Line #56 Main/TakeThatTitForTat


1	For whatever {{meta}} reason the producers and writers desire, sometimes a work will [[TakeThat mock another piece of work]]. This is usually for comedic value and is a light-hearted (if pointed) gag.
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3	However, one little attack can always incite a war. This trope is for instances of Work A making fun of Work B, and then Work B does the same to Work A in response. Though often settled once the score is 1-1 and the statement has been made, some works may continue the war.
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5	Alternatively, Work B may not make a joke at the expense of Work A but instead somehow prove it wrong or create a negative homage to subtly throw shade back without the maligned name-dropping.\
6	On a more lighthearted note, sometimes this can take the form of lighthearted ribbing/jabbing between two works akin to VitriolicBestBuds.
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8	Common in [[DuelingWorks/LiveActionTV Dueling Series]], DuelingMovies, and DuelingGames. Not to be confused with Creator/LaurelAndHardy short film ''Film/TitForTat''.
9	[[SelfDemonstratingArticle Oh, and]] the [[Laconic/TakeThatTitForTat laconic version]]'s terrible.
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11	----
12
13	!!Examples:
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15	[[foldercontrol]]
16
17	[[folder:Advertising]]
18	* The original Advertising/EnergizerBunny commercial from 1988 was a parody of Duracell's commercials, where a row of pink battery-operated drum-playing rabbits ran down one by one, but the Duracell-powered one lasted the longest. Energizer's take on these commercials implied that Duracell [[AsbestosFreeCereal always compared its batteries to zinc-carbon batteries and not similar alkaline batteries like Energizer]] by having the Energizer Bunny show up as an uninvited guest. In Canada, Duracell fired back in 1994 with a commercial parodying ''The Tortoise and the Hare''. In this commercial, after having outlasted the other tortoises, the Duracell-powered tortoise passes by a pink rabbit sleeping under a tree, implying that by this point, Duracell ''did'' compare its batteries to those of its alkaline rivals.
19	* Miracle Whip had their "We Will Not Tone It Down" and "Don't Be So Mayo" ad campaigns. Marketing Miracle Whip as a wonderful condiment for {{Hipster}}s, playing garage rock music in the background, and attempting to play up the brand as a cool and revolutionary new flavor. Creator/StephenColbert ridiculed the campaign on [[Series/TheColbertReport his show]], pointing out that preferring another spread over mayonnaise isn't rebellious or cool, [[https://www.cc.com/video/8xmsj4/the-colbert-report-the-mayo-lution-will-not-be-televised and made an equally absurd pro-mayo commercial to prove his point]]. Afterwards, Kraft decided to ''double down'', buying ad time on Colbert's show to rerun their ads and creating [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jr9s8WO2t4M this response]] to Colbert's attack, calling him "so mayo".
20	[[/folder]]
21
22	[[folder:Comic Books]]
23	* ''ComicBook/{{Viz}}'', based in Newcastle, used to do many vulgar parodies of characters from the ''Beano'' and ''Dandy'', owned by Scottish [[Creator/DCThomson DC Thomson & Co]]. When DC Thomson tried to sue ''Viz'' for breach of copyright, ''Viz'' published a strip about "DC Thomson the Humourless Scottish Twat." DC retaliated by resurrecting an old strip from the ''Dandy'' called "The Jocks and the Geordies," about two gangs of warring schoolboys on either side of the England-Scotland border. The story had both sets of boys attempting to win a competition to design a comic, and the Jocks (Scottish boys) win, to the humiliation of the Geordies (from Newcastle) who tried to cheat by copying them and whose own ideas were all terrible. ''Viz'' responded in its next issue with "Korky the Twat," a parody of the iconic ''Dandy'' flagship character Korky the Cat.
24	* ''ComicBook/TheAuthority'' would often mock and satirize and deconstruct traditional superheroes, their brand of heroism, and their tropes. ComicBook/{{Superman}}, the most traditional of superheroes, thus had an issue called "What's So Funny About Truth, Justice, & the American Way?" (later expanded into a feature-length film called ''WesternAnimation/SupermanVsTheElite'') that satirizes and deconstructs the Authority, their brand of heroism and their tropes.
25	* Creator/MarvelComics and Creator/DCComics superheroes have beaten up thinly-veiled versions of each other's characters too many times to count. ComicBook/SquadronSupreme may be the most famous example.
