Get It Over With: Difference between revisions

{{trope}}

 

You face certain death. Perhaps you're gravely wounded, perhaps you have [[The Cavalry|no reinforcements]], perhaps you [[Last Stand|face overwhelming force]]. Except that the killer is just standing there, waiting for his moment. Waiting for an [[Why Isn't It Attacking?|unreasonably long time.]]

 

 

 

 

{{examples}}

 

* In ''[[Robotech]]'', Miriya, after Max knocks away her knife with a rock:

 

 

== Comic Books ==

* ''[[Watchmen (comics)|Watchmen]]'': {{spoiler|Rorschach}} does die after it, although in this case, he actually had to convince his killer that he couldn't be reasoned with.

* ''[[Elf Quest]]'' #1, [http://www.elfquest.com/gallery/OnlineComics/OQ/OQ01/DisplayOQ01.html?page=6 spoken by Redlance when he's about to be sacrificed by humans]. {{spoiler|He gets rescued.}}

* In ''Deathstroke'', a young assassin named Janissary came after Deathstroke. The fight ended with Janissary's hanging by one hand from a bridge with Deathstroke standing over him and telling Deathstroke to end it. Deathstroke retorts that if J wants him to kill him, J will have to hire him.

* ''[[The Princess Bride (film)|The Princess Bride]]'', Inigo. See page quote. The villains are [[Dirty Coward|slightly less eager]] to die.

* Played for comedy in the [[Marx Brothers]] movie ''Monkey Business''.

* During the so-called "climax" of ''[[Shrek|Shrek 3]]'', Shrek asks Charming to kill him first and ''then'' sing, much to the amusement of Charming's captive audience.

* Variation in ''[[Darkman]]'': "If you're not going to kill me I have things to do."

* In ''[[The Wild Bunch]]'', they are riding away {{spoiler|after a massively cocked-up holdup}}, and one of the wounded Bunch (who was shot in the face) pleads with Pike to "Please...just ki--" (Pike shoots him before he even ''says'' it.) Which cues the following exchange:

'''Lyle''': You crazy bastards! ''Both'' of ya! }}

* In ''[[Little Caesar]]'', when Rico attempts to force Joe to return:

* Probably the best moment in the 2007 ''[[TMNT]]'' movie, when Karai and The Foot Clan sneak into the office of a big businessman, Winters, voiced by [[Patrick Stewart]].

* In ''[[The Terminator|Terminator Salvation]]'', when it seems the T-800 is about to kill John Connor, he defiantly yells at it, "Do it! [[Precision F-Strike|You son of a bitch!]]"

* [[Downplayed Trope|Downplayed]] in the original ''[[The Last House on the Left]]'', due to the victim in question saying it only once whilst actively trying to put obstacles and distance between himself and his attacker.

* In the film ''Patriot Games'', as the Irish terrorists rescue their leader and prepare to execute the guards who were escorting him to prison, the leader asks one of the guards if he has anything to say.

 

 

== Literature ==

* [[Robert Heinlein]]'s ''[[The Star Beast]]''. Johnny's alien pet Lummox has been sentenced to death. Johnny helps Lummox escape, but they're hunted down and trapped. One of the pursuers approaches them.

''The officer looked distressed. "What are you talking about, son? We aren't here to hurt him. We have orders to bring him in without a scratch on him - even if we lost men in the process. Craziest orders I ever had to carry out."'' }}

* In [[Rick Riordan]]'s ''[[Percy Jackson and The Olympians|The Last Olympian]]'', Percy interrupts a (divine!) quarrel to tell them that if they mean to kill him, they should get on with it.

** In the [[Backstory]], when the Night Haunter's assassin hesitated, he told her "Now do your job and be done with it."

* A [[Memetic Mutation|famous quote]] from Polish novel ''The Deluge'', when [[Anti-Hero]] Andrzej Kmicic faces [[Knight in Shining Armor]] Michal Wolodyjowski - the "small knight" and a master fencer. The latter easily hits the first a couple of times, and Kmicic asks to end this and spare him the humiliation.

* In [[George R. R. Martin|George R. R. Martin's]] ''[[A Song of Ice and Fire]]'' novel ''A Clash of Kings'', Jon Snow prepares to kill the captured wildling Ygritte, which he is reluctant to do both on account of her gender and that she had surrendered. For her part, she faces death with equanimity, although it's plain she'd rather not die. Finally she tells him to hurry because she "can't stay brave forever." That's when he tells her to go.

