History Main / NeverForgottenSkill

[[/folder]]

Every character in a fictional work will always have a skill. These skills can be anything like choosing the right people for a job, stealth, pickpocketing and so on. Normally, a skill has to be learned, and once a character learns it, s/he has to practice it lest s/he forgets how to do it.

Not these skills. These skills are learned once, and then the character never forgets how to do them, even if s/he hasn't used them for years.

* In ''Disney/LadyAndTheTrampIIScampsAdventure'', Tramp has long since retired from his life of crime. However, he unlocks one locked door with awe-inspiring ease, showing that his criminal skills have not degraded in all those years.

* In ''Film/TheAddamsFamily'', The Mamushka turns out to be this, as Gordon can dance it almost instinctively.

** ''Anime/DragonBallSuper'': After not using it in-universe for almost two decades (he did use it once in {{Filler}}, but even then only in the afterlife, where his body doesn't have the same limits), Goku [[spoiler: busts out the Kaio-Ken against Hit during their match in the God of Destruction tournament.]]

* In Real Life, skills which work like this are the ones related to motor control; once the cerebellum (the part of the brain which co-ordinates your muscle movements) learns a given pattern of movement, you'll never forget it (through natural means, at least). Hence why it's so easy to get back on a bike (which is controlled entirely by simple muscle movements), no matter how long it's been since you last used one, after learning to ride one. In other words, muscle memory.
* Another Real Life example is musician Clive Wearing, who suffered a bout of encephalitis which left him amnesiac and entirely unable to form new memories. Yet he can still expertly play the piano and remember many of the songs he's learned. This is because the part of the brain that stores your acquired skills is different from the part of your brain that stores experiences. So even if you've forgotten how you learned a skill, you can still perform it. [[/folder]]

-->--'''Tim Drake''', ''WesternAnimation/BatmanBeyondReturnOfTheJoker''

* ''Disney/LadyAndTheTramp'': In the sequel ''Lady and the Tramp II: Scamp's Adventure'', Tramp has long since retired from his life of crime. However, he unlocks one locked door with awe-inspiring ease, showing that his criminal skills have not degraded in all those years.

This trope can result in DamnYouMuscleMemory. BagOfSpilling can happen and subvert this trope. This is the polar opposite of ForgotAboutHisPowers, in other words, an InvertedTrope. Compare and contrast with InstantExpert, NoStatAtrophy, SuddenlyAlwaysKnewThat, and CentipedesDilemma.

** Bruce Wayne has retired from being Batman, and has spent years being a bitter old recluse. However, he is a quite proficient fighter (though he no longer has the stamina for a prolonged battle), using his cane not just for attacking but for casually blocking thrown knives.

** In ''WesternAnimation/BatmanBeyondReturnOfTheJoker'', he still knows how to make the antidote for Joker venom -- fortunately. And in the beginning of the film, he's shown throwing a Batarang with enough accuracy to behead a dummy of Two-Face and then catch it on the rebound.
-->'''Bruce''': Still got it.

** In ''WesternAnimation/BatmanBeyondReturnOfTheJoker'', he still knows how to make the antidote for Joker venom -- fortunately.

[[/folder]]

* ''Anime/DragonBallGT'': Played with quite oddly. After being turned back into a kid, Goku is unable to use his Instant Transmission technique and Trunks theorizes that since Goku is a kid again, he can't use any technique he learned when he was an adult. However, Goku pulls off the techniques of flying, turning Super Saiyan, shooting out ki blasts, and sensing energy with little difficulty... despite the fact that he never learned them back when he was a kid. The show later implies that like turning Super Saiyan 3, it simply requires energy and stamina his child body simply isn't capable of.

----
!!Examples
[[AC:AnimeAndManga]]

-->"I don't know why...I know how to do things like this. How can I know this? How can I know...when I know nothing else?"

[[AC:ComicBooks]]

[[AC:{{Film}}]]

-->Harry: If I break it, they can take it out of my pay.

[[AC:{{Literature}}]]

* ''Literature/TheMysteriousFlameOfQueenLoana'': Yambo, despite losing his memory from a stroke, still knows how to spot valuable texts among old collections - [[MoneyDearBoy and how to get them at the best prices]].

[[AC:LiveActionTV]]
* ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'': Xander got magically transformed into an army soldier. After the transformation wears off, he still has the skills he "learned" even though he rarely uses them.
** By the later parts of the series, however, he admits that he's mostly forgotten them.
* ''Series/DoctorWho'': After being [[spoiler: erased from all of time and space, then reappearing as an Auton Roman centurian then re-integrated back into history after The Doctor restarts the big bang,]] Rory still remembers the whole experience, including details of [[spoiler: living as a Roman and constantly guarding the Pandorica for roughly 2000 years]] despite it technically never happening. {{Justified}} since [[spoiler: !New Rory (along with everything else in the rebooted universe) is created from Amy's memories just like !Auto Rory was; as far as she's concerned, they're the same person so he got both of their memories dumped in his head. Technically, ''none'' of his memories happened to him, but to someone else in a previous universe who happened to be physically identical]].

