History Main / RedeemingReplacement

* In ''Series/Supergirl2015'', Winn Schott Jr. is the son of the original Toyman, a well-known supervillain, but is firmly a heroic character, to the point that, at the end of Season 3 he's recruited by the Legion of Superheroes in the future. At first he goes by the name of "Computer Lad", but after confronting an evil doppelganger of himself [[spoiler:and being saved from him by a digitalized copy of his father's consciousness]], he decides to adopt the name Toyman to redeem it.

** And of course, the series confirms that [[TheAragorn Zuko]] managed to be this for [[ArchnemesisDad Ozai]], [[PredecessorVillain Azulon and Sozin]], with his daughter continuing the position. (Indeed, the Fire Nation's history leaves her reluctant to even lead it into a justified war.)

* In a way, Dark Schneider in ''Manga/Bastard1988'' is one of these. The original Dark Schneider was pretty much an EvilOverlord but then was sealed in a young boy. Thanks to the goodness of the "container", while the new Dark Schneider has the personality of the original (a lecherous egomaniac), he is a saint compared to the original.

* Chiffon Nox of ''Literature/BeastTamer'' is this. Where Arios Orlando was a NominalHero and ThePoorlyChosenOne, only being the hero because he was the only one with the class, Chiffon is an AllLovingHero who truly believes in helping others and treats her comrades like TrueCompanions instead of disposable pawns.

* In the ''Fanfic/PonyPOVSeries'':

* ''Fanfic/ADiplomaticVisit'': [[spoiler:Three of the Powers get passed on to new and more suitable Bearers over the course of the series. While the new Self-Centeredness isn't identified, Aria Blaze is this trope for Adagio Dazzle when she becomes the new Lady of Hatred, and Pharynx is this for Umbrea, former Lady of Nightmares (whose mantle was actually held by Luna after Umbrea's soul was ejected from Luna's body).]]

* ''Film/{{Dave}}'' is about the United States President being replaced by one of these. Not only is Dave much warmer and good-hearted than the President he's acting as a body double for, but said President also turns out to be quite corrupt as well.

* In ''Literature/DragonBones'' [[GentleGiant Ward]] takes over the title of "Hurogmeten" when his cruel and abusive father dies. Many of his subjects consider him a Redeeming Replacement. Some nobles, on the other hand, are not so pleased with his stance towards [[SlaveryIsASpecialKindOfEvil slavery]] and the like. While he doesn't have superpowers as such, Ward ''does'' own castle Hurog, which is PoweredByAForsakenChild, and the enslaved boy, Oreg, by whom it is powered. Oreg is a powerful mage, but subject to the will of the castle's owner, and probably the one who is happiest about the replacement.

* In ''Series/TheFlash2014'', Harrison Wells [[spoiler:turns out to be the BigBad of the first season.]] He is eventually replaced as TheMentor by another version of himself from another dimension. "Harry" turns out to not be without his secrets, and just as big of a prick as the original Wells at times, although he's firmly a good guy through and through, and eventually develops genuine camaraderie with the team.
** The Flash of Earth-2, "Jay Garrick", is in reality merely a time remnant clone of TheDreaded Zoom working in tandem with Zoom. He is "succeeded" in the same capacity by Harry's daughter Jesse "Quick" Wells after she gains superspeed. Meanwhile, the real Jay Garrick turns out to be the Flash of Earth-3 and Barry's father's doppelganger of that world.
* In ''Series/LegendsOfTomorrow'':
** Rip Hunter used to be a member of the Time Masters, an OmniscientCouncilOfVagueness TimePolice that doesn't want anything to do with his vendetta against Vandal Savage, [[spoiler:and in fact the latter is in league with them]], and instead oppose Rip's RagtagBunchOfMisfits in every way. Near the end of Season 1, the Masters were wiped out, and Rip decided to officially make the Legends the true TimePolice and they join him to continue protecting the timeline. Then, at the beginning of Season 3, Rip (who left the Legends) has founded another TimePolice organization, the Time Bureau. While the Bureau finds itself at odds with the Legends, they are a lot more willing to put their differences aside and work together against dangerous threats.
** The FairyDevilmother is a JackassGenie and one of the main villains of Season 4. Nora Darkh takes her place late into the season (although the former is not killed until the season finale), but she does put better effort into the job, becoming a proper FairyGodmother.
* In ''Series/Supergirl2015'', Winn Schott Jr. is the son of the original Toyman, a well-known supervillain, but is firmly a heroic character, to the point that, at the end of Season 3 he's recruited by the Legion of Superheroes in the future. At first he goes by the name of "Computer Lad", but after confronting an evil doppelganger of himself [[spoiler:and being saved from him by a digitalized copy of his father's consciousness]], he decides to adopt the name Toyman to redeem it.

