History Main / MacGuffinMelee

** Happens twice in ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy'', first with Peter retrieving an orb which contains an infinity stone on Morag, only to be cornered by Korath and Ronan's other lackeys. He escapes them, but shortly after gets attacked by Gamora, Rocket, and Groot on Xandar. (Although, to be fair, at that point Rocket and Groot are after Peter's bounty, not the actual orb.)

* In ''Film/ChildrensPartyAtThePalace'', when Burglar Bill appears on stage with the [[UsefulNotes/HMTheQueen Queen]]'s [[MacGuffin handbag]] hidden in his SWAG bag after the magic spell is initiated by Mr. Plod and the audience, many of the other storybook characters chase him down. He ends up in a KneelPushTrip situation where the protagonists push him over and dogpile him, ending in his defeat and the handbag to be retrieved by the Goodies.

* Just like in Canon, ''Fanfic/TotalDramaDoOver'' features this in the finale of the first season. The chase ends in a much larger crash and a largely similar outcome to the canon season. Of course, with 45 students, this trope is exaggerated with moose, helicopters, green jelly, and an atv.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheAdventuresOfTintin'' has this with not just one, but three scrolls (which together form a clue to the location of the sunken treasure of the ''Unicorn'') in a chase through the street, on and rooftops and walls, of a North African city.

A SubTrope of ChaseFight, with a bit of CatAndMouseBoss thrown in, with the twist that [[InvertedTrope rather than getting a power up that makes the boss run from you, you claim an object that means now you have to run from him.]] Will likely either be the result of, or caused by a MeleeATrois. Also see CrowdHockey, particularly for when the melee takes place in crowded areas, As well as LootDrama. Compare StolenMacGuffinReveal, where the MacGuffin is only stolen once (twice, tops). Overlaps with AppleOfDiscord, particularly if the MacGuffin is deliberately set as bait to start a fight. A SlipperyMacGuffin lends itself especially well to this trope.

* In the ''[[WesternAnimation/ThePinkPanther Pink Panther]]'' short "Extinct Pink", the Panther, a caveman, a TyrannosaurusRex and a small dinosaur go after the same bone.

[[folder:Theatre]]
* In ''Film/ChildrensPartyAtThePalace'', when Burglar Bill appears on stage with the [[UsefulNotes/HMTheQueen Queen]]'s [[MacGuffin handbag]] hidden in his SWAG bag after the magic spell is initiated by Mr. Plod and the audience, many of the other storybook characters chase him down. He ends up in a KneelPushTrip situation where the protagonists push him over and dogpile him, ending in his defeat and the handbag to be retrieved by the Goodies.
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[[caption-width-right:350:The MacGuffin of [[AGodAmI Infinite Power]] is on the floor, a pair of feet away. Who will take it first?[[note]]None of them. Starfox will stop Nebula, Thor will stop Thanos, and Drax will stop Hulk (forgetting that they are on the same side). The race continues in slow motion as they try to reach the Gauntlet; and then Adam Warlock will appear and retrieve it.[[/note]]]]

* ''Film/BuddhasPalm'' has a scuffle between the hero Long Hian-fei and the hermit Du Gu, over an enchanted Golden Egg. Subverted when Long accidentally drops the egg, which then releases the ''chi'' of a spirit living in it... that gets swallowed by Long's pet kirin.

* A long, drawn-out version of this trope is the central conflict of ''Manga/GoldenKamuy'', with the added complications that there are twenty-four Macguffins, they're copiable pieces of a map, and the various factions each have ones that the others don't.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheSwanPrincess'' has one between Puffin, Speed and Jean-bob, against Rothbart's assistant over a map of the area, which ends with them playing baseball, football, and hockey with it.
* ''WesternAnimation/KungFuPanda''. The final fight between Po and Tai Lung over the Dragon Scroll. This is one of the reasons why Tai Lung loses the fight, as he's concentrating on trying to grab the scroll instead of turning his full strength on his opponent. [[spoiler:Po knows the scroll is worthless, except to deliver AnAesop.]]
* ''WesternAnimation/TheAdventuresOfTintin'' has this with not just one, but three scrolls (which together form a clue to the location of the sunken treasure of the ''Unicorn'') in a chase through the street, on and rooftops and walls, of a North African city.

