Follow TV Tropes

Following

Moment Killer

Go To

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/codymomentkiller_5.png
Dammit, Cody!

"We're having a moment here. Don't ruin it."
Raven (to Beast Boy just before he totally ruins the moment), Teen Titans (2003)

It's really going to happen this time. They are about to share their feelings with each other after years of keeping them hidden. They come closer together and look into each other's eyes; there has never been a moment so perfect. The stars are aligned, the moon is full and one of them says, "I've never had the courage to tell you this before..."

Then her brother walks into the room, asking if she wants pepperoni or ham on her pizza. Or his/her best friend walks through the door, wanting to talk to them, which sometimes may be an emergency. Or the house phone rings or one of their cellphones rings, ruining the moment. "Ugh!" is their reply, echoed by all of the fans. Whatever was there has been shot down dead. They lost the spirit of the moment and it will likely be a long time before they can get it back. After witnessing their frustrated anger, the brother then asks, "Is this a bad time?"

The Moment Killer is the bane of all shippers, and eternally frustrates those who will find any reason to hook up a favorite pairing. The moment is most commonly romantic in nature, but covers the instances whenever there is a possibility of a relationship upgrade or change, or during a serious or dramatic moment, including going from enemy to ally or getting that coveted "Well Done, Son."

The exact nature of the killer can come under several varieties:

  1. Random Accident: The killer is something mundane so that the frustration is at its highest because the important moment is destroyed by something unimportant. (The pizza example above.)
  2. Plot Progression: Something too important to ignore interrupts the moment, but it doesn't make the moment killing any less painful. (Aliens attack.)
  3. Fatal Fumble: One of the individuals involved ends up being their own moment killer due to miscommunication, poor choice of words, or just a brief hesitation that ruins the magic. ("Hahaha, you're joking, right?")
  4. Deliberate Destruction: A third party intentionally spoils the moment for reasons of their own; often a jealous rival or Boyfriend-Blocking Dad. Also called "the cockblocker." ("You guys aren't doing anything funny in there, are you?")
  5. Actual Antagonism: Similar to Plot Progression and Deliberate Destruction, but the sabotage is done by a villain purposely ruining the moment with malicious intent. (Part of the pairing is Targeted to Hurt the Hero or is a Living MacGuffin.)
  6. Idiot Matchmaker: Someone who's purportedly trying to help set the mood (or simply wants it to happen) kills it, through impatience or unconscious design. ("So have you kissed her yet?")

Basic staple of any Will They or Won't They? set up. May be caused by Date Peepers. Compare Interrupted Intimacy and Instant Turn-Off. The most common subtrope is the Almost Kiss. If the moment is about to lead to a declaration of love, then it might be an Interrupted Declaration of Love. Can overlap with Poorly Timed Confession. See also Failed Attempt at Drama when it's self-inflicted.


Examples:

    open/close all folders 

    Advertising 
  • Axe Body Spray had a campaign in the 2000s called "Gamekillers," showcasing different characters who would get between you and your girl.
  • More than one beer commercial has used the idea of a Moment Killer, usually demonstrating how the advertised beer will aid in thwarting him.
  • A series of commercials for a diarrhea medication show a person experiencing something great (ex: a man being in a hot tub with two beautiful women eager to talk to him, a teenage girl flirting with a hot guy) only for them to be forced to ruin the moment themselves when they experience a sudden need to race to the restroom.
  • Flo from Progressive. One commercial involves two girls who are looking at a hot new guy at the laundromat. Just as one of them convinces the other to go over and talk to him and the guy seems to be interested as well, Flo comes up and welcomes him to the neighborhood, saying she wants to tell him about deals on insurance.
    Guy: (indicating the woman) Oh, I was just—
    Flo: Oh, Tammy, I found your retainer!
  • An anti-vaping ad from the Truth Initiative has two puppets about to kiss when one of them ends up barfing up cloth upon the other, with the ad saying that constant vaping can weaken your immune system.

    Comedy 
  • Comedian Pablo Francisco describes this trope perfectly in one of his sets.
  • In Patton Oswalt's comedy album Werewolves & Lollipops, Oswalt is building a serious moment about birth control and having an intimate relationship when... this happens, prompting Oswalt to tear into him for ruining the setup.

    Comic Books 
  • When Superboy and Wonder Girl had their first kiss, Wonder Woman out of nowhere grabs him by the collar and chucks him to the horizon.
  • Supergirl:
    • In Supergirl (1972) #8 Linda and her Boy-Of-The-Week are about to kiss when her super-hearing detects trouble and she has to leave.
    • In a Supergirl (2005) issue, when Wonder Girl and Supergirl reunited there was the extremely close hug, actual "I love you", leaning in... and being shot with a rocket launcher by Ravager, who apparently enjoys having invulnerable teammates.
  • Even Batman can fantasize about Poison Ivy in the shower... until Alfred turns the water cold.
  • Johnny the Homicidal Maniac does this to himself and Devi. With knives. Ironically, he still thinks he's being romantic ("immortalizing the moment")... naturally, Devi beats the crap out of him and the ship is officially nuked.
  • In the Mekanix miniseries by Chris Claremont, Kitty Pryde and Karma have just collapsed a building on top of a small Sentinel, with Kitty using her phasing powers to bring the two of them down to the ground safely. Kitty lands on top of Karma as the two laugh in relief, and they seem about to kiss. Then it turns out the Sentinel wasn't as defeated as they thought, and they almost die with the moment.
  • To ruin a dramatic moment, in JLA/Avengers, Superman narrowly manages to defeat Thor. The injured and exhausted Superman remarks, "He... May be the single toughest opponent I've ever..." and then the other Avengers dogpile him and beat the crap out of him.
  • Robin (1993): Tim Drake tends to ruin moments between himself and his various love interests by falling asleep at inopportune moments or suddenly having a revelation about the case he's working on and running off or otherwise being distracted. It actually ruins two of his three relationships but Stephanie Brown finds it endearing, even when he suddenly turns away from an Almost Kiss to go fight crime, though it probably helps that she knows what's actually going on and fights alongside him.
  • A preemptive one can be seen in Scott Pilgrim as Scott's plan to cuddle with his girlfriend is ruined by his gay roommate sitting around in his underwear.
  • In The Smurfs comic book story "The Olympic Smurfs", Weakling wins the Olympics, and is just about to embrace and kiss Smurfette as his prize when Brainy shows up with a pink card for Smurfette and takes her away from Weakling, robbing him of that Smooch of Victory.
  • The Strontium Dog arc "Bitch" sets up what appears to be the end to all the Unresolved Sexual Tension between Johnny Alpha and Durham Red when Johnny joins his female colleague in the shower... until a naked Ronald Reagan (It Makes Sense in Context) decides to enter the fray and immediately drop the soap.
  • Similarly to the movie, in Superman: Secret Origin right when Superman and Lois are about to kiss, Jimmy interrupts. Lois is understandably annoyed, but Superman acts like it's nothing.
  • In Teen Titans, Beast Boy and Raven go on a "Not a Date" and have a sweet, tender moment... which is ruined when her brothers show up and beat the crap out of Beast Boy. Guess they didn't approve.
  • Ultimate Spider-Man: Just after Peter's revealed his secret identity to MJ, she admits she thought he was going to kiss her. They start leaning in, closer, and closer... then Aunt May bursts in to say MJ's mom is on the phone, and apparently MJ needs to go home to... clean out her cat's litter tray? Peter sees right through the BS - Aunt May will have no hanky-panky under her roof (even if she approves of Peter and MJ).
  • In the first issue of Avengers: The Children's Crusade, Hulking and Wiccan are about to start making out in the Avenger's mansion when Speed shows up literally out of nowhere and asks what the hell they're doing. Cue the fans: "Dammit, Tommy!"
  • Sonic the Hedgehog (IDW) does this to the point of a Running Gag - though not always Played for Laughs.
    • In Issue #5, Sonic's decided to leave the amnesiac Eggman in peace, and everything is looking up. And just as he's about to leave Shadow shows up to murder Eggman.
    • Issue #30 has two instances of this trope:
      • Cream and Gemerl's reunion with Vanilla amid dozens of cheering people is rudely interrupted by Zavok.
      • Wave comments on Jet's noble act of sticking with her and Storm back in Issue #28, rather than save himself when he had the chance.Spoiler This prompts Jet to brag about how heroic and noble he was, ruining the moment.
    • In Issues #31-32, everyone is celebrating the Metal Virus' demise when Eggman suddenly crashes the party in a giant battle mech, announcing his presence with what might as well be a comic book version of Chewing the Scenery.
      Eggman: TREMBLE IN FEAR, FOOLS! I AM DR. EGGMAN—GREATEST OF PARTY CRASHERS IN THE FIERCEST OF PARTY CRUSHERS!
    • In issue #64, Blaze and Silver have a sweet heart-to-heart discussion over how much they admire each other... and then Sonic announces his presence with The Noisy Straw to end all noisy straws, tells them they're great together, grabs his takeout pasta and leaves as fast as he came.
      Silver: There are days I don't know whether he is the coolest guy in the world or if I should throw a car at him.

