Line #78 Main/BigEgoHiddenDepths


1	The character with a SmallNameBigEgo is the focus of the episode, and in the end, their pretensions and facades are broken down to reveal a ''usually'' [[InferioritySuperiorityComplex insecure and hurt individual]] -- or in some cases, [[HiddenHeartOfGold a truly caring person who hides behind their behavior]] because they are unable to express love/affection. Still others really ''are'' genuinely prideful, [[MrViceGuy but show redeeming moral qualities regardless]].
2
3	Usually, the last thing the character does at the end of the episode is [[StatusQuoIsGod restore their full character]], so the viewer can go back to seeing them in the same stock way but with an added understanding of the character's hidden depth. Can also be a key component of said character's transformation into a JerkWithAHeartOfGold.
4	----
5	!!Examples:
6	[[foldercontrol]]
7
8	[[folder:Anime and Manga]]
9	* Despite Oluo's arrogance in ''Manga/AttackOnTitan'', he greatly respects Levi (to the point of mimicking Levi's appearance and speaking style) and is very attached to his teammates.
10	* Louis from ''Manga/{{Beastars}}''. There is much, much more to him than simply being the lead actor in school.
11	* Noelle Silva in ''Manga/BlackClover'' is first seen to be arrogant and proud over being a royal, disparaging Asta and thinking herself to be too good for the Black Bulls. Soon after it's revealed that she has bad magic control, which led her to be mocked by her family and desperately desire their acknowledgement. Much of her CharacterDevelopment has Noelle overcome her deep insecurity by honing her magic potential.
12	* Under his [[{{Jerkass}} sour]] exterior and massive ego, Rin Matsuoka from ''Anime/{{Free}}'' is a ''deeply'' wounded young man who can barely cope with [[spoiler: his father's death]].
13	* Tetsuya Tsurugi from ''Anime/GreatMazinger'' will never let his foes forget that he's a combat pro and occasionally looks for a way to finish a combat out of wounded pride. Additionally, when the original hero, [[Anime/MazingerZ Kouji Kabuto]] returned, Tetsuya proceeded to chide him a lot and will ''never'' let himself get one-upped. It's also revealed that he's doing that because he's extremely insecure about his status as an orphan and believed that his director/adoptive father, Kenzou Kabuto (Kouji's actual father), only saw him based on his performance as a pilot, slip up a little and his purpose in life will evaporate when Kenzou actually did consider him as a son, but unable to say it well.
14	* Tenka from ''Manga/LaughingUnderTheClouds'' is larger-than-life, and everyone loves him for it, but despite his ridiculously confident and carefree behavior, he's actually deeply afraid of becoming a burden to his family and being hated and/or forgotten.
15	* ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'': Both Naruto and his best friend/enemy Sasuke have cases of this. Naruto is loud and boastful because he needs someone, ''anyone'', to notice him as a person and not a thing. Sasuke, meanwhile, grew up in the shadow of his genius older brother, and his pride in his own talent covers up some massive insecurity.
16	* Asuka Langley Soryu from ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion'' has a [[HairTriggerTemper volatile temper]] and a massive Superiority Complex in order to compensate for the ParentalNeglect she suffered at the hands of her mother, who spent her last days [[TheOphelia driven to such insanity that she did not recognize her Asuka]], and instead became convinced that one of Asuka's dolls was her daughter. A whole new level of trauma is heaped on her when she found [[spoiler:her mother had hanged both herself and the "Asuka" doll]] on the very day that she became an Eva pilot.
17	* The title character of ''Anime/SpaceDandy'' is pretty much an alien-hunting Johnny Bravo. He is also very principled when it comes to his job, refusing to take in sentient aliens because they usually have troubles of their own.
18	* ''Manga/MyHeroAcademia'': Katsuki Bakugo. Beneath his boastful, trigger-happy, and glory-hunting exterior is a genuinely insecure and worried heart. His sense of self-worth can easily be tied to his emotionally brittle ego, but his rant to Midoriya as they brawl for the second time indicates that, in spite of all the praise he was heaped on as a child, he has an unfulfilled need for validation and acceptance, which he realizes his battle prowess cannot earn him.
19	* ''Anime/PokemonTheSeries'': Ash Ketchum had this early on in his Pokémon career. Despite his braggart attitude and pretending he was already the greatest Pokémon Master of all time, his Kanto career went rather rough for him because his knowledge and skills were about as laughable as Team Rocket's competency. However, there were hints that his ego was just his way of compensating for the fact that he feared he lacked the capability of achieving his dream, which wasn't being helped by Misty and Gary both putting him down constantly. When Ash suffers his first humiliating loss in the Indigo League, he's able to snap out of his HeroicBSOD and recover towards obtaining his dream in a more humble and kinder manner.
20	* ''Manga/SpyXFamily'': Damian Desmond has a pretty haughty attitude because of his family's pedigree, being the second son of the Desmond family to attend Eden College, where his brother already became an Imperial Scholar pretty fast, and pretty much expects to be worshipped by others because of all of this. But underneath he's still a child, and a particularly lonely one because his father considers him a stranger and his mother, while loving him dearly, has her own issues towards him. His obsession with earning Stella Stars to become an Imperial Scholar himself comes about not just because it's expected of him, but also because he wants [[WellDoneSonGuy his father to praise him]].
