Tropescilloscope: Hoist by His Own Petard

Defeated by one's own device or plan. (read more at tvtropes.org)

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