History Quotes / TakeAThirdOption

->'''Joker:''' Your pick: Dynamite or crowbar?\\

So Millar chose a fifth way. He raised the gun and shot the hanging shard of black glass.''

'''Caption boxes:''' The Adventures of Dr [=McNinja=]\\
''Now in '''COLOUR!'''''
-->-- ''Webcomic/TheAdventuresOfDrMcNinja'', [[http://drmcninja.com/archives/comic/13p1/ Issue 13, Page 1]]-[[http://drmcninja.com/archives/comic/13p2/ Page 2]]

->'''[[ThePhilosopher Kimblee]]''': You would have no trouble escaping this situation with the stone at your beck and call. And once you were in a safe place, you could BOTH have your old bodies back. That's how your whole journey was supposed to end, wasn't it?\\
'''Alphonse''': ...But then we wouldn't save everyone else.\\
'''Kimblee''': "The greater good." [[EquivalentExchange You can't gain something without sacrificing something else.]]\\
'''Alphonse''': I wonder... Why are there only two choices? [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere "Save yourself and abandon everyone else."]] [[HeroicSacrifice "Give up on returning to normal and save the world."]] Why are those the only options? Why can't I choose "Save the world AND get our original bodies back?"\\
'''Kimblee''': I see. Experiment thoroughly enough, and you may discover NEW laws that the world must then abide by. [[DeconstructedTrope That would mean there is a FOURTH option...]] [[DownerEnding "You lose your chance to return to normal, AND you fail to save the world."]]

->'''Hunter Exam Proctee''': Your mom and your beloved are dying. You have time to save one. Who will you save?\\
'''Gon''': (''silent and glaring furiously at the lady'')\\
'''Proctee''': You pass. Go through the left door to the next stage.[[note]]This is notable for being a trick question. Any candidate who answers either mother or the beloved do go through, but they are immediately failed. As the real purpose of the question was to see what happens if such situation does happen in real life[[/note]].
-->-- ''Manga/{{Hunter X Hunter}}''

->There's always another way.

->None of this works for me. Give me a third option.
-->-- '''ComicBook/CaptainAmerica''', ''Ultimate Comics: The Ultimates''

->'''Chaos:''' [[TheAntiChrist Your]] coming of age is the [[EndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt death knell of man]].\\

'''Hellboy:''' Oh yeah? Screw You! I choose door number ''three''! It's ''my'' goddamn life, [[ScrewDestiny I'll do what I want with it]]! You don't like that, kill me if you can!
-->-- '''ComicBook/{{Hellboy}}''', ''Wake The Devil''

->'''Andy (as "Dr. Porkchop"):''' You must choose, Sheriff Woody. How shall she die!? [[ThreateningShark Shark!?]] Or death by monkeys!? [[SadisticChoice CHOOSE]].\\
'''Andy (as Woody):''' I choose… [[TheCavalry BUZZ LIGHTYEAR!]]\\
'''Andy (as "Dr. Porkchop"):''' [[BigWhat WHAT!?]] [[LampshadeHanging That's not a choice!]]
-->-- ''WesternAnimation/ToyStory2''

''(She destroys the castle sea wall with the trident, reuniting land and sea)''\\

-->-- ''Film/{{Airplane}}!''

->There is a third option. It involves... ''[[MurderIsTheBestSolution murder]]''.
-->-- '''Film/TheCatInTheHat'''

->Then I will execute the [[CoupDeGrace Law]]. I have no tribe... and [[PunctuatedForEmphasis no one is]] [[CycleOfRevenge offended.]]
-->-- '''Film/LawrenceOfArabia'''

->[[AC:[[WorldWarIII A strange game]]. The only winning move is not to play.]]

->'''Steve:''' You're not the guy to make a sacrifice play. To lay down on a wire and let the other guy crawl over you.\\
'''Tony:''' I think I would just cut the wire.
-->-- ''Film/TheAvengers2012''

->'''Asian Thug''': You've got two choices: give us the disk and jump off...\\
'''European Thug''': Or number two: we take the disk and ''throw'' you off.\\
'''Whoami''': I like the third choice: I keep the disk and throw you ''both'' off! ::fight::\\

->'''David''': What? There's a third option? Crazy and daring?\\
'''Fatebane''': Daring, definitely daring… possibly fatal…\\
'''David''': So what else is new?

