Line #69 Main/TryAndFollow


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6	->''"But in the end, sometimes making an escape is just about being willing to do what the guy chasing you won't. Like jumping off a building."''
7	-->-- '''Michael Westen''', ''Series/BurnNotice''
8
9	First Rule of being followed: do what your pursuer is unwilling to do. Of course, part of this is to what extent the prey does not want to be caught.
10
11	In some cases you can expect someone to say "NoOneCouldSurviveThat," because the escape appeared just that insane. In many other cases those following are fully aware that the person survived but are dumbfounded that they are still moving. Especially if surviving that fall was a MillionToOneChance.
12
13	And if the pursuers ''do'' [[LemmingCops keep on following]], the hunted still has the WronskiFeint to fall back on.
14
15	If you are feeling particularly ballsy, you can give your hunters the raspberry and issue the challenge of "[[TitleDrop Go ahead, try and follow me!]]" If you take the chase into an environment where you have a concrete advantage over your pursuers, you are using ExploitedImmunity. If the hazard is a hostile third party, see GiveChaseWithAngryNatives.
16
17	Supertrope to WronskiFeint, ChaseStopsAtWater, and AerialCanyonChase. Compare BriarPatching and SuicidalGotcha. Rarely, if ever, works on the ImplacableMan or TheJuggernaut. Is very likely to be pulled off at least once by the AcePilot.
18	----
19	!!Examples:
20
21	[[foldercontrol]]
22
23	[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
24	* The car chase in episode 2 of ''Anime/{{Canaan}}'', making the unnamed taxi driver into an EnsembleDarkHorse.
25	* In ''Manga/CaseClosed'', Shinichi's mother once hung around too long at an intersection and then pulled away at the last possible minute to evade a car that had been surreptitiously following them.
26	* This is basically how both Izaya and Shizuo of ''Literature/{{Durarara}}'' learned [[LeParkour Parkour]]. Izaya learned it so he could escape and reach places where Shizuo would have to be insane to follow him to. Shizuo was simply insane enough to follow him. [[spoiler:Shizuo eventually ends up doing this himself. Instead of letting himself be captured by the {{Yakuza}} for a murder he didn't commit, or [[NotHelpingYourCase undermining any chance of proving his innocence by attacking them]], he instead opts to escape -- and starts with a superhuman climb up a nearby building]].
27	* In ''Manga/FairyTail'', Lucy is [[BoundAndGagged captured and tied up]] by the [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast Phantom Lords]] and held prisoner on a very tall tower. After she [[GroinAttack kicks the guild leader in the crotch]] she realizes that there is no way down, so rather than face returning home to her father and/or torture at the hands of the guild, she jumps off the building [[spoiler:relying on the fact that she had heard Natsu in the distance and [[BigDamnHeroes she knew he'd come to save her]]. Sure enough, [[DivingSave he catches her]].]]
28	* [[PlayingWithATrope Played with]] in ''Manga/RanmaOneHalf''. Ranma and JerkJock Kunō are staring down in a school corridor, and Ranma declares that "this is no place for a fight" and proceeds out the nearest (third floor) window and Kunō, idiot that he is, jumps right after. While everyone in school gasps in shock (and Kunō himself is horrified when he realizes it,) this is not a problem for Ranma, who's used to this kind of leap. The problem is that Ranma ''didn't'' know about the swimming pool right below, and even though he can withstand the impact, it will also trigger his SexShifter curse in full view of everyone.
29	[[/folder]]
30
31	[[folder:Audio Plays]]
32	* ''AudioPlay/BigFinishDoctorWho''. In "I, Davros", the title character is assigned to a commando team sent behind Thal lines. Having completed their mission, Davros proposes they evade the pursuing Thal troops in the Wastelands, an area poisoned by the ForeverWar inhabited by {{Nuclear Mutant}}s and {{Dangerous Deserter}}s. The Thals do turn back rather than pursue them, but Davros is the only member of the team who makes it back to the Kaled lines alive.
