History Main / FragileSpeedster

** ''Film/GodzillaKingOfTheMonsters'': While Mothra is still an Alpha Titan and powerful {{Kaiju}}, compared to [[LightningBruiser Lightning Bruisers]] Godzilla, Rodan and Ghidorah, Mothra definitely leans towards the [[FragileFlyer fragile flying-type]] similar to the aforementioned Male MUTO. She makes her BigDamnHeroes moment in the FinalBattle [[SpeedBlitz blitzing]] even Rodan who can outpace fighter jets, but she gets greatly injured during her bout with the pterosaur [[spoiler: and [[MadeOfIron unlike]] her partner Goji is killed when hit with Ghidorah's [[BreathWeapon Gravity Beams]].]]

* ''WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles'': [[MeaningfulName Dash]] can outrun damn near anything that tries an attempt on his life, but often gets knocked around like a ragdoll if he is involved in physical combat. The latter part is justified in that he's only 10 years old.

[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]

->''"Sir Francis Drake didn't defeat the Spanish Armada by building even bigger ships. He won by overwhelming them with smaller, lighter boats. It's as true today as it was in 1588: if your ship is too slow to turn, you're doomed."''
-->-- '''[[SociopathicSoldier Colonel Hanse Castillo]]''', ''VideoGame/TerraInvicta''

->''"...I've always found it a mystery. When you're huge and bulky, with heavy arms and armour, why do you think that makes you stronger? You're all... '''Too slow'''."''
-->-- '''[[McNinja Thorfinn "Karlsefni"]]''', ''Manga/VinlandSaga''

* In the starship miniatures game ''TabletopGame/FullThrust,'' the Federal Stats Europa's missile-heavy fleet strives to be {{Lightning Bruiser}}s. In practice, while their ammo lasts they're more like fast-moving {{Glass Cannon}}s, during which time they can pretty much wreck your day, ''especially'' if your ships are PointDefenseless or they (the FSE) get even a little lucky. But once their missiles are spent, they're pretty solidly this trope.

* Light 'Mechs in ''TabletopGame/BattleTech'' tend to fall into this role; being lightweight, they can get potentially high speeds out of a relatively small engine, yet that same low weight limits how much armor and firepower they can carry, so speed (possibly augmented by jump jets) is frequently their only real protection against heavy weapons. Several entire classes of non-[=BattleMech=] units also qualify for the role: Hovercraft are pretty much the fastest type of land unit, but highly prone to finding themselves abruptly grounded and vulnerable to being pounded to pieces in short order, [=VTOLs=] are light and fast but susceptible to losing their rotor and crashing, and conventional fighters, while being really ''extremely'' fast relative to anything that usually operates on a ground map, suffer from both poor armor and the aerospace critical hit rules (short version, pretty much ''anything'' that hits such a fighter may go critical). In fact, during ground support missions any kind of fighter, including the more solid aerospace versions, qualifies because taking any damage whatsoever forces them to make a 'control roll' to avoid abruptly losing altitude and potentially imitating a lawn dart; this together with their capacity to carry quite a bit of firepower ''plus'' an external bomb load actually pushes the larger models into GlassCannon territory.
* Elf teams in ''TabletopGame/BloodBowl'' have universal AG 4 across their team roster, and their Blitzers also have a very high MR of 8. This makes their positional play incredibly scary, as everyone can dodge, catch and pass and it is very easy for anyone in the elf team to penetrate your defences and score. But their weaker than average armour means that bashing them can easily result in a KO or an injury.
* Speedsters are one of the major build types in the ''[[TabletopGame/{{Champions}} HERO System]]'' -- one of the sourcebooks was even called The Ultimate Speedster. They can be very powerful -- a high speed stat is very powerful in the game, and certain builds can give them damage outputs that even dwarf that of the MightyGlacier -- but they tend to be {{Glass Cannon}}s.

* While most TabletopGame/{{Exalted}} are {{Glass Cannon}}s, Scourge caste Infernals are inclined to be speedsters. Adorjan's charmset doesn't contain soak improvers, bonus health levels or parries (Scourges tend to avoid damage by being somewhere else), but a Scourge can reach speeds without trying that a Solar has to expend a lot of effort to hit.

