History Main / WowingCthulhu

* On the ''LetsPlay/DreamSMP'', when Tommy manages to pull off an MLG water bucket from a high drop ''onto bamboo'', [[AnnoyingYoungerSibling Drista]], who is a powerful entity (implied to be a goddess) with access to unobtainable items due to being in Creative mode, is genuinely impressed and stops her antics for the time being.

This trope occurs whenever a character is somehow able to impress, wow, or in any case greatly surprise another one who is far bigger, greater, and/or more powerful. They may not necessarily be a PhysicalGod or EldritchAbomination, but the gap between them in terms of size or power etc. is so great that the comparison is like a man to a god. And yet somehow, despite being so much less talented than this powerful entity, this character was able to present the greater being with a skill or item that captures the godly being's imagination, maybe even giving them more perspective on an issue. The godly being might very well be perfectly capable of what the lesser being did and/or the [[MundaneObjectAmazement skill/item in question isn't that great by the lesser being's standards]]. And yet, the godly being is impressed by their achievements or character.

This can extend to villainous entities as well. Perhaps the character was able to gain [[VillainRespect the villain's respect or shock them]] by [[StaringDownCthulhu standing up to them]] and showing they are not afraid. Heck, the lesser character doesn't even have to oppose the EvilOverlord in question. Maybe this puny person was some HarmlessVillain, {{Mook}}, or IneffectualSympatheticVillain that the EvilOverlord didn't think much of before, but then the mediocre villain proves to the BigBad that [[NotSoHarmlessVillain they aren't a joke after all]] and the evil entity could be so impressed, they give the small time baddie a MookPromotion or even makes them [[TheDragon their right hand man.]]

Compare with StaringDownCthulhu and DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu. Contrast AdmiringTheAbomination, DoNotTauntCthulhu and DidYouJustFlipOffCthulhu.

** When she offers him a wish, he asks her if she's an angel. The tragically neglected orphan never had anyone ask what he wants before.

* In ''Manga/DragonBall'', during the climax of Goku's fight with King Piccolo, most of Goku's limbs have been broken, so he uses an energy blast to launch ''himself'' at his foe and tears a hole through his chest. King Piccolo, a SealedEvilInACan who is the evil counterpart of Kami, the God of Earth, is simply amazed by his defeat. In the manga version he even praises Goku by saying "brilliant".

** In the Saiyan Saga, Raditz gets impressed by Goku and Piccolo being able to amplify their power by taking off weighted clothing, as well as their ability to focus their power in a single attack.

** Perfect Cell is willing to do this, as all he really wants is a good fight. He compliments Trunks on his power, and is legitimately impressed when Gohan turns out to be almost as strong as Goku, after initially dismissing Gohan as nothing more than a boy. Of course, once Gohan surpasses him as a Super Saiyan 2, Cell gets less gracious.

** Despite being the most powerful beings in the setting, the Omni-Kings seem to be [[EasilyImpressed quite susceptible to this]]. Throughout the Tournament of Power arc they were constantly in awe of and praising all of the fighters. The only times they ever seemed to get bored of the fighting where when characters were moving at speeds too fast for them to track, even with their [=GodPads=]. This is in part because the Zenos are not fighters and have never had any reason to learn martial arts; their power is to simply erase anything (or if they see fit, ''[[ApocalypseHow/ClassX5 everything]]'') from existence. Meaning that even the simplest fighting technique is something new and exciting to them.
* The titular ''Literature/GoblinSlayer'' is this to the gods Truth and Illusion. In this world he is known as "he who does not let the gods roll the dice". This is because, to Truth and Illusion, [[spoiler: the fate of everyone and everything in their world (which they see as a tabletop RPG), is literally decided by their dice rolls. Goblin Slayer is noted as having no special attributes or grand destiny in store for him, and is by all accounts an ordinary NPC. Yet his meticulous CrazyPrepared nature and unrelenting drive in his one-man genocide of the goblin race basically throws anything related to chance out the window when it comes to him. This ends up fascinating them, as it's basically the equivalent of a game piece challenging the dice themselves.]]

