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Anime & Manga
I... want to stand beside him [Griffith]... by attaining something of my own. He's... the only one I can't stand looking down on me.
— Guts, Berserk
"[Guts] You're just like Griffith: your dream means everything; you think of nothing but yourself! You don't give a damn whether I'm around or not, do you?!"
—Casca, Berserk
Aqua (flashback): I am the Goddess of Water, Aqua, in the flesh!
Head Priest: (Awed silence, and then snorts)
Aqua: (Gasp!?)
Aqua (present day): I'm a Goddess! I'm a Goddess, yet he...!Dubbed
Kazuma: (snort)
Aqua: WAAAAAHHH!!!!
Head Priest: (Awed silence, and then snorts)
Aqua: (Gasp!?)
Aqua (present day): I'm a Goddess! I'm a Goddess, yet he...!Dubbed
Kazuma: (snort)
Aqua: WAAAAAHHH!!!!
— KonoSuba
Starscream: I remember, a very long time ago, I swore an oath to you, Galvatron. And I could never break that oath.
Galvatron: You had this planned all along, didn't you?!
Starscream: I did, sir. But all of this could have been prevented, if you only had given me some respect.
Galvatron: Save your breath, Starscream.
Starscream: I tried to gain favor from you, but nothing was ever good enough. No matter how many battles I fought, you always found fault. Then I saw how Optimus treated his men, and I realized he was a leader of integrity... unlike you.
Galvatron: You had this planned all along, didn't you?!
Starscream: I did, sir. But all of this could have been prevented, if you only had given me some respect.
Galvatron: Save your breath, Starscream.
Starscream: I tried to gain favor from you, but nothing was ever good enough. No matter how many battles I fought, you always found fault. Then I saw how Optimus treated his men, and I realized he was a leader of integrity... unlike you.
— Transformers: Armada, "Cramp"
Comic Books
Let me tell you the kind of world I live in. It is a world of miserable, bitter, ungrateful paramecium who lash out at you in a state of perpetual rage for not solving their problems fast enough. You do astonishing things for them a hundred times a day. You bring wonder to the lives of ordinary people. And in the end, you realize it's like doing magic tricks for a dog.
What's the matter? Didn't you people hear what I said? I come to you with the first good news the world has had in weeks and this is how you react? Why aren't you thanking me? Why aren't you CHEERING?
—Charybdis/The Survivor, Irredeemable
I used to be a player. Funny how it can all go up the Swanee, ennit? I mean, my name used to stand for something around here. People respected me... or at least were wary enough to fake it. Nowadays? I'm just the bloke who cleans up other people's mess. I'm the fucking plumber. Dunno why I even bother. It's not like I ever get a word of gratitude. You try and do a favor for a mate, and where does it get you? Waist-deep in shit with the tide coming in, every fucking time.
—John Constantine, Hellblazer: The Undiscovered Gothic
Sorry, it's just... Tony Stark and Reed Richards use their genius to save the world every other week. That's how they'll be remembered in history. Meanwhile, I — I, who, forgive me, have just as much to contribute — will be lucky if my tombstone doesn't simply say "Hulk Smash".
— Doctor Bruce Banner, Indestructible Hulk #1
Fan Works
Who always cleans up every pony's mess!? It's me! Who was left out of Gummy's birthday party? Who was left abandoned at The Grand Galloping Gala and wound up at Pony's Joe? Who nearly drowned and froze to death at the end of Winter Wrap Up while some certain ponies were laughing at me? Who is always cleaning up messes from all night studying? Who was left behind to take a book home when I really wanted to be with you all? Me! ME! ME! ME! ME!
— Spike, finally being fed up by the way the Mane Six treat him, "Circus Days"
Shinji: "If Misato hadn't helped us out by getting us a nice 'fund for extraordinary employees' from NERV, I guess I'd still be working as dishwasher in some cheap restaurant."
Asuka: "So that's where that money suddenly came from. I was just angry that it took them so long to honor my work for them properly."
Asuka: "So that's where that money suddenly came from. I was just angry that it took them so long to honor my work for them properly."
