History Main / TooCleverByHalf

** Another illustration: in this story, he is the one who performs Aizawa's logical ruse of "do your absolute best or be kicked out of UA, nope, psych, we just wanted you to not hold back" with the challenge being have several students face off against Izuku (BadassNormal and Aizawa's apprentice in this tale). His aim was to test Izuku. Instead, he makes several of the students loath him because the Quirkless kid curb-stomped them and Aizawa [[FromBadToWorse and All Might]] took suffrage at Nedzu's manipulations.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons''':

* ''WesternAnimation/ABugsLife'': Hopper is cognizant of the fact that the if the ants ever realized they have superior numbers they could easily fight off the grasshoppers. Unfortunately for Hopper, he greatly overestimates the ability of his stick-before-the-carrot approach to keeping them in line. Flik's RousingSpeech combined with the knowledge that Hopper planned on killing the Queen results in the ants finally standing up to the grasshoppers.

** Bruce himself is not above this, either, usually when his paranoia gets the best of him. Four arcs (''Comicbook/BatmanWarGames'', ''ComicBook/JLATowerOfBabel'' and ''ComicBook/BatmanChipZdarsky'') come to happen because he made "perfect" plans (to take over the Gotham underworld in ''War Games'', to take out League members in case they went rogue in ''Tower of Babel'' and creating [[TerminatorImpersonator a powerful Amazo android with a programming that prioritizes targeting him]] if ''he'' ever went rogue), but was not as CrazyPrepared when it came to taking measures to prevent them from being stolen and implemented by other people.
** To say nothing of his [[Comicbook/InfiniteCrisis Brother Eye]] project. That went... poorly. AIIsACrapshoot, indeed.

** VillainProtagonist [[Characters/DeathNoteLightYagami Light Yagami]] is impossibly clever, charming, and manipulative. But for all his great plans, he ends up falling victim to his own {{pride}} too often. By the end of the series, Light can't even consider the possibility he might fail anymore.

* Lelouch in ''Anime/CodeGeass'' is a brilliant strategist and turns out to be a gifted leader, but the higher he aims, the more he is prone to his goals going horribly wrong. By the end of the series, his paranoia and strategic cornering has led to the destruction of [[spoiler:Tokyo, nearly killed his sister, and turned his army into the praetorian guard of a city-razing sociopath.]] Luckily, he gets GenreSavvy about this trope and intentionally sabotages his ultimate victory to ensure that he doesn't screw things up after taking over the world.

** VillainProtagonist Light Yagami is impossibly clever, charming, and manipulative. But for all his great plans, he ends up falling victim to his own {{pride}} too often. By the end of the series, Light can't even consider the possibility he might fail anymore.

* ''Manga/KaguyaSamaLoveIsWar'': The titular heroine is prone to this during her and Shirogane's WarOfLove, as despite the fact her access to the Shinomiya fortune allows her to be CrazyPrepared, All it takes is for one small surprise variable to completely throw her for a loop. Usually, it's Fujiwara, but it doesn't change that fact that Kaguya's victories are ''rarely'' due to her plans working flawlessly.

* ''Film/GodzillaVsKong'': [[Characters/MonsterVerseWalterSimmons Walter Simmons]] (or at least the people in [[EvilInc Apex Cybernetics]] who helped their GloryHound [[CorruptCorporateExecutive CEO]] form his plan) are cunning and deceptive enough to succeed in Apex's machinations to [[spoiler:turn the world against Godzilla by driving him to act destructive in major population centers, and then]] get Monarch to guide Apex to the HollowEarth energy readings they need [[spoiler:to activate Mechagodzilla]] under the illusion that both organizations are trying to stop Godzilla's seemingly-unprovoked rampage. However, Simmons is completely incapable of heeding his own limitations, [[spoiler:to the point where he apparently doesn't see anything remotely wrong with turning a malevolent, man-hating DraconicAbomination[='s=] still-partly-alive remains into his Mecha's ''control system'', and he foregoes PragmaticVillainy in favor of risking everything when he needlessly invokes the UnfinishedUntestedUsedAnyway trope for immediate gratification]] – and unlike Alan Jonah before him, Simmons and his company don't have any Plan B's, emergency recourses or ways to salvage their agenda in the event that they lose control of the Titan-type forces they're meddling with, their {{pride}} was just ''that'' overbloated. Furthermore, a big part of why Apex get as far as they do over the film and they aren't busted and shut down before the penultimate act is in the folly and stupidity of [[HumansAreMorons other humans generally]]: the world at large [[EasilyCondemned easily condemn]] Godzilla, almost everyone decides to focus on killing Godzilla first and asking '''absolutely critical''' questions later, and almost everyone who broaches Godzilla's rampage completely misses or just plain ignores the signs in Godzilla's attack that Apex Cybernetics are a DevilInPlainSight.

