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6[[quoteright:350:[[WesternAnimation/TheFairlyOddParents https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/fop_literally.jpg]]]]
7[[caption-width-right:350:It's always good to know who your friends are.]]
8
9->''"You're a funny guy, Sully, I like you. That's why I'm going to kill you last."''
10-->-- '''John Matrix''', ''Film/{{Commando}}''[[note]][[ILied He lied.]][[/note]]
11
12Part of a villainous stock phrase that usually goes "When I TakeOverTheWorld, you will be spared." The other common variations are "I think I'll kill you last" and "Your death will be quick and painless."
13
14Usually, the villain will make this promise to anyone who helps him, or to someone they feel indebted to, are friends with, or are in love with. If the villain ''really'' likes this person, expect them to sweeten the deal with a ShinyNewAustralia. This is generally played for laughs, since few "realistic" villains are quite so egomaniacal that they bandy out the lives of others this way.
15
16If said to a hero, it may because they're {{Friendly Enem|y}}ies. An OmnicidalManiac may either express a desire to preserve one person or event that they like, or say that it's the one thing they'll miss after destroying the world. If they are sparing someone because that person had previously shown them kindness, then this overlaps with BecauseYouWereNiceToMe. If they believe the person or people they spare have some sort of UniquenessValue, that's SparingTheAces. If they deliberately spare someone to have the person suffer from guilt (perhaps even being ForcedToWatch), that's CruelMercy. If the villain doesn't even feel the need to deal with the individual, they're NotWorthKilling.
17
18An alternative reason for a villain to invoke this trope is to [[SpareAMessenger leave behind a witness to tell of their misdeed]], intending for it to have a demoralizing effect on the villain's enemies.
19
20Contrast IllKillYou
21
22----
23!!Examples:
24[[foldercontrol]]
25
26[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
27* In ''Anime/AuraBattlerDunbine'', when the bad guys arrive on Earth and announce their plan to conquer it, they say they will spare the city of Boston out of respect for one of their pilots who came from there.
28* For ''Literature/{{Baccano}}'s'' Ladd Russo and Lua Klein, nothing says [[MadLove love]] like "I'll kill you last." Ladd also says something along those lines to Graham Spectre ("No, I won't... I like brazen and impudent guys that only I'm able kill"), at which point Graham [[LoonyFan starts fanboying him like nobody's business]].
29* In ''Manga/{{Claymore}}'', the freshly resurrected and awakened Hysteria says that she'll spare any Claymore who removes the sword from her neck. One steps up and does so, and she keeps her word, avoiding that Claymore while slaughtering the rest. Also a prime example of EvenEvilHasStandards.
30* ''Manga/DemonSlayerKimetsuNoYaiba'': When Tanjiro calls Rui out on his messed-up and abusive ideas on what family means, Rui offers him the choice to either recant it and receive a quick, painless death like the [[CurbStompBattle swift and messy one]] he inflicted on a RedShirt Demon Slayer moments previously, or stand by his words and meet a much slower and more painful one. [[{{Determinator}} Tanjiro being Tanjiro]], he naturally refuses, kicking off one of the series' more famous big ol' shonen fights.
31* In ''Anime/DragonBallZTheHistoryOfTrunks'', when a terrified store clerk gives Android 18 beautiful clothes, she is genuinely grateful and says he won't die today. However, as she is walking away, Android 17 blows the store up and kills him. 18 becomes upset because 17 made a liar out of her.
32* The BigBad of ''Manga/FullmetalAlchemist'' didn't ''say'' anything until he'd [[BatmanGambit already made his move]], but once they're the only two left alive, he gives something along the lines of this trope to Van Hohenheim, "in gratitude for giving me life." Poor man had had [[GenreBlindness no inkling]] Homunculus was evil until then, and they had even established in conversation that Hohenheim was basically his father. This might help explain his somewhat ambivalent attitude toward his [[HotBlooded second]] and [[GentleGiant third]] sons. After the first one goes all OmnicidalManiac on you and [[WhatHaveIBecome turns you into]] an [[IAmAMonster immortal]] [[CatchPhrase monster]]...
33* In ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure'', Nazi officer Stroheim goes to a group of Mexican prisoners and makes them choose which one of them will [[{{Ghostapo}} be sacrificed to the "man in the column"]]. One boy stands up to offer himself to save the rest, and Stroheim is [[YouAreACreditToYourRace so impressed by his bravery]] that he chooses to spare him and kill the rest.
34* In ''Manga/MyHeroAcademia'', Stain the HeroKiller will spare a hero if said hero has proven themselves to be heroic, even if he has them at his mercy. So far, only Izuku has proven to match his standards of what being a hero is aside from All Might himself. This even extends to [[spoiler: saving Izuku when a Nomu has grabbed Izuku and attempts to fly off with him]].
35[[/folder]]
36
37[[folder:Comic Books]]
38* ''ComicBook/TheAvengersJonathanHickman'': In the opening Arc the new antagonists Abyss, Aleph and Ex Nihilo have captured an Avengers team and intend to "Evolve" the Earth. Thor blusters and says they will be stopped until Abyss offers to free hm so they can escape and make a pantheon togather. Thor laughs this off until an EpicKiss, then he states this trope.
39* ''ComicBook/UltimateSpiderMan'': Peter and Kitty Pryde hit the mall on their first date and joke about the modern miracle that is the corn-dog on a stick. Kitty quips that when the mutants take over the world, the inventor of the corn-dog will be spared. She has to explain she was kidding when Peter looks nervous. [[{{Foreshadowing}} Little did they know...]]
40* In one ''ComicBook/UsagiYojimbo'' story, Jei, the Blade of the Gods, comes across a group of bandits robbing a peasant's hut. He slaughters them, and then turns his eyes towards the lone survivor of the bandits' raid - a girl called Keiko. Instead of killing her, he decides she's "innocent" and leaves. Keiko then decides to travel with her new "Uncle".
41[[/folder]]
42
43[[folder:Comic Strips]]
44* In [[http://www.gocomics.com/calvinandhobbes/1987/10/18 this]] ''ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes'' strip, a bug-eyed monster in one of Calvin's [[MrImagination "Spaceman Spiff" adventures]] tells Spaceman Spiff:
45-->You have knowledge we need. Cooperate, and we'll kill you rather painlessly.
46[[/folder]]
47
48[[folder:Fan Works]]
49* In the ''Manga/DeathNote'' fic ''Fanfic/ACureForLove'' Light says the following to L [[OpenMouthInsertFoot without really thinking about what he said]] [[MurderIsTheBestSolution because killing people who annoy him has almost become an automatic response]]:
50-->'''Light''': [[FriendlyEnemy You're not trying to do something stupid, are you?]]\
51'''L''': I'm not doing anything stupid, Light. Apart from speaking to you.\
52'''Light''': Good, because I would hate to kill you.\
53'''L''': [[DeadpanSnarker Mmm... I'm sure you would.]]
