| 1 | %% Image and caption selected per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1330202636057430600 |
| 2 | %% Please do not change or remove either without starting a new thread. |
| 3 | %% |
| 4 | [[quoteright:249:[[Webcomic/PennyArcade https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/bile_fascination_9216.png]]]] |
| 5 | [[caption-width-right:249:"Sure, [[SelfDeprecation here's a link to]] Website/TVTropes."]] |
| 6 | |
| 7 | ->'''Razputin:''' If you hate the show so much, why don't you just leave?\ |
| 8 | '''Jasper:''' I just can't take my eyes off it! It's like watching the scene of a ''horrible'' car accident... A car accident where the victims can't act, and the paramedics forget their lines! |
| 9 | -->-- ''VideoGame/{{Psychonauts}}'' |
| 10 | |
| 11 | There's HypeAversion, when numerous people's rabid touting of the latest masterpiece deter you from rushing out and buying it. And then there's the reverse phenomenon, when numerous people's rabid ''panning'' of the latest uber-stinker, complete with detailed lists on why you should never, ever, ''ever'' buy this piece of dung actually fill you with the masochistic urge to rush out and buy it just to see if it's ''that'' bad. |
| 12 | |
| 13 | It's like hearing about the train wreck of the century: [[GoodAngelBadAngel Your better sensibilities are repulsed at the thought of it, and yet part of you wants to see that wreck in all its magnificent destruction]]. You ''want'' to see just how gloriously terrible it must be for all the high-profile people to be expressing their horror over it. |
| 14 | |
| 15 | Don't feel ashamed about it; it's the natural foil to our obsession with the best of the best. Just as we want to know how high in brilliance art can rise, we also want to know how low it can sink in sheer awfulness. Plus the fact that reviews spewing bile over the many ways something stinks tend to be far more entertaining to read than reviews extolling the virtues of the latest OscarBait. |
| 16 | |
| 17 | This feeling is sometimes the basis of SoBadItsGood. What differentiates Bile Fascination from So Bad It's Good, is the fact it is interesting to discuss the work, even if the consuming the work itself is not enjoyable at all, even in So Bad It's Enjoyable way. Perhaps it is interesting to discuss how the authors thought this work was a great idea. Or all the conditions that caused that work to be made in the first place. |
| 18 | |
| 19 | Distinct from NoSuchThingAsBadPublicity in that the criticism is concerning the ''quality'' of the work, rather than the ''content''. Compare and contrast JustHereForGodzilla and WatchItForTheMeme. Can make the film in question become a GuiltyPleasure for some and, if enough people [[SoBadItsGood disagree with the majority]], a CultClassic. Similar to but not quite SchmuckBait. |
| 20 | |
| 21 | ---- |
| 22 | !!Examples: |
| 23 | |
| 24 | [[foldercontrol]] |
| 25 | |
| 26 | !!!'''Real works:''' |
| 27 | |
| 28 | [[folder:Advertising]] |
| 29 | * The main reason people watch ''Advertising/{{Cryptoland}}'' is to see if it really is as bad as people say. |
| 30 | * The infamous [=GrubHub=] "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-T3qKl6y-c Delivery Dance]]" commercial has been memed to Hell and back by people who abhor the commercial's lacklustre 3D animation, cringeworthy dancing, and irritating soundtrack. |
| 31 | [[/folder]] |
| 32 | |
| 33 | [[folder:Anime and Manga]] |
| 34 | * ''Anime/AbunaiSisters'' received universally negative reception owing to its low-quality 3D models, grating voice acting (which is in English only and has all of the voices pitched up to the point where everyone sounds like they're on helium), and over-reliance on the BoobBasedGag, which end up as FetishRetardant due to the aforementioned graphics and voice acting. The main reason why anyone watches it is to see if it's really that bad. |
| 35 | * ''Anime/AstroGanger'': The only reason most people are interested in it is to see if it's bad as the [[Anime/ChargemanKen other]] infamous Creator/KnackProductions work, and the janky animation, UnintentionalUncannyValley and flat characters don't help. |
| 36 | [[/folder]] |
| 37 | |
| 38 | [[folder:Comic Books]] |
| 39 | * ''ComicBook/CerebusTheAardvark'' is largely remembered only for this, thanks to creator Dave Sim's CreatorBreakdown and later issues of the comic devolving into a mess of anti-feminist ranting. |
| 40 | * ''ComicBook/CountdownToFinalCrisis'' was the followup to the well-received ''ComicBook/FiftyTwo'', meant to lead in to Grant Morrison's ''ComicBook/FinalCrisis''. However, ''Countdown'' was extremely slow-paced despite being a weekly book, the continuity between issues was almost nonexistent, the actual storylines were weak, and the story branched off into tie-in issues so often that many stories never finished within the book. It failed at its mission so thoroughly that ''Final Crisis'' ignored everything in the book, and everything was turned into CanonDiscontinuity. The only reason for anyone to read it anymore is to see just how bad it really is. |
| 41 | * ''ComicBook/HeroesInCrisis'' had loads of this, even while it was coming out. With each issue, more people checked out the book just to see why it was so hated by everyone. What they found was a series full of padding, terrible handling of the topic of mental illness, and turning a beloved character into a mass murderer because of ExecutiveMeddling. Immediately after it ended, the series was retconned and undone so that the mass murders never happened in the first place. |
| 42 | * ''ComicBook/{{Marville}}'' would be completely forgotten if not for this trope. Written by then-president of Marvel Bill Jemas (who had essentially no comic writing experience before this) on a bet, it starts as an unfunny parody of the American media business in the early 00s, becomes an unfunny parody of superhero comics, then turns into a highly-inaccurate AuthorTract on science, organized religion, and the story ends claiming to have solved world peace. The comic continues with a recap issue, which comes across as a TakeThat at comic editors (when this comic itself clearly had ProtectionFromEditors because of being written by the president of the company), and the series finally ends with a submission guide for Marvel's revival of the Epic Comics label, designed to give other creative voices the chance to publish for Marvel with similar creative freedom. That line ended after about a year and the only comic of note it produced was ''ComicBook/TroubleMarvelComics'', another comic that fits this trope. In the end, all the comic accomplished was gaining the notoriety of being one of the worst comics ever made. |
| 43 | * Some of the later works of Creator/FrankMiller have little to recommend them except this trope: |
| 44 | ** ''ComicBook/AllStarBatmanAndRobinTheBoyWonder'' is an absolutely bizarre story where Batman kidnaps Dick Grayson [[InsistentTerminology Age Twelve]], as soon as his parents are killed, forces him to live off of rats captured in the Batcave, calls him "retarded" for not knowing he's the "goddamn Batman" and "queer" for not liking the name "Batmobile", Black Canary is an Irish ninja who travels across the country to meet Batman because she idolizes him, the entire Justice League is made up of absolute idiots to show how much better Batman is than them, and it ends randomly in issue 10 (of the planned 12) because ScheduleSlip just got too bad. And this is just scratching the surface of the problems with this book. |
