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| 3 | %% Trope was declared Administrivia/NoRealLifeExamplesPlease via crowner by the Real Life Maintenance thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/crowner.php?crowner_id=19qugn3r |
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| 7 | %% This list of examples has been alphabetized. Please add your example in the proper place. Thanks! |
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| 13 | [[quoteright:350:[[ComicBook/ArchieComics https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/jinx_8.jpg]]]] |
| 14 | [[caption-width-right:350:And Veronica is ''very good'' at attracting boys.[[note]]Also, his jinx range must be ''at least'' [[ExaggeratedTrope half a mile]], if he made those planes crash. And just what is [[UsefulNotes/GraphicalPerspective going on]] with that building on the right?[[/note]]]] |
| 15 | |
| 16 | ->''I am no one's blessing\ |
| 17 | I'll just bring you harm\ |
| 18 | I'm a cursed black cat, I'm an albatross, I'm a mirror broken\ |
| 19 | Sad to say, I’m your bad luck charm!'' |
| 20 | -->-- ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'', [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kdOW8db9FhQ "Bad Luck Charm"]] |
| 21 | |
| 22 | A jinx is a living BadLuckCharm, someone who unintentionally causes calamity everywhere they go. They aren't malicious and they aren't trying to cause harm; they just happen to be very, very unlucky for those around, and bad luck spreads. |
| 23 | |
| 24 | The difference between a jinx and someone who is BornUnlucky is the latter's bad luck falls only on himself. While there are many examples were both overlap, the jinx may instead be perfectly lucky himself but causes horrible bad luck for others; sometimes, it's the case that he causes bad luck for others ''because'' he's so lucky himself, as a form of EquivalentExchange. Because of this, a jinx is likely to become a social leper-- people avoid him to avoid the bad luck. Jinxes: Even when they win, they lose. |
| 25 | |
| 26 | Oddly enough it would seem that in all media, no one has ever thought to consider the potential chaos a jinx could inflict in the world of insurance policies. |
| 27 | |
| 28 | Compare WalkingDisasterArea, where bad things follow the hero [[WeirdnessMagnet because he's the hero]]. DoomMagnet is an extreme form. When this is weaponized, it's WindsOfDestinyChange. May be a CosmicPlaything, ButtMonkey, or [[TheChewToy Chew Toy]]. Approach with caution. Compare LethalKlutz who directly causes problems to those around him, generally through clumsiness. |
| 29 | |
| 30 | SuperTrope to WalkingTechbane. |
| 31 | |
| 32 | ---- |
| 33 | !!Examples: |
| 34 | |
| 35 | [[foldercontrol]] |
| 36 | |
| 37 | [[folder:Advertising]] |
| 38 | * American tropers will be familiar with [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hkvjtRap3ak All State's Mayhem]] who occasionally dabbles in this trope, but his [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3CrTRHq8so counterpart used for advertising in Latin America]] plays this to the hilt - he's literally named ''Mala Suerte'' which translates to "Bad Luck". |
| 39 | [[/folder]] |
| 40 | |
| 41 | [[folder:Anime & Manga]] |
| 42 | * PlayedForDrama with Simon from ''Manga/TheAncientMagusBride''. Due to circumstances around his birth, anyone who eats the sweets he makes is cursed to die a very short time later. His grandmother and mother were the first victims, and by the time he was 18, he'd accidentally killed his aunt, uncle, and cousin. Even the love of his life died because of it. The moment he finds out it really is his fault, he immediately tries to kill himself. |
| 43 | * Asebi Inoue of ''Literature/BenTo'' is this to nearly '''everyone''' around her. |
| 44 | * Blitz T. "Lucky" Abrams from ''Manga/BloodBlockadeBattlefront'' is lucky in that he himself is immune to the disasters he brings with him wherever he goes since he has been cursed so many times. |
| 45 | * Touma in ''Literature/ACertainMagicalIndex'' has a rather unique case: his [[AntiMagic supernatural-dispelling right arm]] [[BlessedWithSuck also happens to dispel luck]]. Usually his own. It is mentioned that the reason he was sent to Academy City was that the people of his hometown labelled him a jinx, but Academy City, being such a center of science, is not likely to have anyone so superstitious as to do something similar. |
| 46 | * Nagito Komaeda from ''Franchise/{{Danganronpa}}'' is normally BornLucky, but in his fantasy world in the ''Super Danganronpa 2.5'' {{OVA}}, he's an inversion of this trope, being [[BornUnlucky tremendously unlucky]] himself while bringing good fortune to everyone around him. |
| 47 | ** A RunningGag in ''Anime/Danganronpa3TheEndOfHopesPeakHighSchool'' is that Nagito's good luck has an inverse effect on Soda's luck, as shown in the first Despair Arc episode when he accidentally empties out a vending machine at the same time Soda gets hit by a truck. However, his luck is PlayedForDrama later on in the anime when [[spoiler: through a series of mishaps, three other students are blamed for ''his'' [[WellIntentionedExtremist domestic terror plot]] and expelled while he [[KarmaHoudini gets away with just a suspension]].]] |
| 48 | ** Nagito ends up on the ''receiving'' end of this in ''Anime/Danganronpa3TheEndOfHopesPeakHighSchool'' when [[spoiler: [[UltimateLifeForm Izuru Kamukura, who was endowed with every talent known to man]], manages to cancel Nagito's luck out with his own and cause his gun to jam before disarming him and using it. [[PocketProtector Nagito's school handbook keeps the bullet from penetrating]], [[UnluckilyLucky but the impact is enough to knock him out cold]].]] |
| 49 | * Due to a curse, whenever Mikan in ''Manga/TheDemonGirlNextDoor'' gets worked up, misfortune befalls the people around her, such as trash-bags exploding, strong gusts of wind or storm clouds coming out of nowhere, or a snake showing up to torment Myth/{{Lilith}}. |
| 50 | * ''Literature/TheFruitOfEvolution'': Altaria Grem, the second of Seiichi's girlfriends, was born with a curse that gives her a -2,000,000 of Luck (that's right, in the ''negative''), which causes misfortune to everyone around her, and she keeps away from people because any adventurers she teams up with end up dead. Thankfully, Seiichi manages to reverse it by giving her a ring that multiplies her luck by -2,[[note]]Double negatives equate to a positive[[/note]] for which she's really grateful. |