* In ''Literature/RestaurantToAnotherWorld'', the master of the titular restaurant is a regular human being and yet almost all of his regular customers are beings with far greater power and magic than him, whether they are experienced warriors, adventurers, demons, magicians or even dragon gods. However his superb culinary skills is enough to earn their respect. In addition, his access to modern technology makes it possible for him to serve foods and cuisine that is impossible to find in the other world such as ice cream. Just the fact that he provides clean ice-cold water with lemon slices for free (refills included) is ''mind-blowing'' to denizens of the other world.

** ''ComicBook/FantasticFour'' issue #288 has Doctor Doom attempt to reconstruct his original body. However, Doom succeeds in bringing forth the godlike Beyonder, who recognizes Doom from the ''ComicBook/SecretWars1984'' arc. The Beyonder roars that he will obliterate Doom for his impudence, when Reed Richards intervenes. Reed points out that if Doom is destroyed now, there will be no Doom in the future to pluck for the Secret Wars, creating a temporal paradox. "Could you, Beyonder, survive the absolute destruction of time itself?" The Beyonder pauses, then admits, "I... do not know." Ultimately, the Beyonder casts Doom into the future intact. Reed Richards made a god recant his judgment.
** In ''ComicBook/MarvelTwoInOne'' Annual #7, an alien calling himself the Champion of the Universe challenges every superhuman on Earth to a series of one-on-one [[TheBoxingEpisode boxing matches]], with the fate of Earth at stake. He defeats every one (some by disqualification, such as the Hulk tearing his gloves off and starting a NoHoldsBarredBeatdown on the Champion). Finally, it is up to the Thing, who impresses the Champion because he just won't quit. Even after being knocked out, he gets back up for more. Eventually, when the Thing is a battered bloody mess and the Champion isn't even winded, the Champion suddenly throws in the towel saying that the Thing won: while the Champion could ''beat'' the Thing he could never ''defeat'' him. And thus the Earth is saved.

* ''Fanfic/FateStarryNight'': Seeing Ritsuka's defiance to his plans and outright refusal to follow him, Gilgamesh is so impressed that he gives him a chance to convince him that there is potential in modern humanity. Should Ritsuka succeed, Gilgamesh will abandon his plan to cull humanity with the mud of the Holy Grail.
* ''Fanfic/GreatGrandUncleSchimmelhornsToolbox'': Upon seeing what Taylor can do from studying Papa's notes on looking "around the corner" from reality, Lisa's shard gives her the impression of drooling and having found a new favourite toy, and starts becoming much more helpful to her with far less headaches. When Taylor then demonstrates the ability to alter momentum using an energy source that ''doesn't fit into the Entities' understanding of physics'', the shard is so overwhelmed that it crashes, then gets rebooted with more resources to study the situation in more depth.

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Hercules}}'': After the battle for Olympus, Hercules goes down to Hades to get Meg's soul back. He offers the god of the underworld his soul in exchange for hers, ''if'' he can get her back from the river of death. Hades is stunned when Herc emerges from the river not only alive, but as a god.

* ''WesternAnimation/SinbadLegendOfTheSevenSeas'': Eris, the Goddess of Discord, halts the execution of Sinbad because he'd correctly answered her question: "Would you forfeit your life to save your friend?" At first, Eris had called him a liar, declaring Sinbad too selfish to be so noble. However, when he returns to Syracuse empty-handed, Sinbad accepts blame for the theft of the MacGuffin, vindicating his answer. Eris seems poised to squash Sinbad like a bug, but instead accedes the MacGuffin, because [[IGaveMyWord she gave her word]].

** {{Downplayed|Trope}} in ''Film/Ghostbusters1984''. Gozer is more amused than impressed by the Ghostbusters' attempts to stop them, and decides that they're worthy enough to pick the form of something that destroys the world.
** Shows up again in ''Film/GhostbustersAfterlife.'' Phoebe doesn't so much as flinch staring Gozer in the eye and telling them juvenile jokes. Gozer asks the girl if she's ready to die, to which Phoebe asks "Are you?" Gozer isn't wowed, but certainly respects Phoebe's badassery enough not to fry the kid on the spot.

