Reveling in the New Form

In media where transformations are a reality, regardless of how it happens, everyone approaches their new forms a little differently: some will be horrified and want to be back to normal ASAP; some — most prominently Voluntary Shapeshifters — may regard their form in a utilitarian way... and a few will love it.

Perhaps this is because their new shape is blessed with great powers in some way; perhaps it's because their natural form is weak or sickly, and taking a healthy form is a welcome change; and on occasion, being in a new form is just fun. Whatever the reason, however it happened, regardless of whether the transformation involves a change in age, a Gender Bender, a shift in species, or something else entirely, the transformed character is having the time of their life and is determined to make the most of it.

In a few rare cases, this may even apply to characters who initially didn't like their new shape: having no choice but to get used to their new bodies, they gradually grow accustomed to the difficulties of being someone or something different, and may even grow to wholeheartedly enjoy it.

Though this is often innocent enough, this can lead to complications in more dramatic plotlines: temporary transformees may be so desperate to continue experiencing the joy of the new body that they might be determined to stay in it, though the fact that Status Quo Is God ensures that this rarely sticks; eventually, something happens that will prompt the transformee to return to their true form... assuming it's not too late, of course.

In other temporary instances, the desire to remain transformed may result in increasingly questionable choices that might end with them damaging their own health, hurting their relationships with their loved ones, or even turning evil. Depending on the nature of the transformation, this may overlap with Transhuman Treachery.

A supertrope of Showing Off the New Body, which is a very specific form of this trope mainly concerned with flaunting the almost exclusively human new self.

Compare Distracted by My Own Sexy, which may overlap with this depending on the nature of the transformation. May overlap with Supernaturally-Validated Trans Person or Self-Perception Shapeshifting.

Contrast Bemoaning the New Body, the opposite reaction to a transformation. Compare and contrast Transformation Exhilaration, which is all about the joy in actually transforming, rather than the form you get as a result. See also Stumbling in the New Form, which can either oppose this trope (if you end up in a hard-to-control form that you hate) or be paired with it (if you are happy with the new form but still trip over yourself simply because you are not used to moving it yet).

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Examples:

Anime & Manga

• The 100 Girlfriends Who Really, Really, Really, Really, Really Love You: In chapter 23, the girls switch bodies with one another following a drug accident. All the girls embrace their predicament, with the only exception being Nano.
• Ranma ½: After falling into a cursed pool, martial arts student Saotome Ranma discovers that he's been transformed into a redhead girl. At the time, he is aghast and mortified at the change. However, by chapter three, Ranma has discovered that Tokyo merchants offer deep discounts and freebies to him while he's in his girl form. "Being a girl is the only way to buy stuff," he chortles to himself.

Comic Books

• The Incredible Hulk (1962): When Bruce manages to find a way to retain control of the Hulk's form, he's overjoyed. However, it soon becomes clear that Banner isn't quite as in control of the Hulk's body as he might like, becoming much more short-tempered and belligerent. Just like the Hulk.
• Secret Wars: Seeking to augment his Red Shirts, Doctor Doom transforms two Denver suburbanites into superhumans: Volcana (heat and flame powers) and Titania (super strength and durability). Volcana's fine with her new powers and appearance, but Titania is elated, since she'd heretofore been a mousy weakling nicknamed "Skeeter." Titania helps deliver a beatdown with gusto on She-Hulk, but fares no better than Skeeter against veteran hero Spider Man.
• She-Hulk usually prefers being in her Hulk form, because she's more confident and taller. Plus, the transformation itself is often portrayed as enjoyable...
• Sonic the Hedgehog: Around the time the characters were getting redesigns to fall in line with their Sonic Adventure designs, Amy uses the Ring of Acorns to wish for a more mature form (as opposed to the tween she is). The ring grants her wish, aging her body to that of a teen about Sonic's own age. She is quite pleased with the effect, even if the transformation didn't do anything for her actual maturity.
• West Coast Avengers: After moving to Los Angeles and assuming a handsome human form, the villainous M.O.D.O.K. attempted to hit on women but most were turned down by his obnoxious attitude. Seeking revenge, he kidnapped them and turned them into enormous kaiju and unleashed them to rampage through the city. The West Coast Avengers restore their sanity and change most of them back, but one woman asks to stay as an enormous dragon, as she genuinely prefers being a huge reptile as opposed to being catcalled all the time in human form. Kate Bishop allows it so long as the dragon lady promises to not eat any people and cause wanton destruction.

