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Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: Difference between revisions
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Basically, the individual has access to [[Stock Super Powers|superpowers]] of some sort -- could be [[Psychic Powers|psionics]], could be [[Functional Magic]] or [[Applied Phlebotinum]], could be [[Nanomachines]] -- and they either don't know they have the power, or [[How Do I Shot Web|don't know how to control it]]. Occasionally they have a [[Power Limiter]] that they are unaware of that will [[Sealed Badass in A Can|seal their strength until needed]].
Common triggers include a [[The Power of Friendship|friend]] or [[The Power of Love|loved one]] in danger (see [[Mama Bear]] and [[Papa Wolf]]), a [[Million
The main point, however, is not the powers, but the radical change in personality that comes with them. The character may ordinarily be harmless, maybe even a [[Technical Pacifist]], but when in [[Badass]] mode, there's no mercy.
Sometimes, this can end up as a full-blown [[Super
In most other cases, the character will gradually learn to control his power -- although he'll usually still need to [[Freak Out]] a bit to use his ''full'' power -- and may evolve into an [[Idiot Hero]], or more rarely, a straight-up [[The Messiah|Messiah]].
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The Japanese term for this is "dame elite" ("dame" meaning ''no good'').
If intentional, then it might be a case of [[Obfuscating Stupidity]] or [[Good Is Not Dumb]], or perhaps even the [[Eccentric Mentor]] in cases where the character is recognised and respected as a badass by those who know him but who seems idiotic to those who don't. If the body count they rack up is also not intentional, then we're dealing with [[Mike Nelson, Destroyer of Worlds]]
Will sometimes occur as a result of [[Giving the Sword To A Noob]].
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<!-- %%Do not remove the folders, they are the standard. -->
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{{examples
== [[Anime]] and [[Manga]] ==
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* ''[[Mazinger Z (Anime)|Mazinger Z]]'': Boss is the [[Butt Monkey]], [[Hopeless Suitor]] and [[Comic Relief]] [[Gonk]] character from this series and the sequel ''[[Great Mazinger (Anime)|Great Mazinger]]''. He is mocked and ridiculized by his friends and belittled by the villains, and he gets beaten easily in each battle. Still, when he is angry he can get ''scarily'' competent and even [[Badass]]. He is [[Acrofatic]] and perfectly capable of holding his own on a fistfight, and although his [[Humongous Mecha]] is a pile of scrap gets destroyed in every fight, he has blown up some dangerous [[Robeast|Robeasts]] and pulled off several awesome [[Big Damn Heroes]] moments. Also, threatening Kouji -his [[Vitriolic Best Buddies|vitriollic best buddy]]- or Sayaka -his crush- is a bad idea.
* ''[[The Slayers]]'' anime: Gourry Gabriev is a swordsman with extremely poor memory (often forgetting whoever he and his companions fought in the past) and a bumbling idiot who can't grasp onto any explanation, but if he's provoked enough, or if anyone, namely [[Redheaded Hero|Lina]], is in danger, he becomes an utterly badass swordsman and pushes the [[Badass Normal]] creed as far as it can go.
* ''[[Jo
* In ''[[Soul Eater (Manga)|Soul Eater]]'', Black*Star's absolute confidence in himself makes him into one of these. Unless he is truly pushed he is too busy [[Chewing the Scenery|chewing scenery]] to fight well. Death the Kid is a form of inversion; he's normally [[The Stoic|stoic]] and [[Badass]], but if his [[Fatal Flaw|OCD]] gets activated he usually devolves into an ineffectual, sobbing wreck. That said, if his OCD is [[Berserk Button|pushed too far]], it results in Kid's reaction in episode 3: obliterating his asymmetrical target and inadvertently demolishing the pyramid it was in.
** The normally goofy Shinigami can be wonderfully Badass when the need arises. He reacts to Asura's resurrection by calmly inquiring how he is...and pointing out that, unfortunately the Kishin is "going to have to die again". A Shinigami Chop that smashes Asura to the ground from however high up he was is only the start of the ensuring fight.
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* Yuri in ''[[Kyo Kara Maoh (Light Novel)|Kyo Kara Maoh]]!'' acts this way whenever his Demon King side gets activated, and although he won't kill his enemies he usually succeeds in scaring the crap out of them.
* ''[[Panty and Stocking With Garterbelt (Anime)|Panty and Stocking With Garterbelt]]'': Brief is a nerdy wannabe ghost exterminator, a frustrated virgin, and has a crush on Panty, who doesn't reciprocate. However, in episode twelve, {{spoiler|he manages to fend off a few ghosts on his own, and even saves Panty from Scanty and Kneesocks when she starts losing her powers.}}
** Also, Chuck is the [[Team Pet]] seemingly only capable of [[Pokémon Speak|saying his name repeatedly]] and getting crushed to a pulp every episode. Not only does he pull off [[Car Fu]] once in a while, {{spoiler|in the final episode it's shown that he can go [[One
* ''[[Bastard]]'': A wild variation may well be Luche Len-Len, a sweet but somewhat dim child who can be "unlocked" and turned into the insanely super-powerful evil wizard Dark Schneider.