Film — Live-Action
"It used to be that being a god, it meant something. People would whisper your name, before sharing their deepest hopes and dreams. They begged you for mercy, without ever knowing if you were actually listening. Now, when they look to the sky, they don't ask us for lightning, they don't ask us for rain, they just want to see one of their so-called superheroes. When did we become the joke?"
— Zeus, Thor: Love and Thunder
Internet
Volus: Shepard! Shepard! A moment of your time!
Shepard: Can it wait? I'm trying to ensure the survival of every sentient being.
Volus: I heard about that. And I think it's really cool. Anyway. I was thinking you could go and get me some artifacts.
Shepard: Can it wait? I'm trying to ensure the survival of every sentient being.
Volus: I heard about that. And I think it's really cool. Anyway. I was thinking you could go and get me some artifacts.
Literature
“Fame you'll be famous, as famous as can be,
with everyone watching you win on TV,
Except when they don't because sometimes they won't.”
with everyone watching you win on TV,
Except when they don't because sometimes they won't.”
—Dr. Seuss, Oh, the Places You'll Go!
"They may be called the Palace Guard, the City Guard, or the Patrol. Whatever the name, their purpose in any work of heroic fantasy is identical: it is, round about Chapter Three (or ten minutes into the film) to rush into the room, attack the hero one at a time, and be slaughtered. No one ever asks them if they want to. This book is dedicated to those fine men."
Live-Action TV
George Clooney married Amal Allamuddin this year. Amal is a human rights lawyer who worked on the Enron case, was an advisor to Kofi Annan regarding Syria, and was selected for a three-person UN commission investigating rules of war violations in the Gaza strip. So tonight her husband is getting a lifetime achievement award.
—Tina Fey, 2015 Golden Globes ceremony
"You know, I come to Sunnydale. I'm the Slayer. I do my job kicking ass better than anyone. But what do I hear about everywhere I go? Buffy. So I slay, I behave, I do the good little girl routine. And who's everybody thank? Buffy."
—Faith Lehane, Buffy the Vampire Slayer
No fame, no armies, no banners, no cities to celebrate your name. You will die alone, unremarked, and forgotten.
"I am doing something! I'm keeping this group together. Alive! I've been doing that all along, no matter what; I didn't ask for this! I killed my best friend for you people, for Christ sake! You saw how he was like. How he pushed me, how he compromised us, how he threatened us. He staged the whole Randall thing, led me out to put a bullet in my back. He gave me no choice! He was my friend, but he came after me. My hands are clean. Maybe you people are better off without me. Go ahead. I say there's a place for us, but maybe — maybe it's just another pipe dream. Maybe — Maybe I'm fooling myself again. Why don't -- why don't you go out and find yourself. Send me a postcard! Go on, there's the door. You can do better. Lets see how far you get. No takers? Fine. But get one thing straight... you're staying. This isn't a democracy anymore."
"There's an old Yorkshire saying...where there's muck, there's brass! And we are in the muck, and the brass took the credit. But it was you...you lot...that cracked this case. (raises his glass) Cheers."
— Detective Inspector Lee, Operation Julie
"I fought Thanos..."
— Clint Barton, about to be executed in a LARP, Hawkeye
Dodd Gerhardt: So you got the money.
Rye Gerhardt: Well, you know, maybe I needed it for me, for something I-
Dodd: No, you earn for the family, not for yourself.
Rye: Yeah, but... You're the oldest, and then there's Bear, and that's the throne. What am I ever gonna be except the kid you send out for milk?
Dodd: You're a Gerhardt!
Rye: That's like Jupiter telling Pluto, "Hey, you're a planet, too!"
Dodd: What?
Rye: If I'm this "royalty", how come you got me doing bullshit collections like some nobody chump?
Dodd: Everybody earns. That's the law.
Rye: Yeah, but what if I got ambitions, you know?
Dodd: You wear short pants till you prove you're a man.
Rye: I'm a man.
Dodd: You're the comic in a piece of bubble gum!
Rye ...Well, I mean, says you.
