History Main / ComicallySmallDemand

* ''Series/ThirtyRock'': When NBC is interested in creating his [[ShowWithinAShow show idea, Gold Case]], Kenneth initially asks for the Head Page position and a new clock radio. However, with Jack's guidance, he quickly amends it to add 5 points on the back end, 20% gross on merchandising, a creator credit on this and any international editions...[[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking and a new clock radio]].

* Justified in ''Manga/{{Noragami}}'', five-yen coins are a traditional offering at Shinto shrines, which is why the homeless god Yato only charges five yen (approximately five cents) for his services--the offering is more important than the money itself.

* ''Manga/TheWayOfTheHousehusband'': Chapter 58 [[FauxHorrific portrays it]] like a terrifying mob shakedown when the infamous [[RetiredMonster ex-Yakuza]] "Immortal" Tatsu goes door-to-door for Neighborhood Association dues... to the tune of 500¥[[note]](less than $5 US)[[/note]] per household -- literal pocket change. Notably, the yakuza he's demanding the money from have to ask one of his associates if he can borrow it, because there is no reason a wealthy crime lord would carry pocket change.

* ''Fanfic/AbsoluteTrust'': In Chapter 21, when Avatar Kyoshi manifests in Chin Village, Alec requests that she stick around for two favors. First, deal with the Rough Rhinos when they come to attack the city, and second...give him an autograph.
* ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/11961369/24/Blood-Man-Luffy Blood Man Luffy]]'': After saving Alabasta from Crocodile, Luffy asks for King Cobra's throne. No, not the kingdom, the ''chair,'' much to Cobra's relief. Because "It'd be so cool to have an actual king's throne on my ship!"

* ''Film/TheDarkKnight'': Subverted. After the Joker is denied his phone call at the police station, he delivers a HannibalLecture to the cop watching him in order to provoke him into a fight, manages to defeat him and get his hands on a weapon, marches out into the station with the cop held hostage, and when asked what he wants says "I just want my [[OnePhoneCall phone call]]". The subversion is [[spoiler:the call triggers a bomb]].
* ''Film/IndianaJonesAndTheLastCrusade'': The Germans offer the Sultan of Hatay a large bribe consisting of "treasures donated by the most powerful families in Germany." The only thing that interests the Sultan, however, is the Rolls Royce that the Germans drove up in. In exchange for the car, he gives the Nazis the removal rights for the Holy grail and even throws in an armed escort, including a tank. The novelisation fleshes this out by pointing out that the Sultan is ''already'' fabulously wealthy and has plenty of treasures of the kind being 'donated' already, and so from his perspective this is a ComicallySmallBribe; he just happens to be keen on cars.
* ''Film/LittleNikita'': A rogue Soviet agent, in 1987, demands $200,000 to get him to stop killing other agents.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheRealGhostbusters'': In "Chicken He Clucked", Cubby is driven mad by the constant smell of chicken due to living next to a chicken stand, so he summons a demon named Morganon to rid the world of all chickens. Morganon, embarrassed by such a request, tries to offer him his own country but Cubby refuses to budge. Morganon compromises with giving him the power to make anything he wants dissappear, thus allowing him to get rid of the chickens for himself. [[spoiler: Morganon later becomes a laughing stock and teams up with the Ghostbusters to break the deal with Cubby.]]

* ''WesternAnimation/TheRealGhostbusters'', In "Chicken He Clucked", Cubby is driven mad by the constant smell of chicken due to living next to a chicken stand, so he summons a demon named Morganon to rid the world of all chickens. Morganon, embarrassed by such a request, tries to offer him his own country but Cubby refuses to budge. Morganon compromises with giving him the power to make anything he wants dissappear, thus allowing him to get rid of the chickens for himself. [[spoiler: Morganon later becomes a laughing stock and teams up with the Ghostbusters to break the deal with Cubby.]]

** When The Geek builds a mecha for Sam and Max to destroy an impending meteor, the duo agreed that it would look like Max and even share his name in exchange for Sam having full control of it's radio.

* ''WesternAnimation/KimPossible'', Downplayed with Frugal Lucre. While his demand isn’t comically small (Six Billion Dollars), the method of it is (everyone in the world sends him one dollar).

