History Main / FeetofClay

* ''Literature/HarryPotter'': Both Snape and Dumbledore are two of the best wizards in the entire franchise but their incompetence as teenagers lead them to colossally screw something and both are still living with the consequences of what they did. In the former’s case, he got the girl he loved killed. In the latter’s case, he got his sister killed. Although Dumbledore has a much better reputation than Snape ever did as he is an out and out good guy while Snape is a known Death Eater.

* Lockheart from the aforementioned ''Harry Potter'' series manages to coast along fairly well on his own hype [[spoiler: and stories stolen from the people that actually did them, who he magicked into forgetting]] and nothing else -- at least until he runs into Harry.

* Gilderoy Lockhart of the ''Literature/HarryPotter'' series manages to coast along fairly well on his own hype [[spoiler: and stories stolen from the people that actually did them, who he magicked into forgetting]] and nothing else -- at least until he runs into Harry.
** Rita Skeeter goes out of her way to explore this in both Dumbledore and Snape.

This is when a character who is generally held to be incredibly talented is revealed in the end to be a total incompetent. If the incompetent character is on the side of the heroes, this forces the heroes to save the "savior", who is usually an obnoxious example of The Rival, or a [[FakeUltimateHero phony example]] of AlwaysSomeoneBetter. Straight-laced heroes usually have to swallow their {{pride}} to help this jerk. The NaiveNewcomer may be shocked to find he's [[WartsAndAll not the nice guy everyone thinks he is]]. [[GreenEyedMonster Other heroes]] will squeeze every benefit they can out of it. If the character is an idol in the eyes of the protagonist(s), BrokenPedestal often follows. If the character with the Feet of Clay is a villain, [[TheWorfEffect at first]] he will appear to be all-powerful and frightening, but will turn out to be [[VillainExitStageLeft a coward]], a weakling [[TheManBehindTheCurtain hiding behind]] illusions, a HarmlessVillain, or TooDumbToLive. This can be subverted if they attempt, and succeed, to BecomingTheBoast.

Not to be confused with ''Discworld/FeetOfClay'', a Literature/{{Discworld}} novel about golems with literal clay feet. The villainous option should also not be confused with the BigBadWannabe, a villain who looks powerful but proves to be a weakling when compared with the other bigger villains.[[note]]Also not to be confused with the accepted meaning of the phrase "feet of clay" in normal English usage: someone who is idolized, but has a hidden ''ethical'' flaw - the Discworld novel's title is ironic, since the golem ''has'' no ethical flaws.[[/note]]

* The Golem referred to by the title in ''Discworld/FeetOfClay'' was built to be a hero, but has gone totally off the deep end thanks to what amounts to conflicting "programming."

The name comes from the concept of a statue being created entirely of precious metals, but if the feet were made out of clay, the entire statue would quickly fall.

* Inversion: WesternAnimation/DangerMouse and Penfold are captured and trussed up by Baron Greenback, who has set up headquarters on the moon. DM appears to acquiesce to Greenback, which irks Penfold. (From the episode "Project Moon.")
-->'''Penfold:''' (''to DM'') Don't apologise. You've no right to be a coward.\\
'''DM:''' (''quietly and a bit sternly'') I'm fooling him.

''DM:''' (''quietly and a bit sternly'') I'm fooling him.

Not to be confused with ''Discworld/FeetOfClay'', a Literature/{{Discworld}} novel about golems with literal clay feet. The villainous option should also not be confused with the BigBadWannabe, a villain who looks powerful only because he delivered a luck-based kill on the hero or the hero's TrueCompanions, but proved to be a weakling when compared with the other bigger villains.[[note]]Also not to be confused with the accepted meaning of the phrase "feet of clay" in normal English usage: someone who is idolized, but has a hidden ''ethical'' flaw - the Discworld novel's title is ironic, since the golem ''has'' no ethical flaws.[[/note]]

* ''Manga/Overlord2012'': [[VillainProtagonist Ainz Ooal Gown]] is a lich of horrifying power, casting spells the likes of which TheArchmage has never seen, and of such formidable intellect that everything he, his minions, or his enemies do ends up playing right into his hands... or so the residents of Nazarick and the new world would have you believe. In fact, while Ainz' player did roleplay an evil lich, he isn't particularly evil (chuuni phase nonwithstanding) and certainly not coldly calculating, has no idea ho or why his powers are so high (in-game, insta-death spells were more for flavor and dealing with trash mobs, in the new world they have no such limitations) and the only thing that has prevented him from breaking down and confessing his ineptitude is the fact that the Nazarickites view him as an infallible god/father figure and his new skeletal body comes with an EmotionSuppression mechanic (a great deal of humor comes from his internal screaming whenever he thinks he's gotten out of showing off his supposed intellect, only for Demiurge to step in and praise Ainz' planning further). He's also very bad at understanding the effect he causes on people, not seeing how casually turning a corpse into an undead servant in front of people ''might'' make them think you don't have their best interests at heart.

* Parodied, lampshaded ''and'' played straight in ''{{Peanuts}}'', when Charlie Brown's baseball hero gets sent down to the minors:

'''Lockhart:''' Books can be misleading...
->'''Harry:''' You wrote them!
->'''Lockhart:''' My dear boy, do use your common sense! My books wouldn't have sold half as well if people didn't think ''I'd'' done all those things!

