History Main / ExpositoryHairstyleChange

** The resolution of ComicBook/{{Storm}}'s personal crisis after her return from outer space became manifest in her [[ImportantHaircut cutting her flowing hair into a mohawk]] in ''Uncanny X-Men'' #173. Later she let it grow out again.

* In ''Literature/ARoseForEmily'', Emily's hair changes at important plot points.

* ''WebAnimation/DontWalkHomeAloneAfterDark'': Used with Sparrow in ''The Worm''.

* ExpositoryHairstyleChange/ComicBooks

* ExpositoryHairstyleChange/{{Webcomics}}

* ExpositoryHairstyleChange/{{Literature}}

Usually this sort of change is done to signify a scene or setting change or show the passage of time in either a FlashForward or a FlashBack. This can result in the FunnyFlashbackHaircut. Occasionally the trope can be used to play with the audience (see the ''Series/{{Lost}}'' example below) or otherwise mess with our perception of what is going on. Do not confuse with a haircut that is done on-screen — as that falls under ImportantHaircut, GagHaircut or TraumaticHaircut.

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles'', Violet Parr spends most of the movie with her hair in her face. After a pep talk from her mom Helen — and realizing she could get in a fight — she keeps her hair restrained behind her ear with a headband, probably to signal growing confidence. This is commented on by her father at the end of the film — and the boy she has a crush on notices as well. Though you do have to wonder how she got her hands on a headband despite being stranded on a "mostly" deserted island.

* You can almost track [[Wrestling/BryanDanielson Daniel Bryan]]'s WWE career by his hairstyles alone. As the EnsembleDarkhorse NXT rookie, he had a crew cut and PermaStubble up to his first World Heavyweight Title run in 2014. After the infamous 18-second loss to Sheamus, and perhaps to go along with his character's descent into madness, his hair and beard began to lengthen with time=. By two years later and his Wrestling/WrestleMania 30 [[AwesomeMomentOfCrowning main event win]], his hair was a shoulder-length mane and he had an impressive, voluminous beard to go along with it. By the following year at [=WrestleMania=] 31, he was approaching LooksLikeJesus levels. Then a string of injuries started, eventually culminating in his retirement from in-ring competition in February 2016. The tip-off to many that this retirement was ''not'' a work was that he emerged for the announcement having cut his hair into a short, conservative style. He transitioned into an on-screen authority figure and occasional announcer, so this fit for a while. Eventually, though, he stopped cutting it regularly, and by the time of his return about two years later, his beard and hair had lengthened to about the level he had worn it during his main event run. His AEW debut added an undercut with a top knot.

* You can almost track Wrestling/DanielBryan's WWE career by his hairstyles alone. As the EnsembleDarkhorse NXT rookie, he had a crew cut and PermaStubble up to his first World Heavyweight Title run in 2014. After the infamous 18-second loss to Sheamus, and perhaps to go along with his character's descent into madness, his hair and beard began to lengthen with time=. By two years later and his WrestleMania 30 [[AwesomeMomentOfCrowning main event win]], his hair was a shoulder-length mane and he had an impressive, voluminous beard to go along with it. By the following year at WrestleMania 31, he was approaching LooksLikeJesus levels. Then a string of injuries started, eventually culminating in his retirement from in-ring competition in February 2016. The tip-off to many that this retirement was ''not'' a work was that he emerged for the announcement having cut his hair into a short, conservative style. He transitioned into an on-screen authority figure and occasional announcer, so this fit for a while. Eventually, though, he stopped cutting it regularly, and by the time of his return about two years later, his beard and hair had lengthened to about the level he had worn it during his main event run. His AEW debut added an undercut with a top knot.

** In his heyday, he tended to sport a beard if he was a face. He was clean-shaven during his time in Evolution. Additionally his traditional long hair was cut short after his loss to Brock Lesnar in 2012. When he returned to television, he was in the role of The Authority and no longer a regular wrestler. Eventually, he became bald.

* From his debut in the 80s until 1997, Wrestling/ScottSteiner had a dark mullet and was clean-shaven. Then, his look began to change. First, he grew a goatee and wore his hair in a ponytail. Then, he cut his hair short towards the end of '97. Finally, after turning heel in early 1998, he bleached his hair and most of his beard blond as part of his new "Big Poppa Pump" persona.

* Wrestling/{{Charlotte}} added extensions to her hair when she won the NXT Women's Championship and solidified herself as a star.

* Music/{{Eminem}}'s CareerResurrection in 2009 came with him returning to his natural dark hair instead of the [[DyeHard peroxide blond]] he'd been [[MemeticHair famous for]] previously. The song "My Darling" on ''Relapse'' portrays this as an ImportantHaircut in [[KayfabeMusic kayfabe]], but it was actually because he worried that dying his hair again would serve as an addiction trigger. Em later returned to blond to signal RevisitingTheRoots for ''The Marshall Mathers LP 2'', then went dark again and grew a beard to signal a more middle-aged, ConsciousHipHop direction for ''Revival'' (which he called attention to in "Walk On Water", in which he analogised ditching the blond to his [[WhiteDwarfStarlet fading fame]]).

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[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
* ''Manga/SevenSeeds'' has Botan, who is originally introduced as an intimidating woman and her hair put up in multiple braids. As her team members warm up to her, Botan lets her hair down and removes the braids, ending up with a high ponytail kind of hairdo.
* Tiffa Addil from ''Anime/AfterWarGundamX'' is a ShyBlueHairedGirl BarrierMaiden who keeps her hair in a ponytail. She [[LettingHerHairDown temporarily lets it loose]] in the Ocean Arc, [[spoiler: as a sign that she's now [[GrandTheftMe possessed]] by the spirit of Lucille Lilliant, the other BarrierMaiden of the story.]]
* [[PlayingWithATrope Played with]] in ''Anime/ArakawaUnderTheBridge'' in the case of the Mayor, whose Kappa suit has a wound mechanism in the head which can change his hair from short and spiky to long with a simple twist, and which he reserves for switching from his usual carefree [[ThePiratesWhoDontDoAnything mayorliness]] to the [[BlatantLies badass youkai within]].
* Each of the four recurring prima characters in ''Manga/{{ARIA}}'' has a FlashBack hairstyle. Alicia, currently in a single braid, wore two braids. Akira, her hair now long, once had it cut short. Athena, now cut short, once wore it at shoulder length. Then we have Grandma, who during her Undine days wore her hair long and wavy and now wears it up in a bun. Unlike the other three, who usually appear in flashbacks dating to four years before the series proper, Grandma's flashbacks date to around thirty years. Four years ago, she wore the same hairstyle but was taller. Finally, we have [[spoiler: Akari, who some years after becoming a prima began wearing her hair in a long ponytail,]] and Aika, who got an ImportantHaircut midway through the series from twin braids to a shorter cut. Alice is a different example, as she wears her hair differently to signify when she attends school.
* In ''Manga/AsteroidInLove'', Ao's personality change from a talkative tomboy to a quiet GirlyGirl is accompanied by her changing her hairstyle from BoyishShortHair to GirlishPigtails.
* ''Manga/AssassinationClassroom'':
** In flashbacks, Nagisa is shown with much [[LongHairedPrettyBoy longer hair]] due to [[spoiler:his ControlFreak mother wanting to raise a girl instead]]. By the time Kayano [[NewTransferStudent transfers]] into the class (just before the events of the series), he's tried to shorten it into a ponytail, but in their first interaction Kayano convinces him to style into the HairWings he has for the rest of the series, a slightly less effeminate hairstyle. [[spoiler: The WhereAreTheyNowEpilogue shows he eventually ditched the HairWings for a more traditional boyish hairstyle, as his mother is no longer there to control him]].
** Speaking of Kayano, [[spoiler: in her true identity as Akari Yukimura she has long dark hair. She adopts a shorter bright green hairstyle with HairIntakes for most of the series as part of her act so that Koro-sensei (who she believes [[MistakenForMurderer murdered her sister]]) would not recognize her. Following [[WhamEpisode Chapter 128]], in which she reveals herself (as well as the fact she has tentacles), she sports to her original hairstyle but still colored green as part of her EvilCostumeSwitch. After her tentacles are removed and she rejoins the class, she reverts back to the hairstyle she had as Kayano. The WhereAreTheyNowEpilogue shows she eventually went back to her hairstyle as Akari]].
** After being welcomed back following her brief FaceHeelTurn in which she [[spoiler: [[MistreatmentInducedBetrayal betrayed the class]] to the Reaper, [[FemmeFatale Irina]] [[SensualSlavs Jelavic]] changes her long flowing hairstyle to a ponytail as part of her GoodCostumeSwitch]].
* ''Manga/AzumangaDaioh'':
** Parodied. It's a new school year for Chiyo-chan, so to show how much she's matured as a person... she starts wearing her pigtails lower.
** As well as Tomo -- she grows her hair out during her second year, intending to be somewhat like [[Franchise/LupinIII Fujiko]]. When that doesn't pan out too well, she cuts it to even shorter than it was when she was a freshman. Yomi gets in a good laugh when Chiyo-chan thinks that Tomo did it because she got dumped. The length of Tomo's hair is a good indicator as to when one of the series' spin-off works takes place.
* [[GoMadFromTheRevelation After the immense trauma she suffered during the Eclipse]], Casca from ''Manga/{{Berserk}}'' grows long, disheveled hair signature to TheOphelia that she turned into, in lieu of the short, cropped hair of the badass ActionGirl she once was.
* ''Manga/{{Bleach}}'':
** [[spoiler:Aizen's removal of his glasses]] and slicking back of his hair demonstrated to the audience that yes, he was now the BigBad.
** Most of the Vaizards had different hair back when they were [[spoiler:Captains and Lieutenants in Soul Society.]] For example, Hirako Shinji [[spoiler:as Aizen's former captain]] used to have a long hair; now he possesses a much shorter bob cut.
** Ichigo briefly had a great deal of hair, in both is most extreme OneWingedAngel form and his final awesome form, in which it [[PowerMakesYourHairGrow was one of the few things that changed]]. Aizen had also grown a lot of hair with his power-up to almost-unimaginable, so apparently the Samson look is in.
** Post-timeskip, for whatever reason (it was only just over a year) just about ''everyone'' has changed their hairstyle, including some odd ones like Shinji's diagonally cut bangs, for example. Almost the only one who hasn't is [[BaldHeadOfToughness Ikkaku]].
** Squad 4 Captain Retsu Unohana has her hair braided so that it hangs down in front of her neck and chest. During this time she is essentially a benevolent TeamMom. [[spoiler:[[AxCrazy When she]] [[BloodKnight lets her]] [[LetsGetDangerous hair down]], [[CurbStompBattle it is time to run]].]]
** Ever since Tatsuki ran out the bullies that cut her hair by force, Orihime has kept her hair long and with hairpins (which are also [[EmpathicWeapon the source of]] [[BarrierWarrior her powers]]). After the first TimeSkip she stops wearing the pins (using them as lapel accessories instead) and switches to a HimeCut. Midway through the last arc, she begins using the clips again [[spoiler: and in the last chapter, when she and Ichigo are HappilyMarried, she ditches the pins for good and uses a MotherlySidePlait.]]
** Rukia began the series with a spiky, somewhat messy haircut reaching to her shoulders. She kept it that way until the first TimeSkip, where she decided to cut it into a more "orderly" pageboy style. At the very end, [[spoiler: when she's both married Renji ''and'' has become a captain]], her hair is much longer.
* [[JerkAss Tsukasa]] from ''Manga/BoysOverFlowers'' gets his hair straightened (either or purpose or accidentally) when he's being [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold genuinely nice]] to [[{{Tsundere}} Tsukushi]].
* In the manga adaptation of ''[[Literature/TheSagaOfDarrenShan Cirque du Freak]]'', Kurda's ponytail snaps open at exactly the moment when he [[spoiler: stabs and kills Gavner Purl, making Darren aware that he's betrayed the vampire clan]]. In his next two appearances, [[spoiler: around people who don't know about his conspiracy]], it is tied back again, but [[spoiler: at his trial, when his actions are exposed]], it is not.
** Much later in volume 10, [[spoiler: before Kurda returns to the Lake of Souls, Harkat rips off a piece of his robes and uses it to tie Kurda's hair back, showing that he is forgiven]].
* ''Anime/CodeGeass'':
** Kallen Stadfeldt/Kozuki has two different hairstyles: a spiky wild look (which is apparently her natural one) when she's being her ActionGirl self, and a combed-down hairstyle she uses at school to as part of the fake IllGirl persona she hides behind. [[spoiler:In the epilogue, she is shown going to school with her spiky hair, signifying that she has thrown away her frail cover, and can now be herself in school.]]
** It's subtle, but in ''Anime/CodeGeassAkitoTheExiled'', when Lelouch is brainwashed into being the Britannian strategist Julius Kingsley, he has parts of his bangs spiked out to the sides that, as Lelouch, he had tucked under the side parts. It gives him an edgier look and goes with how Julius isn't bothered by ruthlessly [[spoiler: causing riots and endangering masses of civilians to help Britannian invade Europia]].
* Between the two seasons of ''Anime/DarkerThanBlack'', Hei goes from clean-cut and capable of passing for a university student to "Hobo Hei", with PermaStubble and WildHair. Since he was extremely badass to begin with, this is a sign that all has not gone well for him during the year or two of TimeSkip.
* In ''Manga/TheDaughterOfTwentyFaces'' the passing of a year is marked by Chiko's bangs growing out of their straight-cut style into a more natural shape, which also serves to mark her evolution from TheOjou into an ActionGirl.
* ''Manga/DeathNote'':
** Aizawa's transition from clean-shaven to PermaStubble is used to show his emerging inner badass.
** Another example is Mello, who gets slightly shorter and messier hair after the [[spoiler:explosion at his Mafia hideout]], from which point not only he becomes more badass but also more reckless.
** Misa is the most pronounced example, combined with some wardrobe changes. Early on, she defaults to GirlishPigtails and similar, with elaborate goth clothes, emphasizing her childishness and cuteness as a model and actress. After the timeskip, she's done her best to become Light's perfect girlfriend and minion, and her acting career has taken a more serious turn, so she wears her hair loose and has a conservative, preppy wardrobe. Eventually, however, suspicion of her builds again and Light decides first that she should quit her job and stop attracting attention to herself, and then that having the active Kira living with him is too dangerous, and he instructs Misa to surrender the Death Note to a new minion, losing all of her memories of it in the process (not to mention Ryuk's companionship). Misa is left as the live-in girlfriend of someone who has absolutely no use for her, plainly can't stand her, and leaves her alone as much as possible, leaving her bored out of her mind. She eventually starts dressing and acting the same as she did in the beginning, five years earlier, as if all of her character development never happened... because she doesn't remember it did!
* In ''Manga/DemonSlayerKimetsuNoYaiba'', initially Tanjiro's hair was long enough to tie it in a high ponytail. Then, when he faces Giyu following the slaughter of his family and Nezuko's transformation into a demon, the ponytail is cut off, leaving him with a messy mop. During his training with Urokodaki, his hair grows out to shoulder-length, only to cut it short after completing his training in two years. The haircuts signify the changes that happened in his life and his ascension as a Demon Slayer.
* There are several examples in ''Franchise/{{Digimon}}'', but the one that fits best is Ken from ''Anime/DigimonAdventure02''. As the Digimon Kaiser, his digital avatar has his hair two-toned and spiked, not too dissimilar to his dead older brother Osamu, whose reputation Ken has spent the last couple of years trying to live up to. During his MyGodWhatHaveIDone scene, his digital avatar breaks apart and he returns to his real appearance, with his hair returning to its natural state of being chin-length, straight, and solid blue. On the long run, it ends up symbolizing not just his HeelFaceTurn, but that he's accepted that he can't replace his brother and will now be himself.
** Between the first part of ''Anime/DigimonFusion'' and the second, Kiriha grows his hair out and parts it in the middle into something of a messy mullet, to highlight [[spoiler:how much time passed in the Digital World while Taiki was away and how much Kiriha had to rough it out in the meantime.]]
* Averted with Bulma from the ''Franchise/DragonBall'' franhcise. While she changes her hairstyle quite often, none of the changes are really expository. It's played straight with Krillin, however, when he displays a full head of hair in the Buu saga to signify that he's left his WarriorMonk lifestyle behind to raise a family.
* ''Manga/EdensZero'': Initially, Weisz Steiner wore his hair in a rockabilly style. Later after trying out the Arsenal Suit, when it dissolves, it rendered him naked and undid his hair. He has since kept it that way. This show him he is independencing himself from the lifepath his future was destined to have.
* In ''Anime/EurekaSeven'', Renton's hairstyle starts to be different from episode 42 onwards, which probably signifies his ComingOfAge.
* ''Manga/Eyeshield21'':
** Sakuraba goes from having a pop-idol-type hairstyle to a shaved head (to the dismay of his fangirls), to show that he's serious about becoming a better athlete. It grows back slowly over the course of the series (with the little bit in the middle inexplicably growing faster than the rest).
** Mamori also gets a haircut after Sena reveals that he's Eyeshield 21, possibly to signify that Mamori no longer has to protect Sena, but can trust him to stand on his own. [[spoiler:After the timeskip, her hair is even longer, which denotes the passage of time.]]
** Just before his debut game against the Shinryujii Naga's, Yukimitsu changes his hairstyle from a combed back one showing off his rather large forehead, to a looser downed style, to represent him no longer being just the geeky benchwarmer.
* Waver Velvet from ''LightNovel/FateZero'' had bobbed dark hair as a teen. Then, after the Fourth Holy Grail War, as years passed, he has been growing his hair out until it reaches hip-length as an adult, where he becomes Lord El-Melloi II, reflecting his maturity and experience.
* ''Manga/FruitsBasket'':
** After [[spoiler:Akito]]'s HeelFaceTurn, she is shown at the end with shoulder-length hair.
** When Kyouko was a BrokenBird delinquent, she had long hair. She keeps it long after marrying Kazuma, but by the time of her death she had cut it into a bob.
** Isuzu (a.k.a. Rin) Sohma had extremely long dark hair when she was introduced. Later, Akito [[TraumaticHaircut chopped it off in a fit of rage]]. This coincides with [[BrokenBird her]] becoming more agreeable and starting to place more trust and faith on others, specially [[AllLovingHero on Tohru]].
* ''Franchise/FullmetalAlchemist'':
** Ed grows his hair out into a short braid after getting his automail — before it had been shorter and messy. [[spoiler:His Earth counterpart in [[Anime/FullmetalAlchemist the 2003 anime]] kept that hairstyle]].
** Late in [[Manga/FullmetalAlchemist the story]], Ed spends several months in hiding recuperating from a serious injury, and afterward he switches to a ponytail. The only reason he does that is that he was being hunted down by the military, and their description of him mentions that his hair is in a braid.
** [[http://gallery.minitokyo.net/view/451809 The ponytail also makes him look]] more like his [[DisappearedDad father]] when ''he'' [[http://gallery.minitokyo.net/view/424299 was young,]] though when his father tells him that, Ed immediately braids the hair back up and scowls at him.
** In the last chapter, it's shown that Ed [[spoiler: keeps the ponytail for good. His father's death might've had something to do with it.]]
** Let's not forget Hawkeye. She is shown to have short hair in her backstory, grew her hair out because she met Winry, and thought it might look good on her, and finally on the photo epilogue page, is shown to have gone back to her original short cut.
** Ed once again has a ponytail in TheMovie based off of the 2003 anime series, ''[[Anime/FullmetalAlchemistTheConquerorOfShamballa Conqueror of Shamballa]]''.
** In the manga, once Ling [[spoiler:becomes Greed]], his front cowlick changes from right to left [[spoiler:to show who is currently in control]].
** In ''Conqueror of Shamballa'' Alphonse grew out his hair into a ponytail in order to replicate his brother. [[spoiler:He cut it after being reunited with Edward]].
* Asuka from ''Anime/FutureGPXCyberFormula'' cuts her long hair short in EP 5 of ''ZERO'' to signifying that she wanted to change to become a stronger person and later in ''SAGA'' and ''SIN'', she grows her hair to shoulder-length, which symbolizes that she's now a full-grown woman.
* ''Manga/GoldenKamuy'': Sofia wore a tight bun in the back before she left behind the life of a noblewoman. As a revolutionary leader, however, she replaced her bun with a long {{braid|sOfAction}}.
* Eikichi Onizuka changes his hairstyle in the first volume of ''Manga/GreatTeacherOnizuka'' right after he decided to be a teacher.
* ''Manga/GTOTheEarlyYears'':
** When Eikichi is actively trying to charm girls, he changes his hairstyle and wears glasses.
** In Chapter 34, Saejima's changed his hairstyle so much that the author has to point out that it's him in several panels.
** [[SadistTeacher Minamino]] forces the students in his class to change their DelinquentHair to more conservative hairstyles.
* ''Anime/HeartcatchPrettyCure'':
** Itsuki starts growing out her hair during the DistantFinale, now accepting the fact that [[TomboyWithAGirlyStreak she can like girlish things and still be a martial artist.]]
** WAY before Itsuki, there's also Tsubomi, who is shanghai'd by Erika in the very first episode for a makeover, changing her ponytail into twintails.
* ''Webcomic/HetaliaAxisPowers'':
** As a little girl and young teenager, Ukraine had long hair and kept it in a [[GirlishPigtails braided]] PrimAndProperBun. As an adult, she has it in a bob ([[ImportantHairAccessory plus a hairband and hairpins]]), probably for practical reasons since she's implied to work as a farmer.
** This is a little harder to spot, but around the same time, Ukraine had her hair long, child!Belarus used to have shoulder-level MessyHair tied with a white headband. As an older nation, her hair is waist-level and noticeably straighter but still kept with a band (a black one in her case).
** When Hungary was young and thought she was a boy, she had a very short ponytail. In the infamous InnocentFanserviceGirl scene with ChivalrousPervert Prussia, she still dresses as a boy but her 'tail is ''much'' longer. When she grows up into a NinjaMaid, she keeps it loose - and in modern days, she still wears it like that.
** Liechtenstein, when was little, had her hair in a long braid or in twin braids. She cut it off some time after meeting Switzerland, [[WellDoneSonGuy as part of her desire to prove herself to him]].
** Parodied when England tries to pull one in his childhood by growing his hair long. SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome occurs when it turns out extremely messy since he only grew it out, without actually putting any care in it. He then asks [[TheDandy France]] to give him one instead... and France proceeds to cut it back to its original style, claiming it's what fits England the best.
** Czech Republic/Czechia had hair in GirlishPigtails as a young nation under Austria and Hungary's care/thumb, but by the time she and Slovakia managed to be independent she switched to a long-ish bob.
* In ''Manga/HoshiWaUtau'' Sakuya's hair grows longer and longer in each volume [[spoiler:until she cuts it short again.]]
* In ''Manhwa/IWish'', K starts off the series with his hair tied back with several hairties. He slowly starts wearing them less and simply letting his hair down and remain open as he begins to warm up to Lyu-Jin. [[spoiler: He reverts back to the hairties when Seven removes his love for Lyu-Jin in the final few chapters.]]
* ''Anime/{{K}}'':
** The AllPowerfulBystander Silver King, Adolf K. Weismann, has let his hair grow to past his knees in the 70 years he's been living in his airship as an immortal hermit after the trauma of [[AngstySurvivingTwin losing his sister]] in the bombing of Dresden during World War II. [[spoiler: In the end of the second season, when he returns to his body, he cuts it back to the length it was before he became immortal.]]
** In the movie that takes place between seasons 1 and 2, Kuroh wears his hair down from his usual SamuraiPonytail, while he's searching for his lost master.
* Most characters in ''Manga/KaguyaSamaLoveIsWar'' are shown with different hairstyles in the past, but only a few have any real significance.
** Kaguya has her hair tied up in the present, but flashbacks ([[GhostInTheMachine and the mental representation of her cold side]]) have it down. She presumably switched around the time she fell in love with Shirogane.
** Shirogane's hair is significantly messier in the present compared to flashbacks. It's bedhead that he doesn't have the time to fix in the morning since he gets so little sleep due to his increased workload.
** Ishigami's hair used to be a lot shorter in middle school. He grew out PeekABangs in order to shut himself off from the world.
** Inverted with Iino. The fact that she has HairstyleInertia helps reflect the fact that she still has the exact same mindset that she did as a child.
* ''Franchise/LyricalNanoha'':
** Teana Lanster sports GirlishPigtails in the third season. Later, she starts wearing her hair loose, indicating that she has outgrown the [[YoungGun reckless tendencies]] she exhibited earlier in the story.
** Nanoha and Fate don't sport GirlishPigtails in their MagicalGirl forms anymore, since the end of the ''[=StrikerS=]'' manga, demonstrating that they are not girls anymore, but women ([[HasTwoMommies with a daughter]]).
* In ''Manga/MarmaladeBoy'', [[TheOjou Meiko Akizuki]] has long straight hair, but once she starts dating Namura-sensei, she starts perming it and keeps it that way.
* Flashbacks in ''Manga/MissKobayashisDragonMaid'' show that Elma's hair used to be a lot longer. While it's never specified why she changed it, it's worth pointing out that she was last seen with long hair [[WeUsedToBeFriends during her falling out with Tohru]].
* ''Anime/MobileSuitGundam00'':
** In the second season, [[spoiler:Feldt Grace starts wearing her hair in a style similar to her dead best friend Christina Sierra.]]
** In the trailers for TheMovie, ''several'' people have gone through hairstyle changes. [[spoiler:Louise grows her hair back to its old length, Saji keeps his slightly longer, Soma/Marie braids hers now, Mileina replaced the GirlishPigtails with a simple headband, Allelujah sports a ''really'' long ponytail... and Feldt ''cut'' her hair and looks like [[Anime/MobileSuitGundamSEEDDestiny Lunamaria Hawke]].]] [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T0WNe6BrTbc See it here!]] (Warning, aside of the already mentioned style changes, there are ''many'' spoilers)
* In ''Manga/{{Monster}}'', the protagonist Kenzo Tenma goes from an immaculately groomed woobie to a scruffy, stubbled, long-haired badass. Pictured above.
* ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'':
** Sakura's ImportantHaircut happened early in the manga and signified her no longer wanting to be TheLoad. She keeps the short hair into adulthood, though it's slightly longer (however not as long as her original style). Prior to the manga, Sakura had short hair, however, she grew it out before becoming a ninja because she heard that Sasuke liked girls with long hair.
** Averted with Ino. She cut her hair in the chunin exams as a part of a trap. While afterwards, she rekindled her relationship with Sakura, she doesn't actually keep the short hair for long, If anything she grew out her ponytail even longer.
** Hanabi is shown to have had this occur. As a toddler her hair was short but she grew it out. After she puts her [[BigBrotherWorship beloved sister]] on a BrokenPedestal it's shown she cut her hair. In between ''Shippuden'' and ''Anime/TheLastNarutoTheMovie'' movie she [[LongHairIsFeminine grew out her hair]] and became [[TheFashionista fashion savvy]] after she TookALevelInCheerfulness.
** Hinata sported chin-length hair at first but following the timeskip, she grew out her hair to mid-length and since ''Manga/{{Boruto}}'', she now sports a shoulder-length bob.
** Naruto himself cuts his hair short [[spoiler:after he becomes Hokage, capping off his journey from the lowest of the low to the highest authority figure in Konoha.]]
* ''Manga/NausicaaOfTheValleyOfTheWind'':
** Nausicaä doesn't do this in the movie, but in the manga she has her hair cut from shoulder length to just below her ears as she prepares to go to war, symbolizing the end of her innocent life.
** Later on in the manga, Princess Kushana, who originally sported a waist-length blonde braid wrapped around her head, chopped it off after she failed to rescue some of her soldiers — who had been assigned a task at odds with their training[[labelnote:†]] (Kushana trained them as elite cavalry specializing in quick attacks, but they were put on point defense; that's the equivalent of forcing Navy SEAL Team Six into a WWI trench)[[/labelnote]] and placed in an indefensible position by her brothers — as a show of solidarity as well as a promise to everyone that she would redouble her efforts to hunt down and kill the Princes of Torumekia.
* ''Manga/OuranHighSchoolHostClub'':
** Identical twins Hikaru and Kaoru parody this by dyeing their hair pink and blue wanting to be seen as different people. They really did it because they were bored, and even faked a fight to make it convincing. Played straight by Hikaru later in the manga when he dyes his hair darker after him and Kaoru really ''do'' have a fight [[spoiler:over their feelings for Haruhi]]. This is a huge step in character development for them, as they permanently want to be seen as separate people (although still Host together) – they even move into their own bedrooms. Near the end of the manga, Kaoru also starts growing his hair long, which differentiates the twins even more.
** Haruhi used to have long hair, but she accidentally glued her hair and ended up having to cut it short, hence why [[{{Bifauxnen}} the Host Club mistake her for a pretty boy at first]]. She keeps the hairstyle for most of the series to maintain her facade as a Host Club member, but after she transfers out of Ouran High, she begins to regrow her hair again.
* Shinichi Izumi from ''Manga/{{Parasyte}}''. The Maxim changes his hair partway through, to having his bangs pushed further back, generally making the character look more action-ready. The glasses are also ditched.
* In the ''XY'' series of ''Anime/{{Pokemon}}'', Serena cuts her hair [[spoiler: after losing her first Pokémon showcase and realizing she needs to better herself as a trainer. Combined with more casual clothes; this signifies her desire to have more confidence in herself and her abilities]].
* ''Manga/ThePrinceOfTennis'':
** Hikaru Amane, a.k.a. Dabide from Rokkaku is a natural redhead who's quite proud of his hair and takes care of it quite well, applying hair wax to it every day. When Amane gets serious in his games, he takes a rubber band and ties his hair up; you can expect him to play [[LetsGetDangerous at his very full strength]] from then on.
** Kippei Tachibana used to dye his long hair blonde until a traumatic incident [[spoiler: where he almost [[EyeScream blinded]] his best friend.]] In penance, he shaved his hair and went back to his natural black hair color. He starts dyeing his hair again after [[spoiler: Fudomine Middle School makes it to the Nationals under his leadership.]]
* The 10th episode of ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica'' reveals that Homura used to be [[spoiler:a nerdy, shy girl with glasses and huge braids. After sticking herself in a GroundhogDayLoop to save her friend, and seeing the situation get worse when its full horror is revealed, she wakes up at the start of a new loop with a speech affirming her determination to fight alone and win at the end, while untying her hair and fixing her eyes with magic]], becoming the [[ZenSurvivor stern badass]] we'd known up to that point.
* Tart in ''Manga/PuellaMagiTartMagica'' does this [[spoiler: following the massacre of her village and her decision to make a contract and become a magical girl]].
* In the first episode of ''Anime/PumpkinScissors'' Alice is shown with braids at her military academy graduation just as war is ended. FlashForward a few years and the braids are gone and she's in the War Relief squadron still cleaning up from the battles.
* ''Manga/RanmaOneHalf'':
** Akane starts the series with hair at about mid-back length, but it gets sliced off to about neck-level during Ranma's initial battle with Ryoga, resulting in a new hairstyle. Almost immediately afterwards, she gets over her long-standing crush on Dr. Tofu (which she knew would always be unrequited, considering his own feelings for her sister, Kasumi) and decides not to grow her hair back. Therefore, it could be argued that, in addition to a TraumaticHaircut, the new hairdo doubles as an Expository Hairstyle Change that signifies her decision to accept that nothing would come of it and move on.
** Ranma's pre-story switch from a ponytail (in the flashbacks) to a pigtail. The Dragon Whisker story arc explains the very good reason behind it.
* In the third ''Anime/RebuildOfEvangelion'' movie, nearly everyone aside from [[spoiler:Gendo and the pilots]] gets a new hairstyle and outfit, to mark the [[spoiler:14-year-TimeSkip.]] Also, [[spoiler:the newly-introduced fresh]] Rei [[spoiler:clone]] has the bangs in the middle of her forehead intersecting or in two distinct points, especially after TheReveal.
* ''Anime/SamuraiChamploo'' has another example that requires knowledge of Japanese customs: Jin's very long bangs/sideburns plus long ponytail are a strange hairstyle for a samurai. Most other samurai in the series either have the short bangs plus ponytail style suitable for teenagers and apprentices or the tonsured style favored by older men, especially bureaucrats. When we start seeing Jin's backstory flashbacks, it becomes clear that he used to have the apprentice style, but stopped cutting it after he became a ronin. His bangs have gone from above his eyebrows to his jawline, suggesting that the time between the flashbacks and the main series timeline is about 3-6 months.
* Kenji Harima from ''Manga/SchoolRumble'' explains his present appearance sporting a moustache and goatee because of the fact that [[spoiler:he wishes to hide his original appearance so Tenma won't recognize him as the boy who rescued her from an incident long ago. She doesn't remember this said event anyway, though.]]
* ''Manga/SkipBeat''
** Kyoko Mogami pulls one on at the end of the first chapter. She's introduced with black hair that reaches past her shoulder blades and appears to be kind to a fault and utterly devoted to her childhood friend, Shou Fuwa, meekly waiting for him to return her romantic feelings. When he admits that he never saw her as more than a maid, Kyoko vows revenge by entering the show business and gets her hair cut to chin-length and dyed chestnut-brown, showing her true colors as a determined, [[WomanScorned scorned woman]] that will stop at nothing to get Shou to kneel before her.
** Done in-universe for the ''[[ShowWithinAShow Dark Moon]]'' character of Mio, the role that Kyoko plays. Mio is the unfavorite daughter from a rich family, with a large facial scar, and torments her cousin. The original hairstyle was a simple HimeCut that mostly hid the scar, but when Kyoko created her own version of Mio, who is much more in-your-face with Mio's hatred for Mizuki, she got her bleached hair dyed back to black and openly displayed the facial scar.
* ''Manga/SlamDunk'':
** Hanamichi Sakuragi starts out with a red-dyed DelinquentHair. Halfway through the story, he shaves his hair almost bald after losing the match against Kainan. This signals that he gets more serious about his role in the team.
** Hisashi Mitsui had mid-length hair when he was in junior high and during his first year in Shohoku. He grew his hair past shoulder length in the two years he spent as a delinquent, and upon returning to the basketball club he cuts his hair short.
* Kumiko from ''Literature/SoundEuphonium'' tries to invoke this in the first episode. As she begins high school, she pulls her wavy hair into a ponytail in order to symbolize a new, more mature her. Subverted when she almost instantly does away with the ponytail afterwards. She's pretty much never shown with that hairstyle outside of the first episode.
* In the Manhwa ''Manhwa/TheTarotCafe'', the protagonist Pamela has very curly hair in the present and wavy hair in flashbacks. This is not due to modern hairstyle technology but because [[spoiler: after she became immortal four hundred-odd years ago she tried to find a way to die -- one of them being getting struck by lightning, which permanently frazzled her hair. It's a little after that that she decides to live.]]
* In one of the ''Anime/TenchiMuyo'' manga, Ayeka ends up changing her hair from the usual purple and straight style she's usually seen in to the light blue and curled similar to what Sasami has, though only temporary, as Sasami was homesick. As it turned out, the blue hair and curled hair was ''Ayeka's real style'', inherited from her ActionMom Misaki; she had it modified like that in her belief that Yosho would fall in love with her more if she resembled the person ''he'' thought was the perfect woman - his mother, Queen Funaho. She later states that, despite falling for Tenchi now, she'd rather keep it as that purple style due to the fact that she ''actually'' enjoys it now.
* Every single character in ''Manga/TokyoRevengers'' has different hairstyles in the past and present, with the exception of Naoto, whose change is noted by his mature looks and height.
* ''Webcomic/TowerOfGod'': [[WideEyedIdealist Bam]] goes from his adorably messy hair to BlindingBangs concealing his shiny gold eyes and growing long hair, indicating his loss of trust and idealism and his gain of awesome ass-kicking powers.
* ''Manga/{{Trigun}}'':
** After Vash [[spoiler: shoots the goddamned moon and does serious damage to a city]], Wolfwood finds him living under the name Ericks with long hair and the beginnings of a beard. After Vash comes out of his TenMinuteRetirement he gets his hair cut, returning it to the upright "broom" style the audience is familiar with.
** Also, Plants like Vash and Knives all have blonde hair at birth, which [[spoiler:slowly turns black the more they use that {{BFG}} within their arm.]] So at the start of the ''Manga/{{Trigun}}'' manga, Vash is a happy-go-lucky blondie, but at the beginning of ''Trigun Maximum'', once his hair is cut and he returns to action we see he sports a shock of black at the very back of his scalp below his ears. By the end of the manga, his hair is almost completely black.
* In ''Manga/TsubasaReservoirChronicle'' the growth of Fay's hair coincides with the GrowingTheBeard segment and shows that he's taken a darker turn, while the rest of the cast apparently went to a barber off-panel during the same period. This also happened when [[spoiler:he was younger and imprisoned with his twin, and we know it's been a long time since they go from short hair to waist-length within a few pages]].
* In ''Manga/{{Uzumaki}}'', Kirie cuts her long hair to ear length when it gets infected with spirals. This is the same time that she finally comes to accept that the events in the town aren't normal.
* ''Manga/VampireKnight'':
** This happens to Yuuki Cross when [[spoiler:her [[BrotherSisterIncest brother/boyfriend]] Kaname reverts her to her true pureblood vampire form. As a human, she had normal shoulder-length hair, and as a vampire, grows long hair very quickly]].
** Once he starts acting more like his former [[spoiler:badass vampire hunter]] self, Kaien Cross takes his hair out of its customary ponytail to return it to the way he used to wear it before.
* ''Manga/WanderingSon'':
** Nitori grows her hair into a bob after she starts getting bullied for [[spoiler:wearing the girl's uniform to school]]. She cuts it short, not because of a dramatic change like her friends think, but because she thought it was getting a bit long for a boy and wanted to emulate a female celebrity with a pixie cut.
** Kanako has worn pigtails her entire life. She takes them out in high school as a sign of her maturing.
** Takatsuki has always worn his hair in varying lengths ranging from pixie length to bob length. In high school, he grows it out [[spoiler:which correlates with his confusion and doubts about his gender identity]].
* ''Manga/TheWorldGodOnlyKnows'':
** Whenever Keima's mom gets angry, she lets her hair fall out of its bun and goes from sweet, kind, and relaxed mother to hot and hotblooded ex-biker gang lady.
** Keima's childhood friend Tenri originally has BlindingBangs, but has them cut to represent her slowly developing confidence.
* In ''Anime/XamdLostMemories,'' Akiyuki's hair grows out from a short cut to a more shaggy look as he matures throughout the series and learns to cope with being a Xam'd.
* ''Manga/YourLieInApril'':
** Hiroko had longer hair in the past but divorced her husband and cut it because, according to her, women change hairstyles when they change men.
** Kaori [[spoiler:wore GirlishPigtails and [[{{meganekko}} had glasses]]]] once but she let her hair down and [[spoiler:[[TheGlassesGottaGo started wearing contacts]]]] when she [[spoiler:decided to befriend Kousei, the boy she had been admiring for years]].

