History Main / ShapeshifterShowoffSession

* Lady Clay's first appearance is in ''ComicBook/BatmanAndTheOutsiders'', in which she impersonates Looker's husband so that she can drug and replace her; as Looker slowly loses consciousness, Lady Clay reveals her blobby true form and gloats for a bit, before making herself into a perfect copy of Looker -- right before the ''real'' Looker finally passes out.
* Shortly after the two of them successfully return Captain Britain to his home dimension in ''ComicBook/CaptainBritainACrookedWorld'', Roma demands to know why Merlin doesn't just show himself and explain things, if only to spare poor old Brian Braddock a great deal of pain and torment. Merlin cheekily asks "which self?" and abruptly shifts between no less than five different forms over the next few panels; among them are a malevolent-looking sorcerer, a benevolent druid-like figure, and even a giant anthropomorphic spider... all to drive home the fact that Merlin may be Captain Britain's guide and benefactor, but he's also a ShapeshiftingTrickster.
* During one plot arc of ''ComicBook/{{Exiles}}'', team shapeshifter Morph ends up [[GrandTheftMe getting taken over]] by Proteus. Overjoyed at finally having a body that can't [[PossessionBurnout burn out]], Proteus immediately shows off his new powers to Morph's horrified team members by assuming no less than four different forms -- including his original human body, Miss Marvel, Jack the Ripper, and a little girl -- all while gloating that he can prey on anyone and never be caught. He quickly follows this up by reshaping his body so that Longshot's throwing knives harmlessly pass right through him, then winds himself into a slinky and [[KarmaHoudini bounces off into another dimension]].

->''I have about twenty other animals I could morph to. Want to see my lobster?''
-->--'''Marco,''' ''Literature/{{Animorphs}} #45: The Revelation''

[[folder: Web Animation]]

* Onyx of ''Animation/TimeMasters'' reveals his powers at the mission briefing by transforming [[{{Objectshifting}} into a vase of flowers]], then (at the prompting of the audience) into a miniature replica of Silbad, before finally transforming himself into a pile of treasure that the heroes will use to gain access to the Reform cruiser.

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Aladdin}}'': When Aladdin rubs the lamp for the first time, it turns red and starts shaking in his hands and spitting colorful fireworks, scaring off Abu and Carpet. Thick, blue-and-pink clouds of smoke leave the lamp, turning into a muscular, screaming, threatening figure, to suddenly change into Genie's real form as he complains about a creek in the neck. He "hangs" Aladdin on a wall of the cave, before taking off his head to spin it around and "fix" the creek. After this, he proceeds turning his smoky appendage into a microphone to talk to Aladdin like a TV host, then becomes a Scottish, calls a dog and becomes the said dog. Quite confused, Aladdin suspect he hit his head harder than he thought.

* ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxyVol2'': Ego is shown to be a shapeshifter since his true form is really a planet, but mostly takes the form of an old man. However when [[spoiler: he reveals he intentionally killed Quill's mother via giving her cancer and Quill instantly shoots him for it]], he briefly morphs into David Hasselhoff (via his [[Series/KnightRider Micheal Knight persona]]) before switching back. [[spoiler: Likewise in the finale when Quill and he clash after the latter awakens to his powers, Ego takes a much bigger form of his older self while Quill turns into...Pac-Man.]]

* In ''Fandeltales: The Cursed Prince'' (WARNING: NSFW) by Website/{{Newgrounds}} +18 artist Derpixon, after the eponymous hero is captured by the [[SuccubiAndIncubi succubus]] Herzha, she decides to give him a choice of what form she'll wear while she [[OutWithABang drains him of life via sex]]. To that end, she transforms into a DarkSkinnedBlond wearing nothing but strategically-placed body paint, before indulging in a little BreastExpansion to demonstrate her control over her new shape; then, in quick succession, she transforms into a forest nymph, a SouthernBelle, a sexy ninja, a [[NaughtyNuns sexy nun]], a CatGirl, [[FanDisservice an old hag]], a child (thankfully fully dressed and complaining about wasted time), an ''[[SexShifter incubus]]'' - before finally turning into [[ScrewYourself an exact replica of Prince Amont himself]].

