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11[[quoteright:300:[[Series/SonsOfAnarchy https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/sons_of_anarchy_tatooedcrook.png]]]]
12
13->''Just a young boy, born to a life of poverty\
14Hustlin, robbery, whatever brung the paper home\
15Carried the chrome like a blind man hold a cane\
16Tattoos all over his chest so you could know his name''
17-->-- '''Dead Prez''', "Behind Enemy Lines"
18
19Tattoos have a long history and have over the millennia been signs of different social classes, from royalty to the rags. In more recent times, they have become associated with criminals, sailors, and [[BreadEggsBreadedEggs criminal sailors]] (a.k.a. {{pirate}}s). In fiction, a tattoo can act as a shorthand for "criminal", and at times [[TruthInTelevision it's not that far off]]. Organized crime from {{Yakuza}} to {{Gangbangers}} have their own codes, and prisoners [[StoryboardBody tell their life stories in pictures]].
20
21The attitudes towards tattoos have softened during the past decades. In an old movie, a character with a tattoo was either a sailor or a thug. In the 2020s, regular middle-class people get tattoos. Indeed, old pirate and prisoner tattoo designs have been adopted into the general lexicon of regular tattoos, prime example being the spider web, which depending on the bearer might have once meant drug addiction, incarceration, or killing a minority, but is now a fashion accessory.
22
23Still, the stigma with the past backgrounds makes tattoos popular with rebel types. Even the RuleAbidingRebel -- or [[EspeciallyZoidberg especially]] the RuleAbidingRebel, since it does not actually require committing illegal acts to look rebellious. There is still extreme stigma related to tattoos in Japan, as they are still closely associated with the Yakuza to this day. A tattoo is still a common visual cue in Japanese media for a character of dubious morals or simply a [[JapaneseDelinquents delinquent]].
24
25This could be regarded as an EvolvingTrope; as tattoos went into mainstream fashion during TheNineties, the gangland crooks took their tattoos up a notch with neck tattoos and face tattoos (see TattooAsCharacterType). If a group of crooks has a defining tattoo, see GroupIdentifyingFeature.
26
27May be EmbarrassingTattoo when a crook or rebellious punk rock musician goes straight and moves to {{Suburbia}}. In futuristic settings, a BarcodeTattoo may be an Orwellian surveillance and control tactic.
28
29In RealLife in the 2020s, tattoos have gone mainstream. Suburban soccer moms and accountants get tattoos, and the college student barista at your BourgeoisBohemian coffeshop has a full sleeve tattoo that you'd only have seen in TheEighties on a HeavyMetal [[TheRockStar lead singer]] or a BadassBiker. Some RealLife tattoos have a horrifying usage. Nazis put identification tattoos on Jewish prisoners in WWII concentration camps during the Holocaust.
30
31----
32!!Examples:
33
34[[foldercontrol]]
35
36[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
37* The leader of [[GangOfHats the clown gang]] in ''Manga/{{Akira}}'' has a clown face tattooed on both his arms.
38* Delinquent Jacuzzi Splot from ''Literature/{{Baccano}}'' has a scimitar tattooed on his face, as a symbol of solidarity to Nice, who got her face scarred in an accident.
39* In ''Manga/BlackCat'', Train has a tattoo of the number XIII on his chest. It signifies that he belonged to [[NebulousEvilOrganization Chronos]], and is generally viewed by people as being fearsome. He doesn't seem to mind showing it though.
40* One chapter of ''Manga/BlackJack'' involved performing an operation on a yakuza boss with fully tattooed skin, without damaging the tattoo.
41* Revy from ''Manga/BlackLagoon'' has a large shoulder piece. Also, Yakuza muscleman Ginji from the "Fujiyama Gangsta Paradise" arc sports a large traditional Yakuza tattoo.
42* The target of the week in the ''Anime/CowboyBebop'' episode "[[Recap/CowboyBebopSession7HeavyMetalQueen Heavy Metal Queen]]" is described to have a dragon tattoo, which causes some confusion as bounty hunters look for the right guy.
43* Horada from ''Literature/{{Durarara}}'' sports a butterfly tattoo on his left wrist. The butterfly logo also can be found on his shirt and the hood of his car. [[spoiler:He is also one of the more ruthless gang members, also being a former Blue Square higher-up that was involved in the kidnapping and crippling of Kida's girlfriend Saki.]]
44* Many characters in ''Manga/{{Gokusen}}'' (including the dog!) like to let their jacket fall open to reveal a heavily tattooed shoulder, for intimidation purposes. Kumiko sometimes does this unconsciously while yelling at her students (although she doesn't seem to have any tattoos).
45* Mion Sonozaki has a large yakuza tattoo on her back in ''VisualNovel/HigurashiWhenTheyCry''. It's also a major plot point, [[spoiler: since ''Shion'' should have gotten it instead, but a TwinSwitch screwed all up]].
46* In ''Manga/KingOfThorn'', Marco Owen is identified by the other survivors as a criminal due to his prominent prison tattoos.
47* Yazan, PsychoForHire of Anime/MobileSuitZetaGundam has a turtle tattooed on his chest.
48* Orochimaru's Curse Seals from ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'' are magical tattoos that let you go OneWingedAngel that he gives to his EvilMinions.
49* ''Manga/OnePiece'' seems to like this trope:
50** Nami first had the Arlong pirate's crest on her shoulder, but after breaking ties with them, changed it into a homage to her adoptive mother Bellemere and surrogate father figure Genzo. Her adoptive older sister Nojiko, despite not being a crook, also got a tattoo to show her sympathy for her.
51** Luffy's brother Ace has the Whitebeard Pirate's crest on his back, which in the manga contained a Manji, but was changed [[NoSwastikas into a cross in the Anime]] and retconned into the manga. He also has ASCE (with an X through the S) on his bicep; the "S" serves as a reminder of Ace and Luffy's third brother, Sabo, who was killed by a Celestial Dragon years ago [[spoiler:([[ReportsOfMyDeathWereGreatlyExaggerated or so everyone thought]])]].
52** Boa Hancock and her sisters Marigold and Sandersonia were revealed to have a scar tattoo on their backs called the "Hoof of the Soaring Dragon", the crest of the [[AristocratsAreEvil Celestial Dragons]]. It is a mark that is branded into people who are slaves to the World Nobles and signifies that they are "less than human"; Hancock and her sisters invented the story of the Gorgon so nobody would look at their backs.
53** Speaking of which, after Fisher Tiger freed a whole lot of slaves belonging to the Celestial Dragons (the Boa sisters included), he took most of the Fishmen slaves, and re-branded their slave tattoos into what resembled sun tattoos, effectively making it the symbol of the Sun Pirates, which he and Jinbe captained, until Tiger died and Jinbe became one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea. Arlong and much of his crew all sport these tattoos because they were once members of the Sun Pirates themselves before parting ways with Jinbe after Tiger's death. Koala, a human slave that stowed away on the Sun Pirates ship, was also branded with the sun tattoo, and presumably still bears it to this day.
54** Subverted with [[spoiler:the New Fishman Pirates. While they sport a tattoo that looks like the Sun Pirates' tattoo at first glance, it has a decapitated human inside the sun ring instead of a dot. Since this would not cover up the Celestial Dragons' SlaveBrand, this eventually leads to TheReveal that no member of the New Fishman Pirates has ever been a slave.]]
55** Trafalgar Law has a number of tattoos, including "Smile" tattoos on his arms, tiny cross-shapes on the backs of his hands, and "DEATH" on his fingers.
56** Dragon the Revolutionary, the most wanted man in the world. The tattoo runs down the left half of his face.
57** Most members of the Longleg Tribe adorn their legs with tattoos, which they then go on to show off by exposing as much of their legs as possible.
58** Big Mom and Kaido, incredibly powerful pirate emperors and the primary antagonists of the Four Emperors Arc, each have tattoos on their left arm. Big Mom has a large heart design, while Kaido has a sleeve resembling scales as well as a skull.
59** Charlotte Katakuri sports tattoos on the left half of his torso, including a wing on his back and his personal Jolly Roger on his shoulder (the same Jolly Roger sported on the back of his jacket).
60** Queen sports a stylized version of the Beast Pirates Jolly Roger on his right shoulder.
61* Gene from ''Manga/OutlawStar'' has a tattoo of a star on his bicep. And is an outlaw.
62* Cabbage from ''Manga/RainbowNishaRokubouNoShichinin'' has a tattoo on his bicep. His criminal activities are just an act of violence while drunk, but it's possible he had the crime pinned on him because of the suspicious tattoo.
63* Mugen from ''Anime/SamuraiChamploo'' has blue rings tattooed around his wrists, to mark him as a convict.
64* One of Nozomu's co-teachers, Jinroku in ''Manga/SayonaraZetsubouSensei'' has a large Yakuza tattoo on his back, which scares the titular protagonist.
65** In one episode where Nozomu comments on getting through life by ignoring unpleasant things, he sees a guy walk by with a dragon tattoo on his arm. He shudders and comments, "Ignoring that."
