Elderly Sensei: Difference between revisions
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{{trope}}
[[File:
{{quote|''"What I learned today is that really old wizards don't get that way by being easy to kill."''
|'''Black Mage'''|'''''[[8-Bit Theater]]'''''}}
Don't let his age (or [[Miniature Senior Citizens|his size]]) fool you; the
▲{{quote|''"What I learned today is that really old wizards don't get that way by being easy to kill."''|'''Black Mage''', '''''[[8-Bit Theater (Webcomic)|Eight Bit Theater]]'''''}}
Break out the ^ sign on your calculator to calculate [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Logical_conjunction#:~:text=for%20Polish%20koniunkcja.-,Definition,of%20its%20operands%20are%20true. logical conjunction] when this trope is applied to [[In Harm's Way|seasoned adventurers]] of any type; anyone who's managed to survive to a ripe old age while performing inherently dangerous work is [[Captain Obvious|obviously]] really damned good at it.▼
▲Don't let his age (or [[Miniature Senior Citizens|his size]]) fool you; the [[Old Master]] is a force to be reckoned with. Despite being at least sixty years old, he (or [[Never Mess With Granny|she]]) is a formidable fighter who can take on several younger opponents at a time, clean the floor with all of them and barely get winded. They may rely on years of [[Charles Atlas Superpower|training]] and deceptive strength, or [[Trying to Catch Me Fighting Dirty|cunning]] and [[Obfuscating Stupidity]], but they get the job done.
The
▲Break out the ^ sign on your calculator when this trope is applied to [[In Harm's Way|seasoned adventurers]] of any type; anyone who's managed to survive to a ripe old age while performing inherently dangerous work is [[Captain Obvious|obviously]] really damned good at it.
Heavily overlaps with [[Hermit Guru]] and [[Stronger
▲The [[Old Master]] is often the sensei to one of the main characters, training them so they can [[Passing the Torch|pass on the torch]] to the new generation (and maybe earn themselves a break). To do so, the character typically prefers the [[Wax On, Wax Off]] approach to education and the [[When You Snatch the Pebble]] approach to final exams. Crueler Old Masters, on the other hand, function as the [[Drill Sergeant Nasty]], and those who study under him had better be prepared for [[Training From Hell]].
▲Heavily overlaps with [[Hermit Guru]] and [[Stronger With Age]]. May double as [[The Obi-Wan]]. See also [[Badass Grandpa]], [[When Elders Attack]], and [[Weak but Skilled]]. [[Retired Gunfighter]] is the western, weaponized version of this. Contrast with [[Older Is Better]]. In martial arts movies, especially, the Old Master tends to be a [[Magical Asian]].
{{examples}}
== [[Advertising]] ==
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9h78cwrYkw This commercial] from 1986 shows an atypical Elderly Sensei teach his protégé the game ''Othello''.
== [[Anime]] and [[Manga]] ==
* Shigekuni Yamamoto-Genryuusai from ''[[Bleach]]''. The Older Immortal Badass Grandpa who is a formidable fighter after being in his position for a thousand years - and [[Badass Boast|boasts]] about it. The head of a Badass Army, and known to be the mentor of two secondary characters, but ''not'' the main character, who gets very different people.
* Master Roshi from ''[[
* Ryuken in ''[[Fist of the North Star]]'', the previous Hokuto Shin-Ken master who trained Kenshiro and his adopted brothers. Also, Ryuken's old rival for the succession, Koryu, as well as the Hokuto Ryu-Ken master Jukei, both qualify.
* Netero from ''[[Hunter X Hunter]]'', still one of the most powerful people on the planet despite being over 110 years old. Not a sensei anymore, and he's still active (though rarely involved in fights) as the head of the Hunter Association, but he fits the trope otherwise.
* Subverted in ''[[Mahou Sensei Negima]]'', where the
** The Mundus Magicus arc introduced a straighter variant in the form of the former [[Badass Crew|Ala Rubra]] member[[Badass Grandpa|Jack Rackan]], who acts as a somewhat goofy [[The Obi-Wan|Obi-Wan]] towards the Ala Alba. {{spoiler|Of course, the [[Obfuscating Stupidity|goofiness is a
* The first words out of anyone's mouth when they face down Andrei Rublev on ''[[IGPX: Immortal Grand Prix|
* Happosai and Cologne from ''[[Ranma
* Jiji from ''[[Ichi the Killer]]'' wears baggy clothing and walks with a slump in order to disguise his true strength.
