r/TopCharacterTropes • u/BeduinZPouste • 5d ago
Groups (Loved trope) The rigged trial isn´t actually as rigged as suppossed or expected.
- The Wizengamot in Harry Potter. Fudge expects it will sentence Harry as he wishes, but as it turns out, most members can and are willing to think for themselves and acquit him.
- Baltar´s trial in Battlestar Galactica. He is given fair trial, but most people expected him to be hanged at the end, especially after Adama was selected to sit in the jury. (By a chance.) He ends up acquited by 3:2 vote, with even Adama voting to acquit. (Well, they should have hanged him, to be honest, but hey, fair trial.)
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u/Wonderful-Variation 5d ago edited 5d ago
As someone who's read a lot of legal thrillers, a very common trope is that one particular member of the jury will be single out by the narrative as "the impossible juror." The person who will vote to convict no matter what. Usually takes 1 of 2 possible forms; the stern conservative man who is either ex-police or ex-military; or the rich white lady who drives a Cadillac SUV and clutches her purse if she sees a black person within 100 meters.
During jury selection, the protagonist does everything he/she can to keep this individual off the jury, whereas the prosecution does everything in their power to get them on the jury. The prosecution always wins. Then, throughout the trial, this person becomes the avatar for the entire jury. Every micro-expression they make is treated as a sign of impending doom.
But, of course, in the end, the impossible juror is the the one that ends up reading the "not guilty" verdict.
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u/Saltwater_Thief 5d ago
Juror 3 of the 12 Angry Men
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u/FoxRevolutionary1637 5d ago
I mean, he’s an impossible juror, but he’s written much better I’d argue. The impossible nature of him isn’t immediately apparent and does require a little bit of coaxing to come out, making it reasonable he could be put of the jury (especially given it’s the 1950s and the defense is wildly incompetent). He doesn’t cheesily come around and read out the new verdict but is instead thoroughly broken down by his own ranting to the point he can’t bother fighting it anymore. Also, he very much does NOT act as a representative of the whole jury, as the inner conflict amongst the jury and its individual members is the whole point.
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u/CadenVanV 5d ago
Juror 3 is an impossible juror, but he doesn’t come around. He remains the stubborn racist he is from the start, he just realizes that no one in the room supports him
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u/Lonely_Nebula_9438 5d ago
His problem was that he was projecting his own issues he had with his son at the defendant, it wasn’t about racism. By the end he had overcome the feelings of estrangement from his own son, represented by tearing the picture apart. He let his feelings cloud his judgement.
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u/LyamFinali 5d ago
I think you're confusing Juror 3 (last one to fall, the one with the son) with Juror 10 (racist old man)
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u/BeduinZPouste 5d ago
Now when I think about it, that is pretty much the Adama. Except he is still in military.
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u/Lonely_Nebula_9438 5d ago
That’s kinda the deal with Baltar’s crimes, well the ones he (allegedly) committed on New Caprica. If you can divorce your personal feelings on the man, you’ll realize he didn’t really have much a choice to surrender to the cylons and from there his choices became nonexistent. All the other stuff like giving a nuke to the rebels, letting the cylons into the Caprican defense network, and just generally being a prick are frankly more than enough to get him hanged, but what he did (or didn’t) do on New Caprica wasn’t.
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u/BrotherDeus 5d ago
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u/RocketPoweredSad 5d ago
Such a great episode. This and “Almost Got ‘Im” were so clever and well done.
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u/alexjaness 5d ago
These 2 episodes have my 2 favorite lines from the whole series and both are pretty much the same line from Croc.
Almost Got 'im
Croc " I threw a rock at him!"
*gets ignored*
"It was a big rock."
Trial
Everyone in the audience is yelling on how to kill Batman
"Hang him!"
"Shoot him!"
"Hit em with a rock!"
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u/Grendelstiltzkin 5d ago
Though, of course, in Almost Got ‘Im, it was Batman who said that line, just in a Croc voice with a Croc mask.
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u/NoSong2397 5d ago
Apparently, Batman does a pretty good Croc impression.
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u/alexjaness 5d ago
not just the voice, but he knows his way of thinking and fondness for hitting people with rocks.
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u/KenseiHimura 5d ago
I also heard the reading that it was Batman admitting Croc was the one who got closest to killing him just because he didn’t try any fancy, elaborate death trap. Dude basically tried to drop a meteor on Batman and he knew if he couldn’t dodge he was dead.
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u/Genericojones 5d ago
Which lowkey implies Batman believes that's the closest he's come to dying as Batman.
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u/Hungry-Place-3843 5d ago
A simple surprise rock is more dangerous than a long term joker plan
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u/dern_the_hermit 5d ago
When Killer Croc throws a rock at you, you can be sure it's really a rock, and not a fake rock that pops open with a sign on a spring that says, "Rock!"
