History Main / StandingBetweenTheEnemies

The pacifist counterpart of the RousingSpeech.

* Franchise/{{Batman}} gives one in ''ComicBook/BatmanTheDarkKnightReturns'', starting with a BigNo that occupies a panel.
* Happened at the climax of Creator/AlanMoore's ''ComicBook/DRAndQuinch Get Drafted'' with the entire gang caught between the enemy Ghoyogian Army and their own Space Marines platoon [[spoiler: with whom they're in trouble for creating a friendly fire incident with a tactical nuke]]. Waldo attempts one plea for sanity by stepping up to "cry out at the horror and injustice of war..." It doesn't work.
* ''Franchise/XMen'': Performed by ComicBook/{{Rogue}} a number of times, for instance she stood between ComicBook/{{Magneto}} and a group of trigger-happy soldiers on two occasions with the same issue-number (in both cases she was not bullet-proof), first in ''Uncanny X-Men'' #274 in the Savage Land with a S.H.I.E.L.D. and Russian squad and later in ''X-Men Legacy'' #274 in Washington, D.C., with a group of U. S. soldiers and police.
* In the ''ComicBook/LandOfArran'' series ''Nains'', Volume 11 "Torun of the Forge" sees both Lord Brum and Redwin fight each other to the death until the little Fann gets between them, calming Brum with a severe stare and exclaiming that Redwin isn’t the real enemy.
* ''Franchise/{{Superman}}'':

* ''ComicBook/WonderWoman1987'': Diana tries to stand between ComicBook/{{Artemis}} and [[ComicBook/{{Etrigan}} Jason Blood]] when Temi shows up set on killing Jason for being a "soulless monster" on some misinformation and his transformation to protect the innocents around them from Temi's attack just further convinces her that she's right. Diana's attempt at a peaceful resolution is ineffective.

* In''[[Literature/TheScholomance The Last Graduate]]'' tensions between studenta aligned with the New York Enclave and the Shanghai Enclave (already high since word came that some unkown force obliterated the Shanghai-aligned Bangkok Enclave, which may well have been the first shot in an outright war) come to a head after several seniors from Shanghai and thier allies try to assassinate a promenent New Yorker and his apparent girlfriend. With numerous near-adult wizards a few breaths from killing each other [[TheHero El Higgins]] (the aformentioned apparent girlfriend, and not incidentally ''the primary target'') starts casting [[PersonOfMassDestruction a 'Summon Supervolcano' spell]] she [[BadPowersGoodPeople composed a couple of years back during an attempt a free-association spell-crafting]], held it ''just'' shy of the point of no return (well past the 'hurt me and it goes off' point) long enough to get everyone [[MassOhCrap focused on her]], then reined it in hard enough to throw several students off their feet before declaring that she actually ''was'' trying to get the whole graduating class working together for a co-ordinated evacuation and [[WrongGenreSavvy whatever baroque plot against them or their enclave]] the Shanghai students feared [[IfIWantedYouDead was far more trouble for her than the direct approach]].

* ''Anime/{{Pokemon}}'':
** Pikachu or Ash tend to try and calm squabbling Pokemon, though they often get hurt in the process.

* ''ComicBook/ElfesEtNains'': In Volume 11 "Torun of the Forge", both Lord Brum and Redwin fight each other to the death until the little Fann gets between them, calming Brum with a severe stare and exclaiming that Redwin isn’t the real enemy.

* In the ''WesternAnimation/TransformersBeastWars'' episode "Transmutate", Transmutate tries to stop its new friends Silverbolt and Rampage from killing each other by standing between them and holding off their missiles. [[spoiler:It ends tragically with Transmutate exploding. Transmutate's head lasts long enough to say goodbye to its friends. This does briefly stop the violence as Rampage howls in anguish and Silverbolt convinces the other Maximals to leave him alone since "for the moment, we are brothers".]]

* In ''Series/StarTrekEnterprise'', Trip (currently commanding the Enterprise, as Archer and T'Pol are on the surface) stops the Vulcan and Andorian ships from firing on each other by targeting both sides, and saying that he will fire on whoever shoots first.
** He does the same thing two seasons later. Again, it involves Vulcan and Andorian fleets. (One internet reviewer calls this the Tucker Maneuver.)

* In a ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'' episode, Jimmy and [[TheUnintelligible Timmy]] get the Bloods and Krips together for a lock-in in the gym, then stand between them while Jimmy gives a speech. It works about as well as you'd expect such a thing to work in real life. [[spoiler:Don't worry, just like Jimmy told you, a gym lock-in always works.]]

