History MirrorCharacter / AnimeAndManga

*** William and UsefulNotes/BillyTheKid''. Both are atoners after having been a "noble criminal" seeking to help people being victimized by horrible people. Billy was well-loved and his dear friend, the Sheriff and representative of justice, Pat Garrett, helped him fake his own death after getting into a confrontation and not seeing another way to save Billy's life. [[SarcasmMode No, that doesn't sound like William and Sherlock at all...]]certainly not to help William figure out what he wants to do in the aftermath of ''The Final Problem''.

* ''LightNovel/TheCaseFilesOfJewelerRichard'':

* ''Anime/KillLaKill'': while Satsuki Kiriyuin and Ryuko Matoi are initially set up as mere foils, they have a lot more in common than either initially realizes. Both are HotBlooded {{Action Girl}}s with enough HeroicWillpower to blow up a stadium, both wear {{Stripperific}} kamui in order to fight, and both are unwavering in their convictions [[note]]or so it appears; and while Satsuki presents as an [[UnstoppableForceMeetsImmovableObject immovable wall, Ryuko is more of an unstoppable force]][[/note]]. It gets even more obvious after TheReveal that, not only are they ''sisters'', they share the same motivation of [[YouKilledMyFather avenging their father's murder.]] Taken [[UpToEleven even further]] in episode 22, where Ryuko realizes that Satsuki has TrueCompanions with {{Cloudcuckoolander}} tendencies that are willing to do anything to protect her- just like Ryuko has. They then activate their {{Transformation Sequence}}s simultaneously, and the near-identical animations are literally mirrored. From then until the end of the series, anytime Ryuko and Satsuki fight ''together'', they make identical but mirrored moves.

** Zenon to Yuno. They are both cold, speak little, and have confidence in their power, preferring to settle things fast with their magics. While Yuno is selfless and cares for his squad, Zenon is merciless and derides his Dark Disciples for being weak.

** Future Lucy and Future Rogue both come from futures in which dragons have destroyed the word, the dragon Acnologia destroying Future Rogue's timeline while a hoard of ten thousand dragons destroyed Future Lucy's timeline. Both have lost loved ones and even a body part, with Future Rogue losing his right eye while Future Lucy lost her right hand, which caused them to fall into despair. The key difference is that Future Lucy comes back in time to save everyone and stop the coming ten-thousand dragons from bringing disaster, while Future Rogue wants to ensure it happens.

* In ''Manga/MagiLabyrinthOfMagic'' there are a number of these.

** Naruto and Gaara. Their arc (and their eventual friendship) is based on them being similar (both are outcasts from their villages who deep down just want friendship, both are the containers of powerful monsters who make them unstoppable in battle but whose power they cannot control, and both must eventually learn to define themselves outside of their roles as those containers) even though outwardly they couldn't be more different- Naruto is friendly, loud, and oblivious to those around him, while Gaara in initially a very quiet borderline sociopath whose only emotions are rage and boredom when he isn't killing. After meeting Naruto and realizing that its possible to ''not'' listen to the monster sealed inside him telling him to kill and that if he did, people besides that monster might come to like him, Gaara begins CharacterDevelopment that leads him to becoming much more compassionate and gentle, while Naruto in turn eventually learns to take things more seriously and be more humble.

** Naruto and Sasuke are like to sides of the same coin, despite being introduced as the prodigy while Naruto was the loser, the two of them were not all that dissimilar. They were both orphans, "lonely kids starved for love who found nothing but hatred". However, they chose different paths: Sasuke let his hatred consume him while Naruto learned to let it go and moved past it.
** Sasuke and Gaara. Back when he was still in his AxCrazy phase, told him that they were very much alike: they both had the same eyes, filled with hatred and the desire to kill the ones who made them so lonely. During the Five Kage Summit arc, he reminds that to Sasuke and tries and convince to abandon his quest for vengeance. It doesn't work.

