History Main / SurroundedByIdiots

* In ''WesternAnimation/SleepingBeauty'', Maleficent had been sending her minions to search for Princess Aurora, whom she cast a curse on as a newborn, to put her plan into motion. However, said minions failed in looking for her for 16 years because [[WhatAnIdiot they thought too much about the "newborn" part]]. Maleficent is not too keen on finding out...

* Cat from ''WesternAnimation/CatDog'' always feels like this amongst the people of Nearburg [[NotSoAboveItAll (although sometimes he can be pretty shortsighted himself)]]. And to make it worse, [[UpToEleven he's attached to one!]]

-->"Are we a pack of imbeciles?"

** Queen reacts with stunned disbelief when he checks in on Kaido's prison labour camp to find out his subordinates have not only let the high-profile prisoner Eustass Kid escape and gotten the master key to the PowerNullifier prisoner handcuffs stolen, but Straw Hat Luffy is literally in the process of escaping ''within view'', and they were telling Queen this instead of trying to stop him.

* Literature/{{Redwall}}'s Cluny the Scourge [[LampshadeHanging muses on this trope]] in the first book, and decides that putting up with stupidity from his followers is worth the utter obedience he gets because they're too dim to think for themselves.

* Asra Nox of ''VideoGame/{{Starbound}}'' seems to have this opinion regarding her [[{{Cult}} Occasus]] minions, if her journal in the Grand Pagoda Libary's any indication:

* The various members of Franchise/{{Batman}}'s RoguesGallery in the VideoGame/BatmanArkhamSeries often complain about how useless their {{Mooks}} are whenever the Dark Knight takes them out.

'''Taserface:''' Uh-uh. Not so fast, Captain. ''[points to the black T'challa]'' Two see-holes, two hear-holes, one eat-hole. Everything checks out.\\

'''Taserface:''' Sure. I don't know. All humans look alike to me.

* Mother Brain often mentions her minions' stupidity in most episodes of ''WesternAnimation/CaptainNTheGameMaster''. Usually her ire is aimed at bungling morons Eggplnt Wizard and King Hippo. Dr.Wily usually escapes the worst of her verbal abuse, as he displays his competency often enough to be genuinly useful.

* ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsTheCloneWars'': Grievous makes it quite clear he is beyond exasperated with the foolishness of his battle droids. Not only does he casually destroy them over every little thing, and acts quite different with organic allies and his own, notably ''very snarky'' medical droid, who are more competent he also has this to shout in [[Recap/StarWarsTheCloneWarsS1E10LairOfGrievous "Lair of Grievous"]]:

** And when he dies and [[http://www.nuklearpower.com/2004/02/24/episode-388-see-you-in-hell-monkey-boy/ ends up in Hell]], Black Mage initially thinks he's dreamed the entire (mis)adventure to date:

* In ''WesternAnimation/PinkyAndTheBrain'', one is a genius, the other is, well... Pinky. They never specify which one is the genius or the insane one. Still, one is drawing complicated mathematical equations on a chalkboard, and at the same time, the other one is dancing around with his tongue hanging out and is tied up in his own arms... do they really ''need'' to specify which one? Considering what happened when The Brain enhanced Pinky's intelligence, it might not hurt. Especially if you've seen the episode where The Brain actually lets Pinky attempt it on his own (the "AreYouPonderingWhatImPondering" bit) and it WORKS until The Brain screws it up. On the other hand, we humans aren't shown as exceptionally bright either. With a few exceptions, folks are perfectly willing to accept the word of a talking mouse in an obvious disguise.

* Mother Brain always mentions her minions' stupidity in most episodes of ''WesternAnimation/CaptainNTheGameMaster''.

*** The sequel series has a notable moment when [[BigBad Amon]]'s {{mooks}} fail to capture Korra, who has ''already'' been kidnapped and locked in a metal box by [[spoiler: Tarrlok]], but still manages to trick them into opening the box and letting her escape. Amon, having just warned them not to underestimate her, is not amused.

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Aladdin}}'': [[InspectorJavert Captain of the palace guards, Razoul]] towards his underlings, who cower in fear upon seeing a little monkey who barely reaches their knees holding a scimitar.

