History WomenAreWiser / WesternAnimation

* ''WesternAnimation/ZakStorm'': Being the most rational minded of the crew, first mate Cece, who is [[TheSmurfettePrinciple also the only girl in the crew,]] often acts as the voice of reason.*** * 97.8% of significant historical figures are men, men have higher iq variance than women and thus accomplish more than them. Men are also more creative than women and thats why most famous comedians, artists, and musicians are men. Women belong in the kitchen and are actually happier being subservient to men, this is for biological reasons, not 'cultural' ones.*** * Trans women are even wiser, probably because theyre really men

* ''WesternAnimation/ZakStorm'': Being the most rational minded of the crew, first mate Cece, who is [[TheSmurfettePrinciple also the only girl in the crew,]] often acts as the voice of reason.** 97.8% of significant historical figures are men, men have higher iq variance than women and thus accomplish more than them. Men are also more creative than women and thats why most famous comedians, artists, and musicians are men. Women belong in the kitchen and are actually happier being subservient to men, this is for biological reasons, not 'cultural' ones.** Trans women are even wiser, probably because theyre really men

* ''WesternAnimation/ZakStorm'': Being the most rational minded of the crew, first mate Cece, who is [[TheSmurfettePrinciple also the only girl in the crew,]] often acts as the voice of reason.* 97.8% of significant historical figures are men, men have higher iq variance than women and thus accomplish more than them. Men are also more creative than women and thats why most famous comedians, artists, and musicians are men. Women belong in the kitchen and are actually happier being subservient to men, this is for biological reasons, not 'cultural' ones.*

* ''WesternAnimation/ZakStorm'': Being the most rational minded of the crew, first mate Cece, who is [[TheSmurfettePrinciple also the only girl in the crew,]] often acts as the voice of reason.

** Marge and Homer Simpson take [[PlayedForLaughs to the point of parody]]. Homer is the archetypical dimwitted sitcom husband who nearly always needs to learn [[AnAesop a moral lesson]] in any given episode, which he is almost certain to [[AesopAmnesia forget]] by the next. Marge, on the other hand, is ''so'' down-to-earth that she is incredibly boring.

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Daria}}'' fans have noted that the female characters are almost always more dominant (and developed) than the males. PlayedWith, however, because being well-developed also often means they have more noticeable flaws. (Jake, for example, is a [[TheDitz ditzy]] BumblingDad, but Helen is a {{Workaholic}} who sometimes seems less sympathetic.) [[TheSnarkKnight Daria's]] relationship with [[TallDarkAndSnarky Tom]] can also be seen as an {{Inversion}}, though some fans think it went too far and made him seem like a [[RelationshipSue Relationship Stu]].

* Kanga of Disney's ''[[WesternAnimation/TheManyAdventuresOfWinnieThePooh Winnie the Pooh]]'' adaptations. While even the sanest males such as Rabbit and Eeyore have frequent moments of naivete and brainlessness, Kanga usually holds the SanityBall and acts as a TeamMom to the other animals outside of unindividual acts of bumbling by the entire cast (a possible reason she is OutOfFocus due to most stories focusing on misunderstandings and blundering). The original novels' Kanga was also slightly saner, but a bit more idiot-prone.

* Played straight in ''WesternAnimation/TheSpectacularSpiderMan''. Of the series' ThreeAmigos, it is Gwen Stacy who is the most observant and concerned for Harry.

** Played in its fullest throttle in "Hurricane". While Francine and Hayley are full-blown {{Action Survivor}}s, all of the male Smiths act as TheMillstone and make things worse. Complete with failed {{Chekhovs Gun}}s, the Aesop of the episode even more or less being that [[SpaceWhaleAesop Stan is completely incompetent compared to Francine]].

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheAmazingWorldOfGumball'', the male and female characters outside of the Gumball home each have their personality quirks based on what kind of creature they are, but within the household Gumball's mother and sister are two of the smartest characters in the show and their father by far the dumbest and laziest guy in town who once even had a competition to see who's the laziest with the man who's now the town's hardest worker but who used to go by the name of "Lazy Larry". His father's brain literally barely functions at all as a result of bad, overprotective parenting from his mother, and his foolishness has led to complete destruction of Elmore as well as financial ruin for the Wattersons many times, but the family still loves him nevertheless. His sister is even found to have a genius IQ. Gumball and Darwin are both equally stupid, but Darwin seems to have more common sense when it comes to Gumball's hair-brained schemes.

