History Main / VindicatedByHistory

!!Examples:

[[caption-width-right:350:Turns out that [[Film/TheThing1982 bad reviews]] are ''really'' the warmest place to hide.]]

[[folder:Comic Books]]
* Creator/JackKirby's ''ComicBook/NewGods'' titles sold poorly (though there is some controversy about just how good or bad the sales figures were at the time, and how much of that was due to a line-wide price hike and format change). Since then, Kirby's work on ''New Gods'', ''Mister Miracle'' and ''The Forever People'' has become widely acclaimed as among his very best, with characters who have been used again and again, in multiple media (e.g. ''WesternAnimation/SuperFriends'', ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague'', and ''Series/{{Smallville}}'').
* ''ComicBook/GothamCentral'' sold poorly during its monthly releases, possibly due to it being a Batman book that rarely featured Batman himself. Towards the end of its run and after, however, it found popularity through good word-of-mouth and critical acclaim for it's intriguing LowerDeckEpisode nature, strong writing, fun characters, and being an InnocuouslyImportantEpisode that heavily impacted later beloved stories like ''ComicBook/FiftyTwo''. Following it's conclusion, it sells very well in collected edition and tends to regularly make lists of best Batman stories of all time.
* ''ComicBook/DisneyDucksComicUniverse'': Creator/CarlBarks worked anonymously during his active years for Disney. Though his comics were always lucrative, he only received recognition after retiring. Comic book fans noticed that certain WesternAnimation/DonaldDuck comics were better than others, so they tracked him down and discovered who had made all those masterful comic books over the years. Luckily, Barks would live long enough to see this recognition during his lifetime.
* ''ComicBook/SpiderMan'' story arcs ''ComicBook/MaximumCarnage'' and ''ComicBook/TheCloneSaga'' have been reappraised as good, despite being initially being panned. Part of this is due to the stories working slightly better when read all at once in a trade collectible, rather than one at a time over a period of months/years. Many of these were written before writing for trades became a thing.
* Both ''ComicBook/CountdownToFinalCrisis'' and ''ComicBook/CivilWar2006'' were given huge boosts while ''ComicBook/SinestroCorpsWar'' and ''ComicBook/WorldWarHulk'' were largely treated as filler events. However, both ''Sinestro Corps'' and ''World War Hulk'' are now considered to be classics, whereas ''Countdown'' and ''Civil War'' are seen as two of the worst big events of the 00s.
* At the same time the ''ComicBook/CivilWar2006'' series was running and had all of the Marvel publicity machine behind it, a small CrisisCrossover event called ''ComicBook/{{Annihilation}}'' was being published. It was largely ignored by Marvel and by readers, due to the lack of involvement from big name characters. The event also led to short-lived books for ''ComicBook/{{Nova}}'' and the ''ComicBook/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy'', which were both cancelled due to low sales. Their plots were finished out via ''ComicBook/TheThanosImperative'', and they were all lumped together as the [=DnA=] Marvel Cosmic era (after it's two primary writers, Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning). An era that has since come to be '''highly''' well-regarded. While readers ignored these books initially, those who ''did'' check them out universally loved them, and in time word-of-mouth helped them bloom into a CultClassic regarded as one of Marvel's best works of the 2000s. Then they ''really'' hit the jackpot when they were used as a huge influence on the mega hit [[Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy2014 movie adaptation of Guardians]], leading to a major NewbieBoom that catapulted many of Marvel's cosmic heroes to the A-List and saw the [=DnA=] run come to further be regarded as one of the great Marvel epics. The series became much easier to obtain as Marvel caught onto the new popularity and reprinted much of their Cosmic stuff, including the [=DnA=] run, which did in fact find sales success.
* ''ComicBook/FinalCrisis'' was incredibly hard to follow back when it was released, due to the series' "channel flipping" method of storytelling, the ScheduleSlip that affected the essential tie-in Superman Beyond 3D, and significant Executive Meddling (particularly in regards to ''ComicBook/CountdownToFinalCrisis''). Now that the series has been collected properly and the readership has had time to properly digest its contents, it's much more well regarded. A number of readers consider it a modern classic. It is still regarded as divisive, just not reviled.
* '' ComicBook/BlackPanther'':
** Creator/{{Christopher Priest|Comics}}'s run didn't sell well at the time of its original publication. Today, it is regarded as one of the best Marvel books of the 90's. Many fans even argue that Priest has earned creator-defining status over the character at this point. His depiction is often considered to be the definitive take on Black Panther.
** While it didn't sell very well at the time, Don [=McGregor=]'s ''Jungle Action'' run ended up having a major impact on the character. It was the first series to actually do serious WorldBuilding for Wakanda and to flesh out T'Challa's supporting cast. It also introduced [[ComicBook/{{Killmonger}} Erik Killmonger]], who would later become one of the Panther's most prominent and popular foes. It was also one of the first mainstream comics to have a self-contained, multi-issue arc, with some critics calling the "Panther's Rage" storyline Marvel's first graphic novel.
* ''ComicBook/DeKiekeboes'' was considered a mere curiosity in its early run and you had to be a hardcore comic book fan to have even heard about it. After ''J. Hoste NV'' (the publisher of the comic book series) crashed the series got owned by ''De Standaard''. They originally did not have a lot of enthusiasm for selling the comic and for a long time it was one of their lowest selling properties (often it would be the very final story in ''MEGA'', their comic book compilation). Its sales however continued rising and rising, to the point that nowadays it may rival ''ComicBook/SuskeEnWiske'' in popularity.
* ''ComicBook/LegionOfSuperHeroes'' has the Reboot/"Postboot" era. It was the first full-on reboot that the Legion of Super-Heroes received, presenting a new world where the heroes were just starting out. The convluted backstory of the original Legion was done away with. The characters were now teenagers again, and much of the stories were about characters and their personal drama rather than large space epics (mostly, that would come later). Because of this, some fans decried them as the "Archie Legion". The era gained a reputation for being a teen drama in space until the [=DnA=] run, which saw a DarkerAndEdgier take as the characters faced an invading army. While the [=DnA=] stuff is still praised, the "Archie" era has also since been reevaluated due to the pushback against DarkerAndEdgier storytelling with superheroes. The reboot that followed the Postboot Legion, the "Threeboot", revelled in this in particular and has been reevaluated in a ''negative'' light. People became more fond of the character work done with the Legion, and there is a general appreciation for how the reboot updated the characters for the modern age.
* Creator/JerrySiegelAndJoeShuster, Creator/JackKirby, Creator/WilliamMoultonMarston, and Creator/StanLee amongst others are names known in the comics industry and even by a surprising amount of non-readers. Nowadays, they are given proper respect due for the characters they helped bring to life, even if harsh battles are still fought over these characters in terms of rights and royalties. One particular name however has taken a much longer time to get the recognition it deserves: Creator/BillFinger the co-creator of, and an early writer for ComicBook/{{Batman}}. He was the one who many would argue gave the Dark Knight more of his iconic features than his much more famous and outspoken partner, Bob Kane. Starting in 2016, DC Comics finally gave Bill Finger his much overdue credit by having his name appear next to Bob Kane's in any new Batman-related media.
* ''ComicBook/{{Superman}}'':
** In [[TheEighties the early 1980's]], the books were going through a sales slump that was attributed to the focus on Krypton and to the existence of Silver/Bronze age characters, such as ComicBook/{{Superboy}}, ComicBook/{{Supergirl}} and ComicBook/KryptoTheSuperdog, whose comics had been cancelled at the time. It was then decreed that the Krypton stuff had to be excised, banned from continuity and replaced with non-Kryptonian substitutes. Flash-forward fifteen years, and the franchise is going through a slump again. Out of all the one replacements, only Superboy (Kon-El) seemed to have caught on with the fandom and been successfully translated to other media. This situation prompted DC to revoke the "Superman is the only Kryptonian survivor" policy and reintroduce the Pre-Crisis versions of the characters. Since then, those characters have been featured in several successful comic storylines as well as animation, live-action series and games, becoming more popular than ever.
** ''ComicBook/TheSupergirlFromKrypton1959'': ComicBook/{{Supergirl}}'s origin story (wherein she was born in a floating space city which survived Krypton's destruction thanks to a forcefield dome) was panned for decades as confusing, campy and in need of [[ComicBook/TheUntoldStoryOfArgoCity several tweaks]] to be workable. When she was killed off and replaced, though, her substitutes' backstories -involving parallel pocket dimensions, artificial lifeforms, Satanists who turn out to be "Earthborn" angels, genetically engineered Brainiac's unwitting pawns who believe to be Superman's daughter...- made Kara Zor-El's origin look positively simple and ridiculously easy to understand. When Kara was brought back, her [[ComicBook/TheSupergirlFromKrypton2004 modern]] [[ComicBook/LastDaughterOfKrypton origin]] storylines tried to do away with the most convoluted elements, but they became quickly dated and subjected to several retcons. Eventually, her first appearance was retconned back into canon (with the addition of some modern tweaks such like Kara being older than Superman) because it was decided it was her simplest and best origin.
** ''ComicBook/SupermanBirthright'' came out at the worst possible time, as DC decided to hype it up as a chaser for ''Superman: For Tomorrow'' (a storyline whose sole memorable feature was that Jim Lee was on art duties) and Chuck Austen's run (which was just flat-out bad). Add in the fact that Leinil Francis Yu was on art duties, and many thought it would be yet another attempt to make Superman DarkerAndEdgier. Mark Waid himself grumbled "I felt like I played at Carnegie Hall and nobody showed up." DC waffled on whether it was even canon for a while, and ended up excising it from continuity only a few years later in favor of ''ComicBook/SupermanSecretOrigin''. Nowadays, ''Birthright'' seems to be regarded as the ''best'' long-form Superman origin story, due to it managing to modernize the origin, giving it a sense of weight and maturity without forgetting its old-school grandeur and optimism. Many consider it a definitive version, due to it working well as a general-purpose origin and bringing back elements lost in the 80s reboot (which is now ''very'' dated) and in spite of this, having a distinctive feel and a cohesive plotline, rather than serving as a highlight reel of what came before (a criticism often leveled at ''Secret Origin''). Nowadays, if you find any "Superman Recommended Reading" list, it is very rare that ''Birthright'' won't be near the top.
* ''ComicBook/GreenLantern'': In the 90's, the comic wasn't a big seller, and several creatives decided that the franchise needed a shake-up. Such as turning Silver Age "relic" Hal Jordan into a villain in order to replace him with a newer and "cooler" character in the storyline ''ComicBook/EmeraldTwilight''. Several years later, Creator/GeoffJohns resurrected Hal Jordan in ''ComicBook/GreenLanternRebirth'' and retconned his descent into evil by explaining that he was possessed by the living embodiment of fear Parallax. After this storyline, Hal Jordan became the main character of the comic again. Nowadays, most of the controversy surrounding ''Emerald Twilight'' has died down, and it's now considered one of the best Green Lantern storylines ever made just for the sheer amounts of HSQ present. There is also a somewhat vocal minority of Green Lantern fans that later (primarily following his resurrection) started to agree with DC's reasoning for making the story (Hal Jordan was boring and needed to be replaced) and that his time as Parallax was actually the only time his character had something going for him.
