History Main / BoisterousWeakling

* The Box Ghost from ''WesternAnimation/DannyPhantom''. Possessing the powers of [[WhatDidYouExpectWhenYouNamedIt box manipulation]], and Rob Paulsen's classic SimpletonVoice, the Box Ghost is little more than a SillySpook joke character compared to the other fearsome villains of the show. [[spoiler: That is until he becomes a juxtaposed FutureBadass.]]

* In ''WesternAnimation/BeastWars'', Quickstrike was often proclaiming himself to be the toughest 'bot on the planet, but in reality he has suffered defeats ranging from being beaten by an already-battered Dinobot to being driven back by primitive humans; the closest he has ever come to defeating one of the Maximals in combat was when he knocked out Depth Charge after his arrival, and Depth Charge had already taken a beating from Rampage and didn't know there was anyone else to watch out for.

* Many minor ''Franchise/{{Batman}}'' villains of the early [[UsefulNotes/TheSilverAgeOfComicBooks Silver Age]] turned into this in UsefulNotes/TheDarkAgeOfComicBooks, since they remained active supervillains but had their skills downplayed and their ridiculous motifs played up. Typically, they'd show up, full of bluster, and be dropped within a page or even a panel. Killer Moth, Catman (before writer Creator/GailSimone [[ComicBook/SecretSix rescued him]]), and the 1940s version of the Cavalier all got such treatment at various points. In both the comics and one of the animated ''Batman'' series, Killer Moth eventually took a ''skyscraper'' in badass, mutating into a deadly and carnivorous actual moth named Charaxes.

* In UsefulNotes/TheGoldenAgeOfComicBooks, this was the role of many a teen sidekick.

** In the past, Rusty was once kidnapped by a boxing-themed villain named Turnbuckle for no reason other than to [[BullyingTheDragon pick a fight with Team Venture]]. In response, Jonas Venture's enforcer [[PsychoForHire The Action Man]] pistol-whipped the piss out of him before blowing his brains out. This also lead to the Guild of Calamitous Intent to establish the [[RandomPowerRanking Equally Matched Aggression system]] to ensure that villains don't get themselves by punching above their weight.

* ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'': Eric Cartman has consistently proven himself to be a bully that's all bark and no bite. He can talk a big game, but when it comes to actual combat, he can't follow through.

* ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'': When drunk, Peter Griffin boasts he can beat up Liam Neeson. Unsurprisingly when it happens, Liam Neeson [[CurbStompBattle beats the ever-living shit out of the fatass]]. It wasn't even a fight, it was a one-sided beatdown.

* ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse'': Peridot starts out as a DirtyCoward afraid to step out of line or get into any kind of fight. After [[GrewASpine getting the courage]] to insult her superior and [[HeelFaceTurn join the Crystal Gems]], she eventually starts training for combat, but her usual [[SmallNameBigEgo ego]] and a few lucky breaks cause her to vastly overestimate her progress. During the fight against [[spoiler:Blue Diamond]], all Peridot can do on her own is [[ShootingSuperman toss empty soda cans at her]], but still brags about how well she fought. She even has the gall to walk up to [[spoiler:Yellow Diamond]] and try to chase her off by ''insulting her''. [[spoiler:[[DoNotTauntCthulhu Peridot instantly gets poofed.]]]]

* ''WesternAnimation/ScoobyDoo'': Scrappy is this, full stop. Despite being a tiny puppy, he wants to fight every monster or criminal the gang comes across and it inevitably falls on Scooby to grab him and carry him off before anything can happen to him. This, of course, led to his becoming the TropeNamer for TheScrappy.

* Dermott in ''WesternAnimation/TheVentureBrothers'' talks about fighting much more often than he actually fights, but it's been demonstrated that when actually challenged, he has no hand-to-hand capabilities ''whatsoever''. Even [[TheLoad Dean]] can beat him. [[spoiler: This is a big hint that he isn't actually Brock's son.]]

* [[MisterMuffykins Small dogs]] fit this trope. Vets call it BDLDLDL: Big Dog, Little Dog, Little Dog Lost.

* This is a common behavior pattern with drunks, especially mean ones. Most of them couldn't fight their way out of a paper bag and are generally aware of it when sober, but once inebriated, they either forget or stop caring and will loudly attempt to start fights or just out-and-out attack people with no regard for the consequences. Given that alcohol also tends to give them {{Determinator}} tendencies and resistance to pain, it's not a good idea to fight them unless you want to potentially cause crippling or lethal injuries by accident.

* Many martial arts "masters" attempt to teach "no-touch takedowns": that is to say, the ability to knock someone out without even touching them using nothing but the energy of the body, with notable examples including George Dillman and the Yellow Bamboo School. They put on grandiose displays of punching the air while their students writhe and fall, but mysteriously, their powers seem to have [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_1ykNZ7rAcw no effect]] on anyone who isn't a planted volunteer.