** Obito and Kabuto. Both of them were involved in the Shinobi World War and were left for dead only to be found by the EvilMentor and taken in as a student. When said EvilMentor died, they both took said EvilMentor and tried to become them and both went from joke level fighters to Kage level enemies. To add to it, both of them pulled a HeelFaceTurn after said EvilMentor returned from the dead and decided to embrace who they actually were. Both are also serve as the EvilCounterpart to Naruto who use this to their advantage.
** Although he denies this, there are also similarities between Obito and Nagato. Both of them in their youth were [[WideEyedIdealists Wide Eyed Idealists]] who were involved in the Shinobi World War. Both of them were in a team of three people and most of all wanted to protect their friends. Both of them fell under the manipulation of another person after witnessing the suicide of their best friend/love interest and eventually abandoned their former idealism and became [[WellIntentionedExtremists Well Intentioned Extremists]]. Both of them began to hide under a different name and eventually became the cause of death of their former sensei. And both of them ultimately pulled a HeelFaceTurn shortly before their deaths, realizing the error of their ways and trying to correct their mistake by resurrecting all those whom they killed.
** Obito is also this to his fellow Uchiha, Sasuke. If you can believe it. Both are of the Uchiha Clan, both were cheerful children, both constantly sought the love/attention of an individual who they thought didn't care for them enough. For Obito it was Rin while Sasuke sought attention from his father. Both constantly compared themselves to a character who was The Ace and fell short in comparison. For Obito it was Kakashi and for Sasuke it was Itachi. When said person whose interest they longed for died they had drastic changes in behaviour. Sasuke had his clan's demise while Obito had Rin's demise, both at the hands of said Ace who committed the deed unwillingly (Itachi was ordered and hated himself for it and Kakashi's hand was forced). And both are ultimately hurt children lashing out at the world for their unfair childhoods, and the events that broke them.

** And then there is Golden Ryan, who has some of the most frustrating traits of both Barnaby and Kotetsu mixed into one, an older, experienced hero who still cares about points and ratings the way Barnaby did when he first started--and a trait of his that has been softened considerably after time with Kotetsu.

[[quoteright:350:[[Manga/MagiLabyrinthOfMagic https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ijijfis.jpg]]]]

** Obito is also one to Kakashi given their past history together, similar (superficial) trickster personality traits, and the same Sharingan abilities. As he holds Obito at knifepoint, Kakashi explicitly admits that he could have very well sunken into the same mindset of despair and hopelessness that Obito did after Rin died, but it was the fact that Obito entrusted him with his eye and indirectly, Obito's hopes for a better world for Rin, that made him keep going.

** Although he denies this, there are also similarities between Obito and Nagato. Both of them in their youth were WideEyedIdealists who were involved in the Shinobi World War. Both of them were in a team of three people and most of all wanted to protect their friends. Both of them fell under the manipulation of another person after witnessing the suicide of their best friend/love interest and eventually abandoned their former idealism and became WellIntentionedExtremists. Both of them began to hide under a different name and eventually became the cause of death of their former sensei. And both of them ultimately pulled a HeelFaceTurn shortly before their deaths, realizing the error of their ways and trying to correct their mistake by resurrecting all those whom they killed.

* ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'': Naruto and Gaara. Their arc (and their eventual friendship) is based on them being similar (both are outcasts from their villages who deep down just want friendship, both are the containers of powerful monsters who make them unstoppable in battle but whose power they cannot control, and both must eventually learn to define themselves outside of their roles as those containers) even though outwardly they couldn't be more different- Naruto is friendly, loud, and oblivious to those around him, while Gaara in initially a very quiet borderline sociopath whose only emotions are rage and boredom when he isn't killing. After meeting Naruto and realizing that its possible to ''not'' listen to the monster sealed inside him telling him to kill and that if he did, people besides that monster might come to like him, Gaara begins CharacterDevelopment that leads him to becoming much more compassionate and gentle, while Naruto in turn eventually learns to take things more seriously and be more humble.

