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1[[quoteright:206:[[ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/meanttodothat_6855.jpg]]]]
2
3->''From a kitten's book of etiquette, this lesson I take\
4 You don't have to be embarrassed when you make a mistake\
5 You pull yourself together, and you brush off your hat,\
6 And tell the watching crowd, "you know, I meant to do that!"''
7-->-- '''Catherine Faber''' and '''Arlene "Callie" Hills''', "I Meant to Do That"
8
9A spill or tumble can be [[FeeFiFauxPas quite embarrassing]] if there are witnesses.
10
11How to reduce the humiliation? Turn it into a stunt. Claim it was intentional, a show for their benefit.
12
13The most common subversion to a [[ThePratfall pratfall]], an I Meant To Do That typically involves the clumsy character either managing to land on his feet (despite all odds) or springing up unhurt immediately after a fall.
14
15There is a bit of TruthInTelevision to this: if you trip up while walking, people are less likely to notice if you just keep walking afterward without looking sheepish or saying "whoa". Oh, they'll probably still snicker, but not as much. It is also a house cat's standard method of preserving dignity.
16
17Some characters may create an apparent GambitRoulette by doing this, claiming random events to be [[AllAccordingToPlan all part of their plan]].
18
19This trope can sometimes be used in less comedic circumstances, such as in a FightScene. Compare AllPartOfTheShow, ExactlyWhatIAimedAt (or AccidentalAimingSkills), and UnintentionalBackupPlan.
20
21A DeliberateFlawRetcon (and its subtrope, ParodyRetcon) is what happens when an artist claims an entire ''work'' was Meant to Do That.
22
23----
24!!Examples:
25
26[[foldercontrol]]
27
28[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
29* One chapter of ''Manga/AyakashiTriangle'' has Matsuri's team planning to [[StormingTheCastle raid Shadow Mei's base]], but Reo and Suzu spend so long fighting over Matsuri that Shadow Mei (who saw them coming) gets tired of waiting and comes out herself. She asks if that was intentionally and says it would be very clever if it was. After a BeatPanel each, Suzu and Reo confidently say ([[InnerMonologueConversation or rather, think]]) it was, and Shirogane shouts that they're lying.
30* ''Anime/CowboyBebop'', in "Stray Dog Strut", when they activate the "Dog Whistle":
31-->'''Boss:''' Is it on? I don't hear anything.\
32'''Lab Tech:''' It's high-pitched, only dogs can hear it.\
33'''Boss:''' ''[[[{{Beat}} long pause]]]'' I knew that. I was just testing you.
34* Played for laughs in ''Manga/InuYasha'', where Miroku "exorcises" a house (just to get some free accommodation), only to have a demon fly out of the roof, as the house really ''did'' need to be exorcised.
35* Implied and then confirmed in supplemental materials that Frieza of ''Anime/DragonBallZ'' fell into this when he failed to destroy Namek like he claimed he'd do, having held too much power back in fear of being killed in the resulting explosion. Caught with egg on his face and not wanting to admit his mistake, Frieza claims the planet is exploding in a mere five minutes to cover for this blunder.
36* ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure'':
37** Absolutely glorious example from the end of [[Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventureBattleTendency Part 2]]. [[CrazyPrepared Joseph Joestar]] drops [[BigBad Kars]] into a volcano to try and kill him. Unfortunately for him, it doesn't work, and Kars re-emerges and cuts Joseph's hand off, and it goes tumbling off into oblivion. Half a chapter later, Joseph manages to trigger a massive eruption, and Kars is planning to just fly away from it...until Joseph's ''severed hand'' comes flying out of the volcano again, propelled on venting gas, and hits him right in the throat, distracting him from the process of forming wings. His last words before he's blasted into orbit are directed at Joseph, accusing him of having planned this all along (which isn't as implausible as it sounds, in this series). Joseph immediately takes credit for it, while simultaneously thinking "''As if! That was just total luck! [[{{Troll}} But if it'll piss him off...]]''"
38** In [[Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventureStardustCrusaders Part 3]], Alessi has a de-aged and wounded Polnareff cornered, and attacks him with his Stand. The attack causes Silver Chariot's rapier to snap, and the point accidentally ends up lodged in Alessi's neck, allowing Polnareff to escape. As he flees, Polnareff claims he did it on purpose.
39* ''Manga/OnePiece'':
40** As the Straw Hats are escaping from the Navy in Alabasta, Usopp's cannons hits a Navy ship, causing it to blow up, and then causing the ship ''next'' to it to blow up as well! Judging from his reaction, it was a total accident, but Ussop immediately takes credit for it.
41** Zeo seems like a rather harmless villain at first, to the point that Brook accidentally stood on his face for a while without noticing. But then Zeo reveals his master plan. Brook was never standing on his face at all. Zeo was in fact headbutting the bottom of Brook's foot! [[http://garththedestroyer.deviantart.com/art/Fruition-263531318 Genius!]] ''Any''time things don't work out for Zeo, he claims the negative result was what he was aiming for. To the point that he claims that he let himself be stabbed in order to dull the blade.
42** When Usopp is trying to knock out Sugar, he gets beaten up and captured by Trebol. Sugar force-feeds Usopp an ultra-spicy grape, which causes him to have a such a nightmarish reaction that Sugar ends up fainting from shock. Usopp then claims that he planned to have it happen that way.
43** The first time Sasaki prepares to launch himself at Franky, he accidentally rotates his propeller frill the wrong direction and flies backwards a good ways. He immediately claims with a straight face that [[BlatantLies he was intentionally putting space between him and Franky to set up his attack]], which Franky doesn't believe for a second.
44* ''Manga/PlaceToPlace'': Subverted when Mayoi opens her second umbrella (having lent the first one to Hime), only to have it break and shoot forwards spear-like. The rest of the cast expect her to laugh it off as another of her usual goofy tricks... but Mayoi's reaction is actually a surprised "Eh?". Nobody was expecting it from her, of all people.
45* ''Anime/SamuraiChamploo'' uses this with an overblown samurai who claims he's going to make it big one day. In a duel, he rushes up, draws his sword -- and gazes skyward when it flies out of his hand and into the air. It looks like it's all over for the blowhard, until the sword falls from the sky and lands on his opponent's head, knocking him out. His response? "That was...my Flying Dragon technique!"
46* ''Manga/SlamDunk'': In the Shohoku vs Sannoh match, at one point Miyagi sees everyone is being marked, so he tries to score himself. Sawakita blocks him, only for the ball to hit Sakuragi in the face bounce off and land ''right into the basket''. Sakuragi then claims that he did a "face shot" on purpose, and Miyagi plays along saying that he expected Sawakita's block too.
