History Main / ThePowerOfFriendship

* Horribly subverted in ''Series/{{Sherlock}}'' when the titular character is [[spoiler: forced to give up life as he knows it]] in order to save the only three people in the world he considers friends: John, Mrs Hudson, and Lestrade.
** Made all the worse by a conversation not long before this:

* The Arabian god [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wadd Wadd]] was the deity of friendship, besides being also a moon and snake god. Maybe a subversion, as his worship is all but extinct.

* Subverted in the "bad" ending of ''VideoGame/BreathOfFireIV'', in which [[spoiler:the main character was absorbed by the villain who then proceeded to summon an enormous dragon to fight the remainder of the party. Said party spouted something about friendship, but it was quickly snuffed out by the fact that the dragon had infinite HP, which regenerated every turn, counterattacks that did thousands of damage, an attack that reduced everybody to 1 HP, and was controlled ''by the player''. The game then proceeded to end with all of humanity being destroyed.]]

** In ''VideoGame/Disgaea3AbsenceOfJustice'', during the final battle. Subverted, in that while idealistic hero Almaz calls it this, Mao categorically denies that it has anything to do with friendship, claiming it's some sort of cosmic energy he was hiding in his body.

** In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVI'', upon reaching the FinalBoss, the party responds to his nihilistic revelations by talking about all of the individual bonds they've made with one another, what they've learned throughout their individual experience, and why real love is worth risking their lives and fighting to preserve. The villain's response? "This is sickening. You sound like chapters from a self help booklet!" Despite that, though, it's not a subversion. Kefka is ''wrong.'' He is ''stopped.'' It's also worth noting that in a game where one of the central themes is "human connection makes you a person," Kefka, the villain, is alone in absolutely every way.

* In the final battle of ''Videogame/JadeEmpire'', your allies weaken the enemies that the BigBad sends at you before you face him. The game's KarmaMeter system results in a mild and possibly unintentional subversion: the only difference between being a [[TheMessiah messiah]] who believes in the power of friendship (Open Palm), and a tyrant who just killed all the followers who disagreed with him (Closed Fist), is you have to fight a few more enemies. It seems the power of friendship and the power of a ruthless, brutally evil martial artist are about the same.

* [[PlayingWithATrope Played with]] interestingly in ''VideoGame/{{Thief}} II: The Metal Age''. One of the epigraphs that preceed the cinematic sequences before each level is from the Keepers' Book of Secrets: "Reliance on others is strength for the weak, but weakness for the strong. Wisdom lies in knowing one's own nature over time." [[AntiHero Garrett]] has always been a (effectual) loner, but winds up needing to [[EnemyMine make allies]] to solve the problems he faces in the game. It's a [[SubvertedTrope subversion]] since, if the epigraph is correct, [[FamilyUnfriendlyAesop this means]] Garrett [[BadassDecay used to be strong but now has become weak]].

* Taken to the [[ThanatosGambit ultimate extent]] in TwoKinds when Master General Alaric turns the system of his homeland on it's head, exploits every loophole in the system, and faces his own death with a steadfast determination, [[MyGreatestFailure just to do right]] [[http://twokinds.keenspot.com/archive.php?p=583 by his best friend.]]

* Subverted in [[http://www.sir-toby.com/extend-a-story/story-2/code/read.php?episode=3747 The Black Void]]

* ''Roleplay/SurvivalOfTheFittest'' subverts this every time it gets the chance. In a story where the goal is to the the last one left standing and the main moral appears to be "don't trust anybody", friendship has no place and SOTF has no qualms with showing the reader exactly why. Version 0 ends with Sydney Morvran and his friends hiding in the school building. [[spoiler:An accidentally dropped flashbang causes them all to go insane with paranoia and butcher each other, Syd using one of them as a human shield.]] Groups and friendships both tend to collapse in a dramatic fashion, especially once suspicion of killers starts to go around, and people often end up being slaughtered by others who were their closest colleagues before the game. Battle Royale, which SOTF is based on, used this trope.

** [[SubvertedTrope On the other hand]], Avatar Roku tried to use the Power of Friendship to restrain Fire Lord Sozin. That didn't work so well.

** The whole message of the trope is subverted in ''WesternAnimation/{{Recess}}''; When playing kickball against a team of weirdly similar kids from a neighboring school, T.J. tells his friends they can beat their {{doppelganger}}s because they have ThePowerOfFriendship... and the camera cuts to his counterpart ''telling her team the same thing''. Though oftentimes, the show plays this trope straight.

* Completely, utterly horrifyingly subverted in ''Manga/AttackOnTitan''. During the battle against the Female Titan, Eren watches helplessly as one comrade after another is slaughtered during her onslaught. He essentially had two options: [[spoiler:Shift into Titan form himself]], charge in recklessly, possibly defeat her, albeit at the cost of compromising Erwin Smith's plan to capture her alive; or put his faith in his comrades, let the elites do what they do best, and believe in Smith and Levi and that their plan will work. End result? [[spoiler:Levi's elites are killed off, dozens of other redshirts pile up, Eren's anger gets the better of him and he gets his ass kicked (and capture), Levi gets badly injured, and lastly the Titan escapes as Smith has no choice but to retreat.]] Lesson of the day? ''Attack on Titan's'' world is so beyond [[CrapsackWorld crapsack]] that anything but the most absolute pragmatic, ruthless and efficient courses of action will get pretty much everyone killed, no matter how romantic or righteous the alternatives are.

** Subverted during [[spoiler: Orihime's 'six hearts beat as one' speech.]]

* Subverted in ''Manga/BusouRenkin''. Kazuki, while defending his school from a homunculus army released by Doctor Butterfly, says that he's regaining strength by drawing on the spirits of his friends and classmates. [[spoiler: What he (and the audience at this point) don't know at the time is exactly how ''literal'' that statement is - he's begun to draw on the life force of the people in the school, signaling that the Black Kakugane in him is beginning to awaken.]]
* Amazingly, [[MagnificentBastard Lelouch]] of the otherwise rather dark ''Anime/CodeGeass'' salvages a potentially disastrous situation by successfully pulling off a speech about friendship and ThePowerOfLove. The most startling is probably when he [[spoiler: tells the Chinese Empress that she can marry for love, instead of being forced into a political marriage with one of his Black Knights]].

* ''Manga/FistOfTheNorthStar'' plays it straight in the final battle, where Kenshiro draws power from everyone he cares about, but it's used before that when Rei, preparing to attack Raoh, yells [[CombinedEnergyAttack "Everyone, lend me your strength!"]] before hurling himself at Raoh and using his DangerousForbiddenTechnique... [[spoiler:and Raoh not only [[SubvertedTrope point-blank counters it]], but hits him with an attack that kills him over three agonizing days]].

* Subverted by a pair of tertiary characters in ''Manga/HighSchoolOfTheDead''. Toshimi and Misuzu's bid for BFF survivors of the apocalypse -- complete with pinky promise -- lasts about as long as it takes one of them to kick the other down a flight of stairs.

** Subverted viciously in the third episode. When Mami Tomoe gets hyped up on the Power of Friendship during the battle with Charlotte, [[spoiler:it causes her to fight recklessly against the witch, as opposed to the cool, careful and methodical style of witch killing that she used from the second episode. This results in Mami freezing up when Charlotte goes OneWingedAngel, immediately followed by one of the most nightmarish and [[CruelAndUnusualDeath horrific deaths of the entire series]] as Mami is ''EatenAlive'']].
** Played straight (as much as it can be in this particular series) in Episode 10, where it is revealed that [[spoiler:Homura's reason for going through [[GroundhogDayLoop many timelines' worth of utter hell]] is because of her undying devotion to Madoka]].

* Subverted in ''Anime/TigerAndBunny.'' Kotetsu tries to [[spoiler: cure Barnaby's amnesia]] with the power of friendship, begging him to remember what a good team they are. Turns out friendship isn't half as powerful as an EmbarrassingNickname.

