History ClarkKenting / ComicBooks

*** ComicBook/WonderGirl Cassie Sandsmark originally had the ingenuity to wear a black wig and goggles, though even then her costume was mainly thrown together from what was already in her closet. She ditched them after a situation where she had to chose between maintaining disguise and saving the day, but her lack of secret identity going forward made it difficult for her to find a school willing to take her due to the potential danger to the other students.

* ''[[Characters/SpidermanPeterParker Spider-Man]]'' is generally not an example due to his costume fully covering his body, but sometimes it still happens:
** Perfectly demolished in a story in which Ben Urich places a call to Peter Parker's cell phone, implies that he knows Peter's secret, and requests a meeting. Once on the roof of the Daily Bugle, Spider-Man asks how Urich could have figured this out. Ben's response goes on for several panels. Some of the highlights: "Peter, I'm an award-winning investigative journalist at a major metropolitan newspaper. We've been working out of the same offices, and frequently assigned to the same stories, for something like eleven years now. I'm honestly insulted you thought I was never going to figure this out." "You frequently smelled like smoke. You know who else always smelled like smoke? Matt Murdock. You told me once that you knew Daredevil was Matt Murdock. Now, how could a substitute science teacher and part-time photojournalist possibly know that Matt Murdock, a blind lawyer in Hell's Kitchen, was the vigilante Characters/{{Daredevil|MattMurdock}}. Oh, right."

* ''ComicBook/{{Identity Crisis|2004}}'': Deconstructed, as villains discovered the secret identities ''all the time''. The answer: a little mind wiping by ComicBook/{{Zatanna}}.
* Generally speaking, ComicBook/{{Batman}} kind of inverts the whole idea of Clark Kenting: both are superheroes hiding in plain sight, one being a prolific journalist and the other is a billionaire playboy, but where Superman can be considered a mask for Clark Kent, Bruce Wayne can be considered a mask for Batman. Many adaptations of the character have it that Wayne considers Batman to be his true identity rather than a persona that he only takes on while he's wearing the cape and cowl--he really ''is'' that dark, brooding, masked vigilante and the UpperClassTwit that most of the people around him associate with Bruce Wayne is there to keep them from suspecting that he's hiding anything in the first place. It still keeps his identity a secret from the rest of the world, just for different reasons.

** Back during the ''ComicBook/{{Knightfall}}'' storyline Jean-Paul Valley had to work just a bit to convince everyone that Batman was back after his crushing defeat at the hands of Bane. Bane wasn't fooled for a second and dismissed him as a pretender. When JP armed himself with the armor, Harvey Bullock just mentioned that "the kid gloves came off". However, Commissioner Gordon just wasn't convinced that the Batman running around in armor was ''his'' Batman. Superman noticed it, too, but because he just recently [[ComicBook/TheDeathOfSuperman came back from the dead]], he really didn't have much time to investigate. ComicBook/TheJoker noticed it, too, by his actions, as did ComicBook/{{Catwoman}} by his reactions around her. Though, with the exceptions of Bane and Superman, they didn't know that it wasn't Bruce Wayne under the mask, they knew it wasn't ''their'' Batman.
* ''ComicBook/BlackCanary'': You wouldn't think a blonde wig would really be that effective of a disguise. Later on she ditches the wig and just dyes her hair blonde, and all-but abandons any notion of a secret identity.

*** George Perez did away with her secret identity when he revamped the character for [[ComicBook/WonderWoman1987 Volume 2]] following ''ComicBook/CrisisOnInfiniteEarths''. As he saw it, Diana would feel no need to hide who she was, and since she was entering the modern world for the first time she would never have been able to pull it off anyway.

*** In the 90's Diana's AntiHeroSubstitute ComicBook/{{Artemis}} was attacked by a number of [[PoliticallyIncorrectVillain Politically Incorrect Villains]] - the Chauvinist, the Exploiter and Involute the Conqueror. As Diana discovered they were all the same guy - a super-strong actor hired by a PR firm tasked with removing Artemis' HeroWithBadPublicity status, something Artemis herself was unaware of. None of his identities wore a mask, at best he had a bandana or a pair of shades, and yet Artemis still didn't figure it out.

