History Main / MoodRingEyes

In subtle cases, this can actually be (sorta) TruthInTelevision. Some eyes might be predominantly one color, but have flecks or even a whole ring of another. Irises constrict and dilate under certain conditions such as lighting or, yes, mood. This can cause some eyes to appear to change color, even though they don't actually change. For instance, blue eyes with flecks of green may appear to turn green when the eyes dilate.

* ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'': The Schnee family butler is called Klein Sieben. His name means 'Little Seven' and is an allusion to the ''Literature/SnowWhiteAndTheSevenDwarfs''. Weiss Schnee, one of the show's main characters, is based on Snow White and Klein puts on little skits with his different personalities to cheer her up whenever she is down. He has seven different personalities, with an eye colour to match each personality. In his first introduction, he has light brown eyes and behaves in a formal, professional manner. When his eyes turn blue, he sneezes a lot in a goofy way. With yellow eyes, he seems overly cheerful and when he has red eyes, his behaviour is grumpy. The eye colours and personalities match the eye colours and personalities of [[Disney/SnowWhiteAndTheSevenDwarfs Disney's Seven Dwarfs]].

* ''Webcomic/GirlGenius'': When Klaus was ''really'' mad at one and [[CoolAndUnusualPunishment devised a rather devious punishment]] his eyes turned from white (on the previous page) to [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20040119 yellow]].

* One of the first signs of a mutant [[PubertySuperpower manifesting]] in the ''Literature/WhateleyUniverse'' is their eye color changing to something unusual, like [[SupernaturalGoldEyes amber]], [[RedEyesTakeWarning red]] or [[PurpleEyes violet]] -- but only the one time, then it becomes permanent. Being a {{Superhero}} series, however, there's also [[PowerGlows other variants of this trope]] in effect with some of the characters.

** An interesting mention must go to Megatron from ''WesternAnimation/TransformersPrime'', whose eyes were originally blue, but changed to [[RedEyesTakeWarning red when he became evil]]. When Megatron, or anyone else, uses Dark Energon to power themselves, their eyes turn [[PurpleEyes purple]].

* Meta Knight's eyes do this in ''Anime/KirbyOfTheStars'' depending on what emotion he's experiencing. Justified since the mask hides his face, and they needed SOME way to show his emotions. When he's unconscious, they're a dull, dark yellow.

* Super Saiyans' eyes in ''Anime/DragonBallZ'' change to turquoise/green-blue as part of their SuperMode.

* Usually downplayed in the ''Franchise/PrettyCure franchise''.

* ''Film/GreenLantern'': Hal's eye change from brown to very light blue whenever he has the mask on, when his ring signals danger and when he first learns the oath. Hammond has a version of this too, overlapping with SupernaturalGoldEyes.
* The Mad Hatter in Creator/TimBurton's version of ''[[Film/AliceInWonderland2010 Alice in Wonderland]]''. Whenever he's angry, his eyes go from neon green to a fiery orange, and that would be your cue to ''run''.

* So does Briar from Pierce's Literature/CircleOfMagic books, although they're mentioned so inconsistently that it seems like a {{Retcon}} half the time.

[[folder:Live Action TV]]

* PlayedForLaughs on later seasons of''Series/HowIMetYourMother'', when Lilly's eyes turn bright red when she's angry, in a visual call back to a [[Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer darker time]] in Creator/AlysonHannigan's career..

[[folder:Tabletop RPG]]
* In previous editions of ''TabletopGame/ForgottenRealms'', the god Vhaeraun had this according to mood (gold for triumph, blue for amusement, red for anger, green for curiosity), accompanied by KaleidoscopeHair to match.

* ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker'' gave Link these in early beta versions - his eyes would flash red when he got into a battle. This was dropped for the final version, though.

* In ''VideoGame/TalesOfSymphonia'', Colette's blue eyes turn red when [[spoiler:she loses her soul; they return to blue when she gets it back again]].
** And in the [[VideoGame/TalesOfSymphoniaDawnOfTheNewWorld sequel]], Emil's normally green eyes turn red whenever his "Ratatosk-mode" personality is in control (usually during battle only).