66* ''Manga/TwentiethCenturyBoys'' features two tattooed former criminals, one Thai and the other Italian, who have both become Catholic priests.
67* Inverted example in ''Anime/YuGiOh'': while Marik Ishtar is a BigBad and the leader of his own criminal organization, what caused him to become a crook in the first place was the painful coming of age ritual where he received his large tattoo covering his back. This tattoo is merely associated with becoming Pharaoh Atem's tombkeeper and not with crime; however, this reception of the tattoo augmented Marik's hatred toward Atem as well as created his SuperPoweredEvilSide, which he would harbor until he would actually become an active BigBad.
68** Also, Marik's stepbrother Rishid/Odion has a tattoo on the right side of his face. (Again, this had nothing to do with him being a criminal; he did it to himself after Marik was given his tattoos to prove his loyalty to him.)
69*** Played straight in 5D's, criminals are given facial scar-like tattoos when incarcerated, even for seemingly minor crimes. The tattoos double as a tracking device in case of repeat offenders.
70[[/folder]]
71
72[[folder:Asian Animation]]
73* ''Animation/BreadBarbershop'': The wanted pie crook has a tattoo of an arrow going through an apple on his right arm.
74[[/folder]]
75
76[[folder:Comic Books]]
77* ''Franchise/TheDCU'':
78** Taken to its logical extreme with two supervillains known as the Tattooed Man (one of which was a ComicBook/GreenLantern foe in UsefulNotes/{{the Silver Age|OfComicBooks}}), both of whom have the ability to bring their many tattoos to life for villainous purposes. In a later story two of his tattoos -- Kabuki Dan (a samurai) and Altara (a succubus) -- come to life outside of his power and commit crimes of their own volition, making them the most literal possible expression of this trope: criminals who ''are'' tattoos.
79** Similar to the Tattooed Man, ''ComicBook/{{Batman}}'' villain Pyx has the ability to animate the tattoos that cover her body.
80** In ''ComicBook/AllStarBatmanAndRobinTheBoyWonder'', the Joker has a large tattoo of a red dragon on his back, suggesting possible {{Yakuza}} ties.
81** A very insignificant background character in ''ComicBook/KingdomCome'' had the left side of her body covered in tattoos. The annotations refer to her as Signalwoman, in a nod to D-List Batman villain Signalman. The tattoos were meant to correspond with the symbols on his cape. Von Bach and Swastika are both ''very'' heavily tattooed; Von Bach's body is almost completely covered in ink, making him black as coal from head to toe except for the unmarked areas on his chest and arms. Swastika has an elaborate design of blocks tattooed on him in such a manner that his non-tattooed skin forms a swastika symbol.
82** King Snake from ''ComicBook/Robin1993'', the [[HandicappedBadass blind]] EvilBrit who murdered his way into a position of power among the gangs of Gotham's Chinatown, has a large snake tattooed on his chest.
83** El Diablo from the 2011 ''ComicBook/SuicideSquad'' series is a slumlord turned holy man with tats all over his upper body; the ones on his head in particular make it look like a skull. They have some vague connection to his PlayingWithFire powers.
84* ''Franchise/MarvelUniverse'':
85** Daken from ''ComicBook/{{Wolverine}}'' sports a very prominent tribal tattoo on his left pectoral, trapezius, and arm, despite having inherited his dad's HealingFactor.
86** The Deacon from ''ComicBook/GhostRider'' has religious symbols and iconography tattooed all over his entire body, and true to form, he is a very devout... uh... Christianity-derived murderous evil cult member. He's also first encountered by the Ghost Rider in prison (long story).
87** The Red Skull from ''ComicBook/TheUltimates'' has these all over his body, including on his [[TearOffYourFace skinned face]]!
88** ''Young X-Men'', the short-lived revamp of ''ComicBook/NewXMenAcademyX'', features a group of minor villains named the Y-Men. They're white trash career criminals [[PowerTattoo whose powers come from their tattoos]], done by a mutant tattoo artist -- for instance, the guy with a bomb on his hand has an explosive punch, while the guy with cheetah spots on his back has super speed. The Young X-Men member named Ink got his own powers from the same source.
89** In ''ComicBook/XMenNoir'', all of Xavier's original X-Men have an "X" tattooed somewhere on their body -- and all of them are master criminals in the making. In the sequel, ''Mark of Cain'', prisoners at Genosha Bay are marked with an "M" tattoo over their right eye. This is ostensibly to signify that they pose a "maximum" risk should they ever be transferred to another facility, but functionally, it serves as an automatic identifier should they manage to escape.
90%%** Death Reaper, the supervillain groupie/specialist in ''ComicBook/DarkReign: Zodiac''.%%Administrivia/ZeroContentExample
91%%** Scorpion from ''ComicBook/UltimateSpiderMan''.%%Administrivia/ZeroContentExample
92* ''ComicBook/TheCouriers'': Mous, one of the two criminal protagonists, has large tribal tattoos on both shoulders. The other protagonist, Special, has a smaller one on her shoulder blade. Their former boss, [[TheTriadsAndTheTongs Triad gangster]] Johnny Funwrecker, is heavily tattooed all over with a mixture of traditional Chinese and punk rock styles.
93* Saya Kuroki from ''ComicBook/DeadlyClass'' is [[MafiaPrincess the heiress]] of the most powerful Yakuza syndicate of Japan. One of her main trademarks is the fact that her body is covered with Japanese tattoos widely used by Yakuza, known as Irezumi.
94%%* The Hellmoth is a tattooed criminal ''kaiju''.%%Source?
95* In ''ComicBook/LoveAndRockets'', Izzy Ortiz has a tattoo on her arm of the logo of the Widows, the female street gang she was a member of in her youth.
96* Akita Sagawa in ''ComicBook/NikolaiDante'' is mistress of the [[{{Yakuza}} Black Dragons]] and is covered in tattoos from her neck to her thighs. Since this is the 27th century, her tattoos change shape and colour depending on her mood.
97* ''ComicBook/SinCity'' has the occasional tattooed criminal with the most obvious example actually coming from a corrupt federal agent who had a big black tattoo of an eagle across his face.
98* ''ComicBook/StrangersInParadise'': "Parker Girls" (Darcy Parker's henchwomen) are all given a lily tattoo. If you're Darcy's "favorite toy" (read: Katchoo), she'll put it on your breast.
99* After Hun was brought into ''ComicBook/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtlesMirage'' from the [[WesternAnimation/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles2003 2003 cartoon]], his stylized Dragon tattoo was made exponentially more elaborate, full of scales and covering his entire arm.
100* ''ComicBook/ThinBlueLine'': When a bunch of anti-cop protestors have cornered Officer Maca and the mayor in their car and killed Sergeant Mack and Officer Mikkelson, a large bald man with snake tattoos approached them. The protestors try to explain how they're on his side, and when it seems like they've swayed him, he shoots the one who was talking to him [[BoomHeadshot in the head]] and demands the Mayor's wallet, which he hands over with no argument.
101%%* Sakura the gambler, in ''ComicBook/UsagiYojimbo''.%%Administrivia/ZeroContentExample
102* ''ComicBook/{{XIII}}'': the members of the mysterious organization XX, that is working to overthrow the US government are identified by a roman numeral tattoo. The titular AmnesiacHero gets his name from his XIII tattoo which is his only identifying marker when he washes ashore at the beginning of the story.
103[[/folder]]
104
105[[folder:Fan Works]]
106* ''Fanfic/KyonBigDamnHero'' has Tsuruya's father [[LargeAndInCharge Kenshiro]] and her bodyguard Kasai. Both of them belong to {{Yakuza}}.
107* Catwoman, an international jewel thief, has more of a "street" look to her in the ''Dusk to Dawn'' fan novels compared to the original comics, with tattoos as well as dyed purple hairstreaks. Her ink includes the kanji for "wind" on her upper right arm, the phrase "Vive ut Vivas[[note]](Live in order to live)[[/note]]" on her left forearm, a white rose circling her ankle, and "a crouching cat made of sharp swirls" across her shoulder blades.
108[[/folder]]
109
110[[folder:Films -- Animation]]
111* In Disney's ''WesternAnimation/PeterPan'', Hook sings:
112-->'''Hook:''' ''As a special offer for today,\
113I'll tell you what I'll do\
114All those who sign without delay\
115will get a free tattoo...''
116[[/folder]]
117
118[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
119* ''Film/TwelveMonkeys'': Cole has two barcodes tattooed on his neck which reveal that he was convicted for violent crimes.
120* {{Barcode Tattoo}}s are marks of prisoners in ''Film/Alien3''. This is one of the few remaining elements of Creator/WilliamGibson's version of the script.
121* Justin Timberlake's gangster in ''Film/AlphaDog'' is covered in Chinese characters. He probably [[BilingualBonus doesn't realize]] that they declare a great love of ice skating, though.
122* The trope is combined with EmbarrassingTattoo in ''Film/AmericanHistoryX'': the protagonist has a huge swastika tattooed on his chest.
