History Main / SaveBothWorlds

* ''Film/TheMatrixRevolutions'': Former Agent [[BigBad Smith]] not only transforms every individual connected to the Matrix into copies of himself, effectively sealing the Matrix's fate, but also resolves to destroy the machine world using his newfound power. Neo intervenes by striking a deal with the machines, insisting that he be allowed to confront Smith in battle as a means of preserving both worlds to ensure the survival of both worlds and bring about peace between Zion and the machine civilization.

* In ''Westernanimation/MyLittlePonyEquestriaGirls1'', Twilight Sparkle goes to a HighSchoolAU featuring human counterparts to her friends and most of the show's cast. While her main objective is to retrieve her crown where her Element resides from BigBad Sunset Shimmer, she also quickly makes a friendship with her counterparts. This becomes a plot point when at the film's climax, Sunset threatens to destroy the portal connecting the two worlds if she didn't give her the crown. Twilight reasons she'd stay to help them, even if they'd both be doomed to never return to Equestria, since Sunset would be free to hurt her friends either way. Her bond with her new friends is strong enough to summon the Elements of Harmony and defeat her OneWingedAngel form. Only when she ensures that her friends would try to show Sunset Shimmer kindness after stripping her of power, does she cross back to Equestria. Nor does she forget this world after leaving, coming back in [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyEquestriaGirlsRainbowRocks the next movie]] to help her human friends and [[TheAtoner a reformed Sunset Shimmer]] confront the next magical threat. Sunset, despite being from Equestria like Twilight, never shows any inclination to return after her HeelFaceTurn and [[IChooseToStay makes the human world her home]], defending it from magical threats. The series then continues on for more entries that don't involve the main series characters at all.

* Technically, the titular heroine from ''May Bird'' series has to save "only" the ''Ever After'' world, but since all humans (including herself) will inevitably go there after death, this affect everybody on Earth as well. And [[spoiler: the BigBad is actively interfering with Earth, too, and it's only a question of time when he wrecks the Earth directly.]]

%%* Extremely weird example in Creator/ChinaMieville's novel ''Literature/TheCityAndTheCity''. Too good to be spoiled.
* ''Literature/{{Coraline}}'', where the titular heroine must beat the Other Mother [[spoiler: to save her parents and stop Other Mother from kidnapping children]].

* The cornerstone of ''{{Series/Fringe}}'' and its mythology is an AlternateUniverse, and the protagonists of the show (from the prime universe) are using MadScience in an attempt to save both worlds after the first attempt at crossing from one universe to another resulted in a parade of soft spots, cracks in the walls of reality, breakdowns of the laws of physics, [[SwirlyEnergyThingy swirly energy thingies]], [[NegativeSpaceWedgie negative earth wedgies]], [[Film/{{Ghostbusters 1984}} dogs and cats living together]], etc. that threaten to destroy both universes. This is juxtaposed by the characters from the AlternateUniverse, who believe the only way to save their universe is to destroy the prime one first (and they may be right). [[spoiler: Or not, as it is revealed that the two worlds are permanently intertwined; therefore, the only way for any character to save their world is to save both of them.]]

* ''VideoGame/TalesOfSymphonia'' soon becomes this type. [[spoiler: The BigBad's EvilPlan alternates which world is in trouble but]] both ultimately have to be saved for either to have lasting peace.

* In ''VideoGame/MortalKombatVsDCUniverse'', the simultaneous defeat of Shao Khan and Darkseid has caused the worlds of ''Mortal Kombat'' and the DC comics to begin to merge, with potentially dire results if not undone. The kombat fought between the denizens of both universes also serves to accelerate the process. [[spoiler:It's not until Superman and Raiden overcome their differences that they can overcome Dark Khan's influence and save their worlds.]]

* The Shadowbringers expansion has two worlds that must be saved in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV''. The Source is the game's main world and the First is a parallel world of the Source. In order to prevent an eighth calamity occuring on the Source, the player character is [[spoiler: whisked away to the First to prevent the Flood of Light from destroying that world. Should the First be destroyed, its effects would transfer to the Source since the two worlds are linked. The is made apparent by the Crystal Exarch who comes from a BadFuture where the calamity on the Source happened and plunged the world into chaos and lawlessness.]]

!Exmaples:

* ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog'':

* ''Franchise/{{Digimon}}'':

** ''Anime/DigimonFrontier'' flirted with the idea of an attack on the real world in the penultimate episode's cliffhanger, but the BigBad never actually made it there.

* In [[Anime/FullmetalAlchemist the 2003 anime version]] of ''Manga/FullmetalAlchemist'', alchemist technology making it into our world is the plot of TheMovie.

* The ''Literature/ApprenticeAdept'' series; Stile is a native of science-based Photon, but is brought to magical Phaze as part of a GambitRoulette to correct an imbalance that would destroy both worlds.

* Most of ''[[Literature/YoungWizards So You Want To Be A Wizard]]'' by Creator/DianeDuane is spent in an alternate universe where the [[BigBad Lone Power]] has already put out the sun. At the climax, the protagonists make it back into their own universe, but the Lone Power follows them through the worldgate and they have to stop it...

* In the fourth ''Animation/PleasantGoatAndBigBigWolf'' film, ''Mission Incredible: Adventures on the Dragon's Trail'', the goats learn that dragons are responsible for [[PaintingTheFrostOnWindows making the clouds, stabilizing the soil, and holding the trees up from underground in the Green Green Grassland]] and that the destruction in the Dragon World is making them panic, affecting the Grassland. Thus, they have to save the Dragon World if they want to save the Grassland.

* Initially, the end goal of the heroes of ''ComicBook/InfinityWars'' was to undo Gamora's merging of half the universe, but things take a turn in the fifth issue of the main story, in which [[ComicBook/{{Warlock}} Adam Warlock]] informs the [[ComicBook/CaptainAmerica Soldier]] [[ComicBook/DoctorStrange Supreme]] about the heroes' intentions, and the Soldier Supreme protests in response, refusing to give up his life for the sake of bringing back Dr. Strange and Captain America as two distinct beings again. The goal from that point forward, then, is to restore the regular Marvel Universe while preserving the Warped Universe within the Soul Stone.

* Taken UpToEleven in ''WesternAnimation/TurtlesForever'', where the 1986 and 2003 TMNT versions team up to stop 2003 Shredder and save not just their own worlds, but the entire TMNT [[TheMultiverse multiverse]].

* In in ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheBraveAndTheBold'', when a DepopulationBomb threatens to kill all life on Earth, Batman and Red Hood teleport it to another dimension. It turns out (as in, we find out they already knew) everyone on that Earth were already [[EverythingsDeaderWithZombies zombies,]] so the bomb's explosion was [[NegateYourOwnSacrifice completely harmless]]. Additionally, this episode primarily takes place in an EvilCounterpart world, similar to Earth-3 of the comics. Batman doesn't just want to escape this world, he wants to make it better (since, in this world, TheBadGuyWins is a regular occurrence). He frees the captured heroes, who are now being led by Red Hood, and the villains have been defeated. Batman only leaves when he feels like the native heroes have a good handle on things.