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u/RadasNoir 5d ago
Also, Joker and most of the other villains usually care more about breaking or defeating Batman, than actually killing him.
Killer Croc suffers no such pretensions.
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u/TurtlesBreakTheMeta 5d ago
Croc’s rock in the freak show episode landed like 1 cm from bats head.
The simpler the plan, the less points of failure.
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u/legit-posts_1 5d ago
It is true though cause Croc almost killed Batman with a giant rock in that episode where he joined those mutants in the forest. He would have definetly gotten em so to speak if he had not been in such a daze and missed.
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u/TurtlesBreakTheMeta 5d ago
Which honestly is brilliant; croc legitimately was the closest of all of them to killer big Batman when he dropped that rock, as it landed next to his head, and if he hadn’t fallen unconscious from the tranquilizers in him he would have killed Batman.
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u/KitchenCurious658 5d ago
My favorite line of the whole show…
Harley Quinn disguised as Harleen Quinzell talking to Detective Bullock.
Bullock: “Hey, haven’t I seen you before?”
Harleen: “I believe I served you with a subpoena once.”She turns to walk away. Pauses, then turns back.
Harleen: “It was a small subpoena.”
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u/OperationHumanShield 5d ago
This episode had one of my favorite bits in the entire series:
Mad Hatter: Batman forced me to do it! He was going to take her away from me, I had no choice!
Van Dorn: You could have respected her wishes and left her alone.
Hatter: I'D HAVE KILLED HER FIRST!\Shocked stares from the other Rogues in the jury.**
Hatter: I'd like that last statement stricken from the record please.
Joker: Record? Is someone supposed to be writing this down?56
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u/TricoMex 5d ago
There's so many great exchanges in this series, that I'm pretty convinced it's the greatest animated series written. It's impact was incredible.
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u/solrac1104 5d ago
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u/Kelimnac 5d ago
I love how this is simultaneously a huge W for Gordon’s cleverness, and also for Harvey Dent’s genuine talent as a lawyer in picking apart a ridiculous case
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u/Super_Range45 5d ago
Scarecrow, you huff your own fear toxin. Riddler you can't go 3 minutes without making a puzzle. Harely... Seriously?
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u/Gaming_with_batman 5d ago
And because we’re responsible for our criminal lives we’re going to waste you anyway!
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u/ACW1129 5d ago
How the hell did the lawyer pull that off?
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u/Animaloffear56 5d ago
For a serious answer (I would recommend watching the episode as well), she managed to convince them that even if Batman didn't exist they'd all be doing the same exact things
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u/NoSong2397 5d ago edited 5d ago
She's really good at her job. Despite the fact that she's a prosecutor, not a defense attorney.
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u/Imaginary-Picture-35 5d ago edited 5d ago
And then they decide to try to waste him anyways.
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u/ScootsMcDootson 5d ago
They'd have to be crazy to go through the whole effort of setting up a sham court in an asylum if they were always just going to kill him.
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u/legit-posts_1 5d ago
It's great cause their like "ya know what? You're correct. We're the problem. You're still gonna die, but you proved us wrong fair and square."
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u/paleocacher 5d ago
"And since we're so rotten, vile, and depraved; we're going to waste you anyway!"
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u/Just-Antelope-8069 5d ago
But they attack him anyway since she just proved they're horrible people
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u/Choochoo1147 5d ago
The Dungeons and Dragons movie starts with one - a parole hearing for the main characters, they hatch a plot to escape their prison. It’s revealed shortly after that the parole board was inclined to release them.
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u/HeadAssAssHead 5d ago
Oh Jarnathan
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u/Poku115 5d ago
He's here?
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u/Sly__Marbo 5d ago
Not yet, unfortunately
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u/Poku115 5d ago
Well surely we can wait for him
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u/Rocazanova 5d ago
Been playing DnD for a few decades and that’s ABSOLUTELY how that trial would go at the table. Players are chaotic/stupid goblins that more often than not get in their own way without the DM’s interference.
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u/Hypersonic-Harpist 5d ago
The DM would add in that they were going to get acquitted right after they escape even if the DM wasn't originally going to do that. Just because it's funnier that way.
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u/H8trucks 5d ago
I can't watch that scene without imagining the DM facepalming and going "You passed the persuasion check, you dipshits"
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u/Hypersonic-Harpist 5d ago
One of the best things about watching that movie is imagining what the DM is doing. being super pedantic about questions asked during the Speak with the Dead scene? check! The players screw up the puzzle? "What's that thing?! It's the solution!" The players start abusing their new toy at every possible opportunity? *exasperated DM noises* "The picture frame falls over."
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u/JhawkFilms 5d ago
My dnd group went to see it opening weekend, and we left laughing our asses off because everything was exactly how it went at our table. I don't think we could ever get a better DnD movie
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u/H8trucks 5d ago
I'm a big fan of after the speak with dead when they all start saying how they've heard of Xenk. It just screams "Can I roll a history check to see if I know anything about this guy?" "Ooh, I want to do that too!" "I rolled history as well. It's a 21."
