History Main / GhostsAbhorAVacuum

** In an unusual variant, Matsuri's pinwheel can suck evil spirits possessing humans out of their mouth through its base, and then expel them from its blades as a gust of wind. Even more bizarrely, without the pinwheel, Matsuri can suck out the spirits ''[[MagicKiss using his own mouth]]''. If he uses the technique ''on'' a (solid) ayakashi, which needn't be through their mouth, [[ManaBurn it will suck away their power, weakening them]].
** Reo is introduced sucking up an [[BlobMonster ikon]] into a tube, not with a vacuum cleaner, but a hand-pumped air cylinder. This only works on amorphous ayakashi, whereas Shirogane simply got his tail caught in the nozzle. Paper talismans wrapped around the tube keep the ayakashi inside--until it breaks out because it's more powerful than Reo expected.

The trope name is a play on the physics quote "nature abhors a vacuum" by the ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle. He believed that nature contains no vacuums [[note]]A vacuum, in a physics context, is a space devoid of matter. An approximation to such a vacuum is a region with a gaseous pressure much less than atmospheric pressure. [[/note]] because the denser surrounding material continuum would immediately fill the rarity of an incipient void.

The trope name is a play on the physics quote, "nature abhors a vacuum", by the ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle. He believed that nature contains no vacuums [[note]]A vacuum, in a physics context, is a space devoid of matter. An approximation to such a vacuum is a region with a gaseous pressure much less than atmospheric pressure. [[/note]] because the denser surrounding material continuum would immediately fill the rarity of an incipient void.

Subtrope of WeaponsThatSuck. Compare ViciousVac (which the vacuum certainly looks like from a ghosts perspective). Often seen as the weapon of choice for TheRealSpoofbusters even though the AwesomeBackpack and the vacuuming containment unit [[LostInImitation were separate tools]] in the original ''{{Franchise/Ghostbusters}}''.

* ''ComicBook/TheDandy'': Subverted. In one issue [[InsufferableGenius Brain Dwayne]], feeling smug at people getting scared by a haunted house builds a modified vacuum and goes around it sucking up the ghosts. Its only after he gets home and boasts about it to his mother, that she asks what exactly stops the intangible ghosts from simply leaving the vacuum and [[DidntThinkThisThrough he realises he didn't think of that]]. Cut the reveal all the annoyed spirits are now haunting his house.
* ''ComicBook/JudgeDredd'': The Dark Judges spirits' exist in gaseous forms that can be temporarily trapped inside a vacuum. The rest of the time they're contained inside a CrystalPrison.

* One of the earlier ''Literature/AliceGirlFromTheFuture'' stories has Alice claiming she met a ghost. When her father sees it and runs toward it, it seems to disappear, and the girl says it must be approached slowly, so that it won't be blown away by the wind. In the end, the "ghost" turned out to be a ProfessorGuineaPig whose body was all but completely dispersed when a fuse was blown during a teleportation experiment.

* In ''WesternAnimation/DannyPhantom'', one of the ghost catching devices built by Danny's parents is a vacuum-like device called the Fenton Ghost Weasel. It turns out to work quite effectively. The ghost sucking device that is used most often in the series is the Fenton Thermos.

* ''WesternAnimation/FostersHomeForImaginaryFriends'': Of a sort in the episode "Bloooo." Wilt, Eduardo, and Coco mistake Bloo (who is sick and very pale) for the ghost from the scary movie they had just watched. They remember that an "Atomic Suckulator" was used to defeat the ghost, and end up arming themselves with a vacuum cleaner from an egg Coco lays.
* On one episode of ''WesternAnimation/TheSmurfs1981'', Brainy and Clumsy become "Ghostsmurfers", hunting for ghosts in a haunted castle. Handy equips them with ghost catching devices, which suck the ghosts into a jar using bellows.

* In an episode of ''WesternAnimation/KiddVideo'' the band find themselves in a city full of ghosts. Whiz saves the day by inventing a giant vacuum cleaner that sucks them all up.

Is it a magical sword, imbued with the power of angels?

A powerful talisman that can shine holy light?

The trope name is a play on the physics quote, "nature abhors a vacuum", by the ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle. He believed that nature contains no vacuums because the denser surrounding material continuum would immediately fill the rarity of an incipient void.

Is it a magical sword,
imbued with the power of angels?

Ghosts are terrifying. They're murderous. They can't be reasoned with. They're unstoppable. No weapon you use on them shows any effect. No barrier you set up can keep them away. You're doomed.

And then you pull out your secret weapon. The one thing in the world that can stop an evil spirit.

Is it a magical sword, imbued with the power of angels?

* The 1942 ''WesternAnimation/TomAndJerry'' cartoon "Fraidy Cat" has Jerry Mouse drape a nightgown over an upright vacuum cleaner, then switch it on/off in succession to mimic an angry ghost. Tom falls for the ruse to the point where his "lives" desert his body, neatly numbered 1 through 9. Lives 1 to 8 seem horrified as they're being drawn by the suction toward the closet; number 9, however, grins like an idiot, enjoying the ride.

-->-- '''King Boo''', ''VideoGame/LuigisMansion''

* ''Anime/M78LoveAndPeace'': One of the [[https://youtu.be/nttwvBPKK7Q?t=429 short gags]] of this OVA spin-off of the ''Franchise/UltraSeries'' has Ultraman working as a janitor in the Monster Graveyard, where he proceeds to suck up a whole ton of ghosts using a vacuum cleaner. He then noticed one ''last'' lonely ghost still around, which he quickly sucked up, only to result in said vacuum overloading and exploding, where all the ghosts in the vacuum merges into a giant-sized super-ghost and proceeds to chase Ultraman off-screen.

