History Main / NoOneCouldSurviveThat

* At the end of ''VideoGame/StarOceanTheLastHope'', [[spoiler: Edge Maverick and Faize Sheifa Beleth seemingly fall to their deaths as Nox Obscuris begins to disintegrate. Nox Obscuris subsequently vanishes into a nebulous cloud of gas, and an unconscious Edge is shown aimlessly drifting through space. In a later scene, Edge appears onboard the Calnus completely unscathed without explanation. Meanwhile, Faize appears unscathed in a special ending involving Lymle, although Faize's figure is cast against a heavily bloomed white background, so it is unclear whether Lymle is hallucinating.]]

** This trope is played upon twice in the episode "[[Recap/BatmanTheAnimatedSeriesTheClockKing The Clock King]]". Right before Fugit seems to die as the clock tower starts to collapse:
--> '''Fugit:''' You of all people should know, Batman... There's always a way out!
** And later in the same episode, when Gordon doubts that Fugit survived, Batman tells him that if ''he'' could have gotten out, then Fugit could have, saying "it's only a matter of time" before he reappears.
*** And it turned out that Batman was right. Fugit did survive, and made a return appearance in a later episode.

* In the AndrewVachss Burke book ''Dead and Gone'', after an ambush on [[spoiler: Burke]] goes wrong because of BigDamnHeroes, the attackers [[BoomHeadshot put a round into the victim's head]]. Somehow it doesn't take.

* In ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'', in the episode [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS2E26ACanterlotWeddingPart2 A Canterlot Wedding Part 2]], Queen Chrysalis and her changelings are blasted away from Canterlot into the distance, basically falling over the edge of a mountain from an attack so powerful that they were unable to use their wings. By rights this should be a DisneyVillainDeath, and Chrysalis hasn't returned in the show, but many fans - including the writers of the [[ComicBook/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicIDW comic series]], like her so much that they believe she survived. To those who take the comics as canon, this is more an instance of NoOneShouldSurviveThat, since nopony seemed to presume Chrysalis dead or show surprise at her return.
** And this ''is'' a show where [[DisneyVillainDeath Disney Villain Deaths]] are possible, seeing as how Twilight would have been killed by [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E2FriendshipIsMagicPart2 two separate]] [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E15FeelingPinkieKeen falls]], [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E16SonicRainboom not to mention]] [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS2E10SecretOfMyExcess Rarity]] and [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E23TheCutieMarkChronicles Fluttershy]], if somepony or something hadn't saved them from each one.

* In ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'', in the episode [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS2E26ACanterlotWeddingPart2 A Canterlot Wedding Part 2]], Queen Chrysalis and her changelings are blasted away from Canterlot into the distance, basically falling over the edge of a mountain from an attack so powerful that they were unable to use their wings. By rights this should be a DisneyVillainDeath, and Chrysalis hasn't returned in the show, but many fans - including the writers of the [[Comic Book/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicIDW comic series]], like her so much that they believe she survived. To those who take the comics as canon, this is more an instance of NoOneShouldSurviveThat, since nopony seemed to presume Chrysalis dead or show surprise at her return.
** And before anypony argues otherwise, this ''is'' a show where DisneyVillainDeaths are possible, seeing as how Twilight would have been killed by [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E2FriendshipIsMagicPart2 two separate]] [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E15FeelingPinkieKeen falls]], [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E16SonicRainboom not to mention]] [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS2E10SecretOfMyExcess Rarity]] and [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E23TheCutieMarkChronicles Fluttershy]], if somepony or something hadn't saved them from each one.

* In ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'', in the episode [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS2E26ACanterlotWeddingPart2 A Canterlot Wedding Part 2]], Queen Chrysalis and her changelings are blasted away from Canterlot into the distance, basically falling over the edge of a mountain from an attack so powerful that they were unable to use their wings. By rights this should be a DisneyVillainDeath, and Chrysalis hasn't returned in the show, but many fans - including the writers of the [[Comics/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicIDW comic series]], like her so much that they believe she survived. To those who take the comics as canon, this is more an instance of NoOneShouldSurviveThat, since nopony seemed to presume Chrysalis dead or show surprise at her return.

----

Of course, the moment someone says this, they've guaranteed that the person in question not only ''has'' survived, but will be coming back to spoil someone's day.

* ''GingaNagareboshiGin'' and its [[GingaDensetsuWeed sequel]] ''love'' this trope.

* In ''GundamWing'', Trowa's temporarily-borrowed mobile suit, the Veyate, [[spoiler: explodes after a fight with Quatre and his newly-constructed monster, the Gundam Wing Zero. He survives that, only to float in space alone.]]
** Done twice to the same guy in ''GundamSEED''. [[WhyWontYouDie Kira Yamato]], in the ''Strike'', was grappled by Athrun's mobile suit with the cockpit slashed open when Zala proved definitively the self-destruct function had a independent power supply. In the final episode, Kira used the ''Freedom'' in a orgy of Mutually Assured Python Skit as it and Rau le Creuset's ''Providence'' took each other apart before Kira managed to use his last remaining limb to not only [[spoiler:spear le Creuset and his mobile suit but [[ItsTheOnlyWayToBeSure shove it into the abortive powersurge of the GENESIS superweapon.]] He also ends up floating in space, but his nearly immortal robot bird [[TimmyInAWell leads his friends to him]].]]
** [[spoiler: Mu La Flaga]] in ''GundamSEED''. [[spoiler: Strike Gundam's cockpit is blown to bits, and everyone's been pretty sure he DIDN'T ESCAPE. Yet, SEED Destiny makes him survive and [[UnexplainedRecovery never gives an explanation.]]]]

** ''{{Gundam 00}}'' features one of the most brilliant examples of this trope ever done in their treatment of the infamous "Immortal Colasour" in the final episodes. Showing how DangerouslyGenreSavvy they can be the writers played a half dozen tricks that had the audience saying this. To sum it up, in episode 23 of the second season, [[spoiler: [[RedemptionEqualsDeath he and his beloved Colonel switch sides in order to help Celestial Being Fight Against the Innovators.]] In the heat of battle, [[HeroicSacrifice he then throws himself in front of three kamikaze mobile suits to protect her]] [[FinalSpeech while confessing his love for her at the top of his lungs.]] As this happens, Kati [[SayMyName shouts his full name for the first time in the series.]] With all of these strikes against him, it seems that our beloved Patrick was down for the count and not coming back, especially since around this time in the series [[KillEmAll important characters had been dying by the bucketload.]] And yet, in the final episode, who should show up but Patrick, not only having survived without a scratch, but [[HappilyEverAfter revealing that he was about to be married to Kati.]]]]

