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Man on Fire (trope): Difference between revisions
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{{trope}}
[[File:
{{quote|''[[Give a Man a Fish|Make a man a fire, you keep him warm for a day.]] Set a man on fire, [[Half Truth|you keep him warm]] [[Black Humor|for the rest of his life.]]''
|'''[[Terry Pratchett]]'''}}
The human body is unexpectedly flammable, resulting in characters, particularly [[Spear Carrier
▲{{quote|''Make a man a fire, you keep him warm for a day. Set a man on fire, [[Half Truth|you keep him warm]] [[Black Humor|for the rest of his life.]]''|'''[[Terry Pratchett]]'''}}
Not to be confused with the [[Man on Fire|Denzel Washington film of the same name]], which ''doesn't'' feature a literal man on fire. Or with the [[Fantastic Four (Comic Book)|Human Torch]]. Or with ''[[w:Burning Man|Burning Man]]''. Or... you get the idea.▼
▲The human body is unexpectedly flammable, resulting in characters, particularly [[Spear Carrier|Spear Carriers]], [[Red Shirt|Red Shirts]], [[Evil Minions]], and [[The Dragon|Dragons]] being engulfed in flames and walking or running around the scene. Thus ensuring steady work (and a lot of money) for stuntmen. These days it's as likely to be used for comedy as to be used straight.
▲Not to be confused with the [[Man on Fire|Denzel Washington film of the same name]], which ''doesn't'' feature a literal man on fire. Or with the [[Fantastic Four (Comic Book)|Human Torch]]. Or with ''Burning Man''. Or... you get the idea.
For the self-destructive version, see [[Self-Immolation]]. For the version that seemingly happens without any kind of external ignition source, see [[Spontaneous Human Combustion]].
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See also [[Kill It with Fire]] and [[Incendiary Exponent]].
{{examples}}
== Anime and Manga ==
* In ''[[Rurouni Kenshin]]'', {{spoiler|Makoto Shishio}} is only defeated when {{spoiler|his body temperature rises so much during his fight with Kenshin that Shishio bursts into flame.}}
** But that's only after his blood boils and evaporates away. Sheesh.
* In ''[[Baccano!]]'', two gangsters pour gasoline on {{spoiler|Szilard}}'s head and then throw a match at it. "We've never set a MAN on fire before!"
** In 2001, {{spoiler|Czeslaw}} throws himself into a fireplace to burn away some ropes that have been binding him, then walks [[Out of the Inferno]] and pushes past his terrified captors, [[Healing Factor|regenerating]] as he goes.
* [[Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann
* In EP544 of [[Pokémon (anime)|Pokémon]] , May is visually set on fire after she realizes all of the food is gone (though no harm comes of it). Coincidentally, her fire-type Blaziken was about to engage in battle when the news was received.
* This is how
== Comic Books ==
* The [[Punisher]] one-shot "The Tyger" begins and ends with a man on fire. Also, the arc "The Slavers" ends with one.
== Film ==
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* Anakin Skywalker, just before his final transformation into Darth Vader in ''[[Star Wars]]: Episode III: [[Revenge of the Sith]]''. Subverted in that, realistically, only his hair and clothes burn. We later see (in ''Return of the Jedi'') that his eyelashes are still there, but the make-up department's only human! (Though it did (subtly) get fixed in the DVD.)
* In the film ''[[Ong Bak]]'', Tony Jaa's character kicks a man in the face while his legs are on fire. He then puts them out in a barrel of water. (Note: Tony Jaa did his own stunts. ''[[Badass|Damn]]''.)
* In the film ''[[Hobgoblins]]'', one character is set on fire after diving onto a
* In one of the ''[[Scary Movie]]'' sequels (either three or four),{{verify}} a flaming man appears in the background walking a flaming dog.
* In ''[[Anchorman]]'', the rival news crews get involved in a violent street brawl and right in the middle a man on fire staggers through the scene. [[Rule of Funny|It's funny]].
{{quote|
*
** ''[[Licence to Kill]]'': Sanchez is doused in petrol and set alight by [[James Bond (film)|James Bond]].
** ''[[Diamonds Are Forever]]''
*** It was also a not-so-subtle attempt to poke fun of that particular villain's sexuality
* In ''[[Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels]]'', a man on fire comes bursting out of a pub, with no explanation. It becomes something of a [[Brick Joke]], as we later learn that Rory Breaker had set the man on fire for turning the channel on his football match.
