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2%% Image kept on page per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=16988998890.29228800
3%% Please do not replace or remove without starting a new thread.
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5[[quoteright:350:[[WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/karma_houdini.jpg]]]]
6[[caption-width-right:350:So is Satan just generous when people don't have a [[DealWithTheDevil soul to sell?]] [[CorruptCorporateExecutive Maybe if you do enough deeds in his name...]]]]
7%%
8->''"It's hard to be religious when certain people are never incinerated by bolts of lightning."''
9-->-- '''Calvin''', about [[TheBully Moe]], ''ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes''
10
11Sometimes, even LaserGuidedKarma misses its target.
12
13The character has done a number of things that deserve a karmic comeuppance, most importantly things that caused harm to the innocent. But when the time comes for the hammer to fall, that's not what happens. At least, not on them. They ''don’t'' get what they deserve. Instead, they get away scot-free. They are EasilyForgiven, maybe even praised, and even elected president. And they might even have ''reversed'' the HumiliationConga that was being planned for them. Worst comes to worst, TheBadGuyWins and a stolen happy ending takes place at the expense of the [[KarmicMisfire hapless victim]] who [[NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished may be punished in the guilty character's place]].
14
15This is it. This is all there is to the story. The show is over. The book is finished. The author isn't going to write any more. The WordOfGod has been spoken. Karma is out to lunch. The villain has become a [[TitleDrop Karma Houdini]].
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17Predictably, it is often shocking or downright ''upsetting'' to see such scoundrels dodge [[CantGetAwayWithNothing instant karmic punishment]] and come out triumphant in the end. But as frustrating as it is, [[TropesAreTools it does not necessarily make the story "worse" as long as it doesn't feel forced, contrived, or even shortsighted.]] Regardless, this trope runs the high risk of leaving the audience's thirst for emotional catharsis unsatiated, especially when they've become so invested in seeing the villain they've projected their hate onto get their full commupance that may or may not come by the end. And when it doesn't, you can expect them to complain about it and clamor for a sequel where the villain ''does'' get their comeuppance -- or alternatively, they'll try to satisfy their frustratingly unfulfilled desire for retribution by [[RevengeFic writing their own]].
18
19There can be a number of reasons for this trope. Sometimes, the story is going for a DownerEnding in which the villains escape justice for their crimes. Other times, the creators overlook relatively minor offenders, whether due to not considering their actions worthy of punishment or not having the time to see them get their comeuppance within the story. Still other times, it may not be possible to exact retribution on the characters who ends up becoming Karma Houdinis. It could be that they're too powerful to be subject to retribution -- any EldritchAbomination in a horror story is likely to be this, as even if they don't outright win, they are so beyond mortal comprehension that the best the protagonists can hope for is to simply escape them. Or it could be that there's no way to legally judge them because they are above the law in some way, and the protagonists are not willing to risk it all for some vigilante justice.
20
21Compare ButtMonkey, for which a character ends up having many disproportionately bad things happen to them throughout the story (and may also technically qualify for this trope, as hard as that sounds). The extreme counterpart of the former trope, CosmicPlaything, can be considered this trope's polar {{opposite|Tropes}}. Also compare with NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished, where the good guy suffers as a result of doing the right thing.
22
23Contrast the aforementioned LaserGuidedKarma, when the villain's comeuppance hits at an incredibly opportune moment and is directly traceable to their transgression; KarmaHoudiniWarranty, when the comeuppance only happens in a sequel; and KarmicDeath, when the comeuppance leads to the villain's death. Also see IdiotHoudini, when a person is forever protected from the results of their stupidity.
24
25Note that a character doesn't necessarily need to be a full-time villain to qualify for this trope. They may simply end up [[KickTheDog doing unnecessarily hurtful things]], yet not suffer the repercussions. (In contrast, when someone ''is'' too evil to kill off, but may suffer other consequences, see JokerImmunity.)
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27Note also: The work usually must be completed for a character to qualify as this trope. Only if there are no more opportunities for LaserGuidedKarma to strike can a character be said to have successfully avoided any consequences for their actions. Exceptions may be made in cases where StatusQuoIsGod,[[note]]which is why you should not add this trope to the ThisImageIsNotAnExample index[[/note]] or when a character can be said to have permanently escaped, e.g. they died peacefully in their sleep at an old age. [[{{Hell}} And sometimes even that’s not enough.]] (Unless they ''somehow'' managed to get into {{Heaven}} and are gleefully rubbing their current state in your face). Otherwise, resist the urge to put it on an ongoing work's page. If you are confident or know that the work has been cancelled before it can finish telling its story, it is valid as an entry.
28
29Don't mistake a lack of direct karma for this trope. If a character, for example, murders someone and never gets caught, but [[BoltOfDivineRetribution a freak lightning strike kills them]], [[KarmicDeath they've still gotten their comeuppance even though the lightning had no connection to their crime]]. Think of the writer as God, with the power to punish or not punish a character who does evil.
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31[[JustForFun/IThoughtItMeant Not to be confused with]] a literal Houdini-style escape by the villain to avoid justice, that's VillainExitStageLeft, although the two certainly can (and often do) overlap.
32
33'''This is a [[SpoileredRotten spoileriffic trope]]; spoilers shall be unmarked. Administrivia/{{You have been warned}}.'''
