Action Survivor: Difference between revisions

{{trope}}{{Needs Image}}

Not all protagonists are [[Hollywood Action Hero|Hollywood Action Heroes]]es; powerful, grizzled and tough. Some are decidedly less... [[Non-Action Guy|action-y.]] One of these is the [['''Action Survivor]]''', who is very much a [[Innocent Bystander|normal guy]] in abnormal circumstances. He won't so much get [[The Call]] as be pinned by a telephone pole, trapping him with an adventure a more qualified [[Action Hero]] would have [[Bring My Red Jacket|trouble sorting out]].

The Action Survivor is almost the opposite of the Action Hero; he's pretty normal in just about every way, so much so that if the Action Hero is ostensibly a fantasy idealized-self, the Action Survivor is more of a [[Audience Surrogate|self insertion]] for the viewer, giving us someone easily related to because [[This Loser Is You|we're wimps]]. However, [[Wish Fulfillment]] does figure into this character's development. While outrunning shadowy evildoers and keeping the [[MacGuffin]] out of reach, he'll discover he's far more cunning, resourceful and resilient than he gave himself credit for... if he doesn't [[Took a Level Inin Badass|learn these tricks and more along the way]], that is.

* If male, [[Perma-Stubble]] at low setting

* Generally, he'llwill suck at fighting and need rescuing, choose flight, or win just by sheer luck and the skin of histhe teeth.

* [[Berserk Button|Gets very angry]] when [[True Companions|someone hethey carescare about]] is threatened.

Related to the [[Final Girl]] -- a—a specifically female, horror movie version. The [[Right Man in the Wrong Place]] is often this type of hero. On the [[Super Weight]] scale, he's primarily Muggle Weight, sometimes making the jump to Iron Weight upon [[Took a Level Inin Badass|taking a level in badass]]. See also [[Action Duo]]. Also compare [[Unfazed Everyman]].

* Rokuro "Rock" Okajima from ''[[Black Lagoon]]''. Goes from everyday [[Salaryman|Salarymanhood]]hood to surviving multiple gunfights, kidnappings, car chases, [[Crowning Moment of Awesome|boat chases]], and the list just goes on.

* Arguably Kyon, from ''[[Haruhi Suzumiya]]'', depending on your interpretation of the show. Just an [[Ordinary High School Student]]... whose closest friends happen to be an alien, a time traveler, an esper... oh, and a "god"[[Reality Warper]]. Somehow, he's able to survive his many adventures, usually caused by Haruhi's desires, due to the intervention of the afore-mentioned friends. Amazingly, he takes much of it in his stride.

** Unlike other [[Action Survivor|Action Survivors]], he was however intentionally climbing the Tower.

* Plenty in ''[[Zone of the Enders|Zone of the Enders: Dolores]]'', as its premise is an ordinary family thrust into world shaking events. James may or may not count as he is actually pretty big and has had military training, though he starts off pretty damn rusty and with none of the 'elite pilot/man of destiny' badges given to the other ZOE protagonists. His son Leon on the other hand is a [[Butt Monkey|meek and pussywipped computer programmer with an obvious Oedipus complex]], yet manages to surprise even himself by facing up to vicious beatings, pushes his programming and mathematical skills to their absolute limit (he is the primary designer of a module for atmospheric entry at one point, despite having no training and only scrap to work with), and showing remarkably quick thinking in a crisis.<br /><br />He contrasts nicely with his sister Noel, who takes after her father by being tough, bluntly spoken and powerfully built. She however often comes across as a [[Faux Action Girl]], possibly because she's far too levelheaded to perform the moments of terrified bravery her brother manages. Perhaps he realises she's far more masculine and infinitely less whiny (though that's like being less hot than the ''sun''...) than he will ever be and feels the need to compensate.

* Female versions: Suzu and {{spoiler|Princess}} Shoukei from ''[[The Twelve Kingdoms]]''.

* The main group of ''[[Bio -Meat: Nectar]]'', especially in part 1. Just some kids running away from [[The Swarm]] armed with ingenuity, guts, lighters, and hairspray. Slightly subverted in parts 2 and 3 when they come closer to being [[Action Hero|Action Heroes]]es.

* Arguably the ''entire main cast'' of ''[[Twentieth20th Century Boys]]''. None of them, except [[Badass Longcoat|Otcho]], are particularly strong, fast, or badass, and they're all up against a [[Complete Monster]] [[Big Bad]] trying to take over the world with the help of a brainwashed cult. Admittedly, they do [[Took a Level Inin Badass|level up]] over the course of the story (especially {{spoiler|[[Crazy Awesome|Kenji]]}}).

* Kaname from ''[[Full Metal Panic!]]''. Normal high school student that just happens to get involved in an elite military unit. Subverted ([[Double Subversion|Double Subverted]]?) Inin that she ''isn't'' an ordinary person, but her particular abilities aren't likely to help her in a situation requiring near-superhuman strength and agility,. thoughWhile she is fairly athletic for a girl her age, her sport of choice is softball, not something combat-related.

