| 1 | !This trope is [[https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=17062106730.12677900 under discussion]] in the Administrivia/TropeRepairShop. |
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| 17 | [[quoteright:350:[[WesternAnimation/ThePrincessAndTheFrog https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/cool_old_lady.jpg]]]] |
| 18 | [[caption-width-right:350:Not bad for a 197-year old [[HandicappedBadass blind]] lady, huh?]] |
| 19 | |
| 20 | ->''"What we have here, [Moist] told himself, is a [=Mk1=] Feisty Old Lady: Turkey neck, embarrassing sense of humour, a gleeful pleasure in mild cruelty, direct way of speaking that flirts with rudeness and, more importantly, also flirts with flirting. Likes to think she's no 'lady'. Game for anything that doesn't carry the risk of falling over and with a look in her eye that says 'I can do what I like because I am old. And I have a soft spot for rascals.' Old ladies like that were hard to fool, but there was no need to."'' |
| 21 | -->-- ''Literature/MakingMoney'' |
| 22 | |
| 23 | Much like its SpearCounterpart the CoolOldGuy, the Cool Old Lady is a character that's much older than the main cast but for whatever reason, they become deeply attached to her. She can be a "hip" grandma that rollerblades, bungee jumps, can speak the teenage slang without it coming across as a TotallyRadical AgingWouldBeHipster, an ApronMatron who's gruff but caring, or a {{Cloudcuckoolander}} who is a joy to have around. Or she could be a kindly old lady who obviously [[LadyOfAdventure led a very rich life]] (when she was younger, she bungee jumped, rode a motorcycle, knows the teenage slang of her era but doesn't dare try to incorporate it into her current speech) and regales the cast with saucy stories of her escapades. The fact that she's ''survived'' doing all that and ''lived'' to that age tells you that you should NeverMessWithGranny. |
| 24 | |
| 25 | If the grandma did all the cool stuff in the past, expect her to be low on the SortingAlgorithmOfMortality; on more dramatic shows, she will die by episode's/story arc's end. Often, she is helping all her new younger friends come to terms with ''their'' grief while being rather at peace with it herself because she "led a good life". |
| 26 | |
| 27 | See also MyGrandmaCanDoBetterThanYou: For when Grandma is not so cool, and this fact is used to insult someone else by implying they are even worse. |
| 28 | |
| 29 | Compare MrsClaus. Not to be confused with ''Film/MyOldLady'', a film starring Creator/KevinKline. |
| 30 | |
| 31 | ---- |
| 32 | !!Examples: |
| 33 | [[foldercontrol]] |
| 34 | |
| 35 | [[folder:Advertising]] |
| 36 | * Granny Goodwitch, Sugar Bear's {{Foil}} (or rather, would-be Foil) in advertisements for Super Golden Crisp. Sure, he always managed to outwit her, but you have to give a lady credit for coolness when she [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XCcVRfM7YJc has a house like this.]] |
| 37 | [[/folder]] |
| 38 | |
| 39 | [[folder:Anime & Manga]] |
| 40 | * ''Manga/ABridesStory'': The male lead's grandmother, Balkirsh, is capable of driving off hostile visitors with a bow and riding a mountain goat up a nearly-vertical cliff to rescue a child. |
| 41 | * Moto Asagi from ''Anime/BrigadoonMarinAndMelan'' is very wise and very generous. She adopted a foundling to replace her own lost child, and she cares for an alien robot like he was a member of the family. |
| 42 | * Megabaa from ''Anime/DenNohCoil''. Hacks the local equivalent of the web, deals in banned software, and can shoot digital beams from her forehead. |
| 43 | * Fortuneteller Baba from ''Franchise/DragonBall'' while her brother Roshi is mostly a DirtyOldMan as well as a martial artist, Baba is a [[MellowFellow chill]] if not somewhat arrogant little old witch who rides her crystal ball and helps the Z-Fighters when it comes to spiritual and mystical matters. Baba also can come to and fro from the MundaneAfterlife, having gone to fetch Vegeta after he dies in Buu Saga and in fact she's the only Earthling in the whole franchise who's never died once. Baba even lives long enough to appear in ''VideoGame/DragonBallOnline''. |
| 44 | * ''Manga/FoodWars'': Fumio Daimidou, the housekeeper of Polaris Dormitory, is a pretty chill and permissive DropInLandlord, allowing her residents to have parties. |
| 45 | * ''Manga/{{Gangsta}}'': Big Mama Georgiana, Madame of the brothel ''Pussy'' as well as a major member of the Corsica family. She's even kind to [[AllOfTheOtherReindeer Nic.]] |
| 46 | * Kim Shi-won of ''Anime/GreatPretender'' is a Korean con woman who's the oldest member of Team Confidence. She smokes, drinks, dyes her hair, wears leather jackets, and is generally the life of the party. She's also pretty good with guns, and is surprisingly athletic. |
| 47 | * Kaoruko Hanasaki from ''Anime/HeartCatchPrettyCure'', who used to be Cure Flower and is usually there to explain Pretty Cure things to her granddaughter and the other Cures. |
| 48 | * ''Manga/IganoKabamaru'': Because of her fun-loving attitude and don't-give-a-damn attitude, Ran Ookumo is seen as a cool grandma by the students of Kin'gyoku, or as a senile fool who needs to be put on a leash. Many of the Kin'gyoku students look up to her, especially Mai and Kabamaru, who were taken in by her after they were orphaned. She's also the loudmouthed [[WackyParentSeriousChild Wacky Parent]] to Mai's Serious Child. |
| 49 | * Before Joseph Joestar was the CoolOldGuy, there was his grandma, Erina Joestar (nee Pendleton) of ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure'', who did not lose the [[SilkHidingSteel steel]] of her youth in her old age in Part 2. The first thing we hear of about her is that Joseph is ''terrified'' of her learning he lost his temper... again, right after beating two {{Corrupt Cop}}s (the irony being {{Lampshaded}}). Later, she wholeheartedly welcomes his new friend Smokey, who is African-American. Keep in mind that 1) she grew up in Victorian England, and 2) this was 1930s America, neither time period particularly friendly to blacks, showing that she completely averts being a RacistGrandma. Lastly, when Smokey is openly insulted by a rude man in the same restaurant as them, other than a reminder to mind the other customers, she lets Joseph loose on the bastard. In fact, one could argue that she was encouraging Joseph to use his greater strength: his wit. |
| 50 | * Grandma Hina from ''Manga/LoveHina''. She spends most of the series traveling around the world on vacation, but the few times that she does show up, all the tenants stand at attention, absolutely amazed by how cunning and on the ball she is when it comes to making sure things get done. She even sets up a plan to get Keitaro into a bit of trouble. The other girls were reluctant to do it. There's a reason (unexplained as it may be) why she's known as "The Demon of Hinata". |
| 51 | * Granny Chiyo and Tsunade (although Tsunade makes herself look young) from ''Manga/{{Naruto}}''; one is a counselor revered in her village, while the other is the Hokage, leader of Konoha. The former fought one of Akatsuki's strongest members to a standstill (though admittedly beating him only with Plot no Jutsu) while the latter is a world-renowned medic, who pretty much wrote the book on combat medicine. |
| 52 | * In ''Manga/OnePiece'', Kokoro's a rather lively old woman (outside, at least) with a penchant for [[TheAlcoholic alcohol]] who loves her granddaughter and adoptive sons and [[DrivesLikeCrazy drives the Sea Train]] around Enies Lobby and uses it to tackle and defeat a giant. There's also Kureha (Chopper's mentor) a 141 year old doctor whose also a booze hound and is spirited enough to walk around with her midriff showing and act like a woman a many decades younger. Can't forget Great Staff Officer Tsuru either, a former Vice-Admiral and friend of Luffy's grandpa Garp whose still powerful enough literally hang {{Mooks}} to dry and even the AxCrazy Donflamingo (whom she isn't intimidated by in the slightest) listens to her when she commands him to stop [[MarionetteMaster puppeting]] two marines in front of her. |
| 53 | * ''Manga/PingPong'': Obaba (Grandmother), who runs the local Ping Pong shop. |
| 54 | * Sakae Jinnouchi in ''Anime/SummerWars'' reaches through her vast connections in her lifetime in order to make sure people are safe from Love Machine. Beforehand, she pulls a naginata on [[spoiler:her adopted son upon the reveal he was the virus's creator and sold it to the US military]]. [[spoiler:The only reason she ends up passing away is that Love Machine hacks into her heart monitor in retaliation.]] |
| 55 | * ''Literature/BookOfBantorra'' has Ireia Kitty, a heavy-set old lady who can kick some serious ass. |
