History Main / RelievedFailure

* ''Series/TheTwilightZone'' episode "[[Recap/TheTwilightZoneS3E70AGameOfPool A Game of Pool]]" ends with Jesse Cardiff winning a hard-won game against the ghost of Fats Brown and becoming the new pool champion... and yet, Fats is smiling in relief. It turns out he'd grown tired of having to defend his title from beyond the grave, though his role as a champion forbade him from just throwing the match; he genuinely wanted someone to beat him fair and square, and Jesse has obliged him. The epilogue reveals that [[PyrrhicVictory Jesse is now trapped in the role of pool champion long after his death]], while Fats is finally free to spend his afterlife fishing.

* At the end of ''Theatre/{{November}}'', President Smith decides to commit career suicide by officiating a wedding between his head speechwriter and her girlfriend (the play was written back in 2007, [[SocietyMarchesOn before the national Defense of Marriage Act was repealed]].) He knows that by breaking a federal law and officiating a same-sex marriage, he will alienate voters and lose re-election, but decides that being President is too stressful and offers too few opportunities for graft.

* In the short story ''A Time For Heroes,'' a guard is ordered to prevent HeroicWannabe Prince Daras from going on a foolhardy quest to rescue his fiancée from an EvilSorcerer. To that end, the guard is entrusted with using any means necessary to keep the prince from leaving his room... but at the same time, [[ImpossibleTask he's also ordered not to harm Daras or even offend him]], ''and'' warned that he will be punished for disrespecting the royal heir in any way. As such, when Daras opts to [[TheGuardsMustBeCrazy invite the guard into his room and knock him out]], the guard is immensely relieved to have found a third option.

* In the short story ''A Time For Heroes," a guard is ordered to prevent HeroicWannabe Prince Daras from going on a foolhardy quest to rescue his fiancée from an EvilSorcerer. To that end, the guard is entrusted with using any means necessary to keep the prince from leaving his room... but at the same time, [[ImpossibleTask he's also ordered not to harm Daras or even offend him]], ''and'' warned that he will be punished for disrespecting the royal heir in any way. As such, when Daras opts to [[TheGuardsMustBeCrazy invite the guard into his room and knock him out]], the guard is immensely relieved to have found a third option.

* ''Series/AmericanHorrorStoryHotel'' eventually reveals that Iris and the other staff members of the Cortez have been actively hiding the AwfulTruth from Detective John Lowe: [[spoiler: he's actually the Ten Commandments Killer and James March's apprentice, having been corrupted into his service many years ago.]] However, when John turns up at the front desk and reveals that the secret's finally out, Iris sighs with relief and mutters "oh thank ''Jesus,"'' admitting that she'd gotten tired of constantly lying to him.

* ''Series/AmericanHorrorStoryHotel'' eventually reveals that Iris and the other staff members of the Cortez have been actively the AwfulTruth from Detective John Lowe: [[spoiler: he's actually the Ten Commandments Killer and James March's apprentice.]] However, when John turns up at the front desk and admits that the secret's out, Iris sighs with relief and mutters "oh thank ''Jesus,"'' admitting that she'd gotten tired of constantly lying to him.
* In ''Series/HouseOfCardsUK'', Prime Minister Henry Collingridge is forced to step down from his position after barely a few months in office, having been undermined in a series of scandals engineered by [[VillainProtagonist Francis Urquhart]]. Though Henry has fought valiantly to clear his name from all accusations and is visibly crestfallen at his defeat, he's secretly relieved to be out of his joyless tenure as PM -- to the point of privately breaking down in tears and admitting that he's glad he doesn't have to "fight those bastards anymore."

* ''Series/TheTwilightZone'' episode "[[Recap/TheTwilightZoneS3E70AGameOfPool A Game of Pool]]" ends with Jesse Cardiff winning a hard-won game against the ghost of Fats Brown and becoming the new pool champion... and yet, Fats is smiling in relief. It turns out he'd grown tired of having to defend his title from beyond the grave, though his professional dignity forbade him from just throwing the match; he genuinely wanted someone to beat him fair and square, and Jesse has obliged him. The epilogue reveals that [[PyrrhicVictory Jesse is now trapped in the role of pool champion long after his death]], while Fats is finally free to spend his afterlife fishing.

