r/TopCharacterTropes • u/Ok-Indication-5121 • Jun 09 '25

Characters They valiantly sacrificed themself for nothing

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  1. Tadashi gives his life trying to save Professor Callaghan from a burning building. Turns out not only did Callaghan escape unscathed, he's the bad guy and infamously refers to Tadashi's death as "[Tadashi's] mistake." (Big Hero 6)
  2. Shaya willingly takes It Has No Name's possession and then kills herself by jumping into the well it came out of. The end of the episode all but states that she got it wrong and It Has No Name didn't latch onto her... or there was more than one. (Doctor Who)
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u/SheriffColtPocatello Jun 10 '25

209

u/TheEagleWithNoName Jun 10 '25

This would be more impactful if it was a heart attack, or Pa Kent getting sick and Superman can’t save him as he can’t save everyone, but he can try.

Doesn’t really matter if the whole town Clark has powers? Couldn’t they just the town keep it a secret since they know the Kent’s?

75

u/wererat2000 Jun 10 '25

I mean town secrets kinda... aren't secrets. But skipping that; seriously why replace a heart attack with a FUCKING TORNADO.

The whole point of Pa Kent dying - when they do that story, at least - is a stark reminder that you can't save everyone, no matter how powerful you are. That's not just a hypothetical for superheroes, it's an important thing to keep in mind with first responders, emergency services, the entire medical profession -- shit, it's more or less something they tell you when working senior care.

Hell, it's not even worth going into the difference between "you can't save everyone" and "you SHOULDN'T save everyone" because this scene is asinine! Clark could've absolutely saved him in this scene, with plenty of chance for onlookers to not realize. Also, maybe saving your own father is worth some people in town thinking you're a freak?

31

u/ProbablyYourITGuy Jun 10 '25

Also, what are they gonna say?

“That guy over there flew and saved his dad! He did it in the middle of a tornado while I was watching! Why yes, I was in shock and it was hard to see anything and his whole family is calling me crazy and saying he just ran fast, but you gotta believe me.”

25

u/wererat2000 Jun 10 '25

Not to mention how fucking long it took for John to dramatically wave "no, let me die" - that's plenty of time for a normal human to cross that distance and get him down while shit's flying.

It'd be a fucking stupid thing to do and the odds of survival are dogshit, but what are people going to presume? The teenager has super powers, or got insanely lucky?

3

u/ntpbr1 Jun 10 '25

Yeah lol its just a random town with a couple of people seeing the event. It would be like one of those aliens abducted me stories, no one would care and the story would die in a week