21	[[/folder]]
22
23	[[folder:Comic Books]]
24	* ''ComicBook/TheFlash'':
25	** This was pretty much the main point of Wally West during the late eighties/early '90s; [[LegacyCharacter he took over the role]] of being The Flash but acted like a brash, often selfish, unthinking jerk, but he had just stepped into the role left behind by his beloved late uncle and was ''incredibly'' insecure about filling his boots, as well as not processing his death well ''and'' was dealing with other issues thanks to his AbusiveParents having messed him up quite badly. His CharacterDevelopment was largely based around him breaking down the Big Ego and wearing the HiddenDepths on his sleeves.
26	*** This is also the thing that sparked his relationship with Linda Park, who also had issues of this on her own. She put up an act of being a stuffy, no-nonsense reporter who was often antagonistic towards the Flash, but she was dealing with frustrations of not being taken seriously and was quite lonely, and didn't react well to Wally's acting out. They bonded when working on the same case caused them to see past their respective walls and became friends, which later blossomed into romance.
27	** The Snart siblings, Captain Cold and Golden Glider, are both career criminals who spent much of the Silver Age as being opportunist jerks and could never resist rubbing in their supposed superiority when fighting the Flash, which in Cold's case continued when he returned from retirement years later. Glider, however, was dealing with the loss of her boyfriend and wasn't handling it well (he was a supervillain and she was AvengingTheVillain) and later on, both would be revealed to have come from an abusive home, and used supervillainy as a means of escaping their shitty past.
28	* ''ComicBook/SpiderMan'': J. Jonah Jameson. Behind his gruff, skinflint exterior, Creator/{{Marvel\|Comics}} has established that his hatred of Spider-Man stems from the fact that deep down, he knows Spidey '''is''' a selfless hero, and the fact that he can't compare makes him jealous. This close-up first happened towards the end of ''Amazing Spider-Man'' #1. I.e., he got his BigEgoHiddenDepths ''in the issue he was introduced''.
29	** In the "ComicBook/SpiderIsland" story from 2011, JJ (like most of New York) temporarily gained spider-powers; he used them to help Spidey out in one fight, and at the end of the storyline he lights the windows of the Empire State Building in red and blue as a grudging "thank you".
30	** In one of his [[WesternAnimation/SpiderManTheAnimatedSeries animated appearances]], he argued that if Spider-Man was ''really'' a hero, he wouldn't need to hide his face with a mask -- and backed this up by going out on the streets himself to track down a story.
31	** In ''ComicBook/UltimateSpiderMan'', it was established that Jameson disliked costumed heroes because his son died on a mission to the moon with relatively little fanfare. Jameson saw his son as a real hero and vigilantes as glory hounds by comparison. Later, he came around and realized that Spider-Man and at least some heroes actually were the real deal.
32	** In the main Marvel continuity, it was made clear during a storyline about quasi-governmental crackdown on mutants that even though Jameson dislikes costumed heroes and is a borderline [[FantasticRacism bigot against people with powers]] ([[HatesEveryoneEqually but otherwise dislikes everyone else as well, to the point of being for equal rights]]), he's genuinely reverential of rule of law and due process. His speech in that issue was so well-written that it almost justified the idea that he just doesn't like people taking the law into their own hands. ''Almost''.
33	** ''ComicBook/YoungAvengers'' also suggests that Jameson's hatred of superheroes stems from the fact that as a child, he idolized ComicBook/CaptainAmerica's KidSidekick ComicBook/{{Bucky\|Barnes}}. When Bucky was killed near the end of UsefulNotes/WorldWarII (something Jameson saw as Cap's fault), Jonah became bitter and disillusioned with the very idea of costumed heroes.
34	** Also, the film version of Jameson doesn't hesitate to risk himself to protect others. He may be a cheapskate, hate Spidey, and have one hell of a mouth on him, but he's not all bad.
35	[[/folder]]
36
37	[[folder:Fan Works]]
38	* ''Fanfic/AdviceAndTrust'': Shinji used to think that Asuka was an arrogant—although intelligent and brave—girl. Then they had a heart-to-heart talk, and he found out about her painful past, her deep traumas, her nightly nightmares, and her feelings of inadequacy, helplessness, and loneliness. Asuka, for her part, discovers that despite being opposite in personality, Shinji completely understands where she's coming from [[NotSoDifferentRemark since he's been through similar events]]; and [[YouAreNotAlone both are overjoyed to discover kindred spirits who understand each other more than they realized]].
39	* ''Fanfic/ChildOfTheStorm'' has Uhtred initially introduced as an ArrogantKungFuGuy and a poor loser, when Harry beats him in a sparring match thanks to a very risky and unorthodox trick and is feted for it. He gets significant CharacterDevelopment shortly after following a BreakTheHaughty experience ([[TheDreaded the Disir]] were involved) where Harry saved his life, earning his UndyingLoyalty, and Harry explaining that no, he ''really'' didn't want fame. It is later revealed that he really is genuinely very talented (Sif doesn't pick just anyone to mentor) and was trying to stand out from his large and talented family, and resented Harry getting praise and respect for (apparently) nothing. After that, he happily settles into being Harry's Sworn Sword and occasionally plays up the associated servility to annoy him.
