Line #80 Main/CuriosityIsACrapshoot


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9	[[caption-width-right:300:Clear and [[{{Pun}} present]] danger.\
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15	->''"Make your choice, adventurous stranger''\
16	''Strike the bell, and bide the danger''
17	->''Or wonder, 'till it drives you mad,''
18	->''What would have followed if you had."''
19	-->-- Literature/TheMagiciansNephew
20
21	Generally, every [[StockAesops stock aesop]] has an opposite, equally valid aesop with advice. In fiction, nowhere is this more pronounced than with curiosity. Depending on the genre, [[SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism idealism]], and morality of the story, curiosity can either save your life or [[CuriosityKilledTheCast prematurely end it]].
22
23	All in all, by its very nature, [[TitleDrop Curiosity Is A Crapshoot]] and the only possible way to have a clue about whether it's rewarded or punished is to be GenreSavvy. In a SurvivalHorror Film, it's bad to ignore the HauntedHouseHistorian and go into the HauntedHouse... although deciding that ItsProbablyNothing is just as bad. In a [[SpeculativeFiction Sci-Fi flick]], usually good (science is about trying to learn things you didn't know) but sometimes over-the-top NightmareFuel (because ScienceIsBad). Fantasy and folk tales can be difficult to tell due to {{Prophecy Twist}}s or some FairFolk's ExactWords, but you usually get a chance to undo it through a series of {{Impossible Task}}s (climb mountains until you wear out thirty pairs of shoes...).
24
25	(Things do tend to turn out well for the ConstantlyCurious or those CuriousAsAMonkey. In the long run, at any rate.)
26
27	Then again, with some author's penchant for {{Twist Ending}}s (let's not get into BrokenAesop for now) the exact same kind of story can have exactly the same action go from good to bad.
28
29	Not to be confused with ApathyKilledTheCat. See also SchmuckBait and CuriosityCausesConversion. This may violate the PowerOfTrust, which can be dangerous.
30
31	[[JustForFun/IThoughtItMeant It has nothing to do with]] [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curiosity_(rover) a certain Mars rover]], which has been operating fine since 2012 and is far from being a crapshoot.
32	----
33	!!Examples:
34
35	[[foldercontrol]]
36
37	[[folder:Curiosity is Bad]]
38
39	[[AC:Anime and Manga]]
40	* Cooro from ''Manga/PlusAnima'', despite being the CheerfulChild, follows his curiosity to a secluded cave with a rather creepy adult (and no one else), and as such almost gets drugged and kidnapped.
41	* In ''Manga/KotouraSan'''s DownerBeginning, Haruka Kotoura is the quintessential CheerfulChild and a classic {{Moe}} heroine. The catch is that she's an [[PowerIncontinence inadvertent]] {{telepath\|y}} in a society where [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tatemae Tatemae]] (roughly, keeping inner thoughts secret while putting on a front) is a major concept. Worse, [[InnocentlyInsensitive she has no idea about any of this]] since speech and thought are one and the same to her, so she [[LivingLieDetector questions why everybody is lying]] and [[MindOverManners speaks their thoughts out loud]]. BreakTheCutie ensues [[TraumaCongaLine again and again]] quickly and painfully,
42
43	[[AC:ComicBooks]]
44	* In Part 2 of ''Franchise/StarWars'' ''Fate of the Jedi'', Jedi Knight Exar Kun's curiosity into forbidden knowledge and dark side/Sith secrets plunges the galaxy into war. Although already a powerful Jedi who even bested his master in lightsaber combat, it was not enough. Seeking to expand his knowledge as well, the young Jedi delved deeper into his studies of the Force and ignored his master's cautions, believing that he was too strong to fall to [[TheDarkSide the dark side]]. However, on Korriban, an evil Sith spirit crushed him with an avalanche and told him to [[JoinOrDie accept the dark side or die of his wounds]].