** Kaorinite throws Sailor Neptune over a waterfall, yet she survives

--->'''{{Mook}} 1:''' ''There's no way he could have survived that fall.''\\

* Broly from ''Manga/DragonBall Z'' takes this trope to the logical extreme and beyond.

* Subverted in ''{{Claymore}}'' when Clare, to throw the insane Ophelia off her trail, deliberately gets herself [[GoodThingYouCanHeal severely wounded]] and knocked off a cliff into a rushing river. Unfortunately for her, Ophelia is DangerouslyGenreSavvy...

* Akito experiences the DisneyDeath version at least twice in ''MartianSuccessorNadesico''.

* Happens a couple of times in ''OnePiece'', usually to side characters.

* [[spoiler:Tomoe]] from ''{{Mai-Otome}}'' takes a thousand-or-more-feet drop from the sky (head first!) after her [[PhlebotinumBreakdown armor was shattered]] during her final fight against Arika. Just as the castle guards discover her and prepare to pronounce her DOA, she springs back up from the gurney and yells at one of them, and then walks away as if she had simply fallen out of a tree.

* In ''Audioplay/StrikersSoundStageX'' of the ''[[LyricalNanoha Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha]]'' franchise, the head [[NightOfTheLivingMooks Mariage]] fires a [[ArmCannon high-explosive howitzer-style cannon]] at [[spoiler: Subaru]], and pronounces her dead, telling [[MysteriousWaif Ixpellia]] that "[[ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill That was a shell that could destroy a tank in one blow]]. [[TemptingFate It's not something a normal body could withstand]]." [[spoiler:Subaru's body [[{{Cyborg}} isn't exactly normal]]]]...
** In ''MagicalChronicleLyricalNanohaForce'' the mysterious people at the start claim that no human can survive their heat "sanitation". Later, [[spoiler:Cypha stabs Signum, saying that her death will serve as a warning for others. Turns out, Signum survived the attack]].
* A recurring antagonist said something along these lines in ''RosarioToVampire'' before Tsukune [[spoiler: first receives Moka's blood]]. The actual quote was something along the lines of "to thrust himself into the fire... despite the human body being so frail it will die with only 50% of its skin burned."

* In ''SaintSeiya'', Phoenix Ikki has been thrown into Hades and into a timeless "Another Dimension". Places from which no one returns. But it's not like something like that would ever stop him, right?
* Gamlin Kizaki in ''{{Macross 7}}'' probably deserves mention, for his crash in one of the later episodes. Here's what went down: his jet crashes headlong into an enemy mech. The two are traveling toward each other, at a very high combined speed. The impact crushes the front half of the jet like a tin can and shears the wings off. The impact alone would pulp a human body. The two craft then explode in a massive fireball. Gamlin has no time to eject and the impact is shown from INSIDE the cockpit. Yet next episode, he's perfectly fine, not even a scratch. Seriously, how did he survive that?

* Early on in the ''{{Berserk}}'' manga, a young Guts is shot with an arrow and falls off a cliff, prompting the bowman to proclaim, "He won't survive the fall."

* Zelgadis uses the line in ''[[{{Slayers}} Slayers Next]]''.

* In ''FateZero'', even DangerouslyGenreSavvy MageKiller Kiritsugu falls for saying this when he [[spoiler:[[DungeonBypass completely blows up the hotel that one of his enemies has turned into a fortress]]]] and confidently declares over a phone call that no magical defense could have saved him from ''that''. Sure enough, the first sign that the enemy Master survived was that his Servant's curse on Saber did not eventually disappear, as it should have.

* ''{{Magneto}}.'' The man got his powers while being machine-gunned along with his family at freakin' ''Auschwitz'', climbing out of the mass-burial trench! His own KIDS have called him on this, as Comicbook/TheAvengers snarked the trope but clearly were too [[GenreSavvy jaded by previous Magneto comebacks]] to believe he was gone for good for one moment.

* In ''ComicBook/{{Runaways}}'' the team saw a missile go off near Chase and counted him as dead. In a case of desperate {{genre savv|y}}iness Molly guessed ''exactly'' how Chase survived and hadn't come back yet.
** Her friends refuse to believe her, sparking the immortal, ''"Why are you not awesomed by me!?"''

* A recent Comicbook/{{X-Men}} comic features someone telling Siryn this about her father Banshee. Her response is [[GenreSavvy that this is an X-Men Comic]] without the glaring hole in the fourth wall. So far, she is wrong.
** A much older X-Men comic has Cyclops recounting how Jean Grey became Phoenix.

*** In ''X-Men'' #3, the audience is supposed to say that as Magneto's asteroid hurtles through the atmosphere, presumably killing him. Guess what happens a few issues later...
* Of all the X-Men Iceman even more so than Wolverine is the king of this trope. Every major X-Men event has him at some point being crushed, melted or destroyed but due to being one of the 10 or so most powerful mutants always comes back. He once exploded in his human form, came back as gas, from gas turned to steam, from steam water vapor, from vapor to melted ice, until he finally solidified as flesh.
* Herman Von Klempt from ''ComicBook/{{Hellboy}}'' is pretty good at this. In 1939 (shown at the beginning of ''Conqueror Worm'') he was at ground zero of an explosion involving [[StupidJetpackHitler the Nazi space program]] and was the only survivor. However, he was reduced to a [[BrainInAJar Head In A Jar]]. Later, Hellboy blew up Von Klempt's lab, with Von Klempt inside, yet Robert Zinco and Karl Ruprect Kroenen were able to find and revive him again. Then ''their'' laboratory exploded, and Von Klempt was again the only survivor. [[spoiler:At the end of ''Conqueror Worm'', Roger breaks Von Klempt's head jar, killing him for real.]]
** In 1946, his attempt to launch a rocket carrying mutant vampires at the United States was foiled, and he was onboard the rocket when it blew up. Trevor Bruttenholm assumes him dead, but Varvara gives him a "what are you, stupid?" look for jumping to conclusions like that.
* In an issue of MarvelComics' ''NewWarriors'', the eponymous teen heroes have a moment like this after the villain is defeated. Comicbook/{{Spider-Man}}, who happens to be teaming up with them at the time, isn't so sure, and begins to tell the story of how Doctor Octopus survived a ground-zero nuclear bomb explosion...