* ''TabletopGame/HunterTheVigil'': The life tenet of the [[DarkIsNotEvil Lucifuge]] is basically "we ''are'' {{Satan}}'s children, but we protect humanity from the darkness". They are also the nicest Hunters when it comes to dealing with the more decent supernaturals. The other children of Satan, however...
** To a lesser extent, the Loyalists of Thule, who seek to make up for the Thule Society's role in the Holocaust. Because most of the people involved in that one are not around anymore (seventy years is a ''long time''), they recruit other people who have screwed up messing about with magic and gotten people hurt.

** Amongst the canonical Exalted, the best example would be Swan, who is the NiceGuy of the iconic Solar circle. The previous incarnation of his Exaltation, a fellow by the name of Desus, was so [[Monster/TabletopGames horrendously evil]] that his actions alone are considered one of the reasons of the Usurpation and the Solars' FallFromGrace.

* ''VideoGame/TheKingOfFighters'':
** Rugal Bernstein is a bonafide evil character. He's then succeeded by his son Adelheid, who did inherit his fighting prowess... but none of his evilness, making him a NobleDemon.
** Clone Zero is a treacherous psychopath who went so far as to nuke a city via KillSat. The redeeming replacement here is, uniquely, the original Zero, who is not happy about what his clone was up to and, when defeated, [[GracefulLoser goes down with both his ship and dignity]].
* In ''VideoGame/CityOfHeroes'', Bill "Faultline" Temblor was a hero but is largely remembered as a villain for destroying an area of Paragon City. After his son Jim learned that Bill was {{mind control}}led when he did so, he embraced his own powers and took up the Faultline mantle as a hero.
* In ''VideoGame/FireEmblemShadowDragonAndTheBladeOfLight'', the kingdom of Gra is ruled by the tyrant Jiol. He is succeeded by his daughter Sheena in ''VideoGame/FireEmblemMysteryOfTheEmblem'', and she's nothing like her father: She's charismatic and protective to her people genuinely, making her a popular ruler and eventually joins Marth... [[AFatherToHisMen if he doesn't harm any of her men on his way to her.]]
* In one possible version of the ModularEpilogue of ''VideoGame/PillarsOfEternity'', [[spoiler:Aloth]] takes control of the society led by the {{Big Bad}}, whose [[GrayAndGrayMorality arguably noble]] [[WellIntentionedExtremist goal]] is to [[spoiler:protect the world from [[TheseAreThingsManWasNotMeantToKnow truths deemed to terrible to release]]]]. However one feels about the aims, it's made clear they intend to pursue much more benevolent and restrained means than their utterly ruthless predecessor.
* In ''Franchise/TheElderScrolls'', the Emperors of Tamriel have often been served by someone in the position of Imperial Battlemage, essentially a CourtMage and advisor on all matters magical. Given the nature of the position, it has long been a breeding ground for EvilSorcerer types who go on to become {{Evil Chancellor}}s. Jagar Tharn, the BigBad of ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsArena Arena]]'' was [[TheGoodKing Emperor Uriel Septim VII]]'s Imperial Battlemage before usurping him. In the prequel ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsOnline'', [[TheDragon Mannimarco]] doesn't officially have the title, but serves in a very similar role to Emperor Varen Aquilarios and betrays him. In the main series' time period, Uriel VII replaces Tharn as Imperial Battlemage with Ocato of Firsthold, who already served Uriel VII as [[TheGoodChancellor High Chancellor]]. Ocato is very much a ReasonableAuthorityFigure who holds the Empire together for the rest of the series until his death, holding the Empire together for 10 years after Uriel VII's death while serving as [[RegentForLife Potentate]]. (He was actually doing such a good job that the [[ANaziByAnyOtherName Thalmor]] had him assassinated so they could rise up.)
* In ''VideoGame/Persona5'', every police officer encountered was rude, incompetent, corrupt, or some combination thereof. ''VideoGame/Persona5Strikers'' introduces the character of Zenkichi Hasegawa, an honest police officer driven by a sincere sense of justice and duty who not only becomes a close ally of the Thieves' but even becomes a full-fledged member of the team himself. [[spoiler:He's later joined by his superior, the [[ReasonableAuthorityFigure Director of Public Safety herself]]]].

