History Main / SomethingForEveryone

->'''Lister:''' What did you see?
->'''The Cat:''' Oh, just some gorgeous chunk of loveliness!

When SomethingForEveryone is in play, if Bob casts a {{Glamour}} spell that is intended to make him irresistably attractive to everyone who sees him, Alice may see him as Creator/OrlandoBloom, while the FaceHugger sees him as [[Film/{{Alien}} Second Officer Kane]]. In the case of an ArtifactOfAttraction, instead of having an innate power to make people want it specifically, it may simply ''imitate'' every observer's most personally coveted object. [[Literature/HarryPotter Lord Voldemort]] will see it as the PhilosophersStone, [[Literature/LordOfTheRings Gollum]] will see it as the One Ring, and so on.

* In the movie ''[[Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion End of Evangelion,]]'' [[spoiler:the multiple avatars of Rei/Lilith who appear to guide each individual human through the transition into Instrumentality have the ability to appear in the form of someone that individual loves. There are several shots of cast members getting a last look at/embrace from what appears to be someone they care for, right before bursting into [[strike: orange Tang]] LCL.]]
** With one notable exception [[spoiler: Aoba Shigeru, AirGuitar playing BridgeBunny who only sees a swarm of naked Rei's and promptly freaks. The writers have said this was because Aoba was a nihilist who cared for no one.]]

* Morpheus from ''ComicBook/TheSandman'' did this. He would appear as a cat for cats or Bast and appear human for humans. Desire, on the other hand, works like the AppleOfDiscord naturally.

* ''Literature/CiaphasCain'': During a raid on a Slaaneshi cult, the madam uses her magic to project an image the soldiers won't shoot at. [[AwwLookTheyReallyDoLoveEachOther Cain sees Amberley]], and is about to shoot another soldier in a jeaous rage (also motivated by the soldier addressing "Amberley" by the wrong name, i.e. his own girlfriend's) but is distracted long enough for Jurgen to approach and his AntiMagic effect to reveal the madam as an frumpy older woman, who Cain shoots on the spot.

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* ''Film/IceAge 4'': The siren fish project an image of whatever the victim loves to lure them in: each of the heroes sees their love interest (real of imaginary, in Sid's case), Sid's grandma sees a Chippendales sloth with a PornStache, and Scrat, of course, sees his acorn. Cut to reality, where Scrat is now trying to bury the siren into the ground, blissfully unaware of what's really happening.

-->--''Series/RedDwarf'', "Camille"

* [[BigBad The Lone Power]] from the ''YoungWizards'' series supposedly looks different to everyone. To Nita, he usually looked like a good looking but cruel [[EvilRedheads red-haired man]].

* Pretty Poison, a succubus from the ''{{Nightside}}'' novels, appears as everyone's hottest sexual fantasy come to life.

* The monsters of ''SilentHill'' appear as appropriate dark reflections of a person's psyche.

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* In ''{{Catherine}}'', [[spoiler: the titular character appears to everyone she seduces as their ideal dream girl.]]

* In relative obscurity, the final season episode of ''{{Roseanne}}'' "Satan, Darling" had a DreamSequence in which Roseanne met the Devil's Advocate, who looked like her [[EvilCostumeSwitch in red]]. It claimed, "I take on whatever form your subconscious chooses to give me. I almost came as a hamburger."

->'''Lister:''' "What did you see?"
->'''The Cat:''' "Oh, just some gorgeous chunk of loveliness!"
-->-''Series/RedDwarf'', ''Camille''

* In the ''RenAndStimpy'' episode "Marooned", a giant alien tentacle monster appears to Ren as a female chihuahua in order to trap him. To Stimpy, the tentacle appears as a bag of kitty litter, so he looks perplex when Ren starts to caress it and talk romantically to it.

* In one episode of ''PinkyAndTheBrain'' the titular mice are placed into a sophisticated maze, including a room with a hologram meant to distract them by showing them whatever they most wanted to see. After unsuccessfully trying to find a secret area of the maze and coming full circle, Pinky states that [[GeniusDitz what he most wants to see is a map of the maze]], causing one to appear in front of them.

* The second half of the ''{{Firekeeper}}'' series of novels gives us the Meddler, a godlike trickster. Lacking a corporeal body, he creates a form through the minds of those around him. The end result is that every person sees him differently. Most saw him as a local man. Others, such as Firekeeper's wolf partner Blind Seer, saw another wolf like himself.

* In the ''WorldsOfPower'' novel of ''VideoGame/BlasterMaster'', The [[BigBad Plutonium Boss]] did the "worst fear" version. The images the players of the game see is something each fears most.

* Verra, a goddess from the ''{{Dragaera}}'' novels, ''sounds'' different to different people. When she speaks, each witness hears her say something that's relevant to them.
* TV news reports in Purgatory, from Piers Anthony's ''IncarnationsOfImmortality'' series, customize themselves to the interests of whomever is watching them.

** Similarly utilized in Stephen King's ''NeedfulThings'', but in the form of TheLittleShopThatWasntThereYesterday.
* In TheAncientOne, there's a swamp with water that lures people in by smelling like their favorite things, but it's really an extremely dangerous pool of acid.

* {{Galactus}} appears as a member of whatever species looks at him, probably to {{Retcon}} his human appearance into the realm of plausibility.

* The [[HowDoYouLikeThemApples Apple of Discord]] in the ''Literature/{{Illuminatus}}'' appears to you as your heart's desire.

* The "Holy Grail" in ''{{The Mists Of Avalon}}'' appears as a chalice which creates food - whichever food one person likes most.

* The [[HowDoYouLikeThemApples Apple of Discord]] in the ''{{Illuminatus}}!'' appears to you as your heart's desire.

** With one notable exception [[spoiler: Aoba Shigeru, AirGuitar playing BridgeBunny who only sees a swarm of naked Rei's and promptly freaks]].

Some artifacts or beings look like different things to different people. The basis for the differences ranges from your worst fear to your greatest sexual fantasy, a favorite memory, or extremely symbolic representations of your psyche. Although usually an inherent trait, sometimes it's a simple MasterOfIllusion trick, and the thing ''does'' have a "true form" once you break through it.

See also EmpathicShapeShifter, AFormYouAreComfortableWith and LieToTheBeholder. Sounds like but has nothing to do with TasteTheRainbow.

* In ''VideoGame/Catherine'', [[spoiler: the titular character appears to everyone she seduces as their ideal dream girl.]]

* Hinted at in an overhead conversation in ''VideoGame/MassEffect2''. A human, a Turian, and a Salarian at a bachelor party are watching an [[GreenSkinnedAlienSpaceBabe Asari]] stripper, and each one finds a different part of her attractive.

* In ''HarryPotter'', the love potion Amortentia smells like all the smeller's favorite smells (Harry smells treacle tart, broomstick varnish, and Ginny's perfume, while Hermione smells like parchment, cut grass, and [[WordOfGod Ron's hair]]) and the polyjuice potion has a different consistency depending on who it turns you into (Crabbe and Goyle's looks like mud, Harry's is gold, we don't see what Bellatrix's looks like but it apparently tastes terrible.) In addition, Boggarts appear as one's worst fear, Dementors cause victims to experience their worst memories, and the Mirror of Erised reflects one's greatest desire. Yeah, Rowling loves this trope.