History Main / ScrewTheRulesIHaveSupernaturalPowers

* This attitude is almost universal among the Princes in ''Literature/TheChroniclesOfAmber,'' since their principal power is walking between dimensions. There can be no consequences for the actions they take out in 'Shadow' (their word for any dimension except their own) since they can simply depart after they have what they want.

* ''Series/TheTwilightZone1959'': The episode "[[Recap/TheTwilightZoneS3E73ItsAGoodLife It's A Good Life]]" is built on this, although six-year-old Anthony is convinced that he's just doing good things. Including getting rid of bad people. And of course, only bad people would think that the things he does could be bad...

* The whole point of ''Videogame/{{Prototype}}'' is that you got superpowers and can do anything you want.

* ''Manga/RosarioPlusVampire'': Ling-Ling Huang. ''So'' badly. She and her brother need to get Tsukune into the Haung family's mafia. After Fang-Fang's [[MistakenForGay initial request]] and [[ScrewTheMoneyIHaveRules failed challenge]], she drops in on another attempt when [[AnIcePerson Mizore]] points out that he needs to offer something in return. The Red (Huang's) Team wins? Tsukune joins the mafia (the girls are free to follow him, something they don't entirely have a problem with). The White (News Club) Team wins? Tour China's hotsprings, it's on us! Cue a couple hundred Jiang Shi on the Huang family's team, armed with bombs, emotionlessness, and dismemberment. Supernatural powers are explicitly against the rules, and what's Ling-Ling's excuse? "Whatever. [[CatchPhrase I'm already dead]]."

* PlayedForLaughs in ''WesternAnimation/SpiderManAcrossTheSpiderVerse'', as after being told YouAreGrounded Miles scoffs to himself and says "I'm not grounded. I'm ComicBook/SpiderMan." before sneaking out anyway. [[spoiler:PlayedForDrama later on, as after being informed of the laws of the multiverse by the AllianceOfAlternates Miles disregards WithGreatPowerComesGreatResponsibility [[ScrewTheRulesImDoingWhatsRight to try to save his father]], resulting in the rest of the Spider-Men trying to beat sense into him BecauseDestinySaysSo.]]

* A significant part of ''Film/{{Hancock}}'''s attempt to clean up his act is to convince the public that he doesn't live by this trope and that they can hold him accountable for his actions, willingly serving prison time for instance, until he's called back in to help.

* ''Film/TheMask'': The Mask is a chaotic, wild madman so he does not care about any rules that come along but he is harmless and a caring, compassionate, good-hearted, kind, NiceGuy which makes him care about innocent lives. He also spares people who annoy him and the police as well despite them trying to arrest him.
** This trope is played ''much'' straighter in the [[ComicBook/TheMask original comics]], where ''every single person'' who gets ahold of The Mask misuses it after becoming Big Head; The Mask exists to cause chaos, and the wearer is practically invulnerable and can create ''anything'' their demented mind can dream up. And while Big Head can get into any number of cartoon shenanigans without harm, the world around him ''can't''. For instance, the two mechanics Stanley Ipkiss takes revenge on in the movie? They don't survive his "funny" revenge.

* Taylor, of ''Literature/{{Worm}}'', comes to essentially this conclusion about the existence of parahumans; that they cause the system of human civilization to break down around them because it wasn't ''designed'' to deal with people like Alexandria, who can fly faster than a jet, is smarter than any ten geniuses, and is {{Nigh Invulnerab|ility}}le, or her, who can essentially perceive everything that happens within five city blocks. Instead of using her powers for her own gain, however, she decides to try to find a system that ''does'' work.

* ''[[Anime/PrettySammy Magical Project S]]'' Subverted by [[TheHero Pretty Sammy]] when she tried to break the rules, a classmate informs her that even Magical Girls have to abide by the rules.

* From ''Anime/HellGirl'', this is tried out by [[spoiler:Mikage Yuzuki after she succeeds Ai Enma to send the one who sent her friend to hell... to hell]]. It doesn't go over too well and even before then, Ichimoku Ren and Honne-Onna leave.