| 45 | ** ''ComicBook/HolyTerror'' is a book where a CaptainErsatz Batman and Catwoman take on Al-Qaeda, originally meant to be a parody/callback to World War II-era propaganda comics, but due to a combination of Frank Miller's CreatorBreakdown and changes made during the ScheduleSlip of the book (originally meant as a Batman story until either Miller changed his mind or [=DC=] told him they wouldn't publish it) turned it into the type of angry, racist story that it was supposed to be a parody of. Add in the absolutely bizarre artwork, terrible pacing, and the story completely losing touch with reality when suddenly Al-Qaeda starts to resemble the Illuminati, and there are few people will defend this book for anything but the Bile Fascination of reading it. |
| 46 | * Creator/BrianMichaelBendis only wrote ''ComicBook/LegionOfSuperHeroes2020'' for roughly three years, but it quickly became the most critically lambasted version of the Legion to date. While veteran fans argued a fresh start was needed following years of retcons and reboots, it gradually became clear Bendis had little to no understanding of why people loved the Legion due to nonexistent character development, rambling dialog, plots that ended up going nowhere, and big amounts of racist subtext. By the end of ''Justice League Vs Legion of Super-Heroes'', the only reason fans bother to look at any of the issues written by Bendis are to see if they really are as boring as people have been saying they are. |
| 47 | * ''ComicBook/TroubleMarvelComics'' was Marvel's attempt at reviving 1950s romance comics... by focusing on the teenage sex lives of Peter Parker's parents and his Aunt May and Uncle Ben. The covers feature photos of possibly underage girls in bikinis giving suggestive looks to the readers, and the book inside is no better due to the flat and unlikeable characters. The story eventually takes a turn for the melodramatic, featuring a teen pregnancy plot, where abortion is considered and handled with all of the misaimed DarkerAndEdgier BlackComedy that Creator/MarkMillar is capable of, and reveals that Peter Parker is actually May's son, not Mary's, reaction to which veers from confusing (the timeline makes absolutely no sense) to the offensive (possibly implying May raising Peter means more because he's her biological child, not "just" her nephew by marriage). |
| 48 | * ''ComicBook/TheUnfunnies'': What is the book that so embraces DarkerAndEdgier BlackComedy that even Creator/MarkMillar has tried to [[BuryYourArt pretend that it never happened]]? [[/folder]] |
| 49 | |
| 50 | [[folder:Fan Works]] |
| 51 | * ''Fanfic/MyImmortal'' is notorious for being one of the most pain-inducing fanfiction, even by the low quality standards of fanfiction, to the point where some people have actually read it to verify whether or not it was a TrollFic. |
| 52 | * ''Fanfic/ThePrayerWarriors'' (which was confirmed to be a TrollFic well after its publication) is one of the strangest fanfics written. It tells the story of a DesignatedHero slaughtering his way through ''Literature/TheCampHalfBloodSeries'' and the ''Literature/HarryPotter'' universe as well as the countries of England and Russia. It's CanonDefilement in its purest form, often with a [[RapeAsDrama literal meaning of "defilement"]] here. It's this bad reputation that draws people into reading it in the first place. |
| 53 | * While the ''Fanfic/TheConversionBureauTheChatoverse'' does have its sincere fans, there are many more readers who are interested in the stories simply because of the strange and disturbing morality that underlies them. |
| 54 | [[/folder]] |
| 55 | |
| 56 | [[folder:Films -- Animation]] |
| 57 | * ''[[WesternAnimation/FoodFight Foodfight!]]'' Where to even ''begin'' with this one? It had an unlisted, uncelebrated release and yet it ''rocketed'' to notoriety thanks to its infamously TroubledProduction, moronic plot, [[AudienceAlienatingPremise baffling premise]], gratuitous ProductPlacement, [[WhatDoYouMeanItsForKids disturbingly inappropriate humor]] and '''eye-gouging''' visuals. It is less of a movie and more of a lesson on how ''not'' to make an animated film! |
| 58 | * About the only notoriety that's ever been received by ''WesternAnimation/NormOfTheNorth'' is that people heard through word-of-mouth that the film is considered an absolute disaster and sought it out just to see if it's as bad as it's said to be. |
| 59 | * ''Animation/PlanetataNaSakrovishtata'' is a unique example of this trope, as its fascination isn't so much about how bad it is, but rather how ''bizarre'' it is. And it certainly lives up to the hype without question. |
| 60 | * ''Animation/SpongeBobInTehran'' has gained widespread mockery from tons of people – especially fans of WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants – for its janky 3D animation, connections with one of the original show's more notorious Persian dubs, glorification of Iran, and unauthorized nature. |
| 61 | * ''WesternAnimation/TitanicTheLegendGoesOn'' is such a [[{{Pun}} legendary]] trainwreck that those who haven't seen it question if it genuinely exists or is a leaked college experiment [[TheseAreThingsManWasNotMeantToKnow not meant to be seen by humanity]].[[note]][[NotMakingThisUpDisclaimer It's the former]], and can even be bought on DVD.[[/note]] Besides its nonsensical plot, StockFootageFailure galore, and LighterAndSofter retelling of a real historical tragedy, the film has '''a rapping dog on board the ''Titanic''''' that comes completely out of nowhere and MakesJustAsMuchSenseInContext. [[JustHereForGodzilla This is the main reason why people watch it.]] |
| 62 | * ''WesternAnimation/TheEmojiMovie''. In case you can't tell by the name, it's not a very good film. It only really gathered an audience who were morbidly curious about how bad it was - [[PresumedFlop enough]] for the movie to actually pay for itself, though thankfully not enough for Sony to make a sequel. |
| 63 | * ''WesternAnimation/WhereTheDeadGoToDie'' is known for being one of, if not, the, worst animated movie of all time, to the point where some reviewers such as [[WebVideo/PhantomStrider Phantom Strider]], [[Main/LetUsNeverSpeakOfThisAgain outright refuse to discuss the film]] for this very reason. [[WebVideo/TheMysteriousMrEnter The Mysterious Mr. Enter]] even called it, “too bad to be an atrocity.” In other words, it’s too terrible to be considered terrible. With a reputation like that, many people can’t help but be curious, just to see how far the movie goes for [[Main/AnimatedShockComedy shock value]] and disturbing content. |
| 64 | * [[Creator/DingoPictures Dingo Pictures]] and [[Creator/VideoBrinquedo Video Brinquedo]] are infamous for the countless [[Main/TheMockbuster Mockbusters]] that they have made. One can’t help but wonder how bad these films really are. |
| 65 | [[/folder]] |
| 66 | |
| 67 | [[folder:Films -- Live-Action]] |