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27
28	[[folder:Comic Strips]]
29	* After the artwork of ''ComicStrip/{{Dilbert}}'' was criticized in ''ComicStrip/ZippyThePinhead'' as simplistic, Scott Adams retaliated by having Dogbert create a comic strip called "Pippy the Ziphead" about "a clown with a small head who says random things" which nobody liked, not even Dogbert.
30	* ''ComicStrip/FoxTrot'' once poked fun at ''ComicStrip/PearlsBeforeSwine'' by claiming their strip compilations don't qualify as good news. A year later, Stephen Pastis got the rights to reuse the same strip and did a RemixComic of it claiming that Bill Amend only semi-retired so he could spend all day playing [=MMOs=]. Bill then shot back that Pastis took so long that he could use his lawyer experience to claim the time length as billable hours.
31	* ''ComicStrip/LilAbner'' once had a parody of ''ComicStrip/MaryWorth'' take a vacation from her strip to meddle in Abner and Daisy Mae's affairs. ''Mary Worth'' reciprocated with an unflattering caricature of ''Li'l Abner'' creator Al Capp as a drunken lout.
32	* After ''Literature/AmericaTheBook'' included a parody of ''ComicStrip/MallardFillmore'' where the title character went on a political rant that ended with "oops, I forgot to tell a joke", the strip responded with an installment where the book's author, Creator/JonStewart, is implied to be a child molester.
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34
35	[[folder:Fan Works]]
36	* ''WebVideo/ScootertrixTheAbridged'', episode 9, features an argument over who the worst MLP AbridgedSeries director is. When ''WebVideo/UltraFastPony'' creator Wacarb comes up in the argument, Celestia responds, "Who the hell is Wacarb?" ''UFP'' shot back in "On Your Mark", where the topic of performing tricks on a scooter comes up: "But there are no good scooter tricks!" "Yeah, Scootertrix sucks!" (It's all for laughs because both of them are fans of the other's work in RealLife.)
37	[[/folder]]
38
39	[[folder:Film - Animated]]
40	* In addition to all of the other anti-Disney humor featured in ''WesternAnimation/Shrek1'', the film's main villain Lord Farquaad was an [[NoCelebritiesWereHarmed unflattering caricature of then-Disney CEO Michael Eisner]], the [[ItsPersonal rival and former business partner]] of Creator/DreamworksAnimation co-founder and former Disney CCO Jeffery Katzenberg. Annoyed by Katzenberg's success with a movie that gave Disney the finger for ninety minutes, Eisner shot back by overhauling Disney's ''WesternAnimation/ChickenLittle'' into a similarly [[DenserAndWackier snarky, self-aware broad comedy]], thinking he could [[BeatThemAtTheirOwnGame beat his rival at his own game]]. Unfortunately for Eisner, it didn't work out: the film was a critical flop and, after a string of bad investments, he resigned from the company.
41	[[/folder]]
42
43	[[folder:Film - Live-Action]]
44	* ''Film/OrcaTheKillerWhale'' featured a scene of an orca easily killing a great white shark as a TakeThat towards ''Film/{{Jaws}}''. When ''Film/Jaws2'' came about, it featured a scene of characters finding a beached corpse of an orca, which has been killed by a Great White shark. It should be noted that in real life, orcas do indeed kill great white sharks, but great white sharks are not known to kill orcas.
45	* There was a running series of the lighthearted version in the respective movies of Creator/ArnoldSchwarzenegger and Creator/SylvesterStallone throughout the 80s and early 90s. Highlights include a joke about Stallone starring in ''Film/Terminator2JudgmentDay'' in ''Film/LastActionHero'' and a reference to President Schwarzenegger in ''Film/DemolitionMan''.
