History Main / AlonewiththePsycho

[[folder:Anime and Manga]]

* Happens in ''LightNovel/HaruhiSuzumiya'', when Kyon is alone in a room with Asakura Ryoko who reveals to be a StepfordSmiler PsychoKnifeNut. She also uses her data manipulation skills to make the room inescapable. Luckily, [[spoiler: Yuki Nagato, who is just as skilled with data handling,]] notices it from outside and [[BigDamnHeroes busts in for a rescue]]. This is par for the course as he also knows a girl who may destroy the universe whenever she gets PMS and another who kidnaps the entire world just to be alone with him.

* In the Swedish ''[[Literature/TheMillenniumTrilogy The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo]]'' film, Mikael was unaware who [[spoiler: Martin]] really was until a tranquilizer dart was jammed into his neck. And [[spoiler: Martin]] was probably going to let Mikael go if Mikael didn't make a slip in conversation.

* Inverted in ''Manga/BlackLagoon'', when Balalaika finds herself alone with PsychoForHire Hansel. The inversion is that [[spoiler:Balalaika [[CurbstompBattle quite easily]] has him killed]].

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[[folder:Film — Live-Action]]

* ''Literature/AgentPendergast'': In ''Literature/StillLifeWithCrows'', Corrie runs off to investigate the cave without calling Pendergast because she doesn't want to look foolish if she's wrong. She ends up running into the killer and taken prisoner.
* ''Literature/{{Blindfold}}: After [[MiscarriageOfJustice being convicted of murder]] Trey ends up sharing cellmates with SerialKiller Eli Stone, although it's played with since Strone (who sees himself a dispenser of justice) considers Eli an innocent for most of their time together and never tries to add him to his list of victims.

* ''Literature/{{City of Bones|1995}}'' by Creator/MarthaWells: Khat is repeatedly caught alone by the insane, murderous [[TheArchmage archmage]] Constans, and has to resort to distractions to get away. However, Constans turns out to be a different flavour of crazy than thought, and is more interested in [[spoiler:manipulating Khat into helping him than in killing him]].

** Done twice with [[spoiler:Killian and Perish.]] The first time Killian is forced to pretend to be Perish's boyfriend when he and Reaver are held captive to earn their captivity. In ''The Ghost and the Darkness'' Perish uses a SlaveCollar to drag Killian and a DwindlingParty of slaves across the greywastes until it ends as this.

* ''Four Against the Mob'' by Oscar Fraley. [[Series/TheUntouchables Elliot]] [[Film/TheUntouchables1987 Ness]] is conducting a lengthy interrogation of a suspected SerialKiller, under the guise of a friendly conversation as they have no evidence against him. At one point Ness orders in lunch for them both, and gets rather uncomfortable when the suspect starts eying him while clutching a steak knife, but reassures himself that two of his men are in the next room. Only when he opens the door after the interview is over, he finds the room empty! Turns out his men went out to get their lunch when they heard Ness order his, not realising how serious the situation was.
* OlderThanRadio: Near the end of ''Literature/GreatExpectations'', Pip is captured and imprisoned by violently insane [[spoiler: Orlick]].
* ''Literature/HarryPotter'': At the end of ''Goblet of Fire'', Harry barely escapes from Voldemort, managing to return to Hogwarts. It seems like he's safe until he's lured to an office by Barty Crouch Jr, disguised as Mad-Eye Moody, and held at wandpoint while Crouch maniacally explains his plans. Luckily, he is interrupted by Dumbledore before he can kill Harry.
* ''Literature/TheLordOfTheRings'': Put the One Ring on? Now you're in the Wraith World, with only Sauron and any Nazgûl that happen to be in the area for company.

* ''Literature/TheMillenniumTrilogy'': Seen in ''Men Who Hate Women'' (English language title: ''The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo''), with the satisfying twist that [[spoiler:the older man, Blomkvist, is the idiot who goes to interview the murderer alone and gets captured. The attractive young woman, Salander, is the one who figures it all out and races over to take out the killer and save her partner's life.]] Considering that the psycho in this case was [[spoiler: promising him rape, torture, and death by strangulation in a short time frame, it's probably a good thing Lisbeth had access to a golf club.]]
* In ''[[Creator/AgathaChristie Murder is Easy]]'' one of the amateur sleuths goes to stay with the suspected murderer, thinking that if the murderer does not know they know, they will be safe. In fact the psycho has other reasons to kill her, with her partner only figuring out the vital clue at the last minute.

