History Main / EmbarrassingButEmpoweringOutfit

** In [[VideoGameRemake Persona 3 FES]] you can actually see what it looks like.

* In ''{{Homestuck}}'', most God Tier outfits (a.k.a. God Hoods) are pretty decent-looking, but some of the class-based variations are just embarrassing -- particularly the Page, Prince, and Bard outfits. The hypnotic terribleness of Jake and Gamzee's speedo shorts and jutting codpiece respectively get PlayedForLaughs. Fortunately, while the outfit comes with ascending to the God Tiers (and is super-comfy and self-cleaning), it isn't required to access any of the other perks.

* In ''[[VideoGame/{{Persona3}} Persona 3 FES]]'' there's a bonus female-only costume you can get called the High Cut Armour. It significantly raises a party members attack and defense, can be gotten early on in the game and isn't usurped as the best armor for a while. However, it's also very skimpy and one the few costumes that the girls will comment on specifically if you equip it (usually you get a generic "thanks!" message, but with the HCA you get a "...really? I have to wear this?" one instead).
* ''VideoGame/TheWorldEndsWithYou'' has something like this with its fashion system. In the game, instead of buying armor or the like, you buy designer clothing that grants you bonuses. Female clothing tends to have very high bonuses, but most of your characters are male. To get them to wear it, their "Bravery" stat must be through the roof (Shiki, the only playable girl, has a naturally high Bravery stat).

Compare to ImpossiblyTackyClothes, RainbowPimpGear

[[quoteright:241:[[LightNovel/KoreWaZombieDesuKa http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/44491325625519df_8108.jpg]]]]

-->'''Haley:''' ... so the Boots of Speed were totally powerful, but they were, like, lime green.
-->'''Vaarsuvius:''' Indeed. A most grave conundrum you faced.
-->Webcomic/TheOrderOfTheStick [[http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0003.html #3]]

* ''Anime/ProjectAko'': B-ko Daitoukuji's battle armor, [[ChainmailBikini Akagiyama 23]] enhances her physical abilities to match A-ko's. However, [[{{Stripperiffic}} it's skimpy]] and comes with a visor. When A-ko and the other students first see it, they burst out laughing at her. Then the fight began. Let's just say A-ko's laughter [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ICiNsGCwvBA was short lived.]]
** Later in the film, it's revealed that it also has a built-in jet pack which enables B-ko to fly; which she uses during her attempt to rescue C-ko from Captain Napolipolita. B-ko was able to manuever effortlessly through [[MacrossMissileMassacre a non-stop missile barrage.]]
** However, the visor's function doesn't become clear until the fourth movie: Final. It [[spoiler: allows B-ko to breath in outter space. Seen when she flies A-ko into space, to get C-ko back, at 11.5 G's!]]
** Taken UpToEleven and hilariously subverted when her '''father''' steals the design and wears one, and '''she's''' the one embarrassed by it.
* ''LightNovel/KoreWaZombieDesuKa'': The costume worn by MagicGirl Haruna contains lots of ruffles and bows. This isn't so embarrassing for her, but when she accidentally passes on her powers, costume included, to the zombie Ayumu (pictured above), he is not so amused by the outfit. Unfortunately, in order to activate his powers, the pink bow-covered costume is included.

[[/folder]]

* In ''ComicBook/{{Empowered}}'', the title character possesses a full body super-suit that gives her numerous super abilities but it's also made of extremely thin and fragile material. The suit tears easily and even when it's fully intact, it's so [[SensualSpandex form-fitting that it leaves little to the imagination,]] and nothing can be worn over or [[GoingCommando under]] it. These are huge problems for a superheroine like Empowered who has numerous body-image issues.
** What makes this worse is [[spoiler:it is guessed/implied by the main character no less that the suit is as powerful or weak as the user's confidence (with some ''VERY'' notable examples of the guess being implied as correct). This is both for the abilities it gives, and the fragility of the material. Given how paper-thin the title character's confidence is and how it gets even thinner after every failure...]]

