History Main / Medusa

** ''VideoGame/ATotalWarSagaTroy'': Gorgons are a type of agents available to players who court Athena's favor. They're fully human, but cultivate deliberately horrific appearances and focus on sabotaging enemy units and morale, the implication being that tales of these women eventually morphed into the later myth of Medusa through centuries of retellings.

* The ''Franchise/TouhouProject'' fangame ''VideoGame/TheGeniusOfSappheiros'' has them appear [[spoiler:as the youngest of the Gorgon sisters responsible for the main game's incident, Litos Medousa Gorgon, complete with the ability to petrify with a gaze (and in fact, of all means of inflicting petrification in the game, she has the most powerful infliction effect). Once they're defeated by Reimu's party, she and her sisters take on the role of guardian goddesses in Gensokyo. In the ''Lingering Summer Heat'' expansion, she is a member of the starting party, working to resolve the incident to avenge her sister, who was one of the victims.]]

* A later book in the ''LightNovel/{{Bakemonogatari}}'' series is titled "Nadeko Medusa," which focuses on [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Nadeko imbibing the remnants of a snake oddity and transforming into a Snake Goddess]], complete with snakes for hair.

* ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries'': There is is a race known as the Medusans. Their appearance is a madness-inducing BrownNote for most humanoid races. They're not bad guys.

* [[https://youtu.be/QpKNsXqZ-08 "Medusa"]] by Music/Anthrax is a ThrashMetal song with a very straightforward description of Medusa that's fairly accurate to the original myth.

[[folder: Western Animation ]]

* ''Literature/AHippieInTheHouseOfMouse'': Disney releases a film about Medusa in 1996 roughly taking the place of ''WesternAnimation/Hercules'' which diverges heavily from the original myth, starting with giving Medusa a heavy dose of AdaptationalHeroism and having a romance with Perseus instead of being slayed by him.

* ''{{VideoGame/The Legend of Zelda Oracle|Games}} of Seasons'': The dungeon boss Medusa Head, fighting Link with petrification powers and damaging EyeBeams.

* ''Fanfic/HereBeMonsters'': This is what [[WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles Violet Parr]] is [[BalefulPolymorph transfigured]] into -- although referred to as a gorgon, WordOfGod name-drops Medusa and her origin myth when giving the reasons for this choice of monster form. Violet's gorgon form is based on ''Film/ClashOfTheTitans2010''' take on Medusa, being a GorgeousGorgon with her [[AloofDarkHairedGirl long, dark hair]] replaced by live snakes and a rattlesnake-like tail instead of legs.

* Played with in ''WesternAnimation/ThePowerpuffGirls''. The show had Sedusa; a character with tentacle-like hair (wasn't snakes but definitely had a life of its own) whose specialty was to, [[MeaningfulName yes]], [[InstantSeduction seduce men]].

* She's one of the main characters in ''WebComic/{{Nightmarish}}'', portrayed as a [[Main/{{Pun}} ston]][[Main/TheStoner er]] with Main/BlindingBangs.

[[folder:Film]]

* ''WesternAnimation/WonderWomanBloodlines'': A Medusa that is a mix of the two from ''ComicBook/WonderWoman1987'' is the film's most deadly villain.

In almost all versions, Medusa is humanoid (occasionally, [[SnakePeople she has a snake tail instead of legs]]) and AlwaysFemale. In some versions, her hair-snakes are venomous. In others, they are not literal snakes but rather hair that supernaturally behaves as if it were made of living snakes. When a version contain a male Medusa, it's usually some [[DistaffCounterpart Spear Counterpart]] with some other name. Medusa's appearance varies depending on what source you're reading. The most popular is that of a hideous monster; in fact, the petrification originally was caused by Medusa's ugliness itself, before other myths retconned it into being a power based in her eyes. Other myths say that Medusa retained her mortal beauty, as a cruel {{Irony}}. And then there are some that offer a compromise and state that she was both beautiful ''and'' terrible at the same time.

* ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'' features the actual Medusa (or, more precisely, her Heroic Spirit, i.e. superpowered ghost) as the Servant [[spoiler:Rider]], under the backstory of having been born as an incomplete goddess that was mocked and cursed. While her eyes still turn people into stone, her "snake hair" is explained to be a negative exaggeration of her [[RapunzelHair really long and luxurious hair]]... however, it turns out it would be more accurate to call this Medusa as the one ''before'' she became a monster. She also has the ability to summon her son Pegasus as a mount. One summonable version of her in ''VideoGame/FateGrandOrder'' (specifically summoning her as the Gorgon of legend) ''does'' have the snakes for hair (more accurately, "hair feelers" with snake head-shaped ends) and all versions of her can apparently shift to [[SuperPoweredEvilSide the monster she eventually became at the end of her life at the cost of her sanity]], which can only be described as a [[EldritchAbomination giant monster made of snakes that can shoot lasers from its single eye]]. A third summonable version appears in the form of a child that represents her time as a goddess, wielding the weapon that in myth was used by Perseus to decapitate her.

