History Main / TheFamilyThatSlaysTogether

[[JudgeDredd http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Angel_5506.jpg]]
[[caption-width:315: Family Bonding]]

[[folder: Comics]]

[[folder: Manga and Anime]]
* The [[HunterXHunter Zoldyeck Family]] are a family of assassins. Not exactly criminals, these guys kill [[CareerKillers strictly as a job]].

[[folder: ProfessionalWrestling]]
* The WrestlingFamily [[EddieGuerrero Los Guerreros]] have as their motto, "We lie, we cheat, we steal. It's a family tradition."
[[/folder]]

[[folder: RealLife]]

[[folder: Theater]]
* In ''{{Hamlet}}'', the royal family (and their aides) seem to make a habit of killing, but, of course, for them it would be better fitting if this was called, "The Family That Slays ''Each Other''."
[[/folder]]

* The Family of Blood from ''DoctorWho''.

->Now the brother shall betray the brother to death, and the father the son; and children shall rise up against their parents, and shall cause them to be put to death.
->--Mark 13:12

:Now the brother shall betray the brother to death, and the father the son; and children shall rise up against their parents, and shall cause them to be put to death.
-Mark 13:12

Now the brother shall betray the brother to death, and the father the son; and children shall rise up against their parents, and shall cause them to be put to death.

Very often, this trope might overlap with CannibalClan, especially in the horror genre.

* The [[HunterXHunter Zoldyeck Family]] are a family of assassins. Not exactly criminals, these guys kill strictly as a job.

* EvanDorkin's "The Murder Family". A not-so-wholesome sitcom family who Do What It Says On The Tin. To a sitcom audience soundtrack, no less.

* In ''{{Hamlet}}'', the royal family (and their aides) seem to make a habit of killing. Of course, this would be the more tragic variety of the trope, seeing that they only kill each other.

* In ''GrandTheftAuto'' games, the leadership structure for a number of the [[GenericEthnicCrimeGang Generic Ethnic Crime Gangs]] are rooted in family ties, especially in [[GrandTheftAutoIV GTA IV]]. Unsurprisingly, a lot of them murder people. The most notable example being the [=McReary=] Family, the backbone of Liberty City's Irish Mob. Both the family matriarch and patriarch have had ties in running the gangs criminal activities, and their sons Derrick, Gerry, and Packie are all violent criminals. It seems the only people serving as an exception to the family violence are Kate and Francis, and yet Francis is a DirtyCop and asks the player to [[spoiler: kill Derrick, effectively making this a Type II example of the trope]]. Kate is the only one in the family without a criminal record.

** "Open Season" had brothers [[TheMostDangerousGame who hunted people for sport]], having been taught to so by their uncle, a paranoid psychotic who had died some time before the events of the episode, leaving them continuing as SiblingsInCrime.

[[quoteright:315:[[JudgeDredd http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Angel_5506.jpg]]]]
[[caption-width-right:315: Family Bonding]]

[[JudgeDredd http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Angel_5506.jpg]]
[[caption-width:315: Family Bonding]]

** In ''Hogfather'', Medium Dave and Banjo were apparently brought up to be criminals by their mother, who is fondly remembered for her ruthlessness by other criminals.

* Invoked by [[{{Discworld}} Terry Pratchett]] in regard to the Agathean Empire royalty - one has to be a murderous bastard to survive the court intrigues and as a result, some features get reinforced every generation.

* [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agnus_McVee The McVee family]], essentially the Canadian equivalent of the Bloody Benders.

While it's not uncommon for some people skilled in a trade to pass it on to their children, sometimes the only thing a parent is skilled at that he can teach to his kids is murder, [[ColdBloodedTorture cold-blooded torture]], and any other heartless criminal deeds you can think of. This will usually result in raising an entire clan of [[CompleteMonster Complete Monsters]], and when the kids are old enough, the family collectively and regularly adds to rising a body count and a growing criminal file.

Contrast: MamaDidntRaiseNoCriminal

!! Examples

'''Families of this variety also typically reach one of two possible conclusions in the course of the story:'''

* They remain united to a common goal to do whatever vulgar criminal behavior they feel like committing ForTheEvulz until they're all gunned down and killed [[GoodHurtsEvil by The Power of Good]], or...
* ...the family's [[DysfunctionalFamily dysfunctional nature]] leads to some members [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder betraying one of their own kin]]; this may be because of someone's HeelFaceTurn, or, if the family is portrayed as a group VillainProtagonist, being a more tragic moment.