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Move Along, Nothing to See Here

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"Ok folks, show's over, nothing to see here, show's... OH MY GOD! A horrible plane crash! Hey everybody, get a load of this flaming wreckage! Come on, crowd around, crowd around, don't be shy, crowd around..."
Chief Wiggum, The Simpsons

The standard line used by police officers or The Men in Black keeping people away from something interesting that the government wants to hide.

It's usually a case of Blatant Lies (if a city block is levelled it's a "gas leak") and often used in Suspiciously Specific Denials ("The gas leak that levelled the city block was in no way related to any secret weapons research being done in any classified facilities").

Compare I Was Never Here. You might also hear All Part of the Show


Examples:

    open/close all folders 

    Anime and Manga 
  • In the second episode of Mobile Suit Gundam Wing, Duo Maxwell uses a flare to keep Relena from seeing his support crew salvaging Heero's Gundam Wing mobile suit.
    Duo: Don't look! Lady, I'm sure you have your reasons for being here, but you'd better just leave. Do yourself a favor.
  • My Monster Secret: When Akari summons a giant demonic castle on school grounds for the last event of the festival, the festival announcer can be heard saying "This is just a demonstration, please do not worry..."

    Comic Books 
  • Ultimate Daredevil & Elektra: A fire caused by two vandals destroy Stavros' shop. Matt gets some evidence around, and then the firemen tell him to get away, that the place is still dangerous.

    Fan Works 
  • Naru-Hina Chronicles: Naruto has another unwanted encounter with Nanami, which ends with the latter's brother once again literally dragging her away. The blond ninja then notices all the people who witnessed what just happened and he nervously tells them to disperse as there's nothing to see there. However, he makes an Oh, Crap! face when he notices Hinata's presence, who just saw what happened with Nanami and isn't too pleased about it.

     Films — Animated  
  • Invoked in Finding Nemo by Mr. Ray to keep the fish away from a fight brewing between Nemo and his dad Marlin.

     Films — Live-Action  

     Literature  
  • Guards! Guards!: Used by Sergeant Colon when a dragon is attacking the city. He follows it up with "Haven't you got homes to go to?", which even he realises isn't as rhetorical as he'd like.
  • In Death: Peabody says this in Vengeance In Death, and then says to Eve, "I Always Wanted to Say That".

     Live Action TV  
  • One of the catch phrases of the MST3K guys, often with a put-on Irish accent. Subverted in one episode where they did "Alright, gather 'round, folks, show's just startin'..."
  • Used in The 10th Kingdom when the rich elf dies. Made more amusing by the exact wording used:
    Sheriff: Move along, nothing to see here... just a dead elf, wings ain't flapping anymore...
  • Used by the Judoon in The Sarah Jane Adventures episode "Prisoner of the Judoon". A rhino-man with a Death Ray has arrested a Grand-Theft-Me-expert reptile-man, while Grey Goo swarms the building. Nobody's fooled.
  • Used in Community by Security Guard Chang as he ropes off a "crime" scene (a yam was squashed). Jeff comments that it's the first time that sentence has actually been true.
  • In the Top Gear India Special, Jeremy says "Nothing to see here" as he and Richard try to sabotage the air-conditioning in James' Rolls-Royce.

     Music  
  • Used as part of the bridge to John Linnell's song "South Carolina":
    Move around, folks
    Push her back there
    Move along, show's over folks
    Let him breathe, step lively
    Move around, folks
    Push her back there
    Move along, show's over folks
    Let him breathe, step lively
  • Used as part of the chorus to the Radiohead song "Gagging Order":
    Move along, there's nothing left to see
    Just a body, pouring down the street

    Move along, there's nothing left to see
    Just a body, nothing left to see

     New Media  
  • Used on the Recent Changes page of This Very Wiki when the database isn't working.
  • Used on slashdot when a posting's comment page hasn't been generated yet.

     Newspaper Comics  
  • Done in a Far Side cartoon by a zebra trying to get its herd away from a lion's kill of another zebra.
  • During a small story segment, Dilbert has this. Dilbert is assigned to a "fun and valuable" project, and takes Dogbert's advice to crush the opposition. He was one of the guys.

     Tabletop Games  
  • A gritty version used by the Texas Rangers in the Tabletop Game Deadlands: "Show me where you didn't see Aunt Millie climb up outta her grave. I got some carvin' to do."

     Video Games  

     Web Comics  
  • In Gunnerkrigg Court, when Jack Hyland running from monitors jumps out of a window it's, "Nothing to see here, kids.. Go back to your educations!" It's just a first-floor window, but still.
  • In Rascals, the moment when Reiko interrupts Lionna and Chrissy's practice on this page.
  • In Spinnerette, the Werewolf of London, Ontario has his own unique version of this.
    London: Move along, nothing to see here! Well, okay, there is, but catch it on YouTube later!

     Web Original  

     Western Animation  
  • The Simpsons:
    • Police Chief Clancy Wiggum as seen in the page quote.
    • Also, in "Homer vs. the Eighteenth Amendment", a parade float honoring Irish police is escorted by several of them, all saying things along the lines of this trope.
    • In "Marge Gets a Job" Groundskeeper Willie says, "Go back to class, lad! Nothin' to see here!" to Bart while wrestling a timber wolf in the halls of Springfield Elementary.
    • Bart says this at the end of "Homer's Night Out".
      Bart: All right folks, the show's over! No more to see, folks, come on. Only sick people want to see my folks kiss!
  • The entrance sign of the supernatural town Gravity Falls bears the logo "Nothing to see here!" indicating the most of the town being dimly aware of the supernatural but trying to pretend it doesn't exist.
  • This was Officer Barbrady's catchphrase in the early seasons of South Park: "Move along, people. Nothing to see here. Go home, you looky-loos." He was even saying it during the Apocalypse in South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut. In the episode where a Human Popsicle was found and taken to Dr. Mephesto's laboratory, Officer Barbrady was using his catchphrase until someone asked him about said Human Popsicle. Officer Barbrady then admitted there was something to see and stepped aside for the others to look.
  • Parodied in an episode of The Cleveland Show, in which the police dig up an inflatable doll belonging to one of Cleveland's friends: "It's a sex doll. I repeat, it's a sex doll. Something to see here folks, something to see here."
  • Invoked by Mr. Nezzer and Mr. Lunt as police officers "Fish" and "Chips" respectively in the VeggieTales Affectionate Parody Sheerluck Holmes. It also counts as their catchphrase — It's just about all they say in the show (Mr. Nezzer says "Move along!" and Mr. Lunt adds, "Nothing to see here!"). Mr. Lunt even shouts from off screen when Mr. Nezzer says his part.
    • It's even on the cover of the DVD — Mr. Nezzer and Mr. Lunt are shown wrapped in police tape that says it.
  • Parodied in American Dad! (pictured above); when the Smith family goes to a CIA fair, one of the booths has a banner invoking this trope.


Alternative Title(s): Nothing To See Here

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Sorry Ma'am

April's attempt at flirting with a cop hits a bit of a snag.

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