Is there a word or phrase that applies to books, movies, etc. that go like this?

[viva la]

3. "Frustrating?"

I know what you mean-- it's that device of "3 encounters"-- where the same basic thing (encountering 3 times an 'adversary", and each time ends differently, and the last one is the worst.

I heard it called "snowball disasters" with the idea that each one ratchets up the tension.

Weirdly (or maybe not so), I have a recurring dream where I run home, desperate to get away from "bad stuff," and get home and make this big sigh of relief because I'm safe, only to discover that the worst is actually waiting for me.

(Suddenly I realize this is the end of Gone with the Wind, where Scarlett loses Melanie, realizes she could get Ashley if she wants him, and then runs through the fog to get home to be dumped by Rhett.)