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Anime and Manga
"I don't need a reason to save someone."
— Touma Kamijou, A Certain Magical Index
"I just can't turn my back on [him/her]!"
— Taiki Kudou, Digimon Fusion
"I won't leave you! I'm sick of watching people die, and I can't just sit back and take it anymore! I won't let anyone else get killed! Not when I can protect them!"
— Alphonse Elric to Lt. Riza Hawkeye, Fullmetal Alchemist
"If there's a person right there who I can save and I'm told she can only be saved by me, of course I'll choose to save her!"
— Kagome Higurashi, InuYasha
"I've never really thought of myself as a savior, I just want to fight strong opponents. But I can't just stand by and watch innocent people and animals suffer. That's what my grandpa taught me."
—Goku, Dragon Ball Super
"Helping others is my hobby."
—Hibiki Tachibana, Symphogear
Comic Books
Supergirl: You think I should stop?
Superman: No. But Kara, you spend so much time trying to save everyone else, to be the hero that everyone expects you to be, that you don't get a chance to relax. You're Supergirl twenty-four hours a day, and I think it's starting to hurt more than help.
Superman: No. But Kara, you spend so much time trying to save everyone else, to be the hero that everyone expects you to be, that you don't get a chance to relax. You're Supergirl twenty-four hours a day, and I think it's starting to hurt more than help.
— Supergirl (2005), #34
Clark Kent: She spends all of her time in that cape. She's missing out on so much... because I think she's afraid to lose it again.
Lois Lane: Kara's been through a lot of trauma.
Clark: I only want her to be happy.
Lois: You want everyone to be happy.
Clark: Is that wrong?
Lois: No, Clark. It's just unusual.
Lois Lane: Kara's been through a lot of trauma.
Clark: I only want her to be happy.
Lois: You want everyone to be happy.
Clark: Is that wrong?
Lois: No, Clark. It's just unusual.
"A disease from outer space... a plane-crash... army ants—! And that thing that camps on my trail! So many problems — I can't think where to begin!"
— Superman, Kryptonite Nevermore
"I stopped loving you when you came home - no, when you came back. When you came back and you couldn't stop. Because you're like me. You never came home. You never will."
—Gamora, to Richard Rider, Guardians of the Galaxy (2020)
Usagi: I can't just stand by and do nothing.
Chizu: Of course you can...but you never do.
Chizu: Of course you can...but you never do.
Frankie Fama: Why you gotta keep picking on me? Look around! The world is going to hell and ya gotta stop a robbery?! Why—why? Why me?! I'm a nobody! I'm just some guy!!!
Spider-Man: Some guy? You think you're just some guy? You think the crimes you commit don't matter? That nobody's ever gonna get hurt because of you? Frankie, buddy, I'm here to tell you… I know different. So yeah, the world might be going to hell. Alien slime monsters might be eating the Empire State Building. But until you stop doing what you're doing, I'm never going to stop finding you and putting you away. Because to me, you're not "just some guy".
Spider-Man: Some guy? You think you're just some guy? You think the crimes you commit don't matter? That nobody's ever gonna get hurt because of you? Frankie, buddy, I'm here to tell you… I know different. So yeah, the world might be going to hell. Alien slime monsters might be eating the Empire State Building. But until you stop doing what you're doing, I'm never going to stop finding you and putting you away. Because to me, you're not "just some guy".
— Amazing Fantasy issue #1000, "Just Some Guy"
Fan Works
"Every time someone cries out in prayer and I can't answer, I feel guilty about not being God."
"Listen to me: There will always be someone in need. There will always a villain to capture, always a monster to slay. Will you continue to pursue them forever? My worst nightmare, Adam, is seeing you fight battles for the needy until the end of time, never once knowing peace, with no one knowing or caring about your struggles..."
— Adam's wife, Fahl, Mass Effect: Human Revolution
"This is what happens, Hisagi-fukutaichou," the noble had finally revealed, words heavy with resignation, "when a man with overwhelming power, a strong sense of responsibility, a compassionate heart, and a penchant for saving as many lives as possible is placed in a war. He never comes back, because he cannot. For every moment he is away from the battlefield, a man could be killed in his absence. A death that he could have prevented. And Ichigo could never accept that."
"I enjoy a good hero - they're so predictable. One little nudge and off they run towards the screaming."
"Why am I doing this?! It makes no sense! I don't even know these people! Why am I fighting a giant fucking goat demon for them?! This is stupid. Why should I care what happens to any of them? They're all just a bunch of stupid sheep who let Corvatz lead them off a cliff. They knew exactly what they were walking into! Which just begs the question, WHY AM I STILL HERE?! (flashback to Sachi's death) DAMMIT!!"
