Line #36 Main/RuleAbidingRebel


1	[[quoteright:350:[[WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/rule_abiding_rebel.jpg]]]]
2	[[caption-width-right:350: These urban renewal murals are going too far.]]
3
4	->''"We're wild, reckless men, we're on a rampage again''\
5	''We drive with just one hand on the wheel''\
6	''Danger's in our soul, we're going out of control''\
7	''Swimming right after a big heavy meal"''
8	-->-- '''Music/WeirdAlYankovic''', "[[Music/{{Alapalooza}} Young, Dumb & Ugly]]"
9
10	Someone who is going for being a RebelliousSpirit but whose rebellion is mildly inconvenient at best, or so minor to be unnoticed at worst. This may be a fumble on the writer's part where they genuinely think the act is impressively rebellious but due to ValuesDissonance the audience doesn't think so. However, it is usually used as a characterization trope to show that the character themself is so out-of-touch or self-important that they believe they're edgy and pushing the envelope even when it's unimpressive. They may also be too timid to really commit to a truly rebellious act. Maybe [[{{Hypocrite}} they don't even really believe in their cause]], but just want to [[CoolPeopleRebelAgainstAuthority fit in with "cool" modern culture]].
11
12	Overlaps heavily with SmallNameBigEgo. Compare PokeThePoodle, where someone's attempt at doing evil is similarly unimpressive. Also compare TheManIsStickingItToTheMan, where a company encourages rebellion by following their own rules and buying their products. Someone who is portrayed as a real rebel but never actually crosses this line is a BadButt. If they pretend to be a political radical but never actually do anything worthwhile, that's RevolutionariesWhoDontDoAnything. See GirlbossFeminist for women that employ the language of feminism but don't live up to it in practice.
13
14	Contrast with an InternalReformist, who never poses as a rebel outwardly yet invests efforts to change the status quo. Also contrast with ZerothLawRebellion, which occurs when a character violates the spirit of the rules but stays in technical compliance with them. Not to be confused with BotheringByTheBook, where someone deliberately evokes this to fight back by [[RulesLawyer following the rules to the letter]] in a way that prevents them from being punished but causes no end of problems for those around them.
15	----
16	!!Examples:
17
18	[[foldercontrol]]
19
20	[[folder:Comic Books]]
21	* PlayedForDrama with Tailgate in ''ComicBook/TransformersMoreThanMeetsTheEye''. He's constantly singing praises about his time in the Primal Vanguard that depict him as a rebellious badass and adventurer who didn't take shit from anyone. Outside of those stories however he's a childish, LovableCoward who never breaks the rules and freaks out under pressure. It's eventually revealed that [[spoiler: [[PhonyVeteran he's not actually a Primal Vanguard member]]. He's actually a young, nobody waste disposal bot who accidentally fell into a pit during a work shift. Nobody seemed to notice he was gone, so he became convinced that nobody cared about him and exploited the fact that none of the Lost Light crewmembers knew him to try and forge a rebel identity, all out of a desperate desire to be loved.]]
22	[[/folder]]
23
24	[[folder:Fan Works]]
25	* In ''Fanfic/QuietSnow'', Yukiko's mother Fuyumi defied her parents by refusing an ArrangedMarriage, but did everything else that was expected of the Amagi heiress-- getting married to a man(albeit not the one her parents chose), having children and running the inn. Yukiko, [[AdaptationalSexuality who in this fic is a lesbian]], and is still considering leaving Inaba when she hears the story, can't help but feel a bit conflicted.
26	[[/folder]]
27
28	[[folder:Film]]
29	* ''Film/AliGInDaHouse'' plays this for comedy with the East and West Staines Massivs, who affect being engaged in a gang rivalry, but won't break any laws. One scene has them drag-racing down a suburban street while maintaining their speed at the exact legal limit.
30	* Played for massive irony in ''{{Film/Footloose}}''. Being a city boy who clearly doesn't fit in with the repressive traditionalist community, most either perceive Ren to be a troublemaker and bad influence, or, to some of the youth, a breath of fresh air, especially [[LoveInterest Ariel]]. Except [[TheHero Ren]] ''was'' doing his best to keep to himself and acclimate himself to the town, even if he struggled at it. [[SelfFulfillingProphecy The only reason he finally decided to stir things up and break their repressive traditions and mindset was because people were hellbent to prove he was a bad influence and rebel from the starting gate, not even giving him a chance to get used to living among them]].
