History Main / InferioritySuperiorityComplex

* ''WebAnimation/MangaSoprano'' features some of these:
** [[https://youtu.be/JyGWpEM6Z_Y Rui]] strived to take what's precious to her twin sister Ram because people liked the latter more than the former ever since they were little.
** [[https://youtu.be/FW6yfEdRsps Lisa]] picks on Kanade because the latter is way happier than her despite working at a part-time job to make ends meet.

** ''LightNovel/FateApocrypha'': Mordred will often go on rants about how much better she is than her father, King Arthur, with no prompting whatsoever. It is eventually revealed that her wish to become king is [[spoiler:not due to a desire to surpass Arthur, but simply to ease Arthur's burden of leadership]]. Unfortunately, [[YoungerThanTheyLook due to being a pre-teen with an artificially aged body]], Mordred is ''super'' immature and chose the worst way to express this desire.

** ''ComicBook/FantasticFour'': This has been suggested about Characters/DoctorDoom. Creator/MarkWaid wondered if his need to be a ruler who's feared and revered is just trying to forget that as a boy he was penniless and miserable, and that his [[TheResenter bitterness and hatred toward Reed Richards]] comes from the fact that he knows, deep down, that the machine that exploded and burned his face really ''was'' due to his own miscalculation ([[NeverMyFault despite his insistence to the contrary]]) and that he's just bitter that Reed [[AlwaysSomeoneBetter spotted the flaw that he missed]] (and also that [[{{Pride}} he was too stubborn to listen to Reed's advice]]).

** Titania, of ''ComicBook/SheHulk'''s RoguesGallery. [[FreudianExcuse The short and scrawny Mary MacPherran was the butt of the wealthy, popular crowd's cruel jokes and was nicknamed "Skeeter" (as in "mosquito") for her troubles]]. Resenting her lot in life, she dreamed of gaining superpowers to enact revenge upon her tormentors and be admired. After lying about being ComicBook/SpiderWoman backfired, Mary got her wish by hastily agreeing to be experimented on by Doctor Doom, becoming a [[StatuesqueStunner tall]], [[AmazonianBeauty buff]], [[SuperStrength mighty]], and [[TheBrute brutish]] SmugSuper over in her introduction in ''Comicbook/SecretWars1984''. However, she still remains troubled within and what forms the bedrock of her maniacal vendetta against She-Hulk is because [[AlwaysSomeoneBetter She-Hulk always seems to be one step ahead of her]]; this reminds Titania of being Skeeter, and she ''hates'' feeling weak. She actually won her first bout against She-Hulk before she tried picking on none other than ComicBook/SpiderMan. He proceeded to utterly ''[[CurbStompBattle crush]]'' her without breaking a sweat, all while giving her a TheReasonYouSuckSpeech, noting that she's still a "wimpette" underneath her new bullying exterior before she's flung out the window. The defeat actually made her ''terrified'' by Spidey for years.

** ''ComicBook/UncannyXMen'': FatBastard villain the Blob likes to throw his weight around to compensate for a lifetime of being mocked for his porcine mutation. When forced to confront his worst fears by psychic hero Mirage of the ComicBook/NewMutants, he saw a crowd of kids, a ringmaster, and the mutants ComicBook/{{Wolverine}} and [[Characters/MarvelComicsExodus Exodus]] all laughing at him.

* The movie ''Film/TheSapphires'' is the story of an Aboriginal girl group that goes to Vietnam to entertain the troops. The darkest of them, who has spent years being bullied because of her complexion, almost relentlessly bullies the lightest-skinned one because of ''her'' skin tone. Among her crueler comments include suggesting that her sole interest in a black GI is to make herself blacker.

** [[Wrestling/KevinSteen Kevin Owens]] actually had this as his StartOfDarkness, feeling that his own son would never respect him as much as he did Wrestling/JohnCena, and even going so far as to accuse Wrestling/{{WWE}} of being nothing more than a gigantic propaganda machine that brainwashes its fans with constant pro-Cena hoopla - [[VillainHasAPoint with which many actual WWE fans agree]]! Cena himself, in fact, pitied Owens, and [[AllLovingHero tried to break through his anger by reasoning with him]] instead of [[PayEvilUntoEvil being a jerk back to him like most faces would]].

** Princess Azula initially comes across as extremely {{arrogant|KungFuGuy}}, {{manipulative|Bastard}}, and brilliant. She constantly belittles her older brother and treats her friends like the help. Season Three slowly reveals her extreme MommyIssues, her tendency to put down those she secretly envies (she outright admits this to Ty Lee), and her utter dependence on [[WellDoneSonGuy her father's "love"]]. By the season finale, [[spoiler: her friends have left her and her father has made it clear that he's only using her. [[VillainousBreakdown It doesn't end well]].]]

* Chancellor Esteban from ''WesternAnimation/ElenaOfAvalor''. At the beginning of the show, he's a {{Jerkass}} who has little to no faith in Elena's leadership capabilities and even tries to screw with her during negotiations with other kingdoms to show that ''he's'' the [[HypercompetentSidekick "true power behind Avalor"]], something that was true during his tenure under Shuriki in the pilot movie. As the show goes on, he undergoes CharacterDevelopment and we learn that he has always felt he was AlwaysSecondBest to his more talented royal cousins and his [[ToxicFriendInfluence best friend]], to the point that he felt that his family didn't love him, and so he [[spoiler:betrayed them to Shuriki by helping her take over Avalor. He came to regret it.]]

* ''WesternAnimation/TheLooneyTunesShow'' have WesternAnimation/{{Daffy|Duck}} in this trope. Tina accurately guessed that he's an "insecure little weirdo who lies about everything and probably cries himself to sleep". Daffy wasn't offended, in fact; he was impressed that she could see through him so easily.

* In ''WesternAnimation/RickAndMorty'', it's shown that InsufferableGenius Rick has this to the point that [[spoiler: he feels so threatened by the idea of someone being smarter than him that he created a metaphysical wall spanning the entire infinite multiverse, blocking out any AlternateUniverse with someone smarter than him from their section of the multiverse to turn reality itself into a NormalFishInATinyPond situation for him for the sake of his own ego.]] In Season 6 we learn why he's frequently referred to as the "smartest ''[[ResolvedNoodleIncident mammal]]''"; some of the dinosaurs survived and became {{ultraterrestrials}} colonizing the universe. Upon meeting them Rick initially enjoys having what he views as intellectual equals around, but upon discovering they're even smarter than he is, he does an immediate 180 [[ScrewYouElves and becomes hellbent on humiliating them]].

** Homer Simpson occasionally drifts into this trope, with a side order of SourGrapes. ("Why won't those idiots let me into their crappy club for jerks?!")

** The Crystal Gems don't have a monopoly on unhealthy compensation for self-esteem issues. Peridot may feel superior to the Crystal Gems because she fits into Homeworld's system whereas Amethyst's defective, Pearls are low-caste, and Garnet's very existence is illegal, but [[spoiler: she's also an Era 2 gem with no natural powers ([[ExtraOreDinary or at least, none that she knew of]]) while the Crystal Gems are all Era 1 gems. Peridot feels that her worth is defined by the technology she uses, which is why she freaked out over the loss of her limb enhancers and when Amethyst tried to throw away her tablet.]]

* In season one of ''WesternAnimation/YoungJustice'', Artemis always acts cocky and confident, but it's slowly revealed that she is deeply unsure of her own abilities, especially in comparison to her sister (an assassin) and the other heroes, many of whom have super-powers.

* Fictional media often portrays bullies as having low self-esteem, with their big egos being a facade to cover up their insecurities. While this is sometimes true, studies show that most real-life bullies actually have ''high'' self-esteem and genuinely do believe they are better than their targets, making them more of a SmallNameBigEgo than this trope. Still, people who admit to having been bullies as kids have [[http://www.fyiliving.com/health-news/bullies-grow-up-to-become-disturbed-adults/ poorer mental health on average.]] Additionally, bullies who [[SchoolyardBullyAllGrownUp fail to shed their abusive behaviour]] are significantly more likely to become [[{{Sadist}} sadists]], [[TheSociopath sociopaths]], or [[PsychopathicManchild psychopaths]], placing them as being equally more likely to engage in criminal acts or acts of violence in the future.

* Adlerian "individual psychology" is the TropeNamer. Alfred Adler's idea of psychological health was the ability to actualize an ideal self. A superiority complex is what happens when perceived failures to live up to this ideal result in an unhealthy overcompensation as a coping mechanism. A healthier approach (according to Adler) is either a more appropriate self-ideal or working to improve the weak spots.

** Yumihiko Ichiyanagi (or Sebastian Debeste, as named in the unofficial English dub) from'' Ace Attorney Investigations 2'' also has similar issues to Franziska. He thinks he's number one and insults everyone else who is obviously smarter than him. Even characters like [[CluelessDetective Gumshoe]] and [[TheFriendNobodyLikes Larry]] call him out on his stupidity. Yumihiko is incredibly slow to pick up what is going on around him and tends to jump in at the point where everyone is past that. [[spoiler: He obviously wants to please his father, but after that goes to hell for him at the end of the fourth chapter, he has longest and hardest Logic Chess in the game lamenting about how much of a failure he is and the Logic Chess is about helping him get back on his feet instead of breaking the opponent down. For Edgeworth, that is incredibly hard to do given how Yumihiko has been acting for most of the game]].

** Hermione's insecurity being masked by her know-it-all attitude makes her a fascinating comparison to her close friend [[spoiler: and later husband]], Ron Weasley, who is pretty open with his insecurity due to being the youngest son (his brothers have already done a lot and his younger sister was the girl his mother always wanted) while being in the shadow of his best friend and thus tends to get a big head whenever he accomplishes something.
** According to Rowling herself, the person she based Gilderoy Lockhart on may have had this (she's not sure because she "never dug that deep"), so it's possible it could be an explanation for Lockhart's behavior as well. For his part, Creator/KennethBranagh (who played Lockhart) rejects this theory: "I wish I could tell you that it's because he's very insecure. In fact, he's not. He's just a narcissist." Once more of his backstory is revealed, it turns out to be a downplayed example. Lockhart ''does'' have a genuinely over-inflated opinion of himself, but he's also aware of his ineptitude and has spent most of his career using the skills he does have to disguise his shortcomings and turn himself into a celebrity. He could actually have been a talented wizard had he put in the effort, but his ego is so big that he refuses to acknowledge this.

[[/folder]]

[[folder:Web Original]]

* ''WebAnimation/TheTwins2022'': Lake seems to hit a nerve when he states that the only reason why Lucas is so hellbent on getting him in trouble and acting like he's better than him is just to make himself ''feel'' better.

** Twilight Sparkle can be rather condescending and arrogant about [[TheSmartGuy her intelligence over the others]] at times, even after her character arc in the series premiere. However, it's revealed later on that she has imposed [[SuperOCD very high standards]] on herself and is absolutely terrified of disappointing her peers or friends (especially [[BigGood Princess]] [[PalsWithJesus Celestia]]). She once had a ''[[SanitySlippage complete psychotic breakdown]]'' when she was out of schedule for even one single task.

May be a trait of the BrokenAce and BetaTestBaddie or show up in {{deconstruction}}s of the AlphaBitch, JerkJock, BrattyHalfPint, SmugSnake, SmugSuper, InsufferableGenius, ArrogantKungfuGuy, SmallNameBigEgo, or even AGodAmI (i.e straight superiority complex). Compare SadClown, someone who masks their insecurities with humor rather than arrogance. Contrast with HeroicSelfDeprecation, where the person is in fact awesome but the person themselves doesn't believe that they are worth much. Might also overlap with EasilyEmbarrassedYoungster if they're under 18.

** Franziska von Karma tries to hide this about herself. She constantly proclaims her perfection, as well as her confidence in defeating "fools" like Phoenix and Edgeworth (so far, she has been unsuccessful). However, the epilogue of ''Justice For All'' shows that she actually hides a lot of insecurity, and feels a constant pressure to live up to her family legacy of being nothing but absolutely perfect in everything she does. This has pushed her to become a full-fledged criminal prosecutor ''at the age of thirteen''.

** Princess Azula initially comes across as extremely {{arrogant|KungFuGuy}}, {{manipulative|Bastard}}, and brilliant. She constantly belittles her older brother and treats her friends like the help. Season Three slowly reveals her extreme MommyIssues, her tendency to put down those she secretly envies (she outright admits this to Ty Lee), and her utter dependence on [[WellDoneSonGuy her father's "love"]]. By the season finale, [[spoiler: her friends have left her and her father has made it clear that he's only using her. [[FromBadToWorse It]] [[CryForTheDevil doesn't]] [[VillainousBreakdown end]] [[TearJerker well.]]]]

* ''WesternAnimation/TheLooneyTunesShow'' have Daffy in this trope. Tina accurately guessed that he's an "insecure little weirdo who lies about everything and probably cries himself to sleep". Daffy wasn't offended, in fact; he was impressed that she could see through him so easily.

