Amazon Admirer

She may be tough, strong, and brave. He or she is not intimidated by her. Instead, her strength is attractive and seductive. She is the Amazon; they are the Amazon Admirer.

Generally, the Amazon Admirer may serve as an Audience Surrogate. They admire the Amazon's strength and courage. Usually, the admirer is a man; however, there are some examples of women or nonbinary people showing that admiration in fiction.

Compare with Hot Amazon, which is about the woman. Contrast with No Guy Wants an Amazon, which is the polar opposite of this trope.

Advertising

 * The "Like a Girl" ad from Always talks about this, how girl athletes need to be celebrated. Being a girl is not something that should shame women of any view.

Anime and Manga

 * Discussed in Codename: Sailor V regarding Minako. She has insecurities about the fact that she's strong for her age, athletic, and brash, and that means no guy will ever like her for who she is. Artemis isn't that sympathetic, which makes it sweeter in the Sailor Moon anime that he gives her a bouquet and calls her a "pretty lady" to cheer her up on finding out one of her crushes has a girlfriend. Kaito Ace, a mysterious masked man, is infatuated with Sailor V precisely because of her athleticism and heroic feats.
 * Sailor Moon:
 * The Sailor Moon manga has Sailor Moon ordering Tuxedo Kamen to stay out of the battle with Kunzite, after they've discovered each other's mutual identities, because the Dark Kingdom general's too dangerous and she has to protect the Moon Princess. She gives him a kiss before running off to confront Kunzite and protect Sailor Venus, who has lied that she is the Moon Princess. Tuxedo Kamen gives a huge blush before running off after her, because he says nuts to staying on the sidelines.
 * One of the brainwashed ice skating instructors in season one becomes attracted to Makoto when they find out she's too heavy for him to pick up, but she lifts him without breaking a sweat, or losing her balance. Unfortunately, it makes him think that she's Sailor Moon, as Usagi is wobbling on her skates. The episode ends with him resuming his relationship with his skating partner, revealing that it was the youma's influence.
 * In Sailor Moon S, an episode goes into Haruka's backstory right around the time the Witches 5 target one of her former track competitors, a woman named Elsa. Elsa loved racing against Haruka, and introduced her to her violin friend Michiru. While Elsa regretted that Haruka retired from running, because she wanted a chance to win against Haruka fairly, she isn't bitter about losing. Far from it, she's happily wistful and hoping her former rival is well. It's hinted that maybe she wanted something more between them. Haruka is saddened and freezes when Eudial succeeds in taking Elsa's Pure Heart, though to Elsa's credit she had the sense to run for her life and dodge the first shot.
 * Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?: Ais Wallenstein is not only one of the most powerful adventurers in Orario, she's the most powerful swordswoman in the setting. The running theme in the main storyline is how Bell Cranel, the story's protagonist, is improving himself in order to become worthy of dating her.

Comic Books

 * Nearly every incarnation of Wonder Woman has a literal example of this, dating all the way back to the Golden Age.
 * Hippolyta tells Diana that the Amazons hide from the world of men per orders from the gods because men are obsessed with conquering them. The Amazons once lived in harmony with other humans, provided they never let men seduce or trick them. Then Hercules, under the influence of Mars, decided to steal Hippolyta's divine girdle, a gift from Aphrodite in an attempt to subdue the Amazons. He proceeded to enslave them while breaking Hippolyta's heart. Aphrodite took pity on them when the Amazons repented the moment of weakness, helping free them and relocate them to a remote island. As a reminder of the betrayal, however, they have to wear bulletproof bracelets. It's also why Hippolyta is at first reluctant to let Diana go help Steve in the world of men, fearing history will repeat itself. (The bracelets end up coming in handy because Diana learns they can repel gunfire.)
 * Steve Trevor plays this straight. He recognizes Diana as the woman who saved him from a plane crash, and she goes with him back to the mainland to see if humans are worthy of her protection. They proceed to fight Nazis and have each other's backs. In the Golden Age, at least before he started dying on a regular basis in DC continuity, he said he was fine if Wonder Woman never returns his feelings; knowing she was saving the world was enough for him.
 * Part of the reason that Superman / Clark Kent is attracted to Lois Lane is not that she's a damsel in distress, but because she is always brave and willing to find the truth in a story. Later incarnations also have Lois reveal that her dad, General Lane, ensured that she received martial arts training.
 * Mister Miracle of the New Gods admired Big Barda of the Female Furies so much that he married her. Their marriage is one of the most stable anywhere in DC Comics history.