* ''[[Bleach]]'' - Being chased down by {{spoiler|the [[Nigh Invulnerable]] [[Walking Wasteland]] Aizen}} has required {{spoiler|Keigo, Tatsuki, Chizuru, Mizuiro and Don Kanonji}} to become this. Special mention to the last two.

* Nijima of ''[[Kenichi: The Mightiest Disciple|Kenichi the Mightiest Disciple]]'' has no martial arts training but manages to be the only one who escape Berserker. Also he has excellent information gathering skills.

* Tsukune Aono of ''[[Rosario + Vampire]]'' had a dangerous habit of [[Taking the Bullet]] for his (technically stronger) friends. He was [[Made of Iron|surprisingly resilient]] even before he [[Took a Level Inin Badass]] via [[Emergency Transformation]], though, and he's a decent strategist and the [[Only Sane Man]], which makes him invaluable to the team.

* Saiga of ''[[Speed Grapher]]'' had become a credentialed [[Action Survivor]] by the beginning of the series, as a veteran war photographer. After he becomes [[Badass Abnormal]] he still exhibits every other feature of the trope.

* {{spoiler|Myung Fan Lone}} from ''[[Macross Plus]]''. Here we have a person whose life has been almost 100% CRAP''crap'' ever sincefor years ago, completely helpless as {{spoiler|[[Mailer Daemon]] Sharon Apple has staged everything to give Isamu the thrill of death}}... and suddenly something snaps inside of {{spoiler|her}}. The next scenes have {{spoiler|herMyung}} escaping from {{spoiler|her}} prison and using {{spoiler|her}} smartsbrains and quick thinking to stop the {{spoiler|Sharon}}[[Big Bad]].

== FanfictionFan Works ==

* Tobias Talltree of ''[[Clouded Sky]]'' is just an ordinary kid who happens to have the great misfortune of having received a Murkrow (alleged in-universe as hisa starterbearer Pokémon,of theill consequencesfortune) beingas thathis starter Pokémon. notNot only is he mistrusted and held in contempt by everyone, but he is also constantly being forced into one life-threatening situation after the otheranother through no fault of his own, and continuing to come out of them all unscathed through sheer dumb luck.

* ''[[The Matrix]]''.{{context}}

* ''[[Wanted (film)|Wanted]]'': Wesley starts as this, but then [[Took a Level Inin Badass|grinds to level 99.]]

* ''[[28 Days Later|Twenty Eight Days Later]]''{{context}}

* Jason Tripitikas in ''[[The Forbidden Kingdom]]'' (although he does [[Took a Level Inin Badass|take a level in badass]] before it's over).

* Arguably most [[Jackie Chan]] movies, with ''Who Am I?'' being the most notable. Jackie's characters tend to be "the Everyman thrust into situations that would crush the spirits of most people."

* Michael in the 2004 version of ''[[Dawn of the Dead (2004 film)|Dawn of the Dead]]''.

* John McClane, from ''[[Die Hard]]'', was initially an [[Action Survivor]] ''[[Action Hero]]''. In fact, the movie became an instant classic largely because of the contrast between McClane and the ubermensch [[Action Hero]] characters of [[Sylvester Stallone]], [[Arnold Schwarzenegger]], and a million B-movie "stars". Not to say that McClane isn't a certifiable [[Badass]], but in the first movie, he's pretty much an ordinary cop thrust into extraordinary circumstances, and he spends much of the film bleeding and swearing at his ill fortune in having been caught up in the plot.<br /><br />His sidekicks in each movie, none of whom wanted to get involved, are more traditional [[Action Survivor|Action Survivors]]. Officer Al Powell was picking up Twinkies, Zeus Carver was just looking after his electronics shop, and the Justin Long guy was a dweeby hacker.

** OnHis thesidekicks in othereach handmovie, none of whom wanted to get involved, are more traditional Action Survivors. Officer Al Powell was picking up Twinkies, Zeus Carver iswas just looking after his electronics shop (although he was kind of a [[Samuel L. Jackson|badass motherfucker]]), and the Justin Long guy was a dweeby hacker.

* Ellen Ripley in the ''[[Alien (franchise)|Alien]]'' series. But as her character is increasingly subjected to this in the series, she becomes more of an orthodox [[Action Hero]] trope. Throughout, she manages to retain most of her sensitivity and humanity, but learns how to be [[Badass]] when necessary along the way.

* Sarah Connor in the ''[[Terminator (franchise)|Terminator]]'' series is especially this in the first film, but [[Took a Level Inin Badass]] and has changed completely to [[Badass]] [[Action Hero]] by the second movie.

* ''[[Innerspace]]'' - Mild-mannered hypochondriac Jack Putter ([[Martin Short]]) finds himself mixed up in a war between the evil corporation and the US government. Mind you, the original reason he took matters into his own hands was the prospect of having a tiny little corpse rotting inside of his body. At the end of the movie, though, when he realizes that a life of adventure is more fun than what he originally had, he grabs onto it with both hands.

