History Main / GenreBlindness

** First, she insisted that "the future of Equestria does not rest on me making friends.'' [[SpoilerOpening Read the title again]] and take a guess [[ForegoneConclusion how that pans out]].

** It happens again in the “The Return of Harmony” two-parter when she fails to notice her friends suddenly acting the opposite of their elements, and assumed they just became jerks in the maze. Even the fact that they actually turned gray, [[GenreSavvy something Spike even points out to Twilight]], goes completely over her head.
** In “A Canterlot Wedding” It seems Twilight hasn’t heard of the concept of impersonation, because [[WrongGenreSavvy she comes to the conclusion that Cadence must have turned evil]] after witnessing several [[OutOfCharacterAlert Out-Of-Character Alerts]].

** She's not the only one. In "[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS3E11KeepCalmAndFlutterOn Keep Calm and Flutter On]]", Rainbow Dash insists the Mane Six come up with a backup plan in case the whole "befriending" business with Discord to have him do a HeelFaceTurn doesn't work out, and the other ponies agree with her, with Twilight settling for [[BrainwashingForTheGreaterGood good old fashioned brainwashing]]. Once again, [[SpoilerTitle read the title of the show]], and [[ForegoneConclusion see how well Twilight's brainwashing plan works out]].
** None of the Cutie Mark Crusaders, who are searching for their special talents, have realized that they live in a world which runs off StevenUlyssesPerhero. Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle have talents related to their names that they are mostly unaware of -- riding a scooter and singing, respectively.[[note]]Apple Bloom, on the other hand, is a talented carpenter, and her ThemeNaming reflects her family's business instead.[[/note]]

** "[[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS5E23TheHooffieldsAndMccolts The Hooffields and McColts]]": Neither Twilight, Fluttershy or the [=McColts=] anticipate the "[[TrojanHorse Trojan Cake]]" filled with hostile ponies... quite unlike a good part of the audience.

* Played for drama with Celebrimbor in VideoGame/MiddleEarthShadowOfWar. He thought he could make a new Ring of Power, untouched by Sauron's evil. He never realized that there wasn't some abstract force that made the Ring evil, but Power, pure and simple.

* ''WesternAnimation/DungeonsAndDragons'':

* Keima of ''Manga/TheWorldGodOnlyKnows'' is normally incredibly, hilariously GenreSavvy. But the problem is, all his experience comes from galges, so when he runs into a situation that doesn't come up in them, he's at a loss. The best example is probably when he missed the MatchmakerCrush--''twice'', involving the same girl both times, no less (first time he was helping Chihiro with a boy, the second time she was helping him with Ayumi).
* When France starts to undergo its [[UsefulNotes/TheFrenchRevolution revolution]] in ''Manga/TheRoseOfVersailles'' the Royals, Clergy, and Nobles who are clinging to power come off as this by trying to suppress the assembly and use deadly force on the representatives. It's TruthInTelevision.
* Villainous and Jerkass characters in both ''Anime/YuGiOh'' and ''Anime/YuGiOhGX'' are quick to label monsters with low ATK/DEF points as "trash". Nevermind said monsters often have [[WeakButSkilled powerful effects]] or are integral part of a combo. Also the sheer number of times a character will attack heedlessly after their opponent simply [[SchmuckBait lays a card face down]].