    Fan Works 
  • Advice and Trust: In a scene, Shinji and Asuka are about to have a shower together and have "fun" at the same time when Kaji shows up all of sudden, ruining their plans.
  • The Amazing Spider-Man: True Purpose;
    • After Peter and Mary Jane have spent the previous night celebrating their reunion in the newly-rebuilt Avengers Mansion (currently Peter’s property and not occupied by anyone else), they come downstairs in their underwear the following morning only to find Captain America, Iron Man, Wolverine and Hope Summers in the main hall.
    • Peter has to deal with this again when he comes downstairs (this time wearing his mask and the lower half of his costume) after a pleasant weekend with Felicia and Mary Jane/Red Sonja, only to find most of the planned Unity Team there along with Steve and Tony.
  • In Ambition of the Red Princess, Malty is in the middle of seducing Naofumi when a monster balloon that he'd forgotten about bites her hand.
  • A non-romantic example occurs in All Mixed Up!, where Ori comes up behind Oprah and scares her just as she gets to the part in the titular case where Otto becomes the only agent left who is able to face Mariana Mag.
  • Batman Beyond Revisited: Jake’s first day off in years, on a date, and Payback interrupts it by crashing their limo and killing their driver.
  • Almost every fanfic for The Cat Returns has this with Haru and Baron, usually in the form of Muta, Hiromi, Toto, Lune, Yuki or a combination of the five. This is especially true in the ones where they have the barrier of Baron being a Creation and Haru a human.
  • The Chaotic Masters: In Chapter 12, Jackie and Viper are about to kiss, when Jade suddenly bursts in to angrily confront Uncle about the inherent sexism of chi magic and the implication that that is why he's never taught it to her. Understandably, Jackie and Viper's attention is immediately off what was about to happen.
  • Cheshire (Miraculous Ladybug): Chloe, in the nastier way possible every time that Adrien and Marinette try to talk to each other.
  • The Child of Love: In chapter 9 Shinji and Asuka are cuddling and kissing… and then the doorbell rings, interrupting them and ruining the mood.
  • In Dave Stdider Pokemon Traner, Terezi and Dave are lying naked in bed after kissing, just as they are about to have sex, Will Turner bursts in the door and tells them that they can't have sex without "Condominuims". Then Dave realizes that he's got more important things to do than banging Terezi, such as exorcizing Giratina from his friend John and leaves her alone naked. The moment is further ruined when Karkat comes in and takes a naked picture of her. Then Jack uses it to blackmail her and stabs Will. Basically, this is the WORST ruined moment in history.
  • In the Looney Tunes story Defying the Odds, whenever Sylvester comes close to telling Tweety how he feels about her, he is interrupted. Luckily, he is finally able to tell her when they are in Paris.
  • In the DC Nation plot "Heaven or Las Vegas", Jade and Kyle are laughing themselves silly over the completely crazy scenario they're trapped in, and making out after a brief tussle with a Yellow Lantern construct. Then, the Star Sapphire flies in.
    Jade: OH HELL NO YOU DON'T! I'm — We're — having a moment here!"
  • In Weavillain's Loud House fic Denial: Not Just a River in Royal Woods, Lynn playing with her soccer ball interrupts Ronnie Anne and Lincoln kissing.
  • The Evening Sonata has Sonata Dusk and Sunset Shimmer about to have sex... And then Discord pops up and ruins the moment.
  • Tucker does this a few times to Danny and Sam in the Facing the Future Series.
  • During the "credits" of Fantasy of Utter Ridiculousness, Koakuma deliberately — and forcefully — invokes this trope to keep Jamie from hitting on Patchouli.
  • Friendship Is Magic: The Adventures of Spike: At the end of their Not a Date, Spike and Fluttershy come within seconds of kissing... when Shining Armor walks in, and Fluttershy flies off in embarrassment. Spike isn't pleased.
  • In Frozen Moonlight, people interrupting such moments include (but is not limited to) Sano, Yahiko, Hiko, a waiter, and a waffle iron.
  • In The Great Alicorn Hunt, Sweetie Belle is enjoying a Puppy Love slow dance with Breezy Shy (Fluttershy's younger brother), when the mood is killed by Apple Bloom loudly throwing up.
  • Grey Area: Sachel and Monokrome are about to kiss in their civilian identities when they're interrupted by a fireball attack.
  • Guardian has a couple of non-romantic instances.
    • Wakka ruins Lulu's dramatic moment of volunteering to be Father Zuke's guardian when he awkwardly pipes up "me too!" She's visibly irritated in the next panel.
    • Lulu initially considers Tidus to be one extended moment-killer for what she had seen as her final months with Yuna.
  • Just when Kanae was going to kiss her Sempai in the Haruhi Suzumiya fanfic Kyon: Big Damn Hero the unnamed enemy slider appeared himself to get her. It doesn't help that the enemy slider dislikes both of them and he has been searching for Kanae for a long time (the last time he lost Kanae was one month ago).
  • In Hellsister Trilogy, Superman and other two heroes interrupt Kara and her boyfriend right when they are about to make out.
    Dev-Em: Would somebody mind telling me really—I mean, really—why all of you had to set off a bomb to get our attention, and why you had to show up here and now, of all times and places? There's a reason we were here alone, you know. I mean, you are aware of that, right?
  • Hetalia: Axis Powers fanfic Kimyōna, Komisch, Caldo, a sequel to Gankona, Unnachgiebig, Unità: Let's just say Kugelmugel interrupted an *ahem* intimate moment Germany, Italy, and Japan were sharing.
    "Oh. Right there. RIGHT THERE!" What sounded like moans and groans in three different pitches could be heard—somehow over the deafening crashes—from the closed door as the boy reached it. Sadly, said boy could not get in due to said door being locked. Just what could they be doing?! Something that young children should never find out.
    Not that he cared. "Open up! OPEN UP!"
    "SCHEIßE!"
    "SHIMATTA!"
    "ACCIDENTI!"
    What seemed to be a wet plopping noise resounded in response to the rapid knocking and insistent rattling of the locked doorknob, what sounded like sheets being removed, spray being frantically spritzed, clothes being rapidly put back on, sheets being put back on, and so on and so on following seconds later.
  • The Hetalia: Axis Powers America×England fanfic You Can't Take the Sky from Me has America and England talking about their pasts while in England's cabin, culminating in an Almost Kiss... before Prussia walks in.
  • Higher Learning: While Misato is working Shinji and Asuka are making out in her apartment. They are right about to take things to the next level when Misato comes home all of sudden and they have to stop, pretending they were doing nothing.
  • In Hotspring Souls!, just when it looks like the Chosen Undead and Rhea are about to have their Relationship Upgrade, Solaire completely ruins it by blasting Van Halen on his boombox.
  • In the House/Once Upon a Time fanfic Definitely Not Lupus, after Emma manages to convince Regina to kiss her, Chase walks in on them making out and instantly kills the mood. For doing so, Emma knocks him out with a clock.
  • In the How to Train Your Dragon fanfic Rebuild All Your Ruins, Toothless interrupts what would have led to wrestling-match-turned-kiss by eating the fish that Astrid was hitting Hiccup with. Toothless seems to be a master at this trope.
  • It's (Not) Your Fault: When Lincoln and Stella admit their feelings for each other, they have a kiss, which is interpreted by Clyde, Liam, Zach and Rusty, which is quite awkward for them.
  • Kingdom Hearts Ψ: The Seeker of Darkness: In Adjustments, Lea manages to interrupt Roxas and Xion's attempts at their first kiss sixteen times, sometimes on purpoes. It even happens right when Roxas is in the middle of complaining to Sora and the others about it.
  • Sparx does this to Spyro and Cynder in the first chapter of The Legend of Spyro: A New Dawn.
  • In Mega Man: Defender of the Human Race, Bass interrupts Splash Woman's attempted seduction of Mega Man several times.
  • Aliens/Once Upon a Time fanfic Monsters: Killian walks in on Regina and Emma making out and awkwardly interrupts them.
  • Naru-Hina Chronicles:
    • Neji and Tenten are kissing while they're alone, until Kakashi accidentally makes his presence known by coughing:
      Kakashi: [smiling behind his mask and waving at them] Ahem! Sorry. Don't mind me.
    • Ichiro and Takara are kissing until they're interrupted by the arrival of Team 7, with Sai telling them to get a room so they can have sex and not do it on the street.
    • During the vacation arc, Kakashi and Anko are kissing each other only to be interrupted by the arrival of Gai, the latter being accompanied by two pretty ladies.
      • In that same chapter, back in Konoha, Iruka and Hotaru are making out when they hear the sound of someone knocking at the door.
    • Sasuke and Sakura are waiting for Naruto and Kakashi while the latter two are talking with Tsunade. The couple decide to make out. It doesn't take long before Naruto arrives and tells them to get a room.
    • Naruto and Hinata have a tender moment where they kiss at Ichiraku. However, they're interrupted by Ayame gushing over how cute that moment is.
    • Sasuke and Sakura are about to kiss each other at the hospital when they're interrupted by a messenger. Needless to say, Sakura isn't too pleased about it and glares at the messenger, telling him he better have a good reason for interrupting them.
    • While travelling to some place for a mission, Sasuke and Sakura have a discussion about the past three years. They're about to kiss once again. However, much to their annoyance, they're interrupted by Naruto telling them to get a room.
  • In Neon Genesis Evangelion: Genocide, Shinji and Asuka were about to kiss right before getting in their robots in order to fight the final enemy when Misato interrupted them.
  • Neon Genesis Evangelion: Genocide: Shinji and Asuka are about to share a kiss before the final battle, when they hear an amused cough. Looking around, they notice Misato -the one who coughed- and a small group of people are watching them.
    Holding his breath to keep from tickling her, he leaned in. There was a momentary look of surprise on Asuka's face, but then she got it and dipped her head towards him in response. Her pink lips parted, matching his own.
    "Ahem."
    Nearly kissing, both teenage pilots turned their heads in the direction of the noise—and found themselves staring at a small group of onlookers that had assembled on the gantry platform just a few feet away. Misato was in the middle, an oddly pleased smile showing on her face.
  • In the second chapter of Out of the Dead Land, Tony and JARVIS both pick inopportune times to interrupt Bucky and Steve's conversations.
    Tony: Hey, Cap, we need your input on — oh, am I interrupting something? Did I interrupt?
  • In The Plots of Pyrrha Nikos, the eponymous character tries to seduce her crush- and is abruptly derailed by the realization that her mother was a slut.
  • In a non-romantic example, Pretender has Sumia accidentally interrupt Chrom when he attempts to have Robin open up after his suicide attempt. Robin quickly uses Sumia as an excuse to get out.
  • In Robb Returns, Jory and Annah's first Ship Tease conversation is cut short when Eddard is possessed by one of his ancestors.
  • Superwomen of Eva 2: Lone Heir of Krypton: Shinji and Asuka were alone at home and about to kiss for the first time when Kaji ruined the moment by coming home dragging a drunk Misato, forcing both teenagers to move away from each other hurriedly and pretend that nothing was happening.
  • In Sparkling Shimmer, Twilight and Sunset nearly kiss on their fourth date, only for a spying Rarity to ruin it. Needless to say, Sunset is not pleased.
  • Spy X Family:
  • Takeru does this during Rika and Takato's First Kiss in the Tamers Forever Series. The author even lampshades it. "But if we know something about these kinds of stories, it's that someone always ruins things when they get interesting.".
    Takeru: What are you two doing? We've been waiting for... holy shit.
  • In Tangled Up In You, an Almost Kiss between Adrien and Marinette is interrupted when Adrien gets hit in the face by a snowball from a nearby fight.
  • This Bites!: Soundbite does this a lot.
    • In the Christmas Special, there's an interesting twist in that it's breaking up a somber moment: when the crew reflects on how they're spending Christmas Eve away from home and family, Soundbite cuts them off with a loud "TIS THE SEASON, JACKASSES!" A moment of anger passes before they realize that it's Christmas Eve, not a time for moodiness.
    • In Chapter 24, after Usopp gives a heartfelt speech to his father through the SBS, Soundbite cuts into the following solemn silence by loudly saying "DADDY'S BOY!" Usopp is predictably furious.
    • In Chapter 27, after Cross consoles Nami for the events in Mock Town, resulting in her laughing and crying in euphoria, the heartfelt moment comes to an abrupt end when Luffy, Masira, and Shoujou begin singing. The mood then abruptly becomes "I Need a Freaking Drink."
    • In Chapter 39, during the standoff between CP9 and the Straw-Hats, Kumadori wonders if Cross would give him an autograph if he asked. Fukuro promptly Dope Slaps him.
  • One lesbian Touhou Project doujin completely hilariously defies this trope. Satori and Koishi share a moment until Koishi basically asks Satori to make love to her. Satori, apparently fully Genre Savvy, rushes to the door and locks it up, before taking her on the offer.
  • In Twisted Fates, Yomiel has just got home from work and really wants some quality time with his wife. Sissel, however, really needs to talk to him and breaks up the moment rather unceremoniously. He feels bad about it, though.
  • WarioWare: Even 9-volt does this to the boss he works for and Mona...
  • In What Everyone Didn't Know Fred and Harry are about to kiss when Ron yells at them for blocking the tunnel from the Shrieking Shack.
  • In X-Men 1970, a phone call interrupts Scott Summers and Jean Grey right when they are about to have sex.
    Jean felt the delicious sensation of his hands on her bare skin, easing up her nightdress, approximately three seconds before the phone rang. He said something she never heard him say in front of Professor Xavier.