* Pretty much the concept behind ''Manga/DeathNote''. Light, a clever teenager lamenting the state of the world, accidentally obtains the titular Death Note in the first episode, and [[UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans immediately going on a world-changing killing spree]] to rid the world of criminals, along with anyone that would try to stop him.
* In ''Anime/CodeGeass'', Lelouch uses his Geass to not get caught leaving the school campus when it's not allowed, as well as other, unspecified rule-breaking so that his second life leading the rebellion won't interfere so much with his cover as an OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent.
* Stated and demonstrated by Mewtwo in ''Anime/PokemonTheFirstMovie''. When one of his human guests says that a Pokémon can't be a trainer, Mewtwo counters this argument by tossing him into a fountain via telekinesis and later proceeds to do the same with said human's Gyarados.
* This is pretty much the motivation for Androids 17 and 18 of ''Anime/DragonBallZ'', albeit to different extremes depending on the timeline. The androids from Future Trunks timeline killed and destroyed simply ForTheEvulz while those in the present timeline were more interested in petty crimes and causing trouble, rarely using lethal force against any who tried to stop them, and viewing the hunt for Son Goku as a "game." But for both versions, they caused mayhem because they were bored, nobody was powerful enough to stop them, and they spent several years with in forced stasis with the words "Kill Son Goku" repeated over and over.
* ''Manga/{{Saki}}'': This series is often called "Franchise/YuGiOh meets Mahjong", and true to that idea, the series is basically about Saki encountering girls with increasingly powerful supernatural abilities who use these abilities to cheat in Mahjong tournaments - and Saki beating them using her own supernatural powers.
* ''Manga/RosarioPlusVampire'': Ling-Ling Huang. ''So'' badly. She and her brother need to get Tsukune into the Haung family's mafia. After Fang-Fang's [[MistakenForGay initial request]] and [[ScrewTheMoneyIHaveRules failed challenge]], she drops in on another attempt when [[AnIcePerson Mizore]] points out that he needs to offer something in return. The Red (Huang's) Team wins? Tsukune joins the mafia (the girls are free to follow him, something they don't entirely have a problem with). The White (News Club) Team wins? Tour China's hotsprings, it's on us! Cue a couple hundred Jiang Shi on the Huang family's team, armed with bombs, emotionlessness, and dismemberment. Supernatural powers are explicitly against the rules, and what's Ling-Ling's excuse? "Whatever. [[CatchPhrase I'm already dead]]."

* The majority of ''Literature/{{Campione}}'''s titular warriors hold the belief that their status grants them the right to do whatever they please. [[TheHero Godou Kusanagi]] is an exception. The magic associations have learned to accept this and simply try their best to earn favor so Campiones will be less likely to destroy them and their countries out of irritation.
* While not a requirement for piracy, many pirates in ''Manga/OnePiece'' will take advantage of their Devil Fruit powers to enhance their criminal activities. Of course, the World Government isn't without their own supply of Devil Fruit users...
* ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica'': Using her ability to [[TimeStandsStill stop time]], Homura Akemi stole all kinds of weaponry from the JSDF and Yakuza to help her fight Witches. All of them are stored in some kind of BagOfHolding behind her shield.
* The general conflict of ''Manga/TalentlessNana'' is sparked by a generation of teens awakening to superpowers and realizing that they could get away with anything with it. It takes several years of warring between the supers and the rest of the world before they are finally contained, establishing the training academy where every Talented teen is sent upon awakening.
* ''Manga/MissKobayashisDragonMaid'': Kobayashi encounters a wizard who is [[Really700YearsOld several centuries old]] and has been moving between Kobayashi's world and the world of dragons. To attain money for his research, he once used Clairvoyance magic to see a best selling book in Kobayashi's world centuries before the author would be alive to write it, copied it, and sold it in the world of dragons. The humans there loved it and it made him a lot of money. When called out on his plagiarism by a dragon acquaintance in Kobayashi's modern times and Kobayashi feels it is sketchy, the wizard's response is thus:
--> "Works go into the public domain fifty years after the author's death. Surely that applies to fifty years ''before'' their birth too. Look, I needed research funds."

* ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'': A bit more "screw the rules, I control supernaturally powered beasts". When the Targaryen dynasty came to Westeros, they practiced incest and polygamy. A major stumbling block for the first 4 kings was that both these things were forbidden by the dominant Faith of the Seven on the continent. [[note]]While not explicitly forbidden, even the North was iffy about doing it.[[/note]] However, while the Faith had tradition and religious zeal, the Targs had DRAGONS! And while they didn't have the firepower to explicitly screw the rules (plus pragmatism), they eventually got a special dispensation that proclaimed their family as unique under heaven, and able to implicitly practice at least the incest. (Polygamy fell out after the last king to practice it was a tyrant}

* ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'': A bit more "screw the rules, I control supernaturally powered beasts". When the Targaryen dynasty came to Westeros, they practiced incest and polygamy. A major stumbling block for the first 4 kings was that both these things were forbidden by the dominant Faith of the Seven on the continent. [[note]]While not explicitly forbidden, even the North was iffy about doing it.[[/note]] However, while the Faith had tradition and religious zeal, the Targs had DRAGONS! And while they didn't have the firepower to explicitly screw the rules (plus pragmatism), they eventually got a special dispensation that proclaimed their family as unique under heaven, and able to implicitly practice at least the incest. (polygamy fell out after the last king to practice it was a tyrant}

* ''{{Series/Sliders}}'':

** The Greek myths in general have the gods hold the attitude that "With Great Power Comes Very Little Responsibility." The only restrictions placed on them are those done by other gods, and even then, they often try to fight it. For example, Zeus is a loving and faithful husband to Hera only as long as there are no pretty mortal women around-in which case, he's only a loving and faithful husband while she's around. In the one case Hera ''seriously'' attempted to stop him (as opposed to punishing the mortal women or the children he'd fathered with them); Zeus thwarted her and punished Hera. Plato, incidentally, thought such stories were blasphemous for portraying the gods as petty, immoral jerks, and wanted to ban them.

