History Main / MissingBackblast

* Averted in ''Film/TheEnforcer''. There is a military demonstration of a LAW rocket, and rookie Inspector Moore is trying to see what it does by standing behind the shooter. Film/DirtyHarry grabs her by the collar and pulls her back in time; afterwards there is a huge scorch mark on the berm ''where she would have been in the way'', behind the shooter who did not experience any recoil effect.

* Averted in ''Film/{{Red Dawn|1984}}''. One scene featured a Wolverine's hat being knocked off when he fired an RPG-7. In the final battle two of the American guerillas fire their RPG-7's at the command trailer used by a [[BigBad Soviet general]]. An enemy soldier who comes round the corner behind them at that precise moment falls to the ground screaming as he's been scorched by the backblast.

* ''Film/TrueLies'' had a brief moment of realism when one of the terrorists fires a Stinger shoulder-fired anti-air missile from a moving panel truck, causing the terrorist behind him to fly out of the front windshield thanks to the backblast. [[ButtMonkey The terrorist that was launched out the windshield is then accidentally run over by the truck.]] The moment of reality can be doubted: Stingers are launched out of their tubes by a relatively small ejector motor before the rocket engine ignites. That's not to say they have no backblast, however -- it's still generating enough force to eject a twenty-pound missile to a safe ignition distance.

[[folder:Anime and Manga]]

* Averted in ''Manga/Reborn2004'' when Tsuna finds that firing his [[KamehameHadoken X-Burner]] without firing a blast of equal force backwards at the right angle produces a very violent recoil. He even gets computerized contact lenses to help him do the math for balancing the forces.

* Averted in ''Literature/{{Gate}}'', where a soldier attacking a dragon with a Panzerfaust actually checks to make sure nobody is behind him before firing. One of the peasants witnessing the fight mistakes his attack for a magic spell: "Bakblast Clir". Later, Itami loans several Panzerfausts to a group of Dark Elves and specifically warns them about the backblast. Unfortunately, they completely forget his warning and as a result, several of their number get killed or maimed by the backblasts.
** Ironically, it's actually one of the few cases when the trope would've been TruthInTelevision. The German-designed Panzerfaust 3, just like its smaller cousin Armbrust, mentioned in the Real Life section below, instead of a venturi nozzle uses a load of plastic chips to throw back to compensate the recoil. The chips actually come out as a plastic ''dust'', which loses speed very fast, but you still wouldn't want to stand within 1-2 meters behind it. One of the elves gets barely dazzled after being hit by the dust cloud, after which he promptly gets ''eaten'' by the dragon they were fighting.
* Averted in ''Literature/TheFamiliarOfZero'' when Saito warns Louise not to stand behind him before firing the "Staff of Destruction" (really a bazooka).

* Subversion: Back when long-running furry anthology {{Furrlough}} was still military-themed, there was a one-page comic called ''Recoilless''. A pair of soldiers are retracing their steps to find a missing rocket launcher and find it in the hands of an enemy squad, who are attempting to figure out how to use it. They load the gun and fire it, only to have the backblast kill the three soldiers standing behind the firing enemy soldier. The soldier's commander yells at him for apparently firing the gun wrong, and then has the soldier [[TooDumbToLive turn the rocket launcher around]]. Certain that they've now figured out how to fire their new toy, the enemy soldier's two commanding officers proudly step back to watch it fire... and are promptly blown up by the firing missile. The last remaining enemy soldier, seeing the carnage behind him, quietly sets the launcher down and sneaks away.

[[folder:Fanfic]]

* In ''Fanfic/TiberiumWars'', the notes on the GDI Hammerhead mention that it had to be engineered to channel the backblast from missile launchers in order to have missile teams fire out of it - which also means that a Hammerhead gunship carrying a missile team that fires out of the compartments on board cannot have anyone else in the passenger compartment of the gunship. At several points in the story characters also have to make sure their backs are clear so they can fire missile launchers.