| 56 | * Maico Kato, one of the Card Professors from ''Manga/YuGiOhR'' (not to mention one with the skill and nerve to give even Yugi a challenge). Also counts as a HandicappedBadass, seeing as she's wheelchair-bound, her Duel Disk being built into her chair. |
| 57 | * Genkai from ''Manga/YuYuHakusho'', who serves as the protagonists' mentor and trainer, and even fought with them as the 5th member of their team in the Dark Tournament. |
| 58 | [[/folder]] |
| 59 | |
| 60 | [[folder:Comic Books]] |
| 61 | * ''ComicBook/DamageControl'': Mrs. Anne-Marie Hoag, founder and first director of the titular group. She hobnobs with [[ComicBook/IronMan Tony Stark]], stands up to ComicBook/TheKingpin, beats the living hell out of muggers, has survived multiple hostile takeovers and is best friends with ComicBook/NickFury. |
| 62 | * Blind Al from ''ComicBook/{{Deadpool}}'' is a blind, [[DeadpanSnarker snarky]] octogenarian who scares Girl Scouts for a hobby and can hold her own trading quips and pranks with one of the most dangerous people on the planet. And her hairstyle looks like soft-swirl ice cream. |
| 63 | * ''ComicBook/LoriLovecraft'': While fading actress Danke Schoen is generally regarded as a WhiteDwarfStarlet, she maintains enough of her HardDrinkingPartyGirl past that Lori definitely regards her as someone cool to hang with, with Danke's antics even managing to embarrass EthicalSlut Lori |
| 64 | * Safa, the older lioness in ''ComicBook/PrideOfBaghdad''. Despite refusing to leave the zoo with the other lions even as it is being blown to pieces, she casts this aside to save Ali from the monkeys, despite knowing that she will make too many enemies to remain at the zoo by doing so. |
| 65 | * ''ComicBook/SpiderMan'': |
| 66 | ** Aunt May, during the Civil War when everyone knew who Peter Parker was and was out to get him, became a downright badass old lady, even going so far as to appear clueless when the Chameleon impersonated Peter while simultaneously tricking him into thinking he'd been poisoned with cookies full of sleeping pills and ''knitting a sweater with the word "GOTCHA" in big letters the whole time.'' |
| 67 | ** When ComicBook/{{Wolverine}} complains about letting Jarvis have the morning off (with May picking up the slack making breakfast), May grabs his cigar right out of his mouth and extinguishes it in his glass of whiskey. Wolverine just stares at her for a couple of seconds, then announces he's just going out to get doughnuts. |
| 68 | --->'''ComicBook/CaptainAmerica:''' Wow. |
| 69 | ** Ultimate Aunt May is quite the proverbial badass as well, so much so that she chewed J. Jonah Jameson out for being mean to Peter. |
| 70 | * ''Franchise/WonderWoman'' [[ComicBook/WonderWoman1942 Vol 1]]: The Holliday College Dean, who seems to be named Strikt but whose students generally call Dean Sourpuss, right to her face. She's old, set in her ways, tough and faster than she looks and is violently protective of her students, even the biggest troublemakers, and will unflinchingly badmouth superheroes, soldiers and US Government officials to their faces if she thinks they've gotten her girls hurt or endangered them while supporting her students following whatever wild dreams they possess. |
| 71 | [[/folder]] |
| 72 | |
| 73 | [[folder:Comic Strips]] |
| 74 | * Andy's mother in ''ComicStrip/FoxTrot''. She seems to [[TheAce excel at everything]]; among other things, she's such a great cook that Martha Stewart herself is trying to buy one of her recipes, she can match Jason in math skills, shares Paige's love for modern fashion, is just as knowledgeable in sports as Peter, and an article in ''The New York Times'' says she's "perfect". Unfortunately, Andy herself has "issues" with her due to feeling inadequate when she's around; her worst case of being a LethalChef came from trying to outdo her on Thanksgiving. (And as fate would have it, her mother told her that [[NotSoDifferentRemark she had gone through the same thing with]] ''[[NotSoDifferentRemark her]]'' [[NotSoDifferentRemark mother.]]) |
| 75 | * ''ComicStrip/{{Garfield}}'': |
| 76 | ** Jon's grandma rarely makes an appearance -- but when she ''does'', it's usually by driving through the wall on her motorcycle. |
| 77 | ** Jon's elderly Aunt Gussie, who was discharged from the Navy for ''unnecessary roughness''. |
| 78 | * Pansy Yokum from ''ComicStrip/LilAbner'', who can fell a cougar with one punch, smokes a corncob pipe, and dispenses sage advice to the rest of the village. |
| 79 | * ''ComicStrip/MaryWorth'': The titular character is ''meant'' to be portrayed as one, but she may come off as a naggy moral guardian. |
| 80 | * ''The Middletons'' has "Gunny Granny", a retired Marine Corps gunnery sergeant with a black belt in martial arts and a love of tackle football (which she ''coaches''). |
| 81 | * ''ComicStrip/{{Peanuts}}'': Charlie Brown's grandmother. On top of being an OpenMindedParent who listens to Charlie Brown's plights when nobody else does, she was also more than happy to invite Linus, Peppermint Patty, Marcie, and Franklin over to her condo for Thanksgiving when she heard they weren't satisfied with their impromptu dinner. |
| 82 | * ''ComicStrip/{{Zits}}'': While playing in a old folks home, Jeremy and Pierce meet a hard-rocking, foulmouthed old lady who plays the drums better than Pierce. Pierce comments that if she was 70 years younger, he'd be dating her. |
| 83 | [[/folder]] |
| 84 | |
| 85 | [[folder:Fairy Tales]] |
| 86 | * "Literature/TheDevilWithTheThreeGoldenHairs": The Devil's grandmother is a nice, kind-hearted, witty old woman who helps the main character fulfill his quest: she turns him into an ant to keep him safe from the Devil, pulls the eponymous hairs from her grandson's head, and gets answers for the questions the main character needs to answer. |
| 87 | * "Literature/MotherHolle": The titular spirit of winter looks like a big-toothed old woman. The main character agrees to stay with her for a while and do her housework, and in return she is treated with great kindness. When she decides she must go back to her house, Frau Holle rewards her hard work and diligence with a huge amount of gold. |
| 88 | -->Finally she came to a small house. An old woman was peering out from inside. She had very large teeth, which frightened the girl, and she wanted to run away. But the old woman called out to her, "Don't be afraid, dear child. Stay here with me, and if you do my housework in an orderly fashion, it will go well with you. Only you must take care to make my bed well and shake it diligently until the feathers fly, then it will snow in the world. I am Frau Holle."\ |
| 89 | Because the old woman spoke so kindly to her, the girl took heart, agreed, and started in her service. The girl took care of everything to Frau Holle's satisfaction and always shook her featherbed vigorously until the feathers flew about like snowflakes. Therefore she had a good life with her: no angry words, and boiled or roast meat every day. |
| 90 | [[/folder]] |
| 91 | |
| 92 | [[folder:Fan Works]] |
| 93 | * In ''Fanfic/AlmostPsychoChuckChicken'' Grandma Butternut is revealed to know kung fu. |
| 94 | * ''Fanfic/ChildOfTheStorm'': |
| 95 | ** Frigga, Queen of Asgard, its [[MedicalMonarch chief healer]], one of its most formidable mages, and the person who successfully raised Thor and Loki. She's a warm and kind woman, a loving GrannyClassic, with a certain regal style, but also a twinkly eyed ShipperOnDeck regarding the young romances around her. She's also capable of making Odin sleep on the sofa. And should someone do something so horrifically unwise as to kidnap her grandson, she will make the Plagues of Egypt look like a mild case of the sniffles. |
| 96 | ** Alison Carter, the nominally retired Deputy Director of SHIELD, and the original Agent 13, also formerly known as 'the White Widow' (so named for her prowess and ability to go one on one with a pre Face-Turn Natasha). The younger sister of Peggy Carter [[spoiler: (or rather, her daughter by Steve)]], she was so successful at SHIELD that she never reached the Directorship because the World Security Council feared how much power she would command. Didn't stop her running SHIELD from behind the scenes, mentoring eventual successor, Nick Fury, and even when 'retired', she's comfortably pulling strings to protect a young Clark Kent and Harry Potter (though thanks to [[spoiler: Sinister]], that didn't work out), capable of verbally breaking Alexander Pierce (who'd spent the last few months toying with interrogators) in five minutes, and is quite possibly the only person capable of making [[{{Series/StargateSG1}} Jack O'Neill]], Tony Stark, and ''Deadpool'' all shut up and snap to. Granted, she's got family ties to the former two, but with Deadpool? Nope. Oh, and even into her sixties, she's perfectly comfortable raiding a Red Room base in another dimension with naught but her son for back-up and never losing her cool. Her catchphrase? |