* ''Franchise/{{Tintin}}'' in North America. While the series was held in high regards, it had a ''very'' limited run in North America. This resulted in it failing to find an audience, since you had to find it in libraries ([[AnimationAgeGhetto where it was placed in the kids section, before Graphic Novel sections became a thing]]) or pay exorbitant prices on eBay auctions. While [[WesternAnimation/TheAdventuresOfTintin1991 the Nelvana adaptation]] ''did'' air in the US, it was originally on Creator/{{HBO}} -- a premium service that focused more on adult shows even in the early 1990s -- and then on Creator/NickJr, mostly at times when most viewers were in school or at work. (It was better in Canada, where it aired on Creator/{{Global}} and other broadcast stations at first, with reruns on YTV and other non-premium cable networks.) More people were interested in works that were inspired by it (such as ''Franchise/IndianaJones'') than the actual license. However, after ''WesternAnimation/{{The Adventures of Tintin|2011}}'', the comics received a much needed reissue, which allowed it to finally get it a bigger audience.
* ''ComicBook/SuperiorSpiderMan'' spent much of its time as a massively controversial gimmick book and overly-edgy mess, perceived by many as the JumpingTheShark moment for the Creator/DanSlott run on Spider-Man and a lame attempt at NoSuchThingAsBadPublicity. In the years following it's end, however, many fans have reappraised it and come to regard it as something of a hidden gem, featuring some of Slott's best writing, an intriguing take on a more morally-ambiguous/horror-oriented Spider-Man, compelling [[DiscussedTrope discussion]] of supervillain redemption arcs, and a lot of genuinely cool arcs that made a real effort to push a badly-stagnating series into bold new territory. At the very least, it is considered infinitely better than [[SeasonalRot the remainder of Slott's run]] and [[AudienceAlienatingEra the Zeb-Lowe run]] that followed it, both of which are hugely hated, and one reason the well-liked Creator/NickSpencer run tends to be praised is that it's the only one of those three that feels like a logical progression from where ''Superior'' left off. On the whole, ''Superior'' has seen it's reputation with the fandom go rather impressively from "one of the worst Spider-Man stories ever" to "an interesting idea that could've been executed even better".
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Professional Wrestling]]
* One of the biggest cases of this in wrestling history is Mildred Burke. Burke had been married to NWA promoter Billy Wolfe; they'd had a bitter falling out that saw Burke frozen out of the NWA even though she was the reigning Women's Champion. When a match between Burke and June Byers (Wolfe's daughter-in-law) was finally booked, it was a two-out-of-three-falls match. Because Burke and Byers legitimately hated each other, the match was (allegedly) a real shoot-wrestling match. Burke was injured at the time and quickly gave up the first fall to conserve energy for the second, the second fall ran for an hour and was stopped by the referee without a decision. Both Burke and Byers believed they were the champion, but Wolfe pulled strings in the NWA and it sided with Byers. Both Burke and her splinter promotion the WWWA took a massive blow in credibility over the loss. However, decades later the full story came out. Burke is now considered the godmother of women's wrestling in the USA and Byers is best known as the woman who helped Wolfe and the NWA ruin Burke's life.
* Wrestling/BigVanVader's run in Wrestling/{{WCW}}, his first with a major promotion in the US since the Wrestling/AmericanWrestlingAssociation, wasn't a favorite of his fans, mostly because he had a slow start with Wrestling/{{Sting}} and Wrestling/HulkHogan later {{no s|ell}}old his moves, drastically reducing Vader's WrestlingMonster aura. However, after even more embarrassing feuds with Wrestling/ShawnMichaels (this was before Shawn got injured, found religion, and learned some humility), Wrestling/{{Goldust}}, and Wrestling/{{Kane}} in the WWF, people instead looked back more fondly on what went right for Vader with Sting, as well as his matches with Wrestling/RonSimmons and [[Wrestling/MickFoley Cactus Jack]].
* Wrestling/{{Edge|Wrestler}} and Wrestling/{{Lita}}: In 2005, word got out about the two having an affair, cheating on Edge's second wife and Wrestling/MattHardy respectively. This and Hardy's reaction which got him fired over it caused a lot of [[XPacHeat fan backlash]] towards both of them at the time, which Wrestling/{{WWE}} decided to [[RealLifeWritesThePlot make into an angle]] (first involving Lita's storyline husband Wrestling/{{Kane}}, then rehiring Matt) to take advantage of the situation. This especially lingered on with Lita to the point it played a hand in her decision to retire toward the end of 2006, receiving a less-than-admirable sendoff from the company on the way out. In the years since then, Edge has entered a [[ScrewTheRulesIHaveConnections nepotistic]] [[SickeninglySweethearts romance]] storyline with Wrestling/VickieGuerrero for about a year or so which worked to the point that if Lita had returned to take Edge back it would've been a '''HeelFaceTurn''' less than two years later. Hardy has increasingly gone JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope as a career-midcarder, and began excusing his brother and friends' every mistake while taking '''four years''' to clearly define that his legit heat with Edge was over. Edge has become a modern day legend through great feuds and matches with the likes of Wrestling/TheUndertaker, Wrestling/JohnCena, Wrestling/CMPunk, Wrestling/JeffHardy, Wrestling/ShawnMichaels, Wrestling/TripleH, Wrestling/{{Batista}}, Wrestling/RandyOrton, so on and so forth, still being the generally all-around awesome guy backstage (seriously, even Cena has the rare dirt sheet article or shoot interview saying he's treated someone like crap. Edge? NOTHING outside the love triangle scandal. In fact, Curt Hawkins and Wrestling/ZackRyder still praise him on Twitter a fair deal for helping them in their formative WWE years, and Hawkins has had a subtle nod to Edge's "Easy Bein' Sleazy" shirt as the logo on his ring jacket). The WWE Women's/Divas Division has plummeted into 2/3-minute snooze-fests on ''Raw'' and ''[=SmackDown=]'', and took such disrespect at ''[=WrestleMania XXV=]'' that Lita and Wrestling/TrishStratus refused to be among the returnees for that night's show because they saw it coming.
** Edge is a first ballot Hall of Famer living a mostly quiet life and loving every minute. Lita has people begging for her return after just showing up at Axxess and later joined the HOF herself in 2014. Matt Hardy is widely derided as an [[SmallNameBigEgo egotistical]] HollywoodPudgy AttentionWhore, who has been arrested on drunk driving charges multiple times in 2011, got fired from '''Wrestling/{{TNA}}''' after the first of said [=DUIs=] (and not just ''for'' the DUI, as Wrestling/KurtAngle and Wrestling/ChristopherDaniels can attest to), and ''[[DudeNotFunny faked a suicide note]]'' after said firing, just to get more attention. TheReasonYouSuckSpeech Edge gave Hardy in 2005 in response to his return promo would never have been listed for long without a counterpoint back then even if this wiki had been as huge as it is now, but now it's taken (along with Lita's statement in one ''Byte This!'' interview that [[GoodAdulteryBadAdultery something had to be wrong for her to go to another man]]) as a prophetic {{deconstruction}} of everything about Matt, at least prior to him getting his life back together.
* Wrestling/MattHardy: After years of being viewed as the lesser Hardy Boy compared to his main eventer brother Wrestling/JeffHardy and getting the worst fallout from the Edge and Lita situation, Matt has reinvigorated his brand with the SoBadItsGood gimmick of [[Funny/MattHardy Broken Matt]], sprouting catch phrases like "DELETE, DELETE, DELETE!" and "OBSOLETE" as well as giving Jeff the moniker of "Brother Nero" in a terrible unidentifiable accent. The Hardy Boyz even got a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BVeC9wXZLUc monster pop]] at [=WrestleMania=] 33. He also has a new loving wife and children as well. So in essence, everyone involved in the Matt, Edge, and Lita scandal somehow came better off than before.
* After the [[Wrestling/WWEBrawlForAll Brawl For All]], it seemed that Wrestling/DrDeathSteveWilliams had faded into obscurity, [[NeverLiveItDown never living down]] the moment when he got knocked out by Bart Gunn. Until he got cancer, rebuilt his friendship with Wrestling/JimRoss that fell apart after Doc's WWF run and became [[SugarWiki/HeartwarmingMoments Dr. Life.]] As a result, Steve Williams is still considered one of the toughest wrestlers that ever walked ''despite'' The Brawl For All.
* Wrestling/JohnBradshawLayfield. When Bradshaw shifted into his wealthy tycoon gimmick in 2004, the backlash was fast and furious for numerous reasons, not the least of which was that Bradshaw had ''rarely'' been seen as a future main eventer up until that time. As JBL, however, while fans still agreed he was never the greatest in the ring, he did reveal a knack for getting under the skin of fans just by being a [[LargeHam gleefully hammy,]] PoliticallyIncorrectVillain - in fact, he quickly became one of the best promos in the business. He cemented this reputation during his stint as a color commentator with Wrestling/MichaelCole, with the bonus of an encyclopedic knowledge of old school wrestling. Now that he's retired, fans who previously decried him for being unworthy of his push now miss him for his memorable (if sometimes [[CrossesTheLineTwice off-color]]) promo work. His return to commentary since Wrestling/JerryLawler's heart attack has only further cemented this trope, at least until he became just another Vince mouthpiece with the passage of time.
* Kayfabe-wise: Many of the casual fans probably wince whenever they think about Wrestling/CMPunk's Straight Edge Society run after his feud with Wrestling/ChrisJericho, who exposed the source of Punk's decision to be Straight Edge (namely, his traumatic childhood with his alcoholic father) which kind of justifies why Punk was so hardcore about it. Subverted with those who watch Wrestling/RingOfHonor, where Punk talked more freely about his family's past. That being said, in hindsight many openly began to agree with the message he was trying to preach, which is probably one of the reasons why the gimmick was gradually phased out of his character.
* Even those who '''HATE''' Wrestling/TheInvasionAngle agree that its ending at Survivor Series 2001 was the closest thing to an epic GrandFinale to the Wrestling/MondayNightWars (even more so than ''[=WrestleMania=]'' that year) that the WWE has ever put out on pay-per-view.
* Wrestling/DoinkTheClown's initial heel run originally drew little more than shrugs from hardcore wrestling fans. An evil wrestling clown was bound to be another failure in the world of WrestlingDoesntPay. But once Matt Borne left the WWF and his personal life flew off the rails, Doink was turned face and made into a [[JokeCharacter comic relief character]], and the company got saturated with more embarrassing gimmicks, smarks looked back at Borne's work in a more positive light. The consensus on heel Doink is that Borne [[AndYouThoughtItWouldFail took a gimmick that sounded stupid on paper and actually made it work]], making him one of the New Generation era's [[EnsembleDarkhorse greatest unsung heroes]].
* What did fans think of Wrestling/DrewMcIntyre in 2010? He's a boring, two-dimensional wrestler who is being pushed too fast and [[CreatorsPet protected by Vince and the gang]] (the irony being ''that was actually his gimmick'' but it just came off too strong). What do fans think of him since his return? He proved his worth in the indies, in hard-core matches in ICW, became champ, became grizzled, and in the 2020 Royal Rumble finally got the rocket strapped to him, as he kicked Brock Lesnar's ass, eliminating him and winning the Rumble to set up the [=WrestleMania=] main event, with the fans chanting along every time he hits his finisher.
* The Anonymous RAW general manager. People quickly got sick and tired of him and wanted the angle to be killed off as quickly as possible. Let's just say when his identity finally was revealed, fans were ''not'' happy and would have been happier if it remained anonymous.
* Wrestling/MarkHenry's 2006-2008 heel work has been viewed in a noticeably more positive light after his 2011 "Hall of Pain" heel run.
* Wrestling/GorillaMonsoon was considered a terrible commentator back in the day, winning a whopping ''six'' Worst Television Announcer awards by the Wrestling Observer newsletter. Nowadays, he's practically a SacredCow.