| 68 | * On several occasions ''Film/ThreeHundredSixtyFiveDays'' has been described as "an even worse version of ''Literature/FiftyShadesOfGrey''". Considering that ''Fifty Shades'' is already notorious, some people just had to check out ''365 Days'' to see if it was really ''that'' bad. The same applies to the books, especially after they were translated from Polish, as well as the sequels ''Film/ThisDay'' and ''The Next 365 Days''. |
| 69 | * ''Film/BattlefieldEarth'': It's not because of its relationship with Creator/LRonHubbard and Scientology, it's not because of its radioactive levels of [[{{Narm}} Narm]], it's not because of its [[SpecialEffectsFailure horrid effects]] and bloated, knuckle-dragging plot, it's ''all of the above'' at once. |
| 70 | %%* ''Film/CaveDwellers'': Three words: ''caveman hang-gliding.'' |
| 71 | * ''Film/ACertainSacrifice'': Infamous for being Music/{{Madonna}}'s film debut and having NoBudget (it was thrown together to capitalize on her fame in 1985, and she immediately disowned it). It can charitably described as "slice of life vignettes meets rape-revenge thriller," yet there exists a subset of viewers who nonetheless appreciate it for her performance and the look at UsefulNotes/NewYorkCity at the end of UsefulNotes/TheSeventies. |
| 72 | * ''Film/TheDayTheClownCried'': This is considered one of the holy grails of lost media aficionados. [[MissingEpisode It was never released]] to the public and currently remains in the hands of several film companies and celebrities as a morbid curiosity. Why is it so bad, you ask? Because it holds the dubious distinction of having one of the most [[AudienceAlienatingPremise alienating premises]] in cinema history: It's about a clown that entertains children...in ''[[DudeNotFunny Auschwitz]]''. If you are really that desperate to watch this, you have to wait until the Library of Congress releases it in August 2025. |
| 73 | * ''Film/DeckTheHalls'': It has become a classic example of a "bad Christmas movie" among many moviegoers, which has naturally gotten a fair share of people watching to see ''why'' it's become so reviled. |
| 74 | * Creator/DavidLynch famously [[CreatorBacklash disowned]] [[Film/Dune1984 his adaptation]] of ''Literature/{{Dune}}'', though many viewers have enjoyed it nonetheless -- ironically or otherwise. It's too bad to be a good film, but it's too good to be a bad film. Having Music/{{Sting}} play a [[LargeHam hamtastic]] villain in a wing-shaped speedo certainly helps. Curiosity about this loveable trainwreck has multiplied tenfold after the release of Creator/DenisVilleneuve's ''significantly'' better and more successful [[Film/Dune2021 two part]] [[Film/DunePartTwo adaptation]]. |
| 75 | * ''Film/{{Hobgoblins}}'' is '''only''' notable now for the legendary way in which it was splattered all over by ''Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000''. |
| 76 | * ''Film/TheHumanCentipede'': This isn't so much of a movie as it is an endurance test. Specifically of your [[NauseaFuel gag reflex.]] And the same goes for its sequels. |
| 77 | * ''[[{{Film/Ishtar}} Ishtar]]'' is a famously awful film, being about lounge singers that get tangled in an international conflict. While most people will gladly watch this terrible movie to see how bad it is, some have found it genuinely enjoyable. Most famous of all being [[ComicStrip/TheFarSide Gary Larson]] himself. |
| 78 | * ''Film/TheLastAirbender'': Those who joined the ''[[WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender Avatar]]'' fandom after the release of this movie can't help but be curious to know why it was panned to kingdom come. |
| 79 | * ''Film/PlanNineFromOuterSpace''. To a '''legendary''' degree. It is synonymous with SoBadItsGood, and it holds the distinction of being the most iconic B-movie in cinema history. |
| 80 | * ''Film/TheOogielovesInTheBigBalloonAdventure''. Everything about it, from its ''staggeringly'' inane premise, baffling marketing gimmicks and its eccentric marketer. (Yes, marketer - ''not'' creator). The end result was the mother of all [[BoxOfficeBomb box office bombs]] and a car accident of a film that its few viewers just couldn't look away from. |
| 81 | * ''Film/TheRoom2003''. This incredibly bad film has come to be considered an ironic masterpiece, thanks in part to a disastrous premiere in Hollywood that had ''half'' of the audience asking for refunds before the ''first thirty minutes!'' |
| 82 | * ''Film/Troll2'', like ''Plan 9'' before it, is ''so'' SoBadItsGood that there's a cast-led-and-featuring documentary called ''Best Worst Movie'' celebrating, [[SelectiveObliviousness defending]] and [[DramaticallyMissingThePoint completely missing the point]] about why it is so enjoyably terrible. |
| 83 | * Like ''Film/GodsNotDead'' and ''Film/SavingChristmas'' before it, atheist/secularist viewers and Trump's critics like to watch ''Film/TheTrumpProphecy'' because of how [[{{Narm}} unintentionally funny]] the movie is. |
| 84 | [[/folder]] |
| 85 | |
| 86 | [[folder:Live-Action TV]] |
| 87 | * ''Series/HeilHoneyImHome'' never made it to air ([[AudienceAlienatingPremise for obvious reasons]]), but certainly made itself [[MemeticMutation viral]], thanks to its premise of [[AdolfHitlarious Adolf Hitler]] living with Eva Braun next to a Jewish family in the style of a 50's sitcom. '''[[{{NotMakingThisUpDisclaimer}} We are not kidding.]]''' |
| 88 | * ''Series/TheILand'': Seems to be the primary reason to watch. [[https://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2019/09/the-i-land-netflix-spoilers-ending-explained.html More than]] [[https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/fien-print/i-land-critics-notebook-netflix-1240033 one review]] has called it not only Netflix's worst original series, but ''one of the worst shows ever made''. Between universally scathing reviews and the heavy involvement of notorious misogynist Neil [=LaBute=] as scriptwriter (leading to lines such as "I didn't try to rape you. There's no such thing like that in a place like this. There's only sex and no sex."), the series has inspired some critics to advise viewers to watch it as a sort of science experiment. It's been called "bafflingly horrible" and currently has an approval rating of 8% on Website/RottenTomatoes. |
| 89 | * Upon release, ''Series/MilfManor'' by Creator/{{TLC}} quickly rose to prominence as one of the worst dating shows ever conceived. Eight mother-son pairs were flown to a RealityTVShowMansion in Mexico to compete for the other contestants' sons and moms while sharing a room with their own biological relation. Aside from being contrived to set up all manner of IBangedYourMom and MamaBear conflicts among the men and women, and uncomfortably flirting with incest, commentators noted it [[HilariousInHindsight sounded astoundingly similar]] to an AudienceAlienatingPremise parody show from ''Series/ThirtyRock'' named ''Milf Island'' devised by CorruptCorporateExecutive Jack Donaghy. Many viewers remarked on Twitter they only kept watching to see how awful it would get. The show currently sits at 17% on Rotten Tomatoes and has been described by critics as "psychological torture" and "Freudian horror". |
