Line #64 Main/ReedSnorkel


1	%%
2	%%
3	%% This list of examples has been alphabetized. Please add your example in the proper place. Thanks!
4	%%
5	%%
6	%% Image selected via crowner in the Image Suggestion thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/crowner.php/ImagePickin/ImageSuggestions49
7	%% Please do not change or remove without starting a new thread.
8	%%
9	[[quoteright:340:[[Manga/DragonBall https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ninja_murasaki_snorkel.png]]]]
10
11	->'''Elf:''' How do you know these reeds are hollow?\
12	'''Kevyn:''' Reeds are ''always'' hollow.
13	-->-- ''Webcomic/SchlockMercenary''
14
15	Plucking a hollow reed and using it to breathe while underwater. Often but not exclusively employed by {{Ninja}}s in fiction.
16
17	This is an example of RealityIsUnrealistic: the major problem is not the pressure, which only becomes a problem as you go really deep (most people are swimming just a few inches below the water, hardly low enough to crush your lungs), but that the width of the reed (or snorkel) needs to get wider the longer the tube is.[[note]]Imagine drinking a drink from a glass through a ''really'' long straw -- you'd need to suck several times just to get the drink to your mouth -- air through a reed would be the same deal.[[/note]] Otherwise you are just rebreathing the same air over and over, which will kill you after long enough. Unless you breathe out into the water -- and if you're trying to hide underwater, that defeats the purpose by highlighting your position with bubbles. Hmm... maybe you could do it with ''two'' reeds.
18	----
19	!!Examples:
20
21	[[foldercontrol]]
22
23	[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
24	* ''Anime/BatmanNinja'': A flotilla of reed snorkels appears around the Joker's ship in the lake as the Bat clan seemingly surrounds it. The Joker's samurai open up with muskets, only to reveal the snorkels are a feint and connected to {{Ninja Log}}s floating the surface.
25	* Done in ''Manga/DragonBall'' by Ninja Murasaki during a game of hide-and-seek. Goku finds him and pours hot tea down the reed.
26	* In ''Anime/GirlsUndPanzer'', Sugiyama uses it to breathe whilst looking for tanks underwater. Since she isn't trying to hide, she could theoretically have done the "breathe into the water" technique.
27	* In ''Anime/HeartCatchPrettyCure'', Cure Marine is trapped inside a water-based Desertarian and quickly panics. Chypre and Coffret come to her rescue and shove a reed inside so Marine can breathe.
28	* In ''Manga/JojosBizarreAdventureStardustCrusaders'', one of DIO's Stand-using assassins hides underground while having his Stand pretend to be a genie. When Polnareff and Avdol find out, they try to flush him out by dropping dirt, rocks, ants, and a spider into the reed. When Cameo endues this, the two men [[ToiletHumor urinate into the tube]], at which point Cameo pops up and begs for mercy.
29	%% Needs context * Done in ''Manga/{{Mahoraba}}'' during a game of hide-and-seek.
30	* ''Anime/{{Mega Man NT Warrior\|2002}} - Stream'': In Episode 38, Rush sneaks away to [=NetCity=] to hide in a fountain while using a bamboo snorkel until Roll covers it up to force him out.
31	* Orochimaru does it to listen to Team 7 in the Forest of Death in ''Manga/{{Naruto}}''; significantly, [[SandIsWater he isn't underwater.]]
32	* In the Shonen Sunday manga version of ''Manga/ObakeNoQTaro'' episode 1 "Q-chan Tanjou", Shōta (who is playing ninja with some neighborhood boys) hides underwater. Two boys notice the reed Shōta is using and put worms in it. He immediately blows out the worms and surfaces, feeling disgusted.
33	* ''Manga/TimeStopHero'': The ninja girl Mikage uses this to hide under sand.
34	* ''Manga/{{Yaiba}}'': During the ninja training under UsefulNotes/MiyamotoMusashi, Musashi and Yaiba train to resist underwater by hiding in the pond of the Mine mansion, using reeds to breathe. Eventually, Raizo's mother forces them to come out by closing the reed's ends with her fingers.
