History Main / MistakenForBadass

* In the [[Literature/TheSagaOfTanyaTheEvil Youjo Senki]] and Series/HouseOfTheDragon crossover [[https://forums.spacebattles.com/threads/a-young-womans-inevitable-dance-of-the-dragons.1143397/ A Young Woman's Inevitable Dance of the Dragons]], Elaena (reincarnated Tanya) helped the Velaryons in the Stepstones by completely annihilating all the enemy forces on the area. The problem, however, is that she was aware she would never get the permission to be part of the battle. She solved this problem by making it seem like everything she did was actually Leanor Velaryon's work. It worked so well people started calling Laenor "The Dark Storm", with Otto now believing Leanor would be as much of a threat in the future as Daemon already is.

* Literature/CiaphasCain, THE HERO OF THE IMPERIUM, believes this of himself. While untold billions think that Cain is an amazingly skilled badass, brilliant orator, and all-around star of the Imperium, Cain himself thinks he's a cowardly nonhero but seeks to perpetuate the accidentally-achieved image because the backlash for failing to do so would be catastrophic.
** The inquisitor who provides the footnotes of the novels and knows what Cain is really like believes this is an inversion; she acknowledges that Cain is one of the best swordsmen she's ever seen and that one of Cain's flaws (that is unknown to him) is his cripplingly low self-esteem when it comes to positive traits that he genuinely has. Then again, [[UnreliableNarrator said inquisitor is also very likely his lover]]. Ultimately, the reader comes up with their own opinion on the subject, but any conclusions drawn are likely to fall somewhere in-between heroic and semi-heroic.

* Harry Flashman in the ''Literature/{{Flashman}}'' novels. Although many characters met by the protagonist know him (or come to know him) to be a cad and a coward, his reputation among society at large is that of a brave and honorable man.
** Flashman ''lives'' for this trope. He can run away from a battle and hide in a cesspool, then show up weeks later and be hailed as a hero for being the lone survivor. He encourages this sort of thing, but all he really has to do most of the time is keep his mouth shut.

* ''Webcomic/OnePunchMan'': King is a FakeUltimateHero who manages to reach S Class by being accidentally credited with the defeat of many powerful monsters (actually killed by Saitama, the main character). Bystanders credit him for the kills, and because of his dangerous appearance and reputation, many bad guys fear him when he appears. In reality, he's an ordinary man who's too afraid to correct everyone's assumptions.

* Mara Shin of ''Manhwa/DorothyOfOz'' has a four million dollar price on her head for allegedly killing Selluriah, the Witch of the East. However, Mara is actually just a normal high school kid who just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time and got blamed for it because a hysterical soldier accused her of it after finding her standing over Selluriah's dead body and wearing her magical boots. It also doesn't help that she allows Abee and Number 50 to escape from some Eastern soldiers who want them dead for being Western spies, or that she helps wayward scientist Dr. Nedbar escape from [[AxeCrazy Tick Tock]] with the Witch of the South's newest and deadliest creation. Or that she travels with three supposedly dangerous escaped biological experiments, all of whom are incredibly loyal to her and will lay down their own lives to protect her. The fact that she doesn't have very good control of her powers in her witch form contributes a bit to the mess as well...

* The ''Manhwa/DorothyOfOz'' example above was cribbed from ''Literature/TheWonderfulWizardOfOz'' where the Munchkins assumed that Dorothy must have been an insanely powerful Munchkin sorceress to call up a storm and squish the East Witch with her house. Compounding this misunderstanding was that Dorothy was the size of an adult Munchkin and wearing her blue and white gingham dress. In Oz, Munchkins favor blue, and ''only'' magic users wear white. That's ''why'' they [[GonnaNeedMoreX called the North Witch for help.]]

* ''Le Grand Blond avec une Chaussure Noire'' (''Film/TheTallBlondManWithOneBlackShoe'') has TheDitz played by Creator/PierreRichard first mistaken for a spy, then used as a decoy by the only agency that knew he isn't... and everyone's cluelessness continued into the sequel ''Le Retour Du Grand Blond''.
** It was remade as ''Film/TheManWithOneRedShoe''.

