Tropescilloscope: Karma Houdini

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

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