** Originally, this was the whole point of Paperinik (Donald's superhero/antihero alter ego): in the first story, and generally most Italian stories of the time, he was being constantly put down by Scrooge and Gladstone, so when he stumbled on the journal and equipment of Fantomius, the GentlemanThief, [[WhosLaughingNow he used it to steal the money-filled bed Scrooge was sleeping on and humiliate Gladstone]]. While he started becoming a more heroic character even in the earliest stories, the trait never fully disappeared, leading to such things as feigning an EasyAmnesia and literally ''steal away half the city '''just to track down a crime boss that he couldn't find''''' (early in the story he was so furious at his inability to find them that he was about to beat up an already captured minion when the police stopped him).

* An interpretation of Zeus's behavior in the ''Literature/PercyJacksonAndTheOlympians'' series. He quarrels with Poseidon over who their mother Rhea likes better, is paranoid Poseidon is constantly plotting against him, demands respect when no one respects him, closes off Olympus due to wounded pride, and tries to blame others for his mistakes. His massive ego and demanding people respect and obey him come across as at least partially trying to cover up his own mistakes and knowledge he is a failure that no one likes, especially when one compares his treatment of others, and how others, in turn, react to him, with his fellow Kings Ra and Odin in their own series having a lot fewer people in those series who snark or debase their kings (at least when Ra isn't senile, then many of the Egyptians Gods will snark at him.)

** Pick any younger-generation Lannister. Blame it on growing up with [[AbusiveParents Tywin Lannister]] as the head of the clan -- it might just be that the only thing worse for you than being one of the kids who was judged to be a disappointment from very young (say, Tyrion and Lancel) is being one of the kids who was born full of enormous potential that he will never see you as living up to, no matter what you do (Cersei, Jaime and to some extent Joffrey). And, then there's poor Joy Hill's situation; she gets shunted to the side of almost everything because she's his brother's acknowledged bastard... and acknowledging low-tier by-blows is simply beneath Lannisters -- and, despite being kin, you're not a Lannister, Miss ''[[BastardAngst Hill]]''. Until using her as a backhanded [[ArrangedMarriage marriage trinket]] comes along as a possibility, that is: yay, suddenly remembered when nobody else in the extended family wants in on that marriage (or when that whole thing just got misinterpreted)! [[DysfunctionJunction How to mess 'em up, House Lannister.]]

** Ramsay Bolton will always hate having been merely born a Snow. Killing his half-brother was probably one way to try proving to Daddy how Bolton he could be. As well as overdoing it a bit with the family hobbies.

** Franziska von Karma tries to hide this about herself. She constantly proclaims her perfection, as well as her confidence in defeating "fools" like Phoenix and Edgeworth (so far, she has been unsuccessful.) However, the epilogue of ''Justice For All'' shows that she actually hides a lot of insecurity, and feels a constant pressure to live up to her family legacy of being nothing but absolutely perfect in everything she does. This has pushed her to become a full-fledged criminal prosecutor ''at the age of thirteen''.

** Princess Azula initially comes across as extremely {{arrogant|KungFuGuy}}, {{manipulative|Bastard}}, and brilliant. She constantly belittles her older brother and treats her friends like the help. Season Three slowly reveals her extreme MommyIssues, her tendency to put down those she secretly envies (she outright admits this to Ty Lee), and her utter dependence on her father's "love". By the season finale, [[spoiler: her friends have left her and her father has made it clear that he's only using her. [[FromBadToWorse It]] [[CryForTheDevil doesn't]] [[VillainousBreakdown end]] [[TearJerker well.]]]]
** Zuko also behaves very arrogantly early on, though his arrogance dissipates as he starts to go through his prolonged {{Heel Face Turn}}. He's rude to his uncle, berates his crew, and frequently loses his temper over small things. It becomes clear later that this attitude is merely Zuko trying to behave as [[WellDoneSonGuy the son his father wants]], and a defensive result of the pressures and frustrations this desire causes. Zuko is actually a sensitive and compassionate kid, but who sees himself as inferior due to these perceived "weaknesses", especially next to his prodigious, ruthless sister Azula. Furthermore, his compassion and sensitivity were what got him in trouble in the first place (after speaking against a general for planning to use new recruits as cannon fodder. He ends up fighting his dad and getting his telltale scar). After [[HeelFaceTurn joining the Avatar's group]], he comes to realise these are his strengths, not his weaknesses.
** Their father Ozai himself may be a near-identical case. He was TheUnfavourite to his EvilOverlord and emotionally distant father Azulon (who possibly was [[AbusiveParents an abusive father]] [[GenerationXerox with him]]) compared to his older brother, the talented and powerful "Dragon of the West" [[BigGood General Iroh]]. It's less clear than with Azula what Ozai felt about this relationship, but it's not difficult to see the similarities in their cases, their personalities, and their temperaments. He is so bitter about not receiving as much respect as his brother that he demands perfection from his own children and punishes perceived weakness or insubordination in his eldest son with extraordinary brutality; when he promotes himself from Fire Lord to Phoenix King and plans to [[spoiler: exterminate the Earth Kingdom]] he essentially acts like a PsychopathicManchild revelling in childish fantasies of power and greatness, but he was so obsessed with the two mostly because of his insecurities.

* Mao Mao of ''WesternAnimation/MaoMaoHeroesOfPureHeart'' has this in spades. He goes through great lengths to be a hero and look cool while doing it, but he really just wants to prove himself in the eyes of his family and the people around him; this was most evident in the episode "Not Impressed" [[StalkerWithoutACrush where he stalks a]] [[RidiculouslyCuteCritter Sweetie Pie]] who was unimpressed with his heroism.

