History Main / TheCreon

Creons can be of any morality or personality. Their motivations may be completely selfish. On occasion, a Creon will be [[LoyalToThePosition perfectly willing for his superior to be replaced by someone else]] - but not by the Creon himself. Most often however, The Creon will be the best right-hand a leader could ask for.

** Similarly Eddard Stark was quite content to be Lord of Winterfell and rule the North, he never expected this position due to being a second son. When his best friend King Robert asks him to be Hand of the King he is reluctant, and only sees his position as adviser to the King, not realizing that under a lazy and incompetent king like Robert he effectively runs the Seven Kingdoms. Sadly his lack of knowledge on this and his lack of political experience, along with the corruption in King's Landing, leads to his arrest [[spoiler:and execution]] for trying to stop Queen Cersei's family usurping the throne [[spoiler:after Robert's death.]]

The Creon is basically the [[NumberTwo right-hand man]], king's ([[TheGoodChancellor good]] or [[EvilChancellor evil]]) advisor, chief general, TheDragon, or other somesuch person of considerable power or influence who is not himself at the pinnacle of the pyramid. He's the second-in-command. However, unlike TheStarscream, The Creon is decidedly ''not'' gunning for the first spot. Maybe he doesn't want the responsibility; maybe he's just fine where he is; maybe [[VillainousFriendship he respects his boss too much]]; maybe he [[UndyingLoyalty values loyalty above all else]]; or maybe the culture is such that the top spot is [[KlingonPromotion just too dangerous a place]] for a person like him. His job as second-in-command suits him just fine, and even if offered the top spot he just won't take it - regardless of how lucrative the offer.

* Shego of WesternAnimation/KimPossible is quite happy being the dragon to Draken, and the one time she does take over due to an alternate future version of herself she finds it too much of a bother and happily goes back to Draken.

** The page quote comes courtesy of [[AffablyEvil Porter]] [[TokenEvilTeammate Gage]] from ''VideoGame/Fallout4: Nuka-World''. Gage has no interest in becoming the Overboss of the [[WretchedHive Nuka-World]] [[BadassCrew Raiders]], fearing that he'd be in the crosshairs of any Raider [[KlingonPromotion with the slightest inklings of ambition]]. Instead, he's content to let the [[PlayerCharacter Sole Survivor]] take the role after they kill the previous Overboss, Colter, in [[YouKillItYouBoughtIt gladiatorial combat]], and use his experience of working with Raider gangs to help you get comfortable in your new position.

* In the last act of ''10 LB. Penalty'' by Creator/DicFrancis, George Juliard becomes cabinet minister for Agriculture, Food, & Fisheries, handling the job in a way that makes him viewed as a potential successor to the Prime Minister. However, while he is an ambitious politician, he has enough loyalty to his boss to downplay his profile to avoid making the rest of the government look bad. He also tries to defend the Prime Minister during a cabinet crisis until the minister chooses to resign and gives George his blessing to seek to be his successor.

This trope is the opposite of TheStarscream, who spends almost all his time scheming to get rid of his superior and assume the top spot. The Creon may be TheConsigliere, TheGoodChancellor, a SarcasticDevotee, a reliable DragonInChief or even a PsychoSupporter - there are many options. Contrast with VolatileSecondTierPosition, where whoever is the second in command is the person who will be blamed and [[YouHaveFailedMe suffer the consequences]] if anything goes wrong.

* During Wrestling/ChrisJericho's run as the inaugural [[Wrestling/AllEliteWrestling AEW]] World Champion, his Inner Circle associate [[Wrestling/JackSwagger Jake Hager]] showed no apparent interest in taking the belt from him, instead content with his position as the group's enforcer, only briefly pursuing the title when Jericho had already lost it to [[Wrestling/DeanAmbrose Jon Moxley]] and was more focused on captaining a feud against The Elite.

'''Astor:''' I can't split- your my best lackey!\\

** He doesn't even think that there's still going to be a Steward after he hands over power to Aragorn. He thinks that he's going to lose all his family's titles and become a common citizen, but he still wants to do it. Thus when he formally invites Aragorn into the city, he says "The last Steward of Gondor begs leave to surrender his office."