| 90 | * This trope is the very reason why ''Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000'' ''exists.'' Pick any film. ''Any'' film they've riffed on, and it will fit this trope to a T. |
| 91 | * ''Film/TheStarWarsHolidaySpecial'' is considered the crown jewel of bad television by critics, viewers and [[CreatorBacklash George Lucas himself.]] |
| 92 | * ''Series/PeppermintPark'' has drawn in audiences online...and ''straight'' into the uncanny valley with its [[UnintentionalUncannyValley creepily low-quality puppets]] and blatant attempts to [[FollowTheLeader ride the coattails]] of ''Series/SesameStreet''. |
| 93 | * The ''Series/DoctorWho'' episode "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS28E10LoveAndMonsters Love & Monsters]]" has gained this reputation, partly for the unexciting LowerDeckEpisode plot, but mainly for its notoriously {{squick}}y ending. |
| 94 | [[/folder]] |
| 95 | |
| 96 | [[folder:Literature]] |
| 97 | * ''Literature/The120DaysOfSodom'': For the [[RapeIsASpecialKindOfEvil worst of reasons.]] Its age and sour reputation (helped in no part by its [[Creator/MarquisDeSade infamous author]]) has inspired morbid curiosity in readers who want to see if it really is as depraved as it is said to be. [[{{BrainBleach}} Turns out it is.]] |
| 98 | * ''Literature/ThreeHundredSixtyFiveDays'': After the [[AdaptationDisplacement better-known]] [[Film/ThreeHundredSixtyFiveDays 2020 film adaptation]] gained infamy over accusations of romanticizing rape, kidnapping and organized crime, some people began seeking out the original novels to see how they compared. Many readers have opined that, in addition to the questionable writing[[note]]some readers of the English versions aren't sure if the problem lies more with the author and editor, or the translators[[/note]], the films are ''tame'' compared the books' outrageous content. |
| 99 | * ''Literature/AlfiesHome'': Pretty much the only reason anyone would read this would be to see if its homophobic messages are really as bad as everyone says. |
| 100 | * ''Literature/EmpressTheresa'': The book is a literary chemical spill in and of itself to begin with, but when you introduce its ''very'' imbalanced author and his ''[[SmallNameBigEgo obsessive]]'' defense of the title, you get a modern-day freak show and a case study in egomania. People who took the time to read this book (or at least about it) are unanimously ''floored'' by its '''staggeringly''' imbecilic plot. |
| 101 | * ''Literature/TheEyeOfArgon'': So much so that it's become a ''parlor game''. |
| 102 | * ''Happyslapped By A Jellyfish'' is not a bad book, but its...unique [[Creator/KarlPilkington author]] is more than enough of a selling point. |
| 103 | * ''Literature/TheLegendOfRahAndTheMuggles'': Barely even a blip on the radar were it not for the author's ill-fated infringement lawsuit against J.K. Rowling. And that's not getting into the ''ridiculous'' plot and grotesque character designs. |
| 104 | * ''Literature/TheLightlarkSaga'': After early reviews for ''Lightlark '' came out and were generally critical of the novel and the way it was marketed (with some calling it "The Fyre Festival of Booktok"), some people picked up the book mostly to see if it was really ''that'' bad. The same applies to ''Nightbane'', with even readers who thought ''Lightlark'' was bad admitting they wanted to read the sequel out of morbid curiosity over what crazy direction the series would go in (less cynically, a few readers wanted to see if the author could actually build upon ''Lightlark'''s redeeming qualities). |
| 105 | * ''Org's Odyssey'' is considered the [[UsefulNotes/FurryFandom furry community's]] answer to ''The Eye of Argon''. The few to have read the book say that it really is as awful as people say it is. |
| 106 | * ''Reaper's Creek'', ''Stones To Abbigale'' and ''This Is Why I Hate You'' are all ''horrible'' books, but what makes them so morbidly fascinating is the man behind them: Onision. Yes, ''that'' Onision. Readers of this trilogy unanimously agree that they serve as a look into the mind of a potential mass murderer. |
| 107 | * It's likely the only reason anyone's even ''heard'' of the ''Literature/SaveThePearls'' duology (a YA dystopia that tries to tackle racism via a PersecutionFlip) is due to people wanting to check just ''how'' bad the portrayal of racism is, after it got huge amounts of criticism for it. It would probably just have been overlooked as one of many teen dystopian novels published at the time if it weren't for this. |
| 108 | * ''Literature/TheTurnerDiaries'' is a book written by a white supremacist. Actually, that's putting it lightly; it's a violent white supremacist PowerFantasy, in which our [[DesignatedHero "heroes"]] carry out mass genocide. Despite being supressed, if not illegal, in several countries for ''obvious reasons'', many people are interested in the book to see how horrific it really is. Especially the {{FBI|Agent}}, who use it as a way of identifying white supremacist rhetoric, culture and tactics (with its most infamous case being the Oklahoma City Bombing). Even if you (somehow) look past its hateful rhetoric and blatant neo-Nazi propaganda, it's an hilariously badly written book with stilted dialogues, paper-thin "characters", a contrived plot, in which the neo-Nazi protagonists are only able to win because their opponents act like idiots, and an EsotericHappyEnding, in which the entire world is nuked into oblivion and the "white paradise" is created in an irradiated hellhole. Yay? |
| 109 | * ''Literature/{{Victoria}}'' is another military-political PowerFantasy, this time by a reactionary paleoconservative, in which a group of {{Right Wing Militia Fanatic}}s go to war against StrawmanPolitical enemies. Despite the fact that it's completely serious, the book [[PoesLaw reads like a satire]] along the lines of ''ComicBook/JudgeDredd'', ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'', or (movie) ''Film/StarshipTroopers'' for being so over-the-top. For example, the author refers to gangsters as "orcs" and calls New York City "The Babylon on the Hudson". |
| 110 | [[/folder]] |
| 111 | |
| 112 | [[folder:Music]] |
| 113 | * This trope (along with WebVideo/OneyPlays) is the sole reason anyone still remembers the Music/LeetStreetBoys. Their music and lyrics appeal to anime and gaming culture so ''[[TotallyRadical aggressively]]'' that newcomers couldn't believe the band's sincerity and lack of self-awareness. Reading the lyrics will have you laughing, cringing or [[BreadEggsBreadedEggs cringe-laughing.]] |
| 114 | * 6ix9ine's "GOOBA" became the biggest debut for a rap song on [=YouTube=] of all time [[note]]beating the previous record-holder - Music/{{Eminem}}'s 2018 CareerResurrection Music/MachineGunKelly [[DissTrack diss]] "Killshot"[[/note]] due to [[OvershadowedByControversy it being the first single 6ix9ine recorded]] after [[TheStoolPigeon snitching on]] [[GangBangers the Bloods]]. The fact that the song is of him bragging about snitching while his face morphs into an animoji of a rat - after saying in court that his 6ix9ine persona was just [[KayfabeMusic something he did to sell records]], then coming right back to it - landed the song on many a 'worst songs of 2020' list. It also hit 3 on the Billboard Hot 100. NME called 6ix9ine [[https://www.nme.com/features/tekashi-6ix9ine-gooba-break-the-internet-snoop-dogg-rat-2680348 "the most hatewatched man in rap."]] |