** Of all people, William Moriarty and ''Mary Morstan'', a pretty, stoic, well-educated, well-mannered, mysterious, suspicious blonde orphan who got herself into legal trouble just trying to help people because she was too inspired by French Socialism and the Paris Commune. Like him, she found herself blackmailed by Milverton despite wanting little more than to live a quiet, peaceful life and came to Sherlock begging for his help and Sherlock immediately agreed to assist without asking for anything and dismissing the need for begging. She's even a governess, which, while certainly not the caliber of a university professor at an elite university at such a young age, is someone who works as a private teacher.
** William and UsefulNotes/BillyTheKid''. Both are atoners after having been a "noble criminal" seeking to help people being victimized by horrible people. Billy was well-loved and his dear friend, the Sheriff and representative of justice, Pat Garrett, helped him fake his own death after getting into a confrontation and not seeing another way to save Billy's life. [[SarcasmMode No, that doesn't sound like William and Sherlock at all...]]certainly not to help William figure out what he wants to do in the aftermath of ''The Final Problem''.
** Mycroft and Albert. Both eldest brothers are reserved and good and masking their emotions and are deeply fond and protective of their younger siblings. They work for the secret parts of the government together to help Britain in the shadows. They both even take on legal burdens hoping to protect their younger brother.

** Sherlock Holmes and Professor William James Moriarty, both nearly incomparably brilliant men, protective of the weak and set on bringing justice, change, and equality to the British Empire, and both capable of horrible, horrible acts of murder. It's invoked over and over how identical they are, by William, Sherlock, even Lestrade and Mycroft get in on the action, and the series revolves around the idea that they're two halves of one whole.
** William and ''Louis'' start picking this up after ''The Final Problem'' once Louis takes over command of [=MI6=] and the crew, with Moneypenny, Mycroft, and even Sherlock commenting on how much looking at Louis is like looking at his older brother, and how similarly they act.
** William also has a one-arc mirror in Adam Whiteley, the kind, charismatic MP who wants to force equality into British society whether people agree with him or not, and even resorts to blackmail, with a beloved blond disabled little brother who worships him and worries about his safety constantly, and wishes to repent for his sins with death.
** Another one-arc mirror for William is the brilliant math prodigy ''Bill'' Hunting who works for a printing company in Durham and had like William would have been had he not been adopted by the Moriartys, unable to access the elite education that his brain is capable of. William says that he stands on the same horizon as him (in regards to math), which is the first half of a MeaningfulEcho to Sherlock saying that he finally stands on the same horizon as William after uncovering the mystery of the Lord of Crime completely.
** Of all people, William Moriarty and ''Mary Morstan'', a pretty, stoic, well-educated, well-mannered, mysterious, suspicious blonde orphan who got herself into legal trouble just trying to help people because she was too inspired by French Socialism and the Paris Commune and found herself blackmailed by Milverton despite wanting little more than to live a quiet, peaceful life and wasn't able to because of all the legal trouble, and came to Sherlock begging for his help and whom Sherlock immediately agreed to assist without asking for anything and dismissing the need for begging. She's even a governess, which, while certainly not the caliber of a university professor at an elite university at such a young age, is someone who works as a private teacher.

** William and UsefulNotes/BillyTheKid''. Both are atoners after having been a "noble criminal" seeking to help people being victimized by horrible people. Billy was well-loved and his dear friend, the Sheriff and representative of justice, Pat Garrett, helped him fake his own death after getting into a confrontation and not seeing another way to save Billy's life. [[SarcasmMode No, that doesn't sound like William and Sherlock at all...]]

** Sonoko Suzuki and Momiji Ooka are the heiresses to, respectively, the [[Fiction500 second and third wealthiest families in Japan]]. They also [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking both have brown hair]]. That's about where the similarities end, though: Sonoko worships the ground Ran walks on and [[ShipperOnDeck enthusiastically supports her relationship with Ran]], whilr Momiji regards Kazuha as a romantic rival.

* Anime/KillLaKill: while Satsuki Kiriyuin and Ryuko Matoi are initially set up as mere foils, they have a lot more in common than either initially realizes. Both are HotBlooded {{Action Girl}}s with enough HeroicWillpower to blow up a stadium, both wear {{Stripperific}} kamui in order to fight, and both are unwavering in their convictions [[note]]or so it appears; and while Satsuki presents as an [[UnstoppableForceMeetsImmovableObject immovable wall, Ryuko is more of an unstoppable force]][[/note]]. It gets even more obvious after TheReveal that, not only are they ''sisters'', they share the same motivation of [[YouKilledMyFather avenging their father's murder.]] Taken [[UpToEleven even further]] in episode 22, where Ryuko realizes that Satsuki has TrueCompanions with {{Cloudcuckoolander}} tendencies that are willing to do anything to protect her- just like Ryuko has. They then activate their {{Transformation Sequence}}s simultaneously, and the near-identical animations are literally mirrored. From then until the end of the series, anytime Ryuko and Satsuki fight ''together'', they make identical but mirrored moves.

