Faceless Goons: Difference between revisions

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You'll never see any faceless goon [[Pet the Dog]], but you ''will'' see them [[Kick the Dog|kick]] plenty of them.

The reasons for this trope are largely matters of convenience. Most obviously, the faceless goon does not display emotion; hence, he does not display humanity. It's much easier to accept characters as evil (and by extension, [[Rule of Empathy|feel no tug of sympathy]] as wave after wave of them get wiped out by the heroes) if you are able to [[What Measure Is a Mook|forget that there's actually a human being]] behind each mask. Not showing any pesky emotions to undercut their menace also adds quite a bit to the creepiness factor.

The reasons for this trope are largely matters of convenience. Most obviously, the faceless goon does not display emotion; hence, he does not display humanity. It's much easier to accept characters as evil (and by extension, [[Rule of Empathy|feel no tug of sympathy]] as wave after wave of them get wiped out by the heroes) if you are able to [[What Measure Is a Mook?|forget that there's actually a human being]] behind each mask. Not showing any pesky emotions to undercut their menace also adds quite a bit to the creepiness factor.

There's also the fact that it's easier on a show's budget, as the director can keep reusing the same ten extras without the audience catching on quickly. It's also helpful in animation, because you only need to design one character (or render one model in the case of video games) and one [[Merchandise Driven|action figure]]. Plus, it makes it more convenient for the hero should he ever need to [[Dressing As the Enemy|hide amongst the goons]]...

There's also the fact that it's easier on a show's budget, as the director can keep reusing the same ten extras without the audience catching on quickly. It's also helpful in animation, because you only need to design one character (or render one model in the case of video games) and one [[Merchandise-Driven|action figure]]. Plus, it makes it more convenient for the hero should he ever need to [[Dressing As the Enemy|hide amongst the goons]]...

If even hurting [[Faceless Goons]] seems a bit extreme, you'll get [[Mecha Mooks]] instead who are beaten till they show [[Bloodless Carnage|broken gears and sparks]]. This can also serve as a justification for why the [[Big Bad]] has so many identical soldiers running around.

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Not to be confused with [[Faceless Masses]], [[Faceless Eye]] or [[The Blank]].

== Anime and Manga ==

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* The Soviet/South Yemeni/North Korean/any other communist nationality enemy pilots from ''Top Gun''.

** [[Reds With Rockets|Soviet pilots in general]]. Usually have (inaccurately) a red star on their helmets.

* In the audio commentary on the ''[[Lord of the Rings]]'' films, [[Peter Jackson]] and company mention that they made the human allies of Sauron, the Haradrim, into [[Faceless Goons]] in ninja-wrap-turbans to [[What Measure Is a Non Human|de-emphasise their humanity]], something they didn't have to do with the [[Always Chaotic Evil|slavering, monstrous Orcs]] that make up the usual mookdom. They also subverted this in the extended edition, when Faramir looks at the body of a fallen Haradrim (with his young, handsome face exposed) and comments on what circumstances would have led him from his home and family to die violently in a foreign country. In the book, this was an internal musing by Sam.

* In the audio commentary on the ''[[Lord of the Rings]]'' films, [[Peter Jackson]] and company mention that they made the human allies of Sauron, the Haradrim, into [[Faceless Goons]] in ninja-wrap-turbans to [[What Measure Is a Non-Human?|de-emphasise their humanity]], something they didn't have to do with the [[Always Chaotic Evil|slavering, monstrous Orcs]] that make up the usual mookdom. They also subverted this in the extended edition, when Faramir looks at the body of a fallen Haradrim (with his young, handsome face exposed) and comments on what circumstances would have led him from his home and family to die violently in a foreign country. In the book, this was an internal musing by Sam.

** Although, ironically, in the book the dead guy's laying face-down.

** Saruman's Uruk-Hai also fit the trope with their identical, face-concealing helmets. In their case the point was probably the intimidation factor of several thousand identical goons, along with saving some time for the special effects people, as they didn't have to craft unique masks for every actor.

