History Main / ReformedButNotTamed

* ''WesternAnimation/TheOwlHouse'': [[Characters/TheOwlHouseAmityBlight Amity Blight]] started out as an AcademicAlphaBitch who would antagonize Luz and her friends. Following a HeelRealization in "Lost in Language", she starts becoming nicer. However, "Enchanting Grom Fright" shows that, while she's accepted that she needs to become a better person, she isn't magically going to completely improve immediately, like when she calls someone ''she'' bumped into a "Nitwit", or when she beats up Hooty for getting into her personal space.

* Much like the [[VideoGame/SonicAdventure2 game continuity]], Shadow in ''Anime/SonicX'' pulled a HeelFaceTurn by sacrificing himself to save the world from the Space Colony ARK. In the Metarex saga, however, Shadow returns (with his memories erased), still the PerpetualFrowner, still cold and aloof around others, and still ruthless in his goals, even to the point of fighting Sonic and his friends if it's necessary. Believe it or not, he's largely more ruthless and less personable than his game incarnation (who mellowed out a bit more after [[VideoGame/ShadowTheHedgehog his own title game]]).

* The Star Wolf team in ''VideoGame/StarFox'' started as mercenaries and {{Evil Counterpart}}s to the Star Fox team. They even worked for Andross in ''VideoGame/StarFox64'' to take down Fox. In the later games, they graduate into [[AntiHero anti-heroes]] who will sometimes, and grudgingly, [[EnemyMine team up with Star Fox in their missions]].

* Seto Kaiba from ''Anime/YuGiOh'' was FauxAffablyEvil at first. Even if he's undergone some CharacterDevelopment and even if he's helped Yugi and his friends, he still remains a grumpy, arrogant, and insufferable {{Jerkass}} (and his [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold heart of gold]] doesn't show that much unless it involves his brother [[MoralityPet Mokuba]]). Also, he is still [[TheOnlyOneAllowedToDefeatYou obsessed with defeating Yugi]].

This trope is when a character goes from evil to good while still retaining the characteristics they had as a {{villain|s}}. There are plenty of reasons for why their immoral or unpleasant behavior remains the same despite changing their alignment:

'''Here's a list of tropes which involve a character changing their alignment, but not their personality. In short, this is more of a character turning into "heroic" versions of what they started off as''':

** Emma Frost started as a villainess who is cold, aloof, arrogant, sociopathic and likes to [[{{Stripperiffic}} underdress]]. Even after she joins the team, nothing has changed about her attitude and behavior, although she seems to [[DefrostingIceQueen let her coldness melt a little]] and becomes ''slightly'' less sociopathic... sometimes.

* Lila is this in ''Webcomic/ScarletLady''. Even after becoming a better person, she still maintains a rather nasty streak, though she now reserves it for those who deserve it. For example, when she and her classmates get an invitation to a party from Chloé, she suggests, "Let's eat her food, trash her hotel, and leave her with the bill. It'll be fuuuun."

* On ''WesternAnimation/IceAge1'', Diego pulls a HeelFaceTurn after befriending Manny and Sid, and remains a [[DeadpanSnarker sarcastic prick]], but with a [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold heart of gold]].

* Petey The Cat in ''Literature/ Dogman'' Petey used to be an evil villain bend on taking over the world woth his invention until his clone/son Lil Petey help his papa change from evil to good but Petey remains a hothead when he his around others and refuse to admit he’s friend with Dogman and co although he really is.

* Meg from ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'' allied with Team Free Will in Seasons 7 and 8 against Crowley, but remained very much a demon. She became a HeroicComedicSociopath, and her primary motivation was AvengingTheVillain that Crowley had earlier helped the Winchesters defeat.

* Wrestling/{{MJF}} was formerly one of the most notorious [[Main/{{Heel}} Heels]] in all of professional wrestling, especially when he entered Wrestling/AllEliteWrestling. He was a smarmy, egotistical, bigoted, cowardly bully who would pull any dirty tactic imaginable in order to get what he wanted. While he eventually made a HeelFaceTurn as a result of his newfound friendship with Wrestling/AdamCole, MJF himself barely changed his behavior. He's more than willing to cheat in matches (even cheating more often than some of the Heels he wrestles against), and remains as egotistical and prone to making offensive comments as ever. Max himself sums it up during one of his promos.

* Wrestling/IvelisseVelez entered Shine Wrestling with two goals, to become the best woman wrestler in the world and torment the people who had wronged her friends. What initiated her official HeelFaceTurn was the realization that those [[EtTuBrute she thought]] were her friends in the Valkyrie PowerStable were not as dedicated to her as she them and that the people worth being friends with were being constantly tormented by Valkyrie and two other stables. Her [[StartMyOwn own power stable]], Las Sicarias, had the exact same missions statement as Valkyrie but quickly moved away from abusing Shine management and officials to those actively imperiling her friends, friends she welcomed to challenge for title belts [[BenevolentBoss even if she held them]]. Still, Velez's desire to be the best occasionally became all-consuming, allowing her enemies [[BatManGambit to stir]] up {{di|videandconquer}}scension in Las Sicarias.