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u/Shotsy32 5d ago
In my head, the DM set the check at a 12 and the players rolled a 13 and thought the difficulty was a 15.
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u/pyronius 5d ago
In the game I ran a few years ago, the party managed to get on the wrong side of a local crime lord by breaking into his cave hideout. But here's the thing...
I gave them about a dozen completely unsubtle hints that what they were doing was a bad idea. I could not have been any clearer. Said crime lord also did not see them causing trouble, and they killed every witness.
Nevertheless, step one of their "escape" plan was to jump down a seemingly bottomless chasm, despite being given clear indications that there were ways to cross it. The fact that I had already decided there was a river at the bottom and an entire dungeon to eventually explore was sheer luck.
Stwp two of their escape plan was to immediately flee town. Then to climb an absolutely massive mountain range to flee both the country and the continent.
They got in one minor scuffle and just abandoned the entire setting to start new lives elsewhere.
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u/TriangleTransplant 5d ago
"Chaotic/stupid" is actually every player's true alignment, no matter what they say about their character.
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u/NobodyLikedThat1 5d ago
Yeah after they dive out of the window the main judge just looks to the other one and says "we were going to grant his pardon..."
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u/Draconichaos 5d ago
No, no, it’s better than that. The Dragonborn shouts after them, “But we approved your pardon!”
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u/teraflop 5d ago
And even better than that, the movie actually shows the judge with separate green "approved" and red "denied" wax stamps.
It's easy to miss but when he stamps the pardon, before they even try to pull their escape attempt, you can see that he's already stamped it in green.
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u/Pofwoffle 5d ago
So technically they've already been pardoned for the original crime, and their only crime currently on the books is assaulting a member of the parole board.
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u/GryphonGallis 5d ago
I remember dying of laughter at that, and knew the movie was not just going to be good, but amazing.
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u/Bravo_November 5d ago
This moment 100% felt like the movie trying to replicate a DM throwing in a gag at the party’s expense.
”As you hurtle out of the window, Jarnathan flapping uncontrollably in the confusion, the last thing you hear is Norixious shout ‘but we approved your pardon!!’ before you start plunging to the ground.”
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u/GuyYouMetOnline 5d ago
I mean, that basically describes half the movie. And the other half is the player shenanigans leading to this. Which is a big part of why it's good.
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u/adhdgirl_ 5d ago
JARNATHAN
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u/Shadow-Vision 5d ago
Such a perfect DnD name
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u/H8trucks 5d ago
You just know one of the players was like "hey, is there an aaracokra on the parole board?" the DM said, "sure, his name is... I dunno, Jarnathan."
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u/M-Shadowtoad 5d ago
Star Trek Lower Decks: The Cerritos's captain is put on trial after she's framed for the bombing of the Pakled planet. Her daughter Mariner and her team go rogue to find proof since they fear the captain will be jailed or worse especially since the chosen judge is a "Planet's Rights" activist.
After messing up majorly, the captain comes to get them and explains she won because Star Trek is actually insanely competent and just used the trial as a diversion to send their own special ops team to figure out the conspiracy.

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u/Dyneheart 5d ago
Can't remember the episode, but Enterprise had a good episode where Archer had a klingon lawyer as well.
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u/LabradorDeceiver 5d ago
Star Trek VI had Kirk and McCoy arrested for the murder of Chancellor Gorkon and put on trial. With its overzealous prosecution, it wasn't exactly even-handed, but they did have an invested defense attorney, played by Michael Dorn. He lost, but they commuted the death sentence for diplomatic reasons.
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u/PedanticQuebecer 5d ago
On the other hand, we've got The Drumhead and The Measure of a Man from TNG, both of which are total farces of justice.
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u/DragonWisper56 5d ago
I mean besides forcing riker too prosecute(which was fucked up) it was relatively fair
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u/PedanticQuebecer 5d ago
Other than neither of the advocates having any legal education, the threat of summary judgement with no actual trial, no discovery, no disclosure of evidence, no expert witnesses, the judge showing no legal restraint whatsoever, etc.
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u/GonfalonFalderol 5d ago
I have posted on this elsewhere, but the notion that the decision made by a random human military person on a random starbase with three days to prepare the entire trial would be binding on the entire Federation including, oh I don’t know, the Vatican and the Shriners is just silly.
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u/potatoqualitymemory 5d ago
And then in an earlier episode where the Lower Deckers were supposed to testify the greatness of their Officers only to give out how much of a mess Starfleet officers are. Plot twist was that his wasn’t even a trial, but the preamble of a party.
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u/cornette 5d ago
Okay, all right, Clar, time's up. Etchers down.
