History Main / MurderInc

* There was an organization named Murder Inc. in the MarvelUniverse in the 1940s, that would take in homeless men, force them to sign life insurance policies, then collect on teh policies after murdering them.

* ''VideoGame/DarkSouls'' has several factions that basically exist to murder other players, Particularly the Darkwraiths and the Forest Hunters.

Indeed, there's often overlap between MurderInc and other groups. Often, what makes MurderInc ''different'' from any other [[TheSyndicate Organized Crime Syndicate]]/terrorist front/SecretPolice is the fact that their strength comes not from their numbers or their training, but their reputation. Most such groups could, in fact, really consist of ten competent people and it wouldn't hinder their operations too much. Or two--don't forget [[{{Neverwhere}} the Old Firm]]. They're feared as the ones that "take people" who are "never seen again." Usually people that [[DeadlyEuphemism "cause problems" that need to be "solved." Capisce?]]

* ''{{Neverwhere}}'' by NeilGaiman has '' "Croup and Vandemar, the Old Firm, obstacles obliterated, nuisances eradicated, bothersome limbs removed and tutelary dentistry." ''

* The Agency and the Franchise in the ''VideoGame/{{Hitman}}'' video games, though the Agency could be considered more of a VillainProtagonist in the sense that they seem to only take hits against scum-of-the-earth criminals who escaped justice, while the Franchise ''are'' the go-to people for the scum-of-the-earth criminals.

* Two such organizations collide in ''film/MrAndMrsSmith''.

* Two such organizations collide in ''film/MrAndMrsSmith}}''.

->''"Thugs-4-Less! Pay for six hits, and the seventh is free!"''
-->-- '''[[NoNameGiven Thug Leader]]''', VideoGame/RatchetAndClankGoingCommando

** It is also mentioned in ''Night Watch'' that the s Guild ''does'' have a political opinion and will act for the good of the city, as they see it, if the Patrician's misrule is causing too much suffering. They never act on their own behalf, but are just there when needed.

* The Assassins' Guild of the great city of Ankh-Morpork on the Literature/{{Discworld}}, whose motto is "''Nil Mortifi Sine Lucre''": "No killing without profit", is at once a parody and a lampshading of the trope. The Guild is legal, its head is an influential public figure, and it is common for nobles to send their children to it (though often just for its normal educational excellence, as the Black Curriculum has a high attrition rate). Assassins abide by several rules, including especially that they're not allowed to kill people unless they are paid to, and cannot kill the defenseless. Though anyone rich enough is automatically considered able to defend themselves by hiring someone else to protect them.

* In one of the ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' novels, the Hashashin parodied with the Hashishim, some extremely un-dangerous assassins who kept giggling at the way light reflected of their knives, swaying to music, and falling over.
* The Assassins Guild of Literature/{{Discworld}}, whose motto is "''Nil Mortifi Sine Lucre''": "No killing without profit". The guild is legal, the head of the Assassin's guild is an influential public figure, and it's common for nobles to send their children to it (though often just for its normal educational excellence, as the Black Curriculum has a high attrition rate). They abide by several rules, including that they're not allowed to kill people unless they are paid to, and cannot kill the defenseless. Though anyone rich enough is considered able to "defend" themselves by hiring someone else to protect them.