* ''Franchise/DragonBall'':
** When Goku, Bulma, Yamcha, Oolong and Puar infiltrate Pilaf's castle in the original ''Manga/DragonBall'', they come across a bunch of arrows. The group decides to follow them until they reach a dead-end. A trap wall then closes behind the group, trapping them. The scene cuts to Pilaf who says, "I didn't think there even were people that stupid."
** Whenever the cast is dismissive towards a current threat because of their appearance. This happens in ''Anime/DragonBallZ'' with Frieza's final form, Androids 17 and 18 being teenagers, Cell's final transformation, Fat Buu, and finally Kid Buu. You would think they'd learn that appearances mean nothing in this series and it is often the most unassuming villains that are the most dangerous.
* ''Manga/JojosBizarreAdventureStardustCrusaders'' features a rather JustForFun/{{egregious}} example when the group is being assaulted in their dreams by a stand-wielding baby. Normally the group assumes that anything unusual happening is the result of an enemy stand, but suddenly everyone except Kakyoin decides that a stand-wielding baby is simply too farfetched an idea (when they'd already encountered a stand-wielding orangutan.)
* A [[TooDumbToLive phenomenal]] example is seen in ''Manga/DanceInTheVampireBund'' when the Student Council hole up in the campus chapel after dark when a discussion on how to deal with several students being transformed into hostile vampires run late... and the student council president, who has been violently abducted several nights before after back-talking the self-proclaimed [[VampireMonarch Queen of the Vampires]], starts knocking on the entrance [[MustBeInvited asking to be let in]]. Only one bothers to protest the doors being thrown open immediately.
* In ''Manga/FairyTail'', [[spoiler:you'd think Carla would have told more than one person about her second deadly premonition, given the way the one about the S-Class exam turned out]].
* In ''Manga/BloomIntoYou'', Doujima is honestly surprised that the SchoolPlay that he and the rest of the student council are doing has [[SchoolgirlLesbians a female lead with a girlfriend]]. [[YuriGenre Two or three of the main female characters have crushes on other girls, while two supporting characters, both adult women, are also in a relationship]].
* In any series of ''Franchise/{{Gundam}}'', you frequently have a battle between a Gundam and a Mobile Armor. The vast majority of the winners will always be a Gundam and yet, there's still always someone in the franchise who can think they can win with a Mobile Armor.
* In ''Anime/GurrenLagann'', [[spoiler:when the Anti-Spiral sends the Moon on a collision course with the Earth, Rossiu decides that it is impossible to stop it and attempts to escape with only a portion of the population, even if this meant leaving the rest to die. He fails to understand that this is the show where the impossible becomes possible just by believing in yourself hard enough, and sure enough, Simon (who he had betrayed and imprisoned in order to bring this plan into fruition) arrives and stops the collision by fighting the Anti-Spiral forces.]]

*** Though Lazarevic is savvy in certain places, like when Nate tries to take one of his men hostage (which he solves by [[ShootTheHostage shooting the hostage]] himself), he really needs to learn that you never pull a NotSoDifferent speech on the hero when there's still monsters crawling about. [[spoiler: Chances are they're right behind you and ready to beat you to death, thus sparing the hero from having to finish you himself.]]

** This one has actually been subverted a few times. Wrestling/DeanMalenko did it at WCW Slamboree 99 in the three-way match for the [[http://www.wrestling-titles.com/wcw/wcw-t.html WCW World Tag Team Titles]] where Wrestling/{{Raven}} and Wrestling/PerrySaturn d. the Champs Wrestling/BillyKidman & [[Wrestling/ReyMysterioJr Rey Misterio Jr.]] and Wrestling/ChrisBenoit & Dean Malenko. Wrestling/DiamondDallasPage, Wrestling/ChavoGuerreroJr and Shelton Benjamin have done it too.
** Jamie Noble averted it at ''Wrestling/{{WWE}} Vengeance'', July 21, 2002, by giving Kidman a Tiger Driver, which is a [[FinishingMove double-underhook sit-out powerbomb]], meaning that Noble had hooked Kidman's arms (sort of like a full nelson except while standing in front of the guy instead of behind him) so he couldn't counter the move.

** A bit character from "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS30E7TheUnicornAndTheWasp The Unicorn and the Wasp]]" [[FamousLastWords goes out]] with the wonderfully genre-blind line:

* Almost anyone who uses the word "vigilante" in traditional comics. Most of the real-world problems with vigilantism are the SubvertedTrope that the genre is built from: here the hero really is TheHero rather than a KnightTemplar loose cannon, and PoliceAreUseless makes "interfering with the authorities" a pointless objection too. (Naturally some comics or some moments in them do allow RealityEnsues instead, but these may serve more as a momentary HeWhoFightsMonsters cautionary tale, or a token StrawmanHasAPoint.)

