View source for Spontaneous Human Combustion

{{trope}}
{{quote|''"You know, dozens of people spontaneously combust each year. It's just not really widely reported."''|'''David St. Hubbins''', ''[[This Is Spinal Tap]]''}}

A person’s body inexplicably catches fire or explodes without the aid of any external ignition sources. There's often no warning and not much in the way of an explanation.

A classic [[Urban Legends|Urban Legend]], hundreds of [[But It Really Happened!|allegedly true]] accounts of this phenomenon have been reported for over centuries, the oldest known stories dating from as far back as the [[Older Than Steam|the mid 1600's]], and thanks to the aura of mystery and strangeness surrounding these incidents, [[Spontaneous Human Combustion]] is an anomaly that some can’t help but try and find a valid explanation for.

As such, works of fiction tend to explore this subject in a few ways. Comedic works, more often than not, tend to let such occurrences happen without a clear explanation of how it happened being given. On the other hand, more serious stories--especially [[Speculative Fiction]] works or strange tales about the paranormal--may reveal some kind of explanation and may even reveal an external cause (likely one that is pseudoscientific and even more bizarre than [[Spontaneous Human Combustion]] already is on its own--possibly involving anything from aliens or ghosts causing it, an uncontrolled [[Pyrokinesis|Pyrokinetic]] ability, or something even weirder).

See Also: [[Made of Explodium]], [[Man On Fire]].

Not to be confused with [[Wreathed in Flames]].

Not actually the [[Inverted Trope|Inverse]] of the trope [[External Combustion]].

{{deathtrope}}

{{examples}}
== [[Anime]] and [[Manga]] ==
* In the original ''[[X 1999]]'' manga, Kamui's mom Tohru spontaneously combusted in the [[Backstory]]. The reason for this, however, was made pretty clear: She made herself a shadow sacrifice of the entire planet Earth and, by burning to death, delayed its destruction by [[Global Warming]]. [[It Makes Sense in Context]].
** In [[The Movie]], Tohru is seen bursting in flames in Kamui's dream at the beginning. We don't know if she truly died like that, however.
* ''[[Rurouni Kenshin]]'' villain Makoto Shishio meets his end this way. The story indicates that after being badly burned, he lost all of his sweat glands and can only stay in the sun for limited periods. The guy also has a [[Flaming Sword]] supposedly powered by the fat of people he's killed, which probably contributed to his end. While that detail is also totally pseudoscience, if you go with the assumption that spontaneous human combustion is possible, it's not ''that'' hard to believe it would happen to a guy wrapped in bandages covered in oil.
* In ''[[Hell Teacher Nube]]'', a few documented cases of people just beginning to develop [[Kill It With Fire|pyrokinesis]] end up [[Superpower Meltdown|consuming the person]] instead, because [[Power Incontinence|they have failed to develop]] the [[Required Secondary Powers]] to control their own flame. When Izuna suddenly starts to burst into flame at random times ([[Clothing Damage|reducing her clothes to ash]], but [[Naked People Are Funny|leaving her otherwise unharmed]]) Nube worries that she could lose control and ignite herself.  {{spoiler|She manages to control these abilities at the last moment.}}
* In ''[[Mawaru Penguindrum (Anime)|Mawaru Penguindrum]]'', this is what happens to {{spoiler|Momoka after she changes Yuri's fate so Yuri can escape from her [[Abusive Parents|abusive father]]. In a subversion she actually ''survives'' the incident, though she's left with serious wounds and has to be hospitalized.}}

== [[Comic Books]] ==
* A ''[[Judge Dredd]]'' story centered around a person who compulsively always had to one-up anyone around him who got more attention than him. One such person who got more attention than him was someone who spontaneously burst into flames at a dinner party, "and everyone figured that was about the coolest thing ever." The jealous main character of the piece did eventually do one better and went out with a nuclear bang... but he had to expose himself to radiation and get struck by lightning to do it after vain attempts to will himself to explode were complete failures.
* In the ''[[Strikeforce Morituri]]'' "Electric Undertow" limited series, this happens to random people due to {{spoiler|1=psychic harvesting by the alien VXX199.}}
* In the final issue of ''[[Nth Man the Ultimate Ninja (Comic Book)|Nth Man the Ultimate Ninja]]'', a character begins to combust soon after she arrives in the past. This is because [[Never the Selves Shall Meet|she's being born at the same moment, and cannot exist in two places simultaneously.]]

