History Main / CluelessMystery

* ''Comicbook/SinCity'' usually utilizes this trope.

* Parodied in ''Literature/TheConditionsOfGreatDetectives''.

* ''Series/{{Elementary}}'' does this a lot, which is not surprising since it's based on Sir Creator/ArthurConanDoyle's work.

* Used in many episodes of ''WesternAnimation/TheSylvesterAndTweetyMysteries''.

* In ''VisualNovel/DanganRonpa'', case [[spoiler:5]] is not ordinarily solvable. The workings of it are revealed afterwards, but it is intentionally a Clueless Mystery to both the protagonist and the player.
** Considering how very often [[spoiler: crucial information regarding the case is only revealed during the trial by other characters, mostly Kirigiri]], depending on where exactly the reader considers "the reveal" to begin, even more, if not most of the cases can be viewed as this. The major exceptions to this are [[spoiler: case 3 and 6]], which are entirely solvable before the court session begins.

* ''Series/PowerRangersZeo'' had this with the arc introducing the [[SixthRanger Gold Ranger]], whose identity is unknown to both the show's cast and the viewer. While there were a few possible candidates, most hints pointed at being the apparently retired ranger Billy, since he was never around when the Gold Ranger was, the Gold Ranger's zord combined with the other rangers' zords, the Gold Ranger saying he'd lose his powers if he told them who he was (explaining why he'd keep that a secret). But when the Gold Ranger's identity is revealed, it turns out be a [[StrangerBehindTheMask completely new character]] that the viewers have never heard of.

* ''TheTurkishGambit'', an adaptation of the eponymous ErastFandorin book, changed the identity of the Turkish spy in the Russian camp. In the book, he was one of those the clues pointed to, while in the movie, all the clues were red herrings, and the real spy was somebody else entirely, whom Fandorin accused based on evidence never shown onscreen before.

* Zilpha Keatley Snyder's ''Literature/TheEgyptGame'' has a terribly egregious example. The actual murderer is not a suspect and is only mentioned ''once'' in passing -- if you're reading too fast you'll miss it.

** In ''TheAdventureOfTheRedHeadedLeague'', as Holmes interrogates someone briefly. When Watson comments that it was a waste of time, Holmes says that on the contrary, it was quite useful, as he wasn't interested in what the man ''said'' but just wanted to look at the knees of his trousers. Watson asks point-blank what Holmes saw, and he replies "Exactly what I expected to see," making it clear that Conan-Doyle ''wasn't even trying to hide'' that he was withholding relevant information (to make matters even worse there's also a reference to an "artificial kneecap factory" elsewhere in the story, which is a bit random if it's not intended as a RedHerring to keep people from jumping to the much more sensible conclusion that Holmes was checking to see if his knees were ''dirty'' from kneeling/crawling).

* ''Film/TwelveAngryMen'' features an interesting twist on it: the details all appear on screen, but in the end, we never learn the truth about the murder that led to the trial in the first place, as the ending is ambiguous as to weather or not the defendant was truly guilty.[[note]]While he is found not guilty, the jurors themselves even note that they can't be 100% certain that the boy didn't murder his father. They have merely established reasonable doubt to believe that he didn't.[[/note]]

* Happens in the 2009 ''Film/SherlockHolmes'' movie with Creator/RobertDowneyJr, where TheReveal at the end [[spoiler: showing the whole "magic" premise as a facade]] involved several clues and details that were scarcely hinted at or never even mentioned. That said, all the crucial details ''do'' appear on screen; it's just Holmes investigation and keeps the ''clues'' within the details their unknown until TheReveal (One, which involves an explosion with a pink-ish tint to it, could be assumed to be a SpecialEffectFailure). This is faithful to the original stories, which were not {{Fair Play Whodunnit}}s.

** At one point, Fake!Moody does Crouch Jr's trademark facial tick (quickly licking his lips) - a trait that was not present in the novel - in front of Crouch Sr, to his horror.

