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Line 2: [[File:notaliens.gif\|link=El Goonish Shive\|frame\|[[Hugh Mann\|Mr. Verres's "ingenious methods to cover up the presence of aliens"]]]] {{quote\|''"You know, you got all these people with beautiful, beautiful blonde hair and stuff. And then there's this sort of hunched over, greasy guy with black hair. It's like, "Would it be...him?"''~~\|'''Karl Urban''', actor of Eomer on Wormtongue}}~~ \|'''Karl Urban''', actor of Eomer on Wormtongue}} A character is put into a position (for [[The Mole\|whatever]] [[In Another Man's Shoes\|reason]]) where they must impersonate someone or pretend to be a member of a particular group. The character, instead of simply acting like an X, attempts to do this by constantly announcing they are an X, that they're doing things because that's what an X does, and [[Suspiciously Specific Denial\|there is not the slightest chance that they could ever not be an X]]. Did they mention they're an X? This sort of behavior almost always indicates that the [[Rule of Funny]] is in full effect, so its effectiveness as a disguise depends on whether it would be funnier for the impostor to get caught. If it's funnier for everyone around him [[Idiot Ball\|to completely fail to see through the ruse]] ~~-- even~~—even though the impersonate-ee is someone they've known for ~~years -- then~~years—then that's what's going to happen. Compare [[Paper-Thin Disguise]], [[Master of Delusion]], [[Clark Kenting]], [[Blatant Lies]], [[Hugh Mann]], and [[Have I Mentioned I Am Heterosexual Today?]] If a zombie were to say they aren't a zombie, well then it would [[Not a Zombie\|not be a zombie]], now would it? Kind of a subtrope of [[Bad Bad Acting]], although it isn't deliberate. Tends to fuse with [[Suspiciously Specific Denial]]. Often happens during a case of [[Impersonating the Evil Twin]]. Contrast with [[Have I Mentioned I Am a Dwarf Today?]] Named for a recurring line in the ''[[Yu-Gi-Oh!: The ~~Abridged Series\|Yu-Gi-Oh the~~ Abridged Series]]'' spinoff ''Cr@psule Monsters''; "My name is Dr. Alex Brisbane. I'm definitely not a villain." If you're looking for a similarly named ~~webcomic~~web comic (which is not an example of this trope), see ''[[Not a Villain]]''. {{examples}} == Anime &and Manga ==▼ ▲== Anime & Manga == * In the ''[[Pokémon (anime)\|Pokémon]]'' episode, "Pokemon Scent-Sation", Ash reluctantly has Team Rocket disguise him as a girl so that he could sneak into the Celadon gym. Ash breaks character a lot while he's in the disguise but always does his best to recover from it, until eventually, Pikachu revealed Ash's identity by electrocuting him. * Sousuke's attempts at passing himself off as a normal civilian in ''[[Full Metal Panic!]]'' occasionally segues into this, especially when one of his classmates ropes him into a [[Zany Scheme]] where he has to pretend being her boyfriend in front of her friends. {{quote\|'''Sousuke:''' I feel unimaginable happiness wasting time talking with women. I'm that type of human.}} == Comic Books == * A [https://web.archive.org/web/20150428205519/http://www.airshipentertainment.com/buckcomic.php?date=20090409 scene] in a ''[[Buck Godot: Zap Gun for Hire]]'' comic has Buck disguised as an alien Pog, sauntering down the street singing a song about how he's just a Pog, no, really. Mind you, in this instance [[Kansas City Shuffle\|having the disguise fail is actually part of the plan]]. For context, Buck Godot is at least eight feet and probably a half ton of muscle, bio-engineered for life on heavy gravity planets. Your typical pog may, generously, top four feet.▼ ~~== Comics ==~~ * The [[Highly-Visible Ninja]] of ''[[The Tick (~~animation~~comic)\|The Tick]]'' disguise themselves a hedge by declaring "We are a hedge. Please move along." While holding sticks. See the appropriate trope page for more (hilarious) details.