Tantrum Throwing

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"I'm so angry I could just throw a rock at that poster of David Cassidy!" —Samuel Norton', Family Guy‍'‍s parody of The Shawshank Redemption

Basically, this is when enraged characters start throwing objects around to express their frustration. They're throwing a tantrum, and throwing objects in the process.

Not to be confused with just being about tantrums in general; the title is a pun.

Examples of Tantrum Throwing include:

Anime and Manga

• Ouran High School Host Club has one episode in which this happens at least three times.
• Index throws things at Touma a number of times in A Certain Magical Index, often because of things that weren't really his fault to begin with.
• Durarara!!: Heiwajima Shizuo often throws impossibly heavy things when somebody makes him mad. Vending machines are pretty popular with him. He first discovered his super strength while attempting to throw a refrigerator at his brother.
• Hanaukyo Maid Tai episode 13 (OVA). When Taro goes to talk to Grace, she asks what he wants. When he can't tell her immediately, she starts throwing things at him and tells him that if he doesn't want anything he should get out.
• Dance in the Vampire Bund: After an argument with Akira over some ethical compromises, Mina does not grab something off her desk and throw it across the room when he storms out. She grabs the (massive hardwood) desk and throws it across the room.

Films -- Animated

• There's a hilarious one in Megamind with Roxie hurling things at Metro Man, and since he's Made of Diamond he doesn't even blink as the stuff the throws keeps shattering against his face.

Films -- Live-Action

• The Shawshank Redemption: Norton throwing rocks around during his "it's a conspiracy" rant made a hole in a poster on the wall, revealing Andy's escape from prison. The Family Guy parody of this scene provides the page quote and image.
• In Star Wars: Attack of the Clones, Anakin does this while ranting about how Obi-Wan's "holding him back."
• Citizen Kane: Upon his wife leaving him, Kane goes in her room and smashes/throws everything he sees.
• In Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland, the Mad Hatter does this in the Red Queen's Castle.
• The Odd Couple: Just as an argument is getting particularly heated, Oscar refers to Felix making spaghetti for dinner, and Felix starts laughing:

Oscar: What's so funny? Felix: That's not spaghetti. It's linguine. [Wordlessly, Oscar grabs the plate of linguine and flings against the wall on the far side of the kitchen.] Oscar: Now, it's garbage.

• Walk Hard: Standard event when Dewey experiences some life setback.
• Bridesmaids: Annie has an epic one leading up to the wedding.
• In The Room, at the height of Johnny's angry tirade upon breaking up with Lisa he throws his own television set right through the window out onto the street.

Literature

• In a notable instance in Will Of the Empress from the Circle of Magic series, After Daja finds out her love interest isn't going to come with her when they leave Namorn, she locks herself up in her room, crying. Tris comes in to yell at her for tossing a fit and snapping at Zhegorz and Daja throws a dish at her, which Tris ducks away from. The next thing Daja throws, Tris bats away with her wind magic.
• Polgara does this at least twice in the Belgariad/Mallorean/prequel novels.
• Gustav Adolf does this in 1632, it's stated that he does this so often his quarters are deliberately stocked with cheap furniture.
• The Harry Potter books have a few examples.
  • In Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, upon discovering that Fred and George have engorged Dudley's tongue, Uncle Vernon begins throwing things at the Weasleys and Harry, who flee the house via Floo Powder.
  • In Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Harry begins throwing and smashing random objects in Dumbledore's office, wanting an explanation about everything thats been going on from Dumbledore, who realizes that he must finally tell Harry the Awful Truth.
• While Safehold‍'‍s Vicar Zaspahr Clyntahn is not quite as hotheaded as his Hair-Trigger Temper reputation suggests, he is known to go into some serious rages when things go badly. In How Firm a Foundation he flies into such a rage when informed that one of their main fleets has been destroyed and its commanding officers defected rather than face him. He goes so far as to hurl his desk away.

Live-Action TV

• This is a stock gag in Last of the Summer Wine where crockery is the projectile of choice. Which is often Truth in Television since when domestic tensions boil over it is the closest thing to hand.
• Apparently, according to Worf in Star Trek: The Next Generation, this is a stock feature in Kilngon Courtship.
• Sex and the City: Maria does one of these half deliberately towards the end of her relationship with Samantha.
• In the Victorious episode "Tori Gets Stuck", Jade throws something at the wall when she finds out Tori got the lead role in the school play instead of her.
• In Happy Days, when Fonzie gets pissed off at the garage he works at, he kicks a car, throws a towel, and then pulls himself together. It's in some versions of the opening credits.
• Sue Sylvester from Glee has done this twice when she gets especially annoyed. For the record, her projectile of choice tends to be students.
• In the Stargate SG-1 episode "Unending", SG-1 is trapped on a spaceship for fifty years; during one Time Compression Montage, Cam gets frustrated and demolishes his room.

Video Games

• In Dwarf Fortress, if a dwarf becomes depressed enough they might take it out in a drunken frenzy and start smashing or throwing things.
• In SHUFFLE! (the Visual Novel), when Rin walks on changing Primula, she starts throwing pillows at him. He mentally notes that if he doesn't leave, she will start throwing heavier things. And when she runs out of heavy things, she will start throwing magic.

Web Comics

• In Family Man, Luther upended a table after his thesis was unfairly rejected.
• In Spinnerette, when Sahira briefly gets spinnerette powers, complete with extra arms, she throws an object-throwing fit which culminates in accidentally defenestrating Spinnerette herself.
• Freefall has an uplifted chimp with self control issues, who needs to protect the rare guests from himself. Among the other precautions, the are warned to watch out for when he's about to throw something, and his data pad is wrapped in soft material.

Web Original

• This is a staple of True Capitalist radio: Piss off the host to the point he throws cans (and sometimes his microphone) all over the studio.

Real Life

• Admirals Rozhestvensky's staff, aware of Rozhestvensky's tendency to throw binoculars when enraged, brought many binoculars (at least 50) when Russia sent its Second Pacific Squadron to Port Arthur.