* ''[[Smoking Aces]]''
* During the climax of ''[[A Nightmare on Elm Street]]'', Freddy Krueger is set on fire (again) by the heroine, Nancy Thompson. Not surprisingly for the undead, Freddy manages to chase Nancy around while still on fire, and even get in a final kill (her mother). Even his footprints are flaming as well.
* In ''[[Be Cool]]'', Vince Vaughn is set on fire and runs into the shooting of a music video. Of course the director of said video [[Throw It In|leaves it in the final cut]].
* The [[
* In one memorable scene in the original 1951 ''[[The Thing from Another World]]'', the eponymous invader gets doused with gasoline and set ablaze; like the Freddy Kreuger example above, he/it continues to run amok. Especially notable in that this was the first time the stunt was attempted for a movie.
* Near the end of the D-Day scene of ''[[Saving Private Ryan]]'', the Allies use a flamethrower on the Nazis. One of the Allied soldiers shouts [[War Is Hell|"Don't shoot! Let 'em burn!"]]
** Another scene depicts US soldiers piling out of a burning landing craft while on fire.
** Later, a German self propelled gun is hit by a Molotov cocktail, resulting in several men on fire wandering around.
* In ''[[Brazil (film)|Brazil]]'', a
* In ''[[Manhunter (film)|Manhunter]]'' and its remake, ''[[Red Dragon]]'', one of the serial killer's victims is set on fire and sent rolling down the street tied to a wheelchair.
* In ''[[Kingdom of Heaven]]'', Balian kills his priest half-brother after he takes his dead wife's necklace and cuts her head off due to her being a suicide. Balian then stabs the guy with a sword he's working on, pushing the guy into a fire. The man then gets off the forge and runs around screaming before finally dying after having set the smithy on fire.
* In ''[[Waking Life]]'', a man ends his disgruntled rant on the human condition by dousing himself with gasoline and tossing a match onto himself, as stoically as a Buddhist monk. Two bystanders watch with mild curiosity on flames rendered by hand-painting the frames of the film.
{{quote|
* ''[[The Wicker Man]]''. The clue is in the title.
* ''The Blue and the Grey,'' a movie about the [[American Civil War]] usually shown in schools, has a Confederate soldier burning alive after his legs have been shot, begging his brother to shoot him. And is responsible for making a class of fifth graders throw up and have nightmares for the rest of <s>our</s> their lives.
* In ''[[Freddy vs. Jason]]'', [[Implacable Man|Jason Voorhees]] is soaked in alcohol and set on fire. All this leads to is a burning, Hockey Mask wearing undead killing machine hacking his way through a cornfield rave, before extinguishing himself by getting sprayed with more alcohol.
* In ''[[Crank|Crank 2: High Voltage]]'', Chev Chelios {{spoiler|self-immolates as a result of drawing a charge from an electrical transformer, after which he beats the main bad guy to death, throws him into a pool, WALKS AWAY from the water, begins tripping severe balls, makes out with a woman, and then gives you the finger.}} [[Rule of Cool|It is that kind of movie.]]
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** A nonmilitary example occurs in the opening scene of ''[[Lethal Weapon 4]]''.
* The Scarecrow in the movie of [[The Wizard of Oz (film)|The Wizard of Oz]].
== Literature ==
* ''[[The Zombie Survival Guide]]'' advised you against using fire to fight the undead, as the only thing worse than a zombie trying to eat you is [[Infernal Retaliation|a ''burning''
▲== Live Action Television ==
* ''[[American Horror Story]]'''s Larry Harvey was set on fire by his lover's son.
* ''[[CSI: Miami]]'' has at least two Corpses of the Week go up in flames in this manner:
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* When ''[[Series/Top Gear|Top Gear]]'' [[Hilarity Ensues|redesigned Sir Steve Redgrave's garden]], during the Ground Force-style fast-forwarding bit a blazing man runs into shot and is put out with a fire blanket. It is [[Rule of Funny|never really explained]].
* In one episode of ''[[Stargate Atlantis]]'', Sheppard and Lucius Luvin, who happens to have an Ancient shield that makes him invincible, need a plan to distract and defeat some Genii soldiers. One of Lucius' ideas is, and I quote, [[Discussed Trope|"I could set myself on fire."]] Naturally, Sheppard likes it. Unfortunately, nothing comes of this idea.