* People are sometimes relieved at the idea of placing a loved one in long-term care when caring for them becomes too much of a challenge.

Compare DeliberateUnderPerformance, SpringtimeForHitler, and HappilyFailedSuicide.

* Sometimes, people whose lives are touched by chronic or terminal illness --- or even persecution -- are relieved at the end of their lives by the prospect of not having to deal with their suffering any longer.

* One early scene in Shakespeare’s ''Theatre/{{HenryV}}'' features three English nobles who have been bribed by the French to kill King Henry. When the king reveals that he knows all about their plots, they claim that they are glad that they failed to commit the sin of regicide and [[FaceDeathWithDignity face death with dignity.]]

* One early scene in Shakespeare’s Henry V features three English nobles who have been bribed by the French to kill King Henry. When the king reveals that he knows all about their plots, they claim that they are glad that they failed to commit the sin of regicide and [[FaceDeathWithDignity face death with dignity.]]

* One early scene in Shakespeare’s Henry V features three English nobles who have been bribed by the French to kill King Henry. When the king reveals that he knows all about their plots, they claim that they are glad that they failed to commit the sin of regicide and [[FacingDeathWithDignity face death with dignity.]]

See also KnowWhenToFoldEm, which may result in this trope.

* In Music/JohnnyCash's "A Satisfied Mind," the narrator remarks that he used to be rich and famous, but eventually [[RichesToRags lost everything in an undisclosed incident]]. Now he's much happier without his wealth, being finally satisfied with what he has -- knowing that it's almost impossible to find "one rich man in ten with [[TitleDrop a satisfied mind]]."

* Played with in ''Series/AmericanHorrorStoryAsylum'': during the episode "[[Recap/AmericanHorrorStoryS02E11SpiltMilk Spilt Milk]]", the SerialKiller Bloody Face AKA [[spoiler: Dr Oliver Thredson]] is finally defeated when Lana escapes from Briarcliff and reveals his true identitty to the police. Finding himself cornered in his home by a gun-toting Lana with the police following close behind, he smiles and admits to being relieved at no longer having to keep secrets. Given that he's a ConsummateLiar, however, it's impossible to tell if he's being serious or just lying to get Lana's guard down. [[spoiler: The latter is likely, given that his final act is to make a grab for a hidden pistol right before Lana guns him down.]]

* Played with in ''Series/AmericanHorrorStoryAsylum'': during the episode "[[Recap/AmericanHorrorStoryS02E11SpiltMilk Spilt Milk]]", the SerialKiller Bloody Face AKA [[spoiler: Dr Oliver Thredson]] is finally defeated when Lana escapes from Briarcliff and reveals his true identity to the police. Finding himself cornered in his home by a gun-toting Lana with the police following close behind, he smiles and admits to being relieved at no longer having to keep secrets. Given that he's a ConsummateLiar, however, it's impossible to tell if he's being serious or just lying to get Lana's guard down. [[spoiler: The latter is likely, given that his final act is to make a grab for a hidden pistol right before Lana guns him down.]]

* In ''VideoGame/Persona5'', Hifumi Togo's defeat in her Confidant story is revealed because of her mother rigging shogi matches from behind the scenes. After the Phantom Thieves defeat her Shadow, Hifumi lost her first match. And while news of her defeat reaches to those who follow Hifumi's shogi career, she decide to take it as a good thing in order to be a shogi player on her own terms.

* ''VideoGame/YandereSimulator'': In her first year, Raibaru was the president of the Martial Arts Club and didn't lose a single duel until the end of the first semester, when Budo Masuta defeated her. However, instead of feeling sad, she felt relieved, because she had wanted to quit martial arts for some time and felt that her winning streak obligated her to continue to practice them. She quit martial arts and promoted Budo the new club leader.

