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Ah, a romantic evening! Lighted candles, soft music, one person (usually the woman) tied up and possibly gagged...
This trope normally follows these conventions:
- The forced date is an entirely innocent attempt by one party (with terrible social skills) to relate to someone he loves. In this case, the guy (and it is usually a guy doing the tying up) probably won't be able to put together what's wrong with that situation.
- The abductor turns violent if confronted, though may not harm his victim even if she attacks him.
- Conversely, the date may presage bad things for the tied-up partner, either death or rape.
- The date is simply a chance to toy with a mortal enemy.
- The victim's friends are racing to find her, and will teach the guy a violent lesson... even if the abductor genuinely means no harm, and a good sit down and chat (preferably with a good psychologist) would be far more effective in the long run.
Compare No, Mister Bond, I Expect You To Dine for when a captor treats his victim in a more platonic manner. Not to be confused with Shotgun Wedding.
Note: The victim doesn't need to be tied up, but must be held captive.
Examples:
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Comics
Film
- The Joker and Vicki Vale, in Batman.
- Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!
 : A recently released psychiatric patient kidnaps an actress in order to make her fall in love with him. He believes his destiny is to marry her and father her children.
- Type 4 in Van Helsing, in which Dracula takes Anna to his masquerade ball and forces her to dance with him while waiting for Van Helsing to arrive. No ropes used, but it's clear he's using some kind of mind control or muscle control.
- The premise of the film P2 revolves around this idea. After refusing to join the security guard, Thomas, for a small Christmas dinner, Angela is kidnapped by him, chained to a chair, and forced to share the meal. It is later revealed that Thomas had been watching and stalking Angela for some time and seems to have developed affections for her. He even goes so far as recording himself dressing her.
- Happens in the Spanish film The Last Circus.
- The Aussie horror film The Loved Ones is about a teenage girl, with help from her dad, kidnapping her high school crush so that she can have the perfect prom with him.
Live Action TV
- Criminal Minds:
- One episode focuses on a killer who treats his victims to a romantic evening complete with rose petals, though they're not tied down. He means no harm until they turn him down once they reach the bathtub part of the date. The rest fits to a T though.
- In another episode, a guy was stalking a woman and ended up kidnapping her. One scene shows them sitting at a table and talking, until the woman raises her hands and it's revealed that she's tied up.
- Battlestar Galactica (Reimagined): Starbuck is held captive by Leobin during New Caprica's occupation. It's a nice house and all and she does kill her captor but he's a Cylon and just comes back the next day (or earlier). She can't escape though because he has her daughter, from when she was captured on Old Caprica and forced into a "medical" facility and possibly impregnated.
- It's not really her daughter but she doesn't know that.
Music
Video Games
Western Animation
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