History Main / NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished

* This can happen in Website/GoAnimate [[YouAreGrounded "Grounded"]] videos. For instance, in [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0NUh6LmjVgY this]] video, WesternAnimation/{{Caillou}} stops his father, Boris, from robbing a bank. However, when Boris gets arrested, Caillou is arrested as well. His crime? Being a "baby show" character. Boris is given three and a half years in jail and is put in a fancy jail cell with all amenities while Caillou is given ''[[DisproportionateRetribution life in prison]]'' stuck in a smaller part of Boris's cell without even a bed or a toilet, and Boris is allowed to beat up Caillou whenever he wishes.

We all know that {{karma}} can be a harsh but fair bitch, but sometimes it's just a total [[{{Jerkass}} bitch]]. It's not enough that the bad guy is a KarmaHoudini. It's not enough that the good guy CantGetAwayWithNuthin. It's not even enough that he's a ButtMonkey or TheChewToy, put through the wringer for no reason. No, sometimes fate isn't satisfied until disaster befalls the good guy purely as a result of him ''doing the right thing''.

-> '''Aladdin:''' I don't get it, Genie. I try to do something good but it… it ''blows up in my face.''\\

* The aesops ''FarmerAndTheViper'' and ''Scorpion and the Frog'' basically ARE this trope.

* The music video for Music/BestFriend. The supermodel who has been [[YouAreWhoYouEat swallowing women whole]] in order maintain her beauty starts to feel unwell as her latest absorptions are wearing off. One of her fellow models goes to see if she's okay, then the next thing we see is the woman's jaws unhinged and the poor supermodel's legs sticking out of her mouth, kicking desperately as she's swallowed alive.

->''No good deed goes unpunished\\
No act of charity goes unresented\\
No good deed goes unpunished\\
That's my new creed\\
My road of good intentions\\
Led where such roads always lead\\
\\
No good deed goes unpunished\\
All helpful urges should be circumvented\\
No good deed goes unpunished\\
Sure, I meant well -- well, look at what well-meant did!''
-->-- '''Elphaba''', "No Good Deed" from ''Theatre/{{Wicked}}''

* Mr. Tensaided suffered a case of this in ''Webcomic/ElGoonishShive'' when he gives Susan the rest of the day off to deal with a personal issue, only to get swarmed by a [[http://egscomics.com/comic/2016-11-18 horde of grandparents]] in complete disagreement as to what constitutes "appropriate content" for their grandchildren. A good deed is usually fairly safe in this comic, but Tensaided had to go and [[TemptingFate tempt fate]] as well.

* ''VisualNovel/PiofioreNoBansho'', in Nicola's route, [[spoiler: Marco]] defends [[spoiler:Roberto]] after the latter attempted to kill Nicola in front of the other Mafia bosses. Despite the bosses wanting to kill [[spoiler:Roberto]], [[spoiler:Marco]] convinces them not to and [[spoiler:Roberto]] was allowed to leave without any harm. However, later on, [[spoiler:Roberto]] would murder [[spoiler:Marco]] in cold blood because in their eyes, [[spoiler:Marco]] betrayed them by "siding" with the Mafia.

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!!Examples:

* Agent Washington from ''WebAnimation/RedVsBlue'' could be a poster child for this trope. He went against his orders to spare Agent South's life... and she shot him in the back as thanks (following orders from the same command as him, no less). After he returns to work, instead of receiving the support he needs to stop [[TheJuggernaut The Meta]], he gets saddled with bureaucracy and a team full of idiots. And after he takes down that military organization and puts a stop to its numerous unsanctioned experiments based on [[AIIsACrapshoot fragmented AIs]], he gets [[ArrestedForHeroism slapped with a number of criminal charges for his efforts]] (most notably, 7 counts of destruction of military property).

* Myth/KingArthur: In some versions, Mordred. At the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Camlann Battle of Camlann]], Mordred draws his sword in order to kill a serpent at Arthur's heel during peace negotiations, but Bedwyr sees this as an act of betrayal and calls for war. This ends with Arthur and Mordred killing one another and Mordred being seen as a traitor forever. Ironically most versions also say Arthur was negotiating in bad faith, it was really a play for time until his allies could get there.

* The Season 5 finale of ''Machinima/ArbyNTheChief'' ends like this. After Arbiter and Master Chief expose Trent Donnovich [[spoiler:for having a private affair, despite being about to get married with Claire]]. Trent and his staff are defeated and Arbiter and Claire resume their relationship, [[BittersweetEnding but at the cost of having their account permabanned by the Bungie Network Executive, Brian, for months]]. Additionally in Season 6, once they do get access to their account back, Arbiter learns that his actions have also "fractured" his relationship with Claire, as she tells him [[TheResenter a part of her is angry at him for ruining]] [[GrassIsGreener what could have been a very promising future for her had she had not known of Trent's true nature]].

