History Main / InkStainAdaptation

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->''"People don't really hate ComicBook/{{Aquaman}}.''\\
''It's just that the 70s version of him is such an easy and irresistible target."''
-->-- [[http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/18.223418-Why-so-much-hatred-for-Aquaman?page=1 User Cheveyo, from the thread "Why So Much Hatred for Aquaman?"]]

An adaptation to a long running franchise which irrevocably colors the public's perception of the franchise as a whole. This is rarely for good reasons.

This can not only kill a show, but may also [[FranchiseKiller kill any interest in doing future adaptations]] unless we are promised the next one will be very good. Even if it doesn't, people who aren't fans, who might never even have seen ''any'' of the installments, will bring this one up to mock because of the ink stains. In the worst scenarios, the good installments [[NoExportForYou aren't freely available in one's country]], while the bad ones ''are''.

Sometimes, an InkStainAdaptation is used for LostInImitation. The results can be [[DarthWiki/RuinedFOREVER disastrous]].

See also AdaptationDisplacement and NeverLiveItDown. [[IThoughtItMeant Not to be confused with]] InkSuitActor.

----
!!Examples

[[foldercontrol]]

[[folder:Anime and Manga]]
* The "original season" ''Anime/{{Pokemon}}'' anime will always be how the Franchise/{{Pokemon}} franchise is most known outside in Japan, for better or worse. In many people's eyes, Ash will always be present, Pokémon will always speak PokemonSpeak, and [[AnimationAgeGhetto there will be no reason for adults to enjoy Pokémon other than nostalgia]]. Certain characters can't quite break the rep of their anime counterparts.
* ''Franchise/{{Gundam}}'':
** While still well-liked by the general fandom, ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamWing'' has attracted a vocal Hatedom from some old timer UC[[note]]Universal Century, the verse where most series happen, but notably not ''Wing'' which is an alternate continuity[[/note]] fans who have accused the series of coloring the general perception of ''Gundam'' and Mecha series in the Western world. When ''Wing'' aired on the Toonami, [[GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff it garnered higher ratings in the US than in its native Japan]] and acted as a GatewaySeries to ''Gundam''. However, its popularity eclipsed those of the UC entries as the original ''Anime/MobileSuitGundam'' aired after ''Wing'''s run only to suffer abysmal ratings. Furthermore, as ''Wing'' had [[EstrogenBrigade many female fans]], it was also blamed for intensifying the ShipToShipCombat and DieForOurShip sentiments in ''Gundam'' that started in ''Anime/MobileSuitZetaGundam''. Much of the rift stems from the differences in narrative and aesthetic styles of ''Wing'' and UC entries. ''Wing'' is about a HoYay-filled independent paramilitary organization trying to end wars between different factions without directly aligning themselves with a specific one. In contrast, the UC entries focus on a single protagonist acting melodramatic in a conflict between 2 major superpowers. Subsequently, many people in Western anime communities are more likely to associate Gundam with the aesthetics of ''Wing'', as it was the most popular series outside of Japan.
** In general, [[VocalMinority some fringe UC fans]] will accuse any alternate universe Gundam series not made by Creator/YoshiyukiTomino for negatively affecting the image of Gundam, regardless of actual quality. Not even beloved OVA series set in the UC timeline like ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamThe08thMSTeam'' are exempt from this accusation. As these [=OVAs=] generally focus on gritty realism, many newcomers initially exposed to these were surprised at more fantastical elements in the UC lore like Newtypes.
* People will always associate ''Franchise/YuGiOh'' with the MerchandiseDriven second [[Anime/YuGiOh anime series]] [[Anime/YuGiOhGX and]] [[Anime/YuGiOh5Ds its]] [[Anime/YuGiOhZEXAL spinoffs]], where card games are SeriousBusiness and [[DuelsDecideEverything are as important to society as politics and business]] are to RealLife, and as such are unable to take the original story seriously at all, which is a bit of a shame because [[Manga/YuGiOh the very first version of the story]] wasn't actually obsessed with the card game at all, actually has proper CharacterDevelopment, and it is very clear that Duel Monsters is simply a hobby; the MythArc doesn't have anything to do with it, in fact.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Film]]
* In 1995, ''ComicBook/JudgeDredd'' had [[Film/JudgeDredd a film adaptation]] starring Creator/SylvesterStallone that had a very devastating impact in the US. While in Britain, ''Dredd'' is an old warhorse of a comic that isn't going anywhere, the movie was the first exposure most Americans had to the franchise. Almost two decades later, the impact can still be seen in DC's failed attempt to market ''Judge Dredd'' trade paperbacks in American comic stores, and in how [[Film/{{Dredd}} the latest film adaptation]] was a BoxOfficeBomb despite being much closer to the source material and [[AcclaimedFlop winning the acclaim of those who actually saw it]].
* Though the original ''Film/{{Gojira}}'' was a [[UnbuiltTrope serious and scary movie]], Franchise/{{Godzilla}} is best remembered by the general populace as a [[SoBadItsGood camp icon from the 60s]], or by the [[Film/{{Godzilla 1998}} 1998]] InNameOnly adaptation. The [[Film/{{Godzilla 2014}} 2014]] reboot has alleviated this somewhat.
* [[Film/{{Frankenstein1931}} The first sound version of]] ''Franchise/{{Frankenstein}}'' (made in 1931, starring Creator/BorisKarloff) simplified and compressed the story considerably and changed the character of FrankensteinsMonster. In particular, the monster in the original story was actually about as lithe as a human, could speak, and was very intelligent, not the stiff, shambling, groaning monster of the movies. He also did not have bolts in his neck or a cylindrical flat-top head. The movie solidified [[IAmNotShazam the idea that the monster was called Frankenstein]], though this mix-up was already in effect in the preceding decades. And the idea of the monster being brutish, unintelligent and unable to speak was established by the book's first dramatic adaptation, Richard Brinsley Peake's stage play ''Presumption, or the Fate of Frankenstein'', as early as 1823.
* The success of the ''Film/TheLordOfTheRings'' films has dramatically colored public perception of the work, for better or worse, since the films put their own dramatically different spin on various themes. The number of people who read the books for the first time prior to seeing the films or knowing everything that happens therein is expected to approach zero. The studio struggled for a while to get the prequel, ''Film/TheHobbit'', off the ground, due in part to the pressure of making it [[DarkerAndEdgier conform to the existing films]] (and turning it into [[AdaptationExpansion a trilogy]]).
* The ''Franchise/ConanTheBarbarian'' franchise has been a series of ink-stain adaptations building on each other, for better or worse, until the original Howard stories were LostInImitation. Some aspects of the ExpandedUniverse Conan, such as [[Film/ConanTheBarbarian1982 the classic Arnold Schwarzenegger film]] and FrankFrazetta's artwork depictions, are more successful than others, such as the sequel ''Film/ConanTheDestroyer'' which with ''Film/RedSonja'' nearly killed the [[GenreKiller entire genre]] as well as [[FranchiseKiller franchise]]. And [[Film/ConanTheBarbarian2011 the Conan remake]] seems to have done it all over again, as it did poorly at the box-office and was savaged by critics.
* For most people, Franchise/{{Superman}} is synonymous with the ChristopherReeve movies, to the point that many critics of ''Film/ManOfSteel'' were off-put by the fact that it '''wasn't''' as light and tame as the Reeve films.
* The failure of Disney's quarter-billion-dollar 2012 ''Film/JohnCarter'' has killed any further attempts to bring Edgar Rice Burroughs' other hero to the big or small screen by Disney or anyone else for at least a few decades.
* While it's largely dismissed by most, ''Film/DragonballEvolution'' was so bad that it prompted series creator Creator/AkiraToriyama to create [[Anime/DragonBallZBattleOfGods his own film]] after having not been involved with the series in over a decade. (With the exception of SelfParody ''Neko Majin Z'').
* ''ComicBook/HowardTheDuck'' fans will always have to deal with the negative reputation the series had from [[Film/HowardTheDuck the film adaptation]]. This got so bad, that [[spoiler: TheStinger to ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy'']] was a bit divisive. You still have Marvel fans saying that there should never be another film adaptation.
* AngLee's ''Film/{{Hulk}}'' movie is often blamed for the failure of the MCU reboot, ''Film/TheIncredibleHulk'', which despite being better received by fans, sold even ''fewer'' tickets than the original. The character's cinematic reputation has been somewhat restored by ''Film/{{The Avengers|2012}}'', but Marvel is still wary of giving the property another chance, which is why there's no Hulk sequel in the works as of 2016. It doesn't help that Disney/Marvel would have to share profits with Universal (a condition of Marvel getting the film rights to the character back is that Universal gets distribution rights to any solo Hulk film).