* In the ''VideoGame/{{Xenosaga}}'' games, KOS-MOS's eyes will change from their default red to blue when [[spoiler:Shion is in mortal peril and Mary Magdelene decides it's time to step in and save her]]. In the third game [[spoiler:they turn blue with the defeat of T-elos and remain that way until Zarathustra has been destroyed]].
* During any given cutscene in ''VideoGame/MortalKombatVsDCUniverse'', one can tell when a kombatant's UnstoppableRage kicks in -- his or her eyes turn yellow.
* ''VideoGame/{{Touhou}}'': Sakuya was given red eyes in her first appearance, but blue eyes in her later ones. This would normally just be an art error, but the fighting games decided that her eyes actually turn red for certain attacks.
* The MMORPG ''VideoGame/{{Aion}}'' has a playable race called the Asmodians, whose eyes glow yellow normally but change to red while in combat.

* ''Videogame/BanjoKazooie'':
** Grunty from normally has yellow eyes, but [[spoiler:when she turns beautiful]] during the GameOver screen, her eyes turn brown.
** Also, Tooty, Banjo's younger sister normally has blue eyes like her older brother Banjo, but [[spoiler: when Grunty turns her ugly]] during the GameOver screen, her eyes also turn brown.
* In ''VideoGame/KingdomHearts3DDreamDropDistance'', if one of your Dream Eater allies has a change in their personality, their eye color ([[ExoticEyeDesigns and shape]]) also changes to reflect it.

* In ''Webcomic/{{Chimneyspeak}}'', Chelsea Grinn's eyes colors change depending on which of her personalities is in control. When she gets red rings around her pupils, everyone around her tends to die horribly.
* Jareth in ''{{Webcomic/Roommates}}'' has a mild case of this as his (normally slightly mismatched) eyes tend to always remain [[OccultBlueEyes blue(ish)]], but the shade shifts with his mood or [[MonochromaticEyes expand into parts where it shouldn't]]. All of this has to do with the fact that he is a FairFolk with human motivations and these two are highly incompatible. The more inhuman his eyes are the more fae he acts and dangerous he is... when his eyes go solid dark blue (on the black and white pages this looks eerily like BlackEyesOfEvil) his SuperPoweredEvilSide took over (happened precisely two times to date).

--> eyes that change color depending on mood

* One of the first signs of a mutant [[PubertySuperpower manifesting]] in the Literature/WhateleyUniverse is their eye color changing to something unusual, like [[SupernaturalGoldEyes amber]], [[RedEyesTakeWarning red]] or [[PurpleEyes violet]] -- but only the one time, then it becomes permanent. Being a {{Superhero}} series, however, there's also [[PowerGlows other variants of this trope]] in effect with some of the characters.

* Gir of ''WeasternAnimation/InvaderZim'' had three different colours for his eyes as well as other parts. His default colour is light blue, red for focused and/or violent, and black for asleep or dead.
* Strip "The King" Weathers from ''WesternAnimation/{{Cars}}'' normally has brown eyes, but when Chick Hicks crashes him at the end of the film, they somehow turn blue. They revert back to brown after he is helped by [=Lightning McQueen=] into reaching the finish line.
* ''WesternAnimation/HowTheGrinchStoleChristmas'': When the Grinch turns good, his eyes actually change from red to blue.
* In the ''WesternAnimation/OneHundredAndOneDalmatiansTheSeries'' episode "[=DeVil=]-Age Elder", Rebecca has light pink eyes while hypnotized under the curse put on [=DeVil=] Ville, and blue eyes when the curse is lifted from her.

* The Kressari are given these in the Franchise/StarTrekNovelVerse, the trait having been introduced in the ''Literature/StarTrekDeepSpaceNineRelaunch'' and referenced in the ''Literature/StarTrekVoyagerRelaunch''. On screen, the Kressari makeup gave them very stiff, inflexible faces. The books gave them colour-changing eyes as the primary means of expressing themselves.

* ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'':

* Aliera e'Kieron in the ''Literature/{{Dragaera}}'' series has eyes that change color according to her mood: they are normally green, change to grey when angry, and then to blue when ''very'' angry. Since Aliera is [[BloodKnight violent even for a Dragaeran]], this feature allows her eyes to be used as a barometer of one's personal safety. In this case, the bizarre color is partially explained by the fact that [[spoiler:Aliera's mother is the Demon Goddess Verra.]]

