Heroic BSOD/Playing With

Basic Trope: The hero experiences something so mind-boggling that he is temporarily put out of action.

• Straight:
  • Bob discovers that Alice has been killed by Lord Bloodstone and is absolutely shocked to his core.
  • Alternatively, it's Bob who (inadvertently) killed Alice while they fight Lord Bloodstone.
• Exaggerated:
  • Bob discovers that Alice has been killed by Lord Bloodstone. He stands stock still in the middle of the room, mouth open.
  • Bob discovers that Alice just got a minor scratch on her arm. He goes into a coma for eight weeks.
• Justified:
  • Alice has been Bob's trusted friend and confidant for years and a possible love interest.
  • Alice and Bob promised each others that they will get out of this situation alive and get married and live a happy life without bloodshed... and now Bob just killed her...
• Inverted:
  • Bob brings Alice back to life and Lord Bloodstone suffers a Villainous Breakdown.
  • Bob discovers Alice has been killed and goes into overdrive.
• Subverted:
  • Bob is using his BSOD moment to lull Lord Bloodstone into a false sense of security and lowering his guard.
  • Bob enters Heroic Safe Mode
• Double Subverted: Except Lord Bloodstone doesn't fall for it and defeats Bob even worse this time, triggering a real Heroic BSOD.
• Parodied: Bob becomes a Large Ham in this instance, falling to his knees, cursing the gods and letting out a Big No, because he left the oven on.
• Deconstructed: Alice's death shows Bob how powerful Lord Bloodstone is and how he can never hope to defeat him. Bob has lost the will to fight. Alice's death has caused him to view himself as a failure, dragging him into a deep depression ending in Bob's suicide.
• Reconstructed: Bob has gone through Hell and back fighting Lord Bloodstone, every fight taking its toll on him. This was the final straw and everyone's aware of it.
• Zig Zagged: The constant battles with Lord Bloodstone has turned Bob into a Stepford Smiler. No-one knows how Alice's death has affected him.
• Averted: Bob uses Alice's death to fuel his battle fury as he charges towards Lord Bloodstone in order to avenge Alice.
• Enforced: "We need some drama here. Let's have the hero's oldest friend be killed, causing the hero to break down out of grief."
• Lampshaded: "So who's got Bob's backup disc?"
• Invoked: Lord Bloodstone's plans involved killed Alice, knowing this would mentally and emotionally cripple Bob and leave him vulnerable.
• Defied:
  • Bob's BSOD moment is brief, as Alice faked her death and comes back in time to tell Bob to get a hold of himself, bringing Bob back to reality.
  • Conversely, the BSOD moment triggers a Battle in the Center of the Mind as Bob wrestles with his feelings of worthlessness. Bob comes out of it a changed man and is ready to restart the battle with renewed vigor.
• Discussed: "Oh, no...they killed the girlfriend. He's gonna lose it for sure."
• Conversed: "Why is it that just one thing always causes the hero to break down. Don't they expect this sort of thing to happen?

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Snap out of it, Troper! We gotta get back to the Heroic BSOD page!