* Miles Edgeworth in ''Franchise/AceAttorney'' starts off as an arrogant prosecutor who always seems to be one step ahead of Phoenix and baits him into making a fool of himself with trap questions and evidence held back until just the right moment. After a HeelFaceTurn and a lot of CharacterDevelopment... he does exactly the same, with the important difference that he is trying to make his best case that the defendant being guilty is the ''truth''. If Phoenix can come up with a counter-explanation that satisfies him (especially if it points to someone else as the guilty party), Edgeworth will help him make his case, even though it means a 'loss' for him.

* An anti-heroic example: ''WesternAnimation/{{Archer}}'' TookALevelInKindness in Season 6 after [[spoiler:becoming a father]], but still retains his reckless attitude and HairTriggerTemper.

** Discord, antagonist of the season 2 opener "The Return of Harmony", is reformed by Fluttershy at the end of the season 3 episode "Keep Calm and Flutter On", but clearly demonstrates afterward that he's still as big a {{Troll}} as ever. He slowly attempts to take on the role of a TricksterMentor, with varying levels of success, and still has some villainous tendencies pop up whenever he feels his friendship with Fluttershy is being threatened in some way. Season 7's "Discordant Harmony" also shows that he ''has'' to act chaotic, or otherwise he would ''fade out of existence''.
** Princess Luna in the Season 2 episode "Luna Eclipsed". Princess Luna still speaks in a booming voice early on, AKA the "Royal Canterlot Voice," which went out of style while she was imprisoned in the moon. This, combined with her past reputation as Nightmare Moon, makes every other pony scared of Luna. She manages to soften her approach by the end of that episode, and later in the series she has escaped her ZeroPercentApprovalRating to be beloved by at least the children of Equestria, but she's still got an edge to her, handing out [[BrutalHonesty unvarnished truths]] and dire warnings whenever possible.

** In the season 5 finale "The Cutie Re-Mark", Starlight Glimmer has a HeelFaceTurn and becomes Twilight Sparkle's student, learning about magic and friendship from her. A few episodes show Starlight's got a lot to learn, especially "Every Little Thing She Does", where she decides it's acceptable to use ''mind control'' to get a bunch of friendship lessons done at once.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheOwlHouse'': Amity Blight started out as an AcademicAlphaBitch who would antagonize Luz and her friends. Following a HeelRealization in "Lost in Language", she starts becoming nicer. However, "Enchanting Grom Fright" shows that, while she's accepted that she needs to become a better person, she isn't magically going to completely improve immediately, like when she calls someone ''she'' bumped into a "Nitwit", or when she beats up Hooty for getting into her personal space.

* ''ComicBook/SuperiorSpiderMan'': After taking over Peter Parker's body and getting infused with a few of his core memories, Otto Octavius promises a dying Spider-Man to continue his legacy. While he does follow the promise, his main motivation is to prove he's a [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Superior Spider-Man]] than Peter, so he uses the same methods as he did as [[Characters/MarvelComicsOttoOctavius Doctor Octopus]], making him just a NominalHero who is as arrogant and pathetic as he was back in his villain days.

* TheVamp → FemmeFatale, GoodBadGirl, HeroicSeductress

Also see TokenEvilTeammate, CombatPragmatist, AboveGoodAndEvil, or VigilanteMan. Subtrope of QuirkyGood. Compare HazyFeelTurn and HeroesFrontierStep. Not to be confused with ReformedButRejected, where a character turns for the better, but others don't acknowledge it.

* AlwaysChaoticEvil → NotAlwaysEvil and MySpeciesDothProtestTooMuch

-->'''MJF''': I'm not gonna change overnight. For crying out loud, I'm still a scumbag, don't get me wrong. But goddamnit, I am ready to be ''your'' scumbag!"

-->'''MJF'''": I'm not gonna change overnight. For crying out loud, I'm still a scumbag, don't get me wrong. But goddamnit, I am ready to be '''your''' scumbag!"

--->'''MJF'''": I'm not gonna change overnight. For crying out loud, I'm still a scumbag, don't get me wrong. But goddamnit, I am ready to be '''your''' scumbag!"

-->"I'm not gonna change overnight. For crying out loud, I'm still a scumbag, don't get me wrong. But goddamnit, I am ready to be '''your''' scumbag!"

->''"I'm not gonna change overnight. For crying out loud, I'm still a scumbag, don't get me wrong. But goddamnit, I am ready to be '''your''' scumbag!"''