History Main / DontFearTheReaper

* ''TabletopGame/WarhammerAgeOfSigmar'': Nagash, the current dominant death god, averts this trope rather spectacularly, being tyrranical, petty, and fully convinced that every mortal soul in existence is his property by right; he was presumably closer to this trope during the Age of Myth, when he was part of Sigmar's pantheon, but even then was implied to be seen as a JerkassGod by everyone outside Shyish. He also consumed every other death god/spirit/psychopomp in the Realms, many of whom fit this trope far better. Legend does speak of one, however, who escaped him and is worshipped still by Nagash's enemies: Morrda, who is implied to be Morr himself, or at least a new incarnation of him.

** Unfortunately, come ''TabletopGame/WarhammerAgeOfSigmar'', Morr (and all other death gods barring Khaine) has been supplanted by Nagash, who averts this trope rather spectacularly.

** The HalloweenEpisode is one good example. At the beginning, he tells Billy and Mandy via {{Flashback}} how Jack (as in Jack o'Lantern) tricked him into making him immortal. Grim did so, but retaliated by [[OffWithHisHead cutting his head off]]. ("Gee, Grim, I didn't know you had it in you," comments Mandy.) During the course of the episode, Jack comes gunning for revenge, nearly destroying the whole town, and at the end of the episode, Grim loses his patience and has the guy DraggedOffToHell, proving he's still got it and that he's the hero in this encounter.[[note]]It helps that in that case, his "victim" was a SmugSnake and a [[AssholeVictim sadistic trickster,]] who's initial death was due to his former victims giving him a taste of his own medicine.[[/note]]

** [[https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-3540 SCP-3540]] is the activity of two grim reapers designated SCP-3540-1 and SCP-3540-2. The reapers, Maurice and Lance, are gay lovers who save up vacation time to take a shared break from their jobs as {{psychopomp}}s to live domestically and participate in the [[UsefulNotes/AllHallowsEve Hallowe'en]] season. The two try not to impede upon the neighbors of the abandoned houses they move into, are hospitable to their visitors, and would [[HasTwoDaddies adopt and raise]] a presumably-mortal child were it not for [[HeteronormativeCrusader certain]] [[FantasticLegalWeirdness limitations]]. Their SCP entry invokes the trope with its title, ''Don't [[{{Pun}} Queer]] the Reaper''.

** [[http://www.scp-wiki.wikidot.net/scp-3540 SCP-3540]] is the activity of two grim reapers designated SCP-3540-1 and SCP-3540-2. The reapers, Maurice and Lance, are gay lovers who save up vacation time to take a shared break from their jobs as {{psychopomp}}s to live domestically and participate in the [[UsefulNotes/AllHallowsEve Hallowe'en]] season. The two try not to impede upon the neighbors of the abandoned houses they move into, are hospitable to their visitors, and would [[HasTwoDaddies adopt and raise]] a presumably-mortal child were it not for [[HeteronormativeCrusader certain]] [[FantasticLegalWeirdness limitations]]. Their SCP entry invokes the trope with its title, ''Don't [[{{Pun}} Queer]] the Reaper''.

* Momo in ''LightNovel/{{Ballad of a Shinigami}}'' is a sweet, [[MysticalWhiteHair white-haired]] girl who not only makes your death painless, she helps the people you are leaving behind by comforting them.

* Some of the art created with the motif of Death and the Maiden shows the maidens as being... well, not exactly afraid of Death's advances. [[http://employees.oneonta.edu/farberas/arth/Images/ARTH200/Women/munch_death_maiden.jpg Edvard Munch's etching]] and [[http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/27/Egon_Schiele_012.jpg Ergon Shiele's painting]] are two examples.

* The Brazilian comic ''ComicBook/MonicasGang'' has one in the spinoff ''Penadinho'' (known in English as ''Bug-a-booo''). Dona Morte/Lady [=McDeath=] is a clumsy Grim Reaper who is always forced to run after her "next clients". Her creator [[http://www.monica.com.br/mauricio/cronicas/cron285.htm states]] (link's in Portuguese) that the character is an attempt to make death less scary than most people treat it, and tries to portray her as just someone doing her job, never an assassin.

** [[http://www.scp-wiki.wikidot.net/scp-4999 SCP-4999]] shows up to people who are on the brink of death who have no loved ones or otherwise close individuals to comfort them as they die.

* ''Webcomic/FindersKeepers'' features a Gaiman-inspired PerkyGoth Death, the youngest of the nine Powers That Be, the highest authorities beyond The Veil. She does have rather nasty skeleton-and-cowl enforcers. She seems to have a soft spot for Card, though.´

* The ''Webcomic/LovingReaper'' series of comics by [[https://jenny-jinya.com/?fbclid=IwAR2ppzgvw1P1ADzIhsrvbfjnplegiZvrfsf_ukqLXe_3gQybx9eIntkiJ4Q Jenny-Jinya]] portrays the Reaper as a kind, merciful being towards the neglected, abused, or (in rare cases) just unlucky animals he reaps. At one point he even sends an abandoned dog in his place for the soul of a kid who died in a hospital, to the kid's delight.

* [[spoiler: Inverted]] in ''WesternAnimation/PussInBootsTheLastWish''. [[spoiler: The Wolf, a.k.a. Death, is absolutely terrifying, and he's personally hunting Puss down because he's sick of him wasting his lives.]]

** His son Death the Kid is also hardly a threatening image of death, being a teenage boy with SuperOCD. Don't try to [[BerserkButton do whatever you like with human lives]]. [[CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass He doesn't like that one bit.]]

Often applied to {{Psychopomp}}s, DeathAndTheMaiden, the GodOfTheDead and TheGrimReaper. Contrast with EverybodyHatesHades, when authors do the opposite with death-related deities. Is often a FriendlySkeleton. Compare also FriendlyGhost and FriendlyZombie. Distant cousin to TheDevilIsALoser. Compare NotAfraidToDie and WeAllDieSomeday, which is about not fearing death itself rather than its personification.

* ComicBook/MartianManhunter: The Martians worshipped H'ronmeer, the god of death and fire (though some regard him as a god of life and light), who called all Green Martians his children. He was blamed for the plague that wiped out the Martian race, but that was actually [[CainAndAbel Ma'alefa'ak]]'s fault. On one occasion, he seemed to be coming after J'onn, but in truth he just needed his help to [[{{Psychopomp}} lead the Martians' souls to the afterlife]].

** In any story involving [[Characters/MarvelComicsThanos Thanos]] (which constitutes ''most'' of the stories she appears prominently in), she is presented as a cruel, greedy, and insidiously manipulative being who enjoys causing suffering almost as much as causing death itself; and is generally depicted as the very antithesis of [[ComicBook/TheSandman DC's compassionate version of Death]]. At best, she is LawfulNeutral, often crossing over into genuine evil (she actively seduced Thanos into becoming the living murder machine he is, while still always keeping him lonely and miserable). The reason her relationship with Deadpool is so funny is ''because'' it's so unusual for her to react with sincere affection (let alone love) to ''anyone.''

* ''Fanfic/ChildOfTheStorm'' has [[ComicBook/TheSandman Death of the Endless]], who's her typical PerkyGoth self and, among other things, occasionally answers to Didi. She helps out the protagonists in little and not so little ways - little, for example, including helping Dumbledore walk an insensible Harry back into Hogwarts and hint that he'll be all right, and everything about her conversation with [[spoiler:the recently deceased Luna Lovegood]], who she essentially adopts as her little sister after she consents to take the position of Delirium (the old one having simply wandered off one day). Not so little assists include bussing in the late Alan Scott to give [[spoiler:Carol]], the new wielder of his Green Lantern Ring, a quick tutorial in how it works, and with Dream, Delirium ([[spoiler:Luna]]) and Destruction a.k.a. the Phoenix a.k.a. [[spoiler:Lily Potter]], briefly diverting [[spoiler:Maddie and Jono]] during their trip through the Nevernever to the Red Room's base, and providing them with a guide and escorts to help them rescue [[spoiler:Harry]].

* [[spoiler: Inverted]] in WesternAnimation/PussInBootsTheLastWish. [[spoiler: The Wolf, a.k.a. Death, is absolutely terrifying, and he's personally hunting Puss down because he's sick of him wasting his lives.]]

[[folder:Mythology and Religion]]