    Films — Animation 
  • Disney Animated Canon:
    • In Aladdin; Jasmine and Aladdin were having a moment at his sleeping spot and talking about how they both feel trapped by their circumstances. About to kiss, they are interrupted by the palace guards arriving to rescue Jasmine and arrest Aladdin.
    • In Hercules; Megara and Hercules were having a post-date conversation and falling in love when Phil arrives with Pegasus to interrupt and chastise Hercules for sneaking out on him. Making the best of the situation, he gives her a flower and a kiss on the cheek before he leaves and that leads to Megara's "falling in love" song.
    • In Frozen II, one of Kristoff's bungled proposal attempts takes place on the sled, while Anna seemed quite ready for an intimate moment. His poor choice of words leads her to be offended and they end up fighting.
    • In The Little Mermaid; Ursula's eels flip Eric and Ariel's rowboat to prevent them from kissing. It has a bit more behind it, though — Ursula's not specifically trying to keep them apart, but instead trying to keep Ariel from fulfilling the terms of her Deal with the Devil.
    • Happens several times between Bernard and Bianca (involving a marriage proposal rather than a kiss) in The Rescuers Down Under.
    • In Tangled, Rapunzel and Flynn are about to kiss on their rowboat date...then Flynn spots the Stabbington brothers waiting for him on the shore and pulls away.
  • Cars: McQueen and Sally are interrupted by Mater on the Dinoco helicopter.
  • Used as a Running Gag in Chicken Run. Every time Ginger and Rocky try to kiss, something interrupts them. (Mostly done because the animators had no clue how to make two chickens kiss...)
  • How to Train Your Dragon:
    • Gobber is practically the king of this trope. This trait has carried over with him in stride in the animated adaptation Dragons: Riders of Berk.
    • He comes back in full force in How to Train Your Dragon 2, when Stoick and Valka have their reunion and sing a duet... Only for Gobber to jump in off-key and rather boisterous.
  • In Hulk vs. Wolverine this seems to be Deadpool's role, though he kills drama rather than romance. For example, as the Weapon X members resolve to hunt down Wolverine and there's the traditional menacing shot of the team assembled and ready for violence, Deadpool shouts, "Strike a pose!"
  • In Jack and the Cuckoo-Clock Heart, Jack and Miss Acacia are about to kiss, when the manager barges in reminding them about work.
  • In My Little Pony: Equestria Girls – Rainbow Rocks, near the end, "The Great and Powerful Trrrrrixie" interrupts a moment between Twilight Sparkle and Flash Sentry.
  • In The Nightmare Before Christmas, the Mayor does this to Jack and Sally with a spotlight in Oogie's lair when Jack finally realizes Sally's affection for him is more than Just Friends. To be fair, the Mayor did think Jack was dead (er, well, more dead then he was), and the final scene with Jack and Sally atop of snow-covered Spiral Hill is a lot more romantic than in Oogie's lair.
  • Donkey does this constantly in the Shrek films. Often to say stuff like "Isn't this romantic?"
  • Proteus' father from Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas. When Proteus proposes to Marina, the moment is butchered by his father, who needs Marina to interpret a foreign ambassador's sign language.
  • The moment killing in Teen Titans: Trouble in Tokyo drove the Robin×Starfire shippers nuts. "No! Why did you walk in now? They were about to, and Robin's wearing those!"
  • In Turning Red, Ming interrupts Mei as she's about to touch the hand of Mei's Celebrity Crush Robaire.
  • WALL•E: Another subversion of this trope pops up in the final scene: WALL•E and EVE finally hold hands, staring lovingly into each other's eyes while WALL•E's tape of Hello, Dolly! reaches the "It Only Takes a Moment" scene. Just then, the broken robots and M-O arrive to greet the two. Fortunately, M-O recognizes that WALL•E and EVE need to be left alone, and he shoos the other 'bots away.