** In ''Literature/TheScienceOfDiscworld'', the Elf Queen tries to bribe Rincewind with his heart's desire. However, due to a previous incident involving Rincewind being stuck on an island for too long, his only real desire is potatoes (having gotten a little, ah, "confused" between them and sex). This baffles and enrages the Queen, and she stomps off, but had she actually provided some potatoes, she might've had Rincewind; he shouts after her he'd be happy with a bag of crisps. Humoroursly, this started out as Rincewind concentrating on potatoes so the Elf Queen couldn't read his mind and find out what the wizards' plan was, but shifted into "I want potatoes" pretty quickly.

** When The Geek builds a mecha for Sam and Max to destroy an impending meteor, the duo agreed that it would look like Max in exchange for Sam having full control of it's radio.

* In ''TabletopGame/VampireTheMasquerade'', a vampire who is owed a favor by another vampire will usually hold onto this debt for decades, using it only in the most dire circumstances. Occasionally, however, the vampire will let his debtor settle the accounts by doing some relatively minor task. In this case, the Comically Small Demand is actually an Insultingly Small Demand: essentially, the creditor is saying to the debtor, "You are so insignificant and worthless that this is all I think you're capable of doing for me, and it isn't even worth the effort to hold onto the favor for the future."

* ''WebVideo/BumReviews'', Chester believes ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'' stole his "Live Long and Suck It" joke and wants compensation. His settlement is [[CardboardBoxHome a box.]] His lawyer did a DoubleTake once he read it out loud and asks if Chester's actually going through all this legal trouble for a box, only for Chester to clarify he wants a ''furnished'' box. His lawyer instantly quits.

* SeriousBusiness (everybody else thinks taking the world hostage over Shechuan Sauce [[DisappointedByTheMotive is beyond ridiculous]], but ''[[SkewedPriorities they]]'' don't)

Someone with authority or power (or the delusion of such) uses it to command, force, or negotiate with people to do mundane or simple tasks for him/her.

* ''VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas'': You can convince the owner of the laser pointer of a KillSat to sell it to you for 1000 caps [[note]]The price of a brand new [=SMG=] and a few clips[[/note]] and convince him to down it to ''20 caps''[[note]]the price of two bottles of water[[/note]] . On the other hand, said owner is a kid and thus not very math-wise, and os also unaware of what exactly it is he's holding.

* ''VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas'': You can convince the owner of the laser pointer of a KillSat to sell it to you for 1000 caps [[note]]The price of a brand new [=SMG=] and a few clips[[/note]] and convince him to down it to ''20 caps''[[note]]the price of two bottles of water[[/note]] . On the other hand, said owner is a kid and thus not very math-wise.

* In ''WesternAnimation/Ducktales2017'', [[spoiler:Bradford]] offers Black Heron to join his organization he calls the Organization of World Domination (O.W.L.) if he breaks her out of SHUSH prison. Heron, finding the name bland, refuses to join unless he agrees to call it the ''Fiendish'' Organization of World Domination (F.O.W.L.). He reluctantly agrees.

-->-- ''Film/AustinPowersInternationalManOfMystery''

** Infamously in ''Film/AustinPowersInternationalManOfMystery'', time-traveling villain Dr. Evil plans to hold the world ransom in exchange for "One million dollars!", which the UN members find hysterical. Number Two advises him to raise the amount to $100 billion, because of [[RidiculousFutureInflation inflation since the '60s]].
** Inverted in ''Film/AustinPowersTheSpyWhoShaggedMe'', where he returns to the '60s and demands his $100 billion, which the President of the US and his staff find equally hilarious, because that amount of money doesn't exist yet. He's told that he might as well ask for a gajillion-bajillion dollars.

* ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'': In "Die Hippie Die," a group of hippies invades South Park, and the only person capable of dealing with them is [[EnfanteTerrible Cartman]], who's in jail for an earlier stunt. All of the adults in town gather to ask him for help and try bribing him with a cake, but he demands something even more precious: a remote control Tonka dump truck, batteries included. As part of the deal, Cartman says that [[SitcomArchNemesis Kyle]] can never be allowed to have a Tonka truck of his own and has to watch him play with the toy. The adults agree, and, once the day is saved, the episode ends with Cartman happily having fun with his truck and refusing to let Kyle take a turn with it.