* In the first ''VideoGame/GalaxyAngel'', the leader of the Transbaal Imperial Fleet, Admiral Sigurd Sidmeyer, [[ProfessionalButtKisser was more concerned about getting in the Empire's higher-ups good graces than the good of the Empire itself]], [[SmallNameBigEgo and he thought his fleet could easily beat Eonia's just by winning a few skirmishes]], only to get a very rude awakening when the Black Moon shows up and his entire fleet gets decimated. He's then replaced by Comodore Luft Weizen, who quickly proves himself a more capable and more effective leader.

* ''WesternAnimation/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles2012'': In Season 4, Karai forms her own Foot Clan separate from Shredder's, seeking to be this to Shredder and his own clan. In "City at War," she makes it clear that she wants to rebuild the Foot under better circumstances and restore its honor after everything Shredder did to pervert it.

* In ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'', when Joffrey is killed in the Purple Wedding, he is succeeded by his younger brother Tommen Baratheon. Tommen is a nice innocent boy, and is nothing like the [[TheCaligula cruel and sadistic]] Joffrey.

* A variation in ''Series/PowerRangersLostGalaxy'' with [[BlackKnight Magna Defender]], who wasn't evil, but was extremely unscrupulous, not hesitating to fight against the Power Rangers or even shoot into a crowd of civilians if there was an enemy among them to avenge the loss of his son. After his death, the Defender passed his sword to [[SixthRanger Mike]], who became a more heroic Defender to make up for the deeds of his predecessor.

* This is largely Sai Akuto's goal in ''Literature/DemonKingDaimao''. It's rather hard to win the trust of the people when the [[strike:[[Franchise/HarryPotter Sorting Hat]]]] vocational raven says that you're going to be a ''Demon King''. [[spoiler:Things aren't as white and black as they seem.]]

* This is largely Sai Akuto's goal in ''LightNovel/DemonKingDaimao''. Of course, it's rather hard to win the trust of the people when the [[strike:[[Franchise/HarryPotter Sorting Hat]]]] vocational raven says that you're going to be a ''Demon King''. [[spoiler:Things aren't as white and black as they seem.]]

* In a way, Dark Schneider in ''Manga/Bastard1988'' is one of these. The original Dark Schneider was pretty much an EvilOverlord, but then was sealed in a young boy. Thanks to the goodness of the "container", while the new Dark Schneider has the personality of the original (a lecherous egomaniac), he is a saint compared to the original.
* This is largely Sai Akuto's goal in ''LightNovel/DemonKingDaimao''. Of course, it's rather hard to win the trust of the people when the [[strike:[[Franchise/HarryPotter Sorting Hat]]]] vocational raven says that you're going to be a ''Demon King''. [[spoiler:Things aren't as white and black as they seems.]]

* ''Fanfic/CheshireMiraculousLadybug'': The core conflict of the fic throughout its first season is how every Black Cat wielder in history has been a murderer, thief, etc. Marinette is the first person in millennia to use the powers of destruction for good, but since the relic has long since developed a reputation as being either TheCorruptor or drawn to vile people, none of people who know the Black Cat's sullied past even entertain the thought that Marinette is any different.

** Played with with Viserion. He's the most allowing of strangers in his midst out of Dany's children, but his namesake... wasn't. His resurrection by the Night King upends this, instantly turning him into an EnemyToAllLivingThings, and an even greater threat than anything the original Viserys ever imagined himself being.