45
46	[[AC:{{Fanfic}}]]
47	* Invoked by Taran about Yen Sid in ''Fanfic/DisneysWarACrossoverStory'', when he argues that the whole story wouldn't have happened, had Yen Sid not invented the Doorway that later allowed the Horned King to travel to other worlds.
48	* ''Fanfic/AGamerInSouthBlue'': When Kowalik [[spoiler:goes OneWingedAngel with his [[GreenThumb Adam Treant]] form]], Jack has the chance to run away. Instead, he pushes himself to his limits, risking a HeroicRROD, because he has to know before he commits to running away...whether or not he had a chance of winning.
49	* ''New Look Series'': Both Sonic and Young Link ended up in their respective predicaments because they couldn't resist exploring a girl's room.
50
51	[[AC:{{Literature}}]]
52	* This is all over ''Literature/AiNoKusabi''. Bad examples include 3 characters snooping where they don't belong to find classified secrets. Two of which [[BrainWashed pay for]] [[GoMadFromTheRevelation it dearly]]. The complicated examples are below.
53	* In ''Literature/TheBookOfAtrixWolfe'', Saro and her father watched Atrix Wolfe's spell because of her curiosity -- and got caught.
54	* ''Franchise/ConanTheBarbarian'':
55	** In "Literature/TheDevilInIron" the fisherman who investigates a place is explicitly described as having more curiosity -- and dies.
56	--->''That he was where he was proved that he was less dully incurious than most of his people.''
57	** In "Literature/IronShadowsInTheMoon", Olivia's terror, [[DreamingOfTimesGoneBy after her dream]], persuades Conan not to assuage his curiosity. Which is just as well.
58	** In "Literature/ThePoolOfTheBlackOne", Sancha is captured because she went on the island out of curiosity.
59	* In the ''VideoGame/{{Darksiders}}'' novel ''The Abomination Vault'', the Keeper of Oblivion invokes this as the reason he doesn't look into whether his victims are deserving of [[CessationOfExistence the fate the Charred Council sentenced them to]]. He's convinced that if his curiosity got the better of him and he started questioning the Council's judgement, he'd go utterly barking mad.
60	-->''"I have to trust the Charred Council's judgement, Death. I have to. It's the only way I can perform [[TheExecutioner my duties]] without losing whatever remains of my sanity."''
61	* The plot of ''Literature/LaszloHadronAndTheWargodsTomb'' happens because Laszlo is only too eager to stick his nose in the Sagittarian investigation once he learns about it.
62	* ''Literature/TheMagiciansNephew'' provides us with the page quote.
63	* The ''Literature/SkeletonCrew'' short story "The Jaunt" is about a little boy who becomes curious as to what goes on during a {{teleportation}} between Earth and Mars, during which everybody is supposed to be knocked out. He holds his breath to avoid the knockout gas... and [[HyperspaceIsAScaryPlace pops out the other side completely insane]]. Turns out that the physical journey is instantaneous, but the ''mental'' journey:
64	-->''"Longer than you think, Dad! LONGER THAN YOU THINK!"''
65
66	[[AC:Live-Action TV]]
67	* ''Series/MonarchLegacyOfMonsters'': In the [[Recap/MonarchLegacyOfMonstersS1E1Aftermath first episode]], approaching and accidentally disturbing the [[BigCreepyCrawlies Endoswarmer]] nest gets Monarch scientist Keiko killed despite Bill and Lee's best efforts to save her. In fact, Lee and Bill got into an argument before directly approaching the nest about whether it was worth getting a sample for research or leaving well alone out of caution.
68
69	[[AC:{{Mythology}}]]
70	* [[Myth/GreekMythology Pandora]] opened the box with all the troubles of the world out of curiosity.
