History Main / TorchesAndPitchforks

** One of the threats to young Sparks or those who start showing any Sparky tendencies without being under the protection of someone like the Baron is they are often hunted down by a mob of the locals, sometimes even including their own families.

** In the episode "[[Recap/TheFairlyOddParentsS4E3ShelfLife Shelf Life]]", Timmy has to jump through several books in pursuit of [[Literature/HuckleberryFinn Tom]] [[TheTrickster Sawyer]], who's stolen Cosmo's wand. At one point he and Tom end up in ''Literature/Frankenstein'' right at the "angry mob" scene, and sure enough, there's a mob with torches and pitchforks who head straight for Timmy. To stop them, he alters the book's wording from "the villagers attack" to "the ill attack", and the mob's pitchforks are promptly replaced with IV drips.

** In the episode "[[Recap/TheFairlyOddParentsS4E3ShelfLife Shelf Life]]", Timmy has to jump through several books in pursuit of [[Literature/HuckleberryFinn Tom]] [[TheTrickster Sawyer]], who's stolen Cosmo's wand. At one point he and Tom end up in Frankenstein right at the "angry mob" scene, and sure enough, there's a mob with torches and pitchforks who head straight for Timmy. To stop them, he alters the book's wording from "the villagers attack" to "the ill attack", and the mob's pitchforks are promptly replaced with IV drips.

* ''Rachel and Miles X-Plain the X-Men'' speculates that "anachronistic vaguely-European torch-wielding peasant mob" is a service you can order from Doctor Doom Latveria, which is why they keep showing up in the origins of various Franchise/XMen.

* In ''ComicBook/AstroCity'' story "Pastoral", seeing the local superhero overwhelmed by a group of supervillains inspires this in a crowd of {{Heroic Bystander}}s who grab whatever's handy to attack. (They buy the hero the moment needed to regroup.)
* ''ComicBook/BatLash'' #1 opens with torches and pitchforks wielding mob planning to break down the jail door and lynch Bat Lash.
* In ''ComicBook/Batman66'' #19, a mob of torch and pitchfork-wielding Gothamites attempt to hunt down Batman and Robin while under the effect of Professor Ffog's mind-affecting fog.
* In ''ComicBook/HexWives'' #1, a Puritan mob bearing torches and pitchforks comes for the witches. Leads to DeadpanSnarker Gabriel's quote (several centuries later):

* ''ComicBook/{{Irredeemable}}''. A farming community witness Qubit using his powers to build them a solar-powered tractor and realise he's one of the superheroes who worked with Plutonian, who's gone rogue and killed millions. They don't have torches (it's daylight) but they do have pitchforks. Qubit is quietly relieved when they accept his explanation that they tried their best to stop Plutonian and he's doing what he can to help out now. However when Survivor turns up and informs them that [[ThouShaltNotKill Qubit threw away a chance to kill Plutonian]], things turn ugly. Suvivor prevents the mob from lynching Qubit, but later threatens to tell the entire world what Qubit did if he gets in his way.

* Happens in ''{{Steampunk}} Swimsuit'' #1 when Dr. Frankensteam's auto-tailor runs amok and starts stripping the clothes off people at the beach. [[LampshadeHanging Lampshaded]] when the Monster asks "Where did they get those torches and pitchforks!?!"
* Used heroically in ''ComicBook/RedSonja'': ''The Forgiving of Monsters''. Evil wizard Katharas-ra comes to town hunting Sonja, who is mortally injured. The town assembles a mob to protect the building where she's staying and holds him off long enough for her to get into fighting shape.
* Parodied in ''ComicBook/SamAndMaxFreelancePolice'' in "The Tell-Tale Tail", when a group of torch-bearing Scotsmen arrives at the castle where Max is attempting to reanimate his severed tail (don't ask):

* In ''ComicBook/SoulsearchersAndCompany'' #2, the gypsies gather up torches and pitchforks and go to confront the monster that has been terrorizing their tribe. And then turn tail and run when they catch sight of the actual monster.