[[folder:Film]]

* [[PlayingWithATrope Played with]] in the German anti-war movie ''Film/{{The Bridge|1959}}''. When one of the boys charged with defending a (tactically actually meaningless) bridge during the last days of WWII fires his Panzerfaust at an American tank from inside a house, ''he'' isn't adversely affected and is even momentarily jubilant about his success. Then he turns back towards the elderly owner of the building who was protesting from behind him only moments ago...
** In the remake, the old civilian isn't there, but he ''does'' set the house on fire.
* ''Film/TrueLies'' had a brief moment of realism when one of the terrorists fires a Stinger shoulder-fired anti-air missile from a moving panel truck, causing the terrorist behind him to fly out of the front windshield thanks to the backblast. [[ButtMonkey The terrorist that was launched out the windshield is then accidentally run over by the truck.]]
** The moment of reality can be doubted: Stingers are launched out of their tubes by a relatively small ejector motor before the rocket engine ignites. That's not to say they have no backblast, however -- it's still generating enough force to eject a twenty-pound missile to a safe ignition distance.
* Averted in ''Film/RedDawn1984''. One scene featured a Wolverine's hat being knocked off when he fired an RPG-7. In the final battle two of the American guerillas fire their RPG-7's at the command trailer used by a [[BigBad Soviet general]]. An enemy soldier who comes round the corner behind them at that precise moment falls to the ground screaming as he's been scorched by the backblast.
* Averted in ''Film/MenOfWar'' in which a mercenary attempting to sneak up behind Creator/DolphLundgren is killed by the backblast of Lundgren's recoilless rifle.
* Averted In ''Tali-Ihantala 44'', when a Swedish-Finnish conscript gets killed firing a Panzerfaust, its exhaust pipe pressed at his chest. While the troops had been warned about this earlier, the instruction was in Finnish, which the conscript didn't understand, being from prominently Swedish-speaking part of the country.
* Mostly averted in ''Film/AustinPowersTheSpyWhoShaggedMe''. An M9 Bazooka used in the film has a very large, bright backblast, though no injuries or property damages seem to result from it, despite being indoors.
* Averted in ''Film/TheDarkKnight''. When the Joker fires an RPG from the trailer of a semi, you can see that his henchmen are out of the way and the door on the other side of it is open. In fact, if you watch closely, it seems to have been opened ''first''.
* Partially averted in ''Film/{{Commando}}''. Cindy attempts to rescue Matrix by firing an M202 Flash rocket launcher. No recoil at all on the first shot when she fires it backwards, then the ''{{Rule of Funny}}'' comes to the rescue of physics with the second shot, properly aimed, throwing her backwards into the car.
* In ''Film/MenInBlack'', when Agent J first uses the Noisy Cricket, it fires a colossal beam of energy, but he gets flung back at least several feet. When firing it backed up against a wall doesn't work, he attaches a silencer to it. The silencer severely reduces the firepower of the Noisy Cricket, but J no longer injures himself whenever he uses it.

* An alternate ending to ''Film/DieHardWithAVengeance'' includes John [=McClane=] playing a variant of RussianRoulette with [[BigBad Simon Gruber]] using a Chinese rocket launcher with the sights removed, so they can't tell which end is the muzzle. He asks Simon a series of questions, and eventually asks a question that Simon gets wrong. [[spoiler: Turns out that the answer to the question is that he forgot to bring a flak jacket, which is what [=McClane=] is wearing and this would have protected Simon from the blast of the rocket, and the rocket fires on Simon, killing him instantly.]]
* In ''WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles1'', Dash and Violet are sent scampering from their hiding spot due to a very large-scale aversion of this trope. The BigBad is firing an ''intercontinental ballistic missile'' and its exhaust has to go somewhere since the silo is inside a volcano...mainly through the "cave" that was actually intended to channel the missile's backblast (presumably one of many).

* ''Missionaries'' by Lukins averted this: [[ColdSniper sniper girl]] glances behind her before aiming. It's clearly needed, considering that her rocketrifle could stop a shark and she was on the ship's deck.

* Averted in ''Literature/GauntsGhosts''. Anytime anyone fires a missile launcher, they yell 'Ease!' to tell everyone to open their mouths to prevent the pressure from damaging their eardrums. Also, one soldier did fire a launcher while inside a small room- he got messed up and set part of the wall on fire, though he survived.