71	* Psyche disobeyed her husband (who secretly was Eros, or Cupid as the Romans called him), who warned her not to try to [[ForbiddenFruit find out who he was]] by lighting a lamp while he was asleep to look at him. Punished for this with a quest and several tasks to complete for [[MyBelovedSmother his mother Aphrodite]] (who already didn't like her[[note]]Psyche was so beautiful that people were worshipping her as a goddess of beauty, which was Aphrodite's domain and naturally incurred her wrath, so Aphrodite had already made her SoBeautifulItsACurse by [[AttractivenessIsolation cursing her to never have anyone fall in love with her]]. Eros circumvented it as prior to this curse, Aphrodite had sent him to prick her with one of his arrows and cause her to fall in love with something ugly, but the sight of her caused him to forget his purpose until he accidentally pricked himself with one of his arrows and cemented a love for her[[/note]]), she didn't exactly learn better for her last task to bring back the beauty of the Queen of the Underworld in a box - peeking into it put her to sleep. Fortunately, Eros had gotten fed up with the situation, [[DeusExMachina showed up]], got her awake again, and [[HappilyEverAfter brought her to Olympus where they married and she was made a goddess]].
72
73	[[AC:{{Radio}}]]
74	* ''Radio/OurMissBrooks'': Definitely bad in the episode "Sneaky Peepers". When Miss Brooks accidentally orders a copy of Rodin's "The Kiss" instead of "The Thinker" for Madison High School. Mr. Conklin orders the offending statue covered up until it can be returned. After Mr. Conklin falsely accuses Walter Denton of looking at the statue, Denton decides to set up a trapdoor to catch the actual culprit. Lo and behold, Walter Denton, Miss Brooks, Mr. Boynton, Mr. Conlin, and Head of the School Board Mr. Stone end up falling through the trapdoor and locked in a storage room in the basement.
75
76	[[AC:VideoGames]]
77	* The main plot of Telltale's ''VideoGame/BackToTheFutureTheGame'' starts out with Doc wanting to go back to 1931 due to wondering who was the infamous Speakeasy Arsonist. He winds up getting framed for the arson charges.
78	* In the [[Franchise/SuperMarioBros Mario]] fangame ''VideoGame/MarioTheMusicBox'', a recurring theme that is hammered into the heads of Mario and the player(s). In fact, the ArcWords are "Ever heard of 'Curiosity Killed the Cat'?"
79	* The Curious quirk in ''VideoGame/DarkestDungeon'' is one of the most harmful ones in the game. A hero with it has a certain chance to interact with ''any object in the dungeon'' without being prompted to do so, often with negative repercussions and always with less-than-optimal ones in the case of ones that require a certain supply item to bring out the full benefit.
80	* The entire story of [[VideoGame/HaloCombatEvolved Halo CE]] in a nutshell. Sure, go ahead, learn more about the [[RingWorldPlanet mysterious ring world]]. Even better, dig deeper into a few of its imposing structures, not minding the big, red ominous Forerunner warning symbols above particular, [[TemptingFate intentionally-locked doors.]] [[WhatCouldPossiblyGoWrong What's the worst that can happen?]]
81	* In ''VideoGame/{{Helltaker}}'', Azazel, the Curious Angel joins the harem in order to study the demon girls. However, over the course of the comics, she starts getting signs of corruption, like graying hair and horns starting to grow. [[spoiler: In the far future of the ''Examtaker'' Extra Chapter, her Curiosity eventually leads her to become Loremaster, an amoral MadScientist and the new overlord of Hell.]]
82
83	[[AC:VisualNovels]]
84	* In ''VisualNovel/TheGreatAceAttorney: Adventures'', [[spoiler:This plays a part in the bizarre circumstances of Case 4's assault case. The victim saw a book fall out of the sky and bent down to pick it up, only for a knife to fall soon after and [[DeathFromAbove stab her in the back]]. Both items were from a flat above, the occupants of which had been fighting over a misunderstanding.]]
85
86	[[AC:{{Webcomics}}]]
87	* ''Webcomic/TheOrderOfTheStick''. The imp [[http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0624.html professes]] to watch V out of curiosity. The plea does not help its case.
88	%%* ''Webcomic/TheDreamlandChronicles''. It gets you suspected of being a spy.