* The Wrestling/HulkHogan vs. Wrestling/AndreTheGiant match at ''Wrestling/WrestleMania III'' was panned by critics in 1987, but all of that criticism has since been obscured by its historical importance in wrestling history and for its enormous box-office draw. The quality of the match itself, however, is still fair game.
** The ''Brawl to End it All'' match between Wrestling/WendiRichter and Wrestling/TheFabulousMoolah has also been affected in a similar manner.
* Wrestling/{{Goldust}} was named the worst gimmick of 1995 by Wrestling Observer, but is today looked back upon as one of the greatest gimmicks of all time[[note]]That "award" was somewhat justified, Goldust had only made his debut in October and the gimmick had yet to evolve past "sexual deviant that keeps making unwanted advances towards [[Wrestling/ScottHall Razor Ramon]]". Given Vince [=McMahon's=] past history (and wrestling history in general) everyone assumed this was just another insensitive homophobic angle that was going to make everyone look like trash and draw no money, and it "won" in a rout[[/note]].
* Wrestling/SamoaJoe. Turning Point 2007. Scott Hall no-showed the event and Joe, given a live mic to announce his replacement in the match, used the opportunity to shoot on his frustration of how "superstars" are starting to flood into the promotion and take away the spotlight from the homegrown talent. At the time he was denounced as a whiner[[note]]And supposedly got smacked around backstage by Wrestling/KevinNash[[/note]]. Today, fans who look back on it see it as [[CassandraTruth one of the forewarnings of the major problems TNA had later on]], which would reach its zenith at the start of the Hogan-Bischoff era, where ''everyone'' got shoved down the card to make room for their buddies and ex-WWE and WCW wrestlers. Joe is now seen in a much more sympathetic light, especially as his TNA career slowed down to midcard hell.
* Wrestling/JohnCena:
** The wrestler spent ''years'' vilified by the smarks and hardcore fans for his stale, kiddy-pandering "Superman" gimmick. However, when Cena began to transition into a part-timer role and do other things, Wrestling/RomanReigns effectively got booked into his place with the same character. It didn't fit him. Reigns' push as the new face of the company has gone so terribly that many began to look at Cena and ''his'' push to the top more objectively. Cena was called up as part of the famous OVW class of 2002 (Lesnar, Orton, Batista, and Cena), and out of all his class, he's the one who had the least amount of help from the company. Orton and Batista joined Wrestling/{{Evolution}} with Wrestling/TripleH and Wrestling/RicFlair, while Lesnar got Wrestling/PaulHeyman and was hotshotted to the main event in his first year. Cena was left on his own, floundered, and if it hadn't been for Wrestling/StephanieMcMahon hearing him rap, might have gotten fired. Then he developed the "Doctor of Thuganomics" gimmick and spent time as a midcard heel, who became more and more popular to the point they had no choice but to turn him face and push him to the moon, especially after Lesnar left and Orton's initial face push didn't pan out well. Case in point, Cena got over ''organically'' -- it was his booking after he won his first world title that ruined him for many fans, and even then it was a testament to his talent as a performer that he managed to make such a terrible gimmick bearable and watchable for ''8 years''. When Reigns, with his manufactured push (he was the well-protected "hot tag" guy in Wrestling/TheShield, to build up his popularity) and much more inferior mic skills, got booked in his place as the chosen new face of the company, the fans shunned him to the point that they began to pine for ''Cena'', and realized that Cena was a much more talented performer than they ever gave him credit for.
** When Cena lost the WWE Championship to Brock Lesnar at Summerslam 2014, many hoped he would then go away for good because they didn't want to see him win the world title for a 16th time, tying Ric Flair's world championship record. All of the aforementioned with Reigns happened after that, so when Cena DID win the WWE title again at Royal Rumble 2017 (in a match vs Wrestling/AJStyles that many felt stole the show that night), many fans gave him cheers and respect for it.
* Wrestling/MichaelCole's heel commentator run from 2010 to 2012 was widely despised by many wrestling fans, who believed he was merely serving as a mouthpiece for Vince's unpopular opinions, and many felt his obnoxious personality and ubiquitous presence brought down the quality of the product. Nowadays, Cole's heel run is seen in a much more positive light, who felt that his outlandish persona was hilarious, appreciated his more penetrating approach at criticism of faces than previous heel commentators, and believed that he really knew how to rile up any fan who heard him speak. His positive reception over handling Jerry Lawler's heart attack in September 2012 and Lawler starting to be seen as an out-of-touch and corny color commentator afterwards certainly helped improve his reputation. That being said, you still won't find many people defending his creepy Miz obsession or his feud with Lawler in 2011; even the moments in the feud that Lawler had the upper hand that the fans were initially ecstatic about are nowadays seen being as no less embarrassing as the rest of it.
** Cole got another dose of vindication in 2021 when he got paired with Pat [=McAfee=] in the ''Wrestling/WWESmackDown'' commentary booth. Cole and [=McAfee=]'s incredible synergy gave Cole the much-needed tremendous uptick in quality that he needed to improve his reputation with the fans. It only got better in 2022 when Vince was forced into retirement and Wrestling/TripleH became the head of creative, as another major increase in Cole's commentary quality thanks to the far more easygoing style of management that Hunter had allowed the majority to realize that yes, Cole ''really'' is held back a lot by Vince's constant micromanagement.
* It's hard to believe that Wrestling/MrFuji was an ''eleven-time'' winner of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter's "Worst Manager" award given he's today universally regarded as one of the greatest heel managers of all time.
* Wrestling/MichelleMcCool was popular during her heyday but had a massive smark hatedom who accused her of being pushed just because [[NeverASelfMadeWoman she was dating, and later married to]], Wrestling/TheUndertaker. The hate has mostly died off since her departure, and her matches are remembered more fondly. She is less inclined to be thought of as a CreatorsPet once stories came out that she suffered the same {{Chickification}} as her fellow Divas - having to refilm matches, being told off for spots that looked too good etc.
* [[Wrestling/BellaTwins Nikki Bella]] was the more popular of the Bella Twins for years, but similar to Michelle [=McCool=] above she gained a massive smark hatedom when it became known that she was dating John Cena (Although Brie is generally regarded as a worse performer than Nikki, she didn't receive nearly as much hate due to her partner -- and later husband -- being [[Wrestling/BryanDanielson Daniel Bryan]], who is far more beloved by smarks than Cena). Things only got worse during her second reign as Diva's Champion, when she surpassed Wrestling/AJLee as the longest reigning Divas champ despite being injured and rarely defended the belt at all during the second half of her reign (with it being widely speculated that the only reason why they didn't strip Nikki of the belt was as a TakeThat to AJ and husband CM Punk, as both had left on very bad terms). By the end of 2015, Nikki had taken time off to have neck surgery and by the time she returned nearly a year later, her in-ring work had improved significantly, she stayed away from the now Women's championship and helped put newcomer Wrestling/{{Carmella}} over, winning back respect from the fans and proving that she wasn't totally undeserving of her Diva's title push.
* WWE's Wrestling/RuthlessAggressionEra, at the time, was seen as a step down for simply ''not'' being the Wrestling/AttitudeEra. With the rise to prominence of several stars who got their start in this era (Wrestling/BrockLesnar, Wrestling/RandyOrton, Wrestling/{{Batista}} and Wrestling/JohnCena), nostalgia for the great women's division and general appreciation of good quality wrestling - without the twists and gimmicks of the Attitude Era - it is more fondly remembered nowadays.
* David Arquette, especially back in 2000, was perhaps the most hated man in the industry due to his title run being one of the decisive factors in the death of Wrestling/{{WCW}}. However as years went by and people had a chance to reevaluate his role in the whole thing (where not only was he as opposed to the idea as everyone else, but that he used his earnings to help the families of Wrestling/OwenHart and Wrestling/BrianPillman), they've come to agree that he did the best he could with the role, and now blame for it is almost squarely on Vince Russo. Coupled with a CareerResurrection in the 2010s on the independent circuit, it's safe to say he's come a long way in the eyes of the fans.
* WWE's Wrestling/{{ECW}} (nicknamed by fans as WWECW), was correctly deemed a complete bastardization of the original ECW in its heyday. After it ended, many fans came to remember it as a decent show that often had better writing than ''RAW'' and ''[=SmackDown=]'' that helped elevate several young wrestlers and introduced them to the wider WWE audience, such as Wrestling/{{Sheamus}}, Wrestling/JohnMorrison, Wrestling/TheMiz, and most notable of all, Wrestling/CMPunk[[note]]The idea of a show focused on young talent with straightforward booking would later be refined into NXT, which was much more well received[[/note]]. Most fans just wished it hadn't been called ECW.
* Wrestling/TonySchiavone's reputation had taken a nosedive in the 2000s due to both his poor commentary during the final years of WCW as well as Wrestling/BobbyHeenan's unflattering stories about him in Heenan's autobiography. The fact that Tony had quit the business altogether and never tried to defend himself from allegations didn't do him any favors. Following Tony's CareerResurrection in the second half of TheNewTens, opinions on him improved drastically, with many realizing that Schiavone is actually a good commentator and no one could have saved WCW's horrible product in its dying days, and his ''What Happened When'' podcast with Conrad Thompson allowed Schiavone to finally tell his perspective on what happened in WCW.
* Wrestling/RomanReigns: Back in late 2014-2015, Reigns was considered a green CreatorsPet, undeserving of his main event push and future position as face of the company. These days, that opinion has shifted dramatically; while almost everyone still agrees that Reigns really was too green in 2015 to receive that level of push at the time, his "Tribal Chief" gimmick and subsequent run with the Universal Championship starting in late 2020 proves that he really is a generational talent who is every bit deserving of his top spot. As an extension of that, most feel he's actually one of the biggest victims of WWE's complacent, tone-deaf, and corporate-driven booking of the 2010s, being a natural heel who was forced to play a character that he didn't fit at ''all'' just because the company wanted someone to replace Wrestling/JohnCena and thought his marketability would make him a fitting substitute.
* Wrestling/{{Sting}}'s "Insane Icon" (aka. "Joker" Sting) persona in 2011 was hotly controversial in the midst of its run, but you are willing to see a lot more love for it today. At the time it was largely viewed as TNA being TNA; giving an iconic wrestler a bizarre and ill-fitting gimmick in an attempt to capitalise on [[Film/TheDarkKnight a recent popular film]], with confusing results. Now however, the gimmick is increasingly praised for its creativity and depth of character; mixing the grounded backstories and WorkedShoot aspects of popular wrestlers at the time with a classic PartsUnknown-style character to great effect. The gimmick is also praised for giving Sting, who has played a white-meat babyface for most of his career, the opportunity to try something completely different and hone his promo skills; and now that the stigma associated with TNA has largely faded, people are willing to admit that [[SugarWiki/HeReallyCanAct he did a great job in the role]]. In the years since we have seen psychological horror-inspired acts such as [[Wrestling/MattHardy The BROKEN Universe]], [[Wrestling/BrayWyatt The Fiend]] and Wrestling/{{Danhausen}} all become incredibly over, and so you are now willing to see a lot of fans view Joker Sting as ahead of its time and a genuine bright spot in TNA's early-2010's AudienceAlienatingEra.
[[/folder]]

