The poster for the ultraviolent movie Boogie el Aceitoso has the poster call Boogie sexist, racist and disgusting, and Boogie thanking the poster for the compliment.
In the Bugs Bunny cartoon "Devil May Hare", Bugs tries to shoo away a fawn by warning it about the Tasmanian Devil, not realizing that the latter is right behind him:
Bugs: He's a mean, vicious, nasty, no-good, baggy-eyed, marble-headed ignoramorous. He's a stupid... (turning and seeing Taz) Eyee...
Porky: I wonder how he knows so much about my family.
In the Paw Paw Bears episode "The Wishing Star Crystal", the villain, Dark Paw, and his two henchbears have to cross a canyon to follow Brave Paw and Mighty Paw:
Dark Paw: Get moving, you two, and build me a catapult! Bumble Paw:(mumbles) "Build me a catapult." Boy, are you mean! Dark Paw: Never mind the compliments! GET GOING!
Dr. Zoidberg: How do I look? Bender: Like whale barf. Dr. Zoidberg: Then the illusion is complete. [...] Dr. Zoidberg: You seem malnourished. Are you suffering from internal parasites? Edna: Why, yes! Thanks for noticing!note This one actually was intended as a compliment; Fry had advised Zoidberg to tell Edna she looked thin. [...] Fry: I'm flattered, really. If I was gonna do it with a big freaky mud bug, you'd be way up the list. Edna: Hush, you romantic fool.
When Leela tries to explain to Zapp Brannigan why she slept with him:
Leela: For a split second, my common sense was overwhelmed by pity. Zapp: A split second is all it takes.
The new pizza shop opened by aliens suffers this as well.
Leela: I don't mean to offend you, but this pizza tastes like vomit. Aliens: Thank you! Leela: Um... actually, I meant to offend you a little...
In "Mars University", Fry, a college dropout in his own time, finds out that by current academic standards he's only a high-school dropout:
Fry: What?! That's not fair. I deserve the same respect any other college dropout gets. By God, I'm going to enroll here at Mars University and drop out all over again! Leela: You won't last two weeks. Fry: Aww, thanks for believin' in me.
Leela: Relax, Bender. No one would let you near a child. Bev will get custody, and you'll be a deadbeat dad who never even bothers to know his own son. Bender:[sniffling] You really think so? Leela:[kindly] I know so! You're absolutely horrible in every way! Bender:[wiping away a tear] You're sweet, Leela!
In "A Tale of Two Santas," when Robot Santa asks Bender to help him "save" X-mas, Fry warns Bender not to do it because he's evil. Robot Santa assumes Fry is talking to him and responds with "I know he is."
During "The Beach", Zuko, Mai, Azula and Ty Lee end up spilling forth all their emotional baggage to one another. Azula chides Ty Lee for having run away to join a circus (even calling her a circus freak). Ty Lee, who is the youngest of six identical siblings immediately retorts that it was a way of finding her own identity, and that "Circus freak is a compliment!"
And then there's the lovely little family reunion between Zuko and his baby sister:
Zuko:You lied to me! Azula:[smugly] Like I've never done that before.
Zuko: We've [the Fire Nation] created an era of fear in the world, and if we don't want the world to destroy itself, we need to replace it with an era of peace, and kindness. Ozai:[laughing dismissively] Your uncle has gotten to you, hasn't he? Zuko:[smiles] Yes, he has.
Toph: It's obvious that the playwright did his research. I know it must hurt but what you're seeing up there on that stage is the truth. [later] Toph:[hearing her voice actor] Wait a minute, I sound like... a guy. A really buff guy. Katara:[attempting to make fun of her] Well, Toph, what you hear up there is the truth. It hurts, doesn't it? Toph:[smiles] Are you kidding me? I wouldn't have cast it any other way!
Rhino:[while chasing Spider-Man] You like being hunted, freak?! Spider-Man: Would you please look who's talking? Rhino: Oh, I may be a freak, but I'm not a coward!
