History Main / IllNeverTellYouWhatImTellingYou

* When Volgin tortures Snake in ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid3SnakeEater'', he insists that Snake is after "the legacy." Snake actually doesn't know what he is talking about, so Volgin brags of what it is and where he's hidden it. Cue TheMole, currently in the room with them, going to steal it for themselves.

** In "Secrets of a Succesful Marriage" Homer tries to keep a story about an "anonymous" couple by calling them "Mr. X" and "Mrs. Y".

* ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog'':

* ''[[VideoGame/ShadowHearts Shadow Hearts: Covenant]]''

* A TextbookHumor joke paper on Arxiv (by a reknowned cosmologist), researching the variation of pi over time, concludes with the following crowner: "A number of colleagues were kind enough to commenton the manuscript. For some reason they did not want me to use their names, so I will identify them by their initials:". Followed by their full names...

* In ''FanFic/ThisBites'', Garp does this twice [[spoiler: on the SBS]], first about Luffy's parentage, and then about [[spoiler: Vivi's Sovereign Will.]]

* A ''Series/MadTV'' sketch has the following exchange:

* ''Videogame/FinalFantasyVII'' plays with this trope a bit, if this is the right trope; Elena doesn't exactly tell you what she's denying, but she does continue to tell you the enemy's plans verbatim after being told explicitly that she talks too much...for telling you the enemy's plans verbatim.

[[quoteright:317:[[ComicStrip/RipHaywire https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/haywire.png]]]]

* ''Series/DadsArmy'', regarding Pike's name:
-->"Don't tell him, Pike!"

* The ''Wiki/SCPFoundation'' entry [[http://www.scp-wiki.net/scp-4357-j SCP-4357-J]] is a demon that keeps mocking the Foundation employees for the insufficient attempts they make at containing it. And, in the process, keeps revealing how to make its containment more effective. In some cases, it improves its own containment itself. Once it is so thoroughly contained that it cannot escape, it is asked why it didn't escape before all the changes to its containment were made. Cue {{Angrish}} as the demon realizes that it has no good answer.

* Seen in an episode of ''ComicBook/LuckyLuke'', unsurprisingly by [[TooDumbToLive Averell]].
* In ''WesternAnimation/AdventuresOfSonicTheHedgehog'', Robotnik captured Tails and used him as a bargaining chip to convince Sonic to deliberately lose a race, which will have every member of a sheep race put into slavery. It works until Sonic demands Grounder (his opponent) to reveal where Tails is. Grounder responds, "You'll never find him under the arena."

* This was done in a ''WesternAnimation/SylvesterTheCatAndTweetyBird'' cartoon. Sylvester has immobilized the dogs in a dog pound, and Tweety wants to know how to break the spell. Sylvester's reply: "You expect me to tell you that the only way to wake them up is with a police whistle?" Sylvester then clamps an upside-down glass over Tweety while the bird was in his paw, silencing Tweety's whistle. Unfortunately for Sylvester, Tweety happens to have a straight-pin with him.

* In one ''WesternAnimation/DangerMouse'' episode, Penfold is hypnotized into going with Danger Mouse in a roller coaster ride and not telling anyone it was a trap. While in trance, he constantly mentioned in front of Danger Mouse he'd never tell anyone it was a trap. Because of how much the show follows the RuleOfFunny, Danger Mouse didn't suspect a thing until Penfold broke free from the trance and "told" him it was a trap.
* In an episode of ''WesternAnimation/GoofTroop'', Goofy tells a group of criminals, "I'll tell you where I live, but I'll never tell you where ''my next door neighbor'' Pete lives".
* It happened to Slushhead at least once in ''WesternAnimation/TheNewAdventuresOfHeMan''. During a peace meeting with the Galactic Guardians, he slips the fact that the meeting is just a diversion while Skeletor and Flogg attack Primus.
* In the ''WesternAnimation/GravityFalls'' episode "Little Dipper", Soos tells an enraged Gideon, "You'll never find Stan, on the second door to the left down the hall... Uh, wait, why did I say that?"
* In an episode of ''WesternAnimation/CareBears1980s'', Treat Heart and a young girl are in No Heart's castle, trying to find a potion that will help them shrink giant vines that have captured their friends, when Beastly appears. They ask him if he knows where it is and Beastly says that he is not going to tell them that it is "next to the dumb-dumb pills."
* Mr. Peevly gives Bananas the Gorilla a stalk of bananas for his friendship to WesternAnimation/TheHairBearBunch (episode "Panda Pandemonium"), assured that he'd never tell the keepers to where the bears escaped.

* In the ''WesternAnimation/GravedaleHigh'' episode "Night of the Living Dad", Gill Waterman accidentally lets slip that Marty is a fake dad that Frankentyke made to prevent everyone from finding out that his real dad is the human scientist who created him.