33	[[/folder]]
34
35	[[folder:Comic Books]]
36	* ''ComicBook/{{Bone}}'' has a famous and catchphrase-launching subversion in an early sequence where little Fone Bone is being pursued by giant rat creatures. "Those rat creatures [[WhoWouldBeStupidEnough would have to be pretty stupid]] to follow me on this frail, little branch!"
37	-->'''Fone Bone:''' STUPID, STUPID RAT CREATURES!
38	* In ''ComicBook/SinCity'', a common technique in avoiding pursuing cop cars is to head to Old Town where they aren't allowed. A civilian car is fine since it's a possible customer for the prostitutes but since the girls have their own rules, a squad car is likely to get blown apart.
39	* ''ComicBook/TheTriganEmpire''. The heroes are being chased by Lokan hover-tanks, so drive into a cave in an attempt to invoke this trope. The Lokans are brave or suicidal enough to follow, so everyone gets smashed up on the stalagmites inside. The heroes, of course, [[PlotArmor survive unharmed]].
40	[[/folder]]
41
42	[[folder:Films -- Animation]]
43	* ''WesternAnimation/TheLionKing1994'': Following Mufasa's death, Simba is chased by the hyenas and inadvertently escapes them when he trips into and crawls through a forest of thorn bushes.
44	-->'''Shenzi:''' Hey! There he goes! ''There he goes!''\
45	'''Banzai:''' ''(covered in thorns)'' So, go get him!\
46	'''Shenzi:''' There ain't no way I'm goin' in there! What, you want me to come out lookin' like ''you'', cactus-butt?
47	* Oliver of ''WesternAnimation/OliverAndCompany'' proves his mettle to the Dodger by successfully following him all over New York, through chaos, traffic, and construction zones, in pursuit of his share of a string of stolen sausages.
48	-->'''Dodger''': ''You want 'em? Come and get 'em!''
49	* The entire "[[IAmSong I Stand Alone]]" number in ''WesternAnimation/QuestForCamelot'' is essentially one extended Try-And-Follow sequence, as our forest-dwelling male lead Garrett attempts to ditch the main heroine Kayley, who ends up having trouble of going past the forest's living plants and trees.
50	[[/folder]]
51
52	[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
53	* In ''Film/{{Apocalypto}}'', Jaguar Paw escapes from the bunch of sadistic Maya city dwellers led by Zero Wolf who are after him by jumping down a waterfall. While he feels momentarily safe and taunts them from below, Zero Wolf forces his men to jump (after [[BadBoss killing one]] for [[DisproportionateRetribution merely suggesting to take a detour]]). They all jump down the waterfall (one more of them dies, this time because his head hits a rock at the bottom of the waterfall), and the chase resumes. This forces their quarry to realize that he can't just outrun them. After all, he is Jaguar Paw. He is a hunter. And this is ''his'' forest.
54	* In ''Film/AppointmentWithVenus'', the heroes spirit the cow and her calf onto a Royal Navy Motor Torpedo Boat to take them to Britain. They are pursued by a German E-boat, which they sink when Trawler steers the torpedo boat through a narrow channel and the E-boat--with its deeper draught--rips out its hull on the rocks just below the surface.
55	* ''Film/BatmanReturns'': Batman heads directly toward a narrow alley far too small to accommodate the Batmobile, then transforms his vehicle until it will fit. The police following him obliviously maintain acceleration right until they crash into the alley.
56	* Axel Foley pulls off a less spectacular, but nonetheless clever, version in in ''Film/BeverlyHillsCop''. While driving, he spots two plainclothes cops tailing him. He stops at a traffic light and waits through the green and yellow cycles, confusing the cops. Just as the light turns red, he speeds through the intersection. By the time the cops recover from their surprise and try to give chase they're cut off by the cross traffic.