— Kirito, Sword Art Online Abridged
"Aaaaaaand the rescue-addict makes his appearance."
"Besides, when someone needs help, I help! That's basically my entire character!"
Scott wasn't quite sure how he'd ended up buying the goat. It had taken almost all the money Scott had brought along with him, but now he owned the ill-tempered creature. Someday, he vowed, he'd learn to ignore the little voice that always got him in to these messes. Next time, he swore to himself that he'd just walk away and mind his own business.
Archer: What the fuck is wrong with me, why did I do that?
Shirou: Because you're secretly a really good guy, and you couldn't just let your protege die!
Archer: You're not my protege! I didn't mean to save you.
You thought that for Sora to want to save you, you had to be someone important to him. But you didn’t know him well enough to realize… all you need to do for Sora to want to rescue you is to be in trouble somewhere where he can see. Playing the hero is one of his fundamental qualities as a person, after all.
Hoshi: {checks his injured shoulder} So... that’s going to take a day or so to heal up.
Tachibana: You know that just from checking it?
Hoshi: Not the first time I’ve been injured. I know my wounds when I feel it.
Tachibana: Hoshi... That’s just it. You’re getting injured. A lot more frequently than people your age normally do. If you continue like this...
Hoshi: I know. But...
Tachibana: No one is putting a gun to your head and demanding you fight as Dante. However, people are worried for your health. Not just me. Your sister, Meteora and the others, their Creators, Kikuchihara, your friend...
Hoshi: Mizushino doesn’t need to concern himself with me. All that matters to me is that I’m up and ready to take on the next threat.
Tachibana: Hoshi... Are you even listening to yourself!? You’re still recovering from this fight and you’re thinking of throwing yourself into another one?
Hoshi: Re:Shocker isn’t taking a break, so I shouldn’t.
Tachibana: You know that just from checking it?
Hoshi: Not the first time I’ve been injured. I know my wounds when I feel it.
Tachibana: Hoshi... That’s just it. You’re getting injured. A lot more frequently than people your age normally do. If you continue like this...
Hoshi: I know. But...
Tachibana: No one is putting a gun to your head and demanding you fight as Dante. However, people are worried for your health. Not just me. Your sister, Meteora and the others, their Creators, Kikuchihara, your friend...
Hoshi: Mizushino doesn’t need to concern himself with me. All that matters to me is that I’m up and ready to take on the next threat.
Tachibana: Hoshi... Are you even listening to yourself!? You’re still recovering from this fight and you’re thinking of throwing yourself into another one?
Hoshi: Re:Shocker isn’t taking a break, so I shouldn’t.
Film - Animated
Grampa: Homer? What the hell are you doing now?
Homer Simpson: Risking my life to save people I hate for reasons I don't quite understand. Gotta go!
Homer Simpson: Risking my life to save people I hate for reasons I don't quite understand. Gotta go!
Bob: What can I say, Rick?
Rick: Nothing you haven't said before.
Bob: Someone's in trouble!
Rick: Someone's always in trouble.
Bob: I have to do something!
Rick: Yeah. Every time you say those words, it means a month and half of troubles for me and hundreds of thousands of taxpayers' dollars. We gotta pay the company to keep quiet. We gotta pay for damages, erase memories, relocate your family. Every time it gets harder! Moneymoneymoneymoneymoney-we can't keep doing this Bob! Look Bob, we appreciate what you've done in the past, but those days are gone. From now on, you're on your own.
Rick: Nothing you haven't said before.
Bob: Someone's in trouble!
Rick: Someone's always in trouble.
Bob: I have to do something!
Rick: Yeah. Every time you say those words, it means a month and half of troubles for me and hundreds of thousands of taxpayers' dollars. We gotta pay the company to keep quiet. We gotta pay for damages, erase memories, relocate your family. Every time it gets harder! Moneymoneymoneymoneymoney-we can't keep doing this Bob! Look Bob, we appreciate what you've done in the past, but those days are gone. From now on, you're on your own.
Film - Live-Action
"I don't destroy victims, I save them!"
— Ben Tennyson, Ben 10: Alien Swarm
"A few years ago, I nearly lost Pepper. I trashed all my suits. And then we were mopping up HYDRA, and then Ultron. And then, and then and then... truth is, I can't stop because I don't wanna stop."
Steve: If I see a situation pointed south, I can't ignore it. Sometimes I wish I could.
Tony: No, you don't.
Steve: ... No, I don't.
Tony: No, you don't.
Steve: ... No, I don't.
