| 1 | %% Image selected per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1336926634035411000 |
| 2 | %% Please do not change or remove without starting a new thread. |
| 3 | [[quoteright:349:[[Franchise/AceAttorney https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/phoenix_wright_but_different.png]]]] |
| 4 | [[caption-width-right:349:Oh, this is that sitcom about the lawyer and his bum roommate, right?[[note]]Wait, what do you mean "that's the same guy"?[[/note]]]] |
| 5 | |
| 6 | A form of CharacterizationMarchesOn in which a character in a long running series gets PutOnABus. Years later, the writers bring the character back, except... he isn't the same person anymore. He behaves differently, has different skills or interests -- he's become a completely different person. |
| 7 | |
| 8 | Writers could justify it by saying that character development took place offscreen, but it seems a little as if the writers have basically written a new character and slapped his traits onto someone who already existed in canon to make the introduction easier. |
| 9 | |
| 10 | The inversion of SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute. EraSpecificPersonality can overlap. See also NotAsYouKnowThem and TheOtherDarrin. Compare AdaptationPersonalityChange, when the two versions of the same character are in different continuities, and YouDontLookLikeYou, which has more to do with dramatic physical changes. |
| 11 | ---- |
| 12 | !!Examples: |
| 13 | |
| 14 | [[foldercontrol]] |
| 15 | |
| 16 | [[folder:Anime & Manga]] |
| 17 | * Eren Yeager in ''Manga/AttackOnTitan''. Throughout the first half of the series, he's a HotBlooded LeeroyJenkins with a scary amount of passion for exterminating the Titan race that is driving humanity to extinction and who took his home and mother from him. He undergoes a ''very'' big change in the last half of the series, becoming more cold, cunning and above all else ruthless. His dress and look also radically change, wearing much more civilian clothes rather than his military garb. It actually started right before the four-year TimeSkip, where he acts much more reserved and wistful. [[spoiler:It's later revealed this is a result of him seeing his father's memories that, as the next inheritor of the Attack Titan, [[StableTimeLoop he in fact drove his father to take the Coordinate for the sake of his plan]], and revealing to him [[SelfFulfillingProphecy just what he would, and did, become to protect his people]].]] |
| 18 | * ''Manga/ChainsawMan'': When Devils die and reincarnate, they become completely distinct from their previous incarnations with new appearances and personalities, as seen with multiple minor antagonistic Devils in Part 2. [[spoiler:As the Control Devil, Nayuta is therefore the same entity that Makima was, but not the same person]]. |
| 19 | * Android 17 in ''Anime/DragonBallSuper'' is a straight-laced, pragmatic, no-nonsense character in both personality and fighting style. He's also something of a StraightMan to the sillier characters, with a deadpan sense of humor. This is basically the complete opposite of how he was characterized in ''Anime/DragonBallZ'', where he was the most carefree and lackadaisical of his trio, screwing around in his fights and annoying his sister with his constant showboating and playing around. He also liked to fight, while his ''Super'' incarnation doesn't dislike it, but derives no particular enjoyment from it either, seeing it as a means to an end (e.g. material gain, like that boat he wanted). Possibly justifed by the revelation that he got married and has children now (one biological and the other two adopted) during the decade or so he spent away from the heroes. As such, it's likely [[ChildrenRaiseYou being a family man caused him to become more mature and grounded]]. |
| 20 | * ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure'': |
| 21 | ** In the ''[[Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventureCrazyDiamondsDemonicHeartbreak Crazy Diamond's Demonic Heartbreak]]'' spin-off, Hol Horse, Mariah, and the Oingo Brothers from ''[[Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventureStardustCrusaders Stardust Crusaders]]'' have moved on and gone about their separate ways after becoming better people, although they were still stricken with guilt and trauma due to serving DIO. Mariah and Kenny G. end up settling down together, with the Oingo Boingo brothers occasionally helping people through their professions. |
| 22 | ** In ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventureGoldenWind'', [[spoiler:Jean-Pierre Polnareff returns 13 years after the events of ''Stardust Crusaders''. Far from the HotBlooded CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass in Part 3, he's an OlderAndWiser HandicappedBadass that contacts Team Buccarati to provide a means of defeating the Boss of Passione, and he speaks with a calculated and experienced tone. That said, [[NotSoAboveItAll he still has some aspects of his goofy younger self]], such as telling Doppio to come out slowly from behind Buccarati "Like you're lifting up your skirt"]]. |
| 23 | * ''Anime/{{Mega Man NT Warrior|2002}}'': This comes into play regarding the [[MonsterOfTheWeek Asteroid and Zoano]] Navis that appear in ''Stream'' and ''Beast''. They have the exact same appearance and abilities of the previous evil Net Navis that were defeated, only that these versions are stated to have been created by Duo or came from AnotherDimension, essentially giving them the power to materialize out from the digital world. |
| 24 | * [[spoiler:[[FallenHero Obito Uchiha]]]] from ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'', who BecameTheirOwnAntithesis. Kakashi changed a lot from who he was as a child too, which proves tragically ironic -- [[spoiler:many of the traits Kakashi picked up as an adult and, more importantly, the philosophy he espouses come from his NotQuiteDead former comrade]]. |
| 25 | [[/folder]] |
| 26 | |
| 27 | [[folder:Comic Books]] |
| 28 | * Superboy-Prime in Creator/DCComics was introduced during ''ComicBook/CrisisOnInfiniteEarths'' as an AscendedFanboy from the real world (or what was closest to it) who became Superboy during the Crisis. He finally went to a better place with the original Superman and Lois. He was brought back during ''ComicBook/InfiniteCrisis'' where it was revealed his untreated PTSD from the deaths of all his loved ones and being gaslit by ToxicFriendInfluence into thinking he helped save the wrong people after being forced to watch his former heroes wind up in darker, more cynical points in their lives. After snapping completely, he spent years as an embittered PhysicalGod that embodied toxic internet comics culture before that problem became more widely known, until winding up being involved in yet another reboot where he finally had someone actually try ''talking'' to him, where he finally did a HeelFaceTurn. |
| 29 | * This is a common reader complaint regarding several characters who were rewritten for the ComicBook/{{New 52}} era. In particular, the older members of the JSA who had the most radical changes, such as being [[YoungerAndHipper aged down significantly.]] Other readers argue that the core of most characters remains the same. There's certainly quite a bit of BrokenBase for the entire DCU due to this. |
| 30 | ** [[ComicBook/{{Shazam}} Billy Batson]] is another example. Traditionally he begins his superhero career as a [[ChildrenAreInnocent ten-year-old]] and is the living embodiment of IncorruptiblePurePureness. The new version is fifteen and is supposed to be a JerkWithAHeartOfGold, but initially came off as too much of a jerk for a lot of Billy's old fans to accept, though he did grow to be a nicer person once he finally found a family where he belonged. |
| 31 | ** Similar to Billy is [[ComicBook/TheFlash Wally West]], when he finally came back. Before the reboot, Wally was Barry Allen's nephew and sidekick, an AscendedFanboy who loved the Flash before he gained his powers, a founding member of the Teen Titans, was mostly a decent guy save for being shamelessly flirty and snarky, and for several decades had succeeded Barry as the Flash and had been married with two kids. When he shows up in the new continuity, he's now a 12-year-old (even younger than he was when he was Kid Flash) half-black JerkAss who hates the Flash for putting his uncle in jail, is yet to bond with Barry and doesn't seem to like him much. In old continuity he was Dick Grayson's best friend and the same age as him and Roy Harper, but this version is about a decade younger than them. |
| 32 | *** Eventually subverted with ''ComicBook/DCRebirth''. As New 52-Wally [[ReplacementScrappy wasn't accepted by fans]], DC simply reintroduced the original version of Wally in ''DC Rebirth'' (down to making him Dick Grayson's best friend again), thus turning him into a DecompositeCharacter. He's now the cousin of the original Wally, who were both independently given their grandfather's name. This has led to the black Wally, who now generally goes by Wallace, or Ace for short, being RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap. |
| 33 | * ''ComicBook/XMen'': This is extremely common in series with large casts. ''X-Men'' in particular has a huge and revolving cast, leading to numerous characters change off panel. Usually, they either join some other team or seek higher education. For example, the character Karma. When we're first introduced to her, she is older than the rest of the New Mutants, and considerably more mature, conservative, and acts as a parental surrogate to her brother and sister. She eventually leaves when her siblings are kidnapped. Then cut to several years later when she meets X-Force in a desert rave, with dyed pink hair, body piercings, and revealing clothing. She would also later come out as a lesbian. |
| 34 | ** Likewise, many X-Men would display different or enhanced powers after an absence. Moonstar, for example gained the ability to display past events in the form of illusions. In the ''X-Treme X-Men'' series ''Mekanix'', Karma was able to possess up to twenty people at a time, whereas previously she was only able to possess one or two. When Dazzler rejoined the X-Men in the "Eve of Destruction" storyline, she displayed the ability to create hard light images, previously she could only create bursts of light or lasers. |
| 35 | ** ...and then there's the Siege Perilous. Psylocke, Dazzler, Colossus, Rogue, Havok, and Master Mold go in, and in some cases ''very'' different people came out the other side: Russian GentleGiant farmboy Colossus (temporarily) becomes a popular American artist named Peter Nicholas, and English telepath Psylocke becomes a statuesque Japanese ninja. It also somehow created Bastion, a bizarre FusionDance of Master Mold and Nimrod, two obviously robotic characters who, when combined, look like a human. While Nimrod was able to holographically disguise itself as a human, for Bastion this is somehow its actual physical form. |
| 36 | * ''ComicBook/SpiderMan'': |
| 37 | ** [[Characters/MarvelComicsNormanOsborn Norman Osborn]] was seemingly killed during a fight with Spider-Man in 1973, leading to his son Harry Osborn taking up the mantle. Norman, revealed to have a HealingFactor that let him survive impalement, returned in the 1990's, having orchestrated ''ComicBook/TheCloneSaga'', and has since become a BigBad within the Marvel Universe in general. Prior to his "death", Osborn was an absentee father and CorruptCorporateExecutive, but had something of a split personality that wanted to make a name for himself in New York's underworld by dressing in a bizarre costume, but following his return he became a MagnificentBastard [[TheSociopath sociopath]] with the Goblin persona now seemingly being merged with the original Norman. |
| 38 | *** This also goes for Harry Osborn, who came back with a very different personality from his previous one after ''ComicBook/OneMoreDay'' (namely that he's not insane and evil anymore). ''ComicBook/TheAmazingSpiderMan2018'' would eventually retcon that this Harry is actually a clone, and the original Harry is still dead. |