* ''[[Best Student Council (Anime)|Best Student Council]]'''s Randou Rino. Her base persona is wet enough to drown Godzilla, but inside her (and manifested by her omni-present hand puppet) is a shrewd, intelligent, ass-kicking master of all she surveys.
* Carrot Glace of ''[[Sorcerer Hunters]]'' is a scruffy, scrawny, lazy, largely single-minded [[Lovable Sex Maniac]]...who just happens to be not only basically immune to magic, but absorbs it to power his [[Involuntary Shapeshifting]] into various monster forms.
* Kenshin Himura of ''[[Rurouni Kenshin (Manga)|Rurouni Kenshin]]'' fame; usually very easy-going, he reverts to a deadly (though [[Technical Pacifist]]) swordsman when lives are in danger. And if he's pushed even further than that, he loses all hint of Technical Pacifism and [[Super
** This change, unlike many series where a transformation usually comes as a surprise to those who witness it, is understood by the other characters from the start, since he was a legendary and merciless assassin 15 years ago.
** He's not [[The Fool]], it's [[Obfuscating Stupidity]]. Most of the time.
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* Monkey D. Luffy of ''[[One Piece (Manga)|One Piece]]''.
** Arguably, he is both at the same time, he is always super powerful, and he casually does super human feats, while acting like a moron. Which makes him incredibly badass.
** Give credit where credit is due: there's Luffy's predecessor [[The Obi
** Same goes for Admiral Kizaru.
** I think it's reasonable to say that about half of the show's cast fits in this category. If not more.
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** Ryōga at least is the main character's [[The Rival|rival]], and as such has to be just slightly weaker than him. Being slightly weaker than the main character pretty much requires that he be stronger than everyone else, he is portrayed as enormously strong and makes the [[Made of Iron]] characters look to be [[Made of Plasticine]]. Of course, Ryōga IS a bit of an idiot and a rather nice guy when not being overly paranoid, so this might still qualify.
*** It is generally thought by fans that Ryōga is physically stronger than Ranma (though the manga does not explicitly show this, it is possible that Ranma just has better control of his strength than Ryoga does), however Ranma is faster, better trained, and better at working out how to overcome any given opponent.
** Also from ''[[Ranma
** Happosai also qualifies. Most of the time he's just a [[Jerkass]] [[Dirty Old Man]] who makes life miserable for everyone by his petty acts. However, he is also the most powerful character in the series capable of defeating both Ranma and Cologne with ease. Fortunately, he rarely gets really dangerous, [[Weaksauce Weakness|and can be quickly distracted and taken out by throwing womens underwear in his direction.]]
* Probably the biggest [[Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass]] ever, Tsuna Sawada of ''[[Katekyo Hitman Reborn]]''. He kicks ultimate ass when in Dying Will Mode.
** Given the series' comedy origins, a lot of the characters have an element of this, especially Takeshi Yamamoto and Ryohei Sasagawa.
** Also Lambo. Idiot as a kid, still an idiot TYL but badass 20YL.
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*** Like, maybe {{spoiler|the entire plotline for the second half of the series? About twenty episodes before there's even a clue?}} Of, course, this is also an example of {{spoiler|[[Too Cool to Live]], because, well, he's [[Too Cool to Live]]}}.
** Ling Yao is introduced as a [[Funny Foreigner]] who constantly collapses in the streets out of hunger, weasels his way into getting a free meal, jokes around, and sends his bodyguards to do his fighting while he runs away. It isn't too long before the audience learns he's an excellent fighter himself, has strong beliefs, and is very driven by his goals. Of course, very early on there were hints that there was much more to him that meets the eye, particularly due to any time he opened his [[Eyes Always Shut|often shut eyes]].
* Nyu/Lucy in ''[[Elfen Lied]]'' has this in the form of a [[Split Personality]], triggered through trauma or imminent danger. Nyu is [[Cute Mute|cute, affectionate, and utterly harmless]] -- but Lucy [[Ax Crazy|hates all of humanity and cuts people in half with her mind]], {{[[[What the Hell, Hero?]] no matter if those people were just innocent civilians}}.
** Well, that's more of a Crouching [[The Woobie|Woobie]] Hidden [[Complete Monster|Monster]].
* Teletha Testarossa, a [[Genius Ditz]] teenage commander from ''[[Full Metal Panic]]'', despite usually being [[Dojikko|clumsy and tripping over her own feet]], when her subordinates are put in danger, can even recapture a submarine from a freak terrorist group. Also, her claims about not be able to use guns, turn out to be false at these moments.
