History Main / StrongAsTheyNeedToBe

* ''ComicBook/BlackPanther'': Creator/{{Christopher Priest|Comics}} mentioned this when writing Characters/{{Black Panther|TitleCharacter}}'s solo series. DependingOnTheWriter, Panther can hold his own against the entire ComicBook/FantasticFour and even trade blows with Characters/TheThing, or be overpowered and beaten unconscious by random muggers and {{Mooks}}. What makes it worse is that the Black Panther's costume is lined with vibranium (the same stuff Captain America's shield is made of), which means he should be able to shrug off blows that would wound or knock out a normal man.
* ''ComicBook/BlueBeetle'' has a history of this, generally thanks to the Scarab- Ted Kord, who didn't have it, was consistent as a BadassNormal. Jaime Reyes' series justified it by revealing that their powers are taken from the Scarab itself, which was damaged before any of them got ahold of it, so whatever it manages to throw together for them ''this'' time is somewhat random. Jaime is able to draw out the most power out of the Scarab, but he also has to deal with the Scarab thinking MurderIsTheBestSolution and having very little in the way of non-lethal powers.

* ''ComicBook/SheHulk'': Creator/PeterDavid pretty much stated this trope when responding to comments of his writing of [[Characters/SheHulkTitleCharacter She-Hulk]]. Fanboys were quibbling about She-Hulk's power level under PAD's run and he said she'd be as strong as the story required -- as the story was more important than the stats.

* Pro wrestling loves this trope. The good guy will consistently get beaten and be depicted as brutalized and exhausted, until they suddenly bounce back for a victory. Wrestling/JohnCena is a particular offender. He needs to be able to lift his opponent onto his shoulders in order to perform his finisher but against gigantic opponents he is often unable to do so (despite him having lifted the likes of Wrestling/BigShow and Viscera in the past). Whether he eventually manages depends on whether he is booked to win that night or not.

*** John Stewart (Green Lantern) has one of the greatest examples, when he is accused of having destroyed a planet, being that despite the fact that destroying planets is not so special in comics, animated series tend to handle a much smaller scale, up to the point that Superman is not sure if he can survive an explosion of half a kiloton. Even when John is found not guilty, that he was supposed to pull off a feat of that caliber is never in question. Though the [[HandWave way the accusation is phrased]] sounds like they're accusing him of setting off a chain reaction of some time rather than just brute-force destroying it (they say he targeted "a vulnerable area of the crust").

* ''ComicStrip/{{Popeye}}'': Just how strong Bluto is tends to vary. Normally, he easily outmatches Popeye until Popeye eats spinach, after which Popeye easily blows him away, while on other occasions, he's either weaker than Popeye and uses trickery to fight back, or can fight Popeye evenly even after the latter eats the spinach.

* According to Umberto Eco's seminal 1995 essay [[https://www.nybooks.com/articles/1995/06/22/ur-fascism/ "Ur-Fascism"]], one of the defining traits of all fascist movements is that they view what ever group they consider the enemy (which obviously varies depending on the fascist movement) as either an overwhelming threat that they have to stop immediately or as weak and ineffectual losers with no hope of winning, depending on what the propaganda requires at the time. He then goes on to suggest that this is part of why fascist governments invariably fail eventually: they are incapable of objectively gauging the strength of their enemies, and thus aren't able to fight them effectively

** The most glaring example is the Davy Back Fight Arc. Last arc, Luffy defeated Eneru, an extremely skilled fighter who used one of the most powerful Devil Fruits ever seen. In the Davy Back Fight, he has trouble with Foxy, who, even if one takes into account his WeakButSkilled status, is indeed extremely weaker than Eneru.
*** This is because, Enel was [[ElementalRockPaperScissors at an extreme disadvantage due to Luffy's rubber body]] and Foxy's Devil Fruit is a GameBreaker: his [[TimeStandsStill Slow-Slow Fruit]] not only decreases the relative speed of what he fires at, it also adds on top the combined accumulated damage delivered once the motion is back in sync with the rest of the environment. This is a problem when Foxy uses RapidFireFisticuffs, and other forms of damage to Luffy. When he briefly stopped using his power and went for an [[PummelDuel all-out slugfest,]] Luffy, despite the damage he received, easily got the upper hand.