Film

 * The animated franchise of How to Train Your Dragon has both Hiccup and Snotlout crushing on Astrid, the best warrior in their age group. Astrid knows how to toss an ax, wield a hammer, and douse a fire. She'll punch Snotlout if he flirts with her, and casually shuts down Hiccup when he attempts to spend time with her..
 * After Esmeralda nearly beheaded Phoebus with a soldier's helmet in the Disney adaptation of The Hunchback of Notre Dame, he says "What a woman!" Before he was attracted to her looks, especially when she danced, but that was the moment he fell for her. Later, he's very impressed when she steals his sword and fights him in the cathedral, saying "You fight almost as well as a man."
 * The Wonder Woman 2017 movie and its sequel Wonder Woman 1984 both feature this:
 * Steve falls for Diana after she rescues him from his plane and vouches for him when he inadvertently leads German soldiers to Themyscira. Later, he admits that though she knows little about the world, her courage and idealism inspire him to make things better when he can.
 * His crew says the same; when they find out there is a whole island of women warriors, they ask if it's hard to find. With that said, Charlie is more attracted to Diana's kindness, when she attempts to comfort him through PTSD nightmares and says he sings well.
 * 1984 has Barbara, one of Diana's coworkers, develop what's implied to be a crush after the latter saves her from a drunk. She says that she admires how Diana is confident about everything, sexy, and strong..

Literature

 * Harry Potter:
 * It's implied that part of the reason that Harry Potter develops a crush on Cho Chang is that she nearly knocks him off his broom while they play Quidditch. Gryffindor Captain Wood screams at Harry to not be a gentleman as Harry swerves to avoid Cho. While on a date several books later, Cho recounts the match and finds it hilarious how competitive Wood was.
 * Hagrid's sweet crush on Madame Maxime at first is because they're both, and she understands what it means to be an outsider. As he recounts in Book five, she impressed him with some fast spellwork to save them both from.
 * In the How to Train Your Dragon book series, Fishlegs starts developing crushes on warrior princesses when puberty hits him. Hiccup, who has not yet developed puberty or interest in girls, tries to discourage Fishlegs because the latter (due to being an orphan) has no chance at all of winning the women over. He has a point, since Tantrum O'Ugerly's father captures the Hooligans and threatens to execute them on the suspicion that one of the men wrote a love letter to Tantrum; if the writer is a prince or heir, they have to go on a dangerous quest to earn Tantrum's heart..
 * In Percy Jackson & the Olympians, Percy develops a crush on Annabeth Chase, daughter of Athena, within a few weeks of meeting her. Sure she can kick his ass, and does so on multiple occasions, but he would follow her into the Underworld if she needed his help. Before, Annabeth considers Percy a "Seaweed Brain" and crushes on Luke because Luke rescued her as a kid from mutant spiders. Then Luke betrays Camp Half-Blood and tries to murder Percy, after he survived a quest with Annabeth and Grover. It's implied that Annabeth started returning Percy's feelings when Luke betrayed her a second time by tricking her into holding up the sky, and then using her as a hostage against the party coming to rescue her and Artemis.

Live-Action TV

 * In Angel, while at first Angel remembered Cordelia as the condescending snotty cheerleader – and she kept up this front in the pilot to hide that she was broke and struggling to find acting gigs – he developed feelings for her in Season 3 after she became a priestess leader in another dimension, helped him rescue Winifred Bunkle, and comforted him about while fending off a demon. One of the ways that it sinks in that.
 * In the series adaptation of The Boys has a few examples:
 * Deconstructed in Homelander's obsession with women that are not cowed by him. He keeps Queen Maeve single and in line, purely because she's his number two and a Supe. Maeve as a result is a raging alcoholic and . That's not even going into how Madelyn Stillwell uses Homelander's attraction to her to keep him in line while being the corporate face of Vought.
 * It's played straight with Hughie and Annie. Hughie at first is attracted to Annie because she seems to be in the same place as he is: enduring a great moment dashed by someone with higher power and authority. They bond over the fact that their lives didn't turn out the way they wanted -- Hughie because A-Train killed his serious girlfriend Robin and got away with it, Starlight because the Deep assaulted her using his status as a member of the Seven. Then he finds out that she's Starlight but makes it clear he likes Annie the person, not Starlight the new Vought sex symbol. Later he cheers after encouraging her to kick his ass at bowling, telling her that she never has to hold back to make him feel better..
 * Discussed often in Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Most of the guys interested in her do like that she can kick ass while looking hot, but they run on a spectrum from the well-meaning adrenaline junkie to supernatural dude that keeps switching sides. In between are those like Riley, who struggle with inadequacy about the number of exes that Buffy has.
 * Xander had the hots for Buffy all through season one, until he reluctantly accepted that she had feelings for Angel. He started dating Cordelia after she Took A Level In Badass and actually became useful with her car in the second part of "What's My Line". It's treated as one of Xander and Willow's low points when they're caught cheating on their partners in Season 3 by kissing each other, namely Cordelia and Oz respectively. After Cordelia gets her groove back in Season Three when saving Buffy and Willwo during "Gingerbread," she and Xander at least start to patch things up as friends and part civilly.
 * Angel had an unhealthy relationship with Buffy, owing to the whole "stalking her for a year" when she was fifteen and the age difference. He did admire how tough she was, and in an alternate timeline died so that she could stop the Master. Part of his Character Development in his spinoff show was acknowledging that Buffy was not a paragon or the hero for him, and certainly not someone he could treat with condescending worship.
 * Robin Wood's infatuation with Buffy is partly influenced by the fact that his mother Nikki was a previous Slayer, one that and because of her dedication to stop the First. Later, he.

