History Main / PrankPunishment

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheTofus'' episode "Out, Out, Fake Spot!", when Chichi [[PlayingSick fakes illness]] to skip a math test, [[HippieParents his eco-hippie parents]] catch on with it, [[ObfuscatingStupidity but pretend that they fell for it]] and subject him to exotic "alternative medicine" treatments, like having his feet licked by goats.
* ''WesternAnimation/TheAdventuresOfJimmyNeutronBoyGenius'': In "The Phantom of Retroland", after Jimmy's parents discover that he snuck out with his friends to debunk the mystery of the titular Phantom, they get back at him by pretending to be the Phantom themselves and scaring the kids away. [[spoiler: [[LaserGuidedKarma Ironically, they then encounter]] the ''[[RealAfterAll REAL]]'' Phantom, sending the two fleeing in terror as the episode ends.]]

* In the ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'' episode "Hooky", after his warnings about the dangers of hooks are ignored by Patrick and Spongebob [[note]]although much less by the latter, who does try to listen to Mr. Krabs and take his words into consideration[[/note]], Mr. Krabs resorts to a combination of this and ScareEmStraight. He gets Squidward to catch [=SpongeBob=]'s pants on a hook, then when [=SpongeBob=] comes running to him for help, Krabs tells him that the only thing he can do is take off his pants -- in front of Pearl and her friends. And so, poor [=SpongeBob=] learns the hard way to never play with hooks again, at the cost of his dignity.
** Done again in ''The Other Patty'', where Mr. Krabs and Plankton are having another one of their disputes, so [=SpongeBob=] creates a new kind of Krabby Patty called the "Flabby Patty" to get them to work together and steal it due to the recipe being better than both of their own. Eventually, [=SpongeBob=] reveals that he was behind the act, and Mr. Krabs and Plankton decide to [[{{ExactWords}} "work together"]] to get [=SpongeBob=]

* One episode of ''WesternAnimation/KingOfTheHill'' has Bobby and Luanne get into a prank war. After Bobby replaces Luanne's birth control pills with children's vitamins, Hank and Peggy get involved. First, Luanne tells Bobby that she has to take those pills to avoid becoming pregnant (conveniently leaving out the part that she also has to have sex) and since she couldn't, Bobby now has to marry her. After the ceremony with Bill officiating, Luanne asks when they're going to reveal the prank. They then tell Luanne that they just discovered that Bill was an ordained minister so the marriage is now legal. They decide to let Bobby and Luanne sort things out before telling them he wasn't.

* [[https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=S1d6y53_FQQ Stories abound]] of military personnel being ordered to do something humiliating as a punishment, to the amusement of everyone on base. This is based on the fact that the "official" punishment involves a ton of paperwork, so giving them something funny to do is much more satisfying.

These sorts of punishments are usually non-malicious in nature, and often given by a mentor or a parental figure. Say, if you cheat during your magic exam, your wizard mentor would cast a spell on you... causing you to speak with a funny VerbalTic. If you disobey your parents, they will not shout at you or ground you... but instead tell you that they've bought you one very cool thing today, but now that you've disobeyed them, [[LovesSecrecy this thing will remain secret till your birthday]]. If you quarrel with [[TricksterGirlfriend your girlfriend]], she will not break up with you... but [[FriendlyScheming will orchestrate an elaborate prank]] to make you realize/think you were wrong.

* The 1968 movie ''Film/GreatCatherine'', based on the eponymous play by Creator/GeorgeBernardShaw, features a flirtatious version of this. When the titular Empress orders the British ambassador to come to her and he disobeys, she orders to tie him up and take to her private torture chamber... [[FriendlyTickleTorture where she "tortures" him by tickling with her bare foot]]. As a condition for getting him untied, she tells him [[IKissYourFoot to kiss her foot]], [[SlapSlapKiss and after that, they spend a passionate night of love]].

* In ''Literature/TheVoyageOfTheDawnTreader'', [[EccentricMentor the magician Coriakin]] turned the Duffers ([[OurGnomesAreDifferent a kind of gnome]] he was assigned to govern) into funny one-legged creatures called Monopods as a playful punishment for disobeying him and doing stupid things like planting boiled potatoes (so they wouldn't have to be cooked after) and washing dishes ''before'' the meal. One interpretation is that he wanted them to understand how ridiculously they behaved by making them ''look'' just as ridiculous. (They still didn't get it.)

* In ''Literature/TheVoyageOfTheDawnTreader'', [[EccentricMentor the magician Coriakin]] turned the Duffers ([[OurGnomesAreDifferent a kind of gnomes]] he was assigned to govern) into funny one-legged creatures called Monopods as a playful punishment for disobeying him and doing stupid things like planting boiled potatoes (so they wouldn't have to be cooked after) and washing dishes ''before'' the meal. One interpretation is that he wanted them to understand how ridiculously they behaved by making them ''look'' just as ridiculous. (They still didn't get it.)

* In one early episode of ''Series/NotGoingOut'', Lucy announces that she is pregnant, much to the shock of Lee, who had [[ADateWithRosiePalms ejaculated into her bathwater]] and now fears he is the father. When he reluctantly admits the deed to Lucy, she initially reacts with horror and tells him to GetOut, then reveals that she knew about it the whole time, and the "pregnancy" was just a prank to get back at him for it.

* ''Series/HomeImprovement'': Brad and Randy convince Mark that the family (sans Mark) are aliens. Tim convinces Mark to let him and Jill stage an actual alien invasion (with the help of a strobelight, a hazmat suit, and [[Music/IronButterfly Inna-Gadda-Da-Vida]]), which freaks the boys out.

* ''Series/HomeImprovement'': Brand and Randy convince Mark that the family (sans Mark) are aliens. Tim convinces Mark to let him and Jill stage an actual alien invasion (with the help of ''Music/IronButterfly''), which freaks the boys out.

* Every episode of ''Series/ImpracticalJokers'' ends with the Jokers pulling a grandiose prank, called a punishment, on whichever Joker lost the most challenges in that episode. These punishments often place the losing Joker in [[CringeComedy awkward public situations]] and are sometimes tailored to [[WhyDidItHaveToBeSnakes each Joker's specific fears]].

* The 1968 movie ''Great Catherine'', based on the eponymous play by Creator/GeorgeBernardShaw, features a flirtatious version of this. When the titular Empress orders the British ambassador to come to her and he disobeys, she orders to tie him up and take to her private torture chamber... [[FriendlyTickleTorture where she "tortures" him by tickling with her bare foot]]. As a condition for getting him untied, she tells him [[IKissYourFoot to kiss her foot]], [[SlapSlapKiss and after that, they spend a passionate night of love]].

* In the ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'' episode "Hooky", after his warnings about the dangers of hooks are ignored by Patrick and Spongebob [[note]]although much less by the latter, who does try to listen to Mr. Krabs and take his words into consideration[[/note]], Mr. Krabs resorts to a combination of this and ScareEmStraight. He gets Squidward to catch [=SpongeBob=]'s pants on a hook, then when [=SpongeBob=] comes running to him for help, Krabs tells him that the only thing he can do is take off his pants -- in front of a gaggle of girls. Poor [=SpongeBob=] is left humiliated, terrified, and naked.

* In ''TheWarWithLilliputians'', when Alice and Pashka try to fend off Granny Lucretia by telling her that they have to care after "skunusiks" (a fictional breed of animals), Lucretia pretends to believe them and creates holographic images of fantastic monsters to convince them that their lie came to life.