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** This also applies for Nel's friends {{spoiler|(and fraccion)}} Pesche and Dondochakka. They act ridiculous most of the time, but when Nel needs their help {{spoiler|they nearly defeat the 8th Espada to reach her. Szayel admits they would have succeeded if they had fought him seriously from the beginning.}}
** Wonderweiss Margera is a [[Cloudcuckoolander]] at very best. Then he's revealed as being capable of rescuing the top three espada from their captain opponents and even Aizen from Yamamoto's prison and so completely outspeeding Ukitake he one-hits him {{spoiler|before then being revealed as the one thing capable of sealing the strongest zanpakutou in existence, Yamamoto's sword.}}
** Isshin is the [[Bumbling Dad]] for most of the first half of the series. Then we learn he's a [[Retired Badass|captain-class shinigami]] when he kills Arrancar Grand Fisher in [[Curb Stomp Battle|one blow]], to [[
** Urahara was introduced in this manner. A sweet-shop owner who had weird knowledge of spiritual things, a bizarre sense of humour and who appeared to be a [[Cloudcuckoolander]] at best and an [[Eccentric Mentor]] who favoured [[Training From Hell]] at worst. Then it's revealed that he used to be a captain of the Gotei 13, is one of Soul Society's greatest (and most notorious) scientists, and is someone even the [[Big Bad]] is (usually) wary of due to the fact he's the only one who's acknowledged as being more intelligent than said [[Big Bad]].
* The ''[[Mega Man Zero (Video Game)|Mega Man Zero]]/Rockman Zero'' manga, in a complete change from the actual games, makes Zero a character of this sort. In his normal state, he's a coward with no memory of his past as a hero. Hit the right trigger, however, and the legendary hero returns, with his signature helmet and insane combat prowess. The manga actually calls this version Rockman Zero -- [[Cowboy Bebop At His Computer|which is just the name of the game series, not the character.]]
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{{quote| '''Miku:''' Masato, we have to lead them towards the forest! Too many civilians are getting hurt!<br />
'''Masato:''' To hell with them! Let THEM worry about the civvies and trip themselves up! }}
** Though like Yugi above, it's actually a [[Super
* Highly similar to Takashi Kawamura from ''[[The Prince of Tennis]]'', is Ippo Makunouchi from ''[[Hajime no Ippo]]''. Generally, he's a shy, awkward, overly-polite mama's boy...but once he steps into the boxing-ring, he becomes an intense and unstoppable fighter with a Dynamite Punch that can shatter bones, and an invincible stamina that allows him to keep coming back no matter how many times he's knocked down. It's not uncommon for people who've seen him in the ring, to completely fail to recognize him outside of it. Several times, this has worked to his advantage, since any opponent who've met him outside the ring is bound to underestimate the level of brutality he can unleash inside of it.
* Goku from ''[[Saiyuki]]'' can turn from kid who only thinks about food and fighting to a rampaging, unstoppable demon when his limiter is broken. Usually breaks if [[Ho Yay|Sanzo is in trouble]]. Basically, he's [[Get Backers|Ginji Amano]] but [[Really Seven Hundred Years Old]].
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* Mikado Ryugamine of ''[[Durarara]]'' is a shy and meek [[Naive Newcomer]] who gets overshadowed by his [[Keet]] best friend. He spends the first several episodes poking around and asking questions about the Dollars, a large and mysterious gang in the area. But when push comes to shove, Mikado reveals that he's got a few secrets up his sleeve: namely, that {{spoiler|''he is'' the leader of the Dollars.}}
** Kida Masaomi and Sonohara Anri also counts. Kida's the playboy who simply knows his way around Ikebukuro - and it's most eccentric inhabitants - really, really well. Anri's the quiet [[Meganekko]] who has a nice rack and is the victim of sexual harassment by a teacher, who is worried about a missing "friend". It turns out that {{spoiler|Kida is the founder and former leader of the Koukinzoku, until it got too violent for him, and Anri is the true user of the Demon Sword Saika}}.
** Shizuo Heiwajima is also a case. Most people's first impression he's a thin, quiet, unassuming young man whose only noticeable quirk appears to be the inexplicable tendency to dress, as noted by some, "like some kind of nineteenth-century nightclub pimp." This impression typically lasts all of five minutes before [[Hair
** Walker Yumasaki and Erika Kurosawa. A couple of wacky, out-of-touch-with-reality fun loving otakus, who spend their days making doujinshi and cosplay and visiting conventions. {{spoiler|They are both psychotic [[Torture Technicians]] infamous for their extremely creative (and unbelievably horrible) ''manga themed practices'', and when they want to be, they can be badass heroes all on their own. With molotov cocktails.}} Other then that, they really are possibly the two friendliest guys you are likely to meet in the crazy hellhole that is Naritaverse Ikebukuro.