47[[/folder]]
48
49[[folder:Comic Books]]
50* In ''ComicBook/SonicTheHedgehogArchieComics'', in a bid for publicity, [[VillainWithGoodPublicity Ixis Naugus]] heals Bunnie of a wound she received in battle. Not only does he do so, [[spoiler:he turns her back into a fully organic Mobian]]. He clearly is surprised by this, but (at the urging of Geoffrey St. John) quickly claims he meant to do it.
51* ComicBook/{{Loki}} is dreadfully prone to defeat himself/themself and plans going awry so accidentally fixing or breaking the situation (guy could take the title God of Unintended Consequences) but this so never stopped the jerk from claiming that he meant to do that... highlights include: taking credit for turning [[ComicBook/TheMightyThor Thor]] back after the frog incident (actually the Asgardians destroyed the machine powering the spell); and claiming that he [[Comicbook/JourneyIntoMysteryGillen meant to die]] in the Siege of Asgard (past Loki's ghost downright denied this, but he isn't the Loki of the now so his opinion doesn't count); or meant to turn [[ComicBook/VoteLoki Nisa]] into an IntrepidReporter by destroying her home.
52* In the ComicBook/DisneyDucksComicUniverse, this is how the Red Bat (Fethry's superhero alter ego) has earned a reputation as a superhero: [[RefugeInAudacity no matter what happens, he acts as if it was all part of the plan]], right from when, in his debut story, he stopped the Beagle Boys and when asked if he had done that alone he pointed at Donald in a gorilla disguise too tall for him (they had been at a masked party, with Fethry's disguise being the one he'd use as a superhero), said "No, this headless gorilla helped me", and left. And considering this guy patrols Duckburg riding a ''pogo stick'' and yet he's still effective, people tend to believe him.
53* ''ComicBook/StarWarsDarthVader'': A large part of the plot involves Darth Vader having to compete with cyborg rivals for his job, created by Cylo. Afterwards Emperor Palpatine tries to explain it all away as part of his EvilPlan. Vader is having none of it.
54-->'''Palpatine:''' My true apprentice would frustrate the copies. Eventually, driven by pride and desperation, Cylo would go too far... and then, when he was simply a traitor, we could purge him. Do you understand, Vader?\
55'''Vader:''' I do. If any of Cylo's toys had succeeded, you would be making this speech to them.\
56'''Palpatine:''' ''[StunnedSilence]''
57* In the ''ComicBook/AstroCity'' story "The Menace From Earth", the First Family routed the Zirr Empire by destroying their mighty Ubersaurus, humiliated the leaders, and smashed their communications array before leaving. Afterwards, the Zirr Empire tells its citizens that their emperor ''mercifully allowed'' the humans to live, exiling them after their deeds, and dismissed the communications array as merely an art piece. Zo the Zirr, who witnessed these events, realizes the official account is a massive pile of BlatantLies.
58* ''ComicBook/Melusine'': Mélusine's niece Malicella, a young witch, often pretends after-the-fact that the results of her out-of-control WildMagic, however random, were exactly what she meant to do.
59[[/folder]]
60
61[[folder:Comic Strips]]
62* ''ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes'':
63** When Hobbes misses [[RunningGag a pounce on Calvin]], he hits the ground, rolls, stretches, licks, and pads off, nose in the air. Calvin, not fooled for a second, muses that Hobbes wants him to ''think'' he meant to do that. This is even better if you own a cat, because they do ''exactly'' the same thing.
64** Another instance features Calvin making a fool of himself while trying to catapult a large snowball from [[SeesawCatapult a springboard consisting of a plank and a log]].
65--->'''Calvin:''' I meant to do that.\
66'''Hobbes:''' [[DeadpanSnarker Then it worked very well.]]
67** Calvin even managed to pull this off for a simple fall.
68* In a ''ComicStrip/{{Garfield}}'' strip set in early December, Jon is carrying groceries. Garfield leaps and yells, "AHA!" and rips the bag open with his claw, causing canned goods to fall on him. Jon says, "I still haven't bought your Christmas present Garfield", to which Garfield replies, "I knew that."
69* ''ComicStrip/USAcres'':
70** [[https://garfield.com/usacres/1986/12/28 Roy hits Sheldon with a snowball and celebrates by banging on the wall, making the roof's snow fall on him.]] He claims he "meant to do that".
71** [[https://garfield.com/usacres/1986/06/18 Orson's attempt to pole vault over a fence.]]
72--->'''Sheldon:''' What's Orson doing?\
73'''Booker:''' I'd say he's trying to pole vault over the fence but his pole is too flimsy and it will probably break (snap!) and he will crash into the fence (crash!) then he will try to play it down.\
74'''Orson: I meant to do that!'''
75[[/folder]]
76
77[[folder:Fan Works]]
78* Creator/LaurenLopez, Draco's [[CrosscastRole actress]] in ''Theatre/AVeryPotterMusical'', claims that this trope is the reason her Draco rolls around on the floor all the time; he tries to look cool in front of Harry and his friends by posing, fails miserably, then tries to make it look like he did it on purpose.
79* In [[http://g0069.deviantart.com/art/DNF-Fifteen-HATE-95432389 this]] ''Manga/DeathNote'' fancomic, L hits a tennis ball right into Light's [[GroinAttack crotch]]. Light later claims to Ryuk that he knew that would happen, and deliberately didn't shield himself to avoid giving away his [[VillainProtagonist identity]].
80* Calvin says this after shooting Hobbes in the nose trying to get him down from his trap in the first episode of ScriptFic ''Fanfic/CalvinAndHobbesTheSeries''.
81* A frequent characteristic of [[CuteKitten Vesta]] in ''Fanfic/{{Game Theory|LyricalNanoha}}''.
82* ''Fanfic/RainbowDoubleDashsLunaverse'': In "File Under 'I' for 'Impossible'", Zizanie is caught out by Trixie, and asks if she'd seen through her act, and that this is the reason for Trixie's BadBoss tendencies. Trixie claims it was totally all part of the plan, which Zizanie immediately sees through.
83* ''Fanfic/TheRenegadeHeroInvaderZim'': While trying out the Galactic Guardians' training room as a demonstration, Zim blasts random parts of it before the training even starts as a lesson in the element of surprise. A little while later, some of the damage from this causes part of the roof to collapse onto a KillerRobot sent after Zim and take it out of commission, giving his audience the impression that that was his strategy all along.
84* ''Fanfic/RiseOfTheMinisukas'': As getting away from Rei, "Prankster" Minisuka grabs her hang glider, launches herself off a walkway...and an errant gust of wind makes her smack with the Fifth Angel. She then hurts it with her Lance, and proclaims that was her plan all along, and nobody can prove otherwise.
