History Main / LonersareFreaks

* Eric, the loner in ''WesternAnimation/DungeonsAndDragons'' who always messed up, was included [[ExecutiveMeddling specifically]] to reinforce a [[http://povonline.com/cols/COL145.htm "The group is always right"]] [[TheComplainerIsAlwaysWrong mentality]] in the show.
* As Creator/MarkEvanier notes in the ''WesternAnimation/DungeonsAndDragons'' piece linked above, this was a [[BrokenAesop common Aesop]] that consultants would foist on cartoons in the 1980s. One extreme example Evanier points to is the show: ''WesternAnimation/TheGetAlongGang'', where this was the ''only'' Aesop.

* Comicbook/{{Thanos}} of Titan was born with the Deviant gene, meaning he was [[PhysicalGod an Eternal]] like the rest of his people but looked like a member of their historical mutant enemies / genetic cousins. He became a loner because of this and eventually [[KillEmAll killed nearly every other member of his race in a nuclear holocaust]] ForTheEvulz. He claims that the other Eternals treated him like an outcast, but his surviving brother says that Thanos imagined this and was just naturally reclusive and paranoid, and obsessed with Death and BlackMagic and other dark ad grim subjects that didn't exactly invite company.

And, as ''Film/{{Freaks}}'' proved, loners may be freaks, but freaks aren't loners.

* [[http://ozyandmillie.org/1999/12/02/ozy-and-millie-262/ This strip]] of ''Webcomic/OzyAndMillie'' sums up this trope.
* In ''Webcomic/{{Sinfest}}'', [[http://www.sinfest.net/view.php?date=2003-01-09 Monique's attempt to jolly herself into appreciating her loneliness are unsuccessful.]]

[[folder:Web Original]]
* This ''Website/{{Cracked}}'' article: "[[http://www.cracked.com/blog/6-misleading-assumptions-you-make-about-quiet-people/ 6 Misleading Assumptions You Make About Quiet People]]."
[[/folder]]

* Parodied in [[http://www.theonion.com/video/potential-school-shooter-gunned-down-by-popular-jo,20877/ this]] video of [[Website/TheOnion Onion News]].
* Any character that happens to be alone in a ''Series/StudioC'' sketch will be mocked.

!!Examples:

SuperTrope of CreepyLonerGirl. Compare BewareTheQuietOnes, TheComplainerIsAlwaysWrong, IneffectualLoner, and perhaps IntelligenceEqualsIsolation. Contrast YouAreNotAlone. See also NoSocialSkills. Often subverted by combining it with a ThisLoserIsYou protagonist, in which case [[DarkIsNotEvil freaks are not evil]].

** The Ice King. He rules the Ice Kingdom, which is uninhabited (except for snow creatures he creates occasionally, and penguins.) He gets a LITTLE better once he becomes friendlier with Finn and Jake.

* Jonny from ''WesternAnimation/EdEddNEddy'', which is zig-zagged six ways from Sunday throughout the course of the series. Jonny is acknowledged as the weird one of the neighborhood for obvious reasons but at the same time, he was usually quite friendly with the other kids and participated in many of their activities (with the Eds being the outcasts as their own separate clique, on the outside looking in). Jonny was just more capable of having fun on his own (although the series also took an ambiguous stance on just how "imaginary" Plank was). This is then played completely straight at the very, very end of the series, where [[spoiler: the Eds finally get accepted and Jonny becomes full-on outcast.]]

* It is often joked that WesternAnimation/DannyPhantom's nemesis Vlad Masters should get a lonely guy cat... which he does in Season 3. Considering [[BigBad who he is]], he does qualify.
* As Creator/MarkEvanier notes in the ''WesternAnimation/DungeonsAndDragons'' piece linked above, this was a [[BrokenAesop common Aesop]] that consultants would foist on cartoons in the 1980s. One extreme example Evanier points to in the piece: ''WesternAnimation/TheGetAlongGang'', where this was the ''only'' Aesop.

