Formerly known as: Their Reputation Precedes Me

Sense of identity is an important trait to most fictional characters. It helps define them to the audience for one thing, but it also gives the character their own set of motives and motivations.

But unfortunately, often a character has a member of their Badass Family whose reputation precedes them; so much so that people greet Bob not by his name but, "Oh, hey, look, it's Big Bob's son!" or Alice by "Look, It's Alicia's baby sister!" much to their chagrin.

Can result in Jumped At The Call as Bob or Alice seek incrasingly more drastic methods of getting out from being under their relative's shadow. Not confined strictly to parent/child or sibling. It can be any family member.

The one whose reputation overshadows the other character need not even be a relative. It can be a friend, acquaintance, or person whose legacy they've inherited.

Sins Of Our Fathers is the Sister Trope wherein the reputation preceding is not a positive one and the character is suffering for the connection to the other.

---

Commercials

• There's an ad for Subway in which a little boy laments that in a crowd of other kids he's nobody. To the teachers, he's Jared's little brother, but at Subway he's himself and he can have what he wants.

Literature

• In the October Daye books, Toby at least gets to introduce herself by name before the person hearing her name shouts, "Oh! You're Amandine's daughter!". Some people refer to her by that appelation exclusively.

Live Action TV

• The Brady Bunch: Jan Brady -- "Marcia, Marcia, Marcia!"

Western Animation

• Superman The Animated Series contains this exchange:
  Criminal: Hold it right there, Ms ...
  Lois Lane: Lane.
  Criminal: [going pale] Lane? Lois Lane? You mean the one Superman always saves?
  Lois Lane: [deadpan, fastens seatbelt] 'Fraid so.
  [beat]
  [Superman arrives, turns plane upside down. Lois and everyone strapped in are fine -- Criminals go sprawling.]
• Played with in Young Justice as Superboy is often mistaken for Superman, and clarifies, "I'm his clone". It was done with anger in season one, when Superman still didn't want anything to do with him. But as of season two, they're family and now Conner corrects it matter-of-factly.