History Main / StepfordSnarker

->'''Daria''': Aha! So my evil plan is working.

* Built into the premise of ''[[Series/GoOn]]''. It's a sitcom about a support group, so naturally, there'd be plenty of these in the cast, including the main character.

* Built into the premise of ''[[series/GoOn]]''. It's a sitcom about a support group, so naturally, there'd be plenty of these in the cast, including the main character.

The fraternal twin of the StepfordSmiler. The Stepford Snarker has intense feelings of sadness, anger, numbness, or other negative emotions, but, for whatever reason, wants to hide these feelings from the people around them. However, unlike the Stepford Smiler, who hides these feelings by acting sweet and happy, the Stepford Snarker hides these feelings by [[DeadpanSnarker being snarky]]. She often puts on an outward appearance of being very jaded and bitter (though some may maintain a brighter disposition when they are in a better mood, snarking only when upset), and makes sarcastic comments about everything and everybody, but those that are able to break her shell find that she is actually deeply hurt. If she is able to heal, she will not necessarily stop being sarcastic -- it may just part of her personality -- but she will hopefully find a way to express her feelings to her loved ones, rather than solely hiding them with her quips.

In addition, she may be a SnarkKnight but she doesn't have to be. While the Snark Knight is antisocial and sarcastic because of discontent with her surroundings, the Stepford Snarker does not have to be anti-social. She could have many friends and even an optimistic view of the world itself, so long as she still hides her bad moods with snark. A staple of the JerkassWoobie and frequently seen in {{Goth}}s. Closely related to {{Kuudere}}, {{Tsundere}}, BrokenBird and DefrostingIceQueen, all of whom might use this sort of snark as a way of masking their inner sweetness. Compare/contrast SadClown, who is less rude and more ridiculous.

* Yozora Mikazuki in ''BokuWaTomodachiGaSukunai''.

* Jeff on {{Community}} has been accused several times of hiding his feelings by being a wise-ass. This may be due to the fact that he spent several years as a lawyer, where keeping things to oneself is a professional necessity. It's also due in no small part to his misery at being forced to attend a crappy community college. He has himself on occasion admitted to it, and being in the study group has [[ThePowerOfFriendship softened him a little]], as shown in later episodes. Still doesn't stop him snarking when he's in a bad mood or feeling insecure, though.

** Given that Tony's [[IronMan own films]] show his life to be something of a mess, with quite a lot of moral emptiness (before he decides to become a superhero,) alcoholism and relationship issues (continuing after he becomes a superhero,) he counts as this trope in all his films.

* ''[[WorldOfSnark Everyone]]'' in a JossWhedon show. Why? [[BreakTheCutie Because]] [[KillTheCutie it's]] [[DysfunctionJunction a]] JossWhedon [[ItGotWorse show]], [[SignatureStyle of course]].

* You could argue that Gabriel from ''Supernatural'' fits this trope - he's a sarcastic smart-arse full of mockery and cynicism, and with a superficially-upbeat demeanour... but it turns out that he knows that [[spoiler: his brothers are destined to kill each other and destroy the Earth and that there's nothing he can do about it, and it's tearing him apart. Hence his running away and hiding on Earth.]]

* You could argue that Gabriel from ''Supernatural'' fits this trope - he's a sarcastic smart-arse full of mockery and cynicism, and with a superficially-upbeat demeanour... but it turns out that he knows that [[spoiler: his brothers are destined to kill each other and destroy the Earth]] and that there's nothing he can do about it, and it's tearing him apart. Hence his running away and hiding on Earth.

* JohnMunch, DeadpanSnarker extraordinaire is confirmed to be this. In one episode of LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit he is directly asked [[ArmorPiercingQuestion "Do you answer every serious question with a joke?"]]. His immediate response is "Do you answer every joke with a serious question?", which, [[LameComeback being somewhat less impressive than his usual quips]], suggests that did actually get to him. Given the fact that he's spent most of his career dealing with brutal murders and horrible sex-crimes, it's not all that surprising that he needs some sort of defence mechanism.

* Dr. Cox from ''{{Scrubs}}'': Partly it's because he's more desensitized to the hospital environment than the young staff he works with. The rest is because, as his therapist tells him, [[AttentionWhore he has a personality that craves any kind of attention, positive or negative]].
* ''StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'': Garak is both a Stepford Smiler and a Stepford Snarker. He's always amiable, cheerful, engaging and polite... and also very sarcastic. Strip away the StepfordSmiler routine and what's left is the StepfordSnarker routine. Then he suffers a life-threatening breakdown that reveals the truth: his exile is absolute agony for him. He's lonely, desolate, full of self-loathing from the contempt he receives off the station's Bajorans and even the station itself is torture for him to live on (human norms are too bright and cold for Cardassian physiology). After he recovers from his breakdown, he returns to his amiable, cheerful, sarcastic disposition but every so often episodes will revisit just how much pain and loneliness he continues to hide as a result of his exile.

* TheAvengers film has [[WorldOfSnark quite a lot of snarkers]], most of whom are garden variety {{Deadpan Snarker}}s, but [[IronMan Tony Stark]] and [[TheIncredibleHulk Bruce Banner]] specifically fit this trope because their sarcasm is respectively a defence mechanism and a way of maintaining self-control. This is particularly evident after [[spoiler: Agent Coulson]] gets killed, and Tony snarks about how stupid he was to face Loki alone, but is clearly using it to cover up his own grief.

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* Yuu Yanase from {{Sekai Ichi Hatsukoi}}. The guy is already a {{troll}} to a certain extent and an {{Ineffectual Loner}} but he has shown signs of being one as time goes on. [[spoiler: Given that your feelings are constantly ignored or laughed at by your best friend who is already taken by your {{Yandere}} rival is enough to be depressed, but given that your friend has become [[TookaLevelinJerkass more of a jerk]] as a result of dating said rival is enough would want to make you even more snarky. And given that his last appearance [[BreaktheCutie has him]] [[HeroicBSOD break down]] for being rejected a second time physically and emotionally]] one can only tell if he becomes a full-blown one.

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* Jade Curtiss from ''TalesOfTheAbyss'' has elements of this ''and'' StepfordSmiler - his brand of snark comes with a permanent smile and cheerful tone attached. It seems to be a sort of self-enforced IntelligenceEqualsIsolation, and covers up his insecurity over his [[MyGreatestFailure troubling childhood]] and [[HeroicSociopath apparent lack of empathy for others]].

* When the [[DoctorWho Ninth Doctor]] gets snarky about humanity, it's often a sign that he's very upset and trying hard not to show it. Rose even lampshades this in ''The Doctor Dances''.