abstract
| - Villains have an urge to gloat. There's something irresistible about twisting the knife that last little bit before finishing things. Rather than activate the needlessly complicated Death Trap right away, they will pause to outline their plan to the hero, often including information on how to stop it. This can give the hero the time they need to escape, but just as often the hero will simply sit there and wait. It's rude to interrupt someone when they're chat before trying to kill you. Even those who plan to simply shoot their enemy may stop by to share details of their plans first. It sometimes seems that heroes get more information out of being interrogated than their interrogators do. Thanks to the Unspoken Plan Guarantee, this removes any chance the villain had at success... unless it already happened. Sometimes, of course, it's all part of the plan. What good is Revenge if they still think it all was plain bad luck and don't know you're out to get them for killing your stepmother's brother's favourite cat? A character who thinks The Hero holds him in contempt may lay out the plan in hopes of getting his respect. But all too often, it's not justified in any way. Heroes are only slightly less prone to such fits of Genre Blindness. They are just as ready to explains the whole game plan to a partner when the opponent stands just out of a hand reach and even more eager to "make a point" about the reasons why exactly the other side have to go down. Almost like proclaiming the verdict of a makeshift jury. Many anime use this as a technique to drag out the fights. Dates at least as far back as the movie serials of the 1940s (especially those made by Republic), making it Older Than Television. This is, in general, a very Discredited Trope that's very often parodied or subverted, but just as often played straight. When the villain falsely thinks it's Just Between You And Me, you have an Engineered Public Confession. When the villain takes advantage of their solitude to tempt The Hero, it's What You Are in the Dark. Truth in Television: As any prankster knows. Though not quite so much in the case of criminal or truly despicable behaviour, as guilt and/or fear of consequence usually overshadows the sadistic joy of mischief, and certainly any urge to reveal it. Examples of Just Between You and Me include:
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