123* ''Film/BabyDriver'':
124** OutlawCouple Buddy and Darling have matching Hers and His tattoos on their necks.
125** PsychoPartyMember Bats has plenty, including a gun on the back of his hand and several Bats on his neck.
126** Griff, JD and No-Nose Eddie all have visible tattoos. Baby comments on JD's rather odd neck tattoo.
127--->'''Baby:''' Your tattoo says, "Hat."\
128'''JD:''' Yeah, it used to say "Hate". But to increase my chances of employment, I got the E removed.\
129'''Baby:''' How's that working out for you?\
130'''JD:''' Who doesn't like hats?
131* Toorop, the mercenary protagonist played by Vin Diesel in ''Film/BabylonAD''.
132* Anatoli Knyazev, Comicbook/LexLuthor's main henchman in ''Film/BatmanVSupermanDawnOfJustice'' has a distinctive tattoo on his neck.
133* ''Film/BillAndTedFaceTheMusic'': The Bill and Ted in prison are muscle-bound and covered in tattoos that say things like "Excellent" and "Heinous."
134* ''Film/BlackWake'': One of the two robbers in one scene has a torso covered in tattoos.
135* ''Film/BloodFather'': Most of the criminals in the film have them, due to being gang members. John easily identifies them being from various gangs as he's familiar with these from his time in prison (along with being a tattoo artist). The sicario sent by the cartel is the standout example, as his facial tattoos are very distinctive.
136* Corky from ''Film/{{Bound|1996}}'' sports a labrys, a symbol of lesbianism and feminine strength. She's a {{butch lesbian}} and ex-con.
137* ''Film/CainHill'': In one scene, you can see that Chester Lockhart, the killer who's been picking off the cast, has a scorpion tattoo on his right arm.
138* Max Cady in ''Film/CapeFear'' has his torso completely covered with tattoos of Bible verses, a broken heart, and a cross, among other things. To quote an officer seeing him shirtless, "I don't know whether to look at him or read him."
139* In ''Captives'', Creator/TimRoth plays a prisoner with tats.
140* ''Film/CharliesAngelsFullThrottle'' has Seamus, the tattooed thug of TheIrishMob, the PsychoExBoyfriend out to get Creator/DrewBarrymore's character, [[DarkAndTroubledPast Dylan]].
141* ''Film/{{Chocolate}}'': Zin and Masashi are both tattooed prominently on their torsos, as seen when they have sex. She's Thai and he's Japanese, both dangerous gangsters.
142* Johnny 23 in ''Film/ConAir'' has an elaborate series of heart symbols tattooed on his right arm -- one for each of the 23 counts of rape for which he was convicted. He claims that if law enforcement knew the truth he'd be Johnny ''100''.
143* ''Film/CurseOfTheZodiac'' features a killer with unexplained tattoos printed on the left side of his neck.
144* ''Film/DenOfThieves'': All of the bank robbery crew except Donnie sport prominent tattoos. So do most of the deputies, who are depicted as being little better than a gang themselves.
145* ''Film/{{Diggstown}}:'' Prison boxer Torres is a tattooed felon with a fearsome reputation.
146* ''Film/DungeonsAndDragonsTheBookOfVileDarkness'': Seith, a ruthless assassin, has distinctive jagged black tattoos on his face and neck.
147* Operates as a ChekhovsGun for Viggo Mortensen's character in ''Film/EasternPromises''. It says something that while taking a break, he accidentally scared several Russian Immigrants into thinking he was the real [=McCoy=].
148* ''Film/{{Elysium}}'': Max spent several years in prison and is on parole, and as we can see from his scenes in the beginning, is very inked out.
149* ''Film/{{Faster}}''. Driver has a tattoo on his forearm marking those people he killed in prison over the past ten years. A Badass Samoan takes one look and backs off, knowing full well the reputation of the man wearing it.
150* ''Film/FatalInstinct'': Spoofed by Max Shady. His prison tattoos include quotes by Pee-Wee Herman and Bart Simpson, and mementos to remind him which of his hands is right or left.
151* Seth in ''Film/FromDuskTillDawn'' has a large black Tribal tattoo stretching from his neck down his whole left arm.
152* In ''Film/AGirlWalksHomeAloneAtNight'', the drug dealer, loan shark, and pimp Saeed has both Latin and Arabic-script tattoos all over his body.
153* The bikers in ''Film/HellRide''. A small plot point comes from villain Billy Wings who has different color wings tattooed on him to mark sexual transgressions, including purple wings for "licking dead pussy".
154* ''Film/HoubaOnTheTrailOfTheMarsupilami'': The three gangsters Pablito owns money to have their faces heavily tattooed. At the end, they are beaten up by the Marsupilami and are smashed against a wall, leaving an imprint of their tattooed faces.
155* In ''Film/LittleOdessa'' Creator/TimRoth plays a hitman for the Russian mob with his tattoos occasionally on display. The Russian mob is known for its use of meaningful tattoos.
156* ''Film/LostGirlsAndLoveHotels'': Kazu, in keeping with the Yakuza tradition, is heavily tattooed all across his torso.
157* Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse:
158** Ivan Vanko from ''Film/IronMan2'' is covered in Russian prison tattoos. Except those tattoos seem to indicate that he's a card sharp and did time for theft, disorderly conduct, and [[BreadEggsMilkSquick raping a minor]], even though he was supposed to have been jailed for plutonium smuggling.
159** In ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy2014'', Drax never wears a shirt, showing off a muscular torso ''covered'' with elaborate scarification.
160** ''Film/SpiderManHomecoming'': Mac Gargan has a noticeable tattoo of a [[{{Foreshadowing}} scorpion]] on the left side of his neck.
161** Alexei Shostakov from ''Film/BlackWidow2021'' acquires [[https://screenrant.com/black-widow-red-guardian-tattoos-meaning/ a large number of tattoos]] during his time in a Russian prison. Like Vanko's, many of them are descriptions of his crimes, length of incarceration, and political stances. He also has more personal markings dedicated to [[UndercoverAsLovers Melina]], Natasha, and Yelena showing that he really did love them even though their "family" was a cover story for spy work.
162* In the LiveActionAdaptation of ''Film/MrMagoo'', the art thief/seller Austin Cloquet is entertaining criminals from all over the world at his mansion. As they disrobe to go into a pool, the crooks start comparing tattoos. Then they take a look at the Yakuza whose entire body is completely covered in elaborate tattoos.
163-->'''American Crook:''' Not bad. What do they mean?\
164'''Yakuza:''' Every time I kill a man... I tattoo his portrait on my body.\
165'''Russian Crook:''' What do you do when you run out of room? Stop killing people? ''[laughs]''
166* Subverted in ''Film/TheNewGuy'', in a prison yard scene where a heavily tattooed Music/HenryRollins is one of many shirtless men applying tattoos. When the prison guard comes up to him, he is forced to put on a shirt, revealing he is in fact the Warden.
167* ''Film/TheNightOfTheHunter'', the TropeMaker for KnuckleTattoos featured a serial killer with LOVE and HATE tattooed on his knuckles.
168%%* The Finglerling in ''Film/TheNumber23''.
169* ''Film/OceansEleven'': Rusty has a tribal design on his left arm that extends onto his hand. It's usually covered up by the sleeves of his suit but the very ends still show. In ''Twelve'' he implies that he also has a tattoo referring to ex-girlfriend Isabel in a [[IntimateMarks location]] that makes it difficult to remove.
170* Nig in ''Film/OnceWereWarriors''. In an unusual but in-setting variation, his tattoos are a mixture of criminal gang markings and traditional Māori face markings, or ta moko.
171* Captain Jack Sparrow from ''Franchise/PiratesOfTheCaribbean'' has plenty, including the trademark Sparrow tattoo on his arm.
172* Another serial killer, the titular ''Film/RedDragon'' (nicknamed "the Tooth Fairy" by the media) had a whole-back tattoo based on a William Blake painting of the eponymous dragon.
173* In ''Film/RobinHoodTheRebellion'', the Sheriff of Nottingham employs a behemoth named Brimstone as his primary enforcer: a massive [[BaldOfEvil bald]], tattooed [[GiantMook musclebound brute who towers over even Little John]].
174* Lester has an Ace of Spades tattooed on his arm in ''Film/{{Rounders}}'', calling it the ace up his sleeve.
175* While it wasn't as obvious as the other examples, Tony Montana of ''Film/{{Scarface 1983}}'' has a tattoo on his hand showing that he was in prison.
176* ''Film/{{Scarred}}'': If you can catch a glimpse of the killer's arm, you'll see he has a tattoo on it.
177* The Creator/JohnSingleton "reboot' ''Film/{{Shaft 2000}}'' features a henchman with the imaginative name of Tattoo, whose distinctively tattooed hand proves to be a ChekhovsGun
178* ''Film/ShotCaller'': Jacob acquires a large number of white supremacy tattoos during his prison sentence displaying his gang affiliations. Obviously, the same holds true for the other higher-ranked members. Interestingly, when he's formally inducted into the Aryan Brotherhood, the leader tells him not to get any AB symbols tattooed on him so the guards can't "validate" him, i.e. conclusively identify him as a member.