85-->If anyone asked, she planned that. She absolutely didn't lose control of her glider and get thrown directly into the core of the Angel by an errant gust of wind. Anybody who suggested that was just jealous of her skills.
86* ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12459242/22/Serpentine Serpentine]]'':
87-->'''Tonks:''' The crowd did look pretty wild. Hufflepuff and Gryffindor aren't exactly rivals like you guys are with Slytherin, but the gloves come off for Quidditch. Did you see how I smashed that bludger Fred sent at Diggory? I can't believe I got it!\
88'''Harry:''' I can't believe you knocked the Quaffle in on accident. Ron went ''mental''.\
89'''Tonks:''' I meant to do that!
90* In ''Fanfic/TheWeaverOption'' the Mighty Iconoclastic Brotherhood was sent to assault the Cadian Gate. While the exact details aren't revealed, the Dark Council which ordered the assault insist that everything went according to the plans of Chaos and disagreeing on that is treason. What was left of the Brotherhood disagreed and took to piracy.
91* In ''[[https://archiveofourown.org/works/27375406 The Internship]]'' by [[https://archiveofourown.org/users/Neeko96 Neeko96]], when, during the presentation of Gabriel's Miraculous-themed Fashion Week collection, the akuma model stumbles, Adrien catches her and attempts to pretend it was part of the show. While it does fit with the theme (akumas ''are'' people who lose their footing thanks to Hawk Moth and are saved by the heroes), it's not enough to save the model's reputation... at least, until evidence is presented the stumble might have been due to deliberate sabotage.
92* ''Fanfic/WhatAStrangeLittleColt'': After her conversation with Gabriel in “Truth”, Rainbow says this when she stumbles and lands in a heap.
93-->'''Gabriel:''' Yeah, I could tell you rehearsed.
94-->'''Rainbow Dash:''' ''[smirks]'' Whatever.
95[[/folder]]
96
97[[folder:Films — Animation]]
98* ''WesternAnimation/ChickenRun'': Nick and Fetcher the rats bring the eponymous chickens a radio. Upon one of them patting the side, the tuning knob shoots across the coop. "It's supposed to do that."
99* ''WesternAnimation/{{Hercules}}'': The Hydra battle. Hercules loses his sword, struggles to fight the Hydra until he retrieves it, and is caught off guard when the Hydra threw him into the air and swallowed him whole. But after a moment, Hercules cut his way out from inside the Hydra's throat. Covered in green slime and swaying on his clumsy feet, Hercules tells Philoctetes, "See, Phil. That...that wasn't so hard." However, he tries to sheath his sword, only to drop it on the ground, before he himself collapses. Looking at Phil, who asks how many horns he see, a dizzy Herc sees triple and his answer is "Six?"
100* ''WesternAnimation/ThomasAndTheMagicRailroad'':
101** When Toby rings his bell very loudly to distract the Evil [[BigBad Diesel 10]]:, causing Diesel 10 to destroy the shed he and his cronies are under.
102--->'''Diesel 10:''' It's the teapot! Smash him!\
103''[Diesel knocks down shed roof with Pinchy, which traps him, Splatter, and Dodge inside]''\
104'''Dodge:''' Uh, Boss? Did you mean to make the roof fall in?\
105'''Splatter:''' All the way in?\
106'''Diesel 10''' Grr...I always mean what I do, ya ''rattletraps''!
107** Though in most cases, it just seems like a {{blatant lie|s}} on Diesel 10's part. He tries to deny the accidents he unintentionally causes and puts himself into, just to make him not look stupid, though Splodge don't buy it.
108[[/folder]]
109
110[[folder:Films — Live-Action]]
111* The TropeNamer is ''Film/PeeWeesBigAdventure'', where [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJXU7EVXs2A Pee Wee crashes his bike spectacularly in front of a couple of aloof kids, albeit ending up neatly on his feet at the end]], giving the claim a little credibility. Although pratfalls had been a staple of comedy since the beginning of time, Pee Wee's priceless quip made this one famous in its own right.
112* Gimli after falling off his horse in TheFilmOfTheBook ''Film/TheLordOfTheRingsTheTwoTowers'': "It was deliberate, it was deliberate!"
113* The Creator/TerenceHill and Creator/BudSpencer movie ''[[Film/{{Trinity}} They Call Me Trinity]]'' features [[TrainingThePeacefulVillagers combat training with a group of Mormons]]. When one of the Mormons, during an actual battle, attempts to use Bud's trademark grapple, he keeps accidentally flipping the other guy 360 degrees -- landing him right back on his feet. Repeat three times...
114* Inspector Clouseau has done this in the various ''[[Franchise/ThePinkPanther Pink Panther]]'' films.
115** At one point he dismounted from a set of parallel bars by going down the stairs. When he saw that a bunch of people had seen him fall, he said, "Ah, that felt good!"
116** After falling off a sofa in ''Film/AShotInTheDark'' he said, "I know I fell off the sofa, Madame. There's no need to tell me: everything I do is carefully planned, Madame."
117** "Ah, the old closet ploy." (after walking into a cupboard when trying to leave a room).
118* Non-comedic examples: the lightsaber battles in the ''Franchise/StarWars'' films, especially the prequels. One moment in ''Film/ThePhantomMenace'': after Obi-Wan chops Darth Maul's lightsaber in half, Maul responds with a kick to the chin. Obi-Wan somersaults in mid-air and lands on his feet, his expression just begging for a chance to quote that famous line.
119* In the ''Film/GetSmart'' movie, Max tries to walk through a beaded curtain and accidentally knocks all of the hanging beads off of their threads, which later results in the guards slipping and knocking themselves out. He then turns to 99 and says "I set that up."
120* ''Film/WillyWonkaAndTheChocolateFactory''. Subversion: Willy Wonka, emerging from his shop for the first time in years, hobbles out on a cane. He continues hobbling after the cane gets stuck in the ground, seemingly unaware of its absence until he notices it gone, stops, falls over, but [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sz9jc5blzRM tucks into a roll at the last moment and springs to his feet]], obviously more spry than he had previously let on. Creator/GeneWilder added the scene as a way to introduce the fact that Wonka was more than he appeared. He also signed on to the movie on the condition he could do this exact scene.
121* In ''[[Literature/TheTomorrowSeries Tomorrow When the War Began]]'' Homer shouts this after falling down Satan's Steps.
122* In ''Film/DesertHeat'', Eddie Lomax walks into a door after being stunned by the diner girl's beauty, turns back to the rest of the diner, and laughs as though he was making a joke. But certainly appears embarrassed as he turns away and puts his hat back on.