[[AC:VideoGames]]

--> '''Kraal''': Kraal is island Orc. Will be okay. Sailing is like riding a horse:
--> '''Sandor''': Because once you know how you never forget?
--> '''Kraal''': No. Because you fall off a lot. Heh heh heh.

[[AC:WesternAnimation]]
* ''WesternAnimation/BatmanBeyond'': Bruce Wayne has retired from being Batman, and has spent years being a bitter old recluse. However, he is a quite proficient fighter (though he no longer has the stamina for a prolonged battle), using his cane not just for attacking but for casually blocking thrown knives.

* ''Disney/LadyAndTheTramp'': In the sequel ''Lady and the Tramp II: Scamp's Adventure'', Tramp has long since retired from his life of crime. However, he unlocks one locked door with awe-inspiring ease, showing that his criminal skills have not degraded in all those years.

* ''WesternAnimation/SpongebobSquarepants'':

[[AC:RealLife]]

* Happens in ''WesternAnimation/{{Archer}}'' when Sterling has a HeroicBSOD that causes him to think he's [[Series/BobsBurgers Bob]]. He retains his skills in combat and the Russian language, putting both to good use throughout the episode. As with just about everything in the show, this is frequently lampshaded by him.

* Happens in ''WesternAnimation/{{Archer}}'' when Sterling has a HeroicBSOD that causes him to think he's [[BobsBurgers Bob]]. He retains his skills in combat and the Russian language, putting both to good use throughout the episode. As with just about everything in the show, this is frequently lampshaded by him.

* ''Radio/OurMissBrooks'' One episode sees Mrs. Davis fill in as a nurse for a miserly millionaire, in spite of having left the nursing profession many years before.
** Subverted in the episode ''The First Aid Course'', where Miss Brooks pretends to have forgotten first aid in order to avoid teaching a night course. This backfires when romantic rival and fellow teacher Miss Enright ends up continuing the course - and [[LoveInterest Mr. Boynton]] signs up.

* ''VideoGame/StarCraftIIHeartOfTheSwarm'': Kerrigan is given a gun by Raynor. She has clearly not forgotten how to shoot with it, which is impressive, considering that she had spent four years as a melee character and a human/zerg hybrid.

* ''WesternAnimation/BatmanBeyond'': Bruce Wayne has retired from being Batman, and has spent years being a bitter old recluse. However, Bruce has proven to be quite proficient with his cane, not just for attacking, but for casually blocking thrown knives with it. Then there's that one episode where he goes into a Lazarus Pit and apparently being made younger causes him to fight with all the skills of his younger self unforgotten.
* ''WesternAnimation/BatmanBeyondReturnOfTheJoker'': Bruce Wayne may have been out of being Batman for years, but a number of his skills were never forgotten. [[spoiler: For instance, he has never forgotten how to make a batch of Anti-Joker Venom. It was a good thing thing, because Joker came calling and doused Bruce with the Joker Venom]].

* ''Manga/DragonBall'': At one point, Goku learns a technique called the Spirit Bomb. He stops using it after the fight with Freeza. Years later, he is reminded to use this technique on Kid Buu by Vegeta, and Goku is still able to use it like a pro.

[[AC:RealLife]]
* In Real Life, skills which work like this are the ones related to motor control; once the cerebellum (the part of the brain which co-ordinates your muscle movements) learns a given pattern of movement, you'll never forget it (through natural means, at least). Hence why it's so easy to get back on a bike (which is controlled entirely by simple muscle movements), no matter how long it's been since you last used one, after learning to ride one. In other words, muscle memory.

* ''Anime/DragonBallGT'': Played with quite oddly. After being turned back into a kid, Goku is unable to use his Instant Transmission technique and Trunks theorizes that since Goku is a kid again, he can't use any technique he learned when he was an adult. However, Goku pulls off the techniques of flying, turning Super Saiyan, shooting out ki blasts, and sensing energy with little difficulty... despite the fact that he never learned them back when he was a kid.

* ''Series/DoctorWho'': After being [[spoiler: erased from all of time and space, then reappearing as an Auton Roman centurian then re-integrated back into history after The Doctor restarts the big bang,]] Rory still remembers the whole experience, including details of [[spoiler: living as a Roman and constantly guarding the Pandorica for roughly 2000 years]] despite it technically never happening.

* ''Manga/DragonBall'': At one point, Goku learns a technique called the Spirit Bomb. He stops using it after the fight with Frieza. Years later, he is reminded to use this technique on Kid Buu by Vegeta, and Goku is still able to use it like a pro.

* In Neil Gaimans ''TheEternals'', Thena demonstrates that though she's spent the last couple of years as a human, with no memory of her godlike immortal self, she's absolutely terrifying in a fight.

* ''Series/DoctorWho'': After being [[spoiler: erased from all of time and space, then reappearing as an Auton Roman centurian then re-integrated back into history after The Doctor restarts the big bang,]] Rory still remembers the whole experience, including details of [[spoiler: living as a Roman]] despite it technically never happening.

* ''Manga/FistOfTheNorthStar'': Close to the end of the series, Kenshirou ends up losing his memory. Despite this, he kills off some thugs with Hokuto Shinken with little effort. Clearly, his skills with the martial art can never be forgotten, even if he has amnesia.