** In ''TabletopGame/{{Eberron}}'', medusae have a unique culture largely based around avoiding looking someone in the eyes -- they're not immune to the petrifying gaze of other medusae, so its kind of the only choice. They were created by the [[EldritchAbomination daelkyr]], but broke free when the [[SealedEvilInACan creatures were sealed away]]. Oh, and there are explicitly males as well--where do you think all the baby medusae come from?
** In ''TabletopGame/ScarredLands'', medusae were created by the titan Mormo. In this setting, pretty much everything was created by the Titans, including the gods. Two centuries ago, the gods rose up against them in what came to be known as the Titanswar or the Divine War. The medusae were initially an important force at the titans' side, but they switched side to serve the Gods, particularly the neutral evil goddess Belsameth.

* There exists a genus of horned dinosaur named after Medusa called ''[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medusaceratops Medusaceratops]]'' due to its horns snaking around. It also carries the species name ''[[Myth/NorseMythologgy lokii]]'' too, might we add.

* There exists a genus of horned dinosaur named after Medusa called ''[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medusaceratops Medusaceratops]]'' due to its horns snaking around. It also carries the species name ''[[Myth/NorseMythologgy lokii]]'' too, might we add.

Originally a character in Myth/ClassicalMythology, Medusa has taken a life of her own, and now exists in all kinds of fantasy -- sometimes as a person, [[AKindOfOne sometimes as an entire species]]. Medusa's main characteristics are snakes for hair and that people [[TakenForGranite turn to stone]] just by [[DeadlyGaze seeing her face]]. So [[TheFourthWallWillNotProtectYou don't look at that illustration]]. [[note]][[DependingOnTheWriter All bets are off]], though, if she is of the GorgeousGorgon resp. CuteMonsterGirl variety. Her petrification powers then may be still present, totally absent, voluntary or, eh, [[{{Hentai}} body part specific.]] [[/note]]

* ''LightNovel/KagerouDaze'': Azami, an immortal being as old as the planet whose long black hair grows as snakes. She can petrify people with eye-contact, but she controls when/if that happens. [[spoiler:She also happens to be the source of the cast's eye powers and creator of the Kagerou Daze world.]] She and her descendants (daughter Shion and granddaughter Mary) are called 'medusae' as a species, and regarded as monsters. Shion and Marry also inherited her abilities, but they get weaker as the medusa-blood is diluted (Shion is a HalfHumanHybrid, hence her daughter is only 1/4 medusa) - by Marry's generation, the most she can do is freeze people in place for a few minutes at a time and make her hair wiggle like snakes when highly emotional.

* ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' fic ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/5464274/1/So-You-Think-You-Had-A-Bad-Hair-Day Bad Hair Day]]'', by Creator/AAPessimal, expands on the throwaway canonical mention of a Medusa as a Watchwoman, explores the particular day-by-day trials of a gorgon policewoman, and expands on the Discworld's Fantasy Counterpart of UsefulNotes/{{Greece}}, Ephebe.
* This is what [[WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles Violet Parr]] is [[BalefulPolymorph transfigured]] into in ''Fanfic/HereBeMonsters'' - though referred to as a gorgon, WordOfGod name-drops Medusa and her origin myth when giving the reasons for this choice of monster form. Violet's gorgon form is based on ''Film/ClashOfTheTitans2010''' take on Medusa as mentioned in the Film section, being a GorgeousGorgon with her [[AloofDarkHairedGirl long, dark hair]] replaced by live snakes and a rattlesnake-like tail instead of legs.

* ''Film/ClashOfTheTitans1981'' included Medusa as an obstacle for Perseus to overcome - cutting off her head so he can use it to petrify the sea monster who will eat Andromeda. She's made even more monstrous than usual - with a rattlesnake tail that she uses to [[HellIsThatNoise scare people when she's off screen]]. She also becomes an AdaptationalBadass who is pretty nifty with a bow and arrow, hunting down Perseus's comrades one by one. As noted above, this portrayal [[ColbertBump brought Medusa into to pop culture]], in no small part thanks to the special effects creator Creator/RayHarryhausen used to bring her to life.
* ''Film/ClashOfTheTitans2010'' includes Medusa's backstory about being cursed. This time it was Aphrodite rather than Athena[[note]]A deleted subplot would have had Athena and Apollo conspiring to help Perseus behind the other gods' backs; presumably having Athena be the one who cursed her would have put her in DesignatedHero territory.[[/note]] - and this version also follows the compromise of Medusa being beautiful and terrible. She's a GorgeousGorgon here, but has a GameFace whenever she petrifies people. She also becomes far more sadistic - cackling cruelly whenever she petrifies someone.

* The Film/HammerHorror film ''Film/TheGorgon'', where a small village is terrorized by the eponymous beast and its secret is the DrivingQuestion. In this case, the titular Gorgon is a lot like a werewolf, who transforms at night and is human during the day. It was notably made before Medusa's pop culture popularity - as the Gorgon in this version is named as Magaera ([[SadlyMythtaken who was one of the Furies]]).
* In the first ''Film/PercyJacksonAndTheOlympians'' film, she's played by Creator/UmaThurman. So, not so much hideous. When she discovers that Percy is the son of Poseidon, she snarks "[[MetaphoricallyTrue I used to date your daddy."]]

