Line #24 Main/TheRevealPromptsRomance


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6	->''"Yeah, if I ''were'' ComicBook/IronMan, I'd have this girlfriend who knew my true identity. She'd be a wreck, 'cause she'd always be worrying that I was gonna die, yet so proud of the man I'd become. She'd be wildly conflicted, which would only make her more crazy about me."''
7	-->-- '''Tony Stark''', ''Film/IronMan1''
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9	People can react in [[MilhollandRelationshipMoment all sorts of odd ways]] to unexpected news, but The Reveal Prompts Romance stands out as the most positive. Instead of feeling alienated from the person who made TheReveal, they feel closer instead. The reason for this is most likely that such a disclosure immediately creates a sense of intimacy between the two people. The person receiving the disclosure may also feel special and connected to the one disclosing for having been chosen. The more UnresolvedSexualTension Alice and Bob have before The Reveal the more this makes sense, and visa versa.
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11	Most often the setup is the male [[TheHero hero]] (who is doing the reveal) and female (who is responding with romance) [[LoveInterest lead]] of a story, right before or right after the climax. Who initiates the "romance" after the reveal varies, but it's never non-consensual.
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13	Sex is not always involved, nor even necessarily a make-out session, but there's always some sort of romantic moment. This trope is one means by which writers may achieve [[StrangledByTheRedString red-string strangulation]] or a LastMinuteHookup. A reveal that involves displaying a physiological abnormality may prompt a FreakinessShame.
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15	This trope may overlap with GenderReveal, which involves revealing a character's true gender.
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17	See MilhollandRelationshipMoment for the non-romance variant of this trope. Compare SecretKeeper which is what Bob is trusting Alice to be with The Reveal. Contrast YouMakeMeSick, MyGodYouAreSerious, and [[{{ILLKILLYOU}} I'll Kill You!]] for less friendly reactions to TheReveal. If TheReveal is a LoveConfession, then it's LoveRevelationEpiphany.
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19	----
20	!!Examples:
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22	[[foldercontrol]]
23
24	[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
25	* ''Webcomic/MobPsycho100'': {{Subverted\|Trope}} in "[[Recap/MobPsycho100S2E1RippedApart Ripped Apart]]". While Emi is impressed by Mob's psychic abilities as well as his kindness, this doesn't translate to a RelationshipUpgrade. Mob also rejects Dimple's suggestion that his powers might have subconsciously influenced Emi to take an interest in him.
26	* ''Manga/RequiemOfTheRoseKing'': Richard III is a CelibateHero partly due to his fears of what might happen if anyone learns he is {{Intersex\|Tribulations}}. When [[spoiler:Henry "Buckingham" Stafford]] discovers his secret and accepts him, the two become partners.
27	* ''Manga/UQHolder'': Kuroumaru comes from a race of {{Demihuman}}s who remain gender neutral until they turn sixteen. When they finally confess this to [[spoiler:Touta]], this helps the latter realize that Kuroumaru has feelings for them, and they start reciprocating soon afterwards.
28	* ''Manga/TheWorldGodOnlyKnows'': Keima {{Invoke\|dTrope}} this during Mio's arc; after he and Elise discover that Mio has just been [[MockMillionaire pretending to be rich]] after her family [[ImpoverishedPatrician lost their fortune]], he decides to become her SecretKeeper in order to reach her route.
29	[[/folder]]
30
31	[[folder:Comic Books]]
32	* There are numerous superheroes who have unmasked themselves to a boyfriend or girlfriend and then immediately made out. Sometimes they do this several times with different people. Heroes on this list include; ComicBook/{{Batman}}, ComicBook/{{Superman}}...
33	* ''ComicBook/{{Irredeemable}}'': The Plutonian was going for this, except that his girlfriend became so upset that he had lied to her all this time that she immediately broke up with him (and revealed his secret to their coworkers). One of the main differences between him and Superman - Superman isn't the kind of PsychopathicManchild who would naturally assume that Lois Lane would be thrilled about being lied to all those years. Empathy and maturity would have gone a long way in that delicate situation.
