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Finding Out
| Tropes and genres | |
|---|---|
| Synonym(s) | Revelation stories, Reveal fic, Identity Reveal, Magic Revealed |
| Related tropes/genres | Arthur Finds Out |
| Related articles on Fanlore. | |
Finding Out fic, also known as revelation stories, is a popular genre in fandoms where one character has a secret.
It's particularly common in fandoms with canon superheroes, or other characters who have a secret identity. In fandoms with supernatural source material, many works focus on characters being revealed as supernatural or magical creatures. Other works focus on the magical or supernatural world being revealed to unsuspecting characters.
Example Fandoms
- In Merlin fandom, the trope Arthur Finds Out explores what might happen once Arthur finds out about Merlin's magic.
- A similar trope was extremely popular in Smallville, involving the possibilities of Lex Luthor finding out about Clark Kent's powers. Revelation stories in which Lois Lane finds out that Clark is Superman are also prevalent in the Lois & Clark fandom.
- In the Teen Wolf fandom, a common trope prior to season 3/4 was Sheriff Stilinski or Danny Mahealani finding out about the supernatural world, as they were some of the few recurring characters who did not know about werewolves up until that point.
- In the Lucifer (TV series) fandom, Devil Reveal fics are common and often appear in works pairing Chloe/Lucifer
- Miraculous Ladybug fics where Marinette and Adrien discover each other's secret identities.
- In Supergirl (TV series) fandom, works often portray characters finding out Supergirl's real identity. In some of these works, the secret identity reveal is unnecessary, as the character Kara reveals herself to (usually Lena Luthor) is already aware of Supergirl's identity.
- In the SPY×FAMILY fandom, works where Loid Forger and Yor Forger discover each other's identities as spy and assassin respectively. Often Anya's telepathy and/or Yuri Briar's position in the secret police is also revealed.
Archives & Links
- Discovery tagged works on Ao3
- Identity Reveal tagged works on Ao3
- Reveal tagged works on Ao3