* ''Anime/YesPrecure5'' also ''subverted'' this somewhat. When Rin and Karen were forced to work together to save the others, they were particularly effective -- because they ''really'' rubbed each other the wrong way, and neither one of them wanted to get shown up by the other. And speaking of the power of RomanticTwoGirlFriendship, that's how you "turn on" a ''{{Simoun}}''.

* Subverted in ''WorldWarHulk'', where several of Banner/Hulk's friends try to appeal to their history, their friendship, or his better nature. [[ViolenceIsTheOnlyOption It never works]]. Oh, and Hulk's own TrueCompanions contain the traitor who caused the problem for which he blames the Earth heroes.

* Practically lampshaded in ''Film/DeepBlueSea'' when Creator/SamuelLJackson gives a big speech about the Power of Teamwork, just before [[spoiler: being unceremoniously eaten by a shark.]] It's further subverted after this point when [[spoiler: almost everyone else gets killed anyway.]]

* In the GauntsGhosts'' novel ''Sabbat Martyr'', this is what saves [[spoiler: Rawne from being subverted by Chaos.]]

** This is subverted in the FateOfTheJedi book series, by having only DarkSide people (Nightsisters and Sith) with a technique called a 'control web'. It allows them to combine their powers, and 'weave' their control over [[OhCrap a dozen Rancors]], or weaken an EldritchAbomination.

** All of the Doctor's previous companions have shown that they're quite willing to die (in some cases, repeatedly) to protect him. [[Recap/DoctorWhoNSS4E13JourneysEnd ''Journey's End'']] puts a subversive twist on this with the claim by Davros that the Doctor basically turns everyone who loves him into living weapons for his cause.

* ''Anime/{{Pokemon}}'': All Pokémon companions.

* A big difference between the conclusions of the anime and the manga. The anime ends with Maka's 'punch of courage' that fitted the series themes from one angle. The manga goes for the broader, Power of Friendship approach by having Soul's [[MusicalAssassin 'musical']] skill invoke the power/courage/support of ''all'' the True Companions to allow [[spoiler: him and Maka to reach Crona within Asura's soul. And [[CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming then]] Soul leaves a spot for Crona's 'note' to add to the tune.]]

* ''Anime/YesPrecure5'' also ''subverted'' this somewhat. When Rin and Karen were forced to work together to save the others, they were particularly effective -- because they ''really'' rubbed each other the wrong way, and neither one of them wanted to get shown up by the other. And speaking of the power of RomanticTwoGirlFriendship, that's how you "turn on" a ''{{Simoun}}''.

--> Now is the Law of the Jungle---as old and true as the sky;\\

As the creeper that girdles the tree-trunk, the Law runneth forward and back---\\

* While [[ComicBook/{{Spiderman}} Spider-Man]] started out as a loner, he's become friends with a great deal of Marvel's other heroes (and even some of the less pleasant types like Loki and Deadpool are on good terms with the wallcrawler), especially the FantasticFour, who treat him like family, and he's been part of several incarnations of TheAvengers, and as Peter Parker he has a big group of {{Muggle}} friends who he can count on. When Spidey's in trouble, a large portion of the Marvel Universe has his back.

* Practically lampshaded in ''Film/DeepBlueSea'' when SamuelLJackson gives a big speech about the Power of Teamwork, just before [[spoiler: being unceremoniously eaten by a shark.]] It's further subverted after this point when [[spoiler: almost everyone else gets killed anyway.]]

* This is the closest thing {{Nightwing}} has to an actual power (well, other than being trained by ''the freaking Batman''), and when your friends include Franchise/{{Superman}} and damn near every single person who is or ever has been in the JusticeLeague and ComicBook/TeenTitans it's the only one you'll ever need.

* In ''Film/TheAvengers'', Tony Stark's kindness towards and acceptance of Bruce Banner/The Hulk, refusing to treat him like a ticking time bomb the way everyone else is, has drastic consequences later on, as not only does his insistence that the Hulk can be used for good get through to Bruce, [[ChangedMyMindKid who decides to come back to help during the final battle]], but the Hulk ''remembers'' Tony and winds up saving his life.

* ''Film/PacificRim'': Because {{Synchronization}} requires two people, they have to get along really well with no secrets.

* In ''StarTrekXI'', Spock cites this trope as the reason why Kirk and Spock ''must'' learn to work together; it is the only way the ''Enterprise'' can defeat Nero.

** In the series 3 finale, [[spoiler:Martha escapes the Master's takeover of Earth and spends one year traveling the world telling everyone about the doctor and how they're supposed to say (and [[ClapYourHandsIfYouBelieve believe!]]) "doctor" over and over during an onconming countdown. When said time arrives, everyone in the world doing this (even the Master's human followers and '''[[HeelFaceTurn his own]] [[InTheBack freaking wife]]''') gives the Doctor the strength he needs to overpower the Master and undo all his evil.]]
** All of the Doctor's previous companions have shown that they're quite willing to die (in some cases, repeatedly) to protect him. ''Journey's End'' puts a subversive twist on this with the claim by Davros that the Doctor basically turns everyone who loves him into living weapons for his cause.

** In one of the show's most effective examples, the episode "Keep Calm and Flutter On" shows [[spoiler:Fluttershy reforming Discord, the [[MadGod mad spirit of]] [[GodOfEvil chaos and disharmony]], simply by trying to be the first friend he ever had. [[BatmanGambit When Discord tries taking advantage of this in a gambit to keep her from using her Element of Harmony against him so he can run rampant]], she agrees to it--[[OutGambitted she'll just stop being his friend if he continues to misbehave]]. Discord, it turns out, would rather have fun together with someone than no one at all]].

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[[caption-width-right:280: [[VideoGame/{{Portal}} This was a triumph...]]]]

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* Hoplites in battle, whose main strength was in trusting that they could depend on each other.
* Truth in music? Queen wrote an awesome song about the Power of Friendship, the aptly titled [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NuxS-9t3tnY Friends will be Friends]]
* The reason why the Human species has become the dominant species of Earth, along with great creativity, the ability of think out strategies and unlimited ruthlessness.
** Some anthropologists also suggest that the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toba_catastrophe_theory Toba Event]] forced the early humans of Eastern Africa to learn to work together or face extinction.
* Invoked by the US military after a massive earthquake and tsunami struck Japan on the 11th of March 2011. The aid mission that they launched on the 12th was called "Operation Tomodachi" (Japanese for friend).
* Dennis Rodman seems to be trying to invoke this with his visit with North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un, telling him that he has a "friend for life." It is Rodman's hope that his visit may help, if even in some little way, to cool the hostility of the North Korean government towards the United States.

* ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitans'':
** In the fourth season, Raven, after becoming her father's portal to Earth and being transformed into a powerless, younger version of herself, is able to [[DeusExMachina regain all of her powers by drawing on The Power of Friendship]] and cause a complete SnapBack of the [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt global destruction]] Trigon caused.
** With the Robin/Slade dynamic, [[ThePowerOfFriendship Robin's friendship with the rest of the team]], by Robin's own words, serves the same purpose that Franchise/{{Batman}}'s [[ThouShaltNotKill code against killing]] does: it's the brake preventing him from crossing the line and [[HeWhoFightsMonsters becoming what he fights]].
** Usually [[AnAesop the aesop]] of ''Teen Titans'' involves this trope.
* ''WesternAnimation/RocketPower'': Part of Reggie Rocket's pep talk in the later part of "Race Across New Zealand": "We're not just another team out here. We're friends. And that's what makes us better."

