Tropescilloscope: Karma Houdini

Character gets away with foul deeds while avoiding justice. (read more at tvtropes.org)

More Tropes Anguished Declaration of Love Flipping the Bird The Hero Dies Handicapped Badass Animal Motifs French Films All There in the Script Real Life Writes the Plot Damsel in Distress Black Comedy Rape You Have Failed Me Affably Evil Throwing Your Sword Always Works Unresolved Sexual Tension Actually Pretty Funny Self-Deprecation Gone Horribly Right Casting Gag Fantastic Racism Meet Cute Dirty Cop Intergenerational Friendship No OSHA Compliance Anyone Can Die Rape as Drama Pun aka: Incredibly Lame Pun Evil Counterpart Bottomless Magazines Five-Man Band MacGuffin Determinator Offscreen Teleportation Male Gaze Big Bad Shut Up, Hannibal! Advertised Extra Jerk with a Heart of Gold Obstructive Bureaucrat The Lost Lenore Retirony Intrepid Reporter What the Hell, Hero? Badass Bookworm Heroes Want Redheads Didn't Think This Through Rich Bitch Mooks The Oner Our Zombies Are Different Canon Foreigner Villain Ball Guile Hero Corpsing Nice Hat B-Movie Love at First Sight Expy He Who Fights Monsters Grievous Bottley Harm Fate Worse than Death I Have Your Wife Evil Is Petty Creepy Child Brother–Sister Incest Heel Realization You Have Outlived Your Usefulness Russian Films Re-Cut Closed Circle Hope Spot Neck Snap Bavarian Fire Drill Chekhov's Skill Psycho for Hire Retired Badass Eyepatch of Power Sexy Discretion Shot Hooker with a Heart of Gold BFG Mistaken for Gay Improbable Weapon User An Axe to Grind Crapsack World Foil Action Film, Quiet Drama Scene Punctuated! For! Emphasis! Light Is Not Good Bittersweet Ending Lighter and Softer The Starscream Asshole Victim Alas, Poor Villain Playing Gertrude Betty and Veronica Rule of Cool Stealth Hi/Bye Up to Eleven Punch-Clock Villain The Mole NO INDOOR VOICE Beauty Is Never Tarnished Almost Kiss Broken Aesop Meaningful Background Event Based on a True Story Death by Irony Knife Nut Get Out! Noodle Incident Improvised Weapon The Ghost Big Damn Heroes Genre Shift Ominous Latin Chanting Random Events Plot The Bully Never Found the Body Age Lift Say My Name Sadistic Choice The Faceless Military and Warfare Films Token Minority It's Personal Straight Gay Imagine Spot Final Girl The Chick Camp Gay Domestic Abuse Country Matters Chase Scene Big Bad Duumvirate Arranged Marriage Retcon The Reveal Cloudcuckoolander Cowboy Cop Evil Is Hammy Lampshade Hanging Call-Back In Medias Res Composite Character Face Death with Dignity Hypocritical Humor Curse Cut Short Needs Wiki Magic Love Action Genre Spared by the Adaptation Better to Die than Be Killed Easily Forgiven Spiritual Successor Only in It for the Money Eye Scream Twist Ending Department of Redundancy Department Deconstruction Shipper on Deck One-Word Title Bad Boss The Hero Historical In-Joke Ambiguous Disorder Irony Rule of Funny I'm a Humanitarian Dwindling Party Bloodier and Gorier Even Evil Has Loved Ones Card-Carrying Villain Epic Movie Chiaroscuro Aside Glance And I Must Scream The Un-Favourite aka: The Un Favorite The '50s Fainting The Voiceless Ooh, Me Accent's Slipping Well-Intentioned Extremist Drowning My Sorrows Television Movie Index Obfuscating Stupidity Wham Shot Dutch Angle Hair-Trigger Temper Boom, Headshot! An Aesop Freudian Excuse Bland-Name Product Femme Fatale Failed a Spot Check The '60s An Arm and a Leg Kids Are Cruel Artistic License – Geography Took a Level in Jerkass Historical-Domain Character A.I. Is a Crapshoot Armor-Piercing