Nun-Too-Holy



""Have you come to give confession? I gladly accept your tithe...in BLOOD.""

- Double, Skullgirls

""What the hell's your problem?! Don't you know what Jesus said in Luke 11? 'Don't trouble me. The door's locked' -- got that, bitch?""

- Eda, Black Lagoon

One would hope that most members of a Noble Profession, though human and prone to imperfection, are decent folk who make an honest effort to uphold the basic moral and ethical standards one might associate with the position.

And then there's this character.

She's a nun, at least that's what it says on her job resume. However, she acts nothing like what she's claiming to be. Instead, she can be violent, destructive, steal from the collection plate, wear revealing clothing, be perverted like the best of them, forget all about her chastity vows, take God's name in vain and swear so much she'd make a sailor cry, not to mention that she seems to have ideas or notions that directly contradict the Church she belongs to. In other words, she's anything but the normal image of a member of the Church you'd expect. It leads one to wonder how she managed to land this job in the first place. Like the Bunny Ears Lawyer, It is possible that she's actually good at parts of her job... once you bypass all the rest of the stuff she does.

One of three things usually occur.
 * 1) The character's coworkers decide they've had enough and kick her out. May be Played for Drama.
 * 2) The character is punished or called out for her actions, but the response is halfhearted and the character remains. May be Played for Laughs.
 * 3) The Nun-Too-Holy character is revealed to have a redeeming trait that makes her immune to getting the boot.

The character's reasons for being the way they are may vary:
 * 1) In some cases, it seems likely the character never had any interest in performing their role adequately; they are just using the position and the church (or other organization) to further their own ends, whether that is a source of funds to embezzle from to a front for an Elaborate Underground Base. In this case they might be anything from a Complete Monster or the Big Bad, to an Anti-Hero leader working within the church to fight its enemies behind The Masquerade.
 * 2) In other cases the character simply finds that the air of semi - respectability his position gives him is just too convenient to give up. The character in this case is often Mr. Vice Guy, a traditional hard - drinking Anti-Hero, or an Ineffectual Sympathetic Villain.
 * 3) Most often, the character is a sympathetic Hero with an F In Good who is sincere about responding to The Call but can't seem to bring themselves to control their excesses.
 * 4) This trope is often subverted; the character turns out never to have been a nun, but is an imposter or simply doesn't correct others' confusion.

Of course, you have to take into consideration the actual setting. If everyone is dressed like Naughty Nuns in the Church, then simply wearing a sexy nun outfit isn't enough to be Nun-Too-Holy.

This trope can apply to any member of the religious orders, not just nuns, or indeed any character whose nominal role is that of a holy person, moral leader, etc.

The difference between this and the Bunny Ears Lawyer is that while the Bunny Ears Lawyer controls his eccentricities so they don't violate his own code of ethics, just others' patience and sense of decorum; the quirks serve as a reminder of the fact that the Bunny Ears Lawyer is good enough that his bosses choose to ignore them. The Nun-Too-Holy character does not have this level of self control. The quirks in this case are so serious that anyone ignoring them strains Willing Suspension of Disbelief.

For characters who take their role as a moral leader too seriously rather than not seriously enough, see Knight Templar or Well-Intentioned Extremist.

Sometimes overlaps with Nuns Are Funny, Nuns Are Mikos, Nuns Are Spooky, Naughty Nuns, Sexy Priest, or The Vicar. Compare also the Sinister Minister.

If the character is sincere but mistreats those they are supposed to cater too, they may be a Jerkass Woobie.

Much less Truth in Television than it used to be. Convents in the Middle Ages were used as dumping grounds for unruly noblewomen, who made equally unruly nuns and possibly the Trope Maker for Naughty Nuns.

Advertising

 * This commercial for Hitman: Absolution. Controversial for obvious reasons, though whether it was because of nuns with firearms and dominatrix outfits or that 47 was killing them is something nobody complaining about it could agree on.

