History Main / CreepyGood

* ''Fanfic/CameraShy'': Taylor is determined to be a hero. However, the nature of her costume and powers results in her being pants-wettingly terrifying ''by accident''. Her assault on [[spoiler:Uber and Leet's base]] is captured on video, and widely assumed to be a faked horror piece, as a faceless figure in a black ragged cloak constantly turns up when they open doors, or steps out from behind them, vanishing as soon as someone blinks or looks away; lights flicker and fail, objects fly off shelves of their own accord...

* Pluto in ''Manga/HeavensDesignTeam'' has very different ideas of what counts as "cute" from her coworkers. This naturally leads to her designing most of the "creepy" animals. [[https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DyN0IPwX0AAcrcu.jpg This design]][[https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DyN0MoeX0AEBet0?format=jpg&name=large turns out]][[https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DyN0RSoXcAA8tc0?format=jpg&name=large to be]][[spoiler:[[https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DyN1DLCWkAA3Ozy?format=jpg&name=large a koala]]]].

* ''Literature/BlackJewels'': Janelle Angelline. She's a FriendToAllLivingThings who saved the world from centuries of oppression. She is also [[TheChosenOne Witch]], which means that she's [[PersonOfMassDestruction terrifyingly powerful]] and as much a sentient anthropomorphic manifestation of the hopes and dreams of all intelligent beings as she is a human woman - and both her power level and her not-entirely-human nature tend to unnerve people.
** Black Widows can be of any character alignment, and the friendly and heroic ones qualify for this trope. Their ability to heal the mind is certainly beneficent, especially in setting as fond of BreakTheCutie and {{Trauma Conga Line}}s as the world of ''Black Jewels'', but their mastery of poisons and illusions has given the caste a scary reputation.
* [[Literature/CharlieAndTheChocolateFactory Willy Wonka]] is the world's greatest candymaker and FunPersonified. He is also TheWonka, a MadScientist, and a NightmareFetishist whose factory is a CrapsaccharineWorld and FalseUtopia -- should one not heed his warnings about what should and shouldn't be touched, absurd-yet-dreadful fates are in store, and he'll have NoSympathy. He's a JerkWithAHeartOfGold, even an AntiHero, but he and his world are presented as fundamentally good and wonderful, especially when contrasted to the dreary, unfair outside world that is often easy on the bad and hard on the good. And his strange way of thinking is what's made him the success story he is (to the point that he's [[TheWonka named a trope]]). His creepy-good nature becomes more obvious in adaptations, particularly [[Film/WillyWonkaAndTheChocolateFactory the 1971 film]] and the [[Theatre/CharlieAndTheChocolateFactory 2013 stage musical]] (in the latter, the character's introductory song "It Must Be Believed to Be Seen" is a WelcomingSong[=/=]IAmGreatSong, but stylistically owes a lot to the VillainSong trope).

* The unnamed boss from ''WesternAnimation/SmilingFriends'' looks very unsettling and has a lot of off-putting mannerisms. However, he's also a BenevolentBoss who runs a company devoted to making its clients happy.

* ''ComicBook/TheMultiversity '': Abin Sur, the ComicBook/GreenLantern of Earth-20 from ''Society of Super-Heroes: Conquerors of the Counter-World #1]]''. He keeps his distance from the inhabitants of Earth because he's aware that he resembles the world's interpretation of Satan and doesn't want to freak anyone out. Doc Fate doesn't care what he looks like and considers him an ally.

* ''ComicBook/SpiderMan'':
** In the early days, Spider-Man was often seen as creepy by many fellow heroes in the Franchise/MarvelUniverse, even as recently as TheNineties, as seen when he and ComicBook/{{Nova}} fought the Tri-Sentinel in ''ComicBook/TheAmazingSpiderMan1963'' #351–352. Prominent reasons for this were his face-covering mask with giant menacing bug-eyes and his penchant for contorting himself in strange ways, his [[WallCrawl ability to cling to any surface]], and his knack for [[StealthHiBye showing up out of the blue]], to say nothing of the fact that he is often a HeroWithBadPublicity. Also, while it isn't canon, even Characters/{{Wonder Woman|TheCharacter}} mentioned he was creepy during his second {{Crossover}} with Characters/{{Superman|TheCharacter}}.
** Also extends to Eddie Brock (during his AntiHero days) and Flash Thompson when bonded to the ComicBook/{{Venom}} symbiote, since Venom is Spider-Man with {{Lovecraftian Superpower}}s. ComicBook/{{Toxin}} as well.

