History Main / SamusisaGirl

* Sasquatch from ''ComicBook/AlphaFlight'' is ''usually'' male in the main continuity, but in the [[ComicBook/UltimateMarvel Ultimate Universe]], when the team returns to base after fighting the X-Men, Sasquatch resumes human form and turns out to be the very female Rahne Sinclair, who in the main Franchise/MarvelUniverse is the werewolf Wolfsbane. There were some hints to this beforehand though; readers may have wondered why "he" had [[TertiarySexualCharacteristics ribbons]] in "his" hair in Sasquatch form.
** Sasquatch from ''The Exiles'' as well. First going into human form: "What surprises you more, that I'm a woman or that I'm black?"
** This happened even in the main continuity. When Sasquatch came back from the dead by using the body of the shapeshifting Snowbird, he first appeared in his Sasquatch form but, when he tries to resume his human form, he discovers that he's trapped in a feminine body, since Snowbird was a woman.

** Ystin being female is taken as a given when she appears in Demon Knights, though most people are polite enough not to point this out.

* In ''ComicBook/TheSandman'', Death's name is mentioned well before we see her. Gaiman intended for most readers to assume Death of the Endless would be male and menacing ... until we saw her.
** [[{{Squick}} In-character example]] from the same series: [[spoiler: "[[SerialKiller Dog Soup]] is a ''woman''?"]]

* In the ''Animorphs'' fanfic ''[[Fanfic/{{Eleutherophobia}} Ghost in the Shell]]'', Tom assumes that the mysterious serial killer is male, but it turns out to be a recurring [[TropaholicsAnonymous Matter Over Mind]] attendee named Margaret White.

* ''LetsPlay/TwitchPlaysPokemon'' has Air the Lapras. For the entirety of the stream, it was assumed to be a male. However, transferring it to Generation II shows it to be a female. By analyzing her stats, it was also found that Flareon the False Prophet/Martyr was also female.

* In ''WesternAnimation/BatmanMaskOfThePhantasm,'' [[spoiler:the Phantasm is presumed to be a member of the Gotham mafia, possibly affiliated with the Gotham mayor, killing old mobsters to clear their name. The Phantasm is later revealed to be Andrea Beaumont, the daughter of one of the mafia's old victims (and Bruce Wayne's LoveInterest).]][[note]]Aditionally it helps that both her father and "The Phantasm" are voiced by the same actor[[/note]]

** In the animated adaptation of Batman: The Long Halloween, the death of [[spoiler: Alberto Falcone]] completely takes away the the AmbigiousEnding of t he original [[spoiler: which throws suspicion onto Gilda Dent, making this incarnation's of the Holiday Killer solely; Gilda Dent[[/spoiler]]

* In ''WesternAnimation/BatmanMaskOfThePhantasm,'' [[spoiler:the Phantasm is presumed to be a member of the Gotham mafia, possibly affiliated with the Gotham mayor, killing old mobsters to clear their name. The Phantasm is later revealed to be Andrea Beaumont, the daughter of one of the mafia's old victims (and Bruce Wayne's LoveInterest).]]

* "Damn, I Wish I Was Your Lover" By Sophia B. Hawkins. The song is about a friend who is stuck in an abusive relationship, and how she both has feelings for them and wishes she could help them, making it seem like it's about a guy with a BastardGirlfriend.. until near the end where she mentions she had a dream about them where she "Sat on a mountainside with peace of mind, And I lay by the ocean making love to '''her''' with visions clear". Apparently the song is based on real events as well, as Sophia is bisexual and had a female friend this was happening to. Whether they ever got together is unknown.

* Turkey actually used this in their performance in the Eurovision Song Contest 2010, "We Could Be the Same" by [=maNga=]. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XjULJg4Ce6M Watch it here.]]
** They must not have been trying that hard, because one good look at the figure makes it really obvious what her gender is.