** Revisited in ComicBook/TheNew52 with Clark and Diana begin dating. Even though Wonder Woman maintains no civilian ID, she is able to go out on a date with Clark in relative anonymity simply by putting on glasses and changing her hairstyle.

* Parodied in ''ComicBook/TheTick'', in which the title character attempts to adopt a secret identity by donning thick glasses, a tie and a flowered purse -- while ''[[http://i37.tinypic.com/9ropqb.jpg still wearing his antennaed blue spandex super-suit.]]''

** And Clark Oppenheimer is a CaptainErsatz parody of the TropeNamer himself. Much of his onscreen time is used to mock this trope mercilessly. The Tick both isn't fooled and doesn't understand Clark's need to maintain an identity.

** {{Lampshaded}} during [[Creator/GrantMorrison Morrison]]'s ''[[ComicBook/JusticeLeagueOfAmerica JLA]]'' run, where the team got chewed out by a random citizen of Star City who just happened to have a blond goatee. Maybe blond goatees are just perpetually in-fashion in Star City!

** Likewise, ComicBook/MaryMarvel looks just like her alter ego Mary Batson, though DependingOnTheWriter, her superhero identity may be a "grown-up" version of her ordinary self. A bigger problem might be the fact that both identities ''share the same first name''[[note]]Albeit one of the most popular names in the English language[[/note]], though this was avoided in the 1990s ''Power of Shazam'' series. In that version, "Captain Marvel" was treated (like, e.g., ComicBook/GreenLantern) more as a ''title'' than a unique name. Third parties would usually distinguish Mary from her brother by referring to her as "the lady Captain Marvel" or something similar.
*** ''WesternAnimation/YoungJustice'' tried its hand at mitigating this--while the character never actually got to appear, [[WhatCouldHaveBeen there were plans]] for an appearance from "Lieutenant Marvel."
*** In the ''Comicbook/BillyBatsonAndTheMagicOfShazam'' series, Mary has no excuse--she uses the "Mary Marvel" name and is a little girl in both forms. [[spoiler:At least until near the end of the series, when she also gets an OlderAlterEgo]].

* ''ComicBook/SpiderMan'' is generally not an example due to his costume fully covering his body, but sometimes it still happens:
** Perfectly demolished in a story in which Ben Urich places a call to Peter Parker's cell phone, implies that he knows Peter's secret, and requests a meeting. Once on the roof of the Daily Bugle, Spider-Man asks how Urich could have figured this out. Ben's response goes on for several panels. Some of the highlights: "Peter, I'm an award-winning investigative journalist at a major metropolitan newspaper. We've been working out of the same offices, and frequently assigned to the same stories, for something like eleven years now. I'm honestly insulted you thought I was never going to figure this out." "You frequently smelled like smoke. You know who else always smelled like smoke? Matt Murdock. You told me once that you knew Daredevil was Matt Murdock. Now, how could a substitute science teacher and part-time photojournalist possibly know that Matt Murdock, a blind lawyer in Hell's Kitchen, was the vigilante ComicBook/{{Daredevil}}. Oh, right."

* In one issue of ''The Uncanny ComicBook/XMen'' the beaten up father of Bobby Drake/Iceman, while lying in a hospital, asks ComicBook/{{Gambit}} a few questions. Bobby's father doesn't understand why some people engage in the X-Men although some of them are perfectly fine looking, just like Gambit, seeming to ignore his pretty unusual eyes. One can't blame him for that, even many colorists forget that Gambit doesn't have normal eyes, or make them blue instead of red. Gambit's eyes are also hypnotic. It's possible that people just don't notice them.

* Conner Kent, the second ComicBook/{{Superboy}}, is one of the more ridiculous examples. He uses glasses like Clark Kent does, but he ''doesn't wear a freaking costume.'' His "costume" as Superboy is a black S-symbol t-shirt, jeans and work boots. That's right, he takes off his glasses and changes shirts, and no one recognizes him. At least the comics incarnation of Conner tends to wear ''different'' civilian clothes when he's not active as Superboy, unlike his animated counterpart in ''WesternAnimation/YoungJustice'' (see '''ClarkKenting/WesternAnimation''').