* {{Tintin}}: every time Tintin is involved in a gruesome car accident, the people trying to kill or capture him go check the burning wreckage in an unusual display of genre savviness. Unfortunately for them, Tintin always escapes those accidents by jumping from the car right before it goes off the road, so he generally ends up stealing his pursuers' car (and in one case ''tank'') while they're looking for his body.

* {{Lampshaded}} in an issue of ''[[BatmanAndTheOutsiders The Outsiders]]'' in TheDCU. When bad guy the Duke of Oil falls off an oil rig (after ''having a sword put through his head''), ComicBook/{{Metamorpho}} (himself a master of BackFromTheDead) remarks that "If you don't find a body, they aren't dead".

* During the first story arc of GrantMorrison's JLA: the [[MonsterOfTheWeek Villains of the month]] have shot down Batman's plane. They don't even bother to check the wreckage, since "[[UnderestimatingBadassery He doesn't have any]] [[BadassNormal powers."]] Somewhat justified in that [[spoiler: they turn out to be martians, who would be vulnerable to the fire coming off the crashed plane.]]
* In the first issue of ''Big Bang Comics'' published by {{Image|Comics}}, Mighty Man faces off against a superintelligent mind controlling Nazi caterpillar who is cut in half at the end of the story while Mighty Man opines on how he's probably not going to hear from him again. [[spoiler:A later story shows ''two'' worms as part of a LegionOfDoom plotting against the Round Table of America, implied to be the two halves regenerated.]]
* In a {{Marvel|Comics}} ''[[ComicBook/TheTransformers Transformers Generation 1]]'' comic set on Cybertron, Optimus Prime has Gears blow up a bridge to prevent Megatron from gaining access to Iacon. When Megatron is blown into the air and buried under masses of metal, Gear remarks that nobody could possibly have survived that. Guess what happens in the next panel.

** The Joker even lampshaded this fact on an episode of WesternAnimation/BatmanTheBraveAndTheBold:

* Likely inspired by the above clown, the Painted Doll from ''{{Promethea}}'' presents an interesting twist on this trope: The Painted Doll keeps waking up in the river with fuzzy memories of another narrow escape no matter how seemingly sure the previous demise seemed. [[spoiler:When a large group of Painted Dolls revive at once it is finally revealed that the character is actually a series of automatons.]]
* ''SecretWars'' had a very interesting take on this. Late in the series, DoctorDoom successfully kills the heroes (multiple times, in the case of CaptainAmerica). However, a traitorous minion, "worrying" about this trope, presents a scenario to Doom where the heroes could have survived. Doom had recently gained [[RealityWarper reality-warping]] powers that he couldn't fully control, and he ''accidentally resurrected'' the heroes simply by considering that they ''might'' have survived (even though they hadn't until Doom thought of it)!

* In the ''FanFic/TamersForeverSeries'' [=BlackWarGreymon=] make this mistake ''[[GenreBlind twice]]'' regarding Takato.

* Fans of the Disney film ''Disney/{{Cinderella}}'' widely believed the villanous cat Lucifer died when he fell from Cinderella's tower after being chased off by Bruno the dog, as this was a typical {{Disney Villain Death}}. Therefore, they were surprised when he turned up alive and well in the sequels.
** It has been revealed that cats (a) can right themselves in midair, and (b) go limp upon reaching terminal velocity, at which point their legs splay out and their skin stretches into a makeshift parachute. This means that they can actually survive very long falls.

* In the film ''{{Grease 2}}'', Michael (as the masked "Cool Rider") disappears for almost the last fifth of the film after Johnny and his gang chase him into jumping his motorcycle off one edge of a wide chasm; it's unclear whether he survived or not until almost the very end of the film.
* Subverted in ''ButchCassidyAndTheSundanceKid''. The two heroes [[TryAndFollow jump off a cliff to escape pursuit.]] Sundance says that he can't swim, and Butch laughs, saying "The fall will prob'ly kill ya!" (See also AsymmetricDilemma.)

* In ''Film/TheFugitive'', Dr. Richard Kimble (Creator/HarrisonFord) [[TryAndFollow jumps off a spillway on a dam]] into the rushing water below. U.S. Marshal Gerard (TommyLeeJones) wants to make sure they see his dead body, despite claims by everyone else that he couldn't possibly survive the fall.

* ''StarWars Episode III: RevengeOfTheSith'': When [[spoiler:Commander Cody turns on Obi-Wan]], he says the line out loud even as [[spoiler:Obi-Wan is ''climbing up behind him'']]. On the other hand, [[spoiler:Mace Windu]] almost certainly ''didn't'' survive that. Probably.

*** Someone on TV Tropes gave me the best answer for this. He did not leave Anakin because he thought he would die, or anything like that. He left Anakin because he had already come dangerously close to falling to the Dark Side in his own rage, anger, and grief at losing someone he loved. Whatever Anakin felt about Obi-Wan, Obi-Wan still thought of him as little Ani. So he steps away, afraid of falling entirely to the Dark Side, and leaves Anakin to the fate of the Force.
*** In the novelisation, he acknowledges that killing Anakin would be the merciful thing to do, but was aware of Palpatine's presence and knew he wouldn't have time. He decides to leave it up to The Force. He also wasn't feeling very merciful.
* ''Film/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles II: The Secret of the Ooze'': Raphael mocks the idea of Shredder having survived his "half gainer right into the back of a garbage truck" at the climax of the first movie; Shredder not only survived the fall, but also being compacted.
** Subverted at the end of TMNT II: [[spoiler: Super Shredder wrecks a pier, bringing the whole structure down on himself and the Turtles. The Turtles see his hand emerge from the wreckage, and Raphael exclaims, "Nobody coulda survived that!" The hand then falls, indicating that Shredder has, in fact, died this time.]]
* The ''{{Terminator}}'' series (particularly ''Terminator 2'') seems to be mostly built around this trope, at least for the inexperienced ActionSurvivor characters.
* In the 2008 movie adaptation of ''Film/IronMan'', Big Bad [[spoiler:Stane]] seemingly falls to his death from over 85,000 feet. The next scene shows protagonist [[IronMan Stark]] barely making it back alive, seemingly setting it up like [[spoiler:Stane]] DID die. However, [[spoiler:he was perfectly fine, and only died when the arc reactor he was over blew up in a classic example of {{power|Glows}} [[PillarOfLight glowing]].]]