* ''Film/WillyWonkaAndTheChocolateFactory'' is this for its source novel, Creator/RoaldDahl's ''Literature/CharlieAndTheChocolateFactory''. That film has become so iconic [[CharlieAndTheChocolateParody and parodied]] that outside of the U.K. -- and ''especially'' in the United States -- the novel has suffered AdaptationDisplacement. There are actually [[AdaptationOverdosed many other adaptations of it out there]], but old-time fans tend to bristle at any telling that doesn't slavishly follow the lead of the 1971 Gene Wilder film, never mind that said tellings are usually TruerToTheText (such as [[Theatre/CharlieAndTheChocolateFactory the 2013 stage musical]], though that adaptation tosses in one song from and several {{Internal Homage}}s to the '71 version). [[DisownedAdaptation Dahl himself disowned the film]], so he likely wouldn't be happy about this at all. Some of the changes were "corrected" in TimBurton's [[Film/CharlieAndTheChocolateFactory 2005 adaptation]] - the Oompa-Loompas changing back from orange-faced, green-haired clowns to dark-skinned jungle natives - but others were not.
** One good example is how the characters' nationalities are presented. Willy Wonka is clearly supposed to be British in the novel, but in both film versions he's American. Augustus Gloop's family in the novel is either British or East Coast American, judging by his mother's speech patterns, but both films made them Germans. Veruca Salt's family was American rather than British (in the text, Mr. Salt says "crazy" rather than "mad" and calls his female employees "gals" rather than "girls"), but both films changed this. With the Bucket family it's a gray area: Charlie and his parents and grandparents are ''implied'' to be British (eating cabbage soup and whatnot), but the sequel ''Literature/CharlieAndTheGreatGlassElevator'' follows the lead of the 1971 film by [[{{Retcon}} retconning]] them as Americans, albeit ones of English descent (Grandma Georgina's [[WhiteAngloSaxonProtestant ancestors]] came over on the ''Mayflower''); in Burton's version, though, they're back to being British.
* Not surprisingly, Creator/WalterHill's 1979 cinematic adaptation of ''Film/TheWarriors'' has completely eclipsed the Sol Yurick novel - so much so that the [[VideoGame/TheWarriors 2005 video game adaptation]] not only kept Hill's campy approach, but made it even ''campier''!
* While the Franchise/TransformersFilmSeries was a ''huge'' success, it had the unfortunate effect of giving the franchise as a whole a reputation of being all about big dumb action and giant robots fighting, much to the irritation of its fans in other medias, where it has plenty of good stories, mature writing and memorable characters.
* While in the original novel Franchise/{{Zorro}} wore a poncho, a sombrero and a full-face mask and used a cavalry sword and a pistol as his main weapons, the 1920 movie adaptation introduced the costume and weapons that have been used in all adaptations, with even the original author (who was still alive) [[RetCanon revising his stories to fit]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Literature]]
* The King James version of ''Literature/TheBible'', with its antiquated (it was deliberately a bit archaic even in James' day) version of English, seems to have produced in some people the rather bizarre notion that God speaks Ye Olde Englishe exclusively, and that it's very nearly sacrilegious to use modern English when speaking to or about Him. To this day, there are a great many Christians and Christian denominations (especially those on the [[TheFundamentalist fundamentalist]] end), known as "King James Onlyites", who will insist that the King James Version is the ''only'' English translation "approved" by God, and can get ''very'' touchy on the subject. However, these people are in the minority in much of the world. This is especially ironic/silly when you consider just ''why'' people like the KJV: Because it is the version of the Bible with the most ''artistic'' merit; [[{{Woolseyism}} rather than just a translation of the Hebrew, it is a work of English verse in its own right]]. In other words, it ''isn't'' a literal translation.
* The later runs of ''Literature/ThePrincessBride'' include post-novel content in which Goldman tells us ({{Kayfabe}}) that Stephen King felt this way about Goldman's abridged version of the story. Goldman also cites this as one of the reasons he can't secure the rights to publish the sequel to the book in English; the Morgenstern estate feels that his abridgement was a travesty and won't let him near the sequel. [[spoiler:The reality is Goldman has made a few abortive attempts to start the sequel, but each time he's realized he can't recapture the magic of the original.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Live Action TV]]
* The 60s high {{Camp}} TV interpretation of ''Series/{{Batman}}'' still lingers on as some people's view of the character, despite several adaptations and major character changes since. This has continued to the extent that Warner Bros. Consumer Products has approached Adam West and 20th Century Fox (producers of the TV show) in 2012 about producing merchandise based on the TV shows. (Also, greeting cards from Hallmark tend to follow the Adam West design, which most closely resembled the traditional comic book design.) The Jim Holmes incident may further encourage this revival of the West version.
** Many also complain that the show paints the UsefulNotes/TheComicsCode[=/=][[UsefulNotes/TheSilverAgeOfComicBooks Silver Age]]-era Batman comics, which are now remembered as being as campy and silly as the show. Many forget that the West show was intended as a parody, and was restrained by the production values and budget of an ABC show in the 1960s. Fans of classic comics lament that so many view this period of comics as a Dork Age, because despite not treating a guy who dresses up as giant bat to fight crime as such serious business, the Batman of the 60's and 70s was still cool in his own right.
** In some ways, ''Batman'' was an ink stain for ''the genre of Western superheroes.'' Until 2000 or so, when superhero movies started being huge, any outside journalism on the genre would feature "Bif! Pow!" in the headline, as if Adam West was the last word on the subject.
** Notably, UsefulNotes/TheDarkAgeOfComicBooks may have revitalized interest in the show as a backlash against all the grimdarkness. ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheBraveAndTheBold'' was something of a love letter to both the show and UsefulNotes/{{the Silver Age|of Comic Books}} DC comics, and even included episodes written by Paul Dini, who had done plenty of serious work for the comparatively serious ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries''. Also, Creator/DCComics debuted ''Batman '66'', which treats the TV show as an alternate universe (even adding characters that either weren't in the show, such as Two-Face and Poison Ivy, or didn't even exist in 1966, such as Bane and Harley Quinn) in 2013, to modest success.
* The 70s ''Series/WonderWoman'' series starring Lynda Carter colored, and continues to color, peoples' cultural knowledge of the character. Unlike Batman, however, Wonder Woman has never had the benefit of a successive adaptation that mitigates the {{Camp}} elements of the 70s show. The ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague'' animated series has helped to some extent, but popular culture still looks almost exclusively to the Carter version, and [[Series/WonderWoman2011Pilot a recent adaptation with Adrianne Palicki]] was cancelled before it aired. And because, unlike the Batman show, it very rarely attempted to adapt any of the villain concepts from the comics, it's also left future filmmakers floundering to find a villain from the comics that the mainstream will care about.
* While ''Franchise/PowerRangers'' is a successful franchise on its own, many ''Franchise/SuperSentai'' purists view it as the reason why ''Super Sentai'' will never get the proper international recognition it deserves, since the adapted footage of the costumes and giant robot battles are so deeply ingrained with ''Power Rangers'', ''Super Sentai'' could never stand on its own merits. It's not uncommon to see ''Super Sentai'' videos on the internet (such as the "Legendary War" scene from ''Series/KaizokuSentaiGokaiger'') to be labeled as ''Power Rangers'' videos, or even Sentai toys sold on eBay also marked as Power Rangers as well. This is especially prevalent among fans from countries such as Brazil, the Philippines, or France, which used to air locally-dubbed versions of ''Super Sentai'' before switching to ''Power Rangers'' dubs.
** On another level, the individual ''Sentai'' seasons can be tarred with the ''Rangers'' brush. Some past seasons get a bad reputation simply because of the following ''Rangers'' adaptations. Some fans who watch ''Rangers'' first looked a little skeptically on ''[[Series/HyakujuuSentaiGaoranger Gaoranger]]'' or ''[[Series/GoGoSentaiBoukenger Boukenger]]'' simply because of how badly they were adapted into ''[[Series/PowerRangersWildForce Wild Force]]'' or ''[[Series/PowerRangersOperationOverdrive Operation Overdrive]]''.
** This also applies to tokusatsu in general. Fairly often people would call any costumed superhero from Japan "a Power Ranger", despite having no resemblance to one whatsoever.
* ''Series/MaskedRider'', Saban's adaptation of ''Series/KamenRiderBlackRX'', was not just an ink stain to the Franchise/KamenRider franchise itself, it was also an ink stain to its very own name. Originally "Masked Rider" was the official romanized name of Kamen Rider (''kamen'' simply means "mask" in Japanese), but because the name "Masked Rider" is so closely associated to the Saban version outside Japan, most fans refuse to use it despite its prominence in many products. When Adness made ''Series/KamenRiderDragonKnight'' (a remake of ''Series/KamenRiderRyuki''), Executive Producer Steve Wang [[http://www.scifijapan.com/articles/2009/02/22/kamen-rider-returns-to-us-television/ insisted]] on using "Kamen Rider" instead of "Masked Rider" since he wanted to distance the show from the Saban version. The Japanese shows, which were using the romanized name of "Masked Rider" on the logos since ''Series/KamenRiderKuuga'', [[http://en.ishimoripro.com/news/index-51177.php followed suit]] by switching to "Kamen Rider" beginning with ''Series/KamenRiderDouble''. On top of that, some time ago Saban applied for a trademark for "Power Rider", which many believe is their giving "Kamen Rider" another swing. Although, that was around the time ''Series/PowerRangersSamurai'' was airing (which gave fans the impression they would try to adapt ''Series/KamenRiderDecade'', considering how it [[{{Crossover}} intersected with]] ''Samurai''[='=]s [[Series/SamuraiSentaiShinkenger source series]]), and nothing yet has come of that.
