History Main / FightingFingerprint

* ''Film/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles'': After the battle Tatsu led against the turtles in April's antique shop, Shredder ruminates on Tatsu's report of the fight, causing Tatsu to ask what the issue is. Shredder clearly had this trope in mind when he answers "Something about the way you describe their fighting. Something familiar. Something... from the past." He would later find out the turtles were taught by the former pet rat of his arch nemesis Hamato Yoshi.

* Taskmaster tries to invoke this in one episode of ''WesternAnimation/UltimateSpiderMan2012'' by impersonating a substitute gym teacher and using an obstacle course to identify Spider-Man. It could have worked, [[JustifiedTrope given that Taskmaster has the explicit ability to memorize movement patterns]], if not for Peter's habit of [[WillfullyWeak under-performing]] in class to maintain his "clumsy nerd" persona.

* In ''FanFic/ANinjasGuideToGotham'', Hayate Gekko is able to figure out that [[{{Franchise/Batman}} Batman and Red Hood]] have fought together before and trained in the same style by observing them go BackToBackBadasses against the Fearsome Hand of Four. He quickly works out that they're family by carefully observing [[{{ComicBook/Nightwing}}'s Nightwing]] and [[SecretSecretKeeper his sister]]'s reactions.

* Lampshaded in ''Fanfic/TheFifthAct''. While discussing the swordsman who could best Sephiroth, Angeal asks Sephiroth if Cloud Strife could be someone he wronged in the past. When Sephiroth responds that Cloud's sword separated, Angeal and Genesis agree that such a unique fighting style would be impossible to forget.

* In ''Anime/SailorMoon'' episode 100 (dubbed as "Individual Happiness"), Sailor Venus battles the MonsterOfTheWeek in a one-on-one game of volleyball -- the ball is an energy sphere protecting the [[HeartDrive Pure Heart Crystal]] extracted from the monster's victim. In the climax of the fight, Venus makes a diving save that the half-conscious victim recognizes as the exact move that Venus performed earlier in her civilian identity.

* ''Manga/AttackOnTitan'': Annie's ruthlessly efficient fighting style is unique. Because of it, Armin [[spoiler:uses it as evidence that she is the Female Titan]], and after she taught it to Eren, he manages to pull one over Reiner in their fight. [[spoiler:Eren lost the first Titan fight against Annie]] because he recognized her fighting style and was distracted [[spoiler:when he realized Annie was the Female Titan.]]
* ''Anime/MobileFighterGGundam:'' Domon figures out that a cloaked stranger is actually Master Asia after he uses a piece of cloth for a weapon and strikes his signature pose.
* In ''Manga/MagicalGirlLyricalNanohaVivid'', Einhart comes to realize that, while Vivio has the [[ArtificialHuman same body]] as [[CrystalDragonJesus the last Sankt Kaiser]], Olivie Sägebrecht, [[ClonesArePeopleToo they are not the same person]] as their fighting styles are completely different.
* In one episode of ''Manga/YamadaKunAndTheSevenWitches'', Yamada, a well-known delinquent around school who uses a trade-mark round-house kick to win a lot of fights, gets identified as himself after [[FreakyFridayFlip switching bodies]] with a female classmate when he uses the same kick in a fight.

* ''Literature/FateZero'': Beserker is a knight cloaked in a shadowy aura that obscures his identity, so it remains a mystery for most of the story. Saber finally guesses Berserker's identity when he is able to effectively block and parry her invisible sword, showing that he knows its exact length and shape, realizing that he has to be one of the Knights of the Round Table. [[spoiler:He's Sir Lancelot.]]
* In ''Manga/DragonBall'', Chi-Chi entered herself in the Tenkaichi Budokai as Anonymous to keep her identity a secret from Goku, who hadn't seen her since they were children. While Master Roshi couldn't figure out who she was, he immediately picked up on her use of his own Turtle School fighting style, which she got from her father Ox-King, Roshi's former student.