* ''Literature/RiversOfLondon'': In ''The Hanging Tree'', Peter is conducting a routine sweep of a victim's home for occult materials when he deduces that [[spoiler:the victim's father is [[BigBad the Faceless Man]].]]
* Literature/SherlockHolmes states in "The Adventure of the Copper Beeches" that this is why he deems idyllic rural settings potential haunts for for KarmaHoudini {{Domestic Abuser}}s.
->"There is no lane so vile that the scream of a tortured child, or the thud of a drunkard's blow, does not beget sympathy and indignation among the neighbors, and then the whole machinery of justice is ever so close that a word of complaint can set it going, and there is but a step between the crime and the dock. But look at these lonely houses, each in its own fields ... Think of the deeds of hellish cruelty, the hidden wickedness which may go on, year in, year out, in such places, and none the wiser."
* In the ''Literature/{{Temps}}'' story "Leaks", when Ken's getting involuntary electroshock from [[spoiler: a DPR scientist who wants to prove a point]], it's fairly obvious he's alone with a psycho. However he then deduces that the psycho is ''also'' partly responsible for the scheme that brought him here in the first place ... and then realises that this probably wasn't the best time to say so.

* Occurs at the end of ''Film/{{Zodiac}}''. Subverted in that [[spoiler: while the character played by Jake Gyllenhaal is convinced the clues all add up, the truth is never revealed]].

* ''Series/PersonOfInterest'' has a variation on this concept. Because of the nature of their information, the heroes know that a person will be involved in a violent crime but they don't know if that person will be the victim or perpetrator. At least twice, they wind up protecting an apparently innocent victim only to find that said victim was actually a perpetrator in a different sense. [[https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Recap/PersonOfInterestS01E23 One example]] even featured a character hiring an assassin to kill her alias [[BatmanGambit in an attempt]] to lure out the heroes.

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'': In the episode where Fry was put into a Robot Insane Asylum, he was roommates with the psychotic Roberto. The room was 10 cubic feet and Roberto liked to practice his stabbing.

* In ''Anime/TheHeroicLegendOfArslan'', while at Peshawar, Arslan is cornered by [[spoiler: Hilmes]] when walking alone at the top of Peshawar's walls, with [[spoiler: Hilmes]] having killed the patrolling guard earlier. It's made clear that [[spoiler: Hilmes]] was toying with Arslan the entire time when he could have easily killed the boy.

* A serial killer finds out a wanna-be bounty hunter is tracking his last victim, so he lures them down into the basement of his plastic surgery business to dispose of them in secret. However this is ''VideoGame/VampireTheMasqueradeBloodlines'' and now the ''killer'' is alone with a supernaturally strong and fast vampire. It goes about as well for him as you think.

* Graham's confrontation with Lecter at the beginning of ''Film/RedDragon''.

* The climax of ''Film/TheSilenceOfTheLambs'' occurs when a CutApart reveals the police squad followed a false lead, but the main character actually confronts Buffalo Bill and follows him into his own booby-trapped lair.

* PlayedWith in the TrollFic ''Fanfiction/CannibalRoleplayHomestuckThingRobloxWhatever''. Even though [[ObfuscatingStupidity Jake]] is being watched over by [[NosyNeighbor Jade and Nepeta]], they can barely do anything to help him while he is in the cannibalistic [[AxCrazy Gamzee]]’s house.

* The pilot episode of ''Series/MurderSheWrote'' sets this up as Jessica has finally found the last piece of evidence that allows her to deduce that the man standing with her is the killer. As she lays out how she realized that he was the murderer, the scene shifts to an ominous angle with suspenseful music [[[[spoiler: SubvertedTrope only for the killer in question to ask if Jessica will accompany him when he goes to the police to confess.]]]]

* The pilot episode of ''Series/MurderSheWrote'' sets this up as Jessica has finally found the last piece of evidence that allows her to deduce that the man standing with her is the killer. As she lays out how she realized that he was the murderer, the scene shifts to an ominous angle with suspenseful music [[SubvertedTrope only for the killer in question to ask if Jessica will accompany him when he goes to the police to confess.]]

* Happens in ''LightNovel/HaruhiSuzumiya'', when Kyon is alone in a room with Asakura Ryoko who reveals to be a StepfordSmiler KnifeNut. She also uses her data manipulation skills to make the room inescapable. Luckily, [[spoiler: Yuki Nagato, who is just as skilled with data handling,]] notices it from outside and [[BigDamnHeroes busts in for a rescue]]. This is par for the course as he also knows a girl who may destroy the universe whenever she gets PMS and another who kidnaps the entire world just to be alone with him.

* ''Series/{{Millennium}}'': this trope is used several times, most notably in the episodes "The Mikado" and "In Arcadia Ego". In both, Frank Black figures out where the killer is before the police do, and has a confrontation with the killer.

* This happens to Detective David Mills' wife in the film ''Film/{{Se7en}}''. Unfortunately, [[spoiler:Detective Somerset later finds [[StuffedIntoTheFridge her decapitated head in a box]]]].

* This horrifyingly matter-of-fact passage in ''The Serial Killers: A Study In The Psychology Of Violence'',referring to [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edmund_Kemper Edmund Kemper]], "The Co-Ed Killer" (more famous to audiences for his fictionalized portrayal in Series/{{Mindhunter}})):

* This horrifyingly matter-of-fact passage in ''The Serial Killers: A Study In The Psychology Of Violence'':

** Claire, [[FauxAffablyEvil Joe's]] ex-wife, gets [[UpToEleven weeks]] of this when Joe has his followers kidnap her and their son.