** Another ''Prime'' example: when Ratchet tries out his Synthetic Energon formula, his eyes [[GreenEyes turn green]] to match the color of the Synth-En.

* In ''VideoGame/StarCraftII'', the various Adjutants have color-changing eyes, but they are usually blue. Confederate Adjutant 23-46 changes its eye colors to reflect different individuals during its playback -- [[color:gold:Edmond Duke]], [[color:magenta:Sarah Kerrigan]], [[color:green:Jim Raynor]], and [[color:red:Arcturus Mengsk]].

Subtrope to EyeColourChange. Not to be confused with TechnicolorEyes. A common trait of a MarySue.

* The Mad Hatter in TimBurton's version of ''[[Film/AliceInWonderland2010 Alice in Wonderland]]''. Whenever he's angry, his eyes go from neon green to a fiery orange, and that would be your cue to ''run''.

* In the ''Literature/MalazanBookOfTheFallen'' series of books, the character Anomander Rake has eyes that change color depending on his mood. This is actually a quality of his entire race. Multiple characters with this trait appear.

* In Creator/DevonMonk's Literature/AllieBeckstrom novel ''Magic to the Bone'', Zayvion has brown eyes with flecks of gold -- until he leaves the magic grid, whereupon they are brown. When he drives back, his eyes turn [[SupernaturalGoldEyes pure gold]] with only flecks of brown.

%%[[quoteright:350:[[Webcomic/{{Sparklypoo}} http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kaleidoscopeeyes.JPG]]]]
%%[[caption-width-right:350:Sparklypoo House represent!]]

%%->''"Somebody calls you, you answer quite slowly,''\\
%%''A girl with kaleidoscope eyes."''
%%-->-- '''Music/TheBeatles''', [[Music/SgtPeppersLonelyHeartsClubBand "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds"]]

* In the early ''TabletopGame/MagicTheGathering'' novel ''The Prodigal Sorcerer'', the elves are all martial artists with KaleidoscopeEyes that reflect their mood.

* Lightning of ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIII'' has eyes that, as mentioned at the bottom of the trope description, don't actually change colour but appear either pale blue or green depending on the lighting conditions. Some players have even spotted her appearing to have heterochromia, and inconsistent official artwork certainly doesn't help the matter.

* Somewhere between ''VideoGame/GoldenSun'''s character concept art and the game sprites, someone forgot what color Sheba's eyes are supposed to be--they're [[WindIsGreen green]] in the art but [[SupernaturalIsPurple purple]] in-game.
* I-No from ''VideoGame/GuiltyGear'' is said to have eyes that change their color depending on the angle you're looking at them, but it's never been fully implemented until ''Xrd''. (Prior artwork depicted her with green eyes or, [[DependingOnTheArtist less commonly]], blue.)

[[folder:Tabletop RPG]]
* ''TabletopGame/{{Cyberpunk}} 2020'', as well as presumably other systems with a similar setting, includes colorshifting as a decorative option for cyberoptics, aka artificial eyes.
* In previous editions of ''TabletopGame/ForgottenRealms'', the god Vhaeraun had this according to mood (gold for triumph, blue for amusement, red for anger, green for curiosity), accompanied by KaleidoscopeHair to match.
* Magnus's remaining eye is a different color every time it's mentioned in ''[[Literature/HorusHeresy A Thousand Sons]]''.
[[/folder]]

* Cherry, one of the [[TheRenfield Renfields]] in Webcomic/BloodyUrban has eyes that can be blue, brown, one of each, or both at the same time at any given time.
* ''Webcomic/GirlGenius'':
** The eyes of Feetmen ("zuper-engineered sqvirrels or zumting") sometimes are white and [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20031024 sometimes]] [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20040702 green]], and when Klaus was ''really'' mad at one and [[CoolAndUnusualPunishment devised a rather devious punishment]] his eyes turned from white (on the previous page) to [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20040119 yellow]].
** In "FanFiction" [[SideStoryBonusArt sidestory]] where a teenage girl is telling her younger siblings the stories of the Heterodynes and inserts her own MarySue, who embodies many Sue tropes including this one.
* The title character in the ''Franchise/StarTrek'' ParodySue comic ''Webcomic/EnsignSueMustDie'' has eyes that change color in every strip, along with her hair highlights and beauty mark. Which gets lampshaded at one point, when Ensign Sue narrates her own actions, 'limpid blue' eyes gets crossed out and replaced with 'stunning violet' eyes.

