| 1 | %% This page's examples section is sorted alphabetically. It would be lovely if you'd maintain this, thanks. |
| 2 | %% |
| 3 | %% Image selected per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=dflt5vofp32j2d32mt9zha3b |
| 4 | %% Please do not change or remove without starting a new thread. |
| 5 | [[quoteright:200:[[WesternAnimation/{{Aladdin}} https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/sealed-good-in-a-can_aladdin_1243.jpg]]]] |
| 6 | [[caption-width-right:200:'''[[AC:[[LargeHam Phenomenal, Cosmic Powers]]!]]''' [---...[[AndIMustScream itty-bitty living space.]]---] ]] |
| 7 | ->''"By now I will have been dead for many thousands of your years. Embedded in the crystals before you is the total accumulation of all literature and scientific fact of dozens of other worlds spanning the twenty-eight known galaxies. There are many questions to be asked. Here, in this Fortress of Solitude, we will try to find the answers together. So, my son, Kal-El: speak."'' |
| 8 | -->-- '''Jor-El''', ''Film/SupermanTheMovie'' |
| 9 | |
| 10 | The complete opposite of SealedEvilInACan. This entity is usually kind and gentle, and usually (if not always) rewards the one who releases it, if it can. In other cases, the wandering band of travelers are desperately trying to evade capture or being killed by the forces of darkness. They stumble upon the entity and, thanks to a can-opener (which can range from a trinket to a sacrifice), the only thing that can stop the great evil awakens, and prepares to open a can... of whoop-ass. Sometimes it's revealed that there is a baddie in there with them and they were the BarrierMaiden or the ever-fighting guard keeping them in (SealedEvilInADuel). In these cases their release ''also'' releases the SealedEvilInACan. [[NiceJobBreakingItHero Oops]]. |
| 11 | |
| 12 | Comes in two flavors: |
| 13 | |
| 14 | * '''Sealed by allies.''' Similar to SealedBadassInACan. There was something in the future they would be needed to combat, so to make sure they would be ready, the Good let themselves be sealed. If the future threat was simply "bad guy I need to beat up," it's probably a case of SealedBadassInACan instead. |
| 15 | |
| 16 | * '''Sealed by enemies.''' A straight inversion of SealedEvilInACan. There was a great foe that no one could defeat, so they sealed him away instead. Only difference is that the foe is the good guy, and the sealers evil. This, in turn, can overlap with BadassInDistress, particularly if the sealed good is a Badass who had to be captured prior to the sealing. |
| 17 | |
| 18 | Occasionally used as a more subtle form of DeusExMachina; may qualify as HoldingBackThePhlebotinum, but on some occasions these can be the main hero. See SealedInsideAPersonShapedCan for when the Good is imprisoned inside a living being, SealedCastInAMultipack for when several characters (good or evil) are canned, or SealedBadassInACan for a neutral variant. See ArtifactOfHope, which could qualify as "the can." Compare FlingALightIntoTheFuture. Contrast KingInTheMountain, who is usually ''not'' let out. May be caused by SupernaturalSealing. See also AwakeningTheSleepingGiant, which is where the Good is less "sealed in a can" and more "lazy". Contrast with TrappedInTheHost. |
| 19 | ---- |
| 20 | !!Examples: |
| 21 | |
| 22 | [[foldercontrol]] |
| 23 | |
| 24 | [[folder:Anime and Manga]] |
| 25 | * The original sealing away of Alexiel in ''Manga/AngelSanctuary'' is a borderline example of this. True, she was captured trying to [[RageAgainstTheHeavens bring down Heaven's ruling class]]. On the other hand, the angels and demons vary so much between moralities that it's hard to say whether she's good or [[SealedEvilInACan evil]]. |
| 26 | * C.C. from ''Anime/CodeGeass'' is almost literally Sealed Good In A Can, since she begins the series locked inside a mechanical capsule that supposedly contains poison gas. |
| 27 | ** The protagonist of the ''Geass'' game ''Lost Colors'' [[spoiler:put himself into a coma within a Geass ruin following the death of his friends and family, making him a rare case of self-sealing]]. |
| 28 | * An early chapter of ''Manga/CrimsonSpell'' features an example of this trope in the form of the magical spirit-creature Lizregbel, released by Vald and Havi and promptly renamed "Ruruka" after Val's little brother's pet bunny. |
| 29 | * Insead of being a villain initially in ''Anime/DigimonAdventure2020'', Gatomon was sealed inside [=SkullKnightmon=] until Kari willingly went inside him to find her. |
| 30 | * In ''Anime/DigimonFusion'', it turns out [[spoiler:the [=DigiMemories=] are actually a group of ancient, heroic Digimon that protected the Digital World. They were ultimately sealed in there in a failed attempt to stop the break up of the Digital World.]] |
| 31 | ** Goldramon has two dragons sealed in his bracers: Amon of the Crimson Blaze, who administers destruction, and Umon of the Blue Thunder, who administers creation. |
| 32 | * Elder Kai from ''[[Manga/DragonBall Dragon Ball Z]]'' was was sealed in the Z Sword about 75 million years ago, and when he comes out he provides lots of help in the effort against Buu. It’s later revealed that the person who sealed him in there was Beerus. |
| 33 | ** And Tapion in ''Anime/DragonBallZWrathOfTheDragon'', who was himself the container of a SealedInsideAPersonShapedCan. |
| 34 | ** In the Piccolo Jr. Saga, Kami attempted to seal Piccolo (the then BigBad) in a bottle with the Evil Containment Wave. Piccolo bounced it back at Kami, sealing him until Goku beat Piccolo and freed him. |
| 35 | * ''Manga/FairyTail'' |
| 36 | ** In the Tartaros Arc, it is revealed [[spoiler:the dragons Igneel, Metalicana, Grandeeny, Weisslogia, and Skiadrum]] were this the entire time, [[spoiler:sealed inside their dragon slayer children, with Igneel leaving Natsu's body to fight off Acnologia while the others destroyed every unit of the magic destroying Face]]. The reasons they sealed themselves were because [[spoiler:one, they needed to provide anti-bodies to prevent the Dragon Slayers from turning into dragons; two, to recover their power while hiding from Acnologia; and three, to have a mean of traveling 400 years into the future, where there would be more magic to absorb]]. |
| 37 | ** Also hinted at in the Tartaros Arc, and further elaborated in the [[GrandFinale Alvarez Empire]] Arc, Fairy Tail's greatest secret Lumen Histoire is actually [[spoiler:the comatose (''not'' dead like almost everyone in the world believes) body of their first guildmaster Mavis Vermillion, who has been using an AstralProjection to interact with the guild and pretending to be a ghost]]. The reasons for this were because [[spoiler:one, her body is the container for an ''infinite'' source of magic known as Fairy Heart that plenty of people would want to get their hands on; and two, because she actually suffers from the same CompleteImmortality curse as [[BigBad Zeref]] complete with InstantDeathRadius, which would both be a threat to her beloved family and the knowledge of her true status would attract all sorts of unwanted attention.]] |
| 38 | * ''Anime/{{Gungrave}}'': [[spoiler:Before his death, Brandon Heat left a letter for Big Daddy, stating that in the event of his (Brandon's) death, and if Harry and the Millenion goes down the wrong path, Brandon would allow his body to undergo necrolization and become a Deadman. His last request was to remain locked away in the doctor's confinement chamber, in a state of hibernation, until the time he needs to be summoned. Brandon (better known as "Grave"), "sleeps" for thirteen years until Mika (Big Daddy's daughter) awakens/releases him because she was told to seek his protection]]. |
| 39 | * This is what Mikael and Silky from ''Anime/ImGonnaBeAnAngel'' [[spoiler:did to themselves - they sealed their fallen halos, in a box (well, more like three boxes) in Mikael's case and in a drawer in Silky's case. Given that a fallen halo means losing potentiality of becoming an angel (losing any goodness) and is basically an expression of self-hatred, it's no wonder why they both turned into such psychos at the end]]. |
| 40 | * In ''Manga/JujutsuKaisen'', Suguru Geto's goal in the main series is to reduce [[BigGood Satoru Gojo]] to this, allowing him to continue with his plans with the strongest sorcerer out of the picture. [[spoiler:In Shibuya, he succeeds.]] |
| 41 | * In ''Manga/MamotteShugogetten,'' Shaorin and other spirits were imprisoned in objects for several hundred years at a time, only coming out to serve a master who was pure of heart. Unlike with most cases, exactly why this is done and who does it are a mystery. (Especially since none of them seem to have done anything to deserve it.) |
| 42 | * At the end of the first arc of ''Manga/MermaidMelodyPichiPichiPitch'', [[spoiler:the recently [[HeelFaceTurn reformed]] Gackto, Sara and the Dark Lovers are sealed under the ocean forever for their crimes. Although she's not going to go and [[RageAgainstTheHeavens turn on Aqua Regina]] for it, Lucia mourns them as if they were dead and is surprised to see them astral project in the Pure arc.]] |
| 43 | * The ''Anime/MonsterRancher'' anime had both Sealed Good and Sealed Evil. The goal of the protagonists became to revive the Phoenix before Mu could fully revive his original body. |
| 44 | * ''Manga/MyHeroAcademia'': During the Sports Festival, the protagonist Izuku Midoriya glimpses mysterious silhouettes who seemingly save him from being brainwashed. All Might brushes them off as mere remnants of previous users of One For All with no will of their own. Much later into the story it is revealed that [[spoiler:the previous users of One For All are indeed alive as spirits within the Quirk and have regained their consciousness. Their first action upon fully awakening is to contact Midoriya and promise to guide him. More information about them is also revealed as the series progresses.]] |
| 45 | * Oddly enough, ''Anime/{{Naruto}}'' himself is the subject of both this and SealedEvilInACan. [[spoiler:When the 4th Hokage, his father, sealed the Nine-Tailed Fox into Naruto, he sealed his own soul into Naruto as well. His soul serves as a failsafe to prevent the seal on the Fox from breaking. Not to mention that if it were possible him to get it out (it isn't), it would double as SealedBadassInACan.]] |
| 46 | * ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'': |
| 47 | ** The ''Black/White'' arc of ''Manga/PokemonAdventures'' ends with [[spoiler:Black getting sealed into the Light Stone in front of a horrified White.]] |
| 48 | ** ''Anime/PokemonLucarioAndTheMysteryOfMew'': The titular Lucario is an ancient Pokémon Aura Guardian who was sealed away in Sir Aaron's staff after the latter seemingly abandoned his kingdom to war and didn't want Lucario to follow him. Lucario would later be freed from the staff centuries when Ash Ketchum held it in a ceremony. |
