Basic Trope: Character has an ability which is never shown.
- Straight: Enn is said to be a fast runner. It is never shown.
- Exaggerated:
- Enn is supposed to be able to fly, shoot Eye Beams and be a good knitter. It is never shown.
- Enn is said to be extremely good at running, but during the action sequences he actually is a Mighty Glacier.
- Downplayed:
- Enn is said to have a certain talent, but it never shows up because Enn is such a minor character.
- Enn is said to be a strong runner. This never comes up, but later he is able to tread water for a long time because his legs are strong.
- Enn's ability to play the harp is used to characterize him as a Princely Young Man.
- Justified:
- Enn using his ability has a substantial cost or side-effect such as a vacuum metastability event. Obviously, if he'd use this ability, the universe, as we know it, would be destroyed.
- Enn's ability to swim very fast never comes up because the story never takes him near any body of water.
- Inverted: Enn demonstrates proficient running skills yet is stated to be an average runner or a slow runner.
- Subverted:
- Chekhov's Skill
- Enn uses one of of his abilities after spending most of the plot not showing them.
- Enn's supposed ability is an artifact from his childhood. He can't do in anymore, even if he wanted to.
- Double Subverted:
- ...off-screen.
- ...in a dream sequence.
- … or so he believes.
- At the end, Enn finally attempts to use one of his abilities, but he's interrupted by another person who tells not to use it.
- Parodied:
- The purported ability is so ludicrous that there's no reason for it to come up.
- The purported ability is one that is precisely stated to only work when no one's looking or is so subtle its impossible to visually verify its existence.
- Zig Zagged: ???
- Averted: Enn shows all his powers he's supposed to have at least once.
- Enforced: Enn was originally more powerful in the novel but the adaption would be impossible to display without either eating up all of the budget for one scene or horrible Special Effects Failure so it's never used on screen.
- Lampshaded: "This is Enn. He's a psychic... Or so he claims... To be frank, I've never seen him doing any psychic-stuff at all!"
- Invoked: Enn doesn't feel like using his psychic powers, but he wants to impress people anyway, so he just tells people he has psychic powers, since characters in fiction often get away with talking about having powers they never really use.
- Exploited: Enn is replaced by Fred, knowing that he could get away with just wearing his costume given that Enn so seldom uses his powers or talents.
- Defied:
- Ace accuses Enn of making up powers. He shows off all of them in an abandoned quarry to prove it to Ace.
- Ace confronts Enn on the subject of his so called-powers, and after the pressure gets to him, he finally confesses that they were just a bunch lies he created to make himself look cooler.
- Discussed: "Now imagine if you had an ability to bring people back to life but never use it?"
- Conversed: Enn has an ability, but he's not directly shown using it. Something in the character dialogue reveals the ability.
- (Enn, Len, and Ken are at a diner. Enn is angry because his friends did not remember to celebrate a special event with him, but doesn't let them know upfront. He decides to mess around with them instead.)
- Enn: "Hey, Kerr. Hey, Len. Just wanted to let you know I hope you have a nice day. Later."
- Ken: "Oh, you, too Enn. See ya."
- Len: "What he said."
- (Enn walks off)
- Ken: "...I thought Enn was good at making people forget things".
- Len: "He can?"
- Ken: "You forgot he could do that?"
- Len: "Forgot about what?"
- Ken: "What did you say?"
- Len: "Huh? Who the heck are you?"
- Ken: "'Who the heck are you? Who the heck am I?!"
- Len: "HOW SHOULD I KNOW?!?"
- Enn: (thinking to himself as he walks down the street) "Heh, heh. Suckers. That's what you get for forgetting my birthday."
- Deconstructed: Enn not using his wind powers to save someone falling results in him getting called out over it.
- Reconstructed: However if Enn used it he would also cause nearby news, fire, and police copters to fall from the sky due to his inability to focus it over small areas.
- Plotted A Good Waste: Enn never uses the powers he claims to have because he is hiding the fact he was Brought Down to Normal.
Back to Informed Ability
