Muscles Are Meaningless: Difference between revisions
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{{trope}}
[[File:
In [[Real Life]], a person's size is [[Pint-Sized Powerhouse|not a foolproof indication of their strength]]. Besides the fact that the short and wiry guy might know kung fu, the size of muscles is also not necessarily proportionate to their efficiency. You can usually expect that pure mass does bring a certain advantage in terms of potential power ([[Square-Cube Law|to an extent]]), but it's not a set rule. Leading experts in Broscience theorize that different weight training styles, say bodybuilder vs Olympic weightlifter, cause hypertrophy of different muscle cell components, in this case intracellular fluid (sarcoplasm) vs contractile protein complexes (myofibrils). Multiple training programs exist to increase strength without bulking up, especially for martial artists, who want strength without the limitation of flexibility excessive muscle can create.
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* Inner Power. It's a common spiritual idea that inner strength equates physical strength. This is often used as a justification in universes where [[Ki Attacks|the spirit is the true source of a character's strength]].
* [[Weak but Skilled]]. The seemingly weaker character is stronger because of his superior technique. This can work as a realistic justification until people [[Charles Atlas Superpower|start shattering mountains]] and punching out [[Did You Just Punch Out Cthulhu?|giant monsters]].
* [[Bishonen]] + [[Beauty Equals Goodness]]. You can't have your [[Troubled but Cute]] hero grow huge muscles without risking certain death at the hands of the [[Fan Girl
* [[Super Strength]]. Characters may have big muscles in comic books to denote being super strong, but elsewhere this is often an exception. Sometimes even in comics books.
* [[Rule of Cool]].
Note that this trope is specifically about instances in which the person with the seemingly weaker body possesses more actual ''strength'' than a muscle-bound opponent. This does not include characters who only win because of other characteristics that make them superior to their enemies, like speed or weapon proficiency. It's a common occurrence in [[Fighting Game
Contrast [[Stout Strength]], where the character has the muscle, he just has fat on top of it as well, and [[Muscles Are Meaningful]], where the muscles DO make a difference.. When it appears on comic book heroes, it is always a case of [[Heroic Build]].
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== Anime & Manga ==
* ''[[
** This actually addressed as a plot point in the Cell Saga. Vegeta and Future Trunks had reached a certain ascended version of the basic Super Saiyan, but while it was an insane increase of power, [[Square-Cube Law|the sheer muscle mass slowed them down too much to actually land a blow on their opponent]].
** There's also very early on the contrast between Vegeta and Nappa. Nappa, who's huge and brawny, is less than half as strong as the short Vegeta.
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*** Videl is actually one of the straightest examples of this, as even before she learned basic ki manipulation she was at least as strong as her father Mr. Satan, despite being a slender teenage girl with none of his huge muscles. As for why Gohan doesn't accidentally snap her in half, it's probably for the same reason real-life weightlifting champions can pet a kitten or pick up an egg without crushing it. Controlling your strength to use only the amount you want to for the task at hand is not difficult.
** The DBZ characters are, however, very muscular for the most part. It turns out that anything that boosts your ki energy will probably also build muscle mass. Really, once you start blowing up planets with mystical ki energy, physics can go out the window and nobody will care.
* The complete dependency on Shinsoo in ''[[
** Yuri and her clan, the Ha, is also a traditional case of being [[Charles Atlas Superpower|physically very strong]] while having a fairly feminine frame. Other characters, especially the damage dealing Fishermen can strengthen their body temporarily while inducing Shinsoo into their body.
* The CP9 of ''[[
** Luffy's small arms are justified since he is made of rubber. Zoro, on the other hand, is just plain crazy. When he flexes, his arms become the size of his torso. When relaxed they are normal size. On the other hand, Sanji's kicks can smash down buildings but he's pretty consistently a bean pole.
** The same also applies to the admirals, Kizaru being the most prominent example; they are among the most powerful of antagonists, but all three [[Lean and Mean|are very thin for their height.]]
