History Main / TheCowl

* Franchise/{{Zorro}}'s [[OlderThanTheyThink first appearance in 1919]] makes him [[ProtoSuperhero one of the longest-running examples of this trope]]. He is thought of as much more of a swashbuckler, especially in the Disney series, but in the original novels he was much more The Cowl, especially to his opponents. A black-clad night-prowling outlaw with the boldness (and skill) to carve his initial into the property and, occasionally, persons of his opponents tended to inspire a certain amount of uneasiness.

* Anita and Edward from ''Literature/AnitaBlake'' can make all minor and most moderate supernaturals shit bricks by simple introduction. Well, they have probably the highest body count of all kill..., ergh, executioners of preternatural criminals.
* Gary Karkofsky in ''Literature/TheSupervillainySaga'' is a BunnyEarsLawyer version of this, being a Ringwraith-looking sorcerer with a quirky sense of humor. He inherited his magical cloak from a more traditional one called the Nightwalker. His wife, Mandy, also becomes one of these [[spoiler: after she becomes a vampire.]] It also fits the two Nightwalkers who are the setting's versions of Batman.

* ''Podcast/RedPandaAdventures'': The Red Panda, homage of radio-era heroes like the Shadow and Green Hornet, is a Cowl that manages to retain a sense of idealism described by creator and voice actor Gregg Taylor as a cross between Creator/OrsonWelles and [[Series/Batman1966 Adam West's Batman]]. When not playing the RichIdiotWithNoDayJob the Red Panda, alongside his sidekick, later partner, later wife the Flying Squirrel, patrols the dark and shadowy places of Toronto, bringing terror to the hearts of criminals who would prey on people during the Depression. While not inherently superpowered, the Red Panda is a master hypnotist and GadgeteerGenius who uses those skills and more to great effect to seem as a phantom to the city's criminal underworld.

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* ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}''

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* Though a villainous example, the appropriately-named Cowl in ''Literature/TheDresdenFiles'' believes he is one of these.

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* Victoria Hawking, lead character of the ''Theatre/MrsHawking'' play series.
** Also [[spoiler:Malaika Shah, in her role as colonial avenger.]]
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[[folder:Film]]

** ''Literature/TheAvenger'', Richard Benson, was a 30's and 40's pulp hero brought to you by the same folks who published ''Literature/TheShadow'' and ''Franchise/DocSavage''. The latter were, respectively, The Cowl and TheCape of their label. Mr. Benson was somewhere between the two; in terms of cynicism and aversion to killing, much closer to Doc, but in terms of method very much closer to the Shadow.

* WesternAnimation/DarkwingDuck, as the page quote shows, though, unlike most examples of this trope, despite being shadowy and mysterious he is also a teensy bit of a GloryHound. Though he's a AffectionateParody of this concept anyway.

** Radio/TheShadow is the other candidate for TropeCodifier of the modern version of this trope. Man of mystery? Check. Creature of the night? Check. TheDreaded to criminals? Double check. (While he debuted on radio as a narrator of an anthology series, his career as a protagonist actually began in PulpMagazine literature of the day.)

** ''Literature/TheAvenger'', Richard Benson, was a 30's and 40's pulp hero brought to you by the same folks who published ''Radio/TheShadow'' and ''Franchise/DocSavage''. The latter were, respectively, The Cowl and TheCape of their label. Mr. Benson was somewhere between the two; in terms of cynicism and aversion to killing, much closer to Doc, but in terms of method very much closer to the Shadow.

* Franchise/{{Batman}} [[RunningGag again]], in virtually all of the animated series from ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'' on.
** Going meta, ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'' had the TV show character "The Gray Ghost", voiced by {{Adam West|ing}}. Since he was a major inspiration for Batman himself, he probably counts.

** When he says LetsGetDangerous, the trope becomes ''very'' real for the bad guys.

** The influence which ''Zorro'' had on the Batman franchise is often [[ShoutOut homaged]]: in most versions of Batman's SuperheroOrigin, (''especially'' in the ''ComicBook/TheDarkKnightReturns'' and later), the movie which the Waynes had taken young Bruce to see the night they were murdered was one of the many film versions of ''Zorro''.

* Gary Karkofsky in ''Literature/TheRulesOfSupervillainy'' is a BunnyEarsLawyer version of this, being a Ringwraith-looking sorcerer with a quirky sense of humor. He inherited his magical cloak from a more traditional one called the Nightwalker.

* Tuxedo Mask in ''Franchise/SailorMoon'' begins as such, often popping out of the shadows to save Sailor Moon from an attack, then disappearing back into the shadows after she defeats the enemy. As his character progresses he starts gaining more aspects of TheCape as well.

Bad guys are out of luck."''

* When ComicStrip/ThePhantom (the name is telling) is after a group of bad guys, there will typically be someone around to tell them about the legend of the Ghost Who Walks, the Man Who Cannot Die. Just when they dismiss it as nonsense, they start noticing members of their group turn up knocked out or having been attacked and questioned by a mysterious masked figure, with an ominous skull symbol (of the Ghost Who Walks!) where they were punched. He always disappears when they go after him, but if they try to victimise an innocent, he will be sure to show up to whisk them away unseen or reveal himself and kick arse. By the time he reveals himself to the last or leading villains, they're liable to be a bunch of nerves. Most good guys he saves will be left wondering who the heck that was (but agreeing that he was awesome).