* Agent Washington from ''Machinima/RedVsBlue'' could be a poster child for this trope. He went against his orders to spare Agent South's life... and she shot him in the back as thanks (following orders from the same command as him, no less). After he returns to work, instead of receiving the support he needs to stop [[TheJuggernaut The Meta]], he gets saddled with bureaucracy and a team full of idiots. And after he takes down that military organization and puts a stop to its numerous unsanctioned experiments based on [[AIIsACrapshoot fragmented AIs]], he gets [[ArrestedForHeroism slapped with a number of criminal charges for his efforts]] (most notably, 7 counts of destruction of military property).

* Strong FantasticRacism in ''Webcomic/ImpureBlood'' means that the protagonists face this wherever they go, most notably when [[spoiler:Dara]] single-handedly fights a squad of rampaging golems to protect a family, then gets [[http://www.impurebloodwebcomic.com/Pages/ISSUE11Pages/ib247.html beaten unconscious]] by the people she had just saved.

* ''Kind'' of: in ''Out-of-Placers'', Kass buys a shiny stone for a high price out of pity from a struggling Yinglet (small rodent) merchant. It promptly [[BalefulPolymorph turns him into a Yinglet]]. [[GenderBender A female one]]. Though, admittedly, it was safe until he broke it himself...

By its very nature, it frequently overlaps with NiceJobBreakingItHero Though it's entirely possible for this to result from a deed that doesn't, in and of itself, have bad consequences.

[[folder: Music Videos]]

---> Whoso rewardeth evil for good, evil shall not depart from his house.

** In ''VisualNovel/DanganronpaV3KillingHarmony'', Tenko is jealous of Angie's bond with Himiko and butts heads with her repeatedly during the game. After [[spoiler: Angie dies]], Tenko is horrified despite her dislike of her and attempts to let go of her jealousy of Angie and Himiko's friendship by volunteering to [[spoiler: be the conduit during a séance set up]] so that Himiko can speak to Angie again. Unfortunately, this act of altruism [[spoiler: costs Tenko her life, since she gets into a death trap Korekiyo had prepared earlier that was originally intended for Himiko.]] [[HeroicBSOD Himiko doesn't take this very well at all.]]

* ''VisualNovel/PiofioreNoBansho'', in Nicola's route, [[spoiler: Marco]] defends [[spoiler: Roberto]] after the latter attempted to kill Nicola in front of the other Mafia bosses. Despite the bosses wanting to kill [[spoiler: Roberto]], [[spoiler: Marco]] convinces them not to and [[spoiler: Roberto]] was allowed to leave without any harm. However, later on, [[spoiler: Roberto]] would murder [[spoiler: Marco]] in cold blood because in their eyes, [[spoiler: Marco]] betrayed them by "siding" with the Mafia.

* Whether or not the reader of ''Webcomic/AnecdoteOfError'' thinks this applies to [[spoiler:Luntsha]] getting expelled for freeing [[spoiler:Zeya]] depends on whether they believe that [[spoiler:Zeya is redeemable or not]]. As far as Talshko and Yensha were concerned, she had just committed treason out of naïve sentimentality.

-->'''Mr. Tensaided''': It's Sunday anyhow. Mostly just returns.

* As currently stands in ''Webcomic/{{Roommates}}'', each and every magical problem [[Film/{{Labyrinth}} Sarah Williams]] ever had (including Film/{{Labyrinth}}) can be traced back to her deeds in the ''Kid!Jareth arc'' where she... was nice to a child. [[spoiler:The child was a [[TheFairFolk Fair Folk]] [[TimeTravel from the past]], and fae are usually kinda clueless how to pay back such things]].

[[folder:Tabletop RPG]]

-->The freed slaves took it upon themselves to end the impasse; after a last prayer of thanks to the Emperor they signalled the Lamenters' Battle Barge and requested a merciful death, knowing that at least they would die as free men and women rather than as the pawns of the bestial Greenskins. With another Ork fleet massing for the attack, the Lamenters had no choice and granted the former slaves the Emperor's Peace.

Named for a well-known saying attributed to Clare Boothe Luce. The WideEyedIdealist is prone to this, and tends to turn them into a KnightInSourArmor at best. Very often, it is a consequence of doing NotQuiteTheRightThing. Compare BeingGoodSucks, where it's the act of being good (rather than the deeds themselves) that brings suffering, and contrast LaserGuidedKarma where ''every'' deed (good or otherwise) gets paid back in spades. If someone sees a hero going through this, it may lead to SympathyForTheHero. Compare AndroclesLion and CharacterWitness, two Tropes that can prove the exact opposite.

Sure, I meant well -- well, look at what well-meant did!"''