History Main / PersonalitySwap

''[[Characters/BatmanTheJoker The Joker]]'' and ''[[Characters/SupermanLexLuthor Lex Luthor]]'' had this happen to them in the formers first solo series. Joker wound up with all of Lex’s scientific genius while Lex got all of the Joker’s madness. It was somewhat deconstructed, as their personalities were so contrasting that the strain of shifting from one extreme to the other would’ve killed them if they didn’t swap back.

* In the ''WesternAnimation/RatedAForAwesome'' episode "Merry-Go-Round of Doom", Thera and Chet experience this after riding on a super-fast merry-go-round; Thera becomes mean and nasty, and Chet becomes kind and charitable. Les and Lars also experience this during an attempt to put things right, and later, Les's dad and [[EverythingsBetterWithMonkeys Mr. Twitchy]].

* Happens in an episode of ''Series/{{Seinfeld}}'' to Jerry and Kramer when they switch apartments.
** Also happens in another episode where both George and Elaine abstain from sex, and discover that it frees his brain up, while clogging her mind with frustration. Before long, he's as confident and bright as she used to be, while she becomes clueless and slow-witted.
** It's even more blatant in "The Opposite," which starts with Elaine enjoying a run of good luck, with a promotion at work and a promising relationship, while George is still unemployed and living with his parents. By the end of the episode [[HourglassPlot their fortunes have been completely reversed]], with George getting his dream job and a new girlfriend and moving out of his parents' house while Elaine has lost her job, her boyfriend and her apartment. The reversal is driven home by the visual of Elaine dressing similarly to George and sitting in his usual place across from Jerry at the diner while confessing her troubles.

** In the PostScriptSeason episode "Stop Team Go", the same AppliedPhlebotinum is now turned into a MirrorMoralityMachine and causes instant [[CharacterAlignment alignment]] switches. Team Go becomes evil and [[TheDragon Shego]] turns good to become Kim's best friend; The [[FoeYay KiGo]] [[LesYay shippers]] {{squee}} as their dreams almost become {{canon}}.

See also: FreakyFridayFlip, InAnotherMansShoes, SoulFragment, and NotHimself. Compare HourglassPlot.

* Parodied in the FourthWallMailSlot in one volume of ''Manga/{{Eyeshield 21}}'' - A reader asks what would happen if [[SociopathicHero Hiruma]] and [[TeamMom Mamori]] switched personalities. They come to the conclusion it's best the way it is.
* ''Webcomic/AxisPowersHetalia'' has [[StraightMan Germany]] and [[TheDitz Italy]] try and act like each other in one comic.

* The foundational trope upon which FanFic/DividedRainbow is based. Played for very serious, often tearjerking drama... though it still has many moments of awesomeness and humor.

* In Hey Arnold, there was an episode in which the class had an aptitude test. Helga, believed that she was dumb while Harold thought he was a genius. Of course, this was an error.

** ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyAndFriends'': In "[[Recap/MyLittlePonyAndFriendsE35MishMashMelee Mish Mash Melee]]", Gusty, Fizzy, Shady, and Wind Whistler upset a barrel that maintains "the balance of nature", releasing creatures called the frazzits that sitch their personalities around between them. Frizzy gets Wind Whistler's [[TheSpock logical personality]] and Wind Whistler gets her [[TheDitz ditzy, happy-go-lucky personality]], while Shady gets Gusty's [[LeeroyJenkins brave and physical personality]] and Gusty gets her [[LovableCoward cowardly personality]].

* ''WesternAnimation/DragonTales'' did this to Zak and Wheezie in one episode via a magic statue. As they share the same body, the FreakyFriday plot wouldn't be an option anyway.

* Even Franchise/WinnieThePooh has done this]]:
** More specifically, ''[[[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Phl8OqxpQ0o Happy Pooh Year]]'' (released together with ''Winnie the Pooh and Christmas Too'' as ''A Very Merry Pooh Year''), with the switch done in two pairs: Tigger and Piglet, and Pooh and Eeyore. Frankly, seeing the [[TheEeyore usually gloomy]] Eeyore acting like Pooh and [[https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/EeyoreCreepySmile.JPG grinning like a madman]] is... [[NightmareFuel/WesternAnimation disturbing]].