** ...fight a [[OneManArmy one-man war]] against [[TheLegionsOfHell Hell's arm...]], [[RunningGag Oh, this is getting ridiculous]]... (''VideoGame/DantesInferno'')

* Literature/TheBible has a few scriptures that concerns this trope:
** In [[Literature/BookOfGenesis Genesis 2:18]], the only thing that God declared something in His creation "not good" is that Adam is all alone, which He Himself says that "it's not good for man to be alone." And this is why God took a rib out of Adam and created Eve to keep him company.
** One meaning of [[Literature/BookOfProverbs Proverbs 18:1]] is that a person who separates themselves from others in seeking their own desires and aren't concerned about the needs of other people fit under this category.

* ''Film/KissOfTheTarantula'': The fact that Susan A) lives in the local funeral home and b) keeps several large tarantulas as pets drive her classmates to view her as a creepy freak. She actually is a creepy freak, but one that actually wants friends.

* In ''Film/ApartmentZero'' Adrian's neighbors are suspicious of him because he is a neurotic loner who avoids them as much as possible. Given his behavior, [[ProperlyParanoid their mistrust is not unwarranted.]] But they are so focused on him that they don't notice that something far worse is lurking under their noses.

* In ''WesternAnimation/{{Tangled}}'', Flynn even admits that his dream involves him being alone and has to be forced into participating in the {{Crowd Song}} and the DanceLine. One Snuggly Duckling tavern thug explicitly tells him that his dream is stupid before the CharacterDevelopment that led him to repudiate this.
** Although what they seemed to have the biggest problem with was that while everyone else dreamed of ''doing'' things, Flynn just dreamed of getting lots and lots of money.

* In ''Film/HowTheGrinchStoleChristmas'', the Grinch complains about this trope: "[[SantaClaus Fat Boy]] should be finishing up anytime now. Talk about a recluse. He only comes out once a year, and ''HE'' never catches any flak for it!"
* ''Film/AboutABoy'' features Hugh Grant in the loner role. Over the course of the film, he learns [[spoiler: how to be a decent human being by making some friends. (starting with a 12-year-old boy, no less!)]]

* Averted in ''Comicbook/{{Asterix}} and the Roman Agent'': while everyone else is bickering thanks to the titular spy's influence, the bard Cacofonix isn't, since he, besides being aphonic at the time, usually keeps to himself and thus keeps away from the agent's jealousy- and paranoia-inducing influence. This isn't necessarily a personal choice -- as per his name, Cacofonix is an enthusiastic but [[DreadfulMusician absolutely horrendous musician]].

** Batman himself seems to ''think'' he is a loner, or that he needs to be something like that to keep himself at the top of the game, but he also acknowledges several people as family or friends, even if he keeps them at a distance at times, and is generally aware that he needs them for the sake of his own sanity and humanity if nothing else, and that he cares deeply for them. After all, he is a man driven by personal loss.

*** And Sho Minamimoto is the classic "evil (or at least crazy) loner that becomes an EnsembleDarkHorse".

Loners can also GoMadFromTheIsolation. Humans learn how to be human through social interaction. There are many social skills that can only be learned in person -- isolation can lead to NoSocialSkills. When you're raised in isolation, you behave differently. Many psychological disorders originate from a deficit in human interaction. Then that person will be shunned, [[LonersWillStayAlone isolating him further in a vicious cycle]], putting him closer to the DespairEventHorizon.....

It's hard to determine whether this trope originated from assumptions about loners in the real world or helped cause it...or whether that's ''another'' vicious cycle.

Loners can also GoMadFromTheIsolation. Humans learn how to be human through social interaction. And there are many social skills that can only be learned in person -- isolation can lead to NoSocialSkills. When you're raised in isolation, you behave differently. Many psychological disorders originate from a deficit in human interaction. Then that person will be shunned, [[LonersWillStayAlone isolating him further in a vicious cycle]], putting him closer to the DespairEventHorizon.....

There are exceptions, as with all other tropes: [[TheHermit the crusty old hermit]] or WitchDoctor who rebuffs the villains and helps out the heroes is a fairly popular stock character. And both of those are frequently portrayed at the very least as eccentric. The MisunderstoodLonerWithAHeartOfGold is a loner who is ''thought'' to be a freak but is a truly NiceGuy.