* The Music/BarenakedLadies song "Falling For the First Time" is about someone who succeeds at everything. When the song takes place, he's actually failed at something. However, he was so bored with success that he's actually "thrilled to be finally be failing" (his words).

** At the very beginning of "[[Recap/BigFinishDoctorWho014TheHolyTerror The Holy Terror]]," Empress Berengaria is abruptly deposed by the guards and denounced as a false goddess in the wake of her GodEmperor husband's death; Berengaria herself barely raises an eyebrow at this fall from grace, actually ''demanding'' to be taken to a cell. As it turns out, she's been bored senseless with the imperial lifestyle and is very eager to experience the imprisonment, torture and ritual execution that will ensue now that she is no longer a goddess - eventually becoming a DeathSeeker and resisting all efforts at saving her life.
** In "[[Recap/BigFinishDoctorWho040Jubilee Jubilee]]," [[PresidentEvil President Rochester]] is absolutely over the moon to be ousted from power by his wife and reduced to living in a ditch in the middle of a Dalek invasion ([[VillainousBreakdown once he's finished panicking]], of course). Rochester has spent most of his presidency driving himself completely insane with [[NeverMyFault the self-inflicted delusion that he was only "pretending" to be a vile despot]] in order to appease imaginary Dalek masters, and now that the Daleks are finally here, he doesn't have to pretend anymore - [[HappinessInSlavery he can just be a slave]].

* Played with in ''Series/AmericanHorrorStoryAsylum'': during the episode "[[Recap/AmericanHorrorStoryS02E11SpiltMilk Spilt Milk]]," the SerialKiller Bloody Face AKA [[spoiler: Dr Oliver Thredson]] is finally defeated when Lana escapes from Briarcliff and reveals his true identity to the police. Finding himself cornered in his home by a gun-toting Lana with the police following close behind, he smiles and admits to being relieved at no longer having to keep secrets. Given that he's a ConsummateLiar, however, it's impossible to tell if he's being serious or just lying to get Lana's guard down. [[spoiler: The latter is likely, given that his final act is to make a grab for a hidden pistol right before Lana guns him down.]]
* In ''Series/HouseOfCardsUK,'' Prime Minister Henry Collingridge is forced to step down from his position after barely a few months in office, having been undermined in a series of scandals engineered by [[VillainProtagonist Francis Urquhart]]. Though Henry has fought valiantly to clear his name from all accusations and is visibly crestfallen at his defeat, he's secretly relieved to be out of his joyless tenure as PM - to the point of privately breaking down in tears and admitting that he's glad he doesn't have to "fight those bastards anymore."

* In the ''Series/RedDwarf'' episode "[[Recap/RedDwarfSeasonVILegion Legion]]," the eponymous villain is a gestalt entity that can only exist when people are alive and conscious aboard his space station. After going to increasingly vicious lengths to force the Boys from the Dwarf to stay with him, Kryten is able to pacify Legion by knocking out the crew one by one, leaving the gestalt with only Kryten's existence to model himself on... and as a mechanoid, Kryten is programmed to help and obey humans - giving Legion no choice but to help the crew leave. As he carries the unconscious bodies back to Starbug, Legion admits that after sharing the uniquely neurotic personalities of Lister, Rimmer and the Cat, returning to a state of nonexistence feels like ''promotion.''
* ''Series/TheTwilightZone'' episode "[[Recap/TheTwilightZoneS3E70AGameOfPool A Game Of Pool]]" ends with Jesse Cardiff winning a hard-won game against the ghost of Fats Brown and becoming the new pool champion... and yet, Fats is smiling in relief. It turns out he'd grown tired of having to defend his title from beyond the grave, though his professional dignity forbade him from just throwing the match; he genuinely wanted someone to beat him fair and square, and Jesse has obliged him. The epilogue reveals that [[PyrrhicVictory Jesse is now trapped in the role of pool champion long after his death]], while Fats is finally free to spend his afterlife fishing.
* ''Series/VeronicaMars'': Veronica ultimately loses the Kane scholarship, which she's been working hard towards all of Season 2, and thus her ability to attend Stanford. However, she ultimately realizes she's glad to be going to Hearst after she comes to understand how much Wallace and Mac - who are both going to Hearst - mean to her.

