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Not entirely sure whether that fits my definition or not. From my understanding and reading the examples, that trope is about characters taking advantage of a bad situation to further their own goals rather than just being in a bad situation themselves and doing something to make it easier to sit through (as I had shown with my example, and it doesn't have to be "about to be killed" bad either). That is, unless Tropes Are Flexible applies here...
In other words, I was thinking of a trope that essentially says "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade" (not literally though; When Life Gives You Lemons..., while it fits, seems to be limited to characters saying the phrase only).
Wasn't there a senator who said that about rape? Like "Well, if its going to happen anyway, just try to enjoy it." When Steve Buscemi wigs out in ARMAGEDDON, he says something like "Embrace the horror!"
^ I think those examples also nicely describe the trope I'm asking about.
Think Happy Thoughts? Conditioned to Accept Horror?
Edited by eroock
Conditioned to Accept Horror seems to refer to characters who were trained to go through bad situations with enjoyment all the time, whereas I'm looking for a trope that involves moments of making the best out of a bad situation rather than characters who do it all the time.
Think Happy Thoughts leans closer to what I'm thinking of, but doesn't feel like quite the trope I want; it involves thinking about positive things, but doesn't seem to extend to actually doing something to make a bad situation at least a little better and more bearable.
Perhaps Pass the Popcorn?
In another few hours, the sun will rise.
Perhaps PassThePopcorn
In another few hours, the sun will rise.
Pass the Popcorn refers to moments where characters react to a dramatic scene (such as a fight, physical or verbal (or both)) by bringing and eating food as they watch said scene. So in essence, it looks like it's limited to characters enjoying someone else's bad situation, rather than trying to enjoy their own (if they're in a pickle themselves, that is).
That being said, on that page I've found While Rome Burns; this is considerably closer to my description, but doesn't seem like it can extend past "our town/economy/planet/universe is collapsing/being destroyed, but I'll try to enjoy while it lasts". I've also found This Is No Time for Knitting, which is also very close but instead has the "trying to make the bad situation better" be something that ultimately gets the character(s) out of trouble.
Quick question: is there a trope where a character makes a bad situation better (or at least tries to) to make it easier to go through? Here's an example of what I mean:
Alice and Bob are cornered by a large monster and have no way out of it, and as such are slated to die very soon. But as the monster slowly closes in on them, Bob suddenly pulls out a bag of popcorn and starts eating it while waiting for their demise, which prompts Alice to go "Why are you eating popcorn at a time like this?!" and to which Bob responds with "Might as well sit back and enjoy the show as if it were a really good horror movie".
I hope my example makes sense.