History Main / GrassIsGreener

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* ''Series/{{The 100}}'' has Earth serve as this for the people living on TheArk space station. Given their cramped quarters, lack of resources, and completely sterile and artificial environment, the wide open and natural world they see from orbit seems like it must be a paradise. They even have a religion where Earth serves as their version of Heaven.

* The first verse of "Wouldn't It Be Good" is someone with unspecified problems (the closest we get is "the cold is biting") saying how much they envy someone else's life. The second verse is the person they envy saying ''real'' problems are when "the heat is stifling", and the first person should be grateful they don't have to deal with ''that''.

** In the Season One episode "Nature Pants", [=SpongeBob=] idealizes living among the jellyfish as what his life is meant to be like, and does everything in his power to leave his current life behind, but after getting stung by an entire hive of jellyfish and a run-in with poison sea urchins, he finally realizes that his old life was preferable.

** The ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'' episode "The Algae's Always Greener" has Plankton switch places with Mr. Krabs using one of his inventions. He quickly finds that dealing with [[BrattyTeenageDaughter the bossy and needy Pearl]], [[ApatheticClerk the grumpy know-it-all Squidward]], and [[BrokenAce the moody, hyperactive, and overly-helpful Spongebob]] means being as successful as Krabs isn't worth it.

* The ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'' episode "The Algae's Always Greener" has Plankton switch places with Mr. Krabs using one of his inventions. He quickly finds that dealing with [[BrattyTeenageDaughter the bossy and needy Pearl]], [[ApatheticClerk the grumpy know-it-all Squidward]], and [[BrokenAce the moody, hyperactive, and overly-helpful Spongebob]] means being as successful as Krabs isn't worth it.

* ''LightNovel/HensukiAreYouWillingToFallInLoveWithAPervertAsLongAsShesACutie'': Keiki starts the series single and jealous of couples. Even when he discovers that his female friends may be interested in him and when he receives an unambiguous love confession from Mizuha, he's still jealous of other couples for having relationships devoid of bizarre perversions while all his potential love interests are perverts.

Whether or not they get there is another story. If they do, usually they find it isn't all it was cracked up to be, though often still preferable to where they came from. Often an enticement for the KidHero to go DownTheRabbitHole, and maybe learn that WantingIsBetterThanHaving. See also CrapsackOnlyByComparison, for when the comparison to the idealized other world makes the character feel like their own world is a CrapsackWorld. Compare MutualEnvy.

** The episode "T.G.I.F" has this as the plot, with Ginger staying briefly staying over with the posh Gripling Family.
* In the ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'' episode "Who's Brian Now?", after learning that he had another family prior to the Griffins, Brian decides to go live with the Henderson family after seeing how wealthy, smart, and sophisticated they are, and how much more he has in common with them than with the Griffin family. But not long afterwards, Brian realizes that the Hendersons don't really see or care about him as anything more than just a pet, while the Griffins, despite all their issues and flaws, have always treated Brian as a member of the family

* ''WesternAnimation/AnAmericanTail'': "There are nooooo cats in Ameeeerica! And the streets are paved with cheeeese!"

%%* ''WesternAnimation/ThePrinceAndThePauper'': Both Prince Mickey and Pauper Mickey.

* ''WesternAnimation/ThePrinceAndThePauper'': Both Prince Mickey and Pauper Mickey.

* ''Literature/NinaTanleven'': Discussed in ''The Ghost in the Third Row'' after Nine's first visit to Chris's house. While she's happy at home, Nine thinks that she also kind of likes things at her friend's house, since it's always occupied and nobody's ever lonely (in stark contrast to Nine's own home where it's just she and her Dad). However, after some consideration, she decides she'd probably go crazy if she had to live there for real.
* ''Literature/NinaTanleven'': Discussed in ''The Ghost in the Third Row'' after Nine's first visit to Chris's house. While she's happy at home, Nine thinks that she also kind of likes things at her friend's house, since it's always occupied and nobody's ever lonely (in stark contrast to Nine's own home where it's just she and her Dad). However, after some consideration, she decides she'd probably go crazy if she had to live there for real.

* ''Manga/VinlandSaga'', Vinland itself for the protagonist Thorfinn.