[[folder:Fanfiction]]

* [[http://www.fanfiction.net/s/8895129/1/Starbound Starbound]], a Lucky Star fic, involves a variation of this, in which Kagami, Konata, and Miyuki's hair end up being [[BeehiveHairdo restyled against their will]]. Trying to undo them doesn't work either, as any strands pulled just arrange themselves back into position. Kagami and Miyuki are both embarrassed by this, although Konata doesn't mind so much and finds {{moe}} in their new hairstyles. Responsible for their hair situation eventually turn out to be [[spoiler: some magical crystals, eventually revealed to contain potent psychokinetic powers]].

[[folder:Live Action TV]]

* Played for laughs on an episode of ''Series/TheBigBangTheory''. After losing a bet, the guys have to dress up as female comic book characters: Howard as Batgirl, Leonard as Supergirl, Sheldon as Wonder Woman and Raj as HalleBerry version of Catwoman. Raj tells the others, "I don't know about you, but I feel empowered."

* In ''[[VideoGame/{{Persona3}} Persona 3 FES]]'' there's a bonus female-only costume you can get called the High Cut Armour. It significantly raises a party members attack and defense, can be gotten early on in the game and isn't usurped as the best armor for a while. However, it's also very skimpy and one the few costumes that the girls will comment on specifically if you equip it (usually you get a generic 'thanks!' message, but with the HCA you get a "...really? I have to wear this?" one instead).

* Mai Tsurugino, the primary protagonist of the Makeruna! Makendou trilogy (quadrilogy if you count the OAV), is not at all fond of the outfit she finds herself in as Makendou Ichi-go.

[[folder:Webcomics]]

* In ''{{Homestuck}}'', most God Tier outfits (aka God Hoods) are pretty decent looking, but some of the class-based variations are just embarrassing -- particularly the Page, Prince, and Bard outfits. The hypnotic terribleness of Jake and Gamzee's speedo shorts and jutting codpiece respectively get PlayedForLaughs. Fortunately, while the outfit comes with ascending to the God Tiers (and is super-comfy and self-cleaning), it isn't required to access any of the other perks.

* In ''WesternAnimation/SpongebobSquarepants'' it is stated that superpowers come from costumes, and that is the only reason that the heroes would wear them.
-->'''Mermaid Man:''' Power's all in the costume. Why else would we run around in colored undies?
-->'''Squidward:''' [[GettingCrapPastTheRadar I can think of ten good reasons.]]
[[/folder]]

* [[http://www.fanfiction.net/s/8895129/1/Starbound Starbound]], a Lucky Star fic, involves a variation of this, in which Kagami, Konata, and Miyuki's hair end up being [[BeehiveHairdo restyled against their will]]. Trying to undo them doesn't work either, as any strands pulled just arrange themselves back into position. Kagami and Miyuki are both embarrassed by this, although Konata doesn't mind so much and finds {{moe}} in their new hairstyles. Responsible for their hair situation eventually turn out to be [[spoiler: some magical crystals]] that contain potent psychokinetic powers.

* Played for laughs on an episode of ''Series/TheBigBangTheory''. After losing a bet, the guys have to dress up as female comic book characters: Howard as Batgirl, Leonard as Supergirl, Sheldon as Wonder Woman and Raj as Catwoman. Raj tells the others, "I don't know about you, but I feel empowered."

--> '''Mermaid Man:''' Power's all in the costume. Why else would we run around in colored undies?

* ''LightNovel/KoreWaZombieDesuKa'': The costume worn by MagicGirl Haruna contains lots of ruffles and bows. This isn't so embarrassing for her, but when she accidentally passes on her powers, costume included, to the zombie Ayumu, [[http://img513.imageshack.us/img513/845/44491325625519df.jpg he is not so amused by the outfit]]. In order to activate his powers, the pink bow-covered costume is included.

* Kenichi from ''Manga/BrockenBlood'' detests his MagicalGirl outfit as he's a boy and it's frilly, fluffy and rather revealing.