* Don Kanonji from ''Manga/{{Bleach}}'' plays with this trope. The audience would assume he's a fake, judging by his over-the-top style and the fact that he's [[ComesGreatResponsibility using his supposed powers for personal gain]], but he really ''can'' see ghosts. Unfortunately, he has no idea how to actually get rid of them and, in the episode that introduces him, ends up turning a ghost into a Hollow before Ichigo can stop him. He does mean well, setting up the Karakura Heroes, which at least keeps the kids out of trouble. His main problem is the fact that everything he does is done through a LargeHam filter. He later proves to at least be useful with his negligible reiatsu and [[spoiler:[[JustInTime saved Tatsuki from Aizen by buying her some time]]]].

** On a subtler [[HeartwarmingMoments moment]], he admits to his Large Ham filter being in place because he is [[InvokedTrope deliberately acting like a children's show protagonist]] to inspire and entertain his audience.

* ''Manga/Overlord2012'': Ainz is a lich of horrifying power, casting spells the likes of which TheArchmage has never seen, and of such formidable intellect that everything he, his minions, or his enemies do ends up playing right into his hands... or so the residents of Nazarick and the new world would have you believe. In fact, while Ainz' player did roleplay an evil lich, he isn't particularly evil (chuuni phase nonwithstanding) and certainly not coldly calculating, and the only thing that has prevented him from breaking down and confessing his ineptitude is the fact that the Nazarickites view him as an infallible god and his new skeletal body comes with an EmotionSuppression mechanic (a great deal of humor comes from his internal screaming whenever he thinks he's gotten out of showing off his supposed intellect, only for Demiurge to step in and praise Ainz' planning further). He's also very bad at understanding the effect he causes on people, not seeing how casually turning a corpse into an undead servant in front of people ''might'' make them think you don't have their best interests at heart.

* In the ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarepants'' episode "Kenny the Cat", everyone in Bikini Bottom, especially [=SpongeBob=] himself, idolizes the cat of the same name whose claim to fame is being able to hold his breath underwater for days at a time despite being a land-dweller. When [=Spongebob=] discovers that Kenny has actually been using a hidden oxygen tank, he's literally heartbroken. Kenny tearfully convinces him to keep his secret, but he gets found out anyway. Thankfully for him, [=SpongeBob=] comes up with an idea for a new gimmick; since CatsHateWater, he can be a cat who ''likes'' it.

* In ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'' The [[SmallNameBigEgo Great and Powerful]] Trixie presents herself as a badass magician who once beat an Ursa Major, and humiliates the mane cast by one-upping them on everything (or rather immaturely playing tricks on them because she actually ''can't'' do better than them), but when an actual Ursa Major ([[spoiler:actually an Ursa Minor]]) shows up, she reveals that she made the story up to give her a better reputation. It's then left up to Twilight Sparkle to actually get rid of the bear.

->'''Harry:''' You're running away? After all that stuff you did in your books?
->'''Lockhart:''' Books can be misleading...

%%* ''Manga/SgtFrog'' has ZeroContextExample

* In the 2004 version of ''Film/TheAlamo'', Davey Crockett expresses the sentiment that he, himself, is an example of this trope, being propped up by public opinion and overblown stories about his so-called exploits. He's not, but it makes for a poignant moment.

* Mr. Satan from DragonBall. A strong martial artist by non-super-powered standards, but he's a ButtMonkey and [[OvershadowedByAwesome much weaker than even the weakest of the main heroes and villains]].

* [[spoiler: Eddy's brother]] on ''WesternAnimation/EdEddNEddy'' is actually both types at once. [[spoiler: The whole series plays him up as TheAce, someone who Eddy looks up to an admires. When we finally see him in TheMovie, he is quickly revealed to be a jerk whose constant abuse toward Eddy was the reason for his JerkassFacade. Then type two comes into effect when Ed defeats him by removing a hinge on his trailer door, causing it to hit him in the face. WordOfGod says this is because he never received pain in his life, so the door hurt him more than it would anyone used to pain]].

* ''WesternAnimation/DarkwingDuck'': Gizmoduck (originally from ''WesternAnimation/DuckTales'') repeatedly visits Saint Canard for the express purpose of thwarting evildoers, and his sterling reputation as a "super-powered" champion of justice far outshines that of the headline-hogging glory-hound ostensibly starring in this show, but more than once he has gotten himself captured by supervillains and needed Darkwing to rescue him.

* ''Manga/SgtFrog''

** And [[VillainWithGoodPublicity even further]] in ''Theatre/{{Wicked}}''.
** Fascinatingly, the ''book'' of ''Literature/{{Wicked}}'' is the only iteration of the story in which he has actual power. He appears to be some kind of magical criminal fleeing his home dimension, and Dorothy, who comes from the same place, is his inadvertent nemesis. ([[spoiler:Elphaba is his daughter.]])
** Film/OzTheGreatAndPowerful shows Oz struggling with this character defect, from his worries about disappointing his carnival fans at the beginning to his decision at the end to [[UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans set himself up as a fake wizard to protect the land from the Wicked Witches]]. But despite his failures, [[CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass he is great and powerful enough]] to dethrone the wicked Evanora with a successful attack on the Emerald City.
*** In the musical he has a long self-justifying song with about the same content as his original explanation.
* The title character of ''Literature/TheLiesOfLockeLamora'' has a reputation as the folk hero the "Thorn of Camorr", a GentlemanThief seeking justice for the common people. The real Locke is [[AntiHero a much more selfish and flawed character, but not without heroic qualities]].