| 97 | --> Retirement is boring. |
| 98 | * ''Fanfic/HowFriendshipAccidentallySavedMagicalBritain'': Frances Cooper, Tom's (semi-fake) relative and guardian, is a retired police officer who teaches criminology at Oxford and gets Tom into shooting muggle guns, a hobby that proves very useful in the climax. She also apparently has "connections" that allow her to easily secure an identity and papers for Tom's newfound existence in the muggle world, and is widow to a squib from the Prewett family, so she's familiar with magic and doesn't bat an eye at her new ward setting up a potions lab in her basement. |
| 99 | * Melissa, the proprietor of the Celestial Treasures new age shop in ''Fanfic/OriginStory'' is a dyed in the wool hippy. She's also a practicing witch who gives Alex and Louise some helpful advice and points them toward Jennifer Kale. |
| 100 | * Several examples in ''Fanfic/PokemonResetBloodlines'': |
| 101 | ** Argenta is 68 and a former Sinnoh champion, several times League Conference winner and runner-up in a Sinnoh Grand Festival. She's so skilled even now that she defeats 399 trainers in a tournament using ''only'' a Pachirisu. |
| 102 | ** Drasna of the Kalos Elite Four loves cooking and wouldn't mind helping trainers with their Dragon-types when she isn't defeating powerful trainers, that is. She even found herself some time to [[SilverFox pose for a swimsuit calendar along with other Gym Leaders and Elite Four trainers.]] |
| 103 | ** Ultima is an OldMaster who teaches starter Pokémon she deems worthy the Ultimate Moves, and always enjoys battling with younger trainers. |
| 104 | * Violet Kincaid from ''Fanfic/RomansEmpire'' is a woman in her late fifties. She's also Vale's [[TheQueenpin dominant mob boss]], able to fight three armed men at once on her own, and spends her free time [[ReallyGetsAround hooking up]] [[MrsRobinson with attractive young]] men and women on a regular basis. Even for [[WorldOfBadass a world like]] ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'', a ruthless mob boss who lives like a playboy is pretty cool. There's a reason Roman looks up to her. |
| 105 | * Perenelle Flamel in ''Fanfic/TheParselmouthOfGryffindor'' appears innocuous, but soon proves she can go toe-to-toe with Barty Crouch Junior in a duel after Crouch kills her husband. |
| 106 | * ''Fanfic/TheManyDatesOfDannyFenton'': Two words: Suga Mama. Unlike Oscar, Suga Mama was more supportive of Penny and Danny's relationship, largely because she senses Danny's basic decency. |
| 107 | [[/folder]] |
| 108 | |
| 109 | [[folder:Films — Animation]] |
| 110 | * Wilhelmina Packard from both ''WesternAnimation/AtlantisTheLostEmpire'' and ''WesternAnimation/HouseOfMouse'': a smoking, permanently [[DeadpanSnarker deadpan]] old woman who will carry on a casual radio conversation with her friend even in the midst of a ''[[EldritchAbomination Leviathan]]'' attack. |
| 111 | * Manolo's grandmother, Anita Sanchez from ''WesternAnimation/TheBookOfLife'', a former bullfighter who gives Manolo some good advice. |
| 112 | * ''WesternAnimation/ABugsLife'': The Queen has been leading the colony for quite a while by the time the film starts, and with her cool, collected attitude and sharp wit, she definitely qualifies. |
| 113 | * Granny Puckett in ''WesternAnimation/{{Hoodwinked}}'' definitely qualifies, being an "Extreme Sports" ace, and world-class skier. She keeps this secret from Red because she doesn't want Red to worry about her. |
| 114 | * Tala has a close and supportive relationship with her granddaughter, WesternAnimation/{{Moana}}, and takes it in stride that she's considered the "Village Crazy Lady." |
| 115 | * Miss Lilly from ''WesternAnimation/MillionaireDogs''. She often rides around on a motorcycle for fun. |
| 116 | * Mowzer of ''WesternAnimation/TheMouseholeCat'' is a feline version. |
| 117 | * Grandmother Fa from ''WesternAnimation/{{Mulan}}''. She fixes her granddaughter with a little bit of luck, gambles, and she has the sarcasm and appreciation of young men to blend in with her teenage counterparts. |
| 118 | * Mamma Odie from ''WesternAnimation/ThePrincessAndTheFrog'', who provides the page image is very much this. Despite being a 197-year-old blind lady, her powers are strong enough to defeat Dr. Facilier's shadows, that came straight from hell. She has a lot of spunk and personality, can sense things like that Tiana was falling in love with Naveen before her and can use her gumbo to see things that are happening far away. |
| 119 | * Fiona's mother Queen Lillian in ''WesternAnimation/Shrek2''. Despite being shocked by her daughter's new form as well as her husband, she tries her best to accept the situation when she sees how happy they are together, defending them against Fiona's more prejudiced father. In ''WesternAnimation/ShrekTheThird'', she breaks herself, her daughter and her daughter's friends out of prison by bashing through two stone walls... with her head! |
| 120 | -->'''Queen Lillian:''' Well, you didn't actually think you got your fighting skills from ''your father'', did you? |
| 121 | * The eponymous ''WesternAnimation/TheTripletsOfBelleville'', ex-vaudeville stars still doing their thing on stage. Also Madame Souza, who is possibly the only [[ImplacableMan Implacable Grandma]]. |
| 122 | [[/folder]] |
| 123 | |
| 124 | [[folder:Films — Live-Action]] |
| 125 | * Flemming in ''Film/TheAgeOfAdaline'' -- made more amusing as she's the [[ImmortalityBeginsAtTwenty protagonist's]] daughter. She has a very active social life and encourages her mother to live. She's also a massive DeadpanSnarker. |
| 126 | -->'''Adaline:''' It's not the same when there's no future.\ |
| 127 | '''Flemming:''' What you talking about? You got nothing ''but'' future. |
| 128 | * ''Film/BoratSubsequentMoviefilm'': In the film, Borat goes to a synagogue and is greeted by a Holocaust survivor who demonstrates the patience of a saint in the face of his horrendous anti-Semitism and his costume, and she even sits with him and hears out his problems. Sacha Baron Cohen was so honoured to meet her that he dropped character after shooting the scene to let her in on the joke, something he never does with his {{Troll}} characters. |
| 129 | * Mrs. Kwan from ''Film/TheCatIntheHat'' When she comes over to watch Sally and Conrad while Joan is out, Joan emphasizes that Sally and Conrad are not allowed to watch TV. She promises to not let them do so. As soon as Joan Pulls away, she invites them to watch TV with her agreeing not to tell Joan about it. |
| 130 | "Would you kids like to watch television with me? We don't have to tell your mother." |
| 131 | * Lady Fingers, one of the poker aces in ''The Cincinnati Kid''. |
| 132 | * In the film version of ''Film/CrazyRichAsians'', Nick's grandma zigzags this. She treats Rachel far better than Eleanor and most of the people in the Young family social circle. But even she [[spoiler: turns against Rachel after finding out the truth about Rachel's mother]]. However, later on, she has a PetTheDog moment with Astrid where she accompanies Astrid to a wedding when Astrid was downcast about [[spoiler: her cheating husband.]] |
| 133 | * ''Film/TheDebt'': Although younger than many of the other examples, Rachel (played by Creator/HelenMirren in the American version), in her fifties, is very old for the sort of spy work she's doing. |
| 134 | * Elise from ''Film/{{Insidious}}'' is an elderly [[PsychicPowers psychic]] woman dedicated to helping people, both living and dead, by contacting spirits and facing off against demons. [[spoiler: [[OurGhostsAreDifferent Not even death can stop her!]]]] |
| 135 | * Dame Creator/JudiDench, the third M after Bernard Lee and Robert Brown in the ''Film/JamesBond'' series. |
| 136 | * The ''Tyrannosaurus'' from ''Film/JurassicWorld'' has returned after a 22-year absence. Even though her aging is clear, she is still able to kick the ''I. rex's'' ass all around the place. With help from [[RaptorAttack Blue]] the ''Velociraptor''. |
| 137 | * Maggie's grandmother from ''Film/TheLastStarfighter'' is a sassy flirt who spends her days listening to modern rock music on her headphones, and makes Maggie and Alex look stodgy by comparison. |
| 138 | * ''Film/TheLavenderHillMob:'' One of Holland and Pendlebury's neighbors is a demure-looking older woman whose favorite conversation topic is the plots of the pulp crime novels she reads. |
| 139 | * Greta, Fletcher's secretary in ''Film/LiarLiar''. She knows the perfect presents to get for Fletcher's son (since Fletcher is too flaky to remember) and despite her kindly old woman appearance, she doesn't take crap from her boss and has an impressive level of sass and snarkery as one would need working with a character played by Jim Carrey. |
| 140 | -->'''Fletcher''': I'll give you the raise! |