** This one is something of a [[SubvertedTrope subversion,]] though. The client in the mystery is a boy who has been selling fresh fruit from a stand on the side of the road; Bugs comes by every day and demands a generous helping of fruit for free, claiming that he is offering "protection" for the boy. On the day that Encyclopedia takes the case, Bugs makes off with a bag of cherries. When Encyclopedia and his client enter Bugs's clubhouse, they find him with an empty bag, but Bugs claims that he bought the cherries elsewhere, and has been eating them since he got back to his hideout. Encyclopedia investigates, and immediately determines that Bugs is lying. The mystery is how he knew--and the solution reveals that [[ConvictionByContradiction if Bugs had been eating the cherries in the clubhouse, there would be stems and pits lying on the floor]]--as there aren't any, he must have made up the story and eaten the fruit on his way there. So yes, the mystery is literally clueless--but in this case, [[FridgeBrilliance the absence of clues is the clue!]]

* While the ''Literature/HarryPotter'' books are {{Fair Play Whodunnit}}s, they tend to become this in [[Film/HarryPotter movie format]] (mainly the earlier ones). For example, the second movie contains absolutely no evidence pointing to [[spoiler:Ginny]]. In fact, she gets so little screen time that by the climax you probably won't even remember who she is. And TheReveal in the third film borders on nonsensical if you haven't already read the book. The fourth film, at least, rectified this somewhat by having Moody periodically drink Not Pumpkin Juice, which, coupled with references to someone possibly brewing Polyjuice Potion, at least gives you a chance to work part of it out.

* One of [[WebVideo/AtopTheFourthWall Linkara's]] main problems with IdentityCrisis is that the story follows this trope, but has to contrive unrealistic situations to explain why.

* Happens in the 2009 ''Film/SherlockHolmes'' movie with Creator/RobertDowneyJr, where TheReveal at the end [[spoiler: showing the whole "magic" premise as a facade]] involved several clues and details that were scarcely hinted at or never even mentioned. This is faithful to the original stories, which were not {{Fair Play Whodunnit}}s.
** That said, all the crucial details ''do'' appear on screen; it's just that their significance is only obvious in hindsight. [[spoiler: Such as the shower of accelerant, in the guise of harmless rain, [[KillItWithFire that dooms one of the victims...]]]]

* Most books in the modern bookstore's mystery section fit this trope. These range from being unapologetic "crime stories" to "mysteries" whose charm lies in the characters and themes rather than a puzzle.
** Margaret Maron's [[spoiler: Sand Sharks]] has this issue, though most of her books do not. In that book, however, the waiter did it. No, really.

* In one Literature/LordPeterWimsey novel, the most crucial piece of evidence -- an item missing from an oil painter's kit -- is deliberately concealed by the author to make the mystery more interesting. It's just possible to figure out what it is, but it's maddening anyway.
** It's arguably still a FairPlayWhodunnit, as we are given a list of everything that ''is'' there, and Lord Peter merely deduced the item's absence from this list.

* ''VisualNovel/UminekoNoNakuKoroNi'' uses this trope as a ''plot point''. Even the ''characters'' can't agree on whether its a FairPlayWhodunnit or a Clueless Mystery. Should be mentioned the trailer did say "No Knox. No Dine. No [[FairPlayWhodunnit Fair]]".

** Careful analysis of the game reveals that it breaks all of the rules of FairPlayWhodunnit. In order: [[spoiler:Yomiel is not mentioned until around 2/3 of the way through.]] The whole game is about rewinding time, but MagicAIsMagicA, so it's OK. [[spoiler:There are at least two secret rooms; the room inside the submarine (which inverts the "secret room" trope), and the basement with the Rube Goldberg machine.]] [[spoiler:Many murder methods are not explained until Sissel rewinds time, and the other time-rewinding powers are not fully explained until near the end of the game.]] Every villain is a DirtyForeigner [[spoiler:except Yomiel. Many accidents help Sissel, which he then manipulates, and he knows many things which he should not because of the telephone-listening and the time-rewinding mechanics; this also allows him to follow what appears to be intuition, but just not going to the places where he knows he's not supposed to go.]] The idea that the detective cannot be guilty is... kind of averted. [[spoiler:The villain commits many of his crimes inside the hero's body, and the hero believes himself to be the villain for most of the story, so it still technically counts.]] Sissel conceals many secrets from the other characters, and his partner Lynne has her own agenda for most of the story. And as for the "doubles" thing, check the last spoiler.
*** Note that this doesn't make the plot bad. A lot of writers purposely go for the unfair whodunnit, because they want the fun to be in the actual discovery of the twists and not trying to work them out.