* ''Franchise/{{Batman}}'':

** Bruce himself is not above this, either, usually when his paranoia gets the best of him. Four arcs (''Comicbook/BatmanWarGames'', ''[[Comicbook/JusticeLeagueOfAmericaTowerOfBabel JLA: Tower of Babel]]'' and Chip Zdarsky's ''Failsafe'') come to happen because he made "perfect" plans (to take over the Gotham underworld in ''War Games'', to take out League members in case they went rogue in ''Tower of Babel'' and creating [[TerminatorImpersonator a powerful Amazo android with a programming that prioritizes targeting him]] if ''he'' ever went rogue), but was not as CrazyPrepared when it came to taking measures to prevent them from being stolen and implemented by other people.

* Issue 1 of DC's ''Tales of the Unexpected'' features the story of a man named Charles Duval, who attempts to assisinate Louis XIV and is set to be executed--but the fickle monarch offers a simple exile instead in exchange for a test of wit. He places Duval in a cell and tells him that there is only one way to escape, and if Duval finds it within three days, he may leave the country unmolested. On the first day Duval accidentally spills his pitcher of water, and discovers a trapdoor which leads to a long passageway which leads to a loose wall--it's the wall of his cell and he's back where he started. On the second day, he discovers that the rope hanging from the top of his cell is just long enough to reach a hook on the wall and pulling the hook opens a trapdoor in the ceiling with a ladder. Duval climbs and climbs--only to discover himself at the top of a 500-foot tall tower. On the third and final day, his shirt snags on a brick which Duval discovers can be pushed in. The whole wall is loose! And on the other side...the outside! A patch of land surrounded by a moat full of crocodiles! On the fourth day, when Louis and his guards come for him the doomed Duval accuses the king of cheating him, but Louis assures him that there was one obvious avenue of escape that Duval was too clever to try. [[spoiler:The door to Duval's cell was unlocked all along and simply pushing against it would have led to his freedom]].
* This was the original characterization of Marvel's ComicBook/DoctorDoom. Although a legitimately brilliant scientist, his god-complex-driven ego outstripped even his prodigious intellect. His entire backstory revolved around the fact he disfigured his face because he made a flaw in an experiment's calculations, and couldn't hold back his ego enough to double-check it. Instead, he clings to his false accusation that Reed Richards sabotaged it because he can't bear to admit that Richards was smart enough to spot that mistake before he made the experiment. Technically, this is still supposed to be his major failing, but after decades of {{Memetic Badass}}ery, [[RunningTheAsylum writers tend to present him as legitimately being as good as he thinks he is.]]
** In ComicBook/UltimateMarvel, Doom having a case of this directly led into ''ComicBook/{{Ultimatum}}''. As revealed during these events, he arranged for the death of the Scarlet Witch, knowing it would provoke ComicBook/{{Magneto}} into going PapaWolf and declare war on mankind, leaving it up to him to "pick up the pieces." However, instead of just overthrowing humanity as Doom expected, Magneto decides to [[FinalSolution wipe it out entirely]] and bring about TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt; Doom later reflects that he never imagined Magneto would be willing or able to go that far.
--->'''Doom''': I had Magneto's daughter - the Scarlet Witch - murdered. I knew Magneto would then declare war on mankind and when it was over... I would be there to pick up the pieces. I... never imagined that Magneto either had the power or the will -- to destroy the human race... What good is a king if there is no kingdom...?
* Happens all too often to WesternAnimation/DonaldDuck, of all people: he'll start a new job, quickly become a master and then go ''beyond'' it, and then his magnum opus ''will'' ruin him due to him not listening to the obvious suggestion that someone with less expertise (usually his nephews) will give him.