** Petyr Baelish in his youth was another example. After [[spoiler:drunkenly sleeping with foster-sister Catelyn Tully after a feast]], he learns that she is betrothed to Brandon Stark and challenges him to a duel for Cat's hand. [[SarcasmMode After all, in ballads the little hero always defeats the big bully and Cat loves him, right?]] Except he's a short scrawny 15-year-old boy and Brandon is a 20-year-old expert swordsman. RealityEnsues and he nearly dies. [[spoiler:Also, Cat did genuinely love Brandon and the girl in Petyr's bed that night was actually Cat's younger sister Lysa.]] However, he took this lesson very much to heart, and as an adult one of his greatest talents is ''causing'' this trope in other people; he plays the part of a smart, but overconfident, SmugSnake so that people will miss the fact that he's actually a full-fledged MagnificentBastard, and [[ItWasHisSled in the first book]] [[spoiler: he convinces Ned Stark (see below,) that he is a SarcasticDevotee when he is in fact a DevilInPlainSight]].

* Used and lampshaded in ''Arsenic and Old Lace'' where the main character is a film critic, and in one scene he describes the stupidity of an oblivious victim, even going so far as to suggest using the curtain cords as rope to tie him up.

** This is the same Twilight Sparkle who, in a world of magic, refuses to believe in ''specific'' types of magic like curses or the "Pinkie Sense". [[HilarityEnsues Wacky hijinks ensue]].

** The heroes not only have Genre Blindness, they seem to have inter-episode amnesia. How many times can you really think say "[[LetsSplitUpGang Let's split up]] to explore the haunted castle" and think it's a good plan? This actually ''is'' {{lampshade|Hanging}}d in one episode of ''WesternAnimation/WhatsNewScoobyDoo'' Long story short, Fred realizes that they ''always'' split up the group the same way and decides to split it up a different way with Fred and Shaggy teaming up. HilarityEnsues.

* Used and lampshaded in ''Arsenic and Old Lace'' where the main character is a film critic, and in one scene he describes an the stupidity of an oblivious victim, even going so far as to suggest using the curtain cords as rope to tie him up.

* ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventureStardustCrusaders'' features a rather JustForFun/{{egregious}} example when the group is being assaulted in their dreams by a stand-wielding baby. Normally the group assumes that anything unusual happening is the result of an enemy stand, but suddenly everyone except Kakyoin decides that a stand-wielding baby is simply too farfetched an idea (when they'd already encountered a stand-wielding orangutan.)

** Sokka has had one or two moments of Genre Blindness. Most notable was in [[spoiler:"The Boiling Rock", where he tries to talk to Suki while still wearing his guard disguise. Later, he does ''the same thing'' when he tries to talk to his father]].

** The heroes not only have Genre Blindness, they seem to have inter-episode amnesia. How many times can you really think say "[[LetsSplitUpGang Let's split up]] to explore the haunted castle" and think it's a good plan? This actually ''is'' {{lampshade|Hanging}} in one episode of ''WesternAnimation/WhatsNewScoobyDoo'' Long story short, Fred realizes that they ''always'' split up the group the same way and decides to split it up a different way with Fred and Shaggy teaming up. HilarityEnsues.

** The heroes not only have Genre Blindness, they seem to have inter-episode amnesia. How many times can you really think say "[[LetsSplitUpGang Let's split up]] to explore the haunted castle" and think it's a good plan? This actually ''is'' {{lampshade|Hanging}}d in one episode of ''WesternAnimation/WhatsNewScoobyDoo'' Long story short, Fred realizes that they ''always'' split up the group the same way and decides to split it up a different way with Fred and Shaggy teaming up. HilarityEnsues.

* When France starts to undergo its [[UsefulNotes/TheFrenchRevolution revolution]] in ''Manga/RoseOfVersailles'' the Royals, Clergy, and Nobles who are clinging to power come off as this by trying to suppress the assembly and use deadly force on the representatives. It's TruthInTelevision.

'''Jack:''' (''points to self'') Pirate.\\

'''Rory:''' (''mumbling'') Mm? Oh yeah. S'ya.

** [[Recap/CommunityS2E06Epidemiology "Epidemiology"]], as fitting for a zombie parody.

** A number of characters in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS12E4GenesisOfTheDaleks "Genesis of the Daleks"]] must surely count too. Despite the fact that Davros is ObviouslyEvil, Kaleds and Thals alike trust him unconditionally, which generally leads to their EX-TER-MI-NA-TION.