123* In ''Film/{{Spaceballs}}'', after [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SOCDCcNSWhw mistaking the coffee machine for the radar]], Dark Helmet insists that he always has a coffee before watching the radar.
124* In ''Film/SonicTheHedgehog2020'', after Sonic manages to outwit him and escape a carefully planned trap, a stunned [[InsufferableGenius Dr. Robotnik]] admits — probably for the first time in his life — that he genuinely DidntSeeThatComing...then he promptly adds that [[BlatantLies he was expecting to not expect something so it doesn't count.]]
125[[/folder]]
126
127[[folder:Literature]]
128* ''Literature/CodexAlera'':
129** In the final book, Tavi struggles to tear down the gates of one of the great cities of Alera, which are centuries old and have been continuously fortified and strengthened since their construction. He does manage to bring them down--as well as everything in a hundred foot radius. He doesn't say anything, but does play it off like part of the plan, to look more impressive.
130** In a previous book, he does another wordless variation. When he's declaring [[spoiler:that he's the Princeps of the realm]], the ground shakes and a bright red light fills the sky [[spoiler:as a result of a volcano erupting in the B plot miles away]]. Tavi has no more clue about what's going on than anyone else, but he decides to act as if he'd planned for it and use it to add dramatics to his speech.
131* This is how Yossarian got his medal and rank in ''Literature/CatchTwentyTwo'': the military was unsure of how to handle his most recent flight, which destroyed the target but in an unusually risky manner and at a fairly high cost, so they decided to pretend this was intentional.
132* Literature/CiaphasCain got the beginnings of his [[FakeUltimateHero heroic reputation]] from this. While running away from a Tyranid attack, he discovered that it was a diversion and that his escape route went right into the main attack. Thus forewarned, his unit survived, and he got the credit because he couldn't very well ''admit'' that he'd [[DirtyCoward tried to run]].
133* In ''Literature/BrothersOfTheSnake'', one of the Space Marines is tasked with making a shot that's supposed to blow up the explosive charges. He takes it...misses...and promptly claims that the first shot was just checking the distance.
134* In the second novel of Creator/SergeyLukyanenko's ''Literature/LineOfDelirium'', Emperor Grey trips and falls while visiting a planet in TheEmpire. In order to save face, he then begins to offer praises to the planet and its people (similar to the RealLife example below). This turns into the Prostration ritual, during which he visits all the planets in his domain and prostrates and prays after leaving his shuttle. Once, though, he forgets to do that and then simply declares that he is changing the ritual.
135* In the first chapter of ''Literature/{{Redwall}}'', an unnamed bird swoops down on a basket left behind by Matthias hoping for a free meal, only to find inedible (to him) nuts. To avoid embarrassment "lest any other birds had been witness to his silly mistake" he makes it out like he just flew down to look for something else to eat.
136* In ''Literature/HarryPotterAndTheChamberOfSecrets'', [[FakeUltimateHero Lockhart]] founds the Dueling Club and is [[TooDumbTolive dumb enough]] to suggest [[TokenEvilTeammate Professor Snape]] as his sparring partner. Snape promptly wipes the floor with him, but Lockhart cheerfully explains that he just wanted to show what you ''shouldn't'' do in a fight.
137* Discussed in ''Literature/MakingMoney''; Moist thinks that Bent, rather than freaking out and locking himself in the vault after making a mistake, should have claimed that he made the mistake on purpose to test the clerks. "Even schoolteachers knew that one!" (Bent is both scrupulously honest and extremely serious, neither of which are qualities that have ever been ascribed to Moist.)
138* ''Literature/FireAndBlood:'' When Baela Targaryen proves entirely uncontrollable to Aegon III's regency council, by sneaking out of the Red Keep and marrying her cousin rather than the man they'd tried to get her to marry, Tyland Lannister throws up his hands and says they should just claim this was the plan all along.
139[[/folder]]
140
141[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
142!!!'''Series:'''
143* Similar is one of the running gags of ''Series/ElChapulinColorado'' (a Mexican TV Superhero spoof); he would fall and then say one of his catch phrases: "Lo hice intencionalmente, todos mis movimientos estan friamente calculados." ("I did that intentionally, all my movements are coldly calculated.") He would also add silly reasons to the fall or otherwise klutz action, such as "testing the ground's stability" or "checking the balance of the walls".
144* ''Series/ElChavoDelOcho'': One time la Chilindrina mentions to Quico of one instance when El Chavo punched him in the nose hard enough to draw blood. Quico counters that he was "hitting Chavo's hands with his nose".
145* ''Series/DoctorWho'':
146** "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS31E4TheTimeOfAngels The Time of Angels]]": When River demonstrates that she can pilot the TARDIS better than the Doctor can, and shows off some features he didn't know about, he insists that his method of piloting is better because it's more interesting.
147** "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS31E6TheVampiresOfVenice The Vampires of Venice]]": The Doctor is doing some work to on the TARDIS and generally showing off for Rory and Amy when the console sudden erupts in an alarming shower of sparks. After an embarrassed pause, the Doctor defensively snaps "It's ''meant'' to do that."
148* In one episode of ''Series/{{Frasier}}'', the characters are arguing with Martin, who is stubbornly refusing to get glasses despite clearly needing them. They're at their favourite coffee shop, and finally Martin snaps, leading to this moment:
149-->'''Martin:''' There's nothing wrong with my eyes! ''[picks up a cream server]'' Now, if you don't mind, I just want to sit here quietly and have a...''[realizes which cup he's picked up]''...have a drink of cream, do you have a problem with that?! Good.
150** And then, for added stubbornness points, he proceeds to take a sip of cream.
151* Maxwell Smart from ''Series/GetSmart'' is a master of this art. Often the unintentional pratfall does in fact save his life.
152* Tim from ''Series/HomeImprovement'' constantly does that due to being TheKlutz. He constantly screws up, then tries to act like he did it that way on purpose. People who know him well, like Al or his family, are never fooled. However, he does occasionally fool a stranger into believing that an EpicFail was deliberate, like when he was bowling with Jill and accidentally managed to throw his ball down the lane of the people bowling next to him and successfully convinced them that it was a joke.
153* Foggy from ''Series/LastOfTheSummerWine'' never misses a chance to boast about how he was putting on a façade of cluelessness to imply that the conversation is best held in private, how he acted all cowardly and prevented a situation from escalating into actual violence...generally how he did really badly, but nobody calls him on it because he'll just boast about that next.
154* In ''Series/MythQuest'''s depiction of the story of Minokichi and Yuki-Onna, Mosaku falls off an icy path. He assures Minokichi, "I'm alright. I just did that to prove how well I bounce."
