Fight for the Last Bite

Only "Me" When It Comes To Meat!

Pigslice: (pig' slys) (n.) The last unclaimed piece of pizza that everyone is secretly dying for.

— Sniglet

Two or more characters are enjoying a snack from a communal source. At some point there is a realization that there is only one left for multiple people. Hilarity ensues as this one bit of food, unlike its fallen brethren, becomes monumentally important. Usually, this is because the food does not divide evenly, such as there being 9 pizza slices for 4 people.

There are several variations on how this may play out:

One character may absent-mindedly reach for the last one, when they are interrupted to point out that it is the last one. This may be played for comedy as everyone realizes how important the last one is, or played for drama, likely resulting in an argument over why it's so important.

If multiple characters realize it at the same time, there may be a Wild West-style stare-down to share this understanding, followed by a quick-draw analogue in grabbing the last one, or a more convoluted competition to determine who is deserving. Cutting the last one in half and sharing it is NOT an option. Expect some Fork Fencing along the way, considering how likely this is to devolve into an actual, physical fight. (And while this is going on, someone else might sneak in and take the last piece before the others notice.)

Occasionally, one character may simply be deprived of the last one because they were absent when it was taken. They will very likely be upset by this and, sometimes, will launch an investigation to see who took it. If the food was something they themselves brought, they'll be especially angry.

If the "last one" is a MacGuffin, it's a Macguffin Melee. Subtrope of Lost Food Grievance. Compare Cut a Slice, Take the Rest.

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Examples:

Advertising

• McDonald's had a commercial in which Ronald and Hamburglar competed in video game over the last fry in their meal.
• In a commercial for Pillsbury Crescent Rolls two boys get in an argument over who gets the last one, but then their mother reveals that she has made more.
• An advertisement early 90s Pizza Hut promotional event involving the X-Men had three teens discover that there was only one slice of pizza left, causing them to all use various mutant powers to try and claim it as their own (the first popped Wolverine Claws while grabbing it, the second used optic blasts to knock it away from him, and the third grabbed it with telekinesis before a Pizza Hut employee grabbed the hovering slice and said they'd box it up for them.
• Walls' advertisements for their Vienetta ice cream showed one being served at a dinner party. Everybody ate the slice they were given, and then held out their plate for the one remaining slice.
• An ad for Cool Quenchers concentrated fruit punch had two kids armwrestle over the last glass. The winner looks over to see that their sister got to it first, who quickly spouts "Iloveyou!" in order to forestall any shouting.

Anime & Manga

• In One Piece, 2nd ending, "Run Run Run", the crew (at the time composed of Luffy, Nami, Zoro, Ussop and Sanji) settle down for some lunch. When it comes to the last piece of meat, Luffy, Ussop and Sanji reach for it at the same time all wanting it and soon go into a scuffle trying to get it. Ultimately Luffy claims it to Ussop and Sanji's dismay. This gets a cute call back in the third ending song when the song focuses on the individual members and Luffy's has him holding onto a piece of meat as Sanji and Ussop try to pry it away from him.
• In Slayers, the first episode of Slayers NEXT has Gourry and Lina literally Fork Fencing at super speed over the last bits of food on the table. Neither of them end up getting it, as a fight breaks out in the tavern and their table is knocked over. This is justified two-fold: First, both of them are notorious Big Eaters. Second, the party has a tradition where the person who eats the least has to pick up the tab.
• In one episode of Tenchi Muyo!, Ryoko and Ayeka get into a huge brawl over the last cookie. Once the dust settles, Washu (inside a protective bubble) eats it.

Comic Strips

• In a The Far Side strip, a man mentions how he wants to eat the last slice of beef despite already being full. A dog, meanwhile, is watching hopefully.
• Garfield: In this comic, Garfield and Jon's date Berta end up fighting over the last piece of Jon's food (most likely steak). Also in a Christmas 1997 strip, Garfield brutally mauled Jon over the last Christmas cookie.

Fan Works

• Dragon Ball Z Abridged:
  • After starting to live on Earth, Vegeta quickly develops an obsession with a drink called Hetap. Taking the last one while he's around is a good way to inspire the wrath of someone who used to regularly destroy planets.
    Vegeta: Did someone take the last Hetap?! I'll kill you!
  • Years later in another episode, an In-Universe Hetap commercial involves someone being shot by a friend for taking the last Hetap. The commercial closes with a narrator saying "Come on, you've killed for less."
    Vegeta: [Thinking] That's not untrue...
• Played for drama in The Loud House fanfiction A Load of Bulk. There's one slice of pizza left and both Lincoln and Lana want it. Lana, under the effects of a strength potion, armwrestles him for it, dislocating Lincoln's shoulder.