| 39 | ** Compare Black Tarantula's appearances in ''ComicBook/SpiderMan'' (late [[MediaNotes/TheDarkAgeOfComicBooks Dark Age]]) with those in Creator/EdBrubaker's ComicBook/{{Daredevil}} ([[MediaNotes/TheModernAgeOfComicBooks Modern Age]]). You will be surprised how much he changed, without any reason. And, what's the most scary, [[Administrivia/TropesAreTools it was good for him]]. |
| 40 | * Terra of the Comicbook/TeenTitans, when she seemed to be resurrected as Terra II. Terra was originally TheMole and a PsychoForHire who infamously died due to her own anger, but the second version was an all-around good guy and a straight superhero. It was later revealed and clarified, however, that the second Terra was actually an alien from an underground society modified into looking like the original, at the cost of her losing her memory of her true identity. |
| 41 | ** Eventually ''that'' explanation was undone to say that she really was Terra, brought back from the dead with her memories and old personality rebooted. Though they went back and on this for a while until the whole thing was rendered moot when Terra II was unceremoniously killed off to make room from a third, completely unrelated Terra as ComicBook/PowerGirl's sidekick. |
| 42 | * ''ComicBook/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy'': Rocket Raccoon, previously a wise-cracking gunslinging raccoon who was otherwise jovial and friendly, during Bendis' run on the title he's turned into a near-sociopath who enjoys yelling "Blam! Murdered you!" at everyone he kills, declares he isn't a raccoon, and suddenly developed a massive hatred for Earth, despite previously having stated he loves Earth, and our awful TV shows, not to mention his friendship with several humans, including Peter Quill and [[ComicBook/XMen Corsair]]. |
| 43 | ** Pretty much applies to all the Guardians of the Galaxy under Bendis. Except the ones who were PutOnABus. |
| 44 | * ''ComicBook/{{Wonder Woman|2011}}'' cast members who weren't exiled from continuity in the New 52 were entirely unrecognizable, even Wondy was a far cry from her old self, though her own book which at least tried to reconcile the core of the character as an AllLovingHero with her new persona. All these changes were undone by the soft reboot of [[ComicBook/WonderWomanRebirth Rebirth]] which declared the characters were fake and Diana's memory had been altered: |
| 45 | ** Zeus was formerly a misogynistic serial rapist who tried to rape Diana and liked to claim giving her powers and life was his idea (and she should be grateful to him for it and his attempt to rape her) when it was carefully done without his knowledge or consent. Now he's her father, and most of his children are now fond of him and missing him while every single one of his children, even the ones who normally can't stand each other, had allied themselves to usurp him from the throne in the [[ComicBook/WonderWoman1987 previous continuity]]. |
| 46 | ** Athena is an anthropomorphic owl now? Also she's going out of her way to try to get her father back on the throne when she was the one who led that coalition of his kids in usurping him in the last continuity. |
| 47 | ** Hermes was an upbeat almost perpetually happy fellow who didn't seem to put much stock in the concept of clothes and loved humanity. The new Hermes is a dour distrusting fellow who dresses in layers and despairs of humanity. |
| 48 | ** Ares is now Diana's old mentor and by far the most relatable of the Olympians. He's normally in the running for being her arch-enemy, even when they're theoretically on the same side he used to always find ways to belittle her. |
| 49 | ** Artemis was asexual, reserved and sharp, jumping to action when her Amazons were in danger but otherwise friendly enough, with lithe muscles, sharp cheekbones and a square chin. [=NuArte=] is a curvy fight loving nutcase with no regard for collateral damage who revels in the chance to murder an infant and has an incestuous crush on her brother. |
| 50 | ** Dionysus used to be a lackadaisical observer to the chaos his family wrought, often lounging in the background with a smirk and a glass of wine. [=NuDio=] Is a sadistic childlike creature with little understanding of human concepts of morality who cuts up and cooks living people and turns people into pigs only to be shocked when it horrifies the woman he's trying to befriend. |
| 51 | ** The Amazons have always been a culture of peace and love, meant to lead by example to the rest of the world by showing them what an idealized human society could be, even if there is some hesitation to trust men again since the last time they did they were [[ComicBook/WonderWoman1987 drugged and forced to become sex slaves]]. The [=NuAmazons=] are a misandrist society of serial rapists who murder their own children if they happen to be born male. (This is the change that had the fans up in arms). |
| 52 | * Pyro, when introduced in ''ComicBook/UltimateXMen'', had AdaptationalHeroism and was a decent and good guy. But when he was used in ''ComicBook/TheUltimates 3'', he was a villain that even proposed to rape Valkery, with no explanation for the change. |
| 53 | [[/folder]] |
| 54 | |
| 55 | [[folder:Fan Works]] |
| 56 | * [[BigBad Darth Nihilus]] in ''Fanfic/JauneArcLordOfHunger'' is an interesting example since he undergoes a drastic change in personality three times ''in the same fanfic''. Somewhat justified given that his personality changes over the course of thousands of years. In the flashbacks depicting his past as a Jedi, he's characterized as a BloodKnight and a ScreamingWarrior. During the time he spends as a Sith spirit trapped inside his mask, he's shows traits befitting that of a patient ManipulativeBastard and a NoNonsenseNemesis. When he finally [[spoiler:takes over Jaune's body]], he starts acting like a [[TheStoic stoic]] SilentAntagonist as well as a SmugSuper prone to [[JustToyingWithThem toying with his enemies]] and showing off. |
| 57 | [[/folder]] |
| 58 | |
| 59 | [[folder:Films -- Live-Action]] |
| 60 | * In ''Film/ScoobyDooMonstersUnleashed'', the main villain of the film is the Evil Masked Figure, whose true identity is revealed to be Dr. Jonathan Jacobo, a past foe of Mystery, Inc. who originally menaced them as the Pterodactyl Ghost. The Pterodactyl Ghost originated as an antagonist in ''WesternAnimation/TheScoobyDooShow'' episode "Hang in There, Scooby-Doo", but other than Johnny sharing his first name and disguise, there are many discrepancies between the two characters, the most notable ones being their motivations (Johnny used his disguise as part of a music piracy scheme, while Dr. Jonathan Jacobo used his disguise to rob banks) and their careers (Johnny drove a catering truck, while Dr. Jonathan Jacobo was a scientist). |
| 61 | * Luke Skywalker from ''Film/TheLastJedi'' is a pretty notable example, to the point that even Creator/MarkHamill at one point said he thought of the Luke in the film as a completely separate character from the one he played in the Original Trilogy. When we last saw Luke he was an idealistic, AllLovingHero who refused to give up on turning his evil father back to the Light Side, never turned his back on his friends, and was ready to train a new generation of Jedi Knights. When we see him again in the film he's isolated himself from the galaxy and his friends when they needed him most, disillusioned with the legacy of the late Jedi Order. Whether these changes were justified or not is a major source of BrokenBase among fans. |
| 62 | * William Hurt portrays Thaddeus Ross in the 2016 Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse movie ''Film/CaptainAmericaCivilWar'', a role he first played 8 years before in ''Film/TheIncredibleHulk2008'' set in the same continuity. However, the character changed a lot as he goes from a General of the U.S. Army to Secretary Of The United States and he seems to be over his personal venedetta against the Hulk and instead now acts as a government member who highly dislikes superheroes in general (despite he wanted to 'create'' SuperSoldiers in his first appearance. However, the changes are mostly {{justified|Trope}} considering a lot of years also past in-universe and Ross even hints in the movie that his perspective has changed thanks to experiencing health issues. |
| 63 | [[/folder]] |
| 64 | |
| 65 | [[folder:Literature]] |
| 66 | * ''Literature/SweetValleyHigh'' and its spin-offs did this several times with characters who would be introduced in one series but drastically changed in another. Examples: |
| 67 | ** Amy Sutton is introduced in ''Sweet Valley Twins'' as Elizabeth's best friend who is very similar to her in personality and interests, but is later brought back for ''Sweet Valley High'' where, after moving away for a while, she has become a gossipy, fashion-obsessed AlphaBitch and popular cheerleader who bears almost no resemblance to her former self. A good example of the contrast is a ''Twins'' book where Amy fights to be accepted onto the school cheerleading squad, against opposition from the popular Unicorns. By the time of ''Sweet Valley High'' however, Amy is a prominent member of the squad and openly bullies girls that she doesn't think are pretty or popular enough to join. |
| 68 | ** Enid Rollins went through this no fewer than three times. In ''Sweet Valley High'' she is Elizabeth's studious, strait-laced best friend. By the time of ''Sweet Valley University'' she had become a shallow, hard-partying sorority girl who had changed her name to Alexandra, in a makeover very similar to Amy's (there was some mention of Enid/Alex wanting to ditch her unpopular image after high school, but all such character development takes place off the page.) By ''Sweet Valley Confidential'', Enid has reverted to her birth name, is a famous gynecologist (although she WASN'T studying medicine at SVU!) and fanatically right-wing. All three versions of the character bear little resemblance to each other. Enid even has a ''fourth'' incarnation off the page where it's mentioned in one of the ''Sweet Valley High'' books that before moving to Sweet Valley she was a juvenile delinquent with a drug addiction and a criminal record - all of which would be extremely uncharacteristic for the Enid presented in that series. |
| 69 | ** Winston Egbert is a loveable nerd in most of the books but by ''Sweet Valley Confidential'' has become an arrogant, cynical, bullying misogynist after becoming a millionaire in the computer industry. There are a few throwaway lines about how his wealth changed him but none of it is shown to the reader. |
| 70 | * ''Literature/{{Animorphs}}'': |
| 71 | ** Villain [[TortureTechnician Taylor]] is introduced with her human and [[PuppeteerParasite Yeerk]] personalities largely blended together; the real Taylor had been a voluntary Controller, and the Yeerk had been [[HumanityIsInfectious totally enraptured]] by her new identity. When she reappears ten books later, this mental instability is pretty much absent to make her more of a [[ManipulativeBastard Manipulative Bitch]], and human!Taylor tries to warn [[DarkAndTroubledPast Tobias]] not to listen to her. |
| 72 | ** {{Inverted|Trope}}, time-wise, with Vice-Principal Chapman. In the main books, he became a Controller [[PapaWolf to protect his daughter]], and generally seems to be a decent guy stuck in a terrible situation. In the prequel book ''The Andalite Chronicles,'' a teenager named Hedrick Chapman winds up [[TheQuisling selling out the Earth to the Yeerks]] and then apparently dies; someone identical is later seen on Earth, but seems to have no memory of going into space. There's enough of a disconnect between the characterizations that [[http://cinnamonbunzuh.blogspot.com/2011/11/andalite-chronicles.html some suggest]] that Hedrick did die in space and the other Chapman appearances are his brother or something. |
| 73 | * ''Franchise/DoctorWhoExpandedUniverse'': |
