History Main / DefeatMeansMenialLabor

* ''Disney/{{Frozen}}'': The short film ''Disney/FrozenFever'' (which takes place some time later) showcases that PrinceCharmless Hans ended up becoming his family palace's horse manure shoveler (and forced to do it in the same clothes he wore during his visit to Arendelle, even).

* In ''Film/TheLoveBug'', before the big climactic race, the BigBad Peter Thorndyke makes a bet with Tang Wu on the outcome of the race: if he wins, Thorndyke can have Herbie the VW Bug. But if Jim Douglas, owner of Herbie, wins, Wu can have Thorndyke's dealership European imported cars. Only at the halfway mark in the race do they reveal this to Douglas and Herbie, Thorndyke more sadistically gleefully than Wu, certain that he will win for sure. The race ends with Thorndyke and Herbie the VW neck and neck until Herbie breaks in half and one of the halves (the ''back'' half) manages to pull ahead and win. As per the terms of the wager, Thorndyke loses his dealership to Wu, but still works there -- as a lowly mechanic, as does his henchman Havershaw.

* ''Disney/{{Frozen}}'' having ended with Prince Hans being sent back to the Southern Isles in disgrace for his attempted takeover of Arendelle, the follow-up short ''Disney/FrozenFever'' shows Hans performing a menial task as punishment: cleaning out horse manure at the royal stables. When a sickly Queen Elsa attempts to blow the birthday horn for her sister Anna on the latter's birthday, she accidentally sneezes into it instead, launching a gigantic snowball all the way to the Isles, which hits and buries Hans in it.

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Frozen}}'': The short film ''WesternAnimation/FrozenFever'' (which takes place some time later) showcases that PrinceCharmless Hans ended up becoming his family palace's horse manure shoveler (and forced to do it in the same clothes he wore during his visit to Arendelle, even).

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheKingAndI'' after their attempts to usurp the king are exposed [[EvilChancellor Kralahome]] and [[MinionWithAnFInEvil Master Little]] are shown shoveling elephant dung.

* Referenced in ''Film/MiracleOnThirtyFourthStreet''. The wife of the lawyer prosecuting Kris Kringle sourly remarks, "Sometimes I wish I'd married a butcher or a plumber." The lawyer replies, "Well, if I'm unsuccessful in this case, dear, you just may get your wish."

* In ''WesternAnimation/CodenameKidsNextDoor'', Nurse Claiborne's second appearance has her running a nursery home for aged Rainbow Monkey dolls (It's a weird show, don't think about it too hard) which Numbuh 3 reluctantly administers her Rainbow Monkey to. However when Numbuh 5 and she come to visit, they find out Nurse Claiborne was shredding them up to use as ingredients for cereal pieces. After the duo stop her, they force her to re-sew Numbuh 3's doll and do the same to the others she shredded.

* Two examples from the ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda'' series:

* ''Film/OsmosisJones'': Having nearly killed Frank and all cells therein by being an ObstructiveBureaucrat, mayor Phlegmming is relegated to a custodial job in the large intestine. This job doesn't last long, [[TooDumbToLive as he manages to eject himself from Frank's body by pressing the flatulence button.]]

* ''Film/OsmosisJones'': Having nearly killed Frank and all cells therein by being an ObstructiveBureaucrat, mayor Phlegmming is relegated to a custodial job in the large intestine. This job doesn't last long, [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere as he manages to eject himself from Frank's body by pressing the flatulence button.]]

* ''Literature/PillarsOfTheEarth:'' Waleran Bigod spends the entire novel scheming against the heroes in order to acquire as much power as possible. When he fails and the good guys disgrace him as part of their ultimate victory, he ends up essentially demoted to the role of a novice monk, doing manual labor under the supervisor of Prior Phillip.

* ''Film/BackToTheFuture'' ends with a CloseEnoughTimeline in which [[spoiler:the villain Biff Tannen, who was George [=McFly=]'s cruel supervisor in the original timeline, ends up as the [=McFly=] family's valet now that George is a successful author]]. Try not to think too hard about why the family would hire a guy who tried to [[spoiler:rape George's wife Lorraine in high school]].

