Basic Trope: Someone is more concerned about something trivial compared to, for instance, a (potential) major disaster.
- Straight: When Alice tells Bob that his friend Carl was kidnapped, Bob's first reaction is, "Oh, Crap! Now I'll never get that money he owes me for our bet!"
- Exaggerated: When Carl is kidnapped, Bob is worried about the piece of candy Carl promised Bob.
- Downplayed:
- When Carl is missing, everyone is worried about him, but Bob is sure he is okay and is more concerned about the money.
- Bob is concerned about Carl being kidnapped, but can’t stop whining about the money from the bet.
- Justified:
- Bob is a sociopath.
- Bob can’t immediately comprehend how much danger Carl is in, but certainly can comprehend losing $1000.
- Carl is The Millstone and The Friend No One Likes. Bob doesn’t see much in saving him, but needs the money.
- Bob is horribly in debt and really needs that money and no, asking someone else to lend him some is not an option because of some really bizarre and equally life-threatening reasons.
- Bob believes that Carl is faking his kidnapping to get out of paying him.
- Inverted: Bob forgets about everything less important than saving Carl, to an absurd degree.
- Subverted:
- Bob was just in shock. He reacts appropriately a few minutes later.
- Bob deals with serious situations via black comedy and was just joking.
- Bob is worried about the kidnappers being able to get money out of Carl. This is actually a very real and valid concern about his entire species becoming targets. With many far stronger threats they depend upon robbing them being known as not worth it.
- Bob needs that last $1000 to be able to pay the medical bills for his sister.
- Double Subverted: Bob still seems to be mainly concerned about the money.
- Parodied: After Bob hears that Carl has been kidnapped, he expresses his (perfunctory) concern for the other man and regret for his lost money with Dull Surprise. Everybody remembers the latter better than the former.
- Zig-Zagged: Bob goes back and forth between fretting about Carl's safety and the money he owes him.
- Averted: Bob cares more that Carl is safe than that he gets paid.
- Enforced: "We need to make Bob sound like an unfeeling jerk in the script."
- Lampshaded: "Bob, your friend just got kidnapped, and all you can think about is money!?"
- Invoked: Alice reminds Bob of Carl's outstanding debt to him, thinking this will give him a personal interest in going to save him.
- Exploited: ???
- Defied: "The money can wait. Carl's in danger. I'm going to try to rescue him if it kills me!"
- Discussed: "So, when I got kidnapped, you were more concerned about the money?! With friends like you, who needs enemies?!"
- Conversed: "What is wrong with Bob!? In Episode 6, he cared more about money than about Carl being kidnapped, even though Carl is meant to be his friend!".
- Implied: Bob tells people he has a "very personal" interest in going to save Carl.
- Deconstructed: Because of Bob's insistence of getting the money, he costs him and his team the mission. Also, Carl gets killed.
- Reconstructed: Determined to get his money, Bob bravely joins the effort to rescue Carl.
- Played for Laughs:
- Bob is preoccupied about Carl and it turns out to be Right for the Wrong Reasons (Bob was only cares about the thousand dollars but it's revealed that Carl was kidnapped so the bad guys would have access to his billion-dollar bank account).
- The Reveal about Bob's priorities after a long time of secrecy and Bob going through hell and high water to get Carl back causes a Disappointed by the Motive reaction from the rest of the cast.
- Bob gets the thousand dollars, hands Carl back to his kidnappers and walks away.
- Played for Drama:
- This uncharacteristic callousness is a sign that Bob is in shock.
- The rest of the cast discover Bob's skewed priorities and don’t take kindly to them at all, leading to stupid things happening.
- Played for Horror: Bob has actually been replaced with an evil double, and this is one of the signs.
I haven't eaten in three days! Where's the link to Skewed Priorities?!