** ''VisualNovel/ApolloJusticeAceAttorney'' followed similar game mechanics to the previous ''Franchise/AceAttorney'' games (cross examinations in the courtroom, investigations in various areas, etc.), but it starred Apollo Justice as the main character while Phoenix Wright, the main character from the last three games, was punted off as a hobo that had his license to practice law revoked due to forged evidence. People and critics alike panned the game just because Apollo and the rest of the cast replaced Phoenix Wright and his crew. However, years later, people gave the game another chance and have seen just how deep the background of Apollo and his sidekick Trucy go, and Apollo makes a comeback as a playable character in ''VisualNovel/PhoenixWrightAceAttorneyDualDestinies''.

** Superboy-Prime. When the character was reintroduced to the DCU in 2004's ''ComicBook/InfiniteCrisis'' event, Prime's character was written to be that of a former, now embittered ex-fan of DC's current continuity. He was disillusioned with how much all the characters had changed since his youth. It was psychologically damaging for him, being trapped in other universe(s), while knowing his old world and all his loved ones were killed. This was understandebly very hard for him to take. [[TakeThatAudience But he was written like an obsessive comic book nerd who was constantly complaining about how]] [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks the universe was better "before" and how everything should be back like it used to be]]. After his return, he attempted to destroy the universe because it did not live up to his expectations. For a long while, readers only hitched on the StrawFan aspects of his character (not helped by how he sounded like a whiny brat). The character was especially mishandled during ''ComicBook/CountdownToFinalCrisis''. Revelations eventually came of how toxic the comics fanbase could be, in addition to the rising popularity of isekai stories. Opinions on Prime started to soften and become sympathetic. All the way to the point where many fans were legitimately excited to see his return in ''ComicBook/Shazam2018'' and ''ComicBook/DarkNightsDeathMetal'', where he [[spoiler:finally chose to accept responsibility for his actions, redeem himself, and get a second chance in his world that was denied to him before]].