* In James Robinson's arc of ''ComicBook/FantasticFour'', the team is expertly brought down by a genius calling himself the Quiet Man. He sets the Thing up for murder, has the Human Torch depowered, causes the FF to lose both their homes and patents, Reed and Sue lose custody of their children, and the team torn apart. He's been helped by the Psycho Man using the power of an alternate universe to manipulate everyone. The Quiet Man plans to have Earth invaded by this other world, all so he can shut down the portals and "save it" and blame it all on Reed. Reed dares him to go ahead, the Quiet Man giving the shut-off signal...and nothing happens, the attack continuing. As the Quiet Man gapes in shock, Reed dryly points out to this supposed genius mastermind that it may not have been the smartest move to give ultimate power over two worlds to THE PSYCHO MAN.

* ComicBook/LexLuthor is also prone to this. Being a multibillionaire who innovated, conquered, and murdered his way to the top of a multibillionaire empire wasn't enough. His motivation for ANYTHING comes solely from his ambition to prove that he can do what others can't -- so in almost any continuity when he can't beat Franchise/{{Superman}}, but Superman can beat the brains out of him, he goes into a steady VillainDecay as a result of his obsession with this humiliating reversal of his motives.
* Creator/MarkMillar:
** In ''ComicBook/JupitersLegacy'', Walter assumes that his super-intelligence alone makes him best-suited to turn the economy around, but Sheldon tells him that he doesn't really have the expertise to do so. [[spoiler:Sheldon is proven right after Walter and Brandon seize control of America, as their policies quickly tank the economy]].
** In ''ComicBook/{{Prodigy}}'', super-genius Edison Crane is approached by CIA operative Rachel Straks who needs his help. Claiming to have been sent by General Bear Thriftbank, Rachel says a vast conspiracy is afoot. Crane is able to figure out this is a sinister organization that's spent years trying to open a gateway to allow Earth to be invaded by another dimension. Crane is able to figure out the calculations for the gateway at which point, Rachel shoots him. She's the half-sister of villain Tinker and they gloat on how they've been using Crane all along. They note how her name is an anagram for "Charles Trask", the traitor from ''Literature/EastOfEden'' and that the general is an anagram of Frank the Rabbit, the ImaginaryFriend from ''Film/DonnieDarko.'' They use Crane's calculations...only to realize too late that it's giving Crane full access to their systems which he uses to thwart the invasion. Crane informs them that he actually figured out the fake names early on. More importantly, the duo had gone to massive lengths to craft an elaborate fake background for Rachel...but missed the fact she couldn't speak Bedouin, which was a prerequisite for any CIA operative in that area. Crane lampshades how the duo's attempts to be so clever just tipped him onto their scheme.
* In the ''ComicBook/MickeyMouseComicUniverse'', this is the flaw of the character Clarabelle Cow. She's a genuinely smart woman -- certainly more so than her friend/rival/love interest, Horace Horsecollar. Unfortunately, Horace comes off especially bad against Clarabelle because he's a KnowNothingKnowItAll, so Clarabelle has an overinflated sense of her own intelligence, which leads her to do foolish things.
* Mystique falls victim to this in issue 16 of ''ComicBook/{{Wolverines}}'': She's been manipulating the team almost from the beginning, and eventually gives up on pretense and outright seizes control of them from Shogun. However, even though she's firmly in command, she ''still'' can't dispense with manipulating them rather than being upfront about what her plans are and how they will solve everyone's problems (in issue 15 outright telling Sabretooth that the rest of the team isn't smart enough to understand). When she tries to prevent Comicbook/{{X 23}} from helping Shogun and Skel rescue the rest of the Paradise experiments because she needs her (the other two are expendable), Laura balks at being controlled and triggers a mass walk-out by the entire team, who ''all'' agree to help just to spite Mystique ([[TokenGoodTeammate except for Laura, who genuinely wants to help]]). [[spoiler:It turns out the rescue mission is a trap by Sinister. Had Mystique been honest about her intentions and not been so determined to manipulate the rest of the team -- who she had control over, anyway -- the entire situation likely could have been prevented.]]

