History Main / ShowingOffYourPowers

Contrast FakeWizardry, for when they don't actually have powers beyond their showmanship.

** After Raven learns Dark Magic in "Nevermore" she shows off her new abilities by playfully shapeshifting [=BeastBoy=] against his will.

** Mumbo Jumbo does this several times in his debut episode, sucking the Titans into a pocket dimension where he can conjure up anything he wants as part of his magic-based showmanship. As is typical for reality warpers, he does it through a bombastic musical number.

[[quoteright:655:[[WesternAnimation/{{Frozen}} https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ee_1.png]]]]

!!Examples

* ''Anime/AssassinationClassroom'': Koro-Sensei's introduction is marked by him demonstrating to his students how impossibly powerful he is: which includes showing his super regeneration, super speed, and combat tentacles.

* ''Manga/Overlord2012'': PlayedForDrama. Emperor Jircniv asks Ainz to cast his most powerful spell in the battle against the kingdom of E-Rantel. This is ostensibly to prove how powerful his new ally is, but he also hopes to convince other nations to band together against Ainz upon seeing it. Ainz dutifully casts his flashiest spell -- which immediately eliminates half the opposing army -- '' and then uses those souls to summon half a dozen [[EldritchAbomination Eldritch Abominations]] that proceed to stomp most of the remaining soldiers to death''. Jircniv is left horrified by the realization that there is no magic in the world that can compare to Ainz. As per usual, Ainz is completely oblivious to all this: his only plan in casting the spell was in the hopes of attracting potential incarnated players like himself.

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Frozen}}'': Elsa playfully shows off her Ice powers to entertain Anna as a kid. As an adult, she falls back into this by creating an ice palace during her song "Let It Go" (although this is only showing off to herself).

* ''Series/FraggleRock'': In one episode, Wembley is jealous of Gobo's talent for exploring and Red's gift for performing the three-rock hand balance (three rocks stacked in the palm of the hand). Later, he frees a trapped spider-fly from a snare blossom. The spider-fly turns out to be an [[GenderBender Odd Old Man/Fairy Godmother]]—who, as a reward, grants Wembley his wish of being able to fly. After being told that he will be able to make only three flights, Wembley tries to show off his powers to his friends by jumping out a window, but they stop him, doubting his powers and fearing that he'll gut hurt... or killed.

* In the VideoGame/CapcomVs titles he shows up as a non-assist character, the Juggernaut will show off his SuperStrength before a fight by twisting a massive steel girder into a horseshoe.

* ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'':
** Aang demonstrates his Airbending as proof of being the Avatar several times throughout the series, including a comical moment where he does it by spinning marbles in his palm.

* ''WesternAnimation/Ben10'': In "Kevin 11" Kevin shows off his energy powers to Ben by making arcade machines malfunction and shoot out coins.

* ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse'': During the movie, Sapphire shows off her future vision to impress Ruby by accurately predicting things moments before they happen. [[spoiler:this takes a dark turn, when she predicts Ruby getting shattered.]]
* ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitans'':

Showing off your powers can also happen during combat, and many {{Smug Super}}s are defined by this as an [[TellMeHowYouFight illustrative fighting style]] unto itself. Younger superheroes especially like to show off to spectators while they fight, and it can even motivate ExplainingYourPowerToTheEnemy.

* ''Series/FraggleRock'': In one episode, Wembley is jealous of Gobo's talent for exploring and Red's gift for performing the three-rock hand balance (three rocks stacked in the palm of the hand). Later, he frees a trapped spider-fly from a snare blossom. The spider-fly turns out to be an [[GenderBender Odd Old Man/Fairy Godmother]]—who, as a reward, grants Wembley his wish of being able to fly. After being told that he will be able to make only three flights, Wembley tries to show off his powers to his friends by jumping out a window, but they stop him, doubting his powers and fearing he'll gut hurt... or killed.

* ''Film/{{Matilda}}'': After a TrainingMontage of Matilda learning how to use her telekinesis, she throws herself a dance party by turning on the radio and making objects fly around the room with her powers. She later proves her abilities to Miss Honey by not only making her pitcher float but also by helping her rearrange her classroom.