* ''ComicBook/{{Lobo}}'': [[Characters/DCComicsLobo Lobo]] may have this as an explicit superpower. Or he could have been lying. Regardless, he can go toe to toe with Superman and regenerate FromASingleCell... and then get himself killed (briefly) by a surprise knife to the guts.

** [[GoldfishPoopGang Team Rocket]] are just as glaring. They lose so often that their rare success [[TropeNamers named]] a [[TeamRocketWins trope.]] But occasionally, they prove to be '''[[NotSoHarmlessVillain scarily competent]]'''...before going back to [[VillainDecay being jokes.]] Case in point, in a ''Pokemon Sun and Moon'' episode, [[TeamRocketWins they more or less BEAT Ash and all his Pokemon in a fair battle,]] and the only thing that stopped them from taking Pikachu was [[DeusExMachina Bewear whisking them away again.]] Fast forward a few episodes and they then get wrecked by a newly-hatched Vulpix...
** In "All for the Love of Meloetta!", [[spoiler:Iris' Axew, a {{mon}} in its first stage with a spotty at best record,]] managed to somehow put up something resembling a fight against [[MemeticBadass Cynthia's Garchomp,]] a mon that beat four of [[ArrogantKungFuGuy Paul's]] team with one hit each. Despite this, it still largely returned to being babied by Iris afterward.
** Iris's Dragonite is another glaring example. It was set up as incredibly overpowered in its first few episodes, tanking quad-effective Ice-type moves like they're nothing and one-shotting its opponents with ease. Ironically, it completely loses this power once it starts obeying Iris, subjected to TheWorfEffect in just about every one of its later battles.
** The actual competence and strength of any Pokemon is highly dependent on the plot. While there's usually ''some'' consistency on which Pokemon are more powerful than others, their individual feats will always change for dramatic or comedic effect.

*** Green Lantern John Stewart is notably lacking in creativity, and his constructs are overpowered regularly, despite believably being capable of destroying a planet on his own (later it's stated that a couple ''dozen'' Lanterns could easily destroy a planet with their blasts).

* Characters/{{Wolverine|JamesLoganHowlett}} pulls this off in ''Film/XMenTheLastStand'' when he faces down Dark Phoenix in the climactic scene of the movie. His healing powers are inexplicably multiplied to the point where he can walk up to Phoenix (who by this point had already atomized several main characters and the entirety of Alcatraz island), taking multiple psychic blasts which flay the muscles from his bones only to fully regenerate in less than a second. Keep in mind that this version of Wolverine took some time to heal from a single gunshot or being hit by a log. This was so egregious that it got a WordOfGod {{Retcon}}, stating that Phoenix's out-of-control abilities also amplified the powers of nearby mutants. It's also been surmised that Jean was FightingFromTheInside, not letting her full power (which could ''easily'' turn Wolverine, adamantium skeleton and all, to vapor) be brought to bear. Then there’s the fact that throughout the whole scene, [[MagicPants his pants remain intact]].

* The Amazons from ''ComicBook/AmazonsAttack'', when Characters/{{Wonder Woman|TheCharacter}}'s people invaded the United States seemed to fluctuate wildly in their power. In one scene they're giving Characters/{{Supergirl|TheCharacter}} and ComicBook/WonderGirl a hard time, then Superman shows up and trounces them effortlessly, then they're taking down fighter jets with [[RockBeatsLaser flying horses and spears]], Batman can beat them in a straight up fight, they can invade Washington DC and the army can't do a thing to stop them, then they get shot down by soldiers. They're not ImmuneToBullets, and they beat the US army with spears and giant bees [[note]] Stygian Killer Hornets, thank you... [[MemeticMutation Bees. My God]][[/note]]!?
** Wonder Woman herself is often subject to this. She can either be as strong as Superman or weaker than him (and even then by how much will vary). Her Lasso of Truth can either be unbreakable or be broken by incredibly strong opponents. And then there is her weakness to bullets which comes and goes at the writers' whims.