"When you can do the things that I can, but you don't... and then the bad things happen, they happen because of you."
Victor Laszlo: You ran guns to Ethiopia. You fought against the fascists in Spain.
Rick Blaine: What of it?
Victor': Isn't it strange that you always happen to be fighting on the side of the underdog?
Rick: Yes. I found that a very expensive hobby, too. But then I never was much of a businessman.
Rick Blaine: What of it?
Victor': Isn't it strange that you always happen to be fighting on the side of the underdog?
Rick: Yes. I found that a very expensive hobby, too. But then I never was much of a businessman.
Lucius Malfoy: Well, let us hope that Mr. Potter will always be around to save the day.
Harry Potter: Don't worry. I will be.
Harry Potter: Don't worry. I will be.
John McClane: You know what you get for being a hero? Nothin'. You get shot at. You get a little pat on the back, blah, blah, blah, attaboy. You get divorced. Your wife can't remember your last name. Your kids don't want to talk to you. You get to eat a lot of meals by yourself. Trust me, kid, nobody wants to be that guy.
Matt Farrell: Then why you doing this?
John McClane: Because there's nobody else to do it right now, that's why. Believe me, if there were somebody else to do it, I'd let them do it, but there's not. So we're doing it.
Matt Farrell: Ah. That's what makes you that guy.
Matt Farrell: Then why you doing this?
John McClane: Because there's nobody else to do it right now, that's why. Believe me, if there were somebody else to do it, I'd let them do it, but there's not. So we're doing it.
Matt Farrell: Ah. That's what makes you that guy.
Thug: What the fuck is wrong with you, man? You'd rather die for some piece of shit that you don't even fucking know?
Kick-Ass: Three assholes laying into one guy while everyone else watches, and you wanna know what's wrong with me?! Yeah, I'd rather die! NOW BRING IT ON!
Kick-Ass: Three assholes laying into one guy while everyone else watches, and you wanna know what's wrong with me?! Yeah, I'd rather die! NOW BRING IT ON!
— Kick-Ass
Lois Lane: It's going to come out eventually. Somebody's going to get a photograph, or figure out where you live...
Clark Kent: Well then, I'll just disappear again.
Lois Lane: The only way you could disappear for good is to stop helping people altogether, and I sense that's not an option for you.
Clark Kent: Well then, I'll just disappear again.
Lois Lane: The only way you could disappear for good is to stop helping people altogether, and I sense that's not an option for you.
"Me? I'm dishonest, and a dishonest man you can always trust to be dishonest. Honestly. It's the honest ones you want to watch out for, because you can never predict when they're going to do something incredibly... stupid."
—Jack Sparrow, Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
"You need to stop carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders."
—May Parker to Peter Parker, Spider-Man: Homecoming
No, Vida. There are times when you help people, and then there are times when if you help people you end up getting yourself killed, so you don't help people...
—Noxeema Jackson to Vida Boheme, To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar
Literature
"I take it you didn't stop the clock," said Miss Susan, looking up and down the street.
"No. I was... too late. Perhaps I shouldn't have gone back to help Lu-Tze."
"I'm sorry? You were dashing to prevent the end of the world but you stopped to help some old man? You... hero!"
"Oh, I wouldn't say that I was a-" And then Lobsang stopped. She hadn't said "you hero" in the tone of voice of "you star;" it had been the tone in which people say "you idiot."
"I see a lot of your sort," Susan went on. "Heroes have a very strange grasp of elementary maths, you know. If you'd smashed the clock before it struck, everything would have been fine. Now the world has stopped, and we're being invaded, and we're probably all going to die, just because you stopped to help someone. I mean, very worthy and all that, but very, very... human..."
She had used the word as if she meant it to mean "silly."
"No. I was... too late. Perhaps I shouldn't have gone back to help Lu-Tze."
"I'm sorry? You were dashing to prevent the end of the world but you stopped to help some old man? You... hero!"
"Oh, I wouldn't say that I was a-" And then Lobsang stopped. She hadn't said "you hero" in the tone of voice of "you star;" it had been the tone in which people say "you idiot."
"I see a lot of your sort," Susan went on. "Heroes have a very strange grasp of elementary maths, you know. If you'd smashed the clock before it struck, everything would have been fine. Now the world has stopped, and we're being invaded, and we're probably all going to die, just because you stopped to help someone. I mean, very worthy and all that, but very, very... human..."
She had used the word as if she meant it to mean "silly."
"You would flirt with chaos, destruction - with war. For the sake of this one wounded soul?"
I smote my staff on the floor, reaching deep for power. Deeper than I've ever reached before. Outside, in the gathering morning, the air crackled with thunder.