** Also, in the novel ''Literature/ColdDays, Harry finds very quickly that the Sidhe always honor their agreements very strictly because Winter (or Summer) Law is so absolute that violating it never even occurs to them. Harry, being Harry, finds out what instantly happens when he tries. [[spoiler:As the Winter Knight, his broken back and other injuries return immediately since Mab's Mantle vanishes when he violates Winter Law.]]

** Played with, however, in the supernatural world's set of laws codified by the wonderfully wicked Mab: the Unseelie Accords, laws to govern how magical beings behave towards one another. Most heavy players follow these laws - save for Nicodemus, who believes that his immortality and powers mean he shouldn't need to bow his head to anybody. As it turns out, Mab doesn't agree-and he learns this, to his regret.
** Also, in the novel "Cold Days," Harry finds very quickly that the Sidhe always honor their agreements very strictly because Winter (or Summer) Law is so absolute that violating it never even occurs to them. Harry, being Harry, finds out what instantly happens when he tries. [[spoiler:As the Winter Knight, his broken back and other injuries return immediately since Mab's Mantle vanishes when he violates Winter Law.]]

* ''Manga/MissKobayashisDragonMaid'': Kobayashi encounters a wizard who is [[Really700YearsOld several centuries old]] and has been moving between Kobayashi's world and the world of dragons. To attain money for his research, he once used Clairvoyance magic to see a best selling book in Kobayashi's world centuries before the author would be alive to write it, copied it, and sold it in the world of dragons. The humans there loved it and it made him a lot of money. When called out on this plargarism by a dragon acquaintance in Kobayashi's modern times and Kobayashi feels it is sketchy, the wizard's response is thus:

* This is pretty much the motivation for Androids 17 and 18 of ''Anime/DragonBallZ'', albeit to different extremes depending on the timeline. The androids from Future Trunks timeline killed and destroyed simply ForTheEvulz while those in the present timeline were more interested in petty crimes and causing trouble, rarely using lethal force against any who tried to stop them, and viewing the hunt for Son Goku as a "game." But for both versions, they caused mayhem because (1) they were bored and (2) nobody was powerful enough to stop them.

* ''WesternAnimation/ElTigre'' was a LovableRogue who lived by this, but more often than not he'd suffer LaserGuidedKarma that would [[PersonalGainHurts force him to do the right thing in the end]].

*** Marik creates a Shadow Game against Joey, who he repeatedly attacks with his monsters not for the purposes of defeating Joey within the rules of the game, but by draining his energy so much that Joey passes out seconds before he would have defeated Marik. Incredibly, Kaiba declares that this is allowed and awards victory to Marik.

*** In Kaiba's first duel with Aigami, his will power is enough to call Obelisk the Tormentor. He doesn't even have the card in his deck. The card appears on the ground and he picks it up instead of drawing from his deck.

*** Yuma uses all of ZEXAL Modes and Shining Draw abilities in his duel against Don Thousand. Yuma's partner Nasch also uses his Barian's Chaos Draw during the duel. To be fair, Thousand is a PurposelyOverpowered villain with overpowered, game breaking and cheap monsters, and if they don't win, they will die and the world is over.

* Pretty much the basic premise of ''ComicBook/{{Wanted}}''. The Fraternity were a group of supervillains who had triumphed and actually retconned the superheroes out of their reality. As a result, anyone with super powers was a member of the Fraternity, and anyone wearing a Fraternity badge, or driving a car with Fraternity plates could get away with ''anything'' and ''everything''.

'''Lovecraft:''' What makes me special is I'm my own man. When I started out I said there were things I'd do and things I wouldn't do. A lot of guys start out like that, and a lot of them sell out along the way. But the more who fall, the easier it gets. "See, look, everybody compromises, everybody cheats, everybody uses magic." So they empty their ideals out of their pockets and get down to the job of sticking it to their neighbors before they stick it to them, because that's that way it's done. To all of which I say nuts. My collar may be a little frayed, and maybe I need a shoeshine. But nobody's got a mortgage on my soul. I own it. Free and clear.

* Examined and played with, heavily, in ''Literature/TheDresdenFiles''. Most supernatural beings feel no compunction towards obeying mortal authority, or believe themselves allowed to ignore the laws (case in point: the Wardens executing warlocks).

* ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'': A bit more "screw the rules, I control supernaturally powered beasts". When the Targaryen dynasty came to Westeros, they practiced incest and polygamy. A major stumbling block for the first 4 kings was that both these things were forbidden by the dominant Faith of the Seven on the continent. [[note]]While not explicitly forbidden, even the north was iffy about doing it.[[/note]] However, while the Faith had tradition and religious zeal, the Targs had DRAGONS! And while they didn't have the firepower to explicitly screw the rules (plus pragmatism), they eventually got a special dispensation that proclaimed their family as unique under heaven, and able to implicitly practice at least the incest. (polygamy fell out after the last king to practice it was a tyrant}
* ''Literature/TheStormlightArchive'': In Alethkar (and most likely other Vorin nations like Jah Keved), Shardbearers are above most laws. It is illegal to imprison them; they can only be executed, and of course only for the most heinous of crimes. In most cases, when a Shardbearer is accused of a crime, the accuser is imprisoned for slander without anyone even bothering to see if the accusation is justified. While a large part of this is due to the Alethi's degeneration into {{Blood Knight}}s and their worship of the kind of slaughter that Shardbearers can wreak, there is a pragmatic side as well. Since they bear Shardblades that they can summon at any time and use to cut through anything, imprisoning them is a laughable prospect. Though note that it ''is'' possible to force a Shardbearer to give up his Blade without killing him. It's just the Alethi see ownership of Shards as a sacred right, and refuse to take them except in duels.

* Creator/IsaacAsimov's ''Literature/FoundationSeries'': In "Literature/TheMule", The Mule, who literally breaks destiny itself by up-ending the [[ThePlan Seldon Plan]] thanks to his ability to make vast numbers of people do what he wants. He becomes the single most successful GalacticConqueror in the history of the Milky Way.

** The [[Quotes/{{Masquerade}} third quote]] for {{Masquerade}} illustrates a problem with this train of thought. That said, vampires in ''TabletopGame/VampireTheMasquerade'' and ''TabletopGame/VampireTheRequiem'' (and most supernaturals, for that matter) can get away with ''a '''lot''''' considering both the {{Crapsack World}}s they live in mean people just don't care about most crimes, and their Masquerade clean up is top notch. (Provided you have the expertise/pull to have the clean up done for you without getting staked, mind you.)

* Player Characters in ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' or ''TabletopGame/{{Pathfinder}}'' will try this. Any GameMaster worth his or her salt should have a thousand ready tricks to foil them, or else should simply embrace their descent into SociopathicHero or even CardCarryingVillain status. This can also extend to the Rules of Gravity for Oracles.

** In the ''WesternAnimation/Ben10AlienForce'' episode "Grounded" where after Ben's parents find out not only about the Omnitrix, but that Ben had been lying to them for years to cover up his superheroing, [[YouAreGrounded they very quickly ground him]]. He actually plays along until he points out that they don't actually have the power to ''enforce'' this punishment, transforms, and runs through the wall to help his friends. This shows how much Ben has matured since the first series in that he's still willing [[ScrewTheRulesImDoingWhatsRight to break some rules if they actually threaten to stop him from doing good and helping people]].

** In the ''WesternAnimation/Ben10AlienForce'' episode "Grounded" where after Ben's parents find out not only about the Omnitrix, but that Ben had been lying to them for years to cover up his superheroing, [[YouAreGrounded they very quickly ground him]]. He actually plays along until he points out that they don't actually have the power to ''enforce'' this punishment, transforms, and runs through the wall to help his friends. This shows how much Ben has matured since the first series in that he's still willing to break some rules if they actually threaten to stop him from doing good and helping people.

* The majority of ''LightNovel/{{Campione}}'''s titular warriors hold the belief that their status grants them the right to do whatever they please. [[TheHero Godou Kusanagi]] is an exception. The magic associations have learned to accept this and simply try their best to earn favor so Campiones will be less likely to destroy them and their countries out of irritation.

* ''Series/DoctorWho'': The Doctor uses a combination of advanced technology (psychic paper) and BavarianFireDrill / ImpersonatingAnOfficer to get past obstacles.

** In the pilot episode of ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries'', [[AGodAmI Gary Mitchell]] developed superpowers after the ''Enterprise'' crossed the energy barrier at the edge of galaxy: he swiftly developed a god complex and started killing crew members. Averted when it came to Dr. Elizabeth Dehner, who used hers to stop Mitchell and ended up getting killed in the process.
** Charlie Evans from "Charlie X" was given superpowers by the Thasians after his ship crashed and everyone else was killed. When the ''Enterprise'' picks him up, he has an obsession with being liked and "removes" people from reality if they piss him off. Eventually the Thasians show up to take him back and repair the damage, but they're too late for a ship he destroyed that was trying to warn the ''Enterprise''. While Charlie repents in the end and promises never to use the powers again, Kirk and the Thasians agree that it's too much of a temptation.
** Trelane from "The Squire Of Gothos". You want someone to hang out with? Instantaneously pluck your guests from their ship. Said guests try to defy you? Chase them around with the planet you're on. [[spoiler: Fortunately, Trelane's parents are close by whenever he takes the trope too far.]]
** There was an episode of ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'' where a guy would enter people's dreams and do terrible things to them. He enters Dr. Crusher's and Counselor Troi's dreams and rapes them, and he enters Riker's dream and beats him within an inch of his life. When confronted, he claims to see nothing wrong with doing something for fun. Until he tries it again on Troi and Worf comes to her rescue.

