Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: Difference between revisions

[[File:Crouching_Moron_Hidden_Badass_1890.jpg|link=Dragon Ball|frame|"[[Memetic Mutation|As soon as I find my pants, I'm going to kick your ass]]."]]

 

'''Jack Fenton''': That may be, but I'm the idiot who beat ''you''.|''[[Danny Phantom]]'', "The Million Dollar Ghost"}}

 

* Amano Ginji of ''[[GetBackers]]'' is normally childish and goofy, and even when fighting can usually enjoy himself...unless the fight becomes a true challenge. Then he goes into "Raitei" mode, and proceeds to show everyone just how he got to be the leader of the most powerful street gang in the Limitless Fortress, and why people nicknamed "Beastmaster" and "The Prince of Battle Terror" would take orders from him.

* Rushuna Tendou in ''[[Grenadier]]'' has a very ditzy, playful personality while being [[The Gunslinger|the best marksman in the known world]]. And did I mention all the [[Fan Service]] she's ''the'' source of?

* Train Heartnet of ''[[Black Cat (manga)|Black Cat]]'' is a fairly easygoing bounty hunter who just wants to eat and have fun...and escape his former life as the strongest of the [[Ancient Conspiracy|thirteen deadliest warriors in the world]]. Much of the action comes from those who want Train to return to his old life.

* [[The Ditz]]/[[Cloudcuckoolander]] Dita proves to be this when she breaks out her [[Determinator]] qualities in the first season finale of ''[[Vandread]]''.

** {{spoiler|And he's the only one still standing ''after'' Saya rips him in two...}}

* The main character of ''[[Hades Project Zeorymer]]'', Masato, is mostly just an angsty teenage boy, who's still trying to wrap his head around how he went from being an [[Ordinary High School Student]] to piloting a [[Humongous Mecha]]. He doesn't want to hurt anybody, not even his enemies -- after all, they're still ''people'' -- and he DEFINITELY doesn't want any innocent bystanders getting hurt. However, when he's actually ''attacked''...he starts grinning like a loon, wielding his mecha like it's an extension of his body, trouncing the opposition without mercy, ignoring "Collateral Damage" completely, and just generally ''enjoying'' being the pilot of a walking WMD.

'''Masato:''' To hell with them! Let THEM worry about the civvies and trip themselves up! }}

** Though like Yugi above, it's actually a [[Super-Powered Evil Side]] -- in his case, {{spoiler|the [[Magnificent Bastard]] of ''Zeorymer'', Kihara Masaki}}.

* Usagi from ''[[Sailor Moon]]''. She spends a good portion of the anime bitching about how she doesn't want to be Sailor Moon and shrieking at the top of her lungs whenever confronted with a problem. And acting incredibly stupid. But in the end she still beats Queen Beryl and protects Earth!

** That's because she is [[This Loser Is You|the embodiment AND exaggeration of a normal girl's flaws]], and also since ''every'' time she awakens to her powers fully, [[Blessed with Suck|Bad Things happen]]. But still, she's [[Mama Bear|protective enough of those she loves]] to go charge against her enemies. Lampshaded in the R season, when a depressed Usagi is monologuing in Mamoru's apartment {{spoiler|after the other Senshi are captured by Rubeus and she, Chibi-Usa and Mamoru barely escape}}.

* ''[[Gate Keepers]]'' had that woman whose only job is to provide fanservice. Then she pulls out her bazooka in the final episode.

* Queen Horn of ''[[Violinist of Hameln]]'' usually acts like a ditzy [[Cloudcuckoolander]], but when she gets serious, she gets ''DEAD'' serious.

* ''[[Mystery Men]]'''s Mr. Furious, when his love interest was threatened, wiped the floor with Casanova Frankenstein.

* In the 1986 film ''[[Alien (franchise)|Aliens]]'' Private Hudson (Bill Paxton) would like to be viewed as a badass but is constantly slapped down by his more-badass companions and spends much of the film whining and complaining -- until the chips are down, when he goes into full badass mode and mows down countless aliens before falling.

