History Main / WhatTheHellAreYou

* A non-villainous example in ''[[VideoGame/PokemonMysteryDungeonExplorers Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky]]'': in the BonusEpisode detailing [[TheDitz Wiggly]][[BigGood tuff's]] origins, as an Igglybuff, he was taken under the wing of a local recluse and former explorer Armaldo. As the two progress through one particular dungeon, Armaldo points out all the traps in the area, including the [[PitTrap concealed pit]], [[TheWallsAreClosingIn spiked walls]], and numerous other traps waiting to deter hopeful explorers. Igglybuff ignores all this, and just uses his unknown power to ''break the door down''. This leaves Armaldo wondering:

** This is asked word-for-word by Nero to V in [[VideoGame/DevilMayCry5 the fifth game]], especially because the latter knows too much about the Qliphoth tree that damaged the city, and because he has just summoned a demonic familiar.

See also WhoAreYou and MuggingTheMonster.

* ''Series/InterviewWithTheVampire2022'': After Alderman Fenwick discovers that Louis de Pointe du Lac is ImmuneToBullets and can [[EarAche slice off his whole ear]] with just his fingernails, he recognizes that Louis can't possibly be human.

* At the end of the first episode of ''LightNovel/{{Durarara}}'', the last human trafficker screams this when he runs down Celty, knocks off her helmet, and [[HeadlessHorseman notices she doesn't have a head]].
* One of Sousuke's more painful moments in ''LightNovel/FullMetalPanic'' is hearing this question from [[spoiler:Kaname's best friend, Kyoko Tokiwa,]] when she winds up in the crossfire of his mercenary double life. Kurama is happy to twist the knife further by volunteering a perfectly true answer.

** In the ''Leviathan'' {{D|ownloadableContent}}LC, [[spoiler: even the ''[[EldritchAbomination Leviathan]]'' have this reaction to Shepard, referring to them as "An Anomaly" that has never manifested before in any previous Cycle. They too are ''very'' curious why Shepard is the first thing that the Reapers have ever shown ''fear'' towards]].

* The Strawhats got this a lot early in ''Manga/OnePiece'', both from whoever they're fighting and whoever happens to be watching.

** Vegeta, Goku and several other characters ask variations of this to Broly in ''Anime/DragonBallSuperBroly'' as even for a Saiyan he’ freakishly powerful and just plain freakish.

* In ''VisualNovel/DanganronpaTriggerHappyHavoc'', [[spoiler:Junko Enoshima]] has this reaction after Makoto is able to bring hope to the remaining surviving Ultimate students and the BigBad can't deal with how he [[spoiler:eventually was christened as the Ultimate Hope, which was the opposite to Junko's Ultimate Despair title]].

'''Batman:''' ''[breaks open the limo's sunroof and pulls Falcone out]'' I'm Franchise/{{Batman}}.

** In ''Anime/DragonBallZResurrectionF'', Vegeta asks this of Whis when Whis reveals that not only is he far more powerful than the freaking God of Destruction, but [[spoiler:he has the ability to ''reverse time''.]] Whis's response can be summed up as "I am me."

-->'''Vegeta:''' Where the hell did you come from?

** A {{mook}} asks this when Section 9 easily takes down his team of professional cyborg guards. Paz responds with IdTellYouButThenIdHaveToKillYou.

* Said once in ''Manga/{{Inuyasha}}'', surprisingly enough, to Kagome by [[VillainOfTheWeek Yura of]] [[CombatTentacles the Hair]]. Her confusion came from the fact that every time she swung a sword at Kagome, it bounced off of Inuyasha's kimono rather than slicing off her limbs.

** In the case of Sanji, opponents and other people asking wandering what the hell he is serves as {{foreshadowing}} [[spoiler: over the fact that [[BioAugmentation he isn’t completely human]] after all.]]
* ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagicaTheMovieRebellion'': [[spoiler: Kyubey, friggin' [[StarfishAlien KYUBEY]], screams this in regards to Sayaka and Nagisa, who have just revealed themselves to be [[OurAngelsAreDifferent agents of the Law of Cycles]].]]