35	[[/folder]]
36
37	[[folder:Comic Books]]
38	* ComicBook/JimmyOlsen used this to hide from an assassin during the lead-up to the ''ComicBook/NewKrypton'' storyline, with the added complication that the assassin could read minds. The only explanation Jimmy could think of was that [[SuperPowerSillyPutty all the times his body had been transformed]] over the years had made his brain impossible to read.
39	* In ''ComicBook/{{Tomahawk}}'' #40, Tomahawk uses this trick to sabotage a canoe race to allow Dan Hunter to win.
40	[[/folder]]
41
42	[[folder:Films -- Animation]]
43	* ''WesternAnimation/IceAgeTheMeltdown'': Stu is submerged underwater with only his snorkel visible moments before Cretaceous and Maelstorm pull him under.
44	* ''WesternAnimation/RobinHood1973'': When escaping from Prince John's castle, Robin jumps into the moat and is fired upon with arrows, leaving Little John and Skippy to [[DisneyDeath assume he'd perished when]] [[DeadHatShot his hat bobs up with an arrow through it]]. As the two weep at Robin's apparent demise, Skippy notices a reed moving along the water, and when Little John investigates, a very much alive Robin squirts water into his face with it.
45	* Jeremy in ''WesternAnimation/TheSecretOfNIMH'' after escaping Auntie Shrew, hiding under a water lily.
46	* In ''WesternAnimation/{{Winnie the Pooh\|2011}}'', Eeyore uses this tactic to hide from Tigger so as to avoid any more Tigger training.
47	* ''WesternAnimation/WreckItRalph'': Ralph breaths through a pirouline wafer stick while hiding from the cops in a pool of chocolate, [[ShoutOut making]] the [[Franchise/StarWars Darth Vader]] breathing [[VaderBreath sound]]. After they leave, he emerges and mutters, "Chocolate. I ''hate'' chocolate."
48	[[/folder]]
49
50	[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
51	* In ''Film/AdeleHasntHadHerDinnerYet'', the villain uses his cigarette holder for this purpose. First it helped him to fake his death in the swamp when the hero though he had drowned. In TheStinger then we see the villain breathing through his cigarette holder while hiding under a heap of coals.
52	%% Needs context * UsefulNotes/RonaldReagan does it in ''Film/CodeOfTheSecretService''.
53	* ''Film/DrNo'': James Bond, Honey Ryder, and Quarrel use reeds to briefly hide underwater from Dr. No's thugs.
54	%% Needs context * This is used to hide from guards in ''Film/IAmAFugitiveFromAChainGang''.
55	* Chuck Norris did this in one of his ''Film/MissingInAction'' movies. But then, [[Website/ChuckNorrisFacts oxygen needs Chuck Norris to exist.]]
56	* A variant in ''Film/MovieCrazy'' when Harold uses a funnel to breathe while fighting the bad guy on a flooded film set.
57	%% Needs context * Used in several Creator/JohnWayne films, such as ''Film/RioLobo'' and ''Back to Bataan''.
58	* ''Film/TheThreeMusketeers1973'' had d'Artagnan try this in a horse trough. Rochefort gets frustrated that he's 'lost' d'Artagnan and kicks the tap off the trough...causing it to empty and leave d'Artagnan exposed.
59	[[/folder]]
60
61	[[folder:Literature]]
62	* ''Literature/AlexRider'': In ''Point Blanc'', Alex hides beneath the surface of a lake, breathing through the barrel of a shotgun.
63	* Referenced in one of the Tiffany Aching ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' books. Miss Tick considers being able to breathe underwater through a hollow reed after being tied up and thrown into a pond an essential survival skill for witches traveling through places where they aren't welcome.
64	* ''Literature/ThePhantomOfTheOpera'' (novel version) not only did this, but he would also ''sing'' through it to get people to look overboard so he could pull them under.
65	%% ZCE * Various ''Literature/{{Redwall}}'' characters use Reed Snorkels.