40	* Asuka from ''Fanfic/ChildrenOfAnElderGod'' came across to other people as an arrogant, brash girl, but when they knew her a little better, most of them realized that she was trying to mask her insecurities and psychological issues, and she could be real nice.
41	* ''Fanfic/DoingItRightThisTime'': After returning to the past, Shinji and Rei know that Asuka's bragging is a front to cover deep-seated issues and insecurities, so they try not to set her off (and she tries to be calmer and more open).
42	* ''Manga/Evangelion303'': Asuka seems obnoxiously arrogant and prideful, but in reality, she's a very insecure person with trust issues (and it's implied that she attempted to kill herself before the beginning of the story). In a scene, Misato tells that Asuka can look strong, but she's very fragile.
43	* In ''Fanfic/GhostsOfEvangelion'' Asuka comes across as a bad-tempered, selfish, irrational girl… though she's a certified genius and a soldier since she was four, survived the end of the world…
44	-->'''Asuka:''' You always gotta one-up me, eh?\
45	'''Shinji:''' Says the woman who's fluent in three languages, has two Ph.D.s, and does guest lectures at MIT and Harvard and other places on a regular basis.
46	* ''Fanfic/{{HERZ}}'': Asuka is a temperamental, prideful, boisterous woman, and some people wonder why Shinji married her. However she is a very fragile person who suffered terribly due to her mother's madness and suicide and her father's abandonment, and Shinji knows that she is the only person who can understand him and help him.
47	* In ''Fanfic/LastChildOfKrypton'', Asuka may come across as a braggart, but in Shinji’s words “she’s beautiful, smart and nicer than she believes she is.” She’s also [[spoiler:the last [[Franchise/WonderWoman Amazon]]]].
48	* Trixie from ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'' is typically portrayed in this manner in {{fanon}}.
49	* In ''Fanfic/NecessaryToWin'', Hiroe, like in ''Manga/{{Saki}}'', is quite [[InsufferableGenius full of herself]], yet also [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold good-hearted]] (although as a tank commander, rather than a mahjong player). Here, it's revealed that she also [[BenevolentBoss cares for her teammates]], because she believes that they're trying their best and that she's good enough to make up for any mistakes they make. She also hopes to win against the [[Anime/GirlsUndPanzer Nishizumi school]], both because it would be proof of her greatness and because she wants to prove that Shiho's ruthless methods don't guarantee success.
50	* In ''Fanfic/NeonGenesisEvangelionGenocide'', after having a long talk with Asuka about their mothers, where she tells him about her mother's death, her father remarrying and ditching her, and her resulting abandonment and loneliness issues... Shinji ruminates on her ego and anger and how they are really only a mask, and that she is more complex than people tend to give her credit for.
51	* In ''Fanfic/OnceMoreWithFeeling'', During Third Impact, Shinji saw Asuka’s mind and memories, and understood that she had built an arrogant, boastful, loud persona to hide her real, frightened, and traumatized self, and her feelings for him.
52	* ''Fanfic/PhoenixsTearReignition'': C.P. is a TrapMaster who insists that he avoided being captured alongside his peers because he was [[TheSmartGuy smart enough]] to evade Stone Dragon and the rest of Naga's followers. This boastfulness is one of his ways of coping with the pressure of being the only able-bodied color pandora ''left'' in his village, making him and his {{Booby Trap}}s the last line of defense against the warumon. Eventually, he breaks down and admits he didn't ''outwit'' the raiders; he just got lucky and had his hiding place overlooked.
53	* ''Fanfic/TheSecondTry'': Asuka. Few people could guess that boastful, cranky, rash, childish teenager is [[spoiler:in reality a mature young wife and mother who is trying to save the same world who took her family away from her again]].
54	* In ''Fanfic/ThousandShinji'', Asuka has -apparently- a big ego, but Shinji thinks that she's earned the right to gloat because she was a beautiful, intelligent woman, an excellent warrior, and a mecha pilot who had risen from her ashes after going through Hell when she was three.
55	* In ''Fanfic/WithThisRing'', the lanterns initially mock Guy because he's a loud, obnoxious man with a crass attitude and is more than a little reckless. However, he learned how to project constructs without tying them to the ring before either Hal or John, figured out how to use his ring to heal himself based on something he watched Paul do, and helps rehabilitate criminals.
56	** He also learned how to ''weaponize'' his large ego, or rather, he figured out how to NoSell Orange Lantern assimilation because he wills himself to be the best he can be, and since he's already perfect, if he changed he wouldn't be the best, now would he?
57	[[/folder]]
58
59	[[folder:Film]]
60	* [[{{Jerkass}} Randal]]'s suddenly dramatic and heartfelt monologue at the climax of ''Film/ClerksII''.
61	* ''Film/MeanGirls'': Regina George acts like a stereotypical AlphaBitch for almost the entire movie, but at one point, it's revealed by [[GossipyHens Gretchen Wieners]] that Regina's got some family issues at home [[SexlessMarriage (like her parents having marital problems to the point of sleeping in separate beds).]] Also, near the end of the movie, Regina (despite obviously getting kicks out of being mean to people at earlier points in the movie) seems genuinely shocked and hurt to discover [[HatedByAll just how much her classmates (and even some of her teachers) dislike her.]]