31	* ''Film/BobRoberts'': The title character has guts to spare to call himself a rebel, when he's really using faux "rebellious" songs in the style of Music/BobDylan to support conservatism.
32	* In ''Film/BeachParty'', the teens party and surf, but don't do drugs. While sex is implied, Dolores wants Frankie to marry her. The ArcWords of the 1960s beach movies would be known as "Good Clean Fun."
33	* In terms of the rules of ''Film/TheMatrix'', this is how Agents work. They have superhuman strength and speed, but they are still bound by The Matrix's system rules as they are a part of it and designed to enforce it. So they can bend the rules, but not outright ''break'' them: they can dodge bullets, jump absurd heights, and fight with superhuman skill, but they can't shrug off a bullet that somehow hits them, fly like a bird, or outright teleport. Thus, they're all but invulnerable to a regular human or even a freed human, but against The One who can outright ''break'' the rules, they're basically harmless. Of course, even killing one is of little consequence as they, being programs, can just re-enter The Matrix good as new, which they [[SuicideAttack frequently abuse to great effect]]. [[spoiler: The sequels show what happens when an Agent becomes able to break the rules, and [[AGodAmI it]] [[GrandTheftMe is]] [[TheVirus not]] [[ApocalypseHow pretty]].]]
34	[[/folder]]
35
36	[[folder:Folklore]]
37	* It's believed that this trope was the reason for Myth/RobinHood's exploits being nailed down as happening during the Third Crusade. Prior to that point, he had mostly just been a straight-up LoveableRogue, who saw no problem with stealing from powerful authority figures and had little-if-any stated loyalty to the king. The general consensus then was that King John, who ran England during that period, was an illegitimate ruler who was trying to take the throne from his heroic-but-absent brother, and therefore Robin Hood's whole "steal from the rich" mantra could be framed as actually ''supportive'' of the monarchy since he was fighting a fake king on behalf of the real one.
38	* The joke about the "great apikoros of Warsaw," who merrily conforms to each detail of Jewish ritual despite supposedly not believing in any of it.
39	[[/folder]]
40
41	[[folder:Literature]]
42	* This is a major component of the {{satire}} in Creator/ChuckPalahniuk's novel (and later [[Film/FightClub film]]) ''Literature/FightClub''. Project Mayhem, Tyler Durden's hyper-macho, anti-consumerist revolutionary group, is ultimately founded on the very same philosophical base as the culture that they think they overthrowing, buying into the same [[TestosteronePoisoning idealized vision of masculinity]] that they got from pop culture and society. They're not rebelling so much as they are lashing out mindlessly, still trying to get a perfect life as "real men", only through fighting and terrorism instead of consumerism. It is made most clear with the Narrator, who rebels against society not because he thinks conformity is bad, but because he feels entitled to live life as their idea of a [[IJustWantToBeBadass "real"]] [[IWantToBeARealMan man]] and win the acceptance that society promised.
43	* ''Literature/{{Kim}}'' by Creator/RudyardKipling features an English boy raised among the locals who speaks Hindustani as his first language. He's seen as too rebellious by his English minders, who nonetheless [[YouWillBeAssimilated try to assimilate him to serve as a loyal spy]] for UsefulNotes/TheBritishEmpire. Within the book, the narrator and others talk about the fact that while Englishmen in India can immerse themselves in local cultures and traditions, GoingNative is a major no-no and Kim ultimately tries to resolve his internal conflict between his liking for India and its people and his awareness of being an English officer who will one day administrate them.
44	* PlayedForLaughs in ''Literature/TheZombieKnight'', with Hector's backstory. He once tried to steal a pack of cigarettes from a man, stole his wallet instead, and then returned it and said he dropped it. The man gave him twenty of the local unit of currency.