Anime and Manga
"Teana: Sexual harassment is a criminal offense, you know."
 * The whole local church in Black Lagoon. Eda provides the page picture..
 * Sort of invoked with one half of the Iscariot Organization team in Hellsing - a nun with a violent, sword-wielding split personality. Technically her partner Heinkel probably should be a nun as well, but instead she Crossdresses as a priest.
 * Miroku in Inuyasha is an itinerant Buddhist monk who is very good at fighting Youkai, but terrible at being a Buddhist, between his incessant skirt-chasing and his habit of conning his way into money and comfortable lodgings whenever possible.
 * This is reasonably historically accurate, given that many monks of the time were incessantly criticized by laymen, both commoners and authorities alike, for doing exactly these things. It was said that there were no worse Buddhists in medieval Japan than among the clergy. Miroku himself manages to stay among the more benevolent examples of the trope and proves to be capable of deep spirituality when the situation is serious... but he's still a terrible Buddhist.
 * Sister Angela from One Pound Gospel. A mild example, since her only serious indiscretion is her relationship with Kosaku.
 * Esther Blanchett from Trinity Blood: not only is it suggested she is in love with both Father Nightroad and Count Ion, at a couple points in the story she's also on the run for murder charges!
 * It should be noted that she was like that before becoming a nun! Partly Fiery Redhead! Partly Dietrich's influence! Reread the first volume! Fridge Logic in that if she hung around him so much how come she never joined the Order? Weren't they lovers (before Abel came into the picture)? Also her Pettanko status doesn't help her personality!
 * In the Anime, however, she apparently became a nun at age five, which probably has a lot to do with it.
 * Wait, then wouldn't she be more inclined to be more holy, then? If that is how she was mostly brought up...
 * It should also be noted that Esther isn't the only nun indicated to be in love with Father Nightroad; Sister Noélle Bor openly admits it to him. Abel gently rejects her, but seems to find nothing inappropriate about the idea. Given that the current Pope is openly acknowledged to be the son of the previous Pope, it seems that in the distant future of Trinity Blood, the Catholic Church has dropped the requirement of celibacy for the clergy.
 * The manga has a better example in Sister Monica Argento, who despite being a nun crossdresses as a priest, and who greatly enjoys killing. And she's one of the good guys! (More or less.)
 * The killing also appears to be less of a problem in Trinity's Catholic Church, considering that there are at least two organizations within the Church whose members are authorized to kill if necessary when carrying out their missions. It is also possible that Ester repented regarding her murderous actions between arriving in Rome as a novice and becoming a full-fledged nun.
 * Nuns are not clergy. Ordaining a woman is liturgically impossible.
 * What Miyu, Alyssa, and Nao become at the end of My-HiME. Nao in particular used to pose as a child prostitute and rob her clients with the help of her Child.
 * Yukariko herself is also one, as despite her innocence and lack of knowledge about men, she gets visibly drunk during the Karaoke party, and also gets into a relationship with Ishigami,.
 * Zange in Kannagi, daughter of a priest, dresses as a nun, but with a miniskirt.
 * The trope description fits Rosette Christopher from Chrono Crusade to a T. She constantly swears, physically takes her frustration out on her assistant Chrono when things go wrong (who's a demon, by the way), enjoys gambling, revels in wearing expensive clothing, in one scene gets rip-roaring drunk and then forces a twelve-year-old to drink - during Prohibition, Drives Like Crazy, and...happens to be one of the best exorcists in the Magdalene Order, when she manages not to destroy anything. The Order puts up with her behavior because not only is she very good and very dedicated to what she does, she has an extremely good reason for being there—saving her younger brother from a powerful demon.
 * Note that Rosette does not have a religious vocation, never claimed to have a religious vocation, only joined up for the training and resources she needed in order to save her brother, and left the Magdalene Order shortly after doing so.
 * Sister from Arakawa Under the Bridge, a large-framed, crossdressing man who holds Mass at gunpoint and claims to be a Living Lie Detector, making Confessions more like Interrogations.
 * Sister Sein in Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha. Getting trained as a nun for a few years under the strict supervision of Sister Schach had done nothing to reduce her mischievous personality. For example, her first appearance on ViVid involved surprise Skinship Grope and secretly touching everyone's no-no places while they were relaxing in the hot springs.


