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TV Babble - Just giving my weird view on my soaps!

 
Okay I admit it I've thrown socks at the screen and I've even yelled. Yes there's some mocking and renaming too and maybe sometimes I might be accidentally amusing.

Why won’t you just die?!

No, this isn’t a rant about someone I wish would leave this mortal coil. Rather, it deals with the phenomenon present in television shows and movies where it seems a character cannot be killed. It doesn’t matter how many bullets they have been riddled with; nor how many times they have been bludgeoned.

Often referred to as Hollywood Healing, this ensures that our intrepid hero can suffer incredible injuries but still beat the bad guy in the end. Often, gunshot and stab wounds are shrugged off with little more than a grimace, and the protagonist continues on in their quest. I somehow doubt that injuries of that nature would really be so inconsequential in real life, and I have no inclination to find out.


This trend features prominently in action films, with the prime example being John McClane from the Die Hard franchise. Notable examples from TV are Jack Bauer in 24 and Spike Spiegel in Cowboy Bebop.

However, one show takes not dying to the extreme – Alias. Like the above, the show does include the characters living through serious injuries – however, the recoveries tended to need medical treatment, and weren’t particularly miraculous.
Alias
The almost indestructible cast of Alias*


Where Alias stood out was that many characters simply did not stay dead. Despite seeming to have met a nasty fate, it would later be discovered that their demise was not real – otherwise known as Faking the Dead. It wasn’t as if the characters only appeared lifeless – funerals were held, as were state executions. We even witnessed Irina being shot in the head; later it was revealed that the woman was actually a double. For those unfamiliar with the show, the revolving door of death must seem to verge on the ridiculous. For fans however, it created a fantastic uncertainty, and always kept us guessing.


Do you know of any other characters that just would not die? Do you think that this trope can be used successfully, or is it disingenuous?

[Note - as Season 5 of Alias has yet to air in its entirety in Australia, please be mindful when discussing its plot points]

*Image courtesy of Wikipedia, and used under Fair Dealing for identification of subject matter in question
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Comments
19 Comments. [ Add A Comment ]
1. September 3rd 2007 @ 02:01. Nickoftime's Sanity Corner Says:
Nina,

I have to admit that I love the Die Hard movies, primarily because they are pure fantasy, and that Willis seems invincible...

But I know what you mean, if someone gets shot in the head, you'd assume they'd stay dead!

LOL

My personal film nemesis is Agent Smith from the Matrix...I just wish someone would kill that guy once and for all...

Great post!

Take care,

Nick
2. September 3rd 2007 @ 02:25. Nina Says:
Hi Nick, nice to see you. The thing I like about the Die Hard movies is that they take the not dying idea to the extreme. I also love Agent Smith - like a virus, it seems that there will always be some trace of him.

Nina
3. September 3rd 2007 @ 02:27. JohnDoe Says:
Hi Nina, fun post because its true..

This is a syndrome that has been around since film & TV began. The John Wayne films are a great example so are the TV westerns like Bonanza and Rawhide.

The A-Team has to be mentioned just for its OTT survival rate, though this was always part of the in joke.

Shows like 24 and Alias seem to really treat the audience like morons because they take themselves seriously, then have ridiculous survival for the hero. I find this more annoying than the fantastical Die Hard style where the tongue is in cheek from the start....

The whole resurrection thing is a lame duck, really enjoyed the Kiss Kiss bang bang explanation.

4. September 3rd 2007 @ 02:34. DuskDevi Says:
Hiya my pretty TV Babble-ina!

Main culprit...Bond, James Bond.

...and the Zoe (or Gia?) Carides character in 'Austen Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me'!...when Powers first meets Agent Shagwell in the club.

On TV...'Lost'...everyone!


It is cheating...that deus ex machina stroke ... Stephen king's book 'Misery'...the female character says it best. Can't remember what she says exactly.

Certainly 'Alias' is the master at this. I sad sack that I am, have cheated...it took so long to get here! I got impatient. And oh boy...won't give spoilers but seriously...

Hope you are well Ninabelle...it's good to see you hon.

big hug

Dusk
5. September 3rd 2007 @ 03:59. Mr Nice Guy Says:
Nina

Nice Post.

Special mention must go to JR (Larry Hagman) from Dallas (as in "Who Shot JR). While we all thought he was dead and buried - two seasons on - didn't we have the whole 'dream sequence thang' - delightfully informing viewers that the past two and a bit years didn't really happen and that it was all a horrible, horrible nightmare?

Cheers

MNG
6. September 3rd 2007 @ 05:21. Tracy Says:
Hi Nina

It's hilarious that Hollywood devised a name for people that come back from the dead. I was also thinking of Dallas like Mr Nice Guy said, that was ridiculous and memorable.