* In [[CSI: NY]], "Sleight Out of Hand", there was a magician who set himself on fire as a magic trick. While the magician was performing his trick, a guy several blocks away burned to death from being set on fire.
** Later, Mac demonstrated the cooling gel used by stunt performers for 'burns' aka setting themselves on fire, slathering it on a sleeve that covered his arm and inviting Danny to set the arm on fire.
{{quote|
'''Danny''': Okay, but if you go up in flames, I get your office. }}
* Averted in an episode of ''[[Psych]]'', where Shawn and Gus pretend to be stuntmen in order to investigate a famous daredevil's entourage. They wonder what the special suits they have to wear for the new stunt they're testing are for, until someone pulls out a torch and ignites it. The boys panic and immediately call it quits.
* In the ''[[How I Met Your Mother]]'' episode "The Burning Beekeeper", {{spoiler|Marshall's boss Mr. Cootes}} is wearing a beekeeping outfit doused in kerosene when he's getting food out of the oven. He runs ablaze out the front door and rolls in the snow to extinguish himself.
* ''[[Game of Thrones]]'' has several during {{spoiler|the Battle of the Blackwater, due to copious use of wildfire and regular flaming arrows.}}
== Music ==
* [[Big Black]]'s ''Kerosene'' is about one contemplating living the rest of their life in a small town in total boredom. Self-immolation is seen as the cure to that boredom.
** This song is considered the band's [[Incredibly Lame Pun|''Light My Fire'']] by many fans.
* The [[Hipgnosis]] cover of [[Pink Floyd]]'s ''Wish You Were Here'' album includes a photo of two businessmen, one of whom happens to be on fire, casually shaking hands. This is intended as a visual metaphor for getting burned in the music business.▼
** The man on fire could also be the Devil ([[Fire and Brimstone Hell|since Hell is full of that stuff]]), and the two shaking hands could equate going into the music business as making a [[Deal with the Devil]].▼
* The original album cover to [[Lynyrd Skynyrd]]'s ''Street Survivors'' had the band standing in the middle of an inferno, which gave the illusion of half the band being on fire. [[Tempting Fate|Three days after the album's release]], the band's flight [[Tear Jerker|crashed]], killing four bandmates and the two pilots.▼
* Sid Wilson of the band [[Slipknot]] has been known to ''set himself on fire'' during live shows. He's stopped doing this in recent years for fears of being arrested for attempted suicide. Yes, being arrested is his main fear for his human inferno act.
*
{{quote|
I'm on fire.
I am, quite literally...
<big>ON FIRE!</big> }}
* Electric Six's album ''Fire'' has a Man on Fire...at the disco. Could be the hit single "Danger! High Voltage" and its constant refrain of "Fire in the disco!" Or it could be their [[Running Gag|inexplicable obsession with the word "fire."]]▼
* Till Lindemann of [[Rammstein]]. Aside from his constant fiery antics on stage, the "Du Hast" video has the drummer Christoph Schneider do this as well. And let's not forget that the first song on their first album is called "Wollt ihr das Bett in Flammen sehen?" (for the non-German-speakers, that's "Do you want to see the bed in flames?").
* [[
* The [[Autopsy (band)|Autopsy]] song "Charred Remains"
* [[Evile]]'s song "Burned Alive"
=== Album Covers ===
▲* The [[Hipgnosis]] cover of [[Pink Floyd]]'s ''Wish You Were Here'' album includes a photo of two businessmen, one of whom happens to be on fire, casually shaking hands. This is intended as a visual metaphor for getting burned in the music business.
▲** The man on fire could also be the Devil ([[Fire and Brimstone Hell|since Hell is full of that stuff]]), and the two shaking hands could equate going into the music business as making a [[Deal with the Devil]].
▲* The original album cover to [[Lynyrd Skynyrd]]'s ''Street Survivors'' had the band standing in the middle of an inferno, which gave the illusion of half the band being on fire. [[Tempting Fate|Three days after the album's release]], the band's flight [[Tear Jerker|crashed]], killing four bandmates and the two pilots.
