About: Despair Event Horizon   Sponge Permalink

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The line that, once crossed, destroys any last remaining sense of hope. It could be for a cause, a person, a situation, or simple survival. A character has given up on it, and there is no going back. It can lead soldiers to despair -- or even suicide. It can turn an Ideal Hero into an Anti-Hero or an outright villain, or even, in some cases, vice versa. It is a vital element of Tragedy. May be preceded with a Hope Spot, just to really twist the knife. And a Downer Ending might follow in really dark stories. Compare Hope Is Scary. Contrast Heroic Spirit. Examples of Despair Event Horizon include:

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  • Despair Event Horizon
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  • The line that, once crossed, destroys any last remaining sense of hope. It could be for a cause, a person, a situation, or simple survival. A character has given up on it, and there is no going back. It can lead soldiers to despair -- or even suicide. It can turn an Ideal Hero into an Anti-Hero or an outright villain, or even, in some cases, vice versa. It is a vital element of Tragedy. May be preceded with a Hope Spot, just to really twist the knife. And a Downer Ending might follow in really dark stories. Compare Hope Is Scary. Contrast Heroic Spirit. Examples of Despair Event Horizon include:
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  • The line that, once crossed, destroys any last remaining sense of hope. It could be for a cause, a person, a situation, or simple survival. A character has given up on it, and there is no going back. It can lead soldiers to despair -- or even suicide. It can turn an Ideal Hero into an Anti-Hero or an outright villain, or even, in some cases, vice versa. It is a vital element of Tragedy. Coming near this line is quite common in fiction; frequently, at the end of the second act or the 45 minute mark of a drama or the first hour of a film, the protagonist comes dangerously close to the edge before a Rousing Speech or Deus Ex Machina or the like comes along. It makes for a Downer Ending if the protagonist does fall over the edge. Frequently, this is when the What You Are in the Dark test hits him. Alternatively, many stories have a hero "Fighting the Good Fight" and meeting someone who'd been at it longer and lost all hope. This is often a goal of some wars. You break the enemy's morale, and you can win even without military success. Related to Heroic BSOD and Heroic Safe Mode, except the hero usually comes back from those. A Woobie, Destroyer of Worlds is often a character who crossed this line long ago. It can result in the character entering an Angst Coma, being Dumb Struck, suffering Death by Despair, or becoming a Woobie, Destroyer of Worlds (and subsequently crossing the Moral Event Horizon). Often a result of We Used to Be Friends. This is often the final stage of the Break the Cutie process. In a video game, often happens during a Bleak Level. May be preceded with a Hope Spot, just to really twist the knife. And a Downer Ending might follow in really dark stories. Compare Hope Is Scary. Contrast Heroic Spirit. IMPORTANT: This is about a character losing all hope, not merely getting depressed, upset, or bored. Examples of Despair Event Horizon include:
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