* In ''Manga/{{Toriko}}'', after [[spoiler:Neo ''ate'' [[EarthShatteringKaboom a tiny supernova]], that Don Slime created as a last-ditch effort to [[TakingYouwithMe kill him along with himself and the rest of the planet]], Don]] suffers [[HeroicBSOD full-blown mental breakdown]] and asks, what the hell he is, while proclaiming, that creatures like this simply can't exist.
** Happens again (although on a smaller scale) in the very next chapter. This time [[spoiler:NEWS]] asks [[spoiler:Jiro]] what he is, not believing that human (or really any Earth creature besides Eight Kings) can withstand his attack without injuries. In response to questions about the origin of his powers, [[spoiler:Jiro]] reveals that he [[spoiler:was [[RaisedByWolves raised by the Wolf King]], who would feed him [[HumanoidAbomination Red]] [[TheDreaded Nitros]] since he was a baby.]]

* In ''ComicBook/{{Supergod}}'' #3, Reddin recounts the time when he got very drunk and confronted Morrigan Lugus, asking it "What are you for?" Morrigan Lugus' response was a BreakingSpeech about the weakness of humanity and its need for an object of worship, concluding with the answer "I am your stash".
* In the Creator/AlexRoss story ''Franchise/WonderWoman: Spirit of Truth'', while in China, Wonder Woman saves a girl from being run over by a tank by picking the tank up and throwing it. Having never seen or heard of superheroes before, the girl is [[TerrifyingRescuer terrified of her]] and asks, "What are you?" Wonder Woman says, "A friend and a woman just like you." The girl screams that she is not like her and runs away, causing Wonder Woman to be sad.

-->'''Black Clad Alpha:''' I don't believe it! What ''are'' you?
-->'''Wonder Woman:''' [[IronicEcho A believer.]] ''[ShockwaveClap]''

* In ''Film/TheLeagueOfExtraordinaryGentlemen'', one of the [[BigBad Fantom]]'s {{Mook}}s unloads a submachinegun clip into [[Literature/ThePictureOfDorianGray Dorian Gray]]. Instead of dying, Dorian gives his formerly nice suit an annoyed look and proceeds to remove the Mook's plate armor with his sword. This conversation takes place.

* ''Film/{{Predator}}'' is arguably the TropeNamer, with Dutch saying it word for word at the end as he inspects the incapacitated alien.

--->'''Eddie:''' [[IAmLegion We...]] '''[[EvilSoundsDeep are Venom]]'''.

* ''Series/{{Barry}}'': After [[ProfessionalKiller a hit]] goes very wrong, Barry finds himself having to track down a witness in the form of the mark's pre-teen daughter... who knows karate and repeatedly wipes the floor with both him and his handler, until they start [[https://kane52630.tumblr.com/post/184549657489/barry-s02e05-ronnylily questioning]] if she's even "of this world."

** The Doctor meets a woman named Oswin Oswald in a [[Recap/DoctorWhoS33E1AsylumOfTheDaleks Dalek asylum]] in the far future, and she dies. Then he meets the same woman (now named Clara) in [[Recap/DoctorWho2012CSTheSnowmen Victorian London]], and she dies. Baffled as to how this could have happened, he seeks her out and encounters ''another'' incarnation of her in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS33E6TheBellsOfSaintJohn modern times]], and adopts her as his new companion to figure this out. He avoids confronting her directly about this until [[Recap/DoctorWhoS33E10JourneyToTheCentreOfTheTARDIS several adventures in]], when it seems they are both going to die. He demands to know just what the hell she actually is, but Clara is just a normal woman and has no idea what he's talking about. It later turns out that [[spoiler:this Clara ''is'' a normal woman, and the ''original''; she winds up entering the Doctor's personal timeline in order to thwart a villain who had done the same, causing multiple incarnations of her to appear throughout his life.]]

* ''Series/LukeCage2016'': Claire Temple is trying to treat Luke but finds herself stymied by his NighInvulnerable skin which makes conventional surgery impossible. She asks, "WhoAreYou" but then adds that this trope would be more appropriate.

* In ''VideoGame/RemnantFromTheAshes'', one of the bosses that can be fought in [[HungryJungle Corsus]] is the Thrall. It has no relation to the Corsus storyline or the Root invading the multiverse, making it a GiantSpaceFleaFromNowhere. The in-game mission to kill it is called "What The Hell Are You?"
* ''VideoGame/TombRaiderUnderworld'':
-->'''Lara Croft:''' Tell me this: what the hell are you?\\
'''Lara's Doppelganger:''' I am you with the flaws removed!
* VideoGame/BatmanArkhamSeries:

** In ''[[VideoGame/BatmanArkhamCity Arkham City]]'', terrified mooks will demands this of Franchise/{{Batman}}, ComicBook/{{Robin}}, and/or ComicBook/{{Nightwing}} after their mook buddies begin dropping like flies during [[StealthExpert Predator]] mode.

