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6AdaptationalBadass in AnimatedFilms.
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8* ''WesternAnimation/{{Aladdin}}'' gives basically everyone this treatment. Aladdin goes from being a lazy kid who's ''maybe'' a little clever to a GuileHero with LeParkour abilities to rival [[VideoGame/AssassinsCreedI Altair]] and in the FinalBattle fights a ScaledUp Jafar armed only with a scimitar. The Princess goes from being a beautiful, but otherwise flat, LoveInterest to a RebelliousPrincess who impresses Aladdin by being smart and fun, as well as pretty. Then there's Jafar himself, who is a CompositeCharacter of an evil sorcerer and an ObstructiveBureaucrat vizier who ''wasn't'' the BigBad. He now ''is'' the BigBad who uses every bit of both magical and political power he has. (The Genie is an exception. He [[AdaptationalHeroism is a kinder, more individualized character]] who is ''not'' more powerful then his story counterpart; the Genie from the story could have easily done the same things ''and'' never mentioned the three rules the one in the movie did.)
9* ''WesternAnimation/TheAngryBirdsMovie'': The Bad Piggies. In earlier ''Franchise/AngryBirds'' media, they were used almost exclusively for comic relief. And while it's still the case, in this movie, not only is their leader smart enough to trick most of the birds, but the pigs actually attempts to fight back when the birds try to reclaim their eggs.
10* ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheDarkKnightReturns'' does this to Batman wearing the [[PoweredArmour Exo-Suit]] in the FinalBattle against ComicBook/{{Superman}}. In the comic Batman [[CombatPragmatist focused on using every tool he had]] to weaken and injure Supes as much as possible before resorting to his powered Batsuit and only got one punch in before Superman overpowered him, [[spoiler: and he was forced to exploit the KryptoniteFactor with Green Arrow's help]]. In the animated version, Batman makes [[https://youtu.be/Wp4huHUUFgw?t=69 effective use]] of the Exo-Suit matching Supes blow for blow with enhanced strength, actually making him break out the [[EyeBeams Heat Vision]], unlike the comic where it's implied Clark was going easy on him.
11* The titular Beast from ''Literature/BeautyAndTheBeast'' wasn't the hairy LightningBruiser that he is presented as in the [[WesternAnimation/BeautyAndTheBeast Disney version]]. In the animated version, Beast fights off a wolf pack and curb-stomps Gaston, the best hunter in the land. In the book, the Beast wasn't nearly as badass as he almost dies [[DeathByDespair due to a broken heart]].
12* ''WesternAnimation/CatwomanHunted'': While in the comics ComicBook/{{Catwoman}} is a BadassNormal, she's not a particularly deadly fighter amongst {{Badass Normal}}s, even in Batman's RoguesGallery, but in this film, she takes on ''several'' super-villains that are considered much stronger or better fighters than her in the comics, and all in the same night with limited assistance from Batwoman.
13* ''WesternAnimation/DeathstrokeKnightsAndDragons'':
14** Jericho's PsychicPowers are expanded far beyond his usual BodySurf abilities. The Hive Queen outright compares him to a nuclear bomb, and he's key to Hive's plan.
15** Deathstroke's HealingFactor is amped up to ComicBook/{{Wolverine}} levels, hence the DisabledInTheAdaptation of Slade ''already'' missing his eye before what happened to Joey as he'd originally lost it as part of the aftermath of that event and if he'd been lost there like it the comic, it'd have regenerated not long after it happened.
16* Despite the AdaptationalAngstUpgrade, Cloud Strife is much stronger in ''Anime/FinalFantasyVIIAdventChildren'' than he was in the original ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII FFVII]]'', being able to defeat the Remnants of Sephiroth, Bahamut SIN, and Sephiroth himself [[OneManArmy solo]]. In the original game, it took ''all'' of TheTeam just to beat Sephiroth, who was an immortal PhysicalGod at that point.
17* [[OurDragonsAreDifferent Toothless]] of ''Literature/HowToTrainYourDragon'' went from a tiny green dragon which could fit on [[ABoyAndHisX Hiccup's]] shoulder in the book series to a Night Fury, described as "the unholy offspring of lightning and death itself", and the dragon every viking fears most -- rather, the ''only'' dragon vikings fear in [[WesternAnimation/HowToTrainYourDragon2010 the film adaptation]].
