History Main / HeroicBystander

* In the G4 ''[[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyTheMovie2017 My Little Pony]]'' [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyTheMovie2017 movie]], three of the four adult Princesses of Equestria have been TakenForGranite, and now an orb is headed for the fourth. Derpy Hooves tries to get her out of the way, and [[TakingTheBullet takes the orb]] for Twilight. In the time it takes the smoke to clear and Tempest to realize she hit the wrong pony, Twilight and her closest friends have enough of a lead to make good their escape and get the help Equestria needs. [[spoiler:All those petrified are freed in the end.]]

* [[https://www.thestar.com/news/world/2011/03/17/the_star_in_japan_hideaki_akaiwa_must_keep_looking.html Hideaki Akaiwa]], resident of the port city of Ishinomaki, hit by the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami. When his city suddenly turned into a lake, his wife was missing. So he got a SCUBA suit and dove into the water to search for her. [[UpToEleven In the currents. By night. Among debris and submerged power lines]]. He found her trapped in their home, water to her neck, and rescued her ''in extremis''. [[OhNoNotAgain The next day, he noticed his aging mother was still missing]]. So he searched again the waters for her, too. [[SerialEscalation He also found and rescued her in her home with water to the neck]]. While most people would call it a day, [[UsefulNotes/JapaneseHonorifics Akaiwa-sama]] spent the next several days wading through the mud, searching for more survivors.

* Combined with BadassBystander in ''Film/{{Werewolf}}''. The titular creature near the end of the movie encounters a random bystander and the two go into a ''fistfight'', with the bystander kicking the werewolf's ass.

* In the ''WesternAnimation/DextersLaboratory'' episode "Accent You Hate," a [[TheBully bully]] named Gary threatens to beat up Dexter and his fellow [[FunnyForeigner heavily-accented]] friends Lucky (who's Irish) and Pierre (who's French) because he doesn't like the way they talk. The trio tries numerous schemes to escape his wrath, but end up on the receiving end of Gary's punches anyway. When they start crying, all of the other schoolchildren rush over and start shouting in accents of their own, which overwhelms Gary and sends him careening into a statue, swelling his jaw and making ''him'' talk in an odd way.

* In ''The Brave Lion and the Foolish Rabbit'',[[note]]Part of an anthology of Jataka stories by Rafe Martin[[/note]] the lion calms down a horde of terrified animals despite having nothing to do with their problem.

* In Creator/DanAbnett's ''Literature/BrothersOfTheSnake'', Antoni is an ordinary human, living on a fairly primitive world, who leads a Space Marine to where the Dark Eldar have landed. When one attacks her, she manages to kill it. (The rest appear, and the Space Marine arrives to deal with them.)
* In ''Literature/IOnlyWantedToHelp'', Cole Nichols and his father intervene when they see three men attempting to rape a teenage girl.
* ''Literture/JourneyToChaos'': During the fourth book, ''Literature/TranscendingLimitations'', Basilard is on his way to his guild's headquarters when he is ambushed by assassins. His neighbors step up to save him and his daughter.
* In ''Theatre/KingLear'', one of Cornwall's servants sees him blinding Gloucester and tries to intercede. Regan kills him, but not before he fatally stabs Cornwall.
* Frodo Baggins in ''Literature/TheLordOfTheRings'', who's just a guest at his uncle's birthday party. He just so happens to be given the One ArtifactOfDoom. It takes the first 2 out of 3 volumes of the original edition to turn him from InnocentBystander to a heroic one.
* Devika in ''Literature/PrincessHolyAura'', who first helps to organise an evacuation in a fight around superpowered beings, and then willingly goes back to help the Apocalypse Maidens.
* Subverted in ''Literature/RainbowSix''; during a hostage situation one of the hostages distracts one of the terrorists, seemingly giving the Rainbow sniper an opening to headshot the terrorist. Later on, the sniper admits in actuality the hostage's action didn't make a difference one way or another, since as a professionally-trained sniper he already had a good shot at that point, but goes to congratulate the hostage anyway because what he did still took major balls.
* In ''Literature/ToKillAMockingbird'', Bob Ewell [[WouldHurtAChild attempts to knife Atticus Finch's children]] to get back at Finch, but [[spoiler:[[MisunderstoodLonerWithAHeartOfGold Boo Radley]] saves their lives, slaying Ewell in the process]].
* In ''Literature/WearingTheCape'' novel ''Small Town Heroes'', Astra's team is clearing out a bar so they could safely take out some supervillains, but she looks less than capable herself. Much to her horror, the bartender -- whom she dubs "Galahad" -- does not leave but instead obviously goes for some kind of weapon.

