History Main / ApparentlyHumanMerfolk

* ''Not'' the mermaids themselves, but the Panthalassa race in ''Manga/MermaidMelodyPichiPichiPitch'' is composed of these. Most of them, however, don't have a choice but to live underwater (until the seal on their civilization breaks, that is), and we only see a few of them, many of whom we're supposed to assume are human until we realize that they've survived instances where they should have drowned. They also have nebulous, unexplained superpowers and CreepyCoolCrosses. Huh.

* The Tideborn people in ''VideoGame/PerfectWorld'' look mostly human-like except for prominent gill-flaps where humans have ears, pale blue or purple skin, and prevalence of white and gray hair colors in all ages ([[YouGottaHaveBlueHair as well as other unusual hair colors]]). Player characters assume a more traditionally merpeople-like shape when they meditate to recover health and mana, and Tideborn who attain very high levels of magic power frequently have fins on their limbs or crustacean-like limbs extending from their backs.

Often overlaps with WalkDontSwim, WaterIsDry, and WaterIsAir. Compare HumanAliens, where "alien" species look exactly like humans do, yet count as aliens.

* The seatrolls of ''Webcomic/{{Homestuck}}'' look exactly the same as any other troll except for having fins attached to their cheeks. (Fans sometimes depict the fins as [[UnusualEars coming out of their ears]] instead.)

Often overlaps with WalkDontSwim, WaterIsDry, and WaterIsAir.

->''"At thirty, the prime of a mermaid's life, her tailfin splits in two so she can live on land. Mermaids are a mysterious species."''
-->-- '''Kokoro''', ''Manga/OnePiece''

* The Mariner in ''Film/{{Waterworld}}'', played by Kevin Costner, has gills behind the ears.

* Creator/DCComics has Comicbook/{{Aquaman}}, Aqualad, and their kin. Somewhat of a mixed example, as Atlantis also includes more traditional mermaids ([[Franchise/{{Superman}} Lori Lemaris]], [[ComicBook/WonderWoman1987 Ronno]]) and others (Lagoon Boy, Blubber) who are animal/sea-life mixtures.

* Creator/DCComics has Comicbook/{{Aquaman}}, Aqualad, and their kin. Somewhat of a mixed example, as Atlantis also includes more traditional mermaids ([[Franchise/{{Superman}} Lori Lemaris, [[ComicBook/WonderWoman1987 Ronno]]) and others (Lagoon Boy, Blubber) who are animal/sea-life mixtures.

* Creator/DCComics has Comicbook/{{Aquaman}}, Aqualad, and their kin. Somewhat of a mixed example, as Atlantis also includes more traditional mermaids (Lori Lemaris) and others (Lagoon Boy, Blubber) who are animal/sea-life mixtures.

* Naiads in ''VideoGame/TheWitcher''. They walk literally naked (yes, right in the game, with all the details), have greenish skin and dark green hair (yes, pubic hair too), but otherwise absolutely human. Dryads and Lady of the Lake closely resemble them in appearance, except that Lady's best parts are [[GodivaHair covered with her long hair]].
* In ''VideoGame/TalesOfLegendia'' there's the Ferines, an aquatic race that looks perfectly human despite the fact that [[spoiler: they evolved completely underwater; their planet had NO dry land until humans from space came and raised it from the ocean]].

* The Tideborn people in ''VideoGame/PerfectWorld'' look mostly human-like except for prominent gill-flaps where humans have ears, pale blue or purple skin, and prevalence of white and gray hair colors in all ages ([[YouGottaHaveBlueHair as well as other unusual hair colors]]). Player characters assume a more traditionally merpeople-like shape when they meditate to recover health and mana, and Tideborn who attain very high levels of magic power frequently have fins on their limbs or crustacean-like limbs extending from their backs.
** The sprites used to represent Little Leaf and [[spoiler:the murdered]] Little Yetz, [[NonhumanHumanoidHybrid two daughters of a Tideborn mother and Earthguard father]], suggest that dominant genetics favor the Tideborn colorations, as well as the SuperNotDrowningSkills alluded to in the story text, in the event that Tideborn should breed with members of other races.

* ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'' gives us Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy, parodies of Creator/AdamWest-era Franchise/{{Batman}} [[Series/{{Batman}} and]] ComicBook/{{Robin}}. The show eventually explained that they ARE normal humans. The starfish Mermaid Man wears on his face magically keeps him alive and was a gift from some friendly mermaids (ergo the name.) Likewise, Mermaid Man gave Barnacle Boy the ability to breathe water....by forcing him to ingest a bunch of barnacles.

* Atlanteans as seen in ''Film/{{Aquaman2018}}'' are visually indistinguishable from humans. Internally they are very different. They have all of the RequiredSecondaryPowers needed to thrive underwater: water breathing, withstanding deep sea pressure and cold, and being able to see in the dark. This is thanks to the power of the Trident of Atlan which altered their physiology even as the ill-advised attempt to weaponize it sunk Atlantis. The high-born Atlanteans such as Arthur himself are also capable of breathing air (the rest of the Atlanteans need PoweredArmor filled with water to survive on the surface). It's worth noting that the present-day Atlanteans are only one of the Seven Kingdoms. The other Kingdoms are populated by the descendants of other survivors of Atlantis who made their homes in less hospital parts of the sea, and over the course of generations they stopped playing this trope straight. One kingdom became FishPeople, another became Crab People, and another became...monsters.

** The sprites used to represent Little Leaf and [[spoiler:the murdered]] Little Yetz, [[NonhumanHumanoidHybrid two daughters of a Tideborn mother and Earthguard father]], suggest that dominant genetics favor the Tideborn colorations, as well as the SuperNotDrowningSkills alluded to in the story text.

* The Inklings from ''VideoGame/{{Splatoon}}'' look mostly human while they are not on squid form; the only things that make them stand out are pointy ears, unnaturally-colored hair that looks like tentacles and three fangs in their mouths. Unlike most examples in this trope, however, [[SuperDrowningSkills Inklings can't swim in water]], they can only go through ink.

* [[Manga/ShinryakuIkaMusume Squid Girl]], arguably, since when she isn't manipulating things with her tentacles, she appears to be a normal girl [[ClothingAppendage with a]] NiceHat and a weird hairstyle.

[[folder:Webcomics]]
* The seatrolls of ''Webcomic/{{Homestuck}}'' look exactly the same as any other troll except for having fins attached to their cheeks. (Fans sometimes depict the fins as [[UnusualEars coming out of their ears]] instead.)
[[/folder]]

* The people of Shioshishio in ''Anime/NagiAsuALullInTheSea'' look exactly like regular humans except for ocean-blue eyes and a nearly-invisible scaly skin coating that allows them to breathe underwater. They can breathe out of water equally well, but have to periodically soak in seawater so their skin doesn't dry out. Despite, or perhaps ''because'', the mer-people and land-dwellers look so similar, FantasticRacism abounds in both directions.

* The people of Shioshishio in ''Anime/NagiAsuALullInTheSea'', are no different from the land dwellers, except an extra covering that they need to periodically soak with seawater, so they wouldn't dry up.