-> '''Robin:''' Well, we can tell the board [[CasualKink everything,]] and accept that it's going to ruin a few lives... or we can let them terminate our contract without telling them what's going on, and accept that [[OnlyKnownByTheirNickname Shifty]]'s going to keep blackmailing [his boss]... or...
-> '''[[PrivateDetective Strike]]:''' Yeah, that's the question, isn't it? Where's the third option, where Shifty gets his comeuppance and [his boss] doesn't [[DrivenToSuicide end up in the Thames?]]
-->-- ''Literature/CormoranStrikeNovels'' book 5, ''Literature/TroubledBlood''

-->-- ''The Book of Nome'', Quarries, Chap. 3, v. VII-X, ''Literature/{{Diggers}}''

->Well either one or the other is going to happen. There's no weird third thing.

->Doakes said I had two choices--kill him or let him go. But he neglected to look behind door number three…
-->-- '''Series/{{Dexter}}'''

->'''Varys:''' You have a choice, my friend. You can stay here at Illyrio's palace and [[DrowningMySorrows drink yourself to death]], or you can ride with me to Meereen, meet Daenerys Targaryen, and [[KnightInSourArmor decide if the world is worth fighting for.]]\\
'''Tyrion:''' ...can I [[BreadEggsBreadedEggs drink myself to death on the road to Meereen]]?
-->-- ''Series/GameOfThrones'', [[Recap/GameOfThronesS5E1TheWarsToCome "The Wars To Come"]]

->'''Roy''': Hello Judy. What can I do for you?\\
'''Judy''': '''[[NoIndoorVoice Computer's broken.]]'''\\

'''Judy''': ...'''[[MathematiciansAnswer yes]]'''.

->Since we can't do the one thing and we can't do the other thing, then all we have to do is think of a third thing that makes everyone happy.

->'''O'Brien''': The way I see it, we only have two choices, both of them bad. If we stand by and do nothing, we run the risk of being the Klingons' next target. But if we disobey Starfleet orders and warn the Cardassians, we may end up ''starting'' a war with the Klingons.
->'''Sisko''': Which means...we need a third option.
-->-- ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'', "The Way of the Warrior"

->There's an old Talaxian expression. "When the road before you splits in two… take the ''third'' path."
-->-- '''Neelix''', ''Series/StarTrekVoyager''

->'''Harvey''': What are your choices when someone puts a gun to your head?\\
'''Mike''': What are you talking about!? You do what they say or they shoot you!\\
'''Harvey''': ''Wrong''. [[GunStruggle You take the gun]]. [[AlwaysABiggerFish Or you pull out a bigger one]]. [[YouWouldntShootMe Or you call their bluff]]. Or you do any one of 146 other things!

->'''Freddie:''' Sam, the number of iCarly viewers who think you're right: 693.\\
'''Sam:''' I got 693 votes.\\
'''Carly:''' And how many votes did I get?\\
'''Freddie:''' 705.\\
'''Carly:''' Ha! looks like y --\\
'''Freddie:''' Wait! I put up a third option for them to vote for.\\
'''Carly:''' Huh?\\
'''Sam:''' What?\\
'''Freddie:''' The first button says Carly's right. The second button said Sam's right. The third button said: "Carly and Sam are both acting dumb, and they should just make up and be friends again."\\
'''Carly:''' How many people voted for that one?\\
'''Freddie:''' 253,719.\\
''(Carly and Sam are shocked)''\\
'''Freddie:''' Our fans don't like it when best friends fight... [[IronicEcho neither do I.]]
-->--''Series/{{iCarly}}'', "iDon't Want to Fight"

->'''Jon''': Which would you rather do, Garfield, go to the farm or go camping?\\
'''Garfield''': Would having something amputated be a choice?
-->-- ''ComicStrip/{{Garfield}}''

->"Cake or death?"\\

"So my choice is 'or death?' Well, I'll have the chicken then, please."

->'''Bard''': All right... I've made my choice.\\
'''Fionnaoch''': Well it's about bloody time.\\
'''Bard''': Don't get too excited. I didn't choose you.\\
'''Fionnaoch''': You choose Caleigh?\\
'''Bard''': I didn't say that either.\\
'''Caleigh''': Tell us my champion, whom do you choose?\\
'''Bard''': A very logical choice... me.

