Line #85 Main/HeelFaceTurn


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3	%% This list of examples has been alphabetized. Take care to put your example in its proper place in accordance with Administrivia/HowToAlphabetizeThings!
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6
7	[[quoteright:275:[[WesternAnimation/HowTheGrinchStoleChristmas https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/heel-face-turn_htgsc2_3933.png]]]]
8	[[caption-width-right:275:TheGrinch, [[{{Jerkass}} before]] and [[TookALevelInKindness after]] a wondrous (and [[LiteralMetaphor literal]]) change of heart.]]
9
10	->''"And what happened then?\
11	Well, in Whoville, they say,\
12	The Grinch's small heart\
13	Grew three sizes that day."''
14	-->-- ''WesternAnimation/HowTheGrinchStoleChristmas''
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16	%% One quote is sufficient. Please place additional entries on the Quotes tab.
17
18	When a bad guy turns good. This usually makes for a good plot, for three reasons:
19	# It lets the writer reintroduce the villain as a "[[DarkerAndEdgier darker, edgier]]" [[AntiHero hero]].
20	# It reinforces a desired notion of the [[RousseauWasRight inherent goodness within people]].
21	# It prevents the WorthyOpponent from falling victim to WhatASenselessWasteOfHumanLife.
22
23	There are also various in-story motivations for the bad guy to make the turn:
24	# An encounter with an AllLovingHero or gaining a MoralityPet.
25	# Discovering that BeingEvilSucks or possibly that GoodFeelsGood.
26	# An EnemyMine situation leading to {{Fire Forged Friends}}hip or ThePowerOfLove in the form of DeliverUsFromEvil or LoveRedeems changing their priorities. Conversely [[MistreatmentInducedBetrayal mistreatment by their boss or their fellow villains]] makes them rethink their loyalties.
27	# Realizing that they are a NobleDemon.
28	# A HeelRealization, if they had never considered their actions evil or wrong in the first place.
29	# [[DefeatMeansFriendship They become friends with a hero after fighting them]].
30	# A case of EvenEvilHasStandards and/or PragmaticVillainy taken to their extremes: A [[AntiVillain more sensible, honorable villain]] becomes a good guy to stop [[CompleteMonster another, much worse villain]] from doing [[MoralEventHorizon something so horrible]] that they just cannot allow it.
31	# A SealedEvilInACan has spent so long imprisoned that they come to realize that BeingEvilSucks and become EvilRedeemedInACan.
32	# The TokenGoodTeammate in a group of villains has had enough and just decides to become a more straightforward and "official" good guy.
33	# A villainous [[TheMole mole]] is sent to infiltrate the heroes, but then they [[BecomingTheMask become the mask]], turn into a hero themselves, and abandon evil altogether.
34
35	By definition, a villain who has genuinely undergone a Heel-Face Turn cannot be a CompleteMonster, since a Complete Monster cannot show any remorse for their crimes nor can they seek redemption.
36
37	Sadly, it sometimes leads to RedemptionEqualsDeath, and when it doesn't, someone still needs to draw their GetOutOfJailFreeCard. Otherwise they may find the good guys unwilling to believe them; their conversion met with a HeelFaceDoorSlam (or they may "merely" find themselves ReformedButRejected). On the other hand, the bad guy may reject their chance at turning over a new leaf altogether, in which case it's RedemptionRejection.
38
39	The many reasons and the probability for a turn are listed in the SortingAlgorithmOfFaceHeelTurning; probability is directly proportional to popularity. A very common [[HighHeelFaceTurn act]] for the lone female character in any evil group, sometimes by a MistreatmentInducedBetrayal. Beware, some authors know the stereotypes of Heel Face Turning and will play with it accordingly.
40
41	The term "Heel Face Turn" comes from ProfessionalWrestling, in which an evil wrestler (a "{{heel}}") sometimes has [[GoodFeelsGood a change of heart]] and becomes good, thereby becoming a "[[{{Face}} babyface]]". Magazines and other promotional material from the various wrestling leagues comment on various wrestlers' changes in alignment nearly as frequently as they cover events in the ring themselves.
42
43	Compare TheMole, who is secretly working for the other team ''all along''. May be the result of a person that was GoodAllAlong. When someone who doesn't care one way or the other is forced to fight they become NeutralNoLonger. Also, to PersonalHateBeforeCommonGoals, when the alignment changes, but previous rivalries remain.
