History Main / TemptingApple

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-->'''The Doctor:''' I don't like guns. I've got a better idea. Are you good at throwing?
-->'''Alit:''' Better than all the boys.
-->'''The Doctor:''' Then how about humanity's first weapon? ''(hands her an apple)'' Tempting, isn't it?

-->There is nothing to fear when there is two against the devil.
-->But we can't wait to see what they'll do against the three worst girls since Eve.
-->We have a new apple. For everyone in the world.

* ''Manga/TokyoGhoul'' has the [[SatanicArchetype One-Eyed Owl]] (as [[spoiler:Eto Yoshimura]]) offer an apple to [[spoiler:Kanae]] while [[ShoutOut explicitly referencing]] the temptation of Eve. Symbolically, the Owl is asking [[spoiler:Kanae]] to join [[AntiHumanAlliance Aogiri Tree]] in exchange for power and [[LoveMakesYouEvil the love of]] [[spoiler:Master Shuu]].

* In the LetsPlay/{{Slimecicle}} video [[https://youtu.be/_dp8iKlbaRs "Minecraft, but every 5 minutes there's a natural disaster"]], Jschlatt (essentially the video's equivalent to God) offers Charlie a golden apple to ease his hunger. Charlie takes and eats it -- and Schlatt ominously declares "[he] fucked up" disappears, and spends the rest of the video being a JerkassGod, offering more apples along the way. Naturally, the Biblical references are lampshaded.

* ''Series/{{Lucifer 2016}}'': The most famous apple is referenced when the first thing Eve, the First Woman, does on the show is order an appletini at the bar. Later, she and Lucifer mention [[SuvertedTrope that there was never a real apple in the Garden]]; the actual Original Sin was Eve cheating on Adam with Lucifer.

* In ''Manga/OnePiece'':
** Doc Q of the Blackbeard Pirates makes his appearance offering the unassuming people (And Luffy) of Mock Town apples. However, some of these apples, when bitten, explode! Luckily, Luffy got a normal apple. It's the Doc's weird way of testing out someone's fate.
** The TimeSkip gives us SMILE fruits, artificial Devil Fruits of the Zoan class. These apples look like black apples with white dots, and if they work, they give their eater a partial animal transformation of variable usefulness. However, only 1/10 [=SMILEs=] even do that much. The other 9 just turn their eaters into a PerpetualSmiler, on ''top'' of losing their ability to swim.
* ''Manga/DeathNote'': Ohba, the writer, apparently requested apples just because he thinks they look cool. In continuity, however, Ryuk finds them addictive, and they're one of the things he enjoys about Earth - next to mass murder and CriminalMindGames, which are also [[AudienceSurrogate among the chief draws of the series for the audience]]. He receives all three from Light in exchange for power, which ultimately leads to Light's death.

* The opening of Season 2 of ''Manga/SeraphOfTheEnd'' has [[CuteMonsterGirl Krul]] bite into an apple; given the number of references to Christianity in the anime, it is likely intentional.
* In ''Anime/GranblueFantasy'', Drang tries to convince the party to accept their offer of a free airship (and subsequently leave Port Breeze unharmed), all while extending an apple in his hand. Vyrn, obviously shivers while resisting the temptation, his TrademarkFavoriteFood.
* In ''Anime/RebuildOfEvangelion'', the symbol of the conspiratorial organisation NERV is a half-eaten apple with a fig leaf.

* In the latter half of the ''Anime/SoulEater'' anime, Medusa, a [[AnimalMotifs snake witch]], is associated with apples several times. One such moment is when Rachel, the child whose body she snatches by disguising herself as a cute dog, is watching an educational television program: A little girl reaching for a certain red fruit, which is then repeated several times: "An apple! An apple! An apple!"
* In ''Anime/{{Monster}}'', [[ManipulativeBastard Johan]] [[EnfanteTerrible Liebert]] gives the all-but-blind Schubert an apple to convince him that the woodland of his younger days is still there. In the short run, this ingratiates himself with him; in the long run, if he ever finds out otherwise it's likely to contribute into Johan's favorite trick of driving people to suicide.
* In ''Anime/TheLegendOfSnowWhite'', Snow White is warned in advance of the poisoned apple, but also warned that [[VainSorceress the disguised queen]] is carrying a magic staff that [[CarryingTheAntidote can undo the curse]] she cast on the forest. She bites into the apple anyway, causing the queen to lower her guard as she uses the last of her strength to go for the staff.
* In ''Anime/KemonoFriends'', no actual temptation is involved, but the library building resembles an apple core, evoking the Biblical version.

