Automoderated users, Autopatrolled users, Bureaucrats, Comment administrators, Confirmed users, Forum administrators, Interface administrators, Moderators, Rollbackers, Administrators
116,199
edits
Violence Is the Only Option: Difference between revisions
m
copyedits
m (update links) |
Looney Toons (talk | contribs) m (copyedits) |
||
| (17 intermediate revisions by 6 users not shown) | |||
Line 1:
{{trope}}
[[File:SwordsReplaceFeelings.jpg|frame]]
{{quote|'''Maxim #6:''' If violence wasn't your last resort, you failed to resort to enough of it.
|''[[Schlock Mercenary|The Seventy Maxims of Maximally Effective Mercenaries]]''}}
Fights are dramatic. There's no question about that. That's why most action-based series will [[Cutting the Knot|inevitably end with a fight.]] After all, what fun is it if [[The Hero]] and the [[Big Bad]] resolve their differences with an [[Talking the Monster to Death|armistice, a few kind words and a handshake]]? Even the most idealistic of [[The Messiah|messiahs]] will have to [[Defeat Means Friendship|beat the evil out of them]] first before they can [[Save the Villain]].
Line 10 ⟶ 12:
In [[Video Games]], this often becomes [[Stupidity Is the Only Option]] as the villain goes "Oh, let's try diplomacy, why don't you come to the heart of our kingdom surrounded by our armed guards and we'll talk! Be sure not to bring weapons."
In most [[Tabletop RPG
Contrast [[To Win Without Fighting]], [[Talking the Monster to Death]] and [[Sheathe Your Sword]], and compare [[Sedgwick Speech]], [[RPGs Equal Combat]].
{{examples}}
== Anime and Manga ==
* Most ''[[Shonen Jump]]'' series have this as the only real and sensible option to most every problem.
* For ''[[Lyrical Nanoha|Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha]]'', the solution to any problem is to blast whatever-it-is in the face with powerful magic attacks. Want to bring your opponent to the light? [[Defeat Means Friendship|Trounce her and make friends!]] {{spoiler|Trapped in a [[Lotus Eater Machine]]}}? Manifest a huge beam sword and blow {{spoiler|the illusion}} away! {{spoiler|Need to save someone who's possessed by an evil book}}? Go all out and it'll work itself out. Then blow up {{spoiler|the book}}. {{spoiler|Is your adoptive daughter magically powered up, desperately confused and on a rampage}}? Eh, blast her. Your weapon [[Stun Guns|can't kill anyone anyway]]. This is actually Nanoha's way of achieving a peaceful solution: Blow the hell out of the enemy so they're in no condition to do anything ''but'' [[Warrior Therapist|talk it out]].
Line 26:
* Deconstructed in the first season of ''[[Mobile Suit Gundam 00]]'' where the Celestial Being seems to embrace this trope since they realized that the endless conflicts throughout the history needs to be forcibly eradicated with '''their own weapons'''.
==
* Subverted in an early storyline of ''[[The Authority]]'' comic: after confronting the [[Mad Scientist]] who devasted several major cities with his army of supers, the Authority reach a compromise with him and enlist him in the reconstruction effort (the reader of course never sees him again). Supposedly a metaphor for how Western democracies cut deals with vicious third world dictators.
* [[The Punisher]], violence is the only way he knows how to solve anything. Of course, the main problem he's usually trying to solve is "too many criminals are still sucking oxygen".
* Over and over again in ''[[World War Hulk]]''. Absolutely nothing deters Hulk from his rampage except overwhelming force. The characters who look for some nonviolent solution and/or appeal to [[The Power of Friendship]] get nowhere and suffer just as much as the ones who go on the offensive from the very beginning.
* A common thing in the Brazilian comic ''[[Monica's Gang]]'' (bordering [[Boring Invincible Hero]]) is basically every villain being defeated by the protagonist - specifically, her beating him to pulp, usually with [[Improbable Weapon User|her plush bunny]].
== Film ==
* Lampshaded and Subverted in ''[[Pirates of the Caribbean
▲* Lampshaded and Subverted in ''[[Pirates of the Caribbean]] On Stranger Tides'' when [[Chaotic Neutral|Jack]] [[The Trickster|Sparrow]] suggests to the crowd of pirates and marines to [[Pass the Popcorn|sit back and watch]] as Barbossa and [[Big Bad|Blackbeard]] duke it out, as they're the only ones who really want the other dead. Both captains then demand their crew fight it out.