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** In Tennant's final episode the billionaire antagonist had an army of goons at his disposal, all wearing face-concealing black visors. {{spoiler|When The Master had assimilated the entire human race into copies of himself he failed to notice the one faceless guard who was a few inches too tall (who wasn't assimilated because he wasn't human).}}

** Any alien race made up of [[Rubber Forehead Aliens]] will, due to budget, employ Faceless Goons. Examples include the Sontarans, the newer Silurians, the Judoon and the Sycorax.

* Most Federation soldiers in ''[[~~Blakes~~ Seven (TV)|Blakes Seven]]'', although there's a deliberate subversion in one episode when a trooper removes his helmet.

* Most Federation soldiers in ''[[Blake's Seven (TV)|Blakes Seven]]'', although there's a deliberate subversion in one episode when a trooper removes his helmet.

* Lannister uniforms in [[Game of Thrones]] include helmets with somewhat impractical folding visors that cover the wearer's face. Seen [http://images5.fanpop.com/image/photos/29400000/Cersei-and-Lannister-soldiers-cersei-lannister-29431415-570-300.jpg here]. This is in marked contrast to the books, where there is no standard uniform for any of the factions beyond a garment bearing some version of your Lord's insignia.

** Greyjoy soldiers also cover their faces with wraps underneath their enormous Wehrmacht cast-off helmets.

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* The Nod soldiers in ''[[Command and Conquer]]: Tiberian Sun'' and more egregiously in ''[[Command and Conquer]]: Renegade''.

** In ''Tiberium Wars'', a great amount of mooks on both sides are wearing some form face concealment; the only exceptions are the GDI Sniper, Nod Fanatics, and Nod Commando.

*** In that game, however, this is a fully [[Justified Trope]], as the infectious [[Green Rocks|Tiberium]] will crystallize you from the inside out with a minimum of exposure. The fact that these units ''aren't'' [[Does This Remind You of Anything|using protection]] [[Fridge Logic|is very strange.]]

*** In that game, however, this is a fully [[Justified Trope]], as the infectious [[Green Rocks|Tiberium]] will crystallize you from the inside out with a minimum of exposure. The fact that these units ''aren't'' [[Does This Remind You of Anything?|using protection]] [[Fridge Logic|is very strange.]]

* In the ''[[Super Robot Wars]]'' series, both the various [[Mooks]] and the [[Redshirt Army]] wear helmets or headgear which obscure their eyes. Taken to extreme levels with the [[Martian Successor Nadesico|Martian Successors]], which have neither but still obscure their eyes thanks to... huh... their eyebrows' shadow?

* The ski-masked mercenaries in the employ of Horne and Vlad from the ''[[Max Payne (Video Game)|Max Payne]]'' series certainly fit the pattern.

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* The Sith troopers in ''[[Knights of the Old Republic]]'' wear inordinately shiny suits of armor. {{spoiler|This is used to the player's advantage in order to gain access to Taris' Lower city early in the game.}}

* [[Xtreme Kool Letterz|Krimzon Guard]] in ''[[Jak and Daxter|Jak II]]'' wear masks that hide most of their faces, although you can still see tattoos in a couple of places. Of the three no-mask Guard, two are rebels/rebel sympathizers, and the last is Baron Praxis's [[The Dragon|Dragon]].

* ''[[Mother 3 (Video Game)|Mother 3]]'' plays this straight with the Pigmask Army, which is [[Exactly What It Says On the Tin]]: they wear grotesque piglike masks of varying colors, even complete with grating squeals. Subverted, however, when Lucas and co meet a soldier without his mask in one of the Magypsy's homes, for a [[What Measure Is a Mook|rather emotional effect]].