* ''{{Warehouse 13}}'' uses this as a major plot point. All of the stories children grew up with, such as ''Literature/{{Cinderella}}'' and ''Literature/AlicesAdventuresInWonderland'', were bowdlerized Warehouse-issue fabrications designed to downplay the more horrifying aspects of the ''true'' stories.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Video Games]]
* The [[NintendoHard nigh-impossible difficulty]] of the NES/Famicom version of ''VideoGame/{{Spelunker}}'' is a HUGE meme (especially in Japan), but not many people realize this is only because it's a PortingDisaster of the arcade version. Most people don't even know the NES version ''is a port.''
* The [[{{VideoGame/Thief2014}} 2014 reboot attempt]] for the ''VideoGame/{{Thief}}'' series has been frequently criticized for being too superficial in its homaging of the original series, mostly ignoring its gameplay and storytelling nuances and often replacing them with gratuitous, out-of-place edginess. The main story was widely derided for being badly plotted, with some [[IdiotBall very questionable and annoying characterisation]] for many characters, the complete jettisoning of the varied factions that made the series' universe interesting and unique (sans the odd token reference here and there) and an absence of the dry-witted humor that was typical for the series alongside its more serious plots. An oft-heard complaint is that the game mechanics and stylistic choices in the reboot seem to shun Thief's previous design sensibilities and prefer to ape the then-recent success of ''VideoGame/{{Dishonored}}'' (itself actually considered more of a ''Thief'' game (in spirit) even by ''Thief'' fans than the official reboot they got). Most damningly, the reboot game suffers the most from lacking level design favourable to the very open-ended style of exploration and objective completion that the original three ''Thief'' games and ''Dishonored'' are well known and loved for. The gameplay instead opts for a very railroaded layout, with very limited options for different possible approaches to each location. Couple all of that with several ridiculous technical issues and bizarre glitches in the worst places possible - particularly in enemy AI and sound propagation, a key part of previous ''Thief'' games - and the reboot does itself almost no favours. Tellingly, the game isn't usually condemned as outright terrible, but even the most forgiving fans and critics predominantly consider it bland and SoOkayItsAverage at best. Granted, a series as acclaimed and ground-breaking as ''Thief'' was a ToughActToFollow, not the least because its creators were [[Creator/LookingGlassStudios one of the most innovative developers of the 1990s]], and yet the reboot still messed up a lot of things in ways it could have avoided. In something of a subversion, the massive flaws of the reboot ''haven't'' substantially hurt the reputation of the old games for newcomers, and many have gone back and discovered them thanks to it. It's currently dubious whether there'll be any future sequels, though (unlike with ''Tomb Raider'', ''Hitman'' or ''Deus Ex'').
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Western Animation]]
* ''WesternAnimation/SuperFriends'' has crippled ComicBook/{{Aquaman}} as a character forever. Give him a harpoon hand, replace it with a magical water hand, point out how life at the bottom of the ocean has made him stronger, faster, and more resilient than most humans... and everyone will still be like, "He's just some guy who swims fast and talks to fish." It's gotten to the point where DC finally decided to [[DyingToBeReplaced kill off the old Aquaman and create a new one]]. But the original is back now, and in New 52, all bets and gloves are off with DC, as they hire expert comic book fixer Geoff Johns to fix Aquaman's bad cred. As Geoff has had Aquaman face all of the 'fish man' jokes and blow them to shreds with all of the awesome things he does, it seems to be working. Additionally, he's now to be a part of the DC Cinematic Universe, to be played by Creator/JasonMomoa; debuting as a cameo in ''Film/BatmanVSupermanDawnOfJustice''. Between [[Series/GameOfThrones Khal Drogo]] and [[Film/ConanTheBarbarian2011 Conan,]] if there's one person in the world who can rescue Aquaman's reputation as a stone-cold badass, it's him.
* Everyone remembers the 1987 ''WesternAnimation/{{Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles|1987}}'' cartoon, while the much darker original comics and more recent cartoon and movies seem to be living in its shadow... Much like [[Series/{{Batman}} the '60s Batman]] example earlier in the page.
* Everyone remembers ''WesternAnimation/HeManAndTheMastersOfTheUniverse1983'', with its goofy takes on the characters and the [[AndKnowingIsHalfTheBattle moral segments]] at the end. It was a cultural phenomenon in its day, and is ripe for MemeticMutation in the internet age. Fewer know that it was not the first version, and it wasn't even close to the last. The earliest version of He-Man had no SecretIdentity, just being a BarbarianHero in a sort of FuturePrimitive setting implied to be AfterTheEnd of their world. [[WesternAnimation/HeManAndTheMastersOfTheUniverse2002 The 2002 series]] was a reboot that primarily drew from the first cartoon, but dialed down the camp and bumped things up a stage on the SlidingScaleOfContinuity. DC Comics would handle another reboot in 2012, in the form of a DarkerAndEdgier comic series. On top of that, you have the spin-off of the first cartoon, [[WesternAnimation/SheRa She-Ra]], about He-Man's long-lost sister, and the pseudo-sequel, [[WesternAnimation/TheNewAdventuresOfHeman New Adventures of He-Man]], which moved to a new setting, mostly new cast, and transitioned to sci-fi.
* When people think of Literature/{{Aladdin}}, odds are they'll think of [[Disney/{{Aladdin}} the Disney version]] with its storybook version of Persia/Arabia, rather than the Chinese setting that the original story employed. To be fair, nearly all adaptations of Aladdin were set in Arabia well before Disney got their hands on the story. And moving the story out of China ''does'' make it easier to [[RaceLift cast Caucasian actors]], as the Disney film did.
* ''Disney/{{Pocahontas}}'', meanwhile, is one of the biggest subversions. The stage version of John Smith and Pocahontas had formed itself not long after the real events. But through many different variations and romantasizing went as far as them being lovers. Once Disney put that story to celluloid, the VocalMinority that knew its inaccuracies raised such a stink that everyone now knows the real Pocahontas was only twelve years old at the time and has no love affair with Smith. She even married John Rolfe and moved with him to England, a fact that Disney inexplicably got right in the direct-to-video sequel.
* Inverted in the case of ''WesternAnimation/TheRealGhostbusters'' and ''Film/GhostbustersII''. It's been said ''[=GB2=]'' is seen as the runt of the franchise because ''RGB'' set such a high standard with writing and characterization. At least until ''RGB'' was tragically torn apart by {{Executive Meddling}} in the later seasons.
* ''Franchise/MyLittlePony'' is frequently dismissed as a {{Glurge}} outlet. This is almost entirely because of G3, which consists almost entirely of saccharine nonsense. People turned onto the franchise by ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'' are often surprised to find the G1 [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyTVSpecials TV specials]], [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyTheMovie movie]], and [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyAndFriends cartoon show]] can be remarkably mature, can be [[VileVillainSaccharineShow a bit]] [[SurpriseCreepy dark]], and on occasion [[https://derpiboo.ru/1084620 quite horrifying]].
* The ''WesternAnimation/HowToTrainYourDragon'' movies, which was adapted from the fairly obscure book series of the same name, have pretty much defined the series in the general public. The average person might be surprised at the wide amount of differences between the books and the movies if you hand them one of the books, where Toothless is a much smaller and annoying dragon for example.
[[/folder]]
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* While ''PowerRangers'' is a successful franchise on its own, many ''SuperSentai'' purists view it as the reason why ''Super Sentai'' will never get the proper international recognition it deserves, since the adapted footage of the costumes and giant robot battles are so deeply ingrained with ''Power Rangers'', ''Super Sentai'' could never stand on its own merits. It's not uncommon to see ''Super Sentai'' videos on the internet (such as the "Legendary War" scene from ''Series/KaizokuSentaiGokaiger'') to be labeled as ''Power Rangers'' videos. This is especially prevalent among fans from countries such as Brazil, the Philippines, or France, which used to air locally-dubbed versions of ''Super Sentai'' before switching to ''Power Rangers'' dubs.