* Wikus van de Merwe of ''[[District 9]]'' is a sniveling, naive corporate pencil-pusher with a silly mustache - and when the chips are down, he {{spoiler|climbs into a suit of alien [[Powered Armor]] and proceeds to vaporize the local voodoo gang as well as the psycho PMC troops sent to retrieve him}}.

* Zen from the Thai film ''[[Chocolate]]'' is a severe autistic, however has the ability to watch a martial-arts fight and absorb the various movements. In a point of awesome, the martial-artist playing Zen ''really does'' learn at least a dozen separate fighting styles for the movie, and displays them flawlessly.

* In ''[[Spaceballs]]'', when Vespa [[Berserk Button|takes a laser beam in the hairdo]], [[Roaring Rampage of Revenge|she goes all Rambo and takes an entire platoon out.]]

* Subverted in ''[[Indiana Jones]] And The Last Crusade''. Indy has given his father's Grail Diary to Marcus Brody, an apparently goofy, harmless professor. The villains indicate that Brody will be easy to find, but Indy tells them that Brody fits this trope. {{spoiler|As it turns out, he does not. [[Gilligan Cut|The camera then cuts]] to a scene of Brody in a crowded market, conspicuously wearing the same thing he always does, calling out "does anybody speak English?}}

'''Indiana Jones''': The hell you will. He's got a two day head start on you, which is more than he needs. Brody's got friends in every town and village from here to the Sudan, he speaks a dozen languages, knows every local custom, he'll blend in, disappear, you'll never see him again. With any luck, he's got the grail already. }}

* [[Dustin Hoffman]]'s character in ''[[Straw Dogs]]''.

* From ''[[Stargate SG-1]]'': [[Colonel Badass|Colonel]] Jack O'Neill. Probably more a case of [[Obfuscating Stupidity]], as you couldn't get to officer rank(much less Colonel) without being fairly smart; he's just a very "military" guy and would like to be told that yes, this alien/Ancient technology/doodad '''will''' do what he thinks it will, instead of listening to a lengthy technical explanation about '''why''' it will do what he thinks it will. He acts [[Book Dumb]] in everything remotely scientific. He never reads Carter's reports, he refuses to listen to Daniel explain some ancient piece of writing or technology, and acts as if nothing matters except ''[[The Simpsons]]''. But...when some dumb Goa'uld or other bad guy threatens his team or the Earth, he gets '''very''' serious, and reminds you just why ''he's'' leading this team. In the season 5 episode "Rite of Passage", Cassandra observes that Jack is smarter than he pretends to be.

** A single conversation with Ba'al during a [[Enemy Mine|temporary alliance]] pretty much sums up why he floats between this and [[Obfuscating Stupidity]].

'''Jack:''' Oh I can! I just ''choose'' not to. }}

** He also happens to be an amateur astronomer (a single comment about an accretion disc results in Daniel hitting a figurative brick wall while talking). When he's not using the telescope on his roof to spy on neighbors, that is.

* [[Merlin (TV series)|Merlin]] may be bumbling, clumsy and at times, naive, but I dare you to get on his bad side. He can certainly kick anyone's butt with the use of his powerful and dangerous magic. [[Papa Wolf|Especially if you hurt his loved ones.]]

* The 1991 series ''[[Step by Step]]'' had Sasha Mitchell's Cody Lambert as the beach bum slacker nephew of Patrick Duffy's Frank Lambert. Though normally a clueless "Valley Dude," in one episode when braced by a group of bikers in a bar, Cody showed why he's played by the man who made two "Kickboxer" films. After clearing the bar of bikers, he reverted to goofy flake with the following dialog;

'''Cody''': Cha, me neither! I'm gonna have to go back and re-read some of my old diaries! }}

* Jason Stackhouse spends most of ''[[True Blood]]'' constantly doing absolutely stupid shit, because he's dumb as a stump, and is often led about by just about anyone. Threaten his sister Sookie, however, and he will not just step up; he'll absolutely take you down and make the audience's jaws drop. But he's still dumb as a stump for the most part.