* ''Franchise/WonderWoman'':

* [[http://random-happenstance.blogspot.com/2010/04/getting-origin-issue-and-killed-off.html As shown here]], Nightcrawler of the ''ComicBook/XMen'' has this as part of his origin story. This is also the metaphorical response many Marvel inhabitants have towards mutants in general.
** Wolfsbane of the ''ComicBook/NewMutants'' got another literal torch-bearing mob after her when her powers manifested, though they had swapped out the pitchforks for shotguns.

* Music/{{Rush}}'s "Witch Hunt".

* Creator/EstherFriesner's ''Literature/MajykByAccident'' has a town that stages these regularly to get around an inconvenient law against making deals with witches. Trying to ''kill'' the witch isn't illegal, after all, and if the witch turns out to be too powerful and has to be appeased with trade goods, that's not the mob's fault. And if they find useful herbal remedies of completely unknown origin placed near her cottage, well, it must be their lucky day.
* In the first book of ''Literature/TheSwordOfTruth'' series, a wizard's house is surrounded by the trope mob. Well, the wizard first points out they call him a witch - which is reserved for females, while males are warlocks. Then, he asks them what do they think a warlock can do. Then, after they list increasingly preposterous strengths that they believe him to have, he says that they must be very brave if they [[BullyingADragon go against someone with such powers]] with... well... you know. HilarityEnsues.

* In Creator/RobertEHoward's Literature/ConanTheBarbarian story "Literature/TheScarletCitadel", the SuccessionCrisis brought about a PowderKegCrowd, but the actual man chosen brings about this. Conan's return puts the cherry on top.

* In ''Literature/TheWitchOfBlackbirdPond'' several of the townspeople who mob together to bring Hannah Tupper to [[WitchHunt "justice"]] sports torches.

* ''[[VideoGame/ChoiceOfGames Choice of the Vampire]]'': The citizens of [[spoiler:St. Charles]] [[BlamedForBeingRailroaded blame the railroaded player character]] for a MortonsFork regarding an injured child and assemble a mob to run them out of town; if you try to face them, [[spoiler:you're [[NonStandardGameOver inevitably killed]]]]. Your manservant even comments on how you're getting your just desserts (if your KarmaMeter is low), or on what {{Ungrateful Bastard}}s the townspeople are (if it's high).

** [[SugarWiki/MostWonderfulSound "AK-47s, for]] [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tZQdaEFa_60 EVERYONE!"]]

* ''[[Creator/ChoiceOfGames Choice of the Vampire]]'': The citizens of [[spoiler:St. Charles]] [[BlamedForBeingRailroaded blame the railroaded player character]] for a MortonsFork regarding an injured child and assemble a mob to run them out of town; if you try to face them, [[spoiler:you're [[NonStandardGameOver inevitably killed]]]]. Your manservant even comments on how you're getting your just desserts (if your KarmaMeter is low), or on what {{Ungrateful Bastard}}s the townspeople are (if it's high).

See also KillItWithFire and BurnTheWitch for its inspiration. A FlameWar happens when you take the sentiment behind this and apply it on the Internet. When you've got pitchforks but not torches, see DevilsPitchfork, ProngsOfPoseidon or GardeningVarietyWeapon. If torches and pitchforks are featured in a musical, then an AngryMobSong is pretty much guaranteed.

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheFairlyOddparents'' episode "Mother Nature", every time the local weather reporter makes an incorrect forecast, [[DisproportionateRetribution they get run out of town by an angry mob]], who come complete with Torches And Pitchforks. [[note]]And, as crazy as it sounds, this was based on a TruthInTelevision event. An Indian weather reporter so consistently got the weather wrong that enraged viewers harassed him on the streets, waved weapons at him, and threatened his mother with a chainsaw.[[/note]]
** In the episode "[=MicroPhony=]", Vicky disguises as Timmy's identity "Double T" and insults all adults by calling them morons in order to ruin his radio station reputation and make him sound terrible in front of everyone in Dimmsdale. This causes an angry mob of adults to take down Double T.
** In the episode "The Secret Origins of Denzel Crocker", townspeople out to celebrate young Crocker's birthday [[LaserGuidedAmnesia get their memories of all the great things he had done for them erased]]. When they wonder why they're there, they see Crocker on stage and reason that they can't be celebrating anything, so they ''must'' be an angry mob out to get him, and out come the Torches And Pitchforks, which they all happened to have tucked away somewhere.
** In "Which Witch is Which?", Timmy goes back in time to Dimmsdale's founding and finds the town in a perpetual WitchHunt thanks to phony witch-hunter Alden Bitterroot ([[spoiler:who is actually a warlock himself]]). Pitchforks are pulled out of nowhere with startling regularity.
** In one episode, Timmy has to jump through several books in pursuit of [[Literature/HuckleberryFinn Tom]] [[TheTrickster Sawyer]], who's stolen Cosmo's wand. At one point he and Tom end up in Frankenstein right at the "angry mob" scene, and sure enough, there's a mob with torches and pitchforks who head straight for Timmy. To stop them, he alters the book's wording from "the villagers attack" to "the ill attack", and the mob's pitchforks are promptly replaced with IV drips.