| 49 | * Prince Mythos from ''Anime/PrincessTutu'' does not literally seal himself, but shatters his heart and seals the pieces in order to seal the Monster Raven. As Princess Tutu returns his heart shards and emotions, the seal on the Raven gets correspondingly weaker. |
| 50 | * In ''Manga/RaveMaster'' [[spoiler:Elie/Resha is one of these. She sealed herself away to combat [[EldritichAbomination Endless]], the seemingly unstoppable monster that would arise in fifty years time, and whose only weakness is her Etherion.]] |
| 51 | * ''Anime/TheRecordOfAFallenVampire / VampireJuujiKai'': The vampire queen Adelheid was considered to be SealedEvilInACan and released only because her ChaoticEvil powers could stop alien invaders... and upon release she revealed the truth that she hadn't [[spoiler:killed her husband's pregnant lover and confessed to it only to snap him out of destroying himself with a suicidal HeroicSacrifice.]] |
| 52 | * {{Implied|Trope}} for [[GreaterScopeParagon Prince Dios]] in ''Anime/RevolutionaryGirlUtena''. In nearly any given Utena incarnation, all the audience initially learns of him is that he resides in an unreachable floating castle, that [[MysteriousWaif Anthy the Rose Bride]] can summon his InfinityPlusOneSword, and that Utena can either summon or [[WillingChanneler channel]] him to [[GuardianEntity grant her victory]]. Beyond this, information is vague, but all evidence points to him being both powerful enough to [[ArcWords bring the world revolution]] and a benevolent, selfless savior of the weak prior to his current imprisonment. [[DeconstructorFleet This being Utena]], this gets several subversions depending on the version: |
| 53 | ** Manga: [[spoiler:Nearly played straight - Dios is indeed imprisoned, but only his [[SealedBadassInACan power]] and [[LiteralSplitPersonality his "good" side]]; his EnemyWithout (End of The World, aka Akio Ohtori) is unfortunately free as a bird.]] |
| 54 | ** Anime: [[spoiler:"Dios" (as well as his castle) were illusions all along. Dios himself is real and free - he just cranked FallenHero up in the intervening centuries and became Akio. His [[SealedBadassInACan powers]], on the other hand...]] |
| 55 | *** This is one of the ''many'' potential interpretations of the ending. |
| 56 | ** Movie: [[spoiler:Dios [[{{Tulpa}} was never real to begin with]], born from [[RealityWarper Anthy]]'s [[BigBrotherWorship need to see her brother as a hero and protector]], instead of the [[SissyVillain weak]], [[RapeAsDrama perverted rapist]] he really was.]] |
| 57 | * Mashiro in ''Anime/{{Tayutama}}'' chose to be sealed along with the Tayutai knowing that if they're freed she'll be freed along with them and can seal them again. She would much rather work with them and get them to get along with humans than fight them. She will fight if necessary however, which is what she does almost immediately upon being released. She then lectures the ones she defeats about how they need to be nice. |
| 58 | * In ''Anime/TearsToTiara'', the long-dead Demon King Arawn is this in the beginning of the series. He is mistaken for a SealedEvilInACan by an evil priest who releases him in the hopes of becoming his [[TheDragon Dragon]]. [[KarmicDeath It ends badly for the priest.]] |
| 59 | * Nuts from ''Anime/YesPrecure5'' was trapped inside the Dream Collet after he let a Kowainaa into his kingdom by mistake. |
| 60 | * ''Anime/YuGiOh'': Pharaoh [[spoiler:Atem]] sealed himself along with the BigBad so he would be around to defeat the Big Bad ''again'' when he was inevitably unsealed in the future. |
| 61 | * ''Anime/YuGiOhArcV'': [[spoiler:Ray, the duelist who first opposed GreaterScopeVillain and OmnicidalManiac Zarc [[SpellMyNameWithAnS (or Z-Arc)]]. The duel between them caused their home dimension to fragment into four different ones (Standard, Fusion, Synchro, and Xyz) and caused both their own souls to fragment, hers now residing in those of Ruri, Rin, Yuzu, and Serena. Unfortunately, Zarc is in the same situation, his soul fragments now residing in Yuri, Yuya, Yugo, and Yuto, and his original goal - destroying all of existence - is one he desires to renew.]] |
| 62 | * ''Manga/ZombieFairy'' has the zombie fairy, bound in a coffin. This is also a case of sealed evil in a can, as she is under a curse that causes her to go into [[SuperpoweredEvilSide berserker rages]]. |
| 63 | [[/folder]] |
| 64 | |
| 65 | [[folder:Comic Books]] |
| 66 | * ''ComicBook/Camelot3000'' is all about the Sealed Good of Myth/KingArthur being revived from a millennia-long hibernation to battle alien invaders. |
| 67 | * ''ComicBook/CaptainAmerica'', frozen in 1944 and thawed out again in... well, whenever the current continuity says (roughly [[ComicBookTime 12 years before whenever you're reading]]). |
| 68 | * Back in the [[UsefulNotes/TheGoldenAgeOfComicBooks Golden Age]], Fawcett Comics (best known for [[ComicBook/{{Shazam}} Captain Marvel)]] had a magician super-hero named Ibis the Invincible. He was an ancient Egyptian who had somehow wound up as a mummy, but then got reawakened in the present day in a museum. He then reawakened his mummified lady love (thanks to magic, they were revived as living breathing people, not movie-style mummies), and then he went on to become a very ComicStrip/MandrakeTheMagician-style super hero. He debuted in ''Whiz Comics'' #2, the very same issue that introduced Captain Marvel. Like the other Fawcett heroes, he's now owned by Creator/DCComics, and pops up once in a while in stories dealing with magic or [[{{Qurac}} the Middle East.]] His signature weapon is a magic wand called the Ibistick. |
| 69 | * ''ComicBook/{{Irredeemable}}'': The mighty and benevolent [[AngelicAbomination Eleos]] are held in a barrier of nuclear energy. They're actually not "imprisoned", as they're more than powerful enough to simply break the barrier and leave anytime they wish. They willfully allow themselves to be contained because escaping would [[spoiler:release the energy and cause the worst nuclear disaster in human history]]. |
| 70 | * In ''ComicBook/LegionOfSuperHeroes'', Lar Gand (Mon-El/M'Onel, ComicBook/{{Valor}}) was trapped in the PhantomZone for 1,000 years before the Legionnaires freed him. |
| 71 | * Creator/ImageComics has the series ''ComicBook/{{Rumble}}''. Rathraq is an ancient warrior god who protected humanity from the monstrous Esu thousands of years ago. A traitorous god separates Rathraq's soul from his body and has the spirit chained on another plane of existence until modern times. Rathraq's soul isn't returned to his mighty body - instead it's placed [[AnimateInanimateObject inside a scarecrow, animating it]]. |
| 72 | * Creator/MarvelComics' Tiamut the Dreaming Celestial was the only member of his race that objected to their genocidal policies and was punished for it. A major {{Retcon}} from his initial appearance, where he's a straight SealedEvilInACan that nearly kills millions. |
| 73 | ** According to what the Dreaming Celestial later told Makkari, he was not actually imprisoned because he objected to killing anyone, he was imprisoned because the other members of the Second Host were ONLY killing the Deviants. Tiamut wanted them to follow protocol and summon the alien Horde race to harvest ALL life on Earth. |
| 74 | * And also Primus, god of the ''Franchise/{{Transformers}}'', who sealed himself away at the core of Cybertron itself in order to also seal off his opposite number, Unicron. He was also present in the Unicron Trilogy, but he was created in the comics. To clarify: initially Primus and Unicron were entities capable of going from physical to astral forms. Primus goaded Unicron into a chase in his astral form, then switched back to physical just in time to embed both of them in lifeloss rock. Unicron eventually turned his prison into a new body; in response, Primus turned his into Cybertron. |
| 75 | * Similarly, ''ComicBook/TheTwelve'' revealed that twelve other (much more obscure) Golden Age Marvel heroes were [[HumanPopsicle frozen in suspended animation]] by the Nazis to study later, but the Nazi scientists didn't get the chance because the war ended. They get reawakened in modern times, and the book mostly deals with how well they each manage to adapt to the new world, or fail to do so. |
| 76 | [[/folder]] |
| 77 | |
| 78 | %%[[folder:Comic Strips]] |
| 79 | %%* Then there's the Ekert from ''ComicStrip/NonSequitur''. |
| 80 | %%[[/folder]] |
| 81 | |
| 82 | [[folder:Fan Works]] |
| 83 | * ''Fanfic/{{Antipodes}}'': After the fall of Equestria, Celestia and Luna were left as scattered fragments hidden in numerous hidden locations. The story's plot is driven by the quest to track them down, put them back together, and resurrect them in order to save the world. |
| 84 | * ''Fanfic/TheBridgeMLP'': The Guardian Beasts [[note]]Anguirus, Raiga, Gamera, Yonggary, Baragon, and Rodan[[/note]] were Kaiju sealed away by BenevolentPrecursors 70,000 years ago to bolster the world's defenses against the BigBad. On the Equestrian side, the Tree of Harmony [[spoiler:is actually the sealed form of the BigGood.]] |
| 85 | * ''Fanfic/TheChaoticMasters'': Olaf was sealed away by Dashi, only to be awakened at [[AuctionOfEvil Roulette's auction of magical artifacts]], but despite being a creation of [[AdaptationalVillainy one of the brides of the Masters]], he doesn't have a malicious snowflake in his body. |
| 86 | * ''Fanfic/DiariesOfAMadman'': The elementals were sealed in one by Discord, and one of Navarone's goals is to free them. |
| 87 | * ''Fanfic/ADiplomaticVisit'': As in canon, the six Pillars of Old Equestria -- Starswirl the Bearded, Rockhoof, Mistmane, Flash Magnus, Somnambula and Mage Meadowbrook -- sacrificed themselves to imprison the Pony of Shadows in Limbo, and themselves with it. When Twilight and co. discover this, it kicks off a new story arc in which they release the six (and unwittingly their enemy as well) from the Can, and then have to take steps to rescue Stygian (the seventh Pillar) and deal with the Pony of Shadows and its fellow Umbrum once and for all. |
| 88 | * ''Fanfic/HellsisterTrilogy'': Wildfire, member of the ''ComicBook/LegionOfSuperHeroes'', spends one thousand years trapped in an anti-matter star until ComicBook/{{Supergirl}} stumbles upon it during one battle, giving Wildfire the opportunity to hitch a ride when she leaves. |
| 89 | * ''Fanfic/IntelligenceFactor'': [[spoiler:Audrey trapped Zygarde in a Pokéball so he wouldn't interfere with the war in Unova.]] |
