Search/Recent Changes
DBTropes
...it's like TV Tropes, but LINKED DATA!

High on Homicide

 High on Homicide
type
FeatureClass
 High on Homicide
label
High on Homicide
 High on Homicide
page
HighOnHomicide
 High on Homicide
comment
So you've just killed a person... and it feels good. Like, really good.
This trope is common both to vendettas and to serial killings. Vastly different motivations aside, the following euphoric calm can be one and the same. All that bided time, all that anticipation and planning, finally pays off. Now able to admire their work, the killer basks in the moment and takes it all in. If the main motivation was Revenge, then Revenge Is Sweet.
Compare Evil Feels Good and Smiting Evil Feels Good, with either of which this may overlap. May lead to This Is Your Brain on Evil if the killer chases this high again. Contrast Laughing Mad, which is Ax-Crazier (though that certainly may follow this trope); Blood Lust and Orgasmic Combat, where the ecstasy is fairly sexual but not necessarily derived from killing; Blood Knight, where the fight is enjoyed as much as (or more than) the kill; and Dissonant Serenity, where the killer is this calm during the struggle. Not to be confused with Tranquil Fury, which wouldn't kill a fly but is no less terrifying. Frequently combined with Blood Is the New Black. Vengeance Feels Empty is one type of inversion.
Since the notoriety of more recent real-life killers can deeply affect their victims' loved ones, please be cautious when adding Real-Life examples!
 High on Homicide
fetched
2023-10-14T21:16:12Z
 High on Homicide
parsed
2023-10-14T21:16:12Z
 High on Homicide
processingComment
Dropped link to HoneyTrap: Not an Item - FEATURE
 High on Homicide
processingComment
Dropped link to KnightTemplar: Not an Item - FEATURE
 High on Homicide
processingComment
Dropped link to KnightTemplarBigBrother: Not an Item - FEATURE
 High on Homicide
processingComment
Dropped link to Roguelike: Not an Item - IGNORE
 High on Homicide
processingComment
Dropped link to invoked: Not an Item - FEATURE
 High on Homicide
isPartOf
DBTropes
 High on Homicide / int_1afad37b
type
High on Homicide
 High on Homicide / int_1afad37b
comment
In Rope (and its film adaptation) which opens with two elite young Manhattanites, Brandon Shaw and Phillip Morgan murdering their classmate as part of their belief that they've committed The Perfect Crime as a pair of Social Darwinists who believe themselves better than others. Brandon a few minutes later admits the actual act of killing was euphoric for him. A lot of dialog between the two is intentionally coded to sound like it could be about gay sex.
 High on Homicide / int_1afad37b
featureApplicability
1.0
 High on Homicide / int_1afad37b
featureConfidence
1.0
 Rope (Theatre)
hasFeature
High on Homicide / int_1afad37b
 High on Homicide / int_1b021fcb
type
High on Homicide
 High on Homicide / int_1b021fcb
comment
Tokyo Ghoul is effectively built around this trope, with many of the bad (and on occasion even the good) Ghouls murdering huge amounts of humans for the fun of it. This is one of the more justified examples as Ghouls need to eat human flesh to survive, but on rare occasions, it's this trope played straight.
 High on Homicide / int_1b021fcb
featureApplicability
1.0
 High on Homicide / int_1b021fcb
featureConfidence
1.0
 Tokyo Ghoul (Manga)
hasFeature
High on Homicide / int_1b021fcb
 High on Homicide / int_24e41891
type
High on Homicide
 High on Homicide / int_24e41891
comment
Dexter: The title Serial-Killer Killer gets a rush out of killing — one of the few emotions he ever feels — and likens it to an addiction, complete with withdrawal symptoms. He's often shown sighing in relief after claiming another victim.
 High on Homicide / int_24e41891
featureApplicability
1.0
 High on Homicide / int_24e41891
featureConfidence
1.0
 Dexter
hasFeature
High on Homicide / int_24e41891
 High on Homicide / int_39e3b5ff
type
High on Homicide
 High on Homicide / int_39e3b5ff
comment
O-Ren Ishii during the anime sequence of Kill Bill (see image). Satisfied with the vengeance she got for her parents, she tilts her head back and blissfully sucks in a deep breath. When the late Boss Matsumoto's subordinates arrive on the scene, all she can do at first is flick her narrowed pupils their way in a look of Oh, it's you...