18* Esmeralda from ''Literature/TheHunchbackOfNotreDame'' changed from TheIngenue in the original story to an ActionGirl in the [[WesternAnimation/TheHunchbackOfNotreDameDisney Disney animated version]]. Claude Frollo also counts because in the original book he wasn't a combatant. Quasimodo is much [[SuperStrength stronger]] as well, being able to rip stone pillars down.
19* ''WesternAnimation/JLAAdventuresTrappedInTime'' sees Dawnstar get some impressive light powers to fill out her comic's powerset, which was limited to tracking and flight. Then the Time Trapper, who was always a major powerhouse, gets treated like a Lovecraftian horror here. It's a Shout-Out to the Paul Levitz/Keith Giffen Legion run where he was in his Entropy Personified incarnation.
20* In the original ''[[Literature/TheJungleBook Jungle Book]]'' novel, [[BigBad Shere Khan]] was portrayed as being crippled due to a leg deformity he received during birth and was a rather pathetic SmugSnake to boot. In the [[WesternAnimation/TheJungleBook1967 Disney adaptation]], however, Khan is portrayed as a menacing, bloodthirsty, yet [[LargeHam hammy]] and [[LaughablyEvil whimsical]] predator who is feared by everyone in the Indian jungle and is constantly determined to kill Mowgli for being a human. In the sequel, however, he is [[KnightOfCerebus flat out]] menacing.
21** And in the Soviet animated adaptation, Shere Khan is a scary villain from his very first appearance. Though it goes both ways, as Shere Khan is a lot more cunning and manipulative in the book.
22** This seems to make the anthropomorphic transition as well, if ''WesternAnimation/TaleSpin'' is of any evidence. In this adaptation, he is a ruthless and extremely savvy businessman (er, businesstiger) that could easily have Baloo hunted down and crushed [[ScrewTheMoneyIHaveRules if not]] for his [[VillainousVirtues moral code]]. Also, in the original he was afraid of guns. In ''[=TaleSpin=]'', his reaction to a stray bullet shattering a champagne glass ''that he's holding'' is to sigh in annoyance.
23* Bekka in ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeagueGodsAndMonsters''. In the mainstream DC universe, she is a scientist with [[TheEmpath emotion controlling powers]] that rarely, if ever, fought. In this movie, she is this universe's own Franchise/WonderWoman and just as capable as Diana of Themyscira. While seemingly lacking her original powers, she makes up for it with her impressive martial skills, superhuman strength, flight and a CoolSword that can cut through nearly everything.
24* In ''ComicBook/TheKillingJoke'', the Joker's circus troupe [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere fled at the mere sight of the Batmobile pulling up]]. In [[WesternAnimation/BatmanTheKillingJoke the animated version]], they actually put up a fight before Batman first confronts the Joker.
25* The Sea Witch from Hans Christian Anderson's ''Literature/TheLittleMermaid'' was just a plot device to teach the titular mermaid a cautionary lesson. In Disney's ''WesternAnimation/TheLittleMermaid1989'' the Sea Witch aka Ursula is a badass [[AdaptationalVillainy evil]] octopus lady who took down King Triton and nearly conquered the entire sea... before she got impaled.
26** For that matter, The Little Mermaid herself gets this as well. In Anderson's original story the Mermaid ([[NamedByTheAdaptation named Ariel]] in the Disney movie) was a much more demure character, while she does save the prince from drowning like the animated movie she spends the rest of the story a BrokenBird as her prince doesn't love her and she commits suicide and turns into sea foam. In the 1989 movie Ariel saving the prince (Eric) from the shipwreck is expanded into a big action scene and later in the movie, she saves him ''[[ViolentlyProtectiveGirlfriend again]]'' from the Sea Witch by pulling Ursula's hair making her kill her own henchmen in the process which is way more badass than anything the original mermaid did. There's also the prince himself, who's useless and heartless in Anderson's book while in the Disney movie he's heroic, actually loves the little mermaid and [[DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu kills]] the Sea Witch in her OneWingedAngel form.
