History Main / NeutralNoLonger

* ''ComicBook/StarWarsLegacy'': It takes nearly the ''entire series'' for Cade Skywalker to stop being a selfish {{Jerkass}}. After the Sith have endangered and killed just about everyone he gives a damn about, Cade declares war on them, though he still doesn't accept the Jedi calling yet. ''That'' doesn't happen until the FinalBattle.
** The Jedi themselves choose to sit the war out, thinking the Sith would turn on itself soon. But when the Sith get more despotic, they soon started to join with the Fel Empire and Alliance Remnant in the war.

** While as of the end of the first season the Empire hasn't turned everyone, or even most people against it (the first season takes place roughly 5 years before ''Film/ANewHope''), but more and more you can see in the background that anti-Imperial sentiment is becoming more widespread and open. The most obvious case is the planet of Ferrix, where Cassian spent most of his life. A CloseKnitCommunity that mostly specialized in working on ships, Ferrix had barely tolerated the Empire early in the season, and aside from doing work on starships, they mostly ignored the Empire, and were happy to deliberately sabotage attempts of the LawEnforcementInc company that the Empire contracted put in charge of of the sector. Then the Empire started directly overseeing the region, complete with a brutal crackdown that includes torture and execution of locals and the Empire inserting itself into every local custom and matter until at the end of Season 1 there is a massive riot against Imperial control.

* ''Series/{{Andor}}'': Having spent most of season 1 pingponging back and forth on his views of the Rebellion, Cassian is finally swayed by Nemik's manifesto, his own time on Narkina 5, and Maarva's speech, and offers his services to the Rebellion without any hesitation in the final episode.

* Alexis Doucet in ''LightNovel/RecordOfGrancrestWar'' was neutral because he didn't want to fight Marrine, his love, or Theo who was previously part of the Union that Alexis rules. Then Theo convinces him that the only way to save Marrine from herself is to get involved, at which point he proves to be very competent.

* ''Film/UnderFire'': Russell Price, a photojournalist, comes to Nicaragua during the civil war, and at first is [[GoingForTheBigScoop interested in chasing any story]] ("I don't take sides, I take pictures. However, when a [[PrivateMilitaryContractor mercenary]] Russell knows ends up shooting a rebel in cold blood, and [[ItsAllMyFault Russell blames himself]] because he knew the mercenary was FakingTheDead and didn't tell anybody, he decides to help the rebels in their revolution against the government.

* The smugglers of the ''Franchise/StarWars'' 'verse are typically neutral -- they'll take any job you happen to want, regardless of faction, and then take your competitors' tomorrow... until the Empire starts encroaching just a little on their line of work. First they take Talon Karrde prisoner to keep him from revealing (i.e. selling) the location of the Katana fleet. After he gets broken out of prison, Karrde promptly turns around and gives it to the New Republic. Then the Empire hires a mole to stop the smugglers from banding together, who promptly [[TooDumbToLive ordered a hit on a smuggler meeting]] that [[AndYourLittleDogToo killed the one unarmed guy in the room]] and approximately no one else. Turns out upsetting an entire underworld's worth of cutthroat low-lives is a ''bad idea''. His Imperial handlers had actually instructed him not to do anything like that, for this exact reason; he was just an idiot.
** Then the Yuuzhan Vong go and make exactly the same mistake by breaking a mercenary contract. With the [[ProudWarriorRace Mandalorians]]. Yeah, [[WhatCouldPossiblyGoWrong that'll work]].

--> Atour could not stand to see this happen again. He was old, he had lived a long and full life, and he decided now that whatever days he had left, he would dedicate to defeating an Empire capable of abominations.

** However, it should be noted Queen Mab of Winter was angry and does want her vengeance against the Red Court, for this infraction and another action taken in a previous time, she simply is waiting for a time that would best suit her. So she[[spoiler:, through a long gambit, got Harry Dresden to fight in her personal courtyard wielding Summer-enhanced fire, and destroy her wellspring. This action draws the ''entire'' Winter Army away from the boarders and]] allows Titania to move her forces for their vengeance. Mab would wait a few years until [[spoiler:Harry's child was taken and he needed her help in saving her, and so Harry became her Knight]]. Then her vengeance would be wrought on the Court with [[spoiler:Harry using the Court's own truly dark ritual to destroy every single Red Court vampire]].

