History Main / TemporaryBlindness

* Making this trope OlderThanFeudalism, in Literature/TheBible, Tobit is blinded when bird droppings fell in his eyes. His son Tobiah sets off to search for a cure and is joined by the Archangel Raphael in disguise. After they free a girl named Sarah from the curse that killed [[DeathBySex her seven husbands in their wedding nights]] and Tobiah marries her, Raphael tells him how to cure his dad.
** In the New Testament, a Jewish man named Saul was blinded for several days after his he had a certain encounter on the road to Damascus. He then had a HeelFaceTurn and became Paul of Tarsus.

* LightNovel/HaruhiSuzumiya goes almost blind in one eye in episode 1 of the ''Franchise/PrettyCure''-style reboot, ''Fanfic/SOSPrettyCure'', and is paralyzed from the waist down in episode 3. Both times she recovers completely.

[[quoteright:300:[[ComicBook/{{Superman}} https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/supereyesight.png]]]]

[[folder:Western Animation]]
* Showed up in an episode of ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'', "Blind as a Bat", where our hero had to stop The Penguin from stealing an experimental military helicopter despite his impairment. Batman uses a sonar system that somehow plugs into his brain to provide an artificial equivalent of sight (why he couldn't just plug a camera into his brain was never addressed), but it's conveniently damaged at the climax of the fight, forcing Batman to defeat The Penguin using only his sense of hearing.
* Happened to Rhinox, Dinobot, Cheetor, and Rattrap in the ''WesternAnimation/BeastWars'' episode "Dark Voyage", where their optic sensors get shorted out and they have to make it back to base so they can use the CR chamber to restore their sight.
* A very similar plot occurred in ''WesternAnimation/DarkwingDuck''. This is to be expected, as the series is somewhat of a spoof of ''Franchise/{{Batman}}'' (though not a direct spoof of [[WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries BTAS]], since the latter premiered after its cancellation).
* In the ''[[WesternAnimation/DragonsRidersOfBerk Dragons: Race to the Edge]]'' episode "Blindsided", Astrid becomes temporarily blinded by a lightning bolt that nearly hit her. She remains blind throughout the entire episode, having to rely on Hiccup to get around and feeling useless in situations involving violence and peril. Later, her enhanced hearing helps her and Hiccup evade danger and even uses them to calm the Triple Stryke.
* In an episode of ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'' Peter decides to set a record for swallowing the most coins. Eventually, he goes blind from nickel poisoning until the end when he inadvertently rescues Horace the bartender when the bar was on fire. He gains his sight back when he receives an eye transplant from a hobo he accidentally killed.
* Late in the first season of ''WesternAnimation/FriskyDingo''; both Killface and Xander are blinded and eventually get eye transplants.
* In an episode of ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'', Leela has one eye blinded and has to wear an eyepatch. Complicated, of course by the fact that she only has one eye to begin with...
* In a [[CanonDiscontinuity Goliath Chronicles]] ''WesternAnimation/{{Gargoyles}}'' episode, the vision in Hudson's good eye starts to wane. He has surgery to get it corrected (as the gargoyles' existence is public knowledge by now) but has to deal with a [[FantasticRacism Quarrymen attack]] while blindfolded, with the help of his permanently-blind friend Robbins.
* An episode of ''WesternAnimation/JackieChanAdventures'' did a triple-whammy with this trope: in accordance to [[MonkeyMoralityPose the monkeys of See No Evil, Hear No Evil, and Speak No Evil]], [[GentleGiant Tohru was rendered blind]], Jade's hearing was taken away, and Jackie couldn't speak.
* An episode of ''WesternAnimation/JimmyTwoShoes'' had the entire town of Miseryville like this after a light show, with Jimmy deciding to take advantage of the situation to do whatever he wants.
* In an episode of ''WesternAnimation/KingOfTheHill'' Hank is very uncomfortable with his mother's new boyfriend; one day when he accidentally walks in on them having sex the sight causes him to go blind for several days, only after accepting him as a stepfather does he get his sight back.
* Used on Kay in an episode of ''WesternAnimation/MenInBlack''. Also allowed Jay to angst, as Kay had taken a blast meant for Jay, which took his sight temporarily.
%%* This trope was used in "Blind Luck", an episode of ''WesternAnimation/RamboTheForceOfFreedom''.