27* ''WesternAnimation/MortalKombatLegendsScorpionsRevenge'' gives this treatment to Scorpion himself (not too surprising given he's in the title). Yes, Scorpion is obviously no pushover in the games being a burning ninja skeleton and all, but he's not unbeatable having frequently gotten [[TheWorfEffect his undead ass kicked]] by the likes of Raiden, Liu Kang, Johnny Cage, Sonya Blade, Kung Lao, Jade and his nemesis Sub-Zero. In the animated film, before he even gets {{Hellfire}} he [[UnstoppableRage rampages]] against the Lin Kuei who massacred his clan and only loses when Sub-Zero shows up. Even after dying and going to Netherrealm, Scorpion breaks free of his chains, kills his torturer Moloch and goes on ''another'' rampage [[OneManArmy against thousands of demons]] and even pushes Quan-Chi around. When Scorpion does get his iconic abilities, he breezes his way through the Mortal Kombat tournament racking up a bigger body count than Liu, Sonya and Johnny combined. After killing Sub-Zero [[spoiler: and learning it was actually Quan-Chi who killed his family, Scorpion steps in to help Liu Kang by killing Goro himself. If that wasn't enough, he then overpowers [[BigBad Shang Tsung]] and gets his revenge by killing Quan-Chi]]. [[SpotlightStealingSquad Unfortunately]], this does kinda take the victory away from the Earthrelam heroes barring the SequelHook.
28* ''Franchise/{{Shrek}}'':
29** ''Literature/PussInBoots'' in the original tale was a GuileHero and pragmatist, in ''WesternAnimation/Shrek2'' and his [[WesternAnimation/PussInBoots solo]] [[WesternAnimation/PussInBootsTheLastWish movies]] he's [[Creator/AntonioBanderas literally]] the cat version of Franchise/{{Zorro}} being a MasterSwordsmen and adventurer.
30** The classical princesses in ''WesternAnimation/ShrekTheThird'' Literature/SnowWhite, Literature/SleepingBeauty, Literature/{{Cinderella}} all of whom are non-fighters or damsels in their original stories form a AmazonBrigade with Fiona and her mother.
31** The Gingerbread Man whose single claim to fame is running away from people and getting eaten by a fox in his original story is turned into a badass adventurer in his own right with ''WesternAnimation/ShrekForeverAfter'' making him an outright spear-wielding gladiator.
32** ''WesternAnimation/PussInBoots'' along with AdaptationalVillainy gives this treatment to Jack and Jill, rather than being just of couple of klutzes who fall down a hill, they’re a hulking OutlawCouple packing heat. [[spoiler:The same movie does this to Humpty Dumpy, in his original nursery rhyme he’s merely a dumb egg man who falls off a wall and breaks apart whilst in the film he’s a EvilGenius and TheChessmaster who’s been manipulating events the whole time.]]
33** ''WesternAnimation/PussInBootsTheLastWish'' gives this treatment to Jack Horner and Goldilocks and the Three Bears. Jack Horner rather than just being a kid who sticks his thumb in a pie is instead a SuperMobBoss with a CrazyPrepared arsenal of magical items who’s so goddamn evil he makes Tony Montana look nice. Goldilocks and the Three Bears for their part are TheFamilyThatSlaysTogether rather than being just a rude girl who barged into someone else’s home and a peaceful bear family respectively.
34* ''WesternAnimation/RalphBreaksTheInternet'' similar to ''Shrek The Third'' does this to the Disney Princesses [[labelnote:*]] Though obviously Mulan, Merida, Ariel, Pocahontas, Rapunzel, Elsa and Moana were already badasses. [[/labelnote]] with the likes of Cinderella breaking her slipper to use as a shank, Aurora using her sewing to save Ralph and Snow using poisoned apples to great effect in the same scene, despite said ladies (especially Snow and Aurora) being simple PrincessClassic in their respective films.
35* In ''Animation/RedShoesAndTheSevenDwarfs '', the Magic Mirror can control trees and use them to attack. He also serves as the final serious threat of the movie.
