History Main / DefeatEqualsExplosion

* ''VideoGame/{{Shantae}}'': Most of the bosses die in this manner, even recurring ones like the Squid Baron. This gets a LampshadeHanging in ''Risky's Revenge'' when said Squid Baron appears later in the game.

* ''Franchise/StarWars VI: Film/ReturnOfTheJedi'': Emperor Palpatine apparently explodes on impact after being thrown down a reactor shaft at the climax of the film. Probably had to do with him incontinently spraying lightning near complex machinery. [[spoiler:Doesn't stop him from re-appearing in ''Film/TheRiseOfSkywalker'', but then again, the body we see him in at that time is that of a clone.]]

* There can be no ''Franchise/StarFox'' game without explosions. This is particularly true of ''VideoGame/StarFox64''.

* There can be no ''VideoGame/StarFox'' game without explosions. This is particularly true of ''VideoGame/StarFox64''.

* Everything you can pick up (including enemies) in ''VideoGame/{{Superman 64}}'' explodes. '''Even boxes'''.

* ''WesternAnimation/HowToTrainYourDragon'': The Red Death is shot in the mouth by a plasma blast from Toothless, which ignites its own rather massive reserves of flammables. Combined with an uncontrolled descent face-first into the ground, physics turns it into a very big boom.

* In the ''[[Literature/TheCrewOfTheCopperColoredCupids Crew of the Copper-Colored Cupids]]'' story ''[[https://thecrewofthecoppercoloredcupids.wordpress.com/2020/05/10/the-trial-of-a-dark-lord/ The Trial of a Dark Lord]]'', Lord Nefarious unexpectedly explodes when he is hit by a Cupid Arrow (which normally result in GettingSmiliesPaintedOnYourSoul, not any physical damage). Characters eventually realise that this was a YinYangBomb-type of reaction due to Nefarious's magic being rooted in hatred.

* VideoGame/SilverSurfer blows up upon death, which will happen a lot.

* ''Film/MessageFromSpace: [[RecycledTheSeries Galactic Battle]]'' has all major enemies explode. One even tries to destroy a MacGuffin with his death explosion.

* In ''VideoGame/AzureStrikerGunvolt'', the only enemies that don't explode upon defeat are the zombies.

* ''VideoGame/DeepRockGalactic'': Aside from [[ActionBomb Glyphid Exploders]], the Volatile Guts modifier makes every enemy (except the smallest ones) explode on death.

* In the ''VideoGame/{{Mother}}'' series, all [[WhenTreesAttack tree enemies]], Atomic Power Robots, and the Smilin' and Uncontrollable Spheres explode when you kill them. If you are at a low level when fighting them, their dying explosion will [[TakingYouWithMe kill you as well]].

* The Akumas in ''Manga/Dgrayman'' always explode regardless of what weapon the exorcists use. Do you shoot Akuma with oversized guns? They explode. Do you kick them with magic boots? They explode. Do you DropTheHammer? They explode. Do you [[OurVampiresAreDifferent suck all of the Akuma's blood out?]] They explode. Do you kick a bell at them like a soccer ball? They explode.

* The Akumas in ''Manga/DGrayman'' always explode regardless of what weapon the exorcists use. Do you shoot Akuma with oversized guns? They explode. Do you kick them with magic boots? They explode. Do you DropTheHammer? They explode. Do you [[OurVampiresAreDifferent suck all of the Akuma's blood out?]] They explode. Do you kick a bell at them like a soccer ball? They explode.

** This happens to most of the bosses in the ''VideoGame/MarioAndLuigi'' series, usually in a flurry of stars (or in the case of ''VideoGame/MarioAndLuigiPartnersInTime'', multiple pink, pulsating circles along with the stars) even if they are alive in the cutscene that follows. The BigBad will often have a darker-colored version of this explosion, while the final boss tends to have a different, more extravagant explosion. If they happen to be alive, more often than not they'll stay in the overworld for a brief moment only to explode ''again''.

* Old commercials for Raid pesticides had cartoon roaches explode into smoke and lightning after being sprayed, usually after screaming [[OhCrap "RAAAAIIID?!"]]

* Sword in ''VideoGame/CyberShadow'' makes enemies go boom.

* A law of nature for ninjas in ''LightNovel/NinjaSlayer'', [[AllThereintheManual due to the]] [[AwesomenessIsVolatile burning power]] of their [[SoulPower ninja soul. ]]

* ''VideoGame/AHatInTime'': Defeated enemies explode into white puffs. This gets played with during the final battle: [[spoiler: seeing that the Hat Kid can fight the Mustache Girl to the standstill at most, ''all'' of the planet's inhabitants that were judged as bad guys by Mustache Girl punch each other so that they would explode and provide Hat Kid with additional power to triumph before she'd take back her stolen Time Pieces to turn back time and prevent this from happening]].

* In ''VideoGame/LyleInCubeSector'' all enemies go out in explosive ways. [[spoiler: Psychovyle's]] death explosion actually propels Lyle out of the pit the two fell in after the final boss fight.

** The bosses in ''VideoGame/MetalGear2SolidSnake'' as well. In Grey Fox's case it is possibly justified as he and Snake fight to the death in the middle of a room filled with mines. [[spoiler:This is then retconned in VideoGame/MetalGearSolidGunsOfThePatriots, where his intact body is outfitted with a cyborg exoskeleton.]]

* In "Ayla and the Mad Scientist" in the ''Literature/WhateleyUniverse'', Team Kimba goes through some '[[ComicBook/XMen Dark Phoenix]]' holographic simulations, a couple of which use [[PersonOfMassDestruction Tennyo]] as the Dark Phoenix character. Phase uses his powers to stop her, and Tennyo explodes. Since she has anti-matter in her blood when she exerts herself, this doesn't work out well. [[spoiler: In the simulation, it destroys the entire eastern seaboard of the United States.]]