*** In the case of Kizaru, however, there's a justification for this. He can move at the speed of
** Before Alvida ate her Devil Fruit she had decent [[Stout Strength]] (being able to wield a large iron club), but she's still strong after eating even though it made her much skinnier (and more attractive).
** Also, Robin is a tall, slight woman with the strength of an above-average athlete, which is pretty weak compared to some of the monsters of the series. However, she easily makes up for it with her Devil Fruit ability, which allows her to ''break your back'' effortlessly.
{{quote|
* ''[[
** In another sense, as various characters get stronger they don't gain much in physical size; they retain the same basic body style that they start the show with.
* ''[[
* In ''[[
** Natsuki Takaya (the artist) actually acknowledges this in an aside from the manga: by all rights, the characters should be more muscular-looking than they are, and it's mainly a design preference that they're not (skinny bishounen and cute girls). In addition, Kagura likely derives her inhuman strength from [[Rule of Funny|somewhere else]].
* In ''[[
** In fact, this trope can be seen many times through out Bleach. This is due to the fact that characters in Bleach use spiritual energy to fight. A character may literally be a Giant, yet may be easily defeated due to their low spiritual pressure. This can be illustrated by Hollows. Gillian Class Hollows are giants, yet are the weakest class of menos. Subsequent classes are more compact, but much more powerful.
** This also extends to the spiritual. Captain-class shinigami compact their zanpaktos, and while they look small (compared to Grand Fisher's), they are more powerful.
** Most obviously present in tiny 11th Vice-Captain [[Killer Rabbit|Yachiru]], the only shinigami that ''might'' be more terrifying than [[Blood Knight|Kenpachi]]. She's also able to lift Kenpachi over her head and carry him as if he were an empty cardboard box, despite the fact that he's twice her height and six times her weight.
** Nnoitra is very skinny, but is clearly much stronger than Grimmjow, and can go toe-to-toe against Kenpachi.
* This is all over the place in the [[Tournament Arc]] of ''[[
* Present in ''[[
** A specific case of this is Nuriko, whose power is super strength, yet {{spoiler|he's skinny enough to convincingly crossdress as a woman.}}
* Kyohei and Sunako from ''[[
* L from ''[[
* ''[[
* [[
** His brother Sesshomaru counts as well. The ''very first thing'' we see Sesh pull in the manga is placing his hand lightly on a big, muscular man's head... and ripping it clean off without even a hint of effort. He's not any ''less'' muscular than Inuyasha (both of them do have some muscle tone, which is more than can be said of many [[Bishonen]]), but he isn't any ''more'' so, either.
** [[Word of God]] states that Sesshoumaru's ''arm strength alone'' is about as strong as Inuyasha in full demon mode. We're talking about all the strength in a single arm here.
* Somewhat averted, somewhat played with in ''[[
** This fellow from Yahoo.com answers the same question: [
** Sakura and Tsunade's hard hitting explicitly ''doesn't'' have anything to do with muscles, as it's actually them [[Ki Attacks|gathering chakra into their fists and blasting it all out on impact]]. Most of their actual physical ability involves heightened agility to [[Deadly Dodging|avoid getting hit]]. When it comes to raw physical strength, the strongest tend to be pretty big guys ([[Stout Strength|Choji and his father]], [[Giant Mook|Jirobo]], [[Gentle Giant|Jugo]], [[Large and In Charge|the Raikage]]) or use some form of body modification ([[Powered
*** However, in one of the first filler episodes Sakura ''rips up a ship's mast and uses it to beat the bad guys off the vessel.'' This is before she began her training with Tsunade, you understand. It was a big ship.
** Naruto himself at one point puts on display a good example of this trope when he {{spoiler|bodyslams ''the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox''! Bear in mind that this fox is large enough that it can smash a mountain by swinging one of its tails.}}
* ''[[Kenichi:
** Akisame is only the smallest and skinniest if you somehow COMPLETELY ignored [[Dirty Old Man|Kensei Ma]], who's a much truer example of this trope. The man is probably barely 4 feet and is the eldest of the masters (barring the [[Old Master]] Hayato himself), making him very scrawny. He seems to be of the [[Weak but Skilled]] category, but he's capable of delivering devastating punches at close range, with apparently barely any technique involved.
