History Main / ScarecrowSolution

* In ''Anime/PomPoko'', the {{tanuki}} attempt to save their home from urban development by shapeshifting into ghosts and monsters and parading down the streets. [[spoiler: It backfires when the humans mistake it for a publicity stunt for an amusement park.]]

[[folder: Comic Books ]]

* ''ComicBook/TheLifeAndTimesOfScroogeMcDuck'' from Creator/DonRosa - the first chapter when Scrooge scares the Whiskerville away by making a fake ghost. They were so scared that, years later, ''all'' the Whiskervilles have white hair (their first appearance showed them black and brown haired, so it wasn't a family trait before that).
** A repeatedly used plot element in lesser ''DonaldDuck'' comics - a variant involves making some idol worshiped by primitive people appear to speak and tell them to stop roasting the heroes or whatever.
* One ''SamAndMax'' story ("Monkeys Violating the Heavenly Temple") has Max about to be used as a sacrifice for a volcano cult. Sam tries this trope, covering himself in mud to ape the volcano god the cult worships. Not only are the cultists not fooled, they beat the stuffing out of Sam.
* ''{{ComicBook/Fables}}'' uses a psychological AntiHero version when a reporter discovers the Fables' (fairytale characters who are actually real) society, though with the belief that they're vampires. Ultimately they kidnap him and trick him into believing they are indeed vampires who have tasted his blood and will control him into committing suicide along with publishing pictures painting him as a child molester (staged with the help of a 300-year-old Pinocchio) should he ever release his discovery. The reporter gets scared out of his mind and complies, but is ultimately killed a few days later by one of the more evil fables acting on his own.

[[folder: Film--Animated ]]

[[folder: Film--Live Action ]]

[[folder: Literature ]]

[[folder: Live-Action TV ]]

-->'''Wash''': Every man go back inside, or we will blow a new crater in this little moon.
-->'''Jayne''' ''(later)'': Damn yokels, can't even tell a transport ship ain't got no guns on it.

* In ''Series/DoctorWho'' episode "The Girl Who Died" part one of the plan to defeat the Mire involves altering what they see through their video interface, so that a ship's figurehead becomes a terrifying sea serpent and so on. Part two involves taking a video of their proud warrior race cowering in fear from obvious puppets, and threatening to effectively upload it to [[RecycledInSpace Space]] [[InstantHumiliationJustAddYoutube Youtube]] to ruin their reputation.

[[folder: Newspaper Comics ]]

* ComicStrip/ModestyBlaise fakes an alien visitation in "The Moonman" arc.
* This is the [[CharacteristicTrope modus operandi]] of ''ComicStrip/ThePhantom''. The natives of his home country think he's an immortal personification of justice and protection, when he's actually [[LegacyImmortality the great-great-great (and so on) grandson of the original Phantom]], with a CharlesAtlasSuperpower. Stories generally climax with him using a Scarecrow Solution to convince criminals that he's immortal.

[[folder: Theatre ]]

* In the Norwegian children's plays about ''CaptainSabretooth'', the good guys pretend to be the ghost of the infamous pirate Gory Gabriel to scare Sabretooth away on several occasions. He falls for it every time, probably because [[WhyDidItHaveToBeSnakes ghosts are the only thing he really fears]].

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Western Animation ]]

** Gabe/Toxic Terror from ''WesternAnimation/WhatsNewScoobyDoo'' is good one. In fact, the next to final scene has the Gabe, Shaggy, Scooby-Doo, and the camp kid disguise them as Toxic Terror sending Clyde packing.
** Velma Dinkley, the brains of Mystery Inc. itself, did this in ''WesternAnimation/ScoobyDooInWheresMyMummy''.