Question Precision F-Strike Wrong Genre Savvy It's All About Me Fat Bastard Jack Bauer Interrogation Technique Stealth Pun Black and Gray Morality Drugs Are Bad I Just Shot Marvin in the Face Slasher Smile Running Gag Interrupted Suicide Spanner in the Works Honor Before Reason Unusually Uninteresting Sight Evil Sounds Deep Fourth Date Marriage Contrived Coincidence Be Careful What You Wish For Vitriolic Best Buds Auto Erotica Henpecked Husband Bloodless Carnage My Greatest Failure Everyone Calls Him "Barkeep" Crazy-Prepared Dying Moment of Awesome Creator Cameo Due to the Dead Facial Horror Trailers Always Spoil Brutal Honesty Biopic Unusual Euphemism Nice Job Breaking It, Hero! Artistic License – Biology Not So Different Would Hurt a Child Defrosting Ice Queen Red Oni, Blue Oni All There in the Manual Extremely Short Timespan Genre Throwback Fantasy Films Dramedy Sacrificial Lion Establishing Character Moment I Did What I Had to Do Blackmail Recap / RiffTrax aka: Riff Trax Movies Even Evil Has Standards Pretty Little Headshots Butt-Monkey Fanservice He Knows Too Much Accidental Murder German Films Dropped a Bridge on Him Redemption Equals Death Even Bad Men Love Their Mamas The Alcoholic Imperial Stormtrooper Marksmanship Academy Break the Cutie Parental Neglect No-Sell Naked People Are Funny Blatant Lies Only One Name Properly Paranoid Faux Affably Evil Decoy Protagonist Darker and Edgier No Celebrities Were Harmed Not What It Looks Like Kick the Son of a Bitch Take That! Skewed Priorities Babies Ever After Catapult Nightmare Nice Job Fixing It, Villain! Conspicuous CG Greater-Scope Villain Too Dumb to Live Bilingual Bonus Epic Fail Karmic Death Those Two Bad Guys Beware the Nice Ones Important Haircut Fun with Acronyms timeperiod The Ace Bring My Brown Pants Bowdlerise Attempted Rape Sinister Minister Bald of Evil Canadian Movies Determinator aka: The Determinator The Sociopath Sir Swears-a-Lot Music Stories Only Known by Their Nickname Super Strength Daddy's Girl Death of a Child Older Than They Look Australian Movies Calling the Old Man Out Dark and Troubled Past Dull Surprise Bond Villain Stupidity Papa Wolf Hidden Depths Broken Pedestal Real Life Married to the Job Manchild Deliberate Values Dissonance Horror Films Adaptational Villainy La Résistance The Dog Bites Back Scare Chord "Well Done, Son!" Guy Hollywood Law Disguised in Drag Have a Gay Old Time Paper-Thin Disguise Mood Whiplash Rule of Symbolism Translation Convention Loophole Abuse Screw This, I'm Outta Here! The Musical Kick the Dog Scenery Gorn Death by Sex Cat Scare Adaptational Badass The Dreaded A Father to His Men Novelization Exactly What It Says on the Tin Stalker with a Crush Dressing as the Enemy Hypocrite Did Not Get the Girl Horror Doesn't Settle for Simple Tuesday Hero Antagonist Hong Kong Films Sports Stories From Bad to Worse Kill 'em All Animal Title Index Body Horror Exact Words Despair Event Horizon Undying Loyalty Blood from the Mouth Outrun the Fireball Crazy Jealous Guy Peek-a-Boo Corpse Poor Communication Kills After the End Kubrick Stare Your Cheating Heart Stepford Smiler My God, What Have I Done? Ax-Crazy Nothing Is Scarier Meaningful Name Fanservice Extra Historical Hero Upgrade Refuge in Audacity The Quiet One Anachronism Stew Roaring Rampage of Revenge Belligerent Sexual Tension Eiffel Tower Effect Ambiguously Gay Never Trust a Trailer Chekhov's Gun Artistic License – Military Disney Death Immune to Bullets Jitter Cam Agony of the Feet Eagleland Driven to Suicide