Go Out with a Smile: Difference between revisions

[[File:GoOutWithASmile_1503.png|link=One Piece|frame|Sorry, but... I'm dead!]]

 

'''Anakin:''' [[Redemption Equals Death|You already have]], Luke. You were right. You were right about me. Tell your sister... you were right.|''[[Star Wars]] Episode VI: [[Return of the Jedi]]''}}

 

* Done brutally in ''[[Aliv: The Final Evolution|Alive the Final Evolution]]'', when victims of the 'suicide virus' gleefully kill themselves, sometimes relenting long enough to do something important to them or encourage others to do the same. Those who are infected with the virus but have yet to succumb to it, and witness the suicides aren't sure whether to be terrified or be jealous.

* {{spoiler|Princess Emeraude}} in the finale of the first season of ''[[Magic Knight Rayearth]]''. {{spoiler|She}} even gets to ''thank'' the Knights for killing {{spoiler|her}}, which means {{spoiler|she's free from the curse that her life as the [[Barrier Maiden|Pillar]] was}}.

* In ''[[Cowboy Bebop]]'' {{spoiler|Julia and Spike, although Spike's may be a dubious example as he dies alone.}}

** Bang.

** In the manga, this happens near the end with {{spoiler|Buccaneer}}.

** {{spoiler|King Bradley/Wrath}} plays this trope very well in the manga, admitting aloud that he's lead a long, pleasant life as he is dying. This is almost ironic, as this man is singlehandedly responsible for the genocide of an entire race of people, as well as the death of three main characters, the slaughter of a sleugh of supporting characters, and the horrific crippling of another. With all this blood on his hands, and without sounding the slightest bit evil or sadistic, he goes out genuinely happy for the fulfilling life he's had.

** The manga's {{spoiler|Greed}} turns this trope [[Up to Eleven]] by laughing maniacally while being ''rendered down to a {{spoiler|Philosopher's Stone}}.''

*** Later played again by {{spoiler|the second Greed when Father destroys him}}. As he dissolves into air and sees {{spoiler|that all of his comrades truly were his friends, he realizes his desires are finally complete}}.

** Also in the manga, {{spoiler|Hohenheim returns to Resembool after the final battle with Father and dies kneeling in front of Trisha's grave.}}

*** Pinako outright says so.

** Lust also goes out with this way in [[Dying Moment of Awesome|the]] [[A Plague on Both Your Houses|manga/Brotherhood]].

* In the ''[[Gungrave]]'' anime {{spoiler|1=Brandon/Grave and Harry McDowell both die with a smile. Mika doesn't get to Grave in time to see him die, but she realizes that although Grave is gone from her life, her memory of him and the thought that they'll always be "family" no matter what allows her to smile because she realized that Grave finally found his peace.}}

{{spoiler|'''Mika'''}}: * smiling through {{spoiler|her}} tears* "I know now...that we're a family...and always will be, forever, and ever." }}

* In ''[[Full Metal Panic]]''... well, it's not so much touching, but {{spoiler|Gauron}} did die with a ''very'' happy smile on his face. It was actually genuine, though, and [[Slasher Smile|not very pretty]]. Apparently his happiness came from causing as much pain as he could to [[The Masochism Tango|the one he loves]].

* {{spoiler|Ambertwo}}'s death in ''[[Pokémon (anime)|The Birth of Mewtwo]]''

* In Chapter 278 of ''[[Mahou Sensei Negima]]'', {{spoiler|[[Crazy Awesome|Jack Rakan]], after delivering a powerful blow to Fate, begins to dissolve into sakura petals just like everyone else hit by Fate's attacks, and he, of all people, combines this with [[Obi-Wan Moment|a rather calm, relaxed attitude]] as he passes on his last words.}}

{{spoiler|Rakan: Sorry. (''a few panels later'') Ah, well. I'm sure you'll be able to handle it.}} }}

** And then he revives for a moment and does it again.

{{spoiler|Negi: Raka...n...san...}} }}

** {{spoiler|Tosaka}} did it too, after taking a hit meant for Ako Izumi.

* In the final episode of ''[[Last Exile]]'', {{spoiler|Alex Rowe dies with a smile after finally carrying out his long-sought vengeance against Maestro Delphine}}.

* In ''[[Toward the Terra]]'', {{spoiler|Jonah Matsuka}} initially seems to have died with a look of numb, [[Dies Wide Open|wide-eyed]] surprise, but actually manages to cling to life long enough to {{spoiler|telepathically draw Keith, who he was protecting, back from the brink of death}} before finally expiring with a [[Tender Tears|Tender Tear]] and a peaceful smile.

* In ''[[Cable and Deadpool]]'', this is how {{spoiler|Cable}} goes out.

* Done heartbreakingly in Villains United:

'''Parademon:''' HAHAHA! See? I told you you were funny... }}

** Made even sadder later when Ragdoll says Parademon was his best friend.

* This is what happens to {{spoiler|[[Bad Movie Beatdown|Film Brain]]}} in ''[[That Guy with the Glasses in Space|I Have Heard the Voices Dying]]''.