[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
* ''Manga/AzumangaDaioh'': It's repeatedly implied throughout the series that Tomo's constant teasing and egotistical behavior is a projection of her own insecurities. She has her own concerns about her weight, appearance, and intelligence, yet repeatedly teases her peers for their own faults in these areas and plays herself up as above them all.
* ''Manga/{{Bakuman}}'':
** Miura often seems unshakably confident in his opinions about the direction Mashiro and Takagi should go, especially his belief that gag manga are more likely to maintain their rank than serious manga, but in his thoughts and around his fellow editors, he's less certain of himself, [[ItsAllMyFault blaming himself for]] [[spoiler:Detective Trap getting cancelled]] and believing that he has to get a hit out to keep his job.
** The biggest example of the series is Aiko Iwase, who thinks she is better than anyone else and trashes manga in comparison to literature. When she meets her rival Takagi, who isn't a professional mangaka at the time, but he does not give a fuck about her already being an infamous author, she's quite shocked to learn that the Weekly Shonen Jump sells multiple times more than her books do, so she starts becoming a mangaka to surpass Takagi. At first, her manga becomes very popular, since her partner is the young genius Nizuma, but when the quality of her story goes down, she is stuck in a crisis, until fellow mangakas motivate her to continue her manga again; since this point, Iwase mellows out of her icy ego.
* In the beginning of ''Manga/BlackClover'', Noelle is a haughty royal who believes that she's superior to commoners because she's been mocked all her life by her family for her PowerIncontinence, giving her very low self-esteem as a result. By being accepted by the Black Bulls and gaining confidence as she develops her magic, she grows out of it, even telling a little peasant girl at the Star Festival that social status shouldn't matter.
* ''Manga/{{Bleach}}'': Nnoitra Gilga proclaims himself the strongest Espada (despite being only the 5th strongest one), acting extremely egotistical during his fights. But beneath his arrogant front is man with a deep inferiority complex. He had an inability to win fights, especially against Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck who at the time was the 3rd Espada. That, combined with Nelliel disrespecting and pitying him for his destructive stupidity, caused him to develop a grudge against her that motivated him to ambush her. As his fight with Zaraki Kenpachi starts to drag on, he gets increasingly more desperate and frustrated over being unable to beat the mighty Captain. He hates being spared by an opponent, viewing it as the biggest disrespect to a warrior.
* In ''Manga/Brave10'', Nanakuma is [[{{Tsundere}} tsuntsun]] and extremely haughty, but it's because he's afraid everyone thinks he's the inferior twin and he's desperate to [[CainAndAbel surpass his brother as a result]].
* Chang Ho from ''Manhwa/TheBreaker'', at first, appears to just be a random bully who really doesn't have a reason to harass the protagonist Shi Woon, going so far as to nearly make Shi Woon DrivenToSuicide. However, near the end of ''The Breaker'', and early in the sequel, ''Manga/TheBreakerNewWaves'', the reason becomes clear. Chang Ho is an [[EpicFail abject failure]] in ''everything''. Beating up Shi Woon, [[AdultsAreUseless and getting away with it]] was the only thing he was good at. Once Shi Woon [[TookALevelInBadass is strong and skilled enough to defend himself]] Chang Ho completely loses it and becomes downright desperate to beat Shi Woon, and anyone close to him. He goes after Sae He, trying to gang-rape her. When that fails, thanks to Shi Woon's reckless BigDamnHeroes, and he ultimately gets his ass handed to him, he joins "Soldiers Under Command" and happily swallows their lies about him being "the ''True'' disciple" of 9AD, along with a bunch of experimental drugs, like the Illwundon, and was actually willing to die, rather than admit that Shi Woon is actually a better fighter, never mind a better person in every way. It doesn't excuse his behavior by any means, but it does explain it to some extent.
* In ''Manga/DailyLivesOfHighSchoolBoys'', Girls-only Sanada East's StudentCouncilPresident [[OnlyKnownByTheirNickname Ringo-chan]] only started to have an extremely large ego as she noticed how the boys-only Sanada North has a far more well-run student council.
* Ruruka Ando in ''Anime/Danganronpa3TheEndOfHopesPeakHighSchool'' was known as the [[SupremeChef "Ultimate Confectionist"]]. Like some other [[TheAce Hope's Peak students]], she began to believe that talent was all that matters in life and developed bitter anxiety towards people who wouldn't eat her sweets as she [[BrokenAce thought it was all she had to offer]]. This ends up poisoning her relationship with her [[WeUsedToBeFriends best friend]] with tragic results once the new DeadlyGame kicks off.
* ''Manga/DeathNote'':
** Light seems to be living his life under the assumption that he has to be ''perfect''. Perfect student, perfect son... and then he kills two people by accident just to satisfy his curiosity and his boredom. [[BrokenAce That ruins everything.]] [[GoMadFromTheRevelation It makes him a murderer, evil]]. The only way to become "perfect" again is [[ZerothLawRebellion to become Justice]], [[AGodAmI to become God]]. In his own words, "If Kira is caught, then Kira is evil. [[WrittenByTheWinners If he wins and rules the world, Kira is justice."]] [[BreakTheHaughty He gets caught]]. As per the trope, at times he comes off as desperate to prove himself -- especially in his interactions with L, where he seems to get overly excited even when he gets simple answers right. And "feeling better about themselves by putting others down"...does the ''whole world'' count?
** Mello is a more typical example of the trope -- though Light does count. Ranked second best at a school for genii, Mello is motivated by his ''raging inferiority complex'' which drives him to [[TheUnfettered do whatever it takes]] to prove he's number one and beat Kira and Near. He grows up from being the slighted [[TheBully school bully]] into becoming [[FromNobodyToNightmare a terrorist mafia lord]].
* ''Anime/DigimonAdventure02'': Ken Ichijouji during his stint as the Digimon Kaiser/Emperor. While he claimed to be the "only perfect human being", and frequently called other people derogatory epithets like "maggots" and "insects", he was actually crippled by a sense of worthlessness and guilt. The "superiority" part falls away completely [[spoiler:once he pulls his HeelFaceTurn]].
* ''Franchise/DragonBall'':
** Vegeta of ''Anime/DragonBallZ'' has this problem for most of the series. Although he boasts about being the strongest and the prince of his race, he's come across as having an inferiority complex given his constant need to prove himself and his inability to take trash talk. Not helped by Goku always being one step ahead of him, despite all the training he does and Goku being a low-class warrior. His insecurities reached a head in the Buu Saga where Vegeta sold his morality and family for power just so he could finally beat Goku and regain his status of being the best. It isn't until near the end of the series that he finally makes peace with being second best and takes real pride in what he has.
** Krillin in the [[Manga/DragonBall original series]]. He acts cocky, self-assured, and is a bit of a smartass, but it's all to hide his crippling low self-esteem. He was bullied mercilessly at his former temple for being weak and small, causing him to eventually run away. After becoming friends with Goku and gaining confidence in himself, he drops the superiority act. However, [[CantCatchUp he becomes very aware of how weak he is compared to all the monsters in the universe]], which causes his inferiority complex to return, except he now covers it with humor and self-deprecation.
** In the video games, BigBad Turles from ''Anime/TheTreeOfMight'' becomes this through his interactions with characters he never had the chance to meet in the movie, most notably the higher-class 'Elites' Nappa and Vegeta but also Goku, who he mocks for "all the clumsiness I'd expect of a low-class warrior" despite being a low-class Saiyan himself.
* Louise of ''LightNovel/TheFamiliarOfZero'' is a JerkAss noble that believes she's superior to her {{Love Interest|s}} (who she refers to as a "dog"), but [[TroubledAbuser deep inside she has very low self-esteem]] due to bullying and taunts about [[ACupAngst her breasts]]. Not to mention the pressures from both societal expectations and being a member of the most prominent family next to the royal family of Tristain, and wanting to live up to the Legacy of her mother, the legendary Karin The Heavy Wind.
* In ''Manga/FullmetalAlchemist'', this is pretty much the reason the homunculi sadistically torment humans. This is most explicitly brought up in the case of [[GreenEyedMonster Envy]].
* Gouda, the primary villain of ''Anime/GhostInTheShellStandAloneComplex Second Gig'' is driven by such a complex. He has a [[RedRightHand horribly scarred face]] that he deliberately kept because he thought it made him look distinctive and notable, and all his crimes are ultimately about getting people to acknowledge his genius. He's ''pissed'' when Batou points out [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech that he's a poser who needed a virus to artificially trigger a Stand Alone Complex instead of coming up with something cool enough that people would do so voluntarily like the Laughing Man incident]].
* ''Franchise/{{Gundam}}'':
** Karozo Ronah, the BigBad of ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamF91'', has this as the rotten core of his villainy in spite of the supposedly high-minded ideals of Cosmo Babylonia he spouts. He's not a true Ronah, having married into the villainy, and when his wife Nadia abandoned him for another man he volunteered to become a Cyber-Newtype, throwing himself into the Cosmo Babylonia ideology to cover for his wounded insecurities (which come out anyway in his reunion with Nadia and battle with his daughter, Berah Ronah aka Cecily Fairchild).
** Tieria Erde from ''[[Anime/MobileSuitGundam00 Gundam 00]]'' starts out as a cold, high-and-mighty JerkAss, but when ''he'' makes the kind of mistake he calls his fellow Meisters out on, his disappointment in himself is such that he ''bursts into tears''. And as soon as the supercomputer he's so faithful to ditches him altogether, it's revealed that he's too insecure to do anything on his own without it.
* In a way, the title character of ''LightNovel/HaruhiSuzumiya''. When she was a little girl, she thought of herself as special until her parents took her to a sporting event and she saw a stadium full of people. She realized then just how many people were alive in the world, and how utterly unremarkable she really was. It's downplayed (in fact, no one may even know it but Kyon), but her forceful and loud personality and attempts to have adventures are a conscious effort to make herself unique. From the other side of things, she's the only one who ''doesn't'' know that she is truly unique (and might possibly be {{God}}).
%%* Prussia, America, and England of ''Webcomic/HetaliaAxisPowers'' all have shades of this.
* ''Manga/InuYasha'': Sesshomaru's [[SiblingRivalry animosity]] towards Inuyasha was hiding a [[WellDoneSonGuy crippling fear that his late father viewed him]] as the [[TheUnfavorite less-favored son]]. He successfully hid these fears from everyone, including himself, by [[BigBrotherBully insulting]] Inuyasha's HalfHumanHybrid heritage while touting his own BlueBlood lineage. Inevitably, it comes out into the open in the [[AwfulTruth worst possible way]] leading Sesshoumaru to the conclusion that his father had been grooming Inuyasha to kill him. He eventually realizes that his father actually had faith in his ability to become a BigBrotherMentor and settles for being an AloofBigBrother who turns up [[IWasJustPassingThrough by accident]] whenever Inuyasha's group needs help.
* ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure'':
** Terence T. D'Arby from ''Manga/StardustCrusaders'' believes himself to be superior in every way to his older brother [[TheGambler Daniel J. D'Arby]]. [[spoiler: This makes Jotaro's statement that Daniel would have been able to figure out that Jotaro was cheating right away all the more humiliating]].
** Formaggio from ''Manga/GoldenWind'' has this, stemming from his teammates’ constant belittlement of him for having such a weak [[FightingSpirit Stand]] [[IncredibleShrinkingMan ability]].
** ''Manga/{{JoJolion}}'''s Joshu Higashikata's {{Jerkass}} tendencies come from his jealousy over people he feels are more talented than him.
* Takeshi's younger brother Gekkou from ''LightNovel/MagicalWarfare'' towards Takeshi. Gekkou's hatred of his brother is fueled by a belief that he's inferior to him thus his desire to take everything from Takeshi (Kurumi, Twilight, personal pride) to make himself feel better.
* In the anime/manga version of ''Literature/TheHeroicLegendOfArslan'', some characters suspect the reason why Silvermask is so quick to proclaim himself as "His Highness" or the rightful king of Pars and becomes infuriated when people don't acknowledge him as such is that he is jealous that Arslan can freely call himself "prince" and people easily flock to Arslan's banner instead of Silvermask's.
* Tetsuya Tsurugi from ''Anime/MazingerZ'' and ''Anime/GreatMazinger'', [[UnbuiltTrope who was created twenty years before]], was EXACTLY like Asuka, word for word. He was a HotBlooded AcePilot and was so arrogant, anyone who questioned his skills had trouble with him. Sometimes he seemed more concerned with showing off than with protecting humanity when he fought the enemy, and he could not stand someone showing him up. That same arrogance also made him bickering with [[{{Tsundere}} Jun]], and Tetsuya WouldHitAGirl even though Jun is both his {{Love Interest|s}}, his BattleCouple, and [[NotBloodRelated adoptive]] [[BrotherSisterIncest sister]]. However, he had a massive complex of inferiority and lacked a sense of self-worth. He was so arrogant because he was permanently afraid of someone replacing him and taking his reason for existing away, and his self-esteem issues were so big he thought his adoptive sister would dump him for someone she barely knew.
* ''Manga/MyHeroAcademia'':
** This is all but shown explicitly to be behind most of Bakugo's bravado; he feels the need to prove himself superior to everyone so that no one will look down on him. In particular, he wants to prove himself superior to Midoriya (who attempted to save him from a villain at the start of the series and later defeated him in a training exercise) and All Might (who ''did'' save him from the villain). In fact, a bonus chapter had Uraraka point-blank tell Bakugo this is why he is so antagonistic to his former friend. Despite belittling and insulting him, he always shows great fear in Midoriya's massive leaps in improvement because deep down, he knows that Midoriya is much worthier of being a better hero than he is.
** Also Aoyama, who is always standing out in his way, is shown to "just want to be equal as everyone" later in the manga, being told there that "Your standards must be off if you don't know you are equal as us" in a moment of awesomeness.
** It's implied that Endeavor's need to surpass All Might, and the [[AbusiveParents horrific treatment of his family that happened as a result]], are rooted in his low opinion of anyone who's not the best, himself included. Furthermore, he's hampered by the physical limitations of his Hellfire Quirk; he risks overheating if used extensively, which is why he tries to finish fights quickly in single shots lest he burns himself out. This is why he banks on Shoto to become his successor since Shoto's Ice and Fire balance each other and thus are not prone to the weaknesses that hamper him or [[spoiler:that possibly crippled his oldest son and original successor, Touya, whose weaker constitution toward heat made his problem toward his own fire Quirk ''worse'' than his father, as implied to be discovered in a training accident]]. He has a mental breakdown when [[spoiler:he becomes the top-ranked hero on a technicality due to All Might's retirement]] because he believes he is unworthy of the recognition and responsibilities. [[spoiler:It takes a personal talk with All Might to finally understand what it really means to be the Symbol of Peace and try and fix what and who he damaged over the years]].
* Alan in ''LightNovel/MyNextLifeAsAVillainessAllRoutesLeadToDoom'' acts all arrogant and condescending, but it's only because he's jealous of his more talented brother. When he finds something he can do better than him, he mellows out and turns out to be a really nice guy.
* ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'':
** It's pretty clear that Sasuke's need to defeat Itachi was driven almost as much by his need to finally prove himself better than his brother for revenge. Being born the AlwaysSecondBest to a genius older brother and the WellDoneSonGuy of a distant father were bad enough, but even then, Itachi and Sasuke were quite close, with Sasuke thinking the world of his older brother while Itachi being protective of Sasuke. Then, said brother killed his entire family and told him to hate and grow strong to be worthy to face him. [[FromBadToWorse Then]] Itachi showed up again years later, looking for Naruto, which is what set off Sasuke (both because of this and because well, Itachi was going to target his precious people once more). Sasuke utterly lost and underwent another dose of mental trauma that unstabilized him. It didn't help that Naruto was finally growing strong enough to challenge and maybe surpass Sasuke, the top student in their class. All this was a recipe for a tragic FaceHeelTurn. [[spoiler:Made more ironic when you realize how Itachi ''played'' that complex, why he did so, and how it all went wrong.]] He also shows some behavior of this type towards Naruto himself, though much of this ties into his issues with Itachi. To Sasuke's mind, if Naruto can advance faster than him/become his equal, then he isn't advancing fast enough himself and has no chance of catching up with Itachi. This flaw of his was lampshaded verbatim by Kakashi in an episode.
** Naruto as well, albeit in a different way. In the beginning, his bratty, braggart attitude, and dreams to be Hokage were driven by a need to be acknowledged by the village and not be viewed as a monster, but as Naruto Uzumaki. His initial rivalry with Sasuke was fueled by his need to prove himself equal to the haughty top student who deep down felt the same sort of pain and loneliness as him (and wanted to befriend him.) Unlike Sasuke though, Naruto would shed his complex as he got people that cared about him and vice versa (which makes for an interesting counterpart to Sasuke, whose process became ''worse'' over time, albeit that was Itachi's doing.) In fact, by the time of ''Shippuden'', he's actually prone to HeroicSelfDeprecation, which increases as he grows stronger (sadly as a result of him reflecting on his failures to save the people he cares about.)
** Neji seemed to have this to an extent as well. Behind his ArrogantKungFuGuy attitude he belied a huge complex over being a member of the Hyuga's Branch Family, a fate he deeply resented and desperately wanted to escape, even if he would never admit it out loud. Instead, he took out his own insecurities on those he perceived as weaker than him (his teammate Lee and his cousin Hinata) to feel better about himself, and [[BerserkButton he would react with anger]] if somebody exposed those insecurities to him, as it happened in both his fights with Hinata and Naruto. Thankfully he dropped this mindset [[DefeatMeansFriendship after Naruto defeated him]].
** Madara Uchiha's complex towards [[spoiler:the 1st Hokage]] is probably the most extreme example in the series. In a flashback, even mentioning his name was enough to tick Madara off. In fact, much of the conflict in the current story can ultimately be traced back to Madara's inability to accept being AlwaysSecondBest to him and his reaction to this.
** The entire history of shinobi was orchestrated using this. Black Zetsu used Indra's jealousy and frustrations with Asura to start a centuries-long conflict that would end with Naruto and Sasuke.
* Asuka Langley Soryu from ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion'' is practically the poster child for this trope. Outwardly she comes across as haughty, arrogant, prideful, and annoying. In reality that is a false persona that she dons to cover up her debilitating lack of self-esteem and [[IJustWantToHaveFriends gut-wrenching fear of being replaced and/or abandoned]], a product of childhood trauma. She's a textbook case of real-life Narcissistic Personality Disorder.
* ''Manga/OnePiece'':
** Usopp alternates between bragging about his skills and being cowardly or deeply insecure about his skills. He worries constantly about [[CantCatchUp being left behind]] and that the Straw Hats don't want or need him. Fortunately, through events and building up his confidence, he realized that yes, the Straw Hats want him because they are TrueCompanions and he becomes more courageous and self-confident.
** The flashbacks in the Fish-Man Island arc reveal Arlong has one of these as part of his HiddenDepths, which only becomes obvious in hindsight. It turns out the reason why Arlong was in the East Blue is that he once got his ass kicked by Borsalino (the future Admiral Kizaru) after trying to avenge the death of Fisher Tiger, teaching him a brutal lesson about how far away he was from the real top-tier fighters of the world. This, in combination with getting his ass kicked ''again'', this time by his "brother" Jimbei, convinced Arlong he had no shot at measuring up to the real monsters of the Grand Line, causing him to run off to the East Blue to find any personal success as a pirate. Thus, all his boasting during the East Blue saga about his superiority and the superiority of Fish-men is really just him trying to prop up his fragile ego after those two crushing defeats.
* Sae from ''Manga/PeachGirl'' has a high and mighty opinion of herself and literally gets a big head over things working out in her favor. She often spreads gossip around to make people distrust Momo, which is done as a result of her own jealousy and insecurity and to bring herself up.
* ''Anime/PokemonTheSeries'':
** Iris used to taunt Ash about his battle skills and always called him a kid. But one episode reveals ''why'' she keeps doing it: [[spoiler:she couldn't battle well when her Excadrill starts ignoring her]]. When this is solved, Iris becomes much friendlier to Ash... though she ''still'' calls him a kid from time to time.
** Ash himself was like this in the Kanto arc. He had his bratty and asshole moments due to his own insecurities about the mistakes he made as a rookie trainer. It didn’t help that people would always put him down for it. He grows out of this once he improves as a trainer.
** In the ''Sun & Moon'' series, this also applies to Guzma, the leader of Team Skull, who often rants about how he is 'undefeated' when in reality most of his 'non-defeats' were just because he was in one-on-one battles that triggered his Golisopod's Emergency Exit and he claimed that he didn't see the point in continuing the fight.
* A few characters from ''Anime/RevolutionaryGirlUtena'' have distinct shades of this:
** Kyouichi Saionji is a massive {{jerkass}} who acts arrogant during duels and with regards to Anthy ([[DomesticAbuse whom he regularly batters]]) but is also hinted to have issues with self-loathing and has a ''huge'' inferiority complex with regards to his childhood frenemy Touga, which drives him to assert himself in horrible ways.
** Nanami Kiryuu is the {{Rich|Bitch}} AlphaBitch of Ohtori's middle school, but when her beloved big brother (the aforementioned Touga, who just about all her feelings of superiority hinge on) starts screwing her over later in the series, it turns out that she has very little in the way of intrinsic feelings of self-worth. The fact that she [[spoiler:drowned Touga's kitten as a small child]] doesn't help, fuelling both her extreme clinginess towards her brother (partly out of penance) and her hatred of herself.
* Ayaka Machida from ''Anime/StellviaOfTheUniverse'' has a psychological need to be TheAce and will go to criminal lengths to ensure that. In the [[RousseauWasRight entire show]], she is pretty much the only character who would willingly hurt another, as she does to [[spoiler:Yayoi and Shima (almost), who were both better than her in piloting. When she fails to eliminate Shima and the truth comes out, she is pretty much crushed. Ironically, she is redeemed by Yayoi herself, who loves her too much to ''not'' forgive her]]. This helps Ayaka to acknowledge that there are pilots better than her and to simply enjoy flying with them (particularly Yayoi) instead of competing.
* ''LightNovel/SwordArtOnline'': Sugou Nobuyuki fancies himself a big and powerful man, even [[AGodAmI declaring himself a god]], but he's ultimately nothing but a poor imitation of [[AlwaysSomeoneBetter Akihiko Kayaba]] and he knows it. When the latter's VirtualGhost intervenes and grants Kirito GameMaster powers to turn the tables in his favor, Sugou whines and throws a temper tantrum over the fact that even with Kayaba dead, he's ''still'' AlwaysSecondBest. Kirito even lampshades it; while both of them were defeated by Kayaba and forced to work for him, Kirito defied Kayaba while Sugou wants to ''be'' him.
* Kamina, of all people, from ''[[Anime/TengenToppaGurrenLagann Gurren Lagann]]'' shows a lot of bravado and pulls one crazy stunt after the next, from going up against a HumongousMecha armed with nothing but a katana to [[GrandTheftPrototype hijacking an enemy mech while in the middle of a fight against said mech]], combining two mechs by literally stabbing one of them down into the other from the top and finally stealing ''another even bigger'' mech in the middle of a battle. And yet, he reveals in Episode 7 that he is actually just as scared as everyone else, if not more so, but acts tough solely for Simon's sake, and that Simon was the one who actually kept him alive all along, and that he doesn't think he can actually do anything without Simon.
* Shutaro Mendo from ''Manga/UruseiYatsura'', though it's not so much his pride hiding insecurity as his pride being so central to his character that he tends to collapse when it's topped. Like when Rei showed up and was judged better looking, he immediately began ranting about how money was all that mattered, and how he keeps rolling into the fetal position every time Ryunuske reveals that she's getting more love letters than him.
* To different extents, both Kaiba and Dark Yugi from ''Manga/YuGiOh''.
** In the former's case, he was an orphan whose only pride was chess and forced the mogul of a big company to adopt him in a chess game. He subsequently takes over the company by force and is obsessed with being number 1. When Dark Yugi beats him in a duel, he becomes obsessed with revenge and coming out on top. In both lives, he seems to have an inferiority complex regarding Yugi, and will only acknowledge him as a rival. While consistently looking down on others, he has a chip on his shoulder in both lifetimes.
** The latter's case happens in the manga up until Duelist Kingdom -- he is confident in his abilities in games to the point of pride and aggression getting the better of him. This seems to be because he doesn't know who he is and assumes that he is merely some other form of Yugi intended to protect him. When he's confronted with the fear of actually having to face loss and not being able to protect Yugi's loved ones, he retreats further into his assumed gaming prowess, underestimating Mai to focus on Pegasus. He grows out of this by admitting his fear, acknowledging the possibility of losing and his pride effectively stops hampering when he learns he was once human, not just a spirit created by the Puzzle.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Fan Works]]
* ''Fanfic/AdviceAndTrust'': In the first chapter, Shinji realizes Asuka's pride is nothing but a front and she is a lonely, hurt child, just like him.
* ''Fanfic/BoldoresAndBoomsticks'': Sabra's haughtiness turns out to be a product of [[spoiler: [[WellDoneSonGuy trying to live up to her Totem mother]].]]
* ''Fanfic/TheChildOfLove'': In chapter 2 Misato tells Shinji about Asuka's past and her mother issues, and how her so-called arrogance is a mask to hide how fragile she is.
* In ''Fanfic/ACharmedLife'', Light builds himself up as "God of the New World" because deep inside he feels ''incredibly'' insecure.
* ''Fanfic/ChildrenOfAnElderGod'': Although she did not flaunt her skills as aggressively as in canon Asuka still tried to come across as a prideful, bombastic girl to hide her deep-seated insecurities. However, her mask cracks during the War and after a while, she stops wearing it.
* ''Fanfic/CommonSense'': Misty, big time. She didn't take her defeat at the Cerulean Gym against Ash very well, refuses to acknowledge that he's grown stronger than her in a short time, and [[SelectiveObliviousness begins to dismiss his victories as flukes or cheating]], [[{{Hypocrite}} even after she starts to try and copy his tactics to use against him]]. [[spoiler: It takes up until Chapter 25 to realize that she hates him for no real reason than her own wounded pride, [[CharacterDevelopment and from then on she decides to]] [[TookALevelInKindness try and be nicer to him]].]]
* ''Fanfic/ACrownOfStars'': Asuka uses a façade of arrogance to hide a bunch of deep-seated insecurities, neuroses and fears, an unhealthy deal of self-loathing, and an utter lack of self-esteem. Although she constantly calls herself the Great Asuka Langley Sohryu, in reality, she thinks she is worthless and horrible.
* In the ''WesternAnimation/DannyPhantom'' fanfiction ''Fanfic/{{Harmless}}'', Jazz believes that this might be the reason for the Box Ghost's behavior.
* ''Fanfic/DoingItRightThisTime'': After returning to the past Shinji and Rei know Asuka's pride is a façade and she has no self-esteem (and Shinji realizes he was unintentionally poking her in her insecurities and neuroses the whole time). So they actively try to make her feel valued and reassure her that she is a damned good pilot.
* In ''Fanfic/EquestriaAHistoryRevealed'', the LemonyNarrator is extremely arrogant and often talks down to the reader, but in a later chapter reveals her deep-seated issues of self-worth, and her longing to prove that she's ''somebody''.
* ''Fanfic/EquestriaGirlsFriendshipSouls'': Gilda is a powerful Arrancar who loves to talk the talk and walk the walk, but it's clear she deeply resents [[spoiler:Adagio's]] rapid rise in power in such a short period of time when she's had to struggle and claw her way up to her current level of strength the hard way over centuries. [[spoiler:When she's made the Tenth Espada, these insecurities come out even more as she's scared of screwing up and being viewed as a liability, which makes her prone to taking big unnecessary risks (such as attacking Sunset at her apartment using outdated info on her strength, or attacking the weakened Smooze while Fluttershy and Timber are in the vicinity) to secure her standing. It turns out it all stems from her mistreatment in Guto's horde as a child and her desire to become strong enough that she never gets under his thumb again.]]
* ''Manga/{{Evangelion 303}}'': Initially, [[{{FieryRedhead}} Asuka]] comes across like a very arrogant AcePilot than [[http://eva303.smackjeeves.com/comics/918665/042/ even refused calling someone her "peer"]]. But in reality, [[http://eva303.smackjeeves.com/comics/2056814/021/ her self-confidence is very fragile]], and when everything begins to fall apart, [[http://eva303.smackjeeves.com/comics/914657/033a/ she is prone to collapse]] and [[http://eva303.smackjeeves.com/comics/1794689/024/ seeing herself as a failure]].
* ''Fanfic/GhostsOfEvangelion'': Asuka used to be boastful, but in reality, she thought everybody -especially Shinji- showed her up and beat her.
* ''Fanfic/{{Haigha}}'': Katsuki already had trouble with this, but it only grew worse after the Sludge Villain incident. Since [[ForWantOfANail Izuku wasn't around to rescue him]], he was held hostage for much longer before finally being saved, ending up with a bad case of pneumonia. This also wrecked his 'invincible' reputation at Aldera, and [[FairWeatherFriend all his followers abandoned him]]. As a result, he's ''desperate'' to 'prove' that he's stronger than everybody else, ''especially'' Izuku.
* ''Fanfic/{{HERZ}}'': All of Asuka's bluster, bravado, and arrogance were a mask to hide her feelings of inadequacy and worthlessness. Shinji is one of the few people who can see what is underneath, and he often has to reassure her he does not think she is ugly and he would never leave her.
* ''Fanfic/HigherLearning'': As her canon self, Asuka acted like an arrogant girl so that nobody noticed how insecure she was. However, she gradually stopped trying so hard to stand out When she started dating Shinji.
