History Main / HelplessGoodSide

* Pearl in ''VideoGame/LegendOfMana''.

Sometimes, when a character has a SplitPersonality, or two people sharing a body, one of them is a total wimp. This can range from merely being incompetent in a combat situation to being unable to take care of their own basic needs, such as feeding themselves and not wetting themselves in public. Regardless, when these come out in a combat situation, the character tends to be royally screwed. If they're on a team, this can transform them from a badass into TheLoad. When the BigBad does this, they may become a ZeroEffortBoss or ClippedWingAngel.

Sometimes, when a character has a SplitPersonality, or two people sharing a body, one of them is a total wimp. This can range from merely being incompetent in a combat situation to being unable to take care of their own basic needs, such as feeding themselves and not wetting themselves in public. Regardless, when these come out in a combat situation, the character tends to be royally screwed. If they're on a team, this can transform them from a badass into TheLoad. When the BigBad does this, they may become a ZeroEffortBoss.

So Bob has the heroes on the ropes. They've given everything they had, and it hasn't been enough. Worse, it seems to have just ticked him off more. Things are looking grim. But just as Bob prepares to finish them off, something happens. Suddenly, Bob backs away, first looking confused, then scared. Within moments, Bob has curled into a TroubledFetalPosition and started crying, begging for mercy, and referring to himself as Tim. Wait, Tim? Congratulations, you've just met the Helpless Good Side.

* ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'': Ben's presence almost saved their lives as they transformed back into him just before Buffy would have dealt the killing blow and she leaves him alive instead. Too bad for him that Giles is savvy enough to just take care of the DirtyBusiness and ShootTheDog.

* Downplayed in ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry5''. [[spoiler:V (being TheFettered human half of Vergil)]] is by no means "weak", but compared to his released evil side [[spoiler:Urizen (TheUnfettered demon half)]], he's an ant begging to get squashed if he goes up against him, which is why he needs Dante and the gang's help to defeat him [[spoiler:so he can perform a FusionDance to bring back the in-control Vergil]].

* In an episode of ''WesternAnimation/AmericanDad'' had Stan go inside Roger's mind. There, he meets Roger's conscience, a withered [[Disney/{{Pinocchio}} Jiminy Cricket]] who is locked in a cage and dying from neglect.

* A Franchise/{{Batman}} villain known as the Ventriloquist has this... sort of problem. He seems like a decent-but-timid person, but he expresses his sociopathic side through a ventriloquists' dummy he carries called "Scarface." Scarface is dressed and acts like a miniature version of Al Capone, often giving the impression that he's actually holding his Ventriloquist hostage. If Scarface is destroyed, the Ventriloquist will usually surrender, often expressing relief that the dummy he was talking through and manipulating is gone. However, it's definitely his own problem and not the dummy being an ArtifactOfDoom or something (and there are times you'll ''really'' start to wonder). He's been separated from the puppet a number of times, but always winds up with him again in the end. This is typical of Batman's RoguesGallery -- fixing Two-Face's appearance doesn't fix Two-Face for long[[note]]One comic actually [[NiceJobBreakingItHero had it turn him fully into his evil persona]], as the mangled side of his face represented the ''good'' Harvey Dent[[/note]], etc.

* {{Miracleman}} has Johnny Bates, the non-superpowered alter ego of the mass-murdering Kid Miracleman. Not only is Bates timid and horrified by the monstrous actions of his other persona, he's also still a child due to Kid Miracleman having remained in superpower form since the early 60s, forcing Bates body to remain in stasis for most of it with his mind helplessly trapped in Kid Miraclemans. Miracleman is eventually forced to kill Bates to permanently stop Kid Miracleman after he destroys most of London and massacres the inhabitants.

So Bob has the heroes on the ropes. They've given everything they had, and it hasn't been enough. Worse, it seems to have just ticked him off more. Things are looking grim. But just as Bob prepares to finish them off, something happens. Suddenly, Bob backs away, first looking confused, then scared. Within moments, Bob has curled into the the fetal position and started crying, begging for mercy, and referring to himself as Tim. Wait, Tim? Congratulations, you've just met the Helpless Good Side.