Bianca, even Ortega looked abruptly uncertain, looking up and around, before focusing on me again.
"For the sake of one soul. For one loved one. For one life." I called power into my blasting rod, and its tip glowed incandescent white. "The way I see it, there's nothing else worth a war for."
I smote my staff on the floor, reaching deep for power. Deeper than I've ever reached before. Outside, in the gathering morning, the air crackled with thunder.
Bianca, even Ortega looked abruptly uncertain, looking up and around, before focusing on me again.
"For the sake of one soul. For one loved one. For one life." I called power into my blasting rod, and its tip glowed incandescent white. "The way I see it, there's nothing else worth a war for."
"But the world wasn't a fair place, was it? And I had more reason to know it than most people twice my age. The world wasn't nice, and it wasn't fair. People who didn't deserve it suffered and died every single day.
So what? So somebody ought to do something about it."
So what? So somebody ought to do something about it."
— Harry Dresden, Ghost Story
"This isn't a criticism, Harry! But you do... sort of... I mean — don't you think you've got a bit of a — saving people thing?"
— Hermione, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
[Sanzang] heard a shout of 'help!' and said to his disciple with shock, "Disciple, what's that cheer in the middle of these mountains?"
"You just keep going, Master," said Monkey, coming up to him. "Stop worrying about chairs, whether they're carried by people or mules, or whether they're open topped or litters. Even if there were a chair here there'd be no one to carry it for you."
"I'm not talking about chairs for carrying but about cheers," said Sanzang.
"I know," said Monkey, "but its no concern of yours. You just keep going."
"You just keep going, Master," said Monkey, coming up to him. "Stop worrying about chairs, whether they're carried by people or mules, or whether they're open topped or litters. Even if there were a chair here there'd be no one to carry it for you."
"I'm not talking about chairs for carrying but about cheers," said Sanzang.
"I know," said Monkey, "but its no concern of yours. You just keep going."
— The Monkey King tries to defy this trope, Journey to the West
"This habit of taking on to your shoulders the harvest of other people's bloomers is growing upon you, Comrade Jackson. You must check it. It is like dram-drinking..."
— Psmith
"You didn't think. You reacted, eager to save the world and to do it alone."
— Mara Jade to Luke Skywalker, Star Wars: Hand of Thrawn
Parian: She’s a lot like me. She wants to protect people. She’s willing to make sacrifices for the people she cares about.
Regent: Terribly unhealthy. Worse than smoking, even.
Regent: Terribly unhealthy. Worse than smoking, even.
— Worm
I will protect those who cannot protect themselves.
I didn’t have a client this morning, or even an hour ago, but now I have. Mr. Rowcliff's ferocious spasms, countenanced by you gentlemen, have made the challenge ineluctable. When Mr. Goodwin said that I was not concerned in this matter and that he was acting solely in his own personal interest, he was telling the truth. As you may know, he is not indifferent to those attributes of young women that constitute the chief reliance of our race in our gallant struggle against the menace of the insects. He is especially vulnerable to young women who possess not only those more obvious charms but also have a knack of stimulating his love of chivalry and adventure and his preoccupation with the picturesque and the passionate. Priscilla Eads was such a woman. She spent some time with Mr. Goodwin yesterday [...] Within three hours of her eviction by him at my behest, she was brutally murdered. I will not say that the effect on him amounted to derangement, but it was considerable. He bounded out of my house like a man obsessed, after telling me that he was going single-handed after a murderer, and after arming himself. It was pathetic, but it was also humane, romantic, and thoroughly admirable, and your callous and churlish treatment of him leaves me with no alternative. I am at his service. He is my client.
— Nero Wolfe on Archie Goodwin, Prisoner's Base
"This isn't the sort of business that comes with a lifetime guarantee. You start because it's the right thing to do, and by the time you realize that the only way to quit is a closed casket funeral, it's too late to get out. That's just the way it is."
—Alice Price-Healy, InCryptid
Sam: It shouldn't have to be you all the time.
Antimony: It isn't. It's just that this sort of thing happens a lot more often than anyone realizes. There's not a chosen one. There never was. There's just people, all over the world, trying their best to make sure the sun comes up tomorrow. We do the job because we know the job exists, and once you know the job exists, it's hard to pretend it doesn't matter.
Antimony: It isn't. It's just that this sort of thing happens a lot more often than anyone realizes. There's not a chosen one. There never was. There's just people, all over the world, trying their best to make sure the sun comes up tomorrow. We do the job because we know the job exists, and once you know the job exists, it's hard to pretend it doesn't matter.