[[folder:Video Games]]
* ''VideoGame/{{Brawlhalla}}'': Has an interesting case in Nix, the Freelance Reaper, as she's not particularly nasty, just focused on her job and she likes to go for bigger prey because they pay out more. She also holds respect for fellow Psychopomp [[{{Valkyries}} Brynn]].
* ''VideoGame/ConkersBadFurDay'' features [[TomTheDarkLord Gregg the Grim Reaper.]] [[NightmareRetardant He's shorter than the squirrel protagonist, he talks like a chipmunk,]] and cats, squirrels, and other creatures with [[DeathIsCheap multiple lives]] irritate him to no end. He's not evil, just a bit of a jerk. Upon your first life lost, he introduces Conker to the concept of getting squirrel tails as lives (including giving him one) and later gives you a gun so you can kill zombies (granted, this is also to help him get rid of them, since they are a hassle for his job).
* Death in ''VideoGame/AdventureQuest'' always tells you he has filled his quota of souls for the day, and sends you back saying you owe him one. For whatever reason, he never calls in the favor. Again, played for laughs.
* Death of ''VideoGame/DeathJr.'' is portrayed as a family man who, in the comics, is happily married to a human woman and is a father who, while stern, is generally willing to show his son aspects of his job. As he once says in a comic book offshoot, "Son, there are two things you can always count on: taxes, and your old man."
* Zig-zagged a few times in ''VideoGame/FateGrandOrder'' due to its CrossoverCosmology.
** [[spoiler: Grand Assassin]] Hassan-i-Sabbah "[[InUniverseNickname First Hassan]]" shows signs of being based on the Abrahamic/Islamic interpretation of the Angel of Death. He is formal, stern, and reserved at all times, but [[CreepyGood usually willing to help those who ask for it]], provided they show him proper respect. Any time he shows up in the story is a HellYesMoment for you and a MookHorrorShow for the enemies.
** Ereshkigal, Sumerian goddess of the Underworld, is a Type-B {{Tsundere}} prone to depression and loneliness and overwhelmed by her job to the point that her goal in Babylonia is to destroy civilization so no one else will die and she can ''quit''. She ''is'' actually pretty good at her job, though; once a soul appears in the underworld she explains the rules to them, guides them to cages to stabilize their existence and explains their options to them. We see her being dramatic with one soul but she dials it back when she notices she was scaring them.
** Although we do not see him, in Lostbelt 5 [[spoiler: Hades sided with humanity against Zeus taking over the world, and was killed in battle]].
* Manny Calavera of ''VideoGame/GrimFandango'' and the page quote is a charming salesman; it just happens that he ''sells'' travel packages to carry dead souls safely through the afterlife. His job and that of his fellow Reapers is simply to ensure people get what they deserve. Most of them aren't scary at all. [[spoiler:In fact, when an earlier Reaper, Salvador, learned that good people were being denied their "sweet hereafters" and being forced to linger in the Land of the Dead, he quit his job, denying himself his 'benefits', and started a revolution.]]
** Even worse? [[spoiler:Salvador had a ticket the entire time. They stole it and forced him into working for them. That's meant to be for the really nasty people.]]
* Grenth, the human God of Death in ''VideoGame/GuildWars'' is friendly to his followers and freely allows resurrection. The Underworld quests task you with aiding his Reapers against a usurper god Dhuum.
* In ''VideoGame/{{Hades}}'' Thanatos, the AnthropomorphicPersonification of Death, is presented as a handsome young man with MysticalWhiteHair wielding a scythe and cape, and he's responsible for dealing with mortals who died peacefully (much like how later Greek myths depict him). He's the brother of PlayerCharacter Zagreus ([[spoiler:although by the time he appears Zag will already know they're NotBloodSiblings]]) and will occasionally appear to help Zagreus clear a room. He is portrayed as thoroughly sympathetic, even if he's a JerkWithAHeartOfGold who is prone to scolding Hypnos (because of his failures at work) and Zagreus (because of the mess he's caused), and even then, he's later shown to have feelings for Zagreus and is one of the LoveInterests of the game.
* Death in the first ''VisualNovel/HatofulBoyfriend'' is just a card of a reaper with a bird skull for a face, whose appearance on reaching a Bad Ending can be alarming. But in the next game, ''Holiday Star'', he's the [[spoiler: [[{{Psychopomp}} conductor on a train]] carrying souls through the afterlife]], and is amiable and a little folksy. The protagonist cheerfully claims familiarity with him and even says that they are friends, which he doesn't dispute.
** She says they've been friends since the demo, and implies it's because she's had so many bad ends. This would imply that she ''remembers'' all her bad ends.
* ''VideoGame/Hitman2016'' has a purely literal example with "Tobias Rieper" (aka the assassin Agent 47), who is human despite the name. He takes pride in being more like a force of nature than a murderer, never killing people other than his target, causing unnecessary panic, or using his strength selfishly. It's hard to fear someone who plays "La Cucaracha" for fun, however [[NothingPersonal cold]] they may be otherwise.
** No less culpable in 47's deeds is his superior, Diana Burnwood. She is the reason that ''a lot'' of drug lords, blackmailers, and other murderers of various stripes can't hurt anyone anymore, and [[LighterAndSofter in later games]] only accepts contracts on people she believes have it coming. She isn't hypocritical, either- [[spoiler:her parents were murdered for no fault of their own, yet she forgives their assassin]] and continues in her own bloody job, still certain that death can be more of a benefit to the world than a curse. [[spoiler:Notably, she does not blame 47 at all when he shoots her in ''Absolution''.]]
* Mara, one of the gods from the ''VideoGame/{{Incursion}}'', puts a big emphasis on fulfillment and resolution; she is surprisingly free with resurrections for her worshipers. Unusually for this trope, she is also the goddess of TheUndead and doesn't view them as [[AlwaysChaoticEvil abominations]].
* [[{{Psychopomp}} The Spirit Monk]] from ''VideoGame/JadeEmpire'' can be nice and helpful to departed souls if the player chooses. The Spirit Monk's boss, the Water Dragon, spends most of the game [[DeathTakesAHoliday incapacitated]] [[AndIMustScream in a grisly fashion]], but takes the form of a benevolent, kindly woman known as the Shepherd of the Dead. Like a Jesus/Guan Yin combo.
* [[EmotionlessGirl Lamb]] and [[BloodKnight Wolf]], the [[TheDividual divided entities]] of [[TheGrimReaper Kindred]] in ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends'', {{zigzag|gingTrope}} with this trope all over the place. At every individual's death, Lamb and Wolf appear, and said individual is forced to choose between accepting Lamb or fleeing from Wolf. [[FaceDeathWithDignity Accepting Lamb]] means a peaceful and painless death when the time comes. Try to run, though, and Wolf will ensure that your end is painful and violent as a price [[YouCantFightFate for attempting to prolong your life]].
* [[CloudCuckooLander Uncle Death]] in ''VideoGame/LetItDie'' is a Finnish skateboarding {{otaku}} who guides you throughout the game, looks up to you, and even calls you "senpai". [[spoiler:He was supposed to wipe out humanity after you defeat the Fourth Don, but since he likes playing with you he decides not to.]]
* Krypta, the Goddess of Death in ''VideoGame/{{Majesty}}'', is apparently quite compassionate and egalitarian. One of the character vignettes has a priestess of Krypta teaming up with a [[LawfulGood Paladin of Dauros]] to destroy some monsters who had been killing pointlessly.
* In ''VideoGame/ManualSamuel'', despite being a TotallyRadical moron who’s “dressed like a douchebag for some reason”, Death is a pretty nice guy who gives Samuel a second chance at life out of the kindness of his heart (and because he wanted to use Sam’s [[FictionalCurrency Shreds of Life]] to buy a new skateboard).
* ''VideoGame/MaximoGhostsToGlory'' has Grim, TheGrimReaper, who is a all around pleasant guy and a wise-ass. [[VideoGame/MaximoVsArmyOfZin The sequel game]] shows that it's not just a job for him, he feels paternal to the souls he guards and hates to see them trapped or used for evil. In fact, in the second game he even directly helps Maximo this time by functioning as the game's SuperMode, temporarily replacing Maximo.
* The grim reaper in ''VideoGame/NappleTale'' is a odd, overly-polite little [[OurFairiesAreDifferent flower fairy]] creature who is the [[ButtMonkey butt of a lot of jokes]] over the course of the game for incompetence. Granted, he earned it when he claimed the heroine instead of the ''cat'' he was sent for.
* ''VideoGame/NeverwinterNights'':
** Death in the ''VideoGame/NeverwinterNights2'' mod saga ''VideoGame/DarkWaters'' is portrayed as a long-suffering hard-working bureaucrat who decides he's just not going to process your character because he's busy, thus excusing your deaths in-game. This is PlayedForLaughs.
** The actual Reaper of ''Hordes of the Underdark'' is benign, and merely opens many doors for you to take once you reach his realm, provided you have the means of paying him to be resurrected...[[spoiler: This is later used against you once it is revealed that his true name was discovered by the BigBad Mephistopheles. Said archdevil used him until the perfect moment so that the hero would be trapped in Cania (read: Hell) and so that the Reaper would not be able to help them escape. And even then the Reaper still steers you towards a way to free you from this problem (as well as himself from this servitude)]].
* ''VideoGame/NocturneInYellow'': While Morena isn't particularly friendly and is fought as a boss, she repeatedly warns Vikenti to turn back and seems genuinely reluctant to kill him, letting him off with a warning in [[HopelessBossFight her first boss fight]]. Even when she is actually trying to kill him, it's mostly just to spare him the fate that would befall him if he was defeated by the island's SoulEating [[EldritchAbomination master]]. After she's defeated she relents, helping Vikenti move forward to face the island's master so he can kill it.
* ''VideoGame/Persona3'' has few examples:
** First is [[spoiler:Nyx]], who is described being the Bringer of Death, and the one who will kill everyone during [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt the Fall]]. However, she is not malevolent, but rather believes that what people want is death and she would be the one to bring it. [[spoiler:She's not even ''wrong'', as it's Erebus, the [[TheHeartless embodiment of humanity's collective desire for death]], calling out to Nyx that is the true catalyst of the Fall. When the protagonist [[HeroicSacrifice gave his soul to seal Nyx away]], what he actually did was prevent Erebus from making contact with her.]]
** Her Avatar, who is even called Death, is really friendly in his two human forms ([[spoiler:the mysterious boy with amnesia called Pharos and TheCasanova transfer student Ryoji Mochizuki]]). He even offers to erase your memories of everything so that you can die in peace.
* ''VideoGame/PersonaQShadowOfTheLabyrinth'' has [[spoiler: Zen]], who used to be an uncaring god of death until he took pity on one departed soul, and has since become a much kinder being. How much so? [[spoiler: He's one of your party members.]]
* In the point-and-click game ''[[https://www.bigfishgames.com/games/8374/riddles-of-fate-memento-mori-ce/ Riddles of Fate: Memento Mori]]'', Death wears sinister armor and is [[GutturalGrowler gravelly-voiced]], but he's ultimately a well-meaning young man who seeks to maintain the balance between life and death: In order for new souls to be born, [[YouCantFightFate people who are fated to die must die]]. Those who ScrewDestiny face severe consequences, as their attempts often involve exploiting the lives of others to prolong their own life (or the lives of their loved ones).
* In ''VideoGame/RuneScape'', the [[http://runescape.wikia.com/wiki/Grim_Reaper Grim Reaper]] may be a skeleton in a black robe, but he is friendly, has a good sense of humour, [[TheKnightsWhoSaySquee is a great fan of a certain rock band]], and [[ShoutOut had]] the CatchPhrase of "[[{{Franchise/Pokemon}} Gotta reap 'em all]]". Death is also one of the Guardians of Guthix, a band of [[TheChosenOne Chosen Ones]] by the god most conscientious of mortal rights. In [=RS3=], Death will even [[BagOfSpilling retrieve your belongings]] when you're killed, for a small fee (not applicable in the Wilderness). He's also a bit overworked, and will offer you Slayer tasks involving boss monsters whose souls he needs to make his quota.
** Icthlarin of the Menaphite pantheon also qualifies, being the equivalent of Anubis or Osiris and hence the god of guiding souls into the afterlife. He and Death are good friends, to the point that Sliske holds Death hostage during the quest "Missing, Presumed Death" to guarantee Icthlarin's cooperation. Sadly, Icthlarin's sister Amascut (a splice of Ammut and Sehkmet), formerly the goddess of rebirth for the just and punishment for the unjust, has [[GodOfEvil gone round the bend]].
* In ''VideoGame/ShinMegamiTenseiIV'', Charon is willing to let the player go for a relatively small price. He says that it's mostly because he's really overworked, [[spoiler:most likely still processing people from the apocalypse a few centuries ago]]. If you decline, he actually complains that you don't want to come back to life, and if you refuse a second time he'll let you queue up for the afterlife, but makes it clear that he really doesn't want to do it.
* ''VideoGame/TheSims'' series portrays the Grim Reaper very kindly; he listens to pleas for dead sims to be revived, and he gives a chance for the Sims to win back their loved ones, and even if they failed at his little game, he might bring them back as zombies anyway. He also gives discounts on children's resurrections. He enjoys watching [=TV=], and if he arrives at a party, he might party with the residents, even though he always spoils the mood with his arrival. Oh that silly Reaper.
** If a sim dies of old age while in Platinum Aspiration in ''VideoGame/TheSims2'', the Reaper shows up in a flower lei, accompanied by hula girl zombies, to send your sim on an eternal vacation to Tropical Paradise Heaven.
** One of the plot hooks in Strangetown is the product of an affair between the local BlackWidow and the friendly guy who kept coming for her husbands.
** Thanks to the University expansion, you can even call the Reaper and bribe him to resurrect your loved ones (or bargain with him as they're dying). He offers a reduced rate for children, but stiffing him otherwise can have [[ZombieApocalypse some unpleasant consequences.]]
** If you have the Pets expansion, the Reaper will [[PetTheDog play with your dogs and cats]] when he comes for them.
** Though he does have his temper. In ''Sims 3 University Life'', if you rant against him, he will strike down your sim. He does resurrect them and tells them not to do that again as he's got a job to do.
** One amusing glitch can happen in Sims 3. One tumblr user reported that a sims' husband died a few minutes before the female sim started to give birth. This causes all [=NPCs=] on the lot to panic at that... Including Death. Another posted "What do I do? This is the opposite of my job!"
** The Sims 4 adds to this even more. If the Grim Reaper comes to your lot to reap a sim, he will stay, and be interacted with. Your sim can come up and try to be his friend, and it will work! There's even an in-game achievement for doing this.
--->'''Grim:''' Aww, how can you not trust this face?
* ''Videogame/SoulNomadAndTheWorldEaters'':
** The [[TheGrimReaper Master of Death]] of the protagonist's homeworld, Vigilance, was picked for the position by the world's chief god specifically because of his kindness and compassion, knowing that he would be far more appropriate than anyone callous or indifferent. Unfortunately, Median believed he was responsible for causing the death of his child and killed him, leaving the souls of the dead unguarded and causing souls to be slowly stolen from the world.
** Gig, a Master of Death from another world, is an aversion: He's cruel, genocidal, rude, arrogant and essentially void of redeeming characteristics. He was sent to kill every living thing in Haephnes and did a pretty good job of it until Median's daughter managed a double knockout and sealed his soul into a black sword. [[spoiler:Later revelations make it clear that Gig and Vigilance are the same person, but the god Drazil corrupted his soul because, once again, there was no one to guard it. It was then sent back. As Gig slowly awakens to his former life, he mellows out and reaches a middle ground between the perfect and compassionate Vigilance and the omnicidal Gig.]]
* ''Videogame/{{Spiritfarer}}'': The protagonist, Stella, is a Spiritfarer, a {{Psychopomp}} whose job is to find lost souls and help them deal with their unresolved emotional problems so that they can pass on to the afterlife.
* In the [=RPG=] Maker game ''Tales From The Reaper'', Reapers effectively form the MagicalUnderpinningsOfReality, and there are Reapers of life, afterlife, death, nature, physics, the "unseen world", and even free will. The Reaper in charge of death hates her job, by the way.
* ''Franchise/TouhouProject'':
** Not-so-grim reaper Komachi is often portrayed as a HardDrinkingPartyGirl whenever she isn't [[DeathTakesAHoliday napping for days on end]]. She basically just wants to "go at her own pace", which happens to be lethargic, even by a (non-flying) turtle's standards, and is notably bright and cheery any time it involves anything besides the drudgery of [[OneHourWorkWeek doing her job]]. Fanon aside, it seems her sloth comes from trying to do her job ''too well'' and spending too much time with each soul rather than working efficiently and heartlessly to meet her quota like she's supposed to. She also takes breaks to give advice to the living.
** Komachi's boss Eiki, who judges the dead, is often portrayed equally comically by the fandom, as a workaholic who spends much of her time stressing out about Komachi's (lack of) work habits, and her own days off [[PokeThePoodle committing laughably minor misdeeds]].
* ''VideoGame/VegaStrike'' [[WelcomeToCorneria apparently]] has "The [[Literature/TheMoonIsAHarshMistress Mistress]]" as a part of the in-'[[TheVerse verse]] folklore. Looks great in the GameOver screen[[note]]DXT format[[/note]], anyway.
* The Grim Reaper is one of the many superheroes in ''VideoGame/TheWonderful101'', codenamed "Wonder Death". We don't get much info about his personality (since he's one of the minor characters), but since he's a superhero, he can't be all that bad.
* The Reapers in ''VideoGame/TheWorldEndsWithYou'' are a varied group, but a good number are just [[PunchClockVillain regular dudes doing their jobs]], and over the course of the game Neku becomes friends with a handful of them.

