History Main / TheDevilIsALoser

* Played with in ''LucyTheDaughterOfTheDevil'': Satan seems like a harmless yuppie right up until the point where he [[HighOctaneNightmareFuel tries to murder you in your dreams with burrowing flesh-worms.]]

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* The Number of the Beast by IronMaiden was perceived by some to out the band as Satan worshipers... the song itself plays out like a horror movie (it was inspired by TheOmen). However, the Run to the Hills single artwork has Eddie, Maiden's zombie mascot, in a fight with the devil. The Number of the Beast album shows the aftermath, Eddie holding the Devil's decapitated head. Maiden rightfully pointed out that they were not encouraging worshiping the Devil as he was the LOSER in the battle.

* [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin The Red Guy With No Pants]] from ''CowAndChicken'' and ''IAmWeasel''.

* In ''[[WebOriginal/BonusStage Bonus Stage]]'', Satan rambles on about nothing and [[CoolAndUnusualPunishment makes people]] watch ''TimeSquad'', watch ''{{Shrek}} 2'' or eat his mom's spaghetti. [[spoiler:He also lets Joel, Phil and Elly out of hell.]]

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* In Antonin Dvorak's opera ''The Devil and Kate'', the sheer bitchiness of the chatterbox Kate is such that even Lucifer is afraid of her, and is willing to do anything in order to send her back to Earth.[[/folder]

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* Discussed by [[ MovieBob ]], he believes that when you take away all the stories and rumours, the devil is less [[LexLuthor Lex Luthor]], and more Starscream.

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* Torak of ''TheBelgariad'' and Azash of ''TheElenium''. Both are incredibly powerful in physical/magical terms, but they're also crippled, handicapped by an inability to change, stupid, and totally unable to understand human emotions, which ultimately results in both their downfalls.

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* In Antonin Dvorak's opera ''The Devil and Kate'', the sheer bitchiness of the chatterbox Kate is such that even Lucifer is afraid of her, and is willing to do anything in order to send her back to Earth.

* Pictured above is the Devil from ''Sinfest''. While he IS a pretty badass dude, more than a few strips feature him being mocked by God, toyed with by the angel couple Ezekiel and Arial, and made aware that he's LonelyAtTheTop. The closest thing he has to a friend is his LoonyFan Lil' Evil, a HarmlessVillain who's faith might as well be HoYay.

* The President of Hell in the ''{{Discworld}}'' novel ''[[strike:Faust]] Discworld/{{Eric}}'' definitely qualifies.
** Not necessarily. He ''did'' manage to inflict more suffering on the people in Hell than anyone before him.

-->-- '''{{Lordi}}''', "Devil Is A Loser"

This is the other side of the infernal coin. Satan as a stylish, seductive badass is actually pretty recent -- [[FairyTale medieval portrayals]] have him a thug, dangerous but also easy to fool and really only waiting for someone stupid enough to sin. And, of course, he's no match at all for the forces of heaven -- heck, even a mortal guy with a cross could drive him back. Trope named for a {{Lordi}} song.

* The Devil in ''OldHarrysGame'' is a somewhat whiny guy who has trouble keeping his demons in line and can be foiled by a dead professor or the director of a privatised water company. [[SatanIsGood He is however portrayed sympathetically]], as he has to spend eternity in Hell just for rebelling against God once.

* Satan in the ''DivineComedy'' is a towering imbecile, trapped chest-deep in ice and forever beating his wings in a vain attempt to escape, which only [[SelfInflictedHell cools and hardens the ice trapping him]].

