History Main / KnowWhenToFoldEm

* In the [[Film/{{Watchmen}} film]] (and comic) ''ComicBook/{{Watchmen}}'', [[spoiler: when the villain dramatically reveals his evil plan, one by one the heroes accept that he is right that the only way they prevent the plan's success is by revealing it to the general public... which will save no one and possibly destroy the world. The final hero is a deontologist and so believes that people should be told the truth, no matter the cost. Naturally, he announces this to the villain. His death is swift[[hottip:*:though he pretty much invited the others to kill him because he also knew deep down that revealing the plan would do more harm than good, his absolute system of morals meant he would have to do it anyway]]. Everyone else Knew When To Fold Em -- they get to go home and mope.]]

* ''VideoGame/{{Portal 2}}'': [[spoiler: [=GLaDOS=] decides that she is so sick of Chell that she doesn't want to kill her anymore, just get her out of her life. So she grants Chell her freedom in the hope that she never comes back.]][[hottip:*: Technically, this is GLaDOS's rationalization for her actions. However, since she's passed up two perfect opportunities to kill Chell, one of which only required her not to reach out and save her, it's likely this is just GLaDOS's [[VitriolicBestBuds warped way of saying goodbye.]]

** The funny thing is, this was actually historically ''true'' at the Ancient Greek Olympics in boxing, wrestling and pankration (a hybrid sport, similar to modern UsefulNotes/MixedMartialArts). The match went on until one fighter surrendered, unless one of the fighters actually died, in which case the dead one ''won''--after all, you can't surrender if you're dead[[hottip:*:Moreover, since bouts could be really brutal and had very few rules, especially pankration, this gave the combatants an incentive to show some restraint]]. It's the same philosophy that informed the old warning of Spartan wives to their husbands: "Return with your shield, or on it!"--in other words, win (carrying your shield) or die (your body returned to Sparta atop your shield) but in no case surrender (throwing your shield away to beat a hastier retreat).

** [[{{SecondSino-JapaneseWar}} Japan's war on China]] was lost the moment they [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarII broadened it to include Britain and the USA]]. The Pacific War was won from the air and at sea, with the USA's island-hopping campaign being an accessory to the air-sea campaign and the ultimate culmination of thereof, [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Downfall ''Operation Downfall'']]. 'Entire armies' is a spot of hyperbole - what Americans of the time considered a battle, and an army, was rather small for a start[[hottip:*: the 1944 Battle of Iwo Jima involved 22 000 Japanese defenders & 70 000+ US attackers, and the 1944 Battle of the Bulge involved 600 000 Anglo-American troops & 300 000 Germans; by way of contrast the Fourth (1944) Battle of Changsha involved over 300 000 Japanese & 300 000 Guomindang troops and the 1944 Battle of Kursk involved 900 000 German & 2 500 000 Soviet soldiers.]] - and only small, desperate and usually starving elements of those Japanese forces did that to die in battle and avoid capture.

* ''AllStarSuperman'': This is Superman's answer to the riddle of the Ultra-Sphinx.

** The Gaang convince LaResistance after Omashu fell that living to fight another day would be better, and they help get the civilians out of the town.

* In ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'', [[BrilliantButLazy Shikamaru]] shows his knowledge of this trope during the Chunin Exam arc. He fought Temari and appeared to have her beaten, then gave up at the last minute.

* Tragically ''averted'' by both sides in UsefulNotes/WorldWarI, especially in the first three calendar years (1914-16), when NOBODY knew how to quit. It nearly broke the French, reduced the Germans from the finest army on Earth to a mass of conscripts, and scratched the British Empire's can-do spirit of optimism raw. ''Subverted'' in 1918, as both sides were well aware that Germany had one more good throw of the dice — '''but one only''' — and that whoever won (or, in the Allies' case, didn't lose) the battles of the March Offensive would wreck the opposing side and win the war.

* A ''Series/DoctorWho'' short story involves an alien invasion arrive on Earth, notice a police box on the street corner, realize that this is the calling card of the Doctor, who has a history of soundly defeating alien invaders like themselves, and wisely decide to get the hell out of Dodge as fast as possible. It's subverted; it turns out that the police box isn't the TARDIS but an ''actual'' police box, and the Doctor's nowhere around.