[[folder:Video Games]]
* In ''[[VideoGame/{{Persona3}} Persona 3 FES]]'' there's a bonus female-only costume you can get called the High Cut Armour. It significantly raises a party members attack and defense, can be gotten early on in the game and isn't usurped as the best armor for a while. However, it's also very skimpy and one the few costumes that the girls will comment on specifically if you equip it (usually you get a generic 'thanks!' message, but with the HCA you get a "...really? I have to wear this?" one instead).
* ''VideoGame/TheWorldEndsWithYou'' has something like this with its fashion system. In the game, instead of buying armor or the like, you buy designer clothing that grants you bonuses. Female clothing tends to have very high bonuses, but most of your characters are male. To get them to wear it, their "Bravery" stat must be through the roof (Shiki, the only playable girl, has a naturally high Bravery stat).
[[/folder]]

* In ''ComicBook/{{Empowered}}'', the title character possesses a full body super-suit that gives her numerous super abilities but it's also made of extremely thin and fragile material. The suit tears easily and even when it's fully intact, it's so [[SensualSpandex form-fitting that it leaves little to the imagination]]. These are huge problems for a superheroine like Empowered who has numerous body-image issues.

* ''Webcomic/MagickChicks'': The mysterious wand grants Melissa Hellrune unimaginable power, enough to trigger a level 9 magical event. Said wand also comes with an outlandish CuteWitch MagicalGirl costume. [[http://www.magickchicks.com/strips-mc/hero_get_a_kiss Melissa is not pleased.]]

* ''Anime/ProjectAko'': B-ko Daitoukuji's battle armor, [[ChainmailBikini Akagiyama 23]] enhances her reflexes to match A-ko's. However, [[{{Stripperiffic}} it's skimpy]] and comes with a visor. When A-ko and the other students first see it, they burst out laughing at her. Then the fight began. Let's just say A-ko's laughter [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ICiNsGCwvBA was short lived.]]

* In ''[[VideoGame/{{Persona3}} Persona 3 FES]]'' there's a bonus female-only costume you can get called the High Cut Armour. It significantly raises a party members attack and defense, can be gotten early on in the game and isn't usurped as the best armor for a while. However, it's also very skimpy and one the few costumes that the girls will comment on specifically if you equip it (usually you get a generic 'thanks!' message, but with the HCA you get a "...really? I have to wear this?" one instead).

[[quoteright:241:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/44491325625519df_8108.jpg]]

* There's a scene in ''LightNovel/TheSlayers'' where Lina and Amelia put on silly dresses and sing a silly song in order to cast a powerful spell and kill a demon. [[SubvertedTrope It produces some lights. The spell was actually for a festival]]. Lina then killed the demon with her classic [[KamehameHadoken Dragon Slave]] as punishment for watching her embarrass herself.

* In ''[[VideoGame/Persona3 Persona 3 FES]]'' there's a bonus female-only costume you can get called the High Cut Armour. It significantly raises a party members attack and defense, can be gotten early on in the game and isn't usurped as the best armor for a while. However, it's also very skimpy and one the few costumes that the girls will comment on specifically if you equip it (usually you get a generic 'thanks!' message, but with the HCA you get a "...really? I have to wear this?" one instead).

-->OrderOfTheStick [[http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0003.html #3]]

* From SumomoMoMomoMo, Sanae's Uma Kamen outfit. It's an outfit from her tribe that increases its wearer power but it looks like a bondage costume. Sanae hates wearing it and most characters, even the ones she saved, are taken aback to how ridiculous the outfit looks.
* [[ProjectAko Project A-ko]]: B-ko Daitoukuji's battle armor, [[ChainmailBikini Akagiyama 23]] enhances her reflexes to match A-ko's. However, [[{{Stripperiffic}} it's skimpy]] and comes with a visor. When A-ko and the other students first see it, they burst out laughing at her. Then the fight began. Let's just say A-ko's laughter [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ICiNsGCwvBA was short lived.]]