* In ''Manga/GlassMask'', Maya and Ayumi envy each other over their different home lives, while focusing on the disadvantages of their own. Maya envies Ayumi for having loving parents that support her choice of being an actress, while Maya's mother was more a believer in ToughLove, and the ample opportunities Ayumi has had to expand and improve her acting skills from childhood onward. Meanwhile, Ayumi envies Maya for having genuine friends that love and support her, with Ayumi realizing she's a LonelyRichKid, and her natural talent at acting. She also feels that Maya is a lot more free than Ayumi, who has been working for years to step out of the shadow of her actress mother and be seen as more than just the child of celebrities. When either mentions this to the other, they seem rather surprised to hear that.
* In ''Manga/NyotaiKa'', the young unlucky in love SalaryMan Makoto wishes to become a woman because he's convinced women have it better in life because they can exploit young men for attention, money, and gifts. After he actually does become a woman (courtesy of a Goddess eager to teach him a lesson) he quickly discovers that young women [[NearRapeExperience face enormous pressure to "put out"]] in exchange for that attention, and that's just one of the downsides. Others include getting hit on constantly and getting groped on the train.
* In ''Manga/ChiosSchoolRoad'', Chio plays western games because she can't stand the glut of [=JRPG=] tropes, drama, and {{Pretty Boy}}s in her own country's games. The western fandom got a kick out of it when they remembered the exact opposite complaints from their own game community.

* ''WesternAnimation/ShrekForeverAfter'': Shrek has grown tired of being a family man and celebrity among the local villagers, and longs for the days where he was a "real ogre", feared by villagers and actually had privacy. He [[BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor gets his wish]], and soon begins to understand the consequences of his actions and how important he was to the grand scheme of things; among other things, his children no longer exist, and Fiona's parents have been erased from existence. Best summed up in this exchange between himself and Donkey near the climax:
-->'''Donkey''': If your life was so perfect, then why'd you [[DealWithTheDevil sign it all away]] to [[BigBad Rumpelstiltskin]] in the first place?\\
'''Shrek''': Because I didn't know what I had until it was gone!
* In ''WesternAnimation/OverTheHedge'', one of the porcupines compares grass stuck in his quills to the grass in the subdivision, and declares that it actually ''is'' [[LampshadeHanging greener on the other side.]]
* Lampshaded in ''WesternAnimation/ChickenRun'' by Rocky. While talking with Ginger about how life is outside of the Chicken Farm, Rocky tries to gently tell Ginger not to get her hopes up about how life is in the outside world [[spoiler: in his efforts to continue covering up his lie about being able to fly]].

* ''WesternAnimation/TheLittleMermaid1989'': Ariel's desire to go up to the surface, as {{lampshaded}} by Sebastian in the song "Under the Sea."

* In ''Film/TheWizardOfOz'', Dorothy wanted to go somewhere "Over The Rainbow".

* ''Film/{{Duets}}'': Frustration with his dull life as a traveling salesman and a family that didn't seem to appreciate him (along with a healthy dose of beta-blockers) led Todd Woods to drop everything and pursue a cross-country karaoke competition.
* The phrase is used ''Film/LuckyNumberSlevin'' as a matter of lifestyle rather than location, where the title character, Slevin, and a crime boss known as "The Rabbi" have a conversation about how he can be both a gangster and a rabbi. When asked point-blank how that works, he turns uncomfortable and admits to being a "bad man" who (as he regains his momentum) doesn't so much justify it as he is both "what could have been" ''and'' "what could not", and "[his] grass is always green".
* In ''Film/JustOneOfTheGuys'', Terry Griffith imagines that life would be easier as a male. She learns otherwise.

* This is a plot point in "The Scrambled States of America." Kansas is sick of being stuck in the middle of the country and never meeting any new states, so he decides to have a party and invite all the other states. At the party, the states all decide to switch places. After the states switch places and a few days pass, the states realize they weren't as happy as they thought, so they all go back to their original places.

* ''Literature/NinaTanleven'': Discussed in ''The Ghost in the Third Row'' after Nine's first visit to Chris's house. While she's happy at home, Nine thinks that she also kind of likes things at her friend's house, since it's always occupied and nobody's ever lonely (in stark contrast to Nine's own home where it's just she and her Dad). However, after some consideration, she decides she'd probably go crazy if she had to live there for real.
* In ''Literature/{{Eileen}}'', Eileen has a dull, miserable life in X-ville, and dreams that everything will be better once she leaves and goes to New York City. Based on hints from the narrator, it sounds like things largely did improve once she left, though it was hardly perfect.