* In the Armenian folktale ''Literature/TheLiarFolktale'', a king offered to give a golden apple to the biggest liar in the kingdom. Eventually a peasant wins the apple by using by stating that the king owed him a pot of gold. [[XanatosGambit If the king denied it, then the peasant would win the lying contest. If the king didn't, well, he'd have to give the peasant the pot of gold.]] So the king parted with the golden apple instead.

* In ''RolePlay/DCNation'', the apple of desire was passed around during the Olympics plot. Jesse Quick sees a world where her father's still alive. Donna Troy saw a world where she was reunited with her family, Titans and Terry Long. It is enough to shock Donna into realizing that she really wants to be with her living family and [[spoiler: give up her dead children to Persephone's care so she can return to the Titans]].
* In the ''Franchise/DragonAge'' fanfic ''Fanfic/AccursedOnes,'' the main character 'Amell' has an apple motif; 'Apple' is even his nickname. Amell is ''also'' a user and advocate for forbidden magics such as blood magic and demonology, which he constantly invites others to share. Anders finally accepts Amell's offer to learn blood magic at about the same point in the story that he enters into a sexual relationship with Amell.

* ''Franchise/PiratesOfTheCaribbean'': Apples are Barbossa's TrademarkFavoriteFood, and his inability to taste them as an undead pirate in the [[Film/PiratesOfTheCaribbeanTheCurseOfTheBlackPearl first film]] ''is'' the most important consequence to him for his theft of the cursed Aztec gold. He also keeps them on-hand at all times, to eat one as soon as he's free of the curse again, which allows Jack to mockingly eat one in front of him in order to goad him into making a deal. It's the temptation and the consequence all at once! When he finally returns from the dead at the end of ''[[Film/PiratesOfTheCaribbeanDeadMansChest Dead Man's Chest]]'', naturally the first thing he does is to eat one.
* Used in ''Film/{{Pleasantville}}'', where the male lead is offered an apple by his girlfriend in a film all about a [[TrappedInTVLand fictional town's]] loss of innocence.
* In ''Film/OzTheGreatAndPowerful'', Evanora offers her sister Theodora a green apple, promising her that one bite will give her ultimate power to have vengeance on Oz and Glinda. [[spoiler:It turns her into the Wicked Witch of the West.]]
* In ''Film/FrightNight1985'', Jerry Dandridge is usually seen snacking on apples - unless he's snacking on someone's neck instead.
* In ''Film/IndianaJonesAndTheTempleOfDoom'', GirlOfTheWeek Willie Scott is [[ForeignQueasine disgusted by the dinner]] served at the temple and refuses to eat, despite being obviously hungry. Retiring for the night, the BelligerentSexualTension between Willie and Indy is heightened by Indy appearing with a big juicy apple that Willie devours with lust.

* In ''Film/TronLegacy'', Clu sees his reflection in a silver apple, recalls his creation by Flynn (who he has come to passionately hate), and loses his temper. With all the stuff in the movie that could be considered religious symbolism, in this case the apple was made by [[GodIsFlawed a well meaning but flawed creator]] and rejected by his [[SatanicArchetype vicious and even more flawed creation]].

* In ''Film/{{Enchanted}}'', Queen Narissa sends Nathaniel to feed Giselle a poison apple. His botched attempts include giving her a caramel-covered[[note]]the caramel forms a skull-shaped pattern, as Giselle apparently doesn't notice[[/note]] poison apple in honor of "Free Caramel Apple Day", and later brewing one into a martini, which he claims came from Giselle's secret admirer. Giselle accepts both of these, but different circumstances prevent her from ingesting them. Eventually, Narissa decides to poison Giselle herself, and offers an apple she claims will erase Giselle's memories of experiencing heartbreak in New York. [[spoiler:Giselle finally bites this one, but True Love's Kiss saves her from a permanent death.]]
* ''Film/{{Doctor Strange|2016}}'' is eating an apple when he sneaks into the library to try a DangerousForbiddenTechnique. As well as the Biblical ForbiddenFruit symbolism, he also reconstructs a missing page explaining the secret of immortality, as per Myth/GreekMythology.

* The front cover of ''Literature/{{Twilight}}'' has someone holding an apple, representing that Edward and Bella are each other's ForbiddenFruit.
* The quote from ''Literature/GoodOmens'' above, in which Adam Young's mischievous apple-scrumping is directly (and not disapprovingly) compared to that other Adam. (Not to mention that the actual serpent from the Garden is one of the main characters of the book.)
* ''Literature/TheIlluminatusTrilogy'' repeatedly plays with Greek mythology's version of the Apple of Discord.

