History Main / CharClone

* Adam Taurus of ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'' fits just about every box. His sword is a crimson red katana, his semblance is [[spoiler: described as being a stronger version of Yang's, similar to the original and his mech]], He wears a mask or bandana until a big unmasking reveal [[spoiler: that his right eye has been branded by anti-Faunus racists]], and he has a relationship with the main cast in the form of [[spoiler: Blake, who he was a mentor and lover of]]. The only exception to the typical Char Clone is Adam's red hair instead of blond hair.

* ''VideoGame/Persona5'' has its primary human antagonist, Masayoshi Shido. He's a mix of all three types with his shadow form wearing a very similar style of mask (0079), riding around on a very golden embodiment of human slavery (Zeta), and his motivations being to helm the world for the sake of "exceptional" people like himself (Char's Counterattack). He's also got the same voice actor as Char, Creator/ShuichiIkeda, in Japanese, and the voice actor of Char's closest clone [[Anime/MobileSuitGundamUnicorn Full Frontal]], Creator/KeithSilverstein, in English.

* ''Anime/CodeGeass'': Split between the show's main character, [[MagnificentBastard Lelouch]], who gets most of Char's backstory (estranged son of nobility, works under a fake name and wears a mask, has a younger sister who doesn't realize who he is, seeks revenge for his parent's murder), and [[ActionGirl Kallen]], who gets his action role (AcePilot with speedy red mecha, TheRival of Suzaku on the battlefield) and his mentor role in Lancelot and Guren to Benio. Also worth a mention, is that WordOfGod indicates Lelouch was initially going to be a [[WhiteHairBlackHeart white-haired pretty boy]], and thus would have looked the part even more. In fact, co-creator and head writer Ichiro Okouchi himself said that Zero was designed specifically to wear a mask because he felt that it wouldn't be a Sunrise show otherwise!

Other than those universal aspects, these characters tend to fall into one of three aspects, which could be roughly aligning with the three works Char appeared in: ''Anime/MobileSuitGundam'', ''Anime/MobileSuitZetaGundam'', and ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamCharsCounterattack''. The '''bolded''' parts is mainly the defining role of that character. When two or more of these types of Char Clone appear in a story, they need not be the same character at different points in the timeline; it's perfectly acceptable to split up Char's three primary roles into multiple clones, and indeed this is what's more often done so as to help the clones distinguish themselves from the original.

** ''[[Anime/MobileSuitGundamUnicorn Gundam Unicorn]]'' has Full Frontal, who (despite the unfortunate name[[note]] he was actually named for the "full frontal assault" -- the ''original'' meaning of the term, not [[FullFrontalAssault the trope]][[/note]]) is the Chariest Char since Char himself, [[spoiler:being a cyber-newtype genetically altered to look like Char, with Char's memories -- and, it's implied, a chunk of Char's ''[[AnatomyOfTheSoul soul]]'' -- implanted in him via the psycoframe]]; to drive the homage even further, he is voiced by the [[Creator/ShuichiIkeda same actor]]. Subverted? Or played ultra-straight? You decide.

* ''Anime/CodeGeass'': Split between the show's main character, [[MagnificentBastard Lelouch]], who gets most of Char's backstory (estranged son of nobility, works under a fake name and wears a mask, has a younger sister who doesn't realize who he is, seeks revenge for his parent's murder), and [[ActionGirl Kallen]], who gets his action role (AcePilot with speedy red mecha, TheRival of Suzaku on the battlefield). Also worth a mention, is that WordOfGod indicates Lelouch was initially going to be a [[WhiteHairBlackHeart white-haired pretty boy]], and thus would have looked the part even more. In fact, co-creator and head writer Ichiro Okouchi himself said that Zero was designed specifically to wear a mask because he felt that it wouldn't be a Sunrise show otherwise!

