Line #11 Main/MisplacedSorrow


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6	->'''Leela:''' Fry? He's... he's dead!\
7	'''Bender:''' Oh, who will make Bender waffles just the way he likes them now?
8	-->-- ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}''
9
10	A form of BlackComedy where a character misses another character for shallow, selfish reasons, such as money. Let's say Alice has died. Or, she has [[PutOnABus gone away for a long time]], [[SuicideMission perhaps never]] [[LongBusTrip to return]]; point is, you're never going to see her again. This trope is when another character, say Bob, expresses sadness over Alice's passing...but not because Bob actually ''misses'' Alice. Rather, he's sad that [[NeverLendToAFriend Alice will never be able to pay back]] the $5 she owes him.
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12	Doesn't necessarily have to be about owing a debt. This would be any example where someone misses a dead character for unconventional and/or inappropriate reasons. A common variant is Alice's family members bawling their hearts out, eliciting sympathy from a passerby... only to be informed that [[PassedOverInheritance they didn't get anything in the will]].
13
14	Compare BaitAndSwitchSentiment and IfYouDieICallYourStuff. Subtrope of SkewedPriorities. See also WorryingForTheWrongReason.
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16	----
17	!!Examples:
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19	[[foldercontrol]]
20
21	[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
22	* After Vegeta kills Guldo in ''Anime/DragonBallZ'', the rest of the Ginyu Force (minus Captain Ginyu himself, who wasn't there to witness it) are upset that their SuperSentaiStance they spent so much time to prefect is off-balance without a fifth member.
23	* In ''Literature/{{Durarara}}'', Kadota's gang are devastated when they find out their friend Kaztano has been kidnapped, but none so much as Togusa, who even claimed he couldn't go on without the man. No one can be there for Togusa like Kaztano. Why? Because Kaztano was his source for sold-out, front row tickets to see IdolSinger Ruri Hijiribe.
24	* ''Funny Pets'': Who cares about your brother becoming a ghost? A dropped plate of cake is where it's at!
25	* Done by America in ''Webcomic/HetaliaAxisPowers''. When England 'dies' in the hospital after an accident involving the panjandrum, America gets teary eyed and tells him he can't go because he owes him a 'crap-ton of money'.
26	* According to the DVD commentary for ''Anime/PokemonTheFirstMovie'', when Ash had turned to stone, Misty [[WhatCouldHaveBeen was originally going to say]] "My bike..." in the English dub.
27	[[/folder]]
28
29	[[folder:Comic Books]]
30	* In ''ComicBook/MortTheDeadTeenager'', Mort's funeral has his mother mourning that her son died without clean underwear, while Mort's father is only upset that his Studebaker was wrecked in the same incident that killed his son.
31	[[/folder]]
32
33	[[folder:Comic Strips]]
34	* The September 26, 1997 strip of ''ComicStrip/{{Garfield}}'' had a spider introducing Garfield to his friend Petey the Tick. After Garfield casually smashes Petey, the spider says, "Hey! He owed me money!"
35	[[/folder]]
36
37	[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
38	* ''Film/TheOtherSideOfHeaven'' has professional mourners who wail at funerals... only to pop up and ask if the pudding is ready.
39	* In ''Film/ScaryMovie'', one girl is outraged to find a fellow student has been murdered... because she planned to cheat off said student's test that day.
40	[[/folder]]
41
42	[[folder:Literature]]
43	* ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'':
44	** In ''Literature/{{Pyramids}}'', one of the surviving student assassins mourns the one who didn't make it, noting that "He still owed me money".
45	** In ''Literature/AHatFullOfSky'', a shopkeeper is horrified to see his wizard assistant turned into a frog [[ShapeshifterBaggage and a big, pink, gloopy blob]]:
46	--->'''Shopkeeper:''' Please, please turn him back! I could never get a ''real'' wizard for what I pay him!
47	[[/folder]]
48
49	[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
50	* In the ''Series/{{Friends}}'' episode "The One Where They're Going to Party", Rachel just about manages to hide that the main reason she's upset about her boss's death is that she was about to be recommended for a promotion, but to the viewer it clearly is.