| 90 | * ''I See the Stars'': Diana is a type 2 as the rightful leader and protector of Leisa. Of course she's only human (er... leisan) so when Ada frees her she proves to be severely traumatized and in desperate need of a therapist. |
| 91 | * ''Fanfic/LegacyOfTheSix'': Omega, the Great Alicorn, got sealed in another dimension by Discord. No one, up until Derpy's interaction with the hivemind spark, has ever heard from or located him since. |
| 92 | * ''Fanfic/ANewChanceSeries'': [[spoiler:The Father Latios, who sacrificed himself to save Altomare and was sealed in the Soul Dew over a century]] before the events of ''Anime/PokemonHeroes'', ends up freed due to the actions of Ash and the villains. |
| 93 | * ''Fanfic/ANewWorldANewWay'': Arceus, the creator of the Pokémon world, starts out as one. Then he gets out, and kicks off the story's plot. |
| 94 | * ''Fanfic/TheParliamentOfHeroes'': Part of the {{Round Robin}}'s background is that the previous Stargirl, Courtney Whitmore, fought against Vandal Savage while attempting to reform the Justice Society of America. The battle ended with Courtney severely wounding Savage and forcing him to go incognito for a time, but at the cost of getting her spirit locked away inside the Cosmic Rod. Her still living body [[EmptyShell became a catatonic husk]], away from where Courtney could find it. She, as the Cosmic Rod, eventually falls into the hands of [[WesternAnimation/TheOwlHouse Luz Noceda]], with whom she develops a sibling-like relationship. |
| 95 | * ''Fanfic/PercyJacksonSpirits'': Someone, implicitly Unalaq, has turned the spiritual defenses of the Oasis the Moon and Ocean spirits inhabit into a prison keeping them from doing much to actively intervene in the current situation in the Spirit World. |
| 96 | * ''Fanfic/PokemonResetBloodlines'': Like in the anime, Sir Aaron's Lucario remains sealed inside his staff. However, the circumstances that led him to be sealed this time around are ''very'' different. |
| 97 | * ''Fanfic/AWolfInTheGarden'': Leman Russ finds himself in a sealed-off section of the Warp which turns out to be a prison where the Chaos Gods imprisoned their "positive" aspects; Khorne's virtue and justice, Nurgle's compassion and fostering of life, Slaanesh's empathy and love, and Tzeentch's scientific discovery. These gods of good have turned the realm within into a veritable paradise (the fic's title is a reference to the Garden of Eden) but are ''very'' anxious to get free and put a stop to their counterparts' rampant destruction. Khorne, in particular, has spent the eons building and training an army of souls for that day. |
| 98 | [[/folder]] |
| 99 | |
| 100 | [[folder:Film -- Animated]] |
| 101 | * In Disney's ''WesternAnimation/{{Aladdin}}'', the Genie is a kind and good spirit who wants to help his masters. He starts the movie sealed in a lamp, but is freed at the start of the second act. In Disney's [[GenieInABottle version of the story, genies -- good and bad -- are naturally sealed.]] In the original Arabic folklore, sealed genies are, according to one of the stories in the Arabian Nights, the criminals of genie society. The lamps they are often found in are their prisons, and genies ''choose'' to grant wishes to show their gratitude for being released. |
| 102 | -->'''Genie:''' It's all part and parcel, the whole genie gig: '''''PHENOMENAL COSMIC POWERS,''''' ''[[AC:itty]]'' [[AC:bitty living space.]] |
| 103 | * In ''WesternAnimation/BarbieAndTheDiamondCastle'', Melody accidentally traps herself in a mirror while fleeing from the BigBad's (literal) dragon, and keeps herself hidden inside, effectively becoming sealed good in a mirror. Until she's coaxed out by the singing of the main characters, of course. |
| 104 | * ''WesternAnimation/{{Mulan}}'': According to his backstory, Mushu the dragon was actually turned into an incense burner inside the Fa family altar as punishment by the Fa family ancestors for failing to do his job as a guardian the last time he was called. When Mulan decides to run off disguised as a male soldier, the Fa family ancestors send him to… awaken another guardian to help her. He fails and accidentally destroys the statue, and has to go himself. Fortunately, he's far from incompetent this time. |
| 105 | [[/folder]] |
| 106 | |
| 107 | [[folder:Film -- Live-Action]] |
| 108 | * The title character of the ''Film/AustinPowers'' series was cryogenically preserved and revived in response to similar efforts by his [[SealedEvilInACan evil counterpart]], Dr. Evil. |
| 109 | * In ''Film/{{Dogma}}'', keeping God on life support in the real world so She could not return to heaven and blink things back to normal could be seen as Sealed Good in a Can, in this case a more direct borrowing of SealedEvilInACan by the dark side. |
| 110 | * Leeloo, as the titular element in ''Film/TheFifthElement'', is the only weapon against the embodiment of evil - life personified. Overlaps heavily with SealedBadassInACan. |
| 111 | * In ''Film/TheGamers: Dorkness Rising'' the... adventurers... players... whatever you may call them are officially on a mission to regain a cursed artifact for the High Priest of the local goddess of LawfulGood, Therin. [[spoiler:Said High Priest is shown to have a powerful artifact of LawfulGood, which is later to be revealed the prison of Therin. The party destroys the prison, freeing the goddess, and are rewarded by her afterward.]] |
| 112 | * In ''Film/TheGarbagePailKidsMovie'', the titular Kids are trapped inside an outer space garbage can that lands on earth, and are discovered by an antiques store owner. He does his best to keep them in the can, but they always manage to find a way out. Much like the Animaniacs example below, the Kids aren't necessarily good, but they aren't evil either. A more apt definition would probably be Sealed Jerkass in a Can. |
| 113 | * In ''Film/{{Jumanji}}'', Alan Parrish is sucked inside a board game for twenty-six years until Peter Shepherd lets him out when he rolls a five. |
| 114 | ** Similarly, in ''Film/JumanjiWelcomeToTheJungle'', the four main characters get sucked in and are trapped there until they finish the game. Alex Vreeke, who joins them in escaping, had been trapped there for twenty years before them. |
| 115 | * The icy Breath of Valkur in ''Film/KullTheConqueror'' had to be retrieved from the far north, to counter the fiery evil BigBad. |
| 116 | %%* The White Queen in ''Film/MirrorMask''. |
| 117 | * ''Film/NightAtTheMuseum'': Ahkmenrah, the Pharaoh whose tablet brought the exhibits to life, spent decades in his sarcophagus, with both staff and exhibit assuming him to be evil. In desperation, Larry and Nick free him from the sarcophagus, and he proves to be very gracious and helpful afterward. |
| 118 | * ''Film/TheSorcerersApprentice'' features two examples. Balthazar Blake was trapped alongside [[DragonInChief Maxim Horvath]] in an urn for ten years. At the same time, Veronica Gorloisen willingly absorbed [[BigBad Morgana]]'s spirit into her body so that Balthazar could trap both into the Grimhold. This also is an example of SealedInsideAPersonShapedCan. |
| 119 | * In ''Film/{{Spaceballs}}'', the Schwartz (the movie's answer to the Force) can be bottled after being condensed into liquid form and used to give a spaceship more kick. |
| 120 | * Sentinel Prime in ''Film/TransformersDarkOfTheMoon''. He's been rusting away in the Ark since he crashed on the moon in TheSixties. [[spoiler:It later turns out that he was actually a SealedEvilInACan, as he defected to the Decepticons before leaving Cybertron. After revealing this to his former comrades, he joins Megatron with a plan to enslave all humanity as a workforce to rebuild Cybertron.]] |
| 121 | * Series/UltramanDyna in the film, ''Film/UltramanSaga'', prior to (and during) the climactic battle between [[Franchise/UltramanZero Ultramen Zero]] and [[Series/UltramanCosmos Cosmos]] against ''[[BigBad Giganto Zetton]]'' |
| 122 | [[/folder]] |
| 123 | |
| 124 | [[folder:Literature]] |
| 125 | * Mordecai of ''Literature/OneHundredCupboards'' was sealed for twelve years in a barrow by [[spoiler:the faeren he was allied to, as this way they could RulesLawyer their way into breaching their agreement by claiming it was for his own protection]]. He is released when [[spoiler:a knife is thrown at his son Henry's belated christening]], as per British folklore. |
| 126 | * ''Literature/TheCrimsonShadow'': Brind'Amour put himself in stasis long ago, then awoke to find Eriador has been taken over by Greensparrow, an {{evil sorcerer}}. His brethren did the same thing, though unfortunately all of the rest have been found and killed by Greensparrow's forces. |
| 127 | * Creator/TerryPratchett's ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'': |
| 128 | ** In ''Literature/MovingPictures'', there's a [[spoiler:guardian sealed away under the Holy Wood hill, that the heroes need to awaken in order to banish the Things that come to life from movies.]] |
| 129 | ** ''Literature/LordsAndLadies'' has a parody of the KingInTheMountain: the ancient king complains he hasn't had a wink of sleep for the last century, because some bugger keeps [[http://www.pitt.edu/~dash/sleep.html#Warriors ringing the bell]]. |
| 130 | * Vangerdahast's subplot in the Literature/ForgottenRealms novel ''[[Literature/TheElminsterSeries Elminster's Daughter]]'' involves him attempting to seal ''dragons'' in a can to protect Cormyr. (The country's previous Sealed Good was unsealed, then destroyed, in a prior war.) [[spoiler:The subplot ends with Vangerdahast [[VoluntaryShapeshifting shapeshifting]] ''himself'' into a dragon, then sealing himself and a volunteer song dragon in the can.]] |
| 131 | * In Creator/GuyGavrielKay's trilogy, ''Literature/TheFionavarTapestry'', King Arthur and Lancelot are both examples. King Arthur is awoken by one of the protagonists to fight the big bad. Arthur finds Lancelot under a mountain and wakes him. Guinevere is already present, SealedInAPersonShapedCan. Arthur is doomed to fight evil when called upon to do so, and the others are doomed with him to relive their own tragedy whenever he does so. [[spoiler:Until the end of the trilogy, when they are freed as a result of a heroic sacrifice allowing Arthur to live to see the end of the battle for the first time averting part of the "doom."]] |
| 132 | * ''Literature/GoblinsInTheCastle'': The goblins had their spirits sucked out and imprisoned in the North Tower of Toad-in-a-Cage Castle, and their bodies locked in the dungeons, all because the old Baron and his sorcerer ally thought they were evil rather than just mischievous. |
| 133 | * In ''Literature/HaloCryptum'', the Forerunner Didact was sealed in the titular Cryptum for one thousand years as a meditative exile after his political defeat by the Builders. He is released early in the book. |