* ''VideoGame/BlazBlue'': Relius Clover fights with a red robot [[spoiler: who is really Carl Clover's mother]], wears a mask that resembles ThePhantomOfTheOpera, is blond, is TheRival to [[spoiler:his son, Carl]], is co-[[TheDragon Dragon]] to the Imperator Librarius (alongside [[spoiler:Hazama/Terumi]]). Yep. Relius is definitely a Char.

* Beyblade:

* Hitoshi Kinomiya from ''Anime/BakutenShootBeyblade'' is a Char clone. He wore a mask at the start while he went by the name Jin of the Gale and later switched to shades during the final arc. He played TheMentor to the protagonist, who's his little brother (and who has much darker hair than Hitoshi has), and later to the ostensibly strongest blader of all. His bit-beast Metal Driger is basically an AceCustom of the original Driger.
** Phoenix from ''Anime/MetalFightBeyblade'' dresses in red, has blond hair[[note]] it's a wig, though[[/note]] and wears a silver mask. He also has an [[AceCustom unusual and very powerful Beyblade]] and is [[spoiler:the protagonist's [[LongLostRelative father, thought to be dead]]]].

A Char Clone is a character who has many traits of Char Aznable from the ''Franchise/{{Gundam}}'' franchise, who [[FountainOfExpies inspired many copies]]. The ''Gundam'' series was (and is) wildly popular in Japan, with a cultural impact comparable to ''Franchise/StarTrek'' or ''Series/DoctorWho'' in the West. Char, an antagonist in the original ''Gundam'' show ''Anime/MobileSuitGundam'', became the most iconic character of the series, outpacing even the main characters and the BigBad in popularity. Given the sheer number of characters that [[ShoutOut reference]], {{homage}}, or flat out ''[[{{Expy}} are]]'' Char with a different name, they eventually [[FanNickname became known as]] Char clones.

* Hiro from ''Anime/{{Beyblade}}'' is a Char clone: he wore a mask at the start and switched to shades by the end; he played TheMentor to the protagonist (who is his little brother) and later to [[FinalBoss Brooklyn]]; his bit-beast Metal Driger is basically an AceCustom of the original Driger.

* Just to round out the trio, ''VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork'' features the cold, aloof, and extremely skilled Net Navi ProtoMan.EXE (along with his equally cold, aloof, and extremely skilled operator Chaud) who ticks off a lot of marks on the Char Clone checklist: wearing red, wearing a helmet with a face-concealing mask, long light-colored hair, extreme combat competence, a rivalry with the primary-colored protagonist, and a notable pride in his abilities. He also happens to hit several points for Char's ''mobile suits'' as well, most notably with his swordsmanship (Char was a more melee focused combatant as compared to Amuro) and the single backwards-facing crest reminiscent of a Zeon commander antenna, such as the one found on Char's various Zeon-type suits. He retains the original Proto Man's shield, sharing its boattailed shape with that of the Gelgoog's shield. He is also noted to be ''extremely'' fast in combat, in the same way that Char's Zaku was reportedly three times faster than the stock model.

* Adam Taurus of ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'' fits just about every box. His sword is a crimson red katana, his semblance is [[spoiler: described as being a stronger version of Yang's, similar to the original and his mech]], He wears a mask or bandana until a big unmasking reveal [[spoiler: that his right eye has been branded by anti-Faunus racists]], and he has a relationship with the main cast in the form of [[spoiler: Blake, who he was a mentor and lover of]]. The only excpetions to the typical Char Clone are Adam's black and red hair instead of blond hair.

* Commander Farsight of ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'', with his red and white Commander battlesuit and MysteriousPast.

* ''[[Creator/ChoiceOfGames Mecha Ace]]'', a digital ChooseYourOwnAdventure story, features a rival AcePilot named Commandant Camille Hawkins, complete with blond hair, CoolMask, AceCustom mech, and RedBaron status. Biggest difference is a blue colour scheme instead of red... and potentially a GenderFlip (the player can optionally select NPC genders).