* ''Fanfic/PrehistoricParkReimagined'': An example that doesn't involve any actual direct conflict occurs in 'Phase 2' episode "Feathered Dragons". At this point, a group of rather lazy and unhelpful temporary workmen have been hired to ostensibly provide assistance in getting the titular ExtinctAnimalPark ready for opening day [[spoiler:as well as serve as spies for an unsympathetic CorruptCorporateExecutive amongst [[MegaCorp Novum's]] executive board who plans to use the park and its resources for his own selfish ends]]. The man hired to serve as the foreman for these workmen, Kevin Drake, doesn't have any higher of an opinion on the unreliable workmen than the established park staff do; but he initially chooses to not really do anything to help the park staff rein in the workmen due to feeling it will be safer to just be an AccompliceByInaction so as to not run the risk getting dismissed and [[OnlyInItForTheMoney losing a guaranteed chance at earning wages]] that he believes would come with filing a complaint against the man who hired him and the workmen or trying to get the workmen to act differently than they were hired to act. However, once Kevin manages to secure a deal with two of the park's chiefs of staff that effectively buys him practical immunity from getting dismissed as punishment for taking a stand against his underlings and getting them to actually make an effort at helping the park get ready for opening day, he is ''very'' swift indeed to get them all in line.

* ''Theatre/SeventeenSevetySix'': New York's delegation [[TheDitherer always fails to vote one way or another]] on ''any and every motion'' presented in Congress, because they never received any instructions from their legislature on how to vote on anything. Lewis Morris ends up with the RunningGag of saying that "New York abstains, courteously". By the end of the play, though, as the Declaration is to be signed, they receive word that British troops have landed in New York and have destroyed Morris' estate; now that ItsPersonal for him, Morris goes "The hell with New York -- I'll sign it anyway."

* ''[[Theatre/SeventeenSevetySix]]'': New York's delegation [[TheDitherer always fails to vote one way or another]] on ''any and every motion'' presented in Congress, because they never received any instructions from their legislature on how to vote on anything. Lewis Morris ends up with the RunningGag of saying that "New York abstains, courteously". By the end of the play, though, as the Declaration is to be signed, they receive word that British troops have landed in New York and have destroyed Morris' estate; now that ItsPersonal for him, Morris goes "The hell with New York -- I'll sign it anyway."

* To protest against [[CorruptCorporateExecutive SOPA and PIPA,]][[note]]The Stop Online Piracy Act and Protect IP Act, respectively. Both were laws proposed by the US Congress in 2012. They would have allowed companies to effectively remove websites from the internet by blocking any access through search engines or internet providers, by simply making a complaint to the US Department of Justice. Both laws were criticised for giving website owners little, if any, opportunity to defend themselves.[[/note]] Wiki/{{Wikipedia}} blacked out their website on January 18, 2012. Wikipedia is notable for staying as TrueNeutral as possible, making this a ''huge'' change in their policy. Ironically enough, they had to break their own neutrality in order to fight for the principle of neutrality.

* As you work your way through the various runs of ''Videogame/{{Undertale}}'', though [[YouBastard he certainly won't hesitate to call you out on it]], you can murder anyone you want in the Underground and [[spoiler:Sans the skeleton]] will still let you pass him without a fight. [[VideoGameCrueltyPotential Even if you kill Papyrus.]] But if you decide to kill everyone and [[spoiler:thus permanently remove any chance of ever reaching the GoldenEnding again,]] he finally becomes motivated enough to [[spoiler:step up and make a last stand in the Judgement Hall, at the point of no return. [[ThatOneBoss Bad]] [[DifficultySpike times]] [[SNKBoss ensue.]]]]

