Iconic Item: Difference between revisions

{{trope}}

 

{{quote|'''[[The Hero|Aang]]:''' Sorry about your [[Battle Boomerang|boomerang]], Sokka.<br />

'''[[The Spock|Sokka]]:''' I feel like I've lost part of my identity. Imagine if you lost your [[Power Tattoo|arrow]], or if [[The Lancer|Katara]] lost her.... [[Buffy-Speak|hair... loopies]].<br />

'''Merchant:''' Here's your produce, ponytail guy.<br />

 

An [[Iconic Item]] is an object carried or used only by one specific character, which also serves to ''define'' the character. Seeing it immediately brings that character to mind. Seeing the object abandoned (i.e., on a battlefield or in a ditch) would cause the character's friends to worry about his safety. Usually concludes with the character in question casually walking up shaken and asking if anyone has seen his [[Iconic Item]].

 

 

If the [[Iconic Item]] just so happens to correlate with the character's personality or traits, which it's going to 90% of the time, it's probably also a [[Weapon of Choice]].

 

== Anime and Manga ==

* Many of the Angels in ''[[Kidou Tenshi Angelic Layer]]'' would count; more than tools to their users, who even ''talk'' to the robotic dolls on more than one occasion, an abandoned Angel is a sign that something is deeply wrong with its operator.

* Ditto for certain cards in ''[[Duel Masters]]'', most recognizably Shobu's Bolshack Dragon.

* Guts from ''[[Berserk]]'' actually has three of these, his [[BFS]] The Dragonslayer, his mechanical hand and his Berserker armour, all of which are one-of-a-kind items that match his personality.

* While all the pilots in ''[[Neon Genesis Evangelion]]'' wear a headset to help them link with their Eva units, Asuka wears hers with her civilian clothes as well (wearing them like barrettes). This helps to establish certain things about Asuka. On a personal level, she is proud to be a pilot, and doesn't want anyone to forget it. The shape of this gear also gives her "horns" like a female Oni (ogre) [[Urusei Yatsura|like another character we could mention]]. It's worth noting that ''oni musume'' (ogre's daughter) is roughly the Japanese equivalent of "bitch".

* Vash The Stampede's very distinctive revolver, and Wolfwood's massive cross (both from ''[[Trigun]]'').

** Also Vash's distinctive sunglasses with the W-shaped earpieces, which he puts on whenever it's time to [[Let's Get Dangerous|get dangerous]].

* Haruko's engine-powered Rickenbacker bass guitar/multi-purpose weapon from ''[[FLCL]]''.

* Natsu's scarf in ''[[Fairy Tail]]'' which he's always seen in. Even while sleeping. When Lucy accidentally yanked it off him (trying to pull it up) and he didn't seem to notice, she knew something was wrong.

* Makoto Kino from ''[[Sailor Moon]]'' never takes off her pink rose-shaped earrings, even after [[Henshin Hero|transforming]] into Sailor Jupiter. Sometimes she uses them as projectile weapons, and more than once the sight of them has snapped Usagi back into remembering.

* Orihime's hairpins in ''[[Bleach]]''. {{spoiler|She mysteriously loses them after the [[Time Skip]], though....}}

** Urahara's [[Nice Hat]]

** ''Everyone's Shikai.''

*** Fuck that. Bankais are what's happening.

** Blue has his cape.

** Gold has his pool cue.

** Crystal's distinguishing feature is the way she throws her Pokeballs. She kicks them into battle.

** Sapphire's [[Cute Little Fangs]].

* [[Cowboy Bebop|Faye Valentine's]] red hoodie around her waist, since any two-bit [[Fan Service]] character can pull off the bright yellow [[Stripperiffic|halter top and short-shorts]].

* Kenshin's [[Weapon of Choice|backward-edged]] [[Katanas Are Just Better|katana]] from ''[[Rurouni Kenshin]]''.

*** Oooh err!

** Or his badge.

* Cyclops of the ''[[X-Men (Comic Book)|X-Men]]'' has his visor.

* ''[[Wonder Woman]]'s'' lasso and armor.

* The Guy Fawkes mask worn by the title character from ''[[V for Vendetta]]''.

* [[Doctor Strange]]'s red Cloak of Levitation (with a peculiar high collar) and the Eye of Agamotto. Since relinquishing the office of Sorcerer Supreme he has neither of these, which is a visual cue that he's searching for a new identity.

 

 

* [[Pirates of the Caribbean|Captain Jack Sparrow]]'s hat. And his compass that doesn't point north.