54* This occurs in ''Fanfic/{{Heir}}'' (a Dark![[Franchise/HarryPotter Harry]] fic where [[spoiler: Harry was raised by the horcrux in his head]]) when Harry and [[spoiler: Tom]] are choosing victims to be [[NonLethalWarfare petrified by the basilisk]] they are so impressed with the muggleborn Hermione Granger that they decide to spare her and move on to a new target.
55* In ''Fanfic/MonsterADeathNoteAU'', Light spares L insisting that [[WeCanRuleTogether they can rule together]] and later [[spoiler:[[BackFromTheDead brings him back to life with the death eraser after Misa killed L in a jealous rage]]]]. Also Mello spares Aizawa in a PetTheDog moment:
56-->'''Light:''' You may report back now...is there anyone else in the car?\
57'''Mello:''' Yeah.\
58'''Light:''' Oh. Kill him. ''(Hangs up)''\
59'''Mello:''' [[HitmanWithAHeart I think I've fired enough shots today.]]
60* ''Fanfic/ThePalaververse'': In ''Wedding March'':
61-->Her time being raised by Saddle Arabians had left one pony-esque impression on Charity's blade of a mind, and that was a sense of something like gratitude. And the form that gratitude took for Charity in that moment was this: for letting her out, she'd eviscerate the cage-opener last.\
62Don't say virtue isn't rewarded.
63* In [[WhamEpisode Chapter 23]] of ''Fanfic/PokemonResetBloodlines'', a girl named Belladonna Tyrian raids the Gringy City Power Plant, and when she encounters two guards, she kills one, but the other pleads for his life [[IHaveAFamily because of his family.]] She knocks him out and leaves him stuffed in a closet with a message so he can be found.
64** Sabrina has gained herself a reputation for killing challengers she deems as "unworthy", [[SparingTheAces but she spares those who manage to impress her]]. [[PragmaticVillainy This is partly because it helps attracting weak ones as they know there is a chance for survival.]]
65* In the ''Manga/DeathNote'' fic ''[[http://archiveofourown.org/works/616971/chapters/1112940 To Feel Alive]]'', Ryuk says this to Light, promising that his death would be quick and painless--much to Light's annoyance.
66-->Shouldn't he be grateful that he wasn't planning on giving him a painful, lingering death?
67[[/folder]]
68
69[[folder:Film — Animated]]
70* Though he never actually tells her as much, Cat R. Waul of ''WesternAnimation/AnAmericanTailFievelGoesWest'' intends to spare Tanya Mousekewitz after he and his gang kill and eat every other mouse in town, because of her singing voice. During the climax, she tricks him into thinking she's caught in his fatal trap, and he freaks out and stops his minions from continuing what they're doing because "You'll crush the diva!"
71* Subverted with Kai in ''WesternAnimation/KungFuPanda3'', when Po is the only one to recognize Kai by his titles, Kai admits that it ''almost'' makes him want to spare the panda’s life.
72* In his first scene in ''WesternAnimation/{{Mulan}}'', Shan Yu kills all but two of the Emperor's soldiers. The two survivors are directed to return to the Emperor with his message, and they run away in terror. He watches them, and smiles thoughtfully before asking his closest followers, "How many men does it take to deliver a message?" His archer replies, "One," and aims.
73[[/folder]]
74
75[[folder:Film — Live-Action]]
76* In ''Film/BillyMadison'', after Billy apologizes to a guy he used to bully as a kid, said person marks him off his "People to Kill" list [[spoiler:and [[BigDamnHeroes saves his life in the ending]]]].
77* AntiHero-ic version in ''Film/BladeII''. Blade gets information out of a Vampire Mook, saying, "Tell me what I want to know, and I'll consider you as a loose end." The Mook spills the beans, and Blade actually lets him get away, even when he runs into him again later on. Of course, [[BrickJoke at the very end]], Blade catches up to the guy in a sleazy porn theater about three countries away: "Well, you didn't think I forgot about you did you? <Brain-stab>"
78* ''Film/ButchCassidyAndTheSundanceKid'': When Harvey provokes Butch into fighting him, he pointedly tells Sundance, "This doesn't concern you", because he doesn't want Sundance as an enemy, and right as he and Butch are getting ready to fight:
79-->'''Harvey:''' Sundance? When we're done, if he's dead, you're welcome to stay.\
80'''Butch:''' Listen, I don't mean to be a sore loser, but, uh, when it's done, if I'm dead, kill him.\
81'''Sundance:''' Love to. ''(raises his hand to Harvey and smiles)''
82* ''Franchise/TheChroniclesOfRiddick'':
83** In the 2004 ''Film/TheChroniclesOfRiddick'', the Lord Marshall promises Aereon that he might save her homeworld for last during the Necromonger purge across the cosmos if she gives him another prophecy on his odds to reach the Underverse. She promises him that he'll reach it pretty soon.
84** At the end of the director's cut of the third ''Film/{{Riddick}}'' movie, Riddick confronts Krone as he's praying in the Lord Marshal's private chambers, having taken up Riddick's former post after betraying Riddick and leaving him for dead. Riddick promises to kill Vaako first and Krone second if he tells him where he can find Vaako. Krone launches into a long-winded rant instead of answering him, prompting Riddick to kill him ahead of schedule.
85* {{Subverted|Trope}} in ''Film/{{Commando}}'': Col. John Matrix (Creator/ArnoldSchwarzenegger) tells Sully, a wise-cracking bad guy, that he'll kill him last. What's lost in MemeticMutation, however, is that Matrix was [[SarcasmMode sarcastically]] responding to [[EvilHasABadSenseOfHumor Sully's taunting "joke"]] that Matrix's daughter would be gang-raped. Later, Sully gets the picture during a HighAltitudeInterrogation:
86-->'''Matrix''': Remember, Sully, when I promised to kill you last?\
87'''Sully:''' That's right, Matrix! ''You did!''\
88'''Matrix:''' ''{{I lied}}. (Drops Sully to his death.)''
89* In ''Film/{{Coneheads}}'', this is what Mr. Conehead says to the woman who sabotages her driving exam in an attempt to start an affair with him. He won't sleep with her, but promises she'll be on the protected list once his people invade.
90* ''Film/Conspiracy2001'': Discussed in the Wannsee conference by the various departments of Nazi Germany. As noted in the Real Life section below, many Germans have some Jewish person they know whom they wish to stay in German society; Heydrich has no intention of accommodating their wishes, and intends for only very narrow exceptions to the Final Solution to exist, being Iron Cross recipients and those with a Jewish grandparent who are married with children to a German. Even then he intends the SS to have ultimate discretion over who gets to stay, with the implication that only they will be able to enact this trope, and won't be generous with their power.