* In one episode of ''WesternAnimation/TheSmurfs'', Poet Smurf is struck mute and learns sign language from a friendly elf named Laconia.
** Also, in the episode "Dark Ness Monster" Brainy Smurf is rendered practically blind after losing his glasses. He has to rely on Clumsy Smurf's guidance for the episode, which results in the two becoming best friends.
* The Creator/RankinBass special ''The Story of the First Christmas Snow'' begins with an orphaned shepherd named Lucas getting hit by lightning, the shock of which renders him blind. Naturally, it ends not only with him getting his wish of [[LetThereBeSnow having it snow on Christmas Eve]] but getting his sight back when the snow touches his eyes. The nun who was caring for Lucas during his recovery calls it a "gift from God."
* ''WesternAnimation/TangledTheSeries'': [[KindheartedSimpleton Lance]] becomes temporarily deaf as a result of exploding one of [[GadgeteerGenius Varian's]] inventions. Every time someone speaks to him, he can only hear ringing. He's back to normal by the next episode.
* In the 2003 ''[[WesternAnimation/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles2003 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles]]'' episode "[[Manga/LoneWolfAndCub Lone Raph and Cub]]", Raphael is temporarily blinded and must rely on the kid he was trying to help to orient him in a fight.
** {{Subverted|Trope}} in the Mirage comic book story "Blind Sight", in which Leonardo is blinded via poison during a fight with a Foot Ninja, who was himself blinded by Leonardo in a previous battle. Leonardo lands what he believes to be a killing blow until he realizes that the ninja was gone and that he'd actually stabbed a homeless person who was in the area. This leads to a sequel mini-series, where the still-blind Leonardo deals with the HeroicBSOD caused by the experience.
** Michelangelo also has his own "Blind Sight" arc in the Archie comic book series (''[[ComicBook/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtlesAdventures TMNT Adventures]]''), wherein he was blinded by a Molotov Cocktail, then survived a plane crash into the ocean, and was then captured and tortured by the U.S. government. After going through all that, and still blind, he managed to find it in his heart to save the man who tortured him from drowning.
** April O'Neil has her turn with this trope in the 2012 series, in an unconventional manner - due to a psychic mishap, she winds up with her sight hooked into the vision of a rampaging mutant bird, leaving her able to see through its eyes as it attacks her friends - but unable to see anything around her. She partners with the still-injured Leonardo to mount a rescue of the captured Turtles and Casey.
* [[PlayingWithATrope Played with]] in ''WesternAnimation/XMenEvolution'': Scott is dropped off in Mexico as a part of a trap laid by Mystique. He can see fine, it's just that she took his visor so he has to keep his eyes closed to avoid his EyeBeams causing massive damage to everything he looks at. Plus, you know, he's in the middle of the desert with no one to help him.
-->''[opens his eyes for an instant to get a look at his surroundings]''\\
'''Scott:''' The good news...no one was there. The bad news, no one was there.
* ''WesternAnimation/HeManAndTheMastersOfTheUniverse1983'': In an episode, He-Man and Ram-Man visit a crystal cave along with a blind boy, so he can hear the "singing crystals". However, a crystal stalactite falls from the ceiling, causing a burst of light that blinds them both. Thus it's the blind boy who now has to guide the heroes back to the surface, due to being more used to the disability.
* A villainous example in ''WesternAnimation/SuperMansion'': Lex Lightning, after revealing herself as TheMole, is blinded by a blast from her illegitimate father Titanium Rex's gauntlet. Her vision is back by the next episode.
[[/folder]]

* ''Manga/ThePrinceOfTennis'' has two instances of this. Early on, the main character, Ryoma Echizen, nearly permanently blinds himself after his own racket breaks and ricochets into his eyelid. Due to excessive bleeding, he is given a ten-minute time limit for finishing the match, and with three minutes left, finally gets serious and wins. Much later, [[spoiler: Fuji, from the same team, breaks concentration and has a ball slammed into the side of his head, somehow blinding him. Not one to give up a match, he continues, though his opponent quickly grasps the situation and starts to make a comeback. Fuji then somehow surpasses his own limits and is able to "feel" the presence of the ball, making for a ridiculous victory.]]
* In ''Manga/SlamDunk'', [[spoiler: Rukawa]] plays a good part of the Toyotama match blinded after a JerkJock player elbows him on the head.