** ''ComicBook/SupermanBirthright'' came out at the worst possible time, as DC decided to hype it up as a chaser for ''Superman: For Tomorrow'' (a storyline whose sole memorable feature was that Jim Lee was on art duties) and Chuck Austen's run (which was just flat-out bad). Add in the fact that Leinil Francis Yu was on art duties, and many thought it would be yet another attempt to make Superman DarkerAndEdgier. Mark Waid himself grumbled "I felt like I played at Carnegie Hall and nobody showed up." DC waffled on whether it was even canon for a while, and ended up excising it from continuity only a few years later in favor of ''ComicBook/SupermanSecretOrigin''. Nowadays, ''Birthright'' seems to be regarded as the ''best'' long-form Superman origin story, due to it managing to modernize the origin. It gave it a sense of weight and maturity, without forgetting its old-school grandeur and optimism. Many consider it a definitive version, due to it working well as a general-purpose origin and bringing back elements lost in the 80s reboot. It had its distinctive feel and a cohesive plotline, rather than serving as a highlight reel of what came before. Nowadays, if you find any "Superman Recommended Reading" list, it is very rare that ''Birthright'' won't be near the top.

* ''ComicBook/GothamCentral'' sold poorly during its monthly releases, possibly due to it being a Batman book that rarely featured Batman himself. Towards the end of its run and after, however, it found popularity through good word-of-mouth and critical acclaim for it's intriguing LowerDecksEpisode nature, strong writing, fun characters, and being an InnocuouslyImportantEpisode that heavily impacted later beloved stories like ''ComicBook/FiftyTwo''. Following it's conclusion, it sells very well in collected edition and tends to regularly make lists of best Batman stories of all time.

* ''ComicBook/GothamCentral'' sold poorly during its monthly releases, possibly due to it being a Batman book that rarely featured Batman himself. It has now found popularity, being sold in hardcover and trade paperback.

* At the same time the ''ComicBook/CivilWar2006'' series was running and had all of the Marvel publicity machine behind it, a small Crisis Crossover event called ''ComicBook/{{Annihilation}}'' was being published. It was largely ignored by Marvel and by readers, due to the lack of involvement from big name characters. The event also led to short-lived books for ''ComicBook/{{Nova}}'' and the ''ComicBook/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy'', which were both cancelled due to low sales. Their plots were finished out via ''ComicBook/TheThanosImperative'', and they were all lumped together as the [=DnA=] Marvel Cosmic era. An era which is well-regarded but nevers sold well. While readers ignored these books at the time, the fact that the post-''Annihilation'' ''Guardians of the Galaxy'' run was such a huge influence on the mega hit [[Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy2014 movie]] has since led to many people discovering the series for the first time. The series became much easier to obtain as Marvel caught onto the new popularity and reprinted the Cosmic stuff, which did in fact find sale success.