▲* [[Electric Six]]'s album ''Fire'' has a Man on Fire...at the disco. Could be the hit single "Danger! High Voltage" and its constant refrain of "Fire in the disco!" Or it could be their [[Running Gag|inexplicable obsession with the word "fire."]]
* The cover of [[Rage Against the Machine]]'s first album is a well-known photo of Thich Quang Duc (see Real Life folder).
=== Music Videos ===▼
* The clip for [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dPT7q825gwI "California" by Wax], directed by Spike Jonze, consists almost ''entirely'' of a
▲== Music Videos ==
▲* The clip for [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dPT7q825gwI "California" by Wax], directed by Spike Jonze, consists almost ''entirely'' of a [[Man On Fire]]!
* The [["Weird Al" Yankovic]] music video for "Smells Like Nirvana" has a burning man in the background of one of the shots.
* Christoph Schneider's character in the [[Rammstein]] video "Du Hast".
* ''[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-hgVeNjYiGo The Everlasting]'' by the [[Manic Street Preachers]] has multiple people on fire. [[What Do You Mean Its Not Symbolic|It probably means something]].
== Tabletop Games ==
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* ''[[Super Mario 64]]'', ''[[Super Mario Sunshine]]'' and ''[[Super Mario Galaxy]]'' all do this. When Mario hits an enemy with fireballs, it catches fire and dies; when Mario falls into lava or gets hit with fire, he gets launched high into the air, then upon landing grabs his flaming rear end and runs in circles, yelling things like "AAAHothothothothot!" and "MAMA!!!"
* In the ''[[Metal Slug]]'' series, using fire-based attacks on [[Mook|enemy soldiers]] causes them to dance in place before they turn to ash.
* In the first ''[[Command
** If the tank was destroyed just after shooting, the driver could manage to get out in time, but would ''still'' be killed by ''his own flame jet he fired seconds ago''. And if the tank was moving, he could also be ran over by ''the tank's exploding remains''. Sick.
* In the first episode of ''[[Blood (video game)|Blood]]'' (the horror [[First-Person Shooter]]), one of the first weapons you acquire is a flare gun whose ammo, after hitting an enemy, sets him ablaze, running and screaming while engulfed by the fire, when he's weakened enough. The sequel had the same weapon, but the enemies stay strangely calm as they fry to a crips (partially justified when they are zombies).
** There's also the spraycan-plus-lighter Caleb uses as a makeshift flamethrower.
* In the video game ''[[Total Carnage]]'', setting fire to certain objects (e.g. vehicles) will turn nearby [[Mooks]] into burning men, who charge at you with flaming fists. You're not so
* The video game ''[[Judge Dredd]]'': Dredd Versus Death has Incendinary ammunition for the very purpose of setting things on fire by shooting them. Unlike some of the other types of ammo (Bouncing Bullets?!), it is quite effective, though using it on most civilians is highly frowned upon.
** Hell, using incendiary rounds on ANYONE not a zombie is considered pure evil. I shot a couple of armed criminals trying to kill me with incendiary rounds, and was quickly determined to be a rogue judge and hunted down by the SJS.
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* Villagers in ''[[Black and White]]'' regularly catch fire when the fireball you're idly tossing about gets away from you. When this happens, their status (normally "working", "sleeping" or whatever) becomes "being on fire".
* In the ''Enhanced Configuration Project'' [[Game Mod]] for soldier sim ''[[Operation Flashpoint]]'', occupants of exploded vehicles will sometimes leap out and run around, on fire and screaming in agony, until they expire or are put out of their misery.
* Oh, the running, screaming, burning pedestrians in ''Syndicate'' and ''Syndicate Wars''. [[Video Game Cruelty Potential|Why else would you pack a flamethrower]]?
* Upon receiving a flamethrower in ''[[Army Men]]: Sarge's Heroes'', Sarge gives a content laugh: "Oh-ho-ho, yeah." Also, several times in the games the quote, "I love the smell of burnt plastic in the morning," is used to further the sadistic craving of burning plastic soldiers. Of course, the results of the flamethrower are quite satisfying and well worth the reaction: any mook (or Sarge himself) caught in the flames runs around in circles before shriveling up into a blob of goo and fading away (as video game corpses do).
