History Main / BadassesWearBandanas

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* ''Anime/MobileFighterGGundam'': Domon Kasshu, the titular Gundam's hot-blooded pilot, wears a red bandana.

* Ryoga Hibiki from ''Anime/RanmaOneHalf'' is a major badass and wears a leopard bandana, which he can also [[ImprobableWeaponUser use as a weapon]].
* May from ''Anime/{{Pokemon}}'' always wears one.
* Zoro from ''Manga/OnePiece'' puts on a bandana whenever he decides to [[LetsGetDangerous get dangerous]].
* Krylancelo Finrandi, the main character of ''Manga/SorcererStabberOrphen''.
* This is a typical way that {{ninja}} of ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'' may choose to wear their forehead protector.
* Yukimi, a modern-day gun-wielding ninja, is frequently depicted wearing a bandana in ''Manga/NabariNoOu''.
* ''Manga/FullmetalAlchemist'': Winry, the resident WrenchWench, wears one of these.

* Tsurezure from ''Manga/{{Ojojojo}}'' is almost always seen wearing a bandanna [[spoiler:and is a former child assassin]] (though he didn't get the bandanna until the latter part stopped applying).
* Nie Given from ''Anime/AuraBattlerDunbine'' wears one after becoming the leader of the [[LaResistance guerrilla resistance]] to overthrow the EvilOverlord that killed his parents.

* ''LightNovel/DirtyPair'': Kei is almost always seen with her hair up and a band tied around her head to keep it in place, which serves as an instant visual signal as to which half of the TomboyAndGirlyGirl dynamic she represents.

* ComicBook/{{Elektra}} typically wears one.
* Franchise/{{Batman}} villain Gunhawk (a [[TheGunslinger gunslinger]] who specialises in {{BFG}}s and GatlingGood) wears one as part of his costume.
* ComicBook/ShangChi sometimes wears a red headband.
* Pre-Crisis ComicBook/{{Supergirl}}, the character's most powerful version, started wearing a red bandanna in ''[[ComicBook/Supergirl1982 her 80's book]]''. She still wore it when she nearly killed the Multiverse-eater Anti-Monitor in ''ComicBook/CrisisOnInfiniteEarths''.

* Will, Jack, and many other pirates in ''Franchise/PiratesOfTheCaribbean'' franchise wear bandanas.
* ''Franchise/{{Rambo}}'': The titular character sports one in every movie, with the exception of the [[Film/RamboLastBlood fifth and final installment]].
* In ''Film/ToraToraTora'', the mechanics chief gives Commander Fuchida a ''hachimaki'' for good luck just before the attack on Pearl Harbor.

* Sgt Jones in ''Film/PoliceAcademy2TheirFirstAssignment'' [[InvokedTrope invokes]] this trope when he puts a bandana on before capturing two would-be thieves.
* Pvt. Vasquez from ''Film/{{Aliens}}'' gives an excellent {{Ladette}} example.

* The streetwise bruiser Lex in ''Series/TheTribe'' wore one in a few first season episodes as well as his flashback episode.
* James May sports a bandana during several of the ''Series/{{Top Gear|UK}}'' overseas trips, which see him doing difficult things such as finding the source of the River Nile, traveling through the deserts of the Middle East, and threatening annoying co-presenters with a machete. It also serves the far more practical use of keeping his long hair out of his face.
* {{Kid Hero}} Lucas Sinclair from ''Series/StrangerThings'' wears a camouflage bandana.
* ''Series/Daredevil2015'': For most of season 1, prior to getting the big red devil suit, [[Creator/CharlieCox Matt Murdock]] wears a black mask with no eyeholes pulled down over his face.

* The Badass Bandana is an actual item in ''TabletopGame/{{Munchkin}}''.

* Marcus Fenix of the ''VideoGame/GearsOfWar'' franchise is one of the most visible examples of this trope. He is only seen without his bandana twice: [[BookEnds at the start of ''Gears of War'' and at the end of ''Gears of War 3'']].
** Dizzy Wallin also wears a bandana under his [[NiceHat cowboy hat]].
* Frank Woods in ''VideoGame/CallOfDutyBlackOps'' wears a headband throughout the game.