* Played around with in ''[[Samurai Deeper Kyo]]''. Kyoshiro seems to have this going on, being a kindly [[Lovable Coward]] and perverted medicine seller with Kyo as a [[Super
** While Benitora really IS a idiot who is head over heels for Yuya. He doesn't really want to become the {{spoiler|Shogun}} like his Dad wants him to. (Yukimura is probably more Obfuscating Stupidity than this trope, though.)
** Bontenmaru is a [[Boisterous Bruiser]] and only came to the Forest because he heard that a group of [[Hot Amazon|Hot Amazons]] had gone to defeat {{spoiler|Nobunaga}}. What he found disappointed him greatly, except for Okuni. Then again, he IS the famed Dokuganryuu AND a {{spoiler|former member of the Shiseiten}}...
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== Film -- Animated ==
* ''[[The Incredibles]]'': Jack-Jack (not a moron, but a baby) demonstrates a startling array of powers (which, by most reckonings, are probably more [[Badass]] than those of the rest of the cast) when threatened by the [[Big Bad]], Syndrome.
** Or the babysitter. In the fairly amusing short packaged with the DVD of ''[[The Incredibles]]'', ''Jack Jack Attack'', Jack-Jack reduces the babysitter to a [[Badly
* The CGI movie ''[[The Magic Roundabout]]'', in which the affable stoner rabbit, Dylan, suddenly snaps and opens up a can of Whup Ass.
* Pumbaa from the ''[[The Lion King]]''. Just look at him go bowling for hyenas. And [[Berserk Button|don't call him a pig]] or he will go [[Incredibly Lame Pun|pork-chop]] on your ass!!
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** {{spoiler|He's also seen cutting down a few enemies when Tyrion storms out to meet Stannis' men.}}
* ''[[The Lord of the Rings (Literature)|The Lord of the Rings]]'': Tom Bombadil.
** Perhaps even more aptly: Samwise Gamgee. His name roughly translates to "halfwit", and it applies. He's overweight, easily frightened, and not very bright. He also [[Did You Just Punch Out Cthulhu?|beat a man-eating giant spider demi-god in single combat,]] single-handedly [[Storming the Castle|stormed a tower full of hostile orcs]] [[No One Gets Left Behind|to save his friend's life]], was the only Ringbearer to steadfastly resist the temptation of the [[Artifact of Doom|One Ring,]] and literally carried another man up the side of a volcano for the fate of the world while starving and suffering from dehydration. There's a reason Tolkien considered him the true hero of the story.
** This is a characteristic of Hobbits as a whole. As a race, they spend most of their time eating, drinking and making sure they have enough to eat and drink (the only function of their police force -the Sherrifs - is to chase of wild animals). Yet as Wolves, Orcs and Saruman have found out, there's only ''so'' far you can push them.
** The Ents are an entire species of Hidden Badasses. At first glance, they look like a race of [[Gentle Giant|Gentle Giants]] who just want to hide in their forest and wait for the danger to go away, so much so, that [[Big Bad Wannabe|Saruman]] [[What an Idiot!|doesn't even consider them a threat]]. However, when Saruman [[
*** That wizard REALLY should have known better, but it should be noted that where Sarumon is concerned, it was more of a case of karma; the Ents attacked almost ''right'' after Sarumon sent his entire army off to Helm's Deep, leaving only a handful of Orcs to guard against an army of trees.
* From L.J. Smith's ''[[Night World]]'' series, Iliana Dominick spends most of the story as [[The Load]] and [[The Ditz]], but when her friends and bodyguards are threatened at the end of the book, she finally unleashes the magic in her blood that she's been denying her entire life.
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* Telnan, introduced in the [[Dragaera]] novel ''Dzur'' may carry a terrifying soul-destroying [[Empathic Weapon]], but he's a cheerful, ditzy guy, and not too bright. However, he still very much fits the [[Proud Warrior Race Guy]] and [[Blood Knight]] credentials of the Dzur, and he's somewhat more competent than he initially seems.
* In the ''[[Sword of Truth]]'' novels, Zedd is initially known to the reader as a goofy old man who's introduced talking to clouds. Naked. What the reader finds out later is that he was once known as the "Wind of Death," is a wizard of the first order, and in the past earned that nickname by winning a magical war.
** Other wizards in the series fit the mold in one way or another, such as Warren who's a total nerd and [[Non
* Somewhat of a subverted trope, but {{spoiler|Orion}} in ''[[Artemis Fowl (Literature)|Artemis Fowl]] and the Atlantis Complex''. {{spoiler|During the penultimate scene, Artemis realizes that his brains are useless and uses electricity to switch back to Orion. As Holly states, "Artemis can't shoot." But Orion can.}}
* When we meet [[The Wheel of Time|Matrim Cauthon]], he plays pranks, jokes around and generally serves as the comic relief in the group of main characters. He then gets cut by an evil knife and gets infected by said evil. Barely out of his sickbed after a major healing, he stumbles out on a training field where arguably the finest swordsmen in the world are training, and needing money, challenges two of them at the same time to a fight. [[Curb Stomp Battle|With a quarterstaff]], [[The Wheel of Time (Literature)/Awesome|he wins]]. [[Took a Level In Badass|The he takes a level in badass]].
