Name's the Same/Cross Media


 * Zero. The entire list is on the page.
 * Sakura too.
 * Also Ryu.
 * Spike as well.
 * Decisive Battle can refer to a long list of media. The two most popular are the one from an extremely Mind Screw anime and the recurring Final Boss theme.
 * Ashley Williams and...Ashley Williams
 * Most likely a Shout Out. There's one mission in Mass Effect where Williams refers to her gun as a "boomstick".
 * While we're on the subject of Mass Effect...Samara. Asari justicar or freaky ghost in your VCR? Or, for that matter, a city in Russia?
 * Geth: A race of sentient robots or Lord of the Vault?
 * Archie Andrews: British ventriloquist's dummy and radio star (yes, really) or US star of Archie Comics?
 * Another Archie Comics example. Alexandra Cabot is a long-running supporting character in Josie and The Pussycats; she's Josie's wealthy rival and occasional ally. There is another Alexandra Cabot featured in Law and Order Special Victims Unit, a no-nonsense Assistant District Attorney.
 * Amon is a pale-faced guy in a black leather jacket who hunts super-powered people for a living, whether they're (mostly) malevolent witches or (mostly) innocent element-benders. There's also the one who tortures innocent Jews.
 * Mike Grell's classic barbarian comic "The Warlord" features an issue where he's rescued by a group of college professors. Among them is Richard Belding,who shares a name with the educator who followed Screech around for the duration of the Saved By the Bell franchise.
 * Let's not forget Travis Morgan's ally Shakira, who is of course not related to the Colombian singer.
 * The Ballad Of Cable Hogue is a 1970 western film about a failed prospector who finds a water source in the Arizona desert, attempts to found a town around it, falls in love with a prostitute, and ultimately dies saving the life of a man who betrayed him years ago. Calexico also has a song, "Ballad of Cable Hogue" (off their 2000 album Hot Rail), about a successful prospector who is betrayed and killed by a Femme Fatale. John Cale (formerly of Velvet Underground) also has a "Ballad of Cable Hogue" (though it was originally released under the title "Cable Hogue"); we're not sure what it's supposed to be about.
 * Bender. Lovable Rogue in Futurama or eh...LovableRogue in dilogy of books by Ilf and Petrov and its many adaptations?
 * Or Judd Nelson's character in The Breakfast Club.
 * Also, there's a rock band called Bender. They appeared on the soundtrack to ATV Offroad Fury
 * Claire Bennet? Do you have a friend who happens to be an otaku and have time manipulation power? Or is your friend ice cold and prone to dramatically yell your name?
 * Noah Bennet is the name of a character in this show or that show; both have been on NBC.
 * Does Bianca refer to the friend of Latias and Latios in Pokémon Heroes, the ditzy rival in Pokémon Black and White (note: this isn't present in the original Japanese versions of both, where movie!Bianca is Kanon and game!Bianca is Bel/Belle), Nico's older sister from Percy Jackson and The Olympians, or one of the eligible brides of the protagonist of Dragon Quest V?
 * Or RICKAAAY!'s wife in Eastenders?
 * Captain Carrot. All-round hero, The Good Captain and indisputably The Cape of his universe. But is he a bunny rabbit with superpowers or a watchman with kingly charisma?
 * Elizabeth Shaw: hot scientist who's confronted aliens played by Caroline John or hot scientist who's confronted aliens played by Noomi Rapace?
 * John Carter. Hero of Mars or a doctor in Chicago county General?
 * Sharon Carter. Captain America's badass girlfriend or the "Girl" from Two Guys a Girl And A Pizza Place?
 * Revolutionary Girl Utena and Xenogears both have half-mouse hybrid Team Pets named Chu-Chu.
 * Yellow of Pokémon Special has a Pikachu of the same name...and mouse qualities.
 * Also, there's Chu Chu Rocket.
 * The Paper is a paperkinetic ditzy Meganekko from Read or Die, or a time-and-space-transcending piece of paper belonging to Strong Bad?
 * Or a SpongeBob episode?
 * Edward Cullen is either a wealthy, hunky vampire with a much younger girlfriend or a wealthy real estate guy/murder victim with a much younger girlfriend/murder victim.
 * Joanna Dark is either the secret agent protagonist of the Perfect Dark games or God empowered super policewoman the Maid from Top Ten.
 * Data: Teenaged Bungling Inventor in The Goonies, or Android Starfleet officer on Star Trek the Next Generation and its subsequent movies? And they both pronounce their name "Day-Tah". Or maybe a member of Griff Tannen's gang in 2015 in Back to The Future Part II. Or perhaps Mega Man's robot monkey.
 * Things can quickly get confusing if you say you're a fan of Arrested Development -- indeed, the hip-hop group by that name sued the producers of the same-named sitcom, and the latter hung a lampshade on the situation.
 * The Doctor is not The Doctor. Or the other Doctor. Or the other other Doctor.
 * Nor is he Il Dottore. Of course, there's also the other Il Dottore, Valentino Rossi...
 * Max Edison is a recurring character in the Doctor Who Magazine comic strip, an easy going Agent Mulder, and friend of the Doctor. As far as is known, he has never killed anyone with a silver hammer.
 * The World Eaters: Titanic golems led by an evil god of death or red power-armored super soldiers serving an evil god of war?