179* ''Film/{{Shuttle}}'': When [[spoiler:Andy]] is revealed to be TheMole, it's punctuated by him ripping his shirt open to show off his tattoos.
180* ''Film/TheSignOfFourSherlockHolmesGreatestCase'': Small's partner the Tattooed Man escaped from prison with him. He has his entire body covered with tattoos to disguise his appearance and works as a tattooed man at the funfair.
181* Most of the gang members in ''Film/SinNombre'' are heavily tattooed. L'il Mago, the leader of the gang, takes this up a notch, [[http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__BqlxfEVGSg/S0OMM6iiZpI/AAAAAAAABpA/IiEIVivImsU/s400/sin+nombre+1.jpg as seen here.]]
182%%* Darth Maul from ''Franchise/StarWars''. See also the Expanded Universe entry below.
183* This marks the difference between the levels of criminals in ''Film/{{Stiletto}}''. The more street-level criminals, like the biker gangs and the Mexican cartels, all sport large numbers of tattoos. The members of vigil's organised crime family -- even PsychoPartyMember Lee -- are all clean skins. Raina often comments on a criminal's ink before she kills them.
184* ComicBook/TheJoker, El Diablo, and Harley Quinn in the Franchise/DCExtendedUniverse's adaptation of ''Film/SuicideSquad2016'' are all heavily tattooed.
185* In ''Film/SupermanReturns'', Lois and her son are held hostage by a bald thug with a clown tattooed on his skull. He's the guy who gets squished by a piano.
186-->'''[[http://comicsalliance.com/comicsalliance-reviews-superman-returns-2006-part-two/ Chris Sims]]''': ''I have always suspected that Luthor was down with the [[Music/InsaneClownPosse Dark Carnival]], but now we know that he employs henchjuggalos.''
187* ''Film/TeenWolf'': The basketball coach, who apparently has a very sordid personal life, advises Michael J. Fox to never get involved with a woman with a tattoo of a dagger on her body.
188* ''Film/ThingsToDoInDenverWhenYoureDead'': Franchise, one of the criminals whom Jimmy recruits, has many tattoos on his arms and chest.
189* The skinheads in ''Film/ThisIsEngland'' have homemade tattoos. At one point, they give Shaun one too, a cross on [[KnuckleTattoos his left middle finger]].
190* ''Film/{{Transporter 2}}''. [[TheDragon Lola]] has a tattoo on her [[ZettaiRyouiki inner thigh]] labelled "[[KillerRabbit Death by Rabbit]]" with a snarling rabbit wielding sixGunsAkimbo.
191* Tran, the 10-year-old drug kingpin from ''Film/TropicThunder''.
192* Like most Omegas in ''Film/XMenTheLastStand'', Kid Omega and Callisto have many tattoos.
193[[/folder]]
194
195[[folder:Literature]]
196* ''Literature/AbleTeam''. Carl Lyons is [[MuggingTheMonster attacked by gangbangers]] and sees several of them have a teardrop tattoo which supposedly shows they've killed someone or done time, but he cynically notes that a lot of gangbangers wore them without having done either. Then their leader appears with two teardrop tattoos, and Lyons thinks he looks like [[AsskickingLeadsToLeadership someone who earned his the hard way.]]
197* ''Altered Carbon''. Literature/TakeshiKovacs is surprised to see criminals on Earth wearing [[ScannableMan barcodes]] as a gang tattoo, as on the world he grew up they have UnfortunateImplications of IndenturedServitude.
198* Web serial ''Literature/{{Barkwire}}'' features Doublewide, an inexplicably tattooed dog who runs a protection racket on the local Arby's.
199* ''Literature/CatwomanSoulstealer'': Selina and other Leopards get spot tattoos on their arms as a gang sign, with new spots each time they win fights. However, mostly she keeps them covered with long sleeves so they aren't recognized given the Leopards are known as a gang in Gotham and it could get Selina in trouble.
200* ''Literature/TheChroniclesOfDorsa'': Akella is a pirate captain who's described as having several tattoos, with the only visible ones usually those on the backs of her hands. This isn't related to being a pirate specifically though. Agessian rizalts (captains) all get more tattoos related to how brave they are.
201* Many characters in Creator/TerryPratchett's ''Literature/{{Discworld}}''. Put to use in {{Bar Brawl}}s, an organised sport in Ankh Morpork, where contestants tattoo their names to all their limbs so TheIgor knows to reattach them later.
202** [[AllTrollsAreDifferent Trolls being living rock]], their equivalent is gang graffiti, or carvings if they're ''really'' tough.
203*** Inverted by Detritus, who opted to have his watchman's badge carved into his arm to show his dedication to the service.
204* In Creator/DanAbnett's ''Literature/GauntsGhosts'' novel, the Ghosts have tattoos. [[BlueBlood Aristocratic]] Guardsmen [[MoralMyopia regard]] them as visual proof of the Ghosts' general uncouthness, along with their WildHair. But new Vergast Ghosts desperately want tattoos to show they are part of the regiment.
205* The Death Eaters' signet in ''Literature/HarryPotter''.
206* Prisoners in ancient China were often tattooed with their sentences. This is a sore point for a character in ''Literature/HeroesOfTheWaterMargin'' and he takes pains to get it removed.
207* Literature/TheIlluminaeFiles features the House of Knives, who has tattoos in a similar fashion to TheMafiya to represent jail time. This includes Nik, one of the protagonists, though it doesn't include his cousin Ella, a PlayfulHacker who is too talented to be caught.
208* A group of young skinheads make trouble at a mall in ''Literature/JenniferGovernment'', and are full of corporate logo tattoos.
209* ''Literature/JoePickett'': Timber Cates in ''Endangered''. He is covered in prison tattoos that his mother finds disgusting. These make him stand out when he attempts to pull a JanitorImpersonationInfiltration at the hospital.
210* A bizarre inversion in Creator/ChinaMieville's ''Literature/{{Kraken}}'', where the crook ''[[AndIMustScream is]]'' the tattoo.
211* Mainyu Mazda, a shady Middle Eastern black market dealer in the ''Literature/LeftBehind'' books, tattoos himself and the victims he has killed with an M, and when Albie pays him a visit to discuss having the GC's meeting place in Al Hillah bugged for money, he is in the process of getting another M tattooed on himself, saying that [[OhCrap sometimes he even gets them in advance]].
212** The "crook" part comes when he promises Albie that he will have the job done as long as he has the money, and then decides not to do the job after all and keep the money all for himself when he murders Albie.
213* Karsa Orlong from ''Literature/MalazanBookOfTheFallen'' has a broken-glass tattoo on his face that denotes his past as a slave.
214* "The Masked Breton" in ''Papillion'', which would also make it a RealLife example. Escaping from the harsh prison camps, too late did he realize that the distinctive facial tattoo he got in prison made him extremely easy to identify and would prohibit him from living a normal life pretty much anywhere.
215* In ''Literature/MobyDick'', Queequeg's tattoos are frequently used as a marker of his "[[NobleSavage savagery]]", although in this case, it's less to do with criminality than to do with culture - to him, they're actually a marker of his noble lineage (he is the son of a chief), but to the Americans, they make him look like a ferocious barbarian, and even as we get to know and like Queequeg, it's still very clear that [[GoodIsNotSoft he's a very dangerous man]], and freely admits to [[CannibalTribe having eaten people]]. The book was written when tattoos were just beginning to catch on in the west, and were still heavily associated with Polynesia.
216* The book of ''Literature/PeterPan'' has Bill Jukes, every inch of him tattooed.
217* Literature/ArkadyRenko
218** In ''Polar Star'', former detective Renko encounters a former inmate he sent to TheGulag for murder who has the scars from when the prison doctors removed his tats. Renko points to an evident injury on the man's forehead and asks what he had up there. It was "Communism drinks the blood of the people". Renko is impressed that he could fit all that on his forehead.
219** In ''Red Square'', one of Renko's partners looks at a witness's tattoos and sounds off that each picture has a meaning, e.g. he's been to prison and is willing to murder and so on.
220* Count Olaf has a tattoo of an eye on his leg in ''Literature/ASeriesOfUnfortunateEvents''.
221* [[ThievesGuild Ink members]] in ''Literature/SkateTheThief'' all have matching tattoos as a GroupIdentifyingFeature. This includes thieves as young as ''six'', if Skate's personal history is anything to go by.
222* ''Literature/SnowCrash'' has some jurisdictions issuing tattoos to the convicted, giving the likely reason for their crimes as a warning to others. As such, they are always [[FacialMarkings on the face]]. Hiro is threatened by one guy with "Racially Insensitive" and "Mood Swings", while BadassBiker Raven, who has a ''Nuclear Weapon'' as the sidecar of his bike, has one that reads "Poor Impulse Control" on his forehead.