 High on Homicide / int_39e3b5ff
featureApplicability
1.0
 High on Homicide / int_39e3b5ff
featureConfidence
1.0
 Kill Bill
hasFeature
High on Homicide / int_39e3b5ff
 High on Homicide / int_468bebb0
type
High on Homicide
 High on Homicide / int_468bebb0
comment
in the Discworld of A.A. Pessimal, mature entrant Assassin Joan Sanderson-Reeves ruefully admits that she inhumed too many people too quickly, finding the thrill of planning her kills, the pleasure of the pursuit and the job satisfaction of the inhumation, were getting to be something of a drug addiction after a while. Mr Mericet, her professional mentor, agrees that this is a subtle hidden danger of being an Assassin, and something we should all guard against as sooner or later, anyone can lose sight of what the profession is actually for, and get careless and overconfident.
 High on Homicide / int_468bebb0
featureApplicability
1.0
 High on Homicide / int_468bebb0
featureConfidence
1.0
 Discworld
hasFeature
High on Homicide / int_468bebb0
 High on Homicide / int_553e183f
type
High on Homicide
 High on Homicide / int_553e183f
comment
The single point of divergence from canon in The Killer Rarityverse is Rarity discovering this feeling at a very young age. She quickly becomes addicted to the high of murder, setting in motion a lifetime of hurt for her and her family.
 High on Homicide / int_553e183f
featureApplicability
1.0
 High on Homicide / int_553e183f
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Killer Rarityverse (Fanfic)
hasFeature
High on Homicide / int_553e183f
 High on Homicide / int_5755b96a
type
High on Homicide
 High on Homicide / int_5755b96a
comment
The Order of the Stick: After Crystal is reanimated as a pain-riddled Flesh Golem, she finds that she feels better when she's killing somebody. Haley immediately tosses her into a lava pit to stop her.
 High on Homicide / int_5755b96a
featureApplicability
1.0
 High on Homicide / int_5755b96a
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Order of the Stick (Webcomic)
hasFeature
High on Homicide / int_5755b96a
 High on Homicide / int_58808436
type
High on Homicide
 High on Homicide / int_58808436
comment
Higurashi: When They Cry:
Keiichi in the Tatarigoroshi arc recalls no visceral reaction to having finished off Satoko's abusive uncle Teppei. He notes instead a sublime comfort beneath the heavy rain.
Rena experiences a deep fulfillment in Tsumihoroboshi-hen, having killed the woman who had seduced her father in a "badger game." Of course, Rina/Ritsuko was about to kill her for knowing too much, so it was technically self-defense...though try gauging that from Rena's reaction.
 High on Homicide / int_58808436
featureApplicability
1.0
 High on Homicide / int_58808436
featureConfidence
1.0
 Higurashi: When They Cry (Visual Novel)
hasFeature
High on Homicide / int_58808436
 High on Homicide / int_58af2679
type
High on Homicide
 High on Homicide / int_58af2679
comment
The Silence of the Lambs: After calmly brutalizing his two new prison guards and billyclubbing the one to death, Dr. Lecter closes his eyes and waves his hand once more to the tune of a Bach variation. His moment of calm self-indulgence ends as the remaining guard's desperate struggle calls him back to reality. Lecter, nonetheless hardly fazed, picks up the dead guard's pocket knife and ambles over to the latter's partner:
 High on Homicide / int_58af2679
featureApplicability
1.0
 High on Homicide / int_58af2679
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Silence of the Lambs
hasFeature
High on Homicide / int_58af2679
 High on Homicide / int_68571b69
type
High on Homicide
 High on Homicide / int_68571b69
comment
In The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, when the eponymous Witch kills the eponymous Lion, she has a brief expression of clear euphoria on her face, complete with closed eyes. It's unclear whether this is typical for her or if it's just due to this one specific kill, but she definitely takes an excessive amount of good feeling from the act.