* Varies with ComicBook/DoctorStrange. He often unnerves {{muggles}} and other superheroes without intending to. When he ''does'' try, he's frightening enough to un-hulk and completely alienate Red She-Hulk with a few whispered words. DependingOnTheWriter, the unsettling effect he has on others does not trouble him at all and is just another tool he can use to his best advantage; in other depictions it makes him unhappy and increases the burden of loneliness and isolation he carries as Sorcerer Supreme.
* Creator/GrantMorrison's version of ''ComicBook/DoomPatrol'', as the team consists of Robotman, a cyborg with severe body dysphoria caused by the loss of his human body and the crude senses of his machine one, Rebis, a bizarre fusion of man, woman and a negative energy spirit, and Crazy Jane, a woman with severe dissociative identity disorder, each of whom has its own superpower. They deal with surreal and insane threats to the world, and are even called creepy by ComicBook/BoosterGold.
* ComicBook/GhostRider is a leather-clad biker from hell with a flaming skull for a head. He's also a stalwart agent of good and a dedicated protector of the innocent, although occasionally you have to remember that GoodIsNotNice.
* ComicBook/GreenLantern Abin Sur of Earth-20 from ''[[ComicBook/TheMultiversity Society of Super-Heroes: Conquerors of the Counter-World #1]]''. He keeps his distance from the inhabitants of Earth because he's aware that he resembles the world's interpretation of Satan and doesn't want to freak anyone out. Doc Fate doesn't care what he looks like and considers him an ally.
* When ComicBook/IronMan made his debut, he had an all gray suit of armor. A passerby mentioned how creepy he looked in such a dark color so he repainted the suit gold in order to avert this trope.
* Creator/MarvelComics also has the Legion of Monsters, which is [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin what it sounds like]]. Mostly they just try to protect their own kind from [[VanHelsingHateCrimes over-zealous monster hunters]], but they're good people (and Characters/{{Morbius}} the Living Vampire is an occasional full-blown superhero).

** In the early days, Spider-Man was often seen as creepy by many fellow heroes in the Franchise/MarvelUniverse, even as recently as TheNineties, as seen when he and ComicBook/{{Nova}} fought the Tri-Sentinel in ''ComicBook/TheAmazingSpiderMan'' #351–352. Prominent reasons for this were his face-covering mask with giant menacing bug-eyes and his penchant for contorting himself in strange ways, his [[WallCrawl ability to cling to any surface]], and his knack for [[StealthHiBye showing up out of the blue]], to say nothing of the fact that he is often a HeroWithBadPublicity. Also, while it isn't canon, even Characters/{{Wonder Woman|TheCharacter}} mentioned he was creepy during his second {{Crossover}} with Characters/{{Superman|TheCharacter}}.

* Blackarachnia turns out to be this in ''ComicBook/TransformersWindblade''. Despite having a sinister appearance and reputation and being a recluse, she's actually an oracle who worked to bring peace and restore relations between Cybertron and the colonies.

** In his early days, [[Characters/MarvelComicsLogan Wolverine]] was the creepy member of the X-Men. His berserk temper and willingness to kill often freaked out his teammates.
** While he always had a bit of this thanks to his perpetual red glasses/visor, Cyclops really took over in his General of the Mutants phase during the Utopia era and after. Wolverine's temper was seen as perversely comforting, since what you saw was generally what you got. Scott, by contrast, was soft spoken, calm and controlled even when [[TranquilFury ragingly angry]] (given that the man is so good at emotional repression he simply repressed [[EldritchAbomination the Void]] in his head for a while, this is not surprising), and utterly ruthless, manipulating and ordering assassinations whenever he deemed it necessary. While he was doing all of this in an ultimately successful effort to prevent mutantkind going extinct, he profoundly disturbed the majority of his allies.
** These days, Magik -- a teleporting demonic sorceress who carries a hell dimension inside her head, and has more than once plunged teams of X-Men and parts of the world ''into'' hell -- tends to occupy this role.

* Gordon Agrippa from ''Manga/BlackClover'' uses Poison Magic, looks like a goth, and creepily mumbles, but he's actually a super nice guy and aligned with the forces of good.