Fan Works

• In The Loud House fanfic Attack of the 50-Foot Sister (now taken down, but covered on the Halloween Episode of Peeking Through the Fourth Wall) when Lynn grows to be a giant, she doesn't want to turn back, since she prefers being a giant to being short.
• In the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine fanfic Jadzia Dax Throws a Party, Dax is turned into a child in a transporter accident, but enjoys it and sees it as an excuse to throw a party.
• In The Land of What Might-Have-Been, an increasingly-depressed Glinda decides to join the Amorphous League in order to make herself more useful to the war effort, only to for her initiation ceremony to end with her being stuck in Elphaba's form. Having been secretly hating her own identity for a while, Glinda greatly enjoys being Elphaba, refusing all efforts to get her to abandon the form — even though remaining in this initial shape will eventually kill her. Eventually, the real Elphaba is able to get through to her and help Glinda overcome the self-loathing that led her to become so fixated on this shape; the chapter ends with Glinda abandoning the Elphaba form, completing her initiation, and becoming an apprentice shapeshifter.
• Pound and Pumpkin Cake's Adventures (and Misadventures) in Potty Training: In "Diamond the Dazzling Foal", Diamond gets zapped into a toddler by Pumpkin Cake's uncontrollable magic, but she enjoys it since she likes getting to have a toddlerhood without her abusive mother.

Films — Animation

• Heavy Metal: In the segment "Den", a scrawny science nerd is studying lightning in his room when a bolt creates an electric arc that teleports him through space and time to the world called Neverwhere, transforming his body into that of muscular warrior. "Hmm, big," Den notes of his new physique, and promptly snags a pendant to use as a loincloth.
• Hotel Transylvania: Transformania: Johnny loves his new monstrous form; he's big, tough, can breathe fire, and he's more like his in-laws! Until it turns out that his mind will degrade until he's just a savage beast, if he doesn't transform back.
• Quest for Camelot: The villain Ruber uses a witch's potion to convert his loyal mooks into walking weapons, with cutlasses and maces for arms. Even a barnyard chicken gets a dose, and becomes Bladebeak with a battle-axe for a head. The most delight comes from Ruber himself, when he finally attains King Arthur's sword Excalibur. The potion fuses the sword to his right hand, which becomes a steel mechanism that can rotate the blade. This also ensures nothing can detach it from him as long as he lives.
• Shrek 2:
  • When Donkey is turned into a horse due to drinking a potion, he enjoys it, since he can whinny, trot, and count by stomping, and he feels "sexy". He even does a Rapid-Fire "No!" when he turns back into a donkey.
  • Pinocchio does a Happy Dance when he briefly turns into a real boy.
• The Sponge Bob Movie Sponge Out Of Water: Squidward is overjoyed when he becomes the superhero Sour Note and refuses to go back to Bikini Bottom because of how muscular he is. He's not pleased when SpongeBob has everything to go back to normal courtesy of the magical book... until SpongeBob reveals that he let him keep his six-pack.
• Turning Red: A delayed example. Mei Lee is at first horrified when she gains her ability to turn into a giant red panda, as she has little to no control over when it happens and even calls herself a "gross red monster" soon after seeing what she looks like in the mirror. However, she begins to appreciate her red panda form as the movie goes on due to her peers finding her extremely cute in panda form, and Mei herself coming to agree with them; she even gradually figures out how to control her shapeshifting abilities. It gets to the point in which Mei has the option to seal her red panda spirit away permanently, preventing her from transforming ever again, but she chooses not to since she's found that she loves the ability.
• Wolfwalkers: Robyn is understandably upset and afraid when she first becomes a wolf, especially since everyone in the town is terrified of wolves and she'll likely be killed if she's discovered. But after Mebh calms her down and shows her all the advantages and joys of being a wolf, it doesn't take Robyn long to genuinely enjoy it.