* ''Fanfic/LastChildOfKrypton'': When Shinji met Asuka she acted like an aggressive, boastful AttentionWhore, but Shinji realized she was just trying to hide her insecurity and fear. Later Shinji saw first-hand how fragile and vulnerable she was inwardly when [[spoiler:he fought to save her from Leliel's MindRape attack.]]
* ''Fanfic/NeonGenesisEvangelionGenocide'': After having a heart-to-heart talk with Asuka and several conversations with Misato, Shinji realized that Asuka may look arrogant and boisterous, but she regards herself as someone worthless. Her pride is nothing but a mask to cover her non-existent self-esteem.
* ''Fanfic/TheNightUnfurls'': Alicia Arcturus develops this over the course of the remastered version. While Alicia isn't a braggart, like how most portrayals of this trope do, she prides herself on maintaining her reputation as a KnightInShiningArmor, and she takes that seriously. This is why Alicia is JerkassToOne towards Kyril, a foreigner with an aloof demeanour who doesn't show respect to her and the Goddess she believes in, like one would towards a noble of her station, yet is [[AlwaysSomeoneBetter inexplicably more powerful than she could ever be]], and is inexplicably able to gain her cousin Prim's trust -- she feels that her honour as a knight is insulted, and she [[ItsPersonal takes that personally]]. As the story progresses, Alicia is increasingly eager to prove her superiority, that she is better than Kyril. His TrialByCombat in Chapters 12-13 provides an opportunity for her to do so, yet she ends up suffering an effortless defeat at Kyril's hands, with the man even calling her a weakling upon her defeat. Her pride is injured. The next time the readers see Alicia, she does not take her loss well. Any reminder of her loss, weakness, or even Kyril's name infuriates her, [[spoiler:to the point of violently lashing out at Soren, one of Kyril's companions, leaving the young man unconscious]].
* ''Fanfic/OnceMoreWithFeeling'': Shinji did not care -too much- for Asuka's gloating because he knew that piloting Eva was all she thought she had. He knew that her pride was the only thing holding her together and he did not want to see her fall apart again.
* ''Fanfic/TheOneILoveIs'': Shinji used to envy Asuka's boastful arrogance and confidence... and then he saw her berating herself several times and losing her will to live after her MindRape and he realized her confidence was false and she was a very insecure, vulnerable person.
* ''Fanfic/ThePokemonSquad'': RM looks like a pompous InsufferableGenius who thinks highly of himself, but he's also insecure about the fact that he can't find a date to save his life and as he admits in "Nobody Cares About the Bears":
-->'''RM:''' I'm not arrogant, I have self-loathing issues.
* ''Fanfic/TheSecondTry'': During [[spoiler:their wedding]] Shinji explains that he fell for Asuka, among other reasons, because he realized her arrogance was a façade to hide a vulnerable, terrified and lonely girl whom he wanted to help and protect.
* ''Fanfic/SleeperHitAU'': Bakugou's utter hatred of Midoriya stems from the fear that if somebody who's Quirkless [[BadassNormal can challenge or even surpass him]], then that proves that he isn't all that special. The realization that Midoriya ''wasn't'' [[ForWantOfANail broken by his expulsion from U.A.]] and, in fact, became the Quirkless Pro Hero Sleeper Hit utterly ''infuriates'' him, since it seems to confirm his worst fears.
* ''Fanfic/SOE2LoneHeirOfKrypton'': As she told Shinji during a heart-to-heart talk in chapter 19, Asuka strove to be the best and boast about it because she was a lonely kid who thought no one would care about her unless she was the best.
* ''Fanfic/ThievesCanBeHeroes'': Bakugou suffers from this, and uses his brash arrogant attitude to cover it up; part of the reason he was so ruthless towards Izuku is that he honestly believed the other boy looked down on him when the truth was the exact opposite. [[spoiler: His Shadow self is the personification of this, forcing him to admit to all the insecurities and self-doubts he hides, then spelling out that ''nobody'', and least of all Midoriya, ever looked down or pitied him; even then, it takes Izuku and Makoto both admitting how much they ''admired'' Bakugou growing up for it to finally get through to him - and unlocking his Persona in the process]].
* ''Fanfic/ThousandShinji'': Shinji was a ''[[TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}} Psyker]]''. When he met Asuka he sensed right away that she exuded pride, confidence, passion, and rage but inwardly she was full of sadness, fright, and pain. Later he told her that he knew she had tried to become stronger but he could tell she was more vulnerable and fragile than she looked.
* In ''Fanfic/ThroughTheLookingGlassMyNextLifeAsAVillainess'', the Katarina Claes from ''Fortune Lover'' is arrogant, vain, and demeaning to those she views beneath her, such as her step-brother Keith or the commoner student Maria. However, for all her talent and etiquette as a noblewoman, she was never able to win the heart of her fiance Geord, a very painful sore spot for her. It became worse when she learned of another Katarina who while lacking the restraint and behavior of a proper lady is able to win the affection and love of those around her, including Geord's counterpart Gerald.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
* ''Series/ThirtyRock'':
** Jenna acts the SmallNameBigEgo, but it's made clear that she's really afraid of becoming a WhiteDwarfStarlet. This is PlayedForLaughs as she acts insanely paranoid about anyone upstaging her.
--->'''Liz''': Jack is hiring a new cast member.\\
'''Jenna''': IF IT IS A BLONDE WOMAN, I WILL KILL MYSELF!
** Tracey apparently has a similar problem. Look at his reaction to the same news.
--->'''Tracey''': IF IT'S A BLONDE WOMAN, I WILL KILL MYSELF!
* ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' & ''Series/{{Angel}}'':
** Buffy herself: A variation. As noted in a DVD [[WordOfGod commentary]], Buffy has a superiority complex in that she's the Slayer and believes herself better than those she protects (pretty much everyone), but this makes her feel bad so she has an inferiority complex about having the superiority complex. This was also pointed out in-universe by a vampire psychology student who opted to put Buffy on the couch while she was trying to kill him. It actually worked for a while.
** Wesley. On ''Buffy'', he was pompous and high and mighty when he was more like an inefficient nuisance by everyone else. Then came Angel and after going through [[BreaktheHaughty a series of horrible situations]], it's revealed he never thought he was good enough as a watcher or [[DaddyIssues to his father]].
** [[JerkAssWoobie Spike]]. He acts cocky and arrogant to the bone, but all the superior remarks of his are for convincing himself as much as convincing everyone else. This is particularly apparent in his dynamic with Buffy and his centuries-long feud with Angel.
** Faith. She scorns Buffy's moral, 'weight-of-the-world' approach to being a slayer all through Buffy Season 3 and even claimed to her they were better than everyone else, then in S4 undergoes a redemption arc and even begs Angel to kill her in a display of overwhelming self-loathing.
** Angel is the inverse of this. He has genuine insecurity and self-hatred, all of which he's very open about, but at the same time sometimes acts superior through his actions. It's only with Spike that Angel is a traditional example of this trope: his rivalry with Spike in S5 all but confirmed he felt a certain degree of entitlement in being the vampire with a soul and a champion, the Shanshu prophecy, ''and'' having Buffy... until Spike came along. Fueling his insecurities and doubts all the more.
* ''Series/{{Community}}'':
** Ken Jeong has stated that Chang abuses his authority and generally acts like a jerk because of insecurity.
** Often, when Britta's obnoxious SoapboxSadie façade is [[BreakTheHaughty broken down]], she reveals her vulnerable side, admitting she actually hates herself, even going as far as to compare herself unfavorably to cancer at one point. A lot of the things she does are to gain respect from others, especially the study group. During the first season's paintball episode, she admitted that the reason she tries so hard to be a good person is that deep down she doesn't believe she is one.
** Jeff, like Britta, has a fragile ego and is implied to have deep-seated self-esteem issues as well. One episode involved an intimate revelation about having to wear a Pocahontas costume for Halloween as a kid and getting "what a pretty girl" comments all night.
---> '''Jeff:''' The worst part was that after the third house, I stopped correcting them. I was just glad they thought I was pretty...
* ''Series/DoctorWho'':
** This comes to dominate the First Doctor's character towards the very end of his run. He starts out as unironically arrogant and in love with his own genius and mellows out a bit. But as more of his assumptions about the way he does things are proven wrong and his favorite companions (Ian and Barbara) make him return them to their own time, his arrogance becomes a cover for his deep-seated uncertainty (not even knowing how to fly his TARDIS, and even if he could, [[YouCantGoHomeAgain he could never go back to his home planet]]) and loneliness. This is PlayedForDrama in "The Massacre", and even PlayedForLaughs in "The Time Meddler", where his demeanour towards the Monk becomes noticeably more haughty as soon as he realizes that the Monk has a much nicer TARDIS than [[TheAllegedCar he does]].
** There's a repeated conceit throughout much of the show that the Doctor's lack of belief in formal education and endorsement of instinctual methods of flying the TARDIS is really because he got terrible grades as a student and failed his TARDIS driving exams. See "Terror of the Autons", where the Third Doctor gets snotty when reminded the Master got better grades on his exams than he did, or "The Time of Angels" when the Eleventh Doctor gets very self-righteous when River points out that he doesn't know what a lot of his TARDIS buttons actually do.
** Few incarnations react with anything other than horror and misery upon seeing their new face for the first time, but soon begin to brag about how handsome it is, suggesting this may be its motive. For example, the Third Doctor sees himself in the mirror at the start of "Spearhead from Space", is mortified, but soon declares it's not all bad and spends the rest of his run acting convinced he's gorgeous. In "The Face of Evil", the Fourth Doctor goes in the space of a single conversation from complaining a statue of him with a doorway behind it isn't very good because 'the nose could be a touch more aquiline', but as soon as Leela suggests the nose might be how they get in (not even directly remarking about its size), the Doctor gives an offended and self-conscious reaction.
** In the Fourth Doctor book ''Festival of Death'', Romana accuses the Doctor of having this problem at the root of his constant self-aggrandizing academic underachievement and conviction that SchoolIsForLosers:
--->'Inferiority complex?' The Doctor fixed her with a probing stare. 'What could I possibly have to feel inferior about? Me? K9, have you ever heard anything so ridiculous?'\\
'Affirmative, master,' replied K9. 'You have frequently made statements with greater nonsensical content.'\\
'And when I want your opinion I'll ask for it.' The Doctor glared at the robot dog.
** Donna Noble seems to have a bad case of this, likely caused by [[AbusiveParents her emotionally abusive mother]]. She's [[NoIndoorVoice loud]], sassy, and [[DeadpanSnarker snarky]], but quietly rejects any attempt by the Doctor to tell her she's important or special. In "Journey's End", the Metacrisis Doctor finally realizes this is not just humility on her part.
--->'''Donna:''' I keep telling you, I'm ''not'' [special].\\
'''Metacrisis Doctor:''' No, but you are-! ''(he pauses)'' Oh... You really don't believe that, do you? I can see, Donna. What you're thinking. All that attitude, all that lip, 'cause all this time... You think you're not worth it.\\
'''Donna:''' ''(half-heartedly)'' Stop it.\\
'''Metacrisis Doctor:''' Shouting at the world 'cause no-one's listening. [[VerbalTic Well]], why should they?\\
'''Donna:''' ''(quietly)'' Doctor. Stop it.
** The Tenth Doctor himself had a bad case of this. Both during Nine and Eleven's runs, and quite a few scenes during Ten's run, have shown the massive guilt and self-loathing he feels about the destruction of the Time Lords, not all of it unwarranted, which seems at odds with his general demeanor of being cocky and almost arrogant, a trait that was exaggerated more and more later in his run, culminating in the [[AGodAmI Time Lord Victorious]] speech in "The Waters of Mars". This seems like the best explanation.
** According to a documentary, actors are instructed to play [[MasterRace the Daleks]] like this, the idea being that subconsciously the Dalek race as a whole are extremely troubled by their existence as deformed, irradiated mutants locked inside unfeeling metal cages from birth to death. Thus, they (over)compensate by deciding they must be better simply by virtue of them being Daleks. The best example of this would be the Daleks from [[Recap/DoctorWhoS27E12BadWolf "Bad Wolf"]]/[[Recap/DoctorWhoS27E13ThePartingOfTheWays "The Parting of the Ways"]], who adopt an erstatz religious fundamentalism to mask the self-loathing they feel due to [[YouAreWhatYouHate being engineered from "impure" human DNA]].
*** The Doctor delivered an observation on this issue in the Literature/NewSeriesAdventures novel ''Prisoner of the Daleks''; confronting Dalek X- the Dalek Inquistor General, the most dangerous Dalek currently active, now trapped on a dead world with just enough power to keep it alive- the Doctor pointed out the Daleks couldn't accept every other race in the unvierse was better than them, pointing out that nobody in existence would willingly become a Dalek.
* Lord Genis, the BigBad of ''Series/DoubutsuSentaiZyuohger'' claims to be the greatest and most powerful being in the universe and destroys planets for his own amusement and as proof of his superiority. He secretly is ashamed of his origin, [[spoiler:that he is composed of countless weak creatures merged into one]]. Anybody exposing his secret or [[DontYouDarePityMe showing pity]] to him is his BerserkButton.
* ''Series/{{ER}}'''s Kerry Weaver frequently found subtle and not-so-subtle ways of putting her coworkers down, turning everything into some kind of competition, and eventually trampled on numerous people in order to advance her career, all to compensate for whatever insecurity she felt about having been abandoned at birth and being disabled. Additionally, it's heavily implied that Doug's womanizing behavior was a form of compensation for feeling unlovable (due to his father abandoning him).
* ''Series/{{Frasier}}'' Crane, despite being openly arrogant, vain, self-absorbed, and in possession of an absurdly inflated opinion of himself, is cripplingly insecure and needy, with much of his self-aggrandizing behavior rooted in his desperation to be liked and admired, and his extreme bossiness towards his little brother Niles and best friend Roz, whose opinions he constantly runs roughshod over and whose lives he is always trying to interfere with, is heavily hinted to be rooted in paranoia that they'll stop hanging around him if they stop needing him.
* ''Series/GameOfThrones'': Theon's arrogance has a lot to do with coping with being constantly reminded of his glorified prisoner status.
* Rachel from ''Series/{{Glee}}'', despite always protesting that she is the best singer in the club. The biggest example comes to mind at the start of season 2, where an eager singer, who was just as if not more talented than Rachel, wanted to join the Glee Club. Rachel responded by [[spoiler:sending her to a crack house]].
* Tahani in ''Series/TheGoodPlace'' was a rich & famous StatuesqueStunner who constantly had to make sure everyone in the room knew it, [[BelligerentSexualTension which annoyed Eleanor to no end]]. However, it's revealed that her haughty streak was the result of a crippling inferiority complex from her parents arbitrarily making her TheUnfavorite, [[spoiler:and the reason she ended up in Hell in the first place is that [[SecretlySelfish all her charitable works were done in the name of self-aggrandizement rather than altruism]]]].
* Frank Pembleton from ''Series/HomicideLifeOnTheStreet'' has a fairly arrogant attitude, but it's occasionally shown that underneath the surface he is plagued by self-doubt and self-loathing.