 * DC Comics had a Doom Patrol character named Elasti-girl and The Incredibles had a character named Elasti-girl. Even their last names are similar: The Doom Patrol Elastigirl is Rita Farr, and the Incredibles Elastigirl is Helen Parr. Their powers are also similar, though Farr has size-changing as well.
 * When you say "Flash", do you mean The Fastest Man in the World or The Saviour of the Universe (ah-ah!)?
 * Or do you mean the programming language used to put games and annoying interactive ads on the web?
 * Or do you mean a type of non-volatile memory?
 * Or a cleaning agent? (in the UK at least)
 * Dr. Clayton Forrester is the name of the good scientist hero in the 1953 movie version of The War of the Worlds, and the evil scientist villain in TV's Mystery Science Theater 3000. (Yes, the latter was a deliberate Shout Out to the former.)
 * Billy Flynn: Dangerously Genre Savvy defense lawyer or horrifying serial killer?
 * A Vorti gaunt is not a Tyranid organism. Neither is Ibram Gaunt a xeno.
 * Not to mention Lord Voldemort's relatives.
 * Or the real-life Sir John of Gaunt, who was Geoffrey Chaucer's patron.
 * The vortigaunt should also not be confused with Vortigern of Wales.
 * Are The Founders the shape-shifting leaders of the Dominion, or a group of elder Whitelighters (guardian angels)?
 * The God-Emperor, lord of the spice, founder of the Fou Empire or the Imperium of Man?
 * The God Hand is one of two magically empowered arms used to fight the demon king Angra. It could also refer to a group of the most powerful demons.
 * Or Lenny's One-Winged Angel form.
 * "Godhand" is also the nickname of one of the fighters in Square Enix's fighting game Ehrgeiz, and has ever since been the name of a gauntlet-type weapon in practically every Final Fantasy game.
 * It is also a class one of your characters can evolve to in Seiken Densetsu 3.
 * Brian Griffin: Wisecracking talking dog or accidentally murdered English teacher?
 * And if it's the latter, what about his wife Kathy Griffin?
 * Hans Gruber: German terrorist from Die Hard, German schoolteacher-turned-Nazi supersoldier in Jack Staff, or minor villain from Our Man Flint?
 * Tommy Gunn: Rocky's protege, or a gangster in Astro City?
 * Not to be confused with the Tommy Gun.
 * Jack Hammer: Best pal of Deadpool better known as "Weasel", or a victim in the first Phoenix Wright game?
 * Or a fighter on steroids from Baki the Grappler
 * Not to be confused with the actual machine called the "Jackhammer".
 * Or with Goldberg's finisher.
 * Hawkeye: Marvel Universe archer/member of The Avengers? Wisecracking surgeon of the 4077th MASH? Sharpshooter/right hand woman to Roy Mustang? Or protagonist of The Leatherstocking Tales?
 * Henry Hill: Did he always want to be a gangster, or did he, also known as Hank, sell propane and propane accessories?
 * Rick Hunter, L.A. homicide detective or ace veritech fighter pilot?
 * Not in Japan, however; the Macross character's real name is Hikaru Ichijo.
 * Rick Hunter is also the first of three people to portray the Postal Dude.
 * One of the characters in Queer As Folk is called Brian Kinney; that's also the civilian identity of Altar Boy.
 * Lois Lane (a.k.a. "Bianca") of the musical Kiss Me Kate is always true to Bill in her fashion, but she probably isn't Superman's type.
 * You want Doctor Light? Do you mean Arthur, The DCU villain; Kimiyo Hoshi, The DCU heroine; or Thomas Xavier, the creator of Mega Man?
 * You missed one.
 * And Dr. Wright in the SNES version of Sim City, who is named after Will Wright, the founder of the series.
 * Speaking of Lucky Star itself: Moe anime series about otakudom and food, or an early song by Madonna, or a Paper Mario item, or anything else named as such.
 * Oscar Madison--is your roommate your complete opposite? Have you ever been turned into a woman?
 * And speaking of Madonna: A nickname for the virgin mother of mankind's possible savior, or a singer from Michigan who made a titanic career out of Getting Crap Past the Radar?
 * Hugh Mann: Obscure Golden Age space hero, or a trope-naming badly disguised Decapodian spy?
 * Oh look, it's Patricia Martin! Tell me, is she a school girl otaku or a geneticist who ends up getting eaten?
 * Thanks to Mega Man's Robot Master Naming Conventions, several comic book characters share names with Dr. Wily's creations, and by virtue of said convention you can expect their powers to be similar. Ice Man, Aquaman, and Shadow Man (Valiant Comics, it's best not to dwell on it) immediately come to mind.
 * When you say "Flashman" do you want the roguish Brit, the Super Sentai team, or the Robot Master? Note that the DC character(s) that runs really fast is just The Flash, though Funky Flashman is someone else entirely.
 * Hawk Man: Thanagarian hero of The DCU, or French Kinnikuman villain? They also have remarkably similar taste in headgear.
 * There's also Junk Man from Mega Man 7, minor Kinnikuman malcontent Junkman, Jimmy Neutron's Junkman, and Astro City's Junkman.
 * Similarly, Kinnikuman antagonist Springman shouldn't be confused with Mega Man 7's Spring Man.
 * Mask man. A Super Sentai series, or a Korean cartoon?
 * Brock Mason. Ruthless and callous soldier, or dyslexic jock?
 * Mega Man himself is an example. See this page for more details.