* In an episode of ''WesternAnimation/TheAmazingWorldOfGumball'', Gumball bursts out of a cement prison after seeing the possible outcome of his friendship if he weren't to get to someone's house in time whilst saying the trope name in the process.
* Disney seems to like this trope a lot:
** The theme of friendship and teamwork as key to the heroes' success underlies many of the plots in ''WesternAnimation/KimPossible''. In fact, in the first movie "A Sitch in Time," [[spoiler: Shego mentions [[EvilCannotComprehendGood not understanding this phenomenon between Kim and Ron]], but acknowledges it, and [[GenreSavvy specifically made efforts to separate the two of them]] in order to counter it!]]
** The whole message of the trope is subverted in ''WesternAnimation/{{Recess}}''; When playing kickball against a team of weirdly similar kids from a neighboring school, T.J. tells his friends they can beat their {{doppelganger}}s because they have ThePowerOfFriendship... and the camera cuts to his counterpart ''telling her team the same thing''. Though oftentimes, the show plays this trope straight.
** Rhino the Hamster from Disney's ''Disney/{{Bolt}}'' completely believes in this trope.
* The ''WesternAnimation/CareBears'' do this a lot, often by using the CareBearStare, or actually telling people about true friendship.
** ''WesternAnimation/TheCareBearsMovie'' actually has the former fail at the end, while the latter works.
* ''WesternAnimation/WonderPets'': What's gonna work? [[ThePowerofFriendship TEAMWORK!!]]
* The major theme in ''WesternAnimation/OnceUponAForest''.

* In ''WesternAnimation/{{Trollz}}'', the Magic of the Five runs off of this. If the girls used spells by themselves, or if one of them were missing, they usually weren't able to defeat Simon.

* Mandell was a little more subtle about it with the ''[[WesternAnimation/AdventuresOfTheGalaxyRangers Galaxy Rangers]]'', but their "pool the badges" tactic is built on this. It also featured prominently in "Mindnet," where the other three go out of their way to clear Shane's name, and Shane overtly chooses his friends over his Supertrooper "family." It also was played wonderfully in "Psychocrypt" when Doc, Niko, and Shane decide to help Zach.
* [[CubixRobotsForEveryone Cubix]] runs on this. If Connor refuses to give up on him, then he's coming back, even if everyone else in the show agrees he shouldn't be able to. This is how Connor fixes him in the first episode, before the two of them have even technically 'met'.
* ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyAndFriends'' features this in the episode "The Magic Coins". Niblick, creator of the coins, refuses to help Megan and company undo the damage [[BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor the ponies' poorly though-out wishes on the coins]] have caused unless they bring him a treasure of greater or equal value than the coins. After three failed attempts, Megan finally gets the idea to use the last of the coins to wish for a friend for Niblick, which even the crotchety troll comes to agree is a better treasure than anything he could think up.
* ''WesternAnimation/StrawberryShortcake'' is big on this and large portions of the 2003 series in particular operate on it. The ultimate expression of it is the songs "Back Together" (from "A Horse of a Different Color") and "The Gift of Friendship" (from "A Berry Merry Christmas.")
* Definitely a theme of ''WesternAnimation/SofiaTheFirst'', in which the title characters ability to make friends and see the good in everybody is revolutionizing things in the castle that she moved to after she became royalty.

* ''Roleplay/SurvivalOfTheFittest'' subverts this every time it gets the chance. In a story where the goal is to the the last one left standing and the main moral appears to be "don't trust anybody", friendship has no place and SOTF has no qualms with showing the reader exactly why. Version 0 ends with Sydney Morvran and his friends hiding in the school building. [[spoiler:An accidentally dropped flashbang causes them all to go insane with paranoia and butcher each other, Syd using one of them as a human shield.]] Groups and friendships both tend to collapse in a dramatic fashion, especially once suspicion of killers starts to go around, and people often end up being slaughtered by others who were their closest colleagues before the game. Battle Royale, which SOTF is based on, used this trope.

* Subverted by [[WebVideo/AtopTheFourthWall Linkara]] at the end of his Mechakara saga.
-->"You're not just a tool, you're my friend! And you're also well paid!"

* This happened precisely once in the entire history of the ''GlobalGuardiansPBEMUniverse'': When Doctor XX had captured several members of the [[SuperheroSchool Hyperion Academy]] student body, she gloated over her prisoners, proclaiming that as "mere children", they never had a hope of defeating her.
-->'''Doctor XX:''' Did you really think you'd win? I'm more powerful than any of you!\\
'''Battlecry:''' Yeah? Maybe so... (cue the wall coming down as the rest of the students arrive) but you're not more powerful than all of us!
* According to the 11/26 uStream, [[CrowningMomentofHeartwarming this along with the fanbase are what's keeping the cast of]] WebVideo/EverymanHYBRID sane. Compare it to many other SlenderManMythos stories where, for the most part, the protagonists are alone against him.
* In her review of ''Film/SpiceWorld'', the only plus WebVideo/TheNostalgiaChick can give the Spice Girls is at least they were marketed as being friends. But they screwed that up in their reunion video when they weren't even looking at each other.
* ''Machinima/RedVsBlue'':
** Once the series starts moving away from pure shenanigans and starts providing a framework to understand their universe, the odds stacked against the Blood Gulch Crew are absurd - the only way they can even survive is by increasingly relying on each other, working past their faults and shortcomings, even as they relentlessly needle each other for those faults. Of note are two instances in the later seasons:
** The crew's combined efforts allow them to take down [[spoiler:the Meta, who had spent all of seasons 6-8 being a [[HeroKiller ruthless]], [[TheDreaded terrifying]] [[TheJuggernaut juggernaut]].]] The only way they accomplished this, according to WordOfGod, is by the power of friendship.
** When Agent Carolina and Epsilon are on their last legs, [[spoiler:the Blood Gulch crew arrives [[BigDamnHeroes in style]] ]]to help her fend off a seemingly endless wave of mooks.
* LetsPlay/TheRunawayGuys, when not at each other's throats, manage to pull of impressive feats of gaming with their teamwork. [[{{LetsPlay/Chuggaaconroy}} Chugga]] in particular inspires his teammates through his [[RousingSpeech friendship speeches]].
* In TheWallWillFall AlternateRealityGame, this was an integral part of defeating Cthulhu. Yes, ''that'' [[{{Necronomicon}} Cthulhu]]. The final battle involved players writing stories and songs around the theme of teamwork after selecting [[HeroicSacrifice one of their own]] to challenge the Elder God directly. According to WordOfGod, the players hit the required amount of writing within ''two days'' of the announcement. This, plus their concern for the player being sent on what was effectively a SuicideMission lead to the end of the game [[AwesomeMoments being changed in order to save them]].
* This is the primary 'weapon' utilized by members of the Blog/KnightsOfFandom.
* ''WebVideo/UltraFastPony'' takes a middle-of-the-road approach to this one. On the one hand, it acknowledges how great it to have someone you can trust to be on your side in a fight. (Even if the friendship is very dysfunctional.) On the other hand, the series loves to mock the idea that friendship is a literal, supernatural power.
-->'''Apple Bloom:''' Well, isn't friendship magic?\\
'''Applejack:''' I don't know. Do ''you'' have friends?\\
'''Apple Bloom:''' Yeah...\\
'''Applejack:''' Are ''you'' magic?\\
'''Apple Bloom:''' No...\\
'''Applejack:''' Well, there you go then!

* In ''Webcomic/RPGWorld'', the main character Hero's power is derived from his bond with his friends. Or at least, the two main female characters.
* This is probably the chief reason that Davan from ''Webcomic/SomethingPositive'' is still hanging in there. Granted, in this case it's the power of ''dysfunctional'' friendship, but they're nevertheless the strongest force in his life.
* ''Webcomic/TerrorIsland'', of all comics, had this: the entire plot revolved around roommates Sid and Stephen trying to make the other buy the groceries. [[spoiler: At the end, they report having found a grocery store. When asked which of them bought the groceries first, they say that they both did. They're asked how that's possible, and they respond "friendship".]] CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming.

* ''Webcomic/TheDreamlandChronicles'': [[http://www.thedreamlandchronicles.com/the-dreamland-chronicles/page-966/ can bring you back from death's door]]
* ''Webcomic/BobAndGeorge'': [[http://www.bobandgeorge.com/archives/011110c Why Chadling can't kill them.]]
* ''Webcomic/SchlockMercenary'' runs on it, in a twisted way. The mercenaries are amoral and violent, have to be wary of every government body, and have to treat the concept of "allies" with dubious detachment at best. But they can damn sure rely on their friends and no mistake.