* From ''VideoGame/{{StarCraft|I}}'', Zeratul to Duran: "Who...what are you?"
** ''VideoGame/StarcraftII'' expansion has everyone wondering just what the hell Kerrigan is. She was [[spoiler:de-infested at the end of ''Wings of Liberty'', and seems to have little-to-no memory of the time she spent infested, yet still can control the swarm and still has Zerg features about her.]] Is she really redeemed this time, or is she just trying to pull her MagnificentBastard act again?

*** In Mission 1, Nero could only ask this question to Dante after the man in red survives all that's just happened, including [[OnceAnEpisode getting impaled in the chest]].

* ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV''

* In ''VideoGame/HeroesOfMightAndMagic V'', Nicolai asks this of Agrael when the demon lord resists the power of Nicolai's Amulet [[spoiler:that has the power to send demons back to Sheogh]]. This is the first hint that Agrael [[spoiler:isn't actually a demon. He's really a Dark Elf.]]

** In the ''Leviathan'' {{DLC}}, [[spoiler: even the ''[[EldritchAbomination Leviathan]]'' have this reaction to Shepard, referring to them as "An Anomaly" that has never manifested before in any previous Cycle. They too are ''very'' curious why Shepard is the first thing that the Reapers have ever shown ''fear'' towards.]]

* ''VideoGame/DragonAgeII'':
** Knight-Commander Meredith has this reaction towards a Mage!Hawke for taking down the Arishok in honourable single-combat, which leads to the rest of the Qunari peacefully leaving and ends the siege of Kirkwall without further incident.
** Fenris will also act this way towards Flemeth, remarking that he has met abominations, demons, and blood mages before, and Flemeth is none of those things. Anders is similarly perturbed that even ''Justice'' doesn't know what she is!

* In ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'', Ghirahim is outraged that Link actually managed to beat him. This doesn't deter him from taunting Link, though.
-->'''Ghirahim:''' [[VillainousBreakdown This... This is preposterous. Driven to my knees by a simple child of man? Laughable! No matter how many times we clash, I can't prevail! You think I can't defeat you? You think I can't win?!]] Boy... what ''are'' you?
* ''VideoGame/MetalGearRisingRevengeance:'' When [[CorruptPolitician Senator Armstrong]] steps up to the plate and reveals his full power, both Raiden and Jetstream Sam ask him this word-for-word.
* ''VideoGame/MarkOfTheNinja'': When the player character terrorizes the {{Mook}} guards, one of things they'll mutter as they stumble backwards is "What ''is'' this guy...?"
* ''VideoGame/Persona4'' has Yosuke saying this line after his attempt to unmask Teddie shows there's nothing inside.
* ''VideoGame/EternalDarkness'': A cutscene combines it with GlamourFailure when the "liche" Pius Augustus posing as a warlord confronts a defeated enemy.
-->'''Soldier:''' Who are you?\\
'''Pius Augustus:''' I am your lord and conqueror!\\
'''Soldier:''' What manner of forsaken being are you?\\
'''Pius Augustus:''' ''[shifts to his skeletal form]'' So, you can see me in my true form...
* ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsChainOfMemories'':
** After Zexion barely escapes from Riku, he screams, "What is he? No-one's ever worn the darkness the way he does. It's impossible!"
** After Vexen fades away to nothingness upon his death, Sora can only respond with this to the remaining members of the Organization. Not even Axel -- the Organization member who killed Vexen -- can give him an honest answer.
* Shadow asks this of Sonic in ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure2'' after the eponymous blue hedgehog survives being [[spoiler:''ejected into space.'']] Though in this case it's out of genuine curiosity rather than panic.
* In ''VideoGame/Fallout4'' the Sole Survivor can ask Nick Valentine this after the former rescues him due to his being a synth missing the rubber skin. This is probably because the synths the Sole Survivor may have encountered thus far are [[KillerRobot Killer Robots]] unlike the robot-bodied, human-acting Nick.
-->'''Sole Survivor:''' Just...what are you, Nick?\\
'''Nick:''' You really don't know? I'm a synth. Synthetic man. All the parts, [[DeadpanSnarker minus a few red blood cells]].

