History Main / JadeColoredGlasses

* Lelouch in ''Anime/CodeGeass'' could be considered an example as well given his [[DarkAndTroubledPast troubled backstory]], only that the glasses he wears are of a much darker tint.

* Played literally in the ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'' episode "[[GrowingUpSucks You're Getting Old]]" where Stan, upon reaching his 10th birthday, contracts 'cynicism' -- depicted as an illness that causes everything you see to look like shit and everything you hear to sound like shit and everything you eat to taste like shit, etc. In the following episode, he learns that the best way to treat his cynicism is by [[DrowningMySorrows drinking alcohol]].

** Quackity started out as an optimistic budding politician who believed [[RousseauWasRight there was good in everyone]] when he ran against Wilbur in the L'Manburg Election. During that time, Wilbur, who was already [[SanitySlippage spiraling mentally]], gave him some advice on how violence was the key to power on the server. Seven months and [[BreakTheCutie many traumatic events]] later, Quackity embraces Wilbur's cynical mentality but swears to not make the same mistakes Wilbur did. Ultimately this becomes somewhat {{deconstructed|Trope}}. After having his old idealism shattered, Quackity went down a dark road that gradually lead to him becoming crueler as a person, teaching people 'lessons' under the mindset that he was helping them come to the same realizations he had and manipulating them to work for him. However, [[spoiler:Slime would later cause Quackity to question this mindset, and later Purpled would betray Quackity because of the destruction of his home, which would never have happened had Quackity been more kind in his recruitment methods]], further showing the flaws in Quackity's overly cynical outlook.

* The ''FanFic/SleeperHitAU'' involves Midoriya Izuku [[ForWantOfANail remaining Quirkless]]. Though he still pursues his dreams of becoming a Pro Hero and has succeeded by the time the main story begins, this hasn't been without considerable hardship -- including getting expelled from U.A. on his very first day due to Aizawa's ulterior motives and struggling to find a school willing to take a chance on a 'powerless' student. This has left him convinced that the only reason anyone would be kind towards him ''now'' is to further their own agenda, such as making themselves look good in the public eye.

* In the short-lived ''WesternAnimation/NeighborsFromHell'', Jane Lynch plays a representative of the [=E.P.A.=] sent to investigate the drill that would go through {{Hell}}. Baltazor, a demon sent to the surface to infiltrate the company that's made the drill, tries to convince her to have declared an environmental hazard and shut down the project. After she kidnaps him and tries to rape him, he manages to talk her down and tries to convince her to shut the project down. When she says she already accepted the bribe to look the other way, he calls her out on it. She then reveals that she became part of the [=EPA=] to protect the environment, but after she saw that people either bribed officials and polluted anyway, or happily paid the insignificant fines and kept destroying the planet, she realized that saving the planet was useless, and decided to play along.

* To an extent Rose from ''Webcomic/{{Homestuck}}''. Ironically, not the character actually named Jade. She's a WideEyedIdealist.
** ...so [[PunnyName Jade wears Rose-Coloured Glasses while Rose wears Jade-Coloured Glasses?]]

*** This subverted a year (in-story) later when John watches Con Air on a montage where he passes the time by himself as he waits to reunite with many of his friends after three years, and he loves the movie once again.

* ''VideoGame/{{Beastieball}}'': [[MentorInSourArmor Redd]] has been figuratively wearing these for many years before the story, as the league and Beastieball grew ever more competitive, and became less about fun. This led to him eventually loosing his drive to win.

** Auron in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyX'' was a WideEyedIdealist and true believer in his first pilgrimage with Braska, but after [[spoiler:he found out the truth and was killed in Zanarkand]], he became a much more [[IncrediblyLamePun sobering]] influence on the pilgrimage with Yuna.

%%* [[CrazySurvivalist Czeslaw]] [[CreepyChild Meyer]] from ''LightNovel/{{Baccano}}'' wasn't given a pair of jade-colored glasses so much as someone [[ColdBloodedTorture nailed them onto his face]].

* ''LetsPlay/DreamSMP'':

* Pretty much Rock by the Roberta's Blood Trail arc in ''Manga/BlackLagoon''. Living in a WretchedHive / CrapsackWorld will do that to you, especially after the BreakTheCutie incidents he'd suffered in previous arcs.

* In ''Literature/SidStillsBluesThreeQuartersInTheBagInAlphabetCity'', Sid used to be a carefree musician but has become jaded and cynical in his later years, not having released any new music in more than a decade and becoming reclusive. He views himself as an old has-been who has worn out his musical usefulness and is not very famous anymore and is surprised at how excited younger people are to meet him. He is so convinced that he has nothing left to offer the world that he is prepared to simply let his lung cancer kill him.