* In the ''WesternAnimation/JellyJamm'' episode "My Little Queen", Bello tries to blame Mina for the Queen becoming a kid again. Mina then posits the possibility it was Bello, leading to Goomo (who saw what had really happened) saying this line:

* In ''WesternAnimation/StarTrekLowerDecks'', a Pakled comes aboard the ''Cerritos'' requesting asylum, but the crew quickly figures out that he's a spy, simply because he's so terrible at it. They give him the runaround. After returning him to Pakled Planet (that's the actual name of their homeworld), he triumphantly admits to being a spy to Captain Freeman, while stating that he learned a lot (he didn't) while also not revealing Pakled secrets. Thinking quickly, Freeman asks what exactly he didn't reveal, causing him to blurt out the Pakled plan to bomb Earth.

* In the ''WesternAnimation/WordGirl'' episode "[[Recap/WordGirlS1E2YouCantCrushCityHallTwoBrainHighway You Can't Crush City Hall]]", the titular heroine finds out about the secret code to deactivate Chuck's sandwich press, which threatens to destroy city hall, in this manner.

* ''Machinima/RedVsBlue: Recreation'' has Sarge pulling several in a row early in the series, when trying to warn Donut, "captured" by Caboose, not to tell him about their new vehicle or hologram chamber. Of course, since this is [[TheDitz Caboose]] we're dealing with, nothing comes of it.

* The two-headed biker in ''WesternAnimation/{{The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie}} in denying ever having visited the Goofy Goober, moments before getting beaten senseless by every able bodied patron of the bar.
-->'''Two-Headed Biker:''' It was him! Uh, he did it! I've never even eatten at *singing* GOOFY GOOFY, GOOBER GOOBERS, YEAH!

* The two-headed biker in ''WesternAnimation/{{TheSpongeBobSquarePantsMovie}} in denying ever having visited the Goofy Goober, moments before getting beaten senseless by every able bodied patron of the bar.
-->'''Two-Headed Biker:''' It was him! Uh, he did it! I've never even eatten at *singing* GOOFY GOOFY, GOOBER GOOBERS, YEAH!

* ''WesternAnimation/TheWackyAdventuresOfRonaldMcdonald'': In the final video "The Monster O'[=McDonaldland=] Loch", Grimace pleads Birdie to not tell anyone about his fear of ducks, forgetting that the rest of the [=McDonaldland=] gang can hear him.

* The breakout hit of ''WesternAnimation/{{Encanto}}'', "We Don't Talk About Bruno," consists entirely of people talking about the character they don't talk about.

* In the ''WesternAnimation/WordGirl'' episode "[[Recap/WordGirlS1E2YouCantCrushCityHallTwoBrainHighway You Can't Crush City Hall]]", the titular hero finds out about the secret code to deactivate Chuck's sandwich press, which threatens to destroy city hall, in this manner.

** Happens in ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure2'' when Eggman finally has Sonic and Tails where he wants them, and just needs the real Chaos Emerald to complete his scheme. (He had earlier picked up two emerald energy signatures, so he had reason to beleive there was a fake ermerald.) Sonic sees through it. Tails... not so much.

'''Mxyzptlk:''' ''Not'' "Kltpzyxm"! Mxyztplk! Now the first thing I'm gonna do... ahh nuts! (''poof!'')

--->'''Pieman:''' No trap can hold Homer Simpson! Uh, but I'm not Homer Simpson... I'm the Pieman! [[WhatAnIdiot Homer Simpson away! I mean, the Pieman.]]

* ''Series/AmericanAuto'' has an episode ("White Van") where the FBI comes to Payne Motors for help tracking down a serial killer who's driving one of their minivans. After an interview on the subject, Katherine decides to not help them. Cyrus meets with the agents and explains how he can track the minivan on his laptop, but refuses to show them. He does, however, direct their attention to the mirror behind him (and helpfully point out that the screen's image would be reversed).

* In an episode of ''WesternAnimation/CareBears'', Treatheart and a young girl are in No-Heart's castle, trying to find a potion that will help them shrink giant vines that have captured their friends, when Beastly appears. They ask him if he knows where it is and Beastly says that he is not going to tell them that it is "next to the dumb-dumb pills."

* ''VideoGame/PaperMarioTheThousandYearDoor'':
** Professor Frankley says "I don't think we can trust this [[SealedEvilInACan box]]. We'd better not tell it we're looking for the [[PlotCoupon Crystal Stars]]."
** Invoked by TEC, an intelligent computer. His programming forbids him from sharing secret information with prisoners. He gets around this by giving a multiple-choice quiz about the X-Nauts' plans and saying if the answer is right or wrong.