Trope Workshop:Establishing Hem Lift

• Main
• All Subpages
• Create New

Because Clothing Reflects Personality, a great way to reveal a different side to a character is exposing them at their most vulnerable. While dressed normally, the hem of whatever said character's wearing rides up their torso as they bend over or reach upwards and shows the audience and/or other character in the scene whatever's underneath. Perhaps it reveals the Girl Next Door has a tramp stamp, or the pacifist has a pistol tucked in their waistband, or the couch potato has a sixpack. Regardless, the other character in the room will be shocked at what they see and either avert their gaze embarrassedly or stare until The Reveal hides under the clothing again.

How the onlooker of the Establishing Hem Lift reacts after the moment depends on the context. If the Lift reveals the character to be a mook, a Mole, or the true mastermind, the onlooker might try and plan a way to discreetly escape while the character is distracted. The Lift can create a Ship Tease if the onlooker was already attracted to the character, or might start one if the Lift reveal ticks the onlooker's boxes. There might be a later scene where the onlooker confronts the character over what they saw, and the buildup to the reaction to this admission may be toe-curling. That said, the character might be aware of what the onlooker saw and come clean or tease the onlooker for Eating the Eye Candy. Maybe they initially tried dragging the hem down immediately after straightening up but wasn't fast enough for the onlooker's gaze.

Variations of Establishing Hem Lifts include underneath sleeves and legs, and can be physically intentional by the character, or caused by another, to give evidence during a plot point (think rolling up a sleeve or an invoked Bare Your Midriff). The Reveal could be something on the character's skin that wasn't there before, like a scar or an unconventional rash that causes immediate concern, whether discovered solo or in front of others. The Lift might be a source of the character's embarrassment, especially if they're a Weight Woe or they've outgrown clothes they can't replace yet. If Played For Laughs, the onlooker might make comment within the moment or physically take advantage of the character's distraction (a Friendly Tickle Torture, for instance).

As this trope can have a plot twist angle, beware of spoilers.

Examples of Establishing Hem Lift include:

Anime and Manga

• A well-known manga page in Komi Can't Communicate takes the shiptease route in which Tadano's wall climbing attempt causes his hoodie's hem to ride up his back and expose the waistband of his underwear peering over the top of his jeans as he pulls himself up with the climbing rope. Komi watching behind averts her eyes in embarrassment when the hoodie continues riding up his back, but then steals a peek after hesitation.

Film

• In Cheaper by the Dozen 2, Charlie Baker privately meets his father's rival's daughter Anne Murtaugh in a cabin. Charlie is dismissive towards Anne and her family because her father openly cusses his father's parenting and "reckless" children. Anne acts apologetic and bends over to take supplies from lower shelves, exposing a butterfly tattoo on her lower back. Charlie stares in disbelief, amazed the perfect eldest daughter of the Murtaugh family would have body art, and smugly confronts her a day later. Anne snaps at him to drop the topic and admits she finds her father's parenting stifling. Sexual tension ensues.
• Deck the Halls uses this to reveal the chief of police is a Wholesome Crossdresser. When Steve visits to report his neighbor Buddy, the police chief's flowery pink strap under his uniform catches Steve's attention. The chief notices and says he's wearing a brace his wife designed, and steps from the desk to search for reporting forms. He crouches in front of drawers, exposing his pink G-string, and an unsettled Steve runs out the station.

Live-Action TV

• Often in Supernatural, a protagonist gets sudden body markings on the torso that they'll inspect or discover when they lift up their t-shirt or pull at sleeves.
  • Episode 8 of the first season takes the comedic route, featuring Sam tapping Dean's exposed belly as he parks into the garage Dean is holding the overhead door open of.
• In How I Met Your Mother, Ted wakes up hungover one morning and when stumbling past his friends, Robin makes a shocked face, catching a confused Lily and Marshall's attention. She motions them to Ted, who is now in the kitchen, and asks him to search through the top shelf in front of him. Ted reaches up, making his pyjama t-shirt glide up, exposing a butterfly tattoo on his lower back.
• The TV version of 10 Things I Hate About You features an irritated Kat getting distracted when Patrick takes off his sweater in front of her, which catches his shirt underneath, exposing his abs to her for a few seconds.
• In Even Stevens, Louis' shirt hem rides up his back as he searches his bedroom drawers and floor. Beans uses his fishing rod to wedgie Louis, latching the hook onto the back of Louis' exposed underwear waistband and tugging.

Recorded and Stand Up Comedy

• Russell Howard's 2011 comedy special ends with him joking about how moving in with his girlfriend has lead to their belongings constantly going missing. An example he uses is the girlfriend panicking about her missing G-string, as he reaches under his jeans' waistband and tugs up a pink thong. He imitates hunkering down to help her look for it as he also wonders aloud where it could've gone.

Western Animation

• When Steve plans to expose the true creator of peanut butter in American Dad!, Stan helps him escape from the Illuminuti until they enter a lava pit under the Lincoln Memorial. They reach the area where the sacred Jar of Proof is stashed and Stan reaches for it, causing the many hems of his damaged suit to spring up, exposing a familiar tattoo on his lower back. Steve is stunned and backs away.
• Characters rolling up a sleeve and exposing an anchor tattoo on their shoulder before fights were common gags in cartoon shorts from The Golden Age of Animation.