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15[[quoteright:350:[[ComicStrip/TomTheDancingBug https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/deus_ex_machina_5.png]]]]
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17->''"Coincidences to get characters into trouble are great; coincidences to get them out of it are cheating."''
18-->-- '''Emma Coats'''
19
20A Deus ex Machina ([[UsefulNotes/LatinPronunciationGuide pron]]: /diːəs ɛks mækɪnə/ for Britons, /deɪuːs ɛks mɑːkɪnə/ for Americans; /deus eks maːkʰinaː/ in the orginal Latin) is when some new event, character, ability, or object solves a seemingly unsolvable problem in a sudden, unexpected way. It's often used as the solution to what is called "writing yourself into a corner," where the problem is so extreme that nothing in the established setting suggests that there is a logical way for the characters to escape. If a bomb is about to go off, someone finds a convenient bomb-proof bunker in easy reach. If a protagonist [[LiteralCliffHanger falls off a cliff]], a [[GiantRobotHandsSaveLives flying robot will suddenly appear to catch them]]. A MillionToOneChance of something occurring is accomplished by a bystander who [[AchievementsInIgnorance didn't know what they were doing]]. If TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt is about to happen and nobody is able to stop it, it will be stopped thanks to some scientist's otherwise useless invention.
21
22The term is Latin for "god out of the machine" and originates in [[OlderThanFeudalism ancient Greek theater]].[[note]]the original classical Greek "theos ek mekhanikos" became "deus ex machina" through Latin translations of Greek literary criticism in the Renaissance.[[/note]] It referred to scenes in which a crane (''machine'') was used to lower actors or [[StarringSpecialEffects statues]] playing a god or gods (''deus'') onto the stage to set things right, often near the end of the play. In its most literal interpretation, this is when DivineIntervention is used to solve a problem that would have doomed the protagonist to absolute failure. The less literal take replaces "godly powers" with [[OnlyTheAuthorCanSaveThemNow a nod that something with control over the narrative itself]] had to nudge things the right way to make a plot twist happen.
23
24Note that there are a number of requirements for a plotline resolution to be a Deus ex Machina:
25# Dei ex Machina are ''solutions'' to a problem. They are not [[DiabolusExMachina unexpected developments that make things worse]], nor [[TheEndingChangesEverything sudden twists that only change the understanding of a story]].
26# Dei ex Machina are ''sudden or unexpected''. This means that they should not be [[ChekhovsGun featured, referenced]] or [[{{Foreshadowing}} set-up earlier in the story]], but even if they were, they do not appear as a natural or a viable solution to the plotline they eventually "solve".
27# Dei ex Machina are used to resolve a situation portrayed as ''unsolvable or hopeless''. If the problem could be fixed with a bit of [[IdiotBall common sense]] or has a [[StatingTheSimpleSolution deceptively simple answer]], the solution is not a Deus ex Machina no matter how unexpected it may seem.
28# Dei ex Machina are ''external'' to the characters and their choices throughout the story. The solution comes from a character with [[SmallRoleBigImpact small or non-existent influence on the plot until that point]], random chance [[GaiasVengeance from nature]], [[LaserGuidedKarma karma]], fate or other ContrivedCoincidence takes over.
29
30Note DivineIntervention by itself is not always a Deus Ex Machina, while most examples ''can'' be half-literal (though unlikely to be entirely literal since gods rarely come out of machines) the crux remains on minimal set up if any at all. The impact on the story may just be leveling the playing field so the protagonist still has something to punch and doesn't have to include an angelic chorus.
31
32The concept eventually came back into vogue during the early years of the film industry thanks to UsefulNotes/TheHaysCode. Villains, and anyone else who didn't toe the moral line, were absolutely not allowed to get away with their crimes. But, more often than not EvilIsCool. [[GettingCrapPastTheRadar The solution]] was to let the bad guy be awesome for the duration of the movie, then [[DroppedABridgeOnHim drop a bridge on them]] in the last five minutes.
33
34Remember, even the notorious Deus ex Machina [[Administrivia/TropesAreTools can be pulled off]]. Sudden resolutions are perfectly capable of leading to satisfying conclusions - see the entire "[[RuleOfIndex Rule Of X]]" series of tropes: RuleOfCool, RuleOfCute, RuleOfEmpathy, RuleOfFun, RuleOfFunny, RuleOfRomantic, RuleOfScary, RuleOfSexy (for those ever-so-fun {{Deus Sex Machina}}s), RuleOfSymbolism, and ''especially'' RuleOfDrama. Some works may explore the premise of fate and choice as a CentralTheme, possibly even with ThePowersThatBe as the BigGood, which makes the use of the trope fit meta-textually. Apparent Dei ex Machina also happen plenty in [[TruthInTelevision real life]], given reality is far more complex and random than most fictionalized versions of it.
35
36For more discussion about this Trope, see {{Only the Author Can Save Them Now}}.
37
38Compare to the ResetButton, NonProtagonistResolver, DiabolusExMachina, CoincidentalBroadcast, YouDidntAsk, EurekaMoment, and SuspiciouslySpecificSermon. A SaveSat is sometimes a literal case of this trope.
39
40Not to be confused with the tropes DeusEstMachina, DeusExitMachina or AveMachina. Nor the works ''Franchise/DeusExUniverse'', ''Manga/DeusExMachina2008'', ''Film/ExMachina'' or ''ComicBook/ExMachina''.
41
42Please make sure an example meets '''the criteria''' before submitting. This is not a place to [[Administrivia/ComplainingAboutShowsYouDontLike Complain About Plot Twists You Don't Like]].
43
44!!As this is an EndingTrope, ''beware of unmarked spoilers!''
