# Looking for action stories in which the heroes decide not to attempt a rescue of a captured comrade. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 21, 2013, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-action-stories-in-which-the-heroes-decide-not-to-attempt-a-rescue-of-a-captured-comrade/671874 "2013-10-21T22:24:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2013, 12:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-action-stories-in-which-the-heroes-decide-not-to-attempt-a-rescue-of-a-captured-comrade/671874/21 "2013-10-22T12:17:46Z")
In _The Wild Geese_, our heroes are scrambling onto the plane as it speeds up on the runway; teammate Richard Harris falls into torturous enemy hands; does Roger Moore hit the brakes to fight overwhelming odds? Of course not; Richard Burton mercy-shoots their doomed buddy and takeoff ensues. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2013, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-action-stories-in-which-the-heroes-decide-not-to-attempt-a-rescue-of-a-captured-comrade/671874/22 "2013-10-22T13:53:46Z")
In _The Warriors_, Ajax (James Remar) is arrested by an undercover cop during their flight; the others continue on toward Coney Island, leaving him behind. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2013, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-action-stories-in-which-the-heroes-decide-not-to-attempt-a-rescue-of-a-captured-comrade/671874/23 "2013-10-22T15:08:24Z")
> [@Edward\_The\_Head](#): > > It’s Marion. Indy left her there because if he hadn’t they would have been found rather quickly and both would have been killed. He was going to come back for her, I don’t really think that counts as leaving her behind. Sure, Indy had the intent to return, but fact of the matter is, he left her in the hands of the Nazis. For all he knew she was a few moments away from being tortured and killed. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2013, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-action-stories-in-which-the-heroes-decide-not-to-attempt-a-rescue-of-a-captured-comrade/671874/24 "2013-10-22T15:29:38Z")
> [@Trinopus](#): > > Poul Anderson does this a few times in the (excellent) “David Falkayn” stories. > > One of the team will get captured, and will simply go along with the people who’ve taken him, not making a foolish desperate bid for freedom. He’s wise enough to know that his teammates will know what he is going to do. Instead of trying to rescue him, they’ll wait and lurk and watch for a better opportunity. Chee rode Adzel in with a blast cannon on his back to rescue David in _Satan’s World_. 🙂 I can recall Dominic Flandry not being rescued in Tiger by the Tail, but could you refresh my memory with the Falkayn/Van Rijn novels? ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2013, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-action-stories-in-which-the-heroes-decide-not-to-attempt-a-rescue-of-a-captured-comrade/671874/25 "2013-10-22T16:02:16Z")
Ardeth Bey is not rescued in the Mummy. He does fight his way out off screen. ---
**Author:** ![Morbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morbo/32/389_2.png) [@Morbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morbo)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2013, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-action-stories-in-which-the-heroes-decide-not-to-attempt-a-rescue-of-a-captured-comrade/671874/26 "2013-10-22T18:31:23Z")
This factors rather heavily into the plot of the movie **Charade**. (The original, not sure about the remake which I didn’t see). ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2013, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-action-stories-in-which-the-heroes-decide-not-to-attempt-a-rescue-of-a-captured-comrade/671874/27 "2013-10-22T18:44:36Z")
> [@shijinn](#): > > well, in Buffy th Looks like **shijinn** went [the way of so many Joss characters](http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/KilledMidSentence). ---
**Author:** ![HubZilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ccd318/32.png) [@HubZilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HubZilla)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2013, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-action-stories-in-which-the-heroes-decide-not-to-attempt-a-rescue-of-a-captured-comrade/671874/28 "2013-10-22T18:45:05Z")
> [@Superhal](#): > > In brave heart, i think Wallace decided not to rescue his wife because he never expected her to be executed. Also in Braveheart, Wallace’s friends don’t rescue him when he’s being disemboweled. I remember screaming at the screen, don’t just stand there, do something! ---
**Author:** ![Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/prof.pepperwinkle/32/13627_2.png) [@Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Prof.Pepperwinkle)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2013, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-action-stories-in-which-the-heroes-decide-not-to-attempt-a-rescue-of-a-captured-comrade/671874/29 "2013-10-22T18:48:36Z")
_The Three Musketeers_: D’Artagnan and his companions are off to retrieve the Queen’s jewels (IIRC), and along the way they fall, one by one, leaving D’Artagnan alone to finish the mission. At no point does anyone even think of going back for a fallen comrade; the duty is to the crown! Of course, they all turn out to have survived (and in at least one case, profited). ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2013, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-action-stories-in-which-the-heroes-decide-not-to-attempt-a-rescue-of-a-captured-comrade/671874/30 "2013-10-22T18:52:36Z")
I remember reading this story once where a bunch of dudes (thirteen, I think) ate dinner together, and then afterwards one of them was captured by enemy soldiers, and none of the others did anything to rescue the captured one. The soldiers ended up putting their captive through a show trial and brutally executing him, and again his buddies did nothing to help. In kind of a deus-ex-caverna move, though, the executed guy shows up again three days later. ---
