Line #12 Main/SmashingWatermelons


1	[[quoteright:300:[[Literature/HarukaNogizakasSecret https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/watermelonsmash.jpg]]]]
2	[[caption-width-right:300:Hazuki hits it in one.]]
3
4	''Suikawari'' in Japanese. A party game, usually in the BeachEpisode of Japanese media, where someone is blindfolded, given a large stick (possibly a ''bokken'' or wooden sword), and directed to smash/crack a watermelon.
5
6	Similar to hitting a [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piñata piñata]] in some Western cultures, except without any goodies other than sandy watermelon.
7
8	One of the traditional summer beach activities in Japan, at least until environmental and economic concerns made it rather less popular.
9
10	Common variations:
11
12	#Someone else (usually the UnluckyEverydude) is [[SandNecktie buried up to his neck in sand]], and [[ThisIsGonnaSuck the watermelon is placed next to him]].
13	#The people guiding the blindfolded one intentionally directs him/her towards the UnluckyEverydude.
14	#The watermelon smasher is a sword expert (KidSamurai, HeirToTheDojo), and [[CleanCut slices the watermelon perfectly]].
15	#The watermelon is destroyed by some other means, to the surprise and consternation of the other participants. This sort of twist plays with the fact that watermelons are freaking expensive in Japan, having a price range from 30 to 150 dollars.
16
17	Not to be confused with the band Music/TheSmashingPumpkins -- but it ''is'' the stunt that dead-ended Creator/{{Gallagher}}'s comedy career.
18	----
19	!!Examples:
20	[[foldercontrol]]
21	[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
22	* ''Manga/{{Aiura}}'': Kanaka has a dream in which she pulls the fourth gag of this trope on her friend Saki. Dream-Saki is devastated by this.
23	* ''Manga/AzumangaDaioh'': In the first BeachEpisode, they don't have a stick and Tomo tries to split it with a karate chop. She never manages to hit it. The second time around, Tomo ignores that they have a bat, and Kagura takes the bat and splits the watermelon before Tomo can put everyone through the karate chop debacle again. Tomo whines about it for a bit afterwards, and Kagura tells her to grow up. In the manga's third one, they don't have a watermelon, and Tomo hunts desperately for ''something'' to smash.
24	* In the BeachEpisode of ''Manga/{{Bleach}}'' (episode 228), everyone fights a monster with tentacles, but it turns out that the monster is made of watermelon, and was part of a surprise watermelon smashing game.
25	* Done in the BeachEpisode of ''VisualNovel/ABridgeToTheStarrySkies''. Ibuki repeatedly tries to smack Kazuma with the stick (leading him to accuse her of being able to see in spite of the blindfold), while Ui ''sniffs out'' the watermelon and hits it without needing guidance.
26	* An anime-original bit of episode 5A of ''Manga/CastleTownDandelion'' involves the Sakurada siblings (sans [[NonActionGuy Haruka]]) attempting to do this [[BeachEpisode on the beach]]. [[spoiler:Shiori succeeded in [[SpeaksFluentAnimal persuading the watermelon to split on its own]].]] This skit, strange, is to showcase Haruka's AwesomenessByAnalysis superpower.
27	* ''Manga/DropkickOnMyDevil''; Yurine catches Jashin teasing Kori and declares that they're going to smash a melon, but since they already cut up their melon they'll have to use something else. In this case, she buries Jashin up to her neck in sand and then blindfolds her before handing Kori the stick, which she freezes into a {{BFS}} before approaching Jashin. Jashin is able to buy herself a little time by detecting something out in the water, but while the other girls go to see what it is Kori cleaves Jashin's head in half ([[AmusingInjuries she gets better eventually]]).
28	* In the {{OVA}} of ''Literature/TheFamiliarOfZero'' where The Academy students go to a beach for their summer trip, along with Siesta, Henrietta, and Agnès. [[DirtyOldMan Headmaster Osmond]] asks the girls to put on the "traditional uniforms for the ritual for the spirit of water". The girls change into one piece swimsuits, then bikinis, as they perform the "rituals": one of them is smashing watermelon.