| 115 | * Farrah Abraham's ''Music/MyTeenageDreamEnded'' is a CultClassic of an album that's become infamous for existing in a reputation between this [[SoBadItsGood and genuine critical admiration]]. The debut album of a nascent artist who knew very little about music and enforced... ''questionable'' creative direction to producers, it was widely lambasted for just how bizarrely it mangled its attempt at being a sharp dance pop album, filled with ridiculously atonal instrumentals amidst heavily auto-tuned vocals that never properly mixes together. This actually ended up being a point that critics quickly became fascinated with -- Abraham and co were ''so'' off course that it shot the moon and [[AccidentalArt accidentally became an intriguing bit of avant-garde outsider music]], which has been enough to earn it a degree of sincere prestige and placements on "best-of" lists. Even if you aren't into the AccidentalArt angle, it's still experimental and ''weird'' enough to have drawn a long-term audience of varying levels of irony. |
| 116 | [[/folder]] |
| 117 | |
| 118 | [[folder:Tabletop Games]] |
| 119 | * ''TabletopGame/{{FATAL}}'' is known solely for being a theatrically egregious example of how ''not'' to make a roleplaying game. Complete with bafflingly convoluted and self-contradictory rules, vicious misogyny and racism, and ''extreme'' amounts of sexual deviancy of every stripe and sort. If you look up any [[https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=7ixhxjqoe9swz1xv4bxgw5h0&page=1 discussion about the game]], it's usually about how bad it is. |
| 120 | * ''TabletopGame/RacialHolyWar'' is basically ''Literature/TheTurnerDiaries'' in RPG form. [[EpicFail Without combat rules.]] Many people, especially of the anti-fascist sort, use it as evidence of how hateful, evil and just plain ''stupid'' Neo-Nazi culture really is. |
| 121 | * The earliest editions of ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'' featured artwork that was less "grimdark" and more [[NightmareRetardant "it came from the 1980s."]] Beak-shaped helmets, ludicrously massive guns and the biggest mohawks you will ever see await you. Longtime fans always like to look back at these just to see how far [[EarlyInstallmentWeirdness the franchise has come]], though some miss that era and think the new material [[{{Narm}} takes itself too seriously]]. |
| 122 | [[/folder]] |
| 123 | |
| 124 | [[folder:Theatre]] |
| 125 | * This trope was the major reason why the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cherry_Sisters Cherry Sisters]] were popular during the 1890s: Because their act ''Something Good, Something Sad'' was so terrible, it looped back into being entertaining for audiences. This was also the reason why the Olympia Music Hall managed to save itself from bankruptcy: According to Willie Hammerstein in an interview, "I've been putting on the best talent, and it hasn't gone over...I'm going to try the worst.". Sadly, [[MissingEpisode their last recording was destroyed in the seventies,]] so all we can really do is ''imagine'' how bad it was. |
| 126 | [[/folder]] |
| 127 | |
| 128 | [[folder:Video Games]] |
| 129 | * ''Videogame/Action52'' is widely considered the worst game (Or compilation of games?) of all time, and many people download the "ROM" or buy a copy of the game to see if it's that bad. |
| 130 | * ''VideoGame/BigRigsOverTheRoadRacing'' because it is considered one of the best examples (if not ''the'' best example) of an ObviousBeta. |
| 131 | * ''VideoGame/Bubsy3D'': A series of contested quality to begin with decided to go for innovation for its third instalment. It succeeded somewhat, at least initially - at the time the only other games of a similar scale were ''VideoGame/SuperMario64'' and ''VideoGame/CrashBandicoot'', both of which released around the same time, with the former also (naturally) being a Platform/Nintendo64 exclusive and the latter having gameplay closer to a 2D platformer (think something along the lines of ''VideoGame/Sonic3DFlickiesIsland'' [[JustForFun/XMeetsY meets]] ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountry'', [[RecycledInSpace but with more polygons!]]) - but then almost immediately afterward the VideoGame3DLeap really started to take off, and ''plenty'' of developers were quick to show how it's really done. It wasn't long before the game started looking horribly garish in comparison, and the retrospective was brutal. CondemnedByHistory is putting it mildly. Of course, all that is the main reason why most people are interested in this game nowadays. |
| 132 | * ''VideoGame/CallOfDutyModernWarfareIII'': The game, especially the campaign, got a lot of attention due to how poorly received was. From the [[ItsShortSoItSucks incredibly short player mode]], [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks the infamous Open Combat Missions]], the constant PanderingToTheBase, a few {{Narm}} inducing scenes, and in top of that, the [[spoiler:UndignifiedDeath of Soap himself]]. All to the price of 70$. |
| 133 | * ''VideoGame/CrazyBus'': This is the reason behind why the game is so popular in the first place despite being something someone bored could've coded up one lazy afternoon. It's a tech demo, a sample application provided with a third-party compiler toolchain and you're supposed to study the game's source code and learn how to program using the toolchain from there. And yet all people are after is the ROM generated by the compiler. And then there's its annoying theme. |
| 134 | * ''Custer's Revenge'' for the Platform/Atari2600: Despite having a ''very'' AudienceAlienatingPremise where the player accumulates points by raping a Native American woman tied to a cactus while dodging arrow fire, the game still managed to sell a decent 80,000 copies approximately in its day, mostly because people first heard about it from the protests enacted by feminists and anti-racist activists, and were curious as to just how bad it really is. The general consensus reached, however, is that the game really ''is'' that bad, not only for its cringe-inducing premise but for its repetitively barebones gameplay, even by the standards of Atari 2600 games. |
| 135 | * ''VideoGame/EthnicCleansing'': If the name alone doesn't put you off then the details will. It's pretty much a video game adaptation of ''TabletopGame/RacialHolyWar'', all the way down to the fact that it's an ObviousBeta. It was made by neo-Nazis and hammers its ideas home - for starters, [[RefugeInAudacity blacks make monkey noises when you kill them]]. |
| 136 | * ''VideoGame/TheFrontier'': ''Hoo boy.'' This ''VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas'' mod gets all its publicity and attention from the ''maelstrom'' of [[OvershadowedByControversy controversy]] that surrounds the game like a dense fog. Spectators to this disaster are treated to unfortunate implications, CanonDefilement, [[AuthorAppeal unsettling fetishistic undertones]], poor writing, [[RoleEndingMisdemeanor developer scandals]] and a [[TroubledProduction behind-the-scenes civil war.]] |