Know when to [[TropeNamer fold 'em]]\\

Know when to [[RunOrDie run]]''

The TropeNamer is the Kenny Rogers song "The Gambler," which uses poker as a metaphor for life.

* In an episode of ''DigimonAdventure02'', Takeru successfully convinces all but one of the Chosen group to make a strategic withdrawal. Subverted when Daisuke, the one who isn't convinced, succeeds despite ignoring the logic, but only through [[BrokenAesop pure dumb luck.]]
** As the goggle-headed HotBlooded protagonist, "defy all logic and win via pure plot convenience" is basically Davis/Daisuke's ''job description.'' Tai, Takuya, and Marcus would approve. (DigimonTamers' place on the [[SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism Sliding Scale]] meant it did things a little differently.) Also [[http://www.mangafox.com/manga/digimon_adventure_v_tamer_01/v04/c028.5/4.html apparent]] in the IntercontinuityCrossover with the AlternateUniverse manga '[[WordSaladTitle Digimon Adventure V-Tamer 01]]''. Not even getting cautioned by both Takeru and Hikari dissuades him from taking rash action. Gets funny [[http://www.mangafox.com/manga/digimon_adventure_v_tamer_01/v04/c028.5/13.html later]] when the alternate universe version of Taichi, Daisuke's role model, has the sense to immediately retreat when faced with an enemy he has difficulty defeating -- much to the shock and disgruntlement of Daisuke.
* In ''[[RanmaHalf Ranma ½]]'' this is known as the Saotome Secret Technique, employed by the Saotome School of Anything-Goes Martial Arts. It relies on speed, obfuscation, and contemplation. Or, put more plainly, run away and hide until you come up with a better plan. While introduced mostly as a joke early on, this is actually Ranma's most useful skill, as most of his fights are won less through sheer skill (Having just learned [[MartialArtsAndCrafts how to fight with teacups and teaspoons a few days ago]]), and more through outsmarting his opponents.
* Similar to the one above, in the manga Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure, [[http://mangable.com/jojos_bizarre_adventure/chapter-50/15/ Joseph final super special plan]] [[http://mangable.com/jojos_bizarre_adventure/chapter-50/16/ consists of basically making the best use of his legs]]. In other words, [[http://mangable.com/jojos_bizarre_adventure/chapter-50/17/ to run the hell away]]. He usually comes up with a better plan while he's at it. It also seems to be hereditary.

* In ''OnePiece'', Luffy decides to order his crew to focus only on running away when facing [[HopelessBossFight Admiral Kizaru, Sentoumaru and Bartholomew Kuma]], after having already exhausted themselves beating one of the latter mere moments earlier. Although not their first defeat, this is the first time they've ever run away from a fight.
* In the ''Anime/{{Pokemon}}'' anime, it is stated on numerous occasions that it is a trainer's duty to end the battle if there is any serious danger to their Pokémon (the first battles with Brock, Sabrina, and Blaine all ended in this fashion). However, this is pretty much a BrokenAesop as Ash will [[{{Determinator}} determinate]] himself through anything, even winning one badge when Pryce forfeited despite Ash ignoring the option to do the same earlier.

** Recently, the ''Team Rocket trio'' has actually began doing this. When things start going too far south, they get the heck of there instead of fighting until they're sent blasting off. It's worked much better for them.

* Early on in ''{{Eyeshield 21}}'', Monta learns that it's okay to give up playing baseball because he's just bad at it and find a sport he can be good at instead. Forfeiting the match against the Hakushuu Dinosaurs is also the reason Taiyo Sphinx quarterback Kiminari Harao is still walking properly; If he had kept the game going, the Dinosaurs' monstrous Rikiya Gaou would've definitely crippled him. The Sphinx had no other option but to forfeit as ''they had no linemen left.''