* Early in ''[[Literature/BardicVoices The Lark and the Wren]]'', Rune the fiddler-girl boasts to some bullies that she'll prove her skill with the fiddle by playing for the Skull Hill Ghost. It's an incredibly stupid thing to say, because the Ghost is immensely powerful, cruel, sadistic, and deadly - it kills anyone it finds on Skull Hill after dark, but it doesn't let them die easily. When it catches Rune on the hill and she tells it why she's there, it offers a bargain: if she can keep it entertained all night with her music, it will spare her life. Rune rises to the challenge, and plays so well that when dawn comes, it not only spares her life, it also rewards her with a heap of silver coins.

*** In the end, there is an implicit wowing from ArchangelUriel when Harry, furious at the fact [[spoiler:Lucifer granted his minions use of Super-Hellfire twice in this book, Michael almost died, and all this bullshit about God not directly stopping them]] and calls God out on these in a hospital chapel. Uriel in disguise as a janitor talks with Harry about how God and the Angels see things from beyond the limited human perspective and might give one person, who doesn't know it at the time, a hand which helps them overcome these trials. [[spoiler:Uriel is speaking of Harry himself, in part for turning the Shadow of a Fallen into a being of good who sacrificed her life to save Harry's in the last book, and to balance Lucifer's actions gifts Harry Soulfire, the Fires of Creation, for him to use]].
** In the short story "The Warrior" ends with Harry at St. Mary's church watching a family he helped save and kept a good man from giving into his wrath. The ArchangelUriel appears besides Harry in a form they met previously in ''Small Favor'', and talk again about how Uriel sees things. He wanted Harry to be there these past few days not just to save this particular family, but three other people he encountered he saved them without them knowing it[[note]]helping a mother recognize her husband is abusing their child ending a cycle of abuse going back generations, saving a drunk construction worker (by shorting out the equipment) will allow him to be alive when his daughter be diagnosed with cancer and he is the closest viable donor, and inspiring a teenage girl who will likely become a counsellor to help hundreds more people[[/note]]. The wowing comes at the end when Harry, while happy to have helped people, hands Uriel a bill. Uriel is shocked that Harry would have the hubris to bill ''God'', to which Harry clarifies he is sending the bill to Uriel, not God. Uriel smiles and leaves without paying.

* In ''Explorers of Literature/{{Gor}}'' a tribe of FantasyCounterpartCulture Zulu warriors have a massive multi-day battle against the Kurii, a group of 9 foot tall alien beasts. Before the final battle the Kurii give a salute to their human enemies in respect of their bravery.
* In one of ''Literature/AesopsFables'', (specifically, [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Honest_Woodman The Honest Woodman]]) a workman dropped his axe into the river. The [[Myth/ClassicalMythology god Mercury]] found out what was wrong, and offered his aid. First Mercury pulled out a silver axe, and asked whether it was the one the workman lost. He told the god that no, it wasn't. Then Mercury pulled out a golden axe, and asked whether it was his. Again...no. Finally, Mercury pulls out the original axe. The man says yes, this is his. Impressed by his honesty, Mercury [[SweetAndSourGrapes gives him the golden and silver one as well]].

* In ''Literature/TheTraitorSonCycle'', after Red Knight, Morgon and Ariosto manage, alone, to take down [[spoiler:an undead dragon]], the creature's masters are left with a metaphysical equivalent of a JawDrop, which the trio exploits with gusto to take them down.

*** "[[Recap/StarTrekS2E22ByAnyOtherName By Any Other Name]]": Kirk and company are taken hostage by powerful aliens. They want to take the Enterprise on a 300-year trip home. The aliens have assumed human form, then they try human food, drink and [[WhatIsThisThingYouCallLove kissing]]. [[spoiler:Soon, the aliens and the ''Enterprise'' crew have made peace and they give back the ship.]]

** In ''Series/StarTrekPicard:'' Agnes Jurati succeeds in outplaying the Borg Queen in a mental duel, and is repaid with an ominous compliment.