45----
46!!Example subpages:
47
48[[index]]
49* DeusExMachina/AnimeAndManga
50* DeusExMachina/ComicBooks
51* DeusExMachina/FanWorks
52* [[DeusExMachina/LiveActionFilms Films — Live-Action]]
53* DeusExMachina/{{Literature}}
54* DeusExMachina/LiveActionTV
55* DeusExMachina/{{Theatre}}
56* DeusExMachina/VideoGames
57* DeusExMachina/WesternAnimation
58[[/index]]
59
60!!Other examples:
61
62[[foldercontrol]]
63
64[[folder:Advertising]]
65* In the third commercial of the four-part Pepsi ad {{Advertising/The Chase|Pepsi}}, Music/MichaelJackson gets cornered by a group of paparazzi twice. [[spoiler:But when they get to where he is, he's seemingly disappeared despite there being no obvious escape routes.]] It's strongly implied he was using [[PortalPicture Portal Pictures]] to get away, but there's no obvious signs of magic use.
66* A commercial for Nissin cup noodles starts out rehashing the scene from the ''Anime/WorldMasterpieceTheater'' version of ''Literature/ADogOfFlanders'' where Nello and Pastrache are [[TearJerker dying in the cathedral]]. [[AnachronismStew Then a pair of Hell's Angels show up and saves them using Nissin cup noodles]]. [[spoiler:What follows next would be best described as ''Nello and Pastrache: Become Man'']].
67[[/folder]]
68
69[[folder:Comic Strips]]
70* ''ComicStrip/{{Retail}}'': After Cooper contracts appendicitis, he gets a $20,000 bill for his treatment because he was uninsured at the time. He can't find any way to pay it off in full on his paltry wages and faces having to file for medical bankruptcy, which will hang over him the rest of his life...and then he wins a $20,000 prize in a fast food contest that wiped out his bill completely. Arguably, though, [[LampshadedTrope this was the point]]: Cooper may have a 'benevolent cartoonist' that can get him out of his medical debt, but this story arc was written before the Affordable Care Act was passed (and is intended as an argument for passing the act) and Norm Feuti's point was that for many other people in Cooper's situation, there is ''no'' Deus Ex Machina to save them.
71* In the final stretch of the Mars arc of ''ComicStrip/SafeHavens'', Fasttrack One is struck by space junk on final approach to Earth and, having already been damaged by a previous incident, starts to break apart. The entire crew makes it to the emergency escape shuttle. Everyone except Remora, who's stuck in mermaid form at the moment and her tank is too far away for anyone else to rescue her before the ship comes apart completely. In desperation, Samantha encourages her to try and tap into her Martian heritage[[note]]During their mission, the crew discovers Mars had a native population of shapeshifters. And that the merfolk of Earth were descended from them.[[/note]] and change into something that can reach the shuttle in time. Remora manages to turn into an octopus and shoot through the [[AirVentEscape ventilation system]] in the nick of time. Though this does have consequences for Remora: She finds she can't resume her mermaid or full fish forms. She can either become full human or human top/octopus bottom hybrid.
72[[/folder]]
73
74[[folder:Films — Animation]]
75* ''WesternAnimation/AllDogsGoToHeaven'': Moments away from being swallowed by a massive gator, Charlie lets out a high-pitched howl, convincing the gator to let him go because he thinks Charlie has a beautiful singing voice. Whew, that was close!
76* The Disney film ''WesternAnimation/TheBlackCauldron''. While the cauldron is the first artifact and/or character introduced, the way it qualifies is how it takes out [[spoiler:The Horned King]]. While it was explained that a living person entering the cauldron of his or her own free will would seal its powers, it is not explained why it kills the guy and destroys the castle. It's implied that it's just that evil, but that's a rather [[HandWave flimsy explanation]]. It is also highly anticlimactic, because the [[spoiler: King]] doesn't get to DO anything, despite being hinted as being a powerful sorcerer. Another is supplied by the witches, who [[spoiler: revive the person that jumped into the cauldron]]. And why is it that the witches have this cauldron in the first place and the heroes practically fall on top of apparently the only society that knows where they are?
77* A literal case in Disney's ''WesternAnimation/{{The Hunchback of Notre Dame|Disney}}'': The BigBad spends the movie on a reign of terror that he proclaims to be for a higher cause, sings a VillainSong that's an inverted confession of sins, and assaults a cathedral. When he's swinging a sword and raving about how He shall cast down the wicked, the gargoyle under his feet roars at him and breaks off.
78* A semi-literal example is the WelcomeToTheRealWorld scene in ''WesternAnimation/TheLEGOMovie'', in which Emmett dives into the void to retrieve the Piece of Resistance and falls out of the model into the real world, where he sees a vision of the child playing LEGO... and his [[StopHavingFunGuys rather less fun]] father. He eventually manages to persuade the kid to give him the Piece and put him back into the story, with him zooming out of the portal [[HomageShot like Neo at the end of]] ''Film/TheMatrix''.
79* An example in ''WesternAnimation/MulanII'', when it is employed in the original style as Mushu climbs into an idol of the Unity Dragon and makes supposedly divine pronouncements (punctuated with a bit of fire-breathing) that neatly resolve what has become a very tangled situation.
80* ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyEquestriaGirls'':
81** ''[[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyEquestriaGirls1 Equestria Girls]]'': Blatantly. Both the viewer and all the characters fully expect that [[OneWingedAngel Demon Sunset Shimmer]] would ''kill'' Twilight Sparkle and friends, but then "the magic of friendship" intervenes, saving them AND giving them the power to [[AnticlimaxBoss quickly, easily, and one-sidedly beat her]].
82** The sequel, ''[[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyEquestriaGirlsRainbowRocks Rainbow Rocks]]'': The villains have absorbed enough magic and [[MindControlMusic enthralled the students]] such that Twilight Sparkle and friends MagicMusic won't cut it. Cue [[EleventhHourRanger Human DJ Pon-3]] showing up in a CoolCar that [[TransformingVehicle TRANSFORMS]] into a sound stage with [[AscendedMeme BASS CANNONS]], enabling them to fight back in a climatic showdown. [[RuleOfCool For some reason, this received less criticism than the above]].
