About: What Could Possibly Go Wrong?   Sponge Permalink

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When said sarcastically, it's telegraphing a disaster. When said more seriously, it's an open invitation for the world to go to hell in a handbasket. Say there is one critical thing that could happen that would cause a catastrophe that, left unchecked, would directly or indirectly result in disaster. But everyone in the story is assured that this critical thing will never, ever happen. Ever. The audience knows better. In the event that someone in the know tries to warn his superiors to get the situation fixed, expect them to be flat out ignored. Examples of What Could Possibly Go Wrong? include:

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  • What Could Possibly Go Wrong?
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  • When said sarcastically, it's telegraphing a disaster. When said more seriously, it's an open invitation for the world to go to hell in a handbasket. Say there is one critical thing that could happen that would cause a catastrophe that, left unchecked, would directly or indirectly result in disaster. But everyone in the story is assured that this critical thing will never, ever happen. Ever. The audience knows better. In the event that someone in the know tries to warn his superiors to get the situation fixed, expect them to be flat out ignored. Examples of What Could Possibly Go Wrong? include:
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  • When said sarcastically, it's telegraphing a disaster. When said more seriously, it's an open invitation for the world to go to hell in a handbasket. Say there is one critical thing that could happen that would cause a catastrophe that, left unchecked, would directly or indirectly result in disaster. But everyone in the story is assured that this critical thing will never, ever happen. Ever. The audience knows better. If anyone ever mentions a component in a reactor that is the only thing stopping a meltdown, or a lockout chip that is the only thing stopping a megalomaniacal AI from taking sentient control, rest assured that it will either fail, be stolen, or be destroyed, and things will Go Horribly Wrong. In the event that someone in the know tries to warn his superiors to get the situation fixed, expect them to be flat out ignored. The Law of Conservation of Detail helps this along; the scientist isn't going to bother to mention the failsafe unless it's going to, well, you know. When is the last time you were watching a movie, and someone mentioned "if this object was damaged, there would be a catastrophe!" and the object was never mentioned again for the rest of the movie? Frequently combined with Einstein Sue, where one person in the work's universe sees the incoming problem (and works to fix it). It's often used to drive a plot. Everything is normal and then this happens and all hell breaks loose. A sub-trope of Million-to-One Chance. Not always related with the Stock Phrase "What could possibly go wrong?". In these cases, it's often said seriously by characters performing a "simple" task where it does indeed appear that nothing can go wrong (although the end result is similar... something does). When this trope is in effect, it's said sarcastically by the audience, or one of the more Genre Savvy characters in the story, when a very obvious danger is being foreshadowed. See Finagle's Law, Tempting Fate, Mugging the Monster, Phlebotinum Rebel, and Failsafe Failure. Compare Gone Horribly Right. Examples of What Could Possibly Go Wrong? include:
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