** [[spoiler:Obito Uchiha]] started out as a good kid until [[spoiler:he got back from being crushed in a jutsu induced landslide just in time to see his best friend murder the girl he liked]]. After that, [[spoiler: he starts an evil organization and plans to become a physical god]].
** Nagato could count as well. He started off as a sweet kid with hopes of changing the world for the better. But after being made into the universe's ChewToy, and witnessing his best friend's death, he becomes determined that only pain can change the world.
* Over the course of ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion'', [[TheChessmaster Gendo Ikari]] shows [[StealthPun shades]] of cynicism in all directions following [[spoiler:the "death" of his wife, Yui Ikari, when Unit 01 sucks her soul inside it and turns her to LCL]] then [[spoiler: failing miserably to resurrect her]], and finally, discovering that [[spoiler:the first Rei clone he ever made from his attempts to rescue Yui, the one remnant of his wife's image, had been mercilessly strangled by Naoko Akagi in a fit of distraught anger (hearing that Gendo called her useless from Rei's mouth made her think it was her old enemy Yui taunting her), who [[DrivenToSuicide killed herself violently]] after seeing what she did.]] At some point in his life, Gendo became afraid of [[spoiler: bonding with anyone, even his son]], and, having lost the one person in his life who truly understood and loved him, turns intensely cold, impassive, and [[MoralMyopia morally]] oblivious to whatever he tries to do- only Instrumentality matters, for it will [[spoiler: let him see Yui once more]]. In the midst of all this, Gendo literally ends up wearing tinted glasses after his old ones break [[spoiler: while rescuing Rei from a superheated Entry Plug]]. While Gendo might seem to be heartless, he's really a JerkWithAHeartOfGold- down deep, there ''is'' regret for what he's done.

** [[spoiler: Kyouko]] used to be a WideEyedIdealist, but had her optimistic worldview shattered when [[spoiler: her father killed her whole family and then himself after finding out people only listened to his preachings because of the wish she'd made.]]

* ''Series/{{Supernatura}}'': Castiel is introduced as someone who believes fully in the mission of Heaven and willing do follow orders to achieve it. Eventually, he admits to Dean he has some doubts and those doubts gradually grow to the point where he rebels and joins Dean and Sam as they try and stop the apocalypse. He then slides into further cynicism when he discovers that God is aware of Heaven's misdeeds and doesn't care.

[[index]]
* JadeColoredGlasses/AnimeAndManga
* JadeColoredGlasses/FanWorks
* JadeColoredGlasses/{{Literature}}
[[/index]]

* JadeColoredGlasses/LiveActionTV
* JadeColoredGlasses/VideoGames
* JadeColoredGlasses/WesternAnimation

Supertrope of GrumpyBear, SillyRabbitIdealismIsForKids, SillyRabbitRomanceIsForKids, TookALevelInCynic, and JadedProfessional. A common trait of the MentorInSourArmor.