[[folder:Web Comics]]
* An uncredited comic strip shows Death picking up a recently deceased dog. The dog asks "Was I a good boy?" Death responds, shaking a bag of treats, "No. I'm told you were the best." It was ultimately turned into a [[https://knowyourmeme.com/photos/1346018-whos-a-good-boy this]] comic / meme template.
* ''Webcomic/{{Apocalyptic Horseplay}}'': Mot, the personification of death. He looks just like typical grandpa, maybe with a little bony knees... He is also the nicest of Horsemen, and the one who convinced them to settle down instead of bringing constant chaos to earth. His appearance is somehow close to Literature/{{Discworld}} Death, with his [[PaintingTheMedium heavy way of speaking]], kindness to humans and lack of understanding them in the same time.
* ''Gashapon Shop'' has the Grim Reaper's angsty nephew, who, on his first day, goes for his target's nephew to slightly similar names. He later cracks a few jokes and aids the heroes, but he doesn't show up often.
* The world of ''Webcomic/GunnerkriggCourt'' has {{Psychopomp}}s from [[FantasyKitchenSink all cultures]] to help the newly deceased [[GoIntoTheLight enter the Ether]]. They range from fuzzy dogs to old women to the [[TheUnseen unseen]] [[BigCreepyCrawlies insect guide Ketrak]], all of them quite personable and concerned for their charges' well-being. Annie was {{pals|WithJesus}} with a lot of them prior to their falling-out [[spoiler:when they didn't show up to collect her mother's spirit]], and the owl-headed Muut makes overtures to try to mend their relationship.
* The title character from the webcomic ''Webcomic/{{Jack|DavidHopkins}}'' is ass-ugly, he's mean, he WILL hunt you down viciously if you try to run away from him, he's one of the Seven Deadly Sins, and [[spoiler: in life, he was an evil dictator who wiped out all of humanity]]. However, he also genuinely cares about the souls he guides to the afterlife (he gets mad when reasonably decent people get condemned to Hell), and even denizens of Hell. And sweet mother of potatoes is he nicer than the ''other'' sins.[[note]]Except Sloth. But Sloth is merely the ground of Hell, so it's disqualified.[[/note]]
* ''Webcomic/FindersKeepers'' features a Gaiman-inspired PerkyGoth Death, the youngest of the nine Powers That Be, the highest authorities beyond The Veil. She does have rather nasty skeleton-and-cowl enforcers. She seems to have a soft spot for Card, though.´
* ''[[Sandbox/{{Reapertale}} Reapertale]]'' is an ''VideoGame/{{Undertale}}'' AU where all the characters are Gods, each having a role mirroring the one they have in the game. The position of the [[TheGrimReaper God of Death]] is shared between two characters due to an accident when creating the role. So why does this trope apply? The gods of Death are [[AllLovingHero Papy]][[NiceGuy rus]] and [[ForGreatJustice Sans]]. Anyone with even passing knowledge of the game should know that the two are [[DarkIsNotEvil among the kindest and most righteous characters in the setting.]] Papyrus is this even more so, as he's not only the one who escorts you to the afterlife, acording to WordOfGod, he represents the ''kinder'' side of Death and always takes the time of day to comfort the spirits of the dead and help them accept the afterlife, unlike Sans who takes them by force ([[JustifiedTrope He only does that]] because he knows first hand [[ComeBackWrong what happens]] when the soul isn't reaped [[GoneHorriblyWrong properly]]). Sans's role, in contrast to Papyrus is, as expected, to judge the dead, but canonically he's LawfulGood when judges you in the game. He is also TheHero who opposes [[HumanoidAbomination Chara]], who stole one of Sans's scythes to become the BigBad and the kind of Death that ''should'' be feared.
* Death from ''Webcomic/SlightlyDamned'', though initially intimidating, is [[https://www.sdamned.com/comic/68 very friendly]]. [[spoiler:However, ''that'' Death has been revealed to be the angel Darius, the adoptive father the boy he is hugging. The real Death appears to be much less pleasant.]]
* In ''Webcomic/TheAdventuresOfDrMcNinja'', Death, while still retaining the black clothing (albeit a suit) and skeletal appearance, is a mostly-polite British waiter who guides you to your table in Purgatory, which is a restaurant.
* Death from ''Webcomic/DeathAndTheMaiden'' is a generally genial guy with a crush on a human girl.
* Death from ''WebComic/{{Fanboys}}'' is a pretty chill and laid-back guy, but he has a ''very'' [[http://www.fanboys-online.com/index.php?id=269 twisted sense of humor]].
* Dee, from the Spanish webcomic ''Webcomic/{{CROWLEY}}'', usually looks like a cheerful little girl and is quite friendly and kind, and a friend of the main character. Unless you piss her off, then she can be downright terrifying.
* Death in ''Webcomic/ProblemSleuth'' is a nice enough guy, willing to let you drink tea and play games for your life. He's also pretty ineffectual at his job, as most of the characters who end up in the afterlife [[DeathIsCheap escape through the door]].
* The deaths in ''Webcomic/IrregularWebcomic'' are [[PunchClockVillain just trying to meet quota]] so they don't get demoted or fired. One can't help feel sorry for [[IneffectualSympatheticVillain Death of]] [[StuffBlowingUp Insanely Overpowered Fireballs]], who can't even manage to harvest people from the [[{{Expy}} Montana]] [[Franchise/IndianaJones Jones]] storylines... even though half the time they're set on ''[[MadeOfExplodium hydrogen zeppelins]]'' manned by trigger-happy [[ThoseWackyNazis Nazis]]. Or, most of the time, the fantasy storylines, which contain a character for whom "[[KillItWithFire cast ridiculously huge fireball]]" is TheAllSolvingHammer.
** Other Deaths become sympathetic due to other mistreatment. The Death of Being Wrestled to Death by Steve (a Steve Irwin parody)...got wrestled to death by Steve.
* Death in ''Muertitos'' takes the form of a vaguely humanoid mass of black, inky substance with a single eye. While somewhat creepy, he's a reasonable enough guy, and popular enough to have once had his own children's cartoon.
* The scrapyard robot in ''Webcomic/{{Freefall}}'' is pretty nice for a robot built to take apart other robots (and who carries a scythe). He even allows them to buy themselves as scrap (including lending them money if they can't afford it) so they don't need to be disassembled (not to mention exist without an owner).
* While the other "The Last Trick-or-Treaters" strips by R.K. Milholland of ''Webcomic/SomethingPositive'' fame are frightening, [[http://www.rhymes-with-witch.com/rww10242011a.shtml this one]] starring TheGrimReaper and an unfortunate trick-or-treater is oddly touching.
* In ''Webcomic/TheOrderOfTheStick'': [[LizardFolk Malack]] argues that while death gods get a bad reputation, they should be viewed as neutral by default. Death claims everyone, not just the righteous. [[spoiler:His own patron god, Nergal, is almost certainly evil though: Malack is his high priest and his goal is, after his allies have passed on (from old age or otherwise), to begin mass sacrifices to Nergal on a scale that the gladiator games cannot compare to.]]
* Deidre from ''Webcomic/{{Rhapsodies}}'' is always friendly and [[http://rhapsodies.wpmorse.com/?p=4037 wishes her clients well]] before leading them into the [[GoIntoTheLight light.]]
* ''Webcomic/{{Housepets}}'': Cerberus is first seen in her new job as the Reaper giving a cookie to a drowned puppy. She apparently took the job [[http://www.housepetscomic.com/2013/03/18/hereafter-thereafter/ for the opportunity to work with kids]]
* Death in ''Webcomic/JohnnyWander'' is an awkward guy who falls in love with a human girl, accidentally [[StrippedToTheBone skeletonizing]] her hand with a kiss and then being too shy to approach her for eighty years, which incidentally prevents her from aging. [[spoiler:They get together in the end.]]
* In ''Webcomic/{{Curtailed}}'', Mandy shows us [[http://curtailedcomic.com/comic/sketchbook05/ a reaper]] that is so cute it would be almost impossible for ''anyone'' to fear it.
* In ''Webcomic/{{Godslave}}'', Anpu, the reaper in question, argues for it, stating that his job simply entails keeping the world from spinning out of control.
* In ''Webcomic/HolyBibble'', Azrael -- the angel of death -- is a blond-haired, blue-eyed angel who values the well-being of the mortals she collects more than some of her fellow fallen.
* In ''Webcomic/{{Deities}}'', Death is very friendly towards humans. He also has a very cute appearance and has even had a human girlfriend.
* In ''[[http://overmorrowtales.com/death/cover.php A Dance with Death]]'', the AnthropomorphicPersonification of Death is rather glum about the impending end of the world and chooses to [[spoiler:dance with Hope]] rather than celebrate with the other HorsemenOfTheApocalypse.
--> '''Death:''' I come peacefully at times. I can be beautiful.
* [[http://thenextreaper.smackjeeves.com/comics/2213685/prologue-page-1/ The Next Reaper]] gives us two flavors of this: Death itself is a very by-the-book and responsible character. He's extremely annoyed at the irresponsibility of his creator, Shapeless, and is ''pissed'' at God and the Devil for them leaving their responsibilities behind. His son, Grim, is a different kind entirely. He's extremely regretful at the prospect of killing, and always attempts to bargain his way out of conflict before resorting to violence.
* In ''Creator/AGnosis''' comics on [[Myth/ClassicalMythology Greek myth]], Hades is a {{Workaholic}} with NoSocialSkills, but is unfailingly dutiful and compassionate towards the dead. He doesn't see why the living are so afraid of him, since they're outside his bailiwick and he has no interest in killing anyone prematurely.
* The ''Webcomic/LovingReaper'' series of comics by [[https://jenny-jinya.com/?fbclid=IwAR2ppzgvw1P1ADzIhsrvbfjnplegiZvrfsf_ukqLXe_3gQybx9eIntkiJ4Q Jenny-Jinya]] portrays the Reaper as a kind, merciful being towards the neglected, abused, or (in rare cases) just unlucky animals he reaps. At one point he even sends an abandoned dog in his place for the soul of a kid who died in a hospital, to the kid's delight.