* In the last book of ''Literature/ASeriesOfUnfortunateEvents'', an enormous apple tree grows in the middle of the arboretum of forbidden knowledge, and at a pivotal moment the Incredibly Deadly Viper offers one of its apples to the orphans [[spoiler:because they have just realized the apples contain an antidote to the Medusoid Mycelium, but are too weakened by the fungus to get one for themselves]], deliberately twisting an allusion to the Garden of Eden.

* The first ''Literature/SwordOfTruth'' book features a scene of the two leads sharing an apple in a rather sexy way, nearly leading Kahlan to lose control of her Confessor's power.
** There's also a mention early on that red apples are poisonous in Midland, courtesy of a D'Haran curse during the war. Red apples were chosen for being the most delicious-looking sort of fruit.
* In ''Literature/TheDragonHoard'', one of Jasleth's first attempts to seek his fortune is a (short-lived) job in an apple orchard, hoping to find that one of the apple trees bears magic apples or is an enchanted princess. Much later, he encounters a grove of magic fruit trees that grow fruit made of gold; the varieties mentioned include oranges, plums, damsons and, inevitably, apples.

* ''Series/TheCollector'': The Devil peddles weird black apples "plucked from the tree of knowledge you'd rather not have". They make people realize unpleasant things about themselves, sometimes by restoring forgotten memories.
* ''Series/OnceUponATime'': Regina Mills (otherwise known as Snow White's evil stepmother) uses the last of her magic (a TragicKeepsake) to grab the poisoned apple from the Fairy Tale realm. She uses it to bake a "special" apple turnover for Emma [[MurderTheHypotenuse (so she can get rid of her son's biological mother and have the kid all to herself)]]. Henry (the son) intervenes by gobbling it and dropping into a magic coma, forcing both his mommies into an EnemyMine to break the spell.
* ''Series/BoardwalkEmpire'': UsefulNotes/AlCapone, first introduced in the pilot as a young, childish thug under the watch of Johnny Torrio, undergoes a maturation process during the first season that ends with a scene where he guns down a rival {{mook}}, takes an apple from the fallen and eats it. By the next season, he shows contempt at the idea of being anything but a gangster.
* On ''{{Series/Heroes}}'' episode "Strange Attractors", Sylar bites into a apple and invokes ForbiddenFruit as he torments Matt Parkman's sanity and home life. The apple is seen again after it's revealed that after Matt blacked out from drinking too much, Sylar has taken over his body.
* At the start of Season 2 of ''Series/{{Luther}}'', the title character promises his boss he won't make contact with Alice Morgan. That same episode he visits her in prison and exchanges a secret message inserted into an apple that he throws over the prison wall.
* In the ''Series/GoodEats'' episode "Apple Family Values," Alton discusses this trope, before being offered an apple by "Eve," who is represented as [[TheUnseen a woman's arm poking out from between some apple trees]]. Since AB already has an apple in his hand, he replies, "No, thanks...I've already got one...nice snake, though."

* Advertising for ''Series/{{Caprica}}'' made use of this theme, showing a naked Zoe Graystone (the first humanoid Cylon) holding only a bright red apple with a bite taken out of it. It's supposed to reflect humanity's temptation and hubris to create artificial life, metaphorically eating from the Tree of Knowledge.
* ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries''. In "Where No Man Has Gone Before", when Gary Mitchell is attempting to persuade Elizabeth Dehner of his viewpoint that they're [[BewareTheSuperman above humanity now]], he creates a [[SpaceX Kaferian apple tree]] with his god-like powers and splits an apple with her.
* ''Series/{{Lucifer 2016}}'': The most famous apple is referenced when the first thing Eve, the First Woman, does on the show is order an appletini at the bar. Later, she and Lucifer mention [[ShownTheirWork that there was never a real apple in the Garden]]; the actual Original Sin was Eve cheating on Adam with Lucifer.

* Myth/IrishMythology: In ''Literature/TheSonsOfTuirenn'', the sons of Tuirenn are to [[FetchQuest get three golden apples]] from the well-guarded Garden in the East of the World. One bite of these fruits can cure any wound or sickness.

* ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid4'': Who's the older woman eating an apple? [[spoiler:EVA]], of course. Who brings her the apple? [[spoiler:Snake]]. Whom does she try to give it? [[spoiler:Ocelot, whose real name is Adam]]. [[spoiler:Adam]] refuses to take the apple from [[spoiler:EVA]]. And he's the baddy while she tries to turn him back to the Light Side.

