby).

* ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'', especially the older versions of it, is rather clear in it's "fascist totalitarianism is bad" message with the [[TheEmpire Imperium]] [[HumansAreTheRealMonsters of Man]] serving as an example of [[FascistButInefficient a dysfunctional fascist regime]]. But this asop is watered down by how 1) the Imperium [[VillainProtagonist is the POV faction for most material]] to the detriment of all other factions, 2) The Imperium's enemies [[BlackAndGrayMorality are presented as genuinly just as bad (at best) if not worse (more often) than it]], and 3) the Imperium just plain looks ''[[EvilIsCool cool]]'' and draws a lot of its imagery from nazism and catholicism. As a result, a fair amount of ''40k'' fans are RootingForTheEmpire (and many actual nazis are drawn to the hobby).

* ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'', especially the older versions of it, is rather clear in it's "fascist totalitarianism is bad" message with the [[TheEmpire Imperium]] [[HumansAreTheRealMonsters of Man]] serving as an example of [[FascistButInefficient a dysfunctional fascist regime]]. But this asop is watered down by how 1) the Imperium [[VillainProtagonist is the POV faction for most material]], 2) The Imperium's enemies [[BlackAndGrayMorality are often just as bad if not worse than it]], and 3) the Imperium just plain looks ''[[EvilIsCool cool]]''. As a result, a fair amount of ''40k'' fans are RootingForTheEmpire (if not having an outright MisaimedFandom for the Imperium).

*** The ad may not be as bad as some, but it does depict Cook going crazy and wrecking a kitchen to illustrate what a drug user, the user's family, etc., go through thanks to drugs. When she finishes and breathes "Any questions?", one question that comes to mind, as WebOriginal/TheNostalgiaCritic put it: "Yeah. What drugs are ''you'' on?"

* The Rifftrax short 'Safety with Animals' has a scene telling the proper way to handle snakes, by way of showing a young child picking a wild snake from the ground, only to go back and say that you should never go near wild animals. Mike quickly mocks this.

** Many of these ads make use of TheAggressiveDrugDealer, a trope which was simply [[DeadUnicornTrope never an accurate reflection of reality]] even before it was discredited. Kids were being warned constantly to be on the lookout for these shady characters looking to corrupt the morals of today's youth for... [[ForTheEvulz uh]]... but as they were never encountered in real life, it caused these ads to provoke more laughter than [[ScareEmStraight fear]]. Probably the worst was an ad that had an obnoxious kid all but forcing his classmate to take a handful of marijuana cigarettes. Everything about the commercial was wrong, as the kid didn't seem to expect payment for the joints, both kids (especially the victim) looking about ten years too young to be in danger of rampant drug use being a thing among their peers, the pusher kid calling his victim a "chicken" and loudly making fun of him ''in a school hallway'' for not taking his drugs, and the kid's utterly wimpy response: "I'm no chicken! You're a turkey!" The takeaway most kids got from this is that marijuana users might be loudmouthed jerks but those who didn't smoke it were hopeless nerds.

[[folder:Music]]
* The song "Dead Man's Curve" by Jan & Dean (also covered by Music/TheCarpenters on their Album Now & Then) tells the story of the protagonist engaging in an impromptu street race against someone in a Jaguar, culminating in a crash at "Dead Man's Curve" which is only vaguely described in the song. In a spoken part near the end of the song, the protagonist tells his doctors the last thing he remembers, then notes, "I know I'll never forget that horrible sight." However, the lack of any consequential details about the crash itself or its aftermath, as well as the generally upbeat melody, make both the protagonist's evaluation of the crash and the repeated advice in the chorus ("Dead Man's Curve, You'd best keep away!") ring hollow. If anything, the song seems more likely to make teenagers want to engage in such a drag race.
** It doesn't help that in the version by Music/TheCarpenters, an instrumental link at the end cuts straight into a sappy rendition of the album's next song, "Johnny Angel."
* Anti-war songs are just as susceptible to this as anti-war films. The message of the song may be about the awful aspects of war, but it may have either too subtle of a title or a catchy, positive or cool sounding beat, as well as LyricalDissonance to keep it from getting its message across. This goes double if it's a popular song that many of the listeners only know the chorus of without knowing any other of the lyrics, often leading to cases of IsntItIronic.
** Edwin Starr's "War". The lyrics denounce the act of war quite {{anvilicious}}ly, but it sounds like a good song to kick ass to. It was used for fight scenes in ''Film/RushHour'', ''Film/SmallSoldiers'', and ''Agent Cody Banks 2'', and ''WebVideo/HellsingAbridged'' lampshades this by using it to underscore a nazi vampire invasion of London.
*** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wa6Ueo643XA The cover]] by Music/BoneThugsNHarmony, which was also featured in ''Small Soldiers'', takes this UpToEleven.
*** Then again, the exact lyrics are "What is it ''good'' for? Absolutely nothing!" - and kicking ass is, well, bad. So the song falls short by not clarifying that warfare doesn't make one a badass.
** Music/{{Metallica}}'s "For Whom the Bell Tolls". Despite being about the futility of war, it's a totally kick ass song that gets your adrenaline pumping.
** Music/RiseAgainst's "Hero of War" is definitely intended as an anti-war song. It tells the story of a teenager who joins the military because he'll get to see the world, [[DareToBeBadass carry a gun]], and he'll even get paid. The war psychologically destroys him, going through [[TrainingFromHell brutal basic training]], being involved in the beating and humiliation of a POW, and finally killing a surrendering civilian woman by accident during a firefight. However, along the way he makes friends, learned a lot, came to love his country, become a decorated veteran, and at home everyone respects him (it's likely the lyrics are supposed to take a more sarcastic tone in the end).
** While not exactly a "catchy" song per say, Bob Dylan's "With God On Our Side" tends to get people thinking that it's a patriotic statement, despite being more about how having God on your side is little more than an excuse to go to war and force your ideals upon others because both sides will always claim this.
* Music/BlackSabbath. Many of their early lyrics dealt with the horrors of things like violence, war, Satan and so on. This has inspired legions of metal bands to write lyrics about how ''awesome'' these same things are.
* Music/MarilynManson. The fact that his {{concept album}}s aren't obvious to non-fans have created so many problems. Half of his songs on the album ''Mechanical Animals'' are from the point of view of the character of Omega (pronounced O-ME-ga), who is a [[ShoutOut space alien fallen to Earth]] [[Music/DavidBowie and forced to be a rock star]] who sings empty anthems of sex, drugs and rock'n'roll and has retreated into copious drug use to cope and has cut himself off from emotion. The other half are by Alpha, who is just beginning to feel emotion and is curious because of it. So, of course, most people listen to Omega's message, ironically doing the same as the mindless sheep In-Universe. It's not much better with ''Antichrist Superstar'', in which the title character ends the universe. It's not supposed to be supported, people. Mr. Manson himself was so pissed off by this that the song ''This Is The New Shit'' is about the fans that do this, with the chorus containing the lyrics "Do we get it? NO! Do we want it? YEAH!" just to make the point more obvious, and this this is the song that starts with "Babble babble, bitch bitch, rebel rebel rebel, party party party, sex sex sex and don't forget the violence". It doesn't help that people have their own preconceived notions of Satanism (which are wildly inaccurate) and he's an ordained Reverend in the Church of Satan. So yes, properly, he is Reverend Marilyn Manson.
* In fact, a lot of heavy metal bands of note either treat these themes negatively, ironically or with a sort of horrified fascination; while a lot may seem like they glorify violence or death, it's often necessary to tune into the particular subcultural lens of heavy metal to understand them properly. Unfortunately, [[MisaimedFandom some of the fans]] (especially for bands that hit the mainstream) and more than a few of the bands don't seem to get this.
* Music/{{Megadeth}}'s album "Peace Sells...But Who's Buying?" led to a rumor that the band members were Satanists or endorsed Satanism due to nearly half of the album being explicitly about Satanism. But all three songs detail horrific things happening to those who dabble in it. The songs stem from a bad experience that Dave Mustaine had with "black magic", where he put a hex on someone and was convinced it worked, plaguing him with guilt. After that incident, he tried to make songs warning against the dark arts, but they ended up so badass-sounding that the message was ignored.
* Music/{{Slayer}} "Angel of Death" is often called a pro-Holocaust song, but guitarist Kerry King notes that the lyrics are as brutal as they are to reflect the real horror of the Holocaust, not to glorify it. The band is not trying to glorify the Holocaust -- but they're not trying to dispel it, either. [[NoSuchThingAsBadPublicity They enjoy causing controversy]].
* Music/BruceSpringsteen's "Born In the USA" is about the issues faced by returning veterans of UsefulNotes/TheVietnamWar. Because of the refrain, the subtle title, and it being one of the catchiest songs musically the Boss has ever done, it's constantly mistaken for an [[{{Eagleland}} American patriotic song]]. It is frequently played at 4th of July events. US President UsefulNotes/RonaldReagan -- a president who had threatened Mutually Assured Destruction on the Russians -- wanted to use it as his 1984 campaign theme.
** "Born to Run", similarly, was named New Jersey's "Unofficial Youth Rock Anthem" by the New Jersey State Legislature in 1979. [[IsntItIronic A song about leaving New Jersey because of how terrible it is]]. No, seriously:
--> Baby this town rips the bones from your back\\
It's a death trap, it's a suicide rap\\
We gotta get out while we're young
* Music/CreedenceClearwaterRevival's "Fortunate Son" is about the class bias of UsefulNotes/TheVietnamWar -- lower and middle class kids being sent to fight and die while rich kids get to stay home. This doesn't stop it from being extremely catchy, and many listeners don't really get more than the first couplet of the lyrics. It also gets mistaken for a patriotic song, thanks largely to the opening lines of "Some folks were born, made to wave the flag, ooh, the red, white, and blue".
* Music/AvrilLavigne's "Girlfriend" is a sarcastic song that, if taken ''un''ironically, would send the message, "If you're a girl who follows the RuleOfCool ''and'' likes a taken boy, it's okay to throw yourself at the guy and steal him away because you ''know'' he likes you back, and his girlfriend is 'like, so whatever.'" The video points out it's okay to humiliate said girlfriend because she's [[AcceptableTargets a nerdy girl with glasses]]. [[WordOfGod Lavigne has said]] it's ''criticizing'' shallow boy-crazy girls who act like that. But the song [[PoesLaw doesn't make this clear]], and try telling it to the song's MisaimedFandom.
* The Music/DropkickMurphys cover of the old Irish anti war song "Johnny I Hardly Knew Ya", when viewed on a particular AMV, makes one want to go to war.
** The same tune was reused for "When Johnny Comes Marching Home", a song from the American Civil War that ''glorifies'' soldiers returning home from war.
* Gangsta Rap.
** The videos for gangsta rap in particular are guilty of this. What was said above re: gangsters in film & television goes double for many gangsta-rap music videos. Even when the lyrics are explicitly about the dangers and harshness of street life, expect the videos to be full of images of diamond studded cars, gold jewelry everywhere, beautiful women, and champagne overflowing.
*** This was on account of the standards of MTV and other "music" channels at the time. They refused to allow any video with gunplay or shooting imagery regardless of context. This was particularly notable in the 1990s during the genre's rise to prominence (since they were airing more videos then).
*** This trope is deliberately invoked in Juvenile's song "Ha". The lyrics are a TakeThat against the glamour of rap excess (the chorus says, "You're a paper chaser, you got your block on fire, remaining a G until the moment you expire"), and in the video itself, the scenes are of poor and near-homeless residents living in housing projects in New Orleans... except during the chorus, when Juvenile and his crew visibly sing in front of expensive cars, stacks of money and visible jewelry.
*** Music/TheRoots' "Never Do What They Do" is another classic music video that tries to shade light on how Mainstream Rap videos are glamorized. They do this three fold by first showing a typical "big baller" video with the big mansion, complete with huge swimming pool, bikini clad women, and high priced cars. Next they show the urban street scene, complete corner gang bangers and drug dealers. Lastly, they show the club scene with attractive women and a Jazz band on stage. Afterwards, they spend the whole video deconstructing all three settings, mostly by using box text to show how these videos are faked.
*** Atmosphere has written a few songs attempting to address this issue too, including "Apple" which has a repeated refrain of "Just cause you're an MC doesn't mean you get to be an asshole" and "National Disgrace" which begins with the following dedication:
--> Peace to Rick James, Anna Nicole Smith, UsefulNotes/BillClinton, and Music/MotleyCrue, and anyone else who has ever utilised their 15 minutes of fame to realise their true dreams of being an absolute jerk-off, just to keep the masses entertained. This goes out to learning from the mistakes of others.
* Scavanger. Used for BlackComedy effect in ''[[https://web.archive.org/web/20100520080950/http://www.jamendo.com/en/track/539623 Assassins of Ankh Morpork]]''. "[[Literature/{{Discworld}} Here]] in [[WretchedHive Ankh Morpork]] they're saint", indeed.
* VisualKei as a genre has this problem: the point of the genre is artistic freedom and using shock value to express your artistic message. Except a large percentage of the fans, looking at the beautifully stylized bandmen, seem to be convinced that to be truly VisualKei, one must be as pretty as they are - thoroughly breaking at least one of the major [[AnAesop Aesops]] in a belief that art is only for the beautiful and sexy. The second problem, especially with Eroguro Kei, is the MisaimedFandom factor - people that don't get that some of this stuff is meant to shock and disgust, not glorify. Which can be a very big UnfortunateImplications minefield with, say, the [=GazettE=]'s Taion, which is meant to be a condemnation of rape and a lashout at the Japanese society for allowing such a rape to happen. When people start ''singing along,'' though... {{Squick}}.
* At the beginning of the track "Tipsy", J-Kwon makes a short statement: "Yo, teen drinking is really bad!"[[note]] (I got a fake ID, tho'!)[[/note]]
* [[Music/WaylonJennings Mamas, don't let your babies grow up to be cowboys.]]
* The Music/BeastieBoys' "Fight For Your Right To Party" was intended as a parody of party anthems and to mock lazy and unmotivated people with a "party all the time" attitude. It ended up become a party anthem as well because... well, no one can deny that the narrator is having fun, and his attitude is a lot more fun than actually doing homework, chores, and going to school on time. That the video looks like so much fun too is another big factor.
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZw7lWd1btQ "Beans In My Ears"]] lampshades this. The song starts with (ostensible) kids singing how their mommy said not to put beans in their ears ... followed by them wondering why they'd want to put beans in their ears ... followed by them putting the beans in their ears ... followed by them telling their mother they've done so, to which she responds "That's nice, boys, just don't put those beans in your ears." It ends with them concluding that all grownups have beans in their ears. Ironically, the hit version by The Serendipity Singers was banned in some markets because of concerns that it would actually encourage children to put foreign objects in their ears.
* In 2002, Creator/VH1 aired a special called ''Inside Hate Rock'', an investigation into white supremacist rock bands. While it was intended to show how these bands are funding hate groups, it instead made them look like part of a cool, underground music scene. Scheduled repeats of the show were cancelled, and it has never aired on [=VH1=] again.
%%* Lampshaded and [[BrokenAesop broken]] in "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EA-TqZuuEA4 You Can't Do That]]" by K.T. Oslin.
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qYS732zyYfU "Cocaine"]] by Music/EricClapton is [[DrugsAreBad anti-drug]] but it sounds more like an [[DrugsAreGood advertisement for nose candy]].
* According to British comedian [[Series/HarryEnfieldAndChums Harry Enfield,]] this was one of his gripes when he created the character and chart-topping song of Loadsamoney - the character was meant as a parody of Thatcher-era upper-middle-class materialists who cared about nothing in the world and in the government besides what made them in particular the most money. Consequently, Loadsamoney is an incredibly obnoxious ''nouveau riche'' asshole who hates the poor and loves ConspicuousConsumption and waving around stacks of cash; his catchphrase being "Shut your mouth and look at my wad!" But the character was such a ham that a lot of people just took him at face value as an AwesomeEgo. Turns out shallow and shortsighted people aren't too good at noticing subtlety...
* Music/{{Sabaton}}, who sing PowerMetal about military history, are aware of this problem and do their best to strike a balance. Their customary opening number is [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9FkYxnm70vg "Ghost Division"]], which is about Erwin Rommel's 7th Panzer Division during the invasion of France, and about two-thirds of the songs praise war heroes. On the flipside, they have several songs that are staunchly anti-war and anti-Nazi, including an eight-minute ballad about Hitler's rise to power called [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JTUSkI-v2LU "Rise of Evil"]] on their second album. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WhA9BkOBrTE "Carolus Rex"]] is a particular example: it sounds awesome, but the lyrics describe the eponymous 18th-century Swedish king as a megalomaniac.
* Kiely Williams has claimed that her song "Spectacular" was intended as a warning about binge drinking and unprotected sex with strangers. However, the song's protagonist keeps raving about how amazing the sex was, and the only attempt to mention the negative consequences is "I hope he used a rubber/Or I'mma be in trouble".
* ''Rodeo'' by Music/GarthBrooks is a notable example of this trope. The verses are about how being a rodeo cowboy will ruin your relationship with your wife, and your health, and your life in general... and then the chorus is a rocking anthem to how awesome it is to be out there participating in the rodeo!
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Literature]]
* An InUniverse example in ''Literature/{{Animorphs}}'': Many of the first twenty books in the series open with the Animorphs engaging in comedic shenanigans using their powers while in the process breaking a wide range of laws, from breaking-and-entering to theft to assault and possible ''[[FridgeHorror murder]]'' towards people [[KickTheSonOfABitch they judge as deserving it]]. Skip ahead to the David trilogy and the team contracts a shared case of MoralMyopia, with Jake threatening new Animorph David for the relatively tame sin of breaking into a hotel room. Though David wouldn't have known about most of the stuff they got up to before he met them.
* ''Literature/TheBerenstainBears'' series sometimes falls into this.
** ''The Bad Dream'', which was about how being an obsessive fanboy and having a GottaCatchThemAll mentality for all the toys will lead to nightmares... [[SpaceWhaleAesop somehow]]. But damn if those action figures didn't look cool.
** ''Get the Gimmies'', where we all genuinely ''wanted'' those toys, games, and candies that Brother and Sister acted like hellions in public in order to get.
** ''The Trouble With Junk Food''. All the candy they learned was bad for you was so colorful!
** Not to mention the disastrous sleepover that took place in one of the books, where the kids pretty much trashed the house and the police were contacted. Though the chaos of the party was only shown on one page, and there were consequences for the kids' actions... it still DID look pretty awesome.
* In ''Literature/{{Phenomena}}'', [[KidHero Alk]] kills a soldier (in self defence) in the 6th book, who taunted him and made him afraid, much like a [[TheBully bully]] including that he wants to kill Alk, while laughing at him. The fact that both [[PragmaticHero Millian]] and [[TheSwordThatSpeaks Kheiko]] say [[ARealManIsAKiller it's natural]] and he would probably have to learn how to do it soon anyway making it seemingly natural for one to kill one's bullies, which of course is very tempting, but also very wrong to do. Made worse by that Alk had so far been a VanillaProtagonist, and him doing this made him somewhat cooler...