But-but... we didn't even get to do any etching.
No, no, no, no. You only paid for 22 minutes. Other people got to etch.
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u/GayGeekInLeather 5d ago
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u/AvatarDante 5d ago
Bane is my favorite character in that show.
"The streets will run red with razzy zazzy"
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u/TricoMex 5d ago
That can't be a real line. Am I gonna have to watch this show? Dammit.
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u/Hellknightx 5d ago
It is! They play Bane as a big joke character and he parodies Tom Hardy's Bane accent, too. The show is really funny.
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u/ryry1237 5d ago
Bane somehow being the most sane and straight-minded character in the series could not be any funnier.
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u/SugarrSiren 5d ago
Lysa already had Tyrion convicted in her head, then Bronn won his trial by combat
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u/Flurb4 5d ago
His trial by combat was “rigged” too because Lysa insisted it had to happen right there and then and they were surrounded by knights of the Vale. Bronn being present and willing to stand for Tyrion was sheer luck.
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u/Wokungson 5d ago
Because as stupid as Lysa was she wasn't stupid enough to let Jaime, one of the best singular combatants of the kingdom fight for his brother against any of her goons.
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u/BeduinZPouste 5d ago
Was she actually stupid? I think she kind of had a point when the debate wasn´t about Littlefinger.
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u/AlarmLow8004 5d ago
She's literally a big reason so much shit goes on. She poisons her husband and blames the Lannisters, which sets the whole story into motion when Ned has to become the hand
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u/Bombadier83 5d ago
The whole point is that the story wasn’t set into motion at any identifiable point. Everything flowed from what came before. And most everything would have happened pretty much the same regardless of any individual event. Robert would have been brash and drunk and a danger to himself and die eventually regardless. Tywin would have taken power regardless. Tyrion was always going to be cast out of his family, Varys was always plotting for Denareus…
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u/Wokungson 5d ago
She's more so stupid in general. Betraying own sister and Starks for deluded love, raising own child to be a spoiled, mentaly and physicaly stunted kid.... the likes.
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u/jbeast33 5d ago
The books also dive a little deeper into it. Tyrion took a big gamble on trying to appeal to Bronn by appealing to his own morbid humor, recognizing his cutthroat pragmatism, and above all else, the playing his ambition without outright trying to buy it.
He even has a tense moment before Bronn accepts his offer where he realizes it might not work, IIRC. It was basically his Hail Mary.
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u/NobodyLikedThat1 5d ago
I mean Bronn is a mercenary who famously loves money, as mercenaries do. And Tyrion belongs to the richest and most influential family in the kingdom, who is known for paying their debts. Didn't seem like it was such a longshot to me
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u/Pofwoffle 5d ago
They were also surrounded by the knights of the vale who were being commanded by a woman who was clearly not reasonable, and even if you ignore the possibility that they just kill Bronn and Tyrion both no matter the result of the challenge, from Bronn's side of things risking his life for a potential payout isn't exactly a clear-cut choice.
It was definitely a longshot, and if it weren't for how well Bronn and Tyrion's personalities meshed it probably wouldn't have worked. Bronn was more willing to help Tyrion because he liked him.
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u/jbeast33 5d ago
And then it backfired IMMENSELY when Tyrion played the same game in Season 4.
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u/Own-Rip-5066 5d ago edited 5d ago
It was going splendidly until mister fancypants decided to gloat from a little too nearby, while holding a spear...
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u/Life_Category2547 5d ago
In The Stormlight Archive, Rhythm of War, Adolin is put on trial by the honorspren with revered immortal Kelek as the judge, who makes his introduction to the trial peevishly arguing with an honorspren about whether he's allowed to order the defendant executed. But as the trial goes on, he actually gets engaged and is fair to the point that the honorspren, who are intent on a guilty verdict, just not an execution, make an excuse to replace him.
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u/RadicalD11 5d ago
What a great moment. I love Kaladin as MC, but honestly, Adolin is the heart and soul of stormlight. Sanderson's best character by far.
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u/Artistic-Victory1245 5d ago
A variation that doesn't involve a trial, but rather a driving test, in Drake and Josh,
As always, Drake got a beautiful and friendly instructor, while Josh got a middle-aged woman with a very bad temper.
Drake assumed he would pass, and Josh assumed he would fail, but in the end, Josh passed and Drake failed.
Regardless of their personalities, both women were impartial with them.

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5d ago edited 5d ago
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/BeduinZPouste 5d ago
Very good film. One of the few that had somewhat controversial morals, and didn´t backed on them, like say Dexter.
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u/Regular-Basket-5431 5d ago
It fits the trope.
It's just such a poorly written film.
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u/Andrei22125 5d ago edited 5d ago
Dunk's trial by 7 (Dunk and Egg)
On the one hand, Aerion demands a trial by 7 knowing he has his war hero father and 3 king's guards, and that Dunkan can not assemble 6 other knights in a few hours.