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* The Clutch Turtles from Sharon Lee & Steve Miller's [[Liaden Universe]] aren't really ''morons per se'', so much as they ''appear to be'' large and slow, with a child-like innocent naivety regarding human culture. But those who get on their bad side discover, very briefly, the error of their ways.
** Their space drive could be considered a metaphor for the Turtles themselves: normally slow, quirky, and meandering, it can move ''very quickly and directly'' if the Turtles see sufficient need.
* Lieutenant Panga in ''[[Someone
== [[Live Action TV]] ==
* ''[[Married With Children]]'''s Al Bundy. On occasion, for whatever reason, Al - schlubby loser Everyman Al - would take it upon himself to beat the living shit out of some poor bastard and he would do so with the psychotic glee you would expect from a man with often literally no other joy. Of all the things Al Bundy failed at - and Al Bundy failed at almost everything he put his hand to - he never once lost a fist fight (or was even mentioned to have lost a fistfight) in the show's entire history.
* ''[[
** T-Bo, a background character who runs the Goovy Smoothy and is normally seen just putting random items on sticks to sell and being wierd, reveals himself to be one in ''iStill Psycho'' when he helps [[Mama Bear|Mrs. Benson]] [[Big Damn Heroes|rescue the iCarly gang]] from [[Ax Crazy|Nora]] and her equally insane family. Not only does he kick down the basement door so Carly can rescue Spenser, he singlehandedly takes down Nora's father.
* Played with in Disney's ''[[The Suite Life of Zack and Cody|The Suite Life]]'': Apparently London Tipton is quite the athlete (notably in volleyball), but only when she's mad.
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* River from ''[[Firefly]]'' is a Crouching ''Crazy'' Hidden Badass. Most of the time, she tends to be a [[Cloudcuckoolander]] with some endearingly whimsical moments mixed in with seriously disturbing fits and a few [[Ax Crazy]] moments. But mess with her brother Simon or her friend Kaylee, and she will take you down, whether by gunning down three men with her eyes closed or orchestrating an impressive [[Batman Gambit]]. And that's even before the [[Big Damn Movie]].
* Drusilla from ''[[Buffy the Vampire Slayer]]'' exhibits only [[Cloudcuckoolander|the loosest connection to reality]], and spends most of the time behaving like an idiot child (e.g. cooing over her pet bird, which died because she left it in the cage and forgot to feed it). But when she does fight, she's extremely dangerous, and capable of killing a Slayer with a slash of her fingernail.
** Let's not forget Xander. Whether it was magic tuxedo, skill with a crane, or just a combination of borderline [[Too Dumb to Live]] and luck, Xander managed to be a useful and functional member of a team that included a slayer, a powerful witch, a werewolf, a vampire, a half-demon, and [[Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking|a high school librarian.]]
* 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]].
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* Otoya Kurenai from ''[[Kamen Rider Kiva]]'', who at first blush seems to be nothing more than a [[Ted Baxter|foolishly self-absorbed]] [[Casanova]] who doesn't have a serious bone in his body. But then he starts pulling [[Batman Gambit]] after [[Batman Gambit]], demonstrating an incredible degree of character judgement, and kicking monster butt with an experimental [[Powered Armor]] -- typically stolen from its intended user as part of said [[Batman Gambit]]. It's no wonder that near the end of the series, {{spoiler|the Fangire Queen, normally tasked with killing "race traitors" who fall in love with humans, has herself fallen for Otoya and would go on to bear their child, the show's protagonist Wataru.}}
** Kagami Arata from [[Kamen Rider Kabuto]]. He's pretty much [[Good Is Dumb]], esepcially compare to the show's protagonist [[Insufferable Genius|Tendo Souji]]. Doesn't stop him from kicking ass, especially after becoming Gatack
* Jackie Burkhart serves [[The Ditz]] with a [[Hair
* Brendan "Hot Dog" Costanza of ''[[Battlestar Galactica Reimagined (TV)|Battlestar Galactica Reimagined]]'' fits the trope quite well. Most of the time, he's just screwing around and [[All ST Ds Are AIDS|too busy having random rashes.]] But in the cockpit, he's more than competent.