* ''WesternAnimation/TheOwlHouse'': [[spoiler:Hunter and Luz are tricked by the Inner Belos into helping destroy the Palismen souls in his mindscape. He then reveals he's been consuming Palismen as they grant him eerie, shapeshifting powers, but the souls up until now cause him to turn into a mud monster and go berserk. He then shows off his new control by transforming his arm into an amorphic mess and killing a Palisman, horrifying the kids]].

** During the preparations for the Yeerk attack on the Free Hork Bajir valley in ''#47: The Resistance'', Jake and Tobias having to evacuate a group of unsuspecting campers who have ended up right in the path of the Yeerk army. Following a failed attempt to talk them into leaving of their own accord, the two are forced to morph right in front of them, with Jake morphing to tiger and Tobias demorphing to hawk. Unfortunately, this backfires: most of the campers are immediately [[MistakenForAliens convinced that the Animorphs are aliens]] and are practically begging to help in the efforts to defend the valley.

* ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'': Late in ''Literature/{{Hogfather}}'', Susan finally meets the Tooth Fairy, here taking the form of a sweet little old lady... and is immediately suspicious because the scene appears to incorporate ''way'' too many cliched elements. Trying to force Susan to back off, the Tooth Fairy begins rapidly cycling through different shapes in an attempt to intimidate Susan into submission -- only for Susan to NoSell them one by one, eventually forcing the Tooth Fairy to assume her true form. [[spoiler:Namely that of the first Bogeyman.]]

** In ''Last Human'', symbi-morphs are shapeshifters that transform to better fit their bonded clients' fantasies; as such, when Lister is bonded with a symbi-morph by the name of Reketrebn as a reward for participating in a SuicideMission, Reketrebn immediately begins showing off to prove that it can accommodate Lister's desires. In short order, it becomes a rose in a vase, a completely naked Kristine Kochanski, Kristine Kochanski wearing a ballroom gown, Arnold Rimmer, before finally settling in its ShapeshifterDefaultForm -- which Lister prefers, allowing him to [[NiceToTheWaiter enjoy a friendly dinner with the symbi-morph]].

* After being infected with a weaponized parasite in ''VideoGame/{{Prototype}}'', Alex Mercer has to seek help in the form of Dr Ragland, both for answers on the current epidemic sweeping Manhattan and for a cure for the parasite; rather than explain what his interest in the disease is, Alex not only shows off the massive glowing boil sticking out of his clothes but also shapeshifts by letting biomatter creep over him in a massive red-and-black ripple.

How they do this varies depending on the nature of their powers and the situation at hand. Some will dramatically revert to their true form, especially if the true form is especially impressive or frightening. In a popular variant, more performative shapeshifters rapidly shifting from one form to the next in a grand display of their versatility. Others still will just contort their body as grotesquely as possible to show how they can alter their disguises.

* In ''VideoGame/TheShapeshiftingDetective'', you're advised against doing this for the sake of [[CoverBlowingSuperpower keeping your true nature a secret]]. However, if you end up captured by the killer in the finale, you have the option of transforming in order to shock them into submission, with the most common option being to turn into the killer themselves. [[spoiler: Zak faints in shock, while Violet becomes convinced that she's gone insane and blows her head off; it doesn't work on Reyne, though.]]

Regardless of how overt or covert they may be, many shapeshifters have a flamboyant streak: as soon as their true nature is revealed - either by themselves or by a canny observer - they just can't resist showing off their powers in some grand display of transformation.

It's also not uncommon for shapeshifters to insist on doing this even in emergency situations - for example, after they've been caught infiltrating a restricted area and their disguise has been left in tatters, even when it might be in their best interests to fight or flee.

This is often for the sake of the audience in order to make the full scope of the shapeshifters' powers apparent as early as possible without getting bogged down in clumsy exposition, and indeed, friendlier shapeshifters can do this in order to explain themselves to their allies. However, it may also be used in order to impress, intimidate, or entertain another character. It may even be used as an illustration of the shapeshifter's personality - a sign of them being FunPersonified, a showboat, a narcissist, or just a really ostentatious ShapeshiftingTrickster; in the case of villains, this might even lead to a case of BondVillainStupidity that the heroes can exploit - unless you're in a work where TransformationIsAFreeAction, of course.

