History Main / NeverGiveTheCaptainAStraightAnswer

Occasionally, [[JustifiedTrope some rationale]] is offered. Perhaps the person who encountered the weirdness is simply too stunned to explain what's going on. Another possibility is that the situation is too sensitive to discuss over a possibly insecure line of communication. Or perhaps the person who encountered the weirdness doesn't ''know'' what's going on, and is calling someone who might be able to figure it out. May also be a case of YouWouldntBelieveMeIfIToldYou.

Variation crops up in most SpaceOpera. Though less common in other genres, it still occasionally shows up as a way to perform the RoomShuffle in response to an unexpected guest or sudden crisis (Often phrased as, "There's {{no time to explain}}, just get here right away!"), or to hold off TheReveal until the moment of maximum [[RuleofDrama drama]]. Can lead to some FridgeLogic that if this ship is the WeirdnessMagnet that it has a reputation of being, why isn't there any training to reflect that? Compare FigureItOutYourself.

* In ''Film/{{Predator}}'', the fact that the person doesn't give a clear description is played for drama. Hawkins is the first member of Dutch's team to be taken by the alien, but all Poncho can find is a pile of internal organs rotting on the ground. When he returns to report, Poncho can barely comprehend what he has seen.

** Invoked in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS12E1Robot "Robot"]]. The Brigadier tries to explain to the Doctor what the situation is like before he leaves, but the Doctor refuses to have any of it for DramaQueen reasons:

* ''Series/TheFall'': A technician examining Spector's computer interrupts Gibson while she's watching one of the interrogations, telling her there's some videos on it that she'd better see.

* ''Series/AmericanGreed'' In "From Bouncer to Millionaire Fraudster" it is described as happening in real life as when the authorities search Cohen's house for evidence of his fraud one of the agents tells his supervisor "she has to see this book". When she asks what it is, (assuming he's found an incriminating ledger) he insisted on her seeing it with her eyes without him describing it. It's a list of his targets for the killing spree he's planning.

** Subverted in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS31E4TheTimeOfAngels "The Time of Angels"]]. Christian and Bob request clarification when told to "Come and see" by a squadmate: "It's not a school trip. Just tell me." [[spoiler:It is, in fact, the Weeping Angel — using their companions' voices. They still come and see, and it still kills them.]]

** Subverted in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS31E4TheTimeOfAngels "The Time of Angels"]]. Christian and Bob request clarification when told to "Come and see" by a squadmate: "It's not a school trip. Just tell me." [[spoiler:It is, in fact, the Weeping Angel — using their companions' voices. It still kills them.]]

* ''Franchise/WonderWoman'' [[ComicBook/WonderWoman1942 Vol 1]]: For whatever reason the communications officer felt the need to call Suprema and every other officer out of the room to hear the broadcast that explained why their earth prisoners were really there and how the Green Geni had broadcast a lying call to help to earth that painted the space police as the villains. By the time they return to the room to apologize and explain the misunderstanding Diana and the Holliday Girls had escaped and gone to the Geni.
* [[JustifiedTrope Justified]] in the 2008 [[ComicStrip/DanDare Dan Dare]] miniseries, as Sergeant-major Wallis doesn't want to announce to the already rather shaken civilians present that a horde of monsters is coming their way.

[[folder:Films — Animated]]

[[folder:Films — Live-Action]]

* Inverted in ''Series/StargateSG1''. In "Fallen", SG-3 come across someone who appears to be one of the natives of Vis Uban, but turns out to be an amnesiac Daniel Jackson, [[spoiler:post-descension]]. The next scene involves SG-3 showing up and informing Jack O'Neill that "we found something you might want to see," but rather than making him go anywhere, it turns out that they actually brought Daniel along with them so he immediately enters the scene. It's not even drawn out for [[TheReveal drama]]; the audience clearly sees that it's Daniel in the same instant that SG-3 recognize him initially.

** ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration''. In "Skin of Evil" a monster made of sludge rises out of a pool of slime. When Commander Riker is ordered to report on the situation, all he can come up with is, "Trouble."

