Could Have Been Messy: Difference between revisions

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{{quote|''"I sure am glad I'm a cartoon!"''|'''Mokuba''' upon falling dozens of stories to what could've been an untimely end, ''[[Yu-Gi-Oh ~~the~~ Abridged Series (Web Video)|Yu-Gi-Oh the Abridged Series]]''}}

{{quote|''"I sure am glad I'm a cartoon!"''|'''Mokuba''' upon falling dozens of stories to what could've been an untimely end, ''[[Yu-Gi-Oh!: The Abridged Series (Web Video)|Yu-Gi-Oh the Abridged Series]]''}}

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* [[Near Misses]]

* [[Never Bring a Knife To A Fist Fight]]

* [[Non Fatal Explosions]]

* [[Non-Fatal Explosions]]

* [[Non Lethal Warfare]]

* [[Paper Cutting]]

* [[Reckless Pacifist]]

* [[Sword Limbo]]

== Anime and Manga ==

* ''[[Fullmetal Alchemist]]'' provides an especially intriguing example. While the Elric brothers' attempts to avoid killing people drag out fights to near typical [[Shonen]] lengths, whenever anyone else, like say the bloodthirsty, revenge-driven anti-hero Scar, joins a fight, blood-soaked bodies begin littering the ground within seconds.

* In the first chapter of the ''[[Mai-HiME (Manga)|Mai-HiME]]'' manga, Natsuki and Mai seem to fight all out with some very lethal looking elemental attacks. And even when cornered by Duran, Mai refuses to budge, preferring to take the attack. The presence of some young children behind her and the subsequent [[My God What Have I Done|oh-crap reaction]] seem to imply that Duran's [[Death Ray|attack]] was going to be quite lethal, which is interesting considering neither Mai nor Natsuki really seemed like the type to murder the other out of pique... So you gotta wonder what would have happened if Tate were one second too slow...

* In the first chapter of the ''[[Mai-HiME (Manga)|Mai-HiME]]'' manga, Natsuki and Mai seem to fight all out with some very lethal looking elemental attacks. And even when cornered by Duran, Mai refuses to budge, preferring to take the attack. The presence of some young children behind her and the subsequent [[My God, What Have I Done?|oh-crap reaction]] seem to imply that Duran's [[Death Ray|attack]] was going to be quite lethal, which is interesting considering neither Mai nor Natsuki really seemed like the type to murder the other out of pique... So you gotta wonder what would have happened if Tate were one second too slow...

* ''[[Mahou Sensei Negima]]'' does this a lot, especially early on. Later in the series, it's averted, although [[Beauty Is Never Tarnished|mostly in regard to male characters]]. The idea is even directly referenced when Jack Rakan {{spoiler|copies the ultimate Shinmeiryu technique, which bypasses all of Negi's barriers and obliterates a bunch of stuff behind him, also nicking Negi on the forehead.}} Jack admits that if he had been off by an inch or so, Negi's head would have been split in half.

** It comes back with during most battles with the [[Fan Nickname|Fatettes]] (not counting Tsukuyomi/Setsuna where it's kinda justified), where lethal force is regularly exchanged: [[Razor Wind]], explosive fire, etc. Even in the "final" battle against them, it's hard to remember Fate issued a no-kill order when one sees how [[Pyromaniac|Homura]] fights.

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== Comic Books ==

* Similarly, the anything but restrained Wolverine never actually managed to successfully shank anything that wasn't mechanical or otherwise inhuman in both ''[[X Men the Animated Series]]'' and ''[[X Men Evolution]]''. And thus the use of the trope allowed writers to feature the very archtype character of the [[Anti Hero|"kill-at-the-drop-of-a-hat anti-hero"]] without having him ever actually kill anyone.

* Similarly, the anything but restrained Wolverine never actually managed to successfully shank anything that wasn't mechanical or otherwise inhuman in both ''[[X Men the Animated Series]]'' and ''[[X Men Evolution]]''. And thus the use of the trope allowed writers to feature the very archtype character of the [[Anti-Hero|"kill-at-the-drop-of-a-hat anti-hero"]] without having him ever actually kill anyone.

** Even in the movies, where he is allowed to cut loose, there's a surprising lack of blood. Perhaps most notable is an instance in the first movie where he accidentally stabs Rogue in the chest. From her back, you can see the exit wounds, but when you see her from the front next, the front of her shirt is still entirely intact, and there isn't so much as a blood stain on her or the shirt.

*** Averted in X-Men Origins: Wolverine (Uncaged edition) where Wolverines claws do exactly what you always wanted them to. Very, very messily.

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*** And that was the point. They weren't allowed to have actual blood, so they replace it with oil from robots.

* In ''[[Teen Titans (Animation)|Teen Titans]]'', bladed weapons and explosions are taken more seriously than, say, goofy laserfire, but none hit the mark unless the target is [[Made of Iron]] or the attack is ensured to somehow be nonlethal. Despite retaining the typical pacifistic heroes role, the Titans themselves rarely hold back during action sequences. Particularly glaring with Robin, who wielded explosive discs as a standard weapon; imagine a police officer substituting a hand grenade for his billy club.

* The ''[[Rambo]]'' cartoon series. [[What Do You Mean ~~Its~~ Not for Kids|What do you mean, it's not for kids?]] Pssh. Let's just have wars where nobody dies. At least the main character is somewhat [[Technical Pacifist|consistent with his portrayal in the first movie]].

* The ''[[Rambo]]'' cartoon series. [[What Do You Mean It's Not for Kids?|What do you mean, it's not for kids?]] Pssh. Let's just have wars where nobody dies. At least the main character is somewhat [[Technical Pacifist|consistent with his portrayal in the first movie]].