* ''Franchise/FireEmblem'' has [[VideoGame/FireEmblemTheBlazingBlade Dart]] and [[VideoGame/FireEmblemShadowDragonAndTheBladeOfLight Darros]], both of whom are {{pirate}}s. Most enemy pirates wear bandanas as well.
** [[TheHero Ike]] from ''VideoGame/FireEmblemPathOfRadiance'' and ''VideoGame/FireEmblemRadiantDawn'' has his iconic tattered headband(s), giving him the fitting "grizzled mercenary" look. From the same games are [[GenkiGirl Mia]] and [[BoisterousBruiser Boyd]], who both also have some kind of band around their heads.
** Many [[VideoGame/FireEmblemElibe Sacaens]] wore headbands; almost all of them were badasses by default and the headgear may have been more evocative of BraidsBeadsAndBuckskins.
** Characters of the Thief, Rogue and Assassin classes tend to have bandanas, headbands, or hoods.
** The ''VideoGame/FireEmblemAwakening'' DLC and ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosForNintendo3DSAndWiiU'' redesigns of [[VideoGame/FireEmblemElibe Roy]] definitely invoke this, giving his headband ridiculously long tails with tattered ends, on top of him being made to look significantly older.
** The wyvern-riding assassin Beruka in ''VideoGame/FireEmblemFates'' comes with a dark-colored one.
* Solid Snake from ''VideoGame/MetalGear''. Big Boss wears one too, but his is a memento of his mentor, The Boss.
** In ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid2'' Snake [[NoFourthWall points to his bandana and says that it gives him infinite ammo]].

* [[MagicKnight Flik]] from ''VideoGame/SuikodenII''.
* Most ''VideoGame/TalesSeries'' protagonists. There's even a skit about it [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DrQ7vhOriXw here]].

* ''VideoGame/FatalFury'' and ''VideoGame/TheKingOfFighters'' has Billy Kane, a mean Brit wearing a red-and-white bandanna.
* Crono from ''VideoGame/ChronoTrigger'' wears one where it is his starting accessory which gives him a speed boost.
* The hero of ''VideoGame/SecretOfMana''.

* The male human player character of ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyLegendII'', as well as Arthur of ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyLegendIII''.
* The protagonist of ''VideoGame/CaveStory'' has a green bandana around his neck. It's all but invisible on the in-game sprite, but it's there in the official artwork.

* Dickson from ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles1'' sports a dark red one on his forehead, making him look somewhat like an old pirate.

* Ernest from ''VideoGame/{{Battleborn}}'' is a badass [[DrillSergeantNasty Drill Sergeant]] DemolitionsExpert [[BirdPeople bird alien]] who wields a GrenadeLauncher. As indicative of the space military based faction he comes from, he wears an army bandana.
* One of Link's equipable headgear pieces in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'' is the Climbing Bandana, which lets him climb surfaces more quickly.
* Gunrock in the ''Videogame/PowerStone'' games wears a blue bandanna on his head to emphasise his working-class background as a miner.
* Petra’s bandana in ''VideoGame/MinecraftStoryMode'' also serves as her {{Iconic Item}}.

** Pan from ''Anime/DragonBallGT'' is a {{Badbutt}} example. She must have been following her dad Gohan's example from when he participated in the World Tournament as The Great Saiyaman in ''Anime/DragonBallZ''.
** Her great-grandfather Bardock's signature red bandana was the cloth he used to wipe up the blood of his deceased comrades and went on to wear it in both of his eponymous specials.

* James May sports a bandana during several of the ''Series/TopGear'' overseas trips, which see him doing difficult things such as finding the source of the River Nile, traveling through the deserts of the Middle East, and threatening annoying co-presenters with a machete. It also serves the far more practical use of keeping his long hair out of his face.

* Domon Kashuu from ''[[Anime/MobileFighterGGundam G Gundam]]''.
* Franchise/DragonBall:

** Her great-grandfather Bardock maybe the ultimate example in the franchise, as his signature red bandana being the cloth he used to wipe up the blood of his deceased comrades and went on to wear it in both of his eponymous specials. Fans were not pleased that when he finally attained CanonImmigrant status, neither the bandana was there or his death which had GoOutWithASmile.

* Caesar Martinez from ''ComicBook/TheWalkingDead'' wears one, and is one of the biggest badasses in the series, [[JawBreaker ripping a zombies jaw off]] by sticking his hand in its mouth.

* John Franchise/{{Rambo}} sports one in every movie, with the exception of the [[Film/RamboLastBlood fifth and final installment]].

* John Franchise/{{Rambo}} sports one in every movie.

* Dickson from ''VideoGame/{{Xenoblade}}'' sports a dark red one on his forehead, making him look somewhat like an old pirate.

* The male human player character of ''VideoGame/SaGa2'', as well as Arthur of ''VideoGame/SaGa3''.

* Parodied in ''Film/HotShotsPartDeux'' when our muscular shirtless hero is standing with his back to the camera tying on his bandanna, except when he turns round we see [[IdiotHero he's tied it around his eyes]] and so he walks straight into a tentpole.