* ComicBook/PowerGirl carries on the Kryptonian tradition in her own series, simply wearing a slightly different hairstyle as Karen Starr. Although (especially as drawn by Amanda Conner) she is unusually good at [[DressedInLayers dressing in layers]], it's still hard to believe people don't make a connection. Indeed, several people do figure it out, which is lampshaded by Atlee, the latest Terra, who points out that Power Girl and Karen Starr look exactly the same. This was also lampshaded by Superman himself, who recommended against making Karen Starr the public face of her company, noting that she's not very good at maintaining an effective secret identity.[[note]]''Power Girl #22 (2011)''[[/note]] Of course, the obvious answer (joke, that is) is that most people [[MaleGaze aren't looking at her]] ''[[MyEyesAreUpHere face]]''. This is even parodied in her team-up with Comicbook/HarleyQuinn (yes, really).
* ComicBook/BlackCanary doesn't wear a mask (aside from her appearances), but the original Black Canary, Dinah Drake, wore a blonde wig, as did her daughter Dinah Laurel Lance, originally. It worked well as when wig-less they looked nothing like their costumed selves. The younger Canary now grew out her hair and simply dyes her hair blonde, however, and while her secret identity was acknowledged to be a relatively thin one, it was made public by villains in a 2010 ''ComicBook/BirdsOfPrey'' storyline.

*** The only people who saw through Paperinik's disguise and couldn't be fooled into thinking it was an error are Everett Ducklair, Lyla Lay and the Griffin, all from ''ComicBook/PaperinikNewAdventures'', and bypass Paperinik's usual tricks: Everett has PsychicPower and read it out of Paperinik's mind, while Lyla and the Griffin have technology that allows to see through LatexPerfection, and saw that Paperinik doesn't wear a Donald mask with a domino mask on it but only the domino mask (at which point it was easy).

** Paperoga (Fethry Duck) becoming the debatably useful superhero Bat-Paperoga (or "Red Bat" in other countries). It's an obvious spoof of Batman and his disguise doesn't even ''try'' to hide the actual identity. It's PlayedForLaughs, and the identity is kept by a combination of the Red Bat's outfit giving actual cover and the Red Bat being seen as awesome (in his first story he humiliated the Beagle Boys with the help of a [[ItMakesSenseInContext headless gorilla]]) instead that the lucky FakeUltimateHero he is.

* Comicbook/{{Vixen}} from the ''[[ComicBook/JusticeLeagueOfAmerica Justice League]]'' is another maskless DC hero, although the rest of her costume [[NavelDeepNeckline may be enough of a distraction]] - or maybe she just has a public ID, since she's a supermodel in her civilian identity.
** While Vixen did wear a mask at the beginning of her career, her identity is definitely public knowledge by now. In Creator/GrantMorrison's ''ComicBook/AnimalMan'' run, she showed up at the title hero's house in-costume, and Animal Man's wife was shown {{Fangirl}}ing over the fact that a popular supermodel was in her living room.

** Spoofed harder by ComicBook/BetaRayBill, who on one occasion reverted to his pre-SuperSoldier form and toured New York City with an overcoat and a set of false glasses with rubber nose and mustache. The alien race Bill was born to, although roughly humanoid, are all hairless, lack external noses or ears, and are ''bright orange''. The narration chalks this up to "[[QuirkyTown New York being what it is]]".

* In various incarnations of the ComicBook/TeenTitans, Beast Boy puts Raven's attempt at a secret identity through its paces by frequently going to see her at school. None of her classmates seem to find it odd that she's constantly talking to green animals, though. The [[WesternAnimation/TeenTitans 2003 animation]] even lampshades it.

** There's also the Iron Man secret identity itself. The armor covers his whole body so it's not a straight example of this trope, but for years in the comic book Tony maintained the pretense that Iron Man was a separate person from Tony himself, a bodyguard with a secret identity. Having Tony and Iron Man appear together was easy enough thanks to stand-ins and robots, but such occasions were still so rare, and Tony was so rarely seen when Iron Man was busy being a superhero, that it's surprising so few people figured it out. Apparently no one notices that Tony Stark's famous bodyguard and Tony Stark are virtually never seen together, especially in times of danger when you'd ''really'' expect him to be at Tony's side. There's a reason the [[Film/IronMan movie version]] couldn't even get through the "he's my bodyguard" excuse with a straight face and just admitted it right away.