** Comicbook/TheMightyThor's hammer can supposedly only be lifted by those who possess a hero's nature and a pure heart. So far this effectively means Thor, Comicbook/CaptainAmerica, Franchise/WonderWoman, Franchise/{{Superman}}, and ComicBook/BetaRayBill.
** Upon being attacked by three supervillains at once, Comicbook/MoonKnight manages to defeat two of them but is tied up by Coachwhip's electrical coils. Coachwhip is about to fry Moon Knight when a bystander sprays her with a hose, shorting out her equipment and knocking her out from the feedback.

*** When a [[Comicbook/SpiderIsland mutating powers virus]] grants normal people the same powers and abilities as Spider-Man, Mary Jane watches the spider-powered citizens having the time of their lives from the sidelines. When the virus mutates those infected into giant spiders, Mary Jane finally becomes infected with powers and comes to the aid of defenseless citizens. She later joins in the final battle with the villain responsible for the madness, saving Spider-Man and motivating him to use his head and then defending him once he formulates a plan to save everybody.

** When Comicbook/TheMightyThor was attacked by what he thought was Skurge The Executioner, an old [[HeelFaceTurn enemy turned friend]] who had been killed in a HeroicSacrifice, he was initially unwilling to fight back against a brother in arms. Little Kevin Masterson intervened and tried to help Thor only to be swatted away by "Skurge," who was in fact a CostumeCopycat simply using Skurge's equipment. Knowing that the '''real''' Skurge [[WouldntHurtAChild would never strike a defenseless little kid]], Thor realized he was facing an impostor and proceeded to deliver a NoHoldsBarredBeatdown.
** Comicbook/{{Daredevil}} fought [[PlayingWithFire Pyro]] and [[FatBastard the Blob]] to keep them from abducting a young mutant girl and forcing her to register with the U.S. government. After taking out Pyro, Daredevil attacked the Blob but was quickly knocked down. The Blob was about to stomp Daredevil when the girl he was trying to protect used her telekinetic powers to pull him out of the way. Daredevil then got the girl to use her powers to pull a large bell down from a nearby church, knocking the Blob out after Daredevil blinded him and then lured him under the steeple.

* ''Comicbook/AstroCity'' once highlighted the story of Pete Donacek, a former hockey player and a doorman at an Astro City hotel. He once saved a little girl's life during a giant robot attack. He sees her every day, doesn't even know her name, but knowing that he did that kind of thing for someone, that he went to Astro City and lived the dream of being a real hero... As he puts it, "My name is Pete Donacek. I live in Astro City. I wear a uniform too."

* Comicbook/{{Supergirl}}: In ''[[ComicBook/Supergirl2005 Supergirl vol 5]] #20'', Supergirl is fighting a cyclops (long story) and being trounced by the giant monster. Then a bystander hands an arrow dropped by an Amazon (long story) over to Supergirl, and she uses it to blind the cyclops.

* Civilians in ''Videogame/AssassinsCreed'' will occasionally grabs guards' arms and grapple with them, taking a little heat off the player and giving them a chance to dispatch the guard without resistance. Maybe this could be a reason so many Assassins wear the distinctive uniform: the people know who the good guys are when there's a sword fight in the street.

[[folder:Web Comics]]

* ''WebComic/JoshAndImp'' is about a regular guy who ends up [[https://web.archive.org/web/20100723013323/http://www.jinxville.com/joshnimp/comic.htm saving a superhero sidekick's life]], so she asks him on a date. We never actually [[NoodleIncident see what Josh did]] and he doesn't remember since he was running on pure adrenaline, but apparently it involved beating up two men with a fire extinguisher and [[CrisisCatchAndCarry fleeing the building with Imp in his arms]].