* Starfist has simulator training on rocket launchers at one point; when the Mariness move into the field to do live training, one of them fires prone and straight; he sets his legs and butt on fire, and it would have been worse if he hadn't flinched from the recoil. Later on in the same novel, when firing from a building interior, the same Marine has to be reassured by his comrades that they've considered backblast by opening the door to the apartment they were in and making sure the rear end of the launcher was pointed at the open door. It still sets the doorframe on fire.
* In a 1946 short story from Jan Drda's ''Silent Barricade'', a civillian attempts to shoot an oncoming tank with a panzerfaust, leaning with his back against a wall. After the blast, they find only pieces of him.

* Averted in an episode of ''Series/CSIMiami'', where a guy gets cooked after firing an RPG from inside a cement mixer.
** In another, a paramilitary shoots an RPG (a weapon he didn't realise isn't point-and-shoot) from a car, and the exhaust shatters the opposite window. The CSI team, however, knows what to do with broken glass.
*** In the another episode, one of the bad guys gets a black eye from the rocket launcher shoving the sight into his face.
*** Also, depending on the design of the weapon, if you don't properly clean the tube, soot and muck from previous firings can clog the tube up a bit, relieving it of the "Recoilless" adjective.
* According to the History Channel's ''[[http://www.history.com/minisites/shootout/ Shootout!]]'' a U.S. combat advisor was knocked off his feet and thrown through the air by the backblast of a heavy RPG.

* In the ''Series/DoctorWho'' story "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS25E1RemembranceOfTheDaleks Remembrance of the Daleks]]", keep an eye on the wall behind Ace when she fires an RPG at a Dalek. The scorch mark is clear proof that these were the days before CGI. Or, you know, decent budget.
* In an episode of ''Series/MiamiVice'', a criminal is seen visibly reacting to recoil from a stinger missile. However, the backblast can be seen from it, and the others present have already moved a safe distance away in preparation for it.
* ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'': In the second season episode "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS2E14Innocence Innocence]]", Buffy uses a shoulder-fired rocket launcher to great effect, and hilarity. She experiences no recoil, which is not surprising, physics be damned, given her super-strength. But notably, she fires from a position where there is nobody or nothing behind her to be fried by the rocket's ignition. Note that Xander had military knowledge, due to a spell, and was one the one who instructed her on how to use it, and presumably included that no one should be behind her when she fires it.

[[folder:Other]]
* There is a rather infamous photo of Dan Quayle holding an unloaded RPG-7 launcher for a photo op. Given that he is holding it ''backward'' -- note the trigger guard, which is neatly tucked in against the base of his thumb -- and also in such fashion that the exhaust end is pointing right past the fellow on his left, while the business end appears to be aimed squarely ''through his elbow'' at the fellow on his right, it's really just as well that the launcher doesn't have a rocket mounted.
[[/folder]]

* Rocket launchers in ''TabletopGame/{{GURPS}}'' create a fairly dangerous backblast when fired. If you use a reactionless missile however, there is no backblast, thanks to superscience.
* ''TabletopGame/BattleTech'' averts this trope in the ''A Time Of War'' RPG book. The combat equipment chapter includes several paragraphs talking about how dangerous it is to fire a recoilless rifle in an enclosed space.
* Averted in the ''Axis & Allies Miniatures'' game, which had the M20 75mm Recoilless Rifle as a type of American infantry in one set. It had the special ability "Backblast: This unit automatically fails cover rolls any round it attacks." This had the end result of making it inferior to other American anti-tank infantry units of similar power, as cover rolls were very important for infantry units in the game.

* Averted in ''VideoGame/RisingStorm2Vietnam''. The backblast of the RPG-7 can and will kill anyone behind the soldier firing it, friendly or enemy.
* Averted in the ''[[VideoGame/{{Battlefield}} Battlefield 2]]'' mod, ''VideoGame/ProjectReality.'' The backblast from rocket launchers WILL kill other players.
* Similarly averted in ''VideoGame/{{Squad}}'', not clearing the blackbast is a good way to get your teammates hurt.
* Averted in ''VideoGame/GhostRecon1'' wherein the backblast can kill friendlies directly behind the soldier who fires an anti-tank weapon. However, the backblast physics in the game don't seem to take into account walls, since said weapon is still safe enough to fire from enclosed areas.
* Similarly averted in ''VideoGame/JaggedAlliance 2''. Don't stand behind the dude with the LAW if you value your face.
* Also averted in the ''VideoGame/CombatMission'' series. While the backblast-to-friendly-face never happens (firstly because each little soldier is an abstraction for a full squad spread over a large area, and secondly because they are representing trained soldiers, not ''morons''), firing a bazooka or panzerschreck from inside a building is a good way to pin down your own troops (the British PIAT is immune to this, as per RealLife). Note that the game's tactical AI knows better than to do it - it'll only happen through direct player prompt
** Amusingly, these weapons also have a substantial chance of setting the building on fire. An urban panzerschreck nest is, by necessity, temporary.