▼ ▲* A [http://www.airshipentertainment.com/buckcomic.php?date=20090409 scene] in a ''[[Buck Godot: Zap Gun for Hire]]'' comic has Buck disguised as an alien Pog, sauntering down the street singing a song about how he's just a Pog, no, really. Mind you, in this instance [[Kansas City Shuffle\|having the disguise fail is actually part of the plan]]. For context, Buck Godot is at least eight feet and probably a half ton of muscle, bio-engineered for life on heavy gravity planets. Your typical pog may, generously, top four feet. ▲* The [[Highly-Visible Ninja]] of ''[[The Tick (animation)]]'' disguise themselves a hedge by declaring "We are a hedge. Please move along." While holding sticks. See the appropriate trope page for more (hilarious) details. * In ''[[PS238]]'', some of the children mask their secret use of a launch pad into space by sending the launch pad operator a message that this launch is scheduled and completely normal; no need to panic. The operator dismisses this as the computer AI being needlessly polite. * In ''[[Preacher (Comic Book)\|Preacher]]'' [[Corrupt Hick]] Odin Quincannon tries to use the Ku Klux Klan to kill the protagonist. In an attempt to ingratiate himself with them, he keeps enthusiastically stating how much he hates black people, all the time, and keeps adding it to practically everything he says. The other Klan members eventually start talking about how forced this makes him sound. * In ''[[Teen Titans (Comic Book)\|Teen Titans]]'', Starfire and Raven, having temporarily lost their ability to fly, seek alternative transportation on a bus full of villains. They beat up two and take their clothing. Starfire then tries to fit in by acting like an over-the-top parody of a villain. Her overacting goes almost completely unnoticed by her audience; what gives her away is the use of an alien version of "God bless you." * In one issue of ''[[Suicide Squad]]'', Captain Boomerang manages to do this while playing ''himself'' in an operation to lure in a local vigilante. {{quote\|Ahhh, Wipeout, me old mate. I, Captain Boomerang, am glad I've returned to Central City. With my old nemesis, the Flash, no longer here, I am free to use me trick boomerangs and amazing skills to knock over this bleedin' armored car! }} == Fan Works == Line 46 ⟶ 44: * "[[The Venture Brothers\|IGNORE ME!]]" "Attention duelist! My hair is definitely not leading you into a trap!" ** Let's not forget Crump, who was possessing Tea, and had to avoid arousing suspicion. He constantly made references to penguins, and the fact that he wanted to have sex with Yugi. But, well, the only thing that really convinced everyone it was Tea was this little gem: {{quote\|'''Joey:''' Yugi, do you notice anything weird about Tea? '''Yugi:''' I haven't noticed anything. You feeling okay Tea? '''Crump!Tea:''' FRIENDSHIP! '''Yugi:''' Yep, she's fine. }} * An episode of ''[[~~Re Boot~~ReBoot the Abridged Series]]'' has this with Cyrus/Syrus/however his name is spelled. * ''[[A Hero (fan work)\|A Hero]]'' has Dalek Sec, who [[Inverted Trope\|inverts]] this by proudly proclaiming that he is, in fact "[[Sarcastic Confession\|AN IM-PE-RIAL-IS-TIC SPA-CE NA-ZI]]" to anyone who cares to ask. This, combined with the fact that, for all their fearsome firepower, Daleks naturally look ridiculous, has lead people to believe that he's just a crazy guy in a suit. * ''[http://1d4chan.org/wiki/Orkhammer Orkhammer]'' is built around the [[Running Gag]] of Orkz "infiltrating" the rest of ''[[Warhammer 40,000]]'' factions. {{quote\|'''"PDF Corporal"''': Me, boss? I’z definnily a humie, ain’t that right, boyz? }} == Films -- Animation == * [[Mulan]]'s joining the Chinese army and posing as a man. And for that matter, Mushu posing as the Great Stone Dragon. "... Did I mention that I am the Great Stone Dragon?" * The monsters in ''[[We Are the Strange]]'' are a rare creepy example of this trope. In