This Index Has Left the Building

An index of tropes relating to character exits.

Tropes:

10-Minute Retirement: A character temporarily abandons their line of work.
Achilles in His Tent: Character leaves before returning right when their allies need him.
Benched Hero: The hero steps out mid-story, leaving the others to carry on (or not) without him.
Big Damn Fire Exit: All dangerous situations have a designated exit, no matter how improbable it might be for the situation (i.e. a collapsing Aztec temple just happens to have a fire escape).

Destination Defenestration: Ejected via being thrown from a window.
Deus Exit Machina: The most powerful or useful character is removed from a story in order to make things more difficult for the other characters.
Door Focus: A character leaves a room, and the focus remains on the door long enough for the character to return.
Escape Route Surprise: A false route of escape, usually with a door leading to danger instead of an exit.
Exit, Pursued by a Bear: The story ends with the villain being chased away by a creature that will most likely harm them.
Failed Dramatic Exit: Someone leaves out of anger, but the mood is ruined because they get hurt on the way out or end up returning briefly for a reason unrelated to their departure.
- The Exit Is That Way: A character attempts a dramatic exit, only to find they're going the wrong way.
- House Amnesia: An angry character forgets they're not in their own house and orders the owner to leave.
Hero on Hiatus: The hero is temporarily taken out of action, and the focus swaps to getting him back.

High-Dive Escape: An unexpected escape or exit via jumping from a great height.
Impact Silhouette: Someone runs through a wall and leaves behind a hole shaped exactly like them.
Let's Get Out of Here: The adventure's over; now it's time to leave.
Montage Out: Story ends with a montage of previous events.
Screw This, I'm Outta Here!: Character elects to leave rather than get involved with the present situation.
Self-Imposed Exile: Character exiles themselves.
Smoke Out: Character disappears under cover of smoke.
Stealth Hi/Bye: Someone is able to appear in front of someone and then go away without the other person seeing them move.
Super Window Jump: Escape by leaping through a closed glass window.
There Was a Door: Someone breaks through a wall even though they could've just used the door.
Villain: Exit, Stage Left: The villain gets away after their scheme is thwarted.

Walking Out on the Show: Patrons walk out of a show in progress to express how bad it is.
Was Just Leaving: A character in the middle of an intense or threatening conversation announces they were "just leaving" when a third character interrupts; the character then leaves.
Win to Exit: The only way to escape the game/battle is by winning it.