* In ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'' fic, ''[[https://www.fimfiction.net/story/322325/sunspawned Sunspawned]]'', Princess Celestia discusses her [[IdleRich dissolute court]] in this way with the [[spoiler:[[OppositeSexClone newly cloned]]]] Sunset Shimmer and her creator, [[IntelligenceEqualsIsolation Sunburst]]:

Of course, the simplest answer for why the evil master is surrounded by idiots is because you'd ''have'' to be stupid to work for him. The underlings' being TooDumbToLive may well explain why they continue to work for an [[VillainousDemotivator abusive employer]], but we still have to wonder why the EvilOverlord hired them in the first place. We can't pretend he's not aware of his hirelings' shortcomings since he never hesitates to exclaim about them: "[[YouFool FOOLS]]! CRETINS! BUNGLERS!" (there always seems to be [[RuleOfThree a basic formula of Mild Insult! Not-So-Mild Insult! EXTREME INSULT!]], if it's not a case of ArsonMurderAndJaywalking), sometimes, "It's so hard to find good help these days..." and of course, the oft-repeated Trope Naming line, "I'm surrounded by idiots!" - sometimes accompanied by a {{Facepalm}}. After one too many failures, the boss tends to say "[[VillainNoLongerIdle If you want something done right, you gotta do it yourself!]]" and then proceeds to do far better at any given mission than his underlings have ever done, making you wonder why he didn't just do this in the first place.

* In ''Anime/{{Pokemon}}'', Giovanni often has to put up with the Team Rocket trio (Jessie, James, and Meowth) and often will comment on their stupidity.

* ComicBook/DoctorDoom has pulled it more than once, as in his eyes, everyone who isn't Doom is an imbecile...

** ComicBook/LexLuthor's flunkies, [[UsefulNotes/TheGoldenAgeOfComicBooks in the Golden Age,]] tended to be dunces and were sometimes played for comic relief. They also might make [[HeelFaceTurn Heel Face Turns.]] [[Film/SupermanTheMovie Otis and Miss Tessmacher]] are actually quite faithful to this type in the comics.
** In ''ComicBook/StarfiresRevenge'', as she is being taken into police custody, ComicBook/{{Supergirl}} villain Starfire grumbles about her subordinates being cowards, stupid or incompetent.

* In the ''ComicBook/SuperiorSpiderMan'' run, [[ComicBook/DoctorOctopus Otto Octavius]] (in Peter Parker's body) often considers everyone he ever meets to be an idiot. Then again, he is a genius.
* In a ''Franchise/JusticeLeagueOfAmerica'' issue detailing a potential universe where ComicBook/{{Darkseid}} won, Batman taunted him by answering his question of why he was "surrounded by maggots" - after winning, he'd done what he always said he would do: reform creation in his image. Thus, he has no room to complain: all he's seeing is his own ugly mug.

--> '''Minato''' (thinking to himself while also [[{{Facepalm}} facepalming]]): '' 'Hide your shame, Ayumu. Hide your shame because I'm evidently surrounded by idiots.' ''

* In their first appearance in ''WesternAnimation/{{Hercules}}'', Hades' minions, Pain and Panic, can't even go down the stairs without slapstick stuff happening to them. Which prompts Hades to [[AsideGlance glance at the audience with a "I don't get paid enough for this" look]].

* ''{{Film/Labyrinth}}'': Jareth the Goblin King actually has to tell his goblin minions to laugh when he tells a joke and is seen at one point [[FacePalm face-palming]] in the middle of his throne room. You get the feeling that he wants Sarah to stay with him because he's probably desperate for a conversation with someone with an IQ above one digit.

* Ignatius Reilly, the protagonist of ''Literature/AConfederacyOfDunces'', views his fellow citizens of New Orleans as such. Inverted to a degree, in that Ignatius himself is very foolish and has some serious MommyIssues.

* ''Literature/RubberGirl'': Melissa Robinson recognizes her classmate Katie Elaz in a news photo of Rubber Girl. But everyone else in her class do not see it even though Rubber Girl was [[ClarkKenting obviously just Katie in a mask]] and Rubber Girl only showed up in town after Katie was [[SuperHeroOrigin hospitalized from an accident at her parents' factory.]] She {{Facepalm}}ed and groaned this line.