** In the manga, during his days as a hitokiri, some guys tried to take him out by using tricks to weaken his sight and hearing. He was still able to kill them even with barely functioning senses, but did have a little more trouble than usual. [[spoiler: And his wife Tomoe died in the mess]].
** In the anime, Kenshin also was temporarily blinded during his fight with Shougo Amakusa. He recovers his sight later. Note that [[spoiler: Shougo has blinded his own uncle and teacher several years later, and the poor man never recovered his sight]], so...

* Happened in [[RecycledScript three separate issues]] of ComicBook/ConanTheBarbarian during TheEighties.

An almost identical plot structure can be used with temporary paralysis, deafness, concussions, etc. Similar but not the same as the StandardStatusEffect, as this trope uses blindness for plot reasons.

A supporting character helps the hero get used to his condition. Often, the blinded character's other senses will become much more acute. Unfortunately, the villain of the story sometimes discovers the hero's condition and instantly realizes he now has an overwhelming advantage. However, the hero still wins because the villain usually underestimates how well he has adjusted to his situation — in some cases, the temporary disability may actually give the hero [[DisabilityImmunity a useful advantage]].

!!Examples:

[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
* Plots based around this trope were absolutely standard in [[TheSeventies 70's]] action drama series, showing up on ''Series/{{Mannix}}'', ''Series/HawaiiFiveO'', and numerous others.
----
* This happens to ''Series/TheATeam'''s [[AcePilot resident pilot]] Murdock in the episode "[[Recap/TheATeamS1E13TheBeastFromTheBellyOfABoeing The Beast From the Belly of a Boeing]]". While reclaiming a hijacked plane from a group of terrorists, one of the terrorists fires his gun in front of Murdock's face, giving him a powder burn rendering him unable to open his eyes. After the fight, Murdock is the only person capable of piloting still on the plane and ends up having to [[ImprobablePilotingSkills tell Hannibal how to land the plane]]. He lands successfully, albeit through the wall of the airport, but it's [[LampshadeHanging acknowledged that it was ridiculous nobody got hurt]]. (TruthInTelevision, since the Mythbusters showed that it's possible to be "talked down" safely.)
* Crops up in one episode of ''Series/BandOfBrothers'', but unusually it lasts less than an hour and is apparently psychosomatic.
* In the ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' episode "Something Blue", Giles is rendered temporarily blind due to a spell.
* In ''Series/{{Charmed|1998}}'', at one point, the Halliwell sisters get the '[[MonkeyMoralityPose see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil]]' version - one is blind, one is deaf and one can't talk. They have the requisite attack from a villain who underestimates them.
* Cliff on ''Series/{{Cheers}}'' suffers from "Hysterical Blindness" when he gets nervous around pretty women.
* ''Series/{{CHiPS}}'' has an entire episode with a pair of robbers using an optical laser mounted in the back of their van to temporarily blind their victims and pursuers.
* ''Series/DoctorWho'':
** Sarah Jane is temporarily blinded in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS13E5TheBrainOfMorbius "The Brain of Morbius"]], and has an adventurous time (including a hair-raising escape from the MadScientist) before her vision returns.
** A variation: Leela is temporarily blinded at the ''end'' of [[Recap/DoctorWhoS15E1HorrorOfFangRock "Horror of Fang Rock"]], and although she quickly recovers, her eyes permanently change colour. This was a RealLifeWritesThePlot HandWave to permit Louise Jameson to stop wearing the coloured contact lenses, which had been causing problems.
** [[Recap/DoctorWhoS31E5FleshAndStone "Flesh and Stone"]]: Amy's brain gets invaded by a [[NightmareFuel Weeping Angel]], and the only way to keep it from killing her is to keep her eyes shut. So although she can physically see, if she opens her eyes she dies, so she's effectively blind. She ends up having to escape alone through a forest full of the Weeping Angels, pretending she can see so they don't attack her.
** [[Recap/DoctorWhoS36E5Oxygen "Oxygen"]]: Happens to [[spoiler:the Doctor, after he's forced to go on a spacewalk helmetless (using his [[BatmanCanBreatheInSpace respiratory bypass system]] to survive) because he had to give his helmet to Bill because her spacesuit was malfunctioning.]] He does pretty well for the rest of the episode, and it gets fixed after everyone gets back on board the TARDIS. [[spoiler:Except not — although his eyes were cleared up, so he no longer has ProphetEyes, he still can't see, and was faking it. He's still hiding his condition from Bill in the next episode. It's not until two episodes later, near the end of [[Recap/DoctorWhoS36E7ThePyramidAtTheEndOfTheWorld "The Pyramid at the End of the World"]], that it is cured, due to Bill making a DealWithTheDevil because the Doctor was in danger of dying.]]