** Kenichi isn't really an example. He's the average high school student height, but [http://somemanga.com/manga/Historys_Strongest_Disciple_Kenichi/380/ he's hardly skinny looking].
* Of course, ''[[
* ''[[
* Who's the strongest character in ''[[Durarara
** It's stated in the anime that Simon is better that Shizuo in a one on one fight. He's the only one who can stop Shizuo's rampages, albeit with some trouble; he does it and comes out with some bruises and a black eye. Shizuo is stated to be better in a street fight however, due to an advantage in speed and his nigh invulnerability.
*** His body is THAT awesome because he literally broke every single bone in his body multiple times in his youth, due to the super strength and [[Hair-Trigger Temper]]. After breaking so many times, his bones won't break anymore. On top of that, his pain receptors broke down from overburdening, and he feels no pain. {{spoiler|In one of the last episodes, he got shot in the back and in the hip from behind, and thought he slipped in the mud. When he realized what happened, he got up and walked halfway across Ikebukuro to Shinra's house to have the bullets removed.}}
* ''[[
** On the subject of Gym Leaders, Chuck and Bruno are on the big end, the former knowing a vast array of martial arts and takes up the same Fighting Gym Leader habit of training with his Pokémon. In case you think he sucks as a teacher, one of his disciples is Green, who while not demonstrating his talents in martial arts on-panel is hardly a slouch at commanding Pokémon. And if Brawly wasn't "scrawny" enough, then Maylene of Sinnoh manages to ''top'' that, being a skinny teenaged Pettanko who can cross blows with a Riolu - which, as we know, grows into Lucario, which is (literally) [[Made of Iron]]. This troper sees ''bad things'' happening to Team Galactic should she have to get involved.
** Many of the Dex Holders themselves manage to perform feats of physical excellence, but the majority of them are a result of being drunk on [[Heroic Resolve]]. And then there's Sapphire, whose feats of strength and heroism [[Cute Bruiser|speak]] [[Badass Normal|for]] [[Wild Child|themselves]].
*** Hell, even Blue may be stronger than she appears. At age 11, she once held onto her flying Jigglypuff with one hand while the other arm was hoisting up Red.
* Hareta from ''[[
* In ''[[
* The strongest characters in ''[[
* Played straight twice in ''[[
* The mages in the ''[[Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha]]'' universe are extremely strong physically, but it doesn't show much in their physique. In the beginning of season two, the nine-year old Nanoha protected herself from attacks from both sides, holding the shields apart with her bare hands in a [[Star Wars]]-like double-[[Advancing Wall of Doom]] manner. Both attacks had the momentum to blow a hole in an average building and eventually made Nanoha ''sink ankle-deep into the concrete floor''. And that's a nine-year old girl with no excessive muscle mass. [[Lightning Bruiser|Powerhouses]] like [[Lady of War|Signum]] could probably punch holes in reinforced concrete with just those sleek, sexy hands of theirs. (This probably has to do with the series' target demographic, which prefers cute girls to muscular warriors.)
* ''[[
* ''[[
** Justified: she's the daughter of Superman and Wonder Woman. No, really.
* ''[[
* ''[[
** Averted with Seijuro Hiko, Kenshin's master, who seems a tall and slender man... until he takes off his coat, revealing a huge muscled body. [[Word of God]] says that some fangirls were disappointed at him not being a Bishounen.
* In ''[[Ranma ½
* Averted humorously in ''[[Ghost in
** The joke here being that the Major doesn't need more strength when she has her far more effective brain.
* Pretty much all [[Magical Girl Warrior]] anime, from ''[[
* In ''[[Rosario
* ''[[
* In ''[[
* Just about every single [[Shoujo Demographic]] that involves action, including the male characters and even in series that don't have the supernatural excuse. You can be a pretty boy and still have a good amount of muscle but not in shoujo.
