Living Ghost

Egon: It would seem that the energy backlash has completely destabilized my molecular structure.
Peter: In other words... you're a ghost!
Egon: Not technically, since I'm still alive, but for all practical purposes — yes.

— The Real Ghostbusters, "Egon's Ghost"

Ghosts and Spirits commonly have a variety of abilities in media, such as Intangibility, possessing other people's bodies and Invisibility. They're also normally dead people.

These characters though, are very much alive, and yet have many of the abilities described above, and possibly others such as Poltergeist-y Telekinesis, illusion-making, and levitation. They might also be able to create some of the atmosphere ghosts have, such as random noises or "cold spots" where the temperature is below normal. Some might theme themselves around ghosts, with things such as white clothing.

Note that Tropes Are Flexible. This trope also applies to entire species with those traits or characters who normally don't have those characteristics gaining them and/or becoming incorporeal temporarily for a single storyline or installment. In those cases, it can overlap with The Disembodied.

Sub-trope of Our Ghosts Are Different. Not to be confused with Astral Projection. Compare and Contrast Ridiculously Alive Undead.

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Examples

Anime and Manga

• One Piece: Perona ate the Horo Horo no Mi, or the Hollow Hollow Fruit, which gives her the ability to summon small ghosts that can suck the willpower out of her opponents, making them too depressed to fight, or large ghosts that can physically harm opponents. These ghosts can also explode if they make contact with the opponent at Perona's command. Not only that, but the fruit also gives Perona ghost-like abilities, such as intangibility, flight, and even the ability to change size. Subverted, since it turns out that Perona herself doesn't have these abilities, but she can only create an Astral Projection of herself that does. However, after the Time Skip, she gains some of the ghost-like abilities for herself, such as flight.

Comic Books

• Legion of Super-Heroes: The inhabitants of the planet Bgztl, including legionnaire Phantom Girl, all have ghost-like powers, primarily phasing/intangibility, but also sometimes invisibility. To add to the theme, they normally wear white clothing, and in the post-rebirth continuity they even have an ethereal purple body.
• Sonic the Hedgehog (Archie Comics): An early issue sees Sonic apparently killed in an explosion of one of Robotnik's newest inventions, much to the sadness of his friends who hold a funeral for him. Even Sonic thinks this is the case when he wakes up and finds he cannot interact with anything else. In reality, his superspeed combined with the machine's explosion has thrown him out of phase with reality, a condition that is slowly correcting itself when he suddenly discovers a random passerby can hear his voice but can't see him and that he can grab objects but still walks through walls. Taking advantage of this, Sonic proceeds to help his friends beat Robotnik by using his temporary powers to convince the doctor he's being haunted. By the end of the issue, Sonic is back to normal.
• X-Men (Chris Claremont): During the 1980s, a battle between the X-Men and the Marauders left Kitty Pryde trapped in her intangible state for months. During this time, she lamented that she had become a "living ghost", unable to interact with anyone.

Film — Live-Action

• Ant-Man and the Wasp: As a child, the Ghost was exposed to quantum energy while caught in an explosion that killed her parents. This granted her invisibility and intangibility. However, these powers came with a price; her molecular structure and equilibrium became imbalanced and she requires a special suit to control her phasing ability.

Literature

• The Graveyard Book: Nobody "Bod" Owens learned several tricks from the Friendly Ghosts who raised him, including talking to people through their dreams and "fading", though he can only become invisible and not intangible like the dead.

Live-Action TV

• Doctor Who: While the Doctor generally doesn't believe ghosts exist, there are a few instances of aliens who are mistaken for ghosts by humans due to their similar abilities:
  • In "The Unquiet Dead", the Ninth Doctor and Rose, along with Charles Dickens, encounter the Gelth in Victorian London, who claim they lost their bodies during the Time War and became blue, gaseous, wraithlike beings. They made rooms colder whenever they appeared (due to feeding on the gas heat) could emit ghostlike screams, and possess human corpses with great difficulty, making it seem like the dead were coming back to life. However, they could only survive in a gaseous environment (hence the gaslit Victorian England) and could be destroyed by fire. Their resemblance to ghosts got an accidental Call-Back by Donna three seasons later:
    Donna: It's not like Agatha Christie went around surrounded by murder, not really. That would be like meeting Charles Dickens and he's surrounded by ghosts ... at Christmas.
    Doctor: Well...
  • Beings that seem to be ghosts appear all over Earth in "Army of Ghosts"/"Doomsday" two-parter, but are actually beings from a parallel Earth that haven't quite broken through the barrier between the worlds yet, making their appearance ethereal and roughly humanoid, although specific characteristics are impossible to make out. Of course, this doesn't stop humans from assuming they are literally their dead loved ones returning, even believing they can smell/see certain traits associated with the real person (for example, Rose's mother believes she can smell her father's cigarettes).
• Space Cases: An episode has some technical incident turn Harlan invisible and intangible, as well as a crucial piece of equipment. Turns out Radu can still hear him.
• Star Trek: The Next Generation: One episode had Geordi and Ensign Ro Laren get caught in an explosion by a malfunctioning experimental cloaking device that a top-secret Federation research facility was working on. It not only rendered them invisible, it also phased them so that they could pass through solid objects. They spend the episode trying to find a way to return to normal.