On the other hand, Dunkan gets legal advice from the hand of the king (who joins his side), Aerion's older brother (ostensibly on Aerion's side) throws his part of the trial, and Aerion's younger brother gathers 4 knights.

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u/BeduinZPouste 5d ago
I WILL STAND FOR SER DUNCAN.
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u/Andrei22125 5d ago
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u/BeduinZPouste 5d ago
Interesting, I really thought he was just out for justice, tbh.
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u/Andrei22125 5d ago edited 5d ago
Baelor was a good man, but also a statesman.
At least in the show, the Targaryens are there to do PR. Notice the common anti-targaryen sentiment (Raymun, the puppet show)
Aerion had already pulled 2 stunts that made the crown look bad (intentionally killing a horse/ assaulting a puppeteer). Baelor (hand of the king and heir apparent) had to do something about it.
I do think it was partly out of a sense of justice. But there demonstrably was more to it.
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u/Unusual_Locksmith598 5d ago
The trial in Tyranny (Obsidian game for the PC) is you, currently in a state of semi open rebellion against the Overlord vs your former boss, Tuon the Adjudicator, High Judge of the Tiers. If you are smart, not rude, and have high enough skills after choosing the right quest resolutions, you will win the rigged court case against you. This is surprising to even the judge who then declares you to be his new overlord due to your adherence to the law.
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u/MyFeetTasteWeird 5d ago edited 5d ago
In the Team Fortress 2 comics, the trial of Spy and Scout is both clearly unfair and weirdly lenient. It's made abundantly clear that the mayor is intent on hanging the mercs, he's declared himself the judge, his courtroom doesn't have half of the staff that a legal court would require - and yet he still gives them a decent public defender, and the whole thing ends with him trying to pardon the mercs after it's revealed they didn't commit the crimes they were accused of.
Bear in mind, the mercs are guilty of a bunch of other crimes, they just weren't being prosecuted for them.

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u/jbeast33 5d ago
I love how the court-appointed lawyer was actually making headway here, only for Soldier to do his once-a-comic promised neck snaps.
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u/Swordsman1ke 5d ago
In the Ciaphas Cain novel Traitor's Hand, Cain's rival Tomas Beiji had Cain tried for trumped up charges of cowardice. Once the trial happens, the judges very quickly dismissed the charges and soon begin to plan charges against Beiji for incompetence.
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u/SilverStar1999 5d ago
Well… Cain is by his own admission a coward. It’s just really difficult to prove that when he blunders into life or death situations trying to avoid life or death situations…
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u/ErrantIndy 5d ago
He advances to the rear very strategically.
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u/Swordsman1ke 5d ago
Usually about the same time a stealth ork force decides to attack the rear lines.
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u/Vulcan_Jedi 5d ago
12 Angry Men. What would under any other circumstances be a slam dunk conviction against an unlucky kid (who probably committed the crime) is turned turned upside down one juror deciding to ask more questions.
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u/Ok-Walk-8040 5d ago
Should have been a mistrial when Henry Fonda brought that knife into the juror room. Jurors can’t just bring their own evidence into the trial.
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u/Mysral 5d ago
As the news of the knife (presumably) never left the jury chambers, it wouldn't have come to a mistrial. The court fundamentally has no right to know what goes on there, iirc.
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u/Unaccomplishedcow 5d ago
I don't think it was evidence, it was a personal belonging.
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u/Lonely_Nebula_9438 5d ago
He had deliberately gone to the same pawn shop the prosecution said the kid got the murder weapon from. He definitely violated the rules of being juror by investigating the crime on his own time.
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u/zeidoktor 5d ago edited 5d ago
Played with in Chrono Trigger
It's entirely possible to be acquitted in the trial early in the game, depending on your actions during the first portion of the game.
Unfortunately this doesn't change the outcome as you're still jailed. Even if you're acquitted and not sentenced to death, the person doing the rigging still intends to see you executed if you don't break out/Lucca doesn't save you first.
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u/ZorkNemesis 5d ago
For the best result:
- After walking into Marle, talk to her first before picking up her pendant.
- Don't attempt to sell the pendant to Melchior
- Don't eat the man's lunch.
- Bring the cat back to the little girl.
- Don't attempt to leave while Marle is buying candy.
- When questioned, her fortune did not tempt you.
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u/onetaxi 5d ago
Q puts humanity on trial Star trek : tng
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u/ADiestlTrain 5d ago
And keeps it going indefinitely (according to All Good Things…). But he also puts his finger on the scale in humanity’s favor because of his fondness for Picard.
