Lovable Coward: Difference between revisions
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|'''Archilochus''', responding to the Spartan saying, "Come home with this shield or upon it."}}
The flip side of the [[Dirty Coward]] is the '''Lovable Coward'''.
Contrast: [[Dirty Coward]], [[The So-Called Coward]], [[Miles Gloriosus]], [[Cowardly Lion]].
{{examples}}
== Anime and Manga ==▼
== [[Advertising]] ==
* Usopp from ''[[One Piece]]'', though in later chapters he's begun to grow a backbone.▼
* Cereal mascots [[Friendly Neighborhood Vampire|Count Chocula]] and [[Frankenstein's Monster|Frankenberry]]. They seem to be afraid of everything: ghosts (often including Boo Berry, who's much braver), other monsters, people (except children), cats, mice, thunder, you name it. Frankly, if they ever met Scooby-Doo, they'd likely be just as scared of him as he would be of them.
▲== [[Anime and Manga]] ==
* ''[[One Piece]]'':
** Nami at times, though in her case it's more a case of pragmatism, seeing as she's a [[Badass Normal]] is a world where many pirates have superhuman powers.
* Grasshop from ''[[Spider Riders]]'' becomes one after his transition from a [[Dirty Coward]].
* Misora of ''[[Mahou Sensei Negima]]'' Her artifact is a pair of [[Sprint Shoes|running shoes]] [[Super Speed|that lets her flee with great haste]] when danger appears. However, when push comes to shove, she can do some daring rescues, which could blindside villains since she's the last person you'd expect to do daring rescues.
* ''[[Ranma ½]]''
** Genma Saotome, [[Alternative Character Interpretation|though some]] view his frequent moments of [[Comedic Sociopathy]] in a harsher light, seeing him as a [[Dirty Coward]].
** Soun Tendô qualifies too
* GB from ''[[Ginga Densetsu Weed]]''
* ''[[Ookiku Furikabutte]]'': Mihashi. Although you're supposed to take his backstory of bullying seriously, his nervous tics are mostly played for laughs. He mostly expresses this by being an [[Extreme Doormat]] to his catcher Abe.
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* Takayuki Furuichi from ''Beelzebub''
== [[Comic Books]] ==
== Comics ==▼
* Volstagg the Voluminous, of [[Marvel Comics]]' trio "The Warriors Three", is a cowardly, tremendously fat braggart with a bizarre amount of success in battle, partly due to his own lies. Then one day he was the only one mobile when an army threatened Midgard. He managed to pull together a defense and [[Took a Level in Badass]]. Judging by his name, he is probably based on Falstaff.
** Averted in the movie where, while we don't see much of him in combat what we do see he's kicking ass as much as Fandral and Hogun▼
* The Dog of ''[[Footrot Flats]]'' talks himself up (metaphorically) but tends to run away very fast from any hostile dog ([[Cats Are Mean|and some cats]]) bigger than him. Although he's still a competent sheepdog.▼
* Sir Rodney from ''[[The Wizard of Id]]'' gets most of his humor out of being a complete chicken.▼
▲== Films -- Animation ==
* The error-prone inept {{spoiler|and immortal}} wizard Schmendrick from ''[[The Last Unicorn (animation)|The Last Unicorn]]'' was not only a Lovable Coward but found himself in the role of the [[Accidental Hero]], until the more conventional hero and [[Knight in Shining Armor]] Prince Lir turned up in the latter half of the story. Both Schmendrick and Lir were uncommonly [[Genre Savvy]]; they knew what roles fate had destined them to play, to the point of {{spoiler|Lir's [[Heroic Sacrifice]] to save the unicorn from King Haggard's monstrous Red Bull}}.
* In ''[[The Swan Princess]]'', Derek's friend Bromley is not nearly as courageous as he pretends to be, but comes through in the end. Jean-Bob, the frog who thinks he's a prince, has shades of this as well.
▲== Films -- Live-Action ==
* [[Bob Hope]], in many of his movies.
* Valentine in ''[[Mirror Mask]]''.
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* ''[[Star Wars]]''' C-3PO. He has mild elements of [[Cowardly Lion]] in that he will run into danger after his friends, but that's as far as it goes.
** Given that he's a droid, this probably has more to do more with his programming telling him to stay close to his master than any sense of loyalty...