* Both Kim and Shego from ''WesternAnimation/KimPossible'' are more sensible and capable than their hilariously incompetent male partners, Ron and Dr. Drakken. Although Ron is only incompetent when he's a ''good guy''. [[MirrorMoralityMachine As a bad guy]] he inexplicably displays [[SuperpoweredEvilSide frightening levels of competence and brilliance]] that can even bring Shego to heel.

* Pick a princess from ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'', any princess at all, and compare her to [[IdleRich Prince]] [[UpperClassTwit Blueblood]]. On that note, compare the villains like Nightmare Moon and Queen Chrysalis [[note]]FreudianExcuse for the former, and out for the survival of her species for the latter[[/note]] to Discord, who simply did things ForTheEvulz[[note]]He probably considered ponies as far beneath him as playthings, though.[[/note]], and King Sombra, who wanted to enslave the ponies. Due to this being a series primarily made for girls, most of the wise and competent roles are filled by females who get the lion's share of CharacterDevelopment, while males are often limited to supporting characters or antagonists tend to be either evil or immature.

* The parents in ''WesternAnimation/{{Rugrats}}'' show evidence of this. With Stu and Didi, Didi is the rational one and the disciplinarian, and of Betty and Howard, Betty is the stronger one and more decisive. This also seems to be the case with Randy and Lucy. However, it's subverted with Chaz and Kira who are both competent parents, although Chaz does slip into BumblingDad territory. Completely averted with Drew and Charlotte, who are both awful parents, as Angelica demonstrates.

* Baloo and Rebecca play a similar (albeit more platonic) example in ''WesternAnimation/TaleSpin''. While Rebecca is slightly less impulsive and obnoxious than Baloo, she shares his stubbornness and [[SmallNameBigEgo ego]] (and is also a borderline ControlFreak). WordOfGod suggests they were intended to foil each other in different aspects. Baloo was BookDumb and slovenly, but also streetwise and resourceful due to his adventuring. Rebecca was a logical businesswoman and well educated, but also somewhat naive and inept to the outside world. Generally if depending on the scenario, either could play the IdiotBall, with the other playing the CloserToEarth Straight Man.

* Averted in ''WesternAnimation/BobsBurgers'' with Bob and Linda. Both of them get carried away from time to time, but the frequency and degree differs. Bob plays the StraightMan more often than not, but when it's his turn to be irrational, he does it big. In contrast, Linda's flights of fancy are more frequent, but they tend to be pretty benign more often than not. Fortunately, when push comes to shove, they've got each other's backs.
* "Wiser" is always relative in the DysfunctionJunction of ''WesternAnimation/BoJackHorseman'', but of its five main characters, the women tend to be more sensible and are often tasked with wrangling whichever characters are in their orbit. Compare the ambitious, organized, and prone-to-pep-talking agent/manager Princess Carolyn and the nerdy and socially aware writer Diane to the self-destructive and messy [=BoJack=], the lazy slacker Todd, and the blissfully oblivious Mr. Peanutbutter.
* Inverted in ''{{WesternAnimation/Chowder}}'' with Truffles, who is short-tempered, obnoxious to everyone and, especially, loud, while her husband, Mung Daal, is calmer and more level-headed.
* Muriel in ''WesternAnimation/CourageTheCowardlyDog'' plays with this trope. While she's definitely much wiser than her {{Jerkass}} husband Eustace, given how Eustace often [[TooDumbToLive ends up on the receiving end of great danger due to his stupidity and stubbornness]], Muriel's intelligence often varies depending on the events she goes through. In some episodes, she is very aware of the danger she and the other two main characters come across. In others, she usually [[HorribleJudgeOfCharacter trusts some of the villains despite how clearly ominous they appear]].
* Played straight and subverted with Maddie from ''WesternAnimation/DannyPhantom''. While she definitely plays a better parental figure than Jack, she will be just as obsessed and out-of-focus as her husband if a ghost catches her attention. With a series about ghosts, this happens quite frequently.

* Elise in ''WesternAnimation/DanVs'', while having her NotSoAboveItAll moments, is usually much more rational and level-headed than both her husband and his psychopathic friend. [[{{Flanderization}} This gets exaggerated big time in the second season]], [[SpotlightStealingSquad especially when most of the episodes in the second season have Elise stealing the spotlight from the main character]], and the ones in which she isn't the focus on, she often saves Dan and Chris through DeusExMachina.