* ''[[Naruto]]'' has the Third Hokage, who despite being a decrepit-looking 70-year-old man, is extremely powerful and skilled, able to go toe-to-toe with the likes of the [[Big Bad]] Orochimaru. Many have called him one of the most powerful Shinobi to come out of the Leaf Village, perhaps equaling or even ''surpassing'' the late Fourth Hokage. A shame he dies, but even then he fights to the bitter end, {{spoiler|sealing Orochimaru's arms and thus rendering them dead and useless}}.
** In that vein we also have Jiraiya, who is the strongest of all three Sannin, could kill three paths of Pain (up until then, that was practically impossible), permanently kill one path, and was the master to Naruto himself. Not only that, there's ''his'' master, Fukasaku, an 800 year old toad and one of the most powerful beings in Naruto
*** I don't know. Jiraiya seems more like [[The Obi-Wan]]. The
*
** He's actually not as old as he looks, but otherwise certainly fits. Apparently the [[Incurable Cough of Death]] somehow makes him look older than his actual age of 50.
* The original head trainer in the [[Heroes-R-Us|Space-Time Administration Bureau]] from ''[[Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha]]'', an old woman who the [[Comic Book Adaptation|supplementary manga]] reveals had trained Nanoha and Fate. And just to make a point on how much more the two leads need to learn despite the events of the first two seasons, she, a lowly [[Random Power Ranking|AA-ranked]] mage using standard equipment, managed to beat the two of them at the same time.
* Prince Kamehame, despite being 70 years old and having a bum heel, is able to defeat [[Kinnikuman]] via pinfall in only seven seconds. In the Dream Choujin Tag Arc, he wrestles alongside Kinnikuman in his Kinnikuman Great guise, and they defeat Black Hole and Pentagon together before {{spoiler|he's mortally injured by Sunshine's Cursed Roller.}}
* ''[[Vagabond]]'' (the Takehiko Inoue manga) has four for [[Miyamoto Musashi]]: his father Shinmen Munisai, Houzouin In'ei, Yagyuu Sekishuusai are ''all'' Musashi's
** Sasaki Kojirou's adoptive father Kanemaki Jisai subverts the trope too: living by the sword has left him unmarried, without children or friends, and thus hopeless... until Kojirou comes along; at that point, he advertises himself (unsuccessfully) as an
* Genkai from ''[[Yu Yu Hakusho]]'', the defining example of the "just wants a break" version, and badass grandma.
* ''[[Saiyuki]]'': When Genjo Sanzo meets Master Abbot Jikaku in the Burial arc, he seems like just a harmless old man- until he kills several youkai attacking a temple. Turns out he was once known as 'The Ogre' for his vicious training of would-be Sanzo candidates, including Sanzo's own master Koumyou.
* ''[[One Piece]]'': Whitebeard, Sengoku, Rayleigh, and Garp among many others. It helps that if you're a pirate or a marine the only way you can live to see old age is by being stronger and more badass than everyone else.
* ''[[Tenchi Muyo!]]'': Katsuhito Masaki in the OAV series (actually he's quite formidable in all of his incarnations, but...). Granted, he's {{spoiler|really a young man — relatively; where he's from, 725 years plus or minus is considered youthful — masquerading as an old man, but even the trope's description warns us that looks can be deceiving}}. Capable of taking on even the most powerful villains in the galaxy and fighting them to a draw, if not actually winning.
* ''[[Tears to Tiara]]''{{'}}s Master Ogam. While he spends much of the early episodes as the calm and serious old guy, it's not long before he breaks out his
* ''[[Toriko]]'': Knocking Master Jirou fits the bill, as demonstrated when {{spoiler|he effortlessly paralyzed a beast that took the combined might of Toriko and Coco to bring down}}. {{spoiler|Later on, the IGO president shows us that he also qualifies.}}
* ''[[Baki the Grappler]]'' has several: Doppo Orochi, Gouki Shibukawa, Kaku Kaioh and Ryu Kaioh...and not one of them stands a chance against [[Villain Sue|Yujiro.]]
* Two in ''[[Samurai Champloo]]'': One crazed hermit who might be [[Miyamoto Musashi]], and the series' [[Big Bad]], who is either this or [[Retired Badass]] (his age is never given, but he is an evil version of [[The Last DJ]] of the old samurai ways).
* Makarov Dreyar of ''[[Fairy Tail]]''. 88 years old ({{spoiler|actually 96, thanks to spending seven years frozen in time}}), incredibly powerful, and master of several different types of magic, on top of being one of the ten Wizard Saints. That title is only granted to the most powerful wizards in the land, and it's implied a few times that Makarov is one of - if not ''the'' - strongest of all of them.