223%%* The Sith, and various alien races in the Franchise/StarWarsExpandedUniverse.%%ZCE
224* ''Literature/TheStormlightArchive'': Zigzagged. [[SlaveBrand Slaves have a brand on their foreheads]]. When the bridgemen are freed, the scars are tattooed over with glyphs declaring them free men.
225* In ''Swords of Exodus'' Lorenzo witnesses a knife fight between a large, heavily muscled Mongol and a smaller, scruffier, and older Russian. Most of the spectators are betting on the Mongol to win but Lorenzo sees the Russian's fading tattoos and concludes that the Russian should win easily. The tattoos identify the Russian as a convicted murderer who killed more than a dozen people in prison knife fights.
226* ''Literature/WelcomeToWonderland'': Sydney Sneemer from "Home Sweet Motel" has a crocodile tattoo on his neck, and was involved in a jewel heist in 1973.
227* In ''Literature/RWBYRomanHoliday'', Roman Torchwick is revealed to have once been a member of the Spiders gang, and has their signature tattoo on his left forearm. After ditching the Spiders to start his own criminal empire in Vale, he has the tattoo inked over with a new tattoo of his own symbol, a grinning jack-o-lantern.
228[[/folder]]
229
230[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
231* Jolin of ''Series/AmishMafia'' has several tattoos which is taboo in Mennonite culture.
232* ''Series/{{Banshee}}'':
233** The crime kingpin Kai Proctor has a crucifix tattooed on his back. The Ukrainian mobsters tend to wear nice suits but you can still see some of their tattoos on their hands and necks. In contrast, Lucas does not seem to have any tattoos even after spending 15 years in prison.
234** All the neo-Nazis in the Brotherhood have tattoos. Kurt Bunker quit the gang and has been trying to atone for his actions as a member but he still is covered with Nazi tattoos and cannot afford to have them removed. When he refuses an offer to rejoin the Brotherhood, his former comrades burn some of his tattoos off with a blowtorch.
235* ''Series/{{Barry}}'': Fuches is already a criminal, but on being released from prison in Season 4 he has many tattoos on his arms, torso and neck. This signals that he's grown [[TookALevelInBadass more dangerous]], as a hardened prison gang leader who's [[TheDreaded widely feared]] now with his own criminal syndicate outside as well.
236* Comes up occasionally in ''Series/BurnNotice'' with Michael's narrations sometimes going into the symbology of a tattoo. Like how the prison tattoos on one Russian gangster show the crimes he was incarcerated for.
237* The Ha'la'tha gang in ''Series/{{Caprica}}'' is made up of these. The elaborate tattoos all have specific meanings according to WordOfGod. Main character Sam Adama has markings that indicate his allegiance to the gang and his relationship with his husband.
238* On the ''Series/{{Castle|2009}}'' episode "Under the Gun", the murder victim was an ex-con who had stashed the jewels he stole in a Manhattan graveyard. After they failed to find anything, Castle glanced at the victim's photo and realized that the roman numeral tattoos on his arm were the key to finding the stolen loot.
239* A comedic version appears in ''Series/{{Community}}'' with [[spoiler:Joshua the gardener]] who has a similar tattoo to the Film/AmericanHistoryX example above but excused away by him as the start of a maze.
240* A ''Series/CriminalMinds'' episode has the BAU investigate a case involving TheMafiya, working alongside a police detective, who specializes in the Russian mob. At one point, an annoyed mobster rips open his shirt in front of Reid, so that the latter knows whom he's dealing with. Reid instantly deciphers all the tattoos on the guy's chest (having memorized them beforehand) and classifies the mobster as a "thief in law" (top of the mob food chain).
241* ''Series/{{CSINY}}'': One case in "[[Recap/CSINYS01E13 Tanglewood]]" deals with a group of young [[TheMafia mafiosos]] killing a guy who had taken an unauthorized version of their membership tattoo.
242* ''Series/DeadlyClass'': Saya has the Yakuza tattoos of her family across her body. In the future, she plans to join in full, though so far she's not a member.
243* ''Series/{{Deputy}}'':
244** Villalobos, a major Latino LA gangster, has a gang tattoo on the side of his head.
245** A Japanese-American gangster has the Yakuza tattoos.
246* ''Series/{{Dexter}}'':
247** Dexter found his biological father after he died, and noticed he had a prison tattoo, a spider web on the elbow.
248** The hitman for a Latino street gang has a large bicep tattoo of a heart, with blood drops under it, each representing one victim. Dexter observes him as he takes a new drop.
249* ''Series/DoctorWho'':
250** The Third Doctor (or at least his actor) had a snake tattoo on his arm, due to the actor having one. Because it first appeared on screen after he was exiled to Earth, {{Fanon}} and ExpandedUniverse media says it was a prison tattoo.
251** Companion Turlough had a triangle-shaped tattoo-like scar on his arm. In his last storyline, [[Recap/DoctorWhoS21E5PlanetOfFire "Planet of Fire"]], he revealed to the Doctor that he was an escaped political prisoner, and the scar was a prison mark. At the end of the arc, a police officer from his home planet informed him that the regime that had imprisoned him was overthrown and that Turlough and his family were pardoned, so he was free to return to his world.
252** [[Recap/DoctorWhoS37E3Rosa "Rosa"]]: The antagonist, Krasko, has a tattoo on his left wrist identifying him as a former inmate of the Stormcage Containment Facility.
253* ''Series/FeelGood'' Mae has a tattoo on their wrist, which they got when in they went to jail for dealing drugs.
254* ''Series/FellowTravelers'': Tim Laughlin is a convicted felon who has a tattoo of a cross with barbed wire on his right arm that he got while in prison.
255* ''Series/GameOfThrones'': Volantis has a variant where slaves are given face tattoos to identify them as such. Quite the MoodWhiplash when one sees them on the show's many prostitutes. There was also a Red Priestess with such a tattoo, implying quite the backstory.
256* ''Series/GangRelated'': Most gangsters on the show have tattoos related to their memberships in different criminal organizations. Javier has them all over his entire torso, as shown in "La Luz Verde".
257* ''Series/GoodGirls'': The trio of Beth, Annie, and Ruby rob more money than they expected from Annie's workplace, money that turns out to belong to a local gang led by Rio. Rio and all his underlings sport pretty elaborate ink.
258* On ''Series/{{Haven}}'', Duke is certainly an example of this trope, not to mention making those tattoos look really good. Duke is leery of other people sporting tattoos, however, since [[spoiler:there is a prophecy claiming that a tattooed man will kill him. ]]
259* When amnesiac Peter Petrelli from ''Series/{{Heroes}}'' joins TheIrishMob for a few episodes in Season 2, he gets the gang tattoo (a Celtic knot) which at one point transforms into the [[SigilSpam RNA helix]] and back.
260* ''Series/{{House}}'' in the episode "Acceptance", the team is treating a man on death row for four murders. The man himself has a lot of prison-made tattoos, which [[CATTrap start heating up in the MRI machine]] because of their heavy metal content. Ealrier, the inmate also spots a small tattoo on the wrist of Dr. Foreman, and asks if he's a gang member, which Foreman denies and says the tattoo is just a native american symbol.
261* In ''Series/LawAndOrderCriminalIntent'', Goren has been known to identify what prisons a criminal has served time in by identifying their prison ink. One episode had him being puzzled by a tattoo on a body until he discovered the victim had entered the U.S. from Canada. A Canadian contact was able to identify what prison the victim had been in after seeing a photo of the tattoo.
262* ''Series/LawAndOrderOrganizedCrime'': Unusually, a gang of dirty cops all have these, from a police code used as a call sign for them. Stabler gets it while infiltrating them.
263* Subverted in an episode of ''Series/{{Luther}}'', where an American kidnapper with a tattoo covering his entire face is seen wiping it off in the next scene, as it's meant to distract attention from his real features.
264* In the ''Series/MidnightCaller'' episode "Life Without Possibility," one of the convicts has the name "Rosa" on his fingers, a marijuana leaf on his neck, and some other tattoos on his arms that are harder to see.
265* ''Series/{{Mindhunter}}'': true to life, Manson has some old prison ink on his forearms and his infamous forehead Swastika. Richard Speck sports a crude "Born to Raise Hell" text on his arm, which is discussed as a part of his descent into his criminal persona.
266* ''Series/TheMurders'':
267** One of the bank robbers in "Heist" sports tattoos.
268** In "Queen of Hearts" a woman also has prison tattoos. As a result, the cops think that her boyfriend's murder might have been gang-related at first.
269* ''Series/MyNameIsEarl'':
270** Glen got his first tattoo in juvenile detention, reading "[[GoshdangItToHeck Fudge The Police]]".
271** Earl's AxeCrazy friend Donny Jones had a HeelFaithTurn while in prison [[spoiler: for a crime Earl committed]], and he got a tattoo of a crucifix on his chest, which he often consults with. [[TakeOurWordForIt He also got one of Moses parting the Red Sea on his butt]].
272* ''Series/TheNightAgent'': The bomber had a scorpion tattoo on the side of his torso that Peter identified him by.