    Films — Live-Action 
  • Marvel Cinematic Universe:
    • Ant-Man has this in a scene during which Scott Lang watches Hank Pym as he reveals to his estranged daughter Hope the manner of Janet Pym's (Hope's mother) death. Heartbroken, Hope asks why Pym never told her, to which Pym replies that he was trying to protect her. They seem to reconcile and are on the verge of tears, but are interrupted when:
      Scott: This is awesome. It's awesome, you know? You guys are breaking down walls, you're healing. It's important.
      [Hope and Hank slowly turn around to stare at Scott.]
      Scott: I ruined the moment, didn't I?
    • And to a slightly lesser extent in The Avengers:
      Tony: I thought we were having a moment.
      Pepper: I was having 12% of a moment.
    • In Black Panther (2018), M'Baku purposefully does this after T'Challa's resuscitation and reunion with his mother and sister, preparing to take back his throne from Killmonger.
      Shuri: The Black Panther lives, and when he fights for the fate of Wakanda, I will be right there beside him.
      Nakia: As will I.
      Agent Ross: I'm in, too. What? You're gonna need all the help you can get.
      M'Baku: [exaggeratedly yawning] ...Are you done? A-A-Are you, are you, are you done?
    • After the funeral, in Captain America: Civil War, Steve and Sharon look like they're gonna say something and keep going the chat they're having, but then Sam interrupts them with the notices of the recent events.
    • Another balcony scene: in Iron Man, Tony and Pepper are talking outside one of Tony's annual parties. They almost kiss and stop when both of them realize how awkward the situation is. Pepper asks for a drink and Tony goes downstairs. A related scene at the end of the movie, Tony and Pepper share a tender moment when he reminds her of "that night" on the balcony. Pepper then reminds him that he forgot to bring the drink back upstairs and left her waiting.
    • Happens AGAIN in the second movie. After Tony and Pepper finally kiss for the first time, Rhodey interrupts them and calls them "two seals fighting over a grape."
      Tony: Hey, you weren't supposed to see any of that. Get lost.
      Rhodey: I was here first. Get a roof.
    • This is pretty much Darcy's job description in Thor: The Dark World and a big part of why Thor and Jane only get to kiss when she gets to Asgard.
    • Spider-Man: Homecoming has Peter (as Spider-Man) and Liz Allen sharing a Held Gaze after he's just saved her from a falling elevator, his suit's AI even nudging him to kiss her... and then his webbing gives out and he goes tumbling down the elevator shaft.
  • Marty and Jennifer in Back to the Future are dreaming about things in the clock-tower square and are playfully flirting, coming close to a kiss. But it is interrupted by an activist asking for donations to save the clock tower, setting up the Chekhov's Gun about lightning hitting the tower later in the film. At the end of the movie (or the beginning of Part II), the return of the Delorean from Doc's trip to the future interrupts another kiss.
  • Batman & Robin: This happens a lot when Poison Ivy is seducing Robin, usually right as she and him are leaning in for a kiss.
    • At Freeze’s hideout, Poison Ivy ambushes Robin, and after interrupting him when he tries to arrest her, offers him a kiss. Batman ends up accidentally interrupting them right before their lips meet when Bane throws him over the rails, startling them both.
    • Shortly afterwards, Poison Ivy distracts Robin by filling his head with delusions of himself the hero instead of Batman. As she promises to guide him she holds him in a hug and they lean in for a kiss, only for Batman to shout for Robin not to kiss her. Robin doesn’t take being interrupted well though and attacks Batman, believing he’s just jealous.
    • Ivy and Robin end up killing the mood themselves in their last scene together. In Ivy’s lair, Robin tries to get a sign of trust from Ivy, as proof that she is really “turning over a new leaf” as she promised. She gains Robin’s trust by explaining what she and Freeze have planned and then finally gives him a kiss for luck. Immediately after the kiss though, Ivy says it was for “bad luck”, revealing her true colors and taunting Robin. Robin however further kills the mood by revealing he was wearing rubber lips and wasn’t poisoned. With the romantic mood between the two completely ruined with both of their lies and mistrust now exposed, Ivy glares angrily at Robin for outsmarting her and stealing a kiss from her, and shoves him into her pond to drown him, officially “breaking up with him.”
  • Bullshot. The Comedic Hero and the Damsel in Distress fall in Love at First Sight the moment they lay eyes on each other in a restaurant. Orchestra music swells as Bullshot bends down to kiss her hand...only to have a waiter shove a menu in front of his face.
  • In Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Shu Lien was apologizing to Mu Bai for letting the sword get stolen, believing that was the reason why he had came to see her. He said that he did not hear about the stolen sword until he arrived in town, implying he came specifically to confess his feelings towards her. When he was about to say it, a servant came in, interrupting them.
  • The Dark Knight:
    • Rachel and Bruce are on the balcony outside the large fundraiser for Harvey Dent. Just as they look like they're going to reconcile romantically, Dent comes in abruptly. To make matters worse, the Joker breaks in with his gang and promptly begins shooting up the place looking for Dent.
    • When Harvey was proposing to Rachel, Bruce appears out of nowhere to knock him out and drag him to a closet because that's when the Joker appeared, looking specifically for him. Of course, Rachel misunderstands this at first and thinks that Bruce is attacking him out of jealousy.
  • This happens several times whenever Dick and Tess try to get close in Dick Tracy. Even at the end when he finally gets the courage to propose, he has to do it quickly and then run off. (We can only assume by her accepting the ring that she said yes.)
  • From Enchanted, during the ball scene, Robert and Giselle were dancing together, including Robert singing softly in Giselle's ear (when he earlier claimed that he didn't sing), leaning quite close to each other, when Nancy and Edward interrupted them.
  • In Epic Movie, a parody of Mystique seduces the main character Peter into having sex with her. After throwing him down on a bed and making out for a little bit, she seductively asks him what she should shapeshift into. The first three requests (being a larger breast and ass size, along with a Badonkadonk) shows they are both rather into, but especially Mystique... then he interrupts the Badonkadonk and asks instead for a monobrow. She does a double-take, but he repeats it like a manchild, which she does reluctantly, basically killing the mood. He then further kills it by requesting "Big flabby grandma arms", causing her to give a rather disgusted look, but he insists loudly, now saying "like a fat blue Britney Spears". She reluctantly does, much to his enjoyment. They still start having sex, but it's clear from Mystique's disgusted moans that the sexy mood set was ruined for her, even if Peter is still really into it...
  • In Fear, Inc., as Ben and Ashleigh are getting frisky in the guest house, Joe enters, claiming to be investigating the sound of breaking glass (although there is a good chance he is just being a Jerkass. After he leaves, Ben says "This has fucked things for us, hasn't it?" as Ashleigh storms off to the bedroom.
  • In The Fighter, an intended "afternoon delight" between Micky and Charlene (complete with lingering shots of Charlene in Black Bra and Panties) is torpedoed when Micky's mother and half-sisters show up at Charlene's door to tell her off. Cat fighting ensues.
  • Harry Potter:
    • The entirety of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is just one cockblock after another for Harry. After Dumbledore ruins Harry's chance with a cute waitress and Hermione smacks him for even looking at Romilda Vane, he then has this happen twice with his true love Ginny. The first time, Ron sits down on the couch between them with an oversized plate of pies. And it just gets better when a bathrobe-clad Ginny is interrupted in kissing Harry when a gaggle of Death Eaters come right the frig out of nowhere and wreak havoc upon The Burrow. Later he finally gets one tiny kiss...and she's gone when he opens his eyes. Oh well, maybe next time. After Voldemort's defeated, or something.
      Ron: So, did you and Ginny do it?
      Harry: [startled] What?!
      Ron: Y'know. Hide the book?
      Harry: Oh. yeah.
    • Done again at the beginning of The Deathly Hallows, Part One when Ginny asks Harry to zip up her dress. Then George walks in...
      George: [smirking] Mornin'.
      Ginny: [glares]
  • At the end of Hatari!, Sean Mercer is about to consumate his marriage to Dallas when the three orphan baby elephants adopted by Dallas barge into the room, collapsing the bed when one of them tries to climb on top of it.
  • The House on Sorority Row: Mrs. Slater barges in on Vicki and Rick while they're getting their freak on and she destroys Vicki's waterbed with a sharp cane.
  • Imagine Me & You: the long-awaited make-out scene between Luce and Rachel is interrupted by the sound of Rachel's husband's voice.
  • James Bond:
  • Judge Dredd. The title character and Judge Hershey are having an intimate talk in Hershey's trashed apartment. Herman Ferguson, the comedy relief sidekick who's been tagging along with Dredd, walks in and interrupts them, then says "Is this a bad time?"
  • Louis in Kangaroo Jack, part of the Running Gag on his Ditz / Born Unlucky character. Charlie lampshades it.
    Charlie: (after making out with Jessie under a waterfall) Okay, I'll admit it. This is the most romantic moment of my entire life. (Louis screams and cannonballs into the water near them) And now it's over.
  • La Famille Bélier: A tryst between Paula's brother and best friend is put on urgent hold when it turns out her brother is allergic to latex condoms.
  • In Mad Love (1995), Matt and Casey are about to kiss in front of his fireplace when Matt's nine-year-old twin siblings arrive home, bickering loudly.
  • In another Mel Brooks film, Robin Hood: Men in Tights, after defeating the Sheriff of Rottingham and finding his key fits Mariam's Chastity Belt, Robin was about to unhook her when Mariam's nursemaid storms in, declaring: "Before you do it, you must go through it!... or else I blew it." Cue Robin snapping his fingers in frustration at being cock-blocked.
  • Jason starts to do this to himself in Mystery Team as he shares an extended embrace with Kelly, by commenting that her skin feels like what he imagines a dolphin's is like. Before this sinks in, Duncan vomits dog urine on the two of them.
  • In Next of Kin (1982), Linda notices a strange figure watching her during her little frolic in the woods with her boyfriend Barney, though he assures her "it's probably just the local ripper."
  • In Notting Hill just before the "I'm also just a girl, standing in front of a boy" speech, Will and Anna are interrupted by a random customer and by a phone call from Will's mother.
  • In Pet Sematary (2019), Louis and Rachel are starting to get amorous on the bed when they hear a noise and turn around to find that the (undead) cat Church has just dropped a badly mutilated, but still living, bird on the bed.
  • Jack Sparrow in Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl. Will and Elizabeth are finally about to have their first kiss, when Jack makes a huge noise in the next enclave, completely oblivious.
  • The raunchy 1983 teen comedy Private School starts with the protagonist's girlfriend telling him she wants to surrender her virginity to him, and after that, almost all the humor involving them in the movie is this Trope foiling their attempts to do it. (The concept of a door with locks on them seems foreign to characters in films like this.) They finally succeed at the beach near the end.
  • Used as a Running Gag at the conclusion of Ready Player One, when Wade and Samantha have their first real-world romantic moment in the back of Aech's van. First Ogden, then the police, then Ogden with lawyers, take turns opening the van's rear doors and interrupting their First Kiss with congratulations and/or questions.
  • Ron Howard's character Genius from the MST3K-featured movie Village of the Giants is this early in the film.
  • Dot Matrix, the parody version of C-3PO in Spaceballs, has a Virgin Alarm that lets out a loud klaxon when Lone Star and Princess Vespa are about to kiss. "It's set to go off before you do!"
  • In SpaceCamp, Kevin and Kathryn's kiss is interrupted by two of the camp counselors, because they weren't supposed to be outside of the camp after dark.
  • Star Trek Into Darkness: As if interrupting Kirk's fun with two Caitians wasn't enough, Pike then goes to the bar where Kirk is drowning his sorrows and cockblocks him before he can get another moment going.
  • Star Wars: C-3PO interrupts Han and Leia's very first kiss in The Empire Strikes Back with "Sir! Sir! I've isolated the reverse power flux coupling!"
    • He does it again in The Force Awakens, killing Han and Leia's heartfelt reunion by popping in frame to interrupt. Han is hardly surprised by this point.
  • Superbad: "You just cockblocked McLovin, man! He's our friend, we should be guiding his cock."
  • In Superman: The Movie, Supes goes back in time to save Lois from death, the two are just about to smooch — and then Jimmy Olsen runs onto the scene and wrecks everything.
  • In Swing Time (1936), Penny has been coming on to Lucky pretty strongly during a romantic day trip to the snowy countryside, and he's just about to throw caution to the winds and kiss her ... when Lucky's pal Pop hits him with a snowball as a reminder that he's engaged to someone else.
  • 10 Things I Hate About You combines this with Above the Influence. Kat got fairly drunk at a Wild Teen Party and Patrick spent most of the night taking care of her and she had sobered up somewhat by the time they got back to her home. She puckers up, ready for a kiss, and Patrick pulls away, which was actually the first evidence that he was starting to fall for this girl rather than being in it for the money. Of course, Kat didn't understand that at the time and left the car in a huff. A Hilarious Outtakes moment goes much differently, where Heath Ledger (Patrick) instead pulled Julia Stiles into a big, sloppy kiss.
  • Time Bandits. Vincent and Pansy are about to kiss when a time door opens above them and the dwarves (and Kevin) fall on them.
  • Total Recall (1990): As Quaid and Melina are kissing in the Martian catacombs, the rebels show up and take them into custody.
  • Mikaela in the Transformers Film Series improvised and used this as an excuse why Sam was acting nervous and jittery when his parents came into his room: "He was hiding a girl." And his parents fell for it enthusiastically, actually really happy about it. Of course, the real reason was that anxious alien robots were in the backyard.
  • Trick 1999: This makes up the entire plot with Mark and Gabriel's attempts to have sex being constantly thwarted by demanding friends. Interestingly, this is actually implied in the end to be a good thing as Mark and Gabriel were originally planning on a one-night stand only but ended up forming a genuine emotional connection somewhere amidst their continual interrupted meetings.
  • A Running Gag in Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets is Valerian's unsuccessful attempts to romance his coworker Laureline. After saving her life it looks like she's more amenable and he leans in for a kiss, only for Laureline to stop him with a Finger Muzzle, then wordlessly point out the horde of angry aliens charging towards them with edged weaponry.
  • In The Weekend, Lindsey Vuolo and David McElfresh are interrupted during foreplay when Beau Allulli and Daniel Bartkevicz set off an alarm while peeping in on them through his window.NSFW
  • Who Framed Roger Rabbit: Eddie and Dolores are about to kiss when they hear Roger sighing. "P-p-p-please, don't mind me." Again after the mystery is solved, and everyone is celebrating, Eddie and Delores try once again to kiss, but Roger pulls Eddie away to ask him a question.
  • The X-Files: Fight the Future: When Mulder and Scully are about to kiss, Scully is stung by a bee. Unless, of course, you watch the blooper in which Gillian throws David against the wall, kissing him, or a real deal deleted scene, in which the two actually do kiss, prompting Mulder to pick Scully up and go...offscreen.
  • X-Men: Apocalypse: Nightcrawler ruins the mood twice—first for Mystique's and Beast's reunion, second for interrupting an emotionally intimate moment between Charles Xavier and Moira MacTaggert.
  • Zenon: Zenon and Greg mutually are guilty of a fatal fumble on this one. At one point they are sitting side-by-side, facing the same direction, with awkward silence. Zenon tells Greg that if he wants to kiss her he should just do it already. After a pause, they both turn towards each other at the same time - and accidentally smash their faces into each other.
  • Tallahassee does this in Zombieland.The best part is, he accidentally ruined the moment by coming in and asking if they could help him build a pillow fort.
    Columbus: My God. You are like a giant cockblocking robot developed in a secret fucking government lab.
    Tallahassee: Hey...

