History Main / TrainStopping

* In ''WesternAnimation/SupermanVsTheElite'', NinetiesAntiHero Manchester Black when recounting his OriginStory to Superman shows himself doing this with his PsychicPowers to save his younger sister who had fallen in its path... while conveniently neglecting to mention that [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome the impact killed a dozen passengers]] with [=MI6=] covering the whole thing up.

See also ChainedToARailway, RailroadTracksOfDoom, PedestrianCrushesCar, & {{Superhero}}. Do not confuse with ''Literature/{{Trainspotting}}'', which, yes, this trope's name is a pun off of.

* Villainous example in ''[[{{VideoGame/Contra}} Contra: Hard Corps]]'' against the Powered Ninja Yokozuna, one of the bosses. It [[RacingTheTrain outruns the train]] then pushes it to a halt. The port of ''Contra III: The Alien Wars'' for the UsefulNotes/GameBoyAdvance even imports this battle into that game. A similar instance also occurs with another blue mecha boss in ''Shattered Soldier''.

* The intro to ''VideoGame/SuperRobotWarsAlpha 3'' scales it up by having [[Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion Unit 01]] stopping a cruiser-sized [[Anime/{{Gunbuster}}Space Monster]] from crashing into the ''Excelion'', but only slowing it down until [[Anime/GaoGaiGar Genesic GaoGaiGar]] plows through it with Hell and Heaven.

* The intro to ''VideoGame/SuperRobotWarsAlpha 3'' scales it up by having [[Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion Unit 01]] stopping a cruiser-sized [[[Anime/{{Gunbuster}}Space Monster]] from crashing into the ''Excelion'', but only slowing it down until ''[[AnimeTgeKingOfBravesGaoGaiGar Genesic GaoGaiGar]] plows through it with Hell and Heaven.

* In ''Manga/OnePiece'' Franky [[SubvertedTrope tries]] to do this in order to rescue Tom, but he fails. [[MadeOfIron He manages to live, though.]]
* In the ''Literature/UnbreakableMachineDoll'', the two main characters pull this off in the first chapter.
* In ''Manga/FistOfTheNorthStar'', Kenshiro stopped Gyoko's train to save the villagers by ''[[PedestrianCrushesCar breaking it with one hand]]''. Obviously, the rider's safety wasn't his concern.

* Multiple episodes of ''{{Literature/Anpanman}}'' have had Anpanman and some of his other superhero friends save SL-Man, a living steam locomotive, this way.

* ''Anime/DinosaurKing'': Averted in the episode "Planes, Trains and Dinosaurs." Going after a specific person on the Trans-Siberian Railway, Seth sends out Tank the Ankylosaurus to stop the train. He calls her back at the last second when he realizes it wouldn't work.

* ComicBook/WonderWoman does this on occasion, especially in the Golden Age:
** Di stops a train in ''More Fun Comics'' #1.
** In ''ComicBook/SensationComics'' #26, Wonder Woman is [[ChainedToARailway tied to the railway tracks]] with what she thinks is her magic lasso. Once she realizes it is a fake, she is able to break loose and stop the train by lifting the locomotive off the tracks.
** ''ComicBook/WonderWoman1942'': During one of Diana's many Silver Age bouts of amnesia Steve Trevor reminds her of a time when she stopped two trains that were going to run headlong into each other while telling her of her exploits to try and jog her memory.

* ''ComicBook/{{Supergirl}}'':
** In ''ComicBook/SupermanFamily'' #217, Supergirl [[https://maidofmight.files.wordpress.com/2015/11/superman-family-217_01.jpg stops a train without needing to break it]].
** Subverted in ''[[ComicBook/Supergirl2005 Supergirl vol. 5]]'' #18. Kara stops a train but it breaks in half and derails upon crashing onto her indestructible body. Kara has a breakdown but she calms down -a bit- when she discovers that it was an illusion.
* ''ComicBook/SpiderMan'': A miniseries called: ''Spider-Man: Power of Terror'' introduced a new ComicBook/{{Deathlok}} character (Deathlok is a LegacyCharacter of [[OurZombiesAreDifferent Zombie]] {{Cyborg}}s) that at one point was chasing [[MakingASplash Hydro-Man]] down the subway system, and he met up with a metro train about to ram in another one. He stopped it in a splash page, cementing his level of strength for the book.
* ''ComicBook/XMen'': There was an issue in the late '90s that paired up Gambit and Bishop, and involved them stopping a runaway train. It let the writer have fun with the combination of powers, where Gambit (an Energy Maker) pumped the engine full of kinetic energy, and Bishop (an Energy Taker) absorbed all of it into himself, before riding the rails to slow the train.