* ''Literature/SlaughterhouseFive''. In-universe. Discussed early on. Vonnegut's war buddy's wife is pissed that our narrator is writing 'another war book'.
-->"You were just babies then. But you won't write it like that, will you? You'll write it like you were men, and you'll be played by men in the movie, and everyone will think it's wonderful and have more wars and send more babies off to die, like those babies [their children] upstairs."
** It works out OK though. He promises her that it will be called ''Slaughterhouse-Five, or The Children's Crusade'' (which is indeed the full title of the book), and no one reading it gets any idea that war is good.
--> "I have told my sons that they are not under any circumstances to take part in massacres, and that the news of massacres of enemies is not to fill them with satisfaction or glee. I have also told them not to work for companies which make massacre machinery, and to express contempt for people who think we need machinery like that."
* The scenes of sinful revelry and luxury (like the island of Acrasia) in ''Literature/TheFaerieQueene'' are, to many, the most appealing parts of the work. This is largely due to ValuesDissonance.
** According to Creator/CSLewis in ''The Allegory of Love'' that was the way it was intended--in a complex manner. Spencer was influenced by Puritans who thought married sex was real cool but were down on both the CourtlyLove and the CelibateHero traditions. He was saying effectively that GoodPeopleHaveGoodSex; when it's good sex that is.
* One of Disney's kiddie books featured WesternAnimation/DonaldDuck eating a poorly balanced, junk-filled meal that the mouth waters just in childhood memory of it.
* Creator/JohnMilton's ''Literature/ParadiseLost'' has infamously run into this problem with its MisaimedFandom. {{Satan}} ''is'' intended to be appealing, but Milton expects his readers will be mature enough to realize that underneath all his charisma, Satan is a vain, petty and [[ParentalIncest incestuous]] bully who picks on [[PunyEarthlings people smaller than him]] because he lost the fight against [[KungFuJesus someone bigger than him]]. Sadly, Milton expected too much of his readers. Many just drool over Satan and think he's TheHero.
** Not helped by a strong case of StrawmanHasAPoint, where Satan's arguments are actually quite logically sound even if his motives aren't pure. Compounded by the fact that Satan is presented as fallen (i.e. human), meaning that his flawed motivations can easily be attributed to heroic flaws instead of overall weak character.
*** Basically, Milton's intended point is somewhat undermined if his readers know more about the classical references he's making and contemporary philosophy than he expects, as well as if they know less.
* K.J Parker's ''Literature/TheScavengerTrilogy'' and Parker's work generally. There's just so much detail and vivid fightin' action that the anti-violence message can be obscured at times.
* The first series of ''Literature/WarriorCats'' covers the early life of a "kittypet" as he struggles to fit into his Clan, overcoming all of the racism and prejudice he faces because of his background as he grows into a hero. Of course, in order for this to work, the majority of the cast has to express some racist sentiments, meaning a lot of the more popular characters twist this lesson into "[[MisaimedFandom racism is good]]".
** The same could be said for the battles, which, combined with their irrational hatred for a pacifist character, doesn't just inspire reactions of "War is cool and pacifism is for {{pu|n}}ssies", but the occasional "Any book that doesn't contain as many gratuitous fight scenes as possible instantly sucks".
*** The latter lesson can probably be connected to their love of ''The Darkest Hour'', the most violent book in the series. It is indeed one of the best books in the series, but not because it's the most violent.
* ''Songmaster'' by Creator/OrsonScottCard ends up making a young boy and his male pedophile master seem sympathetic, and the novel was criticized heavily by conservatives for glorifying homosexuality. Anyone who knows Card's opinions on homosexuality will know that this was not his intent.
* In an interview celebrating the launching of his then-most recent book, ''Imperial Bedrooms'', Bret Easton Ellis recounted how many fans of his work would come up to him and say "You're the guy who wrote ''Literature/LessThanZero'', that's the book that made me want to live in L.A." Anyone who's read the book in question (or indeed anything by Ellis) will appreciate [[MisaimedFandom just how ridiculous this is]].
** One of his aims with ''Imperial Bedrooms'' was to respond to all the readers who perceived Clay as the hero in the first book, by placing far more emphasis on his near-sociopathic narcissism. YMMV on how much it worked, although [[spoiler: Ellis certainly shows him doing some horrific things, but gives him one or two very small PetTheDog moments]].
* A weird borderline example in ''Literature/InterestingTimes''. Rincewind describing sticking fireworks up his nose is followed by a footnote saying DontTryThisAtHome... which goes on to describe official municipal firework displays in a way that makes it clear they're very boring. Creator/TerryPratchett is on record as saying that if stupidity kills, then it's better if it kills the stupid first[[note]]In the Mappe Of Lancre[[/note]]. This could be a stealth joke on that.
* Anthony Horvath's book ''Richard Dawkins, Antony Flew and Mother Theresa Go To Heaven'' is supposed to make Dawkins look like an arrogant JerkAss, while Flew and Theresa are supposed to be viewed as good. However, the way it's written, Theresa comes across as a pathetic sycophant and Flew like a doddering simpleton, while Dawkins sounds downright courageous and noble as he [[DefiantToTheEnd stands in defiance]] of this [[GodIsEvil frankly unsympathetic deity.]] It doesn't help when Heaven is depicted as a place where everyone spends the rest of eternity unable to do anything except praise God, [[EsotericHappyEnding and that's supposed to be desirable.]]
* Happens in-universe to a Nazi spy in Creator/MichaelChabon's ''Literature/TheAmazingAdventuresOfKavalierAndClay''. He starts out reporting to his superiors about a dangerous series of American comic books, but his later reports become more or less reviews of his favorite comic book series.
* In ''[[Literature/TheAvatarChronicles Epic]]'', the [[AnAesop Aesop]] is that you shouldn't get so involved in virtual worlds that you don't do things that need to be done in the real world. However, you can't deny that the game Epic would be ''freaking awesome'' if it were real. And the idea that doing well in video games = getting a good education and being rich is an appealing one to gamers out there. It also strays into a BrokenAesop as the reason everyone plays so much is because they ''have'' to, as Epic is the colony's source of livelihood.
* Robert Heinlein ''intended'' the message of ''Literature/PodkayneOfMars'' to be that parents should take better care of their children and not let them go gallivanting around the Solar System getting involved in espionage intrigues and having awesome adventures and ultimately being heroes by saving an entire planet from a villainous plot... because that would be wrong. Or something. To be fair, in the original plot [[spoiler:she dies from those adventures. Heinlein was forced to change the ending by his editor because the book was intended for adults but made too good of a teen novel, and Heinlein himself seriously worried that changing the ending would undermine the Aesop. He was right]].
* ''Literature/{{Lolita}}.'' The whole book is one big condemnation of pedophilia (even the pedophile himself, narrator Humbert, [[YouAreWhatYouHate can't stand his actions]]), and yet it's a {{Trope Namer|s}} for [[LoliconAndShotacon a fetish for underage girls.]] This is because Humbert is UnintentionallySympathetic and is probably the accidental TropeCodifier. Humbert comes off as a completely nice guy despite his despicable actions because throughout the whole book, he casually explains his actions to the reader, and while it may not be meant to justify them, [[StrawmanHasAPoint it certainly can]]. It doesn't help that while Humbert's arguments [[UnreliableNarrator really don't add up when you think about them or try to tie them all together]], most readers just aren't smart enough to do that. This book has a huge MisaimedFandom among [[http://www.cracked.com/article_18568_the-5-greatest-books-with-psychotic-fanbases_p2.html pedophiles and child molesters]] who have undoubtedly used it, not only to justify their actions, but for tips on how to avoid getting caught (i.e., be sure not to write down your attraction for young girls and your plans for them in your diary, and if you do be sure to do a much better job of hiding it).
** In the words of [[http://www.johnderbyshire.com/Opinions/Straggler/043.html John Derbyshire]]:
-->Now, plainly Humbert did a very wicked thing. There is no doubt that the author knows this -- I have just quoted him calling Humbert a pervert. Humbert himself knows it, too, through the fog of his solipsism. He refers to himself as a "monster" or a "maniac," wearing "polluted rags," and so forth. "But never mind, never mind, I am only a brute, never mind, let us go on with my miserable story."\\
To drive the point home Nabokov inserts oblique, but cumulatively impossible to ignore, references to the fact that the sexual relationship causes pain and perhaps actual physical injury to the object of Humbert's "love." And yet this cruel tormentor is redeemed a little in our eyes by the surpassing power of his creator's art, a thing any educated person in 1958 could understand. In an interview, Nabokov said that he thought Humbert should be given one day's vacation from hell every year, to stroll a green country lane in the sunlight. Such a judgment makes sense only from a grounding in some mature moral vision. It cannot be fitted at all into the infantile who-whom dogmas of our own time.
* If ''Literature/TheHungerGames'' is meant to be a condemnation of reality TV culture... well, all the action in which the in-universe audience revels is the same stuff that we're enjoying as readers. We are supposed at once to feel contemptuous of the audience for lapping up the romance presented to them between Katniss and Peeta but also care about the same romance as readers. While no one at this point would wish for death-based reality TV shows (probably), there are many ''Hunger Games'' fans who would love to see a non-lethal version of the Games brought to reality. Not to mention that the movies inspired a whole raft of merchandise, including make-up based on the Capitol's aesthetic.
* ''Franchise/StarWars'' gives us the ''Literature/DarthBane'' trilogy. Where there are (allegedly) attempts to make Bane look bad. Instead a lot of readers get caught up in how much [[EvilIsCool cool seems to radiate off of everything he does]].
** All of the ''Star Wars'' baddies radiate this. The 501st Legion is the world's largest costuming fan club. The stories were originally entitled "The Adventures of Luke Skywalker" and changed to the "The Rise, Fall, and Redemption of Anakin Skywalker" when the prequels were released.
* ''Literature/TheGame'', which chronicles the author's experiences in the "Seduction Community", leads the reader to the conclusion that the teachings of the pick-up artists will serve only to become a dehumanized "social robot" and that the techniques are worthless for finding true love; however, after seeing how the author transformed from an "average frustrated chump" to a pick-up artist capable of seducing almost every woman he desired, it's no wonder why this book became the go-to source for men for becoming initiated on the "Seduction Community".
* The ''Help Me Be Good'' series by Joy Berry are juvenile books that examine a CompressedVice in each title such as fighting, tattling, destroying possessions, and overeating. Each book would talk about the misbehavior, explain its aspects, how it hurts you and others, and strategies for overcoming it. While intended as education and self-help, some MoralGuardians have protested that the books glorify and promote the bad behavior by showing kids how to misbehave.
* ''Literature/{{Coda}}'' avoids this with the distinction between the Corp's mass-produced tracks and Anthem's band's music.
* The plot of Creator/StephenKing's ''[[Literature/DifferentSeasons Apt Pupil]]'' begins with an InUniverse example: Todd Bowden first acquires his morbid fascination with UsefulNotes/TheHolocaust when he discovers UsefulNotes/WorldWarII-era magazines condemning the murder of six million Jews by the Nazis... right next to advertisements peddling Nazi paraphernalia. This inspires him to discover his elderly German neighbor [[RetiredMonster was once the commander of a Nazi concentration camp]], and [[CorruptTheCutie things go downhill fast]].
* ''Literature/ReadyPlayerOne'' lavishly describes the OASIS: a virtual world that is not only the ultimate in entertainment, but a hyper-efficient means of communication, education, and even jobs… before condemning the entire concept as “a self-imposed prison for humanity. A pleasant place for the world to hide from its problems while human civilization slowly collapses, primarily due to neglect.” There is little consideration that making every intellectual resource ever created by the human race accessible to every human being alive just might be the only reason civilization still exists despite the sad state of the environment and the scarcity of physical resources.
** Not only does the OASIS seem like an objectively useful piece of software, it also ''looks really cool.'' There's a reason that all [[TheFilmOfTheBook the advertisements for the film dwell on the mess of pop culture characters, the car chases, the adventure.]] Sure, the creator of the OASIS was ultimately a deeply miserable dude who couldn't properly live in reality, but he was also fabulously well-to-do. Just about every point the book tries to make for any reason whatsoever is undermined by both its own text and the ''entire reason that anyone is reading the book.''
* In ''Literature/{{Worm}}'', [[VillainProtagonist Taylor]] uses this to her advantage when talking to middle-schoolers about [[FantasticAesop why being a supervillain sucks.]] She explains that while, if you're one of the few who make it big, you can make ''truly insane'' amounts of money, the chances of dying are also high.
* ''The Triflers'' by WebVideo/MumkeyJones actually manages to avert this in regards to the school shooting of the book. The main shooter, for all his issues within, is portrayed as a colossal jackass with delusions of grandeur, and while one can relate to him to some extent, his goal is far from justified with a personality that’d drive anyone away from liking him. [[spoiler: His ultimate shooting that he planned to get vengeance doesn’t even happen, and he’s pathetically killed by his own grenade, taking out a grand total of one kid that happened to be nearby.]]
* An in-universe example in ''Literature/{{Jabberwocky}}'': The boy's father tells him to beware several dangerous monsters, and his immediate response to these warnings is to grab a weapon and go out to kill them. Downplayed, in that the father is very much proud of his son after his success.
* ''Literature/GoAskAlice'' is more or less written as a screed against the evils of drugs, and to a lesser extent, just about everything else teens did that the author disapproved of, like questioning their parents, foul language, casual sex, or bisexuality. This made it a very popular choice for "scared straight"-type storytelling. Like many a "scared straight" attempt, it ended up being many kids's first real exposure to these things, and made them curious, especially when they end up being by far the most interesting parts of it. It certainly doesn't help that the author [[BasedOnAGreatBigLie tried to pass it off as a real account despite it being completely fictional]], giving it an air of "well, if she lied about this, what else did she lie about?"
* Joe Abercrombie's ''Literature/TheFirstLaw'' is built on this. The point is constantly made that a life of violence will make you end up broken, alone, and despised by all decent people... but the scenes of grizzled badasses chopping each other to pieces are ''just so cool.'' Abercrombie seems to be aware of it too, as he mentioned in the foreword to ''The Heroes'' that the novel is not so much about how WarIsHell as about why, seeing as how WarIsHell, stories of it still fascinate us.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
* The ''Manga/BlackCat'' anime took great pains to try to show the viewers that the way of life of an assassin was wrong, and that people who have pacifist ideals are, in the end, stronger. However, all this effort was undermined when Train was shown to be infinitely cooler and stronger when he was working for [[NebulousEvilOrganisation Chronos]]. His [[EvilIsSexy sleek black clothes]] complete with an awesome BlackCloak, the way he managed to effortlessly defeat every single person who ever stepped in his way, and the way he [[TheStoic tended to remain calm and collected]] all made him seem like he was much better off before he became a [[TechnicalPacifist pacifist]]. After he becomes a pacifist, he constantly ends up having to be saved by others, {{wangst}}s and throws temper tantrums, and wears clothes that aren't nearly as cool. One can understand why [[InLoveWithYourCarnage Creed]] goes to such lengths to make him go back to being the way he was when he was an assassin...
** Also Chronos itself: despite being portrayed as a negative organization filled with "bad" people, the fact that most of the characters are badasses and [[OnlySaneMan some of the most rational characters in the series]], doesn't help the Sweeper's case on their opinion on them.
** It also shows that the good guys who just outright kill their opponents, like the Cronos Numbers against the Super Cyborgs, have a significantly easier time dealing with their opponents.
* Most entries in the ''Franchise/{{Gundam}}'' metaseries are meant to have an anti-war message - and many, especially those by Creator/YoshiyukiTomino, do a decent job of depicting how war can utterly ruin people's lives. At the same time, it has beautiful, brightly colored weapons of mass destruction that move with the grace and artistry of the Bolshoi, plenty of MagnificentBastard villains you can't help but admire, [[ImpossiblyCoolClothes gorgeous]] [[BlingOfWar costumes]] on the forces of dangerous space-fascists, and perhaps worst of all, some of the protagonists actually find some kind of meaning to their lives through the war that they may not have had without it.
** And the [[MerchandiseDriven Gundam models,]] let's not forget the models of those "beautiful, brightly colored weapons of mass destruction."
** This trope is lampshaded in ''[[Anime/MobileSuitGundam0080WarInThePocket Gundam 0080]]'', where the 11-year-old protagonist Al - who started the series excited about mobile suits and space battles - ends the series crying his brains out after failing to stop [[spoiler:Bernie from needlessly sacrificing himself to destroy the Alex]], all while his friends are [[TakeThatAudience cheerfully talking about how the mobile suit battle that destroyed their school looked awesome, and that they can't wait for the next war to break out with even cooler mobile suits]].
** ''Anime/GundamReconguistaInG'' deserves special attention here. The anti-war message is quite strong, and it's probably the only one intended to deal with a current issue (Japanese remilitarization), but this is conveyed through a series that has a veritable parade of flashy mecha and the only character that ''doesn't'' seem to be having the time of his life fighting is the killjoy main character.
** ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamIronBloodedOrphans'' subverts this in the second season, Mika slowly dehumanizes himself throughout the series to [[spoiler: his death after blindly following Orga's orders that results in an undignified death by assassins after assisting a failed coup. The Gundam Frames were unceremoniously defeated by BoringButPractical Dainslifs Mass Drivers]].
** Averted by an earlier production not involving Tomino by the same company, ''Anime/ArmoredTrooperVotoms''. If anyone remembers the comical and disgustingly hideous suit of armor the bank robbers came up with in ''Reckless Kelly'', this is essentially a macronised version of those suits. Everything about this series is gritty and depressing and practically uber alles (because anything else gets you killed). It doesn't help the hero begins the series just recovering from his own My Lai (he was ordered to flambé a group of children and did so unquestioningly), because their black ops unit worked on a principle of 'no witnesses.' Throughout the series he delves deeper and deeper into [[GreyAndGrayMorality conspiratorial military intrigue on both sides]], and also when his troupe runs low on funds, as a side venture he winds up being hired into the role of a mercenary [[UpToEleven in a civil war far more nasty and hateful than the war he just got out of]]. It is essentially taking [[WarIsGlorious all the cynicism Gundam at times lacks]] (especially in the more recent post-Tomino era), and piles it all into a single series. Because of the way the series starts, it leaves the price of Chirico's badassery always at the back of one's mind, which probably dumps out a lot of the people who would be on the fence about warfare. This was oddly in direct contrast to the manga, which played it more straightforward, and were it not for the clunky, ugly mechas, could be easily mistaken for ''Franchise/WingCommander: The Comic''.