46	* Creator/WesCraven and Creator/SamRaimi had a history of taking lighthearted jabs at each other in their horror movies, as chronicled [[https://youtu.be/kucahpB82_k here]] by [[WebVideo/TalesFromTheInternet Justin Whang]]. It started when Raimi put a ripped-up ''Film/{{The Hills Have Eyes\|1977}}'' poster in the background of a shot from ''Film/{{The Evil Dead\|1981}}'', in response to a similar shot of a torn ''Film/{{Jaws}}'' poster in that film. Craven fired back with a scene of Nancy falling asleep to ''Evil Dead'' in ''Film/{{A Nightmare on Elm Street\|1984}}'', to which Raimi had Freddy's clawed glove hung up on a wall like a trophy in ''Film/EvilDead2''. ''Film/{{Scream\|1996}}'' then had characters arguing over whether to watch ''Film/{{Hellraiser}}'' or ''Evil Dead'' at a party. After Wes Craven passed away in 2015, however, Raimi would [[{{Bookends}} bring it all full circle]] and wrap things up by putting an intact, framed ''Hills Have Eyes'' poster in ''Series/AshVsEvilDead'' as a post-mortem tribute.
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48
49	[[folder:Literature]]
50	* Creator/EdgarAllanPoe's "Literature/TheCaskOfAmontillado" was written in response to Thomas Dunn English's "1844" AKA "The Power of the S.F.". [[WeUsedToBeFriends Originally friends]], both men had a very nasty public fallout that eventually evolved into a bitter feud. From here on, both Poe and English engaged in several confrontations, usually centered around literary caricatures of one another. One of English's letters which was published in the July 23, 1846, issue of the ''New York Mirror'' caused Poe to successfully sue the editors of the Mirror for libel. That same year, English published his previously mentioned novel that featured a character called [[NoCelebritiesWereHarmed Marmaduke Hammerhead]], author of [[Literature/TheRaven The Black Crow]]. He was portrayed as a drunken liar and wife-beater. Poe's "Literature/TheCaskOfAmontillado" contains several allusions to English's novel and taking into account the nature of the tale: a wronged protagonist who [[BestServedCold successfully exacts revenge]] unto his former friend [[KarmaHoudini with total impunity]]... One can see the parallels.
51	[[/folder]]
52
53	[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
54	* ''Series/{{Angel}}'' and ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' would swap jabs while they were both on air. (Both series were created by the same person, Creator/JossWhedon.)
55	* Creator/DisneyChannel and Creator/{{Nickelodeon}} had a minor feud going during TheNoughties, mainly playing out through stories and devices in ''Series/ICarly'' and ''Series/SonnyWithAChance''[[note]] More specifically, iCarly creator Dan Schneider believed ''Sonny With A Chance'' was plagiarized from his original pitch for ''iCarly'', which was supposedly very similar [[/note]]. ''iCarly'' has an episode where it takes shots at the Disney Channel (a.k.a. [[BlandNameProduct "Dingo" Channel]]), for stealing ideas from [=iCarly.com=] InUniverse. They also claim that the original ideas of the channel are bland and unentertaining, and they make all their adult characters stupid. ''Sonny With a Chance'' got to have its own go with ''Series/SoRandom'' going to hell with new producers in a storyline mocking Nick's ''Series/AllThat''. ''iCarly'' then countered again with an episode dedicated to criticising a certain network's new interpretation of kids' TV and their programming overhaul that ditched all of the 'good' children's TV shows in favor of lesser, more demeaning ones.
56	* ''Series/{{Glee}}'' (as a LongRunner that's easy to mock):
57	** One of Creator/NeilPatrickHarris' Tony performances referred to Platform/{{Broadway}} shows as "a two-hour, live-action, barely affordable, un-lip-synched version of ''Glee''", causing the TV show to have more songs performed live on set rather than pre-recorded and edited.
58	** ''Series/OurGayWeddingTheMusical'' claimed that its entire premise was "gayer than ''Glee''" -- the next season then contained [[Recap/GleeS6E08AWedding a double gay wedding]], just to make sure it kept the title.
59	** After ''Film/PitchPerfect'' trashed the show, characters began saying things like "the {{a cappella}} thing is boring, done".
60	** After ''Series/{{Community}}'' characters told the glee club on their own show (an {{expy}} for the rival shows) to "write some original songs", ''Glee'' did just that. However, ''Glee'' did not respond to ''Community'''s mocking that it "got a lot of awards" for just doing "sing sing singaling", possibly because actually winning all those awards was giving the return Take That for them.
61	** The show also started its own little war, when in [[Recap/GleeS4E18ShootingStar a season 4 episode]] one character claims that a couple she doesn't like makes her feel "dryer than the cast of ''Series/HotInCleveland''", HIC later responded with one of their characters who was played by a former star of ''Glee'' (Creator/ChrisColfer) tell his mother how he was "in the glee club for ''six long years''" as if despairing.