| 74 | ** The ''Literature/BerniceSummerfield'' novels feature a brief appearance by Chris Cwej, the WideEyedIdealist who was [[Series/DoctorWho the Doctor]]'s companion alongside Benny in the Literature/DoctorWhoNewAdventures. Only now he's a cynical and bitter Time Lord agent who has had his memory altered and believes he was kidnapped by "the evil renegade". Then he regenerates (the Time Lords having given him that ability), so he doesn't even ''look'' like the original Chris any more. The ''Literature/FactionParadox'' books take it further, with a whole army of "Cwejen": Cwej-Primes are the original tall, blond version, Cwej-Plus are the post-regeneration fat and balding variety, and Cwej-Magnus are bio-armored shock troops. One FP novel involves a Cwej-Prime allying with the Nazis to hunt down renegade Time Lor-- [[WritingAroundTrademarks ahem, members of the Great Houses]]. |
| 75 | ** In the ''Literature/PastDoctorAdventures'' novel ''Instruments of Darkness'', the villainous "John Doe" who is using Department C19 resources to allow psychic aliens access to Earth in order to get revenge on the Doctor is strongly hinted to be [[spoiler: Jeremy Fitzoliver, Sarah Jane's geeky but well-meaning photographer from the ''Radio/ThirdDoctorRadioDramas'']]. |
| 76 | * ''Literature/ArtemisFowl'' sort of inverts this in ''The Time Paradox,'' which involves TimeTravel and is mostly set a few years before the first book. Trying to connect some of the characters to their first appearances can be difficult. For example, the whole plot hinges on how past!Artemis wiped out an endangered species; even though he was a VillainProtagonist in the first book, [[GreenAesop his environmentalism]] was already being used to show that he [[PetTheDog wasn't so bad]]. Likewise, [[spoiler:[[HijackedByGanon Opal Koboi]]]] is already trying to TakeOverTheWorld, several years before their apparent first attempt in a previous book. |
| 77 | * ''Literature/{{Messenger}}'': Matty has matured ''significantly'' since his appearance in ''Literature/GatheringBlue''. Several characters, including himself, make references as to how much he's changed in-between. Justified since the former takes place six years after the latter, and Matty spent that time living in a place where he is nurtured and supported in a way he never had before, which has clearly had a profound impact on him. |
| 78 | * In the Literature/AgentPendergast novel ''White Fire'' which takes place after a notable TimeSkip compared to previous books, recurring character Corrie Swanson has dropped her gothic appearance as well as the more rebellious nature she had as a teen. This is due to the line of work she's trying to get into, as she notes that it's hard to take someone getting into law enforcement seriously when they have dyed purple hair and piercings. |
| 79 | * In ''Literature/PercyJacksonAndTheOlympians'', Calypso is introduced in ''The Battle of the Labyrinth'' as a sweet and gentle NiceGirl. Come the SequelSeries ''Literature/TheHeroesOfOlympus'', she returns in ''The House of Hades'', and notably TookALevelInJerkass, acting quite cranky towards Leo. When Leo (who heard of her from Percy) [[LampshadeHanging expresses confusion about this]], she explains that by this point she has gotten [[RageBreakingPoint fed up]] with being trapped on an isolated island for centuries and constantly getting rejected by every man who comes there. The fact she initially doesn't think very highly of Leo's appearance and personality in comparison to Percy and her previous visitors probably also factors into her lashing out more. |
| 80 | [[/folder]] |
| 81 | |
| 82 | [[folder:Live-Action TV]] |
| 83 | * Done as one of the main plot points regarding Tony Almeida on ''Series/TwentyFour'' during its penultimate season, who's transformed into a goateed crook in a leather jacket looking to take down the government and anyone else involved. [[spoiler: Then it gets double subverted: first Jack discovers that Tony is actually working undercover with them in order to bring them down from within because he still refuses to let any innocent lives get taken. Then over halfway through the season it's revealed that ''that's'' all an act too and Tony is attempting to avenge the murder of his wife regardless of who gets killed in the crossfire.]] |
| 84 | * This was said about Jeanne Reed on ''Series/Adam12'' when considering the difference between her early appearance and her re-appearance (played by a different actress) in the two-part series finale. Aside from some style changes, her attitude about Jim's job was totally different and she wanted him to quit. |
| 85 | * Colin and Christie from Seasons 5 and 31 of ''Series/TheAmazingRace'' are the returnee team with the longest gap between their seasons, 15 years in fact. [[note]]In a bit of interesting trivia, the Gaghan kids who were the bright spots of the [[SeasonalRot much maligned]] family season were the other choice as the casting team was specifically looking for someone from the earlier seasons. She was 10 and he was 12 when they ran but now they're adults [[/note]] When they did the show the first time they were both in their mid-twenties and had only been together for a year. Colin was extremely hot-headed, including almost getting arrested over $100 and giving the show its most [[MemeticMutation iconic line]], "My ox is broken, this is bullshit!" Christie was a bit of a SatelliteLoveInterest to him that only did one of the roadblocks. He and Christie constantly bickered and their relationship was pretty volatile all around, though they both claim it was [[ManipulativeEditing played up for drama]] a good bit. Come Season 31, they both meditate and do yoga every day. Colin was calm, cool, and collected. He even hugged other racers and locals wherever he went. He didn't even freak out when he got hit in the head with a nail. Christie was much more of an equal partner this go-round, both in the tasks and the narrative. They were still really competitive (and ended up winning) but they were a lot better as a team and didn't let the stress get to them. Colin even said that last time they were too worried about winning each leg that they burnt themselves out towards the end but this time they were a lot more cognizant about pacing themselves. |
| 86 | * Josh in ''Series/BigLittleLies'', although between Season 1 and 2. In the Season 1 finale, it turns out that Josh bullied, physically abused, and even tried to strangle Amabella ''and'' bullied his twin brother Max as [[FreudianExcuse as a result of]] [[HarmfulToMinors being a witness to his father Perry physically abusing his mom Celeste.]] However, come Season 2, Josh and Max are portrayed as essentially the same person, Max shows no fear towards Josh, Josh shows no violent impulses, and Josh is actually well-liked and protected within the group, with Renata even letting him be alone with Amabella with no mention of the past abuse. |
| 87 | * Amy on ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer''. She first appeared in "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS1E3TheWitch The Witch]]," where she was a shy girl whose sudden turn to {{Alpha Bitch}}dom came from her WickedWitch mom [[FreakyFridayFlip stealing her body]]. Later the real Amy is revealed to also have magical powers, but the worst thing we see her do with them is cheat on a school assignment. Then she's {{Shapeshifter Mode Lock}}ed as a rat for a few seasons, and when she's back she becomes significantly nastier and eventually villainous, with a reveal that she was already associating with creepy warlock Rack and his AddictiveMagic offscreen before she turned into a rat. To be fair, we only saw Amy once per season before the rat incident, and her only witch role model was not a healthy one. |
| 88 | * Stephen Reid on ''Series/CoronationStreet''. First mentioned as Audrey Roberts illegitimate son and Gail's half-brother as far back as 1988, began appearing as a recurring character from 1996 to 1997, and then for one month in December 2007. During these stints Stephen appeared as an ordinary and friendly successful man who took an interest in his family. The character would be frequently mentioned off-screen during his absences, with his family often going to see him and his niece Sarah even working for him from 2008 to 2015. But when Stephen returned as a regular in 2022 he became the show's main villain, where he attempted to steal from his mother and screw other residents around. He then turned into the show's new serial killer, bumping off three people during his stint. This is very unlike the Stephen that appeared before, who had no hint of a darker side. |
| 89 | * ''Series/DoctorWho'': |
| 90 | ** Intended as one-shot villains and brought back due to popular demand, the Daleks in the first Dalek serial, "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS1E2TheDaleks The Daleks]]", are much more technologically inferior than the Dalek Earth invasion force from the next Dalek serial, "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS2E2TheDalekInvasionOfEarth The Dalek Invasion of Earth]]", which the Doctor says took place a million years ''earlier''. In addition to this, they have entirely different personalities, physical appearances, motivations, weaknesses, battle tactics, military hierarchy and culture; are a lot more of a physical threat rather than their borderline TheGrotesque characterisation before; and begin to show much more of the shrieking authoritarianism that they would later become famous for (when in "The Daleks" they just spoke in a funny way). The Invasion Daleks are much better and more threatening, though, and it was these versions of them that became the standard used in future Dalek stories. |
| 91 | ** Varga plants show up in "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS3E2MissionToTheUnknown Mission to the Unknown]]" and "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS3E4TheDaleksMasterPlan The Daleks' Master Plan]]" (the first story being a direct predecessor to the latter), in which they are TheVirus -- they walk around on their roots, stab people with three-inch thorns and anyone hit with their toxin slowly transforms into one, losing their mind in the process. They eventually show up almost fifty years later in the ''Doctor Who'' adventure game "[[Recap/DoctorWhoTAGE01CityOfTheDaleks City of the Daleks]]", as much smaller {{Man Eating Plant}}s with pointedly immobile roots that rhythmically shoot out tentacles to grab food. |
| 92 | ** The Macra first show up as hyperintelligent, spacefaring [[GiantEnemyCrab crab monsters]] with hypnotic powers in "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS4E7TheMacraTerror The Macra Terror]]", and return 40 years later in "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS29E3Gridlock Gridlock]]" as much bigger crab monsters that are no longer sapient and have no psychic powers. The Doctor claims that they've devolved into dumb animals over billions of years. The non-sapient Macra show up in an Eleventh Doctor {{Gamebook|s}} as well. |
| 93 | ** The Great Intelligence has BlueAndOrangeMorality in "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS5E2TheAbominableSnowmen The Abominable Snowmen]]", no human emotions, and explicitly states in "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS5E5TheWebOfFear The Web of Fear]]" that it has no need for or understanding of revenge. When it reappeared after 44 years in "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS33E13TheNameOfTheDoctor The Name of the Doctor]]", it gains a new backstory as an imaginary childhood friend come to life and is obsessed with getting revenge on the Doctor. The Yeti are also absent, replaced with ''literal'' snowmen in "[[Recap/DoctorWho2012CSTheSnowmen The Snowmen]]". |
| 94 | ** The Master: |
| 95 | *** The villain went through many changes in the classic era, from a manipulative gentlemanly villain in Creator/RogerDelgado's time, to a walking corpse as the Burned Master, to a flamboyantly evil comic book villain as Creator/AnthonyAinley to a more desperate, savage animalistic character with Creator/EricRoberts' portrayal. Nevertheless all of these different incarnations followed the same core personality. All of the Masters in the Classic era were motivated by a desire for power, a hatred of the Doctor (although he occasionally regarded the Doctor as a WorthyOpponent, and on one occasion offered to share ultimate power with him), and from the burned Master on; a desire to prolong his own life. (The Delgado Master, though not needing to prolong his life, was still written as a coward willing to sacrifice billions to save himself.) They all used the same tactics of manipulation, hypnosis, placing themselves in positions of authority etc. |