* ''Webcomic/ElGoonishShive'': [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2012-09-25 Grace explains]] that ThePowerOfFriendship is greater than the suckiness of the altered versions of the original StarWars movies.
* ''Webcomic/DragonMango'':
** [[http://dragon-mango.com/comic/chapter07/dm07-49.htm Peaches sturdily defends treating her animals as friends, not subjects.]]
** [[http://dragon-mango.com/comic/chapter07/dm07-63.htm Later, she has to]] [[http://dragon-mango.com/comic/chapter07/dm07-64.htm escalate the matter.]]
* In ''FauxPas'', [[http://www.ozfoxes.net/cgi/pl-fp1.cgi?590 Toast is deeply moved when Cindy calls him a friend.]]

* Ruthlessly {{parodied}} in [[http://oglaf.com/hefty-grogol/ this strip]] of ''WebComic/{{Oglaf}}''. A heroine has taken up the challenge of defeating [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast Grogol the Vast]]. She asks guidance from her weapon, [[TalkingWeapon Sword of Friendship]], and the Sword reminds her that "[[InvokedTrope nothing is stronger than friendship!]]" The heroine doesn't believe this, which leads the Sword to ask if she could ''pretend'' to believe... for friendship's sake. The heroine agrees and when she faces Grogol, the Sword [[PowerGlows shines brightly]], and Grogol does a HeelFaceTurn, becoming their friend. This is when the Sword says: "[[MoodWhiplash Now stab the cunt]]", and in the next panel we see the heroine standing on Grogol's corpse yelling triumphantly: "[[BrokenAesop Don't mess with friendship, bitches!]]" Believe it or not, this trope gets deconstructed ''even further'' in the AltText:
-->The gauntlets of hang-on-you're-a-dick could have saved him.

* In ''ImprobableIsland'', there are some situations, especially when there is threat level 1 in every outpost, it simply is not feasible to continue normally, as the cost of healing will outweigh the payouts of hunting. However, in you are part of a large guild, especially one with maxed out buffs, a competent player can become nearly invincible to all level-appropriate encounters, as the enemies will barely be able to [[ScratchDamage overcome your damage resistance]], let alone your regen.

* In ''VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork'':
** Mega Man gains power by fusing with the "souls" of his friends, and some powerful items are only available by playing link games with other players (ostensibly, friends). The game focuses more on the bond between family members though.
** The main character of Battle Network would go on to create the foundation of the world of Star Force, making him the most successful protagonist ever.
* ''Franchise/FireEmblem'':
** In the later games, units that spend significant time battling near each other can have what are called "Support Conversations" wherein they develop their relationships, causing them to have a boost to their offensive or defensive ability when within a short distance of each other. You heard that right: {{Shipping}} provides a strategic advantage. This is justified in Fire Emblem, as all of your characters are soldiers or fighters of some degree. The support levels are gained by having the units fight near each other, so the game is recognizing that people who fight as a team tend to get better at it over time.
** Ike from Fire Emblem's famous line in [[VideoGame/SuperSmashBros Super Smash Bros. Brawl]]: "[[MemeticMutation I fight for my friends.]]"
* In ''Mario Baseball'', some characters have good chemistry with other players. Moves involving two players (e.g. one throws the ball to the other) are improved if those players have good chemistry with each other. This kind of friendship is represented visually by music notes.

* In ''VideoGame/BreathOfFireII'' you're told that the only way to get the final dragon form to beat the BigBad is for one of your friends to give their life. They're varying degrees of willing. It turns out that the '''real''' way to unlock it is [[spoiler:to ignore the requirement and refuse to choose a friend, [[MoreHeroThanThou choosing to sacrifice yourself rather than others]]]].
* Subverted in the "bad" ending of ''VideoGame/BreathOfFireIV'', in which [[spoiler:the main character was absorbed by the villain who then proceeded to summon an enormous dragon to fight the remainder of the party. Said party spouted something about friendship, but it was quickly snuffed out by the fact that the dragon had infinite HP, which regenerated every turn, counterattacks that did thousands of damage, an attack that reduced everybody to 1 HP, and was controlled ''by the player''. The game then proceeded to end with all of humanity being destroyed.]]
* In ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure'', the power of friendship restored the Chaos Emeralds' power after they've been drained by Perfect Chaos, giving Sonic the means to go [[SuperMode Super]] in order to stop the rampaging beast from destroying the world.
** The general theme of ''VideoGame/SonicHeroes'' deals with teamwork and friendship.
** The general theme of ''[[VideoGame/SonicRushSeries Sonic Rush]]'', where the power of friendship allows Blaze to access the power of the Sol Emeralds and go Super to stop the Eggmen from taking over the world.
* Part of the point behind ''VideoGame/TheWorldEndsWithYou'' is getting IneffectualLoner Neku to open up and cooperate with his teammates in order to survive "The Game" being played around Shibuya. Keeping close ties (or, in game terms, a high "Sync" ratio) with them increases their fighting effectiveness, since [[TheHeartless the Noise]] also fight in tandem.

