History Main / MistakenForAnImposter

* A crossover between ''ComicBook/XFactor'' and ''ComicBook/SheHulk'' dealt with a Skrull named Nogor who impersonated ComicBook/{{Longshot}}. When the real Longshot comes to X-Factor's new headquarters, Guido attacks him thinking he was Nogor. Longshot points out that if he were Nogor, he wouldn't use the same disguise twice on the same people.

[[quoteright:263:[[ComicBook/ArchieComics https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/imposter_hair.jpg]]]]

** In the cartoon "Lion Around", two of Donald's nephews dress up in a lion costume to scare Donald while the third nephew goes for a yummy pie. However, one slip-up has Donald discover who the "lion" really is and shoos the nephews out of the house. Then a real mountain lion shows up and goes to Donald's house in an attempt to eat him and the pie. However, Donald thinks the actual lion is just his nephews in costume and tries shooing it away, but the lion persists and enters his house. At once Donald becomes infuriated and even attempts to rip off the lion's head, but then one of his nephews knocks on the window and tries convincing Donald that the lion is real by showing him the costume, which the nephews had taken off. It takes Donald a few seconds to realize that the "lion costume" he attempted to "take off" is actually a real lion, whom he had just ''[[{{Pun}} ticked off]]''! OhCrap!

* A crossover between ''ComicBook/XFactor'' and ''ComicBook/SheHulk'' dealt with a Skrull named Nogor who impersonated ComicBook/{{Longshot}}. When the real Longshot came to X-Factor's new headquarters, Guido attacked him thinking he was Nogor. Longshot points out that if he were Nogor, he wouldn't use the same disguise twice on the same people.

* ''Series/Batwoman2019''. At the end of "How Queer Everything Is Today", Kate Kane gets a nasty shock when a sane version of her twin sister Beth who somehow survived the collapse of the multiverse turns up--her response is to violently assault Beth under the assumption that she's Alice, her evil alternate self, or [[TheDragon Mouse]] under LatexPerfection disguise.

* ''Series/Batwoman2019''. At the end of "How Queer Everything Is Today", Kate Kane gets a nasty shock when a sane version of her twin sister Beth who someone survived the collapse of the multiverse turns up--her response is to violently assault Beth under the assumption that she's Alice, her evil alternate self, or Mouse under LatexPerfection disguise.

* On ''Series/{{CSINY}}'', a badly-injured man who'd been buried alive staggers out of a cemetery and stumbles down the street, covered in blood and grave earth ... straight into a flash mob of people dressed as zombies. Nobody notices his genuine distress until it's too late, and he dies from his ordeal and previous injuries.

* In the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OR4N5OhcY9s Meet the Spy]] trailer for ''VideoGame/TeamFortress2'', after the BLU Spy talks up the RED Spy who has infiltrated their base as an unstoppable badass, the BLU Soldier believes that he's ''obviously'' the RED Spy in disguise [[ButHeSoundsHandsome complimenting himself]], and sees fit to prove it [[BoomHeadshot in the quickest way possible]]. He was wrong. [[spoiler:The RED Spy was actually disguised as the BLU Scout, who spent the whole time ''insulting'' himself. He drops disguise and easily {{Back Stab}}s the remainder of the BLU Team as they are bent over the BLU Spy's corpse]].

[[quoteright:263:[[Franchise/ArchieComics https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/imposter_hair.jpg]]]]

* There's an Franchise/ArchieComics story in which Veronica has Archie masquerade as her dad at the school's father-daughter dance, since Mr. Lodge had to go on a business trip. She gets angry with Archie at some point and then he goes outside, where he finds Mr. Lodge, who cancelled said business trip so he could go to the dance. Mr. Lodge arrives at the dance, but Veronica, still angry with Archie, attempts to expose him and finds out the hard way that she's yelling at her father.

* ''LightNovel/{{Kunosuba}}'': Aqua is a goddess who is worshipped by the fanatical Axis Order/Cult. Since she is very stupid and clumsy and everyone expects goddesses to be wise and graceful, nobody believes her when she identifies herself, even if she demonstrates her powers. The Axis Cult has even attempted to kill her for the blasphemy of impersonating a goddess.

* In an episode of [[Anime/FullMetalAlchemist the 2003 anime version]] of ''Manga/FullmetalAlchemist'', the Elric brothers are shunned in one town they visit...for claiming to be the Elric brothers. It is implied that at least one townsperson knew the other set was fake, but went along with the ruse out of sympathy for the poor orphans.

* In Episode 439 of the long running chinese cartoon ''Animation/PleasantGoatAndBigBigWolf'', the sheep, Wesley escapes from the house of his ArchEnemy, Wolffy, by [[DisguisedInDrag disguising himself]] as the wolf's [[HenPeckedHusband domineering wife]], Wolnie. As Wesley escapes, Wollfy figures out the disguise and gives chase armed with a club. Unfortunately for Wollfy, he happens to run into the real Wolnie, and thinking she's Wesley, starts beating her with the club. When he pulls Wolnie's face he realizes its NotAMask and then freaks out as his wife prepares her FryingPanOfDoom.

