Nightmare Sequence: Difference between revisions

{{trope}}

 

{{quote|'' I get up put on the light, dreading the oncoming night''

 

Some dreams are heart-warming visions of hope, filled with cute and cuddly creatures, so delightful they make you want to fall asleep right away—some dreams, but not all.

 

See also [[Bad Dreams]].

{{examples}}

== Anime and Manga ==

* Tetsuo's series of nightmares and hallucinations in ''[[Akira]]''. These dreams vary from giant stuffed animals attacking him, to visions of his horrifying future, to having his intestines spill out of him from simply falling. I don't even want to mention the [[Body Horror|further horrors]] that this poor kid has to go through during the story (even though he does partially deserve it).

* Pretty much the entire premise of ''[[Nightmare Inspector]]'' is Hiruko the Baku's entering into people's nightmares with them in order to figure out what they mean.

* Happens several times in ''[[Chrono Crusade]]''. Chrono has a nightmare where he's surrounded by dead bodies as Aion tempts him back to his side (hinting at his backstory). Rosette has a nightmare at the start of the [[Darkest Hour]] that serves to recap some of the trauma she's been through as well as gives a clear idea of her psychological state. And in an early episode of the anime, Rosette has a nightmare that's half flashback, half nightmare about her brother's kidnapping by the [[Big Bad]].

 

== Comic Books ==

* Yorick in ''[[Y: The Last Man]]'' suffers from constant nightmares, usually involving his girlfriend Beth. So much so that when Yorick finally does meet her his first reaction is to storm off in the belief that he's just having another cruel dream.

* In [[Transmetropolitan]], Spider Jerusalem has one after he stuffs himself with drugs (again) when he realizes he has become a Japanese-like anime, a cheesy live action TV series and a [[Rule 34|porn movie]]. Sadly, he has a fairly good dream at the beginning.

 

== Film ==

* ''[[An American Werewolf in London]]'':

** There's one upsetting nightmare scene in which the protagonist sees his family shot in their home by what can only be described as [[Ninja Pirate Zombie Robot|Zombie Werewolf Nazi Goblins]]. The fact that ''[[The Muppets]]'' is playing on the television doesn't help. Quite possibly one of the most horrifying nightmares in all of film.

* In ''[[Herbie Rides Again]]'', [[Corrupt Corporate Executive]] Alonzo Hawk is tormented in his dreams by evil Volkswagen Beetles after Herbie thwarts his evil schemes.

* The dream sequence the main character in ''[[Son of the Mask]]'' has. His wife being pregnant and giving birth... only to reveal that she is pregnant with many, many, ''many'' babies, all squirming and crying with fanged mouths.

* ''[[Alice in Wonderland]],'' of course. The original book is a single extended dream sequence, and the various film versions do not skimp on the horror.

** The original ''[[Alice in Wonderland]]'' might or might not count, but ''The Nursery Alice'' most assuredly does. The text is the classic Carroll story, but the illustrations were apparently created by a morbid impressionist while on a bad acid trip.

** Similarly, the scene where the Duchess' baby transforms from a wailing human child to a writhing, screaming piglet.

** And then there's the Jabberwock scene, which seems to be cruelly engineered to traumatize children. [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g7dxhbHAGRE Watch if you dare]. {{spoiler|It looks as though Alice has made her way home, but she's actually still stuck in the world Through the Looking Glass. She can see her parents on the other side of the mirror and cries for their attention, but her mom and dad can't hear or see her and she's left to wander the limbo-like mirror room. She comes upon the ''Jabberwocky'' book and starts to read it -- and then the monster (which could have been co-designed by H.R. Giger and Wayne D. Barlowe) comes charging into the room to eat her and then... that's the cliffhanger ending of the first episode of the two-part special!}}

*** In the original publishing, an illustration of the Jabberwock was intended to be the frontispiece, but was deemed too fearsome.