* ''VideoGame/EatLeadTheReturnOfMattHazard'': Wallace Wellesley goes from CEO of a game company to working in a lowly game store after he's defeated. For an extra kick in the teeth, surrounded by the Matt Hazard game he was trying destroy Matt in.* ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIVOblivion'': One SideQuest involves rescuing a group of ogres from enslavement on a country estate. If the PlayerCharacter visits the estate afterwards, they find the former owners of the estate hoeing the fields under the ogres' supervision.[[KickThemWhileTheyreDown Try it again]] and they [[VideoGameCrueltyPunishment run outside and lock you in]], resulting in a NonstandardGameOver.

* ''Film/BackToTheFuture'' ends with a CloseEnoughTimeline in which [[spoiler:the villain Biff Tannen, who was George [=McFly=]'s cruel supervisor in the original timeline, ends up as the [=McFly=] family's valet now that George is a successful author]]. Try not to think too hard about why the family would hire a guy who [[spoiler:tried to rape George's wife Lorraine in high school]].

* ''Film/BackToTheFuture'' ends with a CloseEnoughTimeline in which [[spoiler:the villain Biff Tannen, who was George [=McFly=]'s cruel supervisor in the original timeline, ends up as the [=McFly=] family's valet now that George is a successful author. Try not to think too hard about why the family would hire a guy who tried to rape George's wife Lorraine in high school.]]

** In ''Literature/WorldWarZ'', the narrator discovers Grover Carlson, the White House Chief of Staff for the last pre-war administration, collecting dung for a bioconversion plant in Amarillo, Texas. Although not ''quite'' a villain, he is a cynical and unrepentant representative of a government that regarded protecting private property and its own re-election prospects as more important than taking a potential global catastrophe seriously. While this is fairly understandable - every government has to prioritise - they also pushed a vaccine they knew was ineffective and continued to ignore the threat even when the evidence became overwhelming. Carlson also appears to be something of an anti-semite.

A subtrope to CoolAndUnusualPunishment and BadJobWorseUniform, the latter which the villain may be forced to wear to add insult to injury. Also may be a form of HumiliationConga.

* Two examples from the ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda'' series:

* ''VideoGame/EatLeadTheReturnOfMattHazard'': Wallace Wellesley goes from CEO of a game company to working in a lowly game store after he's defeated. For an extra kick in the teeth, surrounded by the Matt Hazard game he was trying destroy Matt in.
* ''[[VideoGame/BanjoKazooie Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts]]'' ends with Gruntilda sent to work in L.O.G's game factory after being defeated by the titular duo.
* ''VideoGame/RatchetAndClankGoingCommando'': After being humiliated by Ratchet in the first game, FakeUltimateHero Captain Quark comes up with a scheme to Impersonate the CEO of MegaCorp, [[EngineeredHeroics manufacture a crisis he can pin on Ratchet and retake his place as the galaxy's favorite superhero]]. After his plan is foiled, the ending shows Quark working as a test subject in a MegaCorp experiment involving a particularly unpleasant machine called the [[GroinAttack "Crotchetizer"]].
* ''VideoGame/NeverwinterNights'': In the "Hordes of the Underdark" expansion, one of the options for thwarting [[DemonLordsAndArchDevils Archdevil]] [[BigBad Mephistopheles]]' invasion of Toril is to [[IKnowYourTrueName bind him to your will with the power of his True Name...]] then force him to spend the rest of his immortal existence working as a chambermaid in an inn.
* ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIVOblivion'': One SideQuest involves rescuing a group of ogres from enslavement on a country estate. If the PlayerCharacter visits the estate afterwards, they find the former owners of the estate hoeing the fields under the ogres' supervision.[[KickThemWhileTheyreDown Try it again]] and they [[VideoGameCrueltyPunishment run outside and lock you in]], resulting in a NonstandardGameOver.
* In VideoGame/PaperMarioTheThousandYearDoor, Doopliss proved a demented and cunning villain...for one arc. In later arcs, he's a punching bag for Beldam after joining the Shadow Sirens, and at the end of the game, he's put his shape-shifting powers to use by taking on acting with Flurrie.