34[[noreallife]]
35
36
37----
38!!Example subpages:
39[[index]]
40* KarmaHoudini/AnimeAndManga
41* KarmaHoudini/ComicBooks
42* KarmaHoudini/ComicStrips
43* KarmaHoudini/FanWorks
44* [[KarmaHoudini/AnimatedFilms Films — Animated]]
45* [[KarmaHoudini/LiveActionFilms Films — Live-Action]]
46* KarmaHoudini/{{Folklore}}
47* KarmaHoudini/{{Literature}}
48* KarmaHoudini/LiveActionTV
49** ''KarmaHoudini/OneThousandWaysToDie''
50* KarmaHoudini/{{Music}}
51* KarmaHoudini/ProfessionalWrestling
52* KarmaHoudini/{{Theatre}}
53* KarmaHoudini/VideoGames
54* KarmaHoudini/WebOriginal
55* KarmaHoudini/{{Webcomics}}
56* KarmaHoudini/WesternAnimation
57[[/index]]
58
59!!Other examples:
60[[foldercontrol]]
61
62[[folder:Advertising]]
63* In ''Advertising/TheMythOfOrpheusAndEurydice'', unlike the myth, where Aristaeus was punished for his role in Eurydice's death by losing his bees (in essence, his livelihood), this Aristaeus gets no comeuppance for tempting Orpheus and killing Eurydice.
64* Played for laughs in an AOL commercial from the 90s. A teenage girl crediting AOL with helping with her schoolwork is revealed at the end to be a BigSisterBully who makes her younger brother do her homework for her, giving him a bouncing wedgie because he didn't do good enough to earn her an 'A' and smirks at the camera as she keeps him bouncing.
65[[/folder]]
66
67[[folder:Asian Animation]]
68* In the ''Animation/SimpleSamosa'' episode "Samosa Mama", [[TheRival Cham Cham]] frames Samosa for a kidnapping he never committed, let alone knew about, and comes alarmingly close to indirectly getting him ''killed'' through [[CruelAndUnusualDeath being eaten]] (he is, after all, an [[AnthropomorphicFood anthropomorphic samosa]]) as a penalty for it. Once Samosa is proven innocent, Cham Cham is dealt with by way of... a back massage.
69[[/folder]]
70
71[[folder:Music Videos]]
72* In ''Music/{{Miserable}}'', The GiantWoman spends a decent portion of the video chasing down the band members one-by-one and eating them alive, even as they beg her for mercy. By the end of the video she has succeeded in swallowing every member and walks away, never getting punished for what she did, and seeming quite content with her actions.
73* The (extremely NotSafeForWork) video for "Skinless", by [[Music/{{Skinless}} the death metal band of the same name]], depicts the Hudson Skinner serial killer removing the face of one of his victims in graphic detail. The end of the video shows the Skinner relaxing in his lair while listening to a news report about the band itself being arrested for his crimes[[note]]or in the case of vocalist Sherwood Webber, being the target of an extensive manhunt by authorities in Colorado (he lives in Denver in real life; the rest of the group remains based in upstate New York, where the Skinner was located in the video)[[/note]]. Averted for [[FramingTheGuiltyParty the band themselves]], though - they were acting as accomplices to the Skinner, even "performing" the song to the victim while he was being mutilated.
74[[/folder]]
75
76[[folder:Pinball]]
77* Red and Ted from ''[[Pinball/RedAndTedsRoadShow Red & Ted's Road Show]]'', who travel the country wreaking havoc but never suffer any consequences for their actions, as they are {{Heroic Comedic Sociopath}}s.
78* In ''VideoGame/MetroidPrimePinball'', Meta Ridley is a constant nuisance in the Artifact Temple, but you never actually get to defeat him.
79* It is possible to invoke this in ''Pinball/WhoDunnit1995'' if the player fails to catch the killer, either by failing the Taxi Chase or not completing [[RooftopConfrontation The Roof chase.]]
80* Inverted in ''Pinball/HighSpeed'' and its sequel ''Pinball/TheGetawayHighSpeed2'': You [[VillainProtagonist play the villain]] (albeit a minor one whose offense is ''speeding'') who the cops are after. How long you can stay on the table depends on how good a Karma Houdini you are (which of course depends on your skills at pinball).
81[[/folder]]
82
83[[folder:Radio]]
84* Hercules Grytpype-Thynne in ''Radio/TheGoonShow'' would generally never sustain any comeuppance for using Neddie as a fall guy in his schemes. For example, after faking a disease outbreak in ''Lurgi Strikes Britain'', he and Moriarty disappear while Neddie becomes a wanted criminal ([[FreakOut and goes mad...]] [[CloudCuckoolander OK, madder]]). Granted, sometimes he ''does'' have something bad happen, such as ''Tales of Old Dartmoor'' (in which he ends up inside Dartmoor Prison as it sinks into the ocean...[[ItMakesSenseInContext yeah, it's a weird show]]), but they are vastly outnumbered by the ones where he gets off scot-free.
85** Spike Milligan obviously loved this trope, so even when Grytpype-Thynne (and his frequent partner in crime Count Moriarty) fails, one of the other characters - most frequently Major Bloodnok - will succeed. In at least two episodes, ''The Phantom Head-Shaver'' and ''The Spanish Suitcase'', it turns out to be announcer Wallace Greenslade.
86* ''Radio/AdventuresInOdyssey'' has a very rare intentional example in the episode "The Tangled Web". In it, Connie reads a story that Whit wrote about a boy who fibs about why the money his mother gave him to run an errand disappears. Instead of telling her what actually happened (he lost it by his own fault), he makes up a story about being robbed by a thug. As stories like this usually go, the situation escalates as he struggles to keep the lie up, but despite Connie's full expectations otherwise, he never gets found out. She is absolutely dumbfounded and questions what the point of the story was and believes it to be an example of this, but Whit explains that the message he was trying to convey is that even if you get away with a lie, the guilt you carry for the rest of your life will stay with you, which is what happens to the boy in the story.
87[[/folder]]
88

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