* ''VideoGame/FireEmblem'': From [[VideoGame/FireEmblemAkaneia the first and third game, and their respective remakes]]: Camus is a blond-haired, high-skill anti-villain. In the the third game, Sirius, a masked, blond-haired, high-skill hero who you have totally never met before joins your party. Sounds familiar?
** Notable: Camus himself is a clone target... a "Camus" is, while only [[VideoGame/FireEmblemJugdral Eldigan and Ares]] retain being direct Char clones (albeit maskless ones), a recurring archetype for anti-villain characters. They typically fall under "MyCountryRightOrWrong", and sadly are usually killed off.
** "Marth" from ''[[VideoGame/FireEmblemAwakening Awakening]]'' is another example. Mask? Check. Mysterious? Check. Better version of the hero's weapon? Check. Related to a major character? [[spoiler:[[SamusIsAGirl She]]'s the [[TheHero main lord]] Chrom's [[KidFromTheFuture daughter from the future]].]]

** ''[[VideoGame/FireEmblemGaiden Echoes: Shadows of Valentia]]'' has Conrad, a masked individual with mysterious motives who repeatedly saves Celica from danger, and is later revealed to be [[spoiler: her presumed-dead brother.]]

* ''VideoGame/ArmoredCore'' has Nineball/Hustler One, the highest ranking person in the arena. His AC is [[LawOfChromaticSuperiority red]] and is better than you in every way. This is mostly because [[spoiler:he's an AI]], and when he reveals this, he gets an AceCustom. He is so iconic in the ''Armored Core'' fanbase that every game after his initial appearance either uses him for TheCameo or has an {{Expy}} of him.

* Blond or otherwise pale hair. In case his hair is dark, it'll rarely be shown.

Char Clone is a character-specific subtrope of FountainOfExpies. Compare StockShonenRival, ShanaClone, ReiAyanamiExpy, and DarthVaderClone[[note]]The fact that many traits are shared between these two character archetypes is [[FollowTheLeader not entirely coincidental]][[/note]]. [[JustForFun/IThoughtItMeant Not to be confused]] with expies of [[Franchise/{{Pokemon}} Charmander, Charmeleon, and Charizard]].

* ''VideoGame/Persona5'' has its primary human antagonist, Masayoshi Shido. He's a mix of all three types with his shadow form wearing a very similar style of mask (0079), riding around on a very golden embodiment of human slavery (Zeta), and his motivations being to helm the world for the sake of "exceptional" people like himself (Char's Counterattack). He's also got the same voice actor as Char, Creator/ShuichiIkeda, in Japanese.

* Adam Taurus of ''Web Animation/{{RWBY}}'' fits just about every box. His sword is a crimson red katana, his semblance is [[spoiler: described as being a stronger version of Yang's, similar to the original and his mech]], He wears a mask or bandana until a big unmasking reveal [[spoiler: that his right eye has been branded by anti-Faunus racists]], and he has a relationship with the main cast in the form of [[spoiler: Blake, who he was a mentor and lover of]]. The only excpetions to the typical Char Clone are Adam's black and red hair instead of blond hair.

* Adam Taurus of ''RWBY'' fits just about every box. His sword is a crimson red katana, his semblance is [[spoiler: described as being a stronger version of Yang's, similar to the original and his mech]], He wears a mask or bandana until a big unmasking reveal [[spoiler: that his right eye has been branded by anti-Faunus racists]], and he has a relationship with the main cast in the form of [[spoiler: Blake, who he was a mentor and lover of]]. The only excpetions to the typical Char Clone are Adam's black and red hair instead of blond hair.

[[folder: Web Animation]]
* Adam Taurus of ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'' checks fewer boxes than most examples, but does make the cut. He's the former mentor and lover for one of the main heroes, Blake Belladonna, who became a bitter enemy to her for her defection from the White Fang. He wears a unique mask compared to other members of the White Fang. He has red hair and wears red as part of his RedAndBlackAndEvilAllOver motif, and proves himself to be a DragonWithAnAgenda in Volume 4 and 5 by [[spoiler:murdering the High Leader of the White Fang in a coup and taking over himself]].
[[/folder]]