History Main / NightmareOfNormality

* After the events of the first season of ''Anime/CodeGeass'', [[spoiler:Lelouch [[LaserGuidedAmnesia has his mind wiped]] of the knowledge that he is Zero]].

** After being captured by Zinyak, the Boss wakes up to find themselves in a MindPrison based on 1950s suburbia; here, they're brainwashed into believing that they're a mild-mannered StandardFiftiesFather-type, [[GettingSmiliesPaintedOnYourSoul happy in their mundane sitcom life]], incapable of the Boss's usual feats of spectacular violence -- to the point that the game actually prevents you from driving dangerously, and though they're still President, it's a totally powerless celebrity position. Fortunately, the brainwashing eventually breaks down, allowing the Boss to break free with Kinzie's help.

* The second season off ''Anime/TheBigO'' begins with Roger going up against the foreign bots that come to attack Paradigm City. The fight ends up going badly and Roger... is somehow transported into a world where he's nothing but a homeless bum as opposed to the suave negotiator and wanders the street running into other characters who don't recognize him and have different roles than he knows. The implication being this was apparently everyone's former lives before whatever event caused the mass amnesia that swept over the world, though of course this show never clearly answers this. Regardless, he eventually regains his resolve and wakes up back in his world with renewed vigor to battle against the bots.

-->-- '''Allison Hargreeves,''' ''Series/TheUmbrellaAcademy2019''

* ''Anime/TheBigO'': The second season begins with Roger going up against the foreign bots that come to attack Paradigm City. The fight ends up going badly and Roger... is somehow transported into a world where he's nothing but a homeless bum as opposed to the suave negotiator and wanders the street running into other characters who don't recognize him and have different roles than he knows. The implication being this was apparently everyone's former lives before whatever event caused the mass amnesia that swept over the world, though of course this show never clearly answers this. Regardless, he eventually regains his resolve and wakes up back in his world with renewed vigor to battle against the bots.

* ''AudioPlay/BigFinishDoctorWho''

* In the penultimate confrontation of ''ComicBook/CaptainBritainACrookedWorld'', the eponymous hero faces off against reality-warping prime minister [[ChaoticEvil Mad Jim Jaspers]]. Though at first Captain Britain seems confident in his ability to go on fighting, Jaspers unleashes his powers on him -- and next thing he knows, Brian Braddock is waking up from a coma with no sign of his powers, briefly indicating that his adventures were just delusions. This lasts only for a page before Jaspers wakes him up again; apparently, he did this just to demonstrate how meaningless the good Captain's powers are in the face of a RealityWarper.
* ''ComicBook/SensationalWonderWoman'': PlayedForLaughs -- when Diana finds herself in a MindPrison courtesy of Dr. Pyscho, Diana's greatest subconscious fear is apparently being a married 1950s-style housewife.
* Magazine/DoctorWhoMagazine: In the story “John Smith and the Common Men” the Doctor is trapped in a nightmare world by a parasite, who puts him in a world where he’s a LovableCoward whose clothes are a uniform at his workplace and is hyper focused on everything. It’s implied that Clara was trapped in a similar one, where the Doctor didn’t exist.

* This is occasionally used by the ''heroes'' against threats that would be problematic to deal with under ordinary judicial systems. One classic example happens in ComicBook/JLA1997 when the genocidal White Martians are brainwashed into believing they're normal humans.