!!Examples

* Combined with CostumeTestMontage in one [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DDj8DE2XmQY 2009 commercial]] for Telma Cariot; here, a woman is lounging on the couch eating the eponymous cereal when the doorbell rings, and she belatedly remembers that she's got a date lined up, forcing her to figure out a good look for herself in record time. Over the course of the next few seconds, she proceeds to shapeshift across various fashion styles and ethnicities by shattering her outer skin like porcelain, unmasking herself, or unzipping her entire body to reveal various new selves underneath. She eventually settles on ripping her dress open to become a sexy catgirl - pouncing on her pleasantly-surprised boyfriend in mid-transformation.

* ''Manga/OnePiece'': The Straw Hat Pirates first meet Mr. 2 on friendly terms, so he shows off the shapeshifting powers of his Clone-Clone Fruit, first by turning into members of the crew whose faces he's touched, then by turning into other people he's met in the past. Unfortunately for him, once the Straw Hats learn that he's an agent of Baroque Works - the criminal organization they're trying to stop from taking over the kingdom of Alabasta - they already know how his powers work and are able to prepare a countermeasure in case he tries to shapeshift into any of them.

* A purely audio example occurs late in the AudioPlay/BigFinishDoctorWho episode "[[Recap/BigFinishDoctorWho056AxisOfInsanity Axis Of Insanity]]": here, Erimem belatedly realizes that the Doctor is actually [[BigBad Jarra To]] in disguise, prompting her to turn back and rant at length about how the Time Lords [[SealedEvilInACan imprisoned her]] in an infinite loop to stop her from damaging any more timelines - transforming into various figures from across the Axis as she explains how futile her life became. Not long afterwards, Jarra grows so frustrated with Erimem's SilentTreatment that she resorts to repeatedly shapeshifting into Erimem just so she can hold both sides of her [[JustBetweenYouAndMe expository villain monologue]] until the real Erimem [[BigShutUp screams at Jarra to shut up]].

* Lady Clay's first appearance is in ''ComicBook/BatmanAndTheOutsiders'', in which she impersonates Looker's husband so that she can drug and replace her; as Looker slowly loses consciousness, Lady Clay reveals her blobby true form and gloats for a bit, before making herself into a perfect copy of Looker - right before the ''real'' Looker finally passes out.

* During one plot arc of ''ComicBook/{{Exiles}}'', team shapeshifter Morph ends up [[GrandTheftMe getting taken over]] by Proteus. Overjoyed at finally having a body that can't [[PossessionBurnout burn out]], Proteus immediately shows off his new powers to Morph's horrified team members by assuming no less than four different forms - including his original human body, Miss Marvel, Jack the Ripper, and a little girl - all while gloating that he can prey on anyone and never be caught. He quickly follows this up by reshaping his body so that Longshot's throwing knives harmlessly pass right through him, then winds himself into a slinky and [[KarmaHoudini bounces off into another dimension]].

[[folder:Film -- Animated]]
* ''WesternAnimation/{{Aladdin}}'': When Aladdin rubs the lamp for the first time, it turns red and starts shaking in his hands and spitting colorful fireworks, scaring off Abu and Carpet. Thick, blue-and-pink clouds of smoke leave the lamp, turning into a muscular, screaming, threatening figure, to suddenly change into Genie's real form as he complains about a creek in the neck. He "hangs " Aladdin on a wall of the cave, before taking off his head to spin it around and "fix" the creek. After this, he proceeds turning his smoky appendage into a microphone to talk to Aladdin like a TV host, then becomes a Scottish, calls a dog and becomes the said dog. Quite confused, Aladdin suspect he hit his head harder than he thought.
* In ''WesternAnimation/Injustice2021'' Batman calls a meeting to discuss breaking Mr Terrific out of prison, and admits that there's only one superhero with the power to breach the facility where he's being held... and said superhero has been hiding in their current location for the last few days. Found out, Plastic Man startles the bejesus out of Harley by revealing himself to be the chair she's currently sitting on - sprouting eyes and a mouth from the backrest in the process - and then transforms back into his true form with gusto, much to [[ThisIsGonnaSuck Harley's despair]].

