History Main / GratuitousLaboratoryFlasks

* ''Radio/OurMissBrooks'': In "Swap Week", Mr. Boynton has, for some reason, a lot of test tubes and flasks out in his biology laboratory. Miss Brooks [[IdiotBall absentmindedly adds two test tubes together]], and hides the result under a blanket when the test tube starts to bubble-up.
* In the ''Series/Goosebumps1995'' episode "[[Recap/Goosebumps1995S1E1E2TheHauntedMask The Haunted Mask]]," when Carly Beth sneaks into the back room at the costume store, the shopkeeper has a chemistry set on a table for no readily apparent reason which passes by in the foreground. All of the vessels are filled with a bright blue liquid. We later learn he makes the haunted masks himself (and indeed his [[AllThereInTheManual backstory]] in the ''Goosebumps Collector's Cap Book'' pegs him as a failed chemistry student), but the glassware in the episode doesn't seem to serve much purpose besides being set dressing because the shopkeeper never uses any of it or alludes to its role at all.

* In the ''Series/{{Goosebumps}}'' episode "The Haunted Mask," when Carly Beth sneaks into the back room at the costume store, the shopkeeper has a chemistry set on a table for no readily apparent reason which passes by in the foreground. All of the vessels are filled with a bright blue liquid. We later learn he makes the haunted masks himself (and indeed his [[AllThereInTheManual backstory]] in the ''Goosebumps Collector's Cap Book'' pegs him as a failed chemistry student), but the glassware in the episode doesn't seem to serve much purpose besides being set dressing because the shopkeeper never uses any of it or alludes to its role at all.

Many of these overly complicated glassware apparatuses, particularly the tall ones suspended by cris-cross networks of ringstands and clamps, seem to be based on all of the photos that have been taken of the classic 1952 experiment by Stanley Miller and Harold Urey. However, the overall setup of the apparatus can be explained in simple terms that do make logical sense.

What's the best way to visually demonstrate that a character is a scientist, [[MadScientist mad]] or otherwise? Why, with tons and tons of flasks and beakers, of course! These are usually crammed everywhere conceivable in the scientist's laboratory, connected with spiraling glass tubing and usually filled with bubbling [[TechnicolorScience colored liquids]], even if an experiment isn't actually in progress, and typically it's just there to be set dressing. Often, it's there to be dramatically [[TrashTheSet smashed]] during a fight scene, an [[GoneHorriblyWrong experiment gone wrong]], or during the MadScientist's [[FreakLabAccident transformation]]. Bonus points if the scientist has no need of such chemistry equipment (such as being a physicist or anthropologist for example), and never actually ''does'' anything with it. Also, bonus points apply if you do see it in use, but incorrectly. Oftentimes you see Erlenmeyer or volumetric flasks put over a burner in a distillation setup, which is '''not''' done (that's what round-bottomed flasks are for, since this shape heats up more evenly, so it's less likely to crack from uneven distribution of heat). One or two condensers (preferably coil, Lieig may work in a pinch) are a must, even if the owner's society doesn't have the technology to make glass tubes.

* One of the earliest examples of this trope is the Queen's laboratory in ''WesternAnimation/SnowWhiteAndTheSevenDwarfs''. Some red liquid ''cackles'' (!) when heated over a bunsen burner.

* Many adaptations of ''Literature/SherlockHolmes'' stories both in film and television will fill the background of Holmes' Baker Street flat with chemistry equipment. While this is true to the stories, in which Holmes would sometimes use them, in these adaptations, they're usually little more than set dressing. This tendency to overpopulate the flat with chemistry equipment was parodied in ''Film/WithoutAClue'', when Reginald Kincaid (posing as Holmes) actually ''does'' do something with the chemicals - with hilariously explosive results.

* Dr. Andonuts from ''VideoGame/EarthBound'' has several beakers and flasks on both of the desks in his lab, despite only being shown working with machines in the game.

* Dexter's laboratory in ''WesternAnimation/DextersLaboratory'' is a treasure trove of this kind of thing.

[[folder:Comic Books]]

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheSmurfs'', Papa Smurf and Gargamel's respective labs are always filled with loads of recognizable Florence and Erlenmeyers. The question is, where do they obtain it from? There is no Glassblower Smurf as far as we know. And in this time period, most containers and vessels for liquids were still made out of lathe shaped baked clay. And any vessels for heating liquids had to be made of metal.