* Elves in ''TabletopGame/KingsOfWar'' have a move of 6, 50% higher than dwarf infantry, but rarely have a Defense better than 4+, meaning that any hit will hurt them half the time.
* Kanga in ''TabletopGame/TheOthers2015'' can move 5 spaces per turn, greatly outspeeding her teammates. Unfortunately, she is practically the only character with no defense, and dies easily against bosses.
* The jeeps and Tri-bikes from ''VideoGame/WarGamesDefcon1'' are among the fastest units of their respective factions, but they're very, very lightly armed, with their machine-guns capable of doing some puny ScratchDamage while being lightly armored to boot. What makes them invaluable however is that both of them contains flare launchers, which can be used to [[DeathFromAbove summon airstrikes]] -- making them invaluable in several missions and ''must'' be kept alive at all costs.

** Their evil cousins, the Dark Eldar (or Drukhari) fit even closer. Their basic troops are as tough and well-armoured as [[MadeOfPlasticine Guardsmen]], and even Guardsmen lasguns can threaten their vehicles in sufficiently large volleys. Bolter fire smears these evil elves across the landscape. But it's an army where ''everything'' flies or hovers or at least can be shoved into something that does, and they have insane close combat killing power and anti-tank firepower coming out of their pointed ears. Consequently they are considered Warhammer 40000 on Nightmare difficulty.

* TabletopGame/WarhammerFantasy: Skinks. They're among the fastest infantry in the game, with a move score of 6 and initiative 4... but their toughness score is so low even elves consider them fragile. Ranked-up units tend to be used for flanking enemies, while the skirmishers tend to run around picking off war machines and chariots in a hail of poisonous blowdarts.
* TIE Fighters in ''TabletopGame/XWingMiniatures'' aren't very manoeuvrable, have only three hull points each, and lack shields. However, they are capable of blistering speeds and [[ZergRush they're cheap]] -- you can buy two Academy Pilots for the price of the most basic [[Film/TheForceAwakens T-70 X-wing]]. Interceptors are even faster thanks to the Boost action, and are much more agile with a ridiculous amount of green on the dial, but are no more durable than a basic TIE Fighter. On the Rebel side, A-Wings are absurdly fast, having a green 5 move (most ships have that as either white or red, and many don't have it at all), but only 2 hull and shield. Scum, meanwhile, have the knife-fighting Protectorate Starfighter, which is basically a 4-hull TIE Interceptor that come with a handful of upgrades dedicated solely to point blank knife-fighting. On a tactical level, this is the idea of Arc-Dodger lists, which tend to be small, elite and fragile, but counter straightforward jousting lists by never being in their fire arcs to begin with; they fall apart against turret lists, which don't ''care'' about fire arcs.

[[folder:Real Life]]
* Israeli artist Boris Shpeizman created a motorcycle [[https://www.israel21c.org/israeli-artist-creates-life-size-glass-motorcycle/ made entirely of glass]]. When he was young, his mother forbade him from having or riding a motorcycle for being dangerous. When he got older, he built one out of glass to represent childhood dreams, and that sometimes it better to hold a dream than try to make it real because it would not live up to expectations in real life.
* Cheetahs are the fastest land animal and that is apparently the only thing they have going for them in the wild. They are other wise weak against other predators and have very few survival skills.
[[/folder]]

* ''Webcomic/DragonBallReboot'': The spin-off establishes that Gine could able to move at an impressive speed for a Saiyan but couldn't dish out a lot of damage or take more than a few hits due to her petite and slender build. Also, with her physically weak attacks, Gine often has to strike her opponent in the same spot multiple times before she can inflict any meaningful damage. This is even reflected in her fighting style which consists of HitAndRunTactics that rely on Gine being able to move fast enough to dodge anything her opponent can throw at her.

[[caption-width-right:300:You've heard of {{Glass Cannon}}s, how about ''Glass Choppers''?]]

* The page picture is of a motorcycle [[https://www.israel21c.org/israeli-artist-creates-life-size-glass-motorcycle/ made entirely of glass]] created by Israeli artist Boris Shpeizman. When he was young, his mother forbade him from having or riding a motorcycle for being dangerous. When he got older, he built one out of glass to represent childhood dreams, and that sometimes it better to hold a dream than try to make it real because it would not live up to expectations in real life.

* ''Literature/AesirCrossWars'': Azrael's speed is one of his best assets in battle, having both an S-ranked Speed stat and a FlashStep ability that can be used with impunity. He also has a robust Magic Defense and decent but not impressive attack stats on both sides. If his opponent uses physical attacks, however, SquishyWizard is in full effect, as his poor Physical Defense ensures he tends to go down quickly if he fails to dodge enough.
** Nafir, being Azrael's MovesetClone, also counts, since his stats are identical to Azrael's with the defenses swapped around, while also sharing Azrael's FlashStep abilities. So, a magic-user is Nafir's bane as a result.
** While we have yet to see him fight, Mani's stats make him this. He has the same Speed as Azrael, but also his Physical Defense, and his Magic Defense is mediocre.