| 141 | -->'''Greta''': Here's your raise! ''[flips the bird]'' |
| 142 | * Napoleon's Grandmother from ''Film/NapoleonDynamite'', she sneaks off from "babysitting" her grown (late teens/late twenties or early thirties) grand-children to ride sand dunes on a quad-bike with her friends. Interesting because her grandsons have no idea and are shy and reclusive by nature. |
| 143 | ** This gets carried over into the animated series where she's keenly aware that being an old lady grants her permission to say any offensive thing she likes and people will just think she's being a "character". |
| 144 | * Mrs. Henderson in ''Film/{{Norbit}}'' [[TookALevelInBadass becomes this]] towards the end in [[NeverMessWithGranny taking part in the town's revolt against the Latimores]], even if she proves to be no match as well. |
| 145 | -->[[LetsGetDangerous "BRING IT, BITCHES!"]] |
| 146 | * ''Film/RickiAndTheFlash'' plays this for drama. The protagonist is a fifty-something woman who fronts a rock band. As she abandoned her family to pursue her dreams, she faces constant conflict over not being what society thinks she should be. |
| 147 | * ''Film/SoulFood'''s Mama Joe definitely counts. Sweet and stern while being non-confrontational. Hell, she doesn't even mind when her daughter sneaks away from the kitchen to have sex with her husband! |
| 148 | [[/folder]] |
| 149 | |
| 150 | [[folder:Literature]] |
| 151 | * ''Literature/TwentySixSixtySix'': Mrs. Bubis, [[spoiler: aka Baroness Von Zumpe and one of the few people to know Archimboldi's real identity.]] |
| 152 | * ''Literature/TheAnderssons'' by Solveig Olsson-Hultgren: |
| 153 | ** Ida Sofia is this to her grand-niece Cecilia, who will come and visit her and borrow books from her. |
| 154 | ** Elin will end up being a huge inspiration for her grand-niece Saga. She's also there to help and support Nina, another grand-niece. And she's tough enough to still live at her homestead until she's 100 years old. |
| 155 | * Margaret's paternal Jewish grandmother Sylvia Simon in Creator/JudyBlume's ''Literature/AreYouThereGodItsMeMargaret'' is a mild example. She gives Margaret frequent presents, takes her many places, pays for her summer camp (and paid for her private school until she moved), and only occasionally insists that's she's really Jewish. For comparison, her breifly seen Christian maternal grandmother Mary Hutchins is a rather dowdy old woman; she and her husband Paul visit (and ruin Margaret's spring break trip to Florida to visit Sylvia by coming at all) only because the two are taking a trip to New York anyway, and makes a point of wearing a huge cross ''and'' insisting that Margaret is Christian because her daughter Barbara was raised Christian and "religion goes through the mother." |
| 156 | * Lady Barbara Booker in ''[[Literature/AuntDimity Aunt Dimity and the Lost Prince]]''. She declines the use of her title, saying, "I've never been much of a lady." She is openly atheist and spent much of her life travelling wherever she pleased. In her old age, she disregards doctor's orders to be in a room with her books (too dusty) and a fire (too ashy). Inviting Lori and Bree in, she says, "Bung your bags and jackets there and bung your bums anywhere you please." After that, she gives them inside dope on how to enter the Markov house (Mirfield) as well as a master key she persuaded a young Mikhail to steal when they were children. |
| 157 | * In ''Literature/ABadCaseOfStripes'', there's the old woman who helps Camilla. She's the only one who knows the cure for stripes and has dealt with cases in the past. |
| 158 | * ''Literature/BetweenHeavenAndEarth'' has Doris, an elderly widow who came to Africa to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro. Part of what counts her for this trope is that she's nice to [[TheProtagonist DJ]] and Sarah, and thinking the other porters and Mr. Odogo should be nicer to them. |
| 159 | * Mrs. Bobson from Eliot Fintushel's ''Literature/BreakfastWithTheOnesYouLove.'' She seems to be a sweet, naive Bing Crosby-loving old lady at first, but it turns out that she knows what the protagonist and her drug-dealing occultist boyfriend have been up to all along. She also [[spoiler: turns out to have psychic powers similar to the main character, but she's much more powerful and experienced. She takes down three tough Mafia enforcers singlehandedly and keeps them imprisoned in her basement, and ends up saving the day at the climax of the book by defeating Satan himself.]] When other characters are surprised by her actions, she implies that she has done many other frightening and astonishing things in the past. However, after the climax, she seems to want to give up being a badass and set up a cozy little family with the main character as a substitute for her deceased daughter. |
| 160 | * In R.S. Belcher's ''Literature/TheBrotherhoodOfTheWheel'', Agnes Dee Cottington is a kindly woman in her 80s. She was also a member of the British Intelligence after World War 2 and she saves 19 year old Ava James from HumanoidAbomination [[LivingShadow Shadow People]] with a Mauser and some tracer bullets. Agnes has also been, for decades, a thorn in side of Pagan (a supernatural serial killer), henchmen families like [[TheRenfield the Scodes]] and their deity, the Horned Man. |
| 161 | * Gros-Jeanne, the protagonist's grandmother in ''Literature/BrownGirlInTheRing''. She's a healer, an expert on herbal and supernatural lore, and not somebody you want to mess with. |
| 162 | * In book nine of the ''Literature/CaptainUnderpants'' series, George thinks his great-grandmother is one even ''before'' she accidentally gets superpowers. And after she ''does'', she ends up defeating the villain alongside Harold's grandpa, a CoolOldGuy. |
| 163 | %%* ''Literature/TheCatWhoSeries'': Fanny Klingenschoen, Qwill's mother's best friend, who leaves him her millions. |
| 164 | * Imogen Herondale from ''Literature/CityOfAshes'', her age does ''not'' stop her from being an extremely competent Shadowhunter. |
| 165 | * Santa Battaglia from ''Literature/AConfederacyOfDunces'': Definitely older (she's a grandmother -- specifically, she's Patrolman Mancuso's mom), but also extremely vivacious, insisting on remaining active (she bowls, and also dances enthusiastically) and loves herself some strong drink ([[DrinkBasedCharacterization Early Times bourbon]], in a tall glass if you please) -- not to mention the matchmaking with her younger friends (setting up [[spoiler:Irene Reilly and Claude Robichaux]]). |
| 166 | * The Starwife from the ''Literature/DeptfordMice'' trilogy is the ancient squirrel queen who possesses amazing magical powers. She also has a fiery temper and [[NeverMessWithGranny you do not want to provoke her]]. Though at times she can seem cruel, her motives are always good. |
| 167 | * Creator/DianaWynneJones wrote a couple of examples of this. Both Miss Smith in ''Literature/{{Dogsbody}}'' and Polly's grandmother in ''Literature/FireAndHemlock'' prove to be wiser and more sympathetic than other adults. Both are also very effective at getting custody of children in need. Miss Smith has the added bonus of understanding dogs very well, and Polly's grandmother knows folklore that is vital to the story. |
| 168 | * ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'': |
| 169 | ** Granny Weatherwax has defeated master vampires, [[LightIsNotGood fairy godmothers]], and ''Death himself'' (in a card game). And often, she barely even uses magic to do it - and when she does, she can [[WizardDuel duel]] an Arch-Chancellor of the Unseen University from back in the days when wizard politics involved regular KlingonPromotion into the floor. She's widely acknowledged as the single greatest Witch on the Disc for very good reason, even if other witches would never ''say'' it and she would of course refuse to acknowledge such an accolade. Her precise age is unknown (she's ''probably'' somewhere in her 70s for most of the series), but she's definitely an old lady and she's definitely cool. |
| 170 | ** Nanny Ogg, Granny's life-long best friend. She's less direct than Granny, but she's willing to walk into the Elf King's home and threaten him to get him to intervene when his Queen is running amok, and she may even be more powerful (or at least, inherently talented) than Granny. She's also TheSocialExpert on levels that border on magical, being able to winkle herself into pretty much any place or situation easily enough that Granny - who generally isn't a people person - sometimes thinks that it's a skill worth learning. And that's not even getting into the fact that she's got a vast repertoire of dirty jokes, she distils her own Moonshine, a variety of GargleBlaster known as 'Suicider', and she's got a remarkable if odd knack for languages. That is to say, she's proficient in Dwarfish and Troll, and she can provide absent minded translations off the top of her head for stuff she's overhearing, and while when she speaks anything foreign it's complete gibberish, it's ''authentically foreign'' gibberish, enough that she makes herself understood. |
