Line #87 Main/StoryboardBody


1	->''"And the tapestry here on my skin\
2	It's the map of the victories I win!\
3	Look where I've been, I make everything happen!\
4	Look at that mean Mini-Maui ''a-tippity-tappin''!"''
5	-->-- '''Maui''' "[[IAmGreatSong You're Welcome]]", ''WesternAnimation/{{Moana}}''
6
7	A character description trope.
8
9	Due to TheLawOfConservationOfDetail, characters rarely have tattoos unless they're in some way important to the character. These don't have to be some extremely significant plot point, but they usually do give us greater insight into the character's personality. The tattoos often involve symbolism of some kind related to the character's past or purpose. Many times the character will be a part of some society, such as a [[ProudWarriorRaceGuy Proud Warrior Race]], GangBangers, or TheSyndicate.
10
11	Sometime this trope is played for laughs.
12
13	This trope overlaps with TattooedCrook. However, in this instance the character is not always a rebel or bad guy.
14	----
15	!!Examples
16
17	[[foldercontrol]]
18
19	[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
20	* ''Manga/OnePiece'':
21	** Nami has a tattoo that represents her past, and pays homage to her adopted mother and father figure. Whether she would have gotten this tattoo if her former 'pirate crew' tattoo could have been cleanly destroyed is not quite clear.
22	** A pirate crew composed partly of former slaves took on a tattoo somewhere on their body to hide who had been a former slave and who hadn't to turn the mark of shame into a mark of the bond of shipmates.
23	** Also, Ace. Most obviously, he has the Whitebeard jolly roger on his back. Less obviously is his seemingly misspelled name on his arm. When first introduced it seemed to be a funny little visual gag. Then as more of his and Luffy's past gets revealed that little crossed out "S" gets a lot more significant.
24	* ''Manga/YuGiOh'': Marik Ishtar has a tattoo on his back telling the entire story of the [[NameAmnesia Nameless Pharoah]]. It provides a frightful glimpse into his backstory, as he was just a child when he had the tattoos [[WouldHurtAChild violently burned onto his back]] against his will by his own father, the trauma of which was a major factor in his [[SuperpoweredEvilSide Evil Alter Ego's]] development.
25	[[/folder]]
26
27	[[folder:Comic Books]]
28	* ''ComicBook/{{Batwoman}}'': Katherine has several tattoos: a nautical star, a Special Forces arrowhead, and a bluebird. These were given to her when Creator/GregRucka and J.H. Williams III took over the character, as part of their attempts to make her more than a simple Bruce Wayne clone. The star is a symbol that lesbians in the 1940s used to identify one another, and the arrowhead symbolizes her advanced military training. The bluebird, however, seems to have no greater significance.
29	* ''ComicBook/{{Daken}}'': Daken, who's even more of a SociopathicHero than his father Wolverine, has a large tribal tattoo on his chest and arms.
30	%%* ''ComicBook/{{Starman}}'': Jack Knight (until [[spoiler:his death and regeneration into a new body with no tattoos]]). Seems to be a defining "Tony Harris is no longer the artist" moment.%%ZCE, describe how the trope is used.
31	[[/folder]]
32
33	[[folder:Fan Works]]
34	* ''Fanfic/RocketshipVoyager'': B'Elanna Torres is a [[HalfHumanHybrid Brazilian-Venerian hybrid]], and in the tradition of a [[AmazonBrigade Venerian Amazon]] has body tattoos that show her life tale. When he first lays eyes on her Tom Paris is [[OutgrownSuchSillySuperstitions surprised to see one of the tattoos is a Christian crucifix]]. B'Elanna later tells him she was raised in a Catholic orphanage on Venus.
35	[[/folder]]
36
37	[[folder:Films -- Animated]]
38	* ''WesternAnimation/Cars1'': Sally Carrera has a "tattoo" on her... trunk, hinting at her big-city past.
39	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Moana}}'': The demigod Maui has enchanted tattoos adorning his body telling the stories of his legendary exploits. The tattooed image of himself is also alive and functions as his conscience. Moana's grandmother also has a large tattoo of a manta ray, highlighting her connection to the ocean, and lampshades it with "When I die, I'm coming back as one of these." [[spoiler:Her ghost does come talk to Moana, and it initially appears as a ray before taking human form.]]
