Automoderated users, Autopatrolled users, Bureaucrats, Comment administrators, Confirmed users, Moderators, Rollbackers, Administrators
213,945
edits
Close-Call Haircut: Difference between revisions
→Literature
m (Mass update links) |
|||
| (20 intermediate revisions by 6 users not shown) | |||
Line 1:
{{trope}}
[[File:importanthaircut.png|link=Mai-Otome
{{quote|''"My hair! He shot my hair! Son of a bitch!"''
|'''Princess Vespa'''|''[[Spaceballs]]''}}
In either a gunfight or a sword battle, sometimes the bullet or blade gets just a bit ''[[Could Have Been Messy|too]]'' close for comfort, and you often see a
A common variation involves a bullet passing through a female character's hair, creating a gaping hole that's sometimes magically repaired by the next scene (see [[Hair Reboot]]).
▲In either a gunfight or a sword battle, sometimes the bullet or blade gets just a bit ''[[Could Have Been Messy|too]]'' close for comfort, and you often see a [[Close Call Haircut]] with a few cut strands of hair blowing around to indicate just how close the character came to getting hit. May also mark the point in the battle when the gloves come off, especially if one or both of the fighters are female and [[It's Personal|it suddenly becomes personal]] as soon as [[Minor Injury Overreaction|the female character's beauty is involved]] (a possible [[Double Standard]], though this has been known to happen to the [[White-Haired Pretty Boy]]).
▲A common variation involves a bullet passing through a female character's hair, creating a gaping hole that's sometimes magically repaired by the next scene (see [[Hair Reboot]]).
May overlap with [[Important Haircut]] or [[Traumatic Haircut]] in some cases. See also [[Slipknot Ponytail]] and [[Hat Damage]].
The trope was popularized during the Renaissance, when sword-wielding folk moved away from large and cumbersome cutting tools to lighter weapons that allowed additional finesse. Trimming an opponent's moustache or removing buttons in a declared order was a way to demonstrate one's superior fighting skills, culminating in the famous 'slice your initial in your opponent's clothes without actually breaking his skin' maneuver made famous by Alex Thoth's 'Zorro'.
{{examples}}
== [[Anime]] and [[Manga]] ==▼
* In the 13th ''[[
* Happens twice to Kirika in ''[[Noir (
▲== [[Anime]] ==
* Natsuki of ''[[
▲* In the 13th ''[[Detective Conan (Manga)|Detective Conan]]'' movie - "The Raven Chaser" we see Ran {{spoiler|successfully dodging a bullet fired by a Black Syndicate member standing just in front of her. Truly one of her [[Crowning Moment of Awesome|Crowning Moments of Awesome.]]}} A short slow-motion then happens, while we see this trope in use.
▲* Happens twice to Kirika in ''[[Noir (Anime)|Noir]]'', once in the form of a bullet that grazes her head, apparently leaving her uninjured and undoing part of her [[Laser-Guided Amnesia]], and again with a sword-wielding nun in the final episode. Mirielle also had one of these when she was a child; that's the apparent reason for her "half-bang" hairstyle.
▲* Natsuki of ''[[Mai-HiME (Anime)|Mai-HiME]]'' is angered to find that sword-wielding Mikoto has sheared off part of her hair during their fight in the first episode.
** In a later episode, she does this to Nagi when she attempts to shoot him, but the bullet misses leaves a nasty mark on his hair.
* Shizuru Viola in ''[[
* Meg from ''[[Burst Angel]]'' finds herself with a hole through her hair after Jo shoots through it to hit an enemy behind her.
* Nia from ''[[Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann]]'' cuts her hair short after it's riddled with bullets during a fight. It's also [[Character Development]] since the one who helps her with that is [[Cool Big Sis]] Yoko, showing that they're putting away their disagreements.
Line 27 ⟶ 25:
* It happens to Goku a couple of times in ''[[Dragonball Z]]''. One scene in particular, from the first movie, is even included in the credits of the English version.
** Of course, Goku being a [[Human Aliens|Saiyan]], it's back to normal by the next scene every time.
* In ''[[
** During Vegeta's battle with Recoome he tries to kill Recoome by blasting his head off with a ki-blast, he survives the attacks and it burns off most of his hair.
* Akane getting caught in the middle of Ranma's first on-screen fight with Ryoga in ''[[Ranma
{{quote|Ranma: "She wasn't hurt, but she got a bad cut!"}}
* In one episode of ''[[Pokémon (
** In another episode, a Seviper that Team Rocket is trying to catch does the same thing. Jessie ''beats it into submission with her bare hands'', then captures it. She's had it for seven seasons (spanning two series) since.
