History Main / NearDeathExperience

[[folder:Anime & Manga]]

* Just when Mimi in ''Theatre/{{RENT}}'' seems to have died like her equivalent in ''Theatre/LaBoheme'', she suddenly revives, and claims she was heading toward a warm light when Angel, who died earlier in the show, appeared and told her to go back.

* While there many known cases, only a few have been well observed, with actual proof that the brain was inactive during the "experience." One of them is Pam Reynolds. Watch here [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WNbdUEqDB-k]] or here [[https://vimeo.com/25629985]].

* In ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventureDiamondIsUnbreakable'', [[spoiler:Okuyasu is seemingly killed during the final battle, only to return in BigDamnHeroes fashion. He explains that he had a dream where he saw [[GoIntoTheLight a bright light]] and met his dead brother Keicho and realized that he must have died. However Keicho, who'd always done the thinking for both of them, told Okuyasu that it was time for him to decide for himself what he was going to do; he decided to return to Morioh and help his friends, and woke up just in time to save Josuke.]]

A character almost dies, but is given a chance to or is forced to return. Often overlaps with ItIsNotYourTime and MyLifeFlashedBeforeMyEyes. Sometimes overlaps with NearDeathClairvoyance. If the near-death is a near-suicide, may overlap with ItsAWonderfulPlot. To some extent TruthInTelevision, and heavily overlaps with DontFearTheReaper.

* ''Series/{{Wiseguy}}''. Happens to Frank [=McPike=] after he gets shot. He sees a dog leading him towards the Tunnel of Light, only to be called back by the sounds of the long-silent churchbell his friends start ringing.

* ''WesternAnimation/OverTheGardenWall:'' Greg's dream adventure in [[FluffyCloudHeaven Cloud City]] as [[SnowMeansDeath the temperatures slowly drop]] can be read as an in-story example of this trope; more vitally, [[spoiler: Wirt and Greg are drowning in real-time, making the entire series a near-death experience]].

A near-death experience is when a person is either near-death or without heart beat and respiration and has memories from this time. A docuseries about real-life people who have died and returned to tell about it is Consciousness Continues [[http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0736J34NH]] on Amazon there will be 22 episodes for Season 1.

A docuseries about real life people who have died and returned to tell about it is Consciousness Continues on Amazon there will be 22 episodes for season 1, only 1 is currently up.

* The entire film of ''Film/{{Flatliners}}'' is a plot built around this.

* In the ''Series/{{Dinosaurs]]'' episode "The Last Temptation of Ethyl", Grandma Ethyl has two near-death experiences. After the first one, she gets her own talk show telling the world about the afterlife. In the second, she briefly reunites with her husband Louie, who warns her not to obsess with the afterlife or profit from it anymore, or else she'll end up in an {{Ironic Hell}} instead.

%%[[folder:Theatre]]

%%* Mimi in ''Theatre/{{RENT}}''.
%%[[/folder]]

A character almost dies, but is given a chance to or is forced to return. Often overlaps with ItIsNotYourTime. Sometimes overlaps with NearDeathClairvoyance. If the near-death is a near-suicide, may overlap with ItsAWonderfulPlot. To some extent TruthInTelevision, and heavily overlaps with DontFearTheReaper.

!!Examples

* In a rare serious arc of ''Manga/RanmaOneHalf'', Ryouga dies when the superhumanly-strong Lime crushes his windpipe. He finds himself in a field of flowers with a river in the distance, and his grandpa and grandma yelling, from the other side of the river, not to come closer. But when he hallucinates Akane happily saying goodbye to him, together with Ranma, Ryouga is [[BigNo shocked]] back to life, depressed enough to summon the [[KiAttacks Shishi Hokodan]] and crush Lime with it.

* TheJoker nearly dies at the end of the ''Last Laugh'' crossover. This is possibly the first time the reader is able to experience one of his numerous brushes with death with him.
* Comicbook/ThePunisher has this in ''ComicBook/ThePunisherBorn''. [[spoiler: At the end, during the big battle, he makes a deal with Death. He is given the option of dying there in Nam or having supernatural protection and thusly, a guarantee to see his family again. But the latter option will have a price. Hint: it's his family.]]

* Lampooned in ''ComicStrip/BloomCounty'', where it happened to Opus, but made very little sense. (The guy who told him ItIsNotYourTime was famed high school principal Joe Clark, who "expelled" him to send him back to the living world, and reminded him to watch ''Film/LeanOnMe'', which had just been released.)