Dedicated lab glassware was invented mostly in the mid to late 19th century. Prior to that, distilling vessels such as alembics do date back centuries, but they were made completely of metal and scientists actually used very little glassware, glass-working still being a rare craft reserved for artisans. And until the invention of borosilicate glass in the 1880s (we know it under brand names such as Pyrex), lab glassware, when made of non metallic material such as glass or even earthenware was unreliable due to breaking or cracking when heated. The ubiquitous Erlenmeyer flask wasn't invented until 1860. The retort flask, another ubiquitous and recognizable vessel, was around since the days of alchemy but was originally made of metal. It was actually considered outdated by the time the Liebig condenser was invented in the late 1800s. [[CriticalResearchFailure Despite these facts]], chemistry glassware frequently shows up in settings that predate their invention, or futuristic settings where they should probably be considered impractical and primitive. Retort, round bottom, Florence, volumetric, Pasteur, and Erlenmeyer flasks may thus easily show up in a medieval wizard or alchemist's workshop or in a scientist's lab in a far future SpaceOpera.

Dedicated lab glassware was invented mostly in the mid to late 19th century. Prior to that, distilling vessels such as alembics do date back centuries, but they were made completely of metal and scientists actually used very little glassware, glass-working still being a rare craft reserved for artisans. And until the invention of borosilicate glass in the 1880s (we know it under brand names such as Pyrex), lab glassware, when made of non metallic material such as glass or even earthenware was unreliable due to breaking or cracking when heated. The ubiquitous Erlenmeyer flask wasn't invented until 1860. The retort flask, another ubiquitous and recognizable vessel, was around since the days of alchemy but was originally made of metal. It was actually considered outdated by the time the Liebig condenser was invented in the late 1800s. [[CriticalResearchFailure Despite these facts]], chemistry glassware frequently shows up in settings that predate their invention or futuristic settings where they should probably be considered impractical and primitive. Retort, round bottom, Florence, volumetric, Pasteur, and Erlenmeyer flasks may thus easily show up in a medieval wizard or alchemist's workshop or in a scientist's lab in a far future SpaceOpera.

What's the best way to visually demonstrate that a character is a scientist, [[MadScientist mad]] or otherwise? Why, with tons and tons of flasks and beakers, of course! These are usually crammed everywhere conceivable in the scientist's laboratory, connected with spiraling glass tubing and usually filled with bubbling [[TechnicolorScience colored liquids]], even if an experiment isn't actually in progress, and typically it's just there to be set dressing. Often, it's there to be dramatically [[TrashTheSet smashed]] during a fight scene, an [[GoneHorriblyWrong experiment gone wrong]], or during the MadScientist's [[FreakLabAccident transformation]]. Bonus points if the scientist has no need of such chemistry equipment (such as being a physicist or anthropologist for example), and never actually ''does'' anything with it. Also, bonus points apply if you do see it in use, but incorrectly. Oftentimes you see Erlenmeyer or volumetric flasks put over a burner in a distillation setup, which is '''not''' done (that's what round-bottomed flasks are for, since this shape heats up more evenly, so it's less likely to crack from uneven distribution of heat).

* Creator/RankinBassProductions ''Willy [=McBean=] and his Magic Machine'' opens with the villainous mad scientist gushing over his flasks on a [[ItWasADarkAndStormyNight dark and storm night]], even though the plot involves him inventing a time machine that looks like an oversized stopwatch.

* In one episode of ''WesternAnimation/XMenTheAnimatedSeries'', Morph is performing a play version of ''Literature/TheStrangeCaseOfDrJekyllAndMrHyde'' onstage, using his shapeshifting powers for the show. Whoever the propmaster for the play was went above and beyond the call of duty, considering Morph's lab table is ''covered'' in tons of beakers of colored liquids.

* In one episode of ''WesternAnimation/XMen'', Morph is performing a play version of ''Literature/TheStrangeCaseOfDrJekyllAndMrHyde'' onstage, using his shapeshifting powers for the show. Whoever the propmaster for the play was went above and beyond the call of duty, considering Morph's lab table is ''covered'' in tons of beakers of colored liquids.

What's the best way to visually demonstrate that a character is a man (or woman!) of science, [[MadScientist mad]] or otherwise? Why, with tons and tons of flasks and beakers, of course! These are usually crammed everywhere conceivable in the scientist's laboratory, connected with spiraling glass tubing and usually filled with bubbling [[TechnicolorScience colored liquids]], even if an experiment isn't actually in progress, and typically it's just there to be set dressing. Often, it's there to be dramatically [[TrashTheSet smashed]] during a fight scene, an [[GoneHorriblyWrong experiment gone wrong]], or during the MadScientist's [[FreakLabAccident transformation]]. Bonus points if the scientist has no need of such chemistry equipment (such as being a physicist or anthropologist for example), and never actually ''does'' anything with it. Also, bonus points apply if you do see it in use, but incorrectly. Oftentimes you see Erlenmeyer or volumetric flasks put over a burner in a distillation setup, which is '''not''' done (that's what round-bottomed flasks are for, since this shape heats up more evenly, so it's less likely to crack from uneven distribution of heat).