* ''WesternAnimation/ThePowerpuffGirls'':

* ''WesternAnimation/UltimateSpiderMan'':

* Likewise, in the finale of ComicBook/FearItself, the residents of Broxton form a ragtag militia to defend their homes and the gate to Asgard against the Serpent's forces. However, all but one of the flees in the face of their assault. Then, after being ashamed by their cowardice, they return to fight side by side with Captain America and the Avengers. News reports also tell of more heroic bystanders trying to fight the disasters the Serpent has caused worldwide, showing that his plan to drown the world in fear has ultimately failed.

* [[https://www.youtube.com/shorts/C7w8iDozxtI These people]] at a Traverse City carnival banding together to keep a malfunctioning ride from tipping over.

* TruthInTelevision. In the real world this happens almost any time there is a serious disaster, be it natural (Hurricanes, earthquakes) or manmade (the attacks of September 11th). It seems many normal, average people can find the hero inside when they really need to. In fact, the United States government actually ''encourages'' people to be {{Heroic Bystander}}s with the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Good_Samaritan_law Good Samaritan laws]].

* [[http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2007/jul/07/terrorism.world John Smeaton]]. Kicked a terrorist [[GroinAttack in the groin]]. Told the others that "This is Glasgow. [[ViolentGlaswegian We'll set about ye]]." The man embodies [[ViolentGlaswegian so many]] tropes.
** It bears mentioning that the terrorist [[IncendiaryExponent was literally on fire]] at the time of groin kicking.
** And that he kicked him so hard he ''tore a tendon in his foot''.
** [[https://external-preview.redd.it/0SiYhLxwd8dW4YXnECExyVBVtpc6-nrKMyw-VedkFmM.jpg?auto=webp&s=2b373bcce4a06aaa3ea3d424261b6c2db4b4cb52 You guys are really going to tell the entire story without showing the headline that started it all?]]

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[[quoteright:300:[[Webcomic/JoshAndImp https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/josh_imp.png]]]]
[[caption-width-right:300:You don't have to be a superhero to be a hero!]]

* During a chase scene in ''Film/NationalTreasure'', the heroine Abigail ducks into a deli and hides behind the counter. She tells the employee "I'm just hiding from my ex-husband." Once the employee sees the {{Mook}}, she immediately tells Abigail she can stay as long as she likes and then proceeds to intimidate the clearly-armed-and-angry bad guy into leaving. She even adds a sympathetic, "I see why you left him." All for a random stranger who's trespassing in her business!
* In ''Film/LawnDogs'', Devon, a 10-year-old kid, witnesses her father, a former police officer, and an adult bully beat on her adult friend Trent after they mistakenly believed him to have abused her. She intervenes [[spoiler:by taking her father's gun and shooting the bully, and from there, stops the situation from getting worse]] and helps Trent escape.
* ''Film/SpiderManTrilogy'':
** Aunt May in ''Film/SpiderMan2'' showed her mettle when Dr. Octopus tried to make her a DamselInDistress. Though he did take her hostage, she saved Franchise/SpiderMan by hitting Otto with her umbrella before he could impale Spidey in a sneak attack.
*** In the same scene, the obligatory cameo by Creator/StanLee has him as a nameless old man on the street below. He jumps in to pull a woman out of the way when some rubble falls from the fight above, saving her life.
** Also appears in multiple in the original ''Film/SpiderMan1'' movie, when angry New Yorkers pelt the Green Goblin with junk, giving Spidey the chance to [[TakeAThirdOption save both his girlfriend and a trolley car full of]] {{Innocent Bystander}}s. When they try blocking Doctor Octopus in the second movie, though, [[FoeTossingCharge it doesn't work]]. Though by that point, they've already [[Heartwarming/SpiderMan rescued the unconscious Spider-Man from falling to his death]] and [[TearJerker given him back his mask, promising to keep his identity secret.]] And in any case, [[Awesome/SpiderMan it's the thought that counts]].
** Mary Jane [[DamselScrappy FINALLY]] gets to be one in ''Film/SpiderMan3'', saving Spider-Man from Venom by throwing a cement block on him, allowing Spidey to break free of his grip. Also to her credit, she attempted to be one in ''Spider Man 2'' as well, but Doc Ock [[TaughtByExperience learned his lesson from Aunt May's aforementioned moment]] and disarmed her quickly.
* Gwen Stacy attacks the Lizard to rescue Spidey in ''Film/TheAmazingSpiderMan''. Also, the crane-drivers who arrange things so Spidey has a clear path to Oscorp Tower. And Captain Stacy, although he'd probably resent being considered a bystander; this is his ''job''.
* As well as Creator/StanLee [[AsHimself playing himself]] in many Marvel movies, usually yanking some other extra out of harm's way. Although he seems to have just as much fun being rescued from such situations (see the ''Daredevil'' movie), as well as being turned away from the wedding in ''Film/FantasticFourRiseOfTheSilverSurfer''. And getting mistaken for Hugh Hefner in ''Film/IronMan1''.