[[folder:Web Original]]
* ''WebAnimation/{{Childrinrskary}}'': The Childrin may indeed be scary, but Death, despite the skeleton-in-a-cloak-with-a-scythe look, is a kindly and benevolent figure :
** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8_PXaDBIPR8&feature=emb_title Death 'n' Elsie]].
** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=2&v=YfOSynJuN1M&feature=emb_title An Elephant's Memory]].
** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gkY-oFar9OE&feature=emb_rel_pause A Parting Gift]].
* Death from ''WebVideo/TheTimeGuys'' is pretty cool and takes time out of his [[PungeonMaster killer]] schedule to go to a bar with Dr. Chronos when Timmy and Caveman were unavailable for the weekend.
* ''[[http://yamiredpen.deviantart.com/art/Shadows-299982772 Shadows]]'', which concerns Death and a sick little girl, who isn't real keen on leaving, however, as he takes her, he decides to show her a nice time and dances with her, which puts her at ease with leaving.
* [[https://vine.co/v/OVA2DLUWdWl This Vine]] entitled "The First Angel to Greet You in Heaven."
-->"Hey! That wasn't so bad, was it? Come on, I'll show you the buffet."
* In the short film ''WebAnimation/TheLifeOfDeath'' (otherwise known as ''Death and the Deer'' by fans), Death is given a bit more of a human but child-like side and is genuinely unhappy with his place in nature, until he meets a doe and stays alongside her, until she becomes too weak to catch up with the rest of her herd, thus, she goes to him for a FinalFirstHug.
* ''Podcast/TheAdventureZoneBalance'' has Kravitz, TheGrimReaper, who prevents souls from escaping or avoiding the afterlife as part of the cycle of life and death. If he comes for you personally, you're in major trouble, but he's not a bad or even unreasonable person. He's willing to bend the rules for the heroes due to how important their work is, and even agrees to play a game of cards with Magnus so that the latter has the chance to save an innocent soul. All in all, he's just a person with a very unusual job that he takes very seriously. [[spoiler:[[BoyMeetsGhoul He even falls in love with Taako]].]]
* ''Website/SCPFoundation'':
** [[http://www.scp-wiki.wikidot.net/scp-3540 SCP-3540]] is the activity of two grim reapers designated SCP-3540-1 and SCP-3540-2. The reapers, Maurice and Lance, are gay lovers who save up vacation time to take a shared break from their jobs as {{psychopomp}}s to live domestically and participate in the [[UsefulNotes/AllHallowsEve Hallowe'en]] season. The two try not to impede upon the neighbors of the abandoned houses they move into, are hospitable to their visitors, and would [[HasTwoDaddies adopt and raise]] a presumably-mortal child were it not for [[HeteronormativeCrusader certain]] [[FantasticLegalWeirdness limitations]]. Their SCP entry invokes the trope with its title, ''Don't [[{{Pun}} Queer]] the Reaper''.
** [[http://www.scp-wiki.wikidot.net/scp-4999 SCP-4999]] shows up to people who are on the brink of death who have no loved ones or otherwise close individuals to comfort them as they die.
** In the Foundation universe, the grim reaper is a group called the [[DecompositeCharacter Three Brothers of Death]]. The Small-Death represents the death of the individual, the nameless Second represents the death of the many, and the All-Death represents forces outside our control, both natural and supernatural. At their worst, they're TrueNeutral; they can be petty and especially don't like to be cheated, but they're only trying to do their job. They're still kind to the souls of the dead and All-Death claims they collect them in order to protect them. It's also implied that [=SCP-4999=] is actually the Small-Death.
* In the CreepyPasta ''My Grandfather Made a Deal with Death,'' the narrator recounts how his grandpa met Death in the trenches of UsefulNotes/WorldWarI, and cheated him at a coin flip, and would always tell him that Death smelled horrific- rotten meat, ammonia, etc. As his grandfather becomes more and more decrepit, he fears that he has been given AgeWithoutYouth, and he'll just get older and older until he's in a living hell. However, Death visits him and tells him that he (Death) 'd always known about the coin flip being rigged, he (Grandpa) was just scheduled to die at 96. The narrator sees this whole conversation, and says that Death's scent was Christmas dinner, his mother's perfume, and Grandma's cookies all at once. Death smells of comfort, not horror.
* One Website/{{Tumblr}} [[https://pics.me.me/ineed-hug-i-dont-know-why-everyone-makes-the-grim-16373394.png post]] wonders why the Grim Reaper is seen as a bad guy when he's just there to take you to the afterlife. They mention that it's actually quite nice of him to walk you there- if you had to walk to the afterlife alone, it would suck.
* {{Downplayed|Trope}} by [[Literature/AChristmasCarol the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come]] in ''WebVideo/EpicRapBattlesOfHistory''. Like the other ghosts, he's trying to show Scrooge the error of his ways and make him a better person, but he does so by [[BrutalHonesty harshly spelling out]] how Scrooge is going to die alone and unmourned if he doesn't clean up his act. Though intimidating and harsh, he comes across as more of a 'punisher of the wicked' than an 'evil spirit'. If Scrooge weren't a selfish man, they wouldn't be having this conversation.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Western Animation]]
* ''WesternAnimation/TheGrimAdventuresOfBillyAndMandy'':
** Grim can seem like a scary guy when he's REAPING someone and he can also be ''very'' evil and nasty if you make him angry enough, but on the whole, he's not that bad a guy and is arguably the nicest character on the show. The true evil here is [[EnfantTerrible Mandy]].
** The HalloweenEpisode is one good example. At the beginning, he tells Billy and Mandy via {{Flashback}} how Jack (as in Jack o'Lantern) tricked him into making him immortal. Grim did so, but retaliated by [[OffWithHisHead cutting his head off]]. ("Gee, Grim, I didn't know you had it in you," comments Mandy.) During the course of the episode, Jack comes gunning for revenge, nearly destroying the whole town, and at the end of the episode, Grim loses his patience and has the guy DraggedOffToHell, proving he's still got it and that he's the hero in this encounter.[[note]]It helps that in that case, his "victim" was a SmugSnake and a [[AssholeVictim sadistic trickster,]] who's initial death was due to his former victims giving him a taste of his own medicine.[[/note]]
** Another good example is when Grim sees a boy about to skateboard into a construction area, and decides to rescue him rather than let him die and be reaped.
** He's also on good terms with the staff and residents of a retirement home, the receptionist greeting him amiably.
--->'''Receptionist:''' Hi, Grim!\\
'''Grim:''' ''(smiles)'' ‘Sup, Gloria?\\
'''Receptionist:''' Ohh, here for Mr. Silverman?\\
'''Grim:''' No, that’s ''next'' week.
* ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'': Several episodes have revolved around Peter dealing with Death, and he's often a lot more down-to-earth than most of the human characters on the show--although Death does have a tendency toward using his Touch of Death to get out of awkward situations. Being voiced by Creator/NormMacdonald then Creator/AdamCarolla definitely helps him be seen as a likeable if somewhat sarcastic guy. Just don't look [[NightmareFace under his hood.]]
* In ''WesternAnimation/MaryShelleysFrankenhole'', TheGrimReaper is a bit of a goofball, but every mortal fears him for the obvious reasons. This annoys him when Frankenstein gives him no respect at all as he's immortal and has nothing to fear.
* In ''WesternAnimation/{{Animaniacs}}'' the Reaper is LaughablyEvil, and the three protagonists are able to scare him away as easily as they could anyone else.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
* ''Series/GuardianTheLonelyAndGreatGod'': Wang Yeo is a Grim Reaper (instead of just one Death there are lots of them in the series) and starts out indifferent to humans but not antagonistic towards them. He becomes a lot warmer once he befriends Eun-tak and falls in love with Sunny.
* ''Series/{{Grimm}}'': Gevatter Tod are assassin bug Wesen who use their saliva to peacefully euthanize senile Wesen who pose a threat to society (and the {{Masquerade}}) with uncontrolled woging and violent behavior. They only do it with the consent of their victims' families, are very respectful and solemn, and have never forced the Grimms to go after them.
* The Japanese live-action drama ''Shinigami-kun'' based on the manga of the same name is portrayed as someone who can pass for human, albeit a human with a rather odd taste in clothes. He frequently shows up to congratulate the soon-to-be-dearly-departed on their impending demise, and tell them that they have three days left to live and to tie up and loose ends. He's also baffled and often rather hurt that - with one exception - none of the people he mentions this to are all that happy about the heads up.
* ''Series/TheTwilightZone1959'':
** "[[Recap/TheTwilightZoneS3E81NothingInTheDark Nothing in the Dark]]". A woman frightened of dying allows a wounded police officer (played by a young Creator/RobertRedford) into her apartment. When she realizes that he's Death come to claim her, [[https://youtu.be/9tfyv4BZRug he tries to convince her that she shouldn't fear death]].
--->''Mother, give me your hand... You see. No shock. No engulfment. No tearing asunder. What you feared would come like an explosion is like a whisper. What you thought was the end is the beginning.'' -- Death, assuring the old woman that her journey has just begun.\\
...
--->''Am I really that frightening? Before you knew who I was, you sat with me. Talked with me.''
** With one or two exceptions, Death is regularly portrayed as a very polite man -- often a businessman wearing a [[SharpDressedMan nice suit]]. Which, when you think about it, is probably a good thing since his job is to "welcome" people into death, not to make them run away from it.
** One character, Mr. Bookman, gets to make a deal to extend his life to finish his life's ambition, [[Recap/TheTwilightZone1959S1E2OneForTheAngels to make "a pitch for the angels"]]. Death agrees but is annoyed when Bookman [[LoopholeAbuse decides to retire]] and says [[BalancingDeathsBooks he'll take a life of a little girl instead]], flinging Bookman's loophole back in his face when he tries to break the deal himself. This leads Bookman to make a pitch to Death of a collection of worthless trinkets (ties, threads and matches) in order to make Death miss his appointment with the girl, thus completing his life's ambition of a big sale that made a difference. Either Death set the whole thing up just to make his client feel better or you can trick him by selling him cheap shoe polish; either way no need to fear him.
--->'''Bookman''': Oh, excuse me, I forgot something. I'll be back in a minute. [gathers up his box full of merchandise] You never know who might need something, up there... (''hopefully'') [[FluffyCloudHeaven Up there]]?\\
'''Death''': Up there, Mr. Bookman. [[WhatYouAreInTheDark You made it]].
* ''Series/TheTwilightZone1985'' revival featured an episode where Death was cold and emotionally distant, but not evil or malicious. He regards a woman who has become fascinated with him with curiosity, but never animosity; eventually, he allows her to become his partner and she embodies the trope more closely by helping to comfort the dying as they are taken.
* In ''Series/TheTwilightZone2002'' revival, the episode "A Night In Mercy", Death is a kind man who doesn't like his job at all and admires a doctor for having the power to give life. Death decides to give up his job, and the doctor quickly finds out how vital it is when incurable burn patients are unable to die and are thus left in agony. [[spoiler:When the doctor dies at the end of the episode, Death admits that he's tempted to let him go back to life, but both of them agree that it's just the way things go.]]
* ''Series/TouchedByAnAngel'' has Andrew, who's a cheerful, friendly, and attractive 30-ish man. His predecessor Adam (not [[AdamAndEvePlot that Adam]]... probably) was also a pretty nice guy.
* Played with in ''Series/DeadLikeMe'': the reapers are all former [[DysfunctionJunction semi-normal]] people, and are often quite friendly and reassuring, but are also likely to steal from the newly dead and basically behave like people in a customer service job they're not being paid to do.
* ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'':
** Tessa, one of the Reapers. Admittedly, some of the other Reapers we see range from creepy to outright scary, but Tessa appears to spirits as a gorgeous, compassionate, and genuinely sweet servant of Death, [[spoiler:and Sam and Dean even willingly save her from meeting a grisly fate in season four]]. Though during her role there, she's a bit more snippy than in her first appearance, mostly dismissing the brothers when they try to help a dead young boy who has yet to pass on. The reason being, for the latter, was that [[spoiler:she was supposed to take Dean, until he was brought back to life by Azazel, thanks to his dad making a deal]].
** Death himself, the boss of the Reapers, also appears. Death is a CosmicEntity who is as old as the universe and about the same age as God. He runs on BlueAndOrangeMorality and has seen the death of entire galaxies and will eventually ''[[BeyondTheImpossible reap God!]]'' Hence, he is ''[[DoNotTauntCthulhu extremely pissed off]]'' that he is bound to one tiny planet circling around a barely newborn sun in a young galaxy that usually wouldn't even be a blip on his radar, due to "a spoilt brat having a tantrum" (a.k.a [[{{Satan}} Lucifer]]). [[DidWeJustHaveTeaWithCthulhu Dean has a little problem swallowing his pizza after being told this.]] Just a gentle reminder that, no matter how much of a threat Lucifer may seem, there is AlwaysABiggerFish. A ''much'' bigger fish. This Death is also given a very human trait, one he shares with Dean: he really likes cheap but tasty food such as pizza, bacon dogs, and fried pickles.
** In a later episode Dean wants Death's help [[spoiler: to restore Sam's soul]] and Death gives him a test where Dean has to do Death's duties for a day. Dean [[spoiler:fails the test but attempts to fix his mistake as much as he can]]. Death is impressed that Dean was able to understand the seriousness and importance of Death's job and [[spoiler:gives Sam his soul back]].
** When the Winchesters deal with Death he's usually quite snarky and dispassionate because he feels they're wasting his time by asking him for favors. However, when he's reaping someone he appears quite polite and complimentary and finds it an honor to guide specific people to the afterlife.
* Death is a recurring character in the older BBC series ''Mulberry'', which is appropriate given that the titular character Mulberry is his own son, tasked with cheering up a dour old woman before Death comes to call on business. He spends a good deal of his appearances arguing with Mulberry about how his job isn't a bad thing and how he'd like it if Mulberry would stop asking for extensions on the time he's got.
* ''Series/MarriedWithChildren'': After years of begging for Death, Al Bundy gets his wish. Good news: Death offers Al a way out. Bad news: Death can assume any appearance, so naturally it chose his wife Peggy. (And is quite a DeadpanSnarker to boot.)
* Weirdly enough, there is an ''Series/{{NCIS}}'' episode that implicitly features the Angel of Death. She appears as a little girl, and mostly just appears to be dropping in to check on her next cases.
* A Creator/RowanAtkinson sketch titled [[https://youtu.be/Ut116mBuPpg "The Devil's Welcome"]] plays with this hilariously.
--> '''The Devil:''' Now, you're all here for..... Eternity! Ooh, which I hardly need tell you is a heck of a long time, so you'll all get to know each other pretty well by the end.\\
But for now I'm going to have to split you up in groups.\\
'''''Will You Stop Screaming!'''''
* ''Series/MysteriousWays'': Declan starts worrying that his teaching assistant, a not at all scary looking young woman, is the Angel of Death and she has come for him. Throughout the course of the episode, and in dealing with his own potential illness, it is revealed that she is actually the Angel of Comfort (the same one who visited him when his dad died.) The Angel of Death does not appear.
* Several Angels of Death appear in ''Series/{{Charmed|1998}}'', one in the form of a friendly black janitor, and the other in the form of a wise, insightful (but very, ''very'' snarky) British guy. His first appearance goes out of its way to preach that he is not an evil entity - and other appearances have BalancingDeathsBooks as a plot point. [[spoiler:Piper]] even gets to be the Angel of Death and help people transition to death.
* Death as portrayed in ''Series/HorribleHistories'' is a hot-blooded, chummy CloudCuckooLander who looks quite intimidating and has a very mocking sense of humour (his ''raison d'etre'' is to laugh at [[BlackComedy tales of people who die in stupid ways]], to SoUnfunnyItsFunny levels) but is otherwise a really NiceGuy. The worst he'll do is make a terrible pun about the way you died, laugh at you insultingly for a while, and then let you into the Afterlife. He also sings songs.
* ''Series/AmericanHorrorStoryAsylum'' has Shachath, an angel of death. She uses her KissOfDeath to [[MercyKill release people from pain and suffering]]. Her encounter with [[{{Satan}} Sister Mary Eunice]] makes it quite clear that the two oppose each other.
* Oddly played with in ''Series/SabrinaTheTeenageWitch'' where The Grim Reaper is Sabrina's aunt - it's a community service, randomly assigned, in a similar manner to jury duty, in the witch world. As explained when Sabrina manages to stop screaming, what the job actually entails is delivering bad news, which may be about anything, from death to a handling fee being applied on top of your accountants' fees to be deducted from your tax return. Bad news is best delivered by a cloaked figure with a scythe, [[RuleOfFunny for some reason]].
* The Grim Reaper is a guest on ''Series/TheSiflAndOllyShow'' in one episode. As it turns out, he's from Montreal, he's a Gemini, and he's into R & B music. Sifl and Olly even sing the {{Trope Namer|s}} song at the end of the show. He reappears during an infomercial for the [[HonestJohnsDealership Precious Roy]] Luxury Coffin to point out that he doesn't kill people, he just takes their souls to the afterlife after they die, after which the body just rots. And rots. [[StupidStatementDanceMix And rots.]] [[OverlyLongGag Electric boogaloo, and rots.]]
* ''Series/Lucifer2016'': [[ArchangelAzrael Azrael]] is the famed Angel of Death, whose blade [[DeaderThanDead destroys whoever it stabs in their entirety]]. We finally meet Azrael in "Boo, Normal" and turns out ''she'' is a nerdy, bespectacled dork who goes by "Rae-Rae" [[spoiler:and has been pretending to be Ella's imaginary friend for years]]. She spends most of the fifth season sitting out the conflict between her siblings as death is neutral. She shows up in the season finale [[spoiler:and apologises to Lucifer as she's only there to reap Chloe, something she obviously doesn't ''want'' to do]].
* ''Series/GuidingLight''. When a character is hospitalized after being shot, he notices strange flashes of light around one of his nurses and mentions it to her. Suddenly, he becomes very fearful upon realizing who/what she really is and she gently reassures him, "Don't be scared."
* ''Series/XenaWarriorPrincess'': Celesta takes the role of taking the life out of those whose time has come. Despite floating eerily, she is fairly friendly and is even willing to let a few mortals leave peacefully.
* ''Series/{{Moon Knight|2022}}'' has Tawret, the Egyptian god of birth and fertility, who also serves the purpose of escorting souls to the afterlife. While intimidating in appearance, resembling a humanoid hippopotamus, she turns out to be very friendly. She patiently explains what's going on to the protagonist, balances his moral scale fairly, says that she hopes he makes it to the good afterlife, and (eventually) even tries to help him avert his fate, especially upon witnessing unbalanced souls being condemned before their time. However she's also pretty flippant about condemning souls who fail the test to a FateWorseThanDeath, so there's that.
* ''Series/TheSandman2022'' shows Death much as she was in the original Gaiman stories as an AllLovingHero who prides herself on being a kind, understanding face ready to meet each human as they pass and guide them to their afterlife.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Literature]]
* ''Literature/AmericanGods'' has Jacquel and Ibis, who are the Egyptian gods Anubis and Thoth, currently living as undertakers in Illinois. Both are very humane people who treat the dead with respect and bring some comfort to their surviving family members. Even if they do, ahem, [[ImAHumanitarian sample the product.]] Even that act is done respectfully: while performing an autopsy, Jacquel cuts off a small slice of the cadaver's heart and eats it with the solemnity of a Catholic eating a Communion wafer. They also claim that in their traditional role as judges of the dead they cheated (your heart had to be lighter than a feather, but there [[LoopholeAbuse ain't no rule about what the feather is made out of]]); you had to be absolutely soaked in evil to not go on to paradise.
* In ''Literature/AtTheBackOfTheNorthWind'', the North Wind is implied to be an angel of Death, and always treats Diamond with the greatest gentleness.
* The "Death as a gentleman" concept is OlderThanTheyThink: the Creator/EmilyDickinson poem, "[[http://academic.brooklyn.cuny.edu/english/melani/cs6/stop.html Because I could not stop for Death]]" describes Death as a kind, polite suitor, much like his Literature/{{Discworld}}ian counterpart. Before that the German poet and journalist Matthias Claudius (1740-1815) often portrayed Death as a friendly personification, ''Freund Hain''[[labelnote:*]] As the frontispice to Claudius' collected works shows and the illustration he commissioned for ''Nach der Krankheit'' show, Freund Hain is a classic skeleton with a scythe, but no cloak.[[/labelnote]] - a variation of ''Freund Hein'' or ''Gevatter Hein'' ("friend" or "godfather Hank", a common German euphemism for Death) - most famously in his poem ''Der Tod und das Mädchen'' ("Death and the Maiden", 1775), which also appears in the Music section. Another poem, ''Nach der Krankheit'' ("After Sickness", 1777) describes how during a bad fever Death comes to Asmus (Claudius' alter ego) and with a friendly smile offers to take him into his arm. Asmus asks him to pass him by this time, to which Freund Hain acquiesces, and the poem ends with Asmus saying: "And when you return sooner or later, please smile again, Hain!"
* ''Literature/TheBookThief'' is narrated by Death, who is amusing, non-linear and ''very'' compassionate towards humans (he specifically states he's haunted by them, especially "the ones who are left behind"), particularly the other main characters. Given that it's a book about World War II, the "amusing" part takes a sharp turn. The death camp scenes, unsurprisingly, are particularly bad.
* In ''Literature/{{Cerberon}}'', Edu, the goddess of death, is described as loving and merciful in her duty to provide rest and comfort after death. She's in charge of keeping the dead from bothering the living, but doesn't seem very proactive in this regard, considering all the zombies, ghouls, vampires and ghosts hanging around, although she does promptly respond to her priests' calls to take them away.
* Considering that the main characters are almost all Grim Reapers and are by and large extremely likable people, ''Literature/{{Croak}}'' has this in spades.
* The Danish children's book ''Cry, Heart, But Never Break'' is about four young siblings who are trying to prevent Death from taking their gravely ill grandmother, who is sleeping upstairs. Death is drawn as a kindly, long-nosed old man in a hooded black robe. He's definitely a supernatural being, but his actions and attitude are deeply human, politely staying for coffee at the children's behest and telling them an allegorical story to explain the nature of his job and ease their fears.
%% * TG From ''The Dead Detective'' series is a totally happin' dude.