34	* ''ComicBook/SpiderMan'' is actually kind of a subversion:
35	** When the reveal happened with ComicBook/MaryJaneWatson, it was MJ revealing she actually knew already, not Peter telling her, and it wasn't what sparked them getting together (they had already dated in the past). Being able to open up about it did bring them closer and they did get back together shortly after that. MJ made it clear that she saw Peter and Spider-Man as one and the same, and that loving one meant loving the other, and that as much as Peter risking his life as Spider-Man drove her upset with fear, Peter's dedication, selflessness, and heroism as Spider-Man are [[SingleWomanSeeksGoodMan the principal qualities that attract her to him]] and during their friendship she actually convinced Peter to cancel one of his "Spider-Man no more" and save people.
36	** ComicBook/UltimateSpiderMan is also a subversion as well. Mary Jane was the first person Peter told and when he revealed it to her privately, she was under the impression that Peter was going to kiss her and ask her out, which Peter on hearing the remark, that she still came up anyway (showing that she wanted a relationship with him). The secret did not prompt the romance as there was already a lot of romantic tension between them but MJ loves Peter being Spider-Man, especially when he takes her web-swinging, and for being able to be part of his cool adventures. However, throughout the series, she made it known that she also wishes that Peter wouldn't risk his life so much and she suffers PTSD after an encounter with Goblin that led to their first break-up (Peter broke up with her the second time over her constantly getting involved in his life when he told her to step back), but their attraction is too strong for either of them to stay away from each other.
37	* In ''Franchise/{{Superman}}'' story ''ComicBook/TheAmazingStoryOfSupermanRedAndSupermanBlue'', the Man of Steel gets split into two exact twins, who among other things, decide they should finally be honest with the women they love. Superman Red and Superman Blue reveal their secret identity to ComicBook/LoisLane and ComicBook/LanaLang, respectively, and shortly after they hold a double wedding.
38	[[/folder]]
39
40	[[folder:Fan Works]]
41	* In the ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitans2003'' fic ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/3427267/1/As_the_dust_settles As the dust settles]]'' sees Robin and Starfire get an early RelationshipUpgrade after Robin reveals his true identity to her.
42	* ''Fanfic/DannyPhantomStranded'': Danny and Star officially become a couple after she learns his secret identity in [[spoiler:the third story, ''Lost'']].
43	* ''Series/Daredevil2015'' season 2 ended with Matt Murdock finally coming clean with Karen Page about his secret identity as Daredevil, after having kept her in the dark for the entire season. The scene ends with us only getting the [[StunnedSilence surprised look]] on Karen's face before she can provide any sort of verbal response. Matt and Karen had dated briefly earlier in season 2 before the strain of Matt's double life caused him to falter in contributing to Frank Castle's trial, and Elektra's influence temporarily drove them apart. A few fanfic writers have taken the idea that Matt disclosing his secret to Karen ended up causing them to restart their earlier relationship[[note]]Much of this is retconned by ''Series/TheDefenders2017'', where Matt and Karen are on semi-awkward terms at the beginning[[/note]].
44	** One called ''[[http://archiveofourown.org/chapters/15157885 Better - Now]]'', provides a subversion by looking at Karen's thought processes. Karen's first reaction is to passionately kiss Matt, then awkwardly ask him out on a date, but as it turns out, the reveal just complicates her feelings: she's questioning everything she's ever known about Matt, and constantly thinking about the relationship advice Frank Castle gave her in ".380". It isn't until the end of their impromptu date, that Karen comes to terms with Matt's identity, and while she's still mad at him for letting her and Foggy down during the trial, she seems willing to take it slowly and see where it goes from there.
45	** Another, ''[[http://archiveofourown.org/works/6596377 Do You Mind the Snow?]]'', plays it more straight. Here, Karen takes the news a lot better than Matt is expecting her to take it.
46	** The ''[[http://archiveofourown.org/series/634583 How to Reconcile]]'' series details Matt and Karen's reconciliation in a series of snapshots. This includes having to work through Matt's unreliability during the trial, as well as explain why Matt swung from extremes like a pendulum as a result of Elektra.
47	** One called ''[[http://archiveofourown.org/works/6957157/chapters/15862804 Redemption]]'', has it where Karen forces Matt to explain himself. It's only after he shows her the various scars he's received from his fights with Nobu and Wilson Fisk that she kisses him, to thank him for the two times he's saved her in his alternate persona.