 High on Homicide / int_68571b69
featureApplicability
1.0
 High on Homicide / int_68571b69
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Chronicles of Narnia
hasFeature
High on Homicide / int_68571b69
 High on Homicide / int_6bcd58c7
type
High on Homicide
 High on Homicide / int_6bcd58c7
comment
Sin City: According to Patrick Henry Roark, Kevin came to him with guilt over murdering and cannibalizing prostitutes, despite feeling in it "the touch of God Almighty." This led the cardinal to not only cover up his crimes but join him in them as well.
 High on Homicide / int_6bcd58c7
featureApplicability
1.0
 High on Homicide / int_6bcd58c7
featureConfidence
1.0
 Sin City (Comic Book)
hasFeature
High on Homicide / int_6bcd58c7
 High on Homicide / int_6cd3b44f
type
High on Homicide
 High on Homicide / int_6cd3b44f
comment
Black Lagoon: Hansel and Gretel, the twin serial killer assassins were raised from a young age to perform for snuff films and have become totally engrossed by the act of brutal murder.
 High on Homicide / int_6cd3b44f
featureApplicability
1.0
 High on Homicide / int_6cd3b44f
featureConfidence
1.0
 Black Lagoon (Manga)
hasFeature
High on Homicide / int_6cd3b44f
 High on Homicide / int_7988cb68
type
High on Homicide
 High on Homicide / int_7988cb68
comment
In Mass Effect, Ardat-Yakshi, asari with a rare genetic disorder, are considered dangerous because they experience this trope in a very literal way. Asari reproduce by mentally linking with their partner's nervous system to read their DNA and use it to randomize their own. When an Ardat-Yakshi does this, she causes a brain hemorrhage, with the most extreme cases of the condition causing instant death to their partners. The feedback from doing this causes a narcotic effect that proves extremely addictive, and the ones who turn into serial killers leave behind astronomical body counts in their never-ending quest to experience this high as much as possible.
 High on Homicide / int_7988cb68
featureApplicability
1.0
 High on Homicide / int_7988cb68
featureConfidence
1.0
 Mass Effect (Franchise)
hasFeature
High on Homicide / int_7988cb68
 High on Homicide / int_7be40377
type
High on Homicide
 High on Homicide / int_7be40377
comment
Though Dr. Hannibal Lecter's kills in the Hannibal TV series more often exemplify Dissonant Serenity, some of them — such as of his old colleague Dr. Sutcliffe — show him overtaken by tranquility specifically after his work is done. Then, of course, there's the whole cooking-them-for-himself-and-for-unwitting-guests bit.
 High on Homicide / int_7be40377
featureApplicability
1.0
 High on Homicide / int_7be40377
featureConfidence
1.0
 Hannibal Lecter (Franchise)
hasFeature
High on Homicide / int_7be40377
 High on Homicide / int_7f9dbbcd
type
High on Homicide
 High on Homicide / int_7f9dbbcd
comment
In Far Cry 3, Jason claims that he was upset the first time he killed somebody, but that he's gotten so used to it that he's not just no longer bothered—it actually feels very, very good.
 High on Homicide / int_7f9dbbcd
featureApplicability
1.0
 High on Homicide / int_7f9dbbcd
featureConfidence
1.0
 Far Cry 3 (Video Game)
hasFeature
High on Homicide / int_7f9dbbcd
 High on Homicide / int_8ba4613a
type
High on Homicide
 High on Homicide / int_8ba4613a
comment
Death Note:
While Light Yagami starts off as a Knight Templar who kills criminals out of an extreme sense of justice, he becomes more corrupt over the course of the story and it becomes increasingly clear he enjoys killing and takes glee in it.
Teru Mikami, Light's hand-picked Hand of Kira, is similar and goes way off the deep end during the warehouse scene toward the end, where he's writing down names with a psychotic fervor and has what can only be memetically described as an orgasm toward the end.
