History Main / MundaneWish

* A ''Frumpy The Clown'' comic had the eponymous sarcastic clown and a kid encounter a wizard who claimed he could give them whatever would "make [their lives] complete." Frumpy immediately wishes for the first Music/{{ABBA}} album on vinyl and a watermelon. While the kid complains that he could have wished bigger, Frumpy quips that he doesn't trust midgets with wands.

* At the end of ''Another Fish Story'' by Creator/KimNewman, in payment for his services Derek Leech offers washed-up BMovie actor Creator/LonChaneyJr. anything he wants with [[DealWithTheDevil no strings attached]]. Chaney says Leech has already granted it by [[IKnowYourTrueName addressing him by his real name]], Creighton. Given that Leech is planning to bring about the end of the world by exploiting people's greed, he's genuinely impressed.

* At the end of ''Another Fish Story'' by Creator/KimNewman, in payment for his services Derek Leech offers washed-up BMovie actor Lon Chaney Jr. anything he wants with [[DealWithTheDevil no strings attached]]. Chaney says Leech has already granted it by [[IKnowYourTrueName addressing him by his real name]], Creighton. Given that Leech is planning to bring about the end of the world by exploiting people's greed, he's genuinely impressed.

* UsefulNotes/AlexanderTheGreat once visited Corinth. While there, according to the story, he offered the Philosopher [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diogenes Diogenes of Sinope]], aka Diogenes TheCynic,[[note]]He famously would walk around with a lit lamp during the day searching for an honest man. He took pleasures from the simplest of things and refused luxuries of any sort. He once used a bowl to drink water from a well, but then saw a dog lapping it up without one, and decided to throw away his bowl.[[/note]] anything he wanted and, being emperor of just about everything at the time, he could have granted it. Diogenes only looked up, slightly irritated, and asked him to get out of his light. Sometimes interpreted as Diogenes showing Alexander that all his worldly triumphs couldn't compare to the wonders of nature such as the sunlight. As an alternative interpretation, Diogenes unintentionally showed Alexander the joys of simplicity, because Diogenes was happier than Alexander despite Alexander being the emperor and having anything he wanted at the snap of his fingers.

* In the ''WesternAnimation/GravityFalls'' episode "[[Recap/GravityFallsS2E8BlendinsGame Blendin's Game]]", Dipper and Mabel risk their lives to give Soos a reality-bending wish so he can be with his father. When he sees the twins are covered in dust, he uses it to clean them off, having realized birthdays are about being with people who care about you and his dad never really cared about him. Blendin protests before Soos reveals that he also wished for an infinite slice of pizza.

** Jake has wished for a sandwich... twice. What makes this even weirder is that his life hung in the balance both times. Although Jake didn't actually ''get'' his sandwich wish the second time; Prismo just made him a sandwich and allowed him to keep his wish for something more important.
** In another episode, when the Hot Dog Knights finally get the chance to wish:
--->'''Knight #1:''' I wish for a box! ''(box appears)'' Sweeet!\\
'''Knight #2:''' I wish to blow up! I mean get big. ''(explodes)''\\
'''Finn:''' Wow...you guys are really stupid.\\
'''Knight #1:''' What do you mean?

* In ''Series/BabylonFive'', Londo, ambassador of the Centauri, proved himself so good at his job that the Emperor had him name a wish for him to grant. Londo's wish? A ''divorce''. Specifically, divorcing two of his three wives.[[note]]Londo wanted to divorce all three, but the Emperor said he had to keep at least one of his choosing.[[/note]]{{Justified}} by the fact the nicest one, [[spoiler:that he eventually elects to keep when the Emperor had him choose]], has a fully-deserved fame for ''biting'', and the description below is actually ''flattering''.

* Roleplay/{{Glowfic}}, with wishcoins. {{Justified}} because wishcoins come in sizes and the smaller ones can only ''do'' mundane wishes.

* Parodied by ''ComicStrip/ThePerryBibleFellowship'' [[https://pbfcomics.com/comics/wishing-well/ here]]. A man wishes for true love at a one-wish-only wishing well, but looks disappointed after noticing everyone else's wishes were for things like a spaceship, being a superhero, or having a wheelbarrow full of money.

* In ''Puppy Kitten Grand Aventure'' the title characters are granted one wish each by a genie. Puppy's wish? [[http://puppykittengrandadventure.smackjeeves.com/comics/446748/indosarnian-nights-page-17/ Fruit salad.]]

* One of the ''WebVideo/RoosterTeethShorts'' has [[http://roosterteeth.com/archive/?id=1712 Geoff catch a magic fish that grants him three wishes]]. His first is for two milkshakes, one of which he spills. His second is to unspill his spilled milkshake. His last is [[spoiler:to wish it wasn't against the rules to eat a magical fish sandwich.]]

* [[http://thekettlereview.blogspot.co.uk/2012/10/bosch-private-collection-twk6831.html An adventurer finds a magic lamp]], after an eight year expedition, in the deepest mountains of Nepal. His first wish? A brand new kettle.