* Completely averted in ''WesternAnimation/DaveTheBarbarian'' with its female leads. While the titular Dave is a stereotypical DumbMuscle barbarian man, his sisters Candy and Fang are respectively a shallow ValleyGirl who cares more about going shopping than doing her royal duties and a violent tomboy whose main interest is basically smashing things up. There is also the (female) magic sword Lula, who is rude and abrasive to everyone. In fact, the voice of reason is, usually, their IneptMage uncle Oswidge.

* ''WesternAnimation/GoofTroop'' has a CompetenceZone that drastically favors 11-year-olds... when it comes to the guys. Peg, the only adult woman in the cast, is also the [[OnlySaneMan Only Sane Woman]] a lot of the time, and actually has ''more'' sense than Pete (which of her and PJ has more primarily depended on who is in focus). Completely averted with the Petes' kids, though, with PJ being the OnlySaneMan whenever Peg isn't and Pistol being totally hyperactive--it should be noted, however, that PJ is both in the CompetenceZone and InTouchWithHisFeminineSide, while Pistol is extremely young.

%%* Similarly, George and Jane of ''WesternAnimation/TheJetsons''. ("JANE, STOP THIS CRAZY THING!")





* ''WesternAnimation/JimmyNeutron'': Though Jimmy is smarter than both of them, Hugh is definitely the stupid one in the family.

* Played both ways on ''WesternAnimation/PhineasAndFerb:'' Linda is generally more grounded than Lawrence, and Doofenshmirtz's craziness is contrasted by both his ex-wife and daughter's sanity. However, ''Candace'' is absolutely neurotic, making her far less down-to-earth than either of her brothers or her love interest Jeremy. These cases are murky, though; Candace (and Lawrence to a lesser extent) ''seem'' kookier, but then, they're the ones who know what's ''really'' going on, so...
** In fact, the few times that Linda catches a glimpse of ''just'' how strange her life really is, she becomes almost as neurotic as Candace.

* Kanga of Disney's ''[[WesternAnimation/TheManyAdventuresOfWinnieThePooh Winnie the Pooh]]'' adaptations. While even the sanest males such as Rabbit and Eeyore have frequent moments of naivete and brainlessness, Kanga usually holds the SanityBall and acts as a TeamMom to the other animals outside of unindividual acts of bumbling by the entire cast (a possible reason she is OutOfFocus due to most stories focusing on misunderstandings and blundering). The original novels' Kanga was also slightly saner, but a bit more idiot-prone.
* The parents in ''WesternAnimation/{{Rugrats}}'' show evidence of this. With Stu and Didi, Didi is the rational one and the disciplinarian, and of Betty and Howard, Betty is the stronger one and more decisive. This also seems to be the case with Randy and Lucy. However, it's subverted with Chaz and Kira who are both competent parents, although Chaz does slip into BumblingDad territory. Completely averted with Drew and Charlotte, who are both awful parents, as Angelica demonstrates.
** Played with for Stu and Didi; Stu is more eccentric and childish, but far more laid back than neurotic, overly cautious Didi. Howard is similarly a NervousWreck, but less abrasive than Betty.
* ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'' plays this straight with the Marsh family (Sharon is often exasperated by the idiotic things Randy does), inverts it with the Broflovski family (Gerald is relatively sane, while Sheila is a nutjob) and averts it with the [=McCormick=] family (Stuart and Carol spend too much of their time fighting for one to clearly be depicted as being any smarter than the other).
** Even the Broflovskis zigzag with it since Gerald is also an occasionally immoral lawyer. Similarly, Sharon is only sane compared to Randy, and pretty much ''[[AdultsAreUseless all adults]]'', male or female, revert to moronic panic whenever something plagues the town ([[SeriousBusiness be it warranted or not]]). Stan and Wendy also flip flop with this, both are prone to acts of childishness and self-righteousness as they alternate acting as the OnlySaneMan.
** Generally speaking, as collectives, the girls are more productive, more resilient, better organized, and stronger-willed than the boys, and the men cause more trouble than the women.
** This is deconstructed in Season 23's "Turd Burglars", where the A-plot of the episode is titled "One for the Ladies". In this episode, the women of South Park are given ADayInTheLimelight, and it's clearly shown that the women are just as disgusting, horrible, backstabbing, and idiotic as the men are. To top it all off, all the trouble the women cause is shown to be much more dangerous than all the troubles the men have caused, as the women end up getting infected with C-Diff and contaminate more than half of South Park to the point where they would've died if it weren't for the boys finding a cure for the outbreak their mothers caused.