* In ''Roleplay/TheGamersAlliance'', [[TheAtoner Jahi]] and the [[OurDemonsAreDifferent demon]] clan she has gathered around herself have chosen to settle into living in Alent's [[TheCityNarrows Threshold district]] after entering the Land of the Living, staying out of the conflicts their new home is involved in. However, when agents of the demon hordes infiltrate Alent and keep harassing Jahi in order to force her to side with her old demonic allies, Jahi does her best to not choose any sides until it gets personal as both demons and humans cross the line and hurt her loved ones. She ultimately unleashes the darkness she has kept in check and embraces it, choosing to side with the [[HornyDevils Eastern Horde]] but not on their terms but her own terms, and her newfound ruthlessness in dealing with both enemies and allies alike quickly proves that bringing out the darkness within her [[GoneHorriblyRight may not have been a great idea]].

** In "The Day of the Doctor", it's revealed that this eventually lead to the War Doctor's grim realisation that there was only ''[[KillEmAll one]]'' way to end the Time War, which he [[GenocideDilemma avoided enacting]] until he finally left with no other option.

* As you work your way through the various runs of ''Videogame/{{Undertale}}'', though [[YouBastard he certainly won't hesitate to call you out on it]], you can murder anyone you want in the Underground and [[spoiler:Sans the skeleton]] will still let you pass him without a fight. [[VideoGameCrueltyPotential Even if you kill Papyrus.]] But if you decide to KillEmAll and [[spoiler:thus permanently remove any chance of ever reaching the GoldenEnding again,]] he finally becomes motivated enough to [[spoiler:step up and make a last stand in the Judgement Hall, at the point of no return. [[ThatOneBoss Bad]] [[DifficultySpike times]] [[SNKBoss ensue.]]]]

Compare DefaultToGood, HeroicNeutral, LetsGetDangerous. Hope that no NeutralityBacklash kicks in, when the winning side resents the person who only signed on at the last minute. Contrast ChoosingNeutrality, where someone evil or good shifts to neutral.

* In the WWE story, ''The Return-Remixed'', Wrestling/{{Edge}} is shown as being friendly with the Divas and the members of DEAR when he first returns. When Wrestling/AshleyMassaro (who had been shamelessly throwing herself at him, trying to get a date with him) tried to [[MurderTheHypotenuse take out his girlfriend]], new Diva Kennedi Korklan, Edge firmly threw his weight behind the Divas, helping them become the Diva Army and bringing in [[Wrestling/CarleneMoore Jazz]] to whip them into shape to fight DEAR.

* ''WesternAnimation/DoubleDragon'': At first Su Lien, tai chi chuan master and instructor, refuses to side with either the Dragons or the Shadow in their fight, preferring to remain neutral. The Shadow Master, never taking no for an answer, captures her and plugs her into a virtual reality program to invade her mind and rip her knowledge from her; Jimmy, Billy, and Su Lien's student Kona go in after her. When it seems the Shadow Master, in large dragon form, is about to win, Su Lien breaks her neutrality, turns into a giant white dragon, and kicks his black-scaled butt. When asked later, she says there comes a point where no one can remain neutral in the fight of good vs evil. Afterwards, she stays a useful ally.

** Similarly, said invasion caused formerly unaligned Finland, Sweden, and Austria to consider NATO membership.

* Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Switzerland announced it would abandon its longstanding financial neutrality and deny use of [[SwissBankAccount its banking system]] to persons or entities under international sanctions.

** Bumblebee starts as a neutral Energon scavenger in the WesternAnimation/TransformersWarForCybertronTrilogy, being cynical towards both sides of the war and refusing to join their conflict. This changed when he came to possess the Codes of Alpha Trion, looking at the Autobots for help and assisting them once things cleared up. By ''Earthrise'', he wears the Autobot insignia.

* Happened with the Constructicons in the ''WesternAnimation/TransformersAnimated'' cartoon. Initially they were neutral hedonists and were even friendly to Bulkhead, but after Optimus Prime was a bit of a JerkAss to them they threw in their lot with the far more seemingly benevolent (and generous with his [[GRatedDrug oil]]) Megatron.
* Tigatron does this in ''WesternAnimation/BeastWars''. He wakes up from stasis all confused, not certain who he is, when he sees the Predacons threaten to kill an innocent animal if the Maximals don't surrender their friend. The Maximals surrender -- and he realizes who the good guys are.