History Main / OrpheanRescue

* FanFic/DungeonKeeperAmi features this in the SailorMoon native-verse subplot. At first it's just Usagi, Rei, and Luna, later they are joined by Makoto. Played with somewhat, however, as a way to get Ami home is apparent quite early on from Ami's end, it's simply too dangerous for the Light Gods to send her, as the Dark Gods will immeadiately use that opportunity to attack Ami's world. The overarching plot then revolves on overcomeing this.

* ''{{Sinfest}}'' [[http://www.sinfest.net/archive_page.php?comicID=3667 seemed]] to be going in this direction after [[HollywoodNerd Criminy]] started digging his way to hell in search of [[ReluctantMonster Fuchsia]], but it led to a [[http://www.sinfest.net/archive_page.php?comicID=3675 subversion]].

Their allies decide to mount an Orphean Rescue Mission. Much like [[GreekMythology Orpheus]] and his trip to the Underworld, the heroes will travel into a strange, otherworldy realm. It may be a JourneyToTheCenterOfTheMind, a [[TimeTravel different era]], another planet, a [[DownTheRabbitHole rabbit hole]], the SpiritWorld, Purgatory, {{Limbo}}, {{Hell}}, even ''{{Heaven}}'', ([[AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence or a reasonable facsimile]]) in an attempt to bring the said character back. Whether or not they will actually ''succeed'' is another matter.

** And, of course, Mal became [[spoiler: TheMissingno and TheOphelia]] because Dom's attempt to rescue her from Limbo [[GoneHorriblyRight worked much too well.]] [[spoiler: Dom planted the idea that they should kill themselves to get out of Limbo in her mind, but the idea was so firmly implanted that she ended up killing herself in waking life. After that, Dom's subconscious projection of Mal tormented him with memories of the botched Orphean Rescue and played havoc with damn near every one of his dream schemes. Dom eventually conquered her with a complete inversion of the OrpheanRescue--he told Mal's projection that he was done with her and would leave the memories in Limbo.]]

* You can actually bring back dead people from TheUnderworld in ''TabletopGame/GeistTheSinEaters'', but not without paying some (very terrible) price to the Kerberoi.

* This seems to be [[spoiler: the entirety]] of ''VideoGame/DrawnToLife''. [[spoiler: The creator (seemingly the player character and the force behind the protagonist) is actually Heather, who in the real world was Mike's older sister. In the real world, Mike and Heather were in a devastating car crash which put Mike in a coma and killed their parents. Heather's imagination plus ThePowerOfLove sent Mike into the world of ''Drawn to Life''. '''The Next Chapter''' consists of getting everything together so that Mike can wake up again.]]

* {{Deconstruct|ion}}ed HARD in ''[[VideoGame/{{Persona 3}} Persona 3: FES]]''. The desire to bring back [[spoiler: the main character]] cause the SEES to splinters and fights each other in GroundhogDayLoop. [[spoiler: Even when they actually get back to their senses and work together to reach the place where the MC's soul is, the find out that they CAN'T bring him back without undoing his sacrifice.]] Moral of the story: It's better to let go of deceased loved ones.

A character undergoes a very unusual kidnapping, one where they are taken someplace beyond mortal ken and reckoning. Sometimes it's not the body that's gone but the mind or soul, which can happen if they are lost in {{Cyberspace}} or in a DreamWithinADream. They may have been trapped in a LotusEaterMachine or PsychologicalTormentZone, or had their {{Soul}} taken into the SpiritWorld.

* ''Machinima/RedVsBlue'' has something like this for Church following Tex [[spoiler: into the capture unit]] at the end of Season 8 and into Season 9, followed by the rest of the squad trying to save him as well throughout the present timeline of Nine. [[spoiler: Church is eventually saved... after he [[WhamLine comes to peace with Tex's death and erases his memory of her.]]]]

