History Main / WhyThankYouX

[[Redirect:StealthHiBye]]

[[WMG:[[center:[[AC:This trope is [[https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1610123145032518100&page=1 under discussion]] in the [[https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1597830869030327400&page=1#1 Trope Repair Shop]].]]]]]]
A person is performing an activity — searching, eating, looking at something, and so on — and as he or she is thus occupied, someone beside or behind them helps them out: pointing out where the object they're looking for is, explaining what they're trying to understand, or making some random comment about whatever they're doing. The person replies, usually distractedly or absentmindedly, with the StockPhrase of the trope title, or a variation thereof, returning to what they were doing — only to suddenly do a DoubleTake and whirl around to face X. Usually this would be because X is someone whom they thought was dead, missing, far away, or otherwise impossible to encounter at that place and time. Alternatively, they may have thought they were alone and thus not expected to encounter ''anybody''. In a worst-case scenario, the activity being performed is building a barrier to keep X out, only to discover that [[AbsurdlyIneffectiveBarricade it's too late for that]].

While this can appear in almost any genre (an especially likely variation is for it to masquerade as a killer [[RightBehindMe Right Behind You]] in a slasher flick, or some other form of MeaningfulBackgroundEvent, before revealing its true nature), its origin is actually as a [[ComedyTropes Comedy Trope]].

A specific SubTrope of StealthHiBye, where the appearance of the person out of nowhere is always played for laughs and the emphasis is upon the startled character's initial reaction as if nothing is out of the ordinary. Also a subtrope of DelayedReaction. May be related to [[FailedASpotCheck Failing a Spot Check]]. Quite often occurs because a character [[NotListeningToMeAreYou isn't paying proper attention]]. Can be a trick the TricksterMentor or the EccentricMentor pulls on his pupil after he has [[AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence Ascended to a Higher Plane of Existence]].

Not to be confused with the rather condescending act of loudly thanking Person B for something minor in order to show Person A, who's watching, how to be gracious.

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!!Examples:

[[foldercontrol]]

[[folder:Comic Books]]
* Appears in ''ComicBook/BatmanGothamAdventures'' #1. The Riddler is in his hideout working on a device.
-->'''Riddler:''' Where is my Phillips head screwdriver?\\
''[a gloved hand gives him the screwdriver from offscreen]''\\
'''Riddler:''' Oh, thank you!\\
''[a [[ConfusedQuestionMark question mark appears over his head]], then he's yanked out of the panel by Batman]''
* Happens in ''ComicBook/ElfQuest'' (TOQ #16) when the mysterious muffled figure helping Leetah to heal the dying Cutter turns out to be [[spoiler:Rayek]], whom she thought had died years before (and had what seemed like evidence to prove it).
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Films — Animation]]
* ''WesternAnimation/{{Tangled}}'' begins with [[AntiHero Flynn]] [[DeadpanSnarker Rider]] and two cohorts stealing a tiara. They lower him on a rope to snatch it from behind the guards, but...
-->'''Guard:''' ''[sneezes]''\\
'''Flynn:''' Hay fever?\\
'''Guard:''' Yeah, thanks. ''[DoubleTake]'' Hey!
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Films — Live-Action]]
* The archaeologist in ''Film/TheFifthElement:'' "Thank you, Aziz!" Aziz was supposed to reflect sunlight at the archaeologist. But the last time he shouted for Aziz, it was actually the Mondoshewan ship, which ''flooded'' the room with light, making this a subversion. Aziz was right where he belonged and was expected to be, but not capable of producing that much light.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Folklore]]
* A ghost story: A man wakes up in the middle of the night and wishes for light to comfort himself. He reaches for the matches and gets handed a lit one. No one is visible.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Literature]]
* In ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'', the first book has a bartender committing insurance fraud by burning the bar down. He is handed a match by Death, and the resulting explosion kills him.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
* ''Series/DoctorWho'': The Doctor has a rather ridiculous example of this: In [[Recap/DoctorWhoS31E12ThePandoricaOpens "The Pandorica Opens"]], it takes him ''minutes'' to realize he is telling Rory to be quiet and let him think, when ''Rory was utterly erased from space and time a few episodes ago''. He actually exits the scene without noticing, leaving Rory nonplussed, before striding back in with a look of deep confusion to poke Rory in the chest. Of course, [[{{Cloudcuckoolander}} considering the nature of]] [[AbsentMindedProfessor the Eleventh Doctor]], it's entirely in character.
[[/folder]]
%%
%%[[folder:Theatre]]
%%* [[DependingOnTheWriter Depending on the Director]], Bottom's return in ''Theatre/AMidsummerNightsDream''.
%%[[/folder]]

[[folder:Visual Novels]]
* In Episode 6 of ''VisualNovel/UminekoWhenTheyCry'' this happens when Siesta 410 receives ammo from Gaap
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Web Comics]]
* In ''Webcomic/GirlGenius'', Agatha emerges from one of her sleepwalking-creator states to find herself putting the finishing touches on a mechanism, with somebody off-panel handing her tools on command. [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20040331 She turns to see who it is, and]] discovers her little clanks for the first time.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Western Animation]]
* ''WesternAnimation/ThePowerpuffGirls'':
** In episode "Not So Awesome Blossom", Blossom thanks Buttercup for the kudos for saving the day in the episode while they nosh at a Hot Dog on a Skewer restaurant. Blossom then kvetches that her hot dog has no ketchup (a call back to an earlier scene where a customer rails on her for no ketchup).
** Also, in "Burglar Alarmed", a burglar is stealing from the kitchen while Bubbles goes downstairs for a glass of milk. The exchange happens when she thanks the burglar for the milk and he says "Don't mention it" in return.
* ''WesternAnimation/ScoobyDoo'':
** This happens a lot in the cartoon, especially when Scooby and Shaggy decide to cook or just fool around after splitting up. The monster/ghost makes an appearance handing them something or offering a suggestion before they see it and run for their lives.
** It also happened to Velma when she was in a college lab testing a mummy's bandages to find out if they were really ancient and the mummy handed her a test tube with the right chemical in it. (In retrospect, it's also kind of a clue that the mummy is one of the professors.)
[[/folder]]
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A person is performing an activity — searching, eating, looking at something, and so on — and as he or she is thus occupied, someone beside or behind them helps them out: pointing out where the object they're looking for is, explaining what they're trying to understand, or making some random comment about whatever they're doing. The person replies, usually distractedly or absentmindedly, with the StockPhrase of the trope title, or a variation thereof, returning to what they were doing — only to suddenly do a DoubleTake and whirl around to face X. Usually this would be because X is someone whom they thought was dead, missing, far away, or otherwise impossible to encounter at that place and time. Alternatively, they may have thought they were alone and thus not expected to encounter ''anybody''. In a worst-case scenario, the activity being performed is building a barrier to keep X out, only to discover that it's too late for that.

A person is performing an activity — searching, eating, looking at something, and so on — and as he or she is thus occupied, someone beside or behind them helps them out: pointing out where the object they're looking for is, explaining what they're trying to understand, or making some random comment about whatever they're doing. The person replies, usually distractedly or absentmindedly, with the StockPhrase of the trope title, or a variation thereof, returning to what they were doing — only to suddenly do a DoubleTake and whirl around to face X. Usually this would be because X is someone whom they thought was dead, missing, far away, or otherwise impossible to encounter at that place and time. Alternatively, they may have thought they were alone and thus not expected to encounter ''anybody''.