| 51 | * ''Anime/GenesisOfAquarion'' has Reika, whose [[BlessedWithSuck Element Power apparently consists of having minor bad things happen to and around her]] all the time. She also believes that anyone who gets close to her will also suffer misfortune, which leads her to push most people away. On the other hand, on several occasions, she's been able to channel her misfortune into raw power while piloting Aquarion, and she kills a few Mythic Beasts and Cherubim with it. |
| 52 | * Wonder of U, the Stand of Tooru from ''Manga/JojosBizarreAdventureJojolion'', [[InvokedTrope invokes]] this by inflicting "Calamity" onto anybody pursuing it or its user, completely out of its own hand. When somebody pursues the Stand or the user more and more, they are more likely to have this sense of bad luck kill them. |
| 53 | * Terry Sanders Jr. of ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamThe08thMSTeam'', who has been the SoleSurvivor of several squadrons is shunned by most of his fellow soldiers and believes himself to be cursed. His idealistic CO Shiro Amada, the original EnsignNewbie, struggles to help him overcome it. |
| 54 | * Played for laughs in ''Manga/MyHeroAcademia''. Todoroki claims Midoriya and Ida's hand injuries are because of him being "cursed" as a "hand smasher", and he had the misfortune of running into an Endeavor-hater during the Provisional Hero License Exam whose animosity and continued interference during the rescue stage of the exam plagued him every step of the way and cost them both passing marks. |
| 55 | * Yuuko Aioi of ''Manga/{{Nichijou}}'' is an inversion. The biggest ButtMonkey of the series, the final episode displays that for all of her ''own'' rotten luck, she is unwittingly helping people around her, such as bumping into her friends and knocking them out of the way of something that was about to hit them, or pulling at them and inadvertently stopping them from stepping on ants. |
| 56 | * Takeo Inou, the protagonist of ''Manga/TakeoChanBukkairoku'', [[BornUnlucky has such terrible misfortune]] that she has to wear excessive safety gear just to survive the various mishaps that happen to her en route to or from school. She keeps herself distant from others at the start of the series because that misfortune can jinx others who are around her. Her home's landlord and master, a god of fortune she calls Mu-chan, can negate much of this if they're together. When they're apart, it kicks right back up again. |
| 57 | * Seina Yamada in ''Anime/TenchiMuyoGXP'' is not only unlucky enough to count as a CosmicPlaything, it usually bleeds off onto those around him. One subtly extreme moment comes when a horse jockey falls off his horse in the middle of a race because a man cheering for him was listening to the race on the radio when Seina happened to be riding on his bike nearby. |
| 58 | * Fuuko Izumo of ''Manga/UndeadUnluck'' was born with the unfortunate side effect of bringing anything she touches misfortune, which is multiplied if she had any personal attachments to them. Travelling around with leading man Andy, however, allows her to Exploit the trope; by becoming attached to him, directly touching him can become a huge asset in battles (especially since he's immortal and can shrug it off), while she has a means of protecting herself when she's facing enemies alone. |
| 59 | [[/folder]] |
| 60 | |
| 61 | [[folder:Comic Books]] |
| 62 | * [[http://www.comicvine.com/jinx-malloy/29-60759/all-images/108-216083/jinx_malloy1/105-746050 Jinx Malloy,]] a recurring character in ''ComicBook/ArchieComics'' (of the "causes bad luck in others" variety). He's so infamous in Riverdale that when he goes out, he wears disguises [[TheWoobie so no one will run away in terror at his approach]]. |
| 63 | ** Archie Comics also has another character named Jinx, but she is just a normal (if mischievous) little girl. |
| 64 | ** Archie himself tends to accidentally cause chaos wherever he goes, usually due to his clumsiness. The [[ComicBook/ArchieComics2015 2015 series]]-which-is-now-the-main-series plays this aspect of his character way up; many a GilliganCut ends with him looking sheepish in the midst of [[NoodleIncident unfathomable destruction]] and someone near him yelling "HOW?" |
| 65 | * ''ComicBook/{{Asterix}}'': ''[[Recap/AsterixAndTheRomanAgent Asterix and the Roman Agent]]'' has Tortuous Convolvulus who plays with it, as he most often utilises his unique talent for psychological warfare, strife, and anger for his own Machiavellian enjoyment. However, at times he seems to cause that naturally by his mere presence. Sort of an indirect jinx, as a lot of destruction comes in the wake of that. |
| 66 | * Jonah in ''ComicBook/TheBeano'' was an example with a very specific form of bad luck. If he was anywhere near a ship, it sunk. (Sometimes this was directly his fault, so doesn't count as this trope, but sometimes it just happened all on its own.) He remained perpetually oblivious to this, and couldn't understand why it was so hard for him to get a job as a sailor. (PhraseCatcher, from every ship's captain who encountered him: "Aargh! It's 'im!") |
| 67 | * Weaponized by the ''ComicBook/BlackCat'', who [[EmpoweredBadassNormal deliberately had herself augmented]] with the ability to [[WindsOfDestinyChange inflict bad luck on people around her]]. The original version of this powerset, which she got from the Kingpin, suffered from PowerIncontinence, so she was also a source of bad luck to people around her ''even when she didn't want to be'' -- this wasn't the ''only'' thing that led to her breaking up with ComicBook/SpiderMan, but it played a part. She had these faulty powers removed by ComicBook/DoctorStrange... and then got a new and better version of them installed by MadScientist Dr. Tramma. |
| 68 | * ''ComicBook/GrooTheWanderer''. You'd think that, as monumentally stupid as he already is, he wouldn't need the help of this trope on top of it. You would be wrong. |
| 69 | * DependingOnTheWriter but generally speaking ''ComicBook/{{Loki}}'' can cause mischief by standing still and if there is one thing you can be certain around them that is ''things won't go as expected''. |
| 70 | * In ''ComicBook/{{PS238}}'', a running not-so-gag is that Captain Clarinet's life gets progressively worse every time he gets involved with Moon Shadow in any way, even though Moon Shadow is technically never to blame for any of it. After a while, he starts to lampshade this ("You are '''such''' bad luck!"). |