Tabletop Games

• Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition: The Phantom subclass for Rogues gives them ghost-themed powers, including the ability to temporarily turn into a ghost for a time, making them intangible and able to fly.
• Exalted: "Ghost-Blooded" are children of a living mother and a ghost father. Ghost-Blooded are alive, but they can turn invisible, become intangible, and see spirits, unlike ordinary humans.
• Geist: The Sin-Eaters: Sin-Eaters have Powers via Possession by special ghosts called Geists. All of them can see and speak to ghosts and can "reverse-possess" their Geist to interact physically with ghosts, and they can learn more dramatic powers like intangibility, possession, and causing poltergeist-like activity over a large area.
• In Magic: The Gathering, the planeswalker Kaya comes from a world where the line between living and dead is a bit blurred. Thus, she has ghostly powers such as turning intangible and walking through walls. Most notably, however, her abilities allow her to assassinate ghosts, and she serves as a sort of Hitman with a Heart-slash-exorcist who travels the multiverse getting rid of troublesome ghosts.
• Pathfinder: One Sorcerer bloodline is connected to Ectoplasm, the ethereal pseudo-matter of ghosts and spirits. These sorcerers gain powers like physically handling incorporeal creatures, growing ghostly Combat Tentacles, and transforming into an ectoplasmic cloud, and ultimately attain a Mortality Grey Area with some of the physical resilience of the undead.
• Starfinder: Khulans are a variety of incorporeal fey that tend to the molten cores of planets, often mistaken for ghosts.

Video Games

• Dragon Age II: Fenris has been infused with lyrium in a way that gives him the ability to turn incorporeal for a while. The corresponding gameplay skill is even called "Lyrium Ghost". After DA2, this ability even gains him the sobriquet "Blue Wraith".
• Fire Emblem Engage: Alear is an odd case; they died and were revived as an Emblem, yet they still have their living body. Instead, Alear's Emblem form essentially functions as a Super Mode. They have some of the same abilities as normal Emblems, like glowing and flying, as well as being able to engage with another party member to give them perks (which is like possession, except that the host can still control their body). However, they also have differences, like how they can still fight independently from the one they're engaged to, and still act as a separate unit. Alear is still able to eat, and their ring doesn't need to be polished.
• Kirby: Introduced in Kirby: Squeak Squad, the Ghost copy-ability gives Kirby ghost-like abilities whilst being alive, including possession and free movement.
• Super Mario Galaxy: Mario is capable of turning into Boo Mario in both this game and its sequel, giving him the ability to phase through walls like a Boo. He's even required to turn back to normal to calm down a trapped Luigi.
• Warcraft III: Spirit Walkers are casters that can switch between Ethereal and Corporeal Form. In the latter, they can't be attacked (save for spells and Magic-type damage) or attack (but can cast spells).

Webcomics

• Paranatural: Spectrals are living humans who have gained abilities similar to spirits and ghosts in the comic's universe. Like all paranormal entities, they emit Spectral energy and can interact with spirits, with some having further ghostlike powers through the use of Tools or by virtue of being a Medium.

Western Animation

• Ben 10: One of Ben's first transformations, Ghostfreak, is an alien that, like the name suggests, can turn invisible and intangible with little to no consequence, and in rare instances, possess others. Ghostfreak was sampled from an entire ghost-like race that live in a solar system filled with Halloween-themed aliens. Their entire conscience also exists in every strand of their DNA, which means that Ghostfreak was trapped in the Omnitrix and fully aware until he escaped and became one of Ben's villains.
• Danny Phantom:
  • Danny Fenton explores the inside of his parents' Ghost Portal and accidentally turns it on. As his theme song suggests, he can now turn intangible and walk through almost anything, turn invisible, fly, as well as possess people and even has access to other ghost powers such as Ghost Rays, Cryokinesis, and the Ghostly Wail.
  • Danny's nemesis Vlad Plasmius after contracting a virus from being exposed to ghost energy, amassed the same powers as Danny (minus Cryokenesis and Ghostly Wail), which he mastered and abused over years of experience.
  • Danny's clone Danielle also has all his powers minus Cryokenesis and Ghostly Wail (at least, yet).
• Iron Man: Armored Adventures: In a realistic sense. A mercenary named The Ghost uses technology to make himself invisible and even intangible enough to phase through attacks and walls. He can't touch, hold, or carry anything while intangible and can be caught with the right strategy.
• The Legend of Zelda (1989): In "The Missing Link", Link gets hit with a beam Ganon fired at Zelda. Afterwards, Link's spirit is separated from his body, leaving him audible but invisible to everyone except Zelda and unable to pick up everyday objects like his sword. He's still alive, but a ghost for all intents and purposes. The plot centers around reuniting his body and spirit.
• In The Real Ghostbusters episode "Egon's Ghost", an accident results in Egon becoming noncorporeal and able to sense ghosts. However, he must be turned back into a normal human because being noncorporeal for too long would make him disappear completely.
• The Venture Brothers: Recurring Guild of Calamitous Intent villain Intangible Fancy has multiple "ghostly" powers including intangibility, being able to control other people's bodies by entering them, and being partially invisible. He claims that he is the victim of a science experiment gone awry (also leaving him made of Ectoplasm and with Fog Feet) and is still technically living, given that the Council of 13 discusses executing him for his Gadfly-like behavior.

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