* ''Series/DueSouth'': In "North", the first episode of its second season, Fraser is temporarily blinded due to a head injury suffered in a plane crash that leaves him and Ray Vecchio (along with Fraser's half-wolf Diefenbaker) stranded in the Canadian wilderness. Later Fraser (also temporarily) loses the use of his legs due to the same injury.
%%* The ''Series/EarlyEdition'' episode "Blind Faith" (which seems to be a common title for this plot).
* ''Series/{{Farscape}}'' episode ''Til The Blood Runs Clear'' has Aeryn temporarily blinded when she accidentally glimpses a solar flare with unprotected eyes. Since she doesn't adjust too well, she spends the rest of the episode in the local hangar, finding a more permanent solution to the problems the rest of the cast are facing.
** Two seasons later, they return to the same planet- and it happens ''again,'' this time to Crais.
** Also happens to Chiana in later seasons after she uses her precognitive abilities (she describes it as her eyes getting used up after she uses them to see the future/slow down the present.) The blindness is permanent in the series finale, but she gets new eyes for the miniseries.
* ''Series/ForeverKnight'': In "Father Figure", Nick is assigned to protect a girl who witnessed a crime. While Nick is trying to take care of the hitmen sent to get rid of the girl, she accidentally reflects the sun into his eyes. Because he's a vampire, the results are worse than what would happen to a human, and he's temporarily blinded and has to rely on his other vamp senses to save the day.
* ''Series/TheFugitive'' has this happen to Kimble in one episode, and to Gerard's wife in another.
* In one episode of ''Series/{{Grimm}}'', Nick is blinded by the Wesen of the week. He develops super-hearing (which apparently persists after the episode), and with advice from Rosalee, the rest of the gang manages to get what is needed to restore his sight (defeating said Wesen in the process).
* On ''Series/HappyDays'', the Fonz goes blind from being hit on the head with a tray.
* A [[ExternalCombustion car bomb]] does this to [=McGarret=] on the original ''Series/HawaiiFiveO''. He recovers by the end of the episode.
%%* Hercules loses his vision in one episode of ''Series/HerculesTheLegendaryJourneys''.
* An episode of the 2000 series ''Series/TheInvisibleMan'' has the titular character shot with a "blindness gun". The gun [[spoiler:operates on the same principle as his powers, so when he activates them he can see]].
* In an episode of ''James at 15'' James does this to himself on purpose, thoroughly blocking his ears so he can experience what it's like to be deaf.
* ''Series/KamenRiderAgito'': Hikawa starts losing his vision as a result of stress and overwork. Hikawa being Hikawa, he insists on continuing to work as Kamen Rider G3 all the same, resulting in a rather touching turn of events when Hojou (who, to that point, had made it a point to butt heads with Hikawa and co. as often as possible) uses the G3 team's communication system to act as Hikawa's eyes and help him kick ass. The trope reappears in ''Series/KamenRiderKiva'' with Nago losing his vision and Megumi shouting out directions for him. (It's worth noting that Inoue Toshiki was the head writer for both Agito and Kiva.)
* This happens to Stabler once in ''Series/LawAndOrderSVU'' due to head trauma. Played a little differently than usual, in that he can't go off and do his usual heroics, instead simply waiting for his sight to return while his injuries heal.
* ''Series/{{MacGyver|1985}}'':
** In "The Negotiator", Mac is temporarily blinded by a bomb planted on his boat. Leads to a showdown with the assassin in a warehouse where Mac has to fight while still mostly blind.
** In "Blind Faith", Pete's glaucoma worsens to the point where he is effectively blind. Leads to a HandyHelper situation after Mac's hands are injured in an explosion so Mac acts as Pete's eyes while Pete acts as Mac's hands. Unlike most instances of this trope, Pete would eventually go permanently blind ([[RealLifeWritesThePlot as did his actor]]).
* ''Series/MalcolmInTheMiddle:'' Subject of a gag in one episode where Malcolm and his brothers set off a massive fireworks display, topped with a Komodo 3000, which is so powerful it literally turns night into day for a few seconds:
-->'''Francis:''' ''[deafly yelling]'' DID IT SAY WHEN OUR VISION WOULD COME BACK?\\