* Creator/{{Christopher Priest|Comics}} mentioned this when writing ComicBook/BlackPanther's solo series. DependingOnTheWriter, Panther can hold his own against the entire ComicBook/FantasticFour and even trade blows with Characters/TheThing, or be overpowered and beaten unconscious by random muggers and {{Mooks}}. What makes it worse is that the Black Panther's costume is lined with vibranium (the same stuff Captain America's shield is made of), which means he should be able to shrug off blows that would wound or knock out a normal man.

* Creator/JackKirby's Celestials, through it's more visible in alternate realities -- in ''ComicBook/EarthX'' they as a whole cannot match [[Characters/MarvelComicsGalactus Galactus]], in other worlds they are capable of effortlessly killing three wielders of ComicBook/TheInfinityGauntlet, and in ''ComicBook/WhatIf: Comicbook/SecretWars1984'' they can take Doctor Doom, possessing the Infinity Gauntlet AND the power of the Beyonder, despite that both are individually powerful enough to defeat Abstracts, who are supposed to be far above Celestials. And in another reality one of them is no stronger than a fleet of spaceships.
* Characters/{{Deadpool|WadeWilson}}, whose healing powers are literally taken from Wolverine, has his own healing ability fluctuate wildly depending on how powerful they need to be for the plot. This is explained away as a result of the constant battle between his cancer and his healing powers, as sometimes the cancer gains ground and sometimes the healthy cells gain ground. It even becomes a major plot point when his healing factor stays in a weakened state and he seeks medical attention to try and improve it. He is literally immortal though, since after meeting Death herself when he was having near death experiences he fell in love with her, [[Characters/MarvelComicsThanos Thanos]] became jealous of Deadpool and prevents his soul from passing on so they can never be together.
* ''ComicBook/DoctorDoom'': While it wouldn't be inaccurate to say Doom's become an InvincibleVillain over the years whose PopularityPower has enabled him to defeat or outwit multitudes of heroes, there can still be moments where his exact level of power isn't consistent, such as those times he's shown to be weaker than The Thing but can easily defeat Hulk. And even putting aside how he does against the FF compared to other heroes, his power can vary just as much. His armor can be so strong that the Hulk headbutting him doesn't seem to hurt him or it can withstand Thanos' Infinity Gauntlet blasting him, leaving only cosmetic burns with Doom otherwise seeming unphased. But then in other stories, Doom can be injured by Iron Man (someone less powerful than Hulk or Thanos) punching him and getting up close and physical in an armor-versus-armor brawl.