Films — Live-Action

• Alita: Battle Angel: When Alita is finally merged with the Berserker body she has discovered it adjusts itself to her very subconscious. When she awakens, she shows the doctor how fluidly she can move with it by doing an incredibly difficult yoga pose.
• Avatar: When paraplegic marine Jake Sully first gets to control his Avatar Remote Body, the first thing he notices is that his new body has functioning legs. So ecstatic is he over this regained mobility that he immediately exits the lab (much to the consternation of the doctors monitoring his first use of the Avatar), leaps and dashes across the nearby garden, and digs his toes into the loamy dirt. Colonel Quaritch exploits this glee over the regained mobility, saying that he'll ensure that Jake gets his "real legs" back if he continues reporting on the Na'vi.
• Charlie and the Chocolate Factory: Zigzagged. Violet certainly doesn't seem to enjoy being turned into a blueberry, given the horror-stricken expression on her face. However, when she's still purple after the juice has been squeezed out of her, she doesn't mind it since the procedure made her much more flexible.
• Child's Play:
  • At the start of the film series, serial killer Charles Lee Ray transfers his soul into the body of a Good Guy doll, and much of the overarching plot of the franchise involves him trying to transfer his soul back into a suitable human host, all while cutting a bloody path through the cast. However, in Bride of Chucky, he comes to the realization that he actually likes being a possessed doll as it renders him impossible to permanently kill and he's become a legend for his deeds as Chucky. Plus, despite ample evidence, people never suspect him of being behind the rising body count until it's well under way.
  • In Cult of Chucky, when Chucky possesses Nica Pierce, the first thing he does is admire his new body.
• This trope can often be found in adaptations of The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.
  • In the 1931 film Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, after the first transformation. Hyde leaves the laboratory and, it's pouring rain. Hyde spreads his arms and turns his face to the rain in obvious joy.
  • Dr. Jekyll & Ms. Hyde: Subverted. When Dr. Richard Jacks transforms into the sexy female Helen Hyde, at first it seems he's just taking advantage of this new form to get ahead in his career and enjoy some freedom as a woman. However, it quickly becomes clear that Helen is a personality all her own, and is willing to battle Richard over control of their shared body.
• In Dracula 2000, Marcus and his crew break into Van Helsing's vault and steal Dracula's coffin, believing it to hold valuable treasure. Dracula revives as they're flying him to America and kills the robbers. They later rise as vampires and the first thing Marcus says upon revival is "Better than money!"
• Ghostbusters (2016): After Rowan kills himself and becomes a ghost, he possesses the busters' intern, Kevin. He calls it an upgrade and notes that he should have worked out more when he was alive.
• Jumanji:
  • Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle:
    • Spencer, who has been transformed into the video game character Dr. Smolder Bravestone, is initially the only one to be happy with his character's body once he gets past the shock, marveling at his huge muscles. He comes close to not going back in order to stay this way.
    • Double Subverted with Bethany, who gets stuck in the overweight, middle-aged, male body of Dr. Shelly Oberon. Her initial reaction is a Big "NO!", but she gets fascinated by one particular part of Dr. Oberon's anatomy when it comes time to go to the bathroom. In the sequel, she's even happy to return to being Shelly (though, this was after being stuck as a horse for a chunk of the story.)
  • Jumanji: The Next Level:
    • Eddie and Milo, who are both elderly, are rather enthusiastic when they are transported into the youthful bodies of their avatars Dr. Smolder Bravestone and Franklin "Mouse" Finbar. They take a while to admire how good they look.
    • Towards the end of the film, Milo finds that he enjoys being in the form of Cyclone the horse. He even voluntarily decides to live inside of the game as the game's protector due to an unspecified terminal illness, aware that he doesn't have much time left.
• Marvel Cinematic Universe:
  • This version of Bruce Banner / The Hulk is a delayed example. Early in the franchise, he shows fear of "the other guy", and takes caution to prevent himself from getting too angry or stressed and Hulking Out. In his solo film, he even attempts to find a way to cure himself, but fails. By Avengers: Endgame, however, Bruce has made peace with Hulk and expresses enjoyment over his Split-Personality Merge form, which he now has full control over. He even takes note of how he used to consider the Hulk a "disease", but now considers him a "cure" instead.
  • Spider-Man: No Way Home: Max Dillon / Electro is very pleased with how much more good-looking he becomes after absorbing the electricity from the MCU, compared to both the gap-toothed nerd and blue mutant he was before. His handsome new appearance is actually one of the reasons why he wants to stay in this new universe.
• Space Jam: A New Legacy: Once LeBron James gets a team together with the help of Bugs Bunny to face Al-G Rhythm which consists of Bugs' fellow Looney Tunes, Al-G uses his powers to "upgrade" them and make them look more realistic. While most of the Tune Squad is horrified by this transformation, Daffy can't help but admire how expensive he looks.
• Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows: Bebop and Rocksteady, a pair of Ax-Crazy thugs, are mutated into hulking monsters (one giant warthog, one rhino). They have ZERO issues with it, bragging about their new Super-Strength and endurance, and also cackling over their other new enhancements.