* Similarly, an ep of ''OjamajoDoremi'' has perennial athlete Aiko give up her spot to Hazuki in a swim relay. [[spoiler:Despite Hazuki taking the lead, [[DiabolusExMachina she cramps in the homestretch.]]]]
* When Chrono and Rosete of ''ChronoCrusade'' are ambushed by an enemy, Chrono tells Rosette urgently that they have to retreat. Rosette--being a {{Determinator}}--argues with him, shouting "Why are you saying we should give up?!" [[spoiler:She then grabs his arm as he tries to take her away. This distracts him and gives their opponent a chance to shoot at Chrono, nearly killing him. Things only go downhill from there.]]
* One of the big Aesops of ''InfiniteRyvius''.
* Simon from ''TengenToppaGurrenLagann'' is an insanely BadAss {{Determinator}}, but is rational enough to walk away from a fight once he's exhausted every other option. This is the principal difference between him and Kamina.
* ''CodeGeass'' - One of Lelouch Lamperouge's flaws is his inability to back down. This stems from a personal variation on the Sunken Costs Fallacy (see below): if he doesn't achieve his goals, then all the people who died aiding him will have their deaths rendered meaningless. That, and he simply refuses to accept defeat.

* Knowing when he no longer has anything to gain by continuing to fight is one of the things that makes Neo Roanoke one of the most effective tacticians in ''MobileSuitGundamSEEDDestiny''.
** One of his subordinates, [[OnlySaneMan Sting Oakley]] is this to the rest of the [[{{Tykebomb}} Extended]] trio. [[AxeCrazy Auel]] and [[PsychopathicManchild Stella]] will fight to the end, but Sting is smart enough to know when the battle is going against them, and typically bails soon afterwards, taking the other two with him.
* The "Unknown Enemy" of ''GundamAGE'' don't bother fighting battles they know they can't win. Only once has an entire UE attack force been wiped out in the course of a battle, and that's because they were blindsided by two extremely powerful mobile suits they had no way of predicting. In every other case, they've retreated the moment the battle started going against them.

* [[DiscussedTrope Discussed]] by Reinhard von Lohengramm in ''LegendOfGalacticHeroes'', where he told his attendant that first-rate commanders are commanders who at least knows when to retreat, although he himself never needed to retreat, since he always enters the battlefield with overwhelming advantages (except in one occasion).

* The majority of the characters in ''{{Sekirei}}'' are members of a ProudWarriorRace, and enjoy a [[BloodKnight good]] [[SpiritedCompetitor fight]]. This makes {{AntiVillain}}s Mutsu and Akitsu noteworthy for their willingness to run from a fight. Unlike other Sekirei that flee because they're [[RedShirt hopelessly outmatched]], both are established as being among the most powerful fighters. Instead, they're simply pragmatic enough to see when a situation is unfavorable or a waste of time and too busy [[CloudcuckoolandersMinder keeping their master]] safe.

-->'''Ultra-Sphinx''': "Question: What happens when the Unstoppable Force meets the Inmoveable Object?"\\

* Both Romans and Pirates in the {{Asterix}} comics give up fighting at some point. The pirates are infamous for [[TakeAThirdOption sinking their own ship]] once they realise there are gauls on the other vessel and they can't run away fast enough.
* At least twice Marvel comics has used the schtick that an alien force is intent on invading Earth only for one person doing the research to realize they are trying to invade a planet that has defended itself successfully, multiple times, against other invading aliens, multiple galactic empires (''at the same time''), cosmic entities no one else in the universe has ever managed to even slow down, and is home to entities capable of eating stars, assorted deities, and a Watcher who thinks the planet rocks so much he's actually done stuff instead of merely observing. One time the fleet commander listens and does a u-turn. Another, not so much. The invasion is defeated by three X-Men (one of them drunk).

* This is a part of what has always made DoctorDoom such a capable antagonist. Unlike most supervillains, Doom can recognise when the plan has gone south and it's time to leave. Yeah, Reed Richards is still alive, and you don't have what you came here for. It doesn't matter. It's time to go. Long before he had his diplomatic immunity, Doom regularly got away by having planned his escape in advance, and leaving the minute he was in danger of being surrounded.
* [[ComicBook/FantasticFour Reed Richards]] once contacted an alien invasion fleet right before they were about to attack Earth. In the middle of introducing himself, the aliens realized who he was (the supergenius leader of the group that has foiled other alien invasions and Galactus himself) and wisely got the hell away from Earth.

