Spotting the Thread: Difference between revisions

{{quote|'''Talking dog dressed as ghost:''' How did you know it was me?

'''Human:''' Grandpa didn't have a tail. }}

 

== Anime and Manga ==

* [[Lucky Luke]]: in the comic "The Singing Wire", Lucky Luke finds out that the Indian in their team is in fact not a real indian but a disguised crook who had been sabotaging their attempts to build a telegraph wire, because he smells like shaving cream and Indians don't have beards.

 

* ''[[Harry Potter]] and the Goblet of Fire'': Barty Crouch Jr. used a Polyjuice potion to disguise himself as Mad-eye Moody. However, Barty Crouch Sr. spotted "Moody" doing Junior's signature tongue-flick, which gave him away.

* In ''[[X-Men|X2]]'', Wolverine figures out Mystique isn't Jean because she has the scars where he stabbed her in the previous movie. Later in the same movie, Stryker takes one look at Mystique from across a large room and knows she's not Wolverine simply saying "I know my own work".

'''Price:''' 6:00. I was having dinner.

'''Sefton:''' 6:00 in Berlin. [To the other barrack members:] They were having lunch in Cleveland. }}

 

== Literature ==

* In the [[Georgette Heyer]] novel ''False Colours'', Kit is caught in a [[Twin Switch]] when he opens a snuffbox the wrong way.

* One science fiction novel had the protagonist recruited as a spy because his counterpart in an alternate universe was a ruthless dictator, and the plan was to replace his double to allow for a successful revolution. The plan works and he's successful in convincing everyone he's the dictator, up until the moment, flush with how successful the masquerade has been, he stands to greet one of the dictator's confidants and is immediately exposed. No one outside the dictator's immediate circle knew he's lost the use of his legs.

 

== Live-Action TV ==

* Attempted in ''[[Doctor Who]]''. The TARDIS team are being flipped between two realities, and they need to work out which one is too fantastic to be real- bur Rory points out that this is difficult but when you're in a time machine that's bigger on the inside with a bow tie-wearing alien.

* On [[Warehouse 13]], Pete spots Alice's impersonation of Myka when she [[Fake-Out Make-Out|kisses him]]. The real Myka would never have done so.

 

== Video Games ==

* A spoileriffic example from ''[[Chrono Cross]]'': Kid doesn't realize that {{spoiler|Serge and Lynx have swapped bodies}} until {{spoiler|the suddenly talkative Serge}} mentions the name "Lucca", which up to this point hadn't been said by anybody. She can't really do anything about it, as before she realizes what really happened {{spoiler|she gets stabbed for her troubles.}} Also, seeing {{spoiler|[[Heroic Mime|Serge]] [[Suddenly Voiced|start to talk]]}} is usually a Spotting the Thread moment for the ''player.''

* During the fight with {{spoiler|Vlitra's Core}} in ''[[Asura's Wrath]]'', the cutscenes before and after the fight show {{spoiler|What look like Golden threads woven by The Golden Spider to hold Vlitra inside the planet itself and holds up it's stage}}.

 

== Web Comics ==

* at one point in [[The Order of the Stick]] Elan is replaced by his [[Evil Twin]] Nale, despite pretty much every thing he does being a possible invocation of this trope, all his teammates just chalk it up to Elan being, [[Cloudcuckoolander|well, Elan]]. Until that is Nale changes out of the clothes he stole from Elan and takes a shower, at which point Belkar notices that "Elan" smells like Nale.

* In [[Cuanta Vida]], Jeremy's {{spoiler|green eyes}} and relaxed attitude tip off Jordi that he's dealing with {{spoiler|Miguel, the RED spy}}.

 

== Web Original ==

* At times, [[This Very Wiki]]. That "Super Secret Spoiler" wasn't so Super Secret when some extra white space where there shouldn't be popped up.

** Of course, due to the YMMV finagle, Super Secret Spoiler has been replaced with the normal spoiler.

 

== Western Animation ==

* One episode of [[Regular Show]], "Temp Check", features this. Doug, a shapeshifting mole attempting to take over Rigby's identity, is for the most part successful in convincing Mordecai and his coworkers that he's the real Rigby, but Mordecai sees through the facade for two reasons: the real Rigby whining about being "replaced", and the fact that Doug hugged Mordecai just before that (an act established earlier on in the episode that Rigby himself would never do).

* In the climactic battle in [[Megamind]], Titan realizes that Metroman is actually {{spoiler|Megamind in disguise due to the distinctive way he mispronounces Metro City}}.

 

== Real Life ==

 

{{reflist}}

[[Category:Disguise Tropes]]

[[Category:Espionage Tropes]]