91* In ''Film/DoctorZhivago'', Yuri runs into the War Train of the brutal Bolshevik general Strelnikov, whom no one knows anything about. After questioning, he discovers that Strelnikov is actually his long-lost lover's {{Bishonen}} [[spoiler:ex-boyfriend, who [[NeverFoundTheBody was presumed dead]]]] and suffered a HeroicBSOD and now carries an [[GoodScarsEvilScars evil scar]]. He informs Dr. Zhivago that Lara is still alive and has been spared the purge due to their past relationship. After leaving, the guards tell Yuri he must be blessed: [[HeWhoMustNotBeSeen no one is questioned by Strelnikov and lived to tell the tale]].
92* In the B-Movie ''Film/EvilAlienConquerors'', said conquerors tell a normal human, when he helps them, that he will die painlessly. It's something of a RunningGag, to the point that he eventually waves them off with a parting "Die painlessly" to theirs.
93* This happens between Zorg and Cornelius in ''Film/TheFifthElement''.
94-->'''Jean Baptiste Emmanuel Zorg''': You saved my life, and in return I'll spare yours... for now.
95* In ''Film/Ghostbusters2016'', Rowan, a one-man harbinger of the Apocalypse, as a form of deranged comfort, tells fellow blue-collar worker Patty that "menial workers like you and I will be among the last to go" when the cataclysm he is trying to unleash begins. He then caps it off with a sincere smile as he tells her to "treasure the extra time."
96* In ''Film/{{Hellboy|2004}}'', Rasputin says "It will be quick" to Professor Bruttenholm right before he kills him. It appears to be true.
97* In ''Film/LordOfIllusions'', Nix confesses to Swann that his intent (unsurprisingly) is to "murder the world", but rather charitably offers to kill Swann last if he helps Nix with said murder.
98-->'''Nix:''' Now you know I will kill you when we're done. I have to.
99* Imhotep makes this promise to [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder Beni]] in ''Film/TheMummy1999''.
100* ''Film/ThePatriot2000'': After Colonel Tavington finds proof that Anne's village is helping Benjamin and his militia, he has the whole town rounded up and says they'll be "forgiven their treason" if they tell him where Benjamin is. One guy eventually caves, [[spoiler:[[KickTheDog and Tavington burns the whole village alive anyway]]]].
101-->'''Villager:''' You said we'd be forgiven!\
102'''Tavington:''' And indeed you may! [[spoiler:But that's between you and God.]]
103* In ''Film/RiseOfThePlanetOfTheApes'', Caesar spares [[PunchClockVillain Rodney]] when [[spoiler:the apes break out]], putting him in a cell for his own protection.
104* During a flashback in ''Film/SecondhandLions'', Hub has The Sheik, who has tried to kill him on several occasions, defenseless and at his mercy. He decides to spare him, and leaves him with this.
105-->'''Hub:''' I have held your life in my hands twice, and twice I have given it back to you. The third time, ''your life is mine''.
106* ''Film/TransformersFilmSeries'':
107** In [[Film/Transformers2007 the first film]], Megatron makes the offer to Sam: "Give me the [=AllSpark=], and you may live to be my pet."
108** Becomes a major plot point in the [[Film/TransformersDarkOfTheMoon third film]]. [[spoiler: Carly's boss Dylan, and some of his associates, are the descendants of humans who worked for NASA when the ''Ark'' was discovered on the moon. To ensure that no other human learned of this, Soundwave and Laserbeak forced NASA's employees to keep quiet about the discovery, lest they be killed off. Dylan turns out to be one of the few humans chosen to be spared after the Decepticons enslave humanity, possibly to work as a liaison between the 'Cons and the human slaves. It's also revealed that the various deaths in history related to NASA were Soundwave and Laserbeak getting rid of "loose ends."]]
109* ''Film/TheWizardOfOz'' has the "I'll kill you last" version.
110-->'''Wicked Witch''': The last to go will see the first three go before her.
111[[/folder]]
112
113[[folder:Literature]]
114* In ''Literature/AbrahamLincolnVampireHunter'' the main vampire--though not exactly a villain--would say, every time he and Abraham Lincoln met, and he didn't kill him--or the vampire would save him--he'd ask why and the vampire would say "Some people are just too interesting to kill." Then in the end, when Abraham Lincoln died [[spoiler: and the vampire brought him back as a vampire himself, he said, "Some people are just too interesting to let die."]]
115* ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'': In ''Literature/{{Wintersmith}}'', the titular AnthropomorphicPersonification offered to spare Tiffany and the Chalk (where she came from); the rest of the Disc would remain frozen forever.
116* ''Literature/FireAndBlood'': When Rhaenyra takes the crown back from her half-brother Aegon, she has all of Aegon's supporters imprisoned or killed. Dowager Queen Alicent, Aegon's mom, is imprisoned, even though she's still mouthing off about Rhaenyra's children. Rhaenyra makes clear this is ''only'' because her father loved Alicent.
117* ''Literature/GodsAndWarriors'':
118** During their final confrontation in ''Eye of the Falcon'', [[TheBrute Kreon]] offers to give Hylas a quick and painless death in exchange for [[ArtifactOfDoom the dagger of Koronos]] but promises to make it torturous if the boy refuses. Despite being badly outmatched against the grown warrior, Hylas refuses to give in.
119** In the prologue of ''The Crocodile Tomb'', [[spoiler:Telamon tells the captive Userref that if he immediately reveals where he hid the dagger of Koronos, he'll be killed painlessly and buried with the proper Egyptian rites, but if he refuses, [[TortureTechnician Alekto]] will torture the information out of him and he won't get a proper burial, dooming his spirit for eternity. Userref [[DefiantToTheEnd refuses and endures all the torture before he manages to commit suicide and deny the Crows what they want]]]].
120* ''Literature/HarryPotter'':
121** In ''[[Literature/HarryPotterAndTheGobletOfFire Goblet of Fire]]'', Voldemort tells Harry that if he surrenders, his death will be quick, and possibly painless.
122--->"I would not know... I have never died."
123** [[spoiler:After bumping Lily and her family to the top of Voldemort's hit list, Severus Snape begged him to spare her (though ''not'' James, whom he hated, or Harry, who was Voldemort's primary target and had no chance of being spared), in part due to his unrequited love for her. It almost worked; Voldemort did offer Lily the chance to step aside, but since [[MamaBear she insisted on protecting Harry]], he ended up killing her anyway. When Dumbledore found out about this, he ''royally ripped Snape a new one'' for apparently thinking he could pull some manner of ComfortingTheWidow on Lily after being complicit in the deaths of her husband and child. On the other hand, the fact that she had a choice is what powered the protective magic which shielded Harry from Voldemort after her death - so in an indirect, unintentional way, Snape saved Harry's life.]]
124* A rare heroic version in Creator/RobertAHeinlein's ''Literature/HaveSpaceSuitWillTravel'': just before HumanityOnTrial, Kip is assured that he and Pee-wee will be allowed to live out their lives. Kip asks that they be returned to Earth if humanity loses, which may have been a factor in deciding to spare humanity for now -- although they intend to re-evaluate later.