* In ''[[
* Ivica Tanović, the commander of the Pied Piper Team in ''[[
== Comic Books ==
* Extremely common in superhero comics, for [[Super Strength|obvious reasons]]. By way of an example, [[Batman]] is a large and powerfully built man. [[Wonder Woman]] is a slim and athletic woman ([[Depending
** [[
** Averted with some super-strong heroines; [[She Hulk]] and [[Power Girl]] (to name two) are typically drawn [[Amazonian Beauty|with a body-builder's level of muscularity]], being among the rare believers in the idea that just because you already have super-strength doesn't mean you can't benefit from pumping some iron to get even stronger.
*** But much like Wonder Woman, it depends on the artist. There are times [[She Hulk]] is drawn without muscles.
** So common in fact that when [[Supergirl|Kara Zor-El]] returned in 2004, writers were easily able to tease the fan base with the idea that the slender 16 year old girl might be stronger than her full grown powerfully built cousin Superman. Turns out, he just holds himself back [[World of Cardboard Speech|due to living his whole life in a world made of cardboard.]]
* [[X-Men
* ''[[
* ''[[Spider-Man]]'' possesses incredible strength but also possesses a thin physique that earned him the nickname "Puny Parker".
== Fan Works ==
* Paul in ''[[
** John qualifies when he's wearing his illusion cloak, which makes him look like his normal skinny Earth self.
== Film ==
* ''[[
* Justified in ''[[
{{quote|
'''Neo:''' No.
'''Morpheus:''' You think that's air you're breathing right now?
'''Neo:'''...! }}
* The second [[Transformers (
* [[Sherlock Holmes (
** Doesn't work quite so well with the big French guy, who wipes the floor with Sherlock. It takes two to bring him down.
* In ''[[
* In ''[[How to Train Your Dragon (
* In ''[[
== Literature ==
* [[Lampshade Hanging|Lampshaded]] and [[Subverted Trope]] in Robert Asprin's [[Myth Adventures]] - Guido is getting the "size doesn't matter in a fight" lecture from a drill sergeant, and muses that this only works if the little guy is very skillfull while the big guy is very UN-skillful. He then proceeds to break the arm of the drill instructor, who had been planning to use him as a tackle dummy.
* In ''[http://qntm.org/?power Power of Two]'' (part of the "Fine Structure" series at [[
* Justified in ''[[
* [[Sherlock Holmes]] is tall and wiry, but he is also extremely strong. After a burly man threatens him in "The Speckled Band" by bending an iron poker, Holmes casually straightens it.
* Ditto [[
* ''[[Redwall]]'': [[Continuity Drift]] makes it hard to tell whether the animal characters are supposed to be human-sized, animal-sized, or somewhere in between, but it's pretty clear that animals which are smaller in the real world tend to be at least a ''little'' smaller within the canon than animals which are larger in the real world. It seems to be a rule that the [[What Measure Is a Non-Cute?|small cute animals]] are the good guys and therefore more likely to win in any given fight. Mice versus rats is okay, but when a squirrel can fight a wolverine to a standstill it looks a tad odd.
** The size difference between animals appears to have decreased between books. The original had Cluny vs. Matthias and Cluny was far larger, and Constance was even bigger than he was, indicating a roughly accurate size difference that continued through the early books. About halfway through the series or so the difference seems to have changed from a normal person fighting a T. Rex to a smallish person fighting a tiger or something. Actual physical strength doesn't appear to be different except in extreme cases like badgers etc.
* Elves and Riders in the ''[[Inheritance Trilogy]]'' are often capable of feats of strength (and speed and magic too) beyond that of most humans, including humans with way bigger muscles. Eragon himself notes this in Brisingr by comparing his muscles to his cousin Roran's much larger muscles.