* Throughout the entire ''Mazinger'' trilogy - ''Anime/MazingerZ'', ''Anime/GreatMazinger'' and ''Anime/UFORoboGrendizer'' - and [[Manga/NewMazinger alternate]] [[Anime/ShinMazinger series]], Creator/GoNagai tried to send the message of WarIsHell. Cities were destroyed and burnt to ashes, innocent people were hurt and suffered or died in horrible ways (there are several instances of genocide) or lost their loved ones or were enslaved or brainwashed... And victory always had a high price. Unfortunately, he did so by showing real cool battles between colourful, awesome {{Humongous Mecha}}s and impressive, imaginative monsters duking it out among them with spectacular [[WeaponOfMassDestruction weapons of mass destruction]], so a lot of viewers kind of missed the point.
** He did manage to successfully get his point across in ''Manga/{{Devilman}}'', when he showed that war has no real winners by [[spoiler: killing everyone the viewers came to know and love]]. Unfortunately, that left another Cool Thing in its wake: the Devilman power itself. Sure, you might [[spoiler:get slaughtered horribly in the inevitable apocalypse]], but gaining the strength of a demon and the newfound confidence it brought Akira would be totally worth it.
* Dan, the protagonist of ''Anime/{{Basquash}}'', succeeds at this within the show itself. He wants to destroy the popular sport "Big Foot Basketball" (Basketball... with giant robots!) because of a personal vendetta but also because the sport is really lame (the player robots move sluggishly, use basic moves and tend to fall down; the broadcast has to spice it up with special effects to interest people). Dan manages to obtain a Big Foot and crashes a public game, showing off real moves... then gets arrested and put away in juvie for a year. He's convinced he's "killed" BFB, only to find, on his release, his stunt showed that you can do kickass moves with a robot, thus making the game more popular than ever and "Dunk Mask", the SecretIdentity he used to crash the game, a legend among those who play it. He's not happy.
* The original ''Manga/AstroBoy'' story "The Greatest Robot on Earth" attempted to have an anti-war message while still being a shonen fighting robots series.
* The original manga of ''Manga/GhostInTheShell'' carries often painfully apparent warnings about the consequences of unchecked accumulation of power among not just government offices--including Section 9 itself--as well as commercial interests and, thanks to cybernetics, individuals themselves. The television series caries this further, demonstrating what happens when technology advances at a faster pace than the law can hope to keep up with. And yet, the Major and her comrades come off as supremely professional and awesome, even as they consciously abuse the powers vested in them by the state.
* The manga of ''Anime/DominionTankPolice'' comes right and says it: any society that not just uses tanks to police itself, but feels as though it has no other option, has crossed a line from which there is probably no easy return. Masamune Shirow acknowledged that he made the mini-tank Bonaparte deliberately smaller and cuter than practical as a concession to the misery of having tanks driving around, trying to establish some semblance of order.
* ''LightNovel/FullMetalPanic''. [[WarIsHell War is bad and can seriously mess you up]], but it's so awesome to do things like fight epic mech duels, compromise enemy bases single-handedly, and wrestle a Hind gunship out of the sky with a HumongousMecha.
* ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion'' has similar WarIsHell themes and deconstructs the whole "Spunky teenagers piloting cool giant robots" trope by showing that they're basically ChildSoldiers. The problem is, the HumongousMecha the kids pilot are ''extremely cool'' and have been immortalized in tons of video games, toys, model kits and other merchandise. So even though the show is trying to say "No sane person would ever want to pilot an EVA," quite a few people walk away thinking it'd be ''awesome'' to be an EVA pilot. Or "I can pilot an Eva better since I am not a ShrinkingViolet".
** A common complaint about the show is that Shinji, the main EVA pilot, is "too whiny". Basically they're complaining that a show that's all about children suffering has too many suffering children, because they can't fathom the idea that giant robots might not be fun.
** Building on that, the show also deconstructs an UnwantedHarem setup by showing just how annoying it'd be to live with a Tsundere that uses you as a punching bag, how creepy it'd be to deal with the cold-hearted origin of the ReiAyanamiExpy, or a lazy drunk of a CoolBigSis that you constantly have to clean up after. The problem is that all women in question are beautiful, the intended audience mostly hated Shinji anyway for shallow reasons, and the actual reaction was more "I am not a ShrinkingViolet, I could do better." Never mind that each woman in question is a basket case with issues that no one in real life would want to touch with a twenty foot pole.
* A major theme in the ''Manga/{{Area 88}}'' manga and OVA is that WarIsHell because it devastates countries and turns soldiers into broken men. The problem is, the pilots look ''awesome'' as they engage in aerial combat.
** It actually seems to toy with the trope, Mick is WarIsGlorious personified, but Shin, who is WarIsHell personified winds up the best pilot, and also the one with the most adaptability and forethought. Basically, Mick believes war is glorious because [[DeathSeeker he's an empty shell with nothing to look forwards to anymore except more combat]]. Shin, the fully fleshed out character, [[{{Wangst}} has many things to think about at home]], and wants to end the war so he actually can get home. You can see this in the other pilots as well. The cast of characters slides from one end to the other. Boris is like Shin for instance, while Greg is closer to Mick's side of the coin.
* ''LightNovel/OverLord2012'' attempts to deconstruct the idea of EscapistCharacter in an [[TrappedInAnotherWorld isekai anime]]. The protagonist Ainz gets to play as his character from a MassivelyMultiplayerOnlineRolePlayingGame, acts as an EvilOverlord who rules over powerful minions who worship the ground he walks on, and is in a zone he and his followers are massively overleveled for so little, if anything, poses a threat to them. At the same time, Ainz suffers from EmotionSuppression and the [[ToxicFriendInfluence influence of his very evil friends]] is driving him to greater and greater acts of villainy throughout the series. Yet it's hard to take idea of the series as a deconstruction of escapist fantasy seriously since Ainz originally came from a world that was a [[CrapsackWorld horrid dystopia]], so the idea that one should prefer reality comes off as a BrokenAesop. On top of this, despite the '''many''' acts of villainy Ainz and his followers commit and the series emphasizigng that Ainz is an incompetent leader, none of them ever suffer any consequences for their actions, which ends up simply reinforces the idea that he is an EscapistCharacter (for fans and critics of the series) since he can do whatever he pleases and get away with it.
* ''Manga/RamenFighterMiki'', being a hilarious deconstruction of the FightingSeries, [[BrokenAesop where everyone states violence is bad and then solves the problems with awesome violence,]] manages to avert this problem in the very first short: After seeing two teens fighting, Miki's mother asks her to stop them [[ViolenceIsTheOnlyOption with violence]]. Miki prefers to defer them to an EatingContest. [[RunningGag Things degenerate to a violent fight between Miki and her mother]] and after seeing two {{Man Child}}ren fighting, [[AnAesop the two teens feel ashamed of themselves and leave as friends]].
* ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica'' has this going on both in-universe and out. Mami constantly tells Madoka and Sayaka that being a MagicalGirl is very dangerous, while she skillfully beats the crap out of {{Eldritch Abomination}}s with awesome giant magical guns. They clearly don't take her warnings very seriously, and [[spoiler:even though Mami dies in action,]] Sayaka's decision to make a contract was partly for the cool factor. In the fandom, wanting to become a Puella Magi is very common, despite the nasty revelations that show up later in the story [[spoiler:(which are partially negated by the ending, but not completely)]].
** The third movie portrays Homura's devotion to [[spoiler:Madoka]] as emotionally unhealthy and harmful to both of them. However, before Homura vowed [[spoiler:to protect Madoka from the Incubators]], she was a frail, self-hating victim who didn't have anything to live for. ''Comparatively,'' Homura's MadLove strengthened her (both physically and psychologically) and gave her a purpose in life - which was to kill [[AlwaysChaoticEvil Witches]] with high-powered artillery and pimped-out [[spoiler:time]] powers. It's kind of hard to argue that the net result is negative.
* Although it didn't really come with a "message" per se, ''Manga/{{Shiki}}'' still fell victim to this a little with the character of Natsuno Yuuki. He's a cold, unfriendly high school student who has very few friends in Sotoba as a result, and although he's one of the first people to start investigating the vampires, [[spoiler: once his best friend becomes one he instantly loses the will to fight and tells his friend to feed on him ''until he dies'' instead, despite having no way of knowing he would ever come back. Once he's reborn as a werewolf, he spends the remainder of the series organizing an elaborate assisted suicide in the process of bringing down the vampires]]. Unfortunately, all many fans of the series remember about him is that he was willing to fight off the vampires before anyone else, and so they think he's a total badass and OnlySaneMan, even though he's not really any less of a flawed {{Jerkass}} than many of the other characters. It doesn't help that he doesn't face any lasting consequences for anything he says or does, while the other characters do.
* ''Anime/HeatGuyJ'' consistently promotes the message that violence and hate only beget more violence and hate, and that forgiveness and connection are the way to go. It even goes out of its way to point out that the two most violent major characters (Clair and Boma) are seriously screwed up in the head. Problem is, they both look ''awesome'' as they endanger other people's lives!
* ''Franchise/YuGiOh'':
** The original series' moral is supposed to be that games are a way of making friends and being a {{Stop Having Fun Guy|s}} is not the way to go. The resident SHFG is TheRival, Seto Kaiba, who is [[ScrewTheRulesIHaveMoney fabulously wealthy]], [[{{Bishonen}} physically attractive,]] a BadassBookworm, and a master Duelist in his own right, with a host of powerful and impressive cards. The [[Anime/YuGiOh anime]] took this even further by adding a fair amount of AdaptationalHeroism, and then the dub gave him [[DeadpanSnarker all the best lines.]] He's essentially the card game playing equivalent of [[ComicBook/IronMan Tony Stark]]. Is it any wonder that he became the most popular character in the franchise?
** In ''Anime/YuGiOh5Ds'', Aki's rejection of the cult leader Divine and her [[HeelFaceTurn falling in with the good guys]] is meant to be a sign of growth and her thinking for herself, learning to live a healthy life. However, much like the ''Manga/BlackCat'' example, the intended messaging gets undermined pretty badly by the fact that when Aki was an antagonist, she was an absolute terror, pushing Yusei to his limit and dominating her Duels. She also had a sadistic side and deep-seated issues that made her unique among female characters in the franchise, and was generally positioned as the tritagonist. When she turned good and worked past her issues, she [[{{Chickification}} lost all her unique traits and intimidating aura]] in favor of being a SatelliteLoveInterest, fell OutOfFocus and got displaced in the group by ReplacementScrappy Crow, and [[RedemptionDemotion suffered a humiliating loss on one of the few occasions she actually did get focus again.]] Consequently, most appraisals of Aki that don't involve shipping her with Yusei tend to involve the observation that she was infinitely cooler back when she was a depressive psychopath taking out her rage on the world.
** ''Anime/YuGiOhArcV'' tries to have the moral of ''dueling to make others smile is the way to go!", and contrasts this by giving the main character a SuperpoweredEvilSide who fights in TranquilFury and uses brutal tactics, with the intended point being that this is wrong. The problem is that other series [[RecycledScript had similar moments]] of the main characters losing themselves in anger, and it was always conveyed by having them either fail after pursuing suicidal strategies or [[PyrrhicVictory win too late for it to mean anything]]. Meanwhile, Yuya's berserk state always wins, and usually in a way that significantly advances his goals, and even usually getting a few new cards that his superpowered evil side created from thin air out of the deal. Even after said evil side [[spoiler:becomes the final villain and is defeated]], Yuya still keeps using strategies that said evil side provided for him. And that's not even getting into the viewers who found Yuya's attempts to "entertain" people through Dueling to be saccharine and annoying.
* ''Manga/InitialD'''s anime has a disclaimer pop up before each episode telling the viewer to follow traffic laws. Yet the whole show is premised on the fact that illegal street racing is cool, and proceeds to have 20 minutes of exciting, dramatic and just plain awesome midnight racing.
* Of all the ''Anime/JapanAnimatorExpo'' shorts, "ME!ME!ME!" arguably fell into this the worst. The point was that holing yourself up and diving too deep into your usual pastimes to ignore the pain was ''extremely'' unhealthy, as the short begins and ends on Shuu staring dead-eyed while barely moving from his bed. But this is all offset by the sexy clones performing burlesque routines in his fantasy, the naked girl climbing out of his TV and getting close to him, [[spoiler:the badass SpaceMarine campaign where he fights a sexy girl ''army'', and the fact that we see more of charismatic, demonic general HANA than Hana-chan, the ex-girlfriend he went through so much hell to reconnect with.]] Sure, he's pretty much a wreck and [[spoiler:the girls cannibalize his corpse]], but some viewers got the message that you can get trippy dreams about cute girls climbing all over you with a sweet electro soundtrack in the background if you [[spoiler: keep yourself from forming close relationships.]]
* ''Anime/DigimonTamers'' features an inversion of the trope. The show's episode previews keep ending with the words "you, too, should aim to be a tamer!" This is despite the series being DarkerAndEdgier than previous Digimon series [[spoiler: with one of its main character's Digimon partner being [[KilledOffForReal murdered]] before she is captured and [[MindRape tortured]] by an EldritchAbomination.]] On top of this the series has a CruelTwistEnding [[spoiler: where the main characters are all separated from their Digimon.]] In effect the show's preview said "Do this horrifying thing."
* ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'' shows the horrifying system of kids becoming ninjas and the eponymous protagonist vowing to change it. While life as a ninja is frequently shown to be horrifying, with the characters becoming ChildSoldiers, putting aside all of the cool fight scenes, Naruto's life changes for the better by becoming a ninja - he starts off [[FriendlessBackground ostracized by his village]] and ends with several friends and a loving wife. Not to mention many other characters see their lives improve, even if life as a ninja was difficult, so for all the horror the series demonstrates in the system, it maintaining a hopeful atmosphere means that the system it derides as terrible still sees people leading healthier lives by becoming ninja.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Comic Books]]
* Since WordOfGod [[FlipFlopOfGod finally made up their minds]] that the anti-registration side was in the wrong, this means ''Comicbook/CivilWar'' was one of these for the message they were trying to send... [[CluelessAesop whatever the hell that was]].
** The Aesop was something along the lines of "If you aren't doing anything wrong, [[DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything you have nothing to hide."]] Not a good aesop to use when your main readers are nerds, particularly (in America anyway) Liberal nerds who distrust the government on social issues, Conservative nerds who distrust the government on economic and Second Amendment issues, and Libertarians who ''really'' distrust the government on ''all'' issues.
** It also doesn't make much sense independent of the audience's political leanings. None of us are perfect, so we're all doing ''something'' wrong and all have ''something'' to hide.
** And in addition to all of the above, the "intended" pro-registration aesop of Civil War goes completely against the ''anti''-registration aesop that the ''ComicBook/XMen'' comics had been running with for decades. Creator/{{Marvel|Comics}} spent years preaching to their audience that mutant registration is wrong, [[{{Hypocrite}} and then turned around and tried to argue that superhero registration is good]]... without making it at all clear that that was what they were going for. And then they acted surprised when the audience sided with the anti-registration side.
** Another problem is that the pro-reg side were depicted as committing multiple atrocities, especially in the tie-in books (unleashing some of the universe's most notorious [[PsychoForHire Psychos For Hire]] on unregistered heroes, creating an evil clone of Thor, running a concentration camp where the commandant tortured people for fun), while the anti-reg side were shown as largely morally pure.
** They didn't do themselves any favors by putting ComicBook/CaptainAmerica, probably the closest thing Marvel has to a hero made of IncorruptiblePurePureness, on the anti-registration side. They doubled down on not doing themselves any favors by giving him the ''awesome'' "Plant yourself like a tree beside the River of Truth, and tell them 'No, ''you'' move'" speech.
** They also ignored the ''numerous'' stories where various supervillains infiltrated the US government and were able to access all kinds of dangerous information, like one in which the ComicBook/RedSkull actually got himself elected to the US Senate and started a secret bioweapon research facility in Mt Rushmore, which had only happened a couple of years before Civil War was released. The Pro-Registration side offered ''no'' assurances that registered supers would have their personal information protected from such acts. In fact, ComicBook/TheHood was able to blackmail Pro-Registration hero Tigra by way of threatening to kill her mother. Mind you as well, many supers' reason for choosing to have a SecretIdentity in the first place is to protect their loved ones - and, yes, the Hood made clear that her being registered was the reason he was able to access information about her family.
** And that's just government infiltration. Plenty of people wouldn't want superhuman beings in the hands of the US government in real life, and the US government hasn't built Sentinels. Pretty much every story where the Marvel Universe government is involved has it either [[IncompetenceInc failing at its job]] or [[PresidentEvil actively trying to make things worse]], so a bit of tentativeness in giving them leverage over all of America's superbeings seems pretty reasonable. Hell, that was exactly ''why'' the SHRA eventually got repealed; the enforcement of the act was given over to a VillainWithGoodPublicity who promptly ran the whole thing into the ground.
** The last issue - the head writer of the anti-registration side was Creator/JMichaelStraczynski, who has a long and distinguished track record with these particular themes, and arguably ended up far more eloquent in his arguments than the pro-reg writers.
* ''Comicbook/TheInvisibles'' attempts a subversion--it shows us memorably exciting action sequences, and then gives us equally memorable depictions of the suffering inherent in that flashy violence, most notably ADayInTheLimelight showing us the sad life of one {{Mook|s}}.
* ''ComicBook/{{Powers}}'' goes for something similar. Many of the characters have rather cavalier attitudes towards violence, indulging in black humor, but on-screen violence can be very uncomfortable and jarring despite (or because of) the cartoony art style. WordOfGod has it that Bendis and Oeming want viewers to be faced with something unpleasant and ugly when characters get violent. Despite all that, the darkness of it can be compelling because ''Powers'' relies on a [[DarkerAndEdgier grim-and-gritty]], street-level view of supers as its driving premise. If the whole work is darker and edgier, then showing that the violence is dark and edgy is not necessarily gonna work.
* This was very much the reason for crime comics in the 1950s, particularly Creator/ECComics. This got them (and American comics in general) busted and led to UsefulNotes/TheComicsCode being imposed.
* In ''Franchise/{{Batman}}'' #1, Batman had Robin fight a bunch of unarmed crooks to see how tough they really were without their guns. Robin trounces them with ease, leaving one of the crooks to say "If only I had my gun!" Batman breaks the fourth wall to point out that the readers shouldn't emulate crooks. Sadly, the aesop and the story were probably overshadowed because the comic book ''also'' introduced both ComicBook/TheJoker, one of the most popular, and psychotic, comic book characters of all time, and ComicBook/{{Catwoman}}, one of the most popular AntiHero characters of all time.
* Creator/DCComics' war books were often gritty, dark, and featured tortured protagonists (especially those written by actual veterans, such as Joe Kubert and Robert Kanigher). They often ended with the sign-off, "MAKE WAR NO MORE!" But they were and are exciting adventure stories.
* ''ComicBook/ChickTracts'' fall into this quite heavily to the point where they have been [[PoesLaw believed to be parodies]], and Jack Chick had to point out several times that this is not the case.