— InCryptid: That Ain't Witchcraft
It's, I don't know, a kind of hunger. I can't help it. I've got these abilities, these Gifts, and I can't not use them. I couldn't sit here, knowing that there were people out there who need exactly the kind of help I can give them and not make the effort to find them and take care of them. It's like backing Stavan - it's just something I could not even see myself not doing. I can't explain it, Van, I can't. I have to, or - I'm not me anymore.
—Herald-Trainee Tylendel, Last Herald-Mage Trilogy
Live-Action TV
"I can't tell you what to do. I've been wrestling with this one my whole life. I see fifteen people held hostage on a bus, and everything else goes out the window. I will do whatever it takes to save them – and I mean whatever it takes."
— Jack Bauer, 24
"I trust Dylan to be Dylan. When the universe collapses and dies, there will be three survivors: Tyr Anasazi, the cockroaches... and Dylan Hunt, trying to save the cockroaches."
— Tyr Anasazi, Andromeda
"Just go, stop noticing. Just go, stop noticing. Just go, stop noticing... STOP IT! Am I noticing? No! I am not! What I am not doing is scanning around for electrical fluctuations. Oh shut up you! I'm just dropping in on a friend, the last thing I need right now is a Cortina full of teleport energy! I am going! Do you hear me, going! Not staying, going! I am through saving them! I am going away now!"
— Eleventh Doctor, Doctor Who
Ari: A rich man opens the paper one day. He sees the world is full of misery.
Gus: I-I-Is this a, uh...?
Ari: It's a parable. A rich man opens the paper one day. He sees the world is full of misery. He says, "I have money. I can help." So he gives away all of his money. But it's not enough. The people are still suffering. One day, the man sees another article. He decides he was foolish to think just giving money was enough. So he goes to the doctor and says, "Doctor, I want to donate a kidney." The doctors do the surgery. It's a complete success. After, he knows he should feel good, but he doesn't, for people are still suffering. So he goes back to the doctor. He says, "Doctor, this time I want to give it all." The doctor says, "What does that mean, 'Give it all'?" He says, "This time I want to donate my liver. But not just my liver. I want to donate my heart, but not just my heart. I want to donate my corneas, but not just my corneas. I want to give it all away. Everything I am. All that I have." The doctor says, "A kidney is one thing, but you can't give away your whole body piece by piece. That's suicide." And he sends the man home. But the man cannot live knowing that the people are suffering and he could help. So he gives the one thing he has left. His life.
Gus: ...And does it work? Does it stop the suffering?
Ari: You live in the world. What do you think?
Gus: So he killed himself for nothing?
Ari: Did he?
Gus: Well, I mean... You're saying... What are you saying?
Ari: Only a fool thinks he can solve the world's problems.
Gus: ...Yeah, but you gotta try, don't you?
Gus: I-I-Is this a, uh...?
Ari: It's a parable. A rich man opens the paper one day. He sees the world is full of misery. He says, "I have money. I can help." So he gives away all of his money. But it's not enough. The people are still suffering. One day, the man sees another article. He decides he was foolish to think just giving money was enough. So he goes to the doctor and says, "Doctor, I want to donate a kidney." The doctors do the surgery. It's a complete success. After, he knows he should feel good, but he doesn't, for people are still suffering. So he goes back to the doctor. He says, "Doctor, this time I want to give it all." The doctor says, "What does that mean, 'Give it all'?" He says, "This time I want to donate my liver. But not just my liver. I want to donate my heart, but not just my heart. I want to donate my corneas, but not just my corneas. I want to give it all away. Everything I am. All that I have." The doctor says, "A kidney is one thing, but you can't give away your whole body piece by piece. That's suicide." And he sends the man home. But the man cannot live knowing that the people are suffering and he could help. So he gives the one thing he has left. His life.
Gus: ...And does it work? Does it stop the suffering?
Ari: You live in the world. What do you think?
Gus: So he killed himself for nothing?
Ari: Did he?
Gus: Well, I mean... You're saying... What are you saying?
Ari: Only a fool thinks he can solve the world's problems.
Gus: ...Yeah, but you gotta try, don't you?
"Some doctors have the Messiah Complex - they need to save the world."
— Wilson, House
"This is the problem with being a good guy, though. It gets under your skin!"
— Eliot, Leverage
"The key to hunting Jedi is patience. Jedi cannot help what they are. Their compassion leaves a trail. The Jedi Code is like an itch, he cannot help it!"
— The Grand Inquisitor, Obi-Wan Kenobi
Iris: We can start where we left off, your hero complex, which men often develop in response to being bullied as a child.