 * Does The Master...
 * Have six incarnations?
 * Have six wives?
 * Live under the library?
 * Want to turn everyone into mutants?
 * The last of mankind?
 * Own a talking toaster?
 * Lead a horde of evil magical creatures?
 * The prepubescent hero of the 1986 fantasy film Troll is named Harry Potter. Unlike the more famous Harry Potter he isn't a wizard, although he does wield magic weapons for part of the movie, and he fights a troll.
 * PG Wodehouse's novel Uncle Dynamite includes the dimwitted Police Constable Harold Potter, and also a girl named Hermione.
 * Harold Potter...first victim of Creatures from Another World.
 * The Darkstalkers cartoon, which predated the novels, just happened to also feature a bespectacled preteen wizard named Harry.
 * The antagonist in the wheelchair in Its a Wonderful Life? Henry F. Potter.
 * There's a scene in The Proposition where Charlie Burns briefly uses the alias Charles Murphy. It's also possible that John Hurt's character, Jellon Lamb, was named after a dinner.
 * Navi, helpful but annoying fairy. Navi, extreme graphical interface computer that puts you INTO the web, or the short term of Net-Navi, aka "Internet Navigator", basically an artificial intelligences walking on the Internet. The Na'vi, outgunned but determined space elves.
 * Or a robot parrot who helps find treasure?
 * Nemo: A little boy who finds adventures in his dreams or a little fish who has to be found?
 * And there's Jules Verne's Nemo!
 * Word of God says that Pixar's Nemo is a Shout Out to Verne's Nemo.
 * Thomas Jerome Newton: He doesn't belong on this Earth in both The Man Who Fell to Earth and Fringe
 * Duke Nukem: Eponymous egotistical chauvinistic protagonist, or radiation-powered villain? This bugged the developers of the former enough to consider changing his name to "Duke Nukum" until they found out that the latter's name wasn't trademarked.
 * The Humongous Mecha in the finale of Space Quest III are called Nukem Dukem robots.
 * Photon is either the original version of lasertag (which spawned a TV series), or an anime series, or one of two Marvel Comics characters.
 * Also, it is the name of a form of energy in Dragonball
 * Q: Would that be the Gadgeteer Genius of the James Bond movies or the Sufficiently Advanced Alien on Star Trek the Next Generation? Or a guy with a metallic mask and a trenchcoat from the Street Fighter series? Or the tea-loving British Robot in a Centurion's helmet from Armed and Dangerous?
 * Jaime Reyes, 3rd Blue Beetle or UNATCO doctor?
 * Sam Carter and air force space adventurer, helicopter pilot, or jaded anti-terrorist quarter master?
 * Both Twenty Four and Resident Evil 4 have characters named Ramon Salazar.
 * Greg Sanders (spelled Saunders in recent appearances) is the civilian identity of Vigilante, a founding member of the Seven Soldiers. It is also the name of one of the investigators in CSI.
 * There is a minor character in the novel The Accidental Tourist named Dana Scully. No, this character is not a skeptical FBI agent who investigates the paranormal. In fact, he's a dude.
 * The 1939 book Day of the Locust, and the 1975 film adaptation thereof, feature a character named Homer Simpson. The Simpsons is not a Shout Out, though; Word of God is that Homer Simpson was named after Homer Groening, Matt's father.
 * Snips, is it a nickname for Ahsoka, used by Anakin from Star Wars the Clone Wars cartoon, or one of the bad guys from The Legendary Starfy?
 * Or is it a murderous crab under the employ of the Zookeeper?
 * Or a not-too-bright unicorn with a friend named Snails?
 * A year before the first Star Trek the Original Series episode, Jack Vance's story Star King featured a second-string villain who used the alias Mr. Spock. Not to mention the author of the popular baby care book (who was actually known popularly as "Dr." Spock).
 * "Starlite" is the name of Rainbow Brite's horse. A "Starlyte" is the actual "gun" used in World of Wonder's version of "Lazer Tag" (which was copyrighted with this particular spelling).
 * The sands of time, a curse in a specific Prince of Persia continuity or the landscape when traveling through time in Kamen Rider Den-O? In Kismet, it's just the title of a song based on Borodin's "In the Steppes of Central Asia."
 * Tempest the arcade game, and The Tempest the Shakespeare play. Additionally, Forbidden Planet (which is based upon The Tempest) has monsters from the deeps (of the human psyche), whilst Tempest has monsters from the deeps (of variously-shaped pits).
 * Or Tempest, the arte being used by Lloyd Irving and several other Tales Series characters.
 * Tinstar: A segment on The Schnookums and Meat Funny Cartoon Show or a Super Nintendo game?
 * And there's Tin Star the rock band.
 * PG Wodehouse's famous character Bertie Wooster has an Uncle Tom, but not the racist kind. It's just that his Aunt Dahlia married a man named Tom Travers.
 * While most people know Ultraman as a Japanese robot, Superman had an Evil Counterpart also called Ultraman. This character even preceded the more well-known Ultraman by two years.
 * Either of those two might have been the inspiration for My Secret Identity's Andrew Clements (played Jerry O'Connell) to call himself Ultraman when Dr. Jeffcoate's experiment accidentally gave him superpowers.
 * And all of them were preceded by at least a quarter century by "Gary Concord, the Ultra-Man" a Golden Age hero who first appeared in All-American Comics #8 in 1939.