89	%%* In ''Webcomic/{{Endstone}}'', [[http://endstone.net/2011/08/04/6-16/ Kyri warns about this.]]
90
91	[[AC:WebVideo]]
92	* In ''WebAnimation/IfTheEmperorHadATextToSpeechDevice'', the Emperor is convinced of this, claiming that Magnus' fall from grace and subsequent destruction of his homeworld were the result of him being too curious for his own good. Magnus [[CallingTheOldManOut fires back that maybe that wouldn't have happened if the Emperor had bothered to explain]] ''[[DugTooDeep why]]'' such curiosity would be dangerous when dealing with [[EldritchLocation the Warp]], stating maybe he and the other Primarchs wouldn't have fallen if he actually told them just how dangerous Chaos would be.
93
94	[[AC:WesternAnimation]]
95	* In ''{{WesternAnimation/Alma}}'', Alma's curiosity when she sees a doll in a toy store that looks exactly like her [[spoiler:gets her turned into a doll]].
96	* A ''WesternAnimation/RobotChicken: Star Wars'' skit plays the trope for laughs. A sea serpent professes, in true fantasy novel style, that he has to believe in his dream of something beyond the great desert surrounding his home. All the while, his mother is pleading with him to stop, reminding him that "the elders" all say the desert never ends... and they're proven right. The serpent goes on his quest and dies of dehydration, accomplishing nothing.
97	[[/folder]]
98
99	[[folder:Curiosity is Good]]
100
101	[[AC:{{Advertising}}]]
102	* Vanilla Coke's product launch had a [[TheFamilyForTheWholeFamily vaguely mobster-looking fellow]] (played by Chazz Palminteri) [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rKzgBInG2n4 congratulating a young man on his "youthful curiosity" and giving him a Vanilla Coke.]]
103
104	[[AC:{{Anime}} and {{Manga}}]]
105	* In the English dub of ''Anime/DigimonAdventure'', curiosity is shown to be one of Izzy's best traits. He has it [[OurSoulsAreDifferent removed]] in one episode, which resulted in him acting like a zombie and his Digimon partner Tentomon [[BrownNote almost regressing into nothingness]] because curiosity and intelligence are the virtues that give him power.
106
107	[[AC:{{Fairy Tale}}s]]
108	* In ''Literature/TheBlueMountains'', every man before the Irishman failed to ask what was going on. As a consequence, no one of them could save the princess and all lay in enchanted sleep.
109
110	[[AC:{{Fanfic}}]]
111	* Delivered {{Anvilicious}}ly in ''Fanfic/HarryPotterAndTheMethodsOfRationality'': "That is the story of how Harry James Potter-Evans-Verres was almost killed by his own lack of curiosity."
112
113	[[AC:{{Film}}]]
114	* In ''Film/TimeBandits'', Kevin's curiosity enables him to recognize the things that the dwarfs just want to loot. The only good adult in the film, Agammenon, [[ParentalSubstitute encourages]] his desire to learn.
115
116	[[AC:{{Literature}}]]
117	* ''To Serve Man'' by Creator/DamonKnight, wherein the cast all blithely head off to their unwitting deaths and are saved by one guy who is curious enough to figure out just what ToServeMan means.[[note]]Not so in ''Series/TheTwilightZone1959'''s [[Recap/TheTwilightZone1959S3E24ToServeMan version]], as they only figure this out ''after'' people are boarded, and it's pointed out humanity is doomed whether or not they know it.[[/note]]
118	* In {{Chivalric Romance}}s about Parsizal both Chretain and Wolfram have Parsizal fail to ask the significance of what happens before him. This is disastrous.
119	* In ''[[Literature/TheJungleBook Rikki-Tikki-Tavi]]'', Rikki's curiosity leads to him uncovering Nag's plans to kill the humans who adopted Rikki, allowing him the opportunity to take Nag and Nagina out.
120	-->''"The motto of all the mongoose family is 'Run and find out,' and Rikki-Tikki was a true mongoose."''