* In ''WesternAnimation/CodenameKidsNextDoor'', Nurse Claiborne's second appearance has her running a nursery home for aged Rainbow Monkey dolls (It's a weird show, don't think about it too hard) which Numbuh 3 reluctantly administers her Rainbow Monkey too. However when Numbuh 5 and she come to visit, they find out Nurse Claiborne was shredding them up to us as ingredient for cereal pieces. After the duo stop her, they force her to re-sew Numbuh 3's doll and do the same to the others she shredded.

* In ''WesternAnimation/KidsNextDoor'', Nurse Claiborne's second appearance has her running a nursery home for aged Rainbow Monkey dolls (It's a weird show, don't think about it too hard) which Numbuh 3 reluctantly administers her Rainbow Monkey too. However when Numbuh 5 and she come to visit, they find out Nurse Claiborne was shredding them up to us as ingredient for cereal pieces. After the duo stop her, they force her to re-sew Numbuh 3's doll and do the same to the others she shredded.

The villain is defeated, and the next time s/he is seen, if s/he is seen, as a form of {{Irony}}, s/he is performing menial tasks, sometimes (though not always) on their (no longer) own premises, such as where they work or live, often as a janitor or cleaning up animal dung. Often may come during the end credits.

[[/folder]]

* ''ComicStrip/Nodwick'': After the recurring antagonists are finally defeated, Ildomir the wizard ends up shoveling dung in the Krutzing Hollow stables.

[[folder:Film -- Animation]]
* ''WesternAnimation/CatsDontDance'': Darla Dimple having outed herself as causing the flood to prevent the animals from gaining stardom, her career literally goes through the floor, and, as seen in the end credits, she is relegated to a lowly janitor. Noticing the camera on her, she gives a DeathGlare.
* ''Film/OsmosisJones'': Having nearly killed Frank and all cells therein by being an ObstructiveBureaucrat, mayor Phlegmming is relegated to a custodial job in the large intestine. This job doesn't last long, [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere as he manages to eject himself from Frank's body by pressing the flatulence button.]]
* In the end credits for ''WesternAnimation/UglyDolls'', Lou, having been thrown in the washing machine as part of his being subject to a HeelFaceDoorSlam, is now messy and less perfect than ever as he is relegated to working as a janitor where he is seen cleaning up the mess while being watched by a robotic dog.

[[folder:Comic Books]]
* ''ComicBook/DouweDabbert'': At the end of the StoryWithinAStory in ''Het schip van ijs'', the EvilChancellor that served as the story's BigBad is fired from his position, and degraded to performing manual labor at the Tsar's palace.
* One ''ComicBook/SpirouAndFantasio'' story pits them against an East Asian dictator with "TO THE POLE!" (as in, tied to a pole in front of a firing squad) as his catchphrase. At the end of the story, they hear someone yell "ON THE POLE!", to find the dictator is now an itinerant vegetable salesman (informing a customer that [[CantYouReadTheSign all prices are marked on a sheet of paper stapled to the poles holding up his awning).
* ''ComicBook/SupermanRedSon'': After their failed rebellion, the Batmen undergo brainwashing to become lowly maintenance workers.
* In the dystopian FeudalFuture world of ''ComicBook/{{Lazarus}}'', governments and society as we know them today have collapsed, and the future is run by a handful of super rich Families who operate like the royalty of their own empires. The main characters in the story are the Carlyle Family, and the first volume introduces them, including the [[AmbitionIsEvil ambitious]], [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder disloyal]], SmugSnake that is Jonah Carlyle, and Jonah's menacing [[TheDragon right hand man and enforcer]], Mase. Jonah is exposed as a traitor to the family by the end of volume one, (not that [[ObviouslyEvil anybody from the Carlyle family was surprised by this]]) and even though Mase is cleared of any involvement he is nonetheless later seen working as a common janitor.
[[/folder]]