155* Rich Hall tells of such a moment in ''Series/{{QI}}'':
156-->'''Rich:''' Funniest thing I ever saw was [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_McCririck John [=McCririck=]]] fall out of a boat.\
157'''Stephen:''' ''[looks very interested]'' ''Really''?\
158'''Rich:''' Pretended it didn't happen, and I was interviewing him, and so none of the crew could laugh until two hours later. ''Everyone'' laughed at the same time and didn't stop for half an hour. They kept it in for two hours. It is possible.\
159'''Stephen:''' That's ''fantastic''. Because he was so...sort of...pompously refusing...?\
160'''Rich:''' Well, yeah, he's a big, blustery guy, and he had a [[CigarChomper cigar]]...and he fell right on top of me. And then fell out of the boat. And then got back in and said; 'Right. [[SelectiveObliviousness Where were we]]?' ''[makes 'Whut?' face]'' 'You just fell out of the boat! You're dripping wet!' Cigar just hanging out of his mouth...Guy pretended it never happened! So ''we'' all pretended it didn't happen until two hours later. We're driving back and the guy driving was just...''(makes zigzag gesture)''...almost wrecked, he was laughing so hard.
161* ''Series/RedDwarf'': In "[[Recap/RedDwarfSeasonIVWhiteHole White Hole]]", Lister is attempting to shoot a planet into the eponymous "white hole" as you would pocket a ball in a game of pool ([[ItMakesSenseInContext long story]]). He shoots, misses, hits a completely different planet and "pockets" that one instead. Lister immediately starts crowing about how it was a perfectly executed trick shot. Everyone else thinks he was just a very lucky git.
162* ''Series/{{Seinfeld}}'': In "The Glasses", George [[BlindWithoutEm takes a bite of a raw onion]] instead of an apple and tries to play it off as a conscious decision.
163* In the ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'' episode "[[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS6E13FaceOfTheEnemy Face of the Enemy]]", Troi, disguised as a Romulan [[SecretPolice Tal Shiar]] [[ThePoliticalOfficer officer]], is having dinner with the Romulan Commander Toreth. Toreth suggests that Troi try a dish called viinerine. However, Troi is unfamiliar with Romulan cuisine, so she grabs a random dish, only to be pointed out by Toreth that wasn't viinerine, to which Troi says "I've smelled fresher viinerine aboard a prison barge."
164* In the math round ''Series/8oo10cdc'', after correctly guessing the correct steps, or while Rachel Riley is explaining the steps, sometimes comedians will act as if they knew it all along and were just leaving it to Rachel to solve.
165!!!'''Specials:'''
166* Creator/MrT's [[SoBadItsGood absolutely hilarious]] educational video ''Be Somebody or Be Somebody's Fool'' tells you that if you trip over a pebble, turn it into a break dance move. The people will applaud you and you'll look awesome.
167[[/folder]]
168
169[[folder:Music]]
170* On a Music/GreatBigSea live album and DVD, Alan begins a song on the wrong verse. He claims it was on purpose, to prove that they aren't lip-syncing.
171[[/folder]]
172
173[[folder:Puppet Shows]]
174* ''Series/EureekasCastle'': Batly is known to say this following bad landings. Which, in his case, is [[CaptainCrash nearly every landing]].
175* Robbie Rotten frequently does this in ''Series/LazyTown''.
176[[/folder]]
177
178[[folder:Pro Wrestling]]
179* Happens occasionally in pro wrestling. Due to the nature of the enterprise being a live performance in front of a crowd, action during the matches can be botched. Often when a botch is noticeable, the crowd will chant "You fucked up!" at the offending wrestler, especially if they didn't like him much to begin with. A heel wrestler who falls victim to this will sometimes turn to the crowd and sneer "I MEANT TO DO THAT," just to play up the fact that he is, in fact, a bit of a dick, for the sake of the show.
180* Wrestling/JakeTheSnakeRoberts has said this was how he invented his FinishingMove, the DDT. He had his opponent in a front facelock and accidentally fell backwards, knocking his opponent out in the process.
181* This is how the infamous botch of Wrestling/KevinNash [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5IZ0nvLhcl4 powerbomb attempt of the Giant]] got turned into an angle. Nash, who had earlier successfully powerbombed the Giant without issue, attempted it again, but since the last time the Giant had put on some weight, and Nash's back gave out mid move as a result, dropping the Giant on the back of his head. A week later the Giant accused Nash of doing it on purpose, leading to [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=27r-ZSpmCQI this promo.]]
182[[/folder]]
183
184[[folder:Radio]]
185* In the ''Radio/CabinPressure'' episode "Helsinki", while Carolyn is showing her sister Ruth her [[TheAllegedCar Alleged Aeroplane]], she claims that the wing is supposed to be doing that and the plane is supposed to make that sound. She is unable, however, to go through with claiming that bits of the plane are supposed to fall off.
186[[/folder]]
187
188[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
189* ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'': [[TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragonsFifthEdition 5th Edition]] hobgoblins can use their "Saving Face" trait to gain a bonus to a failed roll if at least one of their allies is nearby and visible to the hobgoblin, potentially turning that failure into a success. The more friendly witnesses there are, the greater the bonus becomes.
190* ''TabletopGame/{{Pathfinder}}'': Second edition has the has the Unexpected Sharpshooter archetype, which literally has a feat called "I Meant to Do That." [[AccidentalAimingSkills It allows the character's missed shots to cause unintended reactions that creates a problem for their enemies, such as accidentally shooting their weapon out of their hand or causing them to stumble and trip while trying to avoid the gunfire]].
191[[/folder]]
192
193[[folder:Theme Parks]]
194* In a possible ShoutOut to ''Film/PeeWeesBigAdventure'', Paul Reubens also uses this line in his role as Rex, the droid who pilots the Starspeeder in the ''Ride/StarTours'' rides at several Ride/DisneyThemeParks. After your ship has left the spaceport through the maintenance bay, Rex says, "I meant to do that -- a little shortcut! Ha-ha!"
195* At Ride/UniversalStudios:
196** The title character in ''Theatre/TheEighthVoyageOfSindbad'' says this right after he falls down due to getting scared by a skeleton.
197** At the end of ''Ride/TheFuntasticWorldOfHannaBarbera'', Yogi Bear is flung from the vehicle and into the target airbag, prompting him to say this.
198[[/folder]]
199
200[[folder:Video Games]]
201* In ''VideoGame/BatmanArkhamAsylum'', after getting some Riddler trophies and/or solving some riddles, he starts delivering snide jabs on this vein, including at how he expected you to find it much sooner. Considering that it doesn't take him very long to get rather annoyed when you find more of them, this probably isn't true.