* Dr. Yagyu from ''[[Nth Man:
== [[Comic Books]] ==▼
== Comedy ==▼
* And of course, one cannot forget the unnamed Master in [[The Frantics]]' legendary ''"Tae Kwon Leep"'' skit.▼
▲== Comic Books ==
* ''[[Archie Comics]]'': He's not that old, but the students of Riverdale High underestimated Coach Kleats in several sports. The same thing happened, with the ''entire male faculty'' challenging the varsity basketball players to a charity game.
* Ekuar in ''[[Elf Quest]]'', tutor of Rayek, definitely qualifies. Despite having endured centuries of imprisonment, mutilation and torture at the hands of the trolls, he never lost his wisdom or his wicked sense of humor.
* ''[[Usagi Yojimbo]]'': Katsuichi-sensei, the hermit who taught
* Splinter, to the ''[[Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles]]''.
* In the first few issues of ''[[Ninja High School]]'',
* Stick from ''[[Daredevil]]''. Even being dead doesn't stop him from coming back every couple of years, to dispense some sage advice.
▲* Dr. Yagyu from ''[[Nth Man the Ultimate Ninja]]'' is a [[Ninja]] master in his late 60s, but thinks nothing of stepping into a war zone with a satchel full of throwing stars and a machine pistol.
* The Ancient One, mentor to [[Doctor Strange]]. He had managed to stretch his lifespan to [[Wizards Live Longer|about 600 years]] and was still vigorous, though he was also holding on until he could train his successor. He also had a [[Deceptive Disciple]] he was pretending not to know about.
* The most famous example is, without a doubt, Mr. Miyagi from ''[[The Karate Kid]]''.
* Grand Master Yoda, in the ''[[Star Wars]]'' films, especially his first appearance in ''The Empire Strikes Back''.
** Also Count Dooku in ''Episode II'', who, while established as a ex-Jedi early in the film, is only revealed as a master swordsman when he neatly trounces Obi-Wan and Anakin during the final
** Obi-Wan in ''Episode IV'', Sidious in ''III'', and the Emperor in ''VI'', are all introduced as physically frail old men who unleash previously unseen powers or abilities by the end of the film. Obi-Wan literally "become[s] more powerful than you can possibly imagine".
*** [[Sarcasm Mode|"I Blind you with my Blue ghostly ninjaness."]]
* Pai Mei in ''[[Kill Bill
* ''[[Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins]]'' subverts this by making its old Korean mentor capable of assorted miraculous feats but also a blatant racist and sexist. He is from a different generation.
** Incidentally, the old Korean mentor's racism consists entirely of Korean chauvinism, which makes him a neat parody of the kinds of racists Western audiences are more likely to encounter.
** In the ''Destroyer'' novels, he was much much worse.
* The [[So Bad It's Good|pretty bad]] ''[[Crossworlds]]'' stars Rutger Hauer as one of these.
* The gatekeeper in ''[[Stardust (film)|Stardust]]''. ("The man must be 90 years old." "Well, then, he's had plenty of time to practice, hasn't he?"
* ''[[RED]]'' appears to be this, with a team of retired black-ops investigating their former employer.
* Practically the archetypal example, and the one that Lu Tze's quote was, in its original context, a [[Shout-Out]] to, is the kung fu movie ''
* Deconstructed in ''[[Ip Man]] 2''. While Master Hung is kickass enough to hold his own against Ip and the Twister at first, the length of the exhibition match causes exhaustion to start setting in {{spoiler|leading to his death}}.
* Played with a bit in ''[[Kung Fu Panda]]'' where Shifu is the
** Played completely straight with extremely pacifist and soft-spoken Oogway himself, to the point that he was originally able to take down the undefeatable [[Big Bad]] in less than a second.▼
* Rafiki from ''[[
== [[Literature]] ==▼
* Eda Bell, one of the two teachers of hand-to-hand combat in [[Tamora Pierce
▲== Literature ==
▲* Eda Bell, one of the two teachers of hand-to-hand combat in [[Tamora Pierce|Tamora Pierce's]] Kel books says something to the effect of 'I may look like someone's grandmother, but some grandchildren require more raising than others.'
* In the ''[[Lost Fleet]]'' series of books by [[Jack Campbell]], Captain John Geary has spent a century in [[Suspended Animation]] while his reputation became [[Shrouded in Myth]]... and everyone '''else''' forgot effective naval tactics in favor of simply charging at the enemy. Which means once he takes command, forces that follow his orders tend to win amazingly one-sided victories unless ridiculously outnumbered -- '''then''' they just win.
