History Main / MidAirBobbing

[[folder: Anime & Manga]]

* In ''Film/{{Apollo 13}}'', the bobbing was due to the zero-gravity set (which was in the Vomit Comet, an airplane being flown in a ballistic trajectory) being buffeted by the atmosphere; when other scenes were later filmed in normal gravity back on the ground, the actors bobbed to match the zero-gravity footage.

** Peeves bobs most likely not due to the qualities of floating, but due to the fact that he has the energy and attention span of a ritalin deprived ADHD 6 year old on a sugar rush.

* A pantomimed version of this is used in ''Theatre/HolyMusicalBatman'' to indicate when Superman is flying. Well, in addition to being lifted from behind by a taller cast member and making whooshing noises like a five-year-old. In a stage musical about superheroes, CoconutSuperpowers like this are to be expected and actually add a lot to the charm.

* A pantomimed version of this is used in ''WebVideo/HolyMusicalBatman'' to indicate when Superman is flying. Well, in addition to being lifted from behind by a taller cast member and making whooshing noises like a five-year-old. In a stage musical about superheroes, CoconutSuperpowers like this are to be expected and actually add a lot to the charm.

* In ''TheSlayers'', characters have a variety of methods of flight, but where the human characters tend to leave the ground for specific directional movement (using "Ray Wing" or the oddly named "Levitation"), Xellos just kind of relaxes in the air a lot, and bobs while he does so. He's perfectly capable of ''not'' bobbing -- sitting or standing perfectly still in the air -- so unless it's merely an affordance to viewers, it's because he enjoys it.

* Fairy Godparents in ''WesternAnimation/TheFairlyOddparents'' all bob like this. And they all do insync, as if floating on the same invisible plain.
** And so do some of their ''buildings''.

* All over the place in the Franchise/{{DCAU}}. Occasionally averted, which tends to look weird.
* Happens in ''WesternAnimation/TheAvengersEarthsMightiestHeroes'' when IronMan flies into space to search for BigBad Kang's ship. Of course, this was right after coming to a stop [[SpaceFriction without benefit]] of retro-rockets.

* In ''{{Slayers))'', characters have a variety of methods of flight, but where the human characters tend to leave the ground for specific directional movement (using "Ray Wing" or the oddly named "Levitation"), Xellos just kind of relaxes in the air a lot, and bobs while he does so. He's perfectly capable of ''not'' bobbing -- sitting or standing perfectly still in the air -- so unless it's merely an affordance to viewers, it's because he enjoys it.

* A pantomimed version of this is used in HolyMusicalBatman to indicate when Superman is flying. Well, in addition to being lifted from behind by a taller cast member and making whooshing noises like a five-year-old. In a stage musical about superheroes, CoconutSuperpowers like this are to be expected and actually add a lot to the charm.

* In ''Franchise/{{Halo}}'', the thrones of the Prophets and Rtas 'Vadum (aka [[FanNickname Half-Jaw]]) both behave this way.

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[[folder: Western Animation ]]

* Happens in ''WesternAnimation/AvengersEarthsMightiestHeroes'' when IronMan flies into space to search for BigBad Kang's ship. Of course, this was right after coming to a stop [[SpaceFriction without benefit]] of retro-rockets.

[[folder: Real Life ]]

* Anyone affected by the "Float" spell in any given ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'' game will hover above the ground for a while. Flying enemies also did this in ''IV'' through ''VI''.

* All over the place in TheDCAU. Occasionally averted, which tends to look weird.

* Luke Skywalker and the other X-Wing pilots do a good bit of this in ''StarWars''. It's only when they do a close-up cockpit shot of one of the X-Wing pilots. Everybody just kind of...bobs. Very odd, especially since the X-Wings themselves certainly aren't bobbing around in the longer shots. The speeders largely subvert this however in that when they are idling they are completely motionless and often don't even react when someone is mounting/dismounting/operating them. (Aside from Luke's speeder in ANH, but that is mentioned on screen to be a bit of a cheapo/junker.)

* Luke Skywalker and the other X-Wing pilots do a good bit of this in ''StarWars''. It's only when they do a close-up cockpit shot of one of the X-Wing pilots. Everybody just kind of...bobs. Very odd, especially since the X-Wings themselves certainly aren't bobbing around in the longer shots. The speeders largely subvert this however in that when they are idling they are completely motionless and often don't even react when someone is mounting/dismounting/operating them (aside from Luke's speeder in ANH, but that is mentioned on screen to be a bit of a cheapo/junker.)

* Luke Skywalker and the other X-Wing pilots do a good bit of this in ''StarWars''. You can see it, for example, in this [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmRfj2dF7gM Youtube clip.]] It's only when they do a close-up cockpit shot of one of the X-Wing pilots. Everybody just kind of...bobs. Very odd, especially since the X-Wings themselves certainly aren't bobbing around in the longer shots. The speeders largely subvert this however in that when they are idling they are completely motionless and often don't even react when someone is mounting/dismounting/operating them (aside from Luke's speeder in ANH, but that is mentioned on screen to be a bit of a cheapo/junker.)