* ''Film/SupermanII''. During Superman's fight with the three Kryptonian supervillains, they smash him with a bus. The citizens of Metropolis join together and charge the villains, only to be blown away by the bad guys' super breath. However, their intervention gives Superman enough time to pull himself together and come up with a cunning plan to lure the villains away from the city.

* In ''Film/VantagePoint'', Creator/ForestWhitaker's character, Howard Lewis, is an classic Heroic Bystander, up to and including [[DivingSave pushing a kid out of the way of an tumbling car]].
* Pvt. Henry Hook in ''Film/{{Zulu}}'' does this, going from malingerer to badass.
* Ted Striker does this in ''Film/{{Airplane}}'', and [[LampshadeHanging again in the sequel]].
* Creator/ChrisEvans's character in ''Film/{{Cellular}}'' is just a random guy on the street, but when he gets a call from a kidnapped woman he's never met he goes to extraordinary lengths to save her.

* In ''Film/TwoDaysInTheValley'', the hitman Woods is killed by Teddy Peppers, an ordinary guy who was dragged into the film's plot by sheer chance. With the very same gun Teddy was planning to use to commit suicide.
* Combined with BadassBystander in ''Film/{{Werewolf}}''. The titular creature near the end of the movie encounters a random bystander and the two go into a ''fistfight'', with the bystander kicking the werewolf's ass.
* ''Film/{{Willow}}'': Ethna is just a midwife trying to do her job. The queen Bavmorda has ordered a baby with a certain birthmark to be found and killed. Ethna delivers Elora, the baby that the queen fears, then immediately flees with her, despite not having any personal stake or even connection to the child. When the Queen sends vicious dogs to attack, Ethna doesn't hesitate a moment to get Elora to a nearby river and send her off to safety--the dogs [[HeroicSacrifice tear Ethna to pieces]], but she dies knowing that she did the right thing.
* ''Film/{{Elysium}}'': The little old lady who hides Max from Kruger and his crew by getting him to crawl under her cart of pigs, defeating their FLIR.
* ''Film/XMenFirstClass'': When Charles Xavier realizes that no-one on the US Coast Guard vessel is willing to help Erik Lehnsherr, he dives into the dark, frigid ocean without hesitation to save the life of a drowning stranger.
* In ''Film/AngelsAndDemons'', Langdon sees [[spoiler: Cardinal Baggia]] being dumped into the Fountain of the Four Rivers, tied to a weighted bed and gagged. Langdon jumps in to save him, but is unable to lift the bed on his own; he then surfaces, screaming, "Help, somebody!" before diving back down and finding an aerator in the fountain that grants the drowning man a little oxygen. At that point, Langdon feels a hand on his shoulder and discovers that a random bystander has leaped into the fountain as well; another man and a woman follow suit, and all four work to hoist the bed and save [[spoiler: the cardinal]], while other people are on hand to move him to the ground.