| 96 | *** The John Simm Master, while having the same motivations and tactics, was given a totally different, more sympathetic origin story. His relationship with the Doctor was completely retooled too. The Doctor was shown to try and redeem the Simm Master (while there were shades of this in the Third Doctor era, with the Doctor reminiscing about their schooldays together, and being quick to take an EnemyMine position against a greater threat, the Fourth viewed him as the "quintessence of evil"). Author Creator/RussellTDavies also added sexual tension between the Doctor and the Master that was never present before. (Word of god from the character's creators Creator/TerranceDicks and Creator/BarryLetts as well as his portrayers, Anthony Ainley and Roger Delgado, always stated that the two were warring brothers in the Classic era -- although the ''Franchise/DoctorWhoExpandedUniverse'' novelist David [=McIntee=], who wrote several books featuring the Delgado Master, has said he wrote them as "bitter exes".) |
| 97 | *** By the time of the female Master, written by Steven Moffat, much more focus is given to aspects of the Master's personality that were downplayed in earlier portrayals. Missy is possibly outright in love with the Doctor (stating that her hearts are maintained by him), and at the very least her primary motivation is "I want my pal back". Has no real desire for power or to dominate (she even gives up a near indestructible Cyber army in her first story, stating she doesn't need it; rather handing them over into the Doctor in hopes that he would use them and prove that, as she'd been saying, [[NotSoDifferentRemark they're not that different]].) Her cowardice is not made a major point, nor is her manipulative nature, although she does show elements of this. She also never demonstrates any hypnotic ability. Even in terms of outer personality whilst the Classic era Masters were mostly more calm and affably evil, Missy is an outright psychopath. All of these changes made Missy the most controversial incarnation of the character, though there were many who appreciated Michelle Gomez's performance. |
| 98 | *** The Sacha Dhawan incarnation is something of a reaction to Missy (and especially her HeelFaceTurn), but is even more of a ranting psychopath, and a full-blown OmnicidalManiac, who isn't interested in power or control, but just in making everything burn and seeing the Doctor suffer. In addition to a greater degree of sadism than past incarnations, he also has a self-destructive streak, rather than being desperate to extend his life, expressing disappointment when it looks like one of his plans might fail to kill anyone ''including himself''. |
| 99 | ** The return of Davros in the revival series saw his characterization having several notable changes from the classic series. In the classic era, Davros' schemes revolved around attempts to control his Dalek creations and he was repeated shown to be a DirtyCoward not above pleading for his life when in mortal danger. By the time of his return however, Davros no longer wants to rule over the Daleks and has accepted he can't control them, simply being content to see them reign supreme of everything. He also isn't afraid of death, having seemingly realized that the Daleks will likely kill him once their evil plan is completed, and even refuses an attempt by the Doctor save him from death purely out of spite. |
| 100 | ** The Third Doctor story "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS9E4TheMutants The Mutants]]" features a race of buglike aliens called Mutts, which are an unintelligent interstitial form of the HumanAlien Solonians, all of whom eventually AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence when the Doctor speeds up their metamorphosis. In "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS13E5TheBrainOfMorbius The Brain of Morbius]]", the Doctor comes across the murdered body of a Mutt, and explains to Sarah that Mutts are a spacefaring, insectoid race widespread throughout the same galaxy in which Karn and Gallifrey are located. The word 'Mutt' was a pretty serious racial slur in the original story, and the Doctor shouldn't even consider Mutts a species at all! The original intention had been to recycle the Mutt costume for a generic insectoid alien, but Creator/RobertHolmes decided it should actually be a Mutt to add some continuity, bungling the reference. (The novelisation of the story, by Creator/TerranceDicks, who had edited the original serial "The Mutants", changes the Mutt to an alien named Kriz.) |
| 101 | ** In "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS13E1TerrorOfTheZygons Terror of the Zygons]]", the Zygon technology only allowed them to double humans if the [[ReplicantSnatching humans were captured and kept in specialised tanks for the duration of the transformation]], and the doubling was only a relatively small part of their plot (which mostly focused on their cyborg technology and the use of the [[StockNessMonster Skarasen]]). In "[[Recap/DoctorWho50thASTheDayOfTheDoctor The Day of the Doctor]]", they don't appear to have this restriction and simply have doubling as their Hat, directly confronting the UNIT members they're shapeshifted into — they also have the ability to double memories and feelings, which they couldn't do originally. Their next appearance "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS35E7TheZygonInvasion The Zygon Invasion]]"/"[[Recap/DoctorWhoS35E8TheZygonInversion The Zygon Inversion]]" explains that their abilities have evolved over time, and in this story they can now impersonate a potential victim's loved ones by reading their thoughts and copying what they find there, and continue to hold the form of a human even after the original has died. This story also reveals that they still use captivity pods in case the person they're impersonating needs to be pumped for information later. |
| 102 | ** TheBrigadier also suffers from this in "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS20E3MawdrynUndead Mawdryn Undead]]", appearing in a story that was originally intended for science teacher Ian (who'd been absent from the show for decades). The solution? Remove all references to Ian, and make the Brigadier a maths teacher. |
| 103 | ** Famously used with Glitz, who was written into "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS24E4Dragonfire Dragonfire]]" at the last moment to replace a new character and gained a level in {{Jerkass}} in the process. Although given that his first episode saw him planning to shoot the Doctor in the back simply because he ''might'' get in his way, it was practically a HeelFaceTurn. |
| 104 | * Clare Bates, in ''Series/EastEnders''. She was a regular character in the show as a young teenager back in the 1990s. She was sweet, a doting daughter, and all-round girl scout. Actress Gemma Bissix found fame in a brief stint on ''Series/{{Hollyoaks}}'' playing a scheming bitch, so the ''[=EastEnders=]'' writers decided to bring her back as a similar character. Now, 15 years might have passed in between for Clare to turn evil, but it was still a bit disappointing that the writers had to basically turn her previous exit storyline, a happy ending, into a sad one. |
| 105 | %%* In ''Series/TheFlash2014'', Season 2 introduced an evil speedster named Zoom as the BigBad of the season, who was a [[TheSociopath sociopathic]] SerialKiller. However [[spoiler:after his defeat at the end of the season, he gets [[DraggedOffToHell dragged off by Time Wraiths into the Speed Force.]] In there he degrades to a zombie-like state with no semblance of humanity remaining, and is forced to be a slave of the Speed Force for all eternity where he hunts down time aberrations.]] On the surface it sounds like an interesting direction to take his character in, but ''nothing'' was left of the [[spoiler: Zoom]] we knew, to the point that it never ended up ''mattering'' that [[spoiler: the Black Flash]] turned out to be him, and nothing would've changed if he hadn't. |
| 106 | %%* This is why long-term fans of ''Series/GeneralHospital'' cringe whenever they hear a beloved character from the 1980's is coming back. |
| 107 | * In ''Series/GossipGirl'' there are a few: |
| 108 | ** Carter Baizen first appears as a renegade and not wealthy character with criminal connections, and Chuck and Nate reminisce on his past as a privileged Manhattanite like themselves before disowning his family. A few episodes later, however, he has supposedly reconciled with his family and is again part of the Upper East Side elite. |
| 109 | ** The first few times Chuck's Uncle Jack Bass appears, he's an evil and villainous ManipulativeBastard and his actions include [[spoiler:attempting to rape Lily and causing the implosion of Chuck and Blaire's relationship.]] When he next appears, he apologizes, blaming his behavior on cocaine, and from them on becomes a helpful, if slimy, ally for Chuck and the gang. |
| 110 | ** the scandalous and cruel Georgina Sparks comes back from disciplinary camp a Jesus-loving PuritySue. |
| 111 | * ''Series/{{Hollyoaks}}'' introduced Sonny Valentine as an angry teenager who was involved in petty crime, though not really a "bad" person at heart. When his actor was fired, Sonny was written out by having him leave to move in with a random aunt. Seven years later, he was re-introduced with a new actor who [[TheOtherDarrin looked nothing like the original]], and with a new personality: a brooding but charming CowboyCop, similar to his brother Calvin. It was later revealed that Sonny had been scheming to murder the [=McQueen=] family (since Theresa [=McQueen=] had killed Calvin) and take Calvin's widow and daughter for himself - also out of character in contrast to the previous Sonny, who hadn't been too bright and preferred to solve his problems with a fist fight. |
| 112 | * Paul Robinette, of ''Series/LawAndOrder'', got hit with this. Being the main prosecutor's NumberTwo for Season's 1-3, and also black, he would occasionally offer insight into racially charged cases. Sometimes he'd take flak from the defense for "siding against his race", sometimes he'd object to how a case was being handled, but his "blackness" wasn't his defining trait. He came back in Season 6 as a defense attorney with MalcolmXerox leanings, with everyone surprised by the change. At the end of the episode, [[CallBack he tells McCoy that once]] where he was asked if he was a lawyer who happened to be black, or vice-versa. Paul admits that he thought he was the former, but wasn't. |
| 113 | * Detective (and later Sargeant) John Munch of ''Series/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit'' is a justified example. When he originated on ''Series/HomicideLifeOnTheStreet'', while he was still a cynical and snarky ConspiracyTheorist, he was a more sociable person who co-owned a bar with Detectives Bayliss and Lewis, looked up to his older partner, Bolander, had a younger brother he saw regularly and was engaged to one of his barmaids. By the time he came to New York, he was a divorced loner who only got along with his partner, Fin, [[{{Flanderization}} was almost defined solely by his aforementioned theories]] and was now an implied only child (as the makers of ''Homicide'' own the rights to the character, several defining characteristics from the old show had to be abandoned once he joined the newer one. This also explains why even as the third-billed star of the series, he was nonetheless absent from about 1/3 of the ''SVU'' episodes when he was still a regular character). |
| 114 | * On ''Series/{{Lost}}'' Claire skipped a season and went from a cute, sweet MoralityPet (acting as MamaBear whenever her child was threatened) to an AxeCrazy Survivalist, having GoMadFromTheIsolation and some off-screen torture. This was all part of her planned character arc however. |
| 115 | * ''Series/{{Merlin|2008}}'' Morgana begins as an idealist WellIntentionedExtremist driven to villainy to make things fair. After going missing for a year and living with Morgause, she returns as an AxeCrazy psychopath obsessed with taking the throne to satisfy her own ego, and never thinks to improve things in Camelot once she has taken it over. It's quite jarring for her friends and family when they fully comprehend what she's become. |
