History PlayingWith / BlackDudeDiesFirst

** Bob is incredibly unlucky, comically falling victim to EverythingTryingToKillYou. Maybe drawn out and subverted several times over for maximum comic effect, but ultimately something does get Bob. Or, Bob is a black TheyKilledKenny character, with much lampshading.

** "There's a serial killer on the loose and I'm the only black dude in the neighborhood. [[GenreSavvy Screw this, I'm moving to Canada]]!"
** "Well, we should of saw that coming."

* '''Exploited''': Bob pulls off a [[ThanatosGambit plan to exploit his death]]. He has a grenade wired to go off if his [[DeadManSwitch life signs fail.]] Bob is ambushed and ends up the only one to die to the monster.

* '''Plotted A Good Waste''': The writers made Bob the first guy to die in the story to set the audience up for a PlotTwist: When Bob died, he went to hell. But since he was a {{Badass}}, [[LikeABadassOutOfHell he managed to fight his way out.]] However, he only actually comes back to life near the end, when the rest of the gang face the murderer. More than half of the fandom is shocked, and the twist is so well-known that it becomes an ItWasHisSled situation (forgetting the rest of the film, by the way).

** ScaryBlackMan + TheWorfEffect

** And/Or: The black dude is the killer.
** Or: The black dude is the only survivor.

* '''Downplayed''': Bob barely beats out dying before a non-black cast member, being fatally wounded less than a second before Charlie.

** "Well, we should of saw [[ForgoneConclusion that]] coming."

*** Bob is GenreSavvy and gets out of town on the first sign a serial killer is on the lose.

*** Bob is GenreSavvy and gets out of town on the first sign a serial killer as soon as he can.

* '''Downplayed''': ???

* '''Exploited''': ???

** Later on, Bob dies for real. He's the first casualty in the story, in fact.

* '''Deconstructed''': Bob spends all of his time cowering in fear due to the existance of this trope.
* '''Reconstructed''': Bob receives constant death threats from racist groups, perhaps due to his being outspoken about an issue which negatively impacts upon them. Therefore, he spends all his time cowering in fear from the potential invokation of the trope. Ultimately, near the start of the story, the threats are acted upon.

* '''Discussed''': "Don't you hate it how the black guy always dies first in this sort of situation?
* '''Conversed''': "I like horror films, but it's a bit jarring how the black guy always dies first"

* '''Plotted A Good Waste''': The writers made Bob the first guy to die in the story to set the audience up for a PlotTwist: When Bob died, he went to hell. But since he was a {{Badass}}, [[LikeABadassOutOfHell he managed to fight his way out.]] However, he only actually comes back to life near the end, when the rest of the gang face the murderer. More than half of the fandom is shocked, and the twist is so well-known that it becomes an ItWasHisSled situation (forgetting the rest of the film, by the way).

* '''Justified''': The murderer is a white supremacist.

* '''Inverted''': Alice, the only white character in an otherwise all-black cast, dies first.

* '''Subverted''': Bob is made a very obvious sacrificial lamb, being Alice's best friend/boyfriend, getting lots of screen time, etc. Only Charlie, who is white and has stayed in the background, is killed first instead.

* '''Double Subverted''': ...except Charlie is actually NotQuiteDead, and while gazing in horror at his "corpse" Bob is really killed first, possibly by Charlie, who was faking his death to lure Bob into a trap.

* '''Parodied''': Bob is incredibly unlucky, comically falling victim to EverythingTryingToKillYou. Maybe drawn out and subverted several times over for maximum comic effect, but ultimately something does get Bob. Or, Bob is a black TheyKilledKenny character, with much lampshading.

* '''Zig Zagged''': Same as parodied, but played for suspense rather than for laughs, and it's the whole cast who are faced with EverythingTryingToKillYou

* '''Averted''': Nobody dies.

* '''Enforced''': In order to woo young black viewers, [[ExecutiveMeddling the studio insists that Bob, as a black superstar, be cast.]] But Bob is very busy and can only be on set for a couple of hours. The script is hastily rewritten to ensure Bob dies first, thereby allowing his name to be plastered all over the production without risking Bob's other commitments.

* '''Lampshaded''': "Hey, Bob, how come Alice died when you were standing right next to her?"

* '''Invoked''': Bob is blatantly the biggest threat to the evil force, so it targets him first

* '''Defied''': Bob is GenreSavvy and does everything he can to stay away from danger for as long as possible.

* '''Played For Laughs''' See parodied, but turned UpToEleven, with Bob being TheChewToy.

** "Okay guys, we're a bunch of teens and a serial killer is on the loose. We all know that serial killers go for the black dude first (you can beat the crap out of me later, Bob) or for defenseless young girls (same for you, Alice). Therefore, all us white males should do whatever we can to protect the black guy and the girl while we all get the hell out of here. As long as Alice and Bob are alive, then the rest of use are pretty much invincible (hopefully)."