62	** On ''Series/VirtuallyFamous'', primarily about modern internet use, Chris and Seann would mock Creator/KevinMcHale for being on ''Glee'', so the next season of the show had the first episode ditch the computing extracurricular in favor of glee club.
63	** With Creator/ChanningTatum's fictional appearances: in season 2, Mike (whose actor plays perpetually-sidelined Cable in the ''Film/StepUp'' films) asked Santa for "Channing Tatum to stop being in stuff". In ''Film/TwentyOneJumpStreet'', Tatum's character curses ''Glee'' for allowing the weird kids to be cool.
64	** The first episode of the final season reveals that Rachel's TV show was a flop, and that it was called... ''[[Series/ThatsSoRaven That's So Rachel]]''. The show it was named for, never actually a failure, then was granted a [[Series/RavensHome sequel series]] shortly after ''Glee'' ended.
65	* The long-lasting, good-spirited, feud between Creator/MorecambeAndWise and Des O'Connor, the first joke and following jibes (some featuring O'Connor) appeared on ''The Morecambe & Wise Show''.
66	* ''Series/Unreal2015'' features a show that is an {{expy}} of ''Series/TheBachelor'' -- the host of ''The Bachelor'' said that one difference between the shows is that people watched his. ''[=UnREAL=]'' responded by featuring an African-American bachelor, something that the other show had yet to do at the time.[note]''The Bachelor'' wouldn't have an African-American bachelor until Matt James in 2021.[/note]
67	* When ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' shifted networks from WB to UPN after season 5, a WB spokesperson said that UPN stood for "Used Parts Network". In response, a UPN spokesperson said that WB stood for "Without Buffy".
68	* ''Series/Titans2018'' responded to the dig in ''Film/Deadpool2'' at the early movies of the Franchise/DCExtendedUniverse and how dark they were with a montage of violent images of their series, ending with "Suck it, Mr. Pool. With Love, Creator/DCUniverse."
69	* After Ronnie Barker criticised ''Series/NotTheNineOClockNews'' for its "adult" tone, the NTNOCN team unleashed a lengthy sketch called ''The Two Ninnies'', which lampshaded the DoubleEntendre that was the basis of a lot of ''Series/TheTwoRonnies'' sketches. Sources vary as to whether Ronnie Corbett found this ActuallyPrettyFunny, but seem unanimous that Barker didn't.
70	[[/folder]]
71
72	[[folder:Music]]
73	* Among Russian rock music fans, the rivalry between Yuri Shevchuk (from band DDT) and Konstantin Kinchev (of Alisa fame) is the most memorable example of this.
74	* The Music/PetShopBoys song "The Night I Fell in Love" depicts a homosexual encounter between the narrator of the song and a rapper heavily implied to be Music/{{Eminem}} after a concert, which was widely interpreted as a shot at Eminem's homophobia accusations. Eminem responded with the answer song "Can-I-Bitch", wherein he and Music/DrDre run the Pet Shop Boys over.
75	* Music/TaylorSwift's "Bad Blood" was a dig towards her former friend Music/KatyPerry, who she accused of taking her dancers away from her. Perry would hit back at Swift with that "Regina George" tweet and "Swish Swish". Swift hit back at her with "Look What You Made Me Do". Fortunately, the feud ended in mid-2018 when the two reconciled and Perry appeared in Swift's music video for "You Need to Calm Down".
76	* In 2005 Music/TarjaTurunen was fired from her position as lead vocalist of Music/{{Nightwish\|Band}} due to personal disputes with the other band members, particularly keyboardist and principal songwriter Tuomas Holopainen. Nightwish subsequently devoted two songs on their 2007 album ''Dark Passion Play'', [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hTdhXxxWREo "Bye Bye Beautiful"]] and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bkib0dIziXk "Master Passion Greed"]], to taking potshots at respectively Tarja and her husband Marcelo Cabuli, whom they accused of being a bad influence on her. Tarja shot back in 2009 with [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=imBsSIFjPfA "Enough"]], which accuses Nightwish and Tuomas in particular of being egotistical prima donnas. (Things have thawed somewhat since then: Tarja is friends with current Nightwish vocalist Floor Jansen and has made live appearances with guitarist Marco Hietala.)