* During her VillainSong in ''WesternAnimation/TheSwordInTheStone'', [[WickedWitch Mad Madam Mim]] shapeshifts numerous times in order to show off her magical powers to Arthur (currently in the form of a sparrow). At first, [[SizeShifter she grows tall enough to bump her head on the rafters]], then small enough to sit on a teacup next to Arthur, then returns to normal size and gives herself the face of a boar, then transforms into a beautiful woman, before finally returning to her true form. With her song over, she then transforms into a cat and prepares to eat Arthur alive - only to be stopped by [[BigDamnHeroes the arrival of Merlin]], neatly segueing into their ShapeshifterShowdown.

[[folder: Film -- Live-Action]]
* Occurs by way of MaybeMagicMaybeMundane in the final act of ''Film/TheLighthouse'': when tensions between Ephraim Winslow and Thomas Wake finally result in a fight to the death, Wake abruptly appears to transform into [[spoiler: the man Winslow murdered for his identity]], startling his opponent into submission; then, Wake becomes the mermaid that's been haunting Ephraim and tries to draw him in for a kiss... only for the mermaid to become a tentacled monster version of Wake and try to throttle him to death. It's left deliberately ambiguous as to whether Winslow has finally lost his grip on reality or if Wake is actually some kind of shapeshifting Proteus figure.

* In the finale of ''Film/{{Society}},'' the villains who aren't busy with the massive flesh-absorbing orgy take great delight in screwing with Billy by demonstrating their shapeshifting powers: [[spoiler: Ted [[OverlyLongTongue extends his tongue]] and [[LecherousLicking gleefully licks Billy's face]]; Dr Cleveland shapes his head into a giant hand, then [[RubberMan stretches his right arm like elastic]] to grab at Billy; Nan reveals that she's removed her limbs and fused herself with various bits of Jim and Jenny - complete with Jenny's head suddenly erupting from her groin to menace Billy... and then the rest of Jim lurches out from under the bedsheets - with his face protruding from the cheeks of his ass.]]
* Bubble of ''Film/ValerianAndTheCityOfAThousandPlanets'' introduces herself by showing off her shapeshifting powers in a burlesque show in which she warps into a wide variety of fetish costumes: beginning with a Sally Bowles-style Cabaret outfit, she then shifts into a sexy nurse costume, then a schoolgirl getup, then a tribal costume complete with headdress, then a 1970s roller-skating costume with a massive blue afro, then a fetish catwoman outfit - before finally reverting to the Cabaret ensemble.
* ''Film/XMenFilmSeries''
** In ''Film/X2XMenUnited'', Mystique "reintroduces" herself to Wolverine by posing as Jean and sneaking into his tent for a booty call. Halfway through their initial kiss, however, Wolverine notices [[ScarsAreForever the scar he gave her in the previous film]]; knowing that her cover is blown, Mystique immediately reverts to her true form, then tauntingly asks what he wants while shifting between various other shapes - first Jean, then Storm, then Rogue, then ''Stryker'' - before Wolverine finally tells her to get out.
** Happens twice in ''Film/XMenFirstClass'': when Charles Xavier presents himself to the CIA, his attempts to reveal his telepathic powers immediately get him and Mystique MistakenForSpies - forcing Mystique to jump to her feet and transform into one of the CIA executives to defuse the situation. Later, while the other mutants are showing off their powers, Mystique's big reveal is to surprise everyone by turning into Banshee - much to Banshee's shock.

* ''Literature/{{Animorphs}}''

--->"I have about twenty other animals I could morph to. Want to see my lobster?"

* Late in ''Literature/{{Hogfather}}'', Susan finally meets the Tooth Fairy, here taking the form of a sweet little old lady... and is immediately suspicious because the scene appears to incorporate ''way'' too many cliched elements. Trying to force Susan to back off, the Tooth Fairy begins rapidly cycling through different shapes in an attempt to intimidate Susan into submission - only for Susan to NoSell them one by one, eventually forcing the Tooth Fairy to assume her true form. [[spoiler: Namely that of the first Bogeyman.]]

