, now in their sixth year, long ago took on the air of a Kafka novel. Every few weeks Egypt’s only democratically elected president, deposed in a coup in 2013, would appear in court to answer one charge or another. He was accused of espionage and torture, and of stealing livestock.
, article in The Economist published on 20 June 2019.
When listing three or more things, the comedy rule is to not finish strong, but to list some strong examples followed by a very weak example, for the funny. Sometimes this will stick to the Rule of Three, but sometimes a proper Long List will increase the humor.
In the US and Canada, "jaywalking" means crossing the road in a dangerous manner, particularly ignoring the crosswalks when crossing city streets. In many other countries, not only are there almost no restrictions on where you can cross, but the idea of someone being fined for crossing the road is alien. In places where jaywalking is illegal, it's usually an infraction (i.e. like a parking ticket) rather than a proper criminal offense, and some cities don't even bother to enforce it.
See also: List of Transgressions, Arson, Murder, and Lifesaving, Felony Misdemeanor, Good News, Bad News, Odd Name Out, The Triple. Compare Poke the Poodle, All Crimes Are Equal, Jaywalking Will Ruin Your Life, when the minor crime carries significant consequences. The inverse is Bread, Eggs, Milk, Squick, where a list of seemingly mundane things ends with something much darker. Clue, Evidence, and a Smoking Gun is a related inverse that deals with deductions rather than listing things. Sub-Trope of The Last of These Is Not Like the Others.
Examples:
- Advertising
- Anime & Manga
- Comic Books
- Comic Strips
- Fan Works
- Films – Animation
- Films – Live-Action
- Literature
- Live-Action TV
- Music
- Mythology
- Pinball
- Podcasts
- Professional Wrestling
- Radio
- Recorded and Stand-Up Comedy
- Tabletop Games
- Theatre
- Video Games
- Web Animation
- Web Comics
- Web Original
- Western Animation
- Other
- Real Life
