History Main / RayOfHopeEnding

* The ending of ''Film/{{Se7e}}''. While the villain has won, [[spoiler: Mills gave in to his anger at his wife's and child's death at the hands of John Doe, the villain, and John does agenda, a recreation of the SevenDeadlySins in the form of murders, came to fruition as mills shot John Doe in the head, giving in to the final sin, wrath]], and his evil plan has suceeded. Mills, clearly emotionally traumatised by the events, has been taken into custody. However, Detective Somerset is a generally selfless and moral KnightInSourArmor until a short time before the beggining of the film when he decides to actually retire and get on with his life. Throughout the film he is on the brink of retiring but just can't keep out that selfless part inside of him that wants to keep on fighting for the innocent, which is pushed on by Mills who is like a reminder of Somerset at a younger age. He does decide to stay on for a few days, but at the end of the film after [[spoiler: Mills shoots Doe and Doe's plan suceeds]], it is implied that he has decided to stay on completely. The last words of the film are Somerset: "The world is a fine place, and worth fighting for. I agree with the second part" which shows that even in the worst of places and after seeing the worst in humanity, people will still fight for good.

This differs (almost to the point of being the opposite) from a BittersweetEnding, where the protagonists win but at a great cost, and is not simply a Downer Ending with a few happy tones either. This trope means that, despite the heroes being soundly defeated, physically and/or emotionally, there's still some hope left; a reassurement that things are not as bleak as they may look, and there could be a chance to turn the tides around, even if everything that has been lost can't ever be truly recovered.

** And given that immediately afterward the Captain ''does'' find something to laugh at when Mrs. Marcus slips on a banana peel...

* The ending of "Se7en" could be seen as this. While the villain has won,[[spoiler: mills (brad pitt)gave in to his anger at his wife and childs death at the hands of john doe, the villain, and john does agenda, a recreation of the 7 deadly sins in the form of murders, came to fruition as mills shot john doe in the head, giving in to the final sin, wrath.]] and his evil plan has suceeded. Mills, clearly emotionally traumatised by the events, has been taken into custody. However, Detective Somerset (morgan freeman)is a generally selfless and moral KnightInSourArmor until a short time before the beggining of the film when he decides to actually retire and get on with his life. Throughout the film he is on the brink of retiring but just cant keep out that selfless part inside of him that wants to keep on fighting for the innocent, which is pushed on by Mills who is like a reminder of Somerset at a younger age. He does decide to stay on for a few days, but at the end of the film after [[spoiler: Mills shoots Doe and Doe's plan suceeds]]it is implied that he has decided to stay on completely, by his words 'Around. Ill be around which he says in response to a policeman asking him where he'll be. Maybe he'll stay a cop until he dies. The last words of the film are Somerset: "Th world is a fine place, and worth fighting for. I agree with the second part" which shows that even in the worst of places and after seeing the worst in humanity people will still fight for good.

* Every single season of ''WesternAnimation/CodeLyoko'' ends this way, [[TheBadGuyWins with a victory for XANA]] but with the potential for the heroes to undo his victory. In order:

** Season Four: This season does not fit the Trope, but [[spoiler:is a BittersweetEnding nonetheless. XANA is finally destroyed, but Hopper [[HeroicSacrifice has to sacrifice himself]] in the second-to-last episode to do it.]]

* Every single season of Code Lyoko ends this way, with a victory for XANA but with the potential for the heroes to undo his victory. In order:

Season One: While Aelita is finally dematerialized, a virus planted inside her makes her freedom temporary, and the heroes still unable to shut down the computer without killing her. Still, Aelita is not a complete prisoner, and Jeremie promises to find the cure no matter what it takes.

Season Two: Aelita has more freedom from Lyoko, but XANA now has a specific goal, to absorb her memories using the Scyphozoa. In the last episode of the season, he succeeds, and manages to escape Lyoko, no longer relying on it and becoming far more powerful than before. But, when the heroes seem out of ideas, they get a message from the enigmatic Franz Hopper, pledging his help.