** The second doctor was probably the most representative of this trope. While all incarnations of the Doctor are capable of deadly seriousness and incredible skill, and most (Exception for the fifth Doctor) were usually goofy, [[Patrick Troughton]] brings the apparent goofiness up to eleven. The vast majority of the time, the second Doctor pretended to be a bumbling idiot, constantly stressed out and panicking. However, when faced with the right danger, he drops the act and becomes dead serious and sometimes even diabolic. This is especially pronounced whenever he encounters Daleks or Cybermen.

* Companion [[Doctor Who|Rory Pond]] is clumsy, awkward, useless in a fight, has a serious inferiority complex concerning the fact that his wife to be seems to love her imaginary friend more than him, and generally is mostly only on board the TARDIS for her. But he will ''not'' take crap if someone is in trouble and by the end of the series has become a major mythical figure and badass fighter. Even after the timelines are reset he remembers living for 2000 years guarding his wife inside Pandora's box, and is an extremely competent fighter, able to face down an army of Cybermen if nessecary. River had to get those genes from somewhere, I suppose...

* Vir from ''[[Babylon 5]]'' is introduced as a timid and shy comic relief, used to being pushed around by his boss Londo. However as the show goes on he gradually shows more and more backbone, first by not backing from a huge monster (a hologram, but he didn't know that) when sent to deliver a message to technomages, then by telling off an emissary of [[Eldritch Abomination|Eldritch Abominations]] in the most awesome way, and finally by retorting to an insult and a spying attempt by borrowing his Londo's duel sword and trashing the offender's stall and forcing him to confess at swordpoint.

** There's also the small part about him becoming Emperor.

** ''358/2 Days'' shows that he's not a coward, he's lazy (or rather [[Dismotivation|Dismotivated]]).

** In regards to the "philosophical zombie" thing: This may also explain his unusual line when Sora tries to invoke [[What Measure Is a Non-Human?]]:

* In ''[[Metal Gear Solid 4 Guns of the Patriots]]'', we are introduced once more to Johnny Sasaki, who had spent a majority of the earlier games on the toilet. This time around, however, {{spoiler|his cowardice proves to be a hidden strength, as his [[Afraid of Needles|fear of needles]] leaves him without nanomachines, making him immune to the [[Big Bad]]'s trump card. Along with [[The Power of Love]], this leads him to develop [[The Gunslinger|amazing Gun Fu and sniping skills]].}}

** And turned right back around for comedic effect in multiplayer, where Johnny's lack of nanomachines robs him of SOP-linking and the benefits it provides; if you try to link while standing still, he does an anime pose, and if you try while running, he does a ''Rainbow Six''-esque hand signal. He also can't do CQC and will flail hilariously if you try. His diarrhea, however, turns him into a ''walking gas grenade'' as it will incapacitate anyone he runs by.

* Hewie of the H-Game ''[[Castle Fantasia 2 Renewal]]'' is this to degree. He acts a carefree moron who always sent one of his team member angry over and over again, but turns out he's a very great war strategist.

* {{spoiler|Piu-Piu}} of the ''[[Chaos Rings]]'' series for [[IOS]] devices. He's a short, weird looking humanoid who runs his mouth about random stuff, owns a shop to sell weapons, armor and other items is a greedy bastard, a cheapskate, and such a God-damn perve that when they tried to create the first Agent Prototype off of his given up perversion, it created a giant, red demon named Libido. He's the least likely person but then you realize in the second playthrough of the game that he actually is the leading scientist behind the Ark Project and that it was him who actually built the Ark spaceship and discovered Time Travelling. Then you make the mistake of challenging him, which makes you enter a bonus boss battle so hard that it would give every other boss in the game a run for their money.