| 71 | * ''ComicBook/ScooterGirl'': Ashton thinks Margaret is a jinx solely affecting him, and his grandpa seems to confirm it with his story. |
| 72 | * ''ComicBook/SonicTheHedgehogArchieComics'' had Larry Lynx, who caused harm to anyone near him - Sonic's attempt to rescue him from a tree ended with all of the Freedom Fighters injured. These injuries ended with them captured by Swatbots, all but Sonic and Larry. Sonic got the idea to weaponize Larry's bad luck and sent him out against the Swatbots, which ended up saving the day. Having used his jinx to do good for the first time apparently broke Larry's curse, and the end of the story shows him enjoying a streak of ''good'' luck. Although in his later appearances, he is still shown to have a bad luck effect but can control it somewhat. This ability ends up leading to him being recruited in a team called the Secret Freedom Fighters. Being able to cause bad luck proves incredibly useful for sabotage missions. He just has to hide near the people he wants to sabotage and let his powers do the work and they will never know they were sabotaged at all. |
| 73 | * ''ComicBook/SpiderMan'' views himself as a jinx, citing all of the horrible things that have happened to his friends, family, loved ones, and associates -- attacks by supervillains, deaths, mutation, experiments by {{Mad Scientist}}s, etcetera. Whether he's ''actually'' this or he's simply hamming up the usual run of ill-luck that tends to befall any superhero in a more dramatic series is up to the reader. |
| 74 | * The ''ComicBook/StrontiumDog'' story arc "A Sorry Case" had Johnny deal with having to escort someone off-planet, a fellow by the name of Sorry Bobbs with whom bad luck follows wherever he goes. Naturally, that makes the simple escort a lot harder than it initially sounded. On several occasions, Sorry Bobbs flat-out calls himself a jinx. |
| 75 | * The infamous "Jonah" Franz from ''ComicBook/{{Sturmtruppen}}'', from the former-Fourth Battalion. (Former because it was annihilated by mistake by a bombardment). |
| 76 | * "Unit Jinx" is an official military position in ''ComicBook/TankVixens'', and an inversion, they're BornUnlucky and luck works like magnetism, so those around them get good luck. Sonya Guildencrantz is the official jinx for the 101st Tank Crushing Brigade. |
| 77 | [[/folder]] |
| 78 | |
| 79 | [[folder:Comic Strips]] |
| 80 | * Joe Btfsplk from ''ComicStrip/LilAbner'' (who has his own article on Website/TheOtherWiki). |
| 81 | [[/folder]] |
| 82 | |
| 83 | [[folder:Fan Works]] |
| 84 | * ''Fanfic/DreamingOfSunshine'': In Chapter 12 of ''Sunshine Sidestories,'' it's shown that the Special Jounin Sasuke patrols with all see him as one of these. Each of the jounin have some kind of horror/traumatizing story from working with him, from impostors and contraband to Aburame giggling about flesh-eating beetles. This is expanded on in chapter 104 to include Shikako and possibly all of Team 7. Shikako herself is unaware and thinks the desk ninja are just weird. |
| 85 | * In ''Fanfic/LostBoy'', many of Berk's villagers seem to believe this of Hiccup. His status as a former bed-slave leads many to believe him to be an ill omen, that any weapon he touches would be cursed, and that ill-fortune would befall their children if he goes anywhere near them. This especially is not helped by the Jorgensons spreading rumors about him. |
| 86 | [[/folder]] |
| 87 | |
| 88 | [[folder:Film -- Live Action]] |
| 89 | * The Italian film ''Film/AmicheDaMorire'' has Crocetta, one of the protagonists, as the official jinx in town. Every guy she has ever dated has been cursed with utter misfortune, and that's why she's an OldMaid in her late thirties. [[spoiler: Turns out it wasn't true: it was her [[MyBelovedSmother beloved (s)mother]] who keeps arranging incidents for her suitors, so she wouldn't ever leave home.]] |
| 90 | * In ''Film/TheCooler'', Bernie Lootz is employed by a Las Vegas casino to simply wander near any gambler who is winning too much. Because of his aura of bad luck, the gambler will instantly start losing. |
| 91 | * ''Film/{{Dangerous|1935}}'': Everybody in the theater world believes that Joyce the actress is this. Joyce believes that she is this, telling Don about the men she's accidentally ruined and the stage shows she's been in that failed. In the backstory, she ruined her husband, and when she meets him again in the movie, she causes a car wreck that cripples him. And Don is ruined when he backs Joyce in a play only to see it fail. Subverted, however, when Don tells Joyce that it's her selfishness and not any jinx that's the problem. |
| 92 | * Dora Lynn in ''Film/GetOverIt''. "Wherever she goes, bad shit happens. I mean, ''weird'' bad shit happens." |
| 93 | * In ''Film/{{Godzilla 2014}}'', every time Ford Brody is with a group of people, he tends to be the sole or one of the few survivors. |
| 94 | * The Spanish film ''Film/{{Intacto}}'' has this as its main premise: certain individuals in the world have the ability to suck people's luck to add to their own. The luckiest of them all(played by MaxVonSydow) is '''so''' lucky, he plays Russian roulette with ''five bullets to one empty chamber'' and always wins. |
| 95 | * The main character in ''Film/MrHulotsHoliday'' tends to accidentally create chaos wherever he goes, frequently getting caught up in the aftermath. In one incident, the simple act of searching for a lost ping-pong ball results in an entire hotel lounge full of people starting to fight with each other. |
| 96 | * Douglas Fackler in several ''Film/PoliceAcademy'' films. In the first film, an apple core casually thrown by him escalates into a city riot. Simply walking through an office is enough to start a localized disaster that results in dozens of people being injured. He's completely oblivious to all this, of course. |
| 97 | * In ''Film/PureLuck'' (1991), a girl who has terrible luck is lost - they find her by employing another jinx - ''guy'' with bad luck, assuming that whatever bad luck she stumbled into he will stumble into, too. |
| 98 | [[/folder]] |
| 99 | |
| 100 | [[folder:Folklore]] |
| 101 | * Sailors had a habit of attributing any streak of poor luck to a single person, often turning on them to rid themselves of the poor luck. (See ''The Rime of the Ancient Mariner'' in Literature). |
| 102 | [[/folder]] |
| 103 | |
