History Main / MetaGuy

* ''Anime/CodeGeass'': Strangely enough, Suzaku Kururugi becomes the Meta Guy in the [[AllThereInTheManual side materials]], especially those related to the second season, sometimes going as far as BreakingTheFourthWall and acting out of character at the whim of the RuleOfFunny. And LampshadeHanging. For example, remarking to himself that he gets more attention in side materials than in the main story, and refusing to go along with Milly's orders because he knows that her smiling is a great big warning sign (compare to the show, where he does whatever she asks because it's "[[StudentCouncilPresident President's]] Orders").

* ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'': Sokka is shown to be intelligent by making oblique references to events in the story. His prediction of a volcanic eruption (and subsequent frustrations with the disinterested townfolk) is another example of how he comments on the story.

** The show initially makes [[TheStraightMan Twilight]] [[OnlySaneMan Sparkle]] one of these, most obviously in the first episode, where her character is used as a means to [[{{Deconstruction}} deconstruct]] the show's [[Franchise/MyLittlePony parent franchise]]. Following the {{reconstruction}} that occurs [[DeconReconSwitch in the next episode]], however, this slowly fades in prominence as Twilight develops into a normal resident of Ponyville, though she retains much of it to this day. Spike usually takes this role on the occasions where Twilight drops it entirely.

** It's rare, but Kyle also has played this role on occasion. Perhaps the best example of this is during the episode "Butt out" when he told the boys that [[spoiler:they could save themselves a lot of trouble]] if they just admitted that they chose to smoke on their own and the tobacco company had no part in the decision. He even commented that everything was following a formula and correctly predicted that [[spoiler:he would make a speech at the end of the episode about what he learned during the episode.]]

** Likewise, Slippy Toad fills this role during Fox and Falco's transmissions in the Lylat Cruse stage, noting how the characters can [[BatmanCanBreatheInSpace survive in deep space without oxygen or space suits]]. Peppy Hare immediately scolds him, breaking the fourth wall in the process.
** In the same way Snake was the Meta Guy of ''Brawl'', [[VideoGame/KidIcarus Pit, Palutena and Viridi]] act as the Meta Guys of ''Wii U'' commenting on the other fighters. This makes sense given the fact that ''VideoGame/KidIcarusUprising'', which is what the ''3DS/Wii U'' incarnations of the characters are based upon, has NoFourthWall.

* ''VideoGame/{{Undertale}}'' has Flowey, who is fully aware of your ability to SAVE and LOAD, calling you out on your previous actions, and towards the end of the game [[spoiler:he [[TheFourthWallWillNotProtectYou closes the game and hijacks your SAVE file.]] He also directly talks to the player when they re-open the game after getting the GoldenEnding, begging them not to reset it.]] Notably, none of this is PlayedForLaughs.

* Speaking of Deadpool, there's ''ComicBook/TheUnbelievableGwenpool'', who started off as a popular variant cover gag and ended up as another fourth-wall breaker. The difference is that she's less [[MemeticMutation LOL Memes]] and more of a GenreSavvy AscendedFangirl, relying on storytelling conventions and her encyclopedic comic book knowledge to make up for her lack of powers.

* Cardinal in the ''Literature/KingdomsDisdain'' books, a transplant from our world into the magical land of Laskmeer, often references {Fantasy} tropes like HP and "the ChosenOne". His chances of being GenreSavvy or WrongGenreSavvy are at any given moment about 50/50.