[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
* A ''lot'' of people in ''Manga/AttackOnTitan'', but particularly Annie and Ymir, when it comes to selfishness versus selflessness and HeroicSacrifice, respectively. As the series progresses, Armin becomes more and more accepting of [[ShootTheDog doing whatever it takes]] to achieve his goals. [[spoiler:Renier, Bertolt, and Annie]] also suffer from a total loss of hope.
%%* [[CrazySurvivalist Czeslaw]] [[CreepyChild Meyer]] from ''LightNovel/{{Baccano}}'' wasn't given a pair of jade-colored glasses so much as someone [[ColdBloodedTorture nailed them onto his face]].
* Pretty much Rock by the Roberta's Blood Trail arc in ''Manga/BlackLagoon''. Living in a WretchedHive / CrapsackWorld will do that to you, especially after the BreakTheCutie incidents he'd suffered in previous arcs.
* ''Manga/{{Bleach}}'': Flashbacks reveal that Ryuuken Ishida used to be a WideEyedIdealist who was under a lot of pressure to protect the future of the Quincies. A [[TraumaCongaLine series of disasters]] occurred that culminated in him suffering a HeroicBSOD that slid over the DespairEventHorizon when his wife was murdered by the [[TheEmperor Quincy King]]; in the present, he's very attached to the jade-colored glasses he wears for all things Quincy. His son, who doesn't know the truth, is extremely frustrated with it. That's the brief version, but it gets worse: [[spoiler:Yhwach's method of murdering Quincies creates a blood clot made of Stil Silver. Ryuuken autopsied his own wife to collect the silver in order to forge the only weapon capable of de-powering Yhwach long enough to kill him. Ryuuken's act ensures Yhwach's defeat but leaves him forever despising his Quincy heritage. Uryuu accidentally witnesses the autopsy, vows to never become something that's forced to cut up his loved ones, and so changes his mind about becoming a doctor. After learning the truth, Uryuu becomes a doctor at his father's hospital, implying that he now understands that his father performed the autopsy because he was a Quincy, not because he was a doctor, and further implying that Uryuu may also have lost his desire to be a Quincy.]]
* Lelouch in ''Anime/CodeGeass'' could be considered an example as well given his [[DarkAndTroubledPast troubled backstory]], only that the glasses he wears are of a much darker tint.
* In ''Anime/{{Monster}}'', when Johan isn't [[BreakTheCutie breaking cuties]] he's handing out jade-coloured glasses. The protagonist of the series, Doctor Tenma, is his special project in this regard. [[spoiler:Johan can never find a pair that fits Tenma, even when he attempts a ThanatosGambit. What's more, at the conclusion, everyone who manages to survive ends up taking them off and starts rebuilding his or her life with an optimistic outlook on life.]]
* ''Manga/{{Naruto}}''
** [[spoiler:Obito Uchiha]] started out as a good kid until [[spoiler:he got back from being crushed in a jutsu induced landslide just in time to see his best friend murder the girl he liked]]. After that, [[spoiler: he starts an evil organization and plans to become a physical god]].
** Nagato could count as well. He started off as a sweet kid with hopes of changing the world for the better. But after being made into the universe's ChewToy, and witnessing his best friend's death, he becomes determined that only pain can change the world.
* Over the course of ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion'', [[TheChessmaster Gendo Ikari]] shows [[StealthPun shades]] of cynicism in all directions following [[spoiler:the "death" of his wife, Yui Ikari, when Unit 01 sucks her soul inside it and turns her to LCL]] then [[spoiler: failing miserably to resurrect her]], and finally, discovering that [[spoiler:the first Rei clone he ever made from his attempts to rescue Yui, the one remnant of his wife's image, had been mercilessly strangled by Naoko Akagi in a fit of distraught anger (hearing that Gendo called her useless from Rei's mouth made her think it was her old enemy Yui taunting her), who [[DrivenToSuicide killed herself violently]] after seeing what she did.]] At some point in his life, Gendo became afraid of [[spoiler: bonding with anyone, even his son]], and, having lost the one person in his life who truly understood and loved him, turns intensely cold, impassive, and [[MoralMyopia morally]] oblivious to whatever he tries to do- only Instrumentality matters, for it will [[spoiler: let him see Yui once more]]. In the midst of all this, Gendo literally ends up wearing tinted glasses after his old ones break [[spoiler: while rescuing Rei from a superheated Entry Plug]]. While Gendo might seem to be heartless, he's really a JerkWithAHeartOfGold- down deep, there ''is'' regret for what he's done.
* ''Manga/OnePiece'': Common among the Seven Warlords of the Sea.
** Crocodile and Moria both dreamed of being the Pirate King. Both fought their way to the New World, the hardest part of the journey. Both faced complete defeat at the hands of one of the Four Emperors and grew jaded as they sought other ways to conquer the world. Their arrogance and sedentary lifestyles as they ostensibly bided their time to try again led to their defeat at Luffy's hands.
** Boa Hancock's introduction shows her in the worst possible light, and it isn't inaccurate in the least. But when we find out ''why'' she's like it, [[FreudianExcuse she becomes a lot more sympathetic,]] and grows the slightest amount warmer thanks to Luffy.
* Akemi Homura in ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica''. Living as a MagicalGirl [[{{Deconstruction}} will do that to you]].
** Sayaka comes to a point that she sports a pair after learning some [[AwfulTruth grave]] facts about becoming a magical girl the hard way before [[spoiler: [[DespairEventHorizon becoming a witch]].]]
** [[spoiler: Kyouko]] used to be a WideEyedIdealist, but had her optimistic worldview shattered when [[spoiler: her father killed her whole family and then himself after finding out people only listened to his preachings because of the wish she'd made.]]
** Then it was {{invoked|Trope}} and then [[spoiler:{{defied|Trope}}]] with this sentence: [[spoiler:"If someone says it's wrong to hope, I will tell them that they're wrong every time. I could tell them that countless times."]]
* Rossiu from ''Anime/TengenToppaGurrenLagann'' spent the first half of the series as an idealistic yet practical kid who truly believed in Kamina and Simon's quest for a new world. Then war happened to him, he spent years as the only intelligent person on a government council who ''deliberately'' slacked off so he'd do the paperwork for them, playing advisor to a guy who'd rather go for a stroll than actually govern his own damn country. The stress made him so jaded and cynical that he was willing to sacrifice Earth to save about 18% of humanity.
%%* Subaru Sumeragi in ''Manga/TokyoBabylon'' and later ''Manga/{{X 1999}}'', due to the fact that his life is one long, long [[TheWoobie woobie moment]].
* Back when he was a SelfMadeMan in the court of his country, Sonken aka Chuutatsu from ''Literature/TheTwelveKingdoms'' witnessed a terrible level of corruption and cruelty. When chosen as the King of Hou, then, the Jade Colored Glasses were so firmly glued to King Chuutatsu's face that he became an absolute KnightTemplar and his absolute sense of justice caused him to slaughter a large portion of his own population for minor offenses. His zeal was so terrible that the minor noblemen rebelled, overthrew and killed him, his ''kirin'' and his wife Queen Kekai, leaving his daughter Shoukei as the last survivor.
