Your Little Dismissive Diminutive

"...Look, listen—I know why you choose to have your little, ahem, group therapy sessions in broad daylight."

— The Joker, The Dark Knight

This is a variety of Stock Phrase in which characters say something like "your little [x]" where [x] is their little description of whatever they're referring to.

Alternatively, the speaker's little use of this phrase can replace the word "your" with a word like his, her, their, etc. and/or replace "little" with a similar enough synonym.

Sometimes this can be used to indicate that such characters are Deadpan Snarkers, Smug Snakes, or both, especially if they use it frequently.

See also And Your Little Dog, Too!. Insignificant Little Blue Planet is a subtrope, at least on the cosmic level.

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... and here are your little examples:

Comic Books

• In the "Threeboot" version of Legion of Super-Heroes, Colossal Boy is actually an alien from a planet of giants whose super-power is shrinking down to human size. After getting into a minor squabble with his teammates, he chuckles, "I just can't stay mad at you little people. You crack me up."

Fan Works

• In City of Lost Children, one of Essa's many condescending remarks to Tom is calling humans "your sad little species".
• In Coyote, during Chapter 3, during a U.A. faculty meeting to discuss Aizawa's causing his entire class to drop out in protest over his teaching methods on the first day (particularly how he expelled entire classes in the past), Principal Nedzu disapprovingly refers to the "little ‘logical ruses’" Aizawa plays on his class, such as claiming that he lied when he said he'd expel the lowest scorer on the Quirk Apprehension Exam.
• In My Dream Is Yours, Jamie Jam uses this against Ohlm in Chapter 4 when getting upset over forgetting her plan to attack the town due to her failed attempts to convey the concept of a "Knock Knock" Joke to the agent.
  Jamie Jam: I WAS SO BUSY TRYING TO GET THAT LITTLE...THAT LITTLE...
  Otis: [nodding] His name's Ohlm.
  Jamie Jam: THAT LITTLE OHLM TO SAY "WHO'S THERE", I FORGOT THE REST OF IT!!

Films — Animation

• Hopper from A Bug's Life uses three of these in the same conversation.
  Hopper: You think it's over?! All your little stunt did was buy them time!
  Flik: No, please! Please, Hopper!
  Hopper: (grabbing Flik's throat) I'll get more grasshoppers and be back next season, but you won't.
  [the sparrow looms over them]
  Hopper: Well, what's this? Another one of your little bird tricks?
  Flik: Yep!
  Hopper: Are there a bunch of little girls in this one, too? Hello, girls!
• Used many times in Meet the Robinsons, especially by "Goob"/Bowler Hat Guy, but by others as well.
  "I just want to bite his chubby little cheeks!"
  "Just worry about your little science gizmo and leave the 'perp' to me."
  "Talking frogs with their own little outdoor bar, and so smartly dressed!"
  "And now all that's left is to return to Inventco, where I'll pass off your little gizmo as my own."
• Star Wars: The Clone Wars (Movie): Count Dooku to Anakin Skywalker in reference to Ahsoka Tano.
  Dooku: I assure you my web is strong enough to catch your insignificant little padawan.

Film — Live-Action

• The page quote comes from the Heath Ledger version of the Joker from The Dark Knight, saying it to Gotham's organized crime community. Dismissive diminutives come up frequently with this version of Joker.
  • At the party, when Joker held Rachel at gunpoint and Batman told Joker to drop the gun:
    Joker: Oh sure, you just take off your little mask and show us all who you really are, hmm?
  • Or during the interrogation scene, when Batman reacts rather angrily to Joker's mention of Rachel:
    Joker: Does Harvey know about you and his little bunny?
  • Or when Joker shows up at Harvey's hospital bed and compares the local police to the local organized crime community:
    Joker: They're schemers. Schemers trying to control their little worlds.
  • Or later in that same conversation:
    Joker: I just took your little plan and I turned it on itself.
• In Star Wars: Return of the Jedi:
  • Emperor Palpatine gets a couple of these.
    Palpatine: It was I who allowed the Alliance to know the location of the shield generator. It is quite safe from your pitiful little band.
  • And a little later:
    Palpatine: From here you will witness the final destruction of the Alliance and the end of your insignificant rebellion.
• Closer: used semi-flirtatiously, semi-patronizingly:
  Alice: Look at your little eyes.
  Dan: I can't see my little eyes.
• Lean on Me has Joe Clark use this.
  Mrs. Elliott: I would love to stay and chat, Mr. Clark, but I've a concert in New York in two weeks and I would like to be prepared.
  Joe Clark: What?
  Mrs. Elliott: Prepare. You do know what prepare means, don't you? It means ready, capable and up to your job.
  Joe Clark: What concert, Mrs. Elliott?
  Mrs. Elliott: The one at Lincoln Center. We do one every year.
  Joe Clark: Until now. As of this moment, your little concert is cancelled.
• Monty Python and the Holy Grail
  French Knight: You and your silly English Knnnnnnniggits! Thpppppt! Thhppt! Thppt!
• The Wizard of Oz:
  Wicked Witch of the West: And Your Little Dog, Too!!
• The Warriors:
  Cyrus: We have been unable to see the truth because we have been fighting for ten square feet of ground. Our turf. Our little piece of turf. That's crap, brothers.
• In The Avengers, when Cap and Tony are squabbling aboard the Helicarrier, Thor laughs rather pompously and says, "You people are so petty! And tiny!"