* WebVideo/{{MarioTehPlumber}} has never had a good reputation because of his poor-quality "reviews" of ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'' (and later Creator/{{Nintendo}}) games on [=YouTube=] that suffer from his [[SensoryAbuse screaming into the microphone]], [[SirSwearsALot excessive profanity]] and [[SkewedPriorities more focus on character design than gameplay]], not at all helped by his [[CantTakeCriticism aggressive retaliation to those who called him out on his behaviour]]. However, in his early years he was one of the most despised [=YouTubers=] on the site. The main reason for this is that, because the ''Sonic'' franchise was already infamous for its extremely [[BrokenBase divided fanbase]] exacerbated by a significant VocalMinority of unpleasantly obsessive fans by the time he first began making his videos, he quickly became subjected to PoesLaw; many of his viewers didn't realise that he is a {{Troll}} and believed he was a genuinely horrible person. As time passed and he continued his [[StrictlyFormula formulaic style]], more and more viewers eventually caught on that he had been trolling them all along and his opinions are usually either fabricated or [[AccentuateTheNegative exaggerated]], especially when he uploaded a few videos where he was actually calm. While his videos are still widely agreed to be really bad, the growing consensus that his [=YouTube=] persona isn't genuine has mitigated much of the vocal contempt towards him, and he has even managed to gain a small fanbase from those who think his videos are [[SoBadItsGood so over-the-top and idiotic as to be funny]].

* WebVideo/{{MarioTehPlumber}} has never had a good reputation because of his poor-quality "reviews" of ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'' (and later Creator/{{Nintendo}}) games on [=YouTube=] that suffer from his [[SensoryAbuse screaming into the microphone]], [[SirSwearsALot excessive profanity]] and [[SkewedPriorities more focus on character design than gameplay]], not at all helped by his [[CantTakeCriticism aggressive retaliation to those who called him out on his behaviour]]. However, in his early years he was one of the most despised [=YouTubers=] on the site. The main reason for this is that, because the ''Sonic'' franchise was already infamous for its extremely [[BrokenBase divided fanbase]] exacerbated by a significant VocalMinority of [[FanDumb unpleasantly obsessive fans]] by the time he first began making his videos, he quickly became subjected to PoesLaw; many of his viewers didn't realise that he is a {{Troll}} and believed he was a genuinely horrible person. As time passed and he continued his [[StrictlyFormula formulaic style]], more and more viewers eventually caught on that he had been trolling them all along and his opinions are usually either fabricated or [[AccentuateTheNegative exaggerated]], especially when he uploaded a few videos where he was actually calm. While his videos are still widely agreed to be really bad, the growing consensus that his [=YouTube=] persona isn't genuine has mitigated much of the vocal contempt towards him, and he has even managed to gain a small fanbase from those who think his videos are [[SoBadItsGood so over-the-top and idiotic as to be funny]].

* WebVideo/TheNostalgiaCritic episode "Let's Play: Bart's Nightmare" has become this over time. When it was released in 2011 many considered it the worst video Doug Walker had ever done, either because you thought the [[FormulaBreakingEpisode completely different departure from his normal videos]] was [[JumpTheShark jumping the shark]] and/or his style of commentary wasn't suited for Let's Plays. But almost a decade later many fans have now warmed up to it, especially with the backlash to his review of ''Film/TheWall''.

* Six Flags was originally hated by the coaster community after its bankruptcy, but people have softened up within the decade since.

* This happens periodically in (painting) art especially between the Renaissance and the 20th century. A rising new art movement is at first derided, and as it becomes accepted the preceding movement turns into the target instead. A couple of centuries later, the art world and scholarship see them both having merits.

The RealLife counterpart of ItWillNeverCatchOn. It can also lead to FollowTheLeader, HypeAversion, HypeBacklash. A SubTrope is VindicatedByCable and VindicatedByReruns; also arguably, as already mentioned, BetterOnDVD. Often these works were the victim of an AwardSnub. For a downplayed version of this trope, where something is discovered to not be as bad as its detractors made it out to be but it's still not quite vindicated, see CriticalBacklash.

* Both ''ComicBook/CountdownToFinalCrisis'' and ''ComicBook/CivilWar'' were given huge boosts while ''ComicBook/SinestroCorpsWar'' and ''ComicBook/WorldWarHulk'' were largely treated as filler events. However, both ''Sinestro Corps'' and ''World War Hulk'' are now considered to be classics, whereas ''Countdown'' and ''Civil War'' are seen as two of the worst big events of the 00s.
* At the same time the ''ComicBook/CivilWar'' series was running and had all of the Marvel publicity machine behind it, a small Crisis Crossover event called ''ComicBook/{{Annihilation}}'' was being published. It was largely ignored by Marvel and by readers, due to the lack of involvement from big name characters. The event also led to short-lived books for ''ComicBook/{{Nova}}'' and the ''ComicBook/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy'', which were both cancelled due to low sales. Their plots were finished out via ''ComicBook/TheThanosImperative'', and they were all lumped together as the [=DnA=] Marvel Cosmic era. An era which is well-regarded but nevers sold well. While readers ignored these books at the time, the fact that the post-''Annihilation'' ''Guardians of the Galaxy'' run was such a huge influence on the mega hit [[Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy2014 movie]] has since led to many people discovering the series for the first time. The series became much easier to obtain as Marvel caught onto the new popularity and reprinted the Cosmic stuff, which did in fact find sale success.