* For a while, ComicBook/{{Starfire}} of the ComicBook/TeenTitans managed to keep a secret identity as a model by simply covering her [[TechnicolorEyes glowing green eyes]] with a pair of sunglasses. Apparently no one noticed her ''[[GreenSkinnedSpaceBabe orange skin]]''. Apparently people just thought it was fake and a celebrity gimmick, but have you seen her body? Or her hair? [[Series/JerseyShore Hey, wait a minute...]]

* PlayedForLaughs in ''ComicBook/PS238''--[[MuggleBornOfMages Tyler]], the only BadassNormal in a school full of [[DifferentlyPoweredIndividuals metahumans]], is also the only one whose superhero identity falls under this trope, to his own perpetual confusion. (The fact that [[SeekerArchetype Cecil]] sees through it instantly just confuses him more.) To be fair, it's {{Justified}} by the fact that a.) it's actually a pretty decent disguise ("Moon Shadow" has a mask and a football helmet to block his face), and b.) nobody ''expects'' Tyler to take up a superhero identity, since he's a token {{Muggle}} and vocally prefers to stay out of trouble. Also, while Tyler has no powers, [[ShroudedInMyth Moon Shadow is the most powerful superhero in the world, with an ever-expanding list of amazing abilities]].

* [[DoubleSubversion Double Subverted]] in ComicBook/MarshalLaw. The titular Marshal is at the airport, on the lookout for murderous Superman {{expy}} Public Spirit, when someone looking like Public Spirit in a business suit and glasses walks by. The twist: they're a decoy, deliberately meant to distract Marshal Law. In the mean time, the real Public Spirit has nearly made it though airport security and escaped, thanks to his clever disguise of... a business suit and glasses.

* The ComicBook/{{Robin}}s, especially Dick Grayson and Tim Drake, generally only use a simple DominoMask as their only concealing feature (though, as Red Robin, Tim did employ a Batman-like cowl).

* Generally speaking, Franchise/{{Batman}} kind of inverts the whole idea of Clark Kenting: both are superheroes hiding in plain sight, one being a prolific journalist and the other is a billionaire playboy, but where Superman can be considered a mask for Clark Kent, Bruce Wayne can be considered a mask for Batman. Many adaptations of the character have it that Wayne considers Batman to be his true identity rather than a persona that he only takes on while he's wearing the cape and cowl--he really ''is'' that dark, brooding, masked vigilante and the UpperClassTwit that most of the people around him associate with Bruce Wayne is there to keep them from suspecting that he's hiding anything in the first place. It still keeps his identity a secret from the rest of the world, just for different reasons.

* ''Franchise/WonderWoman'':

* Jay Garrick, the Golden Age [[Franchise/TheFlash Flash]], was an odd case. In his early adventures, he didn't seem to put any effort into keeping his identity secret whatsoever, and routinely did stuff like trying out for the Olympics under his own name, running at super speed. And in any event, his "Mercury" style helmet left his face uncovered. Later stories ''did'' have him use his secret identity (and everybody else just forgot it, apparently). His secret was supposedly maintained by subtly vibrating his face at super speed while in public. Then in 1978, the semi-retired Garrick went "back" to having a public identity.

** {{Lampshaded}} during [[Creator/GrantMorrison Morrison]]'s ''[[Franchise/JusticeLeagueOfAmerica JLA]]'' run, where the team got chewed out by a random citizen of Star City who just happened to have a blond goatee. Maybe blond goatees are just perpetually in-fashion in Star City!

** Likewise, ComicBook/MaryMarvel looks just like her alter ego Mary Batson, though DependingOnTheWriter, her superhero identity may be a "grown-up" version of her ordinary self. A bigger problem might be the fact that both identities ''share the same first name''[[note]]Albeit one of the most popular names in the English language[[/note]], though this was avoided in the 1990s ''Power of Shazam'' series. In that version, "Captain Marvel" was treated (like, e.g., Franchise/GreenLantern) more as a ''title'' than a unique name. Third parties would usually distinguish Mary from her brother by referring to her as "the lady Captain Marvel" or something similar.