* ''WesternAnimation/SonicTheHedgehogSatAM'': While Sally had palpable flaws such as overcautiousness and a haughty temper, they came at the expense of her competence a lot less often than Sonic's, and a lot of the time, Sally had to keep Sonic in check when his overconfidence or reckless attitude [[IdiotBall lands him in trouble]]. Bunnie and Dulcy were somewhat ditzier, but still made far less detrimental mistakes than him or [[StrawLoser Antoine]].
* ''WesternAnimation/SonicBoom'', on the other hand, is willing to play with gender dynamics for laughs on a case-by-case basis. The episode "Into the Wilderness" does show Amy and Sticks being wiser than Sonic and Knuckles in regards to wilderness survival, but when you consider that [[WildChild Sticks]] is the group's expert on the subject and [[TeamMom Amy]] was more willing to learn than [[AwesomeEgo Sonic]], [[JustifiedTrope it makes complete sense]]. Combined with [[AxCrazy Sticks]] and [[ControlFreak Amy's]] foibles in many other situations, the roles are reversed just as often.
* Played straight in ''WesternAnimation/TheSpectacularSpiderMan''. Of the series' ThreeAmigos, it is Gwen Stacy who is the most observant and concerned for Harry.

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Spliced}}'' plays this completely straight, both with Patricia (in relation to Peri, Joe, and Entree) and Octocat (in relation to Smarty Smarts).


* ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitans'' has Jinx, both the only girl in the H.I.V.E. Five and the only one who strives to be anything more than a common street villain the Titans beat on a weekly basis (more specifically, to join the Brotherhood of Evil). [[spoiler:She's also the only one to take a HeelFaceTurn of the [[HighHeelFaceTurn High Heel]] variety.]]
* {{Subverted}} and {{deconstructed}} by Beth and Jerry in ''WesternAnimation/RickAndMorty''. Jerry is constantly shown as being idiotic, self-defeating, and inadequate, and he allows Beth to put him down because she tolerates his many failings. That certainly looks like this dynamic at first, but it slowly becomes apparent that Beth tolerates their codependent relationship because she is in many ways just as broken as Jerry, getting a perverse schadenfreude-laden pleasure out of seeing him fail so that she can continue feeling superior and knowing that, pathetic as he is, he'll never leave her the way her father did no matter how badly she treats him. Ultimately, Beth is almost certainly more intelligent and competent than Jerry, but ''wiser''? Nuh-uh.
* In the American ''WesternAnimation/{{The Smurfs|1981}}'' series, the producers tried to compensate for Smurfette being [[TheSmurfettePrinciple the only female Smurf]] by making her smarter than most of the population to the point where she is almost the Second in Command of the village.







* ''WesternAnimation/ReadyJetGo'' ''loves'' this trope. The girls in the show, such as Sydney, Mindy, Celery, and Dr. Rafferty, are much more intelligent, competent, and level-headed compared to their male counterparts Jet, Sean, Carrot, and Dr. Bergs, all of which end up as the butt of jokes most of the time.



* On ''WesternAnimation/RockosModernLife'', Bev Bighead is far less hostile than Ed Bighead. While the latter is shown in one episode to have arranged a team of scientists devoted to killing Rocko and his friends, Bev has no animosity towards him.