48	* In ''Fanfic/{{Illimitable}}'', Hikibi and Dai get together after discovering that [[spoiler:Hibiki actually comes from the far-flung future of the ''Naruto'' universe]].
49	* In ''Fanfic/KaraOfRokyn'', Clark Kent and Lois Lane get married after the former finally comes clean about his secret identity.
50	* ''Fanfic/LastChildOfKrypton'': In the original story, when Shinji finally told Asuka he was ''Franchise/{{Superman}}'', her first reaction was to get angry with him for risking his life to save hers. Her next reaction was to tackle him and kiss him anxiously.
51	* PlayedWith in ''Fanfic/LoadedMarch''; while Merlin confesses to Arthur that he has magic as a way of telling him how much he loves him, [[spoiler:Arthur had already figured it out in the previous chapter]].
52	* A frequent plot in ''WesternAnimation/MiraculousLadybug'' fanworks, to be expected given the show's [[TwoPersonLoveTriangle Two-Person Love Square]].
53	** {{Subverted\|Trope}} in ''Fanfic/CrumblingDown''; while they acknowledge their mutual attraction, Marinette convinces Adrien that they should remain JustFriends for now, as they don't want to risk giving Hawkmoth any extra leverage over them.
54	** ''Fanfic/SpotsOff'': After Ladybug is revealed to be Marinette, Adrien is pushed to finally tell her his feelings. After Chat Noir unmasks himself as Adrien and tells her he loves her, the two share their first kiss (or second, counting "Dark Cupid").
55	* Several ''Fanfic/MiraculousLadybugSaltShots'' involve {{Subvert\|edTrope}}ing or {{Def\|iedTrope}}ying this concept:
56	** In ''What Makes You Think I Still Love You?'', Marinette is dismayed to learn that Adrien is Chat Noir, since that means her crush was the same boy who refused to take no for an answer and kept harassing her. Adrien, by contrast, is thrilled, casually admitting he was ''aware'' of her crush but kept [[SelectiveObliviousness acting oblivious]] because he didn't know she was the object of his affections. Tellingly, he keeps addressing her as Ladybug and insisting they ''have'' to get together even as she informs him that she's already dating Luka and Kagami.
57	** ''Masked Hearts'' has Adrien {{Invok\|edTrope}}ing this again, immediately unmasking himself after they defeat Hawkmoth and asking Ladybug out... despite how he's been dating Kagami for two years. In front of Kagami. Neither she or Ladybug are amused by this.
58	* ''Fanfic/SOE2LoneHeirOfKrypton'': When Asuka finally came clean to Shinji about being ''Comicbook/{{Supergirl}}'' she said she would like that he was her confidant. He replied he would also like to be more than a friend because he likes her. Asuka admitted she liked him back and they kissed.
59	* ''Fanfic/TurnBackTheHands'':
60	** PlayedWith when Claude opens up to Byleth about how much he was hurt by [[spoiler:losing his sister]]. This confession spurs him to realize that he's attracted to her, as well as forcing him to confront how he's confided in her more than he has his girlfriend Petra.
61	** Following the timeskip, the revelation of how [[spoiler:Soleth spoke with Claude during the five years that Byleth was sleeping]] helps enable their RelationshipUpgrade.
62	[[/folder]]
63
64	[[folder:Films -- Animated]]
65	* Astrid in ''WesternAnimation/{{How To Train Your Dragon\|2010}}''. Not directly after the reveal, but halfway back to town Toothless grabs her and she's forced to take a flight with Hiccup and Toothless. By the end of their joyride, she's definitely showing a great deal of affection for Hiccup, including a peck on the cheek. Quite the turnaround from contempt/anger/hatred/jealousy.
66	[[/folder]]
67
68	[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
69	* ''Film/Batman1989'' had an exchange like this between Bruce Wayne and Vicki Vale towards the end, when Vale is shown into the Batcave.
70	* ''Film/TheDisappearanceOfAliceCreed'' features an {{Invo\|kedTrope}}cation when Alice's kidnapper removes their mask, as he assumes this will help her grow more comfortable with him. [[spoiler:It doesn't work out the way he hopes.]]