Season Three: The end of this season marks XANA’s biggest victory. His goal is to destroy Lyoko, so that nothing can undo his attacks on humanity. At the end of the episode, he not only succeeds, but makes William his slave. But, when all hope seems lost, the heroes get a message from Hopper again, hinting that he may have a solution. (In the next season, it is shown that Jeremie is able to use what Hopper sends him to rebuild Lyoko.)

Season Four: This season does not fit the Trope, but [[spoiler:is a Bittersweet Ending nonetheless. XANA is finally destroyed, but Hopper has to sacrifice himself in the second-to-last episode to do it.]]

* ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagicaTheMovieRebellion'': The twist ending has a character pull one heck of a FaceHeelTurn and remake the world according to her own desires. All the heroes are trapped in her reality and given LaserGuidedAmnesia. However, [[WellIntentionedExtremist the new villain's desires]] [[UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans are to make everyone alive and happy.]] It's also implied the heroes will regain their memories and oppose the villain.

* ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagicaTheMovieRebellion'': The twist ending has a character pull one heck of a FaceHeelTurn and remake the world according to her own desires. All the heroes are trapped in her reality and given LaserGuidedAmnesia. However, [[WellIntentionExtremist the new villain's desires]] [[UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans are to make everyone alive and happy.]] It's also implied the heroes will regain their memories and oppose the villain.

!Examples

* At the end of ''Literature/TheDarkTower'', when Roland is sent back in a GroundhogDayLoop, he holds the horn of Eld, which implies that he could break the loop eventually.

* The CutShort ''Series/{{V-2009}}'' ended on the big downer of the Visitors gaining the ability to [[spoiler: [[GettingSmiliesPaintedOnYourSoul bliss]] humans en-masse]], which could very well be the backbreaker for the human race. Plus many key characters die, and [[spoiler: a very hopeful-looking plot against Anna by her estranged mother fails utterly]]. But Erica is introduced to a deeper underground resistance involving members of the FBI, military and intelligence communities, which may, with some perseverance, cunning and luck, just have enough resources and high connections to succeed, should there ever be a continuation or sequel...

* In the second part of ''VacantSky'', it turns out Auria is really the BigBad after all, one of the second heroes [[spoiler:Serijala ]] has made a pact with the Virad, and Mia is dead. Things are looking kinda grim. ...And then, we discover that the Virad are infected by demons, meaning demon-killing weapons have a chance of permanently killing them off, and also there is the hope that stopping Ejaro will put an end to the Virad.

When a DownerEnding does not mean that everything has been lost. Things might have gone bad for our heroes; they might have lost the base, have the villain remain victorious, or even [[TheHeroDies have themselves killed]]. But even amongst all that tragedy, there's still something that assures that it doesn't end there, that there might be a chance to make things better.

This is different from a BittersweetEnding, where the protagonists win but at a great cost, and is not simply a Downer Ending with a few happy tones either. This trope means that, despite the heroes being soundly defeated, physically and/or emotionally, there's still some hope left; a reassurement that things are not as bleak as they may look, and there could be a chance to turn the tides around, even if everything that has been lost can't ever be truly recovered.

** However as the sequel ''[[MeaningfulName War in Heaven]]'' is quick to underline, the UEF rarely scores any victories in their war with the GTVA whose forces both outgun and outnumber the UEF's, the second act in particular [[spoiler: ending on a very cruel HopeSpot where the [[BadassCrew Wargods]], who up until that point have been singlehandedly winning the war, are [[CurbStompBattle completely curb-stomped]] on the cusp of what could've been a war-ending victory]] The third act itself ends with the GTVA forces about to invade the Earth itself, [[PlayerCharacter Noemi Laporte's]] revelation that [[spoiler: [[{{Precursors}} the Vishnans]] have given up on preserving humanity because of the UEF-GTVA war and have ordered [[TheDreaded the]] [[OmnicidalManiac Shivans]] to destroy humanity]] and Noemi being forced to fake her death to escape from [[UnwittingPawn the]] [[OmniscientCouncilOfVagueness Elders']] grasp. The ray of hope comes in the form of [[MindHive Ken]] bringing Noemi back from the DespairEventHorizon by telling her that Lorna is still alive and that [[spoiler: the Shivans]] have a plan to prevent humanity's end, but the UEF needs to win the war in order for the plan to work.