 * Susan Walker, of Once in A Lifetime and Coupling: two very different young women.
 * And neither of them is the woman who ran Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in Miracle On 34th Street.
 * James Wilson: American Founding Father portrayed as a meek "non-entity" who doesn't want to be remembered, or a doctor who's best friends with House?
 * George Wilson: perpetually exasperated neighbor to Dennis the Menace US or the slightly worrisome car mechanic from The Great Gatsby?
 * Mary Worth: meddlesome US newspaper comics protagonist or ghost?
 * A double cross-media example from within the same franchise. Gary Oak's sister is named Daisy in the Pokémon Red and Blue game, and May in The Electric Tale of Pikachu manga. Unfortunately, the anime has reserved both names for completely unrelated recurring characters. Naturally, bringing Gary's sister into Fan Fiction causes a lot of head scratching unless written quite clearly, as using either name for the poor girl will get her mixed up with someone else either in or closely related to the main cast.
 * For bonus points, in Electric Tale of Pikachu Ash had a crush on May Oak, and shippers will occasionally pair Ash with May from the anime as well. It's like an Abbott and Costello routine just waiting to happen.
 * Kiba Daioh (Great King Fang): The leader of the Kiba Clan from Fist of the North Star? Or the combined form of the Kiba Ranger's giant robot and four other mechas from Gosei Sentai Dairanger?
 * Red Falcon: The evil alien army from the Contra series? Or the Red Ranger from Choujuu Sentai Liveman?
 * The Egg Emperor from the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise. Is it the Final Boss (not counting Metal Overlord) of Sonic Heroes, or the Japanese codename for E-99, the Humongous Mecha Transforming Mecha from Sonic X?
 * Jack  -- protagonist of The Hunt for Red October or Bio Shock? Or both?
 * Itsuki the esper? From the Haruhi Suzumiya series or the Elite Four member in Pokémon Gold and Silver (Will in English)?
 * There's also "Gatekeeper" Itsuki, a demon with the ability to breach through dimensions and control lesser demons from other worlds.
 * And there's Itsuki, the Wholesome Crossdresser Student Council President who will "light the darkness in your heart".
 * The nation of Belka, with its Germanic airs - A homeland of powerful mage-warriors or skilled fighter pilots?
 * Speaking of Belka, there's a small village within it named Arlon, pronounced exactly the same as Arlen, Texas.
 * Jimmy Two-Shoes was also used in a gag on Whose Line Is It Anyway several years earlier.
 * Who is Doctor Evil the Arch Enemy of? Austin Powers, or DC Comics hero Captain Action?
 * The Gorillaz biography Rise of the Ogre makes reference to a preteen Murdoc's run-in with a bully named Tony Chopper, who apparently has no connection to One Piece.
 * Gou Hibiki: Dan Hibiki's father? Or the name of Speed Racer in the Japanese version of Mach GoGoGo '97
 * G-Force. A group of Disney rodents with gizmos or a certain group of science ninjas...
 * Also not to be confused with the unit for measuring an object's graviational pull.
 * And not to be confused with a group dedicated with finding and stopping a certain gigantic green, atomic fire-breathing lizard.
 * Or the fourth game on the horrendus Action 52.
 * Steve Austin: The Six Million Dollar Man or the WWE superstar?
 * The latter actually was named for the former, as one of his nicknames, "The Bionic Redneck", suggest.
 * The Brood are either X-Men villains or a Professional Wrestling stable consisting of Edge, Christian, and Gangrel (and later The Hardys).
 * Also the name for an almost-extinct Dragon Clan.
 * The Beast is an X-Men member, a Fairy Tale character, or Satan.
 * Does anyone want to see a battle between Alucard and Alucard?
 * There is The Sandman, The Sandman, The Sandman, and...The Sandman.
 * You forgot about the Sandman!
 * (The) Thing: a rocky superhero, a disembodied hand, or an extraterrestrial abomination?
 * Blue Falcon: a blue-clad Hanna-Barbera superhero and Dynomutt's companion? The giant mech in Shadow the Hedgehog? Or Captain Falcon's ship? It doesn't help matters that Captain Falcon himself is often mistakenly called "Blue Falcon" and bears a bit of a resemblance to the Hanna-Barbera character.
 * Blood Falcon: Captain Falcon's Evil Counterpart? or the terrorist group in Contra: Shattered Soldier?
 * Andros, Red Ranger, or Andross the one with the brains to rule Lylat?
 * Black Condor: A DC Comics superhero? Or the Black Ranger from Choujin Sentai Jetman?
 * Who owns a parrot named Iago? Is it Bianca Castafiore or Jafar in Disney's Aladdin?
 * The Disney one was named after the villain from Shakespeare's Othello. The Tintin one was named after the villain from Verdi's opera based on Othello. Confused yet?
 * Star Man, not to be confused with Starman, Starman, waiting in the sky, Starman, waiting in a ? block or the Knight family.
 * Or Jeff Bridges.
 * A winner may be you if you pick Star Man in the NES title Pro Wrestling.
 * Both Black Adder and Redwall featured characters named Friar Bellows.
 * Dirk the Daring from Dragons Lair is not to be confused with Dirk Daring, the name change given to Joe Asakura in the G-Force dub of Science Ninja Team Gatchaman.
 * Rerun: Younger brother of Lucy and Linus van Pelt, or friend of Roger and Dwayne on What's Happening!!?
