History Main / PleaseShootTheMessenger

[[OhCrap What do you mean, the message told her to?!]]

* In the Franchise/{{Tintin}} comic ''[[Recap/TintinCigarsOfThePharaoh Cigars of the Pharaoh]]'', Tintin takes two patients to a mental hospital, and gives the doctor a letter which is supposed to explain their condition. Little does he know that letter describes Tintin himself as a dangerous lunatic, and instructs the doctor to lock him up.

* In ''Webcomic/DanAndMabsFurryAdventures'', [[http://www.missmab.com/Comics/Vol_1773.php Dragon Lord Hizell]] believes that his son, Pyroduck has become soft after he was raised by Fa'Lina, so he sends a messenger with instructions to kill the messenger to prove his worth as a dragon. To up the ante, the messenger was told that if Pyroduck refused to kill her, [[InvoluntaryBattleToTheDeath to kill him instead]].

Not to be confused with ShootTheMessenger or SpareAMessenger. It's related, however, to ShootTheDangerousMinion. Can be combined with the related UriahGambit, when the message tells the recipient to send the messenger on a deadly errand. If you're playing a video game and your PlayerCharacter gets hit with this, you've just encountered one variety of TreacherousQuestGiver.

* The Spartan general Pausanias who was conspiring with the Persian king communicated via letters with instructions to kill the messenger. This backfired [[GenreSavvy when one of them opened the letter]] and alerted the ephors.

* The Spartan general Pausanias who was conspiring with the Persian king communicated via letters with instructions to kill the messenger. This backfired when [[GenreSavvy when one of them opened the letter]] and alerted the ephors.

* This is how John Looney betrays Michael O'Sullivan in ''ComicBook/RoadToPerdition''. The message in question read "Kill O'Sullivan, and all is forgiven." Michael being Michael, however, the people that he sends this message to don't succeed in offing him. John Looney's son Connor, on the other hand, is a lot more successful in [[MoralEventHorizon his part of the betrayal]], though Connor ended up killing the wrong kid (he had intended to kill Michael Jr., who had witnessed a hit by Michael and Connor, and did not trust Michael's words that his son was a man of honor).

* In ''Film/KangarooJack'': The main character is the fuck-up stepson to a mafia boss, who sends him and his BlackBestFriend to Australia to deliver the contract for a mob hit to his associates. It turns out that they're delivering the ''payment'' for their murder, rather than the contract. The kangaroo ends up inadvertently saving their life by running off with the money inside the red jacket.

* This is how John Looney betrays Michael O'Sullivan in ''ComicBook/RoadToPerdition''. The message in question read "Kill O'Sullivan, and all is forgiven." Michael being Michael, however, the people that he sends this message to don't succeed in offing him. John Looney's son Connor, on the other hand, is a lot more successful in [[MoralEventHorizon his part of the betrayal]].

* Downplayed in ''VideoGame/Wizard101'': After giving you a menial task for failure, Professor Cyrus Drake sends you with a letter to the headmaster. The headmaster reads it and exclaims that [[SugarWiki/HeartwarmingMoments he will not expel you, no matter what Cyrus thinks of you]].

* In Germanic tradition, the young prince Amleth was almost killed this way by his evil uncle when the prince proved he was onto the uncle having killed his father. He sent Amleth to Britain with two servants and a message to kill Amleth. Amleth rewrote the messages so both his companions died and he got to marry the local king's daughter. If this sounds familiar, it's because it inspired Hamlet below.

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'', Bart campaigns for class president. Mrs. Krabbappel gives Bart a Note that he wants brought to Principal Skinner. The note reads "Keep Bart distracted for a few minutes".

* An [[UrbanLegends Urban Legend]] from the late days of WWII Berlin, when food was getting scarce, has it that a young boy was payed to deliver an envelope to a butcher shop, after being told strictly not to open it himself. The boy got curious and suspiscious, and opened it anyway. It contained a note with only one sentence: "[[HumanResources Here is the veal.]]"

