History Main / AdaptationalBadass

* ''Webcomic/SweetLullaby'' gives unexpected moments of badassery to its characters, such as [[EverybodyHatesMimes Mime]] possessing magic powers, [[SiblingsInCrime Lifty and Shifty]]'s combat skills, [[BumblingDad Pop]] being a [[DadTheVeteran retired general]], among others. Considering the source material has all of them subjected to [[BloodyHilarious over-the-top gory injuries]] and even suffering [[TheyKilledKennyAgain gruesome deaths in a given episode]] for the ''[[MadeOfPlasticine slightest]]'' inconvenience, they're able to withstand much more this time around.

** Jay and Kay the ''Film/MenInBlack'' are able to take out all of the [[Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy2014 The Guardians of the Galaxy]] at once, this contrasts to the films where one alien cockoroach almost killed them both.
** [[Film/TheLordOfTheRings Aragon]] with Andúri is able overpower [[Franchise/StarWars Luke]] with his freaking lightsaber and dismember him, granted it appeared to be the inexperienced ''Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack'' Luke, but Aragon anywhere else would usually get swatted againist a Force User.
** Similarly [[Series/GameOfThrones Jon Snow]] is able to kill Iceman (mistaking him for a Whitewalker), despite Bobby being a Omega Level mutant i.e unlikely to get easily cut down by a muggle, even a skilled one like Jon.
** [[Franchise/{{Terminator}} The Terminator]] is able to kill both Robocop and Judge Dredd simultaneously and then crush Iron Man's head, sure the T800 is badass, but nowhere near ''that'' badass.
** The Hulk is able to give Superman the Loki treatment (i.e smashing him into the ground repeatedly). While yes [[Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse MCU Hulk]] is extremely strong he still wouldn't likely be able to mandhandle [[Franchise/DCExtendedUniverse DCEU]] Supes like that, especially given unlike the comics Hulks isn't the strongest in TheVerse of his films while Clark for most part ''is''.
** Rey is pretty powerful, but nowhere as powerful compared to other Force Users in ''Star Wars'' (she needed all the deceased Jedi's spirits powering her up to beat Palpatine). Here however she almost wins the bowl, killing Batman and even beats both [[Film/TheMatrix Neo]] and Scarlet Witch (in any other fight Wanda and Neo would make mincemeat out of her, espeically the former).
** Cyclops is able to use his [[EyeBeams Optic Blasts]] to shoot through Captain America's vibranium shield and put a hole through Steve's sternum. In the comics, Cap's shield can reflect Scott's blasts no problem. Doubley impressive given the Fox version of Cyclops's Optic Blasts are pretty pathetic compared to the comics.
** The ''Franchise/JurassicPark'' Velociraptor despite being a regular dinosaur, takes down both the Xenomorph and Venom simultaneously.
** Darth Vader is always badass, but this version is ''ridiculous'' he one-shots Sauron before taking down Darth Maul, his grandson Kylo, the Predator and the Alien Queen all without breaking a sweat. In ''Fanfictasia'' Annie matches both Thor and Hela giving them the PsychicStrangle while tanking Thor's lightning, '''''despite lightning being the very thing that kills him in the films!'''''
** The Wicked Witch of West is a serious threat within ''Film/TheWizardOfOz'' but not so much anywhere else, yet here she has an incredible kill streak taking down Bellatrix Lastrange, Scarecrow, Sabretooth ("Cowardly Lion") and even goddamn Ultron ("Tinman").
** The ''Film/XMenFilmSeries'' version of Jean Grey's Dark Phoinex was nowhere as powerful as she was in the comics (not being able to survive a MercyKill snikt from Wolverine), here however she takes down pretty much everyone and is even able to match and kill MCU Thanos himself.
** Both Deadpool and Harely Quinn despite being not being heavy hitters in their franchises are able to win/survive the respective Superhero and Supervillain Bowls much to their disbelief. Though it turns out it was AllAccordingToPlan from both the heroes and villains in order to stop GreaterScopeVillain Oscar.

* ''WebAnimation/ToonSandwich'''s ''[[TheUltimateShowdownOfUltimateDestiny Super-Hero-Bowl and Super-Villain-Bowl]]'' as well as ''Fanfictasia'' gives this treatmeant to LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters alongside AdaptationalWimp, though it's mainly PlayedForLaughs.

** Both Deadpool and Harely Quinn despite being not being heavy hitter in their franchises are able to win/survive the respective Superhero and Supervillain Bowls much to their disbelief. Though it turns out it was AllAccordingToPlan from both the heroes and villains in order to stop GreaterScopeVillain Oscar.

** Downplayed in [[Recap/DEATHBATTLES02E19ChuckNorrisVSSegataSanshiro Chuck Norris Vs Segata Sanshiro]] Creator/ChuckNorris as a RealLife person is plenty badass, it's that the fight takes into account the various MemeticBadass feats he has amassed over the years as well as feats from his movies and cartoons. This allows Chuck kick with the force of the Big Bang and punch with the third fist that is his chin.

** The Wicked Witch of West is a serious threat within ''Film/TheWizardOfOz'' but not so much any where else, yet here she has an incredible kill streak taking down Bellatrix Lastrange, Scarecrow, Sabretooth ("Cowardly Lion") and even goddamn Ultron ("Tinman").

* ''WebAnimation/ToonSandwich'''s Superhero Bowl and Supervillain Bowl as well as ''Fanfictasia'' gives this treatmeant to LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters alongside AdaptationalWimp, though it's mainly PlayedForLaughs.