* Speaking of [[Arm Cannon]] weaponry, there's also Ashley J. Williams from ''[[Evil Dead]]''. Only instead of an arm-gun, he lopped off his hand and lashed a ''chainsaw'' onto it. This and his sawed off, back-holstered, shotgun are easily the most iconic items for Ash.

* [[Dollars Trilogy|The Man With No Name's]] distinctive {{color|green|green}} poncho

* John [[Rambo]]'s M60, bow and Bowie knife. And the headband, usually {{color|red|red}}.

* [[The Phantom of the Opera]] - The Phantom's white half mask.

* [[Zorro]]'s black mask and Andalusian hat (in the novel he originally wore a sombrero). To a lesser degree his sword and bullwhip.

** And their sunglasses, of course.

* In ''[[El Dorado]]'' people keep commenting about Mississipi's odd-looking hat, but he refuses to stop wearing it because it belonged to his dead mentor.

 

 

== Literature ==

* Roland's guns in ''[[The Dark Tower]]''.

* [[Sherlock Holmes]]'s pipe. The deerstalker in adaptations, though not the original books.

* In ''[[Harry Potter]]'', Mad-Eye Moody's mad eye. After {{spoiler|he dies in ''[[Deathly Hallows]]'', [[The Hero|Harry]] sees it stuck on Umbridge's office door in the Ministry of Magic and is so infuriated that he steals it back, tipping her off that there are intruders in the building.}} There are other items that probably also count, like [[Gentle Giant|Hagrid's]] umbrella.

** Um, [[The Hero|Harry's]] glasses.

*** [[The Hero|Harry's]] ''[[Good Scars, Evil Scars|scar]]''.

* [[Peter Pan|Captain Hook's]] ... um, it's on the tip of my tongue...

* [[The Caine Mutiny|Captain Queeg's]] steel balls.

* [[Rumpole of the Bailey|Rumpole's]] dilapidated old hat.

* [[Les Misérables|Jean Valjean]] is rarely ever seen with them - in fact we only learn he has not sold them at the end of the book - but the silver candelabras he recieved from bishop Myriel are quite iconic to him. Film adaptions enlarged this.

 

 

** Some of the Doctor's companions also had an iconic item associated with them. Examples include Jamie McCrimmon's kilt, Adric's badge for mathematical excellence (the shattered remnants of which featured in an [[Empathy Doll Shot]] after the character died) and Ace's badge-covered black jacket.

** In [[Real Life]], the show in general has the iconic police box outer form used by the TARDIS. Even before advances in communications technology saw the police box retired from its original function, it was heavily associated with the show to the point where the BBC won the rights for it off the police.

* [[Supernatural]]: Dean's amulet, to the point where {{spoiler|he's still wearing it in hell.}}

** He has since lost it, however, and the writers [[Shrug of God|doubt it will reappear]]. The Colt might count, though.

* Done (very, very badly) in an episode of ''[[Mighty Morphin Power Rangers]]'', where a kid who was banned from the science fair is abducted by the Monster of the Week, which he then drops his hat. The Rangers find the hat, and immediately blame Rita, [[Fridge Logic|which makes no sense at all]]. They ended up being right, but they had no right or reason to assume that at all.

* [[Happy Days|Fonzie's]] jacket.

** To a lesser extent: Will's axe, Little John's staff and Robin's recurved bow are all practically synonymous with their characters. Kate is renowned for her forehead braid, though this is more the result of [[Memetic Mutation]] considering she only wore it for three episodes in total.

* Booth's "Cocky" belt buckle in ''[[Bones]]''. Brennan actually worries about him when he takes to wearing normal belts after his brain tumor.

* [[Buffy the Vampire Slayer]] had her stakes, but they really tried last minute to give her a more defined one in a slayer scythe.

** Danny from ''[[CSI New York]]'s'' father's dog tags.

** Sid from ''[[CSI New York]]'' has the iconic glasses that come apart in the front.

* [[Gossip Girl|Chuck Bass']] scarf.

* In [[Ugly Betty]] Betty's Red glasses and pink brasses. Although she finally gets the braces removed in the final fourth season.

 

 

* [[Elton John]]'s [[Making a Spectacle of Yourself|glasses]].

* [[Public Enemy|Flava Flav's clock medallion]].

** Axl Rose's bandanna from the earlier years.

* [[ZZ Top|Dusty Hill's and Billy Gibbons's]] [[Badass Beard|long beards]] and sunglasses.

** Also his Gibson SG(s)

* [[Queen|Freddie Mercury's]] bottomless mic stand and [[Queen|Brian May's]] Red Special guitar (which he built himself).