** In general, the antics in the tracts often send unintended messages like "God is a dick who will send even good people to hell for not accepting my religion, meanwhile serial killers who do get off with no punishment" and "You can kill as many people and steal and burn as many things as you want, if you accept Jesus right before death, you'll be marked as a good person and thus won't have to face any consequences". Depending on the tracts, he'll even make the devils funny or sufficiently clever to provide comic relief... until the Big Boring White Guy In The Sky [[DeusExMachina throws them into hell in the last panel.]]
** The notorious "Dark Dungeons" made roleplaying out to be an exciting life-or-death scenario that introduced real occultism and gave players fabulous supernatural powers that they can use to {{brainwash|ed}} their parents into... ''gasp''... ''buying them stuff''. Also, apparently it's a great way to meet women since most of the players in the comic are [[MostGamersAreMale female]]. More than a few roleplayers love the tract and it has been parodied and affectionately referred to in innumerable ways among the subculture. One group of roleplaying fans even made a [[http://www.darkdungeonsthemovie.com/ film adaptation]] -- with Chick's permission! -- that parodied the source material simply by ''playing it completely straight''.
** In his anti-Catholic tracts, he shows very little downside to being one of those dastardly papists, since they seem to have nothing but crazy sex parties, oodles of cash, and secretly run the world.
** ''The Contract'': Feel free to make a DealWithTheDevil; you won't have to hold up your end.
** ''Wounded Children'': You should do what a demon tells you. No, really. [[spoiler: When some people attack Brian, the demon tells David to help him. Brian dies because he didn't.]] The whole tract is ridiculous: David follows his demon friend's advice all his life, and is a happy, out gay man with a thriving social life and a sweet boyfriend. The supposedly godly Christians attack [[spoiler:and kill]] Brian completely unprovoked and are even portrayed as morally in the wrong (this in a Fundamentalist comic strip preaching the evils of homosexuality). David's life only starts going down the drain when he ignores or rejects his nice supportive demon, and in the end he still dies of AIDS, but having repented and accepted Christ, he goes to his heaven filled with self-hatred as the perfectly nice demon burns for the mortal sin of telling him to be proud of who he is. It's very difficult to accept that the tract is ''not'' a parody.
* One of the comics epitomes of this trope is ComicBook/ThePunisher. Just about every writer who has depicted the character on a long-term basis has established in their works and backed it up with WordOfGod that Frank Castle is a deeply disturbed and damaged man who barely even qualifies as "human" anymore, whose mass murders do nothing to actually improve society, whose activities only don't cause [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome massive innocent casualties]] because of extreme authorial favoritism, and who should not be considered a role model by '''anyone'''. However, go anywhere in comics fandom and you'll stumble across [[MisaimedFandom people]] who think that Frank Castle is the coolest guy ever and it's a terrible pity that nobody's taking out the bad guys like that in the real world. After all, for all his inner demons, he's still a [[SuperheroPackingHeat gun-toting]] badass who's always portrayed as a well-meaning AntiHero rather than an outright villain. It's for this reason that his skull logo has become a popular symbol among pro-police activists, with one company even selling [[https://www.inverse.com/article/39633-marvel-netflix-punisher-skull-meaning-cops-soldiers an entire line]] of Punisher-themed "thin blue line" merchandise. Part of this is that in a comic book universe where ThouShaltNotKill is the order of the day, it just seems like Frank is the only one who's actually willing to put down the bad guys rather than send them to the CardboardPrison, even though in real life, such an easily-escapable prison is not remotely a consideration when dealing with the crime Frank goes after.
** Part of what makes the Punisher appealing is that even though he's shown to not be a good person, the villains he fights against are '''far''' worse than him. When Frank is killing the worst scum of society it's hard to ''not'' make him look cool even if he isn't supposed to be.
* ''ComicBook/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicIDW'':
** An issue of ''ComicBook/MyLittlePonyFriendsForever'' has Pinkie Pie requesting Twilight Sparkle's help in weaning her from [=PheNOMNOMenons=] being sold at a carnival. When we see them, they're bright, colorful and delicious so it's easy to see just why Pinkie would get addicted to them. Twilight can't resist them either. The same would go for the jeweled pretzels that Spike gorges on in the end.
** A similar occurrence happens in ''ComicBook/MyLittlePonyLegendsOfMagic'' where Rockhoof is thrown numerous feasts in his honor after saving his village from a volcanic eruption. His gluttony endangers his health and nearly gets him kicked out of the Mighty Helm, but he was still having the time of his life pigging out.
* This is one of the, if not ''the'', biggest criticisms towards ''ComicBook/SecretEmpire''. Despite the fact that ComicBook/{{HYDRA}} and the Cosmic Cube-altered ComicBook/CaptainAmerica are effectively the bad guys of the storyline, Cap is shown as an EvilIsCool character of VillainousValour who is not only the LesserOfTwoEvils between him doing this or the ComicBook/RedSkull [[spoiler:as well as being worthy of Mjolnir]], Marvel's marketing has been heavily leaning towards HYDRA and ''not'' their heroes, to the point where they were trying to get comic book shop owners to wear shirts with the HYDRA logo on them, making many question if Marvel knows what they're doing. This also wasn't helped by [[CluelessAesop the waffling between]] [[ButNotTooEvil downplaying the idea of HYDRA being connected to Nazis]] and [[ANaziByAnyOtherName invoking HYDRA's connection to Nazis whenever possible]].
* The DC villain Snowflame of ''ComicBook/TheNewGuardians'' is clearly supposed to be an example of DrugsAreBad, [[NotMakingThisUpDisclaimer given he gets his powers from cocaine]]. However, he's not shown to have any drawbacks from his source of power, he gives some of the most memorable lines in the series[[note]]to the point where people read the series just to see him[[/note]], and his premise alone is just so insane that people would probably want to ''do'' cocaine rather than avoid the drug.
* The original run of ''ComicBook/BlueBeetle'' features a hippie sculptor whose modernist sculptures are portrayed as pathetic and self-pitying, especially when contrasted with the realistic art in another wing of the museum. The problem is, the modernist sculptures are a great example of the artstyle that made Creator/SteveDitko a legend, and look much more interesting and dynamic than the realist ones, which could've been drawn by anyone.
* ''ComicBook/TheBoys'', similar to the Punisher, suffered from this with its Punisher {{Expy}}, [[VillainProtagonist Billy the Butcher]] (not coincidentally, the comic was written by Creator/GarthEnnis, [[AuthorAppeal who is a massive Punisher fan]]). Billy is ultimately revealed to be evil and hatches a plan that will kill anybody with the compound that grants superpowers, including himself. This is meant to be a {{Deconstruction}} of the VigilanteMan characters like the Punisher. Except that throughout the comic, just like the Punisher, Billy kills many very evil people, and when he turns on the rest of his team, he kills all but one of them, with his protégé Hughie surviving only because Billy spared him. And during the final showdown with Hughie, Billy only loses because he forgoes his chance at victory to save Hughie. The result is that even though Billy turns out to be a villain, he has been criticized as Garth Ennis' personal power fantasy.
[[/folder]]

A sub-trope of BrokenAesop. Sometimes the result of an AccidentalAesop or an AlternateAesopInterpretation or PoesLaw. Can overlap with CluelessAesop.

[[folder:Video Games]]
* Ineptly done AntiPoopSocking features have a high chance of being one of these. In an attempt to limit people's gameplay, rewards sharply drop after a certain amount of time. The hope is that instead of the player spending four hours a day on a game, they only spend two after they realize that the third and fourth hours don't give much of a reward. This leads to some particularly dedicated players increasing gameplay time to SIX (or more) hours in order to keep up.
** Even a correctly done measure can have this effect regardless. ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'' encourages players to log off and rest by providing Rest Experience: for every eight hours your character spends logged out at a city or rest area, that character will gain twice the monster killing experience for one xp bar bubble (or 5% fragment of your experience bar), up to a maximum of ten days' worth (or a level and a half). This has led players to level up multiple characters at once, cycling through them to level up a single character as long as any rest experience remains and then switching to the next rested up character.
* The ''VideoGame/MetalGear'' series (particularly from ''VideoGame/MetalGear2SolidSnake'' and onward), which is heavy on anti-war messages in the plot, avoids this trope by making it possible (albeit extremely difficult) to [[PacifistRun complete each game]] [[TechnicalPacifist without killing anybody]] (intentionally, at least). On the other hand, there's tons of cool-looking, stylized violence in the cutscenes and collectible weapons just begging to be used, and most of the boss characters talk about how Snake is an honorable warrior and, if they die, do so in glorious, noble and/or bombastic ways. So really, it still has it both ways.
** ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid3SnakeEater'' is the only main game after ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid'' that requires you to kill a character. Said character is the mentor and essentially a [[ParentalSubstitute mother figure]] for Snake/Big Boss who he shares an incredible bond with and is written as a highly sympathetic person. Needless to say, the act of shooting while she's on her back is presented in a relentlessly tragic manner that basically kills Snake on the inside and is essentially the true starting point for every single horrible thing that happens across the rest of the series.
** ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid4GunsOfThePatriots'' includes a [[GunPorn massive arsenal of weapons]] which, ironically, manages to avoid one of the above problems, as that expanded arsenal means players who want to play without killing people are no longer [[BoringButPractical forced to rely on two dedicated non-lethal weapons or punching people out for the entire game]] - in addition to the returning tranquilizer-converted pistol and sniper rifle, the knife can shock people into unconsciousness rather than cutting or stabbing them, [[RobotBuddy Metal Gear Mk. II]] can sneak around under stealth camo and stun enemies in cover, and all the shotguns and grenade launchers have the option of using non-lethal rounds. On the other hand, though, especially in the third game of the series, there are many, ''many'' fun ways to [[TheJoysOfTorturingMooks make life hell for the bad guys without actually killing them]], which may be just as bad in the long run.
** ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolidPeaceWalker'' may be the best inversion in the series, as going through the missions killing everyone actively penalizes you - you lose "heroism points" for it, and every soldier you kill is a potential recruit for Mother Base lost. In-story, Big Boss is also idolized for his aversion to killing his enemies, and it's very rare that enemies captured during a mission will ever have any qualms against working with you. However, while the game also has many non-lethal options like ''4'', those playing the game in a non-lethal capacity will still find approximately three-fourths of their arsenal to be completely useless.
** The ''{{VideoGame/Hitman}}'' series has the same problem. As a silent assassin, Agent 47 is supposed to kill no one save for his targets while being unnoticed and firing the least amount of shots. But hey, there's [[GunPorn tons of guns]] to collect & fire, though most of them are noisy, hard if not impossible to conceal, or fire [[MoreDakka more rounds]] [[GunsAkimbo than needed]].
* A more successful example might be ''VideoGame/DefCon''. Almost everyone who has played it [[VideogameCrueltyPotential tends to feel pretty guilty]].
** The conceptually similar ''Balance of Power'', from 1985, also tried hard to portray nuclear armageddon as a bad thing. If the player failed to prevent war, the game ended abruptly with the text "You have ignited a nuclear war. And no, there is no animated display of a mushroom cloud with parts of bodies flying through the air. We do not reward failure." Unfortunately, it didn't reward ''success'', either - your reward for shepherding the world through eight years of brinkmanship was simply a message stating "You have kept the peace". Maybe the ''real'' message was "Running a power bloc is difficult and unglamorous."
* ''VideoGame/ArmyOfTwo'' and ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid4GunsOfThePatriots'' suffer from this. The games aren't intended to be anti-war, but rather, there is a specific aspect of war they're trying to denounce. Both games are based around of the concept of the military-industrial complex, [[WarForFunAndProfit the privatization of the military and turning war into a business]]. Yet, they both fall victim to Truffaut's theorem, just as the anti-war films do. To clarify;
** In ''Army of Two'', protagonists [[BashBrothers Salem and Rios]] eventually realize that the Security and Strategy Corporation, the {{Private Military Contractor|s}} MegaCorp they work for, is doing a lot of evil things in their attempt to get the US government to pass a bill that will dissolve the US military and replace it with a completely privatized one. To do this, they're attempting to discredit the US military by working in league with anti-American terrorists, as well as leaking sensitive troop information to insurgents in Iraq and Afghanistan and even [[spoiler: trick Salem and Rios into killing a US Senator who opposes the military privatization bill]]. However, after you spend the majority of the game as a badass mercenary using the PMC's [[CoolGuns awesome weapons]] (which you can upgrade and stylize to make even more awesome) and [[GunPorn using them to take down hoards of enemies]], the game certainly manages to makes private militaries look totally awesome and badass. Additionally, [[CorruptCorporateExecutive SSC's executives]] do make numerous [[StrawmanHasAPoint good arguments to justify increased military privatization]], which while undermined by the fact that they're using them to justify an evil plan, are valid points nonetheless and receive very little refutation. Then to make it even worse, it's only in the second to last level that Salem and Rios catch on to the scam, and the whole taking down your bosses to prevent their evil plan is crammed into the final mission. And to top it all off, the game ends with Salem and Rios ''[[StartMyOwn starting their own PMC business]]'' which they use in the sequel to do the same badass stuff again.
** ''Metal Gear Solid 4'' takes place in a future where the military has become mostly privatized, and the world's economy is dependent upon continuous war. While this time, the player isn't a PMC, and the game does a good job of showing the CrapsackWorld this has brought about, it again manages to make [=PMCs=] look extremely cool, thanks largely to the awesome technology they use, such as the Gekko robots, as well as the nanobites that turn even barely-trained ground troops into {{super soldier}}s.
* ''VideoGame/MaxPayne'' does a pretty good job of getting its point across well, assuming that its point is that a RoaringRampageOfRevenge is lots and lots of fun. If it's trying to be anti-violence, not so much. ''VideoGame/MaxPayne3'' tried to avert this by showing how badly Max's quest for revenge has affected him, but ran into the problem that the gameplay was still all cool, stylized, and BulletTime-laden, which made Max's angst come across less as the laments of a man driven to horrible actions and more the whining of an insufferable stick-in-the-mud.
* ''VideoGame/ValkyriaChronicles'': WarIsHell, everyone suffers, and the bad guys feel pain too. Except it's a strategy war game where [[BeautyEqualsGoodness the good guys are all adorable]], everything is rendered with a soft, unthreatening watercolor filter, and half the fun of playing the game is watching [[VideoGameCaringPotential your squad's]] Potentials activate and listening to the stuff they say as they turn enemy mooks into greasy stains on their darling cobbled streets. It also doesn't help that "good guys", "bad guys", and "good guys in a bad situation" are [[BlackAndWhiteMorality so clearly defined they might as well have nametags]], and [[BadGuysDoTheDirtyWork the protagonists never have to get their hands dirty]] to kill ''every single person'' who could possibly be blamed for the war.
** Lampshaded by Unskipable's commentary on the game.
-->'''Paul:''' You know, I know people are dying and stuff, but with these pastel colors and fuzzy frame... I can't help but think everything is going to be okay.
* ''VideoGame/SpecOpsTheLine'' may come closer than most for averting this trope. The game makes its message very brutally, deconstructing military shooters not by trying to make the players say WarIsHell, but rather make the gamers look at the hero power fantasy in what they are doing, and the cost of what being a shooter hero would actually do to a person. Even Yahtzee of WebAnimation/ZeroPunctuation could hardly find any jokes to make about it, and it showed in his review.
* {{Inver|tedTrope}}sion: There were ''gamers'' who have gone as far as declare ''VideoGame/ModernWarfare 2'' to be horrible just based on ''[[MoralEventHorizon No Russian]]'' alone.
** Played straight by other gamers who [[VideoGameCrueltyPotential cheerfully laughed while mowing down the civilians]], because it's fun shooting [=NPCs=] who can't defend themselves. Subverted by some players who ''refuse'' to shoot any civilians and "fake" it by shooting over the civilians' heads, if they shoot at all. Subverted differently by other players who, regardless of how they play the scene, find it a genuinely disturbing way of saying "This is where you're headed when you start believing morality is obsolete in the name of security." Then there's the people who just say "It's a game." and went through the level with some impatience for a challenge. Averted further by people who use any of the game's '''numerous''' opportunities to avoid and skip the level.
** Though it's far, ''far'' less infamous than ''No Russian,'' there are some players who see [[spoiler: General Shepherd]] as a total badass and don't understand why we're not supposed to root for him because of it. For that matter, a good portion of the people who ''do'' realize they aren't supposed to be rooting for him probably only realized so after [[spoiler:he shot [[EnsembleDarkhorse the even more popular Ghost]] in the face]].
** The original ''Modern Warfare'' suffered from this with its attempts to show the horror of war. The game has several scenes of your protagonists doing reprehensible things, like killing enemies in their sleep and calling in an AC-130 to mercilessly dump heavy ordnance on infantry - even the Middle East missions as a US Marine are implied to be solely about keeping the unnamed country's oil - and famously had a player character die in the detonation of a nuclear bomb, ending one of the game's storylines on a low note while showing that soldiers can die at any moment. But the rest of the game has the player fighting against the villain responsible for detonating the nuke. Said villain is a HateSink the audience is meant to want to see dead, and the game ends on a [[BittersweetEnding bittersweet note]] as the use of violence has helped bring peace to the world by killing the bad guys, with the later games only having anything to say on the matter because they [[HappyEndingOverride suddenly pretend the bad guys won all along]] to justify sequels.
* ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyTacticsAdvance'' tries its damnedest to paint staying in Ivalice as a bad thing and Marche's desire to destroy it and bring back the real world as a good thing. Unfortunately, all the characters from "our world" that we see are better off in Ivalice, and the world itself is portrayed as a wonderland outside of the Jagds. AlternativeCharacterInterpretation raised its head, and the result was "Marche the OmnicidalManiac". Supposedly this was less of a problem in the original Japanese version, but even there the trope applies.
** Even the Jagds themselves could be an example of this. Towns where laws have no effect aren't really a bad thing when the law system is so incredibly anal that you can be arrested for using certain attacks or even dealing damage to monsters.
** It's the same debate that took place in ''Film/TheMatrix'' circles, and was implied in the films themselves. One realm is far less "desirable" than another realm whose existence the writers try to vilify, but the former realm is more "real" than the latter. Hence "real CrapsackWorld" versus "imaginary paradise."
** However, there are subtle clues that not ''everyone'' is better off in Ivalice. Marche and friends may have gotten everything they ever wanted, but judging by the fact that a group of zombies in one mission have the same names as the bullies who picked on Mewt in the prologue, some of the townsfolk may have been turned into monsters.
* ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoIV'' has plenty of anti-criminal motifs, it shows how crime and lust for money destroys the lives of opportunist gangsters and how it affects their friends and relatives. However, the missions involving contract killing are done in such a way that instead of making crime repulsive, actually makes it look attractive and fun. The characters we encounter, though they are criminals, are often comedic and very likable and not like those we are afraid of in real life. And thus the game became very popular, being one of the best selling games of 2008 and it's still played by millions of gamers who seem to not get its anti-crime message.