---> ''(about the [[PsychoForHire Cho]] [[BumblingHenchmanDuo Brothers]])'' Enthusiastic, but not very bright.
** ''Series/KamenRiderBuild'' naturally runs into this a lot, being something of an InsufferableGenius. [[spoiler:He has it even moreso late in the series when he reverts to his original, more abrasive personality of Takumi Katsuragi.]] Subverted in a late episode where he and his allies confront the BigBad, and even facing a monstrously powerful evil they still engage in their usual comedic antics, causing [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold Sento]] to remark "I'm surrounded by [[TrueCompanions idiots]]..." before adding with a grin "...And I couldn't be [[PowerOfFriendship happier]]!"

* ''WebComic/TheAdventuresOfDrMcNinja'': In "Futures Trading", [[ItMakesJustAsMuchSenseInContext older alternative future Gordito is part of a resistance movement against intelligent dinosaurs.]] He clearly thinks some resistance members who accidentally attack Dr. [=McNinja=] are really stupid to do so, and makes a kind of "look what I have to deal with" face. He may be being a bit harsh, though.

* While the RealLife [[UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler Hitler]] is considered to be an inversion of this trope, the ''Film/{{Downfall}}'' [[WebVideo/HitlerRants parodies]] Hitler is played straight. Hitler's staff is mostly made up of idiots who have such [[SarcasmMode incredibly useful]] skills as pointing at maps, providing Hitler with useless information, getting drunk, objecting to all of his plans, and ranting. Naturally it's often because of them that Hitler's schemes always backfire. It also doesn't help that most of the people who are slightly more competent are constantly targeting him for their own gain.

-->'''Brain:''' ''*bitterly*'' I am completely alone...

** Mr. Burns, as stated in an ImageSong produced during the 1990s:

* In ''WesternAnimation/AdventuresOfSonicTheHedgehog'' Robotnik reaffirmed the lack of intelligence possessed by [[BumblingHenchmanDuo Scratch and Grounder]] in pretty much every episode. However they're typically his first choice to send after Sonic, and he often trusts them with important inventions he created. This was lampshaded in the episode "Spaceman Sonic" in which Sonic states that Robotnik will figure it cheaper to put Scratch and Grounder back together than to build new robots.

* Another rare heroic example: In ''WesternAnimation/DuckTales1987'', Scrooge [=McDuck=] is preparing to retrieve his vast fortune from the Marinaras Trench. He sees [[MeaningfulName Doofus]], Launchpad, and Gyro Gearloose, the crew that will help him, trip each other up and fall all over the place. And so, Scrooge can't help but exclaim in exasperation, [[HereWeGoAgain "MORONS! I've got]] [[Film/ButchCassidyAndTheSundanceKid MORONS on my team]]!!"
** Similarly, on ''WesternAnimation/DuckTales2017'', Scrooge asks [[CaptainCrash Launchpad]] if he can even pilot a submarine ([[TooDumbToLive he asks this AS Launchpad is at the controls and presumably has been for some time already]]). Launchpad replies that he [[NoodleIncident once crashed a helicopter into a wading pool]], to which Scrooge dejectedly replies "I've done more with less..."

-->'''Shredder:''' Oh, how I've longed for an ally such as this! So unlike the snivelling idiots that I've been forced to suffer! \\

-->'''Sub-Prime:''' You guys are as dumb as a bunch of rocks! Seriously! What's taking so long?!

* Several studies has shown that intelligent people tend to underestimate their intelligence and unskilled people overestimate theirs: the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect Dunning–Kruger effect]]. So stupid people will tend to think that they are surrounded by idiots. This is especially true if they're poor communicators and prone to using BuffySpeak or otherwise fail to use the correct words when giving instructions or describing something.