* Big Bertha of the ComicBook/GreatLakesAvengers is shown doing this with a runaway semi. While the kids are happy to not die, the crossing guard laments being saved by such an unsexy superhero.
* In ''ComicBook/TheAvengers'' volume 1, issue 1, the [[ComicBook/TheIncredibleHulk Hulk]] is tricked into destroying a train trestle. As a result he has to hold the tracks up so a train can pass safely.
* In a 1902 strip of ''Hugo Hercules'', the eponymous character uses his Super Strength to stop a street car so a woman can get on.
* The Brubaker & Fraction run on ''ComicBook/ImmortalIronFist'' culminates with Danny Rand punching a bullet train loaded with explosives.

* Horribly deconstructed in ''ComicBook/TheBoys'' using a plane. A corporate band of superheroes are sent to rescue the last 9/11 plane (in this verse, the CIA's warnings were heeded, and the other three planes were shot down by the Air Force). It starts to go downhill when they can't hear each other over the wind, then they open the door and a kid gets sucked out. Then the super who was supposed to pilot the plane falls out. It ends with the supers cutting their way out through the ''passengers'' in their desperation to get out (when asked why he doesn't hold up the plane, the Homelander replies that there's nothing for him to push against). And just to top it all off, the plane still crashes. . . into the Brooklyn Bridge instead of the WTC.
* Featured prominently on the cover of the April 1979 issue of ''Shogun Warriors'', where TrackTrouble has caused Combatra to pause a fight with Rok-Korr in order to catch the first car of the train before it falls into a ravine. (Passengers are still shown tumbling out of the open doors of the train car.)

* The imagination setpiece at the opening of ''WesternAnimation/ToyStory3'' plays with this: Woody fails to save a RunawayTrain filled with orphan trolls before it falls over a destroyed bridge... cue the BigDamnHeroes moment for Buzz Lightyear as he catches the train in midair and saves the day.

* In ''Film/SpiderMan2'', Octavius does this by disabling an 'L' train's brakes, and leaves Spidey to stop it. Peter jumps to the front of the train, and gives it three tries: First, he tries brute force via putting his foot down on the tracks to generate friction. This doesn't work, and hurts, and ruins a good number of ties. Then he tries firing weblines on either side. The train quickly breaks out when they stretch too far. So he tries again, firing a dozen weblines on each side, to spread out the force, which eventually does stop the train, but only after nearly pulling Spidey apart, and the first car is left hanging precariously off the structure.
* In ''Film/{{Hancock}}'', Hancock saves Ray by stopping a train from hitting his car. Somewhat like the trope picture, Hancock is a FlyingBrick and straight up halts the train rather than slowing it gradually. As a result, he causes the train to derail into a messy pileup that will probably cost hundreds of thousands in damages and cleanup - Ray points out that it would have been much easier to just lift the car off the track.

* A rare villain example occurs in ''Film/HeroicTrio''. TheDragon takes over a station and sends the train [[RunawayTrain out of control]]. The heroes fight him until the train plows through the station wall, heading right for him. He tries to stop it a la Franchise/{{Superman}} but ends up getting pinned to a wall.

* In ''Series/LoisAndClark,'' Superman has to do this. However, this is in the 90s, in the scheme of things not terribly long ComicBook/PostCrisis, so he has great difficulty doing it (when his PowerCreepPowerSeep is at its ''most'' ridonkulous, the man who can move planets with his bare hands doesn't worry too much about trains. But this Supes ain't that Supes, with the writers having given him a significant {{Nerf}}ing to make him easier to believably challenge.) Naturally, in the end he ''does'' prove to be "more powerful than a locomotive." The fact that it's hard for him averts the usual problem of horizontal NotTheFallThatKillsYou: the train ''definitely'' slows down gradually instead of being stopped instantly (which would rightfully result in as much passenger squishification as being stopped with equal suddenness by a crash.)

* ''Series/LegendsOfTomorrow'': Nate Heywood AKA Steel, gets to do this at the climax of the Season 2 episode [[Recap/LegendsOfTomorrowS2E6OutlawCountry ''Outlaw Country'']], preventing it from reaching the pass and exploding the load of [[{{Unobtanium}} dwarfstar ore]] it's carrying. He's visibly excited after he succeeds.
--->''(raising his fists into the air)'' "I STOPPED THE TRAIN!"