Films — Animation

• Kung Fu Panda combines it with When You Snatch the Pebble; after Po's Training Montage, both Po and Master Shifu sit down to eat dumplings, but Shifu keeps snatching them up. When it's down to the last one, it turns into an epic battle, and Po slowly but surely hones his reflexes... until he manages to grab it. Then he decides to give it to Shifu instead, saying that he's not so hungry anymore. Shifu sees it as a sign of growth.

Live-Action TV

• The Amanda Show: One skit shows Drake and Josh quarreling, and getting into a physical fight, over the last piece of some jumbo shrimp.
• Comes up often in The Big Bang Theory, usually involving dumplings.
  • The episode "The Dumpling Paradox" gets its name for a scene in which the guys minus Howard, who is dating one of Penny's friends, are eating at a Chinese restaurant and debate what to do with the leftover dumpling.
  • In "The Lizard-Spock Expansion", the guys play Rock-Paper-Scissors-Lizard-Spock to see who gets the last dumpling. They all draw Spock.
  • In one episode, Sheldon mentions that in Thai culture, the last morsel of food is reserved for the most important person. He reaches for it, but Penny beats him to it and says "Thank you for this high honor."
• Drake & Josh: As a Call-Back to The Amanda Show, Drake and Josh end their finale episode "Really Big Shrimp" fighting over the last piece of shrimp; the scene then transitions to the original scene from the previous show.
• In the Laverne & Shirley episode "Guinea Pigs", Laverne tries to eat the last shrimp at a party, but Shirley, who hadn't eaten in a while, tries to steal it out of Laverne's mouth.
• Malcolm in the Middle. On an unusually happy day, Hal repeatedly and intentionally takes the last chip because mutually understood rules dictate that he is therefore the one who has to go get more.
  • Subverted in an episode where Malcolm is staying at the hospital, back at dinner at the house Lois points how there is one piece of food left and Reese pouces on it only to look around awkwardly. Everyone else is too full and fine with him taking the piece so and Reese backs off defeated, admitting he just wanted to squabble for it.
• That '70s Show:
  • In the episode "Misty Mountain Hop", Donna eats Eric's last Twinkie during the ride up to Jackie's cabin, igniting a fight.
  • In "Who Needs You", Fez was looking forward to a grape soda that he saved in the fridge, and even made up a song to sing for when he would eventually get around to drinking it. Cue his shock at finding an empty grape soda bottle in the fridge after Jackie drank it...
• Sirens (US). Johnny buys donuts for his coworkers, but gets mad upon finding that all of the donuts are gone before he could take one for himself.
• On My Name Is Earl, Billie eats some of Earl's chips without asking, and Earl gets upset because he had the perfect pattern of "crunch, sandwich, crunch" planned out in his head. He then looks around the Crab Shack and sees other couples happily sharing chips, and one guy telling his wife she can have the last chip because he'll "get a crunch next time." Earl wonders if maybe he's been overreacting.

Music

• The is the subject of the song "Do They Know It's Pizza" by comedy music group The Axis of Awesome

Radio

• A sketch on John Finnemore's Souvenir Programme has him recounting the tale of how he, as a member of the University Faculty of Logic and Ethics, witnessed a tragic event in which taking the second to last biscuit led to his fellow logicians agreeing that, since no one would take the last biscuit, the penultimate biscuit was the effective last biscuit and so could not be taken. They then follow this line of reasoning all the way back through the packet until none of them can eat any biscuits at all.

Theater

• Say Goodnight Gracie. Jerry nearly goes into a murderous rage after finding out that Steve ate his last can of chunky turkey soup.

Video Games

• In the Story Mode of Dead or Alive 5, when the part of Elliot and Brad Wong is shown, they talk about training for the fifth Dead or Alive Tournament when they're eating. That, until there's a last piece of dinner. Then, the talk ends and they start to fight for that last piece.
• Tekken Tag Tournament 2 has a variation in Lars ending in which he sits down with the Mashima clan for dinner and they all quickly grab up the food before he even has a chance to get any. At one point an egg gets sent flying from the hot pot, Lars looks to get it but everyone breaks it apart with their chopsticks. Ultimately Lars has to settle for a bit of seaweed only for Hehachi to slurp it up before he can eat it... and then Lars wakes up, revealing it was all an odd dream he was having.
• In the intro cinematic for River City Girls, Makoto and Kyoko fight over the last dumpling at a restaurant. Kunio then notices that it's still there and casually eats it, prompting Makoto to turn on him with violence. Riki doesn't even look up from his phone.