* Luke Skywalker and the other X-Wing pilots do a good bit of this in ''StarWars''. You can see it, for example, in this [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmRfj2dF7gM Youtube clip]]. It's only when they do a close-up cockpit shot of one of the X-Wing pilots. Everybody just kind of...bobs. Very odd, especially since the X-Wings themselves certainly aren't bobbing around in the longer shots. The speeders largely subvert this however in that when they are idling they are completely motionless and often don't even react when someone is mounting/dismounting/operating them (aside from Luke's speeder in ANH, but that is mentioned on screen to be a bit of a cheapo/junker.)

* Peeves in ''Literature/HarryPotter'' bobs most likely not due to the qualities of floating, but due to the fact that he has the energy and attention span of a ritalin deprived ADHD 6 year old on a sugar rush.

Objects and people that hover in the air will always, ''always'' bob up and down, as if floating on some invisible surface of water. This is typically because being perfectly motionless gives the unpleasant impression of being "stuck" in the air. The floating is often accompanied with a ''whoosh'' sound, for no other reason than the RuleOfCool.

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[[AC:Literature]]
* Peeves in ''Literature/HarryPotter'' bobs most likely not due to the qualities of floating, but due to the fact that he has the energy and attention span of a ritalin deprived ADHD 6 year old on a sugar rush.

[[AC:VideoGames]]

[[AC:WebOriginal]]

[[AC:WesternAnimation]]

* Happens in ''WesternAnimation/AvengersEarthsMightiestHeroes'' when IronMan flies into space to search for BigBad Kang's ship. Of course, this was right after coming to a stop [[SpaceFriction without benefit]] of retro-rockets.

[[AC:Real Life]]

* Many aircraft, especially when flying in formation, will do this to a degree. It is usually caused by the pilot (or the in-flight computer) making constant adjustments to the aircraft's control surfaces to stay on course or in formation.
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* In ''Film/{{Apollo 13}}'', the bobbing was due to the set (which was in the Vomit Comet) being buffeted by the atmosphere.

The most egregious instances of this trope are when objects in ''zero gravity'' behave like this - bobbing up and down despite the fact that 'down' doesn't exist here. This conclusively proves that SpaceIsAnOcean.

* It is possible that the bobbing is merely the character performing drift correction. Satellites in orbit, for a real life example, have thrusters to keep them from drifting out of the required orbit all the time.
* In real life, of course, few things float in midair, and those that do (such as tethered or semi-deflated helium balloons) tend to bob in all but the stillest air -- or to be surrounded (as a hummingbird or helicopter) by a blur of corrective motion. And, of course, things floating on water bob up and down too. So this trope seems to derive from carrying learned expectations about the natural behaviour of objects over into extrapolations about ''un''natural behaviour.

* Any powerup, item, or other object that floats in a videogame (especially a newer one) will bob up and down, often also slowly spinning as if on an invisible store window display.

* Watch the ships in ''[[VideoGame/{{Wipeout}} Wipeout HD]]'' when at a standstill. As one would reasonably expect from machines designed to perform best at very high speeds, the ships appear to be performing drift correction to avoid shifting sideways as well as bobbing naturally with air currents, especially close to the ground, and when they move faster, they stop doing this-presumably due to their shapes enacting aerodynamic stability on the ships, allowing them to fly without wiggling everywhere.
* The fire pets from the "Firemaker's Curse" quest in ''Videogame/RuneScape'' do this.
* All "Flying" characters in ''Videogame/MarvelAvengersAlliance'' do this for their idle animation.

* Some arcade air combat games and even a few flight simulators will mimic this effect, with the plane rocking slightly from side, to make the plane seem more natural when flying instead of stiffly moving forward in level flight.

* Billy does this in ''Dude, That's My Ghost'', due to being, well, a ghost.

[[JustifiedTrope Justification]] usually invokes one of the following:

* In [[{{Apollo13}} Apollo 13]], the bobbing was due to the set (which was in the Vomit Comet) being buffeted by the atmosphere.

* Peeves in ''HarryPotter''. Most likely not due to the qualities of floating, but due to the fact that he has the energy and attention span of a ritalin deprived ADHD 6 year old on a sugar rush.

* Anyone affected by the "Float" spell in any given ''FinalFantasy'' game will hover above the ground for a while. Flying enemies also did this in ''IV'' through ''VI''.
* Lt. Magnezone and several other fliers and levitators in the ''{{Pokemon}}: Mystery Dungeon'' games.

* The player in ''{{Descent}}''. Since you're in a spaceship, it's presumably drift correction.
* The Allied Rocketeers in ''CommandAndConquer: Red Alert 2'' do this.
* Happens in ''CityOfHeroes'' when the hover power is engaged and the hero isn't otherwise moving. The [[http://www.cityofheroes.com/ official website]] header makes it even more obvious.
* ''RPG Maker'': Giving an enemy the 'flying' attribute will cause it to midair bob in battle.
* ''{{Halo}}'': The thrones of the Prophets and Rtas 'Vadum (aka [[FanNickname Half-Jaw]]) both behave this way.

* The fire pets from the "Firemaker's Curse" quest in ''Videogame/{{RuneScape}}'' do this.

* ''ThePowerpuffGirls'' are the queens of this trope: not only do they perform Midair Bobbing, they do it ''in unison''.
* Fairy Godparents in ''TheFairlyOddparents'' all bob like this. And they all do insync, as if floating on the same invisible plain.

* The pilots of DastardlyAndMuttleyInTheirFlyingMachines bob in the air, whether they are flying or their planes are stationary.
* Billy does this in ''Dude, That's My Ghost'', due to being, well, [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin a ghost.]]