* Crucial to the ''Franchise/KingdomHearts'' series. Sora's Keyblade, and indeed all keyblades, seem drawn to individuals with strong hearts and emotions, including -- and especially -- friendship. But magic and normal combat also seems to operate under this trope; DonaldDuck and {{Goofy}} and all of Sora's various friends triumph repeatedly through their bonds with each other.
** Sora's Drive Forms could be seen as a physical manifestation of this, as can the Keyblade itself actually. The Keyblade changes form when you use a different trinket as the keychain. The keychains he uses are representative of the worlds that he visits, and Kairi's charm is the chain for the Oathkeeper Keyblade. The Power of Friendship gets you better weapons!
** ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsBirthBySleep'' states that ThePowerOfFriendship is Sora's ''superpower''. Birth By Sleep makes friendship essentially Kingdom Hearts version of [[Anime/TengenToppaGurrenLagann Spiral Power]]. [[spoiler:It also allows Aqua to smash the Keyblade equivalent of Excalibur by turning her own into a lightsaber of friendship. It gives Ven the power to leech Vanitas's abilities off of him and use them to defeat Vanitas, and it gives Terra the ability to control his own armor even after his heart and body have been taken by the big bad. Finally it allows Ven (who's currently comatose) and Terra (who's currently trapped in his own body while another controls it) to magically transport their keyblades to the realm of darkness to one shot freaking Darksides (the strongest of the pureblood heartless) and save a currently HBSOD ing Aqua while also giving her the will to live again.]] If you have a keyblade and at least one close friend in KH verse, you will be unstoppable. Gameplay-wise, D-Links are basically the invoking of The Power Of Friendship, in which characters tap into the powers of characters they've interacted with. Most of these actually involve friendship ([[Disney/LiloAndStitch Experiment 626]], [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII Zack]] and Mickey) while others a bit less so (the {{Disney Princess}}es and in [[UnwittingPawn Terra's]] case, [[Disney/SleepingBeauty Maleficent]]).
** ''[[VideoGame/KingdomHeartscoded coded]]'' keeps up the trend; the connections and friendship that data Sora has built with Mickey, Donald, and Goofy [[spoiler: allow data Sora to ''summon a keyblade'', and may have actually created a heart for him.]]
** The Power of Friendship is the central theme of ''358/2 Days'' too, centering around the friendship of Roxas, Axel and Xion
** Played with like ''wow'' in KingdomHearts3D. The villains [[spoiler: use Sora's reliance of the power of friendship to lure him into a trap]] and Xigbar attempts to deconstruct the trope by pointing out that if Sora's power comes from his friends [[TheUnchosenOne then he doesn't have any of his own]]. Sora completely ignores the attempt to send him into a HeroicBSOD and ''[[DeconReconSwitch reconstructs it on the spot]]'', saying that that makes him part of something bigger than himself and he's totally cool with that.
* ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'':
** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIV'' (II in its ''first'' western release):
*** The player's party is about to be wiped out right before the final battle, when the camera switches back to Earth, to show people sending "their prayers" to the characters. After that, several of the protagonist's friends (some dead ones too!) materialize briefly by his side with words of encouragement. Each such speech heals the members a bit, until they're at full strength again.
*** The same game also turns it against you with the Four Fiends. After taking down the final Fiend, Rubicant, he realizes that you beat him because your party fought him as a team.
** In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVI'', upon reaching the FinalBoss, the party responds to his nihilistic revelations by talking about all of the individual bonds they've made with one another, what they've learned throughout their individual experience, and why real love is worth risking their lives and fighting to preserve. The villain's response? "This is sickening. You sound like chapters from a self help booklet!" Despite that, though, it's not a subversion. Kefka is ''wrong.'' He is ''stopped.'' It's also worth noting that in a game where one of the central themes is "human connection makes you a person," Kefka, the villain, is alone in absolutely every way.
** In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIX'', after a particularly distressing [[TheReveal revelation]], Zidane turns into a zombie-like {{Jerkass}} [[note]] Zidane's jerkass phase was caused by Garland apparently [[MindScrew ripping out his soul]]. Before that, while he was a bit freaked out, he instantly proclaimed his allegiance to Gaia and his friends and tried to turn on his creator. [[/note]] and tries to go it alone. His friends gather around him and convince him that they need each other, helping him turn back into a nice guy.
*** This is used more literally during the ending; after the party is [[spoiler:completely wiped out by Kuja's Ultima and helpless when Necron appears]], the four party members not participating in the final battle hand their power over to the four others, fully healing them and giving a few encouraging words as they do so.
** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXII'' pulled this one twice: once when the main cast is getting ready to fly off to destroy the source of the game's AppliedPhlebotinum, and again when they're just getting ready to fight the BigBad.
** ''VideoGame/DissidiaFinalFantasy'' almost as much as ''Franchise/KingdomHearts''. The initial idea for the game was to make it a ''Kingdom Hearts'' game, which is telling.
* In ''Manga/InuYasha: Secret of the Cursed Mask'', depending on which character you spend your rest days with, you gain more powerful combination attacks with said character as your in-game friendship grows (and character-specific endings, but they just follow similar formats).
* ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda'':
** An argument could be made for this trope's inclusion in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess.'' Link and the imp Midna increasingly learn to trust and rely upon one another; there's even a screencap after one battle they fight together where they look like they're posing for some kind of friendship poster. Additionally, the first item Link receives in the game is a fishing pole handcrafted by his young friend Colin; if Link pulls the fishing pole out during his final fight with the BigBad, his enemy actually stops moving and ''stares'' at it, giving Link the opportunity to get in some hits without retaliation.
** Since this trope is part of the premise of the gameplay of ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSpiritTracks'', Zelda develops a habit of randomly turning into Tea from ''WebVideo/YuGiOhTheAbridgedSeries'' and delivering Friendship-speeches. Aside from these speeches, however, the concept works incredibly well for a game series where TheHero usually fights all alone and leads to many heartwarming scenes. The cheesiness of this is rather hilariously [[LampshadeHanging lampshaded]]: after they fight together to beat [[spoiler:Byrne]] they have a huge celebration for their teamwork...then notice the boss took the opportunity to hobble away in the meantime.
* ''VideoGame/MOTHER'':
** Done at the end of ''VideoGame/{{Earthbound}}'' in possibly the most heartwrenching, most powerful, most incredibly meta way ever. [[spoiler:Giygas is defeated by all the prayers of the friends the Chosen Four make over the course of the game, including the player.]]
** The song [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jyxtKzhc00c "Bein' Friends"]] from ''VideoGame/{{MOTHER|1}}'' could fit as well.
** This one of the main themes of the series, really. By themselves, all of the series' party members are both good people and more-than-decent fighters, but once they all have each other, they can achieve practically anything. [[VideoGame/{{Mother 3}} You will believe a halitosis-ridden cripple, a potty-mouthed teenager, a PTSD-stricken shepherd boy, and a dog can single-handedly save the world]] thanks to the PowerOfFriendship.
* ''VideoGame/RivalSchools'' thrives on this. The students (and teachers) in this game usually gain their strength from their bonds with their friends, and are able to triumph over loner villains in each game. It's so powerful that in each game, a [[TheMole mole]] sent by the villain ([[spoiler:Kyosuke]] in ''United By Fate'' and [[spoiler:Yurika]] in ''Project Justice'') ends up [[BecomingTheMask switching over to the good guys]] because of the friendships they've developed.
* Not only do characters in ''VideoGame/SuperRobotWars'' get bonuses when they're next to a friend (Or [[TheRival rival]] or [[ThePowerOfLove romantic interest]]), but two of the abilities a pilot can have, Trust and Faith, replenish an ally's HP - That's right, you're repairing physical damage to a HumongousMecha through ThePowerOfFriendship.
** A similar system applies to Jump Ultimate Stars. If you place friends next to your playable characters in your deck, the friend will give the playable character a boost to their maximum HP.
* Done in ''VideoGame/Left4Dead'' as game mechanic. Going Rambo and your chance to die is [[strike:100%]] 99.[[RuleOfThree 999]]% (solo runs are being attempted, but no one yet seems to have bagged 'em all) from Smoker and Hunter. Only your friends can help you out of that.

* ''VideoGame/TalesOfGraces'':
*** There's a joke that the "f" added to ''VideoGame/TalesOfGraces'' for its PlayStation3 UpdatedRerelease stands for "friendship" because this trope is pretty much the key theme of the game.
*** Try to count how many times Asbel says the word "protect" or "friends" in ''VideoGame/TalesOfGraces.'' But don't make this into a drinking game. If you did, you would die. You would die horribly. The frequency of friend-protection [[VideoGame/TalesOfRebirth rivals that of]] [[MemeticMutation KUREAAAA]].
* ''Franchise/{{Disgaea}}'':
** In ''VideoGame/Disgaea3AbsenceOfJustice'', during the final battle. Subverted, in that while idealistic hero Almaz calls it this, Mao categorically denies that it has anything to do with friendship, claiming it's some sort of cosmic energy he was hiding in his body.
** Playing the trope straight, Valvatorez of ''VideoGame/{{Disgaea 4|A Promise Unforgotten}}'' strongly believes in the power of friendship, and utters the following line in the last battle:
---> '''Valvatorez''': Do you see now, [[spoiler:God]]!? This is the power of demons, angels, and humans! A power that's much stronger than yours, the ties of our camaraderie!
* The main character, Edge, of ''VideoGame/StarOceanTheLastHope'' will repeat the same sappy, sugary lines about the power of friendship until the player gets diabetes.

* ''Franchise/Castlevania'':
** Death's true ending in ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaJudgment'' implicated that even beings of ultimate evil like Death and Dracula are not exempt from this trope. [[spoiler:In fact, it's what primarily keeps them together.]]
** In ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaPortraitOfRuin'' Death even manages to pull off a BigDamnHeroes for Dracula.