* In the JackieChanAdventures fic ''Fanfic/QueenOfAllOni'', in the latest story chapter, Jade, being DangerouslyGenreSavvy, leaves when it is clear the heroes are on their way, as she has what she came for.

* Subverted in ''WarGames'', when Stephen Falken says, "Now, children, come on over here. I'm going to tell you a bedtime story. Are you sitting comfortably? Then I'll begin. Once upon a time, there lived a magnificent race of animals that dominated the world through age after age. They ran, they swam, and they fought and they flew, until suddenly, quite recently, they disappeared. Nature just gave up and started again. We weren't even apes then. We were just these smart little rodents hiding in the rocks. And when we go, nature will start over. With the bees, probably. Nature knows when to give up, David." He claims that the computer he built will not realize in time, as humanity hadn't, that it is impossible to win a Thermonuclear war. [[spoiler:Eventually, he is convinced to help avert the crisis, and the computer learns the nature of acceptable futility through being unable to win millions of perfect-play games of Tic-Tac-Toe and nuclear war scenarios]].

* Danny [=DeVito's=] great counter-speech to Gregory Peck's more idealistic plea in ''OtherPeoplesMoney''. "We're dead all right. We're just not broke. And you know the surest way to go broke? Keep getting an increasing share of a shrinking market. Down the tubes. Slow but sure."
* [[spoiler: Duncan and Charlie]] in ''MysteryTeam''.
* In ''CaptainAmericaTheFirstAvenger'', the Red Skull activates the self-destruct measures in his base and prepares to flee when he realizes that the prisoners are revolting and are being led by Captain America. When Zola questions his actions, he responds by simply stating that their forces are outmatched.
* In ''Film/TheAvengers'', [[spoiler:after recovering from his brutal beatdown by the Hulk and when cornered by the rest of the heroes, Loki simply asks [[IronMan Tony Stark]] [[INeedAFreakingDrink for that drink he offered earlier]].]]
* Joe Buck does this with his dream of being a "hustler" in the final scene of ''MidnightCowboy''. On the way to Miami, he disposes of his cowboy outfits and later admits to his friend Ratso that his experience in New York taught him that he was never cut out to be a man-whore (at least not a successful one), and resolves to find honest work as soon as they arrive. [[TearJerker Sadly,]] Ratso never hears him, because [[spoiler:he's just died]].
* Film/IronMan3: After Tony has killed several random goons, he turns to the last one and:
--> '''Mook:''' "Honestly, I hate working here; ''they are so weird.''" ''(takes out magazine and runs)''

* ''DealOrNoDeal'' is a big example of knowing when it is a good time to stop and take the banker's offer. Far too often there will be contestants that will keep turning down offers and keep playing, even if they knock off every big prize amount on the board. This is a common fallacy in people that believe if they already gone this far, they might as well keep going to the end and try to get the big prize no matter how much they have lost. Once in a while, you will see players that wise up and cut their losses by taking the money that is offered instead of pushing their luck.

* Creator/DianaWynneJones's ''Literature/CharmedLife'' has a garden that stays the same distance away no matter how long you travel towards it. It is bespelled so as to be inaccessible to people trying to reach it, so those trying to enter only suceeded when they had given up on doing so.
* ''ASeriesOfUnfortunateEvents''

* ''Literature/TheHuntForRedOctober'': the Soviet admiral orders the fleet to avoid harrassing the Americans after a heavy cruiser is subjected to a false attack. He knows the Soviet navy is wasting time that is needed to find the Red October and will be destroyed if the Americans decide to attack for real. The American admiral later says: "they make the first move, we up the ante, they just plain fold."
* TimothyZahn has a few characters who do this. In ''TheThrawnTrilogy'', Thrawn knows when a battle has been lost and, unlike [[CardCarryingVillain most Imperial commanders]], withdraws without wasting his men - sure, [[WeHaveReserves he's got reserves]], but why spend them without a need? Pellaeon, back during the Battle of Endor, had found himself to be the highest-ranked survivor and had ordered the retreat. And of course during the ''HandOfThrawn'' duology, Pellaeon was the one to look at his [[VestigialEmpire Imperial Remnant]] and decide to [[PeaceConference make peace with the NewRepublic]], ending the war.