* On the ''WebVideo/DreamSMP'', Sam, as the GadgeteerGenius of the server running [[TheAlcatraz Pandora's Vault]], is more than deserving of his confidence inside the walls of the prison. Letting anything move through all the defenses while the prison's on lockdown from an attack would be foolish, and Dream had said before that [[CantKillYouStillNeedYou he can't afford to kill Tommy]], who Sam had become [[PapaWolf quite protective of]] after the latter's TraumaCongaLine. [[spoiler:[[BreakTheHaughty Unfortunately for Sam's ego]], Dream and Tommy spending a week together has frayed their nerves to the last and Dream was already at the end of his rope when Sam informed them that they might have to spend ''another'' week together. That combined with Dream having ''memorized'' the contents of his necromancy-based TomeOfEldritchLore finally causes Dream to snap and give a NoHoldsBarredBeatdown to Tommy, [[DeathOfAChild taking his third and last canon life]].]]

* Sylvester, in ''Literature/{{Twig}}'', has this as his main protagonist limitation. While he is TheSocialExpert, he gets overwhelmed by rapid inputs of new information and spends so much time planning for how to react to it that he forgets to react to it. This often leads to him getting punched in the face.

*** Kokichi is the game’s premiere [[TheChessmaster Chessmaster,]] manipulating everyone skillfully [[spoiler: for the sake of ruining the Killing Game. To that end, he spends the whole game causing all his fellow students to hate him and believe him to be pure evil. Once the students are pushed to their breaking point, he makes the final blow by proclaiming himself the Mastermind of the Killing Game, intending to finally break their spirits. It works…and then, the ''true'' Mastermind directly turns that to their advantage, something that Kokichi ''didn’t'' anticipate. They do so by having the students “remember” through a Flashback Light that they’re students of Hope’s Peak Academy, meant to overcome the Remnants of Despair. Newly reinvigorated by these memories, the students immediately assume Kokichi to be a Remnant, an assumption they dive headfirst into thanks to how much Kokichi has already tortured them all so far. Riding on that assumption, Maki tries to kill Kokichi to save Kaito, while also planning on forcing Kokichi to admit himself a Remnant of Despair. Kokichi, ''truthfully,'' says he doesn’t know what she’s talking about, [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome but because he’s already told so many lies, Maki doesn’t believe him.]] The only reason Kokichi ''doesn’t'' die right then and there is because of Kaito [[HeroicSacrifice taking a poisoned arrow meant for him to stop Maki from becoming a Blackened.]] Going further, the only reason Kokichi manages to salvage anything from this debacle is because of Kaito choosing to help him to protect Maki and the others, by murdering Kokichi himself. Kokichi ultimately dies [[DyingAlone a completely lonely death,]] having burned all bridges with the others and with the knowledge that it’s all his own fault.]]

* Scar from ''WesternAnimation/TheLionKing1994'' (and [[WesternAnimation/TheLionKing2019 remake]]) schemes to take the throne, believing himself to be [[BrainsVersusBrawn smarter than his brother, Mufasa]], and actually succeeds in doing so without anyone suspecting he played a role in Mufasa's death. The only real hole in Scar's plot, unbeknownst to him, is that the hyenas failed to kill Simba, but the young lion is still ashamed and runs away. However, after the TimeSkip, it becomes clear that while Scar is certainly a cunning ''schemer'', he puts no thought into being an actual ''ruler''. In a few years under [[TheCaligula his rule]], Pride Rock has fallen into ruin, the lions are running out of food, and even the hyenas who had been loyal to Scar, are about ready to revolt, [[spoiler:and eventually turn on him, literally ripping him to shreds after he tries to blame them for the coup]]. It seems that Mufasa was much smarter than Scar gave him credit for.