77	* Remember when Music/KanyeWest [[Memes/KanyeWest famously interrupted]] Music/TaylorSwift at the 2009 VMA's? Well, she wrote him a song called "Innocent", forgiving him. He didn't seem to get the message and wrote her into his song "Famous" -- ''"I made that bitch [Swift] famous"'', ouch. Swift said that she didn't approve of the lyric, and then Creator/KimKardashian (very good at not making friends) posted a video of a phone call with Swift where she said that Kanye could joke about having made her famous in his song, but not to be referred to as 'that bitch' and certainly not to have Kanye imply he thinks she owes him sex for it. Kardashian continued to mock her for it. Swift's ''Reputation'' album (an introspective look at her, well, reputation) includes the song "This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things", with some lyrics that seem pointed at Kanye: ''"It was so nice being friends again / There I was giving you a second chance / But you stabbed me in the back while shaking my hand / And therein lies the issue / Friends don't try to trick you / Get you on the phone and mind-twist you"''.
78	* The Argentine band ''Music/{{Hermetica}}'' broke up in controversial circumstances. Bassist Ricardo Iorio started a new one, ''Almafuerte'', and all the others got a new bassist and continued as ''Malón''. Their first albums ("Mundo Guanaco" and "Espíritu Combativo") included several indirect jabs at each other.
79	* A rumoured, never confirmed case was the titles of the albums by Music/VanHalen and Music/DavidLeeRoth when Sammy Hagar replaced the latter. Roth released ''Crazy from the Heat'', VH had ''5150'', the police code for a crazy person. Roth released ''Eat 'Em and Smile'', VH had ''[=OU812=]'' ("Oh, you ate one too?"). Finally, VH released ''[[FunWithAcronyms For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge]]'' and Roth had ''Your Filthy Little Mouth''.
80	* In 2018, Music/MachineGunKelly dissed Music/{{Eminem}} on Music/TechN9ne's "No Reason (The Mosh Pit Song)", which resulted in Eminem dissing MGK on his song "Not Alike", before Kelly dissed Eminem again with "Rap Devil" and Eminem would hit back with "Killshot".
81	* Music/JohnFahey wrote "The Assassination of Stephen Grossman", referencing fellow guitarist ''Stefen'' Grossman. It's completely instrumental, and Grossman always took it as a joke--his only complaint being that Fahey misspelled his first name. Grossman replied with a song of his own, "The Assassination of Blind Joe Death", referencing the stage name Fahey had used earlier in his career. Fahey and Grossman wanted to continue the joke by playing together on what would have been called the Assassination Tour, but health problems prevented that.
82	* There was a playful back-and-forth between Music/SteelyDan and the Music/{{Eagles}}. In the former's "Everything You Did," one lyric sarcastically states, "Turn up the Eagles, the neighbors are listening". The latter's "Hotel California" returned the favor with the lyric "They stab it with their ''steely'' knives, but they just can't kill the beast".
83	[[/folder]]
84
85	[[folder:Radio]]
86	* The infamous "feud" between [[Series/TheJackBennyProgram Jack Benny]] and Fred Allen began as one of these, starting when Allen made a crack at Benny's "skills" on the violin in a 1937 episode of his show. Benny responded in kind the following week and they were off to the races.