** Ditto on ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'' when Major Kira commanding the ''Defiant'' returns through the wormhole where, on the station, Commander Sisko asks the major what she found. Kira, visibly terrified, says, "Trouble!"
** And again when Odo calls Sisko to the promenade, saying that he'll "let [Sisko] be the judge" of whether or not what's going on is a problem. Somewhat {{Justified}} in that what's happening is that Kira's been possessed by a Prophet, and Sisko, who knows them best, really is the best judge on if it's a problem.
** Justified in the ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries'' episode "[[Recap/StarTrekS3E2TheEnterpriseIncident The Enterprise Incident]]", when Dr. [=McCoy=] calls Scotty (currently in command) to sick bay to let him in on a situation (that Kirk's supposed insanity and death were faked as part of a secret mission) that can't be discussed over an open intercom.

* In the ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'' episode [[Recap/SupernaturalS02E21AllHellBreaksLoosePartOne "All Hell Breaks Loose, Part One" (S02, Ep21)]], Ash insists Dean comes to the Roadhouse to find out what he has learned about the Yellow-Eyed Demon, but this may be a JustifiedTrope as he did not feel comfortable discussing his discovery over a phone line.

-->'''Minion''': There's trouble. You better come upstairs.

* Parodied by [[http://chainsawsuit.com/comic/2014/07/14/the-star-trek-dilemma/ this]] ''Webcomic/{{Chainsawsuit}}'' strip.

Given that it was the ship's ''doctor'' and not the engineer who answered, and given the very personal nature of the situation, discretion was called for and the trope is justified. Then again, it's still played straight to the hilt: we did just pull the captain off the bridge in a crisis situation, ostensibly with no explanation, after all.

* ''War Junkie'' by Jon Steele. "Trust me, words cannot describe what is coming up the road." [[spoiler:In this case, an air-to-surface missile launcher from a helicopter gunship, mounted on the back of a goods truck.]]

But this is TV, and we need TheCaptain in this scene. That is why you Never Give the Captain a Straight Answer. Instead, you say something like, "You'd better come see for yourself," or the ubiquitous "Sir, I think you'd better (come) see this...", giving the character a reason to enter the scene, with the added bonus of allowing a surprised reaction to the crisis when he arrives.

* ''Series/AmericanGreed'' In "From Bouncer to Millionaire Fraudster" it is described as happening in real life as when the authorities search Cohen's house for evidence of his fraud one of the agents tells his supervisor "she has to see this book". When she asks what it is, (assuming he's found an incriminating ledger) he insister on her seeing it with her eyes without him describing it. It's a list of his targets for the killing spree he's planning.

* ''Series/American Greed'' In "From Bouncer to Millionaire Fraudster" it is described as happening in real life as when the authorities search Cohen's house for evidence of his fraud one of the agents tells his supervisor "she has to see this book". When she asks what it is, (assuming he's found an incriminating ledger) he insister on her seeing it with her eyes without him describing it. It's a list of his targets for the killing spree he's planning.

* Creator/DeanKoontz's ''Literature/{{Phantoms}}''. In one house Deputy Frank Autry finds a room with bullets (not complete cartidges, just the part that shoots out of the gun) all over the floor. He realizes that they're all of the bullets that have been fired at the mystery monster during the book. He calls his superior Sheriff Bryce Hammond on the radio.

* Apparently averted in the fifth season finale of ''Series/GameOfThrones'' when Pip comes to tell Jon that his uncle Benjen has returned to Castle Black. Subverted [[spoiler:when he follows Pip outside and learns, too late, that it's really just a ploy to set up his assassination]].

** The first time occurs after the alien facehugger releases itself from Kane's face and disappears.

'''Ash:''' Interesting.

* In ''Film/{{Predestination}}'', when the Barkeeper offers John to try his real job, the latter asks what his job was but the Barkeeper refuses to explain right out.

* Happens in the first ''Literature/ArtemisFowl'', although in a subversion both people are in the same room, and Foaly tells Commander Root to come look at the screen instead of explaining that [[spoiler:Butler is putting on a suit of medieval armor in order to fight a troll.]]

* ''ComicBook/WonderWoman1942'': For whatever reason the communications officer felt the need to call Suprema and every other officer out of the room to hear the broadcast that explained why their earth prisoners were really there and how the Green Geni had broadcast a lying call to help to earth that painted the space police as the villains. By the time they return to the room to apologize and explain the misunderstanding Diana and the Holliday Girls had escaped and gone to the Geni.