History Main / UnwantedGiftPlot

* The ''{{Frasier}}'' episode 'Our Father Whose Art Ain't Heaven' had Martin buying him a horrible painting after he overheard Frasier praising it to the restarateur exhibiting it. Frasier spent the rest of the episode angsting about how to break the news.

* An episode of ''{{Frasier}}'' had Martin buying him a horrible painting after he overheard Frasier praising it to the restarateur exhibiting it. Frasier spent the rest of the episode angsting about how to break the news.

* In [[AlvinandtheChipmunks Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chip-Wrecked]] Dave is given a macaroni necklace by Theodore, who wants him to wear it everywhere he goes, including a formal dinner with the captain. Alvin's comment was particularly biting:

* In the ''WesternAnimation/RegularShow'' episode "Tants", Pops gets Mordecai and Rigby pairs of the titular [[{{Portmanteau}} table pants]], who find them embarassing and in his absence give them to Muscle Man. When Pops later asks them to go to a "Tants Lunch" with him, Rigby forces himself into lying he took them to be cleaned after very nearly making the former cry. Fortunately for them, Muscle Man is willing to give them back; unfortunately, they're a mess, kicking off an escalating plot that leads to them fighting the president of Tantsco. for making counterfeit replacements. After overhearing their heartfelt apology for the entire conflict, Pops forgives them, and the president gives them free replacement Tants.

* In the ''WesternAnimation/RegularShow'' episode "Tants", Pops gets Mordecai and Rigby pairs of the titular [[XMeetsY table pants]], who find them embarassing and in his absence give them to Muscle Man. When Pops later asks them to go to a "Tants Lunch" with him, Rigby forces himself into lying he took them to be cleaned after very nearly making the former cry. Fortunately for them, Muscle Man is willing to give them back; unfortunately, they're a mess, kicking off an escalating plot that leads to them fighting the president of Tantsco. for making counterfeit replacements. After overhearing their heartfelt apology for the entire conflict, Pops forgives them, and the president gives them free replacement Tants.

* In [[http://cardboard-crack.com/ Cardboard Crack]] a character [[http://cardboard-crack.com/post/70457400710/white-elephant-gift-exchange gives Magic: the Gathering cards as a white elephant gift]] with the hope of getting these cards back for himself.

* One one-shot cartoon is about a kid whose grandmother gets him an NHL jersey for Christmas - of a team that is the hated rival of the local team.

* Harrenhal in ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire''. A massive yet cursed castle, every family that ever took possession of it died out. Most families didn't use the whole thing because upkeep was so expensive. Littlefinger is less then pleased when he is awarded the castle, fully aware of what a burden the 'honor' is.
** Er, not really, at least in Littlefinger's case. Littlefinger is ''thrilled'' to get Harrenhal. He's well aware of the problems with it, but he's also aware that even if he never sets foot in the castle (and he doesn't intend to), the title "Lord of Harrenhal" (and the income that goes with it) raises his social status by a huge margin and gives him some additional leverage to carry out his other schemes...

* Finch tries to get rid of a handmade vase Jack gave him in an episode of ''JustShootMe''.
* An episode of ''LeaveItToBeaver'' was about Beaver giving his mother a sweater that she ''really'' didn't like, but was too nice to tell him about it. And then he suggested that she should wear it to a parent/teacher meeting.
* On the ''TheKingOfQueens'' Doug and Carrie receive a hideous painting of them for their anniversary from their friends Deacon and Kelly. They pretend to love it but secretly try to get rid of it. It turns out Deacon and Kelly intentionally gave them a horrible present so they would be allowed to get rid of an unwanted gift Doug and Carrie had given them.
* In an episode of ''That70sShow'' Donna gave Eric a "man ring." Said ring was hideous and gaudy and was promptly given to Fez.
* In ''HomeImprovement'' the boys gave Jill a very large bottle of very cheap perfume.
* Jake Donovan in ''StarkRavingMad'' had this with a heavy beaded necklace his then girlfriend gave him.

Stock sitcom plot in which a character receives a present. The present is absolutely hideous. He is forced to pretend that he just ''loves'' it, so as not to hurt the presenter's feelings. Unfortunately, he is just ''so'' good an actor that the presenter insists that he wear it all the time, put it on display, paint the house to coordinate, etc. The receiver becomes increasingly miserable, and [[HilarityEnsues thus is comedy committed]].