[[folder:Films -- Animated]]
* In ''WesternAnimation/IceAge2TheMeltdown'', Scrat has this at the end of the movie. Right as he is about to enter the gates of acorn heaven, Sid revives him.

* ''Series/{{Farscape}}''. PlayedForLaughs in "Revenging Angel". Crichton is in a coma and sees his world through the eyes of...WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes?

[[folder:Webcomics]]

* ''Webcomic/GirlGenius'', as a world filled with [[MadScientist Mad Scientists]], has quite a few - although some possibly count as ''actual'' death experiences.

--> '''Tarvek:''' ''[weakly]'' I... I don't think I'm '''''at all well'''''...\\

** Tarvek's sister Anevka was saved from her near-death experience, following her involvement in one of her father's experiments, by Tarvek connecting her barely-living body to a clank that she would be able to control. [[spoiler: This didn't exactly go as planned, as according to Tarvek her body died anyway, and the clank continued living Anevka's life without realising it wasn't her.]]
** Tarvek has had a couple of other near-death experiences separate from his illness and the Si Vales Valeo - one when he was stabbed and then shot in Sturmhalten, and then another when he was stabbed by Martellus and poisoned with something that should have made him ''dissolve'' within half an hour. [[spoiler: Luckily for him, that was when the Baron set off the timestop, and Gil was able to heal him once he pulled him back into realtime.]]

* The ''{{Dilbert}}'' animated series had an entire episode revolving around this. Dilbert gets hit in the head in a gas station parking lot and winds up seeing the afterlife, which, much to his chagrin, turns out to be an office cubicle in the middle of a white void. He recieves a second head injury near the climax of the episode, where he finds that ''Wally'' is now in a cubicle next to his (in accordance with the beliefs of the Wallyites, a cult who had established a religion based on Wally due to a series of events during the episode).

* [[spoiler: Harry]] in ''Literature/HarryPotter''.

* In the 4th novel of ''LightNovel/SuzumiyaHaruhi'', [[spoiler:Kyon experiences this]]. In his own words: "Damn it, [[ThisIsGonnaSuck I'm about to die]]."

* Comicbook/ThePunisher has this in ''[[Comicbook/ThePunisherMAX The Punisher: Born]]''. [[spoiler: At the end, during the big battle, he makes a deal with Death. He is given the option of dying there in Nam or having supernatural protection and thusly, a guarantee to see his family again. But the latter option will have a price. Hint: it's his family.]]

** A literal example of this trope tends to happen to Commander Vimes, as his version involves seeing the GrimReaper himself, who on one occasion notes that Vimes having a near-death means that he has to undergo a "near-Vimes experience". The Grim Reaper in Discworld is GenreSavvy enough to see Vimes's PlotArmor and [[BadAss acknowledges him for it.]]

* Many organized religions take near-death experiences very seriously as proof of their doctrine. Others may shun them or dismiss them as delusions. One thing critics point out is that the [=NDE=]s are contradictory in terms of religious imagery (e.g. people see imagery reflective of their religion or what is dominant where they live) so claming this as proof of any one religion would be problematic at best.

* Many organized religions take near-death experiences very seriously as proof of their doctrine. Others may shun them or dismiss them as delusions. One thing critics point out is that the NDEs are contradictory in terms of religious imagery (e.g. people see imagery reflective of their religion or what is dominant where they live) so claming this as proof of any one religion would be problematic at best.

* ''Series/TheEqualizer'' takes a [[ScareEmStraight class of juvenile delinquents]] to speak to a former hitman about his near-death experience. Later Mickey Kostmeyer scoffs at the idea and asks [=McCall=] if he saw anything on an occasion when he flatlined after getting shot in Africa. The episode ends on [=McCall=]'s silent expression.

* The eponymous ''[[Literature/{{Chalion}} Curse of Chalion]]'' can only be broken by a man "willing to lay down his life three times for the House of Chalion." This leaves poor Cazaril getting just-barely-not-killed twice (once in the backstory and [[TakingYouWithMe once performing death magic]]) so his soul is open enough on the third death that the gods can unmake the curse through him. Yes, he had to ''practice dying''. Strictly speaking only the third time is a real NearDeathExperience, where he gets a full glimpse of the gods' realm and the Lady of Spring gives him the choice whether to return to life or not.