* Eddie Van Halen's cut up and retaped guitars ([[Franken X|Frankenstrat]]), so much so that [[Van Halen]]'s [[Greatest Hits Album]] uses a red, black, and white motif for the cover.

* [[Buckethead]]'s white mask (recently used by the Jabbawockeez too, though) combined with the plastic bucket he wears on his head.

 

== [[Video Games]] ==

** And Sephiroth's ten-foot-long Masamune ''no-dachi'' from the same game.

* The Vampire Killer whip (unique in that it doesn't really represent one person, but [[Badass Family|an entire family of people]]) from ''[[Castlevania]]''.

* The hidden blades and beaked hoods from ''[[Assassin's Creed]]''.

** Luigi has never had an appearance in a game without his hat. In [[Super Mario Galaxy]] and the sequel, he keeps it on all the time, while Mario sometimes takes his off for a few seconds.

** In [[Super Mario Galaxy 2]], {{spoiler|Luma takes Mario's hat in the ending.}} He's not too happy about it.

** Amy Rose is rarely seen without her [[Drop the Hammer|hammer]] expect in [[Sonic the Comic]] when she uses a crossbow.

** [[The Protagonist|Sonic]] and [[Kid Appeal Character|Tails']] biplane, The Tornado.

** Zero's helmet is used for a particularly symbolic, yet sad, example in ''Zero 4''. {{spoiler|It's lying on the ground broken, and Zero is dead, and he doesn't have to fight anymore; because, whether or not Zero survived (''still'' heavily disputed by the fanbase) the war is over.}}

** Proto Man's shield is iconic enough that {{spoiler|Mega Man was shocked when Proto Man gave him his shield in ''7''. It's an equippable item in that same game.}} In fact, his kart and transportation items are all modeled after his shield.

** From the same series, we also have Akuma's prayer beads (used for a [[Shout-Out]] in ''[[Mega Man X|Mega Man X4]]''), [[Kick Chick|Chun-Li's]] spiked bracelets, and Vega's mask.

** [[Cute Bruiser|Sakura]]'s white headband mimics her hero Ryu's headband from his early days as a street fighter, before Ken replaced it with the {{color|red|red}} one.

** There are several others. [[Lady of War|Rose]]'s [[Scarf of Asskicking]], Guile and Charlie's dogtags (Guile later taking the presumably KIA Charlie's dogtags for his own), Dhalsim's necklace made out of the skulls of the children in his village who died from famine, [[Bruce Lee Clone|Fei Long]]'s nunchaku, Dee Jay's maracas, etc. Of special note is [[Final Fight|Guy's]] [[Nice Shoes|sneakers]], popular enough to spawn a [[Memetic Mutation|meme]] ("''[[Take That|Real]]'' [[Ninja|ninjas]] wear [[Product Placement|Nikes]]!").

* Garrus Vakarian's visor in ''[[Mass Effect]]'', and Commander Shepard's N7 armor.

* ''[[The Legend of Zelda]]'': Link's hood and tunic, and to a lesser extent, the [[Cool Sword|Master Sword]]. More recent games even have the {{color|green|green}} tunic be a sign of Link's chosen status as the hero.

* ''[[Metal Gear Solid]]'': Snake's (Solid and Naked, not Liquid or Solidus) Cardboard Box.

** And, on the more normal side, there's his bandanna.

** And his cigs. For a game that loves to make you procure on-site equipment, they go through insane trouble explaining how cigarettes are somehow smuggled along with him... including one example of Snake ingesting his cigarettes and then vomiting them up upon arrival.

** Even more prominently Revolver Ocelot and his revolvers.

** And taunt you about the fact they have their own.

* Samus Aran's Charge Beam and Varia Suit, commonly found in every ''[[Metroid]]'' game, and the focus of most of the box art designed for the games.

** And we musn't forget her [[Arm Cannon]] - though in this case, it's literally her arm. Or, rather power suit's arm.

** And the friggin' Morph Ball.

* Sora's keyblade and crown necklace in ''[[Kingdom Hearts]]''.

** [[Sarcasm Mode|Because there's SO much call for it in interplanetary dogfights.]]

* The Protagonist's [[Headphones Equal Isolation|"Audio Atlus" headphones]], [[The Chick|Yukari's]] heart-shaped choker, and [[Idiot Hero|Junpei's]] baseball cap in ''[[Persona 3]]''.

* In ''[[Persona 2]]'', we have Tatsuya's lighter, Jun's flowers (and watch), and Maya's Mister Rabbit.

