History Main / GangInitiationFight

* ''VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas'': In order to become a member of the Great Khans gang, you have to survive getting beaten to within an inch of your life. If you ask them to stop at any point, you fail. You are allowed to try as many times as it takes though. One NPC laments that he thinks he's just not fit to make it, as he has tried numerous times already.

* In an episode of ''Series/ArrestedDevelopment'', Tobias gets permission to go undercover as a prisoner in order to get background for an acting role, and so he get the full experience, the film loving warden (played by James Lipton) "thoughtfully" puts Tobias in a cell with a violent inmate known as White Power Bill who is sort of "in charge" of the place. Things don't seem to be going well for the effiminate and wimply Tobias until he accidentally does a BreakingSpeech on White Power Bill and drives him to suicide. After that, Tobias becomes the head of a prison gang calling themselves [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friends_Of_Dorothy Friends of Dorothy]].

* ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40K'': Among the grueling trials passed by those chosen to become SpaceMarines (combine every urban legend on Special Forces training, square them, add invasive and semi-safe surgical procedures and make the applicant less than fifteen), several Chapters include fighting against actual SpaceMarines. The object of course not being to defeat them but see how long they last. If a candidate actually suceeded in killing a centuries-old seven-foot-tall {{Power Armor}}ed killing machine, he'd likely be executed for being aided by Chaos.

In real life this is called "beating in", and it tends to involve either the entire gang or at least multiple members all attacking the newcomer together and [[NoHoldsBarredBeatdown beating the snot out of the new guy]]. Obviously the new guy doesn't have to win to get a spot in the gang, (although they will be given extra respect if they can do some damage before being overwhelmed) the idea is just forcing them to show that they want in bad enough to take a massive beatdown to do it.

In fiction there are several common variants to this. The first is that whoever is trying to get into a gang has to fight one on one with one of the biggest, most badass, and/or scariest members currently in the gang, as a sort of ThresholdGuardian. (This variant ''should'' lead to some major FridgeLogic, since the gang usually has plenty of members that are less impressive than the ThresholdGuardian in question and it makes you wonder why they're suddenly so picky about new members.) Generally the newcomer is expected to win in order to earn a spot, but other times it's revealed, (generally after the fight) that the bout was just an excuse to see how they would do, or if they would simply ''survive''. Very similar to this is a prison specific version that involves fighting the meanest, toughest looking guy around in order to earn respect, and (either explicitly or implicitly) to avoid being a target for PrisonRape.

* In ''Webcomic/TheOrderOfTheStick'', Belkar is told that he has to defeat a low ranking member of the barbarians' guild in order to join. He kills all three of the members presented to him because, well, [[HeroicComedicSociopath he's Belkar]].

* In ''VideoGame/KnightsOfTheOldRepublic 2'', you/the Jedi Exile have to beat a number of Mandalorians in their practice arena to earn their respect.

In fiction there are several common variants to this. The first is that whoever is trying to get into a gang has to fight one on one with one of the biggest, most badass, and/or scariest members currently in the gang, as a sort of ThresholdGuardian. (This variant ''should'' lead to some major FridgeLogic, since the gang usually has plenty of members that are less impressive that the ThresholdGuardian in question and it makes you wonder why they're suddenly so picky about new members.) Generally the newcomer is expected to win in order to earn a spot, but other times it's revealed, (generally after the fight) that the bout was just an excuse to see how they would do, or if they would simply ''survive''. Very similar to this is a prison specific version that involves fighting the meanest, toughest looking guy around in order to earn respect, and (either explicitly or implicitly) to avoid being a target for PrisonRape.

* An inversion takes place with the Great Khans in ''VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas''. In order to become a member of their gang, you have to survive getting beaten to within an inch of your life. If you ask them to stop at any point, you fail. You are allowed to try as many times as it takes though. One NPC laments that he thinks he's just not fit to make it, as he has tried numerous times already.

* ''WesternAnimation/Ben10AlienForce'': In ''Voided'', Ben has to fight a member of LaResistance to meet their leader, without using the Omnitrix. [[spoiler: He loses the fight, but it's revealed that it was a test. If he had defeated his opponent, a very skilled fighter, they'd have suspected him to be an enemy agent. Then Ben reveals he saw through the test, and was holding back]].