* ''Series/{{The Twilight Zone|1959}}'' episode "[[Recap/TheTwilightZoneS3E73ItsAGoodLife It's A Good Life]]" is built on this, although six-year-old Anthony is convinced that he's just doing good things. Including getting rid of bad people. And of course, only bad people would think that the things he does could be bad...

* ''Anime/YuGiOh'':
** Pegasus can read minds, this allows him to get the knowledge of his opponent's strategy and set cards. Whether it is rule-breaking or not is debatable.
** Ishizu can see the future, allowing her to prevent bad moves and go the "good route", which is definitively unfair.
** In the end, the Pharaoh can draw any card he wants by [[WindsOfDestinyChange manipulating destiny]].
** Marik creates a Shadow Game against Joey, who he repeatedly attacks with his monsters not for the purposes of defeating Joey within the rules of the game, but by draining his energy so much that Joey passes out seconds before he would have defeated Marik. Incredibly, Kaiba declares that this is allowed and awards victory to Marik.
** In the final against Yugi, Marik is fused to the Winged Dragon of Ra due to his creation of a Shadow Game, so is able to use a De-Fusion card to separate himself. But Marik was only fused to Ra ''in the Shadow Realm'' - in the Duel Monsters game itself, they were never fused to begin with.
* ''Anime/YuGiOhTheMoviePyramidOfLight'': Anubis uses his power to protect the Permanent Trap Card "Pyramid of Light" from being destroyed. Then, he uses souls to empower his Theinen the Great Sphinx and tenfolds its ATK. While tenfolding the ATK out of nowhere doesn't make sense in the English dub, Anubis actually activates Theinen's effect in the Japanese dub. Theinen gains ATK of all the monsters that are in Anubis' graveyard. After doing the math, Anubis does really have enough monsters with an amount of 31500 ATK in his graveyard.[[note]]3x Blue-Eyes White Dragon (3x3000), Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon (4500), Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon (3000), Familiar Knight (1200), Rare Metal Dragon (2400), Des Feral Imp (1600), Paladin of White Dragon (1900), Peten the Dark Clown (500, two of the three of them are banished), Spear Dragon (1900), Andro Sphinx (3000) and Sphinx Teleia (2500).[[/note]]
* ''Anime/YuGiOhTheDarkSideOfDimensions'':
** In all of his duels, Aigami forces his opponents to play with modified rules, which include that the player has to expend their stamina to summon monsters.
** In Kaiba's first duel with Aigami, his will power is enough to call Obelisk the Tormentor. He doesn't even have the card in his deck. The card appears on the ground and he picks it up instead of drawing from his deck.
* ''Anime/YuGiOhGX'':
** When Judai is losing against Zure the Knight of Dark World, Freed the Brave Wanderer sacrifices his life energy to insert his own card into Judai's deck. Judai draws it and manages to win. Afterwards, the card vanishes into thin air.
** Judai uses Super Polymerization to fuse ''himself with Yubel, his opponent''. As you guess, the result of the duel is ambiguous.
** Yusuke Fujiwara uses magic to make Fubiki Tenjoin forget about his own cards, putting him at a disadvantage. Fortunately, Judai and Johan show up and break the spell.
* ''Anime/YuGiOh5Ds'':
** [[SpellMyNameWithAnS Goodwin]] uses a bit of the power of the King of the Underworld to sabotage his three opponents by sending darkness condors at them. That's right. He doesn't use Monster Cards, but outside force. To make it worse, when Crow and Jack crash because of him, Goodwin uses the Riding Duel rules against them, even though he doesn't ride a D-Wheel to begin with.
** Yusei and Jack often manage to create and add new cards to their decks mid-duel.
** In [[Manga/YuGiOh5Ds the manga version]], Akiza and Sherry have different psychic powers that give them an advantage in duels. Akiza can predict what card she will draw while Sherry can look through her opponent's eyes to see the cards in their hands.
* ''Anime/YuGiOhZEXAL'':
** A lot of fans think that Yuma's ability to use Shining Draw in ZEXAL Mode pushes the limits of fair play, but you can excuse him, seeing as the villains cheat worse. ''Eliphas'', however, you cannot. His godlike powers and authority over the Astral World let him use the Shining Draw ability ''any time he wants'' (the equivalent of magical deck-stacking), as opposed to Yuma, who can use it at most twice per duel, and only in ZEXAL Mode. To make this worse, Eliphas sort of broke the bank on broken cards, his ace monster being a ''Rank 13'' Xyz Monster that was able to gain ''33 Overlay Units''. (Most real players would consider that, well, impossible.) Ironically, despite this blatant cheating, Yuma was able to defeat him without Astral's help, [[BreakTheHaughty using a Rank 1 Xyz Monster]].
** In one of Yuma's duels against Vector, Vector is poised to win, as he has a Trap that will destroy Yuma's "Rank-Up-Magic Limited Barian's Force", which is the only card left in his deck, as soon as he draws it and then inflict enough damage to beat him. How does Yuma avoid this? He uses Shining Evolution to ''change the card as soon as he draws it'' to "Rank-Up-Magic Numeron Force". Vector calls him out and accuses him of cheating, but given Vector's atrocities and broken cards, Yuma doesn't care and beats him.
** Yuma uses all of ZEXAL Modes and Shining Draw abilities in his duel against Don Thousand. Yuma's partner Nasch also uses his Barian's Chaos Draw during the duel. To be fair, Thousand is a PurposelyOverpowered villain with overpowered, game breaking and cheap monsters, and if they don't win, they will die and the world is over.
* ''Anime/YuGiOhArcV'': In the first episode, Yuya's pendant suddenly changes several of his cards mid-duel into Pendulum Cards. He ''is'' accused of cheating afterwards. Later, when Yuya fuses with Yuto, he is often able to change his cards mid-duel into Yuto's cards.