* Cielo in ''[[Digital Devil Saga]]''. Usually a calm and cheery ALBINO BRAZILIAN WITH JAMAICAN ACCENT, untill {{spoiler|a guy from the security eats his comrades in order to get power. Cielo proceeds to make a badass speech}}. There's also the time {{spoiler|that in order to protect Sera and Serph, he destroys two fighter jets by chewing on their pilots and cutting their wings, dying in the explosion.}}

* Karl Blaine in ''[[Just Cause (video game)|Just Cause 2]]''. Even before Rico meets him, he's established as the unreliable, comedy relief contact on the island nation who you have to rescue from a government sting. Later, Blaine's captured and successfully interrogated as years as a drunk in a tropical paradise have left him soft and out of practice as a spy. {{spoiler|Much later, during Rico's assault on the evil president's hideout, Blaine sneaks out of his cell BY HIMSELF, and gets past the [[Instant Awesome, Just Add Ninja|ninja guard]] to suicide bomb the President without any assistance from Rico.}} [[What the Hell, Hero?|This doesn't stop Rico from taunting him for giving into the torture, however.]]

* Arguably Liquid Snake of ''[[The Last Days of Foxhound]]'' also applies, considering it's been implied that despite his borderline idiotic behavior he is in reality a killing machine, but has lost the majority of his skills due to an accident caused by his overly aggressive behavior. He gets more intelligent as the comic moves closer to the events of the Shadow Moses rebellion of ''[[Metal Gear Solid]]''.

* Both Joyce and Walky from ''[[Walkyverse|It's Walky!]]'' fall under this. Joyce in particular is ordinarily a complete innocent, with a passion for puppies, stuffed animals, and all things pink and frilly. However, if you push her [http://www.itswalky.com/d/20001015.html just far enough...] whoops, maybe that was a bit ''too'' far.

'''Professor Doc:''' Well, I'm holding out for five. }}

** Walky meanwhile is an excellent example that the trigger doesn't ''have'' to involve an immediate threat to yourself or your loved ones. [http://www.itswalky.com/d/20000523.html This], for example, is what happens if you mess with his favorite snack food.

* Lemmy in ''[http://www.fanboys-online.com/ F@nboy$]''. Normally he's a timid, goofy Nintendo fanatic. However, should anyone ever accuse Nintendo of being "kiddy" within his vicinity, [[Berserk Button|he literally phases out into a trance and turns into a rampaging lunatic, with little to no memory of what he has done afterwards]]. This may also be triggered by getting hit in the head, or more precisely, accidentally hitting other things with his face.

* Fighter of ''[[8-Bit Theater (Webcomic)|Eight Bit Theater]]'' is [[The Ditz|a childish dimwit who is blind to the obvious]] ([[Genius Ditz|for the most part at least]]) but is also a highly proficient swordmaster who can wield the [[Rule of Cool|Sword-Chucks]] (yo!) with enough proficiency to fight a six-armed demon of fire. Oh and if you're an enemy, [[Unstoppable Rage|watch yourself if you kill Black Mage...]]

** He once used his swords as chainsaws to destroy an entire flight of unstoppable dragons just because he was too stupid to realize said action was impossible.

** Not to mention he once survived a fall of several thousand feet by blocking the planet before it hit him. Seriously.

* Smoke from ''[[WTF Comics]]'', starting as a little pocket Monk with seemingly no real battle capabilities besides dodging things, until {{spoiler|Nikisha stabs Anna in front of him, and make him go "all out" in rage with annihilating an entire bridge of Mooks along with the bridge itself under them, nearly killing her too in the process.}}

** Oh, and did we mention that he can also {{spoiler|teleport, modify his own perception of time, resurrect the dead, and see the very fabric of the Timespace around him}}?