** ''VideoGame/RedDeadRedemption'' did much the same thing in the same way.
** ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoV'' also does this, showing that getting into "the life" will either bring you nothing but pain for years and destroy all your dreams (in the case of Michael) or leave you LonelyAtTheTop (in the case of Franklin). Only problem is, this also the game that gives us [[AxCrazy Trevor Phillips]], who from the start of the game is shown reveling in wanton destruction, rape, torture, and murder, and cracks jokes about the mayhem he creates in his wake every time you tap the attack button.
*** On the other hand, Trevor's life is shown to be pretty miserable all around, and he only finds enjoyment in it because he's too unhinged to care. His ComedicSociopathy is played up to the point he doesn't even seem to live in the same universe as the other playable characters.
*** Then of course, depending on the ending, all three protagonists can end up with all of their problems solved, ridiculously rich, and with no real repercussions to their actions. '''Only''' due to the fact they decided to work for themselves instead of cutting deals with everybody else to survive. Throughout the game, working for other criminals is a thankless and penniless affair. Every job they do for someone else ends with them being ambushed or betrayed. This is highlighted in the non Deathwish ending where the survivors are cast aside as pawns and their clients ends on the far better end of the deal.
* ''VideoGame/AceCombat'' insists often and firmly that WarIsHell. However, you play as an AcePilot, arguably the most glamorous combat role in existence, your arrival bringing hope to allies and [[TheDreaded sparking fear in enemies]]. Your distance from your targets means you never see in gory detail the aftermath of your passing and as a FeaturelessProtagonist ([[VideoGame/AirCombat very]] [[VideoGame/AceCombat2 often]] an [[VideoGame/AceCombatZeroTheBelkanWar unrelated]] [[VideoGame/AceCombatJointAssault mercenary]], at that) you are spared the direct effects of deaths in the family. All these combine to dull the effect of the message.
** ''VideoGame/AceCombat5TheUnsungWar'' ultimately zig-zags this trope. It has your squadron spending the whole game telling you about how much they hate war and wishing the two sides could come to a peaceful agreement rather than forcing them to keep fighting. [[MoodWhiplash While this is all going on, they are also constantly congratulating you for almost every one of the near-countless kills you are bound to make]]; one of them eventually actually complains that he's lost track of how many kills he's made, while also reveling in the fact that the enemy has [[RedBaron nicknamed the squad "the Demons of Razgriz]]". The last part of the above point is finally averted, however, when [[spoiler:after seventeen missions of getting to know your three wingmen very well, [[KilledOffForReal one of them is shot down and dies.]] Then it turns out that the two sides were manipulated into starting the war by a shadowy organization called the "Grey Men", and you're back to the usual merciless slaughter from the air because now there's an actually-evil enemy for you to fight, complete with a good half of the people you meet up with near the end deciding to stop fighting that war and start helping you end it]].
* ''VideoGame/SoulNomadAndTheWorldEaters'': Best explanation for the popularity of Gig. He may be a SociopathicHero, but a hilariously entertaining DeadpanSnarker, too. And he loves hotpods, so he can't be 100% evil, right?
** This trope is especially not helped by the fact that Gig [[spoiler: ultimately makes a HeelFaceTurn, a HeroicSacrifice and gets a RedemptionEarnsLife. Most of the characters still can't stand him, but he is enjoying life and may or may not become a couple with the main character.]]
* ''VideoGame/{{Homefront}}'' somehow manages to mostly avoid becoming this trope. It bluntly and plainly shows that WarIsHell and since there is more focus on characters and the action is of a lower octane than in the VideoGame/ModernWarfare series, it really does deliver its antiwar message well.
* ''VisualNovel/MysticMessenger'' has Jumin Han's route and his second Bad Ending. The writers' intent was to deliver AnAesop on how treating someone you love like a possession and hoarding them all to yourself is ''not'' true love. If the player chooses to enable Jumin's latent possessive nature, he will [[spoiler: bind your hands and feet, make you wear shoes implanted with a micro GPS, and lock you up in his penthouse [[Literature/FiftyShadesofGrey Christian Grey]] style. There, you will have everything you want except freedom, and he treats you as an object for his own amusement]]. This ending is meant to be seen as horrific as Jumin has chosen to succumb to his emotional issues rather than change for the better. The problem? He's [[ManofWealthAndTaste filthy rich]], [[TallDarkAndSnarky classy]], and [[MrFanservice very handsome.]] This caused the message to fly over the heads of a [[MisaimedFandom vocal contingent of the fanbase]], with many of them finding this ending kinky, and even going as far as to say that it would be preferable to his Good or Normal endings.
** This happened again with the V Route update, this time to [[spoiler: Saeran, AKA: Ray, and Rika]]. The V Route storyline tries to deliver a similar message about the difference between obsession and love. However, by giving [[spoiler: Ray and Rika]] {{Freudian Excuse}}s and making them AffablyEvil (NOT helped by [[spoiler: the copious amounts of LesYay the protagonist has with Rika, including a Bad Ending wherein they actually get together]]), they caused people to ignore the message once again. As a result, you have ''another'' group of fans wanting to romance [[spoiler: Ray and/or Rika]] in spite of Cheritz' repeated attempts to showcase them as abusive and warn the players about how unhealthy a relationship with either of them would be.
** And then Cheritz [[BrokenAesop completely broke the above aesop all on their own]] by giving Ray a route of his own branching from the same Another Story created for V's route. This means that, in fact, it is perfectly fine to try to reform the mentally unstable man who kidnapped you with your love and encourage his creepily unhealthy obsession with you. Yay?
* '' VideoGame/HeavyRain'': The story's awesome and dramatic and everything, but the [[DancingBear single most awesome thing in the game]] is ARI - CoolShades that [[GogglesDoSomethingUnusual do all kinds of awesome things]] via {{Cyberspace}}; FingerprintingAir, accessing the FBI OmniscientDatabase, ''turning a prison cell of an office into SceneryPorn'', and [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking letting you bounce a ball off a wall like in a prison flick without a ball or a wall.]] [[spoiler:'''[[CyberneticsEatYourSoul They Eat Your Soul.]]''' The game itself just about crosses the UncannyValley and they're saying '''''VR EATS YOUR FUCKING SOUL.''''' What, are they saying anything more realistic than Heavy Rain are ThingsManWasNotMeantToKnow?]]
* ''VideoGame/{{Iji}}'' is much more successful at averting this than most games because it's completely possible to play through the game without killing anyone. Also, if you do kill everything in sight like a normal game, the dialogue will [[YouBastard make you regret it]] unless you're very callous.
* In a meta example, this is what led to ''VideoGame/DestroyAllHumans'' being made. Matt Harding pitched the idea because he was thoroughly fed up with making typical shoot-em-ups and proposed the exact opposite of the game he would like to make. Naturally, it was approved and Harding effectively sabotaged his career, which led to him quitting his job and making ''WebVideo/WhereTheHellIsMatt''. [[Heartwarming/WhereTheHellIsMatt Not that we're complaining.]]
* ''VideoGame/SaintsRow2'' perhaps does an end run around this trope by avoiding the moralizing and continually plays up the fun and rewards of violent crime. Then the player character grinds a few rather sympathetic characters into the MoralEventHorizon, to demonstrate that he/she is every bit the vicious bastard the player is encouraged to be. Even some unsympathetic characters get terminated with much more cruelty than necessary.
** Dane Vogel also suffers from this. He's cool, manipulative, wealthy, spends most of the game in complete control of the situation, and his plan would have solved Stilwater's gang problem. The fact that he's a ruthless, self-serving CorruptCorporateExecutive who simply wants profit and is out to crush anyone in his way to get it -- especially the poor and disenfranchised -- and that his plan to eliminate the gangs involved making things much, much worse before they got better tends to be forgotten because he's ''awesome''.
* ''VideoGame/ArmoredCore'' has you play as a mercenary mech pilot who works for all the wrong reasons (money and being the strongest). The earlier games tend to end fairly positively, but it's pointed out repeatedly most Ravens do not give a damn about how much carnage they cause on the job. Just because your client is an evil MegaCorp doesn't excuse you from responsibility. In Nexus, your final mission results in millions of suicide robots devastating the planet. In 4, the mecha are {{Walking Wasteland}}s and are ruining the world, and in 4A, you've got the option of killing ''millions'' as one mission. Despite that, piloting a mech is goddamn fun, and you're only ever called out on your actions once,[[note]]kill those millions and you earn yourself a fight against your MissionControl, the BigBad, the Dragon, and your WorthyOpponent. They hate you ''that'' much.[[/note]] In other words: That coworker you just murdered? What was his name again? Who cares, his bounty earned you money for new parts for your infinitely customizable robot. Yay!
* ''VideoGame/CookingMamaMamaKillsAnimals'' shows Mama from ''VideoGame/CookingMama'' brutally killing and gruesomely preparing a turkey with cartoonish graphics. Game developer [[http://www.raphkoster.com/2008/11/26/cooking-mama-the-unauthorized-peta-edition-mama-kills-animals-petaorg/ Raph Koster explains]] that his kids found it gleeful fun. Even Majesco Entertainment apparently found it amusing, given that their response was to ''have Cooking Mama herself put out a press release complaining about it''. It's like they said to themselves, "Nobody's going to get their message from it, we aren't going to worry."
* ''VideoGame/{{Wings}}'' arguably subverts this; the game DOES use UsefulNotes/WorldWarI for entertainment, but is stated to be dedicated to those who died in it, and also calls attention to the foolishness of various aspects of it.
* In ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'', both the games and the [[Anime/{{Pokemon}} anime]], treating Pokémon as tools is wrong. The evil teams and the rivals all lose because they treated their Pokémon bad, you won because you care for them. Except the best strategy is to dump all the crappy Pokémon you catch into the PC forever and push the ones you keep in your party to their limits. Sure, they get sad if they faint and they get happy if you use Potions on them...but Happiness is a mostly useless stat[[note]]Unless you have a Pokémon (such as Mega-Kangaskhan or Mega-Salamence) that can take full advantage of the Return move, which scales based on the Happiness stat)[[/note]] and unless you horribly suck as a trainer they will simply be happy enough as time passes. The "best" competitive players even [[{{Tykebomb}} breed new Pokémon to train incessantly from the day they're hatched]] and throw the parents forever into the PC.
** And any newborn that does not meet the expectations of the trainer (ability, nature etc.) is usually thrown into the wild without a second thought. Trainers can burn through dozens of baby Pokemon before they find the one that could become the perfect competitive battler.
** Then there's Hidden Machines, moves that are required to get around the overworld but are useless in battle. The most common strategy there is to pick one or two mons on your team whose sole purpose is to carry the HM moves - meaning you are treating an ostensibly living being as a hedge trimmer / jackhammer / bulldozer / jetski.
** {{Invoked|Trope}} in ''VideoGame/PokemonBlackAndWhite'' by the bad guys, [[AnimalWrongsGroup Team Plasma]]. {{Subverted|Trope}} in that only one of the members, [[AntiVillain N]], actually believes in this; when he does fight you, he only uses Pokemon that can be found in the immediate area, and [[PetTheDog lets them go after he's done]]. By contrast, one of the first appearances of Plasma's [[{{Mooks}} grunts]] is [[KickTheDog kicking a Munna]], and their true leader, Ghetsis, [[StrawHypocrite simply wants people and Pokemon separated so he can conquer Unova]].
** Hilariously, an ad insert in a children's magazine concerning ''Black 2 & White 2'' had the following line:
-->Warning! [[CaptainObvious Making your pets fight in real life will get you arrested.]]
* One of the main points of ''Ryoujoku Guerilla Gari'' (''Suck My Dick Or Die!'' in the English release) is that Lt. Prosper is an evil person for abusing his position and authority to rape women, and that in his bad end, Haresu is just as evil for buying into Prosper's lies. The problem is that, as an [[HGame eroge]], the sex scenes are a big part of the draw, and the most extreme ones are the rape scenes from Prosper's perspective and Haresu's bad end...so, "join the army, meet interesting women, and rape the hell out of them"?
* In-universe-parody in ''VideoGame/KingdomOfLoathing'', with a chest labeled: "Magic equipment. Do not put on skeletons or they will come to life and it will be [[http://kol.coldfront.net/thekolwiki/index.php/Skeletons_and_The_Closet totally awesome."]]
* Deliberately invoked in ''[[VideoGame/SamAndMaxFreelancePolice Night of the Raving Dead:]]'' as part of their plan to discredit Jurgen the vampire in front of his minions, Sam and Max turn a VerySpecialEpisode of [[ShowWithinAShow Midtown Cowboys]] into an endorsement for the garlic-flavored cigarettes they're supposed to be talking about the dangers of. Since the show is a big hit in Jurgen's homeland of Germany, he can't help but smoke the cigarettes even though the garlic makes him ill and embarrasses him in front of his zombie army.
* An in-universe example in ''Franchise/MassEffect'', as Shepard has to remind [[LoonyFan Conrad Verner]] at least [[AesopAmnesia once per game]] that WarIsHell and trying to do what they do without proper [[SuperSoldier physical]] [[CharlesAtlasSuperpower conditioning]] and [[TrainingFromHell military training]] would get a normal person killed ''very'' quickly.
* ''Franchise/FarCry''.
** ''VideoGame/FarCry2'' may actually be pretty good at being an anti-war game. The designers admit to having deliberately included elements which are not fun, such as weapons [[ReliablyUnreliableGuns degrading and malfunctioning]], needing to do tedious missions and drive around the entire map, and having to detour regularly to get more malaria medication. Of course, the game entails you becoming a badass and a hero. So what exactly is supposed to be so bad about all this badass mercenary business?[[note]]Moreover, those "deliberately" not-fun elements may be more of a DeliberateFlawRetcon. In either case the real moral is: if you become a mercenary, learn some basic gun maintenance and how to avoid local diseases first.[[/note]]
** ''VideoGame/FarCry3'' suffers from this. The majority of the game has minor morality (killing too many civilians in a row results in a NonStandardGameOver, and most of the sidequests involve helping good people by doing good things) and focuses on how well Jason learns to slaughter entire armies of pirates and mercenaries, with an underlying implication that Jason is becoming a tribal psychopath, regardless of how good he still is or how evil he secretly was, particularly when he rescues one of his friends in a particularly-exciting escape sequence and she [[WhatTheHellHero is completely appalled that he seemed to be having fun during a life-or-death situation]]. The end of the game slams the full consequences of being a psychopath [[spoiler:by forcing the player to make a genuine moral choice: save your friends and leave the island, or kill them to become the tribe's leader]]. These choices end up having serious consequences[[labelnote:spoilers]]If you decide to leave, [[spoiler:[[CrazyJealousGuy Dennis goes off the deep end]] over your rejection of the woman ''he'' loves but can't be with because of you, but accidentally kills her when she shields you from him.]] If you stay, [[spoiler:Citra has sex with you, only to [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness immediately stab you once you're finished]], noting that since you've become one of their greatest warriors ever, [[StalkerWithATestTube your child with her will be even greater]]]].[[/labelnote]]... and then the game continues beyond the ending, with Jason back in his normal clothes, only [[spoiler:missing the finger the BigBad took from him]]. This subverts the choice you just made: [[spoiler:Made the Good Choice and left the island? No, you're still here, and you get to go back to killing pirates! Made the Bad Choice and died for it? Nope, Jason is still alive]]! After that it's back to business as usual as Jason continues kicking ass and having a blast doing it, now without the scripted story to tell you whether there are any downsides to what Jason is doing.
** To promote ''VideoGame/FarCry5'', Creator/{{Ubisoft}} released the album ''When the World Falls'' performed by the Hope County Choir, who are all members of Eden's Gate, the gun-toting, Christian nationalist ApocalypseCult that serves as the game's main villains. Problem is, the songs themselves are pretty damn good country and Gospel music, especially [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v0sdR-UdYzg "Keep Your Rifle By Your Side",]] a paean to [[RightWingMilitiaFanatic arming up for a confrontation with the government]], and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DCgkCawbMGM "We Will Rise Again",]] a song celebrating the collapse of a decadent civilization while those that it oppressed inherit the Earth. When removed from the context of the game's storyline, these songs were quickly embraced by exactly the kind of people they were meant to satirize. As one top-rated comment on the video for "Keep Your Rifle By Your Side" notes:
-->"If Ubisoft didn’t want us to identify with it then they shouldn’tve made it such a banger."
* One of the games in ''[[VideoGame/WarioWare Game & Wario]]'' has 9-Volt playing a videogame in his bed, while at the same time trying to make sure his mom thinks he's asleep. Before the game starts there is a long-winded message saying you should sleep early and not emulate what 9-Volt is doing.
* An in-universe example appears in ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIVOblivion''. Cyrodiil's only newspaper is ''The Black Horse Courier'', and a number of pamphlets can be found on counters and tables in stores. One issue, ''Night Mother Rituals!'', warns readers of an increase in Dark Brotherhood activity. More and more people in Cyrodiil are performing the ritualistic "Black Sacrament" to summon and hire assassins. Responsibly, the ''Courier'' explicitly details how to perform the Black Sacrament, so its readers can better prevent themselves from being caught with the materials necessary (such as a human heart, partial skeleton and pound of flesh) and be falsely incarcerated. [[StealthCigaretteCommercial You might be inclined to think the Dark Brotherhood themselves had the story printed.]]
* The meth recipe shown in ''VideoGame/Payday2'' is actually for salt water, specifically because the devs know that people are going to try and make it anyways if it had real ingredients. Note that the chemicals used for it are still highly corrosive, so Overkill still discourages people from actually trying it.
* ''VideoGame/{{Undertale}}'' for the most part does a pretty good job of discouraging players from killing anyone, going out of its way to provide fun, quirky, sympathetic enemies and bosses that the player will feel horrible about killing instead of trying to spare. However, there are two exceptions in the otherwise [[KillEmAll extremely dark, extremely grindy and extremely depressing Genocide route]]: [[spoiler: Undyne the Undying and Sans]]. Both serve as massive {{Difficulty Spike}}s in an otherwise easy-but-fairly-tedious playthrough, and the latter is in fact the single hardest boss in the entire game. Unfortunately, both are considered to be [[BestBossEver two of the best boss fights in the game]], the former due to being that character's biggest SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome, and the latter due to being such an insanely brutal fight full of fun, sometimes even [[BreakingTheFourthWall fourth wall-breaking attacks]] (and both of them due to having awesome themes). In addition, he, along with Flowey, will only show their true nihilistic natures in this route, and certain important pieces of context from said route are never given anywhere else. While many players were still successfully discouraged from completing the Genocide route due to all the horrible things they have to do to complete it, there's still a subsection of the fanbase who went through the route [[BloodKnight just for a chance to fight the two bosses]] and another subsection who did it to play a VillainProtagonist in a darker storyline (particularly since Flowey openly mocks those who would simply view videos of it rather than do the dirty work themselves).