Reese: Iris, my school didn't have bullies. I kept them in line.
Iris: Uh, bullying bullies is kind of the very definition of a hero complex... You seem distracted. There something else on your mind?
Reese: You could say that.
Iris: Look, I'm not sure what you're running from, but-
Reese: I'm not running from anything. I'm trying to save someone!
Reese: Iris, my school didn't have bullies. I kept them in line.
Iris: Uh, bullying bullies is kind of the very definition of a hero complex... You seem distracted. There something else on your mind?
Reese: You could say that.
Iris: Look, I'm not sure what you're running from, but-
Reese: I'm not running from anything. I'm trying to save someone!
"Ah, yes. [My husband's gone to] pistol-whip the trucking industry... because he can't save a gunshot victim and he can't stop a hurricane."
— First Lady Abigail Bartlet, The West Wing
Radio
Turlough: I suppose it's too much to ask to arrive somewhere tropical with beaches and pretty girls. What am I doing anyway? Standing in a Moscow back-alley, talking to myself and trying not to freeze my-
(A door at the other end of the alley opens, and Cord shoves Lena out of it)
Cord: Move it!
Lena: Let go of me! (screams)
Turlough: Oh no.
Lena: You're hurting me!
Cord: I warned you; I told you to stay away. You didn't listen.
Turlough: This is nothing to do with me. I'm just going to stay quiet and not get involved.
Lena: Please, someone help me!
Turlough: We'll go back to the TARDIS and leave...
Cord: Be quiet!
Turlough: ...and that will be that.
(Cord slaps Lena across the face)
Turlough: Oh hell. Doctor! Doctor, get back here, quickly! I know I'm going to regret this... OI! YOU! What do you think you're doing?! Let her go!
(A door at the other end of the alley opens, and Cord shoves Lena out of it)
Cord: Move it!
Lena: Let go of me! (screams)
Turlough: Oh no.
Lena: You're hurting me!
Cord: I warned you; I told you to stay away. You didn't listen.
Turlough: This is nothing to do with me. I'm just going to stay quiet and not get involved.
Lena: Please, someone help me!
Turlough: We'll go back to the TARDIS and leave...
Cord: Be quiet!
Turlough: ...and that will be that.
(Cord slaps Lena across the face)
Turlough: Oh hell. Doctor! Doctor, get back here, quickly! I know I'm going to regret this... OI! YOU! What do you think you're doing?! Let her go!
Theater
"That bench stays crowded
It's a regular wailing wall
Penniless and helpless
Ignorant and scared
He collects 'em all!"
It's a regular wailing wall
Penniless and helpless
Ignorant and scared
He collects 'em all!"
Video Games
"[Alice] has a "hero complex:" an inherent desire to help others, being unable to help herself, and compulsion to make the world right... She's trying to "unlock" the true meaning of her life. And she doesn't know who has the key."
— Dr. Wilson, Alice: Madness Returns
Carl: W-what? Why did you...!?
Litchi: "Why...?" I don't know... I wonder why...? But... I was worried about you, so I followed you here.
[...]
Carl: Why did you protect me...? How can you do that!? I don't understand...
Litchi: Do I need... a reason.. to help someone in need...?
Litchi: "Why...?" I don't know... I wonder why...? But... I was worried about you, so I followed you here.
[...]
Carl: Why did you protect me...? How can you do that!? I don't understand...
Litchi: Do I need... a reason.. to help someone in need...?
— BlazBlue: Calamity Trigger, Promise
"So, we're going to solve every squabble in the village personally, are we? My, but the darkspawn will be impressed."
— Morrigan, Dragon Age: Origins
"I'll continue. I must. If I give up now... I could do anything I wanted to, and yet... Even if I was with you, I could never forget."
— Yuna, Final Fantasy X
Nhadala: We've got a prickly situation. Fiends are attacking the Cactuar Nation!
Yuna: We'll take care of it! Benzo, let's go!
Paine: I was wrong. She doesn't get dragged into trouble.
Rikku: She jumps in headfirst.
Yuna: We'll take care of it! Benzo, let's go!
Paine: I was wrong. She doesn't get dragged into trouble.
Rikku: She jumps in headfirst.
Rikku: Isaaru’s changed, too, huh?
Maroda: Him? He’ll never change. (sighs) He goes around playing superhero and leaves us with all the headaches.
Rikku: Hey, I know someone like that.
Paine: Oh, someone who goes around playing superhero, is it?
Yuna: You mean Brother!
Paine: Wrong.
Yuna: Buddy?
Rikku: Nope.
Paine: Well, uh, Rikku, why don’t we get going?
Rikku: Yup, sounds good.