83* The Amnesia-inator in ''WesternAnimation/PhineasAndFerbTheMovieAcrossThe2ndDimension''. Even though it was established that O.W.C.A. has been duplicating Doofenshmirtz's Inators, that one was never seen before in a previous episode. Likely PlayedForLaughs; Doofenshmirtz's response of "I think I'd remember building something like that!" suggests that the original backfired and gave ''him'' amnesia, thus forgetting he built it. Ironically, the previous episode "I Was a Middle Aged Robot" actually introduced a memory eraser, owned by O.W.C.A. no less. Apparently, they forgot about this.
84** In the climax, Candace attempts to invoke this by bringing their mom out to the battlefield to see it. She believes that the "magical force" that always sweeps away her brothers' activities before she can show their mom will take care of things.
85* ''WesternAnimation/{{Pinocchio}}'': When Pinocchio is locked in a cage by Stromboli in the Disney adaptation of the story, Jiminy Cricket finds himself unable to pick the lock, leaving Pinocchio as Stromboli's prisoner. Just then, the Blue Fairy appears and delivers some exposition to Pinocchio before freeing him. Different from most examples, it's acknowledged that the Blue Fairy is doing a ''deus ex machina'' here and she says that this is the one and only time that she'll use her powers to help him, and it really is -- she doesn't appear again until the very end to reward Pinocchio [[BecomeARealBoy by turning him into a real boy]].[[note]]Although, one could argue that the magic dove that drops the letter off saying that Geppetto has been swallowed by Monstro is in fact a transformed Blue Fairy.
86* In ''WesternAnimation/QuestForCamelot'', [[{{BigBad}} Ruber]] fused his arm with Excalibur. In the climax, Kayley (with Garret's help) tricks him into thrusting the sword back into the stone — as he is not the rightful king, he cannot remove it. This is clever, and not this trope. However, it then turns out the inherent magic of the stone, which was only hinted at visually, serves as the legitimate example since it kills Ruber and heals everyone except Garret.
87* ''WesternAnimation/TheSecretOfTheHunchback'' has an egregious example: [[spoiler:In the ending, Quasimodo seems to fall to his death, but then... he GROWS WINGS]]!
88* The end of the ''WesternAnimation/TheSecretOfNimh'' film just ''screams'' Deus Ex Machina. Supposedly, the "stone" that does [[MacGuffin something... powerful]] manages to respond to Mrs. Brisby's... emotion and then pulls the cinderblock out - with no loss of life (or mud, which had been flooding the house). Auntie Shrew likely survived because she fell into a PlotHole when the mud started flooding the house.
89* PlayedForLaughs in ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsonsMovie'', where Maggie shows up to defeat the villain completely out of nowhere by dropping a rock on him as he’s about to shoot Homer and Bart.
90* Towards the end of ''WesternAnimation/SouthParkBiggerLongerAndUncut'', Canadian comedians Terrance and Phillip are gunned down by Kyle's mother, triggering Satan and Saddam Hussein's takeover of the world. All seems to be lost until Saddam insults Satan one too many times after receiving several brutal electric shocks from Cartman's V-chip. Satan finally stands up to Saddam and kills him, thanking Kenny for giving him the courage to get out of his abusive relationship, and grants him one wish. Kenny's wish is for all the horror and tragedy of the US-Canada war to be undone, even if it means going back to hell himself. [[ResetButton Within a matter of seconds, everyone who died in the war is revived and Canadian/American relations are restored.]] Also, instead of going back to hell, as a reward for his sacrifice, Kenny [[spoiler: is sent to heaven where he is greeted by large-breasted angels]].
91* ''WesternAnimation/TheSpongebobSquarepantsMovie'':
92** [=SpongeBob=] and Patrick need a way back to Bikini Bottom after [[spoiler:getting stranded at Shell City]]. The plot sets up the Magic Bag of Winds specifically for this purpose, and then [[RedHerring gets rid of it for a laugh]]. Suddenly... Creator/DavidHasselhoff, in full ''Series/{{Baywatch}}'' form, shows up out of nowhere and offers them a ride home!
93** The end of the movie writes itself into a corner that can only be rectified by a wonderfully ridiculous parody of Music/TwistedSister's "I Wanna Rock". The villain's plans are undone by [[ThePowerOfRock the explosive power of rock music]]. It still manages to be a satisfying conclusion to the story by playing to the strengths of [=SpongeBob=]'s CharacterDevelopment. Once the smoke clears, [=SpongeBob=] is left dangling on the end of a rope suspended above the stage, which is a literal reference to the original meaning of deus ex machina in ancient Greek theatre.
94* The [[spoiler:healing tears]] at the very end of ''WesternAnimation/{{Tangled}}''. While the movie is different in many ways from the original fairy tale, this detail comes straight from the source material. [[spoiler:The fact that her healing powers were rather mysterious to begin with may also be a factor]]. However, nothing in the movie itself foreshadows it in any way (unless you believe the theory that [[spoiler:the drop of sun from the intro ''is'' the tear that saved Flynn]]).
95* '''THE CLAW''' at the end of ''WesternAnimation/ToyStory3'' is a ''[[FridgeBrilliance literal]]'' Deus Ex Machina, as the DVD commentary points out, given that the [=LGMs=] treat "the claw" as their deity and it is also the machine that [[spoiler:saves all of the toys from burning in the garbage furnace]]. Its arrival is accompanied by a choir of angelic voices on the soundtrack. It's justified mostly through TruthInTelevision; [[spoiler:waste incinerators]] really do have giant claws for safety reasons, and real-life tours often reference the scene when explaining how they work.