** Also Queen Shushou of Kyou, who is a good person at heart but is also very much a LittleMissSnarker who keeps telling her ''kirin'' Kyouki that he's too good for his own benefit.
* Frederica Bernkastel in ''Franchise/WhenTheyCry'' meta-series. Living forever in a place severed from a normal timeline [[spoiler:after being murdered ''hundreds'' of times]] will do that to you.
* Judai ([[MeaningfulName Jaden]], in the English dub) of ''Anime/YuGiOhGX'', gets this in Season 4. As a result of [[spoiler:fusing with Yubel]] on top of spending too long Dueling to save the world rather than for fun, he no longer enjoys the game and always aims to end it as fast as possible when he plays, oblivious to all else. He gets better with the help of his friends, though, and a duel with [[spoiler:Yugi]] helps him regain his love for dueling.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Fan Works]]
* In ''Fanfic/MegaManDefenderOfTheHumanRace'', Mr. Black has this mindset and believes violence is the only way to stop Wily.
* We have this occur in the ''Fanfic/Gensokyo20XX'' series with Reimu and Yukari, the latter of which is a BrokenBird and the former playing the role of TheFatalist. This isn't surprising considering the events of the series and, incidentally, the authoress herself is like this, seeing the world in much the same way that Yukari and Reimu do.
* ''Webcomic/{{Guardian}}'' examines how Lulu of ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyX'' got her pair. She's shown to be much more innocent as a child, but after the death of Lady Ginnem, she spends time in Bevelle where she sees the hypocritical treatment of Yuna before and after Braska's success, becomes prone to resentment, and learns that [[spoiler:any "successful" pilgrimage ends in the summoner's death anyway]].
* The ''FanFic/SleeperHitAU'' involves Midoriya Izuku [[ForWantOfANail remaining Quirkless]]. Though he still pursues his dreams of becoming a Pro Hero and has succeeded by the time the main story begins, this hasn't been without considerable hardship -- including getting expelled from U.A. on his very first day due to Aizawa's ulterior motives and struggling to find a school willing to take a chance on a 'powerless' student. This has left him convinced that the only reason anyone would be kind towards him ''now'' is to further their own agenda, such as making themselves look good in the public eye.
* ''Fanfic/TalesOfTheUndiscoveredSwords'': Sasanoyuki is already an EmotionlessBoy BrokenBird from self-hatred, but being exposed to the same past experience ''again'' on his kiwame turns him utterly bitter.
* Tashigi in ''Fanfic/ThisBites'' starts out with whole-hearted fate in the marines and the World Government, which begins to crack even more than in canon during the Alabasta, especially after [[spoiler:Princess Vivi is framed by the World Nobles for piracy when she was trying to save her country]]. Throughout the series, her work with [[DefectorFromDecadence MI3]] and the Straw Hat Pirates further exposes her to the World Government's corruption. By the time that Robin recounts [[spoiler:through the SBS]] the ruthless destruction of Ohara by the Marine Buster Call, Tashigi had become so jaded that the only emotion she could feel about this atrocity is anger... and not even directly at organization she once swore to serve.
--> '''Tashigi''': …If I'd heard what I'm hearing now four months ago, I would have been horrified. I would have vomited, or not believed it or… or ''something''. I… I would have ''felt'' something. But now… after all I've learned, after all I've seen… hearing this… I'm not disgusted anymore. I don't have it in me to be disgusted anymore. I can't vomit in disgust, I can't reel in horror… I am apoplectic because I can't feel anything else. The World Government has successfully jaded me. Not even pirates or criminals, but the ''World Government'', who I swore to protect and serve with my life, and that… That enrages me to the point where I need to physically ''hurt'' something, or else I think that I am going to literally lose my mind.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Literature]]
* This happened to Nathaniel in ''Literature/TheBartimaeusTrilogy'' when Lovelace destroyed the house.
** Although, to be honest, that didn't completely remove his naivete and beliefs about justice and honor, just diminished them. It was spending several years [[spoiler: working in a corrupt, selfish, and paranoid government that resulted in glasses so jade he turned into a VillainProtagonist.]]
* ''Literature/TheBusinessOfDying''
** Protagonist Dennis Milne originally became a police officer, because he was very idealistic and had a strong sense of justice, always trying to get bullies and criminals their just desserts and trying to make the world a safer place. But things didn't go well. Eventually, his idealism was lost, his shooting a dangerous man during a hostage situation didn't bother him a whole lot and it led to him getting into contact with Raymond Keen, starting his double-life as a hitman.
** There's also Carla Graham, a social worker at Coleman house, who also began rather idealistic and quickly learned that most of the kids sent to the home don't want help from authority, despise it, and just go about doing whatever they want because they know they can. [[spoiler: Her previously failed marriage has also left her more cynical about things like love and money, which was part of the reason why she became a call girl on the side.]]
%%* Creator/{{Voltaire}}'s ''Literature/{{Candide}}''; probably the TropeCodifier.
* ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'': When we first meet Sam Vimes, he's the ultimate cynic, and so beaten down by life that he has a serious drinking problem and doesn't even try to do his job. When we meet the 17-year-old Vimes in ''Night Watch'', we discover he was idealistic and perky, and it took "30 years of being hammered on the anvil of life" to turn him into the man we know.
** The Patrician, however (possibly the only character who's ''more'' cynical than Vimes) seems to have been born like that. Or at least donned his glasses very, ''very'' early, going by his anecdote in ''Literature/UnseenAcademicals'' about the time he saw an otter and its pups devour an egg-filled salmon alive...
* In ''Literature/TheDresdenFiles'', a good example of this appears in "A Restoration of Faith," the short story that was the first appearance of Harry Dresden. Faith, a ten-year-old girl, has run away from her rich family home, where she states she isn't loved.
--> "I see these Disney shows about how much parents love their kids. How there's some sort of magical bond of love. But it's a lie. Like you and that troll." She laid her head against my shoulder, and I could feel the exhaustion in her body as she sagged against me. "There's no magic."\\
I fell silent for several paces as I carried her. It was hard to hear that from a kid. A ten-year-old girl's world should be full of music and giggling and notes and dolls and dreams--not harsh, barren, jaded reality. If there was no light in the heart of a child, a little girl like this, then what hope did any of us have?
:: Then Harry gets one for himself in the next paragraph.
--> A few paces later, I realized something I hadn't been admitting to myself. A quiet, cool little voice had been trying to tell me something I hadn't been willing to listen to. I was in the business of wizardry to try to help people; to try to make things better. But no matter how many evil spirits I confronted, no matter how many would-be black magicians I tracked down, there was always something else--something worse--waiting for me in the dark. No matter how many lost children I found, there would always be ten times as many who disappeared for good.\\
No matter how much I did, how much trash I cleaned up, it was only a drop in the ocean.