* In ''Series/LandOfTheLost1974'' episode "Medusa", a version of Medusa who calls herself "Meddy", appears as a beautiful young woman at first, before her hideous true form is revealed. Her stone gaze only worked in her true form, but it worked on anything she looked at, even plants. She could control vines around her garden (eventually turning them to stone out of anger for [[YouHaveFailedMe letting the heroes escape]]). She also had a mirror where her reflection could move on its own and talk to her, but she could only confront it in her pretty form so she would not turn herself to stone. Her reflection constantly scolded her because of her vanity and ego, telling her to just turn Holly to stone right away instead of trying to beautify her or waiting for the others to arrive. Jack defeats her by finding the mirror and showing it to her in her true form. Right before she turned to stone, her reflection commented that she should have listened to her warnings.

* In ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries,'' there is a race known as the Medusans. Their appearance is a madness-inducing BrownNote for most humanoid races. They're not bad guys.
* In one episode of ''Series/SwampThing'', Swampy and Dr. Arcane both encounter Medusa in the form of a beautiful woman - that is, she's only beautiful as long as she keeps her sunglasses on. When she takes them off we see glowing eyes and part of a monstrous face. She can't petrify Swamp Thing, as he isn't made of flesh, but she can (somehow) turn him into dry bark. Arcane is a scientist to the core about the whole thing; in one scene she partially petrifies him, and he spends the entire time clinically describing the sensation of his soft tissues being turned to stone.
* One of the later ''Series/LegendsOfTheHiddenTemple'' rooms was Medusa's Lair, where contestants had to properly place snakes into Medusa's head.
* The ''Series/TalesFromTheDarkside'' episode "Miss May Dusa" involves an amnesiac woman discovering that she is Medusa.
* Medusa appears as a character in ''Series/{{Atlantis}}'', where she is initially a normal young woman with whom Hercules falls in love after the heroes rescue her from the cult of the Maenads.
* Medusa is the MonsterOfTheWeek in an episode of ''Series/BigWolfOnCampus''. She looks like a regular human, and can turn people or objects to stone by making eye contact. Merton falls victim to her.
* Medusa is present in the Enchanted Forest in ''Series/OnceUponATime''. It turns out that her head can't be cut off, but she also ''isn't'' immune to her own gaze. Petrifying herself also seems to restore her other victims back to life.
* Medusa is a character in the ''Series/BloodTies2007'' episode "Stone Cold," a club owner who turns men who fall for her beauty into stone. She is a love interest of Mike's, until Vicky saves the day.
* The first season of ''Series/Charmed2018'' has an interesting approach to the myth, where Medusa actually turns those who won't look at her to stone. Macy "defeats" her by acknowledging her pain.

* Medusas are regular enemies in ''VideoGame/{{Miitopia}}'', where they are serpentines ladies with a Mii mouth on their faces and a Mii eye on five snakes of her hair. Of course, one of their attack can petrify Miis.
* Medusa is playable in ''VideoGame/{{Smite}}'' and for once, able to go toe to toe against the ones who caused her misery: Poseidon and ''especially'' Athena (ironically, she's also an excellent partner to play with Medusa). She's not a Goddess, but gets the pass for being one of the more famous monsters in mythology (when they have already included monsters like Scylla or Demigods like Hercules). Medusa is portrayed here with a porcelain emotionless mask over her face that hides a more snake-like face underneath it. Like in ''Film/ClashOfTheTitans1981'', she makes use of a bow (but can also [[AbnormalAmmo loose vipers with it]]). Her snake heads can also spit out acid, and her ultimate is removing her mask to cause her signature effect to enemies, which damages and temporarily stuns all enemies facing her as she does it (doing less damage and slowing enemies facing away). Being killed by her ultimate leaves a statue of the dead god behind - these statues can be broken, interacts with her acid spitting by helping spread it over a larger area when it hits them, and even potentially (though it's very difficult and not very likely) break the line of sight for Medusa's ultimate for players to avoid it in a future situation.

** Second Edition's 3rd ''Bestiary'' introduces Sthenos, a race that emerged about a century before the setting's present day when an euryale named Stheno, resentful of the constant nightmares plaguing her kind thanks to Lamashtu's "blessings", prayed to the goddess Shelyn for help. Lamashtu's jealous rebuke slew Stheno, but Stheno will and defiance caused each of the one hundred snakes that made up her hair to become a new being; these newborn people took the name of sthenos after their progenitor and went out into the world. Modern sthenos almost completely resemble medusas but lack their petrifying powers; their hair snakes are alive and semi-autonomous, although they share their host's emotions. Sthenos are a scattered and spreading people, without a homeland or a unified culture, and mostly keep their numbers up by mating with humans -- the children of human/stheno pairings are always either human or stheno, more or less randomly.

* Medusa is a character in the ''Series/{{Blood Ties}}'' episode "Stone Cold," a club owner who turns men who fall for her beauty into stone. She is a love interest of Mike's, until Vicky saves the day.