| 134 | * Creator/RickRiordan's ''Literature/TheHeroesOfOlympus'': |
| 135 | ** Percy was kept asleep by Juno for several months until the time was right for him to go to Camp Jupiter. |
| 136 | ** Hazel's time in the Underworld also qualifies. |
| 137 | * In Creator/AlanDeanFoster's ''Literature/HumanxCommonwealth'' novel ''Bloodhype'', the Tar-Aiym Guardian, Peot, was charged with containing and finding a way to destroy the Vom, a planet-scouring EldritchAbomination. Half a million years later, Peot is dormant and must be awakened in order to counter the Vom's renewed threat. Flinx turns out to be the key to accomplishing this. |
| 138 | * Also by Creator/RickRiordan, in ''Literature/TheKaneChronicles'' the good goddess Bast was locked a long time ago and it's main character's father who releases her. It overlaps with SealedEvilInACan, because something very bad was imprisoned along with Bast - and escaped at exactly the same moment. |
| 139 | * ''Literature/TheLostFleet'': Revered hero John "Black Jack" Geary is discovered in cryogenic suspension by the descendants of his culture who after centuries of continuous warfare have forgotten nearly everything he knows about how to fight smart in favour of crazed aggressive tactics. He has to teach them the basics of tactics and to avoid counterproductive atrocities. |
| 140 | * The heroes of ''Literature/TheMalazanBookOfTheFallen'' spend most of the series believing that [[spoiler:the Crippled God is a SealedEvilInACan. When he is freed towards the end of the series, he turns out to be not so much evil as simply mad, and giving him his freedom seems to have undone his madness. He ultimately assists the heroes in preventing the extinction of the human race, and so functions both as a subversion of the Sealed Evil trope and a variant of the Sealed Good trope. He also turns out to have been the NarratorAllAlong; the DirectLineToTheAuthor of the series presents him as having penned it InUniverse so that those who sacrificed their lives to free him and to prevent the end of the world would not be forgotten. Which, of course, also gives the series its title.]] |
| 141 | * Jim Knee in ''Literature/SeptimusHeap'' was sent to Septimus as this and eventually succeeds, despite several incidents and being rather reluctant. |
| 142 | * In the BackStory to Creator/WilliamShakespeare's ''Theatre/TheTempest'', Prospero releases Ariel from the cloven pine where he had been imprisoned for twelve years by the evil witch Sycorax for refusing to do her bidding. Ariel is thus bound to serve Prospero for twelve years to repay his debt. |
| 143 | * In ''Beast Child'', second book of ''Literature/VoyagesOfTheFlyingDragon'' , Manu, the so-called Titan boy is innocent and good, having being put away to serve [[spoiler:the god-like being which has been split into Lenis and Missy.]] |
| 144 | * Creator/RobertJordan's ''Literature/TheWheelOfTime'' series has the Horn of Valere, which can summon the greatest heroes of the setting's history to kick righteous amounts of ass. [[spoiler:The subversion being that the heroes obey whomever blew the horn -- good or evil -- until he dies. Double subverted when we find out that this actually isn't true; the heroes would never fight for the [[BigBad Dark One]] or his minions.]] Also the heroes aren't exactly sealed: they regularly get reincarnated on Earth and only the ones not currently alive are summoned. |
| 145 | [[/folder]] |
| 146 | |
| 147 | [[folder:Live-Action TV]] |
| 148 | * Who would have expected the depths of the planet Z'ha'dum, home of the evil Shadows in ''Series/BabylonFive'', to contain [[spoiler:Lorien, The First One, who saves Sheridan's life and goes on to help the good guys]]? Though it wasn't so much sealed as waiting for someone worthy to find it. |
| 149 | * ''Series/DoctorWho'': |
| 150 | ** The Doctor does this to himself in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS29E8HumanNature "Human Nature"]]/[[Recap/DoctorWhoS29E9TheFamilyOfBlood "The Family of Blood"]] to evade pursuing enemies. |
| 151 | ** Inverted in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS31E12ThePandoricaOpens "The Pandorica Opens"]], as the Pandorica is said to contain [[SealedEvilInACan the greatest evil in the entire universe]], with the Doctor trying to stop his enemies from getting their hands on it as it opens. However, when it finally does open, [[spoiler:it's ''empty''. The whole myth is a trap set up by the Doctor's enemies, who are all under the mistaken impression that ''he's'' the one behind the universe-ending threat of the season. The episode ends with him being locked inside the Pandorica, [[AintTooProudToBeg screaming and begging all the way]].]] |
| 152 | * ''Series/{{Farscape}}'': As seen in the ''Peacekeeper Wars'' post-series finale, [[BenevolentPrecursors the Eidolons]]. There were actually two separate groups of them, one group was TheRemnant, and the other were a Type 2, saved by an [[InvertedTrope Inversion]] of CriticalExistenceFailure. They can [[CharmPerson lull any other species into]] a receptive state, and [[TheEmpath read their minds]], to construct a good argument. Besides being Super-diplomats, they are the ones that [[spoiler:transplanted and genetically engineered early-Hominids , thus creating The Peacekeepers.]] |
| 153 | * In ''Series/IDreamOfJeannie'', Jeannie was sealed in a bottle for 2,000 years by the Blue Djinn as punishment for refusing to marry him. |
| 154 | * It's implied that this was the case for the original ''Series/KamenRiderKuuga''. More than that, it was hinted he did it to himself and ages when he was discovered it is implied he was '''''STILL ALIVE''''' during all the time he was sealed up before the Grongi escaped and may have murdered him as soon as the seal was broken. |
| 155 | * Kai in ''Series/{{Lexx}}'' starts and ends many episodes frozen in a stasis chamber, showing up to save the other characters in the nick of time. You know, because he's dead. |
| 156 | * In ''Series/TheOuterLimits1995'' episode "Sarcophagus", an archeological dig finds an alien inside a tomb. Upon awakening, the friendly being was quite happy to find that humanity had come a long way from the cavemen that had attacked him on sight, forcing him to seal himself up to recover from his injuries. [[spoiler:When there is a cave-in, the alien allows the two who had befriended him to seal themselves up, keeping them alive until they are finally rescued.]] |
| 157 | * ''Franchise/PowerRangers'' and ''Franchise/SuperSentai'': |
| 158 | ** Zordon was technically in a "time warp" and broadcasting his face into a tube, but they freed the man by making him ''actually'' trapped in the tube. To make matters worse, the poor guy was kidnapped as soon as he was "released", and when he was rescued, he promptly had to commit a HeroicSacrifice to [[DeusExMachina save the day]]. Shoulda stuck with the time warp. |
| 159 | ** Ninjor from season 3 played the Sealed Good in a Can twice, once when he first appeared and again when Lord Zedd and Rita captured him and the Falconzord and sealed them away. He's currently still in his initial can thanks to the timewarp inflicted on the Earth. |
| 160 | ** Ninjaman, Ninjor's ''Series/NinjaSentaiKakuranger'' counterpart, was like this as well. To the point where he's resealed after [[NoodleIncident he pissed off the gods he aids]] and isn't released until the ''Series/KaizokuSentaiGokaiger'' team comes knocking, looking to obtain the Kakuranger's Greater Power. |
| 161 | ** The Gold Ranger in ''Series/PowerRangersDinoCharge'' was sealed in [[TheDragon Fury]]'s body for centuries after he bonded with the Gold Energem and Fury imprisoned him in a rage. He tries to escape several times during the Rangers' fights with Fury, but isn't able to until Fury briefly obtains the Energem in episode 11. |
| 162 | ** The Zyurangers in ''Series/KyoryuSentaiZyuranger'' were put in suspended animation rooms in an underground temple, to make sure they would still be alive and ready to fight Bandora if someone released her. |
| 163 | * Sophia de Borghesse from ''Sabrina Goes to Rome''. Since she cannot be with her lover, she seals herself inside a locket. |
| 164 | * In ''Series/StargateSG1'', the progenitor of the Tok'ra, Egeria, was almost literally sealed in a can (a symbiont containment vessel) by her Goa'uld enemies. Egeria fared less well than usual -- the humans who eventually found her were unable to tell her from any other queen Goa'uld and basically tortured her to death. [[NiceJobBreakingItHero Uhh... "Sorry"?]] |
| 165 | * ''Franchise/UltraSeries'' |
| 166 | ** The Spark Dolls from ''Series/UltramanGinga'' are the sealed forms of the previous Ultra Heroes. The Monsters suffered a [[SealedEvilInACan similar fate]]. |
| 167 | ** While Spark Dolls are present in ''Series/UltramanX'', they play [[SleepModeSize a completely different role.]] Instead, the Sealed Good of this series is X himself, who was reduced to data contained within Daichi's [[TransformationTrinket X-Devizer]] as a result of a battle against the BigBad. |
| 168 | ** The Capsule Monsters from ''Series/UltraSeven'' and Sevengar from ''Series/UltramanLeo'' are {{Mons}} placed inside small capsules to be released by the Ultramen to fight in their stead when needed. |
| 169 | ** The title hero of ''Series/UltramanTiga'' was discovered by Daigo as a petrified shell that he merged with to reawaken the hero. |
| 170 | [[/folder]] |
| 171 | |
| 172 | [[folder:Mythology]] |
| 173 | * In [[Myth/AboriginalAustralianMyths Yuin]] religion the TopGod and cultural hero Daramulum is trapped inside the trees. To let him out religious ceremonies often make use of bullroarers. |
| 174 | * Many, many variations of the KingInTheMountain myth, including King Arthur, Frederick Barbarossa and Bran the Blessed. These heroes are almost never sealed by an evil power; in fact they are generally sealed to "preserve" them to fight some coming evil or hardship. The promise that they will returning "[[InItsHourOfNeed at the time of their country's greatest need]]" is a key element of the myth in many cases. |
| 175 | ** On a related note, {{Excalibur}} itself might be considered an example, as this powerful weapon for Good was kept hidden by the Lady of the Lake until the right wielder came along. Like many cases where this trope applies to objects, it was Sealed In A Can Again after Arthur was through with it. |
| 176 | * Some versions of the myth of PandorasBox state that after all the evils of the world had been released from the box, there was just one more thing that remained in the box: Hope. |