202* [[RichBitch Lady Aurelia Hammerlock]] from ''VideoGame/BorderlandsThePreSequel'' has a skill called "Warning Shot", which grants her bonuses whenever she misses a shot with a sniper rifle. She also frequently insists that she's missing on purpose during this effect.
203* Used in ''VideoGame/CallOfDutyBlackOps''. The achievement/reward for scoring a kill with a tomahawk that you [[PinballProjectile first bounced off a wall or floor]] -- a feat that will almost surely come by accident -- is named "I ''Meant'' to Do That!"
204* A slight variation in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyX''. Happens if Tidus fails to do the Jecht Shot on the trip to Luca. He notices that Yuna was watching him and quickly does another flip, ending with a 'ta-da'. She isn't fooled.
205* ''VideoGame/GuildWars'' has a warrior skill called "I Meant to Do That!" that gives the player a boost if he's knocked down. Even better, the skill is a shout, so a speech bubble with the skill name appears above the player's head when he uses it.
206* In ''VideoGame/LostHorizon'' Fenton glues a broken Josephine Baker record together, hides the glue with gunpowder and slips it into the stack of [[CoolAndUnusualPunishment German marching band records]] a Nazi interrogator is torturing Thomas with. When it explodes instead of playing and knocks the Nazi out, Fenton mutters that he meant to do that.
207* In ''The Owl Consults'' Professor Dirk Radon uses his atomic jetpack to return to the airship which he claims Captain Dashing has stolen from him.
208-->Excellent! Disregard the crash you may have heard, Owl; that was just me gently brushing up against a bookcase during my VICTORY DANCE on having accomplished such a perfect landing. And no, there is of course no bookcase on the main deck of the ship. Instead, I used my SPECTACULAR INTELLECT to reroute to a side room off the main deck because...well, to gain the element of surprise. My plan is running smoothly and COMPLETELY ACCORDING TO PLAN.
209* In ''VideoGame/Persona5'', during Ann's romance arc she impulsively confesses that she loves the [=PC=].
210-->'''Ann:''' W-wait, what did I just say!?\
211'''Ren:''' You said 'I love you'.\
212'''Ann:''' I- I said what!? I...I mean...''(assumes a daring expression)''...yeah, I said it! And I meant it too! I really love you! Like, REALLY really! ''(Ren kisses her)'' H-hey...wait a-
213* ''VideoGame/TheRiddleOfMasterLu'': Ripley peeks down into the tomb of the first emperor of China with a matchstick and drops it when it burns his fingers. It hits a line of oil that lights up all the ancient lamps within. When Mei Chen asks what happened, he says he saw that would happen and dropped it on purpose.
214* ''VideoGame/RocketLeague'': The quick chat line "Calculated.", almost always used by players after unintentional errors or lucky goals.
215* In ''VideoGame/{{SSX}} 3'', Psymon Stark says things like "Obviously intentional!" when he gets a power-up or a money token...and when he almost wipes out.
216* Guybrush says this in Chapter 1 of ''VideoGame/TalesOfMonkeyIsland'' after he has caught the Desingeograph of his Poxed hand with his feet and flips it onto the picture bucket near the Illuminopictoscreen. Even though he says that as if he were doing it by accident, it is all a part to escape from the operating table in De Singe's laboratory.
217* Merasmus of ''VideoGame/TeamFortress2'' says this sometimes when he acts like a TacticalSuicideBoss.
218-->'''Merasmus: '''YOU...ARE...GODS! I...meant to do that! It will go badly for you. You watch.
219* If you ask Remilia Scarlet from ''Franchise/TouhouProject'' what she won in the SuperPowerLottery, she'll boastfully tell you that she won the ability to [[WindsOfDestinyChange Manipulate Fate]]. If you ask her little sister, Flandre, she'll tell you that Remilia won the ability to invoke this trope whenever she wants to look cooler than she really is.
220* In ''VideoGame/UnleashTheLight'', one of Amethyst's quotes after being revived is "Yeah... I meant for that to happen!"
221* One of Cherub's quotes on a missed shot in ''VideoGame/XCOMChimeraSquad'' is "That was a warning shot!".
222* ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles3FutureRedeemed'' actually has it PlayedForDrama. [[spoiler:N killing Ghondor, his own son, is framed as a KickTheDog moment, and he acts smug when the topic comes up, but it later turns out that it was really a MurderByMistake. N had come to the City to [[EvilVersusOblivion fight Alpha]] and tried to avoid Ghondor entirely, but they met anyway; N's refusal to fully explain the situation resulted in his son interfering and N unintentionally stabbing him. N is clearly horrified by what he's done, but feels that IveComeTooFar; he claims that he has the right to kill any of his descendants, deliberately giving the impression that he slew Ghondor in cold blood and isn't bothered by it at all. Putting on the attitude of a heartless killer and refusing to acknowledge his guilty conscience leads to N [[BecomingTheMask gradually degenerating]] into the EntitledBastard seen in the main game.]]
223[[/folder]]
224
225[[folder:Webcomics]]
226* ''Webcomic/BeachWZRD'': Wizard's attitude no matter what happens, because [[CircularReasoning in her logic]], whenever her spells [[GoneHorriblyWrong go horribly wrong]], they haven't and that was the intended result since Wizards cannot fail. Whenever they [[GoneHorriblyRight go horribly right]], that's just more proof that wizards can't fail.
227* ''Webcomic/ChairmanJackEmerge'': For all his [[TheSpock seriousness and rationality]], when Chairman Jack's plan to make short work of some {{sky pirate}}s ends up badly to the point of him almost falling to his doom, he feels the need to assure his partner that this was all a deliberate attempt to distract the pirates.
228* In ''Webcomic/ExterminatusNow'', Virus tells the others about how Eastwood had his ex-girlfriend's new boyfriend put to death on heresy charges. Eastwood indignantly defends himself pointing out that the guy actually was a heretic, but Virus reminds him that [[RightForTheWrongReasons they only found that out after they had him executed]].
229* ''Webcomic/FreeFall'': Sam Starfall, upon discovering the hard way that microgravity is the perfect environment for [[http://freefall.purrsia.com/ff1000/fv00972.htm stalking someone]]:
230-->'''Sam:''' No, you did not surprise me. My plans to [[ScreamsLikeALittleGirl scream like a little girl]] when I reached the kitchen were made hours ago. It's pure coincidence that you happened to be [[http://freefall.purrsia.com/ff1000/fv00971.htm here at the time]].
