Can You Hear Me Now?: Difference between revisions

== Anime & Manga ==

* [[Lampshade Hanging|Lampshaded]] in ''[[Mai-HiME]]'', when several characters are stranded in a cave.

* ''[[Final Fantasy VII]]: Advent Children'' uses phones as a metaphor for emotional contact. The result of this is that Cloud and Vincent's reluctance to use phones (Cloud only uses his voicemail, and Vincent doesn't own one at all) is a symbol of their inability to integrate themselves into normal life, and so when Cloud refuses to call for back-up it's all right, because it's all a metaphor. Tifa lectures Cloud about how not getting rid of his cell phone shows he still cares about people deep down, and Vincent later announcing his surprise arrival to help the heroes out after all with the line "[[Anvilicious|where can I buy a phone]]?" At the end, Vincent buys a phone and Cloud starts using his again properly.

** Made funnier when Vincent tells Cloud to pass on a message telling Yuffie to stop calling his number.

* Justified in the film ''30 Days of Night'' after [[The Renfield]] steals and burns the cellphone of everyone in town. It doesn't break the [[Willing Suspension of Disbelief]] because of how it's presented: the opening scene is a pair of policemen finding a pile of melted plastic with a few recognizable cell phone bits.

** They're satellite phones, actually.

* Subverted in ''The Strangers''; the victims' cell phones work fine, it's just that the killers destroy the first, take the battery out of the second one, and the aforementioned victims are too stupid to think to check the body of their friend for the third. This creates some [[Fridge Logic]], as you can't help but wonder what the killers would have done if they had been able to call the police.

* ''[[The Crazies]]'': The cell phone signal goes down as the virus starts to spread. At least here there is somewhat of an explanation, seeing as the military likely cut off phone connection in the town.

== Live Action TV ==

* ''[[Drake and Josh]]'' are forever losing their cellphones to trap them in odd situations.

'''Drake:''' Craig ''does'' get a lot of ear sores... }}

* In an episode of ''Terminator: [[The Sarah Connor Chronicles]]'', Sarah tries to track a truck by using John's cell phone as a beacon. This works perfectly until the truck hits a bump, and the phone breaks irreparably after '''[[Death by Falling Over|falling 3 feet]]'''. Apparently, the future leader of the human race decided to buy the [[Made of Plasticine|most fragile phone on the face of the Earth]].

* LexCorp tracks down the Justice League by using their cell phones as GPS locators in ''[[Smallville]]''. Apparently they all carry their phones around all the time, which in Aquaman's case, doesn't make a whole lot of sense.

* [[Angel]] is really bad at using phones, and there were several occasions in the series where he had let the charge run down, just forgot he had one with him, or couldn't [[For Inconvenience Press One|work out the intercom]].

* A very silly plotline on ''[[Studio 60 On the Sunset Strip]]'' called for Danny and Jordan to get locked on the studio's roof so that they'd be forced to discuss their relationship. [[Aaron Sorkin]] does find it within himself to pay lip service to the idea that they could just call someone to unlock the door... by having them wander around holding their phones aloft, complaining that they can't get a signal. On a roof. In the middle of L.A. For no reason.

* ''[[Babylon 5]]'': In one episode a character loses his communicator. He finds another person's communicator, but can't use it to call for help, because the communicator will only work for its owner. Meanwhile, back in the 21st century, all mobile phones can be used to call the emergency number, even without SIM cards.

== Web Comics ==

* Justified in the ''[[Sluggy Freelance]]'' story "That Which Redeems", thanks to the demons having a very poor understanding of cell phone technology.

'''Reakk:''' ''Bad phone!'' }}

** Justified again in the "bROKEN" story, when the Fate Spider's Apprentice intentionally makes Torg forget to charge his cell phone, forcing him to leave it off when communication would have been vitally important.

== Web Original ==

* Discussed by [[The Distressed Watcher]]

* ''[[24]]'s'' cell phones can do anything. ''Anything''.

** Subverted for humor in a [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JMLH_QyPTYM parody video] that claimed to be the "lost pilot" of ''24'' from 1994:

'''Chloe:''' ... No. }}

* In ''[[Charmed]]'', cellphones work in the underworld, which is a different dimension. Good reception.