*** Later in ''WesternAnimation/ScoobyDooMysteryIncorporated'', the Mystery Inc. gang create the Krampus to distract the real villains from their plan to steal their segments of the season's MacGuffin.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheVentureBrothers'' episode "Escape To The House of Mummies Part II". Dr. Venture, sitting on Brock's shoulders and dressed in a green blanket waves a flashlight at cultists to save Hank and Dean. It doesn't work:

[[folder: Real Life ]]

* The original short story ''Literature/TheLegendOfSleepyHollow'' is a very early example of this one, especially if you subscribe to the interpretation that Ichabod Crane is a meddling jerk rather than a protagonist.

* ''{{ComicBook/Fables}}'' uses a psychological AntiHero version when a reporter discovers the Fables' (fairytale characters who are actually real) society, though with the belief that they're vampires. Ultimately they kidnap him and trick him into believing they are indeed vampires who have tasted his blood and will control him into committing suicide along with publishing pictures painting him as a child molester (staged with the help of a 300-year-old Pinnochio) should he ever release his discovery. The reporter gets scared out of his mind and complies, but is ultimately killed a few days later by one of the more evil fables acting on his own.

* ''WesternAnimation/ABugsLife'', the fake bird. The solution [[spoiler: part is subverted because the villains see the trick, but it is for the better because the ants finally find the courage to rebel against the grasshoppers and send them packing for good as a more permanent solution. Also the scarecrow was still vital to this turn of events, because it helped them consider the possibility in the first place, that the grasshoppers are not unbeatable]].

* "The Dread Pirate Roberts" rig that Fezzik wore in ''Film/ThePrincessBride''.
* The 1971 film, ''The Johnstown Monster''.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheLandBeforeTime'', the original, the dinosaurs cover themselves in tar and pile on top of each other.

[[folder: Live Action TV ]]

* In ''Series/DoctorWho'' ''The Girl Who Died'' part one of the plan to defeat the Mire involves altering what they see through their video interface, so that a ship's figurehead becomes a terrifying sea serpent and so on. Part two involves taking a video of their proud warrior race cowering in fear from obvious puppets, and threatening to effectively upload it to [[RecycledInSpace Space]] [[InstantHumiliationJustAddYoutube Youtube]] to ruin their reputation.

[[AC:ComicBooks]]

[[AC:{{Film}}--Animated]]

[[AC:{{Film}}--Live Action]]

[[AC:{{Literature}}]]

[[AC:LiveActionTV]]

[[AC:NewspaperComics]]

[[AC:Theatre]]

[[AC:WesternAnimation]]

[[AC:Real Life]]

** Gabe/Toxic Terror from ''WhatsNewScoobyDoo'' is good one. In fact, the next to final scene has the Gabe, Shaggy, Scooby-Doo, and the camp kid disguise them as Toxic Terror sending Clyde packing.

* ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyAndFriends'': had in a ''Glo Friends'' segment, a plan of the heroes to get rid of their enemies the Moligans, by making them think that there was a giant Glo monster who would get them, if they kept threatening them.

* ''WesternAnimation/ABugsLife'', the fake bird.

* This is the [[CharacteristicTrope modus operandi]] of ''ComicStrip/ThePhantom''. The natives of his home country think he's an immortal personification of justice and protection, when he's actually the great-great-great (and so on) grandson of the original Phantom, with a CharlesAtlasSuperpower. Stories generally climax with him using a Scarecrow Solution to convince criminals that he's immortal.

* ''{{ComicBook/Fables}}'' uses a psychological AntiHero version when a reporter discovers the Fables' (fairytale characters who are actually real) society, though with the belief that they're vampires. Ultimately they kidnap him and trick him into believing they are indeed vampires who have tasted his blood and will control him into committing suicide along with publishing him as a child molester should he ever release his discovery. The reporter gets scared out of his mind and complies, but is ultimately killed a few days later by one of the more evil fables acting on his own.

* ''{{Fables}}'' uses a psychological AntiHero version when a reporter discovers the Fables' (fairytale characters who are actually real) society, though with the belief that they're vampires. Ultimately they kidnap him and trick him into believing they are indeed vampires who have tasted his blood and will control him into committing suicide along with publishing him as a child molester should he ever release his discovery. The reporter gets scared out of his mind and complies, but is ultimately killed a few days later by one of the more evil fables acting on his own.

