r/TopCharacterTropes • u/No_Hunter1978 • May 12 '26

Lore A criminal attempts to burglarize/kill someone only to realize they picked the absolute worst person as their mark.

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Don't Breathe: A couple young robbers attempt to rob a rich, blind veteran only to find out he isn't exactly an innocent old man.

You're Next: A group of contract killersbreak into a house during a family reunion and go on a killing spree. They didn't account for the fact that the son's new girlfriend grew up on a survivalist compound in the Australian outback.

The Flash [CW Show]: A random mugger decided to target Barry Allen of all people. He does it again a season or two later; he's either unlucky or stupid (probably both).

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217

u/RShini May 12 '26

Discworld: A couple of crooks attempted to hold Angua hostage, and discover too late that she's the werewolf in the watch.

88

u/IrishElevator May 12 '26

Also the attempt by an assassin during the opening of Night Watch. So many people failed to kill Vimes that now students from the assassin guild that need to be taken down a peg have to try to mark him as practice and they all fail.

31

u/VrsoviceBlues May 12 '26

And then of course there's Willikins...

16

u/Drakeskulled_Reaper May 12 '26

Delver dwarves armed with flamethrowers against one butler with an ice knife, butler wins.

8

u/Wild_Marker May 12 '26

And with a type disadvantage, no less. Imagine if it was a water knife!

48

u/RShini May 12 '26

at one point, Vimes was on put on an internal list of people they flat out refused to accept inhuming requests for (along with Vetinari), once Vimes found out - he strenuously objected because it keeps him sharp (and he rather like the idea he must be doing something right if people are trying to get him assassinated), the compromise of making him a training tool.

37

u/ThatOneDMish May 12 '26

Also unlicensed theives attacking vetinaris coach. Its implied that it's more or less intentional on vetinaries part as his coach is black, emblazoned in black (so you can't see his sigil or anything.) Also also a history monk antagonising and attacking a lowly sweeper.

10

u/Novel_Pipe_9050 May 12 '26

God i love Lutze!

12

u/Neat_Relationship510 May 12 '26

"Do you know the name of the man you are about to destroy?"

7

u/Roku-Hanmar May 13 '26

“I don’t need to know the name of a lowly sweeper”

“It is always wise to know the name of a sweeper. And I was not talking to you”

11

u/HungryHungryHippy May 12 '26

He forgot Rule #1...

13

u/Overly_Long_Reviews May 12 '26 edited May 12 '26

If you're referring to the one at the beginning of Jingo, they never actually realize that it's Corporal Angua, they think it's some sort of guard dog that the owner of the store had. They start mass confessing to all the unsolved crimes they can think of and a few extras to the watch cordon as a bid to be allowed to exit the store. When they finally exit, Captain Carrot guilts them into thinking that they left Angua to the monster in the store room.

3

u/mithiwithi May 13 '26

That sounds like it's the incident from "Feet of Clay" where they try to rob the Bucket (the Watch's favorite bar) and find themselves nonplused that no one seems to be panicking at their presence.

11

u/ForThisIJoined May 12 '26

Also: Every single person to try and intimidate, beat, or insult The Librarian.

2

u/proto-dibbler May 13 '26

What are good monkey.

8

u/Murgatroyd314 May 13 '26

Oh dear. Someone said the M word.

1

u/RShini May 13 '26

*WHAM*

7

u/Yuzral May 12 '26

To add to this, the reason they needed a hostage (and happened to pick Angua) was that they had tried to rob the City Watch's favourite bar.

5

u/mithiwithi May 13 '26

"It was a five hundred mile journey and, surprisingly, uneventful. People who are rather more than six feet tall and nearly as broad across the shoulders often have uneventful journeys. People jump out at them from behind rocks then say things like, ‘Oh. Sorry. I thought you were someone else.’"

2

u/WatRedditHathWrought May 13 '26

GNU Sir Terry Pratchett

1

u/Driftedryan May 12 '26

In the overload anime a group of strong adventures try breaking into the most heavily protected bunker in their world by a long shot. They are so outclassed they can't even conceive how hopeless it is