[[folder:Comic Books]]
* In ''ComicBook/AnyasGhost,'' [[CuteGhostGirl Emily]]'s hairstyle changes from [[MessyHair dandelion-like]] to [[StringyHairedGhostGirl straight and modern]] once she becomes more [[ClingyJealousGirl controlling of Anya]].
* ''ComicBook/SonicTheHedgehogArchieComics'': Princess Sally let her hair grow ''long'' when Sonic was thought dead for a year. It's a large signal for her {{Chickification}} and it isn't until about 3-4 years later that she gets her head straightened and asks Bunnie to cut it.
%%* ComicBook/{{Blueberry}} goes through one of these after a bleak turn of plot.
* ''ComicBook/BlueMonday'': All the main characters except Monkeyboy have different hairstyles in the flashback scenes of "Lovecats".
* ''ComicBook/{{Superman}}''
** Creator/DCComics uses hair color as one of the ways to distinguish between AlternateUniverse Supermen, with some of them being at least partially grey-haired (and almost invariably sad, as well). In part, this is because these Supermen are older than New Earth Franchise/{{Superman}}, but it's also an easy visual cue. When even ''Superman'' looks old and grey, you know something's up.
** In the 90's they played this trope straight. When he returned from the dead, he started out with his trademark hairstyle, but traveling around in a warsuit to get back to Metropolis had the chemicals inside grow out his hair, which he kept until the wedding about four years later.
* ''ComicBook/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicIDW'':
** During the battle with the Changelings, Rarity styles Pinkie's hair to look like hers in order to tell her apart from the Changelings who have taken Pinkie's form.
** In the second issue, Pinkie's hair deflates after a Changeling takes the shape of one of her friends and convinces her they all consider her annoying.
* ''ComicBook/ScottPilgrim'' subverts it and then plays it straight as it's actually Ramona ''not'' changing her hair that's important. Having spent most of the series changing it "like every week and a half," the Katayanagi twins are quick to point out that she's let it get really long. [[spoiler: She changes it again just before she leaves Scott.]]
* ComicBook/ShadeTheChangingMan gets a new one every time he [[spoiler: dies]].
* ''ComicBook/SpiderMan''
** When [[ComicBook/ScarletSpider Ben Reiley]] took up the reins as Spider-Man, he was forced to dye his hair blonde after being mistaken for Peter (then trying to start a family with Mary Jane).
** When Gwen Stacy first acquired her signature bangs, Harry Osborn pointed out that it was similar to the way MJ had been wearing hers. This seems to symbolize the point where she takes the competition with MJ seriously.
* ''ComicBook/XMen''
** The resolution of ComicBook/{{Storm}}'s personal crisis after her return from outer space became manifest in her [[ImportantHaircut cutting her flowing hair into a mohawk]] in ''Uncanny X-Men'' #173. Later she let it grow out again.
** Around the same time Rogue started going through a few changes: When she left the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants to join the X-Men, she [[GoodHairEvilHair changed from two white streaks in her hair to one]]. Later, as she grew more comfortable as a member of her new team, she let her hair grow out and starting with UXM #193 began to wear it in a more "wild" hair-do (on the first occasion because she had to go on a mission coming straight from her shower).
** Also around that time, Kitty Pryde's hair became much shorter, a legacy of her capture and narrowly averted possession by Ogun.
* In ''ComicBook/{{Supergirl}}'' storyline ''ComicBook/{{Bizarrogirl}}'', Kara cuts her hair after the destruction of ComicBook/NewKrypton to show she's mourning her people's loss.
* ComicBook/UltimateSpiderMan's Peter Parker grows his hair out after "Ultimatum". His girlfriend and ex-girlfriends buzzcut it after he becomes "big-headed Spiderman".
* Up until the Comicbook/New52 reboot, Linda Park was drawn with long hair past her shoulders. When she reappears in ''ComicBook/DCRebirth'', with her memories of ComicBook/WallyWest and their life together retconned away her hair is cut short, to emphasise the fact that she is a different person. In ''[[ComicBook/DarknightsDeathMetal Speed Metal]]'', after she's been reunited with their children and had her memories restored, her hair is back to its pre-''ComicBook/{{Flashpoint}}'' length.
* In ''ComicBook/TheUmbrellaAcademy'', the Rumor's hair gets longer and shaggier between the end of ''The Apocalypse Suite'' and where ''Dallas'' picks up.
* ''ComicBook/{{X23}}'':
** Subtly done after [[spoiler: Wolverine's death, when she dyes the forelocks of her black hair blue and gold, the colors of his most iconic costume.]]
** It also happens to her when she first appears in ''ComicBook/AllNewXMen'': Laura's [[TraumaticHaircut long black hair is gone]] and she's completely bald when the team finds her wandering Miami in an amnesiac state, either due to injuries she received when Hazmat [[{{Squick}} melted her face off]] on [[Comicbook/AvengersArena Murderworld]], or [[NoodleIncident whatever it was the Purifiers did to her afterwards]]. After being rescued (again) her healing factor restores it to its normal length, and her hair growing back out coincides with her memories returning and shaking off her confusion over meeting the time-displaced O5.
* In ''ComicBook/XFactor'', former NinetiesAntiHero Shatterstar shows back up with a complete makeover. He traded in his long hair for an extremely short cut and proceeds to come out of the closet.
* In ''Franchise/CaptainAmerica'', when ComicBook/BuckyBarnes was the Winter Soldier, his handlers let his hair grow out, since there really wasn't a reason to cut it once he began seeing use after the 70s when long hair on men wasn't that out of place. Once he regains his memories, and after he briefly teams up with Steve Rogers to stop an old contingency plan the Red Skull left behind, Bucky takes Nick Fury up on his offer of more work to fight against the Skull. This includes a new arm -- noticeably replacing the red star that was symbolic of his ties to Russia as their asset withn a white star with an outline reminiscent of Cap's shield -- and a haircut to what you'd expect a a guy from the 40s to have. He kept this for the rest of Ed Brubaker's run on the character. However, MCU-synergy eventually came aknocking and Bucky suddenly sported long hair again after 2014's ''Film/CaptainAmericaTheWinterSoldier'' had the character sporting long hair again (see below).