* JohnCarpenter's original ''Film/{{Halloween 1978}}'' ends with Michael Myers taking multiple gunshots to the chest from Dr. Loomis, then falling from a second-story balcony. When Loomis makes it to the window and looks out, Michael's body has [[NeverFoundTheBody vanished]].

* Played for laughs in ''GeorgeOfTheJungle''. The villain shakes a bridge and one of the guides fall off, plunging a long way down. He shows up in the next scene with a few bandaids. The narrator explains that no one dies in this movie, they just get big boo-boos.
** Also George is later shot protecting Ursala, but survives. The narrator explains this time that George would never die, after all ... he IS the hero!
* In the JamesBond series of films, Ernst Savros Bloefeld is killed several times and comes back in the next film, played by a different actor. (Sometimes one which, in another film was a good guy).

* ''Film/TheThing1982''. When [=MacReady=] is cut loose from his cable in the storm (1982 movie), and the two American pilots stagger back to base after a helicopter crash ([[Film/TheThing2011 2011 movie]]) [[TheDeterminator their survival]] is regarded as proof that they must no longer be human.
* The villains in ''Film/{{Dredd}}'' are smart enough not to assume this even after using three [[GatlingGood gatling guns]] to turn an entire floor of their apartment complex into absolute swiss cheese. TheDragon tells his men the Judges [[GenreSavvy aren't dead until they see the bodies...]][[ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill or]] [[LudicrousGibs parts of them]].

* At one point played strait and then inverted in Ciaphas Cain: hero of the imperium, [[DesignatedHero Ciaphas Cain]] is forced to leave four of his squadmates for dead as he escapes a genestealer horde. a short time later he gets cornered by the genestealers, when who should show up to rescue him but two of the four people he had abandon, apparently, [[spoiler: they only got away because of Jurgen's rare power as a "psycher blank" screwing with the tyranid HiveMind ]]. a few scenes after that, [[spoiler: they encounter the other two, who also said they had escaped the genestealers, although they only vaguely recalled how. and then Cain shoots them because he could tell that the stealers had implanted both of them.]]
* Subverted in the ''StarWars'' novel ''Sacrifice''. [[spoiler:Lumiya starts falling off a ledge during her duel with Luke Skywalker; he grabs her hand, says "I'd never let you fall", and decapitates her.]]
** [[spoiler:Done straight earlier in the same novel, with [[ActionMom Mara Jade]] (in a MamaBear/quasi UnstoppableRage moment) stabbing Lumiya, only to be tripped and throttled by a sentient Sith ship and see Lumiya escape in it (both ladies end up severely injured, by the way).]]
** [[spoiler:Boba Fett has also escaped the Sarlaac pit in at least one short story.]]
* In the novel ''{{Dune}}'', Paul Atreides and his mother are able to escape their hated enemies by piloting an aircraft into a sandstorm which has winds of 400 mph. The main villain is told that they "are certainly dead"; naturally, with their superhuman reflexes, they are able not only to flee, but also to build an army on a practically uninhabitable desert planet which is described as being able to conquer the galaxy. To be fair to the Baron Harkonnen, he immediately smacks his minion in the mouth for doing something so stupid as to assume his enemies are dead without actually seeing their bodies, and then sends his forces back out to find the bodies. Naturally, they don't. But he did at least try!

* In the Literature/HarryPotter series, this trope could also apply to Lord Voldemort, as the Avada Kedavra spell he had tried to kill Harry with hit him instead. We learn in ''Literature/HarryPotterAndTheGobletOfFire'' that no one (aside from Harry himself) had ever survived being hit with Avada Kedavra. His followers certainly seemed to think NoOneCouldSurviveThat, as many (though not all) of them didn't bother to search for him, instead opting to lead lives of lesser evil. [[spoiler:Subverted slightly as Voldemort actually was, for all intents and purposes, dead. He managed to cling to life as some sort of spirit, and would eventually return to his body in ''The Goblet of Fire''.]]
** Subverted in ''Deathly Hallows''. When Voldemort [[spoiler:finally does manage to kill Harry, but Harry survives again,]] Voldemort is careful (and GenreSavvy) enough ''not'' to assume that NoOneCouldSurviveThat, even in the case of Avada Kedavra. So he sends someone to check he's been KilledOffForReal. [[spoiler:Unfortunately he chooses Narcissa Malfoy, who's only concerned about whether Draco's safe and doesn't care that Harry's still around, so she lies to Voldemort.]]

* In ''TheLordOfTheRings'' Pippin kills a large troll, only to be squashed under it when it goes down. Pippin did actually die, but CS Lewis complained to Tolkien that he couldn't kill him off, and Tolkien ended up letting Gimli save the Hobbit.

* Lampshaded by the DangerouslyGenreSavvy [[DeadpanSnarker Denth]] in ''{{Warbreaker}}'', as demonstrated by the pagequote.

* In the seventh book of ''Literature/TheWheelOfTime'', the main character has a villain at his mercy: the fellow is trapped between a semi-sentient DeathGas on one side and Rand is shooting DeaderThanDead-causing DeathRay beams down the other. Rand lets up before actually ''hitting'' the villain, sure that NoOneCouldSurviveThat. At this point, author Robert Jordan discovered the problem with overusing ChekhovsArmy: Sammael was meant to be dead, but because they NeverFoundTheBody, the fandom began to insist HesJustHiding. RJ had to have a fellow villain {{Joss|ed}} the idea before readers would move on.

* In Andy Hoare's WhiteScars novel ''Hunt for Voldorius'', [[TheDragon Nullus]] assures Voldorius that no one could have survived the exploding refinery.

* Said almost word for word in ''Literature/GalaxyOfFear: Ghost of the Jedi''. "[[DisneyVillainDeath I saw him fall]]. No one could have survived that." Hoole is skeptical. Sure, the bad guy was badly injured before he fell and [[ShapeshifterSwanSong changing forms ineffectually]], but he ''was'' still a shapeshifter. [[spoiler: Indeed, the last lines of the book feature a FingerTwitchingRevival and EyeAwaken.]]

* In ''{{Smallville}}'', many of the main character has survived the impossible so many times it isn't even funny.

