History Main / LastGraspAtLife

* After {{Car Fu}}ing several pursuing vehicles in the opening ChaseScene of ''TheRoadwarrior'', Max dismounts from his vehicle only to be startled by a sudden scream, and see a hand grasping in the middle of the wreckage before its owner expires. ''MadMaxBeyondThunderdome'' has the FlippingTheBird version when [[TheDragon Ironbar]] is killed at the end of the movie.

* Subverted in ''Film/{{Terminator}} 2'', as Arnie signs off being lowered into the crucible with the thumbs-up taught to him by Connor.

* The ''Film/{{Terminator}}'' scene gets parodied in Lobo comics - while sinking in quick drying cement, Lobo (modified into a robocopesque cyborg at that time) uses his last gesture to give everyone a finger.

* In one of the death scenes of the Giant Statue stage on ''BrainDead13'', after Lance falls into the AcidPool under the collapsing ground tile, which flies and lands back into the acid and crushes him, the camera cuts down to a close-up of his hands rising and clutching one tile as he tries in vain to pull himself out of the acid before one of them twitches and then becomes still.

* This is (supposedly) the origin of the phrase "grasping at straws". It comes from the idea that a drowning person would (if they have no means of rescue and can't swim) try to pull themselves back to the surface by grabbing straws floating on it. A related trope is the old belief that a drowning person would manage to resurface three times before finally succumbing. Hence "going down for the third time" as a way of saying this was the end. Old BugsBunny cartoons would often have a hand coming up from the water displaying 1, 2, 3 on its fingers before going down for the last time.

See also FutileHandReach, which is more likely to be executed by a witness to the death.

* In ''Literature/{{Nation}}'', First Mate Cox [[LastBreathBullet raises his gun]] one last time as he's sinking into the lagoon [[EverythingsEvenWorseWithSharks full of sharks]].

* In one of the death scenes of the Giant Statue stage on ''BrainDead13'', after Lance falls into the AcidPool under the collapsing ground tiles, the camera pans down to a close-up of his hands rising and clutching one tile as he tries in vain to pull himself out of the acid before they separate from his crumbling body.

* Towards the end of Tim Burton's ''SleepyHollow'', Lady van Tassel is [[DraggedOffToHell dragged to hell]] by the Hessian through the [[{{Hellgate}} Tree of the Dead]]. All that remains of her in the physical world is her hand, which sticks out of the tree.

* In ''Nomads of Literature/{{Gor}}'' the BigBad uses a living pool, "The Yellow Pool of Turia," as his preferred method of execution. He keeps it in a hothouse where there are vines growing around which he can manipulate via remote control so they're closer or further from the victim, to torture them by making them think they could grab a vine and pull themselves out. "I have even seen them reach for vines a spear's length above their head and think they could reach them!" [[ChekhovsGun Naturally]] this comes back to bite him in the ass during the climax.

* Common in card art for ''MagicTheGathering''. Examples include [[http://magiccards.info/vi/en/166.html Quicksand]] and [[http://magiccards.info/m11/en/78.html Unsummon]].

* In ''Disney/{{Aladdin}}'', Jafar's hand is the last thing to disappear into the lamp, reaching out to take Iago with him. Because if you're going to spend eternity in an oil lamp, you want Gilbert Gottfried in there with you.
* RealLife: This is (supposedly) the origin of the phrase "grasping at straws". It comes from the idea that a drowning person would (if they have no means of rescue and can't swim) try to pull themselves back to the surface by grabbing straws floating on it. A related trope is the old belief that a drowning person would manage to resurface three times before finally succumbing. Hence "going down for the third time" as a way of saying this was the end. Old BugsBunny cartoons would often have a hand coming up from the water displaying 1, 2, 3 on its fingers before going down for the last time.
* In ''Nomads of Literature/{{Gor}}'' the BigBad uses a living pool, "The Yellow Pool of Turia," as his preferred method of execution. He keeps it in a hothouse where there are vines growing around which he can manipulate via remote control so they're closer or further from the victim, to torture them by making them think they could grab a vine and pull themselves out. "I have even seen them reach for vines a spear's length above their head and think they could reach them!" [[ChekhovsGun Naturally]] this comes back to bite him in the ass during the climax.
* Thrax dies in this way in ''OsmosisJones''. The last part of him to go is his index finger, which is his signature weapon, bursting cells upon contact.

* In ''WesternAnimation/FlushedAway'', when Rita's boat, the Jammy Dodger, sinks in a whirlpool, the last thing she sees is its mechanical arm giving a farewell salute.
* TheStinger of ''VideoGame/MetroidPrime'' shows Dark Samus' hand reach out of the remains of the titular Metroid Prime. And [[EyesDoNotBelongThere the eye on the back of her hand]] [[EyeOpen opens.]]
* In ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess Twilight Princess]]'', If Link falls into lava or quicksand, he'll sink down into it, with just his hand reaching up before he respawns.
* In ''{{Nation}}'', First Mate Cox [[LastBreathBullet raises his gun]] one last time as he's sinking into the lagoon [[EverythingsEvenWorseWithSharks full of sharks]].