45	[[/folder]]
46
47	[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
48	* From ''Series/TheBigBangTheory'':
49	-->'''Howard''': I’m breaking rules all the time.\
50	'''Leonard''': Name one.\
51	'''Howard''': Last night. Drank my Pepto straight out of the bottle.\
52	'''Raj''': What about that little cup they give you?\
53	'''Howard''': Yeah. ''(Lowers voice)'' What about it?[[note]]It's revealed later that he's lying.[[/note]]
54	* ''Series/CrashingUK'': OddCouple Sam and Fred have the following conversation early in their friendship.
55	-->'''Fred:''' I ''am'' rebellious. There's a crazy Fred in here, serious.\
56	'''Sam:''' Yeah? Shock me.\
57	'''Fred:''' I drew on my desk at school.\
58	'''Sam:''' ''[teasingly]'' Whoa! You wild, boy!\
59	'''Fred:''' I cut the tassels off my mum's special rug.\
60	'''Sam:''' ''[teasingly]'' Mmm, dirty.\
61	'''Fred:''' I regularly steal pens from Ryman's, and [[BreadEggsMilkSquick I once killed a fox with a tennis racket]].\
62	'''Sam:''' ''[{{beat}}, looks sideways at him]''
63	* ''Series/FullHouse'' really wants its audience to believe that Uncle Jesse is a badass because he drives a motorcycle and listens to/plays rock music. (''Classic'' rock like Music/{{Elvis\|Presley}} that is. A TakeThat at Music/TwistedSister indicates that [[WriterOnBoard neither he nor the writers]] care for HeavyMetal.) In reality, not so much. Eventually Jesse leaves his "wild ways" behind when he decides to get married and have [[CousinOliver twins]]. It is implied though that Jesse ''was'' more rebellious in his youth before the show started. But after his sister was killed by a drunk driver, he had to become more mature and responsible so he could help out with raising his nieces. And then, he began to lose more and more of his edge.
64	* ''Series/HowIMetYourMother'' showed a {{Grunge}} music video Robin made back in Canada. It's trying to be all rebellious, but when mixed with [[CourteousCanadian Canadian politeness]], you get the message, "Consider Questioning Authority, Please." In another scene, she "storms out" of an interview by politely excusing herself and repeatedly apologizing as she leaves.
65	* ''Series/TheKidsInTheHall'' featured a sketch where two police officers in a diner realized a gang of wanted criminals are having lunch in the booth across from them. The Police and criminals then race each other to finish their meals, pay their bills, gas up their cars, and then pay the station attendant before engaging in [[LowSpeedChase an under the speed]] limit car chase which ends when the criminals pass 18 inches over "the border" and outside the jurisdiction of the cops following them.
66	* ''Series/MontyPythonsFlyingCircus'' had a band of criminals who [[PiratesWhoDontDoAnything never once did anything illegal]]. Considering the show, it was PlayedForLaughs.
67	* Pretty well all kids' shows on networks like Creator/{{Nickelodeon}} and Creator/DisneyChannel that have a character who is supposed to be a rebel but is in fact this trope, as the MoralGuardians wouldn't allow anyone DarkerAndEdgier. For instance, Dean Moriarty is supposed to be a 'bad boy' in ''Series/WizardsOfWaverlyPlace'', but his character is shown by the fact that he uses ... ''temporary tattoos''! He's very much the BadButt.
68	* On ''Series/{{Cheers}}'', someone implies that Sam is more attractive than Frasier because he's a "bad boy," while Frasier is a "good boy." Frasier gets upset and says, "Would a good boy do this? I am running with scissors!"
69	[[/folder]]
70
71	[[folder:Music]]
72	* The poem and song "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised" by Music/GilScottHeron accuses the [[NewAgeRetroHippie hippies]] of using the language and fashion of rebellion without actually doing anything other than drugs, claiming that, when the ''real'' revolution comes, they would "plug in, turn on, and [[SellOut cop out]]."
73	* The Music/PhilOchs song "Love Me I'm A Liberal" is about [[BourgeoisBohemian people who only espouse left-wing causes as long as it isn't personally inconvenient or dangerous to them]].