| 104 | [[folder:Literature]] |
| 105 | * ''Literature/AlexVerus'': |
| 106 | ** Luna has a hereditary curse that turns her into this in a very literal way, shunting her bad luck onto anyone and anything nearby (despite her desperate wishes to the contrary). And it clings to things. Any pet she owned would die within a month; likewise, anyone sharing her house would wind up hospitalized or worse. Anyone who actually touches her is liable to wind up dead from a freak accident. As the series goes on she gets better and better at controlling it, to the point that it can be safely considered WindsOfDestinyChange. |
| 107 | ** Even after gaining control, her curse still interferes with a couple of things. She has trouble using focuses to channel her power because her curse tries to destroy them from the inside instead of flowing through them properly. [[spoiler:Arachne ends up making her a custom focus capable of playing nicely with her power.]] |
| 108 | * "Jinxie" Penlan, one of the 597th's {{Mauve Shirt}}s in the ''Literature/CiaphasCain'' novels, has an interesting habit of [[BornUnlucky having terrible luck]] which inevitably [[SpannerInTheWorks ruins whatever plan, ambush, or surprise]] the enemy is cooking up, or points her in the right direction to kill them - whatever happens to her is always some combination of bad and humiliating, but almost always leaves her in a better place in the long run. Oddly enough, her squad's morale is better than most, believing that misfortune will happen to her, leaving the rest of them unscathed. |
| 109 | * Creator/IsaacAsimov's ''Literature/FoundationSeries'': In "Literature/TheMule", the protagonists help the Mule's clown, Magnifico Giganticus, escape from Kalgan. However, it seems like he's a bad luck charm because everywhere Toran and Bayta take him, the Mule's forces eventually arrive and [[CurbStompBattle conquer with ease]]. [[spoiler:Bayta eventually realizes that [[TwoAliasesOneCharacter Magnifico is actually the Mule]] and has been [[EmotionControl emotionally manipulating the local populations]] to surrender.]] |
| 110 | --> ''"We were on the Foundation, and it collapsed while the Independent Traders still fought - but we got out in time to go to Haven. We were on Haven, and it collapsed while the others still fought - and again we got out in time. We went to Neotrantor, and by now it's undoubtedly joined the Mule."''--'''Bayta Darell''' |
| 111 | * ''Literature/GeorgeAndAzazel'': Menander from "Saving Humanity" starts as one. The most common expression is bad weather wherever he goes, but it's far from the only or the worst. |
| 112 | * ''Literature/HonorHarrington'': Carson Clinkscales in ''In Enemy Hands''. His extreme clumsiness is legendary, although he gets better by the end of the novel. During one incident, he manages to trip over his own feet during a staff meeting, knocks a cap off another crewmember's head while falling, which hits a pitcher of water standing on the conference table, which falls and breaks open, soaking the captain's pants in water. Honor then asks him to help out with setting up a format dinner, shuddering at the thought of letting him anywhere near a table with food. |
| 113 | * The title character in the book ''Jinx'' by Creator/MegCabot. |
| 114 | * ''Literature/TheJonah'': A lifetime of uncannily recurrent disaster has targeted Detective Constable Jim Kelso. Coincidence and a GuiltComplex, or something else? It's [[spoiler: the tangibly manifest ghost of his crazed twin sister]]. |
| 115 | * A major character in Creator/SergeyLukyanenko's ''Literature/LabyrinthOfReflections'' is actually named Jinx (or rather, it's a nickname given to him by those around him). He is stuck in {{Cyberspace}} and it seems that Cyberspace itself is preventing him from exiting by all manners of freak accidents and coincidences. |
| 116 | * In the ''Literature/{{Nevermoor}}'' series, children born on Eventide, such as our heroine Morrigan, are said to be cursed. Not only will they die at midnight at the end of the Age, but they're said to bring bad luck everywhere they go. When we first meet Morrigan, she's in a monthly meeting with a social worker, going over how many letters of apology she'll have to write this month. She, for her part, strongly suspects that at least some of the things she's blamed for aren't actually her fault--for example, a lunch lady who admits she left a potholder on a stove, causing a small fire, but says it's because Morrigan made eye contact with her earlier that day. [[spoiler:Morrigan's right; it turns out the curse isn't real. Children born on Eventide are murdered by Ezra Squall for his own reasons, and the whole "bad luck" business came about because people couldn't resist an easy scapegoat for their own wrongdoings.]] |
| 117 | * Billy Lathem, aka 'the Jonah', was a minor ''Literature/{{Nightside}}'' character who could inflict misfortune on others at will, manipulating probabilities so that the worst possible outcome would supplant the result that'd actually happened. |
| 118 | * In the ''TabletopGame/{{Shadowrun}}'' short story "No Such Luck" by Matt Forbeck, a dwarf becomes unwillingly and permanently infected with a cursed nanite swarm which rapidly causes gruesome fatal accidents to everyone around him while keeping him alive... so he deliberately starts seeking out the most unrepentant evil bastards he can find. |
| 119 | * ''Literature/TheOdyssey'': Odysseus had this problem, due largely to Poseidon hating his guts. |
| 120 | * The Italian short novel "La Patente" (The License) revolves around Chiarchiaro, a man whose life is ruined because he's rumored to be this. [[spoiler: However he decides to ask a "Jinx-License" and manages to get some cash through this.]] |
| 121 | * The main character "Mitchie" from the SF short story "Prone" - a patriotic youth who joined the army in the midst of a prolonged interplanetary war, and whose Jinx abilities [[OhCrap have been growing exponentially over time]]. [[spoiler: After his presence nearly destroys the military academy, he's secretly sent to live as a civilian on the enemy homeworld, which will probably win the war in a few years]]. |
| 122 | * The Mariner's crew considers him one after shooting an albatross, his ship's good luck charm, in ''Literature/TheRimeOfTheAncientMariner''. After the attack, his crewmates force him to wear the albatross around his neck as a sign of his guilt, and they all die subsequently, each cursing him "with his eye" as he drops; the albatross only falls off the mariner afterwards, when he relents in his malice towards the dumb chums, and blesses the water-snakes. |