* In a later episode of ''Series/SesameStreet,'' Oscar and Telly get three wishes between them. Telly wishes Oscar would be a nice person, and Oscar wishes Telly would be a grouch... and this briefly happens. Then the person who gave out the wishes reverses those two.
* Also on ''Series/SesameStreet'', in episode 720, Ernie imagines [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5tet721PTCQ switching personalities with Bert.]]

* In the ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'' episode "Transfigurations" Dr. Crusher finds that to save a shuttle crash victim she needed someone to volunteer a neural link to help regulate their brain functions. Geordi volunteers and because the individual was undergoing a type of [[AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence Ascending to a Higher Plane of Existence]] transformation the leftover impression gave Geordi an amazing boost in confidence especially with romantic pursuits.

[[folder:Theater]]
* Salieri's opera ''La Grotta di Trofonio'' involves around this. Two sisters (one extroverted, one bookish) are both engaged to be married to men with matching characters. But when the men enter Trofonio's cavern, their personalities are swapped over. In the second act they manage to work out what's happened and swap back, but at the same time the girls decide to make their own visit to the cavern...

* ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyAndFriends'': In "Mish Mash Melee," Gusty, Fizzy, Shady, and Wind Whistler stumble across the AppliedPhlebotinum that maintains "the balance of nature," and their personalities get switched around between them. Frizzy gets Wind Whistler's [[TheSpock logical personality]] and Wind Whistler gets her [[TheDitz ditzy, happy-go-lucky personality]], Shady gets Gusty's [[LeeroyJenkins brave and physical personality]] while Gusty got her [[LovableCoward cowardly personality.]]

* In the ''WesternAnimation/KimPossible'' episode "Bad Boy", AppliedPhlebotinum causes {{Sidekick}} Ron to gradually become evil while MadScientist Drakken turns good.

* Even Franchise/WinnieThePooh [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Phl8OqxpQ0o has done this]] -- more specifically, ''Happy Pooh Year'' (released together with ''Winnie the Pooh and Christmas Too'' as ''A Very Merry Pooh Year''), with the switch done in two pairs: Tigger and Piglet, and Pooh and Eeyore. Frankly, seeing the [[TheEeyore usually gloomy]] Eeyore acting like Pooh and [[https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/EeyoreCreepySmile.JPG grinning like a madman]] is... [[NightmareFuel/WesternAnimation disturbing]].
** Additionally, ''The New Adventures Of Winnie The Pooh'''s episode "Sham Pooh" features Pooh losing his appetite, causing the gang to suspect that he's not, in fact, Pooh. It is then determined that Owl is actually Pooh, Gopher is Owl, Piglet is Gopher, and Rabbit is Piglet. (Only Tigger remains himself, and he's also the one who's having the most fun watching everything unfold.) The characters act accordingly up until Pooh starts eating honey again. Interestingly, no one becomes Rabbit and Pooh doesn't become anyone.
* In an episode of ''Disney/TheLionKing'' spinoff ''WesternAnimation/TimonAndPumbaa'', the titular pair think they're going to die as a result of being stung by a deadly scorpion. During their "last day", the pair undergo a personality swap-the usually [[JerkAss selfish and greedy]] Timon gives away all his earthly possessions and finds joy in kindness and generosity, while the formerly [[NiceGuy kind-hearted]] Pumbaa becomes self-centered and vain, wanting to live it up before he goes out. Naturally, when it is revealed that death isn't imminent, the pair revert to their usual personalities.

* One confusing episode of ''Anime/MartianSuccessorNadesico'' centered around several of the characters' minds being linked together by the enemy robots (or something like that). While they were connected, they were unable to consciously control their own bodies, which were then taken over by their suppressed personality traits. It led to ActionGirl Ryoko cowering in fear, MsExposition Inez refusing to explain things, and eternal sadsack Jun [[SugarWiki/FunnyMoments grabbing a machine gun and running around in search of things to shoot.]]

** Also happens in another episode where, by withholding from sex, George becomes smart and successful and Elaine suffers a severe drop in intelligence from having a lot.

* In the early {{Crossover}} fanfic-turned-novelette, ''[[Series/DoctorWho The Doctor]] and [[Series/StarTrek the Enterprise]]'', Spock and the Doctor take on some of each others' habits and body language after their mind-meld. Seeing the Fourth Doctor use Spock's finger-steepling gesture and Spock struggling not to crack a Tom Baker grin seriously creeps Kirk out.

* Apparently, one of the plans in ''VideoGame/CrashTwinsanity'' was to make it so that when they go to the [[{{BizarroWorld}} Tenth Dimension]], Crash and Cortex switch personalities. Uunfortunately, this was removed from the game.