 * Try not to confuse Jim Halpert, a smug and sexy paper salesman with Lt. Jim Halperin, a skeptical hard-ass cop from the past/present/1996.
 * Mike Brady, head of the Brady household or the heroic health inspector?
 * Goemon is the name of a character in Lupin III, and also the name of the protagonist of the Mystical Ninja series.
 * Both are named after the legendary Japanese bandit Ishikawa Goemon though, so it's not a coincidence in this case.
 * Avatar the film, or Avatar: The Last Airbender? To avoid Title Confusion (and possible lawsuits) the film adaptation of the latter dropped the Avatar from the title.
 * James Cameron's Dark Angel (which also had a video game adaptation) vs. Dark Angel: Vampire Apocalypse (a horrible PS 2 game).
 * Not to mention the Dolph Lundgren movie I Come in Peace, also known as Dark Angel.
 * Sugar Ray (Leonard), a boxer, Sugar Ray (Robinson), another boxer, and Sugar Ray the rock band.
 * Ayla of Clan of the Cave Bear and Ayla of Chrono Trigger. The latter is also somewhat of a Shout Out to the former, since both characters are prehistoric women. Ayla (pronounced eye-la, from Turkish) is also an alias of electronica musician Ingo Kunzi (aka DJ Tandu).
 * Balrog can refer to: the demon from The Lord of the Rings, the Flying Fortress in Strider, the final boss of Cadash, the boxer in Street Fighter II (or the Spaniard if you prefer to stick with the Japanese names), the Recurring Boss in Cave Story, Balrog Lune from Saint Seiya and the Balrog in Maple Story.
 * The Scarecrow. DC Comics villain, Marvel Comics villain, brain-lacking Oz resident, alias of the Reverend Doctor Christopher Syn or Syd Barratt song?
 * Jack Wade is both the name of a CIA operative who assists James Bond in Goldeneye and the protagonist of the video game Headhunter.
 * Scar: Treacherous brother of pride leader Mufasa or religiously-motivated serial killer who comes to understand and resent the cycle of revenge?
 * Or murderous Comanche war chief?
 * Or Guardian of the Black Lantern Corps?
 * There's an Iron Man knockoff titled Metal Man, which is the name of a Robot Master from Mega Man 2.
 * Clannad the anime series, and Clannad the band.
 * Talla 2XLC had a song called "Descent 3", which came out about two years before the game of the same name. Weird coincidence.
 * Cheese and The Cheese. Don't get them mixed up. (considering one's basically incompetent and the other's basically omnipotent, this shouldn't be too difficult.)
 * And Cheese the Chao from Sonic the Hedgehog.
 * And the robot C.H.E.E.S.E. from the Show Within a Show "Mac and C.H.E.E.S.E." on Friends.
 * A Candroid is a Robot Me named after Candace Flynn in Phineas and Ferb. Another type of Candroid is a Robot Buddy that transforms from a soda can in Kamen Rider OOO.
 * Kasumi Asou is the name of a gorgeous Phantom Thief in the manga City Hunter, and the name of a gorgeous teacher in the Dating Sim Tokimeki Memorial 2.
 * The Big Bads of Aladdin and Prince of Persia are both viziers named Jafar (the latter's is spelled with two f's), which was also the name of a character in The Arabian Nights, although that one wasn't a villain. All three were actually named after a real Grand Vizier Jafar.
 * There is also an assassin named Jaffar, although that's not really the subject.
 * Zurg from Toy Story, or the Zerg from Starcraft?
 * Chimera was a monster in Greek mythology, the name of an order of cartilaginous fishes, a monster in Resident Evil, and the alien race in Resistance (who actually look rather similar to the RE monsters).
 * Don't forget that Chimeras are also hybrids of animals in Fullmetal Alchemist.
 * Chimaera is also a rock band.
 * And the Ultimate Chimera from Mother 3.
 * Also a recurring boss in Magic Sword and Breath of Fire III, and a Mook in Breath of Fire II.
 * Candy Candy: classic shojo anime, or Axe Cop villain with the power to excrete explosive cars?
 * Harley Quinn is The Joker's young female apprentice, while Harley Quin (originally Quinn) is one of Agatha Christie's (male) detectives, created over sixty years earlier. Both, of course, are a play on the word Harlequin.
 * Bill Williamson is the protagonist of Uwe Boll's Rampage and an outlaw in Red Dead Redemption.
 * The main character of this Chick tract is named John Freeman.
 * Zuko: banished prince of the Fire Nation or dancing and singing John Travolta? Or a mobster who killed Robin's parents? Or maybe a member of a pirate crew?
 * Or maybe a powdered Mexican soft drink?
 * (The) Brain: a Brain In A Jar from Doom Patrol or a brainy mouse from Pinky and The Brain?
 * Or The Smart Guy from Arthur?
 * Or perhaps a certain "weaselly" wrestling manager?
 * Or was he a convict who helped the president of the United States get out of a post-apocalyptic New York?
 * Pippin generally goes barefoot and has some sort of objection to Self Immolation. Is he a hobbit sidekick in a high fantasy tale or the everyman title character of a musical or that big guy?
 * Or Apple's failed attempt to enter the console market?
 * Or Johnny Thunder's female sidkick in Lego's Adventurers line.
 * Shiki: We have Shiki, SHIKI, Shiki, Shiki, the Shiki, and, Shiki(eiki).