57	* ''Film/ButchCassidyAndTheSundanceKid'' jumped off the cliff into the river below to avoid being caught. But that wasn't enough and they learned later that their pursuers would keep after them until they were captured or dead.
58	* Probably one of the most popular sequences from ''Film/CasinoRoyale2006'' is when Bond is chasing after a bomber who is employing LeParkour moves to navigate a construction site and trying to lose Bond in the process. Instead of replicating his nimble target's movements, Bond would go for far more direct approaches to navigate the same obstacles, like slamming ''through'' a sheet of drywall after his target squeezed through a small, hard-to-reach hole.
59	* In the second ''Film/CrocodileDundee'' movie, Mick is interrogating a criminal who's tied upside down hundreds of feet in the air when the police arrive. He uses the end of the rope to leap off the building and swing into a window. One police officer suggests they follow him, which is met with utter disbelief.
60	* ''Film/Cube2Hypercube''. One of the people imprisoned in the Hypercube turns out to be a hacker who is fleeing the MegaCorp who built it, as it was the one place they wouldn't follow. [[spoiler:Turns out she's wrong, as the person she's talking to is an operative sent after her. Knowing it would be a SuicideMission, they simply used an expendable asset for the job.]]
61	* Subverted in ''Film/FantasticFourRiseOfTheSilverSurfer.'' When Johnny tries this move, apparently hoping his superior knowledge of the area will pay off, the Surfer phases stoically through the obstacles.
62	* In ''Film/FirstBlood'', Rambo is being chased through the woods and actually jumps from a small cliff into trees to escape.
63	* ''Film/MadMaxFuryRoad''. Imperator Furisoa takes her War Rig into a sandstorm that's a virtual tornado, to (temporarily) escape the pursuing War Boys. Given their BloodKnight nature not all of the pursuers are deterred, but as Furiosa's BigBadassRig is heavier it survives while lighter vehicles are blown into the air and destroyed.
64	* ''Film/MasterAndCommander''. After being ambushed by the superior French privateer, Captain Aubrey has his crew put out boats and tow ''Surprise'' into a handy fog bank, knowing the French won't pursue and risk losing their advantage. Sure enough the privateer turns away, firing one last broadside in a final attempt to inflict damage.
65	* ''Film/TheMatrix'':
66	** In the beginning of the movie, Trinity jumps across a roof to escape an agent. The first time, he follows. The second time, she jumps into a window in the side of the building. He doesn't follow.
67	** Subverted when Morpheus gave Neo the ultimatum of either escaping by jumping onto a window-washing platform or being captured by the Agents. Neo chose the second option.
68	* Part of the reason Agent J was recruited into the ''Film/MenInBlack'' was because he was able to keep up with an alien criminal who did this.
69	-->'''[[DaChief Zed]]:''' He's got a [[CowboyCop real problem with authority]].\
70	'''Agent K:''' So do I, but this kid ran down a cephaloid, ''on foot''. That's gotta be tough enough.
71	* ''Film/MissionImpossibleIII''. Ethan's team in a Huey helicopter try to evade a Cobra gunship by flying through a wind turbine farm. [[AcrophobicBird For some reason]] the Cobra doesn't fly above the farm and fire its missiles (which are heat-seaking) down at them -- but then if it did that we wouldn't have a cool scene of the Huey flying ''between'' the spinning turbine blades and the Cobra being smashed when it decides to Try And Follow.
72	* In ''Film/NationalTreasure'', Ben Gates evades his FBI detail with a death-defying jump off the flight deck of an aircraft carrier into the river below. The agents following him are advised to "Pursue at own risk." (They don't.)
73	-->'''FBIAgent:''' ''(to his partner)'' You first.
74	* To escape a police chase in ''Film/NeedForSpeed'', Tobey uses a grassy embankment to drive off a highway and [[{{Ramprovisation}} jump over a street packed with traffic]]. The cops abort the chase rather than follow.