* In Music/WeirdAlYankovic's "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05av9iJvgiQ Everything You Know Is Wrong]]", aliens offer to transport the protagonist to any time in history. He chooses "[[MundaneUtility last Thursday night, so [he] can pay [his] phone bill on time.]]"

* ''VideoGame/PathfinderKingmaker'': A series of encounter areas around Pitax chronicle the misadventures of an Academy of Arts student impersonating a cultist of Charon and trying to bind a daemon[[note]]NeutralEvil fiend, as opposed to LawfulEvil devils and ChaoticEvil demons[[/note]], but he always screws up the summoning and runs away leaving the real cultists to die. Why is he doing all this? Daemons stole the soul of his favorite writer and he wants to know how the series ends.

* After learning [[Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer Xander]] is a half-genie in ''[[https://www.tthfanfic.org/Story-31047-4/Sithicus+Situational+Eros.htm Situational Eros]]'', Faith wishes for a never-ending pack of cigarettes. His mother notes it's a good wish as Xander doesn't fully know how to use his powers so a simple wish like that would be hard for him to mess up.

* ''In the Beginning'', the Prequel Film of ''Series/BabylonFive'', we get an exchange where Londo offers a young Centauri noble any one wish, topping it off with the ArcWords "What do you want?". The boy answers "Tell me a story!". Londo, obliging, wryly notes that the boy [[CallBack did far better on that]] [[BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor question than he did]].

* In Music/WeirdAlYankovic's "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05av9iJvgiQ Everything You Know Is Wrong]]", aliens offer to transport the protagonist to any time in history. He chooses "last Thursday night, so [he] can pay [his] phone bill on time."

* ''TabletopGame/ChuubosMarvelousWishGrantingEngine'': there's a running joke about Chuubo's habit of wishing for ice cream...[[BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor usually in such a way that it nearly dooms Town]].

->'''Calvin:''' If you could have anything in the world right now, what would it be? Anything at all! Whatever you want!\\
'''Hobbes:''' A sandwich.\\
'''Calvin:''' A sandwich?!? What kind of stupid wish is ''that?!'' Talk about a failure of imagination! ''I'd'' ask for a trillion billion dollars, my own space shuttle, and a private continent!\\

'''Hobbes:''' ''[eating a sandwich]'' I got ''my'' wish.\\
'''Calvin:''' ''[grimaces]''

* Parodied by ''ComicStrip/ThePerryBibleFellowship'' [[https://pbfcomics.com/comics/wishing-well/ here]].

** It's a running joke in the City Watch books that, at the very end, whatever else the Watch may or may not be granted from Vetinari, a new dartboard is always on the list.

* In ''Webcomic/CaseyAndAndy'', God offers [[http://www.galactanet.com/comic/view.php?strip=543 them]] [[http://www.galactanet.com/comic/view.php?strip=544 both]] the answer to any one question of their choosing. They both ask "Why does WesternAnimation/KimPossible have a [[WantedPoster picture]] of [[DarkActionGirl Shego]] in her locker?", with Andy stating [[FoeYay his]] [[LesYay own]] [[FanPreferredCouple preferred]] [[GirlOnGirlIsHot explanation]].

** Commander Red is eventually revealed to want the Dragon Balls to wish [[TheNapoleon to be taller]], as he believes his height makes it impossible for him to earn the respect of his men (not realizing that he already does). Upon hearing this, Staff Officer Black, [[EvenEvilHasStandards enraged that he wasted so many resources on such a petty wish]] (not to mention many lives that were lost lost stubbornly underestimating kid Goku), shoots him dead.

** Commander Red is eventually revealed to want the Dragon Balls to wish [[TheNapoleon to be taller.]] Upon hearing this, Staff Officer Black, [[EvenEvilHasStandards enraged that he wasted so many resources on such a petty wish]], shoots him dead.

** There's a (likely anecdotal) story about Stalin and the author of the Soviet anthem. Stalin asked the author what he wanted in reward, a car or a dacha[[note]]A second seasonal or year-round home[[/note]]. The author asked Stalin for his pencil, explaining that Stalin's pencil holds a symbolic value for him. Stalin gave him the pencil, and the car and the dacha too.

--> '''Alexander:''' Were I not Alexander, I would be Diogenes.

** It turns out that [[spoiler:First-Timeline!Madoka]]'s wish was to save a random kitty that got run over.

Related to BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor and SoldHisSoulForADonut. Subtrope of ThreeWishes, evoking the first law. See MundaneUtility and MisappliedPhlebotinum. Someone who wants a mundane prize but isn't simply being offered it has a HumbleGoal. A wish of this type may be created by an IndubitablyUninterestingInidividual. Compare and contrast LudicrousGiftRequest.

Related to BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor and SoldHisSoulForADonut. Subtrope of ThreeWishes, evoking the first law. See MundaneUtility and MisappliedPhlebotinum. Someone who wants a mundane prize but isn't simply being offered it has a HumbleGoal. Compare and contrast LudicrousGiftRequest.