* In ''FlushedAway'', when Rita's boat, the Jammy Dodger, sinks in a whirlpool, the last thing she sees is its mechanical arm giving a farewell salute.
* TheStinger of ''MetroidPrime'' shows Dark Samus' hand reach out of the remains of the titular Metroid Prime. And [[EyesDoNotBelongThere the eye on the back of her hand]] [[EyeOpen opens.]]

* In ''SuperMarioGalaxy'', if Mario falls into toxic waste, he is seen sinking in it and then drowns before he puts a hand up above the surface one last time.

* TheJoker in Tim Burton's ''Film/{{Batman}}'', as he sinks into the AcidPool.

* Blood Elf males in WorldOfWarcraft perform this for the last frame of their death animation.

* Gollum in the film version of ''Film/ReturnOfTheKing'' as he falls into the lava pit at Mount Doom, holding the Ring in that one hand.

* Subverted in ''{{Terminator 2}}'', as Arnie signs off being lowered into the crucible with the thumbs-up taught to him by Connor.

* The ''[[TheTerminator Terminator]]'' scene gets parodied in Lobo comics - while sinking in quick drying cement, Lobo (modified into a robocopesque cyborg at that time) uses his last gesture to give everyone a finger.
* ''Film/TheNakedGun'' does this in the first movie, to a {{Mook}} sent by the main bad guy to kill Drebin at the slaughterhouse.

* Blood Elf males in [[WorldofWarcraft World of Warcraft]] perform this for the last frame of their death animation.

* In ''Nomads of {{Gor}}'' the BigBad uses a living pool, "The Yellow Pool of Turia," as his preferred method of execution. He keeps it in a hothouse where there are vines growing around which he can manipulate via remote control so they're closer or further from the victim, to torture them by making them think they could grab a vine and pull themselves out. "I have even seen them reach for vines a spear's length above their head and think they could reach them!" [[ChekhovsGun Naturally]] this comes back to bite him in the ass during the climax.

A character dies falling into a SharkPool, AcidPool or LavaPit, and their last action is a hand desperately reaching upwards to grasp at... nothing, before going under with the rest of them. Possibly it's the last part of their body to sink into the ooze, but a more dramatic version has them entirely submerged, before their hand bursts through the surface to give [[NotQuiteDead one final scare]]. Bonus points if it [[TakingYouWithMe grabs someone's ankle]].

See also FutileHandReach, which is more likely to be executed by a witness to the death.

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!!Examples
* TheJoker in Tim Burton's ''{{Film/Batman}}'', as he sinks into the AcidPool.
* Subverted in ''{{Terminator 2}}'', as Arnie signs off being lowered into the crucible with the thumbs-up taught to him by Connor.
* Gollum in the film version of ''Film/ReturnOfTheKing'' as he falls into the lava pit at Mount Doom, holding the Ring in that one hand.
* Common in card art for ''MagicTheGathering''. Examples include [[http://magiccards.info/vi/en/166.html Quicksand]] and [[http://magiccards.info/m11/en/78.html Unsummon]].
* The last we see of [[Film/DrNo Dr. No]] in the titular James Bond movie is his RobotHand trying to grasp a metal support beam as he drowns in the cooling tank of a nuclear reactor.

* In ''TwilightPrincess'', If Link falls into lava or quicksand, he'll sink down into it, with just his hand reaching up before he respawns.

* Towards the end of Tim Burton's ''{{Sleepy Hollow}}'', Lady van Tassel is [[DraggedOffToHell dragged to hell]] by the Hessian through the [[{{Hellgate}} Tree of the Dead]]. All that remains of her in the physical world is her hand, which sticks out of the tree.

* Gollum in the film version of ''ReturnOfTheKing'' as he falls into the lava pit at Mount Doom, holding the Ring in that one hand.

* Subverted in ''{{Terminator}} 2'', as Arnie signs off being lowered into the crucible with the thumbs-up taught to him by Connor.

* The last we see of [[DrNo Dr. No]] in the titular James Bond movie is his RobotHand trying to grasp a metal support beam as he drowns in the cooling tank of a nuclear reactor.
* In ''{{Aladdin}}'', Jafar's hand is the last thing to disappear into the lamp, reaching out to take Iago with him. Because if you're going to spend eternity in an oil lamp, you want Gilbert Gottfried in there with you.

* ''TheNakedGun'' does this in the first movie, to a {{Mook}} sent by the main bad guy to kill Drebin at the slaughterhouse.

* Towards the end of Tim Burton's ''{{Sleepy Hollow}}'', Lady van Tassel is dragged to hell by the Hessian through the [[{{Hellgate}} Tree of the Dead]]. All that remains of her in the physical world is her hand, which sticks out of the tree.

* The second DerWixxer movie gives us a variant of this, by having the bad guy giving the middle finger.

* In ''TwilightPrincess'', If Link falls into lava or quicksand, he'll sink down into it, with just his hand reaching up before he respawns.