[[folder:Fan Works]]
* ''Fanfic/DateAReLive'': Origami Tobiichi, like in canon, originally had short hair 5 years ago, but after her parents' death, she grew her hair out due to her mother suggesting it before her death, and wanting to keep her memory alive through that suggestion. After Maria's "death", she restyles her hair to look like Maria's so she can honor her for the same reasons as the above example. She changes it back after Maria and Marina are revealed to be alive.
* ''Fanfic/DoingItRightThisTime'': For her first day back in school after [[PeggySue travelling back in time]], Asuka decides to ditch her GirlishPigtails:
-->She'd worn the nerve clips as barrettes almost every day since they'd been issued to her, intending them to symbolise her devotion to her career as an Evangelion pilot, but now they seemed to symbolise the flipside of that as well: How little else she'd had in her life ''except'' piloting. No hobbies, no other ambitions to speak of, no truly close friends until she'd arrived in Tokyo-3...
* No less than three of them happen in ''Fanfic/GoingAnotherWay''.
** Rei slowly developing into a person of her own is symbolized by her deciding to let her hair grow out, thus distancing herself from the image of Yui Gendo wants her to represent.
** Gendo in turn after his HeelFaceTurn decides to be clean-shaven again, thus showing an outside sign of the change within himself.
** Ritsuko decides to no longer bleach her hair once she realizes that she no longer had any reason to try and distance herself from what her mother looked like. While it at first needs to be dyed, over time her hair returns to its natural brown color.
* In ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/10340937/1/The-Return-Remixed The Return-Remixed]]'', Wrestling/KellyKelly stops bleaching her hair blond after she returns to the Diva Army following her TenMinuteRetirement, showing she's become more serious and TookALevelInBadass.
* In ''Fanfic/TheKeysStandAlone: The Soft World'', when the Guardians take Ringo in, they give him a buzzcut to indicate that he's one of them. After the debacle that follows, Ringo happily allows the Circle to grow his ponytail back for him.
* ''Fanfic/OnceMoreWithFeeling'': Asuka stopped wearing her neural hair clips, opting for tying her hair off into a ponytail, because Shinji said that she looked stunning, and she realized that she didn't need to wear her neural connectors to be Asuka Langley Sohryu.
* In ''Fanfic/TheSecondTry'', Asuka cut her hair to shoulder length at some point during the AfterTheEnd chapters because [[spoiler:a baby Aki kept pulling on it.]] Asuka muttered that her new hairstyle made her look older, but Shinji disagreed and said that she looked like [[spoiler:a mother.]]
* In ''Fanfic/TheStalkingZukoSeries'', Mai wears her trademark buns for most of the fic, earning her the nickname "Gloomy Hairbuns" from Katara. After Mai and Zuko break up, Mai switches to a ponytail.
* In ''Fanfic/WhatYouAlreadyKnow - Resolutions'', an explanation is provided for Teal’c suddenly growing hair in the eighth season of ''Series/StargateSG1''; while the rest of SG-1 were at the Ancient outpost in Antarctica, Teal’c left to attend the Ra'kon Akel, traditionally a rite where a Jaffa pledges his loyalty to the Goa’uld he serves but used on this occasion to reflect Teal’c’s vow to destroy them. At his last Ra'kon Akel (which only takes place every twenty years), Teal’c vowed to shave his head for the rest of his life as a symbol of his service but chose to reverse it at this pledge to reflect his opposition to the Goa’uld (which he couldn’t do earlier as he swore to keep the pledge upon his honour and the lives of his family, and so breaking the pledge would have been the equivalent of dishonouring all Jaffa).
* ''The Sanctuary Telepath'': Janine's original hair colour is a dark shade of brown. She dyes it lighter to appear non-threatening and to make the impression on Helen that she also tries to move on. It turns red during the war then light brown again until she lets it grow out when they arrive to Praxis. Somewhat lampshaded as she's aware of the implications of her hair colour and uses it both for sentimental reasons and to use it to her advantage.
* ''Webcomic/TeamRocketRoots'':
** Jessie switches from her signature AnimeHair to a ponytail after being promoted. This also correlates with her distancing herself from James and Meowth.
** After [[spoiler:the trauma of the final chapters]], Jessie forgoes her usual hairstyle and switches to loosely tied hair.
** In the epilogue, [[spoiler:Butch]], [[spoiler:Cassidy]], Jessie, and James have all changed haircuts after [[spoiler:cutting ties with Team Rocket]]. James' {{long hair|EdPrettyBoy}} signifies his troubled demeanor, while Jessie's shortly cropped hair signifies a huge change in character for a woman who prided herself in her long hair (as well as paying homage to her mother).
* Scarlett's hair changes style in the ''Fanfic/TotalShuffledIslandSeries''. It starts out in a bun throughout Island and starts to come undone in Action when her plans go awry, signaling she is starting to lose it. When she loses it completely and is out for revenge, her hair comes out of its bun and cascades freely down her back. After she is forced to control her temper, her hair changed into a ponytail, showing that while she is in control of herself, she retains some of her vengeful behavior.
* In ''Fanfic/UmeiNoMaisUnchained'', Tobirama first has very spiky hair that he cuts rather short because he doesn't have access to proper hair products and being a shinobi means he needs to be practical about it. After being captured and forcefully married, his hair grows out into soft curls and his wife shows him how to comb and tie them back into a topknot, symbolizing his assimilation into the aristocratic Uchiha clan.
* In ''We Are the Night'', Helena's three personas each have a distinctive hairstyle: A cute {{odango}} at school, loose and tousled with family and friends, and [[BraidsOfAction a french braid]] for kicking ass as Robin.
* In ''Fanfic/WinterWar'', Hinamori burnt part of her hair off at some point between the start of the fic proper and its divergence from ''Manga/{{Bleach}}'' canon during the Fake Karakura Town arc. This, combined with a nickname, obscures her identity somewhat for the first chapter she appears in- which serves to underscore the sheer amount of CharacterDevelopment she's undergone, once you realize who "Peaches" really is. (The hair is also a plot point, as she claims to have gotten it in a kidou accident and Iba for one suspects she did it in a premature bankai attempt.) A less dramatic example is Kon, who's let his (Ichigo's) hair grow a bit, which makes him look a little different than the original inhabitant of his body.
* In ''Fanfic/WithStringsAttached'', Ringo grows a small ponytail (actually, he has his hair grown magically) to indicate to the Baravadans that he should be considered a tirin (noncombatant) rather than a skahs (warrior).
* ''Fanfic/RandomDramaSeries'': Scarlett's hair starts in a PrimAndProperBun and remains that way until she snaps in "Scarlett Fever", at which point it becomes wild and flows freely down her back. Once she regains control of herself, she switches to a long braid, much like Sierra, showing that while she has regained control over herself, NothingIsTheSameAnymore as the rest of the contestants are now aware of her anger problems and almost all of them are both afraid of and no longer trust her.

[[folder:Films — Animation]]
!!!'''By Creator:'''
* This can actually be seen in many of Creator/HayaoMiyazaki's films. It's not uncommon that, by the end of the film, the protagonist's appearance has changed somewhat. This is almost always reflected in their hair, and almost always in the main female. [[AuthorAppeal Miyazaki seems to have a thing for short-haired girls.]]:
** Near the end of ''Anime/CastleInTheSky'', Sheeta — who has sported braided pigtails the entire movie — confronts Muska along with Pazu. Muska pulls out a pistol and, to prove he's not bluffing, ''shoots off Sheeta's pigtails''. This could represent her growth as a person, no longer willing to be a passive participant in the plot.
** ''Anime/PrincessMononoke'' has an unusual inversion for a Miyazaki film. Here, it's the male protagonist who alters his hairstyle at the ''start of the movie'', due to being exiled from his village after becoming infected with a curse.
** ''Anime/HowlsMovingCastle'',
*** Sophie begins the movie with waist-length dark hair done up in a simple braid. She still has the braid after being transformed into an old woman by the Witch of the Wastes, albeit grey and much shorter. However, at the climax of the film, she sacrifices her braid to revive Calcifer (who she'd just realized is [[spoiler:Howl's heart]]), so even after breaking the curse Sophie's hair remains silver and short.
*** Howl himself has one in the movie. After Sophie accidentally rearranged his several dozen hair products, his blond hair turned orange, then later black (the latter being his natural colour). His decision to not re-dye it indicates his increasing willingness to drop his façade, as well as his growing trust of (and love for) Sophie.
** In ''Anime/WhenMarnieWasThere'', Anna starts off with BoyishShortHair. She grows it out slightly over the summer and begins wearing a hairpin after she [[TookALevelInCheerfulness becomes friendlier]].
!!!'''By Movie:'''
* ''WesternAnimation/{{Frozen|2013}}'':
** Elsa's hair at the start of the movie, while she's happy with her sister, is in one braid. As she grows older and afraid of her powers, she styles into a PrimAndProperBun - to symbolise how she's completely shut herself off. The ShakingHerHairLoose into a French braid during "Let It Go" shows her relaxing into her new lifestyle.
** Anna wears her hair in an updo for the coronation ball. But she switches to her more practical GirlishPigtails when she goes to find Elsa.
* ''WesternAnimation/FrozenII'':
** Elsa starts out with her iconic braid from the first movie. Partway through the movie, she rearranges it into a ponytail as she chases the Nokk across the ocean. On arriving in Ahtohallan the ponytail is shaken loose leaving her hair completely free for the first time, representing her embracing her full power and place on the mystical island.
** Anna abandons her GirlishPigtails for a half-up, half-down hairstyle that shows how she's matured in the time since the first film. By the end it's completely up in an elaborate bun, similar to the one Elsa had at her own coronation, as she assumes the throne of Arendelle.
* In ''WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles'', Violet Parr spends most of the movie with her hair in her face. After a pep talk from her mom Helen — and realizing she could get in a fight — she keeps her hair restrained behind her ear with a headband, probably to signal growing confidence. This is commented on by her father at the end of the film — and the boy she has a crush on notices as well. Though you do have to wonder how she got her hands on a headband despite being stranded on a "mostly" deserted island.
* Hal Stewart in ''WesternAnimation/{{Megamind}}'' is voiced by Creator/JonahHill. After [[spoiler:being given superpowers by the eponymous villain, he gains his voice actor's signature hairstyle]].
* ''WesternAnimation/{{Tangled}}'':
** Rapunzel has her hair braided and decorated with flowers when she finally reaches Corona. [[JustifiedTrope On a practical level]], she couldn't really run around with 70 feet of hair dragging behind her. On a symbolic level, it's a sign that she's finally able to let loose and have fun, without her MagicHair being the centre of her very being (it's also an inversion of LettingHerHairDown). [[spoiler:This is contrasted with when she is convinced to go back to the tower with Gothel; the braid is undone, and the flowers taken away, with Gothel off-handedly commenting "There... like it never even happened."]]
** At the end of the movie, Rapunzel's hair [[spoiler: is cut off and reverts to its likely natural brown color]].
* In ''WesternAnimation/SpiderManIntoTheSpiderVerse'', Dr. Olivia has long, unkempt, [[BrainyBrunette brown]] hair with purple highlights to match her "[[CloudCuckoolander kooky]] [[DitzyGenius scientific]] GranolaGirl" aesthetic; she wears it pushed back under a colorful headband, but it still spills out all around her face and shoulders. When she [[spoiler: [[WhamLine reveals her last name--Octavius]]--and thus her role as the universe's [[LegacyCharacter Dr. Octopus]], she immediately ties her hair up into a more practical beehive style as she unveils her CombatTentacles and supervillain suit. This both depicts the [[BewareTheSillyOnes very real threat she now poses]] and emphasizes her AnimalMotif: the updo closely resembles the lengthy mantle of an actual octopus.]]

[[folder:Films — Live-Action]]
!!!'''In General:'''
* In films covering UsefulNotes/NapoleonBonaparte's whole life, he goes from long-haired revolutionary general to short-haired autocrat after he assumes power. Sacha Guitry's film even has a whole scene of Bonaparte getting a hair-cut, mostly as an excuse to switch actors.
!!!'''By Movie:'''
* ''[[Film/AceVentura Ace Ventura Jr.]]'' has the main character's hairstyle change to look more like his father's when he becomes determined to be a pet detective. He also wears the same clothes as him.
* In ''Film/AmericanHistoryX'', Derek Vineyard sports a shaved head when he is a skinhead and has hair both before he makes the change and after he rejects his racist beliefs. His brother also sports a shaved head when Derek returns, showing that he is following in Derek's footsteps into the skinhead clique.
* The LifetimeMovieOfTheWeek ''Film/AmyAndIsabelle'' uses Amy's hair as a clock to show the stage of her and Isabelle's relationship. In flashbacks, Amy is shown with a beautiful head of long curly hair. In the present, it's cut short. Flashbacks later reveal that Amy had an affair with her teacher, and Isabelle cut the hair off in a fit of rage after she discovered this. Later in the movie, after mother and daughter have sorted out their issues, Amy is taken to the hairdressers to have the haircut tidied up.
* ''{{Film/Avatar}}'' - Jake begins the film as a marine with a crew cut. As he embraces life with the Na'vi, his hair grows out a little.
* In ''Film/BeautyAndTheBeast2017'', both the Prince and Madame Garderobe, an opera singer, attend a party in the prologue wearing massively extravagant wigs to demonstrate [[BeautyIsBad their obsession with vanity and outward appearances]]. In the grand finale after the curse on the castle has been broken, both have their natural hair showing as a sign of their CharacterDevelopment while enchanted.
* In ''{{Film/Boyhood}}'' Mason usually has longer hair around the angstier parts of his life (the exception is when his abusive stepdad gives him a TraumaticHaircut). Likewise, his mother favours bobs and shorter styles whenever she's married or in a relationship. When those relationships end, she lets her hair grow out.
* In ''Film/CabinFever'' Marcy's hair is straightened on the first day of the trip. The next morning (after their run-in with the hermit) and the start of the weird events - her hair is more unkempt.
* In ''Film/CharliesAngels2000'', Knox's hair - along with his clothes - changes from shaggy, unkempt computer geek to slick coif [[spoiler: when we find out he's the bad guy]].
* ''Film/{{Divergent}}'':
** Tris's hair is used as a clock to symbolize her character development. In ''Divergent'', when she is part of Abnegation, it's tied up in a modest bun. When she joins Dauntless, it's kept in a ponytail. It only comes down whenever she's at her most vulnerable (usually when she's alone with Four). In ''The Divergent Series: Insurgent'' she cuts it drastically short, showing how she's haunted by what's happened to her. She [[spoiler:forgives herself for everything]] at the end of the film, so it has grown longer by ''The Divergent Series: Allegiant'' to reflect this.
** Jeanine wears her hair down in ''Divergent'' when she's merely a BitchInSheepsClothing. When she takes control in ''The Divergent Series: Insurgent'' she now wears her hair up.
** Natalie's hair was in a bun like Tris's at the start of ''Divergent''. [[spoiler: When she pulls a BigDamnHeroes moment in the climax to rescue Tris]] her hair is now down.
* In ''Film/AnEducation'', Jenny wears her hair in sophisticated updos when with David and his friends, but loose when she's with her schoolmates. Very symbolic of the fact that for all her pretense, she's still very much a child.
* In ''Film/EternalSunshineOfTheSpotlessMind'', Clementine's hair color indicated what part of the timeline we are seeing: red during her relationship with Joel, green in their first meeting, blue after they break up. [[spoiler:When they are seen together and she has blue hair, it's a hint that they got back together and this is not part of the memory removal flashback.]]
* In ''Film/{{Excalibur}}'', Arthur grows a beard after his "Wart" stage to show that he's become King Arthur and not the callow youth he was in the early parts of the film.
* In ''Film/GetOut2017'' when [[spoiler: Rose is revealed to be the villain]] it's marked by her hair being worn up and out of her eyes. In fact in the very scene featuring [[spoiler: the FaceHeelTurn]] she ties her hair up.
* In ''Film/HarryPotterAndTheDeathlyHallows'':
** In Part 1, the trio's hair grows gradually longer as they're out in the wilderness. Harry is shown getting a trim from Hermione but she later says "never ask me to give you a haircut again". Hermione herself begins the film with shoulder-length hair but it eventually reaches down to her elbows.
** In Part 2 the epilogue gives the trio different haircuts to show they're adults now.
* In ''Film/HigherLearning'', the shaved head demonstrates Remy's transformation from confused youth into deranged white supremacist.
* In the movie ''Series/ISpy Returns'', Bill Cosby is shown doing a comic double-take over his old identity picture (from the TV series) with its '60s afro.
* ''Film/JamesBond'' movie ''Film/DieAnotherDay'':
** Bond's imprisonment in North Korea is marked by the [[BeardOfSorrow growth of his hair and a beard]] ([[SerendipityWritesThePlot real reason:]] Pierce Brosnan was filming ''Literature/RobinsonCrusoe''), and once he escapes the first thing he does is get a cut and a shave to look like the Bond we know.
** Not to mention henchman Zao's abrupt change from relatively normal-looking to both BaldOfEvil and albino. (Oh, and he's got diamonds in his face, but that comes rather secondary to the missing hair.)
* ''Film/JurassicWorld'' shows Claire sporting a bob as a sign of what an independent career woman she is. By the time of [[Film/JurassicWorldFallenKingdom the sequel]] - during which she's now in a relationship with Owen - her hair has grown out long.
* From ''Film/TheLastSamurai'': Katsumoto's son, Nobutada, received an ImportantHaircut at the hand of Japanese riflemen; then he reappears as part of the rescue party that breaks his father out of imprisonment, and holds off the riflemen armed with bow and arrow. Algren is stunned by the sight of Nobutada since his wild and loose hair (and chosen weapon) gives him the appearance of the Native Americans he had had to fight prior to the movie.
* In ''Film/{{Limitless}}'', we see the protagonist's ex-wife in flashbacks with beautiful hair, but when we meet her, she has tangled, dishevelled hair and is suffering the after-effects of using the drug. Also, the protagonist's hair changes throughout the film depending on what's going on and how much time has passed.
* In ''Film/TheLordOfTheRings'', among the changes signifying the transition from Gandalf the Grey to Gandalf the White are a whiter, cleaner, and better-trimmed hair and beard.
* ''Film/TheMagdaleneSisters'' uses Bernadette's hair to show the passage of time. It's cut short after she tries to escape, and it growing back to its original length shows that time has passed. [[spoiler: After Crispina is taken away]], there's a TimeSkip to show Bernadette with her hair grown out long. [[spoiler: She now has the courage to escape from the laundry with Rose]].
* Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse:
** Loki starts off with tidy hair that doesn't reach his shoulders during ''Film/{{Thor}}''. When he returns as a would-be world conqueror in ''Film/{{The Avengers|2012}}'', his hair is quite a bit longer and noticeably uncared for. This serves as an indicator that he's considerably less stable than before, now more of a straight-up villain rather than a sympathetic AntiVillain. Come ''Film/ThorTheDarkWorld'', Loki's hair becomes more orderly while in captivity but is longer to denote the passage of time. After [[spoiler:Frigga's death]], he becomes very disheveled due to [[spoiler:[[EvenBadMenLoveTheirMamas grief]]]]. In ''Film/ThorRagnarok,'' his hair is more curly than in previous appearances, giving him a softer look.
** From ''Film/CaptainAmericaTheFirstAvenger'' and ''Film/{{The Avengers|2012}}'', Steve Rogers has an appropriately 1940s era haircut, which makes him stand out especially in the latter along with his wardrobe choices. By the time of ''Film/CaptainAmericaTheWinterSoldier'' he has a more modern haircut to symbolize how he's become used to the present day.
** For ''Film/CaptainAmericaTheFirstAvenger'' and ''Film/CaptainAmericaTheWinterSoldier'', [[spoiler:Bucky Barnes starts with the tidy hairstyle of a disciplined American soldier to the wild untamed locks of the chaotic Winter Soldier.]] For ''Series/TheFalconAndTheWinterSoldier'', it is noticeably short again after he seems to have distanced himself from that.
** ''Film/{{Doctor Strange|2016}}''. The clean-shaven Strange grows a messy BeardOfSorrow after his hands are ruined in an accident, and he loses his ability to wield a scalpel let alone a straight razor. He trims it back to a well-kept goatee after finding new purpose as a sorcerer (using an electric razor).
** In ''Film/AntMan1'', Hope Van Dyne has a SciFiBobHaircut, but in ''Film/AntManAndTheWasp'' she's grown it out due to her and Hank Pym being on the run after the events of ''Film/CaptainAmericaCivilWar''. This was actually [[LampshadeHanging lampshaded]] by Luis when describing Scott and Hope's history.
--->'''Luis:''' Scott met Hope and he was like, "We should be a thing" and she's like "Nah, I'm all business. Just look at my hair!"
** Natasha Romanoff's hair noticeably undergoes some changes after ''Film/CaptainAmericaCivilWar''. While its length constantly shifted between movies (it ended up being ''reliable'' that her hair went from short to long and back with each of her appearances), the colour was always meant to be the same. At the conclusion of ''Film/{{Black Widow|2021}}'', set immediately after ''Civil War'', she cuts her hair short and dyes it platinum blonde, to better help in hiding from Ross, and sports this look for the duration of ''Film/AvengersInfinityWar''. However, after the time jump in ''Film/AvengersEndgame'', she's grown her hair out and it is red again, with only some blonde tips left. This happens to be when she begins taking a leadership role in the Avengers and returns to being a public figure, while also having her look like her normal self [[spoiler: in her final days before she dies]].
* ''Film/{{Master}}'': Jasmine arrives to school wearing her hair in its natural texture. After having trouble fitting in as an African-American student in a mostly white campus, she starts to wear her hair straightened. Thanksgiving break arrives and with everybody gone, she goes back to her natural hairstyle.
* In ''Film/TheMatrix'', clothing and hairstyle changes indicate whether a scene takes place in the real world or in a computer system. After taking the red pill, Neo wakes up in a strange place with no hair or clothing. Later, Morpheus uses this effect to explain the Matrix to Neo:
-->'''Neo:''' Right now... we're inside a computer?\\
'''Morpheus:''' Is it so hard to believe? Your clothes are different. The plugs in your body are gone. Your hair has changed. Your appearance now is what we call "residual self-image". It is the mental projection of your digital self.
* ''Film/MeanGirls'':
** For each act of the film, Cady has a different hairstyle representing her journey from "homeschool jungle freak" (straight and ponytailed) to shiny plastic (a more puffed up, curled style to gel with the other Plastics) to actual human being (a simple, messy style).
** In the epilogue, Gretchen is seen with completely straightened hair now that she's in the [[AsianAirhead Cool Asian]] clique. One could interpret this as going from hair so big ([[MemeticMutation "it's full of secrets"]]) to having nothing to hide or be ashamed of.
** Regina begins wearing her hair tied up around the time the other Plastics start growing disillusioned from her.
* In ''Film/TheMessengerTheStoryOfJoanOfArc'', Joan's hair is used as a symbol throughout the movie:
** At the beginning, when she's convinced she's God's messenger, it's long and very blonde.
** When she arrives to Orleans to lead the army, she gets a boyish haircut to keep the generals from making comments about her being a girl: it works immediately, and she's the leader of the group by the next day. She keeps her hair short and it gets darker at each battle scene until she only has a few gold strands left.
** When she's in prison, doubting her faith and thinking she's going mad, her hair grows darker still and grows long again, though not as long as it was before she cut it.
* Sent up in ''Film/TheNakedGun'' series when a flashback to the characters in TheSeventies, and they all have longer hair (but don't look otherwise any younger), culminating in OJ Simpson's character, whose FunnyAfro is so big that it gets stuck in the door. A character then says in the present "That's right! You were one of the first test subjects for Minoxidil!"
* In ''Film/TheNextThreeDays'' Elizabeth Banks' character's hair goes from sleek platinum blonde (similar to her character in ''Film/IronMan'') to a wavy rusty brown after being imprisoned for three years.
* In ''Film/TheNines'' [[spoiler:Margaret/Melissa/Mary has plain brown hair that turns a vibrant red after she persuades Gary/Gavin/Gabriel to stop pretending to be something he's not.]]
* ''{{Film/Ophelia}}'': The final scene depicts her with waist-length hair again, she having previously had cut it short, indicating [[DistantFinale several years have passed]] since then.
* In ''Film/QueensLogic'', when Carla signals she wants to change her life, she has Patty dye her hair red.
* In ''A Royal Christmas'' (a Hallmark Channel movie), the snooty queen continually wears her hair in updos. At the end of the movie, having finally accepted her son's relationship with a commoner, it's down.
* From ''Film/TheRoyalTenenbaums'': Richie grows the typically long, scruffy hair and beard after his nervous breakdown, and then cuts and shaves them both right before [[spoiler:slitting his wrists with the same razor, because of his love for his [[NotBloodSiblings adopted sister]], Margot]].
* In the parallel universe film ''Film/SlidingDoors'', the version of the protagonist who catches her boyfriend cheating gets an ImportantHaircut and blonde dye job, while the other version stays with the boyfriend and keeps her long dark hair. Throughout the film, this is how we tell which universe it is.
* In ''Film/SpiderMan3'' when he is being influenced by the alien goo/Venom symbiote, Peter Parker restyles his hair into a side-parted style with bangs falling over one eye. This is often referred to as his "emo" look, quite getting for the character as the idea of eye-obscuring "emo hair" being self-effacing and semi-pathetic.
* Bizarrely ''averted'' in ''Film/StarTrekNemesis'', when we are shown an old photograph of Jean-Luc Picard from his academy days and he is seemingly just as bald (actually even balder!) than his older self. This despite it having been mentioned and shown in [[Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration the TV series]] that Picard used to have a full head of hair. This was supposedly done [[ViewersAreMorons to make it simpler to understand]] that the fully-bald Shinzon is really his clone.
* ''Franchise/StarWars'':
** After not having a beard in ''Film/ThePhantomMenace'', Obi-Wan has his familiar facial hair ten years later in ''Film/AttackOfTheClones''.
** Anakin has short Padawan hair in ''Film/AttackOfTheClones'', matching Obi-Wan's haircut in Episode I, whereas Obi-Wan has grown what's popularly known as the "Jedi Mullet" (even though it's long all around, meaning it's more of a "Jedi '70s Mane"). In ''Film/RevengeOfTheSith'', Anakin's hair again looks like Obi-Wan's from the preceding film and has grown out significantly, whereas Obi-Wan now has a much shorter haircut reminiscent of the one he had/will have in ''Film/ANewHope'' when played by Creator/AlecGuinness.
** After she falls into water in a cave on Ahch-To, Rey wears her hair down and in a single bun instead of the iconic three-bun style she wore through the entirety of ''Film/TheForceAwakens'' and ''Film/TheLastJedi''. Since she wore the latter as a child in flashback, the change symbolizes her finally giving up her hope that her parents will return for her.
* In ''Film/TheWall'', you know Pink has gone off the deep end when he emerges from his hotel bathroom with his messy hair slicked back and his eyebrows shaved off.
* In ''Film/WhatDreamsMayCome'', Annie's hairstyle changes throughout the flashbacks which helps the viewer to keep track of the timeline. Annie has long hair when she meets Christy and all through the happy family times, gets a TraumaticHaircut after the kids die, has a stylish bob cut four years later when she has recovered.
* In ''Film/WickerPark'' this is used subtly to indicate what time period we're watching. When it's two years ago, Matthew's hair is messy (and he wears casual clothes) while in the present it's tidy (and he wears suits). Lisa's hair is curly in the past and straight in the present. Alex's is kept up and dowdy in the past but she wears it down and pays more attention to it in the present.
* In ''Film/TheWorldsEnd'', we first see Gary King as a teenager, with obviously dyed but pretty cool-looking black hair. When we next see him at 37, he noticeably still has dyed black hair even though it doesn't suit him anymore or match his blond beard, reflecting his DiscoDan-levels of obsession with TheNineties, as well as how he [[ManChild acts like a teenager despite being almost forty]]. This is his look for the rest of the movie, and his personality is what ends up saving humanity from the Network. However, when we see him AfterTheEnd, the offscreen change in his character is signified by how he now has a clean-shaven face and his natural blond hair colour - as well as how he's asking in a BadGuyBar for a glass of tap water.
* ''Film/XMenFilmSeries'':
** Storm begins with [[LongHairIsFeminine hair which is long and loose]] in ''Film/XMen1'' and it later becomes a more practical pixie cut in ''Film/XMenTheLastStand'' as everything around her and the other X-Men goes FromBadToWorse. Her hairstyle gets even [[BoyishShortHair shorter]] in ''Film/XMenDaysOfFuturePast'' because she lives in a CrapsackWorld where mutants are being hunted down to extinction.
** ''Film/XMenApocalypse'': Creator/JamesMcAvoy's Professor X is finally bald, which means that his transformation into Creator/PatrickStewart's character is complete, albeit with a few tweaks to his personality because his experience in the AlternateTimeline is quite different.
** In ''Film/XMen1'', Rogue has brown hair, but when she's trapped inside Magneto's forced-mutation machine, the device's [[LifeDrain draining properties]] give her the iconic streaks of white that her comic-book counterpart has always possessed. By the next film, she's taken to dyeing the streaks blonde, signifying her acceptance of them.
* The title character in the movie ''Father Stu'' wears his hair messy and unkempt when he's an alcoholic boxer/struggling actor. It gets neater when he starts to get his act together and starts dating a woman from his church. By the time he enters the seminary, it's in a neatly cropped style and finally, as he develops a progressive muscle disease, it's in a buzzcut (likely because he can't maintain anything else).