40	[[/folder]]
41
42	[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
43	* ''Film/TheATeam'': All four have Ranger tattoos.
44	* ''Film/BladesOfGlory'': Played for laughs, as Chazz Micheal Michaels' tattoos are for each famous figure skater he allegedly banged.
45	* ''Film/{{Dogfight}}'': The four Marine buddies, the "killer B's", get a bee tattooed onto their forearms during their last night on the town before being shipped to Vietnam. River Phoenix's character isn't with them at that moment in the evening so one of his buddies gets an extra bee "for him". Later, when Phoenix returns to the states, he has four bees tattooed on his arm.
46	* ''Film/DontBreathe'': Rocky has a new tattoo of a ladybird on her wrist. She explains to Alex that to her the ladybird represents hope and freedom (and why). When she gets to California, she plans to have the tattoo coloured, and that will be the last time she ever marks her body.
47	* ''Film/EasternPromises'': Nikoli. Each tattoo has some symbolism. Also a subversion of TattooedCrook [[spoiler: as he is an undercover cop.]]
48	* ''Film/{{Faster}}'': [[NoNameGiven Driver]] has prison tattoos that are his scoreboard from the fights he had in prison. And by "fights", we mean "CurbStompBattle / NoHoldsBarredBeatdown " that he handed out.
49	* ''Film/TheFountain'': Tom the astronaut tattoos an elaborate up his arm to mark the passage of time during his trip through space reminiscent of the rings inside a tree's trunk, starting from the ring he tattooed around his finger where [[spoiler:he'd lost his wedding ring after his wife's death back on Earth]]. He's been out there for ''[[TimeAbyss hundreds]]'' of years.
50	* ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy2014'': At least half of Drax the Destroyer's muscular body is covered in elaborate red tattoos that, according to a DeletedScene, tell [[http://on.aol.com/video/guardians-of-the-galaxy-deleted-scene-519308589 his life story]].
51	* ''Film/{{Memento}}'': Lenny has very limited amounts of short-term memory. To remind himself of any clues he gets when he makes a breakthrough in solving his wife's murder, he has the details tattooed on his skin.
52	* ''Film/PacificRim'': An alien biologist named Newton Geiszler has tattoos depicting the alien monsters called 'kaiju' which are the main antagonists of the film. The tattoos are a way to visually reinforce his status as TheXenophile and the AscendedFanboy.
53	* ''Franchise/PiratesOfTheCaribbean'': Jack Sparrow has the poem ''The Desiderata'' tattooed on his back.
54	* ''Film/{{Soldier}}'': The titular character. The cheek tattoos are lists of battles and also his rank.
55	* ''Film/Ultraviolet2006'': Violet has tattoos in Thai Hindi on the fingers of one hand, listing romantic life stages. The pinky is "Comrade", the ring finger "Lover", the middle finger reads "Wife". She became a hemophage before the next finger could be tattooed with "Mother".
56	* ''Film/{{Waterworld}}'': Enola has a Chinese-looking tattoo on her back. It ends up being the story's MacGuffin.
57	[[/folder]]
58
59	[[folder:Literature]]
60	* ''Literature/ABrothersPrice'': The Whistlers have their ancestry tattooed on their bodies, or more precisely, their military heritage. That's how others know that they're dangerous if crossed.
61	* ''Literature/DarkShores'': Cel legionnaires have two tattoos -- the number of their legion on their breast and their own personal number on their back, used to identify the deserters and the fallen.
62	* ''Literature/CourtshipRite'': The people of Geta scar their bodies and faces in intricate, beautiful patterns, using toxic native plants to make the scars more permanent. The scars tell of clan allegiances, religious beliefs, and personal interests or history.
63	* ''Literature/TheGodlessWorldTrilogy'': Played straight. The Kyrinin tattoo their faces based on a level system, including the first for killing an enemy and the third for stealing an enemy's fire. The Kyrinin achieve the highest level by literally stealing the enemy's ''cooking'' fire.