Rye Gerhardt: Well, you know, maybe I needed it for me, for something I-
Dodd: No, you earn for the family, not for yourself.
Rye: Yeah, but... You're the oldest, and then there's Bear, and that's the throne. What am I ever gonna be except the kid you send out for milk?
Dodd: You're a Gerhardt!
Rye: That's like Jupiter telling Pluto, "Hey, you're a planet, too!"
Dodd: What?
Rye: If I'm this "royalty", how come you got me doing bullshit collections like some nobody chump?
Dodd: Everybody earns. That's the law.
Rye: Yeah, but what if I got ambitions, you know?
Dodd: You wear short pants till you prove you're a man.
Rye: I'm a man.
Dodd: You're the comic in a piece of bubble gum!
Rye ...Well, I mean, says you.
—Fargo, "Waiting for Dutch"
Music
"I've done the best I can
I want my crown."
I want my crown."
— Kevin Coyne, "I Want My Crown"
"If you're wondering why
All the love that you long for eludes you
And people are rude and cruel to you
I'll tell you why
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
You just haven't earned it, son
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
You must suffer and cry for a longer time"
All the love that you long for eludes you
And people are rude and cruel to you
I'll tell you why
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
You just haven't earned it, son
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
You must suffer and cry for a longer time"
Professional Wrestling
"I got three words: 'Die, Rocky, Die'. That's the gratitude I get from you pieces of crap, for all my blood, my sweat and my tears?! You know, hey: this isn't about the color of my skin - this is about respect. I became the youngest Intercontinental Champion in WWF history, and what did it get me? In arenas across the country, I heard chants of 'Rocky sucks!' Well, Rocky Maivia is a lot of things, but 'sucks' isn't one of 'em!"
"As far as I'm concerned, all of this crap in the ring represents these fans out here. For two years, brother, for two years—I've held my head high. I did everything for the charities. I did everything for the kids. And the reception I got when came out here, you fans can stick it brother! Because if it wasn't for Hulk Hogan, you people wouldn't be here. If it wasn't for Hulk Hogan, Eric Bischoff would still be selling meat from a truck in Minneapolis. And if it wasn't for Hulk Hogan, all of these "Johnny-Come-Latelies" that you see out here wrestling wouldn't be here. I was selling out the world while they were bumming gas to put in their car to go to high school."
—Hulk Hogan, the day he founded the New World Order, Bash at the Beach 1996
Tabletop Games
They've given the Giovanni money, contracts, muscle - not to mention a string of prisons and Urgent Care centers nationwide that might as well be named "McVampires." Not bad for a family whose elder is at least two generations removed from the anziani and two centuries younger than their childer. Do the Giovanni notice? Doesn't seem like it. No "nice job" out of Venice. No increased money (though you'd think they'd smarten up after the Milliners told them to buy into Cisco and MCI, and they didn't and if they had they'd made back ten times their investment).
Permission to Embrace cut back. Permission to diablerize Camarilla and Sabbat enemies denied for those not blood-bound to a Giovanni. Francis Milliner publicly dressed down by Diego Giovanni, practically in front of the whole family.
The Milliners give and give and give to the Giovanni, and what do they get? The boss gets a promotion. They get remedial Necromancy lessons from Diego's pet freak-childe... and demands for more souls to make up for what was lost during the Great Spirit Shake-Out.
—Vampire: The Masquerade - Clanbook: Giovanni (Revised)
Theatre
Adams: Benjamin Franklin smote the ground, and out sprang... George Washington. Fully grown and on his horse. Franklin then electrified them with his miraculous lightning rod, and the three of them—Franklin, Washington, and the horse—conducted the entire Revolution all by themselves.
Franklin: I like it.
Franklin: I like it.
—1776
Video Games
So, you're the leader of those mages in Winterhold? What, am I supposed to be impressed?
— Nord Guards, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Not everyone welcomes my collaboration when it comes to solving cases... My status as a "child" was sufficient to offend many of those whom I worked with. Were that the only issue, then it would have resolved itself with time... But though I will one day change from a child to an adult, I will never change from a woman to a man...