the empty ice cream shoppe, there are rather odd-looking posters which try to pass both the shoppe and the townspeople off as normal. == Films -- Live-Action == Line 71 ⟶ 69: '''Villager:''' That's what you'd say if you ''was'' a Nazi, isn't it sir? }} * ''[[Die Hard]]'': Hans Gruber attempts to fool John McClane into thinking that he's an escaped hostage by trying to put on the worst possible American accent. Thankfully, unlike most of the cops in the film, McClane is ''not'' an idiot, and when he gives a gun to Gruber to protect himself with it turns out to not be loaded. == Literature == * [[Winnie the Pooh]] pretends to be a little cloud when he tries to use a balloon to steal honey from a beehive. This includes having his friend Christopher Robin walking back and forth below him with an umbrella and loudly proclaim that it will be rain soon. While Pooh himself sings a little song about how he's just a raincloud: {{quote\|''How sweet to be a Cloud ''Floating in the Blue! ''Every little cloud ''Always sings aloud: ''"How sweet to be a Cloud ''Floating in the Blue!" ''It makes him very proud ''To be a little cloud.'' }} The Disney adaptation provides an even better example of the trope, as Pooh's song gets even more insistent that he's ''only'' a cloud and ''definitely'' not interested in honey: {{quote\|''Oh, I'm just a little black raincloud ''Hovering under the honey tree. ''I'm only a little black raincloud! ''Pay no attention to little me. ''Everyone knows that a raincloud ''Never eats honey, no not a nip! ''I'm just floating a-round, ''Over the ground, ''Wondering where I will drip!'' }} In the Russian adaptation, he first of all establishes to the bees that: "I'm a little rain cloud and definitely not a bear." * In [[Terry Pratchett]]'s ''[[~~Discworld/Wintersmith\|~~Wintersmith]]'', the wintersmith makes himself a human form, and then goes into an inn. He announces, excitedly, "I am a human, just like you!" The Discworld book ''[[~~Discworld/Thud\|~~Thud!]]'' also features a short appearance by John "Most Definitely Not A Vampire" Smith, the representative and local leader of the [[Friendly Neighborhood Vampire\|Black Ribboners]] in Ankh-Morpork. Vimes makes several references to his less-than-successful attempts to pass himself off as more human, including wearing hideous knit woolen sweaters instead of evening wear, overemphasizing [[Vampire Vords\|Ws]] in his speech, smoking pipes (despite not breathing) and collecting bananas for a hobby. The Wintersmith never denied he was the Wintersmith, though; he just wanted to be human so Tiffany would love him. * In ''[[Animorphs]]'', Ax pretends to be a delinquent. Line 101 ⟶ 98: ** He then proceeds to cause mayhem in the store by... [[Poke the Poodle\|Rearranging store shelves.]] * In ''The Birthday Ball'', Princess Patricia Priscilla, while in disguise as a commoner, repeatedly insists that she's just a humble peasant. * In [[Brandon Sanderson]]'s unpublished novel ''Mythwalker'', the character Ix constantly reaffirms that he is in fact human, while all of the characters know he is a shadowling. {{quote\|'''Ix:''' I am confused. This is not a good thing, because when we humans are confused we are not happy.}} Line 107 ⟶ 104: * In ''Saul of the Molemen'', Saul skins a moleman and uses the skin as a disguise to infiltrate the moleman village. He spends the day shouting, "Grunt grunt! I'm a moleman, just like you!". No one catches on, but Saul gets beaten up anyway because the moleman whose skin he wore owed money to others. * ''[[Buffy the Vampire Slayer]]'' "Doppelgangland": Willow (well, Season 3 Willow, anyway) [[Impersonating the Evil Twin\|pretending to be her vampire duplicate]] was doomed to failure. "I killed her. And sucked her blood, as we vampires do." She lasts all of five minutes before the others catch on. And her vampire duplicate is equally pathetic at passing