* Kellen Moore and Dak Prescott were the Offensive Coordinator/Starting Quarterback combination of the 2021 Dallas Cowboys that led the team to easily winning the NFC East and clinching the 3rd Seed in the conference. Kellen Moore was often stated to be one of the hottest potential Head Coaching candidates coming out of that year and Dak Prescott had just been paid a boatload of money to be the franchise QB of the team. The scenario is the Wild Card game against the San Francisco 49ers. The Cowboys are down 6 with 14 seconds to go and no timeouts at the San Francisco 40 yard line. They need a Touchdown to tie or win the game (depending on a missed Extra Point). The normal strategy in this case would be to try and throw a quick "Out" or "Corner" Pattern to a Wide Receiver, who will break towards the sideline in the hopes of getting more yardage and running out of bounds to stop the clock. The 49ers, understanding this, choose to put the entire secondary on the edges, allowing Dallas to do whatever they desired up the middle (though not in the endzone) but have no chance to get out of bounds to stop the clock. This left Dallas in a bind. They could take two "Hail Mary" attempts, but the chances of them succeeding are less than completing ''VideoGame/DarkSouls'' without dying. They could try a quick pass but the chances of them completing the play and lining up to "spike the ball" (intentionally snapping the ball and throwing it into the ground forward for an incomplete pass to stop the clock) are basically zero.
** This is where the trope comes into play. The Cowboys actually come up with a pretty ingenious idea. Have Prescott run a "Quarterback Draw" where he drops back as if to throw, and then takes off running. The goal is to just get some extra yardage to make the final play manageable and not a Hail Mary in design, greatly increasing their chances of success. The cleverness here is that the reason a passing play to pick up the yardage won't work is because the Offensive Linemen blocking for the QB cannot move forward until the ball is thrown, and you cannot spike the ball unless all 11 players on offense are lined up properly so the timing hinges on the Offensive Linemen getting down field in time. On a Run Play however the Offensive Linemen can move forward immediately after the ball is snapped so they can effectively run with Prescott (while blocking for him of course) and get to the new line of scrimmage faster. Still following? So the goal is to get a bunch of yards, and have the entire team already on the ball quickly to spike it. This is not how it plays out and has a multitude of issues. Prescott either gets too amped, loses track of time or simply gets too greedy and goes down way later than he should, losing valuable seconds. Then, he and the entire team seemingly forget a basic tenet of how football works. A play cannot start until the Umpire in charge spots the ball. They try to get cute and spot them ball themselves, even creeping up a couple of extra yards from what should've been the spot which is basically why such a rule exists in the first place. The Umpire, who was hustling down the field far more than most would, not only has to respot the ball properly but the Offensive Lineman don't get out of his way so he has to push his way through them. All of this leads to Dallas running out of time and the game ending. Even if Dallas HAD gotten the ball off in time, the referees could've flagged them for an illegal formation as the Offensive Line didn't bother to reset themselves after the ball was spotted so they were too far forward, which would've also ended the game. So a potentially clever play is ultimately ruined by not knowing other basic rules which ends up costing Dallas from attempting a last second TD pass at all.

* Pete Carroll, [[UsefulNotes/AmericanFootball NFL coach]] of the [[UsefulNotes/NationalFootballLeague Seattle Seahawks]]. Since he'd taken over as coach, he built himself a reputation of being a clever coach known to call unexpected plays that resulted in epic wins. This popular coaching style made him popular within the NFL and among football fans. His credibility was cemented when he led the Seahawks to their first UsefulNotes/SuperBowl win in franchise history in the 2013-2014 season against the Denver Broncos and their record-breaking offense. He was able to lead his team back to the Super Bowl for the 2014-2015 season. Until the final twenty seconds of the fourth quarter, Pete Carroll called an excellent game, and even though their opponent, the New England Patriots, took the lead by 4 points, the Seahawks were able to drive down to the Patriots one-yard line. Instead of making the logical choice of giving the ball to Marshawn [[RedBaron "Beast Mode"]] Lynch, [[LightningBruiser one of the NFL's top running backs]], who, during the game, ran over 100 yards and got a touchdown, he calls for his quarterback, Russell Wilson, to throw the ball into the end zone. The ball gets intercepted and the Patriots win their fourth Super Bowl during the Bill Belichick and Tom Brady era, and thus instead of being the coach that won back-to-back Super Bowls for his team (and that would've been pulled off against a coach who has done this before), Pete Carroll is now seen as the coach who made the [[NeverLiveItDown dumbest call in NFL history]].
** The Seahawks had three downs available once they got the ball to the one-yard line, but arguably not enough time to call three running plays (incomplete passes take less time off the clock than runs stopped in the field of play) and so, it is argued, it was necessary for Seattle to call a pass rather than a run. The Seahawks could have stopped the clock with a minute remaining by using their final timeout; instead, they let the clock run, apparently believing they could force the Patriots to burn one of their own timeouts, to keep time on the clock for a potential comeback after a Seattle score. Instead Belichick let the clock run, seeing that if he did not call timeout the Seahawks would fail to call one themselves, would fail to substitute in a power running package, and might instead call be induced to call a passing play. The play that Carroll settled on called for one Seahawks receiver to rub off his teammate's defender, leaving his teammate open, but the Patriot defenders were able to anticipate the trick the Seahawks would pull from pregame prep and set themselves up for an improbable interception. A dumb strategy of immediately calling timeout, subbing in a power running package, and then just running the ball up the middle repeatedly until time expired (or until scoring a touchdown) would likely have won the day.