** Another examples occurs in ''A Storm of Swords'':

* In [[Dan Abnett]]'s [[Gaunt's Ghosts]] novel ''First & Only'', Flense threatens to shoot Dorden, whom he is [[Hostage Situation|holding hostage]], if Gaunt mocks him. Dorden tells Gaunt to mock on, so he can be shot rather than listen to Flense's "garbage."

* Death isn't involved, but in ''[[The Thrawn Trilogy|Dark Force Rising]]'', after they meet with Senator Garm Bel Iblis, a man Lando Calrissian is suspicious of and Han Solo admires, Lando asks "You want to go ahead and and get it over with?" "Get what over with?" "Chewing me out for not bowing and scraping in front of your pal the Senator. Do it and get it over with, because we have to talk."

** In the ''[[Star Wars Expanded Universe|Star Wars: Tales of the Bounty Hunters]]'' [[Anthology]], there's a story about how Boba Fett escaped the Sarlacc. The Sarlacc, as the story reveals, is more or less sentient, sort of having the mind of its first victim, and preserves its victims for millennia, getting it to tell them their life stories and forcing them to relive the memories of others while [[And I Must Scream|being kept immobile and dissolving]]; it keeps them even after death. Fett, hearing this, demands to know why it doesn't just kill these people, is told/shown an old joke. It's about a farmer with a meat animal that has one leg missing, that apparently can [[Amplified Animal Aptitude|sing and speak and take care of the farmer's children]]. Asked why it has a missing leg, the farmer says "A barve like that, you don't eat it all at once." Much later, after escaping and healing, Fett hovers in his ship with the weapons pointed at the Sarlacc, and it tells him ''You liberate me from the long Cycle''. But he doesn't shoot it, and when it wants to know why, he repeats that joke's punchline.

** In his allegorical novel ''The Pilgrim's Regress'', John meets Death in a mountain pass on a stormy night. John realizes that it has been the fear of death that has motivated him his entire life. Death hammers home that he only has two choices:

"Then I am your servant and no more your master. The cure of death is dying. He who lays down his liberty in that act receives it back." }}

* Humourously averted in ''[[The Bartimaeus Trilogy]]'':

'''Bartimaeus''': Not that. [[I Shall Taunt You|The rubbish joke you're thinking up.]] About it being good of me to ''hang around'', or something like that. Go on, you know you want to. Get it out of your system. }}

* In Colleen [[Mc Cullough]]'s ''Antony and Cleopatra'', Caesarion says to Octavian, "Get on with it already, Octavianus!"

* In Andy Hoare's [[White Scars]] novel ''Hunt for Voldorius'', when Voldorius reveals he knows that Malya [[Reverse Mole|sent information to his foes]], she tells him to kill her. He reveals worse plans.

* In the miniseries ''Merlin'', when Mab {{spoiler|kills Morgan}}, Frik begs Mab to kill him quickly. Instead {{spoiler|she strips him of magic}}. When Mordred asks why she didn't kill Frik, Mab says "It's because he wanted me to."

* [[The McCoy|Dr. McCoy]] has a version of this when he is attacked by Khan in Sickbay in an episode of [[Star Trek: The Original Series]].

'''Dr. McCoy''': It would be most effective if you would cut the carotid artery, just under the left ear. }}

** He also said it right out in "The Empath", after having [[Percussive Prevention|chosen]] [[More Expendable Than You|himself]] for torture that had an 87% chance of killing him.

'''McCoy''': Get on with it. }}

* ''[[24]]''

** Renee Walker does it in Season 8 too.

** Also {{spoiler|Saul Tigh}} about to be [[Thrown Out the Airlock]]: "[[Crowning Moment of Awesome|What are you waiting for, Apollo? Do it!]]"

* ''[[Stargate Atlantis]]'': The third-season episode 'Common Ground', where the Wraith [[Magnificent Bastard|Todd]] is first introduced. After repeatedly feeding on Sheppard to the point that he's almost become a desiccated corpse, Sheppard intones him to do this. {{spoiler|Then Todd gives back all the life-energy he took from him because he helped him escape from a Genii prison.}}

{{spoiler|'''"Todd"''': As I told you, John Sheppard, there are many things about Wraith that you do not know.}} }}

* Rose, when confronted by a Dalek on ''[[Doctor Who]]''.

