To put it simply, when a character dies in a grand way. Though the plot may say that they have to die, the writer honors the character enough to not take them down like a nameless mook, but instead make their death something to be proud of. They don't run, they don't cry. They die standing, and they go down swinging.
The polar opposite of Dropped a Bridge on Him, the Dying Moment of Awesome is a Super-Trope for:
- Alas, Poor Scrappy
- Alas, Poor Villain
- Angst Nuke (the non-survivable type)
- Berserker Tears
- Death Equals Redemption
- Death Is the Only Option
- Death Means Humanity
- Defiant to the End
- Did You Just Flip Off Cthulhu? (Bring It, squid.)
- Dissonant Serenity (frequently seen in redeeming or willing deaths)
- Dying as Yourself
- Do Not Go Gentle
- "Facing the Bullets" One-Liner
- Go Out with a Smile
- Heroic RRoD
- Heroic Sacrifice
- Heroic Suicide
- Jumping on a Grenade, a specific form of the Heroic Sacrifice.
- Taking the Bullet, another form of the Heroic Sacrifice
- I Die Free
- It Has Been an Honor
- Kill Us Both
- The Last Dance
- Last Stand
- Obi-Wan Moment
- One-Winged Angel
- Redemption Equals Death
- Sacrificial Revival Spell
- Self-Destructive Charge
- Shapeshifter Swan Song
- The Slow Walk
- Staring Down Cthulhu (If the hero doesn't survive the staring contest.)
- Super-Power Meltdown (When put to good use)
- Taking You with Me
- Thanatos Gambit
- Tranquil Fury
- Villainous RRoD
- Villain's Dying Grace
- You Cannot Kill An Idea
- You Shall Not Pass!
If done well, this can be a real Tear Jerker. It can be undermined somewhat if the character later gets better, but eh, what'cha gonna do...
Someone may note that it was a Great Way to Go. Out with a Bang is a rather more undignified way to die, but still enviable and cool in its own way.
Beware while reading this page. This article has been proven to cause Manly Tears in many tropers. Including female ones.
If an example fits in one of the subtropes, please list it there instead.
As a Death Trope, all spoilers will be unmarked ahead. Beware.
Examples
- Anime & Manga
- Comic Books
- Fan Works
- Film
- Literature
- Live-Action TV
- Music
- Radio
- Tabletop Games
- Video Games
- Webcomics
- Web Original
- Western Animation
- Real Life
- In Season 7 of Happy Heroes, Kalo sacrifices himself to save planet Xing Xing from an army of enemy spaceships. He quite literally goes out with a bang, producing a huge explosion that wipes out the entire opposing army.
- Beowulf goes out in a manner befitting a legendary warrior and epic badass. As an old man (quite some time after his defeats of Grendel and Grendel's mother) his people are menaced by a dragon. Beowulf goes out alone to fight it, and although he ends up needing a little help from one of his warriors, he takes the dragon down. He dies a short while after the battle and is buried with the dragon's hoard.
- The Bible:
- Samson, in his final moments, used his newly-regained strength to pull down the Temple of Dagon and bury the Philistine government with him.
- The prophet Elijah ascended to Heaven in a chariot of fire, promising to return one day.
- Also, Jesus Christ. Not only dying for the sins of others, but forgiving those who executed Him. He came back (according to the resurrection), though.
Jesus: Forgive them, they know not what they do.
- Not only that, but his death caused the veil in the temple to split, the earth to crack, the sky to go dark, a hurricane, and a whole bunch of corpses to start walking around.
- Alongside Jesus are the disciples. Peter asks to get crucified upside down, putting himself above them in power. Paul exercises his right as a Roman citizen to a speedy execution and gets beheaded.
- Cú Chulainn, the resident Memetic Badass of Celtic Mythology, fittingly dies this way. When deprived of his invincibility and surrounded by his enemies, he keeps fighting until Lugaid mortally wounds him with a spear. He then ties himself to a nearby stone with his own intestines so he can die facing his enemy on his feet and keeps fighting. When he eventually dies, his enemies are so frightened that they refuse to get near enough to check until a raven lands on his shoulder, proving he is dead. Then, when Lugaid cuts off his head just to make sure, the "hero-light" burns around Cú Chulainn and his sword falls from his hand and cuts Lugaid's hand off.
