History Main / DeadlyGraduation

[[AC:VisualNovel]]
* In ''DanganRonpa'', students "graduate from" (read: are allowed to leave) the school by murdering another student and getting away with it.

* ''Literature?{{Discworld}}'':
* ''Discworld/{{Pyramids}}'' includes a graduation test for Pteppic, in which he's supposed to assassinate someone who is sleeping in a room "guarded" by one of his teachers. Pteppic is terrified by the idea of actually killing someone, however, and ends up firing his crossbow at nothing rather than kill (but still hits the target due to a "lucky" shot). Rumour among the student body is that the victim is a student who failed the exam, but it turns out to just be a dummy under a sheet. They're also perfectly allowed to inhume the examiners... but the savvy ones don't tend to risk it.
** In ''Discworld/WyrdSisters'' it's mentioned that "competitive examination" means the number of student Assassins is drastically reduced by the end of the year (apparently before the Final Exam), which doesn't stop students at the [[BoardingSchoolOfHorrors Fools' Guild]] from envying them.

* ''Discworld/{{Pyramids}}'' includes a graduation test for Pteppic, in which he's supposed to assassinate someone who is sleeping in a room "guarded" by one of his teachers. Pteppic is terrified by the idea of actually killing someone, however, and ends up firing his crossbow at nothing rather than kill (but still hits the target due to a "lucky" shot). It turns out to just be a dummy under a sheet.
** Another student however discovers under the sheet a third one who had failed the exam. Since it's after the fact, this isn't a ShootYourMate order.
** They're also perfectly allowed to inhume the examiners... but the savvy ones don't tend to risk it.

* It used to be part of the Village in the Mist's initiation in ''{{Naruto}}'', until Zabuza decided to be a smartass and kill all the other graduates. ''Before he was even old enough to actually qualify''. They probably couldn't spare any future ninja past that point. Danzo used this as a graduation for his ANBU program in the anime.

* The ''StarWars'' comic ''Crimson Empire'' has this as the final exam for Royal Guards.

** And in the first ''KnightsOfTheOldRepublic'', this is the final test for up-and-coming Sith.
** According to Nathyrra's backstory in ''NeverwinterNights: Hordes of the Underdark'', it's common among Drow assassins as well.

* Creator/CharlesStross's story "Palimpsest" has a unique variation: the final test for a time agent is to go back in time 10 minutes and murder ''yourself'' in the middle of your graduation ceremony.

* Creator/CharlesStross's story "Palimpsest" has a unique variation: the final test for a time agent is to go back in time and murder ''yourself''.

* The loaded-with-blanks version is used in a quite cruel joke. Three cadets are training to be in the FBI, two men and one woman. In the final test they are each lead into a room with their spouse bound and gagged. They're given a gun and told to kill them. One man walks out right away saying he can't do it. The other man stays in the room longer, but eventually walks out saying he couldn't do it either. They are both told that it was a test of loyalty and they failed. The woman stays in the room much longer. When she eventually leaves she says "Some idiot loaded the gun with blanks so I had to strangle him."

* ''VisualNovel/ApolloJusticeAceAttorney'': Phoenix's case in Turnabout Succession involved this. Both Zak and Valant Gramarye were ordered by Magcnifici Garamrye to bring a gun to his hospital room and "shoot straight in the forehead." [[spoiler: Zak passed by shooting the clown doll straight in the forehead. Valant lost by not firing at all.]]
* The main premise of Monokuma's DeadlyGame in ''VisualNovel/DanganRonpa'': the only way anyone can escape their ClosedCircle GildedCage is to kill one of their classmates, then successfully cover up the crime. If the others students can't figure out who the murderer is, they get to escape... while the rest suffer a brutal punishment. If they're ''caught'', though... [[HangingJudge well]]...

* Mentioned as a possible first assignment for a newly trained assassin in the article "The Assassin's Guild" in ''{{Dragon}} Magazine'' #64 (1982).

* It used to be part of the Village in the Mist's initiation in ''{{Naruto}}'', until Zabuza decided to be a smartass and kill all the other graduates. ''Before he was even old enough to actually qualify''. They probably couldn't spare any future ninja past that point, especially since [[InsaneTrollLogic they had such a test to compensate for their small population]]. Danzo used this as a graduation for his ANBU program in the anime.

* It used to be part of the Village in the Mist's initiation in ''{{Naruto}}'', until Zabuza decided to be a smartass and kill all the other graduates. ''Before he was even old enough to actually qualify''. They probably couldn't spare any future ninja past that point, especially since [[InsaneTrollLogic they had such a test to compensate for their small population]].

SubTrope of InvoluntaryBattleToTheDeath.

* [[PsychoForHire Valentino]]'s backstory in the ''{{Marilith}}'' webcomic. Made even more horrifying since it was not an assassin guild, but a ''gulag''.

* In the movie ''Azumi'', the ten young assassin students were told to pair up with the person they liked the most before their final exam. Then they were told to fight each other to the death. (This conveniently killed off half of the cast before the movie even began properly.)
* Used as the second Death Knight quest in ''WorldOfWarcraft'' - After carving the runes on your weapon, you're told to go kill one of the "unworthy trainees," in a fight to the death.
** It's also later somewhat reversed in Naxxramas, during the fight with Instructor Rasuvius -- you mind-control his trainees and force them to kill him.

* Mentioned as a possible first assignment for a newly trained assassin in the article "The Assassin's Guild" in {{Dragon}} magazine #64 (1982).