71	* The 1986 ''Film/{{Highlander}}'' film set one of these up between the secretly-immortal Connor [=MacLeod=] and his LoveInterest. Made more remarkable by the fact that Connor made his reveal by [[ImmortalLifeIsCheap stabbing himself in the chest]].
72	* As seen in the page quote, this is [[LampshadeHanging Lampshaded]] in ''Film/IronMan1''. Tony of course goes on to avert it spectacularly because no SecretIdentity could survive contact with his massive ego.
73	* Dave in the film version of ''Film/KickAss'' does this to Katie. In fact, it's two reveals in one - one should have shocked her, the other angered. As per the trope, neither is her reaction.
74	-->'''Katie''': Dave? What the fuck are you doing? Why are you dressed as Kick-Ass?\
75	'''Dave''': Because I am Kick-Ass!\
76	'''Katie''': What are you talking about?\
77	'''Dave''': I'm also not gay!\
78	'''Katie''': Fuck!
79	** Notably this is '''not''' the way it plays out in the original comic. [[spoiler:Dave tells her that he's not gay, she gets majorly pissed off for being tricked and gets her Scary Black Boyfriend to beat him up. Then she emails him a picture wherein she's giving her boyfriend a blowjob, which Dave both cries over and gets off to.]] He also doesn't tell her that he's Kick Ass.
80	* ''Film/{{Lastelladeire}}'': Gasphar takes an interest in Yumah after she reveals that she's a woman. Later on, this gets [[spoiler:{{Inverted\|Trope}} when he learns that she's the daughter of Balthazar, the man who murdered his father, and immediately rejects her]].
81	* ''Film/NotAnotherTeenMovie'' used this near the end when a girl reveals her wish for a guy to take a dump on her chest. His response is one of shock, disgust, and disbelief...that no one has ever taken a dump on her chest.
82	[[/folder]]
83
84	[[folder:Literature]]
85	* ''Literature/{{Dragaera}}'': This is essentially how Vlad Taltos got to know Cawti. After learning who she was on their second meeting (their first meeting being an attempt on his life by Cawti), he climbed directly into her bed.
86	* In ''Literature/SonOfTheMob'', Vince is dating Kendra when he is forced to reveal to her that his father is a mafia head to prevent her dad (an FBI agent investigating Vince's family) from meeting his. After getting over the shock and preventing their dads from meeting, Kendra meets up with Vince again and tackles him in a passionate kiss.
87	[[/folder]]
88
89	[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
90	* ''Series/{{Forever\|2014}}'':
91	** Inverted with Nora, who was already in love with Henry, and he with her, when she cajoled him into revealing his secret. It resulted in Henry being locked up in an asylum and basically tortured for months, which rather soured the relationship on his end.
92	** Many fans were hoping that this would be the result of the final scene with Jo asking Henry to explain the photo she found.
93	* ''Series/{{Friends}}'': In "The One With The Prom Video," Ross had gotten ready to step in when it seemed like her prom date was going to stand her up. The date arrives at the last minute, disappointing Ross. Rachel sees this for the first time on a video played in the present day and, deeply moved, rushes over to Ross and kisses him passionately, beginning their romance in earnest.
94	* In ''Series/JessicaJones2015'': In "AKA It's Called Whiskey," when Jessica Jones and Luke Cage each find out the other is super-strong and tough, they realize this means they finally have a partner they can cut loose with. This of course means [[DestructoNookie a sexual encounter that literally breaks the bed under them]]. This is downplayed as they are fuck buddies more than anything, but still...
95	* ''Series/{{Smallville}}'': Lois was already attracted to Clark (and also already knew of his SecretIdentity), but when he finally tells her he's the Blur she runs up to him and lays a big slobbering kiss on him.
96	[[/folder]]
97
98	[[folder:Video Games]]
99	* You can do this in ''VideoGame/JadeEmpire'' if you want to romance Silk Fox. You can start flirting with her immediately after she tacitly reveals that she's [[spoiler: the [[RebelliousPrincess Emperor's daughter]]]] in addition to being a kunoichi-esque vigilante. Bear in mind that she tried to kill you during your first meeting.