| 177 | * In ''Literature/JourneyToTheWest'', Monkey was first birthed from a giant stone egg. After gaining power and immortal indestructibility, he caused such trouble in Heaven that the Buddha sealed him under a mountain. Just five hundred years later, he was freed by Kuan Yin (Avalokiteshvara, the boddhisatva of compassion turned Chinese Goddess) after he promised to reform and help the monk Tripitaka/Xaunzang retrieve the Diamond Sutra from far in the West. This legend has been adapted many times in many ways, including Milo Manara's [[DownerEnding dark]] ''The Young Ape'', the rather {{Bishounen}} ''Manga/{{Saiyuki}}'', and Stephen Chow's ''Film/AChineseOdyssey'' films. |
| 178 | * In Hesiod's ''Literature/{{Theogony}}'', the Cyclopes and Hundred-Handers who were locked in Tartarus by their father Ouranos and later (again) by their brother Cronus, are freed by their nephew Zeus and the other Oympians when the Titans make war on the Gods, and in turn they forge weapons -- most importantly, Zeus' thunderbolts -- and help in the Titanomachy, the War with the Titans. |
| 179 | [[/folder]] |
| 180 | |
| 181 | [[folder:Podcasts]] |
| 182 | * Kip, Gol, and Ne-on from the ''Podcast/CoolKidsTable'' game ''Star War'' are Knights of the Old Republic who were frozen in carbonite until defrosted by Admiral Ackbar. |
| 183 | [[/folder]] |
| 184 | |
| 185 | [[folder:Tabletop Games]] |
| 186 | * ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'': |
| 187 | ** In module Q1 ''Queen of the Demonweb Pits'', one possible encounter in Lolth's Web is a chance to rescue a ki-rin (powerful LawfulGood unicorn-like creature) trapped in a transparent cube that keeps it in a state of suspended animation. If rescued, the ki-rin will offer its services to its rescuers. |
| 188 | ** Module I12 ''Egg of the Phoenix''. The ki-rin Da-weng allowed himself to be changed to stone so that at a future time he could be returned to normal and fight against Evil. If released, he gives the party an amulet that will allow them to summon him to aid them. |
| 189 | ** Benekander, a benign Mystaran Immortal, was Sealed inside the Mirror Shield for millennia before being released in time for the ''Wrath of the Immortals'' boxed set. |
| 190 | ** Etienne d'Amberville (Stephen Amber), an extremely powerful wizard [[spoiler:Immortal]] from the ''TabletopGame/CastleAmber'' adventure, must be freed from his tomb to complete the scenario successfully. |
| 191 | ** One way to destroy the Eye of Arik in ''Palace of the Silver Princess'' is to release the benign white dragon Ariksbane from another dimension, so it can shatter the evil gem with its icy breath weapon. |
| 192 | ** The ''Literature/{{Dragonlance}}'' setting is made of this trope: the Disks of Mishakal, the brass dragon Blaize, the rest of the good dragons, plus of course the dragonlances themselves. Half the campaign is uncanning sealed goods. |
| 193 | * In most games for Solar characters, the Jade Prison in ''TabletopGame/{{Exalted}}''. More generally it's mixed at best; the Solar Exalted don't really answer to any authority and may or may not be good. |
| 194 | * Mirage block of ''TabletopGame/MagicTheGathering'' has Mangara of Corondor sealed in the Ember Prison. |
| 195 | ** Lord Ith was imprisoned by Mairsil the Pretender during the years of The Dark (between the Sylex Blast and the Ice Age). |
| 196 | ** Avacyn, archangel and guardian of the humans of Innistrad, was sealed within the Helvault alongside the demon [[SealedEvilInACan Griselbrand]], until Thalia of Thraben was manipulated into freeing them both by Liliana Vess. |
| 197 | * ''TabletopGame/PrincessTheHopeful'' has it as a major plotpoint. The titular Princesses used to be the magic-wielding nobility from a Kingdom, whose function was to [[HopeBringer bring hope to the world]] and keep [[TheCorruption the All-Consuming Darkness]] in check. After [[DividedWeFall finally defeating them by taking advantage on their infighting]], minions of the Darkness were unable to exterminate them due to them having BornAgainImmortality, so they instead trapped the large majority of their souls in a LotusEaterMachine, keeping them away for millenia while they spread and turned Earth into a CrapsackWorld. This lasted until the Apollo Landing, which caused Hope to shing brighter for a while on Earth, giving the trapped Princesses and their Queen enough lucidity to break free from the illusion and resulting in [[TheMagicComesBack resurgence of them in the real world]]. |
| 198 | * ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'': |
| 199 | ** The GodEmperor of Mankind. As much as there IS [[BlackAndGreyMorality "good"]] in the game of course. Technically, he's on psychic-fueled life support in a coma. His death would mean his rebirth, but a lot of bad things would happen in the mean time. So he's Sealed Good In A Can, with the Can being as vital to humanity as the Good. What, you thought we were joking when we said that 40k is [[MemeticMutation GRIMDARK]]? |
| 200 | ** The Eldar in general might qualify, but they are more AwakeningTheSleepingGiant in most cases. |
| 201 | ** From the Tau, Commander Shadowsun, being one of their history's greatest commanders and military minds, and a student of ''the'' greatest, spends much of her existence in stasis, being awakened when the Tau need her the most. |
| 202 | ** To a lesser extent than the Emperor are the Space Marine Dreadnoughts, and Eldar Wraithlords. On the plus side, you're now a near-immortal warrior that can crush hordes of enemies that plagued entire squads of your fellows in the palm of your hand... often literally. The downside? You have to be nearly dead (or for the Eldar, FULLY dead,) be rescued by your compatriots, and have been such a glorious badass among badasses that they plug you into a [[{{Mecha}} huge, lumbering war-machine.]] You're also hooked in there forever, or at least until the machine breaks and you die, and you tend to spend years, decades or centuries in between humongous battles in total stasis, hence fitting into this trope in multiple literal ways. Interestingly, Chaos forces are terrified of being dreadnought-ed themselves, for the same reasons... because they don't get the luxury of being put into stasis between battles. |
| 203 | ** Bjorn the Fell-Handed is the oldest SpaceMarine, having met and fought alongside the GodEmperor himself, and was put in a Dreadnought so he could see his Primarch's return. He's woken up every century to retell the great sagas to the assembled chapter, or when he's needed for battle (and once managed to stop the fratricidal war between the Wolves and the Inquisition-backed Grey Knights by killing their Chapter Master and ordering both sides to stand down). |
| 204 | %%** Eldrad might be an example too. |
| 205 | [[/folder]] |
| 206 | |
| 207 | [[folder:Toys]] |
| 208 | * ''Toys/{{Bionicle}}'': |
| 209 | ** The Great Spirit Mata Nui's soul was [[SoulJar sealed inside]] the [[MaskOfPower Mask of Life]] by [[BigBad Makuta]] and thrown out of the universe. Upon setting things straight, he sealed himself back in, so that civilization could grow in its own pace, without a God. |
| 210 | ** The Toa Mata were put in stasis 100,000 years ago, so that were Mata Nui ever to be struck down, they could be immediately launched in their pods to hurry to his aid. Due to a malfunction, however, their canisters remained floating in the Endless Ocean for a 1,000 years, under which time their flesh decayed and their memories were wiped. [[GoodThingYouCanHeal Good thing they could heal.]] This backstory was, by the way, part of Franchise/{{LEGO}}'s marketing: giving the toy containers and the figure's assembly actual storyline importance. |
| 211 | [[/folder]] |
| 212 | |
| 213 | [[folder:Video Games]] |
| 214 | * ''VideoGame/ActRaiser'': At the beginning of the game the forces of evil control the world, and your character is the Sealed Good In A Can. The game was remarkably lacking in controversy, since said character is strongly implied to be the Judeo-Christian God, or at least [[CrystalDragonJesus the local equivalent]]. |
| 215 | * In ''VideoGame/{{Arcanum}}'', [[spoiler:the supposed Big Bad, Arronax, has been trapped in the Void repenting his crime for thousands of years:]] once found, he joins the party to take on the real Big Bad. |
| 216 | * In the second game of the original ''[[VideoGame/TheBardsTaleTrilogy Bard's Tale]]'' series, the Zen Master Arkast qualifies. (He singlehandedly took on [[BigBad Lagoth Zanta]] and his mercenary army before you showed up, and only failed by lack of being an [[ForegoneVictory unkillable]] Destiny Knight.) You don't technically ''have'' to free him, but travel into his can to group with him (and would thus normally bring him out with you). The start of the relevant poem in the manual: "A tale once told of ages gone, which bards once sung in deep despair / of he who fought the evil one, and cast his fate within the Snare..." |
| 217 | * Alucard from ''Franchise/{{Castlevania}}'' seals ''himself'' away on multiple occasions, seeing his powers as evil. He isn't ''intentionally'' a SealedBadassInACan, but when Dracula rises and the Belmonts are unable to act, he awakens anyway and goes out to deal with Dracula. After Julius Belmont's victory, he appears to be permanently unsealed. |
| 218 | * ''VideoGame/ConvictionSRPG'': The Dark Elf sealed two of the Three Magi, Jing and Snow, into stasis to make Leed's quest to find them harder. |
| 219 | * [[spoiler:JC Denton]] in ''VideoGame/DeusExInvisibleWar''. He [[spoiler:merged with an ultra-powerful AI at the end of the first game]], but the result was unstable. Before he could turn the world into a utopia, he had to go into cryogenic storage and wait for {{Nanotechnology}} upgrades to be developed. Furthermore, [[spoiler:his brother Paul]] was the test subject on some of these upgrades, which proved to be unsuccessful, meaning he ''also'' had to be put into cryogenic storage. The player, [[spoiler:being a successful test subject]], can wake them both over the course of the game. |
| 220 | * In ''VideoGame/Doom2016'', [[spoiler:the Doomguy himself has become this. After being betrayed and becoming the SoleSurvivor of the Night Sentinels of Argent D'Nur, he went on a RoaringRampageOfRevenge against all of demonkind, eventually becoming so feared among all the denizens of Hell that the only way they could stop him was to lure him into a trap and bury him underneath a temple before trapping him in a sarcophagus. Then the UAC find him and bring him and his suit to Mars. The very first thing Doomguy does when the game starts is break out of said sarcophagus, tear through every Possessed in his way and reclaim the suit. Then it's [[OneManArmy back to business.]]]] |