| 123 | * This is Magician Murphey's magical talent in the ''Literature/{{Xanth}}'' books. |
| 124 | [[/folder]] |
| 125 | |
| 126 | [[folder:Live-Action TV]] |
| 127 | %%* Barney on ''Series/TheAndyGriffithShow'' was convinced someone was a jinx in one episode. |
| 128 | * In the ''Series/BabylonFive'' episode "Grail", there is a character nicknamed "Jinxo" who believes himself to be one of these, after his departure from the previous four Babylon stations happened just before each one met some kind of ignominious fate. The final conclusion seems to be that it was just a temporary string of unfortunate coincidences. One character even suggests that he should have been called "[[BornLucky Lucky]]" since he'd left the first four Babylon stations just in time to avoid ''personal'' disaster. |
| 129 | * One episode of ''Series/BigTimeRush'' involves the boys trying to help a friend of theirs get a singing gig. But disaster follows her wherever she goes, costing her a lot of jobs. This includes hospitalizing a large number of international agents by triggering a large explosion trying to perform for them (at the Palm Woods because the boys were afraid they'd endanger the city taking her out to meet them). Ultimately, they find a band who is looking for a super destructive lead singer, which her natural 'talent' made her perfect for. |
| 130 | %%* CousinOliver considered himself a Jinx on ''Series/TheBradyBunch''. |
| 131 | * ''Series/KenanAndKel'': Anyone Kel interacts with (namely [[ButtMonkey Roger and Chris]]) will get the short end of the stick no thanks to his recklessness and stupidity. |
| 132 | * After winning the lottery with seemingly cursed numbers (these numbers have turned others into jinxes as well), Hurley from ''Series/{{Lost}}'' becomes a Jinx. While he is being interviewed by a reporter, his grandfather drops dead of a heart attack. Soon afterwards, his brother's wife leaves him, his mother falls and breaks her ankle when he blindfolds her to take her to a new house he bought her, the house in question goes up in flames, and he is mistakenly arrested by the policemen he approaches for help. The worst point is probably when a news reporter and camera crew interviewing him enter a restaurant he recently bought and are promptly killed when a meteorite hits it. |
| 133 | * A "bad luck for others" example in the ''Series/MontyPythonsFlyingCircus'' "Accidents sketch" where a man goes to a house and disaster ensues, with multiple people being killed. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aUeLs4yFGTg Watch it here.]] |
| 134 | * In the "Valentime's Day" episode of ''Series/NickyRickyDickyAndDawn'' he quads feel like they have jinxed their parents' Valentine's Day after seeing part of a video made when their parents first found out they were having quadruplets. They try to help their parents reconnect with Valentine's Day, but everything they do messes it up wherever they go. |
| 135 | * Fat Paul in ''Series/SirensUK'' is one of the [[TheUnseen unseen]] other members of the group that somehow manages to get called out to major accidents. |
| 136 | * Jimmy Jinx, "the unluckiest man in the world", appears in one episode of ''Series/TheSlammer''. He manages to cause accidents wherever he goes, including causing Mr Burgess to walk into a lamppost. Inside the prison. Twice. |
| 137 | * ''Series/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit:'' FBI Agent Dana Lewis is a jinx to Stabler. In her first appearance, "Raw", he gets shot. In her second appearance, "Informed", he's injured in an explosion (one that she escapes unharmed), and even says she's a jinx as he's taken to the hospital. She eventually returns in the episode "Penetration", and he spends the episode twitchy and paranoid around her, convinced she's going to get him hurt again. She eventually shoots at a pipe behind a criminal (intending to scare him)...and Stabler is hit by the ricochet. The look he gives her is ''hysterical''. |
| 138 | * The subplot of the ''Series/WalkerTexasRanger'' episode "[[Recap/WalkerTexasRangerS9E17MedievalCrimes Medieval Crimes]]" has Trivette transporting a prisoner back to Dallas to testify in a murder trial, who turns out to be a living jinx that causes him all sorts of bad luck during the trip, from his car breaking down (add to that, a [[ShockinglyExpensiveBill shockingly expensive repair bill]] for it), to [[TheFoodPoisoningIncident food poisoning]], to [[ScaryStingingSwarm tons of bee stings]]. |
| 139 | * ''Series/TheXFiles'' episode "The Goldberg Variation": A man has the power to make everything go his way, but avoids using it because every time he does he becomes a powerful jinx because of EquivalentExchange. |
| 140 | [[/folder]] |
| 141 | |
| 142 | [[folder:Music]] |
| 143 | * The music video for Music/{{GreenDay}}'s "Walking Contradiction" features all manner of mishaps occurring wherever the band members go. |
| 144 | [[/folder]] |
| 145 | |
| 146 | [[folder:Tabletop RPG]] |
| 147 | * ''TabletopGame/{{Champions}}''. If a character has 4 or more dice of Unluck, the bad luck affects those around him. |
| 148 | * The Jackelope's foot in ''TabletopGame/{{Deadlands}}'' gives the owner exceptional good luck, at the cost of giving exceptional bad luck to everyone else in the posse. This reflects the fact that, when alive, the Jackelope acts in much the same way, as it feeds on the souls of those killed by the accidents its bad luck aura causes. |
| 149 | * ''TabletopGame/{{GURPS}}'': |
| 150 | ** The third edition also had Jinx as a character disadvantage. It was removed in the fourth edition, possibly because for a typical PC, it was more of an [[CursedWithAwesome advantage than a disadvantage]], especially since the ability was irresistible. For those wanting to keep it, the denizens of the Steve Jackson Games forums have worked out [[http://forums.sjgames.com/showthread.php?t=18972&page=2 a method based on the Visualization ability.]] |
| 151 | ** They suggested that Odysseus from Myth/GreekMythology was this. After all, he survived his adventures, while all of his men died, and Polyphem the cyclops blew his INT roll when Odysseus was there. |