| 137 | * The [[Platform/NintendoEntertainmentSystem NES]] version of ''[[VideoGame/Ghostbusters1984 Ghostbusters]]''. While the original Platform/Commodore64 game, as well as the Platform/Atari2600 and Platform/SegaMasterSystem versions, were all considered decent games in their time, [[PortingDisaster the NES version]] has earned itself an ''overwhelmingly'' negative reputation for an unfortunate combination of being difficult and boring, leaving curiosity as to just ''how'' bad it is as the only reason to play the game. The only positive thing that can be said about this version is the [[SoBadItsGood unintentionally hilarious]] BlindIdiotTranslation that is its ending, which has become [[MemeticMutation memetic]]. |
| 138 | -->''"[[JapaneseRanguage CONGLATURATION !!!]] [[AWinnerIsYou YOU HAVE COMPLETED]] [[BlatantLies A GREAT GAME.]] [[MakesJustAsMuchSenseInContext AND PROOVED THE JUSTICE OF OUR CULTURE.]] [[WantonCrueltyToTheCommonComma NOW GO AND REST OUR HEROES !]]"'' |
| 139 | * Japanese fan demand lead to two [[FanRemake unofficial remakes]] and a Nintendo Switch port of ''VideoGame/HoshiWoMiruHito''. And let's just say that [[ObviousBeta it]] isn't known as the "densetsu no kusoge", or "legendary shitty game", for nothing... |
| 140 | * ''VideoGame/TheLastResurrection'' is an indie RPG from the early 2000s, and it ''reeks'' of the early 2000s. From the poor spelling to the bad art style to the [[AuthorTract ham-fisted]] anti-Christian message, it's attracted an audience for being that bad. UsefulNotes/{{Jesus}} is a CardCarryingVillain who [[JesusWasCrazy leads the Nazis and wants to kill everybody]]. [[{{Narm}} Yes, really]]. |
| 141 | * ''VideoGame/TheLordOfTheRingsGollum'' was first announced in 2019 with little fanfare, but upon its eventual release in 2023, it rapidly caught word-of-mouth attention in the worst way imaginable due to being utterly eviscerated by critics and casual players alike, with audiences -- even those who aren't interested in ''Franchise/TolkiensLegendarium'' -- flocking to see how bad someone would have to botch a game based on a beloved IP for it to earn immediate "potential worst game of the decade" status. |
| 142 | * ''VideoGame/MichiganReportFromHell'': What keeps people coming back to this otherwise obscure game is its ''astonishingly'' bad voice-acting. |
| 143 | * ''VideoGame/NinjabreadMan'': The only reason most people have any interest in this game. That and the title. |
| 144 | * The Platform/Atari2600 version of ''VideoGame/PacMan'': The TropeCodifier for PortingDisaster. [[HilariousInHindsight Hilariously in Hindsight]], the Atari 2600 ports of ''Ms.'' and ''Jr. Pac-Man'' were {{Polished Port}}s. Add the many re-releases of the original [[UsefulNotes/ArcadeGame Arcade]] version on multiple platforms, as well as fan-favorite ''Pac-Man Championship Edition DX'', and there's absolutely no reason to play ''Pac-Man'' on the Atari 2600 other than curiosity as to how bad it is. |
| 145 | * ''VideoGame/PaperMarioStickerStar'': Given its reputation as the weakest ''Paper Mario'', some have played just to see if ''Sticker Star'' is really that bad. |
| 146 | * ''VideoGame/RideToHellRetribution'': The [[ObviousBeta hordes of glitches]] both [[GoodBadBugs amusing]] and [[GameBreakingBug annoying]], repetitive and shallow gameplay, paper-thin story, laughable voice-acting, [[FetishRetardant pointless sex scenes where the characters keep their clothes on the entire time]], and the [[ComplexityAddiction illogical]] and [[DesignatedHero dickish]] actions of the main character (most famously the scene where he blows up a power plant just to shut off an electric fence) have led to the game becoming renowned as a masterpiece of awfulness that gamers play solely to see how bad it can get. |
| 147 | * ''VideoGame/SkullIslandRiseOfKong'': The game is a low-effort licensed shovelware that does a huge disservice to [[Franchise/KingKong its source material]] and is clearly just a forgettable cash-grab, but it garnered a lot of attention upon its release due to just ''how'' rushed it was, with many considering it a strong candidate for worst game of 2023, and a number of people checked out the game solely for that. |
| 148 | * ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog2006'': People who play this game today play it to see if it really is that bad. |
| 149 | ** Similarly, ''VideoGame/SonicBoomRiseOfLyric'' is said to be just as bad as, if not worse than, ''06''. People mostly just play this game to pick apart every last flaw, from its [[ObviousBeta motherload of glitches]], [[FillingTheSilence constant voice clips]], and less-than-impressive gameplay. |
| 150 | * ''VideoGame/SuicideSquadKillTheJusticeLeague'' was already fraught with [[TaintedByThePreview a ton of bad publicity]] prior in [[DevelopmentHell the months-turned-years]] before release for a multitude of reasons, from concerns over the game [[ToughActToFollow being a follow-up to the beloved]] ''Franchise/BatmanArkhamSeries'' as well as the controversial live-service gameplay model alienating fans, with many expecting to only approach the game from a distance. However, general animosity turned into this trope when the game was finally released and word got out of just how bad its plot actually was, with [[spoiler:the game's handling of genuinely killing off the Justice League, including Batman in what was advertised as the late Creator/KevinConroy's SwanSong for the character]] drawing such backlash that more fans flocked to see if it really was as baffling and tone-deaf as claimed. |
| 151 | * ''VideoGame/Superman64'' is infamously known for its laughable story, the "kryptonite fog" used as an excuse for the game's terrible draw distance, the shoddy controls, the massive amount of levels that amount to just flying through rings, and the many bugs and glitches that can be either hilarious, a game breaker, or game breaking hilarious. LetsPlay/ProtonJon covered the game so that no one else would have to play it and he tried to discourage people from playing it, but they went and bought/tried the game anyway just to see for themselves how bad it really was. |
| 152 | * Platform/NintendoSwitch cartridges are very small and could present a choking hazard if a child put one in their mouth. To avoid this, they're sprayed with denatonium benzoate, a harmless chemical that tastes ''horribly'' bitter... which led to a brief fad, shortly after the system's initial release, of people ''licking'' Switch game cartridges just to see how bad it was. |
| 153 | * ''VideoGame/TheWalkingDeadDestinies'': Having been touted as an ambitious game where players could rewrite the most important events of ''Series/TheWalkingDead2010'', the game turned out to be a broken mess with graphics more appropriate for a budget smartphone game, frustrating and repetitive gameplay, and mountains of bugs. It wasn't long before dozens of videos were being made about the game's low quality, which led to morbidly curious gamers seeking it out just to see it for themselves. |
| 154 | [[/folder]] |
| 155 | |
| 156 | [[folder:Webcomics]] |