75	* ''Film/ThePrincessBride'':
76	** When Wesley and Buttercup escape into The Fire Swamp to evade their pursuers.
77	--->'''Buttercup:''' We'll never survive!\
78	'''Wesley:''' Nonsense! You're only saying that because no-one ever has.
79	** He makes a habit of this; see Vizzini's gang climbing the Cliffs of Insanity.
80	* In ''Film/RemoWilliamsTheAdventureBegins'', at one point Remo is being chased by a relentless trio of doberman pinschers. He climbs to the roof of a building to escape, but they follow somehow, at which point he [[ItMakesSenseInContext runs across a cable connecting the building he's on to another building]]. He even [[LampshadeHanging lampshades]] the situation by uttering a sarcastic, "Try and follow me now, you bastards!" Two of the dogs leave the roof to find other avenues of approach. But the third dog ''follows him across the cable''.
81	* ''Film/StarTrekInsurrection''. With Enterprise on the verge of a warp core breach, Commander Riker takes her into the Briar Patch to escape the pursuing Son'a ships.
82	-->'''Riker:''' What's inside that [[SpaceClouds nebula cluster?]]
83	-->'''[[BridgeBunnies Bridge Bunny]]:''' Cometary debris, pockets of unstable metreon gas...we don't want to go in there, sir.
84	-->'''Riker:''' Yes we do. ''(Riker takes the helm)'' Time to use the Briar Patch the way Br'er Rabbit did.
85	* The [[AsteroidThicket asteroid field]] in ''Franchise/StarWars: Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack'' and Han Solo's exclamation, "Never tell me the odds!" The TIE fighters chasing them also ignored the odds (or more precisely they know they have better odds of surviving the chase than [[YouHaveFailedMe surviving trying to explain to Darth Vader why they broke off pursuit]]), and they exploded pretty well.
86	-->'''Leia:''' What are you doing? You're not actually going ''into'' an asteroid field!?\
87	'''Han:''' They'd be crazy to follow us, wouldn't they?
88	** See also the following line from Ben Kenobi...
89	--->'''Obi-Wan:''' Who's the more foolish -- the fool, or the fool who follows him?
90	** The ExpandedUniverse shows that such ploys are such a standard part of Han's repertoire that this trope could be named the "Han Solo Gambit".
91	* The most hilarious moment in the film ''Film/TrueLies'' involves Harry Tasker on a horse (borrowed from a mounted city cop) chasing a bad guy on a motorcycle through an improbable array of settings, including crashing through an elegant soiree in a grand hotel. Eventually the villain uses a ramp to do a suicidal leap from the hotel roof... into a rooftop swimming pool a hundred feet away and twenty feet down. Harry attempts to follow -- only to have his horse come to a dead stop and give him an "Are you insane?" look.
92	* In ''Film/USMarshals'', the fugitive jumps off the roof of a building, uses a rope to swing over to a train station on the other side of the street, then jumps onto the roof of the departing train in order to evade Gerard.
93	[[/folder]]
94
95	[[folder:Folklore]]
96	* A rock cliff in New York's Shawangunk Mountains bears the name Sam's Point. According to legend, it was named back in the 1700s for Sam Gonzales, who escaped a party of pursuing Indians by jumping off the cliff into the bushes below. There is no record as to whether the Indian chief further guaranteed Sam's escape by looking down from atop the cliff and confidently stating "NoOneCouldSurviveThat".
97	[[/folder]]
98
99	[[folder:Literature]]
100	* In Creator/SarahAHoyt's ''Literature/DarkshipThieves'', Athena flees through powertrees because she needs something the mutineers won't follow.
101	* In the ''VideoGame/{{Descent}}'' novels, St. John, during a dogfight around Shiva Station, decides to lose his tail by flying mere meters above the station's hull, dodging and weaving among the towers, antennae, and other assorted space station stuff. This absolutely horrifies his co-pilot, who is convinced that they are going to die. Fortunately, they do not. ''Un''fortunately, the pilot chasing them is good enough to follow them.
