History Main / TakingOverTheTown

* In a [[UsefulNotes/TheGoldenAgeOfComicBooks Golden Age]] ComicBook/JusticeSocietyOfAmerica story, [[LegionOfDoom The Injustice Society of the World]] did this to Washington DC.
* Cobra does it to the town of Millville in issue 100 of Creator/MarvelComics' ''[[ComicBook/GIJoeARealAmericanHeroMarvel G.I. Joe]]'' series.

* Stealth example: In the Franchise/{{Batman}} story arc "[[Comicbook/BatmanNoMansLand No Man's Land]]", ComicBook/LexLuthor uses his connections in the US government to shut Gotham City off from outside aid after a cataclysmic earthquake so he can swoop in, buy up most of the real estate, and look like a hero.

* ''Film/ThirtyDaysOfNight'' (and the original comic it was based on) featured a clan of vampires that essentially invoked this trope on a town on the arctic circle when the sun would be down for a full month.
* ''Film/TheDarkKnightRises'' has Bane and his army quarantine Gotham City by blowing up every bridge and tunnel leading into Manhattan, then they unleash their modern ReignOfTerror.
* Red and the Blackwater Gang do this to Edendale in ''Film/DeadInTombstone'', even though it was not the original plan.

* ''Film/TheMagnificentSeven2016'': This is what Bogue has done to Rose Creek before the Seven ride into town and kill the 22 Blackstone thugs he had left there.
* The biker-cult in ''Film/{{Cobra}}'' take out TheSheriff and set up roadblocks to prevent escape from the small town the protagonists have stayed the night in, though their aim is only to kill a single witness and her police bodyguards. As one of the bodyguards [[TheMole is a member of their cult]], one would think there'd be less blatant means of doing so.
* This is Redeye's main goal in ''Film/Oblivion1994''.
* In ''Film/TheScavengers'', the Confederate renegades take over the small town of Haswell to intercept the Yankee gold shipment.

* Auric Goldfinger's plan to loot Fort Knox in the novel ''Literature/{{Goldfinger}}'' has elements of this (the plan in the movie is different).

* The planet Ghobindi is found to be blockaded in ''Literature/GalaxyOfFear'', with only Imperial ships able to come in or go out. There's only one settlement there, clustered around an elaborate medical clinic. The Empire is actually [[spoiler: testing TheVirus on it.]]

* The second Literature/AbleTeam novel, ''Hostage Island'' has an outlaw biker gang taking over Catalina Island and holding the population hostage.

* Krane and his gang do this in the ''Series/QueenOfSwords'' episode "The Hanged Man".

* The Butler gang does this to Hopetoun in the final episode of ''Series/WildBoys''.
* Combined with TakeOverTheCity in Brick's plan to rule The Glades in season 3 of ''Series/{{Arrow}}''. Although his goal is to totally control The Glades, he uses many of the traditional tactics for isolating an area to do so: destroying all the cell towers, disabling the video feeds, etc.

* ''Series/{{Supernatural}}''. Subverted when demon-possessed humans appear to be doing this only for it to be revealed there are no demons -- it's only War [[HatePlague turning humans against each other]] with a few hallucinations and blown-up bridges.

* This was the set-up for ''VideoGame/MadDogMcCree''. The stranger (i.e. the player) is told that "Mad Dog [=McCree=] and his gang have taken over the town" and that both the mayor and his daughter are imprisoned in the gunfighter's hideout, while the sheriff has been locked up in his own jail by the gang.

* ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsVSkyrim'': A group of Vampires plan to take over Morthal and turn it's people into [[MindControl Thralls]]. Naturally, [[PlayerCharacter The Dragonborn]] stops them.

* ''WesternAnimation/AllHailKingJulien'': In "The All Hail King Julien Show", Pancho and Andy are quick to notice that Julien Vision has become so popular that the entire kingdom spends their whole day either watching or starring in shows, and help themselves to everyone's stuff while they're busy.

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* ''FanFic/SoulEaterTroubledSouls'' has a large-scale variation. After learning from Gilgamesh Anria can potentially evolve, Cancer and Henderson cut off Bermuda from the rest of the world. While they don't exactly loot the place, [[spoiler:they do have the Anria run wild over all the country, kill their citizens, and eat their souls to provoke said evolution]].

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[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/taking_over_the_town.jpg]]

The typical plan is to cut off communications (e.g., [[CutPhoneLines take down phone lines]]) and then isolate the town (blowing the only bridge in is common). Local law enforcement will be eliminated (often being captured and locked up in their own jail).

The typical plan is to cut off communications (e.g., take down phone lines) and then isolate the town (blowing the only bridge in is common). Local law enforcement will be eliminated (often being captured and locked up in their own jail).

* In ''TheLordOfTheRings'' Saruman, a.k.a. "Sharky," does this to an entire country. [[spoiler:When Frodo, Sam and the other hobbits return from their epic quest to destroy the Ring to find the Shire under the control of Saruman's evil Men, they gather the rest of the hobbits and take the place back]].

* ''Literature/{{Parker}}'': In ''The Score'', Parker is recruited to lead a crew to take over and loot and small copper mining town. The town has a curfew, which makes things easier, as the crew only has to take over the police station, the fire station, and the telephone exchange--the only places manned all night--before launching their assault.

* ''FanFicSoul/EaterTroubledSouls'' has a large-scale variation. After learning from Gilgamesh Anria can potentially evolve, Cancer and Henderson cut off Bermuda from the rest of the world. While they don't exactly loot the place, [[spoiler:they do have the Anria run wild over all the country, kill their citizens, and eat their souls to provoke said evolution]].

* ''FanFicSoulEaterTroubledsouls'' has a large-scale variation. After learning from Gilgamesh Anria can potentially evolve, Cancer and Henderson cut off Bermuda from the rest of the world. While they don't exactly loot the place, [[spoiler:they do have the Anria run wild over all the country, kill their citizens, and eat their souls to provoke said evolution]].

* ''VideoGame/NaughtyBear'': A one-teddy version; some players attempt this by sinking the boat, [[VevicularSabotage disabling the car]] [[CutPhoneLines and phones]] and setting up traps at the dock that the police use. This is usually successful at keeping the others from escaping.

* ''Supernatural''. Subverted when demon-possessed humans appear to be doing this only for it to be revealed there are no demons -- it's only War [[HatePlague turning humans against each other]] with a few hallucinations and blown-up bridges.

* The biker-cult in ''Film/{{Cobra}}'' take out TheSheriff and set up roadblocks to prevent escape from the small town the protagonists have stayed the night in, though their aim is only to kill a single witness and her police bodyguards. As one of the bodyguards is a member of their cult, one would think there'd be less blatant means of doing so.

* The biker-cult in ''Film/{{Cobra}}'' They take out TheSheriff and set up roadblocks to prevent escape from the small town the protagonists have stayed the night in, though their aim is only to kill a single witness and her police bodyguards. As one of the bodyguards is a member of their cult, one would think there'd be less blatant means of doing so.

* ''[[Film/ThirtyDaysOfNight 30 Days of Night]]'' (and the original comic it was based on) featured a clan of vampires that essentially invoked this trope on a town on the arctic circle when the sun would be down for a full month.

* The 1942 British WorldWarII drama ''Went the Day Well?'' has a group of Nazi soldiers attempting this with an English village.