| 116 | * Paul Robinson was one of the main characters in the golden age of Australian soap opera ''Series/{{Neighbours}}'' back in the 80s. Then, he was greedy and ambitious, though he usually managed to do the right thing in the end. Cut to 20 years later, and a new batch of writers think that the show needs a villain. Well, who better than the soap's original bad boy Paul? Unfortunately, the new writers misremembered how bad Paul had been - his first act upon returning was to burn down the Lassiters hotel complex, murdering a minor character who got in his way. His evil behaviour continued for a while until the writers relented and wrote in a storyline where he had a brain tumour which had affected his personality. It didn't stick however and he was soon back to blackmailing, stealing, sabotaging building sites and generally wrecking lives, although he wasn't quite as bad as when he first came back. |
| 117 | * ''Series/PowerRangersDinoThunder'' brought back [[Series/MightyMorphinPowerRangers the original]] SixthRanger, Tommy Oliver, as the mentor to the new team. While his personality wasn't too far off from his original portrayal, we're supposed to accept that in the six or seven years since we last saw him he got a doctorate in paleontology (degree takes 8-11 years to actually ''get'') and worked on some secret dinosaur-related research, and that he's now a high school teacher. Now we would probably accept it without question if it was Tommy's teammate Billy, an established TVGenius, that did that, but when Tommy's excuse in the original series for arriving late to fights was being forgetful... |
| 118 | ** It was lampshaded when Tommy's old teammate Adam came by [[Series/PowerRangersOperationOverdrive a few seasons later]] and mused on how "it's really hard to imagine him as a teacher." |
| 119 | * Dominique from the French Canadian family TV program Radio Enfer got hit with this hard. When first introduced, she was a friendly girl from the country fascinated with the supernatural. She got along very well with all the gang despite working for the radio's "rival", the student newspaper. She disappeared for half a season for a student exchange in Paris, and returned completely transformed, now obsessed with psychology (or mental torture, as she now seemed to derive a great deal of pleasure at everyone else's misery, which she often helped caused). After that, she was never treated as anything else than an annoyance (which is ironic, because by then, the radio and newspaper had merged and even the main antagonist of the first two seasons had been let into the core friends group). |
| 120 | * When the character of Kristine Kochanski is brought back after a long absence from ''Series/RedDwarf'', she is not only [[TheOtherDarrin played by a different actress]] but the characterization is significantly different, and she now speaks with an English rather than Scottish accent. She did hail from an alternate universe, getting stuck in our world in that episode. (Now, that doesn't explain that flashbacks to our world's Kochanski would, after this, have her resembling the new one...) |
| 121 | * In ''Series/{{Scrubs}}'', during Danni Sullivan's initial appearances, she was a fun, likable, sensitive girl whose only real flaw was that she wanted a serious relationship while J.D. was still interested in Elliot. After breaking up with J.D. she left the show only to return sometime later as a chain smoking, self absorbed, airhead party girl. The show {{Handwaved}} her totally different personality as being a result of her trying to be what she thought J.D. wanted in a girl. |
| 122 | * Combined with GenerationXerox in ''Still Series/OpenAllHours'': Granville, the shy well-meaning nephew of conniving skinflint Arkwright has, thirty years later, become almost identical to his late uncle. |
| 123 | * ''Series/VeronicaMars'': |
| 124 | ** Jake Kane is the CorruptCorporateExecutive behind Kane Software and a suspect in his daughter Lilly's death. However, Season 1 demonstrates that he's actually a loving father who is grieving deeply for his daughter and whose suspicious behavior is because [[spoiler:he thinks his son Duncan killed Lilly]]. After not appearing in Season 2, he returns in Season 3 as a megalomaniacal cult leader who is trying to recruit Wallace. |
| 125 | ** Richard "Big Dick" Casablancas is an abusive parent who turned his two sons against each other and bullied his younger son (Beaver/Cassidy) [[spoiler:which at least played a part in Beaver turning to mass murder.]] When he came back partway through Season 3, though, he'd genuinely seen the error of his ways, was remorseful, seemed horrified, and looked to make amends with his other son Dick. However, in the revival Season 4, he was even more corrupt and remorseless, and even [[spoiler:nearly got his surviving son killed. It was an accident, but it still didn't stop him executing his plan.]] |
| 126 | [[/folder]] |
| 127 | |
| 128 | [[folder:Music]] |
| 129 | * Music/{{Eminem}}'s CareerResurrection album ''Relapse'' was marketed as the triumphant return of his [[KayfabeMusic evil alter-ego]] Slim Shady and RevisitingTheRoots of ''Music/TheSlimShadyLP'' and Em's early work with D12. However, the Slim Shady of ''The Slim Shady LP'' is a playful, CuteAndPsycho PsychopathicManchild whose violence is car{{toon}}ish BlackComedy and not possible to take seriously ([[TheNewRockAndRoll unless you're a parent or Senator]]); the Slim Shady of ''Relapse'' is a much DarkerAndEdgier JekyllAndHyde-like SerialKiller who murders people, eats foetuses, dissects gay men and rapes women with umbrellas, and doesn't seem to be having much fun doing it. [[AudienceAlienatingPremise A lot of fans who wanted Shady back felt at first that Eminem had missed the mark]], leading to Eminem expressing CreatorBacklash, and the Shady appearances on Eminem's following albums ''Recovery'', ''The Marshall Mathers LP 2'' and ''SHADYXV'' are much closer to the original characterisation. |
| 130 | [[/folder]] |
| 131 | |
| 132 | [[folder:Professional Wrestling]] |
| 133 | * Happens all the time in Wrestling/{{WWE}}, when a wrestler will return after several months - or even years - [[HeelFaceTurn as a face when they previously were a heel]], or [[FaceHeelTurn vice versa]], just to keep them fresh or quickly get him back in a title hunt. Double- (if not triple-) subverted once by Wrestling/{{Tatanka}}, who returned to WWE after about a decade as the same old [[NobleSavage "Native American Warrior"]], stuck to the {{face}} gimmick for over a year, then abruptly turned heel and transformed himself into a Wrestling/{{Sting}}-like "vengeful spirit" in black-and-white corpse paint - then was unceremoniously released from WWE just three weeks later. |
| 134 | [[/folder]] |
| 135 | |
| 136 | [[folder:Tabletop Games]] |
| 137 | * ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer}}'': Durthu the Wood Elf [[PlantPerson Treeman]] started out in the late '90s as a wise, kindly, fatherly figure among the Treemen, who nevertheless hated the Dwarfs who were cutting down and burning his forest home. He stopped being available as a special character as of the release of the 6[[superscript:th]] edition of the game in 2000, but was mentioned once or twice -- with his original personality more or less the same -- in the 2005 6th edition Wood Elf army book (indeed, he was seen as something of a moderating influence on the more warlike of his kin). Fast forward to the 2014 8[[superscript:th]] edition Wood Elf book: Durthu is a fanatical spirit of hatred, death, and vengeance. Thanks to a run in with the fire and axes of the Dwarfs, he is now a charred ruin of a treeman, obsessed with destroying the enemies of the forest at all costs. |
| 138 | [[/folder]] |
| 139 | |
| 140 | [[folder:Toys]] |
| 141 | * ''Franchise/SylvanianFamilies'' have this happen to the sets when a set is phased out of production and is then revived several years later. Marketing staff change and the new staff are likely not eager to pore through archived documentation left by their predecessors. This resulted in complete personality changes, completely changed backstory, inconsistent names, and in the most extreme cases, even changes in color tone and design, resulting in a set that is InNameOnly or worse, is nothing like when the set was originally produced. Examples include the Walnut Squirrel family (originally called the Furbanks outside of Japan at one point before the International name was synchronized with Japan while the US name was changed to Hazelnut instead) and the Striped Cat family (originally called the Macavity family outside of Japan at one point. Again, the International name was synchronized with Japan while the US name was changed to the Sandy Cat family). |
| 142 | [[/folder]] |
| 143 | |
| 144 | [[folder:Video Games]] |
| 145 | * ''Franchise/TouhouProject'' has sort of a weird example. There was an unofficial ContinuityReboot between the fifth and the sixth games (there's some evidence the early games are still in continuity, but even more that they're not, and WordOfGod isn't helping). So, four characters from before the reboot have shown up in later games. They vary from sharing only the name and a few bits of character design[[note]]Alice Margatroid[[/note]] to just having a noticeably different personality[[note]]Kazami Yuuka, who, while still a bit sarcastic, no longer jokes about things like genocide being an enjoyable pastime.[[/note]]. Later on, ZUN [[TrollingCreator began subverting]] popular fanon personalities given to various characters by making them the complete opposite in both dialogue and ExpandedUniverse -- for example, Nitori goes from a supposedly shy genius inventor to a racist, grouchy, violent scam artist. |
| 146 | * ''VideoGame/The3rdBirthday'''s Aya Brea is [[{{Chickification}} much more unstable, submissive, and frightened]] than Aya was in ''VideoGame/ParasiteEve'', to the point of seeming helpless no matter how badass you are in the gameplay. [[spoiler:This is because [[TomatoInTheMirror she's actually Eve]]; Aya herself is actually a total badass in a later cutscene.]] |
| 147 | * Pictured above is Phoenix Wright from the ''Franchise/AceAttorney'' series, a promising lawyer and a really caring person in [[VisualNovel/PhoenixWrightAceAttorney the first trilogy]]. And then came ''[[VisualNovel/ApolloJusticeAceAttorney Apollo Justice]]'', 7 years later, where Phoenix was now a scruffy-looking man who played poker at the basement of a bar and has a 15-year-old adopted daughter. Although when you get to play as him, you learn that he's still the same guy on the inside and we learn what happened: [[spoiler: He got disbarred as a lawyer when he was set up and tricked into presenting forged evidence, costing him his career. As for Trucy Wright, she was the daughter of a man that Phoenix was representing and who disappeared when she was 8. Afterward, Phoenix adopted her as his own daughter and took on odd jobs, such as playing poker, to support her. Turns out these are connected; the man who tricked Phoenix into using forged evidence was the original defending lawyer of Trucy's biological father, who dropped him when he saw him play poker. Or rather, gauged him as a ruthless man and thus dishonest. Given how he ruined Phoenix's career out of his pride being slighted, he was not wrong.]] Then it [[AuthorsSavingThrow came full circle]], with Phoenix resuming the role of protagonist in ''VisualNovel/PhoenixWrightAceAttorneyDualDestinies'', [[HesBack returning to being a lawyer after getting his name cleared]]. For the most part, he kept the mature mentor personality, but his inner monologues reveal that sometimes he's as clueless as his rookie partners (which could be chalked up to being out of the field for seven years). Trucy, meanwhile becomes Phoenix's new assistant and she's quite capable in her own right. |