44
45	This is the opposite of a FaceHeelTurn and is generally found in stories with BlackAndWhiteMorality. It has two subtropes: HeelFaceBrainwashing, more or less the opposite of BrainwashedAndCrazy, and HighHeelFaceTurn. See also MookFaceTurn when the bad guy doing it is a {{Mook}}, and HeelRaceTurn when an entire faction does it. If a character keeps switching from one side to the other and back, they're in a HeelFaceRevolvingDoor. If they turn face, but still act like a heel, they're ReformedButNotTamed. If a character pretends to reform, only to be revealed as EvilAllAlong, they're a FakeDefector. If someone reforms because of faith, they're in a HeelFaithTurn. Compare and contrast, also, with HazyFeelTurn, when is unclear and/or ambiguous the sincerity and/or the extension of the Heel-Face Turn of the character.
46
47	In RealLife, the nature of Heel-Face Turn and FaceHeelTurn is subjective (one person's "seeing the light" is another person's "[[FaceHeelTurn heartless betrayal or fall]]" depending on what group the individual is going to or leaving). Therefore, '''Administrivia/NoRealLifeExamplesPlease'''
48
49	[[noreallife]]
50	!!As this is a {{Betrayal Trope\|s}}, [[Administrivia/SpoilersOff unmarked spoilers abound]]. [[Administrivia/YouHaveBeenWarned Beware]].
51	----
52	!!Example subpages:
53	[[index]]
54	* HeelFaceTurn/AnimeAndManga
55	* HeelFaceTurn/ComicBooks
56	* HeelFaceTurn/FanWorks
57	* [[HeelFaceTurn/AnimatedFilms Films — Animated]]
58	* [[HeelFaceTurn/LiveActionFilms Films — Live-Action]]
59	* HeelFaceTurn/{{Literature}}
60	* HeelFaceTurn/LiveActionTV
61	* HeelFaceTurn/ProfessionalWrestling
62	* HeelFaceTurn/VideoGames
63	* HeelFaceTurn/{{Webcomics}}
64	* HeelFaceTurn/WebOriginal
65	* HeelFaceTurn/WesternAnimation
66	[[/index]]
67
68	!!Other examples:
69
70	[[foldercontrol]]
71
72	[[folder:Advertising]]
73	* A meta example: the apple mascot from [[Advertising/AppleAndCinnaMon Apple Jacks commercials]], once the "Bad Apple" who tried to prevent Cinna-Mon from reaching the bowl, now merely racing him there in a FriendlyRivalry. This was apparently caused by ExecutiveMeddling from the self-regulating arm of the advertising industry, who objected to the negative portrayal of a "healthy" food.
74	* Cookie Crisp mascot Chip the dog started off as a sidekick to the Cookie Crook, helping him try to steal Cookie Crisp. He later gave up his criminal ways and began giving Cookie Crisp to others and is now Chip the Wolf. However, he did go back to his original ways without the Crook at some point.
75	* According to Quaker Oats, the Soggies finally got bored of losing to Advertising/CapnCrunch and have now found honest jobs for themselves as quality control testers at the AFCO Sponge Company.
76	* ''Advertising/FrontRowJoe'': At some point, Elton stops mainly hanging out with Clyde and becomes closer to Joe. The transition probably happened in the "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IUoH5kUIVfg&t=1s Let's Party, Let's Rock!]]" trailer, where Joe successfully gets Elton to toss his trash away after Clyde gets a hole sawed beneath his seat and plummets for failing to toss his- though even the trailers before implied that Elton wasn't really as bad as Clyde- the worst thing he ever actually did was try to sneak into another movie while his was showing. He might have only been hanging around Clyde because he was the only one who can drive him to the movies or something.
77	[[/folder]]
78
79	[[folder:Asian Animation]]
80	* ''Animation/HappyHeroes'': The plot of Season 7 episode 26 revolves around one of Big M.'s monsters, Punk Monster, leaving him and swearing to help people instead of hurting them. Big M. doesn't take kindly to this, calling out Punk Monster for doing some nice things such as cleaning up some garbage and closing the door behind him before he leaves since that's not what villains do.
81	[[/folder]]
82
83	[[folder:Card Games]]
84	* ''TabletopGame/YuGiOh'': In the artwork of "Advance Zone", it's suggested that "Steelswarm Roach" was purified by the Vylons. This can be further proven by his idle and laid-back appearance in "Breath of the Valient"'s artwork as the "Divine Serpent" passes by. Later on, "Steelswarm Roach" becomes "Evilswarm Exciton Knight"
85	[[/folder]]
86
87	[[folder:Comic Strips]]
88	* ComicStrip/DickTracy's allies B.O. Plenty and Gravel Gertie used to be crooks. (Who later married and had a gorgeous daughter named Sparkle.)