* ''[[
* This trope is also used in the ''[[Dragaera]]'' novels. Dragaerans, while admittedly averaging about a foot taller than normal humans (or "Easterners", as they call
* First played straight in ''Graceling'', as Katsa's extreme talent, flexibility, and speed make her too [[Badass]] for strength to matter much, but subverted once she meets another Graced fighter ({{spoiler|though of course Po's Grace is a bit more complex than that}}) and realizes her size and relative weakness do disadvantage her.
* The Doctor, in the ''[[
{{quote|
The Doctor shook his head. 'Not necessarily.'
'Oh?'
The Doctor turned and looked her dead in the eye. 'Would you say I'm very strong?' he asked.
This seemed to amuse her. 'Not really.'
But the Doctor was serious. 'Strange,' he said quietly, 'because I could break you in half as easy as sneeze.'
There was silence for a moment. Awkward silence. }}
** The Seventh Doctor in the [[Virgin New Adventures]], while not being as physically active as his [[The Nth Doctor|older counterpart]], is often described as having an uncanny strength, and the grip of a bear, when need be. He's 5'6" and of a small build.
* ''Sisterhood'' series by [[Fern Michaels]]: Yoko Akia. She is 4 feet 8 inches (1.46304 metres) tall, she weighs 90 pounds (40.82 kilograms), and just about everything about her is tiny. She can flatten just about anybody bigger, more muscular and weightier than her in a fight and her fellow Sisters and Vigilantes call her "the 90-pound stick of dynamite"! In the book ''Lethal Justice'', Yoko (who supposedly has a brown belt) spars against Harry Wong, who is likely a [[Bruce Lee]] [[Expy]], has a black belt, is bigger than her, has more muscle than her, and could supposedly flatten her without difficulty. Instead, the little "porcelain doll" (as Harry described her) ended up pinning him to the ground. Harry afterwards admits to Jack Emery that that was the first time he was ever pinned to the ground!
* [[Mistborn]], those who can burn pewter gain [[Super Strength]] but no muscle mass, Vin, a 5 foot nothing skinny girl can beat the living crap out of several large men at once when burning pewter.
* Stated in ''[[The King Killer Chronicles]]'' with the matriarchal Adem culture of warrior-philosophers. The hero's female mentor states that women are better fighters then men because they are more moral and therefore understand their fighting style better. The hero asks about men's superior reach and strength, which the mentor dismisses as irrelevant. Since Adem are far and away the most skilled warriors in the world, their views are apparently justified.
== Live Action TV ==
* ''[[
** Vampires in this series are like that as well.
** Considering that the super strength of both Slayers and demons is mystically endowed size doesn't matter at all. The strength is clearly not in the muscles.
** Also true of Connor in the spin-off ''[[
* Discussed in ''[[
* Niki/Jessica Sanders, Knox, and now Mohinder on ''[[Heroes (TV series)|Heroes]]''.
** There was also the soldier who was injected with the [[Super Serum]].
* Elliot from ''[[
{{quote|
** She is also shown to have absurdly strong thighs, to the point that she can break lunch trays with them.
* ''[[
* [[Doctor Who
* ''[[Star Trek]]'': Vulcans (and their kin, the Romulans and the Remans) are twice as strong as humans - Spock has effortlessly wiped the floor with Kirk at least two times in the series. And [[Star Trek:
** Data's strength is shown when a Klingon tries to challenge him in their version of arm-wrestling (B'aht Qul). Data effortlessly beats him, at which point the angry Klingon tries to headbutt the android. Data simply points out that his skull is made out of the same stuff they make starship hulls.
* In ''[[
* X-5 series transgenic supersoldiers in ''[[Dark Angel]]''. While Zack is fairly bulky, Max and Alec have roughly the same level of enhanced physical prowess.
* In ''[[Chuck]]'', a new version of the Intersect computer can upload martial arts skills into a user's brain, giving guys with [[Geek Physiques]] the ability to beat up trained soldiers without any change in muscle size.
== Professional Wrestling ==
* Pro wrestling usually averts this trope, but when [[World Wrestling Entertainment|WWE]] had The Hurricane, he would often chokeslam wrestlers several times his own size. (The chokeslam normally being reserved for [[The Giant|huge wrestlers]].) Hey, he is supposed to be a [[Superhero]], after all.