** How can one babble about Alice in Wonderland being nightmare fuel without including the [[American McGee's Alice|American McGee]] version? She is literally an asylum patient in the game {{spoiler|After her parents burned alive in a house fire!}} and then there's the whole demon mode thing...*Shudders*

* ''[[Narnia|The Voyage of the Dawn Treader]]'' The island where dreams come true. When the sailor joke about what they would find, the man who had been trapped there screams that it's not daydreams, it's ''[[Real Dreams Are Weirder|dreams]]''. Which inspires a proper panic in them. Even after their escape, the man they rescued is [[Mind Rape|basically in a state of collapse from the horror]].

** Apparently, everyone saw different things, based on nightmares they'd had. Basically like a boggart from ''[[Harry Potter]]'', except it's a whole island.

* In the [[Star Wars Expanded Universe]] novel ''Death Star'', a trooper transferred to the titled battle station starts having nightmares, some of them about his own death. They make it hard to sleep. Medical staff is short, so a surgeon reluctantly looks him over, takes his blood, and gives him medication. Then the Death Star fires on a prison planet, the trooper wakes up screaming, and his dreams get exponentially worse. The surgeon tells him that it turns out he's Force-Sensitive. {{spoiler|His dreams come true.}}

* In ''[[Dragonlance|Dragons of Winter Night]]'', the protagonists suffer through a particularly horrific nightmare.

* The authors of ''[[Warrior Cats]]'' seem to like horrific blood filled nightmares [[Discredited Trope|considering how many there have been in the books]]. Some even feature the characters ''drowning in blood''.

* Constantly used in the ''[[Goosebumps]]'' books, ''I Live In Your Basement!'' having the most by far.

 

* The ''Superhuman Samurai Syber-Squad'' episode "To Sleep, Perchance to Scream" is centered around nightmares.

* Most of the ''[[Dollhouse]]'' episode "The Attic" is not just a nightmare sequence, but an entire, parallel nightmare world in which inmates' fears can kill them not only in the dream sphere, but also in real life.

** Frasier has two nightmares: a creepy one where he dreams that he killed Niles and married Daphne, while keeping Niles's ashes in a tin next to the coffee; and a panick-stricken one where his radio booth fills up with dozens of telephones, only one of which is ringing, which he frantically tries to find and answer while Roz's booth morphs into a car dashboard and she yells that if he doesn't find the right telephone in five seconds, [[Thelma and Louise|she's going to drive them off a cliff.]]

* Played with on ''[[The Daily Show]]'' for Hallowe'en 2001. [[Steve Carell]], reporting on a haunted house, complains that it isn't scary enough. A dream sequence follows involving his high school gym coach, [[Stephen Colbert]] as the show's new host, and clips from ''Corky Romano''. He wakes up screaming - next to Jon Stewart. They ''both'' scream. {{spoiler|But only because they weren't expecting to see a camera in their bedroom.}}

{{quote|"Hang on a second, if we go on like this you're going to turn into an Alsatian again."}}

* ''[[Lost]]'' uses this in many an episode.

* ''[[Big Bad Beetleborgs]]'' had an episode centered around this trope, in the episode "Booger Man" there was a monster called Booger Man (also known as Booger) who was a boogeyman that came to Hillhurst and gave the house monsters nightmares. Flabber has a nightmare involving the ghost of Edgar Allen Poe. At the end they send him over to the Crustaceons lair to give Les Fortunes nightmares.

* Played for laughs in the ''[[3rd Rock from the Sun]]'' episode "A Nightmare on Dick Street", since the aliens never had dreams before.

 

== Music ==

* The video for [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YTqdPJLTdOk "Easy" by Barenaked Ladies] has little to do with the song itself, and a lot more to do with bloodstained warped-fairytale imagery. The crows don't help.

* ''All'' videos by [http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=tool&search_type=&aq=f Tool.]