* Used in most of the ''[[Star Trek]]'' movies, except I and IV.
** Parodied in the comedy song, ''Star Trekkin.''
Line 45 ⟶ 43:
** The very premise of the Clone Wars has the Senate voting to give the Chancellor "Emergency Powers" to declare war on the Separatists. There is no mention of attempts at diplomacy, and neither the Separatists nor the Republic seem to actually ''want'' anything other than to go to war.
*** That's because {{spoiler|[[The Man Behind the Man]] keeps fanning the flames of war.}}
* ''[[The War of the Worlds (novel)|The War of the Worlds]]'' (1953) film. Humans try twice to establish peaceful contact with the Martians: three men waving a white flag, and a priest carrying a Bible. They all end up the same way: reduced to dust by a Martian heat ray.
** One of the few things the film shares with the original story, as the first people to be killed by the Martians were a group of people attempting the same "peaceful contact" thing, only to receive a face full of [[Death Ray]].
* ''[[Mars Attacks
** During their initial landing, the Martians massacre most of the humans present to greet them.
** When they appear before the U.S. Congress "to apologize", they wipe out everyone present.
Line 55 ⟶ 53:
== Literature ==
* Grandly averted in [[Isaac Asimov]]'s ''[[Foundation]]'' series. Violence is the option only of the villains, who are usually incompetent, and are defeated by the non
▲* Grandly averted in [[Isaac Asimov]]'s ''[[Foundation]]'' series. Violence is the option only of the villains, who are usually incompetent, and are defeated by the non violent hero.
** Terminus Mayor Salvor Hardin is often quoted as saying "Violence is the last resort of the incompetent man." Needless to say ([[Could Say It, But...|so we say it anyway]]), the man was a [[Chessmaster]].
** Then played shockingly straight in a later story. {{spoiler|Bayta realizes who The Mule really was, and the only way to stop him was to kill a researcher before he revealed what he learned.}}
*** What's more, in retrospect for the entire series, that book's ending was almost a [[Shaggy Dog Story]]. The purposes the violence served were to keep information from the ''reader'', and to explore the puzzle of why somebody would rationally feel forced to commit the act. Given who was in the vicinity, and what they'd already have known, the act probably ''didn't'' solve anything in-universe.
* Subverted in ''[[Rainbow Six]]''. After three confrontations with terrorists that refuse to negotiate or surrender, resulting in a [[Kill'Em All]] for each group of baddies, the fourth one manages to end with some of them being talked into giving themselves up rather than having to be gunned down.
* The ''[[Vorkosigan Saga]]'': The Vor nobility were once so inclined toward feuding and vendetta that they had to be put down brutally. In the later, more mellow, time of Emperor Gregor's reign the Emperor who did that is still called "Dorca the Just" because it is generally accepted that he [[I Did What I Had to Do|did what he had to do.]] However the ferocity with which he did it is indicated by the nickname of his chief enforcer, Pierre La Saguinaire-or in English, "Bloody Peter."
== Live
* An example of "trick by the villains to lure the heroes into an ambush": [[Battlestar Galactica (1978 TV series)|The 1970s ''
▲* An example of "trick by the villains to lure the heroes into an ambush": The 1970s ''[[Battlestar Galactica Classic]]'' series. After a thousand year war, the 12 Colonies sent off their entire fleet of Battlestars to a diplomatic meeting with the Cylons, leaving the Colonies completely defenseless. The Council insisted that the fleet not prepare for combat in any way, leaving it defenseless as well. Naturally, the Cylons take advantage of this grotesque stupidity to wipe out both the Colonies and almost all of the Battlestars. It kind of makes you wonder how the Colonies survived the thousand year war.
* Memorably subverted in an episode of ''[[Star Trek: Voyager]]'', "Year of Hell". The two-parter starts with Voyager running into a [[Suicidal Overconfidence|suicidally overconfident]] alien ship which demands they turn around without any explanation. Voyager easily destroys the ship, and heads deeper into the territory to figure out what's going on. When the [[Reset Button]] is pressed at the end of the second part, the scenario plays out again- except this time the alien ship greets them pleasantly, warns them that a war is going on, gives them a map of the disputed territory and they leave on amicable terms. Considering how comparatively easy that was, it's a little strange why violence seems to be the first resort for most species in the Delta Quadrant.