* Kanako in ''Manga/LoveHina'', one major reason she didn't make friends easily. She has her harsh but rather [[GenreBlindness genre-blind]] opinions on Keitaro's bizarre relationships with girls, made calculated [[NakedFirstImpression awkward moments]] to entice him, and had a complete dislike of Naru's [[{{tsundere}} hot-and-cold personality]].
* Being the straight man in ''Anime/HareGuu'', Haré assumes this role frequently.
* A few characters played Meta Guy in ''Anime/BestStudentCouncil'' whenever the characters seemed to remember they had no idea how Pucchan and Lance Bean (who were puppets) could think and speak of their own accord.
* Beauty fulfills this role in ''Manga/BoboboboBobobo''. At first, Gasser also performed this role, but in later episodes he seems to slip into bouts of NotSoAboveItAll. Gasser's case is strange in that at times, he plays this trope so straight as to loop right back in the series' weirdness. His reactions are usually so far over the top that they play a role similar to the rest of the antics.
* Nagisa from ''Anime/FutariWaPrettyCure'' often questions the things she has to do as a MagicalGirl, especially the [[InTheNameOfTheMoon speech]].
* ''Anime/CodeGeass'':
** Strangely enough, Suzaku Kururugi becomes the Meta Guy in the [[AllThereInTheManual side materials]], especially those related to the second season, sometimes going as far as BreakingTheFourthWall and acting out of character at the whim of the RuleOfFunny. And LampshadeHanging. For example, remarking to himself that he gets more attention in side materials than in the main story, and refusing to go along with Milly's orders because he knows that her smiling is a great big warning sign (compare to the show, where he does whatever she asks because it's "[[StudentCouncilPresident President's]] Orders").
** [[ActionGirl Kallen]] sometimes fills this role in the main series, mainly due to having a better sense of morality than most others in the main cast.
* Carol and Gustav St. Germain serve this role in ''Literature/{{Baccano}}''. Conversation topics include: [[JigsawPuzzlePlot where]] [[AnachronicOrder is the story supposed to start]], who exactly is [[DecoyProtagonist the main character of the series]] and whether or not the [[LeftHanging loose thread]] about [[spoiler:Dallas's missing body]] is a blatant sequel hook.

* In ''Manga/DeathNote'', Ryuk frequently questions the implausibilities in Light's plans, and is in many ways an audience surrogate. In fact, he's the one that started off the entire plot, [[ItAmusedMe explicitly because he was bored]], and only hangs around Light for as long as he is entertaining.
* A few different characters in ''Manga/OuranHighSchoolHostClub''. Renge is probably the most overt example.
* ''Anime/RebuildOfEvangelion'' combines this with WhamLine at the end of the second film: [[spoiler:Kaworu remembers the events of [[Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion the original series]].]]
** Maybe. That's not how the line was rendered in the dub, and one would think that such an important revelation wouldn't simply be dropped in the dub, so it could just be a mistaken translation, or a misinterpretation of the line itself.
* Shinpachi in ''Manga/{{Gintama}}'', as the token tsukkomi of the series, being meta is primarily his role of the series.
* [[BadassNormal Usopp and Nami]] tend to be this in ''Manga/OnePiece'', which makes sense being that they are the only members of the [[BadassCrew Straw Hats]] with no special powers.
* [[LittleMissSnarker Ruri]] from ''Anime/MartianSuccessorNadesico'' has commented on the ridiculousness of the series (and the way the characters in it behave) as a huge part of her role.

* In ''Manga/InitialD'', Takeshi Nakazato is introduced defeating several no-name racers with a grip-cornering style as opposed to the flashy drifting style flaunted by every other racer in the series. His reasoning is that, much like in real life, drifting is just for show and has no place in a serious contest of who's faster/fastest. Unfortunately, the series isn't about to deconstruct [[RuleOfCool drifting-as-a-racing-technique]] for him, so despite his best efforts, his grip-style driving proves fruitless against multiple other drift-racing opponents like protagonist Takumi Fujiwara (who drives [[WhatAPieceOfJunk a car considered antiquated]], no less), Akina [=RedSuns=] star Keisuke Takahashi, and an invading racing team of professionals, Emperor.

* Brainy Smurf from the ''ComicBook/TheSmurfs''. Unsurprisingly, this often made him the most unpopular smurf in his village.