273* ''Series/NipTuck'': Colombian drug kingpin Escobar Gallardo has extensive tattoos, as well as almost everyone else portrayed by Robert Lasardo, who in RealLife has tattoos all over his arms, neck, and chest.
274* Many of the inmates in ''Series/{{Oz}}'' are heavily tattooed, especially the bikers. Also, for the purpose of making the intro, the show's producer had the crew film him getting the logo tattooed on him.
275* ''Series/ThePower2023'': The Carpathian gangsters whom Tunde meets have many tattoos.
276* ''Series/PrisonBreak'', Michael's whole-body blueprint tattoo. This is a subversion, in that he got the tattoos before he became a criminal, precisely so he COULD go to jail.
277* ''Series/RipperStreet'': In "In My Protection", TheFagin Carmichael is covered with a multitude of playing card-themed tattoos, each representing a specific crime he has committed. His gang of kids have similar tattoos.
278-->'''Thomas:''' ''[showing his hands]'' Pictures mean different things. King's a mugging. Knave's a house-break.\
279'''Drake:''' No queens?\
280'''Thomas:''' [[RapeIsASpecialKindOfEvil Queen's a rape.]]\
281'''Reid:''' And [[BodyOfTheWeek Manby]]? Which is he?\
282''[Thomas silently points to an ace]''
283* In ''Series/ShamelessUS'', Mickey Milkovich has tattoos on his arms and fingers, having been in and out of prison over the series.
284* Cook's dad in ''Series/{{Skins}}'' has a teardrop tattoo under his left eye, suggesting he's been to jail.
285* ''Series/{{Smallville}}'':
286** "[[Recap/SmallvilleS01E13Kinetic Kinetic]]" has a gang of burglars terrorizing the town thanks to their {{Power Tattoo}}s, which are made with ink mixed with GreenRocks and allow them to [[IntangibleMan pass through walls]].
287** In "[[Recap/SmallvilleS05E01Arrival Arrival]]", Phantom Zone prisoner Aethyr has the House of Zod crest tattooed on her lower back.
288** In "[[Recap/SmallvilleS05E13Vengeance Vengeance]]", the gangster Snake has a tattoo of a snake on part of his face and neck.
289** "[[Recap/SmallvilleS06E17Combat Combat]]" features Phantom Zone prisoner Titan who is covered with Kryptonian tattoos.
290* Ever-present with the bikers in ''Series/SonsOfAnarchy'', including the intro sequence, and a plot point, when an ex-member hasn't covered up the gang name in his large back piece, and it's burned off by the members. Samcro hitman Happy also has several smiley face tattoos around his abdomen marking his victims.
291* ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'':
292** The Jinn look like heavily tattooed people with blue flames coming out of their hands.
293** In [[Recap/SupernaturalS10E14TheExecutionersSong "The Executioner's Song" (S10, E14)]], the convicted serial killer has a tattoo of barbed wire and a bull on his arm.
294* Tom, in the recent BBC remake of the series ''Survivors'', is turfed out of the ex-minister's community for being a convict, entirely on the basis of a prison tattoo.
295* ''Series/SWAT2017'': In "[[Recap/SWATS02E06NeverAgain Never Again]]" the robbers each sport a tattoo in Hebrew on their chest saying "[[TitleDrop Never Again]]". Deacon and Chris note it's odd as they're Jews but tattooing isn't allowed in Judaism and even will get you excluded from a Jewish traditional cemetery, but they clearly didn't care. Since it denoted a vow which they made against their parents' murderers, this isn't too surprising.[[note]]That tattooing will get you excluded from a traditional Jewish cemetery is a common but erroneous belief, promulgated by parents and authority figures to discourage tattooing. It is one of the many things that is prohibited but not punishable--and tattooing is not prohibited if done for a medical reason, as may be the case with marks for radiation treatment (in which case it might actually be required, to help save a life) or to ameliorate a disfiguring condition (this under the rationale that the tattooing would increase the person's ability to earn a living and to marry). Also no one would dare suggest that a Jew tattooed under duress in a concentration camp should be excluded from burial in a Jewish cemetery.[[/note]]
296* On ''Series/TeenWolf'', even though he's not actually a criminal, Derek has a triskelion tattoo between his shoulder blades.
297* ''Series/TwoAndAHalfMen'': In the episode "Paint It, Pierce It or Plug It", Jake brings home a woman named Tammy who has tattoos and mentions having an ankle bracelet.
298* ''Series/TheWalkingDead2010'': Magna has several tattoos and did time in prison prior to the apocalypse. One is a prison tattoo, and identifies her as having served time to those in the know.
299* The works of Creator/JossWhedon (''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' / ''Series/{{Angel}}'' / ''Series/{{Firefly}}''):
300** There is a very strong tendency in Creator/JossWhedon works for characters with visible tattoos or other body modifications to be villainous and/or highly self-destructive. The most notable examples are Faith, Angelus (it's also there when he's Angel), and the Reavers, but many more minor characters follow the pattern. The only exceptions are Cordelia (Creator/CharismaCarpenter's real lower-back tattoo, which they initially made token efforts to hide before deciding that she looked sufficiently sexy in low-waisted clothes to outweigh the metaphorical issues) and Kennedy.
301** In the Expanded Universe for ''Buffy'' we find out that Faith's was entirely against her will, as it was put there by being possessed by a dead Greek Slayer. It's the Mark of Kakistos, the very mutated vamp that killed her Watcher. You'd think she'd want something with such connections to one of the biggest losses of her life to be removed. Then again, she might see it as a "taking it from you and using it against you" thing.
302** In ''Angel'', the villainous [[spoiler:lawyer Lindsey]] returns in Season 5 with a set of tattoos that serve a plot purpose: they [[spoiler:ward him from all forms of magical detection, thus protecting him from the wrath of the Senior Partners, who don't approve of his extracurricular activities]].
303** We can't forget Giles and Ethan's Mark of Eyghon, which is not just a demon-cult tattoo but an ArtifactOfDeath in itself. Ethan later removes his, though.
304[[/folder]]
305
306[[folder:Music]]
307* The song "Blue Wing" has a convict getting the title tattoo in prison, possibly as a symbol of the freedom he's never found in life.
308* The song "Lydia the Tattooed Lady", made famous by [[Creator/MarxBrothers Groucho Marx]], is based on the association between tattoos and "loose" women.
309-->For two bits she will do a mazurka in jazz,\
310With a view of Niagara that nobody has,\
311And on a clear day you can see Alcatraz -\
312You can learn a lot from Lydia!
313* [[InvertedTrope Inverted]] in the song "You Ain't Bout That Life" by Music/WakaFlockaFlame (who is both a member of Bloods and very heavily tattooed himself) when talking about the unnamed subject of his diss.
314-->You ain't bout that life\
315Just because his body full of ink, tattoos in his face I can still tell that\
316You ain't bout that life
317* "Timebomb" by Rancid is about a [[{{Delinquents}} juvenile delinquent]] who dies a young man.
318-->Tears come from the razor that's been tattooed below his eye\
319His mother cries, she knows that he is strong enough to die\
320He's rollin' in the Cadillac, it's midnight, sunroof is down\
321Three shots rung out the hero's dead, the new king is crowned\
322[[/folder]]
323
324[[folder:Pro Wrestling]]
325* Wrestling/{{Konnan}} had two by his neck during his GangBanger [[TheGimmick gimmicks]], though even then he usually covers them up.
326* [[Wrestling/MontelVontaviousPorter Antonio Banks]], who was a former crook but found a more positive outlet for his aggression(wrestling).[[/folder]]
327
328[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
329* ''TabletopGame/ArsMagica'': Referenced regarding [[MysteryCult Criamon]] magi, who spontaneously manifest [[PowerTattoo tattoo-like markings]] as their power and wisdom grow. However, tattoos are generally socially unacceptable in Mythic Europe, so mundanes are prone to mistake the Criamon for thugs, outlaws, or [[MarkOfTheBeast worse]].
330[[/folder]]
331
332[[folder:Video Games]]
333* ''VideoGame/AnarchyReigns'' got the Rin Sisters, Asian assassins with a tattooed leg, a tattooed arm, and a tattooed back.
334* ''VideoGame/ApertureDeskJob'': [[spoiler:The player character gets a tattoo of]] a dragon holding a knife during [[spoiler:their 18-month prison sentence]].
335* ''VideoGame/BatmanArkhamCity'':
336** The Abramovici Brothers have tattoos representing their affiliations. Hammer has a massive church tattoo on his chest (a common Russian criminal tattoo), while Sickle has a pair of stylized penguins on either pectoral.
337** Harley Quinn has some tattoos in this iteration. She sports two of them with playing card versions of Joker wreathed in roses on her left hip and wrapped around her right forearm. And she's still as crazy and murderous as ever.
338* The Tsoo in ''VideoGame/CityOfHeroes'' gain their [[DemonicSpiders ever so annoying powers]] from magical ink in their tattoos.
339* ''VideoGame/Cyberpunk2077'': [[PlayerCharacter V]], who is a mercenary, can have full body tattoos if the player so desires during creating their character.