* In ''[[Ace Combat: The Equestrian War]]'', Derpy's best friend, {{spoiler|Carrot Top}}, kept smiling during her last moments. It's particularly heartwrenching when {{spoiler|Carrot}} asks Derpy to smile as well, but isn't satisfied at first.

 

 

== Film - Live Action ==

* ''[[Goldeneye]]''. When Bond finds the Canadian admiral, he's in rigor mortis with a gigantic grin thanks to [[Famke Janssen]]'s [[Murderous Thighs]].

* In ''[[Sin City]]'', while Kevin is being cut up and fed, he's still smiling. That's not a tear jerker, though, that's just ''intensely fucking creepy''.

* The titular [[Big Bad]] of ''[[Kill Bill]]'', in the final moments of his life, not only forgives his murderer (who had all the reason in the world to be pissed at him, and he admits it), but assures her that she is ''still'' the love of his life with a gentlemanly smile and by telling her she is a wonderful person. [[Tear Jerker|If that is not a man, I don't know what is]].

** Obi-Wan Kenobi gave Luke one last knowing smile before [[Obi-Wan Moment|willingly becoming one with the Force]]. Via lightsaber.

* The Terminator of ''[[Terminator (franchise)|Terminator]] 2 Judgement Day'' is a variation of this trope. Although he could not cry for the boy that he has come to love but must leave, his "thumb up" to encourage John to courageously go on living is no less touching than the above examples.

* Roy Batty in ''[[Blade Runner]]'' does his famous 'tears in the rain' monologue with a smile on his face before dying in front of Deckard -- [[Redemption in the Rain|a man he had just saved]] and who was, up to that moment, trying to kill him. As Deckard himself muses a second later:

* Heartily recommended in ''[[Batman (film)|Batman]]'' (1989), right before the final battle:

** Not to mention the ''creepy'' grin frozen on the Joker's face when he shatters all his bones on the pavement of Gotham, with an unnervingly funny laugh from a Laughing-Bag found by Commissioner Gordon on his corpse.

*** In an early draft of the script, {{spoiler|his unnaturally frozen smile goes ''away'' as he dies.}}

* In [[Graham McNeill]]'s [[Warhammer 40000]] [[Ultramarines (novel)|Ultramarines]] novel ''Dead Sky Black Sun'', Larana Utorian, dying and deranged by her suffering at the hands of the Chaos forces, nevertheless manages to collect her wits and smile at the dying {{spoiler|Leonid}}, thus giving him the courage to {{spoiler|set off a grenade, [[Heroic Sacrifice|killing them]] and the Chaos forces that could have pursued those of their party who could escape}}.

* In ''[[Dracula (novel)|Dracula]]'', every vampire that gets killed leaves a smiling corpse, with the implication that their vampiric nature was a curse they're glad to be free of. (Even Dracula himself, in the moment between his death and his body crumbling to dust.) Van Helsing stated that this was the main reason he was able to keep executing the helpless brides -- because he was saving their souls by doing so. {{spoiler|Quincy Morris died this way as well after taking down Dracula and saving Mina's soul from his taint.}}

** In [[Fred Saberhagen]]'s ''[[The Dracula Tape]]'', the Count hangs a somewhat cynical lampshade on this by observing that nothing seems to make a vampire look more 'at peace' to breathing humans than the knowledge that he or she is finally safely dead.

* Played straight in the last ''[[Harry Potter (novel)|Harry Potter]]'' book when {{spoiler|Fred}} is crushed in a bomb-like explosion [[Go Out with a Smile|laughing.]]

* The end of the chorus of "Fences" by [[Paramore]] features the line: 'So smile/'Cause you'll go out in style.'

* [[Queen]], "The Show Must Go On".

''On with the show!'' }}

 

** Several of {{spoiler|your squadmates}} do something like this if {{spoiler|they die during the suicide mission.}}

** In ''[[Mass Effect 3]]'':

'''{{spoiler|Mordin}}:''' ''"I'm not. Had to be me. Someone else might have gotten it wrong."'' }}

** Also in ''Mass Effect 3'': {{spoiler|Anderson dies with a peaceful smile after telling Shepard how proud he is of her/him. Shepard seems just about ready to do the same before a call from Hackett and an intervention from the Catalyst pull her/him out of it.}}

== Western Animation ==

* In ''[[Justice League (animation)|Justice League]]'', [[Darkseid]] was left to die on an exploding asteroid after being beaten by Superman. Darkseid's only reaction to his impending death? Sneer and mock Superman's failure to kill him personally.

* When ''[[Transformers Armada]]'' {{spoiler|Starscream}} does his death monologue with a sword through his chest, he's got a heartbreakingly peaceful smile on his face--the first he's had in the entire series.

** Similar thing happens with {{spoiler|Prowl}} in ''[[Transformers Animated]]''. Cue crying fangirls.