| 148 | * Frank West from the original ''VideoGame/DeadRising'' had a mostly serious, grounded personality. Come ''VideoGame/DeadRising4'', Frank returns after not having been seen canonically since ''Case West'', a stand-alone expansion to the [[VideoGame/DeadRising2 second game]]. The most obvious change right out the bat is [[TheOtherDarrin a new voice actor]] and a different face while looking notably younger and in-shape than his last appearance (where he was an out-of-shape middle-aged man) even though he's supposed to be ''even older'' at this point. Personality-wise, he's now much sillier and [[ManChild immature]], cracking jokes at every opportune (and inopportune) moment and generally seems to have lost a lot of their moral integrity as a result. Even ''Case West'' Frank had completely noble intentions, while the plot of ''Dead Rising 4'' is mostly centered around his glory hound nature. This has been a contentious change, to say the least. |
| 149 | * Princess Pride from ''VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork'' is an extreme example. When she made her debut in the [[VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork2 second game]], she was a remorseless terrorist who nearly led several people to their deaths. Come the [[VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork5TeamColonelAndTeamProtoMan fifth game]], [[HeelFaceTurn she joins the heroes]] in the battle against [[BigBad Nebula]] and is by far one of the nicest characters in the team. This may be attributed to her portrayal in [[Anime/MegaManNTWarrior2002 the anime adaptation]], where she was a [[NiceGuy Nice Girl]] [[AdaptationalHeroism from the start]]. |
| 150 | * ''Franchise/StreetFighter'': |
| 151 | ** Cody Travers of ''VideoGame/FinalFight'' was originally portrayed as a motivated and heroic figure, out to save his girlfriend Jessica from the Mad Gear Gang. Later on Creator/{{Capcom}} brought him back as part of the cast of ''VideoGame/StreetFighterAlpha 3'' but much to the surprise of players, he returned as an escaped convict, complete with prison clothes and handcuffs on his wrists, though his taunt reveals he can take them off at any time if he wished. (Conversely, Guy, Rolento, and Sodom were mostly unchanged from their ''Final Fight'' appearances.) Capcom explained that his battle with the Mad Gear Gang had given birth to [[BloodKnight an addiction to fighting]] and he was thrown in prison for his constant brawling. Later, in ''[[VideoGame/StreetFighterIV Super Street Fighter IV]]'', he escapes prison again to look for some excitement (with all evidence suggesting [[CardboardPrison he can bust out of jail any time he wants unquestioned]]) and tells Guy in his ending that prison is where he belongs. Further on, in ''Final Fight: Streetwise'', he falls even further due to a bum knee and juicing on a radical drug in order to stay competitive, though he tries to coach his brother due to the potential Cody sees in Kyle, was said to have deliberately taken the fall for a different crime ''Guy'' had committed (Guy also on the receiving end of this trope in ''Streetwise'' to a lesser extent), and [[spoiler:later regains the full use of his legs thanks to said drug]]. |
| 152 | ** It should be noted, however, that Guy feels, deep down, Cody remains a hero and is willing to fight him to make a point of it and convince Cody to join him in the battle against injustice (hence their Rival Battles in ''Alpha 3'' and ''SSFIV''). Cody himself says [[ChronicHeroSyndrome he can't idly sit by]] while evil -- like Bison and Seth -- is at large (again affirmed by his ''Street Fighter'' appearances, particularly his ''Alpha 3'' ending), and depending on the continuity, Cody may have even been falsely accused and jailed for ''Poison's'' crimes. ''VideoGame/StreetFighterV'' shows Guy's faith in Cody isn't unwarranted, as Cody cleans up his act, gets exonerated of his crimes by Haggar, and goes on to become Metro City's next mayor... [[ImNotAHeroIm though Cody insists he's not hero material]]. |
| 153 | ** Charlie, previously presumed dead in the ''VideoGame/StreetFighterAlpha'' series, returns in ''VideoGame/StreetFighterV''. He is now covered in unsettling, wrong-colored skin grafts held together by giant staples, has a PowerCrystal stuck into the middle of his forehead, and his physical transformation seems to have induced a personality transformation as well with Charlie issuing cold threats of lethal violence if you are unfortunate enough to be his opponent. His moveset is also different, replete with FlashStep teleports and the ability to call upon a dark green energy of sorts. The story mode explains that [[spoiler:he was revived by [[VideoGame/StreetFighterIII Illuminati]] agents and is given a task to kill Bison and stop the Shadaloo group, and he's told that while he's given enhanced powers, his revival won't last long, so he's pretty dead-set on his mission. It's also revealed that his ending in ''Alpha 2'', where Charlie was betrayed by his own Air Force members (implied to be Shadaloo's mole troops) and thrown out of his aircraft, was his canonical death as opposed to the previously-thought-to-be-canon HeroicSacrifice in ''Alpha 3'', which made Charlie bitter and untrusting]]. |
| 154 | * Invoked in ''VideoGame/TalesOfSymphoniaDawnOfTheNewWorld''. Lloyd returns but acts completely out of character [[spoiler:because that Lloyd is an impostor]]. |
| 155 | * A central theme of the ''VisualNovel/WorldEndEconomica'' visual novel trilogy by Isuna Hasekura is the changes made to the setting and characters in the {{Time Skip}}s between each of the instalments. In each episode, the characters look and act noticeably different and more mature. This is especially notable in Haru, the protagonist, who goes from an overambitious and bratty teenager to an almost emotionless adult after [[spoiler:Barton's betrayal leaves Haru two million [[WeirdCurrency mools]] in debt, and everybody he worked so hard to protect homeless, permanently shattering Haru's dream]] at the end of episode.01. |
| 156 | * ''VideoGame/HarvestMoonBackToNature'' plays with this. Most of the residents of Mineral Town are recycled characters from ''VideoGame/HarvestMoon64'', but despite the same name and character designs, they often have completely different personalities, job descriptions, and even relationships with the other villagers. |
| 157 | * Isaac and Garrett, heroes from ''VideoGame/GoldenSun1'' and ''VideoGame/GoldenSunTheLostAge'' are completely different in ''VideoGame/GoldenSunDarkDawn'', which takes place 20 years later. Isaac was originally portrayed as a bit reckless, but had a clear goal in mind and knew what to do while Garrett was the hot headed idiot. Cut ahead 20 years later, Isaac has become totally aloof, cryptic, and has no problem of sending his son, Matthew, and his friend, Faris, on a dangerous quest to save Garrett's son, Tyrell and then tasking all three kids with finding a way to repairing the Soar Wing. Garrett calls Isaac out for being completely irresponsible by letting the kids go out on their own on such a dangerous journey while Isaac says it will do them good since they would learn from experience like he had done when he first started on his quest years prior. In short, Isaac goes from leader to vague and irresponsible while Garrett changes from irresponsible to responsible and sensible. |
| 158 | * ''VideoGame/CapcomVs'': |
| 159 | ** [[Franchise/ResidentEvil Jill Valentine]] manages to do this in a non-storyline way in ''VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcom3''. In ''VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcom2'' she was still wearing [[VideoGame/ResidentEvil1 her S.T.A.R.S. uniform]] and was able to do things like a flaming dash and summon zombies, birds, and a Tyrant for her Hyper Combo. Come ''[=MvC3=]'', where she came in as DownloadableContent, she was modeled after her appearance in ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil5'', where she was under Wesker's control. As a result she fought like an acrobatic assassin, using things like sommersault kicks and attacking with her Skorpion submachine gun. The two ''Marvel vs. Capcom'' iterations of Jill are completely different from each other with zero overlap, essentially making them two distinct characters in the same series of games. |
| 160 | ** Though less dramatically, Frank West in ''VideoGame/TatsunokoVsCapcom: Ultimate All-Stars'' and ''Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3'' are not the same character. He still behaves the same way and his moves still fit the ''VideoGame/DeadRising'' setting he's from but the actual attacks are different, ''[=MvC3=]'' introduced an [[MechanicallyUnusualFighter unusual]] MagikarpPower gameplay mechanic to him and he has to approach the fight differently from ''[=TvC=]''. |
| 161 | ** Even though he was the FinalBoss of ''VideoGame/MarvelSuperHeroes'', [[Characters/MarvelComicsThanos Thanos]] is also playable in said game. However, he retained his [[GameBreaker game-breaking]] normal attacks even as a playable character. He had six Hyper Combos, representing his usage of each of the six [[ComicBook/TheInfinityGauntlet Infinity Gems]]. He was toned down considerably in ''[=MvC2=]'', where his normals weren't given such high priority and he only had access to four Hyper Combos, missing the ones where he uses the Time and Mind Gems. [[TheBusCameBack Making his return to the series]] in ''VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcomInfinite'', Thanos's moveset was given quite an overhaul. He has several new normals, special moves, and most importantly, Hyper Combos [[note]]considering that the usage of the rechristened Infinity [[Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse Stones]] are a part of the universal gameplay mechanics of ''[=MvCI=]'', Thanos no longer has access to them for Hyper Combos[[/note]]. |
| 162 | * The ''Franchise/SpyroTheDragon'' series underwent a soft ContinuityReboot for ''VideoGame/SpyroAHerosTail'', with many characters remaining from the Insomniac-era games, but altered heavily, alongside new characters; however, only one other game, ''VideoGame/SpyroShadowLegacy'', was released in that continuity before Creator/{{Sierra}} decided to start fresh- in came ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfSpyro'', which eventually got replaced by the not as Spyro-centric ''VideoGame/{{Skylanders}}''. |
| 163 | * Noob Saibot of the ''Franchise/MortalKombat'' franchise went through a curious change after his first appearance in ''[[VideoGame/MortalKombatII II]]''. In that game, he was a pure black palette swap of Scorpion, replete with his spear special move. Come [[VideoGame/MortalKombat3 the third game]], despite the game having ninjas in the form of Sub-Zero and the cyborg trio of Sektor, Cyrax and Smoke, Noob was made into a pure black palette swap of ''Kano'', and with no special moves. When Scorpion and Reptile were re-introduced in the ''Ultimate'' update of ''3'', Noob was altered into his traditional pure black ninja form, and the later ''Trilogy'' version made him the shadow attack-based character we know today. |
| 164 | * ''VideoGame/MetalGear'': |
| 165 | ** Frank Jaeger goes from being a charismatic and conflicted EvilCounterpart to Snake to being a ghost-like CyberNinja DeathSeeker with a CombatSadomasochist theme, although this is justified with CameBackWrong, with the other characters disturbed and horrified by the change. Also, flashes of his original personality emerge from time to time, particularly through his "Deepthroat" storyline and towards the end. A similar change happens to Raiden, who goes from being a ThisLoserIsYou gamer caricature who is still quite bright and hopeful, into a deeply depressed ninja who inherits Frank's Death Seeker personality and fixation on Snake - a [[RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap move to boost Raiden's popularity]] that went over quite well. Like with Frank, Snake in particular is shown to be horrified by what has happened to his friend, and tries to talk him back to his older personality. |
| 166 | ** Vamp keeps a similar aesthetic and powers between his appearances, but in ''4'' he has a markedly different personality, going from being brooding and somewhat sympathetic, to being a horrifically violent DeathSeeker with no explanation. All the water-themed and magic-themed powers he had in his first appearance (the ones [[CompositeCharacter inherited from Chinaman]]) are dropped. |