29	* In the BeachEpisode of ''Anime/FightIppatsu!", Sento is given a bat to strike a watermelon with (fitting considering his use of bats as his most common weapon), while Hakone and Iono direct him towards his goal, with his boss on the sideline. Plug and Arresta are also watching, albeit in the air. Just as Plug ponders what a watermelon tastes like in the "parallel world" Sento strikes his target successfully. In triumph, he offers a chunk of the watermelon to his friends on the ground, but they are surprised when an invisible (to them, not Sento) Plug comes down to eat it while he's still holding it. Plug exclaims the sweetness of the watermelon, just before meeting the end of Sento's bat.
30	* ''Anime/FLCLProgressiveAndAlternative''. The 3rd episode of ''Progressive'' is a BeachEpisode. During a montage of activities, one of the characters does an overhead smash of a watermelon.
31	* ''Manga/FruitsBasket'': Done at the beach, and Tohru talks about how she used to do it with her mom.
32	** And then when they actually try it, martial artist Haru smashes one with his bare hands, so Tohru decides to try it that way as well...
33	* ''Anime/FullMetalPanicFumoffu'':
34	** Sousuke's classmates try to set this up for him. He marches off some distance away, discards the wooden stick, and blows the watermelon away with a shotgun, [[ImprobableAimingSkills hitting it dead on]]... but too bad it was the one sitting next to Kaname, [[OhCrap spraying her with watermelon juice even though she chose her swimsuit specifically to show off to him]]. She's [[SparklingStreamOfTears not amused]].
35	** In the first ''FMP'' series, HandsomeLech Kurz Weber starts hitting on Kaname at the beach whereupon Melissa Mao forcibly plants a watermelon on top of his head. Then Kyoko comes up and [[HumiliationConga hits it with a stick]].
36	* ''Manga/HanaukyoMaidTeam'' episode 9. Taro and the maids forget to play the smashing watermelons game during their BeachEpisode, so they do it while most of the mansion's maids have gone home on vacation. Security chief Konoe, who is an expert with the sword, cuts a watermelon perfectly in half multiple times.
37	* ''Literature/HarukaNogizakasSecret'': While Yuuto and Haruka try to teach Shiina to swim at the school pool, the side characters suddenly turn up for no reason and act like they're at the beach. A watermelon is produced, NinjaMaid Hazuki is blindfolded and given a baseball bat, and she promptly breaks the bat trying to hit Yuuto.
38	** Later, a straight version of the trope is used during the actual BeachEpisode.
39	* ''Manga/HidamariSketch'': No BeachEpisode in this series. However, Yuno finds an inflatable watermelon-like beach ball in the shed and plays around with it in this manner, "just to get the feeling."
40	* In the manga of ''Manga/KOn'', a panel shows a blindfolded Mio chasing a terrified Ritsu as Yui points at the watermelon on the ground. In the anime adaptation of the same event, Mio's brought a watermelon over, and is saying that if they don't have fun, what was the point of coming... then she realizes why she had them go there in the first place.
41	* In the BeachEpisode of ''Franchise/LoveLive'', Hanayo is given a wooden staff and is placed in front of the watermelon, her idol teammates watching and supporting her, while Eli films her close by. Nico (due to the camera presence, and trying to keep up her cute/mischievous idol persona. This is proven to be the reason in the next scene, where Nico talks to Maki) swipes the watermelon away just as the staff comes down. This prompts Kotori to comment on how cute they are, and Eli jokingly scolding Nico for her crimes against watermelon splitting.
42	* ''Manga/LuckyStar'': Konata mentions that only rich people would want to spend the money to do this, but rich people aren't usually the sort who would do it anyway. Sure enough, rich girl Miyuki's never done it. Konata also directly refers to the ''Fumoffu'' example above.
43	* ''Manga/{{Mahoraba}}'': Tamami ignores the shouted directions, walks right to the watermelon, and [[CleanCut slices it neatly]] (using a wooden bokken) into quarters.
44	* ''Manga/MissKobayashisDragonMaid'': Kanna does this during an [[AdaptationExpansion anime-only segment]]. Of course, Kanna is a dragon with SuperStrength, so she ends up vaporizing the melon and splattering the remains all over Kobayashi and Shouta's faces.
45	* Done several times in ''Manga/RanmaOneHalf''.