** Bob suffers many AmusingInjuries and several cases of NooneCouldSurviveThat, but ends up as one of the only survivors of the story, hooks up with Alice, and walks away with a large bag of money.

** Bob's [[{{Nakama}} very protective friends]] are equally GenreSavvy and risk danger themselves to keep him safe.

* '''Parodied''': Bob is incredibly unlucky, comically falling victim to EverythingTryingToKillYou. Maybe drawn out and subverted several times over for maximum comic effect, but ultimately something does get Bob.

* '''Played For Laughs''' See parodied, but turned UpToEleven, with Bob being TheChewtoy.
** Bob suffers many AmusingInjuries and several cases of NooneCouldSurviveThat, but ends up as one of the only survivors of the story, hooks up with Alice, and walks away with a large bag of money.

* '''Inverted''': In an all-black cast, Alice dies first.

* '''Double Subverted''': ...except actually is NotQuiteDead, and while gazing in horror at his "corpse" Bob really is killed first, possibly by Charlie, who was faking his death to lure Bob into a trap.

* '''Straight''': Mike, the TokenMinority black guy, dies before all the white characters, such as Jill.

** Or, Mike made a HeroicSacrifice in the beginning.

* '''Inverted''': In an all-black cast, Jill dies first.

* '''Subverted''': Mike is made a very obvious sacrificial lamb, being Jill's best friend/boyfriend, getting lots of screen time, etc. Only Caleb, who is white and has stayed in the background, is killed first instead.
** Alternately, Mike dies a DisneyDeath in the beginning.
* '''Double Subverted''': ...except actually is NotQuiteDead, and while gazing in horror at his "corpse" Mike really is killed first, possibly by Caleb, who was faking his death to lure Mike into a trap.
* '''Parodied''': Mike is incredibly unlucky, comically falling victim to EverythingTryingToKillYou. Maybe drawn out and subverted several times over for maximum comic effect, but ultimately something does get Mike.
** An arrow about to hit a MightyWhitey changes its course at the last second to hit Mike.
* '''Deconstructed''': Mike spends all of his time cowering in fear due to the existance of this trope.
* '''Reconstructed''': Mike receives constant death threats from racist groups, perhaps due to his being outspoken about an issue which negatively impacts upon them. Therefore, he spends all his time cowering in fear from the potential invokation of the trope. Ultimately, near the start of the story, the threats are acted upon.

** Same as double subverted, but Mike knew Caleb was trying to kill him and either fakes his own death or else avoids Caleb's attack, thus allowing Mike to kill or apprehend him as so desired.

** Mike either survives, or dies at some other point in the story without his ethnicity having any significance or relevance to this
** OR: Mike lives long enough to be the only living hero or, at least, dies last.

* '''Enforced''': In order to woo young black viewers, [[ExecutiveMeddling the studio insists that Mike, as a black superstar, be cast.]] But Mike is very busy and can only be on set for a couple of hours. The script is hastily rewritten to ensure Mike dies first, thereby allowing his name to be plastered all over the production without risking Mike's other commitments.
** The director is a racist. So are his fans. Killing off black people is expected of him, it's one of his trademarks. Of course, the actor who plays Mike didn't know this.......
* '''Lampshaded''': "Hey, Mike, how come Jill died when you were standing right next to her?"

* '''Invoked''': Mike is blatantly the biggest threat to the evil force, so it targets him first
** The cast arrive on an island full of people who have never seen a black man before, and consider Mike some sort of evil spirit. So, they kill him first to protect themselves.
** Mike [[GenreSavvy knows he's going to die very soon]] so kills himself painlessly at the start to avoid the possibility of a more drawn out and painful death.
** Alternately, Mike knows he's going to die soon, so panics and tries to escape/avoid his fate, causing him to be predictable and easier to pick off.
* '''Defied''': Mike is GenreSavvy and does everything he can to stay away from danger for as long as possible.
** Mike's [[{{Nakama}} very protective friends]] are equally GenreSavvy and risk danger themselves to keep him safe.
** "Okay guys, we're a bunch of teens and a serial killer is on the loose. We all know that serial killers go for the black dude first (you can beat the crap out of me later, Mike) or for defenseless young girls (same for you, Jill). Therefore, all us white males should do whatever we can to protect the black guy and the girl while we all get the hell out of here. As long as Jill and Mike are alive, then the rest of use are pretty much invincible (hopefully)."