* Creator/IsaacAsimov's "{{Literature/Flies}}": The viewpoint character, John Polen, remembers when he started trying to analyze the BodyLanguage of various animals in order to [[TheEmpath better understand emotional language]]. Seeing the dissonance between people's words and emotions has driven him to extreme cynicism.
* ''Literature/TheHeatherWellsMysteries'' has protagonist Heather wear them by the time the story starts. She was pretty wide-eyed and idealistic when she was a teenage pop-singer, but as she got older, she lost some of this. She ultimately became jaded when she was dropped by her label for insisting on singing her own songs, her mother consequently stole her life savings and left the country, and finally, Heather also walking in on her fiancé cheating on her with another singer.
%%* ''Literature/TheHungerGames'': Katniss isn't exactly all smiles. Most people who grow up in the Seam wear them in fact. Most victors, too, for that matter.
%%zce * ''Literature/InDeath'': Eve Dallas claims that she can't remember ''being'' innocent, but ''New York To Dallas'' shows that the tint of those glasses obviously became darker since the time she was in uniform.
* ''Literature/TheInfernalDevices'':
%%** Arguably Will, as he alludes to a traumatic childhood quite often.
** Subverted with [[spoiler:Jem, who had a very traumatic experience and seems to function quite well outside his "illness".]]
* The main character in ''Literature/InvisibleMan'' is an absolutely perfect example of this -- he begins as a LoveFreak ''and'' a WideEyedIdealist and ends up nearly knifing a guy for insulting him. It doesn't help that he was an UnwittingPawn twice over and a victim of YankTheDogsChain at least three times.
* ''Literature/ThePictureOfDorianGray'''s eponymous character was given jade-colored glasses by Lord Henry. Rather than being "broken," Lord Henry simply puts thoughts into Dorian's mind that reminds him of how terrible the world can be and the fleeting nature of youth, beauty, and the sheer pleasure that can be derived from living a life of debauch and leaving notions of innocence and kindness behind.
* In ''Literature/SidStillsBluesThreeQuartersInTheBagInAlphabetCity'', Sid used to be a carefree musician but has become jaded and cynical in his later years, not having released any new music in more than a decade and becoming reclusive. He views himself as an old has-been who has worn out his musical usefulness and is not very famous anymore and is surprised at how excited younger people are to meet him. He is so convinced that he has nothing left to offer the world that he is prepared to simply let his lung cancer kill him.
* At the beginning of ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'', the lovely and ladylike [[TheIngenue Sansa Stark]] is an idealist who [[WrongGenreSavvy thinks the world works exactly like in heroic songs and fairy tales.]] By the fourth book, her views have changed considerably, and she's being mentored by [[MagnificentBastard Petyr "Littlefinger"]] [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder Baelish]].
%%** Based on his backstory, Littlefinger went through the same cycle himself during his youth.
** One of Sansa's other teachers, Sandor Clegane, went through this in his backstory and also tried to [[SillyRabbitIdealismIsForKids knock sense]] into Sansa before her idealism got her into even worse trouble. Arya didn't exactly have very rosy specs to start with, but he also helped make her aware of the amount of jading she still needed, too.
** Brienne of Tarth manages to combine this with WideEyedIdealist; she half-believes the world is like the songs and is always shocked when someone breaks an oath or anything like that, but she's also resigned to never being able to sleep while there are strange men around, and occasionally having to beat seven shades of shit out of someone trying to rape her.
%%** Leia Organa in ''Literature/SplinterOfTheMindsEye'' has elements of this, contrasting dramatically with her brother. And with her portrayal in the Films.
%%---> "I saw my whole world, several million people, destroyed," she responded with chilling matter-of-factness. "Nothing mankind does surprises me anymore. [...] We have our devils and our angels, Luke. You have to be ready to handle both."
* Franchise/StarWarsLegends:
** In ''[[Literature/StarWarsAllegiance Allegiance]]'', Mara Jade, as the Emperor's Hand, tended to be sharp-tongued but was overall quite idealistic. She consciously felt that the Emperor was [[HorribleJudgeOfCharacter "a good and wise man"]], she believed that the Empire was fundamentally good with some foul elements that could be removed from within, and just in general she had a pretty stable existence. We see in ''Literature/ChoicesOfOne'' that she couldn't even really imagine being anything else, and found the sensation of missing someone to be alien. The Emperor's death changed everything -- his last command to her was "YOU WILL KILL LUKE SKYWALKER," and it echoed in her head at dangerous intervals, her Force-sensitivity fluctuated on and off, and she saw the Empire for what it was -- fundamentally foul with some good elements, and not ruled by anyone she felt was worthy. In the years after that, she bounced between various non-Imperial non-Rebel groups, mostly smugglers, always leaving after her Force-sensitivity flared up and made her employer uneasy, and although her last employer, [[KnowledgeBroker Talon Karrde]], was by far the best, by Literature/TheThrawnTrilogy she was highly cynical. Mara [[MeaningfulName means "bitter"]], and "Jade" fits that (and one of creator Timothy Zahn's dictionaries also listed, as another meaning for Jade, "discarded woman").
** Ben Skywalker puts on some very tinted glasses immediately after [[Literature/LegacyOfTheForce Mara's death]]. He's mostly an odd mix of idealistic and pragmatic (merging both of his parents' traits, leaning slightly towards the latter), but losing his mother, the one person in the galaxy that he loved and admired the most (and could talk to without fear of anything), clouded his judgment and even caused him to go so far as ''kill'' in the name of [[YouKilledMyFather revenge]], causing Luke to forcibly stop that last attempt at killing Jacen (who Ben correctly guessed as Mara's killer), at which point Ben realizes he's gone too far. He recovers from that phase fairly quickly, but the tint's never going to wear off.
* In Creator/PoulAnderson's ''Literature/TimePatrol'' story "Gibraltar Falls", Manse admits that Thomas succeeded correctly, and he had resisted not because it was wrong but because he had seen too often when it could not be done.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
%%zce * Archie Bunker of ''Series/AllInTheFamily'' had a pair of them throughout the whole series (and also in ''Series/ArchieBunkersPlace'') but these got less thick over time. Justified by having lived through TheGreatDepression, having fought in UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, and having his thoughts discredited by [[TheSixties the counterculture]].
* In ''Series/{{Bunheads}}'', Michelle started as a dancer with great potential that gradually let it fritter away until she wound up stuck in a dead-end job as a Las Vegas showgirl.
* ''Series/DoctorWho'' has the Doctor himself. For all of his apparent youth and energy, it's hard to forget he's over two, [[VagueAge perhaps even]] three thousand years old and was forced to kill his own people[[note]]at least he thought so[[/note]] in the Time War; he still retains a lot of idealism, but he lets the cynicism shine through every now and again. Very apparent with the Ninth and Eleventh Doctors.