* Over the course of the first three acts (of five) of the ''VideoGame/FreeSpace 2'' mod, ''VideoGame/BluePlanet: War In Heaven'' the [[DesignatedHero "heroic"]] [[TheAlliance United Earth Federation]] rarely scores any victories in their war with the [[TheFederation GT]][[DesignatedVillain VA]] whose forces both outgun and outnumber the UEF's, the second act in particular [[spoiler: ending on a very cruel HopeSpot where the [[BadassCrew Wargods]] are [[CurbStompBattle completely curb-stomped]] on the cusp of what could be a war-ending victory]] The third act itself ends with the GTVA forces about to invade Earth, [[PlayerCharacter Noemi's]] revelation that [[spoiler: [[{{Precursors}} the Vishnans]] have given up on preserving humanity because of the UEF-GTVA war and have ordered [[TheDreaded the]] [[OmnicidalManiac Shivans]] to destroy humanity]] and Noemi being forced to fake her death to escape from [[UnwittingPawn the]] [[OmniscientCouncilOfVagueness Elders']] grasp. The ray of hope comes in the form of [[MindHive Ken]] bringing Noemi back from the DespairEventHorizon by telling her that Lorna is still alive and that [[spoiler: the Shivans]] have a plan to prevent humanity's end, but the UEF needs to win in order for the plan to work.

* Over the course of the first three acts (of five) of the ''VideoGame/FreeSpace 2'' mod, ''VideoGame/BluePlanet: War In Heaven'' the [[DesignatedHero "heroic"]] [[TheAlliance United Earth Federation]] rarely scores any victories in their war with the [[TheFederation GT]][[DesignatedVillain VA]] whose forces both outgun and outnumber the UEF's, the second act in particular [[spoiler: ending on a very cruel HopeSpot where the [[BadassCrew Wargods]] being [[CurbStompBattle completely curb-stomped]] on the cusp of what could be a war-ending victory]] The third act itself ends with the GTVA forces about to invade Earth, [[PlayerCharacter Noemi's]] revelation that [[spoiler: [[{{Precursors}} the Vishnans]] have given up on preserving humanity because of the UEF-GTVA war and have ordered [[TheDreaded the]][[OmnicidalManiac Shivans]] to destroy humanity]] and Noemi being forced to fake her death to escape from [[UnwittingPawn the]][[OmniscientCouncilOfVagueness Elders']] grasp. The ray of hope comes in the form of [[MindHive Ken]] bringing Noemi back from the DespairEventHorizon by telling her that Lorna is still alive and that [[spoiler: the Shivans]] have a plan to prevent humanity's end from happening but the UEF needs to win in order for the plan to work.

* The third act of the ''VideoGame/FreeSpace 2'' mod, ''VideoGame/BluePlanet: War In Heaven'' ends with the GTVA forces about to invade Earth, [[PlayerCharacter Noemi's]] revelation that [[spoiler: the Vishnans have given up on preserving humanity because of the Sol-GTVA war and have ordered the Shivans to destroy humanity]] and Noemi is forced to fake her death to escape from the Elders' grasp. The ray of hope comes in the form of Ken saying that [[spoiler: the Shivans]] have a plan to prevent humanity's end from happening but it will only come to pass if the war ends quickly and also in Noemi learning that Lorna is still alive and vowing to end the war no matter the cost.