** It is mentioned in one novel that they were inspired by a Klatchian ([[FantasyCounterpartCulture read Arabic]]) group identical to the original Assassins. In ''Jingo'', as Ankh-Morpork goes to war with the Klatch, Vetinari notes acidly that the Guild's boast of being so good that the Klatchians send their children there really means that Klatch's assassins know Ankh-Morpork's methods, have refined their ancestral skills, and have a working knowledge of the city's layout.
** It is also mentioned in ''Night Watch'' that the Assassin's Guild ''does'' have a political opinion and, as they see it, will act for the good of the city if the Patrician's misrule is causing too much suffering. They never act on their own behalf, but are just there when needed.
** This is further explored in ''Discworld/{{Thud}}'', in which it's revealed that the Assassin's Guild does not take contracts on people whose death they feel would be disadvantageous to the stability of Ankh-Mopork (in Vimes' words, "would not only spoil the game but toss the board out the window"). To date, this list contains the current patrician, Vetinari, and the commander of the city watch, Vimes. Both men have proven to be very assassination-resistant anyway: A NoodleIncident is referred to about the last assassin sent after Vimes before the ban; apparently Vimes overpowered him and had him put on a boat headed for [[LandDownUnder XXXX]].
** Another of the Guild's duties is to maintain its monopoly on the trade. Demarcation being the greatest and most foolhardy of Morporkian crimes (with the possible exception of [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking street miming]]), freelancers lucky enough to be caught by the Watch are considered to be getting off easy.
* Also from Literature/{{Discworld}}, and a probable reference to the page quote, The New Firm; Mr. Pin, the brains, and Mr. Tulip, the muscle (with a bad chemical habit and a deep appreciation for antiquities). Aside from referencing Misters Croup and Vandemar, some of their dialogue also echoes Jules and Vincent of ''Film/PulpFiction''.
** Mr. Tulip's purse says "[=Not A Very Nice Person At All=]". Says it all, really.
* The Hashishin are identified as the ([[UnreliableNarrator possible]]) forebears of the Illuminati in the ''{{Illuminatus}}!'' trilogy.

* The creation of such a group, to prevent overlapping contracts, is a major plot point in ''GrossePointeBlank''.
* Two such organizations collide in ''{{Mr and Mrs Smith}}''.
* The Deadly Viper Assassination Squad of ''KillBill'' infamy.
* The Fraternity in ''{{Wanted}}''.
* ''TheAssassinationBureau'', based on the unfinished novel ''The Assassination Bureau, Ltd.'' by JackLondon.

* The Junshi clan from ''[[Series/{{Jake20}} Jake 2.0]]''.

** If Team Vorg isn't a Parody, it crossed the line into StrawmanPolitical. Reaganomics does NOT work that way. Vorg just spouts slogans to cover up that he's a bloodthirsty warlord.
*** He seemed more like a 90's CEO to me.

* Team Vorg from ''CwensQuest''. From what this troper can tell Team Vorg is a "business" in CQ's fantasy world who's whole business model is based around having large armies going about conquering city's and towns at the behest of their psychotic and unstable but also Reaganomic, corporate minded & business savvy leader.

* This troper heard that there was actually a organization named Murder Inc. in the MarvelUniverse, but possibly it was destroyed by one of Kingpin's predecessor's, or something.
** Not sure if this is what you're thinking of, but there was an individual called Murder, Inc., at one point in the '90s.

* The Brotherhood of the Hand from ''TheDeathGateCycle'' is part MurderInc and part ThievesGuild; they are the most powerful criminal organization in their world and have their hands in all sorts of dubious enterprises, but are most well-known for producing highly competent assassins, including AntiHero [[BadassNormal Hugh]].

* The Mal Noche from ''CSIMiami'' are supposed to be one of these. A street gang originally from South America, it's repeatedly mentioned that their business is solely in murder for hire (avoiding other lucrative businesses like selling drugs). Considering the sheer number of Mal Noche members operating in Miami, one has to think the Miami market for hired killers is booming.

* In ''TheWestWing'', Toby Ziegler's father was a member of the historic Murder Incorporated.
* One episode of ''MutantX'' featured Blue Bolt, an organization of BadassNormal assassins with acute hand-to-hand skills and cutting-edge technological weaponry.

** Interestingly enough, the Dark Brotherhood is not just an assassin's guild, it is a psychotic cult whose main deity feeds on death. The other deity they worship, the Night Mother, ascribes to TheSpartanWay, as she [[spoiler:allows the player character to slaughter his way through the upper ranks of the Brotherhood because they were stupid enough to let someone specifically out to destroy them reach the inner circle of their organization.]]
** Although, while the members are crazy, they seem to have some firm standards. You lose part of your paycheck for anybody else aside from the intended target dying in the mission area. They appear to very much dislike the wholesale slaughter of innocent people, but one unnoticed target or another they do seem to encourage as that is how you gain entry into the guild, just no mass murdering people for the hell of it. Also, the lower level leaders are very much sane in a professional way, and generally only care if you are doing your job right.