* ComicBook/DoctorDoom regards friendship as a sign of weakness. He ''does'' have a handful of people he is relatively close to, but he refuses to call them "friends" because he imagines himself to be entirely self-reliant and superior to other men, and he keeps them at an emotional distance. Said "not-friends" are really his most trusted minions, anyway. He had a long-lost love called Valeria, but when he sacrificed her to a trio of demons for power, that kind of went out the window. He is not entirely asocial though and is AffablyEvil enough to [[NoMrBondIExpectYouToDine offer his female opponents a feast while their male teammates languish in the dungeons.]] Also, he has an annual dinner with the mercenary Comicbook/SilverSable in her role as ambassador for the neighbouring country- apparently, she looks forward to them as Doom is a very good host. And he truly wants his own people to love and respect him and is relatively nice to them in return. Also, he has a very big soft spot for [[DeadGuyJunior Valeria]] Richards, his god-daughter who he helped deliver (she gets away with calling him "Uncle Doom"), and has placed her under his royal protection (you harm her, he makes you ''pay'').

* In the prequel comic of ''WebVideo/DoctorHorriblesSingAlongBlog'', Captain Hammer, JerkJock nemesis of the VillainProtagonist, states that goths and kids that are good at science and math should be reported to the police as they are all potential supervillains. And, as Dr. Horrible works on his Death Ray, he also stops meeting with Penny or Moist.

* Averted in ''Film/SilentRunning'' - protagonist [[SignificantName Freeman]] Lowell is a loner who is more at home with plants and animals than with people, but he's also the good guy in comparison to his uncaring, mercenary crewmates. And he's got his droids, so it's not really that he doesn't want company, he just wants ''better'' company.

*** ...mop the floor with the remnants of the American government, blowing up their main base, [[spoiler:Logic-bombing the freaking president]], racking up a surreal kill count and casually blowing up cities with nuke launchers, either becoming the new Messiah or Satan's offspring. And above all, he is even named 'The Lone Wanderer' (''VideoGame/{{Fallout 3}}'')

Even more unfortunately, there is ''some'' [[TruthInTelevision historic basis]] for this. Humans, after all, are social animals. Cooperation along with the invention of language is how we survived, and those who tried to go it alone often weren't able to reproduce or hand over their innovations to the next person. Through most of human history, collective action was the only practical means of survival; being extremely selfish, hiding all the time, or being shunned/banned/exiled/cast out was very often a precursor to slow death by starvation and predation. Thus a person condemned to DyingAlone was almost certainly alone because of a problem they would had fitting into another group and thus they should be avoided.

Fiction doesn't seem to draw a distinction between being asocial and ''anti''-social. A loner character usually is more than just socially awkward; they'll have a number of serious psychological issues too. [[ItsAllAboutMe Arrogance, selfishness]], and [[LackOfEmpathy mental]] [[AxCrazy instability]] are all fairly common. At worst, they're portrayed as evil since their refusal to socialize is proof that others are not worthy of their presence and that the only person they could ever care about is themselves. [[FamilyUnfriendlyAesop Right]]? When fiction doesn't make a distinction between being a loner by choice or being driven to it, this is the attitude at work.

Similarly, if a writer is going to create a sympathetic AntiHero, they often choose to make the character a brooding and friendless loner. Introversion seems to get used much more often than other epic or humanizing flaws like {{pride}}, addiction, [[GreenEyedMonster jealousy]] or {{lust}}. Perhaps this is because showing a complete ''lack'' of a social life as opposed to a self-destructive one is much easier to accomplish. A quick establishing shot of a character [[EatingLunchAlone sitting alone in a social setting]] or [[IWorkAlone an insistence that they be left to their own devices]] is an easy way to alert the audience that something isn't quite right.

** On the flip-side, ComicBook/TheJoker is one of the most extroverted villains in all of fiction. He usually has a gang, and a very large one, has a girlfriend in Harley Quinn and is very fond of the VillainTeamUp both with regular Batman rogues and on the grander stage with guys like Comicbook/LexLuthor. Of course, he is a BadBoss to said gang and tends to kill members at random on a whim; his relationship with Harley Quinn is the {{Trope Namer|s}} for MadLove, and though he might like teaming up with other villains, the other villains are afraid to team up ''[[TheDreaded with him]]''. He's not a freaky loner; he's the freak you ''wish'' was a loner, because [[WithFriendsLikeThese With Friends Like Him...]]