* ''[[Series/{{House}} Gregory House]]'' has said a few times that he doesn't deserve to live or be happy and that the only thing he has going for him is his mind.
* ''Series/HowIMetYourMother'': Barney Stinson occasionally betrays the vulnerabilities and insecurities which hide beneath his self-assured, charismatic demeanor.
* ''Series/TheInBESTigators'': In "The Case of the Peculiar Pop Quiz," Ava repeatedly goes out of her way to claim that Kelly wanted to hire both Maudie and Ezra as tutors because she knew Ezra would see it when he edited the video.
* Jay from ''Series/TheInbetweeners''.
* ''Franchise/KamenRider'':
** [[BadassBiker Shintaro Gotou]] of ''Series/KamenRiderOOO'' began like this in relation to the eponymous Rider, [[TheHero Eiji Hino]], who he saw as an irresponsible fool. After getting [[BreakTheHaughty thoroughly humbled]] and re-training himself as a sidekick to Kamen Rider Birth, he [[CharacterDevelopment becomes a person more genuinely worthy of being called a hero]] [[spoiler: and eventually takes over as Birth.]]
** The following series, ''Series/KamenRiderFourze'', has ''two'' such cases. Kengo Utahoshi refuses to acknowledge the existence of the Kamen Rider Club or accept the friendship of hero [[{{Delinquents}} Gentaro]], until Kengo is [[spoiler:nearly killed while stranded on the moon]], where he reveals how scared and unhappy he really is. [[JerkJock Shun Daimonji]] mercilessly bullies students whom he views as lower-class than himself until it's discovered that he is under crippling pressure from his father and [[IJustWantToHaveFriends Just Wants to Have Friends]]. Both characters [[TookALevelInKindness become much nicer]] after this.
* The live-action of ''Literature/TheKingsAvatar'' highlighted this more in certain characters.
** While Sun Xiang is a great player, much of his boosting after he joins Excellent Era is due to the fact he knows that he cannot live up to the hype of being Ye Xiu's successor.
** Wei Chen likes to brag and claim he would lead the team to victory to cover for the fact that his Glory skills have deteriorated due to his age.
** Qiu Fei likes to present himself as very knowledgeable and skilled in Glory but in reality, he is terrified of being seen as a loser as his family sees him as.
* Hank Kingsley from ''Series/TheLarrySandersShow'' tends to act the very picture of the bombastically egotistic Hollywood celebrity, but deep down clearly knows that he's not that talented nor smart, that his fame and success rests solely on being the sidekick to a more talented and successful person, and that his career is built on a very shaky and unstable foundation that could be taken away any second. Consequently, he's clearly also full of bitterness, self-loathing, and insecurity.
* ''Series/{{Life|2007}}'': Detective Charlie Crews thinks this about the universe.
-->'''Charlie:''' It was the universe that makes fun of us all. \\
'''...''' \\
'''Reese:''' Why exactly would the universe make fun of us all? \\
'''Charlie''' Maybe it's insecure.
* ''Series/{{Lost}}'' has several examples. There's [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold Sawyer]], a cocky, abrasive playboy who actually [[spoiler:hates himself for becoming like the man who killed his parents]], [[DoggedNiceGuy Charlie]], who looks more dejected every time someone doesn't recognize a Drive-Shaft song, [[ManipulativeBitch Shannon]], whose seemingly large ego is frequently cut down by her brother telling her she's worthless, and finally [[IJustWantToBeSpecial Ben]], whose aloofness and presumed arrogance are due to his feelings of inadequacy caused by his [[spoiler:abusive father]] and the [[spoiler:deep need he feels to impress Jacob]].
* Prince Arthur from ''Series/{{Merlin|2008}}'' can often fall into this category. His {{Jerkass}} behavior near the start of the series is quickly put down to his FreudianExcuse of having a very demanding and emotionally distant father, and it's clear in his insecurity with Guinevere, Merlin, Morgana, and Lancelot that he doesn't consider himself worthy of their affection or friendship, even as he takes them all for granted.
* Tom from ''Series/ParksAndRecreation'' is superficially self-confident to the point of arrogance, but it’s clear that his carefully crafted persona as a “baller” masks deep insecurities, likely stemming from his childhood as a social outcast. For all his entrepreneurial ventures, ConspicuousConsumption, meticulously-groomed appearance, and constant put-downs of anyone he considers uncool, he lives in terror of being left behind by the zeitgeist and turning out to be nothing more than an insignificant man working an unfulfilling government job in a nowhere small town, to the point that he suffers a borderline existential crisis when he learns that teenagers do not recognise or enjoy his favourite music. This aspect of his character disappears in later seasons when he manages to achieve success as a businessman and genuinely does become a ManOfWealthAndTaste.
** The perfect demonstration of this is when Jerry retires and the department begins looking for who will be the next office ButtMonkey and quickly settle on Tom over Andy. Although Andy is a clumsy, slovenly idiot who regularly humiliates himself; he also lacks any sense of shame and is genuinely and sincerely comfortable in his own skin, meaning that people laugh with him rather than at him whenever he screws up. Meanwhile, Tom’s dignity is so fragile and artificial that simply saying the phrase “file piles” is sufficient to turn him into a laughing stock.
* Arthur Shelby of ''Series/PeakyBlinders'' is a swaggering loudmouth prone to violence and [[BadassBoast boasting]], and comes off as genuinely arrogant and intimidating, especially during confrontations with his rivals. But behind the bravado, he's a horrendously broken human being who struggles with insecurity and self-hate. He regularly engages in massively self-destructive behavior and has attempted suicide more than once.
* In ''Series/RedDwarf'', Arnold Rimmer is always publicly aggrandising himself: of ''course'' he'd pass the officer's exam if Lister hadn't stopped him studying, of ''course'' he'd be a great military leader if he had that opportunity[[note]]In "Legion" he claims to be a brave warrior soul who, through no fault of his own, was born in the body of an abject coward[[/note]], and so on. However, in "Terrorform", the most powerful force in his mind is self-loathing, and in "Inquisitor" he admits he's nothing "but from where I started, nothing is up". Essentially he tries desperately to believe he's the sort of son his parents wanted but knows he isn't and doesn't know how to be anything else.
** The [[Literature/RedDwarf alternate novel continuity]] had the observation that Rimmer is actually good at art and graphic design, and his main problem with trying to succeed in the space corps is that he genuinely isn't cut out for it but his family is so fixated on that career path that he's never let himself consider another option.
* In ''Series/{{Sherlock}}'', Sherlock Holmes has this; and the second season is pretty much all BreakTheHaughty where he's concerned. While the other characters don't see him as a JerkassWoobie in-universe (he's more a case of IntelligenceEqualsIsolation), he can be seen like this from the audience's perspective.
* ''Series/{{Smallville}}'''s Lionel Luthor is a grandiose MagnificentBastard and CorruptCorporateExecutive who is still running away from his past as an abused child. ComicBook/LexLuthor is his son and bases his need to [[WellIntentionedExtremist be a hero]] in his own feelings of worthlessness.
* Kendall Roy from ''Series/{{Succession}}'' practically oozes insecurity, desperation, and self-loathing despite playing at being a confident, ruthless businessman.
* Dean Winchester from ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'' is a pretty good example of this. He's arrogant, judgmental, self-righteous, and is capable of being very brutal to compensate for his insecurities and overwhelming lack of self-worth.
* ''Series/TheTwilightZone1959'' episode [[Recap/TheTwilightZoneS3E87APianoIntheHouse "A Piano in the House".]] A cruel, arrogant bully buys a player piano that causes listeners to reveal their true personalities. When it works on him, he admits that he's actually frightened, immature, and jealous of the people around him.
* ''Series/TheWire'' has Jimmy [=McNulty=], an arrogant, TooCleverByHalf detective who believes deep down that his profession is the only thing that keeps him from being worthless.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Video Games]]
* This is ''the'' FatalFlaw of Lotte Carmine from ''VideoGame/BlazBlue''. As a researcher, he harbored some ambition that he'd surpass his superior Kokonoe in scientific breakthrough, but for some reason, Kokonoe dismissed him that bad and even refused to support him in particular research about seithr. Not knowing to give up and even dismissing the support of his partner Litchi, he went on through the research and [[spoiler:ended up as Arakune. And even as Arakune, what remains of him was his hatred for Kokonoe's superiority and his desire to become supreme scientist.]]
* George from ''VideoGame/DeadlyPremonition'' is obsessed with gaining power, physical or otherwise, due to being raised by an [[AbusiveParents abusive mom]] and his belief that the strong will naturally overcome the weak. [[spoiler:His insecurities lead him to become the new Raincoat Killer.]]
* ''VideoGame/{{Deltarune}}'': Kris's [[InsufferableGenius know-it-all classmate]] Berdly is revealed to have this problem in Chapter 2. He prides himself on being one of the smartest kids in class, but it's revealed [[spoiler: it stems from beating Noelle in a spelling bee as a kid when he only won due to the final word "December" being her TraumaButton, and he let the praise go to his head. In reality, he's reliant on Noelle's help to maintain his good grades.]]
* Dominus Ghaul in ''VideoGame/Destiny2'' is a mighty [[ScaryDogmaticAliens Cabal]] warlord who's brave and intelligent, but also has a rather fragile ego and is constantly seeking validation for his actions. He tries to conquer the City and gain the Traveler's powers because he's ''jealous''; angry that the Guardians were granted the Traveler's blessing and not him, because surely someone as strong as him deserves it more. It's noted he could easily just steal the Traveler's light, but [[HonorBeforeReason he won't because he's convinced doing so would be equal to admitting failure and he won't accept that]]. He ''needs'' the Traveler to acknowledge him as worthy on its own and [[VillainousBreakdown starts cracking]] when it becomes increasingly obvious that [[WellDoneSonGuy he can't impress it]].
* ''Franchise/{{Disgaea}}'':
** [[VideoGame/DisgaeaHourOfDarkness Laharl]] suffers from this. He acts all high and mighty for being the Overlord, but deep down is really somewhat lonely, especially once you learn of his backstory. However, the fact that he acts like a complete JerkAss to most people isn't exactly earning him any brownie points, either. This is driven further in ''VideoGame/DisgaeaD2ABrighterDarkness'' in which the Krichevskoy group constantly compares Laharl to his old man and say what Krichevskoy would do in a situation like this. [[spoiler:Escalates to the point where in chapter 8 Laharl makes it very clear that he's going to be better than his dad and demands they trust him when the trio get themselves in a bad situation.]]
** Axel from ''VideoGame/Disgaea2'' also suffers the same complex. He acts like he's popular and that everyone loves him yet he ''knows'' that his career is in shambles and he's pretty much the laughingstock of the universe. His efforts at put-downs are less effective than Laharl's but he still hides his insecurities underneath the Dark Hero mask he constantly dons.
* ''VideoGame/EnsembleStars'':
** Tori is extremely demanding and loves to gloat about how much better he is than the 'slaves' around him. However, he is ''highly'' aware that he is the youngest and least experienced member of fine and is very worried deep down that he might be holding them back. Part of his CharacterDevelopment involves him deliberately choosing to become less childish and selfish so he can stand on his own even after the third years graduate without making them worry.
** Arashi appears very confident, often boasting about her great fashion sense and beauty. But deep down she's dealing with some pretty major gender issues, and while she pretends it doesn't bother her when others call her things like 'okama' (a slur aimed at queer men and trans women), she really does worry that she'll never be able to become the beautiful woman she wants to be. Her boasting is an attempt to put up a shield and to convince herself that she's okay with things as they are.
* ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'':
** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'' is full of these. To the extent that it could be considered one of the main themes of the game:
*** Cloud insists on showing off as much as possible, striking poses, and being flamboyantly snarky towards others. This is later revealed to be a false persona that stemmed from a complex caused by his feelings of worthlessness, exacerbated by [[TheVirus Jenova cells]] and trauma. At one point, he states that as a child he dealt with his isolation and feelings of worthlessness by [[IntelligenceEqualsIsolation convincing himself that it was because everyone other than him was stupid]].
*** A similar case can be made for Cloud's enemy, Sephiroth. When he learned he was the product of sick science and some sort of alien monster "lady", he... didn't take it well. [[StartOfDarkness To say the least]]. When his pride was shattered by the revelation, he went mad trying to prove himself more than a lab monster and ended up falling into delusions of grandeur, ripping through many {{Moral Event Horizon}}s like wet paper in his wake. Upon realising he isn't a real human, Cloud [[UnreliableNarrator quotes him]] as saying that he'd always known he was strange and different when compared to other people, "but... not like this...". A week later, he's declaring himself the 'rightful heir to this Planet' and planning to become a God. His arrogance even allows him to re-emerge five years after his apparent death falling into a reservoir of Mako energy, without having experienced the ego-death that is suffered by most people heavily exposed to Mako energy.
*** Red XIII acts haughty, intelligent, and ancient, with little time for the inexplicable behaviour of humans. To Red's embarrassment and Cloud's surprise, it later turns out that he's the equivalent of a fifteen-year-old boy and he still lives with his grandfather, and he was showing off due to feelings of inadequacy.
*** Aerith's [[CasualDangerDialogue reckless behaviour]] and manic levels of confidence about her {{Zany Scheme}}s are in contrast to how awkwardly she talks about her powers when Tifa asks her about them. It's clear she has only a confused grasp of her abilities, doesn't know what her mother's Materia is for (calling one of the two most powerful magical items in the world 'good for absolutely nothing' and wearing it as a hair accessory), and is scared of how different she is. The ExpandedUniverse has it that she was mostly isolated growing up due to her surveillance by the Turks and because her abilities led people to consider her creepy. By the end of the first Disc, she has so much control over her powers that she can translate the words of spirits, interfere with Cloud's dreams to speak to him while he's unconscious, find the lost City of the Ancients, and cast her mother's spell.
*** Barret at first comes off as an aggressive blowhard who loves being in charge and is [[AngryBlackManStereotype very arrogant and uncompromising about his anti-Shinra political views]]. He later admits that this is all an attempt to deal with his feelings of worthlessness after his initially pro-Shinra views led to his town being destroyed. When the displaced and destitute residents corner him and shout abuse at him, Barret just nods and takes it.
*** Zigzagged by Yuffie, who at one point gives a big speech about how her country has been stripped of pride after its colonisation, and she only stole from the party because she thought that if she did, she could prove herself... and immediately reverts to her usual AwesomeEgo personality after [[WoundedGazelleGambit using this to lure the party leader into trapping the other members in a big cage]], gloating at them for being stupid enough to fall for it. However, most fans do think Yuffie's speech was about her real reasoning, even if she was using it to manipulate others. Many of her in-party scenes show her tough-girl attitude falling apart when faced with genuinely threatening and disturbing things, like confronting the shooter in the Battle Square, saying goodbye to Aerith, or [[RomanceSidequest working up the courage to kiss a boy]].
** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIIRemake'', as a Remake, has Barret directly call Cloud out on his cockiness coming from "a huge inferiority complex".
** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIX'' has Kuja. In a race of artificial people called "Genomes", he was the only one with an actual soul due to some sort of fluke. He was always insisting due to this that he was different from his nigh-mindless peers, loudly trying to enforce his individuality. But then ANOTHER Genome was created with a soul (on purpose this time) and was scheduled to be Kuja's replacement. Kuja reacted... badly. He kidnapped the child and dropped him into the world Kuja was to help destroy, all out of a desire to prove himself superior.
* ''VideoGame/FireEmblem'':