* This trope is actually used to describe the power of ''ComicBook/DCRebirth'' characters Gotham and Gotham Girl, introduced in the ''Batman'' storyline "I Am Gotham". The brother-sister duo are given powers by Dr. Hugo Strange that fluctuate depending on who they're facing. This is easily shown in the finale when a FaceHeelTurn Gotham is beaten bloody by Batman, yet when the entire Justice League, whose numbers include two Green Lanterns and the pre-''ComicBook/{{Flashpoint}}'' Superman, show up, he tears them apart. The downside of this is that it is CastFromHitPoints, meaning that they're going to die when it's all used up. [[spoiler:Gotham ended up dying earlier as Gotham Girl is forced to put him down.]]
* [[Characters/GreenLantern1941 Solomon Grundy]], a regular villain in Franchise/TheDCU, is a justified case. His power explicitly fluctuates due to his ResurrectiveImmortality; every time he comes back, he gets a somewhat different personality and power level. Some forms are able to trade blows with Superman, while others are weak enough for Batman or Green Arrow to take down.
* DC's ''ComicBook/{{Hawkman}}'' has a nebulously defined amount of superhuman stats (ie: far stronger than any peak human but below Superman or Wonder Woman levels) that's never been clearly measured where he's powerful enough to hurt serious heavy hitters like Despero or Black Adam and draw blood from them but in turn, he can be hurt or even beaten by peak humans like Batman or low level superhumans like Deathstroke.
* The Characters/{{Incredible Hulk|BruceBanner}}'s level of physical might and durability varies tremendously. This one, however, has a built-in explanation: Hulk's physical might -- and in [[Film/{{Hulk}} the 2003 movie]], his physical mass and size -- is directly related to how angry he gets. Hence the catchphrase "The madder Hulk gets, the stronger Hulk gets." For example, Characters/{{Wolverine|JamesLoganHowlett}} has fought him several times -- most of the time to a standstill until he manages to get one good cut in and piss the Hulk off enough that his anger really flares up. At the same time, during the ComicBook/{{Onslaught}} [[CrisisCrossover event]], in the last battle with the titular villain, [[Characters/MarvelComicsJeanGrey Jean Grey]] mentally removed any blocks Banner may have had to restrain himself, and he beat the hell out of the physical form of a being that could [[RealityWarper alter reality with a thought]]. In short: hope your first punch knocks him out. Similarly to Darwin below, in one story Hulk developed the ability to breathe in space by getting angry enough. Another factor is ''[[SplitPersonality which]]'' Hulk's shown up, as different Hulks have different strength levels, though even Grey Hulk/Joe Fixit, who's usually considered weaker than his other selves, is still formidable in a fight.
* The ''ComicBook/InfiniteCrisis'' ComicBook/{{OMAC}}s are an interesting case. They're villains, which is unusual for this trope, and Strong As They Need To Be is their explicitly stated ability. When they sight a superhero, they'll identify the hero and reconfigure to have the powers and abilities they need to win the fight. Nearly everyone has asked [[FridgeLogic the obvious question]], which is: Why are the bad guys going out of their way to give the heroes a fair chance? Why don't they just configure themselves with the Superman-killing abilities and lay waste to everyone? No answer has yet been given. Fan theories quite naturally abound; for example, as machine-based creatures, it's been suggested that it would take far more energy for them to hit someone as hard as Superman could ''all the time'' than to reconfigure into more limited forms. The fact that the Infinite Crisis Brother Eye was made by Batman would explain a lot. (Of course, [[WatsonianVersusDoylist the real reason]] is so that O.M.A.C.s could believably pull off a RedSkiesCrossover with any hero on the roster, even near-BadassNormal ones.)
* ''ComicBook/IronMan'': Iron Man occupies this niche in Marvel, being extremely strong, fast, and durable enough to be considered a lower end high-tier or a higher end mid-tier power character. He's powerful but not too powerful as to be unbeatable. However, he's still powerful enough that you'll really have to work for a victory over him if you're beneath or around his power level. And underneath all that powerful armor is still a man with both the physical and psychological weaknesses of a mortal man. Over the years, we've seen Tony get the upper hand over heavy hitters like Magneto, She-Hulk, and Dr. Doom. But alternately, street level to mid-tier power characters like Captain America, Spider-Man, or Shang-Chi can also get the upper hand over Iron Man and even defeat him in some cases with the right setup.
* Deconstructed with Plutonian in ComicBook/{{Irredeemable}} -- [[spoiler: he doesn't really have super strength -- he is a reality warper and breaks laws of physics without thinking about it, so he can subconsciously set himself to be as strong as the situation requires him to]].
* In ''ComicBook/JLAAvengers'', Superman and Thor are as strong as the plot requires. Thor can take on Superman and the Martian Manhunter simultaneously in the first fight (actually he was overpowered), but Superman alone can knock him out (even so, Thor claims in the last issue that he has a good idea of how powerful Superman is and could possibly beat him in another fight). In the final battle, Superman defeats Count Nefaria, a villain who can take on Thor and the entire Avengers team at once (at least we see Superman confront the Count, so for all we know he could have had help). Rising to the challenge, Thor defeats Doomsday, who is famous for killing Superman. Creator/KurtBusiek's word is that Thor only knocked Doomsday off the panel, not that he was actually defeated.
* [[Characters/BatmanTheJoker The Joker]]'s fighting skills fluctuate wildly. Sometimes, he's an excellent fighter who can actually defeat Batman in a straight-up fight, whereas most writers prefer to present him as so weak that he can be knocked out cold with one punch.
* [[Characters/BatmanHarleyQuinn Harley Quinn]]'s fighting ability fluctuate wildly as well. While she is pretty consistently portrayed as weaker than Batman, just how much weaker varies greatly. Sometimes she's a complete joke that goes down in a single move, and in others she's scarily competent and an actual threat.
* ''ComicBook/LegionOfSuperHeroes'' has the character Nemesis Kid, whose power is exactly this. He develops abilities strong enough to deal with anyone he's directly fighting. If he fights a martial artist, his skills will be superior, if he fights a cosmic powerhouse, his strength will go through the roof. Naturally the only way to defeat him is to go after him in pairs because he can only adapt to one power at a time. [[spoiler:He dies at the hands of Princess Projectra, not a particularly strong fighter, whose only ability is casting illusions. He can see through them, but this does not stop her from snapping his neck for murdering her husband.]]
* [[Characters/DCComicsLobo Lobo]] may have this as an explicit superpower. Or he could have been lying. Regardless, he can go toe to toe with Superman and regenerate FromASingleCell... and then get himself killed (briefly) by a surprise knife to the guts.
* What powers the ComicBook/MartianManhunter has, and to what degree, varies enormously with who's writing him and the needs of the current story. He seems to have all and only the abilities he needs to put the story where the writer wants it. Sometimes he's like a combination of Superman and ComicBook/PlasticMan (except weaker), and other times he is the most powerful being on Earth (as in a storyline where he turned evil and everyone was terrified of fighting him). In ''ComicBook/BlackestNight'', a [[OurZombiesAreDifferent zombie]] MM points out "I'm as powerful as Superman. Why does everyone FORGET that?" before kicking some ass. For that matter, his KryptoniteFactor toward fire is alternately treated as a WeaksauceWeakness that keeps him from being too overpowered, or a [[YourMindMakesItReal psychosomatic]] weakness that can be overcome with willpower; the two inconsistencies go hand in hand.
* In ''ComicBook/MarvelComicsOneThousand'', the Eternity Mask (established by retcon to have been owned by multiple characters throughout Marvel's history) has this as an explicit power; as long as the wearer intends to use the mask's power for good, it makes them the equal of any opponent they face. This doesn't guarantee them a win, though, only makes the fight fair. When first created, it allowed an untrained peasant wearing it to duel [[Characters/BlackKnightMarvelComics Sir Percy of Scandia]] to a standstill, and the 2021 ''Defenders'' series clarifies that it will even give the wearer power on the level of cosmic entities if they face one in a fight.
* Another instance of a character having this as an explicit part of their powerset is Hurricane in ''ComicBook/MarvelWesterns''. He was granted a magical power that allows him to be the fastest gun in the west... but ''only'' when his life is threatened, so he can't use it for profit. But if it is, he can be outnumbered one hundred to one and still come out on top.
* [[Characters/TheMightyThorThorOdinson Thor]] frequently invokes this trope, with the idea that he was "holding back" for fear that unleashing his true power would kill his opponent. Almost always accompanied by a line such as "Now you must face the full might of Thor!" Thor states that even against superhuman foes on Earth, he doesn't dare use his full strength for fear of killing them. There's clearly some ego involved in this, of course, since Earth has some superhumans who are every bit as strong and durable as Thor, if not moreso (see: Hulk, Juggernaut, Hercules, Sentry, etc). Though during the Mutant Massacre he got so angry he ''did'' kill the super-strong Blockbuster (who might not have been "Class 100" level but was clearly no pushover) with a single blow, so he's not just blowing smoke, either.