 * Don't forget about Shiki!
 * And there's an anime show that's called Shiki.
 * Lumpy is a blob monster, idiotic moose, Chewbacca's son,heffalump, mouse turned- oil tycoon, and many others.
 * Lammy: a schizophrenic lamb, or a guitarist in a band?
 * Or Scorpina's Japanese name.
 * The Avengers: The Marvel Universe super-hero team or the British spy series?
 * This resulted in a Market-Based Title for the 2012 Avengers movie, which is called Avengers Assemble in the British Isles.
 * Captain Stern(n): A character from Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire/Emerald (and he also made an appearance in the anime), or the titular character from a segment from Heavy Metal.
 * Cooper: A soldier who travels to an island, is chased through a jungle and then devoured by an enormous predatory dinosaur, or a soldier who travels to an island, is chased through a jungle and then devoured by an enormous predatory dinosaur. Huh...
 * Kida, a Japansese boy voiced by Mamoru Miyano, or an Atlantean princess voiced by Cree Summer?
 * Roger Smith: Negotiator, or alien? Or is he the "Roger" of Michael Moore's documentary Roger and Me, the Real Life CEO of General Motors?
 * Brother Bear: One of The Berenstain Bears or an animated Disney movie?
 * Jiraishin: a hardboiled detective manga by Tsutomu Takahashi? Or the Humongous Mecha from Sekai Ninja Sen Jiraiya? The kanji used to spell both names are different though.
 * Shin Asuka: Ultraman Dyna? Or the pilot from Gundam Seed Destiny?
 * Bert and Ernie: Two roommates with very different personalities or a taxi driver and a cop?
 * This one is actually lampshaded in the Christmas Special Elmo Saves Christmas, which has a Wonderful Life Plot.
 * And it actually is a Shout Out.
 * Renaldo: A soccer player or Dangeresque's boss.
 * Hatchet: A 1987 Gary Paulsen novel, and a 2006 Slasher Movie movie.
 * One of the segments in the 1932 Anthology Film If I Had a Million has characters named Bullwinkle and Peabody.
 * One villain from The Powerpuff Girls is actually a Monster Clown named Mr. Mime.
 * Mathman is the name of a Show Within a Show on Square One TV parodying Pacman, and also a PC math edutainment game.
 * Oz: a magical land, a Kevin Nash gimmick and a HBO crime series.
 * The book Bringing Down The House became Twenty One in order to avoid Title Confusion with that other film.
 * Red Robin is both a restaurant chain and a superhero identity in Batman currently used by Tim Drake.
 * Stephen Black the lowly servant with a glorious destiny from Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, or Steven Black, the one-shot Wayne Brady character on Thirty Rock. And yes, both of them are black.
 * Hakumen: one of the Six Heroes who fought against the Black Beast, or a nine-tailed fox demon bent on destroying the world one nation at a time for its own enjoyment? (Although the latter is properly known as Hakumen no Mono.)
 * They may have different surnames, but two works share a titular character of Arthur: a Dudley Moore movie about a drunken heir, and a cartoon series about a young aardvark.
 * Muk is either a living mass of sludge or a polar bear.
 * A Soul Gem sure sounds like a powerful item...but tell us, is it one of the Infinity Gems in the Marvel Universe, a device used to capture souls for use in recharging magic items in the The Elder Scrolls universe, or a key magical girl item in the universe Puella Magi Madoka Magica?
 * There's Gary A pet snail belonging to an idiot sponge and Garry a human Antarctic base commander as well as Gerry and Gerry, a pair of hikers from a movie called Gerry.
 * Are the Coneheads cone-headed aliens or cone-headed robots or zombies wearing road cones on their heads?
 * Gibbs: Leroy Jethro, Joshamee, or Jimmy Jr.?
 * CeCe and C.C. One is a 13-year old dancer in a TV Show. The other is the one who has Geass given to a Royal rebel. The latter however, is officially pronounced "C-2".
 * In an episode of Street Fighter II V, Ryu and Ken fight a pair of giant mooks named Sodom and Gomorrah. The anime aired before the former's namesake from Final Fight appeared as a playable character in Street Fighter Alpha.
 * Evolution is a mystery...it could refer to a 2001 film.
 * Or a transforming Pokemon
 * Or a "line in the sand" you didn't want to cross between 2003 and 2005 (although Goldberg and Chris Benoit did just that)
 * Black Cat is an anime and Felicia Hardy from Spider-Man.
 * Kharma is a female member of the WWE. Karma is a female member of the X-Men.
 * The Darkness: Comic book-turned-video game, or a British rock band with a falsetto lead singer ("I Believe In A Thing Called Love")?
 * Zelda: princess who usually needs rescuing from The Legend of Zelda series or an evil hag alien from Terrahawks? Robin Williams named his daughter after the former, as a recent advert for the 3DS shows.
 * How about Sabrina the Teenage Witch's Aunt Zelda?
 * The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter: A 1940 novel by Carson McCullers, or a Reba McEntire song?
 * Nuts and Milk: The eponymous Waddling Heads from an old video game, or two of the three mascot creatures in Yes Pretty Cure 5?
 * Sam the Eagle: Patriotic eagle or patriotic eagle?
 * Animus: Able to send you to the memories of your ancestors or a God in giant robot form.
 * Or the unconscious masculine side of the female psyche, according to Carl Jung?