Literature

• In Mogworld, Mr. Wonderful often calls the group "my little [x]" with x being a word or phrase vaguely appropriate for the situation. Lampshaded within the story, so he switches it up with "my tiny [x]," "my diminutive [x]" and so forth, to the point of having an open thesaurus on his desk during an interrogation.
• In Death: Eve in Vengeance In Death says in response to a ridiculous supposition at a media conference, "They belong in tiny rooms where they can be discussed by tiny minds."

Live-Action TV

• In Police Squad!, when Frank is minding a key-cutting shop in order to flush out a gang of extortionists:
  Extortionist: You'd better watch your little key store.
  Frank: What about my little keister?
• The Adam-12 episode "Killing Ground" has a bank robber who makes fun of the police and their "little tests" and "little review boards." It turns out he's bitter because he wanted to be a cop, but was deemed too mentally unstable. Towards the end, he loses it completely and yells "LITTLE TESTS! LITTLE BOARDS!" over and over again.
• Star Trek: Voyager: The backup copy of The Doctor in reference to the Vaskan-Kyrian race relations in "Living Witness":
  The Doctor: 700 years, and I'm still caught in the middle of your little dispute.

Theatre

• Elphaba from Wicked not only gets the "Little dog" line but describes Dorothy as "That wretched little farm girl" and tells Glinda to get the truth into "Your blissful little blonde brain".
• 1776: Addressing Jefferson, Edward Rutledge refers to the Declaration of Independence as "your little paper there."

Video Games

• StarCraft:
  Kerrigan: [to DuGalle] You see at this point, I'm pretty much the Queen Bitch of the Universe, and not all of your little soldiers or space ships will stand in my way again.
• Might and Magic VII: Queen Catherine has been reluctantly convinced that instead of beheading him, she should exile Archibald to Clanker's Lab, or to quote Her Majesty:
  Queen Catherine: "...your little island"
• Castlevania: Symphony of the Night has Dracula's most famous line of the game.
  Dracula: What is a man? A miserable little pile of secrets! But enough talk, HAVE AT YOU!
• Team Fortress 2:
  • When the Demoman (who specialises with a grenade launcher and stickybombs) is dominated by a Spy, one of the Spy's possible lines is:
    Spy: Don't feel bad; you did a fine job tossing your little balls around!
  • The Heavy does this a lot due to being the biggest mercenary around and his emphasize on size and power in comparison to the other classes.
    I am amused by entire eety-beety-teeny team!
    Little little man.
    Go ahead! Build your tiny gun, and run!
• The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim:
  • Some characters will respond to the Dragonborn stealing items in plain sight.
    Why you little filcher!
    You thieving little elf!
  • When the Dragonborn is caught pickpocketing:
    You little wretch, I saw that!
    You little thief!

Visual Novels

• Toward the end of Shinrai: Broken Beyond Despair, on the route to the good ending], Raiko Shinpuku, the protagonist, defends the falsely accused Kamen Eiga, and presents arguments as to why the person in question is not the killer. After the individual provides further evidence to corroborate Raiko's theory, Taiko Kikai, unconvinced, claims that the person made it up after hearing Raiko's "little story."

Web Comics

• The Inexplicable Adventures of Bob!: Although Voluptua claims to be the only member of her race who has any respect for humanity, this never stops her from patronizing us as "you little critters" or Earth as "this little world. It's so fragile and cute." Jean has repeatedly called her out for once calling us "wildlife."

Western Animation

• Captain Planet and the Planeteers: In "Don't Drink the Water", while telling Captain Planet to leave them alone if he wants Wheeler unharmed, Looten Plunder calls the teenager "[Planet's] little errand boy."
• The Simpsons often has Homer saying "Why you little—!" to Bart, before strangling him.
• In one episode of My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic, Big Macintosh is the one who dresses down the Cutie Mark Crusaders for spreading gossip around Ponyville. This also counts doubly as O.O.C. Is Serious Business and Swapped Roles, as Applejack is the one using the short responses Big Mac is typically known for.
  Big Mac: We don't want to talk to any of y'all right now, so take your little gossip column and your embarrassin' photographs and just go away!
• Daria has an example of Quinn referring to Jane's artwork as "her little paintings". Quinn doesn't seem to realize how condescending it was, though it doesn't pass by Jane without comment.
  Jane: They are minuscule, aren't they?
• The Transformers:
  • In "Autobot Spike", Megatron transforms and has Soundwave use him to shoot Bumblebee, who's in vehicle mode with Spike inside, in order to cause a diversion so the Decepticons can retreat unscathed. Bumblebee and Spike take the full impact, causing the Autobots to shift focus.
    Megatron: Yes! Attend to your diminutive friends while we depart.
  • Earlier in the same episode, the Decepticons attack a rocket base, intent on securing the fuel for themselves. After chasing off the humans:
    Megatron: Now, before any other such petty annoyances present themselves...
    Optimus Prime: Do you consider us petty, Megatron?

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