== [[Film]] ==
* Multiple drummers in the titular band from ''[[This Is Spinal Tap]]'' die in such a fashion.
* Ambassador Standish in ''[[Sherlock Holmes (Film)|Sherlock Holmes]]'' bursts into flames when he attempts to shoot Lord Blackwood.  {{spoiler|This is intended to be taken as a magical occurrence, displaying the dark powers Blackwood has protecting him from those who oppose him, but in the end a clear, external cause is revealed by Holmes that has nothing at all to do with magic.}}
* Shown in the horror film ''Spontaneous Combustion'', naturally. A couple who were involved in an atomic weapons spontaneously bust into flames shortly after the birth of their son. When their son grows up, he discovers a pyrokinetic ability and begins setting people on fire when he gets angry.
* In ''[[Bowfinger]]'', spontaneous combustion is mentioned by Kit to be one of his biggest fears, along with aliens and a giant foot trying to squash him.

== [[Literature]] ==
* Krook in [[Charles Dickens (Creator)|Charles Dickens]]’ ''[[Bleak House]]'' dies like this and is '''possibly''' the [[Ur Example]] of this trope appearing in fiction, though "true stories" were already said to have existed at the time, and Dickens was known to have strongly believed that this was possible.
* The ''[[Doctor Who (TV)|Doctor Who]]'' [[Virgin New Adventures]] novel ''All-Consuming Fire'' features what appears to be a case of spontaneous human combustion, but ultimately turns out to have been murder-by-pyrokinesis.
* [[Tim Powers]]' novel ''Expiration Date'' reveals that ghosts sometimes burst into flames if they are suddenly alarmed. From this, it's suggested that human combustion happens when a person dies, but their ghost doesn't immediately notice and keeps walking around in their body for a while before suffering some kind of shock (such as, often, the shocking realization that they've been dead for a while and hadn't noticed).
* The novel ''Fire Pattern'' by Bob Shaw is all about this: it turns out that combustion is the result of failed attempts by a dying alien species to [[Grand Theft Me|implant their minds]] into humans.
* Some "Drummers" in [[Neal Stephenson]]'s ''[[The Diamond Age]]'' end up like this  {{spoiler|due to the heat generated by extensive computation done by nanosites in their bloodstreams}}. A major character almost suffers from this fate near the end of the book only to be saved in the last minute.
* In ''[[The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel]]'', the phenomenon is explained as the result of one over-exerting his/her aura.
* Reports of people bursting into flames circulate in a couple of the ''[[Garrett PI]]'' novels, as a rumor going around the city. Garrett finally looks into the matter in ''Whispering Nickel Idols'', and learns that  {{spoiler|Chodo Contague triggered some of them with the help of some pyrogenic rocks planted by his lawyer}}. Saucerhead also tracks down some cases that turn out to be ordinary accidental fires, under circumstances very similar to the [[Real Life]] mishaps that inspired the [[Spontaneous Human Combustion]] [[Urban Legend]].
* [[Conversational Troping]] in ''[[Johnny Maxwell Trilogy|Johnny And The Bomb]]''; it's mentioned that Johnny once read about the phenomenon and [[Paranoia Fuel|slept with a bucket of water by his bed for weeks]].
* In Tolkien's ''[[The Silmarillion]]'', Feanor's spirit is so strong that when he dies, his corpse bursts into flames as it leaves his body.
* ''[[Written In Bone]]'' features a body for which this is considered. Then Dr Hunter explains how spontaneous combustion is not all that spontaneous.