* ''Film/RushHour2'''s Red Dragon Casino fight, involving a bomb detonator.
* ''Film/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtlesIITheSecretOfTheOoze'' has a battle in the TGRI labs over a canister of mutagen.

* ''Film/TheGreatMuppetCaper'' climaxes with one of these. The MacGuffin in question is the fabulous Baseball Diamond, which the Muppets end up actually playing baseball with.
* Some Hong Kong movies combines this with MeleeATrois.
** ''Film/MillionairesExpress'' ends with a 25-minute battle between the heroes, bandits and a trio of samurai for a priceless Qin Dynasty scroll.
** ''Film/ThreeAgainstTheWorld'' has the protagonist Charlie and his girlfriend, the triads, and master thief Ma fighting each other over a priceless Quran.
* Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse:
** Happens twice in ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy'', first with Peter retrieving an orb which contains an infinity stone on Morag, only to be cornered by Korath and Ronan's other lackeys. He escapes them, but shortly after gets attacked by Gamora, Rocket, and Groot on Xandar. (Although, to be fair, at that point Rocket and Groot are after Peter's bounty, not the actual orb.)
** There's one in the climax of ''Film/AvengersEndgame'' involving [[spoiler:Tony's full Infinity Gauntlet. It trades sides several times until Tony manages to secretly remove the Stones with his nano tech.]]

* ''VideoGame/Persona3 FES'': The Answer has one point where [[spoiler: all of the main party members are fighting each other]] over their individual pieces of the [[DismantledMacguffin Key of Time]].

* ''WesternAnimation/TheSpectacularSpiderMan'' did this when Spidey, Hammerhead, Silver Sable, and eventually the Rhino, all throwdown over a disk with technology that will allow the wielder to create their own Rhino-like henchman. Spider-Man and Rhino team up since they don't want that (Spidey does not want more Rhino's, and Rhino likes being the only game in town), allowing them to break the stalemate.

* Likewise, ''WesternAnimation/TomAndJerry'' sometimes had episodes where Tom had to compete against another cat in order to eat Jerry, and in one case, for a female cat.
* ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'' had a special where Prehistoric Spongebob, Prehistoric Patrick and Prehistoric Squidward have a battle for a flaming log.

* ''WesternAnimation/KimPossible'' has a four way battle between Kim, Shego, Monkey Fist and Duff Killigan for possession of Ron's naked mole rat Rufus.
* ''Toys/{{BIONICLE}}'': The end of the 2006 and the entire 2007 storyline was this involving the mask of life.
* ''WesternAnimation/XiaolinShowdown'' was arguable one big Macguffin Melee. Heroes and Villains knocked each other all over the place over the [[{{Macguffin}} Shen gong wu]], until two of them grabbed it at once and were forced into a [[TitleDrop Xiaolin Showdown]] to determine the winner.
* ''WesternAnimation/JackieChanAdventures'' also did this. The Talismans of Shendu, the demon portals, the Noble Animals that contained the Talisman powers after the Talismans were shattered, the Shadowkhan masks, and then finally the chi powers of the other Demon Sorcerers (not to mention the various episodic Macguffins not connected to the story arcs). They were always hunting for something, and when both heroes and villains converged on said Macguffin at the same time, one of these usually ensued.
* ''WesternAnimation/TotalDrama'' invoked this in the finale of the first season by releasing a case of one million dollars into Camp Wawanakwa with anyone of the 22 competitors in their various groups able to get it. Of course, it gets eaten by a shark.
* The ''WesternAnimation/TheAvengersEarthsMightiestHeroes'' episode "Hail Hydra" had this between the Avengers, [[ThoseWackyNazis Hydra,]] and [[ForScience Advanced Idea Mechanics a.k.a. AIM]] for the [[RealityWarper Cosmic Cube]].