| 221 | ** The demons see him as {{Sealed Evil|InACan}}, however, and play dead straight to that trope. The UAC notes the demons fought with absolute frenzy to protect his sarcophagus, thinking it to be some kind of legendary artifact. Truth is [[spoiler:they were absolutely ''terrified'' of Doomguy ever getting loose again, as he is literally a walking extinction event for demonkind.]] |
| 222 | * Golem named Shale from ''VideoGame/DragonAgeOrigins'' The Stone Prisoner DLC. Like other golems, she was a dwarven woman whose soul was transferred into the golem body to guard against the darkspawn threat, but was forced to spend hundreds of years dormant (but [[AndIMustScream still awake and sentient]] in total darkness) until the Warden finds her control rod and re-activates her. |
| 223 | * In ''VideoGame/{{Dragonfable}}'', at the end of Chapter 2, the Hero of Lore is imprisoned in a block of ice by Jaania. The Hero finally breaks out many years later after a TimeSkip, only to discover that the world has become very hostile towards magic and Jaania has become the new BigBad. |
| 224 | * The hero Melvin in ''VideoGame/DragonQuestVII'' was sealed in a stone by God so he would be alive to fight should the demon lord rise again. |
| 225 | * In ''VideoGame/DuelSaviorDestiny'' for a twist in the last route it turns out [[spoiler:Aether Relics]] are previous Messiahs who have vowed to stop [[spoiler:God from destroying the universe again]]. |
| 226 | * ''Franchise/TheElderScrolls'' |
| 227 | ** The series' primary CreationMyth provides an example of a permanent sealing. Anu and Padomay are the [[AnthropomorphicPersonification anthropomorphized]] primordial forces of [[OrderVersusChaos "stasis/order/light" and "change/chaos/darkness"]], respectively. Their interplay in the great "void" of pre-creation led to creation itself. Creation, sometimes anthropomorphized as the female entity "Nir", favored Anu, [[DrivenByEnvy which angered Padomay]]. Padomay killed Nir and [[EarthShatteringKaboom shattered the twelve worlds]] she gave birth to. Anu then wounded Padomay, presuming him dead. Anu salvaged the pieces of the twelve worlds to create one world: Nirn. Padomay returned and wounded Anu, seeking to destroy Nirn. Anu then [[SealedEvilInACan pulled Padomay]] and ''[[TakingYouWithMe himself]]'' outside of time, ending Padomay's threat to creation "forever". From the intermingling of their spilled blood came the "et'Ada", or "original spirits", who would go on to become either the [[OurGodsAreDifferent Aedra or the Daedra]] depending on their actions during creation. (Some myths state that the Aedra come from the mixed blood of Anu and Padomay, while the Daedra come purely from the blood of Padomay). |
| 228 | ** Serana from ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsVSkyrim Skyrim]]'' DLC ''Dawnguard'' is an ancient FriendlyNeighborhoodVampire who rebelled against her vampire father, Lord Hakon, centuries ago and was sealed away with an [[PlotCoupon Elder Scroll]] by her mother in order to protect them both from him. Although she's not particularly "good" (admitting freely that for her, the perks of being vampire royalty outweigh any moral compunctions), she seeks to thwart her father's omnicidal plans after being released from her imprisonment and becomes a loyal friend to the [[PlayerCharacter Dragonborn]]. |
| 229 | * In ''VideoGame/Fallout3'', James, the Lone Wanderer's father is a variation of this. After the death of his wife in childbirth, he abandoned his work on Project Purity for nineteen years to raise his child in the safety of Vault 101, making him a BigGood who chose to seal ''himself'' in a Can. The game kicks off when he decides to [[AwakeningTheSleepingGiant escape the Vault]] with the intention of restarting the Project, inadvertently forcing his child to follow him out into the Wasteland after him. |
| 230 | ** He actually does it again a little further in the game, a little more literally, when he manages to accidentally [[spoiler:get himself stuck in the Vault 112 simulation Tranquility Lane]]. |
| 231 | * Myth/{{Merlin}} in ''VideoGame/FateGrandOrder'' has been locked away in a tower in the realm of Avalon by a witch (most likely the Lady of the Lake) since the end of King Arthur's reign. Though he can communicate with the protagonists via magic, he has to resort to LoopholeAbuse to actually physically leave in some way. |
| 232 | * Holy, in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'', is cosmically powerful Sealed Good In A Can, the opposite number to SealedEvilInACan Meteor. It takes a couple steps to successfully unseal it, mind. |
| 233 | ** In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIII'', friendly and mighty Unne is trapped in the dream world until you grab the [[PlotCoupon magic lute]] that awakens her. |
| 234 | ** Bahamut and Leviathan in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyV'' were sealed along with the twelve legendary weapons and the ultimate magic spells after a battle against an evil wizard. |
| 235 | * ''VideoGame/FindingLight'': After clearing the Depths, [[spoiler:the party finds Ruth and Gwen, the heroines of ''VideoGame/KnightBewitched'', who Lilith put into stasis]]. |
| 236 | * In ''VideoGame/FireEmblemPathOfRadiance'' and ''VideoGame/FireEmblemRadiantDawn'', [[spoiler:the goddess Yune]] is sealed in a medallion, locked away by [[spoiler:her twin sister/other half Ashera]], who found her chaotic whims too dangerous. While neither is technically good or evil, [[spoiler:[[OrderVersusChaos Yune is the goddess of chaos and Ashera represents order]], and this, along with the fact that anyone (save for Mist, her mother, and members of the heron clan) who touches the medallion goes berserk, has given Yune somewhat of a bad reputation (as a "Dark God").]] After her long sleep, [[spoiler:Yune is warm and friendly to the humans, since she was always with them when in the medallion. Meanwhile, Ashera has become bitter after 780 years on the top of a inaccessible tower, and is portrayed closer to the SealedEvilInACan Yune was accused to be (particularly after passing judgment on all people when she realised they had been warring for all this time, where Yune decides to take the few remaining and defeat Ashera).]] |
| 237 | * The events of the game ''VideoGame/GraffitiKingdom'' are set in motion after the [[IdiotHero Prince Pixel]] releases both the good Pastel and [[SealedEvilInACan the Devil]] from a wall mural when he decides to play around with the Graffiti Wand he finds lying adjacent to the mural chamber hidden in the castle. |
| 238 | * Vyrn of ''VideoGame/GranblueFantasy'': His true powers were sealed away in the Zinkenstill forest shrine. Once the crew gets him near it, a silhouette of Bahamut appeared over him. So far, one of his revealed powers is to seal away the Dark Energy corrupting Yggdrasil into her Malice incarnation. |
| 239 | * ''Franchise/{{Halo}}'': |
| 240 | ** The finale of ''VideoGame/Halo3'' seals [[spoiler:Master Chief]] in a can. |
| 241 | ** It can also be said that Master Chief is a sealed good in a can at the beginning of ''VideoGame/HaloCombatEvolved''. |
| 242 | * The finale of ''VideoGame/HalfLife1'' seals [[spoiler:Gordon Freeman]] in a can, to be reheated and served in the sequel. |
| 243 | ** And at the end of ''VideoGame/HalfLife2'', he is resealed until ''Episode 1''. Then things get weird, and either an ''Episode 3'' or a third game has yet to come along and explain it all. |
| 244 | * In the NES game ''VideoGame/TheKrionConquest'', a good witch who, depending on if you're playing the orginal Japanese version or not, is named either Doropie or Francesca, is released from a magic staff to fight off an AlienInvasion. Why she was sealed in it in the first place is unknown. |
| 245 | * ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfSpyroTheEternalNight'': During the ending, Spyro, Cynder, and Sparx [[spoiler:are trapped in the Well of Souls, resulting in Spyro using his Dragon Time powers to seal them in a crystal to save themselves]]. In the sequel, ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfSpyroDawnOfTheDragon'', taking place three years later, a group of Malefor's minions come and chisel them out for a sacrifice days before Malefor's plan would have ultimately succeeded without their interference anyway. |
| 246 | * ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda'': |
| 247 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast'': In the Dark World, Link has to rescue the seven maidens, who are descended from the Seven Sages in the game's backstory; Agahnim has imprisoned them in crystals scattered in the dungeons of the Dark World. |
| 248 | ** In ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening'', the benevolent Wind Fish is asleep in an egg until it is awoken by our hero. |
| 249 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaPhantomHourglass'' harkens back to this, with the mighty Ocean King left powerless by the BigBad. |
| 250 | ** Link himself becomes this in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Ocarina of Time]]''. The Master Sword chose him to be the Hero of Time as a child, but since he was too young, he was sealed away in the Sacred Realm for seven years. |
| 251 | ** In ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'' Link is this once again, having apparently been sealed in a shrine for the purpose of of defeating Calamity Ganon. [[spoiler:Mainly because he was nearly killed when Calamity Ganon original ravaged Hyrule, and needed a hundred years or so to recover.]] |
| 252 | * In ''VideoGame/Lunar2EternalBlueComplete'', [[EmotionlessGirl Lucia]] is Sealed In A Crystal until she is awakened - and not on schedule - at the beginning of the game. [[spoiler:At the end, she seals herself up again.]] [[spoiler:And in the PlayableEpilogue, Hiro goes after her.]] |
| 253 | * In ''VideoGame/MajinAndTheForsakenKingdom'', Teotl, the titular majin, has been sealed away by the Darkness and the game begins when he’s released by [[PlayerCharacter Tepeu]]. Later on, the pair also releases WarriorPrincess Toci from similar containment. |
| 254 | * In ''Franchise/MassEffect'', it's mentioned that an eccentric volus billionaire is spending his fortune excavating a planet of ruins for "lost beings of light" who are intended to fight "machine devils from beyond the stars". [[spoiler:Unfortunately for the people of the galaxy, this apparently ended up being a RedHerring]]. |
| 255 | ** In the first game, it's revealed that many Protheans attempted to put themselves into stasis to survive, intending to awaken and rebuild the Empire once the Reapers had departed once and for all. Unfortunately for the people of Ilos, the Reaper's extermination took centuries to complete, the VI "Vigil" was forced to sacrifice non-essential personnel to maintain the others, to the point where only a ''dozen'' remained out of the ''hundreds'' put into stasis. |