| 152 | * ''TabletopGame/{{SavageWorlds}}'' literally has a jinx power in both editions of its Super Heroes supplement. It drastically increases the consequences of failing rolls against the possessor of the power. Combine this power with others like Malfunction and some creative trapping and you too can play a walking disaster. |
| 153 | [[/folder]] |
| 154 | |
| 155 | [[folder:Video Games]] |
| 156 | * ''VideoGame/{{Fallout}}'': |
| 157 | ** The player can pick the Jinxed trait in ''VideoGame/Fallout1'' and ''VideoGame/Fallout2'' to increase enemy's CriticalFailure rate, but it affects them just as badly as the other characters--however, a [[BornLucky maxed out Luck stat]] will protect you from it. |
| 158 | ** The Pariah Dog from ''Fallout 2'' constantly causes characters around it to miss shots, injure themselves, and lose ammo and weapons. It's also NighInvulnerable, thanks to ridiculously high health, abject cowardice, and the aforementioned traits preventing many attacks directed at it. |
| 159 | * Arthur from ''VideoGame/FireEmblemFates'' has the worst luck out of all characters in the game. This even extends to his personal skill Misfortunate, which reduces his Critical Evade by 5, but also reduces the Critical Evade of enemies within two tiles by 15. |
| 160 | * ''Videogame/GenshinImpact'' has Bennett, a young adventurer with infectious bad luck and the leader of "Benny's Adventure Team". He's also coincidentally the only member of Benny's Adventure Team since everyone has ditched him due to how just being around him will cause all sorts of disasters ranging from getting struck by lightning to getting a single piece of Mora as loot, and the fact it can even ''outright alter the weather'' suggests that he is legitimately cursed. Bennett for his part takes everything in stride and doesn't let any of this break his spirit. |
| 161 | * Eizen, a party member in ''VideoGame/TalesOfBerseria'', is afflicted with the Reaper's Curse, causing him [[BornUnlucky supernaturally bad luck]], which extends to those around him. It has, among other things, forced him to live apart from his beloved little sister, [[VideoGame/TalesOfZestiria Edna]], to [[BigBrotherInstinct protect her from the misfortune he spreads]]. It's implied that the only reason the party isn't hopelessly bogged down by the curse is that [[spoiler: Velvet's Therion powers are partially absorbing its effects]]. |
| 162 | -->'''Bienfu:''' Miss Magilou, please stop making up things [about the curse] just to scare Madam Eleanor! Like when you said four navy warships tried to detain the [[CoolShip Van Eltia]] and disappeared without a trace? Or that Eizen made a stopover on an island, and all the men there caught [[ForcedTransformation daemonblight]]? Or that a man bumped into his shoulder and started laughing and [[DieLaughing died from suffocation]]? |
| 163 | -->'''Eleanor:''' Please, stop. That's even more frightening. |
| 164 | -->'''Eizen:''' That's a pack of lies. [[BaitAndSwitch It was seven warships. Everyone on the island, not just men, caught daemonblight. And the guy who bumped into me died from hiccups]]. |
| 165 | * Shion Yorigami from ''Franchise/TouhouProject'' spinoff ''VideoGame/TouhouHyouibanaAntinomyOfCommonFlowers'' is a goddess of poverty that stores misfortune inside her body and brings it to people around her. Unfortunately for her, almost everyone avoids her like the plague and her powers extend to ''herself'', leaving her in a depressed state. Her only real friend is Tenshi Hinanawi, whose [[BornLucky absurdly good luck]] means that she is unaffected by her powers. |
| 166 | * Kasandra, a unique Blade from ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles2'', is a cheerful and sunny character who seems to have no idea about the misfortune that seems to follow her. The fox mask she wears on the back of her head rattles whenever something bad is about to happen, which it frequently does. Her previous Driver was a Nopon (which is in itself a rarity) who was one of the most celebrated salvagers of Argentum until he got eaten by a gigantic fish monster; presumably as a result of the bad luck that seems to plague Kasandra. After you learn about this and defeat that same monster, you obtain her core crystal, labelled as the "[[{{Irony}} Lucky Core Crystal]]." As if to highlight Kasandra's status as this, her heart-to-heart conversation just happens to be where a powerful {{Superboss}} [[spoiler:(Artifice Ophion)]] appears after Chapter 10, which can result in it photo-bombing the scene [[UnusuallyUninterestingSight while Kasandra and her Driver pay it no mind,]] or worse, [[ThisIsGonnaSuck ambushing the party as soon as gameplay resumes.]] |
| 167 | [[/folder]] |
| 168 | |
| 169 | [[folder:Webcomics]] |
| 170 | * Lorraine, ("Troubles"), in ''Webcomic/NineteenSeventySevenTheComic'', can bring calamity to a crowded room just by standing there. |
| 171 | * In ''Webcomic/TheIntrepidGirlbot'', the title character is sadly a major jinx -- not only does she not fit in well with the rest of her world, but she actively disrupts it just by existing -- who also spawned a WalkingDisasterArea in Raccoon #1. However, much of their misfortune is due to their respective cases of PowerIncontinence. |
| 172 | * In the ''[[ShowWithinTheShow Lucky Bunny Bounty Show]]'', in ''Webcomic/ElGoonishShive'', Unusagi appears to [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2002-07-22 be this.]] (The commentaries have suggested the show was designed to be the other way around: Travis is permanently jinxed, and the "bunny goddess of luck" brings his luck back to normal... ''most of the time''. But it's never been pinned down.) |
| 173 | -->'''Unusagi''': Luck isn't necessarily good luck, Travis san! And watch the hands!! |
| 174 | * Cookie from ''Webcomic/FurryFightChronicles'' is called ''Misfortune Cookie'' because every time she tries something, which ranges from gambling to her profession, she's met with bad luck that also affects those associated with her. |
| 175 | * ''Webcomic/ToPreventWorldPeace'' shows a rare example of a jinx who does it deliberately. The cost of her good luck power is to cause bad luck to everybody else around her. She knows this, and yet she [[http://worldpeace.emilymarthasorensen.com/worldpeace268.html does it anyway.]] |
| 176 | [[/folder]] |
| 177 | |
| 178 | [[folder:Web Original]] |
| 179 | * Deconstructed in ''WebVideo/DanganronpaRebirth'': [[spoiler:Ayumu Fujimori's talent as the Ultimate Unlucky Student proved to be so destructive that ''the Japanese government'', despite him being a genuine NiceGuy, hired a ProfessionalKiller to assassinate him.]] |