* In the western ''WesternAnimation/StreetFighter'' cartoon, Ryu and Ken go undercover in infiltrate the Mad Gear gang from ''VideoGame/FinalFight''. They're told they can only get in if they can beat Sodom, who was the katana wielding boss from the second stage of Final Fight. Naturally, they're up to the challenge, but it makes you wonder how all the street punks that you can practically [[OneHitPointWonder one shot]] in ''Final Fight'' made it into the gang.

* An inversion takes place with the Great Khans in ''VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas''. In order to become a member of their gang, you have to survive getting beaten to within an inch of your life. If you ask them to stop at any point, you fail. You are allowed to try as many times as it takes through. One NPC laments that he thinks he's just not fit to make it, as he has tried numerous times already.
* Done in the game ''Sleeping Dogs'', where Wei Shen must fight some of the strongest in the Sun On Yee in order to prove himself worthy of joining them.

* In ''Literature/ConsiderPhlebas'', Horza, one of the protagonists, is picked up by SpacePirates, and is told that there have limited beds and food, and so if he wants a spot on board, he'll have to fight to the death. He's put against a young and cocky crewmember, and while Horza is a skilled mercenary, at this point, he's shapeshifted into an elderly body. He defeats but does not kill his opponent, but the captain kills the opponent- basically, he wanted an excuse to get rid of the guy, and since Horza was the better fighter, he found one.

* Played with in ''Film/FightClub'', where to join the club, new members are expected to fight on their first day. However, subverte in that it really doesn't seem to matter whether they win. It's all about the fight.

The second variant is the real life version outlined above, and it may be used to underscore a theme about the violence and cruelty inherent in gang life. This generally tends to be confined to either realistic shows or those planted firmly on the cynical side of the sliding scale, because there's somewhat less of a market for watching a hero being being stomped by a dozen guys, or showing why a main or sympathetic character would want to join such a group so badly.

* In a late episode of ''Series/{{Soap}}'' Jodie and Maggie track his Baby Mama and daughter to a kung fu castle somewhere in California. He watches two men fight, one of whom is a giant guy (the same actor who fights Indiana Jones in ''Raiders'' before he gets killed by the plane propeller). After the big guy wins his fight, it's Jodie's turn with him. It isn't explicitly stated that he has to beat him to get in, but it's strongly implied. Jodie manages to beat the big guy with a [[StarTrekTheOriginalSeries Vulcan nerve pinch]].

* In ''[[DefJamSeries Def Jam: Fight For New York]]'', D-Mob's men want to see how you do against MightyGlacier House, (who is probably the biggest guy in their gang) before they let you in. However, it's mostly there just as an excuse to give you a tutorial.

In fiction there are several common variants to this. The first is that whoever is trying to get into a gang has to fight one on one with one of the biggest, most badass, and/or scariest members currently in the gang, as a sort of ThresholdGuardian. Sometimes the newcomer is expected to ''win'' but more realistic cases are to see how they would do, or if they would simply ''survive''. Very similar to this is a prison specific version that involves fighting the meanest, toughest looking guy around in order to earn respect, and (either explicitly or implicitly) to avoid being a target for PrisonRape.

* In one episode of ''Series/BurnNotice'', Michael and co. capture a member of TheMafiya, and in order to get information out of him, Michael pretends to be a fellow captive. Michael picks a fight with the captive, accusing the other guy of being a snitch, and then proceeds to use a fighting style that someone with a background in TheMafiya would know in order to sell his cover identity. Michael also states that he has to fight very carefully in this case, well enough to win, but not quite so violently that it becomes a fight to the death. Michael wins, and the gangster takes something of a DefeatMeansFriendship attitude afterward, including ''completely'' buying the idea that Michael is a fellow member that he just happened to never meet instead of an outsider trying to get information.

Since criminal gangs tend to engage in, well, ''criminal'' activities, they don't tend to let just anyone in. So to make sure a newcomer is serious, won't fold under pressure, and can handle themselves, they have to be put into a fight in order to join the gang.