->I am Andrew Ryan, and I'm here to ask you a question: Is a man not entitled to the sweat of his brow?\\
"No!" says [[TheGovernment the man in Washington]], "it belongs to the poor!"\\
"No!" says [[UsefulNotes/ThePope the man in the Vatican]], "it belongs to God!"\\
"No!" says [[DirtyCommies the man in Moscow]], "it belongs to everyone!"\\
I rejected those answers. Instead, I chose something different. I chose the impossible. I chose... [[UnderwaterCity RAPTURE!]] A city where [[MadArtist the artist would not fear the censor,]] where [[ForScience the scientist would not be bound by petty morality,]] where [[TheSocialDarwinist the great would not be constrained by the small!]] And with the sweat of your brow, Rapture can become your city as well.
-->-- ''{{VideoGame/BioShock|1}}''

->'''???:''' Tough choice ahead of you, ''bratan''. The prisoners... or whistleblower. You can't save both.\\
'''Jensen:''' Wha- the hacker, from the ship. You've been listening this whole time?\\

'''???:''' Precisely. But if you want to bring down Belltower, the choice is clear.\\
(''instead, Jensen [[spoiler:crawls into the air ducts and destroys the device pumping the gas]]'')\\
'''???''': ''Obaldet!'' The toxicity level is dropping! You found a way to save everyone, ''bratan!''\\

->Hey, my bad, homie. [[IronicEcho I picked "C".]] Ain't that a bitch?

->Choosing isn't always right! Sometimes, not choosing is the correct answer! It may be referred to as the [[MarryThemAll "harem" option!]]

->With the invasion over, [[ThouShaltNotKill Bruce]] and [[WellIntentionedExtremist Superman]] started fighting again. I wasn't down with either of them. On the one hand, the Regime's right; [[TheEndJustifiesTheMeans scumbag murderers and rapists deserve to die]]. But on the other hand, I'm no fan of government authority, especially the [[KnightTemplar dictatorial variety]]. So while the World's Finest fight each other, I fight for the people. The weak, the innocent, anyone who can't protect themselves. When they cry out for a saviour, I'll answer. As for the criminals who threaten them? They need to know that their actions have consequences. That the Red Hood is coming for them.

'''[=DiZ=]:''' Between the road to light--and the road to darkness.\\

->'''Kain:''' Thirty years hence, I am presented with a dilemma. Let's call it a two-sided coin. If the coin falls one way, [[HeroicSacrifice I sacrifice myself]], and thus restore the Pillars. But as [[LastOfHisKind the last surviving Vampire in Nosgoth]], this would be the annihilation of our species. Moebius made sure of that. If the coin lands on the reverse, I refuse the sacrifice, and thus doom the Pillars to an eternity of collapse. [[XanatosGambit Either way, the game is rigged.]]\\

'''Raziel:''' (''sighs'') Your arrogance is boundless, Kain.\\
'''Kain:''' (''chuckles'') There's a ''third'' option. A monumental secret, hidden in your very presence here. But it's a secret you have to discover for yourself. Unearth your destiny, Raziel. It's all laid out for you here.\\

'''Kain:''' Apparently so. But suppose you throw a coin enough times. Suppose one day... it lands on its ''[[HeadsTailsEdge edge.]]''

'''Liu Kang:''' There is a third option: [[PreAssKickingOneLiner Your demise]]!

->'''[[OppositeSexClone Brother]] One:''' Does that make us good or evil?\\
'''One:''' We don't get to answer that question.
-->--''VideoGame/Drakengard3''

->'''Joker:''' Your pick: Dynamite or crowbar?\\
'''Brainiac:''' ''[[NoYou You]]'' will die by other means.

->'''Doctor Fate:''' Choose between order and chaos.\\
'''Catwoman:''' I choose my way.
-->--''Videogame/Injustice2''

->There's a funny thing that happens when you know the correct answer. It throws you when you get a ''different'' answer that's ''not wrong''.

->Russia, Japan, must you kill each other so? We can negotiate! Or, if you want to, we can safari. FUCK IT LET'S DO BOTH.

