History Film / LethalWeapon3

* TakeThat: Riggs suck-starts the flow of gasoline from a fuel tanker. When he gets a mouthful of gas, he spits it out and goes "Ugh, Exxon!". The film was produced shortly after the ''Exxon Valdez'' disaster in Alaska.

** The Dog Biscuits for AngryGuardDog eventually become and addiction to Riggs.

* AngryGuardDog: Deconstructed. Riggs and Cole face a rottweiler guard dog in a warehouse, and Riggs proceeds to placate the dog with [[ChekhovsGun dog biscuits Murtaugh gave him to help quit smoking]]. They rescue him in the ensuing impromptu gun raid, and Riggs ''still'' keeps him as a pet in the fourth film.

** This confuses Riggs, and he [[DistractingDisambiguation brings this up]] when they go to examine an address they picked up from Billy Phelps' phone records, and are initially facing the AngryGuardDog. [[DontExplainTheJoke It's likely because they were]] [[FunWithHomophones using different meanings of "close"]]; Lorna was using a comparison alluding to something being shut down, while Riggs meant proximity to arresting Travis. It also counts as CasualDangerDialogue.

::This confuses Riggs, and he [[DistractingDisambiguation brings this up]] when they go to examine an address they picked up from Billy Phelps' phone records, and are initially facing the AngryGuardDog. [[DontExplainTheJoke It's likely because they were]] [[FunWithHomophones using different meanings of "close"]]; Lorna was using a comparison alluding to something being shut down, while Riggs meant proximity to arresting Travis. It also counts as CasualDangerDialogue.

* ClusterFBomb: Done exclusively in the Czech dub: When Riggs loses Jack Travis, he shouts "Fucking asshole!"

* ArtisticLicenseGunSafety: Murtaugh accidentally fires his pistol in the locker room while putting it in his holster, showing that he's either getting too old for this shit, or that he's not all with it [[spoiler:after shooting his son's friend]]. Riggs covers the mishap by smashing in some lockers, producing an apparently identical sound.

* HonestJohnsDealership: Averted by Leo Getz. When trying to sell Murtaugh's home in, he insists on following the law and disclosing such interesting and alarming tidbits as the upstairs bathroom being "recently remodeled due to unexpected bomb damage" (which happened in the [[Film/LethalWeapon2 previous film]]).

* DropTheHammer: Murtaugh kills a {{Mook}} with a thrown hammer to the chest during the final shootout.

->'''Riggs:''' [[TheStinger I think you better get your girdle out of mothballs, Rog.]]\\

'''Riggs:''' Well, if you find one that fits.\\

->'''Riggs:''' [[TheStinger I think you better get your girdle out of mothballs, Rog.\\

* BattleAmongstTheFlames: The climactic shootout.

* HeroicBSOD: Murtaugh [[DrowningMySorrows goes on a drinking binge]] after he is forced to kill a teenager (who was a friend of his son's). In a RoleReversal, Riggs has to play the sane man in the entire episode.

* OfCorsetsFunny: Riggs catches Murtaugh wearing a girdle under his body armor so that he can fit in his uniform when they get busted to patrol. Naturally, Riggs teases him about it.
-->'''Riggs''': Does Trish know?\\

** This confuses Riggs, and he [[DistractingDisambiguation brings this up]] when they go to examine an address they picked up from Billy Phelps' phone records, and are initially facing the AngryGuardDog. [[DontExplainTheJoke It's likely because they were]] [[FunWithHomophones using different meanings of "close"]]; Lorna was using a comparison alluding to something being shut down, while Riggs meant proximity to arresting Travis. It also counts as CasualDangerDialogue.

* TrashTheSet: The buildings imploded during the opening and the stinger were actual buildings (both in Florida) that were being demolished. The housing development destroyed in the climax was also an ill fated development north of Los Angeles whose company had gone out of business sometime before and the city was all too glad to use the film to get rid of the abandoned frames.

* WireDilemma: Occurs... and the bomb goes off.

->'''Riggs:''' [[TheStinger I think you better get your]] [[OfCorsetsFunny girdle]] [[TheStinger out of mothballs, Rog]].\\

'''Riggs:''' [[ShrunkInTheWash Well, if you find one that fits]].\\

* KarmaHoudini: Downplayed at the very beginning of the movie, but Riggs and Murtaugh have clearly suffered no career repercussions for going rogue to bring down the South Africans at the end of the last film. This can be probably justified due to the international incident Rudd's actions created for Pretoria (not to mention the LAPD was already out for blood after Pieter Vordstedt assassinated half a dozen officers).
* KarmaHoudini: The bomber from the opening is never caught so far as the audience is shown, doubly so if it's the same culprit who bombs the hotel after the credits.

* Karma Houdini: Downplayed at the very beginning of the movie, but Riggs and Murtaugh have clearly suffered no career repercussions for going rogue to bring down the South Africans at the end of the last film. This can be probably justified due to the international incident Rudd's actions created for Pretoria (not to mention the LAPD was already out for blood after Pieter Vordstedt assassinated half a dozen officers).

* AllForNothing: Played for laughs in TheStinger. Because of their role in the opening bombing, Riggs and Murtaugh spend the Jack Travis investigation clawing their way out of their demotion to patrolmen and regaining their Detective-Sergent ranks. Then the film ends with ''another'' building getting bombed and Riggs and Murtaugh are ''again'' present. Even though ironically they weren't responsible this time, both men still bemoan that they're gonna get blamed for this and that they'll end up demoted back to patrolmen again.

* AllForNothing: Played for laughs in TheStinger. Because of their role in the opening bombing, Riggs and Murtaugh spend much of this film clawing their way out of their demotion to patrolmen and regaining their Detective-Sergent ranks. Then the film ends with ''another'' building getting bombed and Riggs and Murtaugh are ''again'' present. Even though ironically they weren't responsible this time, both men still bemoan that they're gonna get blamed for this and that they'll end up demoted back to patrolmen again.

* AllForNothing: Played for laughs in TheStinger. Because of their role in the opening bombing, Riggs and Murtaugh spend much of this film crawling out of their demotion and regaining their Detective-Sergent ranks. Then the film ends with ''another'' building getting bombed and Riggs and Murtaugh are present. Even though ironically they weren't responsible this time, both men bemoan that they're gonna get blamed for this and that they'll end up demoted again.

* MistakenForGay: While he was coming down from his [[DrowningMySorrows drunken]] HeroicBSOD, Murtaugh briefly got confused when Riggs mentioned he did it with Sgt. Cole. As it turns out, Lorna has an uncle that works in the Traffic division, and is also a sergeant.

* DiedOnTheirBirthday: When Travis and his men raid the police station, Riggs enlists the help of a young cop to stop them. When Riggs asks for his age, the cop mentions that it's his birthday that day. During a shootout, the young cop is killed by one of Travis' armor-piercing bullets. Upon seeing the corpse, Riggs grimly says, "Happy Birthday."

* HelpingAbotherSaveFace: When Roger accidentally discharges his gun in the precinct locker room,Riggs immediately begins slamming lockers around to act as though he were the source of the noise.