* [[Iron Maiden]] has many (mostly by Steve Harris, who must sleep horribly), most notably "Infinite Dreams" and "Dream of Mirrors". Also, "The Number of the Beast" was based on both ''[[The Omen]] II'' and a nightmare of Harris.

 

== Video Games ==

* ''[[Dark Messiah of Might and Magic|Dark Messiah]]'' has a few nightmare cutscenes, which are made worse by the fact that they're in '''first person''' like the rest of the game. The worst part of those dreams was {{spoiler|they turn out to be the truth, and the thing you thought was real was the ACTUAL dream.}}

* Except for the one with Zelda, any dream, hallucination, transformation sequence, flashback, abstract idea, or dizzy state in ''[[The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask|The Legend of Zelda Majoras Mask]]'' is overflowing with nightmarish elements.

* Entering a little girl's dreams in ''[[Yume Nikki]]''? That can't possibly be so-OHMYGODWHATTHEHELLWASTHAT!? Madotsuki, you have problems.

* In a similar vein as the above, ''[[LSD Dream Emulator]]'' is just as disturbing.

* ''[[The Elder Scrolls Four|Elder Scrolls: Oblivion]]'' has not only one, but TWO quests in which the PC actively participates in an NPC's nightmare. {{spoiler|1) In "Through a Nightmare, Darkly", the PC uses a magical amulet to enter the nightmare world of a mage in order to rescue him. In his or her skivvies, no less. 2) Vaermina's quest "Arkved's Tower" sends the PC into a nightmarish world of burning corpses, molten lava, zombie-o-rama, only to find that the entire quest is the never-ending nightmare of the titular wizard-in-question, the result of him having stolen an artifact from Vaermina.}}

* ''[[Fable]] 2'' has a sequence in which {{spoiler|after you are shot by Lucien, you enter [[Lotus Eater Machine|a dreamlike state where Rose and your parents are still alive]], and live on a peaceful farm. At first, this is very pleasant, until nighttime. You wake up to the sound of a music box and leave the farm, but your sister follows. If you head down a path beyond a now-opened gate, your sister begs you not to leave and eventually vanishes with a desperate [[Big No]], and the area outside turns out to be full of fire and dead bodies, all while [[Soundtrack Dissonance|a music box is playing in the background]].}}

* Vincent's nightmares in ''[[Catherine]]''. He has to make his way up staircases made of blocks to reach the top. If he fails (falling off the stage, crushed by falling blocks, caught in traps or being killed by the weird creatures that pursue him), then [[Your Mind Makes It Real|he dies in real life]].

* Gabriel's recurrent nightmare is a very important plot point in the first game, ''[[Gabriel Knight|Sins of the Fathers]]''. {{spoiler|It is actually tied to Gunter's last moments, and has been tormenting his descendants for 300 years.}}

** In the first generation, a lot of [[Foreshadowing]] is involved, such as hinting that {{spoiler|the Point Man shares a bond with Alma, since, as Paxton Fettel says "She cannot see into your mind, but you can see into hers"}} or that {{spoiler|lieutenant Chen}} will be killed by a monster in ''Perseus Mandate''.

** The second game uses these as a sign that {{spoiler|Alma is trying to approach Becket sexually}}.

* In the same vein of the series above, ''[[Nightmare House]] 2'' has several of these. {{spoiler|It's actually Romero trying to mess with your head by using his mind control Core.}}

* A few in ''[[Mass Effect 3]]'' as Shepard goes through a serious case of [[Survivor Guilt]] and wonders why s/he is still alive and so many of his/her friends, loved ones, and innocent people are dead.

 

== [[Web Comics]] ==

* No one seems to sleep that well in ''[[Slightly Damned]]'', as a significant portion of the characters get either nightmares or [[Recurring Dreams]].

