History Main / NoDelaysForTheWicked

-->'''Kronk''' Well, ya got me. ''[Displays a map that shows the previous chase]'' By all accounts it doesn't make sense.

* Played relatively straight in ''TabletopGame/HunterTheVigil''. While none of the conspiracies are strictly "evil", the Cheiron Group is a thoroughly amoral corporation dedicated to harvesting supernatural body-parts for profit, and very keen on performing painful and potentially lethal modifications on their field agents (sometimes with consent, but always without explaining the downsides). On the other hand, the government-run agencies such as Task Force Valkyrie and VASCU are generally dedicated to protecting the general public from monstrous enemies, fighting the good fight, and so on. Guess which factions are frequently hampered by bureaucracy, infighting and budget cuts?
** Then again, Valkryie and VASCU actually have these moral scruple thingies that prevent them from using mind control implants on their own employees, or selling monster parts on the black market for ridiculous profit...

* A big part of ''VideoGame/DeusEx'' is that the conspiracies keep ''[[WeAreStrugglingTogether breaking apart.]]'' At the heart of the story is [[spoiler:the original AncientConspiracy, the Illuminati.]] One of their members breaks away to form [[spoiler:Majestic 12,]] and starts fighting them for control of the world, then a bunch of scientists make a HeelFaceTurn and split off into [[spoiler:X-51]] to fight ''both'' of them. They get some assistance from every RightWingMilitiaFanatic in the US, resulting in a RagtagBunchOfMisfits that call themselves [[spoiler:the National Secessionist Forces.]] Along the way another conspirator starts a PlayfulHacker resistance called "Silhouette", which fights [[spoiler:the Illuminati and Majestic 12.]] TheTriadsAndTheTongs have a MadScientist or twenty, and tear off a chunk of Southeast Asia for themselves, allying with whoever suits their purposes at the moment.

** Nod's fanatic efficiency comes from the fact that they (like most cases of TheEmpire) weed out inefficient members (especially in the inner circle of Kane and his [[NonEntityGeneral Commanders]]) and that Nod, as a whole, relies on strong leaders rather than a bureaucracy. As exemplified by the frequent [[EnemyCivilWar Nod Civil Wars]] as well as Alexa's unauthorised listening of Killian's transmissions and undermining her authority, it is evident that Nod is far less efficient than it seems. They are merely more...driven and fanatical about what they do, hence more interested in doing it right.
** GDI's problems with bureaucrats is played with in ''[[VideoGame/CommandAndConquerTiberianDawn Tiberian Dawn]]''. In the canonical GDI campaign, they do indeed get their budget suspended by the UN pending an investigation of reported atrocities Nod has framed GDI for... [[spoiler:as part of a plan by GDI's commanding officer General Mark Sheppard to bait Nod into striking before the Brotherhood is really ready. The bureaucrats were just playing along, and when the bait is taken, General Sheppard returns with a larger budget and new toys for GDI.]]

** The Empire of Blood [[spoiler:and the other two major empires in the West Continent desert]] inverts this because holding an empire in the West Continent desert is near-impossible if done with warlord tactics; maps and leaders change in a matter of months, so decreasing the delay in everything means that the people rise up and get conquered faster. So, to hold his empire, Tarquin had to create an elaborate genre-savvy system of checks and balances, executions and arrests, and magnificently devious relationships with the other major empires [[spoiler: (they're all friends)]]. The end result of the delays is that the villains can use bureaucracy to restructure an empire themselves each time it falls, turning revolutions into phyrric victories when the empires inevitably collapse, thereby perpetuating the network, and ultimately, the empirical concept.

** It's implied in parts of the NegativeContinuity that large portions of world government are aware of the Foundation but know enough not to stick their noses in. Official doctrine in ''many'' stories mentions that if the fate of humanity is at stake the Foundation can hit all sorts of [[ResetButton reboots]]. A couple items in the listings specifically note other organisations working on a cover-up. One specific story has a ReligionOfEvil help contain a mass panic they caused, because EvenEvilHasStandards .

* The ''WesternAnimation/CodenameKidsNextDoor'' episode "Operation TRIP" [[spoiler:is based on this]]. Two spies chasing [[TheDitz Numbuh Three]] are plagued by horrible coincidences, like bumping in to a rabid dog, getting on the wrong train, and so on. [[spoiler:In the end, it turns out that every accident they had was arranged by the heroes]].

** Subverted in Tunguska, where the conspiracy is thwarted when OverreactingAirportSecurity decides to crack open a package of black oil; ''despite'' the courier giving up and admitting he's transporting biohazardous material, the customs agent chooses to believe it's valuable contraband -- most likely something worth stealing. TruthInTelevision; though smartphones and self-tracing electronics have made it very easy to catch them in the act in the 21st century, they've ''always'' had sticky fingers. An excellent example of how the conspiracy could have plants in various government department, they had no control of little things. A few seasons later however, some of their schemes would require every single person in the FBI building to be part of the conspiracy.