* {{Satan}}, in most Abrahamic scriptures where he appears, is a fallen angel whose defeat is a given from day one and whose antics on earth are basically a bully picking on the [[{{God}} teacher]]'s [[HumansAreSpecial pets]] and who can be foiled by any yokel with faith or some brains. Starting in the Middle Ages, demonologists began writing interpretations of him that expand on details that the Bible left vague. As of today, Satan is viewed by Christian theologians as a nigh-omnipotent force of evil second only to God himself in terms of raw power, and is only kept from creating HellOnEarth by the forces of light remaining ever vigilant. Likewise, he even has a good chance at obtaining ultimate victory at the end of days.

At its core this causes a significant dissonance with those familiar with the original character. It is not about a change in personality (MartialPacifist to BloodKnight), method of fighting (defensive MartialArtsStaff to offensive {{BFS}}) or battlefield intelligence (DumbMuscle to GeniusBruiser), but in terms of how relevant they are ''in'' a fight. The key is how they are able to navigate through the story. Consider as a result of PowerCreepPowerSeep that Franchise/{{Superman}} himself has varied from simply "above human" in strength to near godlike, but he has always been [[FlyingBrick Superman]].

At its core this causes a significant dissonance with those familiar with the original character. It is not about a change in personality (MartialPacifist to BloodKnight), method of fighting (defensive SimpleStaff to offensive {{BFS}}) or battlefield intelligence (DumbMuscle to GeniusBruiser), but in terms of how relevant they are ''in'' a fight. The key is how they are able to navigate through the story. Consider as a result of PowerCreepPowerSeep that Franchise/{{Superman}} himself has varied from simply "above human" in strength to near godlike, but he has always been [[FlyingBrick Superman]].

* Music/HeatherDale's [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGvepxEl7Pw version of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.]] The song that was originally about Gawain's failure became a story of how perfect he was.

* Sometimes a character is ''defined'' by being not the fighter: their usefulness to the team is their intelligence, [[TheHeart peacekeeping among teammates]] or being a FriendToAllLivingThings. When making such a character become violent in any form, a side effect is that they appear and act brutish as a trade-off, risking fans reacting TheyChangedItNowItSucks.

** Harley Q was a pathetic WarmUpBoss. Now, he is a NighInvulnerable BlobMonster that takes the heroes' combined efforts to take down. After that not only is he still alive, but he [[spoiler:eventually turns into an EldritchAbomination that devours [[KillEmAll everyone]] and everything in the Junkyard]].

* ''WebAnimation/DeathBattle'':
** This trope applies to Franchise/HarryPotter. Not that he was slacking in the book series, but in his fight with [[Franchise/StarWars Luke Skywalker]], he's capable of pulling off feats he canonically didn't.
** [[Franchise/MortalKombat Shao Kahn]] undergoes this in his fight with [[Franchise/MortalKombat Akuma]]. [[spoiler:While Shao Kahn survived Liu Kang punching a hole into his torso in ''VideoGame/MortalKombat9'' and would've recovered, he still needed Quan Chi's help to speed his healing up enough get back up to stop his underlings from debating who'd replace him when he did -- and he was still staggering while doing this. Here, he's back on his feet under his own power and able to resume the fight -- and while Akuma pummeled him for a bit, Shao Kahn was still able to land the killing blow and win the battle with a TorsoWithAView.]]

** this trope applies to Franchise/HarryPotter. Not that he was slacking in the book series, but in his fight with [[Franchise/StarWars Luke Skywalker]], he's capable of pulling off feats he canonically didn't.
** [[Franchise/MortalKombat Shao Kahn]] undergoes this in his fight with [[Franchise/MortalKombat Akuma]]. [[spoiler:While Shao Kahn survived Liu Kand punching a hole into his torso in ''VideoGame/MortalKombat9'' and would've recovered, he still needed Quan Chi's help to speed his healing up enough get back up to stop his underlings from debating who'd replace him when he did -- and he was still staggering while doing this. Here, he's back on his feet under his own power and able to resume the fight -- and while Akuma pummeled him for a bit, Shao Kahn was still able to land the killing blow and win the battle with a TorsoWithAView.]]

** [[FRanchise/MortalKombat Shao Kahn]] undergoes this in his fight with [[Franchise/MortalKombat Akuma]]. [[spoiler:While Shao Kahn survived Liu Kand punching a hole into his torso in ''VideoGame/MortalKombat9'' and would've recovered, he still needed Quan Chi's help to speed his healing up enough get back up to stop his underlings from debating who'd replace him when he did -- and he was still staggering while doing this. Here, he's back on his feet under his own power and able to resume the fight -- and while Akuma pummeled him for a bit, Shao Kahn was still able to land the killing blow and win the battle with a TorsonWithAView.]]

** [[FRanchise/MortalKombat Shao Kahn]] undergoes this in his fight with [[Franchise/MortalKombat Akuma]]. [[spoiler:While Shao Kahn survived Liu Kand punching a hole into his torso in ''VideoGame/MortalKombat9'' and would've recovered, he still needed Quan Chi's help to get back up to stop his underlings from debating who'd replace him when he did and was still staggering while doing this. Here, he's back on his feet under his own power and able to resume the fight -- and while Akuma pummeled him for a bit, Shao Kahn was still able to land the killing blow and win the battle with a TorsonWithAView.]]

* ''Ride/GodzillaVsEvangelionTheReal4D'': Who's the one to turn the tide [[spoiler:in the battle against King Ghiodrah]] after Godzilla is drained? [[ShrinkingViolet Shinji Ikari]], who [[spoiler:drives a katana into King Ghidorah]]. He's also the only one who accomplish anything against Godzilla -- and it's the Godzilla of ''Film/ShinGodzilla'' he, Rei, and Asuka are up against.

* In ''WebAnimation/DeathBattle'', this trope applies to Franchise/HarryPotter. Not that he was slacking in the book series, but in his fight with [[Franchise/StarWars Luke Skywalker]], he's capable of pulling off feats he canonically didn't.