62	[[/folder]]
63
64	[[folder:Literature]]
65	* From the outside, the title character in ''Literature/EdenGreen'' comes off as an egotistical bitch, but since the story is first-person, she is revealed to be very uncomfortable with and afraid of the people around her.
66	[[/folder]]
67
68	[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
69	* ''Series/WKRPInCincinnati'':
70	** "Put Up or Shut Up": Bailey convinces Jennifer to accept a date with Herb in the hope that he'll get scared and back down.
71	** Lampshaded in the "Real Families" episode, where Herb signs his family up for the eponymous ShowWithinAShow and completely fails to make them look good.
72	%%* This happened every once in a while with Alex on ''Series/FamilyTies''.
73	* Dan Fielding on ''Series/NightCourt'' got the treatment a couple times.
74	** When he was [[ReallyGetsAround misidentified]] by a lawyer as the father of a little boy, at first Dan was a complete jerk but eventually started to warm up to the kid. Even after the mother straightened out the lawyer, Dan still went out of his way to track the little boy down when he ran off and gave the little family a check for $1000. The little boy really wanted a glove for baseball; Dan told him to let his mother handle the rest. She'd know what to do.
75	** Dan saved Roz's life once. Her blood sugar was too high (she's diabetic), making her act loopy and lost in the courthouse. Dan managed to talk her down from the edge of the courthouse roof and give her needed insulin, even though she half-clobbered him in the process.
76	%% * Similarly Charlie on ''Series/EmptyNest''.
77	%% * Ditto Bulldog in ''Series/{{Frasier}}''.
78	%% * Kirk on ''Series/DearJohn''.
79	* Whenever the Ferengi are featured in an episode of ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'', there is some exploration into the species beyond their hat of pursuing profit. Usually, Quark is the SmallNameBigEgo of the episode and often shows that he genuinely loves his family and is capable of great bravery in certain situations.
80	* ''Series/{{Scrubs}}'':
81	** Dr. Kelso's "His Story" episode was used as an opportunity to explore some of the softer sides of the character, ending with his character deciding that he was meant to be hated as leader (uniting his otherwise bickering subordinates in their resentment of him), and was satisfied with his place in the world.
82	** The Janitor in "His Story III" spends the entire day keeping a patient with [[AndIMustScream Lock-in Syndrome]] company, since the computer he used to communicate had broken. He reveals that he originally took the job because hospitals help people and by keeping it clean, he felt like he contributed to that. However because no one has ''ever'' thanked him or made him feel like part of the team, he's become apathetic and pranks people out of sheer boredom.
83	* In the US version of ''Series/{{The Office\|US}}'' Michael is a terrible manager who's also completely clueless about his own incompetence. But, in addition to being a genuinely nice guy who generally cares about his employees, he's also shown to be an exceptional salesman. It just turns out that those skills don't transfer to management.
84	* [[FallenHero Taiga Hanaya]] [[note]] His name spells ''big ego'' by the way of possible kanji interpretation. [[/note]] of ''Series/KamenRiderExAid'' is smug, careless jerk with [[BrokenAce matching skills]] to boot. Later events offer a peek into his real self, a broken man who ''wants'' to be hated because it makes things easier for him and believes that this is the only way he can earn redemption. Simply saying that he's had a messed-up life would be a major understatement.
85	* The earlier Sawyer-centric ''Series/{{Lost}}'' episodes fit before CharacterDevelopment made them moot.
86	* Ted Baxter on ''Series/TheMaryTylerMooreShow''. Also a [[Administrivia/RenamedTropes former]] {{Trope Namer}}s. (Ted Baxter Close-Up) This came about a couple of years after ''[=MTM=]'' became a success, and Ted Knight became concerned about Baxter becoming a one-dimensional buffoon. As such, the Ted Baxter character soon gained morals, got married, and had a family ... all while his on-air buffoonery and over-the-top delivery were de-emphasized and his desire to be the best newscaster (despite his inherent lack of skill) was shown to be driven by more than his inflated ego.
87	* The episode of ''Series/{{Taxi}}'' in which Louie loses his job after peeking at Elaine through a hole in the lady's room.
88	* Happens often on ''Series/TheColbertReport'', and usually results in the character talking himself out of it: "Snap out of it, Colber'''t'''!"
89	* ''Series/DoctorWho'': The Doctor, particularly his Sixth and Tenth incarnations. They're usually the smartest person in the room, knows it, and won't bother with much modesty under pressure, to the point that most random groups of people they happen to help out would probably tire of them before they could do them any good if they didn't have their various co-adventurers vouching for them and their usually heroic intentions. For all they might call us "stupid apes" or "pudding brains", they actually find humanity and its indomitable will to live very impressive and much prefers us to their advanced but stagnant homeworld. And, like many other examples on this list, they're not quite as confident as they act and actually capable of quite a lot of self-hatred, especially after the Time War.
90	* ''Series/{{MASH}}'':
91	** Charles' big ego is a major part of his characterization, but unlike his predecessor Frank, he actually has the skills to back it up. Moreover, there are numerous episodes where he's shown to genuinely care about people, under his facade of arrogance and unconcern. Examples range from secretly giving candy to the orphanage on Christmas to sitting up with Hawkeye when his father is undergoing surgery back in the states to having an emotional meltdown when the Chinese [=POWs=] he was teaching Mozart to got killed.