herself off as the human ~~Willow -- though~~Willow—though far more successful, because she's talking to the [[Alpha Bitch\|ever self-absorbed Cordelia]]. "Why don't you let me out, 'cause I'm... so helpless." In fact, there's an enormous distinction between Willow, vamp Willow, Willow posing as vamp Willow, and vamp Willow posing as Willow. On the other hand, the Scoobies were completely oblivious to the true nature of the BuffyBot in her first appearance, despite stilted dialogue along the lines of "I wouldn't keep a secret from you, Willow. You're my best friend. You're recently gay." Buffy was understandably irritated. Yet another ''Buffy'' example: when {{spoiler\|[[Evil Counterpart\|Faith]]}} exchanges bodies with Buffy, she spends about three minutes practicing saying "Because it's ''wrong''!" very emphatically and with different inflections in front of a mirror. It's amusing. She [[Ironic Echo\|later says this seriously]] in a case of [[Becoming the Mask]]. Line 116 ⟶ 113: Subverted in a later episode when {{spoiler\|Cassandra takes over Rose's body. Of course the Doctor knows something is wrong, but he jumps to the wrong conclusion.}} ** The teenage "son" from the Family of Blood spends two episodes walking around looking ''as suspicious as is (in)humanly possible.'' [[Refuge in Audacity\|It only works because he pulls it off in such a magnificently creepy way.]] * ''[[Firefly (TV series)\|Firefly]]'': Simon acting as Mal's boss in "Jaynestown" is like this. {{quote\|'''Simon:''' Yes? ''(playing up role)'' I mean, I make the decisions around here, uh-- employee... ''(to Foreman)'' I employ him. He is a person I employ. I'm the boss.}} It gets [[Lampshaded]] when Wash sarcastically asks when Simon became such a cunning master of disguise. Line 144 ⟶ 141: Of course, he's also made it clear that [[For the Evulz\|he just likes screwing with people basically for the fun of it.]] * A clumsy case was Morgana from ''[[Merlin (TV series)\|Merlin]]''. When she returns to Camelot in series three, she spends most of her time smirking evilly to herself (in public) and interacting with her friends and family in a cloying, faux-sympathetic way (that was completely unlike the Morgana of the first two series). The audience isn't fooled for a second, but everyone else is completely taken in. == Video Games == Line 187 ⟶ 183: * In [[Magicka]] we have Vlad, who is most definitely not a Vampire. * In ''[[Rift]]'', the inhabitants of Lakeshore in Freemarch are doing normal human things because they are normal humans (and most definitely not [[Fish People\|Deep Ones]]). == Web Comics == Line 216 ⟶ 211: {{quote\|'''Antimony:''' We are looking for a particular robot. A... ''fellow'' robot. Because we are also robots.}} ** ...Because clearly she's a robot... {{quote\|'''Antimony:''' Also [[~~Circular_Reasoning~~Circular Reasoning\|robots never lie]].}} * [http://www.galactanet.com/comic/view.php?strip=646 Lord "Smith"] is Most Definitely Not [[Casey and Andy\|Lord Milligan]]. * In ''[[Terror Island]]'', [http://www.terrorisland.net/strips/183.html Theorem 183], Demon-Jame tries to pass himself off as Jame. {{quote\|'''Demon-Jame:''' Yes, I am your friend. I run a non-demon restaurant here in your space-time manifold, of which I am a native.}} * In [http://www.nuklearpower.com/2008/05/31/episode-999-like-a-hobby/ these] ''[[8-Bit Theater\|Eight Bit Theater]]'' [http://www.nuklearpower.com/2008/10/16/episode-1047-the-ol-180/ strips], [[Humongous Mecha\|Warmech]] is Most Definitely Not a Robot. And Red Mage, for his part, is Most Definitely Not a Monster. * [https://web.archive.org/web/20121231063726/http://amazoness.co.uk/10.htm This] ''[[Amazoness]]!'' strip. Ekphobippe is a master of disguise. * In ''[[El Goonish Shive]]'', all you have to do to convince everyone that you're a normal, everyday human being is to wear a T-shirt that says so on it. In