* While Death from the ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' series is still probably not the kind of person (or AnthropomorphicPersonification) you'd like to meet in a dark alleyway, what with him still being the classic cowled skeleton and all, he's the closest thing the Discworld has to a responsible, benevolent deity, fulfilling a necessary role (see ''Literature/ReaperMan'' for what happens when he doesn't do the job). Most of the actual gods (and a fair few other Anthropomorphic Personifications) tend to be self-interested jerks running on [[Myth/ClassicalMythology Greek Mythology]] rules. It's worth noting that said role doesn't involve doing the ''actual killing'', or even collecting the departed's life, but rather just facilitating the 'moving on' once the body is dead, and has no stake in the process. Not to mention that he's [[KindheartedCatLover very fond of cats]] (it's suggested that cruelty to cats is [[BerserkButton one of the very few things that can make Death genuinely angry]], and he also has adopted rather a large number of his own, which by all indications he takes quite good care of).\\
\\
Unfortunately, no matter how kind he is, people are still rarely pleased to see him (except under certain ''very'' unfortunate circumstances). Interestingly, despite him being a skeleton along the traditional Grim Reaper mould, there have been a fair few elderly or terminally ill fans (some imminently due to be "collected") who wrote to Creator/TerryPratchett saying that they hope that he wasn't too far off the mark. Pratchett wrote that these letters usually caused him to spend some time staring at the wall. Especially when said fans were children.
** Death's former apprentice Mort and his wife, Ysabell (Death's adopted daughter), use "Non Timetis Messor" -- [[CanisLatinicus slightly dodgy]] Latin "Don't fear the Reaper" as their family motto.
** As a central protagonist in several books, a great deal of Death's characterisation is dedicated to ''his'' problems. Fiction rarely depicts the reaper after the soul of their client has moved on, but the Discworld does, and it illustrates what it would be like to have to have such a role; not just from his point of view, but from Mort's (when he was Death's apprentice), and his granddaughter Susan's (who thanks to the strange nature of Discworld inheritance, has picked up a number of his traits and abilities, to her great displeasure). It's noted that it's rarely a pleasant duty and he isn't allowed to interfere, so the same empathy that makes him sympathetic to others also brings him sadness and grief (probably the only mortal emotions he truly grasps), with his entire plot in ''Literature/SoulMusic'' more or less summarising the five stages of grief from the point of view of a being who not only never forgets anything, no matter how hard he tries, but remembers it as if it was yesterday.
** ''Literature/ReaperMan'' is devoted to Death discovering how vital kindness in his job is, and near the end, he delivers perhaps the defining quote for his character, and one of the defining ones for this trope.
--->[[AC:Lord, what can the harvest hope for, if not for the care of the [[TitleDrop Reaper Man?]]]]
** A major part of the plot in the later half of the book is the risk of this trope being {{averted|Trope}}. Death is only to be feared if you've made him your enemy. The new emerging Death ''of Humans'' is exactly the sort of Death that ''should'' be feared.
** Interestingly, Death was [[CharacterizationMarchesOn much more petty and fearsome in his first appearances]], doing things like taking the life of a swarm of flies or a random passer-by out of anger for not being able to collect Rincewind's life. [[EarlyInstallmentWeirdness This was dropped]] by the fourth book, ''Literature/{{Mort}}'', which (not coincidentally) is the first book focusing on Death as a character.
** One of his most telling moments in the whole series is when he has to kill a chicken in ''Reaper Man''... and is ''utterly horrified''. His internal monologue explains that he never "takes" life - he simply takes over where life leaves off. When he does take a life, then has to spend the rest of the day laying down rat poison, the narration notes that he feels like a murderer.
** When Death takes over the duties of the Discworld's {{Expy}} of Santa Claus in ''Literature/{{Hogfather}}'', he thoroughly enjoys the role, as it allows him to interact and even improve lives rather than just sweep up after the lights go out. The crowning moment comes when he [[spoiler: refills Literature/TheLittleMatchGirl's hourglass rather than collect her soul]].
--->''(Death takes out his hourglass and turns back the sands.)''\\
'''Albert''': You're not allowed to do that...\\
'''Death''': [[AC:[[LoopholeAbuse The Hogfather can.]] [[ScrewTheRulesImDoingWhatsRight The Hogfather gives presents.]] [[ScrewDestiny There's no better present than a future.]]]]
** A part of being a witch on the Disc is that witches know when they are going to die. Witches, being generally pragmatic, stoic types whose outward reaction to a cottage on fire would likely be the same as to spilling their tea, tend to treat this not as a terrifying prospect, but as a well-appreciated chance to get their affairs in order and pass the homestead on to the next witch, before meeting Death with a sense of familiarity. Wizards also know -- they tend to treat it as a chance to have one last rousing feast and spend (and borrow) lots of money they won't be needing soon.
** Death has also been replaced temporarily by his apprentice Mort and Mort's daughter (Death's "granddaughter") Susan Sto Helit. One is a knobby-kneed adolescent male who gradually starts taking on Death's traits while DeathTakesAHoliday, and the other is a young woman, who inherited a number of said traits. Death and Susan are also two of the only things standing between humanity and the Auditors. ''Boy'' have they done a good job there...
** Death's struggle in ''Thief of Time'' is his inability to prevent the Auditors from freezing time, thus bringing about a kind of apocalypse, without breaking the rules. He gets around this by drafting Susan to do the legwork instead, but also [[spoiler:when the Auditors remind him and the other HorsemenOfTheApocalypse that the rules state they have to ride out, Death is the one to point out that [[LoopholeAbuse the rules never specify]] who they must ride out ''against'']]. Cue MassOhCrap from the Auditors.
** As a side bonus, when author Terry Pratchett was knighted for his work, he chose the motto "Noli Timere Messorem" for his coat of arms, which is the proper Latin for Death's motto above.
** The final posts to Sir Terry Pratchett's Twitter account (written by his daughter, Rhihanna, also a well known writer in the videogame industry), are as follows:
--->''[[AC:At last, Sir Terry, we must walk together.]]''\\
''Terry took Death’s arm and followed him through the doors and on to the black desert under the endless night.''\\
''The End.''
** Interestingly, the surgical team who treated Terry Pratchett for a minor procedure - which after patient questioning on his part, turned out to have become somewhat more complicated and turned into a more urgent Situation - told him afterwards that he'd sat up during the operation, demonstrating the anaesthesia wasn't ''quite'' working, and had a one-sided conversation with an unseen Other in the operating theatre. Pratchett had apparently asked that if he had to go at this point, could a packed lunch be provided? Ham sandwiches with mustard would be appreciated. Apparently he was only offered plain ham with no condiments, and had expressed disappointment. Terry was both perplexed and oddly reassured by this, and this account of his own NDE - which he didn't remember at all save through the doctor's recollection - ended up in a Discworld novel as a discourse between an elderly witch and Death. This is recollected in ''A Blink Of The Screen'', a collection of his non-fiction writings. Hopefully Death remembered the mustard, when the time did arrive.
* ''Literature/TheDresdenFiles'':
** Over the course of the books, Harry encounters ArchangelUriel. While not the typical reaper, death falls under his purview as many deaths are instigated by human choices, and protecting a human's ability to choose without being influenced by a non-mortal power is his job. See the ''Ghost Story'' example for more details. If another power were to ''lie'' to a mortal and cause the mortal's death, Uriel would act in defense of the mortal too. He is also directly responsible for the final plague on Egypt, the death of the first born sons.
** In ''Literature/GhostStory'', when [[spoiler:Father Forthill]]'s life is in jeopardy, Dresden has a conversation with an angel of death waiting nearby. Dresden assumes he'll need to battle the angel to prevent his friend's death, but the angel assures him that (a) she is there only to guard the soul, should it be released from the body, on its way to [[FluffyCloudHeaven a final reward]], and (b) it was [[spoiler:Forthill's]] choice to enter the conflict, the angel had no part in it (indeed, they don't have free will as humans do). And (c) she would [[CurbstompBattle utterly stomp Harry if he raised a finger against her]].
** In ''Literature/SkinGame'', Harry gets to meet [[spoiler:Hades himself, who stops time so they can have a chat, and so that the ''freaking God of the Underworld'' could express a sense of sympathy and respect for Harry, including pointing out all they had in common (scary reputation, having responsibility for a fortress/prison full of nasty things, friendly, but very dangerous dogs, an iron-clad sense of duty, etc) and wanting to shake his hand. Hades also tells Harry that, contrary to myth, he and Persephone legitimately fell in love; the AbductionIsLove story was a result of Demeter's EmptyNest issues. He's even polite enough that, when Harry starts to talk about the negative reputations other gods like Zeus had, Hades gently warns him that even if it's true, insulting his family would violate SacredHospitality]].
* In the German children's book ''Ente, Tod und Tulpe'' (Duck, Death and the Tulip) by Wolf Erlbruch, despite having a SkullForAHead death is portrayed as a fairly affable fellow, casually making friends with the titular duck and just having a fun time until the time of the ducks death.
* Charlie in Creator/ClaireNorth's ''The End of the Day'' isn't Death, but he does work for Death as his Harbinger. He goes before Death to honour a person's life, or a way of life, or sometimes as a warning so that they might avoid death, though Charlie never knows which one. Charlie is kind, and good at listening. Death themself is rarely seen, but when they are they are largely benevolent and gentle, except when someone tries to hurt Charlie. Then they get [[BerserkButton mad]]...
* Deconstructed in ''Literature/TheFableOfTheDragonTyrant'' with the dragon-tyrant being the reaper. Here, the fable gives AnAesop that we are perfectly justified in fearing death and that lack of fear is more dangerous than fear itself. A society that doesn't fear death will never have enough motive to invent immortality.
* In "[[https://web.archive.org/web/20111207232832/http://www.horrormasters.com/Text/a2747.pdf The Glass of Supreme Moments]]", Death is portrayed as a beautiful woman -- and the protagonist's TrueLove.
* In Tais Teng's anthology ''Glass Spears'', [[TheGrimReaper the opposite trope]] is {{lampshade|Hanging}}d. In reality, Death is a kind, elegant aristocrat with a cloak in "a flowing caleidoscope of constantly shifting colors and patterns that made all people long for the calm, the final change."
* ''Literature/GoodOmens'': Death is basically an {{Expy}} of ''Discworld'''s (Pratchett co-wrote it), albeit pre ''Reaper Man''. He is also [[HorsemenOfTheApocalypse the Horsepeople of the Apocalypse's]] TokenGoodTeammate, and the only one who is an angel (or quite possibly something else entirely -- he calls himself [[ArchangelAzrael Azrael]], and states that he was "created to be creation's shadow") instead of a mere AnthropomorphicPersonification. On the one hand, he does try to trigger the end of the world (it's part of his job description), but he gives in as soon as the AntiAntichrist deals with the other Horsemen and tells him to knock it off.
* ''Literature/TheGraveyardBook'': The Lady on the Grey. She even dances with Bod during the ''Danse Macabre'', promises to let him ride her big horse in the future (''"Everyone does"'') and tells the dead to take good care of him.
* ''Literature/TheHalloweenTree'': Carapace Clavicle Moundshroud is a morbidly-humorous Grim Reaper who takes time out from his busy Halloween schedule to educate some young boys about the holiday's origins, while giving them the opportunity to save a friend who's dying of appendicitis.