When Bart is working for money in order to save up for something, he works at a barber shop. He gets his pay, but it's hair instead of money. Bart asks the barber about this and asks if the barber's crazy, and the barber smiles widely and nods, also laughing in a creepy way as a disturbed Bart backs out of the barber shop.
From another episode:
Homer: Hey, Flanders, you stink! Flanders:[cheerfully] Uh-oh. Better cancel that dinner party tonight. Thanks for the nose news, neighbor!
In early episodes of the series (and merchandise related to the show), Bart replies to accusation that he's an "underachiever" by saying that he's "proud of it". This is lampshaded in a much later episode (after his antics in many seasons make it clear that he's anything but) when he reads his permanent record at Springfield Elementary:
Bart:[reading] "Underachiever and proud of it"? Man, how old is this thing?
In "Lisa's Substitute", Martin Prince, competing with Bart to become class president, puts up a campaign poster with the slogan "A Vote for Bart is a Vote for Anarchy!". Bart, of course, puts up another poster with the same slogan.
In "Lisa on Ice", upon seeing Bart in his pajamas, this attempt to capitalize on the situation by Jimbo quite conclusively backfires.
Ned Flanders: Homer... you are the worst human being I have ever met. Homer Simpson:Hey, I got off pretty easy.
Later in the episode, Homer and Ned's roles are reversed.
Homer Simpson: That's it, you just can't insult this guy. You call him a moron and he just sits there, grinning moronly.
In "Three Men and a Comic Book", Bart works his ass off for Mrs. Glick to earn enough money to buy the first issue of Radioactive Man. After doing all his hard work upon payday, she gives him two quarters.
Mrs. Glick: Bart... you didn't say 'thank you.' Bart: Listen, lady, I can leave without screaming, I can leave without saying a bad word, but there is no wayI'm saying 'thank you'! Mrs. Glick: You're welcome!
Rainer: The film is just me in front of a brick wall for an hour and a half. It cost $80 million. Jay:[contemptuous] How do you sleep at night? Rainer: On top of a pile of money with many beautiful ladies. Jay: Just asking. Yeesh! [Long after the interview, Rainer Wolfcastle prepares to shoot Jay on the street, having just realized he's been insulted and made him look bad. Jay distracts Wolfcastle by telling him his shoes are untied and grabs a taxi. Hours later, Wolfcastle realizes that he's wearing loafers.]
Later, a female viewer comments on how beautiful Barney's movie is. Barney is sitting next to her and thanks her. She's then disgusted by him.
Woman: Eww! Did something crawl into your mouth and die? Barney: It didn't die. [the woman's eyes widen]
In "Dude, Where's My Ranch?", Homer writes a song about how much Ned Flanders sucks, which turns into a huge hit. During the musical montage, we see that even Flanders loves the song, and his sons scream in joy when the song describes them as "his creepy offspring".
Bart: Jessica, you're very beautiful, but you're not very nice. Jessica: Well, duh.
During her Shaming the Mob speech in "The Boys of Bummer", Marge mentions that Springfield has been called "The Meanest Town in America" and points to a nearby sign that shows that the town was proud enough about this label to put it on the sign like it's something worth mentioning to tourists.
Mr. Burns visits his alma mater only to discover that the university had become much more liberal since his graduation. After Mr. Burns expresses his opinions on certain changes, a student calls him "worse than Hitler". Burns snaps, "It's too late for flattery!" and leaves in a huff.
The Justice League episode "Hereafter" has the following exchange between a time-travelling Superman and Vandal Savage, now a few thousand years older and the last human left, stuck on a barren and ruined earth for all eternity:
Superman:You're insane. Vandal Savage: ...True. But that doesn't mean I'm not good company. Say, you want to come over to my place?[Beat] Like you have anything better to do.
Toadstool: I should have known never to trust you! Mario: Yeah, once a sewer-breath slime wagon, always a sewer-breath slime wagon! Koopa: How nice of you to say so!
Rattrap: You're nothin' but a schemin' snake-in-the-grass! Starscream: Flattery will get you flattened, vermin.
