# Cliches in crime thrillers **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 11, 2018, 10:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-in-crime-thrillers/822798 "2018-10-11T10:26:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Fundisi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Fundisi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fundisi)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2018, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-in-crime-thrillers/822798/21 "2018-10-12T12:44:03Z")
The one we have noticed in the past 10 years or so, is that the first person to be interviewed by the detectives (even though that person isn’t a suspect at the time) turns out to be the murderer. This is true possibly as much as 9 times out of 10. (Bones, Elementary, Castle, etc) ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2018, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-in-crime-thrillers/822798/22 "2018-10-12T14:00:19Z")
When people are confronted by the killer, their cell phone won’t work. Either it’s out of power, out of reach of a signal, or just out of their reach. One on TV that drives me bonkers: The police give the killer more than one chance to “drop the weapon.” In real life, they say “Drop the weapon or I will shoot,” and the person had better do it within two seconds, or the cop will shoot. ---
**Author:** ![GargoyleWB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gargoylewb/32/199_2.png) [@GargoyleWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GargoyleWB)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2018, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-in-crime-thrillers/822798/23 "2018-10-12T14:23:50Z")
> [@MrAtoz](#): > > Or its variation: the retired officer was a mentor to the hero, who admires him greatly and loves him like a father. Unfortunately, he turns out to be in league with the criminals. Variation 3: Any officer shown in a photograph in full dress uniform receiving a merit or award will always be in league with the criminals. The surest way to clean up crime in a city would to simply go out and arrest anyone with a medal. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2018, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-in-crime-thrillers/822798/24 "2018-10-12T15:18:35Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > And my years of reading culinary mysteries have informed me that women who own food establishments have “slaydar”–an uncanny ability to stumble over murder victims. And they have boyfriends and/or husbands that are the worst homicide detectives on the planet. Not to mention that these teach that one can make a good living selling three muffins a day. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2018, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-in-crime-thrillers/822798/25 "2018-10-12T16:02:19Z")
> [@Scougs](#): > > - if a nail gun appears, there will be inevitable consequences A kah-_chek_ov’s gun, if you will. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2018, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-in-crime-thrillers/822798/26 "2018-10-12T16:06:37Z")
> [@RunSilent](#): > > 1. The sexy female agent or officer from a different agency working a different angle of the same case as the hero, who despises him for his interference in her case. They eventually end up in the sack together, then solve the crime together. That is one of the points that caused me to give up on my Richard Castle/Derek Storm novel. Bonus points because her name was pronounced “Shebang”. Of course, by leaving early, I missed the part where she gets killed, as well. > [@nightshadea](#): > > No matter who dies in what manner the first assumption is its a robbery …… One episode of Criminal Intent had Eames musing, “Just once I wish robbery really WAS the motive.” ---
**Author:** ![BrickBat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ac91a4/32.png) [@BrickBat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrickBat)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2018, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-in-crime-thrillers/822798/27 "2018-10-12T16:15:40Z")
The protagonist’s, usually a detective, efforts to think outside the box are stymied by his superior’s rigid protocol. An example, one that seems to occur from the film noir days through today is when the young idealistic detective has a hunch or theory, but is told by his superior not to waste time on such long-shots and just play it by the numbers. Young detective protests, his superior threatens him that it’s his way or the highway. Young detective runs his theory of collecting clues on his own time, his theories begin to bear fruit, case is solved. Young detective is told “good work” in a dispassionate tone. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2018, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-in-crime-thrillers/822798/28 "2018-10-12T16:39:17Z")
> [@Alpha\_Twit](#): > > Not sure if this qualifies or not but it’s something I’ve certainly noticed quite often. The police will show up on the scene of a crime where they find a dead body with a bullet wound in the chest. The detective takes one glance at the wound, a wound that’s probably obscured by one or more layers of clothing, and says something like “Looks like the perp used a .38.” > > I’m certainly no ballistic expert and I’ve only seen one bullet wound in a human in my life but I know enough to see this as ridiculous. Identifying a specific caliber or weapon based on a glance at the wound is impossible. There’s far too much variation in bullet design and in the way that different shell desigs interact with different weapons for this to be useful. You can use and I have heard the terms “small caliber” or “large caliber” used. So yeah, you can tell a .25 from a .45. You can \*guess \*at a 9mm, but a .38 makes the exact same sized hole. Now if you see 9mm casings scattered around, it is quite a bit easier. Also- a amateur detective would find him/herself in jail, likely thought of as a suspect, or interfering. If you are not at least a PI, the cops dont like you messing around. But I can tell you, if I did murder someone in a ally, I’d take the expensive watch, wallet etc, since then- of course!- it would be a robbery. Mind you, the homeless will often loot a DB, so even finding that stuff gone doesnt prover much one way or the other. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2018, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-in-crime-thrillers/822798/29 "2018-10-12T16:41:14Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > If a crime potentially falls under two jurisdictions, the two teams will not work peacefully together like professionals, but will instead turn it into a dick measuring contest. This happens more often that you think. Especially when the FBI arrives. The term “arrogant” doesn’t begin to cover it. ---
