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This trope is not strictly limited for the bad guys. However, when it's the good guys doing this, they typically turn into dragons instead of snakes. Note that since Disney's ''Sleeping Beauty'', many villains have also turned into fire-breathing dragons.

** This also occurs in [[Film/{{Maleficent}} her movie]], [[spoiler: with the exception that her raven Diaval is instead the one to do so.]]

* Played straight by a female Dark One at the conclusion of ''The Wizard of Sunset Strip''. Probably a tribute to ''Sleeping Beauty'', as the battle in question takes place at a reconstructed Disneyland.

* Mister Monday transforms into a giant snake in the first book of the ''Literature/KeysToTheKingdom'' series, He ALMOST succeeds in killing Arthur, until Arthur [[spoiler: gets Suzy to write on him with her fingers and a bottle of ink, causing him to be attacked by hundreds of text-destroying, acid-spittingNithling-snake.

* No pity for [[MegaManStarForce Luna]]? Especially after she's forced into this due to the [=FMian=] Ophiuchus hijacking her? Thankfully, Geo [[IKnowYouAreInThereSomewhereFight beats her back to normal]] and Gemini slaughters the smug snake, but still...
** On a side note, why wasn't [[DrillHair Luna's hair]] as Queen Ophiuca/Ophiuchus Queen used as a weapon? It was ''visibly rotating!''

* The ''WesternAnimation/DefendersOfTheEarth'' episode "Dracula's Potion" also contains a rare example of one of the heroes turning into a snake. The titular potion transforms most of the Defenders into the animals which best reflect their personalities; in Mandrake's case, the animal in question is a cobra.

* The ''WesternAnimation/DefendersOfTheEarth'' episode "Dracula's Potion" also contains a rare example of one of the heroes turning into a snake. The titular potion transforms most of the Defenders into the animals which best reflect their personalities; in Mandrake's case, the animal in question is a cobra.

* DarkIsNotEvil heroic example from the titular character from {{VideoGame/Bayonetta 2}} when she obtains the ability to [[{{Animorphism}} transform into a giant snake]] in order to swim quickly underwater, aptly named Snake Within. Her mother, [[SecretCharacter Rosa]], also gains a similar ability called Cobra Within.

* A recurring antagonist in ''ShakuganNoShana'' lives to be recurring only because he shapeshifts into a ''small'' snakelike creature to escape a losing battle.

This trope is not strictly limited for the bad guys. However, when it's the good guys doing this, they typically turn into dragons instead of snakes.

* ''WesternAnimation/DextersLaboratory'': One of the very few examples where it's a good character doing this. When [=DeDe=] was a baby she gave birth to an imaginary world called Koosland, with Peepers as her first creation, a cynical rabbit like creature who gave away so much happiness in the land that he left none for himself. One day, an evil animesque alien kidnapped him to use as an energy source. In the end foiled by the efforts of Dexter and [=DeDe's=] other imaginary friend, Koosy, the alien warlord meets his demise by being stomped by Peepers, who mutated himself in a flesh-colored, evil-looking dragon.

* The Dragonlord in ''VideoGame/DragonQuest'' does this after defeating his normal human form. It only partially works for him because unless you've procured [[AncestralWeapon Loto's/Erdrick's Sword]], [[CherryTapping You do a little fewer HP damage to him each turn]], making the fight [[CurbStompBattle take a long time]]. It's still quite possible to defeat him with the Flame Sword, and possible in theory with the weaker buyable weapons.

* The Dragonlord in ''VideoGame/DragonQuest'' does this in the North American release (''Dragon Warrior''). It only partially works for him because unless you've procured [[AncestralWeapon Loto's/Erdrick's Sword]], [[CherryTapping You do a little fewer HP damage to him each turn]], making the fight [[CurbStompBattle take a long time]]. It's still quite possible to defeat him with the Flame Sword, and possible in theory with the weaker buyable weapons.

** The Dragonlord does this in all the various remakes of the original game, too. It was decided that the BigBad transforming into a dragon as his OneWingedAngel form was more interesting than easily killing him and then having to fight his pet dragon that he inexplicably didn't sic on you first.

* The Creator/MarvelComics ''Comicbook/FearItself'' crossover ended with the [[BigBad Serpent]], a humanoid Asgardian god whose name is more of a nickname/title due to his nature, abandoning his human form and all if its powers to turn into a giant snake that is easily sliced up by [[TheMightyThor Thor]] for no apparent reason.

There's probably something [[FauxSymbolism symbolic]] about the tendencies of a villain to turn into a snake. In the West there is a strong established symbolism for snakes from Literature/TheBible (most famously the serpent in the Garden of Eden), Myth/NorseMythology, and there's {{Orochi}} in Myth/JapaneseMythology. Adding onto this, there is the fact that when walking in the wild, it's generally not a good idea to stop and pet a snake.