* Both Kim and Shego from ''WesternAnimation/KimPossible'' are more sensible and capable than their hilariously incompetent male partners, Ron and Dr. Drakken. Although Ron is only incompetent when he's a ''good guy''. [[MirrorMoralityMachine As a bad guy]] he inexplicably displays [[SuperpoweredEvilSide frightening levels of competence and brilliance]] that can even bring Shego to heel.
* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'':
** Marge and Homer Simpson take [[PlayedForLaughs to the point of parody]]. Homer is the archetypical dimwitted sitcom husband who nearly always needs to learn [[AnAesop a moral lesson]] in any given episode, which he is almost certain to [[AesopAmnesia forget]] by the next. Marge, on the other hand, is ''so'' down-to-earth that she is incredibly boring.
** Bart and Lisa Simpson do this too, albeit to a much lesser extent than their parents -- Lisa is certainly much more intelligent than Bart, but Bart is the more socially adept of the two and isn't nearly as dumb as his father.
** Taken to its logical extreme in the episode "Lisa The Simpson," where Lisa discovers to her horror that ''all'' Simpsons start out as intelligent as her, but suffer from a genetic condition that causes them to gradually get dumber as they age until they end up as dumb as Homer. At the end of the episode, she is relieved to find out that only the men have this condition, while the Simpson women all keep their intelligence into adulthood and are all very successful with high-status jobs.
* Lois and Peter Griffin in ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy''. This is somewhat subverted in that Lois is far from perfect herself, often giving in to temptations such as theft and lust. While she always outshines Peter, she is often outshone by their intellectual and compassionate dog, Brian. Of course, even Brian has a number of character flaws like alcoholism and angry outbursts. For the first season at least, though, it was played completely straight. Peter is always the jerk or the idiot, and if Lois ever loses her patience, it's only due to having been driven to the point where even Mother Theresa would lose it. She and Meg only develop real comic character flaws in later seasons (though given its evolution into more [[SadistShow sadistic humor]] they [[BitchInSheepsClothing take said flaws to extremes]]).
* Inverted in ''WesternAnimation/KingOfTheHill''. Hank is down-to-earth and grounded (even to the point of being a wet blanket). Peggy is crazy and out there. She perceives the situation... [[SmallNameBigEgo differently]]. Luanne is a DumbBlonde.
%%* ''WesternAnimation/TheFlintstones'': Fred and Wilma and to a lesser degree Barney and Betty.
%%* Similarly, George and Jane of ''WesternAnimation/TheJetsons''. ("JANE, STOP THIS CRAZY THING!")
* Cosmo and Wanda in ''WesternAnimation/TheFairlyOddParents''. While Wanda usually serves as an OnlySaneMan who advises Timmy against stupid wishes, Cosmo tends to openly encourage them.
** To a lesser extent, Timmy's parents. Sure, they're both nuts, but his dad's considerably ''more'' nuts.
** Inverted with Anti-Cosmo and Anti-Wanda. Anti-Cosmo is an EvilGenius, while Anti-Wanda is a dim-witted redneck who eats with her feet.
* Muriel in ''WesternAnimation/CourageTheCowardlyDog'' plays with this trope. While she's definitely much wiser than her {{Jerkass}} husband Eustace, given how Eustace often [[TooDumbToLive ends up on the receiving end of great danger due to his stupidity and stubbornness]], Muriel's intelligence often varies depending on the events she goes through. In some episodes, she is very aware of the danger she and the other two main characters come across. In others, she usually [[HorribleJudgeOfCharacter trusts some of the villains despite how clearly ominous they appear]].
* Elise in ''WesternAnimation/DanVs'', while having her NotSoAboveItAll moments, is usually much more rational and level-headed than both her husband and his psychopathic friend. [[{{Flanderization}} This gets exaggerated big time in the second season]], [[SpotlightStealingSquad especially when most of the episodes in the second season have Elise stealing the spotlight from the main character]], and the ones in which she isn't the focus on, she often saves Dan and Chris through DeusExMachina.
* ''WesternAnimation/DrawnTogether'' is an odd case, both Toot and Clara are often portrayed as just as bad, if not worse than the males in the house. Foxxy Love, however (although she's certainly no saint) has been described as the only one "not totally retarded" and is generally the most caring, responsible, and motivated person on the show. She's also black, so it's probably her being a FlawlessToken.
* Played straight and subverted with Maddie from ''WesternAnimation/DannyPhantom''. While she definitely plays a better parental figure than Jack, she will be just as obsessed and out-of-focus as her husband if a ghost catches her attention. With a series about ghosts, this happens quite frequently.
** Even in that case, she's much more competent and rational in her ghost hunting and tends to avoid seeing ghosts where there are none and overreacting like Jack does.
** Although it seems that Jack is something of a GeniusDitz who actually may be smarter than Maddie in some respects. Most of their equipment, although maintained by Maddie, is usually invented by Jack.
* ''WesternAnimation/JimmyNeutron'': Though Jimmy is smarter than both of them, Hugh is definitely the stupid one in the family.