* In the cutscene right after a fight with one of the minibosses in ''[[Dead Rising]]'', said miniboss, a teenage [[Pyromaniac]], is shown backing away from Frank shaking like a leaf and holding out a Molotov cocktail and ends up slipping and landing flat on his back, accidentally hurling the projectile into the air. It lands, already burning, [[Played for Laughs|on his crotch]], and the player has the option to put him out with a nearby fire extinguisher, resulting in a [[Heel Face Turn]].
* ''[[Call of Duty]] 2'', when the player lands at Pointe du Hoc he is immediately stunned by an artillery shell. In his hazy immobilized state, the player sees an LCVP engulfed in flames with partially burning soldiers fleeing from it. Then, and it's something that made this Troper go "holy shit", a burning soldier walks calmly out of the ship and down the ramp, collapses to his knees, and falls down.
* The dwarves in ''[[Dwarf Fortress]]'' have a special relationship with fire, mostly because they don't register it as a problem they should solve, and so merrily go about their duties and setting the ''rest'' of the fortress on fire as well.
** A famous instance in [[Boatmurdered]] in which 'god emperor' Sankis the Beardless snapped and went postal. "OH MY GOD. Sankis is on a bloody rampage! He mauled a baby and a cow, and now, at this very instant, he's beating the Elite Marksdwarf Kadol Lokumad into paste! DID I MENTION HE IS ON FUCKING FIRE!??"
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* In the [[Rail Shooter]] part of ''[[Die Hard]] Trilogy'', people periodically get set on fire by explosions, etc. Shooting them gets you a "[[Mercy Kill|Mercy Shot]]" bonus.
* Early on in ''[[Anachronox]]'', you're barred from one area by a NOX Guard who informs you that some guy set himself on fire and they're waiting for him to stop. You can see him run around madly while the sociopathic guards do nothing to help him. Hilariously, this is also a [[Broken Bridge]], so unless you further the polt sufficiently, you can come back an hour later and find the guy ''still running around and being on fire''.
* [[World of Warcraft]] warlocks and mages can set their enemies on fire for short periods of time.
** So can many mobs and bosses (if you are not careful) leading to the now-meme "Don't stand in the fire."
** In ''Cataclysm'' there is a quest in Mount Hyjal to extinguish burning Twilight Cultists who have failed their training test to defeat a fire elemental.
** Engineers can get the Transporter Malfunction debuff "YOU ARE ON FIRE!!!"
* ''[[Odium]]'' has lighting the monsters on fire (they burn and receive damage for three turns) as one of the most helpful and damaging combat maneouvers. You can begin doing it very quickly, since you find a flamethrower a few combats into the game. There are also [[Molotov Cocktail
* ''[[Scott Pilgrim vs. the World|Scott Pilgrim vs. the World: The Game]]'' feature [[
* ''[[Purple]]'' features enemies who look like standard onion-head NPCs, except their head is on fire and they can attack and hurt you. Later, there's a (stronger) ''freezing'' head variation.
* ''[[Overlord]]'s'' red minions can do this to enemies, some of which have the courtesy to [[Kill It with Fire|die panicked shrieking deaths]]. Explosives thrown or planted by enemies can hit each other for similar effect.
* ''[[Dragon Age II]]'''s Ketojan, a Qunari Saarebas whom Hawke escorts out of Kirkwall, {{spoiler|uses his power to set himself on fire to kill himself rather than risk the possibility that he has been corrupted by demons, as is demanded by the Qun.}}
* One of the [[Mook
* In ''[[Banjo Tooie]]'', if you use your fire eggs or Dragon!Kazooie's fire breath on a mook, you can watch him run around ablaze until it stops or you kill him.
* It's something of a tradition for ''[[Fallout]]'' games to depict the average human being as kindling in waiting. Flamethrowers in the first and second games give a kill animation fondly referred to among fans as the Burning Bitch Dance, while the later installments by Bethesda have given the various desert-wandering protagonists plenty of ways to demonstrate how flammable people are.
* ''[[Resident Evil 2
** Also, both Mr. X and the Nemesis are set ablaze in the game.
* ''[[Fallout: New Vegas]]'' has Joshua Graham, The Burned Man. Formerly the [[The Dragon|Legate]] of [[The Horde|Caesar's Legion]], for his failure to defeat the NCR he was covered in pitch, set aflame and thrown down the Grand Canyon. [[Memetic Badass|It didn't work.]] However, when you meet him in the Honest Hearts DLC he can tell you that every night when he has to change the bandages that cover him from head to toe and expose his wounds to the air, [[And I Must Scream|he must go through the feeling of being burned alive once again.]]