** In the Literature/BookOfGenesis, God orders Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac. Abraham is already about to go through with it when an angel tells him to stop, because it was just a test of his obedience to God. Impressed by his faith, God blesses his descendants by giving them right to the Promised Land.
** God later asks King Solomon what he would most like, such as great power, long life, death to his enemies, etc., with the implication being that God would grant Solomon's request. Solomon asks for wisdom above all else. God was impressed, and blessed Solomon not only with wisdom, but with great power and riches as well.

* In Myth/ClassicalMythology, Orpheus traveled to the underworld to rescue his wife Eurydice. Cerberus, being Hades' guard dog, attacked Orpheus. He managed to charm the dog with a song. He then reaches Hades and his wife Persephone. The two were so wowed by one of his songs, Hades decided to let Orpheus take Eurydice back to the world of the living as long as he doesn't look back. He did. This is taken to [[ExaggeratedTrope an extreme]] in ''Literature/TheGeorgics'', where Hades itself, not just its inhabitants, are spell-bound by Orpheus' song.

** The story of Ork warboss Tuska The Daemon Killa. Tuska and his Boyz loved fighting Daemons. And knowing there was an endless supply of them in [[HyperspaceIsAScaryPlace the Warp]], Tuska gathered his Boyz and barreled headlong into the Eye Of Terror, turning the Imperium defense around it into Swiss cheese on his way through. Tuska's WAAAGH conquered several Daemon worlds in a glorious Orky festival of carnage. Until they arrived on one planet, where Tuska and his crew fell in battle to a Daemon known as The Blood Prince. On the verge of death, Tuska [[TakingYouWithMe took the Blood Prince with him]] by [[GroinAttack stabbing him in his Daemon nether bits with a Power Klaw]]. Tuska's sheer balls-to-the-wall slaughter of Daemon worlds and final act of violence nabbed the attention of [[WarGod Khorne, Chaos God of War]]. Who saw fit to resurrect Tuska and his crew, having them fight and die daily against his strongest generals. Yes, Tuska so wowed a blood loving god of death that he and his Boyz landed in an Ork WarriorHeaven.

** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'': Link is able to gain the respect of Faron, Eldin, and Lanayru, the three [[PhysicalGod dragon deities of the game]] and get them to teach him their parts of the Song of the Hero. Faron is the most notable example as she's quite a {{Jerkass God|s}} to Link at first and isn't convinced such a [[FantasticRacism lowly human]] would be TheChosenOne. It's to the extent that Link constantly reincarnates into her provenience in games were we see his hometown.

* ''VideoGame/HeroesOfTheStorm'' has [[VideoGame/{{Starcraft}} Alarak]], a sadistic, battle happy Protoss warlord and [[VideoGame/Diablo3 Malthael]], who is basically TheGrimReaper on steroids, impressed by ''Murky''. A revenge craving Murloc.

* ''Webcomic/{{Buttersafe}}'': [[http://buttersafe.com/2008/10/23/the-detour/ In this comic]], a man manages to get lost walking to his kitchen for a snack, bumbling into his way into the Twelfth Plane of Torment to the astonishment of an EldritchAbomination.
* In a story of ''Webcomic/OkashinaOkashi'' which is based off of Music/TenaciousD's song [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_lK4cX5xGiQ "Tribute"]], they tell the story of meeting a demon who demands that they play "the best song in the world" or else it will eat their souls. They spontaneously play what turns out to be the best song in the world.