[[folder:Literature]]
* ''LightNovel/AscendanceOfABookworm'':
** Girls under the age of fifteen are expected to wear their hair in a style that lets most of it naturally drop. Once they reach adulthood, they are supposed to bind their hair in a way that keeps most of it up. This results in there being an age range during which the only obvious difference between a minor and a woman who has come of age is the way she wears her hair.
** From an outside perspective, Myne is prone to changing hairstyles after major changes in her life:
*** Her PastLifeMemories from modern-day Japan awakening result in her starting to use a stick to partly bundle her hair, while she didn't seem to care much about styling her hair before that.
*** As Rozemyne, her noble identity, she has braids in her hair in addition to her bun.
* ''Literature/AvalonWebOfMagic'': An animal variant in ''Secret of the Unicorns''. Kara and [[{{Unicorn}} Calliope]] first bond when the former complains that her mane is dirty. [[note]]This is something of a case of SkewedPriorities, given that Calliope was lost in an alien world and had no idea how to leave.[[/note]] Kara agrees that hair is important and reassures Calliope that she'll clean it.
-->''"First impressions are very important." Kara held Calliope’s head to inspect her handiwork.''
* ''Literature/TheBible'',
** If a woman from a neighboring nation was taken as a prisoner of war and one of the Israelite men decided he liked her, he could take her as his wife (with her consent)... but he had to shave her hair and cut her nails first so she could mourn for her family (and so she would look less attractive, giving her captor time to reconsider his lust).
** Similarly, it is mentioned elsewhere that shaving the head was a sign of mourning.
* ''Literature/{{Circleverse}}'': Tris wears her hair loose in the [[Literature/CircleOfMagic first quartet]]. Between the second and third books, she cuts it short to keep from [[PowerIncontinence accumulating lightning in it]]. In the [[Literature/TheCircleOpens second quartet]], she wears her hair in a lot of pinned braids — each of which has a different kind of weather magic braided into it. Whenever adult-Tris wants to use a lot of magic, she starts undoing her braids.
* ''Literature/{{Deryni}}'': In ''The Bishop's Heir'', King Kelson has his hair braided to mimic that of his foster brother Dhugal [=MacArdry=]; it's initially a diplomatic effort to honour [[spoiler: Dhugal's grandfather]] The [=MacArdry=] in an effort to win over the highlanders and solidify their support of him. He retains the braid, and two of his cousins adopt the braid in admiration of their king and Dhugal. His cousin Conall retains the short-cropped style of the elder generation of courtiers (Morgan, Nigel), just as he rejects the notion of the need for diplomacy on that original visit.
* The more time passes in ''Literature/LordOfTheFlies'', the longer the plane crash survivors go without haircuts. Around the time they start to go completely around the bend, their hair starts obscuring their vision.
* In ''Literature/ARoseForEmily'', Emily's hair changes at important plot points.
* In the ''[=SERRAted=] Edge'' series, Joe, the son of a [[ReligionOfEvil crazy cultist leader]], was military-neat in the book he was introduced in, but when ''Chrome Circle'' came around, he was growing out his hair -- a sign that he had finally severed the link between him and his mad father, and his growing acceptance that he could perform magic.
* In ''Literature/TheWheelOfTime'', Perrin grows a beard midway through the series to show that he's a full adult now.