92	** Although eventually plagued with Flanderization by the last few years of his run, Frank Burns (Charles' predecessor) could occasionally undergo this. It's revealed that it took the man twice as long to pass medical school as most people, that he mainly became a doctor to satisfy his mother, and that he became a snitch because "it was the only way for people to notice me". In fact, even in the end, his reaction to Margaret's engagement shows the audience that he really feels hurt by the loss of her.
93	* Foreman on ''Series/{{House}}'' has moments of this. In "House Training", it's revealed that he acts like a jackass towards the poor or homeless because he knows he's not that different from the patient; the realization makes him contemplate what his life could have been and feel like he hasn't deserved anything he got since he started med school. Putting distance between himself and anything that reminds him of his old life is how he keeps himself from contemplating this.
94	* The title character of ''Series/KamenRiderBuild'', Sento Kiryu, has [[AmnesiacHero amnesia]], resulting in a severe case of LossOfIdentity and with him being just so at a ''lost'' at where his place in the world is, but nonetheless tries to be [[AllLovingHero the best person he can be with his new identity]]. This can come across as quite a shock to some who first meet him given how much of an InsufferableGenius ManChild Sento can be towards those around him.
95	* ''Series/TheRehearsal'': Angela spends most of her screentime judging Nathan and claiming to know the "truth" about how the world operates, and generally looks down her nose at anyone who doesn't share her very specific and strange beliefs. In "Pretend Daddy", though, she [[spoiler: not only quickly forgives Nathan for hijacking her own rehearsal, she also intuits that a lot of his problems stem from personal turmoil and encourages him to forgive himself, telling him that even if we forgive other people, self-forgiveness is an often overlooked part of the healing process.]]
96	[[/folder]]
97
98	[[folder:Video Games]]
99	* Papyrus from ''VideoGame/{{Undertale}}'' is a LargeHam who also thinks he's the greatest monster to ever live. He calls himself "the great Papyrus", and is always boasting about how great he is and how he will one day achieve everything he wants. However, he is far from malicious; indeed, he's one of the nicest characters in the entire setting. He doesn't just have high confidence in himself: he has high confidence in everyone. He always has great things to say about you during your trip through Snowdin and even tries to cheer you up when he thinks you're being too harsh on yourself (even if you were actually trying to insult him). Even when the player is [[VillainProtagonist the darkest they can be on a Genocide playthrough]], Papyrus still [[YouAreBetterThanYouThinkYouAre thinks they can be good if they really try]]. Papyrus is also easy to befriend, and [[FissionMailed losing to him in his battle]] just leads to your capture in a CardboardPrison, because he wants the protagonist alive.
100	** He's also shown some traits that can be surprising if you just see him as an egotistical man-child. He can be pretty sly and manipulative when he wants to be, such as when he convinces Undyne to try befriending the protagonist as presenting it as a challenge. He's also more aware of what's happening around him than it seems; when he becomes king in one of the Neutral endings, he initially says that while he believes Sans' lies about his friends going on an "extended vacation", it's subtly hinted that he knows that they're probably gone for good.
101	* ''Franchise/TouhouProject''
102	** Cirno is shown in the manga series to possess a wide variety of skills that subvert her otherwise [[TheDitz memetic status as an idiot]], being capable of feats such as performing mathematics including multiplication and fractions, running a shaved ice business, and reading and writing in English, all things that put her ahead of the majority of fairies which often ''aren't even literate''.
103	** Marisa Kirisame comes across as a loudmouthed kleptomaniac witch, a BloodKnight even by Gensokyo standards, and an incorrigible mythomaniac. All of it is true, but her immense skill comes exclusively from hard work, rather than an outside source of power, without ever toeing the line that would be the loss of her humanity. Of course, she isn't shy about advertising ''some'' of it - she's fond of introducing herself as "Ordinary Magician", but goes out of her way to hide how hard she has to work to keep up with other characters in the franchise to make her feats look more effortless.
104	* [[BrokenAce Miranda Lawson]] from ''Franchise/MassEffect'' comes across as extremely cocky and arrogant at points due to the genetic modifications made to her before birth to make her close to perfect. [[BeneathTheMask In reality]], she's ''extremely'' insecure, with those genetic modifications only creating a severe inferiority complex. Her successes are attributed to her modifications, and only her failures are attributed to herself, and this is only made worse when [[AlwaysSomeoneBetter she compares herself]] to [[TheAce Shepard]], who has accomplished even more when s/he never had such modifications. [[AbusiveParents Her father]] being [[FreudianExcuse a sociopathic perfectionist]] who [[OffingTheOffspring threatened to dispose of her]] if she didn't live up to his near-impossible standards didn't help. [[TheAtoner Along with owning up to her past mistakes]], one of the biggest points of her CharacterDevelopment is also learning to accept her successes as something that she still did herself through her choices.
105	* Dorian Pavus in ''VideoGame/DragonAgeInquisition'' is introduced as a snarky and arrogant aristocrat from the [[TheEmpire Tevinter Imperium]] who nearly everyone mistrusts. It's eventually revealed that he's the {{white sheep}} of his family who left after his father tried to [[CureYourGays change his sexuality]] with [[BlackMagic blood magic]]. He joined the Inquisition genuinely wanting to help and hopes to one day return to his homeland to change it for the better, [[spoiler:and the end-game epilogue shows he's doing just that]]. On top of all that, he's kind and intelligent and ends up being one of the most loyal companions in the game.
