Cartoons with Story Arcs have slowly started becoming more popular over the past decade or so, perhaps influenced by the popularity of the many, many anime series which have an ongoing continuity. This trope is especially true for cartoons, where networks want to be free to broadcast reruns in any convenient order or lack thereof. And God forbid anyone change the status quo of the surrounding world. Much like Failure Is The Only Option, any changes at all are resolved with a Snap Back or Reset Button. For example, they may use a title sequence that tells us everything we need to know. The reasoning is probably that they want the audience to instantly know everything about the characters and situation, without having to bother with such things as "what happened last episode". This usually happens in a series with no overarching conflict. "A more extreme version of Failure Is The Only Option, in which almost nothing changes. A Prequel may require one, or both the Happy Ending was Doomed By Canon." Kill Em All and The Bad Guy Wins are particularly cruel variations of this. If enough people consider it fundamentally unjust, it may acquire the Dis Continuity and Snicket Warning labels. If it comes out of nowhere or is the result of an Ass Pull then it may be the result of the writers summoning Diabolus Ex Machina. Sometimes, it can be overused to the point it's practically a Mandatory Twist Ending. Sometimes, a Downer Ending can still conclude the character arcs in a very satisfying way, despite being dark. Sometimes used in an attempt to get Emmy nominations, or to at least surprise the viewer. Also rare, due to the same reasons as above. A similarly low-key or unhappy ending to an episode of a normally "happy" series. Sometimes done as a way to assure that the show, once canceled, cannot be revived later (similar to the Grand Finale), but sometimes leaves the show on a cliffhanger. These tend to be rare, as there is overwhelming pressure to tie loose ends up in a "happy" way. A finale to a movie, a TV series, a video game, or some other form of media that ends things on a low note, or in some other way that isn't quite happy. Can cause Fridge Logic if dragons are a regular and accepted occurrence in the characters' world, then why would they use it as an example to compare with something that doesn't? That would be equivalent to saying "If elephants exist Sometimes characters will discuss this, comparing someone's cynicism about talking bats to their fighting dragons last week. Sometimes this is used to define the extent of the fantasy of the world: for example, letting the viewer know that in this Fantasy Kitchen Sink, there are no vampires or ghosts, even if there are unicorns. It could also be argued that this is a case of Truth In Television after getting acquainted with quantum physics many supernatural phenomena do seem quite reasonable in comparison but it doesn't automatically make them true. Sometimes this makes sense just because aliens exist, it doesn't mean that unicorns do but often the viewer is left wondering how the characters can still be skeptical after everything they've seen. "Arbitrary Skepticism is the tendency of characters who deal with the bizarre on a daily basis to be unreasonably closed-minded. Second, it assures the audience that the world of the story is like Real Life: what's implausible for you or me is just as implausible for these characters, and just as likely to provoke an incredulous response.The creators are using the tactic of self-deprecatingly pointing out their own flaws themselves, thus depriving critics and opponents of their ammunition. First, it assures the audience that the author is aware of the implausible plot development that just happened, and that they aren't trying to slip something past the audience. and then moving on.In simple terms - the author points out the improbable subject through some medium (character, passerby, narration, etc.) and says it exists regardless of logic.The reason for this counter-intuitive strategy is two-fold. Lampshade Hanging is the writers' trick of dealing with any element of the story that threatens the audience's Willing Suspension of Disbelief - whether a very implausible plot development, or a particularly blatant use of a Trope - by calling attention to it.
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