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* In ''[[Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann]]'', things are ''powered'' by awesome, so being awesome makes it practical by definition! Best seen early in the series when Simon tries to take the [[Boring but Practical]] route to [[Combining Mecha]] and just climb up Kamina's Gurren with his Lagann. Kamina ''attacks'' him until he does it more awesomely. And it really does work better that way!
* The [[Sphere of Destruction|Rasengan]] and Kage Bunshin/Shadow Clone Jutsu as part of [[Naruto]] Uzumaki's arsenal. So simple tricks...but so highly effective in battle. Even moreso when he uses his [[Super Mode]]{s}.
** When Kimimaro's illness renders him paralyzed, he moves by using his [[Bad Withwith the Bone|ability to manipulate his skeleton]].
** In the same vein as Kimimaro, Nagato can't really move his legs but he can send six bodies that are strong enough to take on Konoha and win.
** Minato's Rasengan was even more awesome (as well as more efficient) than Naruto's, if only because he could form it almost instantly and ''without'' having to use Shadow Clones. During his fight with Tobi, he was even able to initiate it right after reappearing from using the Flying Thunder God 2.0, just milliseconds before he slammed down on Tobi.
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== Fan Works ==
 
* George's closet in ''[[With Strings Attached (Fanfic)|With Strings Attached]]''. A side effect of his [[Amulet of Concentrated Awesome|shapeshifting ring]] is the ability to hold something and change into himself not holding it, thus storing it in “some unfathomable limbo” until he changes into himself holding it again. In practice it looks like he can simply will things into existence! And he can store huge amounts of stuff in there, too, so that the four are never burdened with supplies.
 
== Film ==
 
* [[Raiders of the Lost Ark (Film)|Indy]] has the scene in the market where a swordsman comes, and he decides [[Combat Pragmatist|to pull off his gun.]]
* [[Jackie Chan]]'s movies are famous for the wire-free stunts he pulls, frequently baffling his enemies with [[Roof Hopping]] and running across a pool. Among his most famous include clog dancing shoes (a [[Groin Attack|very hard surface]]), using the added kicking range of stilts to his advantage and making a folding ladder into a credible weapon.
** However, the outtakes at the end of his films certainly call the practicality of some his weapon choices into question.
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== Tabletop Games ==
 
* ''[[Battle TechBattleTech]]'' features a somewhat more literal example than most. In an era where new tech was being rapidly introduced (the 3050s), there existed an assault 'mech that was a paragon of ''old'' tech. Max armor, four powerful weapons, heat sinks to fire them repeatedly, electronic countermeasures to disable some new tech, and it was affordable for a 'mech. Its only real weakness was its sluggishness, but [[Mighty Glacier|assault 'mechs]] were never meant to be quick. The name of this particularly machine? The Awesome. [http://www.hyperdrv.de/CC/Mechs/awesome_aws-9q.htm See for yourself!]
* ''[[Yu-Gi-Oh (Tabletop Game)|Yu-Gi-Oh]]'''s Synchro Monsters can be seen like this. They are typically easy to summon, can be put into virtually any deck, have powerful effects, and are generally cool in design. [http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Stardust_Dragon Stardust Dragon] in particular is so useful and easy to use, it is one of the most dominating cards in its metagame. In fact, most of the awesome cards (mostly Synchro) featured in ''[[Yu-Gi-Oh! 5 Ds (Anime)5D's|Yu-Gi-Oh 5 Ds]]'' are this, [http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Shooting_Star_Dragon Shooting Star Dragon] and [http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Red_Nova_Dragon Red Nova Dragon] being the big examples. Xyz monsters in ''[[Yu-Gi-Oh Ze Xal (Anime)|Yu-Gi-Oh Ze Xal]]'' take it to the next level, being even easier to summon, despite most of them become almost useless when out of Xyz materials.
* In ''[[Magic: theThe Gathering]]'', the game designers like powerful, tournament-dominating cards to be splashy, exciting, and fun to play, so it's common to see splashy, exciting, and fun cards intentionally pushed up in power level. Planeswalkers are a great example: not only do they have their own unique card type, but their characters are designed to be the face of the game, so the developers make sure to give them powerful abilities. [http://magiccards.info/wwk/en/31.html Jace, the Mind Sculptor] in particular quickly gained a dominating presence in multiple tournament formats.
* In ''[[Warhammer 40000]]'', the Tau tend to be this. They employ [[Power Armor|battlesuits]], high-tech weapons, and similarly high-grade armor and equipment for even their most basic infantry. Each trooper has a tremendously powerful energy rifle and armor on par with the best available in the Imperial Guard, not to mention a helmet chock-full of useful tech. And when working with plasma weapons, they simply reduced the power output marginally and managed to make it perfectly safe to use while not compromising its ability to virtually nullify any form of infantry armor. Unfortunately, the only area their tech ''doesn't'' cover is close combat. That came back to bite them when...
** ...the Dark Eldar employed this trope with their Grotesques and Wracks, which are essentially just fleshy abominations created by the Haemonculi. In one incident, the Dark Eldar were temporarily allied with the Tau, predominantly using the Wracks/Grotesques to stand toe-to-toe with the Tyranids when the long-range Tau couldn't. [[Curb Stomp Battle|It didn't work out for the tau]] [[Fate Worse Than Death|when the Dark Eldar broke the alliance.]]
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== Video Games ==
 