**Author:** ![epbrown01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7ba0ec/32.png) [@epbrown01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/epbrown01)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2013, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-action-stories-in-which-the-heroes-decide-not-to-attempt-a-rescue-of-a-captured-comrade/671874/31 "2013-10-22T19:04:09Z")
The CW show _Supernatural_ had a recurring theme: one of the two brothers that star on the show would be captured by demons and sent to hell or some other dimension, and the other would sell his soul or make some other deal to get his sibling back. Until the start of last year’s season, when Dean escapes from Purgatory to discover Sam did _nothing_ to free him. Instead, he quit demon-hunting and settled down. Now, to be honest, this is what they always told the other to do if things go south - move on, get a life - but they always made the attempt. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2013, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-action-stories-in-which-the-heroes-decide-not-to-attempt-a-rescue-of-a-captured-comrade/671874/32 "2013-10-22T20:20:11Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > I remember reading this story once where a bunch of dudes (thirteen, I think) ate dinner together, and then afterwards one of them was captured by enemy soldiers, and none of the others did anything to rescue the captured one. The soldiers ended up putting their captive through a show trial and brutally executing him, and again his buddies did nothing to help. In kind of a deus-ex-caverna move, though, the executed guy shows up again three days later. I thought it was the other way around, that all the dudes got captured, and the one hero snuck around and figured out how to break them all free and hide in barrels so they could float away on the river. ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2013, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-action-stories-in-which-the-heroes-decide-not-to-attempt-a-rescue-of-a-captured-comrade/671874/33 "2013-10-22T20:36:07Z")
In the remake of Red Dawn they leave the Tom Cruise’s kid behind. Whether it is because he has a tracker embedded in his arm or because nobody likes his dad is anybody’s guess. ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2013, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-action-stories-in-which-the-heroes-decide-not-to-attempt-a-rescue-of-a-captured-comrade/671874/34 "2013-10-22T21:20:01Z")
> [@Ethilrist](#): > > In Aliens, several people got captured but were not rescued. _Aliens_ is interesting for the tension between the cynical (the message repeated in several Alien-franchise movies that ‘you can’t help them, don’t even try to help them, they’re already being cocooned’) and the idealistic (the emotional heart of _Aliens_ being Ripley’s refusal to leave the daughter-figure behind). It’s a fascinating topic; it hits our evolved-to-live-in-groups brains right in the paradox: the conflict between the benefits of group adhesion, and the even more obvious benefits of self-preservation. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2013, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-action-stories-in-which-the-heroes-decide-not-to-attempt-a-rescue-of-a-captured-comrade/671874/35 "2013-10-22T22:00:21Z")
> [@epbrown01](#): > > The CW show _Supernatural_ had a recurring theme: one of the two brothers that star on the show would be captured by demons and sent to hell or some other dimension, and the other would sell his soul or make some other deal to get his sibling back. Until the start of last year’s season, when Dean escapes from Purgatory to discover Sam did _nothing_ to free him. Instead, he quit demon-hunting and settled down. Now, to be honest, this is what they always told the other to do if things go south - move on, get a life - but they always made the attempt. Except for that time two years earlier when \*Sam \*got trapped in a box in Hell with Satan and St. Michael, and Dean did nothing to free him. Funny how THAT never came up. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2013, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-action-stories-in-which-the-heroes-decide-not-to-attempt-a-rescue-of-a-captured-comrade/671874/36 "2013-10-22T23:41:40Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > Oh, and nobody say “Buffy the Vampire Slayer.” I have sworn never to type the name Wesley Wyndham-Pryce ever again. > > Thoughts, anyone? My thought is that since you’re kind of famous for keeping your promises, “Wesley Wyndham-Pryce” is probably code for somebody else. Can we have a thread where we all guess who that is? ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2013, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-action-stories-in-which-the-heroes-decide-not-to-attempt-a-rescue-of-a-captured-comrade/671874/37 "2013-10-23T04:02:17Z")
Sure, why not action: from an old episode of _South Park_: > [@](#): > > Romper Stomper: Hurry up! They’re sending the dogs after us! (trips on a rock and falls.) Ow! > > Cartman: What’s the matter?! > > Romper Stomper: It’s my leg! I think it’s broken! (hears the dogs) You go on ahead without me! > > Cartman: Okay! (starts to leave) > > Romper Stomper: Hey! (Cartman stops) You’re s’posed to say “I’m not going without you!” or something! > > Cartman: Oh! Really?! > > Romper Stomper: Look, kid! You go on! You’ve got something to live for out there! You’ve got friends! > > Cartman: Yeah! I never really realized that until just now! > > Romper Stomper: I sure would’ve liked to have seen Disneyland! Here! (give Cartman his Romper Stompers.) I want you to have > these! > > Cartman: Okay! (takes the Romper Stompers.) > > Romper Stomper: No! You’re s’posed to say “I can’t take these!” or somethin’, dumbass! > > Cartman: Oh! I can’t take these! > > Romper Stomper: Take them! They’ll bring you luck! Now go on! Get outta here! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-action-stories-in-which-the-heroes-decide-not-to-attempt-a-rescue-of-a-captured-comrade/671874.md?page=1)