Transferable Memory: Difference between revisions

 

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* ''[[Kaiba]]'' takes this trope on front and center. Only the privileged can afford effective memory treatment, and on many planets the poor sell their good memories (and sometimes bodies) to make ends meet. We're introduced early on via newscast to a group of known terrorists who sabotage memory treatment facilities, but little is elaborated on that topic until {{spoiler|about halfway through Kaiba visits a memory theme park. When it closes down, several memories scream to be taken out of their misery as they're forced to remain in a state of not-quite-life-or-death. The elderly patrons Kaiba was with just thought it was [[All Part of the Show]]}}.

* In ''[[The Big O]],'' memories are a [[MacGuffin]].

* Tsukimiya from ''[[Bloody Cross]]'' is a [[Dhampyr]] who can read people's memories by drinking their blood.

 

* The ''[[Harry Potter]]'' fanfiction ''[[The Ollivander Children]]'' has an Obliviator as a main character, who deals with transferable memories as a matter of course.

* The ''[[Fallout]]/[[My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic]]'' [[Fusion Fic]] ''[[Fallout Equestria]]'' makes frequent use of "memory orbs" as a form of [[Apocalyptic Log]]. As well as {{spoiler|a [[Memory Gambit]] by the protagonist}}.

* In the "Steelverse" of ''[[A Brane of Extraordinary Women]]'', the identity of [[James Bond]] (and presumably the other "00" agents) [[Legacy Character|has been possessed by several generations of agents]] with the help of a device which imprints previous Bonds' memories upon a volunteer to be the next Bond.

 

* ''[[Blade Runner]]''. Rachel is given memories copied from Tyrell's niece to improve her emotional stability.

* ''[[Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind]]'' averts the base concepts of this trope: it features a device that can erase memories, but using what is "technically" "brain damage", "about on par with a night of heavy drinking". Once they're gone, they can't come back. Central to the story are the main characters {{spoiler|and assisting nurse}} who only realize the ramifications of what they're doing after agreeing to the procedure.

* In the ''[[Underworld (film)|Underworld]]'' movies, vampires can access the memories of other vampires by drinking their blood. This is used by Vampire Elders to catch up with the events that transpired while they were in torpor.

 

* [[Keith Laumer]]'s ''A Trace of Memory''. An amnesiac alien living as a human on Earth must recover the device in which his full memories are stored. He later discovers that on his home planet almost everyone has this problem.

* The [[Scary Dogmatic Aliens|Yuuzhan Vong]] from the [[New Jedi Order]] can literally manufacture memories. Usuually this is used as a way to learn new skills quickly, but with time and careful application can also [[Mind Rape|overwrite entire personalities]]. For the latter, though, as it requires a very complex set of memories, it's easiest to just use someone's preexisting ones rather than grow a whole new set, however.

** When Jake is infested by the Yeerk that once controlled his brother, the Yeerk's memories of its hosts are dumped into Jake's memory as the Yeerk is dying of starvation.

* In Orson Scott Card's ''[[Worthing Saga]]'', the cold sleep used to enable starflight has the unfortunate side effect of completely wiping a person's memory. The solution, spheres which record this and replay it into the subject's brain.

* A part of becoming the Empress/Emperor of the Twenty Universes in [[Robert A. Heinlein]]'s ''[[Glory Road (novel)|Glory Road]]'' is the imprinting of ''all'' the memories of ''all'' the previous emperors and empresses, which are stored in a device called "The Egg of the Phoenix".

 

* ''[[Red Dwarf]]'': "Thanks For The Memories".

* This could be said to happen in [[Buffy the Vampire Slayer]], given Angel's explanation that when a person is vamped, the vampire demon gets their memories and body, but not their soul.

* ''[[Dollhouse]]'' A very central concept, along with the ability to transfer and back up etc personalities.

* The third episode of ''[[Black Mirror (TV series)|Black Mirror]]'' focuses around a device called a Grain. It records memories and is capable or replay with all kinds of features like zoom, crop, reconstruction. You can also share memories with people and there is a black market for people's grains.

 

* ''[[Dungeons and Dragons]]'' again got one of everything. An item "Thought Bottle" that appeared in [http://index.rpg.net/display-entry.phtml?mainid=2697 Tome of Magic]'' does exactly this. Possible uses as a relatively secure data medium or [[Memory Gambit]] prop were mentioned.

** In ''[[Forgotten Realms]]'' tel'kiira ("elven lore-gem") are memory storage devices used as write-at-will personal logs and spellbooks, normally usable only by elves and worn mostly by nobility. Physically, it's a little gem stuck on the forehead of its wearer, most of the time sunk in and not visible. Ancestral lore-gem worn by generations of heirs of a noble House has a value much like the flag of a military unit: not waved around in vain, and losing it counts as a major disgrace. An elven kingdom that didn't allowed humans into capital knighted a human just for carrying one of these from a dying heir to the new rightful wearer, past their guards. Variants include books of elven advanced magic, secret agents' tools and occasional hybrids with other enchanted gems, up to ioun stones turned into [[Attack Drone|semi-sentient defensive spellgem following the owner]].

* From ''[[Wraith: The Oblivion]]'', we get the Mnemoi and their Arcanos, Mnemosynis, the sole purpose of which is to transfer and manipulate memories. In a place where memories are important for maintaining one's existence, the Mnemoi are far from welcome, and are therefore one of the three Forbidden Guilds. {{spoiler|In actuality, the Mnemoi are using their talents to store the memories of Charon for [[Rightful King Returns|his return]], and the whole persecuted thing [[Fake Defector|is a ruse]]. One that, sadly, works a bit too well in the end.}}

 

* A [[Mind Screw|truly bizarre version]] of this occurs in ''[[Kingdom Hearts]]''. {{spoiler|Xion is a whole character made out of memories.}}

* ''[[Final Fantasy VII]]'': One of Jenova's abilities is copying the form and memories of other beings. Just knowledge of this is used to great advantage by Sephiroth to [[Mind Screw|give Cloud even more psychological problems than he already had.]]

 

* In ''[[Red vs. Blue]]: Reconstruction'', the Epsilon AI was created from the Alpha AI's memories. Agent Washington eventually receives these memories when he implants Epsilon into his head, providing the catalyst for the series' events.