History Main / SmarterThanYouLook

* Jayne Cobb from ''{{Firefly}}''. He can read people much better than [[BookDumb books]] and even gets a reluctant praise from his interrogatee in those very words.
* In Series Five of the new DoctorWho, Rory Williams initially looks like the dim, dreary sort-of boyfriend Amy will happily ditch to go travelling with the Doctor. Then you realise that while the whole of Leadworth is outside taking photos of the Sun apparently going out, Rory - the nurse - is paying attention to the coma patient out walking his dog, and taking photos of ''that''. That's right, Mickey Smith 2.0 just identified Prisoner Zero all on his own with no help from the Doctor, and did the one thing that would let the Doctor give the Atraxi all the information they needed to catch it. There's a ''reason'' the Doctor beams at Rory like he's just got a new crush at the end of their first conversation.

* In Series Five of the new DoctorWho, Rory Williams initially looks like the dim, dreary sort-of boyfriend Amy will happily ditch to go travelling with the Doctor. Then you realise that while the whole of Leadworth is outside taking photos of the Sun apparently going out, Rory - the nurse - is paying attention to the coma patient out walking his dog, and taking photos of ''that''. That's right, Mickey Smith 2.0 just identified Prisoner Zero all on his own with no help from the Doctor, and did the one thing that would let the Doctor give the Atraxi all the information they needed to catch it. There's a ''reason'' the Doctor beams at Rory like he's just got a new crush at the end of their first conversation.

[[WalkyVerse http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/smarterthanilook.JPG]]

-> JamesBond: "You know, you're cleverer than you look."
-> [[JohnCleese Q]]: "Still, better than looking cleverer than you are."
---> - ''DieAnotherDay''

This character is not simply the GeniusDitz or RainMan, for those characters are sharply skilled in a single area while remarkably hindered in others. The Smarter Than You Look character has true vast and all-encompassing intelligence. He just ''looks'' stupid, through mannerisms, vernacular or visible appearance, while actually being quite smart. He may also be PrettySmartForAHottie, though the key to being Smarter Than You Look is the distinct and clear appearance of stupidity.

[[AC: {{Anime}} and {{Manga}}]]

* 2nd Lt. Heymans Breda from FullmetalAlchemist looks like a [[DumbMuscle big dumb grunt]], but he's actually pretty bright. Our first glimpse of him comes as he's gloating about [[SmartPeoplePlayChess winning at]] {{shogi}} for the 47th time in a row.
** The end of the flashback chapters about the war note why Mustang took on the subordinates he did. Breda's in the group because he's smarter than he looks.

[[AC:ComicBooks]]

* Dream Girl in the modern/original version of the ''{{Legion of Super-Heroes}}''. Like many story elements in the Legion, this was based on a throwaway reference from the SilverAge: she changed Light Lass's powers using Naltorian Science. She's the smartest Legionnaire after Brainiac 5, Superman, and Supergirl, at least if you believe the RPG, and is one of the few who haas been able to use Brainiac 5's force shield belt.

[[AC:{{Film}}]]

* Norville Barnes in ''TheHudsuckerProxy'', who keeps showing people a picture of a circle and saying, "you know, for kids!" Turns out he thought up the Hula Hoop.

[[AC:{{Literature}}]]

* Keith from ''[[{{Discworld}} The Amazing Maurice and his Educated Rodents]]'' is a stupid-''looking'' kid. He is not stupid, and he doesn't appreciate Maurice assuming that he is.
* Siegfried from ''The Sleeping Beauty'' of the TalesOfTheFiveHundredKingdoms looks like your standard muscle-for-brains BarbarianHero, but he's smart enough to excel at the EngagementChallenge tournament with his outside-the-box thinking and to figure out some of the intrigues and secret identities involved.

[[AC:LiveActionTV]]

* Quinn from {{Glee}} might be expected to be the dumb, beautiful, bitchy head cheerleader, but it turns out she only fulfils 3/4 of this. She seems pretty intelligent for most of the series (except, y'know, the whole teen pregnancy thing) and I think she's mentioned at one point as a straight-A student. Her boyfriend, stereotypical non-JerkJock Finn, is correspondingly dumb.