74	* Spray's ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KGC1zFjQ8Ts I Always Wanted to Say "I Always Wanted to Say That"]]'' lampshades this with phrases like "quite restrained mayhem" and "sanctioned anarchy."
75	* The Music/{{TISM}} song "[[Music/LedZeppelin Dazed And]] Creator/{{Confucius}}" is a lament that, while the singer does want to be a rebel, he just can't stay up late enough to do any rebellious things. In the end the police search his house and find his stash of H[[spoiler:omework]].
76	-->Week night discos, late-night movies\
77	Are indispensable to be called groovy.\
78	My friends, they go out at 11 pm\
79	I'm meant to be in bed an hour before then.
80	[[/folder]]
81
82	[[folder:Newspaper Comics]]
83	* ''ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes'' would often explore the hypocrisy of pop-culture rebellion -- and in at least one instance, in a more gentle and wistful way that focused on the "conformist" rather than the "rebel."
84	** In an early series of strips from 1987, Calvin got it into his head to rebel - but he was determined to [[CoolPeopleRebelAgainstAuthority rebel only in a "cool" way]] that (he thought) wouldn't get him actually mocked. Hobbes finds him leaning against a tree with a smug, world-weary expression on his face and claiming to be "cool"; Hobbes points out that Calvin doesn't look very happy, whereupon Calvin tells him that that's the whole point of being cool. Hobbes disagrees, and when he comes back he's wearing a sombrero simply because he likes the look and says ''this'' makes him cool. Calvin tells him that not only do "cool" people not wear sombreros, but ''nobody'' wears sombreros. Annoyed, Hobbes leaves and then comes back wearing some "cool" WesternAnimation/MickeyMouse pants - again, simply because he likes how they look on him. Again Calvin mocks him...but Hobbes does not care. [[note]] The joke here is that Calvin thinks Hobbes is the Rule-Abiding Rebel, but that [[{{Irony}} it's clear from the overall strip that that person is Calvin himself]]. [[/note]]
85	** The March 11, 1992 strip had Calvin complain that the generation that created rock 'n' roll likes to act like they're still rebelling against the establishment when in reality they've long since sold out and became part of the establishment.
86	--->'''Calvin''': Rock pretends it's still rebellious with it's video posturing, but who believes it? The stars are 45 year- old zillionaires or they're endorsing soft drinks! The "revolution" is a capitalist industry!
87	* ''ComicStrip/{{Garfield}}'': Jon Arbuckle's attempts to be unconventional come off as this.
88	-->'''Jon''': I'm wearing knee pads on my ''elbows''!\
89	'''Garfield''': You're a wild man, Jon Arbuckle!
90	[[/folder]]
91
92	[[folder:Professional Wrestling]]
93	* When he teamed up with Wrestling/RandyOrton to battle D-Generation X in the fall of 2006, Wrestling/{{Edge\|Wrestler}} accused Wrestling/ShawnMichaels and Wrestling/TripleH of being this. Certainly, compared with their overtly offensive incarnation during TheNineties, DX's second coming in 2006 looked pretty {{Badbutt}}.
94	* CM Punk:
95	** After he gained notoriety for his {{worked shoot}} promo in the summer of 2011 and won the WWE Championship, many fans felt that he had turned into a typical face. Problem solved almost exactly one year later when he turned heel again and the fans continued to cheer him.
96	** His original heel turn after cashing in the Money in the Bank briefcase on Jeff Hardy, was primarily based around his Straight Edge lifestyle vs. Hardy's drug use. Yes, the bad guy was the one who didn't smoke, drink, or do drugs.[[note]]Though he was heel because of his HolierThanThou attitude.[[/note]]
97	[[/folder]]
98
99	[[folder:Roleplay]]
100	* ''Roleplay/DawnOfANewAgeOldportBlues'':
101	** Daigo wants to stage a revolution against the upper class but is also a {{hypocrite}} who doesn't want to sacrifice the comforts of his own upper-class upbringing. While he presents himself as a leader and a revolutionary, he'd rather have others carry out his rebellion for him.
102	** Carlie likes the aesthetic of punk despite otherwise being a very clean and sweet girl, so her rebellious look and role as a bully in Nadine's girl gang fall a little short of the mark.