102	* ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'': In ''Literature/MenAtArms'', Sergeant Angua (a w-[[spoiler:erewolf]]) is running from a dog pack on the rooftops. She jumps over a wide street, and the dogs following stop. The leader tells them to keep chasing, and jumps over to demonstrate. [[spoiler:It doesn't work.]]
103	* ''Literature/{{Dune}}''. Paul and Jessica Atreides are able to escape their Harkonnen pursuers by piloting an aircraft into a Coriolis storm, a massive sandstorm with winds over 400 kph. Everyone agrees (with good reason) that they are "certainly dead", which turns out to be a huge mistake.
104	* ''Literature/GalaxyOfFear'': To take a big ship into an AsteroidThicket after a tiny agile ship is practically suicide, but Spore does it anyway. [[spoiler:And runs into the [[ChekhovsGun giant space slugs Tash knew were there]].]]
105	* ''Literature/TheMachineGunners''. The police suspect the children are hiding the missing machine gun, so try following them to their hideout. Chas enjoys leading them through a swamp and various other places an adult policeman is too big or heavy to follow. He gets a nasty shock when his pursuer keeps following him — because he's actually another child, [[TheBully Boddser Brown]].
106	* In Creator/RudyardKipling's ''Literature/TheSecondJungleBook'' story "Red Dog", Mowgli is fleeing the rampaging dogs and jumps off a cliff into a raging river. This is a deliberate subversion, though -- he knows they'll follow him, but is setting a trap for them.
107	* This sets off the events of ''Literature/ShipBreaker''. Nita is the SoleSurvivor on the wrecked clipper ship that the protagonist Nailer finds washed up on the shore. It's later revealed that her EvilUncle was trying to capture her, so they sailed into a city-killer hurricane to escape.
108	[[/folder]]
109
110	[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
111	* ''Series/BlakesSeven'':
112	** In "Pressure Point", [[TheDragon Space Commander Travis]] realises that [[RebelLeader Blake]], having just escaped, will go into the ForbiddenZone despite its automated defenses because it's the last place anyone would look (though Blake is also after the MasterComputer the zone is protecting).
113	** In "Volcano", Federation troopers capture two of our heroes and hide just inside the crater rim of an active volcano, thinking it's the last place anyone will look for them. Fortunately one of their captives is a telepath and can tell the others where they are.
114	* ''Series/BurnNotice'':
115	** Explained in the top quote. The show has a "Spy Work for Dummies" narration and in trying to escape some pursuers, Michael jumped down two stories and ran home on a twisted ankle. From a later episode, "You bend your knees, tuck and roll... and just accept that it's going to hurt."
116	** In another episode, he said that this is also an effective way to tell if you are being trailed, you take unnecessary risks. If in a car, you signal one way and go the other, speed through red lights, etc. In at least one episode, he notes that doing this is a tip-off to your pursuers that you suspect you're being followed, and gives the variant of driving extremely prudently... signaling well before turns or lane changes, braking and accelerating slowly and smoothly, stopping on yellow lights... until suddenly you do something like pull a right turn from the left lane to leave your tail behind, having lulled them into thinking you'd never do anything crazy like that.
117	* ''Series/DoctorWho''. In "The Pilot", the Doctor takes the TARDIS to Australia, then 23 million years in the future on the other side of the Universe, then into the midst of a Dalek war to see if the MonsterOfTheWeek will follow. [[TheDeterminator It does.]]
118	* In an episode of ''Series/{{Firefly}}'', Wash attempts to lose the Feds on their tail by saying "Let's see them follow us through here!" and ducking and weaving through a narrow canyon. The camera pulls back to show the Feds are simply flying above the canyon and watching them from there. "Oh...I didn't think of that." Then they start with the [[NoKillLikeOverkill bombing]].