* ''VideoGame/SandsOfDestruction'' opens with Morte and the World Annihilation Front attacking Viteaux like a bunch of BombThrowingAnarchists. You're [[IntroOnlyPointOfView in control of Naja]] and are supposed to fight her off and save the town, but the girl is having ''way'' too much fun either way. With the way Naja and his jerkish superior Rajif keep calling her a terrorist, she'd make an ''excellent'' poster girl for any sort of terrorist group: "Be a terrorist! [[StuffBlowingUp Blow stuff up!]] '''It's fun!'''" At least it does help you feel more sympathetic towards Kyrie for falling in LoveAtFirstSight: that kind of enthusiasm can be infectious, even coming from a PsychopathicWomanChild. [[spoiler:And, thankfully, she keeps her upbeat, determined personality even after changing her mind about destroying the world, proving that good doesn't have to be boring.]]
* One level in ''VideoGame/{{Emogame}} 2'' has you going onto the set of ''The Jenny Jones Show'', where the use of this trope on [[PointAndLaughShow tabloid talk shows]] is mocked for all it's worth. Today's episode revolves around "12-year-old hoochies" in a way that seems to be backhandedly promoting the TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior of the adolescent girls featured while ostensibly condemning it, with Jenny Jones bragging about using [[SexSells softcore child porn]] as a RatingsStunt.
* ''VideoGame/HotlineMiami'' discusses the way people today tend to be desensitized to violence through the media and video games; yet this message is buried under the game's fast-paced, adrenaline-filled ultraviolence backed by a {{UsefulNotes/Synthwave}} soundtrack. The sequel is a ''bit'' better about this, but only just.
* The extremely rare Atari 2600 game ''Pepsi Invaders'' is a ''VideoGame/SpaceInvaders'' clone where the aliens get replaced with the letters of the Pepsi logo. It was reportedly made by Coke, as a "morale boost" for their employees. One has to wonder if Coke realized that they were making a game where you stare at six versions of their competitor's logo for most of its playtime.
* ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'' revolves around the Holy Grail War where mages summon a hero in the form of a Servant in a battle royale where the winner gets one wish. The story goes to great lengths to show how horrifying the Holy Grail War is, how it puts innocent people in danger, how good people can get involved in the war and die, [[spoiler:how the previous war was responsible for the main character Emiya Shirou's life getting screwed up, and how even the [[JackassGenie wish granted to the winner will be corrupted]].]] The problem is that most of the endings have Shirou come out of the Holy Grail War better off than when he started by hooking up with a cute girlfriend, and even the ending where he DidNotGettheGirl still has him overcome his emotional trauma. Later entries in the franchise continued to have this issue by having things end on an uplifting note for the main character, while also having a Servant as a love interest. Even the DarkerAndEdgier prequel ''LightNovel/FateZero'', [[spoiler: despite its DownerEnding, still has the life of one of its supporting characters improved thanks to entering the Holy Grail War.]] In fact, the idea of Servants proved so popular that they've essentially become the main focus of the overall universe, simply because of how cool and universally-adaptable the concept is. Who wouldn't want to hang out with your favorite historical figure or fictional character, upgraded into a [[HistoricalBeautyUpgrade gorgeous]] [[HistoricalBadassUpgrade magically-empowered]] [[HistoricalHeroUpgrade superhuman]]?
* The original series of ''VideoGame/GodOfWar'' brutally [[DeconstructedCharacterArchetype deconstructs]] the idea of the classical Greek hero, showing that Kratos's MightMakesRight mentality causes him to progressively degenerate into selfish, violent, and vengeful individual going out of his way to kill as many people as he could just because he can. The stories by themselves make it clear that the world ''does not'' need someone like Kratos. The gameplay on the other hand requires that you slash up the various monsters in increasingly brutal ways, and Kratos just looks ''awesome'' doing so, so many players still root for Kratos despite the stories' portrayal of him. It certainly doesn't help that for much of the series, the Greek gods are framed as so corrupt and cruel that the conflict reads as EvilVsEvil at worst and KickTheSonOfABitch more frequently.
* ''{{VideoGame/Yakuza 0}}'' has an in-universe example. Shintaro Kazama knows very well what joining [[{{Yakuza}} The Yakuza]] means, the burdens, the regrets and the sacrifices one must live with to live that life, and does his best to dissuade his adopted sons from following in his footsteps. His sons, on the other hand, want nothing more than to join, both to show respect, but also to [[DamnItFeelsGoodToBeAGangster get a taste of the wealth, power and respect he has.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Web Comics]]

[[folder:Real Life]]
* There was a case where some cops took some pictures of an accident scene and, without the families' consent, started showing them to kids, apparently wanting to ScareEmStraight. Instead, the kids thought they were cool and posted them on the Internet. The families' attempts to get the pictures taken down have simply invoked the StreisandEffect.
* This is basically the reason why abstinence-only sexual education tends to be somewhat less than persuasive to high school students: sex is very physically and emotionally alluring while readily available contraception has greatly mitigated its potentially detrimental physical consequences; and its long-term personal and social consequences are rather abstract and particularly difficult for a HormoneAddledTeenager to comprehend. In other words, the gratification that having sex offers is immediate and obvious, while the risks are all delayed and uncertain, and teens are notoriously reckless and short-sighted about the future. Worse is that these programs tend to condemn premarital sex in ''all'' forms, protected and unprotected alike, either refusing to acknowledge protection exists or wildly inflating how often it fails. The result is that teens in these programs have just as much sex, but get pregnant and spread diseases much more frequently than those taught how to ''use'' those easily available contraceptives.
** Which is not to say that every pro-contraceptive sex-ed class nails it either. Indeed, many can become inadvertent commercials for unprotected sex if they aren't careful. Portraying unprotected sex as reckless and worse, admitting that it feels awesome is an invitation for teenagers to try it. Some teenagers also have a romanticized view of teen pregnancy (or at least believe getting pregnant in their teens will [[GloryHound let them get on television]]), especially the accidental sort. Really, any work that tells teenagers to not do stupid things runs into a risk of being this trope if they don't tread carefully and emphasis that the negative results of their actions also include being ostracized.
** It doesn't help that many faith-based abstinence programs, rather than emphasizing abstinence as a form of self-control, and a virtue in its own right, often emphasize abstinence only as a means to an end: Abstain from sex now, and you'll be guaranteed to have a great sex life in marriage. Which only reinforces the hedonistic mindset that you're trying to work against.
** It also doesn't help that vocations associated with sexual continence (e.g. priests, monks, nuns) have very little prestige in society-at-large anymore.
* Similarly, this is why Driver's Education's attempts to dissuade reckless driving in teenagers is often ineffective. "If you drive recklessly, you'll have a ton of awesome stories to tell about all the times you almost died like a total badass. And if you ''do'' die, all your friends and family will spend all their time thinking and talking about you". The Texas DMV tried to subvert this by having [[PublicServiceAnnouncement PSAs]] claiming that if you are a careful driver, you'll be the one able to tell all the awesome stories about how your friends and classmates died. Morbid, but apparently effective.
* ContentWarnings can have this effect. They're supposed to serve as warnings to parents about what's appropriate for kids, but it's impossible to stop the kids from seeing them, and all they think is, "If I'm not supposed to be exposed to it then [[ForbiddenFruit it must be totally awesome]]." Indeed, back in TheNineties when the Parental Advisory warning on [=CDs=] was just becoming well-known, TV advertisements for rap albums would proudly flash the "Tipper Sticker" as a point of pride, and Creator/GeorgeCarlin even recorded an album '''titled''' ''Parental Advisory: Explicit Lyrics''.
* The [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meese_Report Meese Report]] on pornography. The commission's conclusions on the harmful effects of porn were transparently determined by the prejudices of Edwin Meese et al. rather than actual analysis, while the report also included plenty of excerpts and juicy descriptions of otherwise hard-to-find material.
* [[AnimalWrongsGroup PETA]] wants to put [[https://web.archive.org/web/20151112194813/http://www.peta.org/blog/peta-warns-mexicanus-border-crossers a mural on the Mexican border fence]] to "warn" Mexicans not to come to the US because [[FirstWorldProblems they'll get fat from all the junk food and meat]]. The painting makes the USA look like a carnival-land made of candy and barbecues, turning the ''actual'' message into "Hey, we've got all the awesome delicious food you could ever want!" Yeah, that'll scare 'em away.
** It's not like they were starving, anyway. [[http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/hea_obe-health-obesity Mexico is the among the fattest countries in the world]], second only to the USA with the rare case of [[http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/news/america-fattest-obese-un-144341236.html overtaking it, such as in 2013]]. Combine this with the explosion in the last few decades of cheap, fattening, nutrient-poor junk food, and you have, for the first time in history, a situation where the poor are fatter than the rich on average. Indeed, many health workers in the developing world have witnessed cases of people who are simultaneously obese and malnourished because of just how awful the local diets have gotten.
** Also, due to their reputation as putting animal rights above human ones, it brings the UnfortunateImplications of what they think about Mexicans.
* Studies have suggested that kids who went through the ''D.A.R.E.'' ('''D'''rug '''A'''buse '''R'''esistance '''E'''ducation) program were actually ''more'' likely to do drugs than if they hadn't; the suggested explanation is this trope. Specifically, that the program focused so much on resisting peer pressure that the message morphed to "everyone is doing drugs but you". This led to a joke [[FunWithAcronyms backronym]] for the group, '''D'''rugs '''A'''re '''R'''eally '''E'''xcellent.
* Creator/HunterSThompson famously said, "I hate to advocate drugs, alcohol, violence, or insanity to anyone, but they've always worked for me."
** Well, up to a point, at least.
* Creator/ChrisFarley openly idolized Creator/JohnBelushi and enthusiastically imitated his hellraising, burn-the-candle-at-both-ends lifestyle. Like Belushi, he died of a tragic drug overdose at age 33.
* During the Cold War some Hollywood films were approved by the censors for release in the cinemas in the countries behind the Iron Curtain. Films were approved if they showed the US government in a bad light (evil CIA agents in ''Film/ETTheExtraTerrestrial'' or the authorities in the first ''Franchise/{{Rambo}}''), featured evil capitalistic corporations (''Film/{{Aliens}}''), or had any theme that could be portrayed in an anti-west manner (the West caused a world-wide apocalypse in ''Film/TheTerminator''). Inevitably, the audience would just end up impressed by the Western living standards.
** ''The Grapes of Wrath'': "This desperately poor family has ''its own truck?!''"
* Newspapers often carry lifestyle or entertainment features that glamourise trends that their political journalism, editorials and opinion articles condemn. In Britain this is particularly pronounced in left wing newspapers - Editorial: "Global warming sucks!", Feature: "Look at all these glossy photos of a new super-car!". How much of a problem you think this is depends on how much you think the rational part of the brain is influenced by the impressionistic part.
* One of the Nazis' biggest propaganda mistakes was sending their "Gallery of Degenerate Art" on tour around the whole country so that all good loyal German citizens could see just how degenerate this art was for themselves. In terms of turnout, the tour was a smashing success: people turned out in ''droves'' in order to [[JustHereForGodzilla see for themselves]] just ''how'' degenerate all this art was. In terms of messaging, however, it was an abject failure: for some reason, this [[ForbiddenFruit well-nigh pornographic degeneracy]] was always much more popular with people than the morally wholesome state-approved art the Nazis thought their loyal citizens ought to prefer.
* [[http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Inside-Chinatown-s-gangs-3239507.php#page-2 Bill Lee]] is a former Chinatown gangster who has written about his experiences. When his own son got involved in a gang, Lee told him about his experiences to keep him out of the gang. The son's reaction was basically "My dad and granddad were gangsters! Awesome!"
%%* When Mexican cartel leader Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán was caught, [[http://www.borderlandbeat.com/2014/03/chapo-hero-worship-is-manifested-by.html people from Sinaloa, Mexico protected him]], under the reasoning that he was doing more for the people in his area than what the government ever had done, due to his financing of city embellishment and security (because who attacks a town inhabited by the country's most powerful warlord?) in situations that a mixture of corruption, bureaucracy and blatant lack of care from the government's side had made them not answer to the people's demands. The same happened in Colombia with Pablo Escobar.
* Author Brian Solis offers [[http://socialmediatoday.com/briansolis/1328766/how-i-faked-celebrity-tweets-support-my-new-book-and-why-you-should-care-wtf this example]] of how someone can produce fake Website/{{tw|itter}}eets that appear to be coming from celebrities, [[AndThatsTerrible which of course is totally unethical]] and has disturbing implications for journalism, so you should never do it [[HypocriticalHumor like he did to promote his first book]].
* During Prohibition, there was a loophole that allowed vineyards to indirectly sell wine. They would sell bricks of grape concentrate and yeast that, when placed in water for an appropriate amount of time, would become wine. They often had "[[StealthCigaretteCommercial disclaimers]]" which stated: "Do not add water and leave in a dark place or it will ferment and turn to wine." [[Series/MontyPythonsFlyingCircus Nudge, nudge, wink, wink]].
* One of the best selling books of the Restoration era was ''The Wandering Whore'', a beautifully printed pocketbook that argues vociferously against prostitution in London's Covent Garden district. Except the booklet also includes ''long'' passages describing each one of the prostitutes working in Covent Gardens, their address, fee, appearance, and "specialty" [[SuspiciouslySpecificDenial in explicit detail]]...all such that "God-fearing men may better avoid them". It probably would not surprise anyone that this book later became ''Harris's List of Covent Garden Ladies'', the Yellow Pages for the sex trade of 1700s London.
* In the tradition of a great many other anti-vice campaigns, [[http://dfw.cbslocal.com/2013/10/08/are-anti-bullying-programs-having-an-opposite-effect/ anti-bullying programs are now showing signs of actually encouraging bullying]] by--for instance--inadvertently teaching potential bullies new techniques for teasing and harassing their peers online.
** One of the main criticisms of so-called [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zero_tolerance Zero tolerance policies]] are that they unfairly punish the victim while offering no incentive for the instigators or abusers to stop. These policies have also been speculated to increase violent bullying and fighting in schools; bullies will continue to abuse their victims undeterred because they don't care about the punishments, while some victims, aware that they'll be sanctioned whether they defend themselves or not, feel that they have no choice but to resort to violence to try to fight back.
** Same goes for books about social engineering. Sure thing, security personnel might benefit from reading these. But that is also true for con men.
* In order to demonstrate just how cold it was during the US's [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polar_vortex "polar vortex"]] of January 2014, NBC News threw a pot of boiling water in the air, which immediately froze. Naturally, they warned viewers about doing the same at the time. When at least 50 copycat examples appeared on social media in which people scalded themselves or others, NBC even more urgently cautioned viewers not to repeat the trick... as they repeated showing that cool clip.
* This was basically the essence of Marshal Marmont's lessons to the Duke of Reichstadt, UsefulNotes/{{Napoleon|Bonaparte}}'s son. He gave the Duke firsthand account of his father's brilliant campaigns, detailing his tactics and strategies, while emphasizing that this example was not to be emulated at all - partly because most of Napoleon's victories were at the expense of the Emperor of Austria, who also happened to be Reichstadt's grandfather. Needless to say, it did not prevent the Duke from dreaming that he could one day take power in France and restore the country to its former glory.
* Anytime the RIAA or MPAA takes a public stance to warn internet users that downloading unlicensed media from torrent sharing sites because "they will get viruses from them", the general reaction from the internet is usually "thank you for telling us about these torrent sites we weren't aware of."
* There are theories that this phenomenon is responsible for some school shootings and other high-profile mass killings, because much of the media reporting on such crimes focuses on the killers and their motivations. While the reports are intended to show that the kinds of people who would do such things are mentally ill and/or evil, some people (particularly those [[DidntThinkThisThrough who are mentally ill to begin with]]) instead take the message as [[IfItBleedsItLeads "if I kill a bunch of people, I'll get on TV and be famous!"]]. Instead, some people advocate deliberately avoiding talking about the killers as much as possible in news reports, and instead focus on promoting the memory of the victims.
** A particular example was the UsefulNotes/{{Columbine}} shooting, where much of the later media response played up the TragicMonster aspects of the event, claiming that the violence of the shooters stemmed from them being bullied loners (which is [[VeryLooselyBasedOnATrueStory dubious at best on several levels]]), hoping to push towards reconciliation and encouraging both bullies and bullied to be more open. As it turned out, this backfired twice over; bullies heard that [[LonersAreFreaks the unpopular kids they bullied were spree-killers-in-waiting]] and therefore had it coming, and unpopular kids found an icon in the shooters for [[WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds "striking back"]].
* Many retail stores in the US have large posters in the employee lounge telling them to stop the meth problem by reporting "any large purchases of the following items" to the DEA. While it's meant to curb meth production, it also tells the low-paid worker "Here are the things you'll need to start a meth lab!".
* Creator/DorothyLSayers wrote a cycle of radio plays on the life of Christ for the BBC. The Lord's Day Observance Society thought that the idea was blasphemous, and inveighed against it. All this resulted in was more people than would otherwise have done so tuning in to see what all the fuss was about. Sayers, in the preface to the published book of the scripts, thanked the LDOS for the publicity; since in her youth she had worked in an advertising agency, she knew that there is NoSuchThingAsBadPublicity.
* Although Music/{{Motorhead}} frontman Lemmy Kilmeister spoke openly about his vices (smoking, alcohol, drugs, groupies) and hard-partying lifestyle, he did not encourage others to follow his example because he'd seen too many of his friends die from living the way he lived. It probably doesn't help, however, that the message "If you live like I do, you'll die young" is ''slightly'' dampened when you remember that Lemmy lived to be 70.
* Legend has it that the reason lesbianism was never outlawed in the UK was because Parliament thought it would give women ideas. Or perhaps because, in the popular imagery, [[GirlOnGirlIsHot it didn't look bad]].
* Similarly, early [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gay_pulp_fiction gay]] and [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lesbian_pulp_fiction lesbian]] pulp fiction is a good example of this trope. Works had to portray homosexuals as [[PsychoLesbian disturbed]], [[DepravedHomosexual deviant]] and/or [[BuryYourGays doomed]] in order to pass [[MoralGuardians censorship]], but the books were eagerly bought by many LGBT people who otherwise lacked representation in media or access to information about homosexuality.
* Similarly to the "Degenerate Art" example above, the exhibition "Oto Ameryka" (This Is America), organized in Communist Poland back in 1952, was meant to show the degeneracy, racism, and all-around moral collapse supposedly widespread in the US. The exhibition was wildly popular -- the people were glad to see ''anything'' American, and they ended up highly impressed by how high the standards of living seemed in America, even when depicted via a propagandistic lens intended to paint that lifestyle as a bad thing. Among other things, the notable Polish comic book artist Grzegorz Rosinski was first inspired to start drawing by seeing a fragment of an American comic in the exhibition catalogue; comic books were still considered capitalist degeneracy back then, and there was nothing like them available in Poland at the time.
* Soviet media (and those of their satellites) focused a lot on jazz music, portraying it and the life style built around as being symbolic of the wasteful capitalist lifestyle. Russia and more or less other former Communist countries still have a taste for jazz long after it’s faded to a more niche genre in its country of origin. It's safe to say that the anti-jazz propaganda failed spectacularly.
