Adrenaline Makeover: Difference between revisions

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[[File:~~katara_makeover_6135~~.jpg|link=Avatar: The Last Airbender|frame|Can you see the difference?]]

[[File:katara makeover 6135.jpg|link=Avatar: The Last Airbender|frame|Can you see the difference?]]

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The Adrenaline Makeover candidate is almost always or was [[Beautiful All Along]]. But at the beginning of the story, our heroine is mousy, shy, wearing the bad glasses, the frumpy clothes, etc.

Sometimes she's secretly, unknowingly, the [[Hot Librarian]], or a case of [[She's All Grown Up|late blooming gorgeous]]. Sometimes they're gorgeous but shy, or otherwise mild-mannered because they have to work twice as hard to be [[You Go, Girl!|thought of as half as good in a male-dominated field]]; and being sexy equals not being taken seriously; and [[No Guy Wants an Amazon|being aggressive is considered a negative trait for a female]] ~~-- at~~ least, in this part of the story. Less frequently, she's a teenager going through this, which results in [[I Can't Believe a Guy Like You Would Notice Me]] at some point during the transformation.

Sometimes she's secretly, unknowingly, the [[Hot Librarian]], or a case of [[She's All Grown Up|late blooming gorgeous]]. Sometimes they're gorgeous but shy, or otherwise mild-mannered because they have to work twice as hard to be [[You Go, Girl!|thought of as half as good in a male-dominated field]]; and being sexy equals not being taken seriously; and [[No Guy Wants an Amazon|being aggressive is considered a negative trait for a female]]—at least, in this part of the story. Less frequently, she's a teenager going through this, which results in [[I Can't Believe a Guy Like You Would Notice Me]] at some point during the transformation.

The usual progression of the trope has the character starting out blinded to the world by their academic pursuits. She's in trouble that she needs assistance to get out of, resulting in a hero showing up and helping her through an epic adventure. The adventure distracts her from maintaining her frumpiness; the hero is there to rescue her, to help her de-frump, and to fall in love with her, making her realize as she returns his affections that if she'd just shaken out the hair and dumped the glasses before, she might have gotten a hot hero guy that much sooner.

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This often happens to make [[The Chick]] [[Hot Amazon|more palatable]] to men (and sometimes, [[Real Women Never Wear Dresses|"more exigent" females]]), and to [[Token Romance|add that romantic element]] so that [[Most Writers Are Male|action movies]] can also be [[Most Fanfic Writers Are Girls|date movies]]. The recipient of the Adrenaline Makeover is almost [[Always Female]], though a [[Non-Action Guy]] can occasionally also get a Makeover.

The [[Adrenaline Makeover]] has [[Unfortunate Implications]], as it can be viewed as a contradiction of the [[Be Yourself]] trope. This trope can also be viewed as implying that a woman is not desirable just as she was; she was not worth noticing or the hero's interest until her adventure-triggered transformation took her from plain to pretty.

The '''Adrenaline Makeover''' has [[Unfortunate Implications]], as it can be viewed as a contradiction of the [[Be Yourself]] trope. This trope can also be viewed as implying that a woman is not desirable just as she was; she was not worth noticing or the hero's interest until her adventure-triggered transformation took her from plain to pretty.

Basically [[Fan Service Pack]] as [[Character Development]]. The opposite of [[Chickification]].

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== Films -- Live-Action ==

* Chris in ''[[Adventures in Babysitting]]'' is played from a slightly different angle. She finds out during a night of running from gangbangers and criminals that her boyfriend is cheating on her because she won't put out. She gets everybody safely home, parents none the wiser, and gets a nicer, new, upgraded boyfriend when all is said and ~~done -- all~~ ''without'' changing her look. Then again, she doesn't really ''need'' to change her ~~look -- a~~ running gag/subplot of the film is the [[Identical Stranger]] who is the current Playmate of the Month, for whom she is repeatedly mistaken.

* Chris in ''[[Adventures in Babysitting]]'' is played from a slightly different angle. She finds out during a night of running from gangbangers and criminals that her boyfriend is cheating on her because she won't put out. She gets everybody safely home, parents none the wiser, and gets a nicer, new, upgraded boyfriend when all is said and done—all ''without'' changing her look. Then again, she doesn't really ''need'' to change her look—a running gag/subplot of the film is the [[Identical Stranger]] who is the current Playmate of the Month, for whom she is repeatedly mistaken.

* ''[[Fantastic Four (film)|Fantastic Four]]'': Sue Storm, a.k.a. the Invisible Woman. She was acknowledged as extremely beautiful from the very beginning but she was the "hair in a bun, glasses on the face" science girl. Starting from the moment they get back to earth, she starts wearing the hair down and ditches the glasses. The movie progresses through her reconciling with Reed, and by the end of the movie they're an [[Adventure Duo]] plus two. By the sequel, she's [[Took a Level In Badass|way more skilled with her powers]] and takes no crap, even from Reed.

* The remake of ''[[The Hills Have Eyes]]'', when the nerdy pacifist protagonist shed a few layers of clothing, [[Took a Level In Badass|broke out the weaponry]], and stomped off to avenge his family and cause some serious mutant pain.

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** [[Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom|Willie Scott]] goes from bombshell to frump and back, but remains [[The Scrappy|thoroughly useless]] the entire time.