* Lord English in ''WebComic/{{Homestuck}}'', though not with the usual connotations of this trope; he has this on account of his eyes being a constant loop of pool balls spinning around in his eye sockets. [[spoiler:B2 Jack Noir gets these as well when he's sent Li'l Cal while in jail...[[EyeScream after gouging out his own eyes and replacing them with the puppet's.]]]]

* [[http://akaichounokoe.deviantart.com/gallery/39686204 Doki's eyes, like her twin sister's, changes in accordance to what she wears or at will]]

[[folder:Comic Books]]
* In ''[[ComicBook/TheSandman Endless Nights]]'', Delight's eyes change from green to blue during her brief appearance. This was probably the norm for her, before she turned into Delirium and acquired her present heterochromia.\\
After her change of status, it's interestingly subverted: While the rest of Delirium is highly mutable owing to her nature, her eyes are almost always the same. [[spoiler:They only change when she briefly pulls herself together to help Dream, both eyes becoming the same color to represent her temporary sanity.]]
[[/folder]]

* Airosian eyes in ''ThePeaceKeeperForce'' are limited to shades of blue, but they do shift from almost-white blue to almost-black blue, sometimes in the span of a single panel, and with all the shades inbetween.

* In ''A Hero Born'' and ''A Hero Reborn'', this is a mark of a [=ChaosRider=], called Chaosfire. Considered a stigma because, "Once you're touched by the Chaosfire, you're considered capable of anything."
* [[Film/TheBourneSeries Jason Bourne]] has eyes that mildly change color depending on the clothes he wears.
* ''Literature/NewJediOrder'', from the ''Franchise/StarWarsExpandedUniverse'': Yuuzhan Vong Supreme Overlord Shimrra Jamaane has these, due to mqaaq'it implants.
* Door of ''Literature/{{Neverwhere}}'' has "fire-opal" eyes of ever-changing/unclassifiable colour.
* Charlie Bone in the ''Literature/ChildrenOfTheRedKing'' series has a "cousin" who can do this. She is, in fact, a very old shape shifter and her eyes can't remember what color they are supposed to be. In the story it is unnerving to other characters and is treated more as a GlamourFailure.
* The eponymous protagonist of ''Literature/EmilyOfNewMoon''. Her eyes look purple or purple-grey, and a few times they appear black because of the dilation of her pupils when she's taken by strong emotion.

* In the Creator/StephenKing novel, ''Literature/NeedfulThings'', Leland Gaunt's eye colour changes depending on who sees him.

* Wynne in ''Literature/BeansidhesWail'' is said to have eyes that change from "pale grey, to sky blue, to sea green, to violet to silver." [[CloudCuckoolander The author]] says the same thing about ''her own'' eyes, saying, "A Clear Crystalline Grey That Shifts In Colour From Grey To Blue, To Green, To Violet And Sometimes Almost Silver, Depending On My Mood And My Clothes. I Have A Darker Grey Ring Around My Irises {Said To Be The Mark Of One With Faerie Blood And A Natural Witch} And Unusual *Lightning Bolt* Markings In Both Irises. My Eyes Are Quite Cat~Like, Almond Shaped. People Are Always Telling Me That I Have *Faerie Eyes* And Saying That My Eyes Are *Ancient*, *Ageless* *Endless*, And *Full Of Wisdom*"
* In Creator/RogerZelazny's ''Divlish the Damned'', some witches have eyes that wax and wane with the moon.
* In Creator/RobertEHoward's Literature/ConanTheBarbarian story "Literature/TheGodsOfTheNorth", the woman (with obvious magic) also has eyes that change.
-->''Her eyes were likewise neither wholly blue nor wholly grey, but of shifting colors and dancing lights and clouds of colors he could not define. ''
* Literature/EighthDoctorAdventures:
** The Doctor apparently has eyes like this, although they really are usually blue (and the descriptions aren't usually this overwrought).
-->''[...]his eyes were something else again. As he strode towards her, they glittered, seeming to change colour from moment to moment – first an honest brown of earth and nature, then a peaceful green of inner strength and eternal hope, then finally a piercing electric blue.''
** Also, Fitz's eyes are almost always grey, but are inexplicably described as blue shortly after he's introduced. To be fair, grey and blue are a lot alike. Sabbath's eyes can be brown, green, or black.
** The Seventh Doctors eyes are also sometimes described like this in the ''DoctorWhoNewAdventures'', especially if he's [[ManipulativeBastard very slightly hypnotising someone]].
* Piper's eyes in ''TheHeroesOfOlympus'' were described like this. It should be noted that she turns out the be a daughter of [[spoiler:Aphrodite]].