* The big twist in the first of ''Literature/TheCurseWorkers'' novels is that [[spoiler:Cassel]] isn't a MuggleBornOfMages after all: [[spoiler:he's actually a [[TheTransmogrifier transformation]] worker and has been brainwashed by his brothers into forgetting his powers -- except on occasions when they need an assassin who can effectively kill people [[PerfectCrime without leaving any kind of evidence]]. As such, reclaiming his powers and saving one of his past victims forms a major part of the story from then on]].
* ''{{Literature/Discworld}}'': PlayedForLaughs with the Bursar, the University accountant who's gone insane from prolonged daily contact with Archchancellor Ridcully, who is basically everything an accountant would deem wrong with the world. He's given dried frog pills (made from the kind of tropical frogs whose poison induces hallucinations) in order to hallucinate that he is sane (as Discworld magic training mostly consists of ''not'' using magic, his magic manifesting is treated as more of an annoyance than a catastrophe).
* ''Series/ForeverKnight'' has a tie-in novel called "Imitations of Mortality", where Nick becomes increasingly trapped in a dream world where he's human. Strangely, he's increasingly tired while awake and has to find out what's causing it all.
* ''Literature/LabyrinthsOfEcho'': This happens in "Volunteers of Eternity", when [[SummonEverymanHero Max]] travels from Echo back to our world, but upon arrival, assumes that his adventures in Echo were AllJustADream. Fortunately, this delusion falls apart as soon as he tries using the [[FantasyKeepsake magical powers]] he learned in Echo. In the next novella, it is revealed that said delusion was the result of an insidious psychic attack launched at Max by the villain-of-the-week while he was traveling between the worlds.
* This is a common practice at [[WizardingSchool Brakebills School of Magical Pedagogy]] in Lev Grossman's ''Literature/TheMagicians''. Because the study of magic is so intensive, the faculty take pains to weed out anyone who doesn't live up to the college's high standards via a [[IncomprehensibleEntranceExam ridiculously difficult entrance exam]]: those who fail have all memory of Brakebills and what little knowledge they have of magic expunged, before being sent on their way. As it turns out, this is the fate of Quentin Coldwater's friend Julia; however, thanks to a [[SpotTheThread minor error in the cover story she was given]], she manages to unearth what really happened and begin studying magic as a Hedge-Witch, as ''The Magician King'' demonstrates.

* ''Series/ForeverKnight'': When Nick Knight suffers from amnesia after a gunshot wound, Natalie is surprised to see him eating normal food in hospital. She tries keeping the secret of his vampirism from him in the hope that it will lead to further improvement (she believes that vampirism is similar to addiction and Nick could be cured if he stopped drinking blood altogether). Unfortunately, this doesn't last very long as he still experiences BloodLust and is burnt by the sun.
* The ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'' episode "[[Recap/StarTrekDeepSpaceNineS06E13FarBeyondTheStars Far Beyond the Stars]]" features Captain Ben Sisko abruptly going from the respected administrator of the eponymous space station and Emissary of the Prophets... to a sci-fi writer on Earth in the 1950s, struggling against the racial prejudice and brutality of the time. However, he isn't aware of who he really is at first, being fully taken in by the illusion, only becoming aware of it in apparent hallucinations of his life in space. [[spoiler:It's eventually revealed that this is a vision from the Prophets intended to inspire him not to lose hope in his fight against the Dominion.]]

* Overlaps with CuckooNest in ''Series/Legion2017.'' During the apparent final confrontation with the Devil with Yellow Eyes in "[[Recap/LegionS1E5Chapter5 Chapter 5]]", David and his allies are plunged into a mental recreation of the asylum from the beginning of the series and convinced that they are mundane, powerless human beings. Completely assimilated by the illusion, they remember nothing of their real-life experiences and regard any idea of their powers as facets of mental illness; amusingly enough, the normally-troubled David actually seems quite content with his new life, believing himself to be well on the way to recovery. [[spoiler:Oliver Byrd ends up having to awaken most of the group from the brainwashing so they can attempt a breakout, while David rediscovers himself after the Devil tries to pull a GrandTheftMe on him and -- with a little help from his subconsciousness -- breaks free with a massive telekinetic blast.]]