* A continuing theme in Kelley Armstrong's ''[[TheOtherworld Women of the Otherworld]]'' series is that sometimes you have to abandon an ambition in order to achieve other ambitions and/or live a fulfilling life. The main character of "Bitten", the first book, spends her character development deciding which of her conflicting desires to pursue and which to abandon. In later books, the trope is more subtle, but still reoccurs often.
* This is the hat of the Raven Guard in Warhammer 40,000. In the Horus Heresy novel ''Deliverance Lost'', Corax specifically states that because his legion is smaller than the others, they would not survive a mass frontal assault on the traitor forces, and must rely on hit and run attacks
* In the StarTrekExpandedUniverse novel ''Kobayashi Maru'', this is essentially Sulu's resolution. He decides the whole thing is a trap and elects not to enter the Neutral Zone.
* ''Sisterhood'' series by FernMichaels: Owen Orzell in ''Home Free'' knew that he had no chance of winning once the Vigilantes caught him. As bonus points, he reveals that he gambles, tries to be very careful not to get addicted, and so he would clearly understand this trope very well.

* Practically a catchphrase of Commander Adama in the revived ''Series/{{Battlestar Galactica|Reimagined}}''. In the miniseries pilot Roslin convinces Adama that retaking The Colonies is hopeless, and their best hope is to escort humanity's survivors somewhere safe from the Cylons. In ''You Can't Go Home Again'', Adama is forced to concede that the search and rescue mission for Starbuck is hopeless. And in ''Lay Down Your Burdens'' Lee makes the point that 2 ships with skeleton crews cannot hope to hold off a Cylon invasion fleet.
** Also in the revived ''Battlestar Galactica'', the reason Tom Zarek was such a thorn in Roslin & Adama's side for all four seasons, is that he recognized when he shouldn't overextend himself, and was simply smart enough to quit while he was relatively ahead. For example he wanted to assassinate Roslin outside the Tomb of Athena, but once Commander Adama and his men showed up he realized it was too risky and simply dropped the plan. One of Zarek's goons even urges that they go through with it anyway, but Zarek cites this trope...the goon tries on his own initiative, and gets killed.

* Oddly, ''FullHouse'' once used AnAesop very similar to this. Stephanie works hard to prepare for a school SpellingBee. She doesn't just lose, she doesn't even get her first word right ("mnemonic"). Not willing to admit to being second-best, she challenges the winner to a private match. She loses again, on another word with a silent letter ("sarsaparilla"). The Aesop: "It's okay to lose, because no matter how good you get at something, there will [[AlwaysABiggerFish always be someone else who is better]]."
** And that words with silent letters are tricky.
* Master Vile in ''Series/MightyMorphinPowerRangers''. He actually realized fairly quickly that he wasn't going to beat the PowerRangers, and he'd be better off cutting his losses and going home to his galaxy, where [[GenreSavvy evil always wins]]. It can just as easily come off as him acting like a kid who throws a fit and goes home in frustration.

* In Series/CanadasWorstDriver, two drivers (Jason from Season Three and Mike from Season Five) gave up driving for good. Aaron from Season Seven came in ready to do so too [[spoiler: as it turned out, he didn't have to.]]

* In ''FootrotFlats'', the Dog is trying to watch the farm while his owner is away, leading to many WhatWouldXDo questions. When a situation involving many, many stinging insects arises, it turns out Wal would...hide in the outhouse with the newspaper until they go away.

* A possible Aesop in the classic play, ''DeathOfASalesman'', where Willy Loman is told in so many words that he should give up his misguided dream of being a popular salesman and find a better life. This is further reinforced by the fact that the play makes it obvious he would have been far more happy and successful as a construction tradesman.

* VideoGame/{{Portal 2}}: [[spoiler: [=GLaDOS=] decides that she is so sick of Chell that she doesn't want to kill her anymore, just get her out of her life. So she grants Chell her freedom in the hope that she never comes back.]][[hottip:*: Technically, this is GLaDOS's rationalization for her actions. However, since she's passed up two perfect opportunities to kill Chell, one of which only required her not to reach out and save her, it's likely this is just GLaDOS's [[VitriolicBestBuds warped way of saying goodbye.]]
* Parodied in VideoGame/PokerNightAtTheInventory. When [[VideoGame/TeamFortress2 The Heavy]] is knocked out of the tournament, he will occasionally reference a well-known song from [[GloriousMotherRussia his homeland]]: "You must know when to hold on to your cards, and you must know when to burn them in fire. Because if you lose, you bring insufferable shame to Republic, and are sent to a work camp in forest."