121
122	[[AC:LiveActionTelevision]]
123	* In ''Series/BabylonFive'', the leader of the Gray Council, Dukhat, chastises the isolationist council members for not wanting to open communications with humans for a plethora of reasons while a young acolyte, Delenn, wants to meet them for no other reason than simple curiosity. Turns out, that may have been the wisest choice. [[spoiler:By not interacting with humans, they ended up meeting unexpectedly and a terrified human captain fired upon the Gray council's ship, killing Dukhat and starting a 2-year genocidal war.]]
124	* The entire theme of ''Franchise/StarTrek''. ''To seek out new life, and new civilizations. To boldly go where no one has gone before.'' Though [[RedShirt people die]], it always comes back to the idea that it is better to take the risk. Indeed, Q actually introduced Starfleet to the Borg, their absolute worst enemy from then on, more or less to make the point that exploration is as risky as it is rewarding; [[spoiler:his actual reason was to give Starfleet a heads up to the danger so they could start preparing for the inevitable confrontation and wouldn't just be caught unaware and destroyed when the Borg decided to invade the Alpha Quadrant]].
125
126	[[AC:{{Webcomics}}]]
127	* In ''Webcomic/BlueYonder'', Jared suggests that they let Kevin talk [[http://www.blueyondercomic.net/comics/1321329/blue-yonder-chapter-1-page-32/ because he is morbidly curious about what he will say next.]] [[https://web.archive.org/web/20111016020830/http://www.blueyondercomic.net/comics/1327214/blue-yonder-chapter-1-page-33 Even Lena has to admit he had something to say.]]
128	[[/folder]]
129
130	[[folder:Curiosity Is Complicated]]
131
132	[[AC:{{Anime}}]]
133	* In the final episode of season 1 of ''Anime/GhostInTheShellStandAloneComplex'' the Major argues that simple curiosity is the factor that keeps the individuality of people from becoming consumed by increasing synchronization of cyberbrains. [[spoiler:This is particularly relevant coming from her at that moment since she just spent some time cruising around the cyberbrain web as a bodiless soul to avoid an assassination attempt. There was a very real chance that her individuality could've been overwhelmed by other minds without a body to anchor her.]] Of course, this being Ghost in the Shell, the topic is complicated. Certainly, more than a few people get killed by accidentally discovering conspiracies after investigating a few strange irregularities.
134
135	[[AC:FanWorks]]
136	* In ''Fanfic/AmazingFantasy'', Izuku ventured down an alleyway rather than a shady underpass to investigate a strange purple-clad figure he saw climbing up a wall. Because of this, he gets bitten by the spider and nearly dies, spending two days in a coma. On the other hand, he also gains spider-powers.
137
138	[[AC:{{Film}}]]
139	* In ''WesternAnimation/TheNightmareBeforeChristmas'', Jack's curiosity about Christmas leads him to try SubbingForSanta. On the one hand, Jack [[BadSanta doesn't make for a very good Santa]], causes the titular nightmare, and puts Santa in jeopardy. On the other hand, if Jack wasn't curious, he would have been locked into his depression, [[ObliviousToLove not realize that Sally loved him and that he loved her too]], and his curiosity wasn't what caused all the trouble -- it was [[IdiotHero Jack rushing into things]] [[DidntThinkThisThrough without thinking things through]] that made things [[GoneHorriblyWrong Go Horribly Wrong]].
140	** Nicely [[LampshadeHanging lampshading]] this complexity at one point, though possibly unintentionally, someone quotes the phrase "curiosity killed the cat" verbatim, but, as this is Halloween, it's meant as ''[[BadIsGood encouragement]]''.
141
142	[[AC:{{Fairy Tale}}s]]
143	* The ''Literature/{{Bluebeard}}'' story. Every wife gets killed for curiosity until one of them turns out to have common sense in addition to curiosity and starts to plan her escape after finding the corpses of all the previous wives.