* Need, in ''Literature/HeraldsOfValdemar'', is introduced as a magic sword which compels its wielder to rush to [[RoaringRampageOfRescue protect]] and [[RoaringRampageOfRevenge avenge]] victimized women - often driving said wielder with pain and a pulling sensation to ride or run for miles [[ChronicHeroSyndrome to find them]]. It also ''possesses'' some wielders at times, relegating them to passengers in their own bodies. In return Need heals and protects them and those they care about. The Heralds setting is pragmatic enough that being made to rush to the aid of strangers who may not "deserve it" is a pain and a danger, making being Need's bearer a case of BlessedWithSuck to some characters.
** Eventually Need 'wakes' and is revealed to be an ancient mage spirit bound to the blade she made, who keeps secrets and always has her own agenda. Some characters remain suspicious of her, with Elspeth disliking her psychic presence and Firesong noting that he's always uncomfortable talking to something without eyes or a face, but she's shown to have only the best intentions and [[AngelUnaware may in fact be an angel]].
---> There had been such a feeling of power when Need had responded to her — a feeling of controlled strength, held back, the way a mastiff would handle a newborn chick.

* Certain guest characters in ''Series/CriminalMinds''. The tattoo artist the team consults about the dead killer’s body art in "[[Recap/CriminalMindsS5E20AThousandWords ...A Thousand Words]]" is a seedy NightmareFetishist, but he also provides the team valuable information and insight even after they reject his request to see the body in person.

* Dr. Henry Morgan of ''Series/Forever2014'' is described as creepy by several people in the pilot. He works as a Medical Examiner, which he describes at one point as "I dismember dead bodies for a living." He can read personal details about people's lives, living or dead, at a glance. According to his resume, his last job before going to medical school (in Guam) was working as a grave-digger. When a warrant is served to search his home because he withheld information about a mass-murder, he's found to have a hidden basement laboratory (which he pronounces with emphasis on the second syllable, like a movie MadScientist) containing body parts (excusable since he's an ME) and "torture devices" ("[[CasualKink All those are for sex.]]") and poisons. When questioned he seems completely unperturbed, stating casually which poison he'd have used instead and agreeing that their suspicions of him are quite reasonable — before poking a great big hole in their theory. It's unclear whether knowing that he's [[Really700YearsOld been alive since the 18th century]] and [[ResurrectiveImmortality can't seem to ''stay'' dead]] would help their impression of him any. He's also an ActualPacifist who has worked as a doctor for a couple hundred years and is quite ready to put himself in danger if it spares someone else.

** [[TheChessmaster Nate]]. In "[[Recap/LeverageS02E03TheOrder23Job The Order 23 Job]]", he comes up with a plan to convince TheMark that's in danger of being exposed to a deadly virus, and his nose starts bleeding as a result of his stress, shocking Parker into thinking that Nate made it happen with his mind. This tendency seems to come out more when he stops drinking:

* Beecher from ''Series/{{Oz}}'' is one of the few genuinely moral and compassionate inmates in Oz; it just so happens that he's also a vengeful berserker who [[GroinAttack once bit off a guy's dick]].

** Finch can find out everything there is to know about someone's personal life and will show off that knowledge in many offhand ways, has surveillance on everyone he's in contact with, and is impossible to pin down or [[TheSpook find anything about him]]. His CreepyMonotone and penchant for SpockSpeak add to the unsettling image.

* ''Series/SesameStreet'': In the first season, the Beautiful Day Monster was like this. He had a rather scary appearance, but was generally curious and well-meaning, even though he often ended up (unintentionally) scaring other Muppets away. Several other minor/one-off first season Muppet monsters were like this too.

* Zigzagged with the ''Franchise/TheAddamsFamily'' franchise. In [[ComicStrip/TheAddamsFamily the original comic strips]] they're just plain creepy while [[Series/TheAddamsFamily the series]] could be the codifier for this trope. [[Film/TheAddamsFamily The films]] lean more towards the creepy than the good, especially regarding Wednesday, but still qualify.
* The titular vigilante on ''Series/{{Arrow}}'' is fighting for justice, but relies heavily on scaring the crap out of bad guys to get information from them, especially when you compare him to more people-friendly superheroes like the Flash and Supergirl. His willingness to kill in the first season (before he adopts and mostly sticks to a ThouShaltNotKill policy) doesn't help his reputation.
** Season 5 introduces Ragman, an eerie figure who speaks with a VoiceOfTheLegion and tends to announce his presence to the bad guys by hiding in the shadows and then using his rag suit's CombatTentacles to drag some helpless {{Mook}}s into the darkness like a horror movie villain. The fact that he's bulletproof may add to this, as the criminals of Star City are used to BadassNormal vigilantes who at least bother to duck when shot at, while Ragman can flat-out ignore the bullets. When not suited up, however, he's one of the kinder, more emotionally adept members of Team Arrow (aside from his RoaringRampageOfRevenge in his debut episode).