* Likewise, Dr. Loveless from ''Series/TheWildWildWest'' would typically suffer similar fates (most notably in "The Night of the Murderous Spring" [[spoiler: when he, Antoinette and their friend - none of whom, by their own admission, can swim - sink into the ''GilligansIsland'' lagoon thanks to Jim shooting holes in their boat]]), only to show up in a new episode perfectly hale and healthy, with a one-liner at the ready when James West would invariably ask him how he avoided almost certain death in the last episode.

* In ''TheWire'' season 5, Omar escapes from a shootout by jumping of a 4th floor balcony. He breaks his leg, but is otherwise unharmed. There is never given any explanation to his miraculous survival.

* At one point on ''Series/StargateSG1'', Sam reminds Jack that Daniel has been missing and was last known to be on an exploding starship... shouldn't they say some words or something? I mean, NoOneCouldSurviveThat. Jack [[GenreSavvy remembers all the times they thought him dead before]] and refuses to 'hold a memorial service for someone who isn't dead', saying he'll probably turn up any minute. He even yells out, "Ya hear that? I'm not buyin' it!" This being Daniel "BackFromTheDead Again" Jackson, Jack is right... he ''was'' on the exploding ship, but turns up again anyway. Hilariously.

--->Carter: "I don't believe it! He's coming back! Nothing could have survived that!"

* The RogerCorman film ''Night of the Blood Beast,'' featured in an episode of MST3k, unintentionally played with this. Two of the ensemble cast chase the eponymous monster into the clearing where the rocket he's presumed to have hitched a ride to earth crashed, and the beast is nowhere to be seen. Both men fire their "berry pistols" into the rocket without looking inside first.
-->''"Steve":'' Nothing could survive that!
-->''Mike:'' And we know for sure it was in there!
* At the beginning of ''Series/PowerRangersZEO'', the rangers found the ZEO Crystal, which clued them to the fact Rito and Goldar were caught at the explosion [[HoistByHisOwnPetard they caused]] at the end of Mighty Morphin Alien Rangers. Despite the fact [[NeverFoundTheBody their bodies had never been found]], Adam Park wrongly concluded there was no way they could have survived.
* In ''[[{{CSINY}} CSI:NY]]'', the Season BigBad Shane Casey survives falling off a lighthouse and having stated that he ''must'' be dead, later turns up to torment Lindsay and Danny in the cliffhanger. However, [[spoiler: he doesn't survive Lindsay shooting him. Probably.]]
* Played with in the ''HancocksHalfHour'' episode "The Bowmans", in which Hancock plays a radio soap actor. After surviving an attempt by his fellow actors to kill off his character he demands script privileges and takes his revenge by writing a scene where the characters of the actors who tried to depose him all fall down a disused mine shaft. When the only other surviving character asks Hancock's whether they should look for survivors Hancock insists that the others couldn't have survived and suggests filling in the mine.
* Subverted with [[spoiler: Gus]] at the end of the fourth season of ''Series/BreakingBad'' [[spoiler: He gets hit with a bomb in the finale, but then walks out seconds later apparently unharmed. Then the camera pans the other side of his face and it's revealed that half of it's been blown off, and seconds after that he lifelessly drops to the ground.]]

* The Tyranids of ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'' are so resilient that they can survive (individually, in rare instances) [[EarthShatteringKaboom Exterminatus]]. In other words, not even converting everything on a planet to ash can kill them, as they can just burrow into the bedrock.
** The ''lesser'' Tyranids need to burrow in. Certain variations of the Carnifex have [[HealingFactor regenerative abilities]] and bodies that are even more resilient to damage than normal. In the 3rd/4th edition it mentions on one page that the guys examining a planet that had undergone Exterminatus found what looked like a strange rock formation; it was actually a Carnifex trying to heal the damage it had taken.
* SpiritOfTheCentury, with its focus on [[TwoFistedTales pulp action narrative]], allows players to {{invoke|dTrope}} this trope with the Death Defiance stunt. It allows any character who has it to avoid death if it happens "offscreen" (falling off a cliff, failing to escape the collapsing building, etc.) by spending half of their fate points and citing some explanation (including bizarre and improbable coincidences) of how they survived.
* Extra Life in ''{{GURPS}}'' is summarized as "No matter how sure your foes were that they killed you, you didn't ''really'' die."
* A vital part of the GM Fiat game mechanic in ''MutantsAndMasterminds''. Villains don't die. They undergo a seemingly fatal accident at the last moment, the players get Hero Points for the inconvenience, and then the villains return a few adventures later, seemingly none the worse for the wear.
* {{Exalted}} has Perfect Defences that allow characters to dodge a nuclear explosion at ground zero, deflect a falling mountain using a toothpick, and simply shrug off attacks that ought to not only kill them, but retroactively erase their existence from history itself. Naturally, if you don't have a body, it's pretty much guaranteed that they aren't dead.

* Alex in the VideoGame/GoldenSun saga, between the second and the third game. In the ending of The Lost Age, the Wise One prevents him from gaining the full power of the Golden Sun and leaves him for dead.On top of a ''volcano that later erupts obliterating everything around it, and eventually collapses''.He appears without as much as a scratch twenty years later in Dark Dawn: when Kraden confronts him about that, he merely answers with a smirk.
* In ''KnightsOfTheOldRepublic'', Calo Nord is LeftForDead. Buried under rubble. In a collapsing building. On a doomed planet undergoing heavy bombardment. With no chance to escape had he even not been buried, as the player has just stolen [[CoolShip the only possible means of escape]]. Later in the game, he emerges on the BigBad's flagship with barely a scratch; it is never explained how he survived, although they do [[LampshadeHanging hang a lampshade]] on this.

** He actually dies for real at the end of the game. First his HumongousMecha explodes, then he's kicked off the top of it, then the room caves in on top of him, then he's in a car crash, before an assassination virus gives him a heart attack. At each turn, characters treat it as a certain, irrevocable death (it helps that these things are meant to be fatal to the player as well). Remarkably death hasn't kept him from taking major roles in ''MetalGearSolid2'' and ''MetalGearSolid4''.

** In [=MGS4,=] the fight between Raiden and Vamp. See for yourself in youtube. Raiden survived his collision against a titanic size ship without any hands.