[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
* In the ''Series/TwoBrokeGirls'' episode "And the Married Man Sleepover", Max has her hair redone in a bouffant style, coinciding with her decision to let her relationship with Deke get more serious.
* ''Series/YediYuz'': Pınar begins wearing her hair down when she regularly uses Oşa's musical trigger in "Hayatın Musikisi". Previously, she had opted for a tight high ponytail that matched her restrained demeanor.
* ''Series/TwentyFour'':
** Jack Bauer's huge hair and beard growth during the time between season 1 and 2 and 5 and 6. Both eventually led to an ImportantHaircut.
** A more subtle one occurs in the series in between the first two seasons. Jack's regular hairstyle in the first season is noticeably longer than the much shorter style he commonly keeps it in for the remainder of the series, fitting the new more vicious, battle-hardened RogueAgent attitude he has from the second season onward and that's best remembered about his character.
** Tony has his head almost completely shaved and has PermaStubble to showcase his FallenHero period in Season 7.
** Bill also has a noticeable change in Season 7, going from the clean-cut style he had prior to a messier hairstyle and a similar PermaStubble look, as an indicator of him going underground to stop the latest terrorist threat.
** Chloe changes her hair every season, but the most dramatic change occurs in ''[[Series/TwentyFourLiveAnotherDay Live Another Day]]'', giving her a messy, black hairstyle with dark eye shadow. It's to reflect her BrokenBird status after [[spoiler:her husband and son were killed in a car crash.]]
* Played for laughs in ''Series/ThirtyRock'', when Judah Friedlander's character beta-tested Tracy's [[{{Hentai}} porn video game]] and ''three months'' of [[PoopSocking nonstop play]] felt like a few hours to him.
* Several on ''Series/The100'':
** When Octavia starts training to be a Grounder warrior, she adds braids to her hair to better fit in with the Grounders. Clarke changes her hair similarly in Season 3 as she's spending more time among the Grounders than her own people (she also dyes her hair red while trying to live anonymously, but that doesn't last long). She ends up keeping a red highlight in the back.
** Kane and Jaha were both clean-shaven on the Ark and kept their hair short and neat. On the Ground, their hair and beards grow out and become shaggier, as they're living more rugged lives without the positions of control they had on the Ark. Jaha goes back to having short hair, and trims his beard down to a soul patch after he becomes an emissary for ALIE, while Kane looks progressively [[LooksLikeJesus more like Jesus]] as he becomes determined to maintain peace ''nonviolently''.
** In Season 3, Jasper cuts his hair down to a buzz cut, which coincides with the development of his angst-ridden and hard-drinking persona.
* In ''Series/AgentsOfSHIELD'' Season 2:
** Simmons cuts her hair to show that she has matured since Season 1. Conveniently, this also helps [[spoiler:distinguish the real Simmons from Fitz's hallucination, whose hair naturally stays the way Fitz remembers it.]]
** Skye sports a fringe (bangs) to show that she TookALevelInBadass, although this is mostly shown by her change of clothing style.
** Ward grows a BeardOfEvil or possibly a BeardOfSorrow.
** In Season 3, Skye has cut her shoulder-length hair to neck-length, showing her growth as a character. [[spoiler:It also serves to make her appearance look closer to her comic counterpart, and symbolizes her acceptance as an Inhuman.]]
** When rewatching old episodes, you can easily tell what season you're in according to Skye's hairstyle. In Season 1, it's at shoulder-length and light brunette. In Season 2, she adds the aforementioned bangs and the color becomes a darker brunette. In Season 3, she gets the aforementioned cut to chin-length and the color goes even darker still ([[spoiler:this is also when she switches to going by her previously unknown real name of Daisy]]). In Season 4, it's back to her Season 2 style, but keeping Season 3's darker coloring.
* ''Series/BabylonFive'' has Delenn, who changes her hairdo towards the end of season two. The change in hairstyle comes along with a new and more secure role as councelor and war leader, whereas her former hairstyle was accompanied by a feeling of insecurity regarding her new "human" features.
* ''Series/{{Arrow}}'':
** Oliver had long hair in the flashbacks, a leftover of his [[HandsomeLech idiot playboy persona]] five years ago. He cut it short upon returning to Starling City and keeps it that way for the rest of the series.
** In the final season, Earth-2 Laurel cuts her hair drastically short and dyes it platinum blonde, showing her full transformation into a distinct Black Canary from her dead Earth-1 counterpart (in Season 7, she mostly took after Earth-1 Laurel's style, as this was right after she underwent a HeelFaceTurn and hadn't had time to craft a new identity).
* ''Series/{{Battlestar Galactica|2003}}'':
** After the Fleet in finds New Caprica, Starbuck grows out her hair. She later [[ImportantHaircut cuts it all off]].\\\ She stopped cutting it around the time she first meets Sam Anders: on her first trip back to Caprica, it looks like her original haircut in need of a trim, and by the time she gets back, it's just long enough to tie back. Her ponytail gradually gets longer but still neat until the timeskip, after which it's long and untidy until the ImportantHaircut. The growth seems to parallel the erosion of her identity as a soldier.
** After [[spoiler: he leaves the army]], Apollo starts to let his hair grow, which is very common (in real life, a lot of male soldiers are compelled to have very short haircuts, and [[spoiler: are relieved to give up this constraining routine when they become civilians]], but in Apollo's case, this change of hairstyle matches with his developping self-confidence and independence.
* ''Series/BehindHerEyes'': In the past, Adele had long, flowing, wavy hair. In the present, she has a straight chin-length bob to reflect her new personality and [[spoiler:the fact that she isn't Adele anymore.]]
* Flashbacks in ''Series/BirdsOfPrey2002'' show Helena with long hair. Seven years later, after the murder of her mother and becoming the vigilante Huntress, it's short.
* In ''Series/{{Bones}}'':
** The character of Zack Addy is given a significant makeover, to signify his emotional development. However, the only real change is his curly floppy hair being trimmed down to a neat short-back-and-sides.
** Also, the hairstyles of Brennan and Hodgins changed throughout the series. Originally Brennan had characteristically frizzy hair and Hodgins sported a curly afro until her hair became more kempt and his was cut short. In the OriginsEpisode #100, the original styles come back.
** Hodgins also reverts to a scruffier hairstyle and longer hair both after Zack leaves the show and during his season 11 DontYouDarePityMe period after being paralyzed, but it gets neater when he starts coping better.
** Booth is scruffy and has a BeardOfSorrow during and just after his prison stint in season 9-10. He hangs onto the look up until he is ready to take out Sweets’ murderer himself. But after Brennan breaks through to him and convinces him to let the system solve the case, he shaves, goes back to his neater hair, and goes back to work.
* In ''Series/BreakingBad'':
** Walt gets an ImportantHaircut in which he [[BaldOfEvil shaves his head]] in preparation for chemo.
** He also grows his silly mustache into a [[BeardOfEvil full goatee]] during a time skip. It shows that time has passed and also makes him look more ominous as he makes the transition from pathetic science teacher to dangerous meth cook.
** Used again during the Season 5 premiere, when [[spoiler:we see a flash-forward to Walt sometime in the future with a full head of hair and a shaggy unkempt beard. The change in appearance is made more dramatic because Walt has been bald with only a neatly trimmed mustache/goatee since late Season 1.]]
* ''Franchise/{{Buffyverse}}'':
** A relatively subtle, constant example with Spike, whose position on the HeelFaceIndex at any given time often correlates with how slicked-down or messy his hair is: the more tousled it is, the more you're meant to sympathise with him. It's almost as if he too is aware of this; when in episode 2 of season 7, he attempts to ''pretend'' he's [[spoiler: still soulless]], he slicked-down his hair, whereas the rest of the season (where he lets his softer side come out) it's pretty consistently tousled.
** Willow starts off the series sporting chest-length hair, which she sports for the first two seasons. During Seasons 3-5, her hair gets gradually shorter and less straight as she grows more and more away from her original shy nerd girl persona and then gets longer and more straight again in Seasons 6-7 as she becomes more independent and comes into her true power as a witch. Dark Willow's hair becomes very dark, almost black, and changes back to her natural red when Xander brings her back from being evil. Conversely, Goddess Willow's hair is pure white.
** Buffy's hairstyle changes in episodes where she's NotHerself, e.g. "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS4E9SomethingBlue Something Blue]]" (LovePotion), "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS4E16WhoAreYou Who Are You]]" (GrandTheftMe), and "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS4E17Superstar Superstar]]" (RealityWarper). In fact, whenever Buffy's hair is curly, it's normally a sign that she's not acting herself or crazy. This goes all the way back to Xander's daydream in "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS1E4TeachersPet Teacher's Pet]]".
** In Season 6, Buffy's hair has darkened to a more strawberry blonde to reflect [[spoiler: her trauma at being ripped out of heaven]]. As her toxic relationship with Spike progresses, it's marked by a drastically shorter cut at the season's midpoint. She gets over it at the end of the season, and the start of the next shows her hair having grown out again.
** As a human and Angelus, Angel often sported either long, shoulder-length hair, either down or in a loose ponytail. After regaining his soul, he cut his hair shorter by the 1920s, occasionally slicked with a side part. In the next five decades, he kept his hair that way until the 1970s where had grew out his hair again. Since the late 1990s during his tenure in Sunnydale, his hair was consistently spiked upward at the front with styling product (a fact that he was apparently unaware of, due to his reaction upon seeing his reflection in a mirror during a trip to Pylea). The length seemed to be slighter shorter around 2002 and while CEO of Wolfram & Hart, he sometimes had his hair combed over. Around the fall of Los Angeles, Angel returned to his notable spiked look.
** Gunn was originally bald, but he grew a short layer of hair once he got his lawyer smarts. It was not mentioned by a character until more than halfway through the season (shortly after which, ironically, Gunn returned to his original cut after the cost of keeping his new knowledge resulted in him [[spoiler:unwittingly taking part in a conspiracy that led to the death of his ex-lover, Fred]]).
** Also, when Wesley goes through his darker phases, he grows a layer of stubble. Seasons 1 and 2 Wes have no facial hair at all, while seasons 3-5 have Wes with varying degrees of facial hair.
** In high school, Cordelia kept long, medium brown hair and had a notable fringe in the eleventh grade. In Los Angeles, Cordelia continued with the same hair length, though it appeared darker. She eventually cut her hair down to shoulder length. She then cut her hair further down into a graduated bob cut with blonde highlights after being fired. Months later, she then had short, brown chin-length hair but then changed to a blonde, layered bob cut up around the time of her ascension as higher being, but then changed brown again and short length when she was possessed. After her coma, she had a shoulder length, brown perm. As a spirit, her hair returned to its early stages as long, straight and brown.
** For most of history, Anya's hair remained dark brown and long. While at Sunnydale High, she retained short, light brown hair while made it darker when she started dating Xander. By the end of 1999, she lightened her hair cut it down into a bob but let it grow out the following months. During the months Glory was around, she retained short, curly and blondish hair which eventually grew out the later months. After Buffy's resurrection, she kept long, sandy blond hair, similar to Buffy's the year before. In the months as a vengeance demons after Willow's attempt at destroying the world, she had long, dark brown hair and eventually cut it down and made it blond again [[spoiler:before her death]].
** Oz's hair color continuously changed: before meeting Willow, he had light red hair; he dyed it chestnut brown after his first meeting with Willow, who noticed the change; he dyed his hair blond after his first monthly transformations; during the first months of his repeated senior year, he had dark hair with light spikes, which teenage Principal Snyder thought was "great hair"; he dyed his hair black around the time he began dating Willow again; he dyed his hair blond shortly before graduation; at graduation he had dark hair with light spikes again; during college at UC Sunnydale and in Tibet, he had auburn hair.
** Lindsey [=McDonald=] had longer hair in the first two seasons. Midway through Season 2 when he starts feeling conflicted between his growing attraction to Darla and Wolfram & Hart's plans - leading to a HeelFaceTurn - his hair is cut short. When he returns in Season 5 as a villain once again, his hair is back to its long length.
** During her coma, Faith's hair grew longer and became noticeably wavy and lighter.
* In ''Series/Candy2022'' the story starts out on 1978, with Candy's hair in [[SeventiesHair short, tight permed curls]]. By the time she goes to trial for Betty's murder in 1980, the perm is gone, and her hair is about chin-length, indicating the passage of time.
* In ''Series/{{Castle}}'' Detective Kate Beckett starts season one with short, blunt brown hair. As the seasons progress and she becomes a more obvious love interest for Richard Castle, her hair becomes more stereotypically feminine, by growing longer, wavier, and getting blonde highlights. In one case, [[http://badwasabi.tumblr.com/post/32365606333/and-so-after-a-while-spent-brooding-in-the-rain apparently overnight]].
* ''Series/{{Charmed|1998}}'' did this a lot with the Halliwells.
** Phoebe went through five hair changes in the fourth season. She started off with blonde highlights that disappeared into a caramel brown as Paige was welcomed into the fold. It was dyed brown for one episode and then darker still when Cole proposed. After [[spoiler: he is possessed by the Source]] she has cut it to shoulder length. Then when [[spoiler: she becomes his queen]] it darkens to an almost black hue. Notably in Season 5 when she's trying to distance herself from Cole her hair is longer. Her drastic short haircut in Season 6 was a case of Alyssa Milano wanting to do something for her 30th birthday, but it does overlap with Phoebe gaining empathic powers. Her hair growing longer in season 8 coincides with her desire to find love as opposed to just having a baby. Before that she first dyed her hair blonde in Season 3 which coincided with her romance with Cole. The colour softened and darkened the more the romance developed. When she starts having visions of her future self in Season 7, she has long hair.
** Paige's hair turned red in Season 5 when she jumped into her duties as a witch. The other characters joked that her hair turned that color after a potion blew up on her. She goes strawberry blonde in Season 6 when she starts working temp jobs and she has gone back to her natural brown when she stops going to the jobs.
** Prue's hair starts off in a bob at the start of the series but grows longer as her powers grow. It's noticeably nearly waist-length in Season 3 when she's at her most powerful.
** Piper is notable in that her hair doesn't change much in the series. Her hair grows to waist length in the third season and stays that way for the whole series. She does start off in the series having bangs which she gets rid of early on in Season 2; they return for a bit in Season 6, coinciding with the drama between her and Leo.
** In the episode "Morality Bites" the sisters visit the future and all have different hairstyles. Prue's normally black hair has turned blonde, to show that she's a powerful businesswoman now. Phoebe's shoulder-length hair has grown to waist-length along with her powers increasing. Piper's hair is curly, reflecting that she's a mother now. Amusingly this becomes prophetic of the other actresses changing their hair a lot on the show (the episode is in Season 2) while Piper's wouldn't change much.
** Phoebe, Prue and Paige reverting to their teenage selves in different unrelated episodes is accompanied by them getting thick bangs.
** When Chris is a morally ambiguous figure in Season 6, his hair is at its longest; in a messy, curtains style. His self from a good future has much shorter, neater hair.
* ''Series/{{Chuck}}'':
** The titular character grows a huge {{beard of sorrow}} and sits at home moping at the beginning of season 3, because [[spoiler:he quit his job, lost Sarah AND didn't pass spy training]]. Later, he tries to buy more junk food at the Buy More and does so looking remarkably like the [[Film/TheBigLebowski Dude]] with morning coat, beard, hairstyle, and sunglasses.
** His hair also gets shorter as he becomes more professional, and embraces becoming a spy. It's quite shaggy in the first two seasons, gets a little shorter and much neater in season 3 until by season 5 it's very short.
* In the ''Series/CityGuys'' episode "Frisky Business", Chris returns from spending the summer in Europe, with a shorter haircut. He states the reason he did it was because his long hair got him mistaken for a girl and while touring Italy, he was hit on by men who threw him "pick-up vowels" ("aaay, oooh, eeee!").
* ''Series/CobraKai'':
** Miguel Diaz starts with relatively neat hair in season 1. By the end of the season, when he becomes more of a jerk thanks to Cobra Kai's teachings, he styles it in a pompadour. Like the attitude, he lets it go later. By season 4, he's grown his hair out a bit similar to Xolo Maridueña's natural hairstyle, which also gives him a bit more of a resemblance to Daniel.
** Robby Keene sports longish center-parted 90s' hair during season 1, which he ties back in a ponytail to fight in the All-Valley Tournament. After joking with Sam about his hair in Season 2 and getting mistaken for "[[Series/MiamiVice Dan Johnson]]", he cuts it all off at the beginning of Season 3 while he's on the run after injuring Miguel in the school brawl. In season 4, after he joins Cobra Kai, he begins styling his hair in a way that gives him a strong resemblance to [[Film/TheKarateKidPartIII Mike Barnes]].
** To "flip the script" and illustrate that he's embraced the Cobra Kai way of being a badass, Eli shaves the sides of his head and styles the middle into a blue mohawk, and begins going by "Hawk". Partway through season 2, Hawk redyes the mohawk red, marking his transformation into a vicious bully who goes after his friends over perceived slights.
** Samantha [=LaRusso=] constantly wears her hair loose in season 1, during a time when she's avoiding karate and trying to fit in with the popular kids at school. In season 2, when she gets back into the swing of karate, she starts pulling her hair back, the only notable exceptions being at Moon's party (where she has her season 1 hairstyle again) and in the school fight, [[ByTheHair when she really could have used it]] during her fight with Tory. In season 3, when Sam is dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder in the aftermath of the fight, her hair is much messier, suggesting that she hasn't been taking much care of it.[[note]]This is actually how Creator/MaryMouser normally styles her hair when she isn't shooting[[/note]] Once Daniel helps her work through her fear of Tory and she gets back together with Miguel, she starts to pay more attention to her hair.
** Yasmine wears long [[Film/MeanGirls Regina George]] hair in season 1, when she's the top [[AlphaBitch mean girl]] at school. When she returns in season 3, she's sporting a slightly less-flattering choppy bob, reflecting how she's been [[LovableAlphaBitch brought down a notch]] after being humiliated by Aisha, as well as her openness to get together with someone as offbeat and "uncool" as Demetri.
* ''Series/{{Community}}'' "[[Recap/CommunityS3E04RemedialChaosTheory Remedial Chaos Theory]]": In the tag set in the "dark timeline" where Pierce is dead, Annie went insane, Shirley is drunk, Troy lost his larynx, Jeff lost an arm and Britta...
-->'''Jeff:''' Britta, you put one wash-away blue streak in your hair and I lost an '''arm'''.\\
'''Britta:''' Exactly! Life got '''dark'''!
* ''Series/{{CSI}}'' :
** Grissom's beard got to be this and it was lampshaded once how he seemed to shave it when Sara was there and he was happy and then she left and the beard came back. (although he wore it between season 4 and early 7 while she was there.)
** Nick Stokes started out with a longer hairstyle but by the end of the series, he’s gone through a lot and become more of a leader and he sports a buzz cut and stubble.
* The last episode of the 1980s adaptation of ''Series/{{The Day of the Triffids|1981}}'' gave the protagonist much longer hair and a TimePassageBeard of epic proportions as visual shorthand for their hardscrabble daily existence as subsistence farmers after the not-so-CosyCatastrophe.
* ''Series/DegrassiTheNextGeneration'':
** In season 7, Darcy's hair goes from wavy to straight right before [[spoiler: she is raped]]. Then goes back to wavy after the storyline is resolved.
** Anya ceases to wear her hair in ponytails when she stops being Holly J's lackey and starts to come into her own story. Holly J stops wearing ponytails on a daily basis when she stops being the AlphaBitch at the end of Season 8.
* ''Series/DoctorWho'':
** The First Doctor companion Steven Taylor shaves off his beard (offscreen) after the Doctor agrees to take him on as a companion, signifying his decision to join the crew, not to mention his decision to rejoin civilisation as he'd been marooned on a planet populated entirely by spherical robots for two years.
** Both Liz and the Doctor sport different haircuts in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS7E3TheAmbassadorsOfDeath "The Ambassadors of Death"]] to the ones they had in the previous story, [[Recap/DoctorWhoS7E2DoctorWhoAndTheSilurians "Doctor Who and the Silurians"]]. From this and a few other details (like the Doctor now having a fully-decorated and quite worn-looking living room), we can surmise that a reasonably long time has elapsed between the end of "Doctor Who and the Silurians" and "The Ambassadors of Death", somewhat helping to explain the AngstWhatAngst after such a harrowing adventure and that the Doctor seems to have mostly [[EasilyForgiven forgiven]] the Brigadier for committing a genocide of defenseless thinking beings at the end of the last story.
** The Third Doctor's hair gets longer and increasingly elaborate and curled as his relationship with UNIT softens up.
** Mike Yates is kicked out of UNIT at the end of [[Recap/DoctorWhoS11E2InvasionOfTheDinosaurs "Invasion of the Dinosaurs"]]. By the time of his reappearance in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS11E5PlanetOfTheSpiders "Planet of the Spiders"]], his hair has grown out into a ([[FashionDissonance then]]) fashionable long cut rather than the military haircut he'd sported up until that point.
** In [[Recap/DoctorWhoS15E6TheInvasionOfTime "The Invasion of Time"]], the Fourth Doctor wears his hair differently — with a side parting, and straightened at the root — to give him a [[EvilCostumeSwitch darker, crazier look]].
** Leela was intended to start wearing her straight hair in Victorian-esque curls to mimic the Doctor's curly hair and indicate his growing influence on her, but due to the season being re-edited to make K-9 a companion she reverts to her old hairdo after that story.
** The Fourth Doctor goes through a few subtly different shapes and cuts for his [[MessyHair mop]] as he goes, reflecting the show feel. In S12, when he's still going for the scruffy "eternal student" aesthetic, it looks like a short cut that has been grown out due to neglect (the actor had just grown out a short cut he'd had for a previous role); in the darker Seasons 13-15, it becomes deliberately layered long cut with long sideburns, giving him a Byronic look; in the goofy S17, he has it in a rounder FunnyAfro cut with short, precisely-groomed wedge-shaped sideburns. It looks most different in Season 18, where it is visibly greying and has a different texture to match the Doctor's more subdued and dark personality. This was something of a WrittenInInfirmity as the actor was seriously ill and it had made his usually glossy and curly hair dull and straight (he'd had to have it permed before resuming filming). In the same season, after Romana leaves the TARDIS, he alters his short fringe into a sort of bouffant style with the fringe combed off his face.
** Generally speaking, any Doctor who returns after a significant timeskip will do so with a different haircut. Specific examples include the long-haired Seventh Doctor in the [[Recap/DoctorWhoTVMTheTVMovie TV Movie]], the short-haired Eighth Doctor and long-haired War Doctor in [[Recap/DoctorWho50thPrequelTheNightOfTheDoctor "The Night of the Doctor"]] and the short-haired Curator in [[Recap/DoctorWho50thASTheDayOfTheDoctor "The Day of the Doctor"]].
** While all of the Doctors have different hair each [[TheNthDoctor regeneration]], all of the Classic Doctors seem to prefer relatively long hair, generally hovering somewhere between earlobe and shoulder, with the Eighth Doctor, the most recent at the time, getting Byronic flowing hair. Therefore, when the series got a huge ReTool after a hiatus of over a decade, media commentators at the time were genuinely shocked that the costume department had decided to give the new, Ninth Doctor a buzz cut. This was to distinguish the new series from the old one, as well as a way of indicating that the Ninth Doctor was going to be the most moody, no-nonsense Doctor yet seen — definitely no [[{{Camp}} scarves or frilly shirts in sight]]! (It should also be noted that the shaved-head-and-leather-jacket look was thoroughly associated with [[LGBTFanbase gay communities in the UK at the time]], which served as a MythologyGag to the producer's [[Series/QueerAsFolk last work]] and also fit the new interpretation of the character.) All of the modern Doctors so far have also had rather short hair.
** [[Recap/DoctorWho50thPrequelTheNightOfTheDoctor "The Night of the Doctor"]] shows that the old Eighth Doctor has cut off his iconic [[LongHairedPrettyBoy pretty-boy long hair]], indicating that he is now much older and much less of a pretty boy, and has been living as a soldier for some time. He also has started wearing PermaStubble, despite having been clean-shaven in his typical appearance.
** In [[Recap/DoctorWho50thASTheDayOfTheDoctor "The Day of the Doctor"]], we meet the incarnation between the Doctor's Eighth and Ninth, who [[NomDeGuerre does not go by the name "The Doctor" due to a desire to disown his actions in war]]. One of the main indications that he's not like his other selves is that he is the only one who wears facial hair, when every other Doctor, regardless of age and taste otherwise, seems to prefer being clean-shaven (a few habitually wear small, tidy sideburns, and the Second and Tenth Doctors have [[PermaStubble perma-shadow]], but that's it — this preference is briefly lampshaded by the Tenth Doctor in [[Recap/DoctorWho2007CiNSTimeCrash "Time Crash"]]). This is further emphasized by the fact that the newly-regenerated War Doctor, as he has not yet participated in the War, is clean-shaven as he checks out his reflection and goes to [[BatmanGrabsAGun pick up a gun]].
** The Tenth Doctor spent this episode with a much longer, shaggier haircut than usual, which Eleven calls his "grunge phase". Since the episode is presumably set between [[Recap/DoctorWhoS30E16TheWatersOfMars "The Waters of Mars"]] and [[Recap/DoctorWhoS30E17E18TheEndOfTime "The End of Time"]] in [[TimeyWimeyBall his part of the timeline]], it may reflect his despair at nearly crossing the MoralEventHorizon, as well as his impending death. Returning to the closer cut would in turn reflect at least some acceptance of what's coming, even if he still takes it rather badly when it's time to regenerate.
** Clara's hairstyles during Season 8 are used to indicate the length of time passing between each trip, due in part to one of her gimmicks as a companion being that she doesn't actually live with the Doctor. It fluctuates wildly in terms of length — super-long in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS34E3RobotOfSherwood "Robot of Sherwood"]], bobbed in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS34E8MummyOnTheOrientExpress "Mummy on the Orient Express"]], longish with a blunt fringe in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS34E6TheCaretaker "The Caretaker"]], etcetera. The Doctor's haircuts differ more subtly but are similarly inconsistent — longer in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS34E5TimeHeist "Time Heist"]], shorter in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS34E1DeepBreath "Deep Breath"]], very short at the sides with a longer bit on top in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS34E9Flatline "Flatline"]]...
** Also averted a couple of times due to problems. For instance, the Chief Scientist in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS6E7TheWarGames "The War Games"]] grows a beard between several episodes that are only a few hours apart diegetically, which can be a pretty confusing TimePassageBeard RedHerring seeing as the plot involves villainous use of time machines. Similarly, the Doctor's hair has been cut noticeably between [[Recap/DoctorWhoS6E1TheDominators "The Dominators"]] and [[Recap/DoctorWhoS6E2TheMindRobber "The Mind Robber"]] even though the two stories lead straight into each other, and everyone's (the Brigadier's, Sarah Jane's and the Fourth Doctor's) hair has grown out significantly between the cliffhanger at the end of [[Recap/DoctorWhoS11E5PlanetOfTheSpiders "Planet of the Spiders"]] and [[Recap/DoctorWhoS12E1Robot "Robot"]] even though they link directly to each other, bad enough that the [[FlashbackWithTheOtherDarrin cliffhanger had to be reshot to make it less noticeable]] (although justified in the case of the Doctor, who is still regenerating).
** The Twelfth Doctor's hair changes throughout his era rival those of his Third incarnation's. The difference between the very, very short close-cut in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS34E1DeepBreath "Deep Breath"]] to the wild, flowing hair in [[Recap/DoctorWho2017CSTwiceUponATime the 2017 Christmas Special]] is staggering, and it reflects the Doctor's change from a grumpy, stern old man to his much more lax, goofy and younger-acting personality he developed later on in his era. It's a change you don't really notice if you watch episode-by-episode as it's very gradual.
* ''Series/{{Farscape}}'':
** Aeryn Sun generally wore her hair somewhat past her shoulders, and usually tied up in a neat little braid, which only made sense as she was an ActionGirl. She softens slightly as the show progresses, and when John first encounters her at the beginning of the fourth season she has a possibly terminal condition — and a ''sheet'' of ''very'' long, thick, and unbound black hair (which somehow manages to fit in a coldsuit like Scorpius'). Her hair returned to something approximating its original length some time after she got better, but she rarely (if ever) has her hair braided or even in a ponytail from that point on — because even in her most badass moments, she's generally being badass because someone she cares about is in trouble.
** Whether it's before or after his HazyFeelTurn, the state of Crais's hair is a good barometer of his metal state. If it's a neat SamuraiPonytail, he's in control of himself. The stragglier his hair gets, the more his level of sanity is slipping.
* In ''Series/LaFemmeNikita'', the three top people in Section One, Operations, Madeline, and Michael, all get dramatic new haircuts at the beginning of season 3, signaling that Section has [[TookALevelInBadass taken a level in badass]]. Partly [[EnforcedTrope enforced]] because the actor playing Madeline had lost her hair due to chemotherapy and the actor playing Michael couldn't stand the long mane anymore and just got his hair cut between seasons. The actor playing Operations went from gray to platinum, presumably in solidarity with Section's sleek new look. Nikita kept her long blonde tresses.
* ''Series/{{Firefly}}'' had a flashback with a mustache-wearing Wash that disturbed more than one viewer. And, it's implied, his future wife.
* ''Series/{{Fringe}}'' has a version of this: Fauxlivia always wears bangs, even when she's pretending to be Olivia, and Olivia only wears bangs when she [[spoiler:has been brainwashed into thinking she's Fauxlivia]], and stops wearing them when she gets back home.
* ''Series/GameOfThrones'':
** After Margaery takes up residence in King's Landing, her signature style gradually takes over the capital's fashion from Cersei. Thus the many noblewoman extras ditch their flamboyant updos in favor of Tyrell style intricate ponytails.
** Likewise [[PrincessClassic Sansa Stark]] starts wearing a Southern hairstyle to match what the Royal Court is wearing. Her TomboyPrincess sister stubbornly maintains her Northern look. When she pretends to be Littlefinger's niece, she dyes her hair black until she has to be identified as one of the Starks.
** Jaime grows an appropriately leonine one while in Northern captivity in Season 2 and he keeps it thick into the rest of Season 3. His hairstyle changes to a shorter, simpler cut in Season 4 to indicate his new-found humility and a disconnect with his earlier self.
** Arya gets an ImportantHaircut to disguise herself as a boy at the end of Season 1, and the hair gradually growing back corresponds with her character development. Notably, it gets to shoulder length when she begins her Faceless Man training. Fittingly it has returned to its original length [[spoiler: when she finally returns home to Winterfell]].
** Cersei's TraumaticHaircut at the end of Season 5 wouldn't count - except the short hair she keeps for the remainder of the series is a reflection of her growing insanity.
** Missandei is introduced with her hair tied up in a bun. When she willingly becomes Daenerys's handmaiden, the hair is worn looser to show that she's a free woman.
** Daenerys herself begins the series as NaiveEverygirl with her hair fully down. As her confidence and power grow, she begins to wear her hair in a series of braids that get more elaborate.
** Creator/KitHarington [[WordOfGod confirms]] that Jon's switch to a man-bun starting in Season 6 is [[https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2018/09/210400/kit-harington-dolce-gabbana-the-one-grey-fragrance meant to echo Ned's hairstyle and show Jon's growth]].
** Sam becoming a Maester corresponds with him wearing his hair brushed back and slightly longer.
** Podrick sports longer hair in Season 8 as a sign that he's grown up.
** Tyrion's hair darkening is half-practical - as continually dyeing it blond was too taxing for Creator/PeterDinklage - and also symbolic of his status. [[spoiler: After murdering Shae and Tywin, and then fleeing King's Landing]] he's also grown a BeardOfSorrow.
* On ''Series/{{Glee}}'':
** Quinn cut her hair into a bob at the end of season 2 in the hopes that it might make her happier. It doesn't work, and when she appears at the start of season 3, she's dyed her normally blonde hair [[http://25.media.tumblr.com/d30429f9112df3d0c68302517c7cf8f1/tumblr_ml8x6tuGWm1qijplgo2_250.gif pink]] and wears it messily to show how she's lost interest or any sense of caring (she's actually really depressed). When she wants to re-enter her daughter's life, she dyes it back to blonde and wears it in neat waves to show that she's regained a sense of (false) stability.
** Sam's hair goes from long throughout most of season 4-5 to a sleek haircut when he decides to try and take his modelling seriously.
* Crowley in ''Series/GoodOmens'' has hair that changes with the times, from long with braids at Noah's Ark to a man-bun in the mid-20-teens. By contrast, Aziraphale's is always a halo of short curls.
* On ''Series/{{Gotham}}'', the length of Barbara Kean's hair is usually inversely proportional to how evil she is at a given point in the story. In the first season, where she's not a villain [[spoiler: until the last episode]], it's quite long, but she cuts it to about neck-length in the second season to coincide with her FaceHeelTurn, and it gets shorter and shorter as she grows in her independent villainy, to the point that it's a pixie cut in the fifth season. Then in the finale, [[spoiler: after she makes an against-all-odds HeelFaceTurn, it's once again long, not to mention a comics-accurate bright red, when she'd previously always been a blonde.]]
* In ''Series/GreysAnatomy'':
** You can literally tell when the plot for Izzie Stevens is shifting—her hairstyle changes. From consistent ponytails to long, straight hair, to long, beautiful curls, you know some angst is coming.
** Lampshaded, temporary example from the same series:
--->'''Meredith:''' Good Morning!\\
'''Derek:''' ''[double take]'' ...[[CaptainObvious you're wearing an alarmingly high pony tail.]]\\
'''Meredith:''' [with forced cheerfulness] Your mother is coming!
* ''Series/{{Heroes}}'':
** Future-Hiro's long hair (and soul-patch!) is used to show that he TookALevelInBadass.
** At the beginning of season 2, Nathan sports a [[BeardOfSorrow thick beard]] during his drunken depression inspired by [[spoiler: Peter's supposed death.]]
* Duncan [=MacLeod=] cut his hair after Richie's death in ''Series/{{Highlander}}: The Series''.
* ''Series/HowIMetYourMother'':
** This happens all the time to Lily. Admittedly, she changes her hair color over every summer so it has to change in flashbacks, but we've also seen her with Hillary Clinton hair in the future. It's used as shorthand to remind viewers what year the flashback takes place (because the show is an absolute sex shop of ContinuityPorn) because having "the year 2006" or something up on the screen for more than a few seconds would be annoying. So, straight, black, goth: 1996-2000; fiery red, short, curly: 2002-summer of 2006; dark, no bangs: summer of 2006-summer of 2007; dark with bangs: summer 2007-spring of 2008; dark, layered: spring 2008-summer 2009; auburn, wavy: summer 2009-summer 2010; light red, shorter, wavy: summer 2010-summer 2011; summer 2011-summer (we assume, from flashforwards) 2012: light red and straight; 2020-2029: red, Hillary Clinton-ish.
** Averted, or rather ignored with her husband, though. Marshall's hair tends to stay the same in flashbacks, which was quite noticeable when it was comparatively long in season 4. The only notable exception is the rat tail he had as a 15 year old, which he expected to still have as a 30-year-old.
* ''Series/ItsAlwaysSunnyInPhiladelphia'': As the seasons go on, Frank Reynold's hair becomes increasingly longer and unkempt, symbolizing his descent into depravity.
* In the ''{{Series/Lost}}'' season 3 finale they make use of this. In the end, we find out that [[spoiler: Jack's hair growth (beard) indicates that the episode flash ''back'' is actually a flash ''forward''.]]
* ''Series/{{Lucifer|2016}}'':
** If Lucifer's normally well-groomed hair is messy, it indicates either one of two things: he has just gone out of bed, or he is too upset to bother grooming it. The second variant is seen in a couple of episodes, notably after he kills his brother Uriel, and when he learns that Chloe wants to send him to Hell.
** "[[WholeEpisodeFlashback City of Angels?]]" has a few of these. Maze has long, straight black hair instead of the colorful and constantly changing hairdo she is known for, as she has recently arrived on Earth and has yet to learn human culture. Charlotte also sports a long bob instead of the flowy long hair seen in the present, as this takes place when she was still an AmoralAttorney.
* Every main character from ''Series/MarriedWithChildren'' with the exception of Steve, Buck, and Lucky went through this:
** As Al's hair got thinner, [[MaddenIntoMisanthropy he became angrier and more misanthropic.]]
** The bigger and more red Peg's hair became, [[{{Jerkass}} the more obnoxious she was.]]
** Kelly became noticeably stupider as soon as she cut her hair.
** Once Bud started growing facial hair, he became more pathetic and perverted.
** When Marcy started cutting her hair shorter, she became more shrill and antagonistic, especially towards Al/men in general and her [[StrawFeminist feminist qualities]] got cranked up.
** After Jefferson cut his hair and let it go a darker brown, he became lazier and [[StrawMisogynist more of a reflection of the other members of NO MA'AM.]]
* ''Series/{{Merlin|2008}}'':
** Merlin's hair gradually shortening as the series progresses is a reflection of his character development.
** Gwen's hair is typically just past her shoulders and curly -- emphasizing her UnkemptBeauty status as a servant girl. [[spoiler:After she is crowned Queen]] her hair is now waist-length and straightened.
** Morgana's normally perfectly conditioned and styled hair becomes slightly more unkempt in season 4 [[spoiler: after she has been exposed as a traitor and is in hiding]].
* Micky Dolenz's naturally curly hair in the first season of ''Series/TheMonkees'' was styled straight and combed to resemble Music/TheBeatles' "moptop" look, as the Monkees were Beatles [[{{Expy}} Expies]]. In the second, [[GrowingTheBeard more psychedelic season]], Dolenz grew out his hair and kept it curly. To a lesser extent, Mike Nesmith's sideburns were wider by season 2.
* Briefly in season 2 of ''Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000'', Tom Servo has his dome shaved down to a cyclical shape. This was done, meta-wise, to lower how much Tom's dome obscures the screen, but the creators hated it and preferred his old look.
* In ''Series/TheNewsroom'', Maggie cuts her hair short and dyes it red after a traumatic experience in Uganda. Also crosses over into ImportantHaircut when the audience finds out why she did it.
* ''Series/NightAndDay'''s Roxanne Doyle dyes her hair black when she reverts to her given name of Helen, while Natalie Harper adopts a World War II hairstyle during one of her (many) personality crises.
* In ''{{Series/Numb3rs}}'', the most recent season premiere had several characters suddenly grow facial hair or at least a significant amount of stubble. Colby at least had the excuse of having been in jail, but was like the "Everyone Grows a Beard" episode. Colby and Charlie had shaved by the next episode, but Larry kept the stubble.
* ''Series/OnceUponATime'':
** Regina in Storybrooke begins with PowerHair. In Season 2 when she attempts a HeelFaceTurn her hair grows a little longer. When she sides with her evil mother, the hair is back to its shorter length. When she undergoes a HeelFaceTurn for good, her hair grows with it. By the end of Season 4 when she's fully on the side of good, her hair is much longer. In Season 6 when she actually separates her evil self into a separate entity, her hair is back to its shorter length in Season 1.
** Emma begins the series as an AgentScully with curly hair. As she's exposed to the nature of the curse, her hair is worn straighter.
** Ursula the sea witch had dark hair in her youth when she was good. Now that she's evil, her hair is now blonde.
* At the start of season five of ''Series/OneTreeHill'', Nathan grows a shoulder-length mane and unkempt stubble to symbolise his dark emotional state, and later shaves/gets a haircut to signify that he's no longer tempted to throw himself into his mansion pool.
* Joannie Trotter changed her hairstyle four times: the first time was in the pilot episode of ''Series/OnlyFoolsAndHorses'' {{Prequel}} ''Rock and Chips'', modelled after Creator/MarilynMonroe; the second time was in the second episode "Five Gold Rings", modelled after Creator/ElizabethTaylor; and the third and fourth times were in the third episode "The Frog and the Pussycat", modelled after Creator/AudreyHepburn and Creator/JaneFonda.
* ''Series/PersonOfInterest''. After a HappyFlashback, we SmashCut to our protagonist John Reese as he is now, drunk and wearing a BeardOfSorrow in the subway, though still badass enough to [[MuggingTheMonster take down some thugs who try to attack him]]. After deciding to take Finch's offer, Reese shaves his permastubble, cuts his hair, and [[BadassInANiceSuit puts on a nice suit]], greatly confusing the thugs when he runs into them later.
* In ''Series/ThePillarsOfTheEarth'' miniseries, Prior Philip is shown with a beard during the final scene to show that a great deal of time has passed and he is much older.
* ''Franchise/PowerRangers'':
** In ''Series/PowerRangersDinoThunder,'' the two EvilMinions are fighter Zeltrax, able to take on any Ranger, singularly or all together (as long as one isn't Tommy) and monster-maker Elsa, who is typically put out of a fight if she gets hit ''once.'' Then Zeltrax "[[NotQuiteDead dies]]." Then Elsa changes her hair. Suddenly, she's able to handle the entire team without breaking a sweat.
** While [[FashionVictimVillain Astronema]] from ''Series/PowerRangersInSpace'' has plenty of non-expository hairstyle changes, the scene where she sheds her long, curly, royal blue wig (and heavy makeup) pretty much scream out that she's no longer the BigBad but TheHero's cute sister. Then she dresses up as Astronema again, with a very, very short tomato-red bowl cut, and becomes a creepy and even ''more'' [[BastardUnderstudy bastardly]] EmotionlessGirl, thanks to brainwashing cybernetic implants--although more dramatic in this case was the fact that pre-implants Karone-disguised-as-Astronema wore very colorful makeup, while post-implants Astronema was ghostly pale.
* In ''Series/{{Primeval}}'', Connor and Abby went through this while they were [[spoiler:stuck in the Cretaceous]]. Connor sprouted a beard, while Abby's normally short hair became unkempt and neck-length. Connor lost the beard, but Abby's hair remained long.
* ''Series/SabrinaTheTeenageWitch'':
** Zelda's hair is short in Season 1 but grows out in Season 2. This also marks a shift in characterization; initially portrayed as a stern disciplinarian, Season 2 softens her and plays her status as the OnlySaneMan for laughs - giving her much more NotSoAboveItAll moments.
** Harvey's hair shortens in Season 2 when he and Sabrina decide to take a break from their relationship. At the start of Season 3 when they agree to go steady again, it's longer.
** Sabrina's hair turns red in Season 5 showing how she's experimenting with life in college (and her actress Melissa Joan Hart had done the same).
** Josh spending a summer in Prague - and Sabrina worrying that he's changed - is marked by him growing facial hair.
** Roxie's hair growing to waist length across the series also matches her softening and becoming a better friend to Sabrina.
* ''Series/{{Scrubs}}'':
** One episode sees Elliot Reid have her long blonde hair cut into a short, layered style with a fringe (or "bangs"). She then marches into Sacred Heart dressed in black, finally able to tell people what to do. Her badassery is also emphasised in the haircut montage, in which she rips her poster of a kitten. However, she tapes it together shortly after. Some things never change. It's shown that maintaining the look is hard for her but by Season 4 she's found a balance.
** The season seven premiere is only a week or so after the season six finale, but either a chance to use this trope is avoided or Dr. Cox's hair started growing REALLY fast. It had barely grown out from his head-shaving breakdown, but became a full head of sproingy locks in the new season.
* Parodied on ''Series/{{Seinfeld}}''. Season 9 opens with George, Jerry, and Kramer all sporting moustaches, explained as George (out of work and extremely bored) having suggested they grow them to take "a vacation from ourselves". All three of them quickly decide they hate the moustaches and shave them off less than five minutes after the start of the episode.
* ''Series/{{Sherlock}}'':
** John Watson devoted the years following Series/{{Sherlock}}'s [[spoiler:apparent suicide]] to growing a [[BeardOfSorrow Moustache of Grief]]. It is magnificent.
** In "The Empty Hearse", Sherlock has gained bedraggled long hair and a beard due to being held captive by Serbian terrorists. After his rescue, we cut to a scene where John is being criticised for his incredibly unflattering moustache by Mrs Hudson, who tells him that he can't escape middle age. We then cut straight back to Sherlock lying in an impromptu barber's chair in Mycroft's office, being shaved with a straight razor and having his hair restored to the same style he wore in previous seasons while telling Mycroft that he has no interest in reaching middle age himself. This is all obviously done to highlight the differences in their attitude - John is trying to move on, even if it doesn't suit him, while Sherlock cannot move on and sees no reason why anyone might want to.
** Later that episode, despite ignoring large amounts of criticism of his moustache, John eventually shaves it off because {{Sherlock Scan}}ned his fiancée Mary and determined that she secretly hates it. John attempts to explain to her later that he shaved it for her benefit, but both Mary and the audience know it's because Sherlock was the one who suggested he do so.
** When Sherlock has been living for months in a squat doing heroin, he grows a rubbish beard and wears his curly hair in a neglected mop. Even though he cleans himself up afterwards and gets his life back on track, as indicated by him reverting to his usual clean-shaven look, he only starts wearing his hair in the tidy, flowing style he used to at the point when the audience knows for sure that he'd only been doing it as part of a cover, and not because he's succumbed to his junkie impulses again.
* ''Series/SpartacusBloodAndSand'':
** Agron in Season 1 sported long braids. [[spoiler: His brother Duro is killed]] in the finale, and in the Season 2 premiere he has now cropped his hair. It's not explained why, but it does coincide with him taking a more prominent role in the resistance.
** Crixus begins the prequel series as a recently [[MadeASlave forced slave]], and sports shaggy long-hair and a beard. After he becomes the champion gladiator, his hair is shorn into a military-type haircut. As the seasons progress, it grows out longer to reflect his freedom, until Season 3 where it resembles a more grizzled version of his original long hair and beard, showing his maturity and return to his roots.
** Naevia is first introduced with her hair usually tied up, and only being [[LettingHerHairDown worn down]] as her romance with Crixus blossomed. It's all cut off in a TraumaticHaircut by a jealous Lucretia, and she's not found until months later in Season 2 when it's still growing back. She has become a proper DarkActionGirl by Season 3, where it is now longer but worn [[BraidsOfAction in various styles of braids]].
** The prequel series shows that Lucretia's decision to start wearing red wigs was to honour her friend Gaia who was [[spoiler: cruelly murdered by Titus]]. This marks the start of her FaceHeelTurn into becoming one of the villains of the parent series.
* On ''Series/StargateSG1'', Daniel's hair goes from long hair similar to what he had in the movie to much shorter styles as he becomes more action-oriented around his military friends. Teal'c, usually shaven bald, grows hair in later seasons as he becomes more like Earth humans. And time-travel or alternate-universe episodes often featured wigs to give clues about how the alternate character is different — for example, alternate-universe versions of Carter get conspicuously long, flowing hair in any world where she didn't join the military.
* In ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'':
** Sisko shaves his head and grows a beard in order to mark his promotion from Commander to Captain in the fourth season. Behind the scenes, this was also a concession to Creator/AveryBrooks, who was prevented from shaving his head when he first landed the part so that he would look distinct from his previous character Hawk from the ''Literature/{{Spenser}}'' adaptation "Spenser: For Hire."
** Kira Nerys, who spends six seasons with [[http://www.startreklives.de/crew/images/kira3.gif close-cropped hair.]] During the seventh season, after her RelationshipUpgrade with Odo, her hair becomes [[http://www.euderion.de/Materialien/Charaktere%20DS9/Nana%20Visitor%20-%20Kira/Nerys%20smile.jpg much sleeker and more feminine.]]
* ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'':
** The TropeNamer for GrowingTheBeard, William Riker, did this in the second season to show that he had outgrown simply being a Kirk clone, and this is also when the show was thought to have hit its stride.
** There is also Deanna Troi, who had two of these early in the series. In response to viewer complaints that her character was too peppy and cheerleader like in the pilot, her hair was worn in a PrimAndProperBun (along with her adopting most of the corresponding personality traits, most notably being much more emotionally reserved) for the remainder of the first season. After it was decided that her character had gone too far in the opposite direction (becoming too reserved), the second season had her LettingHerHairDown, which stuck for the rest of the series and the four subsequent movies.
** In the first 2 seasons of TNG, Worf wears short hair to contrast himself from other Klingons that have WildHair, showing he's much more stoic than them. Then, from seasons 3 through part of season 6, [[https://tng.trekcore.com/hd/albums/3x07/the_enemy_hd_355.jpg Worf starts wearing longer hair]], which was also when he started connecting more with other Klingons, although this particular hairstyle drew humorous comparisons to ComicStrip/PrinceValiant. Starting in season 6's "Face Of The Enemy", Worf starts wearing his hair in a SailorsPonytail, which he sticks with through the rest of the franchise.
* ''Series/StarTrekDiscovery'':
** Michael Burnham's hair has changed repeatedly throughout the series. In flashbacks to her childhood and when she first joins Starfleet we see her wearing a Vulcan-esque bowl cut, which makes sense given that she grew up immersed in Vulcan culture; in the first two-part story "[[Recap/StarTrekDiscoveryS1E01TheVulcanHello The Vulcan Hello]]" when she's a lieutenant in Starfleet she has a more human hairstyle, more relaxed than the Vulcan cut but still worn straight; fast forward a few months following her imprisonment for mutiny after the first story, and for the rest of the first two seasons, she wears a more natural short curly cut. In season three she grows this out, first into a longer spiral bob and then into box braids [[spoiler: while waiting for the ''Discovery'' to arrive in the 32nd century]].
* In ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'', Castiel grows a beard while in purgatory and Kevin Tran gets a short hair cut after being captured by Crowley. Similarly, when Dean is [[spoiler: posessed by Michael]] the most evident change is that his usual casual brush cut is now combed, parted, and slicked back. When we see it without the newsboy cap, anyway.
* ''Franchise/SuperSentai'':
** In the second arc of ''Series/TensouSentaiGoseiger'', three of the heroes get one: Moune gets a bob in place of her wavy shoulder-length hair, Agri's hair becomes shorter and light brown instead of blond, and Eri stops wearing a ponytail (although it had returned by the end of the show.) This made Moune look less like her yellow ranger predecessor [[Series/SamuraiSentaiShinkenger Kotoha]], who had a similar hairstyle.
** In most team-ups, the previous year's team will have different hairstyles, known as "Vs Hair" in the fandom. This serves the effect of making them looking like the more experienced team, since the actors usually change hairstyles after the end of the show in an effort to prove they can do more "grown-up" roles.
* In ''Series/TheThickOfIt'', Malcolm's hair is white in the final season. This was Creator/PeterCapaldi's own hair, but was left in as it reflected how the character had experienced a [[DiseaseBleach mental breakdown]] before then - it serves to remind the audience that even though he's functional now, the experience has left him permanently scarred.
* In the KoreanDrama ''Series/TwinkleTwinkle'', the two female leads change their hair length/curl/color ever time they make an important decision. Every. Single. Time.
* In ''Series/TwinPeaks'', Leland Palmer suffers some serious {{Wangst}} when he finds out his daughter Laura has been murdered. After he [[spoiler:kills Jacques Renault (one of the murder suspects) at the end of the first season]], his hair turns white and he acts unnaturally cheerful. [[spoiler:It also signifies that he's possessed by Killer BOB, the show's Big Bad]].
* In ''Series/VeronicaMars'', the sweet, naïve Veronica of years past is recognizable not just by the blur-effect and blue-green lens used to indicate flashbacks, but also by her long, golden, angelic hair. Pre-season one she becomes disillusioned and [[ImportantHaircut shortens her hair significantly]]. She starts growing it out in season 2 and it's quite long by the end of the year, and remains that way next season, which may be symbolic of her softening up a little with [[spoiler:having solved Lily's murder]]; alternatively, Kristen Bell may have wanted to wear her hair long. However, there is a certain innocence in her earlier long hair that her later long hair lacks -- her earlier hair is straight as an arrow, her later hair very wavy and even curly.
* ''Series/{{Vikings}}'': About two decades pass across the first four seasons, so some male characters change their hairstyles to show the passage of time. Ragnar crops off his mohawk/braid and eventually shaves his head bald while also steadily growing out his beard. Floki's hair also gets sparser and his beard longer, until he too is bald and long-bearded. Meanwhile, Bjorn grows a braid and a beard to achieve a look similar to Ragnar's youthful style, showing that Bjorn is taking his father's place.
* ''Series/XenaWarriorPrincess'' - Gabrielle is a TechnicalPacifist ActionGirl with long Red Hair. In season 4 she becomes an Actual Pacifist following an involuntary haircut and then falling under the influence of Crystal Dragon Jesus Eli. Although in the immortal words of Monty Python, "she got better."
* On ''Series/TheXFiles'', Scully's usually short hair is grown out during Mulder's abduction of season eight and gets even longer in his absence of season nine. She retains this long hair though revival seasons, until the mid-point of season eleven when she cuts it short again.