* Played for laughs in ''Series/BrooklynNineNine'' with Detective Boyle, who is a good-hearted, friendly and likeable man who only wants to please, but nevertheless has no social skills or internal filter and at times seems determined to express himself in the creepiest ways possible.
* ''Series/CriminalMinds'': Certain guest characters. The tattoo artist the team consults about the dead killer’s body art in "A Thousand Words" is a seedy NightmareFetishist, but he also provides the team valuable information and insight even after they reject his request to see the body in person.

** The Doctor generally acts affably and charmingly, but we are constantly reminded that they are an alien with [[BlueAndOrangeMorality a system of morality which only partially overlaps with human conceptions of good and bad]]. They seem to be rather a fan of the human way of doing things, even if no instinctive capability for it themselves exists -- which is [[MoralityChain the primary reason for taking Companions in the new series]]. Some of the incarnations are particularly terrifying, such as the First, who looks and acts like a MadScientist and [[{{Jerkass}} does not seem to care about other people at all]], the Fourth who had [[CreepyBlueEyes strange bulging eyes]] and cared exclusively about his own freedom, the Sixth who bordered on MonsterClown, the Seventh, a Machiavellian [[TheChessmaster Chessmaster]] who used [[ObfuscatingStupidity a thin veneer of bumbling-fool]] to use everyone around him as pawns, and the Tenth, who appears to be a dashing romantic but is at heart unspeakably ruthless. Several characters mention being instinctively afraid of the Ninth Doctor, with Rose even saying at one point that she found him scarier on first meeting than her first encounter with a Dalek.
*** The Twelfth Doctor is pretty much a reconstruction of this trope. Clara goes from being doted on by an appeasing old man with a handsome face to being pestered by a glowering, ruthless pragmatist with a paranoid streak. It takes her until the ending of "Mummy on the Orient Express", eight episodes after his regeneration, for her to understand he genuinely means to help as many people as possible with limited resources and isn't being a jerk for the sake of it. By the end of his tenure he's arguably the '''kindest''' Doctor of all. The short story "Baby Sleepy Face" describes him, as seen through the eyes of twin kids, with "...and he looked both terrifying and kind, all at the same time."
** A number of monsters end up being this, such as the Ood, and as revealed in "Time of the Doctor", [[spoiler: most of the Silence]]. "The Sensorites" introduces us to a race of aliens that use psychic MindRape as a weapon and uses a closeup of a hideous Sensorite against the glass of the spaceship as its first {{Cliffhanger}}, but they turn out to be a rather sweet, vulnerable species who really just want the humans to leave them alone.
** The fish people in "The Underwater Menace" horrify Polly, but it soon turns out that they're actually just human survivors of shipwrecks who were surgically converted to work as slaves by the Atlanteans. They aren't bad people and are persuaded very easily to go on strike in order to help defeat the MadScientist trying to blow up the earth ForTheEvulz.
** [[spoiler:The Rills]] from "Galaxy 4". Fanged, ammonia-breathing monsters with booming voices and hand claws that look like a cross between Jabba the Hutt and Satan's pet angler fish. Also sweet, hospitable, and eternally forgiving [[spoiler: even after both the brutish Drahvins and the misguided TARDIS crew repeatedly attack them and their robots]].

*** Turlough was [[spoiler:an alien political exile]] coerced into attempting to assassinate the Doctor, who the Doctor's other companion Tegan distrusted. Even [[spoiler:post-HeelFaceTurn]] he still comes off as secretive and offputting.
*** Handles was the scooped out head of a Cyberman that the Eleventh Doctor liked to talk to when there were no humans around.
** Mr. Razor from "World Enough and Time" is a creepy old man, dresses like a hobo and is just [[ConditionedToAcceptHorror a bit too okay]] with all of the patients in the hospital being [[UnwillingRoboticisation converted into Cybermen]]. Nevertheless, he befriends Bill and keeps her company for the ten years she spends in the hospital. [[spoiler: At the end of the episode this is ''horrifically'' averted, as Razor turns out to be '''''TheMaster''''' [[BitchInSheepsClothing in disguise]], luring Bill into her own Cyber-conversion mere ''hours'' before the Doctor arrives to save her, then teaming up with Missy to capture and attempt to kill the Doctor.]]