* The rocket launcher in ''VideoGame/HalfLife'' uses compressed air to launch the rocket a safe distance away before the propellant ignites, averting this trope. It's still dangerous in confined spaces, though, since the initial launch will make the rocket jump up a foot or so. If you don't have enough height clearance - boom. Which, in turn, leads to a bit of FridgeLogic: such a weapon typically won't arm itself until after the rocket motor ignites, meaning that it should be "klunk" rather than "boom".
* ''Franchise/{{Halo}}'' is a bit funny about this. The rocket launcher has a small puff of flame that emits out the back, but it doesn't actually harm anything. Nonetheless, ''VideoGame/Halo3ODST'' has any (non-[[HeroicMime Rookie]]) player that swaps to a rocket launcher shout a warning about backblast. ''VideoGame/{{Halo 3}}'' features an explicit justification with its missile pod, which launches its missiles with compressed air, with their fuel only igniting after they've already left the pod.

* ''VideoGame/JediKnightIIJediOutcast'' and ''VideoGame/JediKnightJediAcademy'' feature a handheld missile launcher which is designed to be held like a traditional firearm and expels its backblast in ''front'' of the user - though it's at right angles to the rocket launcher, so it can't harm the operator. The barrel also moves away from the rocket, absorbing some of the recoil, which is actually similar to how most tanks dissipate recoil. This is also in noted contrast to an earlier model in the same series from ''VideoGame/StarWarsBattlefront'', which is designed more like a traditional RPG launcher, sitting over the shoulder and with an opening at the rear to expel the backblast.
* Inverted to a ridiculous degree in ''VideoGame/ActOfWar'', where the player can have infantry occupy buildings for added protection. Attempting this with rocket-armed troops will result in the death of the rocket guy, some or all of any other infantry in the building, and considerable damage to the building itself the instant something hostile comes within range of the garrisoned building and those rocket guys open fire on it.

* Darkest Hour, a ''VideoGame/RedOrchestra'' mod set in western Europe, has the very good possibility of teamkilling - friendly fire is always on, and backblast from Bazookas, Panzerfausts, and Panzershrecks is deadly. The PIAT, as historically accurate, has no backblast, but is much slower to reload since there's no way for an Assistant Gunner to help.
* Col. Volgin in ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid3SnakeEater'' averts this by firing a recoilless ''nuclear warhead'' from a helicopter gunship but makes sure to open the doors of the helicopter on both sides before firing.
* Though absent from the actual ''VideoGame/CallOfDuty'' games, backblast is brought up once in the bonus "Soap's Journal" from the Hardened edition of ''VideoGame/ModernWarfare 3'' - in the entry from the fourth game's Azerbaijan missions, Soap writes that if not for how the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FGM-148_Javelin FGM-148 Javelin]] works, he could have accidentally burnt off [[PornStache Price's famed mustache]].
** Also parodied in [[https://web.archive.org/web/20151030054558/https://desdinova84.deviantart.com/art/Game-over-106046360 this depiction]] of the same game's final level, where Soap tries to fire an RPG-7 at an enemy helicopter, as in the game itself, and [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome promptly pastes everyone else in the truck]] with the backblast.