* ''Series/MaskedRider'', Saban's adaptation of ''Series/KamenRiderBlackRX'', was not just an ink stain to the Franchise/KamenRider franchise itself, it was also an ink stain to its very own name. Originally "Masked Rider" was the official romanized name of Kamen Rider (''kamen'' simply means "mask" in Japanese), but because the name "Masked Rider" is so closely associated to the Saban version outside Japan, most fans refuse to use it despite its prominence in many products. When Adness made ''Series/KamenRiderDragonKnight'' (a remake of ''Series/KamenRiderRyuki''), Executive Producer Steve Wang [[http://www.scifijapan.com/articles/2009/02/22/kamen-rider-returns-to-us-television/ insisted]] on using "Kamen Rider" instead of "Masked Rider" since he wanted to distance the show from the Saban version. The Japanese shows, which were using the romanized name of "Masked Rider" on the logos since ''Series/KamenRiderKuuga'', [[http://en.ishimoripro.com/news/index-51177.php followed suit]] by switching to "Kamen Rider" beginning with ''Series/KamenRiderDouble''.\\
On top of that, some time ago Saban applied for a trademark for "Power Rider", which many believe is their giving "Kamen Rider" another swing. Although, that was around the time ''Series/PowerRangersSamurai'' was airing (which gave fans the impression they would try to adapt ''Series/KamenRiderDecade'', considering how it [[{{Crossover}} intersected with]] ''Samurai''[='=]s [[Series/SamuraiSentaiShinkenger source series]]), and nothing yet has come of that.