 * It is, however, indicated that, immature tendencies aside, she's a caring individual who's good at her job. In Sound Stage X, she notices when an elderly pilgrim is about to collapse and carries her the rest of the way, and she is often seen caring for the comatose.
 * Nicholas D. Wolfwood of Trigun is a male example. He claims to be a travelling Christian priest, yet he drinks, smokes, sells confessional sessions for money, kills both for profit and for expediency, and is . In the anime, he even admits he's never actually been inside a church before when he.
 * Genjyo Sanzo of Saiyuki. A Buddhist priest known for his heavy smoking, easy irritability and general disinterest in giving sermons whenever possible. Also notorious among Youkai for being a killer marksman.
 * A Certain Magical Index takes this in stride; quite possibly, this is the one place in anime history where viewers will cheer for a male hero who belts a nun in the face.
 * Index is no wallflower, may be a glutton (while claiming she isn't), but she doesn't swear and has decent manners when she isn't biting Touma's head.
 * The Roman Catholic's ranks seem to subside on nuns with weapons and criminally short skirts (especially Agnese, and especially her Stripperiffic Restraining Bolt during her second appearance). They're also dangerously zealous and pay no heed to the cardinal rule thou shall not kill.
 * The Amakusa are unique in that they seem to be a variant of Kirisuto-kyō. The whole sect tends to be portrayed more as noble Ninja than a religious denomination, though the portrayal has its reasons. They also have their own Saint. Who frequently kicks ass and almost always dresses in Stripperiffic street clothes herself. She also gets away with fighting.
 * Double subverted in Hayate the Combat Butler with Sister Freesia. At first, it seems that she lives up to this, being stingy, greedy, and showing hints of a Yandere nature. Subverted when it's revealed that the character first introduced as Sister Freesia, Sonia, is an impostor. Double subverted when it's revealed that the real Sister Freesia doesn't act mature at all and obsesses over boy bands. Played straight by the priest, a noted lech and obsessed with role-playing games.
 * And Sonia's thoughts indicate she is a nun, just not really named Freesia. A nineteen-year-old, money-hungry, would-be-murdering nun who's fallen in love with a thirteen-year-old boy.
 * Played straight with Kazumi Ryudo from Haunted Junction, who is something of a Loveable Sex Maniac.

Comic Books

 * Played with in the European comic book series Soda. One book has a (male) small-time criminal who dresses up as a nun for disguise. Of course, Soda himself is a rare male example (and subversion), since.
 * Bad Girl icon Warrior Nun Arealla: Give her 20 "Hail Marys" or she'll chop your head off.
 * The Ghost Rider arc "Heaven's On Fire" introduced a legion of Gun Nuns. Yes, that's the actual name of their order. Previously we'd also seen a deadly order of martial artist nuns. That said, they aren't actually bad, they just go to necessary extremes. The Gun Nuns protect the portal to Hell, after all.
 * Soeur Marie-Thérèse des Batignolles : drinks, fights, swears, punches fouls and completely disrespects her hierarchy. But then, she is also good friend with the pope.

Fan Works

 * Nao in the My-HiME fanfic The Sword of the Lord. She swears quite often (in and out of her narration), likes to drink and occasionally has contact with men. Yukariko is still a nun despite being married, which Nao suspects is only allowed because she got an exemption in exchange for keeping quiet about Joseph's infiltration, forced a bishop to submit or used St. Vlas' powers to convince people it was allowd. It's suggested that the order as a whole loosely follows the rules, being more focused on dealing with supernatural threats.