87	[[/folder]]
88
89	[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
90	* An example that sits between this trope and ShoutOut can be found in ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragonsFourthEdition''. In issue #265 of Magazine/{{Dragon}}, the issue of ComicStrip/KnightsOfTheDinnerTable features the {{munchkin}} players challenging their GM's apparently super-lethal dungeon by buying a large variety of livestock, which they use as cheap tools to overcome various obstacles.[[note]]Herding sheep into the dungeon to spring various traps, using pigeons with Explosive Runes scrolls strapped to their legs as flying bombs, using chickens as weights to calculate the depth of pits, goats as expendable meat shields, and pigs with saddlebags full of oil flasks as living bombs.[[/note]] In the 4e sourcebook "The Dungeon Survival Handbook", a sourcebook on dungeons[[note]]races prone to living in dungeons, character themes with a focus on dungeon environments, guides to crafting dungeons, famous D&D dungeons, etc[[/note]], using herd animals in such a way is mentioned... as a "Dungeon Don't", or something you should ''not'' do, with observations as to the various flaws in driving herds of animals into the dungeon ahead of you.[[note]]They can't open doors, they may split up in random directions, they slow your travel down, they require massive amounts of provisions, and you can just forget about being stealthy...[[/note]]
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92
93	[[folder:Video Games]]
94	* The ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAuto'' series had two games in a row (''[[VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoIII 3]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoViceCity Vice City]]'') where the player character has to kill someone named Tanner, as in the protagonist of the ''VideoGame/{{Driver}}'' series. In response, Reflections put a group of men in ''[=Driv3r=]'' named Timmy Vermicelli (a [[CaptainErsatz takeoff]] on ''Vice City's'' Tommy Vercetti) who wears a Hawaiian shirt and arm floaters (due to Tommy's [[SuperDrowningSkills inability to swim]]) and shoots at the player. Killing all Timmy's unlocks a bonus area. Rockstar fired back in ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoSanAndreas'' by including a scene where a character is shown playing a video game and shouting "This sucks, I mean, how could [[BlandNameProduct Refractions]] mess up so bad? Tanner, you suck ass!".
95	* An interesting case of this (that sits between ShoutOut and TakeThat) is the "Zombie Genocider" achievement in ''VideoGame/DeadRising'' requires the player to kill 53,594 zombies, or the equivalent of the entire population of Willamette. ''VideoGame/Left4Dead'' includes an achievement called "Zombie Genocidest", which requires you to kill 53,595 Infected. In response, ''VideoGame/DeadRising2'' added the "Z-Genocider 2: Genocide Harder" achievement for 53,596 zombie kills. Some other games have also referenced this, like "Trail of Corpses" in ''VideoGame/{{Prototype}}'' [[note]]"Kill 53,596 infected"[[/note]], a note in the credits for ''VideoGame/BioShock2'' that claims "53,596 zombies were killed during the making of this game", and the "HOPO-cidal Maniac" achievement in ''[[VideoGame/RockBand Rock Band 3]]'' for "killing" 53,596 hammer-ons and pull-offs. In fact depending on how one sees it, it's less of a TakeThat and more like different games constantly referencing and one-upping each other.
96	* At the end of ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountry2DiddysKongQuest'', [[Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog Sonic's shoes]] and [[VideoGame/EarthwormJim Earthworm Jim's gun]] are seen next to a trash can that says, '''NO HOPERS''' when Cranky ranks Diddy alongside [[Franchise/SuperMarioBros Mario, Yoshi]], and [[Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda Link]], depending on how many DK Coins they found throughout the game. This was done in response to two separate take thats; a promotional video for the ''[[VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles Sonic & Knuckles]]'' game had the line, "Can an old gorilla beat this new team? [[BlatantLies No way!]]", and the [[Platform/SegaGenesis Sega CD]] version of ''Earthworm Jim'' had the unlockable "Worm Kong" mask, which resembled Donkey Kong with an arrow through his head, in response to the original ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountry'' game outselling the original ''Earthworm Jim'' game in retail sales.
97	* ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry'' managed to do this to ''itself''. Tameem Antoniades, director of Creator/NinjaTheory's ''VideoGame/DMCDevilMayCry'', had a clear disdain for the original continuity that manifested in ''[=DmC=]'' Dante ending up with a "wig" resembling the original Dante's hairstyle falling on his head in the middle of a fight, only to declare "Not in a million years" and rip it off. The eventual ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry5'' - developed in-house by Capcom - had a few light-hearted jabs that [[MythologyGag reference]] ''[=DmC=]'':
98	** Dr. Faust, a cowboy hat weapon used by Dante that causes him to strike flamboyant poses while using it, referencing an infamous GDC presentation by Ninja Theory which included an image of the original Dante edited into the background of ''Film/BrokebackMountain''.
99	** Nero's hair being cut short to resemble ''[=DmC=]'' Dante, then shouting the phrase "Fuck you!", which that Dante said [[SirSwearsALot a lot]].
100	** The classic Dante outright saying "[[IronicEcho Not in a million years]]" when [[spoiler:Vergil summons a Doppelganger during their fight in an attempt to gain an advantage in numbers]].