Then I thought of the soapies like The Bold and the Sweaty, how many times has Taylor died and come back and now she has fish lips and her cheeks are all sucked in....

Byee
7. September 3rd 2007 @ 06:34. KylieW Says:
Nina,

Like Tracy, when I think of characters who won't die, I automatically think of soap operas. Did you ever watch Days of Our Lives? I think Marlena has been killed about 7 times. I saw an episode where she was holding a photo frame that was actually a bomb. IT went off in her hand, but a couple years later she turned up on some island where she'd been brainwashed.

The other show that kind of springs to mind is MacGyver. Not that he got injured so often, but is didn't matter what life threatening situation he ended up with, good ol' Macgyver would get out of it using nothing more than a straw, a pen and battery!

I love love love the Die Hard movies. But at least they do approach the situation with a sense of humour. Everyone knows that John Maclane is bulletproof!

Hope you're doing well and school work isn't getting you down!!!

Kylie
8. September 3rd 2007 @ 10:21. Michaelie Says:
I LOVE Die Hard. Am very glad John Maclane's demise is such a difficult thing to achieve.

As for the others... I am in total agreement! Alias and soaps are the worst for it. I actively encourage the deaths of characters whenever I watch. I believe my little contribution of positive thought and encouragement might just help one day.

Michaelie
9. September 3rd 2007 @ 23:04. Nina Says:
JohnDoe, I too like it when shows and movies don't take themselves too seriously, particularly with a phenomenon as unrealistic as this.
Even though Alias doesn't generally take this approach, I don't mind it because it fulfils all the technology and abilities that people like to believe super-secret spy agencies have, however unrealistic they seem.

The whole resurrection thing is a lame duck, really enjoyed the Kiss Kiss bang bang explanation.

I haven't seen that - I'd love to know their explanation.
10. September 3rd 2007 @ 23:15. Nina Says:
Hiya Dusk,

Lost can't seem to make up its mind on this one - they off characters at every turn, yet others with similar injuries all but shrug it off. The mystery of the island, I guess...

You certainly know how I feel about deus ex machina usage It is a concept that can be used incredibly well or incredibly badly. I personally like it is when its usage is subverted or ironic.

It's great to 'see' you too, Dusk.

Nina
11. September 3rd 2007 @ 23:20. Nina Says:
Mr Nice Guy, I'm afraid I've never seen Dallas. However, I think the 'it was all a dream' device is even worse the things I've mentioned.
Then again, if it was the first show to run with such a concept, then I guess they should probably be given marks for originality...
12. September 3rd 2007 @ 23:26. Nina Says:
Tracy, soap operas would have to be the worst offenders - from what you've said, it sounds like it provides a break for the stars to get their plastic surgery done!
13. September 3rd 2007 @ 23:32. Nina Says:
Kylie,

That sounds utterly hilarious! Perhaps I should start watching some soapies...

John McClane is bulletproof... and crash proof... and explosion proof... and any other proof you can think of! I really don't like action movies that take themselves too seriously; the sense of humour in Die Hard makes it so enjoyable.

Take care,

Nina
14. September 3rd 2007 @ 23:38. Nina Says:
Michaelie, keep trying and believing, and perhaps you will be rewarded
I have to admit that there may have been a few occasions where I screamed at the TV for a character to die already. Lauren from Alias Season 3 comes to mind. As do Kate and Jack from Lost (but I doubt that will ever happen)...
15. September 4th 2007 @ 04:42. Aimzster Says:
Hi Nina, Yikes! I haven't seen Die Hard yet. Yes, I know, I'll watch it eventually - everyone keeps saying how good it is but I've never been fond of Bruce Willis.
I used to like Alias but this dying, living, dying thing is also driving me crazy.
16. September 4th 2007 @ 12:36. Mrs M Says:
Hi Nina,

Jack Bauer is the 21st century MacGyver. It's amazing what he can fashion out of a bit of paper and some string.

Love & stuff
Mrs M
17. September 4th 2007 @ 23:29. Nina Says:
Aimzster, I'm not a huge Bruce Willis fan either, but I do like his part in the Die Hard movies. As others have said, the Die Hard franchise doesn't take itself too seriously, which makes Willis' character more likeable than many other action heroes.
18. September 4th 2007 @ 23:35. Nina Says:
Mrs M, if only problems could be solved via such simple means...
19. March 20th 2009 @ 02:02. Anonymous Says:
Dallas was the first with the "all a dream" device - netting full points for originality and brickbats for the waste of two years. Followed much later by the ultimate send-up when Bob Newhart's Vermont show had him wake in the season finale in bed with Suzanne Pleshette from his first show showing the entire series to have been a dream. Classic!!

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