* Both Rorschach and Dr. Manhattan of ''ComicBook/{{Watchmen}}''. Rorschach has difficulty relating to people on a social level, being paranoid, violent, and insulting. Dr. Manhattan pushes away from humanity due to his god-like powers. It's implied in his back-story that Dr Manhattan wasn't the most gregarious man in the world even before becoming omnipotent, omniscient and probably omnipresent if he felt like it.
* In many ''ComicBook/LegionOfSuperHeroes'' continuities, [[PsychoElectro Lightning Lord's]] misanthropy is at least partially attributed to this. His homeworld, Winath, has a population composed mostly of twins. As a single birth, he was apparently treated with pity, disdain and suspicion, and didn't take it well.

* Sarah from from ''ComicBook/BazookaJules'' is an anti-social girl that goes to Julie's school. She's nicknamed weird girl because she has no friends and spends a lot of her time talking to her imaginary friends. The only person that wants to be her friend in Julie and she hates Julie.
* ComicBook/{{X 23}} is already a withdrawn and quiet girl as a result of her DarkAndTroubledPast, but then she goes through phases where she isolates herself from others entirely. In ''NYX'' she rarely speaks and creeps out her companions, and in the beginning of her solo series Laura mostly avoids the other younger mutants and has been spending most of her time alone after being pulled from Comicbook/XForce. The other students are quick to comment on this.

* In ''ComicBook/AmethystPrincessOfGemworld'' it happens to Amy, on Earth. She used to try to fit in, but gave up around sixth grade. She was even called Freaky Amy by her classmates.

'''Asuka''': ''"You never had many friends before you came here. No on ever wanted to just talk to you for you."''\\

'''Asuka''': ''"And there was never any point in talking about it to anyone, because there was no one in the world who could understand what being an Evangelion Pilot was like,"''

* FanFic/ShadowSnark after being in self made isolation for a few years; he has NoSocialSkills.

* ''Film/TenThingsIHateAboutYou''. Julia Stiles and Heath Ledger both play social outsiders. In reality they are rather mundane, but their rejection of society causes people to assume everything they do has some dark or criminal explanation.
* Brendan Frye in ''Film/{{Brick}}'' is cool, and badass, and a perfect example of ''Determinator'', but he eats lunch alone and the only two people who could possibly be called his friends are his ex-girlfriend and Brain, who serves as a sort of information broker. Brendan plays many sides against each other, and is not very well liked for it.

* The Joker from ''Film/TheDarkKnight''. However, he does run with a pretty large gang, and seems to pick up new members out of nowhere and know where all the criminals meet. It's noted that a good chunk of his men broke out from Arkham in the previous movie, and he also seems to absorb the lower ranks from the other mobsters he kills into his own gang, which would give him a) intel on the other criminals and b) underlings who aren't completely AxCrazy. Just mostly.

* ''Film/AboutABoy'' features Hugh Grant in the loner role. Over the course of the film he learns [[spoiler: how to be a decent human being by making some friends. (starting with a 12 year old boy, no less!)]]

I'm loudist when I'm in a crowd \\

* The Lonely in ''TabletopGame/DeltaGreen'' are a collection of unaffiliated loners and incels who are organized through the internet by a mysterious figure known as "[=CptnSnshn=]" (Captain Sunshine). [=CptnSnshn=] has an uncanny ability to find isolated people in nearly any internet subculture, and reinforce and amplify their loneliness and resentment. [[spoiler:The many persons that become [=CptnSnshn=] are actually a Phantom of Truth: an avatar of the King in Yellow]]. As [=CptnSnshn=] keeps corrupting them more and more, they tend to either disappear out of existance or become [[MadBomber mad bombers]] or [[SpreeKiller mass shooters]].

* ''Theatre/AsYouLikeIt'' : Jaques, the melancholic courtier, frequently absents himself from society. Despite beimg a member of Duke Senior's court, he is known to wander off alone and talk either to himself or to nearby animals, rather than to his peers. Naturally, the other courtiers amuse themselves by spying on him and gossiping about him.