** Serra from ''VideoGame/FireEmblemTheBlazingBlade'' acts like a haughty RichBitch, but inside is a scared little girl afraid of being alone and ignored.
** Severa from ''VideoGame/FireEmblemAwakening'' takes this on pretty hard. She has spent her entire life being compared to [[TheAce her "perfect" mother]] and even opts to not follow the same career path as her just so she doesn't get compared further.
** Takumi from ''VideoGame/FireEmblemFates'' haughtily declares that he intends to be the one to bring the [[PlayerCharacter Avatar]] down for their betrayal in the ''Conquest'' route and is often abrasive toward people who haven't earned his trust, but it quickly becomes clear that he doesn't have much faith in himself. He also has a tendency to project his negative thoughts about himself on others. His supports with his older siblings [[spoiler:and even his own son]] drive the point home the best. Takumi's self-esteem is actually frighteningly low, and [[spoiler:his possession by [[BigBad Anankos]] on the ''Conquest'' route just makes his issues worse]].
* Roxanne Wolf from ''VideoGame/FiveNightsAtFreddysSecurityBreach''. While she just seems narcissistic at first, there are several hints that it's merely a facade. When you spy on her in the vents, she starts out complimenting herself in front of the mirror but then breaks down crying a short time later. One of her voice lines has her nervously reassure herself that she will find Gregory first because she's "the best".
* In ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel'', it is not outright stated but heavily implied that the protagonist, Rean Schwarzer, '''loathes''' himself, which is what causes him to go out of his way to help practically everyone who asks, no matter how mundane or outrageous their requests may be, and even some who never ask for help. In the first game, people just assume he's just a good kid who wants to do well, but by the third and fourth games, he actually hates himself for who he is and what he has done up to that point.
* In ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'', [[spoiler: Zelda]] was initially very cold and dismissive towards Link but as later revealed, acted in this manner due to [[spoiler: not being able to awaken her ancestral power]]. Seeing Link as the chosen hero, easily wielding the Master Sword, was a reminder of their own failures. [[spoiler: Revali]] also acts in a similar manner towards Link by constantly spouting off on how much better he is than him and brushes off Link's chosen one status as merely "being lucky". It's all a front to hide his feelings of looking worthless after spending most of his life being his village's highly praised warrior and getting one-upped by a boy that happened to be special.
* ''Franchise/MassEffect'':
** Miranda from ''VideoGame/MassEffect2'' was genetically designed to be perfect, and she envies Shepard for having built their career with nothing more than skill, hard work, and courage. If you [[DefrostingIceQueen defrost her enough]], she'll admit to feeling that she can't take responsibility for anything ''but'' her mistakes, as she constantly worries that any good she does is the result of the geneticists who created her.
** The BigBad of the ''Citadel DLC'' for ''VideoGame/MassEffect3'' implies this during their VillainousBreakdown, [[spoiler: that their ''real'' motivation to KillAndReplace Shepard stems from an inferiority complex at being considered [[CloningBlues nothing more]] than a [[EvilTwin clone]] of the ''real'' Commander Shepard.]]
* Time Man from ''VideoGame/MegaManPoweredUp'' acts this way to compensate for the fact that he was activated in an unfinished state.
* Liquid Snake from ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid''. He grew up believing that he was genetically inferior to his "brother" Solid Snake, and this insecurity partly inspired Liquid's world domination plot. [[spoiler:It turns out it was the other way around, and it was Liquid who was the superior one, and Solid had the inferior genes, and it was all made up by the Patriots.]] ''Webcomic/TheLastDaysOfFoxhound'' has The Sorrow exploit it into convincing him to learn a lesson about brains vs brawn.
-->'''Big Boss:''' You play him like a damn Stradivarius.\\
'''The Sorrow:''' Ha! More like a fifty-cent kazoo. A kazoo with a big red button labelled "inferiority complex".
* ''Franchise/{{Persona}}'':
** ''VideoGame/Persona3'' has this in the Magician Arcana in Junpei Iori. He tends to act cocky and confrontational, mainly with TheHero. However, we learn that he has low self-esteem and a cruddy home life with an absent alcoholic father. As such, he initially saw SEES as a way to escape his home life and [[IJustWantToBeSpecial be a somebody]] in his life. However, he does carry the insecurity of being not good at anything besides fighting ... which he then gets outclassed by [[TheLoad the entire cast]]. His issues are toned down a bit in ''Portable'' should you play as the female character, instead becoming more of an older brother sort of figure, though still also your closest friend (outside of Aigis).
** TokenEvilTeammate Akechi in ''VideoGame/Persona5'' was a SadClown with a FriendlessBackground, who despite having [[BrokenAce many talents]] including being a powerful [[FightingSpirit Persona]] user, [[TheResenter despised Joker]] for being able to [[EvilCounterpart catch up to]] and eventually surpass him through ThePowerOfFriendship while he had nobody.
** ''VideoGame/Persona5Strikers'': Ango Natsume's pride was devastatingly wounded when he found out that [[spoiler: not only was the writing competition he won fixed, but his editor saw him only as a talentless money fountain]]. He propped himself up with EMMA, but still felt inadequate. It's best represented by how after he is defeated, his outfit is revealed to be a cardboard cutout he stands behind in his underwear.
* TheRival (A.K.A. "Silver") in ''VideoGame/PokemonGoldAndSilver'' and ''Crystal'' is an extremely arrogant, highly abrasive boy who acts like he's stronger and better than everyone else, berating the player and calling them "weakling" constantly throughout the game even right after losing, calling everyone else weak, rudely brushing off advice and help from others, viewing [[NebulousEvilOrganization Team Rocket]] or any bunch of people as little more than a bunch of cowards compensating for their lack of strength and possessing a burning hatred for everyone and everything he sees as weak, even scoffing at you for trying to cure a sick Ampharos. In the original generation 2 games, he goes as far as to say he wants to [[TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior wipe out the weak]]. However, in the remakes it's revealed that it's to compensate for [[spoiler:his deep-seated fear of his own weakness, stemming from his father [[BigBad Giovanni]]'s [[VideoGame/PokemonRedAndBlue loss to Red three years prior]] that prompted the temporary disbanding of Team Rocket and his [[ParentalAbandonment abandoning of a very young Silver]]]]. [[CharacterDevelopment He gets better by the end, however]].
* In the Wii remake of ''VideoGame/PunchOut'', Super Macho Man is an egocentric showoff who plays to the crowd and treats his opponents like dirt. Surely losing to Little Mac once isn't going to put a dent in that massive ego, right? Fight him again in Title Defense and he's changed for the worse - he throws a tantrum when the crowd boos him, yelling "Why don't you '''love''' me?" (The crowd always booed him before and he ignored it.) He doesn't even flash his trademark smile as he taunts anymore - instead, he flexes so hard it looks painful as he grimaces at Mac. If he wins this bout, he has an epiphany and decides that CelebrityIsOverrated... but then it goes to his head and he reverts to his old ways. If the man wasn't an atomic-level JerkAss, you'd almost feel sorry for him.
* ''VideoGame/RadiantArc'': At the start of the game, it's clear that Derek is jealous that Lexie is giving Linky so much attention, which is why he bullies Linky and looks down on the latter for being weaker. [[spoiler:In the present, he's easily defeated by a Minotaur while Linky succeeds by awakening his powers as the Radiant Arc, causing Derek to lose faith in himself now that Linky surpassed him. This causes him to join the Morians both to prove himself stronger than Linky and because he's projecting his fear of his weakness on the rest of humanity, believing they're too weak to oppose the demons.]]
* ''VideoGame/RiseOfTheThirdPower'': Noraskov survived the Great War, but at the top of Peren Desh, he claims that failing to bring his country to victory was one of his greatest failures. This, combined with his shame over his peasant background, implies that he cultivates a strongman image to compensate for his own inferiority complex.
* In the first ''VideoGame/ShovelKnight'' expansion, Plague of Shadows, Plague Knight is very proud of his intelligence and skill with explosives and arcane arts, but he's constantly belittled by every other character in the game for his lack of physical strength and reliance on "trickery." He blows off their insults with his own retorts, but it becomes clear as you progress that he really does feel ashamed of not being stronger. [[spoiler:So much so that the entire purpose of his quest to create the ultimate potion is merely to become strong enough to woo his LoveInterest Mona. (Who, of course, loves him already.)]]
* ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog'':
** This is Metal Sonic's motivation. He was built for the sole purpose of defeating Sonic, but no matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't beat him. This slowly developed into a drive to prove himself superior to Sonic, one that began to drive Metal insane. By the time of ''VideoGame/SonicHeroes'', his inferiority complex caused him to become so unstable that he [[TheStarscream betrays Eggman]] and tries to devastate the planet in a desperate attempt to prove that he's the more powerful warrior.
** [[TheDragon Infinite]] takes this even further in ''VideoGame/SonicForces''. The [[MilesGloriosus self-proclaimed]] "Ultimate Mercenary", he belittles ''everyone'' he meets, including [[TheHero Sonic]] and [[UltimateLifeForm Shadow]]; he even gloats a bit toward his boss, Dr. Eggman. But for all his arrogance, Sonic doesn't take him any more seriously than he does his other enemies, and even Dr. Eggman gets sick of him. Why? [[spoiler: Before the events of the game, Infinite was just a two-bit [[HiredGuns sellsword]]. His [[CurbstompBattle effortless defeat]] at Shadow's hands prompted a FreakOut and [[InspirationalInsult motivated him]] to fusing himself with the Phantom Ruby, [[FromNobodyToNightmare becoming a weapon of mass destruction]] and shredding his original name.]]
** Blaze the Cat. Acts rather aloof and a bit above it all, and prefers being independent and doing everything by herself ([[CharacterDevelopment at least initially]]). Despite this, she's socially awkward and insecure, it's stated in official sources that [[ACupAngst she's self-conscious about her figure]], and she becomes very defensive and snappy when Silver claims that he could have taken the robots out without her in ''VideoGame/SonicColors'', immediately claiming that she could have taken them out without him as well. This could also be seen in [[VideoGame/SonicRushSeries her debut game]], in which she was so disgusted by the notion of letting Sonic aid her that she fought him when he refused to back out of the fight with the Eggmen, which allowed the latter to escape their grasp and in turn nearly led to the destruction of two dimensions.
* Alex from ''VideoGame/StardewValley'' reveals this in his route; [[spoiler: he was abused by his father as a child, possibly witnessed his mother's death, and came to believe he was worthless]]. Grandma Evelyn's well-meant concerns about his [[BookDumb academic shortcomings]] are furthering his insecurity, so he covers up with rudeness and bragging about his athleticism and future as a sports star.
* [[SmugSnake Darth Thanaton]] in ''VideoGame/StarWarsTheOldRepublic'', the BigBad of the [[VillainProtagonist Sith Inquisitor]] storyline. Like the PlayerCharacter he was a [[SlaveryIsASpecialKindOfEvil former slave]] who became Sith after it was discovered he was Force-sensitive, but his low upbringing combined with his InsufferableGenius demeanor caused him to not be taken seriously by his peers. Even after ascending to the Dark Council [[TheFriendNobodyLikes most of the other members seem to quietly disdain him]], and his [[FatalFlaw stubborn adherence to Sith tradition]] [[HonorBeforeReason at the cost of alienating everyone around him]] is a thinly-veiled overcompensation to validate himself.
* Papyrus from ''VideoGame/{{Undertale}}'' has this. His EstablishingCharacterMoment is him nagging his brother [[LazyBum Sans]] to stop slacking around, slipping into a boast on how perfect he is, and ultimately wishes to be showered with the respect he deserves. When you have to fight him, the way he talks heavily implies he just wants people to like him. That, of course, isn't to say he doesn't already have what he wants, and he doesn't seem to notice when someone actually hates him, to the point of giving words of encouragement to [[spoiler:the person who just decapitated him]]. That one he does notice - if you choose [[spoiler:not to decapitate him]], he actually tells you "to be honest, I was a little afraid" of coming out to meet you. [[IncorruptiblePurePureness He just sincerely believed you could do better.]]
* In ''VideoGame/UntilDawn'', during the therapy sessions with Dr. Hill, if [[AcademicAlphaBitch Emily]] is chosen as the player's least favourite person, Dr. Hill would suggest that she may have a fear of failure and her abrasiveness is a cover for her insecurities. This is seen later on if both she and Matt survive and have high relationship stats, Emily will ask the police about Matt and is noticeably concerned if Matt still considers her a good, devoted girlfriend.
* It's currently just [[AllThereInTheManual background information]] since ''VideoGame/YandereSimulator'' isn't finished yet, but final rival Megami Saiko's little brother Kencho has this ''bad''. The only reason he was born was to be a SpareToTheThrone in case Megami dies or abandons her responsibilities (like her aunt did before her), and he knows it. Because of this, he feels that his entire self-worth is tied to her, and he only has purpose if he can outdo her. Unfortunately for him, she's a ParodySue who always outdoes him in everything, so he has a massive inferiority complex tied to her. The 'superiority' part comes from his relationship with other people- he loves flaunting his wealth and generally rubbing his status into the faces of people he considers his inferiors in a desperate attempt to feel better than ''someone''.
* ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles3'': Lanz leans into his role as the team's [[TheBigGuy Big Guy]] and DumbMuscle in order to cover up the SurvivorsGuilt he feels from an incident where a friend saved him at the cost of their life. Sena has shades of this as well, deliberately playing herself up as a PluckyGirl to mask the fact that she doesn't consider herself to have much value outside of being the team's DumbMuscle. The two of them eventually bond over their shared insecurities and resolve to support each other instead of pretending to have no weaknesses.
[[/folder]]