* Enemies in ''[[
* ''[[Evolva]]'': Use the mucus attack against your enemies, then the flame weapon. [[Hilarity Ensues]]. Your enemies can do the same thing to you if a mucus and a flame parasite stick together, though. Thankfully, such a situation can only happen at the end of level 11.
* [[Bare Handed Monk|Lee Sin]] of [[League of Legends]] did so [[All There in the Manual|in his backstory]], leaving him as a [[Handicapped Badass]]. Also a shout out to Thich Quang Duc in the [[Real Life]] section.
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==
* ''[[The Adventures of Dr. McNinja]]'' - Dan McNinja's superior reasoning ability leads him to conclude that the best way to avoid being caught by other ninjas is to set himself on fire (granted, the ninjas in question are actually teenagers on a "ninja drug", and therefore are rather reluctant to grab someone on fire). He does have the advantage of a fireproof ninja suit, though.
** In a later comic the [[Big Bad]] of the same arc (who ''doesn't'' need the drug for his ninja skills) admits that setting yourself on fire does prevent ninjas in general (himself included) from catching you... {{spoiler|[[You Have Failed Me...|after telling the ninjas who failed to catch Dan to set themselves on fire to prove otherwise]]}}.
* ''[[8-
** [http://www.nuklearpower.com/2009/12/12/episode-1203-maligned/ Also happened to Black Mage when he tried to equip a holy weapon:]
{{quote|
* In ''[[Cuanta Vida]]'', Bleu has done this once. [[Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?|And guess what he is the most afraid of?]]
* In [https://web.archive.org/web/20110602051139/http://bukucomics.com/loserz/go/323 this strip] of ''[[Loserz]]'', for no apparent reason.
* In ''[[Homestuck]]'', at least three dreamselves are killed by being set on fire: Kanaya's, {{spoiler|Aradia's}}, and Karkat's. Although in Karkat's case, it's not so much the fire that kills him as being right in front of a person causing a massive explosion powered by green fire.
* In Lethal Doses, a long-gone
== Web Original ==
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* Parodied in ''[[Homestar Runner]]'''s Trogdor games with the "burninated" peasants.
* Melina Frost of ''[[Survival of the Fittest]]'' is briefly set alight in one scene. By all accounts this results in her looking like [[Batman|Two-Face]]. - She actually survives this, as the fire is quickly extinguished.
**
* ''[[College Saga]]'' has a brief scene in which an NPC lit on fire runs across the room while the party walks by. [[
* Caboose manages to set his combat armor on fire (while wearing it, of course) in the trailer for ''[[Red vs. Blue]]: Recreation''.
* In ''Wink The Game'', the PC Wink can grab torches and toss them on enemies. They set on fire, running around making [[Speaking Simlish|screaming noises]] until they disintegrate into ash
* ''[[Asdfmovie
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120503054148/http://www.safenow.org/ If you have set yourself on fire, do not run].
== Western Animation ==
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* In one episode of ''[[American Dad]]'', in order to create a diversion, Stan sets Roger in fire. [[Hilarity Ensues]] as Roger is repeatedly extinguished only to immediately combust again, even after being soaked in water.
* ''[[The Simpsons (animation)|The Simpsons]]''
{{quote|
** Also, from the time Ned and Maude Flanders are performing a skit about fire safety and Ned catches on fire:
{{quote|
'''Maude''': Um...stop, drop, and roll, Neddie. (everyone laughs)
'''Ned''': It's not working! [[Broken Aesop|It just spreads the flames!]] }}
** Getting stuck in a tar pit and rescued by Stampy the elephant Barney Gumble thanks him as he lights a cigarette and due to being covered with tar he catches on fire. It doesn't seem to bother him much.
** Then there was the ridiculous [[Treehouse
* Mr. Krabs in ''The [[SpongeBob SquarePants]] Movie'':
{{quote|
** Yes, we're all aware that the show takes place ''underwater''. It's [[Rule of Funny]]. Moving on.
** Also in a deleted scene from "Just One Bite" Squidward gets doused in gasoline and set on fire by the Krusty Krab security system twice.