Also a version where a genuine complement is basically taken as a backfired insult:
Blackarachnia: What are you looking at? Silverbolt: That star. It's a planet really. It's Venus. It reminds me of you. Blackarachnia: Dark, hot, deadly, and poisonous? You're sweet. Silverbolt: No, wait. That's not what I meant...
Vendetta: * while pretending to be Charlotte in mockery* Tee-hee, I would like a stupid puppy! Charlotte: * appears from behind Vendetta* So would I!
Jimmy Two-Shoes: Heloise is very prone to taking it as a compliment whenever Jimmy and Beezy are shocked by her Enfant Terrible moments. Take for example, this moment in "Jimmy in the Big House" regarding Heloise's description of Miseryville's animals-only jail.
Beezy: What kind of heartless monster could design such a horrible place? Heloise: (coyly) That would be me, thank you.
And again in "The Terrific Trio" when Heloise explains that the monster that's been attacking Lucius was created by one of her experiments (specifically Samy going through ingesting a Jekyll & Hyde potion).
Jimmy: What kind of twisted... Beezy:...monstrous... Jimmy:...horrible... Beezy:...evil creature... Jimmy:...is capable of such a thing? Heloise: (still coyly) Oh, stop it, you're embarrassing me.
Narrator: Yes, unbelievable though it may seem, the box top counterfeiter was really Boris Badenov, that notorious No-Goodnik, that Venal villain, that delinquent demon, that... Boris Badenov: Is no use. Flattery will get you nowhere.
"Read My Lips" has Demonic Dummy Scarface thinking that there's a traitor in his gang who's selling them out to the cops. Dumb Muscle Rhino tries to prove his loyalty:
Rhino: It ain't me, boss! Scarface: I know it aint you, Rhino! You're too stupid to be a mole! Rhino: Gee, thanks, boss!
Warren: "Thanks, Kevin"? Awfully chummy with the help, Bruce. Do you thank the garbage man for picking up your trash? Bruce: If I happen to run into him.
In "Girls' Night Out", Batgirl and Supergirl fight Livewire, Poison Ivy, and Harley Quinn. Harley rescues Livewire by spraying her with water. Livewire gets up and grabs Harley, preparing to fry her:
Livewire:Are you outta your mind?! Harley Quinn:[thinks hard for several seconds, then smiles broadly] Yes!
In "Beware the Creeper", the as-yet unnamed Creeper confronts the Joker's henchmen:
Henchman: We don't know nothing about no Joker, creep! Pre-Creeper: Creep? Creep? ... I like it! My new name — the Creep! No, wait, too negative...
An example from the 'proud nerd' category pops up in Freakazoid!:
Freakazoid: You really have no life, do you? Fan Boy:[proudly] No, sir!
Done in one episode of Earthworm Jim (in which Psycrow and Professor Monkey-For-a-Head steal Jim's suit), though instead of being flattered, it just leaves Jim confused:
Psycrow: Face your doom, spineless worm-thingy! Jim: Was that supposed to be an insult? I really don't have a spine, you know...
Happens in the Code Lyoko episode "XANA's Kiss". Odd is having his ass handed to him by a polymorphic clone that keeps changing shape, currently assuming Jim's appearance. Odd tells it, "Hey, X.A.N.A., if you're going to keep changing appearances like that, do me a favor and turn into a wimp next time." XANA's response? He has it turn into a duplicate of Odd. Of course, being the Deadpan Snarker he is, Odd quickly comes up with a witty comeback to that: "Oh, no. Not him. I know his kind. Small, but tough as nails." (Unfortunately, he's right. It starts to pummel him even worse.)
Zim: (To Tak) You're a worse pilot than I am! (Beat) Wait.
Happens a lot in Daria, mainly because most of the people that Daria insults do not understand sarcasm. Here's one notable example with Quinn, though:
Daria: "Sometimes your shallowness is so much, it actually has depth."
Quinn: "Thanks!"