**Author:** ![Rough\_Draft](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/76d3ee/32.png) [@Rough\_Draft](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rough_Draft)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2018, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-in-crime-thrillers/822798/30 "2018-10-12T16:59:38Z")
> [@Roderick\_Femm](#): > > I couldn’t even read the Peter Diamond installment where Yeah, that was a low point in the series. Have you read the more recent Diamond mysteries? Peter Lovesey has been writing in a lot more lighthearted tone lately, and I’m enjoying them more than the early ones (although _The Stone Wife_ was pretty dumb). ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2018, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-in-crime-thrillers/822798/31 "2018-10-12T17:04:53Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > …One episode of Criminal Intent had Eames musing, “Just once I wish robbery really WAS the motive.” I miss that show. It was my fave of the L&Os, and Bobby Goren (though nuts) was my favorite [del]dick[/del], er, detective. How about someone finds an important clue and phones the cop and says, “I know who did it,” or the like, but they won’t tell the cop on the phone and insist on meeting. The informant is immediately killed, of course, often (in pre-cell phone days) right there in the phone booth. Why do they NEVER go ahead and TELL them on the phone? And then there’s the person (usually a woman or sometimes a child) who is either threatened or else witnesses something but cannot convince the scoffing/skeptical cops to take them seriously until four or five bodies show up. How about the increasingly popular one where the Chief Constable (I watch a lot of British mysteries) definitely takes the putative victim seriously and hints that there are crooks in the station house, so “let’s keep this quiet while I investigate,” and it turns out the head cop is the serial killer! That one is fun. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2018, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-in-crime-thrillers/822798/32 "2018-10-12T17:16:32Z")
Does checking the safety on a revolver count? How about referring to the cylinders as magazines? ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2018, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-in-crime-thrillers/822798/33 "2018-10-12T17:29:56Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > If a crime potentially falls under two jurisdictions, the two teams will not work peacefully together like professionals, but will instead turn it into a dick measuring contest. Yeah, what is it with this bunk? 😕 If I had a chance to pawn off a murder investigation with little to no evidence on some other poor schmuck, I’d be all over that! ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2018, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-in-crime-thrillers/822798/34 "2018-10-12T17:36:24Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > Does checking the safety on a revolver count? How about referring to the cylinders as magazines? Or a killer picking up an empty pistol and failing to notice it isn’t loaded? (This happened yesterday on _ **Mission: Impossible** _.) Technical terms are often wrong. F’rinstance, Columbo referring to gunshot residue as “powder burns.” ---
**Author:** ![nightshadea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7ba0ec/32.png) [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2018, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-in-crime-thrillers/822798/35 "2018-10-12T17:41:33Z")
on tv its the guy you only see for 45 seconds in the beginning ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2018, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-in-crime-thrillers/822798/36 "2018-10-12T18:01:57Z")
They have someone in custody and assume the crime is solved. Everyone is celebrating. The lead detective is worn out or wounded or both, so the chief sends him home. Of course, the real killer is waiting on his balcony, in his garage, in his bathroom, etc. Yawn. ---
**Author:** ![Rough\_Draft](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/76d3ee/32.png) [@Rough\_Draft](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rough_Draft)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2018, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-in-crime-thrillers/822798/37 "2018-10-12T18:34:52Z")
A guy is attacked by a killer with a shotgun, wrestles with him over the gun, and the assassin winds up shot in the face. The would-be victim then changes clothes with the unrecognizable corpse and goes undercover hoping everyone will think he’s dead, thus preventing more murder attempts. This one dates back at least as far as Sherlock Holmes (_The Valley of Fear_), and I’ve seen it as recently as an Inspector Banks novel from the 1990s. I guess DNA testing pretty much prevents it from being an effective plot gimmick these days, though. ---
**Author:** ![Sangahyando](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f14d63/32.png) [@Sangahyando](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sangahyando)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2018, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-in-crime-thrillers/822798/38 "2018-10-12T19:03:35Z")
> [@Rough\_Draft](#): > > Yeah, that was a low point in the series. > > Have you read the more recent Diamond mysteries? Peter Lovesey has been writing in a lot more lighthearted tone lately, and I’m enjoying them more than the early ones (although _The Stone Wife_ was pretty dumb). I’m a big Diamond fan – Lovesey can’t turn them out fast or frequently enough for me. So far as I’m concerned, even the less-good ones are pretty good – _Stagestruck_, for example, I found rather far-fetched. ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2018, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-in-crime-thrillers/822798/39 "2018-10-12T19:32:54Z")
> [@](#): > > - if a nail gun appears, there will be inevitable consequences Chekhov said that a gun should never appear in Act One of a play unless it’s going to be used. A frequent trope I’ve noticed is that a character who says at the outset something like 'What did the police want?" or “Have they got a suspect?” turns out to have something to hide, at the very least. And then there’s the casual-seeming “Oh, just one thing” question as the detective leaves (which usually turns out to be what unearths a key fact). Not forgetting the final post-denouement round-up of some red herring fact : “There’s one thing I don’t understand - why did the butler hide the bicycle?” ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2018, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-in-crime-thrillers/822798/40 "2018-10-12T19:52:07Z")
And the lying! When the lie is found out, the person inevitably says, “I didn’t think it was important.” “So you fathered 16 children with the murder victim, but you claimed at first that you didn’t know her??” “I didn’t think it was important.” :smack: [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-in-crime-thrillers/822798.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cliches-in-crime-thrillers/822798.md?page=3)