* Used occasionally by the IMF in ''Series/MissionImpossible''. "Banshee" features feature perhaps the fullest embodiment as the plan hinges entirely on convincing the villain that he is being stalked by the souls of those he has killed.

* On ''McHalesNavy,'' the crew of the PT-73 fakes their deaths and comes back dressed as ghosts to scare Binghampton into tearing up the orders that were going to get them all transferred.

* This is the [[CharacteristicTrope modus operandi]] of ''ThePhantom''. The natives of his home country think he's an immortal personification of justice and protection, when he's actually the great-great-great (and so on) grandson of the original Phantom, with a CharlesAtlasSuperpower. Stories generally climax with him using a Scarecrow Solution to convince criminals that he's immortal.

* The AmericanCivilWar included the ''Quaker Guns", dummy cannons that were really just painted logs, employed by both sides occasionally and used successfully by the Confederacy a few times.

* ''ComicBook/TheLifeAndTimesOfScroogeMcDuck'' from DonRosa - the first chapter when Scrooge scares the Whiskerville away by making a fake ghost. They were so scared that, years later, ''all'' the Whiskervilles have white hair (their first appearance showed them black and brown haired, so it wasn't a family trait before that).

* ''TheLandBeforeTime'', the original, the dinosaurs cover themselves in tar and pile on top of each other.

* In ''StarWars'', Obi-Wan first appears by scaring away some Sand People who were about to kill Luke. He does this by dressing up in his old Jedi robes and making some weird-sounding monster noises, causing them to flee in terror. According to the [[AllThereInTheManual associated materials]], the sound he's making is that of the [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast Krayt Dragon]].

* Kehaar in ''WatershipDown'', albeit only halfway intentionally - great coincidental timing on his, Bigwig's, and the weather's part make it appear to the Efrafans that the bird was summoned out of lightning by Bigwig.
* The original short story ''TheLegendOfSleepyHollow'' is a very early example of this one, especially if you subscribe to the interpretation that Ichabod Crane is a meddling jerk rather than a protagonist.
* Another early example features in EdgarAllanPoe's ''Literature/TheNarrativeOfArthurGordonPymOfNantucket'', when the protagonist dresses up as a dead sailor's ghost to scare mutineers into abandoning ship.

* When Bo and Luke were mistakenly declared to have drowned on ''TheDukesOfHazzard'' they faked a haunting by coating the General Lee with glow-in-the-dark paint and having Cooter rig it to run by remote control, using it to intimidate Boss Hogg to prevent him from blaming them for a theft. Subverted in that Boss Hogg isn't fooled for more than a few moments, and immediately suspects Cooter's involvement.

* In the Norwegian children's plays about ''CaptainSabretooth'', the good guys pretend to be the ghost of the infamous pirate Gory Gabriel to scare Sabretooth away on several occasions. He falls for it every time, probably because [[WhyDidItHaveToBeSnakes ghosts is the only thing he really fears]].

* In ''Franchise/ScoobyDoo'', though it's often [[ScoobyDooHoax the villain who does this]] to scare away the DistressedDamsel from a Real Estate claim, etc., the heroes often use this technique as well.

** Amy Cavenaugh/Amy The Siren from ''WesternAnimation/ScoobyDooMysteryIncorporated'' is another good one -- especially since she got Velma [[JustForPun hooked.]]

* ''Operation Fortitude'', used by the Allies to conceal their true intentions of where they were invading France in WorldWarTwo, included the use of dummy inflatable "tanks" that deceived German intelligence into thinking the Allies had a couple of extra armored divisions in reserve.
* The AmericanCivilWar included the ''Quaker Guns", dummy cannons that were really just painted logs, employed by both sides occasionally and used succesfully by the Confederacy a few times.