Was Once a Man: Difference between revisions

[[File:iusedtolooklikethis_6180iusedtolooklikethis 6180.jpg|link=Nedroid|frame|"[[G.I. Joe: The Movie|I wasss once a maaaan! Once a maaaaan!]]"]]

Related to [[Body Horror]] and [[Face Monster Turn]], but distinct in that while [[Body Horror]] deals with the fact of the monstrosity itself and usually follows it from beginning to end, [['''Was Once a Man]]''' is where a creature is monstrous when first introduced, but is either implied heavily or later revealed to have once been human.

See also: [[Body Horror]], [[Viral Transformation]], [[The Virus]], [[Tragic Monster]] and [[Stages of Monster Grief]]. Compare ''and'' contrast [[Uncanny Valley]]. Not to be confused with any tropes related to [[Gender Bender]]. Has [[I Thought It Meant|nothing to do with]] the aftermath of [[Squick|particularly ugly]] [[Groin Attack|Groin Attacks]]s.

* Every demon in the ''[[Berserk]]'' universe was once a human. Humans become demons when a creepy little egg-like item called a Behelit comes into their possession and they hit an [[Despair Event Horizon|emotional nadir]] where they will do anything to get out of their current situation. At this point, the Behelit rearranges the features scattered upon its surface into a human face and screams, which summons the demonic gods of the Godhand, who proceed to [[Deal with the Devil|offer him the chance to become a demon in exchange for the sacrifice of those closest to them]]. It also turns out that {{spoiler|every member of the Godhand was also human, and they are created with the use of Behelits as well}}. While demons do sometimes retain the personalities they had when they were human, all too often they commit [[Transhuman Treachery]], becoming [[Complete Monster|Complete Monsters]]s of the worst order, with many of them preferring to [[I'm a Humanitarian|dine on their former species]].

* [[J. R. R. Tolkien|JRR Tolkien]]'s Middle-earth (''[[The Lord of the Rings]]'', etc): As individuals, there are the Nazgul (once human leaders) and Gollum (once just an ordinary proto-hobbit). In Tolkien's concept, evil and the various [[Big Bad|Big Bads]]s cannot create, only pervert: therefore almost every evil creature (e.g. those used as mooks) is a corrution or mockery of a pre-existing being. The [[Our Orcs Are Different|orcs]] are descendants of elves twisted by Sauron's predecessor Morgoth. If you really want a [[Squick|squickysquick]]y thought, it's rumoured that the Uruk-hai were partly Man in some fashion. Trolls are a mockery of Ents. Subverted in the case of the undead Barrow-wights, who only possessed the dead bodies of those buried.

* In [[Graham McNeill]]'s [[Warhammer 40000]] [[Ultramarines (novel)|Ultramarines]] novel ''Dead Sky Black Sun'', Uriel realizes the Unfleshed -- monstrousUnfleshed—monstrous, gigantic (next to him, a [[Space Marine]]), and flesh-eating -- wereeating—were once not only human but {{spoiler|[[Children Are Innocent|children]]. When they are willing to speak with him, having [[The Nose Knows|smells that he came from the same place they were made]], he finds that they are still good and will help him in his [[The Quest|his quest]]. One sadly confesses to him that they loathe themselves because of their forms. In ''The Killing Ground'', Uriel must [[Mercy Kill]] the last survivor and is left deeply melancholy thereafter.}}

* The Steel Inquisitors of ''[[Mistborn]]'' are humans who have been transformed into immortal killing machines via the dark art of [[Black Magic|Hemalurgy]]. {{spoiler|The [[Always ChaoticExclusively Evil|Koloss]] from the same series were originally humans as well, created by a similar process.}}

** Another Dalek faction, the Imperials, were made from [[Human Popsicle|Human Popsicles]]s. "Not pure enough in their blobbiness" indeed. And the original Daleks were once the humanoid Kaleds.

* Fafnir, aka the dragon from Wagner's Ring cycle, aka the inspiration for Smaug in ''[[The Hobbit]]'', [[Was Once a Man]]! In fact, he got the gold hoard first, and it cursed him for his greed.

* ''[[Dead Space (series)|Dead Space]]''. Every single zombie enemy you fight was once a human. The tentacle-baby monsters are implied to be embryos that were being vat-grown -- possiblygrown—possibly simply as an alternative to pregnancy, as it's demonstrated that the technology to grow limbs and organs independently exists in this universe.

* Demons in [[Dominic Deegan]] [[Was Once a Man|Were Once Men]]; we get to see some of the transitions. Most notable, of course, is {{spoiler|Siegfried}}, whom we knew rather well before his death. ( {{spoiler|In fact, he was the second recurring character to be introduced.}}) From [http://www.dominic-deegan.com/view.php?date=2006-04-25 this] to [http://www.dominic-deegan.com/view.php?date=2010-09-16 this] to [http://www.dominic-deegan.com/view.php?date=2010-12-07 this].