* ''[[Shaman King]]'' uses this on Bokuto no Ryu as a running gag, as his Elvis-esque pompadour is cut repeatedly. Very rarely is his pompadour ever intact, though he will go to absurd ends to cover up his mangled hair. (In the manga, he claims to use the hair-care product "[[Bland-Name Product|Wrongain]]", obviously a Rogaine-spoof, to quickly grow his pompadour back.)
* Slicer cuts off Miyuki's braid in the ''[[Triangle Heart 3
** This is later referenced in ''[[Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha]]'' with Signum as a [[Mythology Gag]].
** Speaking of ''Nanoha'', you can barely see it (it's one of those "pause it and THEN you'll see it), but in Nanoha and Fate's climatic battle, some of Nanoha's hair ''is'' shot off by Fate's [[Magic Missile]].
* ''Laputa: [[Laputa: Castle in
* During one of Teresa's fights in ''[[Claymore]]'' a few strands of her hair are seen blowing after her when Ilena attempts to attack her. However, this isn't so much hint that she's losing her composure (quite the opposite) but to show that she's [[Badass|just that good]] and they can't even touch her.
** Another example occurs when Clare rescues {{spoiler|Galatea from Agatha's clutches ? Clare's Windcutter nicks off a bit of Galatea's bangs, prompting Galatea to snark that her rescuer's technique needs refining.}}
Line 42 ⟶ 41:
* In the first episode of ''[[Seto no Hanayome]]'' Nagasumi loses a few strands of hair when a dagger hits the wall close to his head.
** In a later episode, Akeno actually slices the top of his head off.
* In ''[[
* Occurs in ''[[Elfen Lied]]'' to multiple characters (mainly Lucy and Nana). However more often than not, people do get dismembered and sliced in half a lot.
* Mikuru is subject to one of these during the baseball game in ''[[Suzumiya Haruhi|The Melancholy Of Haruhi Suzumiya]]'' when she ducks a fast moving baseball headed straight for her head.
** Not too long after, Yuki experiences the same thing, excepts she does it while standing comfortably at attention and catches only the balls that head straight for her face and other vital spots on her body.
** And this goddess gets another two from {{spoiler|Mikuru}} while filming the movie. Not by baseballs, not by BB pellets, {{spoiler|but by pressurized water balls, which promptly decimates the landscape behind her. AT POINT BLANK RANGE.}}
* In the ''[[
** Also, in the first coliseum fight, Kino faces an assassin with a bladed boomerang that manages to give her a tiny shave on the way back.
* In ''[[Hunter X Hunter]]'', Biscuit gets one of her pigtails cut off in a fight shortly after she is introduced. She continues to sport one-and-a-half pigtails for a while afterwards, before switching to a single ponytail.
* Chrono in ''[[Chrono Crusade]]'' has his braid cut off during a battle with {{spoiler|Remington}}. Another example of an [[Important Haircut]].
* ''[[
* In ''[[Full Metal Panic!|Full Metal Panic: The Second Raid]]'' Kaname Chidori is targeted by assassin Xia Yu Lan. Fortunately her knees buckle at that precise moment and so the bullet just clips her hair.
* Played perfectly straight in ''[[Devil May Cry:
* It happens in ''[[
* Death the Kid in ''[[Soul Eater]]'' had once some of his hair cut off during a fight. However, since he's ''very'' obsessed with balance and symmetry, it was sufficient to ''knock him out''.
* In ''[[Mahou Sensei Negima]]'', Negi, Yue, Nodoka, Tsukuyomi, and even [[Big Bad|Fate]] have experienced this.
Line 65 ⟶ 64:
* Sakuya get hers lopped off by a spear in ''[[Utawarerumono]]''.
* One [[Monster of the Week]] in ''[[Sailor Moon]]'' was a doll with razor-sharp, projectile appendages. Sailor Mars just barely misses losing her head, and instead loses a few strands.
* In ''[[
* This is how Goku lost his long hair in ''[[Saiyuki]]'', when Gojyo first activated the shakujo staff without knowing how to use it.
* Lelouch's hair gets clipped in ''[[Code Geass]]'' when {{spoiler|Shirley}} shoots at him after being [[Mind Rape|mind raped]] by [[Psychopathic Manchild|Mao]].
Line 72 ⟶ 71:
* Happens in almost every fight scene in ''[[Change 123]]''. Everyone loses a few strands here and there, and yet it never adds up to a visible difference.
* In ''[[Majin Tantei Nougami Neuro]]'', Yako gets her hair clipped when Neuro uses her to demonstrate a "Slingshot Guillotine" (more visible in the manga).