46	** Ranma was once forced to participate in a [[MartialArtsAndCrafts Martial Arts Watermelon Splitting]] contest in the manga, in which the participants must race to the finish line with their watermelon intact to win, while trying to break each others' watermelons with a bokken.
47	** Tatewaki Kunō once turned this game into TrainingFromHell. He stood under a waterfall on the originally named Watermelon Island, and smashed every watermelon that fell off the waterfall towards him. A watermelon to the head gave him EasyAmnesia, but the training worked -- whenever he saw a watermelon, his speed and strength would increase tenfold, allowing him to easily defeat his rival Ranma, who was unfortunately wearing a watermelon-print bathing suit. His new watermelon-slicing skills also made him a hit with ladies. He retained the skill afterward, but his training is a subliminal conditioning to destroy ''watermelons''. [[CongruentMemory It's absolutely useless unless his opponent is holding or otherwise resembling a watermelon]], something that Ranma is well aware of. In fact, Kunō himself '''knows''' that the Watermelon Island training is useless for combat -- he never intended for it to be any use in combat (being so egotistic that he already considers himself unbeatable): he wanted to upgrade his talents at slicing watermelons in order to impress girls, particularly Ranma's girl-form.
48	* Done in ''Anime/ReKan'' during the BeachEpisode. [[ISeeDeadPeople Hibiki]], who gets to go first, gives the melon an aboslutely pathetic tap with the tip of her stick - only for the melon to suddenly fall apart into CleanCut segments, courtesy of the samurai FriendlyGhost following her around. Hibiki's friends, who immediately realize what happened, call him out on it.
49	* A RunningGag in the ''Anime/SDGundamForce'' shorts are the Zakus slicing a watermelon at parties.
50	* In ''Manga/SayonaraZetsubouSensei'' [[http://myanimelist.net/clubs.php?action=view&t=pic&id=1496&pid=35604 the watermelon]] says "Don't open it!"
51	* Subverted in ''Manga/SchoolRumble'' because Mikoto almost drowned.
52	* In the manga of ''Manga/StrawberryMarshmallow'', Nobue calls it part of Matsuri's challenge, and spins her around... but Matsuri gets dizzy and falls down. Chika is somehow talked into giving it a go, but Miu guides her to a grilled corn vendor. In the anime, Miu is buried up to her neck as punishment for undoing Nobue's top, and an unwitting Ana is guided to her head... though Ana hears Miu and doesn't hit her.
53	* Done in ''Anime/TengenToppaGurrenLagann'', to show how utterly great PrincessClassic Nia is at everything.
54	** Also played with somewhat: the dark stripes on the melon are actually an octopus-like creature's tentacles and it tries to dodge out of the way.
55	* ''Literature/ThatTimeIGotReincarnatedAsASlime''; in the "Slime Diaries" spinoff's BeachEpisode, Rimuru sets up a melon and has Shion take the first swing. Shion uses an extra sense she normally uses to detect Rimuru when he's in slime form, then summons her {{BFS}} before making the strike. The result is a massive crater where the melon used to be and all the others covered in small bits of melon while Shion looks around in confusion.
56	* A BeachEpisode of ''Manga/ToLoveRu'' has Momo produces a giant living watermelon to play this, but some insults from some of the gang angers the living watermelon to go on a rampage, attacking everyone. They are all saved eventually by Yami, who slices the watermelon in half with a sword, thinking that that's how you play Watermelon Splitting.
57	* The ''Franchise/UltraSeries'' OVA, ''Anime/M78LoveAndPeace'' have this as a quick gag in the credits, where Red King is about to smash a watermelon atop where one of the Dada triplets is buried.
58	* In ''Manga/UruseiYatsura'' there is actually a story where Lum, Ataru, Mendō and Shinobu try to acquire a watermelon to play the game, only the townsfolk of the town they are in refuses to sell them due to their fear of the wrath of the local Watermelon God. The group wind up pissing off the Melon God anyway, and it turns out that its terrible wrath is [[BulletSeed spitting watermelon seeds at the people who angered it]].