** Jo also told the Master to get it over with.

** In "Evolution of the Daleks", the Doctor ends up ''screaming'' "Do it!" at one of the Daleks, who is only prevented from doing so by the human-hybrid Dalek Sec.

** The Master confronted by the Doctor:

* Season Three of ''[[The Wire]]'', {{spoiler|Omar Little}} and {{spoiler|Brother Mouzone}}, discover {{spoiler|Stringer Bell's}} plan to have them murder each other and [[Enemy Mine|team up]] to track him down. They have him cornered at gunpoint, when {{spoiler|Stringer}} says "Get on with it, motherf-". {{spoiler|They do.}}

* ''[[Buffy the Vampire Slayer]]'', "Sleeper."

** Also, in "This Year's Girl":

* "Finish it, Highlander!!" says Slan Quince in the very first episode of the ''[[Highlander the Series|Highlander]]'' TV series.

* In the season 5 episode of ''[[Supernatural]]'', "Dark Side of the Moon," Dean is sitting in his hotel room at gunpoint as Roy and Walt argue over whether or not to kill him. He finally growls, "Go ahead, Roy, do it. But I'm gonna warn ya--when I come back, I'm gonna be pissed." This can be viewed as a variation on the trope because Dean knew Zachariah would just resurrect him anyway.

** In season 4, Dean is given an ultimatum - to hand another character over to die, or {{spoiler|go back to hell.}} He initially doesn't think they'll do it, but once convinced they will, still tells them to go ahead. They switch to threatening Sam instead, and he complies {{spoiler|exactly as Sam had planned.}}

'''Mal''': Oh, you already know I ain't gonna. }}

** A variation from the same show, from the episode ''Safe''.

'''Avon''': You claim you can kill me. You'd better get on with it. Make me die. There's nothing else you can make me do. }}

* Subtle double subversion in the first season finale of ''[[Terriers]]''. After {{spoiler|Hank is framed for murder and hauled off to jail along with the actual murderers who almost certainly mean to do away with him as soon as they're alone}}, he starts yelling at them to get it over with and kill him right there in the police car. Doubly subverted in that {{spoiler|a) he's [[Death Seeker|partly]] doing it to get the cops to take him seriously and help him, and b) the cops were already secretly on his side and were planning to let him go anyway.}}

* In the first season episode of Angel "Eternity," actress Rebecca Lowell tries to persuade Angel to turn her into a vampiress so that she won't have to worry about aging; needless to say he refuses. In an effort to change his mind, she drugs him, thinking just to render him more pliable, not realizing that this will turn him evil instead. He stalks her through his office complex, toying with his prey, deliberately putting off the murder so as to enjoy her fear; she is clearly terrified, but finally gets fed up with this, stops running, and turns to face him, saying "Whatever you're going to do, do it." Of course, that's when Wesley and Cordelia show up to save the day, but it was a pretty awesome moment for Rebecca, and it did somewhat redeem her from her earlier behavior.

 

* In Act III of Thornton Wilder's play ''[[The Skin of Our Teeth]]'', {{spoiler|Henry, having just come back from the war and intercepted at gunpoint by his father, encourages him to go ahead and shoot. He doesn't.}}.

* ''[[Jesus Christ Superstar]]'', in the midst of Judas and Jesus's row, Jesus asks Judas "Why don't you go do it?", that is, go on and turn me in:

** Later, Jesus urges ''God'' to get his arrest and execution over with quickly.

 

 

* ''[[The Witcher]]'': This is Geralt's repeated response to the [[Big Bad|BigBads']] and [[The Dragon|Dragon's]] <s>extended</s> endless [[Boss Banter]].

* Done without messing about in ''[[Jedi Academy]]'':

'''[[Dark Side]] [[Player Character|Jaden Korr]]''': [kills her] }}

* Both {{spoiler|Aribeth}} in ''[[Neverwinter Nights]]'' and {{spoiler|Bastila}} in ''[[Knights of the Old Republic]]'' insist you kill them, as they have come too far to turn back to the good side if you persist in trying. However, both works being rather on the idealistic side, they both relent and come back if you previously completed their [[Romance Sidequest]] or roll a really high Persuade check.