96* This is truly the only thing keeping ''WesternAnimation/ATrollInCentralPark'' from having one of the worst {{Downer Ending}}s in the history of animated cinema, as Stanley is turned into stone in the climax -- ''the very thing he was afraid of happening to him the whole movie'' -- and the only thing that saves him in the end is the little boy just ''somehow'' getting Stanley's Green Thumb powers for no given reason that restore him.
97[[/note]]
98
99[[/folder]]
100
101[[folder:Music]]
102* In the Music Video for Music/CyndiLauper's ''"The Goonies 'R' Good Enough"'', Wrestling/AndreTheGiant appears out of nowhere (literally, just a puff of smoke, and there he is) to chase off the bad guys.
103* The climax of Clamavi de Profundis's first song in the ''Music/{{Chieftain}}'' saga, "Strong", features a literal example when the VillainProtagonist is stopped by an angel from killing a monk whose monastery his troops were raiding.
104* ''Music/{{Gloryhammer}}''
105** The ending of the story of the album ''Space 1992: Rise of the Chaos Wizards'' -- the song is called "Apocalypse 1992". Zargothrax is about to succeed in summoning the Elder God Kor-Virliath from the 18th hell dimension, dooming the galaxy and/or universe, and there seems to be no way to stop him. Then it's revealed at that exact moment -- almost 8 minutes into the last song on the album -- that the BarbarianHero the Hootsman is actually a cyborg powered by a nuclear heart powerful enough to destroy Earth when detonated, which he now does to stop the summoning. The closest thing to foreshadowing for this would be just the fact that he seemed to randomly be TheAgeless before.
106** Borderline or relative case in the album ''Legends from Beyond the Galactic Terrorvortex''. The Hootsman returns as a PhysicalGod to help beat Zargothrax in the end (in "The Fires of Ancient Cosmic Destiny"). This comes out of nowhere if you just listened to the songs, but apparently it's foreshadowed in the story as [[AllThereInTheManual explained elsewhere]].
107** In the FinalBattle the album ''Return to the Kingdom of Fife'' -- the specific song has the lovely title "Maleficus Geminus (Colossus Matrix 38B -- Ultimate Invocation of the Binary Thaumaturge)". Angus [=McFife=] II and his forces are losing to Zargothrax and his clone, who are now wielding both of the other two legendary weapons from the same series as his Hammer of Glory. But this is just what prompts the Starlords of Infinity, previously only ever mentioned as the creators of these weapons, to descend from space and annihilate everyone except for Angus, whom they take away to AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence, or at least to adventure in space.
108[[/folder]]
109
110[[folder:Myths & Religion]]
111* Myth/ClassicalMythology: Funnily enough, there are many times in Greek Mythology where the gods and goddesses fail to do this all the way through; they may do something which only partly rectifies the situation or has its own shortcomings to it. Not all instances from classical mythology are subversions, though. For example, at one point Hera offers her aid to the Argonauts to get them through. In fact, the entire name of the trope came from the theatrical device used (via a cherry-picker like machine) in ancient Greek plays based on the Greeks' myths.
112[[/folder]]
113
114[[folder:Podcasts]]
115* ''Podcast/RelativeDisasters'' discuss the Black Monday hailstorm of 1360 as a real-life example of this within the context of the Hundred Years' War, decimating the English army and leaving the French army untouched and driving the previously unstoppable English to negotiate a truce.
116[[/folder]]
117
118[[folder:Radio]]
119* ''Radio/TheHitchhikersGuideToTheGalaxy1978'':
120** While writing the first installment, Creator/DouglasAdams found himself faced with a writer's dilemma: His characters had just gotten thrown out an airlock, and would pass out and die from lack of oxygen in 30 seconds, and it was so utterly improbable that another spaceship would come around within those 30 seconds to rescue them that to have had that happen would've been nothing short of this trope. This gave him the idea for the Infinite Improbability Drive.
121** The Quintessential Phase, which adapts ''Mostly Harmless'', at its conclusion has the Babel Fish suddenly turn out to have an ability to teleport itself out of danger when facing certain death. This was done to avert the EveryoneDiesEnding of the book, and is naturally subject to liberal LampshadeHanging when Arthur asks why it's never come up before.
122[[/folder]]
123
124[[folder:Roleplay]]
125* ''Roleplay/AlphaTeamMissionDeepFreezeRPG'' had a recurring Deus ex Machina where characters on the brink of death would be confronted by a mysterious voice telling them "it is time", but could be convinced to bring people back. This was basically invented by Kotua in Space as a means of getting his character, who had been reduced to a ghost forced to possess vehicles in order to stay in this world, back into a physical human body in an easy and feasible manner. This happened several times with the same people. Given the context, this might very well be a literal case of Deus ex Machina. This was later parodied by ''Roleplay/DinoAttackRPG'', in which the voice outright scolded a man for trying to convince it to bring him back. The parody is taken even farther in a non-canon post, where the voice doesn't even give another character a chance to speak for himself and sends him straight into the afterlife.
126* ''Roleplay/DinoAttackRPG'' has a number of Deus ex Machina instances of its own. There are probably too many in number to list them all, but here's a few notable examples:
127** When the Dino Attack Team arrived at the base of the Ogel's Island volcano, they had no means of ascending the mountainside. Quite conveniently, Reptile's T-1 Typhoon crash-landed into the volcano and dropped off some climbing gear.
128** Although set up and foreshadowed several posts before it arrived, the stampeding Triceratops herd that ended the battle for the Aztec Village was {{lampshade|Hanging}}d as a Deus ex Machina. Interestingly, unlike most examples of {{lampshad|eHanging}}ing, this was not PlayedForLaughs but [[PlayedForDrama For Drama]], since Rex realized that relying on a Deus ex Machina to save the day is a poor strategy that could easily backfire. Rex later attempted to {{def|iedTrope}}y Deus ex Machina by setting up a BigDamnHeroes in advance, only to be punished for it by the UnspokenPlanGuarantee.