Most of the time, these villains will be very small time thinkers, at most terrorizing local authorities into making them sort of kings, but when some ''do'' [[VisionaryVillain see the big picture]], you [[AntiHumanAlliance can expect them to want]] to TakeOverTheWorld, or even [[TranshumanTreachery try to enslave humanity]].

Contrast CutLexLuthorACheck for the ways a supervillain could have used his or her abilities to make tons of ''entirely legal'' cash. Contrast WithGreatPowerComesGreatResponsibility, this trope's exact opposite. Compare and contrast WithGreatPowerComesGreatPerks, where people use their power for the own benefit, but without immoral behavior.

* In ''Anime/CodeGeass'', Lelouch uses his Geass to not get caught leaving the school campus when it's not allowed, as well as other, unspecified rule-breaking, so that his second life leading the rebellion won't interfere so much with his cover as an OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent.

* The general conflict of ''Manga/TalentlessNana'' is sparked from a generation of teens awakening to superpowers and realizing that they could get away with anything with it. It takes several years of warring between the supers and the rest of the world before they are finally contained, establishing the training academy where every Talented teen is sent upon awakening.

* Creator/MarkWaid and Peter Krause's ''ComicBook/{{Irredeemable}}'' shows us what happens when a Superman-level hero suddenly decides that he's completely sick of humanity and its infantile whining. During the first few pages we learn that the Plutonian has already killed millions by basically nuking a city and we personally see him incinerate one of his former allies in his own home, killing his wife and children as well. The series takes us along as his former mates try to stop him, but even they fear him as they would an angry god.

* ''ComicBook/{{Invincible}}'' mentions this during a crossover with ''ComicBook/TheAstoundingWolfMan''. When Wolf-Man asks if Invincible will get in trouble for breaking government property and beating up superheroes, Invincible shrugs it off, saying that as long as he's strong enough to save the earth, he gets a pass. While he often blows off the rules for good reason, Invincible increasingly starts to believe that because he's the most powerful superhero on Earth, the rules don't apply to him all. This is treated as a decidedly negative trait, and eventually backfires badly.

* In ''ComicBook/TheBoys'' every superhero is this. They have superpowers and they decide that they can do anything they want, and feel that the government can't stop them. Thing is, they are actually wrong. While Vought American, a large defense contractor that has created all the superheroes in the setting, is willing to cover up and/or whitewash the exploits of their supers for the sake of profit and good PR, the company can and will deal with them if the incidents cannot be spun or are hurting their bottom line. The best example of this is what happened to the ''ComicBook/XMen'' expies G-Men. The government and Vought American knew that the team founder John Goldokin was a unrepentant pedophile and child abductor that had abused of all the children under his care, but they were still willing to turn a blind eye to this because the G-Men were one of the most popular and profitable superhero teams. All things changed once V.A. realized that Goldokin's perversions and instability were out of control (he requested permission to create ''another'' preschool team) and after public scandals like the suicide of Jean Grey expy Silver Kincaid, the higher-ups realized that the team were a public relations liability and ordered a team of [[PrivateMilitaryContractor Red River operatives]] to deal with them. The subsequent fight saw the G-Men getting massacred with frightful efficiency.

* In ''Fanfic/AllYourBaseAreBelongToHer'', Dawn embodies this to an ''Epic'' degree. She was [[ClassyCatBurglar bad enough]] back in the Buffyverse, where a small remnant of her awakened Key abilities remained active even after Buffy sacrificed herself, allowing her to defeat any lock. When she enters SG-1's universe, however, and discovers that Key+PortalNetwork=Teleportation abilities, she lives this trope with joyful abandon. Basically, if there is something shiny, fashionable or valuable lying unattended anywhere in Colorado, she'll get around to taking it eventually.

* When Hal gets powers in ''WesternAnimation/{{Megamind}}'', even before [[FromNobodyToNightmare going on a destruction spree throughout the city]] he was using his powers to steal money, bikes, and arcade games. (This was screwing ''super'' rules as well, since he was supposed to fight Megamind but didn't bother showing up.)

* ''Film/BruceAlmighty'''s crimes include, among other things, vandalism (breaking a fire hydrant), theft (swapping his clothes for those in a shop), sexual harassment (blowing a girl's skirt up) and assault (the butt monkey). And that's just one scene.