* The page picture is of a motorcycle [[https://www.israel21c.org/israeli-artist-creates-life-size-glass-motorcycle/ made entirely of glass]] created by Israeli artist Boris Shpeizman. When he was young, his mother forbade him from having or riding it for being dangerous. When he was older, he built one out of glass to represent childhood dreams, that sometimes it better to hold a dream than try to make it real because it would not live up to expectations in real life.

[[caption-width-right:350:You've heard of {{Glass Cannon}}s, how about ''Glass Choppers''?]]

%% Image moved to Catching The Speedster per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=16698692950.41881000

[[quoteright:349:[[ComicBook/SpiderMan https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/speedstervsspidey_mirroredit.png]]]]

%% Image selected per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1611183934091844300&page=1
%% Previous thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1310860161023740100
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* All the speedsters in ''Franchise/TheFlash'' (DC Comics). Depending on the Writer, the Speed Force, and the day of the week, the Flash can be taken out with a well-timed punch from an average woman because their endurance is simply that of a normal peak-level athlete. When his RequiredSecondaryPowers are working properly, Flash is more of a LightningBruiser; able to deal incredible damage and take it, too.

* [[DependingOnTheWriter Depending on who writes him]] the flagship Marvel character Franchise/SpiderMan is [[MadeOfIron much sturdier than the average non-powered civilian]], but compared to some of his superpowered pals (e.g. Hulk and Thor) he's a lightweight. His fighting style is all about using his speed and reflexes (and his SpiderSense giving him a few crucial seconds' warning of incoming attacks) to dodge around using HitAndRunTactics not to mention [[DeadpanSnarker constantly running his mouth]] to [[IShallTauntYou annoy opponents and break their concentration]]. However, subverted as Spidey has taken powerful blows from TheJuggernaut and survived a NoHoldsBarredBeatdown from [[SuperPoweredEvilSide Phoenix-Enhanced]] ComicBook/{{Colossus}}, and Spider-Man is ''much'' stronger than the likes of ComicBook/{{Wolverine}}, ComicBook/CaptainAmerica, ComicBook/LukeCage and ComicBook/BlackPanther; so overall Spidey walks the line between this trope and LightningBruiser.
* ''Franchise/WonderWoman'': The villain Mayfly has superspeed without all of the RequiredSecondaryPowers. In [[ComicBook/WonderWoman1987 Volume 2]] this led to her rather gory death when she ran into a gate at nearly full speed while trying to escape prison.
* ''Franchise/XMen'':
** ComicBook/{{X 23}} is faster, more agile, and more acrobatic than her gene donor Wolverine, frequently utilizing CombatParkour to dodge enemies and bring her [[ArmedLegs foot claws]] into play. However because only her claws are bonded with adamantium she's much more vulnerable to being disabled by broken bones or severed limbs, and a clean head shot can put her down until she heals. Laura therefore relies mainly on just plain ''not getting hit'' in a fight, though she's [[ComicBook/AllNewWolverine recently]] taken to wearing an armored costume to help make up for her lack of durability. She does also ''heal'' faster, as well.

** Angel from the original X-Men, his Mutant ability grants him {{Flight}} an incredible aerial advantage and speed but compared to the villains he's facing and his fellow Mutants (e.g. Beast), one powerful attack will put him down. Subverted when Apocalypse turns him into [[SuperPoweredEvilSide Archangel]] who has metal wings and is much tougher.

** ComicBook/{{Nightcrawler}} has [[TeleportSpam teleportation powers aka "Bamf"]] which mean getting a hit on him is near impossible but strong foes can overpower him if they get a good attack in.
** [[ComicBook/JubileeMarvelComics Jubilee]] is pretty speedy and has strong attacks (especially as a vampire) but she's one of the physically weakest X-Men. [[DamselInDistress Especially]] in the 90s.
** ComicBook/{{Gambit}} while certainly above BadassNormal doesn't display any extreme SuperStrength or durability, so his melee fighting prowess comes from his agility. This is how helped Gambit was able to survive a one on one fight with [[FlyingBrick Gladiator]], who acknowledged his mobility before grabbing Gambit's foot and overpowering him. However, Gambit still turned the tables with a kinetic energy blast created from a full deck of cards.
** Pietro Maximoff alias ''ComicBook/{{Quicksilver}}'' may be able to break the sound barrier and deliver punches at the speed of light, but if a Tank ''does'' manage to land a hit, he's usually down and out. Depending on the writer, he might be presented as more of a LightningBruiser having taken some serious damage on multiple occasions, which logically should be the case all the time, as a body that can withstand the stress of traveling at the speeds he regularly hits [[RequiredSecondaryPowers should be immensely durable]]. This trope definitely applies for Quicksilver in ''WesternAnimation/XMenEvolution''. Getting hit ''once'' by ''any'' attack (regardless of its strength) usually sent this guy down for the count.