Film

 * The title character of Luis Buñuel's Viridiana is a novitiate-nun who tries to be Mother Theresa, but is secretly Prideful of her Good Works. She's really more misinformed and naive than 'bad', but she screws it up magnificently nevertheless.
 * Sister Maria from The Sound of Music: 'She's always late for everything except for every meal'. Another mild example, she has strong moral character, is hard working, compassionate, and a talented music teacher, but it's obvious to the other nuns that becoming a nun was a poor career choice for Maria.
 * Worth mentioning, although it was done in the name of heroism: In the movie only, when the Van Trapp family is on the run from the Nazis in the Abbey, a group of sisters come to the Reverend Mother and cross themselves, intoning "Bless us mother, for we have sinned." Then from under their habits they pull the car parts they stole from the soldier's cars.
 * The real Maria averted this as she was the classic stereotype of the stern, sour-faced, ruler wielding nun. It was the father, Georg von Trapp, who was carefree, letting his children get away with murder, until Maria disciplined them.
 * Delores from Sister Act. Justified in that she's really a lounge singer and witness in a high profile court case who was sent to the convent by the authorities to protect her. Subverted in that if it weren't for her party girl side, she'd have made a very good nun.
 * Sara in Two Mules for Sister Sara.
 * Subverted in that Sister Sara
 * Spy Hard has gun-toting nuns.
 * The demon nun, the villain from The Conjuring 2. Whether this thing has any ties to actual nuns other than its appearance is questionable, as it's a Humanoid Abomination who seeks to tempt mortals into unspeakable acts of evil. Oddly enough, it is due to be the subject of a Spin Off movie debuting in July 2018.

Literature

 * Christopher Moore's Fool: A woman supposedly so dedicated to asceticism she is locked up in solitary in a convent turns out to have an extremely inventive mind when it comes to sex with one of the altar boys, despite the fact that her only access to the outside world is a small cross-shaped window...
 * The Sister of Battle trainer in Cain's Last Stand is a loyal and pious soldier of His Divine Majesty's church - and also drinks and plays cards with the navy, infantry, and Commissariat trainers in her down time (.

Live Action TV

 * Desmond on Lost became a monk after receiving a sign from God, but was kicked out for drinking the wine made at the monastery.
 * Pushing Daisies had a plot in the second season where Olive became a nun to avoid the stress from all the secrets people entrusted her with. Olive herself wasn't that great of a nun (trying desperately to take back her stuff from the poor when it was donated), and at least one other nun like this was featured in an episode.
 * In one episode of Leverage, Parker dresses as a nun. The audience knew that she wasn't, but it was still an amusing scene. (Earlier she was mistaken for an angel while stealing a statue)
 * Also Sister Lupe in "The Boys Night Out Job", who Nate's friend Jack met and had feelings for. Nate kept stressing "She's not a nun".
 * Sybil on Camelot is manipulative, cunning, and delves into pagan magic more than once, up to and including "sacrificing" girls studying at her Convent (whether they died as a result is left unclear) to keep spiritual forces at bay.

Music

 * The Jake Thackray song Sister Josephine is about a criminal on the run and disguised as a nun. His co-nuns are quite oblivious to the fact; Hilarity Ensues.

Tabletop Games

 * The Tabletop RPG Macho Women With Guns supplement Renegade Nuns on Wheels.
 * The whole point of a short lived reality show about priests in training... and their girlfriends.
 * In Warhammer Fantasy battles Nagash used his posistion as head of church when he tried to conquer the world his first time.
 * Exalted features Sulamore, one of the signature characters of the Infernal Exalted, who wears clothing approaching a nun's vestments, but a) she acts as a servitor of the will of the Yozis upon creation, and b) there's a reason that clothing is "approaching" a nun's vestments.
 * It is also saying something that Sulumor is one of the more conservatively dressed female characters in Exalted canon. Compare the Lady of Darkness in Bloodstained Robes, who is a high priestess of the Neverborn, the dead cousins of the Yozis, who wears... Well, the jury is still out on whether what she has constitutes wearing something.
 * She's definitely got a skirt on.