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* In an episode of ''[[The Venture Bros]]'' Brock Samson douses a henchman in gasoline and sets him on fire with a lit cigarette, he then puts him out by punching him.
** Used in another episode where The Incredible Mr. Brisby (a [[Walt Disney]] [[Expy]]) monologues a little too close to the fireplace. Due to his being in a wheelchair, his legs catch on fire and he screams "I've come aflame again!" as Ling-Ling, his "companda", swats at him and stomps the fire out.
* In the ''[[Family Guy]]'' episode "Patriot Games" during Stewie's torture of Brian for not paying him he lights Brian on fire with a flamethrower.
* This has happened to the title character of ''[[Dexter's Laboratory]]'' a number of times.
* Self-inflicted on an episode of [[Sealab 2021]]. The crew are camping in the woods, only to discover it full of "Tree-snakes." They realize the snakes are repelled by the light, so they don't come near the campfire. [[Too Dumb to Live|Stormy]] at once proclaims, "So if we lite ''ourselves'' on fire, we can go anywhere!" before dousing himself in gasoline and striking a match.
* Humorously and accidentally averted in an episode of ''[[The Smurfs]]'', when Clumsy splashes water on Papa Smurf and is thanked by him for putting out his beard.
* In ''[[Futurama]]'', one episode had Bender (a ''robot'') on fire, with no explanation whatsoever. After a moment, several members of the crew put him out, [[
== Real Life ==
=== Self-Immolation as Protest ===
* Perhaps the most famous was [[wikipedia:
* Richard Pryor set himself on fire while freebasing and literally did run down the street while ablaze in 1980. In his next big special, he [[Take That Us|made jokes about it]].▼
* Has happened more than once in [[Formula One]] and other racing sports. Some fuel sprinkles here, then it catched heat, and BOOM. Jos Verstappen's case is the most recent, but Niki Lauda and ''specially'' [[Tear Jerker|poor Riccardo Paletti]] take the cake.▼
** The worst is probably that the fire burns invisible. In other words you are on fire and no one notices it to come and help you because they don't know you are on fire.▼
* The Tunisian ("Jasmine") Revolution of 2010-11 was started when a young man, Mohammed Bouazizi, [[Kill It with Fire|attempted suicide by fire]] as a protest against bad conditions in the country (he died later in the hospital). Besides a full-blown revolution in Tunisia, Bouazizi's actions have inspired four copycats in Egypt, where the Mubarak regime fell one month after Bouazizi's death. Other Middle Eastern nations - Jordan, Syria, Algeria, Libya, Bahrain, and Iran - are undergoing mass protests in response to what happened in Tunisia and Egypt.
** The protests in Libya developed into a full-blown revolution, which, as of this writing,{{when}} is close to overthrowing the Libyan government. Given its efficacy in Vietnam in the 60s, and the fact that it resulted in regime change in three countries this year, this makes the present trope seem a very effective form of protest.
** At least one video has emerged of protestors accidentally setting themselves ablaze with poor Molotov throws.
* Actually happened in the Vietnam era in the USA. [[wikipedia:Norman Morrison|Norman Morrison]], a Quaker protester of the war, set himself on fire outside the Pentagon in 1965.
* Self-immolation also happened in protests against the Chinese government's suppression of Falun Gong.
* Several people committed a suicide by self-immolation as a protest against Soviet occupation of Czechoslovakia: [[wikipedia:Ryszard Siwiec|Ryszard Siwiec]], [[wikipedia:Jan Palach|Jan Palach]], [[wikipedia:Jan
=== Other Cases ===
▲* [[Richard Pryor]] set himself on fire while freebasing and literally did run down the street while ablaze in 1980. In his next big special, he [[Take That Us|made jokes about it]].
▲* Has happened more than once in [[Formula One]] and other racing sports. Some fuel sprinkles here, then it catched heat, and BOOM. Jos Verstappen's case is the most recent,{{when}} but Niki Lauda and ''specially'' [[Tear Jerker|poor Riccardo Paletti]] take the cake.
▲** The worst is probably that the fire burns invisible. In other words you are on fire and no one notices it to come and help you because they don't know you are on fire.
{{reflist}}
[[Category:Man on Fire]]
[[Category:This Index Is On Fire]]
[[Category:Action Adventure Tropes]]
[[Category:Spectacle]]
▲[[Category:Man on Fire]]
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