** In the ExpandedUniverse, Eight started off as bubbly romantic, but his entire run became darker and darker, until the end where he was ''more'' than willing to [[DrivenToSuicide die off for good]]. It's only because [[ItsUpToYou the alternative was all existence being destroyed]] that he reluctantly regenerated into an incarnation (War Doctor) where the glasses were so dark that he won't use the name "Doctor" to describe himself at that point.
** An [[Recap/DoctorWhoS31E5FleshAndStone extra scene]] in the New Series reveals this one of the reasons why the Doctor drags Companions around with him. They still have the youthful idealism and wonder that he used to enjoy.
* Marty and Thommo from ''Series/{{Frontline}}''. There are plenty of signs that they both used to care deeply about journalism, but had the idealism ground out of them by years of working in tabloid current affairs.
* ''Series/GameOfThrones'': Robett Glover's faith in House Stark was severely crushed by Robb's failures and downfall.
-->'''Robett''': I served House Stark once...but House Stark is ''dead''.
%%zce * The eponymous character of ''Series/Merlin2008'' starts out the series as a WideEyedIdealist. However, five seasons of [[ShootTheDog having to do increasingly immoral things for the greater good]], [[YankTheDogsChain having friends that accept him, his girlfriend, and even his father die and leave him alone]], and getting absolutely no credit for saving Camelot and Arthur many, many, ''many'' times while knowing full well that he will be killed if anyone knows have caused him to develop a fairly thick pair of these as an alternative to mental breakdown.
* [[TheAtoner Eliot Spencer]] of ''Series/{{Leverage}}'' is this, having gone from an idealistic young soldier to a [[BloodKnight ruthless hired killer]] to the [[KnightinSourArmor character we first meet on the show]].
-->'''Eliot''': You have no idea who I was before all this started. That guy -- kid -- he had God in his heart and a flag on his shoulder. Clean hands. I haven't seen him in the mirror in more than ten years, and believe me--I get up every morning looking for him.
%%* [[TheWoobie Daniel]] from ''Series/StargateSG1'', although he often plays his newfound cynicism for humor.
* ''Series/TheThickOfIt'': By the time we meet Hugh Abbot, he seems to have already not only earned his pair but glued them permanently to his face.
* ''Series/TheWhiteQueen'': Richard of Gloucester, a steadfast supporter of King Edward IV, used to be the most idealistic among the sons of York, but the more he's vexed by his eldest brother's glaring flaws, the more his worldview crumbles.
-->'''Richard''': How could he do this to me? Now Edward tries to buy my honour! He confuses me with my brother George. He does not even know me.\\
'''Anne Neville''': Then send it back and show him you do not care for wealth.\\
'''Richard''': The insult has been paid now. Though everything I thought I knew has been shaken, perhaps there's no honour in anyone and each of us is alone.
%%zce * ''Series/YesMinister'': Jim Hacker eventually gets these, but he has the heart (or lack of head) to take them off once in a while. Bernard follows a similar trajectory, while [[ObstructiveBureaucrat Sir Humphrey]] doesn't need them, as the lenses in his eyes were made of jade from birth.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Video Games]]
%%zce * In ''VideoGame/BaldursGateII'', provided you don't give her a HappilyEverAfter ending as the PlayerCharacter's love interest, Aerie starts on the road towards getting one of these. [[spoiler:In her ending, provided you didn't romance her or left her to ascend to godhood, she slips into [[HeWhoFightsMonsters the abyss]] during the course of a one-woman crusade towards slavery in the Sword Coast.]]
%%--> '''Aerie''': I've... I've just been thinking. About all this death, all these [[KickTheDog horrifying things]] [[BigBad Irenicus]] has done. He actually [[OurSoulsAreDifferent stole a soul]] and... and all these people died for nothing... And for what? Some "[[{{Revenge}} vengeance]]" that Irenicus wants! For that he throws people aside like mere objects?! I... I cannot believe that such evil is allowed to exist! I will not [[{{Wangst}} sit idly by and be pathetic]]! I have paid too much attention to my own sorrows and experiences... and not enough to the evil that has surrounded me!
* Alistair in ''VideoGame/DragonAgeOrigins'' loses his mentor, his place in the Grey Wardens, and pretty much everything to his name during the course of his backstory and the first hour of the game. If you complete his personal quest in a way that shows to him that not even his own remaining family really cares about him unless it benefits them, he completes this transition.
* ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'':
** Squall from ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIII'': When [[spoiler: his "sister" Ellone was taken away from his orphanage, and due to his use of Guardian Force junctions -- which erased his memories -- he never got over the trauma.]] As a result, Squall grew up believing that it was better to push everyone else away and refused to make friends or even have any ambitions beyond proving himself strong enough to take care of himself.
** Auron in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyX'' was a WideEyedIdealist and true believer in his first pilgrimage with Braska, but after [[spoiler:he found out the truth and was killed in Zanarkand]], he became a much more [[IncrediblyLamePun sobering]] influence on the pilgrimage with Yuna.
* Lanselot Tartaros ([[spoiler:A.K.A. Alphonse in the gaiden ''Tactics Ogre: The Knight of Lodis'']]) from ''VideoGame/OgreBattle'' series starts out as a WideEyedIdealist. However, after [[spoiler:losing his best friend and lover by the end of the gaiden]], he became a bitter cynic that we see in ''Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together''.
%%* Neku of ''VideoGame/TheWorldEndsWithYou'', before his CharacterDevelopment.
* Nessiah ([[spoiler:A.K.A. the grim angel Aries]]) from ''VideoGame/YggdraUnion'' was at first a MessianicArchetype. However, after getting cursed and thrown out of [[CelestialBureaucracy Asgard]] by the corrupt magi, he went insane and started the massive {{plan}} that destroyed countless people's lives in order to exact vengeance on Asgard. When a MessianicArchetype gets broken, the result is not pretty.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Western Animation]]
* An ''WesternAnimation/AquaTeenHungerForce'' episode has a discount toy doll being drug-addicted, alcoholic, nihilistic, and self-harming and convinces two characters to become depressingly nihilistic, with the second one (another, more expensive doll) driven to blowing his head off with a shotgun.
* One episode of ''WesternAnimation/HeyArnold'' had Eugene becoming this when he [[BrokenPedestal discovered his childhood hero]] was actually a [[ThePrimaDonna Prima Donna]] actor. By the end of the episode, he gets better when said actor realizes he was wrong and decides to stand for the ideals of his character by saving the life of Eugene's younger friend.
* ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague's'' J'onn (Martian Manhunter). In "Tabula Rasa", he struggles with a [[HeroicBSOD crisis of conscience]] as he's telepathically overwhelmed by the sheer volume of selfishness and entitlement from the thoughts of humanity. This on top of being the only Martian alive causes him to become detached and unfeeling towards humanity at large. Represented in ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeagueUnlimited'' by the fact that he rarely ever leaves the Watchtower for anything. Once he does leave towards the end of the series, it's shown that he eventually gains a connection to humanity, with a personal life and companion in the process.

