Expecting Someone Taller: Difference between revisions

'''Anakin:''' General Grievous. You're ''shorter'' than I expected.|''[[Revenge of the Sith]]''}}

* [[Patalliro]] had this effect on Bancoran when they first met, since the photo Bancoran was given to identify the prince had been touched up to make him look more like a [[Bishounen]] and less like the [[Chibi]] he actually is.

* In ''[[Inazuma Eleven]]'', Fubuki has quite a reputation as a talented athlete, so everybody expected him to be a tall and strong guy. Much to their surprise, he turns out to be the average-sized teen [[Actually, I Am Him|they ran into earlier]]. Apparently, he gets that a lot.

* ''[[Fairy Tail|Fairy Tail's]]'' {{spoiler|[[Sealed Evil in a Can|Zeref]]}} looks a lot younger and [[Bishonen|prettier]] than one would have first assumed. His [[Woobie, Destroyer of Worlds|disposition]] does not help.

* Used frequently in [[Ghost Hunt]], when people are surprised that Naru is president of SPR at only 17. This is later subverted when they attempt to disguise Naru's identity; Yasuhara (who is really a year or so older) poses as the president, and the client comments, "Yes, I heard you were very young."

* Rorschach from ''[[Watchmen (comics)|Watchmen]]'': super strong, intelligent, horrifying scourge of the underworld; also rather short, homely, red-haired and freckled. When he's caught by the police they discover he wears lifts.

* The scene where Mmy met Nny in ''[[Johnny the Homicidal Maniac]]'':

'''Jimmy:''' Like I said, I only saw you in the dark, but still, I thought you'd be paler than you are. And you're shorter. I always thought you'd be a bit taller than-- }}

* [[Incredible Hulk|The Hulk's]] son, Skaar, said this when he first met his father on Earth.

== Fan Works ==

* ''[http://www.spike.com/video/star-wars-episode/2663936 Star Wars Episode III: A Lost Hope]''. ...

'''Darth Vader:''' ... Touché! }}

* In the ''[[Jackie Chan Adventures]]'' fanfic ''[[Queen of All Oni]]'', this is General Ozeki's reaction to meeting Jackie.

== Films -- Animated ==

* In ''[[Shrek]]'':

'''Fiona:''' Actually, yes! }}

* ''[[Star Wars]]'' series:

** General Grievous and Anakin Skywalker use this as a back-and-forth insult.

'''General Grievous:''' ... Jedi slime! }}

** Luke Skywalker was somewhat surprised on meeting the great Jedi master Yoda, although that's more "I thought you'd be less senile and less likely to steal my lunch."

* In the movie ''[[Willow]]'', the group first encounters Finn Raziel, one of the world's most powerful witches, [[Baleful Polymorph|after she's been transformed into a possum]] by the [[Big Bad]]. The two Brownies name a whole bunch of things they were expecting instead, with taller being just one of them.

* In [[The Film of the Book]] ''[[The Chronicles of Narnia|Prince Caspian]]'', Reepicheep plays the trope for laughs when he and his fellow mice open a door to admit Trumpkin the dwarf into a room of the castle.

'''Reepicheep:''' What is that, irony? }}

** Also played by Prince Caspian when meeting the Pevensies, thinking they'd be older.

* ''[[Braveheart]]'': William Wallace has to deal with this.

'''William Wallace''': Yes, I've heard. Kills men by the hundreds. And if ''he'' were here, he'd consume the English with fireballs from his eyes, and bolts of lightning from his arse. }}

:: In a fairness, the real Wallace was 6'3"-6'9" and 250-400lbs. Given the time period this is not just unusually tall, but spectacularly so.

* ''[[Collateral]]'': Played straight; When Max, posing as hitman Vincent, meets Vincents "client" Felix for the first time, the latter one plays greets him with the words "I thought you'd be taller". Then again, he'd probably say the same thing to Vincent (played by [[Tom Cruise]]), but still.

* ''[[A Few Good Men]]'': A variation is inverted and then played straight. Earlier in the film, Kaffee makes fun of Downey's aunt Ginny (as Downey is from somewhere rural and is not that bright, Kaffee assumes Aunt Ginny is some kind of hillbilly). When the trial begins, he finally meets Aunt Ginny and is surprised to find she's an attractive, intelligent woman who isn't all that impressed with ''him''.

'''Aunt Ginny:''' So was I. }}

* ''The Alamo'': After the [[Final Battle]] of the 2004 version, when David Crockett has been captured and is offered the chance to beg for his life before General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna.

'''Crockett:''' ... I thought you'd be taller. }}

* ''[[Hook]]'': Done retrospectively, and with inverted hero-villain relation:

'''Hook:''' To a ten-year-old, I'm huge. }}

* ''[[The Gamers]]'': "Make way for the bandit king! all hail the [[Mister Big|Bandit King]]! Hail! Hail!"

* In ''[[Captain America: The First Avenger]]'', during [[Stan Lee]]'s cameo, he says this exact phrase. Also when Steve shows up for the supersoldier experiment, everyone in the room ''stops dead in their tracks'' and falls silent.