* ''[[Sluggy Freelance]]'':

** Torg, despite [[Took a Level In Badass|taking a few levels in badass]] over the years, is still mostly just a goofy, not-too-bright guy that everyone treats as pretty harmless. Probably best exemplified in [http://www.sluggy.com/daily.php?date=090205 this] strip:

'''Torg:''' But I ''so'' want to teach one! }}

** Riff is a milder (or more complicated) example. He's superficially cool much of the time, but under that "strong and silent" act he rivals Torg in stereotypic male dumbness (and beats him in insensitivity); in the presence of the opposite sex, whenever he tries to do anything but look cool, he puts his foot in his mouth and becomes a total fool. However, he's right at home being a [[Badass]] action hero or heroic leader when the right opportunity arises. So in this case you might actually miss the "moron" part of the trope if you only saw the superficial everyday coolness and the hero mode.

** Though recently the creators seem to be pushing the idea that Grymm and the Masked T-Square aren't even the same person despite multiple past pages existing as proof.

* [[The Ditz|Donald]] from ''[[Dark Legacy Comics]]'' is shown to be [[Too Dumb to Live]] and is completely useless at fighting (and pretty much everything). However during a Raid Boss the group had been stuck at for three months, Nyte whispered something that caused Donald to lose it and slice his head off in a single strike.

* Mr. Fish from ''[[Manly Guys Doing Manly Things]]'' does it twice over. He's a [[Pokémon|Gyrados]], and was Jared's worse-than-useless starter Pokémon when he was a [[Joke Character|Magikarp]]... right until he [[Lethal Joke Character|evolved]], which is true to the original source material. After he's introduced though, he's not very bright, has trouble fitting in the corridors, and tends to eat people (including his trainer), but if you manage to get him to [http://thepunchlineismachismo.com/archives/1112 an actual fight], he will [[Wave Motion Gun|Hyper Beam]] anything in his way.

 

 

* Ron from ''[[Kim Possible]]'' seems useless much of the time. His primary contribution to most missions appears to be serving as a distraction, and even after he's exposed to the Mystical Monkey Power, he admits that his skill at monkey kung fu "comes and goes." But when necessary ([[All Up to You|i.e. when Kim is busy, incapacitated, or not present]]), Ron displays extraordinary skill in both martial arts and general resourcefulness. As a matter of fact, when one reviews the majority of episodes, one finds that Ron is the person to actually foil the villain's [[Pointless Doomsday Device|plot du jour]] while Kim is keeping the help busy.

** His Mystical Monkey Kung Fu is shown three times, especially in the [[Grand Finale]] where Ron suddenly becomes [[Badass]] enough to get a [[Chunky Updraft]] [[Battle Aura]] that Kim, Rufus and even Shego just stared at him while he beat those Aliens' asses.

'''Shego:''' I think the sidekick just stepped up...monkey-style! }}

* ''[[Darkwing Duck]]''. The change from incompetence to determination was usually signified by the [[Catch Phrase]] "[[Let's Get Dangerous]]!"

*** When the Fire Nation attacked his city with overwhelming force, he surrendered and let them close him in a metal coffin to prevent him from Bending. When an eclipse stripped the Firebenders of their power, he bent with his face to break free of the coffin, [[Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking|kicked the Fire Nation out of his city and defaced Ozai's giant statue]] ''in less than eight minutes''. I repeat, he defeated an army in less than eight minutes and still had enough time to deface a metal statue as big as Lady Liberty if not bigger, and then [[Badass|threw it down of a cliff]]. And he's an insane old man.

** And then there's Sokka. At first he seems like a guy who ''wants'' to be a capable warrior but is [[Can't Catch Up|constantly outstripped by the others.]] Then, as the series goes on, he [[Character Development|turns into a]] [[Gadgeteer Genius]] who has a space sword and is a much more capable leader and a skilled fighter to boot, who has gone toe-to-toe and ''WON'' with such deadly foes as Mai, Wan Shi Tong, and {{spoiler|'''Combustion Man.'''}}

* [[Inspector Gadget]], of all people, occasionally demonstrated this. When Penny and Brain were in real danger from Dr. Claw's traps in one or two episodes, the normally [[Too Dumb to Live]] Inspector would [[Let's Get Dangerous|skilfully use his gadgets to save them.]]

* On ''[[South Park]]'', Pip becomes a super dodgeball player after being repeatedly insulted.