* ''VideoGame/StarWarsRepublicCommando''. "We'll beat them, Delta Squad!"
* [[PlayingWithATrope Played with]] interestingly in ''VideoGame/{{Thief}} II: The Metal Age''. One of the epigraphs that preceed the cinematic sequences before each level is from the Keepers' Book of Secrets: "Reliance on others is strength for the weak, but weakness for the strong. Wisdom lies in knowing one's own nature over time." [[AntiHero Garrett]] has always been a (effectual) loner, but winds up needing to [[EnemyMine make allies]] to solve the problems he faces in the game. It's a [[SubvertedTrope subversion]] since, if the epigraph is correct, [[FamilyUnfriendlyAesop this means]] Garrett [[BadassDecay used to be strong but now has become weak]].
* Used ''against the player'' in ''VideoGame/EXceed 3rd'': the third boss, Giee, uses SummonMagic, and claims that the love and trust between herself and her summons grants her incredible power (since she's just the Stage 3 boss, she goes down hard).
* Given a very bittersweet nod in ''VideoGame/ProfessorLaytonAndTheUnwoundFuture''. It's revealed during the course of the gameplay that [[spoiler: Luke, the Prof's devoted apprentice, is going to be moving overseas with his parents (and his father is also one of Layton's closest friends). Layton points out a statue depicting the friendship between a different adult and child, and promises Luke that no matter where they are in the world, they will always be friends.]]
* ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}''
** One of the major themes in the franchise is the relationship between trainers and their Pokémon. Regardless of the forms they take or abilities they have, all can be befriended and made into potential allies. Another theme is the relationship between trainers themselves, both in-game and the players since it's almost impossible to collect all Pokémon within a single game and trading between players is vital.
** The move Return, which grows stronger the higher the user's happiness value is. Inverted with the move Frustration, which is stronger the less happy the user is.
** This trope is what drives the plot of ''VideoGame/PokeParkWii'', because friendship powers a crystal that keeps a floating island from falling and crushing the park.
** Some Pokémon can only evolve when their happiness level is at maximum.
** The Pokémon-Amie feature in ''VideoGame/PokemonXAndY'' allows you to interact with your Pokémon and increase its affection for you. Pokémon with a high affection get a number of bonuses, like an increased critical hit rate or a chance to shrug off status effects, ignore stat-lowering moves like Leer, or even ''survive attacks that would have knocked them out''.
* ''VideoGame/SamuraiWarriors'' - The personal philosophy of Kanetsugu Naoe (well, that and Justice). Everyone else is annoyed by his constant speechifying and tells him to shut up.
* Parodied in the season finale of ''VideoGame/SamAndMaxFreelancePolice'' season 2 when Sam tells Satan that he managed to escape his own eternal punishment through the power of friendship and cooperation. Max then adds that he mauled the demon guard and ripped out his kidneys.
* This is what Red of ''VideoGame/{{Solatorobo}}'' says keeps him going even when things get rough. [[spoiler:Also the reason he claims the Caninu and Felineko will not dissolve into war like the humans did, since humans only began to war on a global scale when they stopped helping each other get better.]]
* This is a gameplay mechanic in ''VideoGame/ShiningForceIII''. If two characters work together to defeat an enemy unit or heal each other they can gain relationship point,to increase the level of their relationship Ally-Partner-Friend-Trusted-[[ThePowerOfLove Soulmate]]. When two characters with a relationship level stand near each other, they get a stat boost.
* The power of friendship allows everyone to survive their DuelBoss fights in the last route of ''VideoGame/DuelSaviorDestiny''. Otherwise, they'd all have died either before the fight or right after it.
* A recurring theme in ''Franchise/DragonAge'':
** Depending on how you play the Warden, ''VideoGame/DragonAgeOrigins'' has some very powerful examples of this. A female Warden who befriends Morrigan can induce her to admit that she has never had or even wanted a friend before, but has come to view the Warden almost as a sister. A number of the other companions have similar trust issues, but with thoughtful gifts and compassionate dialogue choices, you can get them to make similar confessions regardless of the Warden's gender. This translates in gameplay as stat boosts.
** In ''VideoGame/DragonAgeII'', the mechanic returns, allowing you to build up Friendship by making choices your [[ArbitraryHeadcountLimit current two companions]] agree with... As well as building up [[InvertedTrope Rivalry, which makes them fight just as hard to either sway you to their reasoning, prove you wrong, or just out of spite]]. Ultimately, however, both the Power of Friendship and the [[TheRival Power of Rivalry]] lead to UndyingLoyalty if you spend enough time with a character.
* While Commander Shepard's skill to inspire UndyingLoyalty in his/her crew is a recurring motif in the ''Franchise/MassEffect'' series, the aesop of how important it is to have loyal friends covering your back is [[SomeAnvilsNeedToBeDropped pretty much hammered home with a sledge]] in the "Citadel" DLC campaign for ''VideoGame/MassEffect3''. Its entire plotline is basically as a series of situations where ThePowerOfFriendship ensures the continuous survival, sanity, and success of the entire party.
* A major theme in ''VideoGame/ThomasWasAlone.''
* This theme is prominent in ''VideoGame/TheWitcher'' if you choose to work with the Order or, more accurately, with the knight Siegfried. From the very start, Geralt muses that he prefers to work alone but fighting monsters [[BackToBackBadasses back-to-back with Siegfried]] has unexpected advantages. Throughout the game, the two men can develop a friendship that is awkward at first (since they come from very different backgrounds and neither is particularly good at being friends) but becomes one of unconditional trust towards the end.

* ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoV'' of all things heavily employs this trope, particularly in the GoldenEnding. [[spoiler:Rather than kill his two friends and mentor figures at the behest of [[CorruptCorporateExecutive Devin Weston]] and the FIB, Franklin instead opts to get Michael and Trevor together to take down everyone who wants them dead, despite the latter two's ongoing feud. In the end, the protagonists eliminate all their enemies, deal with their inner demons, strengthen their bonds, and [[EarnYourHappyEnding earn their happy endings]]]]. The other endings where [[spoiler:Franklin betrays one of the two]] are much bleaker.
* In ''VideoGame/NeverwinterNights2's'' endgame [[TheDragon Black Garius]] uses your tiefling companion Neeshka's devil blood to put a {{geas}} on her. If your [[RelationshipValues Influence]] with her is strong enough, she'll break the geas, refusing to attack the only person who's ever been nice to her.

* ''Byron Falls'' from John Wick's ''[[http://johnwickpresents.com/big-book-of-little-games/ Big Book Of Little Games]]'' utilizes it in mechanics - players divide points between their friends - the more points asigned to a person, the stronger is your relationship with them. When you help one of those friends, you use number of dices equal to how many points you spend on them. However, it also [[DeconstructedTrope deconstructs the trope]] - you cannot asign the same number of points to two different friends, and if any of them betrays you, they use number of dice equal points you spend on them for all actions against you.

* Series/{{Angel}}, like Buffy, tends to play it pretty straight (although it's generally more subdued), but lightly parodied it at least once:
-->'''Angel''': You may have the attitude, and you may have the power. But there's one thing you don't have and never will: friends. Four of 'em, standin' behind you with big, heavy things.
* This also works in ''Series/{{Firefly}}''. It's what Mal tries to beat into Jayne's head throughout the show, especially in "Ariel," and it's how the crew gets the better of Saffron twice.
-->'''Saffron:''' Everybody plays each other. That's all anybody ever does. We play parts.\\
'''Mal:''' You got all kinds a' learnin' and you made me look the fool without trying, yet here I am with a gun to your head. That's 'cause I got people with me, people who trust each other, who do for each other and ain't always looking for the advantage.

* The theme in season 5 of ''HerculesTheLegendaryJourneys''. In the episode "Descent", Hercules defeats D'muzi simply by screaming out Iolaus' name.
* In the second episode of ''Series/YoungHercules'', Ares decides that Hercules's weakest point is his "pathetic mortal feelings", and sends Strife to attack Hercules through his best friend, Iolaus. In the end, it is Iolaus shouting Herc's name during Hercules and Strife's final showdown that distracts Strife long enough for Hercules to win the fight.
* The basic premise of ''BlackHoleHigh'' seems to be that, at least within the AppliedPhlebotinum field of the school, character flaws trump physics. In the second episode, it ''makes perfect logical sense'' that realizing that your friends care for you can cure invisibility.
* Parodied in the comedy show ''Series/{{Stella|US}}'', in which the three main characters use the power of friendship to create an invisible forcefield to trap a rival group of evil paperboys that have been bullying them throughout the episode. They then threaten to use the power of friendship to crush the bullies to death if they don't cut it out. Stella's Aesop is ALWAYS the power of friendship. ALWAYS.
* ''Franchise/StarTrek'' features a lot of this; especially in ''[[Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries The Original Series]]'' and in ''[[Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration The Next Generation]]''. Many episodes revolve around one of the crew being kidnapped, threatened, or otherwise in danger, and having the rest of the crew band together to save them. Has resulted in plenty of CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming and BigDamnHeroes.
* ''Series/{{Heroes}}'' also features a lot of this, but taken to almost {{anvilicious}} (but still enjoyable) levels concerning Hiro and Ando.
* ''Series/TheATeam''. So much so that in the beginning of Season 5, when Hannibal, Face, and B.A. are [[spoiler: finally captured and put on trial]] all three of them choose to [[spoiler: plead guilty for the infamous crime they didn't commit because the only way their lawyer can prove them innocent is by pinning the crime on Murdock.]] The team realizes that if that happens [[spoiler: Murdock will be sentenced to death.]] All three of them stand up and [[spoiler: plead guilty, knowing that they will face the firing squad.]] They were willing to [[spoiler: ''die'']] to protect Murdock.