51	-->'''Co-worker''': I didn't realise you were so close.\
52	'''Rachel''': ''So'' close.
53	* In an episode of ''Series/HappyEndings'', Max comes in after just leaving his hairdresser's funeral. He quickly says, "The real tragedy is I need a haircut and I have no one to go to!"
54	* In the first episode of ''Series/RedDwarf'', Dave Lister's first reaction when he finally gets that EverybodysDeadDave and is told that he's three million years in the future is "Three million years?! I've still got that library book!"
55	[[/folder]]
56
57	[[folder:Music]]
58	* "Superman" by ''Music/{{Atmosphere}}''. In the song, Slug one day discovers he has superpowers. While walking down the street he runs into two friends of his. He goes to give one of them a fist-bump but ends up ''killing'' him accidentally with his super strength. The other friend, heard in the background, is heartbroken and laments, "Why you gotta squish my friend, dude?... That dude owed me, like, five dollars. Why you gotta kill him?"
59	* Music/WeirdAlYankovic's song "Why Does This Always Happen to Me" is all about this, complete with $5 reference. A news flash comes on to tell about a devastating earthquake, and he mourns the fact that he was recording ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' and will have to do it again. His friend dies in a traffic accident, and he mourns the $5 the friend owed him, and that he'll be late to work now. He stabs his boss, and mourns the knife, which broke and will never be as sharp again.
60	[[/folder]]
61
62	[[folder:Theatre]]
63	* ''Theatre/WesterosAnAmericanMusical'': If a person essential to her current plan to become Queen dies, Margaery tends to mourn the plan rather than the person who died.
64	[[/folder]]
65
66	[[folder:Video Games]]
67	* In ''VideoGame/{{Borderlands}}'' you often get this reaction from {{NPC}}s [[CrapsackWorld when you break bad news to them]]. For example when you tell Scooter that [[spoiler:T.K. (a CoolOldGuy you meet in the first town)]] is dead, he angrily laments that he never returned his tools.
68	* In ''VideoGame/DragonAgeII'', Merrill misses the Qunari after they [[spoiler:commited a massacre in Kirkwall]] and left, just because they [[WalkingShirtlessScene "were easy on the eyes"]].
69	[[/folder]]
70
71	[[folder:Webcomics]]
72	* ''Webcomic/YetAnotherFantasyGamerComic'', when CourtMage Meegs [[http://yafgc.net/comic/1894-disapprenticed/ loses her apprentice]]. She weeps so hard even an ''orc'' tries to console her, while...
73	-->'''Meegs:''' ''(thinking)'' By the gods!!! Now I have to go through that damned apprentice audition process again!!
74	[[/folder]]
75
76	[[folder:Web Original]]
77	* In ''AlternateRealityDragonBallZ'', Krillin gets in tears whenever Vegeta dies. Because he was carrying his borrowed iPod.
78	* ''WebAnimation/HomestarRunner'' plays this straight in the WebAnimation/StrongBadEmail "army", when "Col-o-nel" Homestar laments his fallen soldier Frank Bennedetto ([[CompanionCube a popcorn popper]]):
79	-->'''Homestar:''' Don't you die on me, Bennedetto! Not on my watch! Don't you give up! You never gave me the five bucks...
80	* After [[spoiler:Sparadrap's pets]] were killed in ''Series/{{Noob}}'', deeply saddening her ManChild guildmate in the process, Gaea's apparent sympathy reaction turned out to be along the lines of "Darn, one of my potential revenue sources just got destroyed".
81	* In ''WebAnimation/PokemonRusty'', when Blaine's Growlithe uses Flamethrower to melt Rusty's Vanilite.
82	-->'''Rusty:''' No! That Pokémon cost me like ten dollars! It was gelato.
83	* In [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zWVcgYd6cNE this]] parody of the live action opening of the original ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil1'', Jill is upset that Joseph got mauled to death by zombie dogs because he owes her money.