* The Cowardly Lion in ''[[The Wizard of Oz (film)|The Wizard of Oz]]'', naturally, overlapping with [[Cowardly Lion| the Trope named after him.]] The Scarecrow and Tin Man too, in a few scenes.
▲
* Hoggle from ''[[Labyrinth]]''; eventually becomes a [[Cowardly Lion]].
== [[Literature]] ==▼
▲== Literature ==
* Yossarian in ''[[Catch-22]]''.
* Rincewind of ''[[Discworld]]'' fame.
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* Piglet of ''[[Winnie the Pooh]]'' is almost certainly this, a timid stammering [[Neat Freak]] who fears every superstition and mythical animal his friends make up. The Disney adapted version dials this [[Up to Eleven]] (along with adding [[Canon Foreigner|Lumpy]] to the list as well).
== [[Live-Action TV]] ==
* ''[[Maverick (TV series)|
* Vinton Harper from ''[[Mama's Family]]''.
* Vila from ''[[Blake's 7
{{quote|'''Vila:''' There isn't a lock I can't open... if I'm scared enough.
'''Blake:''' Are you scared enough for that one?
'''Vila:''' What d'you think? }}
* Merton J. Dingle from ''[[Big Wolf on Campus]]''. Despite being a guy who has hidden behind girls during fights with supernatural beings, has regularly redirected the Big Bad towards his best friend and show's hero in order to keep himself safe and has outright apologised to enemies if a plan or strategy he used against them doesn't work; he's still an incredibly lovable (and funny) character.
* ''[[Kaamelott]]''{{'}}s Bohort. He's mostly a coward, but then again his all-around good nature makes him rather endearing, all the more so since many other characters are brutes.
* Rodney McKay from ''[[Stargate Atlantis]]''. Well, usually.
* Pirate Percy from ''[[Candle Cove]]'' is [[The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything|a pirate who's almost too cowardly to even go into caves to look for treasure]].
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* Captain Blackadder in ''[[Blackadder Goes Forth]]'' tries everything to get out of the [[World War I|war]]. But since the war is portrayed as a completely pointless waste of human life, the audience roots for him.
* Patrick Jane of ''[[The Mentalist]]'' sometimes acts as this. His cowardly moments make him more endearing because it reveals that under his [[The Chessmaster|cool facade]] he still experiences the same fears as everyone else.
* Telly Monster from ''[[Sesame Street]]'', also an insecure worry-wart.
▲== [[Newspaper Comics]] ==
▲* The Dog of ''[[Footrot Flats]]'' talks himself up (metaphorically) but tends to run away very fast from any hostile dog ([[Cats Are Mean|and some cats]]) bigger than him. Although he's still a competent sheepdog.
▲* Sir Rodney from ''[[The Wizard of Id]]'' gets most of his humor out of being a complete chicken.
== [[Theater]] ==
* The classic example is [[Shakespeare]]'s Falstaff, the originator of the timeless saying, "The better part of valor is discretion, and in that better part I have saved my life."
* Papageno in Mozart's ''[[The Magic Flute]]''.
▲== Pro Wrestling ==
* Norman Smiley, a goofy British-born wrestler in [[WCW]]. He was loved by fans for his entertaining dance moves, but was such a coward that he'd wear heavy padding during his matches and would [[Screams Like a Little Girl|scream like a little girl]] whenever it seemed like a villain was about to get the better of him in the ring. Even when he somehow managed to win the Hardcore Championship, he was terrified of having to defend it in Hardcore Matches and kept trying to deliberately lose the title (which didn't work for a long time).
== [[Video Games]] ==▼
* Axel from ''[[Disgaea
▲== Video Games ==
* ''[[Super Mario Bros.
▲* Axel from ''[[Disgaea]] 2'' is a fallen "Dark Hero", one-man [[Goldfish Poop Gang]] and all-around goofball, frequently making up excuses whenever his can gets kicked. However, much like {{spoiler|his spiritual predecessor Mid-Boss from the first game}}, he winds up helping out Adell and company late in the game (but not out of the kindness of his own heart).
▲* [[Super Mario Bros.|Luigi]], originally nothing more than a sprite recolor of his older brother Mario, has [[Divergent Character Evolution|slowly developed]] into one of these.