59	* ''Manga/UzakiChanWantsToHangOut'': During the BeachEpisode, Shinichi is roped into doing this, and while blindfolded Hana decides to mess with him by giving him videogame codes rather than directing him properly. [[LaserGuidedKarma It backfires on her]] when Shinichi, fed up with her antics, tries to reach out with his hands (still blindfolded) and [[SuggestiveCollision falls on top of her]], getting [[ThanksForTheMammary a handful of a different kind of melon]].
60	* The TrainingMontage used as the first ending of ''Anime/YuGiOhArcV'' has one scene showing Yuya, Yuzu and Gongenzaka trying to hit a watermelon blindfolded. The first still shows Yuya leaned over the watermelon as he missed with Yuzu and Gongenzaka leaning back for a strike. The next still has Yuya with a very painful bump on his noggin, and Yuzu looking apologetic as the teens eat watermelon.
61	* In the BeachEpisode of ''Anime/YukiYunaIsAHero'', Itsuki is given a wooden katana (possibly Karin's, as it is similar to the ones she trains with) and is asked to split a watermelon. Karin pretends to show no interest, saying watermelon splitting is for the simple-minded, but that immediately changes when Itsuki approaches the watermelon and is ready to strike. She successfully splits the watermelon by imitating her sister Fu (a proficient warrior). Fu doesn't realize this until Karin points it out, as she was blissfully ignorant of the copying, even mocking Itsuki by commenting on how she had an exaggerated stance. After the deed, Togo comments on how Itsuki will become a fine lady after refining herself.
62	* In the first ''Manga/YuYuHakusho'' movie, Koenma is kidnapped while trying to smash a melon at the beach.
63	[[/folder]]
64
65	[[folder:Fan Works]]
66	* In ''Franchise/TouhouProject'' fanworks that feature the resident oni ''Suika'' Ibuki, sometimes with a pun about going to smash or fight Suika.
67	[[/folder]]
68
69	[[folder:Film -- Animated]]
70	* Implied at the end of ''WesternAnimation/MonstersInc1'': after the Scare Floor becomes the Laugh Floor, various monsters are seen with comedy props, including one with a watermelon and a mallet.
71	[[/folder]]
72
73	[[folder:Film -- Live-Action]]
74	* ''Film/IronMan2'': Tony Stark decides to wear his PowerArmor at his birthday party. He starts off trick-shooting thrown bottles, but when one of his guests comes jogging up with a watermelon, he gleefully remarks, "I think she wants the Creator/{{Gallagher}}!" before blasting it with the [[ChestBlaster Uni-beam]]. [[WhatTheHellHero His friends are not amused]] -- because he is ''very'' [[AlcoholInducedIdiocy drunk]].
75	[[/folder]]
76
77	[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
78	%%* ''Series/Zoey101''.
79	* Creator/{{Gallagher}} and his "Sledge-O-Matic" may be the first that comes to the mind of American audiences. Of course, he wouldn't be blindfolded and would smash anything that would make a big splatter. There's a reason the first few rows of the audience have a big sheet of plastic in front of them.
80	* ''Series/KamenRiderGaim'' raises the scale quite a bit: Gaim's watermelon-themed Suika Arms starts off as an [[IndyEscape Indy-style giant ball]], to which Kamen Rider Bravo responds by smashing it with a ''steel girder'' from a nearby construction site, causing it to split into nice, even slices...but it re-forms moments later, transforms into a MiniMecha, and lets Gaim [[CurbStompBattle utterly own]] Bravo.
81	[[/folder]]
82
83	[[folder:Pro Wrestling]]
84	* Wrestling/SinnBodhi did this with a water melon placed on top of Jeckles The Jester at an Wrestling/{{N\|ational Wrestling Alliance}}WA Vendetta Pro Show, managing to bisect the fruit without cutting Jeckles, who it was placed on top of.
85	[[/folder]]
86
87	[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
88	* The town of Carpenden in the ''TabletopGame/{{Pathfinder}}'' country of [[{{Eagleland}} Andoran]] has an annual festival that, among other things, features the residents hurling extremely sour melons at each other.
89	[[/folder]]
90
91	[[folder:Video Games]]
92	* [[WhenTreesAttack Hashi]] from ''VideoGame/TheBlackHeart'' has a special move in which he grows fruits from his body and tosses them at the opponent. The super version of that special throws a watermelon, which if left unblocked smashes to pieces against the opponent's body, dealing heavy damage.