 High on Homicide / int_8ba4613a
featureApplicability
1.0
 High on Homicide / int_8ba4613a
featureConfidence
1.0
 Death Note (Manga)
hasFeature
High on Homicide / int_8ba4613a
 High on Homicide / int_989506be
type
High on Homicide
 High on Homicide / int_989506be
comment
The Vampire Chronicles: Downplayed when a vampire feeds on a human while they die. It's described as a "wallop" and a "rolling delirium" for the vampire, but not particularly addictive compared to their obsession with blood itself.
 High on Homicide / int_989506be
featureApplicability
1.0
 High on Homicide / int_989506be
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Vampire Chronicles
hasFeature
High on Homicide / int_989506be
 High on Homicide / int_a4517e73
type
High on Homicide
 High on Homicide / int_a4517e73
comment
Rubi Malone in WET occisionally goes into "Rage Mode" by killing an enemy at close enough range to completely cover her face in blood. When this happens, Rubi gives a deranged smile before the level proceeds in a red monochrome filter to symbolize how bloodthirsty she's become. While in Rage Mode, Rubi gains attack speed and damage bonuses and each kill extends Rage Mode.
 High on Homicide / int_a4517e73
featureApplicability
1.0
 High on Homicide / int_a4517e73
featureConfidence
1.0
 WET (Video Game)
hasFeature
High on Homicide / int_a4517e73
 High on Homicide / int_a77c0823
type
High on Homicide
 High on Homicide / int_a77c0823
comment
From Hell posits this started happening to Jack The Ripper around his third victim. In the footnotes, Alan Moore added this aspect based on his extensive research into interviews with serial killers.
 High on Homicide / int_a77c0823
featureApplicability
1.0
 High on Homicide / int_a77c0823
featureConfidence
1.0
 From Hell / Comicbook
hasFeature
High on Homicide / int_a77c0823
 High on Homicide / int_bcadd7cb
type
High on Homicide
 High on Homicide / int_bcadd7cb
comment
Warhammer 40,000: Inverted with Angron and several of the World Eaters marines, who have cerebral implants known as the Butcher's Nails that cause them to feel pain whenever they aren't killing something.
 High on Homicide / int_bcadd7cb
featureApplicability
1.0
 High on Homicide / int_bcadd7cb
featureConfidence
1.0
 Warhammer 40,000 (Tabletop Game)
hasFeature
High on Homicide / int_bcadd7cb
 High on Homicide / int_c43df4d8
type
High on Homicide
 High on Homicide / int_c43df4d8
comment
Doctor Who: In "Spyfall", the Master admits to the Doctor that he gets a buzz in his chest when killing someone for no reason.
 High on Homicide / int_c43df4d8
featureApplicability
1.0
 High on Homicide / int_c43df4d8
featureConfidence
1.0
 Doctor Who
hasFeature
High on Homicide / int_c43df4d8
 High on Homicide / int_c506565e
type
High on Homicide
 High on Homicide / int_c506565e
comment
Vatta's War: Kylara Vatta discovers, after she kills for the first time in self-defense, that she gets a thrill of victory from doing it — something that recurs throughout the series and she considers similar to a drug addiction she has to avoid feeding if possible.
 High on Homicide / int_c506565e
featureApplicability
1.0
 High on Homicide / int_c506565e
featureConfidence
1.0
 Vatta's War
hasFeature
High on Homicide / int_c506565e
 High on Homicide / int_ccf875f7
type
High on Homicide
 High on Homicide / int_ccf875f7
comment
Criminal Minds: One of the discussed reasons why Serial Killers continue killing even after they allegedly reached their goal (such as misguided vigilante-types) is that they achieved a serious adrenaline high when they committed their first murder and will do anything to get it again, refining their methods or maybe even going on a rampage, but they never will precisely because they are getting used to killing people. One example of said "looking for a high" killer is Norman "The Road Warrior" Hill of the episode "Normal".