* In the ''ComicBook/UsagiYojimbo'' story "Demon Mask", the SerialKiller antagonist who targets ronin (like Usagi) uses a unique slashing technique. Usagi later notices the local guards practicing the same technique and discovers that it's called the "Full Moon Slash", and their late former captain (who was murdered by a ronin in the past) was the one who taught them. Usagi puts two and two together and realizes that the killer is [[spoiler:the late captain's father, who taught his son the technique, having gone insane with grief over his son's death and targeting ronin because a ronin killed his son.]]
* Tom "Pie-Face" Kalmaku recognizes his friend Hal Jordan is ''ComicBook/GreenLantern'' because they have the same right hook.

* In ''ComicBook/ThePunisher2099'', Jake is fighting a supervillain villain named Hot Wire, who can digitize himself to interact with electronic systems. Jake performs a PunchCatch on him, which he counters by turning his arm and ramming his elbow into Jake's face. Jake is shocked because it's a move he made up himself and there's only one other person he taught it to--his son, Dean Gallows.
* ''ComicBook/CaptainAmerica'' 411-412 (vol. 1): Cap, Diamondback and Falcon infiltrated [[NebulousEvilorganization A.I.M.]] Island during an annual weapons expo (protected by international law), disguised as villians Crossbones, Mother Dark and Jack O'Lantern, respectively. Unfortunately for Cap, this was at a time where Crossbones had already agreed to fight five opponents picked by [[WorthyOpponent Batroc The Leaper]], to prove he (Crossbones) was the best hand-to-hand fighter in their ranks. The fifth opponent was Batroc himself, who immediately let Cap know he'd recognized his fighting style, but he'd keep quiet if he (as Crossbones) threw the match. When Cap [[HonorBeforeReason tries to choke out Batroc to keep him quiet]], a cohort of Batroc's immediately blew the whistle on Cap from outside the ring. Cue dogpile on Cap.

* Members of the Vale Secret Service in ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12574905/1/In-the-Kingdom-s-Service In the Kingdom's Service]]'' use different weapons while on the job than they do in their day to day lives for this exact reason. Oobleck trains Jaune in knife fighting as knives are versatile, easily concealable, and vastly different than using a sword and shield. Presumably this also applies to [[CoverBlowingSuperpower distinctive Semblances]].
** Later utilized when Jaune faces an Atlas agent while undercover. Jaune recognizes her stance as one used by Oobleck but can't verbally state that he's a VSS agent so instead uses another stance Oobleck teaches, knowing she'd recognize it.

* ''Fanfic/TheDimensionalDrifter'': Yuya makes the connection between Judai and Sora when he notices that both are experts in Fusion Summoning but are inexperienced with Action Duels. That's when he starts prodding Sora about his background, and asks Judai if they went to the same Academia, as this particular combination of skills is extremely unusual in the city Yuya's from.
* Liu Qingge from ''Fanfic/RouletteWheelOfFate'' comes to understand his shixiong has been replaced by another person entirely because of this; Shen Qingqiu isn't the CombatPragmatist Shen Jiu was, being much more calculative and prone to redirect his foe's strength against them.

* In the ''Literature/HarryPotter'' series, the Expelliarmus Spell is this to Harry. Becomes a bit of a problem when he is supposed to be hiding behind several people disguised as him, because it helps the Death Eaters to recognize their main target. It started out as just being one of the few dueling spells Harry knew, but it worked out so well for him initially that for the next several books he made little effort to learn more and almost always defaulted to casting it. [[CripplingOverspecialization This turned out to be a poor choice.]]

* ''{{Literature/Drenai}}'': In ''The King Beyond the Gate'', a ScarilyCompetentTracker pursuing Tenaka Khan manages to identify his quarry based on a pair of footprints in the middle of a battlefield. The prints show that someone, during the fighting, leapt into the air and spun around to deliver a cut, and the tracker knows that Tenaka is the only person insane enough to try a leapspin in a serious fight, especially when outnumbered, as well as good enough to actually pull it off.