125* ''Literature/JasonWood'': Inverted by Virigar [[OurWerewolvesAreDifferent the Werewolf King]] in ''Digital Knight'', when he tells Jason Wood, "I'm minded to let you live for a while... So you will suffer all the more while everything you value is destroyed before your very eyes!"
126* Bagheera does this in ''Literature/TheJungleBook''. During the water peace (when he is not allowed to hunt) he absent-mindedly says he wishes he could eat grass. A young animal from one of his prey species quips: "So do we." Everybody laughs and Bagheera makes an effort to memorize this animal's appearance so he can remember not to eat the animal that made him laugh next time they meet.
127* UrExample: In ''Literature/TheOdyssey'', when Odysseus gives his name to the Cyclops as "Nobody", the Cyclops says that he will eat "Nobody" last out of thanks for giving him the wine. (It may or may not have been the giant's sick idea of a joke.) This also doubles as a [[KickTheDog kick the dog moment]] to make him evil enough that the audience can enjoy him getting brutally blinded later. Capturing, enslaving and killing intruders wouldn't make him particularly bad in the eyes of Homer's audience (eating them is a bit over the top, though). Deliberately insulting the laws of SacredHospitality by expressly making this Odysseus' "guest gift" is sacrilege though, and that's a completely different matter.
128[[/folder]]
129
130[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
131* In the second season of ''Series/ThirdRockFromTheSun'' when Evil Dick takes over and meets the students in Dick's physics class for the first time, he assesses several of their attributes. He tells [[ButtMonkey Leon]] "You will be spared and made to carry heavy things."
132* ''Series/TheAvengers1960s''. In "Man-Eater of Surrey Green", the sentient ManEatingPlant tells the mind-controlled herbologists helping it TakeOverTheWorld that they need not be afraid, as it will ensure they are protected as a reward for their efforts.
133* The first scene of the ''Series/BladeTheSeries'' pilot subverts the trope after Blade chases down a vampire in Russia and acquires some information from him at swordpoint.
134-->'''Blade:''' You can go.\
135'''Vampire:''' You are kidding, yes?\
136'''Blade:''' Yes. ''([[OffWithHisHead whack]])''
137* ''Series/BreakingBad'':
138** In a flashback in "Hermanos", it's revealed that while Gus Fring's old partner Max was killed, Gus was spared from being killed by Don Eladio because Eladio knows who Gus really is.
139** Having just killed Hank and Gomez, the Neo-Nazi crew of Uncle Jack Welker spares Walter and Jesse for very different reasons: Jesse, who they keep alive and enslave to cook meth for them; and Walt, who they leave with $11 million to disappear and keep the heat on him. It comes back to bite them since Walt does return to avenge Hank's death.
140* ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'', season 6: While drowning sorrows and bemoaning their (lack of) love lives together, Spike tells Anya that she's the only one he wouldn't bite if he didn't have his RestrainingBolt. He respects women who say exactly what's on their minds (even if they happen to be off their rocker like Drusilla).
141* ''Series/DoctorWho'':
142** [[Recap/DoctorWhoS27E11BoomTown "Boom Town"]]: {{Discussed|Trope}} and {{deconstructed|Trope}}. The main villain, a surviving Slitheen from a previous episode, spares a nosy journalist despite her getting dangerously close to uncovering her EvilPlan because the journalist is pregnant. When the Doctor takes Margaret the Slitheen prisoner with the intent to send her back to her home planet so she can put on trial for her crimes, Margaret brings up her flash of mercy as a sign that she is capable of redemption. The Doctor coldly rebukes this as a typical example of a killer justifying themselves, but Margaret responds in equal measure that only a killer would know that. And in the end, while Margaret technically does take a last chance at redemption, she still proceeds to threaten the entire planet by ripping open a rift in spacetime.
143** [[Recap/DoctorWhoS30E16TheWatersOfMars "The Waters of Mars"]]: The Doctor meets a woman in 2059 who he knows is critically important to history. She reveals that the reason she's in space is because she was spared by a Dalek [[Recap/DoctorWhoS30E12TheStolenEarth during their invasion of Earth fifty years earlier]]. She never knew why, but the Doctor knows that it's because of her importance to the future; she's a "fixed point in time", and even the Daleks know better than to mess with those.
144** [[Recap/DoctorWho50thASTheDayOfTheDoctor "The Day of the Doctor"]] reveals this was actually forced on the Doctor during the Time War. When the War Doctor was contemplating using the Moment to destroy both the Time Lords and Daleks, it told him that his punishment would be that he would be the only one to survive it, forcing him to live with the guilt for eternity.
145* ''Series/{{Friends}}'' has this exchange from Phoebe: "When the revolution comes, I will have to destroy you all... except you, Joey."
146* Because they had an unwitting hand in his genesis, a BigBad tells the ''Series/{{Lexx}}'' crew that they will be [[OmnicidalManiac the last in the universe to die]].
147-->'''Mantrid:''' That will be my thank you.
148* In ''Series/{{Gotham}}'', Fish Mooney does this to a few helpless victims she has strung up.
149-->'''Fish Mooney:''' You... and you, will die slow. ''(Points at Gordon)'' You... It'll be quick. ''(Points at Bullock)'' And you... We're cool.
150* In the ''Series/{{Haven}}'' episode "Speak No Evil", Mara tricks Vickie into helping her open a portal to another dimension. Mara says as thanks, she will spare her life once she gets what she needs, comes back, and basically conquers the world. When the portal closes before she can pass through, Mara angrily shoots Vickie with a taser, but doesn't kill her.
151* ''Series/{{Heroes}}'' has Sylar informing Mohinder, "I wasn't begging for my life... I was offering you yours."
152* ''Series/{{Lost}}'':
153** The show inverts the "I'll kill you last" variety. Said by Ethan to Charlie, this is a ''threat'': Charlie will see all his friends die before he's killed.
154** "What They Died For" plays it straight with the Man in Black offering to spare Penny if Widmore tells him what he needs to know.
155* In the Season 2 finale of ''Series/TheMentalist'', series BigBad Red John kills two college kids who were making a slasher film based on his work, but spares the life of a third kid who they forced to help them by [[IHaveYourWife kidnapping and threatening his mother]].
156* In ''Series/PersonOfInterest'', Root tells her psychiatrist she's deciding whether or not to kill him. She ultimately decides [[spoiler:to spare him, thus playing the trope straight]].
157* In ''Series/TheSandman2022'', John Dee decides that Rosemary is a good person who only lied to him out of understandable fear and gives her his mother's protective amulet, promising her it'll keep her safe "even from [him]".
158%%* In the ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries'' episode "Arena", the Gorn captain promises Kirk a quick death if he surrenders.
159* On ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'', the demons assisting Lucifer will be killed as soon as Lucifer is finished with the humans and angels if not sooner. Any demon caught assisting Team Free Will will be granted [[WhoWantsToLiveForever immortality]] [[AndIMustScream instead]].
160* ''Series/YoungDracula'': Ingrid tells her therapist this word for word after the therapist helps her get past her VillainousBSOD. The therapist believes that her ability to make such jokes is a good sign.