* In ''VideoGame/CommandAndConquerGenerals,'' not only do rockets not have backblast, you can fill a tiny Humvee up with rocket-carrying infantry, all of whom can fire out of the windows, while the vehicle itself has a mounted TOW missile launcher.
* Touched on hilariously in ''VideoGame/CompanyOfHeroes'', when ordering Panzergrenadiers with Panzerschrecks into a building.
-->I ''know'' it's technically impossible to shoot a Panzerschreck from an enclosed position. ''Don't read the fucking manual next time, and you won't care so much!''
* Averted in ''VideoGame/TheWalkingDeadSeasonTwo.'' This season takes place when Clementine is only eleven and still pretty small, and in the first episode she's discouraged from picking up a rifle because the kickback would knock her over. Cue her trying to use one in another episode and promptly falling back onto the ground from the recoil.
* In ''VideoGame/KingdomOfLoathing'', the "Great Wolf's Rocket Launcher" gives you a special "Fire Rocket" combat ability. This does quite a lot of damage, but also hits you for about 1/3rd of your HP, because "the rocket part of the rocket burned your face pretty badly on its way out."
* ''VideoGame/SaintsRowIV'' has an interesting variation on this trope with the Alien Rocket Launcher. Weapons of its type in the series normally lack backblast of any kind, but the ultimate upgrade of the weapon ''adds'' backblast that damages any enemies that happen to be behind you when you fire it.
* The RPG-7 in ''VideoGame/KillingFloor2'' has backblast. It can stumble or knock down enemies who are close behind the user when they fire, and it's ''just'' strong enough to kill Clots outright. The effects of backblast in an enclosed space aren't simulated, however, nor is it particularly relevant since [[FriendlyFireproof you can't harm teammates anyway]].
* The Barnstormer RPG in ''VideoGame/BioshockInfinite'' takes this to its logical extreme; not only is there no backblast, there is no opening in the back of the launcher ''for'' the backblast. This would be fine if the rockets were spring-launched like the PIAT,[[note]]and to be fair the Barnstormer is operated via a side-crank in a fashion that could ''imply'' compressing a spring[[/note]] but the rockets ignite the second they leave the barrel. In any reasonable situation, Booker would be flung backwards the second he fired it. [[BottomlessMagazines Nevermind the fact the thing somehow stores two rockets in a single tube.]]

* In ''WesternAnimation/{{Archer}}'' the title character attempts to use an RPG-7 to blow his way out of a sealed armory. It fails to destroy the door, [[RunningGag he's deafened]], and [[AmusingInjuries his clothes are shredded]], but there is a hole in the bulletproof glass directly behind his firing position, continuing the show's record of being rather accurate with its depiction of weapons, [[RuleofFunny aside from lethality]].

* The rocket launcher in ''VideoGame/HalfLife'' uses compressed air to to launch the rocket a safe distance away before the propellant ignites, averting this trope. It's still dangerous in confined spaces, though, since the initial launch will make the rocket jump up a foot or so. If you don't have enough height clearance - boom. Which, in turn, leads to a bit of FridgeLogic: such a weapon typically won't arm itself until after the rocket motor ignites, meaning that it should be "klunk" rather than "boom".

* Averted in ''Literature/IceStation. When Renshaw fires a rocket in a hovercraft, the backblast destroys the windows behind him.

* Averted by Creator/MatthewReilly. When Renshaw fires a rocket in a hovercraft, the backblast destroys the windows behind him.

* Averted in ''Creator/TomClancy's VideoGame/GhostRecon'' wherein the backblast can kill friendlies directly behind the soldier who fires an anti-tank weapon. However, the backblast physics in the game don't seem to take into account walls, since said weapon is still safe enough to fire from enclosed areas.

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles'', Dash and Violet are sent scampering from their hiding spot due to a very large-scale aversion of this trope. The BigBad is firing an ''intercontinental ballistic missile'' and its exhaust has to go somewhere since the silo is inside a volcano...mainly through the "cave" that was actually intended to channel the missile's backblast (presumably one of many).

* Averted in ''Anime/{{Pokemon}}'' of all places. An early Johto episode had Jessie and James steal the Mon of the Week (Donphan) with what appeared to be a shoulder-fired net. It had a backblast.

* Averted in ''LightNovel/TheFamiliarOfZero'' where Saito warns Louise not to stand behind him before firing the "Staff of Destruction" (really a bazooka).

* In the ''Series/DoctorWho'' story "Remembrance of the Daleks", keep an eye on the wall behind Ace when she fires an RPG at a Dalek. The scorch mark is clear proof that these were the days before CGI. Or, you know, decent budget.