** In a similar fashion to the JLU example below that came before it, in "Darkseid Descending", [[GodOfEvil Darkseid]] has his [[AlienInvasion army of Parademons invade Earth]]. When he finally arrives, he easily [[TheWorfBarrage repels the combined attack of other JL members]], forcing Batman to challenge him to a fist fight. While Batman's actual attacks work as [[PunchPunchPunchUhOh well as you'd expect]], he is able to dodge Darkseid's practically unavoidable Omega Beam. Darkseid is [[VillainRespect impressed]] that a mere human like [[BadassNormal Batman]] was able to do this.
** In "Death Race to Oblivion!", [[GalacticConqueror Mongul]] has an assortment of heroes and villains pitted in a car race, where the penalty for losing is the destruction of their hometown. At one point Green Arrow crashes his car, he leaps out of the wreckage and has his bow drawn in a matter of seconds. Mongul is impressed by Green Arrow's feat, but still teleports him into the loser cage for his trouble.
* ''WesternAnimation/{{Catscratch}}'': Gordon gains the [[SeaMonster Kraken's]] respect [[DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu after he defeats it to save his brothers.]] He later does again when he impresses the entire Kraken race by defeating the Three Headed Kraken.
* Creator/GenndyTartakovsky created ''[[WesternAnimation/DextersLaboratory Dial M For Monkey]]'', and scripted its third episode, "Simeon." Simeon started as a chimp, sent into space on a hopeless mission by [=NASA=], where he became exposed to cosmic radiation, and morphed into the godlike Simeon. Simeon is poised to return to Earth and eradicate humanity, until Monkey offers him a banana. This simple act of kindness convinces Simeon to abandon his hateful wrath and pursue cosmic oneness with the universe instead.

* ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeagueUnlimited'', Batman manages to evade Darkseid's Omega Beams, something no one else has ever accomplished. [[GodofEvil Darkseid]] is legitimately impressed, and prepares to see if Lex Luthor could do the same. [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere Luthor flees in terror]]. Darkseid commends his stategy, but probably isn't quite wowed that time.

** In "Fists of Justice", Mordecai and Rigby find themselves doing all of Skips chores when Skips redeems his Do-Your-Chores coupon, but in the last job, they are unable to get a harpsichord dislodged from the doorway and ask for Skips help, but they accidentally [[NiceJobBreakingItHero break his hands in the process]] and right before they find out why Skips redeemed his coupon: [[CosmicEntity The Guardians of Youth]] have tasked Skips with using the Fists of Justice to defeat [[GodOfEvil Klorgbane the Destroyer]] every 157 years, but [[WorfHadTheFlu Skips hands are too injured]] to use them and he easily gets thrashed. Before Klorgbane can kill him, Mordecai and Rigby step in and volunteer to use the Fists. The Guardians comply and after some [[HowDoIShotWeb initial difficulty]], they [[DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu defeat Klorgbane]]. Impressed and grateful, the Guardians later help them and Skips with moving the harpsichord.
* ''WesternAnimation/SpongebobSquarepants'': In an early episode, Spongebob comes face to face with the [[PhysicalGod all-mighty King Neptune]], who arrives after Spongebob pulls out the Golden Spatula. The [[OnlytheChosenMayWield one who draws it is destined to be Neptune's great chef]] but he refuses to believe Spongebob has the mettle for it so he challenges him to burger frying contest. In terms of quantity, Neptune beats Spongebob by a landslide with several thousand patties versus one from Spongebob. His patties prove to be utterly disgusting, however, while Spongebob's one patty proves to be so delicious that [[{{Squick}} Neptune eats it]] ''[[CrossingTheLineTwice twice]]'' and instantly makes Spongebob his new fry cook. Spongebob, not wanting to give up his old life, declines the offer and instead decides [[BoxingLessonsforSuperman to teach him how to cook for himself.]]

** In a straight-up homage to the ''Marvel Two-in-One'' Annual #7 example listed above, the episode "Rasslor" featured an intergalactic wrestling champion (voiced by then-future WWE Hall of Famer Wrestling/RandySavage) challenging Earth's heroes. Rasslor manages to effortlessly beat every one of them, but Monkey keeps getting back up and trying again. Realizing he can never break Monkey's spirit, Rasslor forfeits and spares the Earth.

* In The State of the Art, one of ''Literature/TheCulture'' novels, Special Circumstances agent Diziet Sma regards the civilization of 1970s Earth as primitive and barbaric, until she visits a French Holocaust memorial and is awestruck by its beauty and the artistic meaning behind it.