* Mazer Rackham in ''[[Ender's Game]]'', hero of the second [[Bug War]] and Ender's trainer in the third one.
* Kaa in ''[[The Jungle Book (
* Ser Barristan Selmy from ''[[A Song of Ice and Fire]]''. He's the last living member of King Aerys' old Kingsguard, if you leave Jaime Lannister out of the count, and can easily defeat younger adversaries.
** Also from this book, Syrio Forel, the first sword of Braavos, who takes on several [[Mooks]] to protect Arya while she escapes, and bludgeons them to death with a wooden sword. {{spoiler|He dies a few minutes later to a knight, though. In his defense, the knight was wearing armor and he was aware that the fight was hopeless.}}
* ''[[Harry Potter]]'': Dumbledore is clearly a prime example. He's incredibly old, but most people speak of him in complete awe. In the fifth book we probably get the best view of his power when he {{spoiler|takes down three ministry officials (with a little help) and then battles [[The Big Bad|Voldemort]] to a draw after restraining some half a dozen [[Elite Mooks|Death Eaters]]}}. This is likely due to the fact that in the wizarding world knowledge actually equals power and Dumbledore has had plenty of training time.
* In ''Emergence'', by David R. Palmer, the character referred to by the narrator as "Teacher" or "Master" (depending on context. Name is given as Soo Kim McDivott) plays this role for the narrator and several other characters.
* [[Discworld]]:
*
*** To be fair, while they did manage to conquer the Agatean Empire (aforementioned continent roughly analogous to China), often merely [[To the Pain|explaining]] this trope to them is enough to frighten most of the non-military types into submission. It became something of a self-fulfilling prophecy. Exchanges usually went something like this:
{{quote|
'''Mr Saveloy''': Indeed, and of course, this is true. They are ''very old'' barbarian heroes.
'''Six Beneficient Winds''': Oh, my ...
'''Mr Saveloy''': That's right. They've had a lifetime's experience of not dying. They've become very good at it." ...
... And Mr Saveloy could see ''it'' dawning in the fat man's eyes. }}
{{quote|
* Druss from [[David Gemmell]]'s first published novel, ''Legend'', is an unusually blunt variant of this trope. Sixty years old, built like a bull, and quite capable of single-handedly slaughtering a dozen men half his age. His presence, and wisdom, inspire the younger characters to heroism; after all, he is a living legend. Meanwhile, he's trying to pretend he's not half-dead from exhaustion, agonised by arthritis, and determined to avoid senility through battle.
* Gandalf from ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]'' of course. Théoden also kicks some serious ass.
* Larkin and Mkoll from ''[[Warhammer
** Mkoll was canonically the father of adult children (and probably grandchildren) before the series started, but they all died in the annihilation of Tanith. Similarly, Doc Dorden had a grown son in the regiment at the start of the series. A lot of the Tanith are quite old for Guardsmen. But then, you only have to survive one battle to be [[Redshirt Army|quite old for a Guardsman]]...
** Eldrad Ulthran, the late leader of Ulthwe craftworld. More than 10,000 years old, so old that his body has begun to crystallise. Before he was lost to a talisman of vaul, he was arguably the galaxy's most powerful living psyker. In fact, he was able to defeat Abaddon, one of the greatest warriors aligned with Chaos, in hand-to-hand combat by using his prescience to stall until the single perfect moment to strike.
* From the [[
* Colbey Calistinsson, from ''[[The Last of the Renshai]]'' trilogy. Never mind that he is 67, in an era where people seldom lived to 40. He was perfectly calm about taking out a group of 15, training a 16 year old girl in the art of the sword, fighting a group of 100 with only Santagithi to help him, and {{spoiler|an army of 10000 quaracks, by himself}}
** Santagithi is also a very competent swordsman, at the age of 58, waiting until the ''end'' of the battle to die, because he tripped on a rock
** The Renshai race, which Colbey was a part of, almost never lived to the age of 25
* ''[[The Belgariad
* In ''[[The Destroyer]]'' series of novels, 80 year old (at least) tiny Chiun is quite literally, the most dangerous man in the world. If he wants you dead, you might as well shoot yourself.
* [[The Vicar|Patera Silk]], the protagonist of [[Gene Wolfe]]'s ''[[Book of the Long Sun]]'', learns swordsmanship from Master Xiphias, who is very much one of these. His [[Meaningful Name|name]] is derived from a species of swordfish.
