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A subtrope of Gushing About Shows You Like. Just as we sometimes need to give praise to particularly engaging writing or characters we also need to express particular scenes that seem to be the pinnacle of their craft. This would be for a scene which isn't by any means an overtly awesome or epic moment, but it is a scene which does just what it needed to in order to have an epic scale impact on a viewer by pertaining its message effectively.
It's a scene, a song, an image, something that bring together all of the individual elements and tropes to create an ambience that impacts on the viewer and makes them remember it forever.
Examples:
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Anime & Manga
- Cowboy Bebop - There are a ton of great ambience scenes in the show thanks to Yoko Kanno's absolutely amazing soundtrack, but one standout is the end of episode 5 with Green Bird playing during Spike's fall from the church.
- Basilisk - In the near finale of the series. Right before Kagerou dies in the arms of Gennosuke. She meets face to face with Oboro, the other woman who was vying for Gennosuke's love, this is the only time they meet in the series. Made even more powerful by the fact that it inadvertently prevents Kagerou from killing Gennosuke
- Blame! - Every time there is a two-page spread of one the ginormous areas of the Megastructure.
- Gantz - The couple's death at the hands of 1000 armed goddess statue.
- Code Geass: Whenever we get scenes panoramics of the striking scenery, especially to the sound of the track Eleven. The epilogue too.
Film
- In Over the Hedge there is a brief scene of the animals having fun at birthday party, to the tune of Heist by Ben Folds. At one point RJ the Racoon plays air guitar with a Spuddies container. For some reason that one scene seems genuinely fun, and the awesome fun-ness of that very moment never fails to put a huge grin on my face.
- In the film of Watchmen, at the very end we see New York being rebuilt after the Ozymandias attack on a clear sunny day, with epic music playing. The whole scene lasts, at most, about 15 seconds, but it's a Tear Jerker nonetheless.** The intro. The way the amazing visuals are combined with fantastic editing and the best usage of a country music in a movie ever makes up an immensely beautiful scene.
- In Rumblefish, at the very beginning, we see a sign saying The Motorcycle Boy Reigns as the clouds move at a hyper-fast speed through the sky and shadows stretch and bend across the sign. It's trippy-awesome.
- Double Indemnity: When it is revealed that Keyes has been listening in on Walter's confession the whole time.
- Fight Club - The twist, with the perfect timing of the monologue and the climatic scene before the twist. Also the "plane crash sequence" at the beginning.
- The Lord of the Rings - Faramir's suicide charge intercut with Pippin singing to Denethor.
- The intro of Coraline, which set up the Creepy Awesome atmosphere of the movie with shots of a metallic hand crafting a doll while one of the absolute best music track known to mankind plays on the background. But the whole movie counts, really. The way the script, cinematography, lighting, music, sounds, voice acting and editing work together to change the mood from sweet and funny to dark and chilling throughout the movie is just beautiful.
- The scene where Coraline lists various stuff around the house. Way Better Than It Sounds, thanks to the epic music and the creative way the scenes are shot. Keep in mind, all of it was done in stop-motion.
- The part where she found the door for the first time. The editing, cinematography and colors add to the eerie feel. Then there's the Puppy-Dog Eyes...
- The first and second times Coraline enters the Otherworld, again thanks to the music. Mickey Mousing at its best.
- The long crawl through the tunnel just before the "game". The anticipation for something that might jump out of the darkness, the lighting, the dialog, all work together to create a truly fantastic atmosphere.
- The extraordinarily eerie atmosphere in Other Bobinsky's flat near the end.
- Night sequences, period.
- The build-up to the Alliance vs. Reavers battle in Serenity.
Literature
Live Action TV
- Dollhouse: "Epitaph One" is a brilliant piece of storytelling in general, but the last five minutes in particular, with the shot of Whiskey quietly falling as the ruins of the Dollhouse is gassed and shots of post-apocalyptic LA, mixed with the survivors' reactions and that song? Just watch it
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- Of all Criminal Minds episodes, "Open Season" is one of the most memorable ones to this troper, partly for a certain poignant scene right before the obligatory jet ride home - the intended victim of two brother unsubs gets ahold of a knife and repeatedly stabs one of them, and the other finds him and leaves him alone by a fire while he goes to finish her now for a reason besides the lulz. The fire draws the team, and Gideon crouches beside him trying to calm him down and gently interrogating him. Even when he realizes who he is and what's going on and most of the team has gone after his brother, Gideon stays with him while he dies (mind you he went from a Dead Rising-esque Axe Crazy to a pathetic kid who doesn't want his brother to leave him shortly after being jumped), comforting him, calling him "son" and repeating "It's okay..." It doesn't help that right before he finally dies he's officially broken down when he hears Morgan shooting his brother to death. You Are Not Alone, indeed, done bizarrely heartbreakingly and touchingly and just well all at once.
Video Games
Western Animation
- This.
- The use of Pulp's "Like a Friend" in the season four finale of The Venture Bros.. Does a good job setting the fast pacing for Brock's race down the hill to get to the bunker in time, makes for an oddly sweet (albeit lyrically dissonant) track as the leads happily dance with their hooker-dates, and then creates a great bit of comedic Soundtrack Dissonance when the song continues as the hookers are turned into mutant Spanish flies and start spitting acid everywhere.
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