* The ''Series/RedDwarf'' episode "[[Recap/RedDwarfSeasonVBackToReality Back to Reality]]", the boys from the dwarf end up getting a dose of hallucinogenic venom from the Despair Squid, sending them into an illusory scenario in which the events of the series were just a virtual reality game they were playing over the course of the last four years. Most of the four are even more pathetic than ever before as a result: Rimmer is no longer a hologram, but is a homeless man and lacks what little achievements he possessed on Red Dwarf [[spoiler:(and he's also Lister's half-brother)]]; Kryten is a cyborg traffic cop with zero authority [[spoiler:and eventually a death on his conscience]]; Cat's arguably been hit the hardest up front, having gone from an effortlessly-cool evolved cat to a hopeless dork by the name of Dwayne Dibbley. Lister's the odd one out, being rich and successful... but only because [[spoiler:he's actually a mass-murdering official in the totalitarian government that runs the world]]. Essentially, the illusion is meant to force the crew to the DespairEventHorizon, and it's up to [[BenevolentAI Holly]] to snap them out of it before all four of them commit suicide.
* In the ''Series/{{Smallville}}'' episode "[[Recap/SmallvilleS06E12Labyrinth Labyrinth]]", a Phantom wraith traps Clark in a mental nightmare dreamscape where all of his powers and previous interactions with friends and foes are actually part of a paranoid schizophrenic delusion resulting from a psychotic break five years prior. The wraith, who is masquerading as Clark's treating physician Dr. Hudson, nearly succeeds in convincing Clark that a lobotomy-like operation will relieve his delusions. However, Martian Manhunter is able to sneak into the dreamscape as a fellow patient and convince Clark to kill Dr. Hudson and free himself from illusion.

[[folder: Podcasts]]
* In episode 19 of ''[[Podcast/EidolonPlaytest Eidolon SKA]]'', a newly aggressive Charlie uses her eidolon Three Small Words (which can convince anyone that a three-word sentence Charlie says is fundamentally true) to tell [[spoiler: Naomi]] "Eidolons aren't real". They immediately forgets the supernatural elements of the case they've been working on with the Mystery-Solver's Club, and in their head their own eidolon gets locked in a prison cell.

** [[{{Golem}} Shale]] is returned to Honnleath square, back to being an inanimate statue left on display - as they were for over thirty years prior to the events of the game. You are able to end this delusion by reminding Shale that the golem control rod no longer has any power over them.

* This is the big twist of ''VideoGame/KnightsOfTheOldRepublic'': [[spoiler:the player is actually the legendary Sith lord Darth Revan, having been captured by the Jedi after being betrayed and nearly killed by Darth Malak; essentially, the Jedi set you up with FakeMemories of being an ordinary human being -- either a soldier, a scout or a smuggler, depending on the player's chosen career. However, you weren't intended to remain this way forever, as it was hoped that with Bastila's guidance, you could pinpoint the way to the Star Forge using the fragmentary memories that you retain, and even become a Jedi -- which you end up doing. However, remaining true to the Light or falling to the Dark Side again is up to you...]]

[[folder:Web Original]]

* ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheBraveAndTheBold'': In "Emperor Joker!", the Joker gains Bat-Mite's powers and uses them to torment Batman by repeatedly killing and resurrecting him. Batman defeats him by [[BriarPatching begging him not to destroy his sanity]]; when the Joker tries to do just that, he finds himself outmatched by Batman's highly disciplined mind. The Joker finds himself in a dreary version of Gotham City where he is nothing but a perfectly normal average person, a prospect that dismays him so badly that he agrees to give up the powers to escape it.

* The ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'' episode "[[Recap/StarTrekDeepSpaceNineS06E13FarBeyondTheStars Beyond the Stars]]" features Captain Ben Sisko abruptly going from the respected administrator of the eponymous space station and Emissary of the Prophets... to a sci-fi writer on Earth in the 1950s, struggling against the racial prejudice and brutality of the time. However, he isn't aware of who he really is at first, being fully taken in by the illusion, only becoming aware of it in apparent hallucinations of his life in space. [[spoiler:It's eventually revealed that this is a vision from the Prophets intended to inspire him not to lose hope in his fight against the Dominion.]]

* In ''Anime/TengenToppaGurrenLagann'', when the protagonists fight the Anti-Spiral, they get trapped in a dimension in various fantasies, some being [[LotusEaterMachine dreams that they wish could come true]] (Yuko getting with either Kamina or Kittan before they died, Viral wishing to have the family that he can't have due to his beastman nature keeping him from reproducing, etc.). For Simon, he finds himself back in his teenage years in a world where Kamina is still alive and they're petty jewel thieves rather than the badass mech pilots and revolutionaries who successfully helped humanity rise from the underground depths. What's more, the dream version of Kamina is a pathetic bootlicker who cowers at the first sign of trouble. Eventually the spirit of the ''real'' Kamina arrives and helps Simon break through the illusion.