* OlderThanFeudalism: [[Myth/GreekMythology Iobates]] was the King of Lycia. His son-in-law Proetus, convinced that his guest Bellerophon had tried to rape his wife/Iobates' daughter (in fact, [[FalseRapeAccusation Bellerophon had refused her advances]]), was determined to kill the hero, but was bound by ''[[SacredHospitality xenia]]'' not to. So he sent Bellerophon to Iobates with a note that said "Kill the bearer of this message." But before Bellerophon could hand the message to Iobates, he had feasted at the Lycian court and slept under the King's roof--''xenia'' again! So [[UriahGambit Bellerophon was sent to destroy the horrible monster Chimera]].

* ''Series/{{Rome}}''. Pompey the Great

is murdered by a Roman mercenary employed by

* Done in ''Series/{{Rome}}'' to [[spoiler: the assassin of Pompey]].

* ''Film/TheFourthProtocol'' is about a Soviet plot to detonate a nuclear device on British soil and MakeItLookLikeAnAccident. As such an act violates a secret protocol between the nuclear powers, various people get bumped off because [[YouKnowTooMuch They Know Too Much]]. The KGB agent assigned to the task is given 'final instructions' by his briefing officer before going on the mission. The agent looks surprised after reading them, given his briefing officer a MeaningfulLook, then breaks his neck. Later a female military scientist is sent to assemble the bomb that the agent will detonate. She delivers a message which Brosnan decodes using a one-time pad, then he burns the message claiming that it just confirms her instructions re setting off the bomb. She ends up sleeping with him, and the morning after rolls over in bed and [[WritingIndentationClue sees the imprint on the notepad]]: KILL HER. The agent immediately shoves a pillow against her chest and fires his gun through it, killing her as she's about to blurt out that the bomb's timer has been set to kill him the moment he activates it.

* ''Film/RoadToPerdition'' combines this with a UriahGambit. When Sullivan goes out on his debt collecting rounds for Mr. Rooney, he is given a special note from him [[spoiler: actually from Rooney's son]] for the first debtor he visits - an offer to forgive the debt if the debtor kills Sullivan.

* ''Film/TheFourthProtocol'' is about a Soviet plot to detonate a nuclear device on British soil and MakeItLookLikeAnAccident. As such an act violates a secret protocol between the nuclear powers, various people get bumped off because [[YouKnowTooMuch They Know Too Much]]. A female military scientist is sent to assemble the bomb that the KGB agent played by Pierce Brosnan will detonate. She delivers a message which Brosnan decodes using a one-time pad, then he burns the message claiming that it just confirms her instructions re setting off the bomb. She ends up sleeping with him, and the morning after rolls over in bed and [[WritingIndentationClue sees the imprint on the notepad]]: KILL HER. Brosnan immediately shoves a pillow against her chest and fires his gun through it, killing her as she's about to blurt out that the bomb's timer has been set to kill him the moment he activates it.

* Downplayed in ''VideoGame/Wizard101'': After giving you a menial task for failure, Professor Cyrus Drake sends you with a letter to the headmaster. The headmaster reads it and exclaims that [[HeartwarmingMoment he will not expel you, no matter what Cyrus thinks of you]].

* ''VideoGame/{{Dishonored}}'' has a variation: Before the Boyle party mission your compatriot [[BlueBlood Lord Pendleton]] asks you to deliver a letter to one of the guests. Said letter designates you as [[DirtyCoward Pendleton]]'s stand-in for a DuelToTheDeath. Naturally you don't find this out until ''after'' the other man has read the letter.

* An [[UrbanLegends Urban Legend]] from the late days of WWII Berlin, when food was getting scarce, has it that a young boy was payed to deliver an envelope to a butcher shop, after being told strictly not to open it himself. The boy got curious and suspiscious, and opened the it anyway. It contained a note with only one sentence: "[[HumanResources Here is the veal.]]"