* The movement to legalize recreational marijuana in Canada (made official in 2018) led to a '''huge''' amount of this in the Canadian media, with outlets running stories like "How pot smoking could be a new bonding ritual for elderly parents and their children" and how pot is going to be a cash cow for Canadians alongside stories citing issues related to health concerns about second hand smoke and impaired driving. This despite the federal government indicating that one purpose in legalizing was to remove the "cool factor" from recreational pot.
* In July 2018, the mayor of UsefulNotes/LosAngeles posted [[https://twitter.com/MayorOfLA/status/1013926739225935877 a video on Twitter]] to explain the city's ban on fireworks, showing how even a small firework can make an entire watermelon blow up. So don't play with fireworks, kids, or you might ''get to see some [[StuffBlowingUp freakin' awesome explosions]] like this one!''
* The usage of flares in European football stadiums is both popular among the diehard fans as well as very forbidden. And whenever one does get smuggled inside and ignited during the match, the cameras will definitely linger on the impressive view of illegal pyrotechnics for a few moments.
* This news story from UsefulNotes/NewYorkCity: "[[https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/Federal-Judge-Wants-to-Climb-Statue-of-Liberty-Before-Sentencing-Protester-Who-Climbed-It-Last-Year-506208971.html Federal Judge Wants to Climb Statue of Liberty Before Sentencing Protester Who Climbed It Last Year.]]"
-->"Additionally, if it were deemed possible and safe, the Court would like a ladder to be made available so the Court (and counsel if requested) can view, while remaining on the ladder, the surface of the area where the defendant was situated on July 4, 2018," the order read.
* A somewhat infamous [[https://twitter.com/bennyjohnson/status/1174871396855382016 tweet]] by conservative commentator Benny Johnson had him travel to Cuba and go to a supermarket to show the poor state there. He claimed that the store seemed to stock nothing but BrandX items in identical packaging, claiming that this was a sign of an uncompetitive market and the evils of socialism. Most commentators just pointed out that the supermarket in question was exceptionally well-stocked, spotlessly clean, and had reasonable-looking prices, which isn't half bad for a country under infamously heavy embargoes. Others even said they found the identical packaging to look much more convenient than American supermarket's varied packaging. It was easy to assume that Johnson had thought the market would be poorly stocked or in a state of disrepair, and was now reduced to nitpicking when it turned out to be in top shape. Not to mention the vast majority of brands in the US [[https://www.businessinsider.com/10-companies-control-the-food-industry-2016-9 are owned by a handful of companies]], so they're not a good gauge of a competitive market anyway.
** On a similar note, The Sun columnist Dan Wootton [[https://twitter.com/danwootton/status/1213874968418643969 tweeted about the set menu at the 2020 Golden Globes being entirely vegan]]. His intention to make it seem like the vegans were forcing their lifestyle on others was mocked by many as A) the photos showed the vegan meals in question as being immaculately presented, and B) having a vegan-only menu at a ceremony that only celebrities could attend (many of whom, if not vegan themselves, were liberal enough to likely not care either way) is hardly an attack on civil liberties, where any of the 18 million people watching the Golden Globes from home could still buy and eat whatever they pleased while doing so.
%%* Former prime minister of Australia Tony Abbott once referred to wind turbines as [[https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2019/jul/19/dark-satanic-mills-tony-abbott-continues-his-crusade-against-wind-turbines "Dark Satanic Mills"]]. Keep in mind this was after getting voted out of his electorate in favour of a politician who favoured wind turbines.
%%* During the 2020 Democratic primary, the campaign for Michael Bloomberg [[https://twitter.com/Mike2020/status/1232004382436274178 attempted to cite a case of vandalism]], where reportedly someone had left a sign reading "EAT THE RICH" on one of their campaign offices, with the intended message being that Bloomberg's opponents were unreasonable and violent. The wide response was that it was ''barely'' vandalism: rather than graffiti or thrown stones, this was a paper sign fixed to a window with tape. Even assuming it was really planted by supporters of other candidates, that's one softball act of rebellion. What was more, this was in Flint, Michigan, a city with failing and underfunded infrastructure and notoriously corrupt officials that led to an infamous lead-in-the-water crisis that, at the time of the primary, was still ongoing with little noteworthy work to fix the problem for ''six years''; if there was one city in America that had every right to be annoyed at rich people, it was Flint. If anything, it left a lot of people asking why Bloomberg hadn't fixed Flint up yet, as it would take a fraction of the money he was using to campaign. (Bloomberg spent an estimated $188 million over the course of the primary, and won zero states.)
* Even though safety education programs universally recommend against kids giving each other rides on bicycles and other such shenanigans, the very existence of pegs on BMX bikes is arguably an example of this trope. It's conceivable that 0.1% of the usage of BMX pegs is for trained BMX riders to do tricks, and 99.9% of their usage is for kids to do stupid stuff with them.
** The argument that they are actually intended only for legitimate tricks done by BMX riders might actually hold water if the pegs were only put on designer bicycles that cost hundreds or thousands of dollars. But even affordable. department store bicycles have them.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Western Animation]]
* ''WesternAnimation/BeavisAndButtHead''. Spoofed in the Season 4 episode, "Safe Driving". The boys watch a grisly driver's-ed film featuring two guys who seem to be grown-up versions of themselves (albeit handsomer). Naturally, they think it's cool and get into the same accident seconds after taking the wheel.
* Parodied heavily in ''WesternAnimation/CloneHigh'', where an anti-drug speaker comes to the school and talks about his experiences, advising the kids to not do drugs and recounting a particular bender. However, he notes that during said bender, he wrote a song that turned out to be hugely successful. He tries to justify this by saying he mostly spent the money on more drugs, but he also had enough left for a house for his mom, a motorboat, and a charity donation. He also muses that he smoked so many types of drugs (all of which are actually just synonyms for marijuana) that he'd have probably smoked raisins, which, naturally, convinces the student body that smoking raisins can get you high and has them immediately try it out. (It later turns out he was doing it on purpose to make teenagers buy raisins.)
* ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'' dedicated an entire ''episode'' to parodying this: "Bender Should Not Be Allowed on TV." After scamming his way onto ''[[ShowWithinAShow All My Circuits]]'', Bender starts acting like his usual {{Jerkass}} self while smoking, drinking, and being a general nuisance. The network and public love it, and children start emulating Bender's self-destructive actions, much to the annoyance of their parents (who also repeatedly remark on how cool Bender's thievery and use of violence are).
-->'''Bender (on TV, while lighting himself on fire)''': Try this, kids at home!\\
'''(on-screen subtitles)''': Don't try this, kids at home.
** Later, during his speech against himself, Bender gives the following golden lines:
--->'''Bender''': Do smoking and drinking on TV make me look cool? Of course! What about committing crimes and violence? Again, the answer is yes. But do we really want to teach our children these things?
** At one point in the episode, Dwight, Cubert, and Tinny Tim, all of whom love Bender, try smoking, drinking, and cursing to emulate him, but just end up getting sick and in trouble. Tinny Tim suggests that they commit a robbery instead--specifically, stealing from Bender himself. The conversation that follows:
--->'''Dwight''': TV gave us the idea!
--->''Sudden cut to the Futurama logo''
--->'''Bender''': You're watching ''Futurama,'' the show that does NOT advocate the '''''cool''''' crime of robbery!
** The writers even managed to sneak AnAesop into the episode. Professor Farnsworth and Hermes decide to form a protest group against Bender, who takes issue with the idea. Both Fry and Leela point out that [[JerkassHasAPoint Bender does make a good argument]] by saying that his bad behavior isn't solely to blame for kids acting poorly (as Fry puts it, "Give a little credit to our public schools!"). Later, after making the speech mentioned above, Bender reminds both the in-universe audience and the actual viewers that it's ultimately a ''parent's'' responsibility to monitor their children's TV watching and set a good example.
--->'''Bender:''' (looking directly at the viewers) Have you tried simply turning off the TV, sitting down with your children...and ''[[BreadEggsMilkSquick hitting them?]]''
** Bender also does this in the episode "The Problem With Popplers", where he tries to convince a crowd outside of a restaurant to not eat the titular aliens by listing all of the different sauces and snack deals available.
** [[WhatCouldHaveBeen A deleted plot point]] in "Free Will Hunting" explains that Bender wrote the song "DE¢I$IONZ I MADE" (which was kept in the episode as an end credits gag) to warn children not to make the bad choices he did. The lyrics:
--->''Decisions I made! Thought I was a thug!''
--->''Dropped outta school and [[AIGettingHigh smoked stuff that's like a drug!]]''
--->''A broke-down dirty homeless substance abuser,''
--->''[[BrokenAesop And now I'm richer than all y'all losers!]]''
* ''WesternAnimation/HomeMovies'': Parodied in an episode where Brendon makes an educational video telling kids not to put marbles up their noses. The kids think the idea is cool, so...
** Made even funnier because ''everybody'' who saw the film immediately tried to put marbles up their nose. Even the teacher and Brendon's mom.
** There's a similar situation in ''Little Men'' where Jo tells the children a story about a mother who warned her children not stick beans up their noses, prompting them to do just that. Jo says she stuck pebbles up her nose after hearing the story.
* ''WesternAnimation/ThePowerpuffGirls'' parodied this in the episode of "Mojo Jonesin'," where the mad genius chimp Mojo tempts a group of children with bootleg Chemical X which grants them superpowers. [[DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything The first dose was free but to continue their addiction, they have to follow his orders.]] It's an obvious send-up of a don't-do-drugs episode complete with an ending when the kids decide to give up Chemical X and warn their classmates against "X abuse." Then another kid asks what it was like. "It was AWESOME!" This is further shown when you realize that the girls (and Mojo Jojo) are partly made of this chemical.
* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'':
** Directly {{spoof|Aesop}}ed: Lisa is shown a short film where rap stars in costume represent tooth decay: they stylishly and violently set about some giant teeth, rapping all the while. Lisa comments that while the film is against tooth decay it also kinda glamorises it.
** Also parodied when Bart's class is shown a sex-ed video. "So now that we've shown you how it's done...''don't do it''."
** In the episode where Bart is working for the Mafia and leaves at the end: "Sorry, Fat Tony, I've learned that crime doesn't pay". Fat Tony replies "Yeah, maybe you're right," and then leaves in an expensive limo filled with women. His henchmen have their own limos.
** [[http://simpsons.wikia.com/wiki/The_10_Do%27s_and_500_Don%27ts_of_Knife_Safety "Don't Do What Donny Don't Does",]] an entire book meant as a ''Literature/GoofusAndGallant''-esque "what not to do" method. Most of these involve showing Donny Don't using his knife in all kinds of ways that most people would never consider, like shooting it out of a slingshot. Bart grumbles that they never let you have any fun.
** Bart and Milhouse see a stunt on TV to which they want to copy. Milhouse adds "All those disclaimers makes me want to do it more!"
** When Homer is prescribed medical marijuana, he quickly gets hooked and Lisa asks him why he suddenly loves her saxophone music.
--->'''Homer''': Now, daddy's special medicine, which you must ''never use'' because it will ''ruin your life'', lets daddy see into magical places that you will never experience. ''Ever''.
* ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark''
** Another in-fiction example: In the episode "Pinkeye," when Mrs. Cartman sends her son to school dressed as [[UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler Hitler,]] the principal shows him an educational film to [[ScareEmStraight scare him straight.]] However, the film consists solely of the message "Adolf Hitler was a very, very naughty man", followed by (untranslated) clips of his speeches and goose-stepping, saluting Nazis. There's no mention of anything evil he actually did. Cartman thinks the movie is "cool", to the point of seeing himself in place of Hitler in the video, and asks to see it again. However, given Cartman's stated anti-Semitism, he'd probably have thought it was even cooler had it been translated.
** "Major Boobage": "Schoolchildren are often experimenting with dangerous ways to get high, like sniffing glue, or huffing paint, but they're all bad, m'kay...male cats, when they're marking their territory spray a concentrated urine to fend off other male cats, and that can get you really high...like really, really, high...probably shouldn't have told you that just now, m'kay? That was probably bad."
** "Butt Out'' also parodied this but in the opposite way. An overly upbeat anti-smoking group called Butt Out, which incorporates elements of terrible dance and hip-hop into its routine, performs at the school. All the students think it's really lame and disturbing. At the end, Butt Out enthusiastically calls out, [[{{Nerd}} "If you don't smoke, you can grow up to be just like us!"]] Directly after they say this, [[SugarWiki/FunnyMoments the boys start frantically smoking.]]
** In "Sexual Healing," some of the kids ask what autoerotic asphyxiation is. The man they ask says he doesn't want to give them any ideas...but then describes it in detail, adding that it supposedly feels "really, ''really'' awesome". Three guesses how [[TheyKilledKennyAgain Kenny died]] in that episode.
** "Kick A Ginger Day" is ''not'' something that should ever have been {{defictionaliz|ation}}ed!
** Invoked in-universe when Cartman gets a fat scooter and Token and Kyle hatch a plan to make a documentary series about him. Kyle intends to warn people away from his self-destructive, fat-enabling behavior. Token, on the other hand, correctly predicts that it will become a hit along the lines of ''[[Series/HereComesHoneyBooBoo Honey Boo Boo]]'' and inspire imitators. Averted when Creator/JamesCameron ([[ThemeTune The greatest pioneer!]]) raises the bar and everyone loses interest.
** "Medical Fried Chicken" has South Park legalize medical marijuana. [[TheDitz Randy Marsh]] wants to smoke it, and gives himself testicular cancer so he will get a medical referral to allow him buy marijuana for medical purposes. The result is that Randy, and his friends, spend most of the episode happier by giving themselves cancer, even finding their testicles being enlarged by the cancer to be a benefit. Their only issue comes from when they can't enter the building to actually get any of the marijuana. And then, while the show does frame them being in the wrong for giving themselves cancer for such a short-sighted reason, StatusQuoIsGod means that the ResetButton is hit in the end and [[IdiotHoudini none of them suffer any long term consequences from it.]]
* ''WesternAnimation/RickAndMorty'' attempts to depict Rick's many vices, unstable nature, and BrokenAce characteristics in a negative light, as a kind of deconstruction of the idea of the InsufferableGenius power fantasy. But in the vast majority of episodes, Rick's flaws don't prevent him from [[ProperlyParanoid being right]] or saving the day (in fact, many plots happen because of a character not doing what Rick would do), the series operates in a CrapsackWorld, meaning many of the victims of his actions [[AssholeVictim seemingly deserve it,]] and while it's often shown that Rick's hedonistic lifestyle is leaving him an empty and miserable shell of a person, we also see all the incredibly fun and exciting bits of it where he's enjoying every minute--and top of all that, he gets all the best lines. Altogether, he's meant to be a satire of the hypercompetent EscapistCharacter, but most of the time, the audience is along for the ride--and when they're not, he's still usually somewhat sympathetic.
* ''WesternAnimation/TheIronGiant'' tries to present the message that the use of weapons of mass destruction is wrong, and in fact, it was the {{Trope Namer|s}} for IAmNotAGun. The problem is, when the titular Giant is switched into its weaponized mode, it also looks undeniably ''awesome'', which confuses the metaphor somewhat.
* Parodied on ''WesternAnimation/{{Archer}}'' with marijuana:
--> '''Archer''': And I advocate its use. As a potential role model, I advocate it.
* ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'' spoofs the trope in one episode where all the students at James Woods High are lectured on why having sex before marriage is a sinful act. Instead of taking the lesson to heart, the kids decide to have ''ear sex'' because it doesn't count and thus they still remain pure in God's eyes.
-->''You know the saying: once you go black, you go deaf.''
* ''WesternAnimation/TheBoondocks'' lampshades this in the episode "The Trial Of R. Kelly" where R. Kelly is on trial for urinating on a 14-year-old girl on video, and a news reporter mentions that said video is "widely available" on the internet, even specifically naming the website it's hosted on. Of course, Riley Freeman immediately tries to sneak off and download it.
* ''WesternAnimation/TheIncredibleCrashDummies'' franchise started life as a set of public service announcements telling kids to buckle their seatbelts. This was conveyed by the dummies getting into spectacular car accidents and exploding in cool ways, before putting themselves back together in moments, and pretty much all the toys were focused around using these car accidents as a play feature, which undermined the message just a wee bit.
* ''WesternAnimation/LadyAndTheTrampIIScampsAdventure'': Tramp tries to convince Scamp of how good he has it as a house puppy, concealing Tramp's own rakish past as a street dog.
* An episode of ''WesternAnimation/TransformersAnimated'' has Prowl picking up a suit of powerful samurai armor that upgrades his strength and gave him new abilities, but also makes him reckless and causes him to rely more on his new upgrades than his actual skills. At the end of the episode, he destroys the armor, proving that he's grown past the need for it. The problem was that "Samurai Prowl" looked incredibly cool and people fell in love with the idea--so much so that Hasbro quickly got to work in turning it into a toy. Ultimately, Prowl even gets the armor back as a late-season powerboost, with the writers rather hastily having to explain why the armor is okay ''now''.
* ''WesternAnimation/DuckTales2017'' has an InUniverse example in the episode "The Outlaw Scrooge [=McDuck=]!" Uncle Scrooge is trying to teach [[BrilliantButLazy Louie]] the value of hard work by telling a story from his past that juxtaposes Scrooge's resourcefulness and grit with John D. Rockerduck, a self-important CorruptCorporateExecutive, and Goldie O'Gilt, an [[ConArtist underhanded swindler.]] [[spoiler:In the end, Louie asks Goldie to mentor him behind Scrooge's back.]]
* Reportedly, ''WesternAnimation/{{Veggietales}}'' ran into this problem with the episode "Rack, Shack, and Benny", where an evil chocolate factory owner who has a VillainSong demanding his workers worship a giant chocolate bunny and reject morality (an adaptation of the Biblical story of Nebuchadnezzar demanding people worship him instead of God). The problem was that [[EvilIsCool said song ended up being the best part of the episode,]] so the biggest takeaway kids had was singing along with "I won't go to church, and I won't go to school!" and "I don't love my mom or my dad, just the bunny!" They ended up rereleasing the song and episode with different lyrics to downplay the more blasphemous parts and reinforce the episode's actual message...but now the song wasn't as catchy, so kids didn't care or even ''complained''.
* ''WesternAnimation/{{Arthur}}'' tends to run into this ''a lot'', typically courtesy of Arthur's parents. In "Arthur Makes A Movie", we're shown that Arthur is banned from seeing PG-13 movies, and this is portrayed as a reasonable decision by his parents. "Tales of Grotesquely Grim Bunny" is even worse. It's a not-so-subtle condemnation of the idea of kids liking horror comics (Arthur reads one due to peer pressure, and gets nightmares), but the fact that the comic itself is CreepyAwesome means that its negative portrayal backfires on many viewers.