* ''[[Mother 3 (Video Game)|Mother 3]]'' plays this straight with the Pigmask Army, which is [[Exactly What It Says On the Tin]]: they wear grotesque piglike masks of varying colors, even complete with grating squeals. Subverted, however, when Lucas and co meet a soldier without his mask in one of the Magypsy's homes, for a [[What Measure Is a Mook?|rather emotional effect]].

* The three major gangs that Cole encounters during the course of events in ''[[In Famous (Video Game)|In Famous]]'' - the Dustmen, the Reapers, and the First Sons, wear trashbag masks, skull masks, and gas masks, respectively. Most other helpful NPCs are named and (sort of) unique.

* Played with in a heartbreaking manner in ''[[Deus Ex (Video Game)|Deus Ex]]''. During his visit to Paris, J.C. meets a French couple who are complaining about the martial law and the MJ12 presence. The distraught woman then starts crying, saying that their son joined the MJ12. She gives a description of her son and begs J.C. to spare him but then pauses and says "But they all look the same in those uniforms".

* [[Evil Army|BlackWatch]] from ''[[Prototype (Video Game)|Prototype]]'' wear [[Gas Mask Mooks|gas masks]] and night vision goggles in order to make them look like inhuman killers. The Marines wear slightly less inhuman-looking balaclavas.

* Imp-type enemies in ''[[Okami]]'', which more accurately resemble monkeys, cover their faces with paper slips, with a kanji drawn on them as identification. Later on, as Amaterasu infiltrates their stronghold, she puts on the [[Paper Thin Disguise|impenetrable disguise]] of... a [[Incredibly Lame Pun|sheet of paper]] with whatever the player wants to draw on it.

* Imp-type enemies in ''[[Okami]]'', which more accurately resemble monkeys, cover their faces with paper slips, with a kanji drawn on them as identification. Later on, as Amaterasu infiltrates their stronghold, she puts on the [[Paper-Thin Disguise|impenetrable disguise]] of... a [[Incredibly Lame Pun|sheet of paper]] with whatever the player wants to draw on it.

* For some reason, almost ''every single'' Russian soldier in ''[[Battlefield Bad Company (Video Game)|Battlefield: Bad Company 2]]'''s singleplayer campaign wears either a mask and goggles or a black balaclava, completely obscuring their faces. The only exceptions are the officers, who wear only a bright red beret, and some of the [[Elite Mooks]] near the end of the game. Strangely, though, the South American militiamen don't seem to follow the same rule.

* Inverted in ''[[Halo]]'', in which the player character is a [[Super Soldier]] with a face-covering visor, which the [[Redshirt Army]] lacks. As for the Covenant soldiers, well, [[Ditto Aliens|they all look identical anyway]].

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* The majority of mercenaries you fight in ''[[Mass Effect]]'' are wearing helmets. Only a few will have visible faces.

** [[Brainwashed and Crazy|Cerberus Commandos]], in ''[[Mass Effect 3 (Video Game)|Mass Effect 3]]''. They basically look like [[Star Wars|Stormtroopers]], if their armor was more futuristic and realistic looking. {{spoiler|There's also a good reason for them to be faceless; it hides the Reaper implants Cerberus gave them.}}

* Because they need helmets to survive in the Schwarzwelt, ''everyone'' in the Strike Team in ''[[Shin Megami Tensei (Franchise)|Shin Megami Tensei]]: [[Strange Journey]]'', whether they have names or not, winds up a faceless goon. Even [[Hello Insert Name Here|you]]. This is thanks to the [[Powered Armor|Demonica]]'s head-concealing helmet, which doesn't even have eye-sockets -- its "eyes" are actually optical sensors that project an image inside the helmet. Only plot-important characters ever raise the helmet's faceplate to let the player see their faces.

