| abstract | - There are some plans perpetrated by a select few that involve the villain's own demise as the finishing touch. Naturally, any plan that involves the literal end of the world would finish off an antagonist as well as everyone else, but that's usually a side effect. My Death Is Just the Beginning has it the first (or one of the first) items on the Big Bad's To Do list. There are plenty of reasons for why these plans are drawn up. Sometimes it is to evade justice from the heroes; the villain knows that if he is successful, someone will want to take revenge. Perhaps the character doesn't want to die per se, but knows that there's no way around it if he wants to succeed. It could be a plan to turn The Hero to The Dark Side, or maybe the villain's death is part of an overarching Gambit Roulette and it will set in motion events the heroes couldn't possibly predict. Still, there are some bastards who just love to have the last laugh. My Death Is Just the Beginning isn't the sort of plot the average antagonist will use as it requires a certain dedication to results over personal glory and power. Well Intentioned Extremists can drift towards plans of this sort, especially if they happen to be dedicated to the fulfillment of some lofty ideal. The Chessmaster has the sort of talents to execute this kind of scheme, and will opt to do himself in if the gains are substantial enough. A Magnificent Bastard will never use this sort of plan unless it also doubles as his Crowning Moment of Awesome. This all depends on what the nature of death is in a series though. Media in which Disney Death is common, Death Is Cheap, or uses any death trope along similar lines that lessens the impact of a character dying is less likely to use My Death Is Just the Beginning because the essential sacrifice is missing. Then again, that doesn't stop some writers. If done in a series in which Status Quo Is God it may herald a Genre Shift, or will at the least be the climax of a major story arc. Protagonists are also capable of doing this, but more often than not those are just undertakings that are considered suicide and not part of some master scheme. If anyone on the hero side pulls this off it will probably be The Obi-Wan, complete with an Obi-Wan Moment. Can overlap with Strike Me Down with All of Your Hatred. Compare Suicide by Cop, in which dying is the goal and not a step. It usually also makes Facing Death With Dignity a little easier. Also compare/contrast Thanatos Gambit, in which the villain or hero's death is the final part of a complex plan. Take into consideration Nice Job Breaking It, Hero as well (when either the hero kills the villain without considering the consequences, or does it anyway despite the warnings of what might happen). is frequently the motivation for/preceded by "Strike Me Down." See also You Cannot Kill an Idea. Unrelated to Xanatos Gambit because the planner's death is a crucial element and so if it doesn't happen the plan fails. Examples of My Death Is Just the Beginning include:
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