"Do you ever wonder why I work so hard to make sure there's always another option for... for Kaidan, or Bette, or Gil, or you? I find a way! That's my role! I always find a way, and I don't do it out of mercy for the bad guys! I do it for you because killing someone changes you!"
— Qubit, Irredeemable
Burns: Don't kill me!
Abe Simpson: I ain't gonna kill ya. That'd be cowardly. Monty Burns cowardly! I just wanna watch you squirm.
Burns: Yes, sir! Is this to your liking? [squirms]
Abe Simpson: I ain't gonna kill ya. That'd be cowardly. Monty Burns cowardly! I just wanna watch you squirm.
Burns: Yes, sir! Is this to your liking? [squirms]
Buffy: Willow, please, just stop. We love you. And Tara. But we don't kill humans. It's not the way.
Willow: How can you say that? Tara is dead.
Buffy: I know... I know. And I... can't understand... anything. Not what happened... a-and not what you must be going through. Willow, if you do this, you let Warren destroy you too.
Xander: You said it yourself, Will. The magic's too strong. There's no coming back from it.
Willow: I'm not coming back.
Willow: How can you say that? Tara is dead.
Buffy: I know... I know. And I... can't understand... anything. Not what happened... a-and not what you must be going through. Willow, if you do this, you let Warren destroy you too.
Xander: You said it yourself, Will. The magic's too strong. There's no coming back from it.
Willow: I'm not coming back.
Ra's al Ghul: Bruce, your compassion is a weakness that your enemies will not share.
Bruce Wayne: That's why it's so important. It separates us from them.
Bruce Wayne: That's why it's so important. It separates us from them.
"Wade! Four or five moments, that's all it takes to be a hero. Everyone thinks it's a full-time job. Wake up a hero, brush your teeth a hero, go to work a hero. Not true. Over a lifetime there are only four or five moments that really matter. Moments when you're offered a choice to make a sacrifice, conquer a flaw, save a friend... spare an enemy. In these moments everything else falls away—"
— Colossus, before Wade gets bored and blows the Big Bad away, Deadpool (2016)
Batgirl: Stop. I need him alive.
Supergirl: But why?
Batgirl: Because... Because he has to suffer for his crimes! And because you — you're better than vengeance! You're... Hope. If you let him change that... If you let him bring you down... Then he really has destroyed the last child of Krypton.
Supergirl: But why?
Batgirl: Because... Because he has to suffer for his crimes! And because you — you're better than vengeance! You're... Hope. If you let him change that... If you let him bring you down... Then he really has destroyed the last child of Krypton.
Lin: You are responsible for the death of Captain Brenner. You killed him, and now I'm going to kill you. Will and the others won't like it... But it's what needs to be done.
Greyfield: Stop! I... I... I surrender! I surrender my forces to you! Th-there! You can't hurt me now! I am a prisoner of war! C-C-Captain Brenner would never hurt a prisoner! It's murder! If you kill me, you're as bad as me! You'll be just the same as me!
Lin: ...Huh. I guess you're right. [shoots him anyway]
Greyfield: Stop! I... I... I surrender! I surrender my forces to you! Th-there! You can't hurt me now! I am a prisoner of war! C-C-Captain Brenner would never hurt a prisoner! It's murder! If you kill me, you're as bad as me! You'll be just the same as me!
Lin: ...Huh. I guess you're right. [shoots him anyway]
"Don't be the monster they fear you are!"
— Prince Hans, Frozen (2013)
Jean Grey: Wolverine, NO! Don't kill him! I can't imagine what that animal put you through over the years, but murder him out here like this and all you're going to do is prove that the papers are right about us.
Wolverine: Babe, do I look like the kind of guy who lies awake at night worrying about the public's perception of mutants?
Jean Grey: You've had a hard enough day, big man. Don't make me hurt you.
Wolverine: Babe, do I look like the kind of guy who lies awake at night worrying about the public's perception of mutants?
Jean Grey: You've had a hard enough day, big man. Don't make me hurt you.
Scar: What are you going to do? You wouldn't kill your own uncle, would you?
Simba: No, Scar. I'm not like you.
Simba: No, Scar. I'm not like you.
"Don't do it, Krillin. I know it seems like justice, but it's not right. If you strike him down, it will only show that we aren't any better than he is. It means that they've won, no matter what. He's strong... Don't forget, Krillin, I am a Saiyan, just like he is. [Krillin drops the sword] Thanks, Krillin. That took a lot of strength and courage. I'm proud of you."
— Goku, Dragon Ball Znote
Nick: Lemme hit 'im too, sir. I promise not to kill 'im too quick.
Kevyn: I know he murdered our friend, but that will take you into a very dark place, Nick. We are going to turn Shufgar, alive and healthy, over to judges of House Est'll. Then, per ancient tradition, he will be killed and eaten a little bit at a time.
Nick: Your place sounds darker, sir.
Kevyn: It has the advantage of being legal.