106	* Anomen Delryn in ''VideoGame/BaldursGateII'' is a [[IWantToBeARealMan wannabe paladin]] who is [[{{Jerkass}} arrogant]], [[KnightTemplar self-righteous]], and [[MilesGloriosus constantly bragging about impossible battles he probably never fought]]. Other members of the party ([[TheScrappy and many players]]) tend to find him annoying. However, his sidequest reveals that [[MissingMom his mom is gone]] and his dad is [[AbusiveParents a terrible person]], and that Anomen's been struggling to simultaneously escape his father's influence and [[WellDoneSonGuy earn his respect]]. This sidequest is the main driver of Anomen's later CharacterDevelopment, which can take one of two directions.
107	* Lady Cassandra Mallory in the interactive romance novel ''VideoGame/{{Moonrise}}'' is condescending, demanding, and rude to the player when they first meet her. Depending on the player's choices, they can learn more about her and realize [[spoiler: she's a JerkWithAHeartOfGold]].
108	* Eikichi Mishina of ''VideoGame/Persona2'' is described by the game as a narcissist at every opportunity. He's brash, cocky, and violent, and thinks he's the hottest, most talented, coolest guy at Kusagayama High School, which he rules with an iron fist as its Death Boss. In the Club Zodiac dungeon, we start to see why Eikichi is this way: he used to be bullied relentlessly for being a fat, clumsy crybaby. He decided to change his life and become the guy in charge so that he could ''stop'' bullying like that at his school (though he admits that part of it was because he liked being on the top). As it turns out, he's actually a very caring person, especially towards his LoveInterest Miyabi... though it doesn't stop him from being TheFightingNarcissist for the rest of the game.
109	* Raffina from ''VideoGame/PuyoPuyo''.
110	** Refined and prideful as she is, her story in ''VideoGame/PuyoPuyo20thAnniversary'' shows she's a little self-conscious of her magic power, running off when Lemres points out her waist pouch is her main power source. She was left a near-stuttering mess once he pointed it out.
111	** According to the light novel ''Everyone's Dreams, Coming True?!'', as much as she mocks and argues with Klug, she actually considers him her voice of reason, who reigns in her pride and prevents her from taking things for granted through his scathing comments.
112	* Beowulf from ''VideoGame/{{Skullgirls}}'' is a boisterous pro-wrestler who his opponents view as a self-aggrandizing blowhard who's just getting in their way. Indeed, he's often looked down on as just a performer and not a real warrior. However, Beowulf is a genuinely good and honorable person looking to make the city better by cleaning the streets of the people terrorizing it. He was even willing to accept and admit to the public that the biggest victory of his career was rigged in his favor (though without his knowledge), and promised to make it up to his fans by taking on the biggest threat of all, the Skullgirl. It's also shown that everyone underestimates his strength and skill, and he is legitimately a powerful fighter that could have won the rigged match cleanly.
113	* Zed from ''VideoGame/WildArms1'' definitely qualifies. He acts like he's a celebrity in the making and gives himself all kinds of silly nicknames such as 'the Grim Reaper's pen pal' and 'the Ultimate Macho Man.' [[spoiler: Then you run into him in Saint Centaur. If you manage to defeat him there, he reveals he's befriended a lone blind girl because she was nice to him, revealing all he really wanted was love and acceptance.]]
114	* While Riku does act like a jerk and condescending towards Sora in ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsI'', he valued their friendship enough to feel completely betrayed at the thought of Sora abandoning him and Kairi, and he also admitted being jealous of Sora for his ability to just follow his heart.
115	* The demon man Akira in ''VideoGame/ShinMegamiTenseiIV'' is a brash, arrogant gang leader who calls himself the Future King of Tokyo, in sharp contrast to [[spoiler:his humble, levelheaded, and entirely human AlternateSelf, also named Akira]]. Visiting any district other than his own reveals that he's a weak fighter, regularly scavenges through trash, is well known as the city's ButtMonkey, and even hides behind [[PlayerCharacter Flynn]] while he kills his enemies for him. Akira is well aware of his shortcomings but reveals himself to be one of the very few Lawful characters in the franchise who isn't a KnightTemplar: his goal is to stop the endless gang wars and create a Tokyo where everyone is equal. Revisiting the districts after his coronation reveals a sharp gain in the quality of life.
116	* [[BunnyEarsLawyer Inspector Cabanela]] from ''VideoGame/GhostTrick'' is a man who is obsessed over his own abilities as well as his "perfect record". He didn't even seem to mind that his best friend, Detective Jowd, was [[spoiler: about to be executed]] and comes across as a massive, arrogant Jerkass throughout the game because of his actions. [[spoiler: However, it is later revealed that this was all an act on Cabenela's end as the only reason why he acted this way was that he wanted to keep close tabs on [[BigBad The Manipulator]]'s files as he was secretly trying to hunt him down, something he could only accomplish in a high-ranking position that he needed the perfect record to attain, and if he were to let Jowd escape by looking the other way instead of recapturing him and putting him back on death row, he would've been demoted as a result and all his work would've been for naught. Not to mention that Cabanela was actually trying to stall Jowd's execution as much as he can (even bringing the latter to the Prime Minister's office rather than straight back to jail to buy more time). Indeed, Cabenela was GoodAllAlong.]]