** Inverted when Bucky sees Steve for the first time since he shipped out

* In the ''[[Eragon (film)|Eragon]]'' movie, two characters, upon meeting Eragon, say, "I was expecting someone more...well, more."

* ''[[Kung Fu Hustle]]''. [[Names to Run Away From Really Fast|The Beast]] is a legendary killing machine, locked away in an asylum. When Sing is sent to retrieve him, he's a little surprised to see a balding old man, in flip flops.

* In the [[Barbara Hambly]] book ''[[Literature/Dragonsbane|Dragonsbane]]'', this is a major component of the surprise that Gareth feels at his first encounter with the titular dragon-slayer, John Aversin -- although he is too well-bred to comment.

* ''[[Tortall Universe]]'': In the later quartets, practically everyone has heard of Alanna the Lioness, King's Champion, and her adventurous exploits. Then they find out she's a lot shorter than even most of the other women she works with. No less [[Action Girl|badass]] for it, but it makes for some awkward introductions.

* [[Mary Renault]]'s historical novels about the Greek hero Theseus pull this trope ''on the readers'', subverting the expectation that Theseus "should" be a towering muscleman with her short, yet quick and agile protagonist. Nicely justified in the author's notes, which point out that a small man would've had far more reason to develop clever fighting tricks, as Theseus is said to have done, than a [[Big Guy]] who can win by brute force.

* In the [[Isaac Asimov]] novel ''[[The Robots of Dawn]]'', we learn that the story of the previous investigation of the hero, Elijah Baley, was made into a "hyperwave drama". Consequently, everybody who he meets Baley tells him that he doesn't look like the actor playing him (who was younger and more handsome).

== Live-Action TV ==

* Subverted in ''[[Ashes to Ashes]]'':

"I'm bigger in every department." }}

* Senator Vreenak in the ''[[Star Trek: Deep Space Nine]]'' episode "In The Pale Moonlight", when he meets Sisko.

'''Vreenak:''' [[Deadpan Snarker|To be honest, my opinion of Starfleet officers is so low, you'd have to work very hard indeed to disappoint me.]] }}

* An episode of ''[[Star Trek: Voyager]]'' called "Live Fast and Prosper" featured a group of aliens who were masquerading as members of the ''Voyager'' crew. Janeway got this line from the woman, Dala, who was impersonating her:

'''Janeway:''' I'm not a liar and a thief. }}

* In ''[[Angel]]'', Illyria reacted along these lines to meeting her priest, Knox:

'''Illyria:''' ''(dismissively)'' My last Qwa'ha Xahn was taller. }}

* ''[[Buffy the Vampire Slayer]]''

** The first time Buffy met Angel (as opposed to the first time he ''[[Retcon|saw]]'' her), he tells her "I thought you'd be taller." -- Lampshading the fact that Buffy was played by a different actress in the movie.

** A indirect version is used in the episode ''Prophecy Girl'', when Jenny remarks:

** Xander says this about Count Dracula.

* ''[[Stargate SG-1]]''

** Series opening:

'''Carter:''' ''She'' is transferring from the Pentagon. ''(enters the briefing room)'' I take you're Colonel O'Neill. Captain Samantha Carter reporting, sir! }}

** Later, when teenage-clone O'Neill meets adult original O'Neill, he comments "Wow. I'm taller than I thought."

* ''[[Power Rangers RPM]]'': Doctor K's reaction to her Ranger's reaction to her [[Samus Is a Girl]] reveal.

* Averted in ''[[The X-Files]]'' when Reyes meets Mulder properly for the first time (he was somewhat dead the first time she saw him).

'''Reyes:''' I was there when they found you in the woods. You were... Uh... Yeah. I'm not surprised you don't remember. }}

* General Beckman from ''[[Chuck]]'', played by the diminutive Bonita Friedericy. For a while she only appears on video conferences with the heroes, and the first time she shows up in person, Chuck blurts out, "Wow, Beckman is tiny!"

* In ''[[Father Ted]]'' when Dougal is reminded of once meeting The Pope,He brushes it off as unimportant.Ted reminds Him that the Pope is God's representative on Earth to which Dougal replies "You think He'd be Taller"

* [[Sherlock]]: When the titular character, newly famous, meets an employee of the British government:

'''Sherlock''': Take the precaution of a [[Memetic Outfit|good coat]] and a [[The Watson|short friend]]. }}

* Inverted with Canadian TV game show host Jim Perry. He was 6'4", and the set of the game show Definition had a hole for him to stand in, so he wouldn't look so much taller than the contestants.

* Goto in ''[[Knights of the Old Republic]] II'' delivers the "I was expecting someone taller" line when he first meets the Jedi Exile.

* Usually played straight in the ''[[Spyro the Dragon]]'' series... but with an inversion/subversion/lampshading in ''A Hero's Tail'':

'''Spyro:''' ... Huh? Normally people I fight say I'm smaller than they expected. You know -- trying to psyche me out. }}

* In ''[[Dawn of War]]'': One line of Imperial Guard chatter that can trigger when they spot an Eldar unit: "Those are Eldar? I thought they'd be taller."