* In ''WesternAnimation/JackieChanAdventures'', when the Tiger Talisman splits Jackie into two sides, Jackie's light side, often referred to as ''Pussycat'' by his darker side, acts much like this. Case in point, he cried when he stepped on a bug. However, as Jackie was Jackie, he's still able to kick ass.

* ''Literature/{{Animorphs}}'' had a variant of this when Rachel morphed starfish and was split into two Rachels. Her 'Nice Rachel' side was this trope, weak, scared, freezing up under stress, not good for much of anything. However, unlike most examples of this trope, her 'Bad Rachel' side was just as big a liability because she couldn't think of anything more complex than [[AttackAttackAttack "hit it till it falls over"]]. ''Both'' of them realized that as much as they didn't like the other, they needed each other. They worked together, and eventually recombined of their own free will.

* In ''Anime/SailorMoon S'', Hotaru is still present in the mind of Mistress 9 after she takes over her body. She fights against her constantly as she grows weaker and weaker. When her light finally peters out, Mistress 9 announces triumphantly to Usagi that Hotaru has died.

So Bob has the heroes on the ropes. They've given everything they had, and it hasn't been enough. Worse, it seems to have just ticked him off more. Things are looking grim. But just as Bob prepares to finish them off, something happens. Suddenly, Bob backs away, first looking confused, then scared. Within moments, Bob has curled into the the fetal position and started crying, begging for mercy, and referring to himself as Tim. Wait, Tim? Congratulations, you've just met the HelplessGoodSide.

* Ed Norton's character in ''Film/PrimalFear'' is at first revealed to have an evil split personality that was probably the one responsible for the murder. After their stunt in the courtroom, with the trial finished, Richard Gere's lawyer character suddenly suspects it was the other way around, that the psycho killer in fact had a HelplessGoodSide and he's now helped that psycho use his good side to get out of real jail time. Turns out that's not quite right either as [[spoiler: there never was any good side at all, the whole thing was just the psycho doing an act and playing everybody (including a mental health professional)]].

* In ''VideoGame/{{Nox}}'', [[spoiler:Hecubah]], of all people, is revealed to have a HelplessGoodSide in the Wizard ending.

* ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'': Ben's presence almost saved their lives as they transformed back into him just before Buffy would have dealt the killing blow and she leaves him alive instead. Too bad for him that Giles is GenreSavvy enough to just take care of the DirtyBusiness and ShootTheDog.

Sometimes, when a character has a SplitPersonality, or two people sharing a body, one of them is a total wimp. This can range from merely being incompetent in a combat situation to being unable to take care of their own basic needs, such as feeding themselves and not wetting themselves in public. Regardless, when these come out in a combat situation, the character tends to be royally screwed. If they're on a team, this can transform them from a {{Badass}} into TheLoad. When the BigBad does this, they may become a ZeroEffortBoss.

* In an episode of ''WesternAnimation/AmericanDad'' had Stan go inside Roger's mind. There, he meets his conscience, a withered [[Disney/{{Pinocchio}} Jiminy Cricket]] who is locked in a cage and dying from neglect.

* Ed Norton's character in ''Film/PrimalFear'' is at first revealed to have a (not super-powered) SuperpoweredEvilSide that was probably the one responsible for the murder. After their stunt in the courtroom, with the trial finished, Richard Gere's lawyer character suddenly suspects it was the other way around, that the psycho killer in fact had a HelplessGoodSide and he's now helped that psycho use his good side to get out of real jail time. Turns out that's not quite right either as [[spoiler: there never was any good side at all, the whole thing was just the psycho doing an act and playing everybody (including a mental health professional)]].

* In ''{{Smallville}}'', LexLuthor's good side, a boy who goes by "Alexander".

* ''VideoGame/DarkSoulsII'' has Royal Sorcerer Navlaan. Talk to him while hollow, and you will meet a bloodthirsty assassin who will enlist your aid in killing a number of other NPCs. If human, however he will be meek and frightened, begging you to get as far away as possible and leave him there. It is implied that, rather than being a split personality, the former 'side' is actually another being [[SharingABody using Navlaan's body as a vessel, and that the latter is his true self]].

* Emil in ''VideoGame/TalesOfSymphoniaDawnOfTheNewWorld'', who spends the entire game resorting to his SuperPoweredEvilSide for ''every single random encounter''. [[spoiler:Until the very end, anyways.]]