* In the final episode of ''Series/TheHauntingOfHillHouse'', the surviving Crain siblings are lured into the Red Room and trapped in their personal LotusEaterMachine: Theo finds herself in bed with Trish and without her powers, fully assimilated by the illusion. Though she enjoys the fact that she can be touched without [[HatesBeingTouched experiencing disturbing stimuli]] for a change, she eventually asks for it to stop -- whereupon the illusion turns ''nasty.'' [[spoiler:In the end, she has to be rescued by Nell's ghost.]]

* In episode 19 of ''[[EidolonPlaytest Eidolon SKA]]'', a newly aggressive Charlie uses her eidolon Three Small Words (which can convince anyone that a three-word sentence Charlie says is fundamentally true) to tell [[spoiler: Naomi]] "Eidolons aren't real". They immediately forgets the supernatural elements of the case they've been working on with the Mystery-Solver's Club, and in their head their own eidolon gets locked in a prison cell.

* In episode 19 of Eidolon SKA, a newly aggressive Charlie uses her eidolon Three Small Words (which can convince anyone that a three-word sentence Charlie says is fundamentally true) to tell [[spoiler: Naomi]] "Eidolons aren't real". They immediately forgets the supernatural elements of the case they've been working on with the Mystery-Solver's Club, and in their head their own eidolon gets locked in a prison cell.

* In the ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' episode "Normal Again", hallucinogenic demon venom causes Buffy to have visions of a world in which she's been in a mental hospital for years and her battles against evil supernatural entities were just delusions.
* ''[[Series/Charmed1998 Charmed]]'': In "Brain Drain", the Source gets a hold of Piper and exploits her desire for a normal life by sending her into a coma, where she dreams that she's a mental hospital patient and her "sisters" are actually her delusional roommates. For extra [[KickTheDog kick]], he, masquerading as a doctor in the dream world, claims that the recently deceased Prue didn't die, she was just released from the facility. The end goal is to goad Piper into casting a power-relinquishing spell to render the Charmed Ones powerless.

* ''Series/ForeverKnight''. When Nick Knight suffers from amnesia after a gunshot wound, Natalie is surprised to see him eating normal food in hospital. She tries keeping the secret of his vampirism from him in the hope that it will lead to further improvement (she believes that vampirism is similar to addiction and Nick could be cured if he stopped drinking blood altogether). Unfortunately, this doesn't last very long as he still experiences BloodLust and is burnt by the sun.

* In the ''Series/{{Smallville}}'' episode "Labyrinth", a Phantom wraith traps Clark in a mental nightmare dreamscape where all of his powers and previous interactions with friends and foes are actually part of a paranoid schizophrenic delusion resulting from a psychotic break five years prior. The wraith, who is masquerading as Clark's treating physician Dr. Hudson, nearly succeeds in convincing Clark that a lobotomy-like operation will relieve his delusions. However, Martian Manhunter is able to sneak into the dreamscape as a fellow patient and convince Clark to kill Dr. Hudson and free himself from illusion.

* ''Wiki/SCPFoundation'': {{Downplayed|Trope}} in the case of [[http://www.scp-wiki.net/scp-239 SCP-239]]. An eight-year-old girl with [[RealityWarper reality-warping powers]], she's been convinced that she's actually a witch and can only cast "spells" from a pre-approved list, all as part of an effort to limit her powers to manageable levels. Not ''quite'' down to completely normal levels, but definitely a drastic power loss given that she's actually GooGooGodlike -- and while uncontrolled, has managed to do things like ''summon Santa Claus''. [[spoiler:Unfortunately, this approach no longer works, and 239 is now being kept in a medically induced coma in order to avoid a potentially apocalyptic incident.]]