* In ''VideoGame/PowerPete'', some of the food items in Fairy Tale Trail are apples, but some are poisonous decoys. The only way to tell which is which is to run over them (while down a point) with a shield - if it doesn't pick up, it's a poison one.

* The final Palace in ''VideoGame/Persona5 Royal'' has a model of the Biblical Garden of Eden at the very top, with a gigantic tree at the center, bearing apples with bite marks on them. [[spoiler:This symbolism is also alluded to in the very beginning, with said Palace's ruler having apple juice as his TrademarkFavoriteFood, and always keeping a box of it in his office.]]

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_F9EMbkvLBQ Free Apple]]. The skull just lets you know how natural and organic it is!

* In ''Webcomic/{{Sinfest}}'', [[http://www.sinfest.net/view.php?date=2011-09-11 Lil Evil naturally goes for the apples in Paradise because they are forbidden.]]
* In ''Webcomic/OlympusOverdrive'', the symbol of [[AppleOfDiscord Eris]] is... yep. An apple.

* At the start of Season 2 of ''Series/{{Luther}}'', the title character promises his boss he [[FoeYay won't make contact with Alice Morgan]]. That same episode he visits her in prison and exchanges a secret message inserted into an apple that he throws over the prison wall.

** In Islam, the forbidden fruit is traditionally wheat. This has interesting implications, placing the Fall of Mankind as the agricultural revolution. [[JeanJacquesRousseau Rousseau]] [[RousseauWasRight would be pleased,]] as he had much the same opinion.

* In the "WesternAnimated/VeggieTales" episode "Larryboy and the Bad Apple", we get an apple villainess literally named "Temptation", taking the trope to an extreme

* ''VideoGame/CrisisCoreFinalFantasyVII'': Genesis often offers Banora White apples to people he tries to convince to join his cause. He tries to give one to Sephiroth, but the latter turns it away, representing the end of their friendship.

* In ''Anime/DragonHalf'', Rozario offers an apple to a PO'd Mink, but Mink rejects it, knowing it is poisoned. Rozario can't believe that the "Snow White strategy" failed.

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* Played with by the K-Pop group Music/{{LOONA}} in their music video "new". Yves, pronounced Eve, eats in an apple referencing the biblical story of Eve biting into the {{Forbidden Fruit}}, but this "Eve" is aware of the consequences and ''wants'' to fall from the good graces of Eden.
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* In ''Anime/TheLegendOfSnowWhite'', Snow White is warned in advance of the poisoned apple, but also warned that [[VainSorceress the disguised queen]] is carrying a magic staff that can undo the curse she cast on the forest. She bites into the apple anyway, causing the queen to lower her guard as she uses the last of her strength to go for the staff.

* ''Series/{{Lucifer 2016}}'': The most famous apple is referenced when the first thing Eve, the First Woman, does on the show is order an appletini at the bar. Later, she and Lucifer mention [[ShownTheirWork that there was never a real apple in the Garden]]; the actual Original Sin was [[YourCheatingHeart Eve cheating on Adam with Lucifer]].

* This goes [[OlderThanFeudalism all the way back]] to the [[Literature/TheTrojanCycle stories]] of the [[Myth/GreekMythology Ancient Greeks]]. The Apple of Discord was inscribed ''ΚΑΛΛΊΣΤῌ'' ("For the fairest") by Eris, Goddess of Strife, and thrown into the round of undeniably vain Olympians, eventually resulting in UsefulNotes/TheTrojanWar. Gods sure tend to overreact... Then there's also Hera's orchard of golden apples in the Garden of the Hesperides, the apple by means of which Akontios tricked Kydippe to marry him, and the golden apples Hippomenes used to distract Atalanta in a race and earn the right to marry her. Don't get 'em mixed up.
* Literature/TheBible: The Fruit of the Tree of Knowledge. Contrary to popular conception, Literature/TheBible does not, in fact, name the original ForbiddenFruit an "apple." Some researchers believe than it was LostInTranslation back in Ancient Rome, since "malus/malum" can mean both "evil" and "apple" in Latin. So, technically, the Biblical apple is likely a {{Fanon}} coupled with absorbing Greek notions of the Apple Of Discord. And an IncrediblyLamePun. An alternate explanation for the 'Latin mistranslation' is that "apple" in English used to be a generic name for all fruit, and it [[HaveAGayOldTime changed its meaning]].
** In fact, Judaism presents in the Literature/{{Talmud}} a rather large selection of possible contenders for the original fruit, stating that God deliberately did not identify it in the Bible so as not to cause a backlash against it (the fruit, after all, wasn't at fault here). The candidates include commonly known fruits in the Middle East (not apples), such as figs, dates, pomegranates, etrogs (a citrus fruit kind of like a giant, sweet lemon), and ''wheat.''