* On ''Series/{{Nikita}}'', Nikita recognizes her opponent, even with the hood, because of his fighting abilities in the second season episode "Doublecross".

* In an early episode of ''Series/{{Chuck}}'', Sarah recognizes the masked woman who attacks her in her apartment as "Carina" because she always telegraphs her punches. Or so she claims.

* A mild example in ''Series/Warehouse13'', where Helena explains how she figured out that TimeTravel was possible. The night her daughter was killed in a home invasion, her maid tried to fight off the burglars. When questioning one of the burglars, she realized that the maid was using Kempo, Helena's favored fighting style, which the maid didn't know. Thus, she knew that she would one day build a time machine and use MentalTimeTravel to possess her maid.

* ''Series/Daredevil2015'': Matt Murdock visits Wilson Fisk in prison and is disturbed to realise [[MightAsWellNotBeInPrisonAtAll he is basically running the place]], shown when Murdock angers Fisk enough that Fisk reveals his handcuffs are loose and starts beating on Murdock and vowing to get his revenge on him and all his friends for putting him in jail once he gets out. Murdock manages to punch him in self-defence before getting out of there, and Fisk goes back to his cell...and it dawns on him that the last person to hit him like that was Daredevil, so he orders the files they have on Murdock brought in for a closer look.

** Referenced in ''Series/MightyMorphinPowerRangers''. Faced with Trini and the MonsterOfTheWeek shapeshifted into her, Jason suggests they both attack him, as he knows the real Trini's fighting style. The monster actually gives himself away by being way too eager, where as the real Trini refused to fight a friend.

* ''Series/PersonOfInterest''. At the start of Season 4, Team Machine are hiding from ArtificialIntelligence Samaritan. While handling the case of the week, John Reese does a DynamicEntry with a GrenadeLauncher, followed by a BarBrawl with DestinationDefenestration and PerpSweating, only to be knocked unconscious and dragged out of there by Sameen Shaw, as he's doing all his signature moves which will only draw Samaritan onto them.
* ''Series/KamenRiderGaim'': Used as a plot point. Oren Pierre Alfonso (Armored Rider Bravo) interferes in a bout between Gaim and Zangetsu, claiming the latter completely lacked the elegance he had in prior fights, and then proves it via outmaneuvering and flooring him. [[spoiler:He's right. Mitsuzane had been impersonating his older brother, Takatora, the latter of whom Oren had a mancrush on.]]
* ''Series/{{Treadstone}}''. A CIA agent is shown security video of some psycho who killed everyone in a 7/11 store. On further study however, he notes the smooth one-handed draw, the fast yet accurate shooting, and rather than just shooting from right-to-left like most right-handed shooters would, the shooter selected his targets on the basis of threat level--from the youngest and physically fit to the oldest--showing calm thinking under pressure. All of which fit a Treadstone SuperSoldier.

* {{Subverted|Trope}} in Wrestling/{{TNA}} regarding Suicide. Don West had figured out through observing him that Suicide was Wrestling/ChristopherDaniels and accused Daniels of using a mask to earn two pay checks from TNA. But by the time West had figured this out and Daniels had reappeared, he had given the Suicide suit back to his good friend and future {{tag team}} partner Wrestling/FrankieKazarian, who he was simply filling in for at the time due to an injury. This also caused something of a subversion when once again, Austin Aries decided to steal another wrestler's identity. So many people had been Suicide at that point no one found it ''too'' odd to see him wrestling like Aries until the current Suicide made it clear Aries was not a "legitimate" inheritor and changed his name to Manik to distance himself from the Aries impostor.[[/folder]]

