Cathartic Scream

"I'm so frustrated I could just scream!" —Fluttershy

Thing have been getting crazy, the plot has been thickening, and The Hero has been keeping calm the whole time, despite the fact that the one thing The Hero wants to do is to go off and scream for a little while.

Despite the similarity in name, has nothing to do whatsoever with And I Must Scream, or The Scream (which is a Fate Worse Than Death and a horrific reaction, respectively. This is a frustration trope). May overlap with Skyward Scream and Angrish.

Examples of Cathartic Scream include:

Anime and Manga

• In Ergo Proxy, The Stoic detective Re-l keeps her calm throughout the series until a particular episode where nothing whatsoever happens for the entire episode. This forced idleness, multiplied by her lack of understanding of the overall plot and her companions' weirdly relaxed attitudes, finally drives her frustration over the edge. She decides to take it all out on the wind, which died at the beginning of the episode, stranding them in the middle of nowhere (since they are traveling on a wind-propelled land "boat"). The wind picks up immediately after she's done yelling.

Fan Works

• Stated in Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality that, in addition to desperately needing something alcoholic, the cast listing for Minerva McGonagall states that she needs to go off somewhere private and scream for a while.

Film - Live Action

• In the film Bringing Down the House, Steve Martin's character listens to a (presumably long) confession from his teenage daughter about all the things in her life. After hearing this, he calmly walks upstairs, takes a pillow, holds it to his face, and screams.
  • Then proceeds to take a couple pills, then scream into the pillow again.
• High Anxiety: "I'm so close to my menstrual cycle that I could scream!"
• The Dragon in Total Recall does this at least once after Quaid has gotten away from him.

Film - Animated

• Early on in Lilo and Stitch, after an argument between Nani and Lilo, both of them retreat to scream into their respective pillows in frustration.

Live Action TV

• Played for laughs in The Golden Girls, the episode where Rose fears she has AIDS. Blanche tells her to scream or throw something or whatever to let it all out, and it appears she's going to, but it's just a loud "HECK!". Possibly a subversion. Played straighter another time when someone, I think Blanche, said "I'm so mad I could scream" and then did. Prompting a "that's the first time I ever heard someone say that and then do it" type comment from Rose.
• In Andromeda, Rev Bem mentions that when he studied at the Wayist school, there was a cliff nearby for such screams.

Video Games

• In Final Fantasy X, early in the game Tidus states that he just wants to scream. And he does so, right in the middle of the Killika Temple.
  • Later, in Luca, Yuna asks him if he wants to scream again. Tidus states that it's really not going to help this time.

Web Comics

• In Exiern Princess Peonie does it a time or two here and here and here.

Web Original

• In Linkara's review of Power Rangers Turbo, he drops this little gem.

"After a filler episode where they get baked into a giant pizza... Excuse me for a moment." *walks away from the mic, lets out a loud scream of torment, then walks back* "The story then continues in The Phantom Phenomenon..."

• In the Hellfire Commentaries playthrough of Sonic the Hedgehog 2006, FTA's reaction to the "Who's the Captain?" mission.

FTA: WHAT?! You're fucking joking! Please tell me you're joking on that. Please tell me, tell me he, what, I, just... Excuse me for ten seconds, please... (walks away from his mic) WHAT THE FUCK?! GRAAAAAAAAH! (thud thud thud thud) NTom: All better now? FTA: You have no clue how close I am to wanting to kill myself, now.

Western Animation

• In the last episode of Undergrads, Brody and Krueger are studying for exam week, when the social and academic pressures become too much for Brody. He opens up a window and starts screaming. Krueger declares it brilliant, and joins in, sparking a chain reaction which eventually causes the entire city to erupt in a massive chorus of screams.
• Fluttershy does this in the My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic episode "Green Isn't Your Color". Because she's timid and quiet, her scream humorously came out as more of a long squeal.
• In The Amazing World of Gumball, the school counselor tries to teach Gumball and Darwin scream therapy. Gumball can only muster up a feeble squeak, while Darwin blows a huge bubble that pops so loud it leaves the other's ears ringing.