Video Games

 * In La Pucelle, Prier is rude, very violent (inside and outside her demon hunting job), steals on occasion from the Church, doesn't take prayer that seriously, and sometimes outright decides to go against their own Holy Scriptures. Everyone calls her out on that, especially since she aims to become The Messiah.
 * Keep in mind Prier apparently really did become a Demon Overlord in the Disgaea games.
 * Ironically enough, in La Pucelle, the goddess Poitreene SAYS she shouldn't be worshiped, she's just as "aspect" of Light in general.
 * Skullgirls has Double, the demon who's true appearance is a morphing creature of Body Horror.
 * The H-Game series Kango Shicyauzo features one nun who 'sometimes falls asleep when she is in bed with a boyfriend', a second who apparently fell in love with a priest and joined the sisterhood in order to stalk him, and a third who is the biological mother of one of her students...
 * In the iPhone app and Xbox Indie game Twin Blades, we might excuse the heavy weapons she carts around as necessary for killing zombies. The revealing red dress and white stockings, though...
 * Dragon Age gives us Leliana who used to be a nun before she joined your party. While she qualifies for this trope based on how unlike the nuns of her setting she is, there are several subversions here. The big one is she disagree's with Chantry dogma and believes the creator is a loving god instead of an indifferent one.
 * Referencing the brothel mentioned in the Real Life section below, Sister Teodora in Assassin's Creed II runs a bordello staffed by (former) nuns. She says she takes care of both the body and the soul.
 * And of course, Pope Alexander VI (again, see Real Life) shows up in the game -.
 * Mother Judgement from Newgrounds. The main screen sums it up as "Nun with guns".
 * Male example in Persona 3, which has a cigar-smoking, hard-drinking monk as one of the Social Links.
 * There are two nuns in the Arcana Heart series. Elsa la Conti mostly averts this trope, despite being armed with a large cross and several other weapons (which could be excused as she works for an organization trained to deal with spiritual anomalies). On the other hand, her partner, Clarice di Lanza, is a full-blooded demon who acts rather immoral at times (though she usually means well), as well as having a major lesbian crush on Elsa.
 * Bridget, anyone?

Jokes

 * Here's one: A couple of nuns go into the city to buy some groceries for their convent. But they aren't very experienced drivers and soon they get lost and run out of gas in a bad part of town. A local gang sees their expensive car, and the leader comes over and leans on the hood and sticks a gun in Sister Mary's face. She says "Sister Agatha, what should I do?," and Sister Agatha says "Show him your cross," and Sister Mary says, "Get off my fucking car!"

Real Life

 * As stated above, often Truth in Television during periods when the fate of The Unfavorite or a younger son was often being forced into a career in the church.
 * OTOH, it was also a convenient way to lead a more or less comfy life and avoid being sent to fight and die in the military.
 * Pope Alexander VI. Among his more notable accomplishments, preventing a major war and fathering Lucrezia Borgia.
 * It wasn't terribly unheard-of for Renaissance Popes to lavish attention on "nieces" and "nephews" whose mothers didn't appear to have a close blood tie to the Pope and whose fathers were nowhere to be found. Alexander VI was just the first to openly acknowledge his daughter and three sons.
 * There was a brothel in medieval England that catered to customers with a Naughty Nuns fetish. None of the employees were actually nuns, but they wore the full costume.
 * A nunnery indeed...
 * The "Nuns Having Fun" calendars are fairly mild cases, but the appeal comes largely from this trope. They ride roller coasters, dance around, go paddling in their habits, and smoke cigarettes, and it's all pretty giggle-worthy because they're nuns.
 * A certain good-sized priest had a story about how he got the chance to attend a ceremony at the Vatican that was being led by the Pope. As soon as the Pope appeared, he claims that, in their zeal to reach the pontificate, a couple of little old Italian nuns knocked him out of the way as if they were pro linebackers.
 * A British World War II Public Service Announcement film warned the public to be on the look out for Nazi paratroopers disguised as nuns. People were warned to look out for nuns with hairy forearms, adam's apples, and tattoos spelling out H.I.T.L.E.R.
 * Averted with St Margret of Hungary, but played somewhat straight with the other nuns who don't like her too much for taking her role as a nun too seriously. According to the medieval hagiographies at least. One thing that is often overlooked or played down, is the fact she basically threw her father, the King, out of the monastery when he wanted to call her back for an arranged marriage, making her probably one of the most independent women remembered from her time. Not exactly what nuns are known for.