* A comic shows Superman replacing a gap in a bridge, with the engineers commenting that this an increasingly frequent occurence. The final panel is Superman enjoying his vigorous back massage.

* In a ShoutOut to ''Film/SpiderMan2'', ''WesternAnimation/TheSpectacularSpiderMan'' does this. [[{{Pun}} Spectacularly.]] In that case it was an 18-wheel semi.
* In his [[WesternAnimation/PopeyeTheSailor first theatrical cartoon,]] ComicStrip/{{Popeye}} saves Olive Oyl, who is ChainedToARailway, by ''punching out'' the train at the last second.

* Subverted in ''WesternAnimation/XMenEvolution''. Two trains, one carrying fuel, the other passengers, were diverted onto one set of tracks, heading towards each other. Attempting to save the day, Jean tries to slow down one train. Jean, however, simply isn't that good, so Kitty has to phase one through the other. Kitty likewise isn't that good, so StuffBlowingUp ensues.
* ''[[WesternAnimation/GeorgeOfTheJungle Super Chicken]]'' tries to do this in the opening of his cartoon shorts, the train just plows him over.

* In ''WesternAnimation/IronManArmoredAdventures'', Iron Man does both the push and pull versions in the pilot. He first attempts to stop a four-car train from the front. This particular model has a door on the front, though, so it just collapses under his weight. Then he disconnects the other cars so he can pull the first to a stop. This doesn't work completely, but he slows it down enough to lift it into the air once it flies off the unfinished track.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheSecretSaturdays'': Fiskerton has to stop a runaway train before it smashes into the end of an unfinished tunnel in "Target: Fiskerton". He grabs hold of the rear of the train and digs his feet in, snapping sleepers as he goes.
* The WesternAnimation/SupermanTheatricalCartoons cartoon "Billion Dollar Limited" has Superman inverting it, doing everything he can to ''keep'' the train going, including saving it from falling into a canyon when the bridge is dynamited by the bad guys. It's on Website/YouTube [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f44K6VYU67g here]]: the scene starts around 6:00. He eventually ends up ''pulling'' the train himself all the way to its destination.
* ''WesternAnimation/{{Superfriends}}'':
** In 1973-74 episode "The Power Pirate", Superman saves a train rolling backwards down a mountain by using his strength to bring it to a stop.
** In the opening title for the 1973-74 season, Superman is shown stopping a runaway train by grabbing the train's back end and pulling until the train stops. This may be a unique case, but it's a lot safer than the other method.
** In one episode Wonder Woman stops ''two'' trains on a collision course with each other, by standing between them and pushing hard in both directions. (How this is materially different from an actual collision, only the scriptwriters can tell you.)
* In ''WesternAnimation/SupermanVsTheElite'' Manchester Black recounts his origin story to Superman, where he mentions how he used his powers to stop a train, saving his sister, who had fallen on the tracks. What he left out was [[spoiler:the fact that his actions killed a dozen people on said train.]]
* In one of their many crossovers in ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'', Batman did a lot of the work to make it possible, but it still took Superman letting the bad guy get away to actually stop the train.
* In one episode of ''WesternAnimation/Ben10Omniverse'', Ben as [[BuiltWithLego Bloxx]] replaces the missing tracks with his own body.
-->'''Ben/Bloxx:''' Oh, is this going to hurt. *train passes over* YEEEOOWH!
* ''WesternAnimation/TheNewAdventuresOfSuperman'': In "The Iron Eater", Clark Kent is travelling on a train when the eponymous monster eats the tracks in front of the train. Clark has to do a fast train change to Superman and stop the train before it derails.
* In the ''WesternAnimation/MiraculousLadybug'' episode "Queen Wasp", [[HeroWithAnFInGood Chloé/Queen Bee]] attempts to invoke this trope by paralyzing a subway driver so she can stop the train [[EngineeredHeroics and look like a hero]]. Unfortunately, she isn't strong enough to stop the train herself (although she is durable enough to survive being pushed along the tracks at high speed), so Ladybug and Chat Noir have to come to the rescue, with Ladybug using her KillerYoYo to slow the train enough that Chat can block it with his TelescopingStaff at the next station.
* WesternAnimation/ThePowerpuffGirls have to stop two trains (on the same track, mind) from colliding with each other as one of the riddles posed by Him ("Him Diddle Riddle").
* PlayedForHorror in the ''WesternAnimation/Invincible2021'' episode “[[Recap/Invincible2021S01E08WhereIReallyComeFrom Where I Really Come From]]”. [[spoiler:Omni-Man]] picks up the titular hero and holds him directly in front of an onrushing subway train. This results in Invincible's invulnerable body tearing through the train—and its hundreds of passengers—like a bullet through Styrofoam, much to Invincible's horror.