Newspaper Comics

 * The 1930s comic strip Terry and the Pirates had the Dragon Lady as an antagonist. She later agrees to join the heroes, much to Terry's delight as he admires how fierce she is.

Oral Tradition, Folklore, Myths and Legends

 * In Greek Mythology, one of Heracles's twelve labors was to deliver Hippolyta's belt to the king that he served. Hippolyta was more than fine with that because she truly liked him. She handed over the belt, no argument or negotiation required. Alas, Hera intervened and staged a fight when she framed Heracles for kidnapping Hippolyta. In some versions of the myth, Heracles killed Hippolyta in the skirmish before she could defuse the situation. During others, he handed her to Theseus for safekeeping, but she married Theseus of her own volition.
 * Hindu Mythology has a few examples with Parvati and her incarnations:
 * Parvati was supposed to marry Shiva as Sati, but Sati's father basically kidnapped her after the wedding and showed disrespect towards his son-in-law. This motivated Sati to burn herself on a pyre. Parvati tries to first win over Shiva by doting on him; it ends up not working because he realizes that the love god Kama is trying to use magic to bring them together, and burns Kama alive in front of Parvati and his wife Rati. Instead, she decided to fast and make penance to the god of death. To test her, Shiva posed as a youth who trolled Parvati by saying that Shiva is ugly, covered in ash, and doesn't bathe, so why bother worshipping him. She said she doesn't care, she loves the god selflessly and not for his looks. Shiva is impressed and proposes to her on the spot.
 * Devi Durga, one of Parvati's shakhtis, represents her fierce side. Durga rides on a lion and usually beheads men. A form of Durga named Ambika appears when the gods are asking Parvati for help. One rakshasa king says that she's beautiful and asks if she will marry him. She says yes, if he can beat her in battle. He says that sounds silly but sure. She proceeds to kick his ass, using the power of Parvati's other shaktis and revealing they are all her.

Puppet Shows

 * Kermit of The Muppets may claim that he doesn't have time for a serious relationship with Miss Piggy, but he can be entranced when she shows off her martial arts... provided he is not the target. Gonzo has also shown interest in Miss Piggy being tough as nails, but then this is Gonzo.

Theatre

 * The stage adaptation of Disney's The Hunchback of Notre Dame has this in the German and La Jolla Playhouse version. While Phoebus is reverted to the womanizer he was from the books, he becomes smitten with Esmeralda after she rescues Quasimodo from the crowd. He quickly lies that she claimed sanctuary at Notre Dame to save her from Frollo. Later, he repeats her reprise of "I'm a fool, I guess," when he refuses to burn down a brothel with people inside on Frollo's orders.
 * In A Midsummer Night's Dream, Amazon leader Hippolyta is a supporting character, as Theseus's fiancee. Theseus mentions how he loved fighting Hippolyta in battle before asking her to marry him.
 * Wagner's Ring Cycle shows that Brunhilde the warrior is appealing, and many want to win her hand. She's also not one to be trifled with, as shown with what happens to Sigurd.

Video Games

 * In the Twilight Hammer storyline of World of Warcraft, an Arranged Marriage is suggested between Fanny Thundermar and Keegan Firebeard in order to convince their clans to stop fighting; Keegan falls in love with Fanny after seeing her beat ten ogres to death with a frying pan.