    Literature 
  • In Venetia by Georgette Heyer, the heroine's Annoying Younger Sibling pops up every time the hero starts to propose to her.
  • Happens multiple times in Audrey, Wait!. Random Accident varieties are from the customers in the Scooper Dooper, and Sharon is the jealous rival type.
  • Bofuri: I Don't Want to Get Hurt, so I'll Max Out My Defense.: A non-romantic example occurs when Payne, the leader of the Order of the Holy Sword is about to duel Mii, the leader of the Flame Empire. Cue Maple suddenly crashing through, encased in a giant ball of wool in the mouth of a huge alligator, laughing her head off while firing lasers in every direction. Payne and Mii both stare in total bewilderment, then say they're not feeling it anymore.
  • The Case Files of Ibrahim Helsing: In the third chapter of The Miskatonic Affair, a cab driver interrupts Ibrahim and Abba's kiss.
  • Oh so many times in the Darkest Powers trilogy. Especially with Chloe and Derek. Simon is a master cockblocker.
  • Family Skeleton Mysteries: Twice in book 2, Georgia is having a friendly chat with Adam McDaniels, and his older (and less mature) son Adam Jr. manages to interrupt both times - first by honking the horn on their car outside, and later by just snorting in disgust at their interaction.
  • In Half Wild, Nesbitt interrupts Nathan and Annalise, just as Nathan was about to tell her he loved her.
  • Harry Potter:
    • In Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix Ron decides to confrontationally interrogate Cho on her favorite Quidditch team right when she and Harry are having a moment when he notices her wearing a bit of their merchandise. It is something he feels very strongly about, but he doesn't seem to have a clue until Hermione tells him off for it that he was messing things up for Harry.
    • That's exactly what happens in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows when Ginny invites Harry to her bedroom to give him his birthday present (a kiss). How far they would've gone is debatable, but they clearly would've gone past "thank you for the gift" if Ron hadn't shown up to assassinate the moment. In the film, Ron is replaced by George, who knows exactly what he's doing.
    • Later, Harry takes a turn as moment killer for Ron and Hermione — though he does have a good reason.
      Harry: OI! There's a war going on here!
  • Happens twice to Katniss and Peeta in the first two books of The Hunger Games. Both times they are kissing and she begins to feel desire for him. The first time they're interrupted by her bleeding head wound; the second time by lightning hitting a tree.
  • In the third Kate Daniels novel, Kate and Curran are having hot and heavy makeouts in a hot tub when oblivious Derek comes in and asks Curran's opinion on another matter. After he leaves, Kate shuts Curran down cold, the break giving her a chance to regain her willpower and her resolution not to get romantically involved.
  • Keeper of the Lost Cities:
    • In Exile, as Sophie has an emotional goodbye with Grady and Edaline before departing with Keefe and Silveny, Keefe breaks the moment by commenting on how "hardcore" they are with goodbyes.
    • In Flashback, Fitz and Sophie have just confessed their feelings for each other and are about to kiss when Sophie receives a telepathic cry for help from Silveny.
  • A hilarious moment in Master and Commander has a Mr. Timely showing up at Jack's door just as his girlfriend is sticking her cleavage in his face so he can see what the necklace he just gave her looks like on.
  • In The Mortal Instruments every time Jace and Clary seem to be about to exchange a moment that could turn into a Relationship Upgrade it is inevitably interrupted.
  • In Oathbringer, Shallan has her spren Pattern act as a chaperone for herself and her fiancé Adolin, since in Vorin culture it's taboo for an unmarried man and woman to be alone together. After a while, Pattern realizes his job as chaperone is to prevent them from "mating". After a long and meaningful conversation, Shallan and Adolin hold a loving gaze with each other until Pattern suddenly buzzes in and loudly declares, "No mating!"
  • In The Sorcerer's Daughter, Rothbart and Odette finally confess their love and share an embrace when Siegfried shows up and coughs tactfully... that is, tries to, forgetting his mouth is full of cherry stones.
  • A much earlier example of the meddling robot (à la C-3PO / Dot Matrix) appears in the Robert Sheckley short story Human Man's Burden. Every time the man and the woman start edging towards expressing their true feelings, an obnoxious marrying-bot bursts in, ruining the moment. Some other robots finally physically restrain the intruder long enough to allow the couple to clinch.
  • Thursday Next's time-traveling father does this to Thursday and Landen in the first book when he shows up (freezing time for everyone but himself and Thursday) to have a chat with his daughter about the invention of the banana — while she and Landen are having a moment.
  • In Time Enough for Love, when Lazarus and Maureen are headed off for an adulterous note  tryst, their moment is well and truly murdered by the abrupt appearance of Maureen's five-year-old son Woodrow, who stowed away in the car in the hopes of getting a trip to the amusement park. Their reluctance to continue is prompted not so much by concern for Woody's innocence as much as his complete inability to keep his mouth shut.
  • Universal Monsters: Captain Bob, who somehow interrupts any time Nina tries to get close to a guy. She gets really irritated about it in book 4 when he interrupts she and Levi Tovar, who has similar interests to her. Captain Bob, for his part, doesn't seem to understand why she's angry at him.
  • In Why We Took the Car, just as Isa proposes a kiss, Tschick walks in.
  • In Escaping Peril, Peril gets frustrated at Turtle for popping up just when she was finally alone with Clay.
  • In Starfighters of Adumar, Wedge and Iella, who have been undergoing something like a decade (both real time and In-Universe) of Will They or Won't They?, are giving little hints about hooking up again, but then someone bursts into the room next door to start a duel for honor, and they pull back. Of course, they get together right after that, so the moment-killer / neighbor-killer was only so effective. (He succeeded at the other of his goals!)
  • In The Memory of Earth, Hushidh goes to see her younger sister, Luet, wanting to talk about her misgivings about her impending marriage to Issib. After wondering why Issib's brother Nafai was there, she realized she had been so wrapped up in her own issues, she'd completely forgotten that Luet and Nafai were married earlier that day... And that she was barging in on their wedding night. Though the young couple were understanding and actually helped Hushidh through some of her issues.

    Music 
  • Queen's song "Tie Your Mother Down" is about the narrator taking...drastic measures to avoid his Love Interest's family ruining their moment.
  • Billy Joel's song "Leave a Tender Moment Alone" is about this but the Moment Killer is the narrator himself breaking up the moment between himself and the girl he fancies.
  • The song "Susanna" by Dutch band VOF De Kunst/The Art Company is about a man who is about to get close with his girlfriend (something he has been waiting for for a long time now), but then the moment is interrupted by a phone call from someone who dialed the wrong number. Afterwards, the romantic atmosphere is gone.
  • ZAMAGI's "It's So Good Now" music video has a very memetic moment where a guy and girl are just about to kiss...only for the guy to suddenly launch into a guitar solo instead.

    Tabletop Games 

    Theatre 
  • Henry IV, Part 1:
    • A non-romantic but still important relationship moment killer happens in this history play. Prince Hal for the first time expresses that when he becomes king, his friendship with Falstaff will end. Before Falstaff can properly answer that, the sheriff arrives to arrest Falstaff.
    • The 2012 BBC production then creates another moment killer out of that scene: after hiding Falstaff, Prince Hal and Hooker with a Heart of Gold Doll Tearsheet pretend to be "extremely busy" so when the sheriff so awkwardly interrupts them, Hal has a good excuse to send him away.
  • Toward the end of Henry V, Henry spends a great deal of words trying to woo the French princess Katherine who doesn't speak any English. After finally charming her into letting him kiss her, her father and the French and English courts re-enter to sign the terms of peace. Some productions have the couple shoot apart as if they'd been zapped by lightning.
  • In Act 2 Scene 3 of Othello, Othello is called down from being in bed with Desdemona to break up a fight between Cassio and Roderigo. It's implied that they interrupted his attempt to consummate his marriage.
  • In On the Town, Hildy and Chip's embrace is rudely interrupted by her roommate Lucy Schmeeler's violent sneezing and inhaler use.
    Lucy: Y'know, Hildy, this is just like taking a picture. If I had a camera, I could get the two of you together.
    Hildy: You could do that by just leaving the room.

    Video Games 
  • Happens a couple of times in Black Sigil. Every time Kairu and Isa seem about to kiss, Juji comes in and breaks them up.
  • Blaze Union:
    • Jenon has an unfortunate tendency towards this. Early into the story, there's a scene where protagonist Garlot and his childhood friend Siskier have a heart-to-heart while waiting for their enemies to walk into their trap—and right when Siskier has finished giving Garlot some much-needed encouragement, Jenon comes charging in with the announcement that it's time to fight. And then pauses to ask Siskier what's wrong and why her face is so red. Siskier is not amused.
    • Much later, in the final chapter of the canon route, there's a scene after the battle of the day has been won where Gulcasa and Nessiah take a few moments to praise each other on their good teamwork. Their happiness is, of course, short-lived: Jenon comes charging in to interrogate Gulcasa with no small lack of subtlety or sensitivity, leaving him very confused and upset. Nessiah then cuts in to inform Jenon that now is kind of a bad time, and proceeds to drag Gulcasa off so that the two of them can have peace and quiet. Among other things, this scene is very much meant to be a more somber Call-Back to the early one between Garlot and Siskier.
    • In yet another scene from the canon route (taking place before the Gulcasa and Nessiah one), Siskier comes out to chat with Garlot one night while the latter is worrying about the future, and over the course of their discussion, she comes very close to confessing her feelings for him several times but continually cuts herself off. Just when Garlot has finally figured out that something is weird about the way she's acting, there's a surprise attack from the enemy.
  • Borderlands 2:
    • Scooter hilariously murders a touching family moment between Ellie and himself. Ellie and Moxxi, Scooter and Ellie's mother, have argued severely in the past, disagreeing to the point of both women living on different parts of the planet. When things go bad towards the end of the game, however, Ellie asks Scooter to tell their mother that she loves her, but Scooter says that Moxxi already knows and always knew. It's really rather sweet and shows that for all their personal flaws, they're still perhaps the most loving family on Pandora. Then, Scooter returns to normal:
      Scooter: CATCH-A-FAMILIAL-RECONCILIATIOOOON!
      Ellie: Why you gotta keep doing that?!
    • Later, in the epilogue to Tiny Tina's Assault on Dragon Keep, Marcus finishes his story in an uncharacteristically schmaltzy, emotional way...
      Claptrap: I love you guys.
      [everyone groans]
      Marcus: ...and then Claptrap said something stupid and ruined everything.
  • The Curse of Monkey Island: Guybrush has just proposed to Elaine, and put the engagement ring on her finger, when Wally appears and innocently informs them that the ring has a huge voodoo curse on it. Elaine is not happy.
  • Double subverted during Angelico and Kari's romance arc in Dead In Vinland. He catches her before she falls in a river, and they stand there in one another's arms gazing at each other... until a nearby toad croaks loudly and they both crack up. However, this doesn't stop him from kissing her against his better judgment afterward — at which point he's so shocked by his own behavior that he drops her in the river. It only gets worse from there.
  • DJMAX has the NB Rangers, a group of Sentai "heroes" who specialize in causing this, often in violent ways. Several of their music videos show them going after and attacking couples on dates, such as kicking away and burning the flowers a man hands his girlfriend, or bumping a couple's heads together as they're about to kiss.
  • Dragon Age: Inquisition
    • The Inquisitor's First Kiss with Cullen gets interrupted by a soldier with an important message for Cullen. He manages to shoo off the messenger with a Death Glare in time to give the Inquisitor a "Shut Up" Kiss when she starts to chicken out.
    • One moment in the Iron Bull's romance arc has him and the Inquisitor basking in the afterglow when Cullen walks in so the Inquisitor can take care of something. Then Josephine sees Cullen standing there and thinks that the Inquisitor is available to deal with her issue. Then Cassandra sees the other two standing in a doorway and decides to investigate.
      Cassandra: Is something the mat-Aah!
      The Iron Bull: Oh, for fuck's sake!
  • In EarthBound Beginnings, right after Ninten and Ana confess their love for each other, Teddy bursts in and a giant robot attacks them, severely injuring Teddy. Real mood killer there.
  • Final Fantasy IX has one scene involving Steiner and Beatrix together... which gets wrecked when Baku walks into them, sneezing loudly.
  • Final Fantasy XV gets special mention for actually giving Noctis EXP for killing a moment during his first time in Lestallum, while Iris is showing him around.
  • Haven (2020): Near the beginning of the game, Kay and Yu are about to have fun on the table when the power goes out.
    Kay: Lights off? I'm fine with that.
    Yu: No, that wasn't me.
  • Jak and Daxter: Daxter. Daxter Daxter Daxter Daxter Daxter. Turning a kiss into an Almost Kiss once would be forgivable, but doing it twice? Thankfully, not only does Jak get his revenge in Jak 3: Wastelander, but at the end of Jak X: Combat Racing Daxter Lampshades this with "Would you just kiss her already? Sheesh!"
  • In one of the street cases of L.A. Noire, Cole Phelps becomes one of this when the suspect and his girlfriend are having a romantic moment.
  • Subverted in The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel IV where Rean made sure to run like hell to avoid being this trope when he overhears Olivert asking for Schera's hand in marriage. Rean never ends up finding out what her answer was but talking to them on the next day implies that Rean figured out that Schera said yes. Which is then revealed during the epilogue where Olivert does indeed marry Schera.
    • Played straight in Cold Steel II where Rean and Alisa are having an intimate moment at Bareahard during Alisa's bonding event, when Valimar wonders what was going on between them (take note, they're inside him).
  • The Legend of Zelda:
    • The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening: Marin has been stranded on a dilapidated bridge by monsters and Link saves her with his hookshot. She seems to finally muster up the courage to tell him that she's in love with him.... And Tarin comes calling for Marin, ruining her big chance.
    • The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass: Tetra finally gets better from being Taken for Granite, and Link and Tetra look one another in the eyes. Smiling, they reach their hands out to one another in slow-motion, and just as they're about to touch, Bellum bursts through the ceiling and steals Tetra away.
    • Ghirahim appears to love destroying any happy moment between Link and Zelda in The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword. First he knocks Zelda out of the sky with a black tornado just as she's about to give to Link what appears to be a love confession. Then he kills the second reunion (the first being halted instead by Impa) they make at gate of time by charging in and attempting to kill both Impa and Zelda. And then he shows up after the Imprisoned is killed and Zelda is released from her self-imposed seal to cockblock the two again by kidnapping the poor girl and running off into the Gate of Time.
  • Mass Effect:
    • Mass Effect: Shepard and your chosen Love Interest are getting quite close (should you pursue the romantic subplot between them) when Joker interrupts. Shepard can accuse him of doing it intentionally.
    • Also, in Mass Effect 3, if neither Garrus nor Tali was romanced, Shepard will walk in on them getting quite cozy near the end of the game. They stammer that Garrus's mandible just got caught on her helmet.
    • Mass Effect: Andromeda: Should the player pursue the Cora romance with Scott, their romance scene ends with SAM interrupting them to point out it's time for work. Lessened slightly since the two have implicitly been going at it all night by that point, but they were just about to go at it again.
  • In a cut scene in Max Payne 2, Max and Mona are in an alley heavily making out to the point where Mona is leaning against a wall with her legs wrapped around Max and her shirt pulled up to her neck and Max *ahem* below that, when they hear Mooks yelling and running towards them. They then have to end their previous activities.
  • Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater:
    • Naked Snake managed to cock-block himself. EVA moved in to kiss him and was suggesting a little more when he out of the blue decided to offer her a roasted snake, while moving his head away from hernote .
    • Later on, he declares his love for her!... except he doesn't:
      Snake: I need you.
      EVA: ... Say that for me one more time.
      Snake: I need you. I can't pilot the WIG all by myself.
    • This is eventually spoofed in the memetically famous Hiimdaisy comic: "Eva, I... I need you! (Eva starts to stare and blush in awe)... TO STOP WHINING AND FLY US OUT OF HERE!"
  • In Persona 3, during the Yakushima Island vacation, the Main Character goes out to comfort Yukari after she runs off upon discovering that her father was responsible for creating the Shadow threat the party has been fighting. After a brief and somewhat stormy conversation, depending on the player's dialog choices, the Main Character will move to embrace Yukari... and then the two will fly apart when Junpei shows up to bring them back inside. True to form, Junpei asks "Did I miss something?"
  • Marco from Radiant Historia is so good at this that at one point he manages to cause the end of the world through sheer obliviousness.
  • In Solatorobo, Red does this to Dade and Vanille. His sister Chocolat also does it accidentally to Red and Elh when she tells a group to Leave The Two Love Birds Alone too loudly and the lovebirds in question overhear her.
  • Lloyd inflicts this on himself on a regular basis in Tales of Symphonia, courtesy of being Oblivious to Love. Sheena has to put up with this constantly:
    • For example, in one skit, Lloyd asks Sheena about how he can learn summoning abilities like her. Sheena answers that he would need to become one of them to learn it. Lloyd asks how he could do that, and Sheena suggests that he’d need to marry to do so. Lloyd almost makes it seem like he’s willing to marry Sheena as a result, but then...
    Lloyd: I just need to marry someone from your village, right?
    Sheena: ...You’re so insensitive.
  • In Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World, this is Tenebrae's specialty. If an EmilxMarta scene ever gets interrupted, chances are good that Tenebrae has something to do with it (of course, not that other characters aren't guilty of this also). It even gets lampshaded a few times.
    Marta: (blush) Your hands are so warm, Emil.
    Emil: (blush) You think so?
    Tenebrae: Ah, two young hearts all aflutter. How sweet.
    Emil: "Aflutter"? Who says stuff like that anymore?
    Tenebrae: I do. You got a problem with that?
    Emil: (laugh) You're funny, Tenebrae.
    Marta: Way to kill the moment, you two...
  • At the end of Uncharted: Drake's Fortune, just as Nate and Elena are leaning in suggestively for a kiss, Sully comes out of nowhere and says "You two got a funny idea of romantic!" therefore breaking up the romance... and making it a dreaded Almost Kiss. Nice job, Sully.
  • The Walking Dead: The Final Season has two optional romance routes for Clem. Choose to pursue one of them and AJ will spend a fair amount of time innocently ruining most of the nice moments between her and her love interest.
  • Alhazad from Wild ARMs always seems to appear when two characters are alone and having a moment. He does it to Garrett and Elmina in the secret intro, and later to Rudy and Jane in Court Seim. In the latter case, he outright acknowledges his Moment Killer tendencies.
  • The Witcher 3 is loaded with love scenes, but one example of this trope that comes to mind is in the Hearts of Stone expansion. If you come on to Shani after she's had too much wine, she throws up, pretty much ruining what was, up to that moment, a rather romantic interlude.