| 256 | ** Javik in ''VideoGame/MassEffect3'' was another such Prothean put into stasis on Eden Prime, with the VI "Victory" sacrificing the other survivors to maintain his pod. It [[FromBadToWorse got even worse]] as the damage caused by the Collectors meant that the revival procedure could only be activated ''[[FailsafeFailure manually]]'', causing him to wait over 50,000 years before Shepard awoke him. By then, the latest Reaper invasion was already well underway. |
| 257 | ** Liara mentions in the third game having refined the Protheans' plan of using [[FlingALightIntoTheFuture their Beacons]] as a warning, seeding many worlds with time capsules containing an archive with all galactic information, knowledge of the Reapers and plans for the Crucible weapon, in case the worst should happen and they fail to stop the Reapers. [[spoiler:In the Refusal Ending, it's revealed that this did indeed work and allow the next Cycle to defeat the Reapers.]] |
| 258 | ** It's implied that the Protheans may have been responsible for sealing the Charon Relay in ice to intentionally keep humanity undiscovered and isolated from the rest of the galaxy, possibly to prevent the Reapers discovering them if they had not advanced to the space-age by the next extermination Cycle. Or maybe just another ace in the hole if their plans with [[spoiler:the asari]] fell through. |
| 259 | * The Biometal (or "Live Metal") from the ''VideoGame/MegaManZX'' series are the sealed memories of many past characters. Namely, Model X is obviously [[VideoGame/MegaManX X]], Model Z is Zero, And Models H, L, F, and P are the Guardians From ''VideoGame/MegaManZero''. |
| 260 | ** Before that are X and Zero themselves, found in such a state at the beginning of their respective series. |
| 261 | *** Ironically, Zero was actually [[SealedEvilInACan Sealed]] ''[[SealedEvilInACan Evil]]'' [[SealedEvilInACan In A Can]] at the start of the X series, as shown in ''VideoGame/MegaManX4'': he [[spoiler:killed an entire Hunter unit, then [[CurbstompBattle effortlessly beat the ever-loving crap out of]] the then-good [[BigBad Sigma]] when the latter tried to stop him– and ''laughed about it the entire time''.]] That version of Zero made a return in ''Zero 3'' as [[spoiler:[[TheDragon Omega]], [[TomatoInTheMirror sort of]]]], who was again SealedEvilInACan; [[spoiler:albeit a can that can move, speak and wreck stuff on its own. Heck, Zero himself opens Omega's can unintentionally, possibly making this a NiceJobBreakingItHero scenario.]] |
| 262 | * In ''VideoGame/MightAndMagic V: Darkside of Xeen'' one quest involves unsealing Corak the Mysterious, discovered in stasis inside an escape pod. Then you get a task to find a special box to temporarily seal him in, so you can get him in place to [[TheUnfought fight and kill]] the BigBad for you when you enter his room. |
| 263 | * ''VideoGame/AMessOTrouble'' (a shareware AdventureGame) has two godlike creatures trapped inside time dilation bubbles in some ruins. You know from local historians (and abominations lying around in the ruins) that their civilization was practically constructed by a good creature and then fooled into nearly destroying itself by a bad creature. One is a beautiful {{Energy Being|s}}, the other a dull-looking lizard man. [[LightIsNotGood Guess which is which?]] |
| 264 | * Amaterasu of ''VideoGame/{{Okami}}'', who is awakened at the start of the game after someone cracks open the [[SealedEvilInACan Evil Sealed Can]] of {{Orochi}}. |
| 265 | ** Sakuya, a wood sprite with trees extending all across Nippon, is also sealed away until you can awaken her. Reviving her various Guardian Saplings will break the curse over an area. |
| 266 | ** For that matter, the brush gods as well, requiring you to free them and regain their powers. |
| 267 | ** Happens again in ''VideoGame/{{Okamiden}}'' with Chibi releasing Shiranui from being frozen in ice. |
| 268 | * In ''VideoGame/PaperMarioTheThousandYearDoor'', according to [[AllMythsAreTrue ingame myths]], [[spoiler:the black boxes are actually the four heroes of a thousand years ago who sealed the Shadow Queen and were sealed as well]]. |
| 269 | * ''VideoGame/Persona5'': [[spoiler:Igor, the BigGood of the ''Franchise/{{Persona}}'' franchise, spends most of the game sealed away by the game's hidden BigBad, who's been [[IdentityImpersonator impersonating him]]. It's only after discovering the villain's deception that Igor is freed and lends you his full aid in the FinalBattle.]] |
| 270 | * Franchise/{{Pokemon}} can become this in their Poké Balls, especially if their Trainer [[NightmareFuel deposits them indefinitely into the Pokémon Storage System]].[[note]]And yes, according to Jessie's Ekans in the episode "Island of the Giant Pokémon": "Pokémon do bad things because '''master bad. Pokémon not bad."'''[[/note]] |
| 271 | * In ''VideoGame/PuzzleQuest: Challenge of the Warlords'', the player character and his/her allies must help the minotaurs revive their god, Lord Sartek, so that he can defeat the evil Lord Bane. |
| 272 | * In ''VideoGame/QuestForGloryIV'', you finally learn the fate of the legendary mage and FriendToAllLivingThings, Erana. [[spoiler:She attempted to seal a CosmicHorror that was invading the land, but only partially succeeded, and got sealed with it as well rather than miss her chance to do so. She's since been tormented by it for all that time, until the very end of the game]]. |
| 273 | * In ''VideoGame/ShadowHeartsFromTheNewWorld'', the light of Will (the [[EvilCounterpart good counterpart]] of the Malice animating the BigBad and TheDragon) is sealed inside a big tower in a salt lake. |
| 274 | * ''VideoGame/ShadowOfTheColossus'' may or may not have an example in Dormin: They're definitely some kind of sealed entity, but the jury's still out on if they're good, evil, or neither. |
| 275 | * In the early ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'' games, Dr. Robotnik's plans usually involved sealing innocent creatures into his robots as power sources. Recently, he seems to have found another source of energy for them (Chaos Drives?). Why he didn't just use batteries in the first place is anyone's guess. |
| 276 | ** He might indeed use batteries, and the Small Furry Animals merely serve as the "intelligence" part of the robot. In other media, however, Robotnik relied upon the ''roboticization'' process. This other media includes Creator/{{Bioware}}'s ''VideoGame/SonicChronicles: Dark Brotherhood''. |
| 277 | ** First major straight example in the series is Tikal in ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure''. Sealed up right alongside [[SealedEvilInACan Chaos]], she gets released at the same time as god of destruction, and spends the rest of the game playing ExpositionFairy in the form of a glowing ball, and occasionally causing visions of Chaos's origin and nature. At the end she helps Chaos AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence. Somehow. |
| 278 | ** ''VideoGame/SonicUnleashed'' has this as well [[spoiler:in the form of Chip, aka Light Gaia, who voluntarily sealed himself within the planet to bind his counterpart, Dark Gaia, and both were released incomplete when Eggman blew the planet open ahead of schedule -- one's an amnesiac ExpositionFairy and the other a physically-scattered CosmicHorror.]] |
| 279 | ** In ''VideoGame/SonicAndTheSecretRings'' the good genie, Shahra, is sealed inside a ring found by Sonic at the beginning of the game. Another cosmic being in the game, the evil Erazor Djinn, becomes SealedEvilInACan at the end of the game. |
| 280 | * In ''VideoGame/StarControl 2: Ur-Quan Masters'', races defeated by [[AffablyEvil Ur-Quan Kzer-Za]] have choice between enrollment as [[LesCollaborateurs battle thralls]] or imprisonment on their own homeworld under an impenetrable ''slave shield''. One of the latter must be fetched out of can by the player in order to win. |
| 281 | * In ''VideoGame/{{Subnautica}}'' the [[spoiler:[[AlwaysABiggerFish Sea Emperor Leviathan]] can count as Sealed Good in an Aquarium. It was sealed by the [[WellIntentionedExtremist Precursors]] as it was needed to cure [[ThePlague Kharaa]]. Sadly, [[AndIMustScream it can never escape]] - [[HopeSpot its offspring though...]]]] |
| 282 | * In ''VideoGame/SuperMarioWorld'', the Yoshis are trapped inside eggs until Mario rescues them. In the Super Famicom version, it's explicit. |
| 283 | * ''Franchise/TouhouProject'' has Byakuren, who was sealed away after trying to establish equality between youkai and humans. Bizarrely enough, you fight her as the final boss, after unsealing her, on purpose. Of course, given how the heroines usually behave, that probably isn't too surprising. |
| 284 | * In ''VideoGame/UniverseAtWar'', it turns out there's an entire race of {{Sufficiently Advanced|Aliens}} BenevolentPrecursors who are sympathetic to us PunyEarthlings in stasis under the Atlantic Ocean. Just what the doctor ordered for helping turn the tables in a HopelessWar against a race of brutal PlanetLooters. Overlaps with AwakeningTheSleepingGiant. |
| 285 | * The druids in ''VideoGame/WarcraftIII'', whom the player must wake up during the Night Elf campaign. Some of whom are ''really, really cranky''. |
| 286 | * ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft: Mists of Pandaria'' gives us the Klaxxi Paragons. The Klaxxi are [[BigCreepyCrawlies Mantid]] whose best and brightest are sealed away in amber and resurrected when the need arises. In this case, they're Sealed Good from the ''Mantid'' perspective, as their objection to Empress Shek'zeer isn't that she's raising a swarm of Mantid to attack Pandaria, but is doing so at the wrong time and in the process abandoning the Mantids' SocialDarwinist values. |
| 287 | * In ''VideoGame/{{XCOM 2}}'' starts with the Commander imprisoned in a stasis pod by ADVENT. The tutorial mission consists in rescuing them to restore XCOM's fighting ability and unite mankind against the aliens. |
| 288 | [[/folder]] |
| 289 | |
| 290 | [[folder:Webcomics]] |
| 291 | * [[spoiler:The rabbit spirit]] from ''[[Webcomic/FifteenMinds Blue Moon Blossom]]'' was sealed inside a crystal deep in a temple guarded by bat creatures. And even when the seal is broken, it remains asleep until it's needed. |
| 292 | * Abraham, the wizard who created the dewitchery diamond in ''Webcomic/ElGoonishShive''. Sure, he almost kills Ellen because she was created by the diamond, but it's pretty obvious that she was the first non-evil thing created by it. |
| 293 | ** He also revises his statue's inscription to say [[spoiler:I rise to atone for my sins]] after he realizes both good and evil creatures can be created by the diamond. This is a step above "I rise to reap what I have sown" which suggested destroying everything the diamond created. |