In South Park Stan and Kyle regularly tell Cartman he's a most unpleasant person for his selfish, manipulative schemes. He doesn't accept it OR deny it - he doesn't care. It bounces right off him.
In a non-show example, when Trey Parker and Matt Stone read that a critic called South Park "a badly animated cartoon with nothing but fart jokes for 20 minutes" they thought it was gold and created Terrance & Phillip.
In Disney's The Legend of Tarzan, after Queen La has killed some of her Leopard Men...
In Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2012), Raphael rips the arm off a Kraang robot and uses it to bar the door. Upon seeing the shocked expressions of his teamates...
Raphael: What? Leonardo: You are seriously twisted. Raphael: Thanks!
Happens a lot in The Tick. One of the best examples:
Barry: Where's the jerk who calls himself the Tick?! Tick: I am that jerk.
The Wacky Races episode "Rhode Island Road Race" had the narrator call Dick Dastardly "the Dracula of the drag strip":
Stone Cold: ...So I stunned McMahon's sorry ass, and that's the bottom line. Vince:[angrily] Stone Cold, who the hell do you think you are? You dare to disparage me? You're nothing but a foul-mouthed, beer-swilling sonuvabitch! Stone Cold: Hell, Vince, I appreciate the compliments, and right after I finish this beverage, I'm gonna knock that damn toupee off that stupid little head of yours and shove itright up...
In one episode of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1987) Shredder has taken April hostage and is making his get away he notices the turtles coming after him on motorized skateboards, he then sends a missile after them which they avoid we then get this exchange:
Shredder: By now they're nothing more than chunks of turtle meat splattered on the sewer walls!
April: Shredder, you're fiendishly inhuman!
Shredder: Thank you!
Aladdin: The Series episode "The Prophet Motive'' where Aladdin and co. confront Abis Mal after he steals Carpet. Abis Mal just shrugs the insult off and tells Haroud to write it down to remind him to use it against Aladdin.
Aladdin: You won't get away with this, you filthy jackal! Abis Mal: Ooo! "Filthy jackal!" Haroud, write that one down!
Occurs during the episode "Opposite Day", when Squidward tells SpongeBob that it's Opposite Day. SpongeBob falls for it, and dedicates his entire day to doing and perceiving everything possible inversely.
SpongeBob:[greeting Squidward] Hello, Squidward! Woop! I mean... goodbye, Squidward! Oh, isn't Opposite Day... terrible? [giggles gleefully] Squidward:[groans angrily] I'll tell you what's terrible! Living next to YOU! You're the worst neighbor in history! SpongeBob:[with genuine happiness] Wow! That's the nicest thing Squidward has ever said to me! Squidward:[facepalm]
In "Procrastination" as Mrs. Puff announces the essay:
Mrs. Puff: Now, get out your pencils and paper, and write down the assignment. SpongeBob:[to the student next to him] Did you hear that? We get an assignment! Mrs. Puff: Everyone must write an essay on What Not to Do at a Stoplight. SpongeBob: Did you hear that? What Not to Do at a Stoplight! Mrs. Puff: In no less than 800 words. Student:[mimicking him] Did you hear that? 800 words! SpongeBob:[smiles] Yeah, I know!
[The student frowns.]
In the episode One Krab's Trash , Mr. Krabs tries to get back a rare novelty hat from SpongeBob.
Mr. Krabs: I didn't want to say this in front of Patrick, but that hat makes you look like a girl. SpongeBob: Am I a pretty girl?
In "To Save a Squirrel", SpongeBob claims that Squidward once complimented his and Patrick's survival skills. A flashback reveals that what Squidward actually did back then is complaining that they are harder to get rid of than cockroaches.
Star Trek: Lower Decks: In "No Small Parts", when Ransom asks Troi if she could introduce him to any of her Betazoid friends, she points out that he uses his outward confidence to mask deep insecurity. He cheerily says that he could make that work.
Connie: I don't care! So I'm not Steven. Maybe he's really great at helping people work out these arguments, maybe he's really patient and caring, even though it must be hard for him having to be the adult for a bunch of super-powered children!