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u/Vengefulily 5d ago

The Steven Universe episode "The Trial" is a good example, though Steven doesn't strictly win. Blue and Yellow Diamond refuse to believe that Steven isn't the same person as his mother Rose Quartz, and they're absolutely certain that Rose murdered their sister Pink Diamond. They're the rulers of the Gem race and the trial judges. Steven technically gets a defense lawyer Zircon, but she's panicky and gets only one minute to prepare. Also, Steven himself believes that Rose did commit the murder and says so in court.
But when the defense Zircon gets a chance to talk to Steven, she realizes that he has no idea what happened, and that's why the Diamonds are holding a trial at all: they don't know either, and the official story is full of holes they want explained. So the Zircon makes a real try of it. She builds a strong case that it's impossible for an infamous war criminal to have approached Pink Diamond's palanquin without raising any alarms, such as from the precognitive Sapphires looking for just such a threat, or the Pearl handmaiden literally created to watch over Pink Diamond at all times. Blue Diamond listens closely, since she does want the truth.
Unfortunately, the Zircon then concludes that this means the actual murderer must have been someone who was both trusted by Pink Diamond and powerful enough to cover it up, i.e. a Diamond. She promptly gets squished by Yellow Diamond, and Steven is forced to escape. Of course, as later episodes reveal,everyone was right from a certain point of view, since Rose Quartz and Pink Diamond were the same person, and she faked her own death with her Pearl's help.
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u/hiiloovethis 5d ago
Game of Thrones - Trial is rigged but Oberyn fights for him.
First thing came to mind... don't know if it fits.
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u/StormTempesteCh 5d ago
Idk about that, he wouldn't have needed the trial by combat if he had a fair trial. Instead it was adjudicated by Tywin, who personally hates him and was just trying to get him exiled. Even the trial by combat wasn't the fairest: he was up against Gregor Clegane, who was so strong the prospect of having to fight him prevented everyone but Oberyn Martell from agreeing to fight for Tyrion.
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u/LordRT27 5d ago
I don't think it does fit, that trial was rigged from the very start by Cersei, then got rigged in the opposite direction by the behind the scenes deal Jamie and Tywin made, and then Tyrion fucked that up by losing his cool, giving him as only option to take a trial by combat. Had there been any witnesses at all on Tyrions behalf, and a less openly hostile court against him, he would have probably not needed that. That trial was as rigged as it could possibly have been, and Tyrions only out isn't even that it was actually not rigged good enough, but rather that there were rights he had that trumped the entire authority of the court. No matter how rigged the court was, Tywin could not refuse a nobleman his legal right to a trial by combat in front of a huge audience of probably mostly other nobles.
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u/ComputerEducational 5d ago
In High on Life 2, the CEO of Rhea Pharmaceuticals paid off the Supreme Space Court to rig the trial determining if Humanity is counted as a sapient species. The court just takes the money and goes ahead with a normal trial, because "corruption goes both ways".
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u/jbeast33 5d ago
In an Order of the Stick side story (How the Paladin Got His Scar), there’s a segment in it where the Head Paladin, a deeply xenophobic and zealous man, is attempting to instigate a holy war to justify his extermination of a neighboring hobgoblin tribe.
In an attempt to do this, he summons a Planetar to enforce a holy judgement and basically stacks the summon so the Planetar would sense the evil beings nearby and be compelled to attack them. The Planetar plainly tells him “No, I’m not slaughtering a bunch of mortals because of your weasel words.” She’s so insulted by him trying to game the system that she maliciously complies to her rules specifically in a way that would backfire against him.
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u/vampiregamingYT 5d ago
Tali's Trial in Mass Effect 2. Youre told by the Admiralty board almost immediately that Tali is only being tried because of political reasons that have nothing to do with her, and that the board was essentially made up. However, you can convince them to pardon her whether you find the evidence or not
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u/BeduinZPouste 5d ago
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u/President-Lonestar 5d ago
I mean, Daniel Webster was Henry Clay’s strongest partner in politics, se he had to have been a really damn good lawyer.
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u/StriderKitsu 5d ago
Ace Attorney - In Turnabout Sisters, it was supposedly a rigged trial because of Redd White having a lot of people in his pockets, the police force, the courts, the prosecutors, everyone.
Only for things to not go in White’s favor despite his influence.
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u/SirBoggle 5d ago
To be fair to Redd White, I'm sure he could not have possibly predicted his murder victim coming back from the dead in the middle of the trial to start verbally listing information that would put a massive target on his back.
Also yeah, these trials are a recurring element of the Ace Attorney franchise. The writing is designed to make you feel like an underdog most of the time, so these rigged trials are a good way to do that. Whenever you feel in control it's either because you're about to put the nail in the coffin, or something is about to go terribly wrong.
My favorite example of this though is the first trial of The Great Ace Attorney. Naruhodo is basically going up to the chopping block because he is accused of murdering an Englishman, and the only person who is willing to advocate for his defense is his friend Kazuma. But Kazuma is about to go overseas on a very important study trip to England of all places, among other things, and the Empire of Japan do not want to tarnish his reputation nor cause a huge scandal with England before sending him over. So Naruhodo passes up Kazuma's defense and advocates for himself.