* One of the stories about [[https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/CrazyAwesome/RealLife Emperor Norton]] is the time when a crazed mob made its way to the Chinese ghetto. Norton took a knee between the angry mob, and the Chinese gathered to defend their home, and started reciting the Lord's Prayer. The rioters [[ShamingTheMob dispersed in shame]].

* Pikachu or Ash tend to try and calm squabbling Pokemon, though they often get hurt in the process.

* Performed by ComicBook/{{Rogue}} a number of times, for instance she stood between ComicBook/{{Magneto}} and a group of trigger-happy soldiers on two occasions with the same issue-number (in both cases she was not bullet-proof), first in ''Uncanny X-Men'' #274 in the Savage Land with a S.H.I.E.L.D. and Russian squad and later in ''X-Men Legacy'' #274 in Washington, D.C., with a group of U. S. soldiers and police.

Right before a duel, brawl, battle, or war would start between two misled factions, the heroes arrive just in time, give a BattleInterruptingShout, and tell everyone to try and be friends instead. They might reveal some sinister BigBad who manipulated them into the fight, explain to them how the CycleOfHatred leads nowhere, or just [[ShamingTheMob break the ice by being heartwarmingly idealistic]]. The speech itself may share rhetorical devices with the WhoopiEpiphanySpeech, the KirkSummation, ShamingTheMob or a NotSoDifferent speech.

* An episode from the AnimatedAdaptation of ''WesternAnimation/BackToTheFuture'', the gang traveled to the American Civil War and saw [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XII_5mwUBVA#t08m18s Jules and Verne caught between Union and Confederate armies.]]

* ''Manga/GunslingerGirl''. After the terrorist BigBad has been captured, the Italian government decides the Social Welfare Agency has outlived its usefulness and sends in the army to destroy them. Cyborg girl Claes however takes the guns off the SWA personal, walks out to the armoured personnel carriers facing the compound and calls on them not to fire. The soldiers are reluctant to shoot a little girl, so the SWA is able to surrender peacefully. The act is particularly significant as the cyborg girls were created to take advantage of the WouldntHurtAChild trope to kill their enemies.

** Tired of seeing both real and clone Pokemon hurting each other, Ash tries this in ''Anime/PokemonTheFirstMovie'' between Mew and Mewtwo's BeamOWar. It ''does'' stop the battle, but[[spoiler: he is [[TakenForGranite petrified as a result]]. Momentarily.]]

* In ''Anime/SoundOfTheSky'', [[spoiler:Sorami stops a battle by playing AmazingFreakingGrace.]]

* In a Bronze Age ComicBook/{{Supergirl}} story, Supergirl's landlady Ida Berkowitz stands between the titular heroine and the super-villain Blackstarr, Mrs. Berkowitz's own daughter, to keep them from killing each other.

* Franchise/{{Gundam}}:

* Franchise/{{Batman}} gives one in ''Comicbook/BatmanTheDarkKnightReturns'', starting with a BigNo that occupies a panel.

* Performed by Comicbook/{{Rogue}} a number of times, for instance she stood between Comicbook/{{Magneto}} and a group of trigger-happy soldiers on two occasions with the same issue-number (in both cases she was not bullet-proof), first in ''Uncanny X-Men'' #274 in the Savage Land with a S.H.I.E.L.D. and Russian squad and later in ''X-Men Legacy'' #274 in Washington, D.C., with a group of U. S. soldiers and police.
* In a Bronze Age Comicbook/{{Supergirl}} story, Supergirl's landlady Ida Berkowitz stands between the titular heroine and the super-villain Blackstarr, Mrs. Berkowitz's own daughter, to keep them from killing each other.

* During Miyako's storyline in ''VisualNovel/MajiDeWatashiNiKoiShinasai'', in order to atone for having let things get so far out of hand while [[spoiler: Cap was away]], Yamato stops a four-way fight between [[spoiler: Wanko, Miyako, Mayucchi, and Chris]] - with his body. [[spoiler: Mayucchi]] reacts fast enough to pull back at the last moment, but between the other three, Yamato is very much Not OK.

* In ''{{Webcomic/Oglaf}}'', The two priests of Sithrak try to prevent a battle, reasoning that their god tortures everybody after death, so killing isn't okay. [[http://oglaf.com/outreach/ It doesn't end well.]]

* One of the stories about [[https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/CrazyAwesome/RealLife Emperor Norton]] is the time when a crazed mob made its way to the Chinese ghetto. Norton took a knee between the angry mob, and the Chinese gathered to defend their home, and started reciting the Lord's Prayer. The rioters dispersed in shame.

* Subverted in ''Sword of Gideon'' (1986). A priest throws himself between the Israeli assassination squad and their target, the terrorists who've taken sanctuary in his church. The terrorists simply fire around this convenient HumanShield.