* ''[[The Venture Bros]]'': Dean Venture snaps and beats the crap out of Dermott, a kid twice his size, after Dermot insults [[Perky Goth|Triana]].

** 21 and 24 are bumbling [[Mooks]]. However, thanks to being dangerously [[Genre Savvy]], they can do things even the most competent henchmen wouldn't dare attempt. Well, until one of them and does something [[Genre Blind|genre-dumb]].

** Hank Venture tries to invoke this when rescuing his brother Dean [[Long Story|from being married to Baron Underbheit]], but fails. So it's really more like Crouching Moron Hidden...Moron.

*** Then Hank {{spoiler|plays it straight in season 04's "Pomp and Circuitry." He tries to join SPHINX and passes every single test, including foiling Hunter and Shore Leave's intentions to mind-wipe him.}}

* ''[[Family Guy]]'' actually has a few. Glenn Quagmire is a sexual predator, but an absolutely ace pilot (it's "Hidden Badass" because it's so rarely we actually get to see him do his piloting job). Plus, it turns out [[Adam West]] was a KGB sleeper agent who managed to single-handedly beat the crap out of Brian, Stewie, [[Dan Aykroyd]], AND Chevy Chase all at once when accidentally activated.

* Jack Fenton in ''[[Danny Phantom]]''. Granted he's an [[Genius Ditz|eccentric inventor]], a bumbling ghost fighter, and an [[Amazingly Embarrassing Parents|embarrassing parent]]. But when his family is in danger, he'll show everyone just how competent he can be, then proceed to kick the opposer's ass. Vlad (his old college friend turned supervillan) learned this the hard way. Twice.

** The Box Ghost becomes appropriate for this trope near the end of the series, when he decides to finally get his due by utilizing [[Sealed Evil in a Can|Pandora's Box]].

* The eponymous character from ''[[Martin Mystery]]''. Normally he's a lazy goofball who Diana has to kick into line. Mess with Diana, Java, or the Center (something that happens nearly every episode), and he WILL make you regret it.

* [[Plastic Man]] in ''[[Batman: The Brave And The Bold|Batman the Brave And The Bold]]''. A light-hearted jokester underestimated even by his own wife, he gets a few badass moments (there would have probably been more if it weren't for Batman being a one-man [[Spotlight-Stealing Squad]]), such as coming the closest to catching Batman when he was accused of committing crimes, making a [[Rousing Speech]] that actually worked in front of an alien audience, taking down a pack of supernaturally powered gorillas with [[Bullet Seed|Bullet Gold Bars]] by himself and making a [[Heroic Sacrifice]] for his family. {{spoiler|He got better.}}

* Penfold on ''[[Danger Mouse]]'' has a moment in the episode "Chicken Run." While trying to evade a giant chicken pecking at him and DM, Penfold jumps into a reservoir of a growth formula and grows larger than Nelson's Column. He single-handedly (literally) captures Greenback and Stiletto, garnering DM's praise as a national hero.

* ''[[Beast Wars]]'' gives us Silverbolt, The [[Knight in Shining Armor]] who is usually about as smart as a sack of hammers due to his over-chivalrous ways. [[Berserk Button|Bring any harm to his lady]], and prepare for a severe ass kicking. Tarantulas learned this the hard way.

* Orko in ''[[He-Man and the Masters of the Universe|He Man and The Masters of The Universe]]''. On [[Fish Out of Water|Eternia]], this Trollan native is the comic relief buffoon who's famous for being [[Inept Mage|unable]] to make many of his spells work properly. In the eyes of even his friends, he's little more than the court jester, albeit with a [[Plucky Comic Relief|brave heart]]. However, it turns out that's because the laws of magic on Eternia and Trolla are the reverse of each other. On Trolla, he's revealed to be one of that planet's greatest arch-mages who (with only a little help from He-Man) almost single-handedly saves his people from enslavement by a half-dragon servant of [[Big Bad|Skeletor]]. Even on Eternia, when his magic does work, he can be extremely competent.