open/close all folders
Anime & Manga
"What a sorry excuse I've become... me, Piccolo, laying down his life to protect some whiny little pipsqueak..."
"A man who inflicts suffering can not rest. His guilty mind won't allow it. But today I can finally close my eyes to the living nightmare and lay down, knowing that I won't wake again."
"Thank you. And sorry. I wanted to apologize to you for so long. It hurt inside. I was scared. Always. Because I had no idea. I had no clue about anything. But now I'm finally free. I can see you clearly now. So please don't cry. You no longer need to cry. I'll protect you. My true feelings will protect you."
— The ghost of Flay Allster to Kira Yamato, Mobile Suit Gundam SEED
"Was everything I did in my life a mistake? Would I be wrong now to ask for your forgiveness? I did not want to die this way!"
— Nicholas D. Wolfwood before a church altar, Trigun
"Aporia... Antinomy... Paradox... I'll be there with you soon, at long last... "
—Z-One moments before his Heroic Sacrifice, Yu-Gi-Oh! 5Ds episode 151, "Wishes Gathered"
Comic Books
Rodimus: I don't want to die.
Ultra Magnus: Of course not. Of course you don't.
Rodimus: No, I mean— Self-sacrifice, Magnus— it's cheap. It's a cheap way out. I need to live so I can make amends and- AAAARRRGH!
Ultra Magnus: Of course not. Of course you don't.
Rodimus: No, I mean— Self-sacrifice, Magnus— it's cheap. It's a cheap way out. I need to live so I can make amends and- AAAARRRGH!
Film — Animated
"Redemption? Sure. But in the end, he's just another dead rat in a garbage pail behind a Chinese restaurant."
— Mr.Fox, Fantastic Mr. Fox
Film — Live-Action
"I've... seen things, you people wouldn't believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I've watched c-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser Gate. All those moments will be lost in time... like tears in rain. Time... to die."
"I will not die a monster!"
— Doctor Octopus, Spider-Man 2
Darth Vader/Anakin: Now... go, my son. Leave me...
Luke: No... you're coming with me. I'll not leave you here, I've got to save you.
Anakin: You already... have, Luke. You were right. You were right about me. Tell your sister... you were right.
Luke: No... you're coming with me. I'll not leave you here, I've got to save you.
Anakin: You already... have, Luke. You were right. You were right about me. Tell your sister... you were right.
Literature
"Stand by. Stand by."
Mortarion: Why do this? Why waste yourselves?
Torghun Khan: Why, my lord? Atonement. At last.
Torghun Khan: Why, my lord? Atonement. At last.
Live-Action TV
Buffy: When your blood pours out, it might save the world. What do you think about that? Does that buy it all back? Are you "redeemed"?
Andrew:...No.
Buffy: Why not?
Andrew: (crying) Because I killed him.
Andrew:...No.
Buffy: Why not?
Andrew: (crying) Because I killed him.
"If I help you, I will die. But I will die free!"
— Gerak, "The Fourth Horseman, Part 2," Stargate SG-1
Video Games
"Much responsibility for what has happened lies with me. I helped the Grand Master in his quest for power. I am not really ready for death. But perhaps I am ready for redemption."
— Bruno Ostvald, Broken Sword 3: The Sleeping Dragon
"Please, I've done so much wrong. Allow me to do one last thing right."
— Loghain Mac Tir, before sacrificing himself to kill the Archdemon, Dragon Age: Origins
Kuja: I don't deserve to live after all that I've done. I'm useless to this world.
Zidane: No one's useless... You helped us escape, remember?
Kuja: ...After you guys beat me, I had nothing left...nothing more to lose. Then, I finally realized what it means to live...I guess I was too late.
Zidane: No one's useless... You helped us escape, remember?
Kuja: ...After you guys beat me, I had nothing left...nothing more to lose. Then, I finally realized what it means to live...I guess I was too late.
"My project, my work, my cure. My responsibility."