** This was to be Green Goblin's secret identity as well, originally. Instead of someone he knew/knew by proxy, it was to be an absolute stranger.
*** Not quite: Lee and Ditko always intended the Goblin to be NormanOsborn, who was seen as a ChekhovsGunman member of Jameson's club issues before we ever even met his son Harry and learned of his name and identity.

* ''PowerRangersZeo'' had this with the arc introducing the [[SixthRanger Gold Ranger]], whose identity is unknown to both the show's cast and the viewer. While there were a few possible candidates, most hints pointed at being the apparently retired ranger Billy, since he was never around when the Gold Ranger was, the Gold Ranger's zord combined with the other rangers' zords, the Gold Ranger saying he'd lose his powers if he told them who he was (explaining why he'd keep that a secret). But when the Gold Ranger's identity is revealed, it turns out be a [[StrangerBehindTheMask completely new character]] that the viewers have never heard of.

* ''The Turkish Gambit'', an adaptation of the eponymous ErastFandorin book, changed the identity of the Turkish spy in the Russian camp. In the book, he was one of those the clues pointed to, while in the movie, all the clues were red herrings, and the real spy was somebody else entirely, whom Fandorin accused based on evidence never shown onscreen before.

* Done fairly well in Creator/DashiellHammett's ''The Big Knockover''. A mob of over a hundred crooks lays siege to a bank, stealing a fortune and killing several people. The mastermind of the job then sets to killing every one of the crooks instead of paying them. At the climax, the surviving criminals and [[Literature/TheContinentalOp the detective]], pretending to be one of them, hole up in a house to make a stand against the cops. The suspects are: [[TheRoper a sympathetic thief]], [[DarkActionGirl a magnificent bitch]], [[EvilMinions her meek lackey]], a [[TheJuggernaut dumb bruiser]], and [[RebelliousPrincess his naive girlfriend]]. So who's TheChessmaster? [[spoiler:The meek lackey, introduced just a few pages ago, with an assist from [[TheDragon his girlfriend]] the magnificent bitch.]] Upon finding this out, even the detective can barely believe it.

* Each book of Creator/TamoraPierce's ''The Circle Opens'' quartet had a crime central to the plot, requiring the four mages of the original ''Circle Of Magic'' books to play detective. The first two books were {{Reverse Whodunnit}}s, where the reader knew from the start who was responsible. The third was a fair play whodunnit until it outright revealed its criminal early in the story (turning the rest of the tale into another reverse whodunnit). The fourth however, used the clueless mystery format, where the culprit was someone who had never been introduced to the reader, who the characters had no previous interaction with and who had no other importance to the plot. More observant readers might have worked out which ''group'' the killer belonged to, but the fact that neither reader nor heroes could identify an individual was part of the book's social commentary. Even after the murderer ''is'' revealed, we are told very little about them.

* ''PowerRangersZeo'' had this with the arc introducing the [[SixthRanger Gold Ranger]], whose identity is unknown to both the show's cast and the viewer. While there were a few possible candidates, most hints pointed at being the apparently retired ranger Billy, since he was never around when the Gold Ranger was, the Gold Ranger's zord combined with the other rangers' zords, the Gold Ranger saying he'd lose his powers if he told them who he was (explaining why he'd keep that a secret). But when the Gold Ranger's identity is revealed, it turns out be a completely new character that the viewers have never heard of.