* [[Characters/TheSentry Sentry]] has this problem, one time being able to fight with Hulk as equal, having his ass handed to him by ComicBook/SheHulk or [[ComicBook/TheIncredibleHercules Hercules]] another, then reaching a level where he can [[spoiler: [[ComicBook/DarkReign kill Ares, wipe the floor with Thor and destroy Asgard single-handedly]]]] or kill [[spoiler: Molecule Man]]. May be justified as his powers may depend on his emotional level or [[spoiler: how much he's influenced by the Void]]. Not to mention [[DependingOnTheWriter the writer]]. At any given time he may just be Super-Fabio, but then again he may also be a high scale reality warper, have complete control over every molecule in the universe, or be [[Literature/TheBible the angel of death]].
* Creator/PeterDavid pretty much stated this trope when responding to comments of his writing of ComicBook/SheHulk. Fanboys were quibbling about She-Hulk's power level under PAD's run and he said she'd be as strong as the story required -- as the story was more important than the stats.
* [[Characters/SpiderManPeterParker Spider-Man]] has this problem very often. His strength, while theoretically possible to mathematically calculate, is subject to plenty of fluctuation. Even his webbing is subject to this, sometimes being broken by a BadassNormal and sometimes strong enough to hold up a car or two.
** The ultimate expression of this was when he was attacked by Firelord. Panicking, dodging, and running for his life, he sees the Herald of Galactus survive everything he can throw at him unharmed, up to and including an exploding gas station. But when two kids nearly get killed by his uncaring foe, Spidey loses his cool -- and proceeds to pound Firelord into the pavement, punctuating every barrage of fists with statements on the order of "Hey, you don't attack kids!" It takes the arrival of [[Characters/MarvelComicsSteveRogers Captain America]] and Comicbook/TheAvengers to snap him out, by which time Firelord is flat on his back, eyes crossed, and dazed for quite a while. Just to elaborate, this is a being on a power level roughly equal to Thor or the Characters/SilverSurfer, and leagues above the power level of Spidey or any of his usual foes.
** [[https://www.cbr.com/spider-man-iconic-lifting-rubble-mary-jane-twist/ Several times,]] [[Characters/UltimateSpiderManMilesMorales Spider-Man]] has been trapped under tons of debris when someone's life was at stake. On those occasions he was able to tap into a reserve of strength that allowed him to lift the debris off him, all the while disbelieving it ("Come on, Thor couldn't lift this...the Hulk couldn't lift this!")
** Comicbook/{{Venom}} also goes through this, ranging from only being a little bit stronger than Spidey himself to being able to match the Juggernaut blow for blow. This is actually part of Venom (Mac Gargan)'s powers; when injured or threatened, the symbiote can increase in mass and strength to meet whatever threat it is fighting with equal force.
** Rhino's exact physical might and resilience tend to fluctuate, ranging from "Spider-Man can beat him when very pissed" to "about as strong as the Thing". One comic in the seventies had him fight ''The Hulk'' for three days straight, while a later comic had [[Characters/UltimateSpiderManMilesMorales Miles Morales]] knock him out by tricking him into falling a few stories.
** Subverted when Comicbook/SpiderGirl happened to be in a similar situation, with evil god Set trapping every superhero on Earth under an unbreakable forcefield. May was doing everything she could to beat him and [[TheJuggernaut even dropping a building on him didn't slow him down]]. However, when May called all her HeroicResolve for one final attack and it was looking like this trope was going to be used....[[GroinAttack she kicked him in the nuts]]. After that, Set admitted that he was holding back on her. Unluckily for him, that kick was painful enough to make him stop upholding the force field and release the superheroes, who unleashed a giant ass-kicking upon him.