** In ''VideoGame/MegaManStarForce'' this is the main subject in the first game. In the second game the theme was more like "fight for the friendship", which was just an extension of this trope.

** Fujiwara no Mokou likewise isolates herself, apparently feeling more connection to humans than {{youkai}} society, she protects people who wander into the bamboo forest, but isolates herself from them otherwise, main reason being that she knows [[WeAreAsMayflies she will outlive]] [[WhoWantsToLiveForever everyone she meets]]. Her {{Bifauxnen}} appearance, and LesYay relationship with Keine prevent anyone from calling her a freak, however.

** In Lilly's route, however, Hanako becomes less of a loner, not only befriending Hisao, but also joining the newspaper club and spending her summer vacation on a trip with one of her classmates who is also in the club. Her teacher also notices that her attendance and grades have improved since becoming friends with Hisao.

** Lemongrab. He's a science experiment gone wrong, and is socially awkward and isolated -- and a huge jerk. Apparently, he prefers to be alone... not that anyone would really desire his company, anyway.

* Jonny from ''WesternAnimation/EdEddNEddy''. Which is zig-zagged six ways from Sunday throughout the course of the series. Jonny is acknowledged as the weird one of the neighborhood for obvious reasons, but at the same time he was usually quite friendly with the other kids, and participated in many of their activities (with the Eds being the outcasts as their own separate clique, on the outside looking in). Jonny was just more capable of having fun on his own (although the series also took an ambiguous stance on just how "imaginary" Plank was). This is then played completely straight at the very, very end of the series, where [[spoiler: the Eds finally get accepted and Jonny becomes full-on outcast.]]
* Deep Six in ''WesternAnimation/GIJoeARealAmericanHero'' became a deep sea diver solely so he could go on missions alone. He's never been known for being sociable, and all of his teammates are constantly suspicious of ulterior motives that he simply doesn't have.

** Loners barely even seem to exist in the show; friendship is, quite literally, one of the fundamental forces of that universe. The biggest loner so far shown is Zecora (a [[FantasyCounterpartCulture faux-African]] witch doctor living alone in the dark woods), and she's a very sympathetic character -- the first episode featuring her is all about how she's ''not'' a freak. On the other hand, even she is not a complete loner, as she keeps friendly relations with the main characters, doesn't mind visits to her hut and sometimes helps out with celebrations in Ponyville.

* Music/{{Disturbed}}'s music has this as a theme [[{{Anvilicious}} probably too often]]. A few examples would be "Just Stop", "Divide", and their SignatureSong "Down with the Sickness".

* In ''Disney/{{Tangled}}'', Flynn even admits that his dream involves him being alone and has to be forced into participating in the {{Crowd Song}} and the DanceLine. One Snuggly Duckling tavern thug explicitly tells him that his dream is stupid before the CharacterDevelopment that led him to repudiate this.

* WebVideo/TheNostalgiaChick has often admitted to being lonely, and her well-meaning but clueless friends believe her causticness is a result of her hating ''Disney/TheLittleMermaid''.

* From Toys/{{Bionicle}}:

* Any character that happens to be alone in a ''WebVideo/StudioC'' sketch will be mocked.

In idealistic works concerning this trope, the AllLovingHero will often effect a HeelFaceTurn on an antagonist by [[BefriendingTheEnemy trying to be their friend]]. Often this will work by itself, hammering home the idea that what's wrong with the villain isn't the need for revenge or a severely unbalanced psyche, it's a lack of friends. Even if The AllLovingHero eventually accepts the Loner ''as'' a Loner, the Loner will often appreciate the effort, and begin [[LonerTurnedFriend making token attempts to be sociable]] with the TrueCompanions.

** ...destroy the entire pantheon of Greek gods. (''VideoGame/{{God of War|Series}}'')

Compare BewareTheQuietOnes, TheComplainerIsAlwaysWrong, IneffectualLoner, and perhaps IntelligenceEqualsIsolation. Contrast YouAreNotAlone. See also NoSocialSkills. Often subverted by combining it with a ThisLoserIsYou protagonist, in which case [[DarkIsNotEvil freaks are not evil]].