Web Comics

 * Discussed in Love and Capes. It comes out that Abby was Mark's rebound after he broke up with Amazonia, the world's version of Wonder Woman. It wasn't because Amazonia was mean or insensitive; it's that she wanted him to be Crusader 24/7 after inviting him to move in with her. Mark thought about it but realized that his job as an accountant, his helping clients, his being on the ground, was what he needed. Amazonia finds out that her ex is dating a bookstore owner, and becomes jealous. She even talks with Darkblade that she can't understand why Mark would want someone ordinary, and not a strong powerful woman like her.

Western Animation

 * Avatar: The Last Airbender has a few examples:
 * At first, Sokka makes a bad first impression on Kyoshi Warrior leader Suki when saying there's no way a bunch of female warriors could have defeated him in an ambush. Then after Suki tosses him on his ass a few times, Sokka humbles himself before her to ask for proper combat lessons. It's not until season two that Sokka realizes he has feelings for her, while dealing with PTSD from losing Yue and becoming terrified that Suki will die in front of him the way that Yue did. When Suki does the gruntwork to take a prison warden hostage in season three, Sokka has a lovestruck look at how awesome she is.
 * Zuko admits that part of his attraction to Mai, in addition to them being childhood friends, is that he loves how she fights. He also loves when she breaks her usually stoic exterior to express her true feelings.
 * Gender-inverted when Ty Lee develops a Villainous Crush on Sokka. This happens after Appa saves a sleep-deprived Katara and Sokka from Ty Lee and Mai, and when Sokka kept fighting to the bitter end to protect his little sister. As Ty Lee and Mai wash up on the other side of the river, Ty Lee asks Mai if she thinks that Sokka is cute.
 * Subverted when Azula tries to hit on guys in "The Beach". She is certainly attractive, and Chan even kisses her when they talk in the privacy of his family's balcony, but her lack of social skills scare guys away from her.
 * Batman: The Animated Series: Usually Batman's real tastes in women tend to run this way when he's not playing the part of the playboy. He has an on-off flirtation with Selina Kyle aka Catwoman, is attracted to Talia al Ghul, and has done playful sparring with Andrea Beaumont who he would have married. We'll just ignore his relationship with Barbara Gordon because that was weird given their age gap.
 * In the crossover between Superman: The Animated Series and Batman: The Animated Series, this is why Bruce Wayne falls for Lois Lane. He sees that she's not afraid to speak her mind or try to rescue innocents. As he tells a suspicious Clark Kent, Lois deserves someone that knows the person she is. Lois is also no pushover; as she tells a would-be assailant, "Daddy was a black belt."
 * In Legend of Korra, there are a few examples:
 * Mako's taste in women tends to run this way. He meets Asami when she nearly runs him over in a sports car, and encounters Korra when Bolin recruits her for their Probending team. The problem is that Mako doesn't know how to set boundaries with Korra, who hasn't been taught that that hitting on a guy in a committed relationship is very wrong for a lot of reasons. He also doesn't know how to set boundaries with Asami in season two after he breaks up with Korra. It says something that Prince Wu in season 4 says he fudged it.
 * In season 3, after they've had time to bond and talk about the awkwardness in Mako dating them both, Asami and Korra develop this dynamic towards each other. Asami gives Korra driving lessons, and busts them out of the Earth Queen's custody. Korra comes to admire how Asami never gives into despair or gives up in the face of impossible odds. It's implied, however that.
 * The Netflix show Dogs in Space has a female-on-female example where Pluto pilot Nomi starts crushing hard on Kira, the stranded captain that the crew finds on the "ghost planet". She admires how Kira handles herself in a fight and strives to be like her..
 * Overlapping with Villainous Crush, in The Incredible Hulk cartoon, Gargoyle is a Hopeless Suitor towards She-Hulk.

Real Life

 * Writer Stephen King says that, in addition to Tabitha Spruce wearing pretty stockings and owning a nice typewriter, this was why he fell for her. In a writing workshop where people were writing edgy poetry that lacked meaning, Tabby wasn't afraid to speak her mind while remaining calm and patient with terrible writing. She made allowances for his alcoholism and drug addiction, but drew the line and staged an intervention after Maximum Overdrive flopped, complete with a crew member getting injured. Stephen said that Tabby's faith in his ability to get clean only strengthened their bond.
 * This can be played to creepy effect in fandoms for an Action Girl actress. Fans may forget that the actresses are just playing a part. Eliza Dushku, who played Faith in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, has horror stories about creepy men hitting on her after season three premiered.