History Main / TattooSharpie

* In the fifth season finale of ''Series/{{Friends}}'', "The One in Las Vegas", a drunken Ross and Rachel draw on each other's faces with permanent marker. Ross calls the manufacturer and is told that it's not coming off, so they go around the casino with marked-up faces. Come the 6th Season premier, they've disappeared with no explanation.

Usually overlaps with StatusQuoIsGod in TV, as even though it's explicitly stated it'll never come off, it's off by the next episode. Sometimes leads to or from ScannableMan or HumanNotepad. Overlaps with FaceDoodling when it comes to practical jokes.

[[folder:Video Game]]

Naturally, this isn't TruthInTelevision because skin produces a protective oil which breaks down most ink and makeup, so even permanent marker will wear off on its own, and hand sanitizer gel can help a great deal. Even substances which permanently stain or damage the outer layer of skin will disappear when the skin itself is shed and replaced. Permanent tattooing involves having the pigment placed between layers of skin (and even tattoos and scars can fade over time).

* One ''ComicStrip/{{Foxtrot}}'' arc had Jason try to remove an ink goatee from Peter (having tricked him into using a blue permanent marker), which unfortunately smeared all over his face instead. He went to school the next day with his face entirely blue... with the effect that the guys thought he looked like a Franchise/StarTrek alien, while the girls thought he looked like Creator/LeonardoDiCaprio towards the end of ''Film/{{Titanic|1997}}''.
-->'''Peter:''' So between the teasing and the google-eyed fawning, it averaged out okay. \\
'''Jason:''' Huh. I thought girls ''liked'' Dicaprio. \\
'''Peter:''' You and I share so many genes, and yet...

[[/folder]]

Naturally, this isn't TruthInTelevision because skin produces a protective oil which breaks down most ink and makeup, so even permanent marker will wear off on its own. Even substances which permanently stain or damage the outer layer of skin will disappear when the skin itself is shed and replaced. Permanent tattooing involves having the pigment placed between layers of skin (and even tattoos and scars can fade over time).

[[/folder]]

[[folder:Real Life]]
* In countries that don't use electoral roll systems, sometimes an [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Election_ink indelible ink]] is used to mark the fingers of voters so that they can't vote a second time (while still keeping votes themselves anonymous). It normally contains a substance that semi-permanently stains the skin, like silver nitrate.
* Some people like little girls, and vloggers who want to take a challenge, use markers and other supplies like crayons and colored pencils as makeup. While the products are nontoxic and quite easy to wash, companies like Crayola do not recommend on using it as makeup as it's not tested on skin and is not used for that purpose.

[[folder:Comic]]
* One ''ComicStrip/{{Foxtrot}}'' had Jason try to remove an ink goatee from Peter (having tricked him into using a blue permanent marker), which unfortunately smeared all over his face instead. He went to school the next day with his face entirely blue... with the effect that the guys thought he looked like a Franchise/StarTrek alien, while the girls thought he looked like Creator/LeonardoDiCaprio towards the end of ''Film/{{Titanic|1997}}''.

* In ''Webcomic/NineToNine'' [[https://www.tigerknight.com/99/2019-08-18 drunk girls found some fur dye in a bargain bin]] [[https://www.tigerknight.com/99/2019-08-25 and applied some of it to sleeping Phil.]] It proved much harder to wash off than expected.

* In ''VisualNovel/ButterflySoup'', Min draws one of a dagger on her arm as a young child, which can be seen in all of the flashbacks (although it isn't clarified if it lasts, or she just keeps redrawing it). In the present, as a pre-teen, she prefers to carry [[KnifeNut the actual thing]].

'''[[HollywoodNerd Jason:]]''' Huh. I thought girls ''liked'' Dicaprio. \\

Usually overlaps with StatusQuoIsGod in TV, as even though it's explicitly stated it'll never come off, it's off by the next episode. Sometimes leads to or from ScannableMan or HumanNotepad.

* One ''ComicStrip/{{Foxtrot}}'' had Jason try to remove an ink goatee from Peter (having tricked him into using a blue permanent marker), which unfortunately smeared all over his face instead. He went to school the next day with his face entirely blue... with the effect that the guys thought he looked like a Franchise/StarTrek alien, while the girls thought he looked like LeonardoDiCaprio towards the end of ''Film/{{Titanic|1997}}''.

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' had Homer sent to a mental institution and marked with an "INSANE" stamp on his right hand. Once he is declared sane, he has a very difficult time taking it off.

Permanent marker can be a problem when you get it on something you don't mean to. It's even worse in fiction where permanent marker is permanent on skin. This can be part of a plot thread, as the character tries to wash it off or hide it with makeup, or it can simply be a gag where the character has to grin and bare it.