Dedicated lab glassware was invented mostly in the mid to late 19th century. Prior to that, distilling vessels such as alembics do date back centuries, but they were made completely of metal and scientists actually used very little glassware, glass-working still being a rare craft reserved for artisans. And until the invention of borosilicate glass in the 1880s (we know it under brand names such as Pyrex), lab glassware, when made of non metallic material such as glass or even earthenware was unreliable due to breaking or cracking when heated. The ubiquitous Erlenmeyer flask wasn't invented until 1860. The retort flask, another ubiquitous and recognizable vessel, was actually considered outdated by the time the Liebig condenser was invented in the late 1800s. [[CriticalResearchFailure Despite these facts]], chemistry glassware frequently shows up in settings that predate their invention or futuristic settings where they should probably be considered impractical and primitive. Retort, round bottom, Florence, volumetric, Pasteur, and Erlenmeyer flasks may thus easily show up in a medieval wizard or alchemist's workshop or in a scientist's lab in a far future SpaceOpera.

What's the best way to visually demonstrate that a character is a man (or woman!) of science, [[MadScientist mad]] or otherwise? Why, with tons and tons of flasks and beakers, of course! These are usually crammed everywhere conceivable in the scientist's laboratory, connected with spiraling glass tubing and usually filled with bubbling [[TechnicolorScience colored liquids]], even if an experiment isn't actually in progress, and typically it's just there to be set dressing. Often, it's there to be dramatically [[TrashTheSet smashed]] during a fight scene, an [[GoneHorriblyWrong experiment gone wrong]], or during the MadScientist's [[FreakLabAccident transformation]]. Bonus points if the scientist has no need of such chemistry equipment (such as being a physicist or anthropologist for example), and never actually ''does'' anything with it. Also, bonus points apply if you do see it in use, but incorrectly. Oftentimes you see Erlenmeyer flask put over a burner in this sort of a setup, which is '''not''' done (that's what round-bottomed flasks are for, since this shape heats up more evenly, so it's less likely to crack from uneven distribution of heat).

Dedicated lab glassware was invented mostly in the mid to late 19th century. Prior to that, distilling vessels such as alembics do date back centuries, but they were made completely of metal and scientists actually used very little glassware, glass-working still being a rare craft reserved for artisans. And until the invention of borosilicate glass in the 1880s (we know it under brand names such as Pyrex), lab glassware was not reliable for not breaking or cracking when heated. The ubiquitous Erlenmeyer flask wasn't invented until 1860. The retort flask, another ubiquitous and recognizable vessel, was actually considered outdated by the time the Liebig condenser was invented in the late 1800s. [[CriticalResearchFailure Despite these facts]], chemistry glassware frequently shows up in settings that predate their invention or futuristic settings where they should probably be considered impractical and primitive. Retort, round bottom, Florence, volumetric, Pasteur, and Erlenmeyer flasks may thus easily show up in a medieval wizard or alchemist's workshop or in a scientist's lab in a far future SpaceOpera.

A SubTrope of CowTools. They're almost required to show up in a MadScientistLaboratory. Interestingly enough, despite PopCultureOsmosis, they would not have been part of the scene dressing in the [[Literature/{{Frankenstein}} original literary version of the Ur Example]] as the book also predates the availability of most of these items.

->''"What manner of [[MadScientist mad scientist]] neglects his flasks of colored liquid? Next you'll question the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Van_de_Graaff_generator Van de Graaff generator]] in the middle of the room -- and where will '''that''' leave us?"''

*** Mark Nagata's ''The Deadly Experiments of Dr. Eeek'' showed a [[EverythingsBetterWithMonkeys maniacal chimpanzee]] in a lab coat squatting on a table covered in glassware (a flask heating over a bunsen burner and a rack of test tubes) mixing chemicals together in test tubes although all the vessels shown contain green liquid, so nothing is actually being mixed. In the actual book, the eponymous Dr. Eeek's lab is presented as relatively utilitarian.

Dedicated lab glassware was invented mostly in the mid to late 19th century. Prior to that, distilling vessels such as alembics do date back centuries, but they were made completely of metal and scientists actually used very little glassware, glass-working still being a rare craft reserved for artisans. And until the invention of borosilicate glass in the 1880s (we know it under brand names such as Pyrex), lab glassware was not reliable for not breaking or cracking when heated. The ubiquitous Erlenmeyer flask wasn't invented until 1860. The retort flask, another ubiquitous and recognizable vessel, was actually considered outdated by the time the Liebig condenser was invented in the late 1800s. [[CriticalResearchFailure Despite these facts]], chemistry glassware frequently shows up in settings that predate their invention or futuristic settings where they should probably be considered impractical and primitive. Retort, Round bottom, Florence, Volumetric, Pasteur, and Erlenmeyer flasks may show up in a medieval wizard or alchemist's workshop or an scientist's lab in a far future SpaceOpera.