** In ''Better Than Life,'' the Polymorph is first introduced impersonating Lister, only being found out when it turns out that the ''real'' Lister is actually in his sixties thanks to TimeDilation on Garbage World; seconds later, it [[BodyHorror partially reverts to its monstrous true form]] and goes on the attack, trying to encourage as much fear as possible.

** In ''Last Human,'' symbi-morphs are shapeshifters that transform to better fit their bonded clients' fantasies; as such, when Lister is bonded with a symbi-morph by the name of Reketrebn as a reward for participating in a SuicideMission, Reketrebn immediately begins showing off to prove that it can accommodate Lister's desires. In short order, it becomes a rose in a vase, a completely naked Kristine Kochanski, Kristine Kochanski wearing a ballroom gown, Arnold Rimmer, before finally settling in its ShapeshifterDefaultForm - which Lister prefers, allowing him to [[NiceToTheWaiter enjoy a friendly dinner with the symbi-morph]].
* According to [[Literature/GalaxyOfFear Senior Anthropologist Hoole]] in Franchise/StarWarsLegends, this is how his fellow Shi'ido keep outsiders from getting too interested in their home planet; whenever explorers begin snooping around, nearby Shi'ido transform into hideous monsters in order to intimidate them into leaving - and that's if they don't just [[{{Objectshifting}} shapeshift into rocks and trees]] so they can pretend nobody's home. Consequently, in ''The Star Wars Essential Guide To Species'', the illustration of a Shi'ido is depicted right in the middle of a transformation into something terrifying; in fact, this practice is apparently so common that the only image of a Shi'ido in ShapeshifterDefaultForm available to in-universe texts is that of Hoole himself.
* Early in ''[[Literature/{{Hagwood}} Thorn Ogres Of Hagwood]]'', Terser Gibble the Wergle master reveals himself to his students by suddenly bursting into the classroom as a magpie - an intimidating sight, given that most Werlings are small enough to be ''eaten'' by magpies. It's not until the terrified students notice that [[TheAce Finnen Lufkin]] isn't panicking that they finally realize that the huge predator is just their teacher in disguise, whereupon Gibble changes back to his true form and [[SadistTeacher admonishes any students too slow to sit back down]].

** In "[[Recap/FarscapeS03E14InfinitePossibilitiesDaedalusDemands Infinite Possibilities Part 1]]," Furlow is immediately suspicious of "Jack Crichton", and when he informs her that the wormhole technology must be destroyed, she pulls a gun on him, demanding to know why she should listen to anything he says. Jack responds by reverting to his otherworldly true form unprompted, immediately shocking Furlow into silence.

** A visit to a massage parlor in "[[Recap/FarscapeS04E16BringingHomeTheBeacon Bringing Home The Beacon]]" results in Chiana being given a session with a shapeshifting masseuse while she tries to get information on the two men she was tailing; initially, Marella appears content to carry out the massage with her own rather dainty long-nailed hands, but then transforms into a hardened, punkish character [[MundaneUtility so she can work her customer's back muscles more forcefully]] - much to Chiana's appreciation. However, when Chiana begins asking questions about confidential matters, Marella swiftly transforms into a burly wrestler-type and jams a thumb into one of her pressure points, threatening to paralyze her if she doesn't explain herself... before changing back and revealing that Chiana's questions are pointless because she followed her targets into an establishment that ''sells'' transformations.

* During the ''Series/RedDwarf'' episode "[[Recap/RedDwarfSeasonIIIPolymorph Polymorph]]", the eponymous EmotionEater first demonstrates its powers in a deliberately showy fashion in order to provoke fear in Lister so that it can feed. Initially impersonating one of his kebabs, it then goes for his neck, before becoming his underwear and painfully constricting him from the waist down, then becoming a boa constrictor and trying to attack him head-on - before finally reverting to its gigantic armoured ShapeshifterDefaultForm and devouring Lister's fear.
* In the ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'' pilot episode "[[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS1E1EncounterAtFarpoint Encounter At Far Point]]," Q introduces himself by suddenly appearing on the bridge in the guise of a Renaissance-era ship captain, then (after some more godlike antics) becoming a US army general, then a soldier from post-atomic Earth.

