Bullies Don't Back Down

A character is being threatened by a bully, and someone gives them the bad advice that if they stand up to the bully, the bully will back down and leave them alone.

ALF

Appearances

• Cheers: Season 2, episode 16, "Cliff's Rocky Moment" (1984). Another bar patron has been picking on Cliff, so Carla tells him to stand up to the guy and stare him down and he'll back off. So Cliff stands up to him, and the bully invites him outside, prompting Cliff to sneak out through the restaurant upstairs.
• ALF: Season 2, episode 21, "Hit Me with Your Best Shot" (1988). When Brian gets in a fight with a boy at school, Willie tells him that if he refuses to fight and just walks away, the bully will leave him alone. He finds out he was wrong the next day when Brian comes home with a bruised face.
• Just Shoot Me!: Season 5, episode 10, "Finch and the Fighter" (2001). Finch's boxer girlfriend, Kelly, has a jealous ex boxer girlfriend named Maria, who wants fight Finch so she can take Kelly back. Finch is terrified of Maria, but Jack convinces him to to fight her by telling him that "bullies always back down when you stand up to them," which he later tells Nina is just a "theory" of his. Of course, Jack is wrong, and Maria is more than willing to face off against Finch in the ring.