* Subverted brutally by The Boss, aka {{spoiler|you, the player}} in [[Saints Row]] 2. After [[Trying to Catch Me Fighting Dirty|outright cheating in a sword duel]], the Boss catches Akuji with no weapons, with a gun pointed to his head. Akuji utters this trope. Instead of finishing him, or leaving him alive, the Boss goes to his back, picks another sword, stabs through Akuji's defenseless body, calls his friend Mr. Wong, and purposefully aggravates the wound to make Akuji scream in pain to the phone. ''Then'' he leaves him alive, in a burning, soon-to-explode ship.

* After her [[Traumatic Haircut]], [[Yume Miru Kusuri]]'s [[The Woobie|Aeka]] tells [[Alpha Bitch|Kyoka]] to get it over with, although it's played with.

'''Aeka''': ''(what she meant)'' {{spoiler|Either you kill me right now, or ''I swear'', one of these days [[I'll Kill You!|I'm going to kill]] '''[[I'll Kill You!|you]]'''.}} }}

** Quickly followed by a [[Final Speech]], a [[My God, What Have I Done?]] {{spoiler|1=from DuGalle who was [[The Chessmaster|manipulated by Duran]] into ordering the execution}}, and a [[Race Against the Clock]], in quick succession.

* Teyrn Loghain asks you for a quick death after you defeat him in a [[Combat by Champion]] at the Landsmeet. You can either grant his wish, have Alistair finish him off, or {{spoiler|[[Can't Kill You - Still Need You|induct him into the Gray Wardens]]}}.

 

 

* Planet Zebeth:

'''Samus''': ''No! It's time for you to LIIIIIIIVE! [[[Evil Laugh]]]'' }}

* ''[[Girl Genius]]'': [http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20100830 When Wooster left Boris in the Jagers' room, having exposed his secrets.]

'''General''': Perhaps. But '''first''' -- '''tell''' us about Meez Agatha and de Other. Ve is listening. }}

* [[Bob and George]] [http://www.bobandgeorge.com/archives/020629 where he's not believed]

** [http://www.bobandgeorge.com/archives/040215 where he's lying]

* [[Pibgorn]] [http://www.gocomics.com/pibgorn/2003/09/16/ For heaven's sake, murder me, don't torture me!]

** [http://www.gocomics.com/pibgorn/2008/11/28/ That was a plea for mercy]

== Western Animation ==

* ''[[Shadow Raiders]]''

'''Graveheart''': ''I would...but you're not my enemy.'' }}

* The [[Chuck Jones]] Hubie and Bertie short, Cheese Chasers.

* There was a ''[[Beast Wars]]'' episode where Rhinox was captured by Megatron. If he had died there, he would have gone out in a pretty badass way (Not the fact that he was chained down with no way of moving, but his last words helped make up for it)

** During Silverbolt's brief tenure as a Predacon, the Maximals take him down and he tells them to get on with destroying him. Dinobot, admittedly, is happy to take him up on it, but Rattrap and Cheetor firmly refuse; this is what convinces Silverbolt he's on the wrong side.

* Zhao towards Zuko in the third episode of ''[[Avatar: The Last Airbender]]''. Zuko does not comply.

* Che Guevara's [[Famous Last Words/Real Life|last words]] were supposedly "I know you've come to kill me. Shoot, coward, you are only going to kill a man!"

* The last words of Giles Corey, [[Nightmare Fuel|pressed to death over two days]] during the [[Burn the Witch|Salem witch trials]]:

** The man was being savvy: he knew at that point that he was in a no win situation. The inquisitors wanted him to confess to witchcraft, hence the torture. The result of the confession would be a long trial in which his confession is hung on him several times, the ruin of his family, and of course, his execution. Naturally, not confessing would not gain his freedom: he'd remain in the press until he confessed or died. The Salem inquisitors had the art of the Catch-22 down. He forced them to perform the trope name, robbing them of the show trial and confiscation of goods that the inquisitors would have gained otherwise.

** Actually, during the Salem trials, confession would save you from execution. That's why some did confess: it meant pardon, absolution, and redemption. It also meant condemning every other innocent who refused to confess. Not to mention the perpetual shame on yourself and your family and the knowledge that you had lied.

[[Category:Combat Tropes]]

[[Category:Last Words]]

[[Category:Example as a Thesis]]