36* Leon S. Kennedy in the ''Franchise/ResidentEvil'' CG movies ''[[Anime/ResidentEvilDegeneration Degeneration]]'', ''[[Anime/ResidentEvilDamnation Damnation]]'' and ''[[Anime/ResidentEvilVendetta Vendetta]] ''. True, Leon is very skilled and competent in the games but the CG movies essentially [[TookALevelInBadass turn him]] into the superhuman love child of Franchise/JohnWick and Lara Croft, Leon can take on entire countries [[ZombieApocalypse filled]] with zombies and Lickers [[OneManArmy all by himself]], fight and [[MadeOfIron tank blows]] from two [[TheBrute Tyrants]] + [[MonstrousHumanoid two Mutated antagonists]]... '''and win'''. Leon even [[SpotlightStealingSquad shows up]] Chris Redfield who is the main character of the franchise.
37* In the original book of ''Literature/SleepingBeauty'', there was a minor villain known as The Evil Fairy. When the book was [[WesternAnimation/SleepingBeauty adapted into a film]], that minor baddie was morphed into Maleficent, one of the most badass Disney villains to date.
38** The Prince (named Philip in the film) doesn't do much in the original story besides kiss (and in the older versions of the story [[DudeShesLikeInAComa bone]]) an unconscious princess. In the film Philip is easily one of the most [[WarriorPrince badass]] Disney princes period, as he fights and kills Maleficent with a CoolSword and shield, albeit he gets some help from the three good fairies.
39* ''WesternAnimation/SpiderManIntoTheSpiderVerse'' gives this treatment to almost ''everyone'' but here are the most notable examples:
40** ComicBook/SpiderGwen, while by no means a weakling, isn't very strong or particularly competent in the comics (especially compared to other Spider-Women). She gets all her moves from watching kung-fu movies, [[UnskilledButStrong relies upon her superpowers to get by in a fight]], and struggles against fully combat-trained opponents. One BigBad even admonishes Gwen for not knowing ''how to throw a punch''. ''Spider-Verse'' Gwen, however, is a different story, being a very skilled and graceful fighter, which makes sense given it's shown [[DanceBattler she does ballet]]. This Gwen Stacy even takes down Scorpion and saves adult Peter Parker from Doc Ock, feats that comic Gwen would struggle to replicate.
41** Spider-Ham is a JokeCharacter in the comics and only gets a few cool moments, but otherwise falls short of his more serious Spider counterparts. In the movie, Spider-Ham uses CartoonPhysics and HyperspaceMallet to full effect to curb stomp Scorpion, and may possibly be the most powerful member of the Spider-Gang in spite of his absurdity.
42** [[ComicBook/SpiderManNoir Noir Spider-Man]] is cool in the comics but his strength is inferior to mainline Spider-Man and others. In the movie, Noir Spidey easily takes on half the RoguesGallery with just 1940s-era GoodOldFisticuffs and his origin is tweaked to make him a PrivateDetective who fights Nazis on a ''daily basis'', whereas in the comic he's just a reporter who doesn't get to punch a single Nazi. Although, the 2020 Spider-Man Noir series, would fix this having a Nazi fighting, nicer tempered Noir Spidey, very likely influenced by the animated film version.
43** Peni Parker in the comics was really only a physical threat when inside her HumongousMecha. Here, however, she finishes off Scorpion ''after'' he destroys her suit. ''With one of said suit's broken arms''.
44** Aunt May is a frail old lady in the comics. In ''Spider-Verse'' she beats up ''[[TheBrute freaking Tombstone]] with a baseball bat''. She's also directly involved in assisting her universe's Spider-Man, being basically the Alfred to her version of Peter [[spoiler:and later Miles]].
45** The Prowler is a mostly [[GadgeteerGenius tech-based]] bruiser in the comics who isn't nearly as formidable as other villains, while in the film he's an unabashed LightningBruiser strong enough to give Spider-Man trouble and [[SuperSpeed so fast]] Miles has to go invisible to avoid him.
46** But [[ComicBook/TheKingpin Kingpin]] takes home the gold for this one. While Wilson Fisk in the comics is pretty much StoutStrength par excellence and usually gives Daredevil a rough time, he still gets wrecked by Spider-Man in a serious battle and is nowhere near the rest of Spidey's villains in terms of raw power. In this incarnation however, Kingpin is nothing short of a titan of strength. At the start of the movie, he beats [[spoiler:''Spider-Man'']] to death with his bare hands and then at the climax is able to dominate Miles in a fight, lift cars, smash through buildings and survive massive falls from great heights.
