History Main / AmbiguousSituation

** In the leadup to ''ComicBook/BatmanADeathInTheFamily'', ComicBook/{{Robin}} Jason Todd chases a diplomat's son after he gets off scot-free for abusing his girlfriend and later killing her. The comic cuts away to show the man falling to his death. When Batman catches up to him, he demands to know if he fell or if he was pushed. Jason can only say "he slipped". Neither Batman nor the reader knows if Robin crossed a line or not.

** In the ''Franchise/{{Superman}}'' storyline ''ComicBook/TheGirlWithTheXRayMind'', villainess Lesla-Lar kidnaps, brainwashes and poses as Lena Thorul. Was it part of a larger scheme, or did Lesla simply want to hurt ComicBook/{{Supergirl}} through her friend? It's not known because Lesla got killed off shortly later, before having the opportunity to carry out the next stage of her plan.

* In ''ComicBook/TheDepartmentOfTruth'', the man who runs the Department of Truth says that he is Lee Harvey Oswald, the man who (allegedly) [[WhoShotJFK assassinated President John F. Kennedy]]. It is brought up multiple times whether or not he's the real Oswald, a belief-based manifestation or if this is just a codename, but a real answer is never given.
* ''ComicBook/TheIncredibleHulk'': In the ''Tempest Fugit'' arc, it was revealed that the Hulk was originally an imaginary friend of Bruce Banner's, and implied that the Hulk was really an alternate personality. One day after Bruce was bullied at school, the Hulk took over his body and planted a bomb at his school. Bruce stopped the bomb but was expelled from school. Thaddeus Ross, impressed with how advanced the bomb was, offered to guide Bruce through his education. The end of the arc revealed Nightmare has been plaguing the Hulk for years with hallucinations, misdirections, and manipulations of reality. It is thus left ambiguous on whether the flashback we saw was real or fake.
* ''ComicBook/LokiAgentOfAsgard:'' In the final arc, tying in with the events of ''ComicBook/SecretWars2015'', Those Who Sit Above In Shadow supposedly return in the face of the Final Incursion. However, they also borrow a few phrases from The Beyonder, so in the final issue Loki wonders whether they ''are'' Those Who Sit Above, or merely a bunch of Beyonders running away from Doctor Doom. Loki being Loki, they simply shrug their shoulders and refuse to give a definite answer, merely calling the Beyonder theory "a nice explanation for the science crowd".
* Played for laughs in ''ComicBook/MightyMorphinPowerRangersTeenageMutantNinjaTurtles'', when Splinter gives a deliberately vague answer to Billy Cranston's question about whether he was a human mutated into a rat or a rat who became part-human after his mutation in this version of the Turtles' history.

* ComicBook/UltimateMarvel:

* ''Comicbook/{{Watchmen}}'' has an open-ended ending where Rorschach's journal is seen lying in a pile of papers and reports in the ''New Frontiersman'', and a hand is seen reaching for the pile. The significance of the journal is that Rorschach uses it to expose [[spoiler: Ozymandias]] for the murders of The Comedian and Moloch, which could potentially lead to an investigation that would expose him. However, [[spoiler: the journal only exposes the murders of The Comedian and Moloch, and does not actually expose the squid monster ending, as Rorschach was not aware of the squid monster when he submitted the journal. And an underground newspaper may find it hard to expose a man as rich and powerful as Ozymandias.]] They actually do an interesting Parallel stories where in the ''ComicBook/DoomsdayClock'', [[spoiler:as it's revealed that Rorschach's journal, along with supporting evidence, revealed Ozymandias' plot to the public, branding him a fugitive and throwing the world to hell as a result.]] whiles in the Series/{{Watchmen|2019}} its revealed [[spoiler: the Plan worked and the world got decades of peace as a result]]

** In ''Franchise/{{Superman}}'' storyline ''ComicBook/TheGirlWithTheXRayMind'', villainess Lesla-Lar kidnaps, brainwashes and poses as Lena Thorul. Was it part of a larger scheme, or Lesla simply wanted to hurt ComicBook/{{Supergirl}} through her friend? It is not known because Lesla got killed off shortly later, before having the opportunity to carry out the next stage of her plan.