* In "Pikappa",the reboot of PaperinikNewAdventures,[[MadScientist Vendor]] developed a gas that transform people in dinosaur-like creatures.

* ''Comicbook/TheLastTemptation'' graphic novel by NeilGaiman and Music/AliceCooper (yes, you read that right) has The Showman turn into a giant snake at the end, but he doesn't actually attack the hero. He just messes with his head a bit, and scares him away. If this story is meant to tie into Cooper's song "Welcome To My Nightmare", (which many of his fans believe it is) then it was an entirely successful head-mess, because by then, Stephen is a SerialKiller.

[[GenreBlind Villains do love their symbolism and cliches]], however, so despite how often this trope tends to end with the villain chopped up on the hero's sword, (usually rather easily too) villains everywhere still love the order Squamata because, of course, ReptilesAreAbhorrent. Think about it for a second: how often have you ever seen a villain turn into, say, a bear, a rhino, a lion, a koala, or something else that would actually be useful?

* In ''TenkoAndTheGuardiansOfTheMagic'', Jana and Jason combine their starfire crystals to turn into a two-headed dragon.
* ''SamuraiJack'': In Scotsman Saves Jack, the burly Scotsman tries to help an amnesiac Jack by retrieving his lost memories from a trio of sirens who hypnotize unlucky travelers. In the final battle, they combine into a fiery, three headed snake like creature and almost defeat the Scotsman before Jack finally remembers who he is and beheads (threeheads) the creature.

* ''DinoSquad'' is about a group of [[RecruitTeenagersWithAttitude Teenagers With Attitude]] who can turn into dinosaurs, fighting a dinosaur who can turn into a man, who wants to turn every creature on Earth into a dinosaur.

* ''VisualNovel/UminekoNoNakuKoroNi'': During the climactic fight at the end of the first season, Beatrice summons meta-Kinzo, who immediately gives an EvilLaugh, turns into a ''dragon'', and tries to eat meta-Battler's face, only to be stopped by a non-magical explanation and blasted to pieces by a multitude of flying spikes that accompany Battler's signature dramatic gesture.

* Avaritia, the leader of the Black Knights in ''VisualNovel/ElevenEyes'', stays on the sidelines for most of the game. Come the final fight, he transforms into a gigantic black dragon. Kukuri and Shiori face him down, and, though it takes a hell of a lot of power from Shiori, they just barely end up victorious.

* Inverted by ''GGundam'''s Cobra Gundam, which starts off as a {{Naga}} and can separate into a humanoid HumongousMecha and a mechanical snake, operated by the pilot's pet snake.

* Mister Monday transforms into a giant snake in the first book of the ''KeysToTheKingdom'' series, He ALMOST succeeds in killing Arthur, until Arthur [[spoiler: gets Suzy to write on him with her fingers and a bottle of ink, causing him to be attacked by hundreds of text-destroying, acid-spittingNithling-snake.

* ''SimonTheSorcerer''. At one point, you partake in a "wizard's duel" (read: magical rock-paper-scissors) with a witch. Upon winning three rounds, the witch transforms into a dragon (breaking the rule she set at the start). This is completely innefective, of course - you just transform into a mouse and escape through the small mousehole in the wall.
* Draconis and Abazigal from ''[[BaldursGate Baldur's Gate II: Throne of Bhaal]]'' revert to their [[OneWingedAngel true forms]] -- adult dragons -- upon being whacked sufficiently while in human form. While you still kill them, the 'partial success' part is because Draconis' dragon form is a challenge (or at least a ''bloody'' annoyance) and is widely considered to be an actually difficult boss. Abazigal, however... Isn't.

* Avaritia, the leader of the Black Knights in ''ElevenEyes'', stays on the sidelines for most of the game. Come the final fight, he transforms into a gigantic black dragon. Kukuri and Shiori face him down, and, though it takes a hell of a lot of power from Shiori, they just barely end up victorious.
* In a heroic version, Aelia of ''ValkyrieProfile'' turns into a dragon briefly during her FinishingMove to fire a giant beam at enemies. It only partially works because it's a bit weaker than most anyone else's finishing move, and is even less useful when you consider the one hit does little to help the ComboMeter.
* One of the minor villains in ArcanumOfSteamworksAndMagickObscura is Kraka-Tur, a human who, tired of being bullied for his weakness, killed Arcanum's last dragon by feeding him poison and used his blood in a magic ritual which turned him into a dragon, a crime for which he was banished. While the transformation gives him impressive strength and fighting prowess, he still has the personality of a coward.

* In ''Literature/ Animorphs'', the second to final book, The Answer, sees Jake morphing an anaconda on the cover. [[spoiler: He uses it to convince the Taxxons to turn on their Yeerk overlord and go [[ShapeshifterModeLock nothlit]] ]]