47* ''WesternAnimation/SpiderManAcrossTheSpiderVerse'' gives this treatment to the Spot. In the comics, Spot is a C-list villain ''at best'' who gets an ounce of credibility in the Supervillain community because his powers make him an useful getaway guy, and once a blue moon he can occasionally prove to be a NotSoHarmlessVillain. Even so, his first appearance had him flee from Spider-Man after taking a single punch, and afterwards he mostly serves as a minion to more competent villains or punching bag for superheroes. In the movie, he ''starts'' off like that, even being dismissed as a VillainOfTheWeek by all the Spider-people, but as the movie progresses and he gets a handle of his powers [[FromNobodyToNightmare he evolves into]] a borderline multiversal EldritchAbomination and Miles' Archenemy.
48* ''WesternAnimation/SuicideSquadHellToPay'':
49** Waller labels Bronze Tiger as [[WorldsBestWarrior the best martial artist on the planet]], which if true, would put him far above his comics version, who is undeniably near the top, but doesn't quite reach the heights of ComicBook/BlackCanary, [[ComicBook/{{Batgirl}} Cassandra Cain]], or his former ally ComicBook/LadyShiva.
50** Most incarnations of Copperhead are treated as jokes these days outside of the female versions, and even before that he was just a guy in a suit barring his brief mutation. This version is heavily modified and fittingly more of a threat, possessing greater fighting strength and acid shooters in his mouth. [[spoiler: This version can even match Killer Frost of all people in a fight for a prolonged period.]]
51* ''WesternAnimation/TheSuperMarioBrosMovie'':
52** Princess Peach is the most obvious example, getting {{Xenafication}} from DamselInDistress to ActionGirl. She's introduced easily clearing an obstacle course that Mario himself struggles with, and in the FinalBattle, she has a DamselOutOfDistress segment during her forced wedding with Bowser where she uses an [[AnIcePerson Ice Flower]] to freeze Bowser and take a horde of enemies by herself before being knocked out by a explosion. While many games have Peach be able to keep up with the Mario brothers, she's still often in need of rescuing and rarely the one who actually leads the charge. Additionally, Peach's soft-spoken, kindhearted, and feminine GirlyGirl ([[GirlyGirlWithATomboyStreak with a tomboy streak]]) personality from the games is [[AdaptationPersonalityChange significantly altered]], with her being [[CompositeCharacter given]] Daisy's TomboyPrincess traits instead.
53** Toad is usually TheLoad, but in the movie he's much more capable and brave, being a GuileHero that even helps in the fight against Bowser during the climax.
54** Koopa Troopas and Dry Bones are '''far''' more badass and intimidating than they ever were in the games. The Koopa Troopas can not only attack all at once unlike the games, but in the Rainbow Road segment they channel the War Boys from ''Film/MadMaxFuryRoad''. Likewise, the Dry Bones act like modern swarming fast zombies rather than the usual ZombieGait of the games.
55** Banzai Bill ([[AdaptationNameChange referred to as the Bomber Bill in this adaptation]]), in addition to being twice as fast as he is in the games, ''explodes with the force of a nuke'', causing a dimensional rift that sucks Bowser's castle to Earth.
56* ''WesternAnimation/SupermanRedSon'':
57** The Green Lantern Corps, in the [[ComicBook/SupermanRedSon comic]] are basically a RedShirtArmy as their constructs are easily destroyed by Russian Superman, who steamrolls them. In the animated film on the other hand, they collectively overpower Supes and even trap him in a unbreakable green cube ''which they shrink''. They only lose when Wonder Woman [[NiceJobBreakingItHero steps in to free Superman]].
58** Speaking of which in the same scene Wonder Woman is able to [[PunchCatch catch Superman’s punch]] implying she’s stronger than him. Whereas in the comic Diana got curb stomped same as the Lanterns when she tried to stop him, though admittedly she was explicitly weakened due to breaking her own lasso.
59** Superior Man aka Bizzaro (created by Lex Luthor) actually puts up a real against Superman in a extended battle before suffering a SuperPowerMeltdown. Though this version removes the HeroicSacrifice he performed in the comics.