340* Not as elaborate as some of these examples, but during the bonus game in ''VideoGame/DarkTales: The Raven'', the body in the morgue turns out to have a Raven Society tattoo on his upper chest.
341* In ''VideoGame/DragonAgeOrigins'', casteless dwarves are forced to have their faces tattooed so to set them apart from regular dwarven citizens. Since casteless dwarfs have no rights in dwarven society and cannot work legally, every one of them is either a thug working for the local crime syndicate or a beggar.
342* Bambi "Buck" Hughes of ''VideoGame/FarCry3'' is an [[AwesomeAussie Australian]] [[PsychoForHire mercenary]] who wears the tattoo of a stag head over his bared chest. Somewhat appropriate, since he's a [[spoiler:SerialRapist of [[DepravedHomosexual other men]],]] and [[AnimalMotif stags are known to be quite violent when it's breeding season]].
343* [[BigBad Reika the Tattooed Priestess]] in ''VideoGame/FatalFrameIII'' has deep blue tattoos all over her body, which ensures that there's not much naughty detail to see despite [[FullFrontalAssault being topless]] while adding to her terrifying presence. In the selfsame game, those who are claimed by the Tattooed Curse and become hostile ghosts will have tattoos all over as well.
344* In ''VideoGame/FateGrandOrder'', the Assassin of Shinjuku has an elaborate torso and sleeve of thorny roses, and in that storyline has indeed hired himself out to the Yakuza.
345* [[HonorAmongThieves Gaius]] of ''VideoGame/FireEmblemAwakening'' has what's all but stated to be a prison brand on his left arm, which he covers with a black band. When [[TheHero the Avatar]] accidentally sees it [[AccidentalPervert when s/he walks into him when he's bathing]], Gaius is so upset that he tries to bribe them to get them to stay quiet. [[WontTakeYesForAnAnswer Even after the Avatar repeatedly reassures him that s/he won't tell]].
346* ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAuto'':
347** ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoSanAndreas'' introduced tattoos as a CharacterCustomization option. Tattoo parlors in the three different cities offer a different selection. Also, the characters Cesar Vialpando and OG Loc are both heavily tattooed.
348** ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoChinatownWars'' has a minigame where the player can apply tattoos on clients.
349** ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoV'' reintroduces tattoos for the player characters. Each of the three protagonists has their own selection to pick from, reflecting their different personalities and tastes. Trevor even has a memorial tattoo for Michael, who he thought was dead before the events of the game. Franklin's friend Lamar Davis is very heavily tattooed on both arms. The tattoo artist at the tattoo shop will cheerfully tell the player "I do gang stuff too"
350*** Marabunta Grande, a gang based on the real life Mara Salvatrucha or MS-13 gang is identifiable by members' large face tattoos, and is featured in both ''GTAV'' and ''Online''
351** VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoOnline'' features gender specific selections of tattoos for the player characters, with designs now numbering in the hundreds, as new ones have been added with new DLC content. Fooliganz, a friendly gang faction introduced in "Lost Santos Drug Wars" are all heavily tattooed, including WalkingShirtlessScene Mutt who works as the ClandestineChemist for the acid lab.
352* [[ScannableMan 47]] from ''VideoGame/{{Hitman}}''.
353* All the members of the Mizo gang in ''VideoGame/JakXCombatRacing'' have the same flame tattoo on their right wrists.
354* Octopus-themed tattoos are very common in Bilgewater, the pirate town of ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends''. This is especially obvious in ''VideoGame/LegendsOfRuneterra'' card art, which has a lot of minor characters covered in ink.
355* Francis of ''VideoGame/Left4Dead'' seems to enjoy stealing things, and also pretending to be "The cops".
356** Ellis in ''VideoGame/Left4Dead2'' mentions at one point that his friend Keith got a tattoo on his forehead - of the words "I'm A Moron". He won a $200 dare as a result. Keith may or may not be a criminal, but if Ellis is to be believed, he's done a lot of questionable things.
357* The ''VideoGame/LikeADragon'' series naturally features many characters with ''irezumi'' back tattoos and some with sleeve tattoos. The series protagonist, Kazuma Kiryu, has a full-back tattoo of a silver dragon that's shown whenever he [[BattleStrip takes his shirt off]] for a final boss throwdown. [[BreakoutCharacter Fan-favorite]] Goro Majima has a Hannya face on his back.
358** The tattoos are highly symbolic as well. Kiryu's enemies tend to either invoke TigerVersusDragon (Against [[BaldOfEvil Shimano]] or [[BaldHeadOfToughness Saejima]]) or LegendaryCarp (Against [[spoiler: [[EvilFormerFriend Nishikiyama]] or [[TheDogWasTheMastermind Aizawa]]]]). Majima's mask, on the other hand, is indicative of his hiding his true personality behind "the Mad Dog".
359** ''VideoGame/Yakuza0'':
360*** Notably, Kiryu's dragon tattoo is unfinished in this game, symbolizing that he hasn't yet become the [[RedBaron Dragon of Dojima]].
361*** The 3 Dojima Lieutenants have their own ''irezumi'' that are symbolic in Kiryu's 1988 adventure. [[TheBrute Daisaku]] [[RecurringBoss Kuze]] has Judge Enma, signifying the 5 trials (read: fights) that Kiryu goes through, [[spoiler:[[EvilGenius Hiroki]] [[PurpleIsPowerful Awano]] has Momotaro, a Japanese folk hero who slays demons, and he faces off against Majima, who has a ''hannya'', a demon of sorts. Finally, there's [[DragonInChief Keiji]] [[FinalBoss Shibusawa]], who has a green Dragon ''irezumi'', and also refers to himself as [[RedBaron Dragon of Dojima]].]]
362*** The heavily-tattooed ex-hitman [[TheBigGuy Wen Hai Lee]]. He's searching for the man who [[spoiler:kidnapped Makoto and sold her into slavery]], with the only real clue to his identity being the distinctive bat tattoo on his left forearm. [[spoiler:Every member of Oda's old street gang, including Tachibana, had a bat tattoo, but Oda's the only one responsible for selling Makoto.]]
363** In ''VideoGame/Yakuza3'', Yoshitaka Mine has the ''{{Kirin}}'', a creature claimed to only appear in the presence of wise and benevolent leaders, [[spoiler:clearly alluding to his UndyingLoyalty to Daigo Dojima]]. Kirin are also stated to be the only creature ''capable of killing a dragon.'' [[spoiler:Except for Kiryu. You basically can't beat him, let alone actually kill him, no matter how strong you are. Unless you're [[TheBigGuy Saejima]], but that dream is still far.]]
364** ''VideoGame/Yakuza4'' has Majima's Lieutenant [[TheBrute Daisaku]] [[BoozeFlamethrower Minami]], who combines the traditional ''irezumi'' with wacky Western-style tattoos, like a snake slithering around a skull on his back, and the word "HONOR" in Gothic font on his belly, showing his balls-off-the-walls personality.
365** ''VideoGame/Yakuza6'':
366*** {{Defied|Trope}} with Takumi Someya who lacks the Irezumi, having a disdain against them entirely to show how far from the GoodOldWays the Yakuza has fallen, much to Kiryu's shock.
367*** Played straight [[spoiler:with Tsuneo Iwami]], the game's FinalBoss, who carries a dark-coloured Bai Ze on his back. The Bai Ze is a creature with the body of a beast and the face of a man. It's said to know the affairs of gods and ghosts, and he was [[spoiler:able to discover the Secret of Onomichi by himself, despite his father's attempts to keep him in the dark on it]]. It also fits given how he looks completely unassuming and harmless on the surface, but is actually a vicious and figuratively monstrous criminal mastermind.
368** ''VideoGame/LostJudgment'': ''The Kaito Files'' has [[TheBrute Shusuke]] [[TheAlcoholic Kenmochi]], who sports tribal tattoos.
369* In ''VideoGame/LoveAndPies'', Benny Benson, a low-ranking criminal, has a snake tattoo on the left side of his neck.
370* ''VideoGame/MassEffect2''.
371** Jack. Kidnapping, murder, arson, theft of military craft ("Parades are boring. I helped."), destruction of a space station, and [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking vandalism]]...[[DefaceOfTheMoon of a moon.]] ''[[ColonyDrop With the space station]]''.
372** DLC character Zaeed also displays FashionableAsymmetry with his right arm partially bare to show off a series of tattoos.
373** [[SpaceRomans Turian]] society inverts this -- most turians you meet wear facepaint to identify what colony they're from. "Barefaced" turians are considered untrustworthy and, true to form, the only barefaced turians you meet are the main villain of the first game, a PrisonShip-running slave trader trying to pass himself off as a hero and a racist [[TakeThat politician]].