* Yasmini, the FemmeFatale of Talbot Mundy's ''King of the Khyber Rifles'' has lovely blue eyes ...which can also turn brown, or green, or hazel, or yellow, or reflective, or [[GlowingEyesOfDoom glowy.]] It's notable that King, the hero, finds this to be extremely {{creepy|BlueEyes}}, and not alluring.

* In the ''Literature/InheritanceCycle'', Solembum has these (and potentially the elves, if you count that they can use their magic to change their forms when they feel like it). In the first novel, he is stated to have red eyes. In the second, he has golden eyes. In the third, he has green eyes. In the fourth, he has blue eyes. This is even lampshaded by Eragon, who quips, "Weren't your eyes red?" which prompts Solembum to change his eyes back to red.

* Indra Ingridsdotter, the protagonist of "Röd måne" by Elisabet Nemert, has this.

* ''Literature/TheKingkillerChronicle''

* In the first episode to introduce Reverend Jim in ''Series/{{Taxi}}'', Jim asks the other people around him what color his eyes are. It takes a few minutes of looking to decide on a consensus. (Brown.)

[[folder:Music]]
* The [[TropeNamers Trope Namer]] is "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" (LSD) by Music/TheBeatles. John describes Lucy as having "kaleidoscope eyes"; that's how he knows her. Unlike most of the other examples here, he does not elaborate. Given the overall character of the song (plasticine porters with looking-glass ties? Marmalade skies?) it's implied that the eyes are actually perfectly normal--the kaleidoscope bit is probably acid-induced MushroomSamba.
* The Music/PanicAtTheDisco song of the same name.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Myth And Legend]]
* Loki the {{Trickster}} god in Myth/NorseMythology is occasionally described as having these. Kaleidoscope eyes seem unique to Loki; despite being [[VoluntaryShapeshifting able to change his form]], his eyes result in at least one GlamourFailure (eye-related glamour failure is common in Norse myth; Odin's shapeshifted forms were always one-eyed). This attribute possibly relates to his mental instability, rather than simply adding mysticism.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:New Media]]
* [[http://pottersues.livejournal.com/ Pottersues]], a Website/LiveJournal community dedicated to snarking the {{Mary Sue}}s of ''Franchise/HarryPotter'' fandom, uses animated [=GIFs=] of KaleidoscopeEyes in place of stars for its rating system.
[[/folder]]

** Also happens with Misa Amane, whose eyes change from brown to blue to even ''green'' in one instance. There is no mention of why this occurs, though the circumstances in which her eyes switch from their natural brown imply that she wears the contacts for idol-related work.

* Catherine Bloom in ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamWing'' has eyes that, in extreme close-ups, appear to be shimmering, changing color constantly.

* The amateur film from ''LightNovel/HaruhiSuzumiya'' has one of Mikuru's eyesconstantly changing color. The second novel explains this as Haruhi putting her in a different contact lens every day they shoot the film. [[spoiler:It turns out this ''actually'' causes Mikuru to fire something from her eyes depending on the color of the lens, from ultraviolet lasers to micro-black holes to rifle bullets.]]

This trope refers to when the character's eyes change on their own to suit something mental. Minor sight gags ([[IncrediblyLamePun har, har...]]) such as BlankWhiteEyes don't count and neither do contacts.

* One of the first signs of a mutant [[PubertySuperpower manifesting]] in the WhateleyUniverse is their eye color changing to something unusual, like [[SupernaturalGoldEyes amber]], [[RedEyesTakeWarning red]] or [[PurpleEyes violet]] -- but only the one time, then it becomes permanent. Being a {{Superhero}} series, however, there's also [[PowerGlows other variants of this trope]] in effect with some of the characters.

[[redirect:KaleidoscopeEyes]]