Deadpan Snarker Reckless Gun Usage Cluster F-Bomb Big-Bad Ensemble Big Brother Instinct "Where Are They Now?" Epilogue For Want of a Nail Hero of Another Story Bi the Way Break the Haughty Silence Is Golden Large Ham Darkest Hour '80s Hair Not So Stoic Developing Doomed Characters Beta Couple Same Language Dub Mundane Made Awesome I Want My Beloved to Be Happy The Stoic Action Prologue Grey and Gray Morality It Will Never Catch On Adaptation Dye-Job Totally Radical Why Did It Have to Be Snakes? Corrupt Corporate Executive Heroic Sacrifice Public Domain Feature Films Diabolus ex Machina Naïve Newcomer Hoist by His Own Petard Creative Closing Credits O.O.C. Is Serious Business Film Noir Cool Old Guy Earn Your Happy Ending Car Fu Dark Reprise Mexican Standoff Malevolent Masked Men Genre Savvy Evil vs. Evil Sequel Hook Love Triangle Red Right Hand May–December Romance Hollywood Darkness Obviously Evil Sliding Scale of Idealism vs. Cynicism Major Injury Underreaction Wicked Cultured Bar Brawl Amusing Injuries "Shaggy Dog" Story Works Set in World War II Girl-on-Girl Is Hot Homage Not Quite Dead Neck Lift Superhero Manipulative Bastard Chewing the Scenery Spell My Name with an "S" As the Good Book Says... Adorkable Central Theme Adaptation Expansion Fingore Dissonant Serenity Alpha Bitch My Beloved Smother Dirty Old Man Artistic License – Physics Amoral Attorney Aluminum Christmas Trees More Dakka Very Loosely Based on a True Story N-Word Privileges Author Appeal Time Skip Cruel and Unusual Death Reasonable Authority Figure Wham Line Blood Knight Deal with the Devil Mad Scientist Book-Ends Maybe Magic, Maybe Mundane Coming-of-Age Story Parental Incest The Great Depression Bloody Hilarious World of Ham Rule of Three The Remake Leave the Camera Running Those Wacky Nazis Combat Pragmatist The Chessmaster And the Adventure Continues Star-Crossed Lovers Bait-and-Switch Your Head A-Splode Improbable Infant Survival aka: Infant Immortality Ms. Fanservice Product Placement Humiliation Conga Covers Always Lie Disproportionate Retribution Adaptation Distillation In the Back A God Am I Big Fancy House Artistic License – Gun Safety Worthy Opponent Moment Killer Taking the Bullet Does Not Like Shoes Italian Films Jerkass True Companions Chekhov's Gunman Psychopathic Manchild Word of God The Smurfette Principle Fan Disservice Anti-Villain Film Noir Index Shout-Out Silent Movie The End... Or Is It? Costume Porn Heterosexual Life-Partners Sassy Black Woman Gainax Ending How We Got Here Good Is Not Nice Sole Survivor Cool Guns Market-Based Title No Ending Abusive Parents Unwitting Instigator of Doom Jump Scare The Place Tempting Fate Posthumous Character Idiot Ball Demonic Possession Mercy Kill Eldritch Abomination Brick Joke As You Know Curb-Stomp Battle Mystery and Detective Films Serious Business Villainous Breakdown Bury Your Gays Pragmatic Adaptation Insane Troll Logic The Bad Guy Wins Visual Pun One-Man Army The Atoner Cool Car The Un-Reveal No Name Given Bound and Gagged Getting Crap Past the Radar Big Applesauce Killed Mid-Sentence Call-Forward Heel–Face Turn Race Against the Clock Badass Grandpa For the Evulz Documentary Room Full of Crazy Overprotective Dad Rasputinian Death Gory Discretion Shot All for Nothing Scary Black Man Rousing Speech Dies Wide Open Expository Hairstyle Change Reality Is Unrealistic Dark Is Not Evil Smug Snake Dumb Blonde Heroic BSoD Make It Look Like an Accident Together in Death Disappeared Dad Take a Third Option Parental Abandonment The