"Tragedy always strikes when one least expects it. But to wait for a man to stand before striking him down seems almost crueler than dealing the fatal blow while he lies on the ground."
— The narrator, Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors (bad ending number 5)
Now, you shouldn't be surprised that there is magical 'interference' at work here because on the one hand, we can pick up lifesigns so well we can identify the species of a lifeform from lightyears away, while they're hiding inside of an asteroid field—inside of an asteroid, no less? But detecting explosives within the asteroid field? Ha ha ha, not a chance. 'Interference' usually means 'from the writer'.
—SFDebris on Star Trek: Voyager, "Homestead"
"But... this is a Moulin Rouge! review, we can't end on a happy note!"
"You're right, we need a sad ending for no reason other than we need a sad ending!"
— The Nostalgia Critic and The Nostalgia Chick, MUSICAL REVIEW: Moulin Rouge
"I wasn't expecting Ammon to clap us on the back and say "Great job kid, now let's go home," but it'd be better than what we got. As it is, all our work, all our effort invested into NWN2 as a game is undone in seconds because Obsidian wanted a 'tragic' ending. It is tragic, mind, but only for the player."
— Let’s Play
Neverwinter Nights 2, by Lt. Danger
Neverwinter Nights 2, by Lt. DangerSeth Gecko: Yeah, those acts of God really stick it in and break it off, don't they?
Jacob Fuller: Yes, they do.
"You can do everything right and cheat death, and then be ruined by one false step."
—Michael Altman, Dead Space: Martyr
Shakespeare: Master, I do write stories with happy endings from time to time, but... a fairytale world like this sure makes me want to write a bad ending.
Protagonist: Stop it.
Shakespeare: Ah, Master, it's dangerous. I really want to write that ending now! Hey, right hand, settle down!
Kuzco: No! It can't be! How did you get back here before us?
Yzma: Ah... (Beat) Uh... How did we, Kronk?
Kronk: Well, ya got me. (pulls down the chase map the audience was looking at) By all accounts, it doesn't make sense.
Yzma: Oh, well. Back to business!
Yzma: Ah... (Beat) Uh... How did we, Kronk?
Kronk: Well, ya got me. (pulls down the chase map the audience was looking at) By all accounts, it doesn't make sense.
Yzma: Oh, well. Back to business!
”What’s a bad miracle? They got a word for that?”
—OJ Haywood, Nope
This is like a reverse Deus ex Machina. Instead of creating a solution out of nowhere, they create a problem out of nowhere.
—Felix Recenserar, Sune på Bilsemester