* Parodied in ''ComicBook/TheInferiorFive'', where even though only Awkwardman wears a mask, nobody knows their true identities. Even Awkwardman is pretty obvious. "Nobody suspects clumsy, oafish Leander Brent is really clumsy, oafish Awkwardman!... I wonder how come?"

* Comicbook/{{Vixen}} from the ''[[Franchise/JusticeLeagueOfAmerica Justice League]]'' is another maskless DC hero, although the rest of her costume [[NavelDeepNeckline may be enough of a distraction]] - or maybe she just has a public ID, since she's a supermodel in her civilian identity.

* Kyle Rayner's first appearance as the new Franchise/GreenLantern, before he chose the mask that covers most of his face, suggests that some people will be fooled and others won't. A woman rushes up to him proclaiming that he saved her years ago and asks if he remembers her, while a man comments on the new Green Lantern's different hair. Later stories suggested that no-one who knew him was fooled; the mask may have covered his face, but to anyone familiar with his artwork it was recognisably a Kyle Rayner design. Although Hal Jordan plays this straight where even his boss and love interest Carol Ferris doesn't recognize him past that little domino mask he has. You'd think that she would recognize the facial structure of somebody that keeps ask her out on dates.

* ''ComicBook/IdentityCrisis'': Deconstructed, as villains discovered the secret identities ''all the time''. The answer: a little mind wiping by ComicBook/{{Zatanna}}.

** Further lampshaded in an issue of ''Batman Adventures''. To infiltrate the underworld, Batman assumes the identity of "Matches Malone", by wearing a false mustache and carrying a match in his mouth. When Alfred expresses concern over whether it will be effective, Bruce simply tells him that "I know a guy who does this with just a pair of glasses."

** Matches Malone, Batman's criminal persona, is him with sunglasses and a mustache which shouldn't hide the fact that it's billionaire playboy Bruce Wayne. To his credit he also dons a heavy New Jersey accent and even in jail he gets to keep his sunglasses.

** Both ''Power of Shazam'' and ''Billy Batson and the Magic of Shazam'' have Billy hiding his orphan status by posing as his own father. Nobody notices that "Mr Batson" looks like Captain Marvel in civvies.

** Likewise, ComicBook/MaryMarvel looks just like her alter ego Mary Batson, though DependingOnTheWriter, her superhero identity may be a "grown-up" version of her ordinary self. A bigger problem might be the fact that both identities ''share the same first name''[[note]]Albeit one of the most popular names in the English language[[/note]], though this was avoided in the 1990s "Power of Shazam" series. In that version, "Captain Marvel" was treated (like, e.g., Franchise/GreenLantern) more as a ''title'' than a unique name. Third parties would usually distinguish Mary from her brother by referring to her as "the lady Captain Marvel" or something similar.

* Played straight for a while in ''ComicBook/{{Wolverine}}'', with Logan creating himself the secret identity of "Patch" in Southeast Asia, which consisted of putting on an EyepatchOfPower and not popping his claws. This was later subverted: apparently everyone realized there aren't a lot of short hairy men with wingtip hair, but decided it was safer to just humor TheBerserker who stores knives up his wrists.

*** In the first story it was even ''worse'', as Paperinik only wore Fantomius' costume with his trademark hat and ''no kind of mask''. It was actually a colouring error, as Paperinik was supposed to wear Fantomius whole costume (that includes a blue silk mask covering the whole face except the beak), but the colourist missed it and depicted Paperinik's face white (the novelization of the story {{Retcon}}s it away as showing that Donald ''had'' considered wearing Fantomius' mask but in the end opted for the domino mask). Due the second story having Paperinik acting disguised as Fantomius (he had to infiltrate a costume party in Gladstone's place, with Gladstone planning to enter disguised as Fantomius), it wouldn't be until the third story that the domino mask debuted, by which time Paperinik was already TheDreaded.

*** Demolished even further when Peter revealed to the world that he was Spider-Man during the ''ComicBook/CivilWar'' story arc. Jameson is pissed at being deceived for so long, but Robbie calls him out on it, telling him he must have suspected deep down but never acknowledged it because Pete's pictures of Spider-Man were good for the paper's circulation. Robbie sinks it in even further by asking Jameson how he could possibly ''not'' have known. "Pete's always there to get pictures of Spidey. When there's trouble somewhere in the city, Pete leaves here and arrives on-scene faster than any bus, taxi, or subway could have gotten him there. Pete runs out the door. Ten seconds later Spider-Man comes swinging in through the window. How many times did all these things have to happen before you put two and two together? ''I figured it out years ago.''"