Literature

• Animorphs:
  • The process of morphing is a visually terrifying experience, but the actual morphs themselves are often a good deal of fun to test-drive. Of course, some of the more stressful adventures in these forms end up being so traumatic that the Animorphs opt to never try them again if they can help it, but the thrill of morphing a bird and flying never gets old.
  • Tobias came from a broken home and was very eager to escape his troubles by flying. He ends up in Mode Lock as a hawk at the end of the first book, and despite his sadness over losing the power to morph and his human identity, he's still far happier as hawk than he ever was as a human. Later, he regains his morphing ability with help from the Ellimist, and while he still prefers his hawk form, he likes being able to interact with people on a human level and help out on missions again.
  • As the war progresses, the Animorphs make the difficult decision to recruit a number of disabled teenagers on the grounds that the Yeerks won't want to infest handicapped bodies. As Shapeshifting Heals Wounds, many of these Auxiliary Animorphs are overjoyed to have fully functional bodies again once they demorph; for those of them who were born with their conditions and thus can't be healed, being in a fully-mobile animal body for up to two hours is still glorious.
• Beware of Chicken: Tigu the cat becomes much happier and more content after achieving a human form, to the point of having difficulty mustering the will to ever change back.
• In Poul Anderson's story "Call Me Joe", the control link between "Joe", an artificial lifeform designed to live on Jupiter, and Ed Anglesey, the wheelchair-using human controller in an orbiting spaceship, keeps shorting out. It is suspected that the problem arises from Ed's fear and reluctance of becoming Joe; actually, the problem is his reluctance to leave Joe's alien, but fully healthy, body.
• Chrysalis (RinoZ): Anthony's initial reaction to reincarnation as an ant is, "I've been reborn as a WHAT?!" But it doesn't take long for him to decide that ants are much better than humans — especially the unconditional love and acceptance that all the ants in the Colony have for each other.
• Diary of a Wimpy Kid: In "Double Down", Greg dreams that he grows a tail and loves being able to do tricks with it. While this dream eventually becomes a nightmare when he gets hunted down for having a tail, he's still disappointed when he wakes up with no tail.
• Dinoverse has kids possessing the bodies of dinosaurs. Janine, in the body of a Quetzalcoatlus, immediately seems unusually ready to accept this compared to the other characters, because she instantly hits on the idea of staying as a pterosaur in the past rather than returning to her troubled home life. She only starts to love being a pterosaur once she's experienced the Call of the Wild Blue Yonder, but that's so good she feels confident of her choice. Candayce is initially extremely dismayed to be a Leptoceratops, seeing it as beyond thunder-thighed and its yellow and red coloration as garish; despite having nothing to cover, she insists on making and wearing first leaves glued on with sap, then a Seashell Bra and bottom piece. As time goes on stuck in the Cretaceous, she finds that she loves running as a little dinosaur, feeling more powerful and agile.
• In Discworld, Dr. Horace Worblehat, the librarian of the Unseen University, gets transformed into an orangutan in The Light Fantastic and thoroughly enjoys the fact, refusing to be turned back. It also helps that his new form gives him the ability to read cursed books that no man can even look at. In The Last Continent, it's even discovered that he's gone out of his way to destroy any materials that could have been used to restore him to human form.
• Dr. Franklin's Island has the Slow Transformation of Miranda and Semi into Mix-and-Match Critters very much played for dread and horror, especially as it progresses far enough to get painful and grotesque. However, once POV character Semi wakes up in a pool as a manta ray-like creature she feels rested, calm, and happy and enjoys the sensation of having wings and being able to 'fly' effortlessly through the water, even noticing that her pool is in a cage and thinking with amusement that it's not like she can get away. Only upon seeing a bird monster, realizing that that's Miranda, and finding that she can't speak to her - that she has no voice and no hands - is she horrified. Still, The Mind Is a Plaything of the Body and much of the time both she and Miranda enjoy their forms and what they can do, and more resent the restrictions of their freedom and the presence of their hated creators.
• Flat Stanley: In the first book, Stanley is Squashed Flat by a bulletin board. While he has fun with this at first because it comes with all kinds of advantages such as being mailed places and being able to slide under doors, he comes to miss being round, especially when some people start to laugh at him.
• In the Johnny Catbiscuit books, when Wayne (a wiry preteen boy) first turns into his superhero alter-ego Johnny (a muscular, grown man with superhuman intelligence and endurance who Speaks Fluent Animal and can fly) he loves it and enthuses about it.
• In the Dr. Seuss book I Wish That I Had Duck Feet, the protagonist imagines himself with animal features (such as a tiger's tail, antlers, and duck feet) and he enjoys them for various reasons like being able to swat flies or carrying many things at once, but he realizes they have their disadvantages, like being tied in a tree or not being able to get through doors. Then when he imagines himself with all those features, he thinks it would be cool until it dawns on him that he would be locked in the zoo. As such, he decides to be himself.
• The Magicians:
  • The fourth year at Brakebills features the students being transformed into ducks so they can transport themselves to the southern campus for a year-long Training from Hell. Once the initial Transformation Horror is over, Quentin and the other students enjoy flying immensely, and treat the whole thing as an epic adventure that they look back upon with much fondness.
  • Over the course of the aforementioned year at Brakebills South, the students are taught to transform at will, spending a happy afternoon clowning around in the form of polar bears in a welcome reprieve from the mind-pummeling coursework. Later, they're taught to transform into Arctic Foxes, which they also enjoy... but unfortunately, they end up taking the fun a little too far when the sex-starved students begin succumbing to their newfound animal instincts. Nobody in the class can make eye contact once they return to human form.
• Tales of the Five Hundred Kingdoms: In The Sleeping Beauty, "Bird" is a sparrow with a great deal of magical power. Late in the novel, Bird is on the receiving end of an Emergency Transformation into a Firebird (not to save her life, but because it's the only aid Godmother Lily can give to Siegfried right then). Lily and Jimson are apologetic after the transformation, which was only done with Bird's consent if you have a very generous interpretation of that word, but Bird is absolutely delighted.