--->'''Parker:''' Past Parker is dead. She dies every second, over and over. Future Parker never arrives. She's suspended in time, forever.
--->'''Breanna:''' Sometimes you forget how her brain works, then ''(explosion noise)''.
** [[TheChessmaster Nate]]. In "[[Recap/LeverageS02E03TheOrder23Job The Order 23 Job]]" he comes up with a plan to convince TheMark that's in danger of being exposed to a deadly virus, and his nose starts bleeding as a result of his stress, shocking Parker into thinking that Nate made it happen with his mind. This tendency seems to come out more when he stops drinking:
--->'''Nate:''' I mean, if you have a body in the trunk of your car, you're gonna drive under the speed limit, right?
--->'''Parker:''' You know, when you're sober your metaphors get even creepier.
* Glen Bishop has [[CreepyChild off putting behavior]] in the early seasons of ''Series/MadMen'', but his intentions have largely been benign and in the latter seasons has proven to be the most decent person in Sally's life.

* ''Series/{{Psych}}'' introduces us to [[GenderBlenderName Mary Lightly (it's a family name)]], a geeky, clingy psychologist who speaks in monotone and has no social skills. He appears in a few episodes to help the protagonists track the recurring villains Yin and Yang, with whom he ''might'' be a little obsessed. Main hero Shawn Spencer suspects that Mary ''is'' Yin since he knows so much about the two murdering fiends; [[spoiler:these suspicions are allayed when Yin kills Mary during the season 4 finale]].

* Series/SherlockHolmes:

** Similarly, the Creator/JeremyBrett version is aristocratic, pallid, and condescending, even bordering on snappish. Also, his depiction doesn't gloss over the character's drug addiction, or pass off Sherlock's sexism as FairForItsDay. He's shown to care about helping his clients, but genuinely dislikes the attention that might come with it.

* ''Series/{{Smallville}}'', "Homecoming", [[spoiler:Brainiac 5]]. When he first appears, he starts off by performing some of his trademark MindRape. The fact that he keeps his CreepyMonotone doesn't help matters, and Clark immediately demanded that he leave everyone alone the moment he came in.
* ''Series/TheXFiles'' episode "Revelations" has the boy who has been suffering from stigmata being abducted by a creepy man with vaguely demonic features (played by Creator/MichaelBerryman), who is revealed midway through the episode [[spoiler: to be acting as the boy's guardian angel. After he dies fighting the real villain Scully even notes how during the autopsy his body shows no signs of decomposition, a characteristic described as that of a saint]].
* Beecher from ''Series/{{Oz}}'' is one of the few genuinely moral and compassionate inmates in Oz; it just so happens that he's also a vengeful berserker who [[GroinAttack once bit off a guy's dick.]]
* Tyler in the original ''[[https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Series/V1983 V]]'' is a rough and tumble former CIA agent assisting, training and arming his fellow rebels against the visitors. Proving that GoodIsNotSoft he can go from plain "creepy" to outright terrifying. Portrated by Creator/MichaelIronside in case you wonder.

* ''Literature/TheJungleBook'' has Kaa, an enormous and ancient rock python. He's incredibly old, possibly thousands of years old in fact, and his hypnotic powers are downright terrifying, which is probably why he's subject to AdaptationalVillainy in adaptations like [[WesternAnimation/TheJungleBook1967 the 1967 Disney version]]. That being said, in the book he's a [[OldMaster wise and helpful mentor]] to Mowgli, and saves his life several times. He's also one of the physically strongest characters in the book; when Mowgli's trapped in a cistern, even though Bagheera and Baloo are both present, it's Kaa who breaks him out (by using his own head as a battering ram).

** Alexandrite has two mouths, six arms, is two stories tall, and has a tendency to argue with herself.

* ''VideoGame/{{Control}}'' has an entity (or possibly a group of entities) called The Board, an ambiguously benevolent EldritchAbomination represented by [[SinisterGeometry an upside-down black pyramid in a white plane]] that ostensibly serves as [[BigGood the highest authority of The Oldest House and the Federal Bureau of Control.]] Their intentions are vague, they communicate through a very confusing, at-times contradictory form of [[MultipleChoiceFormLetter multiple-choice speaking]], and it's strongly implied that their partnership with humans has less to do with mutual agreement and more that [[InMysteriousWays it simply betters their own agenda, which exists beyond human comprehension]]. With all that said, however, their shared goals are broad enough that their willingness to cooperate is sincere, and they ultimately work in the best interest of helping and protecting [[PlayerCharacter Jesse]] and the Bureau at large.