* Baloo and Rebecca play a similar (albeit more platonic) example in ''WesternAnimation/TaleSpin''. While Rebecca is slightly less impulsive and obnoxious than Baloo, she shares his stubbornness and [[SmallNameBigEgo ego]] (and is also a borderline ControlFreak). WordOfGod suggests they were intended to foil each other in different aspects. Baloo was BookDumb and slovenly, but also streetwise and resourceful due to his adventuring. Rebecca was a logical businesswoman and well educated, but also somewhat naive and inept to the outside world. Generally if depending on the scenario, either could play the IdiotBall, with the other playing the CloserToEarth Straight Man.
* ''WesternAnimation/TheTick'': There's American Maid, a completely competent confident superheroine in a cast that includes mostly insane and retarded heroes alongside posturing ineffectual heroes and meek neurotic sidekicks. They also have an exchange with a female superhero team in Belgium, this team is shown to be more powerful and more competent than Arthur and the Tick.
* Played both ways on ''WesternAnimation/PhineasAndFerb:'' Linda is generally more grounded than Lawrence, and Doofenshmirtz's craziness is contrasted by both his ex-wife and daughter's sanity. However, ''Candace'' is absolutely neurotic, making her far less down-to-earth than either of her brothers or her love interest Jeremy. These cases are murky, though; Candace (and Lawrence to a lesser extent) ''seem'' kookier, but then, they're the ones who know what's ''really'' going on, so...
** In fact, the few times that Linda catches a glimpse of ''just'' how strange her life really is, she becomes almost as neurotic as Candace.
* Noodle from {{Music/Gorillaz}} has been the most mentally stable and well-adjusted member of the group so far. Strangely, she remained so even after she regained her memory in between Phases 1 and 2, learning that she was trained as a SuperSoldier for the Japanese government and the only alive kid left from the project.
* Inverted in ''WesternAnimation/TinyToonAdventures'', where Buster was far less flighty and impulsive than Babs.

* Kanga of Disney's ''[[WesternAnimation/TheManyAdventuresOfWinnieThePooh Winnie the Pooh]]'' adaptations. While even the sanest males such as Rabbit and Eeyore have frequent moments of naivete and brainlessness, Kanga usually holds the SanityBall and acts as a TeamMom to the other animals outside of unindividual acts of bumbling by the entire cast (a possible reason she is OutOfFocus due to most stories focusing on misunderstandings and blundering). The original novels' Kanga was also slightly saner, but a bit more idiot-prone.
* The parents in ''WesternAnimation/{{Rugrats}}'' show evidence of this. With Stu and Didi, Didi is the rational one and the disciplinarian, and of Betty and Howard, Betty is the stronger one and more decisive. This also seems to be the case with Randy and Lucy. However, it's subverted with Chaz and Kira who are both competent parents, although Chaz does slip into BumblingDad territory. Completely averted with Drew and Charlotte, who are both awful parents, as Angelica demonstrates.
** Played with for Stu and Didi; Stu is more eccentric and childish, but far more laid back than neurotic, overly cautious Didi. Howard is similarly a NervousWreck, but less abrasive than Betty.
* ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'' plays this straight with the Marsh family (Sharon is often exasperated by the idiotic things Randy does), inverts it with the Broflovski family (Gerald is relatively sane, while Sheila is a nutjob) and averts it with the [=McCormick=] family (Stuart and Carol spend too much of their time fighting for one to clearly be depicted as being any smarter than the other).
** Even the Broflovskis zigzag with it since Gerald is also an occasionally immoral lawyer. Similarly, Sharon is only sane compared to Randy, and pretty much ''[[AdultsAreUseless all adults]]'', male or female, revert to moronic panic whenever something plagues the town ([[SeriousBusiness be it warranted or not]]). Stan and Wendy also flip flop with this, both are prone to acts of childishness and self-righteousness as they alternate acting as the OnlySaneMan.
** Generally speaking, as collectives, the girls are more productive, more resilient, better organized, and stronger-willed than the boys, and the men cause more trouble than the women.
** This is deconstructed in Season 23's "Turd Burglars", where the A-plot of the episode is titled "One for the Ladies". In this episode, the women of South Park are given ADayInTheLimelight, and it's clearly shown that the women are just as disgusting, horrible, backstabbing, and idiotic as the men are. To top it all off, all the trouble the women cause is shown to be much more dangerous than all the troubles the men have caused, as the women end up getting infected with C-Diff and contaminate more than half of South Park to the point where they would've died if it weren't for the boys finding a cure for the outbreak their mothers caused.
* ''WesternAnimation/{{Daria}}'' fans have noted that the female characters are almost always more dominant (and developed) than the males. PlayedWith, however, because being well-developed also often means they have more noticeable flaws. (Jake, for example, is a [[TheDitz ditzy]] BumblingDad, but Helen is a {{Workaholic}} who sometimes seems less sympathetic.) [[TheSnarkKnight Daria's]] relationship with [[TallDarkAndSnarky Tom]] can also be seen as an {{Inversion}}, though some fans think it went too far and made him seem like a [[RelationshipSue Relationship Stu]].
* ''WesternAnimation/SonicTheHedgehogSatAM'': While Sally had palpable flaws such as overcautiousness and a haughty temper, they came at the expense of her competence a lot less often than Sonic's, and a lot of the time, Sally had to keep Sonic in check when his overconfidence or reckless attitude [[IdiotBall lands him in trouble]]. Bunnie and Dulcy were somewhat ditzier, but still made far less detrimental mistakes than him or [[StrawLoser Antoine]].
* ''WesternAnimation/SonicBoom'', on the other hand, is willing to play with gender dynamics for laughs on a case-by-case basis. The episode "Into the Wilderness" does show Amy and Sticks being wiser than Sonic and Knuckles in regards to wilderness survival, but when you consider that [[WildChild Sticks]] is the group's expert on the subject and [[TeamMom Amy]] was more willing to learn than [[AwesomeEgo Sonic]], [[JustifiedTrope it makes complete sense]]. Combined with [[AxCrazy Sticks]] and [[ControlFreak Amy's]] foibles in many other situations, the roles are reversed just as often.
* Played straight in ''WesternAnimation/TheSpectacularSpiderMan''. Of the series' ThreeAmigos, it is Gwen Stacy who is the most observant and concerned for Harry.
* ''WesternAnimation/GoofTroop'' has a CompetenceZone that drastically favors 11-year-olds... when it comes to the guys. Peg, the only adult woman in the cast, is also the [[OnlySaneMan Only Sane Woman]] a lot of the time, and actually has ''more'' sense than Pete (which of her and PJ has more primarily depended on who is in focus). Completely averted with the Petes' kids, though, with PJ being the OnlySaneMan whenever Peg isn't and Pistol being totally hyperactive--it should be noted, however, that PJ is both in the CompetenceZone and InTouchWithHisFeminineSide, while Pistol is extremely young.
* ''WesternAnimation/{{Spliced}}'' plays this completely straight, both with Patricia (in relation to Peri, Joe, and Entree) and Octocat (in relation to Smarty Smarts).
* With the four members of WesternAnimation/{{Grojband}}, Laney is the sole girl of the band, as well as the most rational, mature, and sensible member of the group. She's usually the one who has to pull the others back down to earth, point out problems in their {{Zany Scheme}}s, or snark at her bandmates goofing around.