* ''[[Persona 4 (Video Game)|Persona 4]]'' has your teammates have a chance, at [[Level Up At Intimacy 5|Social Link level 3]], to perform follow-up attacks, assuming you knock down an enemy. Basic party member Yosuke gets your standard Critical Hit, but Chie uses the ''incredibly effective'' "Galactic Punt." Chie will target a random enemy, up to and including ''mid-bosses'' that aren't downed, and ''[[Exactly What It Says Onon the Tin|kick them]] [[Megaton Punch|into the stratosphere]]'', complete with [[A Twinkle in Thethe Sky]] to signal the fact you just scored a one-hit kill. And yes, you ''do'' still get EXP and Yen from it.
** And it ''still'' counts as knocking down the target, so you can follow up with an All-Out Attack if everyone else is knocked down, too.
* ''[[Prototype (Videovideo Gamegame)|Prototype]]'' has a ton of this. Most notable is probably hijacking helicopters. The easiest way to get onto one in order to steal it? [http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2009/6/19/ Karate kick].
* ''[[In FamousInfamous (Videovideo game Gameseries)|In Famous]]'' is, [[Dueling Games|unsurprisingly]], similar to ''Prototype'' in this. The final move ''calls lightning from the skies to smite your foes'', which is easily the most effective way to defeat normal enemies, and even the final boss takes good damage from it.
** The sequel has Ice Launch, which not only looks awesome but launches you up a good two storeys, allowing you to avoid climbing smaller buildings and only consuming a small amount of energy.
* [[Counter Attack|Counter Attacks]] and [[Back Stab|Stealth Kills]] in ''[[Assassin's Creed (Video Game)|Assassin's Creed]]''. Ridiculously badass looking? Check. The most reliable way of systematically depopulating the Holy Land/Renaissance Italy? Double check!
* ''[[Bio ShockBioshock]]''. [[Shock and Awe|Electric]] [[Shotguns Are Just Better|buckshot]]. Bam.
* ''[[Pokémon (Franchise)|Pokémon]]'' games have Surf, a move normally used on the world map. Unlike the other comparable moves (Flash, Fly, Dig, etc), Surf is actually worth using in battle as well, being on par with pure-combat moves like Earthquake, Flamethrower, Thunderbolt, and Ice Beam.
* The mighty Tidal Wave attack in ''[[Vanguard Bandits]]''. It does so much damage most enemies blocking it from the front will take more damages then lesser hits to the rear. It's fairly accurate, and the costs for it are so reasonable that you can use it twice a round with little consequence.
* Vikings in ''[[Starcraft]] II''. VTOL capability, twin miniguns, and with careful work they can dominate much more expensive units like Carriers and Battlecruisers.
** What, no [[Tank Goodness|Siege Tank?]] Excellent in offense AND defense, plus their transformation animation is always fun to watch.
* The Bozar from ''[[Fallout 2 (Video Game)|Fallout 2]]''. It's a minigun that is accessible early, needs only medium skill in big guns and fires what is probably the most common ammo in the game. The consumption rate is still very high (as appropriate for a minigun) though, but at least it's far easier to get more ammo for it than for the Vindicator.
** In ''[[Fallout 3 (Video Game)|Fallout 3]]'', you can hunt an entire town of slave owners dressed as [[Abraham Lincoln]] with Lincoln's Repeater.
* ''[[Resident Evil 4]]'': Leon can use [[Suplex Finisher]], which, not only looks darned cool, is almost guaranteed one hit kill, and even stops Plaga monsters coming out of their necks.
* ''[[Just Cause (Videovideo Gamegame)|Just Cause]] 2'': There is, almost literally, no situation that cannot be solved with the grappling hook. You can flip over vehicles to cut short a chase, you can quickly jump onto any vehicle, you can easily climb skyscrapers, and combining it with the parachute provides a sweet form of transportation.
* ''[[Final Fantasy XII (Video Game)|Final Fantasy XII]]'': [[Limit Break|Quickenings]] eat up MP, but they a) pause the battle while they're being used, preventing enemies from acting, b) are capable of breaking the damage limit, letting them deal way more damage per MP used than any normal attack, c) is considered neither physical nor magical damage, thus ignoring any resistances the enemy has to either, d) can be chained together so the player can do 5-8 of them in a row, and e) [[Visual Effects of Awesome|look really damn cool]].
** ''[[Final Fantasy VIII (Video Game)|Final Fantasy VIII]]'' has Zell's Limit Break, Duel. Quickly alternating between Punch Rush and Booya not only looks cool, but with good junctions the combo can potentially dish out the highest possible amount of damage in one turn.
* The Shockwave biotic power from ''[[Mass Effect 2]]'', at least on lower difficulties. It shatters enemy formations, instakills Husks, and has a tremendous range. And it looks ''amazing''.
* A lot of new guns introduced in ''[[Mass Effect 3]]''.
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** The M-358 Talon, a revolver that shoots heavy-gauge shotgun slugs. Short-ranged, but will kill pretty much anyone who gets anywhere near the user in one shot.
** The Chakram Launcher is an assault rifle with good damage, great accuracy, and the ability to stagger enemies, puncture Guardian shields, or deliver a [[Charged Attack]]. It also fires glowing, razor-sharp discs that explode.
* ''[[Torchlight (Video Game)|Torchlight]]'' has several:
** The Alchemist's Ember Lightning. Visually awesome and ''shoots through walls.''
** The Vanquisher's Explosive Shot. BOOM!
* Impactors from ''[[Sword of the Stars]]'' have a range matched only by missiles and deal excellent damage to boot. If the enemy gets them before you, expect to lose a lot of your ships before you manage to build up enough with the necessary anti-kinetic [[Deflector Shields]].