[[folder:Music]]
* In part due to the counterculture, a lot of rock groups that began in the early-mid 1960s would later grow out their hair during the second half of the decade, coinciding with the evolution of their music into more experimental, sophisticated or heavy styles and leading to the image of long hair being associated with rock and roll. A group wearing short combed hair and suits in 1964, would probably don perms and frilly psychedelic regalia in 1967, and then have long hair, more casual and baggier clothes in 1969. However some groups, like The Pretty Things, beat everyone to the punch before the psychedelic era had a chance to come and go.
* The psychedelic [[Music/SgtPeppersLonelyHeartsClubBand Sgt. Pepper]] era of Music/TheBeatles came into effect when the former moptops wore mustaches, muttonchops, and beards, and John wore [[RoundHippieShades his famous round glasses]].
* Dave Gahan of Music/DepecheMode grew his hair out to shoulder-length and grew a BeardOfSorrow during the early-to-mid'90s when he was at the height of his alcohol and drug addiction, only to cut his hair again and lose the beard once he got clean and sober. Likewise, he and the rest of the band went from typical EightiesHair during their early years to more "normal" haircuts by the late '90s.
* Sir Music/EltonJohn got a hair implant in TheNineties, which quite helped when he went from CampGay to StraightGay.
* Music/MarilynManson in the "Mechanical Animals" era has crimson-red hair, a typically outlandish hair colour, supposedly used to signify a theme of "alienation" (literally -- the album cover portrays him as a red-haired androgynous naked alien-type-thing).
* Music/MileyCyrus' full transformation from Disney princess to her "mature" persona can be visually marked by her change from girlish long hair to the short pixie cut she received in 2012, though in 2016, she outgrew it to a chin-length hairstyle and then shoulder length a year later.
* When Music/OzzyOsbourne went solo in the early 80s his hair was bleached blonde. Peculiarly as his sound became more influenced by mainstream rock his hair seemed to get bigger and blonder. When he hired Zakk Wylde and went back to a more traditional heavy metal sound he ditched the bleach and eventually went back to his natural straight brown.
* After Music/RickAstley stopped working with ''Stock Aitken and Waterman'', he let his formerly short and slicked-back hair grow to chin-length. See his video [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pfRfPon9vmU Cry For Help.]]
* Music/{{Eminem}}'s CareerResurrection in 2009 came with him returning to his natural dark hair instead of the [[DyeHard peroxide blond]] he'd been [[MemeticHair famous for]] previously. The song "My Darling" on ''Relapse'' portrays this as an ImportantHaircut in [[KayfabeMusic kayfabe]], but it was actually because he worried that dying his hair again would serve as an addiction trigger. Em later returned to blond to signal RevisitingTheRoots for ''The Marshall Mathers LP 2'', then went dark again and grew a beard to signal a more middle-aged, ConsciousHipHop direction for ''Revival'' (which he called attention to in "Walk On Water", in which he analogised ditching the blond to his [[WhiteDwarfStarlet fading fame]]).
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Pro Wrestling]]
* Wrestling/{{Aksana}} changed her hair when she underwent a character switch in FCW. She was originally a FunnyForeigner DumbBlonde. She then became a much more serious FemmeFatale and adopted black hair with a thick fringe.
* Wrestling/AlexaBliss had blue and purple tips in her hair as a face. When she turned heel and joined Blake and Murphy - who were color-coded with red - the tips became red too.
* Wrestling/AliciaFox's hair was dark blonde and straight when she debuted as DJ Gabriel's dance partner. When she was traded to Smackdown and appeared as a heel, her hair was worn curly. She would continue to wear it in an afro or tightly curled for most of her time as a heel. After her HeelFaceTurn her hair was dyed bright red and worn straight more often. And if it was curled, it was more relaxed. Also when she started appearing as a face and heel at random depending on the week, her red hair had changed to a more muted dark brown.
* Wrestling/{{Cameron}} normally wore her hair straight in The Funkadactyls. As she started showing signs of a FaceHeelTurn, she began to wear her hair curly. When she fully underwent the turn and faced her former partner Naomi, she had darkened her hair to a two-tone blonde and black colour. Naomi meanwhile wore her hair in braids or relaxed curls after the split.
* Wrestling/CandiceMichelle began highlighting her hair around the time she TookALevelInBadass in 2007.
* Wrestling/{{Carmella}} had a mixture of brown and blonde hair when she debuted as the TokenEvilTeammate to Enzo Amore and Big Cass. Around the time she underwent a proper HeelFaceTurn and established herself as part of their entourage for good, her hair became completely blonde.
* Wrestling/{{Charlotte}} added extensions to her hair when she won the NXT Women's Championship and solidified herself as a star.
* Wrestling/{{Sting}} started off with a bleach-blond flattop haircut to go with his surfer gimmick. But in late 1995, he stopped bleaching his naturally dark brown hair and started growing it out. Soon after he switched to a darker gimmick that was based on ''Franchise/TheCrow''.
* Wrestling/CMPunk appeared with his normally slicked back hair shaved to a buzzcut after his 2012 FaceHeelTurn. In 2013 after he returned from hiatus and underwent a HeelFaceTurn, his hair was a little longer and he had Wolverine-like sideburns.
* [[Wrestling/TenilleDashwood Emma's]] hair was completely blonde for most of her NXT career. As she began a FaceHeelTurn and hooked up with Wrestling/DanaBrooke to form Team Disingenuous - the color was replaced with a balayage of brown into blonde.
* You can almost track Wrestling/DanielBryan's WWE career by his hairstyles alone. As the EnsembleDarkhorse NXT rookie, he had a crew cut and PermaStubble up to his first World Heavyweight Title run in 2014. After the infamous 18-second loss to Sheamus, and perhaps to go along with his character's descent into madness, his hair and beard began to lengthen with time=. By two years later and his WrestleMania 30 [[AwesomeMomentOfCrowning main event win]], his hair was a shoulder-length mane and he had an impressive, voluminous beard to go along with it. By the following year at WrestleMania 31, he was approaching LooksLikeJesus levels. Then a string of injuries started, eventually culminating in his retirement from in-ring competition in February 2016. The tip-off to many that this retirement was ''not'' a work was that he emerged for the announcement having cut his hair into a short, conservative style. He transitioned into an on-screen authority figure and occasional announcer, so this fit for a while. Eventually, though, he stopped cutting it regularly, and by the time of his return about two years later, his beard and hair had lengthened to about the level he had worn it during his main event run. His AEW debut added an undercut with a top knot.
* Downplayed with Wrestling/EveTorres but she wore her hair up for the first time when cutting her first heel promo.
* Wrestling/{{Layla}} initially started out with an afro, then changed to shoulder-length hair with a thick fringe when she became a heel. After returning from injury as a face, her hair was now nearly waist-length. She lightened her hair eventually to blonde after losing the Divas' Championship but she then went back to brunette. She cut her hair into a bob in 2015, retiring a few months later.
* Wrestling/MadisonRayne had platinum blonde hair when she was in the Beautiful People. It was shoulder-length when she was in her subservient role and she added extensions when she became the champion. When she split from them and adopted her 'Queen Bee' persona, her hair changed to brown. When she lost the Knockouts Championship to Mickie James, she removed her extensions. After returning from her maternity leave now as a face her hair was red and longer.
* While he was away filming ''The Marine 3'' and just before his HeelFaceTurn, Wrestling/TheMiz returned and his normal fauxhawk had been replaced by a longer and slicked back style.
* Wrestling/SashaBanks changed her dark blonde hair to brown after splitting from the [=BFFs=] and then changed to red when she started developing into a top heel. After splitting from Team BAD, her hair became pink and was worn straight more often. Further into her face turn, it became fuchsia. After a break with natural black, Banks returned as the villainous Blueprint with azure locks.
* Wrestling/TripleH:
** In his heyday, he tended to sport a beard if he was a face. He was clean-shaven during his time in Evolution. Additionally his traditional long hair was cut short after his loss to Brock Lesnar in 2012. When he returned to television, he was in the role of The Authority and no longer a regular wrestler. Eventually, he became bald.
** Before this, Hunter wore his hair in a ponytail, then a half-updo as the Connecticut Blueblood, completely down as the leader of DX, shortened to shoulder-length and worn wet for matches with a growing BeardOfEvil weeks after his FaceHeelTurn at WrestleMania XV. The latter stuck until shaving of the beard at Summerslam 2002.
* In TNA Bobby Roode's switch from long hair to a buzzcut helped fit the transition between his previous Beer Money Inc character and his new serious World Champion character.
* Similarly Wrestling/VelvetSky's blonde highlights lessened a little after her TNA HeelFaceTurn.
* From his debut in the 80s until 1997, Wrestling/ScottSteiner had a dark mullet and was clean-shaven. Then, his look began to change. First, he grew a goatee and wore his hair in a ponytail. Then, he cut his hair short towards the end of '97. Finally, after turning heel in early 1998, he bleached his hair and most of his beard blond as part of his new "Big Poppa Pump" persona.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Theatre]]
* In the musical ''Theatre/{{Hamilton}}'' Alexander Hamilton has his hair tied back for most of the first act up to the song Yorktown ("The World Turned Upside Down"), to signify him when he was young (from 14 till about 27 years old) (after Yorktown is "What Comes Next?", which is one of King George III's numbers). By the next song "Dear Theodosia", Hamilton has his hair down until the end of the show (from 28 years old to 47/49 years old).
* In some productions of ''Theatre/{{Hamlet}}'', Ophelia will start the play with her hair in an updo, and as she descends further into madness, her hairstyle becomes looser and looser until it's completely down.
* Agent Curt Mega in ''Theatre/SpiesAreForever'' grows a truly hideous beard during his 4 year break from the agency to show how much he was hurt by the death of his best friend [[spoiler: and secret lover]] Owen, which he inadvertently caused with his own negligence. [[spoiler: In the end, it was actually all for naught because Owen survived the accident.]]
* In the Austrian stage musical ''Theatre/TanzDerVampire'', the scullery maid Magda wears her (straight) hair loose but tidy or in a braid until she is bitten late in Act I. In Act II, she has become a vampire, and her hair has become much so wavy that it seems to have a mind of its own. She now wears it in a sultry half-pulled-up style.
* In ''Theatre/{{Wicked}}'', Elphaba begins the show wearing her hair in a scholarly braid, until Galinda decides to give her a makeover in "Popular". She keeps her hair loose under her signature pointy hat after that, signifying her growing confidence.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Video Games]]
* In ''VideoGame/BlazeUnion'', the True Route has Garlot start wearing his hair down [[spoiler:after his childhood friend dies and he [[ThatManIsDead changes his name to Gulcasa]]]]. It makes him look older and more serious, and goes well with that HeroicBSOD he's stuck in after that point.
* By ''[[VideoGame/BackyardSports Backyard Hockey]]'', Tony's hairstyle has changed from a huge patch of brown hair near his forehead to more laid back black hair, giving him more of a gangster attitude.
* ''VideoGame/Cyberpunk2077'':
** Kerry goes through three haircuts: in 2013, his hair is short and messy. In 2023, he's sporting a [[EightiesHair mullet]], signifying that he's grown into his rocker persona. In 2077, his hair is kept in a modern cut, but it's completely [[SilverFox grey]], showing that, despite his age, he's still young at heart, for better or [[{{Manchild}} worse]].
** [[TheFixer Rogue]] used to have a blue [[EightiesHair mullet]] in 2023. In 2077, her hair is still long, but it looks more like a classical cut, and is [[SilverFox grey]], to show that she's matured into the "Queen Of The Fixers".
* A number of characters in the mobile game ''VideoGame/EnsembleStars'' are shown with different hairstyles in the previous school year, some changes being more significant to characterization than others. The main two:
** Rei loses the slicked-back look he had as a delinquent, instead opting for a more relaxed look that better suits his current "tired old man" persona.
** Tsumugi grows out his hair and puts an electric blue streak in it, apparently as part of some kind of agreement with Natsume. He states a couple of times that he finds it annoying and wants to cut it, but Natsume won't let him. It's possibly part of an attempt to make up with Natsume following the things he did the previous year.
* When we meet [[PlayerCharacter Sam]], from ''VideoGame/DeathStranding'', for the first time, his hair is loose. After he agrees to connect the nation to the Chiral Network and travel the [=US=] from east coast all the way to the west, he ties up his hair into a small ponytail. [[spoiler:After he finishes his quest and leaves [=BRIDGES=], he lets it loose again]].
* In the last scene of ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIX'', Garnet's hair, [[spoiler: which she had cut to chin length midway through the game, has grown back down to its original waist-length,]] indicating the amount of time that has passed.
* ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyTactics'': Sometime after [[WhamEpisode Fort Zeakden]], Ramza lost the ponytail marking him as a cadet, also symbolic of how, at the same time, he opened his eyes to what a CrapsackWorld Ivalice is if you're not at the top of the heap. (His [[IdiotHair cowlick]] remained, though, because he refused to be anything but a determined optimist and hero.)
* ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'' and related:
** In ''Final Fantasy VII'' flashbacks, Vincent Valentine is shown as a Turk -- with short, more military-esque hair. After sleeping for a few decades, (during which the rest of his body isn't aged in the least), he's now a gun-wielding, shape-shifting good guy -- with long hair to the middle of his back.
** Midway through ''VideoGame/CrisisCore'', Zack changes his hairstyle after [[spoiler:having to kill his mentor.]]
** The only time in the original game or ''Compilation'' when Cloud is shown without his trademark spiky hairstyle is at the end of ''Crisis Core'', at the moment when he [[HeroicBSOD snaps and loses his identity]].
* Yuna, the demure and timid Summoner from ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyX'', wore her hair down to her shoulders during her pilgrimage. In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyX2'', set after [[spoiler: the defeat of Sin]], she has become a [[GunsAkimbo gun-wielding]] [[ActionGirl Sphere Hunter]], and her hair is cropped much shorter except for a long, rope-like braid that falls down to ankle-height. It's also styled to look exactly like Tidus's hairstyle (long braid aside). A cute (and completely understandable) homage to her gone-forever boyfriend, but potentially embarrassing [[spoiler: after he gets better.]]
* The poster boy (representative of the PlayerCharacter) in various ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'' trailers has his gear change based on a different battle class, which happens with every new expansion announced. By ''Stormblood'', the character's hair goes from short to a mop head look mixed with PeekABangs, signifying their wearied and more experienced look. By ''Shadowbringers'', the character has grown a PermaStubble. Because the poster boy (and by extension, the player) has gone through several emotionally traumatizing events throughout the story, the longer hair and stubble reflects their changing attitude.
* ''VideoGame/FireEmblemThreeHouses'' does this with a few characters to show changes after the timeskip.
** Dimitri's hair grows longer and becomes a mess, reflecting his broken mental state and how he spent the last five years as a vagrant [[spoiler: on every route except Crimson Flower.]]
** Ferdinand's hair grows halfway down his back and becomes tangled and unkempt in the back. This is because he's too preoccupied with the war to remember to cut it, [[spoiler: and if recruited on any route besides Crimson Flower, because he spends the next five years as a fugitive.]]
** Bernadetta's hair is much neater, better showcasing her more confident personality, including [[spoiler: always being out of her room on Crimson Flower.]]
** While Sylvain's hair is still spiky, it's also neater than it was pre-timeskip, reflecting his more serious personality during the war phase.
** Ingrid cuts her hair to [[BoyishShortHair barely chin-length]]. This shows that she's fully dedicated to fighting, [[spoiler: and on any route besides Azure Moon, cutting her ties to House Galatea to fight for her own beliefs.]]
** Annette loses her GirlishPigtails and Ashe's hair is both neater and slightly longer, showing that they are now full-grown.
** Marianne cuts her bangs and her updo is noticeably neater, signifying her better mental health.
* Of the facial-hair variety in ''VideoGame/GodOfWarPS4'': Kratos has grown a full, thick beard in contrast to his clean-shaven younger self to demonstrate just how OlderAndWiser he has become.
* In the ''Second Vision'' titles of ''VideoGame/TheIdolmaster'', a few of the idols change up their hairstyles. Ritsuko switches her girly braids for a professional bun, Azusa cuts her hair short (which she also does in the anime when Ryugu Komachi is formed), and Mami grows out her side ponytail to distance herself from her identical twin Ami.
* In ''VideoGame/JakIIRenegade'', you know Jak is going to be all badass now when you see that he's grown a soul patch. Likewise, you can tell he's matured and mellowed out a bit (a ''bit'') at the start of ''VideoGame/Jak3Wastelander'' when he trades it in for a goatee.
* When Riku reappears in ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII'' his hair is grown down past his shoulders, reflecting both his increased maturity struggle he's been having. In ''VideoGame/KingdomHearts3DDreamDropDistance'', he's resolved most of his issues and has cut it shorter than it was at the start of the series, implying an off-screen ImportantHaircut.
* ''VideoGame/LonelyWolfTreat'':
** Mochi is a cheerful GenkiGirl who has short hair at the start of the series. After her first BreakTheCutie moment, she becomes melancholy and her hair grows long and loose. When she gets her cheer back, her long hair is tied into twintails.
** Danny starts out as an ApatheticClerk with PeekABangs-styled hair. When they start [[LGBTAwakening figuring out their gender identity]] and [[TookALevelInCheerfulness opening up to others]], their hair is tied back so their whole face is visible.
* In ''VideoGame/MapleStory'', Illium initially sports BlindingBangs to illustrate his crippling shyness and lack of confidence. After being empowered by the Elder Crystal, his hair is bleached white and shaved to a crew cut, revealing his striking red eyes and burning resolve to defend the Verdant Flora.
* ''VideoGame/MassEffect'':
** In ''VideoGame/MassEffect3'' Jack's CharacterDevelopment over the six-month TimeSkip, moving from AxCrazy to a MamaBear, is marked by her growing her hair out from "recently shaved" to "a ponytail". She's pretty much the only teammate who changes hairstyle; everyone else either uses the exact same model, or has the exact same model minus the Cerberus insignia.
** Ashley has literally let her hair down following ''VideoGame/MassEffect1''.
* ''VideoGame/MetalGear'':
** ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid2SonsOfLiberty'':
*** Solid Snake has grown out the cropped hair he wore in all of his appearances before that. He's also unshaven, when he had appeared clean-shaven in every game up until then. This serves to signify that he's no longer working with any organisation that particularly cares how long he wears his hair or if he bothers to shave, as well as to indicate the much more mellow and easy-going personality he developed as a result of the events of the previous game (the game document suggests the change indicates a man who now has higher priorities than his personal appearance).
*** Olga has a military buzz cut in the Tanker chapter and a short bob in the Plant chapter. This serves as an early indication that her loyalties do not lie with her unit anymore. Specifically, the unit is no longer her 'only family' as she announced in the Tanker chapter - in between her appearances, she's become a mother.
** Big Boss's hair deserves some attention: In ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid3SnakeEater'', Snake goes from styling his long hair in a side part to having it scraped off his face with a bandanna, making it resemble the hairstyle of his mentor The Boss (who switches her own hair to a ponytail). She even points it out after she meets up with him later, apparently finding it immature. At the end of ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolidPeaceWalker'', Snake discards the bandanna along with The Boss's ideals, and it's gone in ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolidGroundZeroes''. In ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolidVThePhantomPain'', he switches to an imitation of her ponytail style.
** In ''VideoGame/MetalGearRisingRevengeance'', Raiden starts out with his ''Metal Gear Solid 2'' hairstyle of long blond hair, which in his white armour body gives him a [[GoldAndWhiteAreDivine pure and noble, knightly sort of look]]. When he gets a black and red armour body, his hair has been coloured cold white, making him look much more inhuman and demonic.
** When Sunny was first introduced in ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid4GunsOfThePatriots'', she had boyishly short hair like her mother. When we see her again a few years later in ''VideoGame/MetalGearRisingRevengeance'', Sunny has let her hair grow a little and decorated it with a hair clip adorned with a blue flower. In that time, she has grown happy and content after coming out of her shell.
** Otacon's hairstyle stays a similar length and style in all of his appearances (the position of the parting moves about, but that's all), but the colour changes from grey, to light brown, to dark brown as he becomes more confident and [[ProgressivelyPrettier sexier]].
** Come Paz's reappearance in ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolidGroundZeroes'', her head of [[HairOfGoldHeartOfGold wavy blond hair]] has been buzzed off as just a tiny indicator of the unspeakable, hideous torture she's been subjected to.
** A lot of fans were delighted to see Psycho Mantis, whose head was shaved in his previous appearances, appear with a mop of shoulder-length red hair in his appearance as a child in ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolidV''.
* The protagonist of ''VideoGame/NieR'', specifically the ''Replicant'' version of the game, significantly changes his hair after a five year TimeSkip, going from long hair that's neatly tied up and styled to long, unkempt hair. Especially poignant in that, according to [[AllThereInTheManual supplemenary material]], the protagonist kept his hair tidy and tied up because he had an intense phobia of others touching his hair brought upon by his time working as a prostitute to get enough money to get by. After [[spoiler:his sister is kidnapped and he's spent the intervening years searching for her]], it really goes to show that he cares about ''nothing'' more than completing his mission.
* Combined with a SignificantWardrobeShift, [[spoiler:Lillie]] in ''VideoGame/PokemonSunAndMoon'' [[spoiler:pulls her hair into a ponytail to signify her strengthening resolve after TheReveal]].
* The Prince in ''VideoGame/PrinceOfPersiaWarriorWithin'' grows a layer of PermaStubble in combination with his DarkerAndEdgier person gets much more grizzled, to the point that some wanted him to use the sword to shave the stuff off.
* Siegfried Schtauffen of the ''VideoGame/SoulSeries'' originally had short hair, but with Soulcalibur and onward, he grows it past shoulder length before cutting it and slicking it back in Soulcalibur V.
* In ''VideoGame/TalesOfXillia2'', Elise sports a shorter haircut with twin tails which reflects the fact that she's overcome [[ShrinkingViolet her former nature]] and become more outgoing.
* Used constantly throughout the ''Persona'' universe to represent a character's growth:
** From ''VideoGame/{{Persona|1}}'' to ''VideoGame/Persona2'':
*** [[ShrinkingViolet Maki Sonomura]], who wore her hair shoulder-length while a shy and conflicted teen, comes to the sequel as a determined woman with short-cropped, boyish hair, set on making amends for her role in the previous game.
*** Eriko Kirishima, excitable fan of the occult, traded her waist-length ponytail for a short bowl-cut style in time for ''Persona 2''. And, if you played the [[{{Macekre}} original North American release]] of ''Revelations: Persona'', her hair also changed from blonde (originally dark brown) to solid black.
*** [[JapaneseDelinquents Yukino Mayuzumi]] styled herself as a ''sukeban'', with extremely short and messily-cropped dyed hair and an ankle-length skirt, a holdover from her days as a delinquent boss. By the time of ''Persona 2'', she's a professional photojournalist, and she's still just as much of a badass (if not more) but has grown her hair out to shoulder-length (revealing it to be very curly) and holds it down with a floppy gray hat.
*** [[JapaneseDelinquents Reiji Kido]], the fearsome and antisocial misfit, let go of the enormous, unruly mane of his teen years for a more respectable (if still slightly messy) short style befitting his ordinary job as a salesman. His new look also hides the X-shaped scar on his forehead, which he used to display proudly as part of his badass image.
** Within ''VideoGame/Persona2'':
*** Maya Amano, while still in junior-high, wore heir hair in a messy pageboy cut during those fateful days of the Masquerade. As an adult, she wears it long, slightly past her shoulders, and perfectly coiffed.
*** Eikichi Mishina's entire look was as ordinary as anyone could get as a kid, but when he fell in love with Miyabi, he decided someone as pretty as she was would never even notice someone as plain as he, so he developed a glam-rocker style which included spiky, dyed hair with a shocking white stripe down the middle.
** Within ''VideoGame/Persona3''
*** [[TheOjou Mitsuru Kirijo]] is shown in ''The Answer'' to have worn her hair in twin ponytails, "princess curl"-style, as a child, when she first Awakened to her Persona. By ninth grade, well on her way to establish [=SEES=], she still had the curls but wore her hair loose save for a headband. By the time of ''Persona 3'' proper, her hair is waist-length and wavy, with only a slight curl in the ends.
** From ''VideoGame/Persona3'' to ''VideoGame/Persona4'':
*** [[TheOjou Yukiko Amagi]] shows up in ''[[UpdatedRerelease Persona 3 Portable]]'' as a 9th-grader, with a short bowl-cut that barely reaches her neck. Two years later, in ''Persona 4'', her long, straight hair reaches down the middle of her back, more fitting for her YamatoNadeshiko image.
** From ''VideoGame/Persona3'' and ''VideoGame/Persona4'' to ''VideoGame/Persona4Arena'':
*** Mitsuru's hair reaches past her hips and is much fuller, completely lacking the "princess curl" of her childhood.
*** Likewise, the geeky and unstylish [[ShrinkingViolet Fuuka Yamagishi]]'s short and unkempt hair is now much longer and better-styled, pulled into a French braid that rests over her shoulder.
** After ''VideoGame/Persona4Arena'':
*** [[TheLancer Yosuke Hanamura]] wears the same style, but shorter by half, especially in the back, symbolizing his growth into adulthood.
*** [[{{Tomboy}} Chie Satonaka]] and [[{{Bifauxnen}} Naoto Shirogane]] are growing their hair out to [[GirlinessUpgrade emphasize their burgeoning femininity.]]
*** Conversely, Yukiko has her hair done up in [[PrimandProperBun a professional-looking bun]], to portray her maturity and independence.
*** [[IdolSinger Rise Kujikawa]], who previously wore her hair in girlish ponytails to play up her role as Risette, has gone for a "movie star" look instead and lets it down in a flowing cascade to rival Mitsuru's.
*** Most dramatic of all, [[JapaneseDelinquents Kanji Tatsumi]] has stopped bleaching his hair and combing it back, wearing it instead as its natural black and with a slightly nerdy side-part. It is so unlike him that even the Protagonist is shocked the first time he sees it, and Yukiko (who ''has'' been present for the change and has had time to acclimate) still finds it hilarious.
*** The Protagonist's cousin Nanako, who developed a crush for her "Big Brother," apparently taking a cue from [[ChickMagnet his many female friends]], has grown her hair out a bit and stopped tying it in pigtails.
** ''Persona x Detective Naoto''
*** Set two years after the events of ''Persona 4'', Naoto now wears her hair all the way to her waist, having fully embraced her femininity.
* Once the party decides to go save the world in ''VideoGame/WildArms1'', Cecilia not only cuts her hair but changes her outfit too.
* ''VideoGame/{{Yakuza}}'':
** In [[VideoGame/Yakuza1 the first game]], Kazuma Kiryu's BigBadFriend Akira "Nishiki" Nishikiyama has his hair slicked back to give him a smug, evil look, while in [[VideoGame/Yakuza0 the prequel]] and the prologue of the first game, which takes place when he was still Kiryu's loyal blood brother, his hair is neatly parted down the middle. [[VIdeoGameRemake The HD remake of the first game]], ''Yakuza: Kiwami'', has a special series of cutscenes chronicling Nishiki's StartOfDarkness, with the exact moment he switches hairstyles coinciding with his official FaceHeelTurn.
** Throughout most of the series, Goro Majima sports a medium-cut hairstyle, while in ''VideoGame/Yakuza0'', Majima grew his hair out and wore a ponytail during his time in exile in Sotenbori - which could symbolize the Omi Alliance having him "tied up". By the end of the game, after he settles his accounts with the Omi, he cuts his hair again.
** Taiga Saejima originally had his hair in a long shaggy mane. By the time of 5, he's shaved his head.
** Ichiban Kasuga's hairstyle prior to prison was a punch perm typical of Yakuza thugs. After getting out, his hair grew out to a short ponytail and upon trying to get his old hairstyle back he instead ended up with AnimeHair thanks to an inexperienced hairstylist who has no idea what a punch perm is.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Visual Novels]]
* ''Franchise/AceAttorney'':
** In the fourth game, Phoenix's fall from grace is brought home by the stubble on his face. It's gone in the fifth, to indicate that HesBack.
** And [[spoiler:Kristoph]] goes from perfectly-coiffed long hair to tangled blond mess almost instantaneously when his plans are foiled once and for all, showing just how hard the failure hits him.
* In ''VisualNovel/KiraKira'', Kirari dyes her hair pink for the band's tour. [[MultipleEndings Depending on the circumstances]], she may dye it back to brown once things have settled down, though.