** Tommy Oliver and Adam Park from ''Series/MightyMorphinPowerRangers'' wore a bandanas on occasion. Adam's predecessor Zack wore one at least once. Jason Lee Scott, the original Red Ranger, occasionally wore a red MartialArtsHeadband. When the Rangers were granted new {{Ninja}} powers they gained new costumes that came with head bands as part of the ceremony.

* Tommy Oliver and Adam Park from ''Series/MightyMorphinPowerRangers'' wore a bandanas on occasion. Adam's predecessor Zack wore one at least once. Jason Lee Scott, the original Red Ranger, occasionally wore a red MartialArtsHeadband. When the Rangers were granted new {{Ninja}} powers they gained new costumes that came with head bands as part of the ceremony.

* Tommy Oliver and Adam Park from ''Series/MightyMorphinPowerRangers'' wore a bandanas on occasion. Adam's predecessor Zack wore one at least once.

* Soma Yukihira and Ryo Kurokiba from ''[[Manga/ShokugekiNoSoma Food Wars]]'' both satisfy this trope, donning bandannas while cooking.

* In ''Tabletopgame/Warhammer40000'', the Catachan Jungle Fighters sport these, as part of their theme of Franchise/{{Rambo}} expies.

* ''Series/TheDefenders2017'': Matt uses Series/{{Jessica Jones}}' scarf like a bandanna to hide his identity when infiltrating Midland Circle.

[[caption-width-right:350:[[Music/TheUltimateShowdownOfUltimateDestiny The Ultimate Showdown of]] [[{{Pun}} Ultimate Bandanary]][[labelnote:*]]Image is based on ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosUltimate''. Clockwise from top: [[Franchise/StreetFighter Ryu]], [[VideoGame/FireEmblemTheBindingBlade Roy]], [[VideoGame/CastlevaniaRondoOfBlood Richter]], [[VideoGame/FireEmblemPathOfRadiance Ike]], and [[Franchise/MetalGear Snake]][[/labelnote]].]]

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[[quoteright:350:[[Film/{{Aliens}} https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/aliens_030_7965.png]]]]

* Pan from ''Anime/DragonBallGT'' is a {{Badbutt}} example. She must have been following her dad Gohan's example from when he participated in the World Tournament as The Great Saiyaman in ''Anime/DragonBallZ''.

* Tsurezure from ''Manga/{{Ojojojo}}'' is almost always seen wearing a bandanna [[spoiler: and is a former child assassin]] (though he didn't get the bandanna until the latter part stopped applying).

* Petra’s bandana in ''VideoGame/MinecraftStoryMode'' also serves as her {Iconic Item}.

The reasons for wearing one can vary. [[RuleOfCool Maybe the wearer thinks it looks cool.]] It can keep the wearers hair out of their face without obscuring their vision like a helmet might. If supplies are scarce, a bandana might be the only headgear one is able to find. Whatever the reason, a bandana usually highlights just how much of a badass the wearer is, and warns others to stay out of his way.

Related to BadassLongcoat. Both are added to a character to show they are a badass with a short visual cue, in this case a certain type of rugged, masculine badass.

[[folder:AnimeAndManga]]

* Pan from ''Anime/DragonBallGT'' is a {{Badbutt}} example. She must have been following her dad Gohan's example from when he participated in the World Tornament as The Great Saiyaman in ''Anime/DragonBallZ''.
** Her great-grandfather Bardock maybe the ultimate example in the franchise, as his signature red bandana being the cloth he used to wipe up the blood of his descrased comrades and went on to wear it in both of his eponymous specials. Fans where not pleased that when he finally attained CanonImmigrant status, neither the bandana was there or his death which had GoOutWithASmile.

[[folder:ComicBooks]]

[[folder:{{Film}}]]

* Sgt Jones in ''Film/PoliceAcademy2TheirFirstAssignment'' [[InvokedTrope invokes]] this trope when he puts a bandana on before capturing two would be thieves.

[[folder:LiveActionTelevision]]

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[[folder:ProfessionalWrestling]]

[[folder:RolePlayingGames]]

[[folder:TabletopGame]]

[[folder:VideoGames]]

* In the ''VideoGame/FableI'' and ''VideoGame/FableII'', bandits often wear bandanas, but aren't very badass in comparison to your Hero. But you can wear a bandana; just expect people to run in fear from you.

* ''VideoGame/FatalFury'' and ''VideoGame/TheKingOfFighters'' has Billy Kane, a mean Brit wearing red-and-white bandanna.

* One of Link's equipable head gear pieces in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'' is the Climbing Bandana, which lets him climb surfaces more quickly.

[[folder: WebAnimation]]

[[folder: Webcomics]]

[[folder: Western Animation]]

[[folder: Real Life]]
* A number of real life {{Badass Biker}}s wear bandannas as fashion statements.