* A tie-in to CrisisCrossover ''ComicBook/FearItself'' shows that [[ComicBook/NewWarriors Speedball]] has been working at a volunteer organization devoted to helping survivors of the [[ComicBook/CivilWar Samford Disaster]]. Since he's blamed for said disaster ([[HeroWithBadPublicity rather than the villain who actually did the killing]]), he's been disguising himself with a pair of glasses. Being the Franchise/MarvelUniverse, people are smart enough to see through it. Being the [[HumansAreMorons Marvel Universe]], people are also stupid enough to try and [[BullyingADragon beat up the indestructible guy whose powers are fueled by pain]].

* Generally speaking, Franchise/{{Batman}} kind of inverts the whole idea of Clark Kenting: both are superheroes hiding in plain sight, one being a prolific journalist and the other is a billionaire playboy, but where Superman can be considered a mask for Clark Kent, Bruce Wayne can be considered a mask for Batman. Many adaptations of the character have it that Wayne considers Batman to be his true identity rather than a persona that he only takes on while he's wearing the cape and cowl--he really ''is'' that dark, brooding, masked vigilante and the RichIdiotWithNoDayJob that most of the people around him associate with Bruce Wayne is there to keep them from suspecting that he's hiding anything in the first place. It still keeps his identity a secret from the rest of the world, just for different reasons.

** Wonder Woman was engaged in this even ''before'' she left her home island. Her [[ComicBook/AllStarComicsNumber8 classic origin]] (recounted in, among other places, ''WesternAnimation/SuperFriends'') had her donning a tiny little eye-mask to "disguise" herself for the iconic tournament, as her [[MyBelovedSmother mother]] had forbidden her from participating. In ''every'' version of the story, it works, even though she's doing it under the noses of people who've known her for her whole life (it's especially silly in her [[ComicBook/AllStarComicsNumberEight initial]] [[ComicBook/WonderWoman1942 Golden Age origin]], where she was the ''only'' one who wore a mask; later versions had ''all'' the contestants masked to avoid favoritism on the part of the judges, and at least one threw a VoluntaryShapeshifting mask into the mix).

** Wonder Woman was engaged in this even ''before'' she left her home island. Her [[ComicBook/AllStarComicsNumberEight classic origin]] (recounted in, among other places, ''WesternAnimation/SuperFriends'') had her donning a tiny little eye-mask to "disguise" herself for the iconic tournament, as her [[MyBelovedSmother mother]] had forbidden her from participating. In ''every'' version of the story, it works, even though she's doing it under the noses of people who've known her for her whole life (it's especially silly in her [[ComicBook/AllStarComicsNumberEight initial]] [[ComicBook/WonderWoman1942 Golden Age origin]], where she was the ''only'' one who wore a mask; later versions had ''all'' the contestants masked to avoid favoritism on the part of the judges, and at least one threw a VoluntaryShapeshifting mask into the mix).

** Well, there was that [[Memes/Comics one]] [[http://images3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20101017051539/marvel_dc/images/3/32/Green_Lantern_secret_identity.jpg time]]...

* Comicbook/{{Vixen}} from the ''[[Franchise/JusticeLeagueOfAmerica Justice League]]'' is another maskless DC hero, although the rest of her costume [[AbsoluteCleavage may be enough of a distraction]] - or maybe she just has a public ID, since she's a supermodel in her civilian identity.

* In ComicBook/{{Irredeemable}}, flashbacks reveal that The Plutonian's secret identity was limited to Clark Kenting, plus changing his hair color and style (but not using a wig, apparently). Just like the trope namer, he worked in journalism, but seemed to do something more behind-the-scenes than actual reporting. And the fact that [[spoiler: it's later revealed that the Plutonian is a RealityWarper]] neatly justifies any implausibility in the disguise.