->If someone can't handle an unpleasant truth? '''Lie''' to them. If somone won't listen to reason? '''Make''' them. If people don't choose to live peaceably—don't give them a '''choice.''' If you don't like the rules—'''change the game.'''
-->-- '''Tarvek Sturmvoraus''', ''Webcomic/GirlGenius''

->Remember that discussion on whether the comic should be digitally shaded or pure black and white? I thought of a third option...
-->-- '''AltText''', ''Webcomic/TheAdventuresOfDrMcNinja'', [[http://drmcninja.com/archives/comic/13p1/ Issue 13, Page 1]]
->The Adventures of Dr [=McNinja=]
->''Now in '''COLOUR!''' ''
-->-- '''Caption boxes''', ''Webcomic/TheAdventuresOfDrMcNinja'', [[http://drmcninja.com/archives/comic/13p2/ Issue 13, Page 2]]

->"There are epics in this world about heroes who won the day by refusing the terms of the fight. Who found a path more subtle than “hit it harder”, and in doing so changed the course of destiny. [As Integra just decides to 'hit it harder' and stabs the Major] This is not one of those stories."
-->--''Webcomic/AndShineHeavenNow''

->I'm not going to deal with this now. It's like [[GeniusBruiser the classic debate of why measuring the position of an electron changes its momentum and vice-versa.]] The only correct answer is to [[TheAlcoholic get drunk]] and [[{{Pyromaniac}} set fire to things]].

->'''Serenity:''' Okay, Nesbitt! [[LogicBomb Which came first: the chicken or the egg?]]\\
'''Nesbitt:''' The [[RocketPunch rocket-powered fist!]]\\
'''Serenity:''' But, that wasn't one of the-- (''WHAM'')
-->-- ''WebVideo/YuGiOhTheAbridgedSeries'', Episode 51: "The Death of Tristan Taylor"

-->-- The Laws of [[SuperRobotGenre Super Robot Anime]]

There are three healers. One represents one side and one represents another and one represents how we have run out of sides. Wait, that’s not right. Huh.

->'''Thomas:''' You're holding court and a peasant approaches the throne. "Your majesty, I've defended my village from raiders for the past five years, and I've come to pledge myself to you as your knight." What do you do?\\
'''Kyle:''' Sure. He seems like a cool guy.\\
'''Thomas:''' Nope! Now you've insulted your whole court by knighting a commoner. They question your leadership, poison your drink, aaaand you're assassinated. Try again.\\
'''Kyle:''' Fine. I tell him to go back where he came from.\\
'''Thomas:''' Well, now you've insulted the folk hero and the other commoners. They train their entire lives for revenge, and before you know it... Assassinated!\\
'''Kyle:''' Assassinated. Yeah.\\
'''Thomas:''' The correct answer is to make him your court jester.\\
'''Kyle:''' Yeah, I was never gonna get that.
-->-- ''WebVideo/DoorMonster'', "[[VideoGame/CrusaderKingsIII CKIII]]: Holding Court"

->'''King of Omashu''': Your final test is a duel. And, as a special treat, you may choose your opponent. ''[two muscular warriors enter]'' Point and choose.\\
'''Aang''': So you're saying [[ExactWords whoever I point to... that's the person I get to fight?]]\\
'''King of Omashu''': Choose wisely...\\
'''Aang''': I... choose... you! ''[points at the king]''\\
'''King of Omashu''': [[SubvertedTrope Hmhm...]] [[RankScalesWithAsskicking WRONG CHOICE!!!]] ''[removes his cloak to reveal a muscular body, then sends Aang flying 50 feet into the air]''

->'''ComicBook/HarleyQuinn:''' [[EvilGloating Gee, Batman, what are you gonna do?]] [[SadisticChoice Kick me around or save your kitty?]] [[TemptingFate You've only got time for one.]]\\
(''without letting go of her, Batman silently opens a nearby electrical panel and flips the master switch, shutting down the machine Catwoman is tied to'')\\
'''Harley Quinn:''' [[{{Touche}} Heh-heh… good call.]] [[OhCrap Help!]]
-->-- ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'', "Almost Got 'im"

->My vengeance will be neither swift nor entertaining! I will mete it out over decades, so that you will wonder if the misery in your life is manifest or the machinations of Leonardo Leonardo! Or... some third thing. Good day!

->There's always a third way, and it's not a combination of the other two ways. It's a ''different'' way.
-->-- '''David Carradine'''

->One day, someone showed me a glass of water that was half full. And he said, "Is it half full or half empty?" So I drank the water. No more problem.

->'''King of Omashu''': Your final test is a duel. And, as a special treat, you may choose your opponent. (''two muscular warriors enter'') Point and choose.\\

'''Aang''': I... choose... you! (''points at the king'')\\
'''King of Omashu''': [[SubvertedTrope Hmhm...]] [[AuthorityEqualsAsskicking WRONG CHOICE!!!]] (''removes his cloak to reveal a muscular body, then sends Aang flying 50 feet into the air'')