** In general, [[VocalMinority some fringe UC fans]] will accuse any alternate universe Gundam series not made by Creator/YoshiyukiTomino for negatively affecting the image of Gundam, regardless of actual quality. Not even beloved OVA series set in the UC timeline like ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamThe08thMSTeam'' are exempt from this accusation. As these OVAs generally focus on gritty realism, many newcomers initially exposed to these were surprised of more fantastical elements in the UC lore like Newtypes.

* Everyone remembers ''WesternAnimation/HeManAndTheMastersOfTheUniverse1983'', with its goofy takes on the characters and the [[AndKnowingIsHalfTheBattle moral segments]] at the end. Very few remember the previous DC Comics take on ''Franchise/MastersOfTheUniverse'', where the Sorceress is referred to as 'The Goddess' and lives in a cave (and not Castle Greyskull—and she and Zoar the falcon are separate characters), Prince Adam (He-Man's alter-ego who didn't appear in the toyline minicomics... at first) is known for 'wenching and carousing', and Skeletor is a much more dangerous villain who kills a rival wizard in combat. There were also illustrated books released with the original action figures which gave different origins for the characters (Teela, instead of being the Sorceress' daughter, is a magical clone of her[[note]]which practically makes Teela her "daughter" anyway[[/note]]), and had a storyline where He-Man's Sword of Power was split in two (with He-Man possessing one half and Skeletor the other—this was reflected in the original action figure accessories with two 'sword halves' with the characters' figures that could be put together). Later takes on He-Man and the Masters of the Universe (such as [[Film/MastersOfTheUniverse the 1987 live-action movie]] and [[WesternAnimation/HeManAndTheMastersOfTheUniverse2002 the 2002 series]]) don't seem to be talked about as much as the [[FirstInstallmentWins 80's Filmation cartoon.]]

* The infamously cheap and [[TroubledProduction horribly produced]] ''Series/DoctorWho'' story "Warriors of the Deep" pretty much codified all of the negative opinion of 1980s ''Who''. This was because the problems with the story were [[FranchiseOriginalSin exaggerations of problems that were already there at a more manageable level for years]], and because its more embarrassing clips were often pointed to by the show's detractors to point out how silly it looked. Even now that the thoroughly better made revival series has eroded much of this, it's still common to hear commentators talking about wobbly sets, bad acting and dodgy monster costumes over that clip of Whatsherface [[{{Narm}} trying to kick a pantomime horse]].