** By the end of the series, most characters who weren't introduced as straight-up badasses (and are still alive) have turned out to fit this trope. Off the top of my head I can think of {{spoiler|Felix Gaeta's leading an armed mutiny, Laura Roslin's raging refusal to surrender when it appears that said mutiny has succeeded, Romo Lampkin's escaping from a marine who had a gun to his head by stabbing the guy's jugular with a pen, and Gaius Baltar going all Rambo on the enemy Cylons during the battle in the Series Finale}}.
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** Or is it? Considering the massive [[Mind Screw]] the ''KH'' universe has going on, not to mention the [[Retcon|Ret Cons]] which are [[All There in the Manual]] and more canon then the games, as [[Word of God]] stated, it may or may not be.
** ''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
{{quote| '''Demyx''': Aww, [[Blatant Lies|we do too have hearts!]] Don't be mad!}}
* 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]].}}
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* The Black Baron of ''[[Mad World]]''. An [[Uncle Tomfoolery]] who is constantly killed by his own deathtraps and girlfriend, it's hard to believe he poses any real threat, even when {{spoiler|he turns out to be the final boss. Most players saw an easy fight...and then he goes Super Saiyan, kicks at you with lightning and punches you with a black hole.}} Sadly, when he meets his final end, he's reverted back to his moron stage.
* In one instance of ''[[The Lord of the Rings Online (Video Game)|The Lord of the Rings Online]]'', Radagast the Brown walks through a wight-infested swamp talking to little animals while the players have to fight all around him. In the end, he incapacitates who seems to be the endboss with a single hit, saving the players.
* [[Shrinking Violet|Emil Castagnier]] from ''[[Tales of Symphonia Dawn of the New World|Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World]]'' might qualify, as he becomes [[Super
** In this case, Emil seems to take a leaflet out of [[Harry Potter (Literature)|Neville's]] book here; over time, Emil loses the coward part of himself, even pulling a few moments of role reversal on Marta when the latter isn't up to her best (the pair [[Lampshade Hanging|lampshade]] this in an [[Exactly What It Says On the Tin|aptly named]] skit named "Role Reversal"). {{spoiler|In fact, in the very last chapter of the game, he out and out ''seals away the Ratatosk side of his personality'', and you get to play as ''Emil himself'' in battles from that point onward.}}
* [[Distressed Damsel|Princess Peach]] from ''[[Super Mario Bros]]'', when she [[Let's Get Dangerous|decides to fight]]. Especially her ''[[Super Smash Bros]] Brawl'' incarnation.
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** UDON played with this in the ''Street Fighter Legends'' comic, where Dan briefly managed to tap into the Dark Hadou, only to trip and fall on his face before he could attack.
* Travis Touchdown, the main character of the ''[[No More Heroes]]'' series, is a very skilled swordsman, [[Made of Iron]], can move at superhuman speeds and transform into a ''tiger'', owns a [[Humongous Mecha]] the size of a large building and could probably cut an average human to pieces in the blink of an eye...if he's not too busy pleasuring himself to Moe Anime, playing video games, or clumsily hitting on his female opponents..
* The Vortigaunts in the ''[[Half Life]]'' series are an entire species of this trope. In ''Half-Life'' and its expansions they're a relatively weak mid-level enemy slaughtered by the dozens and used as manual labourers by the more powerful members of the Nihilanth's army. By ''Half-Life 2'' they are freed from their enforced servitude [[Heel Face Turn|and join Earth's]] [[La Résistance]] against the Combine, providing Gordon with cryptic statements and the occasional charge for his [[Powered Armor|HEV suit]]. At the beginning of ''Episode One'' however they render the nigh-unstoppable GMan ''[[Did You Just Punch Out Cthulhu?|completely powerless]]'', saving Gordon and Alyx in the process, and when three of them are faced with an army of [[Big Creepy Crawlies|Antlions]] in ''Episode Two'' they proceed to ''slaughter every last one'', then use what is essentially Antlion feces to {{spoiler|raise Alyx from the dead}}. Given that they were at the time also hunting and presumably killing the horrifically powerful Combine Advisors, hopefully they will return for the expected battle/s with them in ''Episode Three''.
* Maeda Keiji from ''[[Sengoku Basara]]'' is usually a laidback, jovial guy who enjoys drinking, pulling pranks, chasing girls and generally goofing around. However if you dare to hurt his friends, family or any innocent person when he's around, you'd better get the fuck out before he either punches you in the face or cuts you neatly in half with his [[BFS]].
* Dick Gumshoe in ''[[Ace Attorney (Visual Novel)|Ace Attorney]]''. He barely passes as a detective (and then he got Flanderised) and despite his woobiesh qualities, he deserves most of the punishment he gets for his screw ups. But when someone he cares about is in danger, like Edgeworth, Maggey or Maya, he gains a drastic burst in competence. {{spoiler|In 3-3, he's a surprisingly accurate source of information for Phoenix, gives the more important pieces of evidence to him and stands up to [[Yakuza|Tigre]] without even blinking, saving Wright and Maya from a possibly gruesome conclusion. All for his crush, Maggey.}}
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{{quote| The Aforementioned Boss: "I love you guys!" *shoots a giant Qualia jack-n-the-box at you*}}
* 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.]]