| 171 | ** Topsy Lavish, nee Turvy, from ''Literature/MakingMoney'' -- the page quote is the main character (who is a very good judge of character) appraising her. And she knows exactly what he's doing when he's doing it. |
| 172 | ** Miss Flitworth from ''Literature/ReaperMan'', although too straight-laced to be "cool" in the conventional sense, is determined enough to have a certain charm of her own. The fact she's the only person in the series besides Ysabell to have smacked Death and gotten away with it probably helps. |
| 173 | * ''Literature/DorkDiaries'': Nikki's grandma, who gives Nikki the inspiring "You can be a CHICKEN or a CHAMPION" line, would likely win a lot at ''Series/ThePriceIsRight'', and can dance pretty well. |
| 174 | * ''Literature/{{Dragaera}}'': Sethra Lavode, legendary enchantress, legendary general, vampire and military nerd. She's about 200,000 years old (the average Dragaeran lives to about 2000), counting the years after her death. |
| 175 | * In ''Literature/DragonBones'', Aunt Stala is of unspecified age, has grey hair, and is armsmaster of the Blue Guard of castle Hurog. She taught the protagonist, Ward, everything he knows about fighting and strategy and is a better fighter than both his father and he, who are both known for their fighting skills. (Implicitly, the only reason she got no higher position is that she's a woman.) |
| 176 | * Most of Creator/ElizabethMoon's works contain a Cool Old Lady: |
| 177 | ** ''Literature/RemnantPopulation'' is just the story of one making [[spoiler:FirstContact]]. |
| 178 | ** The ''Literature/HerisSerranoTrilogy'' has Cecilia de Markos (who, despite being the owner of a space yacht called ''Sweet Delight'', at one point manages to pass herself off as a military spy through sheer nerve, because [[RefugeInAudacity surely she wouldn't make such a ridiculous claim if it weren't true]]. |
| 179 | ** The ''Literature/VattasWar'' series has Ky Vatta's aunt Gracie, who is a brilliant strategist, and who smuggles diamonds in her famously inedible fruitcakes. |
| 180 | * ''Literature/GangstaGranny'': Zigzagged. At first, Ben finds the granny boring, then he sees her as cool when she talks about having been an international jewel thief. [[spoiler: This turns out to be a lie, but she's still pretty cool.]] |
| 181 | * ''Literature/TheGrandmother'': The titular character is kind, gentle, wise, knowledgeable and virtuous. She devotes herself to her grandchildren, takes them places, imparts her knowledge to them, and teaches them right from wrong, all the while showing understanding for their childish behaviors. She has advice for anyone in the community and is able to intercede for young people when their life plans are thwarted by those in authority. Her backstory is also very interesting and shows that she has survived through some turbulent times herself. |
| 182 | * ''Literature/HarryPotter'': Augusta Longbottom is described as being formidable. She has the skills to back it up. When Dawlish, who is an Auror and said to be elite, went to arrest her, she sent him running with his tail between his legs straight to St Mungo's! Plus, she participated in the Battle of Hogwarts. She is seen running very quickly ''into'' the battle. |
| 183 | * ''Literature/HeartInHand'': Alex's mother, former Olympics gold medalist in basketball, beats current NHL players soundly at a game of backyard basketball and is fiercely supportive of Alex when [[spoiler:the photograph of him kissing another man is leaked]]. |
| 184 | * In ''Literature/{{Heidi}}'', Klara's grandmother who is really young in spirit and greatly respected by everybody. She's wonderful to Klara and Heidi. It was she who convinced Heidi that reading is not as hard as Peter told her and that it can bring her many pleasures. |
| 185 | * There are some in the ''Literature/HeraldsOfValdemar'' series. Tarma and Kethry, the heroines of the Vows and Honor books, get to be this while mentoring Kethry's granddaughter Kerowyn. There's also [[CoolSword Need]] once she's awake, who was an old swordsmith-mage in life. Awake, Need has a cynical JerkassFacade but cares deeply about people. |
| 186 | * Ruth, Thom Creed's [[PsychicPowers precog]] teammate in Perry Moore's novel ''Literature/{{Hero}}''. |
| 187 | * Greasy Sae from ''Literature/TheHungerGames''. Katniss likes her enough, and she seems pretty alright, despite her odd choices in cooking ingredients. |
| 188 | * ''Literature/IntruderInTheDust'': The septuagenarian Ms. Habersham is descended from slave owners but is also one of the only people in town to defend black murder suspect Lucas Beauchamp's good name and goes as far as to sit in the jail to protect him from a lynch mob (gambling on how they WouldntHitAGirl) after the jailer flees. She is also the godmother of one of Lucas's children. |
| 189 | * Maggie Calloway, in Geoph Essex's ''Jackrabbit Messiah'', is a [[NeverMessWithGranny badass]] LadyOfAdventure from [[ReallySevenHundredYearsOld way back]] who serves as the de facto [[TheLeader leader]] of the heroes. Her reaction when another character points out she's been shot? |
| 190 | -->"Not for the first time...For that matter, this isn't even my first ''hip''. I was due for an upgrade." |
| 191 | ** There's also Lieutenant Springer: nowhere near as old as Maggie, but a phenomenal [[PintSizedPowerhouse badass]] in her own right. |
| 192 | * Nettie's Ma in the ''Literature/KnightAndRogueSeries'', a swamp-dwelling energetic older woman who helps [[BreakTheCutie put Michael back together]] after he gets dragged through a TraumaCongaLine and volunteers to distract a known killer so the main characters get evidence on him. |
| 193 | * Lady Callahan from ''[[Literature/CallahansCrosstimeSaloon Lady Slings The Booze]]'' dabbles in this but she's a trope in herself. She's also a Madam (but 'free will' is paramount) and one of her 'girls' is a grandmother. |
| 194 | * ''Literature/LegendsAndLattes'': The Madrigal is an AffablyEvil and quite proper old lady who runs a gang and a ProtectionRacket--but respects Viv's business savvy and realizes that her newfangled coffee shop is improving the quality of the Madrigal's territory, so she backs off from shaking Viv down and negotiates payment in pastries instead. |
| 195 | * {{Lampshaded}} aversion in ''Literature/LittleWomen'': "Some old people keep young at heart in spite of wrinkles and grey hair, can sympathize with children's little cares and joys, make them feel at home and can hide wise lessons under pleasant plays, giving and receiving friendship in the sweetest way. [[{{Dissimile}} But Aunt March had not this gift]]." |
| 196 | * ''Literature/LordPeterWimsey'': |
| 197 | ** The Dowager Duchess, especially in contrast to her stick-in-the-mud daughter-in-law, Helen, Duchess of Denver. Inspector Parker, her future son-in-law, says of her, "Time and trouble will tame an advanced young woman, but an advanced old woman can't be stopped by Heaven itself." |
| 198 | ** [[PosthumousCharacter We never meet]] Lady Dormer in "The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club", but everyone who knew her remembers her fondly because she still had the same impulsive, fun-loving personality as when she was a SpiritedYoungLady. |
| 199 | * Annie Jason Masmajean, "Mama Jason" to her family, the protagonist of ''Literature/{{Mirabile}}''. |
| 200 | * Literature/MissMarple always has a story about something really bad happening in her home village to illustrate why she knows who the murderer has to be. She usually recounts these horrific events to the astonishment of her listeners who never dreamed things like that happen in the backwaters of the country. |
| 201 | * ''Literature/TheMouseWatch'' upgrades Gadget Hackwrench from the GadgeteerGenius of ''WesternAnimation/ChipNDaleRescueRangers'' into the UsefulNotes/SteveJobs or Elon Musk of mice, not to mention the creator of the titular HeroesRUs team. And while it's uncertain how old she's supposed to be here, when we finally see her she's wearing bifocals. |
| 202 | * In ''Literature/OneOfUsIsLying'', Cooper's grandmother is one of these. Warm, loving and matter-of-fact, it's strongly implied [[spoiler: she knew Cooper is gay before he was ready to admit it, encouraging but not forcing him to be honest about it]]. When [[spoiler: the investigation forces him to come out to his family]], she's there for him both during and after. |
| 203 | * The title character in Creator/DorothyGilman's ''Literature/MrsPollifax'' series. A sweet if somewhat shrewd little old lady who raises flowers, plays bridge, fusses over the grandkids and generally potters around -- in between doing courier work for the CIA. |