* On one episode of ''WesternAnimation/TheSmurfs'', Brainy and Clumsy become "Ghostsmurfers", hunting for ghosts in a haunted castle. Handy equips them with ghost catching devices, which suck the ghosts into a jar using bellows.

* ''VideoGame/LuigisMansion'': Luigi's WeaponOfChoice is the Poltergust, a modified vacuum invented by Professor E. Gadd for the [[JustifiedTrope express purpose of catching ghosts]]. [[MundaneUtility It also works pretty great as an ordinary vacuum.]]

* ''WebComic/BrunoTheBandit'' used a vacuum cleaner in place of an enchanted box to trap the Dread Lord Numbth'kul off-camera between [[http://www.brunothebandit.com/d/19990618.html this comic]] and [[http://www.brunothebandit.com/d/19990619.html this comic]].
* ''Webcomic/GrimTalesFromDownBelow'': In the fight between Mina Harper and Mimi, after Mina uses her vampire powers to turn into a ghostly form to avoid getting crushed by a house Mimi threw at her, Mimi [[https://snafu-comics.com/swmcomic/housekeeping/ uses a vacuum to trap her]].

* In the ''WesternAnimation/DuckTales2017'' promo "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ELtEn2wQ3pA Meet Mrs. Beakley!]]", Mrs. Beakley is vacuuming while the kids flee from a ghost. She calmly flips a switch on the vacuum from "dirt" to "ghost", vacuums up the ghost, then returns to her cleaning.

* In ''WesternAnimation/DannyPhantom'', one of the ghost catching devices built by Danny's parents is a vacuum-like device called the Fenton Ghost Weasel. It turns out to work quite effectively.

** In an unusual variant, Matsuri's pinwheel can suck evil spirits possessing humans out their mouth through base, and then expel them from its blades as a gust of wind. Even more bizarrely, without the pinwheel, Matsuri can suck out the spirits ''[[MagicKiss using his own mouth]]''. If he uses the technique ''on'' a (solid) ayakashi, which needn't be through their mouth, [[ManaBurn it will suck away their power, weakening them]].

[[caption-width-right:350:[[{{Pun}} Sucks]] to be a ghost right now]]

* In the ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' episode, "Loan-a-Lisa", in the ''[[WesternAnimation/TheItchyAndScratchyShow Itchy and Scratchy]]'' episode that parodies the beginning of ''WesternAnimation/{{Up}}'', Itchy kills Scratchy and his girlfriend, and [[WingedSoulFliesOffAtDeath when their souls try to float up to heaven]], Itchy sucks them up in a vacuum cleaner. Then he takes out the vacuum bag (which the souls are struggling to get out of) and [[KillItWithFire lights it on fire]].

* ''VideoGame/GalGun 2'': One of your weapons to defeat the mini-demons attacking the school is a vacuum weapon that sucks them in... and also sucks the clothes off of any girls that are in the vicinity. Yeah, it's that kind of game.

** In an unusual variant, Matsuri's pinwheel can suck evil spirits possessing humans out their mouth through base, and then expel them from its blades as a gust of wind. Even more bizarrely, Matsuri can't suck out the spirits ''[[MagicKiss using his own mouth]]''. If he uses the technique ''on'' a (solid) ayakashi, which needn't be through their mouth, [[ManaBurn it will suck away their power, weakening them]].

Subtrope of WeaponsThatSuck. Compare ViciousVac (which the vacuum certainly looks like from a ghosts perspective).

* ''VideoGame/LuigisMansion'': Luigi's WeaponOfChoice is the Poltergust, a modified vacuum invented by Professor E. Gadd for the [[JustifiedTrope express purpose of catching ghosts]].

** In an unusual variant, Matsuri's pinwheel can suck out evil spirits possessing a human body into itself through the base, then expel them out through its blades as a gust of wind. If he uses the technique ''on'' a (solid) ayakashi, [[ManaBurn it will suck away their power, weakening them]].

** In an unusual variant, Matsuri's pinwheel can suck out evil spirits possessing a human body into itself through the base, then expel them out through its blades as a gust of wind.

* ''Manga/AyakashiTriangle'': Reo is introduced sucking up an ikon into a tube, not with a vacuum cleaner, but a hand-pumped air cylinder. This only works on amorphous ayakashi, whereas Shirogane simply got his tail caught in the nozzle. Paper talismans wrapped around the tube keep the ayakashi inside--until it breaks out because it's more powerful than Reo expected.

* In the ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' episode, "Loan-a-Lisa", in the ''[[WesternAnimation/TheItchyAndScratchyShow Itchy and Scratchy]]'' episode that parodies the beginning of ''WesternAnimation/{{Up}}'', Itchy kills Scratchy and his girlfriend, and [[WingedSoulsFlyOffToHeaven when their souls try to float up to heaven]], Itchy sucks them up in a vacuum cleaner. Then he takes out the vacuum bag (which the souls are struggling to get out of) and [[KillItWithFire lights it on fire]].

* In the ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' episode, "Loan-a-Lisa", in the ''[[WesternAnimation/TheItchyAndScratchyShow Itchy and Scratchy]]'' episode that parodies the beginning of ''WesternAnimation/{{Up}}'', Itchy kills Scratchy and his girlfriend, and [[WingedSoulsFlyUpToHeaven when their souls try to float up to heaven]], Itchy sucks them up in a vacuum cleaner. Then he takes out the vacuum bag (which the souls are struggling to get out of) and [[KillItWithFire lights it on fire]].