* The Assassin's Guild in the video game ''{{Summoner}} 2''.
* The Lotus Assassins in ''JadeEmpire''
* The Howling Voice Guild and Nether Gate in ''{{Suikoden}}''. The latter even has no fewer than ''four'' [[DefectorFromDecadence defectors]]. They're all, naturally, quite loyal to the cause once recruited.

* In ''{{Knights of the Old Republic}}'', you encounter the Genoharadan (which is claimed to be an AncientConspiracy). Sorta. This particular league of assassins is so shrouded in deception and mystery that you never really find out what it's really all about. And by the time you finish the associated quests, it may not even exist anymore. Or maybe it does. Who knows?
* Thugs-4-Less in ''RatchetAndClankGoingCommando''. Boasting such mottos as "If it ain't broke, we'll break it!" and "Pay for six hits and the seventh one's free." Thugs-4-Less flunkies challenge Ratchet throughout the game, and the Thugs-4-Less leader serves as one of the game's main villains, even though [[spoiler:you end up on the same side as the person who hired them in the first place. Right around the time it's revealed the thief is a good guy, and Mr Fizwidget doesn't really want anything more to do with you, the Thugs-4-Less leader gets a phone call to make him switch sides, and still be opposed to you.]]
* The UAA from the video game ''NoMoreHeroes'' follows this trope. Interestingly enough, it also sets up deathmatches between members of its own organization, allowing ambitious killers to climb their way up the UAA's assassin rankings.

* The Molochean Hand in ''{{Arcanum}} Of Steamworks and Magic Obscura''. They are secretive, with an ancient and actually very compelling history, and they're quite literally ''everywhere'' you go - hot on your trail, keeping lookout in bars, and waiting for you in plot-relevant dungeons. Sadly their fearsome reputation becomes a bit implausible when you realize you've killed two dozen already, and you're not even playing a combat-oriented character.

* The BobClampett short ''Coal Black and De Sebben Dwarfs'' has the queen hire assassins literally called Murder Inc. to "black out So White''. On their van, they even have "Midgets 1/2 Price, Japs Free" proudly lit up on it's side.

* In Creator/CJCherryh's ''{{Literature/Foreigner}}'' series, the alien atevi have a strange form of government approved Guild: someone contracts with the Guild to assassinate a target, the Guild informs the government, and the government informs the target. If the target is still killed in spite of the warning, the killing is legal. If a amateur kills someone themselves, it's illegal. If a Guild member kills someone without a Guild sanctioned contract, it's illegal ''and'' ticks off the Guild.

Please note that MurderInc isn't always [[EvilInc evil.]] They don't tend to let [[TrueNeutral codes of morality]] get in the way of their [[OnlyInItForTheMoney business model]]. [[note]](Sometimes...)[[/note]]

Please note that MurderInc isn't always [[EvilInc evil.]] They don't tend to let [[TrueNeutral codes of morality]] get in the way of their [[OnlyInItForTheMoney business model]]. [[hottip:*:(Sometimes...)]]

* Also from Literature/{{Discworld}}, and a probable reference to the page quote, The New Firm; Mr. Pin, the brains, and Mr. Tulip, the muscle (with a bad chemical habit and a deep appreciation for antiquities). Aside from referencing Misters Croup and Vandemar, some of their dialogue also echoes Jules and Vincent of PulpFiction.

** The Faceless Men of Braavos are [[WarriorMonk Warrior Monks]] who worship death as a universal force, with the "Many-Faced God" as its personification. They are the world's most capable assassins, but do not consider themselves to be killers for hire. Instead, the customer is expected to make a "donation" to their temple for the privilege of selecting an individual to receive the blessing of death.

* ''{{The Shadow}}'' once fought an organization that offered death insurance. People would buy insurance on a person and would be payed if they did not die by a certain time. Of course, this was really a paper thin disguise for a murder for hire business, though when the organization failed to carry out a hit they did pay up.