103	[[/folder]]
104
105	[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
106	* ''TabletopGame/{{Paranoia}}'': While all secret societies are officially treasonous (doubly so for the Communists), their actual threat to Alpha Complex varies a lot (FCCCP and the Trekkies in particular are identified as mostly harmless). The XP edition introduces a secret three-tier classification system and reveals that some societies were deliberately created to draw in potential traitors and turn them into {{Rule Abiding Rebel}}s (for every Commie and [=PURGEr=] blowing stuff up, there's ten Death Leopards who think they're badass for putting up some graffiti).
107	[[/folder]]
108
109	[[folder:Video Games]]
110	* In ''Franchise/AssassinsCreed'', the Assassins claim "Nothing is true and everything is permitted" and that people don't need Kings, Priests, or others to tell them what to do and believe. Yet by and large, the Assassins rarely go against ruling classes despite occasionally threatening to do so. They frequently ally or court support from Kings and Nobles (Richard the Lionheart, Lorenzo de'Medici, Caterina Sforza, Suleiman, Queen Victoria) to fight against Templars. Indeed, the Assassins allied with the French King Philip le Bel, openly serving his offices, to institute ThePurge on the Templars, and in ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedUnity'', they backed the royalists during UsefulNotes/TheFrenchRevolution. This is TruthInTelevision as their historical counterparts preferred threatening people into submission by showing that they ''could'' be very scary enemies. With select exceptions, (Altair fighting Genghis Khan, Ezio fighting the Pope and in the New World, Connor and Edward fighting against the Empire), the Assassins rarely take a stand against powerful authorities and usually oppose revolutions since they feel these are {{Staged Populist Uprising}}s created by the Templars. In general, the games feature the Assassins opposing the Templars, taking over territory and merely becoming [[MeetTheNewBoss the new secret society pulling strings]] over society.\
111	The Assassin Recruit Contract missions in ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedBrotherhood'' go into more detail about this. They protect nobles, politicians, etc. that oppose the Templars because they are either allies (like Caterina Sforza) or at least an EnemyMine situation. They also killed nobles, politicians, etc. that were Templars or the servants of Templars. Some of the targets do not specify if they are Templars to any degree. Queen Isabella I of Castile was poisoned by them. Her contemporary, King Henry of England, received aid several times from them in dealing with would-be usurpers and infiltrators of his Star Court. Another ruler, this one in Germany, received an army trained by Assassins disguised as mercenaries. It's more that they are anti-Templar then they are Anti-General-Figure-of-Authority.
112	* In ''VideoGame/DragonAgeII'', the Tal-Vashoth rebels against the [[ScaryDogmaticAliens Qunari]] end up operating according to a specific set of codes about how rebels should operate. Those that can't usually end up entering human society as mercenaries or occasionally merchants.
113	* In ''VideoGame/EnsembleStars'', this is Undead's whole deal: they build their appeal as an idol unit on being dangerous and scary and rebellious, but the worst they ever seem to do is hold concerts without the approval of the AbsurdlyPowerfulStudentCouncil. And off-stage, all of them are genuinely kind people, if a bit rough around the edges in some cases.
114	* In the full version of ''VisualNovel/HatofulBoyfriend'', the human girl can, as a sidequest, make friends with the former leaders of a notorious biker gang called "Hell's Birdies"... who are ''extremely'' conscientious of traffic laws.
115	* ''VideoGame/StarWarsTheOldRepublic'': [[BombThrowingAnarchist Kaliyo Djannis]], of all people, becomes one during the years after the Zakuul Invasion. She goes to Zakuul, sets off some bombs and then goes home to her lavish apartment, [[spoiler: provided and furnished by her sponsor at whose behest she operates]], but aside from a few moments of excitement, nothing of consequence happens. It isn't until the Outlander returns and begins sparking ''real'' fear in the people of Zakuul that she realizes the rut she's fallen into, and begins planning a major attack, [[spoiler: which you can either encourage or talk her out of]].
116	[[/folder]]
117
118	[[folder:Webcomics]]
119	* ''Webcomic/ElGoonishShive'':
120	** Nanase's [[http://egscomics.com/?date=2009-03-28 bold act of defiance]] consists of a haircut, and a wardrobe change that was fairly modest all things considered. Needless to say, her mother wasn't all that upset.
