History Main / ShabbyHeroesWellDressedVillains

* ''WesternAnimation/GravityFalls'': Dipper, Mabel, Soos, and Wendy all wear pretty casual clothes most of the time, while Ford's getup is worn from his interdimensional travels. Stan's two outfits are either a full suit or shorts, a tank top, and sandals. Meanwhile, Gideon, Preston Northwest, and Agents Trigger and Powers all wear suits the majority of the time. Even Bill Cipher has a top hat and cane.

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Gargoyles}}'' The Gargoyles of the Manhattan Clan all wear loincloths made of what looks to be tattered cloth or leather, with the exception of Hudson, who wears armor, and Angela, who wears a shirt (still made from tattered cloth). By contrast, David Xanatos, being a billionaire, is usually rocking business attire, while his butler Owen is typically in a full suit.

* ''WesternAnimation/Gargoyles'' The Gargoyles of the Manhattan Clan all wear loincloths made of what looks to be tattered cloth or leather, with the exception of Hudson, who wears armor, and Angela, who wears a shirt (still made from tattered cloth). By contrast, David Xanatos, being a billionaire, is usually rocking business attire, while his butler Owen is typically in a full suit.

* In ''Manga/MoriartyThePatriot'', William Moriarty is rarely seen out of a full three-piece suit and top hat with a cane, and when he is, it's usually the jacket missing. Meanwhile, Sherlock Holmes cannot even remember how to tie a necktie since he hasn't properly worn one since his university graduation.

[[quoteright:350:[[Film/RogueOne https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/rogue_one_krennic_and_jyn_clothes.png]]]]

* One episode of ''WebVideo/EpicRapBattlesOfHistory'' has Frank Sinatra against Freddie Mercury. Guess which one is portrayed in a more positive light.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheIronGiant'': Hogarth wears typical attire for a 9-year-old in the '50s. Kent Mansley works for the government. And all that it implies.

Countless stories depict heroes wearing casual clothes or serving as living embodiments of the RummageSaleReject, if not outright decked out in rags, while the villains dress as stylish and/or high-end as they come. There are many ways to display this trope: The RebelLeader may wear a patchwork cloak while the EvilOverlord wears a jewel-encrusted cape, or the WorkingClassHero may wear a pair of overalls [[LimitedWardrobe every day]] while the CorruptCorporateExecutive has a closet full of suits. No matter what, the general class difference that fuels this trope is always present - the usual explanation is that heroes are LaResistance against the villainous establishment, whether TheEmpire, a MegaCorp, or something else. Another is that our heroes come from a lower-class background (if not outright social pariahs/criminals) while the villains are high-class and wealthy (if not outright AristocratsAreEvil). In short, our heroes are [[UnderdogsNeverLose underdogs]] and their choice of clothing shows it.

Can also overlap with DarkIsNotEvil and LightIsNotGood when the shabby hero invoke a dark and low class style to contrast with the villain's more high class light theme

* Guts and Griffith from ''Manga/{{Berserk}}'' with the former wearing low classed armor and clothing in contrast to Griffith's more regal armor and clothing.

* ''ComicBook/{{Uber}}'': While the Allied super soldiers are dressed in practical combat fatiques, the Nazi "Ubers" take to the battlefield in tailored black leather suits; this is because they're important to the Nazi PropagandaMachine.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheIronGiant'': Hogarth wears typical attire for a 9-year-old in the 50s. Kent Mansley works for the government. And all that that implies.

* ''Series/GameOfThrones'': The soldiers of House Stark wear furs and ulitarian plate armor. The men of House Lannister are very partial to enforcing BlingOfWar.

* In ''VideoGame/JetSetRadio'' games (JSR and JSR Future), the normal/modified clothes of the GG's and other gangs are contrasted with the {{Elite Mook}}s of Golden Rhinos, [[TheMenInBlack dressed with black suits and ties]], and the BigBad Gouji Rokkaku, which is a ManOfWealthAndTaste.

* Creator/TotalTelevision's ''WesternAnimation/{{Underdog}}'' wears a superhero outfit that seems too big for him. His two primary nemeses are MadScientist Simon Bar Sinister in a proper white lab coat, and RoaringTwenties mobster Riff Raff in a dark pinstripe suit.

** In the BadFuture, Dean meets VillianInAWhiteSuit Lucifer himself, [[spoiler: who also happens to be wearing Sam Winchester as his vessel, much to his brother's horror.]]

* ''Franchise/StarWars'': As a general rule, Rebels dress casually, while members of the Galactic Empire are clad in either military uniforms or heavy armor (the page image is from ''Film/RogueOne'', where heroine Jyn Erso wears simple fatigues while villainous Krennic even adds a stylish cape to to his uniform). There are exceptions; royal characters affiliated to the Republic/Rebellion, like Princess Leia or Queen Amidala, will wear appropriately opulent costumes (although both are more often seen in civilian clothes), and Sith Lords wear simple black robes not that dissimilar to the monastic robes of the Jedi.

* ''Film/TheDarkKnight'' plays with this. Batman wears a suit of high-tech armor to contrast the filthiness and poor hygiene of the Joker, which would make this an inversion. However, it's later that the Joker had all of his clothing custom-made so that no labels could be traced to him, and he emphasizes that they were not cheap.

* Despite the Beast from ''WesternAnimation/BeautyAndTheBeast'' being a ''prince'', his initial outfit is a cape and a pair of tattered pants. Despite adding a shirt later in the movie, he is still much more shabbily dressed than [[BigBad Gaston]].

Countless stories depict heroes wearing casual clothes or serving as living embodiments of the RummageSaleReject, if not outright decked out in rags, while the villains dress as stylish and/or high-end as they come. There are many ways to display this trope: The RebelLeader may wear a patchwork cloak while the EvilOverlord wears a jewel-encrusted cape, or the WorkingClassHero may wear a pair of overalls [[LimitedWardrobe every day]] while the CorruptCorporateExecutive has a closet full of suits. No matter what, the general class difference that fuels this trope is always present - the usual explanation is that heroes are LaResistance against the villainous establishment, whether TheEmpire, a MegaCorp, or something else.

* The titular character of ''Disney/WreckItRalph'' wears a shabby shirt and a worn set of overalls, while [[spoiler:King Candy is TheDandy and the BigBad]].

* ''Disney/{{Aladdin}}'': Aladdin wears pauper's clothes, complete with a patch on his pants, while Jafar dresses in finery befitting a Royal Vizier.

* Despite the Beast from ''Disney/BeautyAndTheBeast'' being a ''prince'', his initial outfit is a cape and a pair of tattered pants. Despite adding a shirt later in the movie, he is still much more shabbily dressed than [[BigBad Gaston]].

* ''WesternAnimation/TheThiefAndTheCobbler'': Tack wears ragged overalls [=ZigZag=] wears a black robe with bright yellow highlights and dozens of rings on each hand.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheThiefAndTheCobbler'': Tack wears nothing but rags while [=ZigZag=] wears a black robe with bright yellow highlights and dozens of rings on each hand.

* The titular character of ''Disney/WreckItRalph'' wears a shabby shirt and a worn set of overalls. King Candy is TheDandy and the BigBad.