| 204 | * Julia from ''Literature/ThisPerfectDay''. Sister of the dictator of a prison island, she subverts his repressive social policies with philanthropy. Then she finances multiple covert strike teams to attack and destroy the supercomputer that rules the rest of the world, supporting the widows and orphans when they fail. |
| 205 | * Ms. Fortier from ''Literature/ProudPinkSky'' perfectly fits the trope, guiding protagonist Cissie through the world's first gay state. |
| 206 | * "General" Anna of ''Literature/ThePushcartWar'' is an outwardly unassuming old lady who takes to the war against the trucks readily (hence her nickname), racking up an impressive tire-popping record herself despite being unable to shoot a peashooter and sticking the pushpins into the tires by hand. |
| 207 | * The ''Literature/RainbowMagic'' series has Mrs. Croft, who gets the girls parts as extras in a movie. |
| 208 | * Aunt Zelda from ''Literature/SeptimusHeap'', being the Keeper of Draggen Island. |
| 209 | * Fawn's elderly blind Aunt Nattie from ''Literature/TheSharingKnife'' books embodies this trope in addition to being the only member of the household that understands the misfit only daughter. For that matter, Dag's [[OlderThanTheyLook considerably-more-elderly-but-does-not-look-it]] Aunt Mari skirts this trope. |
| 210 | * Rain from ''Literature/{{Schooled}}'' plays it straight with Cap, her grandson. An old hippy, she's instructed him everything from social justice to farming. To everyone else, she's a bit of a subversion. Flora, who grew up in Garland, thought she was a tyrant and resents her for not teaching her about the real world. |
| 211 | * Olenna Tyrell, more commonly known as "[[ScrewPolitenessImASenior The Queen of Thorns]]," from ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire''. To the point of [[spoiler:personally assassinating one of the series' most odious characters and completely escaping blame.]] |
| 212 | * In the ''Literature/StephaniePlum'' series, Stephanie's maternal grandmother, Grandma Mazur, drives her rather more conventional daughter up the wall, but nearly every other character thinks she's hilarious (except possibly her son-in-law). We've seen her take on trying to be a bounty hunter, riding a motorcycle, joining a rock band (that also includes a retired hooker and a transvestite), and taking up taxidermy, among other antics. Grandma apparently does not buy into the concept of one's "golden years" being quiet and peaceful. She's partly based on a genuine bounty-hunting grandmother the series' author, Janet Evanovich, met during her research. |
| 213 | * In ''Literature/TalesOfTheCity'', there is Anna Madrigal, MamaBear of 28 Barbary Lane, who hands out free joints to her tenants, is willing to overlook the occasional late rent, and always seems to know how to fix everyone's problems. |
| 214 | * ''Literature/ThursdayNext'' has two of these. A beloved great-aunt whose favorite hobbies are tormenting telemarketers and helping her husband build devices that defy the laws of physics. Then there's Grannie Next who is a whole different level of trouble on her own. For starters, just which side of the family is she from? |
| 215 | * The grandmother from ''Literature/TheWitches'', a cigar-smoking retired [[HunterOfMonsters monster-hunter]]. |
| 216 | * In ''Literature/TheWonderfulAdventuresOfNils'', Akka of Kebnekaise -the old female goose-, is a smart and competent leader of her flock. Not to mention she raised an eagle chick when she was younger. |
| 217 | [[/folder]] |
| 218 | |
| 219 | [[folder:Live-Action TV]] |
| 220 | %%!!!'''By Network:''' |
| 221 | %%* On Creator/FoodNetwork, Ina Garten could be considered one, although she isn't exactly "old", more like middle-aged. |
| 222 | %%!!!'''By Series:''' |
| 223 | * ''Series/AsTimeGoesBy'': Madge, who sings country music, goes bungee-jumping, protests fox hunting, and plays the drums, all in her early eighties. |
| 224 | * ''Series/AwkwafinaIsNoraFromQueens'': Nora's grandmother is the foundation of the family and the funniest character in the show according to most fans. |
| 225 | * ''Series/{{Battlestar Galactica|2003}}'': President Laura Roslin certainly qualifies. Knowing that a) her job is literally the survival of the human species and b) her knowing she was living on borrowed time for the entire series, Roslin can have all the credit for Cool Old Ladydom she wants. |
| 226 | * ''Series/BetterThings'': Phyllis, even if she gets on her daughter Sam's nerves frequently, is really laidback, free-spirited and uninhibited. All her granddaughters adore her, even if she embarrasses them sometimes too. |
| 227 | * ''Series/TheBrokenwoodMysteries'': Kindly old lady Jean Marlowe is a fan of classic rock and extreme sports, in addition to her more typical grandmotherly interests like sewing and baking. |
| 228 | * ''Series/BurnNotice'': Madeline Westen has moments of these. She made a terrorist hijacker's pilot more terrified of her than he was of his employer. |
| 229 | * ''Series/{{Castle|2009}}'': Castle's mother, a.k.a Alexis' grandmother, Martha Rodgers is still leading the good life. She's an actress. |
| 230 | * ''Series/DoctorWho'': |
| 231 | ** There were three during the Tom Baker era: Amelia Ducat in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS13E6TheSeedsOfDoom "The Seeds of Doom"]] (who went undercover into Harrison Chase's mansion to check on the Doctor & Sarah Jane), Mrs. Tyler (no relation to Rose Tyler) in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS15E3ImageOfTheFendahl "Image of the Fendahl"]] (who used her psychic abilities to help the Doctor & Leela), and Amelia Rumford in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS16E3TheStonesOfBlood "The Stones of Blood"]] (who helped the Doctor against Cessair of Diplos). |
| 232 | ** From the [[Franchise/DoctorWhoExpandedUniverse Expanded Universe]], Dr. Evelyn Smythe [[spoiler:(later Evelyn Rossiter)]]. Facing against Six's ego-trips and ''winning''? Give the woman a medal. |
| 233 | ** Sarah-Jane Smith herself proves to be this when she returns in revived series, [[Series/SarahJaneSmithAdventures having plenty of adventures of her own]] and more than holding up her end when she runs into the Doctor from time to time. Of all the companions, the only one who matches the way she stepped out of the Doctor's shadow in her own right is [[{{Series/Torchwood}} Captain Jack Harkness]] - plus he was a trained badass Time Agent even before he a) joined the TARDIS, b) left the TARDIS as an immortal. She even got her own sonic lipstick, and her own selection of companions, and a son. It didn't hurt that she aged well, too: [[SilverVixen "May I say, looking good, ma'am?"]] |
| 234 | ** [[Recap/DoctorWhoS30E16TheWatersOfMars "The Waters of Mars"]]: Captain Adelaide Brooke is a ReasonableAuthorityFigure who isn't intimidated by the Doctor even when he ends up temporarily going off the deep end. |
| 235 | * ''Series/DowntonAbbey'': Violet Crawley, Dowager Countess of Grantham, can [[DeadpanSnarker snark]] with the best of them and tends to have the [[OlderAndWiser wisest]] outlook in the family. Also, despite her rigidly traditional mindset, she has proved surprisingly progressive and adaptable on numerous occasions, making younger generations see her differently than they might have before. |
| 236 | * ''Series/{{Everwood}}'': Edna rides a motorbike, her granddaughter adores her and even moves in for a while, and she acts as a great (grand)mother figure to Delia. |
| 237 | * ''Series/FamilyMatters'': Estelle Winslow. She manages to use the young people slang of the 1990s without any awkwardness, had a ''very'' active sex life (much to her son's chagrin), was physically active, and quite often ended up serving as the voice of reason in the family. |
| 238 | * ''Series/{{Farscape}}'': Noranti becomes one of these in the last season. She starts out seeming a bit sinister but really she's just trying to do the right thing. Her coolness mostly stems from her willingness to do crazy things like dance naked (while disguised as a sexy young woman) to distract guards from the rest of the team and her genuine desire to take care of the crew on Moya. |
| 239 | * ''Series/TheFlipsideOfDominickHide'': Dominick's Great Aunt Mavis, who is pretty much the reason Dominick sets off in his quest and is also the one who first recognises the change in him when he starts arguing back over stuff. People in the 22nd Century never argue. At best, they express mild discontent. |
| 240 | * ''Series/GameOfThrones'': |
