History Main / QuestForAWish

* The first arc of ''Series/KamenRiderGhost'' boils down to this. Several parties are trying to collect the [[MacGuffin 15 Heroic]] [[TransformationTrinket Eyecons]] so they can get a wish: [[TheHero Takeru]] wants to wish himself back to life, [[SixthRanger Makoto]] wants to restore his little sister, and [[BigBadWannabe Saionji]] wants power. [[spoiler:Takeru gets the wish and restores Makoto's sister; his "resurrection timer" gets reset shortly thereafter. At the end of the series he's granted a second wish and comes back to life.]]

* ''WesternAnimation/PussInBootsTheLastWish'': Puss becomes fearful of permanently dying after losing [[CatsHaveNineLives his eighth life]] and retires, until he hears of [[WishUponAShootingStar a magical shooting star]] that has landed in the [[EnchantedForest Dark Forest]] which will grant any wish to the first person who reaches it. Puss's adventuring courage is rejuvenated as he realizes he can wish his eight lives back. However, he's not the only one looking for the star; he reencounters his old paramour Kitty Softpaws, and they reluctantly team up against [[Literature/{{Goldilocks}} Goldilocks and the Three Bears]], as well as "Big" Jack Horner and his squad of fighting bakers. [[spoiler:In the end, [[NoMacGuffinNoWinner no one gets the wish]], as Goldilocks, Puss, and Kitty realize they didn't really ''need'' it, and they destroy the star to prevent Jack from using its power to TakeOverTheWorld.]]

* The ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'' episode "[[ChristmasEpisode It's Christmas in Canada]]" is basically [[OffToSeeTheWizard the same premise as]] ''Literature/TheWonderfulWizardOfOz'', only instead of getting wishes granted, the protagonists merely wanted to repeal some unfavorable laws. Cartman, Stan, and Kenny were just along for the ride.

* The Disney animated musical ''WesternAnimation/Wish2023'' is a sort of inversion: The heroine [[MakeAWish makes a wish]] to save her homeland from a sorcerer king who ''can'' grant people's wishes but instead secretly hoards most of them for his own benefit, and an actual anthropomorphic star comes down to give her the means to do so. From there, she and her companions must first free the captive wishes so the star can grant them.

[[folder:Comics]]

[[folder:Film - Animation]]

[[folder:Film - Live Action]]
* ''Film/{{Stalker}}'', adapted from ''Roadside Picnic'', goes even further than the novel, with the Stalker refusing to ask anything, the Writer having his wish granted while getting there, and the Professor [[spoiler:abandoning his original plan to nuke the Room altogether]].

** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast'' concerns Link's quest for the wish-granting Triforce; he wants it less to make a wish of his own and more to get it out of the hands of Ganon, who had previously used it to take over the Sacred Realm (in the process turning it into the Dark World) and is currently using it to invade the Light World. Once Link gets it, however, he realizes that he can use it to undo all of Ganon's evil works.
*** Earlier in the game, Link has to make a wish to unlock the second pendant palace, though the wish is unstated. Notably, the palace entrance requirement is that he make ''a'' wish, not a specific one: it's entirely possible that he just wished to enter the palace.
** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkBetweenWorlds'', a semi-sequel to [=LttP=], has [[spoiler: Hilda and]] Yuga of Lorule scheme to steal Hyrule's Triforce to replace Lorule's, which had been destroyed centuries before by {{Well Intentioned Extremist}}s who were unaware that it was a CosmicKeystone without which their world would slowly crumble. Once again, Link is more concerned with keeping it out of [[spoiler: their]] hands than using it for himself. [[spoiler: Once he recovers it, he realizes that he can use it to wish for the Lorulian Triforce to be restored. Win-win!]]

[[folder:Fan Works]]
* This serves as the entire premise of ''Roleplay/NothingIsSacred''. By collecting mystical artifacts and using them to empower her Sacred Beast before the other chosen are able to do the same, Stella will be granted a single wish. Her wish of choice? [[TakeOverTheWorld World domination]].
[[/folder]]

* ''Literature/{{Xanth}}'' books frequently involves quests to have one's problems solved by Magician Humphrey, a grouchy old wizard who sets all kinds of dangers and tests at his tower. In the first book the plot is set off because Bink, a man who's going to be exiled for being the UnSorcerer, tries to find out his talent from Humphrey but even he is stumped.

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Aladdin}}'': The Cave of Wonders serves as a test in order to find the wish-granting genie's lamp - not only must the person who enters the cave be a "Diamond in the Rough", but said person must refuse to touch any of the treasures, except for the lamp. While Aladdin is unaware of the genie, Jafar essentially sends Aladdin on the quest to get the genie for him.

* The plot of the ''WesternAnimation/{{Animaniacs}}'' movie ''WesternAnimation/WakkosWish''. All the characters race to find a fallen star; the first one there gets one wish. [[spoiler: Interestingly, while Wakko of course gets the wish, his wish ends up granting the wishes of nearly everyone else in the cast.]]

[[folder:Film - Live Action]]
* ''Film/{{Stalker}}'', adapted from ''Roadside Picnic'', goes even further than the novel, with the Stalker refusing to ask anything, the Writer having his wish granted while getting there, and the Professor [[spoiler:abandoning his original plan to nuke the Room altogether]].

[[folder:Film]]

* The plot of the ''WesternAnimation/{{Animaniacs}}'' movie ''WesternAnimation/WakkosWish''. All the characters race to find a fallen star; the first one there gets one wish.