** To say nothing of the Toads: even at his worst, he's still braver than these guys.
*
** Captain Linebeck in ''[[Phantom Hourglass]]'' is one of these for most of the game.
** Yunobo in ''[[The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild|Breath of the Wild]]'' and ''[[The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom| Tears of the Kingdom]]'', gradually overlaping with [[Cowardly Lion]] in the second game.
* Gilgamesh from ''[[Final Fantasy V]]'' runs away when battles turn against him, generally claiming urgent business has suddenly come up. {{spoiler|Later he does the opposite with a [[Heroic Sacrifice]]}}.
* In the sidekick (and mostly comedic) vein, how about Arnaud G. Vasquez from ''[[Wild ARMs 4]]''? At one point in game, he actually runs away and cowers behind a box, leaving the rest of the main characters behind. {{spoiler|He does get better, in a 'true bravery means working around your fear' way. And by working around your fear, we mean ''[[Car Fu|smashing him with a squadron of fighter jets.]]''}}
* Louis from ''[[Left 4 Dead]]''. It seems in the Canon, his fear of the infected seems to get him and the rest of the gang in trouble, due to his tendency for flight over fight. Despite this, his ridiculously optimistic attitude and emphatic enthusiasm makes him one of the more entertaining characters for many players.
* Saemon Havarian from ''[[Baldur's Gate
** The first game has poor Khalid, a shy, nervous, but kind-hearted fighter with decent dexterity and at least 1/3 more hit points than many other party members. Given tons of armor he's a fantastic tank, it's just he has this tragically low morale score..."Better part of valor! Better part of valor!" In some circumstances this is actually helpful though, like when he's an inch from death and you can't get a healer into melee to save him.
* The Spathi of the ''[[Star Control]]'' series are like this. Their ship is even designed to fight while running away. It's also one of the more powerful ships in the game.
* In ''[[World of Warcraft]]'' Flynn Fairwind fits (unless you're a Horde player, in which case he's a [[Dirty Coward]]). He tends to panic at the sight of abominations, dragons, and other monsters of supernatural origin, but is pretty brave when fighting pirates, naga, and Horde soldiers.
== [[Tabletop Games]] ==
* [http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?multiverseid=113512 Norin the Wary] from ''[[Magic: The Gathering]]''. He had some flavor text attributed to him and finally showed up in time spiral.
== [[Web Comics]] ==
* The [[Unfortunate Names|unfortunately-named]] goblin "[[Prophetic Name|Dies-Horribly]]" from ''[[Goblins]]'' is made of this trope.
{{quote|'''Dies:''' I AM A ''COWARD!'' I KNOW WHEN TO '''RUN!''' Come on!}}
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* Elly, from ''[[Dubious Company]]''. Being a [[Adorkable|wimpy]], [[Dojikko|clumsy]], [[Dude Looks Like a Lady|pretty boy]] his whole life limits [[The Chick|his perspective]]. Even in the few occasions he does try to be brave, the [[Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?|raccoon]] decides its time for [[The Glomp|hugs]], or his opponent is [[Abhorrent Admirer|Mary or Marty]]. In later arcs, he makes up for this with his [[Min-Maxing|natural]] [[Guile Hero|strengths]].
== [[Western Animation]] ==▼
▲== Western Animation ==
* ''[[Courage the Cowardly Dog]]''. Subverted: Courage is timid and physically feeble, but never lets his fear get in the way of saving Muriel. It helps that he's [[MacGyvering|resourceful]] and [[Made of Iron|tenacious]]...
* [[Scooby-Doo]] and Shaggy are lovable ''because'' they're cowards.
{{quote|'''[[Eddie Izzard]]:''' We love Shaggy and Scooby because they were cowards! [[This Loser Is You|Because we can identify with them.]] We love them! The other guys driving the van? Fuck off!}}
:* In some incarnations of the [[Scooby-Doo (animation)|''Scooby-Doo'' franchise]] this is more justified
* Wade Duck in the ''[[U.S. Acres]]'' segment of ''[[Garfield and Friends]]'' fits this trope to a T.
* Shifty Dingo from ''[[Blinky Bill]]'' fits this trope to a T after his family's [[Heel Face Turn]] and he gets accepted as the [[Sixth Ranger]] in Blinky Bill's gang.
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