| 241 | ** Lady Olenna can match wits with the best of them and is ''fully'' willing to take the piss out of her own house, although never herself. She later adds a dash of BewareTheNiceOnes when she has a hand in the killing of Joffrey. [[spoiler: She eventually admits this last part to Jamie, right before she dies from the poison he offers her getting the last laugh on him ''and'' Cersei.]] |
| 242 | ** Septa Mordane was portrayed as stern and stodgy in the books, whereas in the TV show she's a more warmhearted and pleasant person, and more-or-less saved Sansa's life with her little FaceDeathWithDignity distraction act in "Baelor". |
| 243 | ** Old Nan's excellent storytelling abilities make her this; Bran is particularly entertained by her truly terrifying tales of the White Walkers. |
| 244 | * ''Series/GoodEats'': At the start of the punch episode, Alton is attending a dry wedding at some church hall, and talking about how most people today think of "punch" as a low-quality mix of cheap juice and ginger ale, with maybe some sherbet, when in actuality it can be much more than that (and that real punch utilizes alcohol.) While he's talking, a little old lady walks up to the punch bowl and pours in an entire bottle of alcohol, and starts handing out cups of her newly-made GargleBlaster to other wedding guests, including Alton. |
| 245 | * ''Series/GossipGirl'': Double subverted with Celia. Serena is excited for Dan to meet her grandmother, but she turns out to be a BitchInSheepsClothing. Then when she reappears in Season 2, she has had a HeelRealization and becomes a ShipperOnDeck for the two of them. |
| 246 | %%* The titular ''Series/GraceAndFrankie''. Played by Creator/JaneFonda and Creator/LilyTomlin. |
| 247 | * ''Series/TheGreatBritishBakeOff'': Mary Berry [[UsefulNotes/KnightFever CBE]], the 82-year-old undisputed grand dame of British baking with more than 75 cookbooks to her name. Despite all of which, refuses to put on haughty airs or otherwise intimidate the contestants, instead playing a supportive "everybody's favourite grandma" foil to Paul's terrifyingly perfectionist ScienceHero. |
| 248 | * ''Series/H2OJustAddWater'': Louise Chatham. Especially after admitting to the [[OurMermaidsAreDifferent girls]] that she was in the original trio of mermaids in the 1950s. |
| 249 | * ''Series/{{Heroes}}'': While a bit of a MagnificentBastard, Angela Petrelli has a bit of this. Despite threats of violence, plans blowing up in her face, and other negatives, she very seldom loses her cool. [[spoiler:Having precognition for a power tends to do that.]] |
| 250 | * ''Series/HouseOfTheDragon'': Princess Rhaenys Targaryen has elements of this. A sharp-tongued and politically savvy grandmother, she speaks her mind regardless of who's on the receiving end. She also [[{{Dragon Rider}} rides a dragon]] and looks great in both silk and armor. |
| 251 | * ''Series/IceFantasy'': Ka Suo's grandmother, who's a more formidable warrior than most immortals half her age and doesn't hesitate to rescue Xing Gui from the Fire Tribe's clutches. |
| 252 | * ''Series/TheInBESTigators'': Ezra's nana (grandmother), when she realized that her visit forced Ezra to put the agency on hold while she stayed in the granny flat (a.k.a. their office), crafted an intricate mystery for the team to solve. |
| 253 | * ''Series/ItsABigBigWorld'': Madge. She's the oldest and wisest creature in the World Tree, and the one everyone comes to when they have a problem to solve. She traveled all over the world and shares her experiences with everyone. |
| 254 | * ''Series/{{JAG}}'': Porter Webb, UsefulNotes/{{CIA}} officer Clayton Webb's mother, a former UsefulNotes/{{NSA}} analyst who is perfectly comfortable with her son's fake deaths and other cloak and dagger shenanigans. |
| 255 | * Ladies and gentlemen, the one and only Judith Sheindlin, aka. ''Series/JudgeJudy''. A familial and criminal court judge with a sharp wit and a sharper tongue who has been evaluating and mediating disputes between [[PointAndLaughShow some of the worst human garbage you'll ever see on a screen]] since 1996 -- and she was in her fifties back then. She was once named one of the toughest women on TV, and she's certainly still in the top 10 all these years later. |
| 256 | * ''Series/{{Justified}}'': |
| 257 | ** Raylan's aunt and stepmother Helen. She's witty, outspoken, and very comfortable using a shotgun on anyone who tries to intimidate her. And despite her [[LovableRogue proximity to the criminal underworld, she's one of the most moral characters in the show.]] |
| 258 | ** Mags Bennett is an evil version. She's a ruthless drug lord, sure, but she's [[AffablyEvil friendly]], witty, a great singer, and she's one of the biggest [[TheChessmaster Chessmasters]] in the series. |
| 259 | * ''Series/LizzieMcGuire'': |
| 260 | ** A possible deconstruction shows up in the episode featuring Gordo's grandmother. He previously remembers her as a conservative woman but she shows up now wearing kimonos, eating sushi and full of fun. Gordo finds this off-putting and wishes for her to be the way she used to be. |
| 261 | ** Lizzie's never seen grandmother appears to be this as well. She apparently teaches windsurfing classes, though has horrible taste in sweaters. |
| 262 | * Martha Kent was reimagined as this in ''Series/LoisAndClark''. Still as loving and nurturing as ever, this version of Ma Kent has a little more bite to her. She's witty, outspoken, and not afraid to try new things. She even once posed nude for a painting, much to Jonathan, and Clark's horror. |
| 263 | * ''Series/{{Monk}}'': A very brief one from the episode "Mr. Monk and the Man Who Shot Santa Claus". An old lady named Alice [=DuBois=] is walking home from work when a thug, who has been waiting for her, steps from the shadows with a knife. She promptly pulls pepper spray out of her purse and shoots it directly into his eyeballs, continuing to spray while he reacts with pain and even ''[[ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill tracking his eyes]]'' with the spray as he jerks around in agony. Unfortunately, the thug in question works for a gang that needs Alice dead to further their crime scheme. That is solved when Michael Kenworthy, the gang leader, comes up and bludgeons her to death with a bell. |
| 264 | * ''Series/MorkAndMindy'': Cora Hudson, Mindy's grandmother. Imagine an old lady who loved both rock music and Mork with his lovable silliness, even after she learned he is an alien. |
| 265 | * ''Series/TheMuppetShow'': A recurring act is Geri and the Atrics, a band of old ladies that play rock 'n' roll songs. |
| 266 | * ''Series/NCISLosAngeles'': |
| 267 | ** Henrietta "Hetty" Lange is about four feet tall, into her seventies, and runs a team of experts who don't even begin to question who's in charge. |
| 268 | ** While her actual age is indeterminate, Marty Deeks' mother Roberta sometimes acts more like free-wheeling hippie than anything else. When Marty and Kensi adopt an orphaned teenager, Roberta fully leans into grandma mode and gives the two parenting advice. Perhaps having an abusive husband - whom Marty killed in self-defense as a pre-teen - inspired her to live for the moment. |
| 269 | * ''Series/OnceUponATime'': Widow Lucas/Ruby's grandmother. In the fairy tale land, she puts a group of enraged villagers and hunters in their places, and she wields a crossbow with efficiency. In Storybrooke, she runs a Breakfast in Bed AND a Diner, not to mention appears to like motorcycles and still like cute guys, when she tells Emma "If you won't, I will!" When August offers Emma a ride on his motorcycle. |
| 270 | * ''Series/OnMyBlock'': Ruby's grandmother smokes marijuana, eagerly helps Jamal search for [[AMacGuffinFullOfMoney [=RollerWorld=]]], and helps the kids in their various misadventures. |
| 271 | * ''Series/OurMissBrooks'': Mrs. Davis, Miss Brooks' landlady who's a CordonBleughChef, confidant, blabbermouth, and occasional fortune teller. |
| 272 | * ''{{Series/Poldark}}'': Agatha Poldark is the most [[BrutalHonesty brutally honest]] character on the show and one of the very few characters willing to tell off George Warleggan to his face. At the same time, she always has deep compassion and sage advice for the women of the family, including niece-in-law Elizabeth. |
| 273 | * ''Series/ThePrincessWeiYoung'': Old Granny Li is over sixty, and one of the few people in the Li household who openly stands up to [[WickedStepmother Chiyun Rou]] and defends Xin Er. |
| 274 | * ''Series/RosemaryAndThyme'': The titular characters definitely count. They are wandering gardeners/detectives who are fiercely independent and unafraid to get aggressive when it's needed. |