60** [[spoiler: Lex in the FinalBattle of the comic helps Superman beat Brainiac by tinkering from the sidelines. In the animated version Lex gets into PoweredArmor and actually fights Brainiac alongside Supes]].
61* [[ActionGirl Rapunzel]] from ''WesternAnimation/{{Tangled}}'', in the [[Literature/{{Rapunzel}} original tale]] all she did was lift people up with her super long hair, [[BabiesEverAfter and get pregnant with twins later]]. In the Disney version she kicks ass with [[FryingPanOfDoom a frying pan]] and can [[BuildingSwing swing around]] and lasso things with her hair. And that’s not even getting into [[SuperMode how badass Rapunzel becomes]] in her [[WesternAnimation/TangledTheSeries show]].
62** Technically, you could say ''everyone'' in ''Tangled,'' since the original story doesn't really have any sort of "action." [[BigBad Gothel]] is a sort of weird example -- she becomes more badass by becoming ''less'' powerful, going from a witch in the fairy tale to a knife-wielding badass (she knows a spell to retain her youth and is also implied to be able to fly -- which is seen in only one scene -- but otherwise she never uses magic in the whole film).
63* ''Animation/TreasureIsland1988'': PlayedForLaughs.
64** In the book, Jim Hawkins is a classic KidHero who got through the whole ordeal only with brains and bravery. Here, simply doing gymnastics every morning made him into a martial arts master with SuperStrength, capable of beating pirates four times his own size to a pulp within seconds. He's also a fan of MoreDakka when he has an opportunity.
65** Dr. Livesey, already a CombatMedic in the book, was given ImplausibleFencingPowers. During the stockade assault, he's able to defeat three burly pirates DualWielding cutlasses at once with a single flimsy rapier used in left hand, [[ExcuseMeWhileIMultitask while using his right one]] to casually sniff a flower.
66** Captain Smollett is a complete joke, but he's also MadeOfIron and shrugs off (literally) being repeatedly crushed by a log wall.
67* ''WesternAnimation/TreasurePlanet'', thanks in large part to being a [[JustForFun/RecycledInSpace Sci-Fi update]] to ''Literature/TreasureIsland'', does this to several characters from the original novel.
68** Jim Hawkins was a traditional KidHero in the book, being [[GuileHero guile]] and sneaky to survive, he only kills Israel Hands in self-defense and avoids swashbuckling in general. In ''Treasure Planet'', Jim is a LeParkour, SkySurfing badass who's handy with a RayGun, kicks Scoop (a spider alien pirate) into outer space, and achieves more in minutes than his literary counterpart could in multiple chapters.
69** Long John Silver was at best a HandicappedBadass in the book who relied on his men in battle, and used his wits more than his sword or flintlock. In ''Treasure Planet'', Silver is a {{Cyborg}} who has all manner of tools and gadgets in his robotic arm and can turn his prosthetic leg into a laser cannon. He also retains his guile from the book.
70** Mr Arrow was a useless drunk in the original book who was hardly mourned when he died. In ''Treasure Planet'', Arrow (reimagined as an alien rock monster) is an extremely competent officer who is highly respected and his death is treated as a tragedy. This characterization of Arrow is akin to other adaptations e.g ''Film/MuppetTreasureIsland'' where Arrow is competent, heroic, and is SparedByAdaptation.
71* For the most part the Disney ''Franchise/WinnieThePooh'' films are as silly and laid back as the novels, and the characters thus so as well. The occasional Disney work however amps up the stakes and shows one of the characters being genuinely competent in a real adventure:
72** In ''WesternAnimation/TheTiggerMovie'', Tigger has this trope epitomised via the Whoop-de-Dooper Loop-de-Looper Alley-Ooper Bounce, a super powered CartoonPhysics bounce that springs him around like a pinball with enough charge to dislodge a large boulder. Later on in the film, the group get caught in an avalanche, a peril far greater and real than anything they were ever put through before, and Tigger has to perform a HeroicSacrifice to save them all. Roo, in turn, finally masters the bounce to rescue Tigger.
73** ''WesternAnimation/PigletsBigMovie'' does this to, you guessed it, Piglet. Already something of a CowardlyLion, Piglet is made the unsung hero in several retellings of the original stories. He also saves Pooh after he nearly falls down a ravine.
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