* Speaking of Loki, he generally hovers between this trope and outright FourthWallObserver. His newer incarnations are best described as sitting atop an in-universe fourth wall (claiming gods are ''living myth and metaphor'') {{leaning on the|FourthWall}} real one and occasionally hitting it so hard it {{break|ingTheFourthWall}}s in spectacularly awesome ways.
* Speaking of Deadpool, there's ''ComicBook/TheUnbelievableGwenpool'', who started off as a popular variant cover gag and ended up as another fourth-wall breaker. The difference is that she's less [[MemeticMutation LOL Memes]] and more of a GenreSavvy AscendedFangirl, relying on storytelling conventions and her encyclopedic comic book knowledge to make up for her lack of powers.

* Keith Giffen's ComicBook/AmbushBug was one of the first characters to do this, [[OlderThanTheyThink making this older than they think]].
* Matthew the Raven, from ''ComicBook/TheSandman1989'', was noted by Creator/NeilGaiman as serving as a sort of mouthpiece for the audience, frequently questioning the actions of other characters who went outside the bounds of real-world common sense.
* ''ComicBook/{{Batman}}'''s nemesis [[Characters/BatmanTheJoker the Joker]] has played this role to an extent sometimes. One issue even had him directly addressing the audience at the start while recapping the events of the previous issue. It is apparently a canon fact that the Joker is so crazy that he's actually aware of practically everything having to do with the DCU, including events of stories that [[{{Retcon}} haven't happened anymore]] and, conceivably, the fact that it's all just comic books. It's described on multiple occasions as "super-sanity". The disturbing part is that this could explain the Joker's behavior in the first place; it's possible that he's a psychotic killer because ''he knows his actions don't matter.'' Nobody he hurts is real. He's beyond solipsism... and ''he's right''. In fact, the more atrocities he commits, the more comics he appears in!
* ''ComicBook/SpiderMan'' is a more "classical" type, as he often comments on the unlikely events of the plot, how his actions go against rationality, and makes pop culture references, but he's still completely unaware of the FourthWall. [[DependingOnTheWriter Usually]], [[WesternAnimation/UltimateSpiderMan2012 anyway]].
* ''ComicBook/{{Empowered}}'' regularly breaks the fourth wall when she appears in the title pages of stories; Ninjette and [=ThugBoy=] get confused when they appear and have no idea who she's talking to.
* ''ComicBook/AnimalMan'' is an example of this trope being played mostly for drama. He was less than happy when he realized that he was a fictional character and side characters made the same realization with [[GoMadFromTheRevelation worse reactions]].
-->'''Animal Man:''' Oh my God, I'm important to the plot...
* ''ComicBook/{{Superman}}'': [[GreatGazoo Mr. Mxyzptlk]] often gets portrayed this way in the modern era.
* Brainstorm and Chromedome take on these traits under [[ComicBook/TransformersMoreThanMeetsTheEye James Roberts]], commenting on story pacing, infodumps, and how often their titular race is called on to save the universe from destruction. Swerve gets this way after he accidentally sets of Brainstorm's Metafictional Bomb.
* You have a melancholic version in the DC Universe with Pariah. He has knowledge of '''''everything''''', but he cannot act on ''anything''.
* In a limited sense, both [[Characters/NewGodsDarkseid Darkseid]] and [[Characters/SupermanBrainiacCharacter Brainiac]] have shown to be unaffected by the events of either ''ComicBook/CrisisOnInfiniteEarths'' and ''ComicBook/{{Flashpoint}}''
* ''ComicBook/{{Alias}}'': The Purple Man describes everything as if he and the other characters are in comic books, even going so far as to narrate events like he's writing a comic. He does a considerable amount of LeaningOnTheFourthWall in the final issues of the series.

* ''Fanfic/PinkieTales'' has Applejack of all ponies in this role, as she often breaks character to point out various oddities, like how her "mother" Mrs. Sparkle doesn't just use her Alicorn Magic to help out in the ''Applejack and the Beanstalk'', despite clearly being an Alicorn or that part of the Beanstalk conveniently spirals around it like a ramp, or how Pinkie pretends like they are complete strangers, despite the fact that she obviously knows who Applejack is.

