Badass and Baby



""You all know who I am. You know what I can do. But I'm holding a small child here. And if you make me do anything that could possibly endanger this baby... you will be very, very sorry. Forever.""

- Batman

The Hero is fighting in the middle of a bustling metropolis. Suddenly, a Baby Carriage rolls into the middle of the battleground. For whatever reason, he (and it's usually a man) can't return the baby to its mother or hand it to one of the Five-Man Band to get it out of the way while he fights. Instead, he picks the baby up and continues the fight, casually picking off Mooks while cradling the infant in the crook of one arm.

If the baby is a little older, expect the hero to tell the youngster to cover his or her eyes while he finishes the battle.

The baby or child doesn't have to be picked up before or during the fight. It can just as easily be the hero's kid, in which case there is optimal crossover between this and Action Mom if the hero is a woman. The important thing here is that the baby is held by the hero during the battle. If a baby is present, but not carried, then it's Baby Carriage. If one of the Innocent Bystanders just so happens to be a baby, that is also not this trope. If the hero is fighting specifically to defend a child, then it's Mama Bear or Papa Wolf. If the hero and baby are together for the majority of the plot/plotline, it's Badass and Child Duo.

This trope is useful for demonstrating the hero's sensitive side, as well as showing just how macho he is. Not only is he caring for an innocent, but he's fighting one-handed, to boot. This can also be used to show that Even Evil Has Standards, as some Mooks will refuse to fight until the baby is safely out of the way. It also adds a sense of additional danger and urgency to the scene, though Infant Immortality is in full effect here.

Compare Badly-Battered Babysitter, Escort Mission, and Badass and Child Duo. A Pregnant Badass is, by definition, always doing this.

For the love of God, Do Not Try This At Home!

Anime & Manga

 * This is the main premise of Lone Wolf and Cub.
 * In Gintama, Gintoki and 'Appo, the Door Step Baby, implied to be his child  from a one-night stand. At one point, Gin-chan needs both arms to fight so he throws the baby straight up into the air and catches him once the mooks are taken out.
 * In Bleach, Kenpachi (a Blood Knight who attained the rank of Captain via a Klingon Promotion) took in his eventual lieutenant as a baby. A clearer example occurred in a filler arc where a sociopath zanpakuto acquired one as a Morality Pet for an episode.
 * This is Beelzebub in a nutshell.
 * Kazemakase Tsukikage Ran has a scene where Meow fights with a baby on her back. Then she punches out guards on her way to returning it.

Comic Books

 * Batman himself does this in The Batman Adventures #26.
 * Similar to the Batman Beyond example, there's an arc in the Ultimate Spider-Man comics where Spider-Man and Kitty Pryde are tasked with taking care of a robot baby for a human health class. The robot ends up worse for the wear.
 * The whole point of the 2008 Cable series is to protect the mutant messiah baby from Bishop, who thinks her existence will lead to a Bad Future.

Film

 * Happens in the second Hellboy movie. A baby is locked in a minivan during Hellboy's battle with the elemental, and runs into battle with it instead of getting it to Liz or Abe.
 * Happens in John Woo's Chinese-language film Red Cliff, which is an adaptation of part of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms.
 * The whole plot of Shoot Em Up is basically about The Gunslinger Smith trying to keep the baby whose mother's murder he witnessed out of the villains' hands.
 * In Undercover Blues, Jeff beats up small-time street thug Morty (aka "Muerte"), using only kicks while holding his baby.

Live Action TV

 * In the Robin Hood episode Parent Hood Robin and his men find an abandoned baby just before the bad guys show up. While they're fighting them off, Robin deftly dispatches a mook, saying "Do you mind, I'm trying to get a baby to sleep!"
 * One episode of Power Rangers RPM has one of the Rangers holding a baby carriage in the middle of the fight. He ends up using it as a weapon while the baby is still inside (he doesn't know the baby is there before this.)
 * Happens during a fight in Hercules: The Legendary Journeys. At one point, Herc throws the baby up into the air so he can use both hands at once, then catches the baby after he's done.
 * Xena: Warrior Princess also does this. During one episode, she has to protect a baby prophesied to take the throne of a kingdom from the king's corrupt agents who want to kill him. And yes, she does the same thing as Herc during one point of the episode.
 * In the first episode of Torchwood: Miracle Day, Gwen coolly fires on a helicopter full of men with machine guns while holding her baby daughter in one arm. The badassery of the scene pales in comparison to the way the baby has the most adorable smile during the battle.
 * The Doctor Who episode "Closing Time" features the baby Alfie (or Stormageddon, Dark Lord of All) quite prominently, even as the characters fight off Cybermen and Cybermats. And even though the Doctor's most certainly a Badass, that doesn't stop him from being delightfully awkward and sweet with the kid.
 * In Once Upon a Time, Prince Charming is forced to fight his way through an army of mooks all while he's holding and protecting his new born daughter, Emma. It is as badass as it sounds.

Western Animation

 * In The Simpsons episode "Crook And Ladder", Marge's Smothering Mother magazine has one of these on the cover.
 * A sort-of example in the Batman Beyond episode "The Eggbaby". Terry is Egg Sitting and ends up fighting crime while still caring for his egg.
 * And to top it off? He ended up getting the top grade in his class for the project, as, on top of being cared for physically, the 'baby' got the mental stimulation from being brought along that none of Terry's other classmates had thought to provide.
 * The last episode of Samurai Jack is about this.

Tabletop Games

 * Tepet Ejava of Exalted started off as the Baby half of this trope - born on a battlefield where her mother was leading the legions of House Tepet. Ejava's mother didn't want to leave her in someone else's care, so had the newborn girl strapped to her chest, her armour modified to protect both mother and child, before going out onto the battlefield and putting her sword to use. It's no wonder, then, that Tepet Ejava has risen to be one of the most talented generals the Realm's ever seen.
 * The Khaastas from Dungeons & Dragons 3rd Edition are a race of reptilian humanoids from the outer planes. Females battle alongside males while carrying their babies on their backs. And they don't seem too worried about the children though they vicously protect them from danger.

Video Games

 * If one of your female dwarfs in Dwarf Fortress is a part of your defence force and has children, she will often take her babies out onto the battlefield with her; sometimes even using them as weapons. Needless to say, this generally doesn't end well for the children.
 * Dynasty Warriors 7's introduction

Other

 * A Real Life example: Sacajawea led Lewis and Clark across North America while carrying her infant son, Jean-Baptiste, on her back.
 * In Shi`a and Sunni Islam, Imam Husayn ibn Ali entered the Battle of Karbala carrying his infant son, Ali al-Asghar ibn Husayn, hoping that it would have a "My God, What Have I Done?" effect. It didn't work out. It's up to you to decide whether it's Real Life or not.
 * Tequila does this in perhaps one of the most iconic moments from Hard Boiled's hospital shootout.