** While Kyo and Yuki Sohma are constantly at each other's throats, it's ultimately revealed that despite having a RedOniBlueOni dynamic, they're [[TooMuchAlike they're much more similar than they first appear]]. Both of them have a multitude of issues which has stemmed from the abuse they received during their childhood, both have low self-esteem and feelings of isolation, both are NotGoodWithRejection, and they struggle to communicate their true feelings. Recognizing this, and realizing that they both admire and [[MutualEnvy envy each other]] is what allows them to move on from their hostility and have a better relationship.

* Anime/KillLaKill: while Satsuki Kiriyuin and Ryuko Matoi are initially set up as mere foils, they have a lot more in common than either initially realizes. They are the {{Deuteragonist}}s of the story; both are HotBlooded {{Action Girl}}s with enough HeroicWillpower to blow up a stadium, both wear {{Stripperific}} kamui in order to fight, and both are unwavering in their convictions [[note]]or so it appears; and while Satsuki presents as an [[UnstoppableForceMeetsImmovableObject immovable wall, Ryuko is more of an unstoppable force]][[/note]]. It gets even more obvious after TheReveal that, not only are they ''sisters'', they share the same motivation of [[YouKilledMyFather avenging their father's murder.]] Taken [[UpToEleven even further]] in episode 22, where Ryuko realizes that Satsuki has TrueCompanions with {{Cloudcuckoolander}} tendencies that are willing to do anything to protect her- just like Ryuko has. They then activate their {{Transformation Sequence}}s simultaneously, and the near-identical animations are literally mirrored. From then until the end of the series, anytime Ryuko and Satsuki fight ''together'', they make identical but mirrored moves.

* ''Anime/LittleWitchAcademia'': Although Akko and Diana seem like complete Main/{{Foil}}s on the surface, given their opposing personalities, skill sets and social backgrounds, it is later revealed that both are far more alike than either of them would like to admit. They're both passionate about magic, they're both prone to being reckless, arrogant, immature, stubborn and competitive, and they're both fans of Shiny Chariot (though Diana keeps her interest [[ClosetGeek closeted]]), to where they both became students of Luna Nova because it’s the school Chariot went to. On top of that, they were both bullied and/or ostracized by others simply because of their love for Chariot and/or magic and both have had their [[spoiler:magic unintentionally drained from a young age by Chariot thanks to attending her show in Japan, on top of coming to the realization that Chariot is not who they thought her to be]]. Despite their differences, it's through these similarities and more that they're able to come together and become friends by the end of the series.

* It seems like Osaka from ''Anime/CaseClosed'' is some sort of parallel dimension, looking at how directly its population mirrors the Tokyoite main cast:
** [[FriendlyRivalHeiji Hattori]] is almost the same character as pre-Conan Shinichi, being a famous teenage AmateurSleuth who plays a sport, loves mystery stories, and has a [[ChildhoodFriendRomance crush on his childhood friend]]. The big differences are what sport they play, who their favorite authors are, and that Heiji is a textbook StockShonenHero while Shinichi is calm and snarky.

* ''Anime/LittleWitchAcademia'': Although Akko and Diana seem like complete Main/{{Foil}}s on the surface, given their different personalities and social backgrounds, it is later revealed that both are far more alike than either of them would like to admit. They're both passionate about magic, they're both prone to being reckless, arrogant, immature, stubborn and competitive, and they're both fans of Shiny Chariot (though Diana keeps her interest [[ClosetGeek closeted]]), to where they both became students of Luna Nova, simply because it’s the school Chariot went to. On top of that, they were both bullied and/or ostracized by others simply because of their love for Chariot and/or magic and both have had their [[spoiler:magic unintentionally drained from a young age by Chariot thanks to attending her show in Japan, on top of coming to the realization that Chariot is not who they thought her to be]]. Despite their differences, it's through these similarities and more that they're able to come together and become friends by the end of the series.