* One ''ComicStrip/{{Foxtrot}}'' had Jason try to remove an ink goatee from Peter (having tricked him into using a blue permanent marker), which unfortunately smeared all over his face instead. He went to school the next day with has face entirely blue... with the effect that the guys thought he looked like a Franchise/StarTrek alien, while the girls thought he looked like LeonardoDiCaprio towards the end of ''Film/{{Titanic|1997}}''.
--> '''Peter:''' So between the teasing and the google-eyed fawning, it averaged out okay. \\
'''[[HollywoodNerd Jason:]]''' Huh. I though girls ''liked'' Dicaprio. \\

* Inverted in ''VideoGame/LifeIsStrangeBeforeTheStorm''. Chloe can potentially get a black eye in the first episode. If she does, Rachel will cover it up with makeup about half way through the episode, which hides the bruise for the rest of the game (even though Chloe takes a shower at the start of the third episode, two days later, which is nowhere near long enough for a black eye to disappear).

* In ''WesternAnimation/ElTigre'', Frida is signing autographs after becoming a one-hit wonder and accidentally writes an F on Manny's forehead. Manny isn't mad and thinks it will come off, until he sees a label that says "Does Not Come Off".
* In ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' had Homer sent to mental institution and marked with an "INSANE" stamp on his right hand. Once he is declared sane, he has a very difficult time taking it off.

* One ''ComicStrip/{{Foxtrot}}'' had Jason try to remove an ink goatee from Peter (having tricked him into using a blue permanent marker), which unfortunately smeared all over his face instead. He went to school the next day with has face entirely blue... with the effect that the guys thought he looked like a Franchise/StarTrek alien, while the girls thought he looked like LeonardoDiCaprio towards the end of ''Film/{{Titanic}}''.

As TropesAreFlexible, this can apply to other stationary supplies permanently marking the skin.

* In ''Webcomic/OnePunchMan'', [[StarterVillain Crablante]] wants to hunt down a kid who [[DisproportionateRetribution drew nipples on him]] using a permanent marker. Crablante notes that the marker could be scrubbed off, but as he has two giant crab pincers for arms, he can't possibly clean it off himself.

* ''Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000:'' In ''[[Recap/MysteryScienceTheater3000S11E14AttheEarthsCore At the Earth's Core]]'', Jonah and the bots get frustrated at how quickly their temporary tattoos wear off, so they invent ''Permanent'' Temporary Tattoos: you apply them to the skin like temporary tattoos, but they never go away. "Just wet it, set it... and [[EmbarrassingTattoo regret it]]."

* One ''ComicStrip/{{Foxtrot}}'' had Jason try to remove an ink goatee from Peter (having tricked him into using a blue permanent marker), which unfortunately smeared all over his face instead. He went to school the next day with has face entirely blue... with the effect that the guys thought he looked like a StarTrek alien, while the girls thought he looked like LeonardoDiCaprio towards the end of ''Film/{{Titanic}}''.
--> '''Peter:''' So between the teasing and the google-eyed fawning, it averaged out okay.
--> '''[[HollywoodNerd Jason:]]''' Huh. I though girls ''liked'' Dicaprio.
--> '''Peter:''' You and I share so many genes, and yet...

* Basically the plot of the book ''Literature/PurpleGreenAndYellow'', wherein the child protagonist gets a set of "super-indelible, never come off till your dead or maybe even later markers." You can guess what happens next.

* In the fifth season finale of ''Series/{{Friends}}'', "The One in Las Vegas'', a drunken Ross and Rachel draw on each other's faces with permanent marker. Ross calls the manufacturer and is told that it's not coming off, so they go around the casino with marked-up faces. Come the 6th Season premier, they've disappeared with no explanation.

* One ''ComicStrip/{{Foxtrot}}'' had Jason try to remove an ink goatee from Peter (having tricked him into using a blue permanent marker), which unfortunately smeared all over his face instead. He went to school the next day with has face entirely blue... with the effect that the guys thought he looked like a StarTrek alien, while the girls thought he looked like LeonardoDiCaprio towards the end of {{Titanic}}.

* In ''WebVideo/YuGiOhTheAbridgedSeries'', Téa draws a smiley face across everyone's hands as a [[ThePowerOfFriendship friendship gesture]] in the first episode. Joey points out afterwards that she used a permanent marker. Several episodes later, it becomes a BrickJoke when she asks if everyone remembers the friendship symbol. Even [[TheDitz Tristan]] does, because it took him several weeks to scrub the marker off.

* ''Series/{{Trollhunters}}'' has goblins who all look alike identify their leader by being the first one to pick up the last leader's permanent marker and draw on a moustache. The only way for the goblins to get a new leader is for the old one to die. It happens a lot: goblins are not very bright.

Name suggestions:
* ReallyPermanentMarker
* TattooSharpie*

Draft begins below the line.
----