* Tyrell in ''[[Golden Sun Dark Dawn]]'' nearly qualifies for a [[Too Dumb to Live|Darwin Award]] in his intro cutscene and [[Distressed Dude|has to be rescued]] from his own stupidity, [[Establishing Character Moment|firmly establishing him]] as the "[[Hot Blooded|act before you think]]" type. Then he ''[[Let's Get Dangerous|freaking jumps]]'' [[Manipulative Bastard|Ar]][[The Evil Genius|ca]][[The Chessmaster|nus]] at {{spoiler|Luna Tower}}. He gets pwned, naturally, but in the last dungeon he starts making ''death threats''. Yes, to {{spoiler|goddamn ''[[Complete Monster|A]][[Hidden Agenda Villain|L]][[Big Bad|E]][[A God Am I|X]]''}}.
* [[Space Quest|Roger Wilco]] will even admit he's far from the sharpest knife in the drawer. Hell, he's a marginally competent janitor who is prone to taking on-shift naps in the closet. When "it" hits fan, though? Tricks a nasty creature twice his size into blowing itself up. Kills an ''entire ship'' worth of Sariens to prevent them from nuking his home planet. Stops an evil genius from invading his home planet with a clone army (granted, it was an army of insurance salesmen...), rescues two programmers from slavery and beats their [[Bad Boss]] with a [[Humongous Mecha]], destroyed the evil genius in a rematch after the evil genius took over his homeworld, took down the Confederation's shiny flagship with a garbage scow, and stopped another mad scientist from committing [[Grand Theft Me]] on a close friend. Do not piss off the [[Almighty Janitor]]!
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** For example: during the GOF, another army leader (in the GOF, the first few days involve groups of fighters forming ad-hoc armies led by the most badass members) approached Ray at night, knocking him to the ground and calling him a coward and a liar. Ray's response? He ''ripped the dude's face off with his bare hands.''
* Zap Vexler from ''[[Zap (Webcomic)|Zap]]'' is a prime example. Huge [[Psychic Powers]] are usually triggered by threats towards his crush, Reona. The first example is [http://www.zapinspace.com/d/20040326.html here]. [http://www.zapinspace.com/d/20061019.html Don't make fun of his hair, either]. Recently revealed to suffer from [[Amnesiac Dissonance]], with his former self being a powerful psychic out to [[Take Over the World]].
* Trace from ''[[Two Kinds]]'' is basically the same, only substituting [[Functional Magic]] for [[Psychic Powers]]. His powers mostly makes an appearance when he needs to protect Flora, his [[Catgirl]] girlfriend. Had a full-blown [[Amnesiac Dissonance]] meets [[Super
* 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.
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'''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.
* Ping from ''[[Megatokyo]]'' is a dating-sim accessory who is just a regular [[Ridiculously Human Robot]] girl...whose way of dealing with rejection involves [[Super
* Grace from ''[[El Goonish Shive (Webcomic)|El Goonish Shive]]'' can best be described as a bubbly, naive girl, which would almost make you forget she's a genetically engineered [[Super Soldier]] who, the one time she [[Unstoppable Rage|actually got angry]], {{spoiler|proceeded to toss megalomaniac arch-villain Damien around like a rag doll, only to turn around at the last moment and ask him to forgive ''her''}}.
* Mega Man in ''[[Bob and George]]''. Ordinarily he's a complete buffoon. But when he goes into battle, particularly against the Robot Masters, he becomes [[Badass]], often coming up with clever ways to defeat them. The fans figured out a reason for this, and the author said "[[Sure Why Not]]": In one of the early comics, the punchline is that Mega Man was accidentally programmed first to defeat evil robots, and second to be an idiot. He later retconned that this was the reason Mega Man was a default moron whenever there wasn't evil around, but when a bad guy shows up, he becomes an instant badass for the duration of the crisis.
* 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 ''[[
{{quote| '''Fighter:''' Cool. Because friends look out for one another and '''we're''' friends, but Black Mage is my '''best''' friend. Also, I can block any attack and kill '''anything''' that bleeds. '''Hint'''.}}
** 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.
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** 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.
{{quote| '''Donald:''' WHY DID YOU EAT SANTA YOU BIG BLUE MEAN [[Precision F
* Mr. Fish from ''[[Manly Guys Doing Manly Things]]'' does it twice over. He's a [[Pokémon (Franchise)|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.