*** [[Recap/DoctorWhoS28E4TheGirlInTheFireplace "The Girl in the Fireplace"]] has a moment late in the episode where he forgets that he can't leave Reinette for "two minutes" after inviting her to come travelling with him because the NarniaTime of the {{time portal}}s will kick in, with the result that when he comes back it's been years and she's just died. It overlaps with the IdiotBall since he could have just taken her through the fireplace there and then.
** A bit character from [[Recap/DoctorWhoS30E7TheUnicornAndTheWasp "The Unicorn and the Wasp"]] [[FamousLastWords goes out]] with the wonderfully genre-blind line:

** [[Recap/DoctorWhoS30E11TurnLeft "Turn Left"]]: Donna Noble doesn't notice that the fortune teller she's talking to is ObviouslyEvil until it's too late.
** [[Recap/DoctorWhoS30E12TheStolenEarth "The Stolen Earth"]]: The [[SpacePolice Shadow Proclamation]] ''sort'' of knows who the Doctor is (ArbitrarySkepticism on the Shadow Architect's part regarding the existence of Time Lords aside), but they think that they can make him fight a war for them. Naturally, the second the Architect lets him go get his keys, he's ''gone''.
** [[Recap/DoctorWhoS30E15PlanetOfTheDead "Planet of the Dead"]]: Lady Christina does not include invisible force fields as something she should watch out for when boldly rappelling down a deep shaft to recover a MacGuffin. Fortunately, the Doctor stops her just short of a messy death.
** [[Recap/DoctorWhoS31E7AmysChoice "Amy's Choice"]]:

** [[Recap/DoctorWhoS31E8TheHungryEarth "The Hungry Earth"]]:

** She's not the only one. In [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS3E11KeepCalmAndFlutterOn "Keep Calm and Flutter On"]], Rainbow Dash insists the Mane Six come up with a backup plan in case the whole "befriending" business with Discord to have him do a HeelFaceTurn doesn't work out, and the other ponies agree with her, with Twilight settling for [[BrainwashingForTheGreaterGood good old fashioned brainwashing]]. Once again, [[SpoilerTitle read the title of the show]], and [[ForegoneConclusion see how well Twilight's brainwashing plan works out]].

** [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS4E23InspirationManifestation "Inspiration Manifestation"]]: Spike apparently hasn't learned from the [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS4E6PowerPonies enchanted comic that was literally enchanted]] that something that ''sounds'' innocuous might be much more dangerous. [[FridgeLogic Also]], you would think that someone who has spent his whole life around a unicorn that specializes in magic and is an expert in spellbooks would know a tome of dark magic when he sees one.
** [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS5E23TheHooffieldsAndMccolts "The Hooffields and McColts"]]: Neither Twilight, Fluttershy or the [=McColts=] anticipate the "[[TrojanHorse Trojan Cake]]" filled with hostile ponies... quite unlike a good part of the audience.

* ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsResistance'': Tam Ryvora naïvely believes that the First Order, a faction which emulates and idolizes the evil Galactic Empire, is just another faction instead of the bad guys. She brushes off her friends and co-workers when they try to warn her about the FO's true nature after they begin to occupy the Colossus, claiming that they're making the platform more secure after [[spoiler:the kidnapping of Colossus owner Captain Doza's daughter Torra by pirates — which the First Order arranged]], and getting angry with Kaz when he tries to point out how oppressive the First Order is making the platform. At one point, she uses the fact that her grandfather used to work in an Imperial factory to defend herself, even after her boss Yeager points out in response that the Empire liked to prey on the vulnerable. In [[Recap/StarWarsResistanceS1E18Descent "Descent"]], it comes to a head when [[spoiler:after finding out that Kaz and Yeager have been [[LockedOutOfTheLoop keeping her in the dark]] about their Resistance connections when stormtroopers come to arrest Team Fireball, she decides to side with the First Order, and refuses to listen to Yeager when he tries to tell her she's being manipulated and lied to.]]

-->-- '''The Joker''', ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague'', "[[Recap/JusticeLeagueS2E21And22WildCards Wild Cards Part 1]]"

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* ''Series/KitchenNightmares'': Anyone underestimating Gordon (i.e. backtalking him, disregarding his advice, et cetera) counts, but the standout example has to be Amy of ''Amy's Baking Company''. It's pretty clear she brought in Gordon to tell off the 'haters'- i.e. everyone who'd set foot in her restaurant that wasn't her or her husband Samy. ''Creator/GordonRamsay''. The guy who's made a television career out of being [[BrutalHonest brutally honest]] and [[SirSwearsALot cursing out]] people who aren't up to standards or try to get one over him. She thought ''that'' guy would be her YesMan. Suffice to say, she was wrong.