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheAmazingWorldOfGumball'', the male and female characters outside of the Gumball home each have their personality quirks based on what kind of creature they are, but within the household Gumball's mother and sister are two of the smartest characters in the show and their father by far the dumbest and laziest guy in town who once even had a competition to see who's the laziest with the man who's now the town's hardest worker but who used to go by the name of "Lazy Larry". His father's brain literally barely functions at all as a result of bad, overprotective parenting from his mother, and his foolishness has led to complete destruction of Elmore as well as financial ruin for the Wattersons many times, but the family still loves him nevertheless. His sister is even found to have a genius IQ. Gumball and Darwin are both equally stupid, but Darwin seems to have more common sense when it comes to Gumball's hair-brained schemes.
* Completely averted in ''WesternAnimation/DaveTheBarbarian'' with its female leads. While the titular Dave is a stereotypical DumbMuscle barbarian man, his sisters Candy and Fang are respectively a shallow ValleyGirl who cares more about going shopping than doing her royal duties and a violent tomboy whose main interest is basically smashing things up. There is also the (female) magic sword Lula, who is rude and abrasive to everyone. In fact, the voice of reason is, usually, their IneptMage uncle Oswidge.
* ''WesternAnimation/TheGrimAdventuresOfBillyAndMandy'':
** Another [[AvertedTrope aversion]]. Mandy is way smarter than Billy (not that that's a very high bar, anyway) but is also amoral, mean, and manipulative. In fact, arguably the closest the show has to character who's both sensible and morally adjusted is [[TheGrimReaper Grim]].
** Inverted initially with Billy's parents Harold and Gladys. Aside from being comically oblivious to the supernatural goings-on around him, Harold started out as a rational and level-headed man, while his wife Gladys has always had a pronounced psychotic side. The only reason she could be considered "wiser" than Harold is because, unlike him, she was fully aware that Grim was a [[DemBones living skeleton]]. Even after Harold [[TookALevelInDumbass lost a good deal of his intelligence]], Gladys [[{{flanderization}} became even crazier]], so she still couldn't be called "wiser".
* Inverted in ''{{WesternAnimation/Chowder}}'' with Truffles, who is short-tempered, obnoxious to everyone and, especially, loud, while her husband, Mung Daal, is calmer and more level-headed.
* Averted in ''WesternAnimation/BobsBurgers'' with Bob and Linda. Both of them get carried away from time to time, but the frequency and degree differs. Bob plays the StraightMan more often than not, but when it's his turn to be irrational, he does it big. In contrast, Linda's flights of fancy are more frequent, but they tend to be pretty benign more often than not. Fortunately, when push comes to shove, they've got each other's backs.
* Averted on ''WesternAnimation/MoralOrel''. Bloberta Puppington's abuse is more subtle than her husband's, but, in her own way, she's just as horrible a parent, Christian, and human being in general as Clay.
* Played with on ''WesternAnimation/JimmyTwoShoes''. Heloise, the token girl, is far and away the smartest character on the show and is the one who really keeps Miseryville running in the face of the incompetence of her male coworkers. However, she's also a deranged, sadistic EnfantTerrible who mainly uses her skills to make the rest of the population miserable ForTheEvulz, while Jimmy is the show's moral centre.