* ''[[The Mummy Trilogy|The Mummy 1999]]'': Evy is a dressed down [[Hot Librarian]] as the movie begins. She's prim, easily offended, and rather stiff, but brainy. But because she's the object of desire for the [[Card-Carrying Villain]], of course she has to be dressed up properly to be a [[Virgin Sacrifice]] (or the closest thing to it). Along comes Rick, and along the way they fall in love. By the end of the movie, she's completely calm about all the insanity she's encountered, and [[Rescue Romance|madly in love with her rescuer]]. By The Sequel, she's [[Took a Level In Badass|leveled up]], and she and Rick are a [[Battle Couple]], which carries over into the [[Animated Series]]. Not only that, but she is a [[Mama Bear]] as well.

* ''[[Romancing the Stone]]'': Joan Wilder is a mousy, reclusive romance novelist. But when she gets in over her head in Colombia, Jack T. Colton is there to help her ~~out -- for~~ a price. Along the way, after he chops the heels off her shoes and tosses her suitcase full of sensible business suits into the jungle, they ride a mudslide, swing on vines, and do the sort of things she writes about in her novels. By the midpoint of the movie, her hair is down and she's dip-dancing in Jack's arms. By the end of the movie, she's no longer mousy or reclusive. By The Sequel, Joan's backslid a little and [[Mission Pack Sequel|goes through the transformation a second time]].

* ''[[Romancing the Stone]]'': Joan Wilder is a mousy, reclusive romance novelist. But when she gets in over her head in Colombia, Jack T. Colton is there to help her out—for a price. Along the way, after he chops the heels off her shoes and tosses her suitcase full of sensible business suits into the jungle, they ride a mudslide, swing on vines, and do the sort of things she writes about in her novels. By the midpoint of the movie, her hair is down and she's dip-dancing in Jack's arms. By the end of the movie, she's no longer mousy or reclusive. By The Sequel, Joan's backslid a little and [[Mission Pack Sequel|goes through the transformation a second time]].

* ''[[The Saint]]'': Emma is a shy, nervous nuclear physicist who is brilliant enough to have invented Cold Fusion. She meets Simon in one of his aliases, and it's [[Love At First Sight]]. Once she gets over being astonished that a man like him would notice her, she's so worked up she has to take her heart medication before they go to bed. But he betrays her. Incensed, Emma throws off the meek mouse persona and tracks him down. Along the way, they're pursued by the Russian Mafia, and by the end of the movie, she can do a 100 yard dash, and doesn't need her pills anymore.

** In the original ending, she was going to die of heart problems, but test audiences didn't like it.

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* ''[[Tank Girl]]'' has a [[Les Yay]] example. Jet Girl is meek and mousy, and lets the Water and Power mook push her around until she makes friends with Tank Girl. By the end of the movie, Jet has quit stuttering, is telling off people on the radio, and cowing the Reavers when they cross her.

* Lucy in ''[[The Frighteners]]'' starts out as a beleaguered widow, a little frumpy, and a doctor who's not taken seriously by the patients of the male doctor she occasionally replaces. After the events of the movie, she ends up with Frank, the hero, in more ways than one.

* Ellie Sawyer of ''[[My Science Project]]'' starts out as a dowdy, glasses-adorned nerd, eventually losing her hairpins and glasses in the midst of the action. In the end, though, she's still a ~~nerd -- just~~ a more attractive one.

* Ellie Sawyer of ''[[My Science Project]]'' starts out as a dowdy, glasses-adorned nerd, eventually losing her hairpins and glasses in the midst of the action. In the end, though, she's still a nerd—just a more attractive one.

* Over the course of the three films, Elizabeth Swann of ''[[Pirates of the Caribbean]]'' loses the corset, lets her hair down, and gets the upgrade from [[Damsel in Distress]] to [[Action Girl]] ({{spoiler|Captain Swann}}!)({{spoiler|''Pirate King'' Swann}}!), which debatably results in better outfits in the process.

* [[Guy Pearce]] in the remake of [[The Time Machine]].

* Somewhat of an inversion with Annie from ''[[The Invisible]]''. She starts out brutal, violent, and dressed in guys' clothes, no to mention the leader of the school bullies. As she realizes the consequences of her violent life, her bad choices, and the fact that Nick was more like her than she gave him credit for, she ~~feminizes -- beginning~~ to wear her hair down, and her clothing less gender neutral.

* Somewhat of an inversion with Annie from ''[[The Invisible]]''. She starts out brutal, violent, and dressed in guys' clothes, no to mention the leader of the school bullies. As she realizes the consequences of her violent life, her bad choices, and the fact that Nick was more like her than she gave him credit for, she feminizes—beginning to wear her hair down, and her clothing less gender neutral.

* David/Bud in ''[[Pleasantville]]'' starts the film as a shy, downtrodden loner who gets [[Trapped in TV Land|beamed into his favorite wholesome 50s Sitcom]]. Halfway into the story, he's forced to help the town firemen put out a fire (all they did previously was rescue cats from trees), subsequently gets a date [[All Guys Want Cheerleaders|with a cheerleader]], and rescues his mother from a gang of thugs. From that point on, he becomes a strong, competent leader whose insights and bravery eventually bring color and life to the previously sterile black-and-white world he's (temporarily) living in.

* ''[[Mystery Science Theater 3000]]'' alumnus ''Alien from L.A.'' is built on this trope, as applied to Kathy "[[Dull Surprise]]" Ireland's adventures [[Beneath the Earth]] in search of her [[Disappeared Dad]].