Live-Action TV

• The Barbarian and the Troll: Stacey was turned into an owl, but she appreciates it a lot because of all the perks, like night vision and being able to poop whenever she wants. Actually, she wanted her mother to turn her into an owl.
• Doctor Who:
  • While the Doctor typically regards regeneration with either fear or reluctant acceptance depending on the incarnation, the new incarnation that results from it often reacts to their new self with some level of glee (when they aren't swept up by Resurrection Sickness, that is). The Sixth Doctor in particular openly regards himself as a marked improvement over the Fifth Doctor as soon as he comes into existence, ending "The Caves of Androzani" with a smug grin and the words "change, my dear, and it seems not a moment too soon," before reacting to Peri's apprehension in "The Twin Dilemma" with confusion. He even admires himself in the mirror, commenting favorably on his "noble brow."
  • In "The Doctor's Wife", sentient asteroid House successfully pulls a Grand Theft Me on the TARDIS — while Amy and Rory are alone aboard it. As the TARDIS abandons the Doctor and Idris on the asteroid, House can be heard gloating over his fancy new body, enthusing over all the corridors he now possesses; soon after, he forces Amy and Rory to entertain him by fleeing for their lives, and greatly enjoys the sensation of his new playthings running around inside him.
  • In "Let's Kill Hitler", Mels is rather taken with her new form after regenerating, appreciating her new mature body and voluminous hair. Subverted since it's hard to tell how much was genuine and how much was her lulling the Doctor into a false sense of security so she could poison him.
• Guillermo del Toro's Cabinet of Curiosities: In the episode "The Outside," Stacey goes through a long and painful metamorphosis as a result of her overexposure to Alo Glo, but eventually rises from an entire bath of the stuff to find that she's been transformed into the new, beautiful self she always wanted. She's immediately overjoyed, especially when she sees that her lazy eye has been corrected. Once Stacy's finished dressing, she makes for her workplace and revels in the attention of others, clearly taking great delight that she's now so beautiful that people can't take their eyes off her... but in between spates of delighted laughter, her expression shifts to one of confusion and horror.
• Misfits: In season 3, Curtis swaps his Mental Time Travel for the ability to change his sex at will, which he picked mainly because it was the only power that Seth had available. Initially uncertain of what he can use it for, Curtis quickly grows to enjoy his alternate shape, even creating a new identity for himself so he can participate in athletics again and becoming greatly enamored with lesbian sex. Unfortunately, Curtis ends up having a little too much fun: due to his habit of masturbating in both his male and female forms (and mopping up with the same tissues), he ends up accidentally impregnating himself. Worse still, the pregnancy leaves Curtis trapped in female form, forcing him into a very ropey deal with Seth to fix the problem.
• The Sandman: In "Lost Hearts", Dream brings back Gault and bestows upon her a set of butterfly wings, having finally accepted her wish to no longer be a Nightmare. She reacts with open joy and uses her new wings to fly off.
• Star Trek: The Next Generation: In "Rascals", Picard, Ro, Keiko, and Guinan are turned into 12-year-olds due to a Teleporter Accident. While most of them hate this, Guinian enjoys it and sees it as an excuse to get away with things that are only socially acceptable for children, such as jumping on beds. At the end, Ro also decides that being a kid isn't so bad and decides to wait until later to change back.
• Star Trek: Deep Space Nine: Odo greatly enjoys turning into animals as a hobby, with birds being a particular favorite; after learning some advanced shapeshifting techniques from his fellow Changelings in "The Search Part 2," he goes on a joyride around the planet as a bird of prey and lands in front of Kira, excitedly babbling about the experience as if he'd just gotten off a rollercoaster.
• The Umbrella Academy:
  • In "Öga för Öga", Klaus allows Ben to possess his body so he can finally interact with the world again; Ben is a little bemused with it at first... up until he reacquaints himself with things like touch and taste. This blissed-out joytrip ends with Ben collapsing into a bare patch of soil and groaning "I love dirt!"
  • In the finale of "Oblivion," Luther unexpectedly reappears alongside the rest of the Academy — and finds that his clumsy gorilla-like build has been replaced with the much more normal physique he had before he was dosed with Sir Reginald's formula. Luther is immediately overjoyed and eager to show his body off to Sloane... but unfortunately, Sloane is nowhere to be found, Luther and the rest of the Academy have been stripped of their powers, and the city is now dominated by Sir Reginald Hargreeves.