* ''VideoGame/BloodyRoar'': Each sequel after the 2nd further destroyed people's perceptions that the game involved any skill or strategy, culminating with Bloody Roar 4, where one could almost justly assume the entire series was just a ButtonMasher.
* ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaRondoOfBlood'', the [[NoExportForYou Japanese-only]] [[TurboGrafx16 PC Engine]] installment of the ''Franchise/{{Castlevania}}'' franchise, received one in the form of the SNES adaptation, ''Dracula X'', which eschewed all of the stages as well as a playable Maria, and [[NintendoHard ratcheted the difficulty upward to ungodly levels]]. It did not go over well at all, and [[SmallReferencePools anyone unaware of the original would immediately think of the SNES game instead]] even when the PC Engine version was specifically mentioned. Luckily, this was all remedied with the release of the PSP mini-compilation ''The Dracula X Chronicles'', which included both the original Rondo along with the remake, as well as its sequel ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaSymphonyOfTheNight'', and subsequently, the appearance of a perfectly emulated ''Rondo'' for the [[UsefulNotes/{{Wii}} Wii's Virtual Console]].
* ''VideoGame/ToeJamAndEarl'' had many [[RogueLike Rogue Lite]] elements and many aspects that were rarely seen in console games, but a glance at its good but less creative side-scrolling sequel or the unimpressive third game can make a casual observer overlook the original.
* For ''VideoGame/CallOfDuty'':
** The later entries in the ''VideoGame/ModernWarfare'' sub-series, while being one of the biggest selling trilogies in all of gaming, have ultimately tainted many gamers' view of the franchise as a whole, to the point that any future releases are unfavorably deemed as being "mere MW re-skins". Try to point out how much different the games from Treyarch and Sledgehammer are, and most will still write them off as being just recycled assets all dressed up. Not helped by the fact that the first post-''MW'' Infinity Ward release, ''VideoGame/CallOfDutyGhosts'', was essentially everything that the detractors claimed the series has become[[note]]see in particular [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ezuDHfDhrP0 this comparison]] between the ending of ''[=MW2=]'' and the beginning of ''Ghosts''[[/note]], leading many to call the next upcoming release, ''VideoGame/CallOfDutyAdvancedWarfare'', as the derogatory nickname "Call of Duty Recycled Warfare", in spite of the many changes it had, in addition to using a new engine and being in development for three years (one of the things which helped make ''Call of Duty 4'' as good as it was, was that the developers were brainstorming ideas for it since 2004).
** In Russia, the ''Modern Warfare'''s [[FlameBait controversial]] [[MisplacedNationalism plot]], perceived repetitiveness and exploitational nature of the gameplay, and the [[{{GIFT}} hordes of obscenities-screaming kids]] in the console versions painted the series' perception for all eternity, leading much of the die-hard FPS fans (especially [[UnpleasableFanbase the old-school bunch]], who associate it with everything they see wrong with the modern FPS) to dismiss it out of hand, and earning the whole series, not just MW, a ''hugely'' disparaging nickname "Каловдутие" ("Kalovdutie", [[SpellMyNameWithAnS phonetically close to the original name]], but literally meaning "Shit blow-in").

* Many fans of the ''Franchise/ResidentEvil'' ''[[Film/ResidentEvil film series]]'' will take one look at the games, particularly ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil3'' where there is quite the resemblance between the two characters, and mistake Jill for Alice. Needless to say making this mistake or even believing Jill was ''based'' on ''Creator/MillaJovovich'' within earshot of the game's fanbase (to whom you're better off not mentioning the films ''period'') will make them [[FandomBerserkButton go nuclear]].
* ''VideoGame/SonicBoom: Rise of Lyric'', while not as egregious as other examples, has tainted the reputation of [[WesternAnimation/SonicBoom the show]].
** For some people, this game tainted the reputation of the '''entire''' ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'' franchise if ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog2006'' didn't do so already.
* [[VideoGame/KidIcarusUprising Dark Pit]]'s and [[VideoGame/FireEmblemAwakening Lucina]]'s controversial status as MovesetClone characters in ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'' ultimately damaged their overall reputation as characters, particularly in the former case. It gets to where few folks can see either one of them without thinking of their depiction in ''Smash''.
* The popularity of the Cat Mario power-up from ''VideoGame/SuperMario3DWorld'' was damaged by Cat Peach becoming a [=DLC=] character in ''VideoGame/MarioKart8''. This caused backlash from the fanbase as there were now four Peaches (standard Peach, Baby Peach, Pink Gold Peach, and now Cat Peach) in the game's roster, and Cat Peach (as well as Tanooki Mario) was seen as an unnecessary addition to the game over more popular characters who weren't in the game already (such as Bowser Jr., Birdo, or Dry Bones). The later addition of Mario and Peach in Cat Suits to ''VideoGame/SuperMarioMaker'' as Mystery Mushroom characters was met with indifference at best.
* The [[{{VideoGame/Thief2014}} 2014 reboot attempt]] for the ''VideoGame/{{Thief}}'' series has been frequently criticised for being too superficial in its homaging of the original series, mostly ignoring its gameplay and storytelling nuanses and often replacing them with gratuitous, out-of-place edginess. The main story was widely derided for being badly plotted, with some [[IdiotBall very questionable and annoying characterisation]] for many characters, the complete jettisoning of the varied factions that made the series' universe interesting and unique (sans the odd token reference here and there) and an absence of the dry-witted humour that was typical for the series alongside its more serious plots. An oft-heard complaint is that the game mechanics and stylistic choices in the reboot seem to shun Thief's previous design sensibilities and prefer to ape the then-recent success of ''VideoGame/{{Dishonored}}'' (itself actually considered more of a ''Thief'' game (in spirit) even by ''Thief'' fans than the official reboot they got). Most damningly, the reboot game suffers the most from lacking level design favourable to the very open-ended style of exploration and objective completion that the original three ''Thief'' games and ''Dishonored'' are well known and loved for. The gameplay instead opts for a very railroaded layout, with very limited options for different possible approaches to each location. Couple all of that with several ridiculous technical issues and bizarre glitches in the worst places possible - particularly in enemy AI and sound propagation, a key part of previous ''Thief'' games - and the reboot does itself almost no favours. Tellingly, the game isn't usually condemned as outright terrible, but even the most forgiving fans and critics predominantly consider it bland and SoOkayItsAverage at best. Granted, a series as acclaimed and ground-breaking as ''Thief'' was a ToughActToFollow, not the least because its creators were [[Creator/LookingGlassStudios one of the most innovative developers of the 1990s]], and yet the reboot still messed up a lot of things in ways it could have avoided. In something of a subversion, the massive flaws of the reboot ''haven't'' substantially hurt the reputation of the old games for newcomers, and many have gone back and discovered them thanks to it. It's currently dubious whether there'll be any future sequels, though (unlike with ''Tomb Raider'', ''Hitman'' or ''Deus Ex'').