129* In ''Roleplay/TheGamersAlliance'', when Leon is about to die in battle, a black wolf appears all of a sudden and saves his life. It later turns out that the wolf was in fact [[AntiVillain Kagetsu I]] whom Leon had unknowingly freed earlier. [[{{Pun}} Technically Kagetsu was only a half-god, though]].
130* Critics of the ending to ''Roleplay/SurvivalOfTheFittest'' v1 tend to claim that the only reason that Adam Dodd won was a series of these. Others who believe that the alternate universe "Afterlife" RP signifies the existence of the supernatural in SOTF claim that the spirits of [[TrueCompanions his dead friends]] may have been [[ThePowerOfFriendship protecting him]].
131[[/folder]]
132
133[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
134* ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons''
135** The high-level Cleric spell Miracle allows you to request intervention from your deity. It costs experience points to use in that fashion, but other than that the only stated downside is that the deity might refuse.
136** In 5th Edition, Clerics can eventually gain a feature called Divine Intervention that lets them beseech their deity to offer assistance in their time of need. The roll for it is very unlikely to succeed -- the player has to roll their Cleric level or lower on a [=d100=], effectively getting anywhere from a 10 to 19 percent chance to succeed. But having an ability that will effectively let you do whatever you want is nothing to scoff at.
137** The 2nd edition setting ''TabletopGame/AlQadim'' puts a great deal of emphasis upon Fate, and a Zakharan player character may call upon it to intervene and even the odds of a desperate situation. This may involve being suddenly [[IWantThemAlive captured alive]] rather than killed outright, or the glint of sunlight from a magic weapon in the sane. Most characters have 2% odds of success at best, but Clerics of Order can have it as high as 18%, gradually reduced as they gain levels (Fate favors the young).
138* ''[[TabletopGame/FateOfTheNornsRagnarok Fate of the Norns: Ragnarok]]'' allows player characters to ask a deity to help them in battle. A sacrifice is performed, runes are drawn, and if the aforementioned deity is in a good mood, Deus ex Machina may occur. However, if your prayer has ''angered'' it, the divine intervention will benefit your opponents!
139* In ''TabletopGame/{{GURPS}}'', a character can buy an Advantage called Serendipity, which allows one extremely fortunate event per game session to take place at the player's discretion. The Gizmos advantage is designed to let players imitate fictional characters like Batman and James Bond, as described above.
140* The parody RPG ''TabletopGame/HoL'' has the "Grace of God" pool, which players can put points in by rolling {{Critical Hit}}s during the game. If the character cannot get out of a situation and has points in Grace of God, they can say "Praise Jesus", which allows the DM to use any random, nonsensical, and/or inexplicable means they can think of to solve the character's dilemma.
141* In the tongue-in-cheek RPG ''TabletopGame/InNomineSatanisMagnaVeritas'', which is played with rolls of 3d6, anyone rolling 111 means a direct and usually over-the-top divine intervention happens. Which can be a very good thing if you're playing an angel, and a very ''bad'' thing if you're a demon. And of course, a roll of 666 causes a direct satanic intervention. Also, any angel can try to summon his archangel, and any demon can try to summon his demon prince. And yes, it ''can'' work... If you're lucky.
142* ''TabletopGame/MagicTheGathering'' has the "Miracle" mechanic. Cards with Miracle are all powerful, expensive spells. However, if they're the first card their owner draws in a turn, they can be immediately played for their (deeply discounted) Miracle cost, making them a sudden solution to many a hopeless scenario.
143* {{Lampshade|Hanging}}d in ''TabletopGame/{{Munchkin}}'': There's a card called Deus Ex Machinegun that has the gods come down with a machine gun and kill all the monsters, take all the treasure, and make the combat just magically go away.
144* As you might expect, given you're playing the children of the gods, you can invoke this trope in ''TabletopGame/{{Scion}}'' with the right Boons. Set it off, and a group of whatever Fate (or the Storyteller) decides will show up and save you. There's a catch, though - because you're invoking a ''lot'' of divine power to make this work, you'll ''always'' be strongly Fatebound to whoever saved you.
145* ''TabletopGame/{{Shadowrun}}'' actually has a rule about this, called Hand Of God. When a PC ends up in some sort of [[NoOneCouldSurviveThat hopeless situation]], the PC's player can invoke the Hand Of God, having the GM save the PC via some form of Deus ex Machina. There's a catch, of course: it has a hefty experience-point cost, and it can only be used once per character.
146* In ''TabletopGame/SpiritOfTheCentury'' players may use their characters' Aspects, a Declaration, or even certain Stunts to make an unlikely coincidence happen. Players can also have gadgets and artifacts with undefined abilities, so you can decide that they do exactly what you want at the right moment (of course, once you've decided it stays that way at least until the end of the adventure)
147* ''TabletopGame/WarhammerFantasyRoleplay'' and ''TabletopGame/DarkHeresy'' have the [[OneUp Fate Points]], which will unfailingly pull a character out of certain death and put them in a position where you are safe for the immediate moment. For small stuff a Fate Point will turn a killing blow to a glancing one, cause the enemies to take you prisoner instead of killing you on the spot, or let you dodge that lethal fall pit, but it becomes one of these when, say, you've just been killed by being spaced, caught inside a collapsing mine or building, or by having a daemon biting your head off.
148* This is Modus Operandi for the Legion of the Damned chapter of Space Marines in ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}''. They appear without warning and aid beleaguered Imperial forces against the enemies of mankind, then disappear as soon as the battle is won just as suddenly as they came. Notably, this is one that creeps out the Imperials something fierce. Interestingly, one of the theories behind the Damned Legionnaires' appearance is that they are extensions of the God-Emperor's will. Although he's more like [[{{Pun}} Deus IN Machina]]. [[spoiler:[[DontExplainTheJoke You know, the Golden Throne?]]]]