** ''[[Indiana Jones]]'' - Indy is an [[Action Survivor]]{{context}} [[Action Hero]] [[Adventurer Archaeologist]].

* Terri Doolittle ([[Whoopi Goldberg]]) from ''[[Jumpin' Jack Flash (film)|Jumpin' Jack Flash]].'' She's a bank worker who finds herself on the run from international spies after she accidentally intercepts message from a British secret agent using the eponymous alias.

** Not quite-: Wedge did have military training, (one of the innumerable former imperial pilots). Though, in the SW universe, not being a space wizard or having said plot armor, Ithat dondoesn't thinkrevoke thathis revokes hisAction ASSurvivor status.

* Joan Wilder in ''[[Romancing the Stone]]'' is a classic case. Starting out as a romance novelist who barely leaves her dowdy apartment, she ventures off to aid her sister and becomes . . . a romance novelist who lives her plot lines.

* The eponymous ''[[Mystery Team]]''.{{context}}

* ''[[El Mariachi]]'' has a rare action hero example. The Mariachi is on the run throughout the film and survives through cunning and dumb luck. This aspect of his characters fades away in the sequels as he [[Took a Level Inin Badass|takes a level in badass.]]

* Cliff Secord aka ''[[The Rocketeer (film)|The Rocketeer]]''.{{context}}

* Richard Mayhew in ''[[Neverwhere]]''. Survivor really is the word here, as the sole fact that he lived to see the ending is an ample feat of [[Badass|badasserybadass]]ery.

* Rincewind the 'Wizzard' from ''[[Discworld]]''. The man is a champion runner, great at improvising and never willingly goes along with insane plans.<ref>Except in ''The Last Hero'', where he didn't want to volunteer but knew running meant he'd just be dragged back - and they were short on time.</ref> [[Cosmic Plaything|Not that that stops it from happening]]. Of course, since he is ''literally'' The Lady <s> Luck</s>'s [[Cosmic Plaything|plaything]], the extraordinary coincidences are no accident. At this point, due to some of his companions and their publications, so many people know about him and his penchant for surviving ''anything'' the universe can throw at him that they genuinely believe he is amazingly good at what he does.

** His personal philosophy is "It doesn't matter where you're running, it only matters where you're running from." Seems like a good mantra for any [[Action Survivor]].

* [[Older Than Radio]]: The protagonist of [[H. G. Wells]]'s ''[[The War of the Worlds (novel)|The War of the Worlds]]'' pretty much does nothing to actually advance the plot; he's little more than an observer of the unfolding Martian invasion. Better still, he's just trying to stay alive long enough to reunite with his wife, whom he had left with relatives when the Martians first touched down.

* [[Jules Verne]] had a similar style to H. G. Wells, with ''[[Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea]]'' and ''[[Journey to Thethe Center of Thethe Earth]]'' both featuring an [[Action Survivor]] narrator who does little other than recount the story while others engage in the actual action.

* [[The Pendragon Adventure|Bobby Pendragon]] fits this trope to a T until he [[Took a Level Inin Badass|takes a level in Badass]].

* Skeeter Jackson, in ''[[Time Scout]]'', as a child finds himself accidentally {{spoiler|in medieval Mongolia}}, where he has to struggle desperately to survive, with no more training than a neglected child of a wealthy, modern family might have.<ref>ie. none</ref>.

** [[Took a Level Inin Badass|Until]] [[Badass Abnormal|later]]...

* Shas'la Kais in ''[[Warhammer 40,000: Fire Warrior]]'' was a raw recruit thrown into a particularly hellish warzone, and pitted against [[Redshirt Army|Imperial Guardsmen]], [[Space Marine|Space Marines]]s, and not one but ''two'' Daemon Princes. He comes out of the fight victorious, but missing several limbs and in a coma.

** Torg, to lesser extent. While he's usually a little more enthusiastic than Zoe about the weirdness that surrounds them, and has [[Took a Level Inin Badass|Taken A Level In Badass]], he is for the most part just a normal guy thrust into bizarre situations that, statistically, should have killed him at least a dozen times by now.

* To an extent, the human species itself. We're designed to live in tropical environments, (hence the lack of hair--ithair—it's thought to be an adaptation that favors sweating, allowing us to [[Fragile Speedster|outrun a lot of things in Africa]]). Yet we have become capable of living in pretty much ''any'' climate despite lacking claws, fangs, fur, or other built-in survival gear. For example, if you drop a human off into the woods with nothing but the clothes on his back, he can make a fire, fashion a makeshift knife from the stones around him, and build a small shelter. He won't be very comfortable, but if he knows what to do and how to do it, he'll live. If you take a penguin and drop him off in the woods, even if it had the intelligence and knowledge it would take to survive in the forest, it would not necessarily be able to do so due to a lack of hands.