* The ''ComicBook/ArchieComicsSonicTheHedgehog'' story arc "Treasure Team Tango" is basically this. Especially the last part.

* In ''Film/ChildrensPartyAtThePalace'', when Burglar Bill appears on stage with the [[UsefulNotes/HMTheQueen Queen]]'s {{MacGuffin handbag}} hidden in his SWAG bag after the magic spell is initiated by Mr. Plod and the audience, many of the other storybook characters chase him down. He ends up in a KneelPushTrip situation where the protagonists push him over and dogpile him, ending in his defeat and the handbag to be retrieved by the Goodies.

* Several factions want the eponymous Black Cauldron in the second book of the Literature/ChroniclesOfPrydain, including the heroes, the villain, and TheStarscream. Considering that the power of the cauldron enables the creation of an undead and fanatically loyal army, it's pretty clear why the bad guys want it, and why the good guys want to destroy it. [[spoiler:Unfortunately, to destroy it requires a live sacrifice.]]

[[quoteright:350:[[ComicBook/TheInfinityGauntlet https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Infinity_Gauntlet_1_8999.jpg]]]]

* The lounge scene in ''Film/IndianaJonesAndTheTempleOfDoom'', where Jones, Willie Scott, and Lao Che's goons fight over a diamond [[spoiler:and the antidote to the poison Jones drank]].

* The ''ComicBook/ArchieComicsSonicTheHedgehog'' story arc Treasure Team Tango is basically this. Especially the last part.

* ''WesternAnimation/JackieChanAdventures'' also did this. The Talismans of Shen Du, the demon portals, The Animals that contained the Talisman powers, the Shadow Kahn masks, and then finally the powers of the other Demons. They were always hunting for something, and when both heroes and villains converged on said Macguffin at the same time, one of these usually ensued.

Often the reason the character opt to run instead of fight is due to a time crunch. They can't afford to take the time to fight, or no-one is strong enough to beat the other without getting badly injured. Perhaps they are evenly matched as fighters, but the object may allow to make the difference. Or maybe there a [[MeleeATrois just so many people involved in the chase, it's impossible to keep track of all the players.]] Expect the aforementioned MacGuffin to trade owners numerous times. Sometimes one person finally comes out on top, and claims the prize, but - often due to all the fighting - it is destroyed either due to someone dropping it by accident, or one person deciding [[WeWinBecauseYouDidnot that destroying it is better than letting the enemy claim it.]]

* The climax of ''Literature/TheWindInTheWillows'' segment of ''Disney/TheAdventuresOfIchabodAndMrToad'', in which the characters fight over possession of the deed to Toad Hall.

[[caption-width-right:350:The {{Macguffin}} of [[AGodAmI Infinite Power]] is on the floor, a pair of feet away. Who will take it first?[[note]]None of them. Starfox will stop Nebula, Thor will stop Thanos, and Drax will stop Hulk (forgetting that they are on the same side). The race continues in slow motion as they try to reach the Gaunlet; and then Adam Warlock will appear and retrieve it.[[/note]]]]

There is an important MacGuffin that two or more characters want. One character manages to get their hands on it, and now they need to escape. [[SternChase Unfortunately, now everybody is after their ass,]] [[ImplacableMan and they won't stop until they get it.]] In fact, they probably will get it, in which case, the hunter now becomes the hunted, as this character must flee, before the others snatch the {{Macguffin}} back from them.