    Visual Novels 
  • Ace Attorney:
    • Becomes a running gag when Detective Gumshoe walks in, accompanied by a loud "Thump" and exclaims "Hope I'm not interrupting anything!" Cue the icy stares and Gumshoe sulking off. After which Phoenix will promptly call him over. It was a running gag in the bonus fifth case where Gumshoe would then retort "You're doing this on purpose, aren't you? Making a gumshoe run around while on duty! And on top of that, you drag me here! I've seen happier people at funerals!"
    • The Judge does this many times too. Many a tense moment is spoiled by him misunderstanding words or saying something stupid. For example when Edgeworth is saying about how the Chief of Police Gant used Lana as his puppet and the suspense music starts up, only for the music to stop abruptly as the Judge says this stupid remark:
      Judge: You mean despite his manly structure and power, the Chief of Police... likes to play with puppets?!
  • Amnesia: Memories' fandisc Amnesia LATER has several occur in Kent's After Story. Both are trying to kiss, but when it isn't the egg-timer in the kitchen going off to interrupt them, it's Kent's cellphone.
  • Cafe Enchante:
    • In Rindo's route, just when Kotone and Rindo were about to kiss, the regulars, who have been watching them from a distance, deliberately call his phone to ruin their moment and accuse him of taking advantage of her.
    • In Ignis's route, Kotone and Ignis were having a heartfelt moment where Kotone almost confesses her feelings to Ignis when Kororo, who was playing in the waters, sends a large wave towards Ignis. Ironically, Kororo is a Shipper on Deck for Ignis and Kotone and most likely didn't realize he was interrupting them.
  • Doki Doki Literature Club!
    • Day 2 and day 3 follow the same pattern where you get closer to one of the girls (other than Monika) based on your previous choices, until Monika announces it's time for everyone to read their poems of the day together. Thus, Monika's announcement keeps interrupting whatever moment you were having with one of the others. It turns out she's actually jealous too, in spite of pretending otherwise, so maybe it's not coincidental.
    • You're going to spend the day before the school festival with either Yuri or Natsuki, after which Sayori from next door shows up to interrupt what was possibly turning into a goodbye kiss and to give her own Anguished Declaration of Love after the other girl runs off.
  • In the Fate/stay night games, Sakura tends to walk in at bad moments. This is especially bad in Fate/hollow ataraxia where she manages to walk in on just seemingly every scene that Shirou and Rider have together. Perhaps justified though — Sakura is Rider's Master, also likes Shirou, and the few times she doesn't walk in, Rider and Shirou tend to end up naked.
  • A Little Lily Princess: One of the factors making Lavinia's route chaotic is that both times Sara and Lavinia manage to have a tender moment prior to the finale, Miss Minchin, the headmistress of their Boarding School, walks in on them, forcing them to part.
  • Early in Sea Bed Sachiko and Takako share a intimate moment during their vacation and start kissing in the middle of a rainstorm, only to be startled by the sound of leaves rustling. It turns out to be a coconut crab. Takako later recalls the crab and, clearly annoyed, suggests finding it and cooking it for dinner.
  • Beatrice pulls this on George and Shannon in Umineko: When They Cry. After Shannon asks George to tell him that he loved her, Beatrice just trolls up, and replies: You really thought I'd let him say it? DUMB ASS! and then kills them both.
  • While Wildfire and Chase are necking in the woods of War: 13th Day, Brooks pops up. Totally topless.

    Web Animation 
  • In asdfmovie 5, one of the skits is about a couple who are relaxing together under the moonlight, when the moon tells them they should kiss. However, it's unknown if the couple heard the moon.
  • One vignette in the Bad Days short Disassembled has Bruce Banner's and Betty Ross's romantic dinner get cut short after Bruce's Hair-Trigger Temper causes him to Hulk Out after dropping a pea. Worse, Bruce would have proposed to Betty if he controlled himself that night.
  • In one of the early BIONICLE animations, Hewkii and Macku appear to be about to kiss when they turn around and realize their friends are right behind them. Luminescent Blush ensues. Then, of course, that moment got Killed Off for Real via Retcon, since BIONICLE characters aren't supposed to be capable of having romantic feelings.
  • In the Homestar Runner cartoon Date Nite, Homestar and Strong Bad do this on purpose to Marzipan and The Cheat.
    Homestar: Ah, good evening ungodly couple, my name is Waiter, I will be your Homestar for this evening. Can I start you two off with a glass of "Breaking Up", or perhaps "Never Seeing Each Other Again" with capers?