144	** This is an especially interesting example because, over time, the emphasis of the story changes. The early versions focused on how curiosity, as well as being brave and clever, saved the heroine. (If she hadn't looked through the forbidden door, she would ''have stayed married to a serial killer.'') [[http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/bluebeard/index.html Later versions]] altered the story to imply that curiosity is unmitigatedly bad; the heroine is so wild with curiosity that she abandons her duties and disobeys her husband. The subtext seems almost to read that she deserves death.
145	** There's also another one where the moral is curiosity isn't necessarily bad but assumptions and lack of trust will color your perceptions. In that version, the wife peeks in his closet and sees heads in the dark. He drags her back to the closet to show her the heads where she kills him... and in the light of the candle, she sees the heads are actually statue busts. Cue massive WhatHaveIDone.
146
147	[[AC:{{Literature}}]]
148	* ''Literature/AiNoKusabi'' has two complicated examples that end very badly for the curious. The first being Daryl putting HonorBeforeReason and his life at risk to do a SecretTestOfCharacter. The second having a positive outcome of [[TheBeautifulElite Iason]] and [[SexSlave Riki]] truly falling in love despite the [[{{Dystopia}} grim]] [[NoSexAllowed circumstances]] of [[StarCrossedLovers their]] [[TheMasochismTango relationship]] which started out as a WorkOffTheDebt agreement fueled by sexual curiosity.
149	* In Creator/CSLewis[='=]s ''Literature/TheSilverChair'', the character giving advice was himself only a small percentage of the time and seemed insane when he's actually giving the right advice. But at least there they had the literal WordOfGod to guide them onto the correct course.
150	* Swaps back and forth in ''Literature/{{Coraline}}''. At first, it's good, because everything in the Other World is idyllic. Then bad, when [[spoiler:the Other Mother tries to make her stay forever]]. Then good again, because Coraline [[spoiler:saves the souls of three previously taken children and [[SealedEvilInACan defeats the Other Mother]]]].
151	* Considered for several paragraphs in one of Creator/TimothyZahn's ''[[Literature/TheThrawnTrilogy Thrawn]]'' novels where Luke, having returned to Dagobah and recalling Yoda's advice on how some emotions inherently serve the Dark Side, ponders which side curiosity is aligned with before deciding it's probably a bit of both.
152	** In ''Literature/GalaxyOfFear'', curiosity generally gets our heroes in the way of the [[MonsterOfTheWeek Threat of the Book]], and this can get pretty harrowing. On the other hand, a lot of the time said threat would have come for them anyway, sooner or later, and curiosity is usually a component of how said threat is defeated - often for good.
153	* As mentioned above, Rudyard Kipling's "The Elephant's Child" (from his ''Literature/JustSoStories'' and [[ConstantlyCurious its own trope]]). He was spanked repeatedly by his relatives for his "'satiable curiosity", and nearly killed when a crocodile sank his teeth into his nose. As the Elephant's Child pulled against the crocodile, he stretched his nose out. He then found many great uses for his new nose-- including spanking his relatives back, until they decided to get their noses stretched as well, which is why elephants have trunks.
154	* Despite usually getting dragged out as the poster child for ThingsManWasNotMeantToKnow, the story canon of Creator/HPLovecraft runs the gamut. Curiosity can be dangerous here because the world is weirder than humans (or at least the stock higher-class gentry and city folk of LovecraftCountry) are quite ready to admit and there are both ''things'' and villains of the more human persuasion willing to go to any lengths to keep their secrets to themselves; but it's not necessarily a bad thing in and of itself and does sometimes lead to the discovery of just the bits of knowledge needed to, if not save the day, then at least avert an even worse outcome.
155	* Played with in ''Literature/HarryPotterAndTheGobletOfFire'' when Dumbledore praises Harry for his curiosity, but also cautions him to exercise good judgment alongside it.
156
157	[[AC:LiveActionTV]]
158	* ''Series/DoctorWho'':
159	** Curiosity can get you killed or worse, but it can also lead to you becoming one of the Doctor's companions. Though becoming one of the Doctor's companions may also get you [[AnyoneCanDie killed]] [[BreakTheCutie or]] [[LaserGuidedAmnesia worse]].