* In ''VisualNovel/TokimekiMemorial'', multiple girls - and boys - change their hairstyle over the course of the game.
** In the first ''Tokimeki Memorial'', Nozomi will begin to grow her hair out if you have her as a sure-win at the end of the game and do not date her between December of your 3rd Year and Graduation Day.
** In the second ''Tokimeki Memorial'', the lead heroine Hikari used to have long hair but cut it short after [[spoiler: the protagonist moved away]].
** In the fourth ''Tokimeki Memorial'', [[LateArrivalSpoiler the secret character]] [[spoiler: Ookura Miyako]] has two! She begins the game with her hair tied back. Unlocking her route will result in her to stop tying it back, letting it hang loosely around her hair. Continuing on her route, she will later end up tying it into a ponytail.
** In the first ''Girl's Side 1st Love'' game, the extra character Tendou Jin will stop bleaching his hair and revert to his natural brown color, if the player chooses a certain option late in his route.
* ''VisualNovel/UminekoWhenTheyCry'':
** In [=EP5=] Beatrice lets her hair down for the whole EP. Not only that, [[spoiler:she can't even fix her hair. [[EmptyShell Or move, or eat, or speak...]] Virgilia is even combing her hair for her. She gets better, though. Sort of.]]
** In general it can be said that the different hairstyles show a significant change in Beatrice. [[spoiler:In addition to Meta Beato having the hair-down look until her death, Episode 6 shows us that this was the 'original' design for Beatrice before Kinzo had the portrait hung in 1984 - with her hair down and in the suit. [=EP7=] reveals that this is how [[AmbiguousGender Yasu]] envisioned 'the type of girl Battler likes' and based Beatrice's design on that before the portrait appeared to show the 'true' style of Beatrice with that of the iconic black dress and up-do.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Web Animation]]
* ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'': The main characters usually go through hairstyle changes whenever their outfits change, which denotes either a time skip or a new phase of their lives beginning. Flashbacks often show characters sporting different hairstyles to help emphasise that the scenes are occurring at different periods of their lives.
** Volume 3 villain flashbacks show that Cinder used to have short hair and Emerald used to bind her hair. This contrasts their longer, looser flowing hairstyles in the main storyline, where their circumstances are very different to their past lives.
** The TimeSkip between Volumes 3 and 4 show Ruby and Nora with longer, shaggier hair, and Ren's hair is now loose instead of bound. This helps emphasise that they've spent months on the road. Yang's hair is now bound, signifying the repression of her wild personality while she battles depression and PTSD. Meanwhile, Cinder is now sporting short hair, in keeping with her very asymmetrical design. [[spoiler:Having been badly injured on the left-side of her body, her short hair covers the scarred half of her face and her dress has a long sleeve that completely hides her left arm. Like Yang, she spends Volume 4 recovering from her Beacon injuries.]]
** From Volume 4, Ironwood's appearance begins to change. Originally neat and clean-shaven, the increasing stress he's under after Volume 3 manifests in shaggier hair and PermaStubble that's implied to be a BeardOfSorrow. By Volume 7, he has a full beard and very shaggy hairstyle. [[spoiler:From Volume 8, his BeardOfSorrow fully transitions into a BeardOfEvil after he cracks from the strain the villains [[TraumaButton have put him under]], becoming so authoritarian that he [[HeWhoFightsMonsters ends up as dangerous as Salem]].]]
** The Volume 5 character short for Weiss shows her with a centred ponytail instead of her usual off-centre style. This combines with her lack of eye scar to emphasise that the flashback predates the original White Trailer and is dealing with a version of Weiss who has not yet gained the strength to rebel against her abusive father.
** Volume 6 flashbacks reveal that Salem used to wear her hair in a half-bun prior to her ascension as the setting's BigBad, where she now sports a mature, elegant and complex bun that contains some oiran and tayuu inspiration.
** In Volume 7, the heroes arrive in Atlas and join forces with Ironwood to protect the kingdom and fight the BigBad. As a result, they refresh their wardrobe and tidy up their hair styles. Ruby receives a more Anime-style spikey hair cut, while Weiss and Ren adopt braids. Blake and Jaune cut their hair short. [[spoiler:Penny's return also sees her sporting a new, longer hairstyle to help show she's changed from Volume 3.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Webcomics]]
* In the contemporary arc of ''Webcomic/ArthurKingOfTimeAndSpace'', Arthur grows a beard when he becomes CEO of Excalicorp (he grows a beard about a year earlier in the other arcs, but this doesn't seem to be expository, although it does help indicate when {{flashback}}s are set).
* ''Webcomic/CiemWebcomicSeries'':
** [[ExaggeratedTrope Taken to extremes]] in ''Ciem: The Human Centipede'', where Candi alternates amongst 8 different hairstyles across 32 chapters (averaging a new style every four.) Granted, a few of these are just dye jobs, but that still makes for about 4 or 5 actual styles. [[JustifiedTrope Partially justified]] in that she's trying to hide from [[FantasticRacism genocidal]] [[NinjaPirateZombieRobot alien gangsters]], and by the fact that the story covers over 2 years'-worth of her life. Also understandable, as it's a [[{{Machinomics}} DSHW machinomic]] made with ''VideoGame/TheSims2'', which practically ''encourages'' players to toy around with hairstyles.
** ''Ciem 2'' both plays this straight and subverts it. Candi has only one ''official'' hairstyle change; from her Maxis-default mesh, [[SoLastSeason end-of-first-story red hair]]; to her messier-looking custom mesh hairstyle. This [[ImportantHaircut indicates]] [[WhatDoYouMeanItsNotSymbolic not only]] her continued loss of innocence between parts 1 and 2, but [[OutDamnedSpot her frustrations]] with [[MyGirlIsNotASlut trying to hide/prevent it]].
* As an adult, Haru from ''Webcomic/CrossHeart'' stops wearing GirlishPigtails to signify her maturity.
* Invoked by Ariel in ''Webcomic/{{Drowtales}}'', since she's a shapeshifter who can change her hair color and length at will, especially the front part of her bangs which are colored. When it's pointed out by [[BigBad Snadhya'rune]] to [[AxCrazy Kalki]] [[spoiler:her half-sister]] that the purple bangs she's sporting are "our" colors Ariel [[http://www.drowtales.com/mainarchive.php?sid=10121 immediately changes them to the Sarghress red]]. She's shown doing the same thing at several other points since purple is also associated with her sister ([[spoiler:really mother]]) Mel'arnach, while she tends to use the red bangs when she has to present herself as heir to the Sarghress clan.
* Jaeger in Carla Speed [=McNeil=]'s ''ComicBook/{{Finder}}'' frequently alters his hairstyle in relation to changes in his life or challenges he faces. Just as commonly, the motives behind these changes are misinterpreted by those around him.
* ''Webcomic/ElGoonishShive'':
** When a magic user gets burned out from using too much magic, their hair turns temporarily black to indicate they can't access their magic. This is attributed to Magic's flair for the dramatic, and is such a common occurrence that sudden "unexplained" hair-color changes are a medically-recognized condition. [[spoiler: This occurs to Nanase at the end of Sister 2, and partially after the Not-Tengu fight in Family Tree. Ellen, for drama reasons, burns out blonde in Family Tree.]]
** Tedd [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1846 cut his hair and changed its color to pink]]. He affirms it's a way to own and [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1847 embrace his own girliness]] (meaning that he no longer is ashamed of his androgyny) but also because he's rebelling[[note]]maybe at his dad's negation of exposing magic to public eye[[/note]]. However, because Tedd used magic to color his hair, [[spoiler: it made it all the more noticeable when Tedd's hair turned back to its natural purple the very same evening, due to the color-changing spell getting counteracted by a GenderBender spell. This lead to some major revelations about Tedd's capabilities.]]
** In an earlier arc, Tedd's cousin Nanase also got her hair cut short to rebel against her mother (and the two bare a remarkable resemblance to each other with short hair). However, this was right before she discovered she had a spell that could change the hair color, texture, and length with magic, making her regret that she spent the money on the haircut.
** Susan was born blonde, but began dyeing her hair blue-black after discovering her father having an affair with a blonde woman. However, her angst-induced magical awakening in Hammerchlorians made her hair longer and changed her hair to blue-black permanently, [[spoiler: as a hidden reserve of magical power she can use in a pinch]].
** Deconstructed and reconstructed in "The Legend of Diane". Diane gets her long hair cut chin-length after the traumatic events of Sister 3, but even ''she'' isn't sure exactly why she changed her hair at first. She looks so different that people talk about her in the hall without realizing she's there. Flashbacks and discussions with her inner child reveal that Diane originally grew her hair out to be more attractive to boys so she could date them, and became more of a jaded GoldDigger as she went on. Her recent style change was a subconscious effort to look more like her hopeful and optimistic 12-year-old self again. The choppy cut later grows out to a more natural shoulder-length as she adjusts.
* In ''Webcomic/GunnerkriggCourt'':
** Both Antimony and Kat begin wearing their hair differently after the incident on the bridge. (Annie's change was explained by her losing her hair clip; no explanation was given for Kat.)
** In the more recent chapters, Kat's grown her hair long (although she still ties it in the same way while working on machinery), making it resemble her mother's.
** As of chapter 51, Antimony has cut her hair back to chin length like she wore it as a child [[spoiler:to symbolize [[AbusiveParents her father's]] return of control over her]].
* ''Webcomic/{{Heartcore}}'': Ame had long hair as a young demon princess. When she started her rebellion against Royce, she cut her hair to shoulder-length and dyed her bangs green.
* ''Webcomic/HeroineChic'': When fashion designer and amateur hero Zoe is rescued from intergalactic villain Excelsion's ship by her future self, she adds a stripe of purple dye to her red hair to resemble future-Zoe. Dying her hair symbolizes her commitment to superheroics, trying to grow into the confident and powerful hero her future-self is/ will be -- even if it means Zoe has to shift her focus away from her passion for fashion design. At the end of Season 3 Zoe gets rid of the purple stripe, symbolizing her desire to take control of her own future and return her focus to her career as a designer.
* ''Webcomic/ImTheGrimReaper'': After [[spoiler: spending 25 years in the 9th Circle of Hell,]]Scarlet's bob has grown long enough to reach the floor. It reflects her developing a usually more calm, quiet nature.
* ''Webcomic/{{Narbonic}}'': Dave's facial hair gets noticeably tidier after the first couple of story arcs, reflecting his CharacterDevelopment as he settles into his job as [[MadScientist Helen Narbon]]'s sysadmin, gains a bit of self-confidence and starts taking better care of his appearance as a result.
* In ''Webcomic/TheOrderOfTheStick'':
** Vaarsuvius starts out with their hair short with a circlet to adorn it, but after [[spoiler:their DealWithTheDevil]] they start wearing their hair back in a ponytail. This seems to coincide with them realizing that absolute power is not all it's cracked up to be, as well as [[spoiler:letting go of their family]]. It helps that this was after coming down from an episode of PowerMakesYourHairGrow.
** Lampshaded when Haley gets her hair cut [[spoiler: by her nemesis, Crystal, as an act of revenge.]] Elan notes that hairstyle changes are a great way to symbolically reflect character changes. Haley later gets her hair restored magically, commenting that it was probably "just a crappy haircut", after all.
* Occurs [[http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=3136 over several panels]] in ''Webcomic/QuestionableContent'' after Faye is fired from the coffee shop for showing up to work drunk, only to start working as a mechanic in an underground robot fighting ring. We see her hair first grow out and then change to an undercut as at least several months pass. And once Faye works up the courage to go back to the shop [[http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=3141 Dora has shoulder-length hair]] when the last time we saw her it was a pixie cut.
* ''{{Webcomic/Sarilho}}'': Nikita goes through two different haircuts during this chapter alone, along with EyepatchAfterTimeskip.
* ''Webcomic/SleeplessDomain'': As the famous {{magical girl}} Alchemical Aether, Tessa has [[PowerDyesYourHair bright pink hair]], which she styles into signature [[AnimeHair "swoopy" bangs]] that resemble an exaggerated {{Hair Intake|s}}. After a traumatic event leaves her [[DePower powerless]] and [[BrokenAce broken]], she still continues to style her now-brunette hair in the same way, but as she gradually spirals deeper into depression in the aftermath of her trauma, she stops maintaining her hairstyle -- to the point that [[PeekABangs her bangs eventually fall over her right eye]].
* Subverted in ''Webcomic/SluggyFreelance'': Zoë shows up with long hair in Torg's hospital ward to signal that he's been in a coma for a few years after the battle against K'Z'K in Gwynn's body. However, [[spoiler: it turns out to be a practical joke, and he's only been out cold for a few days.]]
* ''Webcomic/SomethingPositive'': Sherri, one of Rory's friends and a member of his RPG group, is introduced as having [[https://somethingpositive.net/comic/game-makers-pt-1/ long brown hair that she's constantly hiding behind]]. When the gang get aged up to teenagers, she has [[https://somethingpositive.net/comic/piledrives-pins-pt-6/ two-tone pink and purple hair]], indicating that she's outgrown her shyness. (Most of the others, including Rory, look exactly the same only taller.)
* ''Webcomic/{{Subnormality}}'': When a recurring female character decides to quit her soul-crushing waitressing job, her hair, which she had dyed brown in order to conform to workplace regulations, suddenly goes back to its previous pink.
* ''Webcomic/{{Unordinary}}'':
** Back when she was still considered TheAce, Sera wore her hair long and in a ponytail. Now, she has short hair with a messy fringe, yellow tips, and hair extensions. Her mother was not amused when she first saw them.
** John usually gels his hair before attending school. [[spoiler: When he stops slicking back his hair, it signals his slide into his older, more hateful, personality.]]
* In ''Webcomic/WapsiSquare'', after Shelly [[spoiler:spends 80,000 years trapped in the time forest,]] she starts wearing her hair longer, signifying increased confidence and a sense of self-identity.
* ''Webcomic/WeakHero'':
** Ben starts the series with a long bob that is quickly switched up for a shorter, curly cut. Not only does it look more attractive on him, but it fits his role as SupportingLeader much better.
** This happens with Gerard twice; he had tidy long hair in middle school that he changed to a more attractive delinquent style when he took on the moniker of Mad Hound. Then, after hitting the DespairEventHorizon and receiving a nasty scar above his left eye, he changed his hairstyle again to BlindingBangs so he'd no longer stand out.
** After he starts [[HeelFaceTurn developing into a better person]], Teddy switches his unflattering bob for a more practical, attractive ponytail.
** After Gray and Teddy dethrone [[BoisterousWeakling Phillip]] from being top dog of Eunjang High, he stops styling his hair into spikes and instead it droops depressingly over his face.
** When Bryce notices girls crushing on Gray and Stephen, he [[TheGlassesGottaGo ditches his glasses]] and starts styling his hair back to look more desirable, marking his change from shy nerd to {{jerkass}} delinquent.
** The main villain, Donald Na, slicks his delinquent hair back into a more business-like cut once issues with the Union become serious enough that they're no longer beneath his notice.
** Hwangmo had a coiffed hairstyle in the past that, while silly, was at least somewhat respectable. Now that he's fully become Wolf's mook and the ButtMonkey of Ganghak, he has his bizarre and unflattering undercut mullet.
* ''Webcomic/YumisCells'':
** At the start of the comic, Yumi sports a bob, but she eventually resolves to let her hair grow out as she puts more effort into her appearance. She gets an ImportantHaircut after she becomes a published author and starts to get over her recent ex, but she still grows her hair out in the following years. At the end of the comic, she has her original bob style, which indicates that she's fully comfortable with her boyfriend, later husband.
** Woong has long hair that represents his pride. When his company goes under and he's looking for a job, he cuts his hair for an interview to symbolize him swallowing his pride. A few years later, he has attained a successful career and his hair is even longer than it was at the start.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Web Videos]]
* Jeff of ''WebVideo/EverymanHYBRID'' starts out with a boyish mop of hair. When he comes back after disappearing for a while and revisiting a traumatic event from his childhood, he's had a buzz-cut somewhere in the intervening time. His brother Alex has a similar change. Evan, however, goes ''without'' a haircut, although his longer hair is only unkept when he's perfectly sane, and nicely combed during his AxCrazy moments.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Western Animation]]
* ''WesternAnimation/TheAdventuresOfJimmyNeutronBoyGenius'': In ''WesternAnimation/JimmyNeutronBoyGenius'', Cindy sported pigtails. When the premise was picked up for a Nicktoon, Cindy was updated with a new design and given a Ponytail; though its {{Justified|Trope}} since the movie takes place a while before the show. Libby's hair originally had PeekABangs and a bun, though later in the series she was given a design changed for plot reasons and her hair became cornrow-braids.
* ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'':
** ''Every time anything changes in Zuko's life'', with the sole exception of his encountering Aang for the first time, his hair changes. He took up his weird head-shaved thing that no one else wears when scarred and banished, he cuts his queue very symbolically upon going from 'exile' to 'fugitive,' he (unintentionally) grows out his hair into steadily less severe styles while relaxing during Season Two, and then he puts it up into a topknot while reconciled with TheEmpire and lets it down before CallingTheOldManOut. Over half of these changes receive lovingly detailed depictions in the show.
** Aang's shaggy hair in the season 3 opening is used to set the tone and indicate his new outlook.
** This happens to Azula in season 3 finale, [[spoiler:the haircut is self-inflicted, and it gets worse with a [[SlipknotPonytail disheveling]] during her climactic battle]].
** Fire Lord Ozai's hair remains remarkable symmetrical for nearly all of his limited appearances until the season 3 finale. [[spoiler:When Aang turns the tide of the final battle and pins Ozai down, the Fire Lord's hair start falling out of line. After Aang takes away his firebending, Ozai's long symmetrical hair falls over his face in disheveled mess, which becomes his new permanent look as he is thrown in prison for war crimes, symbolizing the loss of control over the Fire Nation and his fall from grace.]]
* ''Franchise/Ben10'':
** Gwen sported chin-length hair in [[WesternAnimation/Ben10 the original series]], followed by sporting long hair in the first two seasons of ''[[WesternAnimation/Ben10AlienForce Alien Force]]'', then putting her hair up in a ponytail in season three of ''Alien Force'', ''[[WesternAnimation/Ben10UltimateAlien Ultimate Alien]]'' and the first episode of ''[[WesternAnimation/Ben10Omniverse Omniverse]]'', then back to chin-length hair in later appearances in ''Omniverse''.
** Her future counterpart sported a pixie cut in the original series episode "Ben 10,000" and later a ponytail in "Ken 10".
** Julie sported chin-length hair in ''Alien Force'' and ''Ultimate Alien'', then GirlishPigtails in ''Omniverse''.
* ''WesternAnimation/CarmenSandiego'': When we see Gray in Carmen's flashbacks of her time with V.I.L.E., he has his bangs swept across his forehead. When we see him again in the present, his bangs are now sticking straight up, a style that remains for the rest of the series.
* At the beginning of the {{prequel}} episode "XANA Awakens" of ''WesternAnimation/CodeLyoko'', Odd has a very different hairstyle; he adopts his current [[AnimeHair spiky hair]] to mimic his DigitalAvatar on Lyoko. (He actually has to go through the change twice because of a [[ResetButton Return to the Past]].)
* Technus of ''WesternAnimation/DannyPhantom'' starts off with wild hair that would make Doc Brown proud; when he upgrades himself to Technus 2.0, his hair is now sleek and tied back to possibly allude to the removal of his flaws from his first form since he now dons a more serious outlook.
* In ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'', Amy Wong apparently grew her hair out between "[[Recap/FuturamaS4E18TheDevilsHandsAreIdlePlaythings The Devil's Hands Are Idle Playthings]]" and "[[Recap/FuturamaM1BendersBigScore Bender's Big Score]]". It was burned back down to its original length by Bender's trademark fiery burp during the {{introdump}}.
* John Stewart changed his appearance from short black hair, to a shaven head]] and goatee in between the ending of ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague'' [[spoiler: in the last episode of which, he broke up with Hawkgirl]], and the beginning of ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeagueUnlimited''. The first thing Shayera says to him upon meeting him again, apparently for the first time since the end of ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague'' is:
-->'''Shayera:''' ... Hate the beard.
* This happens all over the place in the fourth season, of ''WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfKorra.''
** Three years after the events of book three, Mako and Bolin -- especially Mako -- both have hairstyles that are more restrained and kempt than what they've worn previously, as befits their roles as a bodyguard to royalty and a peacekeeping soldier. When Mako goes back to his old job as a cop in the sequel comic, he reverts to the more casual look.
** Jinora's signature hairdo has become a bob after [[spoiler: having to shave it off at the end of book 3 to receive her Airbending Master tattoos]]. All of Tenzin and Pema's children have grown their hair out to some degree, in fact.
** Korra, on the other hand, after the TraumaCongaLine at the end of book three, [[spoiler: cuts her signature ponytail off and leaves her hair loose at chin length (as well as wearing Earth Kingdom Green clothes) so that people won't recognize her as the Avatar while she's still weakened and struggling with her [[FlashbackEcho flashbacks]] and EnemyWithout.]]
* ''WesternAnimation/LiloAndStitchTheSeries'' is fond of having flashbacks of Jumba Jookiba with various hairstyles, as opposed to his "modern" style of three little hairs.
-->'''Jumba:''' I like hair. It just doesn't feel [[MadScientist evil scientist]]-like.
* ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic:'' Starlight Glimmer switches manestyles after her HeelFaceTurn. According to WordOfGod, her old manestyle made her look matronly, as befitting her role as leader of her TownWithADarkSecret, while the new one makes her look younger to fit her new role as Twilight Sparkle's student.
* From the largely-forgotten Re-tool ''WesternAnimation/TheNewAdventuresOfHeMan'': in the fourth episode, after an entrance of messianic awesomeness using his magical sword to transport himself across space to save the invaded people of Primus from their moment of ultimate defeat, He-Man displays his inexplicably (but quite explicitly) longer hair that has somehow grown from a short-back-and-sides in the previous scene (and episodes) to a long mullety cascade. He even takes a moment to tie it into a ponytail and luxuriously shake it ''before'' laying the smackdown on the bad guys. This is never explained or referred to.
* In ''WesternAnimation/TheOwlHouse'' Amity starts the series with her brown hair dyed green to resemble her mother's, but after deciding to break away from her toxic influence, she dyes it purple with her natural color at the temples.
* ''WesternAnimation/SheRaAndThePrincessesOfPower'':
** Glimmer grows her hair out into a bob between the third and fourth seasons, [[spoiler:making it look more like her dead mother's hair]], but unlike its in-universe inspiration, it's much more asymmetrical, as if to show that she hasn't fully stepped into [[spoiler:Angella's]] shoes and is still working on fitting into her newfound role. [[spoiler:And indeed, she proves very insecure about her authority as queen, and makes quite a few mistakes, at least one of them catastrophic.]]
** Catra gets her hair more under control, and removes her ear-tufts, as she moves to her fourth season costume and tries to get herself under control - she's working to suppress her more emotional, erratic side and concentrate on getting what she thinks she wants. In particular, she removes the tufts after Shadow Weaver touches them while manipulating her, in an obvious attempt to shore up her emotional vulnerabilities. [[spoiler:It doesn't work, and her second VillainousBreakdown, which takes place after she's gotten her hair more controlled, is if anything ''even more'' emotionally devastating than the first.]]
** Adora's hair going from its former ponytail to being long and unstyled after [[spoiler:destroying the Sword of Protection to save the world]] represents her newfound freedom after rejecting all the forces that have tried to control and manipulate her.
** Hordak wears his hair tousled after Entrapta's free spirit starts influencing him.[[spoiler: When he is reconditioned by Horde Prime, his hair is bleached and pulled backwards again, but one strand gets loosen when he gets his memory back and and kills Horde Prime.]]
* ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsTheCloneWars'':
** "[[Recap/StarWarsTheCloneWarsS5E12MissingInAction Missing in Action]]": After [[TraumaInducedAmnesia amnesiac]] clone commando Gregor is informed of his true identity, he cuts his hair back into his old short military style and shaves off the messy beard he'd grown during his time on Abafar.
** The {{uncancelled}} [[WesternAnimation/StarWarsTheCloneWarsSeasonSeven seventh and final season]] has some characters with hairstyle changes:
*** Anakin Skywalker now sports the "Jedi [[SeventiesHair '70s Mane]]" he has in ''Film/RevengeOfTheSith'', to indicate that events are closing in on those of the movie.
*** Clone medic Kix has, for no explained reason, grown his hair out into the "regulation" clone trooper haircut from his previous almost completely bald look.
* ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsRebels'':
** In Season 3, Ezra Bridger sports a buzzcut, as opposed to the mop-top he had previously, to reflect his more serious, darker outlook after [[WhamEpisode Malachor]].
** In Season 4, [[spoiler:Kallus]] wears his hair loose and uncombed as an Alliance officer, unlike how he wore it [[DefectorFromDecadence as an Imperial]].
* ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse'':
** Back when Greg and Rose first met, Amethyst had short, chin-length hair, which was reflective of her childish personality at the time. Later she [[VoluntaryShapeshifting changed]] it to be around ankle-length to show her personality's development into that of a slightly more mature teenager. Interestingly, a portrait in "[[Recap/StevenUniverseS1E13SoManyBirthdays So Many Birthdays]]" and her appearance in "[[Recap/StevenUniverseS4E3BuddysBook Buddy's Book]]" (which occur long before Greg met Rose) show her with long hair.
** Connie sported waist-length hair throughout the series' first four seasons and the start of season five. However, during the time of the latter, [[spoiler:she and Steven argue over him surrendering himself to Homeworld]], leading to a weeks-long estrangement between them. By the time Steven (and the audience) see her again at Kevin's party, she is revealed to have cut or had someone cut her hair down to chin-length and added bangs. Following the two-year TimeSkip between the end of the fifth season and ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverseTheMovie'', her hair has regrown to shoulder-length, and she retains her bangs, while also keeping part of it tied back with hair clips. She keeps this style throughout the epilogue ''Future'' season.
** Sadie sported blonde, shoulder-length hair that remained relatively unchanged throughout the first four seasons and most of season five of the original series. However, after joining the band that would become Sadie Killer and the Suspects and quitting her job at the Big Donut, she dyes her hair green right before the end of the series (possibly just for one concert). At some point during the two-year TimeSkip between season five and the movie, she has just the tips and edges of her hair dyed (in a lighter shade of green). By the time of Little Homeschool's first graduation ceremony in the ''Future'' epilogue series, [[spoiler:by which point the band has broken up and she has started dating Shep]], she has returned her hair to its natural blonde color and now wears it in a ponytail.
** Throughout the franchise, Steven's signature curly hair remains relatively unchanged, save for a few temporary exceptions. The most notable changes, however, come during the epilogue ''Future'' season:
*** After Steven trains with Jasper to hone his newly-emerged destructive powers, his hair briefly shapes into a pompadour hairstyle to match his new ruthless (and slightly arrogant) personality.
*** Later, after returning from Homeworld, sinking into deep denial about every bad thing that has happened to him as of late, and trying to help others the way he used to as a kid, his hair shapes to resemble that of his late mother in her Diamond form.
* In addition to Pidge's ImportantHaircut, ''WesternAnimation/VoltronLegendaryDefender'', Allura stopped appearing with her hair down after becoming a Paladin in season 3 by sporting a PrimAndProperBun for the rest of the series, though would still appear with her hair down during the final season, along with Acxa outgrowing her hair to neck length during the TimeSkip between season 6 and 7 and Honerva undoing her bun by having her hair down after [[FaceHeelTurn becoming Haggar]] before tying it to a ponytail during the final season, following after regaining her pre-Quintessence identity and then into a bun in the final episodes.
* In ''WesternAnimation/XiaolinShowdown'', Kimiko tends to sport a different hairstyle in almost every episode when she's outdoors. Averted in ''WesternAnimation/XiaolinChronicles'' as her hairstyle remains the same when outdoors.
[[/folder]]