89	* ''ComicStrip/FlashGordon'': It would almost be easier to list how many of Flash Gordon's friends ''didn't'' start out as his enemies. Even Zarkov was pretty scary in the very beginning. To his considerable credit, Thun is one of the few people on Mongo who treated Flash decently from the word go. Thun's a cool dude.
90	* The premise of ''ComicStrip/ScaryGary'' is that Gary is a formerly ruthless vampire who had a change of heart and retires to the suburbs, with the series starting shortly after the move is complete.
91	[[/folder]]
92
93	[[folder:Music]]
94	* Music/TheMegas' take on Proto Man starts out driven by bitterness, [[TheResenter resentment]], [[TheFatalist fatalism]] and an all-consuming rage, fighting Mega Man and planning to kill Dr Light. By the end of the ''History Repeating'' double album, after receiving a KirkSummation from Mega Man, he acknowledges that Mega Man is the real deal, accepts that neither of them JustAMachine, and leaves to "[[HeroOfAnotherStory make [his] own history]]".
95	* Music/RhapsodyOfFire:
96	** In the Emerald Sword Saga, [[spoiler:Dargor]] turns against evil, striking down [[spoiler:The Queen of the Dark Horizons]] and summoning an army of gargoyles to stop [[spoiler:The Dark Lord]] in their moment of triumph.
97	** Played with later in the Dark Secret Saga when betrayed in turn by [[spoiler:Tarish]].
98	* After spreading terror, the eponymous Ringo by Lorne Green shows the narrator mercy for a past kindness. He's paid back moments later by being shot to death in the street.
99	[[/folder]]
100
101	[[folder:Pinball]]
102	* ''Pinball/FooFighters2023'': [[spoiler:The Overlord, of all people,]] goes from being a villain to getting redeemed after [[spoiler:finishing "The Final Battle." Seeing him defeated and dejected, the band decides to give him a position in their group as a mascot of sorts, something which he wholeheartedly accepts.]]
103	[[/folder]]
104
105	[[folder:Podcasts]]
106	* In ''Podcast/InterstitialActualPlay'', Larxene decides to help the party out after [[spoiler: [=DiZ=] has her assassinated and Edith subsequently keeps her from fading away]].
107	[[/folder]]
108
109	[[folder:Religion]]
110	* Christianity features a few canonical examples, possibly the most significant being Matthew the Apostle who used to be a tax collector before his conversion. Also, Saul, before he was renamed Paul the Apostle, was a Pharisee, a member of a very zealous Jewish sect, and he was on his way to Damascus to murder members of the early church when the Lord Jesus Christ came to him in a vision. (Acts ch. 9)
111	** The German version of Website/ThisVeryWiki has Saul as the TropeNamer: De/VomSaulusZumPaulus, or "From Saul to Paul".
112	** Orthodox Christianity states before we die, we are not Face, as we sin for our entire life, either by thought, word, or deed. Everything can change, and only death solidifies Heel-Face Turn or damnation... and in the latter case, not completely until the Last Judgement.
113	[[/folder]]
114
115	[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
116	* ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'':
117	** Fifth Edition introduced the "Oath of Redemption" Paladin, which emphasizes that the path to redemption for evil-doers can be an arduous one, and that they should be given help along the way. The tenets ''also'' point out that there are some [[CardCarryingVillain who can never be redeemed]], [[GoodIsNotSoft and a Redemption Paladin should be willing to end the threat they pose]].
118	** The ''Book of Exalted Deeds'' featured two characters usually part of always-evil species: one was an orc paladin (the answer to the old question "would a LawfulGood paladin kill an orc baby" is apparently "raise her as part of his order") and another a LawfulGood ''illithid'' (who was enslaved by her former duergar thralls, found, saved and spared by adventurers, and joined a monastic order after discovering that GoodFeelsGood).
119	* ''TabletopGame/InNomine'':
120	** While it's fairly rare overall, it's possible for demons to seek redemption and become angels. It's a very difficult process -- a demon needs to first get over itself enough to recognize that its ego isn't the most important thing in the world, develop a genuine to desire to help others, and keep all of this secret from Hell's inquisition, then undergo enough personal growth to become a viable candidate for formal redemption, and then find an Archangel who will complete the transformation, which may very well kill the prospective angel. Successful redemptions, however, are greatly valued by Heaven.
121	** By definition, Bright Lilim are all the result of such a turn. The Demon Princess Lilith is the only being who can create Lilim, and as such all Lilim begin life as demons on the side of Hell. Each and every Bright Lilim thus had to, at some point, make a conscious decision to abandon Hell and the ruination of humanity in order to seek Heaven.