* In "Literature/TheBrainStealersOfMars", Rod Blake encounters a {{shapeshifting}} alien plant-thing that disguises itself--poorly--as his partner Ted Penton. He shoots it and it turns into a bat and flies away. He's still in the grip of hysteria when another Ted-Penton-thing shows up, and Rod shoots at it too. Of course, this one is real.

* In one Japanese legend, [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danzaburou-danuki Danzaburou]] the {{Tanuki}} deliberately {{invoke|dTrope}}s this trope to screw over a boastful {{Kitsune}} he comes across, claiming he can [[MasterOfIllusion disguise himself as an entire feudal lord's procession]] before dissappearing. When the procession promptly approaches, the fox jumps on the lord's basket to mock Danzaburou, thinking it's all an illusion... only to be immediately seized and put to the sword for his trouble. As it turns out, Danzaburou was bluffing, knowing beforehand that the ''actual'' procession was about to pass by, and [[GuileHero tricked the kitsune into crashing it]].

* In [[https://youtu.be/IR7MwB2sYYY?t=658 Episode 439]] of the long running chinese cartoon ''Animation/PleasantGoatAndBigBigWolf'', the sheep, Wesley escapes from the house of his ArchEnemy, Wolffy, by [[DisguisedInDrag disguising himself]] as the wolf's [[HenPeckedHusband domineering wife]], Wolnie. As Wesley escapes, Wollfy figures out the disguise and gives chase armed with a club. Unfortunately for Wollfy, he happens to run into the real Wolnie, and thinking she's Wesley, starts beating her with the club. When he pulls Wolnie's face he realizes its NotAMask and then freaks out as his wife prepares her FryingPanOfDoom.

* ''Comicbook/SpiderMan''

* In ''Film/WhiteChicks'', when two FBI agents capture who they believe to be two men disguised as supermodels Brittany and Tiffany, they forcibly undress them in front of their superior to prove it. Turns out they actually captured the ''real'' Brittany and Tiffany, [[PervertRevengeMode who punch them unconscious in retaliation for the undressing]].

* In the ''Disney/{{Frozen}}'' fanfic ''FanFic/{{Unfrozen}}'', Elsa and Anna, having been pulled into RealLife circa 2013, suffer from this trope and are thought to be exceptionally good cosplayers by delighted parents. Elsa's (magical) snow is even mistaken for PracticalEffects by Disney World employees.
* In the ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer''[=/=]''Series/{{Angel}}'' fic ''FanFic/BringMeToLife'', the Scooby Gang and Angel's crew are confronted by the newly-undead Lilah Morgan, reanimated as part of Wolfram & Hart's standard perpetuity clause. Buffy promptly assumes that it's [[UltimateEvil the First Evil]] pulling a DeadPersonImpersonation. Lilah proves that theory wrong by shoving a vase off of a nearby table, something the [[{{Intangibility}} non-corporeal]] First would be incapable of doing.

* In one Japanese legend, Danzaburou the {{Tanuki}} deliberately {{invoke|dTrope}}s this trope to screw over a boastful {{Kitsune}} he comes across, claiming he can [[MasterOfIllusion disguise himself as an entire feudal lord's procession]] before dissappearing. When the procession promptly approaches, the fox jumps on the lord's basket to mock Danzaburou, thinking it's all an illusion... only to be immediately seized and put to the sword for his trouble. As it turns out, Danzaburou was bluffing, knowing beforehand that the ''actual'' procession was about to pass by, and [[GuileHero tricked the kitsune into crashing it]].

* In one Japanese legend, Danzaburou the {{Tanuki}} deliberately {{invoke|dTrope}}s this trope to screw over a boastful {{Kitsune}} he comes across, claiming he can [[MasterOfIllusion disguise himself as an entire feudal lord's procession]] before dissappearing. When the procession promptly approaches, the kitsune jumps on the lord's basket to mock Danzaburou, thinking it's all an illusion... only to be immediately seized and put to the sword for his trouble. As it turns out, Danzaburou was bluffing, knowing beforehand that the ''actual'' procession was about to pass by.

* In one Japanese legend, Danzaburou the {{Tanuki}} deliberately {{invoke|dTrope}}s this trope to screw over a boastful {{Kitsune}} he comes across, claiming he can [[MasterOfIllusion disguise himself an entire feudal lord's procession]] before dissappearing. When the procession promptly approaches, the kitsune jumps on the lord's basket to mock Danzaburou... only to be immediately seized and put to the sword for his trouble. As it turns out, Danzaburou was bluffing, and he knew beforehand the procession was about to pass by.

* At one point in ''[[Recap/TintinTheBlueLotus The Blue Lotus]]'', a man with a large, bushy beard and wearing sunglasses and a coat enters the bad guys' opium den and is immediately recognized by them as Tintin in disguise. Only when they beat him up, it turns out it ''isn't'' Tintin, just a man who happens to look like him with a large beard.

* ''WesternAnimation/DonaldDuck''

** In "Donald's Rocket Ruckus", Donald sees what he thinks is [[TotemPoleTrench his nephews Huey, Dewey, and Louie disguised as a tall woman]] in order to trick him into [[YouMustBeThisTallToRide letting them on the titular amusement park ride]]. He tears the dress off only to find that the tall and lumbering woman actually is a tall and lumbering woman and is now naked, getting [[MegatonPunch a punch from the embarrassed woman]] for all his troubles.