Perhaps nobody mentioned her gender because YouDidntAsk. Or because she's just one among a whole BadassArmy, so nobody paid attention specifically to her. Or because she's a complete stranger that nobody had seen before. Maybe she is a VoiceWithAnInternetConnection, and no one has ever seen her in person. (Audiences' disbelief that a woman could really be doing all these things may be bolstered by the fact that it often ''isn't'' in live-action productions, since CastasAMask allows the use of male suit actors until the reveal scene.) This is notably harder to pull off in some languages. [[note]]Some languages don't use gender-neutral descriptors that much. It's one thing to say Samus is a bounty hunter in English, but in some languages -- like German, or all latinate languages -- all words are inherently masculine or feminine, and Samus would have to be explicitly described as a "bounty huntress"; likewise, a male character would have to be talked about using clearly masculine word endings. Characters that ''do'' know about Samus' gender and just don't care to elaborate to the listener couldn't just call her a bounty hunter without stretching suspension of disbelief. It's one thing to trick the viewers by clever terminology, but when you completely break your language to do it, the effect becomes not so much "Hey, that's right, the gender was never actually mentioned!" as "Um, why have you been calling her a man this whole time?" Whether this works in Mandarin may even hinge on the medium; this is because Mandarin "he" and "she" are pronounced the same but written differently. But in other languages like Japanese and English, it is becoming more common to use the "masculine" or "gender-neutral" term when referring to women. For example, female comedians are almost never referred to as comediennes these days, and waiters and waitresses are often known as just servers.[[/note]]

->'''Kid Icarus:''' Gosh-a-cus, Princess Lana! [[{{Franchise/Metroid}} Samus]] is super-duper-a-cus!\\

* Named for Samus Aran from ''Franchise/{{Metroid}}''. The instructional manual for the [[VideoGame/{{Metroid 1}} first game]], as well as a number of tie-in material and magazine ads, refers to Samus as being male, though also allude to the player learning a secret about them if you can beat the game fast enough. The secret, of course, being that Samus is actually a young woman. You could find this out if you beat the game under five hours, at which point she takes off her helmet, but her identity is made far more clear when you beat the game under three hours, with the ending showing her take off her PoweredArmor entirely to proudly stand in her leotard and boots (which also unlocks a NewGamePlus where you can play using this form). If that wasn't enough, then beating the game in an hour nets you Samus in a bikini.

* In ''Comicbook/XMen'', ComicBook/ProfessorX's primary love interest Lilandra is introduced in a running subplot in which he is having ominous visions of space battles and a menacing armored figure. When the figure finally shows up and takes off its helmet, it isn't quite what he is expecting.
* The original Ronin in ''Comicbook/NewAvengers'' turned out to be Comicbook/{{Daredevil}}'s love interest Echo (after a minor RedHerring that it was DD himself).
%% * Julie-Su from ''Comicbook/SonicTheHedgehogArchieComics''.

* ''Comicbook/{{Empowered}}'':

* [[spoiler:Junior, who is assumed to be Ragdoll's brother or father]] in ''Comicbook/SecretSix'', turns out to be his [[spoiler:sister]].

* In ''ComicBook/{{Camelot 3000}}'', Merlin sends Tom to a wedding to awaken the memories of a reincarnated Round Table knight. The homing-amulet he's carrying leads him to the couple at the altar. Tom assumes it's the groom he's looking for, but it's [[GenderBender actually the bride]] whom Sir Tristan has been reborn as. Of course, the now awoken Tristan fully identifies as a man and draws a great deal of angst from it.

* Taz in the ''ComicBook/AtariForce'' second series was referred to as being male up until Morphea discovered [[spoiler:Taz not only was actually female, she was [[PregnantBadass pregnant]]]].

* In DC's 1980s comics series ''ArakSonOfThunder'', the character of Valda is introduced in full plate armor. Arak doesn't find out her sex until he removes her helmet. Unfortunately, the cover spoils the surprise by showing her wearing her standard mail byrnie and no helmet.

* Johnathan Hickman's ''[[Comicbook/TheAvengers Avengers]]'' run introduced Comicbook/IronMan 3030, a futuristic LegacyCharacter. The bulk of the character's debut issue deliberately leaves their gender ambiguous, only for the final few pages to reveal that Iron Man 3030 is actually Tony Stark's [[AffirmativeActionLegacy mixed-race granddaughter]], Rhodey.

** ''Comicbook/GrantMorrisonsBatman'' had the Absence, which gets {{lampshade|Hanging}}d by Dick!Bats.

* ''Comicbook/TheAvengers'' #145 (from 1976) introduces a hired killer known only as [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin The Assassin]], who wears a bulky armored costume with a full hood. In issue #146, the Assassin's hood gets knocked off to reveal that she's a woman. She then proceeds to lecture Hawkeye for being surprised by her gender, considering the number of {{Action Girl}}s on his own team.

