Cowardly Lion: Difference between revisions
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|'''Jerome Cady'''}}
A '''Cowardly Lion''' is a character with the major characteristic of being a coward, especially when compared to any fearless characters of the story. Thing is, when push comes to shove, they have nothing to envy about the naturally badass characters.
Unlike [[Took a Level in Badass]], the character's fearful nature isn't eliminated after their moment/s of glory. They remain scaredy-cats and/or insecure in their regular lives, despite the fact that they can kick major ass when they put their minds into it. Many of them will tell everyone to [[Think Nothing of It]], because they think the fear they felt trumps the heroism they performed.
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Usually, inverse of [[Miles Gloriosus]]. Unlike [[The So-Called Coward]], this character is not actually misunderstood and does not need to be viewed by other characters as cowardly; it is his own opinion that matters. (And the so-called coward may be perfectly confident in his own courage.) Unlike the [[Accidental Hero]], the examples in this trope are characters that manage to get things done with their own worth, despite their fears.
Contrast the [[Fearless Fool]]—especially when it is invoked to encourage him. Prone to [[Heroic Self-Deprecation]] and [[Face Your Fears]]. See also [[Lovable Coward]], which may overlap; contrast [[Dirty Coward]], who likely will not.
{{examples}}
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== Film ==
* A major characteristic of the [[Trope Namer|Cowardly Lion]] in ''[[The Wizard of Oz (film)|The Wizard of Oz]]'' [[Captain Obvious|is]] [[Department of Redundancy Department|cowardice]], overlapping with [[Lovable Coward]]. The Scarecrow and Tin Woodsman fit the Trope too in many scenes.
* Albert Lory from ''[[This Land Is Mine]]'' lives in an unnamed country under Nazi occupation and, literally, runs home to his aged mother any time there is an allied air strike. He eventually makes a [[Heroic Sacrifice]] because he's more terrified of seeing his friends picked off one by one than actually dying.
* Bob from ''[[Drugstore Cowboy]]'' is pretty open about his neurosis and his reliance on drugs to keep the stresses of world away from him. The people around him are still awed by the acts of [[Magnificent Bastard]]ry he performs out of sheer panic.
* Edgar from ''[[The Lost Boys]]'' is a teenager who fancies himself a vampire hunter, but while he is incredibly knowledgeable on the subject, he's just as terrified of them as anyone else would be. Still, he does manage to be a decent fighter when backed into a corner.
== Literature ==
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* ''[[The Lone Gunmen]]'': Byers is a meek, mild-tempered guy - ''except'' when you ask him to look the other way on an injustice. Then, he suddenly develops enough balls to call out one of the most frightening members of [[The Conspiracy]] right to his face.
* ''[[Once Upon a Time (TV series)|Once Upon a Time]]'': Archie (or Jiminy) was such an [[Extreme Doormat]] that he gave up his humanity just to get away from his thieving family. However, [[God Save Us From the Queen|Regina]] made the mistake of trying to trying to interfere in his treatment for Henry. Instant backbone and set of [[Brass Balls]] showed up, and he ''threatened her'' by saying that he could be a deciding factor if Emma wanted to sue Regina for custody of the kid.
* In the ''[[The Electric Company]]'', bumbling hero the Blue Beetle is something of a coward, and if he knows a crisis is too dangerous for him to handle, he politely refuses to help... but if ''children'' are in danger in said crisis, [[Friend to All Children| ''that'' is a different story.]]
== New Media ==
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* Chip from the web fiction serial ''[[Dimension Heroes]]''.
* Phase, from the [[Whateley Universe]]. While Team Kimba fearlessly charges into fights against supervillains, Phase is the only one who's really frightened. He still dives in like everyone else. He has claustrophobia, and his best trick is walking into solid matter ''which sets his phobia off''. Or maybe he's the [[Only Sane Man]] in a comic book world.
* Although Headmaster
== Western Animation ==
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{{quote|"Let's face it, Kim, you can do anything. So facing all those dangers and villains, well, it's just like you say. No big. A fella filled with that much fear, always chargin' into action with you? Seems to me that's a ''true'' hero."}}
* Early TV star ''[[Tom Terrific]]'' had the ironically-named Mighty Manfred the Wonder Dog, who always suggested avoiding the adventure of the day.
* In the ''[[Looney Tunes]]'' short "Scardy Cat", Sylvester acts like a [[Dirty Coward]] at first, running for his life after the mice grab Porky. Then his conscience appears, calls him a coward and gives him a pep talk. Sylvester manages to overcome his fear, rip a limb from a tree and brandish it like a club... Then changes his mind, ''[[Crowning Moment of Awesome| uproots the entire tree]]'', and charges in for a [[Big Damn Heroes]]-style rescue.
{{reflist}}
[[Category:More Than Meets the Eye]]
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