* On the ''LetsPlay/DreamSMP'', Sam, as the GadgeteerGenius of the server running [[TheAlcatraz Pandora's Vault]], is more than deserving of his confidence inside the walls of the prison. Letting anything move through all the defenses while the prison's on lockdown from an attack would be foolish, and Dream had said before that [[CantKillYouStillNeedYou he can't afford to kill Tommy]], who Sam had become [[PapaWolf quite protective of]] after the latter's TraumaCongaLine. [[spoiler:[[BreakTheHaughty Unfortunately for Sam's ego]], Dream and Tommy spending a week together has frayed their nerves to the last and Dream was already at the end of his rope when Sam informed them that they might have to spend ''another'' week together. That combined with Dream having ''memorized'' the contents of his necromancy-based TomeOfEldritchLore finally causes Dream to snap and give a NoHoldsBarredBeatdown to Tommy, [[DeathOfAChild taking his third and last canon life]].]]

* ''VideoGame/LikeADragon'': The Dojima Family lieutenants are this. By all accounts, their manipulation of the Empty Lot crisis is a clever power play to take out Kazama and those loyal to him. They make one critical mistake: their mock trial of Kiryu. While Kiryu is initially prepared to accept blame for the murder to protect the Tojo Clan, their attempt to get him to confess to ''shooting'' the victim in the Empty Lot ends up cluing Kiryu into the fact that the victim died by someone else’s hands and that it was important that the body was found in the lot. By trying to tie up every loose end to rise in rank, the lieutenants end up building the very weapon that results in their downfall.

* ''VideoGame/MassEffect2'' introduces Miranda Lawson: as she and her sister were DesignerBabies engineered by their megalomaniacal TrulySingleParent to be {{Born Winner}}s, InstantExpert TVGenius barely ''begins'' to describe her capabilities. Lawson drops in on Shepard's resurrection without any knowledge of the process and becomes the project's leader through sheer ability in less than a ''week''. Of course, being unfamiliar with failure, she never sees her mistakes coming: her statement that "any [[MindOverMatter Biotic]] could be a BarrierWarrior" turns out to be completely in error - it takes a PsychoPrototype or a CoolOldLady to do it - she gets an ally killed if her advice is followed. She is actually cursed with being ''aware'' of this trope, resulting in an ''inferiority'' complex - [[ItsAllMyFault she attributes all her successes to her father's design, and only takes credit for her failures]].

* ''WesternAnimation/GravityFalls'': This is [[Characters/GravityFallsTheAuthor The Author/Stanford Pine's]] FatalFlaw summed up. He's very intelligent, but his insecurities, arrogance, and stubbornness cause a lot of problems, including [[spoiler:letting his twin brother be disowned over an accident, trusting someone who turned out to be the BigBad, pushing away his friend (which indirectly caused his insanity), disappearing for thirty years and later withholding critical information about Bill Cipher and The Rift from everyone except for Dipper]]. He gets better in the end, after realizing the damage he unintentionally caused.

*** In "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS11E10LittleBigMom Little Big Mom]]", Lisa's attempt at causing an InducedHypochondria scare on the Simpson males so they will help her clean up instead ends with her having to do all of the chores by herself because they literally would rather die (or seek help from someone they loathe) than do that.