119	* ''Series/GameOfThrones''. In "Kill The Boy", Jorah Mormont takes his boat carrying a kidnapped Tyrion through the ruins of Valyria, where any pirates won't dare follow. Although this is mainly due to superstition, there are very real threats as our heroes discover when the [[OurZombiesAreDifferent Stonemen]] attack.
120	* On ''Series/{{Leverage}}'', [[ClassyCatBurglar Parker]] specializes in this. She has rappelled down the side of a building, base jumped off a building, and flipped off a bridge and held on by her fingertips to avoid pursuit.
121	* ''Series/TheLordOfTheRingsTheRingsOfPower'': Galadriel escapes the CityGuards that were tasked to keep an eye on her, by leaping between buildings where they cannot see her.
122	* ''Series/PersonOfInterest'':
123	** In "Witness", John Reese and the witness flee TheMafiya into an apartment block controlled by Bulgarian gangsters. The Russian gangsters chasing them have to call their boss to negotiate entry with the Bulgarians, giving Reese time to treat their injuries and find a phone to call [[MissionControl Finch]].
124	** In "No Good Dead", the VictimOfTheWeek is being chased by government assassins, so he [[GetIntoJailFree throws a bottle at a passing police car]] so he'll get arrested.
125	* ''Series/StarTrekVoyager'':
126	** In the ActionPrologue of the pilot episode, Chakotay flies his ship into the Badlands to escape a much larger Cardassian warship, which is damaged by a plasma storm when it tries to pursue.
127	** In "Scientific Method", aliens have taken over Voyager and threaten to kill the crew if they resist their [[TestedOnHumans medical experiments]]. Captain Janeway flies the ship on a reckless course between two binary pulsars whose combined gravitational force could tear the ship apart, so the aliens have a choice between risking destruction or fleeing in their own ships. Not being as crazy as Janeway is, they flee.
128	* On ''Series/TopGear'', Jeremy Clarkson (being pursued through a shopping mall by "baddies" in a Corvette as part of an "extreme road test"), attempted dodging in and out of several tight spaces in his Ford Fiesta. The 'Vette still gave chase, but it got significantly delayed, and Clarkson eventually made his escape.
129	-->'''Clarkson:''' The Corvette is stuck in British Home Stores!
130	[[/folder]]
131
132	[[folder:Role-Playing Games]]
133	* In ''Roleplay/TheBalladOfEdgardo'', when fleeing from a mob of angry players who are [[TravelingAtTheSpeedOfPlot ignoring the travelling rules]], the title character and his sidekick A Guy Called Squid briefly manage to escape their pursuers by deliberately following a RidiculouslyDifficultRoute through snowy mountains strewn with especially dangerous random events and monsters, correctly guessing both that no other player would dare follow them through such a dangerous route and risk getting their precious characters killed, and that they themselves would be relatively safe from said dangerous random encounters since the forum mods [[TheGodsMustBeLazy had long stopped giving a shit about what the two of them were doing and just ignored them for the most part]].
134	[[/folder]]
135
136	[[folder:Theme Parks]]
137	* In the former ''Ride/TheFuntasticWorldOfHannaBarbera'' at Ride/UniversalStudios, Dick Dastardly leads the riders into the ''Scooby-Doo'' scene to "scare them off his tail", though it's not exactly effective.
138	[[/folder]]
139
140	[[folder:Video Games]]
141	* In ''VideoGame/CallOfJuarezGunslinger'' Silas Greaves is after the Indian Chief Grey Wolf. After their first encounter, Grey Wolf flees and you have to follow him through a series of caves and on narrow paths leading down a cliff face. You have to do a number of 'Leap of Faith' jumps to get from one rock shelf to another and when you finally catch up to Grey Wolf, you end up walking straight into a major ambush. After all this, [[spoiler:Grey Wolf still manages to escape and you never see him again]].