| 157 | * ''Webcomic/BillyTheHeretic'': Notable for being possibly the first webcomic made by neo-Nazis for neo-Nazis, pretty much the only reason anyone reads the comic is to see how bad it really is. |
| 158 | * ''Webcomic/{{Sinfest}}'': Following [[SeasonalRot the infamous "Sisterhood" arc]] and subsequently increasing FilibusterFreefall to a virtually incomprehensible degree, the number of non-ironic followers of the series has dwindled to a tiny fraction it had prior, [[note]]Partly due to the creator banning or blocking anyone that criticizes him, even constructively, including taking down the comic's old forum because of it.[[/note]] with the majority of its readers nowadays only reading to see how nonsensical it's gotten. |
| 159 | * Most readers of ''Webcomic/{{Sonichu}}'' do so in order to see the shockingly bad artwork, the graphic content existing side-by-side with juvenile plots, and its completely convoluted story. And that's without mentioning how it was heavily influenced by the life of its notorious creator. |
| 160 | [[/folder]] |
| 161 | |
| 162 | [[folder:Web Original]] |
| 163 | * ''WebAnimation/DusksDawn'' is considered by many [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic Bronies]] to be their subculture's answer to ''Film/TheRoom2003.'' |
| 164 | * ''WebVideo/ThePainter'': The series became quickly controversial on the Internet, due to the excessive shock factor, the lack of actual characters and the plot not going beyond of "evil dude doing evil shit", with some calling it "the worst Analog Horror series". The result is one of the most (in)famous horror series on Youtube. |
| 165 | * ''WebAnimation/TheRedApeFamily'' ''immediately'' gathered infamy and had many memes and YouTubers making fun of it. There were many reasons for it: 1) It was entirely based on Non-Fungible Tokens (specifically the "Bored Ape" collection), a controversial and widely hated technology; 2) the voice acting is poor and it is ''barely'' animated; 3) The Twitter account for it was overhyping the show to the [[SmallNameBigEgo point of delusion]], calling its first episode "already a masterpiece". It's a dumpster fire and many, many people were eager to watch it smoulder. |
| 166 | * A variation whereby the creator themselves isn't bad, but the stuff they present is; New England Wildlife and More gained popularity for his presentation of decades-old food products; people flocked to his channel to see how awful the food is after several decades. |
| 167 | [[/folder]] |
| 168 | |
| 169 | [[folder:Western Animation]] |
| 170 | * With how hated ''WesternAnimation/AllenGregory'' is to the point where Fox has tried to [[BuryYourArt bury it]], many still seek it out to see how bad it really is. |
| 171 | * ''WesternAnimation/BigMouth'' has landed a spot on its page because of the controversy over its premise as an edgy, no-holds-barred comedy about puberty. Those who decided to take a chance and see for themselves [[BrokenBase are divided into two camps]]: those who have found it to be the funniest cartoon in ''years'', and those who were unimpressed by its unusual art style, crass humor and uncomfortable subject matter. |
| 172 | * Viewers who lost their appetite while watching ''WesternAnimation/TheBrothersGrunt'' were hard-pressed to imagine that this was made by the same minds behind ''WesternAnimation/EdEddNEddy.'' |
| 173 | * Being a blatant knockoff of ''WesternAnimation/{{Bluey}}'' and made by [[Creator/{{Bentkey}} a conservative right-wing media company]], ''WesternAnimation/ChipChilla'' has elicited this reaction from many. |
| 174 | * Downplayed with ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy''. Although it's been, for the most part, well-received, from season seven and onward, the show slowly began to suffer from SeasonalRot and the later seasons have received mixed-to-negative reviews from fans. Those who decided to see for themselves why this was the case found it difficult to believe that they were written by sane, decent human beings. |
| 175 | * Some people only watch ''WesternAnimation/MegaBabies'' just to see how strong their stomachs are. Others in disbelief that it was by the same people who made the ''vastly'' superior ''[[WesternAnimation/SwatKats Swat Kats.]]'' |
| 176 | * Thanks to its appearance in countless [[MemeticMutation memes]] and just as many countdowns of the worst cartoons (and its [[EarWorm infamous]] theme song), ''WesternAnimation/TheNutshack'' has [[NoSuchThingAsBadPublicity made quite the name for itself]]. |
| 177 | * ''WesternAnimation/RapsittieStreetKidsBelieveInSanta'': Long considered [[MissingEpisode lost]] for several years, this trainwreck only aired ''once'' on Creator/TheWB. Viewers are unanimously awestruck by how this steaming heap managed to make it on ''[[MemeticMutation NATIONAL TV.]]'' |
| 178 | * ''WesternAnimation/ThePowerpuffGirls1998'': |
| 179 | ** Fans tend to watch the absolutely despised "Town and Out" (for its realistic nature) and "Moral Decay" (for Buttercup grasping the JerkassBall quite hard) just to see how bad they are. |
| 180 | ** To a further extent, fans of the original just watch [[WesternAnimation/ThePowerpuffGirls2016 the reboot]] just to pick apart everything wrong with it for how it changed everything about the original show. |
| 181 | * ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'': |
| 182 | ** After hearing about the universal hatred for the episode "[[Recap/SpongeBobSquarePantsS7E5KeepBikiniBottomBeautifulAPalForGary A Pal for Gary]]", many people found themselves wondering just how awful it could be, watched it themselves and immediately regretted it afterwards. |
| 183 | ** Many watched "[[Recap/SpongeBobSquarePantsS7E11OneCoarseMealGaryInLove One Coarse Meal]]" to see how bad it is, and many also regretted watching it. It says something when even ''[[CreatorBacklash many of the cast members of the show]]'' say they've regretted making this episode. |
| 184 | * The ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'' episode "[[Recap/SouthParkS10E14StanleysCup Stanley's Cup]]" has received tons of backlash from many fans, often making it to many "Worst South Park Episodes" lists. Because of this, many people became curious as to why the episode was so bad, decided to watch it themselves, saw the point and immediately regretted it afterwards. |
| 185 | * There are only two reasons why anyone would willingly watch ''WesternAnimation/{{Velma}}'': One is that they’ve never heard of its reputation and viewed out of pure curiosity due to its association with the ''Franchise/ScoobyDoo'' brand. The other is that they do actually know of its reputation and just wonder why it has been panned every which way. |
| 186 | * ''WesternAnimation/YoYogi'': It's TotallyRadical to the point of self-parody, it nearly ''killed'' most of Hanna-Barbara's original intellectual property and it's a ''spectacle'' to see. |
| 187 | [[/folder]] |
| 188 | |
| 189 | !!'''InUniverse works:''' |
| 190 | |
| 191 | [[folder:Fan Works]] |
| 192 | * ''Fanfic/AceLives'': In Chapter 19, despite the increasing amount of embarrassment and humiliation everyone is feeling, no one can find it in themselves to stop Whitebeard and Kaido from airing all the dirt they have on each other [[spoiler:from their time together on the Rocks Pirates]]. It's explicitly compared to a slow-motion ship collision that you can't look away from, no matter how much you want to. |