== [[Live Action TV]] ==
* ''[[Fringe]]'':
** A Season One episode explored this. People who were used in experiments involving Pyrokinesis would burst into flames and explode if they couldn't focus their attention on other things around them when their power builds up inside of them.
** Later, in Season Four, a fringe incident is initially believed to involve several people spontaneously combusting after their bodies exerted too much energy (with others in the affected area needing to stand perfectly still to avoid meeting the same fate), but it is revealed to have been spurned by nanotechnology entering the affected persons' bloodstream.
* [[The X-Files]] suggested this as an explanation in the first-season episode "Fire," although there turns out to be an external cause. Also suggested as an explanation in "Soft Light" and "Trevor," both of which turn out to be something weirder.
** The "Trevor" reference to this trope is funny, since it is [[Agent Scully|Scully]] that offers it as an initial cause:
{{quote| '''Scully:''' Spontaneous human combustion.<br />
'''Mulder:''' [grinning] Scully!<br />
'''Scully:''' Well, isn't that where you were going with this?<br />
'''Mulder:''' "Dear Diary, today my heart leapt when [[Agent Scully]] [[Mulder Moment|suggested spontaneous human combustion]]."<br />
'''Scully:''' Mulder, there are one or two somewhat well-documented cases.<br />
'''[Mulder nods, grinning]'''<br />
'''Scully:''' Mulder, shut up. }}
* In the ''[[Bones]]'' episode "The Foot in the Foreclosure" they find ashes of a pair of lovers; Booth suspects SHC but Brennan says it's just an Urban Legend.
* An episode of ''[[Picket Fences]]'' wrote the depressed, alcoholic mayor out of the plot by having him spontaneously combust within his own house. He already figured his political career was over, apparently making him a literal burnout was the final blow to the character.
* One episode of ''[[Dead Like Me]]'' sees an untalented stand-up comedian, literally, die on stage by inexplicably exploding after one of his bad jokes.
* In ''[[Garth Marenghi's Darkplace (TV)|Garth Marenghi's Darkplace]]'', Rick Dagless's old college buddy spontaneously explodes (though his head survives long enough to ask Rick to finish him off); in the commentary, Dean Learner mentions that while filming the scene it was clear to everyone that "someone close to Garth had exploded" in real life.
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FN5rqMxmmpM Mrs. Niggerbaiter] in ''[[Monty Python's Flying Circus]]''.
{{quote|  ''"It's funny, isn't it, how... how your best friend can just... blow up like that. I mean, you wouldn't think it was medically possible, would you?"''}}
* In one of the first episodes of ''[[Buffy the Vampire Slayer]]'', Giles initially attributes this as the cause for a cheerleader bursting into flames; it's later revealed to have been caused by a witch's spell.
** In the [[Musical Episode]], this is a side-effect of [[Fan Nickname|Sweet]]'s power.
{{quote| '''Sweet:''' ''[[Villain Song|All those hearts lay open, that must sting]] / [[Bread, Eggs, Milk, Squick|Plus some customers just start combusting]]!''}}
* ''[[CSI]]'' had an episode with a subplot dedicated to SHC. After finding a charred corpse with all the hallmarks of [[Real Life]] SHC cases, the characters conducted an experiment: They wrapped a pig's corpse in the woman's clothing, put the corpse on an identical lounger to the victim, doused the pig with liquor, and lit it up, thereby replicating the scene that they found. Grissom, who already knew about [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wick_effect the Wick Effect], congratulated the experimenters on a successful experiment, and then told them that this was coming out of their paycheck since it was unnecessary.
* On ''The Sean Cullen Show'', an episode revolved around a talisman which granted Sean's every wish in exchange for famous figure skaters spontaneously combusting.
* [[Played for Laughs]] (of course) on [[The Muppet Show]] in a news segment:
{{quote|  '''Reporter''': "Reports are coming in from all over that television news reporters are blowing up! These unlikely rumors have--" '''Boom!'''}}

== [[Music]] ==
* The a capella group [http://www.bobs.com The Bobs] have a song about this, called "Spontaneous Human Combustion.”
* This is the subject of the [[Incubus (Music)|Incubus]] song "Pardon Me."
* [[They Might Be Giants]]' song "The Statue Got Me High" makes reference to spontaneous human combustion supernaturally induced by a humanoid statue.