* ''Anime/LittleWitchAcademia'': Although Akko and Diana seem like complete Main/{{Foil}}s on the surface, given their different personalities and social backgrounds, it is later revealed that both are far more alike than either of them would like to admit. They're both passionate about magic, they're both prone to being reckless, arrogant, immature, stubborn and competitive, and they're both fans of Shiny Chariot (though Diana keeps her interest [[ClosetGeek closeted]]), to where they both became students of Luna Nova, simply because it’s the school Chariot went to. Both also have had their [[spoiler:magic drained from a young age thanks to attending the same Shiny Chariot show and come to the realization that Chariot is not who they thought her to be]], on top of being bullied and ostracized by others for expressing their love of Chariot and magic (which is partly why Diana hides her interest). Despite their differences, it's through these similarities and more that they're able to come together and become friends by the end of the series.

* ''Anime/LittleWitchAcademia'': Although Akko and Diana seem like complete Main/{{Foil}}s on the surface, given their different personalities and social backgrounds, it is later revealed that both are far more alike than either of them would like to admit. They're both passionate about magic, they're both prone to being reckless, arrogant, immature, stubborn and competitive, and they're both fans of Shiny Chariot (though Diana keeps her interest [[ClosetGeek closeted]]), to where they both became students of Luna Nova, simply because it’s the school Chariot went to. Both also have had their [[spoiler:magic drained from a young age thanks to attending the same Shiny Chariot show and come to the realization that Chariot is not who they thought her to be]]. Despite their differences, it's through these similarities and more that they're able to come together and become friends by the end of the series.

* ''Manga/{{Berserk}}'': [[NinetiesAntiHero Guts]] and [[FallenHero Griffith]] were born in squalor and grew into the mercenary life to become a [[CharlesAtlasSuperpower superhuman]] MasterSwordsman capable of leading the Band of the Hawk (as Guts discovers when the former leader Griffith was rendered lame and crippled due to being tortured for a year). Both Guts and Griffith each have a respective dream which they effectively ruin for each other. They both love [[CockFight the same woman]]. And while they have plenty of connections the [[NobleMaleRoguishMale contrast]] is clear as well: Guts resembles the [[DarkIsNotEvil archetypical villain]] and often [[BloodKnight acts]] like it despite being TheHero, whilst Griffith can be seen as the [[LightIsNotGood archetypal hero]] being a literal KnightInShiningArmour but who is ultimately [[BigBad the villain]] due to his [[MoralEventHorizon unforgivable actions]] during the Eclipse.

* ''Manga/{{Berserk}}'': [[NinetiesAntiHero Guts]] and [[FallenHero Griffith]] were born in squalor and grew into the mercenary life to become a [[CharlesAtlasSuperpower superhuman]] MasterSwordsman capable of leading the Band of the Hawk (as Guts discovers when the former leader Griffith was rendered lame and crippled due to being tortured for a year). Both Guts and Griffith each have a respective dream which they effectively ruin for each other. They both love [[CockFight the same woman]]. And while they have plenty of connections the [[NobleMaleRoguishMale contrast]] is clear as well: Guts resembles the [[DarkIsNotEvil archetypal villain]] and often [[BloodKnight acts]] like it despite being TheHero, whilst Griffith can be seen as the [[LightIsNotGood archetypal hero]] being a literal KnightInShiningArmour but who is ultimately [[BigBad the villain]] due to his [[MoralEventHorizon unforgivable actions]] during the Eclipse.

* ''Anime/MyHime'' has Natsuki and Nao. Both are [=HiME=]. Both lost their mothers at a young age to violence. Both were abandonded by their surviving relatives, afterwords. Both set out on a quest for revenge. But in Natsuki's first year of middle-school, she caught the eye of [[SchoolgirlLesbians Shizuru Fujino]], who [[TheDefroster made a concentrated effort to bring Natsuki out of her isolated shell]], causing her to slowly open up to others. Nao, on the other hand, had no one looking out for her but herself, and became jaded, bitter, and cynical. After Natsuki suffers a PsychosomaticSuperpowerOutage, a comment from Nao about how love and relationships were meaningless made Natsuki realize that it was Shizuru's love that kept her from becoming like Nao. That knowledge restores her powers, and she intervenes to prevent Shizuru from killing Nao. When the BigBad is defeated and the dust settles, the two are on much friendlier terms.