Bulletproof Vest: Difference between revisions

 

{{examples}}

== Anime ==

* Rotton the Wizard probably one of the few people in ''[[Black Lagoon]]'' with the sense to wear one. Shouting out your presence when you have the jump on the enemy not so much.

* [[Desert Punk (manga)|Desert Punk]] uses quite a bit of armor.

* Kirei Kotomine in ''[[Fate/Zero]]'' is shown to have bullet-proof priest robes (they're reinforced with Kevlar), which shows just how [[Crazy Prepared]] he is for hunting enemy magi.

 

== Comic Books ==

* In Robert Kirkman's ''[[The Walking Dead]]'', there is a fairly realistic portrayal of a bullet proof vest in action. Glenn is shot with a shotgun at fairly close range while wearing a suit of riot gear (including the vest) and while he does survive, he is injured quite badly with broken ribs and possible internal bleeding.

* In one ''[[Mad Magazine]]'' "[[Spy vs. Spy]]" strip, the black spy welds together a thick metal vest and tests it against bullets, knives, etc; it's invulnerable. He confidently approaches the white spy, who is leaning on a bridge railing. The white spy tosses a large magnet off the bridge into the water below, dragging the vest and its wearer along.

 

== Film ==

* Subverted in ''[[Three Days of the Condor]]''. A CIA clerk who is a friend of the protagonist Turner is asked to help bring him in for debriefing and is issued a bulletproof vest "just in case". In reality the meeting is a set-up to kill Turner—when it goes wrong the wounded killer aims carefully and [[You Know Too Much|shoots the clerk in the throat]].

* In the remake of ''New [[Police Story]]'', Jackie Chan's character takes a gunshot point-blank to the chest while negotiating with a hostage taker, and is able to take the guy down immediately after. Subverted immediately after, in which it's indicated that he was [[Crazy Prepared|lucky he was wearing]] ''two'' bullet proof vests or the first wouldn't have protected him at that range.

 

== Literature ==

* The nightsilk garments of the ''Corean Chronicles'' series is impact resistant when worn in a skintight outfit, making a body stocking of this material effectively a set of bulletproof underwear. The material is very expensive though, so the reason the hero of the first trilogy can afford to wear it constantly is because his family manufactures it.

* ''[[Fate/Zero]]'' revealed that, in the [[Nasuverse]], Church Executioners wear bullet proof ''priest robes''.

 

== Live-Action TV ==

* The ''[[Criminal Minds]]'' team suit up in Kevlar vests [[Once an Episode]].

* Subverted in ''Lost''. Ben shoots Charlotte and she is saved by her vest. Despite this, she is knocked unconscious, suffers extreme injuries from the impact and is in a lot of pain from getting hit with a bullet.

 

== Music ==

* A bulletproof vest is one of [[50 Cent]]'s signature pieces of clothing. Since he based his entire schtick on surviving 9 gunshot wounds, it made sense. Reportedly, the men that murdered Jam Master Jay were actually looking for him, and also supposedly the first runs of G-Unit clothing only came in XXL specifically so they could be worn over the top of the vest.

 

== Tabletop Games ==

* The bullet proof vests available in ''[[GURPS]]'' do not inspire confidence, but they can make the difference between dead and dying.

* Flak vests (and flak helmets, jackets, pants, and suits in the expanded 2nd and 3rd editions) are the most widely available armor in the ''[[Mechwarrior]]'' tabletop role playing game and are actually reasonably useful against most of the common weapons a player character might face, such as slugthrower pistols and melee weapons. Once lasers and other exotic weapons come into play (particularly [[Kill It with Fire|flamers]] and [[Flechette Storm|heavy needlers]], basic flak armor generally falls by the wayside for something sturdier.

 

== Video Games ==

* ''[[The Godfather (video game)|The Godfather]] 2'' has bulletproof vests as a reward for completing the diamond smuggling crime ring. They only reduce damage and don't guard the head or limbs.

* ''SWAT 4'' has you and your team wear light Kevlar vests and helmets by default, and the expansion pack allows you to use Heavy or even no armor in multiplayer. Suspects get armor too in some missions, but due to the game being big on realism, said body armors are only marginally effective in most situations.

 

== Webcomics ==

** Later on there's a [http://sluggy.com/daily.php?date=061108 bit of discussion] about the difference between "bullet proof" and "knife proof" vests.

* Nearly all the soldiers, mercenaries, and guards in ''[[Cry Havoc]]'' wear body armor, most of it military grade plate armor. It also becomes a plot point when Freyja develops a 'formula' for armor that adapts to changes in its wearers physiology (an important issue for werewolves).

 

== Web Original ==

* In [[The Return (fanfic)|The Return]] Darkstar's [[Friendly Neighborhood Vampires|Brood]] are eventually convinced to replace their [[Stripperiffic]] [http://florestica.com/jtemple/art/return/ds02.jpg outfits] with more [http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y44/sunshinetemple/FanArt_not_on_site/Ranma_new-armor2.jpg sensible ones] with bullet proofing.

* Subverted in a ''[[Homestar Runner|Cheat Commandos]]'' toon, where Gunhaver shoots Flashfight playfully, falsely believing that the latter is wearing a bulletproof vest that they were playing around with at the beginning of the toon.

 

== Western Animation ==

* In ''[[American Dad]]'', Stan has to wear braces to prevent teeth grinding, making him sound like a geek. His coworkers plant a [["Kick Me" Prank|"Shoot Me"]] sign on him, and then shoot at him.

{{quote|'''Stan:''' Oh, ha ha! Very funny guys! You're lucky I'm wearing my vest!!}}

 

== Real Life ==

** The latest trend in body armor? Ballistic shorts which provide coverage to the groin area. This being intended to address a [[Groin Attack|major problem]] for troops riding in vehicles that roll over landmines or IEDs. Various styles are being evaluated, including "[http://www.stripes.com/blogs/stripes-central/stripes-central-1.8040/ballistic-boxers-might-just-save-your-tail-1.122993 ballistic boxers]" to shorts made from more conventional body armor materials. [[Incredibly Lame Pun]]s abound, obviously.

* A primitive version of such a vest is reputed to have been used by tax-gatherers. It consisted of a plank of wood hanging under the clothes on their back, and apparently it was not unknown for them to go about their business with arrows sticking out of it.

* People who make chainmail as a hobby can make good money not only by making costume-armor for Renaissance fairs but also selling mail vests to police officers looking for greater knife-protection than what their standard-issue body armor provides. However, according to research carried out by the British army in [[WW 1]], chainmail will actually make a gunshot worse. It's not strong enough to stop a bullet and will actually fragment, carrying more shrapnel into the body, as well as making it hard to reach the wound for treatment. Additionally, any stabs that do get through the chainmail will drive part of the mail into the wound, which can easily lead to infection. Also, while high quality chainmail coupled with effective padding is effectively knife proof, lower grade chain is not.

** Chainmail is also pretty heavy and cumbersome as it hangs from the shoulders. Thin steel panels are much lighter and provide comparable knife protection.