Often the reason the character opt to run instead of fight is due to a time crunch. They can't afford to take the time to fight, or no-one is strong enough to beat the other without getting badly injured. Perhaps they are evenly matched as fighters, but the object may allow to make the difference. Or maybe there a [[MeleeATrois just so many people involved in the chase, it's impossible to keep track of all the players.]] Expect the aforementioned Macguffin to trade owners numerous times. Sometimes one person finally comes out on top, and claims the prize, but often due to all the fighting, it is destroyed either due to someone dropping it by accident, or one person deciding [[WeWinBecauseYouDidnot that destroying it is better than letting the enemy claim it.]]

In some older cartoons, it would often have one character running off with the Macguffin, only to have another character coming from the opposite direction run by, and snatch it out of his or her hands, only to have someone else do the same to them. That is when they don't just stick out their foot and trip the other character. This is usually done in the more humorous stories.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheAdventuresOfTintin'' has this with not just one, but three scrolls that together form the a clue to the location of the sunken treasure of the ''Unicorn'' in a chase through the street, and rooftops and walls, of a North African city.

* ''Film/RushHour2'''s Red Dragon Casino fight, involving a bomb detontator.

* ''Series/{{Angel}}'' Season 3: Several different factions want to get their hands on Angel's baby son.
* ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'' episode "Who Mourns for Mourn?" Everyone fighting over Morn's latinum.

* ''TabletopGame/{{Paranoia}}'': This is the basis for the first three sections of the adventure The Yellow Clearance Black Box Blues. Almost every secret society and service group in Alpha Complex wants the title Black Box, but most of them don't even know what's in it. It changes hands repeatedly between the various groups during the missions.

* Numerous ''WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes'' episodes, especially ones where Sylvester and another cat compete over who gets to eat tweety. [[FailureIsTheOnlyOption The winner is always Tweety.]]

[[folder: Anime and Manga ]]

[[folder: Comic Books ]]

[[folder: Fan Works ]]

* Just like in Canon, ''TotalDramaDoOver'' features this in the finale of the first season. The chase ends in a much larger crash and a largely similar outcome to the canon season. Of course, with 45 students, this trope is exaggerated with moose, helicopters, green jelly, and an atv.

[[folder: Films -- Animated ]]

[[folder: Films -- Live-Action ]]

* Happens twice in ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy'', first with Peter retrieving an orb which contains an infinity stone on Morag, only to be cornered by Korath and Ronan's other lackeys. He escapes them, but shortly after gets attacked by Gamora, Rocket, and Groot on Xandar. (Although, to be fair, at that point Rocket and Groot are after Peter's bounty, not the actual orb.)

[[folder: Literature ]]

[[folder: Live Action TV ]]

[[folder: Professional Wrestling ]]

[[folder: Tabletop RPG ]]

[[folder: Video Games ]]

* ''VideoGame/{{Persona 3}} FES'': The Answer has one point where [[spoiler: all of the main party members are fighting each other]] over their individual pieces of the [[DismantledMacguffin Key of Time]].

[[folder: Western Animation ]]

** In "The Golden Goose Part One" it's a fight between the thieving Dijon and the Beagle Boys.
** In "The Golden Goose Part Two" it's a scramble at an abandoned automobile factory between Scrooge, Glomgold, Launchpad, the Beagle Boys, Dijon and his monk brother Poupon.

* The ''WesternAnimation/TheAvengersEarthsMightiestHeroes'' episode "Hail Hydra" had this between the Avengers, [[ThoseWackyNazis Hydra,]] and [[ForScience Advanced Idea Mechanics aka AIM]] for the [[RealityWarper Cosmic Cube]].

[[folder: Tabletop Rpg ]]

* In ''Literature/TheAffix'', about a ''dozen'' antagonists go after the jewel, frequently obstructing one another and even killing to thin the herd. This is partly the result of the causality-warping gem drawing them together. The [[Literature/TheWellOfMoments sequel]] is also titled for its MacGuffin.

* In ''Literature/TheAffix'', about a ''dozen'' antagonists go after the jewel, frequently obstructing one another and even killing to thin the herd. This is partly the result of the causality-warping gem drawing them together.