-->'''Miu:''' [after showing Shuichi her inventions] Hah-hahahaha! Whaddaya think!? Bow before my formidable talent!\\
'''Shuichi:''' *sigh*...I don't know what to say. This is all very odd.\\

* Mao Mao of WesternAnimation/MaoMaoHeroesOfPureHeart has this in spades. He goes through great lengths to be a hero and look cool while doing it, but he really just wants to prove himself in the eyes of his family and the people around him; this was most evident in the episode "Not Impressed" [[StalkerWithoutACrush where he stalks a]] [[RidiculouslyCuteCritter Sweetie Pie]] who was unimpressed with his heroism.

!!Examples

* ''Manga/OnePiece''

* ''ComicBook/DisneyDucksComicUniverse'':
** Originally, this was the whole point of Paperinik (Donald's superhero/antihero alter ego): in the first story, and generally most Italian stories of the time, he was being constantly put down by Scrooge and Gladstone, so when he stumbled on the journal and equipment of Fantomius, the GentlemanThief, [[WhosLaughingNow he used it to steal the money-filled bed Scrooge was sleeping on and humiliate Gladstone]]. While he started becoming a more heroic character even in the earliest stories, the trait never fully disappeared, leading to such things as feigning an EasyAmnesia and literally ''steal away half the city '''just to track down a crime boss that he couldn't find''''' (early in the story he was so furious at his inability to find them that he was about to beat up an already captured minion when the police stopped him).
** This seems to be a recurring theme in Paperinik's stories: Paperinika, Paperinik's DistaffCounterpart, was born of Daisy being unable to take being put down for being female when she's just as smart if not more than Donald. At the same time, Italian authors ([[DependingOnTheWriter at least the ones who remember she exists]]) depict her rivalry with Paperinik as being caused by him being the only one she cannot consistently one-up and Paperinik feeling the same toward her.

* ''Manga/{{Evangelion 303}}'': Initially, [[{{FieryRedhead}} Asuka]] comes across like a very arrogant AcePilot than [[http://eva303.smackjeeves.com/comics/918665/042/ even refused calling someone her "peer."]] But in reality, [[http://eva303.smackjeeves.com/comics/2056814/021/ her self-confidence is very fragile,]] and when everything begins to fall apart, [[http://eva303.smackjeeves.com/comics/914657/033a/ she is prone to collapse]] and [[http://eva303.smackjeeves.com/comics/1794689/024/ seeing herself as a failure.]]

* ''Fanfic/{{HERZ}}'': All of Asuka’s bluster, bravado, and arrogance were a mask to hide her feelings of inadequacy and worthlessness. Shinji is one of the few people who can see what is underneath, and he often has to reassure her he does not think she is ugly and he would never leave her.

* The movie ''Film/TheSapphires'' is the story of an Aboriginal girl group that goes to Vietnam to entertain the troops. The darkest of them, who has spent years being bullied because of her complexion, almost relentlessly bullies the lightest-skinned one because of ''her'' skin tone. Among her crueler comments include suggesting that her sole interest in a black GI is to make herself blacker.
* In ''Film/MomAndDadSaveTheWorld'', Emperor Tod “The Destroyer” Spengo is basically built entirely around this trope.

* The deal with Bradley Chalkers of ''Literature/TheresABoyInTheGirlsBathroom''. Bradley begins as the blueprint BarbaricBully, responding to a kid's first interaction with him with "Give me a dollar or I'll spit on you.". Few see his struggles: he's a KiddieKid with learning disabilities that have held him back a grade, classified as a failure by everyone but his mother. Figuring that if he's a failure, it won't sting as much if he hates the people who branded him one, he gains confidence and a sense of superiority by ''becoming'' their worst expectations: an aggressive, lying, friendless wretch who will break anything given to him. The story is about Bradley's relationship with his new school counselor, Carla, who helps Bradley break out of his cage of self-image and [[CharacterDevelopment flourish as a person]].
--> He understood it when the other kids were mean to him. It didn't bother him. He simply hated them. As long as he hated them, it didn't matter what they thought of him.

-->''"Probably an over-compensated inferiority complex. Younger sons of royalty get that way, you know."'' -- '''Salvor Hardin'''

* ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire''

* ''Series/ThirtyRock'':
** Jenna acts the SmallNameBigEgo, but it's made clear that she's really afraid of becoming a WhiteDwarfStarlet. This is PlayedForLaughs as she acts insanely paranoid about anyone upstaging her.
--->'''Liz''': Jack is hiring a new cast member.\\
'''Jenna''': IF IT IS A BLONDE WOMAN, I WILL KILL MYSELF!
** Tracey apparently has a similar problem. Look at his reaction to the same news.
--->'''Tracey''': IF IT'S A BLONDE WOMAN, I WILL KILL MYSELF!

-->'''Big Boss:''' You play him like a damn Stradivarius.
-->'''The Sorrow:''' Ha! More like a fifty-cent kazoo. A kazoo with a big red button labelled "inferiority complex".

** ''VideoGame/Persona3'' has this in the Magician Arcana in Junpei Iori. He tends to act cocky and confrontational, mainly with TheHero. However, we learn that he has low self-esteem and a cruddy home life with an absent alcoholic father. As such, he initially saw SEES as a way to escape his home life and [[IJustWantToBeSpecial be a somebody]] in his life. However, he does carry the insecurity of being not good at anything besides fighting ... which he then gets outclassed by [[AlwaysSomeoneBetter the Protagonist]]. CharacterDevelopment does have him grow out of this as he grows close to them and becomes TheLancer and BestFriend of the main character over time. His issues are toned down a bit in ''Portable'' should you play as the female character, instead becoming more of an older brother sort of figure, though still also your closest friend (outside of Aigis).

* The deal with Bradley Chalkers of ''Literature/TheresABoyInTheGirlsBathroom''. Bradley begins as the blueprint BarbaricBully, responding to a kid's first interaction with him with "Give me a dollar or I'll spit on you.". Few see his struggles: he's a KiddieKid with learning disabilities that have held him back a grade, seen as a failure by everyone around him but his mother. Figuring that if he's a failure, it won't sting as much if he hates the people who branded him one, he gains confidence and a sense of superiority by ''becoming'' their worst expectations: an aggressive, lying, friendless wretch who will break anything given to him. The story is about Bradley's relationship with his new school counselor, Carla, who helps Bradley break out of his cage of self-image and [[CharacterDevelopment flourish as a person]].

* The deal with Bradley Chalkers of ''Literature/TheresABoyInTheGirlsBathroom''. Bradley begins as the blueprint BarbaricBully, responding to a kid's first interaction with him with "Give me a dollar or I'll spit on you.". Few see his struggles: he's a KiddieKid with learning disabilities that have held him back a grade, seen as a failure by everyone around him but his mother. Figuring that if he's a failure, it won't sting as much if he hates the people who label him one, he gains confidence and a sense of superiority by ''becoming'' their worst expectations: an aggressive, lying, friendless wretch who will break anything given to him. The story is about Bradley's relationship with his new school counselor, Carla, who helps Bradley break out of his cage of self-image and [[CharacterDevelopment flourish as a person]].
-> He understood it when the other kids were mean to him. It didn't bother him. He simply hated them. As long as he hated them, it didn't matter what they thought of him.

* The deal with Bradley Chalkers of ''Literature/TheresABoyInTheGirlsBathroom''. Bradley begins as the blueprint BarbaricBully, responding to a kid's first interaction with him with "Give me a dollar or I'll spit on you.". He's also struggling: he's a KiddieKid with learning disabilities that have held him back a grade, seen as a failure by everyone around him but his mother. Figuring that if he's a failure, it won't sting as much if he hates the people who label him one, he feels superior by ''becoming'' their worst expectations: an aggressive, lying, friendless wretch who will break anything given to him. The story is about Bradley's relationship with his new school counselor, Carla, who helps Bradley break out of his prison of self-perception and [[CharacterDevelopment flourish as a person]].

* Both Zen and Jumin from ''VisualNovel/MysticMessenger'' show shades of this. LongHairedPrettyBoy Zen is constantly gushing about how he's the world's most handsome man and an amazing actor, but flashbacks in his route show that as a child he was both objectified by almost everyone, from teachers to strangers, and [[AbusiveParents ruthlessly insulted and belittled him, constantly telling him that he was ugly and incompetent, and his mother even once tried to forcibly shave all his hair off.]] WordOfGod is that he talks himself up constantly because he's never really had someone consistently in his corner and he secretly hides a lot of insecurity, and Jumin muses that maybe people who are vain are only that way because they've never known the privilege of being able to love someone else safely. Jumin, on the other hand, is less mouthy about his accomplishments, but he does take pride in being an excellent businessman CEO-in-line of a massive business conglomerate, as well as being handsome, intelligent, and level-headed, but he turns out to be extremely lonely, hence why he dotes on his cat Elizabeth the Third, and tells you in his route that [[IAmAMonster he feels like a mutant who's unable to relate to or be close with almost anyone]], which can be attributed to growing up with parents who treated him as a project instead of a child, as well as the [[ParentalIncest heavily implied sexual grooming that one of his stepmothers tried to exact on him as a kid.]]

* In ''WesternAnimation/RickAndMorty'', it's shown that InsufferableGenius Rick has this to the point that [[spoiler: he feels so threatened by the idea of someone being smarter than him that he created a metaphysical wall spanning the entire infinite multiverse, blocking out any AlternateUniverse with someone smarter than him from their section of the multiverse to turn reality itself into a NormalFishInATinyPond situation for him for the sake of his own ego.]]

* ''Manga/{{Bleach}}'': Nnoitra Gilga proclaims himself the strongest Espada (despite being only the 5th strongest one), acting extremely egotistical during his fights. But beneath his arrogant front is man with a deep inferiority complex. He had an inability to win fights, especially against Nelliel who at the time was the 3rd Espada. That, combined with Nelliel pitying him for his destructive stupidity, caused him to develop a grudge against her that motivated him to attack her. As his fight with Zaraki Kenpachi starts to drag on, he gets increasingly more desperate and frustrated over being unable to beat the mighty Captain. He hates being spared by an opponent, viewing it as the biggest disrespect to a warrior.