* In ''[[
* ''[[Softenni]]'' has Kotone, in a fit of jealousy, manage to undo Coach Mishimagi's ponytail and cut off a part of his hair. With a ''soft tennis ball''.
* In ''[[Gunsmith Cats]]'', Rally gets a goodly portion of hair from the left side of her head cut off when Gray slashes at her with his prosthetic blade-arm.
* Joe from ''[[
* This happens a couple of times to Kenshin of ''[[Rurouni Kenshin]]''.
* In one story arc of ''[[Lupin
* In ''[[The Slayers]]'', Lina gets a magic suppressing tiara latched onto her head to prevent her from using magic or suffer a nasty shock. After she and Gourry escaped from their cell, Gourry finds their weapons, and without hesitation, tosses Lina up and SLICES at her face with his sword as she fell. It took of a small strand of hair, but ultimately sliced off the tiara from her head. She repays him by bashing him over the head [[Breaking the Fourth Wall|WITH HER OWN SWEATDROP]].
==
* British children's comic ''Dandy'' features one issue in which giant cowboy Desperate Dan has to get ready for a date. First he shaves, by dangling over a volcano to burn off the stubble. Then he gets a haircut by finding an Indian with a sharp-looking tomahawk, punching him in the face, and ducking at just the right moment...
* [[X-Men|Storm]] had this happen to her once, during a duel with [[Knife Nut|Marrow]]. It led to a second [[Important Haircut|dramatic hairstyle change from long and flowing to short and practical]] (and this one was much more stylish than her original Mohawk), though her character didn't change quite as much this time.
* ''[[
** While he doesn't make a big deal of it, [[Usagi Yojimbo
== [[Fan Fiction]] ==▼
* In ''[[Kyon Big Damn Hero (Fanfic)|Kyon Big Damn Hero]]'', Kyon's sister gets one by a stray flechette, during the Combine's attack at North High.▼
▲* In ''[[Kyon
== [[Film]] ==
* Used comedically in ''[[
* Happens with stubble at the climax of ''[[Blades of Glory]]''.
* Daigoro's topknot from ''[[Lone Wolf and Cub]]'' gets a chunk taken out of it during a fight, but he's otherwise unharmed. Considering that he's a small child, this might have been as far as the director wanted to go when it came to actually injuring him.
* ''[[Undercover Brother]]'' qualifies, although there it was more to motivate the hero to victory, à la the [[Berserk Button]].
* ''[[
* ''The Adventures of Baron Munchausen'' does this, but with an executioner's axe (one of his servants arrives just in the nick of time). "Thanks! I needed a trim!"
* A variant of this happens early in ''[[Get Shorty]]'', when Ray Bones tries to sneak into Chili Palmer's office to shoot him. Chili, having been alerted to this, just waits with his gun aimed at head height. When Bones breaks in, Chili shoots
{{quote|
* This popped up in a climactic battle in ''[[The Mummy
* In Peter Jackson's depiction of the War of the Last Alliance in ''The Fellowship of the Ring'', an Elf arrow just ''barely'' misses taking Elrond's pointy ear off as it breezes through his hair.
* In ''Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves'' Kevin Costner (Robin Hood) chops off a decent sized piece of Alan Rickman's (The Sheriff of Nottingham) hair during their final battle. He then quips "If I have to, I shall take you a piece at a time..."
* The Thin Man in the ''[[
* The fatter of the two Scousers in ''[[Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels]]'' takes a shotgun blast to the perm. He is not pleased.
* ''[[Red Cliff]]'': At the climax, Cao Cao's topnot is undone (in [[Bullet Time]], even!) by an arrow courtesy of Sun Quan.
* Subverted in ''[[Kill Bill]], Pt. 1'', when for perhaps half a second, it appears that the Bride's katana has cut O-Ren's black hair off her head. Then you realize that O-Ren's scalp and the top of her skull have come off with it.
Line 111 ⟶ 108:
== [[Literature]] ==
* In [[Mercedes Lackey]] 's ''Born to Run'' (part of the ''[[
* In ''[[Forgotten Realms|Finder's Stone]]'' trilogy one halfling got a clump of her hair shaved off by ''[[Beam Spam|dozen]] of sweeping [[Disintegrator Ray|disintegration rays]]''. Granted, this trap was set on a reasonable assumption that only one ''human'' could be there, but it still looks like those who suspected she's [[Born Lucky|favoured by Lady Luck]] even more than other halflings got it right...