* In his first theatrical cartoon, ComicStrip/{{Popeye}} saves Olive Oyl, who is ChainedToARailway, by ''punching out'' the train at the last second.

** In ''Superman Family'' #217, Supergirl [[https://maidofmight.files.wordpress.com/2015/11/superman-family-217_01.jpg stops a train without needing to break it]].

* A miniseries of Franchise/SpiderMan called: ''Spider-Man: Power of Terror'' introduced a new Deathlok character (Deathlok is a LegacyCharacter of [[OurZombiesAreDifferent Zombie]] {{Cyborg}}s) that at one point was chasing [[MakingASplash Hydro-Man]] down the subway system, and he met up with a metro train about to ram in another one. He stopped it in a splash page, cementing his level of strength for the book.
* There was an issue of ''ComicBook/XMen'' in the late '90s that paired up Gambit and Bishop, and involved them stopping a runaway train. It let the writer have fun with the combination of powers, where Gambit (an Energy Maker) pumped the engine full of kinetic energy, and Bishop (an Energy Taker) absorbed all of it into himself, before riding the rails to slow the train.

* The imagination setpiece at the opening of ''WesternAnimation/ToyStory3'' plays with this: Woody fails to save a RunawayTrain filled with orphan trolls before it falls over a destroyed bridge... cue the BigDamnHeroes moment for Buzz Lightyear as he catches the train in midair and saves the day.

*** "Christmas With The Joker". Being {{Badass Normal}}s, Batman and Robin are forced to stop the train through the relatively mundane method of disconnecting the carriages from the engine, then leaping off the train with the engineer in tow.

*** Surprisingly, Supes himself never full-on stops a train in this manner [[note]]Without Batman/The Batmobile's help at least.[[/note]], but the villainous Metallo intentionally ''does'' to show his power, causing a huge pile-up. There's also another variation in "My Girl" where a terrorist uses his BFG to destroy a railroad bridge, forcing Superman to use himself as the tracks [[SadisticChoice while the terrorist gets away]].
*** In "Identity Crisis", Bizarro attempts to stop a bridge from "collapsing". Unfortunately, it's ''opening'' to let a boat through.

*** "Metamorphosis" opens with Green Lantern / John Stewart stopping a runaway train. It still crashes into a station, but without him, the damage would've been much worse.
*** Justice Lord! Wonder Woman stops a train after an overpass is wrecked during Doomsday's first appearance.
*** Sinestro destroys a bridge so a train full of gold is forced to hit the brakes. It doesn't stop in time, but Sinestro creates a replacement set of tracks to divert it to a nearby mountain cave where he can rob it blind. Hey, he has a [[ImaginationBasedSuperpower Yellow Lantern Ring.]]

* In ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitans2003'', Bumblebee is forced to stop a subway train (while trapped in her minimum size) before it reaches a certain destination, or a bomb will go off. [[spoiler: She doesn't stop the train, but she did manage to stop the timer on the bomb.]]
** Same episode, Más Y Menos have to keep a train from going over a broken bridge. They don't stop the train, but they do pull the switch so it goes onto another (not broken) track.

* In ''Manga/FistOfTheNorthStar'', Kenshiro stopped Gyoko's train to save the villagers, he didn't just stop the train, he ''[[PedestrianCrushesCar broke the train with one hand]]''.

* Subverted in ''VideoGame/WarioWare Touched''... Wario as Wario Man tries to stop the train, then gets smashed halfway across the horizon and into a sewer.

* Subverted in ''VideoGame/WarioWare Touched''... Wario as Wario Man tries to stop the train, then gets smashed halfway across the horizon and into a sewer.
* In the strength-test arcade game ''Sonic Blast Man'', one of the scenarios that has to be resolved by punching things as hard as you can is stopping an out-of-control train.