— Naoto Shirogane, Persona 4
Hey! Which one of you just called me Indian mythology's sideshow act!? Look, I can understand why you'd do a double take at a gal with an elephant for a head, but my fame and divinity are the real deal! So show me the respect I deserve, dammit!
— Ganesha, Fate/Grand Order
Same old story- you save the world whilst standing waist deep in shit, and nobody gives a damn.
— Miller, Metro 2033
Black Adam: Go terrorize your own Earth!
Power Girl: You're the only terror here, Adam.
Black Adam: Are you incapable of respect?
Power Girl: You're the only terror here, Adam.
Black Adam: Are you incapable of respect?
Black Adam: The grandson of Ra's al Ghul...
Robin: ...meets the dictator of a failed state.
Black Adam: Are you incapable of respect?
Robin: ...meets the dictator of a failed state.
Black Adam: Are you incapable of respect?
Black Adam: Any final words, child?
Raphael: Mikey says you make a pretty mean pizza.
Black Adam: Are you incapable of respect?
Raphael: Mikey says you make a pretty mean pizza.
Black Adam: Are you incapable of respect?
Webcomics
What's it like to walk through life without any sense of personal responsibility? To think nothing of expecting an elite cadre of warriors to attend to your every whim and worry no matter its insignificance. Tasks so important that they must delay the work of men responsible for ensuring that the sun will rise again — yet they are tasks that you cannot be bothered with personally as it may interfere with your schedule of rigorous masturbation!?
—Thief, 8-Bit Theater
WHAT'VE I GOTTA DO TO GET SOME RESPECT AROUND HERE?! I've fought bandits and monsters, slain wights, I even bested The Wild Hunt, and still everywhere I go I have to start all over again, as a laughingstock! I'm a Questor, this is what I do—go on quests, rescue maidens and slay monsters! I can't put up with this—I won't put up with this—every time I go someplace new!
Rory: It's not fair, y'know. Every Thanksgiving I wash all of the dishes and you do nothing.
Davan: Nothing, huh? I spent all of yesterday making the desserts you enjoyed. I got up at five this morning and started cooking the food- food I went and bought, by the way. I spent all day in the kitchen working but I did nothing.
Rory: Yeah, but that's your job, right? You're s'posed to do that. I had to do dishes.
Davan: I can't wait to have memory problems so when I ask what I did to deserve you I don't immediately remember all the dumb shit I said as a teen.
Davan: Nothing, huh? I spent all of yesterday making the desserts you enjoyed. I got up at five this morning and started cooking the food- food I went and bought, by the way. I spent all day in the kitchen working but I did nothing.
Rory: Yeah, but that's your job, right? You're s'posed to do that. I had to do dishes.
Davan: I can't wait to have memory problems so when I ask what I did to deserve you I don't immediately remember all the dumb shit I said as a teen.
Web Animation
Oh yes, spoiler alert: turns out Cortana’s dramatic death scene in the last game wasn’t for realsies...But despite Mr. Chuffy knowing Cortana best and his grief affecting his work—'cos they had to install little windscreen wipers to get all the tears off his face plate—he is inexplicably disinvited from the mission. (I guess his superiors thought they were playing XCom and wanted to level up some of their rookies.)
Web Original
Janeway: Hello, Jean-Luc. I'm an Admiral, and you're not.
Picard: Fuck off, bitch. I saved Earth a half-dozen times and all you did was find your way back there after getting lost.
Picard: Fuck off, bitch. I saved Earth a half-dozen times and all you did was find your way back there after getting lost.
Erik: Your latest success has really impressed everyone here. Some agents have even asked if zey could go on missions vith you. But... Caroline von't let zem. I don't think she completely trusts you yet. But, she vill soon.
Ross: Oh, she doesn't trust me yet, huh?! Wow, this is some great writing! I'm B.J. Blaskowicz! I've killed 300 fucking Nazis in this game alone! That's not good enough for her?! Hey, this is a sequel to Wolfenstein 3-D! Did you tell her I killed Hitler?! I killed Adolf Fucking Hitler?! I put a bullet in his head as he was facing me down with twin chainguns! What does she want?! Does she need me to kill two Hitlers?!