| 180 | * In the animated short "WesternAnimation/JinxyJenkinsAndLuckyLou", Jinxy Jenkins attracts bad luck wherever he goes. Things fall on him, mirrors shatter, and the weather instantly changes to inconvenience him. |
| 181 | * ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'': Towards the end of Volume 4, when Ruby demands to know why her {{honorary uncle}} Qrow was secretly following her current team (RNJR) from a distance instead of just traveling alongside them, he reveals that his [[PersonalityPowers Semblance]] is this trope, bitterly joking how well it fits his name (since crows are considered unlucky). Said semblance is permanently active and thus uncontrollable; great for dealing with opponents in battle, but not so great if you're fighting alongside any allies, hence why Qrow also tended to keep his distance from friends and family in general. The page quote is from his ImageSong, which describes his feelings about this "helpful" ability of his. |
| 182 | * ''Website/SCPFoundation'': |
| 183 | ** [[http://www.scp-wiki.net/scp-181 SCP-181]] appears on the surface to just be [[BornLucky lucky to a supernatural degree]]. However, one of the researchers noticed that casualty rates at the site increased by an unspecified ''triple''-digit percentage and realized that his luck comes at the cost of inflicting bad luck to everyone around him. They then hypothesize that through chaos theory he runs the risk of causing bad luck on a [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt global scale]], and moved him to solitary confinement indefinitely to prevent it from spreading. |
| 184 | ** [[http://www.scp-wiki.net/scp-1440 SCP-1440, "The Old Man from Nowhere"]]. Ever since he won a game of cards against Death, every manmade object close to him gets destroyed, but only in ways that can reasonably be justified as an accident. It wasn't so much losing that bothered Death, but the fact that the man decided to gloat. |
| 185 | ** [[http://www.scp-wiki.net/scp-7000 SCP-7000]] is an [[InvertedTrope inversion]], he spent his whole life believing himself to be this trope when in reality he acts as a sponge absorbing other people's bad luck that is then inflicted on him. |
| 186 | [[/folder]] |
| 187 | |
| 188 | [[folder:Western Animation]] |
| 189 | * One episode of ''WesternAnimation/AaahhRealMonsters'' has Oblina step on a slug, which is a monster superstition of causing bad luck and soon enough bad things keep happening to her and around her. |
| 190 | * In an episode of ''WesternAnimation/TheAdventuresOfPussInBoots'', a goblin places a curse on Puss to turn him into a black cat, thus becoming a Jinx. He ultimately decides for the good of his friends, to exile himself from town until he can find a cure. |
| 191 | * ''WesternAnimation/AmericanDad'': In "Hurricane!", Stan said to be a jinx any time he tries to help somebody, as shown when he tries to protect his family during a hurricane. In fact, Francine even tells him to his face that ''any'' idea, no matter how practical, is automatically doomed to fail on the mere grounds that he thought of it. |
| 192 | * Overlapping with MeaningfulName, the ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends'' animated series ''WesternAnimation/{{Arcane}}'' reveals that the aptly named [[AxCrazy Jinx]] earned that moniker during her youth, as whenever she was brought along on missions with her fellow street urchins, she would end up screwing up everything. The plot of the series is instigated when she tinkers with some magical crystals in a lab her group is robbing, causing an explosion that tips off the Piltovan authorities, and things only get worse from there. By the end of the first season, her actions [[spoiler:turned what would have been a successful rescue operation into the deaths of her entire adoptive family sans her sister Vi, set the groundwork for another all-out war between Piltover and the Undercity/Zaun, and result in the death of her second adoptive father, Silco]]. |
| 193 | * The black cat in ''WesternAnimation/BadLuckBlackie'' actually uses his natural bad luck to help out cats in need of his services. He helps a small kitten who is being bullied by a bulldog out by causing the dog bad luck, which usually takes the form of [[AnvilOnHead heavy objects falling on the dog out of nowhere]]. |
| 194 | * Ringo thinks he's a jinx in ''WesternAnimation/TheBeatles'' episode "Good Day Sunshine." |
| 195 | * The aptly listed [[ThirteenIsUnlucky Numbuh 13]] in ''WesternAnimation/CodenameKidsNextDoor''. He's a bit of a jerk who is completely oblivious to the fact that he brings anything he touches to ruin. He makes Sector V's lives Hell until they finally lose him when he accidentally gets himself kidnapped by the villains at the end of his debut episode. |
| 196 | * Lynx the Jinx was a lugubrious wildcat in an episode of ''WesternAnimation/TheDeputyDawgShow'' whose bad luck proves hazardous to Deputy Dawg. Lynx tries to get arrested in a scheme to get three hots and a cot, but DD thwarts him. |
| 197 | * ''Literature/EdgarAndEllen'': The black cat named Gwendoline (dubbed [[PunnyName Miss Fortune]] by Ellen), who causes disasters just by walking by. |
| 198 | * In ''WesternAnimation/GeneratorRex'', a high-school student named Annie is known as [[InUniverseNickname "the Blonde Widow"]] by her classmates because of the tendency of her dates ending in hospitals because of some accident. Undaunted and wanting to experience what a high school prom is like, goes out with her anyway. Just ''getting'' to prom has her cause Rex to fall from a cliff twice, get him put on fire (and while he leaves to briefly to recover from that, she somehow destroys a restaurant by sneezing), nearly strangle Rex when she tries to fix his tie, shoot him with a missile, and open a door in his face. Thankfully, the other characters manage to succeed in weaponing her bad luck to deal with that episode's villain, so it wasn't all bad. |
| 199 | * Lucky the black cat in an episode of ''WesternAnimation/HeathcliffAndTheCatillacCats'' does get a lucky charm for a while, but that protects only himself, not nearby characters. |