64	* ''Literature/TheIllustratedMan'': An inversion. The main character's tattoos tell other people's stories, and eventually how the person watching will die.
65	* ''Literature/JonathanStrangeAndMrNorrell'': A subversion. Vinculus has the complete text of a book of magic tattooed on his entire body. However, this would seem to reveal something about the character.
66	* ''Literature/TheMortalInstruments'': Strange tattoos cover [[spoiler:Jordan]] Kyle's arms. They're actually mantras from the Upanishads.
67	* ''Literature/OonaOutOfOrder'': Oona leaps in time from 1982 to 2015 and finds a tattoo of an hourglass with galaxies instead of grains of sand and the letters M.C.D.R. She figures the first two letters are for her parents' names (Madeleine and Charles) and the D is for Dale, her boyfriend from the past. When she leaps to 1999, she finds [[HelpYourselfInTheFuture a note her past self left her]], instructing her to ask her mother what does the tattoo mean. [[spoiler:The letters are her biological son's initials]].
68	* ''Literature/StrangerInAStrangeLand'': Patty Paiwonski is entirely covered with scenes from the life of the founder of her religion, Fosterism.
69	[[/folder]]
70
71	[[folder:Live Action TV]]
72	* ''Series/{{Arrow}}''
73	** Combined with EveryScarHasAStory when TheHero Oliver Queen returns to Starling City after being LostAtSea for five years, now with a well-muscled body CoveredInScars and some unexplained tattoos, the full story of which is gradually revealed over the following seasons. [[spoiler:One tattoo identifies him as a Captain in the [[TheMafiya Bratva]], there's a dragon tattoo the same as his LoveInterest Shado given as a MarkOfShame by Slade Wilson (who blames Oliver for Shado's death) and a [[PowerTattoo magical protection]] from Series/{{Constantine}}.]]
74	** [[ProfessionalKiller Deadshot]] has the names of his victims tattooed on his body. One of them is Andrew Diggle, brother of Oliver's FireForgedFriend John Diggle. As with Oliver's tats it's a while before we get the full story on that.
75	* ''Series/{{Caprica}}'': Sam Adama and most of the other members of the Tauron Ha'la'tha. [[http://www.chicagonow.com/blogs/show-patrol/2010/02/exclusive-caprica-producer-jane-espenson-explains-sam-adamas-tattoos.html The writers even worked the whole thing out.]]
76	* ''Series/{{Elementary}}: in the episode "A Study In Charlotte" a dead woman is found to have a large tattoo reading "RACHE" (German for revenge) on her back. It is later revealed the tattoo was expanded from originally just "ACH", the initials of the woman's ex who dies in the opening of the episode.
77	* ''Series/{{Farscape}}'': D'Argo's tattoos mark him as a general. They're actually fake, as he got them so he could act as a decoy to protect his own general.
78	* ''Series/{{Lost}}'': Jack's tattoos. The producer chose to openly show actor Matthew Fox's personal tattoos during the first season and eventually reveal the circumstances under which the character got the tattoos with special attention towards their meaning (in traditional Lost-fashion).
79	* ''Series/PrisonBreak'': It is subverted, though, in that whilst the many tattoos on Michael Schofield's body seem to have some significance to his past or his character, they are actually just there to assist in his breakout from Fox River.
80	* ''Series/SonsOfAnarchy'': tattoos are a significant part of the culture of SAMCRO, as already seen in the opening credits. Whenever Jax has a ShirtlessScene, you can read a lot about his gang and family life from his ink.
81	* ''Series/TheWire'': Osman the sailor from Season 2 has compass roses on his knees and the Turkish crescent on his arm. These help The Greek to guess his nationality, and later, helps the police identify the body.
82	[[/folder]]
83
84	[[folder:Music]]
85	* Music/ThePixies: A girlfriend is characterized in this way in "No. 13 Baby" from ''Music/{{Doolittle}}''.
86	-->''Black tear falling on my lazy queen''\
87	''Got a tattooed tit say number 13.''