Ross: Oh, she doesn't trust me yet, huh?! Wow, this is some great writing! I'm B.J. Blaskowicz! I've killed 300 fucking Nazis in this game alone! That's not good enough for her?! Hey, this is a sequel to Wolfenstein 3-D! Did you tell her I killed Hitler?! I killed Adolf Fucking Hitler?! I put a bullet in his head as he was facing me down with twin chainguns! What does she want?! Does she need me to kill two Hitlers?!
Web Video
Mikami: ... and I was class president. I like to think I was tough but fair and respected by all...
Bullies: Nerd! He's wearing glasses, kill him! Burn the Witch!
Mikami: Of course, people showed respect differently back then...
Bullies: Nerd! He's wearing glasses, kill him! Burn the Witch!
Mikami: Of course, people showed respect differently back then...
Spoony!Avatar: ...What, seriously? You don't know who I am? The motherfucker who saved the world no less than six times already?
Baron Horrible Von Voice Actor: Stories tell of the coming of the Avatar, but years have passed since he last visited here.
Spoony!Avatar: I am LITERALLY the Christ Figure of your fucking religion. There are museums dedicated to my great feats stretching back through hundreds of years of your recorded history. I should be the most recognizable bastard on the face of this planet, and this cock hydrant doesn't know who I am?
(Stupefied faces stare back)
Spoony!Avatar: None of you guys know who I am?!?
(more stupefied faces)
Spoony!Avatar: READ A BOOK, people! I know that humility is one of the eight virtues, but I'm the Goddamned Avatar! Hello??
Baron Horrible Von Voice Actor: Stories tell of the coming of the Avatar, but years have passed since he last visited here.
Spoony!Avatar: I am LITERALLY the Christ Figure of your fucking religion. There are museums dedicated to my great feats stretching back through hundreds of years of your recorded history. I should be the most recognizable bastard on the face of this planet, and this cock hydrant doesn't know who I am?
(Stupefied faces stare back)
Spoony!Avatar: None of you guys know who I am?!?
(more stupefied faces)
Spoony!Avatar: READ A BOOK, people! I know that humility is one of the eight virtues, but I'm the Goddamned Avatar! Hello??
Western Animation
I get no respect!
"You know what I think is 'compassionate?' Saving the village from Eggman! Like, every week! But do I get any props for that? No! Everyone just goes around gasping at me whenever I call a guy a 'guy,' or people 'people!'"
—Sonic the Hedgehog, Sonic Boom
Leonardo: Raph thinks he can lead the team better than me, so I let him.
Splinter: That is not your decision to make.
Leonardo: Why not, Sensei? I've had to make every other decision and I'm tired of it! Those guys have no idea what kind of pressure I'm under, and all they do is complain! Is it too much to ask for a simple "Thank you?"
Splinter: That is not your decision to make.
Leonardo: Why not, Sensei? I've had to make every other decision and I'm tired of it! Those guys have no idea what kind of pressure I'm under, and all they do is complain! Is it too much to ask for a simple "Thank you?"
"What's so special about your friends?! How can a group of ponies that are so different be so important?!"
— Starlight Glimmer, My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic
"But they don't understand. All they can think of is HATE, HATE, HAAAAAAAAAATE!"
— Billy, The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy
Zarya: You know what's frustrating? This! (show the Wanted Posters of their Mysticon selves) We put our butts on the line for them, and this is the thanks we get?!
Em: We are heroes, Zarya! We do it for the honor, not for the glory!
Zarya: You're saying this doesn't bug you? (Em just sighs) Exactly! It's a bunch of garbage!
Em: We are heroes, Zarya! We do it for the honor, not for the glory!
Zarya: You're saying this doesn't bug you? (Em just sighs) Exactly! It's a bunch of garbage!
It's always the same. I can save the world ten times over, but when I need help? I'm on my own. Thanks... for nothing.
Professor Utonium: Oh, you work here? Uh...