Yuna: Come on. Tell me who!
Maroda: Him? He’ll never change. (sighs) He goes around playing superhero and leaves us with all the headaches.
Rikku: Hey, I know someone like that.
Paine: Oh, someone who goes around playing superhero, is it?
Yuna: You mean Brother!
Paine: Wrong.
Yuna: Buddy?
Rikku: Nope.
Paine: Well, uh, Rikku, why don’t we get going?
Rikku: Yup, sounds good.
Yuna: Come on. Tell me who!
"Hero. Summoner. Doormat."
— Shinra summarizes Yuna, Final Fantasy X-2
"How did we arrive in this situation, exactly?"
"Because Matthew can be talked into anything, that's how."
"Because Matthew can be talked into anything, that's how."
"Have you got some pathological need to help people? Not that I'm complaining; it's just weird, is all."
— Miller, Kult: Heretic Kingdoms
Goredolf: Huh? Why would you do that?
Holmes: I understand your confusion, Goredolf, but this is simply how Chaldea... ah, rolls, as they say. I do hope you'l learn to accept it. Rest assured that endeavors like this are far from fruitless. They may be fraught with risk, but their returns more than make up for it.
Holmes: I understand your confusion, Goredolf, but this is simply how Chaldea... ah, rolls, as they say. I do hope you'l learn to accept it. Rest assured that endeavors like this are far from fruitless. They may be fraught with risk, but their returns more than make up for it.
Tali: And what are you doing here, Shepard? We're in the middle of Geth space!
Shepard: I was in the neighbourhood. Thought you might need a hand?
Shepard: I was in the neighbourhood. Thought you might need a hand?
Amazing Spider-Man: Where does this so-called death happen?
Spider-Man 2099: Sloan's building another gateway on the 66th floor so he can travel back and forth. I saw you being killed right there.
Amazing Spider-Man: By who?
Spider-Man 2099: I couldn't make it out. It doesn't matter. Get out of the building.
Amazing Spider-Man: So a crazed killer can wander around the building without me to stop him? No way. Besides, if I find this guy somewhere else, then I'm invincible, since I can only die at the gateway, right?
Spider-Man 2099: It's... not an exact science, Parker.
Amazing Spider-Man: Meaning what?
Spider-Man 2099: You want to spend an hour getting a crash course on temporal physics? No? Then do what I say.
Amazing Spider-Man: You've got a lot to learn about priorities, pal. I'm going to do what I think is right, and that means going after bad guys. You want a Spider-Man who'll do whatever you want? Go play a video game.
Spider-Man 2099: Sloan's building another gateway on the 66th floor so he can travel back and forth. I saw you being killed right there.
Amazing Spider-Man: By who?
Spider-Man 2099: I couldn't make it out. It doesn't matter. Get out of the building.
Amazing Spider-Man: So a crazed killer can wander around the building without me to stop him? No way. Besides, if I find this guy somewhere else, then I'm invincible, since I can only die at the gateway, right?
Spider-Man 2099: It's... not an exact science, Parker.
Amazing Spider-Man: Meaning what?
Spider-Man 2099: You want to spend an hour getting a crash course on temporal physics? No? Then do what I say.
Amazing Spider-Man: You've got a lot to learn about priorities, pal. I'm going to do what I think is right, and that means going after bad guys. You want a Spider-Man who'll do whatever you want? Go play a video game.
Based on the recent pattern, I anticipate a landing near St. John (New Brunswick). I plan to drive across the border and stake out the area.
Probably a waste of time, but I'm frustrated by inaction. I can't sleep anymore. I lie awake, haunted by the watchful eyes of those poor lost girls... waiting for us to find them.
—Mark Meltzer, Bioshock 2: There's Something In The Sea
Ashleigh: Jingo was tellin' me there are some real characters in Leeves. Like this one sucker who spends all his free time doing everything anyone asks him to. Maybe you know him?
Rean: (I can feel her eyes boring into me...)
Kurt: (If she can make Instructor Rean sweat like that, she must really be something else...)
"I can't just look away when monsters are attacking someone right in front of me, right?"
— Yuri Lowell, Tales of Vesperia
Mei: Kiana, you're always like this. Even if you're battered, you'd still force a smile. You saved me. You saved us all. Yet you shoulder everything alone, at the cost of your life.
Kiana: Mei! This is my... mission...
Webcomics
"Confound it! An entire train full of helpless Sparks AND dangerous monsters AND a handy chasm nearby. Someone is tempting me. So not fair!
This is ridiculous. There were only two and a half innocent people on this train (Jäger = 0.5 person). Surely I can skip the last one. Yeah.