* In the short-lived ''WesternAnimation/NeighborsFromHell'', Jane Lynch plays a representative of the [=E.P.A.=] sent to investigate the drill that would go through {{Hell}}. Baltazor, a demon sent to the surface to infiltrate the company that's made the drill, tries to convince her to have declared an environmental hazard and shut down the project. After she kidnaps him and tries to rape him, he manages to talk her down and tries to convince her to shut the project down. When she says she already accepted the bribe to look the other way, he calls her out on it. She then reveals that she became part of the [=EPA=] to protect the environment, but after she saw that people either bribed officials and polluted anyway, or happily paid the insignificant fines and kept destroying the planet, she realized that saving the planet was useless, and decided to play along.
* Rev. Lovejoy of ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons''. Naturally, it was heavily implied that Flanders was solely responsible for beating the idealism out of him.
-->'''Lovejoy''': Finally, I just stopped caring. Luckily, by then [[TakeThat it was the Eighties and no-one noticed]].
* Played literally in the ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'' episode "[[GrowingUpSucks You're Getting Old]]" where Stan, upon reaching his 10th birthday, contracts 'cynicism' -- depicted as an illness that causes everything you see to look like shit and everything you hear to sound like shit and everything you eat to taste like shit, etc. In the following episode, he learns that the best way to treat his cynicism is by [[DrowningMySorrows drinking alcohol]].
[[/folder]]