* ''WesternAnimation/AmericanDad'' parodies this in "She Swill Survive", where a plot point in the episode involves Stan and Hayley getting drunk to numb themselves from pain before doing dangerous things like crashing cars and jumping from tall buildings. The episode ends with a PSA from [[ShowWithinAShow Stan and Hayley]]'s "[[AnimatedActors actors]]" to warn viewers... not against crashing cars or jumping off of buildings, but against doing so [[SelectiveCondemnation while drunk]].
* Hilariously used during an episode of ''Westernanimation/BobsBurgers'', when an anti-smoking assembly has the exact opposite effect on Bob and Linda because of the juggling.
-->'''Linda''': I really want a cigarette.
-->'''Bob''': I really wanna juggle.
* ''WesternAnimation/{{Kaeloo}}'' parodies this. In-universe, Stumpy and Quack Quack get addicted to [[GRatedDrug carrots that have the same effect on their bodies as tobacco]], and Mr. Cat tells Kaeloo that he can show them a PSA that is "terribly dissuasive" against carrots. The PSA in question has a doctor start to discuss the dangers of carrots, only to be shot by a cool cowboy with a gun who says that even though carrots are bad, they're "super cool". Stumpy and Quack Quack decide that carrots are actually cool because of the PSA, and immediately buy some... from Mr. Cat himself.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
* Similar to the "Marijuana is bad because it's illegal" commercials, there's an episode of ''Series/{{House}}'' in which a drug dealer is being disparaged by the team. His response is basically "So your big problem is not that it's immoral but that it's illegal. Sounds like we've got the same problem."
** ''House'' in general had this problem with the titular character. Dr. House was suppose to show it was bad to be a misanthropic, drug-addicted DrJerk, but the show never showed a serious problem with that. His boss once commented House was paid in peanuts because no one else would hire him, but you wouldn't know it from House's nice apartment, or wardrobe, or the surprisingly attractive prostitutes he hires. His drug addiction never seriously affected his ability to do his job unless he took way too much Vicodin (which usually only happened when some dramatic plot twist happened). And his terrible personality never stopped his co-workers from respecting him, his boss having the hots for him, or his best friend interacting with him.
* Although bigoted, Alf Garnett from ''Till Death Us Do Part'' was intended to be a figure of fun showing the stupidity of racism. He became a cult hero for misogynists and xenophobes. The same goes for the show's loose American remake. ''Series/AllInTheFamily'' was, officially, intended to show that bigotry is bad, but Archie Bunker came across as a fairly fun, likable guy in spite of it. The more progressive "Meathead" often came across as self-righteous.
* ''Series/MadMen'' is about deconstructing the myth of [[NostalgiaAintLikeItUsedToBe the good ol' days]] and is supposed to be about the 'dark side' of social conformism, corporate careerism, and white male privilege in [[TheSixties '60s]] white collar America. The show demonstrates this by endlessly displaying hot (and frequently undressed) women, acts of debauchery, plentiful alcohol, smoking without guilt, fabulous outfits, and snazzy Jet Age decor. Wait, there's a dark side to making tons of money and being able to tell people what to do?
* ''Series/{{Life On Mars|2006}}'', series one. The impression the viewer gets is that the first series of ''Life on Mars'' was written to paint Sam's contemporary attitudes as what the viewer was supposed to sympathise with, but the public response was overwhelmingly in favor of Gene Hunt's GoodOldWays. The second series and all of ''Series/AshesToAshes2008'' was written accordingly.
* ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer''
** The show had a subtle anti-smoking message for the first season or two -- every character who smoked either turned out to be a villain or died soon after they were introduced. But Spike, who started out as a villain, [[EnsembleDarkhorse/LiveActionTV ended up being a regular and a well-liked character]]... who often smoked cigarettes. Sexily. Faith took up smoking in the last season.
** The fourth season episode "Beer Bad" tried to show that beer was evil by turning anyone who drank it into cavemen. But the transformation ends up mostly positive for Buffy, who finally gets over being dumped after a one night stand because of it. The concept might be seen as parody, but the episode was written as a sincere grab for government anti-alcohol PSA dollars. (It didn't work.)
* The show ''Series/{{Manswers}},'' on Creator/SpikeTV, when talking about illicit drug use or other criminal activities or dangerous acts, will include a disclaimer to not do so. But if you do do it, you can get laid, according to them.
* Creator/{{Fox News|Channel}}, while more fiscally conservative than socially conservative, pays lip service to the MoralGuardians by doing stories condemning various media as "immoral" (especially on ''Series/TheOReillyFactor''). But they punctuate these condemnations with lurid video clips and bring on MsFanservice-type anchors and nagging correspondents who are more amused than angry. Thirty years ago, much of what we see on Fox News would have ''never'' been shown on basic cable. No, not even CNN. Fox [[http://www.cc.com/video-clips/p9ek5k/the-daily-show-with-jon-stewart-the-younger-games--catching-ire going after spring break]] might just [[ExaggeratedTrope take the cake]].
* When {{Comm|ieLand}}unist UsefulNotes/{{Romania}} broadcast ''Series/{{Dallas}}'', the idea was that the people would be disgusted with the pettiness and decadence of capitalism. This was, in fact, part of the reason the series was created in the first place -- you probably are supposed to be vaguely disgusted with the way the Ewings live. It didn't work in either country. What was seen was, "[[AttentionDeficitOohShiny Ooh, shiny]]! I want!" In a few years, communism fell and the USA had a MisaimedFandom for Wall Street.
* ''Series/{{Dollhouse}}'': Turning people into objects is bad! Even when they're hot, attractive objects with [[MindControlEyes blank stares]] and bare feet... oh hey, it's time to show [[spoiler:Sierra]] getting raped again!
* Done intentionally on an episode of ''Series/{{Community}}''. The main characters put on an anti-drug show for a group of elementary school children, but they love Pierce's performance as "Drugs" so much it backfires. The situation is ultimately remedied by forcing Pierce to leave and replacing him with Chang. It ends up being a ''more'' effective portrait of addiction as a result, because the children loved drugs then drugs turned on them.
* ''Series/TheWire'': For all of its social criticism on the dysfunctions of modern society, a significant portion of the show is given to the gang wars waged between extremely colorful and badass drug lords. While almost all of them come to bad ends, the big shot dealers sure seem to have a lot of fun while they're on top.
* Similarly, ''Series/BreakingBad'' has the same effect of showcasing the appealing aspects of the drug business, even when the bad parts are [[ParanoiaFuel fueled with endless paranoia]], and by contributing to the business in some form or fashion, you'll hurt so many different people along the way. And oh yeah, DrugsAreBad. But boy is it tough not to reap the rewards of selling pure meth, ain't it?
** The show's protagonist, Walter White, has been described as a deconstruction of the EscapistCharacter, by initially seeming like a fun character for the audience to project themselves onto, only for the show to depict his [[SlowlySlippingIntoEvil gradual transformation]] into a ruthless, vicious monster. Despite that, he is nevertheless depicted as an extremely intelligent and powerful villain, and one feared and respected by his peers and by the police and DEA, while the show's voice of reason, his wife Skyler is widely reviled by fans. Many viewers not unreasonably perceive White as cool (indeed, the show's creator Vince Gilligan has used the term "badass" to describe the character).
* In-universe example in ''Series/ArrestedDevelopment'' when George Sr. is invited as a "[[ScareEmStraight Scared Straight]]" speaker to talk teens out of committing crimes and going to jail. He accidentally picks the wrong Scared Straight tent and ends up talking to a group of gay teens who feel increasingly enticed by the thought of being locked up in a jail full of bad boys.
* ''Series/TheSopranos'' was even MORE realistic and de-glamorized than ''Goodfellas''. It {{lampshade|Hanging}}d that mobsters love ''The Godfather'' and ''Goodfellas''. Guess who loved it? And many viewers who weren't gangsters also missed the point and saw Tony and crew as heroes and anyone who ratted on them as deserving of death.
* Creator/MandyPatinkin left ''Series/CriminalMinds'' because he felt that this trope was in play. ''Criminal Minds'' is about people who catch horrible criminals by figuring out the mindset of those criminals -- how they think. It is a long-running, popular show. Patikin thought that the show was becoming sick fantasy fulfillment for people and couldn't be a part of it anymore.
* Occasionally played with on ''Series/TopGear'' when, for instance, the presenters solemnly (and with perfect insincerity) state that they strictly obey the speed limit at all times, or state "this is something we mustn't do" before engaging in impromptu drag races on public streets.
* In-universe in ''Series/MalcolmInTheMiddle''; Hal would tell his sons about his youthful escapades, supposedly as cautionary tales. As Lois puts it, "Cautionary tales do not end with 'It was so cool!'"
* ''Series/MythBusters'' has become the living embodiment of this trope, the hosts and cast reminding the viewers multiple times per show not to attempts the awesome and ridiculously dangerous experiments they show. Adam even promised to track down and kick the ass of anyone who tried to reproduce the million match heads burnout experiment. Their cold open and ad break cards have become "Do not try this at home" warnings after the first few seasons.
--> '''Adam:''' Remember, kids, [[LampshadeHanging no matter how much fun I'm having]], under no circumstances should you try this at home.
** A great example would be when they were test whether drafting behind a big rig to see if doing so could increase mileage. Despite the fact that they spent nearly as much time stressing how crazy attempting to draft a big rig is as they did actually testing the myth, for some people, that's just not quite enough to balance out the simple fact that ''it actually works''.
* On ''Series/{{Degrassi}}'', Ellie's storyline was meant to show people how cutting is not okay and should never be done no matter what the circumstances. However, despite this, many fans were inspired to cut after seeing Ellie do so.
* ''Series/SaturdayNightLive'''s [[ParodyCommercial false ad]] for "Amazin' Laser" was full of this. While Chris Elliot exalted the virtues of using this precise, powerful and ridiculously powerful disintegrator raygun, subtitles gave more and more precise instructions. "Do not use Amazin' Laser on live targets." "Terrorists, please do not use Amazin' Laser." "On second thought, please do not buy Amazin' Laser."
* On the Investigation Discovery channel, this happens often with the {{dramatization}}s of real crimes. The most egregious examples are the shows ''Sins and Secrets'', ''Wicked Attraction'', and ''Deadly Women''. They usually discuss how sick and wrong the killer(s) are, but they then show reenactments of their scandalous affairs by attractive actors in about as much detail as you can have on cable TV. It's so bad that some of the shows have ContentWarnings. Sometimes the softcore is accompanied by the narrator and interviewees going on about the unfaithful spouses' sexual needs and how they were being awesomely fulfilled by their lovers. And also that cheating and murder is bad, ''really.''
* ''Series/DowntonAbbey'' can really make living in TheEdwardianEra look appealing, despite occasional attempts to portray how bad women and the lower class had it. It doesn't help that most of the servants are portrayed as perfectly happy and content in their jobs, and with the sole exception of Gwen, the few who aren't are either petty and cruel, or stupid.
** In addition, in order to make the characters sympathetic to modern audiences, the creators tend to give them more modern views than most people of that era actually had. This creates the impression that Edwardian views weren't ''that'' different from our own.
* In-universe example on ''Series/EverybodyLovesRaymond'': Frank pays off his mortgage and invites the family over to celebrate. As he burns the paperwork, he declared that the bank can kiss his ass. Debra reminds him that the grandchildren are listening, and Frank replies, "Oh yeah. Kids--don't say 'ass'".
* ''Series/PowerRangersWildForce'' has strong environmental themes, as do a lot of ''Power Rangers'' seasons, but, as ''Power Rangers'' is also a marketing vehicle for toys, quite a bit of screen time is devoted to how awesome their motorcycles are and making riding motorcycles like that look fun and cool. A motorcycle even defeats Serpenterra. The message to reduce the carbon footprint is somewhat undermined by showing how great it is to drive around in fast vehicles like this. It's not helped that the motorcycles, save for the Silver Ranger's, do NOT come from the Japanese series ''Series/HyakujuuSentaiGaoranger'', so the ''Power Rangers'' producers can't play the "we were stuck with what was in the Japanese footage" card.
* Played with in the anti-alcohol episode of ''Series/{{Glee}}''. The Glee club is asked to perform a song showing the dangers of underage drinking, but they end up getting really drunk, having a great time but screwing up the assembly. The attitude of the episode is best summed up by Coach Beaste, who tells their teacher Will that drinking is fun, and kids are going to do it and it'd be hypocritical of him to lecture them on the dangers of drinking when he himself falls into the same pitfalls the students do. The lesson? Drinking is cool and fun, but you have to be responsible about it.
* Lampshaded and played with in an episode of ''Series/TheWarAtHome'', first with Dave's speech at the beginning:
-->'''Dave''': When I was a kid, all I wanted to do was sneak into "R" rated movies. In my mind, "R" stood for "really good." Nowadays, there's warnings and ratings on everything; video games, music, booze, cigarettes. You think these warnings would keep kids away from all these things. When, actually, it's sending up a flare saying, "[[RatedMForMoney Hey, look. Good stuff over here.]]\\
''(Disclaimer appears on screen: "Due to the mature subject matter, the following episode may not be suitable for all family members.")''\\
'''Dave''': ''(glances down at disclaimer)'' See? Makes you wanna watch even more, doesn't it?
** Then the main plot of the episode involves Hilary and her friend Brenda getting drunk off her parents' liquor, then Vicky worries that their drinking is a bad influence on Hilary and to Dave's annoyance, implements a rule that no one in the house can drink. Vicky only lasts two days before secretly drinking in the garage, then both Dave and Vicky get drunk off free liquor and make a scene in front of Brenda's parents, causing much embarrassment and end up lecturing Hilary that they can drink because they're the parents.
* ProfessionalWrestling is built on this. See that awesome 720 corkscrew suicide dive? [[DontTryThisAtHome Don't do that]].
* ''Series/LastWeekTonightWithJohnOliver'':
** He pokes fun at a Singapore anti-gambling ad aired the week before the 2014 World Cup in which a young child despondently tells his friends that his dad bet all their money on underdog Germany to win. The problem? In an upset victory, [[HilariousInHindsight Germany DID win]], meaning that the kid and his family are set for life! A follow-up ad was aired the next week in which the same kid reveals that his dad turned around and spent all of their winnings on more gambling, but, as Oliver points out, as long as the dad's streak keeps up, this isn't much of a problem. Even if we assume it doesn't, the [[AnAesop Aesop]] could easily be interpreted as "quit while you're ahead" or maybe "take half of a big windfall and put it into something responsible like a college fund or a house and then let the other half ride" as opposed to "gambling is bad."
** Another episode where he talks about the drug scare of the 1980's features a segment where he tries to deduce the message of ''WesternAnimation/CartoonAllStarsToTheRescue''.
--->'''John:''' Listen, if you do drugs, all your favorite cartoon characters will show up and talk to you. Is that what you want? Is that what you want!?
* ''Series/SonsOfAnarchy'' is yet another example of this, like many modern crime series. The series is suppose to show the stressful, painful, and tragic lives of SAMCRO and the people whom are associated with them, because of secrets, lies, backstabbing, and murder. The storyline is based off ''{{Theatre/Hamlet}}''. However, the show also glamorizes the biker gang culture. SAMCRO are shown as misunderstood, anti-heroes whom are protecting a small town from negative outside influences - when they are just career criminals. Drugs, booze, and loose women are promoted as being plentiful and great fun for inspiring bike enthusiast. Even being a CorruptCop is cool, as long as that cop is being corrupt for their friends.
* In the [[DrugsAreBad anti-marijuana]] ''Series/AfterschoolSpecial'' episode "Stoned", Scott Baio plays an uptight and unpopular high school student who [[TheStoner starts smoking pot]] moderately and then learns to loosen up, makes some friends, meets a pretty girl and saves his brother's life after a potentially fatal boating accident.
* ''Series/{{Narcos}}'' ran into some similar problems like ''Series/BreakingBad'' only this show is based on real-life drug lords such as Pablo Escobar. His son, Sebastian Marroquin, accused the show [[https://sg.news.yahoo.com/pablo-escobars-son-slams-tv-series-glorifying-criminals-002102462.html for glorifying drug lords after young people are asking him on how to be like his late father]].
* ''Series/ThirteenReasonsWhy'' caused this reaction among some [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/13_Reasons_Why#Social_impact critics]], leading to schools sending warnings home to parents and Netflix adding extra ContentWarnings. The show's graphic depiction of Hannah's suicide, as well as the tapes she left behind explaining how the people at her school caused her suicide is part of the reason. Critics claim that, instead of raising awareness of bullying, this may cause already vulnerable teens to think that suicide will solve all their problems (since, in the end, Hannah's tapes achieve her desired outcome of making everyone who wronged her feel guilty).
* An episode of ''Series/JoanOfArcadia'' had an in-universe deconstruction of the trope. The Girardi kids learn that Will once shot and killed a robber during a bank heist. Luke remarks "Dad blew a guy away. That's so cool"--and Will ''immediately'' [[BerserkButton rips into the teen for saying it]]. He goes on to explain that the fact that he killed a man is the precise opposite of cool, and how he's still struggling with the guilt of leaving a man's family to bury their loved one, regardless of his being a criminal.
* InUniverse on the ''Series/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit'' episode [[Recap/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnitS8E7Underbelly "Underbelly"]]. Belinda says she got the idea to go into prostitution from watching ''Film/PrettyWoman'' over and over.
* Parodied in ''Series/ParksAndRecreation'' when Andy and Leslie go to TP the house of the kid who broke into City Hall and TP'd their office:
--> '''Leslie:''' This is really fun! (Looks at camera) But I don't condone it!
* Played with in ''Series/TheInbetweeners'' when the boys (bar Will) decide to experiment with marijuana:
-->'''Jay:'''You're a mummy's boy. Go on, petal, have a puff. Show us you're not scared.
-->'''Will:'''I would, but I don't actually smoke because...what's that thing you get when you smoke?
-->'''Neil:''' Sex?
-->'''Will:''' No, cancer, Neil.
** Subverted by the end of the episode, as Will caves into peer pressure and ends up embarrassing himself, while Simon gets a mouthful of someone else's vomit, Neil blacks out and Jay has an attack of paranoia.
* ''Series/TheShield'' often got accused of this. as while it wasn't trying to endorse Vic Mackey and the Strike Team's long-list of crimes (as evidenced by the fact that he kills a cop in the FIRST episode so he won't rat on the team), they ended up with a lot of defenders. This included many real-life cops, much to the disturbance of Creator/ShawnRyan, many of whom said that Terry deserved to be killed for "being a rat". Part of this is the fact that Vic's methods--while extreme--are often shown to be justified: the criminals he kills and brutalizes are often FAR worse then anyone on the team, and it's made clear that several criminals would've gotten off scot-free without Vic's illegal methods. Plus, the team are often shown reaping the rewards of their criminal enterprise with hot women, money and other benefits. When Creator/ForestWhitaker played IA agent Kavanaugh, who was trying to take down Vic, he was shocked by how much hate his character got and how much hate mail he received from Vic fans (which was rumored to have been the inspiration for his infamous "pissing" speech).

[[/folder]]