* In ''WebVideo/ProjectVoicebend'', Amon is aware of the narrative structure and has the power to make his victims aware of it as well. Minor characters become terrified by their insignificance, and Bolin becomes aware of his parents' deaths being nothing more than a plot device.
* In ''Fanfic/LegacyDocSuess'', in typical [[ComicBook/{{Deadpool}} Wade]] fashion, he tends to [[BreakingTheFourthWall Break the Fourth Wall]] at his leisure.
--> '''Peter''': How'd you guys find me? I didn't tell y'all where I've been working.\\
'''Wade''': Well, the author really wanted a scene with me in it because she forgot about me at your party.

* In ''Film/TopSecret'' there wasn't a character consistently the Meta Guy -- which was exceedingly odd giving some of the surrealistic jokes (such as Nick and his girlfriend making out while parachuting and the camera panning to... a parachuting fireplace, which itself is [[RunningGag a callback to an earlier gag]] where the camera pans away to a fireplace, and then has to pan away ''again'' to a ''second'' fireplace because Nick and his girlfriend roll back into frame). However, at one point Nick [[ExpoSpeak sarcastically summarizes his girlfriend's life as he knows it as being a little too weird even for a one-man pastiche of Elvis, the Beatles, and the Beach Boys]]. This leads into a [[NoFourthWall fourth wall gag]].
* In the ''Film/{{Scream}}'' movies, Randy was a horror movie buff pointing out various horror movie tropes, including going over the rules for surviving a horror movie -- [[SexSignalsDeath never have sex]], [[TheScourgeOfGod never drink or use drugs]], and [[TemptingFate never say "I'll be right back."]] Naturally, [[TooDumbToLive the characters break all three in record time]]. He expands the rules to sequels and trilogies in [[Film/{{Scream 2}} the second]] and [[Film/{{Scream 3}} third]] films. Given [[Film/{{Scream 4}} the 4th film]] is an assassin "remaking" the original, two {{Suspiciously Similar Substitute}}s to Randy deliver the rules of remakes/reboots. [[spoiler:One of them is part of the BigBadDuumvirate.]] And ''Film/Scream2022'' introduces Mindy, the niece of Randy who has inherited his traits. Befitting for the subject of legacy sequels.

* Han Solo tends to fill this trope in the original ''Franchise/StarWars'' trilogy. Some critics have complained that one of the weaknesses of the prequels is the lack of a similar character to act as the audience proxy.
* ''Film/KingsmanTheSecretService'':
** Valentine frequently comments on the various TuxedoAndMartini tropes as he either averts or [[AscendedFanboy revels in them]].
** Eggsy shows flashes of this, humorously riffing on the James Bondesque aspects of the Kingsmen.

* Cardinal in the ''Literature/KingdomsDisdain'' books, a transplant from our world into the magical land of Laskmeer, often references {Fantasy} tropes like HP and "the ChosenOne". His chances of being GenreSavvy or WrongGenreSavvy are at any given moment about 50/50.
* Leggy Starlitz in the Creator/BruceSterling novel ''Literature/{{Zeitgeist}}'' uses narrative to change reality. The antagonist [[TheMafiya Greek Mafiya]] MagnificentBastard, Mehmet Ozbey, discovers this power, and goes on to use [[Film/JamesBond Bond]]-style ActionHero tropes for his own nefarious purposes. Leggy's young daughter Zenobia is particularly adept. At one point she's [[spoiler:dancing on the ceiling, saying "Look Dad! I'm being impossible!"]]

* Both {{Lord Peter Wimsey}} and his love interest Harriet Vane reference detective fiction tropes constantly, either in a dismissive ThisIsRealLife manner or in an attempt to get into the head of a criminal who [[YouWatchTooMuchX reads too many novels]]. Harriet in particular knows whereof she speaks, [[AuthorAvatar being a detective novelist herself]].