** Shiki's stuffed animal/living weapon Mr. Mew.

** Most of the other characters have something like this too, but Neku and Shiki's [[Iconic Item|Iconic Items]] are, well, the most iconic.

** Most of these iconic items are available as rare items which usually give really good stat boosts. Things like Beat's hat, Rhyme's pendant, and {{spoiler|a feather belonging to Joshua.}}

* Raidou Kuzunoha the 14th of ''[[Raidou Kuzunoha vs. the Soulless Army]]'' and ''[[Raidou Kuzunoha VS King Abaddon]]'' is noted, both in universe and out, as having a reputation attached to the school uniform he wears. He is even wearing it in the second game when he is 20 and no longer in school.

* Most ''[[Harvest Moon]]'' protagonists wear a red neckerchief. Even some animals in the ''Wonderful Life'' subseries wear them.

* Various variations appear for the ''[[Pokémon]]'' characters. Pretty much every protagonist has a [[Nice Hat]] which they can quickly be identified with. Pokemon also count in [[Fanon]]: May is synonymous with a Torchic starter, Brendan with Mudkip, Dawn with Piplup, Red with Pikachu, Blue with Eevee, and Bianca with Munna, just to name a few.

** The Poké Ball, synonymous with the ''entire franchise itself''.

* Aside from his ever-present (but differently-styled) [[Bring My Red Jacket|red]] [[Badass Longcoat|longcoats]], [[Devil May Cry|Dante]] will ''always'' tout his [[Cool Sword|Rebellion]] and [[Cool Guns|Ebony & Ivory]]. His [[Shock and Awe|Alastor]] sword ''was'' this for a time (along with his [[Memetic Outfit|attire from the first game]], it followed him into several crossovers), but was eventually displaced by the Rebellion ([[It Was a Gift|a gift from]] [[Disappeared Dad|his father]], [[Red Baron|The Legendary Dark Knight]] [[Ascended Demon|Sparda]]). His Shotgun ''may'' be working its way up to this status, as it's the only weapon besides E&I to be present in all four games.

** His sunglasses too.

* In ''[[Blaz Blue]]'', the various [[Artifact of Doom|Nox Nyctores]], weapons, and accessories, notably:

** Tsubaki Yayoi's Nox Nyctores, Izayoi, and especially her [[Nice Hat]] with the eye.

** Hazama/Terumi's suit and hat.

** Frank's Camera is also a pretty iconic item in the series.

* Sly Cooper's cane

* ''[[Girl Genius]]'': Agatha's trilobite necklace. The trilobite is the emblem of the Heterodyne family, but Agatha's is also a {{spoiler|[[Restraining Bolt]]}}.

* Torg in ''[[Sluggy Freelance]]'' had a flannel shirt, which has since phased out somewhat. Riff always has his sunglasses, and though he's depicted often without his [[Badass Longcoat|trench]], he will always be associated with some form of long coat, either duster or labcoat. Bun-bun will always have his switchblade and associated ''ka-click!''

* Tina of ''[[Wapsi Square]]'' is never seen without her choker, to the point where other characters speculate that it is there to keep her head attached.

* ''[[Homestuck]]'': Weapons of choice aside, John is strongly associated with the ''[[Con Air]]'' bunny he received as a birthday present three times over all on the same day. Jade was also associated with her pair of [[Tastes Like Diabetes|Squiddles]] dolls until having a nightmare about the things following the death of her dreamself.

 

== [[Web Original]] ==

 

 

* In most ''[[Transformers]]'' series, the Autobot Matrix of Leadership is strongly associated with Optimus Prime, who carries it inside him. When it's seen in other hands, it's generally a sign that Optimus is badly injured, if not dead.

** While not really an item, Optimus Prime's original vehicle mode. If he isn't a flatnose Mac truck, the franchise is [[Ruined FOREVER|RUINED FOREVER.]]

{{quote| '''Sandy''': Spongebob's tie! And all his other little dressings! But he always folds up his clothes before runnin' around... ''in the nude''! Something terrible must have happened to him!}}

* Most of the leading characters in ''Around the World with Willy Fog'' have some form of iconic item:

** Princess Romy has a jeweled head-dress, revealed in one episode to contain medicinal chicken bones

** Inspector Dix has a flat cap and a pipe, though he is never actually seen smoking

** Some other examples are Aang's arrow tattoo or his glider, as well as Katara's hair loopies or water jug. Iroh and [[Spot of Tea|tea]] could also be thought of this way.

* Every character on ''[[Scooby Doo]]'' can be identified by their one outfit, but the most iconic item is Fred's ascot.