** {{Downplayed|Trope}} with Spider-Man, he's still a LightningBruiser compared to most of the cast but when up againist [[EvilIsBigger bigger]] and stronger foes, he falls into this. As seen when he fought [[Film/CaptainAmericaCivilWar Giant-Man]], [[Film/AvengersInfinityWar Cull Obsidian and Thanos]], Spidey can swing and jump circles around them and dodge their blows due to his small teenage frame. But when he does get caught by them, he tends to get very slammed down hard and needs time to recover, although keep in mind, most other Avengers would be greatly injured -- if not killed were they in Peter's place.
** ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy'': Rocket Raccoon. Like a RealLife raccoon he can jump four feet and is extremely agile, but nevertheless he's still a small animal at the end of the day and can be easily picked up or overpowered by the average human-sized enemy.

* ''Webcomic/EverydayHeroes'': Dot Dash can punch her opponent [[https://www.smackjeeves.com/discover/detail?titleNo=141697&articleNo=38 multiple times]] before he even knows she's there. However, she can be knocked down if caught [[https://www.smackjeeves.com/discover/detail?titleNo=141697&articleNo=40 off-balance]].

* ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague'': Franchise/TheFlash ([[DependingOnTheWriter Most of the time]]). He sometimes leans towards combining it with GlassCannon, or even becoming a full-on LightningBruiser depending on how serious he's getting and how well his RequiredSecondaryPowers are working this week. Especially early on, though, he's often taken out of the fight with one lucky hit.

%%* In ''Fanfic/ATeachersGlory'', rather than being TheAce, Haku is portrayed as this. His AnIcePerson BarrierWarrior abilities help, but he's still in trouble when enemies get in close.

%%** Chaos 2 started as a LightningBruiser in the early series, but gradually became this trope, as captain George Francis was a self-employed mechanic and didn't have the money to spend on upgrading the polycarbonate and titanium armour. It could still zip around the arena at 20mph and flip a robot over the arena sidewall, but in its last appearance it was defeated by a newcomer in the heats stages.

Often overlaps with GlassCannon, creating an archetype that sacrifices durability for strength as well as speed, and FragileFlyer. Contrast MightyGlacier, who sacrifices speed for strength. Heavy characters can sometimes turn into Fragile Speedsters via ShedArmorGainSpeed. Contrast the LightningBruiser, who is fast and powerful without any loss to durability.

Often overlaps with GlassCannon, creating an archetype that sacrifices durability for strength as well as speed. Contrast MightyGlacier, who sacrifices speed for strength. Heavy characters can sometimes turn into Fragile Speedsters via ShedArmorGainSpeed. Contrast the LightningBruiser, who is fast and powerful without any loss to durability.

** ''Film/GodzillaKingOfTheMonsters'': While Mothra is still an Alpha Titan and powerful {{Kaiju}}, compared to [[LightningBruiser Lightning Bruisers]] Godzilla, Rodan and Ghidorah, Mothra definitely leans towards the fragile flying-type similar to the aforementioned Male MUTO. She makes her BigDamnHeroes moment in the FinalBattle [[SpeedBlitz blitzing]] even Rodan who can outpace fighter jets, but she gets greatly injured during her bout with the pterosaur [[spoiler: and [[MadeOfIron unlike]] her partner Goji is killed when hit with Ghidorah's [[BreathWeapon Gravity Beams]].]]

* ''Fanfic/{{Vapors}}'' has Aiko Uzumaki, who can take a hit if she has to, but ends up injured relatively often. However, she uses her size and speed to avoid most hits, which goes UpToEleven when she learns [[TeleportSpam Hiraishin]].

** The [[MookMobile TIE fighters]] have no shields, instead focusing on being fast, maneuverable, and [[ZergRush cheap to mass-produce]]. Their high casualty rate is [[WeHaveReserves considered acceptable]] by the Empire. The TIE Interceptor is a newer model built according to the same philosophy, which is to say it's [[UpToEleven even faster]]. The Rebel equivalent is the A-Wing, which ''does'' have shields, they're just not as strong as those of the [[JackOfAllStats X-Wing]].