* Chuck from ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'', a prophet who wrote a series of books based on Sam and Dean's adventures without knowing they were real until they found his books and investigated. At first, he thinks he might have actually been [[RealityWarper causing all these things]], and [[TakeThatMe apologizes for some of the less popular episodes.]]
* Sue Sylvester from ''Series/{{Glee}}'' frequently lampshades how improbable some aspects of the show are, particularly their lavish performances that appear out of thin air. Her leaning against the fourth wall is exaggerated in the sixth season.
* Noah in the TV adaptation of ''Series/{{Scream}}'', taking the place of Randy from [[Film/{{Scream}} the original movies]] (see above). His wit is aimed more at horror TV series this time instead of movies, but otherwise, he fills pretty much the same role.
* ''Series/AshVsEvilDead'': Kelly often snarks about the horror movie situations she finds herself in ("Sure, [[AbandonedHospital that building]] is not scary at all", "Oh great, another dark hallway").

* ''Roleplay/DestroyTheGodmodder'': Twinbuilder is this, TT2000 is this, many of the players pull this off. The actual posters are supposedly characters even though they're in real life, so that's not too surprising.

* Vladimir from ''Theatre/WaitingForGodot'', who seems to exhibit MediumAwareness and [[LeaningOnTheFourthWall comments on it]].

* Paravicini in ''Theatre/TheMousetrap'' has a lot to say about the conventions of its genre of crime fiction, right down to asking the detective not to spoil the ending and reveal the killer just yet.

* In ''Franchise/TheElderScrolls'', M'aiq the Lair is a recurring EasterEgg LegacyCharacter who has appeared in every game since ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIIIMorrowind Morrowind]]''. M'aiq is a known a FourthWallObserver (and [[LeaningOnTheFourthWall Leaner]] and ''[[BreakingTheFourthWall Breaker]]'') who [[AuthorAvatar voices the opinions]] of the series' creators and developers, largely in the form of {{Take That}}s, to both the [[TakeThatAudience audience]] (given the ''ES'' UnpleasableFanbase) and isn't above above [[SelfDeprecation taking some]] at [[TakeThatUs Bethesda itself]]. His "meta" dialogue understandably doesn't make any sense from an in-universe perspective and justifiably makes him seem [[CloudCuckoolander very detached from the game world]].

* 707 from ''VisualNovel/MysticMessenger'' seems aware that he is in a romance visual novel, commenting at several points on how the player character has gotten on a certain character's route or on the anime tropes displayed by a character.

* Embodied in the character Cherry Blossomfeather from the long-comatose comic ''Webcomic/RPGWorld''. As the story continues, it turns out that she has a special magical skill which allows her to look beyond the boundaries of her world - which manifests in a painfully deadpan attitude and a trope spotted at least once a strip.

* The entire plot of ''Webcomic/OneOverZero'' was characters debating their own existence with the author.
** Though Petitus seems the most like this.