** Creator/HieronymusBosch, the Dutch painter, liked to use exotic (to him) oranges for his Forbidden Fruit. Probably partly because Oranges are called Sinaasappel (Chinese Apple) in Dutch.
** In Islam, the forbidden fruit is traditionally wheat. This has interesting implications, placing the Fall of Mankind with the agricultural revolution. [[JeanJacquesRousseau Rousseau]] [[RousseauWasRight would be pleased]], as he had much the same opinion.

* At the end of Film/TheImaginariumOfDoctorParnassus as Parnassus is selling small theater mobiles, he glances up to see Mr. Nick offering an apple to a couple of nuns, affirming that he is satan and his goal is to continue to corrupt the pious with the temptation of sin.

** In the Season 2 novelisation ''Earthsearch: Deathship'', the protagonists are off the planet Paradise when a bomb hidden in an apple sprays them with KnockoutGas so they can be kidnapped (the radio series just has them gassed by a surgical droid).

[[JustForFun/IThoughtItMeant Has nothing to do with]] TemptingFate (At least, probably).

** The TimeSkip gives us SMILE fruits, artificial Devil Fruits of the Zoan class. These apples look like black apples with white dots, and if they work, they give their eater a partial animal transformation of variable usefulness. However, only 1/10 SMILEs even do that much. The other 9 just turn their eaters into a PerpetualSmiler, on ''top'' of losing their ability to swim.

[[quoteright:300:[[Disney/SnowWhiteAndTheSevenDwarfs https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/apple.jpg]]]]

* The apple eaten by Literature/{{Snow White|AndTheSevenDwarfs}}, chosen to be beautiful but poisonous

* ''FanFic/DeathAndKer'' is rife with apple symbolism, including allusions to Eris's apple of discord, Literature/{{Snow White|and the seven dwarfs}}'s poisoned apple, and the golden apples of immortality tended by the Hesperides. During one confrontation, Minako is even tempted with an apple.

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[[caption-width-right:300:Careful, Princess. [[TamperingWithFoodAndDrink That apple probably isn't as sweet as you think.]]]]

* ''Manga/AkagamiNoShirayukihime'': The basketful of perfect apples the same color as Shirayuki's hair that Raji sent to her after she fled from him into the neighboring kingdom. They are of course poisoned just like the perfect apple from Literature/SnowWhiteAndTheSevenDwarfs which the manga is inspired by, though she is not the one who takes a bite out of one of them.

* ''Literature/SnowWhiteAndTheSevenDwarfs'': The queen disguises herself as a peddler in order to kill Snow White, and the third and successful attempt involves a delicious-looking, but poisoned apple.

* ''WesternAnimation/GarfieldAndFriends''' parody of Literature/SnowWhiteAndTheSevenDwarves had Lanolin Sheep (wearing a purple hood and a basket of apples labeled "poison apples") offering a poison apple and openly saying it's poison [[note]] In foreign dubs of the episode, she says it's just an apple[[/note]] to Snow Wade while the other dwarves are still in the house. [[spoiler: Just like in the story, Snow Wade then eats it and dies. His reason? "I'll accept anything that's free!"]]

* ''Series/GoodOmens2019'': The series starts with Eve eating the Apple, followed by her and Adam leaving Eden. The snake who tempted her then slithers up to the angel who was supposed to be guarding the tree [[FriendlyEnemies and strikes up a friendly conversation about it]]. Crawley (the snake) says that [[PunchClockVillain he was just told to "stir up some trouble,"]] and finds the whole scenario a bit too on the nose, and doesn't see the problem with knowing the difference between Good and Evil anyway. Aziraphale (the angel) then reveals that he gave his flaming sword to Adam because they looked all sad and pathetic. It's implied very strongly that Aziraphale giving humanity a weapon was far worse in the long run than Crawley giving them knowledge.
-->'''Crawley:''' What if I did the right thing with the whole "eat the apple" business? A demon can get into a lot of trouble for doing the right thing.\\

'''Crawley:''' It'd be funny if we both got it wrong, eh? If I did the good thing and you did the bad one.