fact, Tedd's father makes a ''living'' covering up supernatural or alien entities in such a manner, as seen, for example, [http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2003-02-15 here]. ** This is parodied in a fan-made comic centered around the fans who are represented as avatars with nametags over their heads. One strip involves two characters chasing after Dan. Note that Dan represents himself as an anthropomorphic squirrel. A guy who looks suspiciously like Dan in real life shows up holding a "NotDan" tag over his head and points them in the right direction. In an earlier strip, the comic's [[Card-Carrying Villain]] manages to deceive two detectives with a fake name tag. Line 240 ⟶ 235: {{color\|indigo\| TC: FuUuUuCk, Im LiKe AlL mOvInG mY mOuTh AnD tHe WiCkEd NoIsE iS cOmInG oUt In ThE fRoNtIeSt WaY pOsSiBlE.}} {{color\|indigo\| TC: aNd It'S gOiNg At YoUr DiReCtIoN, cAuSe ThAt'S tHe DiReCtIoN tO fUcKiN bE aNgRy At!}} }} * ''[[Voices]]'' has the advertisement for [[Mega Corp\|Xern]] on [https://web.archive.org/web/20110102121956/http://windowchronicles.com/voices/index.php?page=v01-085 this page.] * [http://www.housepetscomic.com/2010/09/10/falling-into-the-role/ This] ''[[Housepets]]'' strip. * In ''[[Eerie Cuties]]'' Tiffany is most definitely not a slayer. She's just a ghost in a school for monsters! [http://www.eeriecuties.com/strips-ec/not_suspicious Not suspicious at all!] Line 254 ⟶ 249: * ''[[Goblins]]'' bonus side story got a "[http://www.goblinscomic.com/tempts-fate-5/ Real pile of gold! Take what you want. This is not a trap. Checking for traps is just a waste of time.]" {{quote\|'''Tempts Fate''': Sigh. [[You Have Got to Be Kidding Me!\|You gotta be kidding me.]]}} * ''Nerd Rage'' presents: a shop with [http://www.nerdragecomic.com/index.php?date=2010-11-10 100% genuine Nerd Chicks]. * ''[[Servants of the Imperium]]'' has Krin [http://www.servantsoftheimperium.com/comic.php?comicid=55 accompanied] by a completely normal servo-skull that certainly isn't a piece of tech-heresy. == Web Original == * ''[[~~Doctor~~Dr. ~~Horribles~~Horrible's Sing -Along Blog]]'' invokes this a version of this trope when Penny introduces Captain Hammer to Billy at the laundromat. {{quote\|'''Billy:''' We're meeting now for the first time.}} ** Also, it doesn't actually fool Hammer, who just waits until Penny's out of earshot to make it clear [[I Know You Know I Know\|he knows]]. Line 263 ⟶ 260: * In ''I Don't Need Your Civil War'', Hulkling infiltrates as a SHIELD agent a super-human prison to kidnap Hank Pym, and while there he salutes SHIELD commander Maria Hill with "Hello. Not a spy." * ''[[MSF High Forum]]'': While Xadan doesn't quite fall under this trope, he uses pretty much the same use pretty thoroughly. He's [[Obviously Evil]], but trying to act as a mentor. * [https://web.archive.org/web/20130830115314/http://evilatheistconspiracy.org/en/about.htm There is no Evil Atheist Conspiracy!] * [http://knowyourmeme.com/photos/692321-bait-this-is-bait There's a reaction image] for this. * Mocked [https://web.archive.org/web/20160827003242/http://themetapicture.com/how-i-feel-on-the-internet-nowadays/ here]. The problem with Internet today? Not the excess of clueless, cringeworthy shills at. * in the Netflix original series ''[[The Dragon Prince]]'' Rayla, a Moonshadow Elf and Callum, a Human, have on separate occasions decided to disguise themselves as human and elf, respectively, to blend in with the local population. However, their attempts to pass themselves as human or elf turn out like this in practice. == Western Animation == Line 279 ⟶ 278: '''Robot:''' Yes, it's me... ''Bender'' }} ::: The twist is that it really is Bender. Used in another episode featuring Flexo, in which Bender tries to impersonate him, going out of his way to "act" and "sound" like ~~Flexo -- the~~Flexo—the joke being that, different catchphrases aside, Flexo