149* An actual game mechanic in ''World of Synnibarr'' (really). If your character is on the verge of death with no hope of salvation, you actually get a ''dice roll'' to see if your patron deity turns up to haul your arse out of the fire.
150* For some {{Game Master}}s, this is going to happen eventually. Whether it be a TotalPartyKill where it shouldn't be, the players making a decision that turns out to be much worse than they could imagine, or other misadventure, a group of players will find themselves in a situation where the only way out is to basically cheat. Some [=GMs=] will just rewrite the then-latest events, but for [=GMs=] who like to maintain the narrative, this may be the only way out.
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153[[folder:Toys]]
154* Happens quite a bit in Toys/{{BIONICLE}}, but three particular examples stand out:
155** In the final moments of the Bohrok-Kal arc, Tahu summons the [[MaskOfPower Kanohi]] [[TimeDilation Vahi]], which gives the Toa Nuva just enough time to defeat the Kal, who were literally only seconds away from victory. There was no prior indication that Tahu had the Vahi (though the novelization ''Makuta's Revenge'' fixes this).
156** In the Toa Inika's battle with Vezon, Jaller pulls out a unique Zamor Sphere that freezes Vezon in stasis when Vezon, who's in the middle of a rage-induced VillainousBreakdown, attempts to inflict a FateWorseThanDeath on Matoro, allowing the Inika to recover the Mask of Life. Unlike the Vahi example, there ''was'' a scene of Axonn giving Jaller the sphere, however its power was never explained,[[note]]The most Axonn says is that it's "for protection"[[/note]] which raises a lot of FridgeLogic.
157** In the GrandFinale ''Journey's End'' arc, completely out of the blue, the Mask of Life creates a mystical set of Golden Armor for Tahu, which is capable of annihilating every single Rahkshi soldier ''and'' [[PowerCopying gaining all their abilities]]. Granted, the Mask Of Life has done and created some pretty crazy things with its power before, but this is said to be a contingency plan of the Great Beings for if The Makuta ever rebelled. It was never mentioned prior to this, and you'd think it would've activated a lot sooner [[FailsafeFailure if it supposed to be a fail-safe]].
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159
160[[folder:Visual Novels]]
161* In ''VisualNovel/Danganronpa2GoodbyeDespair'', the characters are forced to make a SadisticChoice: either A. [[spoiler:"Graduate", which would replace their memories of being the most dangerous terrorists alive who brought about the end of the world with the memories of the time they spent in the virtual world, reforming them and giving them hope for the future. This, however, would release a malevolent ArtificialIntelligence (specifically that of their leader during their time as terrorists) which would infect every person on the planet, essentially turning it into a world of nothing but copies of said leader, plunging the recovering world into a permanent state of blood, horror, and, most especially, despair. Oh, and it would also trap a couple surviving characters from the first game inside the virtual world.]] Or B., [[spoiler:activate the "Forced Shutdown", resulting in them losing all of the memories they've acquired in the virtual world and revert back to being the horrible terrorists (who are also physically mutilated), with a chance of being executed. However, this would completely destroy said malevolent AI, saving the world.]] They choose option B. The ending of the game reveals that [[spoiler:after getting out of the program, the characters decide to stay on the island and try to revive their friends who died inside the virtual world (of which there is a very, very small chance of pulling off), peaceably seeing off said first-game characters who put them in the program in the first place.]] Obviously, [[spoiler:they didn't simply revert to their old terrorist selves; either the Forced Shutdown replaced their terrorist memories with their virtual ones, or they now have both sets of memories.]] Either way, [[spoiler:there was no foreshadowing or explanation given for how or why the program would behave in such a way]].
162* In ''VisualNovel/{{Melody}}'', Bethany shows every clinical characteristic of a sociopath throughout the greater part of the story. In trying to revive her relationship with the protagonist, she goes as far as conning her way backstage at one of Melody's concerts and stealing her prize guitar, manipulating her ally, Steve, with sex all the while. However, in the final confrontation, when she and Steve are threatening to destroy Melody's guitar if she doesn't get what she wants, she suddenly relents (if Melody's romantic path is active) when the protagonist shows how far he's willing to go to get the guitar back.
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165[[folder:Web Animation]]
166* ''[[WebAnimation/TheChampions2018 The Champions]]'' has one in the Season 3 finale: after the [[UsefulNotes/EuroFooty Champions League goalkeepers]] [[spoiler:fail to prevent TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt via meteor strike, the damage is reversed by the intervention of Galactic VAR]].
167* ''WebAnimation/DickFigures'': One of the most straightforward examples out there, in the episode "Zeusbag", Red and Blue have to enter a gladiator match with Raccoon. As they're about to die by his hand, Raccoon suddenly has to shit and apathetically forfeits the match running off screen.
168* ''WebAnimation/HelluvaBoss'': The episode "Truth Seekers" ends with [[DemonLordsAndArchdevils Stolas]] appearing to save the main characters from their human abductors, implicitly revealing he's been watching over them in secret, or at least noticed the potential disaster when they were caught by an organisation that wants to prove that demons exist. The unusual thing here is that the ''need'' for a Deus Ex Machina is contrived; the captured imps had been released, and the demons had been totally unbeatable in fighting the humans so far, so why was it suddenly a big problem that they were locked in with the only two humans they hadn't slaughtered yet? They could normally even have just teleported back to hell, but couldn't because the spellbook was hard to read with the flashing lights.
169* {{Lampshade|Hanging}}d in [[http://onering.legendaryfrog.com/movies_or2_w.php The One Ring to Rule Them All 2]]. Frodo and Sam escape their lava trap with no other explanation than "plot device, Mr. Frodo, plot device".