** Subverted in Tunguska, where the conspiracy is thwarted when OverreactingAirportSecurity decides to crack open a package of black oil; ''despite'' the courier giving up and admitting he's transporting biohazardous material, the customs agent chooses to believe its valuable contraband -- most likely something worth stealing. TruthInTelevision; though smartphones and self-tracing electronics have made it very easy to catch them in the act in the 21st century, they've ''always'' had sticky fingers. An excellent example of how the conspiracy could have plants in various government department, they had no control of little things. A few seasons later however, some of their schemes would require every single person in the FBI building to be part of the conspiracy.

** Subverted in Tunguska, where the conspiracy is thwarted when OverreactingAirportSecurity decides to crack open a package of black oil; ''despite'' the courier giving up and admitting he's transporting biohazardous material, the customs agent chooses to believe there's valuable contraband inside the creepy transparent tubes -- most likely something worth stealing. TruthInTelevision; though smartphones and self-tracing electronics have made it very easy to catch them in the act in the 21st century, they've ''always'' had sticky fingers. An excellent example of how the conspiracy could have plants in various government department, they had no control of little things. A few seasons later however, some of their schemes would require every single person in the FBI building to be part of the conspiracy.
** A particularly egregious example; even when something goes wrong the MIB move in so fast that the heroes are lucky if they get there in time to watch the evidence/witness/villain disappear.

** Subverted in Tunguska, where the conspiracy is thwarted when a member of staff at the airport decides to check a package of black oil. I thought this was a lovely almost plausible example as it showed that, while the conspiracy had plants in various government department, they had no control of little things. A few seasons later however, some of their schemes would require every single person in the FBI building to be part of the conspiracy.

* Averted in a gag in the SailorMoon S season where Eudial calls Haruka's house to leave a message on her answering machine that she has found the holder of a talisman. Eudial's message gets cut off by the answering machine only allowing messages of a certain length, and then she has to call back and leaves the rest of her message, which begins with her yelling about the answering machine cutting her off in the first message.

* Similar to the ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'' example, TheVentureBrothers shows that the minions of the supervillains often question the order of their bosses, have very human failings, have a union of their own and will bring their negotiating demands to their bosses who themselves constantly struggle with budgetary contraints. This show loves taking the demolition ball to any trope it can find.

* Becomes a plot point in ''[[NancyDrew Alibi In Ashes]]'', when Nancy realizes that [[spoiler: Brenda]] has some secret way of getting around town very fast, despite traffic delays and bridge closures.

* In ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'', the Imperium is the largest aversion to this trope. The galaxy spanning empire is rife with corruption and bureaucracy (in fact, there are entire PLANETS of {{Obstructive Bureaucrat}}s). If a planet or system falls under attack, it can take years to organize a sizeable relief force and get to the front lines, assuming there aren't any freak Warp storms to delay or outright destroy the fleet. It's so bad that entire planetary systems are lost and armies rerouted to the wrong place due to ''rounding errors''. The only faction that seems to play this trope straight are the Forces of Chaos, if only because by their very nature they sneer and heckle such fool concepts as logistics and casualty.

* Averted in AmericanTabloid. A plot to kill JFK in Miami falls apart, with Dallas being a hastily kludged together but successful back-up plan.

* The entire Franchise/AssassinsCreed franchise seems to be this at first glance, with the Templars foiling the Assassins at every turn and ultimately shaping the world - and [[WrittenByTheWinners history]] - in their favor. However, in VideoGame/AssassinsCreedIII, the BigBad of the American Revolution-era Templars explains that they are simply [[EvilIsEasy realistic]] and [[EvilPaysBetter opportunistic]] - they don't ''need'' to be perfectly competent to achieve their goals, they just need to [[TheCorrupter accommodate and nurture]] the flaws in human nature instead of attempting to correct them as the Assassins do. [[AsLongAsThereIsEvil As long as there are ambitious, greedy, cruel, humans]], there will be Templars to reward obedience with influence, wealth and power.

* The entire Franchise/AssassinsCreed franchise seems to be this at first glance, with the Templars foiling the Assassins at every turn and ultimately shaping the world - and [[WrittenByTheWinners history]] - in their favor. However, in VideoGame/AssassinsCreedIII, the BigBad of the American Revolution-era Templars explains that they are simply [[EvilIsEasy realistic]] and [[EvilPaysBetter opportunistic]] - they don't ''need'' to be perfectly competent to achieve their goals, they just need to [[TheCorrupter accommodate and nurture]] the flaws in human nature instead of attempting to correct them as the Assassins do. [[AsLongAsThereIsEvil As long as there are cruel, greedy humans]], there will be Templars to reward obedience with wealth, power and influence.

*** Though the episode also features an inversion, when one of her crewmates casually refers to Zuko and Iroh as prisoners, tipping them off (though Iroh was already suspicious) and allowing them to escape. She's absolutely livid, and the crewmate clearly fears for his life.

