Often used in comedy and a sister trope to the Trust-Building Blunder.
Alice is stuck on a ledge with no apparent stairs, elevator, rope or other normal way to reach the ground and needs to get down fast so that she can escape the bad guys, catch up to the others, etc. Bob, waiting on the ground, holds up his arms and shouts out something along the lines of "Jump! I'll catch you!". There may be some hesitation, but eventually Alice jumps into Bob's waiting arms...well, at least she tried.
Alice is usually fine. Don't worry, Bob will be okay in a few minutes.
Examples
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Anime & Manga
- Done metaphorically in the 5th game of Umineko: When They Cry. "Beato, jump!" "Battleeerrrrr!!!"
- Played straight in an episode of Ouran High School Host Club, Haruhi jumps from a platform into Tamaki's waiting arms during a play to escape the Zuka club.
- Done in the first episode of Terror in Resonance when Twelve catches Lisa after jumping out of a partially destroyed building.
- Inverted in Hayate the Combat Butler: Hinagiku, afraid of heights, yells at Hayate to catch her and jumps out of a tree before he can even react. After stepping on his face, she manages a perfect landing.
- Later in the manga, Fumi attempts the same when Hinagiku is up a tree again. Fumi cringes and then Hina jumps, intending to miss her entirely, and Fumi bolts, causing her to land in a bush.
- Used in the first chapter of obscure shoujo manga Ten Yori Mo, Hoshi Yori Mo. The heroine is being menaced by murderous thugs on top of a skyscraper when who should come along but a Bishie on a hang glider. A few lines later she jumps into his arms and they fly off into the sunset. No, really.
- Used in one episode of the Bubblegum Crisis OVA when Sylia and Linna are flying alongside and a little below a speeding car and Priss is trying to get the passengers out.
- In Yu-Gi-Oh!, Joey does this for Mai after a botched kidnapping leaves her hanging from a pole above the street. They both end up (mostly) fine.
Comics
- Played straight in Shade, the Changing Man when Lenny says this to Lily, who's trying to escape a burning building.
Films — Animated
- Despicable Me: At the end, Gru says this nearly word-for-word to Margo, the last of the three girls to jump to safety. Unfortunately, they both fall. Luckily, the minions save them.
Films — Live-Action
- Parodied in The Muppet Christmas Carol. Rizzo the Rat climbs to the top of a gate and tries to jump into Gonzo's arms so they can catch up to the main characters. After much terrified dithering, he finally jumps, but Gonzo fails to catch him and he hits the ground. Then, after he recovers, Rizzo suddenly realizes that he forgot his jellybeans on the other side of the gate... as well as the fact that he was able to go between the bars of the gate the entire time.
- In Dr. Dolittle, Dr. Dolittle is trying talk down the tiger Jake, but also has to contend with the heckling coming below from a pair of rats.
Dr. Dolittle: No, no, don't jump!Rat 1: Jump, you big pussy!Rat 2: Come on, you little scaredy cat!Rat 1: I'll catch ya'! ... NOT! (chuckles)
Live-Action TV
- The Hercules: The Legendary Journeys episode "For Those of You Just Joining Us" had the cast performing the old trust building exercise with Rob Tapert. He eventually recovers.
- Done spectacularly by Donna Noble in her first Doctor Who appearance. She jumps from a speeding taxi on a motorway driven by a homicidal android into the TARDIS (which is flying along about 2m from the cab) in her wedding dress. (She flattens the Doctor, but he's had heavier things land on him.)
- In the second episode of "The Lone Gunmen" Jimmy tells Langly to jump, that he did and he's fine, that it's not that far, and finally promising to catch him. On the latter, Langly finally jumps...only for Jimmy to turn around when Frohike starts talking to him.
Video Games
- In Kingdom Hearts II, during a visit to the Hundred Acre Wood, Piglet is blown in the blustery wind and ends up on a high tree. Sora and Pooh come over and the former says this trope. Piglet gathers his courage and jumps. Sora misses him, but Pooh doesn't.
Western Animation
- One of the Roger Rabbit Shorts had Roger yell "Don't worry, Baby Herman, I'll catch you!" only to be smashed on the head by an elevator while Baby Herman parachuted safely down with his diaper.
- An Overly Long Gag in The Ren & Stimpy Show episode "Firedogs."
- My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic:
- Inverted in the episode "The Last Roundup". Pinkie jumps off a moving stagecoach and yells "Rarity, catch me!"(They both fall out of the stagecoach Rarity is in.)
- The second episode has Applejack telling Twilight to jump, and Fluttershy and Rainbow catch her.
- In Heathcliff & the Catillac Cats, Hector shouts to Mungo, "Jump! We'll catch you!" Hector and Wordsworth then exchange glances and fail to get out of the way in time.
Real Life
- Famed pro wrestling manager/booker/promoter/commentator Jim Cornette was doing a bit during Starrcade '86 where he was chased up a scaffold, then took a bump off it. However, the work order must have been sent wrong, and the 15 foot scaffold was built to 25 feet. Crockett decided he would do what skydivers do, and drop and roll when he landed. The fall was going to be aided by Bubba, who was going to catch him. He would fall into Big Bubba Rogers' arms, and they would both drop and roll to the left. Predictably, the relatively green Rogers' missed catching him, and Cornette blew his knee out. Or rather, in. Squick.