** Combined with HeelFaceBrainwashing in "[[Recap/BigFinishDoctorWho049Master Master]]". Here, the Doctor has made a deal with [[HumanoidAbomination Death]] to erase the Master's memories and give him a new life in the human colony of Perfugium, where he can be at peace away from Death's influence. Now unaware of the Time Lord powers he still possesses, the Master assumes he's just an ordinary human being with [[NightmareFace a disfigured face]], takes on the name of [[MrSmith John Smith]], and even becomes a well-respected doctor in the town. Unfortunately, the fact that he's still a Time Lord causes problems: the Master's personality is ''not happy'' about being pushed out of the limelight, and though he's not able to control John directly, he's able to use John's telepathic powers to [[TheCorruptor subtly encourage people around him to succumb to their darker natures]]. [[spoiler:Add to that the fact that Death is actively manipulating the setting to her advantage and the Doctor's hopes of redeeming the Master permanently are dead in the water by the story's end.]]

* Crops up in LotusEaterMachine form in ''Literature/{{Animorphs}}: The Ellimist Chronicles.'' After crashing on an ocean world, Toomin is forcibly connected to a planet-wide HiveMind known only as [[EldritchAbomination Father]] and finds himself in an illusion of his carefree life back on Ket. In exchange for amusing Father through games of skill and chance, Toomin is provided with an imaginary life where he remained an ordinary gamer and never became the heroic leader of the Ketrans; here, he can be reunited with his friends, marry Aguella, start a family and grow old. He doesn't really enjoy it, especially since he knows full well it isn't real and everyone he's ever known and loved has died; however, he agrees to Father's terms because [[HeroicBSOD the games are all he has left]]. [[spoiler:In the end, Toomin escapes the illusion by winning at enough games to hijack Father's nervous system and absorb all of the entity's collected knowledge, thus paving the way for Toomin's transformation into [[SufficientlyAdvancedAlien the Ellimist]].]]
* The big twist in the first of ''Literature/TheCurseWorkers'' novels is that [[spoiler:Cassel]] isn't [[MuggleBornOfMages the token muggle of the family]] after all: [[spoiler:he's actually a [[ForcedTransformation transformation]] worker, and has been brainwashed by his brothers into forgetting his powers -- except on occasions when they need an assassin who can effectively kill people [[PerfectCrime without leaving any kind of evidence]]. As such, reclaiming his powers and saving one of his past victims forms a major part of the story from then on]].

* This is a common practice at [[WizardingSchool Brakebills School of Magical Pedagogy]] in Lev Grossman's ''Literature/TheMagicians''. Because the study of magic is so intensive, the faculty take pains to weed out anyone who doesn't live up to the college's high standards via a ridiculously difficult entrance exam: those who fail have all memory of Brakebills and what little knowledge they have of magic expunged, before being sent on their way. As it turns out, this is the fate of Quentin Coldwater's friend Julia; however, following a great deal of SanitySlippage, she manages to unearth what really happened and begin studying magic as a Hedge-Witch, as ''The Magician King'' demonstrates.

* ''Series/ForeverKnight''. When Nick Knight suffers from amnesia after a gunshot wound, Natalie is surprised to see him eating normal food in hospital. She tries keeping the secret of his vampirism from him in the hope that it will lead to further improvement (she believes that vampirism is similar to addiction and Nick could be cured if he stopped drinking blood altogether). Unfortunately this doesn't last very long as he still experiences BloodLust and is burnt by the sun.

* Overlaps with CuckooNest in ''Series/Legion2017.'' During the apparent final confrontation with the Devil with Yellow Eyes in "[[Recap/LegionS1E5Chapter5 Chapter 5]]", David and his allies are plunged into a mental recreation of the asylum from the beginning of the series and convinced that they are mundane, powerless human beings. Completely assimilated by the illusion, they remember nothing of their real-life experiences and regard any idea of their powers as facets of mental illness; amusingly enough, David actually seems quite content with his new life, believing himself to be well on the way to recovery. [[spoiler:Oliver Byrd ends up having to awaken most of the group from the brainwashing so they can attempt a breakout, while David rediscovers himself after the Devil tries to pull a GrandTheftMe on him and -- with a little help from his subconscious -- breaks free with a massive telekinetic blast.]]