* ''WesternAnimation/GravityFalls'': This is The Author/[[spoiler:Stanford Pine]]'s FatalFlaw summed up. He's very intelligent, but his insecurities, arrogance, and stubbornness cause a lot of problems, including [[spoiler:letting his twin brother be disowned over an accident, trusting someone who turned out to be the BigBad, pushing away his friend (which indirectly caused his insanity), disappearing for thirty years and later withholding critical information about Bill Cipher and The Rift from everyone except for Dipper]]. He gets better in the end, after realizing the damage he unintentionally caused.

* The title character of ''WesternAnimation/InvaderZim'' is an EvilGenius armed with advanced technology, but his [[InsufferableGenius massive ego]] and faulty programming prevent him from taking over Earth. For that matter, Dib is a ChildProdigy who is much better at investigating paranormal phenomena than the so-called experts... and absolutely terrible at convincing anyone with the resources to do anything about it of what he's found.

* In ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic,'' Twilight Sparkle can fall into this trap. She has an innate desire to be perfect and is ObsessivelyOrganized. She was acknowledged by [[PhysicalGod Princess Celestia]] as having the most potential of any unicorn Celestia had ever met; even when outclassed, Twilight outsmarted Nightmare Moon and defeated Discord with ThePowerOfFriendship. Twilight has studied magic her whole life and is one of the most knowledgeable magic users in the world. However, Twilight is so terrified of failure that her perfectionism causes SanitySlippage whenever things start going pear-shaped, especially if she thinks it will cause Celestia to be disappointed with her.

** In the first "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS2E3TreehouseOfHorror Treehouse of Horror]]"'s segment "Hungry Are the Damned", Kang and Kodos abduct them in their flying saucer to live in luxury. Lisa snoops around the ship and finds a book titled "How to Cook Humans". Offended at the notion, the aliens blow some [[SpaceX space-dust]] off the book's cover revealing the title to be "How to Cook for Humans". To which Lisa points out that there is still dust on the book, with the title now "How to Cook Forty Humans". Kang (or Kodos) then demonstrates that there is yet still more dust on the book's cover, finally revealing the book's full title "How to Cook for Forty Humans" (the Simpsons are gluttons).

** In "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS11E10LittleBigMom Little Big Mom]]", Lisa's attempt at causing an InducedHypochondria scare on the Simpson males so they will help her clean up instead ends with her having to do all of the chores by herself because they literally would rather die (or seek help from someone they loathe) than do that.

--> '''Richard III''': Oh, we are too damn clever by half, aren't we? ''(after another attempt at a bluff, Richard lets loose that he already knows why The Doctor is there.)''

** Many Thinkers, most prominently Tattletale, can fall into this, getting faulty conclusions due to their own biases and/or a lack (or even overabundance) of data. This overconfidence contributes to [[spoiler:Alexandria]]'s death.

*** Kokichi is the game’s premiere Chessmaster, manipulating everyone skillfully [[spoiler: for the sake of ruining the Killing Game. To that end, he spends the whole game causing all his fellow students to hate him and believe him to be pure evil. Once the students are pushed to their breaking point, he makes the final blow by proclaiming himself the Mastermind of the Killing Game, intending to finally break their spirits. It works…and then, the ''true'' Mastermind directly turns that to their advantage, something that Kokichi ''didn’t'' anticipate. They do so by having the students “remember” through a Flashback Light that they’re students of Hope’s Peak Academy, meant to overcome the Remnants of Despair. Newly reinvigorated by these memories, the students immediately assume Kokichi to be a Remnant, an assumption they dive headfirst into thanks to how much Kokichi has already tortured them all so far. Riding on that assumption, Maki tries to kill Kokichi to save Kaito, while also planning on forcing Kokichi to admit himself a Remnant of Despair. Kokichi, ''truthfully,'' says he doesn’t know what she’s talking about, [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome but because he’s already told so many lies, Maki doesn’t believe him.]] The only reason Kokichi ''doesn’t'' die right then and there is because of Kaito [[HeroicSacrifice taking a poisoned arrow meant for him to stop Maki from becoming a Blackened.]] Going further, the only reason Kokichi manages to salvage anything from this debacle is because of Kaito choosing to help him to protect Maki and the others, by murdering Kokichi himself. Kokichi ultimately dies [[DyingAlone a completely lonely death,]] having burned all bridges with the others and with the knowledge that it’s all his own fault.]]