* ''Series/TheTwilightZone1959'': In "[[Recap/TheTwilightZoneS3E78OnceUponATime Once Upon a Time]]", the janitor Woodrow Mulligan is driven buggy by the high prices and everyday annoyances of 1890. He steals an experimental time machine and travels forward to 1961, which he assumes will be a utopia. The noise and even higher prices of the then-present convince him that he prefers living in his own time.

* ''Theatre/WestSideStory'': "I'd like to be in America! Okay by me in America!"

* ''Theatre/{{Hair}}'': Manchester, England, England, across the Atlantic sea...
* ''Theatre/{{Newsies}}'': Santa Fe, my old friend, I can't spend my whole life dreamin', though I know that's all I seem inclined to do! I ain't getting any younger, and I wanna start brand new! I need space and fresh air! Let 'em laugh in my face, I don't care! Save my place, I'll be there.
* ''Theatre/{{Elisabeth}}'': A particularly dark version in "Nichts, nichts, gar nichts" when touring an asylum The Empress contemplates how much easier her life would be if she would just let herself go insane like the patients within, yet decides against it as it would seem to be too much work to stay mad.

* Well, not really that he wanted to go to a different country or anything, but...Roxas from ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII'' became jealous of the visions he had of Sora and his friends. To the point where he actually betrayed and left Organization XIII because he wanted friends and love so badly. The result? He gets tricked by [=DiZ=] into merging with Sora. Not quite what he wanted.
* ''VideoGame/ConkersBadFurDay'': [[spoiler:Conker realizes only after becoming rich and powerful like he always wanted to be that he had everything he wanted all along. Only by then, [[DownerEnding it was too late]].]]
-->'''Conker:''' It's true what they say, the grass is always greener. And you don't really know what it is you have, [[DownerEnding until it's gone...]]

* ''WesternAnimation/LittleRuralRidingHood'' has the [[CountryMouse Country Wolf]] visit his [[CityMouse cousin in the city]], and proceeds to go gaga over City Red. Embarrassed by his cousin's lack of self-control, City Wolf drives him back home... and [[StarstruckSpeechless proceeds to go gaga over]] ''Country'' Red, prompting Country Wolf to chide him over [[HypocriticalHumor his lack of self-control]] and [[HereWeGoAgain drive him back home to the city]].
* In ''WesternAnimation/HeyArnold'' this is what drives the conflict between Helga Pataki and her older sister Olga over their parents' ParentalFavoritism. Helga sees all of the extra attention that Olga gets while Helga herself suffers from severe ParentalNeglect and resents Olga as a result, while Olga sees Helga being free to do what she wishes without their parents' interference instead of being constantly expected to perform perfectly "like a wind-up doll" and holds on to her idealized image of her "baby sister" to cope; the inability of both sisters to fully acknowledge the negatives that the other experiences because of their parents' behavior prevents them from fixing the rift between them.

* ''WesternAnimation/OneHundredAndOneDalmatiansTheSeries'': In "Lucky To Be Alone", Lucky gets tired of living with 98 brothers and sisters and wants more personal space. Pongo and Perdita get the idea to send him to stay with his wealthy cousins, the Vandercreams, where he gets to stay in a massive mansion with a room all to himself, with a butler, and all the luxuries he can imagine. While there are some things he likes and other things he doesn't, the thing he ended up missing the most was being able to spend time with his family.

'''Baxter:''' ''([[StealthPun smoking a joint]])'' They'll find it a lot more expensive.

* ''Theatre/{{Newsies}}'': Santa Fe, my old friend, I can't spend my whole life dreamin', though I know that's all I seem inclined to do! I ain't getting any younger, and I wanna start brand new! I need space, and fresh air! Let 'em laugh in my face, I don't care! Save my place, I'll be there.