* The loaded-with-blanks version is used in a quite cruel joke. Three cadets are training to be in the FBI, two men and one woman. In the final test they are each lead into a room with their spouse bound and gagged. They're given a gun and told to kill them. One man walks out right away saying he can't do it. The other man stays in the room longer, but eventually walks out saying he couldn't do it either. They are both told that it was a test of loyalty and they failed. The woman stays in the room much longer. When she eventually leaves she says "Some idiot loaded the gun with blanks so I had to strangle him."
** There are of course countless variations of that joke, from CIA recruitment to SAS training.
*** And from strangling to PistolWhipping to [[ComedicSociopathy beating him to death with his chair...]]
* ''[[BakuretsuTenshi Burst Angel]]'' has the Genocide Angels killing each other [[ThereCanBeOnlyOne until only one remains]]... or at least they were supposed to: their final test is interrupted, they end up scattered around the world, and now Jo is pestered by the two remaining survivors who are there to kill her.
* In the first book of the ''Emperor'' series this happens to Gaius and Marcus after Renius spent years training them. Only in this case their graduation is to fight Renius himself, veteran warrior and gladiator, to the death.
* The Wong Jing film ''Naked Weapon'' does this particularly graphically, and variations have cropped up in other Category III films.
* The opening montage of the Korean movie ''Shiri'' shows North Korean assassins going through a hellish training program and initiation. In one test, the cadets are made to bayonet a field full of civilians who are tied to stakes. One man shows remorse afterwards and is killed. In another, cadets are paired up and each given a disassembled pistol. The first one to correctly assemble it must shoot their partner.
* VisualNovel/ApolloJusticeAceAttorney: Phoenix's case in Turnabout Succession involved this. Both Zak and Valant Gramarye were ordered by Magcnifici Garamrye to bring a gun to his hospital room and "shoot straight in the forehead." [[spoiler: Zak passed by shooting the clown doll straight in the forehead. Valant lost by not firing at all.]]

* In the ForgottenRealms novels WarOfTheSpiderQueen the [[spoiler:rebirth of lloth]] is discribed in a prologue: you have thousands of spiders, they suddenly start killing and eating each other to gain power, but if one grows to strong others will team up to get it down, until only the 8 most cunning ones are remaing. [[spoiler:They then serve as the eight spider aspect avatars of lloth.]]

* Not exactly "good and innocent", but after the Joker kills Gambol in ''Film/TheDarkKnight'', he talks about how his organization is "small, but growing". Then he mentions he only has room for one more member at the moment... as he snaps a pool cue over his knee and drops the sharper half between three of Gambol's men. "Make it quick."

** In the "Shadow Academy" story arc of the Young Jedi Knights series, it's revealed that exactly this is necessary to earn the title of Darkest Knight in the titular academy.

* CharlesStross's story "Palimpsest" has a unique variation: the final test for a time agent is to go back in time and murder ''yourself''.

* Not exactly "good and innocent", but after the Joker kills Gambol in ''TheDarkKnight'', he talks about how his organization is "small, but growing". Then he mentions he only has room for one more member at the moment... as he snaps a pool cue over his knee and drops the sharper half between two of Gambol's men. "Make it quick."

A classic for evil training programs, especially for assassins. Relatively good and innocent characters are trained in combat skills in a harsh and often deadly program. Often they are made to train in pairs for years building reliance on their partner. Now it is time for their final test. They must battle their best friend to the death!

* In the [[DCComics Granny Goodness]] backstory her final exam was to kill the loyal dog she had trained. She avoided this by killing the examiner. Darkseid later forced her to complete the test by siccing the dog on her.

* Used as the second Death Knight quest in ''WorldOfWarcraft'' - After carving the runes on your weapon, you're told to go kill one of the "unworthy trainees," in a fight to the death.

* On ''{{Gor}}'' this is the final test to join the Caste of Assassins.
* Mentioned as a possible first assignment for a newly trained assassin in the article "The Assassin's Guild" in {{Dragon}} magazine #64 (1982).

* The opening montage of the Korean movie ''Shiri'' shows North Korean assassins going through a hellish training program and initiation. In one test, the cadets are made to bayonet a field full of civilians who are tied to stakes. One man shows remorse afterwards and is killed. In another, cadets are paired up and each given a disassembled pistol. The first one to correctly assemble it must shoot their partner.

<<|{{Plots}}|>>
<<|NarrativeDevices|>>

* Apollo Justice: AceAttorney Phoenix's case in Turnabout Succession involved this. Both Zak and Valant Gramarye were ordered by Magcnifici Garamrye to bring a gun to his hospital room and "shoot straight in the forehead." [[spoiler: Zak passed by shooting the clown doll straight in the forehead. Valant lost by not firing at all.]]

* ''Discworld/{{Pyramids}}'' includes a graduation test for Pteppic, in which he's supposed to assassinate someone who is in a room "guarded" by one of his teachers. Pteppic is terrified by the idea of actually killing someone, however, and ends up firing his crossbow at nothing rather than kill (but still hits the target due to a "lucky" shot). It turns out to just be a dummy under a sheet.

* In the [[DCComics Granny Goodness]] backstory her final exam was to kill the loyal dog she had trained. She avoided this by killing the examiner. Darkseid later forced her to complete the test.

* ''Discworld/{{Pyramids}}'' includes a graduation test for Pteppic, in which he's supposed to assassinate someone who is in a room "guarded" by one of his teachers. Pteppic is terrified by the idea of actually killing someone, however, and ends up firing his crossbow at nothing rather than kill (but still hits the target due to a "lucky" shot). It turns out to just be a dummy under a sheet, but not so much for one of his friends.