    Webcomics 
  • Bittersweet Candy Bowl has this a few times.
    • Yashy a few times in the older stuff about 2/3s of the way down.
    • Thanks for that, Lucy. She was trying to be graceful!
    • Well, it's David and all. MAKE OUT!!
  • Deliberately set up in Blip. When Hester gets set up on an unwanted date, she arranges for her friend K to "accidentally" run into them and act as a third wheel for the remainder of the date.
  • But I'm a Cat Person: A loud and obnoxious ringtone starts blasting just when Bennett and Cohen are about to kiss.
  • Casey and Andy:
    • Strip 627: Andy pops in to inform Casey of the arrival of Jenn's time-traveling daughter, and the necessity to embark on further temporal misadventures to save the timeline... while he's in the middle of proposing to his girlfriend. Of course, Mary is very understanding and even lets Casey go off with Andy to save the timeline.
    • "Cockblocked by God. That's gotta suck"
  • City of Somnus has one when Paollo and Odette have just successfully crossed a slightly eldritch swamp and are complimenting each other on how great they did and how great everything's going to be from now on... and all of a sudden a Feyn who looks like Snufkin on dope appears to say:
    Feyn: Sure is a lot of SAP in the trees 'round here.
  • Dubious Company has a moment that acts as both a romance killer and a heroism moment killer. Walter and Tiren are being chased by Mary, Gary, and Marty and reach a cliff. Walter rips off his shirt (he has wings) and grabs Tiren. Meanwhile, the rest of the crew is climbing up said cliff. Leading to this exchange. Did I mention Tiren is Walter's first mate?
  • In 8-Bit Theater, Black Mage accidentally killed his own moment. The one time when it seemed he might be slowly winning the heart of White Mage, he casually let it slip that his Hadoken siphons love out of the universe every time it's used... and that he sacrificed several children to obtain the spell. She didn't take it too well. Tough luck for BM, but if he ever reads this page, he'll feel better knowing he killed something. Except that he would probably want those moments back. And this is not the only time Black Mage cockblocked himself either.
  • El Goonish Shive:
    • Often, usually with Sarah doing the moment-killing — and occasionally realizing that she'd just killed a moment. Also lampshaded in the process of aversion when Tedd asks Grace why she's leading him away from Ellen and Nanase as if they need privacy for some reason.
    • The Demonic Duck deliberately interrupts Justin and Susan during the party using his illusion powers. Afterward, they're both grateful the "light bulb burned out".
  • Freefall:
    • In this strip Florence and Winston are about to kiss, but are interrupted by a watching young boy crying out "there's a man outside who's gonna kiss a dog!" (Florence is an uplifted red wolf, whereas Winston is a human male.)
    • Later, a quiet romantic moment between Florence and Winston is interrupted by Sawtooth Rivergrinder, when he accidentally buries them in sand.
  • Girl Genius:
  • Forgath has become this in Goblins whenever he shows up as Minmax and Kin discuss their feelings... and lately as the two are sharing a very tender hug after Minmax saved Kin from imaginary Goblinslayer/the mysteriously growing forest.
  • Gunnerkrigg Court:
    • Chapter 18 begins with Kat walking in on her parents as they're getting intimate. They resume intimacy after she had left the room.
    • In Chapter 30, with Parley having admitted her love for Andrew, as they're moving in for their first kiss, Antimony interrupts them by continuing the discussion they were having beforehand. Then seconds later does it again when the moment is in danger of reestablishing itself. Kat has to drag Antimony off.
  • iMew: In the fifth page, Lydia barges in on Sammy and Raf, hoping to be interrupting something romantic.
  • This becomes a Running Gag in Kid Radd, due to the fact that the two characters' original game always ended just before they kissed.
  • Knights Errant: Wilfrid the Heartless is the killer of many things- "the moment" among them. Like here, where he kills the moment so hard that the moment's ancestors probably felt it.
  • Ménage à 3: The trope is, after all, something of a stock feature for any Sex Comedy — even one like this one, where people do actually sometimes succeed in having sex. For example...
    • In early strips, it seemed to verge on a Running Gag that Zii was prone to constantly — and usually unintentionally — cockblocking Gary.
    • Sonya arrived (due to Zii trying to throw Gary a boner) just as Yuki was volunteering to model at least topless for him.
    • It seemed at one point that everything in the world was conspiring to keep Matt from giving DiDi a toe-curling orgasm, from nosy roommates to Japanese girls afraid of penises and accidents with chili sauce.
    • Later, Yuki and Sonya challenge each other to seduce each other, despite the fact that (a) they're already having semi-regular sex, and (b) they can't actually stand each other. (It's a long story.) This leads to some almost-deliberate moment killers...
      Yuki: ICK! I have that same pair of panties at home! Guess I'll have to burn them now!
  • Misfile: Rumisiel plays the Moment Killer on Ash and Em in an early strip, sending their relationship straight down Belligerent Sexual Tension alley. And here we have Ash and Em having a significant moment, with Em just on the verge of saying something, before Missi storms in and kills the mood deader than dead.
  • Nerf NOW!!: a strip depicts two female Engineers having a heated argument while leaning their heads in to kiss. Scout, an impatient, twitchy loudmouth, is of course a natural Moment Killer and interrupts before they do anything.
  • When Ghanny in 1/0 spoils the ending of a poem.
  • The Order of the Stick:
  • ReBoot: Code of Honor: Bob and Dot almost share a kiss towards the end of the comic, but Lens shoots Bob with a beam that dematerializes and transmits him before they do, though.
    "Hmph. Kissing. Disgusting."
  • Sandra and Woo:
  • In Sinfest, whenever Slick and Monique have a genuinely tender moment, it will usually be ruined by Slick's stupidity or Seymour showing up and bothering them.
  • Sluggy Freelance: Torg and Zoe have something like this happen a few times.
    • In the chapter "Summer Vacation", Zoe feels attracted to Torg after he does something heroic (if stupid). Even Kiki comments that they're going to smooch. But when Zoe starts telling how brave she thinks he was, he obliviously says that if she was impressed by it, another woman he has a crush on is "going to flip", and goes to call her. The moment is killed so thoroughly Zoe stops showing any such inclination for years.
    • Later, having realized he's in love with her, Torg tries to win Zoe's heart with a giant bejewelled necklace he found in a pyramid as a Christmas present. She's quite taken with the gift until she puts it on and it turns her into a camel.
    • Subverted in "Love Potion," when Torg and Zoe look at each other by accident while they think they're under the influence of a potion that makes people madly attracted to the first person they see. As they're staring at each other, Gwynn pops up to tell them the potion's effects have worn off. After she leaves, Torg finally asks Zoe out and she readily accepts.
    • The big moment killer comes in the same chapter, during said date. Just as he's contemplating leaning over and kissing her, he suddenly finds lips touching his - but they belong to an immortal assassin who is extremely obsessed with him. To protect Zoe, he has to insult her and then laugh it off when said assassin kicks her in the face, right before dragging him away to get married. Epic moment kill.
    • Done for all sorts of drama in the "bROKEN" Story Arc. Zoe has just realized that Torg's in love with her, and, to her own amazement, that she loves him back. And Torg's rushing to her location right at that moment. Then the assassin mentioned above sets Zoe on fire, seemingly killing her just as Torg arrives on the scene.
  • In Spacetrawler, Pierrot manages to ruin his own moment. When his love interest Emily is outnumbered and outgunned, Pierrot swoops in on a hoverbike, gun a-blazing, and then takes Emily in his arms and kisses her. Then...
    Pierrot: Sorry about the whole Fiyena thing.
    Emily: Holy hell, do you know how to ruin a mood.
  • In S.S.D.D., Richard gets Heather (the wife of his old friend Jessie Kingston and who really wants to get in his pants) really worked up—then blows away the moment very deliberately.
    Heather: "Are you going to stop teasing and put it in?"
    Richard: "Nope."
  • The title character of Experimental Comic Kotone is a Moment Killer, a theory that Konstantin forcibly tests out here.
  • In Umlaut House 2, Volair and Saundra, worried that their son Pierce is moving too fast with his boyfriend, come up with a brilliant way to kill the mood: they make a big show about ensuring that everything is ready for the two to have a great night together, then remind them that they'll both be right upstairs if they need anything else.
    Piece: What do you call it when suddenly having everything you'd need to do something assures you that there is little or no chance of you getting up the nerve to do it for, like, a year?
    Volair: "Mission Accomplished".
  • Yet Another Fantasy Gamer Comic: After King Eric (finally) realizes the love of his life and ideal candidate for Queen is Clover, he proposes, they kiss... and it turns out quite a few people came to cheer them on (most of the kingdom actively shipping the two, with the king being the only one dense enough not to see it).

    Web Original 
  • 20020: In chapter 12, the Oklahoma coach's Rousing Speech is interrupted by a player yelling over the phone that a fish bit him on the dick.
  • In the fourth book of Shadow of the Templar, Jeremy, normally calm and emotionally unaffected, suddenly kisses Simon passionately and seems to be about to tell him something important. Of course, they're interrupted before he can get it out.
  • A variant of this trope occurs in SOTF-TV, where, after a traumatic first day, Amber Lyons and Sterling Odair start to get... "intimate". Unfortunately, however, each team has a mentor which can give advice through the collars. Soon enough...
    Jared Clayton: Less fucking, more playing. Keep it in your damn pants and maybe watch your fucking backs for once? Wanna wind up like Anthony? Thought not. Wanna argue? I won this game. Fuck you. You have a godsend of a mentor, and he's telling you to wise up.

    Web Video 
  • In The Awkward Compilation, Alex performs this function for Lester and Steph. Lester being the target of his stalkerish affections, it's entirely intentional. Lester doesn't take it well.
  • Critical Role: During the climactic final boss fight of Campaign 2, Jester is brutally stabbed to death by Lucien. Caduceus, the only other person able to cast Revivify, quickly runs over to her... at which point Matt accidentally knocks over several pieces of the map, forcing him to pause the scene so he can put everything back together.
    Taliesin: ...and with my imagination I send the entire city crumbling down!
  • Shannon calls Tom in Echo Chamber's "Trope Of The Week" Unresolved Sexual Tension and ruins a moment between him and Dana.
  • The Nostalgia Chick:
    • In her countdown of songs about sex, the Chick manages to kill the moment herself when, after Todd in the Shadows agrees to sleep with her (out of boredom) she puts on one of the songs from her list and he immediately runs away.
    • There's also Mignon, her puppy, who likes to nom on her mistress even when Dark Nella is being all threatening.
  • The Spoony Experiment: In Spoony's Vlog/Review of the New Moon movie, he comments on how Bella and Jacob are about to kiss several times before something stupid happens, such as, as he put it, a guy runs in yelling "Hey you guys I made muffins!!".
  • Sword Art Online Abridged: At the beginning of Episode 11, Asuna is admiring the sleeping Kirito and anticipating a bit of morning fun when he awakes, when her reverie is interrupted by a DM from Heathcliff, summoning them both to guild HQ.
    Asuna: Fucking clam jammer...
  • A variation of this, but in Two Best Friends Play The Walking Dead, Matt decides to have Lee shoot Duck. Normally, people are saddened by this, even some people who didn't like Duck, but then Matt says his favorite phrase: "SEE YOU LATER, FUCKER!"

