History Main / ThisWasHisTrueForm

* Averted to a degree in the HammerHorror ''Film/TheCurseOfTheWerewolf'' (1961): when Leon the werewolf is shot by his father, the father covers his body with a cloak and the audience does not see if it reverts or not.

* ''Film/FrightNight'' (1985). After Evil Ed is killed while in wolf form, he returns to human form.

* ''ComicBook/NewAvengers'': Someone they thought was ComicBook/{{Elektra}} is fatally injured...and turns into a Skrull. No-one had any idea she wasn't the real Elektra, including [[SuperSenses Wolverine]] and Comicbook/DoctorStrange, meaning that this faction of Skrulls has considerably improved their shapeshifting powers. Naturally, they start to wonder [[SecretInvasion who else]] might be an imposter...

* In the ''{{Berserk}}'' series, demons used to be humans, and will revert to their former human selves after they die. This causes problems for Guts from time to time, but especially during the Rosine arc, where the BigBad's pseudo-Elf minions were Apostle-spawns created from human children, leading the populace of the village she menaced to believe that Guts is a child murderer.

* Drake in ''Film/BladeTrinity'' actually managed to hold on to the last shape he shifted into for a few hours after death, [[spoiler:having mimicked Blade as a parting gift to fool the authorities into thinking he was dead.]]

* ''StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'': Changelings must revert to their true form, a liquid, every day to rest. [[spoiler: They also revert to this liquid if they are killed.]]

** Oddly enough, in ''Diablo II'', there's no sign of this when the player removes Mephisto's soulstone from the body that used to be Sankekur. Possibly due to Diablo's "death" in the first game being planned while Mephisto's death wasn't

* ComicBook/CaptainAmerica's body turns into that of a very old man after his death (though it is implied this takes several hours.)

* And then used straight in ''Series/{{Angel}}'', as it's said werewolves revert back to human form upon death and thus must be eaten alive. A [[FanWank possible explanation]] is that werewolves of the species Lycanthropus Exterus change back to human upon death, whereas the "common" werewolf does not.
* In an episode of ''Series/{{Charmed}}'' (and blatant ''Film/{{Ladyhawke}}'' rip-off), the MonsterOfTheWeek sends a [[{{Mooks}} mook]] after the man he cursed into an owl. When said mook turns up with a dead owl, he asks him why it didn't revert to human upon death, and [[YouHaveFailedMe promptly zaps him]].

* Plenty of video game bosses are able to change back to their 'regular' selves for a [[FinalSpeech terminal conversation]] (or even mano-e-mano duel) with the heroes after being defeated in their boss-form. This is really jarring if said boss form was a [[OneWingedAngel 300' tall monstrosity with multiple heads, wings, mouths, and tentacles]]. On fire. And it exploded when you defeated it...

** Although some fans speculate that Drake survived the fight and only changed back after waking up.

This started with [[WolfMan werewolves]]; as monsters go, they tend be... [[OurWerewolvesAreDifferent "different"]]. One of their more peculiar traits is that they have NoOntologicalInertia, because upon death they inevitably revert back to their "true" human form. Though similar to the ShapeshifterSwanSong (which usually ends in ThisWasHisTrueForm), this is not a case of a SuperPowerMeltdown, but an example of NoOntologicalInertia regarding their [[CursedWithAwesome "curse"]]. Whatever innate [[MagicAndPowers power]] or [[TheVirus curse]] is capable of using LegoGenetics and ShapeshifterBaggage to add and remove a few hundred kilograms of fur, muscle, and teeth to or from an InnocentBystander in a few moments, it apparently has no more lasting effect than a shot of espresso. Well, at least the espresso doesn't induce a killing frenzy -- [[CaffeineBulletTime usually]]. This is usually used to show that the (sometimes) only way to cure a Werewolf is to kill them.

* In the third ''AceAttorney'' game, the last trial centers around the death of a children's book author. [[spoiler:It turns out that the author was Misty Fey, mother of Mia and Maya, and that to try to foil a plan to kill Maya, she channeled the spirit of and shapeshifted into her murderous niece, Dahlia Hawthorne. Dahlia still set off to kill Maya, so Godot stabbed Dahlia, resulting in Dahlia being forced back to the afterlife and the now-dead Misty changed back to her own appearance. This leaves Godot with the issue of how to dispose of Misty's body.]]

* The Were-Rabbit in the ''Franchise/WallaceAndGromit'' [[WesternAnimation/CurseOfTheWereRabbit movie]].

* The Were Rabbit in the ''WallaceAndGromit'' [[TheMovie movie]].

*** ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBrosTheLostLevels'' featured six new Fake Bowsers, two of them being found about halfway through worlds 8-4 and D-4. These Fake Bowsers, however are slightly bluish in appearance (in [[CompilationRerelease ''Super Mario All-Stars'']], they are colored normally), and are optional. The new Fake Bowsers encountered are:

* Subverted and {{Lampshaded}} in ''Franchise/TheElderScrolls'' series. Slain werewolves retain whichever form they were in upon their death, and never change back. This was mentioned in the book "On Lycanthropy" in ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIIDaggerfall Daggerfall]]''.

* In ''VideoGame/{{Mega Man X}}8'', when you defeat each Maverick in [[BossRush the requisite rematch stage]], you'll find that they are really next-gen Reploids who shifted into the Mavericks' forms, and they revert to their true forms before they blow up. Taken to its logical extreme when [[spoiler:even your first "Sigma battle" [[ActuallyADoomBot turns out to be a shapeshifter]], and every minor enemy in the final stage is a next-gen Reploid imitating Sigma. They all shift back to their true form before they are destroyed.]]

->'''Counselor Tryhard:''' How do we tell [[SpotTheImposter which one is the real captain]]?\\

* Referenced and subverted in a ''TheXFiles'' tie-in novel. Standing over the corpse of a woman with natural camoflage, Mulder laughs out loud when he realizes that he's been waiting for her to turn back to normal.

** The pilot, "The Man Trap", has a shape-shifting alien that avoids capture by mimicking different members of the ship's crew. It finally returns to its true (hideous) form after Spock is forced to put it down to save Kirk.

* {{Roguelike}} Example: In ''NetHack'', the player (and monsters) can polymorph through various means. A polymorphed creature will return to their true form when killed, but strangely, the true form remains alive. That is, unless you used a magic scroll to genocide the race(s) that the true form belongs to, in which case the creature simply dies.
** [[TheDevTeamThinksOfEverything That goes for you too]]. Genocide your own race while polymorphed, and you get the message, "You feel dead inside."

->'''Counselor Tryhard:''' How do we tell which one is the real captain?\\

* Non-death example: In an episode of ''WesternAnimation/Futurama'', Leela meets another cyclops, whom she almost marries. At their wedding though, it's revealed that he had another four wedding to attend that day with other nearly extinct aliens. Leela and the other four brides beat the crap out of him, demanding to see his true form, until eventually he submits.