* While Literature/HarryPotter never encounters Death, according to ''Literature/HarryPotterAndTheDeathlyHallows'', Harry's ancestor -- the one who received Death's invisibility cloak -- befriended him, and when it was time for him to die, he sought Death out and they walked away together. Later on in ''The Deathly Hallows'', [[spoiler:Harry dies briefly, and his guide into the afterlife, should he choose not to go back, is Dumbledore.]] Really, death gets a pretty good rap in this series.\\
\\
It all has to do with AnAesop about how to deal with death, stemming from when [[RealLifeWritesThePlot Rowling's mother died]]. If one doesn't accept their own mortality ([[spoiler:i.e. the first Peverell brother, Voldemort]]), or gain acceptance of their loved ones' passing ([[spoiler:the second brother, Snape]]), then Death will be a grueling bastard. But if one accepts Death's visit as an inevitability ([[spoiler:the third brother, Harry]]), then he will greet you like an old friend.\\
\\
Indeed, the true "Master of Death" as described in the legend of the Deathly Hallows isn't someone who has found a way to avoid death. It's someone whose experiences with the three Hallows has taught them that death is inevitable, it is not a thing to be feared, and that there are [[FateWorseThanDeath far worse things]].
* ''Literature/TheHeartstrikers'':
** Mortal Spirits that represent various concepts of death are always terrifying, since they are of course the purest form of humanity's fear of that thing. However, they are actually {{Psychopomp}}s in charge of rescuing souls that have suffered that fate. Without them, humans would [[CessationOfExistence cease to exist]] after death. [[spoiler:Marcie's spirit, who she calls Ghost, is the Spirit of the Forgotten Dead, the most terrifying of all. He is normally a sort of failsafe spirit who collects souls that fail to qualify for any of the other Mortal Spirits, but right now he's the only Mortal Spirit around, which means he has to rescue ''all'' human souls. Even then, he can only do it once they've been forgotten.]]
** ''Literature/{{DFZ}}'': Continuing from the first series, Empty Wind, the Spirit of the Forgotten Dead, is absolutely terrifying, but in the end his job is simply to protect those who have been forgotten and find them justice. When he almost kills Nik for desecrating a corpse, Opal is able to talk him down partly by admitting they should have just gone to him for help in the first place. Nik wonders at one point if Empty Wind is trying to get them to die somewhere they will be forgotten so he can claim their souls; Opal scoffs at this.
* In ''Literature/TheHeroesOfOlympus'', Thanatos is rather polite and [[PrettyBoy so beautiful]] that he is mistaken for [[LoveGod Cupid]]. In fact, he had to be rescued by the heroes (since the villains were keeping him captive to cheat death).
* In ''Literature/HisDarkMaterials'', each person has their own personal Death who follows them around and eventually leads them to the underworld when they die. These Deaths are quite amiable, and usually hide from their owners because the people don't want to see them. In addition, the witches believe in a death goddess named Yambe-Akka who arrives, smiling and kindly, when it's your time to go.
* Thanatos (aka Zane) from ''Literature/IncarnationsOfImmortality'' will take time to talk to his clients and give whatever comfort he can (if they need it). He's also managed to prevent a few deaths he thought unfair or unnecessary, as well as helping somebody being kept on life support against their wishes cross over. At least one other character comments that he has an unusually caring approach to his Office.
* ''Literature/InheritanceCycle'': Eragon's allegorical "poem" in ''Eldest'' ends this way.
* ''Literature/JourneyToChaos'':
** Basilard mentioned offhandedly that he has drinking matches with Lord Death.
** His clerical organizations, such as The Brotherhood of Death, are {{Saintly Church}}es that help the dead and dying move on.
** Samael, the NumberTwo Grim Reaper, states that Lord Death has a "high public approval rating" in Ataidar because his domain is associated with its patron deity, fire goddess Fiol.
* The Spanish novel ''La Dama del Alba'' (''The Lady of the Dawn'') is about Death visiting a family (that has been mourning the death of one of its members for years) in the form of a woman. She notes how she envies mortals for their capacity to love.
* In the second novel of the ''[[Literature/HeraldsOfValdemar Last Herald-Mage]]'' trilogy, Vanyel meets the "Shadow-Lover" -- one of the Valdemaran interpretations of Death. To the gay Vanyel, he appears as a beautiful young man, and when he allows Vanyel a short chat with a recently-departed fellow Herald, said friend refers to "Lady Death."
* In ''Literature/{{Momo}}'', Momo meets Master Hora, whose task is to see that every human has their allotted span of time. Momo asks Master Hora whether he's Death; he doesn't answer, but says death is nothing to be scared of.
* In Joe R. Lansdale's short story "Not from Detroit", Death ultimately turns out to be a JerkWithAHeartOfGold. While he initially acts coldly towards the old man who is trying to get his wife back, he eventually agrees to let her come back for a brief moment. He also agrees to take the old man before his time so they can be TogetherInDeath as they wanted. Death even lets them ride up front in his car so they can listen to music during the trip to the afterlife. Death remarks that he must be becoming a sentimental old fool.
* Although there is no reaper in the ''Literature/OldKingdom'' series, the [[AfterlifeAntechamber River of Death]] is a benign place, where the only danger comes from the Dead who cling to the world until they're [[WasOnceAMan twisted remnants of what they were in life]]. In particular, the Ninth Gate is a beautiful starry sky that peacefully calls anyone whose time is up, such that even a vicious undead HumanoidAbomination will GoOutWithASmile in the end.
* Creator/NKJemisin's "On the Banks of the River Lex": Death will MercyKill anything that requests it, but otherwise lets life flourish on its own, enjoys the company of his fellow {{Anthropomorphic Personification}}s, and is happy to realize that [[spoiler:they will survive HumanitysWake as a new species evolves a sense of imagination]].
-->''"Death comes on its own. I don't have to do anything to facilitate it. But everyone deserves a chance to ''try'' and survive."''
* Creator/LordDunsany's allegorical short story "On the Dry Land" tells how Love, after leading a man through "perilous marshes" for many years, finally makes ready to leave him, now that the man is old and has reached the dry and safe land. The old man however is unconsolable that Love is leaving him so that Love is moved to promise him to send "his little brother Death" to take care of him. And soon, Death comes "tall and beautiful" and with a smile lifts up the man gently and "murmuring with his low deep voice an ancient song, carried him to the morning, to the gods."
* Played with in ''LightNovel/{{Reaper}}''.
** Subverted in that most reapers are rather pleasant. Most reapers make an effort to be accommodating to the newly dead to make the process of moving on as easy as possible.
** Played straight with some reapers such as the actual Grim Reaper who other reapers are wary of.
** Death is actually rather polite and kind if a bit snarky. She truly cares about her reapers and those who die. She even has a loving relationship with her husband Life who calls her Deatz.
* This is a recurring theme in ''Literature/TheRiftwarCycle'', which has a number of death gods and cults devoted to them. The various death gods are depicted as benevolent or at worst morally neutral, and the cults are really just everyday churches. For example, the Minwanabe Red God initially looks like an Aztec-inspired violent sect that practices human sacrifice and has savage priests covered in bones and red and black facepaint. Behind the scenes they only sacrifice rare volunteers, the paint and everything else is just religious dress (the equivalent of a Christian minister dressing in full regalia for services) which they swap out for clean white robes and a little eyeshadow when off duty, and the seemingly psychotic bloodthirsty maniac of a priest is a kindly old man who likes to drink tea in his study.
* ''Literature/TheScrewtapeLetters'': The apprentice demon Wormwood is delighted to hear that [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarII England is under attack]], since that will cause plenty of woe and death. However, his uncle Screwtape chides him for thinking that way because Wormwood's target is now a Christian, meaning if he dies he'll go to heaven. According to Screwtape, human fear of death is a demonic tactic, to deceive humans and keep them from realizing that they have nothing to fear from death.
-->'''Screwtape''': They see death as the greatest evil and living as the greatest good because we have taught them to do so. Do not be infected by our own propaganda.
* Although he's an inscrutable [[TheChessmaster Chessmaster]] and MagnificentBastard, Death from ''Literature/TheSecretsOfTheImmortalNicholasFlamel'' (called Marethyu in the series) is ultimately a hero and the champion of humanity. [[spoiler:It turns out that he's a future version of Josh, one of the two main characters. (ItMakesSenseInContext.)]]
* Richard the reaper from ''Literature/SiliconWolfpack'' has a major sense of humor, and is reasonably sympathetic toward those he meets in his line of work.
* The Many-Faced God of Braavos in ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'' is a death god spoken of in very positive terms. One of his worshipers makes a comment (slightly paraphrased) that every person has a dark angel beside them, and when the suffering of life becomes too great, that angel will give them the "gift" of death.
* The Earth-Dog in ''Literature/SurvivorDogs'' acts as the dog equivalent of both MotherNature and the Grim Reaper. Despite this, dogs don't fear her. She's one of the, if not the, most respected of the Spirit-Dogs and is considered a benevolent individual (unless angered, in which she'll start earthquakes).
* Creator/JRRTolkien's work:
** In Arda, Námo Mandos is not the god of death but the benevolent Vala (archangel) who collects and judges the dead, and one of the CouncilOfAngels of Valinor.
** ''Literature/TheSilmarillion'' doesn't say that death is a fate that's intended by {{God}} for humans but rather that it's all natural and you should not fear it.
*** Death is, in fact, considered Iluvatar's ''blessing'' to men. Men may not live very long, but they get to leave and go off to another world (the afterlife). Elves are immortal, get reincarnated, and have their own version of heaven on Arda, Valinor, but one of the major themes of the 'verse is that [[TheMagicGoesAway the magic is leaving]] Middle-Earth (i.e. it's becoming our own world) and even Valinor will dwindle and disappear. The elves "share Arda's fate"--when the Earth goes, so do they.
* In ''Literature/TheSupervillainySaga'' by Creator/CTPhipps this comes in a double dose. First, Gary Karkofsky a.k.a Merciless: the Supervillain without [=MercyTM=] works for Death who is a PerkyGoth as well as ReasonableAuthorityFigure. He is also employed as a psychopomp to gather the souls of ghosts as well as other undead beings between heists.
* In the Literature/TortallUniverse, the kindest and most forgiving of the gods is the Black God of Death. He's one of a handful of deities that gives a shit about humans. He's gentle and never makes any effort to intimidate or scare mortals who may see him. His domain is called "The Peaceful Realms". The rest of the gods [[GodsNeedPrayerBadly merely use them for power]] in their own quarrels, and are difficult even for their chosen servants to interact with.
* Invoked in ''Literature/{{Unwind}}''. When a side character is brought to the Chop Shop to be Unwound, the band's leader begins playing [[Music/BlueOysterCult Don't Fear the Reaper]] to try and help him along.
* ''Literature/WatershipDown''. In the story of the Black Rabbit of Inlé, it's explained that the Black Rabbit only does the appointed task set by the sun god Frith, who created the ''elil'' to keep the rabbit population down but promised they would never be exterminated. The Black Rabbit punishes ''elil'' who kill without his permission, and acts to save El-ahrairah's warren after all of the rabbit trickster's schemes have failed.
* Garovel of ''Literature/TheZombieKnight'' is this. He resurrects the protagonist in order to save other people from dying. However, many of the other reapers do not look so favorably upon the living and prefer to ''cause'' destruction and death.
[[/folder]]