* Because they need helmets to survive in the Schwarzwelt, ''everyone'' in the Strike Team in ''[[Shin Megami Tensei (Franchise)|Shin Megami Tensei]]: [[Strange Journey]]'', whether they have names or not, winds up a faceless goon. Even [[Hello, Insert Name Here|you]]. This is thanks to the [[Powered Armor|Demonica]]'s head-concealing helmet, which doesn't even have eye-sockets -- its "eyes" are actually optical sensors that project an image inside the helmet. Only plot-important characters ever raise the helmet's faceplate to let the player see their faces.

** While the Strike Team is majorly heroic, the nameless, black-clad {{spoiler|and villainous Jack Squad members}} also wear their faceplates down, making them more apt representatives of the trope.

** Ironically, the Doppelganger demon looks ''just like you'', and doesn't wear a helmet because it doesn't need one. The "Demonica-N," "Demonica-C," and "Demonica-L" demons, on the other hand, are meant to reflect what Strike Team humans look like, so they get helmets to complete the illusion.

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Henchman 24: You just made your unavoidable death more pathetic.<br />

Henchman 21: (pause) Fuck it. (begins walking across a laser tripwired floor) Nothing's gonna happen to me. }}

* Played straight for most of ''[[The Incredibles]]'', then played with in one scene: Dash punches one mook's mask off, then pauses upon seeing his face (or maybe he paused because he saw the hovercraft was flying towards a cliff). This pause gives the mook time to punch Dash off the hovercraft, after which he [[Family Unfriendly Death|dies in a fiery explosion]] about a half second later.

* Played straight for most of ''[[The Incredibles]]'', then played with in one scene: Dash punches one mook's mask off, then pauses upon seeing his face (or maybe he paused because he saw the hovercraft was flying towards a cliff). This pause gives the mook time to punch Dash off the hovercraft, after which he [[Family-Unfriendly Death|dies in a fiery explosion]] about a half second later.

* Subverted in the original MTV animated ''[[Aeon Flux]]'' shorts, which would rapidly flip from showing the heroine gunning down the minions... to tragic sequences showing the suffering of those very same dying minions after the heroine has left. Typically they'd unmask at the start of these sequences, or the normally opaque eyelets in their masks would be transparent to show their feelings. In a later episode, the hero would be killed by a minion... who then unmasks, becomes the new hero, guns down minions, gets killed by a minion who becomes the new hero... etc.

* In a rare heroic example, the [[Redshirt Army]] in the science-fiction series ''[[Shadow Raiders]]'' all wear masks. The [[In Universe]] explanation is that the masks serve as both combat armor and environmental gear. The actual explanation is that animating faces costs a lot of money. The bad guy army are all [[Mecha Mooks]] with identical faces.

** Occasionally masked police or security guards show up to act as [[Red Shirts]].

* Another [[Gray and Black Morality|"Heroic"]] example comes from ''[[Generator Rex]]'' with the Providence grunts. Even more rare, several of them are shown without their masks, with personalities, backstories, and individual motives. Which makes it even worse that they are still considered to be expendable. Then again, Providence considers just about ''everyone'' expendable.

* Endemic in ''[[Iron Man Armored Adventures]]''. As well as A.I.M., the Mandarin's [[The Triads and The Tongs|Tong]] all wear [[Highly Visible Ninja]] outfits and the [[The Family for The Whole Family|Maggia]] (apart from [[Elite Mooks]] like Killer Shrike) wear identical suits and blank white masks.

* Endemic in ''[[Iron Man Armored Adventures]]''. As well as A.I.M., the Mandarin's [[The Triads and The Tongs|Tong]] all wear [[Highly-Visible Ninja]] outfits and the [[The Family for The Whole Family|Maggia]] (apart from [[Elite Mooks]] like Killer Shrike) wear identical suits and blank white masks.

* ''[[Transformers Prime]]'' has the Vehicons, who's only distinguishing facial feature is their V-shaped visor. They come in car and jet flavors. The only difference between the variants is [[Kibbles and Bits|type of kibble.]]

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[[Category:Villains]]

[[Category:Faceless Goons]]

[[Category:Trope]]

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