* Paladin of ''Series/HaveGunWillTravel'' is an interesting twist. Paladin was hired by a CattleBaron to kill a gunslinger called Smoke, because he claimed Smoke was terrorizing a small town. As he lay dying, Smoke proved that he had been hired by the town to protect them from the cattle baron's thugs and called Paladin "Paladin" ironically. Paladin adopted the name "Paladin" and Smoke's all-black "working outfit", and set out [[TheAtoner to atone for his mistake]].

** Wataru, a.k.a. ''Series/KamenRiderKiva'' is not this, despite there seemingly a tie between him and the [[BigBad Fangire King]]. However, his half-brother Taiga (full-blooded son of the King) definitely qualifies; not only is he more qualified for the throne, Taiga would later adopt his father's alter-ego, Dark Kiva, for the finale, just in time to work together with Wataru to battle the resurrected King. The series ends with the brothers in good terms, working together to create a peaceful co-existence between Fangire and humans.

** The FairyDevilmother is a JackassGenie and one of the main villains of Season 4. Nora Darkh takes her place late into the season (although the former is not killed until the season finale), but she does puts better effort into the job, becoming a proper FairyGodmother.
* In ''Series/Supergirl2015'', Winn Schott Jr. is the son of the original Toyman, a well known supervillain, but is firmly a heroic character, to the point that, at the end of Season 3 he's recruited by the Legion of Superheroes in the future. At first he goes by the name of "Computer Lad", but after confronting an evil doppelganger of himself [[spoiler:and being saved from him by a digitalized copy of his father's consciousness]], he decides to adopt the name Toyman to redeem it.

** To a lesser extent, the Loyalists of Thule, who seek to make up for the Thule Society's role in the Holocaust. Because most of the people involved in that one are not around any more (seventy years is a ''long time''), they recruit other people who have screwed up messing about with magic and gotten people hurt.

* ''TabletopGame/MagicTheGathering:'' In Ravnica several of the guildmasters receive more benign replacements at the end of the original block or in Return to Ravnica --

* In ''Webcomic/GirlGenius'', the Heterodyne boys were really [[ScienceHero stand-up guys...]] but their ancestors... [[MadScientist not so much.]] Bill's daugther, Agatha, is also trying to redeem the family reputation -- which is a bit hard when they've even made toasters that can kill people.

* ''WesternAnimation/HotWheelsBattleForce5'': The Red Sentients are the more warlike race of Sentients (having been frozen to stop the war), and Krytus, their leader, becomes the BigBad in season 2. When they are unfrozen, they exile Krytus as they are sick of war, and two new Red Sentients become part of the ruling council Korosivash and Karmakaris. While the former is kind and wants to help the people, the latter is arrogant and looks down on his blue counterparts. However in the final act, he personally leads a brigade in to stop the antagonists and launches the hero out to beat the new BigBad, cementing his own position as a good guy, and as the new ruler of the council, washing away the treachery and evil Krytus brought to their species.

* Chiffon Nox of ''LightNovel/BeastTamer'' is this. Where Arios Orlando was a NominalHero and ThePoorlyChosenOne, only being the hero because he was the only one with the class, Chiffon is an AllLovingHero who truly believes in helping others and treats her comrades like TrueCompanions instead of disposable pawns.

* Chiffon Nox of ''LightNove/Beast Tamer'' is this. Where Arios Orlando was a NominalHero and ThePoorlyChosenOne, only being the hero because he was the only one with the class, Chiffon is an AllLovingHero who truly believes in helping others and treats her comrades like TrueCompanions instead of disposable pawns.

** Played with with Viserion. He's the most allowing of strangers in his midst, out of Dany's children, but his namesake... wasn't. His resurrection by the Night King upends this, instantly turning him into an EnemyToAllLivingThings, and an even greater threat than anything the original Viserys ever imagined himself being.
** Deconstructed with Tommen. He is a sweet and kind-hearted boy who ''wants'' to be a good king, but he's hindered by his indecisiveness and lack of experience. All the adults in his life who could help him learn to rule see him as nothing more than a chance to control King's Landing, and thus refuse to teach him what he needs to know. This eventually leads to him being very easily manipulated by the Faith Militant and causing the majority of the conflict in Season Six, [[spoiler:and ends with him being DrivenToSuicide after things go horribly wrong.]]

* ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure'': Giorno Giovana, the main protagonist of [[Manga/JojosBizarreAdventureGoldenWind Part 5]], is the son of the late Dio Brando, the main antagonist of [[Manga/JojosBizarreAdventurePhantomBlood Part 1]] and [[Manga/JojosBizarreAdventureStardustCrusaders Part 3]]. Unlike his villainous father, Giorno is rather heroic and loyal to his gang of friends. He even felt devastated when an innocent man gets killed. He even got revenge on his killer!

* One of the driving conflicts of ''Fanfic/CheshireMiraculousLadybug'' is how literally every other Black Cat in history has been a murderer, thief, etc. Marinette is the first one to use the Miraculous for good, but no one who knows about the Black Cat Miraculous's history, such as Fu, Adrien, or even Hawkmoth, is willing to believe that.

* ''Film/{{Dave}}'' is about the United States President being replaced by one of these.

[[folder:Film]]

* ''Series/DoctorWho':

* Rugal Bernstein from ''VideoGame/TheKingOfFighters'' is a bonafide evil character. He's then succeeded by his son Adelheid, who did inherit his fighting prowess... but none of his evilness, making him a NobleDemon.

* ''Fanfic/TheEquestrianWindMage'': Vaati, long since having had a HeelFaceTurn of his own, ends up becoming one to [[spoiler: Ganondorf]] as of the end of Season 2 [[spoiler: when a dying Ganon passes the Triforce of Power on to him.]]

** Cadence in [[BadFuture Dark World]] serves as this for Queen Chrysalis after defeating her and taking over the Changelings. From that point to her death, she turns the Changelings from vampiric parasites to symbiotic heroes who form a large part of the resistance against Discord. [[spoiler: Cadence ends up replacing Chrysalis in the main timeline too.]]

** Deconstructed with Tommen. He is a sweet and kind-hearted boy who ''wants'' to be a good king, but he's hindered by his indecisiveness and lack of experience. All the adults in his life who could help him learn to rule see him as nothing more than a chance to control King's Landing, and thus refuse to teach him what he needs to know. This eventually leads to him being very easily manipulated by the Faith Militant and causing the majority of the conflict in Season Six, [[spoiler: and ends with him being DrivenToSuicide after things go horribly wrong.]]

* In ''Series/TheFlash2014'', Harrison Wells [[spoiler: turns out to be the BigBad of the first season.]] He is eventually replaced as TheMentor by another version of himself from another dimension. "Harry" turns out to not be without his secrets, and just as big of a prick as the original Wells at times, although he's firmly a good guy through and through, and eventually develops genuine camaraderie with the team.

* ''TabletopGame/MagicTheGathering:'' In Ravnica several of the guildmasters receive more benign replacements at the end of the original block or in Return to Ravnica -

* ''VideoGame/MassEffect2'' has [[spoiler: Legion]], a [[spoiler:geth platform]]. While Commander Shepard has blasted through enough of these things to melt them down and rebuild the Normandy, [[spoiler:Legion is a member of the ''true'' geth, which regards the geth Commander Shepard is familiar with as "heretics". These geth just want to be left alone, rather than leaving geth space and attacking.]]

* In ''Webcomic/GirlGenius'', the Heterodyne boys were really [[ScienceHero stand-up guys...]] but their ancestors... [[MadScientist not so much.]] Bill's daugther, Agatha, is also trying to redeem the family reputation- which is a bit hard when they've even made toasters that can kill people.

* [[PlayingWithATrope Played with]] in ''WesternAnimation/YoungJustice''--During season two, Artemis goes deep undercover with the villains, claiming to be an assassin named Tigress. After the final battle and [[spoiler:her boyfriend Wally's death]], she decides to use "Tigress" as [[MeaningfulRename her new superhero name]].