170* Analyzed in one of the Trope Talk episodes of ''WebAnimation/OverlySarcasticProductions''. According to Red, Deus Ex Machina can have varying level of foreshadowing but it still must be something that cannot be relied on to happen. She also discusses how deus ex machina that solves the problem on its own is generally less well-received than a deus ex machina that merely makes it possible for heroes to solve a problem.
171* ''WebAnimation/SuperMarioBrosZ'': In Episode 7, Kolorado's grandfather's stopwatch was revealed to [[spoiler:house an ancient magic which proved to be the only thing capable of negating the curse trapping the characters within the MinusWorld, allowing them all to escape]]. Alvin-Earthworm, the series creator, criticizes himself for writing this into the episode, and he intends to omit this episode from the reboot as a result.
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174[[folder:Webcomics]]
175* ''Webcomic/BobAndGeorge'', where rather often various "convenient plot devices" were thrown in (to the point that even the author of the series himself became a regular cast member).
176* T-Rex of ''Webcomic/DinosaurComics'' explains it in his inimitable style [[http://www.qwantz.com/index.php?comic=1354 here]].
177* In an apparently unintentional {{lampshade|Hanging}}d example, Miranda of ''Webcomic/DominicDeegan'' has taken to calling herself "Deus Ex Momina," being a rather jarring ParentExMachina in what is neither a sitcom nor starred by a teenager. WordOfGod states the joke was her terrible delivery of the joke rather than being one of the most MetaGuy moments the comic's ever had. There are other events where this happens, [[http://www.dominic-deegan.com/view.php?date=2004-03-01 sometimes even being mentioned by the cast]].
178* The plot of ''Webcomic/ErrantStory'' is kicked off when Meji casts a spell to invoke a Deus ex Machina so she can find a way to complete her senior project and graduate from wizard school. As a result, she accidentally discovers, in the school library, the only surviving copy of a book that contains some information that the elves were trying to keep secret. Oddly, despite the [[LampshadeHanging name of the trope being mentioned]], this is ''not'' a normal example of the literary trope, because it serves to drive the plot rather than resolve it.
179* In ''Webcomic/GameDestroyers'', Ferahgo is a purposeful example of this, and Jipples has become a minor, though lazy, example of this as well.
180* ''Webcomic/KevinAndKell'' has seen its fair share of these in its [[WebcomicsLongRunners two decades as a comic]]. One arc [[http://kevinandkell.com/2011/kk0608.html from June of 2011]] involving factional elections amongst rabbits comes to an end with a completely unexplained, contrived resolution that [[StatusQuoIsGod restores the status quo]], just in time for [[InvincibleHero the Dewclaw family to escape their latest conundrum.]] Made all the more jarring by their salvation in this situation spontaneously appearing and disappearing with no indication from where or why it came and left as it did. Even if [[http://kevinandkell.com/2011/kk0623.html the final strip]] is a hint to who saved the day, it's still never mentioned before or after.
181* ''Webcomic/MagickChicks'': At the end of chapter 15, [[spoiler: [[EvilRedhead Cerise]]]] mass teleported the student council to their {{uncertain doom}} and she was the only one who knew their location. You'd think it would've paved the way for a RescueArc, or that she'd be forced undo the spell and return them. Nope. Near the end of chapter 18, the wand became [[PlotDevice an all-purpose problem solver]] by enabling Mel to sense they were alive, [[spoiler: [[http://www.magickchicks.com/strips-mc/she_was_alive instantly whisked her to where they were, and back]]]], in less than a minute.
182* LampshadeHanging: In ''Webcomic/QuestionableContent'' the cast are trapped in an alley by a crazed KnightTemplar / AntiHero and her robot {{Sidekick}} until they are saved at the last minute by their own [[RobotBuddy robot sidekicks]] under the battle cry "Deus Ex Machina!". QC, one should note, is set in a slightly-warped version of the ''real'' world, somewhere between MundaneFantastic and a [[SpeculativeFiction sci-fi]] or {{superhero}} world.
183** The introduction of Spookybot and quick resolution of Bubbles and Faye's problems with Corpse Witch is arguably another example.
184* In [[https://reallifecomics.com/comic.php?comic=title-215 this]] ''Webcomic/RealLifeComics'' strip, Greg wants to buy ''VideoGame/DiabloII'' but he has no money. The author then declares he has enough money. In the following strip, the author makes a copy of the Collector's Edition of the game appear in the store.
185** The Author shows up semi-regularly in the comic, usually to get the plot moving in an "It would take too long to get from A to B the regular way." (Such as when she took Liz from "Trying to conceive their second child" to "eight months pregnant" [[https://reallifecomics.com/comic.php?comic=august-24-2020 in one panel]]) One notable exception is when she made sure [[https://reallifecomics.com/comic.php?comic=october-7-2020 the newborn Parker Dean was completely healthy]], rather than saddled with the health problems his real-life counterpart (plus his parents) had to deal with.
186** Tony and his ridiculous mad science tech can play this role, but Tony tends to be the only one to take advantage (such as when he gave himself immortality. It didn't stick.) He offered to give Mae a perfect transition to female [[https://reallifecomics.com/comic.php?comic=october-23-2020 in an afternoon]], but "she" decided the "right way" to do it would be the normal, no-shortcuts way...
187---> '''Tony''': Are you sure?
188---> '''Mae''': ''Apparently.''
189---> '''The Author''': For the last time, if I had to suffer, '''so do you.'''
190* ''Webcomic/SchlockMercenary'' on several occasions. Also {{lampshade|Hanging}}d [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2005-03-19 here]].
191** The Petey-focused extra story in the printed version of book 7 is actually called "Deus ex Nausea", as scenario after scenario is resolved by sudden Fleetmind interference. He's actually trying to subtly kill the literary device in several cultures in an attempt to make them more self-reliant, which gets awkward when he's simultaneously acting as one.