Kevyn: I know he murdered our friend, but that will take you into a very dark place, Nick. We are going to turn Shufgar, alive and healthy, over to judges of House Est'll. Then, per ancient tradition, he will be killed and eaten a little bit at a time.
Nick: Your place sounds darker, sir.
Kevyn: It has the advantage of being legal.
"Do not fear, human," the Perslop said. "I'll not kill you. I define myself by being what you are not. I let you live even though every pulse of my hearts says you should be squashed between my arms like vermin."
— The History Within Us, by Matthew Kressel
"I should make you pull the trigger. But that would make us no better than you."
— Kayla Silverfox using her hypnotic powers on Colonel William Stryker, X-Men Origins: Wolverine
"Mihaly's granddaughter tossed the gun aside. She said that if she resorted to killing, she'd just end up like the rest of us."
— Dr. Schroeder, invoking the trope on Ionela A. Shilage, Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown, "Lighthouse"
Spike: If you kill me, you'll be no better than me.
Norman: I can live with that.
Norman: I can live with that.
"The man who kills a killer is a killer."
— Maida, 2020 Texas Gladiators
Superman: That's enough!
Captain Marvel: No, I have to. To protect them.
Superman: How? By being like him?
Marvel: By being stronger than him!
Superman: Then be strong... be good!
Captain Marvel: No, I have to. To protect them.
Superman: How? By being like him?
Marvel: By being stronger than him!
Superman: Then be strong... be good!
Ratchet: No. If we kill him, we're no better than him. If we kill him, he wins.
First Aid: Yeah, except we are better than him and he doesn't win. He doesn't anything. He's dead. That's the point.
First Aid: Yeah, except we are better than him and he doesn't win. He doesn't anything. He's dead. That's the point.
"The issue was promoted as being the one that would finally explain why Batman has never killed the Joker. And unsurprisingly, and kind of boringly given the hype, the answer is... because it would betray his morality and turn him into the very thing he fights against. People understandably object to that, though to answer the hype... what the hell were people expecting the answer to be? That Joker has a special bomb that would go off if he was ever killed or something? Or that the Joker was secretly a family member? There is no satisfying answer beyond his morality."
— Linkara, Atop the Fourth Wall, reviewing Batman: Hush
Palpatine: You were destined to destroy me... Do it! Give in to your hatred!
Rahm Kota: He's beaten. Let it go.
Galen Marek: It's a trick! He's stronger than you know, and he deserves to die for what he's done to me...
Rahm Kota: Maybe so, but if you strike him down in anger, you'll be right back where you began.
Rahm Kota: He's beaten. Let it go.
Galen Marek: It's a trick! He's stronger than you know, and he deserves to die for what he's done to me...
Rahm Kota: Maybe so, but if you strike him down in anger, you'll be right back where you began.
Georgie: Finally, you know we're real! Now, tell us what you did to my family.
Mr. P: They wanted to help me with my research...
Georgie: You took them away from me. You hurt them. Now I am going to hurt you.
Player: Georgie, don't do it! If you hurt him, you are no better than him! It would only turn you into what you hate the most in him.
Mr. P: They wanted to help me with my research...
Georgie: You took them away from me. You hurt them. Now I am going to hurt you.
Player: Georgie, don't do it! If you hurt him, you are no better than him! It would only turn you into what you hate the most in him.
— Piggy
"Parker...people change, alright? He's not the same guy! If you get revenge on him, then you'll be the jerk!"
— Josh Redgrove, Mr. Meaty
Wheeler: Gi, you don't really want to do this!
Gi: Yes, I do!
Wheeler: This is his way, Gi, not yours...
[Gi gives up with a sigh and starts crying in his arms]
Gi: Yes, I do!
Wheeler: This is his way, Gi, not yours...
[Gi gives up with a sigh and starts crying in his arms]
Luz: When I saw the Collector fly up to Belos... I hoped with all my heart I would see them blast him away, and... [sighs]
The Titan: Hey, I can relate. I was willing to do anything to keep my kid safe. But I attacked the wrong person. Dragged the Collector down here for nothing.
Luz: Does that make us as bad as... Belos?
The Titan: [laughs] What?! Have you been drinking Eda's home-made apple blood?
Luz: Well... Belos says he's trying to save humanity, and we're saying we wanna save our families, so... isn't that the same thing, don't— don't these feelings come from the same place?!
The Titan: Well, you assume Belos's goal comes from a genuine place. But that man doesn't care about anything except his need to be the hero in his own delusion. And because of that, he fears what he can't control.
The Titan: Hey, I can relate. I was willing to do anything to keep my kid safe. But I attacked the wrong person. Dragged the Collector down here for nothing.
Luz: Does that make us as bad as... Belos?
The Titan: [laughs] What?! Have you been drinking Eda's home-made apple blood?
Luz: Well... Belos says he's trying to save humanity, and we're saying we wanna save our families, so... isn't that the same thing, don't— don't these feelings come from the same place?!
The Titan: Well, you assume Belos's goal comes from a genuine place. But that man doesn't care about anything except his need to be the hero in his own delusion. And because of that, he fears what he can't control.