[[folder:Automobiles]]
* In the '30s, the Chrysler Airflow shocked automotive consumers, who regarded its radically streamlined styling as ugly and looking like an amorphous blob. The car was a flop that caused Chrysler to recoil from such styling going forward; until the mid-'50s, its cars were noted as very plain-looking. Engineers at other automakers, however, noted the aerodynamic benefits of the Airflow's styling, which was imitated to far greater success by the likes of Peugeot, GM, and Toyota over the course of the late '30s and '40s. Nowadays, the Airflow is remembered as a symbol of ArtDeco automotive engineering that was ahead of its time, such that in 2022 Chrysler revived the Airflow name for their first electric car.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Other]]
* In UsefulNotes/{{Cricket}}, bowlers can legally use certain methods to keep one side of the ball smooth and shiny while the other side becomes rougher due to wear and tear as the innings progresses. This allows ''swing bowling'', where the ball swings in the air. For regular swing, the ball swings toward the rough side -- however, in the 80s and 90s, Pakistani bowlers such as Imran Khan, Sarfraz Nawaz, Waqar Younis and Wasim Akram were able to produce ''reverse swing'', swinging the ball '''the other way'''. This happens because “polishing” one side of the ball for prolonged periods as in more than 40 overs of usage, causes more wear and tear to be inflicted on the shiny side as opposed to the unpolished side. At the time, members of the press accused them of illegally tampering with the ball, but as the mechanics of reverse swing have become better understood, they are now seen as being simply ahead of their time.
** Ignorance of this mechanism among pace bowler heavy teams such as England, Australia and the West Indies could have been due to the pitches in those countries being more bouncy and therefore more conducive to fast bowling. Therefore, a good pace attack would typically dismiss a batting side long before reverse swing’s mechanics could take effect. Those with weak pace bowling resources would often switch to a spin bowling attack, where aerodynamic “swing” isn’t a factor and is not utilized. Pakistan had the right special circumstances to discover this phenomenon, as they became a pace bowler heavy team with excellent seamers, but Pakistani pitches as is typical for the subcontinent tend to be flat dead pitches that do not assist bowlers at all. Therefore, batting sides tend to last much longer in those conditions, thereby allowing enough time for a pace heavy attack to notice and exploit reverse swing.
* Six Flags was originally hated by the coaster community after its bankruptcy, but people have softened up within the decade since.
* In the world of railroading, the Pennsylvania Railroad T1 Duplex stands out as perhaps one of the most troubled steam locomotives ever made. Though pretty, the locomotive proved itself to be a hassle, infamous for its constant wheel slipping, a long line of issues right from the manufacturer, not one, but two railroads rejecting the engine for possible duplication on their lines, and having the distinction of not being saved amongst the railroad's many steam locomotives when they donated at least one example of each to what eventually became the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania in Strasburg. An analysis by Classic Trains Magazine later determined that the engine was [[AwesomeButImpractical designed to solve an issue that simply never occurred]]--create a complex machine built to counter the traditional 4-8-4 out of concerns that adhesion issues would do the design in, when it in fact never did. Instead, the railroad was given a maintenance nightmare they could have avoided had they simply gone with a 4-8-4. Most railroaders and historians marked the engine off as a failure for many years. However, as time went on and the engine was given a closer look, it was looked upon more fondly--still a flawed machine, but one that proved itself a viable competitor with the diesel when let loose on the mainline and running at the speeds it was meant to run. This nostalgia eventually led a group to [[https://prrt1steamlocomotivetrust.org form for the sole purpose of building an entirely new one from scratch]], with the sole intent of further proving what such a class of engine could do.
* {{Creator/Nickelodeon}} executives were vilified in the 1990s for firing Creator/JohnKricfalusi from ''WesternAnimation/TheRenAndStimpyShow'' over his ScheduleSlip and NauseaFuel tendencies. Many animation fans realized that Nickelodeon may have had a point when they saw Kricfalusi's worst tendencies for themselves in his later work. ''WesternAnimation/RenAndStimpyAdultPartyCartoon'' was widely loathed for exaggerating the original GrossoutShow premise, and there's the even ''worse'' ScheduleSlip the show suffered from. Things hit RockBottom with ''WesternAnimation/CansWithoutLabels'', which suffered from a Kickstarter disaster where Kricfalusi collected over $136,723 from backers and blew through the budget without completing the cartoon, literally ''seven years'' of ScheduleSlip, backers not receiving the prizes they were promised, and a final product savaged for its NauseaFuel, terrible animation and simply not being funny. When discussing the original ''Ren And Stimpy'' today, many people focus more on the contributions other creators like Bob Camp and Creator/BillyWest as what made the show memorable.
* Abraham Lincoln's famous "Gettysburg Address" wasn't especially well received by most of the audience that heard him speak it; politicians and others were generally expected to give [[ItsShortSoItSucks much longer speeches]], and Lincoln's high-pitched speaking voice carried well but didn't especially suit the dramatic tone of the speech itself. On the other hand, the primary featured speaker that day, [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Everett Edward Everett]], later wrote to Lincoln "I should be glad if I could flatter myself that I came as near to the central idea of the occasion, in two hours, as you did in two minutes" and Lincoln's "brief remarks" went down in history as one of the greatest speeches ever written.
* When Rivet Networks introduced the ''Killer NIC'' in 2006, many people noted that despite the wide performance gains in games, the idea of having a dedicated CPU for the network stack was just a expensive novelty and could be quickly offset by having more powerful hardware. This led to Rivet performing poorly and getting bought out by Qualcomm, then Intel. Come 2022, the idea of a dedicated network processor resurfaced, this time for servers, the market has become far more accepting of it.
* Branch Rickey's choice of Jackie Robinson to be the first African-American in modern Major League Baseball was controversial at the time. In addition to the obvious racial issues, Robinson had played only one season in the Negro Leagues and although he had played very well, was not necessarily the most obvious choice. Multiple Negro League players of his time have since stated that they were upset at his selection and did not feel that he was the best player available. However Robinson ended up not only having the right personality to deal with the pressures of breaking the color line, but also became an excellent baseball player who arguably could've been elected to the Hall of Fame based purely on his on-field achievements.
[[/folder]]

** Creator/ChristopherPriest's run didn't sell well at the time of its original publication. Today, it is regarded as one of the best Marvel books of the 90's. Many fans even argue that Priest has earned creator-defining status over the character at this point. His depiction is often considered to be the definitive take on Black Panther.

* WebVideo/{{MarioTehPlumber}} has never had a good reputation because of his poor-quality "reviews" of ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'' (and later Creator/{{Nintendo}}) games on [=YouTube=] that suffer from his [[SensoryAbuse screaming into the microphone]], [[SirSwearsALot excessive profanity]] and [[SkewedPriorities more focus on character design than gameplay]], not at all helped by his [[CantTakeCriticism aggressive retaliation to those who called him out on his behaviour]]. However, in his early years he was one of the most despised [=YouTubers=] on the site. The main reason for this is that, because the ''Sonic'' franchise was already infamous for its extremely [[BrokenBase divided fanbase]] exacerbated by a significant VocalMinority of [[FanDumb unpleasantly obsessive fans]] by the time he first began making his videos, he quickly became subjected to PoesLaw; many of his viewers didn't realise that he is a {{Troll}} and believed he was a genuinely horrible person. As time passed and he continued his [[StrictlyFormula formulaic style]], more and more viewers eventually caught on that he had been trolling them all along and his opinions are usually either fabricated or [[AccentuateTheNegative exaggerated]], especially when he uploaded a few videos where he was actually calm. While his videos are still agreed to be really bad, the growing consensus that his [=YouTube=] persona isn't genuine has mitigated much of the vocal contempt towards him, and he has even managed to gain a small fanbase from those who think his videos are [[SoBadItsGood so over-the-top and idiotic as to be funny]].

* John Yudkin was a scientist who, during the crusade against fat, found that sugar was one of the biggest causes of obesity. Over three decades after his findings were discredited, and his reputation ruined, the populace wised up to sugar being the true enemy instead of fat, and his findings were brought back into scientific consensus.

* In his early years in practice, UsefulNotes/SigmundFreud, along with his colleague Joseph Breuer, began to theorize that the condition referred to as "hysteria" was not an affliction of the uterus as was commonly believed at the time, but was actually rooted in psychological trauma. Freud was pressured into retracting and from there morphed into the sex-obsessed persona that many ascribe to him, but these early works were ultimately vindicated when, decades later, people began discussing the same concepts under a new name -- Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