* In ''VideoGame/LikeADragonIshin'', this is a major plot point that drives the first half of the game. Sakamoto Ryoma's Parental Substitute, Yoshida Toyo, is murdered by a masked individual, with a unique sword style that proves capable of holding back both Ryoma and Takechi Hanpeita, each skilled swordsmen that are formidable in combat, at bay. Accidentally blamed for Toya's murder, Ryoma only has the assailant's unique swordplay as an identifying mark whilst he tries to ClearMyName. He eventually discovers it's the ''Tennen Rishin'' style, drawing from various assets such as jujutsu, staff combat, and old martial arts, with a focus on function over form, the only practitioners of which relocated to Kyo and were eventually turned into the leaders of the Shinsengumi because of their fearsome swordplay. Having crossed blades with the assassin once, he infiltrates the Shinsengumi under the identity of 'Saito Hajime', looking for opportunities to observe their members in a fight to identify which one is the killer he's looking for. As it turns out, apparently aware that his unique swordplay would identify him too much, the killer [[{{Antepiece}} only used the style's foundational techniques]] when clashing against Ryoma, and each member proves to have adapted their own unique take on the style when going all-out.

*** Zuko was also forced to [[CoverBlowingSuperpower out himself as a firebender]] while defending an Earth Kingdom village he was staying in from some Earth Kingdom soldiers who were abusing their authority. He was doing fine with just his swords until the leader of the group proved to be a strong enough earthbender that Zuko had to go all-out in order to win. Afterward he had to flee [[UngratefulTownsfolk the village he'd just saved]].

* In the ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'' episode "Night of the Ninja," the titular ninja kidnaps Bruce Wayne and the journalist Summer Gleeson, and Bruce deliberately fights below his actual skills as long as Summer is a witness, because of this trope (billionnaire Bruce Wayne isn't known for his martial skills). However, Bruce eventually turns back to his actual style once Robin manages to blind Summer,[[note]]Afterward, Bruce told her [[ExactWords Batman arrived and rescued them]] while her head was covered[[/note]] and this very fight results in the ninja figuring out that Bruce is Batman, because they both studied martial arts under the same master in the past and had fought before.

* ''WesternAnimation/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles2012'': Michelangelo befriends a famous martial artist and learns one of his secret katas. When Splinter sees the move he immediately deduces that whoever taught Michelangelo must have been trained by the Foot Clan because it comes from his arch rival Shredder's fighting style.
** This case is less egregious than most, as a Kata is a VERY formalized training set of moves. While Splinter only sees the tail end...you actually COULD recognize a school by the kata.

* On ''WesternAnimation/XiaolinShowdown'' Omi's old friend Jermaine arrives at the temple having become a xiaolin monk since they last met. During a sparring match between the two, Jermaine manages to beat Omi using a move called "Repulse the Monkey", which makes Omi suspicious because it's a move that had been used on him before--by super bad guy Chase Young. It turns out that Jermaine had been training under Chase, and was unaware that he was evil.

* PlayedForLaughs in ''LightNovel/{{Durarara}}'' A vending machine flying through the air is enough for Kida to identify [[SuperStrength Shizuo Hewaijima]] at a 500 meter distance.

* ''LightNovel/FateZero'': Beserker is a knight cloaked in a shadowy aura that obscures his identity, so it remains a mystery for most of the story. Saber finally guesses Berserker's identity when he is able to effectively block and parry her invisible sword, showing that he knows its exact length and shape, realizing that he has to be one of the Knights of the Round Table. [[spoiler:He's Sir Lancelot.]]

* In ''ComicBook/FiftyTwo'', Renee Montoya realizes that Batwoman is her ex-girlfriend Kate Kane because she uses the exact same punching technique (in addition to the other clues.)

* ''Series/KamenRiderGaim'': Used as a plot point. Oren Pierre Alfonso (Armored Rider Bravo) interferes in a bout between Gaim and Zangetsu, claiming the latter completely lacked the elegance he had in prior fights, and then proves it via outmaneuvering and flooring him. [[spoiler: He's right. Mitsuzane had been impersonating his older brother, Takatora, the latter of whom Oren had a mancrush on.]]

* PlayedForLaughs by some of the EnemyChatter after the ending of ''VideoGame/BatmanArkhamKnight''. As it turns out, [[spoiler: one of the random thugs Bruce Wayne beat up in the beginning of ''[[VideoGame/BatmanArkhamCity Arkham City]]'' noticed that he fought like Batman. But he thought the realization was just a concussion at the time.]]