117	[[/folder]]
118
119	[[folder:Visual Novels]]
120	* [[PunnyName Sebastian Debeste]] from ''VisualNovel/{{Ace Attorney Investigations\|MilesEdgeworth}} 2'' is an arrogant, self-satisfied rookie prosecutor who calls himself "The Best" despite always [[TheDitz mixing up his words]] and [[InsaneTrollLogic arriving at the most absurd conclusions]]. He constantly boasts of his own perceived greatness even though ''nobody'' takes him seriously (his own father even habitually refers to him as his "idiot son"). Then, in case 4, [[spoiler:[[BreakTheCutie he gets broken pretty badly]] when his father tells him that everything he thought he achieved is a lie and that he was really only ever being used as a pawn for him]]. As it turns out, [[spoiler:Sebastian's biggest goal was to impress his former-chief-prosecutor father by surpassing him in greatness, and this revelation [[HeroicBSOD sends him so far over the edge]] that it takes an entire Logic Chess session to pull him out of it, the only time in the game where Logic Chess is used to build someone up rather than take them apart]]. After Edgeworth convinces him that [[spoiler:he's better than his corrupt father]], Sebastian [[TookALevelInBadass Takes a Level in Badass]] and resolves to become a better prosecutor.
121	[[/folder]]
122
123	[[folder:Webcomics]]
124	* Vriska in ''Webcomic/{{Homestuck}}'' is very arrogant and convinced of her superiority, but it's clear that's because she had a horrible childhood where she was forced by her parent figure to murder people to survive. In this case, the audience is soon made aware of what her deal is, but Vriska herself is too emotionally tone-deaf to work it out, and over the course of her journey she realises what happened to her.
125	* Radon in ''Webcomic/WastedAway'' starts out as a negligent social climber - but when he actually has to confront his issues after losing his family, he starts to rethink things.
126	* ''Webcomic/StandStillStaySilent'': Emil is introduced having a general ItsAllAboutMe attitude and plenty of remnants of being a spoiled rich kid. However, he panics when he realizes he gave people a bad first impression and, once he remembers other people exist, he can be quite caring. For instance, when his strange new crewmate steals the meat out of his sandwich while he's distracted by something else, Emil's response is to go get more food for ''both'' of them. He later tries to befriend the new crewmate in question, despite the presence of a LanguageBarrier in addition to the weirdness in character. The guy's own cousin and CloudcuckoolandersMinder settled for mostly bossing him around over the years.
127	[[/folder]]
128
129	[[folder:Web Original]]
130	* Michael Seer from ''Literature/TheCityOfNever'' is a nihilistic author who constantly speaks to everyone in a condescending or sarcastic tone and only seems to care about himself. As the story progressed, he TookALevelInKindness and started to value the concept of life, [[spoiler:even after he himself died and was resurrected]]. By the time the story's over, he's TheAntiNihilist.
131	[[/folder]]
132
133	[[folder:WesternAnimation]]
134	* An episode of ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'' (where Peter gets amnesia) featured this with Quagmire, where after flirting with Lois after Peter dumps her, he gets her into bed, only for her to reveal that she likes Quagmire and feels like she can trust him. This causes him to have a played-with close-up, culminating in an OverlyLongGag of him going through increasingly painful and absurd attempts to get himself erect again.
135	* The ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'' episode "In-a-Gadda-da-Leela" seems to be this for Zapp, when he's shown to be kind and caring towards Leela (in his own inept way) when she's stuck under a log and it appears that they're the last two humans alive. [[spoiler:Subverted near the end, when every last good thing he's done in the episode is peeled back to be part of a charade to get back into her pants, even going as far as to show that he trapped her under the log and also managed to make an elaborate hoax of Earth's destruction]].
136	* ''WesternAnimation/XiaolinShowdown'' -- Three of the four main characters undergo this trope: Omi, the truest SmallNameBigEgo of the show; Raimundo, the BrilliantButLazy JerkWithAHeartOfGold; and Kimiko, the {{Tsundere}} with the HairTriggerTemper.
137	** Many episodes (particularly ones where the Xiaolin Dragons have strained relations) suggest that Omi fears being alone and believes that if he is perfect, he will be surrounded by adulating friends and admirers.
138	** As shown during [[spoiler: the events leading to his betrayal]], Rai becomes angry whenever he feels helpless or inadequate. It's straight-up stated in "Dream Stalker" that his lazy, jerk-ish attitude results from his fear of not being good enough and letting others down.
139	** And as early as the third episode, it's revealed that Kimiko deeply fears [[DamselInDistress needing others' help]] and wants to prove that [[DontYouDarePityMe she can keep up]] with the boys.
140	* In ''WesternAnimation/EdEddNEddysBigPictureShow'', it's revealed that Eddy's behavior is all an act pretending to be a jerk due to him believing that if he acted more like his brother (who is an even bigger {{jerkass}}), he'd be more popular. After he apologizes to everyone, the Eds [[EarnYourHappyEnding are finally accepted by the community.]]