* ''{{Goblins}}'' - When [[http://www.goblinscomic.com/04262011/ facing]] [[http://www.goblinscomic.com/04292011/ down]] [[EldritchAbomination Mr. Fingers]], [[FailOSuckyname Dies Horribly]] is [[LovableCoward perhaps better equipped]] to make a [[OhCrap strategic]] [[AttackAttackRetreatRetreat determination]] than [[HonorBeforeReason Grem.]]

* Phase, of the WhateleyUniverse, handles power mimic Counterpoint by avoiding fighting him, so the power mimic doesn't get Phase's powers. [[spoiler: It turns out in another book that Phase does have a way of fighting a power mimic, but it's ''lethal''.]]

** Same goes for the Firelord himself, who knows that an invasion is planned and that he and his guards will be severly weakened during the eclipse. So he decides to [[spoiler:not be in his throne room. And not in his secret bunker either. Instead he hides in a second secret bunker and sit the whole thing out.]]

* ''WesternAnimation/WinxClub'' has a textbook example of the dissonance between going down fighting and Knowing When To Fold Them: Timmy is threatening the Trix (pillaging a Codex from Red Fountain) with his weapon... until he realizes that the Trix are ''much'' more powerful than he is, and decides that he's better off figuring out a way to defeat them later. Tecna sees this and calls him a coward for not fighting. However, [=4K=] simply discards this issue and replaces it with an anti-violence spell. [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-qq4L-y01Ns Video.]]

* ''HeyArnold'' plays this card a few times:
** "Phoebe Takes the Fall" has Helga making Phoebe throw the qualifier for a citywide academic bowl so she can get a chance to one-up her much-accomplished sister for once. After long and hard studying, mostly with Phoebe, she has a nightmare where Arnold confronts her during the quiz to ask her why she's competing instead of Phoebe. She [[LampshadeHanging lampshades]] the dream before dismissing it... but ends up feeling guilty for nipping Phoebe's chances in the bud and has Phoebe compete anyway. [[spoiler:Despite being training-free, Phoebe wins, and on the very same question Helga's sister had missed, too.]]

* WesternAnimation/TransformersPrime gives us Silas, head of the terrorist organization M.E.C.H. He's made no secret his desire to obtain Cybertronian tech for his own ends. However, if it looks as if the tide of battle is turning against him, he has no problem ordering a strategic withdrawal, happy to use what information he's gleaned for the next encounter. It's notable that Optimus Prime compares him to Megatron.
* In ''WesternAnimation/BatmanMysteryOfTheBatwoman''. A goon walks in as Batman is snooping around. When all the other mooks would attack Batman and get their butts handed to them, he [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pMd4S-LkywI brilliantly decides to just close the door and pretend that he did not see him]].

* The SovietUnion implemented the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinatra_Doctrine Sinatra Doctrine]] when the Eastern Bloc nations began showing greater independence in the 1980's. The [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politburo politburo]] was dealing with economic problems and could not risk an internal uprising.

** The funny thing is, this was actually historically ''true'' at the Ancient Greek Olympics in boxing, wrestling and pankration (a hybrid sport, similar to modern MixedMartialArts). The match went on until one fighter surrendered, unless one of the fighters actually died, in which case the dead one ''won''--after all, you can't surrender if you're dead[[hottip:*:Moreover, since bouts could be really brutal and had very few rules, especially pankration, this gave the combatants an incentive to show some restraint]]. It's the same philosophy that informed the old warning of Spartan wives to their husbands: "Return with your shield, or on it!"--in other words, win (carrying your shield) or die (your body returned to Sparta atop your shield) but in no case surrender (throwing your shield away to beat a hastier retreat).
* Regarding the TropeNamer, in {{poker}}, to "fold" is to pitch in your cards, conceding defeat and avoiding any further rounds of betting. If you don't know when to fold, you will lose all your chips/money betting on bad hands. It is sometimes best to fold even when you literally have an ace in the hole (i.e., in the hidden part of your hand). After all, even two aces in the hole can be beat by a pair of deuces on the table...if your opponent holds a ''third'' deuce.
* Blend an inability to do this with YouFailLogicForever and you get the SunkCostFallacy. "I can't give up now, I've already invested far too much in this!" The fallacy being to not realise that while winning it back is one possible outcome, losing just as much again, or even more, is another. You need to work out the relative probabilities, which is why poker is such a good analogy.
* Exhibited by large portions German military in the last weeks of the European part of WorldWarTwo.