* One of the themes in ''Series/BurnNotice''. Michael's a bad-ass spy who can handle anything...but even he needs the help of his friends and family to save the day. Moreover, Michael has acknowledged that he is NotSoDifferent from many of the villains his team have dealt with over the course of the series--particularly Larry ([[RunningGag yes]], [[MemeticMutation Dead Larry]]), and in the episode "Enemies Closer" he admits that what keeps him from crossing the MoralEventHorizon is his connection to his friends. Or maybe he was [[ThePowerOfLove only talking to Fi]].

* ''Series/{{Chuck}}'' Bartowski has lost his powers and nothing seems to work to restore them. And to make matters worse the bad guys capture him and his best friend (who has no idea of what he really does) and are about to execute them, with no help in sight. In one of the series greatest moments, Chuck regains his powers.....with a simple buddy talk with Morgan.
** Near the end of Season 3, the BigBad Shaw has effectively destroyed Team Bartowski, by capturing Chuck, Sarah, Casey and Beckman. Little does he know that by now there's a second brigade to Team Bartowski - Ellie, Devon and Morgan. This second string's counterespionage credentials are practically nil -- but they'll do anything to rescue Chuck, Sarah and Casey.
** Throughout the series, any character who stubbornly holds to the belief that a proper spy should have no personal attachments is either shown to be at the very least wrong (Sarah& Casey, in early episodes), unlikeable (Corrina), or vulnerable to being turned (Shaw).
* Parodied in an episode of ''Series/TheGoodLife'': "You know, Tom and Barbara are the only real friends we've got. Pity they don't have any money or power."
* Like with Leverage above, the ''Series/{{Community}}'' universe seems to be fueled by this. The RagTagBunchOfMisfits work together to [[Recap/CommunityS2E04BasicRocketScience bring home a space simulator]], [[Recap/CommunityS2E14AdvancedDungeonsAndDragons make a bullied kid feel]] better with DungeonsAndDragons, help [[Recap/CommunityS3E20DigitalEstatePlanning Pierce get his rightful inheritance in a video game]], and [[Recap/CommunityS3E21TheFirstChangDynasty save the school with an elaborate heist]].
* ''Series/KamenRiderFourze'': The show is perhaps more focused on this trope than any of the other KamenRider shows put together, as it stars a hero who wishes to make friends with nearly everyone, and lives up to the promise by creating the Kamen Rider Club, with contains him and six other TrueCompanions.
** All of Gentaro's States' form are only fully achieved when he reaffirmed/gain friendship[[note]]Elec for JK, Fire with Tomoko, Magnet with Kengo, Cosmic with the entire Rider club (+ Ryusei), Rocket from Nadeshiko[[/note]].
** The bond between them also powers his SuperMode. The SuperMode is so depended on it that [[spoiler: the lost of JK's friendship, as well as the disappearance of Tomoko, made Gentaro lose the ability to turn into Cosmic States mode]].
* Why ''Series/TheAmazingRace'' uses teams of two, and what differentiates the show from most other competitive Reality Shows.

* ''{{Friends}}'' obviously. Its pretty clear none of the characters would get through any of their problems, without the rest of the gang to support them. This was established from the minute the theme song played:
--> I'll be there for you..When the rain starts to pour
--> I'll be there for you.. Like I've been there before
--> I'll be there for you...'Cause you're there for me too
* In ''Series/HowIMetYourMother'', Future!Ted is pretty clear to his kids that life will occasionally (or even frequently) suck really badly, but if you have friends to accompany you on your journey through it, it'll never be completely terrible.
** He also notes that the pull of friendship is more powerful than any number of problems, complications, and conflicts that might get in its way: "Friendship is an involuntary reflex; it just happens."
* Horribly subverted in ''Series/{{Sherlock}}'' when the titular character is [[spoiler: forced to give up life as he knows it]] in order to save the only three people in the world he considers friends: John, Mrs Hudson, and Lestrade.
** Made all the worse by a conversation not long before this:
--->'''Sherlock''': Alone is what I have. Alone protects me.\\
'''John''': No. Friends protect people.
* Believe it or not, on ''Series/TwentyFour'', this is [[spoiler: what ultimately turns Jack Bauer back from the dark side in the final episode and prevents him from assassinating Russian president, Yuri Suvarov. When Chloe O'Brian comes for him to try to talk him down, he asks her why she came and she replies that she had to, she's his friend.]]
* This seems to be the main reason Sibuna keep winning in ''Series/HouseOfAnubis''. Fabian makes a speech about it in season 2, even, claiming that while the teachers have more of the advantages, they have the team, and they'd win because they wouldn't let each other fail.

* The Arabian god [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wadd Wadd]] was the deity of friendship, besides being also a moon and snake god. Maybe a subversion, as his worship is all but extinct.

* {{Wrestling/Kane}} and {{Daniel Bryan}} (Hell No) are doing this right now albeit partially zigzagged (I AM THE TAG TEAM CHAMPIONS, etc.)

* In Creator/AlexandreDumas's classic ''Literature/TheThreeMusketeers'': "One for All, All for One!"

* In the GauntsGhosts'' novel ''Sabbat Martyr'', this is what saves [[spoiler: Rawne from being subverted by Chaos.]]

* In Creator/EdgarRiceBurroughs's ''[[Literature/JohnCarterOfMars A Princess of Mars]]'', what Tars Tarkas learns from John Carter.
-->'''Tars:''' I would scarcely recognize you, John Carter, but there is no other mortal upon Barsoom who would have done what you have for me. I think I have learned that there is such a thing as friendship, my friend.

* A major theme in many of the works of Creator/StephenKing, particularly ''{{IT}}''.
* In William King's ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'' SpaceWolf novel ''Wolfblade'', Sven [[AFriendInNeed stays with Ragnar]] while his case is being considered by the Wolf Lords, and fumes about the injustice of its even being considered something to be tried, until Ranek shows up to send him away. Ranek admits the support does him credit, but the Wolf Lords will be angry with him if they discover it.
* A major theme in many of the works of DeanKoontz.
* In Lee Lightner's TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}} novels:
** ''Sons of Fenris'': Ragnar arrives at the mess hall feeling demoralized and isolated; his old company is eating, and his fellow Wolfblade, Haegr, is sitting alone. When they realize that he is there, one raises a toast, and they all pounce to talk and commiserate so eager that Haegr comes to reclaim him. Ragnar proclaims that his old company are still his battle brothers.
** ''Wolf's Honour'': Ragnar goes to a cold and isolated spot on the Fang to think. Torin and Haegr track him down; Haegr deduces his location because whenever Ragnar is in a black mood, you can find him in the most unpleasant place where he could put himself. Ragnar admits to not telling where he was because they would have dragged him out of it as soon as they learned.
* In GrahamMcNeill's ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'' Literature/{{Ultramarines}} novel "The Killing Ground", Leodegarius tells Uriel that Pasnius has been fiercely loyal to him. Uriel tells him that Pasanius is his friend, and that's what friends do.
* In Rick Riordan's ''[[Literature/PercyJacksonAndTheOlympians The Last Olympian]]'', why the Ares's cabin campers followed [[spoiler:Sirena; they didn't guess it wasn't Clarisse because they wanted to go fight next to their friends.]]