* There was also He Who Must Not Be Named ({{spoiler|[[Chris Benoit]]}}). Part of his "Silent But Violent" persona was that he was ridiculously strong for his size and able to perform power moves on wrestlers literally twice his size.
* In one of his books [[Mick Foley]] once wrote that when a wrestler had a less than stellar physique, the commentators would often cover for the wrestler's ability to throw guys around by claiming they had exceptional ''tendon'' strength. In some cases, such as with Dan "The Beast" Severn, it was true.
* While it is normal for lightweight wrestlers to be squashed by the big guys they are plenty of cases where the smaller guys (and girls) can get the win against them. This can normally only be done with high flyers who rely on hit-and-run type tactics.
* If you're a muscular WWE Diva then it's not wise to assume the [[Waif Fu]] girls will be an easy win. Just ask [[Beth Phoenix]].
== Tabletop Games ==
* In most if not all [[Superhero]] roleplaying games -- such as ''[[Villains and Vigilantes]], [[Champions]], [[GURPS Supers]]'' and more -- body mass and physical strength are completely decoupled. (Then again, that's usually true for any genre of roleplaying game but it's far more noticeable in superhero games.) It's possible to make slender, three-foot faerie-type who can pound [[The Incredible Hulk]] into the dirt with ease.
== Video Games ==
* In ''[[Super Smash Bros
* This can be seen in MMORPGs as well. Since character appearances are purely aesthetic, a large muscular character could be defeated with ease by a smaller character.
** Extremely apparent in ''[[
** Create a male draenei or orc mage in '' [[
*** Or a gnome, who in many cases will be swinging weapons larger than him/her self, and is just as capable as a tauren of tearing you to shreds.
** Not just MMO's, any game with a customizable [[Statistically Speaking|strength stat]] is susceptible to this because often the character model doesn't match the stats. Case in point, in ''[[
*** Try attacking a Behemoth with a levelled up Yuna doing 99999 damage. The wimpy sound she makes as she swings her staff just makes it that much stranger.
* [[Super Mario Bros.|Mario]] as well; he can do things like lift Bowser by the tail, spin him around swiftly and throw him across an arena [[Shaped Like Itself|with just his arms]] in ''[[
* In the third ''[[
* In a word, ''[[
** Or blow up planets...
* ''[[Kingdom Hearts]]''' Sora, like most [[Kid Hero
** Same thing that applies to Axel, goes with Larxene.
*** This is lampshaded early on in the first game, with Maleficent openly stating that "the boy's strength is not his own". It's implied that a combination of the Keyblade's magic and [[The Power of Friendship]] is what allows him to kick so much ass.
* Pick ''any'' [[One-Hit-Point Wonder]] [[Nintendo Hard]] 80s/early 90s game where you play a bare-chested, supermuscloid juggernaut. (''Karnov'', ''[[
* Link from ''[[The Legend of Zelda]]'' is generally on the small side and, even as an adult, doesn't get much bulkier than "wiry [[Bishounen]]" (and, if you're willing to go outside canon and take ''[[Soul Series|SoulCalibur II]]'' as a visual reference, barely grazes even ''five feet''). He also generally lacks any super powers beyond an [[Determinator|absurd level of courage]] and maybe a few acquired spells. So how is it that the guy can fight toe-to-toe with the [[Large and In Charge|hulking]] [[Big Bad]] or spontaneously perform backflips while wearing ''chainmail''? And that doesn't even get into the time he out-Sumo Wrestled a ''giant rock creature'' because he was wearing heavy boots.
** Although ''[[The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
** To be fair, in ''Ocarina of Time'' Adult Link is a larger guy than most of the population.
** In ''Wind Waker'' Link was about 4 feet tall, one of the smallest characters in the game. Ganon was almost thrice Link's height!