122	* ''TabletopGame/{{Pathfinder}}'':
123	** The concept of redemption plays a significant role in the ''Wrath of the Righteous'' adventure path. One of the primary NPC characters, Aureshalae, is a succubus seeking to leave evil and the Abyss behind -- she's managed to shift her alignment from ChaoticEvil to ChaoticNeutral by the time the adventure starts, and over the course of the story attempts to cement her Turn and become ChaoticGood. The players are also given the option of turning a traitor and a fallen crusader back to the light, and once they delve into the Abyss itself they can attempt to redeem Alderpash, one of the former [[SorcerousOverlord Runelords of Thassilon]] and a very, very evil man. By the time the players get to him he's been trapped in Baphomet's Inelecutable Prison for millennia, and will do ''anything'' to get out -- and if this entails him sticking to the straight and narrow in return for the players breaking him out of planar jail, he will give this an honest try.
124	** Nocticula, the demon lord of seduction and assassins, is rumored by some of her more heretical followers to be seeking to cleanse herself of the Abyss' taint as part of her more widely recognized ploy for full divinity. As it turns out, [[spoiler:this is entirely correct. If Nocticula ascends in ''Wrath of the Righteous'' she explicitly does so as a ChaoticNeutral goddess of outcasts and artists, something that ''Planar Adventures'' and later 2nd Edition establish as canon.]]
125	** Balisse angels are formed from the souls of evildoers who forsook their former ways and embraced benevolence, and seek to help others undergo the same change of heart that they did.
126	** A subclass in First Edition -- "[[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin the Redeemer]]" -- gives half-orc paladins the ability to invoke these in defeated enemies. Second Edition makes it the NeutralGood Champion name.
127	* ''TabletopGame/SentinelsOfTheMultiverse'':
128	** The villain Omnitron upgrades itself repeatedly, finally adding an [[MoralityChip empathy component]]. When it does this, it [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone realizes the death and destruction it caused]] as a villain and travels back in time to join the heroes.
129	** In the Iron Legacy dark future, Fright Train has taken over the role of Bunker.
130	** After her defeat by the Freedom Five, The Matriarch gets some tutoring and magical training from Nightmist and joins the heroic Dark Watch as The Harpy. Sometime before Sentinels: Tactics, she takes the codename to Pinion.
131	** A much OlderAndWiser La Capitan, seeking to atone for her past self's deeds, becomes the hero La Comodora.
132	** A promo card shows that Infinitor pulls one of these. The card specifies he is a hero target and his gameplay focuses on keeping him alive while taking down his rampaging HardLight projections. In the end, he does a HeroicSacrifice to save his brother.
133	[[/folder]]
134
135	[[folder:Theatre]]
136	* ''Theatre/{{Anastasia}}'': In the stage version, Gleb, knowing now that this is truly the Grand Duchess Anastasia, chooses to not kill her and instead makes a deal to return to Russia and say she was nothing more than a rumor.
137	* ''Theatre/{{Heathers}}'': While their movie counterpart didn't, Heathers [=McNamara=] and Duke both reform in the finale ''Seventeen'', [=McNamara=] after Veronica offered her to and Duke after seeing how happy everybody else as they stop being mean to each other.
138	* ''Theatre/KingLear'': Edmund goes from helping to plot the death of the play's most sympathetic characters to (ineffectually) attempting to save them: "I pant for life; some good I mean to do/Despite of mine own nature."
139	* in ''Theatre/LesMiserables'': Javert has a brief one after his HeelRealization upon being freed by Valjean when the latter could have easily taken revenge. Conflicted, he makes to arrest Valjean when he emerges from the sewers, but when he sees [[spoiler:Marius's body on his back]], he lets him go instead. He's so shaken by his own Turn that he [[spoiler:kills himself shortly thereafter]].
140	* In ''Theatre/TheMerchantOfVenice'', Shylock, partly because he wants to get out of his predicament alive and partly because Antonio suggested the order to convert to Christianity out of a desire to redeem his soul, agrees to become a Christian, departs from the court in poor physical health from what he had just gone through in his unsuccessful attempt to get the pound of flesh from Antonio, and signs the deed offscreen when the court delivers it to him.
141	* ''Theatre/{{Oliver}}'': Fagin gives serious consideration to this in a song called "Reviewing the Situation".
142	[[/folder]]
143
144	[[folder:Toys]]
145	* ''Toys/{{Bionicle}}'':
146	** Brutaka, a traitor during the Voya Nui arc, has one in the following Mahri Nui arc.
147	** Krika would have had one, if Gorast hadn't killed him.
148	** Vezon, after the Mask of Life was separated from his body.