* ''Literature/HarryPotter'':
** A significant theme throughout the entire series; WordOfGod has even stated that Harry, Ron, and Hermione's bond is the chief reason for Harry's success and continued survival, and that they are a case of the whole being more than the sum of its parts.
** This is exemplified in every book: 1st book, Hermione's intellect and Ron's prowess with chess allow Harry to reach the last chamber of the gauntlet; 2nd book, Ron goes into the Forbidden Forest - which he knows has spiders, [[WhyDidItHaveToBeSnakes which he has a phobia to]] - out of his loyalty to Harry and Hermione; 3rd book, Ron and Hermione put themselves between Harry and Sirius, telling him that they'll have to pass through them if he wants to reach Harry; 5th book, when Harry believes Sirius is on the Ministry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Neville and Luna go with their friend despite Harry repeteadly telling them to stay at Hogwarts; 6th book, Ron and Hermione state that they are going to go with Harry on his Horcrux-searching quest, no matter what; and 7th book, Ron and Hermione stay with Harry for a lot of time - even Ron's leaving is useful as it allows him to gain information about what's going on everywhere else - and each of them manages to destroy one Horcrux.
*** Also from the third book onwards whenever Harry needs to create a Patronus he uses thoughts of his friends or loved ones.
* ''Literature/BattleRoyale'' where Shuya and Noriko feel that the power of friendship will get them through the program. Shogo disagrees and is proved right when [[spoiler: the rest of their classmates betray each other and play to win. In fact in the end Shogo pretends to betray them (I'm sure more than one person thought he really did) in order to get the three of them out.]]
* ''Franchise/StarWarsExpandedUniverse'':
** The series gives us a slightly lame scene wherein Jaina tries to save Zekk from TheDarkSide with ThePowerOfFriendship. It manages not to be ''completely'' lame, but only just.
** When a Sith Lord's spirit (Exar Kun) tried to push the young Jedi students attacking him over the DespairEventHorizon by taunting them about their weaknesses, their friendship strengthened them and thwarted his mental attack. At this point, Exar's former-Jedi master appeared as a Force Ghost and said "Together, Jedi can overcome their weaknesses."
** This is subverted in the FateOfTheJedi book series, by having only DarkSide people (Nightsisters and Sith) with a technique called a 'control web'. It allows them to combine their powers, and 'weave' their control over [[OhCrap a dozen Rancors]], or weaken an EldritchAbomination.
* The backbone of ''Literature/AvalonWebOfMagic'', and stated outright by the author many times. No main character ever accomplishes anything without her friends backing her up.

* In the first ''Literature/TheKingdomKeepers'' book, [[FiveManBand the DHIs]] invoke this on the [[DisneyThemeParks "its a small world"]] ride. [[spoiler: They smile at the Audio-Animatronics, which stop attacking them and return to their posts]].
* In the ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'' prequel novels, ''LightNovel/FateZero'', the servant Rider, who actually happens to be Alexander the Great, has actually weaponized the power of friendship with his Noble Phantasm, Ionian Hetairoi. Because of the tremendous bond of loyalty and friendship between him and his soldiers, they are actually able to answer his call, breaking the laws of time and space to recreate the land they once marched over and fight alongside him once again.
* A recurring theme in the ''Literature/TheElenium'' trilogy by DavidEddings is that Sparhawk wouldn't manage to survive the epic quest he must undertake without the help of his best friend from childhood, his squire, his tutor, and the other knights who join them on the adventure. Sparhawk is TheChosenOne, but his friends are what enable him to achieve his destiny.
* Seen throughout Creator/LloydAlexander's ''Literature/ChroniclesOfPrydain''. "The companions," as Taran's friends are known, help him and each other repeatedly. It's particularly a theme in the third book of the series, ''The Castle of Llyr,'' in which they discover that Princess Eilonwy's magic trinket becomes more powerful when the holder thinks more of others than of themselves.
* At the end of ''Iron Dawn'', Barra points out to the captive BigBad that he lost out because he only had slaves on his side, whereas she had friends to back her up.
* A very deep quote from [[Film/TheGodfather Don Vito]]
--> '''Vito Corleone''': Friendship is everything. Friendship is more than talent. It is more than government. It is almost the equal of family. Never forget that.
* [[Literature/TheJungleBook The Law of the Jungle:]]
--> Now is the Law of the Jungle---as old and true as the sky;\\
And the wolf that shall keep it may prosper, but the wolf that shall break it must die.\\
As the creeper that girdles the tree-trunk, the Law runneth forward and back---\\
For the strength of the pack is the wolf, and the strength of the wolf is the pack.''

* While this trope is present in almost all of Creator/TamoraPierce's works, it's particularly notable in the ''Literature/CircleOfMagic'' series. Four children, from the most different backgrounds possible (a kind and caring noble-girl, a frumpy and snarky merchant daughter, an outcast trader girl and an egotistical street rat) become best friends and foster siblings, whose minds become mentally linked. On their own, they're formidable mages. Together? ''Run''.
* In Creator/VictoriaForester's ''Literature/TheGirlWhoCouldFly'', actually making friends makes Piper delighted with the institute.
* During ''Literature/DrFranklinsIsland'' Miranda [[InvoluntaryTransformation becomes a bird]] and [[TheMindIsAPlaythingOfTheBody gradually seems to lose her human mind]]. Her friend being in danger seems to pull her back, a little. Certainly for most of the book the friendship between Miranda and Semi is a great comfort to them both, and helps them in some very dark times.

* ''Film/StarWars'': The Emperor thinks Luke is a fool for trusting his friends to destroy the greatest superweapon ever built. We all know how that turned out.
-->'''Luke Skywalker:''' Your overconfidence is your weakness.\\
'''Emperor Palpatine:''' Your faith in your friends is yours.

* Practically lampshaded in ''Film/DeepBlueSea'' when SamuelLJackson gives a big speech about the Power of Teamwork, just before [[spoiler: being unceremoniously eaten by a shark.]] It's further subverted after this point when [[spoiler: almost everyone else gets killed anyway.]]
* At the end of ''Film/ItsAWonderfulLife'', George Bailey ends up being saved by one of the more mundane versions of this trope: after he was falsely accused of stealing some money placed in his care that is now missing, all the people he's helped over the years come together and give him enough cash to replace the money that was stolen.

* ''Film/TheKingsSpeech'' focuses on the friendship between King George VI and his speech therapist and how it helped the former grow into a strong leader.
* Sam and Frodo's friendship in ''Film/TheLordOfTheRings'' can be summarised in eleven simple words: "I can't carry it for You, but I can carry You".
* In ''Film/TheAvengers'', Tony Stark's kindness towards and acceptance of Bruce Banner/The Hulk, refusing to treat him like a ticking time bomb the way everyone else is, has drastic consequences later on, as not only does his insistence that the Hulk can be used for good get through to Bruce, [[ChangedMyMindKid who decides to come back to help during the final battle]], but the Hulk ''remembers'' Tony and winds up saving his life.
* Played with in ''Film/IronMan2''. [[spoiler:When Rhodes takes the Mk II, his BeamOWar with Tony produces a powerful blast, which is needed in the climax to defeat Whiplash after Rhodey makes up with Tony.]]
* ''Film/PacificRim'': Because {{Synchronization}} requires two people, they have to get along really well with no secrets.

* In ''Fanfic/WithStringsAttached'', the obvious love the four have for one another, despite their frequent quarrels and cranky moods, impresses the Hunter far more than any of their magic. After all, he's no stranger to power, but he doesn't have a single friend in the world. Ultimately, he is won over by this quality.
* Without this, ''Fanfic/KyonBigDamnHero'' would likely be far less upbeat. [[spoiler: For a start, Tsuruya would likely be dead. Or illegally shipped to another country as a slave.]]
* Done in a purely symbolic way in ''Power Rangers GPX''. By the penultimate chapter in Part 1, four of the Rangers have become a tight [[TrueCompanions friends]] even after [[spoiler: one Ranger split from the team. Acutally, make that two, since he dragged his younger sister with him. Anyway, with said symbolic power, they were able to defeat the enemy general.]]

* Easily the strongest theme of ''FanFic/AdventCrossoverCrisis'' is how the heroes, combining their skills and willing to [[HeroicSacrifice put others ahead of themselves]], can best even the most powerful villains, who in turn have difficulty [[EvilCannotComprehendGood grasping this]].

* ''FanFic/FallenKing'' examines and ultimately deconstructs this. While their friendship sustains them and helps them to never give up, Joey realizes that the villains can and will use it as a weapon, and ultimately decides that [[spoiler: he, Tristan, and Tea must ''stop'' being friends to save the world]].