142	* In ''VideoGame/HeavyRain'', Ethan can escape from the police by jumping off a building and hijacking a taxi. It's not clear why this works though, since the police have a helicopter.
143	* The dam jump of ''Film/TheFugitive'' is homaged in, among many other things, ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid3SnakeEater'', where Snake does the same to escape Ocelot, whose response to this is "[[TryNotToDie Don't you die on me yet...]]"
144	* The many chase setpieces in both ''VideoGame/{{Outlast}}'' games are usually broken up by the PlayerCharacter performing a jump across a long gap or some other similar maneuver, so the pursuers are unable to follow.
145	* ''Path of Neo'' allows you to pursue the first option described in the second ''Film/TheMatrix'' example above, and see what could have happened. They might catch you anyway, but if you're good enough to escape them, Trinity is waiting outside on her motorcycle and will instantly take you to Morpheus.
146	* ''VideoGame/QBert'': One way to escape Coily the snake is to jump off the edge of the board onto a spinning disc. Coily attempts to follow and plummets to his doom.
147	* When playing games such as ''Snake'' or ''Light Cycles'' (''Film/{{Tron}}''), getting into tight alleys that your opponent can't follow is a key tactic in advanced play. Of course, one has to be sure they can actually make it through the often tight maze to the other end before someone seals it off.
148	* It's possible to invoke this trope in the ''[[VideoGame/{{X}} X-Universe]]'' games. If your ship is small enough, you can do things like fly through gaps in space stations and make tight passes through {{asteroid thicket}}s. Meanwhile, your A.I. pursuer's collision avoidance programming is likely to force it into going through a wide loop around the object while you continue to open the gap.
149	[[/folder]]
150
151	[[folder:Web Comics]]
152	* In ''Webcomic/GirlGenius'' Tarvek, [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20080926 has a bright idea]] to run into the Castle Heterodyne. At the time, it's one big insane deathtrap used as a prison not seriously guarded once the prisoners are shepherded into the gate -- usually the equivalent of a death sentence. Yes, the guards didn't follow him inside...
153	-->'''Violetta:''' Now do you understand what I have to work with?!
154	** In fairness, Tarvek was heading into the Castle anyway. [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20080331#.VXE71UYnIpQ Agatha does the same tactic earlier]] by fleeing into an uncharted corridor that hasn't been mapped for deathtraps. However the mooks end up following her anyway, when their BadBoss shoots one to encourage the others.
155	* In ''Webcomic/RustyAndCo'', [[http://rustyandco.com/comic/level-5-23/ Prestige jumps out the window onto a cloud.]] The pursuing illithid is obviously thinking of this trope. Then he assumes she's got something that makes it solid and assumes that he can follow right after her. He falls right through the cloud and she reveals that she was only pretending to walk on the cloud and was actually using a flight spell.
156	[[/folder]]
157
158	[[folder:Western Animation]]
159	* ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'':
160	** Parodied when Peter and Lois escape from wheelchair-bound cop Joe by jumping over a fence.
161	** Another episode has a robber do the same thing. After he got away, Joe went through a HeroicBSOD and quit the force, but at the end crossed paths with the robber again, who tried the same thing, only for Joe to find a way to fling himself over the fence and land on the guy [[spoiler:which ended up breaking his spine... killing him]].
162	* In ''WesternAnimation/InvaderZim'', when Dib and Zim are driving the planets Mercury and Mars, Zim attempts this with Dib by challenging him to follow him through the [[AsteroidThicket asteroid belt]]. Dib is smart enough not to take on the challenge.
163	* Done by ComicBook/TheQuestion in ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague'' to escape Huntress and Green Arrow. Question may not have superpowers or extensive martial arts training, but he's very willing to play chicken with a train.
164	* Parodied in an episode of ''WesternAnimation/KingOfTheHill'': Hank is caught in a car chase with a pimp, and so he waits at an intersection for a yellow light and then guns it. When the pimp runs through the subsequent red light, [[GoodCannotComprehendEvil Hank is shocked]].