'''Reese:''' BOX SAID TWO DAYS!\\
'''Francis:''' ...TOTALLY WORTH IT!
* In the ''Series/{{Mannix}}'' episode "The Sound of Darkness", Mannix goes blind after being wounded by a hit man's bullet. Thanks to an ex-marine who once blind himself, Mannix is able to cope with living in darkness and even use it to his advantage. He regains his sight after the police bust into his darkened office after he shoots the hitman.
* ''Series/{{MASH}}''
** Hawkeye is temporarily blinded by an exploding heater. During the course of his recovery, he experiences a heightening of his other senses, up to and including Radar's ability to hear incoming helicopters.
** Later in the series, Klinger goes deaf for an episode.
** In another episode, Colonel Potter mentions that he suffered from this during World War I.
** In the GrandFinale, Father Mulcahy is deafened by an explosion, apparently permanently. In the first episode of ''Series/AfterMASH'', a surgical procedure repairs the damage and restores his hearing.
%%* Patrick Jane loses his vision in one episode of ''Series/TheMentalist''.
* Happens to Barney in the ''Series/MissionImpossible'' episode "The Falcon", Cinnamon in "The Heir Apparent", and Jim in, appropriately enough, "Blind".
* The title character of ''Series/{{Monk}}'' is temporarily blinded in one episode, only to find that he actually prefers being sightless, as what he can't see can't repulse or terrify him. He still recovers by the end of the episode and suffers the customary disadvantage against a sneak attack from the villain of the week.
* In the ''Series/QuantumLeap'' episode "Blind Faith" (there's that title again), Sam leaps into the body of a blind pianist. Although able to see for most of the episode, he is temporarily blinded by a camera flash at the climax of the episode just as he needs to save the girl. This works to his advantage near the end of the episode. The girl's mother thinks he is a fraud and suddenly lights a lighter in front of his eyes. He is still blind due to the camera flash, so he doesn't flinch.
* ''Series/TheSentinel'': The protagonist is blinded, which is an odd twist in a show about a guy with SuperSenses. He decides to use his remaining senses to fake it for the duration of the episode and does better than a normal person could.
* Clark gets blinded at the beginning of the ''Series/{{Smallville}}'' episode "Whisper", which leads to his developing super-hearing. This also leads to a ContinuityNod where Clark has to wear glasses.
* In the ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries'' episode "Operation - Annihilate!", Spock is rendered temporarily blind by an experimental solution to that week's NegativeSpaceWedgie.
* Subverted in a ''Series/StargateSG1'' season 3 episode: "New Ground". [[ProudWarriorRaceGuy Teal'c]] is blinded by an energy blast and his Goa'uld larva is injured, preventing it from healing him right away. The rest of the team is captured, so Teal'c stubbornly insists on riding to the rescue... and promptly walks into a solid rock wall, nearly knocking himself unconscious. [[spoiler:Finally, he swallows his pride and accepts the assistance of a native, receiving a partial cure for his condition. But he still can't shoot beyond point-blank range and nearly blasts Colonel O'Neill. Really, it's mostly the native guy who saves the day.]]
* Temporary deafness variant: In an episode of the mid-60s ''Franchise/{{Tarzan}}'' series, Tarzan is temporarily deafened when the episode's villains try to kill Tarzan by throwing hand grenades into the lagoon he is swimming in.
* ''Series/TourOfDuty'': In "Brown-Gray Odyssey", Lt. Goldman temporarily loses his sight when his Jeep hits a mine and has to be guided by a female VC prisoner he is holding at gunpoint.
* ''Series/TheTwilightZone1985'': In "Many, Many Monkeys", a rapidly spreading condition results in about 100,000 people in the US losing their sight due to a curtain of flesh growing over their eyes. It may be [[MaybeMagicMaybeMundane a punishment for ignoring each other's hardships or the result of bacteria being released from a biological research lab]]. After several days, it is determined that the flesh curtain can be safely removed through surgery.
* Xena from ''Series/XenaWarriorPrincess'' goes temporarily blind in one episode. Not once does she ever seem bothered by it, however. She simply trades her sword for a staff and goes right on with the ass-kicking, even managing to ''catch her chakram from the air'' on sound alone.
* Lilith goes temporarily blind in one episode of ''Series/YoungHercules'' due to head trauma. While blind, she learns to depend on her other senses and manages to hold her own against several attackers within days of losing her sight.
[[/folder]]