* ''[[Conan the Barbarian]]'' by [[Robert E. Howard]]: In "The Tower of Elephant" Conan meets Taurus, whom he has heard of as "the prince of thieves." Taurus, liking his spirit, takes him along and immediately instructs him.
{{quote|
Taurus' eyes flashed angrily.
"I? I, a mistake? Impossible!"
"You should have dragged the body into the bushes."
"Said the novice to the master of the art. They will not change the guard until past midnight. Should any come searching for him now, and find his body, they would flee at once to Yara, bellowing the news, and give us time to escape. Were they not to find it, they'd go beating up the bushes and catch us like rats in a trap."
* Subverted in ''[[The Wise
* In [[Battlestar Galactica (2004 TV series)|the 2003 version of ''
▲== Live Action TV ==
▲* In the 2003 version of ''[[Battlestar Galactica]]'', the main character, Commander Bill Adama is an [[Old Master]]. His morals and ethics dictate the conduct of the rest of the crew (i.e. characters remarking on more than one occasion "Cmdr. Adama would/would not do this"), and [[A Father to His Men|he openly regards many of them like children to him]] (which is extremely worrisome when you consider his terrible relationship with Lee, his ''actual'' son). This does not change the fact that, as we see in the season one episode "Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part 1", and the season three episode "Unfinished Business", Bill's capable of stepping into the boxing ring the crew has set up and beating the stuffing out of said "children" should he feel the need.
** He's pretty handy with a flashlight, too.
* Grasshopper, Master Po from ''[[Kung Fu]]'', surely one of the [[Trope
* Master <s>Bratak</s> [[Punctuation Shaker|Bra'tac]] of ''[[Stargate SG-1]]''. In his first appearance in the series, started off by complaining about his old age, then promptly incapacitated Colonel O'Neill in an embarassingly short fight sequence. Continues to refer to himself as an old man during the entire 10 seasons despite the fact that he is obviously one of the most skilled warriors in the galaxy.
** Some other Jaffa [[Idiot Ball|make the mistake of confusing his age with weakness]]. Too late and to their sorrow do they realize that a prominent man living a century and a half in an ''entire society of expendable warriors'' should have been a clue as to his badassery.
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* In "Worst Nightmare", the ''[[NCIS]]'' team has a difficult time keeping up with the [[Old Soldier|grandfather]] of a missing girl.
** What do you mean "in 'Worst Nightmare'"? Gibbs himself should be the first example, and his former boss and teacher Mike Franks should easily qualify.
* ''[[Power Rangers]]'':
* Both played straight and averted in ''[[Power Rangers Jungle Fury]]''; some of the masters and teachers from the Order of the Claw are indeed old masters. However, in the first episode, when the rangers are sent to the Jungle Karma Pizza restaurant to find their new master, they see a man who looks like your stereotypical old master and immidiately assume he must be the one they are searching for, only to find out he is just a customer and the real master is the much younger owner of the restaurant.▼
** The original series had a few as one-shots; Trini's uncle Howard was a [[Genius Bruiser]] type skilled in both martial arts and chemistry, who taught Billy how to fight, and puts up ''quite'' a decent fight against the Putty Patrolers ("Dark Warrior"); Trini learned praying mantis style kung fu from a teacher named Master Li ("Plague of the Mantis")
▲** Both played straight and averted in ''[[Power Rangers Jungle Fury]]''; some of the masters and teachers from the Order of the Claw are indeed
** In ''[[Power Rangers Lightspeed Rescue]]'', Chad's former mentor Tomashiro was one, but he and Chad weren't exactly on good terms. Tomashiro was sorely disappointed that his student had chosen his current occupation (as a Ranger) rather than take the role as his successor. This led to Tomashiro [[Horrible Judge of Character| foolishly accepting the demon Cyclopter as a student]], who naturally [[Deceptive Disciple| turned on him after learning enough]]. By the end of that episode, Chad managed to win back his mentor's respect.
== [[Radio]] ==
▲* And of course, one cannot forget the unnamed Master in [[The Frantics]]' legendary
== [[Tabletop Games]] ==
* The
* Monks in ''[[Dungeons
== [[Video Games]] ==
* In ''[[Assassin's Creed
** Though he isn't any better with his sword than other major opponents; instead he uses extensive trickery. {{spoiler|Being able to magically multiply yourself has some clear advantages in battle.}}
*** Plus, {{spoiler|he can be insta-killed with the [[Game Breaker|Hidden Blade]], just like every other NPC}}.
** Although his true age is unknown, La Volpe from the sequel is clearly no spring chicken as his wrinkled face shows. Nevertheless, the first time Ezio meets him, the former is winded trying to keep him.