** Heck, Lisa herself counts as one. She's a hotel manager trying to take a flight when she gets caught up in a terrorist plot, and rather than panicking, she tries all manner of plans to alert other people to Rippner's schemes, most of which nearly succeed. When she finally escapes Rippner, she not only calls Cynthia and foils the assassination, but she also finds herself fighting the villain in her own home and successfully fends him off long enough for her father to fatally shoot him. It's not suggested that she has any kind of self-defense or firearms training, either--she's just a woman trying to help people in danger.
* Toward the end of ''Film/WonderWoman1984'', the villainous [[WellIntentionedExtremist Maxwell Lord]] is overloading with power from the Dreamstone, which is [[PoweredByAForsakenChild fueled by the wishes of humans around the world.]] [[spoiler: Instead of fighting Maxwell, Diana calls upon the people of the Earth to recant their requests, pointing out that the cost is far too great. In a stirring montage, ''every single person who made a wish''--including [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone Maxwell himself]]--recants their request, which undoes all of the damage and destroys the Dreamstone's abilities.]]

%% This section has been alphabetised. Please enter entries in alphabetical order.

* In ''Literature/ToKillAMockingbird'', Bob Ewell [[WouldHurtAChild attempts to knife Atticus Finch's children]] to get back at Finch, but [[spoiler:[[MisunderstoodLonerWithAHeartOfGold Boo Radley]] saves their lives, slaying Ewell in the process]].

%%* ''{{Series/Seinfeld}}''.
* Niki from ''Series/{{Heroes}}'', who aids the rest of the superpowered main characters in New York during the first season finale largely out of choice, and not because of any knowledge of who the villain, Sylar, is. She beats Sylar with a traffic meter, even though she had never met any of the heroes (except Nathan and Parkman) prior to the final fight. Or Sylar, for that matter. She meets bystander criteria by being little more than just a single mom, albeit with super strength.
* ''Series/PowerRangersInSpace'':
** A whole city of heroic bystanders appeared in the finale. The Big Bad has invaded the city, and threatens to destroy it if the Power Rangers don't show themselves. [[ThoseTwoGuys Bulk and Skull]], two comic relief characters that had varying roles throughout the series, step forward and [[IAmSpartacus identify themselves as Rangers, and the rest of the civilians follow their lead]]. This naturally pisses the villain off, but before she can order the city destroyed, the real Rangers announce their presence and morph, and begin to fight her horde of minions. Angel Grove's populace, ''[[Awesome/PowerRangersInSpace led by Bulk and Skull]]'', join the fray and help the Rangers successfully fight them off.
** Bulk and Skull do this frequently in all the seasons up to there as well. Their response to almost any minor monster or minion attack is to attack it head on, and despite their complete lack of skill being a frequent source of humor they often make a good showing of themselves, often by accidental DrunkenBoxing.
* One of the unique "hooks" in the very premise of the 60s spy series ''Series/TheManFromUNCLE'' was that in just about every episode the U.N.C.L.E. agents would be involved with an "innocent civilian" who would become a prime actor in the episode's plot. While sometimes these innocents would be persons persuaded by U.N.C.L.E. to assist them in their operations, in many episodes the innocent was just someone who happened to be around while Solo (usually) or Kuryakin was implementing the plot of the week, and thus got involved in U.N.C.L.E.'s operations as a Heroic Bystander.
* ''Series/{{Sherlock}}'': John's girlfriend, Sarah, fulfills this role in the second episode. She is on a date with John at the circus when Sherlock gets attacked by one of the company while poking about backstage in search of clues. When the fight escalates and bursts out onstage, Sarah grabs a random stick of some sort and beats the crap of out Sherlock's assailant, effectively taking the guy out of the fight and really helping Sherlock out, since he'd gotten knocked over and was lying on the floor at the time.
* In the ''Series/{{Lost}}'' episode "Greatest Hits," Charlie is recalling the best moments of his life as he sets out on a suicide mission. #2 is saving a woman from an attacker, and her subsequently declaring him a hero, because three other people had passed by without intervening, and especially because Charlie was terrified and not used to fighting. Coincidentally(?) she was Nadia, [[OneDegreeOfSeparation love of Sayid's life]].

** This is actually a very common trope in the [[Franchise/{{Whoniverse}} Doctor Who universe]] - so common that Davros even argued ''in-universe'' that everything the Doctor accomplishes is really just accomplished with the help of Heroic Bystanders.
* Marcy stopped a bank robbery on ''Series/MarriedWithChildren''.