* Confucian historians of the time demonized UsefulNotes/WuZetian as a monstrous tyrant for being a woman who "ruined" the natural order by ascending to a throne that had been reserved exclusively for men and for a while is seen as one of China's worst emperors. But as time progressed, modern views of Wu are much more positive acknowledging her policies which made China a stronger and more powerful nation and was noted for bringing prosperity and stability and creating a level of gender equality that endured through much of the later Tang Dynasty.
* U.S. Presidents:
** UsefulNotes/CalvinCoolidge is seen a forgettable and mediocre president for a while by historians, but now Coolidge is more appreciated for curbing out the corruption under his predecessor, for cutting the national debt, and his opposition to lynchings and for giving citizenship to Native Americans. He also received a cult following by right wingers and conservatives due to his lower taxes and decreased government spending.
** UsefulNotes/HarrySTruman was seen for a long time as one of America's worst presidents due to the UsefulNotes/KoreanWar and the start of the UsefulNotes/ColdWar, economic challenges such as handling including high inflation and labor strikes, and for his blunt and sometimes confrontational personality. However, in more recent years, Truman's presidency has been re-evaluated by historians and scholars, who have come to appreciate his leadership and accomplishments such as Truman's support for civil rights and his efforts to establish the United Nations are seen as important achievements as well as use of aid for European countries through the Marshall Plan.
** Zig Zagged for UsefulNotes/DwightDEisenhower. His approval ratings remained high throughout his two terms in office from 1953 to 1961. He was seen as a skilled and experienced military leader, and his reputation for honesty, integrity, and competence made him a popular and respected figure among the American people. Eisenhower's popularity began to decline towards the end of his presidency as the U.S. faced economic and foreign policy challenges, including the Cold War and the U-2 spy plane incident. However, over time, his legacy has been reevaluated, and he is generally viewed more favorably today than he was in the immediate aftermath of his presidency. Eisenhower's reputation as a leader who prioritized stability and cooperation over ideological conflict has resonated with many Americans, and his achievements in areas such as infrastructure development and civil rights have been recognized as important contributions to American history. Additionally, his leadership during the early years of the Cold War is seen as a key factor in preventing the conflict from escalating into a larger military conflict.
** UsefulNotes/GeraldFord was viewed negatively by the American people during his presidency due to high inflation, energy crises, and the fallout from the Watergate scandal. As a result, his approval ratings were low, and he was not always viewed positively by the public or by historians. However, over time, Ford's legacy has been reevaluated, and he has received some historical vindication for his leadership and accomplishments.Ford's decision to pardon Nixon was controversial at the time, but it was seen as a way to move the country forward and avoid a prolonged legal battle that could have further divided the country. Additionally, Ford's efforts to address economic challenges, including inflation and energy crises, have been recognized as important contributions to American history. His decision to launch the "Whip Inflation Now" campaign, which encouraged Americans to conserve energy and reduce their use of fossil fuels, was ahead of its time and helped to raise awareness about environmental issues. Finally, Ford's commitment to human rights and civil rights, including his support for the Equal Rights Amendment have been recognized as important contributions to American society.
** UsefulNotes/UlyssesSGrant was seen as a great general but was seen as a terrible president who oversaw corruption and for poorly handling Reconstruction. Now more people have evaluated his presidency more positively. During his presidency, Grant worked to enforce civil rights for African Americans in the South, including the passage of the Enforcement Acts and the establishment of the Department of Justice. He also signed into law the 15th Amendment, which prohibited states from denying voting rights based on race. Grant's presidency was also marked by the reconstruction of the South after the Civil War. He sent federal troops to protect the rights of African Americans and to enforce the reconstruction policies. He also worked to stabilize the economy and promote industrialization in the country. While Grant's presidency did face some corruption scandals, recent historians have been reevaluating his legacy and finding that many of these scandals were actually the result of political opponents and media bias. Additionally, Grant himself worked to uncover and prosecute corrupt officials in his administration.
** UsefulNotes/GeorgeHWBush was seen as another [[UpperClassTwit upper class elitist stooge]] who became president because of money and was hated for saying there won't be new taxes and then later increasing taxes. However, in recent years, Bush's legacy has been reevaluated, and he has received some historical vindication for his leadership and accomplishments. One of Bush's most significant accomplishments was his role in ending the Cold War. He oversaw a period of dramatic change in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union, and his approach to diplomacy and negotiations with Soviet leaders helped to ease tensions and promote peaceful relations between the two superpowers. Additionally, his leadership during the Gulf War, which resulted in a swift and decisive victory over Iraq, has been recognized as an important accomplishment. Bush's commitment to environmental protection, including his support for the Clean Air Act and his work to promote international cooperation on environmental issues, has also been recognized as an important contribution to American society. Additionally, his efforts to address domestic issues, including education reform and public health initiatives, have been recognized as important contributions to American society.
** UsefulNotes/GroverCleveland has been hated by the end of his presidency for the Panic Of 1893 and for refusing to switch the currency value from gold to silver.However, over time, his legacy has been reevaluated, and he has received some historical vindication for his leadership and accomplishments. One of Cleveland's most significant accomplishments was his commitment to civil service reform. He worked to eliminate corruption and political patronage from the federal government, and he established a merit-based system for government employment even willing to work with people across the aisle and appointing Republicans. This commitment to civil service reform helped to modernize and professionalize the federal government, and it has been recognized as an important contribution to American society. Cleveland was also committed to fiscal responsibility and balanced budgets, and he vetoed a number of bills that he believed would have resulted in wasteful government spending. This commitment to responsible government has been recognized as an important contribution to American history. Additionally, Cleveland's strong stance on preserving the gold standard and maintaining the value of the dollar has been reevaluated in recent years. While some criticized his conservative economic policies at the time, his commitment to sound money and responsible fiscal policies is now seen as an important contribution to American economic history.
* UsefulNotes/QingDynasty was hated both in China and worldwide, blaming it for China's weakness in the 19th and 20th century and also for racism of the Manchu elite against other peoples of China. However, starting in the 21st century, a favorable view has emerged with people seeing Qing China as benevolent, strong and more economically advanced than the West. They blame ugly wars and diplomatic controversies on imperialist exploitation by Western nations and Japan and see Qing China and the Chinese living in it as victims of imperialist policies such as the Opium Wars.

** Superboy-Prime. When the character was reintroduced to the DCU in 2004's ''ComicBook/InfiniteCrisis'' event, Prime's character was written to be that of a former, now embittered ex-fan of DC's current continuity. He was disillusioned with how much all the characters had changed since his youth. It was psychologically damaging for him, being trapped in other universe(s), while knowing his old world and all his loved ones were killed. For a long while, fans only hitched on the "Fanboy strawman" aspect of his character (not helped by Lewis Lovhaug interpreting him as a whiny brat). The character was greatly mishandled during ''ComicBook/CountdownToFinalCrisis.'' Revelations eventually came of how toxic the comics fanbase could be, in addition to the rising popularity of isekai stories. Opinions on Prime started to soften and become sympathetic. All the way to the point where many fans were legitimately excited to see his return in ''ComicBook/Shazam2018'' and ''ComicBook/DarkNightsDeathMetal'', where he [[spoiler:finally chose to accept responsibility for his actions, redeem himself, and get a second chance in his world that was denied to him before]].
* ''ComicBook/GreenLantern'': In the 90's, the comic wasn't a big seller, and several creatives decided that the franchise needed a shake-up. Such as turning Silver Age "relic" Hal Jordan into a villain in order to replace him with a newer and "cooler" character in ''ComicBook/EmeraldTwilight''. Several years later, Creator/GeoffJohns rehabilitates Hal Jordan in ''ComicBook/GreenLanternRebirth'' and makes him the centerpiece of a massively popular, best-selling run.

The RealLife counterpart of ItWillNeverCatchOn. It can also lead to FollowTheLeader, HypeAversion, HypeBacklash. A SubTrope is VindicatedByCable and VindicatedByReruns; also arguably, as already mentioned, BetterOnDVD. Often these works were the victim of an AwardSnub.

** UsefulNotes/UlyssesSGrant was seen as a great general but was seen as a terrible president who oversaw corruption and for poorly handling Reconstruction. Now more people have evaluated his presidency more positively. During his presidency, Grant worked to enforce civil rights for African Americans in the South, including the passage of the Enforcement Acts and the establishment of the Department of Justice. He also signed into law the 15th Amendment, which prohibited states from denying voting rights based on race. Grant's presidency was also marked by the reconstruction of the South after the Civil War. He sent federal troops to protect the rights of African Americans and to enforce the reconstruction policies. He also worked to stabilize the economy and promote industrialization in the country.While Grant's presidency did face some corruption scandals, recent historians have been reevaluating his legacy and finding that many of these scandals were actually the result of political opponents and media bias. Additionally, Grant himself worked to uncover and prosecute corrupt officials in his administration.

** UsefulNotes/GroverCleveland has been hated by the end of his presidency for the Panic Of 1893 and for refusing to switch the currency value from gold to silver.However, over time, his legacy has been reevaluated, and he has received some historical vindication for his leadership and accomplishments. One of Cleveland's most significant accomplishments was his commitment to civil service reform. He worked to eliminate corruption and political patronage from the federal government, and he signed the Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act into law, which established a merit-based system for government employment. This commitment to civil service reform helped to modernize and professionalize the federal government, and it has been recognized as an important contribution to American society. Cleveland was also committed to fiscal responsibility and balanced budgets, and he vetoed a number of bills that he believed would have resulted in wasteful government spending. This commitment to responsible government has been recognized as an important contribution to American history. Additionally, Cleveland's strong stance on preserving the gold standard and maintaining the value of the dollar has been reevaluated in recent years. While some criticized his conservative economic policies at the time, his commitment to sound money and responsible fiscal policies is now seen as an important contribution to American economic history.

[[folder:History (In General)]]

** UsefulNotes/HarrySTruman was seen for a long time as one of America's worst presidents due to the UsefulNotes/KoreanWar and the start of the UsefulNotes/TheColdWar, economic challenges such as handling including high inflation and labor strikes, and for his blunt and sometimes confrontational personality. However, in more recent years, Truman's presidency has been re-evaluated by historians and scholars, who have come to appreciate his leadership and accomplishments such as Truman's support for civil rights and his efforts to establish the United Nations are seen as important achievements as well as use of aid for European countries through the Marshall Plan.