* ''SuikodenII'' [[spoiler:Luca Blight is killed as follows: Riddled with arrows (killing his horse), fought three times (all three of them six-on-one beatdowns), riddled with arrows, riddled with arrows ''again'', and then fought in a duel. Only then does he die.]]
* Zero from the ''MegaManX'' series, he can die, turn evil, be put into stasis, and STILL be a playable character in the next game.
** His nemesis from ''MegaManZero'', Dr. Weil, deserves a mention, seeing as he [[spoiler:was the target of ''a KillSat that completely leveled TheEmpire (!)'']]. TheReveal of [[spoiler:his being immortal]] [[JustifiedTrope might have something to do with it]]...
** For that matter, in ''MegaManBattleNetwork 2'', Lan is exposed to hundreds of thousands of rads of radiation. Even with a good radiation suit, that should have killed him, and quickly. Its so egregious that it crosses into ArtisticLicenseNuclearPhysics, never mind CosmicLotteryWinner. For reference, 1000 rads will kill you within a month or two, and 5000 will kill you in a few days.
*** Actually, 1000 rads will kill you in about 10 minutes. At least, that's what I heard on ''MythBusters''...

* ''VideoGame/{{Tekken}} 3'', Bryan Fury's ending. [[http://youtube.com/watch?v=8q2OCza3O1A Nuff said]].
** And in ''VideoGame/{{Tekken}} 4'', Kazuya Mishima got into this. So he was thrown into a volcano, and probably was immolated there... But he still manages to get BackFromTheDead, because some scientists hauled off his ashes just in time and resurrected him.
** And in ''VideoGame/{{Tekken}} 5'', Heihachi Mishima takes this to a new level. Surrounded with robots, pinned down with no chance to escape, and all the robot self destructed, destroying him and the temple where he's located. An observer confirms ''"Heihachi Mishima is dead"''... Is it? Bzzt! Wrong! He NeverFoundTheBody. So it turns out that Heihachi managed to survive the near-impossible odds, [[BadassNormal being no ordinary man]].

* In ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil'', Albert Wesker got impaled by Tyrant, LeftForDead, and has the building he was in self-destruct, and comes out of it NighInvulnerable, as shown in his next appearance when he takes a pile of I-beams and then a small explosion to the face and yet is still mocking Chris as the place self-destructs around him. Also tends to happen with most of the BigBad monsters... until the [[{{BFG}} rocket launcher]] shows up.

** The we have [[NietzscheWannabe Sync]], who was ''thrown into a volcano''.
* ''ArmyOfTwo'' winds up using this for the central premise of the money-making objectives of the last level. [[spoiler:Philip Clyde is on the wrong end of a grenade explosion that rips a cargo plane in two, and free-falls to the flooded Miami streets. Guess who the last boss pre-expansions is?]]

** There's also Maggey Byrde, an [[BornUnlucky impossibly]] [[CosmicPlaything unlucky]] young woman who managed to survive falling off the ninth floor of an appartment building, ''when she was an infant''. Seriously, even if her fall was somehow softened by some things, it's still impossibly unlikely that she would survive falling from that high at such a young age.
* In the early missions of ''SyphonFilter 2'', Logan makes a leap of faith to dodge a helicopter-launched missile not once, but twice, first diving ''headfirst'' off a cliff of unknown height, then later off a 100-foot or so high bridge ''onto a moving train''. There's no way these leaps could be survived in real life, at least not without crippling injuries. In fact jumping onto a speeding train from a stationary object would cause one to slide backwards and sustain severe lacerations or broken bones, maybe fall between the cars and be shredded under the wheels. Apparently the designers disregarded Newton's third law. Don't think the snow in the first case would do much to cushion the impact, either (see SoftWater).

* ''FireEmblem: Radiant Dawn'': It's assumed that the Black Knight was killed in ''Path of Radiance'' when Nasir [[strike:[[DroppedABridgeOnHim drops a bridge]]]] [[DroppedABridgeOnHim collapses Nados Castle on him]], although they NeverFoundTheBody when they examined the ruins. He comes back in ''Radiant Dawn'', revealing that [[HesJustHiding he was just hiding]] for the past three years.
** The {{Canon}} is actually that Ike beats him in the sword fight, then the Black Knight's mooks drop the castle trying to kill Ike. The Japanese version also gives a cheesy explanation to how he survived that was SoBadItsAwful that was thankfully cut from the American version.

* ''SaintsRow2'' - The Ronin Leader is left, stabbed through with his own katana, on the deck of a burning junk ship that explodes when your character leaves. How much do you want to bet he'll be back for the sequel?
** The Boss him/herself might come under this trope [[spoiler: with the boat explotion from Saints Row 1]]. Or the average shenanigans of his/her day to day life.
* Peppy in ''VideoGame/StarFox Assault'' has [[spoiler: an Apparoid infection on his right arm, receives a few explosions in the face and has the Great Fox blow up with him in it]] and he [[spoiler: appears in the end with only an injury in the face.]]

* Double subverted in ''MassEffect'', when TheDragon dies, or commits suicide, when you issue the order to either save the Council, attack the ship that TheDragon was indoctrinated by, or let the Council die. Guess what Shepard says to his/her squad, "Make sure he's dead." 10 seconds later, a squadmember makes sure TheDragon is dead by shooting him with a pistol, in the head, but then comes back to life thanks to implants.

* In ''SoldierOfFortune: Payback'', you shoot down the Moor's helicopter, but you NeverFoundTheBody, so you can't verify his death. During the {{cliffhanger}} ending, he is revealed to be still alive.

* In ''RecordOfAgarestWar'' Leonhardt was finally able to kill the Black Knight by making him fall to his death from a high cliff. And then he actually comes back. [[spoiler: As Vashtor.]]

* Your Commander in ''TotalAnnihilation'' is able to survive a nuclear missile blast, provided the missile is not a direct hit.

* The shark in ''JawsUnleashed'' is ruled out dead by the mayor after it causes an undersea facility to explode, citing this. Michael Brody and Craddock are still rightfully doubtful.
* Don't assume this of your enemies in VideoGame/SuperSmashBros. Example: [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=twqSNmMYjRc]].
* Averted in Breath of Fire IV: Yohm traps Fou-Lu on a bridge of a giant drop, and watches the God-lad plummet "to his death". Being a smart man, Yohm immediately orders his troops "We take no chances. I want his body found."
* Max Payne is extraordinarily resistant; in Max Payne 2 he survives being shot in the head with a Desert Eagle, and being thrown hundreds of feet off the side of a building.