* Becomes a plot point in ''[[NancyDrew Alibi In Ashes]]'', when Nancy realizes that [[spoiler: Brenda]] has some secret way to get around town very fast, despite traffic delays and bridge closures.

** According to the prequel novel ''Deus Ex: Icarus Effect'', the [[spoiler:NSF]] was formed a few decades before the formation of [[spoiler:X-51]].

* As soon as ''Film/CaptainAmericaTheWinterSoldier'' reveals [[spoiler: SHIELD is thoroughly compromised by enemy agents]], the same agency that had constant logistic and communication difficulties coping with events in former MCU movies (even ones, such as the Chitauri invasion in ''Avengers,'' that were '''not''' part of the EvilPlan) becomes terrifyingly efficient in pursuing and eliminating the heroes.

* Lewis acknowledges this again in ''TheChroniclesOfNarnia'' book ''TheHorseAndHisBoy'' (set during the reign of the kids). TheEvilPrince Rabadash is angered when Susan rejects his marriage proposal but knows that his country's massive armies can't cross the desert to reach Narnia. He decides to collect 200 horsemen in an attempt to kill the King of Archenland(Narnia's neighbor) and gain a foothold. Even then it takes the better part of two days to get the men ready.

* The '''''heroes''''' in TomClancy's novels are subject to this from about ''RedStormRising'' on. The US military and intelligence agencies are staffed with supremely competent agents from the lowliest grunt to the most senior general or administrator. All these agencies cooperate well and share information, and the infamous real-life rivalry between the CIA and the FBI, or the fights for funding between the army, navy and air force, are nowhere to be found. Agents are given experimental equipment that works perfectly as advertised the first time out in the field. When the villains inevitably make a small misstep in their master plan, the protagonists are on them like white on rice.
** In fact, the only thing holding [[AmericaSavesTheDay the USA back from finishing the story by page 30]] are [[StrawmanPolitical bleeding heart liberal socialist Commies.]]
** Notably, in ''[[Literature/JackRyan Patriot Games]]'' the bad guys raiding Jack's house miss Robby, who rescues the other. An hour later, the terrorist are cornered by a dozen cops, a Coast Guard cutter, and a squad of Marines, with an FBI team late to the party.

* The Swiss crime story [[Literature/ThePledge The Pledge]] revolves around subverting this trope: A cop spends years analyzing a serial killer's MO, finding out who the next victim will be and and builds a relationship with the victim's family to use them as bait - but the killer never strikes. After several years, the cop's gone mad and refuses to believe he was wrong. [[spoiler: He actually was right, but the killer died in a car accident on his way to the crime. Wah wah waaaaaah...]]

* The Swiss crime story [[Literature/DasVersprechen The Pledge]] revolves around subverting this trope: A cop spends years analyzing a serial killer's MO, finding out who the next victim will be and and builds a relationship with the victim's family to use them as bait - but the killer never strikes. After several years, the cop's gone mad and refuses to believe he was wrong. [[spoiler: He actually was right, but the killer died in a car accident on his way to the crime. Wah wah waaaaaah...]]

* Subverted in an episode of ''WesternAnimation/JackieChanAdventures''. The [[MonsterOfTheWeek episode's antagonists]], a well-organized magical cult, plan to harness the Stonehenge's magical power. These cultists had planned for every possible event and had Jackie and Jade in a tight spot for most of the episode. They ultimately complete their ritual, only to discover [[spoiler:[[CouldHaveAvoidedThisPlot that the Stonehenge really wasn't magical]].]] Hilariously, [[spoiler:a UFO lands at the site after everyone has left]].

* Lampshaded in ''Disney/TheEmperorsNewGroove'', when Kronk and Yzma make it back to the palace before Kuzco and Pacha ''in spite of'' having a delay.
-->'''Kuzco''': No, it can't be! How'd you get here before us?

-->'''Kronk''' Ya got me. ''[Displays a map that shows them having fallen into a ravine]'' By all accounts it doesn't make sense.

* The Swiss crime story The Pledge revolves around subverting this trope: A cop spends years analyzing a serial killer's MO, finding out who the next victim will be and and builds a relationship with the victim's family to use them as bait - but the killer never strikes. After several years, the cop's gone mad and refuses to believe he was wrong. [[spoiler: He actually was right, but the killer died in a car accident on his way to the crime. Wah wah waaaaaah...]]

* ''SCPFoundation'' tends to avert this. They keep a worldwide {{Masquerade}} running... ''barely''. It is very clear that it only works because most world governments are cooperating/funding the Foundation, and they [[NecessarilyEvil must cross all kinds of moral lines]] to keep the [[ArtifactofDoom objects]] contained. Yet, read enough of the site, it becomes clear that with the many close calls, containment breaches from employee errors, and many other incidents, things are only kept secret because the Foundation has [[EasyAmnesia drugs that can completely wipe people's memories]].