* In ''Webcomic/GirlGenius'', the Heterodyne boys were really [[ScienceHero stand-up guys...]] but their ancestors... [[MadScientist not so much.]] Agatha, meanwhile, is also learning to use the [[MindManipulation Other's power]] for good.
[[/folder]]

* Thanks to TheNthDoctor and the TimeyWimeyBall, the Doctor of ''Series/DoctorWho'' sometimes functions as one of these to ''himself''. For example, the expanded universe often shows Eight deliberately rejecting Seven's [[TheChessmaster chessmaster]] tendencies.

* ''Series/GameOfThrones'': Played with with Viserion. He's the most allowing of strangers in his midst, out of Dany's children, but his namesake... wasn't. His resurrection by the Night King upends this, instantly turning him into an EnemyToAllLivingThings, and an even greater threat than anything the original Viserys ever imagined himself being.

* ''Franchise/KamenRider''

* In ''Series/LegendsOfTomorrow'', Rip Hunter used to be a member of the Time Masters, an OmniscientCouncilOfVagueness TimePolice that doesn't want anything to do with his vendetta against Vandal Savage, [[spoiler:and in fact the latter is in league with them]], and instead oppose Rip's RagtagBunchOfMisfits in every way. Near the end of Season 1, the Masters were wiped out, and Rip decided to officially make the Legends the true TimePolice and they join him to continue protecting the timeline. Then, at the beginning of Season 3, Rip (who left the Legends) has founded another TimePolice organization, the Time Bureau. While the Bureau finds itself at odds with the Legends, they are a lot more willing to put their differences aside and work together against dangerous threats.

* ''VideoGame/Injustice2'': Seeing how far [[FallenHero Superman]] has fallen, Supergirl ultimately decides to bring honor back to the House of El. It happens in both her Arcade ending and the Absolute Justice ending.

* In a way, Dark Schneider in ''Manga/{{Bastard}}'' is one of these. The original Dark Schneider was pretty much an EvilOverlord, but then was sealed in a young boy. Thanks to the goodness of the "container", while the new Dark Schneider has the personality of the original (a lecherous egomaniac), he is a saint compared to the original.

* In ''VideoGame/Persona5'', every police officer encountered was rude, incompetent, corrupt, or some combination thereof. ''VideoGame/Persona5Strikers'' introduces the character of Zenkichi Hasegawa, an honest police officer driven by a sincere sense of justice and duty who not only becomes a close ally of the Thieves' but even becomes a full-fledged member of the team himself.

* In ''Series/Supergirl2015'', Winn Schott Jr. is the son of the original Toyman, a well known supervillain, but is firmly a heroic character, to the point that, at the end of Season 4 he's recruited by the Legion of Superheroes in the future. At first he goes by the name of "Computer Lad", but after confronting an evil doppelganger of himself [[spoiler:and being saved from him by a digitalized copy of his father's consciousness]], he decides to adopt the name Toyman to redeem it.

* In ''Series/StrangerThings'', Dr Sam Owens serves as this for the US Government, and Hawkins National Laboratory, in season 2. After the AbusiveDad tendencies of Martin Brenner in season 1, Owens is initially presented as a replacement character, but after showing compassion and helping the main characters on several occasions, it becomes clear that he genuinely wants to help.

* ''Fanfic/TheEquestrianWindMage'': Vaati, long since having had a HeelFaceTurn of his own, ends up becoming one to [[spoiler: Ganondorf]] as of the end of Season 2 [[spoiler: when a [[FinalDeath dying]] Ganon passes the Triforce of Power on to him.]]