* Averted with Bulma from the ''Franchise/DragonBall'' franhcise. While she changes her hairstyle quite often, none of the changes are really expository.

** When Marcy started cutting her hair shorter, she became more shrill and antagonistic, especially towards Al/men in general and her [[StrawFeminist feminist qualities]] [[UpToEleven got cranked up.]]

** Another example is Mello, who gets slightly shorter and messier hair after the [[spoiler:explosion at his Mafia hideout]], from which point not only he becomes more badass but seems to start [[spoiler:cooperating with Near.]]

** Gunn was originally a BaldBlackLeaderGuy. He grew a short layer of hair once he got his lawyer smarts. It was not mentioned by a character until more than halfway through the season (shortly after which, ironically, Gunn returned to his original cut after the cost of keeping his new knowledge resulted in him [[spoiler:unwittingly taking part in a conspiracy that led to the death of his ex-lover, Fred]]).

The addition of [[PermaStubble stubble]] on a male character is often used to show that they've either [[TookALevelInBacdass gone badass]], have [[BeardOfSorrow gone through a rough patch emotionally]] or [[SeriouslyScruffy just had more important things to do than shave]]. Likewise, the sight of a usually picture-perfect woman with waist-length disheveled hair is often used to conjure the image of insanity or sadness, especially in the case of the StringyHairedGhostGirl or TheOphelia.

** Chloe changes her hair every season, but the most dramatic change occurs in ''[[Series/TwentyFourLiveAnotherDay Live Another Day]]'', giving her a messy, black hairstyle with dark eye shadow, making her look similar to [[Literature/TheMillenniumTrilogy Lisbeth Slander]]. It's to reflect her BrokenBird status after [[spoiler:her husband and son were killed in a car crash.]]

The addition of [[PermaStubble stubble]] on a male character is often used to show that they've either [[TookALevelInBadass gone badass]], have [[BeardOfSorrow gone through a rough patch emotionally]] or [[SeriouslyScruffy just had more important things to do than shave]]. Likewise, the sight of a usually picture-perfect woman with waist-length disheveled hair is often used to conjure the image of insanity or sadness, especially in the case of the StringyHairedGhostGirl or TheOphelia.

* In ''Series/{{Candy}}'' the story starts out on 1978, with Candy's hair in [[SeventiesHair short, tight permed curls]]. By the time she goes to trial for Betty's murder in 1980, the perm is gone, and her hair is about chin-length, indicating the passage of time.

* Eikichi Onizuka changes his hairstyle in the first volume of ''Manga/GreatTeacherOnizuka'' right after he decided to be a teacher.

* ''Manga/ShonanJunaiGumi'':
** When Eikichi is actively trying to charm girls, he changes his hairstyle and wears glasses.
** In Chapter 34, Saejima's changed his hairstyle so much that the author has to point out that it's him in several panels.
** [[SadistTeacher Minamino]] forces the students in his class to change their DelinquentHair to more conservative hairstyles.

** It also happens to her when she first appears in ''Comicbook/AllNewXMen'': Laura's [[TraumaticHaircut long black hair is gone]] and she's completely bald when the team finds her wandering Miami in an amnesiac state, either due to injuries she received when Hazmat [[{{Squick}} melted her face off]] on [[Comicbook/AvengersArena Murderworld]], or [[NoodleIncident whatever it was the Purifiers did to her afterwards]]. After being rescued (again) her healing factor restores it to its normal length, and her hair growing back out coincides with her memories returning and shaking off her confusion over meeting the time-displaced O5.

** From ''VideoGame/{{Persona|1}}'' to ''VideoGame/{{Persona 2}}'':

[[folder:Web Comics]]

** [[ExaggeratedTrope Taken to extremes]] in ''Ciem: The Human Centipede'', where Candi alternates amongst 8 different hairstyles across 32 chapters (averaging a new style every four.) Granted, a few of these are just dye jobs, but that still makes for about 4 or 5 actual styles. [[JustifiedTrope Partially justified]] in that she's trying to hide from [[FantasticRacism genocidal]] [[NinjaPirateZombieRobot alien gangsters]], and by the fact that the story covers over 2 years'-worth of her life. Also understandable, as it's a [[{{Machinomics}} DSHW machinomic]] made with ''[[VideoGame/TheSims The Sims 2]]'', which practically ''encourages'' players to toy around with hairstyles.

** Most of the Vaizards had different hair back when they were [[spoiler:Captains and Lieutenants in Soul Society.]] For example, Hirako Shinji [[spoiler:as Aizen's former captain]] used to have a [[RapunzelHair long hair]]; now he possesses a much shorter bob cut.

** Phoebe went through five hair changes in the fourth season. She started off with blonde highlights that disappeared into a caramel brown as Paige was welcomed into the fold. It was dyed brown for one episode and then darker still when Cole proposed. After [[spoiler: he is possessed by the Source]] she has cut it to shoulder length. Then when [[spoiler: she becomes his queen]] it darkens to an almost black hue. Notably in Season 5 when she's trying to distance herself from Cole her hair is longer. Her drastic short haircut in Season 6 was a case of Alyssa Milano wanting to do something for her 30th birthday, but it does overlap with Phoebe gaining empathic powers. Her hair growing longer in season 8 coincides with her desire to find love as opposed to just having a baby. Before that she first dyed her hair blonde in Season 3 which coincided with her romance with Cole. The colour softened and darkened the more the romance developed. When she starts having visions of her future self in Season 7, she has RapunzelHair.

** Ingrid cuts her RapunzelHair to [[BoyishShortHair barely chin-length]]. This shows that she's fully dedicated to fighting, [[spoiler: and on any route besides Azure Moon, cutting her ties to House Galatea to fight for her own beliefs.]]

* ''Webcomic/{{Heartcore}}'': Ame had RapunzelHair as a young demon princess. When she started her rebellion against Royce, she cut her hair to shoulder-length and dyed her bangs green.

** Connie sported waist-length RapunzelHair throughout the series' first four seasons and the start of season five. However, during the time of the latter, [[spoiler:she and Steven argue over him surrendering himself to Homeworld]], leading to a weeks-long estrangement between them. By the time Steven (and the audience) see her again at Kevin's party, she is revealed to have cut or had someone cut her hair down to chin-length and added bangs. Following the two-year TimeSkip between the end of the fifth season and ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverseTheMovie'', her hair has regrown to shoulder-length, and she retains her bangs, while also keeping part of it tied back with hair clips. She keeps this style throughout the epilogue ''Future'' season.