Connie: Then act like it! Be the Gems you've been for thousands of years instead of playing this silly game.
At the end of the Pound Puppies (1980s) episode "Whopper Cries Uncle", when it is discovered that the Puppy Pound's food supply had been stolen by Katrina Stoneheart, the Puppy Pound's owner Holly tells her that what she did was very mean and cruel. Katrina responds by sobbing and stating that Holly's remark is the nicest thing anyone's ever said to her.
Nazi Colonel: I am comfortable with being called a Nazi, you think there's some other word that will hurt my feelings? (beat) Ja, think before you talk shit!
Xiaolin Showdown: While he was solving a Crossword Puzzle, Jack asks Wuya to tell him a four-letter word for "idiot". He takes "Jack" as the perfect answer, not realizing she was making fun of him.
In "Uncle Albert Alert", the final episode of Shaggy & Scooby-Doo Get A Clue!, the main villain Dr. Phineas Phibes finds out that someone has been infiltrating his organization in order to tell Shaggy and Scooby of his evil plans. He rounds up his most trusted minions and gives reasons for why he's sure they're not the mole. When he gets to Agent 2, he tells him that he can't be the traitor because he's too stupid to be a mole. Agent 2 happily replies by thanking Phibes.
The Drak Pack episode "Package Deal" had Toad thank Dr. Dred for telling him that his stupidity was exceeded only by how hideous he was.
In Miraculous Ladybug, Plagg, Cat Noir's kwami, nicknames Tikki, Ladybug's kwami, "sugarcube", which she hates. She threatens to call him "stinky sock" in retaliation, but Plagg actually rather likes the idea.
A meta example regarding Family Guy: a joke from an episode where Peter becomes a baseball manager has him trading Meg to American Dad!, with both of them acting like it's a step down. Virtually every YouTube comment on the official channel's clip remarks that Meg is actually getting a good deal, as American Dad has grown in esteem while Family Guy has undergone serious Seasonal Rot.
Played for Laughs in Mission Hill when Jim is wearing his ridiculous "Karai Pantsu" from Japan, much to Andy's chagrin. Andy asks Gus and Wally, a gay couple, if they think Jim looks gay in those pants and it goes right over their heads that he meant gay as a perjorative.
Gus: Ehh. No self-respecting gay man would be caught dead in those things!
In "Alien Resurr-eggtion", Leshawna passes by a locked door and gets shivers. She asks the others if they too feel like there's a strange and soulless cold on the other side. What she's sensing is Chris, who is seated in the control room and watches Leshawna's remark through the camera system. He is flattered by her description of him.
Heather derogatively calls Blaineley a diva in "Chinese Fake-Out". Blaineley cheerfully thanks her for it.
Transformers: Animated: In "Garbage In, Garbage Out", Ratchet cruelly declares Wreck-Gar is only good for one thing— GARBAGE!Wreck-Gar takes this as a command and dumps garbage on Ratchet.
Also:
Ratchet: You glitch-head! You're gonna destroy the whole city! You wouldn't dare do something that stupid! Wreck-Gar: I am Wreck-Gar! I dare to be stupid!
In the X-Men: The Animated Series episode "Mojovision", Longshot tells Mojo "You're a soulless, sadistic bag of pus. And you smell!" Mojo replies "Flattery, young man, will get you absolutely nowhere!"
In the first episode of Over the Garden Wall, Wirt compares one of his younger brother's nicknames to the first ridiculous thing that comes to his head, but the younger brother loves the silly nickname.
Greg: I'm gonna call him "Wirt". Wirt: That's gonna be confusing. Greg: No, because I'll call you "Kitty". Wirt: Well, I'm going to call you "Candy Pants". Greg: Whoa, yeah!
The Johnny Bravo episode "Bikini Space Planet" has Carl reminisce on a time where Johnny called him the Mayor of Doofus Town, taking it as a compliment because he's focused on the "mayor" part.