[[folder:Comic Books]]
[[AC:MarvelUniverse]]
* In Comicbook/SpiderMan,
** Phil Urich stumbled on a Green Goblin costume and got doused in the SuperSerum (note, it was explicitly this -- unlike the earlier PsychoSerum, this one didn't make you insane), producing the irony of a guy a lot like Peter Parker (snarky journalist UnluckyEverydude) taking on the identity of Peter's worst enemy. In the main Comicbook/SpiderMan series, Urich did end up suffering from mental problems and ultimately pulled a FaceHeelTurn.\\\
In the ''ComicBook/SpiderGirl'' series, things went better, and he is an HonoraryUncle to the heroine, and has moonlighted as a superhero in both his Green Goblin costume and as the "Golden Goblin" (basically a PaletteSwap Hobgoblin).
** Also in the ''Spider Girl'' series is Normie Osborn. Following his father and grandfather, he took on the Green Goblin identity as a villain, but after conquering his demons ended up being a Redeeming Replacement for Venom (although he doesn't call himself that)- he was forcibly merged with the symbiote but managed to stay mostly sane with it and fight crime. Similarly to the irony with Urich, Normie is a friend and love interest to May Parker, despite running around in the costume of one of her father's worst enemies.
** And the series has another example in Brenda Drago, Raptor, who ends up marrying Normie Osborn. She's the daughter of Blackie Drago, the second Vulture, and started out as a criminal, but then reformed and became an antihero.
** Back in the main Franchise/MarvelUniverse, the Comicbook/{{Venom}} symbiote spent some time as a US military asset bonded to Flash Thompson, who took the job because [[AscendedFanboy it was a chance to be Spider-Man.]]
** The first Wraith was Brian [=DeWolff=], a powerful psychic who had a HeelFaceRevolvingDoor, but is mostly remembered for attempting a RoaringRampageOfRevenge against the police department when his sister, Detective Jean [=DeWolff=] was killed, only to be [[CListFodder immediately shot by the Scourge of the Underworld]]. His successor is a heroic vigilante who [[spoiler: uses Spider-villain technology to pose as Jean's ghost]].
** The alternate-universe-heavy series ComicBook/WebWarriors, spinning out of ComicBook/SpiderVerse, introduced Octavia Otto, a gender- and morality-flipped version of Doc Ock who was the TokenGoodTeammate in an evil cabal of AU Electros and Ocks. She joined the Web Warriors and was still helping AU Spiders fight the good fight as of ComicBook/SpiderGeddon.
* The versions of Sabretooth and Mimic that were members of the ''Comicbook/{{Exiles}}'' were heroes from {{alternate universe}}s. However, the original Mimic isn't so bad these days.
* While on his deathbed, B-List supervillain the Black Knight begged his nephew Dane Whitman to restore honor to their family legacy and to atone for his crimes. Whitman did so, becoming a heroic Black Knight still active to this day. The villainous Black Knight is also something of an inversion: he based the identity and his equipment off of his heroic ancestor, the medieval Black Knight.
** Dane Whitman's debut also deconstructed the concept: when he first tried to join the Avengers, [[LetsYouAndHimFight they immediately attacked him]] assuming him to be his villainous uncle (understandable, since he kept the full-face mask).
* ''Loki'':
** Loki's various [[TheNthDoctor deaths and rebirths]] since the Comicbook/{{Siege}} are in-universe attempts to create one of these, as evil is predictable, Loki would rather die than be predictable, and that's ''very'' literal. Turns out it's not as easy as it sounds, mostly because Loki is Loki and dreadfully prone to sabotage themself.
** First the evil one [[DeaderThanDead died]] in a HeroicSacrifice and was replaced by the KidHero Kid!Loki. Then, just when things were looking up for him, Siege! Loki screwed the new version over from beyond the grave by trying to usurp his good name with a CloningGambit. [[DeathOfPersonality This backfired]], creating [[ComicBook/LokiAgentOfAsgard Agent Loki.]] ''That'' version then had to deal with an evil future self trying to force them back into their old ways. All this just served to create a ''fourth'' Loki, who was last seen stepping outside the universe to whatever's waiting after ComicBook/SecretWars2015.