* The second part of a two-part reveal in ''Comicbook/SupermanAndBatmanGenerations 3'' #3 -- the first is that the character we've been assuming is Comicbook/{{Kamandi}} is actually his child. But when Batman uses the word "son", Kamandi is baffled, at which point we finally see what Kam looks like without her PostApunkalypticArmor, or her hair and goggles hiding her face.

* The player character of the ''VideoGame/HalfLife'' mod ''[[VideoGame/HalfLifeResidualLife Half-Life: Residual Life]]'', Sora Kim, doesn't have her gender confirmed until the level 'Alter of Sacrifice' when the level boss refers to her as 'fresh female'.

-->'''Russell''': (almost casually) Kevin's a girl?

* The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dy6MpsDPKts music video]] for the Music/WithinTemptation / Music/{{Tarja}} song "Paradise" features a pair of survivors in a post-apocalyptic wasteland trying to restore life to the planet. In the end it's revealed they are both women.

* In one of the vignettes in ''TabletopGame/{{GURPS}} Steam-Tech'', describing a new fad at {{UsefulNotes/Oxbridge}} for chivalric duelling with blunt swords (the relevant "tech" being applying 19th century metalsmithing to armour), a masked combatant who wins two out of three fights removes their helm to reveal "the well-known feminist agitator Miss Viola Dalrymple".

* ''{{Franchise/Danganronpa}}'':

%%* Done [[http://cockeyed.webcomic.ws/comics/122 here]] with a ninja-type figure in ''Webcomic/{{Cockeyed Comix}}''.
* ''Webcomic/DarthsAndDroids'' has the revelation "No, Luke, I am your ''mother''" -- coming, of course, from Darth Vader, the [[MagicKnight Magic]] BlackKnight InSpace, who was up to that point assumed to be Luke's father like in the [[Franchise/StarWars movies]]. Palpatine had figured the traditionalist military wouldn't want to follow an openly female leader. Of course, Vader's armour made him taller and gave him a lower voice in the original as well.

--> She woke up like she did every day: slowly pulling her motorcycle helmet off, then shaking her head slowly back and forth to reveal a long, blonde ponytail. Everyone gasped. “That’s right,” she said, kicking the winning football goal before sliding into a sheer, sexy camisole under a blazer and playing as hard as she worked, “I’ve been a girl ''this whole time''.” One of the guys, the real sexy one, shook his head in slow motion, as if to say “wh-wh-wh-whaaat?” You know the kind. His mouth was kind of open while he did it. He was totally blown away.

* ''Manga/MetroidSamusAndJoey'' paints Samus as the mercenary equivalent of a ReclusiveArtist. Even InUniverse most people think that Samus is a man, and [[YouDidntAsk Samus doesn't bother to correct them]] - because she's [[IWorkAlone a lone wolf]] who HatesSmallTalk, and doesn't really care what people think of her as long as they keep giving her work. It's even implied she might be encouraging [[ShroudedInMyth some of the crazier rumours]] so that people won't recognize her when she's off-duty. Joey manages to go on multiple adventures with Samus [[DramaticIrony without realising she's a woman]], even thinking of her as a ''substitute father'' of sorts, until she removes her suit in front of him before they part ways at the end of the penultimate chapter.

* In ''Fanfic/{{Wonderful}}'', no one knew that [[TheHero Wonder Red]] was a girl until she revealed herself.
* In the ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'' fanfic ''Beware the Equalizer'', the titular character wearing PoweredArmor and a CoolHelmet and wielding a MagicStaff is revealed to be none other than [[spoiler:[[StepfordSmiler Starlight Glimmer]]]].

* ''Webcomic/GunnerkriggCourt'': The [[SomethingCompletelyDifferent interim comic]] ''City Face 2'' introduces a magpie named Bobeyes. In a bit of PaintingTheMedium, the ShoutBox below the comic features [[http://gunnerkrigg.wikia.com/wiki/City_Face_2_comments commentary by in-universe characters]]--one of whom is a magpie going by the username "magpie55". He thinks Bobeyes is a pretty cool, tough guy, and is as surprised as anyone to learn that Bobeyes is a girl. From his commentary on the final comic page, it's obvious that he's smitten.

* M. Brundage, cover illustrator for Magazine/WeirdTales, and one of the TropeMakers for the association of MonsterMisogyny, GoGoEnslavement, and several other forms of ContemptibleCover with fantasy and science fiction. Like many people today, both contemporary fans and MoralGuardians were surprised to learn that the "M" stood for ''Margaret''.