231* ''Webcomic/GirlGenius'': Agatha Heterodyne delivers the line when the coffee machine she's rebuilding [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20070608 explodes]]. Subverted in that she doesn't even have to use it at all to save face, the crowd of onlookers/helpers ''cheers'' at the explosion. The ''Literature/AgathaHAndTheVoiceOfTheCastle'' official novelization makes clear she indeed meant to do that.
232* ''Webcomic/LookingForGroup'' has [[http://www.lfg.co/page/978/ this exchange]] when Richard runs out of steam fighting Assaracus's [[BiologicalMashup whalephants]]:
233-->'''Richard:''' Hey. Was it your plan to make incredibly flammable creatures, knowing I would expend the majority of my power simply to watch whalephant fat burn?\
234''[{{beat|Panel}}]''\
235'''Assaracus:''' [[SureLetsGoWithThat Behold my genius]]!
236* ''Webcomic/TheOrderOfTheStick'':
237** Vaarsuvius has a variant philosophy: "Close enough is good enough."
238** There's an inversion of the trope when Vaarsuvius cast a Cone of Cold on goblins, [[InstantIceJustAddCold icing a very annoying Elan in the process]]. V [[SureLetsGoWithThat immediately agrees with Roy's assessment]] that it was "accidental", and didn't mean to do that.
239* ''Webcomic/SaturdayMorningBreakfastCereal'': Strip [[http://www.smbc-comics.com/?id=3149#comic 3149]]: "All my mistakes are performance art."
240* ''Webcomic/SluggyFreelance'':
241** Riff, about his robot. "That's a feature. It plays dead! ...That's another feature. It's got interchangeable parts! [angrily] That's another feature!"
242** In "Chapter 73: The Immortal King - Bound and Unbound", Riff accidentally fires his laser cannon instead of turning on his flashlight. He briefly admits his mistake but then corrects that that was his cooler but less effective flashlight.
243* In ''Webcomic/StandStillStaySilent'', Onni shows up in Mora with just a bag too small to contain even a change of clothes. When Taru asks him if it's really all he packed, we get to see a brief flash-back in which Onni's refusal to board the boat until the very last minute causes him to abandon most of his luggage on the pier and drop the one extra bag he had managed to grab in the water. Onni's official explanation? He "has no need for wordly possessions".
244[[/folder]]
245
246[[folder:Web Videos]]
247* The [[LetsPlay Let's Player]] LetsPlay/{{Raocow}} used to {{invoke|dTrope}} this every time he made a mistake playing a game, usually saying "That was a demo" or "ForScience", so much so that the [[GameMod Romhack]] made by his fanbase, ''VideoGame/ASuperMarioThing'', counts every player death, called the demo counter.
248* On an episode of ''WebVideo/ManAtArms'', said by Grant Imahara (from ''Series/MythBusters'') while testing Leonidas's sword on a watermelon and only chipping off a little bit.
249* ''WebVideo/SwordArtOnlineAbridged'' has a rare example of this being played ([[{{Dramedy}} sorta]]) [[PlayedForDrama for drama]]: [[spoiler:when working three weeks straight with no sleep to get the game to come out before its deadline, [[ExhaustionInducedIdiocy lead developer Kayaba Akihiko accidentally created a glitch that kills players when their avatars die.]] In his sleep-deprived state, [[InsaneTrollLogic he thought the game would be better received if he pretended this glitch was intentional and was all part of some master plan of a grand villain rather than a terrible bug]], so he disabled everyone playing from being able to able to log out and forced them to clear the game instead of owning up to his own shortcomings as a developer. When he finally caught up on his sleep, he realized what a utterly horrible mistake he had made, but he decided to keep up the charade of it all being part of a plan any way so he could hold the 10,000+ player base hostage inside of his game, in the hopes of buying himself enough time to figure out a way to keep the authorities off his back.]]
250-->[[spoiler:'''Kirito:''' So, you thought that critics would be harsher on a game that killed a few people by accident, than one that killed thousands on purpose?\
251'''Kayaba:''' ''(embarrassed)'' [[DidntThinkThisThrough That was my thought process, yes.]]]]
252* ''WebVideo/TheNostalgiaCritic'' makes fun of this during his first ''Top 11 Nostalgia Critic F*ckups'' video, when he gets to all of his spelling mistakes. He points out how people thought the typo at the end of ''Film/AKidInKingArthursCourt'', which actually ''was'' a legitimate typo, was done on purpose as a joke since he spends a good portion of the episode beating his head with a book trying to forget he ever saw it:
253--> '''Critic:''' A lot of people thought this was part of the joke, that I smashed my head so hard that I got the spelling wrong. Uh...yeah, that was it.
254* Vex of ''WebVideo/CriticalRole'' falls off a flying broom while entertaining a group of children, but manages to land in a forward roll and catch the broom as it falls beside her, insisting through gritted teeth that it was part of the show. The kids believe her. Her friends do not.
255[[/folder]]
256
257[[folder:Western Animation]]
258* ''WesternAnimation/AmericanDad'':
259** In one episode, Francine joins a womens' society but tries to get out when they expect her to cheat on Stan. Just as they prepare to kill her [[YouKnowTooMuch to preserve their secrets]], Francine's neighbor Linda interrupts and [[LesYay gives her a VERY passionate kiss]]. This convinces the women to back off ("No wonder she refused to cheat on Stan with a ''man''...), and afterwards Francine thanks Linda for saving her with the fake lesbian kiss. Linda's response is this trope combined with SuspiciouslySpecificDenial ("Oh, here is your husband. I should get home to my husband, whom I love and am still sexually attracted to.")
260** In another episode, Stan says "I'm the one who made the decisions that kept this family on track for twenty years. I deserve a little respect!" and storms off...into a pantry. When Francine [[TheExitIsThatWay points this out,]] Stan shouts "I'M LOOKING FOR PEACHES!"
261* Lasso Lass, in the ''WesternAnimation/CodenameKidsNextDoor'' episode "Operation: C.O.W.G.I.R.L.", says this after crashing through the rotten floor of her treehouse with her horse. And again at the end of the episode when she crashes through Mr. Wink and Mr. Fibb's fence when trying to ride off into the sunset.
262* ''WesternAnimation/EarthwormJim'': In the teaser for "Assault and Battery", Jim and Peter Puppy are bound to an enormous boulder by Professor Monkey-For-A-Head, who is about to blast them with an enormous laser cannon. Jim tries to use his super-strength to break free, but instead yanks the rock out of the ground and squashes the Professor with it.
263-->'''Jim:''' Would you believe I meant to do that?\
264'''Peter:''' Not a chance, big fella.
