The Hero and a friend, usually The Lancer are preparing to do something dangerous. Nerves are strained and tension is high. Before they go do the dangerous thing, The Lancer turns to The Hero and asks "Are you ready?" The response is always "I Was Born Ready."
A variation where The Hero asks The Lancer if they're ready is common, and the wording can vary.
Examples:
- This is Bud's answer
when the Shaw tech asks the delivery bots if he's ready for work.
Comic Books
- The Powerpuff Girls: In issue #43's "Power Picnic" (DC run), a giant egg-shaped sphere is headed towards earth. The Professor, priming the girls to intercept and stop the craft, asks them if they're ready.
Blossom: (as she, Bubbles and Buttercup assume heroic poses) We were born ready!
Fan Works
- In the Gunslinger Girl fic Marisa 12: Victory & Goodbye, Marisa says, "I was built ready!" then clarifies that it's literally true, as she's a specialist cyborg designed for the kind of underwater mission they're about to carry out.
- Big Trouble in Little China: Supporting Protagonist Jack Burton tells this to his friend Wang when they're about to infiltrate into the Big Bad's hide-out.
- A Warriors Heart: Connor, the protagonist, responds with this when asked if he's ready to play in the game.
- Lampshaded in Ocean's Thirteen:
Ocean: "Are you ready?"
Benedict: "I was born ready." (Ocean waits until he turns away, then rolls his eyes at the cliche) - Just Friends (2005):
Chris: You ready to do this?
Samantha James: I was born ready, bitch! - Blade: Trinity:
Dracula: Blade, ready to die?
Blade: I was born ready, motherfucker! - A variation of this occurs in the film adaptation of Astro Boy.
Dr. Tenma: Son, are you ready?
Astro: I was made ready! - Jason X:
Tsunaron: Are you ready?Kay-Em 14: I was built ready, baby.
- Dredd. Judge Dredd asks his rookie trainee Cassandra Anderson three times if she's ready for what she's about to face, and is clearly not happy at her assurances that she is. The third time however he notes with approval, "You look ready."
- Smokey and the Bandit: Bandit and Carrie have this exchange late in the film.
- In Turning Red, Mei and Priya have this exchange.
Mei: Ready to change the world?
Priya: I was born to do this.
- Gaunt's Ghosts
Varl: I was born ready. Well, actually, I was born horny; I didn't get ready until I reached puberty.
- This seems to be the Twin's catch phrase in The House of Night.
- Action-adventure novelist Jerry Ahern uses the line in several of his novels, with the characters inevitably attributing it to actor Ward Bond (presumably from the 1953 western Hondo). The below example is from Written in Time (co-written with his wife Sharon Ahern).
"Now, remember. Try and sound like Ward Bond when I shout to see if we're ready."
"I know," Ellen said smiling, "I call out, 'I was born ready.' But let's skip the part where the Apaches chase us, okay?"
- Doctor Who''. In "Ascension of the Cybermen".
- Bescot: Go careful.Graham: I was born careful!Yasmin: That's actually true.
- Gilmore Girls - Season 6, Episode 7, "Twenty-One Is the Loneliest Number":
Luke: Ready?
Lorelai: I was born ready. - Parks and Recreation:
Ron Swanson: I was born ready. I'm Ron fucking Swanson
- Subverted in Spaced:
Tim: Are you ready?
Mike: I was born ready.
Tim: Yeah, but are you ready now?
Mike: Errrm.... Yeah - Subverted in Chuck: "I was born ready," "I was born premature."
- And again "I was born re... well, no, I wasn't born ready, but I'm ready now."
- Used in The Incredible Hulk (1977) episode "Stop the Presses".
- Appears in the Knight Rider episode "Knight Moves".
- Expanded in 8-Bit Theater:
Red Mage: "I was born ready."
Fighter: "I was born naked and screaming."
Black Mage" "If all goes according to plan, you'll die like that too."
- Dr. Insano says this in episode five of Kickassia.
- Grif, official slacker of Red vs. Blue :"I was born to take it easy." The advertise for a T-shirt with the quote actually says:"Never again be confused as the kind of person who was "born ready" or "born yesterday."
- Bender in Futurama, "Raging Bender": "I was built ready!"
- My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic episode "Pinkie Pride". Before the "goof-off" begins, when Twilight Sparkle asks when the competitors are ready, their replies:
Pinkie Pie: I was born ready!Cheese Sandwich: I was ready before I was born!
- This is a catchphrase for the animated version of Flipshot in The New Adventures of He-Man.
- Variant: The Hair Bear Bunch are auditioning for roles in a revisionist film adaptation of "Goldilocks and the Three Bears." Twinkles Sunshine, the uppity diva playing Goldilocks has doubts about the bears' credibility.
Twinkles Sunshine: You guys don't look like actors to me. You sure you've been on the stage before?
Hair Bear: (mockingly) Have we been on the stage before? Lady, we were born in a trunk! - A variant occurs in the Ready Jet Go! episode "Asteroid Belt Space Race".
Zucchini: Feelin' lucky today, sis?Celery: I was born lucky, Zucchini!