| 200 | * The terminally unlucky Eugene in ''WesternAnimation/HeyArnold'' is referred to in-universe as a jinx, though most of Eugene's bad luck falls on himself ([[ThePollyanna not that he really notices or cares]]). Still, one episode had everyone except Arnold refusing to go on a rollercoaster with him, sure that something bad would happen. Predictably, it stalls halfway through, and the rest of the episode involves efforts to rescue them (most of which fail). In another episode, Eugene realizes that Arnold is always around when bad things happen to him, and decides that ''Arnold'' is the real jinx. |
| 201 | * Violasse from ''WesternAnimation/{{Kaeloo}}'' doesn't just have bad luck, her bad luck is apparently prone to spreading to the people around her. Her sister Cramoisie gives her a wide berth because of this and refuses to allow Violasse to touch her because she thinks her bad luck will rub off on her. |
| 202 | * In ''WesternAnimation/LiloAndStitchTheSeries'', Lilo and Stitch encounter experiment 113 AKA Shoe, whose power is bringing bad luck to everyone around him. Poor Shoe doesn’t mean to cause trouble, but his power activates every few seconds and [[PowerIncontinence he has no control over it]]. However, while he brings bad luck when his horns are pointing down, Lilo and Stitch discover that his horns can be turned upwards, which causes him to bring people good luck, instead. |
| 203 | * In the infamous ''WesternAnimation/TheLoudHouse'' episode, "No Such Luck," Lynn believes that Lincoln is a jinx after he comes to one of her baseball games and her team loses. He initially embraces this so he doesn't have to get dragged to various events, but it soon escalates to the whole family ostracizing him even at home, eventually making him sleep in the backyard. |
| 204 | * In an episode of ''WesternAnimation/MarthaSpeaks'', Martha gets jinxed walking under a ladder and then later breaking a mirror, at least she THINKS she is. She does get quite a lot of bad luck, and it begins to appear that everyone she runs across does as well. While it turns out to be coincidental, it still makes her TheWoobie for the episode. |
| 205 | * In ''WesternAnimation/MiloMurphysLaw,'' the title character is both BornUnlucky (it's a genetic trait) and a jinx (though he apparently doesn't like "the 'J' word"). [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ARTRJQfV90k The theme song]] establishes this pretty well, as he [[DissonantSerenity deftly and happily dodges disasters]] that instead hit the people around him. |
| 206 | * In ''WesternAnimation/MiraculousLadybug'', while Ladybug has the power of good luck, Cat Noir has the power of bad luck. These are mostly [[InformedAbility informed abilities]] and seem to only exist as a reference to the "miracle"/"lucky charm" theme of the Miraculous heroes. Perhaps the most bad luck that Cat Noir has is his [[TouchOfDeath Cataclysm]] power (he had more powers of destruction in [[WhatCouldHaveBeen the original concepts]]), Ladybug can save the day without him whereas he can't (as he cannot purify akumas), his father is [[ControlFreak controlling]] and [[ParentalNeglect neglectful]], [[MissingMom his mother is missing]], and Ladybug doesn't reciprocate his love because she loves someone else ([[TwoPersonLoveTriangle his civilian identity]]). Depending on how you look at it, however, it could be seen as {{irony}}, given that Ladybug's civilian identity frequently suffers from her own clumsiness and lack of confidence while Cat Noir's civilian identity seems to have it all. |
| 207 | * The ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyAndFriends'' episode "Woe is Me" features a character who goes by the name of Woebegone who was cursed into being this by a witch when he accidentally crashed into her cauldron during a game of tag. Rather than honestly apologizing he made excuses, saying "I guess I'm just bad luck." So she made him literally be that way. The episode's plot revolves around the ponies not giving up on him and not letting him give up on himself until at last he decides to defy the old excuse, and [[ScrewDestiny refuse to be bad luck.]] This causes the curse to get lifted. |
| 208 | * Badluck Schleprock, a regular on ''WesternAnimation/TheFlintstones'' SpinOff ''WesternAnimation/ThePebblesAndBammBammShow''. |
| 209 | * In an episode of the Hub's ''WesternAnimation/{{Pound Puppies|2010}}'', a group of creepy alley cats try to blackmail our heroes into getting them fish by saddling them with a pup named Taboo who has bad luck follow him wherever he goes. Turns out the source of Taboo's bad luck was [[spoiler: the cats secretly tailing him and causing trouble.]] |
| 210 | * Sam Dullard in ''WesternAnimation/RocketPower'' was temporarily this in one episode. |
| 211 | * In the ''WesternAnimation/RockosModernLife'' episode "Fortune Cookie", Filburt gets jinxed by a MisfortuneCookie. At the end of the episode, his lucky charms do get him a small victory but pretty much wreck the world in the process. Luckily (well, relatively), later episodes disregard the cookie's promise of eternal misfortune. |
| 212 | * Misery in ''WesternAnimation/RubyGloom''. Usually, the bad luck [[BornUnlucky only strikes her]], but every Friday the 13th it reverses and she gets good luck while everyone around her is hit by bad luck. |
| 213 | * ''WesternAnimation/TheSuperMarioBrosSuperShow'': The episode "Mighty [=McMario=] and the Pot of Gold" has the heroes travel to the [[{{Oireland}} Shamrock Kingdom]], where they meet a leprechaun named [[MeaningfulName Murphy.]] Ordinarily, Murphy has the power to bestow good luck on others, but Koopa has stolen his pot of magic gold coins, which has turned the leprechaun into a jinx. His presence causes the heroes to suffer numerous setbacks until Mario hits upon the idea of having Murphy befriend Koopa as opposed to trying to fight him; Murphy gets the hint and starts acting chummy, which immediately jinxes Koopa and leaves him to run off without the coins, restoring the leprechaun's luck and saving the Shamrock Kingdom. |
| 214 | * Jinx from ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitans2003'' is so named because she [[WindsOfDestinyChange can bestow bad luck at will]]. Mostly she uses it on inanimate objects to make them collapse. |
| 215 | * Astoria Carlton Ritz from ''WesternAnimation/TheTransformers''. |
| 216 | * The ''WesternAnimation/{{TUGS}}'' episode, "Jinxed" has Boomer, an unlucky tugboat. Before he was renamed Boomer, his name was Captain Harry. Unfortunately, as the urban legend goes, renaming a ship gives bad luck... in this case, bad luck to Boomer himself. |
| 217 | [[/folder]] |
| 218 |
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