* ''Webcomic/{{Homestuck}}'':
** [[JerkAss Caliborn]] takes this roll on occasion, such as when he [[HypocriticalHumor complains about]] the series use of RainbowSpeak WallOfText chatlogs... in a RainbowSpeak WallOfText chatlog. [[spoiler:By Act 6 Act 6, he becomes a full-blown Fourth-Wall Observer, taking control of the narrative and talking directly to the readers.]]
** [[TheStoic Dave]] ends up playing this role during Act 6 Intermission 3.
** Karkat has some elements of this [[spoiler:possibly due to his ancestor's ability to remember other universes]]. In Karkat's very first log of [[AnArc Hivebent]], he is confused that Gamzee can get hold of Faygo (since they are aliens), and when he meets his pre-scratch Ancestors he complains about how [[FlatCharacter flat and shallow their characterisation mostly is]] compared to him and his friends. Kankri has a noxious variant in that he criticises the '[[AllIssuesArePoliticalIssues pr96lematic]]' elements of the world from inside his own universe, as if he were a sociologically-inclined fan complaining about UnfortunateImplications in his fandom on Website/{{tumblr}}. At one point he [[CharacterFilibuster lectures]] [[FunnySchizophrenia Mituna]] for being too much like a stereotype of TheMentallyDisturbed, even though (from their perspective) Mituna cannot help acting that way.
* David of ''Webcomic/BittersweetCandyBowl'' is often this, when he isn't LeaningOnTheFourthWall or just being a CloudCuckoolander.
* Halo of ''Webcomic/GrrlPower''. When you have superpowers ''and'' you co-own a comic book store that sells superhero comics, you get self-referential. Before she signs up as a superhero, she sits and considers whether she has any 'bad' superpowers that will plague her, like having Wolverine's regeneration so she would get seriously hurt regularly. This specific example is defied by Maxima immediately afterward, pointing out that, to these characters, this ''isn't'' fiction, and thus the consequences of those "bad powers" might not actually apply.
* ''Everybody'' in ''Webcomic/BobAndGeorge''. Megaman demolishes the fourth wall in the very first strip and it never gets rebuilt. The entire cast knows they're in a comic, interact with the Author on a regular basis, and lampshade pretty much ''[[BetterThanABareBulb everything]]'' that happens throughout its run.
* In ''Webcomic/ElGoonishShive'', this role is the reason George exists; his [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2010-04-26 first appearance]] [[LampshadeHanging lampshades]] the origin of the {{Hyperspace Mallet}}s being explained seemingly out of the blue and his character developed from there.
* ''Webcomic/FriendshipIsDragons'': Weaponized. Here, Discord isn't just a villain, he's an entirely new DM called in to help the normal DM surprise the players. He was given all the information he needed on the players and the characters, allowing him to exploit the flaws of the players into exploiting the flaws of the characters, basically tricking them into roleplaying their own friendship falling apart.

* [[MauveShirt #21 and #24]] from ''WesternAnimation/TheVentureBrothers'' but many of the other characters are meta as well.
* Jeff Albertson (better known as Comic Book Guy) on ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' is usually the character who does this, perfectly fitting with his persona of a nerd overanalyzing comic books and cartoons.
-->'''Homer:''' Does anybody ''care'' what this guy thinks?\\
'''Crowd:''' NO!

* ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'':
** Craig takes on this role in the "Pandemic" two-parter, with his constant cynical [[LampshadeHanging lampshading]] about the main cast's tendency to get into increasingly ridiculous situations based on a backfired plan or idea.
** It's rare, but Kyle also has played this role on occasion. Perhaps the best example of this is during the episode "Butt out" when he told the boys that [[spoiler:they could save themselves a lot of trouble]] if they just admitted that they chose to smoke on their own and the tobacco company had no part in the decision. He even commented that everything was following a formula and correctly predicted that [[spoiler:he would make a speech at the end of the episode about what he learned during the episode.]]
* ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'': Sokka is shown to be intelligent by making oblique references to events in the story. His prediction of a volcanic eruption (and subsequent frustrations with the disinterested townfolk) is another example of how he comments on the story.

Very common in [[TheParody parodies]]. Not to be confused with Meta Knight from the ''Franchise/{{Kirby}}'' series of video games, or MetaPower, which deals with powers that influence other powers.

* In the ''Film/{{Scream}}'' movies, Randy was a horror movie buff pointing out various horror movie tropes, including going over the rules for surviving a horror movie -- [[DeathBySex never have sex]], [[TheScourgeOfGod never drink or use drugs]], and [[TemptingFate never say "I'll be right back."]] Naturally, [[TooDumbToLive the characters break all three in record time]]. He expands the rules to sequels and trilogies in [[Film/{{Scream 2}} the second]] and [[Film/{{Scream 3}} third]] films. Given [[Film/{{Scream 4}} the 4th film]] is an assassin "remaking" the original, two {{Suspiciously Similar Substitute}}s to Randy deliver the rules of remakes/reboots. [[spoiler:One of them is part of the BigBadDuumvirate.]] And ''Film/Scream2022'' introduces Mindy, the niece of Randy who has inherited his traits. Befitting for the subject of legacy sequels.