* [[Bullet Time]] in ''[[Max Payne (Video Gameseries)|Max Payne]]''. [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UuFHQqcrqg8 You can drop 13 people before they have a chance to get their fingers on the triggers]. Not to mention the amount of times you'll be jumping around, firing your handguns akimbo.
* EX Combos in ''[[Baten Kaitos]] Origins'' often take two or three turns to assemble, during which your characters are usually just taking hits. That being said, they're also the best way of dealing out tremendous damage, and in the later parts of the game, it's more efficient to spend five turns assembling one advanced combo than it is to just attack wildly and hope for the best. It doesn't hurt that lots of them look ''awesome''.
* The Thu'um in ''[[Skyrim]]''. Being able to warp reality by ''shouting'' is definitely cool, and all of the Shouts are useful. And one of the most useful and entertaining Shouts is the ''very first one you get''.
** Conjured dremora lords. They are perhaps your best available summon, as they tank well and deal huge damage. They're also [[Evil Is Hammy|very entertaining]] [[Boisterous Bruiser|to listen to]] as they [[Curb Stomp Battle|obliterate whatever opposes you.]]
* The Djinn and summon system of ''[[Golden Sun (Video Game)|Golden Sun]]'' is very friendly to people that like fighting in style. Unleashing Djinn does remove their stat bonuses, but it gives you a powerful cost-free effect (whether just a really strong attack, healing/protecting/boosting the whole party, or something else) that then feeds into summons, which a) Look awesome, b) Do tons of damage, c) Raise the summoning character's power so their psyenergy does more damage, and d) mean you get your Djinn back in a turn or two if the summon didn't already end the battle. Of course, since Golden Sun encourages a lot of customization, an entirely different awesome but practical battle method is to conserve your djinn and acquire gear that will help release the devastatingly powerful [[Critical Hit]] attached to each weapon, filling any offensive or defensive gaps with psyenergy.
* ''[[Alice: Madness Returns]]'' has the Teapot Cannon, the Noob Tube of Wonderland. Infinite ammo, no friendly splash damage, and more shots between cooldowns after upgrading. Whether or not you use your handheld ad-hoc artillery at 1 feet or 50 away from your target is simply up to personal preference.
* For players of ''[[X (Videovideo Gamegame)|X3]]: Terran Conflict'' and ''Albion Prelude'' with a good supply train for munitions, M7M Missile Frigates can single-handedly level sectors with [[Macross Missile Massacre]].
* Most of the magic in ''[[Dark Souls (Video Game)|Dark Souls]]'' is really cool, and almost all of the spells are lifesavers in the right situations. Iron Flesh in particular turns you into a slow but durable [[Chrome Champion]] that can tank just about anything the game throws at you.
* The Glaive in ''[[Dark Sector]]''. Awesome to look at, awesome to use, and almost always useful. Small wonder the normally [[Wangst|wangsty]] protagonist stops complaining so much about his transformation after he gets it.
* ''[[Vanquish]]'' turned this trope into a video game. Everything Sam Gideon is capable of doing in battle looks frickin' sweet but also serves a greater purpose ([[Bullet Time|AR Mode]] attaches target identifiers to all available targets so you can pick them apart while you're still slowed down, boosting is like doing a rock and roll power slide but at 50 mph in the heat of battle, the list goes on).
* The Medi-Gun in [[Team Fortress 2 (Video Game)|Team Fortress 2]]. [[The Medic]] is absolutely the rock of the team, supplying everyone with heals. This is accomplished by a real sweet backpack hooked up to a gun that shoots people with [[Power Glows|glowing tendrils of light]]. The Uber-Charge only makes it more awesome; for seven seconds both the medic and his patient are glowing, invulnerable metallic demons of death.
* Many ultimate abilities of [[League of Legends]] champions fall under this, particularly those belonging to [[Death or Glory Attack|burst damage based]] characters once you get their cooldowns sufficiently lowered. Special note goes to [[Light'Em Up|Lux's]] [[Wave Motion Gun|Finales Funkeln]]: Good damage, once of the longer ranges in the game, and can be used as frequently as every 24 seconds, with the right gear.
* Most of the weapon-mods in ''[[Borderlands (Video Game)|Borderlands]]'' fall into this category. [[Shock and Awe|Electric]] guns laugh in the face of shields and can very briefly stun enemies; [[Kill It Withwith Fire|fire]] guns do a good burst and damage over time; [[Hollywood Acid|acid]] guns do less damage over time than fire but also lower armor value so the target takes more damage; and finally [[Stuff Blowing Up|explosive]] guns do fairly good damage with an area of effect. And then there's the named [[Shotguns Are Just Better|shotgun]] that shoots missiles [[Macross Missile Massacre|an entire magazine at a time]], which are two rare mods stuffed into one weapon. About the only reason you'd ever pick up a non-elemental weapon over an elemental one is if it's got [[Disc One Nuke|disproportionately high damage]] or you just haven't found an elemental of that type of weapon yet.
* In the first ''[[The Godfather (Videovideo Gamegame)|The Godfather]]'' the automatic weapon wasn't much good unupgraded. In the sequel, however, the increased focused on mobility makes methodical headshotting with handguns hard to pull off, turning the automatic weapon into this. Large ammo capacity, [[More Dakka]] and better accuracy than the first game's version, what's not to like?
 
