Dry has several great examples of irony. One that happens throughout the text is situational irony. Situational irony occurs when something happens that is different than what was expected to happen. It is a testament to Shusterman's writing ability that he is able to do this to readers in this semi-post–apocalyptic story. Readers have a tendency to expect that anything and everything is going to go wrong in these kinds of stories, but Shusterman repeatedly hits readers with events that we were not expecting.

One such example of situational irony occurs when an intruder is attempting to enter Kelton's house. His father has been adamant that lethal force might have to be used during the Tap Out. Readers are fully expecting that someone is going to get shot in the next few moments, but we definitely don't expect the intruder to be Kelton's brother, nor do we expect that Kelton's father will end up shooting his own son.

Another good example of situational irony occurs when the four main characters get to Kelton's family shelter in the country. For a great deal of the book, Kelton has been telling the others and readers that his family's shelter will be a safe place, filled with enough supplies to last quite a while. The kids have been willing themselves to get to the shelter, and reader hope is high that the shelter will be able to sustain the group through the Tap Out. Unfortunately, the shelter has been completely drained of supplies by none other than Kelton's now-dead brother.