| 167 | * The Nameless Hero in the ''VideoGame/{{Gothic}}'' franchise. In the trilogy created by Piranha Bytes, he's known as a roguish hero with a snarky sense of humor and not really caring about authority. However, "Forsaken Gods" [[DependingOnTheWriter made by a completely different studio]] changed his character completely. He became [[TookALevelInJerkass overly patriotic, authoritarian and absolutely loves giving pompous speeches]]. That goes to the point he agrees to kill a bunch of people just because they refused to go to war. |
| 168 | * Anders from ''VideoGame/DragonAgeOriginsAwakening'' is almost a completely different character from his future appearance in ''VideoGame/DragonAgeII''. In ''Awakening'', he is a rather carefree apostate on the run from the Circle who is a pretty big womanizer. In ''II'', while still an apostate mage, he is now rather moody and serious, as well as being gay (if Hawke is a man, bisexual if Hawke is a woman) without showing any interest in any women (besides a female Hawke). This can at least partially be chalked up to the fact that he fused with Justice, a spirit from the Fade stuck in the physical world, which undoubtedly altered his personality (and continues to do so as the story progresses), but even with that he barely resembles the character he was in his first appearance. |
| 169 | * ''VideoGame/RedDeadRedemption2'': The personalities of most existing gang members from ''[[VideoGame/RedDeadRedemption I]]'' have been changed, some more than others. Only Jack Marston and Dutch van der Linde are more or less exactly like described in ''I''. |
| 170 | ** The first game and its AllInTheManual material paint John Marston as being the only rational one in the gang, disliked by both Javier Escuella and Bill Williamson, and who noticed Dutch's [[spoiler: declining mental state first]]. Not only is John more or less liked by almost everyone, John's rationality was given to Arthur Morgan. John was also said to have been a "romantic" and have an eloquent way of speaking, very much a stark contrast to his depiction in ''II''. |
| 171 | ** Javier is described as a creep disliked by Abigail Roberts who "had a lot of passion, but no love" for the outlaw lifestyle, and who was a FalseFriend to John. Here he's a DashingHispanic who genuinely sees John as a brother, respects Abigail, and whose main flaw is his UndyingLoyalty to Dutch. [[spoiler: Even as the gang starts falling apart, Javier doesn't go "crazy" like John described in ''I'', he just [[TookALeveInJerkass becomes a total asshole]]]]. |
| 172 | ** Bill is TheFriendNobodyLikes instead of the crazy and greedy maniac described in ''I''; however, this change is somewhat explained InUniverse by his mental issues. He was described as having a "fatherly" relationship with Dutch and a "brotherly" relationship with John and was jealous that Abigail picked John over him, none of which is shown or indicated in "II". Also, his AmbiguouslyGay traits contradicts the claim that he loved and slept with Abigail, as well as his [[spoiler: RapePillageAndBurn]] aspects from ''I''. |
| 173 | ** In general, it seems like Bill and Javier's negative traits that were implied in ''I'' were given to [[TokenEvilTeammate Micah Bell]], likely to make those two more sympathetic. Meanwhile, Bill's original background and some of John's implied character traits were given to Arthur. |
| 174 | ** Abigail is repeatedly said to have been the gang bicycle, which is not shown here. However, this is also somewhat justified as she is implied to have been a prostitute before Jack was born. Still, the way things happen in ''II'' would be unlikely to leave the impression that Abigail was "passed around" and was "any man's wife". |
| 175 | ** Even Uncle seems different. He's meek and grumpy in ''I'', but very outgoing and cheerful in ''II''. While this could initially be chalked up to him [[TookALevelInJerkass becoming more cynical]] [[spoiler: in the twelve years after the gang, basically his only family, had fallen apart]], that doesn't really work when taking into account that[[spoiler: he still has the same lively personality in the epilogue (1907) which is only a few years away from the events of ''I'' (1911)]]. Really, the only similarities he has with his characterization in the first game is that he's an old drunkard that dislikes working. There's also no indication in ''I'' that he was a part of the Van der Linde gang. |
| 176 | * ''VideoGame/SaintsRowIV'': In ''VideoGame/SaintsRowTheThird'', Cyrus Temple was a HeroAntagonist, but was [[ArmiesAreEvil militant extremist]] with little regard for human life, and the Well Intentioned Goal of driving out gang activity in Steelport. ''IV'', we get ''four'' different takes on Cyrus, in both the the real world and Zinyak's simulations. |
| 177 | ** There's the ''real'' Cyrus, who lost his more redeeming qualities, in favour of being a self-rigorous megalomaniac. When STAG is disbanded, their FalseFlagOperation exposed and the Saints hailed as heroes against STAG, out of spite, Cyrus joins a terror cell, leading a plot to launch a nuclear attack and recreate America in his own image. |
| 178 | ** There's the first virtual simulation of Cryus, created in Kenzie’s nightmare simulation. This Cyrus is a facist leader of 50's, spouting extreme conservative values and is Kinzie's controlling husband. |
| 179 | ** There's the second virtual recreation in the simulated Steelport, that resembles his counterpart in ''The Third'', but has the same megalomania as the real Cyrus, and the conservative and controlling nature of his first recreation. It's expressly stated this recreation of him is based off of Kinzie's memory of the man and her newfound hatred for him. |
| 180 | ** And finally, there's the third recreation of Cyrus as an unlockable homie. He's a lot closer to his counterpart in ''The Third'', but a lot more personable and even showing a softer side. He's apologetic to Shaundi regarding her treatment in STAG's captivity, and briefly mentions having a niece who was a fan of Veteran Child, asking the latter for an autograph for her. |
| 181 | * ''VideoGame/YouDontKnowJack'': Nate Shapiro is a smooth-talking GameShowHost in the '90s CD-ROM games. When he returns 20 years later in ''Full Stream'', he's a [[CloudCuckooLander slightly-unhinged]] ConspiracyTheorist hosting a radio show called "Truth Talk 23/7". |
| 182 | * ''VideoGame/NoMoreHeroesIII'' reintroduces plenty of characters from [[VideoGame/NoMoreHeroes past games]] as undergone having plenty of CharacterDevelopment, but by far the most drastic departure in characterization in Henry Cooldown, Travis Touchdown's twin brother. In previous games, Henry -- [[BreakingTheFourthWall by his own recognition]] -- is the "cool, handsome foil" who's played as [[CulturedBadass suave and classy, even during a fight]], but in ''III''... [[KnightOfCerebus oh boy]]... [[spoiler:he's become a completely AxCrazy, almost demonic berserker, having spent the interim between ''VideoGame/NoMoreHeroes2DesperateStruggle'' and ''III'' suffering [[GoMadFromTheRevalation an explosively traumatic revelation]] regarding his and Travis' SerialKiller father after watching the movie ''{{Film/Thor}}'' ([[{{Bathos}} yes, really]]). Not only did he receive an almost unrecognizable new look, his fighting style lost any elegance and since became violent and destructively unhinged, and he explicitly wants to kill Travis.]] |
| 183 | * ''VideoGame/GuiltyGear'': Going from ''VideoGame/GuiltyGearXrd'' to ''[[VideoGame/GuiltyGearStrive -STRIVE-]]'', Faust somehow went from being a jovial, wacky and eccentric doctor to having a downright creepy, horrifying personality on top of somehow looking more malformed, without quite going back to his original [[DeadlyDoctor Dr. Baldhead]] personality from [[VideoGame/GuiltyGearTheMissingLink the first game]]. There was initially ''zero'' explanation for his dramatic change, and all series director Creator/DaisukeIshiwatari had to say about it was [[ShrugOfGod a big shrug]]. ''Another Story'' finally shows how this sudden change of characterization happened, that being [[spoiler:[[EmptyShell Faust's soul left his body after overexertion from trying to save Delilah, leaving his body animated purely by his will to help people as a doctor]]]]. |
| 184 | * ''VideoGame/The7thSaga'' has seven playable apprentices. One of them is controlled by the player. One is recruited as the player's ally (maybe). One of them hired Pison to stop you (maybe). One of them snaps, so they [[spoiler: murder a king and steal the king's rune]]. One found a rune, only to be defeated by the player (or, perhaps, join the player). On rare occasions, one may betray and attack the player when they find a rune. The rest either temporarily joined the player or did nothing of note. But again, all seven apprentices are playable; five of them can fill any role, while the other two can't snap or betray you but can fill any other role. This means Same Character, But Different applies to '''''every''''' playable character. |
| 185 | * In ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles2'', this occurs in-universe whenever a Blade's Driver dies, as, when this happens, the Blade in question returns to their Core Crystal, and, upon resonance with a new Driver from there, they retain none of their previous life's memories. One such example is when [[spoiler:Vandham]] dies, and his sole Blade returns to its Core Crystal. Rex then resonates with it anew, and it introduces itself as though meeting for the first time. Of course, like many other Blades in its position, it expresses an interest in learning more about what its old Driver was like. While Blades generally retain their personalities between resonations, it's not unheard of for certain ones to vary depending on the nature of their current Driver, such as the KnightErrant Perceval having been a ruthless murderer under his previous Driver. |
| 186 | * In the ''VisualNovel/ZeroEscape'' trilogy, Junpei changes drastically in each installement. He's introduced as a naive college-age boy in ''VisualNovel/NineHoursNinePersonsNineDoors'', but when he's reintroduced in ''VisualNovel/ZeroTimeDilemma'', he's now a brooding angst-filled detective. Basically the only prominent character trait that persists between games is his care and devotion to his loved ones. [[spoiler:This is actually the trope behind a major twist in ''VisualNovel/VirtuesLastReward''. Who would've suspected that Tenmyouji - a bitter old man - is actually the protagonist from the previous game, searching for Akane, especially when you are led to believe that the game only takes place a year after the first game?]] |
| 187 | [[/folder]] |
| 188 | |
| 189 | [[folder:Web Animation]] |
| 190 | * ''WebAnimation/{{Eddsworld}}'' originally featured four main characters based on the real life creators of the show. Edd, Creator/{{Tom|Ska}}, Matt and Tord. Since the latter didn't exactly get along with Tom, he eventually decided to leave the team, his character was also removed from the cast. In ''Eddsworld Legacy'', made as a tribute to Edd Gould after his death, Tord is brought back in the final episode, but this time as an antagonist, revealing that his [[EvilAllAlong friendship was a lie]]. This idea was quite controversial as Tord is based on a real person and this vilification of his character was deemed insensitive for some. |
| 191 | [[/folder]] |
| 192 | |
| 193 | [[folder:Western Animation]] |
| 194 | * In ''WesternAnimation/AdventureTime'', [[OurGoblinsAreDifferent Xergiok the Goblin King]] was introduced as a tyrant whom [[KidHero Finn]] and [[NonHumanSidekick Jake]] had to defeat. He reappears seasons later having been magically blinded, peacefully [[FriendToAllLivingThings caring for a flock of giant birds]]. [[spoiler:He goes through a FaceHeelRevolvingDoor, temporarily turning evil again]]. |
| 195 | * ''WesternAnimation/BeastMachines'': One of the main reasons this series gets a lot of criticism is that the characters' characterizations aren't completely consistent with the [[WesternAnimation/BeastWars original series]], most notably: |