* Characters/TheThing is another character whose strength has actual limits and there are some foes that he simply cannot overpower. Although we pretty much have to be ''told'' this for this to be true; at one point he was even asked point blank how strong he was and his answer was "STRONG ENOUGH!" That said, he does have one long-standing solid limitation: he's not as strong as the Hulk.
* ''ComicBook/YoungAvengers'': When Billy manages to temporarily access his Demiurge potential, he becomes capable of Breaking the Fourth Wall and actually stepping out onto the pages of the comic to change/rearrange panels (i.e. reality), effectively making himself almost as all-powerful as the artists, writers and editors.
* Many mutants from the ''ComicBook/XMen'' have to cope with this, heroes and villains alike:
** Characters/{{Wolverine|JamesLoganHowlett}}'s HealingFactor is a prime example of this. It ranges in effectiveness from merely a slightly accelerated form of ordinary healing (needing days to heal from relatively minor injuries) to full FromASingleCell level (being able to regenerate himself from just a bit of brain marrow or a blood smear).

* The ''Creator/ValiantComics'' version of [[ComicBook/DoctorSolar Solar, Man of the Atom]] once stated that he could make himself literally as strong as he wanted to be. Justified, as he was a [[NighOmnipotent Nigh-Omnipotent]] RealityWarper who was eventually revealed to have [[TheMaker created the entire multiverse]].

** In talking to Supergirl, Comicbook/{{Steel}} sums it up as being that the original seven have some special quality about them, even though they aren't all the most powerful, that helps them pull through.