| 294 | * Winnie from ''Webcomic/FreeSpirit2014'' fears getting trapped in a mirror. A witch like her can not escape one by herself, and if no one lets her out before it breaks, she will die. |
| 295 | * [[spoiler:The first Prissan]] in ''Webcomic/{{Goblins}}'' is stated to be a hammer meant to contain good and be wielded by the evil, mirroring the [[SealedEvilInACan Axe of Prissan]] [[spoiler:which is actually something else]]. |
| 296 | * ''Webcomic/{{Godslave}}'' has Anpu, the reaper of "[[DontFearTheReaper don't fear]]" kind, sealed by his siblings when they rebelled against the EternalRecurrence. However, if Heru and EpilepticTrees are right, he's actually {{Sealed Evil|InACan}}. |
| 297 | * [[spoiler:The plot hole juju]] in ''Webcomic/{{Homestuck}}'' likely qualifies, as it [[spoiler:contains the souls of the four beta kids. Definitely a Type 2, since Caliborn put them in there. That said, what exactly it ''does'' with those souls when it's activated against Lord English is not shown]]. |
| 298 | * ''Webcomic/SluggyFreelance'': When the demons first conquered the world that became the Dimension of Pain, they sealed away all that world's goodness in a Zip-Lock bag and stored it in the Demon King's refrigerator. |
| 299 | -->'''Torg:''' I heard the story before, but I assumed it was ''metaphor''. |
| 300 | [[/folder]] |
| 301 | |
| 302 | [[folder:Web Original]] |
| 303 | * ''Literature/FineStructure'''s BigGood is revealed in an LooseCanon story to have been sealed in a can and released before the main action of the series began. Ironically, that story is evidence for a much darker AlternateCharacterInterpretation of him. |
| 304 | * ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'': The heroes find that one of the relics they need to defeat the villainous Salem contains Jinn, a charismatic, kind, and omniscient magical being created by the God of Light to truthfully answer three questions every one hundred years. Later, they find another being like her named Ambrosius in the relic of creation, though he's a little less friendly. |
| 305 | * In ''Terramirum'', Animusara finds herself trapped in a reliquary for 1,000 years. |
| 306 | * The Web novel ''There'' features sealed good -- the life force of the world, without which environmental decline happens at a rapid rate. |
| 307 | * ''WebAnimation/TrickMoon'': The heroic, powerful Prince was betrayed and trapped inside the Magic Moonstone without any of his magic or abilities. Unlike most examples, he's fully able to communicate with the outside world. |
| 308 | [[/folder]] |
| 309 | |
| 310 | [[folder:Western Animation]] |
| 311 | * HumanPopsicle Aang of ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'' is the Avatar, essentially a GodInHumanForm, who gets sealed in an iceberg for a hundred years right as TheEmpire is beginning it's conquest of the rest of the world. He awakens to find that [[LastOfHisKind the rest of his people were killed]] and the remaining nations are on the brink of defeat. Katara unseals him in the [[Recap/AvatarTheLastAirbenderTheBoyInTheIceberg first episode]] and the series follows his journey to restore balance to the world. |
| 312 | * In ''WesternAnimation/BeastWars'', stasis pods were the writer's means of introducing new characters. Whenever they needed a new character the character would usually come from a stasis pod, a sort of cocoon that provides life support for a spark and basic body for a transformer until they can scan an alt mode and become a fully conscious character. All the stasis pods in the show were Maximal by default, but sometimes gave birth to predacons through either intentional alteration or by an unlikely glitch or chance. Most of the time they're a straight example, save for Quickstrike[[note]]Naturally aggressive and cruel, and prefers the Predacons to the Maximals[[/note]] and Inferno[[note]]A glitch in his programming made him think he was an ant, and he imprints upon and refers to Megatron as his Queen much to the big guy's embarrassment[[/note]] who hopped out as willing predacons. |
| 313 | * Dark Heart does this to the Care Bears at the end of ''WesternAnimation/CareBearsMovieIIANewGeneration'', before Christy frees them. |
| 314 | * ''WesternAnimation/CodeLyoko'': |
| 315 | ** In the prequel, Jeremie turned back on an abandoned Supercomputer inside which resides what he thinks at first is a benevolent A.I., Aelita. He will spend the next season trying to materialize her in the real world. This comes of course with its counterpart SealedEvilInACan. |
| 316 | ** Franz Hopper, the BigGood of the series, although the heroes' interaction with him is very limited as he is more securely sealed and has no body. |
| 317 | * ''WesternAnimation/DungeonsAndDragons1983'' |
| 318 | ** In the episode "The Box," the good sorceress Zandora has been sealed in the eponymous container by the evil Venger; her attempts to reward the shows' heroes for freeing her are [[FailureIsTheOnlyOption somewhat less than successful]]. |
| 319 | ** Venger seals other enemies he deems dangerous by transforming them; [[spoiler:The heroic knight Sir Lawrence is turned into a dorky-looking creature in "Garden of Zinn" and the spellbinder Lukion has become a swamp creature made out of moss and goo in "Prison Without Walls", unable to talk or use his magic.]] |
| 320 | * In ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'', it's revealed that HumanPopsicle Fry was deliberately frozen by Nibbler, a member of the {{Precursors}} because he's TheChosenOne, the only being capable of defeating the Brain-Spawn and preventing them from destroying the universe. |
| 321 | * A StoryArc in ''[[WesternAnimation/AdventuresOfTheGalaxyRangers Galaxy Rangers]]'' was about Tarkon's benevolent MasterComputer that had been "sleeping" since an ancient war. The Heart of Tarkon controlled sophisticated defense systems for the planet and had to be "awakened" to repel a Crown invasion. |
| 322 | * ''WesternAnimation/JadeArmor'': [[spoiler:Lan Jun eventually manages to bind her mother, who had become an EnergySpirit following a HeroicSacrifice, into a bottle of her mother's favorite perfume, allowing her mother to get a more stable form in the absence of her human body.]] |
| 323 | * This happenes to the Justice League in ''WesternAnimation/HarleyQuinn2019'', after the Queen of Fables traps them in her book. [[spoiler: They are eventually freed by Harley in order to defeat Dr. Psycho and his parademons.]] |
| 324 | * In one episode of ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague'', [[spoiler:Despero]] is leeching off a Sealed Good's energy gradually to fuel his powers. When it's completely freed, he's toast. |
| 325 | * ''WesternAnimation/MummiesAlive'' had a royal prince and his four guards. When all five are slaughtered by the minions of the EvilChancellor, the four guards are mummified and enchanted so that when the prince is reborn, they may awake to protect them. This is particularly important since the SealedEvilInACan BigBad has already been released. Further more they need to return to their sarcophagus's to recharge their powers. |
| 326 | * ''WesternAnimation/PJMasks'': has An Yu, the defender of Mystery Mountain, who originally was sealed inside the Dragon Gong (though how and when she was sealed is unknown), forced to obey whoever possessed the gong's mallet. That is untill in the season 3 episode "Meet An Yu", Night Ninja steals the gong and takes it to Mystery Mountain in hopes that the dragon will help him rob the pagoda. Instead, [[NiceJobFixingItVillain this turns out to be exactly the thing An Yu needed to break free]]. |
| 327 | * Non-character example with WesternAnimation/{{Popeye}}'s spinach; ''anyone'' can become strong from eating it, not just him. |
| 328 | * ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse'': In [[Recap/StevenUniverseS1E25MirrorGem "Mirror Gem"]]/[[Recap/StevenUniverseS1E26OceanGem "Ocean Gem"]], Lapis Lazuli is initially found in gem form attached to the mirror in the former until she instructs Steven to remove her from it. At the end of season 1, she becomes both this and [[SealedEvilInADuel Sealed Good in a Duel]] when she fuses with Jasper in order to imprison them both at the bottom of the sea, where they stay until early on in season 3. |
| 329 | * Zigzagged in one episode of ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitans2003'' where Raven meets a heroic wizard named Malchior who has been sealed into a book by an evil dragon called Rorek of Nol, and both befriends and begins working to free him. [[spoiler:Unfortunately, it turns out Rorek was the wizard and the sealed Malchior is actually [[SealedEvilInACan the very evil]] dragon who she [[NiceJobBreakingItHero ends up freeing]].]] |
| 330 | * The Autobots in the original ''[[WesternAnimation/TheTransformers Transformers]]'' cartoon, who were all sealed away inside a volcano with the Decepticons after both factions crashed into it in the distant past, making them all unconscious. It wasn't until the volcano's eruption that both were set free. |
| 331 | ** This more or less seems to be Metroplex's role in various recent continuities. He is often hidden and in stasis until unwittingly awakened by the Autobots. |
| 332 | * In ''WesternAnimation/WinxClub'', the White Circle is found to have been imprisoning the remaining Earth Fairies for sixteen years. Played with in that while technically good and victimised, the Earth Fairies are not purely good once released; Nebula and her Warrior Fairies also serve as an [[HeWhoFightsMonsters antagonistic force]] to the Winx Club for much of the story. |
| 333 | * Season Two of ''WesternAnimation/{{WITCH}}'' has [[spoiler:Elyon]], who is sealed inside [[spoiler:a necklace that her powers were drained into. Nerissa uses the necklace/Elyon's powers to attack Elyon's friends]]. It can't have been pleasant. |
| 334 | [[/folder]] |
| 335 | |
| 336 | [[folder:Real Life]] |
| 337 | * The Svalbard seed vault and other heirloom and traditional seed and plant vaults and storages - the only hope of the world to avoid starving to death in the event of anything from nuclear war to a genetic modification mistake. Reserves of vaccines, medications, and other necessary health items so ''if'' there is a pandemic or a major disaster that reduces healthcare to pre 20th century levels, there's some chance at saving lives from it and/or bringing conditions back to their pre-disaster levels. |
| 338 | [[/folder]] |
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/context.php
FollowingContext Main / SealedGoodInACan
Go To
- Show Spoilers
- Night Vision
- Sticky Header
- Wide Load