** Ezio and Altair eventually become this, as shown in ''[[Assassin's Creed
* The magician Patrus from ''[[Betrayal
** For that matter, Gorath also qualifies, after surviving in a position of leadership in a cutthroat society for close to two and a half ''centuries''.
* Fo Fai from ''Battle Arena Toshinden''. According to the manual, he's 103 when the first tournament starts.
* ''[[Final Fantasy XI]]'' has Maat, the old man responsible for raising the level cap from 50 to 75 (or just to 70 on a few expansion jobs). He uses both [[Wax On, Wax Off]] and [[Training
** Love him or hate him, you have to respect him. Even if you fought Maat as a Red Mage [[Nintendo Hard|back in the days before he was nerfed]], you have to smile when you see Maat whalloping the crap out of enemies [[Timey-Wimey Ball|in the past]] in the ''Wings of the Goddess'' expansion.
* Master Li in ''[[Jade Empire]]''.
* Saisyu Kusanagi, Chin Gensai, Takuma Sakazaki, and a number of others from ''[[The King of Fighters]]''. Several of them got together to form the Old Man Team one year: Saisyu, Takuma and [[Colonel Badass]] Heidern (despite them not being ''that'' old, compared to Chin).
** Also Tung Fu-Rue and Jubei Yamada from the ''[[Fatal Fury]]'' series, along with Lee Pai-Long from ''[[Art of Fighting]]''. Tung even made it as a bonus character in the [[
* In ''[[Okami]]'', the sensei which teaches you new moves starts out when he first talks to you as a kind old man....but when you purchase a new move his head literally spins completely around, turning his giant chin into a giant forehead, and his long mustache into badass eyebrows, and his back straightens out, and his cane becomes a bamboo riding crop.
* The Master from ''[[Paper Mario (
* ''[[Parappa the Rapper]]'': Chop Chop Master Onion, anyone?
* Played straight in ''[[Phantasy Star]] Universe'' with Headmaster Nav - the only difference being that he's a CAST (an android) who only ''looks'' like an old man. He's still almost 200 years old, though.
* Ford Cruller, from ''[[
* Sotaro Komaki from ''[[Ryu ga Gotoku]]'' embodies this trope in the game.
* Haohmaru's master, Caffeine Nicotine in ''[[Samurai Shodown]] II''.
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** Also from ''[[Street Fighter]]'', Gouken, the elder brother of Akuma and the legendary master of Ryu and Ken.
** Oro from ''III'', an elderly hermit who is 140-years-young and still more powerful than the average young fighter in their prime. So much that he voluntarily disables one of his arms just to even the odds for his opponent.
* In ''[[Punch-Out!!|Super Punch-Out!!]]'' on the SNES, you fight a Chinese martial arts master called Hoy Quarlow. He is both the most unorthodox and most irritating opponent in the game, not so much for his difficulty (he is indeed a tough opponent), but for the fact he unabashedly cheats; half the time he doesn't punch you, ''but kicks you and hits you with his walking stick''. In a boxing game. You can guess that he's [[That One Boss]]...
* Master Rishu from ''[[Super Robot Wars]] [[Original Generation]]'' deserves a mention here. While being a side character who is only mentioned to be Sanger's teacher in the first game, and using a cane to walk, he was more than capable to take on multiple bioroids armed with automatic weapons while using only [[Sword Cane|a sword, hidden in his cane]]. Later, in OG 2.5 he becomes an actual playable character, piloting Grungust type 0.
* Wang Jinrei from the ''[[Tekken]]'' series. When he participates in The King of Iron Fist Tournament 5, he's 105 years old, has a bad back, and is somewhat senile. He can ''still'' send the young'uns tumbling across the arena with ease, however...
* Master Zen, the ancient martial arts master in ''[[Tony Hawk's Pro Skater|Tony Hawk's American Wasteland]]''. For some reason, his teaching translate very well to skateboarding while still conveying supernatural abilities. He's also a total goofball, in spite of his wisdom.
* Lau Chan from ''[[Virtua Fighter]]''. As well as [[Drunken Master|Shun Di.]]
* The Great Sensei from ''[[God Hand]]''. [[That One Boss|He will kick your ass.]]
* All four of the Dragon Guardians from ''[[Spyro the Dragon|The Legend of Spyro]]'' trilogy. While their age isn't mentioned, their words imply they're getting too old for the job, but that doesn't mean the Apes attacking the temple in the second game didn't get their butts kicked by the four of them. Yeah, Spyro and Cynder outclass them in the end, but that's what they were hoping for.