| 193 | [[/folder]] |
| 194 | |
| 195 | [[folder:Films -- Live-Action]] |
| 196 | * In ''Film/LiarLiar'', this is the only reason Judge Stevens allows Fletcher to call Samantha Cole to the stand. He's completely and utterly fed up with how much of a joke the trial has been, and pretty much already made up his mind that Samantha's ex-husband will win the case, but he just ''has'' to see what Fletcher is going to do next. |
| 197 | --> '''Judge:''' Mr. Reede, it is out of sheer morbid curiosity I'm allowing this... freak show to continue! Mrs. Cole? ''If you dare.'' |
| 198 | * ''Film/StarTrekGenerations'': After installing the emotions chip that Dr. Soong made for him, Data tries a drink for the first time. He finds the drink unagreeable, but can't get enough of it. |
| 199 | -->'''Guinan''': Well, it looks like he hates it.\ |
| 200 | '''Data''': ...yes, that is it! I ''hate'' this!\ |
| 201 | '''Geordi''': Data, I think the chip is working.\ |
| 202 | '''Data''': (''takes another swing'') UGH! Yes! I ''HATE'' this! It is ''REVOLTING''!\ |
| 203 | '''Guinan''': More?\ |
| 204 | '''Data''': Please! |
| 205 | [[/folder]] |
| 206 | |
| 207 | [[folder:Literature]] |
| 208 | * In ''Literature/DiaryOfAWimpyKid'', Greg and his dad can't resist reading the dreadful newspaper comic ''Li'l Cutie'' (a parody of ''ComicStrip/TheFamilyCircus'') just to see how bad it is. (One of the captions for a ''Li'l Cutie'' comic was, "Daddy, is rain just God sweating?") |
| 209 | * ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' has the historical figure of Bergholt Stuttley 'Bloody Stupid' Johnson, a man who took BunglingInventor and {{Bizarrchitecture}} and elevated them to art forms. His creations ranged from merely useless (a range of monuments less than an inch high) to somewhat alarming (a manicure device mainly used to peel potatoes, a fountain capable of launching a stone cherub a thousand feet in the air) to reality breaking (a row of houses [[EldritchLocation that refused to confirm to Euclidean geometry]]). His crowning achievement was a mail-sorting machine - containing a wheel for which the value of pi is [[AlienGeometries exactly three]] - that threatened to ''[[RealityBreakingParadox destroy the universe]]''. As for how he kept receiving commissions to build this stuff; half of it was [[ConspicuousConsumption rich idiots showing off that they had money to spend on things that were worse than useless]], and the other half was a sick curiosity about what he would do next. |
| 210 | [[/folder]] |
| 211 | |
| 212 | [[folder:Live-Action TV]] |
| 213 | * In ''Series/CobraKai'', this is more or less the primary reason the Sekai Taikai moderators allow both Cobra Kai ''and'' Johnny and Daniel's combined dojo compete. When made to choose between the two they almost immediately decide that Cobra Kai is the superior dojo, but as they've never seen a dojo quite like the combined Miyagi-Do and Eagle Fang, they are so bemused and morbidly curious of what it could bring to the Sekai Taikai that they allow them to compete as well. The secondary reason being Johnny manages to bond with the German moderator over their shared love of ''Film/RockyIV'' and bad-assery. |
| 214 | [[/folder]] |
| 215 | |
| 216 | [[folder:Theater]] |
| 217 | * In the musical version of ''Film/TheProducers'', the opening song implies that the only reason people still go to see the shows Max Bialystock produces is to see for themselves just how much of a disaster it's going to be. |
| 218 | [[/folder]] |
| 219 | |
| 220 | [[folder:Video Games]] |
| 221 | * One of the sidequests you can tackle in ''VideoGame/BugFables'' involves finding three bad books to give to a wasp named Reeves. He wants them because of this trope. |
| 222 | * [[https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/841031802880524289/841036896188366848/image0.png An event]] in ''VideoGame/TheNewOrderLastDaysOfEurope'' describes an AlternateHistory book (or more accurately an AlternateHistoryWank) called ''The Greatest Story Never Told''. The cover has a [[TerribleArtist badly hand-drawn illustration]] of a tank with the Dixie flag and the contents aren't much better. It claims that [[InsaneTrollLogic Nazi Germany is controlled by Jews]] among many other absurd things. People end up buying the book because it's so unintentionally funny. |
| 223 | * In ''VideoGame/{{Psychonauts}}'', the StrawCritic Jasper Rolls (who is Gloria von Gouten's inner critic) believes that Bonita Soilel's plays are this. [[spoiler:He also sticks around to watch because he is the Phantom, and gets satisfaction from sabotaging her performances.]] |
| 224 | [[/folder]] |
| 225 | |
| 226 | [[folder:Web Animation]] |
| 227 | * ''WebAnimation/ZeroPunctuation'': |
| 228 | ** Yahtzee genuinely recommends buying ''VideoGame/RideToHellRetribution'' since it's so bad it has to be played to be believed. |
| 229 | --->"It's bad. It's explosively, apocalyptically bad, and you should totally buy it. I'm serious, you have to see this shit! ''Where to start?!"'' |
| 230 | ** He also claims the only reason ''VideoGame/{{Daikatana}}'' was released on Platform/{{Steam}} was so people could see how bad it is, adding that the description should have been "roll up, roll up, everyone come and see the freak." |
| 231 | [[/folder]] |
| 232 | |
| 233 | [[folder:Webcomics]] |
| 234 | * Tycho of ''Webcomic/PennyArcade'' [[https://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2009/12/14 once bought]] a copy of ''[[VideoGame/TonyHawksProSkater Tony Hawk: Ride]]'' for 120$ on the basis that the game is, in his own words, "fucking goddamn bullshit, even though it sucks," and later asking the store clerk if they have anything else horrible. |
| 235 | * In ''Webcomic/ElGoonishShive'', Elliot [[https://www.egscomics.com/comic/2013-03-29 watches]] ''Film/JackAndJill'' because he was curious why it had a 4% approval rating. |
| 236 | [[/folder]] |
| 237 | |
| 238 | [[folder:Web Video]] |
| 239 | * In ''WebVideo/AtopTheFourthWallTheMovie'', Linkara ultimately comes to an epiphany that despite all the crap he's gone through, the thing that gives him purpose in life is reviewing bad comics and learning about the creative decisions that led to them getting made. |
| 240 | * ''WebAnimation/BigtopBurger'': Zomburger is a LethalEatery that deliberately makes poor-quality burgers in order to garner negative reviews, which in turn drives more customers to eat there just to see if the menu is as bad as they claim. |
| 241 | --> '''Frances:''' The worse the food, the better the sales! |
| 242 | [[/folder]] |
| 243 | |
| 244 | [[folder:Western Animation]] |
| 245 | * ''WesternAnimation/DuckTales2017'': In "Louie's Eleven!," Dewey is convinced yo-yo tricks are the next big thing and hopes to perform them for hit-maker Emma Glamour. When Glamour's party is overtaken by mercenaries, Dewey jumps at the chance to create a distraction. He's ''terrible'' and fails at even the simplest of tricks, but Glamour and the mercenaries can't pull their eyes away from the spectacle. |
| 246 | [[/folder]] |
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