| rdfs:comment | - Alice is going to meet Dr. Smith, whom she knows only by name and/or reputation. Upon entering Dr. Smith's office, she sees a distinguished-looking gentleman who perfectly fits her mental image of what Dr. Smith ought to look like talking to an ordinary teenage girl. So she goes up to the man and starts talking to him... only for the teenage girl to inform her that she's Dr. Smith, and the man is just an assistant (or male relative, friend, or something along those lines). Compare Mistaken Age. Examples of Actually, That's My Assistant include:
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| abstract | - Alice is going to meet Dr. Smith, whom she knows only by name and/or reputation. Upon entering Dr. Smith's office, she sees a distinguished-looking gentleman who perfectly fits her mental image of what Dr. Smith ought to look like talking to an ordinary teenage girl. So she goes up to the man and starts talking to him... only for the teenage girl to inform her that she's Dr. Smith, and the man is just an assistant (or male relative, friend, or something along those lines). Gender, Improbable Age, or the real Dr. Smith being eccentric or sloppy-looking are some of the most common reasons why Alice might be mistaken, though there can be other reasons why Dr. Smith doesn't look the part (at least in Alice's eyes). In some instances, race can be a factor; this usually leads to Unfortunate Implications. This trope is a relative of Actually, I Am Him and Expecting Someone Taller. In the former, Alice is looking for Bob but doesn't know what he looks like; she meets a man and tells him that she's looking for Bob, and he leads her on a bit before revealing that he is Bob. In the latter, Alice is looking for Bob (whom she knows only by reputation); he arrives, but looks nothing like she was expecting, and she explains her confusion or lack of reaction by saying "I'm sorry, I was expecting someone taller" or something along those lines. Neither involves the element of picking the wrong person out of a pair (or more), which is what this trope's about at its core. Sometimes cultivated intentionally; with the assistant being a decoy for the real deal; in order to protect their boss from their enemies; such as a Decoy Leader or Body Double. Compare Mistaken Age. Examples of Actually, That's My Assistant include:
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