* Master Xehanort in ''[[Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep]]'' is the [[Big Bad]] of the game {{spoiler|and more or less the entire franchise}} and is a hunched-over old man. However, in spite of his age he's still one of the most powerful entities in the series so
* Edge Master from the ''[[Soul Series]]''. He is Kilik's master and can also use every weapon in the game with equal proficiency to its owner. One of the oldest, non-immortal characters in the series (though his actual age is unknown).
* The Greybeards from ''[[The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim]]''. They have trained their voices to such an incredible extent that even a misplaced whisper could kill you instantly. When they greet you with a politely whispered "Dovahkiin", ''the whole mountain shakes'' from the force of it. When they spoke in full voice to summon you to High Hrothgar, ''all of Skyrim heard it''.
== [[Web Comics]] ==
* Thaco from ''[[Goblins]]''.
* Feng from ''[[Sluggy Freelance]]''. His fight with [[Badass|Kusari]] would have been a tie if it weren't for her [[Healing Factor]].
* Dr. Herb from ''[https://web.archive.org/web/20171212154432/http://www.goldcoincomics.com/ Gold Coin Comics]''.
* Dr. Sun Jen-djieh from ''[[Girl Genius]]''. When Baron Wulfenbach bypassed his medical order of staying in bed by building a bed into a Humongous Mecha, Dr. Sun '''destroyed''' that mecha. By hand.
* Master Fei of [[How I Killed Your Master]] certainly counts.
{{quote|
'''Ji Bao:''' -- And outnumbered.
'''Master Fei:''' Not by my reckoning.
One [[Curb Stomp Battle]] later...
'''Master Fei:''' It's been ten years since anyone spoke of my fights because no-one has walked away from them in that time. }}
* Ten Winds of ''[[Keychain of Creation]]''. Ten's a Terrestrial Exalt, the weakest [[Exalted]] type - but he's badass enough to make other, nominally more powerful Exalted think twice about facing him.
* In ''[[
{{quote|
== [[Web Original]] ==▼
▲== Web Original ==
* [http://wiki.rpg.net/index.php/File:MPost3226-0e6a2fa9.jpg This] RPG-[[Fauxtivational Poster]] invokes the genre conventions:
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* The Old Man and Prof. Oak from ''[[Pokémon]]'', according to [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9IsnAI5wAl0 this video].
== [[Western Animation]] ==
* Bruce Wayne from ''[[Batman Beyond]]'' is definitely an example of this trope. Stooped over and forced to rely on a cane to help him walk, he still stares daggers through anyone who would presume to show him his place, and is more than capable of beating the holy howling tar out of an entire motorcycle gang by himself, standing almost completely still, with [[Cane Fu|nothing but his cane]]. This plus his still-razor-sharp mind and the experience of his years makes him somehow ''more'' intimidating than when he was in his physical prime. This was proven in an episode where his younger self visited the future, forcing ''[[Batman]]'' to play ''[[Good Cop, Bad Cop|good cop]]'' to Old Man Wayne.
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Cut to the gang member telling the Old Man ''everything'' up to and including that he wet the bed until he was a teenager. }}
* ''[[
** {{spoiler|And in the [[Grand Finale]] King Bumi, Uncle Iroh, Jeong Jeong, Master Pakku and Piandao all show up and take back Ba Sing Se themselves. For bonus points, the episode in which we see them is
* Spoofed in the ''[[George of the Jungle]]'' episode "Still Got It", in the form of Grouch-Mouth. He's an elderly tiger who gets picked on at first but," You're forgeting that Ol' Grouch-Mouth is the king of the pranks." He then gets in his scooter and goes on a pranking rampage, until the now-decrepit "Mighty Berment" (who originally defeated him) arrives. The two fight. While the fight was anticlimactic, {{spoiler|it turns out the two are old friends and join forces to show how pranks are really done. They go on an even bigger pranking rampage, which was a [[Crowning Moment of Funny]]. George ends up sending Berments Wife, Mighty Mary, to save the day and the two pranksters leave.}}
* [[Everyone Calls Him "Barkeep"|Uncle]] in ''[[
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* Master Panda of ''[[Skunk Fu!]]'' is a textbook example of this.▼
▲* Played a bit in ''[[Kung Fu Panda]]'' where Shifu is the old master to the Furious Five and Po, but he himself has more to learn from both his own mentor, Master Oogway, and from Po's own insight.
* In one ''[[
▲** Played completely straight with extremely pacifist and soft-spoken Oogway himself, to the point that he was originally able to take down the undefeatable [[Big Bad]] in less than a second.