* A few chefs on ''Series/HellsKitchen'' (USA) had actually served a dish that was not completely fresh for the competition's opening signature dish showcase, using something that is prepackaged or frozen. While one of the first chefs to do this, Rock, was able to bounce back and win his season, the other offenders got an imaginary DunceCap put on their heads along with a tongue-lashing from chef Gordon Ramsay (who threatened to kick a few of these people out), and none of them even made it to the halfway point of the show.

* A Advertising/{{Geico}} commercial has a group of slasher movie characters running from the villain. They suggest several places to hide which no real life person would try. One character suggests getting into a running car and is dismissed as crazy. Their eventual hiding place turns out to be where the villain is hiding. He seems to be mentally rolling his eyes when he sees them.

* The reporters from ''Website/TheOnion'' segment "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Uq9pp586AEExperts Agree Giant, Bioengineered Crabs Pose No Threat]]." They happily muse on how useful the superhuman strength and acidic spray of the crabs would be in construction and congratulate [[MadScientist Doctor]] [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast Lester Mordock]] for turning his life around after he was left disabled in a military accident and [[GoodProstheticEvilProsthetic replaced his arm with a robot crab claw]]. When a scientist, [[Film/JurassicPark depicted as]] Creator/JeffGoldblum, warns that NatureIsNotAToy, [[IgnoredExpert they dismiss him as a luddite]] and cheerfully discuss how one of the crabs [[ItCanThink can apparently solve Rubix cubes.]]

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* Literature/MertonOfTheMovies: Due to having NoSenseOfHumor, the title character is unable to spot that he's in a comedy. Both in the movies he's starring in and in his actual life.

* The reporters from [[https://www.theonion.com/experts-agree-giant-razor-clawed-bioengineered-crabs-p-1819594782 this]] ''Website/TheOnion'' segment.

** In the Prequel Trilogy, Obi-Wan Kenobi demonstrates a surprising amount of Genre Blindness. He knows that there's an AncientConspiracy out there somewhere looking to plunge the Galaxy into darkness, he knows that Palpatine is an ambitious and slimy politician who used a crisis to seize an alarming amount of power, but he's so cynical about politics and politicians that he can't quite put two and two together. At worst, Obi-Wan figures that Palpatine is the UnwittingPawn of the unknown Sithlord. The possibility that Palpatine ''is'' the Sith Lord - and the possibility that this entire crisis has been deliberately and systematically engineered ''by'' him - doesn't enter Obi-Wan's head until it's too obvious to deny...and too late to do anything about it.

-->'''Atlas:''' What possessed them to [[spoiler:put military grade artificial bio-intelligence inside children's toys? Hadn't any of them seen ''Film/SmallSoldiers''?!]]

* The page image is from ''Webcomic/{{Freefall}}''. The doctor (actually, a veterinarian) in the image survives, since he's [[WrongGenreSavvy not dealing with a werewolf]], merely a genetically engineered uplifted wolf who needs his services.

** Elan displays ''intentional'' Genre Blindness, in assuming that Nale [[NoOneCouldSurviveThat must have been killed]] in Azure City's collapse. When Nale calls him out on how genre blind that is, Elan retorts that of course he thought Nale was dead, because "the hero always THINKS the bad guy is dead until he shows up again." [[http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0793.html This promptly leads to a near aneurysm on Nale's part, when he tries to puzzle through Elan's "logic".]] This overlaps with ContractualGenreBlindness because Elan [[CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass might]] honestly have ''believed'' that Nale was dead....

* In ''Disney/{{Cinderella}}'', the Grand Duke tells the king that his plot to find a wife for his son, Prince Charming, is the stuff that fairy tales are made of, and would not work in real life.

* The Cy-bugs in ''Disney/WreckItRalph''. They are the only characters who don't seem to realize that they are in a video game. Unfortunately, this means that they do not know when to stop, so they actually pose a bigger threat than any of the GenreSavvy villains.