-->'''Rioter:''' What are you going to do, old man? Tear us limb from limb?
-->'''The Master:''' Now that's an invitation I could not possibly refuse...

--> '''Rally the Peasants:''' ''"If you must go out at night, bring a mob."'' --Master of the Elgaud Cathars
--> '''Ludevic's Abomination:''' ''"After several frustrating experiments, the visionary Ludevic realized he needed to create a monster that fed on torch-wielding mobs."''

* ''WesternAnimation/JimmyNeutron'' attracts one of these after he creates the tastiest candy ever, and then refuses to make more when he realizes how addictive it is. He flees to a candy shop for safety, only to learn that the now customerless owner called the mob.

--> '''Shrek''': I'm an ogre! You know, 'Grab your torch and pitchfork!' Doesn't that bother you?

* In the opening scene of the [[WesternAnimation/Shrek1 first movie]], the ogre is obviously used to angry mobs coming to drive him out of his hut, as he easily scares one of them off, even prompting them at one point, [[ThisIsThePartWhere "This is the part where you run away."]] He later [[LampshadeHanging hangs a lampshade on it]] when speaking to Donkey.

* In the opening scene of ''WesternAnimation/{{Shrek}}'', the ogre is obviously used to angry mobs coming to drive him out of his hut, as he easily scares one of them off, even prompting them at one point, [[ThisIsThePartWhere "This is the part where you run away."]] He later [[LampshadeHanging hangs a lampshade on it]] when speaking to Donkey.

** Also [[LampshadeHanging lampshaded]] in the sequel, when Shrek and Fiona step out of their carriage in Far Far Away and are [[TheReveal revealed to be ogres]]. Shrek sees some pitchforks in the crowd and gets nervous, commenting "Let's go before they light the torches."

* ''[[Manga/DevilMan Amon: Apocalypse of Devilman]]'' has this archetype of people who try to hunt down "Devil Man's girlfriend" and end up killing Miki Makimura and her underaged brother. Devil Man finds them carrying pitches, forks, and Miki's severed head. [[UnstoppableRage The rest is predictable.]]

* The first episode of ''Anime/{{Slayers}}'' ends with Lina and Gourry fleeing from villagers wielding these. After Lina prevented a dragon from destroying said village. [[DestructiveSaviour Destroying the village herself in the process]]. {{Ungrateful Bastard}}s.
* The town where murder is legal in ''LightNovel/KinosJourney''. The townsfolk are genuinely nice people, but if you try to use that legality to commit murder ForTheEvulz, [[spoiler:the entire townsfolk will come after you with guns, crossbows, knives, and more, before executing you on the spot.]]

** ''[[Film/TransylvaniaSixFiveThousand Transylvania 6-5000]]'' has a particularly clever parody. A [[spoiler:burn victim]] is mistaken for Frankenstein, and is about to be [[spoiler:burned at the stake]]!

* In the ''WesternAnimation/GarfieldAndFriends'' episode, "The Worst Pizza In the History of Mankind", an angry mob (no pitchforks, but all carry torches) attempts to destroy the pizzeria owned by one of John's ancestors. The crowd gets routed by the owner's [[HollywoodToneDeaf god-awful singing]], but his place of business '''''still''''' gets destroyed by [[MadeOfExplodium a burning pizza in the oven]].