161[[/folder]]
162
163[[folder:Mythology and Religion]]
164* Another OlderThanFeudalism heroic one is in ''Literature/TheBible''--Rahab is told that she and her family will be spared after hiding the Hebrew spies from the soldiers of Jericho, but only if they were in Rahab's dwelling at the time of the attack.
165** According to Jewish tradition, the only two Egyptian firstborn who didn't die in the final plague were Pharaoh (because God already had other plans for him) and Batya, the princess who raised Moses and thus earned God's favor.
166** When the Israelites were about to conquer the Promised Land, ten of their spies said that it would be impossible, despite having {{God}} on their side; the people crossed the DespairEventHorizon and [[RageAgainstTheHeavens Raged Against the Heavens]]. God was so angry that He declared that forty years would pass before they could enter the land, and in that time, every man over the age of 20 would die. The only exceptions were Joshua and Caleb, the two spies who had gone against the majority and kept their faith in God's power.
167[[/folder]]
168
169[[folder:Puppet Shows]]
170* In ''Series/TheMuppetsMayhem'', when Nora is trying to convince the band to get back together, and talking to Janice, who has become the Earth Mother of a cult called the Forsureleans.
171-->'''Janice''': Perhaps one day we'll find our way back home, but until then, you'll always be an honorary Forsurelean, who shall be spared during the reckoning.\
172'''Nora''': ...The what now?
173[[/folder]]
174
175[[folder:Theatre]]
176* How Alquist ended up as [[LastOfHisKind the last human]] in ''Theatre/{{RUR}}''. In the world of the play, robots did all the manual labor, but Alquist started building walls as a hobby. After the robots took over the factory where he worked, he was dragged before the one in charge, the usually human-hating Radius, who took one look at him and told the other robots to leave him be because 'he works with his hands like a robot'.
177[[/folder]]
178
179[[folder:Video Games]]
180* This is one of the taunts in ''VideoGame/CommandAndConquerRedAlert2''. The exact wording depends on the faction, ranging from "I promise amnesty for you and your troops" for the Americans, to "Surrender now and I'll kill you quickly" for the Cubans.
181* The BigBad of ''VideoGame/DetectivesUnited: Deadly Debt'' invokes the 'kill you last' version in the bonus chapter. [[spoiler:Because James, the youngest of the three detectives, was the one who actually killed her in the main game, the VengefulGhost informs him that "I'll save you for last" so he can watch his two close friends be killed first.]]
182* Right before the FinalBattle of ''VideoGame/EarthBoundBeginnings'', Giygas offers to spare Ninten, and ''only'' Ninten, and take him back to Giygas' world [[spoiler:out of lingering sentimentality for Ninten's great-grandmother Maria, who was Giygas' ParentalSubstitute when he was a baby]]. Ninten of course refuses, and the battle commences.
183* ''VideoGame/GalacticCivilizations'': Implied as part of the deal between the Korath Clan and the Dread Lords; if the Korath Clan help the Dread Lords kill everybody, they will be allowed to continue to live. Whether the Dread Lords have any intention of letting the Korath live afterward, or they plan to betray them, is an open-ended question.
184* ''VideoGame/GenshinImpact'': In [[{{Chuunibyou}} Fischl]]'s line for reaching the maximum level range (81-90), she assures the Traveler that they'll be spared during her future conquest of Teyvat:
185-->'''Fischl:''' I appear to have now regained most of the strength I lost in my transition to this world. [[EvilLaugh Mwuhahaha]], the day of judgment is nigh! ...Ah, worry not. Even at the last, when I bring the lightning of retribution upon this world, you shall come to no harm, for thou art blessed by the Prinzessin.
186* ''Franchise/MassEffect'':
187** Saren ''attempts'' to {{invoke|dTrope}} this in ''Franchise/MassEffect'' by making organics useful to the BigBad. Even though the whole point of what they were trying to do was to kill them all. [[spoiler:Saren was brainwashed into thinking he could actually have a few organics be spared so the next evolution of species/their own would be able to recover much faster.]] Then again, who would think that as the races of the galaxy would have a heads up?
188** In ''VideoGame/MassEffect2'', we learn that [[spoiler:a certain amount of people would be spared. [[FateWorseThanDeath But they]] [[SlaveMooks probably will]] [[AndIMustScream wish they hadn't]]]].
189** In ''VideoGame/MassEffect3'', it's revealed that [[spoiler:only the most advanced races are wiped out in each Cycle. During the Prothean's Cycle for example, the ancestors of the present day races were spared. The Reaper Cycle is actually a rather warped attempt to ''preserve'' organic life in the galaxy by periodically hitting a ResetButton on civilization to prevent an all out RobotWar that would completely wipe out life. This leads to the Reapers' downfall, since the people of each Cycle worked on the Crucible, the weapon that ultimately defeats them]].
190* In Quan Chi's ending in ''VideoGame/MortalKombat4'', this is his "reward" for helping Shinnok. He does not take it well and challenges the fallen elder god. [[spoiler:[[DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu He actually WINS]].]]
191-->'''Shinnok:''' As payment for your loyal services, Quan Chi, I grant you the gift of your existence.\
192'''Quan Chi:''' My existence?\
193'''Shinnok:''' Understand, sorcerer, I consume all energies, including the life forces of all that live. But I shall spare you.
194* In ''VideoGame/MouseHunt'''s "[[ChristmasMode Great Winter Hunt 2012]]", the player assists an embittered mouse and receives a note of thanks, including the line "When we mice finally overthrow your world and become the rightful rulers, I will be sure to make sure the other mice treat you well."
195* At the conclusion of ''VideoGame/SleepingDogs2012'''s main story, the new [[TheTriadsAndTheTongs Sun On Yee]] Dragon Head [[spoiler:"Broken Nose" Jiang]] informs her advisor that [[spoiler:the protagonist Wei Shen]] is to be spared [[spoiler:[[TheMole despite having been an undercover cop who'd infiltrated his way to "Red Pole" -- and thus one of her peers]], since while he had abetted [[CorruptCorporateExecutive Sonny Wo]]'s arrest he also had defended her and his own gang when rival triads attacked, and in decimating Henry "Big Smile" Lee's gang and killing him Wei had cleared the way for her own ascension]].
196* ''VideoGame/SoulNomadAndTheWorldEaters'' has OmnicidalManiac Gig, who mentions if he gets control over the hero's body he will destroy everything, "except maybe those hotpods. Those are good. I'll keep those."
197* Inverted in ''VideoGame/StarControlII''; if you [[NonstandardGameover surrender to the Ur-Quan Kzer-Za]], they will tell you that all of your crew will be spared, but your main character will be executed.
198* ''VideoGame/StarWarsTheOldRepublic'': In the ''Shadow of Revan'' expansion, [[OmnicidalManiac Emperor]] [[EldritchAbomination Vitiate]] makes this promise to the Sith Warrior, letting you know in no uncertain terms that when his time comes, you will be forced to watch the entire galaxy die for your betrayal.