* Jaune yet again in ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12574905/1/In-the-Kingdom-s-Service In the Kingdom's Service]]'', where he gets kidnapped by the Vale Secret Service, though for the opposite reason as in the [[Creator/CoeurAlAran author's]] other work ''Fanfic/ProfessorArc''. Namely, Jaune's transcripts are obviously fake to anyone who digs through them... yet Ozpin accepts him anyway. Combined with how bad frontier town records are, the [=VSS=] naturally become suspicious and pre-emptively spirits him away for interrogation and/or disposal. Unlike most examples, they quickly figure out Jaune is just a stupid teenager due to one of their members having a Semblance that lets him know if someone is telling the truth. On the other hand, others like Blake start assuming Jaune is unusually competent after he easily tracks her in the Emerald Forest despite her best efforts to stay hidden (Jaune is wearing glasses with thermal imaging and can see someone up in the trees).

* Slightly meta example, but Rotton the Wizard from ''Manga/BlackLagoon''. When he makes his first appearance in a bar, he sits quietly in the corner, in his BadassLongcoat and CoolShades, armed with [[GunsAkimbo two]] [[CoolGuns broom-handle Mauser pistols]]. Most people -- both characters and fans -- thought he was the most badass motherfucker in history, based on appearances. {{Subverted}} later in the episode, when everyone [[JokeCharacter was]] [[WideEyedIdealist proven]] to [[CantHoldHisLiquor be]] [[TheFool dead]] [[ButtMonkey wrong]]. Though, he does salvage some of his reputation by being the only one smart enough to bring a bullet-resistant vest.

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fEuFDuCoe20 This greentext post]] on ''Website/{{4chan}}'' involves the police trying to track down an individual, only to be frustrated as they can't find any trace of his existence - no records of employment, no social media accounts, no sightings, nothing at all. They assume the man to be a highly skilled criminal, calling him "a ghost". The joke, of course, is that [[{{NEET}} the real reason they can't find any traces of his activities is because there is nothing to find]].

* Harry Flashman in the ''Literature/{{Flashman}}'' novels by George Macdonald Fraser. Although many characters met by the protagonist know him (or come to know him) to be a cad and a coward, his reputation among society at large is that of a brave and honorable man.

* In ''Literature/ANightInTheLonesomeOctober'' by Creator/RogerZelazny, a bunch of magic-users preparing for the imminent ritual confrontation mistook one bystander -- though not exactly ''"innocent"'' -- for a participant. Massive scheming ensued. They (or at least their {{familiar}}s) learned he never was in their game too late for it to matter.

* ''Film/GalaxyQuest'': Actors in a ''Franchise/StarTrek'' {{Expy}} are mistaken for their characters.

** A plot driver in ''Film/CarryOnCleo'' where the escaped slave Hengist Pod is concussed hiding under a table while his badass neighbor, Horsa, takes out a squad of legionnaires and makes good his escape. With all the witnesses dead the authorities assume Hengist is the badass swordsman and he is made personal bodyguard to Julius Cesar... Hilarity ensues.
** Another example in ''Film/CarryOnCowboy'' when a stagecoach carrying Marshal P. Knutt and a young woman [[note]]Annie Oakley traveling incognito[[/note]] is attacked by outlaws. He shoots wildly while she kills them all and then lets everyone, including Marshal (yes, that's his name) believe he did it. He is mistaken for a lawman because of his name (he actually fixes drains) and is recruited to deal with a problem that some "rats" are giving the town.

* Jaune Arc, from the ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'' fanfictions ''Fanfic/ProfessorArc'' and ''Fanfic/TheBeaconCivilWar'', both written by Coeur Al'Aran. In ''Fanfic/ProfessorArc'', Jaune Arc fakes his school transcripts as per canon, leading to him being accepted into the prestigious Beacon Academy for Huntsmen and Huntresses. Only not as a student, but as ''a teacher'' instead, since his transcripts are excessively impressive. In 'Beacon Civil War', a boys vs girls war exercise in Beacon has Jaune Arc and his teammate Lie Ren trying to evade getting captured by the girls and being subjected to the whims of their much stronger female teammates. Through a series of events, Jaune finds himself becoming the boys' leader. In both cases, HilarityEnsues.
* In ''Fanfic/TheSagesDisciple'', Crow deliberately invokes this trope by trying to make himself look far more dangerous and powerful than he actually is by doing things such as joining Caster on the front lines instead of hiding. [[spoiler: So far, he's convinced Emiya Kiritsugu that he's a high-tier Puppet Master by using Caster's mini-Wicker Men as decoys, Rider thinks that he's an oracle due to his future knowledge, and the rest of the competitors see him as a combination of Magnificent Bastard and The Wonka. The only one that has a hint that he isn't quite what he seems is Kirei.]]