    Western Animation 
  • On American Dad!, there's always something to ruin Steve's chances with attractive women.
    • "Failure Is Not a Factory-Installed Option": Just as Steve and his friends are about to reach first-base with the popular girls, after setting up a drive-in, the cars Stan gathered are repo'ed and the girls leave with the repo man who calls this "an evening full of disappointment and compromise" for these boys.
    • "A Jones for a Smith": A crack-addicted Stan ruins Steve's chance to hook up with a beautiful girl whose father is willing to let Steve sleep with her.
    • In one episode, Stan and Steve are having a really sweet moment, then Steve says: "Are we having a father-son moment?"
  • Archer: In "Skorpio", Archer and Lana have a moment in the middle of a shootout with arms dealers where Archer remarks on how amazing Lana's eyes are. He of course ruins it a second later by saying "I mean, not compared to your tits, but...", causing Lana to shoot him in the foot.
  • Avatar franchise:
    • Avatar: The Last Airbender:
      • In "The Earth King", the group was parting ways for a little time, and Aang wanted to confess his feelings to Katara. Just as he said, "I kinda want to tell you something..." Sokka swings his arm around him and excitedly talks about where they are going.
      • Earlier Aang finds himself in the rather odd situation of having the person he's trying to talk to be the moment killer: when he first tells Katara how he feels she's so completely not paying attention that she actually shushes him.
      • Aang managed to do a pretty impressive job of moment killing himself in "The Cave of Two Lovers."
        Aang: What? I'm saying is I would rather kiss you than die - that's a compliment.
      • Zuko and Katara have a gentle moment where Katara was pondering whether to use her healing powers on Zuko's scar... when Aang bursts through the cave wall to come to the rescue. Word of God has repeatedly said that nothing romantic was implied in that scene anyway, except maybe a cruel "never-going-to-happen" Ship Tease.
      • Zuko also picks a very bad time for a chat with Sokka, although this doesn't actually kill the moment so much as delay it for a few minutes.
      • And even later when Zuko (whose disguise made Aang think was some random stranger) sits between Aang and Katara when Aang wanted to sit next to Katara. Zuko is really bad at this.
      • Runs in the family: Azula does it to Zuko and Mai during their sunset picnic. Azula does it on purpose. Zuko simply doesn't think. (He's older and more experienced than most of the kids on the show, it's just that he's a bit too self-focused to realize other people might have relationships outside him.)
      • In the comic continuing the series, we see what happened just after that last kiss between Aang and Katara.
    • In The Legend of Korra, Korra makes a second Anguished Declaration of Love to Mako after he accuses her of dating Bolin just to annoy him. Then she kisses him and he seems pretty into it... until they see Bolin holding a bouquet which was clearly meant for Korra and bawling his eyes out. Not that that kiss was going to end well anyway.
  • Batman: The Animated Series has a scene during Two Face's two-part Start of Darkness. The scene where he is looking at a photo of him and Grace and trying to decide whether or not he should go to her is incredibly touching... until you spot the bank card with the name "Two Face" on it and realize he must have walked right into a bank and opened an account under his villain identity.
  • In the "Teen Talk" episode of Beavis and Butt-Head, Beavis and Butt-Head are about to hook up with Lolita and Tanqueray when Captain Dick Jackman cockblocks them and the two girls end up making out with two members of the production crew instead.
  • Played with on Code Lyoko. After returning from a school break, Yumi wanted to talk to Ulrich about their UST. No less then three times in 10 minutes, as they tried to have that moment, they were interrupted. When they finally get the needed 30 seconds, Yumi then gives him the dreaded Just Friends line. Ouch.
  • Towards the end of DuckTales (2017) Season 2, when Della returns to Earth, she realizes that she has to make a good first impression to her family, so she starts practicing different greetings (such as hiding behind a plant) right on their doorstep. The scene cuts to Scrooge and the kids about to go off on another adventure when Scrooge casually whips open the door right as Della performs one of her lame greetings. Downplayed, as it then goes the typical way a dramatic reunion scene would go.
  • In The Fairly OddParents!, "Wishology Part III" had a Running Gag about Timmy and Trixie trying to kiss, but a different character would interrupt them each time: first Mark, then Mr. Turner, then finally Jorgen, who may be the worst (or best, depending on how you look at it), since he flat out tells Timmy he's wiping everyone's memories, effectively hitting a Reset Button of the relationship.
  • Futurama:
    • In the Pilot "Space Pilot 3000", Bender killed Fry and Leela's very first "moment" by placing his hand on top of their joined hands. Fry called him out on it.
      Fry: What is the matter with you?
      Bender: I just wanted to be part of the moment.
    • In the episode "A Flight to Remember", where the characters travel on a cruise spaceship:
      Leela: Looks like everybody's got somebody. Except me.
      Fry: And me.
      (they Almost Kiss, when the ship shakes and they fall over)
      Leela: What was that? Oh, my God! We're heading straight into a black hole.
      Fry: Talk about a mood killer!
    • In the episode "Parasites Lost", Fry himself kills the moment. First, he runs away to get rid of the parasites, hoping to prove that Leela loves him and not just what the parasites did for him. When he came back, and Leela was rather miraculously still in the mood, he managed to tick her off by bringing an old girlfriend into the conversation. Fry would rather win her over while remaining who he is instead of letting the miracle worms keep turning him into Batman.
    • One of the most epic moment killers ever involved an episode where time would skip forward randomly, such that certain things would happen and the character never remembers how they got to that point. Fry had managed to convince Leela to marry him in one of those skips and she divorced him during another, so he tried to figure out what he did to convince her in the first place. As it turned out, to stop the time skips they had to drop several dozen stars into a black hole so it wouldn't interfere with the rest of the universe. Using the star moving device, Fry spelled out a declaration of love using the stars themselves. Before he could point it out to Leela the Doomsday Device sucked all the stars into the black hole.
    • The entire premise of the season 7 episode "Fry and Leela's Big Fling". Fry and Leela try desperately to have a romantic moment together, but are constantly interrupted by friends and coworkers. They then go on a trip to be alone, until they run into Leela's previously mentioned ex-boyfriend Sean who is trapped there with his wife. When they leave, they are alone and proceed to have sex, but it turns out that their "resort" was actually a zoo on a planet populated by apes and unbeknownst to them, everything they did was on display.
  • In an episode of G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero, Cobra Commander spots Destro and Baroness making out and immediately orders them to stop. The scene is so well known and popular amongst Joe fans that it's lead to the popular joke "Cobra Commander has the latest in cock-blocking technology."
  • In Gravity Falls, Grunkle Stan interrupts a man who is in the process of proposing, in order to crack a joke about how terrible marriage is.
  • Jimmy Two-Shoes: When Jimmy is under the influence of a love sweater, his attempts to kiss Heloise are thwarted by Beezy who, due to the effects of a fear sweater, "rescues" him.
  • Justice League Unlimited:
    • Flash managed a dramatic moment killer: the league makes a perfect, epic entrance and the awe of the moment gets Narmed by Flash shouting "Ta-da!" More traditional examples happen to moments between Green Lantern and Hawkgirl. A few of these happened to Batman and Wonder Woman. One time, they were discussing their potential relationship when an alarm sounded off.
    • Joker manages to do this between Hawkgirl and Green Lantern... Literally. GL got better.
  • Happens on Kick Buttowski between Kick and Kendall. They're having a moment... that really only seems to lead to one thing, which apparently a member in the audience picks up on and thus shouts "KISS HER!", to which the moment is ruined and the pair feels disgusted.
  • Wade does this a few times in Kim Possible. Apparently it was funny according to the writers.
  • Miraculous Ladybug has a several, but one sticks out. In the episode "Dark Cupid", the Monster of the Week has the power to spread a hate plague. Cat Noir is about to confess his feelings to Ladybug, and... gets affected by the aforementioned hate plague. He gets better through True Love's Kiss though, so it evens out.
  • Phineas and Ferb:
  • ReBoot: In addition to the moments listed under Almost Kiss, there was the reunion between Bob and Dot after almost an entire season of being separated. That got interrupted by Mouse getting to Bob first and passionately kissing him in front of Dot, which killed the moment and led to a bunch of awkward almost hellos and almost handshakes.
  • The Simpsons: In the "New Kid on the Block" episode, the Simpsons' babysitter, Laura Powers and Jimbo Jones are making out at second base when Moe Syzlak charges into the Simpsons' house to threaten Jimbo with a rusty and dull butcher knife in retaliation for making prank calls that Bart made in his name, causing Jimbo to break down in tears. Laura then dumps him.
  • Parodied in South Park; for most of the series, every time it's even theoretically possible Stan and Wendy might be on their way toward having a moment, he throws up. Usually on her. Funnily enough, his lack of such responses indicates that he isn't crushing on her anymore, so she's genuinely happy when he does again.
  • In an episode of The Spectacular Spider-Man, Gwen keeps attempting to suggest that she'd like to go to the High-School Dance with him (since she Cannot Spit It Out any other way), but Peter is her Moment Killer by confessing that he had been going to go with an older girl, but she turned him down. And then Gwen tries to be a little more blunt...("She's not the only girl who would...")...before Peter changes the subject.
  • In Superman: Brainiac Attacks, the title villain is the moment killer for Clark and Lois. Let's face it, all supervillains seem to have perfect timing for moment killing...
  • Super Robot Monkey Team Hyperforce Go!:
    • In the "A Ghost in the Machinder" episode, Sprx appears to be about to confess his love to Nova when he thinks they're about to die. The Super Robot barges into the scene before Sprx can spit it out. Ironically enough, the Super Robot was saving their lives.
    • In the final episode, Valeena also does this to Sprx and Nova. Nova finally confesses her love for Sprx and kisses him on the cheek. Before Sprx can answer to her confession, Valeena interrupts their moment by starting the resurrection of the Skeleton King.
  • Teen Titans, between both the series itself and Teen Titans: Trouble in Tokyo, is fond of doing this whenever two characters share a quiet moment, be it romantic or platonic in nature. Robin and Starfire naturally get the brunt of this.
    • Beast Boy and Raven had two major instances of this, both of which involved one comforting the other and affirming that they're still cared for and appreciated despite their outsider statuses. The first one was Cyborg throwing a ball of dirty laundry at Beast Boy's head while he and Raven shared a rare hug at the end of "Spellbound", and the second was killed by Beast Boy himself telling bad jokes at the end of "The Beast Within", much to Raven's annoyance.
      Raven: We're having a moment here. Don't ruin it.
    • When Starfire was cheering Cyborg up about not being normal at the end of "Deception", the rest of the Titans show up to wrestle Cyborg into a pink dress as an "initiation", since he had technically quit the team during the events of the episode.
      Robin: (singsong) Oh, Cybooooorg....
  • Lampshaded in the Thunder Cats 2011 episode "Song of the Petalars" Lion-O and Cheetara are sharing a tender moment alone by a campfire, when Snarf jumps onto Lion-O's face.
    Lion-O: Are you kidding me? Now?
  • Total Drama Island:
    • Cody constantly kills Gwen and Trent moments by trying to win Gwen's affections. He even manages to pull this off in the intro.
    • Owen also does this pretty frequently. In the Island intro, he kills a moment between Geoff and Bridgette, and in Action, he interrupts a Gwen and Trent moment to ask them if they're going to make out (and gets pelted by sticks for his trouble). Heck, in one episode of Island, he and Cody killed a Gwen and Trent moment together!
  • In the TRON: Uprising episode "Rendezvous", Beck and Paige are gazing into each other's eyes... and then Pavel bursts in and arrests them.

    Real Life 
  • General news reporter/news anchor Wendy Rieger when interviewed on a college cable channel said that one thing that annoys her is when fans bother her for an autograph and end up twatblocking her when she's trying to pick up guys.
  • This trope was invoked by a group of guys none too happy with their friend ditching them to try and have sex with a girl. So they set about sabotaging him on Facebook in the most blatant way possible.
    I though you were better than claiming "I have this shit in the bag."
  • Ask any parent how many times they've been interrupted. Children are master Moment-Killers.
  • Leaving the TV on during romance can lead to this. Bad commercials can kill the moment like they were paid to.


Alternative Title(s): Mood Killer

Top

Dog Stars

Whilst stargazing Dylan and Summer entertain each other with knowledge of the constellations, which is lost on Dolly and Spike who are more interested in each other.

How well does it match the trope?

5 (4 votes)

Example of:

Main / StargazingScene

Media sources:

Report