141	* ''WesternAnimation/DarkwingDuck'': "Inside Binkie's Brain" shows that while Darkwing Duck's 'inner hero' is fairly small, his ego is ''enormous''. But this is a guy who puts his own life in danger for those he loves on a regular basis, adopted a little girl who desperately needed a father who understood her, and he even puts up with his royally annoying neighbors, Quackerware and all. "Life, the Negaverse, and Everything" shows how vitally important his role as father is to him.
142	* ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'':
143	** [[Characters/FriendshipIsMagicRainbowDash Rainbow Dash]] is generally portrayed as having a rather inflated opinion of herself and constantly reminds everyone how awesome she is, but most of her focus episodes reveal that she has a bit of an InferioritySuperiorityComplex and despite being very protective of [[{{Badbutt}} her reputation]], she's [[UndyingLoyalty loyal to a fault]] where her friends are concerned.
144	** Similarly in most episodes, [[Characters/FriendshipIsMagicRarity Rarity]] sits halfway between a DramaQueen and an AttentionWhore, but most episodes that are focused on her reveal that under [[TheFashionista the facade]], she's actually one of the most emotionally mature members of the cast and she just has a tendency toward histrionics.
145	* Lance from ''WesternAnimation/VoltronLegendaryDefender'' has an overinflated opinion of himself, but it's revealed to be overcompensation for suffering from IJustWantToBeSpecial.
146	* Half the reason for Ahsoka Tano's BrattyHalfPint behavior in the early seasons of ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsTheCloneWars'' is that she knows Anakin didn't want her and keeps getting mad when it seems like he doesn't believe in her or trust her. When she realizes Anakin does believe in her during season 3, she tones down a lot.
147	* ''WesternAnimation/ReadyJetGo'': Mitchell has a hot-blooded temper, a Napoleon complex, and a sarcastic streak, and projects a massive superiority complex in order to compensate for his loneliness as a result of his poor social skills and [[InferioritySuperiorityComplex low self-esteem]].
148	* Brainy Smurf in ''WesternAnimation/TheSmurfs1981'' goes through this in the episode "The Dark Ness Monster", where the loss of his glasses forces him to ditch his superiority complex and rely on his friend Clumsy for help. At a later point in the episode, Brainy writes a heartfelt quotation to express his feelings, in which he refers to himself as being weak and just pretending to be strong. Some other episodes hint at this hidden side to Brainy as well, particularly the episodes "The Smurfiest of Friends" and "Papa’s Family Album".
149	* Varney the vampire in ''WesternAnimation/Castlevania2017'' just screams for someone to take him down a peg: he takes credit for other peoples' ideas, boasts about how much Dracula trusted him even though he was clearly ReassignedToAntarctica, and contributes almost nothing to plans. Absolutely nobody respects him; Isaac tells his MagicMirror not to accept any further communcations from him, St. Germain ignores his rantings, and Ratko gives him a scathing TheReasonYouSuckSpeech. In the last episodes, Varney's ego is justified: [[spoiler:he's [[CanonCharacterAllAlong Death]], an ancient and powerful spirit possibly even stronger than Dracula. He isn't acting stronger than he is, he's ''actually that strong'']].
150	* ''WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfKorra'': It's subtle, but it's frequently shown that there is more to Prince Wu than meets the eye.
151	** In "[[Recap/TheLegendOfKorraS4E3TheCoronation The Coronation]]", he shows that despite his ego, he can freely accept criticism. When Mako tells him that while Kuvira is no saint, he's just as unfit for the throne, rather than become angry and defensive, he actually agrees with Mako and admits that he probably wouldn't make a great ruler, stating that no one ever told it to him like that before. [[spoiler: This partially influences his decision to ultimately dissolve the monarchy and let the various states govern themselves.]]
152	** In "[[Recap/TheLegendOfKorraS4E10OperationBeifong Operation Beifong]]", he shows some surprisingly quick thinking when he actually suggests that they evacuate the city in preparation for Kuvira's impending attack. Both Raiko and Mako praise this suggestion, though he freely admits it was just to impress Korra.
153	** In "[[Recap/TheLegendOfKorraS4E11KuvirasGambit Kuvira's Gambit]]", he turns out to be an excellent public speaker whose oratory skills convince the citizens of Republic City to evacuate, especially when Mako's emotionless warning drove the citizens into a panic.
154	** In "[[Recap/TheLegendOfKorraS4E12DayOfTheColossus Day of the Colossus]]", he again shows that he's surprisingly clever when [[spoiler: he uses his singing to convince the Badgermoles to dig a tunnel out of the city and even fakes a TakeMeInstead moment to distract three of Kuvira's goons when they corner them.]]
155	** In ''ComicBook/TheLegendOfKorraRuinsOfTheEmpire'', he displays a working knowledge of the Dai Li's history of brainwashing to keep control of Ba Sing Se, which Toph commends.
156	*** He also has a hallucination of his aunt, Earth Queen Hou-Ting, berating him for championing democracy not because he thinks it'll be better for the people, but because he doesn't want the responsibility of ruling when he knows he'll fail. This shakes him pretty hard.
157	[[/folder]]
158

Context Main / BigEgoHiddenDepths