** Spoofed [[UpToEleven harder]] by ComicBook/BetaRayBill, who on one occasion reverted to his pre-SuperSoldier form and toured New York City with an overcoat and a set of false glasses with rubber nose and mustache. The alien race Bill was born to, although roughly humanoid, are all hairless, lack external noses or ears, and are ''bright orange''. The narration chalks this up to "[[QuirkyTown New York being what it is]]".

* ''ComicBook/{{Superlopez}}'': Being a Superman parody, it's a given. However, as the series went on, he stopped wearing glasses when he's in civilian clothes, elevating the trope UpToEleven, since there's literally no physical difference whatsoever between the two personas and ''people still don't recognize him''.

* In the Netherlands meanwhile Paperinikia is known as Super Katrien (Katrien being Daisy's Dutch name) and Paperinik is known as Super Donald.

* ComicBook/DisneyMouseAndDuckComics superhero stories both play it straight and [[JustifiedTrope justify it]].

* ''ComicBook/{{Superlopez}}'': Being a Franchise/{{Superman}} parody, it's a given. However, as the series went on, he stopped wearing glasses when he's in civilian clothes, elevating the trope UpToEleven, since there's literally no physical difference whatsoever between the two personas and ''people still don't recognize him''.
* The Robins, especially [[ComicBook/{{Nightwing}} Dick]] and [[ComicBook/RobinSeries Tim]], generally only use a simple DominoMask as their only concealing feature (though, as Red Robin, Tim did employ a Batman-like cowl). Possible justification, however, lies in the fact that, at least ComicBook/PostCrisis, the Robins, like Batman, generally operate at night, where recognizing their faces would be difficult thanks to the darkness of the night and their speedy acrobatic combat style.
* Played for laughs in one issue of ''{{ComicBook/Impulse}}'' : Bart gets pointed out that his near-ShonenHair tier hairdo is really distinctive... so in [[IdiotHero his usual style]] he promptly ''shaves his head''. He ends up having to wear a wig as a civilian for a good bunch of following issues so people don't notice the hyperactive teen of the neighbourhood went bald at the same time as the masked hyperactive teen with SuperSpeed.

* Like everything else about Superman, this was parodied/deconstructed in ''ComicBook/SupremePower''. Mark Milton tells his government handlers he can disguise himself -- and puts on a pair of glasses. The agents just shoot him ''[[WhatAnIdiot that look]]''. The fact that Hyperion has no secret identity and thus no real human contact is one of the reasons he becomes so unhinged later. Goddammit, they should've let him wear the glasses... His original ''ComicBook/SquadronSupreme'' counterpart wore a tiny domino mask as Hyperion that covered no more than glasses would, and when the Squadron "went public", he removed it on television as if it were a dramatic [[TheReveal Reveal]].

* ''Comicbook/{{Supergirl}}'': Several incarnations of Superman's cousin have tried her hand at Clark Kenting. In order from bad to better:
** [[ComicBook/Supergirl2011 Post-Flashpoint]] Kara didn't use any extras prior to "DC: Rebirth" (but only half-heartedly attempted to have a secret identity in one story).
** [[ComicBook/Supergirl2005 Pre-Flashpoint]] and ''ComicBook/SupergirlCosmicAdventuresInThe8thGrade'' Kara versions followed her cousin's example by using glasses.
** ''[[Comicbook/{{Supergirl 1972}} For]]'' ''[[Comicbook/{{Supergirl 1982}} most]]'' of her Pre-Crisis life, Kara used a brown wig to hide her blonde hair.
** In the original ''ComicBook/TheSupergirlFromKrypton'' story, Clark buys a brown wig, a blouse and a long skirt to create his cousin's secret identity.
--->'''Superman:''' There! That wig of pigtails makes you look like a different girl entirely who was born on Earth!
** Reversing this, when the naturally brunette Post-Crisis Linda Danvers lost the ability to transform into Supergirl, she started wearing a ''blonde'' wig in her heroic persona.
** The animated Supergirl of the DCAU uses both wig and glasses.
** ''ComicBook/SupergirlRebirth'' Kara wears loose clothes, glasses, dyes her hair brown and braids it into a ponytail, and behaves like a insecure, quiet, geeky girl (as opposite to her hot-blooded, fiery and determined real self).
--->'''Director Chase:''' "Kara Danvers" is a tool for you to walk amongst the people you protect.
* Kon-El, the Post-Crisis version of Superboy, is probably the worst offender of them all. He changes his clothes, but makes no attempt to cover his face or change his mannerisms in any way. As a result, trained government officials can easily pick him out of a crowd or recognize him after bumping into him. That said, it should be noted that Kon doesn't have much of a SecretIdentity to begin with, given that the government is aware of his existence already.
* ''[[ComicBook/DCRebirth Rebirth's]]'' ComicBook/{{Superboy}}, [[Characters/SupermanJonathanSamuelKent Jonathan Samuel Kent]], is also a terrible offender. Aside from wearing a baseball cap and fake glasses, Jon makes no attempt to alter his voice or mannerisms or even change what jeans he's wearing in his uniform. This is only further compounded by his status as a BadLiar who can't come up with a good excuse for all the things he's doing. This issue gets [[LampshadeHanging lampshaded heavily]] by Beast Boy.
-->'''Starfire:''' ''[The Teen Titans are in the Kent apartment]'' That "S" on your chest means that you're a big advantage.\\
'''Jon:''' [[BlatantLies "S"? What "S"? I'm just a normal kid...]] that [[Characters/{{Robin}} Robin]] happens to know...\\
'''Beast Boy:''' We know who you are. Your SecretIdentity is more obvious than ''mine''. And I'm '''''[[LockedIntoStrangeness green!]]'''''