165	* In ''WesternAnimation/WatershipDown2018'' the escape from Efrafa is on the punt is dropped, with Hazel trying to deter pursuit by taking the rabbits through the "human warren". It doesn't work as General Woundwort, obsessed with vengeance, drives the Efrafans to track them back to Watership Down.
166	[[/folder]]
167
168	[[folder:Real Life]]
169	* Criminals in car chases will sometimes take really crazy risks (swerving, going in the wrong lane) to get the police to stop following them--an officer's first duty is to protect the innocent, after all. Watch any episode of "World's Wildest Police Chases" or similar shows for confirmation. Of course, with police helicopters, the police can keep the criminals under surveillance until they can get the situation back under control.
170	** There is one instance of a guy in a stolen tank leading the police on a merry chase that they couldn't follow directly (mainly because he was in a tank and crushed things rather than going around them); when he tried to lose them by swerving into oncoming traffic, [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome Reality Ensued]] and the tank got stuck on the concrete lane dividers. [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shawn_Nelson_(plumber) Linkage]]
171	* Find yourself a victim of an IncrediblyObviousTail? Experts suggest the best way to shake your stalker is to jump into traffic. The confusion ensures everyone is paying attention to you, and your stalker won't act with witnesses around. Plus, if you really cause enough trouble, police might take you into (protective) custody. Of course, [[ShaggyDogStory you might just get mowed over by a car.]]
172	* Standard tactics for small tree-dwelling animals (squirrels, monkeys) when chased by arboreal predators: either climb out to the tip of a branch too flimsy for the pursuer to risk adding its own weight to, or take a wild leap into the next tree and hope the hunter doesn't take the risk.
173	** Also a common tactic for reef-dwelling prey species, which may take shelter from active predators by huddling in close to slow-moving yet venomous creatures (anemones, sea urchins, etc) in the hope that the predator won't be as willing to risk a nasty sting as they are.
174	* One standard tactic in aerial combat is to try and dive out of the fight if you're outmatched. Diving is the easiest way to accelerate, and if done improperly, brings the risk of exceeding the airframe's structural limits (in other words, you will break the airplane). If pursued, a pilot might attempt to [[WronskiFeint hold the dive as long as possible]] and pull out at the last second. More than a few times either the pursuing or fleeing pilot ended up either crashing into the ground or ripping a wing off trying to pull out of the dive (followed by crashing into the ground).
175	* A common defensive strategy used by aircraft hoping to avoid a fight is to fly Nap-of-the-Earth. This makes them difficult to spot on some types of radar (especially older, less precise systems), gives AntiAir batteries less opportunity to engage them, and makes it riskier for enemy aircraft to chase them. It is less effective against more modern opponents [[TechnologyMarchesOn with advances in radar, missiles, and terrain avoidance auto-pilots]] negating many of the advantages and simply leaving the pilot with limited room to maneuver if they get attacked.
176	* Smaller ships and boats attempting to evade pursuit will occasionally race into shallower waters, given that their smaller craft need less clearance to avoid the seabed or other obstacles. During UsefulNotes/WorldWarI, the US Navy fielded shallow-draft wooden sub-hunter boats that could race through shallow waters or even minefields which the heavier German subs had to sail around, allowing them to use hit-and-run tactics against the bigger German ships.
177	* When drug smugglers started to use [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Go-fast_boat go-fast boats]], the Coast Guard had their own versions built. However it was pointed out that they were AwesomeButImpractical because a smuggler would be more likely to risk destruction of his vessel to escape a lengthy prison sentence than the government employee piloting the Coast Guard vessel. It's for this reason that such boats work in conjunction with helicopters carrying snipers who can disable the engines of the go-fast boat.
178	[[/folder]]

Context Main / TryAndFollow