* ''Brotherhood of the Rose'' by Creator/DavidMorrell. John Eliot was offered the directorship of the CIA but turned it down, as it's a political appointment and he'd be replaced when a new government came into power, interfering with the conspiracy that he's involved in.

* In the background of ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'', [[CoolOldMan Malcador the Sigilite]] was the right-hand man to the Emperor of Mankind himself, and managed the [[BadassBureaucrat entirety of the Administratum]], the Office of Assassins and the Knights Errant, the forunners of the daemon hunting Grey Knights. While the Emperor had a more dominant presence managing the military and technological innovation that made the Imperium, Malcador kept the Imperium running through complex bureaucracy that would keep everything united. [[AlmightyJanitor He also had considerable psychic powers]] and a very intelligent mind, capable of even defeating Primarchs with his powers. However, he was content with his position, and remained loyal to the Emperor until his death, sacrificing himself to the Golden Throne to give the Emperor time to duel Horus.

* Shego of KimPossible is quite happy being the dragon to Draken, and the one time she does take over due to an alternate future version of herself she finds it too much of a bother and happily goes back to Draken.

* Zigzagged on ''Series/ItsAlwaysSunnyInPhiladelphia''. Dennis usually tries to fill this role for Frank in his various enterprises--acting as the middleman between Frank and the public so Frank's [[FatSlob manners]], [[TheHedonist hobbies]], or [[{{Gonk}} troll-like appearance]] don't creep people out. It's often subverted because Dennis is not nearly as intelligent or suave as he believes he is. Regardless, Dennis acts as TheCreon in "Sweet Dee Gets Audited", "The Gang Hits the Slopes", and "Wolf Cola: A Public Relations Nightmare" (where he even remarks how he never actually receives any perks from taking on this position).

* Monkey D. Garp in ''Manga/OnePiece'' has remained a Vice Admiral in the Marines for decades. He has been offered a promotion to a full Admiral more than once but has always turned it down, the idea being that as an Admiral, he'll have to spend most of his time stuck in an office doing administrative work and tend to the World Nobel's, the settings biggest villains, whereas if he remains a Vice Admiral, he can travel around where he wants and only has to answer to people who are on better terms with him than said Nobel's.

This trope is the opposite of TheStarscream, who spends almost all his time scheming to get rid of his superior and assume the top spot. The Creon may be TheConsigliere, TheGoodChancellor, a SarcasticDevotee, a reliable DragonInChief or even a PsychoSupporter - there are many options.

* ''VideoGame/MadMax'' has Stank Gum, a particularly depraved example of this trope and second in command to the BigBad, Scabrous Scrotus. He has no aspirations to greater power - as long as he gets to [[GenuineHumanHide peel his victims]] like bananas and make accessories out of them, he's perfectly fine with his place in the post-apocalyptic world.

** In ''VideoGame/Fallout3'', Bob from the [[{{Egopolis}} Republic of Dave]] is Dave's second-in-command (as well as his son). When the [[PlayerCharacter Lone Wanderer]] tries to convince Bob that he should run for President of the Republic, he refuses saying that he's fine just where he is -- [[ImmediateSelfContradiction although in the same conversation]] he also says that he ''does'' want to inherit the presidency naturally from Dave some day, but as to make himself the Republic's dictator.

--> "Would any mortal choose a troubled reign of terrors, rather than secure repose, if the same power were given him? As for me, I have no natural craving for the name of king, preferring to do kingly deeds, and so thinks every sober-minded man. Now all my needs are satisfied through thee, and I have naught to fear; but were I king, my acts would oft run counter to my will. How could a title then have charms for me above the sweets of boundless influence? I am not so infatuate as to grasp the shadow when I hold the substance fast. Now all men cry me Godspeed! wish me well, and every suitor seeks to gain my ear, if he would hope to win a grace from thee. Why should I leave the better, choose the worse? That were sheer madness, and I am not mad. No such ambition ever tempted me, nor would I have a share in such intrigue."