66	* ''Literature/SienkiewiczTrilogy'': In ''With Fire and Sword'', Skrzetuski does it to get out of besieged Zbaraż and BringHelpBack.
67	* ''Literature/TwoMinuteMysteries'' has a story in which Haledjian's clue that the story is false is this trope. Being himself, he knows that [[JustForFun/TelevisionIsTryingToKillUs it doesn't work nearly so well]] in RealLife.
68	[[/folder]]
69
70	[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
71	* In the ''Series/GilligansIsland'' episode "Gilligan's Mother-in-Law", Ginger and the Professor are hunting for Gilligan when Ginger notices a reed sticking out of the water.
72	* ''Series/MacGyver1985'': Invoked in "Target [=MacGyver=]". Mac uses hollow reeds stuck into a piece of bark and sets it afloat in the water to make the bad guys think they are still in the water.
73	* A different take in ''Series/TheMandalorian'' episode "Sanctuary" when a mother and her child hide under an upturned wicker basket floating in the water. Fortunately the villains are too busy plundering the village to pay close attention to it.
74	* Invoked in the ''Series/MrBean'' episode "Tee Off Mr Bean". When Mr Bean puts his teddy in the washing machine, at first the teddy resists going in. Mr Bean offers him a drinking straw to use as a snorkel, which seems to pacify the teddy. When Mr Bean unloads the machine, he is first puzzled by the straw; then he remembers what it was for.
75	* Rated "Plausible" by the ''Series/MythBusters''. They could breathe while remaining concealed underwater using a reed snorkel, and with a little practice they could also make it double as a blowgun, and hit a target above the water. However, they were barely a foot from the surface, which makes their secondary objective of remaining undetected (it was a Ninja episode) pretty difficult in a perfectly still pond.
76	* ''Series/WaltDisneyPresents'': In "Operation Undersea", an animated segment about the history at diving presents this as man's first advancement in breathing underwater. Unfortunately, he could only go so deep before the change in pressure causes his lungs to collapse.
77	[[/folder]]
78
79	[[folder:Video Games]]
80	* ''VisualNovel/TheGreatAceAttorney 2'': In the first case, Satoru Hosonaga tapes a toy turtle to his head in an attempt to pull off an underwater disguise using a Reed Snorkel.
81	* ''VideoGame/KirbyStarAllies'': If Kirby is floating on water with the {{Ninja}} ability, he can spit water above with a reed.
82	* In ''VideoGame/LiveALive'', Oboromaru, the prisoner, Mimic Mammet (for a few seconds anyway), and any guards patrolling the area use one to breathe in Ode Castle's moat.
83	* ''VideoGame/NinjaHayate'': Hayate infiltrates the ninja castle in the opening scene through the surrounding bodies of water, for which he breathes through a reed.
84	* ''VideoGame/ShadowTacticsBladesOfTheShogun'': Hayato, Yuki, and Aiko can all swim underwater and stay hidden there indefinitely via reed snorkels.
85	* The TV commercials for ''VideoGame/StarWarsBountyHunter'' had a bounty try to hide from Jango Fett this way. It didn't work.
86	* ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'':
87	** In ''VideoGame/PaperMarioTheOrigamiKing'', a Ninji found in Shogun Studios forgot to bring a reed for snorkeling class. As part of a ChainOfDeals, you can give a soda-drink straw for him to use instead.
88	** ''VideoGame/PrincessPeachShowtime'': When traversing underwater as a ninja, Peach uses an extended reed snorkel while sneaking past enemies.
89	* In ''VideoGame/{{Tenchu}} 2'', you can use this to become invisible in the water, which is slightly jarring as the water is depicted as crystal clear.
90	* A breathing reed is one of the various items in ''VideoGame/{{Terraria}}'', though its use is limited due to the shallowness it requires. You can breathe perfectly for up to three blocks underwater, and double your breath for any further depths. You also can't use any other item while using it, and due to the simplistic way the game handles water physics, you can easily dig air pockets above you even if you're in progress of draining an entire ocean.