* ''Series/{{Buffy the Vampire Slayer}}'': In the second season episode "Innocence", Buffy uses a shoulder-fired rocket launcher to great effect, and hilarity. She experiences no recoil, which is not surprising, physics be damned, given her super-strength. But notably, she fires from a position where there is nobody or no thing behind her to be fried by the rocket's ignition.
** Note that Xander had military knowledge, due to a spell, and was one the one who instructed her on how to use it, and presumably included that no one should be behind her when she fires it.

* ''Series/StarTrekVoyager''. In "Future's End" Captain Janeway has to crawl into a launch tube and fire a photon torpedo manually. She's knocked down and scorched by the exhaust gasses. Knowing this, her NumberOne made sure the Doctor would be on hand to treat her.

[[folder:Web Comics]]

* Averted in the ''Axis & Allies Miniatures'' game, which had the M20 75mm Recoilless Rifle as a type of American infantry in one set. It had the special ability "Backblast: This unit automatically fails cover rolls any round it attacks." This had the end result of making it inferior to other American anti-tank infantry units of similar power.

* Averted in ''Anime/MobileSuitGundam'' when a civilian helping to fire malfunctioning missiles from an aircraft doesn't realize she needs to get out of the way after setting them off and is blown out of the plane.

->''Recoilless rifles, aren't.''

* ''VideoGame/JediKnightIIJediOutcast'' and ''VideoGame/JediKnightJediAcademy'' feature a handheld missile launcher which is designed to be held like a traditional firearm and expels its backblast in ''front'' of the user - though it's at right angles to the rocket launcher, so it can't harm the operator. The barrel also moves away from the rocket, absorbing some of the recoil, which is actually similar to how most tanks dissipate recoil. This is also in noted contrast to an earlier model in the same series from ''VideoGame/StarWarsBattlefront'', which is designed more like a real-life RPG launcher, sitting over the shoulder and with an opening at the rear

* Both ''VideoGame/JediOutcast'' and ''VideoGame/JediAcademy'' in the ''VideoGame/DarkForcesSaga'' features the handheld model of the Merr-Sonn PLX-2M where the backblast is expelled in ''front'' of the user - though it's at right angles to the rocket launcher, so it can't harm the operator. The barrel also moves away from the rocket, absorbing some of the recoil. This is actually similar to how most tanks dissipate recoil.

* The Barnstormer RPG in ''VideoGame/BioshockInfinite'' takes this to its logical extreme; not only is there no backblast, there is no opening in the back of the launcher ''for'' the backblast. This would be fine if the rockets were spring-launched like the PIAT[[note]] and to be fair the Barnstormer is operated via a side-crank in a fashion that could ''imply'' loading a spring[[/note]], but the rockets ignite the second they leave the barrel. In any reasonable situation, Booker would be flung backwards the second he fired it. [[BottomlessMagazines Nevermind the fact the thing somehow stores two rockets in a single tube...]]

** Also parodied in [[https://web.archive.org/web/20151030054558/https://desdinova84.deviantart.com/art/Game-over-106046360 this depiction]] of the same game's final level, where Soap tries to fire an RPG-7 at an enemy helicopter, as in the game itself, and [[RealityEnsues promptly pastes everyone else in the truck]] with the backblast.

In the world of fiction, rocket-propelled weaponry create negligible, if any, backblast. The characters shown using such weapons are thus able to use rocket launchers with their backs to a wall or within an enclosed space; as if the rocket just levitates away instead of being accelerated by the thrust of a strong jet.

* Averted in ''Manga/KatekyoHitmanReborn'' when Tsuna finds that firing his [[KamehameHadoken X-Burner]] without firing a blast of equal force backwards at the right angle produces a very violent recoil. He even gets computerized contact lenses to help him do the math for balancing the forces.

* Averted in ''{{Literature/Gate}}'', where a soldier attacking a dragon with a Panzerfaust actually checks to make sure nobody is behind him before firing. One of the peasants witnessing the fight mistakes his attack for a magic spell: "Bakblast Clir". Later, Itami loans several Panzerfausts to a group of Dark Elves and specifically warns them about the backblast. Unfortunately, they completely forget his warning and as a result, several of their number get killed or maimed by the backblasts.