* Confidently invoked by a Clone Trooper in [[http://www.darthsanddroids.net/episodes/0568.html this]] episode of ''{{Darths and Droids}}'' after the clones have blasted [[TheObiWan Obi-Wan]] off of a cliff. Of course, Obi-Wan just hits some {{Soft Water}} and is [[ForegoneConclusion completely fine...]]

* Played with in ''CaptainSNES'' where an explosion is set up for the sole purpose of killing a character named Bob. The person who made the explosion, who was GenreSavvy and realized the heroes would just be blown away, mentions that only a Chocobo would have the reflexes to survive said explosion. Guess what Bob happens to be at the moment.

* [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20031010 Othar Tryggvassen,]] GentlemanAdventurer! of Webcomic/GirlGenius fame. The man has survive falling from an airship several times, AND multiple explosions, and apparently WORSE, we just haven't actually been witness to it.

* {{Panthera}}. When [[spoiler:Ari/Oosterhuis gets unmasked]], he [[CollapsingLair brings down the entire building]]. [[spoiler: Leo chooses to stay behind and use his powers to help the others get a chance to get out]].
* [[InstantAwesomeJustAddNinja Mike]] from Webcomic/BobAndGeorge [[DisneyDeath drops from]] [[RunningGag a cliff]] and is MONTHS LATER FOUND THERE BY [[IdiotHero MEGA MAN]] AND BASS.
** In the end of series, [[spoiler:[[BigBad Bob]] ''[[Film/ApocalypseNow nukes the whole planet]]'' with [[KillItWithFire his powers]]. Nobody dies. Thanks to [[TheHero George]] / [[BigGood Shadowy Author]]]]

* BigBad {{Darkseid}} was practically guaranteed to return on a future episode of ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague'' because Batman foolishly declared "Nothing could have survived that, not even Darkseid" after the villain's apparent death by atomic-sized explosion. Superman provided a little LampshadeHanging by immediately quipping "You know something Bruce? You're not always right." The ''Unlimited'' episode "Alive!" provided the shocking twist that [[spoiler: Darkseid '''''didn't''''' survive. But since he came BackFromTheDead, the end result is the same regardless]].

** In ''TransformersGeneration1'', Megatron "died" at the end of a major storyline, only to turn out to be alive at the end, ''three times'' in the first season alone. Spike Witwicky could be counted on to deliver the NoOneCouldSurviveThat line, but Optimus Prime was always good about [[GenreSavvy predicting his return]].
** Mumm-Ra, of ''{{Thundercats}}'' fame, "died" with similar frequency. He's called The Ever-Living [[AsLongAsThereIsEvil for a reason]].

* Bob was hit with the DisneyDeath version just before the second season finale of ''ReBoot'', although they managed to make it more believable by showing him shooting the explosive away from himself at the last second.

* ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'' had a moment like this for Batman, in the aptly-named episode "The Man Who Killed Batman".
** This trope is played upon twice in the episode "The Clock King". Right before Fugit seems to die as the clock tower starts to collapse:

* Throughout the {{DCAU}}, SelfDemonstrating/TheJoker ended about half of his appearances like this.

* The two-part [[{{Pilot}} series premiere]] of ''WesternAnimation/DarkwingDuck'' relies on the DisneyDeath version. As Taurus Bulba's Ram Rod, a gravity gun, explodes violently in a gigantic fireball (large enough to engulf the top of Canard Tower, which is taller than the city is wide), both the villain and Darkwing are caught at ground zero. Gosalyn and Launchpad both believe that Darkwing has died, until he appears at the orphanage a few days later, having decided to adopt Gosalyn as his daughter.
** Surprisingly, Taurus Bulba did in fact die. However, his remains were subsequently stolen by the criminal organization F.O.W.L., and made into a nigh-unstoppable cyborg.

* In the ''[[WesternAnimation/SpiderMan1967 Spider-Man]]'' 60's animated series, Doctor Octopus throws Spider-Man out of a ''window'' and immediately declares that ''he's finally rid of him''. In a rare moment of sanity for the series, Spider-Man immediately comes back in through the window, although it makes Doctor Octopus look like he should have failed his dissertation.
* ''MegasXLR'' gives us this exchange
--> Zerak: "No one could have survived that blast!"
--> S-Force: "[[AchievementsInIgnorance Good thing no one ever told us that.]]"
* Early ''WesternAnimation/{{Gargoyles}}'' episodes had something along these lines after fighting with Demona. They stopped doing this when it is revealed that she is immortal.

*** Subverted when Goliath, Angela, and Elisa fight the ghosts of Hakon and the Captain. When the newly-reincarnated Captain turns on Hakon and pushes him into the magical standing stones, which then collapse around them, Elisa says "No one could survive that." They didn't.
* On an episode of ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'': Mona (Homer's mother) [[PutOnABus drives a bus]] off a cliff and into a lake. At first Chief Wiggum subverts this by noting, "There's still air in that bus, so for the next thirty minutes, this is a rescue mission." But then the bus [[EveryCarIsAPinto explodes]]. And then the cliffside collapses and the rubble ''fills the entire lake.'' But before the episode even ends, we discover Mona didn't die because she jumped clear before the bus even left the ground.

** Moleman. Just ... Moleman.
* In the ''SuperMarioBrosSuperShow'', episode "Toad Warriors", Kar-Krazy Koopa blasts a fortress where the heroes are hiding. Though he immediately jeers like he assumes he's defeated his opponents, in the very next scene he refuses Mouser's insistence on the same outcome, thinking that the heroes might be lying low as a trick. It takes a couple more potshots and more urging from Mouser until Koopa finally agrees to move in, which is also when Mario & Co. initiate the plan they had just developed. Yep, Koopa was GenreSavvy for just one moment, in contrast to the other 99% of the series.
* Most every episode of the old ''Birdman'' cartoon ended with Birdman or Birdboy uttering something to this effect so the writers had a way out if they felt like reusing a Villain of the Week.
* In TheMovie of ''WesternAnimation/KimPossible'' Shego is kicked from the roof of a high building, into an electrical signal tower, which not only electrocutes her but also collapses right on top of her. And she survives.
** In fact, the creators put her in an extra scene just to prove that she actually survived.