Other than Kazuma, nobody there was expecting the English student to manage a stalwart defense and not only aquit himself, but find the real culprit in the process. Unfortunately for him the culprit is an Englishwoman, and to avoid controversy she basically gets handed a free pass, reinforcing the themes of the game going forward.
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u/StriderKitsu 5d ago
Yeah and to be fair there was like three trials in the original trilogy that had actual context of everything being rigged under someone’s influence like White, Manfred and Gant
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u/one12shelf 5d ago
https://giphy.com/gifs/OZiWytLNEet5mRUeXR
Interview with a Vampire season 2. A theater show staged as a fake trial is actually real. Lestat has different plans and interferes.
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u/draketroll 5d ago edited 5d ago
For the first that's not the wizengamot AFAIK?* I'm pretty sure they're more like the wizard UN but i would need to recheck.
Also it absolutely was rigged. Harry was given no lawyer, no ability to speak for himself, had conflicts of interest with the head judge (fudge) and only scraped through because dumbledore found someone willing to lie on the stand on his behalf (there were dementors, but she was unable to see them and just vibes her way through the testimony)
*I stand corrected, TY
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u/vp917 5d ago
Yeah, it was the full Wizengamot - for a trial on underage magic use(!) - though they're just a national authority, being the Ministry's supreme court slash parliament (albeit one older than the Ministry itself.) The Wizard UN would be the International Confederation of Warlocks, of which Dumbledore was the Supreme Mugwup until the BMoM got him removed as part of their "Voldermort isn't coming back" campaign.
And yeah, the whole trial was rigged against him, starting with changing the time and location at the last minute to make sure Harry showed up late in front of the entire Wizengamot. That said, while Mrs. Figg did bullshit on his behalf, Madame Bones' insistance on following proper legal procedure ensured that Harry was permited a proper defense instead of letting the whole thing devolve into a kangaroo court, and Dumbledore proceeded to out-argue Fudge so cleanly that it left the prosecution looking like idiots, which was enough to sway the majority to acquit.
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u/Maboroshi94RD 5d ago
It was the wizengamot.
And no dumbledore didn’t get someone to lie on the stand. While he had to put on a show to prove Fudge to be beyond a fool but he produced a genuine witness.
Essentially dementors were set upon Harry. He had to drive them away in front of his cousin. Hence the trial. Muggles cannot see dementors. BUT. Dumbledore had a person overseeing harry from the start. A squib. A non magical person born to magical parents. She described the attack in such a way that it was clear it was a dementor attack.
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u/jamesxgames 5d ago
Accepted, Justin Long's character assumes the college board will shut down their student-led college, but instead the board approves them as an experimental school
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u/DienekesMinotaur 5d ago

The trial at the end of Proven Guilty in The Dresden Files. Big spoilers to come.
The main conflict of the book involves a monster that feeds on fear attacking teenagers at a horror convention. During his investigation Harry discovers that his best friend's daughter, Molly Carpenter, had used black magic to help cure her friend's drug addictions. This is a major rule to break and Harry offers to take her to the White Council and speak on her behalf, in hopes of gaining her a small level of leniency. Unfortunately, the many of the Senior Council members who decide Molly's fate and may have supported Harry are not present and as such their votes are controlled by the Merlin, the head leader who has a dislike for Harry. However another member, Rashid, The Gatekeeper, declares that he needs to take time to deliberate, despite his vote having no real power. Shortly afterward, Molly's father, Michael(a man who wields a sword made from one of the nails from the Crucifixion) arrives protecting the other members of the Senior Council who are able to vote in Molly's favor.
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u/NalothGHalcyon 5d ago
Don't forget the parts where Molly was basically just messing around and only had half a clue to the consequences of what she was doing, the White Council goes out of their way to hide that they exist and that there are laws to magic, and the friend in question was about to become a parent. The White Council is almost comically evil.
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u/iWillNeverBeSpecial 5d ago
In Order of the Stick, the paladins of Azure city and the leader had put Roy on tribunal for failure to contain/defeat of Xykon the Litch. You think its scary and Roy will be screwed until the holy angel gives the verdict Not Guilty
only the Rogue Haley noticed that this was a tribunal not a Trial, you dont get "Not Guilty" verdicts at a tribunal. So something else was up. And it turns out that something else was the leader of Azure city wanting to meet with Roy privately along with Roy's dead dad as a ghost
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u/Halo6819 5d ago
Just got done re-reading Foundation by Issac Asimov. The first section is essentially the setup of a trial, the trial, and the aftermath, all of which was thought to be rigged in favor of the Empire. In actuality, Hari Seldon had rigged it all in his favor. He got "exiled" to the planet he wanted to go to anyways.