Puppet Shows

• Sesame Street: In one "Hero Guy" skit, when Baby Bear turns Hero Guy into different animals, he enjoys being the hippo and is reluctant to turn back.

Theatre

• Damn Yankees: Downplayed when middle-aged Joe Boyd gets transformed into ideal ballplayer Joe Hardy — it happens right at the climax of "Goodbye, Old Girl" with the literal Devil rushing him to a cab, so he only gets a moment to marvel in glee at his young, strong new body before he exits offstage. However, the last refrain of the song is much more energetic to reflect Joe's happiness with his new body.

Toys

• Transformers: On occasion, Transformers can be revived in a new body or receive a Mid-Season Upgrade like reformatting into a new form. As part of the Merchandise-Driven nature of the franchise, they'll generally express their approval of their new bodies, partially to encourage kids to go out and buy their toys.
  • The original G1 Bumblebee was upgraded into the Throttlebot leader Goldbug in the toyline, the cartoon and the comic books, though in differing ways. It was an Emergency Transformation to save his life in all versions ^note In the cartoon he was badly damaged during an attempt to recover the dead body of Optimus Prime, while the Marvel comic presented two different versions depending on the country; In the American run he was shot to pieces by G.I. Joe, while in the UK, he's blown up by a time-traveling Death's Head to prevent anyone from knowing he was there., but he appreciated his more powerful new form and took the name Goldbug to reflect he was now more mature and confident than he was as Bumblebee. As an example of how dramatic the change was, Bumblebee's strength stat was 2 while as Goldbug it was increased to 9.
  • Beast Megatron was intrigued when his archnemesis Optimus Primal took in the Spark of Autobot leader Optimus Prime in a desperate attempt to save the latter's life and preserve history, resulting in him reformatting into a powerful new body named Optimal Optimus. He broke into the Ark and found the comatose body of the original Megatron and took in his Spark, hoping to gain a similarly powerful new form. His plan succeeded, granting him an awesomely powerful Transmetal 2 body and a new dragon alternate mode, which he was more than pleased with.
  • In the Crapsack World of Beast Wars: Uprising (where Beast Megatron successfully assassinated Optimus Prime, but in retaliation Black Arachnia murdered the original Megatron), the Predacon Gnashteeth eventually takes the name Megatron and develops the Beast Upgrade. This upgrade allowed the Maximals and Predacons to feed on Cybertron's wildlife and plant life to fuel themselves, rather than relying on processing Energon like the Builders of Cybertron they were warring with. Gnashteeth himself reserves the most powerful Upgrade for himself, reveling in his new physical power alongside his wealth (from selling the Beast Upgrade to anyone who wanted it) and political power (since he was now "legit").
  • Some of the cartoon cast from Beast Wars didn't undergo the Transmetal upgrade, including Rhinox, Waspinator and Terrorsaur (and Terrorsaur was Killed Off for Real to boot alongside Scorponok). However, they did get Transmetal toys, and their bios generally mention how happy they are with their new bodies. Waspinator in particular gains an additional F-15-inspired vehicle mode (a reference to how he was possessed by Starscream in the episode "Possession"), and is described as greatly enjoying the enhanced speed and firepower.
  • Subverted with the Combaticons in the episode "Starscream's Brigade". Having been rebuilt on Earth by Starscream, they express disgust at their new bodies with Blast-Off going so far as to exclaim he hopes he doesn't run into anyone he knows, since he's so embarrassed. Their disgust is understandable: Starscream had stumbled upon the remains of the World War II battle of Guadalcanal and used the wreckage he found to construct their new bodies. Assuming that the episode took place in the year it aired, that means their bodies were built out of 40 year old scrap metal.
  • In both of the Transformers continuities by IDW Publishing, it's implied that becoming part of a combiner has this effect. In the original continuity begun by The Transformers Megaseries, the Aerialbots (forming Superion), Constructicons (forming Devastator) and the Monstructor Six (forming Monstructor) begin spending much of their time in their combined mode. When the Combaticons form Bruticus as part of a revenge scheme against Starscream, Vortex actively revels in the power of Bruticus. Meanwhile, in the 2019 continuity, when they first combine the Constructicons are excited and thrilled by their new combined form thanks to the raw power it provides, allowing them to do the work of entire construction crews in a matter of minutes. The problem starts when they realised there's a seventh consciousness in there with them...
  • Transformers: Cybertron: After nearly dying to a swarm of Scrapmetals, Crumplezone is revived by the ghost of Megatron, giving him an upgraded body and a buff in strength and firepower. Dude absolutely loves the upgrade:
    Ransack: Uhh, Crumplezone? Isn't that kind of a... new look for you?
    Crumplezone: New look? I guess you could call it that. Or you might call it a new me. This is unbelievable! I don't think I've ever felt this good before, or this powerful!!
  • This applies to alternate modes as well as new bodies. When given a choice, most Transformers will find a new mode that appeals to them, and voice their enthusiasm when it meets their approval. In the first episode of Beast Wars, for example, the Maximals take a moment to show off their new beast modes; all of them seem quite proud of their new forms, with Cheetor in particular eager to show off.