93	* In the JustifiedTutorial in ''Call of Duty 4: VideoGame/ModernWarfare'', you must smash a watermelon with your knife as part of melee training.
94	* ''VideoGame/DragaliaLost'' has this in the 4koma comic, ''Dragalia Life'' #133 where Celliera and Luca play it. In her case, she does it blindfolded and while giving it a homerun swing that somehow doesn't splatter it to Luca's chagrin. Far as she's concerned, if it splats when it lands, she wins.
95	* ''VideoGame/FreddiFish3TheCaseOfTheStolenConchShell'': One of the shows at Rosie Pearl's Luau involves a turtle smashing a watermelon with a mallet, Gallagher style.
96	* ''VideoGame/FruitNinja'': In this game, the goal for the player is to slice as much fruit as they can when they're in the air, and one of those fruits are watermelons.
97	* The Japanese version of ''VideoGame/HeyYouPikachu'' had this. It was re-worked into a piñata game with a Pokéball on a string in the American release.
98	* In the PAL version of ''VideoGame/{{Ico}}'', [[NewGamePlus in your second play-through]], there are watermelons growing at the edge of the beach at the very end. Ico can smash them by throwing them. And if he's carrying one of them [[spoiler:when he walks over to Yorda to trigger the final cut scene, then the shot of her waking up is followed by a shot of Ico and Yorda, sitting on the beach together, eating watermelon.]]
99	* ''VideoGame/KatamariDamacy'': You can roll up a kid trying to smash a watermelon on the beach. You can also roll up the watermelon. The watermelon is twice the size of the kid.
100	* ''VideoGame/KirbysEpicYarn'': The animation that plays when you unlock Meta Melon Island is one of a Waddle Dee using a large bat to smash a watermelon, turning it into the island.
101	* In ''VideoGame/Persona4'', your team is relaxing at your home in August when Dojima brings home a pre-sliced watermelon. Several members of your team, as well as Nanako, express disappointment they can't smash it themselves.
102	* In ''VideoGame/Persona5Strikers'' during the Okinawa arc, Makoto wants to play it. Buying the melon is the most mundane step. To warm up for splitting it blindfolded, the Request requires she kills 10 Jack Frosts.
103	* A summer beach activity in ''VideoGame/RuneFactoryFrontier'', where only you and a few girls participate.
104	* One of Sakura's power attacks in ''VideoGame/SuperGemFighter'' is to try this, with her opponent in the way.
105	* ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'':
106	** ''VideoGame/SuperMarioSunshine''. In episode 8 of Gelato Beach, you can smash giant watermelons for coins.
107	** ''VideoGame/MarioParty10'': The 1 vs. Rivals minigame Watermelon Whalin' features the Rival players each holding a watermelon, and they must avoid letting the solo player smash the melons with their hammer. If at least one watermelon manages to survive the timer, the Rival players win, while the solo player wins if they can smash them all.
108	* ''VideoGame/WiiSportsResort'': This is part of the Speed Splice game. The player's Mii has to slice falling fruits, including watermelons, in specific directions. The accuracy and speed of the speed in each slash will determined the score.
109	* In ''VideoGame/MegaManXDive'', [[MsFanservice Layer]] gets a bikini alternate variant. One of her standard attacks is called "Water Melon Slice", which is basically the same as her normal one but with [[MakingASplash water elemental damage]]. She actually smashes a watermelon in her character selection animation, and funnily enough, one event gives a watermelon skin to Chill Penguin as a boss to take it to even more literal levels.
110	* One of the minigames of ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsIntoReverie'' is this trope with the men of [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel Class VII]] and [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsFromZeroAndTrailsToAzure SSS]] splitting the watermelon at the beach of Mishelam while the rest of the crowd all cheer on.
111	* In the "Far Side of the Sea" event for ''VideoGame/GirlsFrontline'', Five-seveN talks SPAS-12 into doing this blindfolded and with an axe, instead of simply divvying and sharing the watermelon the latter brought. Unbeknownst to them, the watermelon was placed a palm's length away from [[PlayerCharacter the Commander]]'s head, as [=M37=] and [=M1=] Garand had previously buried them there. Needless to say, SPAS-12 came dangerously close to being an accidental HeroKiller.