199* ''VideoGame/WeaponLord'' has an interesting integration of this on the SlidingScaleOfGameplayAndStoryIntegration, as sparing an opponent instead of killing them in Story mode will force you to fight them again before fighting Zarak. Sparing certain people can also net you a different Story Ending.
200** Jen-Tai has been known to spare her opponents in order to let them learn from their mistakes and challenge her again.
201* [[SealedEvilInACan Axenos]] from ''VideoGame/{{Wizard101}}'' inverts this trope by combining it with MercyKill. Since the player (accidentally) releases him, he thanks them and promises to kill the first [[FateWorseThanDeath so they would be spared from witnessing the horrors he'd bring about on the Spiral]].
202[[/folder]]
203
204[[folder:Webcomics]]
205* In ''WebComic/EightBitTheater'':
206** Sarda shows mercy to the AffablyEvil Dark Warriors:
207--->"Look, I don't do this... uh, ever. But you guys are basically like kittens stuck on a leaking lifeboat in a typhoon. Just run."
208** Also, upon stumbling upon the Dark Warriors trying to steal the {{Cosmic Keystone}}s to defeat him and gain ultimate power, Sarda asks them [[PossessionImpliesMastery if they even know how to use them]]. Bikke tosses his keystone at Sarda, becoming the first person in the series to land any sort of hit on him:
209--->"You're a quick thinker ''and'' spiteful. I can respect that. You won't be killed, Bikke."
210* ''Webcomic/CuantaVida'': "You're a crazy bastard, yes? You, I like. I'll kill you last." Though considering the speaker's ''[[FateWorseThanDeath modus operandi]]'', this is probably of no consolation to the guy who ''really'' doesn't like seeing his friends killed.
211* ''Webcomic/DominicDeegan'' uses this when Snow Song is thinking about how she'll destroy the town while sitting down to eat in a restaurant, but then the waitress gives her some chocolate cake on the house:
212-->'''Snow Song''': ''None'' of these drones will be spared... Except for her.
213* ''Webcomic/GirlGenius'':
214-->'''Gil''', to Tarvek: "I ''am'' Gilgamesh Wulfenbach - heir to the Empire and defender of the [[AlternateHistory Pax Transylvaniana]] - and I ''will'' crush this whole [[AncientConspiracy Knights of Jove]]/Storm King ''mess'' of yours. Ooh, don't worry - I'll let ''you'' escape. ''You'' can go ''skulking around'' with your little ''plans'' - after all, I'll ''always'' need someone to ''[[TheScapegoat take the blame]]''."
215** Castle Heterodyne eventually uses the "I like you, so I will kill you ''quickly''" line on [[spoiler:Professor Tiktoffen, while crushing him to death]].
216** Gil also uses a variant of this ("After this is over, you will be promoted") this to the one person who doesn't believe he's who he says he is just because of his hat.
217* ''Webcomic/{{Homestuck}}'':
218** [[IneffectualSympatheticVillain Eridan]] wants to kill all the land [[VerbalTic dwwellers]] [[http://www.mspaintadventures.com/?s=6&p=004243 he admits he won't kill Kanaya]]. [[spoiler:Of course when he snaps, the only land dweller he kills is Kanaya by blowing a hole through her stomach with a "science wand" she made him.]]
219--->'''CA''': im not goin to vvery wwell kill you am i that wwould be fuckin unconscionable\
220'''CA''': wwhat kind of friend wwould i be
221** The Disciple was also spared during The Sufferer's execution- she ''was'' supposed to die, but the Executioner couldn't bring himself to kill her.
222** The "less painful death" variant is how Caliborn ''says'' he feels about Dirk. He's not lying, but at the same time, he wants to be bros with him too.
223--->'''uu:''' THE DEATH I WISH ON HIM DOESN'T HAVE TO BE ESPECIALLY PAINFUL. IT COULD BE LIKE. GOING TO SLEEP. WITH MAYBE ONLY A SHORT SCREAM.
224* Amical, the friendly villain of ''Webcomic/{{morphe}}'' is very fond of picking favorites and giving them favor in life or death situations. In the first chapter he recognizes a celebrity in a fight to the death and breaks the rules to help him win by shooting the other contestant in the back. Later the plot focuses on his use of this trope to select which of his pupils will have to die before his next big party.
225* In ''Webcomic/PvP'', after horrifying him by StoryboardingTheApocalypse, Scratch reassures a quivering Skull that ''his'' death will be painless.
226* A posthumous variant is employed in ''Webcomic/SamAndFuzzy'', in which [[spoiler:Mr. Blank]] states that he made [[spoiler:Mr. Black]]'s death as quick and painless as possible because the person in question "had earned it"... [[ToThePain But the person he's talking to is]] ''[[ToThePain not]]'' [[NoHoldsBarredBeatdown going to be in for the same treatment]].
227* ''Webcomic/VGCats'' plays with this [[http://www.vgcats.com/comics/?strip_id=199 here]] with [[PathOfInspiration The Church of the]] OneWingedAngel [[Franchise/FinalFantasy of Latter-Day Summons]].
228-->''"So if I join, I'll be saved?"''\
229''"Oh no, you'll still die... but '''faster.'''"''
230[[/folder]]
231
232[[folder:Web Original]]
233* ''WebVideo/AskThatGuyWithTheGlasses'':
234-->'''The Narrator''': Does Barry Manilow know you raid his wardrobe?\
235'''Ask That Guy''': You are very funny. That is why I am going to kill you last.
236* ''WebVideo/DragonBallZAbridged'': In Episode 60, Cell combines this with StealthInsult to Goku when he threatens to murder each of the Z Fighters to get Gohan to snap:
237-->'''Cell:''' Don't worry, I'll save your daddy for last. [[BaitAndSwitch Hear that]], [[ParentalSubstitute Piccolo]]?!\
238'''Piccolo:''' I mean, [[LampshadeHanging if you're just gonna say it]]...\
239'''[[IdiotHero Goku]]:''' I don't get it...
240* Rule 68 of the EvilOverlordList: "I will spare someone who saved my life sometime in the past. [[PragmaticVillainy This is only reasonable as it encourages others to do so]]. However, the offer is good one time only. If they want me to spare them again, they'd better save my life again."
241* ''Website/SCPFoundation'': Under the "Broken Masquerade"[[note]]Where the Foundation is exposed to the public.[[/note]] section of the Tales heading, a little boy writes a letter to 682 asking it all sorts of questions about its powers, and [[HorribleJudgeOfCharacter claiming that 682 is his "hero"]]. 682 ''actually responds'', harshly at first, and then with this trope:
242-->'''682''': [[PetTheDog Of course I can eat cities and breathe fire. I promise that you will live to see it.]]