Their allies decide to mount an Orphean Rescue Mission. Much like [[GreekMythology Orpheus]] and his trip to the Underworld, the heroes will travel into a strange, otherworldy realm. It may be a JourneyToTheCenterOfTheMind, a [[TimeTravel different era]], another planet, a [[DownTheRabbitHole rabbit hole]], the SpiritWorld, Purgatory, {{Limbo}}, {{Hell}}, even ''{{Heaven}}'', ([[AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence or a reasonable facsimile]]).

* The second ''[[Comicbook/SwampThing Swamp Thing Annual]]'' has the title character, with the assistance of ThePhantomStranger and {{Etrigan}}, journey out-of-body to Hell in order to rescue Abby, whose soul her uncle Anton Arcane had maliciously cast down there.

* Heracles did something similar when he went to the Underworld to abduct Cerberus for his Twelfth Labor. While there, his found his cousin Theseus and Theseus' friend Pirithous, who Hades had bound to a chair as punishment for trying to kidnap Persephone. Hades said he could take Theseus with back with him - if he could. Heracles managed to wrest Theseus free, but he wasn't allowed to do the same for Pirithous. (Pirithous had been the orchestrator of the plan and Theseus was only guilty by association, so Hades was willing to let him go.) As this story and the one with Orpheus seems to show, more-or-less, even attempting a rescue like this in GreekMythology is impossible unless you have Hades' permission.

* During MarkWaid's run, the ''Comicbook/FantasticFour'' rescued their fallen teammate Ben Grimm in this manner.

* A story arc of ''SecretSix'' had them doing this to rescue Scandal's lover Knockout.

[[caption-width-right:350:Orpheus in the underworld, rescuing his wife. For a value of "rescue" that includes walking off with a lute.]]

* Parodied in ''{{Oglaf}}'', where the ruler of the netherworld realizes to his annoyance that the rescuer isn't there to save a specific person, he's just listing qualities he wants in a girlfriend.

* ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitans'' has Robin do this for Raven in the Season Four finale.

* In ''[[CircleOfMagic Briar's Book]]'', Briar follows his teacher into death to convince her to come back.

* Heracles did something similar when he went to the Underworld to abduct Cerberus for his Twelfth Labor. While there, his found his cousin Theseus and Theseus' friend Pirithous, who Hades had bound to a chair as punishment for trying to kidnap Persephone. Hades said he could take Theseus with back with him - if he could. Heracles managed to wrest Theseus free, but he wasn't allowed to do the same for Pirithous. (Pirithous had been the orchestrator of the plan and Theseus was only guilty by association, so Hades was willing to let him go.)

* Heracles did something similar when he went to the Underworld to abduct Cerberus for his Twelfth Labor. While there, his cousin Thesus, who Hades had bound to a chair along with Theseus' friend Pirithous as punishment for trying to kidnap Persephone. Hades said he could take Thesus with back with him - if he could. Heracles managed to wrest Theseus free, but he wasn't allowed to do the same for Pirithous. (Pirithous had been the orchestrator of the plan and Theseus was only guilty by association, so Hades was willing to let him go.)

* Heracles did something similar when he went to the Underworld to abduct Cerberus for his Twelfth Labor. While there, he found his cousin Theseus his cousin Thesus, who Hades had bound to a chair along with Theseus' friend Pirithous as punishment for trying to kidnap Persephone. Hades said he could take Thesus with back with him - if he could. Heracles managed to wrest Theseus free, but he wasn't allowed to do the same for Pirithous. (Pirithous had been the orchestrator of the plan and Theseus was only guilty by association, so Hades was willing to let him go.)

* The greek myth themed ''Theros'' cycle in ''MAgicTheGathering'' has the black card "Journey to the Underworld", which involves one of the players creatures leaving play and returning next turn along with one that was in the discard pile, aka "Hades".

A character undergoes a very unusual kidnapping, one where they are taken someplace beyond mortal ken and reckoning. Sometimes it's not the body that's gone but the mind or soul, which can happen if are lost in {{Cyberspace}} or in a DreamWithinADream. They may have been trapped in a LotusEaterMachine or PsychologicalTormentZone, or had their {{Soul}} taken into the SpiritWorld.