* ''Series/Jericho2006'' practically ran on this. [[ProdigalHero Prodigal Son]] and self described "screw-up" Jake Green was the town savior for most of the show's run. Other characters like farmer Stanly Richmond and school teachers Emily and Heather got in on the act as well.
* A heroic [[IncrediblyLamePun by-''sitter'']] appears in the ''Series/{{Monk}}'' episode "[[EpisodeOnAPlane Mr. Monk and the Airplane.]]" As the title suggests, Monk and Sharona are taking a cross-country flight; immediately after boarding, Monk realizes that a fellow passenger has killed his wife and replaced her with a lookalike. Sharona is too busy flirting with Tim Daly (who is sitting in first-class) to pay attention, so Monk turns to the nearest available resource: Warren Beach, an extension cord salesman in the seat next to him. Warren listens to all of Monk's theories, and, in the end, even helps the detective take the murderer's shoes (which prove to be the key to solving the case) by offering him an extra-long extension cord.

** He leaves the station while on-air during episode 42. He is the [[GoodSamaritan only one who goes to help Fey]] after she announces her intention to escape her station, but when he gets there [[spoiler:she has already been rebooted and he can do nothing to help her]]. He also leaves the station during the special episode "Condos" to [[spoiler:save Carlos from the condo]].

* In a heroic combination of this, the UpgradeArtifact and taking a level in badass, Vent/Aile in ''VideoGame/MegaManZX'' start out exactly like this. Vent later comments that had he not saved Prairie in such a manner, he'd somehow regret it (despite the fact she's Giro's commander...)
* If Cole chooses the heroic path in ''VideoGame/{{inFamous}}'', the bystanders will gradually cheer him on until they start taking an active role in your defence of Empire City, hurling rocks at random mooks trying to take him down and providing a useful distraction. This is especially useful on the Dustmen who carry insulated riot shields, forcing them to turn sideways to block the pelting and offering you a critical opening to quickly take them down. If Cole takes the villainous route, mobs of civilians will form to throw rocks at ''you'' instead.

* In ''VideoGame/YuGiOhReshefOfDestruction'', when the Neo Ghouls attack Domino City, everyone is either panicking or losing badly to the thugs... except minor manga character Hanaski, who dresses up as the superhero Zombire to stop them. ''He actually manages to take one out''.
* In the ''VideoGame/{{Overwatch}}'' trailer, the older kid in the museum takes the power glove before it could be stolen by Widowmaker, and uses it to punch her across the exhibit before she turns her gun to his younger brother.

*** The episode "Trial" features Janet van Dorn, Gotham City's new D.A. and an outspoken critic of Batman's methods. Eventually, she and Batman are both kidnapped and taken to Arkham, where Batman's RoguesGallery forces the two of them into a deadly game: van Dorn must defend Batman on the charge of making the supervillians into criminals, with [[KangarooCourt said villains as the jury, and the Joker as judge]]. A guilty verdict means they both die, while a "not guilty" means they live. Though at first panicked, van Dorn proves her legal expertise by manipulating all of the villains on the witness stand into making confessions about their insanity, proving that Batman isn't to blame for their problems. Shockingly, the villains give Batman a not guilty verdict--only to [[ForegoneConclusion decide to kill them both anyway: after all, they're insane.]] Batman is trapped in a straitjacket, tied to an electric chair, and about to be unmasked by the Joker, which is when van Dorn gets to pull off ''another'' Heroic Bystander moment by throwing a batarang at the light hanging from the ceiling, plunging the room into darkness and allowing the Caped Crusader to escape. Batman himself thanks van Dorn for her help at the end of the episode.