** One episode of ''{{Futurama}}'' references this song. Robot Devil challenges Fry and Leela to a fiddle contest for Bender's soul. When Robot Devil shows what a virtuoso fiddler he is, Leela just picks up the golden fiddle and beats the crap out of him, making him [[ScreamsLikeALittleGirl scream like a little girl]]. In a later episode he's the one who schemes desperately to end a deal he's struck, rather than his "victim" Fry.
*** Wouldn't a solid gold fiddle weigh hundreds of pounds and sound really crappy?
**** That's why you use it in the drum solo.
** This song and the subjective nature of the competition is parodied in this [[http://jjrowland.com/wigu/20040908.html Wigu strip]]. Topato challenges Satan to a music duel for a chance to leave hell. Satan has God judge the competition ("He's impartial as they come"), with the rules being that whoever God feels is better wins. Satan plays a normal song, but all Topato does is play a single loud note. God rules in favor of Topato, but Satan then protests that they should have to play the same instrument and style. After Topato is given an awkwardly heavy golden fiddle to play with, he retaliates by beating the crap out of Satan with it. God just responds with "I am going to allow this". I guess God isn't too neutral after all.
*** ** Sounds more like a Full Episode homage to/rip off of ''Futurama'', down to the line "I am going to allow this."
** One can found a hilarious subversion of the "Devil's Challenge" in [[http://terminaitor.deviantart.com/art/OotF-Largo-s-Jumper-Tales-117427222?q=1&qo=1 this comic]]. The Devil should've realized the flaws in his loopholes.
** The Mono Puff song "The Devil Went Down to Newport" reveals that Satan is no good at surfing, either, because of his hooves.
** In ''TenaciousD in The Pick of Destiny'', Cage and Jables must use ThePowerOfRock to beat the devil in a "rock-off". In this case, the devil actually ''wins'' the competition -- but, in so doing, he loses one of his horns, which Jables is able to use to cast a spell to bind him in Hell. It seems that [[FailureIsTheOnlyOption the Devil can't win for losing.]]
*** This plot in itself seems to reference their song ''Tribute'', in which the two meet a demon highly implied to be Satan on the road. He challenges them to sing the greatest song ever written or he'll eat their souls. When they burst forth with the greatest song in the world he's stunned and asks if they are angels. To which they reply "Nay, we are but men! Rock!" It's too bad they forgot how the song goes.
** In ''{{Guitar Hero}} 3'', the finale is a heavy metal cover of this song, which is so intensely difficult that it's become the ScrappyLevel. This actually angered the Charlie Daniels Band, because it undermined the point of the song.
** Robot Chicken naturally parodies this, with Spawn challenging Satan to a fiddling contest. Spawn manages a grand playing of the song, when all Satan can do is scratch out a painful note. Because the audience are his minions, however, he still gets called the winner.

* In the ''{{Bedazzled}}'' remake the Devil [[HotAsHell (a beautiful woman)]] grants wishes to a man in exchange for his soul, but each wish [[JackassGenie results in a humiliating failure]]. It turns out that the Devil is actually harmless, since [[spoiler: God owns all people's souls; they can't be sold!]] She's just a practical joker.

* Another Loser Devil shows up in the Eoin Colfer novel ''The Wish List''.

* This is the premise of the LordOfTheRings MarySueHunters story [[http://www.fanfiction.net/s/1518794/1/The_Game_of_the_Gods The Game of The Gods]]. In it, [[GodOfEvil Morgoth]] attempts to derail the books by inserting various {{Mary Sue}}s in it, but ends up getting them killed through a loose grasp of the lore, the cleverness of his opponents, and sheer lack of common sense. By the end of the story, [[IneffectualSympatheticVillain he's become rather pitiable]].

** There was one "fanfic" where it was revealed that the devil and antichrist we see in the books are strawmen set up by the ''real'' antichrist, who arrives at the end of the series, pretending to be Jesus. That actually made a lot of sense...

* In UsefulNotes/{{Mormonism}} the Devil is the loser of the war in heaven. Basically, it boils down into different versions of the Plan of Eternal Salvation. Lucifer's plan involved everyone not having free will, guaranteed entry into heaven, and the glory for all of that belonging to himself since it was his plan. Jesus wanted everyone to have free will even though it meant that yes, there will be sinners and evil people, as well all the people going into heaven [[EarnYourHappyEnding deserving it for trying act ethically over the course of their lifetime]] and all the glory going to God because God enabled it and [[TheChessmaster probably had it all in mind anyways]]. Lucifer eventually becomes Satan, stewing in Outer Darkness (Hell) and trying to upset the Plan of Eternal Salvation at every chance he can get. Which is, of course, [[TooDumbToLive helps to enable the entire thing]].

* Pictured above is the Devil from ''Sinfest''. While he IS a pretty badass dude, more than a few strips feature him being mocked by God, toyed with by the angel couple Ezekiel and Arial, and made aware that he's LonelyAtTheTop. The closest thing he has to a friend is his LooneyFan Lil' Evil, a HarmlessVillain who's faith might as well be HoYay.

** Does that mean the Devil's plan was {{instrumentality}}?
*** ...''holy shit'', just when I thought ''NeonGenesisEvangelion'' had enough [[WildMassGuessing insane theories]].
*** Jokes aside, the Devil is still treated as a very dangerous character. Yeah, he's lost, but his goal shifted from elevating himself above God by forcing humanity into salvation, [[OmnicidalManiac to taking as many souls down with him as he can.]]

* Phil, the Prince of [[strike: Darkness]] Insufficient Light from ''{{Dilbert}}''. He even has a giant spoon in place of the usual pitchfork, and claims to be from ''Heck''. May or may not be related to the PointyHairedBoss.

* Poor, poor Fan(Damn) from the swedish comic ''Himmlens Änglar''(Heavens Angels), in this series he is TheWoobie.