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▲* Rafiki from ''[[Disney Animated Canon|The Lion King]]'' ends the film kicking some serious hyena butt.
▲* Master Panda of ''[[Skunk Fu]]'' is a textbook example of this.
▲* In one ''[[Stargate Infinity (Animation)|Stargate Infinity]]'' episode, the crew met a race of squirrel people. To cross a bridge a kindly old man requests that one of the team fight him. When the [[Action Girl]] tries and gets her ass handed to her, the team leader quips:
▲{{quote| "When an old man challenges you to a fight, you've got to figure he's either crazy, or knows something you don't. This guy didn't look that crazy to me."}}
* Scavenger in ''[[Transformers Armada]]''. Not only is he the kind of fighter badass enough to catch a blow from an unstoppably powerful sword ''with his arm'', but he {{spoiler|makes a pretty good double agent.}}
* Spoofed with Master Yo in ''[[Yin Yang Yo
* Master Fung of ''[[
== [[Real Life]] ==
* [[wikipedia:Morihei Ueshiba|Ueshiba Morihei]], founder of Aikido,
** In Japan he is referred to as O-Sensei, the Great Teacher. He's the
* Almost ''every''
** They don't need to be quicker. They have seen all the tricks anyone could possibly attempt before.
*** They also have refined their sense of timing to the point that regardless of how fast you are, they are still where they need to be before you are.
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* The late, the great, Helio Gracie, one of the founders of Brazilian Jiujitsu. He continued to train hard and utilise the martial art he helped to create until his death at the age of 95.
* A 24-year-old mugger with a knife made the mistake of breaking into 72-year-old Frank Corti's home and threatened him and his wife. Corti, a former boxer, beat the mugger's left eye and mouth purple with two punches.
* A newspaper story concerned three youths who mugged a retired gentleman in his sixties as he left a London Underground station late at night. Unfortunately for them, the job he had recently retired from was thirty years teaching unarmed combat to the SAS. His attackers were arrested in hospital.{{verify}}
* Master Lau Kar Leung. A [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QiIGGqC0Lv8 veteran] [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ngMR7k02H80 action] [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2M8OhVOBa7U star] of the Hong Kong Cinema (he is best known for his movies which he made during the 1970s and 1980s for the Shaw Brothers Studio) as well as director and fight choreographer, as well as the grand master and practitioner of Hung Gar style of Kung Fu system (the inspiration for [[Avatar: The Last Airbender|earthbending]]), which was made famous by Chinese hero Wong Fei-Hung. Yes, that [[Once Upon a Time
* [[wikipedia:Itosu Anko|Anko Itosu]], one of the founders of modern Karate, took on a much-publicized challenge for a fight between Judo (the Japanese Martial-Art) and Karate (the Okinawan Style) when he was in his late seventies. The Japanese were insulted and the Judo champion spent the first few minutes of the fight mocking the old man. [[Crowning Moment of Awesome|Itosu threw]] [[One Hit KO|one]] [[Curb Stomp Battle|punch]], [[I Hit You, You Hit the Ground|the other guy hit the ground]], and then Itosu helped revive the unconscious Judo champion.
* Lu Zijian, reportedly 117 or 118 years old, said to have lived in three centuries, and [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mr5vQm_i09I master of huolong taiyi tai chi.] The man has aged amazingly well and was known to have mopped the floor with opponents in his youth. The man actively started joined all the martial arts contests he could find...at the ripe old age of ''86''.
* Not quite as old as most of these examples, but Bernard Hopkins continues to dominate in boxing at 46. Remember one thing, most boxers are considered old and faded by the time they get into their mid-thirties, so in boxing years, Hopkins (or rather Master Hopkins, as most boxing fans are beginning to refer to him now) is absolutely ancient and is still handling guys half his age. In fact, in June 2011, Hopkins became the oldest boxer ever to win a major world championship when he defeated Jean Pascal to win the WBC, IBO and ''The Ring'' Light Heavyweight belts.
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y6oPgV0tJrM&feature=fvwrel Ip Chun,] son of [[Ip Man]] himself. [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R5uL4dD4YJI&feature=related See him kicks ass with Wing Chun.]
* In the world of film music, when all modern scores are dominated by computer and electronic software, [[John Williams]] showed why he is still intellectually superior with the releases of ''[[War Horse]]''
{{reflist}}
[[Category:Mentors]]
[[Category:More Than Meets the Eye]]
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[[Category:Master of the Index]]
[[Category:Elders]]
▲[[Category:Old Master]]
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