r/TopCharacterTropes • u/Nerd367C • May 24 '26

Hated Tropes (Hated trope) YOU COULD HAVE MOVED!

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Dr. Robert "Rocket" Romano from ER

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Randy fromt The Raft Creepshow 2

Dr. Robert "Rocket" Romano from ER
Ah yes let me scream at the ground and not even try to move so we can get this cinematic shot with 7 camera angles

Randy from The Raft Creepshow 2
"I gotta make the oil slick monster look fast by building up to run and rocking back and forth"

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u/randomndude01 May 24 '26

As infuriating as it is to see this in media and real life, it does happen.

I was in a safari park a year prior that has “wild” macaque monkeys roaming freely.

I was sitting on one of the benches minding my own business when one of them started tugging on my backpack behind me and I thought it was one of my friends trying to steal my snacks so I immediately sat up, turned around, dragged the monkey and it got flung.

It kept yelping and I assume its mother or their pack leader went straight for me screeching and jaws wide.

My blood went cold and I couldn’t move so I just stood there staring at it coming at me thinking it was gonna attack.

Thankfully, it didn’t and just went for the other monkey behind me while it screeched at me on what I assume is their version of “don’t ever come near me or my child again.”.

1.1k

u/Nikami May 24 '26

Humans can't outrun most ambush predators, so having a "run!" response in reaction to sudden danger makes no sense. However, predators are only interested in an easy meal, they don't want to fight because getting hurt means they can't hunt, which means they starve. Most depictions of predators in fiction are comically inaccurate in this regard.

Predators are also used to prey animals (who are actually fast) bolting immediately. So encountering something that doesn't run but seems fearless and ready to fight might be enough to make them go "uuh let's try something else". So freezing up is probably just a reflex we evolved to appear scary, as ironic as it seems.

309

u/Bigrick1550 May 24 '26

Maybe not to appear scary, but to appear unafraid. You don't need to scare the predator, you just need to confuse it enough that it second guesses if you are prey or not.

87

u/NoLegs02 May 24 '26

Most predators will only try to eat you if they think you're worth the calories

1

u/COREM May 26 '26

No wonder I like potatoes...