History Main / SassySecretary

* Carol, the PointyHairedBoss's secretary from ''ComicStrip/{{Dilbert}}'', takes "sass" [[UpToEleven straight into misanthropy and narcissism]]. For a while she also had a crossbow.

-->-- '''Stuart Farquhar''' and '''Miss Dobbs''', ''Film/CarryOnAbroad''.

->'''Miss Dobbs''': That's what they all say Mr. Farquhar, but it won't get you anywhere.

May also be a SexySecretary or a PluckyOfficeGirl. Due to the interpersonal nature of the role, they may be TheFace of their group. See also and related to SarcasticDevotee.

* ''Literature/SecretSanta'': Executive Assistant Marcy isn't afraid to call Erik out when he's acting outrageously. [[spoiler: She's also the SecretSanta making his life miserable.]]

* In the first dream world of ''VideoGame/{{Obsidian}}'', the first [[TvHeadRobot Vidbot]] you meet is this, exaggerated to the point that she's as much of an ObstructiveBureaucrat as every other employee.

* Pamela Finkelstein from ''Film/{{UHF}}'' certainly qualifies. Her short fuse and annoyance are {{Justified}} because she really signed onto the station to be a news reporter and got shunted into clerical work instead. [[{{Cloudcuckoolander}} George]], being [[CrazyAwesome George]] decided "why not" when letting her cover news. HilarityEnsues.

* ''ComicBook/WonderWoman1942'': Lila Brown has only so much patience for her boss ComicBook/SteveTrevor, and even less for his boss' secretary Diana Prince who seems to care far more about formalities than Lila ever has. In return she gives them both as much sass as possible, though this eventually backfires when she ignores Diana telling her not to pick up a pen that ends up being the disguised explosive device which kills her.

* ''Anime/AggressiveRetsuko'' has Washimi, the [=CEO=]'s secretary, who is so fearless and elegant that he (and everyone else in the company) is intimidated by her.

** Oddly enough, Russell Dunbar (also Spade) has his own rare male example, Timmy, on ''Series/RulesOfEngagement''.

[[folder: Newspaper Comics]]
* Carol, the PointyHairedBoss's secretary from ''ComicStrip/{{Dilbert}}'', takes "sass" [[UpToEleven straight into misanthropy and narcissism]]. For a while she also had a crossbow.

[[folder: TabletopGames]]
* Lolth has one. No, seriously, the dreaded Demon Queen of Spiders of ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' has a Sassy Secretary, and PlayerCharacters have to deal with her in the epic adventure ''Vault of the Drow'' (from ''way'' back in 1980). [[NotMakingThisUpDisclaimer Seriously.]] When the players reach the room with the sole access to Lolth's throne room, they find a Type V demon (called a marilith in later editions, a very powerful six-armed female fiend with a snaky lower body) at a messy desk who insists they sign in before they confront Lolth, and then wait while she finds the ledger. (Craziest part? If the [=PCs=] comply, she ''lets them in'' with no argument! If they don't wait, they'll have a much harder time getting in, not just from fighting her, but triggering an alarm and increasing the probability of random encounters. Doing what the secretary says lets them conserve their power for [[FinalBoss Lolth herself]], who is no pushover.) No explanation is given for this and if the players ask, the demon just says "Lolth told me to". (Maybe this demon is just being punished for some slight by being given a job that chaotic fiends would likely hate, but that's just conjecture.)
** The demon secretary appears in a ''ComicStrip/{{Nodwick}}'' strip much later that parodies the adventure, resembling a more traditional type, a coffee addict using a laptop. She's sassier and ruder than the one in the source, and not all-too-good at her job, more occupied with playing solitaire on the computer than dealing with the heroes, who eventually sneak past by leaving dummies in the waiting room.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Video Games]]

[[folder: Webcomics]]

[[folder: Western Animation]]

* In the ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'' episode "Hearth's Warming Eve", Chancellor Pudding Head's secretary Smart Cookie is portrayed as quite the snarker.

[[folder: Anime/Manga]]

[[folder: Fan Works]]

[[folder:Film]]

[[folder: Live-Action TV ]]

-->'''Beth:''' Mention that there's a spunky redhead in this office.
-->'''Joe:''' I don't know how to tell you this, but there's a spunky redhead in ''every'' office.
-->'''Beth:''' Tell me about it.
** She shouldn't have been so upset about one character being like her character, so much as for most of TheNineties approximately 80% of the shows on NBC were about [[FollowTheLeader single people working at a media outlet in a big city]]. They all had a character that was exactly like hers.

%% Image replaced per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1441568841021484500

[[quoteright:350:[[ComicStrip/{{Dilbert}} https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/dilbertsassysecretarycombined350.png]]]]

* [[BeleagueredBureaucrat Sir John's]] clerk Mrs Pound from ''Literature/DarknessVisible'' is sassy enough to deliberately wind up Lewis when she has information he needs to prevent the end of the world. Of course she's going to give it to him, but not until he realises how damned hard it was to get...

* Veronica in ''Series/{{Dads}}''. She takes a fair amount of abuse from her bosses, but gives back just as much.

** The demon secretary appears in a ''ComicStrip/{{Nodwick}}'' strip much later that parodies the adventure, resembling a more traditional type, a coffee addict using a laptop. She's sassier and ruder than the one in the source, and not all-too good at her job, more occupied with playing solitaire on the computer than dealing with the heroes, who eventually sneak past by leaving dummies in the waiting room.

-->'''Manny Calavera:''' It's my boss's secretary, Eva.
-->'''Eva:''' It's my boss's whipping boy, Manny.

-->'''Manuel Calavera:''' Any messages for me?
-->'''Eva:''' No, calls stopped coming for you the day you left. They're STILL sending you that lingerie catalog, though.

-->'''Manuel Calavera:''' Busy as ever, I see.
-->'''Eva:''' I'd have more work to do if you had more clients.

* Laura from ''WesternAnimation/DrKatzProfessionalTherapist'' qualifies, but she's extremely rude and useless as a secretary. She doesn't take messages, and refuses to bring Dr. Katz coffee.

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheRealGhostbusters'', Janine started out just as sassy as her movie incarnation, and even sported a bright red punk-style hairdo, but her incarnation in ''WesternAnimation/ExtremeGhostbusters'' wasn't nearly as much so.

* Elaine on ''Series/DocMartin'', to the point that Martin actually fires her in annoyance during the first episode (the rest of the town forces him to hire her back). Mostly averted with Pauline, though she really "wants" to be one.

[[folder: Fan Works]]
* Golden Quill, the secretary of Piercing Gaze in the ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'' fanfic ''Fanfic/ALongNightAtTheHippodrome''. She's smart, streetwise, indispensable to her boss, and knows it.

May also be a SexySecretary or a PluckyOfficeGirl. Due to the interpersonal nature of the role, they may be TheFace of their group.

* In the ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'' episode "Hearths Warming Eve", Chancellor Pudding Head's secretary Smart Cookie is portrayed as quite the snarker.

Cracking gum and cracking wise. Often with a ''very'' nasal voice, usually with a [Joisey] or Brooklyn accent.

Cracking gum and cracking wise. Often with a ''very'' nasal voice, usually with a Joisey or Brooklyn accent.

* Vicki Lewis ("Beth") on ''Series/NewsRadio'' reportedly feuded with Kathy Griffin because of her similar redheaded character on ''SuddenlySusan''. It is worth noting that Griffin's character, while a complete ripoff of Lewis's from the standpoint of personality, is not actually a secretary.