* A rare positive example is the effect that the episode "Heart Of Ice" had on the character of Mr. Freeze in ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries''. The episode had given him a tearjerking backstory and a beautifully done characterization that is considered canon by comics and fans, overriding his relatively flat [[Series/{{Batman}} '60s version]].

* ''WesternAnimation/TheAngryBirdsMovie'' seems to be a strange case where making the movie this to [[VideoGame/AngryBirds the popular game series]] seems to be the intent, as any and all new merchandise or media appearances by the birds and pigs typically depicts them as they appear in the movie rather than their iconic [[WaddlingHead limbless designs]].

* Although the book series it was based off of was reasonably popular at the time, the ''Literature/{{Dinotopia}}'' miniseries has colored the view of the entire franchise in the minds of many.

* Averted with the TV series of ''Franchise/TheWitcher'', which kicked up [[{{Hatedom}} enough of a shitstorm]] that it was initially feared that it will inextricably paint all further adaptations, including the then-in-development [[VideoGame/TheWitcher video game]]. Luckily, the VG turned out an ''enormous'' success that [[AdaptationDisplacement displaced not only the flawed TV series]], but also [[WeirdAlEffect the book originals as well]]. Also, played straight early on, when it were largely exactly these considerations that canned the ''early'' attempts to adapt the series into a VideoGame in the late 90es.

* ''ComicBook/HowardTheDuck'' fans will always have to deal with the negative reputation the series had from [[Film/HowardTheDuck the film adaptation]]. This got so bad, that [[spoiler: TheStinger to GuardiansOfTheGalaxy]] was a bit divisive. You still have Marvel fans saying that there should never be another film adaptation.

* The made-for-TV Joe Oriolo FelixTheCat series tends to be considered this by fans of the Silent Era Felix the Cat, mainly for being the most well known and longest supported incarnation of the character, despite many fans considering the TV cartoons inferior to the Silent cartoons due to their [[LighterAndSofter more childish tone and stories]] and [[LimitedAnimation very cheap animation.]] Joe Oriolo's Felix is also a nice, fun loving guy, but compared to how wild and rascally Felix [[AntiHero was portrayed in]] [[MrViceGuy his original cartoons]], the Oriolo Felix comes off as [[VanillaProtagonist very milquetoast protagonist in contrast]], and thus hardly any different than a standard WesternAnimation/MickeyMouse style character (which is ironic, considering Felix is older than Mickey and was a major influence on the original Mickey Mouse cartoons). Making matters worse is that the Oriolo Felix is rarely the one who drives the plots in his own cartoons, [[TheHeavy which are usually instigated]] by The Professor and Rock Bottom instead. It got to the extent that many of the staff on WesternAnimation/TheTwistedTalesOfFelixTheCat openly voiced their displeasure with the Oriolo Felix and pushed for the show to use the more wild tone of the original cartoons and make Felix as rascally as before, and to also abandon the characters and tone of the TV cartoons, which was met with resistance from then-owner of Felix, Don Oriolo (the son of Joe Oriolo), who caved in their demands in the first season, but also [[ExecutiveMeddling forced them to include certain elements from his dad's Felix, such as the Magic Bag of Tricks]]. And then Don forced a retool on the second season of the show to make it more in line with his dad's Felix cartoons, [[CreatorBacklash a move that did]] ''[[CreatorBacklash not]]'' [[CreatorBacklash sit well with the staff]] and prompted a WriterRevolt with episodes like ''Attack of the Robot Rat'' (a mean-spirited parody of the Joe Oriolo Felix formula) and ''Phoney Felix'' (which is a StealthParody of the shows Retool).
** It bears noting that it [[{{Misblamed}} wasn't Joe Oriolo's fault]] that the series got so heavily watered down. For starters, Trans-Lux, his distributor, [[ExecutiveMeddling gave the orders]] that the made-for-TV Felix cartoons were to be aimed exclusively at kids and that [[TheGoodGuysAlwaysWin Felix always had to defeat Professor and Rock Bottom in each episode]], and the kid aimed direction [[OlderThanTheyThink wasn't anything new to the Felix series either]]--the long running comic books had already gone down the kid friendly fantasy driven direction years before Joe Oriolo inherited the series. And In the late 50's and 60's, TV censors and parent groups were ''very'' strict on what kind of content could or couldn't be included in cartoons. The idea of a kids cartoon with grayer morality and starring an AntiHero cat with vices like drinking and womanizing would have been unthinkable at the time.

* ComicBook/LanaLang has played a minor role in the many adaptations of {{Franchise/Superman}}, including ''Film/SupermanIII'' and ''WesternAnimation/SupermanTheAnimatedSeries'', but unfortunately she gets [[TheScrappy immense hate]] for her appearance in ''{{Series/Smallville}}'', where she is infamous for 8 seasons of non-stop RomanticPlotTumour.

* While the ''Film/SuperMarioBros'' movie isn't one for the ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'' franchise as a whole, it is one for movies adapted from video games, and a frequent punchline for jokes relating to the often lacking quality/faithfulness thereof. As far as the game series went, it merely inflicted the "Mario Mario and Luigi Mario" idea on some fans, much to the [[FandomBerserkButton chagrin of other fans]] for a while.

* Because of the TV series noted below, and because of the [[Film/BatmanForever Schumacher]] [[Film/BatmanAndRobin films]], ComicBook/{{Robin}} (Batman's sidekick and partner) is seen as more of a joke than anything outside of comic book audiences, and even TheScrappy among the SeriousBusiness fans, and the idea of him appearing on film again is generally derived (notably, both Creator/ChristianBale and Creator/ChristopherNolan refused to let Robin appear in Film/TheDarkKnightTrilogy, as they both fell into the view that Robin was lame). This, even though in the comics Robin has been modernized as much as the rest of the Batman mythos, and has long since grown out of being just his sidekick as he became leader of the ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitans'' and TookALevelInBadass and donned the new identity of Nightwing. For a brief period Dick Grayson even led the Justice League! What's baffling is when some fans will admit that, even though he became cool in the comics and cartoons now, he 'just wouldn't work in film', without really any answer as to ''why'' he wouldn't; there's also some that think he would need to be made really gritty and violent, in order to justify why Batman would train a teen, which ignores [[MoralityPet the point of Robin in the mythos]]. A good reason for this is that any adaptation of the origin stories for three (Dick Grayson, Jason Todd, Damian Wayne) of the major Robins have to be adoption stories, which puts adapters and the studio in a tricky situation. They want Batman, regardless of tone beyond that, to be relentless $150 million+ tent-pole action (The Dark Knight Rises was $250 million) but, regardless of tone, to introduce a kid, you have to be working with simpler, cheaper, action and shorter time frames than said tent-pole stuff mandates. So they age him up strictly to not have to worry about visible aging, in spite of the fact that the youthful contrast is what Robin is there for, especially in the origin. ''Film/TheDarkKnightRises'' technically did something that was better on paper (remove the adoption stuff entirely, composite three Robins (Dick, Jason and Tim) together, tying him into cops because Dick Grayson was a cop at one point and that franchise was 60-70% a police corruption drama, even as, in practice, nothing interesting was left), than how ''BatmanForever' handled it, with Batman [[ArtisticLicenseLaw adopting someone of college age with little to no justification.]]