* ''Miller'', from the ''Franchise/MyLittlePony'' Fanfiction of the same name, written by totallynotabrony. A human wakes up in Equestria as a pegasus, and he eventually finds himself in the middle of a major drug operation, but all he wants to do is get home. Thanks to his luck (or unluck), the criminal underworld nicknames him "Miller the Killer".

* Mr. Black, from the ''Franchise/HarryPotter'' fanfiction ''Fanfic/MakeAWish'', written by Rorschach's Blot. Throughout the story, he somehow manages to convince everyone that he's: a veteran Magical Law Enforcer; the world's deadliest assassin; a rampaging and particularly creative psychokiller; a rare creature specialist; a master of stealth and evasion; a master of detection, ward, and deadly ancient spells; a member of various old organizations, rebellions, and militias; a vampire hunter; a sex god; a master archaeologist; at the very least, a 13000-year-old immortal; the destroyer of countless civilizations; and finally Death Incarnate. He was just a [[NiceGuy regular guy]] on vacation. [[spoiler:[[GambitPileup Or ]][[CompoundInterestTimeTravelGambit is]] [[AllAccordingToPlan he?]]...]]

* In ''[[http://www.fimfiction.net/story/237978/how-trixie-somehow-saved-hearths-warming How Trixie (Somehow) Saved Hearth's Warming]]'', Trixie's showboating accidentally convinces one of Santa's reindeer, Vixen, that she's a badflank heroine after saving Vixen from freezing to death. This results in Vixen deciding Trixie can help her stop the BigBad and save Hearth's Warming. Trixie ''is'' fairly talented and did help the mane six stop a Diamond thief on one occasion, but not nearly as much as she likes to say she is or Vixen ''thinks'' she is.

* In a ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer''/''WesternAnimation/TeenTitans'' crossover, an evil cult summons Gachnar the fear demon, accidentally summoning Xander (who had Gachnar in his pocket) as well. When Xander tells the cultists not to order around his pet and calmly crossing the ritual circle, Raven becomes terrified of him, assuming Xander must be a being of unfathomable power to both keep a name rank demon as a pet and ignore powerful demon binding magic. In reality, demon binding magic doesn't affect humans and he keeps Gachnar as a pet by feeding it Twinkies. ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/9706397/54/More-Fragments Read Here]]''

** Chaff's FearlessFool, NeatFreak tendencies make him clean up the blood in an area where a tribute died. Everyone who sees him leaves him alone due to [[RefugeInAudacity feeling he can't possibly be that stupid and must have a cunning trap nearby]].

* According to [[https://www.reddit.com/r/ShittyDaystrom/comments/ohkd1l/imagine_you_are_elim_garak/ this fan theory]], [[https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine Elim Garak]] is actually this.

[[CodeName The Tourist]] is a ''monster.'' After intercepting [[CodeName The]] [[Videogame/FalloutNewVegas Courier]] and stealing [[MacGuffin The Package]], he's liquidated [[DefeatMeansFriendship or turned]] every agent, assassin, and hitman sent to retrieve it or kill him. Every spy agency this side of the Atlantic is scouring their records, trying to discover who he is, what he knows and who he works for, but one question burns brightest: "What does he ''want''?"

%%* Subverted in ''Film/LuckyNumberSlevin'' ...and that's enough about that.

* ''WesternAnimation/StarTrekLowerDecks'': In "[[Recap/StarTrekLowerDecksS1E08Veritas Veritas]]", Tendi is cleaning a conference room when a black-ops team walks in. When she explains that she's just there as a cleaner, Ransom assumes that she's "the Cleaner", a stone-cold black ops agent, and drafts her for the mission.

* The premise of ''Fanfic/{{Denial}}'' in a nutshell. A series of [[ContrivedCoincidence Contrived Coincidences]] allow Taylor to defeat several of the setting's more powerful villains, leading everyone to believe that she is a ridiculously powerful parahuman.