121	--->'''Mrs. Kitsune:''' I am more troubled that you seem to be treating this as an act of defiance.
122	** Later, in the "So a Date at the Mall" story, Elliot and Ashley commit the bold and rebellious act is to go one of the security blind spots of the bookstore, so that Elliot can [[GenderBender transform]] while Ashley watches, leading to [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=2058 this lovely exchange:]]
123	--->'''Ashley''': Well, let's do it then! Live on the edge! Be rebels!\
124	'''Elliot''': Yeah!\
125	'''Ashley''': We'd better finish our cookies first. There's no food or drinks allowed in there.\
126	'''Elliot''': Right.
127	* Blunt in ''Webcomic/{{Freefall}}'' is trying to wipe out all intelligent robots (including himself) to protect humanity which is mostly willing to take the risk. This qualifies as both treason and genocide. Nevertheless, [[http://freefall.purrsia.com/ff2600/fc02520.htm he scrupulously refuses to break any law in his quest.]] As was said earlier, law-abiding criminals can be the hardest ones to stop.
128	* Aiko Hibana from ''Webcomic/TheLegendOfGenji'' isn't a RebelliousSpirit by nature and just wants her emotionally distant mother to pay attention to her, so she'll limit herself to petty acts of rebellion that will grate on her mother's nerves but go unnoticed by everyone else. Early in the story, when Aiko shows up to a formal party that her mother was forcing her to attend, she deliberately arrives hours late in a pink gown clearly different from the one her mother picked out for her, while sporting extremely high-heeled slippers in defiance of her mother's previous instructions to not bring shoes that would make her seem tall.
129	* ''Webcomic/SkinHorse'' gives us Sweetheart's [[http://skin-horse.com/comic/effort-to-find/ rampage]]. Sweetheart is a creation of mad science, so a rampage was inevitable. Spilling coffee (which she bought) on a random lawn. Shocking.
130	[[/folder]]
131
132	[[folder:Web Original]]
133	* Creator/LindsayEllis:
134	** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0qfFbtIj5w Her video]] on ''Theatre/{{Rent}}'' sees her discussing the phenomenon of "bourgeois theatre", specifically the youth-oriented "we have been left behind by the system" musicals that have proliferated on Broadway since TheSixties. In her argument, while they purport to be countercultural, their values tend towards the middle-class status quo upon further examination, serving mainly to validate the views of their mostly BourgeoisBohemian audiences rather than challenge them. She uses that to segue into Augusto Boal's Marxist concept of the "theater of the oppressed", which argues that, barring a genuine revolution to break the dominance of the ruling class over access to media, the Rule-Abiding Rebels are the only members of the counterculture who can possibly get their works disseminated to a mainstream audience. In addition to the subject of the episode, she also cited ''Theatre/LesMiserables'' and ''Theatre/{{Hamilton}}'' as examples of bourgeois theatre, though she came down substantially harder on ''RENT'' for doing this because, while ''Les Mis'' and ''Hamilton'' are honest about being such (and are set in different times and cultures, affording them some distance from their present-day audiences), ''RENT'' explicitly positions itself in opposition to the values of the culture around it and yet [[{{Hypocrite}} fails to walk the walk]].
135	** This is also her opinion in [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xU1ffHa47YY "Woke Disney",]] where she discusses many Creator/{{Disney}} films of the late 2000s and 2010s in relation to this. Most of them do express liberal ideas, but also consistently show the problems in society to be unnatural outliers rather than InherentInTheSystem, introduce sympathetic characters on the other side in an effort to show that BothSidesHaveAPoint (which undermines the resulting message), avoid bringing up things that could frame Disney or corporations in general in a negative light, and mainly poke at things that [[CaptainObviousAesop most people have long since agreed are bad]] (i.e. animal abuse). She describes the resulting message as "we need more female [[CorruptCorporateExecutive CEOs]]."