* Green Arrow in ''Series/{{Arrow}}'', to a much greater extent than his portrayal in ''Smallville''; this is more notable during crossovers with [[Series/TheFlash2014 The Flash]]. However, this appears to be changing with Arrow changing his costume slightly and adding "Green" to his name, after rejecting [[spoiler:League of Assassins membership]].

* From ''ComicBook/{{Stormwatch}}'' and ''ComicBook/TheAuthority'', Midnighter, who is so rarely seen out of his cowl that no two artists have ever been able to agree on what colour his hair is (explained away by admitting that he likes to dye his hair). His husband and crime-fighting partner Apollo is very much TheCape.

* The {{Pulp Magazines}} threw up some crucial early examples:

* ComicBook/{{V|ForVendetta}} is an especially antiheroic version of one of these, fighting a fascist government that has taken over Britain and using quite terroristic means of fighting his adversaries, such as bombs. He rocks the fedora and Guy Fawkes mask, and does the swishy black cape thing quite well.

* Radio/TheShadow is the other candidate for TropeCodifier of the modern version of this trope. Man of mystery? Check. Creature of the night? Check. TheDreaded to criminals? Double check. (While he debuted on radio as a narrator of an anthology series, his career as a protagonist actually began in PulpMagazine literature of the day.)
* Literature/TheSpider was [[FollowTheLeader directly and almost immediately]] inspired by the Shadow. His usual disguise, a weird amalgam of the Shadow's nose, Dracula's fangs and Igor's hunchback, was enough to unnerve most criminals on its own. The fact that he was more bloodthirsty than the Shadow or possibly even [[ComicBook/{{Watchmen}} Rorschach]] made him even more TheDreaded.

** ''Literature/TheAvenger'': Richard Benson, the 30's and 40's pulp hero brought to you by the same folks who published ''Radio/TheShadow'' and ''Franchise/DocSavage''. The latter were, respectively, The Cowl and TheCape of their label. Mr. Benson was somewhere between the two; in terms of cynicism and aversion to killing, much closer to Doc, but in terms of method very much closer to the Shadow.

* The Revenant in ''ComicBook/{{PS238}}'' is a NonPoweredCostumedHero with the mask, the gadgets, the ominous reputation, [[CrimefightingWithCash the rich background]] and a kid sidekick (MuggleBornOfMages Tyler) he puts in embarrassing amounts of danger. In fact, he turns out to be a minor {{deconstruction}}: The Revenant is a rogue hero with an arrest warrant, and not recognized as an 'official' superhero by the U.S. government. This is exactly because [[DifferentlyPoweredIndividual he's not a metahuman]] and has Views on [[BewareTheSuperman metahumans claiming monopoly on the role as humanity's protectors]].

%% * The Revenant in ''ComicBook/PS238''.

* in ''Literature/TalesOfAnMazingGirl'': [=NightHawk=], The Flame and Knife Girl are all this -- and all seem to be very diffrent examples of this from a Street Level Bruiser, to a Masked Avenger, to a Demonic Presence.

* Garrus Vakarian in ''VideoGame/MassEffect2'', who in the two years between the games have become their universe's equivalent of ''Franchise/{{Batman}}'', as a vigilante on [[WretchedHive Omega]] known as "Archangel". [[TheCape Paragon Shepard]] can curb the more extreme tendencies he's picked up, during his loyalty mission, pointing out that Garrus is very close to [[HeWhoFightsMonsters becoming one the monsters he's fighting.]]

* in ''Literature/TalesOfAnMazingGirl'' NightHawk, The flame and Knife Girl are all this-and all seem to be very diffrent examples of this from A street Level Bruiser, to a Masked Avenger to a Demonic Presence.

* Tuxedo Mask in ''Franchise/SailorMoon'' begins as such, often popping out of the shadows to save Sailor Moon from an attack, then disappearing back into the shadows after she defeats the enemy. As his character progresses he stars gaining more aspects of TheCape as well.

* The Silver Shroud from the ''VideoGame/{{Fallout}}'' universe. In ''VideoGame/{{Fallout 4}}'', the Sole Survivor can take on the role of the Shroud and mete out deadly justice to several of Goodneighbor's scumbags, ultimately culminating in taking down a vicious raider leader in an abandoned hospital.

** The spinoff ''Manga/VigilanteMyHeroAcademiaIllegals'' has Knuckle Duster, a non-powered vigilante whose outlaw status means that he operates from the shadows.

* Shota Aizawa, the homeroom teacher of Class 1-A from ''Manga/MyHeroAcademia'', is also known as "Eraserhead", an underground hero that operates at night and generally avoids the press. Unfortunately, the Cowl method means he ends up not being as well-known as most professional heroes.

* One episode of Disney's ''Disney/{{Hercules}}'' featured Theseus as The Cowl, in contrast with Herc being TheCape.