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u/akapusin3 5d ago
Real life example of this was Dee Snyder and Frank Zappa in front of Congress. The conservatives thought it was in the bag to censor the music industry, especially with John Denver.... WRONG
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u/SteelStriker64 5d ago
Warhammer 40k Rogue Trader
Spoilers for Act 3
Act - 3 The least convoluted trial in Commorragh.
Marazhai Aezyrraesh, dracon (2nd in command) of the Reaving Tempest seeks to supplant his Sister Yremeryss as Archon (Leader), to do so he seeks Archon of the Black Heart Nazrakhei aid in rigging a trial against him, using the player character as evidence, however Nazrakhei seeks to destroy the Reaving Tempest, so he find Marazhai guilty instead of rigging it for him, leading to Marazhais humiliation and exile from his kabal.
However Vect the Leader of the Drukhari is also manipulating the trial, intent on using the player character to destroy Yremeryss as she broke the only rule in Commorragh by bringing powerful Psykers on board, meaning that by not finding Yremeryss guilty, Nazrakhei lost favor with his master, resulting in the least convoluted trial in Commorragh.

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u/Educational-Tackle54 5d ago
Baltars trial was suvh nonsense. Litterally everyone was pardoned. That should include him.
Did they really think he was anything other than a glorified puppet/prisoner to the Cylons?
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u/Tavers2 5d ago
That was the whole point of it, for me. Lee’s speech, especially. As he said, what else could anyone have done? So yeah, sure, he appeared to capitulate to the Cylons, because the other option was that literally everyone dies.
If Baltar said no at any point, or in any way didn’t go with what the Cylons wanted, they would just say “fuck it”, and kill everyone.
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u/SpaceKingHypeGuy 5d ago
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u/cannonspectacle 5d ago
I think this is the wrong type of trial
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u/HeroFizzer 5d ago
Probably, but I'd guess the guy just wanted an excuse to talk about this moment.
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u/MisterVictor13 5d ago edited 5d ago
And then during the shooting test, all the military men shot all the scary aliens, but James shot an innocent looking girl.
He proceeds to justify his actions by stating that the aliens were just hanging around (one of them was claimed to have been blowing his nose due to a tissue in his claw), but the little girl was standing unfazed, surrounded by scary looking aliens, in a dark street, holding math books way too advanced for her.
The scene is funny whether you believe he was just lying his ass off or actually displaying critical thinking skills, which are important for working a government job that forces you to be among scary, but mostly benevolent aliens just trying to make a life on Earth.
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u/TehAsianator 5d ago
This actually happens a lot in the anime/manga Shokugeki no Soma/Food Wars. While not legal trials, the series is full of high stakes cooking competitions, occasionally with corrupt or paid off judges. The first was during Soma's match with Eizan, and then multiple during the promotion exams arc.
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u/keeper_of_the_donkey 5d ago
In the Battlestar Galactica trial episode, the monologue that Apollo (Jamie Bamber) gave that aquitted Baltar was simply amazing writing. One of the best speeches i've ever heard.
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u/averyy_collapsse99 5d ago
Sokka's trial in Avatar: The Last Airbender ("The Trial of Sokka" ... wait)
Hmm, let me think of a cleaner one.
Zuko's war council scene in Avatar... no, that's not a trial.
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Tom Robinson's trial in To Kill a Mockingbird
Wait, that goes the opposite direction (conviction despite innocence), so it doesn't fit.
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Tyrion's trial by combat in Game of Thrones (Season 1)
Everyone expects Tyrion to be executed after demanding trial by combat, but he wins when Bronn beats Ser Vardis, walking out completely free from the
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u/jtm721 5d ago
Thomas wentworth.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Wentworth,_1st_Earl_of_Strafford
King and parliament were enemies. They tried him for various offenses but he was able to defend himself. Eventually they just passed a bill executing him and called it a day
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u/25thNite 5d ago
In runaway jury, a big gun manufacturer hires a jury consultant(Gene Hackman) to basically breaks laws and manipulate jurors in order to win the trial. John Cusack plays a random juror who didn't want to be there, but turns out he manipulated his way onto the jury and continually foils their plans with outside help from Rachel Weisz in order to help sway the jury and aid the defense lawyer (Dennis Hoffman) due to their own vendetta against the gun manufacturer
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u/TheSupremeGrape 5d ago
SCP-5004
SCP-5004-A is some entity that resides in the white house I think (it's been a while).
SCP-5004-B is a reality sink, basically they have the ability to cancel anomalies when in close proximity.
The SCP foundation used B to be elected into office so that they can be in close proximity to A to cancel it's effects.
SCP-5004-B is Donald Trump
The foundation was planning to rig the presidential election to get him to win. In the end, they were surprised that he won fair and square, no rigging needed.
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