[[folder:Fan Fic]]
* Averted in the ''Franchise/MassEffect'' fanfiction ''FanFic/MassEffectInterregnum.'' One of the stories Garrus tells Sidonis is about the time C-Sec investigated the murder of an elcor, blown out of a tower by a rocket launcher. As Garrus points out, however, "an elcor weighs an awful lot, and that means you need a big, big gun to launch one out of a window"... leaving only a handful of smoking remains of the killer behind.

* Col. Volgin in ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid3SnakeEater'' was man enough to fire a recoilless ''nuclear warhead'' from a helicopter gunship traveling in an aerial convoy. Somehow this doesn't kill everybody aboard.

* Averted in ''Manga/KatekyoHitmanReborn'' when Tsuna finds that firing his [[KamehameHadoken X-Burner]] without firing a blast of equal force backwards at the right angle produces a very violent recoil.

** Bear in mind that the Panzerfaust's backblast is ''comparatively'' milder; the end of the tube still had to be pointed away from the user. The Germans were aware enough to inscribe a warning at the rear end of the launcher ("Achtung! Feuerstrahl!")[[note]]literally, "Beware! Fire Jet!" in German)[[/note]] to admonish its users. There were numerous cases of soldiers, generally Finns who were issued with Panzerfausts but not trained in their use (since they couldn't read the German warning on the tube) killing themselves by bracing the tube against their shoulder like a regular rifle and firing.

* In ''Film/RamboFirstBloodPartII'', the title character plays dead at the controls of a downed helicopter so he can [[BatmanGambit lure a Soviet gunship pilot to linger and smile evilly over firing the kill shot]] in order to ambush him with an RPG, to great audience satisfaction. However, in the scene in question, he also has about 20 rescued POWs in the back of the chopper who would have likely been torched by the backblast in real life, but are unaffected.[[note]]Rambo was also risking getting burnt as well[[/note]]

* ''Inverted'' in the [=RTS=] ''VideoGame/ActOfWar'', where the player can have infantry occupy buildings for added protection. Attempting this with rocket-armed troops will result in the death of the rocket guy, some or all of any other infantry in the building, and considerable damage to the building itself the instant something hostile comes within range of the garrisoned building and those rocket guys open fire on it.

* In the VideoGame/BallisticWeapons mod for ''VideoGame/UnrealTournament2004'', one of the heavy weapons, the [=J2329=] HAMR, is a massive artillery piece that does not have any backblast. As a result, the recoil is so severe that if you attempt to fire it without deploying it as a turret first, you actually ''injure yourself''.

--> I KNOW it's technically impossible to shoot a Panzerschreck from an enclosed position. ''Don't read the fucking manual next time, and you won't care so much!''

* ''VideoGame/SaintsRowIV'' has an interesting variation on this trope with the Alien Rocket Launcher. Weapons in the game normally lack a backblast of any kind, but the ultimate upgrade of the weapon ''adds'' a backblast that damages any enemies that happen to be behind you when you fire it.
* The RPG-7 in ''VideoGame/KillingFloor2'' has a backblast. It can stumble or knock down enemies who are close behind the user when they fire, and it's ''just'' strong enough to kill Clots outright. Backblast in enclosed spaces isn't simulated, however, nor is it particularly relevant since [[FriendlyFireproof you can't harm teammates anyway]].

** Also parodied in [[https://desdinova84.deviantart.com/art/Game-over-106046360 this depiction]] of the same game's final level.

* In ''VideoGame/TheEvilWithin'', Sebastian [[spoiler:fires a rocket launcher at the final boss while lying against a wall he was just impaled on.]] This is justified as [[spoiler:the entire plot takes place in a MentalWorld]].

* In ''VideoGame/TheEvilWithin'', Sebastian [[spoiler:fires a rocket launcher at the final boss while lying against a wall he was just impaled on.]]
** This is justified as [[spoiler:the entire plot takes place in a MentalWorld]].

* The RPG in ''VideoGame/KillingFloor2'' has a backblast. It can stumble or knock down enemies who are close behind the user when they fire, and it's ''just'' strong enough to kill Clots outright.