136	* ''Website/TheHardTimes'': [[https://thehardtimes.net/culture/office-worker-subverts-system-by-wearing-vans-in-cubicle Office Worker Subverts System by Wearing Vans in Cubicle.]] The woman profiled in the article identifies as a punk and rebel against the system, but is a model worker whose acts of rebellion, like secretly flipping off her boss or wearing punk shirts under her work shirt, are too minor to be noticed by anyone.
137	* Website/TheOnion: [[http://www.theonion.com/articles/teen-rebel-refusing-to-purchase-yearbook,19901 Teen rebel refusing to purchase yearbook.]]
138	* In ''WebAnimation/PuffinForest'' Ben played a ''Franchise/StarWars'' campaign where his character was a smuggler. Despite his profession, Ben never smuggled anything nor did he actually commit ''any'' crimes aside from smoking death sticks. It became a joke in the party that if the Empire ever captured them Ben would be the only one released thanks to his clean record
139	* Lampooned by the Website/BabylonBee: [[https://babylonbee.com/news/counter-cultural-rebel-believes-everything-athletes-reporters-actors-ceos-believe "Man Who Agrees With The Media, Universities, Corporations, And Hollywood Thinks He's Part Of The Resistance"]]
140	* WebVideo/RenegadeCut: Similar to Lindsay Ellis's "Woke Disney", his [[https://youtu.be/D0lSoHNmMTA "Late Stage Disney"]] video argues that, despite seemingly deconstructing the original works, Disney's live-action remakes still seem to promote morals which were outdated even at the time the original was made.
141	* ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'' gives us Yang Xiao Long, who walks into clubs where she's not invited...to beat up goons of a guy who's working with a criminal she's looking for. ''WebAnimation/RWBYChibi'' amps it up by showing the viewer her dream of being seen as an anti-authority biker.
142	--> '''Yang:''' [[ARareSentence Suck rainbow, authority figures!]]
143	* The Twitter feed Small Robots has [[https://twitter.com/smolrobots/status/1105809557836783616 Coolbot,]] defined as follows:
144	--> Just a really cool dude who shows up to comb its hair in a provocative fashion or express mildly anti-authoritarian views without comitting to any kind of coherent ideology. Rides a motorcycle that's in the shop right now. [[GirlfriendInCanada Has a botfriend who goes to another school]].
145	[[/folder]]
146
147	[[folder:Western Animation]]
148	* ''WesternAnimation/GravedaleHigh'': Vinnie is (aside from Reggie) probably the nicest and most level-headed of the class despite being a greaser.
149	* A ''WesternAnimation/RobotChicken'' sketch has the Wildman, a generic '80s rock star type, who comes off as a cool rebel type to a group of kids. Except that when the kids of the sketch spend some time around him, he insists on turning everything into an AndKnowingIsHalfTheBattle type moment, and following so many minor, nitpicky rules about everything that it kills any possibility for fun. By the end he's inserting hamfisted conservative messages into his bit, and the kids are long since tired of him and think he's a weird flake. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XklH0kj3mBs Link]]
150	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Rugrats}}'': In one episode, Angelica encourages Tommy to be bad in order to get what he wants. The first thing he decides to do is to knock over his juice cup--after first drinking the juice because he didn't want to make a mess.
151	* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'':
152	** Homer in "Take My Wife, Sleaze." After winning a motorcycle in a dance contest, Homer decides to start a biker gang called the "Hell's Satans", consisting of himself, Moe, Lenny, Carl, and [[TheRuntAtTheEnd Ned Flanders]]. All of them - except Flanders - see themselves as bold, offensive scofflaws, taunting Chief Wiggum that he can't stop them and calling him a "pig." But as soon as Homer finds himself threatened by another biker gang out of California who claim to be the ''original'' Hell's Satans, he appeals to Chief Wiggum for help; Wiggum points out the hypocrisy of this appeal and tells Homer he's on his own. Homer eventually ends up hunting down and fighting the Hell's Satans when they kidnap Marge, ultimately [[StatusQuoIsGod returning to his former lifestyle]].