* In the ''TabletopGame/MageTheAscension'' tradition book ''Verbena (revised)'', the character template known simply as "Shapeshifter" lived a restrained and depressive life as one of the Sleepers until she fell in love with a mystery man - a Verbena mage, of course. Their relationship eventually led to him revealing his true nature to her by transforming into a wolf, then an eagle, then ''her'' - as a preamble to explaining that the character [[SuperEmpowering can do this as well]].

* Should you accept the Genoharadan contracts in ''VideoGame/KnightsOfTheOldRepublic'', you're eventually sent after Rulan Prolik, a shapeshifting assassin currently on safari in the Shadowlands of Kashyyyk. At first, the search seems fruitless, as the only sentient being there is a Wookie by the name of Grarwwaar. However, checking the surrounding area reveals clues indicating that Rulan [[HuntingTheMostDangerousGame hunted down and murdered the real Grarwwar]] several days ago (along with the rest of his hunting party); confronting Rulan with this prompts him to take a form "more to your liking" - in this case, your companion Jolee Bindo. For good measure, he doesn't actually attack until you respond to the transformation, suggesting he only did this to screw with you.

[[folder:Webcomics]]

* ''WesternAnimation/GravityFalls''
** In "[[Recap/GravityFallsS1E19Dreamscaperers Dreamscaperers]]," the search for the safe combination inside Stan's mind ends with Mabel and the others locating the door it's hidden behind; Soos even offers to destroy the door so that Bill Cipher can't get a hold of it... and then the ''real'' Soos appears, having wandered off to investigate another memory. Immediately, "Soos" transforms back into Bill with unearthly flourish, takes a moment to laugh at the team, before stealing the door and flying off.
** The Shapeshifter of "[[Recap/GravityFallsS2E2IntoTheBunker Into The Bunker]]" initially poses as the Author and makes it look as if Experiment 210 is his enemy, even tricking Dipper into handing over the Journal... right up until Wendy realizes that the "Author" is identical to the mascot on a can of baked beans. Experiment 210 responds by turning his head 180 degrees, scuttling up the wall on giant spider legs, and screaming diabolically with BlankWhiteEyes - frightening the living crap out of Dipper and Wendy in the process - before finally reverting to his true insectoid form. Then, while obsessing over the Journal, he quickly shapeshifts into a number of forms based on the creatures documented within, including a gremloblin, a gnome, and even the Hide-Behind.
* ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'':
** In [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS2E1TheReturnOfHarmonyPart1 "The Return to Harmony"]], Discord makes his debut transforming into one of the figures of the stained-glasses windows of the royal palace to taunt Celestia and the Mane Six.
** In [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS4E25TwilightsKingdomPart1 "Twilight's Kingdom"]], Tirek prepares to corner a gray unicorn in an alley, when the unicorn's head suddenly [[ExorcistHead turns 180°]]as it transforms into Discord's head. When Tirek recognizes him, he stutters "You're free?". Discord answers "As a bird!" as he turns into one to illustrate his answer.

* ''WesternAnimation/Aladdin'': When Aladdin rubs the lamp for the first time, it turns red and starts shaking in his hands and spitting colorful fireworks, scaring off Abu and Carpet. Thick, blue-and-pink clouds of smoke leave the lamp, turning into a muscular, screaming, threatening figure, to suddenly change into Genie's real form as he complains about a creek in the neck. He "hangs " Aladdin in a wall of the cave, before taking his head off to spin it around, then turns his smoky appendage into a microphone to talk to Aladdin like a TV host, then becomes a Scottish, calls a dog and becomes the said dog. Quite confused, Aladdin suspect he hit his head harder than he thought.

* ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'': In [[''Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS2E1TheReturnOfHarmonyPart1'' "The Return to Harmony"]], Discord makes his debut transforming into one of the figures of the stained-glasses windows of the royal palace to taunt Celestia and the Mane Six.
** In [["Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS4E25TwilightsKingdomPart1" "Twilight's Kingdom"]], Tirek prepares to corner a gray unicorn in an alley, when the unicorn's head suddenly [[ExorcistHead turns 180°]]as it transforms into Discord's head. When Tirek recognizes him, he stutters "You're free?". Discord answers "As a bird!" as he turns into one to illustrate his answer.

* ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'': In ''Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS2E1TheReturnOfHarmonyPart1'', Discord makes his debut transforming into one of the figures of the stained-glasses windows of the royal palace to taunt Celestia and the Mane Six.
** In "Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS4E25TwilightsKingdomPart1", Tirek prepares to corner a gray unicorn in an alley, when the unicorn's head suddenly [[ExorcistHead turns 180°]]as it transforms into Discord's head. When Tirek recognizes him, he stutters "You're free?". Discord answers "As a bird!" as he turns into one to illustrate his answer.

This is often for the sake of the audience in order to make the full scope of the shapeshifters' powers apparent as early as possible without getting bogged down in clumsy exposition, and indeed, friendlier shapeshifters can do this in order to explain themselves to their allies. However, it may also be used in order to impress, intimidate, or entertain another character. It may even be used as an illustration of the shapeshifter's personality - a sign of them being FunPersonified, a showboat, a narcissist, or just a really ostentatious ShapeshiftingTrickster; in the case of villains, this might even lead into a case of BondVillainStupidity that the heroes can exploit - unless you're in a work where TransformationIsAFreeAction, of course.

[[folder: Advertising]]

[[folder: Anime & Manga]]

[[folder: Audio Plays]]

[[folder: Comic Books]]

* During one plot arc of ''ComicBook/{{Exiles}}'', team shapeshifter Morph ends up [[GrandTheftMe getting taken over]] by Proteus. Overjoyed at finally having a body that can't [[PossessionBurnout burn out]], Proteus immediately shows off his new powers to Morph's horrified team-members by assuming no less than four different forms - including his original human body, Miss Marvel, Jack the Ripper, and a little girl - all while gloating that he can prey on anyone and never be caught. He quickly follows this up by reshaping his body so that Longshot's throwing knives harmlessly pass right through him, then winds himself into a slinky and [[KarmaHoudini bounces off into another dimension]].
* ''ComicBook/SonicTheHedgehogIDW'': In the "Tangle and Whisper" mini-series, we don't get to see the full display of Mimic's power until Tangle and Whisper come to first confront him. First by taking Jewel's form then Whisper's to trick Tangle. Then later Tangle's form when Whisper encounters him which she sees through easily. He then goes onto revert to other members of her former Diamond Cutters unit in a ShapeshifterGuiltTrip ploy to get her to drop her guard. It nearly works but she regains her resolve, forcing him to go to Plan B before she takes the chance to off him.

[[folder: Fan Works]]

[[folder: Film - Animated]]

* The first time that ''WesternAnimation/SinbadLegendOfTheSevenSeas'' meets Eris, the goddess of discord, she attempts to inveigle him into absconding with the Book of Peace for her. Part of her pitch involves showboating her transformative powers: she's like an inky mist that moves at eyeblink speed, and changes size from normal woman into giant goddess. Though suitably impressed, Sinbad nevertheless declines her offer.

[[folder: Film - Live Action]]

[[folder: Literature]]

** In ''#45: The Revelation,'' Marco is forced to [[BrokenMasquerade reveal the truth to his dad]] after having to rescue him from being captured by the Yeerks for his R&D work. Afterwards, his dad is briefly convinced that he was just hallucinating the whole thing, forcing Marco to drive the point home by morphing an ant and an osprey in quick succession.