192* Invoked with Webcomic/SlackWyrm and The Deus Ex Box in [[https://www.joshuawright.net/slack-wyrm-473.html this comic]]. A magical box that will solve all your problems in a vague and unsatisfying way. In this case it helped Ferragus pay off his debts (without him knowing), removed his sister from keep (something he was previously unware of) and raised Lord [=EdgeGod=]'s edginess level to 99%.
193* ''Webcomic/SluggyFreelance'': Parodied in the "Holiday Wars" arc. We learn that there exist three magic "Deus ex ova" (singular "ovum"), Latin for "God from the egg", magic eggs created by the Greek gods that will hit the ResetButton with respect to the story's dramatic events if broken. And this eventually happens, but only after characters have have played a BattleOfWits around whether the egg in question gets used. So it's not exactly an example because it's foreshadowed and is played as part of the actual events in the finale... but it's first foreshadowed pretty late in the story, and it comes out of nowhere at ''that'' point, so the author's [[SelfDeprecation self-irony]] about the whole thing is understandable.
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196[[folder:Web Original]]
197* ''[[http://www.wowwiki.com/Chronicle_of_the_Annoying_Quest Chronicle of the Annoying Quest]]'' features a character ''named'' "Dues X. Machina" (Pronounced "doose"). The name seems to be an ironic joke, however, as he doesn't actually do anything plot-related in his first appearance (though he does provide another excuse for [[HilarityEnsues hilarity to ensue...]])
198* The 7th ''Literature/ChronoHustle'' story, which is in fact title Deus Ex Machina, involves a situation where Jack Masterson is about to be raped by Aphrodite. He has no way out of the situation when suddenly [[spoiler:Hermes]], who had not been so much as mentioned up to that point, shows up. He [[spoiler:doesn't actually save the day, but does provide enough of a distraction to give the rest of the main cast time to show up.]]
199* ''LetsPlay/{{Dream}}:'' In [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgdSJdeGF_0 "Minecraft Speedrunner VS 3 Hunters FINALE,"]] after he goes underwater and digs down, [[spoiler: he finds some diamonds. Christmas music starts playing.]]
200* Frequently delivered by random old men in ''Fanfic/FarceOfTheThreeKingdoms.'' Cao Cao apparently has a subscription with Deus Ex Machina Services, Inc.
201* In ''WebOriginal/KeitAi'', an unexplained deus ex machina is responsible for letting a boy get the phone number of his crush, only to realize later that it was actually from the [[AlternateUniverse alternate universe]] [[AlternateSelf version]] of his crush instead.
202* ''Literature/TheLayOfPaulTwister'': When Paul Twister is right about to get caught by a guard, an angelic warrior whose life he had saved at the beginning of the story shows up to conveniently provide a distraction, just long enough for him to get away. Paul is a bit freaked out by this, since it seems to have come out of nowhere and required knowledge that she shouldn't have had, and he figures that [[ThisIsGonnaSuck whatever he's caught up in is probably about to get worse.]]
203--> Things like that just didn't happen to me, suddenly being bailed out by an unexpected ally, just seconds after being caught flat-footed. And she was a Celestial, to boot. [[LampshadeHanging Seriously, all that was missing was the ''machina''!]]
204* PlayedForLaughs in Website/TheOnion Sports Dome reporting a collapse of the Staples Center had brought an early end to a basketball game between the Los Angeles Clippers and the Phoenix Suns where the home team Clippers were on the losing end of a CurbStompBattle.
205* Anything classified as [[spoiler:Thaumiel]] by ''The Website/SCPFoundation'' essentially works as this trope, being objects that could be of benefit to the Foundation. Of particular note is [[http://www.scp-wiki.net/scp-2000 SCP-2000]], which basically [[spoiler:acts as a ResetButton to clone humanity in the event of an apocalypse.]]
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208[[folder:Web Videos]]
209* WebVideo/HBomberguy: In his video on the 2017 British Election, the horror of having to live through another Tory government is immediately resolved when [[spoiler:the money birds come back home]]
210* ''Film/NoobLaCroiseeDesDestins'': At the very en of the movie, Gaea, a StarvingStudent who's trying to live off schloarship as long as she can according to AllThereInTheManual, get an inverted case of HeroismEqualsJobQualification (in that the act that lands her the job is awesome, but otherwise villainous). The character who offers her the job is a pre-existing minor character that gave absolutely no previous indication of being in a position in which he could offer her such a job.
211* ''WebVideo/TheNostalgiaChick'': Averted during the course of "The Dark Nella Saga" with the jar of mayonnaise. While it does allow for teleportation [[spoiler:and resurrection]] it was shown being injected with "a plot device" by Lord MacGuffin early on in the saga. The only remaining question is how [[MadScientist Dr. Tease]] got the jar in the first place...
212* ''WebAnimation/OverlySarcasticProductions'': Red does a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YsajlJhoSBs deep dive]] into this trope, examining its long history and the various ways it manifests in stories. She also expresses her view that the trope's negative reputation is not wholly deserved; random coincidences pop up and cause unexpected benefits in real life all the time, so why is the same thing happening in fiction considered "cheating" or dismissed as bad writing?
213* ''WebVideo/SomeJerkWithACamera'': After accidentally erasing his own birth at the very end of his "It's a Small World" review, Jerk is saved by a dimensional figure called The All-Being, who transports him to an alternate universe that's exactly the same as his old own.
214* ''WebVideo/VideoGameHighSchool'': Averted in season 2: The Law [[spoiler:Is saved from Shane's men by Robot [=ShotBot=]. It is a Deus Ex Machina even more considering that he is saved by a machine, but we must consider that [=ShotBot's=] intervention was foretold in the beginning of the episode, and that his presence really is useful for the next events: [=ShotBot=] stays on track and makes the narration progress]].
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