and Bender ''already'' sound and act like each other. * No, the ''real'' joke is that he is trying to seduce his girlfriend as Flexo because he jealously suspects that she secretly loves Flexo (her ex), but only succeeds by acting ''nothing like Flexo at all'', doing all the things she loves to do (like dancing) even though she keeps pointing out that he -- "Flexo" ~~-- hates~~—hates those same things and thats partly why they broke up. Bender eventually reveals the ruse but fails to realise that she could hardly have been falling for Flexo when he had to not act like Flexo at all. {{quote\|'''Bender''': "You love him so much you even love anyone pretending to be him!" '''Angleene''': "Maybe I love you so much I love you no matter who you're pretending to be." Line 314 ⟶ 313: * An episode of [[Taz-Mania]] featured two spies who dressed themselves as tourists from Cleveland. Practically every conversation they had included some mention about the place. * In ''[[Phineas and Ferb]]'' episode "Not Phineas & Ferb", Irwin tricked his brother Albert by having Baljeet and Buford dressed as Phineas and Ferb. Buford, who was dressed as Ferb, mentioned being a Britton that doesn't talk a lot. * In ''[[The Fairly ~~Odd Parents~~OddParents]]'' episode "Timvisible", Francis the bully held a tradition of beating all other boys during last day. One of his victims put on a pink dress and a blonde wig to avoid it. That boy stated he was a girl, whom Francis would beat if he were a boy but won't because he was a girl or something like that. Does any troper know the correct line? Francis saw through the lame acting and removed the wig. The boy then pleaded that he was still wearing a dress but it didn't work. * In the [[Captain Caveman]] and Son segment of ''[[The Flintstone Kids]]'', Captain Caveman "hides" his home's location by posting a sign stating "This is NOT Captain Caveman's Secret Hideout". == Real Life == * [[Truth in Television\|Tourists.]] Their "I ♥ NY" T-shirts give them away ~~EVERY~~''every'' time. Especially in Tokyo. Lampshaded in ''[[CSI: NY]]''. When they find a victim wearing such a shirt, they immediately assume it's a tourist. They are right (although he was actually wearing it because he spilt coffee down his shirt and was there to {{spoiler\|rescue his daughter from a brothel}} rather than sightseeing). In a subversion, Danny mentions he wanted one as a kid (when he got one, it got him beaten up at school). If they ~~DON~~'T'don't'' wear "I ♥ NY" T-shirts, the accent will reveal the truth. * And even if you don't hear them speak, you'll know them anyway, because they'll be the ones constantly staring up at the "really tall buildings". Most residents and even frequent visitors have long since ceased to be impressed. ** The New York Times Magazine once ran a list of tips for passing as a New Yorker. One of them advised, "Profess no knowledge of where the Statue of Liberty is." Line 338 ⟶ 337: * Lots of "Japanese" restaurants ''outside of Japan'' (well, at least in Europe) are teppan-yaki and involve ridiculous kimonos and food-dropping games with a chef playing with food while cooking it. The kind of restaurant you can't find anywhere in Japan. Teppan-yaki restaurants did originate in Japan. They're just [[Germans Love David Hasselhoff\|far more popular in the west]] than they are in their home country. Many Japanese restaurants aren't even run by Japanese people, but by Korean or Chinese businessmen as a successful attempt to cash on the growing popularity of Japanese sushi, sashimi... etc. * In an inversion a spy in England, when asked what his profession was by friends and neighbors would answer [[Sarcastic Confession\|"I'm a spy."]] Because nobody believed him, the ruse worked. {{reflist}} [[Category:~~Disguise Tropes~~{{PAGENAME}}]] [[Category:Comedy Tropes]] [[Category:~~Most~~Disguise ~~Definitely Not a Villain~~Tropes]]