 * Click the appropriate links for the 2006 Adam Sandler film and the kid's Game Show hosted by Ryan Seacrest.
 * Or a technology series from The BBC.
 * Young Frankenstein is a Mel Brooks' film and a Teen Titans member.
 * Mister America: Justice Society of America member and Hulk Hogan's Charlie Brown From Outta Town identity.
 * Kimba is an anime-styled white lion and the name of the heroes' team from the Whateley Universe.
 * There are two unrelated superheroines with elastic powers named Elastigirl.
 * Grace Holloway is a former jazz singer loyal to the Rapture Family...or maybe she was a short-lived companion of The Doctor.
 * This happens to celestial bodies, of all things, in this case Pandora. One is a dangerous jungle moon with stores of unobtanium being harvested by corrupt corporate executives from earth. The other is a barren wasteland planet resulting from strip mining by competing mega corps. Hilarious coincidence, as these two came out the same year.
 * Wanda is either the fairy who guided Mario through levels when he had a bucket stuck on his head, or the fairy godparent of Timmy Turner.
 * Or a fish...
 * Cosmo can either be a green haired plant girl from Sonic X, a green haired male fairy from Fairly Oddparents or a weird neighbor who borrows food from your fridge.
 * Suzie Wong is a Chinese prostitute from a novel by Richard Mason, and Henry's little sister on Digimon Tamers.
 * Necron: The final boss of Final Fantasy IX or a Warhammer 40000 faction? Meanwhile, Nekron is a DC Comics supervillain.
 * Son Goku: Hero from Dragonball and the Japanese pronounciation of Sun Wukong, the Monkey King.
 * Also, one of the four leads of Saiyuki, which is also based off of Journey to the West.
 * Now, a tailed beast.
 * Billy West: Voice actor and hero of the Bayou.
 * FATHER: Big Bad from Fullmetal Alchemist or the one from Codename Kids Next Door? Or perhaps one of the central characters from Ragtime?
 * Sora: Either the Keybearer, a Chosen Child, or an acrobat.
 * Java is a caveman in both Martin Mystery and in DC Comics' Metamorpho-related titles.
 * Mrs. Cake is either a precognitive spiritualist or co-owner of Sugar Cube Corner.
 * Is Poochie Yoshi's pet dog or an extremely hated cartoon dog voiced by Homer Simpson?
 * John and Dave, the snarky hero and goofy best friend, or John and Dave, the goofy hero and snarky best friend?
 * Princess Celestia from My Little Pony Friendship Is Magic actually shares her name with a popular astronomy software.
 * Elizabeth Halsey is of course the scientist who helps develop the SPARTAN program in Halo and also a minor character in Ayn Rand's Fountainhead.
 * The claymation character Gumby has nothing to do with a certain group of people who wear hankerchiefs on their heads, glasses, gumboots, sport toothbrush mustaches and talk in slow, loud, broken sentences who are fond of the sound of bricks being bashed together and often complain that their brains hurt.
 * Pulstar is either an electronic music piece by Vangelis, or a Neo Geo R Type clone.
 * Sanjūrō Sugata: a student from Nekketsu High School, or the commander-in-chief of Hikari Sentai Maskman?
 * Sector Seven: are they trying to hide the existence of the Transformers, or are they fighting against the forces of the NOL? Or are they just a sector in Midgar destroyed by Shinra?
 * Joey Wheeler: Yugi's blond friend or the fire planeteer?
 * Bellatrix is a Death Eater loyal to Lord Voldemort or an Icelandic girls only rock group
 * Lothar, the black man from Mandrake the Magician and Defenders of the Earth, meet Lothor the Big Bad from Power Rangers Ninja Storm.
 * Is Clu a video game or a computer program gone bad?
 * Bust-A-Move is the name of a Young MC song, the overseas title of Taito's Puzzle Bobble arcade game, and the Japanese title of Enix's Bust-A-Groove rhythm game. Coincidentally, Taito is now owned by Square-Enix.
 * Stephen Stills: Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young guitarist, or Scott Pilgrim's bandmate?
 * Is Morris a moose with a unicorn tail or a midget moose?
 * Or the world's most finicky ginger cat?
 * Team America can either be the team of well-meaning patriots who cause a lot of destruction for America or a team of motorcycle daredevils from the Marvel Universe.
 * Survivor: that massively famous TV show? A certain rock band that's a lot less famous wanted you to think otherwise.
 * Ronin: maybe a comic series set in feudal Japan written by Frank Miller, or a film about secret agents no longer needed after the Cold War, starring Robert De Niro.
 * Kurt Wagner: a loveable blue fuzzy mutant or a crazy cultist and serial killer?
 * Is Elmer a rainbow patchwork elephant or a misfit elephant who's in love with a tiger?
 * Luke is either a blonde guy wielding a sword or a blonde guy wielding a light saber.
 * Nyx: Big Bad of Persona 3, or protagonist of Past Sins?, or a fiery wizard with a living scepter?
 * There are at least 3 separate works titled Tamayura. The one we have here on TV Tropes is the Anime adaptation of a Slice of Life Manga; another is a (heterosexual) Visual Novel about slaying demons from Akabei Soft2; and finally, a Yaoi Visual Novel, unrelated to either of them, from Palmiers. To tell one from the others, the hetero VN has "soul" character for its tama while the yaoi one has "ball".