* '''Played For Drama''': The highly racist Caucasian cast conspire to ensure that Mike is always in the most danger, thus making it inevitable that he'll die first. Jill is appalled by this, and a major theme of the rest of the story is the conflict between those like her who tried and failed to protect Mike, and those who ensured he was the first victim. The drama is even greater if this scenario, takes place before the Emancipation, thus bringing overtones of FairForItsDay into the mix.
* '''Played For Laughs''' See parodied, but turned UpToEleven, with Mike being TheChewtoy.
** Mike suffers many AmusingInjuries and several cases of NooneCouldSurviveThat, but ends up as one of the only survivors of the story, hooks up with Jill, and walks away with a large bag of money.

----

* '''Straight''': Bob, the TokenMinority black guy, dies before all the white characters, such as Alice

** Or, Bob made a HeroicSacrifice in the beginning.

* '''Inverted''': In an all-black cast, Alice dies first.

* '''Subverted''': Bob is made a very obvious sacrificial lamb, being Alice's best friend/boyfriend, getting lots of screen time, etc. Only Charlie, who is white and has stayed in the background, is killed first instead
** Alternately, Bob dies a DisneyDeath in the beginning.
* '''Double Subverted''': ...except actually is NotQuiteDead, and while gazing in horror at his "corpse" Bob really is killed first, possibly by Charlie, who was faking his death to lure Bob into a trap
* '''Parodied''': Bob is incredibly unlucky, comically falling victim to EverythingTryingToKillYou. Maybe drawn out and subverted several times over for maximum comic effect, but ultimately something does get Bob
** An arrow about to hit a Mightey Whitey changes its course at the last second to hit Bob.
* '''Deconstructed''': Bob spends all of his time cowering in fear due to the existance of this trope.
* '''Reconstructed''': Bob receives constant death threats from racist groups, perhaps due to his being outspoken about an issue which negatively impacts upon them. Therefore, he spends all his time cowering in fear from the potential invokation of the trope. Ultimately, near the start of the story, the threats are acted upon.

** Same as double subverted, but Bob knew Charlie was trying to kill him and either fakes his own death or else avoids Charlie's attack, thus allowing Bob to kill or apprehend him as so desired
* '''Averted''': Nobody dies
** The cast is mixed race, so the deaths of various ethnicities are spread out
** Bob either survives, or dies at some other point in the story without his ethnicity having any significance or relevance to this
** OR: Bob lives long enough to be the only living hero or, at least, dies last.

* '''Enforced''': In order to woo young black viewers, [[ExecutiveMeddling the studio insists that Bob, as a black superstar, be cast.]] But Bob is very busy and can only be on set for a couple of hours. The script is hastily rewritten to ensure Bob dies first, thereby allowing his name to be plastered all over the production without risking Bob's other commitments.
** The director is a racist. So are his fans. Killing off black people is expected of him, it's one of his trademarks. Of course, the actor who plays Bob didn't know this.......
* '''Lampshaded''': "Hey, Bob, how come Alice died when you were standing right next to her?"

* '''Invoked''': Bob is blatantly the biggest threat to the evil force, so it targets him first
** The cast arrive on an island full of people who have never seen a black man before, and consider Bob some sort of evil spirit. So, they kill him first to protect themselves
** Bob [[GenreSavvy knows he's going to die very soon]] so kills himself painlessly at the start to avoid the possibility of a more drawn out and painful death
** Alternately, Bob knows he's going to die soon, so panics and tries to escape/avoid his fate, causing him to be predictable and easier to pick off.
* '''Defied''': Bob is GenreSavvy and does everything he can to stay away from danger for as long as possible
** Bob's [[{{Nakama}} very protective friends]] are equally GenreSavvy and risk danger themselves to keep him safe
** "Okay guys, we're a bunch of teens and a serial killer is on the loose. We all know that serial killers go for the black dude first (you can beat the crap out of me later, Bob) or for defenseless young girls (same for you, Alice). Therefore, all us white males should do whatever we can to protect the black guy and the girl while we all get the hell out of here. As long as Alice and Bob are alive then the rest of use are pretty much invincible (hopefully)."

* '''Played For Drama''': The highly racist Caucasian cast conspire to ensure that Bob is always in the most danger, thus making it inevitable that he'll die first. Alice is appalled by this, and a major theme of the rest of the story is the conflict between those like her who tried and failed to protect Bob, and those who ensured he was the first victim. The drama is even greater if this scenario, takes place before the Emancipation, thus bringing overtones of FairForItsDay into the mix
* '''Played For Laughs''' See parodied, but turned UpToEleven, with Bob being TheChewtoy.
** Bob suffers many AmusingInjuries and several cases of NooneCouldSurviveThat, but ends up as one of the only survivors of the story, hooking up with Alice and walking away with a large bag of money.

** Bob's very protective friends are equally GenreSavvy and risk danger themselves to keep him safe