It’s a common occurrence but rarely captured in such stunning high-definition. “Recline rage” is DMARGE’s favourite term for when the person in front of you just won’t stop reclining their seat no matter how much it may discomfort you or, as is the case here, when you just want to lay back and relax but encounter some unwanted resistance from behind…
Air travel has always been an etiquette minefield, with people’s d*ickheaded in-plane behaviour causing anger time and time again in a seemingly never-ending cycle of bad vibes and great content.
Another plum example has surfaced today as a woman on an unidentified airline absolutely loses it after having reclined her seat during a flight, only to have had the person behind her relentlessly push back on the seat for the duration of the journey.
Seemingly at breaking point, the woman – who has held her tongue until landing – has seemingly stood up, turned around, and decided to give her fellow passengers a piece of her mind.
In a short but oh-so-sweet clip, you can see the woman’s reaction here as other travellers look on; some amused, some bemused, and a few humble heroes trying to defuse the situation.
Watch said lady go nuclear below.
Unsurprisingly, the video has quickly gone viral on social media, with viewers divided on who is at fault in the situation and whether her undeniably ballistic response was wholly justified.
By far and away the most-liked comment on the video was a user saying, quite straightforwardly: “She is allowed to put her seat back though”, with many viewers seemingly siding with the woman in question.
A more nuanced response also received a swarm of likes and, debatably, seemed to provide the “common sense” answer to the wider debate of whether seat reclining is ever appropriate:
“Until the airlines remove reclining seats, technically you are allowed to put your seat back. If 6’5 Brad is seated behind you, common courtesy says don’t.”
@sassyaftersixty
As a 6’6 “Brad” myself, I’m broadly aligned with the above comment: though people are, technically speaking, well within their rights to recline so long as the function is available, a bit of common decency never goes amiss.
If you’ve got a lankly fella behind you, maybe think twice before settling into a three-hour movie in full recline and – if you go for it – don’t be surprised if you get a little kick back…
But if the person behind you has got some room to spare, then you go right ahead: sit back, relax, and put those noise-cancelling headphones in, because hell hath no fury like a Karen scorned.