== Real Life ==
 
* Martial arts. Each discipline is designed to incapacitate someone as efficiently as possible, and, as evidenced by televised boxing, MMA tournaments, et cetera, many people find them entertaining to watch.
* Fire. Largely considered to be the most destructive primal force. Use it to [[Mundane Utility|cook a tasty meal]], make weapons, or even [[Kill It Withwith Fire|as a weapon itself]].
* 3D Printers. Allow you to make virtually anything on demand easily from a variety of materials.
* Nuclear Weaponry. Since their first and last deployments in World War II, they've become essentially a signal that a nation is now an advanced power, possessing the wealth, the infrastructure, and the knowledge base to create them. Largely due to their existence, disputes between the great power, though still, sadly, involving bloodshed, have become notably less violent and smaller scale. Like it or not, they're the only weapons ever created that really are effective deterrents, and a nuclear blast is most certainly an awe-inspiring event.
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** Sadly (for Americans anyway), the F-35 is turning into [[Awesome but Impractical]]. Much lower price? Not anymore (F-22 unit cost per plane $150 million, F-35 now at $122M to $184M). The stealth was in 2006 downgraded from "very low observable" to "low observable". In November 2011, a Pentagon study team identified 13 areas of concern that remained to be addressed in the F-35.
** The F-22 itself went from [[Awesome Yet Practical]] to [[Awesome but Impractical]], as the entire fleet has been grounded multiple times for suspected oxygen system problems. The F-22 has the highest accident rate of any USAF fighter aircraft in service.
* [[Everything's Even Worse Withwith Sharks|Sharks.]] Though there are a large variety of shark species [[A Worldwide Punomenon|floating around]] today, sharks are one of only a handful of species whose basic form has remained unchanged since prehistoric times, others including crocodiles and alligators. Sharks are no smarter, no stronger, no faster, and yet no less deadly than they were before humans' earliest ancestors showed up, and what this means is that all that time there was ''no need for them to improve.''
** And on land, wolverines. These things aren't much bigger than a medium-size dog -- they'd come up to a man's knee fully grown -- but ''they can and do take down moose.''
* The USAF's A-10 Thunderbolt. A truly awe inspiring machine that fulfills its function very well.
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