** Another episode hilariously inverts this trope. The people of Townsville become so lazy and reliant on the Girls for everything--including changing light bulbs, scooping kitty litter, and, in the Professor's case, passing him the remote control because he doesn't want to get up--that they decide to take a break from saving the day. When another giant monster attacks the town, the citizens are completely unconcerned--but when the Girls tell them to solve the problem themselves, they panic, running around trying to escape the beast. Eventually, the monster gets tangled up in telephone wires, and the girls have to coach the populace in destroying it step by step; this proves difficult when the citizens cannot draw even extremely simple conclusions: when asked why putting a toaster in a bathtub is a bad idea, they respond, "Duh! [[ComicallyMissingThePoint Because then you'd have to go to the bathroom every time you wanted toast!"]] Highlights include the townspeople imagining they have superpowers, and one old man, trying to defeat the monster, suggesting, "[[ItMakesSenseInContext I could be soggy toast!]]"

* In October 2014, a drunken man at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport verbally attacked a nearby man--who did nothing more than wear a pink shirt--with homophobic slurs. Eventually, the drunk started physically assaulting the guy--and five people immediately jumped forward, tackling the man and holding him down until police officers could subdue him. Extra awesome points go to a man who ''fractured his ankle'' when diving to catch the homophobic man, but still remained in position until the guy was safely cuffed.
* In 1996, an African-American eighteen-year-old girl named Keshia Thomas joined a group of protesters at a Ku Klux Klan rally in Ann Arbor, Michigan. As they protested, they noticed that a White man in the crowd had an SS tattoo and was wearing a shirt emblazoned with a Confederate flag. The group turned ugly, accusing the man of being a Nazi, kicking him when he fell to the ground, and beating him with their signs. Thomas then jumped forward and shielded the man with her body, protecting him from their blows. Reporters were stunned by Thomas's actions, and she explained, "just because you beat somebody, doesn't mean you're going to change their mind."
* On Saturday July 18th in 2015, a Kansas City two-year-old girl was accidentally left in a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qtba14VwcfM locked, swelteringly hot car]]. A teenager noticed the child and began screaming for help; she and other passerby then tried to use whatever they could find--including a screwdriver and a chair--to break the car's window. After three minutes, a woman named Sarah Oropeza was able to rescue the child by repeatedly beating on and eventually shattering the glass with a tire iron.

* A famous World War II example: [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Ships_of_Dunkirk The Little Ships of Dunkirk]]. During the Battle of Dunkirk, over 300,000 British and French troops found themselves trapped on the shores of the beach where the fighting was happening; naval ships were too large to approach the shore, leaving the men stranded with no way of escaping. Winston Churchill himself realized that if the soldiers weren't saved, morale would sink to an all-time low and the Allied forces might very well lose the war. As such, the Navy put out a call for anyone who owned a small boat to join the cause. The result? Over ''eight hundred'' boats, including yachts, launches, sloops, pleasure boats, barges, and fishers were given up (although some were commandeered without getting permission first). The resulting rescue operation saved the lives of the trapped soldiers, became a rallying cry for the British--this was the origin of Churchill's famous "We shall fight on the beaches" speech--and has been credited as a major turning point in the war.

* ''WebComic/JoshAndImp'' is about a regular guy who ends up [[https://web.archive.org/web/20100723013323/http://www.jinxville.com/joshnimp/comic.htm saving a superhero sidekick's life]], so she asks him on a date. We never actually [[NoodleIncident see what Josh did]] and he doesn't remember since he was running on pure adrenaline, but apparently it involved beating up two men with a fire extinguisher and fleeing the building with Imp in his arms.

* This is what T. Campbell meant to portray in the actions of Rikk in the first storyline of ''{{Webcomic/Fans}}''
* ''Josh & Imp'' [[https://web.archive.org/web/20100723013323/http://www.jinxville.com/joshnimp/comic.htm]]

* ''ComicBook/JimmyOlsen'':

* ''Series/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit'': In one episode, a serial killer grabs a woman off the street. A passer-by jumps in to help the woman's boyfriend try to rescue her, but they're unsuccessful. {{Subverted|Trope}} as it turns out [[spoiler:the passer-by was actually the killer's accomplice who was just trying to get into the van. When the killer left him behind, he realized people thought he was being a Good Samaritan and decided to go along with it since it gave him an out.]]
** In another episode, a different serial killer attacks a young boy in a public bathroom. When the boy's father comes in, the serial killer goes after him too, and another man who just happeed to be there tries to get in between them. Unfortunately, the killer stabbed him and then went after the father anyway.
* ''Series/{{Jericho}}'': Practically ran on this [[ProdigalHero Prodigal Son]] and self described "screw-up" Jake Green was the town savior for most of the shows run. Other characters like farmer Stanly Richmond, school teachers Emily and Heather got in on the act as well.