| 196 | ** Optimus Primal becoming an extremist who is so focused on the mission that he thinks little of the other Maximals' feelings (which, to be fair, is called out InUniverse) |
| 197 | ** Megatron developing a supremacist hatred of organic life, which he had never exhibited during the Beast Wars |
| 198 | * ''Franchise/Ben10'' has this as a source of for why every installment is a ContestedSequel, with most characters deemed by fans to have undergone personality shifts both major and minor between showrunners -- those being Creator/ManOfActionStudios and Alex Soto for the original, Dwayne [=McDuffie=] and Glen Murakami for ''Alien Force'' and ''Ultimate'', Derrick J. Wyatt and Matt Youngberg for ''Omniverse'', and Man of Action and John Fang for the 2016 reboot. How many of these personality changes made sense in the original continuity, and thus actually qualify for this trope, is YMMV, but the following are unanimously agreed upon: |
| 199 | ** In the original ''WesternAnimation/Ben10'' series, [[MonsterClown Zombozo]] was a horrifying emotion vampire who was also a great showman. In ''WesternAnimation/Ben10UltimateAlien'', he's just ComicBook/TheJoker with a couple of magician-based superpowers. |
| 200 | ** Kevin in the original series was an EnfantTerrible with extra terrible, being ''frighteningly'' murderous. In some ways he was more evil than even some season {{Big Bad}}s: A TakeOverTheWorld type will kill you because you're in the way; Kevin will kill you just because he ''can.'' In ''WesternAnimation/Ben10AlienForce'' and ''WesternAnimation/Ben10UltimateAlien'', he's reintroduced as a criminal of the more "out to make a dishonest buck" type and quickly makes a HeelFaceTurn after falling in LoveAtFirstSight (well, first sight in the new series) with Gwen. His powers have gone from energy absorption to the ability to transform into any material he touches. When his past was discussed, it was softened considerably - apparently, viewers were supposed to believe he'd ''always'' been the mostly harmless ne'er-do-well he'd been in the first ten minutes of ''Alien Force.'' It should tell you something when TheDreaded BigBad ''Vilgax,'' once described as "Darth Vader without the sense of humor," turned out to actually care about his people and is a UniversallyBelovedLeader back home and it wasn't considered to be nearly the same level of derailment as Kevin's change. Some of his behavior can be attributed to the five-year TimeSkip, but certain changes like his lack of sociopathy and rather abrupt HeelFaceTurn struck a sizable chunk of the fanbase as ham-fisted. It took until ''Ultimate Alien'' before any explanation was given for how Kevin became sane - it was still being demanded at that point because even after ''years'' of this new characterization, Saint Kevin was just too big a horse pill for fans to swallow. In all fairness the writers ''did'' have an explanation in mind they would have used in the third season of ''Alien Force'', but thanks to ExecutiveMeddling it was scrapped and they ended up having to incorporate it into the sequel series instead. |
| 201 | ** It's to the point that Ben and Gwen giving Kevin a chance needed ''every'' bit as much explaining away because it's just that unthinkable after what he'd been like. After a time travel episode that Original Series Ben wasn't supposed to remember once he'd returned to the past, Professor Paradox [[AuthorsSavingThrow explained that he'd remember it very faintly]], maybe just enough to consider the idea of Kevin becoming good when meeting him again. ''Omniverse'' took it farther, establishing that the gang had met the criminal-but-not-psychotic version of Kevin between the original series and AF/UA, though this serves as another SeriesContinuityError on ''Omniverse's'' part since it was already established that Ben and Gwen hadn't seen Kevin since he was locked in the Null Void. Yes, it actually took years to make the new Kevin make sense, and ''more'' years to make Ben and Gwen ''entertaining the idea that Kevin could be in their midst and not kill them for fun'' make sense! That's how you know you've fallen into this trope big-time. [[note]](For the record, if you care, the reason given for his change was that his powers can absorb matter ''or'' energy, but storing energy drives him insane. He learned to rid himself of that energy between series, and has stuck to a matter-only diet since then.)[[/note]] |
| 202 | ** The character of Charmcaster is a particularly egregious case of this trope in action. In the original series, she was a play on the DarkMagicalGirl trope, more willfully malevolent than most but not wholly devoid of better qualities either. Come ''Alien Force'', she has [[TookALevelInJerkass become purely villainous]] and increasingly [[AxCrazy murderous]]. In ''Ultimate Alien'', she suddenly becomes a [[WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds darkly tragic]] BrokenBird who starts going through a HeelFaceRevolvingDoor. Then in ''Omniverse'', an emotional breakdown has made her become a [[PsychopathicManchild childish]], LaughablyEvil CloudCuckoolander, although toward the end she circles back toward being more like she was in the original series. |
| 203 | ** Hex from the original ''WesternAnimation/Ben10'' series was a ruthless villain and a major enemy of the Tennysons. His reappearances in ''Alien Force'' are similar, but ''Ultimate Alien'' emphasizes his care for his niece, Charmcaster. Then ''Omniverse'' came along and by the Hex appeared, he'd completely abandoned villainy and was content with his new job as a university professor. Not only that, but he became a lot friendlier. [[LampshadeHanging Even Gwen and the others are puzzled by this 180 in personality.]] |
| 204 | * Cleveland Jr. from ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'' was portrayed as a little, energetic kid... until ''WesternAnimation/TheClevelandShow'', when he reappeared transformed into a fat, slow-witted Chris Griffin {{Expy}}. This is [[LampshadeHanging lampshaded]] in the episode ''A Rodent Like This'' when Junior points out to Rallo that he looks nothing like Cleveland and it is revealed [[spoiler:that the real Cleveland Junior was killed and the current one [[ItMakesSenseInContext is really a spy who replaced him in order to get to his next target]]]]. Naturally the episode has a ResetButtonEnding. |
| 205 | * ''WesternAnimation/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy2015'': |
| 206 | ** Played with. The Guardians are very different in both personality and appearance than how they've previously been seen in ''WesternAnimation/UltimateSpiderMan2012'' and the first season of ''WesternAnimation/AvengersAssemble'' as they're being based more on their movie counterparts but more recent episodes of ''Avengers Assemble'' and ''WesternAnimation/HulkAndTheAgentsOfSmash'' have featured the updated Guardians. |
| 207 | ** But played straight in the cases of the Collector, Grandmaster, The Supreme Intelligence and Ronan the Accuser who like the Guardians have extremely different personalities and appearances than they did in ''Ultimate Spider-Man'' and ''Hulk and the Agents of SMASH'', which is especially jarring when the former and this show go back to back and feature both versions of the characters, not to mention that the season finale of the latter featured the redesigned Guardians and the original version of Ronan. |
| 208 | * The Hyperion studio's ''Itsy Bitsy Spider'' (spun off from the short subject that played in theaters with the feature ''Bebe's Kids'') series had a little {{Meganekko}} girl named Leslie as Itsy's friend. Leslie went from being sweet and introverted in the first season to kind of bitchy in the second. |
| 209 | * Goofy and Pete had sons in various WesternAnimation/ClassicDisneyShorts (some of the fatherhood-related TheEveryman sketches for the former, and the WesternAnimation/DonaldDuck cartoon "Bellboy Donald" for the latter). They had sons decades later in the ''WesternAnimation/GoofTroop'' series (and a [[CanonImmigrant few other sources]] in Goofy's case). Within this time: |
| 210 | ** Goofy Jr. gained ears, turned from a redhead with a pink nose to being colored the same way as his dad, became much more serious and also more of a RoundedCharacter (since Goofy Jr. was mainly a plot device), and got a name change to Max. There was a brief transition period in the comics, though. |
| 211 | ** Pete Jr. got smaller ears, got fatter, had his voice pitched up roughly two or three octaves (despite being ''older''), and made a 180 degree personality change from being [[EnfantTerrible bratty, conniving, and sadistic]] to being a [[NiceGuy sweet and unassuming]] textbook {{Woobie}}. Oh, and he started going by "PJ" instead of "Junior." |
| 212 | * The 2015 revival of the 2007 ''WesternAnimation/{{George of the Jungle|2007}}'' series has had several changes made to the characters. George is a TopHeavyGuy like 60s George, Ape has a British accent like 60s Ape, Magnolia and Ursula's names have been switched, Ursula (previously named Magnolia) is a feral wild woman, the scientist and the witch doctor are no longer the girls' dads, and the scientist is now a villain. |
| 213 | ** Ursula and Magnolia switching names might have been a reference to Magnolia being based on the 60s Ursula, with the new Ursula being a mostly original character, but the former Magnolia becoming a villain makes her seem even less like any character from the original. |
| 214 | * Kiara as a cub hated the idea of becoming queen in ''WesternAnimation/TheLionKingIISimbasPride'' but in the midquel ''WesternAnimation/TheLionGuard'' she's pleased with the idea and lords it over Kion. She was also shown to be a very poor hunter even as an adult in ''Simba's Pride'', to the point where Kovu had to teach her how, but in ''The Lion Guard'' she seems to be a pro even as a cub. |
| 215 | * Bubbles in ''WesternAnimation/ThePowerpuffGirls1998'' was a sensitive, FriendToAllLivingThings and was TheHeart of the trio. In ''WesternAnimation/ThePowerpuffGirls2016'' her {{cloudcuckoolander}} traits are exaggerated even compared to her post-{{flanderization}} characterization in the previous series. She's not portrayed nearly as sensitive as before and has an [[GenkiGirl excitable]] [[FunPersonified personality]]. Her [[BewareTheNiceOnes darker side]] is more obvious as well. |
| 216 | * ''WesternAnimation/{{Kaeloo}}'': This happens to Pretty in season 5. From her introduction until the end of season 4, Pretty was a [[ItsAllAboutMe self-centered]], [[JerkAss mean]] {{narcissist}} and an AlphaBitch. In season 5, Pretty is revealed to have undergone offscreen CharacterDevelopment and becomes a friendly, helpful, and caring person, with absolutely none of her previous character traits present. |
| 217 | * ''WesternAnimation/SheRaAndThePrincessesOfPower'': Princess Frosta was a strict and solemn ruler who took herself very seriously during her first appearance in Season 1. In Season 2, she is way more excitable and eager to help. It's {{Justified|Trope}} since she was putting up a front as not look too weak or immature to rule her kingdom, being a kid made too mature too soon into the role of a monarch, and after joining the Rebellion she finally allowed herself to be a kid, but it's still almost a complete 180 of her personality. |
| 218 | * ''WesternAnimation/TotalDrama'' |
| 219 | ** Ezekiel was introduced as a home-schooled loner who was always destined to be eliminated first and forgotten. Come ''World Tour'', he stowes away on the plane and becomes malnourished and feral, pretty much turning into [[Film/TheLordOfTheRings Gollum]], where he'd spend the rest of his time terrorizing the cast with his [[RecurringExtra Where's Waldo]] style cameos. |
| 220 | ** This was kind of done with [[InformedAttractiveness Justin]]. In the first season proper, he was very OutOfFocus--he only spoke in the first episode and got voted off around episode five. In the first season special, however, he [[SuddenlySpeaking talks a lot more]] and is presented as a rather crafty antagonist. Season two continued with this characterization and set him up as the new villain, only to [[AbortedArc forget about that arc]] and replace him with Courtney. |
| 221 | [[/folder]] |
| 222 |
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