374* In a pre-mission cutscene in ''VideoGame/ModernWarfare2'' we get a glimpse of the tattoos the Russian ultra-nationalists that attack the airport sport. This includes a church on the abdomen, a popular Russian prison tattoo ("Church is the home of God, the prison is the home of the criminal")
375* As of later entries in the ''Franchise/MortalKombat'' series, Johnny Cage has his name across his chest. A shining example of the RuleAbidingRebel type -- he's an actor and the ButtMonkey of the series.
376* Ronan O'Connor, the protagonist of ''VideoGame/MurderedSoulSuspect'', spent his formative years committing various crimes and getting tattoos to commemorate them.
377* Kenzo Satake of ''VideoGame/RaidouKuzunohaVsTheSoullessArmy'', as a yakuza boss, has a full-back tattoo.
378* ''VideoGame/Reverse1999'' has Pavia, a gangster and killer for hire who worked for mafias in his home country of Italy, and has numerous tattoos on his body. Some of them are in Italian, some of them are symbols, and Pavia himself is ''definitely'' a criminal with a long, ''long'' list of crimes like murders, theft, and disposal of evidence, as he'll be happy to tell you directly or imply with his dialog.
379* The ''VideoGame/SaintsRow'' franchise lets you give The Playa/The Boss tattoos. There's also Maero, the heavily-tattooed leader of the Brotherhood in ''VideoGame/SaintsRow2''.
380* Pretty much every Triad-affiliated character in ''VideoGame/SleepingDogs2012''.
381** The main character has a sneaky one. The tattoo on his right arm is a depiction of the deity Guan Yu, who is venerated as the protector of all things requiring badassitude and loyalty, and is a favored god among both the Triads and the police.
382* Vega from ''VideoGame/StreetFighterII'' has a snake tattoo on his back, meant to invoke Yakuza imagery.
383* The notorious fighting game ''VideoGame/TattooAssassins'' (so bad the playtesters refused to touch it!).
384* In ''Tony Hawk's American Wasteland'', you have to get a large tattoo of a spider on your chest in order to join the nefarious Black Widowz gang.
385* Georgie Porgie in ''VideoGame/TheWolfAmongUs'' has numerous tattoos on his body and face.
386* The first boss of ''X-Kaliber 2097'' is a mutant [[MeaningfulName actually named Tattoo]] who carries a [[{{BFS}} large sword]] and can thrust vines out of his rose tattoo.
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389[[folder:Web Animation]]
390* ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'':
391** Vernal has a tattoo on her left arm of a phoenix rising from flowers towards the crescent moon. She's a member of the Branwen Tribe, which is a band of thieves and murderers that has been known to hit villages and then leave them vulnerable to subsequent Grimm attacks as a result of the negative energy their attacks create. When the tribe captures [[spoiler:Weiss]], she is thrilled to have the chance to ransom [[spoiler:Weiss]] off to her father.
392** Lil' Miss Malachite, a crime boss of the Mistral underworld, runs a criminal organization with a [[AnimalMotifs spider motif]]. The organization's spider-in-web sigil, aside from being used to mark affiliated buildings, also serves as a gang tattoo. Every single person who works for her organization has the same tattoo somewhere on their body, with Lil' Miss herself wearing hers on her left shoulder.
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394
395[[folder:Webcomics]]
396* The Russian mobsters in ''Webcomic/{{Chimneyspeak}}'' have large tattoos on their arms and hands as a status symbol.
397* In ''Webcomic/TheCroaking'' the [[WingedHumanoid corvids]] who belong to a gang (called a murder in case of crows) signify their kills through black lines on their arms. Since killing somebody is part of the initiation, full-fledged gang members can easily be recognized by these tattoos.
398* ''Webcomic/DocRat'' [[http://www.docrat.com.au/default.asp?thisItem=763 gets one patient manifestly dangerous from his tattoos.]]
399%%* Rick from ''[[{{Webcomic/morphe}} morphE]]''.
400* ''Webcomic/TheOatmeal'' has [[http://theoatmeal.com/pl/minor_differences5/tattoos commented on the evolution of tattoos]].
401* Donald from ''Webcomic/WeakHero''. If his [[TheDreaded reputation]] wasn't enough of a hint that he's a bad dude, he's revealed to be covered head to toe in tattoos, including [[KnuckleTattoos across his knuckles]].
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403
404[[folder:Web Video]]
405* ''WebVideo/CriticalRole''[='=]s "The Adventures of Darrington Brigade" sees Creator/AshleyJohnson's character for it, Damian Vadoma, a mob enforcer trying to be TheAtoner, be one of these, including the words "Never Forget" on her neck and a pair of KnuckleTattoos saying "''Vita''" and "''Mors''" (Latin for "Life" and "Death" respectively).
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408[[folder:Western Animation]]
409* ''WesternAnimation/{{Arcane}}'': Something that Vi and Jinx share as adults are their prominent tattoos; Vi's signature VI tattoo on her right cheek as well as her arms, back, and neck, while Jinx's are in her right arm and the right side of her abdomen. Then there's Silco's unnamed Giant Mook and chemlord Finn, who are also covered in tattoos.
410* ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'':
411** The assassin [[HavingABlast Combustion Man]] has a ThirdEye tattoo.
412** Inverted with the Air Nomads. Their tattoos are a sign of mastering Airbending. They are known for being the [[ThouShallNotKill gentlest]], most spiritual nation in the world.
413** In a straight example, Avatar Kyoshi's [[Literature/TheRiseOfKyoshi tie-in novel]] reveals that her mother Jesa was a rogue Airbender. She met Kyoshi's bandit Earthbender father and ran off with him and started a gang. She turned her arrows into snakes.
414** Subverted with the prisoners from "Avatar Day". They look menacing at first, but it turns out, they're really sensitive and kind. Considering the village's [[KangarooCourt "justice" system]], they could very well be innocent people.
415** Also subverted with the Boulder, who makes a HeelFaceTurn.
416** Played with in regards to Jun, the morally ambiguous BountyHunter.
417** SequelSeries ''WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfKorra'' plays it [[HiddenAgendaVillain seemingly]] straight with [[TheConspiracy Red Lotus]] operatives P'Li (who takes Combustion Man's [[HavingABlast schtick]] up a notch and has [[ThirdEye similar inkwork]]) and Ghazan (who, according to WordOfGod, is inked up just for RuleOfCool).
418* ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'':
419** The ninja thief Kyodai-Ken has a ''huge'' tattoo of a Japanese demon's head on his back.
420** In another episode, Scarface's DumbMuscle henchman Rhino had a tattoo (of a rhino's head, naturally) on his arm that was not very obvious at all, but Batman was still able to use this feature to identify him from a security camera and discover who he was working for. (Note that this was Scarface's first appearance in the series.)
421* The Stalker in ''WesternAnimation/BatmanBeyond'' has tribal tattoos all over his body, though in this case it's implied to be part of his attempt to go back to the roots of his trade.
422* Todd Ianuzzi from ''WesternAnimation/BeavisAndButtHead'' has a tattoo on his right bicep of a flaming skull wearing an eye patch clutching a knife between its teeth with a message around it reading "Life Sucks."
423* The white and black skull marking on the ''Franchise/Ben10'' villain Hex's face was stated to be a tattoo in ''WesternAnimation/Ben10Omniverse''. Ironically, though, in ''Omniverse'', he's [[HeelFaceTurn reformed]] and has become something of an EmbarrassingTattoo for him as it made things difficult for him to get an honest job and only got his current job as a professor because he donated all of his collection to the university.
424* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'':
425** In the episode "Cape Feare", we see Sideshow Bob's prison tattoos, including "DIE BART DIE" ("Oh, it's German, 'The Bart, The'"), as well as his KnuckleTattoos LUV and HĀT, referencing ''Film/TheNightOfTheHunter''.
426** Also, recurring petty crook Snake has a tattoo reflecting his moniker on his right arm.
427** "Tattoo Annie" in Springfield Women's jail has a Mad Magazine fold-out page tattooed on her back, reading "What kind of slime would I marry?" [[spoiler:folding into "What, me worry?"]]
428** There's a Season 27 CouchGag that makes a parody of ''Series/MiamiVice'' and ''Series/KnightRider'' with Ned Flanders portrayed as the villain. While working out in prison, he's shown with several tattoos, one of which is his catchphrase "Hi-diddly-ho, neighborino!" while most of the others are christianism symbols.
429* In ''WesternAnimation/{{Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles|2003}}'' (2003), several members of the Purple Dragons gang sport the gang's trademark dragon as a tattoo. Their leader, Hun, sports the dragon tattoo along his left arm and wore a tattoo of the Foot insignia on his left. Another member had a purple dragon tattooed on his face, and not surprisingly, everyone called him "Dragon Face."
430* Lockdown from ''WesternAnimation/TransformersAnimated'' has large black decals on both his robot and car mode that resemble tattoos. This is also true with [[Film/TransformersFilmSeries Movie]] [[TheStarscream Starscream.]]
431* The Monarch, in a direct reference to ''Red Dragon'', has a full back tattoo of a minotaur at one point in ''WesternAnimation/TheVentureBrothers''. It turns out he was just trying to get his villain on again and used it to intimidate a prostitute; it late came off in the shower.
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