[[AC:Franchise/DCUniverse]]
* One version of Toyman is a [[{{otaku}} young Japanese genius]], while the other versions of the character are all villains. Unfortunately he, like all other versions, turned out to be a super-advanced android, created by the one and only original Toyman. However, the ComicBook/New52 CosmicRetcon saw him back as a human and as a heroic Toyman.
* The ComicBook/RedHood in most continuities is an identity used by ComicBook/TheJoker before he became a MonsterClown. The identity has also been taken by some of the Comicbook/{{Robin}}s, mainly Jason Todd, typically when acting as anti-heroes. And in ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheBraveAndTheBold'', it was the identity of a good Joker from an AlternateUniverse.
* Also in Franchise/{{Batman}}, Dick Grayson wound up being this to Jean Paul-Valley. In "Prodigal", the direct followup to the "ComicBook/{{Knightfall}}" saga, Bruce takes a sabbatical not long after reclaiming the mantle of the Bat from Valley in order to avoid burning himself out again. Dick takes over during in his absence and explicitly makes sure to remind everyone that there's still a Batman who can show compassion and has rules when it comes to the law.
* The female Dr. Light, who (like the Toyman example above) is a Japanese genius. She's also a HotScientist and MamaBear - as opposed to the first Dr. Light, who was a man, a villain, and a [[ComicBook/IdentityCrisis rapist (by retcon)]].
* ''Comicbook/LegionOfSuperHeroes'':
** This is the basic idea behind Brainiac 5, descendant of Franchise/{{Superman}} villain Comicbook/{{Brainiac}}. (There are intervening Brainiacs of varied morality, but they weren't really focused on until well after B5 had been introduced.)
** Also from the Legion, Danielle Foccart assumed the codename "Computo" in the [=V4=] era when she gained {{Technopath}}ic powers -- after the villainous AI that possessed her in her first appearance (her brother Jacques' origin as the second Invisible Kid).
* Faust, a (generally) heroic magic-user in the DCU, is the son of ''Franchise/JusticeLeagueOfAmerica'' villain Felix Faust.
* The Golden Age villain Brain Wave had a son that called himself Brain Wave Jr. and became a member of Comicbook/InfinityInc. Of course, he's now gone a long way from being the hero that he was.
* Owen Mercer, the son of the first [[Characters/TheFlash Captain Boomerang]], tried to be one of these.
* One story in the ''ComicBook/KingdomCome'' universe had Iris "Kid Flash" West encounter the Fiddler's great-grandson, Iowa Bowin, who believed his ancestor had "a headful of bad wiring", and wants to use his guitar version of Isaac's weaponized violin to be a hero.
* The original Terra in ''ComicBook/TeenTitans'' turned out to be TheMole for the team and an unrepentant villain. Her first successor was a deliberate attempt to show a heroic version of Terra, to the point where some DC editors and writers even wanted her to be the original resurrected (this wound up averted in the end). The third ComicBook/{{Terra}} (who was originally planned to be an unrelated character) was even more of an example, as she lacked the second Terra's identity crisis issues and the original's sociopathy, and was a much more idealistic hero without much angst at all.
* You wouldn't think ''Superman'' would need one of these, but in the ''ComicBook/Injustice2'' comic, Conner Kent ends up donning the classic suit (red trunks and all) years after the original went KnightTemplar.
* ''ComicBook/BatmanLastKnightOnEarth'' focuses on a younger, more optimistic clone of Batman after [[spoiler:the original Bruce Wayne became a FallenHero and the the BigBad, Omega.]]

[[AC:Other]]
* In ''Comicbook/AstroCity'', the heroine Quarrel is the daughter of a super-villain who was also named Quarrel.
** There was an evil Assemblyman in the 70s and a good one in the modern age. Both are {{Gadgeteer Genius}}es, but any further connection has yet to be revealed.
* There's an example of this in ''Comicbook/{{Watchmen}}'' where at the end Laurie discusses a change of costume design into one that looks like that of the Comedian, [[spoiler: her father]]. While the Comedian was technically a hero, being the TokenEvilTeammate of the original team of heroes, this example probably still fits.
* In ''WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles'' comics by Creator/BoomStudios, the Parr's new neighbors turn out to be Elastigirl's old nemesis, MadScientist Organa, and her family. Eventually, Organa's son Xander turns out to have inherited his mother's skills and becomes a superhero, using a [[GenderedOutfit modified]] version of her old costume.
* ''ComicBook/TheTransformersDarkCybertron'': Chapter 9 sees Rodimus pull Orion Pax out of his HeroicBSOD by telling him that the title of Prime stands for decency, integrity, and morality because of him.
-->'''Rodimus:''' Listen. The world will always need a Prime. But only if that Prime is ''you''.
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