149	[[/folder]]
150
151	[[folder:Visual Novels]]
152	* ''VisualNovel/BionicHeart'': The CorruptCorporateExecutive's brand new android henchwoman turns on him when the psychic human brain he placed in her head allows her to have visions showing the destruction that will result from his future plans.
153	* In ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'', Ilya is the main threat for the first half of the series, but she becomes an ally when her monstrous Servant Berserker is killed in the Fate scenario (she couldn't keep fighting at that point, but that didn't mean she had to join the TrueCompanions). In the Heaven's Feel scenario, she goes so far as to [[spoiler:sacrifice herself for Shirou's life in the Good End]].
154	* ''VisualNovel/UminekoWhenTheyCry'': In [[GrandFinale Episode 8]], [[spoiler: Lambdadelta]] manages to do one, going up against [[spoiler: [[GoodPowersBadPeople Bernk]][[RealityWarper astel]] ]].
155	[[/folder]]
156
157	[[folder:Web Animation]]
158	* ''WebAnimation/{{HFIL}}'': The whole point of the series and the titular HFIL is to try to reform the villains-oh, sorry, [[InsistentTerminology morally compromised malefactors]]-of ''WebVideo/DragonBallZAbridged'' so they can make the turn. It's stated Cui was a successful case (but then again ''his'' worst crime was hating Vegeta), and it's implied that his time in HFIL is why Nappa had a HazyFeelTurn when he came BackFromTheDead. [[spoiler: King Cold, of all people, also graduated from HFIL and now works with them, but it's unclear if he ''truly'' made a Heel Face Turn or if he's manipulating everyone for his own ends.]]
159	* ''WebAnimation/HTFPlus'': In ''HTF+CC 2'' LG Creepybloom only wanted to cook Flippy into a cupcake so she could earn her cutie mark. But she realized having a cutie mark for murder does not seem to be a good look on her, so she decided to help Flippy to escape.
160	* ''WebAnimation/ETUAnimatedStories'': Tina, Milton's sister turned over a new leaf over the course of the story and became a hardworking woman unlike her other sisters who continue to sabotage their brother's success.
161	* ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'': There's a running theme in the show of trying to save people from falling down the wrong path, even if they're under the sway of very dangerous villains. As a result, a couple of characters switch sides along the way, the most significant occurring in Volume 8 after [[BigGood Ozpin]] reveals what [[BigBad Salem's]] true end-game is, making a number of people rethink whose side they're on. [[spoiler:[[ReluctantWarrior Hazel]] and [[NotInThisForYourRevolution Emerald]] are so disturbed by this that Hazel sacrifices his life to ensure Emerald and the tortured [[LegacyOfTheChosen Oscar]] can escape Salem's clutches; Oscar then convinces the heroes to give Emerald a chance, which they decide to do after Emerald unexpectedly helps them save a [[RobotGirl hacked Penny]] before admitting that she'll be [[PrecisionFStrike super-pissed]] if they all [[HeroicBSOD give up]] the moment she decides to switch sides.]]
162	** Prior to this, Blake's former friend (who liked Blake a bit more than that) Ilia Amitola, a member of the [[FantasticTerrorists White Fang]], pulls one after leading the attack on the Belladonnas, the former leaders of the Fang before it turned to evil. After a fight and an argument over ideologies with Blake, Ilia realized how far the White Fang had fallen and helped fight off [[CreepyTwins Corsac and Fennec Albain]]. She later takes part in the Battle of Haven, fighting against her former comrades in the Fang and disarming [[NotSoWellIntentionedExtremist Adam Taurus']] bombs.
163	* ''WebAnimation/TheMostEpicStoryEverToldInAllOfHumanHistory'': Epic Robot Guy, after [[FaceHeelTurn turning evil]] and becoming TheDragon to [[BigBad Ridiculously Epic]], eventually returns to the side of good in “The Most Epic Introspective Journey on a Nautical Voyage”.
164	* In ''WebAnimation/BattleForDreamIsland'', Blocky starts off as a sadistic "prankster" who kills the other contestants for fun. However, in Season 4 Episode 21, Blocky realizes that Woody, his number one victim, has grown a lot and is able to stand up for himself now, convincing Blocky to not be a sadistic "prankster". He even goes as far as to start doing more light-hearted pranks with Woody.
165	* the first battle in WebAnimation/WolfSongTheMovie ends up boiling over to a one on one clash between Zar and Alador. Alador goes through quite a beating but decides to talk sense into his opponent before moving in the way of a snake that was about to bite his enemy. The wound is by no means fatal and the snake isn’t venomous, but this one selfless act is enough to convince Zar and his whole squad to side with the heroes from here on out
166	[[/folder]]
167
168	%% No "real life", please.

Context Main / HeelFaceTurn