 High on Homicide / int_ccf875f7
featureApplicability
1.0
 High on Homicide / int_ccf875f7
featureConfidence
1.0
 Criminal Minds
hasFeature
High on Homicide / int_ccf875f7
 High on Homicide / int_d0e25eb9
type
High on Homicide
 High on Homicide / int_d0e25eb9
comment
Heavy Object: Skuld Silent-Third is a Serial Killer who experiences a near-sexual pleasure in the act of killing. A glimpse in her mind when she was getting ready to murder showed she was seeing psychedelic colors.
 High on Homicide / int_d0e25eb9
featureApplicability
1.0
 High on Homicide / int_d0e25eb9
featureConfidence
1.0
 Heavy Object
hasFeature
High on Homicide / int_d0e25eb9
 High on Homicide / int_d5bdc32e
type
High on Homicide
 High on Homicide / int_d5bdc32e
comment
Gold Digger: An eventual revelation of the Shun-Leep School of Supernatural Martial Arts (which is used by various heroes) is that it has a series of forbidden techniques called "The Killing Blows" — they are so powerful that are a near-One-Hit Kill Touch of Death (and pretty violent, at that), but the side-effect in the user's body is a heroin-like euphoria that is incredibly addictive, which leads people who use the Killing Blows to eventually become hyper-violent Blood Knight types and even the occasional Serial Killer. This plot point overall is a double-barreled Shout-Out to the Street Fighter Satsu No Hadou and Star Wars' Dark Side of the Force (never let it be said that Fred Perry doesn't know how to apply his Reference Overdose).
 High on Homicide / int_d5bdc32e
featureApplicability
1.0
 High on Homicide / int_d5bdc32e
featureConfidence
1.0
 Gold Digger (Comic Book)
hasFeature
High on Homicide / int_d5bdc32e
 High on Homicide / int_f14e1069
type
High on Homicide
 High on Homicide / int_f14e1069
comment
The Cyclops Killer of AI: The Somnium Files was unable to produce the hormone oxytocin, which rendered him incapable of feeling positive emotions except through killing. He claimed his first victim at the age of twelve. When he undergoes a "Freaky Friday" Flip, he is unable to get the same rush when he murders, so he hunts down the person with his original body.
 High on Homicide / int_f14e1069
featureApplicability
1.0
 High on Homicide / int_f14e1069
featureConfidence
1.0
 AI: The Somnium Files (Video Game)
hasFeature
High on Homicide / int_f14e1069
 High on Homicide / int_fd073ab9
type
High on Homicide
 High on Homicide / int_fd073ab9
comment
Of the serial killers in Mindhunter, Edmund Kemper and David Berkowitz describe their actions, and the reliving the events in their fantasies, in very euphoric terms, and both speculate that the then uncaught BTK is similar in that regard. Paul Bateson also talks about his one confirmed murder in similar terms but is careful not to say anything implicating him in the series of death he is suspected of.
 High on Homicide / int_fd073ab9
featureApplicability
1.0
 High on Homicide / int_fd073ab9
featureConfidence
1.0
 Mindhunter
hasFeature
High on Homicide / int_fd073ab9

The following is a list of statements referring to the current page from other pages.

 High on Homicide
processingCategory2
Murder Tropes
 High on Homicide
processingCategory2
This Is Your Index on Drugs
 Gold Digger (Comic Book) / int_d7f63a30
type
High on Homicide
 Sin City (Comic Book) / int_d7f63a30
type
High on Homicide
 Faraway Killers (Fanfic) / int_d7f63a30
type
High on Homicide
 OC Story (Fanfic) / int_d7f63a30
type
High on Homicide
 Kill Bill / int_d7f63a30
type
High on Homicide
 The Vampire Chronicles / int_d7f63a30
type
High on Homicide
 The Villains Series / int_d7f63a30
type
High on Homicide
 Forever (2014) / int_d7f63a30
type
High on Homicide
 Tell Me What You Saw / int_d7f63a30
type
High on Homicide
 Rope (Theatre) / int_d7f63a30
type
High on Homicide
 Cataclysm (Video Game) / int_d7f63a30
type
High on Homicide
 Higurashi: When They Cry (Visual Novel) / int_d7f63a30
type
High on Homicide