* Plots based around this trope were absolutely standard in [[The70s 70's]] action drama series, showing up on ''Series/{{Mannix}}'', ''Series/HawaiiFiveO'', and numerous others.

!!!'''In General:'''
* This plot was absolutely standard in Seventies action drama, showing up on ''Series/{{Mannix}}'', ''Series/HawaiiFiveO'', and numerous others.
!!!'''By Series:'''

[[folder:Films - Animation]]

[[folder:Pro Wrestling]]

* A young UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler was temporarily blinded by mustard gas during UsefulNotes/WorldWarI. This is probably the reason he refused to approve the use of chemical weapons during UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, even during the final days of the war when he was pinning all his hopes on "superweapons" -- proof that there was at least one thing that [[EvenEvilHasStandards even Hitler wouldn't stoop to]].

An almost identical plot structure can be used with temporary paralysis, deafness, concussions, etc.

* ''VideoGame/UnhappyEverAfter'': [[Literature/HanselAndGretel Gretel]] has an affinity that allows her to throw dust into an enemy's eyes, temporarily blinding them and increasing their chances to cause their attacks to miss their intended target.

** Another inversion of the trope occurs in the pages of ''Superior Iron Man'': After Matt confronts him over his recent actions, Tony uses the Extremis virus he infected San Francisco with to restore Matt's eyesight, but tells him it'll only last for a few hours, though he'd be willing to cut a deal with Matt to make it permanent. Naturally, Matt turns it down, though he does manage to [[spoiler:actually see his friend Foggy [[TearJerker just as his eyesight starts fading again]].]]

* In the fic ''I Never Really Knew'', Ryuuko's vision loss is the first sign that there is something wrong and said blindness is caused by a brain tumor. When said tumor is removed, some of the other symptoms associated goes away but Ryuuko's blindness doesn't, so she's left visually impaired. However, while there's a chance, no one can say if her sight will fully come back, given how big the tumor was and how long her sight had been gone.

* In ''Film/DeathSpa'', Laura is temporarily blinded when the chlorine pumped into the SaunaOfDeath burns her eyes, and spends most of the film with her eyes bandaged. This leads to her being unaware of things like David stalking through the house, or Marci's body being stuffed into her locker. She regains her sight just in time for the climax.

* In the ''Series/{{Mannix}}'' episode "The Sound of Darkness", Mannix goes blind after being wounded by a hit man's bullet. Thanks to an ex-marine who once blind himself, Mannix is able to cope with living in darkness and even use it to his advantage. He regains his sight after the police bust into his darkened office after he shoots the hit man.