* In the ''TabletopGame/OldWorldOfDarkness'' crossover game ''Midnight Circus,'' one of the unfortunate supernatural beings who've been "recruited" into the lowest ranks of the eponymous CircusOfFear is Dimitri Babinov, a [[BearyFriendly Gurahl]] [[OurWerebeastsAreDifferent werebear]]. Following his enslavement, he's been gradually worn down by the corruption field until he's forgotten his old identity, his powers and even the basic ability to shapeshift, and now truly believes himself to be a tame bear. These days, [[MonsterClown Koba the clown]] most commonly uses him as a performer and (occasionally) an executioner. However, if you can get through to Babinov, it might be possible for you to awaken him -- resulting in an immediate RoaringRampageOfRevenge against Koba.

* This appears in the climax of ''VideoGame/{{Control}}'': [[spoiler:the game [[FissionMailed seemingly ends]] -- complete with credits -- when Jesse is infected by [[EldritchAbomination the Hiss]], sending her mind into a nightmarish illusion where she never became the superpowered director of the Federal Bureau of Control, but instead lives out her days as an office temp at the FBC (which isn't even the paranormal research organization it is in reality, but instead a mundane homeland defense group). In sharp contrast to her stoic, confident former self, she's shy, demure, and constantly bullied by just about everyone in the building, forcing the player into an endless MiniGame of collecting coffee cups and delivering mail. However, with a little encouragement from [[AlmightyJanitor Ahti]], Jesse gradually begins to notice that something's wrong; after figuring out what's going on, she finally breaks free by rediscovering the power of Polaris within her, backdooring into the [[InnBetweenTheWorlds Oceanview Motel]] with help from [[BunnyEarsLawyer Dr. Darling]] and unleashing her renewed powers on the Hiss.]]
* In ''VideoGame/TheDarkness 2'', Jackie Estacado finds himself occasionally suffering delusions of being a patient in a mental hospital, where all his friends and enemies are either patients or staff, and his life as an AntiHero empowered by the Darkness was just a delusional fantasy. Eventually, the Darkling (disguised as a janitor) reveals that this is just the Darkness trying to keep Jackie distracted in situations where he's been injured enough to end up in the Hell realm it presides over -- because if Jackie ends up in Hell ''this'' time, [[spoiler:he'll find that Jenny is being held prisoner there]]. Eventually, [[TheFinalTemptation Jackie is given a choice]] between staying in the asylum [[LotusEaterMachine with an illusory Jenny to comfort him]] or jumping from the balcony to his "death" to escape the illusion [[spoiler:and rescue the ''real'' Jenny]]. It's up to you...

** [[{{Manchild}} Alistair]] has been convinced that he abandoned the life of a heroic Grey Warden and is living happily with his sister and her many, many kids, having finally achieved his dream of having a loving family of his own. You break him out by drawing his attention to the the blanks in his "memories" within the fantasy.
** [[ChurchMilitant Leliana]] is back in the Chantry at Lothering, a lowly lay-sister with no idea who you are, no memory of her prophetic vision, and no notions of saving Ferelden in the name of the Maker. For good measure, she has a Revered Mother around to chide her for ever imagining that she could have a higher purpose in life. You snap her out of it by reminding her of the sign from the Maker, prompting Leliana to realize that the ''real'' Revered Mother wouldn't be trying to discourage her.