** This part of the series is so odd that even Miyamoto commented on it as peculiar. Of course in many cases it's justified by his possession of a strength-enhancing magical accouterment (in the last two set-top games, you get some in the first dungeon). To give an idea of how powerful these can make Link, by the end of ''[[The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
* Dante of ''[[
** All of his feats and strength are easily explained by the fact that he's supernatural. Despite being a bishonen though, he is actually of above average build (the degree varies from game to game).
** He's not only supernatural but also magical as well. He can after all create a footing in thin air, why not enhance strength with magic?
* Little Mac from ''[[Punch
* The original ''[[Mega Man (
* Saber from ''[[Fate/stay
* Kinda averted in [[
* Played with in ''[[Prototype (
* Makoto Nanaya of ''[[
* ''[[
** The sniper rifle in question, the [[Names to Run Away From Really Fast|M-98 Widow]], is an ''anti-tank rifle''.<ref>"The Widow was never designed to be carried and fired by a human. Although this modified model can be carried, no ordinary human could fire it without shattering an arm."</ref>
* One of the augmentations the Spartans received in the ''[[Halo (
* While not as scrawny as some of the other video game characters listed, in ''[[
* Cloud from ''[[
** If Cloud doesn't count because of all his mako enhancements, then Tifa most definitely does. She looks like a waif, but she can keep pace with Jenova-enhanced [[Super Soldier
* Similarly, Fenris of ''[[
* In ''[[Saints Row:
* As the result of an [[Emergency Transformation]] gone wrong, Gauldoth from ''[[
== [[Web Comics]] ==
* Bun-Bun from ''[[
* ''[[The Inexplicable Adventures of Bob]].'' Molly's alien pet Snookums is about the size of a basketball, but began as a [[Kaiju|giant monster]] before getting [[Incredible Shrinking Man|shrunk.]] He retains all his original mass, so the ground shakes when he hops around, and he can defeat much larger opponents simply by hopping into them.
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20150508052219/http://adventurers.keenspot.com/d/20020114.html Discussed] in ''[[Adventurers
== Web Original ==
* In evidence in ''[[Tales of MU]]'', where many characters' strength comes from magic. The protagonist Mackenzie Blaise is among the stronger characters, but appears to be an underdeveloped eighteen-year-old girl. [[Psycho Lesbian|Puddy]] is more muscular in appearance, but not enough to account for the fact that she's sometimes stronger than a dragon.
* In the web fiction [[
== Western Animation ==
* ''[[
* Disney's [[Hercules (
* Bamm-Bamm as an infant on ''[[The Flintstones]]''. [[The Pebbles and Bamm
* Ed, Sarah, and Rolf from ''[[Ed, Edd 'n' Eddy
* [[The Life and Times of Juniper Lee|Juniper Lee]] displays remarkable super strength compared to her appearance. Justified in that she's the [[The Chosen One|Te Xuan Ze]] and her super strength is magical.
* Stewie Griffin of ''[[
* June from ''[[
* In ''[[
* [[
* [[
* On ''[[
* In ''[[
== Truth In Television ==
Line 269 ⟶ 272:
* While machines were adopted for weight training because they keep the weight from moving around in an unsafe manner, this has turned out to cause more injuries than traditional methods because it works out major muscle groups without also engaging stability muscles. In recent years, there's been a shift to "strongman"-style training with awkward loads (sandbags, water tubes, medicine balls, etc.) to give athletes control to back their strength.
* It's entirely possible for a diet to provide enough calories to get stronger, but not enough to gain muscle mass. It's much more common with vegetarian and vegan athletes who can reach their optimal protein intake with fewer total calories.
* Varvara Akulova. Amazingly strong and has been lifting weights since a very young age. At her early teenage years she could lift 350
* Abraham Lincoln was unusually tall and thin, but according to several sources, [https://web.archive.org/web/20150515133925/http://www.lincolnportrait.com/physical_man.asp was quite a good wrestler in his youth.]
{{reflist}}
[[Category:Characterization Tropes]]
[[Category:Muscles Are Meaningless]]
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