243* Marik Ishtar from ''[[WebVideo/YuGiOhTheAbridgedSeries Yu-Gi-Oh The Abridged Series]]'' has to following evil monologue:
244-->With his help I shall defeat you and then conquer the world! [[EvilLaugh Ah-hahaha!]] [[DistractedByTheShiny Oh hey look a bird!]] [[PetTheDog Isn't it just the cutest little guy]]-- I mean no! In my new world all birds will be enslaved! ''Especially this one!'' And he shall be named Mr. Tweetums, because it is ''very evil!'' Ah-hahaha! Now be gone Mr. Tweetums. I am trying to stalk my nemesis.
245** He also likes Joey, who will be killed last. Evil Bakura quotes the ''Film/{{Commando}}'' exchange with Pegasus.
246[[/folder]]
247
248[[folder:Western Animation]]
249* This line from Dr. Robotnik in an episode of ''WesternAnimation/AdventuresOfSonicTheHedgehog'':
250-->'''Dr. Robotnik:''' Perhaps due to your change of heart, I'll exterminate you '''somewhat''' painlessly...
251* In ''WesternAnimation/Castlevania2017'', RetiredMonster Dracula fell in love with and married a human woman named Lisa, teaching her medical science before WalkingTheEarth at her request to better understand humanity. When he returned, he found their house burned to the ground and an elderly woman, a patient of his wife, who told Dracula that the Church took Lisa and had her [[BurnTheWitch burned at the stake]] for believing her scientific knowledge to be witchcraft. Lisa was kind to her old neighbor, so she chose to pay respects to her memory rather than attend the burning. In what Dracula calls his "last kindness", he warns the old woman to take her family and flee Wallachia before he makes his preparations to KillAllHumans therein.
252* ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'':
253** Stewie has said this to Peter ("Your death shall be quick and painless") when he turned off the mind-numbing ''Series/{{Teletubbies}}'' show, and again to Flappy ("Good news! I've decided not to kill you!") to let him know that his pancakes were satisfactory.
254** In "[[Recap/FamilyGuyS4E6Petarded Petarded]]", Peter says, "When we retarded guys take over, you will beg for mercy, and we will consider it."
255* ''WesternAnimation/FilmationsGhostbusters'': Two kids unwittingly release a ghost bent on revenge against the family of one of them. He spares the kid as thanks.
256* ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'':
257** In "[[Recap/FuturamaS2E4XmasStory Xmas Story]]", Robot Santa proclaims his intention to kill the entire Planet Express team... except Zoidberg, who hasn't been naughty and gets a pogo stick instead.
258** Bender has said that he might spare Fry when he [[KillAllHumans kills all humans]], including at Fry's funeral in "[[Recap/FuturamaS4E12TheSting The Sting]]" (don't worry, [[AllJustADream he gets better]]):
259--->'''Bender:''' Whenever I said 'Kill all humans', I'd whisper to myself '...[[BigotryException except for one]]'. [[RobotBuddy He was the one!]] ''[bursts into tears]''
260** As of "[[Recap/FuturamaS6E6LethalInspection Lethal Inspection]]", Hermes has been added to the list of humans to not kill.
261* The ''[[WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague Justice League Unlimited]]'' finale episodes "[[Recap/JusticeLeagueUnlimitedS3E12Alive Alive!]]" and "[[Recap/JusticeLeagueUnlimitedS3E13Destroyer Destroyer]]" offer Darkseid's take, which is to say he'll give you a swift MercyKill rather than endless torment for his amusement:
262** After being [[spoiler:brought back to life]] by Luthor:
263--->'''Darkseid:''' It seems I have you to thank [[spoiler:for my resurrection]]. Though your world will suffer slowly, I grant ''you'' a quick death. '''(BOOM)'''
264** During the final showdown with Superman:
265--->'''Darkseid:''' You impress me, Kryptonian. More, your valor has touched my heart. Oh yes, there is still some small part of me that knows mercy. I will [[AgonyBeam end your pain]]... with something special I've been saving for just this occasion. ''(Darkseid draws a Kryptonite knife)'' I'm going to carve out your heart and put it on a pike in my throne room.
266* In the fourth episode of ''WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfKorra'', Amon ambushes Korra and has a golden opportunity to [[spoiler:take her bending away]], but doesn't take it because [[spoiler:that would make her a martyr]]. Instead he gives a [[BreakThemByTalking Breaking Speech]] explaining that he'll save her for last.
267* ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsRebels'': In "[[Recap/StarWarsRebelsS3E19ZeroHour Zero]] [[Recap/StarWarsRebelsS3E20ZeroHourPartII Hour]]", TheMole, [[spoiler:Kallus]], is unmasked, and subsequently held hostage by [[MagnificentBastard Grand Admiral Thrawn]]. Thrawn says he won't stop until the last rebel falls, so it's an implied "I'm saving you for last" -- [[spoiler:Kallus]] will definitely be the last. [[spoiler:However, this winds up giving Kallus all the time he needs to plan his escape, and when he gets the chance to escape, he takes it, so he survives anyway.]]
268[[/folder]]
269
270[[folder:Other]]
271* This is supposedly one of the reasons to worship [[Franchise/CthulhuMythos Cthulhu]]. Upon his rising, cultists will be devoured first, sparing them what happens next.
272* Seen on Website/FourChan: "youfunnyguyikillyoulast.jpg"
273* On ''[[WebOriginal/{{Lolcats}} I Can Has Cheezburger?]]'': [[https://cheezburger.com/812295936 A promise made by a cute little tiger cub.]]
274* ''WebAnimation/RedVsBlue'', BigBad OmnicidalManiac Omega discussing his plans to conquer the universe with MissionControl Vic.
275-->''"Then, the universe will be mine, and I'll CRUSH EVERY LIVING SOUL INTO DUST!!.... Um... except for you, Vic. You can be assistant crusher."''
276* In ''Website/TheOnion'''s "Literature/OurDumbCentury", this is the Nazis' response when (as the headline says) ''Non-white Japan allies with Aryan Supremacist UsefulNotes/NaziGermany in Well-Thought Out Scheme''.
277* Creator/DaneCook has a stand-up act about [[BecauseYouWereNiceToMe befriending]] the [[LonersAreFreaks creepy loner]] in your office so that this happens when he inevitably snaps and goes on a rampage with a shotgun.
278* On ''WebVideo/AtopTheFourthWall'', because he defeated someone who was a nuisance to it, the Entity ''does'' save Linkara for last and lets him run and hide after [[spoiler:it absorbs everyone else]] - but it's waiting when he comes back out.
279* In ''Franchise/{{Noob}}'', the hacker that is trying to get people to stop playing MMORPG says he'll leave the main guild alone due to them indirectly helping him with all the disasters they cause or a negotiated immunity from his business partner among them depending on the media. Another implied reason is the frequent GoKartingWithBowser.
280* Near the end of browser game ''WebComic/DemonThesis'', [[spoiler:EldritchAbomination Mesmerus begins crossing over from his dimension to our world thanks in large part to the main characters being his {{Unwitting Pawn}}s]] and states that the main characters will be killed quickly and at the same time, as that seems the most humane thing to do and he owes them that much for inadvertently helping him as they have.