[[AC:{{Radio}}]]

[[AC:VideoGames]]

* In ''TeamFortress2'', the Heavy Weapons Guy may look, and even sound, like a big lumbering oaf who loves nothing but his Heavy Weapons, but in the Russian translation, [[EloquentInMyNativeTongue he actually comes off as quite intelligent]], and he has a surprising depth to his character in ''PokerNightAtTheInventory'' too.
** HE even has a PhD in Russian Literature.
* Much like the above example, ''MassEffect'' has Urdnot Wrex, a large, slow speaking [[ProudWarriorRaceGuy Krogan]] who is less his people's stereotypical BloodKnight, and far more a WarriorPoet.
** ''MassEffect2'' has Grunt from the same species who, despite essentially being a newborn test-tube baby, is very articulate. And when he's not killing big things, he enjoys reading Ernest Hemingway.
* [[MonkeyIsland Guybrush Threepwood]].

[[AC:{{Webcomics}}]]

[[AC:WesternAnimation]]

** "Well put, Oxford."
* Jim, Andy's best friend from MissionHill doesn't seem all that smart. A slow talking, monosyllabic guy, who is implied on more than one occasion to be a stoner. But apparently, he's also a total computer whiz, and paid very well for it by an ad agency. Andy wasn't even aware until Jim told him.

[[AC:RealLife]]
* [[TruthInTelevision Happens often enough]] - Sometimes it's said in the reverse, "not as dumb as you look."
* Dyslexic people. Initially they appear stupid as they have trouble reading. But spend enough time with one, and it's a different story. The same can be said for those with Aspergers or Autism: very intellegent in some subjects, but many social conventions such as sarcasm are often beyond them.
* LadyGaga's at least built this image, although it's not clear if it's ObfuscatingStupdity, genuine stupidity with a façade of hidden depths built up by a slick team, or an honest accident by a genuine {{Cloudcuckoolander}}.
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* Dyslexic people. Initially they appear stupid as they have trouble reading. But spend enough time with one, and it's a different story.
* the same can be said for those with Aspergers or Autism. Very intellegent in some subjects, but many social conventions such as sarcasm are beyond them.

* Cordelia Chase in ''{{Angel}}''. She was smart in ''BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' too of course, but at least early was operating more under ObfuscatingStupidity to stay popular.

* Jayne Cobb from ''{{Firefly}}''. He can read people much better than [[BookDumb books]] and even gets a reluctant prause from his interrogatee in those very words.

* In ''TeamFortress2'', the Heavy Weapons Guy may look, and even sound, like a big lumbering oaf who loves nothing but his Heavy Weapons, but in the Russian translation, [[EloquentInMyNativeLanguage he actually comes off as quite intelligent]], and he has a surprising depth to his character in ''PokerNightAtTheInventory'' too.

* The [[TeamFortress2 Heavy Weapons Guy]] may look, and even sound, like a big lumbering oaf who loves nothing but his Heavy Weapons, but in the Russian translation, he actually comes off as quite intelligent, and he has a surprising depth to his character in PokerNightAtTheInventory too.
* Much like the above example, MassEffect has Urdnot Wrex, a large, slow speaking [[ProudWarriorRaceGuy Krogan]] who is less his people's stereotypical BloodKnight, and far more a WarriorPoet.

* 2nd Lt. Heymans Breda from FullmetalAlchemist looks like a [[DumbMuscle big dumb grunt]], but he's actually pretty bright. Our first glimpse of him comes as he gloats about [[SmartPeoplePlayChess winning at]] {{shogi}} for the 47th time in a row.

* 2nd Lt. Heymans Breda from FullmetalAlchemist looks like a big dumb grunt, but he's actually pretty bright. Our first glimpse of him comes as he gloats about his 47th [[SmartPeoplePlayChess shogi]] win in a row.

* Keith from ''[[{{Discworld}} The Amazing Maurice and his Educated Rodents]] is a stupid-''looking'' kid. He is not stupid, and he doesn't appreciate Maurice assuming that he is.

The SmartGuy in a FiveManBand may start out as this, or he may stay as this. The AbsentMindedProfessor is often a subtrope of this. This trope is to intellect as the OldMaster is to strength, or as the KillerRabbit is to danger/terror. This trope is a very close relative of DitzyGenius, but differs in that the DitzyGenius actually is pretty stupid/inept/{{Cloudcuckoolander}}ish sometimes, whereas the SmarterThanYouLook character just has a ditzy personality.