* ''VideoGame/Fallout3'' springs this on the players during the mission to Vault 112: upon discovering James imprisoned within one of the Tranquility Loungers, you take a seat in one yourself in an attempt to rescue him... only to end up in the virtual-reality neighborhood of [[LotusEaterMachine Tranquility Lane]], [[StepfordSuburbia a suburban cul-de-sac modeled on 1950s-era sitcoms]]. Here, you're not only stripped of all your equipment but [[FountainOfYouth regressed to the age of ten]] -- meaning that all those hard-earned skills and powers you earned out in the Capital Wastelands are now effectively useless. For good measure, it eventually becomes apparent that the Loungers are equipped with mechanisms that can [[MindRape erase your memory and alter your personality]], ensuring that the illusion of normality is utterly unbreakable for most of the residents; fortunately, you're spared the extra mile of mental manipulation for as long as you remain amusing to Vault 112's overseer, [[PsychopathicManchild Stanislaus Braun]]. [[spoiler:Breaking out requires you to either indulge his sadistic whims or sabotage the scenario from within.]]
* This is the big twist of ''VideoGame/KnightsOfTheOldRepublic'': [[spoiler:the player is actually the legendary Sith lord Darth Revan, having been captured by the Jedi after being betrayed and nearly killed by Darth Malak; essentially, the Jedi set you up with FakeMemories of being an ordinary human being -- either a soldier, a scout or a smuggler, depending on the player's choice. However, you weren't intended to remain this way forever, as it was hoped that with Bastila's guidance, you could pinpoint the way to the Star Forge using the fragmentary memories that you retain and even become a Jedi -- which you end up doing.]]

** After being captured by Zinyak, the Boss wakes up to find themselves in a MindPrison based on 1950s suburbia; here, he's brainwashed into believing that they're a mild-mannered StandardFiftiesFather-type, [[GettingSmiliesPaintedOnYourSoul happy in their mundane sitcom life]], incapable of the Boss's usual feats of spectacular violence -- to the point that the game actually prevents you from driving dangerously, and though they're still President, it's a totally powerless celebrity position. Fortunately, the brainwashing eventually breaks down, allowing the Boss to break free with Kinzie's help.
** After being captured by the Zin, Kinzie is plunged into the same MindPrison: here, she's reduced from a badass hacker with borderline administrator-level control over the simulation to a passive, subservient and completely oblivious sidekick to Cyrus Temple -- wearing a poodle skirt, no less. It takes the Boss firing up stereos all over town with rebellious music to snap Kinzie out of the illusion, whereupon she unlocks her simulation superpowers and kicks Cyrus's ass.
* {{Invoked|Trope}} by [[EldritchAbomination the Black Signal]] a.k.a. John in ''VideoGame/TheSecretWorld''. Having caught you trying to access his memories, he inflicts a PokeInTheThirdEye that forces you to replay memories of past incidents and battles, including a scenario in which you were never bonded with one of [[EnigmaticEmpoweringEntity the Bees]] and became one of [[TheChosenMany Gaia's Chosen]]. From here, John taunts you by suggesting that you're just an ordinary human being who accidentally swallowed a bee and is now in hospital, dreaming of being special. [[spoiler:Unfortunately for John, replaying your memories eventually results in him encountering a vision of Lilith, hammering his TraumaButton so hard he turns the MindRape on ''himself''.]]

* In ''Webcomic/MobPsycho100'', Mob and Reigen are hired, along with other psychics and exorcists, to purge an evil spirit from a girl. Mob tries to fight against it by going into the girl's body but the spirit, named Keiji Mogami, turns the tables and puts Mob into a mental image of his neighborhood -- only without his powers -- where he's constantly beat up by images of people who knows. Keiji's plan being to drive Mob over the DespairEventHorizon to get him to want to kill once he gives his powers back. It's only thanks to Dimple managing to break into the mental world and stop Mob that saves him from the brink and puts him back on focus to save the girl. What's more during all of this, while 30 minutes pass in the real world, to Mob in the mental one ''[[YearInsideHourOutside six months had gone by]]''.

* The big twist in the first of ''Literature/TheCurseWorkers'' novels is that [[spoiler:Cassel]] isn't [[MuggleBornOfMages the token muggle of the family]] after all: [[spoiler:he's actually a [[BalefulPolymorph transformation]] worker, and has been brainwashed by his brothers into forgetting his powers -- except on occasions when they need an assassin who can effectively kill people [[PerfectCrime without leaving any kind of evidence]]. As such, reclaiming his powers and saving one of his past victims forms a major part of the story from then on]].