In fiction there are several common variants to this. The first is that whoever is trying to get into a gang has to win a one on one fight with one of the biggest, most badass, and/or scariest members currently in the gang, as a sort of ThresholdGuardian. (This variant ''should'' lead to some major FridgeLogic, since the gang usually has plenty of members that are less impressive that the ThresholdGuardian in question and it makes you wonder why they're getting so picky about new members now, and because a gang that only allows new people in that are tougher than its current members will be in constant turmoil and likely to have many... management changes due to AsskickingEqualsAuthority.) Sometimes the unrealistic nature of this variant may be tempered with a revelation that the newcomer wasn't actually expected to win, the intent was to see how they would do, or even if they would simply survive. Very similar to this is a prison specific version that involves fighting the meanest, toughest looking guy around in order to earn respect, and (either explicitly or implicitly) to avoid being a target for PrisonRape.

The second variant is the real life version outlined above, and it may be used to underscore a theme about the violence and cruelty inherent in gang life. This generally tends to be confined to either realistic shows or those planted firmly on the cynical side of the sliding scale, because there's somewhat less of a market for watching a hero being completely helpless while being stomped by a dozen guys, or showing why a main or sympathetic character would want to join such a group so badly.

* In ''Disney/AladdinAndTheKingOfThieves'', the Forty Thieves have an initiation session called "the challenge." Essentially, if you discover the thieves' secrets, the only way you can escape being killed to ensure silence is to fight and kill one of their toughest members, and if you win, you become a member of the gang. In Aladdin's case, he has to fight Sa'luk, the DragonWithAnAgenda (and later BigBad).

* In an episode of ''Series/ArrestedDevelopment'', Tobias gets permission to go undercover as a prisoner in order to get background for an acting role, and so he get the full experience, the film loving warden (played by James Lipton) "thoughtfully" puts Tobias in a cell with a violent inmate known as White Power Bill who is sort of "in charge" of the place. Things don't seem to be going well for the effiminate and wimply Tobias until he accidentally does a HannibalLecture on White Power Bill and drives him to suicide. After that, Tobias becomes the head of a prison gang calling themselves [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friends_Of_Dorothy Friends of Dorothy]].

In fiction there are several common variants to this. The first is that whoever is trying to get into a gang has to win a one on one fight with one of the biggest, most badass, and/or scariest members currently in the gang, as a sort of ThresholdGuardian. (This variant ''should'' lead to some major FridgeLogic, since the gang usually has plenty of members that are less impressive that the ThresholdGuardian in question until this particular case, and because a gang that only allows new people in that are tougher than its current members will be in constant turmoil and likely to have many... management changes due to AsskickingEqualsAuthority.) Sometimes the unrealistic nature of this variant may be tempered with a revelation that the newcomer wasn't actually expected to win, the intent was to see how they would do, or even if they would simply survive. Very similar to this is a prison specific version that involves fighting the meanest, toughest looking guy that in order to earn respect, and (either explicitly or implicitly) to avoid being a target for PrisonRape.

In fiction there are several common variants to this. The first is that whoever is trying to get into a gang has to win a one on one fight with one of the biggest, most badass, and/or scariest members currently in the gang, as a sort of ThresholdGuardian. (This variant ''should'' lead to some major FridgeLogic, since the gang usually has plenty of members that are less impressive that the ThresholdGuardian in question until this particular case, and because a gang that only allows new people in that are tougher than its current members will be in constant turmoil and likely to have many... management changes due to AsskickingEqualsAuthority.) Sometimes the unrealistic nature of this variant may be tempered with a revelation that the newcomer wasn't actually expected to win, the intent was to see how they would do, or even if they would simply survive.

The second variant is the realistic version outlined above, and it may be used to underscore a theme about the violence and cruelty inherent in gang life. A third, prison specific version tends to be similar to the first variant, and involves fighting the meanest, toughest member of a gang, (or just the baddest looking guy that one can find) in order to earn respect, and either explicitly or implicitly, to avoid being a target for PrisonRape.

* Admission to the Clan Military in ''TabletopGame/BattleTech'' includes this. Referred to "The Blooding", at the end of their training Clan Warrior Caste cadets have to fight a live-fire duel with three established Warriors. If they survive and defeat at least one of the warriors they are accepted into the Caste.

* In ''Webcomic/OrderOfTheStick'', Belkar is told that he has to defeat a low ranking member of the barbarians' guild in order to join. He kills all three of the members presented to him because, well, [[HeroicComedicSociopath he's Belkar]].