* Goes without saying in [[Toku]], but special mention goes to ''[[Kamen Rider Faiz]]'', where any attempts to solve the conflict the protagonists have with each other must happen through a fight. Overlaps with [[Conflict Ball]].
Line 72 ⟶ 69:
* The original legend of [[King Arthur]] and Medred (commonly, ''Mordred'') at the ''[[wikipedia:Battle of camlann|Battle of Camlann]]'' involves Arthur's and Medred's armies poised on the field. At first, it seems that the two leaders will be able to negotiate a peaceful resolution... then an adder spooks a soldier on one side into drawing his sword to kill it; thus causing a chain reaction that leads to everyone on both sides drawing swords, and they end up going to war.
** In the "finalized" ''[[Le Morte d'Arthur|Le Morte Darthur]]'' of Sir Thomas Malory, the justification is that due to the mutual lack of trust, both Arthur and his son, Medred / Mordred,<ref>Modred, Medraut, [[I Have Many Names|Merdraut]]...</ref>
*** Bear in mind also the symbolic meaning of the serpent to the (almost invariably) Western, Christian reader of the original...
** This also occurs in "The Tale of King Arthur and Emperor Lucius", where one of Arthur's knights beheads a Roman knight during peace talks. And it was the Arthurian knight's fault in the first place.
Line 78 ⟶ 75:
== Tabletop Games ==
* To say that this trope generally applies in the ''[[Warhammer
** Special mention must be given to [[Our Orcs Are Different|da Orks]] however, an ''entire species'' that has this trope ''programmed into their very biology'', who solve everything via liberal use of [[More Dakka|dakka]] and/or choppa, and if it isn't solved, well, [[Blood Knight|that just means more fighting]]. WAAAGH!
** To elaborate even further, to Orks, violence isn't so much a way of settling differences (but that too) as it is a social skill. Someone giving you lip? Whack him in the head with the business end of a massive axe (he'll survive). Are you having a race? Consider shooting at the other contestants with whatever firearm you have at hand (they nearly always have one), it's pretty much considered polite (don't you dare hit their vehicle though, that's likely to make them go berserk - they're also likely to survive, regardless of what weapon you have "on hand"). Did a fellow ork make a stupid comment? ''Crush his entire body'' in your mechanical claw/backhand him with enough force to knock over a truck (he'll probably survive). An ork that is run over in a race by a multi-ton halftrack is likely to roll around on the ground, writhing in ''laughter''.
* Same goes with pretty much every ''[[Paranoia (game)|Paranoia]]'' game. You're usually playing a member of a Troubleshooter team, and a Troubleshooter's job is to find trouble and shoot it. Oh, and speaking of trouble, see those teammates of yours..?
* ''[[Dungeons & Dragons]]'' has sort of love-hate relationship with this.
** Up to AD&D1, sources of XP were for capturing or slaying opponents and capturing loot. But the encounters are not supposed to be adjusted so that the PCs can steamroll them all. That's where jokes about Charisma as [[Dump Stat]] started - and never ended.
** In AD&D2 the assumption was weakened. In that it was clarified that XP are given for "defeat" of the opponents - an obstacle is removed from one's path, it counts. And there are specific XP awards per class for doing what the character is suposed to do. And in some settings, XP awards defined by the character's culture.
** The rules that allow this annoyed [[The Order of the Stick|Rich Burlew]] enough that he did an [http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9606632&postcount=2 extensive rewrite] of the Diplomacy skill.▼
** In 3.x combat ''is'' the only predictable (as opposed to arbitrary handouts) source of XP, but now skills are prone to absurdly excessive [[Min-Maxing]]. Including Diplomacy. "Diplomancer" approach takes advantage of the flat difficulties set for Diplomacy checks to reduce someone's hostility towards you - a low-level bard can make anything hostile completely indifferent to his presence quite rapidly. On higher levels, a properly tweaked Diplomancer can turn any hostile intelligent being in helpful friends in 9 seconds flat, or even fanatical followers willing to sacrifice themselves to the mere word of the diplomancer, if tweaking is taken far enough.