* As he expresses numerous times, Kazuma of ''LightNovel/{{Konosuba}}'' feels this way about his lackluster party. His Arch-Priestess is a Goddess with the brainpower of a gnat, his Crusdaer is a crazy masochist who literally can't hit the broadside of a barn, and his mage is an explosion obsessed {{Chuunibyou}} who tires out after casting one spell. He muses quite often that he'd replace all of them if he could.

* ''Series/{{Loki 2021}}'': At one point, Loki is surrounded by dozens of people with their own ChronicBackstabbingDisorder. [[ThirtyGambitPileUp As everyone reveals their plans to usurp everyone else]] and [[MeleeATrois it devolves into a giant brawl]], Loki can be seen in the background, [[{{Facepalm}} face in his hands]]. The best part (which for some reason Loki doesn't find funny) is that [[spoiler:[[AlternateSelf they're all timeline variants of him]]]].

* ''Series/{{Sherlock}}'': Mycroft implies this in his dialogue in "The Empty Hearse"; when discussing their relative intelligence, Mycroft says to Sherlock: "If you seem slow to me, Sherlock, imagine how real people are like. I'm living in a world full of goldfish." Worth pointing out that Sherlock has supersonic thinking processes compared to normal people, so if Sherlock is slow to Mycroft.....

->'''Banzai:''' MUFASA!\\
'''Shenzi:''' Oooh.\\
[*{{Beat}}*]\\
'''Shenzi:''' Do it again!\\
'''Banzai:''' MUFASA!\\
'''Shenzi:''' Ooh!\\
'''Banzai:''' MUFASA MUFASA MUFASA!\\
'''Ed:''' [''cracks up laughing'']\\
'''Shenzi:''' Ooh, it just tingles me!\\
'''Scar:''' [''[[{{Facepalm}} massages his forehead softly]]''] [[TropeNamer I'm surrounded by idiots...]]
-->-- ''WesternAnimation/TheLionKing1994''

* ComicBook/DoctorDoom, of course, has pulled it more than once. Then again, Doom has it harder than most -- in his eyes -- as everyone who isn't Doom fits this quote...

* Dr. Light (the hero) was the overly serious member of the late '80s "bwa-ha-ha" Franchise/{{Justice League|OfAmerica}}. She said this a lot.
* ComicBook/LexLuthor's flunkies, [[UsefulNotes/TheGoldenAgeOfComicBooks back in the day,]] tended to be dunces and were sometimes played for comic relief. They also might make [[HeelFaceTurn Heel Face Turns.]] [[Film/{{Superman}} Otis and Miss Tessmacher]] are actually quite faithful to this type in the comics.
* Subverted in ''Comicbook/{{Empowered}}'' where Thugboy and the other self-dubbed Witless Minions [[ObfuscatingStupidity pretended to be this]] to aspiring supervillains so they could fleece their high-tech equipment (and administer some quick, unexpected justice whenever a supervillain tried to cross the MoralEventHorizon). It went pretty well for them for a while, until they made the mistake of trying this on [[HeroKiller Willy Pete]].
* ''ComicBook/{{Asterix}}'': [[BeleagueredBoss General Cantankerus]] once described his troops as "They're all quite thick, and I'm their leader! [sobs]"

->'''Banzai''': MUFASA!\\
'''Shenzi''': Ooh!\\
'''Banzai''': MUFASA MUFASA MUFASA!\\
'''Ed''': ''[cracks up laughing]''
'''Shenzi''': Ooh, it tingles me!\\
'''Scar:''' ([[Main/Facepalm facepalms]]) [[TropeNamer I'm surrounded by idiots...]]

->'''Shenzi''': Tell me about it. I just hear that name and I shudder.\\
'''Banzai''': MUFASA!\\
'''Shenzi''': Oooh.\\
[*Main/{{Beat}}*]
'''Shenzi''': Do it again!\\
'''Banzai''': MUFASA!\\

'''Ed''': ''[cracks up laughing]''\\

'''Scar:''' [[TropeNamer I'm surrounded by idiots...]]

'''Ed'': ''[cracks up laughing]''\\
'''Shenzi:''' Ooh, it tingles me!\\

->'''Banzi:''' Mufasa, Mufasa, Mufasa.\\
'''Shenzi:''' Ooh, it tingles me.\\