** In ''Last Human,'' symbi-morphs are shapeshifters that transform to better fit their their bonded clients' fantasies; as such, when Lister is bonded with a symbi-morph by the name of Reketrebn as a reward for participating in a SuicideMission, Reketrebn immediately begins showing off to prove that it can accommodate Lister's desires. In short order, it becomes a rose in a vase, a completely naked Kristine Kochanski, Kristine Kochanski wearing a ballroom gown, Arnold Rimmer, before finally settling in its ShapeshifterDefaultForm - which Lister prefers, allowing him to [[NiceToTheWaiter enjoy a friendly dinner with the symbi-morph]].

[[folder: Live-Action TV]]

* In the final episode of ''Series/InFromTheCold,'' Jenny's shapeshifting powers seemingly kick into overdrive as she hurries [[MamaBear to save her daughter]]. By now, snipers are targeting her [[HeroWithBadPublicity in the belief that she's a terrorist]], but she is able to throw them off by transforming so quickly that none of them can work out what happened, much less recognize her. An extended tracking shot of her marching down the corridor reveals that she's actually transforming into everyone she's ever sampled over the course of her career, but [[EleventhHourSuperpower at a speed she's never been able to utilize up until now]]. [[spoiler: However, the ending indicates that Jenny has actually been lying about her true allegiance, suggesting that she may have been lying about the limitations of her powers as well.]]

[[folder: Tabletop Games]]

[[folder: Video Games]]

* ''VideoGame/DraculaUnleashed'': The vampirized Juliet does this in a bid to save herself from being a staked by turning into protagonists loved ones (Mina to Harker and Anisette to Alexander). Dracula likewise is shown to have this power [[spoiler: as he's been posing as Arthur the whole time, having killed him and his wife prior to the events of the game.]]

* ''VideoGame/MegaManZXAdvent'': When [[spoiler: Albert]] reveals that he possess the same VoluntaryShapeshifting as the protagonist, he demonstrates it by switching between the forms of the game's bosses and doing a little impression of each of them.
* After being infected with a weaponized parasite in ''VideoGame/{{Prototype}}'', Alex Mercer has to seek help in the form of Dr Ragland, both for answers on the current epidemic sweeping Manhattan and for a cure for the parasite; rather than explain what his interest in the disease is, Alex not only shows off the massive glowing boil sticking out of his clothes, but also shapeshifts by letting biomatter creep over him in a massive red-and-black ripple.

[[folder: Western Animation]]

* ''Franchise/StarTrek'': In the ''[[Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine Deep Space Nine]]'' [[Franchise/StarTrekExpandedUniverse novel]] "The Siege" Odo and another shape shifter named Meta show off their shape shifting abilities while Odo is attempting to arrest Meta for several murders on DS9.

* ''ComicBook/SonicTheHedgehogIDW'': In the "Tangle and Whisper" mini-series, we don't get to see the full display of Mimic's power until Tangle and Whisper cone to first confront him. First by taking Jewel's form then Whisper's to trick Tangle. Then later Tangle's form when Whisper encounters him which she sees through easily. He then goes onto revert to other members of her former Diamond Cutters unit in a ShapeshifterGuiltTrip ploy to get her to drop her guard. It nearly works but she regains her resolve, forcing him to go to Plan B before she takes the chance to off him.

* ''ComicBook/SonicTheHedgehogIDW'': In the "Tangle and Whisper" mini-series, we don't get to see the full display of Mimic's power until Tangle and Whisper cone to first confront him. First by taking Jewel's form then Whisper's to trick Tangle. Then later Tangle's form when Whisper encounters him which she sees through easily. He then goes onto revert to other members of her former Diamond Cutters unit in a ShapeshiftingGuiltTrip ploy to get her to drop her guard. It nearly works but she regains her resolve, forcing him to go to Plan B before she takes the chance to off him.

* Shortly after the two of them successfully return Captain Britain to his home dimension in ''ComicBook/CaptainBritainACrookedWorld'', Roma demands to know why Merlin doesn't just show himself and explain things, if only to spare poor old Brian Braddock a great deal of pain. Merlin cheekily asks "which self?" and abruptly shifts between no less than five different forms over the next few panels; among them are a malevolent-looking sorcerer, a benevolent druid-like figure, and even a giant anthropomorphic spider... all to drive home the fact that Merlin may be Captain Britain's benefactor, but he's also a ShapeshiftingTrickster.