* Subverted in ''VideoGame/{{Riven}}'': when you finally track down [[BigBad Gehn]], he's relieved to have failed in his efforts to kill his son Atrus, and even claims to be grateful for being [[SealedEvilInACan imprisoned in Riven]], as it allowed him the time he needed to rethink his life. He's lying: if you've seen his efforts to indoctrinate the natives into worshipping him as a god, it's clear that he hasn't changed at all - and if you make the mistake of letting him go free [[spoiler: he'll kill Atrus in cold blood and do the same to you.]]

* Sometimes, people whose lives are touched by chronic or terminal illness - or even persecution - are relieved at the end of their lives by the prospect of not having to deal with their suffering any longer.

!!Examples

[[folder: Audio Plays]]
* ''AudioPlay/BigFinishDoctorWho''

[[folder: Film - Live Action]]

[[folder: Literature]]

[[folder: Live-Action TV]]

[[folder: Music]]

* In Music/JohnnyCash's "A Satisfied Mind," the narrator remarks that he used to be rich and famous, but eventually [[RichesToRags lost everything in an undisclosed incident]]. Now he's much happier without his wealth, being finally satisfied with what he has - knowing that it's almost impossible to find "one rich man in ten with [[TitleDrop a satisfied mind]]."

[[folder: Theatre]]

[[folder: Video Games]]

[[folder: Western Animation]]

* In the ''WesternAnimation/ThePenguinsOfMadagascar'' episode "Two Feet High and Rising", King Julien banishes Mort from his habitat when Mort won't stop touching his feet. The Penguins take Mort in and help cure him of his foot obsession, eventually succeeding. Shortly afterwards, King Julien [[{{Balloonacy}} floats away on his Super Comfy Pamper Time Floaty Throne when Maurice accidentally puts too many balloons on it]], and the balloons pop when the throne floats over a hot dog cart. Mort lassos Julien's feet in the balloons' strings, but the only way to pull Julien to safety is to touch his feet (and [[OOCIsSeriousBusiness Julien even begs for Mort to do so]]). After Mort pulls Julien to safety, a grateful Julien accepts him back into his habitat, and this exchange occurs between the Penguins and Marlene:

(''Marlene looks at Kowalski, confused.'')\\

'''Marlene:''' (''still confused'') Riiiight.

[[folder: Real Life]]

[[/folder]]

* ''WesternAnimation/DextersLaboratory'': ZigZagged with the episode "Average Joe". Dexter ''seems'' relieved to be average as a result of failing a grade and ''embraces it'' a bit too openly with a TotallyRadical kid who looks like one of the band Hanson from the 1990s, although because StatusQuoIsGod in that show, it's never brought up again.

The reasons for this vary: perhaps the character was stuck in a contest they no longer wanted to win but couldn't afford to leave; maybe they finally realize how much happier they are without the pressure to succeed; there might even be a host of unexpected benefits to losing; in some cases, they may have belatedly realized that winning would have only occurred at a cost they wouldn't have been able to pay. One way or the other, they're defeated and all the happier for it. Do not be surprised if the words "I'm glad it's over" are used at some point. They may even have a plan that hinges on them failing; see FailureGambit.

The reasons for this vary: perhaps the character was stuck in a contest they no longer wanted to win but couldn't afford to leave; maybe they finally realize how much happier they are without the pressure to succeed; there might even be a host of unexpected benefits to losing; in some cases, they may have belatedly realized that winning would have only occurred at a cost they wouldn't have been able to pay. One way or the other, they're defeated and all the happier for it. Do not be surprised if the words "I'm glad it's over" are used at some point.

-->'''Private:''' We tried to make Mort foot-phobic, but we failed.
'''Kowalski:''' Ironically, if not for our failure, Julien would be... sleeping with the hot dogs.
(''Marlene looks at Kowalski, confused.'')
'''Kowalski:''' [[DontExplainTheJoke Dead]].
'''Skipper:''' Exactly. That's not failure, that's redefined objectives.