100	* ''VideoGame/KnightsOfTheOldRepublic'' has a variant for the GayOption. Play female and Juhani may become attracted to you. Then, it's revealed that [[spoiler:Revan (you)]] were her rescuer and inspiration for picking up a lightsaber in the first place, as well as [[spoiler:an infamous Sith Lord who very nearly toppled the Republic]]. Her quiet crush becomes much more obvious.
101	[[/folder]]
102
103	[[folder:Visual Novels]]
104	* ''VisualNovel/TokimekiMemorial 2'' has an inversion: when [[BrokenBird Kaori Yae]] finally confesses her [[DarkAndTroubledPast Dark And Troubled]] {{Backstory}} to the main protagonist (i.e. the player) in her storyline's mandatory Event, it unlocks ''her'' full [[RelationshipValues Tokimeki Mode]], along with an enormous boost in Love Points, enough to easily get her LoveConfession at the end of the game.
105	[[/folder]]
106
107	[[folder:{{Webcomics}}]]
108	* Played straight and then inverted by the final strips of ''Webcomic/BiteMe'' when Claire finally reveals her [[ParodySue full backstory]] to Lucien. Claire has been flirting with him for the entire comic, but Lucien doesn't really reciprocate until after she's done explaining herself. He starts to indicate a hesitant attraction to her... and then she jumps on him.
109	[[/folder]]
110
111	[[folder:Web Original]]
112	* In ''Literature/TheDescendants'', Warrick is forced to reveal his identity as Alloy to his girlfriend by an attacking villain. She instantly kisses him passionately. Later explained as her being greatly relieved that she doesn't have to explain to Warrick how his apparent idol, Alloy has been hitting on her.
113	[[/folder]]
114
115	[[folder:Western Animation]]
116	* ''WesternAnimation/GravityFalls'': {{Downplayed\|Trope}} in "The Deep End"; Mabel already liked Mermando, but falls even harder after learning that he's actually a merman.
117	* In the ''WesternAnimation/MiraculousLadybug'' episode "[[Recap/MiraculousLadybugS03E22CatBlanc Cat Blanc]]", Adrien starts a relationship with Marinette after learning that she's Ladybug. This reveal is one-sided; Marinette is not ''aware'' that Adrien figured out her SecretIdentity, and he keeps her in the dark. This ultimately results in a BadFuture, so Bunnyx presses the RelationshipResetButton by pulling Ladybug in from the past and having her change the event that led to the reveal. The same plot point is used in "[[Recap/MiraculousLadybugS04E22Ephemeral Ephemeral]]"; after Master Su-Han forces Marinette to uncover Cat Noir's true identity and she realizes he's her crush, she reveals herself and they initiate a romance... which leads to Hawkmoth figuring out the secret too, use it to capture their Miraculouses, and very nearly winning if not for ''another'' time-related ResetButton. Also, in "[[Recap/MiraculousLadybugS03E10Oblivio Oblivio]]", they're both hit with amnesia before detransforming and comes to the conclusion that they must be a close hero duo who trust each other completely and also in a relationship, which they're happy to continue with. They're ''again'' hit with the ResetButton when the villain's defeat returns their original memories, at the cost of their memories of everything that happened in between. Except for a photo of their BigDamnKiss.
118	* ''WesternAnimation/SupermanDoomsday'' has Superman and Lois Lane in an explicitly romantic relationship, yet he still hasn't told her he's Clark Kent. In a twist on the usual dynamic, she ''knows'' who he really is, she just wants him to actually admit it to her out loud, viewing it as the last step between the two of them having a fully committed relationship. When he does so at the end of the film, she embraces him with an affectionate kiss and reminds him to give his mother a call.
119	* In ''WesternAnimation/XMenEvolution'', the demonic-looking mutant Kurt (during this time in the show, the existence of mutants is still a secret and Kurt hides his appearance with a hologram) is asked to a school dance by normal student Amanda. During the dance, an emergency happens, and when he's torn between pretending to be normal or revealing his powers to her, she reveals to him that she already has an idea of what he's capable of. He gets her to safety and then turns off his hologram, letting her get a good look at his true self. They become a couple.
120	[[/folder]]

Context Main / TheRevealPromptsRomance