History Main / RoofHopping

** Assassins are expected to be able to do this. ''Discworld/{{Pyramids}}'' in particular features the main character doing quite a bit of roof hopping.
** Sam Vimes engages in quite a few rooftop chases, most of them off-page. One of Death's [[NearDeathExperience near Vimes experiences]] happened when one of these ''stopped'' being a rooftop chase. (Another chase, in ''Discworld/NightWatch'', ended when both participants fell through the glass ceiling of Unseen University.)
* The killer in ''Literature/TheAlienist'' demonstrates remarkable abilities traveling roofs and other urban structures. Not surprising, as he feels best when he's away from society, and up on the rooftops he feels alone and powerful.
* This is a very common way of getting around for the titular extraordinarily empowered individuals of ''Literature/{{Mistborn}}'', since they can telekinetically push and pull on metals.
* The climax of ''[[Literature/HeraldsOfValdemar Changes]]'' is a roof-hopping race between Mags and two assassins.

* In the ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsTheCloneWars'' episode "Lightsaber Lost" Ahsoka chases the thief who had stolen her lightsaber earlier on the rooftops of Coruscant. The thief is a very agile "Terrellian Jango Jumper" who manages to outrun and elude her.

** [[WebVideo/SailorMoonAbridged "Jumping, jumping, jumping, jumping, even though I can teleport!"]]

* Kurumi does a fair amount of roofhopping in ''[[Anime/SteelAngelKurumi Steel Angel Kurumi 2]]''.
* Lupin the Third and Jigen, escaping the bad guys who attack their room at the inn in ''Anime/TheCastleOfCagliostro''. And Lupin continues this trick as he breaks into the castle to speak with the Princess again.

* All the Seven Angels and the Seven Seals in ''Manga/{{X1999}}''. The series ''loves'' this one.
** Not to mention hopping off and [[IHaveTheHighGround standing on]] lampposts and such.

* Renamon from ''Anime/DigimonTamers'' does this a fair bit in the first part of the series, before they go to the Digital World.

* Alex Mercer from ''VideoGame/{{Prototype}}'' can both use LeParkour and InASingleBound. This is the natural extension.

* ''WesternAnimation/MiraculousLadybug'': Ladybug and Cat Noir get around Paris with a mix of this and [[BuildingSwing building-swinging]] (or [[TelescopingStaff pole-vaulting]] in Cat's case.)

* Matrix in a season 3 episode of ReBoot does this to follow a thief that made away with his keytool.

* In the film of ''Film/{{Hellboy}}'', this is Hellboy's preferred method of tracking what Liz Sherman and John Myers are doing on their 'going out for coffee' walk. Here Del Toro shows the risky chance of encountering civilians on rooftops - milk-and-cookie-distributing-civilians, but still. Hellboy, even with his superman abilities, still nearly misses one of the jumps.

** The opening ChaseScene involved Agents RoofHopping after Trinity. Part way through, the whole thing is {{lampshade|Hanging}}d when a cop, seeing an agent jump an unbelievable distance following Trinity, says, "That's impossible!" This is the first hint we get that the action is not, in fact, taking place in the real world.

* This was possible in ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIIDaggerfall'' and ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIIIMorrowind Morrowind]]''. ''Oblivion'' drastically nerfed jump height, leaving very few places where a rooftop could be reached at all, let alone from another.

* One of the most impressive abilities of high-level Agents in ''VideoGame/{{Crackdown}}''.

* The Agent in ''VideoGame/{{Crackdown}}''. Build your [[EvolvingWeapon Agility Skill]] high enough, and you can make some truly vertigo-inducing leaps. This is arguably the better way to get around, as opposed to running or driving the streets.

* Bulga in ''Anime/OkusamaWaMahouShoujo'' once hops between telephone poles. Otherwise, the girls usually to fly.

* One bad guy on ''Series/NCISLosAngeles'' tries this to get away from Callen and Sam. [[RealityEnsues He]] [[DisneyDeath fails]].

* Exercised extensively in the ''Franchise/SlyCooper'' series to avoid mook patrols.

* In ''Manga/AkagamiNoShirayukihime'' the knight Mitsuhide was introduced to his charge, the second prince of the kingdom, by being brought to the castle by the first prince, walking near a building and being told to look up as Zen leapt from the roof to a nearby tree in an attempt to escape his duties. It's a habit Zen never grew out of and early on he acquires an aide who also prefers to get around this way, to the point that he rarely ever uses doors or hallways without being ordered to.

[[folder:Web Comics]]
* Subverted in ''Webcomic/TheNonAdventuresOfWonderella'':
-->'''Gentleman Wednesday''': Um, my dramatic exit seems to have been foiled by the lack of another rooftop on this side of the building.
-->'''Wonderella''': Nope! Just my side!
-->'''Gentleman Wednesday''': Ah. ''Well''. Thank God for ''that''.
* Junpei from ''Webcomic/MegaTokyo'' is adept of this.
* ''Webcomic/SluggyFreelance'': In "That Which Redeems", the [[BewareTheSillyOnes so far relatively harmless-seeming]] [[DemonLordsAndArchdevils Demon Lord]] Horribus is shown to be capable of leaping across a city from rooftop to rooftop ([[InASingleBound and not just adjacent rooftops]]) in pursuit of his nemesis, probably by virtue of his SuperStrength. He does break the roof of the last building he lands on with his great weight, and humorously falls through all its stories after that.
* Mr. Hyde in ''Webcomic/TheGlassScientists'' likes to leap across the buildings of VictorianLondon to get around.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Anime & Manga]]

* In crowded parts of the world like parts of Europe and India, roof hopping is made much easier because the roofs may only be a metre apart. However, roof construction in some of these older buildings is mainly just light timber structure, roof tiles and... well, nothing else. You can also very easily go ''through'' the roof. Don't try this at a series of someone else's homes.

* ''WesternAnimation/MiraculousLadybug'': Ladybug and Cat Noir get around Paris with a mix of this and [[BuildingSwing building-swinging]] (or [[TelescopingStaff pole-vaulting]] in Cat's case.]]

* ''Film/TheMatrix'' had a ChaseScene that involved Agents RoofHopping after Trinity. Part way through, the whole thing is [[LampshadeHanging Lampshaded]] when a cop, seeing an agent jump an unbelievable distance following Trinity, says, "That's impossible!" This is also the first hint we get that the action is not, in fact, taking place in the real world.
** There's also the infamous "Whoa" scene, where Morpheus shows Neo how to do it. Neo fails the first time.

* ''Series/CriminalMinds'': An unsub tries (and fails) to do this in an attempt to escape arrest in the episode "Tabula Rasa". Morgan follows, with [[CrowningMomentOfAwesome considerably greater success]].

* ''WesternAnimation/KimPossible'' loves to do it while chasing criminals. Her Sidekick [[YouSuck Ron Stoppable]], not so much...