History Main / FerrisWheelOfDoom

%%* The first level in the remake of ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry'' features one of these.

* While not really an action flick, ''Carpool'' uses this trope as well. In the climax of the film, one of the main characters' kids must be saved from a runaway Ferris wheel. Of course [[FromBadToWorse it gets worse]] and the kid's car breaks off and it turns into a whole big mess...

* The ''Series/UltramanTiga'' episode "The Closed Amusement Park" features the hibernating kaiju, Gagi, awakening in an amusement park and sealing the entire area with an impenetrable force-field. The situation starts becoming tense when Gagi targets the Ferris Wheel, where Shinjoh's younger sister and a little girl is stranded on its top, at which point Shinjoh and a boy he befriended decides to hijack a couple of go-karts to draw Gagi's attention away, trying to buy some time until Ultraman Tiga arrives to deal with the monster.

* ''Manga/DetectiveConan'': In ThatOneCase for Satou, her partner died rather than choose to disarm a bomb in a Ferris wheel so he can send her the directions to another bomb that the bomber had hidden, and the location would not be given in full unless the timer was allowed to run out. In the 20th film Gin causes the giant Ferris wheel to roll by shooting the axis with his helicopters minigun.

* In ''Film/{{Catwoman}}'', a Ferris wheel mysteriously breaks down while the leads are on it, allowing Tom to shut down the motor and stop it, and Patience to save a little boy who falls out of a seat that somehow suffers a structural failure at the same time.

* On one of the levels in ''VideoGame/TwistedMetal Black'', you can send a Ferris wheel rolling. If I remember correctly, it either uncovers a secret or does damage to anyone who gets hit by it. Or both...

A Ferris Wheel is the most useful ride for TV and movies because it is both big and tall (a hero saving people from a spinning teacup ride gone amok isn't impressive) and slow (If a rollercoaster doing a hundred miles an hour leaves the tracks it boggles the mind that any hero but a {{Super Speed}}ster could find a convenient phone booth, change, and return in time to do anything but help gather up the dead). Ferris Wheels are also large open structures with a lot of rods and beams that let athletic types show their stuff. [[CoincidenceMagnet Having a hero in the area]] thus generally causes any Ferris Wheel to suffer a sudden massive breakdown.

It should be noted that if in RealLife a Ferris wheel ''did'' break off and roll away, it wouldn't get very far. The wheel itself isn't very structurally sound, and would collapse under its own weight. Rolling away would also imply a clean break on both sides of its central axle at the same time, which is unlikely.

* Featured in the climatic battle of ''Film/{{Shazam}}'' when Dr. Sivana proceed to unleash the sins in an amusement park, a few of them who then proceeds to attack the Ferris Wheel making it fall over on its side. [[spoiler: Thankfully, at that point Billy already transferred his powers to his siblings, at which point three of them - Freddy, Pedro and Darla - immediately helps out, Pedro using his super strength to hold the collapsing wheel in place while Darla and Freddy assists in evacuating civilians trapped on the wheel]].

* Avoided in the ''Film/IronMan1'' movie; there's a Ferris Wheel which fails to break or roll away at all.

* Featured in the climatic battle of ''Film/Shazam'' when Dr. Sivana proceed to unleash the sins in an amusement park, a few of them who then proceeds to attack the Ferris Wheel making it fall over on its side. [[spoiler: Thankfully, at that point Billy already transferred his powers to his siblings, at which point three of them - Freddy, Pedro and Darla - immediately helps out, Pedro using his super strength to hold the collapsing wheel in place while Darla and Freddy assists in evacuating civilians trapped on the wheel]].

* Played with in ''Disney/TheGreatMouseDetective'', as our mouse heroes have to dodge a tambourine sent rolling at them by TheDragon, in a clear invocation of this trope.

* The first level in the remake of devil may cry features one of these.

* ''Anime/GirlsUndPanzer'': In ''[[TheMovie Der Film]]'' Rabbit Team shoots a Ferris wheel off its supports, causing it to roll down towards the enemy team's encirclement as a distraction. They call this "Operation Mifune", after the scene in ''Film/NineteenFortyOne'', which they had watched the previous night. It works, and the Ooarai team is able to use the confusion to escape. As the wheel slows to a halt and topples over, the girls affectionately [[SugarWiki/FunnyMoments thank "Ferris-senpai"/"Ferry-chan" for its help]].

** Not to mention its prominent role in the finale, where [[spoiler:Samson BriarPatches Justin and Iris into riding it, Jonesy traps them at the top, then cuts the brakes and lets the thing go speeding around, and Ben uses Justin's life force to heal everyone at the show. SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome for Justin as he yells "BE STILL!" ''and the Ferris Wheel listens''.]]

* [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panjandrum The Panjandrum]]. Justified, as it was ''designed'' to be a weapon.

** Not to mention its prominent role in the finale, where [[spoiler:Samson BriarPatches Justin and Iris into riding it, Jonesy traps them at the top, then cuts the brakes and lets the thing go speeding around, and Ben uses Justin's life force to heal everyone at the show. CrowningMomentOfAwesome for Justin as he yells "BE STILL!" ''and the Ferris Wheel listens''.]]

* ''Series/{{Bottom}}'': "Hole", in which Richie and Eddie find themselves stuck at the top of a rickety, illegal, death trap Ferris wheel just after the owners have closed it down pending its demolition? How will they ever escape? Well, they pray for salvation and God answers. Unfortunately, they then realise that they don't believe in God, so they fall anyway. They get better in time for the next episode.

* ''Anime/GirlsUndPanzer'': In ''[[TheMovie Der Film]]'' Rabbit Team shoots a Ferris wheel off its supports, causing it to roll down towards the enemy team's encirclement as a distraction. They call this "Operation Mifune", after the scene in ''Film/NineteenFortyOne'', which they had watched the previous night. It works, and the Ooarai team is able to use the confusion to escape. As the wheel slows to a halt and topples over, the girls affectionately [[FunnyMoments thank "Ferris-senpai"/"Ferry-chan" for its help]].

[[folder:Table Top Games]]
* CardsAgainstHumanity has a white card labeled "An unhinged ferris wheel rolling toward the sea." There is a meme in the game's fandom that three cards should be used to form the sentence, "When you get right down to it, an unhindred ferris wheel rolling toward the sea is just a windmill full of corpses."
[[/folder]]

* A Ferris Wheel crashes out its supports in ''WesternAnimation/JimmyNeutronBoyGenius'', except it then is used as a ''[[RuleofCool spaceship]]''

* In the ''VideoGame/BatmanArkhamKnight'' expansion "A Matter of Family", Batgirl has to rescue some cops from this at one point. Considering it's an amusement park taken over by SelfDemonstrating/TheJoker, it doesn't come as much of a surprise.