* LightNovel/KoreWaZombieDesuKa: The costume worn by MagicGirl Haruna contains lots of ruffles and bows. This isn't so embarrassing for her, but when she accidentally passes on her powers, costume included, to the zombie Ayumu, [[http://img513.imageshack.us/img513/845/44491325625519df.jpg he is not so amused by the outfit]]. In order to activate his powers, the pink bow-covered costume is included.
* There's a scene in TheSlayers where Lina and Amelia put on silly dresses and sing a silly song in order to cast a powerful spell and kill a demon. [[SubvertedTrope It produces some lights. The spell was actually for a festival]]. Lina then killed the demon with her classic [[KamehameHadoken Dragon Slave]] as punishment for watching her embarrass herself.

* In ComicBook/{{Empowered}}, the titular character possesses a full body super-suit that gives her numerous super abilities but it's also made of extremely thin and fragile material. The suit tears easily and even when it's fully intact, it's so [[SensualSpandex form-fitting that it leaves little to the imagination]]. These are huge problems for a superheroine like Empowered who has numerous body-image issues.

* On ''WizardsOfWaverlyPlace'', when Max's powers fully come in he's unable to truly control or use them. In order to do so, he must wear a huge, gaudy, puffy jester hat. Not doing so would cause events like spontaneous indoor blizzards, but doing so made him the laughing stock of the school.

* MagickChicks: The mysterious wand grants Melissa Hellrune unimaginable power, enough to trigger a level 9 magical event. Said wand also comes with an outlandish CuteWitch MagicalGirl costume. [[http://www.magickchicks.com/strips-mc/hero_get_a_kiss Melissa is not pleased.]]
* Haley in OrderOfTheStick has a pair of magical Boots of Speed, but considers them a fashion disaster because they're lime green, and refuses to wear them until she can get them dyed brown to match her armor.
* Webcomic/{{Goblins}} has a subversion, when Minmax complains loudly about Forgath forcing him to wear a suit of magical pink armor. He doesn't realise that one of the armor's properties is the ability to take on any color he chooses.
* In the Webcomic/{{Xkcd}} strip titled [[http://www.xkcd.com/1065/ shoes]] a character is rewarded shoes that make their wearer immortal. He can't decide whether or not to wear the shoes since the have creepy individual toes.

* In Persona3FES there's a bonus female-only costume you can get called the High Cut Armour. It significantly raises a party members attack and defense, can be gotten early on in the game and isn't usurped as the best armor for a while. However, it's also very skimpy and one the few costumes that the girls will comment on specifically if you equip it (usually you get a generic 'thanks!' message, but with the HCA you get a "...really? I have to wear this?" one instead).

* The Armor of Zeldron, from AdventureTime, grants its wearer flight and protects them from just about anything. In the episode "Blood Under the Skin" Finn and Jake go quest to find the armor, but when they do find it Finn refuses to wear it since it's "[[BreastPlate girl armor]]"
* In ''SpongebobSquarepants'' it is stated that superpowers come from costumes, and that is the only reason that the heroes would wear them.

* [[ProjectAko Project A-ko]]: B-ko Daitoukuji's battle armor, [[ChainmailBikini Akagiyama 23]] enhances her reflexes to match A-ko's. However, [[{{Stripperiffic}} it's skimpy]] and comes with a visor. When A-ko and the other students fitst see it, they burst out laughing at her. Then the fight began. Let's just say A-ko's laughter [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ICiNsGCwvBA was short lived.]]
** Later in the film, it's reaveled that it also has a built-in jet pack which enables B-ko to fly; which she uses during her attempt to rescue C-ko from Captain Napolipolita. B-ko was able to manuever effortlessly through [[MacrossMissileMassacre a non-stop missile barrage.]]

[[caption-width-right:241:Upside: [[ChainsawGood Magical Chainsaw.]] Downside: [[PinkIsForSissies Well...]]]]