* In Creator/AnneMcCaffrey's Talents 'verse (''Literature/ToRidePegasus'' trilogy and ''Literature/TowerAndTheHive'' series), in the early days the psychics form a group with a code of behavior in order to try to avert this trope. When a girl more powerful than any other psychic in the world learns how to use her powers (ironically because she saw a public service announcement by the group) she goes on a crime spree which eventually results in murder [[spoiler:and her own death]]. In later books, every Talent of significant strength is [[MutantDraftBoard brought into the fold early]] and [[WithGreatPowerComesGreatResponsibility taught to use their powers responsibly]].

* The protagonist of ''Literature/{{Jumper}}'' used his teleporting powers to wage a one-man vigilante anti-terrorism campaign. ''In the 1990s''. In a moment almost ripped from a buddy comedy, he kidnapped both the terrorist leader, and the NSA agent following him, then left them on an island surrounded by freezing-cold water in a large, sheer-walled pit in the desert.

* This attitude is almost universal among the Princes in ''Literature/TheChroniclesOfAmber,'' since their principal power is walking between dimensions. There can be no consequences for the actions they take out in 'Shadow' (their word for any dimension except their own), since they can simply depart after they have what they want.

** Basically every single member of the Q Continuum ignores ''all'' rules imposed by ''anybody'' except their own kind, and even then it's kind of iffy. Being [[TheOmnipotent omnipotent]] they can get away with this since nobody more powerful than them has appeared in any canonical story. Q's own son, appearing as a teenage boy in ''Series/StarTrekVoyager'', flat-out tells Janeway he can do whatever he wants because he has unlimited control over space, time and matter. At least his father felt the need to claim [[BlatantLies "superior morality"]] as a justification for his behavior. They generally at least just [[TheTrickster toy with]] normal people. You'd shudder to think of a truly ''malicious'' Q.

* ''Series/{{The Twilight Zone|1959}}'' episode "[[Recap/TheTwilightZoneS3E73ItsAGoodLife It's A Good Life]]" is built on this, although six-year old Anthony is convinced that he's just doing good things. Including getting rid of bad people. And of course, only bad people would think that the things he does could be bad...

* Dragons in ''TabletopGame/{{Shadowrun}}'' combine this trope with ScrewTheRulesIHaveMoney and ScrewTheRulesIMakeThem- thanks to their unmatched physical prowess, unmatched magical prowess, and unmatched intellectual prowess they quickly able to amass huge fortunes and positions of political and social power. They're not quite invincible, but only a [[NuclearOption nuclear weapon]] or a direct hit from the railgun on a KillSat can kill a dragon and sometimes not even then, so even national governments and megacorps tread carefully when a dragon's involved.

* The basic plot of Marlowe's ''Theatre/DoctorFaustus''. He gains supernatural powers through a DealWithTheDevil and decides he can do whatever the heck he wants. After they do that, he grows [[EvilIsPetty increasingly petty]], stooping to playing pranks on UsefulNotes/ThePope, amusing the Emperor's court, and eventually just dying alone, realizing how badly he wasted his potential.

* In ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIIIMorrowind'', this is the outlook of [[TheClan Great House]] [[EvilSorcerer Telvanni]]. They strongly believe in MightMakesRight, and KlingonPromotion is a legitimate means of advancement within the house (which is your "in" to rise to the top of the as an otherwise hated outlander). The Telvanni tend strongly toward magical might, and only care about the Temple and Imperial laws and their various bans on certain kinds of magic insofar as they can actually ''enforce'' those laws and bans...

** This is part of what makes the original ''WesternAnimation/Ben10'' so enjoyable, because in a rare protagonist example, Ben does what pretty much any [[KidHero ten-year-old boy with super powers would do]], switching between beating up super villains in the streets, to shrinking down to try and find his sought after prize in boxes of cereal without buying it first.

* The ''ComicBook/{{New 52}}'' version of young Franchise/{{Superman}} in ''ComicBook/ActionComics'' and the first story arc of Franchise/{{Justice League|OfAmerica}}, which take place in his early superhero years. He laughs at the cops, throws [=CEOs=] into rivers, chokes Batman, etc. He grows out of it and is much more humble in the present.

* In the ''Anime/{{Pokemon}}'' fanfic "[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/11587968/1/Resident-Hybrid-infection Resident Hybrid infection]]", quite a few characters transformed by the hybrid virus seem to be operating on this philosophy, with even Iris seeing nothing wrong with infecting Cilan so that he can join her as a hybrid, while Ash is fighting to keep control of himself even as the transformed May and Serena try to seduce him.

* ''Series/{{The Twilight Zone|1959}}'' episode "Literature/ItsAGoodLife" is built on this, although six-year old Anthony is convinced that he's just doing good things. Including getting rid of bad people. And of course, only bad people would think that the things he does could be bad...

* Pretty much the concept behind ''Manga/DeathNote''. Light, a clever teenager lamenting the state of the world, accidentally obtains superpowers in the first episode, and [[UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans immediately going on a world-changing killing spree]].