* There's a short story published in ''TheNewYorker'' that plays with this. A man gets his wife a fur coat for Christmas but, as a practical joke, buys a little square of grubby rabbit fur at the same time and has it wrapped as if it's the real present. He drops hints in the weeks leading to Christmas about how he didn't get a bonus this year and he's afraid it's looking pretty lean. When she unwraps it, she puts on a brave face and pretends it's gorgeous and just what she wanted, going to such lengths (calling up a friend like she couldn't wait to tell her about it, and so on) that she almost convinces herself, and he gets annoyed and finally calls her attention to the huge package he's hidden in the hall. When she sees the coat, all the reaction he gets is, "It's ''nice''."

* Harrenhal in ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire''. A massive yet cursed castle, every family that ever took possession of it died out. Most families didn't use the whole thing because upkeep was so expensive. Littlefinger is less then pleased when he is awarded the castle, fully aware of what a burden the 'honor' is.

* Harrenhal in ''ASongOfIceAndFire''. A massive yet cursed castle, every family that ever took possession of it died out. Most families didn't use the whole thing because upkeep was so expensive. Littlefinger is less then pleased when he is awarded the castle, fully aware of what a burden the 'honor' is.

[[quoteright:350:[[TheDickVanDykeShow http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/necklace_903.jpg]]]]

Very much TruthInTelevision, as every person with a very generous but senile/half-blind/out-of-touch grandmother can attest. Further, gift cards exist solely to avert the trope.

Very much TruthInTelevision, as every person with a very generous but senile/half-blind grandmother can attest.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheSmurfs'' episode "A Gift For Papa" is all about Papa Smurf trying to get rid of a gift hat that he doesn't like wearing. It gets humorously mistaken for a MagicHat by Gargamel when he uses it to capture the Smurfs, and Papa Smurf even fools Gargamel into believing that it is in order to distract him long enough for the Smurfs to escape.

[[caption-width-right:350:Oh, ''Rob!'' You ''shouldn't'' have![[hottip:*:No, really, you shouldn't have.]]]]

* The term "white elephant" (meaning a troublesome or unwanted gift) comes from a legend that when the King of Siam didn't like someone, [[InvokedTrope he would give them]] a white elephant as a present. In this culture white elephants were sacred, so the recipient couldn't put it to work but still had to feed it, creating a drain on his resources.

* There's a short story published in the ''New Yorker'' that plays with this. A man gets his wife a fur coat for Christmas but, as a practical joke, buys a little square of grubby rabbit fur at the same time and has it wrapped as if it's the real present. He drops hints in the weeks leading to Christmas about how he didn't get a bonus this year and he's afraid it's looking pretty lean. When she unwraps it, she puts on a brave face and pretends it's gorgeous and just what she wanted, going to such lengths (calling up a friend like she couldn't wait to tell her about it, and so on) that she almost convinces herself, and he gets annoyed and finally calls her attention to the huge package he's hidden in the hall. When she sees the coat, all the reaction he gets is, "It's ''nice''."

* ''SeitokaiYakuindomo'': [[DeadpanSnarker Tsuda]] receives, in quick succession, [[OverlyLongGag three]] implied and unwanted vibrating (sex) toys during the ChristmasEpisode. The first time as a part of a present exchange roulette and he knew about the possibility of getting that one (and tried to avoid it); the second time was from [[ImpliedLoveInterest Shino]] directly and seems awkward even by the show's standard; the third time is [[SantasExistenceClause from Santa himself]] and manages to achieve RuleOfThree [[RuleOfFunny funny]]. He utters not a complaint.
* The term "white elephant" (meaning a troublesome or unwanted gift) comes from a legend that when the King of Siam didn't like someone, [[InvokedTrope he would give them]] a white elephant as a present. In this culture white elephants were sacred, so the recipient couldn't put it to work but still had to feed it, creating a drain on his resources.

* ''{{Friends}}'': In "The One with the Prom Video," Joey buys Chandler a gaudy bracelet, and {{hilarity ensues}}.