153	** The trope was also explored in a number of ways in "A Midsummer's Nice Dream" when Creator/CheechAndChong come to perform in Springfield. While they are acting out their popular "Dave's not here" skit, Chong becomes annoyed when he notices that their middle-aged fans know the routine by heart and are shouting out the lines before he and Cheech can say them. So begins ad-libbing - and when Cheech tells him to stick to the script, Chong replies with an angry shout of [[ThatManIsDead "CHONG'S not here!"]] and [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere storms off the stage]] (in what proves eventually to be a TenMinuteRetirement). Cheech now needs a new Chong and settles on Homer. At first Homer is [[AscendedFanboy thrilled to be performing alongside one of his adolescent heroes]], and imagines Cheech and himself going on all kinds of "wacky adventures." Homer soon becomes disappointed when he finds that Cheech is actually quite serious off-stage, and that his idea of "sticking it to the man" is going to museums to view works created by marginalized Chicano artists, which Homer finds boring. (He won't even let them buy French fries, because they're "too high in trans-fats.")
154	** In "And Maggie Makes Three", Homer quits his job, he decides to finally stick it to his MeanBoss, Mr. Burns, by . . . putting a glass of water on Burns's desk without a coaster. Then grabbing Burns's wastepaper basket and dumping the one piece of paper in it on the floor. On the other hand, Mr Burns does actually show [[SeriousBusiness shock and outrage at this behaviour]].
155	** Certain episodes, notably "Homerpalooza", have mocked Generation-X'ers for thinking they're cool when in fact they're just insecure and cynical ''en masse'' - and, in one case, so confused that [[LogicBomb they're not even sure if they're]] ''[[LogicBomb really]]'' [[LogicBomb being sarcastic]]. They're also shown to be hypocritical: at the rock festival, Lisa has just gotten finished (sincerely) saying that Gen-X'ers accept all people for who they are when Homer sees [[TheFreakShow a freak show]] set up among the exhibits. And the kids at the festival hate Homer and angrily tell him to leave because they can't stand [[StrawAffiliation "uncool"]] adults [[PretenderDiss copying their culture]].
156	** In "The Heartbroke Kid", Springfield Elementary School decides to install vending machines, giving half its profits to the school. Its hip-hop-themed mascots, Scammer and Z-Dawg, are described by Lindsey Naegle as "spokesrebels".
157	--->'''Scammer''': [[TheManIsStickingItToTheMan Yo, don't flava hate, participate]]!
158	* Marco Diaz from ''WesternAnimation/StarVsTheForcesOfEvil'' likes to imagine himself as a tough guy and a "misunderstood bad boy" but in truth, he's a bit of a safety freak (there's a reason he's known as [[EmbarrassingNickname "the Safe Kid"]] at school) and he ends up serving as the CloudcuckoolandersMinder to Star.
159	* ''WesternAnimation/TheVentureBrothers'':
160	** The title characters Hank and Dean get a lot of mileage from this trope, because they're sheltered teens whose cultural exposure is largely from educational materials created by their grandfather. When they run away from home, for example, the theme of rebellion is reinforced with repeated allusions to ''Film/EasyRider'', but Hank seems to think having pancakes for lunch is a grand celebration of freedom. When he accidentally swears, they both realize they've taken the rebellion too far. This has been gradually [[DownplayedTrope downplayed]] as the series has progressed, and the boys have been allowed to mature just a little.
161	** Their friend Dermott is also a teen and has an ''extremely'' SmallNameBigEgo that causes him to act more rebellious than he really is. The difference is that, despite being full of it, Dermott is genuinely more worldly and gritty than the Venture brothers. It's just that the level of rebellion he pretends to is frankly ridiculous. For example, he claimed that a gang war was fought over whether to call him "The Wolf" or "Psycho". The contrast between Dermott's and the Ventures' use of this trope is established early. When Dermott mocks Dr. Venture, he introduces himself as "Pat, Pat [=McCrotch=]". Trying to impress him, Hank introduces himself as "Walter, Walter Melon". (Never mind that he was trying to pull this on his own father.)
162	** The villain Radical Left gives this trope a physical form. He has a [[TwoFaced visible split personality]], being a parody of ComicBook/TwoFace. His left side is a raving anarchist. His right side just wants a nice home and a family.
163	[[/folder]]

Context Main / RuleAbidingRebel