160	-->'''Doctor:''' We might die.\
161	'''Martha Jones:''' We might not.\
162	'''Doctor:''' Good.
163	** In ''[[Recap/DoctorWhoS15E4TheSunMakers The Sun Makers]]'', the Doctor's fellow prisoner was sent for correction because of his curiosity. Though it does mean he's there to be rescued by Leela.
164	** In "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS1E2TheDaleks The Daleks]]", the Doctor is so desperate to investigate an apparently deserted city that he sabotages the TARDIS. This nearly causes the entire TARDIS crew to perish, as not only are they captured by the Daleks but they discover the planet's atmosphere has given them radiation poisoning.
165
166	[[AC:VideoGames]]
167	* Discussed in ''VideoGame/FireEmblemTheBlazingBlade'' in regards to the resident scholars of the party, Canas and Pent. Their shared support has Canas remark that he can't stop himself from seeking knowledge, even though that same behavior is what landed his three brothers in comas from dark magic overuse, and Pent agrees that the search for knowledge is a dangerous one. Pent's support with Hawkeye has the latter note that people like Pent go to war over magic, which Pent again attributes to the desire for knowledge. Meanwhile, in their B support, Nino is aghast that Canas left his son (baby Hugh from [[VideoGame/FireEmblemTheBindingBlade the sequel]]) at home to go on a journey of knowledge and demands that he go home as soon as possible. This is muddied, however, by both being quite nice and bonding with others on the basis of that knowledge.
168	* A mixed bag in ''VideoGame/{{Stellaris}}'' -- leaving the more mysterious things in the galaxy alone is always safe while prodding at them can lead to anything from massive benefit to disaster, depending on luck and your scientists' skills. Sometimes it's a bit of both; certain events can simultaneously be creepy and costly, but provide great benefit if you see them through.
169
170	[[AC:VisualNovels]]
171	* In ''VisualNovel/DoubleHomework'', looking into the weirdness of Dr. Mosely's summer school program could give someone all of the answers anyone could look for. [[spoiler:It could also be a death sentence.]]
172
173	[[AC:WebAnimation]]
174	* ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'': The Curious Cat in the [[Characters/RWBYTheEverAfter Ever After]], per their name, is constantly curious and desires new knowledge, implicitly because they were originally ''designed'' to be that way. It was initially a boon as the curiosity encouraged the Cat to interact with the world and fellow Afterans, facilitating their role as the world's {{Psychopomp}}. However, over the eons since their creators, [[TheMaker the Brother Gods]], left them and the Ever After behind to create Remnant, the Cat, who was confined to the Ever After, was unable to work out why their makers left them behind. What's more, their curious nature prevented them from achieving spiritual self-renew via [[{{Reincarnation}} ascension]] as the other Afterans can -- the end result was that the Cat's curiosity turned into a "curse" and drove them insane with a desperate need to access Remnant in search of their answers.
175
176	[[AC:{{Webcomics}}]]
177	* In ''Webcomic/TheIntrepidGirlbot'', seemingly much of the plot is driven by the curiosity of both Girlbot and Raccoon #1. While the initial results are almost always [[https://web.archive.org/web/20101104005057/http://www.intrepidgirlbot.com/2010/09/27/a-la-mode/ painful]] or [[https://web.archive.org/web/20120229054105/http://www.intrepidgirlbot.com/2011/10/18/prototypical horrifying]], good intentions, cooperation, and luck allow things to work out in the end.
178
179	[[AC:RealLife]]
180	* Openness to Experience, the [[UsefulNotes/BigFivePersonalityTraits Big Five trait]] measuring intellectualism and artistic tendencies, is also associated with curiosity and a tendency to explore new possibilities. The fact that it's normally distributed is essentially biology admitting that there's a time and place for all levels of curiosity.
181	[[/folder]]

Context Main / CuriosityIsACrapshoot