Basic Trope: An authority figure of great power that nobody knows any details about.
- Straight: The Hidden Minister rules the country of Loshiya with an iron fist, but never appears in public.
- Exaggerated: No-one has seen the Minister in person for over twenty years, but he still manages to rule the country with an iron fist somehow.
- Downplayed: The Minister makes radio or parade appearances every so often, but prefers to wear a disguise while doing so.
- Justified:
- The Minister is very paranoid and has a very loyal second-in-command, so it's not a problem for him to hide and let others relay his orders.
- Loshiyarlaphotep The Minister isn't a comprehensible being to begin with, and he hides himself to keep his subordinates from going insane.
- The Minister is a figurative representation of the authority, therefore he doesn't have a physical form.
- The Hidden Minister has severe social anxiety, and so does everything he can to avoid having the public see him, while still oppressing said public. Most of his dealings involve proxies that speak in his stead.
- Inverted:
- The Minister is a total Attention Whore, holding parades and rallies every other day, barely ever getting off TV and radio, and plastering every wall with the posters of his face.
- The citizens of Loshiya are practically unknown for the Minister.
- Subverted: The Hidden Minister used to control the country from the shadows, but has over the years granted more and more leeways and autonomy to his much more well known underlings, to the point that the actual leaders of the country are now public figures, while the people are still believing that the Hidden Minister still personally oversees everything.
- Double Subverted: However, the Hidden Minister still has veto powers over the people who make actual decisions, so that he can make sure no decisions will be implemented that would unwittingly hinder his plans.
- Parodied:
- The Hidden Minister makes frequent public appearances, but remains completely anonymous... by donning mustachioed sunglasses and a Conspicuous Trenchcoat.
- The Hidden Minister is frustrated to find a constant stream of anonymous imposters - his followers are both confused and frustrated at the constantly changed orders.
- The Minister finally reveals himself to the public, and... Let's just say he doesn't quite live up to the expectations.
- Zig Zagged: The Minister plasters every wall with the posters of his face, but nobody has seen him in person for years. The official line is that he hides to be safe from the assassins sent by foreign powers - but it's a lie. The Hidden Minister doesn't even exist, being merely a metaphor for the power of the ruling Party, and actual decisions are taken in concert by the Hidden Cabinet, a sizable assembly of second-rate functionaries formally subordinate to the Minister, who are generally considered Beneath Notice. An actor is used to portray him for TV and radio broadcasts... but then this actor starts getting ideas about actually running things and begins plotting to become the Hidden Minister for real.
- Averted: The Minister is not a particularly public figure, but he doesn't try to conceal his identity when he's called upon to make a public appearance.
- Enforced: ???
- Lampshaded: ???
- Invoked: In an attempt to make his life more secure, the Minister erases all records of his previous existence and hires several Body Doubles to make himself exceptionally hard to track down.
- Exploited: ???
- Defied: The Minister is adored by population, so he doesn't hide his identity because hiding it would make him less safe.
- Discussed: "Yes, I know he's the ultimate authority, and I'm thankful for his wise rule, but... well, it would be nice to know how the Hidden Minister even looks like. Hail the Hidden Minister!" "Just between you and me, I think the man in a position like the Hidden Minister's has a lot of reasons not to show his face. The enemies may be watching... Hail the Hidden Minister!"
- Conversed: "You know, I have to wonder if the Hidden Minister is an actual character. Does he have an actor listed in the cast?"
- Implied: The story takes place after the Hidden Minister was overthrown, but one character mentions that no-one ever did find out what the guy looked like, and that it'll probably remain a Riddle for the Ages.
- Deconstructed:
- No-one knows how the Hidden Minister looks like... so no-one catches on when he is killed and replaced.
- When the coup is staged against the Hidden Minister and his ex-allies break down his door, he turns out to be The Man Behind the Curtain.
- The Hidden Minister winds up killed by a fall down some stairs, a random car accident or a mugger because anything or anyone which could protect him or offer aid would compromise the anonymity.
- The Hidden Minister dies without anyone knowing, resulting in his government becoming paralyzed.
- Reconstructed:
- The group that wants to Kill and Replace the Hidden Minister immediately runs into a problem - nobody knows where or how to find him.
- The Hidden Minister has become an institution for better or worse. While accountability is limited largely to their own conscience it has some advantages. It provides an illusion of continuity to avoid open succession crisies or identifying to exploit when the ruler has been replaced by someone inexperienced or grown senile.
- Played For Laughs: The Hidden Minister is a protagonist of Sketch Comedy vignettes, with titles like "Hidden Minister Goes Grocery Shopping" and "Hidden Minister's Christmas Vacation". Every time, the crux of the plot is the same: the Hidden Minister having to conceal his true identity by any means necessary, because otherwise people will accost him with problems they need him to solve.
- Played For Drama: The plot concerns Alice and Bob, two deep-cover agents from a rival power, that seek to find the Hidden Minister and expose him to the public - and the entire story builds up to the revelation of the Minister's true identity, with betrayals, dark secrets, and plot twists galore.
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