88	* Discussed at the end of the music video "For My Dawgs" by Music/WakaFlockaFlame, where Waka shows tattoos dedicated to dead and locked up loved ones.
89	[[/folder]]
90
91	[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
92	* ''TabletopGame/{{Exalted}}'': As Lunars had their Exaltations tainted by [[RealityIsOutToLunch the Wyld]] as a result of hiding out there for centuries, they came up with using silver tattoos as a way to affix their Caste and protect themselves from the Shaping magics of the Wyld. Part of the process of getting the tattoos involves telling the story of your life and having another Lunar translate it into tattoo form.
93	* ''TabletopGame/MagicTheGathering'': Inverted by [[https://scryfall.com/card/sok/142/reki-the-history-of-kamigawa Reki, the History of Kamigawa]] -- his tattoos don't tell his history. They tell ''everyone else's'' history.
94	* ''TabletopGame/{{Talislanta}}'': [[ProudWarriorRace Thralls]], a race of [[DesignerBabies clone troopers]] so uniform in appearance that they can only be distinguished from one another by their unique tattoos.
95	* ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'': The Novamarines have inherited the tradition of tattooing their bodies with scenes of their greatest achievements from the feral tribes that they recruit from. The Novamarines believe that after their death, the Emperor will judge the worth of their life by the deeds inscribed on their skin.
96	* ''TabletopGame/WarhammerFantasy'': Slayers are Dwarves who had shamed themselves in some way and [[DeathSeeker seek redemption via death in combat]]. Part of the Slayer appearance includes ornate tattoos covering most of their faces and bodies.
97	* ''TabletopGame/WerewolfTheForsaken'': Werewolves calculate worth in their society by Renown, split up into five categories -- Cunning, Glory, Honor, Purity, and Wisdom. These categories are recognized by the spirits as a form of status, and appear on their bodies as silver brands whenever they enter [[SpiritWorld the Hisil]].
98	[[/folder]]
99
100	[[folder:Video Games]]
101	* Dante in ''VideoGame/DantesInferno'' has a cloth cross filled with his own backstory sewn onto his chest. The opening of the game even shows him doing it, in all its brutal glory.
102	* Played for {{Squick}} laughs in ''VideoGame/TheCurseOfMonkeyIsland'' as you have to remove a tattoo of a map of the tri-island area from a music promoter's back. Played straight in that the whole reason he had the tattoo was that he was traveling to those places all the time.
103	* The Nameless One from ''VideoGame/PlanescapeTorment'' has a variation of this: He has '''instructions''' to find his life's story tattooed on his back.
104	* The Minmatar in ''VideoGame/{{EVE Online}}'': The tattoos are supposed to reveal the character's life task or purpose. Also a RiteOfPassage.
105	* Psymon Stark of the ''VideoGame/{{SSX}}'' series. Each of his tattoos are designed by him first, and they all tell a story and carry a deep personal meaning, at least according to DJ Atomika; Of course, you don't get to see many of his tattoos (he's a freaking pro snowboarder, you can't blame him for bundling up), but still.
106	* Runners in ''VideoGame/MirrorsEdge'' all have distinct tattoos (including Faith, the player character).
107	* Lilith from ''VideoGame/{{Borderlands}}'' has a large blue tattoo running across her chest. This tattoo most likely serves as an indicator that she's a Siren, and also draws attention to her, erm, assets. Commandant Steele and Maya have similar tattoos.
108	* In ''VideoGame/TheBouncer'', you learn through text crawls that Koh Leifoh got his tattoos [[spoiler: from the government, as part of an attempt to better blend in with the denizens of [[ViceCity Dog Street]]. He pretty much hates them but sees them as a necessary evil to get the mission done.]]
109	* [[AxCrazy Jack]] in ''VideoGame/MassEffect2'' has a lot of tattoos. Some are for prisons she's been in, some are for kills (good ones), some are for things she's lost (those aren't your business), and some are there because, well, why not? This becomes amusing (relatively, anyway), when you look closely and realise that many of the tattoos on her arms are her different looks in the official Mass Effect concept art. She also has a very plausible [[RapeAsBackstory reason]] for all the tattoos; the symptoms of the psychological disorder known as Rape Trauma Syndrome often include getting tattoos to reassert control over one's own flesh, and Jack has a '' ridiculously'' DarkAndTroubledPast.