Cavalry Apocalypse How Villain Protagonist Made of Iron Mr. Exposition Black Dude Dies First Shower Scene Ugly Guy, Hot Wife Made of Explodium Camera Abuse Colour-Coded for Your Convenience aka: Color Coded For Your Convenience Toplessness from the Back Badass Normal folderlabel Character Development Toilet Humour aka: Toilet Humor Ragtag Bunch of Misfits Gorn Ungrateful Bastard Celebrity Paradox Anachronic Order Pyrrhic Victory Sci-Fi Horror The Lancer Big Eater Line-of-Sight Name Evil Laugh Shown Their Work Gratuitous English Ironic Echo Kill It with Fire Accidental Misnaming Mythology Gag Whole Plot Reference Punny Name No Good Deed Goes Unpunished The Cameo Artistic License – Law Jerk Jock Sealed Evil in a Can Show Within a Show Victoria's Secret Compartment Slashed Throat Breaking the Fourth Wall Pragmatic Villainy Fiery Redhead Adults Are Useless Off-into-the-Distance Ending Spiteful Spit Evil Brit Pretty in Mink Cold-Blooded Torture Awesome, but Impractical Alliterative Name Cool Shades Serial Killer Scenery Porn Smoking Is Cool Screw the Money, I Have Rules! She Cleans Up Nicely Knight Templar Freeze-Frame Bonus Wretched Hive Foreshadowing Loads and Loads of Characters Not Even Bothering with the Accent Adaptation Name Change Badass Longcoat Dramatic Irony You Have Got to Be Kidding Me! Improbable Aiming Skills "Awesome McCool" Name Action Girl Non-Indicative Name Friend to All Children Reality Has No Subtitles Chuck Cunningham Syndrome Sequel Escalation Roger Ebert: Great Movies List Only Sane Man Anti-Hero Rape Is a Special Kind of Evil Antagonist Title "The Reason You Suck" Speech One Steve Limit No-Holds-Barred Beatdown Revenge Rated M for Manly Annoying Younger Sibling Missing Mom Arc Words Wounded Gazelle Gambit Actor Allusion Redshirt Army As Long as It Sounds Foreign Evil Plan Japanese Films Early Installment Weirdness Romantic Comedy Abhorrent Admirer Taking You with Me Ghost Fiction She's Got Legs Pre-Mortem One-Liner Funny Background Event Double-Meaning Title Maybe Ever After Psychological Thriller Bond One-Liner Death Glare Comically Missing the Point The Stinger Brainless Beauty What You Are in the Dark Woobie, Destroyer of Worlds Gold Digger Bitch in Sheep's Clothing Drives Like Crazy From Nobody to Nightmare Face–Heel Turn Every Car Is a Pinto Index of Film Westerns Guns Akimbo Tap on the Head Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking The Vamp Badass in a Nice Suit Deus ex Machina Distracted by the Sexy Big "NO!" Black Best Friend Happily Married The Film of the Book Arch-Enemy Children Are Innocent Back from the Dead Bullying a Dragon Green-Eyed Monster Tranquil Fury Empathic Environment Berserk Button Left the Background Music On Red Herring Groin Attack Plot Hole Those Two Guys All Girls Want Bad Boys Politically Incorrect Villain Adapted Out There Is No Kill Like Overkill The Stoner Enemy Mine Artistic License – History Soundtrack Dissonance Framing Device Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass Names to Run Away from Really Fast Shirtless Scene Pimped-Out Dress Mugging the Monster Shoot the Shaggy Dog Vacation Films Fake Shemp What Happened to the Mouse? Parental Substitute Monumental Damage Man on Fire Horror Comedy Ship Tease Manic Pixie Dream Girl Captain Ersatz I Need a Freaking Drink Ascended Extra Villain with Good Publicity Bad "Bad Acting" Badass Boast Cat Fight Leaning on the Fourth Wall All Just a Dream Once More, with Clarity! Only a Flesh Wound Screw the Rules, I'm Doing What's Right! Historical