== [[Video Games]] ==
* In ''[[Guitar Hero|Guitar Hero II]]'', the drummer is shown exploding and leaving behind a puff of smoke after performances of "Tonight I’m Gonna Rock You Tonight" as a [[Shout Out]] to the band that wrote the song, [[Spinal Tap]].
* This is a pretty common occurrence in ''[[Parasite Eve]]''. Eve does this by making the mitochondria of a victim generate an energy over-charge, which causes the body of a victim to burst into flames. Using this, she massacres the cast, staff and most of the audience of an opera, the staff at the Central Park Zoo, the skeleton crew at a hospital, numerous NYPD officers and Aya's partner. Twice. She even manages to use it as a means to start a carriage, by ''setting the horses on fire''. In fact, one of the central plot elements is the fact that Aya's own mutated mitochondria prevent her from going up like a Roman candle whenever she gets within a thousand feet of Eve, which makes her the only one able to defeat her.

== [[Web Comics]] ==
* Unexpectedly and unceremoniously happens to {{spoiler|Tory}} near the beginning of ''Not Included'', leaving behind a pair of [[Smoldering Shoes]] and a message from the narrator, "And then {{spoiler|Tory}} burst into flames and died."
* The world of ''[[Girl Genius (Webcomic)|Girl Genius]]'' has a disease (probably engineered by some [[Mad Scientist]]), "[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20090810 Hogfarb's resplendent immolation]", that causes this effect. The body is filled with an incendiary substance, and in the end the victim will "go up like a torch".

== [[Web Original]] ==
* The [[SCP Foundation (Wiki)|SCP Foundation]] describes [http://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-081 SCP-081] as a virus that causes spontaneous combustion.
* College Humor's article [http://www.collegehumor.com/article:1813069 "Things to Do Before Dying in a Freak Accident"] ends with the main character of the piece suddenly blowing up.
* Caitlin Evans dies this way in ''[[Survival of the Fittest]]'' v2, abruptly exploding due to a chemical reaction in her digestive tract.

== [[Western Animation]] ==
* In one episode of ''[[South Park]]'' Kenny is shown dying via Spontaneous Combustion; it’s later explained that Kenny had a new girlfriend and was holding in all his farts. Other South Park citizens get killed the same way.
* In ''[[Celebrity Deathmatch (Animation)|Celebrity Deathmatch]]'', it appears that referee Mills Lane is about to suffer from this, but it turns out it's just gas. Later, interviewer Stacy Cornbred starts showing signs of it, and Nick Diamond and Johnny Gomez think it's just gas... until she suddenly explodes.
* [[Played for Laughs]] in a ''[[Family Guy]]'' [[Cutaway Gag]] in the episode "A Fish Out of Water," when Stewie imagines how his family would look if they were more cultured. Cue the Griffin men sitting in the living room wearing formal clothes, drinking wine, talking with British accents... [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PAMfCG6nn1w and Peter spontaneously bursting into flames.]
* In one episode of ''[[The Simpsons (Animation)|The Simpsons]]'', Mr. Burns claims one of his siblings died this way, although he was probably murdered.

{{reflist}}
[[Category:Death Tropes]]
[[Category:Older Than Steam]]
[[Category:Index of Exact Trope Titles]]
[[Category:This Index Is On Fire]]
[[Category:Speculative Fiction Tropes]]
[[Category:Stuff Blowing Up]]
[[Category:Spontaneous Human Combustion]]