History Main / TheProfessor

[[quoteright:310:[[Film/BackToTheFuture https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Doc-Brown_5440.jpg]]]]
[[caption-width-right:310:Great Scott!]]

* Professor Utonium from ''WesternAnimation/ThePowerpuffGirls'' is possibly one of the kindest and most fatherly characters here- although in one episode he realises that pretty much everything good he ever invented was by accident, from the eponymous girls to Sloppy Joe's.

-->'''Donatello:''' Professor!
-->'''Professor Honeycutt:''' Yes?
-->'''Donatello:''' [[NamesTheSame No, the other]] [[EveryoneCallsHimBarkeep professor.]]

* Inorder to stop Dr. Gearck’s conquest of the entire world with the power of the evil gears called the “Warugiano” in the ''TabletopGame/YuGiOh [[Metaplot/YuGiOh metaplot]]'', Professor Kross created the Gear Heroes known as the “Geargias”!!!

* Early example: Merlin of [[KingArthur Arthurian Legend]] is a magical version.

If The Professor is quite a bit older than the FiveManBand / RagtagBunchOfMisfits / TrueCompanions he works with, he's very likely to be the TeamDad or [[TeamDad Team Grandpa]].

* Arbat-Elivat-Estoni from ''Literature/{{Animorphs}}''.

*** ''Anime/MazingerZ'': Dr. Gennosuke Yumi and the Morimori/Nozori/Sewashi triad. Note that the series also subverts this, since Dr. Juuzou Kabuto is sometimes The Professor and sometimes a MadScientist, depending ''heavily'' on which canon we're talking about. This was because Go Nagai wanted to showing bluntly Mazinger-Z was a machine whose actions were completely depending on the pilot. In the original manga, Dr. Kabuto and Dr. Hell were NotSoDifferent, and as [[FallingIntoTheCockpit Kouji tried to learn how piloting it]], [[UnbuiltTrope Mazinger caused so much destruction]] as your average {{Robeast}}.

* Dr. Umatarō Tenma and later Professor Ochanomizu (aka Dr. Boyton and Dr. Elefun, respectively) in ''Tetsuwan Atom''/''Astro Boy''.

* Gyro Gearloose in ''DonaldDuck'' comics.

* Dr. Casper Darling in ''VideoGame/{{Control}}'', an [[{{Adorkable}} adorkably]] enthusiastic scientist who is the FBC's top mind when it comes to the many strange items or interdimensional incursions that the bureau has to deal with. He likes to record his findings in cheesy no-budget newsreels, which you'll find throughout the building [[MrExposition to learn about various things in the game]]. [[spoiler:Though you never meet him in person because it's implied by one of his recordings that he's AscendedToAHigherPlaneOfExistence.]] To a lesser extent his number two, Emily Pope, shares a lot of the same qualities.

* Dr. Light from ''VideoGame/MegaMan''.

** There's also Dr. Crumhorn. His motive is nothing more than to destroy Danger Mouse for TEH EVULZ!!1!

* ''WesternAnimation/DangerMouse'' had two Professor Sqwuakenclucks within two runs, both employed to kit DM out with whatever he needs for his mission. The first was a German male mole, the second a Scottish female budgie (niece of the original) who doesn't suffer DM's foolishness lightly.

* Cornelius Robinson, [[spoiler: the older form of the protagonist]] in Disney/MeetTheRobinsons. Graduated college at age 14 and went on to invent flying cars, self constructing buildings, time machines and much of the rest of the future's technology.

* The ''Roleplay/GlobalGuardiansPBEMUniverse'' has both Herr Doktor Archeville and The Academician. The former is a world-renowned scientist who uses his advanced technology to fight crime. The latter is the leader of the People's Republic of China's official hero team. Both are among the smartest men in the world.

** Parodied in the form of Dr. Thaddeus Venture of ''WesternAnimation/TheVentureBrothers'', who is not actually a doctor, having dropped out of school two months before getting his degree. While most of his inventions do actually work, his success is often due more to blind luck and other people's perceptions of him than any actual skill. Also an example of a MadScientist, as many of his inventions are monstrously destructive or unethical, including an "Ooo-ray" that somehow melts buildings with sound waves, and a dream machine powered by [[PoweredByAForsakenChild the heart of an orphan.]] Venture's twin brother, Jonas Venture Jr., [[EvilTwin his good fraternal twin]], is a more straight application of the trope, but is still played for comedic value.

The [[SuperIntelligence nearly impossibly]] [[TheSmartGuy smart guy]]; A StockCharacter exemplified on ''Series/GilligansIsland'' and ''Series/MacGyver1985''. Probably started off as a TeenGenius and is capable of many an AssPull, DeusExMachina, or, um, [[ReversePolarity Polarity Reversal]]. May or may not rely on TechnoBabble. Is the source of much AppliedPhlebotinum, but is incapable of providing a solution that would thwart the show's premise (the Professor couldn't get the rest of the gang off that darn island, Ziggy couldn't bring Sam home on ''Series/QuantumLeap''). Often gets to be MrExposition. Fluent in SesquipedalianLoquaciousness and SoundsOfScience. If he plays a game, it's inevitably TabletopGame/{{chess}}, because SmartPeoplePlayChess. He's also very likely to be a TVGenius.

* Roughly half the cast of the ''Franchise/MetalGear'' games qualify for the trope in at least a few respects, although Otacon probably comes closest to fulfilling it.

* On ''Series/DoctorWho'', Ace called the Seventh Doctor "Professor". Despite his irritation at this sobriquet, all of the Doctor's incarnations have had at least an element of The Professor about them.
** And, of course, there's Professor [[YouAreNotAlone Yana]] from ''Utopia''. However, he cheerfully admits it's an invented title, since there hasn't been an university around in centuries.

* ''Series/UltraQ'''s Professor Ichinotani served as Jun, Yuriko, and Ippei's usual expert for scientific consultation for any Weirdness or MonstersOfTheWeek. He's also stated [[AllThereInTheManual in later material]] to be the founder of Science Patrol, the main organization of [[Series/{{Ultraman}} the succeeding series]].
** Speaking of ''Series/{{Ultraman}}'', the Science Patrol had their own recurring professor named Dr. Iwamoto who served a similar role to Ichinotani. He also tended to have {{Suspiciously Similar Subsitute}}s, always with last names ending with "-moto".