* Soldiers are sometimes trained to disassemble, clean/unjam and reassemble weapons, or to refill and merge partially expended ammunition magazines while blindfolded. This is to allow soldiers who have their vision impaired by sand in their eyes or non-life threatening injuries to keep being useful to their unit in a combat situation.

* ''Series/MalcolmInTheMiddle:'' Subject of a gag in one episode where Malcolm and his brothers set off a massive fireworks display, topped with a Komodo 3000, which is so powerful it literally turns night into day for a few seconds:
-->'''Francis:''' ''[deafly yelling]'' DID IT SAY WHEN OUR VISION WOULD COME BACK?\\
'''Reese:''' BOX SAID TWO DAYS!\\
'''Francis:''' ...TOTALLY WORTH IT!

* In ''Literature/{{Worm}}'', Skitter is blinded for about one (extremely action-packed) day. She manages to get by using her [[AnimalEyeSpy swarm-sense]]. Since she wears a mask, she is able to hide it from the others until afterwards leading to shocked reactions when they discover she was blind the whole time.

* In ''Manga/InuYasha'', the titular character is blinded by Sesshoumaru's [[PoisonousPerson poisonous claws]]. This helps [=InuYasha=] to master his [[RazorWind Wind Scar]] attack since it requires one to locate the spot where demonic aura of the user and the opponent collide. This is easier to do by using one's sense of smell [[NiceJobFixingItVillain and since [=InuYasha=] couldn't see anything at all at the time]]... With the help of his HealingFactor, [=InuYasha=] later makes a full recovery from his temporary blindness.

* Happened to Rhinox, Dinobot, Cheetor, and Rattrap in an episode of ''WesternAnimation/BeastWars''. Rhinox had to do the ZenMaster thing to help them fend off the Predacons.

* Similarly, Franchise/WonderWoman experienced a bout of blindness in one mini-arc of her own series. A variation in that [[DisabilityImmunity she intentionally did it to herself]] so she could fight a Gorgon without getting turned to stone.

A supporting character helps the hero get used to his condition. Often, the blinded character's other senses will become much more acute. Unfortunately, the villain of the story sometimes discovers the hero's condition and instantly realizes he now has an overwhelming advantage. However, the hero still wins because the villain usually underestimates how well he has adjusted to his situation -- in some cases, the temporary disability may actually give the hero [[DisabilityImmunity a useful advantage]].

[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]

* This plot was absolutely standard in Seventies action drama, showing up on ''Series/{{Mannix}},'' ''Series/HawaiiFiveO,'' and numerous others.

** In [[Recap/DoctorWhoS31E5FleshAndStone "Flesh and Stone"]], Amy's brain gets invaded by a [[NightmareFuel Weeping Angel]], and the only way to keep it from killing her is to keep her eyes shut. So although she can physically see, if she opens her eyes she dies, so she's effectively blind. She ends up having to escape alone through a forest full of the Weeping Angels, pretending she can see so they don't attack her.
** [[Recap/DoctorWhoS36E5Oxygen "Oxygen"]]: Happens to [[spoiler:the Doctor, after he's forced to go on a spacewalk helmetless (using his [[BatmanCanBreatheInSpace respiratory bypass system]] to survive) because he had to give his helmet to Bill because her spacesuit was malfunctioning.]] He does pretty well for the rest of the episode, and it gets fixed after everyone gets back on board the TARDIS. [[spoiler:Except not -- although his eyes were cleared up, so he no longer has ProphetEyes, he still can't see, and was faking it. He's still hiding his condition from Bill in the next episode. It's not until two episodes later, near the end of [[Recap/DoctorWhoS36E7ThePyramidAtTheEndOfTheWorld "The Pyramid at the End of the World"]], that it is cured, due to Bill making a DealWithTheDevil because the Doctor was in danger of dying.]]

* ''Series/MacGyver1985'':

[[folder:Web Comics]]

* In the fic ''I Never Really Knew'', Ryuuko vision loss is the first sign that there is something wrong and said blindness is caused by a brain tumor. When said tumor is removed, some of the other symptoms associated goes away but Ryuuko's blindness doesn't, so she's left visually impaired. However, while there's a chance, no one can say if her sight will fully come back, given how big the tumor was and how long her sight had been gone.