* When Sora faces [[spoiler: "Ansem"]] in ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII'' completely concealed in an Organization Black cloak, he's able to guess that it's actually Riku based on fighting style and signature weapon.

* ''VideoGame/WingCommanderIVThePriceOfFreedom'': A particular technique, practiced only by the most reckless of fighter pilots, involves dropping a mine and waiting until the last possible second before engaging the engines, and [[ExplosionPropulsion using the shockwave from the mine's explosion to propel the fighter away]]. [[spoiler: It's eventually used to connect the AcePilot [[SociopathicSoldier "Seether"]] with a series of atrocities against civilians.]]

* ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'': This is the problem with [[ElementalPowers bending powers]]. They can only be mastered by the people of the ElementalNation corresponding to them, meaning that if you use for example [[MakingASplash waterbending]], you're sure to be recognized to be a member of the Water Tribe. This applies especially to [[TheHero Aang]], who ([[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin as the title of the series suggests]]) is the [[TheLastOfHisKind last]] [[BlowYouAway airbender]], so if he uses his powers, everyone can figure out that he's [[MessianicArchetype the Avatar]].

* In the ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'' episode "Night of the Ninja," the titular ninja kidnaps Bruce Wayne and the journalist Summer Gleeson, and Bruce deliberately fights below his actual skills as long as Summer is a witness, because of this trope (billionnaire Bruce Wayne isn't known for his martial skills). However, Bruce eventually turns back to his actual style once Robin manages to blind Summer[[note]]Afterward, Bruce told her [[ExactWords Batman arrived and rescued them]] while her head was covered[[/note]], and this very fight results in the ninja figuring out that Bruce is Batman, because they both studied martial arts under the same master in the past and had fought before.

* In the ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'' episode "Night of the Ninja," the titular ninja kidnaps Bruce Wayne and the journalist Summer Gleeson, and Bruce deliberately fights below his actual skills as long as Summer is a witness, because of this trope. However, Bruce eventually turns back to his actual style once Robin manages to blind Summer[[note]]Afterward, Bruce told her [[ExactWords Batman arrived and rescued them]] while her head was covered[[/note]], and this very fight results in the ninja figuring out that Bruce is Batman, because they both studied martial arts under the same master in the past and had fought before.

* In the ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'' episode "Night of the Ninja," the titular ninja kidnaps Bruce Wayne and the journalist Summer Gleeson, and Bruce deliberately fights below his actual skills as long as Summer is a witness, because of this trope. However, Bruce eventually turns back to his actual style once Robin manages to blind Summer, and this very fight results in the ninja figuring out that Bruce is Batman, because they both studied martial arts under the same master in the past and had fought before.

* In the ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'' episode "Night of the Ninja," the titular ninja figures out that Bruce Wayne is Batman after fighting him, because they both studied martial arts under the same master in the past and had fought before.

* In the ''Series/BurnNotice'' episode "Comrades", Michael Westen (in one of his narrative spy tips) talks about the importance of knowing different fighting styles and remembering which one to use depending on your cover. In the episode he was posing as a Russian [[TheMafiya Mafiya]] mook and so had to use a fighting style called Sambo.

* In ''VideoGame/LikeADragonIshin'', this is a major plot point that drives the first half of the game. Sakamoto Ryoma's Parental Substitute, Yoshida Toyo, is murdered by a masked individual, with a unique sword style that proves capable of holding back both Ryoma and Takechi Hanpeita, each skilled swordsmen that are formidable in combat, at bay. Accidentally blamed for Toya's murder, Ryoma only has the assailant's unique swordplay as an identifying mark whilst he tries to ClearMyName. He eventually discovers it's the ''Tennen Rishin'' style, drawing from various assets such as jujutsu, staff combat, and old martial arts, with a focus on function over form, the only practitioners of which relocated to Kyo and were eventually turned into the leaders of the Shinsengumi because of their fearsome swordplay. Having crossed blades with the assassin once, he infiltrates the Shinsengumi under the identity of 'Saito Hajime', looking for opportunities to observe their members in a fight to identify which one is the killer he's looking for. As it turns out, apparently aware that his unique swordplay would identify him too much, the killer [[Antepiece only used the style's foundational techniques]] when clashing against Ryoma, and each member proves to have adapted their own unique take on the style when going all-out.