91	[[/folder]]
92
93	[[folder:Web Comics]]
94	* Used in ''Webcomic/SchlockMercenary''. On an unknown alien planet, so Kevyn has Schlock lay over them like the BlobMonster he is, and they breathe out into him so he can absorb the [=CO2=], which incidentally solves the bubble problem.
95	-->'''Elf:''' How do you know these reeds are hollow?\
96	'''Kevyn:''' Reeds are ''always'' hollow.
97	[[/folder]]
98
99	[[folder:Western Animation]]
100	* ''WesternAnimation/TheAdventuresOfJimmyNeutronBoyGenius'': Jimmy, Carl, and Sheen use these in Cindy's swimming pool while on the run from a cop in "Who Framed Jimmy Neutron".
101	* In ''WesternAnimation/AquaTeenHungerForce'' episode "Sweet C", Carl angers a bunch of bees and hides in his pool before rising a reed, which the bees enter and tear him apart from the inside.
102	* ''WesternAnimation/HeyArnold'': In "Buses, Bikes, and Subways", while hiding out from clowns in the swamp, Helga and Harold breathe through reeds.
103	* Race Bannon does this while approaching the tribal camp in the ''WesternAnimation/JonnyQuest'' TOS episode "Pursuit of the Po-Ho".
104	* ''WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes'':
105	** [[WesternAnimation/SylvesterTheCatAndTweetyBird Sylvester]] tries this with a lead pipe to catch Tweety, who is stranded by high tide, in "Tugboat Granny". HilarityEnsues when a seagull decides to roost on the pipe.
106	** In the ''WesternAnimation/RalphWolfAndSamSheepdog'' short "Don't Give Up the Sheep", the wolf tries this in order to sneak underwater through a pond, past the sheepdog, to get the sheep. The sheepdog drops a stick of dynamite down the reed.
107	** The same "drop a stick of dynamite down the reed" gag is used in yet another ''WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes'' short, "WesternAnimation/MouseAndGarden", when Sylvester and another cat named Sam are fighting over a mouse. Sam tries to sneak past using a pipe as a Reed Snorkel, but Sylvester has a stick of dynamite. The gag is extended a little bit when Sam twice spits the dynamite out, only for Sylvester to twice throw it back in before it goes boom.
108	* A ''WesternAnimation/TomAndJerry'' short has Tom use one to hide from a swarm of bees. It works until Jerry points the bees in the right direction.
109	* ''WesternAnimation/TotalDrama'':
110	** The challenge in "[[Recap/TotalDramaHideAndBeSneaky Hide and Be Sneaky]]" is to hide from Chef or reach home base before he catches you. Leshawna hides in the water just below the docks and keeps herself out of sight by breathing through a green reed snorkel complete with lily pad for camouflage. The strategy works and leaves Leshawna the only person to evade Chef.
111	** In "[[Recap/TotalDramaMastersOfDisasters Masters of Disasters]]", a challenge turns into a true drowning risk for the contestants. The only way out is a hatch on the floor, but it needs to be cracked open first and at that point the water is so high that anyone who'd work on finding the code would be slowed down by the need to come up for air. Luckily, Harold has brought along a package of straws taken from breakfast that morning. He has Leshawna link them up for him into one long snorkel so he can work on the hatch without interruption. Courtesy of Harold, everyone gets to live that day.
112	** The middle part of the finale in "[[Recap/TotalDramaLiesCriesAndOneBigPrize Lies, Cries, and One Big Prize]]" requires one of each finalist-helper duo to take the other on their shoulders and wade through a deep mud pool. The one who has to wade through the mud gets a garden hose to breathe through, the other end of which the one on top must hold up above the mud. It also, somehow, serves as a communication line from which the one on top gives directional instructions.
113	[[/folder]]
114
115	[[folder:Real Life]]
116	* "[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_Brady#Brady.27s_Leap Brady's Leap]]". Sam Brady hid underwater breathing through a reed stem while escaping from Indians.
117	[[/folder]]

Context Main / ReedSnorkel