* Subverted in ''VideoGame/StarFox64''. How do you stop the gigantic Forever Train? You blow it up. Starting at the back. Eventually, you reach the engine where the driver deploys a battle droid to fight you. Or for the advanced path, you hit eight switches along the way to open a lock on the track switcher and send it crashing into a fuel bunker.
* Subverted in ''VideoGame/Uncharted2AmongThieves''. Perhaps to highlight Nate's accidental action hero status, the train he happens to be on at first starts off unscathed, until you are attacked by a Hind-D attack chopper, at which point the explosions start. The entire back end of the train is cut off, and the only reason you survive is because you go under a tunnel at the last second. The train gets stopped for good later when Nate shoots some propane tanks in a last stand, blowing the train up off the tracks, and it ends up dangling over a thousand foot deep Himalayan valley.

* Villainous example in ''[[{{VideoGame/Contra}} Contra: Hard Corps]]'' against the blue mecha, one of the bosses. It [[RacingTheTrain outruns the train]] then pushes it to a halt. The port of ''Contra III: The Alien Wars'' for the UsefulNotes/GameBoyAdvance even imports this battle into that game. A similar instance also occurs with another blue mecha boss in ''Shattered Soldier''

* ''VideoGame/FateGrandOrder'': During the fourth Christmas event "Holy Samba Night", there's a ShoutOut to the ''Manga/{{Kinnikuman}}'' example where [[BadassPreacher Saint Martha]] was disqualified from the wrestling tournament during the off-screen "Train Attack" event when she saved a puppy that wandered onto the tracks via this method. She has to settle for being a coach to the Chaldean team, specifically Bradamante.

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles'', Mr Incredible stops an elevated train from crashing after a bomb accidentally destroys a piece of track, although several people sue him for the resulting injuries. Still, Mr. Incredible visibly cringes in preparation of the incoming slam; it won't kill him, but it is still going to ''hurt''.

* The ''Franchise/{{DCAU}}'' has several takes on this:

* In the ''LightNovel/UnbreakableMachineDoll'', the two main characters pull this off in the first chapter.

*** In "Identity Crisis", Bizarro attempts to stop a bridge from "collapsing". Unfortunately it's ''opening'' to let a boat through.

*** "Metamorphosis" opens with Green Lantern / John Stewart stopping a runaway train. It still crashes into a station, but without him the damage would've been much worse.

* In a ShoutOut to ''Film/SpiderMan2'', ''WesternAnimation/TheSpectacularSpiderMan'' does this. [[IncrediblyLamePun Spectacularly.]] In that case it was an 18-wheel semi.

* In ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitans'' Bumblebee is forced to stop a subway train (while trapped in her minimum size) before it reaches a certain destination, or a bomb will go off. [[spoiler: She doesn't stop the train, but she did manage to stop the timer on the bomb]]

* Subverted in ''VideoGame/StarFox64''. How do you stop the gigantic Forever Train? You blow it up. Starting at the back.

* A rare villain example occurs in ''Film/HeroicTrio''. TheDragon takes over a station and sends the train [[RunawayTrain out of control]]. The heroes fight him until the train plows through the station wall, heading right for him. He tries to stop it a la {{Superman}} but ends up getting pinned to a wall.

* In ''ComicBook/TheAvengers'' volume 1, issue 1, [[ComicBook/IncredibleHulk the Hulk]] is tricked into destroying a train trestle. As a result he has to hold the tracks up so a train can pass safely.

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles'', Mr Incredible stops an elevated train from crashing after a bomb accidentally destroys a piece of track, although several people [[FantasticRacism sue him]] for the resulting injuries. Still, Mr. Incredible visibly cringes in preparation of the incoming slam; it won't kill him, but it is still going to ''hurt''.

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles'', Mr Incredible stops an elevated train from crashing after a bomb accidentally destroys a piece of track, although several people [[HilaritySues sue him]] for the resulting injuries. Still, Mr. Incredible visibly cringes in preparation of the incoming slam; it won't kill him, but it is still going to ''hurt''.

See also ChainedToARailway, PedestrianCrushesCar, & {{Superhero}}. Do not confuse with ''Literature/{{Trainspotting}}'', which, yes, this trope's name is a pun off of.

* In the ''WesternAnimation/Invincible2021'' episode “Where I Really Come From”, [[spoiler:Omni-Man]] picks up the titular hero and holds him directly in front of an onrushing subway train. This results in Invincible's invulnerable body tearing through the train—and its hundreds of passengers—like a bullet through Styrofoam, much to Invincible's horror.

* ''Anime/SenkiZesshouSymphogear'':