** ''ComicBook/UltimateSpiderMan'': High school student Peter Parker is bitten by an experimental spider in Oscorp, and gets super powers. Aware of all this, Norman Osborn tries to repeat the experiment on himself to get superpowers. He turns into a terrible menacing monster, who can fly and throw fireballs. First he burns his house and kills his wife, and tries to kill his son Harry. Then he attacks the school, and Spider-Man fights him. But why did he attack the school? Was he trying to kill Harry again? Was he trying to kill Parker? Both? During the fight he was limited to HulkSpeak and just growled "Parker" when he fought Spider-Man, so it was not easy to figure out his motives.

*** Xavier has no qualms about using his powers to pursue his plans, but when he ''actually'' used them and when he didn't is sometimes left ambiguous, for either the characters or the reader according to circumstances. For example, he openly used his powers when Cyclops was about to leave the team and join the Brotherhood, and when he discovered that Iceman outed the X-Men secrets to impress a girl. In another case, David claimed that Storm only loved Beast because Xavier influenced him to do so, so that he is happy and stays in the team, but it was eventually revealed that he was not involved in that.

** Ever since the season 2 finale aired, it has been a major point of argument among fans as to whether or not [[spoiler: [[BigBad Chrysalis]] and/or her army survived being catapulted out of Canterlot]], as it wasn't made clear in the episode itself. In the comic, we find out that [[spoiler:yes, she did survive. And then one changeling makes an appearance during season 6, and the whole hive comes back at the season finale]].

** "[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS4E9PinkieApplePie Pinkie Apple Pie]]" leaves it unclear whether Pinkie Pie is related to Applejack. All the records they find are [[{{Conveniently Interrupted Document}} smudged in the exact relevant spot]], but after their adventures, Applejack decided it doesn't matter whether they have common genes since they get along so well Pinkie would fit just fine as a member of the family even if they're not related.

* ''Film/BornInTheMaelstrom'': It's left explained what the community is about, why it formed and even its location.

** In the leadup to ''ComicBook/ADeathInTheFamily'', ComicBook/{{Robin}} Jason Todd chases a diplomat's son after he gets off scot-free for abusing his girlfriend and later killing her. The comic cuts away to show the man falling to his death. When Batman catches up to him, he demands to know if he fell or if he was pushed. Jason can only say "he slipped". Neither Batman nor the reader knows if Robin crossed a line or not.

* DiagnosedByTheAudience: When a character shows signs of having a mental disorder, but it’s not clear if they actually have it, though the audience believes that they do have it.

** [[Characters/TheOwlHouseTheCollector The Collector]]
*** Is he simply a PsychopathicManchild, or is his childish behavior because he’s literally a child, both physically and mentally? Kikimora's statement that he's a "child from the stars" seems to suggest it’s the latter.
*** When he’s first freed, he blasts Belos into goop via a "game of tag". It’s unknown whether he knew that what he was doing and was using a form of NeverSayDie UnusualEuphemism as per his BlueAndOrangeMorality or if he genuinely believes that’s how tag works. Though given how his tone drops when he says "I'm it", the former seems far more likely.
*** Is the Collector we see in "Knock Knock Knockin' On Hooty's Door" the same Collector we see later as a shadow and then freed in "King's Tide"? The former is tall and sounds more mature and sadistic, while the latter is more playful and childish and in his physical form looks slightly taller than a toddler. Could the former simply be the distorted perception the Owl Beast had because of its traumatic capture? Did the Collector's imprisonment somehow reverted them to a child-like state? Or is The Collector some kind of LegacyCharacter and the one we see from "Hollow Mind" on is just the last one in a line of Collectors?

Only add examples where the ambiguity of the situation is implied in-universe. Also, don't add situations that are only temporarily ambiguous: If the situation is clarified after a little while then it is not an example.

* ''Film/AbsolutePower'': At the end, it's unclear if Walter Sullivan murdered Richmond and made this look like suicide, or talked him into it.

* DiagnosedByTheAudience: When a character shows signs of having a mental disorder, but it’s not clear if they actually have it.

* ''Art/LasMeninas'' is one of the most ambiguous paintings in Western art history. The way the subjects in the painting are positioned and perspective is utilized lend themselves to multiple situations, neither of which are a perfect fit for what is depicted.