112	[[/folder]]
113
114	[[folder:Web Video]]
115	* The WebVideo/HydraulicPressChannel has at least two variations:
116	** A fairly straight example can be seen [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1d-fy0JaXA here]], in which the creator Lauri Vuohensilta crushes several different types of fruit with his press, with watermelon being the first to be crushed.
117	** A less typical example is [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZYMoSAy3PdI here]], in which Vuohensilta rigs a hydraulic press to create a jet of water that easily tears through a watermelon.
118	* Another variation can be seen from time to time on ''WebVideo/KentuckyBallistics'', which features former Kentucky state trooper Scott [=DeShields=] shooting all kinds of guns at various targets. One of the channel's signature segments sees the host interrupted by an alarm clock whose face reads "Watermelon Time", immediately followed by a cut to a slow-mo video of him saying "It's watermelon time!" and shooting watermelons with the featured weapon. One example starts at the 9:35 mark of [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qsX23WuqP2U this video]].
119	** A completely straight version can be seen [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i02b7Jmxw80 here]] (go to the 5:49 mark), where [=DeShields=] uses a replica of a medieval military flail on watermelons.
120	[[/folder]]
121
122	[[folder:Webcomics]]
123	* ''Webcomic/EnnuiGo'': [[https://ennuigo.thecomicseries.com/comics/874 "Beach Shit"]] shows a couple people doing this on Key Manati's beach. They buy the watermelon from [[{{Jerkass}} Sybil]], who claims that she bought her watermelons from a farmer who wanted to get rid of them; when the watermelon gets smashed, it unleashes a horde of bees on the unfortunate beachgoers.
124	* ''Webcomic/KarinDou4koma'': The Karin-dou four hold one at their PocketDimension beach after Tamaryu gives a watermelon to Seren as a peace offering. For some reason, they hand the bat to [[SuperStrongChild Tamaryu]], who promptly [[DoesNotKnowHerOwnStrength rends the watermelon into a fine pink mist]].
125	[[/folder]]
126
127	[[folder:Western Animation]]
128	* ''WesternAnimation/HeyArnold'': Arnold's grandma smashes a watermelon to pieces to serve for dinner in one episode.
129	* WesternAnimation/TheSmurfs go smashing smurfmelons in Farmer's garden in the episode "Alarming Smurfs" when they accidentally set off all the alarm bugs that Brainy and Clumsy had placed around the village.
130	* ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse'':
131	** Used in a StealthPun in [[Recap/StevenUniverseS1E18BeachParty "Beach Party"]]: a puffer fish-monster with a green and pink color scheme gets crushed during a beach party, and [[spoiler:WordOfGod says it [[WasOnceAMan was once a Crystal Gem]] named Watermelon Tourmaline]].
132	** [[Recap/StevenUniverseS1E34WatermelonSteven "Watermelon Steven"]] has Steven inadvertently growing a grove of watermelons with previously unknown GreenThumb powers shaped like him. They become animate, but act in his defense outside of his control, leading to the Gems fighting off an army on the beach and [[VictoryByEndurance eventually losing]]. They specifically smash into slices, rather than pulp.
133	[[/folder]]
134
135	[[folder:Real Life]]
136	* The [[http://www.melonfest.com.au/ Melon Fest]] in Chinchilla, Australia, includes a number of melon-related games, including melon smashing. A regular fixture is an attempt by a local to smash as many melons as he can with his head in a minute ([[OverlyNarrowSuperlative he holds the Guinness World Record in this regard]]).
137	* UsefulNotes/{{NASCAR}} driver Creator/RossChastain has this as his race-winning trademark, having grown up as a Florida watermelon farmer. He'll also smash them upon winning other accolades and some special occasions.
138	* The game was played backstage at The Ice 2012 and filmed by Alex and Maia Shibutani for their vlog channel. Variation 3 occurred when Yuzuru Hanyu cleaved the melon in half in one hit. While he's a LivingLegend figure skater rather than a master swordsman, Website/YouTube commenters pointed out that his great spatial awareness enabled him to do this.
139	[[/folder]]

Context Main / SmashingWatermelons