Worth the Cost- Why Does Sacrifice Make a Hero?

About this episode

"I'll stay behind." "Go without me." "There's only one way this ends." We know exactly where the scene is going, and somehow it still gets us. Why is self-sacrifice one of the most powerful ideas in storytelling? And does sacrifice have to mean dying? Giving up power, dreams, comfort, reputation, relationships or simply putting somebody else's needs ahead of your own can be just as costly. On this episode we talk about the greatest sacrifices in fandom, cheap or meaningless character deaths, sacrifices that were reversed later, and whether something can really be called sacrifice if it costs us nothing.