* This happens in ''[[Harry Potter and
** During a duel Harry ducks to avoid a spell, and mentions the smell of singed hair to show how close the spell was
* In the Italian children's book ''Il Mascheraio Innocente'' (''The Innocent Mask-maker''), the titular character is wrongly accused of putting a wasp inside a duchess' mask, and sentenced to death by beheading. He spends the time until the execution making a mask with his likeness and then wears it on top of his head, so when he gets executed he survives. He didn't make the neck of the mask quite long enough, though, causing his friends to remark that "[his] haircut looks like it's been made with a meat cleaver".
* In the [[Federation of the Hub]] story ''Lion Loose'', "Baldy" Perk got his name because a near-miss from a blaster permanently removed the hair from the top of his head.
* Happens to Peter Petrelli in ''[[Heroes (TV series)|Heroes]]'', during his first encounter with Sylar.▼
* On ''[[
== [[Video Games]] ==
* In ''[[
* The introductory cutscene to ''[[The Witcher]]'' has Geralt doing this to a Striga.
== [[Web Comics]] ==
* Elf in ''[[
* Yorikiro in ''[[No Need for Bushido]]'' gets this and a little clothing damage in a [https://web.archive.org/web/20130605001957/http://noneedforbushido.com/2007/comic/285/ fight scene].
* Agatha loses about an inch of hair to the axe of Gilgamesh's fencing clank in [[Girl Genius]].
* [http://www.drunkduck.com/STICKFODDER/index.php?p=601334 Stickfodder]{{Dead link}}: Jen has her hair cut after Morgan takes a swing at her with his sword.
* Early on in ''[[Dominic Deegan]]'', [[Lovable Rogue|Bumper]] loses his top-knot when he ''just barely'' dodges a swing from a berserker wielding an axe.
* In ''[[The Inexplicable Adventures of Bob]],'' it happens to [http://bobadventures.comicgenesis.com/d/20100615.html Jolly the Giant.]
▲== [[Live Action TV]] ==
▲* Happens to Peter Petrelli in ''[[Heroes (TV)|Heroes]]'', during his first encounter with Sylar.
▲* On ''[[Myth Busters]]'', Adam once got a bit too close to an exploding ball of fire. [[Memetic Mutation|"Am I missing an eyebrow?"]]
== [[Western Animation]] ==
* In the [[Woody Woodpecker]] short "Solid Ivory", Woody gets a chunk of his hair chopped off by a flying axe. [[Berserk Button|He is not amused.]]
* Katara does this to Azula with a blade of water in the season two finale of ''[[
** Earlier, in a fight between Jet and Zuko, a blow gets so close that it cuts the [[Oral Fixation Fixation|blade of grass]] from Jet's mouth.
** And even earlier than that, the leaders of two feuding tribes that the gAang run into have a duel in which they do this to each other.
** In [[Sequel Series]] [[The Legend of Korra]], {{spoiler|Tarrlok}} does this to Korra with a viscious waterbending attack.
* In the ''[[
** In ''[[The Movie|Bender's Big Score]]'', Bender belches, setting Amy's uncharacteristically long hair on
* In ''[[The Simpsons]]'' episode "Itchy and Scratchy Land," Homer repeatedly ducks the cleaver of a mad robot while insisting that nothing is wrong, but loses the two hairs on top of his head when it gets too close ("Ah! My hair!").
* At least one episode of ''[[
* An episode of ''[[Jimmy Two
* An episode of ''[[The Fairly
** In another episode in which he wishes that he and Trixie were the last people on earth, near the end Trixie has gone insane and tries to kill Timmy with a helicopter just before he wishes the world back to normal she has managed to cut off some of his hair with the helicopter blades.
* The [[
* Happens to Clover in an episode of ''[[Totally Spies
* ''[[
* In the ''[[The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes
* In the ''[[Samurai Jack]]'' episode "Jack vs Mad Jack" during their fight Evil Jack slices off his trademark topknot hair, he then does the same to him.
* In the ''[[Courage the Cowardly Dog]]'' episode "The Ride of the Valkyries" after being mistaken for their sister the Valkyries give Muriel a battle axe as she playfully fools around with it she accidentally cuts off some of Courage's fur on his head.
* In the ''[[
* [[Rambo]] in his 1980's cartoon was often seen ducking for cover right when the enemy fires at him, just fast enough for the bullets to slice a few locks of hair from his head. The man had the Devil's luck, one has to admit.
* In ''[[My Little Pony:
* In the ''[[
== [[Real Life]] ==
* At the battle of Fredericksburg during the [[American Civil War]], Confederate cavalry general J.E.B Stuart had a lock of hair cut off by a bullet, and three more bullets passing through his clothes, while he left the battlefield unharmed.
{{reflist}}
[[Category:Fight Scene]]
[[Category:Hair Tropes]]
▲[[Category:Close Call Haircut]]
| |||