** Germany as a whole, to some extent, in WorldWarOne. They sued for an armistice while still occupying almost all of Belgium and a good chunk of northeastern France. They had the good sense to quit before their own territory was invaded. [[WorldWarTwo Too bad they learned exactly the wrong lesson from this.]]

* Tragically ''averted'' by both sides in WorldWarOne, especially in the first three calendar years (1914-16), when NOBODY knew how to quit. It nearly broke the French, reduced the Germans from the finest army on Earth to a mass of conscripts, and scratched the British Empire's can-do spirit of optimism raw. ''Subverted'' in 1918, as both sides were well aware that Germany had one more good throw of the dice — '''but one only''' — and that whoever won (or, in the Allies' case, didn't lose) the battles of the March Offensive would wreck the opposing side and win the war.

* The abhorrence of this trope was actually one of the reasons why ImperialJapan lost faster in WWII. Since the Imperial Japanese military [[HonorBeforeReason defined honor as "do not surrender, ever,"]] they wasted [[WeHaveReserves entire armies]] in [[ZergRush suicidal headlong rushes]] at American positions. Yes, it made life for the American forces hell, but it depleted the Japanese forces far faster than it would have had they opted for hit-and-run tactics and allowed their men to retreat and regroup. But after two cities of the homeland being completely destroyed by a single bomb each, even the Emperor had to admit that the war ''"[[{{Understatement}} has turned out not necessarily in our favor]]"''. Worse, the Soviets were fast approaching their back door, and their analysis showed that surrender to the Americans would probably put them in better post-war conditions. And even then elements in the military [[StupidEvil attempted a coup d'etat to force the Japanese government into continuing to the death because of the stubborn pride they called honor]].
** [[SecondSinoJapaneseWar Japan's war on China]] was lost the moment they [[WorldWarTwo broadened it to include Britain and the USA]]. The Pacific War was won from the air and at sea, with the USA's island-hopping campaign being an accessory to the air-sea campaign and the ultimate culmination of thereof, [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Downfall ''Operation Downfall'']]. 'Entire armies' is a spot of hyperbole - what Americans of the time considered a battle, and an army, was rather small for a start[[hottip:*: the 1944 Battle of Iwo Jima involved 22 000 Japanese defenders & 70 000+ US attackers, and the 1944 Battle of the Bulge involved 600 000 Anglo-American troops & 300 000 Germans; by way of contrast the Fourth (1944) Battle of Changsha involved over 300 000 Japanese & 300 000 Guomindang troops and the 1944 Battle of Kursk involved 900 000 German & 2 500 000 Soviet soldiers.]] - and only small, desperate and usually starving elements of those Japanese forces did that to die in battle and avoid capture.

----

* The NoEnding (except for that of the main plot) of the last ''ASeriesOfUnfortunateEvents'' book. Sorry, [[TheChrisCarterEffect you'll never (ever) get all the answers]], just accept it as it is...

* IronMan3: After Tony has killed several random goons, he turns to the last one and:

** He uses it again in the series finale. Smokey was ''not'' amused.

** In the Finnish version, the judges decided to let one contestant go, because there was absolutely nothing they could do to help him.

* In 1992 there were three automakers competing in IMSA GTP races: Nissan (who had won on points the past four seasons), Jaguar, and Toyota. Each entered a relatively new car: the NPT-90 for Nissan, the XJR-14 for Jaguar, and the Eagle Mk III for Toyota. The Toyota won 9 of 13 races in 1992 and 10 of 11 in 1993 (the only one it didn't win in 1993 being one in which it was not entered) including a streak of 17 consecutive wins over the two seasons and a streak of 7 consecutive races where the two Toyotas entered came in first and second. After 1993 all of the other competitors decided enough was enough and abandoned the series, resulting in the entire IMSA GTP category being discontinued.