"This is what I get for trying to be a bloody hero."
— Piety, Path of Exile
"Please... young one... This war has gone on long enough. You have the power... Take my soul, and leave this cursed place."
— Asgore Dreemurr, Undertale
"They will judge me not in life, but in death!"
— Egil, Xenoblade Chronicles 1
Web Animation
Omega: Don't get me wrong, the sole reason I didn't kill you on sight is because you aided us with those corpses, but be assured, if you stay here any longer you WILL die.
Daemon: Yeah, yeah, we already know that.
Wraith: Told you he was going to be pissed. Heh.
Specter: We would rather die tonight than double-cross you again sir.
Xero: That's the spirit, motherfuckers!
Daemon: Yeah, yeah, we already know that.
Wraith: Told you he was going to be pissed. Heh.
Specter: We would rather die tonight than double-cross you again sir.
Xero: That's the spirit, motherfuckers!
Web Original
"His name was Wodan Ymir, he was a good man. He fought for the wrong side, but in the end he died doing the right thing."
Web Video
"Beyus! You're a coward and a traitor to your people. So the only way we can redeem you is with a big heroic death scene."
— The 7th Doctor, Doctor Who The Abridged Series
Axel: I am a good guy now.
Sora: Okay, I believe you!
Axel: Behold my special attack! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA- (Mega destructive fire blast of death and chaos) And now I’m dead.
Sora: Okay, I believe you!
Axel: Behold my special attack! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA- (Mega destructive fire blast of death and chaos) And now I’m dead.
—Kingdom Hearts 2 in a nutshell, though he comes back as Lea
Villain: Look, I know I've been terrible this whole time.
Hero #1: You've killed many human beings.
Villain: But I think we can all agree that I am the lesser evil here.
Hero #1: Debatable, honestly.
Villain: I'm going to sacrifice myself. (explodes)
Hero #2: No way, that guy sacrificed himself for the greater good! He must've been good this whole time!
Hero #1: He literally killed everyone I ever loved.
Hero #2: Doesn't matter now, because he did one good thing right before he died, which nullifies all of his previous war crimes, and, uh, atrocities.
Hero #1: You've killed many human beings.
Villain: But I think we can all agree that I am the lesser evil here.
Hero #1: Debatable, honestly.
Villain: I'm going to sacrifice myself. (explodes)
Hero #2: No way, that guy sacrificed himself for the greater good! He must've been good this whole time!
Hero #1: He literally killed everyone I ever loved.
Hero #2: Doesn't matter now, because he did one good thing right before he died, which nullifies all of his previous war crimes, and, uh, atrocities.
Webcomics
"You picked the wrong time to grow a spine, Chuck... and for that, you will pay dearly..."
— Trudy, General Protection Fault
"The problem with a 'redemption' gig is, well, no one wants to see it. They all want to believe in it, sure, but to do it... it's as good as signing your own death warrant. Audiences don't want to see you redeemed, living a normal life. They'll never truly forgive you for your flaws as long as you're alive. You could spend years making amends, and it still wouldn't get half as much attention as a five-minute death scene."
"I've taken too many lives to be afraid of laying down my own."
Western Animation
"Tell him that Matthew Marcus knew how to die!"
"Soundwave was truly an evil Decepticon...but Soundwave turned out to be more than that. He became a friend to me, and he was a hero to us all."
— Hot Rod, Transformers: Cyberverse
Real Life
"When the cold heart of a villain softens and he turns into a good guy, the plot will quickly require him to be killed, usually after maudlin final words."
— Roger Ebert, Deadly Change-of-Heart, Ebert's Glossary of Movie Terms
It is repentance that kills off the bad people in plays. They always repent, and the moment they repent they die. Repentance on the stage seems to be one of the most dangerous things a man can be taken with. Our advice to stage wicked people would undoubtedly be, "Never repent. If you value your life, don't repent. It always means sudden death!"
— Jerome K. Jerome, Stage Land