[[folder:Fan Fiction]]

* ''{{Series/Sliders}}'':
** One episode had a world in which a group that could kill through dreams flagrantly broke the law and killed people right in front of the police with their powers. Of course, nobody thought to just arrest the whole group, preventing them from touching you.
** Another episode has a world where magic is real, so the cops are afraid to touch powerful sorcerers.

* Widespread in ''Franchise/StarTrek''.
** In the pilot episode of ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries'', [[AGodAmI Gary Mitchell]] developed superpowers after the ''Enterprise'' crossed the energy barrier at the edge of galaxy: he swiftly developed a god complex and started killing crew members. Averted when it came to Dr. Elizabeth Dehner, who used hers to stop Mitchell and ended up getting killed in the process.
** Charlie Evans from "Charlie X" was given superpowers by the Thasians after his ship crashed and everyone else was killed. When the ''Enterprise'' picks him up, he has an obsession with being liked and "removes" people from reality if they piss him off. Eventually the Thasians show up to take him back and repair the damage, but they're too late for a ship he destroyed that was trying to warn the ''Enterprise''. While Charlie repents in the end and promises never to use the powers again, Kirk and the Thasians agree that it's too much of a temptation.
** Trelane from "The Squire Of Gothos". You want someone to hang out with? Instantaneously pluck your guests from their ship. Said guests try to defy you? Chase them around with the planet you're on. [[spoiler: Fortunately, Trelane's parents are close by whenever he takes the trope too far.]]
** There was an episode of ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'' where a guy would enter people's dreams and do terrible things to them. He enters Dr. Crusher's and Counselor Troi's dreams and rapes them, and he enters Riker's dream and beats him within an inch of his life. When confronted, he claims to see nothing wrong with doing something for fun. Until he tries it again on Troi and Worf comes to her rescue.
** Basically every single member of the Q Continuum ignores ''all'' rules imposed by ''anybody'' except their own kind, and even then it's kind of iffy. Being [[TheOmnipotent omnipotent]] they can get away with this since nobody more powerful than them has appeared in any canonical story. Q's own son, appearing as a teenage boy in ''Series/StarTrekVoyager'', flat-out tells Janeway he can do whatever he wants because he has unlimited control over space, time and matter. At least his father felt the need to claim [[BlatantLies "superior morality"]] as a justification for his behavior. They generally at least just [[TheTrickster toy with]] normal people. You'd shudder to think of a truly ''malicious'' Q.

* Kind of the entire point of most plots - romantic and non - in the first few seasons of ''{{Series/Smallville}}''. The meteor [[MonsterOfTheWeek freak of the week]] suffers "Kryptonite Psychosis" and uses their meteor-given powers for their own selfish gain, perfectly willing to commit multiple murders to further their goals before Clark stops them and they get sent to the Belle Reve mental institution. {{Lampshade|Hanging}}d numerous times by characters [[FantasticRacism biased against meteor freaks]]. Clark himself qualifies when under the influence of Red Kryptonite. His Red K-activated personality, Kal, acts out Clark's basic wants and needs without concerning himself with the consequences of his actions, and is not only unconcerned with [[{{Masquerade}} keeping his powers a secret]], but is even tempted to go public with them because he believes that his powers make him infallible.
* In ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'', Faith and, in the episode "Bad Girls", Buffy herself. Also [[MySpeciesDothProtestTooMuch the majority]] of [[AlwaysChaoticEvil vampires and demons]]. It helps that Sunnydale was made for evil entities to screw around in. The rules are bent for slaughter and games.
* ''Series/WizardsOfWaverlyPlace'' is ''made'' of this trope. Well, at least in [[AntiHero Alex's]] mind.
* ''Series/{{The Twilight Zone|1959}}'' episode "Literature/ItsAGoodLife" is built on this, although six-year old Anthony is convinced that he's just doing good things. Including getting rid of bad people. And of course, only bad people would think that the things he does could be bad...

* This is widespread among vampires on ''Series/TrueBlood''. Although their public relations campaign claims that they just want to be a [[FriendlyNeighborhoodVampire part of normal human society]], including having equal civil rights, they have no problem with breaking the law if they think they can get away with it. In particular they are not above using mind control on humans and/or feeding from people without their consent. In one episode, Bill even subverts [[MustBeInvited the rule that vampires aren't allowed to enter a human's home without an invitation]] by glamoring one of them and having that person invite him. It's seen that many vampires murder humans for blood with impunity, and thus the anti-vampire human fanatics (who don't distinguish them from the nicer vampires) aren't ''entirely'' wrong about them. It's ''really'' difficult to rein in someone with their powers and the vampires' own government doesn't care about that, only violence against other vampires.

* The Griffin family in the ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'' short "[[Recap/FamilyGuyS3E21FamilyGuyViewerMailOne Super Griffins]]."
-->'''Peter''': Well, we promised Lois we'd use our powers responsibly, but I suppose doing the exact opposite couldn't hurt.