This is a less meta-y trope than TellMeHowYouFight. Compare CoverBlowingSuperpower and RevealingSkill. Often the mark of a MasterApprenticeChain.

* ''VideoGame/AceCombat'':
** In ''VideoGame/AceCombat5TheUnsungWar'', as Pops and the Wardog squadron flee from the 8492nd squadron, the leader of the 8492nd notices Pops’ flying style and realizes that he’s actually Huckenbein the Raven, an ace pilot who betrayed his homeland during the [[VideoGame/AceCombatZeroTheBelkanWar Belkan War]].
** {{Inverted}} in ''VideoGame/AceCombat7SkiesUnknown''. When Trigger has his final showdown with Mihaly, Count, Húxiän, and Jeager all notice how Mihaly was flying like the drone that Trigger and Count had encountered in "Transfer Orders". They then realize that it was the other way around, and that it was the drone that was flying like Mihaly. [[spoiler:The FinalBoss, Hugin and Munin, also had their flying styles based off of Mihaly.]]
* ''VideoGame/WingCommanderIVThePriceOfFreedom'': A particular technique, practiced only by the most reckless of fighter pilots, involves dropping a mine and waiting until the last possible second before engaging the engines, and [[ExplosionPropulsion using the shockwave from the mine's explosion to propel the fighter away]]. [[spoiler: It's eventually used to connect the AcePilot [[SociopathicSoldier "Seether"]] with a series of atrocities against civilians.]]
* PlayedForLaughs by some of the EnemyChatter after the ending of ''VideoGame/BatmanArkhamKnight''. As it turns out, [[spoiler: one of the random thugs Bruce Wayne beat up in the beginning of ''[[VideoGame/BatmanArkhamCity Arkham City]]'' noticed that he fought like Batman. But he thought the realization was just a concussion at the time.]]
* Shows up in a way in ''VideoGame/UtawarerumonoMaskOfTruth''. Near the start of the game, the Pillar General Mikazuchi challenges Oshtor, another Pillar general, to a duel. As these two are warriors that have known each other for years to the point of seeing each other as brothers, they have of course dueled plenty of times before, knowing how the other fights down to instinct. However after a single blow against Oshtor, Mikazuchi simply stops and asks "Who are you?!". This of course a result of the fact that this "Oshtor" is an imposter who took up the mantle of the real one following his death, so of course their fighting styles don't match.

** The increased intermixture between the Four Nations in ''WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfKorra'' reduces this, however. While interracial relationships were obviously uncommon when one nation was functionally extinct and a second was waging a genocidal war against the entire rest of the world, the 70+ years of peace following the end of the first season - and the creation of Republic City, which isn't bound to a specific nation - saw at least a few. Mako and Bolin, for example, come from both Earth and Fire stock, and as such one is a firebender and the other an earthbender [[spoiler:specifically a lavabender]]. And then thrown out the window entirely in season 3; [[spoiler:after Harmonic Convergence, citizens of any nation can gain airbending; the majority come from the Earth Kingdom mostly because of its high population]].
*** This trope is also what allows Tarrlok to realize that [[spoiler:Amon is his long-lost brother, Noatak. When Amon de-bends him, Tarrlok recognizes the sensation as being that of his brother's bloodbending]].

* ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsRebels'': In [[Recap/StarWarsRebelsS1E03RiseOfTheOldMasters "Rise of the Old Masters"]], the Grand Inquisitor is able to figure out who Kanan's master was (Depa Billaba) based on his fighting style...and the fact that Kanan doesn't use it correctly shows he never completed his training (he was a 14-year-old padawan when Order 66 came down).

* ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsRebels'': In [[Recap/StarWarsRebelsS1E03RiseOfTheOldMasters "Rise of the Old Masters"]], the Grand Inquisitor is able to figure out who Kanan's master was (Depa Billaba) based on his fighting style...and the fact that Kanan doesn't use it correctly shows he never completed his training.

* ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsRebels'': In [[Recap/StarWarsRebelsS1E03RiseOfTheOldMasters "Rise of the Old Masters"]], the Grand Inquisitor is able to figure out who Kanan's master was (Depa Billaba) based on his fighting style.

* In [[Literature/InheritanceCycle Eldest]], Eragon figures out his opponent's identity during the climax when he recognizes a sword flourish.
* In [[Literature/TheWitcher the Witcher saga]], Bonhart figures out Ciri's identity after watching her fight. As a competent swordsman himself, he realizes her deadly fencing is essentially improvisational, which was a hallmark of witchers' fencing. Given that witcher-trained girls were, shall we say, uncommon, the rest was more or less a formality.

* ''Videogame/{{Fire Emblem}}:

** In both ''Videogame/{{Fire Emblem Awakening}}'' and ''Videogame/{{Fire Emblem Warriors}}'', "Marth" says she learned to fight from her father. Since she uses the same fighting style as Chrom, who is self-taught, this serves as a big clue that "Marth" is actually Chrom's child from the future.

* ''Videogame/WingCommanderIVThePriceOfFreedom'': A particular technique, practiced only by the most reckless of fighter pilots, involves dropping a mine and waiting until the last possible second before engaging the engines, and [[ExplosionPropulsion using the shockwave from the mine's explosion to propel the fighter away]]. [[spoiler: It's eventually used to connect the AcePilot [[SociopathicSoldier "Seether"]] with a series of atrocities against civilians.]]
* PlayedForLaughs by some of the EnemyChatter after the ending of VideoGame/BatmanArkhamKnight. As it turns out, [[spoiler: one of the random thugs Bruce Wayne beat up in the beginning of [[Videogame/BatmanArkhamCity Arkham City]] noticed that he fought like Batman. But he thought the realization was just a concussion at the time.]]

* In ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitans'', this actually works against Robin when [[TheRealRemingtonSteele someone new]] shows up wearing the Red X suit that he himself once used against his friends. After the entire team is effectively curbstomped by Red X, it takes some convincing for the other Titans to believe that it's ''not'' Robin this time (they first suspect that "their" Robin is either some kind of hologram or a robot). Why? Because the "new" Red X's fighting style is so incredibly similar to Robin's own. It never is revealed just who the new Red X is, or why their fighting style is so much like Robin's.
* Taskmaster tries to invoke this in one episode of ''WesternAnimation/UltimateSpiderMan'' by impersonating a substitute gym teacher and using an obstacle course to identify Spider-Man. It could have worked, [[JustifiedTrope given that Taskmaster has the explicit ability to memorize movement patterns]], if not for Peter's habit of [[WillfullyWeak under-performing]] in class to maintain his "clumsy nerd" persona.
* Played a bit tragically in ''WesternAnimation/YoungJustice''. Artemis gets into a fight with her father Sportsmaster while masked and undercover. She tries to reveal her true identity by having her telepathic friend share her childhood memories with her father, but he dismisses it as a trick. It's not until she beats him up that he recognises the combat style he taught her and stands down. Sportsmaster isn't the best dad.

* Greil from ''VideoGame/FireEmblemPathOfRadiance'' immediately identifies the completely anonymous Black Knight as one of his former students after exchanging blows and hearing his manner of speech. In ''VideoGame/FireEmblemRadiantDawn'', Ranulf identifies him after fighting him in costume and out of costume, and also acknowledges his scent. After being told about his identity, Ike confirms it after clashing with him out of costume and claims it makes perfect sense in hindsight because their fighting style is identical.