* The original, Sam Raimi-directed ''Film/SpiderManTrilogy'' films with Tobey Maguire have became so iconic with the character that a good part of the reason for the Mark Webb [[Film/TheAmazingSpiderMan reboot]] being so contentious is for rebooting it. Notably, changes made to make it ''closer'' to the source material are often [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks criticized]] simply for not being like the previous films. In a more direct manner, the depiction of Mary Jane Watson has shaped the [[DamselScrappy general perception of her]], and combined with the way Gwen Stacy [[AdaptationalBadass is depicted in the reboot]], has lead to a significant hamper to MJ's popularity among fans of the franchise who don't read the comics (for reference, MJ is typically a HeroicBystander in the comics, while Gwen was a more traditional DistressedDamsel love interest in the comics).
** Completely averted as of Spider-Man's Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse [[Film/CaptainAmericaCivilWar debut]]. This version of Spider-Man has been widely considered to be the best yet, even with his limited screentime.

* It seemed that the 2004 adaptation of ''Film/{{Catwoman}}'' starring Creator/HalleBerry would kill any chance for a reasonable adaptation for quite some time... though the character appears in ''Film/TheDarkKnightRises'', played by Anne Hathaway. (Notably, this version of Selina Kyle doesn't wear the iconic outfit and [[ComicBookMoviesDontUseCodenames is not even called Catwoman]] -- possibly because of this stigma.)

* The movie adaptation of ''Film/TankGirl'', which many critics saw as the comic's swansong (and which pissed off the original creator so badly that he didn't write the character again for a decade). Members of its cult following might disagree, though.

* The 4Kids dub of ''Manga/OnePiece'' has probably kept many anime fans away from the series, since they believe it's a childish series with no serious story to it. It's not ''just'' about a kid made of rubber wanting to become King of the Pirates and having to face bad guys armed with "poison suction cups" or brightly-colored "pop-guns". It also ''hasn't even been owned by 4Kids since early 2007''. However, the ink stain may be lifting. Since Funimation bought the rights, uncut DVD releases have been big sellers on Amazon's anime section; and when the uncut version was added to the revived Toonami block in 2013, it regularly garnered some of the highest ratings of the evening, along with ''Manga/{{Bleach}}'' and ''Manga/{{Naruto}}''.
* A lot of entry-level ''Anime/GalaxyAngel'' fans immediately split into two camps. One believes that [[Anime/GalaxyAngel the anime]], for throwing out the plot and turning it into a SitCom with more CharacterExaggeration than previously thought possible, has ruined the serious games. The other believes that [[VideoGame/GalaxyAngel the games]], for ''having'' a far-reaching SpaceOpera plot that mutes the characters to realistic personalities instead of exaggerations, has ruined the funny anime. Both camps invariably grate on the nerves of [[TeamSwitzerland those that have learned to enjoy both.]]
* Perhaps a mild version, but many people only know ''Anime/DragonBallZ'' for its anime adaptation. This causes people to stereotype it as having whole episodes of powering up, pointless {{filler}}, and many an InactionSequence, whereas the manga had none of these. Still, ''Dragon Ball Z'' is a very popular anime, so it's not all bad.

* Because of Creator/FourKidsEntertainment and their infamous {{macekre}}s, anime dubs are almost always disliked by a subset of anime fans no matter how accurate they are to the original version[[note]]''Anime/CowboyBebop'' would be the agreed-upon exception to this rule[[/note]], thus contributing to the neverending SubbingVersusDubbing wars that have torn anime fandom apart.

* The 2015 ''[[Film/FantasticFour2015 Fantastic Four]]'' reboot. Where do we start? The 2005 films, while not stellar films by any means, had a bit of NarmCharm to them, more closely resembled the comics, and are seen by some as either SoOkayItsAverage or SoBadItsGood. ''This'' film, by contrast, has been universally despised by fans and critics alike and is widely seen as the absolute '''worst''' film adaptation of the characters to date, ''especially'' with its [[InNameOnly portrayal of Doctor Doom]]. The film is so bad that it has now displaced ''Film/HowardTheDuck'' as the low point for Marvel movies. Now, Creator/TwentiethCenturyFox must either pump out another Fantastic Four film within ten years or risk having the rights to the characters revert back to Creator/{{Marvel}}.

* The animated adaptation of ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheKillingJoke'' has been accused by fans of doing immense damage to Batgirl's character. The writers claim that the film's prologue was intended to flesh out Batgirl's character. But to many fans, it destroyed her character as she acts nothing like her animated or comic counterparts. Instead of the strong, intelligent, independent woman she normally is, the film portrays her as an arrogant, reckless, thrill-seeking StalkerWithACrush who pines after Batman, irrationally attacks a man arguing with his girlfriend, and ends up having sex with Batman on the rooftop in the film's most infamous scene. To many, she comes off as completely unlikable and thus, not many felt sorry for her when the Joker cripples her.

* Indecisively the case with ''Anime/SailorMoon.'' Some argue the Creator/DiC-produced dub of the anime that ran in North America is a more offensive {{Macekre}} than anything 4Kids ever did. Nonetheless it still earned the series a large number of fans of both sexes, and had enough staying power that 15 years later, the uncut release of the [[Manga/SailorMoon original manga]] shot to the top of the graphic novel sales charts (often coming in second only to ''Franchise/{{Batman}}'').