* Kyon from ''LightNovel/HaruhiSuzumiya''. Haruhi herself can be meta at times; for example, she seeks out members for the SOS Brigade based quite specifically on anime character cliches. However, she's also a RealityWarper without realizing it, so the universe sometimes goes out of her way to meet her expectations.

* Carol and Gustav St. Germain serve this role in ''LightNovel/{{Baccano}}''. Conversation topics include: [[JigsawPuzzlePlot where]] [[AnachronicOrder is the story supposed to start]], who exactly is [[DecoyProtagonist the main character of the series]] and whether or not the [[LeftHanging loose thread]] about [[spoiler:Dallas's missing body]] is a blatant sequel hook.

* Mello is this in ''LightNovel/AnotherNote'', commenting on both characters and happenings in the novel itself, and from the ''Manga/DeathNote'' series proper.

* ''VideoGame/VampireTheMasqueradeBloodlines'': The Malkavian PC knows the answers to questions that haven't been asked yet. He/she even knows she's in a videogame, once complaining that he/she doesn't want to do a mission, "but tell the guy controlling me that." However, they ''explicitly'' don't understand what they're saying more often than not and are just as surprised by the payoff as everone else. It's generally recomended to save Malkavian for a later playthrough, since most of these moments work best as a RewatchBonus.
* ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'':
** [[VideoGame/MetalGear Snake]], one of ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosBrawl'''s third-party characters, plays this trope fully. His mission briefings usually consist of his complete boggling of how incredibly strange the Nintendo universe actually is. Given that he's the only character whose home franchise is remotely grounded in reality (and then it's borderline NoFourthWall), it fits him quite well.
** Likewise, Slippy Toad fills this role during Fox and Falco's transmissions in the Lylat Cruse stage, noting how the characters can [[BatmanCanBreatheInSpace survive in deep space without oxygen or space suits]]. Peppy Hare immediately scolds him, breaking the fourth wall in the process.
** In the same way Snake was the Meta Guy of ''Brawl'', [[VideoGame/KidIcarus Pit, Palutena and Viridi]] act as the Meta Guys of ''Wii U'' commenting on the other fighters. This makes sense given the fact that ''VideoGame/KidIcarusUprising'', which is what the ''3DS/Wii U'' incarnations of the characters are based upon, has NoFourthWall.

* The Executor and Tradgedian of ''VideoGame/{{Pathologic}}'' are "stage hands" (which ties into the game's overarching theme of theatre, mostly consisting of {{Mind Screw}}s and [[NoFourthWall vapourizing the fourth wall]]). Their dialogue is full of LeaningOnTheFourthWall as a result. However, despite this claim, they are surprisingly participant in the main story: if you see them standing outside of a building in their distinctive bird masks and robes, then you know bad stuff has happened.
-->"Only those who would '''[[YouBastard give their life for you]]''' will '''[[OhCrap die because of you]]'''..."
* Cranky Kong is like this in the ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountry'' games. In between hints, he'll complain about how overblown and overrated the game's graphics and story is.
* In the Platform Game ''VideoGame/LevelUp'', Brainy the Squarian is this. He [[TheOmniscient knows everything]], including [[MediumAwareness that you, the player, exist]]:
-->'''The Girl:''' So do I purchase it?\\
'''Brainy:''' You make a choice, entirely determined by another's actions.

* Webcomic/{{Homestuck}} escapee Davesprite in ''VideoGame/NamcoHigh'' spends his time poking fun at the traits of the DatingSim [[spoiler:before his ending rips your heart clean out of your chest]].