* ''{{Metalocalypse}}'' ''lives'' for this trope. To list all the examples would take too much time, so only the two most memorable ones will be listed:

* The {{Filmation}} ''{{Superboy}}'' cartoon "Finger of Doom". An observatory is destroyed by a beam of light from a rogue star. Superboy utters the immortal line "No one could have survived that." It turns out that Dr. Bailey, an astronomer who was in the observatory when it exploded, has [[WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity gained superpowers and been driven mad]].

** Incidentally, the poison was a literal example of NoOneCouldSurviveThat: it was more than enough to kill him several times over. It's thought that it evaporated when they baked the cake it was in.

* Richard Hammond from ''TopGear''. In September 2006 the rocket-propelled jet car he was driving blew a tire at 288 mph, rolled off the runway and came to a halt upside down. Hammond was conscious within minutes, up and talking within 24 hours, out of the hospital in five weeks, and back on the show by January.

* During the [[http://www.statemaster.com/encyclopedia/Battle-of-Kapyong Battle of Kapyong]] of TheKoreanWar, Canadian and Australian troops defended the hills against the overwhelming and relentless forces of the Chinese. When Australian Major Bernard O'Dowd managed to radio the 1st U.S. Marine Division requesting reinforcements, the answering general incredulously thought he was an enemy agent, declaring that the units down there was all wiped out the night before. O'Dowd replied that [[CrowningMomentOfAwesome "I've got news for you, we are still here and we are staying here."]]
* [[http://survival.wikia.com/wiki/Betty_Lou_Oliver Betty Lou Oliver]]: Elevator operator, Empire State Building, 1940s. Not only survived the the injuries initial impact and fireball when a B-25 Bomber crashed into the side of the building, but then subsequently survived when the cables on the elevator she was in snapped, causing the car to plummet 79 stories (incidentally, one of the few real life examples of an elevator actually plummeting out of control after the cables breaking).

* Juliane Koepcke. Your average 17-year-old German girl. On her way to visit her father her plane crashed. As in broke apart in mid-air. Right over the Amazon Rain Forest. She fell 10,000 feet partially conscious in her seat. It took her several days, but despite her serious injuries, she was the only one to walk out of the jungle alive.
** She was so tough WernerHerzog even made a documentary about her.

----

** For that matter, in ''MegaManBattleNetwork 2'', Lan is exposed to hundreds of thousands of rads of radiation. Even with a good radiation suit, that should have killed him, and quickly. Its so egregious that it crosses into YouFailNuclearPhysicsForever, never mind CosmicLotteryWinner. For reference, 1000 rads will kill you within a month or two, and 5000 will kill you in a few days.

* Throughout the {{DCAU}}, Joker ended about half of his appearances like this.

* In the Literature/HarryPotter series, this trope could also apply to Lord Voldemort, as the Avada Kedavra spell he had tried to kill Harry with hit him instead. We learn in ''HarryPotter/HarryPotterAndTheGobletOfFire'' that no one (aside from Harry himself) had ever survived being hit with Avada Kedavra. His followers certainly seemed to think NoOneCouldSurviveThat, as many (though not all) of them didn't bother to search for him, instead opting to lead lives of lesser evil. [[spoiler:Subverted slightly as Voldemort actually was, for all intents and purposes, dead. He managed to cling to life as some sort of spirit, and would eventually return to his body in ''The Goblet of Fire''.]]

!!Examples

[[folder: Anime & Manga]]

[[folder:Film]]

* ''Disney/{{Aladdin}} and the King of Thieves'': [[TheStarscream Saluk]] is presumed dead when Aladdin knocks him off a cliff in their duel. As soon as the Forty Thieves are done welcoming Al to the team, the movie cuts to Saluk surfacing and killing a shark as he makes his way ashore.
* Metro Man in WesternAnimation/{{Megamind}} get hit with the power of the sun after being weakened by a [[WeaksauceWeakness copper trap]], prompting this trope: "I don't think even he could survive that". [[spoiler: As a subversion to normal expectations, his DeaderThanDead skeleton ends up in plain view of the main characters. Later double subverted when it's revealed that Metro Man used it to fake his own death.]]

* Fans of the Disney film {{Disney/Cinderella}} widely believed the villanous cat Lucifer died when he fell from Cinderella's tower after being chased off by Bruno the dog, as this was a typical {{Disney Villain Death}}. Therefore, they were surprised when he turned up alive and well in the sequels.
** It has been revealed that cats (a) can right themselves in midair, and (b) go limp upon reaching terminal velocity, at which point their legs splay out and their skin stretches into a makeshift parachute. This means that they can actually survive very long falls.

[[folder: Live-Action TV ]]

[[folder: Tabletop Games ]]

[[folder: Video Games ]]

[[folder: Western Animation ]]

[[folder: Real Life ]]

* [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G9YEpHIowB4&feature=related This]] NASCAR wreck would qualify, but since the driver in question was wearing a neck restraint, he ''walked away with only a minor bruise.''

** On another occasion, he was shot in the chest multiple times at point blank range, while in a helicopter that then exploded with him in it, and fell into the sea. Even {{Superman}} NeverFoundTheBody though...

* {{Batman}} survived a similar incident in an episode of ''JusticeLeagueUnlimited'', in a scene that more than one viewer has admitted to believing for a moment that he had really died.

* In ''{{Runaways}}'' the team saw a missile go off near Chase and counted him as dead. In a case of desperate {{genre savv|y}}iness Molly guessed ''exactly'' how Chase survived and hadn't come back yet.

** It has been revealed that cats (a) can right themselves in midair, and (b) go limp upon reaching terminal velocity, at which point their legs splay out and their skin stretches into a makeshift parachute. This means that they can actually survive very long falls. [[/folder]]

* [[{{Metallica}} James Hetfield]]. Montreal. 1992. Stage pyrotechnic gone wrong, for those not with me yet.

*** In the novelisation, he acknowledges that killing Anakin would be the merciful thing to do, but was aware of Palpatine's presence and knew he wouldn't have time. He decides to leave it up to The Force.

* The villains in ''Film/{{Dredd}}'' are smart enough not to assume this even after using three [[GatlingGood gatling guns]] to turn an entire floor of their apartment complex into absolute swiss cheese. TheDragon tells his men the Judges aren't dead until they see the bodies...[[ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill or]] [[LudicrousGibs parts of them]].

* IndianaJones.