* On ''WesternAnimation/MackAndMoxy'', the female raccoon Moxy is portrayed as being more competent than Mack, who suffers from a [[DownplayedTrope downplayed]] MooseAreIdiots characterization.
* A possible species-wide example from ''WesternAnimation/TheLifeAndTimesOfJuniperLee'' in the case of the BigfootSasquatchAndYeti that the main characters meet; the males are barely functioning idiots with short-term memory problems (their chief forgets he's the chief several times in a single conversation). The only Sasquatch with any common sense and useful skills is Lila, the only confirmed female we see [[CompetenceZone and roughly June's age to boot]]. She joins June at the end of the episode to try out the "normal kid" side of things, including attending the main characters' elementary school.
* ''WesternAnimation/DuckTales2017'':
** Zan Owlson is the only female CEO seen in the series, and she manages to be a lot more moral and competent than most of the male [=CEOs=] (which is especially noticeable with [[EvilIsPetty Glomgold]], who she ends up interacting with the most). She even manages to come off as this to Scrooge, to an extent; both are highly competent, but unlike Scrooge, she's far less likely to give in to a petty grudge.
** Of all the major members of the RoguesGallery, Ma Beagle is both one of the only females (there's also Magica and Goldie, but they have their own issues) ''and'' quite possibly the [[OnlySaneMan sanest]] of them all. All of her children are male and dumber than she is.
* On ''WesternAnimation/RockosModernLife'', Bev Bighead is far less hostile than Ed Bighead. While the latter is shown in one episode to have arranged a team of scientists devoted to killing Rocko and his friends, Bev has no animosity towards him.
* "Wiser" is always relative in the DysfunctionJunction of ''WesternAnimation/BoJackHorseman'', but of its five main characters, the women tend to be more sensible and are often tasked with wrangling whichever characters are in their orbit. Compare the ambitious, organized, and prone-to-pep-talking agent/manager Princess Carolyn and the nerdy and socially aware writer Diane to the self-destructive and messy [=BoJack=], the lazy slacker Todd, and the blissfully oblivious Mr. Peanutbutter.

* ''WesternAnimation/DrawnTogether'' is an odd case, both Toot and Clara are often portrayed as just as bad, if not worse than the males in the house. Foxxy Love, however (although she's certainly no saint) has been described as the only one "not totally retarded" and is generally the most caring, responsible, and motivated person on the show. She's also black, so it's probably another form of PositiveDiscrimination.

* Both Kim and Shego from ''WesternAnimation/KimPossible'' are more sensible and capable than their hilariously incompetent male partners, Ron and Dr. Drakken.

* In the American ''WesternAnimation/TheSmurfs'' series, the producers tried to compensate for Smurfette being [[TheSmurfettePrinciple the only female Smurf]] by making her smarter than most of the population to the point where she is almost the Second in Command of the village.

** Marge and Homer Simpson take this UpToEleven [[PlayedForLaughs to the point of parody]]. Homer is the archetypical dimwitted sitcom husband who nearly always needs to learn [[AnAesop a moral lesson]] in any given episode, which he is almost certain to [[AesopAmnesia forget]] by the next. Marge, on the other hand, is ''so'' down-to-earth that she is incredibly boring.