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Author: MiinU

Jul 7th 2011 at 8:05:23 PM

^^^@Elihu, I think the distinction between ItGotWorse and this trope can be illustrated as follows:

*Ex. 1, our heroes have just been soundly defeated, the PowerOfFriendship didn't work, and their base has fallen. No worries, they have their secret base where they've hidden their trump card for just such an emergency! So they fallback... and find their secret base a smoldering ruin and that super special awesome weapon they kept hidden in reserve all this time is now in enemy hands.

*They got played. Turns out the Dragon was keeping them occupied in the previous battle, while the BigBad was busy trashing their safe haven and securing that shiny new weapon for himself. And just in time too! 'Cuz look who just showed up, giving him the prime target try it out on.

This is ItGotWorse in a nutshell.

*Ex. 2, our hero has just narrowly escaped a group of crazed psychos. He bolts down the hallway, through the door, and slams it shut behind him, securing a bevy of locks as our would-be killers pound on it furiously from the other side. Exhausted, he breathes a sigh of relief; only to turn and find himself surrounded by a pack of velociraptors. All alone, outdoors, no friends, no weapon, and nothing between him and what's sure to be a swift, violent, and excruciatingly painful death.

This is outta the frying pan, the difference being that the transition from "bad" to "worse" is usually immediate with no downtime inbetween. Whereas ItGotWorse builds over a period of time and is gradual rather than sudden.