Webcomics

• In this comic◊ from Amby Comics, what apparently starts as a heartwarming moment with a girl hugging her boyfriend from behind turns into this trope as the "hug" morphs into a suplex and her claiming the last slice of cake they had in their refrigerator.
• In the second issue of Batman: Wayne Family Adventures Cass, Jason, Duke, Tim and Damian gather round for some of Alfred's baked goods and award-winning cookies. And then they notice there is only one cookie left and proceed to get into a brawl.

Web Videos

• Inverted in the CollegeHumor short "You Can Never Take the Last Cookie", which is about how it's considered rude to take the last cookie. The characters keep dividing the cookie (so nobody is rude) until it creates a nuclear reaction.
• Flander's Company: The episode "Motus" is one lengthy fight scene between the various characters over the last pastry, the first action-filled episode of the series. In the end, Dr. Parker picks up the last pastry and eats it, oblivious that his co-workers are fighting each other outside for it.
• A YouTube video called Expectations vs Reality - Martial Arts Movies from the group Martial Club does several different skits that poke fun at various Martial Arts Movie tropes and cliches. During the "expectations" part of one skit, two friends get into an elaborate fight right out of a Wire Fu Wuxia movie over the last piece of junk food that they're sharing. (In the reality section, there's no fight, just some resentful stares.)
• Door Monster has "Psychomachia", in which Kyle's Good Angel, Bad Angel appear when he's torn about taking the last slice of pizza.

Western Animation

• In a flashback to Kate's birth in an Arthur episode, Arthur and D.W. are seen fighting over the last grape, when their parents walk into the kitchen to inform them that they're going to be getting a new sibling.
• In one episode of The Berenstain Bears cartoon, Brother and Papa Bear are fighting over a snack that is the last one left in a bowl, and saying things such as "En garde!" and "Touche!".
• Mentioned in the first season of The Dragon Prince. Viren and Amaya are taking a little time to reminisce about Amaya's dead sister, Sarai. This includes fondly remembering Viren being on the receiving end of Sarai's temper for taking last sweet before she could claim it for herself.
  Amaya: She was compassionate and patient... unless of course you took the last jelly tart.
  Viren: [chuckling] I only made that mistake once!
• The Fanboy and Chum Chum episode "The Last Strawberry Fun Finger" has the titular duo find a third strawberry fun finger and argue over who should have it. It's not until the end that they realize they can cut the fun finger in half so they can both eat it.
• The Merrie Melodies toon "The Fighting 69 1/2th" has black and red ants going to war over picnic food. When only a single cake is left, a truce is called to divide it in half, only for the ants to start fighting again over who gets the cherry on top.
• The Loud House:
  • In the short "Slice of Life", Lincoln and his sisters argue over the last slice of pizza. At the end, mom and dad are revealed to have bought two pizzas, so the kids rush off, leaving the aforementioned slice behind... only for the pets to start fighting. In the graphic novel version of this, the comic actually Art Shift to an anime style with the sibling seemingly wielding powers as they get ready to fight for the last slice.
  • In "Time Trap!", a flashback shows Lynn and Lincoln fighting over the last slice of pizza.
• Shows up a couple of times in The Simpsons; at the beginning of "A Milhouse Divided", Maggie and the 2 pets get into a Mexican Standoff over a meatball that fell off of Homer's plate (cut short when Homer snatches it back with his fork), and in "A Star Is Burns", Homer and Jay Sherman (and their stomachs) fight over the last pork chop (Jay ends up getting it because he's the guest).
• One Cartoon Network promo for Teen Titans (2003) used line "Fighting for truth, justice, and the last slice of pizza".

Real Life

• At Wizards of the Coast headquarters, a chocolate-covered creme-filled donut is known as "Mark's donut", named after Magic head designer Mark Rosewater, who has vowed to never buy and share donuts again if that one is not saved for him.
• Some places in real life implement rules like "You kill it, you fill it" to avert this situation; namely, whoever takes the last piece of food (or drink from a pitcher or carton) will then have to get or make more unless everybody else at the table says they're full.

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