{{quote| '''Jared:''' I didn't know... I didn't know he was a laser fish.}}
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* [[Homestar Runner]] is one of the most idiotic characters to hit the internet. In "The Strongest Man in the World", he bicycle kicks the Cheat, ''while upside down'', into the far horizon
** In ''4 Branches'', it's mentioned that Homestar's stupidity occasionally reaches such heights that it "flips back to start", and shows him answering the calculation "2 + 2" by defining Coulomb's law. When this is pointed out, he reverts to normal, revising his answer as "22".
* Tristan from ''[[Yu-Gi-Oh!:
** "Yeah, I can break necks with my mind."
* When he's not reviewing movies, [[The Nostalgia Critic (Web Video)|The Nostalgia Critic]] is a mix of [[The Ditz]] and a loser. But apparently he's a good enough gamer to absolutely whup [[The Angry Joe Show (Web Video)|Angry Joe's]] ass at Marvel Vs. Capcom.
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*** Made even funnier in that Iroh uses this trope as a disguise in Season Three.
** And then of course there's Bumi. He appears to be an insane old man. [[The Wonka|And he is]]. He's also built like [[Arnold Schwarzenegger]] (normally concealed by his cloak) and one of the greatest Earthbenders in history.
*** 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.'''}}
{{quote| [[Badass Boast|"That's called Sokka Style.]] ''[[Crowning Moment of Awesome|Learn it!"]]''}}
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** There was also that one time he watched a video called "Five Second Massive Pecs," and then proceeded to kick large amounts of ass against Crocker...who was in a mech suit.
* In one episode of ''[[G.I. Joe]]'', three Cobra [[Mooks]] dogpile on the simpleton Bazooka, which causes him to exclaim, "Darn it, ''swallowed my gum!''" and knock them all out with one punch each.
* Beast Boy in ''[[Teen Titans (Animation)|Teen Titans]]'' is usually portrayed as, while not an actual moron, certainly far less combat-effective than [[Badass Normal|Robin]], [[Dark Magical Girl|Raven]], [[We Can Rebuild Him|Cyborg]], and [[Green
** And then there's ''Beast Within''...
* GIR of ''[[Invader Zim]]'' is even more inept than [[General Failure|Zim himself]]. His brain is literally made of chewing gum, coins and a paper clip and he seems to have both feet [[Cloudcuckoolander|firmly planted in space]] and his mind on waffles or tacos. However, when issued a command, his eyes occasionally turn from a bright blue to a glowing red and he acknowledges the order like a perfect Irken SIR unit. He usually forgets the order or becomes distracted by something else within seconds, but when Zim locks GIR into this "duty mode" after one-too-many failures that ''weren't'' due to him, the little robot becomes scarily competent and almost kills Zim after, correctly, determining he is the greatest threat to "the mission".
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** 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.
* Fry from ''[[Futurama]]''. Not only is he a [[Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass]], but he's exactly the right ''kind'' of moron, as he {{spoiler|lacks the Delta Brainwave, allowing him to infiltrate the Infosphere and save the universe from the Brainspawn.}}
** Fry has also saved the universe on several occasions. This is always due to his lack of the delta brainwave. Fry is a badass BECAUSE he is a moron.
* Sterling Archer, title character of the series ''[[Archer]]'' is the world's dumbest secret agent. But he is a secret agent, and can dole out a secret agent level ass whooping when the need arises.
* ''Johnny'' of ''[[Ed, Edd n Eddy]]'', in the Big Picture Show. Several others as well, but particularly Johnny.
** ''Ed'' deserves to be notably mentioned, as at one episode, he went into a nasty mood to a point where he proved he could even intimidate [[Bratty Half Pint|his bratty]] [[Karma Houdini|little sister Sarah]].
* In ''[[Scooby Doo Mystery Inc]]'', Scooby may be the same lovable goof he always is, but when a robotic dog actually tries to kill the gang (as opposed to just scaring them), Scooby steps up, {{spoiler|fights and destroys it with a forklift}}, and manages to dish out some really [[Badass]] [[Pre
* [[Goofy]] of [[Walt Disney]] fame is pretty much a gangly, clumsy hayseed, but there has been more than one occasion where he's become [[Let's Get Dangerous|scary focused]] on what he needs to do and manages to pull it off, as unorthodox as it may be.
** "Its about staying focused...''ON YOUR GOALS!!!"''
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* Also Tigger of ''[[Winnie the Pooh]]'', most evident in the Disney incarnation, which is [[Cloudcuckoolander|no less brainless]] than he is the original novels, while having saved the lives of almost all his friends in the Hundred Acre Wood from an avalanche to name at least one example.
* Rigby from ''[[Regular Show]]'' can open up a serious can of whoop-ass when he wants to.
* [[Plastic Man]] in ''[[Batman the Brave And The Bold (Animation)|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 [[
* Penfold on ''[[Danger Mouse (Animation)|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.
{{quote| '''Penfold:''' Oh, thank you sir. Mum always wanted to know what I'd be when I grew up.}}
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