* In Exalted, due to the difference in timescale between Social and physical combat (roughly, one 'tick' of social is equivalent to sixty of actual fighting), the most effective way of countering the [[Mind Rape]] abilities of the more powerful Exalts is to draw your sword and get hacking.▼
▲***
** ''[[Forgotten Realms]]'' has lots of snide remarks, both [[In-Universe]] and [[In and Out of Character|out]], about the adventurers' usual inclination toward avoidable violence. It also has <ref>Back in the first official setting description - AD&D1 "Grey Box"; Later updated in ''Gold and Glory''.</ref> possibly the first official Diplomancer type NPC in tabletop RPG. Gayrlana "Lady Bloodsword", a human female fighter. She entered abandoned Castle Mindulgulph on a dungeon crawl with team of adventurers, eponymous [[Whip Sword]], 18 Charisma and one random psionic talent... Telepathy (in the later editions called Mindlink).<ref>Allows telepathic "talk" with anything that isn't mindless, ignoring language barriers - [[What Kind of Lame Power Is Heart, Anyway?|and that's it]].</ref> By the time she left the place, it was a base of her own mercenary company.
▲* In ''[[Exalted]]'', due to the difference in timescale between Social and physical combat (roughly, one 'tick' of social is equivalent to sixty of actual fighting), the most effective way of countering the [[Mind Rape]] abilities of the more powerful Exalts is to draw your sword and get hacking.
== Video Games ==
Line 109:
* Massively averted in many of the ''[[Shin Megami Tensei]]'' games, where negotiating with [[Wandering Monsters]] is a vital way to gain new allies/spell cards/info.
* Beating the hell out of ''something'' is the usual solution to the problems that come up in ''[[Lost Odyssey]],'' but when the [[Big Bad]] {{spoiler|uses magic to turn one of your party members into a [[People Puppets|People Puppet]]}}, the best solution is to do anything ''but'' attack, since {{spoiler|killing your friend results in an immediate [[Game Over]]}}.
* This can be averted in ''[[Fallout]]''
** The final boss of ''[[Fallout 2]]'' forces you to have an all-out fight scene; however, if you play your cards right, you can convince the hostile NPCs to fight the final boss for you.
*** Or you could just abuse the properties of Super Stimpacks and [[Revive Kills Zombie|heal him to death]]. Or, with luck, find him early and plant a grenade in his inventory.
* ''[[Ratchet and Clank]]''. When you can just walk into nearest shop and buy a [[BFG]], [[Corrupt Corporate Executive|corrupt CEOs]] and [[Omnicidal Maniac
* Subverted in ''[[Iji]]''. You can kill everything in sight like usual, but [[You Bastard|you'll probably feel sorry for it later on]]. It's also possible to [[Pacifist Run|go through the whole game without killing anything]], which leads to a slightly happier ending.
* The campaigns maps in the ''[[Total War]]'' series of games pretends to feature political machinations and allegiances, but in the end everything will either be [[Everything Trying to Kill You|allied against you]] or allied to you and in your way ([[Gang Up on the Human|and no-one else's]]). In ''Medieval: Total War'' this includes rebellions, automatic battle outcomes, and whatever political maneouvering has not yet been tossed aside in favour of constant war. No matter how much cunning you use, [[Rubber Band AI|the AI]] ([[The Computer Is a Cheating Bastard|and sometimes the random number generator]]) will all conspire against you; the only real answer is fighting. Lots of fighting.
Line 132:
* The premise of ''[[Total Annihilation]]'' is a millennia-old war over a fundamental difference in philosophy, and all diplomatic alternatives have presumably been extinguished long ago.
** The [[Spiritual Sequel]] ''[[Supreme Commander]]'' has a similar premise, but it turns into an [[Enemy Mine]] situation in the expansion pack.
* Averted in [[Wild
* Averted in the original [[Prince of Persia]], where the protagonist must fight his evil mirror twin. The only way to win is to {{spoiler|put away your sword, causing your reflection to do the same}}.
* More or less ''[[Adventure Quest]]'', ''[[Dragon Fable]]'', ''[[Mechquest]]'' and ''[[Adventure Quest Worlds]]'' in a nutshell. Expect numerous lampshades.