** Random dialogue from a Commoner Dwarf in the original game includes a line that she thought humans/a Grey Warden (you) would be taller. Her image of it must be rather skewed....

** In ''Dragon Age: Awakening'', an imported Warden can get this reaction from Nathaniel Howe when you first encounter him in a prison cell.

* ''[[Star Wars Rebel Assault]] II'', after [[Dressing as the Enemy]]:

'''Ru Murleen:''' Shut up. }}

* [[World of Warcraft]] contains a quest which requires you to take an orphan to [[The High Queen]] of [[Our Dragons Are Different|the dragons]]. Despite her being [[Large and In Charge|about twice as big as the average player]], he still comments that he expected her to be somewhat bigger.

* ''[[Adventure Quest Worlds]]'' uses this trope and lampshades it at the same time in {{spoiler|the conclusion of the Vordred storyline, where upon meeting Artix he remarks. 'I always thought you'd be taller...and have a deeper voice.' To which Artix responds 'Yeah I get that a lot.'.}}

* The bonus boss of ''[[Touhou]] 13: Ten Desires'' is the youkai's trump card against {{spoiler|the resurrected saint}} who served as the [[Final Boss]]. The four heroines of the game expected youkai such as the [[Kaiju|giant]] [[Dem Bones|skeleton]] known as a Gashadokuro. Instead, they got Mamizou, {{spoiler|a [[Tanuki]]}}. Granted, she's one of the strongest examples of her species and is as powerful as one would expect from a [[Bonus Boss]], but well, as [[Deadpan Snarker|Marisa]] put it...

'''Marisa:''' Sure, but you're still a {{spoiler|tanuki}}, right? The kind that {{spoiler|[[Let's Mock the Monsters|drums on their bellies on the night of the full moon]]}}, right? }}

* Conker's Bad Fur Day

'''Gregg:''' Well, how many Grim Reapers have you met before, mate? What am I supposed to look like? }}

* In the ''[[Suikoden]]'' games, this comes up a couple of times. In the first game, some early townspeople will share rumors that Odessa, the leader of [[La Résistance]], is some kind of nine-feet-tall ogre. ''While Odessa is right there in your party, and completely unnoticed by the townspeople.'' In the second game, Hoi's impersonating you, but his disguise falls flat when his "True Rune" (actually a bit of body painting) starts to dissolve. Cue one of the villagers admitting that Hoi's actually a little ''small'' to be the leader of the anti-Highwind forces. Now consider that Hoi isn't just ''larger'' than you, he's pretty hefty. (And that they mistook you for his accomplice...) No way are they going to realize that the genuine article is the genuine article.

* ''[[Terraria]]'':

== Web Comics ==

== Western Animation ==

* Aang, from ''[[Avatar: The Last Airbender]]''. Supposedly a 112-year-old master of all elements. He's really a 12-year-old kid who likes penguin sledding. This is commented on by Zuko the first time they come face to face:

'''Aang:''' Well, you're just a teenager! }}

* In ''[[Gummi Bears]],'' when Cubbi became the superhero the Crimson Avenger, the rumors get so out of hand that he is thought to be a tall human. This helps keep the existence of the Gummi Bears secret.

* In ''[[Wakfu]]'' season 2 episode 6, a trio of Sadida children comments that they were expecting someone taller about {{spoiler|the red-headed warrior -- i.e. the resurrected Sadlygrove}}.

* A ''[[Family Guy]]'' [[Cutaway Gag]] depicts the second coming of Jesus, who recognizes this trope.

* In a ''[[Winnie the Pooh]]'' Christmas special, Pooh fears he has made it impossible for the letter he and his friends wrote for Santa Claus to reach him, so he disguises himself as Santa in an attempt to rectify his mistake and get his friends the presents they wished for. Unlike Santa, Pooh isn't very stealthy, Tigger, Rabbit and Eeyore each notice him coming into their houses and each comment on how they thought Santa would be taller. Of course, this is Justified as Pooh is obviously not the real Santa and, being a teddy bear, can't be more than a foot or so tall.

* [[Re Boot]]: Rare villainous example in Season 4's Supervirus [[Big Bad|Daemon]]. Given what [[One-Winged Angel|Supervirus]] [[Attack of the 50-Foot Whatever|Gigabyte]] looked like and that Daemon was even MORE powerful, few were expecting a [[Affably Evil|sweet]], [[Light Is Not Good|shiny]], [[Bright Is Not Good|brightly-colored]] [[Joan of Arc]] [[Expy]].

'''Daemon''': (gently) Yes. Did you expect something else?<br />

'''Mike''': Oh, actually... yes. I mean, where are the [[Femme Fatalons|talons]] and the [[Fangs Are Evil|teeth]] and the [[Spikes of Villainy|spiky things]]? You're a little small for a supervirus, aren't you? }}