* In ''VideoGame/{{Subnautica}}'', Ryley's first contact with [[spoiler: the Sea Emperor Leviathan]] comes in the form of this question. In this case, it's asked more out of curiosity (perhaps even hope) than fear, though the manner in which it happens is likely to inspire a moment of panic in the ''player''.

'''Quigley:''' Personally I've never felt the tail's been adequatley addressed.\\

* In ''Franchise/{{RWBY}}'', [[spoiler:Volume 9 has this an an important plot point, with many characters of the Ever After asking Team RWBY what they are.]]

* ''WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes'': Zig-zag -- the Devil himself asks Yosemite Sam "Who the hell are you?" when he lands in Hell in the cartoon "Satan's Waitin'".

* ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitans'': Robin asks "What are you?" to Slade when [[spoiler:Slade's mask comes off to reveal a SkullForAHead]].

* In ''Franchise/{{RWBY}}'', [[spoiler:Volume 9 has this an an important plot point, with many characters of the Ever After asking Team RWBY what they are?]]

* In ''Franchise/RWBY'', [[spoiler:Volume 9 has this an an important plot point, with many characters of the Ever After asking Team RWBY what they are?]]

** Vegeta, Goku and several other characters ask this variations of Broly in ''Anime/DragonBallSuperBroly'' as even for a Saiyan he’ freakishly powerful and just plain freakish.

* Sephiroth himself actually utters “What the hell are you?” word for word towards Cloud in ''Anime/LastOrderFinalFantasyVII ''. With good reason too as Cloud had [[NoSell no selled]] [[PullYourselfDownTheSpear getting impaled]] and lifted Sephiroth up by his own Masamune, which shouldn’t be possible for anyone who isn’t a SuperSoldier let alone a rookie grunt like Cloud. In the original game and ''VideoGame/CrisisCore'' he just exclaims ThisCannotBe, regardless it’s one of the very few times we ever see him lose his cool and show fear.

* ''LightNovel/RebuildWorld'':

* ''Series/LukeCage2016''. Claire Temple is trying to treat Luke but finds herself stymied by his NighInvulnerable skin which makes conventional surgery impossible. She asks, "WhoAreYou" but then adds that this trope would be more appropriate.

* ''Literature/TheNameOfTheRose'': When having sex with a peasant girl, Adso fears she might be a [[HornyDevils succubus]] sent to corrupt him and steal his soul, which they apparently do at the moment of ecstasy when the victim cries out, "Who are you?" She isn't, as it turns out, but as Adso is (was) a virgin and a novice monk, [[SexIsEvilAndIAmHorny he's no less disturbed]].

* ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'' has the final boss of Heavensward ask this of the player character. [[spoiler: Archbishop Thordan, who became a primal via using an ArtifactOfDoom and a millenia of prayers, is defeated by the player and he becomes absolutely terrified of them since he was (possibly) the strongest primal to date and was beaten by someone who doesn't have the same kind of power.]]
** The FinalBoss of FFXIV patch 5.3 also asks this of the [[PlayerCharacter Warrior Of Darkness]] just before the fight starts. Not in rage or terror, but with ''genuine wonder and curiosity'', as the WOD just did something so unusual that it amazes even a millennia-old individual like the Boss. It ''almost'' gets him to back down, until his desire to destroy anyone in his way reasserts itself.

** In ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry4'' after Nero defeats Berial:
--->'''Berial:''' Your [[RedRightHand arm]]... [[OhCrap you're not human!]]\\

** This is asked word-for-word by Nero to V in [[VideoGame/DevilMayCry5 the fifth game]], especially because the latter knows too much about the Qliphoth tree that damaged the city.

'''The Bendu:''' [[BadassBoast One beyond your power to destroy.]]

Assumptions are dangerous. You assume that your foe is mortal and limited, that there are certain things they cannot do or [[NoOneCouldSurviveThat survive]]. When these assumptions break down, in their panic, many heroes or villains will ask, "What the hell are you?"

** This is an equivalent of OhCrap, usually uttered when the speaker realizes he has just attacked a demon host.
** ''Naruto himself'' makes that exclamation of Pain when's he's impaled by his chakra rods. The rods are chanelled by Pain's own chakra, which allows him to mobilise his hosts - [[PeoplePuppets The Six Paths]], and disrupts Naruto's own once he stabs him with it. Ironically, in contrast to the above, Pain is fully aware he's going after a demon host and refers to Naruto as the demon inside him.