Line 139:
** Averted in In ''Dark Forces 2: Jedi Knight'', with the power ''Force Grab'', which allows the Kyle Katarn to snatch weapons from the hands of his enemies with the odd effect of leaving stormtroopers running around shouting "Stand at your post! Stand at your post!", hence one can follow the Jedi principle of conflict avoidance through much of the game, leaving a wake of living but disarmed opponents in Kyle's path. Interestingly, [http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Gran grans] disarmed would approach Katarn and try to beat him up.
** Played straight in ''Dark Forces: Mysteries of the Sith'', where stormtroopers learned to attack Katarn by hand when disarmed. Fisticuff troopers are generally ineffective, but they warrant neutralization, all methods of which are lethal. Most other characters will also suicide-rush Kyle (or Mara) throughout the game, once disarmed.
** Averted through most of the latter half of ''Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast'', though Raven Software intended the this trope to be played straight: Kyle relearns force-pull
** Averted ''and'' played straight depending on each level in ''Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy''. Some levels have [[Shoot Everything That Moves|Destroy All Enemies]] as a mission parameter. At the same time, one can ''very'' quickly achieve Force Grip level three (ironically a dark-side power) which has the incidental effect of disarming most opponents <ref>
* Played straight in ''[[No One Lives Forever|NOLF 2:]] A Spy in HARM's Way'' despite itself. The game includes a number of ways to knock opponents out, such as the CT-180 utility launcher and [[Instant Sedation|tranquilizer darts]]. Sadly, knocked out bad guys will not only wake up in short time, but will also magically manifest weapons. The pragmatic response is to stealth-kill by tranq-ing targets from afar , and then finishing them off at point blank with a suppressed handgun.
* Until the ''A Murder of Crows'' expansions, victory in ''[[Sword of the Stars]]'' could only be achieved through annihilation of the enemy. Even with diplomacy options being available from then on, you still need violent power on tap if the target refuses to surrender.
* In ''[[
* Subverted in ''[[Task Maker]]'', a [[Fetch Quest]] RPG for the Mac. One of the quests given to you by the title character is to bring him the head of a rebel. A player can indeed kill the Rebel and take his head (although this drains a lot of points and some Spirit due to his Good alignment, which is not revealed until after you kill him), but the more sane option is to Bestow a gift to the Rebel, who will then give him a slave's head. The TaskMaker never suspects otherwise.
Line 150:
* Subverted in [http://www.irregularwebcomic.net/darthsanddroids/episodes/0025.html this] ''[[Darths and Droids]]'' strip.
* The main cast of ''[[
* ''[[Schlock Mercenary]]'' is an interesting case, since most of the cast ''claim'' to believe it, but they usually find a solution that doesn't involve killing everyone.
{{quote|
'''Schlock:''' YOU'RE JUST AFRAID TO USE ENOUGH OF IT!
'''Massey:''' You're...probably right. }}
* Mocked in ''[[God Mode]]'' [http://godmode.keenspot.com/d/20071005.html here]. Poor [[Ninja Gaiden|Ryu Hyabusa]] can't even give an autograph without decapitating someone.
== Web Original ==
* In ''[[Greek Ninja]]'', although there is some form of a discussion first, Sasha and Daichi decide it's the only way to settle their disagreement.
== Western Animation ==
Line 174 ⟶ 175:
* The case where a man [[wikipedia:Joseph Stack|flew his plane into an IRS building]], where just before he set off to do it, he posted on the Internet saying "violence not only is the answer, it is the only answer."
* An old saying goes "Violence only understands violence": While the defender doesn't want war, it's either fight back or let the other guy take your country.
* Another old adage goes ''[[wikipedia:Si vis pacem, para bellum|Si vis pacem, para bellum]]''<ref>
** More importantly, there are some people with whom diplomacy will '''not''' work. [[Blood Knight
** And the Roman adage/grammatical mnemonic: ''Vis vim vi vincit'', force beats force with (more) force.
** Or as [[Leon Trotsky]] put it, «You may not be interested in war, but war is interested in you.»
* In [[Real Life]], [[Realpolitik]]
* Sadly, in many cases of school bullying, this ends up becoming the last resort for victims who had enough. ▼
** The phone line presumed the existence of the missiles. That protection did not exist in [[The Killing Fields|Cambodia.]]
▲* Sadly, in many cases of school bullying, this ends up becoming the last resort for victims who had enough.
{{reflist}}
Line 185 ⟶ 188:
[[Category:Action Adventure Tropes]]
[[Category:Stock Aesops]]
[[Category:
| |||