Body swapping

A popular trope in print and visual media, the act of body swapping involves one character inhabiting the body of another character and vice versa. This is typically shown as the characters merely acting like the other, but quite often their voices are somehow swapped as well.

The earliest known print instance occurs in the 1882 fantasy novel Vice Versa: A Lesson to Fathers by Thomas Anstey Guthrie. Usually to heighten the dramatic or comedic effect, the two characters are contrasts in either physicality or personality.

Instances[]

In the Pigs in Space sketch in episode 314 of The Muppet Show, Dr. Julius Strangepork invents a Dissolvatron, which can transport matter. After using it on Link Hogthrob and Miss Piggy, it's shown that they've swapped bodies. The effect is not limited to the Swinetrek, as Janice, The Swedish Chef and Kermit the Frog are shown having swapped bodies as well.

At the end of Episode 2658 of Sesame Street, the Amazing Mumford ends up swapping the bodies of Isaac Stern and Elmo.

The Amazing Mumford swaps places with a dog in Sesame Street Episode 3157.

Earl Sinclair and the Spirit of the Tree exchange souls in the Dinosaurs episode "If I Were a Tree."

In When You Wish Upon a Pickle, Elmo wishes he could be a grown-up like Chris, who wishes he could have the care-free life of a child. The Wish Pickle grants their wishes by switching their bodies (established by swapping their voices and outfits).

In the series finale of Muppet Babies, Baby Bunsen and Baby Beaker's demonstration of their new "switcheroo remote" goes awry, causing the two scientists to trade minds. Their attempts to fix the problem accidentally drag Summer Penguin and an inanimate bowling ball into the sentience-swapping chaos.

Honorable mentions[]

In an Ernie and Bert sketch from season three of Sesame Street, Ernie imagines himself and Bert having the other's personalities.

In Episode 1857 of Sesame Street, the performers of the Two-Headed Monster are reversed, even though the character was well-established with consistent performers at the time.

In Episode 4231 of Sesame Street, Abby Cadabby turns Zoe into a duplicate of herself, then makes herself a duplicate of Zoe.

During the Pigs in Space sketch performed during The Muppets Take the O2, Link is sent into the Swinetrek's regeneration chamber, where he transforms into other Muppets. He's finally changed to resemble Miss Piggy, still keeping his voice.