Video Games

• Dawn of War: A Chaos Lord transformed into a Daemon Prince (a Big Red Devil bigger than a tank) will make his satisfaction known. Loudly.
  "I have ascended — none may challenge me!"
  "All pale before my might!"
  "They are but gnats before me!"
  "None can stand before me!"
• Final Fantasy IX: In the finale of Disc 3, Kuja is able to attain the power of Trance and transforms at the end of his boss battle, becoming an eerily beautiful Humanoid Abomination covered in red feathers and blessed with even greater magical powers. Immediately glorying in his new state, he casually mops the floor with the player characters, then spends the next scene gloating over his magnificent new form and everything he plans to do with it.
• Final Fantasy XIV: After transforming herself into the primal Tsukuyomi, Yotsuyu gloats about her new form. She declares that naught could compare to her new celestial majesty and that even the Warrior of Light will flicker and fade in the face of her powers.
• Kid Icarus: Uprising plays with this trope in the case of Medusa, as whilst she takes pride in her "new" form, it's actually her old form prior to being cursed.
• Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis ends with one of three possible characters ending up being used to test the god-making properties of the Colossus: Indy, Sophia, or Dr Ubermann. Regardless of who ends up in the machine, the subject is successfully transformed into a giant glowing energy being with glowing red eyes and prominent horns; the newly-made god immediately admires its new form and cackles maniacally before going on an extended display of its new powers... but unfortunately, the energy being can't maintain cohesion and disintegrates, resulting in a chain reaction that ultimately destroys Atlantis.
• In Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga, Cackletta is nearly dead before possessing the closest thing around, Bowser. Upon becoming Bowletta, the first thing she does is display an evil grin, breathe fire, and do her trademark evil laugh.
• Persona 5: A variant. When the characters awaken to their Personas, they definitely seem to enjoy it. Eventually Played for Horror with Akechi, where the definition of "enjoying" is a Psychotic Smirk, Evil Laugh, and attempted murder of the Phantom Thieves.
• Portal 2: After Chell helps plug Wheatley into GLaDOS's vacant body, he can't help but marvel at both his massive size and all the control he now has over the facility. Unfortunately, it quickly goes to his head, resulting in him becoming a new villain in a matter of minutes.
• Primal: While Jen initially dislikes transforming, once she gets used to the enhanced abilities of her new shapes she becomes quite happy about them.
• [PROTOTYPE]: After being infected with a power-inhibiting parasite for a good chunk of the narrative, Alex Mercer is able to eventually kill the parasite and regain control of his shapeshifting abilities... and in the process, he gains a new armour-plated form that he can assume at will. Alex is immediately thrilled by the latest shape in his repertoire, gleefully manifesting a sword-arm and admiring his awe-inspiring new body with a roar of "I'M BACK."