* ''[[ComicBook/DCRebirth Rebirth's]]'' ComicBook/{{Superboy}}, ComicBook/JonathanSamuelKent, is also a terrible offender. Aside from wearing a baseball cap and fake glasses, Jon makes no attempt to alter his voice or mannerisms or even change what jeans he's wearing in his uniform. This is only further compounded by his status as a BadLiar who can't come up with a good excuse for all the things he's doing. This issue gets [[LampshadeHanging lampshaded heavily]] by Beast Boy.

** In Issue #0 of the ''ComicBook/{{Batwoman}}'' series, Batman has been surveilling Katherine "Kate" Kane to determine if she is the person behind the Batwoman mask. He knows she has the skill to be Batwoman, she is the daughter of two career soldiers and she earned the position of Cadet Captain at the Military Academy at West Point, and she also has the motivation: [[DeathByOriginStory her mother and twin sister were murdered when they and she were kidnapped in her childhood]], but he does not know if she has the ''drive'' to be Batwoman. To test her he decides to "mug" her and see how she reacts, and he disguises himself with a black wig. ''Only'' a black wig. In the narration, [[LampshadeHanging he muses how "Clark" always said the simple disguises were the best]]. Batwoman herself averts the trope; not only does she wear a face-concealing mask, but her long red hair is actually a wig that covers her much shorter (albeit still red) hair.

*** Demolished even further when Peter revealed to the world that he was Spider-Man during the ''ComicBook/CivilWar'' story arc. Jameson is pissed at being deceived for so long, but Robbie calls him out on it, telling him he must have suspected deep down but never acknowledged it because Pete's pictures of Spider-Man were good for the paper's circulation. Robbie sinks it in even further by asking Jameson how he could possibly ''not'' have known. "Pete's always there to get pictures of Spidey. When there's trouble somewhere in the city, Pete leaves here and arrives on-scene faster than any bus, taxi, or subway could have gotten him there. Pete runs out the door. Ten seconds later Spider-Man comes swinging in through the window. How many times did all these things have to happen before you put two and two together? ''I figured it out years ago.''

* ''ComicBook/CyberSix'': Cyber 6 goes as high school teacher Adrian Seidelman, wearing glasses and male clothing. It's explained in a flashback that while escaping from Von Reichter, she found a crashed car, in which one of the victims, the real Adrian Seidelman, had a passing resemblance to her, so she buried him away from the crash and took his identification papers and appeared in public as a ConvenientlyAnOrphan.

* ''ComicBook/CyberSix'': Cyber 6 goes as high school teacher Adrian Seidelman, wearing glasses and male clothing. It's explained in a flashback that while escaping from Von Reichter, she found a crashed car, in which one of the victims, the real Adrian Seidelman, had a passing resemblance to her, so she buried him away from the crash and took his identification papers and appeared in public as a ConvenientOrphan.