* In 1992 there were three automakers competing in IMSA GTP races: Nissan (who had won on points the past four seasons), Jaguar, and Toyota. Each entered a relatively new car: the NPT-90 for Nissan, the XJR-14 for Jaguar, and the Eagle MkIII for Toyota. The Toyota won 9 of 13 races in 1992 and 10 of 11 in 1993 (the only one it didn't win in 1993 being one in which it was not entered) including a streak of 17 consecutive wins over the two seasons and a streak of 7 consecutive races where the two Eagle MkIIIs entered came in first and second. After 1993 all of the other competitors decided enough was enough and abandoned the series, resulting in the entire IMSA GTP category being discontinued.

* Joe Buck does this with his dream of being a "hustler" in the final scene of ''MidnightCowboy''. On the way to Miami, he disposes of his cowboy outfits and later admits to his friend Ratso that his experience in New York taught him that he was never cut out to be a man-whore (at least not a successful one), and announces his intention to find honest work as soon as they arrive. [[TearJerker Sadly,]] Ratso never hears him, because [[spoiler:he's just died]].

* Joe Buck does this with his dream of being a "hustler" in the final scene of ''MidnightCowboy''. On the way to Miami, he disposes of his cowboy outfits and later admits to his [[spoiler:unknowingly deceased]] friend Ratso that his experience in New York taught him that he was never cut out to be a man-whore (at least not a successful one), and announces his intention to find honest work as soon as they arrive.

** As the goggle-headed HotBlooded protagonist, "defy all logic and win via pure plot convenience" is basically Davis/Daisuke's ''job description.'' Tai, Takuya, and Marcus would approve. (DigimonTamers' place on the [[SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism Sliding Scale]] meant it did things a little differently.) Also [[http://www.mangafox.com/manga/digimon_adventure_v_tamer_01/v04/c028.5/4.html apparent]] in the IntercontinuityCrossover with the AlternateUniverse manga '[[WordSaladTitle Digimon Adventure V-Tamer 01]]''. Not even getting cautioned by both Takeru and Hikari dissuades him from taking rash action. Gets funny [[http://www.mangafox.com/manga/digimon_adventure_v_tamer_01/v04/c028.5/13.html later]] when the alternate universe version of Taichi, Diasuke's role model, has the sense to immediately retreat when faced with an enemy he has difficulty defeating -- much to the shock and disgruntlement of Daisuke.

** Of course, at that point the Russians could have won because the United States' missile system was crippled by a computer that wouldn't "play".
*** [[CompletelyMissingThePoint Yes, I suppose they could have.]] Plus, WOPR only controlled the ICBM's, not the SLBM's or the bombers. It's a triad for a reason.

* In ''[[Literature/AliceInWonderland Through the Looking Glass]]'', Alice can't get to the hills where the chess game is being played. She keeps on getting stuck at the house again. Then she tries to find the house, and finds herself on the hill.

* Would you believe that the film version of ''[[TheLordOfTheRings The Return of the King]]'' contained this during its production? Peter Jackson's crew, to make filming the large-scale war scenes easier without requiring thousands of extras on hand, developed software that rendered virtual armies that would act out their simulated battles, complete with an A.I. which would cause each unit to "think" independently and decide the best course of action. Unfortunately, for those opposing Sauron's forces, their A.I. worked too well -- so hopelessly outnumbered, all of the soldiers fighting on the Fellowship's side turned tail and ran as soon as the battles started.
** Urban legend, actually. The more prosaic tale is that the individuals were programmed to charge to their front and engage whatever enemy they met; however, a large number of troops spawned facing in the wrong direction, and so charged off looking for foes where there were none...
*** Which should've been obvious because currently there are no AI in games capable of actually recognizing tactical advantage or disadvantage beyond the simplest numerical tally or immediate direct combat. The idea that they could develop one with current existing level of AI and that they would attempt to do so just for the movie is extremely far fetched to say the least.