* In ''WesternAnimation/{{Sixteen}}'''s [[Recap/SixteenS1E22EnterTheDragon "Enter the Dragon"]], Nikki and Caitlin essentially swap personalities [[AllPeriodsArePMS while on their periods]]: Nikki becomes an overly emotional FragileFlower and sheds many TenderTears, and also develops [[GirlsLoveChocolate a strong craving for chocolate]] (even though it's said that she hates chocolate); Caitlin starts acting [[HairTriggerTemper really bitchy]] [[DeadpanSnarker and cranky]] (Jen even goes so far as to say that, "[Caitlin makes] pit bulls look friendly"). However, it's unknown if Caitlin develops an aversion to chocolate when she gets her period.

* Even Franchise/WinnieThePooh [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Phl8OqxpQ0o has done this]] -- more specifically, ''Happy Pooh Year'' (released together with ''Winnie the Pooh and Christmas Too'' as ''A Very Merry Pooh Year''), with the switch done in two pairs: Tigger and Piglet, and Pooh and Eeyore. Frankly, seeing the [[TheEeyore usually gloomy]] Eeyore acting like Pooh and [[https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/EeyoreCreepySmile.JPG grinning like a madman]] is... [[NightmareFuel/WesternAnimationTV disturbing]].

!!Examples

[[folder: Anime & Manga]]

[[folder: Comic Books]]

[[folder:FanFiction]]

[[folder:Theatre]]

[[folder:Web Original]]
* WebVideo/ToddInTheShadows jokingly speculated, in his review of "Counting Stars" and "Demons", that Music/{{OneRepublic}} and Music/ImagineDragons had undergone one of these, only with musical talent instead of personality. This was one of the few explanations he could come up with as to why Imagine Dragons, a band that he normally likes, disappointed him with "Demons", which he felt sounded like a bad [=OneRepublic=] song, while [=OneRepublic=], a band that he finds to be [[SoOkayItsAverage crushingly mediocre]] on the best of days, pleasantly surprised him with "Counting Stars", which he felt sounded like it could've been one of Imagine Dragons' best songs.

* One chapter of ''Manga/PokemonSpecial'' had Red and Green accidentally trading their teams. Because of the contrasting personalities of the trainers, the Pokémon had to adjust: Red teaches Green's Pokémon to be more laid-back and relaxed, while Green trains Red's team into battle-hardened warriors. By the time they switched back at the end of the chapter, neither trainer is amused at the results (Red had to ''run for his life'' from his Pokémon, and Green is weirded out by his team having mellowed out). It's also plot-relevant, since the trading sequence allowed Green to evolve his Machoke into Machamp, and a previously recalcitrant Porygon now ''snuggling'' up to him.

* The ''WesternAnimation/BigHero6TheSeries'' episode "Big Roommates" has GoGo and Honey Lemon temporarily becoming roommates due to an accident the latter created. As the episode goes on, the normally optimistic and open hearted Honey becomes more cynical and sarcastic, while GoGo, who's tougher and no nonsense, becomes the optimist.

* Apparently, one of the plans in ''VideoGame/CrashTwinsanity'' was to make it so that when they go to the [[{{BizarroWorld}} Tenth Dimension]], Crash and Cortex switch personalities, unfortunately, this was removed from the game.

* In The Recreation arc of ''Machinima/RedVsBlue'', [[ProfessionalButtKisser Simmons]], becoming more assertive in his role as the OnlySaneMan, becomes more openly critical of Sarge's warped orders and SkewedPriorities and is less eager to carry them out. Meanwhile, [[TheSlack Grif]] sees how keeping up the ForeverWar is easier, agrees with Sarge's self-destructive strategies so Red Team won't win against Caboose (The only Blue Team member around) and then possibly be shipped to a more difficult battlefield. This backfires on Grif, though;

* One confusing episode of ''Anime/MartianSuccessorNadesico'' centered around several of the characters' minds being linked together by the enemy robots (or something like that). While they were connected, they were unable to consciously control their own bodies, which were then taken over by their suppressed personality traits. It led to ActionGirl Ryoko cowering in fear, MsExposition Inez refusing to explain things, and eternal sadsack Jun [[CrowningMomentOfFunny grabbing a machine gun and running around in search of things to shoot.]]

See also: FreakyFridayFlip, InAnotherMansShoes, SoulFragment, and NotHimself.