History Main / BumblingDad

Naturally, this is filled with [[UnfortunateImplications problematic messages]]. This trope essentially agrees that dads shouldn't be expected to do anything but watch sports and drink beer, but rather than being due to traditional gender roles, it's because they're simply too stupid and incompetent to accomplish anything else. While indirectly paying women a compliment by depicting them as the more capable gender, women are therefore expected to be the responsible ones and to shoulder all of the work of keeping a household stable. Asking a man to do something, like look after the kids, is only asking for disaster, and the long-suffering woman can only sigh and clean up his mess. Traditional gender roles are therefore still enforced. The reasoning is simply re-framed in a way that infantilizes men. It also present the mother as either cruel or indifferent when there is no explanation for why she doesn't try to [[AnticsEnablingWife stop some of the more dangerous behaviour]].

* Naruto and Sasuke are this in ''Manga/{{Boruto}}''. There's a good balance of it being PlayedForLaughs and PlayedForDrama. Not helping is Naruto not having parents to begin with, and Sasuke's parents being somewhat incompetent.

* Kogoro Mouri of ''Manga/CaseClosed'' is a loser, but his care towards his daughter Ran is utterly remarkable, which makes him a PapaWolf all the way. He may burn through a bar's worth of alcohol and tobacco in a day, but if anyone threatens his little girl Ran and his charge Conan ''he will have their face for a doily.''

His family is made up of at least one child nearing or in their teenage years, and a [[WomenAreWiser wife]] (usually [[UglyGuyHotWife much prettier than Dad]]) who spends her time ParentingTheHusband. If he has one or more teenage daughters, at least one will be a BrattyTeenageDaughter or a DaddysGirl; whether they are or not, the dad will be a BoyfriendBlockingDad in regards to the girl(s) -- and quite often [[AmazinglyEmbarrassingParents Amazingly Embarrassing]] to the girls and the boys alike.

This trope is still mostly seen in [[SitCom sitcoms]] and cartoons, along with many commercials, especially ones aimed at kids. In {{anime}}, this type of character is taken more respectfully, since it usually consists of a goofier dad, more involved with his family than the stereotypical {{Salaryman}}. This is even more common when his children have [[ParentalAbandonment no visible]] [[MissingMom mother]]. When the mother is visible she'll often be presented as [[WomenAreWiser knowing better]] but doing [[AnticsEnablingWife nothing to stop the dad]].

* The comic ''ComicStrip/AdamAtHome'' embodies (and lives on) this trope with its [[TheDitz bungling]] and adorkable ([[SubvertedTrope though still rather competent]]) title character, apart from his [[UglyGuyHotWife reasonably more attractive]] [[WomenAreWiser (and assertive) wife]], his two kids (his son is somewhat of a CheerfulChild and his daughter is quite bratty) and [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking more recently]], [[PreciousPuppies a labradoodle]].

* ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'': Randy Marsh has [[{{Flanderization}} drifted in this direction]] over the years; in the beginning, he rarely appeared (and the first episode he played a major part in needed him because he was a scientist); now, he usually gets caught up in every stupid fad, and is frequently portrayed as the single dumbest individual in any of the kids' families, while [[WomenAreWiser his wife]] is one of the sanest ([[AdultsAreUseless ...of the adults, at least]]).

* ''Franchise/ThePowerpuffGirls'': Professor Utonium, despite having a talent for science and inventing, as well as his mostly loving nature to his three superhero little girls, still falls victim to this trope, [[AdultsAreUseless because almost every adult in Townsville is an idiot for the sake of plot]].

Born out of the SitCom DysfunctionalFamily, he's a deliberate subversion of the StandardFiftiesFather. Now so ubiquitous the older trope is nearly [[ForgottenTrope forgotten]].

This is an example of how a SubvertedTrope can end up becoming the norm. Back in the day, fathers were assumed to be [[StandardFiftiesFather wise and in charge]], and the bumbling dad was something fresh and unusual--which was arguably what made it so funny in the first place. Today, despite some pushback, sitcoms have made bumbling dads an UndeadHorseTrope, and consistently competent fathers are a comparative rarity.

* ''ComicStrip/Blondie1930'': Dagwood Bumstead ranges between a StandardFiftiesFather and this. Justified by his IdleRich background -- he never learned to do most of the things required of him as a working-class father.

* WesternAnimation/{{Goofy}}: In ''WesternAnimation/GoofTroop'', ''WesternAnimation/AGoofyMovie'' and, earlier, in [[WesternAnimation/ClassicDisneyShorts his '50s cartoon shorts]] where he attempted to play a StandardFiftiesFather named George Geef. A perfect example of this trope in action is "Father's Day Off", in which Goofy, as Geef, [[ADayInHerApron assumes his wife's duties while she goes out for the day]]. However, it's easy to forgive Goofy for being bumbling as a family man, because bumbling has always been part of his overall personality.

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Hilda}}: The eponymous character’s father Anders is this: he’s a freedom-loving explorer, who gets into risky misadventures on air, but he loves his daughter greatly and two gladly spend time together as much as possible.