* Finnish metal band Music/{{Nightwish}} can be seen as this. While the earlier albums (from ''Angels Fall First'' to ''Wishmaster'') high-fantasy and folk stories were a common occurrence in the lyrics and the music used to be more vivid and powerful, later albums (starting from ''Century Child'') started bringing despair, loneliness and nostalgia for lost times as a common theme, and the introduction of a full orchestra for most of the songs brought an eerie "goth" feeling to the band, all of this culminating with ''Dark Passion Play'', probably their darkest album overall.

* On the ''LetsPlay/DreamSMP'', Quackity started out as an optimistic budding politician who believed [[RousseauWasRight there was good in everyone]] when he ran against Wilbur in the L'Manburg Election. During that time, Wilbur, who was already [[SanitySlippage spiraling mentally]], gave him some advice on how violence was the key to power on the server. Seven months and [[BreakTheCutie many traumatic events]] later, Quackity embraces Wilbur's cynical mentality but swears to not make the same mistakes Wilbur did. Ultimately this becomes somewhat {{deconstructed|Trope}}. After having his old idealism shattered, Quackity went down a dark road that gradually lead to him becoming crueler as a person, teaching people 'lessons' under the mindset that he was helping them come to the same realizations he had and manipulating them to work for him. However, [[spoiler:Slime would later cause Quackity to question this mindset, and later Purpled would betray Quackity because of the destruction of his home, which would never have happened had Quackity been more kind in his recruitment methods]], further showing the flaws in Quackity's overly cynical outlook.
** At the same time, Wilbur himself also classifies as one, who also initially believed in pacifism and fighting with words as opposed to violence during the War for L'Manburg Independence. After [[spoiler:Eret's betrayal of the revolution]], though, his naivety as the leader of the L'Manburgian revolution [[CynicismCatalyst became shattered]], and after the war, his mental health spiraled, and when he saw Quackity enter the world of the SMP with the same naive idealism that he himself once had, [[SillyRabbitIdealismIsForKids he advised him that to gain power and help others on the server, one must be willing to use violence]] [[UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans of any means to achieve it]]... but this is somewhat {{downplayed|Trope}} by the fact that Wilbur was never ''quite'' able to walk the walk even if he talks the talk.

* Tashigi in ''Fanfic/ThisBites'' starts out in whole-hearted fate in the marines and the World Government, which begins to crack even more in canon during the Alabasta, especially after [[spoiler:Princess Vivi is framed by the World Nobles for piracy when she was trying to save her country]]. Throughout the series, her work with MI3 and the Straw Hat Pirates further exposes her to the World Government's corruption. By the time that Robin recounts [[spoiler:through the SBS]] the ruthless destruction of Ohara by the Marine Buster Call, Tashigi had become so jaded that the only emotion she could feel about this atrocity is anger... and not even directly at organization she once swore to serve.

%%* In ''Fanfic/ThisBites'', Tashigi ends up getting a pair when she hears about the atrocity that is Ohara, much to Smoker's chagrin.