* Li Tsung of ''{{Series/Longstreet}}''. In his first appearance, he saves Mike Longstreet from a gang of Long Shore-Men. Though it helps that he is played by Creator/BruceLee.
* In the ''Series/{{Supergirl 2015}}'' episode "Worlds Finest", the people of National City are still reeling from Supergirl's actions under the influence of red kryptonite and have lost faith in her. However, during the climactic showdown between Supergirl (with the assistance of [[Series/TheFlash2014 the Flash]]) and the evil duo of [[ShockAndAwe Livewire]] and [[MakeMeWannaShout Silver Banshee]], Supergirl prevents Livewire from shooting down a helicopter (which would've crashed down onto a crowd of innocents) by putting herself in the path of the blast. Seeing this, the people in the park rally around the Supergirl and prevent the villains from harming their heroine. Livewire and Silver Banshee are stopped by firefighters, who hose them down with water, shorting out Livewire and, by extension, Silver Banshee. Furthermore, thanks to Barry's experience with retrofitting the Iron Heights prison in his own world to contain metahumans, National City's prison is likewise retrofitted to be able to contain individuals with superpowers, allowing them to be handed over to the justice system.

* ''Film/{{Willow}}'': Ethna was just a midwife who was doing her job. The queen Bavmorda ordered a baby with a certain birthmark to be found and killed. Ethna delivered Elora, the baby that the queen feared. Ethna took the baby and fled, despite not having any personal stake or even connection to the child, she risked her life to get the child to safety and sends her down the river so the Queens dogs don't get her, they tear Ethna to pieces.

* In ''Film/AngelsAndDemons'', Langdon sees [[spoiler: Cardinal Baggia]] being dumped into the Fountain of the Four Rivers, tied to a weighted bed and gagged. Langdon jumps in to save him, but is unable to lift the bed on his own; he then surfaces, screaming, "Help, somebody!" before diving back down and finding an aerator in the fountain that grants the drowning man a little oxygen. At that point, Langdon feels a hand on his shoulder and discovers that a random bystander has leaped into the fountain as well; another man and a woman follow suit, and all four work to hoist the bed, saving [[spoiler: the cardinal]], while other people are on hand to move him to the ground.
* In ''Film/RedEye'', only one passenger notices that something is ''wrong'' about Rippner, or that he's threatening Lisa. At the end, when Lisa stabs Rippner and runs like hell, and Rippner jumps up to follow, this one passenger (not even a blip on Rippner's radar) tosses her suitcase into the aisle to trip him, buying Lisa a few precious extra seconds to get a head start. The kicker? [[LittleMissBadass This heroic passenger is maybe nine years old]].
* Toward the end of ''Film/WonderWoman1984'', the villainous [[WellIntentionedExtremist Maxwell Lord]] is overloading with power from the Dreamstone, which is [[PoweredByAForsakenChild fueled by the wishes of humans around the world.]] [[spoiler: Instead of fighting Maxwell, Diana calls upon the people of the Earth to recant their requests, pointing out that the cost is far too great. In a stirring montage, ''every single person who made a wish'' renounces it, which drains the Dreamstone of its strength and defeats Maxwell.]]

* ''Manga/RosarioToVampire'' S2: Fairy Tail kidnaps Mizore and threaten to annihilate ''her entire species'' if they fight back. So Tsurara asks for help from people who ''can'' fight the organization effectively, and supplies them with weapons. Sometimes heroism isn't about fighting evil, but helping the people who do.

* {{Creator/madsthenerdygirl}}'s ''Fanfic/MCURewrites'': In [[http://archiveofourown.org/works/6461902 this rewrite]] of Film/AvengersAgeOfUltron, during Ultron's attack on Sokovia, [[LittleMissBadass a little girl]] stands up to the killer robot by [[DidYouJustFlipOffCthulhu throwing a rock at one of his drones]].

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