** Mr. Burns. He's always depicted as frail and weak, but just ''how'' frail and ''how'' weak depends on [[RuleOfFunny whatever makes the joke work]].

** It's most on display in ''Series/KamenRiderDecade'' and other crossover occasions. Decade and Rising Ultimate [[Series/KamenRiderKuuga Kuuga]] are noted as having the power to ''destroy the world.''. Yet, they get trounced by an A.R. version of Shadow Moon from ''Series/KamenRiderBlack''. While some of it can be explained by Shadow Moon's natural prowess[[note]]He and Black (RX) are chosen successors for the Creation King, whom can conquer the universe itself at full power[[/note]], as well as how he studied their fighting styles, there is no excuse for how ''Series/KamenRiderDouble'' showed up and just as easily beat him down. In general, in a MassiveMultiplayerCrossover, count on the featured team or hero to be much more effective than the various FakeShemp rangers and riders in the background, and the featured villain, who was the enemy of ''one'' team or hero, to be a match for ''all'' involved (going up several orders of magnitude in power) while the less focused-upon ones to easily be knocked aside in one punch (beaten in seconds whereas it took a whole episode for a MonsterOfTheWeek and much of the season for TheDragon or BigBad.) In short... Akiba Red knows what he's talking about.

** It's most on display in ''Series/KamenRiderDecade'' and other crossover occasions. Decade and Rising Ultimate [[Series/KamenRiderKuuga Kuuga]] can each supposedly ''destroy the world.'' Shadow Moon, an EnsembleDarkhorse BreakoutVillain from ''Series/KamenRiderBlack'', utterly ''hands them their spandex-covered butts.'' Then ''Series/KamenRiderDouble'' shows up and just as easily beats down Shadow Moon. In general, in a MassiveMultiplayerCrossover, count on the featured team or hero to be much more effective than the various FakeShemp rangers and riders in the background, and the featured villain, who was the enemy of ''one'' team or hero, to be a match for ''all'' involved (going up several orders of magnitude in power) while the less focused-upon ones to easily be knocked aside in one punch (beaten in seconds whereas it took a whole episode for a MonsterOfTheWeek and much of the season for TheDragon or BigBad.) In short... Akiba Red knows what he's talking about.
** It's most ridiculous in the ''Franchise/KamenRider'' franchise, where Riders will have officially published stats like running speed, jumping height, and punching and kicking power. [[AllThereInTheManual The manual]] (sometimes a literal one! We saw the stats on Professor Ryouma's computer in ''Series/KamenRiderGaim!'') says ''exactly'' what every Rider can do, no more, no less, and what advantages and disadvantages [[MultiformBalance each form]] has. Count on ''absolutely none of it'' to be adhered to in any actual episode.

** For a majority of the series, vast differences in power levels were usually portrayed as hard walls. No matter how hard a weaker character tried, they would never be able to even scratch a stronger character. However, around the point after it was stated that Goku had absorbed some of his God powers into his natural state in Battle of Gods, large differences in power levels being portrayed as impossible barriers started to slowly disappear. Characters like Master Roshi, Krillin, Tien, Android 17, and Piccolo began having far better showings against established strong characters than they logically should, especially Master Roshi in the manga who was able to hold his own against Jiren. In addition strong characters like Goku seem to get randomly weaker, such as Goku getting injured by a bullet that he saw coming, even though he got surprise shot in the head as a kid with no injury. And then there's cases where both seem to happen at once, like Goku and Krillin's sparring match, where Goku is portrayed as stronger than Krillin but not nearly to the utterly one-sided no effort curbstomp degree that it logically be at this point even in just his base form. This is sometimes hand-waved with a character implying that they did some training off-screen or other characters saying they'd slacked off and subsequently become weaker, to varying degrees of believability.[[labelnote:*]]For example, Piccolo being able to fight Gohan? A bit of a stretch given their previous power gap, but not that hard to believe given how much Gohan slacked off. Android 17 being as strong as SSB Goku? Really starting to stretch the effects of off-screen training here. Master Roshi being able to fight in the Tournament of Power after Goku makes an offhand comment that Roshi has been "hiding his power" and being able to fight against JIREN? Not a chance.[[/labelnote]]