Villain Upgrade Evil-Detecting Dog Downer Ending Villain Song Informed Ability Dogged Nice Guy Stuff Blowing Up Bare Your Midriff Thriller Suddenly SHOUTING! Oh, Crap! This Is Gonna Suck Reality Ensues Extreme Doormat Author Avatar Hair of Gold, Heart of Gold Affectionate Parody Dual Wielding Unreliable Narrator Mind Screw Does This Remind You of Anything? Evil Cannot Comprehend Good The Alleged Car Pet the Dog Insistent Terminology The Power of Love Red Shirt Authority Equals Asskicking The Ditz Adult Fear Cool Old Lady Death Seeker Off with His Head! Vomit Discretion Shot Mr. Fanservice Insult Backfire Protagonist Title Pre-Asskicking One-Liner Let's Get Dangerous! It Can Think Danny Peary Cult Movies List Why Don't You Just Shoot Him? Small Name, Big Ego The '90s The Big Guy The '80s Suspiciously Specific Denial Manly Tears Double Entendre Credits Gag Catch-Phrase Truth in Television Becoming the Mask Deliberately Monochrome Logo Joke Soft Glass You Killed My Father Broken Bird Here We Go Again! Animated Credits Opening Laser-Guided Karma Film Series Never Trust a Trailer aka: Trailers Always Lie Fish out of Water Science Fiction Films Adaptational Heroism Blonde, Brunette, Redhead Gilligan Cut The Casanova Ambiguous Ending Continuity Nod Pay Evil unto Evil Not So Above It All Beard of Evil Training Montage Vomit Indiscretion Shot Depraved Bisexual Riddle for the Ages Sir Not-Appearing-in-This-Trailer Hell Is That Noise Mighty Whitey Cassandra Truth Setting Update Slap-Slap-Kiss Cain and Abel Nice Guy Mama Bear Black Comedy Romantic False Lead Men Are the Expendable Gender Fire-Forged Friends Aww, Look! They Really Do Love Each Other And Starring Death by Adaptation Male Frontal Nudity Funny Foreigner The Dragon Video Credits Match Cut The Smart Guy Bolivian Army Ending A Date with Rosie Palms Crucified Hero Shot Flashback Disney Villain Death Dirty Coward Last-Name Basis Stock Footage In Name Only Implacable Man Martial Arts Movie Would Hit a Girl Took a Level in Badass As Himself All Men Are Perverts Title Drop Slasher Movie The Brute Destination Defenestration Bunny-Ears Lawyer Shell-Shocked Veteran Overly Long Gag Famous Last Words No Antagonist Villain Opening Scene Yandere Four-Temperament Ensemble Offscreen Moment of Awesome The Load Tagline Defiant to the End Rewatch Bonus Faking the Dead Award-Bait Song Fatal Flaw Impaled with Extreme Prejudice Humans Are Bastards Laughing Mad Motor Mouth Ripped from the Headlines Lock and Load Montage Early-Bird Cameo Frame-Up Gender Flip Leitmotif Police Brutality Drill Sergeant Nasty Sanity Slippage Daylight Horror Woman in White Eureka Moment Recycled IN SPACE! Madness Mantra Everyone Has Standards Stylistic Suck Action Survivor Air-Vent Passageway Dark Action Girl Ass Shove Screw the Rules, I Have Money! Christmas Movies Index Red Eyes, Take Warning Jerkass Has a Point The '70s Instant Death Bullet Sudden Sequel Death Syndrome British Films The X of Y Really Gets Around Narrator Storming the Castle Demoted to Extra The Mafia Foregone Conclusion Karma Houdini Half the Man He Used to Be Vampire Fiction Police are Useless Suspiciously Similar Substitute Race Lift Adaptational Attractiveness Fatal Family Photo Not Using the "Z" Word A Minor Kidroduction Zombie Stories Captain Obvious Woman Scorned 20 Minutes into the Future Dramatic Gun Cock Unspoken Plan Guarantee Never My Fault Batman Gambit War Is Hell Hate Sink Morality Pet Meaningful Echo Put on a Bus Our Vampires Are Different Plucky Comic Relief