This is an example of how a SubvertedTrope can end up becoming the norm. Back in the day, fathers were assumed to be [[StandardFiftiesFather wise and in charge]], and the bumbling dad was something fresh and unusual--which was arguably [[SeinfeldIsUnfunny what made it so funny in the first place.]] Today, despite some pushback, sitcoms have made bumbling dads an UndeadHorseTrope, and consistently competent fathers are a comparative rarity.

* ''WesternAnimation/AsToldByGinger'': Jonas is an example of how this trope can affect children [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome in real life]]. Jonas left the family years prior to the series and only recently began trying to reconnect with them despite seeming borderline incapable of keeping his word. One kid sees him through rose-colored glasses and wants him and their mother to get back together so they can be a happy family ([[BrokenPedestal and is later sobered up to the reality]]), the other is bitter and resentful at being abandoned, and both children seem to have issues with trust linked to their father's lack of reliability. To top it off, Jonas is very aware of how much of a flake he is and eventually gives his ex-wife away to a second husband who is far more reliable than he was.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheProudFamily.'' Oscar Proud is an unsuccessful inventor of snack foods. He regularly engages in, and loses, competitions with his {{Rival}} "The Wizard." He is the frequent victim of cartoon-slapstick mishaps. His mother, the "cool" grandmother Sugar Momma, insults him constantly. And to top it all off, many episodes portray him foolishly overprotective of his daughter Penny.

This is an example of how a SubvertedTrope can end up becoming the norm. Back in the day, fathers were assumed to be [[StandardFiftiesFather wise and in charge]], and the bumbling dad was something fresh and unusual--which was arguably [[SeinfeldIsUnfunny what made it so funny in the first place.]] Today, sitcoms have made bumbling dads an UndeadHorseTrope, and consistently competent fathers are a comparative rarity.

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Bluey}}'': Bluey's father Bandit is a very {{downplayed}} case; although Bandit tends be goofy and act quite brashly at times, a lot of his bumbling tends to come from him being BornUnlucky than any foolishness. He is overall portrayed as being a lot more down-to-earth and understanding than most other examples of this trope. He's also a highly competent dad and can even be a StealthMentor at times through the games he plays with his daughters.

Naturally, this is filled with problematic messages. This trope essentially agrees that dads shouldn't be expected to do anything but watch sports and drink beer, but rather than being due to traditional gender roles, it's because they're simply too stupid and incompetent to accomplish anything else. While indirectly paying women a compliment by depicting them as the more capable gender, women are therefore expected to be the responsible ones and to shoulder all of the work of keeping a household stable. Asking a man to do something, like look after the kids, is only asking for disaster, and the long-suffering woman can only sigh and clean up his mess. Traditional gender roles are therefore still enforced. The reasoning is simply re-framed in a way that infantilizes men. It also present the mother as either cruel or indifferent when there is no explanation for why she doesn't try to [[AnticsEnablingWife stop some of the more dangerous behaviour]].

This is an example of how a SubvertedTrope can end up becoming the norm. Back in the day, fathers were assumed to be wise and in charge, and the bumbling dad was something fresh and unusual--which was arguably [[SeinfeldIsUnfunny what made it so funny in the first place.]] Today, sitcoms have made bumbling dads an UndeadHorseTrope, and consistently competent fathers are a comparative rarity.

* Bobby Rivers in the Australian sitcom ''All Together Now'', a middle aged [[BritishRockStar ex-rock star]] [[DiscoDan stuck in the 60s]]. When he finds out he's the father of preteen twins as the result of an old fling years earlier, [[PromotionToParent he tries to make up for lost time]].
* Played with in the Hallmark Channel movie ''Christmas In The Air'', in which the father appears to be a classic example of this. The root of this, however, is him struggling to run his business and raise his kids in wake of his wife's death. Once he hires a professional organizer, he gets it together.

* Tucker from ''WebAnimation/{{Anon}}'', especially in Season 6. His sexual health advice to teenage son Connor is especially awkward. Don't be silly, wrap your willy.

* Bobby Rivers in the Australian sitcom ''All Together Now'', a middle aged [[BritishRockStar ex-rock star]] [[DiscoDan stuck in the 60s]]. When he finds out he's the father of preteen twins as the result of an old fling years earlier, [[PromotedToParent he tries to make up for lost time]].

* Bobby Rivers in the Australian sitcom ''All Together Now'', a middle aged RockStar [[DiscoDan stuck in the 60s]]. When he finds out he's the father of preteen twins as the result of an old fling years earlier, [[PromotedToParent he tries to make up for lost time]].

* Dagwood Bumstead on ''ComicStrip/{{Blondie}}'' ranges between a StandardFiftiesFather and this. Justified by his IdleRich background-- he never learned to do most of the things required of him as a working-class father.

* ''Franchise/ThePowerpuffGirls'': Professor Utonium, despite having a talent for science and inventing, as well as his mostly loving nature to his three superhero little girls, still falls victim to this trope, [[AdultsAreUseless because almost every adult in Townsville is an idiot for the sake of plot sake of plot]].

* In ''Literature/HarryPotter'', Arthur Weasley (Ron's father) somewhat gives off this vibe, although he seems to be competent enough when it really counts. [[GenerationXerox Ron possibly fulfills this trope during the epilogue era.]] Vernon Dursley might count as a rare villainous version.