* ''Fanfic/FateStarryNight'': Seeing Ritsuka's defiance to his plans and outright refusal to follow him, Gilgamesh is so impressed that he gives him a chance to convince him that there is potential in modern humanity. Should Ritsuka succeed, Gilgamesh will abandon his plan to cull humanitor with the mud of the Holy Grail.

** During the Herb Arc. Ryoga momentarily gets killed by Lime. [[OutOfBodyExperience He enters the afterlife where he meeting his deceased grandparents]], who convince him to return. His spirit then returns to his body where he unleashes the most powerful {{Ki Manipulation}}s ever shown in the series which crushes Lime. Herb, who borderlines on being a PhysicalGod, watches from a distance and is utterly impressed.

** Anyone who fights [[BlueAndOrangeMorality Beerus]] and doesn't get utterly curbstomped will elicit this response from him, and even then he just feels like he got a fun workout.

%% Image selected per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1468512867044517200

[[quoteright:286:[[Webcomic/OkashinaOkashi https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/wowing_cthulhu.jpg]]]]
[[caption-width-right:286: [[Music/TenaciousD ROCK!]]]]

** Demon King Demise, also from ''Skyward Sword'', is impressed by Link and Groose's courage when they stand up to him. They are nothing like the cowardly mortals who cowered behind Hylia in the past.

** In ''Small Favor'':

* ''Film/{{Pokemon}}'':

* In the Literature/{{Spellsinger}} novel ''Day of the Dissonance'', Jon-Tom is challenged, on pain of death, to provide a suitable gift to a kangaroo demon. He plays [[Music/{{Prince}} Purple Rain]] for him, which impresses the demon even before the magical effect kicks in (causing both of them to get ''massively'' stoned).

* Creator/GenndyTartakovsky created ''[[{{WesternAnimation/DextersLaboratory}} Dial M For Monkey]]'', and scripted its third episode, "Simeon." Simeon started as a chimp, sent into space on a hopeless mission by [=NASA=], where he became exposed to cosmic radiation, and morphed into the godlike Simeon. Simeon is poised to return to Earth and eradicate humanity, until Monkey offers him a banana. This simple act of kindness convinces Simeon to abandon his hateful wrath and pursue cosmic oneness with the universe instead.