281[[/folder]]
282
283[[folder:Real Life]]
284* The author of ''A Hundred Little Hitlers'' (about Neo-Nazis), who is Jewish, apparently impressed one Neo-Nazi so much that he told her when he annihilated all the Jews, he'd spare her.
285** We can one-up that one with the story of [[http://www.cracked.com/article_20441_6-people-saved-by-literally-last-person-they-expected_p2.html Ernest Hess]], a Jewish former soldier in Nazi Germany, who was spared from all persecution, harassment and even death by his former military subordinate... UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler. Yes. You read that right.
286** Add to that [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eduard_Bloch the physician]] who looked after Hitler's mother, and who also happened to be Jewish. Hitler, [[EvenBadMenLoveTheirMamas who adored his mother]], granted him special protection out of gratitude for his work.
287** Nazi Germany was, in some sense, full of this trope. Many high ranking Nazi party officials, military officers, and government bureaucrats had friends and relatives who were Jewish or, more often, had recent Jewish ancestry, and in fact, quite a few had recent Jewish ancestry themselves. An entire legal process was created (described in detail in the book ''Hitler's Jewish Soldiers'' by Bryan Mark Riggs) whereby such people might apply for legal exceptions that spared them persecution--at least for the time being. Some high ranking Nazi leaders on trial at Nuremberg even used the help they had given their friends in securing these exemptions in an attempt to demonstrate that they were not hardcore Nazis. For example, Goering talked about how he helped his friend General Erhard Milch, whose father was Jewish, stay in "his" Luftwaffe (incidentally, Milch was himself on trial for war crimes at Nuremberg). Doenitz used the help he had given Captain Bernhard Rogge (who would become famous for his humane and honorable conduct as the captain of the German raider ''Atlantis'') who had a Jewish grandfather, as his defense. According to Riggs, several hundred thousand such exemptions were granted throughout the Nazi era.
288*** Riggs notes that the degree of protection granted by these exemptions varied. At the end of the war, Milch was a field marshal and Rogge was an admiral. But many who had received the legal exemptions were still dismissed from their positions of prestige and a large number, despite some being highly decorated combat veterans, were conscripted into undignified labor units (Organization Todt) doing menial work.
289* This trope most likely lay at the heart of the cynical German-Japanese military alliance during UsefulNotes/WorldWarII from at least the Nazis' perspective (but possibly the Japanese as well). A paranoid, virulently racist, Aryan supremacist country decides to team up against other enemies with a nation they probably deem subhuman when it gets down to it. [[http://www.tinyrevolution.com/mt/archives/000120.html This article]] from ''Our Dumb Century'' puts it best.
290** Ironically enough, UsefulNotes/ImperialJapan had strong notions of racial purity and superior bloodlines itself. Basically, both countries were willing to make a deal with what they considered an inferior race for the sake of gaining power over their enemies.
291** Also it was a lot less of an alliance than often shown, and more a vague "We are fighting roughly the same enemies and currently have no conflicting interests so let's help each other out a bit" deal. Japan had a non aggression pact with Russia, which allowed Russia to resist the Germans much easier, while Germany was happily aiding China in its struggle against Japan.
292** The USSR and Nazi Germany were also aligned at the start of the war in their interests, with [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molotov%E2%80%93Ribbentrop_Pact Stalin and Hitler secretly agreeing to divide up Eastern Europe between them]]; the Soviets and Nazis jointly kicked off the war in Europe by invading and annexing Poland and brutally massacring people there. The Soviets had secret agreements with the Nazis about who would get what, and the Soviet Union attempted to [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German%E2%80%93Soviet_Axis_talks formally join the Axis in 1940]]. However, Stalin demanded too much territory, and Hitler figured after the poor performance of the Soviets during [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winter_War the Winter War versus Finland]] that [[{{YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness}} they had outlived their usefulness]] and chose to invade them as well, only to find out that the Soviets were ultimately EvilerThanThou.
293** Hitler also made offers of this kind to the UK during the early phase of the war, generally along the lines of "[[WeCanRuleTogether Britannia can rule the waves and Germania the earth]]." This seemed natural to Hitler, [[EvilCannotComprehendGood who was mystified as to why the UK wouldn't want to purge itself of the impure]] and unite with him against the "Jewish Bolsheviks". The UK ignored the offers (they didn't even acknowledge they had received them), which is essentially a diplomatic way of telling Berlin to fuck off.
294* There was a persistent {{Urban Legend|s}} floating around in the British media in the wake of the July 2007 suicide bombings in London about a woman stopping to assist a gentleman of Middle Eastern extraction with some problem or other -a lost contact lens, directions, whatever- and being told to not take [[UsefulNotes/TheLondonUnderground the tube]] on certain dates. If this exchange ever took place in any form outside someone's especially vivid imagination, it was a subversion; none of the quoted dates ever seem to match up to a known terrorist plot, successful or otherwise, and the person dispensing this advice was almost certainly taking the piss.
295** A [[http://www.snopes.com/rumors/cocacola.asp similar]] urban legend in the [=US=] involves someone doing something nice for a Muslim or Middle Eastern person, and being warned not to drink [insert brand of soda here] after a certain date. The story always has a strong implication of "because it'll be poisoned", but so far, there have been no mass poisonings via Coke or Pepsi.
296* One of the reasons Guy Fawkes' gunpowder plot to blow up the parliament failed was that many of the plotters had friends in Parliament and wanted to warn them not to go.
297* As recounted by David Cullen, immediately before the [[{{UsefulNotes/Columbine}} Columbine High School massacre]] began, this happened:
298-->Brooks Brown walked out for a cigarette and spotted Eric [Harris] parking in the wrong lot. Brooks charged up to confront him about the test [he had missed earlier that day]; by the time he got there, Eric had stepped out and was pulling out a big hulking duffel bag. "What's the matter with you?" Brooks yelled. "We had a test in psychology!" Eric was calm but insistent. "It doesn't matter anymore," he said. "Brooks, I like you now. Get out of here. Go home."
299** Brooks Brown wouldn't be the only person spared by the two shooters. While potentially dozens of people the shooters saw that day were not fired upon for reasons unknown, two people they encountered that day were explicitly spared from death or injury. The first was John Savage, who was instructed by Dylan Klebold to leave the school during the shooting; the other was Evan Todd, whom Dylan Klebold intimidated and taunted, but did not shoot.
300* During the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Umpqua_Community_College_shooting Umpqua college shooting]], the gunman selected one person to deliver his manifesto to the police, sparing them from gunfire.
301* Charleston church shooter [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dylann_Roof Dylann Roof]] chose not to shoot one of the people in the building in order to have a witness to the attack explain what happened to the police.
302* In the Siege of Baghdad in 1258, Hulagu Khan decimated the city and slaughtered the inhabitants . But the Christian populace was spared due to his wife’s urgings as she was also Christian.
303[[/folder]]

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