Scrappy-Doo: Scrappy! Yeah, for a while now! I've been busting my hump at this network for years! I mean, who do you think's been keeping the cartoon industry fresh all this time? But, do I get the same treatment as them? Not even close! (to Bubbles) Can I help you?!
Johnny Bravo: Whoa, easy there, Scooby.
Scrappy: My name is Scrappy! And I've been here longer than all of you! Longer than you, you, you, you, you, you, you, and YOU!
Johnny Bravo: Whooaaa, mama.
Scrappy: The problem, as I see it, is too many Cartoon Cartoons! They're the "Kings and Queens" of this network. And they know it! They put in the hours; the late nights! Where's my key to the castle?
Scrappy-Doo: Scrappy! Yeah, for a while now! I've been busting my hump at this network for years! I mean, who do you think's been keeping the cartoon industry fresh all this time? But, do I get the same treatment as them? Not even close! (to Bubbles) Can I help you?!
Johnny Bravo: Whoa, easy there, Scooby.
Scrappy: My name is Scrappy! And I've been here longer than all of you! Longer than you, you, you, you, you, you, you, and YOU!
Johnny Bravo: Whooaaa, mama.
Scrappy: The problem, as I see it, is too many Cartoon Cartoons! They're the "Kings and Queens" of this network. And they know it! They put in the hours; the late nights! Where's my key to the castle?
Real Life
By 1960 Sinatra was once again political. He had been a playmate of Jack Kennedy during his senatorial days; he was also gung-ho to help out his conservative but attractive fellow Catholic friend. But some Kennedy advisers thought the Red Mafioso should be avoided at all costs... for those who have wondered what dinner might have been like for Falstaff when Prince Hal—now King—snubbed him, I can report that after Kennedy was nominated in Los Angeles at the convention where I was a delegate, Tony Curtis and Janet Lee gave a movie-star party for the nominee. I was placed, along with Sinatra, at the table where Kennedy would sit. We waited. And waited. Sinatra looked edgy; started to drink heavily. Dinner began. Then one of the toothy sisters of the nominee said, casually, 'Oh, Jack's sorry. He can't come. He's gone to the movies.' Opposite me, Falstaff deflated and spoke no more that evening.
Another odd turn, in my opinion, was the non-promotion of Ensign Kim. I mean, come on people! Kim was probed, beaten, tortured and held the distinction of being the first Voyager crew member to die and come back to life. What more does a guy have to do to get promoted to Lieutenant for frak’s sake?
—Garret Wang on Star Trek: Voyager
"The Aztecs spent the next 50-100 years hiring out to whichever Empire or City-State needed some really good warriors. The other tribes tolerated the Azzies, as long as they didn't try to move in with the Quality after the screaming and bleeding was done.
"Same old story: The Azzies were Shining Saviours when somebody else's army was waving obsidian-toothed clubs at your populace, but when it came time to pay for services rendered — suddenly the Aztecs were just another horde of over-paid, over-sexed mercenaries. Coulda done the job ourselves, didn't look so hard...
"After three or four generations of this, the Aztecs got tired of being shown the highway as soon as the bodies quit bouncing, and they decided to make their own Empire and make darn sure that they got to be the Snobs."
"Same old story: The Azzies were Shining Saviours when somebody else's army was waving obsidian-toothed clubs at your populace, but when it came time to pay for services rendered — suddenly the Aztecs were just another horde of over-paid, over-sexed mercenaries. Coulda done the job ourselves, didn't look so hard...
"After three or four generations of this, the Aztecs got tired of being shown the highway as soon as the bodies quit bouncing, and they decided to make their own Empire and make darn sure that they got to be the Snobs."
—The LawDog Files, "Ruminations on the Aztec Empire"
"The problem in politics is this: You don't get any credit for disaster averted. Going to the voters and saying, 'Boy, things really suck, but you know what? If it wasn't for me, they would suck worse.' That is not a platform on which anybody has ever gotten elected in the history of the world."
—Congressman Barney Frank (D-Massachusetts), on the federal government's reaction to the 2008 financial crisis