No. I can't. This is what being A Hero is about. I should never have taken that aptitude test back at the university. I wanted to be a chef."
This is ridiculous. There were only two and a half innocent people on this train (Jäger = 0.5 person). Surely I can skip the last one. Yeah.
No. I can't. This is what being A Hero is about. I should never have taken that aptitude test back at the university. I wanted to be a chef."
— Other Tryggvassen (GENTLEMAN ADVENTURER!) on Twitter
, Girl Genius
, Girl Genius Web Original
Zoe: You’re out of your league!
Nancy: Yes, I am always out of my league, but I’m trying to help!
And there’s something about the way Nancy says it that just feels like this moment of triumph for her. It’s not just that her loved ones have been holding her back throughout the game or that Zoe hasn’t believed in her. It’s that this attitude has defined her entire career as a detective, and everyone is just always telling her that she can’t do this, that she’s just a meddling, immature girl who won’t be able to handle herself when she finds herself in a dangerous situation. But that’s not even the point. She has always known she’s unwanted there, but she has to do what she does if it means making the world better, bringing evil people to justice, repairing families, restoring someone’s well-earned wealth to them. And so when she’s defending herself here, I think she fully understands the impulse that made Kate leave— because Nancy couldn’t imagine not helping people, not doing what she loves, even if it means putting herself in danger over and over again. Kate was in over her head, too, but she was trying to help, and there’s nothing more noble in the entire world.''
Nancy: Yes, I am always out of my league, but I’m trying to help!
And there’s something about the way Nancy says it that just feels like this moment of triumph for her. It’s not just that her loved ones have been holding her back throughout the game or that Zoe hasn’t believed in her. It’s that this attitude has defined her entire career as a detective, and everyone is just always telling her that she can’t do this, that she’s just a meddling, immature girl who won’t be able to handle herself when she finds herself in a dangerous situation. But that’s not even the point. She has always known she’s unwanted there, but she has to do what she does if it means making the world better, bringing evil people to justice, repairing families, restoring someone’s well-earned wealth to them. And so when she’s defending herself here, I think she fully understands the impulse that made Kate leave— because Nancy couldn’t imagine not helping people, not doing what she loves, even if it means putting herself in danger over and over again. Kate was in over her head, too, but she was trying to help, and there’s nothing more noble in the entire world.''
— A blogger analysing a scene in Nancy Drew: The Silent Spy
analysing a scene in Nancy Drew: The Silent Spy "This is subtle and a bit counterintuitive but beware of the rescuer-martyr. The person that's always rushing out to help and give everyone else their all whether or not it's needed or whether the recipient is comfortable with it. They are good people, very well intentioned and saintly in their generosity with their time and energy. However, sometimes it goes to the extreme and then it's more a symptom of a toxic cycle where they only get meaning and self-worth when they are saving someone; or maybe they keep swooping into people's lives to fix things in hopes that someone will do the same for them.
They may have good intentions but they tend not to have good boundaries; they get overinvolved in your life; take on way too much and make everyone's problems their own. They end up overwhelmed, mired in drama, and resentful. And then they become the martyr."
They may have good intentions but they tend not to have good boundaries; they get overinvolved in your life; take on way too much and make everyone's problems their own. They end up overwhelmed, mired in drama, and resentful. And then they become the martyr."
— WeddingElly, on the r/AskReddit thread "What Red Flags In Friendships Do People Ignore?"
" Western Animation
Six: I told you not to get involved, Rex. You are not at full strength.
Rex: What was I supposed to do? Just leave it?
Dr. Holiday: Six has a point, Rex. You are pushed to the edge lately. You can't save everyone.
Rex: Not listening.
Rex: What was I supposed to do? Just leave it?
Dr. Holiday: Six has a point, Rex. You are pushed to the edge lately. You can't save everyone.
Rex: Not listening.
— Generator Rex, "Mind Games"
Mike: I guess we oughta save [Lu].
Og: It'd be the right thing.
Mike: Funny, I usually enjoy doing the right thing.
—Mike, Lu & Og, "The Good Ship Bad"
"I will never, ever turn my back on people who need me!"
—Katara, Avatar: The Last Airbender, "The Painted Lady"
Commissioner Barbara Gordon: Terry?
Terry McGinnis: (walking in) I'm okay, now.
Barbara: Listen to experience, kid. I appreciate what you've done tonight, but ditch the costume. You can't live a life of narrow escapes forever. It's a thankless existence, and the rewards are small, if any.
Terry: (petting Ace) Well, sometimes the small rewards are the best ones.
— Batman Beyond, "Splicers"