When done enthusiastically, it generally characterizes the person as having a streak of showmanship to themselves. [[MagiciansAreWizards Stage Magicians]] and [[CircusOfMagic Circus Ringmasters]] for instance may ''exclusively'' use their powers for spectacle -- and all stage performances openly involving superpowers implicitly rely on this trope. For related reasons, the most bombastic examples of this tend to happen through a full-on diegetic musical number ([[RealityWarper Reality Warpers]] in particular are fond of this variation due to PersonalityPowers).

When done enthusiastically, it generally characterizes the person as having a streak of showmanship to themselves. [[MagiciansAreWizards Stage Magicians]] and [[CircusOfMagic Circus Ringmasters]] for instance may ''exclusively'' use their powers for spectacle -- and all stage performances openly involving superpowers implicitly rely on this trope. For related reasons, the most bombastic examples of this tend to happen through a full-on diegetic musical number ([[RealityWarper Reality Warpers]] in particular are fond of this variation).

* ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'': In ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosUltimate'', some characters may show off their powers for their victory animations and/or Taunts, like Mario and Zelda could display their fire powers for a victory pose, or Bowser Junior can breathe fire for one of his Taunts.

Overlaps with MundaneUtility where trying to impress people is the utility. May function as an EstablishingCharacterMoment. HowDoIShotWeb and PowerIncontinence can get in the way of showing off. BarehandedBarBending is often done for this purpose as well.

SpoonBending is a common way for psychics to show off. For shapeshifters, see ShapeshifterShowoffSession.

Overlaps with MundaneUtility where trying to impress people is the utility. May function as an EstablishingCharacterMoment. HowDoIShotWeb and PowerIncontinence can get in the way of showing off.

[[folder:Animations]]

[[caption-width-right:655:Do you wanna build a snowman?]]

On the more mundane side, this can also function as a quick no-frills demonstration meant to prove you have superpowers to those who are skeptical, such as a new teammate or a SecretKeeper. It can even be done for the sake of a child, as a very advanced form of [[MundaneUtility jingling your car keys in front of their face]].

When done enthusiastically, it generally characterizes the person as having a streak of showmanship to themselves. [[MagiciansAreWizards Stage Magicians]] and [[CircusOfMagic Circus Ringmasters]] for instance may ''only'' use their powers for spectacle -- and all stage performances openly involving superpowers implicitly rely on this trope. For related reasons, the most bombastic examples of this tend to happen through a full-on diegetic musical number ([[RealityWarper Reality Warpers]] in particular are fond of this variation).

Showing off your powers can also happen during combat, and many {{Smug Super}}s are defined by this as an [[TellMeHowYouFight illustrative fighting style]] unto itself. This can come up as a needlessly fanciful BadassFingersnap, or ShapingYourAttacks when you really didn't need to. Younger superheroes especially like to show off to spectators while they fight, and it can motivate ExplainingYourPowerToTheEnemy.

** Mumbo Jumbo does this several times in his debut episode, sucking the Titans into a pocket dimension where he can conjure up anything he wants as part of his magic-based showmanship.

On the more mundane side, this can also function as a quick no-frills demonstration meant to prove you have superpowers to those who are skeptical. It is also the standard way to introduce your powers to a new teammate or a SecretKeeper. It can even be done for the sake of a child, as a very advanced form of [[MundaneUtility jingling your car keys in front of their face]].

On the more mundane side, this can also function as a quick no-frills demonstration meant to prove you have superpowers to a new teammate or a SecretKeeper. It can even be done for the sake of a child, as a very advanced form of [[MundaneUtility jingling your car keys in front of their face]].

* ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse'': During the movie, Sapphire shows off her future vision to impress Ruby by accurately predicting things moments before they happen. [[spoiler:this takes a dark turn, when she predicts her getting shattered.]]

Showing off your powers can also happen during combat, and many {{Smug Super}}s are defined by this as an [[TellMeHowYouFight illustrative fighting style]] unto itself. This can come up as a needlessly fanciful BadassFingersnap, or ShapingYourAttacks when you really didn't need to. Younger superheroes especially like to show off to others while they fight, and it can motivate ExplainingYourPowerToTheEnemy.

Showing off your powers can also happen during combat, and many {{Smug Super}}s are defined by this as a full-on [[TellMeHowYouFight fighting style]]. This can come up as a needlessly fanciful BadassFingersnap, or ShapingYourAttacks when you really didn't need to. Younger superheroes especially like to show off to others while they fight, and it can motivate ExplainingYourPowerToTheEnemy.