84	* [[http://envyskort.deviantart.com/art/KNOCK-OUT-S-TRUE-FEELS-296157426 This]] piece of ''WesternAnimation/TransformersPrime'' fanart - Knock Out is upset when he hears about [[spoiler:Breakdown's death]], not because he cared about [[spoiler:Breakdown]], but because he now has to do actual work instead of sneaking off to race.
85	* Parodied in the WebVideo/ProZD sketch "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Osd16ILchHs When Your Party Member Dies Permanently]]." Video game protagonist Dennis is distraught by Archibald dying... because Archibald is wearing and carrying all the best equipment and Dennis's player spent hours level-grinding the character. Archibald, who isn't dead yet, spends his final moments being pissed about this.
86	[[/folder]]
87
88	[[folder:Western Animation]]
89	* ''WesternAnimation/AdventureTime'': At the end of "Princess Monster Wife", the titular character sacrifices herself by returning the stolen body parts to their owners. At the end, Ice King appears to be sad... but he's actually upset that she gave away "all [his] stuff".
90	* In an episode of ''WesternAnimation/{{Archer}}'', Archer's fiancée has just performed a HeroicSacrifice by tackling evil cyborg Barry off a building. She dies, Barry is just fine, and Archer is in tears over this senseless tragedy. So is Doctor Krieger; they landed on and crushed his beloved van.
91	* ''WesternAnimation/CodenameKidsNextDoor'': Numbuh Three is about to be married to King Sandy, a kid pretending to be a king. Numbuh Four claims that the only reason he wanted to rescue her isn't because he's jealous, but because she owes him a quarter.
92	* The ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'' episode, [[FeverDreamEpisode The Sting]], has Fry sacrifice himself to save Leela, causing Bender to be devastated over his friend's death:
93	-->'''Leela:''' Fry? He's... he's dead!\
94	'''Bender:''' Oh, who will make Bender waffles just the way he likes them now?
95	* ''WesternAnimation/GravityFalls'': In "The Stanchurian Candidate", the (incredibly old) mayor dies, and Shandra Jimenez breaks down and cries over the rush of emotion caused by having ''actual news'' to report on for the first time in ages.
96	* In one episode of ''WesternAnimation/{{Kaeloo}}'', Kaeloo, Pretty, Stumpy and Quack Quack are walking through a desert. Stumpy starts drowning in quicksand, so everybody panics and pulls him out... because all their supplies were in his backpack.
97	* In ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'', after Kenny is KilledOffForReal, the boys discover that he has the winning ticket to a candy store shopping spree, so they decide to build a ladder to heaven in order for him to give it to them. But when adults ask what they're doing they don't mention the candy part, they just say they want to see Kenny again.
98	* In the ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'' episode "Neptune's Spatula", [=SpongeBob=] is about to be taken to Atlantis to be King Neptune's top fry cook after beating him in a contest. This would mean separating [=SpongeBob=] from his friends. Mr. Krabs is saddened not because he lost his best fry cook, but because he lost his bet on King Neptune.
99	** Also, in the movie, when Mr. Krabs is frozen in place by King Neptune, Squidward freaks out, not because Mr. Krabs is in trouble, but because now he can't sign his paycheck.
100	* In season 5 of ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse'', [[spoiler:Lars is abducted by aliens.]] When Ronaldo finds out in "Letters to Lars", he's horribly upset... because he's envious that '''he''' wasn't the one abducted.
101	* ''WesternAnimation/WanderOverYonder'': In TheStinger for "The Little Guy", Peepers comforts a crying Lord Hater after Westley's funeral, believing he's sad over Westley [[FakingTheDead (supposedly)]] dying. Hater says he's crying because Wander and Sylvia got away, and he doesn't even remember Westley.
102	* ''WesternAnimation/WeBareBears'': In "Bear Squad", when Grizz reports back to Ranger Tabes that they still don't have any leads to the location of the thieving fox, Tabes lets out a frustrated BigNo... because she just lost at the Minesweeper-like game she was playing.
103	[[/folder]]

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