Webcomics

• El Goonish Shive: Considering one of the main characters has a Transformation Ray gun plus a Gender Bender transformation fetish, and a girlfriend who is just as into that stuff as he is, this happens a lot. Interestingly for Elliot, his magic, which got stuck on female transformation spells due to the flawed way his magic awakened, actively tried to invoke this because it doesn't understand why new female transformation spells aren't making Elliot happy — only by liking being in girl form can his magic move beyond transformation spells. This eventually came to pass.
• In The Gamer, Jihan undergoes "Metamorphosis" after learning Cheonbu Spirit Mastery, gaining a variety of additional skills and powerups to his physical and magical stats. After managing to clothe himself, he revels in his new powers and Heroic Build by flexing his muscles while gloating about how much stronger he is now.
• Homestuck: When Equius and Auto-Responder are fused into Arquiusprite, both sides are delighted by his/their new body. Equius loves having a super-powerful computer brain, and Auto-Responder enjoys having a physical body that comes with immense strength.
• The Selfish Beast and the Selfless Maiden: When the Maiden is transformed into a dragon, she rejoices in her new body.

Western Animation

• Action Man: In episode 7, Dr. X reveals his plan to pull a Grand Theft Me on Action Man's rival Brandon Caine, hence why he has been giving Brandon cybernetic upgrades for his body. Action Man seemingly prevents the attempt from being successful, though it leaves Brandon with a partly mechanical body. At the end of the episode, Action Man tells Brandon that it may take a while for him to get used to this new look, but no sooner is he gone or the viewer gets to see Dr. X succeeded after all, and he claims to be very content with his new look.
• In Batman Beyond, Charlie "Big Time" Bigelow manipulates Terry by pretending he's horrified by his transformation into a super-strong monster and wants to be a regular human again. He ultimately reveals that he likes his new form since Gotham's criminals all "respect" (read: fear) him.
• In Chaotic, the main draw of the battles is that the human players can transform into the creatures from the game for the duration of their battle. Naturally, the players (most of them being teenagers) absolutely love being able to transform into powerful badass creatures and get to enjoy the thrill of going into battle themselves rather than simply playing the card game.
• The Legend of Vox Machina: Doubly subverted. When Scanlan tries out a new spell, he gets randomly transformed into a frog, then a unicorn, which he doesn't like. Then he comes around to the hot elven woman...
  Scanlan: How the hell... do I look this good?
• The Mask:
  • In "Little Big Mask," the Mask creates an anti-aging formula and uses it on himself, only for Stanley to find himself regressing uncontrollably into childhood, the same process being extended to his alter-ego. With the Mask in command for the purposes of creating a cure, he's ecstatic with each regression — no doubt aided by the fact that the Mask is a bit of a Manchild anyway; he even spends the day playing on the swings with an increasingly horrified Peggy. Indeed, the Mask is having so much fun that it's not until he regresses from toddler to baby that he finally understands that if he doesn't help Peggy find a cure, he'll regress out of existence.
  • In the finale of the same episode, the Mask tricks Peggy into getting exposed to the anti-aging formula, and despite her initial dread over what might happen, she's quite taken with her teenage self. After hearing that they have a large supply of baby wipes on hand, she joyfully cartwheels out of the apartment, the Mask pausing just long enough to apply his own dose of formula before chasing after her.
• My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic: In "Growing Up is Hard to Do", when three fillies named Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle are magically turned into grown mares, they love it since they now have the independence associated with being an adult. In fact, they themselves accidentally caused the transformation by wishing they were adults.
• The Owl House: Halfway through season 2, Eda is able to make peace with the owl beast that functions as her curse. This results in her gaining a new harpy form to fight with, as opposed to the rampaging monster she once became. She is quite impressed with this new transformation, declaring how she makes for one hot harpy lady.
• Skeleton Warriors: The people transformed into the Skeleton Warriors greatly enjoy their new forms. So much so that two of Baron Dark's minions are horrified when they are turned back into humans and later beg Baron Dark to skeletonize them again.
• Steven Universe: Most of the fusions revel and show off their abilities a little when they first come together:
  • When Steven and Connie first accidentally fuse into the taller, older-looking Stevonnie in "Alone Together", they spend some time wondering at their form before immediately going to show the other Crystal Gems.
  • Sugilite (Garnet and Amethyst's fusion) says she forgot how good it feels to be her, and enjoys showing off her brute strength.

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