* In the [[Ciem Webcomic Series]], Candi is trying to set a good example by not giving in to the family curse [[All Women Are Lustful|like her sisters did]]. This results in her suffering gargantuan levels of [[Unresolved Sexual Tension]] between herself and Denny. She has a dream that begins subtly enough one night, [[Erotic Dream|with her and Denny giving in]]. [[Space Whale Aesop|Then zombies attack]]! She awakes to save Denny from a ''Meethlite'' attack! They finally elope, because they're tired of waiting for a decent time to get their families together. [[Can't Have Sex Ever|Only to discover]] that Candi being pregnant means her powers don't work, which leads to {{spoiler|Denny's neck being crushed by Musaran's foot}} and to [[Second Law of Metafictional Thermodynamics|Candi herself being nearly burned alive]]—arguably a fate worse than zombies!

** But [[Video Game Cruelty Potential|fun to screen capture]].

** In the sequel, it's lampshaded. Her previous UST for Denny combines with her actual sense of guilt for having given in with Donte to create ''titanic'' levels of shame that harass her in her sleep! [[Stealth Pun|So where does she end up]]? [[Don't Explain the Joke|Aboard the]] ''Titanic'', [[Captain Obvious|of course]]. Except the only things awaiting her on her nightmare's version are the ghosts of Gunner and Skellig Soorfelt (who died in the first story) as well as Denny and an [[Soap Opera Rapid Aging Syndrome|aged-up]] [[Enfante Terrible|Angie]]. [[Freud Was Right|And an unopened box of condoms]].

 

== [[Web Original]] ==

{{quote|'''Phantom''': ''Papa's '''blood''' is delicious, Papa's '''blood''' is pure, it is essence and we are bathe[d] in bless. So drink... and be happy. After all. You killed him.''}}

* The Phase novels from the ''[[Whateley Universe]]''. Phase has nasty nightmares really often, sometimes several in one night. and given that Phase has suffered [[Transformation Trauma]] for real, and has fought an unkillable [[Eldritch Abomination]], and has been tortured by a [[Mad Scientist]], he has ''horrific'' nightmares.

 

== Western Animation ==

{{quote|"I'm not Stu! HUHAHAHAHAHAHA!"}}

* ''A Goofy Movie'' has a bit at the beginning where Max has a nightmare in which he's in an idyllic scene with the girl of his dreams, and suddenly turns into a copy of his dad.

* ''[[The Brave Little Toaster]]'' featured [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YEdZh8a4ZvE a nightmare sequence] where the titular Toaster is menaced by a horrifying [[Monster Clown]] in a fireman outfit, then [[Electrified Bathtub|falls to his doom into a bathtub]].

* In the animated film ''[[Anastasia]]'', Anya/Anastasia the title heroine has a nightmare during the boat scenes at stormy night while things start off with her family swimming around happily in the water beckoning her to join them, they then suddenly turn into the bat-like demon minions of undead sorcerer Rasputin. It's made even more horrible by the fact that Anya is a sleepwalker, so when she watches her family's swimming from a cliff she's actually standing at the railing of the deck, and the demons are trying to make her fall into a certain death.

* ''[[Nightmare Ned]]''. The ''entire show'' is a string of nightmare sequences inflicted upon poor Ned every time he slept, and every episode ends with him feeling terrified and paranoid. Oh, and it's a [[Disney]] show. No lie.

** ''[[Nightmare Ned]]'' also had a PC game made by Disney Interactive. The entire game is one big nightmare sequence, and to get the good ending you have to solve puzzles and reveal the shadowy monsters that plague Ned's dreams.

* An episode of ''[[Jimmy Two-Shoes]]'' has [[Satan|Lucius]] suffering from these after Jimmy casually says [[You Owe Me]]. Even though Jimmy would probably never collect, he has nightmare about having to do degrading things for him.

* The opening scene of the ''[[Adventures of the Galaxy Rangers|Galaxy Rangers]]'' episode "Psychocrypt." Made worse when you realize that it ''isn't'' a nightmare, but a form of [[Mind Rape]] the Queen is using on Zachary ''and'' his wife...

 

{{reflist}}

[[Category:Dream Tropes]]