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Kung Fu Panda Legends Of Awesomeness}}'': In the episode "A Stitch in Time", Po's [[NiceJobBreakingItHero irresponsibleness allows Fenghuang]] to become a TimeMaster and [[KnightOfCerebus erase all his friends]] from existence. Fortunately he catches her before she can do the same to him, and their struggle eventually brings them to the beginning of time where the Tree of Time has born a new fruit. After a long struggle, Po makes a deal with Fenghuang to spare his friends in exchange for his own life, but before the [[OminousOwl evil owl]] is able to take him on his offer, the Tree of Time halts the fight, stating that he's impressed with Po's selflessness. He then [[KilledOffForReal banishes Fenghuang to oblivion]] and pushes the big, temporal ResetButton, returning everything back to normal.
* ''WesternAnimation/{{Regular Show}}''
** In the episode “Dead at Eight”, Mordecai and Rigby have to babysit [[TheGrimReaper Death’s]] son in order to save Muscle Man’s soul after Muscle Man has a fatal accident. Death’s son however is a superpowered ManChild and proves to be quite a handful for the two. Finally, in order to get him to go to bed, Thomas demands that they read him his favorite bedtime story which is about a monster that eats souls. However, once they finish, [[SealedEvilInACan the actual worm monster]] bursts out of the book and Thomas [[{{Jerkass}} wants to feed Muscle Man’s soul to it]]. Fortunately Rigby and Mordecai are able to thwart the beast, but an infuriated Thomas then refuses to go to bed to get the two in trouble, but then a chandelier falls on him, knocking him out. When Death and his wife return, they’re amazed and happy to see Thomas asleep. Death commends the two, stating that he was certain they would have died on the job and he spares Muscle Man’s soul.
** In "Fists of Justice", Mordecai and Rigby find themselves doing all of Skips chores when Skips redeems his Do-Your-Chores coupon, but in the last job, they are unable to get a harpsichord dislodged from the doorway and ask for Skips help, but they accidentally [[NiceJobBreakingItHero break his hands in the process]] and right before they find out why Skips redeemed his coupon: [[CosmicEntity The Guardians of Youth]] have tasked Skips with using the Fists of Justice to defeat [[GodOfEvil Klorgbane the Destroyer]] every 157 years, but [[WorfHadTheFlu Skips hands are too injured]] to use them and he easily gets thrashed. Before Klorgbane can kill him, Mordecai and Rigby step in and volunteer to use the Fists. The Guardians comply and after some [[HowDoIShotWeb initial difficulty]], they [[DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu defeat Klorgbane]]. Impressed and grateful, the Guardians later help them and Skips with moving the harpsichord.
* ''WesternAnimation/{{Spongebob Squarepants}}'': In an early episode, Spongebob comes face to face with the [[PhysicalGod all-mighty King Neptune]], who arrives after Spongebob pulls out the Golden Spatula. The [[OnlytheChosenMayWield one who draws it is destined to be Neptune's great chef]] but he refuses to believe Spongebob has the mettle for it so he challenges him to burger frying contest. In terms of quantity, Neptune beats Spongebob by a landslide with several thousand patties versus one from Spongebob. His patties prove to be utterly disgusting, however, while Spongebob's one patty proves to be so delicious that [[{{Squick}} Neptune eats it]] ''[[CrossingTheLineTwice twice]]'' and instantly makes Spongebob his new fry cook. Spongebob, not wanting to give up his old life, declines the offer and instead decides [[BoxingLessonsforSuperman to teach him how to cook for himself.]]
* ''WesternAnimation/SupermanBatmanApocalypse'' had [[DidYouJustScamCthulhu Batman threaten to use Darkseid's own superweapons]] to destroy Apokolips, unless [[StaringDownCthulhu Darkseid backs down]]. Reluctantly, Darkseid agrees, and [[VillainRespect admires his]] [[YourApprovalFillsMeWithShame refusal to surrender]] and his willingness to obliterate an entire planet to win.

** The ComicBook/SilverSurfer's OriginStory involves a civilian named Norrin Radd impressing Galactus, a PlanetEater, with his devotion to his home planet, Zenn-La. Galactus spares Radd's planet in exchange for him becoming Galactus's herald.

** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'': In Link's childhood, when Ganondorf demands that Link tell him where Impa and Zelda went, in response he took out the kokiri Sword to defend them. Ganondorf explicitly states that he likes Link's attitude. [[Ganondorf then hurls a ball of magic at Link, knocking Link down.]]

** Tien being able to hold Semi-perfect Cell at bay using the Neo-Tribeam was an extremely commendable feat, considering how far apart their strength levels are. Cell even remarks how he was stopped by Tien of all people.

*** He is also repeatedly taken aback by Goku's skill and power. Being shocked when he knocks back Frieza's Death Beams, hitting him with a Kaio-ken x20 Kamehameha, and seeing Goku generate a massive [[SphereOfDestruction Spirit Bomb]] which he narrowly survives. Of course, all this changes when Goku [[EleventhHourSuperpower turns Super Saiyan]], effectively stealing Frieza's Cthulu status.

** The English dub of the moment gives the impression that Truth is not just happy that Ed found the "right answer", but is ''elated'' that '''''someone''''' managed to figure out the real solution to Human Tramsmutation: it’s not about what you can get, but what you already have. For Ed, [[spoiler:having alchemy]] was nothing compared to living his life with his brother and his friends. He was willing to give it up 100%.

->''"You have my respect, Stark. When I'm done, half of humanity will still be alive; I hope they will remember you."''

Alternatively, this pure deity may have felt that HumansAreFlawed or are simply [[FantasticRacism beneath them]], and this character was able to prove to the deity that HumansAreGood or HumansAreSpecial. A lesser character could have also called out some JerkassGods and those gods end up becoming impressed at how a puny being had the guts to make them rethink their behavior.