110	* The [[ProudWarriorRace bahmi]] in ''VideoGame/{{Rift}}'' are stated to cover their skin with {{Power Tattoo}}s to commemorate their accomplishments. [[GameplayAndStorySegregation Unfortunately, player characters are somewhat limited in that regard]].
111	* Every single [[ProudWarriorRace Auroran]] warrior in ''VideoGame/{{EscapeVelocity}}'': Nova uses tattoos to tell the story of their life as a warrior from the moment they are initiated into their House. The two most prominent markings are their House's emblem, and a symbolic image of what death means to that individual. The rest of the tattoos tell of every accomplishment, honor, rank, victory, as well as failures and dishonors, that warrior has earned or experienced. Warriors wear naught but a loincloth at formal gatherings and ceremones, that their lives are laid bare before their fellow warriors; elder warriors can still appear to be fully clothed by the density of their markings.
112	* Plumeria in ''VideoGame/PokemonSunAndMoon'' is a member of Team Skull and has the Team Skull logo [[TattooedCrook tattooed]] on her stomach. [[PostEndGameContent After the main story is over]] and Team Skull is disbanded, she gets an outfit to match her Salazzle, and the tattoo is gone.
113	[[/folder]]
114
115	[[folder:Western Animation]]
116
117	* Hun, of ''WesternAnimation/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles2003'' fame, originally started out with two tattoos, depicting the logos of the two syndicates he was loyal to, The Foot and the Purple Dragons. When the character was redesigned for season 7, he no longer sported the Foot tattoo, reflecting how he'd left that particular group behind.
118	* ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'': Airbenders, when they have not only learnt all the techniques but also invented one of their own and ascend to the rank of Airbending Master, receive tattoos that map the chi paths in their bodies and are made to resemble the markings on their Flying Bison out of respect for the original source of Airbending. Since as of the current time of the story the Avatar is known to be [[TitleDrop the last airbender]], Aang's tattoos often serve to indicate his identity.
119	* ''WesternAnimation/KungFuPandaLegendsOfAwesomeness'': Kim the Invincible in "Camp Ping" has tattoos on his body celebrating the major victories in his life over the warriors he's hunted down and defeated, including a lion warrior from Zambia and a spider monkey from Borneo. He also had plans to have his victory over Po tattooed on his body but eventually gets defeated before he can get around to it.
120
121	[[/folder]]
122
123	[[folder:Real Life]]
124
125	* Several cultures have tattoos which are significant to their culture and/or tell the story of the bearer. Wrestling/DwayneJohnson (who is half Samoan) has a fair amount of Culturally Significant Tattoos on his upper body and at least one arm, which are usually digitally removed or covered with makeup for films.
126	* A gang member got the story of his murder of a member of a rival gang member tattooed on his chest. Detectives were going over random snapshots of gang tattoos when they noticed something eerily familiar about the tats of one Anthony Garcia who had been pulled over for a minor traffic offence. Not one to skimp on his tattoos, Anthony had included details such as the roof, windows and frames of the liquor store, which were the same as those of the liquor store where the murder was committed. And as if that wasn't enough, the image of a cartoon peanut-man was being shot to death by an angry helicopter. Garcia's gang referred to rival gang members as "peanuts," and Garcia himself went by the nickname "Chopper." The tattoo was so accurate that even the direction in which the shots were fired from the helicopter was exactly as it happened in the murder. The crime had otherwise gone unsolved for ''four years.'' Garcia was arrested again, and he soon confessed to an undercover cop. That's probably a detail that he'll leave out of his next tattoo design. Which he'll probably get in prison.
127	* Tattoo magazine ''Inked'' and fashion magazine ''GQ'' both have youtube channels that have videos where various celebrities break down their tattoos.
128	* In the traditional tattoo subcltures -- sailors and prisoners -- certain tattoos have to be earned, doubling as a resumé.
129	[[/folder]]

Context Main / StoryboardBody