Inappropriate Hunger - Television Tropes & Idioms

"Everybody, gather 'round. Let's pray. Dear Lord, see us safely through our time of trial in this mall. And please Lord... let the food court be okay."

—Coach, Left 4 Dead 2, while inside a mall filled with zombies

The characters are in a disgusting situation. Maybe they're looking at dead bodies, maybe it's alien goo. Everyone will be disgusted... except the one guy who suddenly wants a burger.

A surprisingly common Real Life trope. Who hasn't watched a movie about cannibals and felt a sudden urge to get some McDonald's? (A particularly disturbing example is the oft-cited fact that burning human flesh smells like cooking pork.)

Compare Obsessed With Food and The Snack Is More Interesting. Contrast Lost My Appetite, Vomiting Cop. See also Autopsy Snack Time.

Examples

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Advertising

There's a commercial for...Boost Mobile?...where a morgue worker's breakfast burrito falls into the cadaver he's working on, and he blithely picks it up and continues eating it. "What, you think this is wrong? What's wrong is paying too much for cell phone service."

Anime

YuYu Hakusho:Koema is often scolded for chowing down whilst Yusuke fights for his life.
In the first season of Slayers, Dilgear's eulogy for a fallen fishman is marred by the rest of his men eating the body. When he finishes the eulogy he gets upset because they didn't leave any for him.
In Fushigi Yuugi, just before the Final Battle Miaka and Tamahome decide they might not get a chance to do it later, so they might as well have sex (completely disregarding the rules Miaka is held to). Before they get too far into the act, however, Miaka's stomach growls and totally kills the mood, so they stop.

Film

In Zombieland, looking at a zombie chowing down on a corpse makes Columbus sick and sad. But it makes Tallahassee hungry.
In Thor, after Thor has been banished and Loki has taken the throne, the Warriors Three's discussion on what to do starts with Fandral calling Volstagg out for chowing down. Volstagg shouts back that Fandral should not "mistake my appetite for apathy."
In Gone In Sixty Seconds 2000 the not-really-mute character played by Vinnie Jones first appears when he's contacted by phone. He is shown in a morgue, his work place, and when notified that he's been called, he leaves his sandwich on a dead man.
In Masters of the Universe, the Big Eater Man-at-Arms mentions that he's feeling a little hungry while ducking behind cover before a firefight.

Literature

One Animorphs book involves a horrific visit to a slaughterhouse for the main characters. Once they save the day they end up in the mall food court...and all decide to order burgers.
As in the TV series (below), the main character of the Dexter novels by Jeff Lindsay is rarely ever put off his food, due to his hobby of slicing up murderers and his job analyzing blood spatters. His lack of most normal emotions also helps. He usually mopes about any missed meal, noting that his high metabolism requires regular fueling.
During Galaxy of Fear some of the Children slog out of the swamp to grab at Zak. His companion shoots one, and the other talks them out of shooting him too, but he keeps looking at his dead comrade and once licks his lips. It looks like a nervous gesture. Actually, the Children are cannibals.

Live Action TV

Fringe: Walter Bishop is well known for this, to the point of it being a Running Gag. Somewhat justified, in that he'd been in a mental institution with terrible food for 17 years straight.
Psych: An ad for this show shows Shawn snacking on a donut that he took from the corpse at the crime scene he's investigating. It ends with him licking something red off his finger and nonchalantly saying "That wasn't a jelly donut."
- In one episode, Gus goes really far beyond the line of common decency when he starts talking about how he could use some waffles with strawberries and syrup while at a crime scene of a near-mythical serial killer. Of course, he's doing it to help keep Shawn from freaking out, but even Shawn says that it's getting really weird.
Bones: Temperance Brennan is so used to dealing with gruesome dead bodies that her appetite isn't put off by it. Of course, Agent Booth does not have the same (lack of) reaction.
During an episode of Doctor Who, the Doctor feels he wants a hotdog. While running from Cybermen.
In the X-Files episode "Bad Blood", Scully's autopsy of a victim reveals his last meal was pizza. Scully thinks that sounds pretty good.
One episode of House had him ordering his team to get a stool sample (with unnecessarily graphic detail), then muttering "That reminds me, I want a bagel..."
EUReKA: While watching an autopsy on a mystery body found burned and fused into a metal door, Allison comments that she's "craving rib meat...beef jerky". Even though her weird cravings might be justified by her pregnancy, it's still enough to make Jack want to throw up.
One episode of Dexter has Dexter explaining his forensic analysis of a bloody crime scene, with details on exactly how the victims were killed, then gleefully announces that he's going to lunch.
Uniform on scene: What now?
Dexter: Now I eat!
On Misfits, after a mild breakdown during the season finale, Simon relaxes in a deserted back room, eating pizza while gazing at the frozen corpse of Sally the probation worker.
In an early episode of Babylon 5, Lieutenant Commander Ivanova finds Micheal Garibaldi at a restaurant "eating like a man starved" after he had found a missing passenger transport that had been destroyed by Raiders. He explains that seeing death makes him hungry, he figures that it is his way of reminding himiself that he is still alive.
Provenza of The Closer, is usually seen snacking even in the presence of rotting corpses.
Happens once on House of Anubis-
Amber: Alfie, how could you possibly be eating at a time like this?
Alfie: I always eat when I'm scared. Or nervous. Or...happy, come to think of it.
Amber: Or any day with a 'y' in it...
In Game of Thrones, a brutal torturer called the Tickler snacks on a peach while torturing his victims.

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