!!Examples:

->''"[[Creator/ChristopherWalken I gotta have more cowbell!]]"''

* ''Literature/WatershipDown''. In the story of the Black Rabbit of Inlé', it's explained that the Black Rabbit only does the appointed task set by the sun god Frith, who created the ''elil' to keep the rabbit population down but promised they would never be exterminated. The Black Rabbit punishes ''elil'' who kill without his permission and acts to save El-ahrairah's warren after all of the rabbit trickster's schemes have failed.

* ''[[Sandbox/{{Reapertale}} Reapertale]]]'' is an ''VideoGame/{{Undertale}}'' AU where all the characters are Gods, each having a role mirroring the one they have in the game. The position of the [[TheGrimReaper God of Death]] is shared between two characters due to an accident when creating the role. So why does this trope apply? The gods of Death are [[AllLovingHero Papy]][[NiceGuy rus]] and [[ForGreatJustice Sans]]. Anyone with even passing knowledge of the game should know that the two are [[DarkIsNotEvil among the kindest and most righteous characters in the setting.]] Papyrus is this even more so, as he's not only the one who escorts you to the afterlife, acording to WordOfGod, he represents the ''kinder'' side of Death and always takes the time of day to comfort the spirits of the dead and help them accept the afterlife, unlike Sans who takes them by force ([[JustifiedTrope He only does that]] because he knows first hand [[ComeBackWrong what happens]] when the soul isn't reaped [[GoneHorriblyWrong properly]]). Sans's role, in contrast to Papyrus is, as expected, to judge the dead, but canonically he's LawfulGood when judges you in the game. He is also TheHero who opposes [[HumanoidAbomination Chara]], who stole one of Sans's scythes to become the BigBad and the kind of Death that ''should'' be feared.