265* ''WesternAnimation/KingOfTheHill'': In the "Hank's Back Story", Dale and Hank are practicing for an upcoming mower racing event and end up mowing towards each in a game of chicken and both stop just before the get to the hedges that divide their yards. Then Dale indicates he will back out and twists around to see where he is going, but instead of reversing, the mower shoots forward through the hedges, and Dale yelps and almost falls off. Once his mower stops, Dale feigns deliberateness and tells Hank, "there's more where that came from," then calmly reverses out.
266* ''WesternAnimation/MollyOfDenali'': In "[[Recap/MollyOfDenaliS1E24WelcomeHomeBaltoSnowJam Snow Jam]]," Trini shoots a basket and ends up bouncing the ball between the backboard and the scoreboard multiple times before it finally drops into the basket. Then she claims she planned it that way.
267* ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'':
268** In the episode [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS2E2TheReturnOfHarmonyPart2 "The Return of Harmony, Part 2",]] Applejack [[SlipperySkid slips on some soap,]] knocking over the other ponies. She immediately invokes this trope. Somewhat of a parody, as she was [[spoiler:hypnotized by Discord to lie about everything at the time.]]
269** Done visually by the Wonderbolts flying team in [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS2E10SecretOfMyExcess "Secret of My Excess":]] While fending off a rampaging dragon, they get captured in a water tower. They're freed after the crisis has passed, adopt a heroic pose, then fly off without a word.
270** In [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS3E4OneBadApple "One Bad Apple",]] Babs Seed tries to impress Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon by knocking a wheel off of the Cutie Mark Crusaders' float. However, it ends up [[DisasterDominoes wrecking the entire float.]] She is clearly shocked, but since the two bullies are impressed by her act, she goes along with it.
271** In [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS6E7NewbieDash "Newbie Dash",]] Rainbow Dash tries to pretend she was just testing the other Wonderbolts by not looking left and right before crossing the runway. None of them are fooled.
272* ''WesternAnimation/RobotChicken'' satirizes the AssPull ending of ''Film/TheRiseOfSkywalker'' by having [[spoiler:Palpatine]] insist that everything that happened in the trilogy was according to his plan, while Rey says that nothing makes sense and looks more like he was winging it. When the mechanical arm sustaining Palpatine malfunctions and yanks him away, he also says that this is part of his plan, and also when the arm beats the top of his head against the ceiling.
273* ''WesternAnimation/SheRaAndThePrincessesOfPower'': After Adora thrashes Seahawk at arm-wrestling in a contest to see whether he'll take them to their destination, Seahawk insists that he let her win to boost her confidence and anyway he was just looking for an excuse to sail that way.
274-->'''Adora & Glimmer:''' [SKEPTICISM INTENSIFIES]
275* ''WesternAnimation/ShimmerAndShine'': Zac says this to Leah after crashing into a ''second'' mailbox in "Backyard Ballet".
276* ''WesternAnimation/SofiaTheFirst'': In "The Enchanted Feast", Cedric botches up his spell to conjure up the feast, so hehe claims that it's part of a joke before his main act.
277* ''WesternAnimation/SonicBoom'': In "Translate this" Tails shows off his new invention to the team, the Universal Translator, and proudly claims it not only translates any language into English, but also retranslates any English phrase into what the speaker actually means. This is [[HoistByHisOwnPetard promptly retranslated]] into "I didn't intend for it to do that, but I will gladly accept full credit".
278* ''WesternAnimation/SpecialAgentOso'': The title character's catchphrase: "It's all part of the plan...more or less."
279* ''WesternAnimation/{{Wakfu}}'':
280** Sadlygrove tries to pull this out after being tripped and tumbling during his duel against Prince Armand. Nobody's fooled.
281** In season 2's Gobbowl arc, Kriss Krass also protests this when the Masked Gobbowler takes back the gobball whithout Kriss even noticing.
282* ''WesternAnimation/WeBareBears'' has Ice Bear getting the basketball stuck next to the hoop in a game. But as Ice Bear says, "Ice Bear meant to do that".
283[[/folder]]
284
285[[folder:Real Life]]
286* When UsefulNotes/JuliusCaesar went to Africa (to fight his nemesis, Pompeius Magnus), he stumbled and fell when leaving the ship. Since this could be considered a bad omen, he immediately exclaimed, "I have you, Africa!"
287* William the Conqueror did something similar upon tripping on the shore of England, then proclaiming that he would "grasp it with both hands". Overall, this precise story seems to be something of a wandering anecdote and as the tales of the conquering are usually written when the conquering is done, it's hard to say whether the falling down and quipping about it happened as described or at all.
288* When a sex scene in his novel ''I Am Charlotte Simmons'' won the "Bad Sex in Fiction" award, Tom Wolfe started [[ParodyRetcon telling anyone who would listen]] that the sex scene was ''supposed'' to be bad.
289* One time when Music/DemiLovato was [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lb2JV_WCttc performing "Until You're Mine",]] they tripped and started laughing. During one of the instrumental breaks, they said "I planned that, the whole falling thing? That was already planned."
290* Music/FreddieMercury's [[IconicItem bottomless microphone stand]] originated during a gig very early in Music/{{Queen|Band}}'s career, when his mic stand snapped in half in the middle of a song, but he carried on with the intact bit and decided it would be more interesting to keep it like that.
291* On occasion, during sharpshooting performances, Annie Oakley would miss her target purely for show and visibly pout about it afterwards. Oakley never missed a target without meaning to.
292* UsefulNotes/DonaldTrump has one of two tactics to choose from to save face after he's done or said something dumb: Either deny he did/said it despite ''actual video and audio evidence'', or this trope. A perfect example of the latter is a tweet reading "Despite the constant negative press covfefe", which was so nonsensical it immediately went {{memetic|Mutation}}, especially the nonsense word it ended in. After deleting the tweet, he attempted to save face by challenging followers to guess the meaning of the PerfectlyCromulentWord he'd accidentally coined and apparently compelling then-press secretary Sean Spicer to imply it was some sort of codeword or in-joke if challenged on it. He's also insisted that the bankruptcies he suffered in TheNineties were actually strategic business decisions.
293* This is how Pete Townshend of Music/TheWho's famous [[RockersSmashGuitars guitar smashing]] started. Townshend accidentally cracked the neck of his guitar on a club's low ceiling, then smashed his guitar out of frustration and to make it look like he'd done it on purpose. The band's manager, Kit Lambert, loved it so much he asked Townshend to do it for every performance.
294* After the unlikely cult success of his movie ''Film/{{The Room|2003}}'', director Tommy Wiseau has since insisted the film was always intended as a comedy. Most viewers perceive it simply as a terrible film that was so badly done it was [[TheUnwittingComedian unintentionally hilarious]].
295* Cats will often play off goofy moves or obvious failures as something they meant to do.
296[[/folder]]

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