Not sure if Tobias counts as a Karma Houdini. I don't think it's nearly as black and white as the description makes it sound. Yes, Tobias took actions that prevented the Mercora from saving themselves and doomed the dinosaurs, but when you consider that the alternative would have been allowing history to be altered in a massive way that could easily have led to the entire human race never being born...Even Cassie, the moralist of the group, can't deny that Tobias did the right thing, even if she does hate it.Definitely a case of Your Mileage May Vary as to whether Tobias deserved any kind of retribution or not.
Edited by isk2837 Hide / Show Replies
Overall, it's portrayed as a necessary evil - the Animorphs have to let the dinosaurs and Mercora die because if the dinosaurs live then the human race will never have a chance to evolve, and if the Mercora live then there's no telling what that will do to the future, given that the Mercora want to live on Earth. It might make it better, but it might also make it worse. The Animorphs have no idea what them trying to change the future could cause, so they choose not to risk trying to save the Mercora. Tobias clearly isn't happy himself with what he's done, explicitly stating that he did it to spare the others from having to make the choice and live with the guilt.
Noting that in the "The Boscombe Valley Mystery" example, the disease was diabetes -a death sentence in the days before they learned how it worked and how to isolate insulin from the pancreases of cattle and pigs. Holmes was showing the guy mercy by letting him die at home, if possible.
Coming back to where you started is not the same as never leaving. -Terry Pratchett