* In ''Franchise/TheElderScrolls'', M'aiq the Lair is a recurring EasterEgg LegacyCharacter who has appeared in every game since ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIIIMorrowind Morrowind]]''. M'aiq is a known a FourthWallObserver (and [[LeaningOnTheFourthWall Leaner]] and ''[[BreakingTheFourthWall Breaker]]'') who [[AuthorAvatar voices the opinions]] of the series' creators and developers, largely in the form of {{Take That}}s, to both the [[TakeThatAudience audience]] (given the ''ES'' UnpleasableFanbase) and isn't above above [[SelfDeprecation taking some]] at [[TakeThatUs Bethesda itself]]. His "meta" dialogue understandably doesn't make any sense from an in-universe perspective and justifiably makes him seem [[CloudCuckoolander very detached from the game world]].
* ''VideoGame/{{Undertale}}'' has Flowey, who is fully aware of your ability to SAVE and LOAD, calling you out on your previous actions, and towards the end of the game [[spoiler:he [[TheFourthWallWillNotProtectYou closes the game and hijacks your SAVE file.]] He also directly talks to the player when they re-open the game after getting the GoldenEnding, begging them not to reset it.]] Notably, none of this is PlayedForLaughs.
** Also, [[spoiler:Sans the skeleton. He's so smart that he knows what you've [=SAVEd=] over without being able to SAVE, and comments on the changes between the [=SAVEs=]. This gets played to disturbing effect if you decide to go for a Genocide Run, where he serves as the final boss. Since it's almost impossible to get here on a first playthrough (you have to go out of your way to kill everyone) he starts to theorize on why you would decide to murder every living thing you came across after having already seen a happy ending. His number one theory is [[OneHundredPercentCompletion "you wanted to see what would happen"]]. He also elevates the Meta Guy routine [[ThatOneBoss to a weaponized form]], with almost all of his attacks invoking some flavor of InterfaceScrew. It becomes clear he's not attacking the player character; he's trying to ''stall out the player until they [[RageQuit quit the game in frustration]]'', because you're pretty much impossible to kill.]]

* ''VideoGame/HuniePop'' has Kyu, the game's [[HeKnowsAboutTimedHits tutorial character]] and mascot, who eventually becomes a dateable character, while still constantly brings up the game's mechanics, or how a certain piece of background music is her favorite in the soundtrack.
* In ''VideoGame/SoulCaliburVI'', GuestFighter [[VideoGame/TheWitcher Geralt of Rivia]] gets saddled with this during his brief visit to the world of ''Soul Calibur''. He notices out how strange it is that this world has so many weapon masters able to go toe-to-toe with a Witcher, and pays [[HotBlooded Mitsirugi]]'s attempt to become [[TheRival his rival]] [[UnknownRival no particular attention]].

* Sometimes, particularly when Creator/JohnByrne [[ComicBook/SensationalSheHulk is writing]], the ComicBook/SheHulk will take this role.

* Sue Sylvester from ''Series/{{Glee}}'' frequently lampshades how improbable some aspects of the show are, particularly their lavish performances that appear out of thin air. Her leaning against the fourth wall is taken UpToEleven in the sixth season.

* ''VideoGame/{{OFF}}'' gives us Zacharie who [[UpToEleven overkills this trope]] throughout the whole game. To give an example of his MediumAwareness, your first encounter with him has him [[LampshadeHanging describing]] himself as a merchant required in every video game.

* In the ''Film/{{Scream}}'' movies, Randy was a horror movie buff pointing out various horror movie tropes, including going over the rules for surviving a horror movie -- [[DeathBySex never have sex]], [[TheScourgeOfGod never drink or use drugs]], and [[TemptingFate never say "I'll be right back."]] Naturally, [[TooDumbToLive the characters break all three in record time]]. He expands the rules to sequels and trilogies in [[Film/{{Scream 2}} the second]] and [[Film/{{Scream 3}} third]] films. Given [[Film/{{Scream 4}} the 4th film]] is an assassin "remaking" the original, two {{Suspiciously Similar Substitute}}s to Randy deliver the rules of remakes/reboots. [[spoiler:One of them is part of the BigBadDuumvirate.]]