 * Black Heart: the son of Mephisto, a boss from Battle Garegga, or the moe personification of the PlayStation 3?
 * Devastator: Either a giant robot made up of several smaller ones, or a giant biomechanical being capable of turning into sand. Or perhaps some smaller robot dudes who ride in giant robot suits?
 * Pokey the Pig, one of Adam's few real possessions in I Am The Cheese, and Pokey Minch (whose first name is actually Porky), Ness's pig-like Jerkass of a neighbor in Earthbound who becomes The Dragon and then the Big Bad in Mother 3.
 * Gauron: Klingon warlord who hopes to lead the High Council and makes a deal to restore Worf's family honor, or an unhinged evil mercenary mecha pilot.
 * Here's something interesting: Sakura, Hinata, and Karin.
 * Both Sakuras are fangirls, the first being a competent martial artist and admirer of Ryu, the second a fangirl who grew out of her infatuation with a traitorous Uchiha.
 * The first Hinata is nicknamed the Sunshine Girl of Taiyo High for her cheery disposition. The second is a shy heiress to a powerful clan with a crush on a certain knuckleheaded jinchuuriki.
 * Karin could either be Sakura's wealthy rival or a former subordinate to Orochimaru and current teammate to said traitorous Uchiha.
 * Both Tribeca Prep and Moperville North High School have teams with the unlikely name the Turkeys.
 * Which Asuka are you talking about? Jun's niece and cousin to Jin? Or the Japanese-German pilot of Unit 02 and teammate to Shinji Ikari?
 * Dakota North. Private detective? Or supermodel?
 * Jack and Rose are lovers, father and daughter, mortal enemies, Companions, and Johnny Depp's children (Jack and Lily-Rose).
 * Valentine: Jill? Dick? Isabella? Vincent? Joachim, Keith and Hildegard? Faye? Mai? Eddie? Billy Ray? Calvin, Leo, and Sasha? Esther? Skeeter? Luke and Jan? Beka? Aubrey? or Wiggin?
 * Ironically Jill's father is named Dick in the S.D. Perry novels.
 * Bonkers could easily be a hammer-welding gorilla mini-boss or a cartoon bobcat police officer.
 * Is Luigi an Italian plumber or an Italian car?
 * Is Kabuto a trilobite, Orochimaru's right-hand man or a mean Japanese car?
 * There are two cowboys named Clay that are known for Dishing Out Dirt. One of them does it with martial arts while the other does it with an Excadrill.
 * The name Jackson and the nickname Jax. But who could it be? Sonya's bionic-armed commanding officer, or the recently-promoted president of a biker gang?
 * The White Queen is either a former supervillainess-turned-X-woman or an albinistic ruler of a fantasy world that detests physical violence?
 * Chun-Li: "The Strongest Woman in the World"? or Dragon Shiryu's childhood friend?
 * Is Barney a dinosaur, a caveman, a drunk, a deputy, or just plain awesome?
 * The name Rock. Son to Geese Howard and nephew to Kain? Mega Man's real name? an axe-wielding Englishman looking for his adopted son? Rocky and Ata's son? Ex-salaryman Rokuro Okajima? Alcatraz Prison?
 * Sadako. A girl with psychic powers who was thrown down a well? Or a Hiroshima bomb survivor famous for folding paper cranes before dying of leukemia?
 * Captain Jack could refer to a Crazy Awesome pirate captain, a polysexual time traveler, a ghost cop, or a wily young girl (Captain Jacky) with a love for adventure.
 * Rex. This can refer to a toy dinosaur, a droid pilot of the StarSpeeder, and a captain in the Clone Army. Notable in that the latter two are within the same franchise.
 * Sakuya: Raoh's strategist? or a knife-throwing maid?
 * The Saboteur has an evil British man named Bishop who is voiced by John Noble. On Fringe John Noble plays Dr. Walter Bishop.
 * Rip Van Winkle: one of the tropes on this website? The main character of the story with the Trope Namer? Or a musket mistress from Hellsing?
 * Montana Max is either a greedy, villainous spoiled brat who runs the Acme Corporation or the leader of a batallion of Nazi vampires who survived World War II and want to start a war of their own.
 * Dora, a young girl that teaches young viewers to speak English and Spanish or a centaur fighting against evil?
 * Uhura is a communication officer on a starship or a single mother warrior defending her tribe?
 * Is Jin a man who deeply cares about his wife despite initial appearances or a young girl interested in the new waiter at the tea shop?
 * John Shep(p)ard: he's a military man who fights aliens and has a unique approach to "first contact." But are you thinking of the one in the Navy or the one in the Air Force?
 * Dr. McCoy is improbably well versed in all areas of medical science, biochemistry, and genetics, but does he serve on a starship or at a school for gifted youngsters?
 * Mei Ling: Li Shaoran's cousin?, a Chinese gate-keeper from the Scarlet Mansion?, or a Chinese-American Mission Control girl?
 * Is Nora Walker the mother of a large family or of a single blind, deaf, mute kid?
 * Aqualung could be a song by Jethro Tull or a really nasty water-based magic used by Jenova.
 * Kuai Liang. Adviser to Liu Biao? Or Bi-Han's little brother?
 * Ymir: Besides the mythological character from Norse Mythology, are we talking about The Iron Princess, The Sword of Magus, or a character from Fire Emblem?
 * Sophie: A mysterious girl who is named after a flower, or a space police cadet whose real identity is an android?