101	[[/folder]]
102
103	[[folder:Web Original]]
104	* When Creator/TwoSetViolin made [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2C8PwVf9liQ a snarky video]] arguing that the violin was superior to the recorder because more elaborate techniques are possible, a professional recorder player responded with [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iABAU4UsqpI her own video]] demonstrating how she could execute all those techniques and then some. [=TwoSet=] were good sports [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1njMqWQu4Z4 and acknowledged]] they had been properly roasted.
105	[[/folder]]
106
107	[[folder:Western Animation]]
108	* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'':
109	** The episode "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS3E21BlackWidower Black Widower]]" begins with the Simpson family watching a parody of ''Series/{{Dinosaurs}}'', and Bart comments, "It's like they saw our lives and put it right up on screen!", a reference to the criticism ''Dinosaurs'' received at the time for [[TheyCopiedItSoItSucks allegedly ripping off]] ''The Simpsons''. ''Dinosaurs'' would later fire back in the episode "Dirty Dancin'", wherein Earl complains about the TV line-up consisting of nothing but shows involving [[BumblingDad idiot fathers]], [[FollowTheLeader following the success]] of "[[ShowWithinAShow Totally Ineffectual Dad]]", and that the other shows are just cheap rip-offs. Baby then says, "Don't have a cow, man!", Bart's catchphrase at the time.
110	** In another episode, Peter from ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'' appeared on a Wanted poster for [[FollowTheLeader plagiarism]]. ''Family Guy'' responded in [[CrossesTheLineTwice its typical way]] (see below).
111	** ''WesternAnimation/RenAndStimpy'' creator Creator/JohnKricfalusi's numerous derogatory remarks about ''The Simpsons'' resulted in a moment in "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS4E19TheFront The Front]]" where a clip from ''Ren and Stimpy'' nominated for an award ceremony is instead a black screen reading "clip not done yet", referencing the show's infamous TroubledProduction and severe {{Schedule Slip}}s.
112	** In a more good-natured rib, ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'' did the episode "Simpsons Already Did It" because it was hard for the writers to think good ideas that hadn't already shown up in Springfield. ''The Simpsons'' responded by having Bart and Milhouse watching ''South Park'', something which Marge vehemently disapproves of.
113	* As mentioned above, Creator/SethMacFarlane took a "little shot back" at Creator/MattGroening's plagiarism joke in ''The Simpsons'' by having a CutawayGag in ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'' in which... [[DisproportionateRetribution Marge is brutally raped by Quagmire, who then follows her home and murders the entire Simpson family]]. Needless to say, Groening [[DudeNotFunny didn't find it funny]] ''[[WhatTheHellHero at all]]'' and threatened never to speak to [=MacFarlane=] again if the scene wasn't pulled from reruns.
114	* Despite the fact that he designed the character of [[CaptainErsatz Sappy]] [[WesternAnimation/SidneyTheElephant Stanley]] for the episode "[[Recap/TinyToonAdventuresS1E50WhoBoppedBugsBunny Who Bopped Bugs Bunny?]]", ''[[WesternAnimation/TheRenAndStimpyShow Ren and Stimpy]]'' creator Creator/JohnKricfalusi did not enjoy the work he did for ''WesternAnimation/TinyToonAdventures''. When he became a contributor for the "Wild Cartoon Kingdom" magazine, he gave negative reviews to the later animated works of Creator/StevenSpielberg, such as ''WesternAnimation/WereBackADinosaursStory'' and ''WesternAnimation/{{Animaniacs}}'' under the pseudonym "Tom Paine", the latter of which he bashed [[ComplainingAboutShowsYouDontWatch before he even saw the show]]. The ''WesternAnimation/TinyToonAdventuresSpringBreakSpecial'' fired back by having Rank and Stumpy, rooster and squirrel [[{{Expy}} expies]] of Ren and Stimpy [[SquashedFlat get run over]] by the ''Tiny Toons'' bus near the end of the special. The other victims of the bus were [[WesternAnimation/BeavisAndButtHead Beaver and Hoghead]], based on the stars of a show John K notably enjoyed, adding even more fuel to the fire.
115	[[/folder]]
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117	-->[[BigWhat What?]] This is a SelfDemonstratingArticle? [[{{Jerkass}} Who really cares about that bloated index?]]

Context Main / TakeThatTitForTat