This is notably harder to pull off in some languages -- those that don't use gender-neutral descriptors that much. It's one thing to say Samus is a bounty hunter in English, but in some languages -- like German, or all latinate languages -- all words are inherently masculine or feminine, and Samus would have to be explicitly described as a "bounty huntress"; likewise, a male character would have to be talked about using clearly masculine word endings. Characters that ''do'' know about Samus' gender and just don't care to elaborate to the listener couldn't just call her a bounty hunter without stretching suspension of disbelief. It's one thing to trick the viewers by clever terminology, but when you completely break your language to do it, the effect becomes not so much "Hey, that's right, the gender was never actually mentioned!" as "Um, why have you been calling her a man this whole time?" But in other langues like Japanese and English, it is becoming more common to use the "masculine" or "gender-neutral" term when referring to women. For example, female comedians are almost never referred to as comediennes these days, and waiters and waitresses are often known as just servers.

Perhaps nobody mentioned her gender because YouDidntAsk. Or because she's just one among a whole BadassArmy, so nobody paid attention specifically to her. Or because she's a complete stranger that nobody had seen before. Maybe she is a VoiceWithAnInternetConnection, and no one has ever seen her in person. (Audiences' disbelief that a woman could really be doing all these things may be bolstered by the fact that it often ''isn't'' in live-action productions, since CastasAMask allows the use of male suit actors until the reveal scene.)

Perhaps nobody mentioned her gender because YouDidntAsk. Or because she's just one among a whole BadassArmy, so nobody paid attention specifically to her. Or because she's a complete stranger that nobody had seen before. Maybe she is a VoiceWithAnInternetConnection, and no one has ever seen her in person. (Audiences' disbelief that a woman could really be doing all these things may be bolstered by the fact that it often ''isn't'', since CastasAMask allows the use of male suit actors until the reveals scene.)

Perhaps nobody mentioned her gender because YouDidntAsk. Or because she's just one among a whole BadassArmy, so nobody paid attention specifically to her. Or because she's a complete stranger that nobody had seen before. Maybe she is a VoiceWithAnInternetConnection, and no one has ever seen her in person.

** In ''Brawl'', if the player fights Samus as [[VideoGame/MetalGear Solid Snake]] on Shadow Moses Island, Snake remarks to Otacon that he's fighting "a woman in a power suit." Otacon is baffled as to how Snake can possibly know she's a woman. Snake figured it out by watching how she walks [[MaleGaze and checking out the anatomy involved]].

* ''Webcomic/HarpyGee'': The unnamed hulking knight that acts as Princess Halcea's bodyguard. The "Courage and Fear" story revealed not only that the knight was a human woman, but [[spoiler: Ash's mother.]]

* [[http://www.interrobangstudios.com/potluck/index.php?strip_id=1084 This]] [[Webcomic/EnsignSueMustDie Interrobang]] [[Webcomic/TriggerStar Studios]] comic where [[Franchise/SuperMarioBros Luigi]] complains to Link about some gay Bounty Hunter in Orange armor who asked him out.

* According to ''Webcomic/ItSucksToBeWeegie'', Luigi is oblivious to the {{Trope Namer|s}}. When Samus, the only girl who is into him, tried to pick Luigi up at a bar. Luigi, naturally, assumed she was a guy and said that he "doesn't swing that way". Cue Link giving a FacePalm and immediately offering Luigi afterwards to cry on his couch to sleep over "nothing".

* In ''WesternAnimation/BatmanMaskOfThePhantasm,'' the Phantasm is presumed to be a member of the Gotham mafia, possibly affiliated with the Gotham mayor, killing old mobsters to clear their name. [[spoiler:The Phantasm is later revealed to be Andrea, the daughter of one of the mafia's old victims (and Bruce Wayne's LoveInterest).]]

* Valka in ''WesternAnimation/HowToTrainYourDragon2''. Even though {{Action Girl}}s are perfectly common and accepted in the film's culture, the mask and armor conceal the figure's shape and size completely, making it a surprise when it turns out to be a woman, helped by the fact that Hiccup and the viewer have been given reason to suspect it was the man Drago he's just heard about.

* Shining Knight, from Creator/GrantMorrison's ''[[ComicBook/SevenSoldiers Seven Soldiers of Victory]]'', is revealed to be a girl at the end of her portion of the series.