* ''WesternAnimation/OneHundredAndOneDalmatiansTheSeries'': In "Lucky To Be Alone", Lucky gets tired of living with 98 brothers and sisters and wants more personal space. Pongo and Perdita get the idea to send him to stay with his wealthy cousins, the Vandercreams, where he gets to stay in a massive mansion with a room all to himself, with a butler and all the luxeries he can imagine. While there are some things he likes and other things he doesn't, the thing he ended up missing the most was being able to spend time with his family.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'': In "Pray Anything", Homer looks at Flanders' backyard and sees that the grass is greener on his side. Marge says it's because he keeps passing out on their lawn, and the camera zooms out to reveal several Homer-shaped patches of dirt.

* The ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'' episode "The Algae's Always Greener" has Plankton switch places with Mr. Krabs to try to get the Krabby Patty secret formula.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheLittleMermaid1989'': Ariel's desire to go up to the surface, as described in the song at the top of the page.
* ''WesternAnimation/BeautyAndTheBeast'': "I want much more than this provincial liiife...!" Belle is reading [[IWishItWereReal a story about a prince in disguise...]]

Whether or not they get there is another story. If they do, usually they find it isn't all it was cracked up to be, though often still preferable to where they came from. Often an enticement for the KidHero to go DownTheRabbitHole, and maybe learn that WantingIsBetterThanHaving. See also CrapsackOnlyByComparison, for when the comparison to the idealized other world makes the character feel like their own world is a CrapsackWorld.

* ''WesternAnimation/LittleRuralRidingHood'' has the [[CountryMouse Country Wolf]] visit his [[CityMouse cousin in the city]], and proceeds to go gaga over City Red. Embarrassed by his cousin's lack of self-control, City Wolf drives him back home... and [[NotSoDifferent proceeds to go gaga over]] ''Country'' Red, prompting Country Wolf to chide him over [[HypocriticalHumor his lack of self-control]] and [[HereWeGoAgain drive him back home to the city]].

** {{Discussed|Trope}} in the ThemeSong. The singer notes that despite having been told this by someone, when comparing the "grass" themselves, they found that it "seemed different, yet exactly the same."

* The theme song to ''WesternAnimation/AsToldByGinger'' starts off with "Someone once told the grass is much greener, on the other side, well I took a visit and it's possible I missed it. It looks so different and exactly the same..." The episode "T.G.I.F" even had it as a theme when Ginger stayed over with the posh Gripling Family

* In ''Manga/NyotaiKa'', the young unlucky in love SalaryMan Makoto wishes to become a woman because he's convinced women have it better in life because they can exploit young men for attention, money and gifts. After he actually does becomes a woman (courtesy of a Goddess eager to teach him a lesson) he quickly discovers that young women [[NearRapeExperience face enormous pressure to "put out"]] in exchange for that attention, and that's just one of the downsides. Others include getting hit on constantly and getting groped on the train.

* Lampshaded in ''WesternAnimation/ChickenRun'' by Rocky. While talking with Ginger about how life is outside of the Chicken Farm, Rocky tries to gently tell Ginger not get her hopes up about how life is in the outside world [[spoiler: in his efforts to continue covering up his lie about being able to fly]].

* ''VideoGame/TeamFortress2'' is the ultimate example of this. 360 players are always complaining that their version never gets any updates like the PC version. PC players are always complain that their version ''is'' getting updated, screaming TheyChangedItNowItSucks to the point of having an aneurysm towards everything from a class update to more hats to a small tweak in the netcode. A fair number of players have likely switched sides by now.

* An anglophone expression that reflects this mindset is "keeping up with the Joneses." The "Joneses" in this case are one's neighbors or peers. To "keep up" with them is to do things not because a person necessarily wants to do them, but because they want to improve their own life by emulating someone else's. In addition, the desire to not be seen as "inferior" to one's peers is also a part of it. Quite often, people who follow this mindset will find themselves buying things they don't need and doing things they don't want, but feel obligated to do out of some vague promise of an improved life. However, it rarely pans out this way.

* In a literal example goats, sheep and cattle can often be seen reaching through gaps in fences to reach grass growing on the other side even when they have plenty of grass on their side of the fence. Horse fencing has to be tall enough to prevent the horses reaching the grass on the other side or they'll lean on the fence until they push it over.

* ''WesternAnimation/ThePrinceAndThePauper'': Both Prince Mickey and Pauper Mickey.