| 275 | * ''Series/SabrinaTheTeenageWitch'': Unlike Grandma Lydia who is closer to MyBelovedSmother and Great Aunt Irma who is an EvilMatriarch, Great Grandma from "Witch Trash" is this. When Sabrina's hillbilly cousins Boyd, Racine, and Maw Maw Spellman start harassing Sabrina and her aunts to get the Magic Book, Great Grandma shows up just as Sabrina's ready to hand it over. The older woman calls out Boyd and Racine for acting like they were snubbed in her will (which is the equivalent of a garage sale to clean out clutter due to witches being practically immortal) when she gave them exactly what they requested - her entire fortune, which they promptly wasted. Great Grandma refuses to let them keep pulling NeverMyFault and orders them to deal with their problems instead of taking it out on Sabrina's family. |
| 276 | * ''Series/TheSarahJaneAdventures'': |
| 277 | ** Sarah Jane Smith, who still fights the good fight like in the old says traveling with the Doctor, though she's not as old-looking as most characters of this type. She'd be even cooler if she'd stop [[TooDumbToLive marching up to villains and telling them she knew what they were up to]]. |
| 278 | ** Former companion Jo Grant made an appearance as a thoroughly cool old lady, having traveled all over the world, experiencing new cultures and fighting more mundane battles against government corruption and such-like. |
| 279 | * ''Franchise/StarTrek'': |
| 280 | ** ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'' |
| 281 | *** Although she appears to be a middle aged woman, Guinan is several hundred years old, being able to listen to people centuries younger than her about their concerns, facing down Q, and stopping bar fights single handedly. |
| 282 | *** Lwaxanna Troi was very active for an older lady, but there is some strong evidence that she was acting rather annoying to her own daughter, Captain Picard and Worf. |
| 283 | ** ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'': |
| 284 | *** Though she doesn't look it, Jadzia Dax is the [[TheNthDoctor eighth incarnation of a 350-year-old alien]]. She's a master of hand to hand combat and an [[AcePilot expert pilot]], drinks and parties hard, [[BarBrawl likes to brawl with Klingons]], [[DeadpanSnarker snarks]] and makes dirty jokes a lot. She once destroyed an entire bar, caused [[NoodleIncident a couple of diplomatic incidents]], and thinks that spending early mornings having broken bones fixed is a healthy sex life. |
| 285 | *** Jadzia's successor Ezri Dax also looks like a young woman but she is the [[TheNthDoctor next incarnation of a 350-year-old alien]]. She's not like Curzon or Jadzia and doesn't always like the same things they did. She went to rescue Worf after the Klingon ship he was on was destroyed then endured capture by the Dominion. She does all this while intergrating all the personalities into herself, something much more difficult as Ezri never wanted to be joined and therefore did not undergo any of the training or testing that other joined Trill did before being forced to take on the Dax symbiont. |
| 286 | *** The magistrate who oversees Dax's extradition hearing in the episode "Dax" qualifies too. |
| 287 | ---->'''Magistrate''': Gentleman, I am 108 years old. I intend for this to an ''informal'' hearing. In short, I intend to be here until supper not ''senility." |
| 288 | *** Quark and Rom's mother Ishka also qualifies, having had the business acumen , or "lobes," that Quark inheritied from her while Rom inherited her husband's engineering skill and taking care of his family. Ishka is utterly unafraid of the Ferengi Commerece Authority despite their position in Ferengi society and later beings a romantic relationship with Grand Nagus Zek - using her influence to get him to institute major reforms in Ferengi society to allow females to wear clothes and transact business. |
| 289 | * ''{{Series/Tucker}}'': Deconstructed. Tucker finds his grandmother full of fun, but it's gradually shown that her abuse of Aunt Claire affects the woman so negatively that he realises what a real piece of work she is. Then Claire reprimands him for calling her out -- and the two women bond over that. He lampshades the {{Irony}} of this. |
| 290 | * ''Series/TheTwilightZone1959'': In "[[Recap/TheTwilightZone1959S5E36TheBewitchinPool The Bewitchin' Pool]]", Aunt T is a sweet, kind-hearted elderly woman who adores children and is endlessly patient with them. Her realm is a paradise for children such as Sport and Jeb Sharewood whose parents are neglectful and do not deserve them. Although the children have to do chores, they spend a great deal of their time playing and helping Aunt T to make cakes. |
| 291 | * ''Series/UglyBetty'': Claire Meade often plays this role, giving Betty and her own children valuable life advice, but she's also shown as a flawed person (TheAlcoholic, and [[spoiler:she only got acquitted of murder due to temporary insanity]]). She and Betty seem to have an [[IntergenerationalFriendship Intergenerational]] OddFriendship. |
| 292 | * ''Series/WaitingForGod'': Diana Trent, played by Stephanie Cole (who was only 50 at the time); she was a photojournalist and a war correspondent for most of her life, spent her 65th birthday hanging from a helicopter and gives everyone hell in her. |
| 293 | * ''Series/TheWestWing'': Dolores Landingham is a fine example. She routinely matches wits with the often extremely witty senior staff and is the only member of the cast never seen to be intimidated by working with the President. |
| 294 | * ''Series/WhatWouldYouDo'': This hidden camera show tests passers-by in many RippedFromTheHeadlines scenarios. Women of all ages come out of the woodwork to help in all sorts of situations in this, but older women tend to be the most forthright - and awesome - when coming to the defense of others. |
| 295 | * ''Series/WhiteCollar'': June has no problem letting Neal Caffrey, a convicted conman, live in her house, and occasionally mentions hanging around with the who's who of the 50's New York social scene. Her late husband was apparently involved in shady business as well, and when Neal works with the FBI as part of his parole deal, she occasionally helps with their operations. |
| 296 | * ''Series/YoungSheldon'': In "The Geezer Bus and a New Model for Education", Connie (age ~65) has to use the so-called Geezer Bus while her car is at the mechanic. After talking to the three other passengers (all age 80+), Connie realizes that they haven't done anything fun in a long time, and so she takes them out to the salon and to a karaoke bar. |
| 297 | [[/folder]] |
| 298 | |
| 299 | [[folder:Music]] |
| 300 | * "The Little Old Lady from Pasadena" by Music/JanAndDean. Why is she cool? Because "parked in her rickety old garage is a brand new shiny red Super Stock Dodge." And while ''most'' women her age are slowing down and embracing the role of GrannyClassic, ''she'' is out there [[DrivesLikeCrazy driving fast]] and living it up. |
| 301 | * The old lady in the audio samples of Music/{{Oasis}}'s "Fuckin' in the Bushes." The song contains several samples from ''Message to Love'' of contemporary reactions to the Isle of Wight music festival, Britain's version of Woodstock. The old lady enthusiastically supports the festival, saying, "I love it! Room for everybody here. Yes, all are welcome. Yes, indeed. I love them! Fun! Nice! Life! Youth! Beautiful! I'm all for it!" |
| 302 | [[/folder]] |
| 303 | |
| 304 | [[folder:Podcasts]] |
| 305 | * Dot Harper from ''Podcast/UnwellPodcast''. |
| 306 | [[/folder]] |
| 307 | |
| 308 | [[folder:Professional Wrestling]] |
| 309 | * Wrestling/MaeYoung, the most [[NeverMessWithGranny badass old woman ever to set foot in a wrestling ring]]. During her Attitude Era return to WWE she smoked cigars, got into a torrid sexual relationship with Wrestling/MarkHenry, and most famously got powerbombed off the elevated stage and through a table by [[Wrestling/TheDudleyBoys Bubba Ray Dudley]]. During rehearsals, Bubba Ray was hesitant about doing the spot with a woman in her late seventies, only for Mae to slap him across the face and demand ''"[[BringIt Throw me through the table,]] [[ScrewPolitenessImASenior asshole!]]"'' During her last appearance on Old School Raw in 2010, she responded to taunts from Wrestling/LayCool by demanding a match with them, [[RefugeInAudacity calling them "sluts" and "bitches" on PG TV]], and while she obviously wouldn't be able to work an actual match with them at the age of 87, she commanded so much respect from the locker room that four other girls came charging out to reinforce her, beating down the obnoxious pair and draging Layla in front of Mae for the old champion to slap her to the ground and pin her with a foot on her chest. After her passing the Wrestling/WWEMaeYoungClassic was named in her honour. |
| 310 | [[/folder]] |
| 311 | |
| 312 | [[folder:Tabletop Games]] |
| 313 | * Many elder female exalts embody that trope in ''TabletopGame/{{Exalted}}''. A special mention goes to Mnemon. She is the eldest surviving child of the Empress and although she is in the late of her life, she remains one of the most powerful sorceresses in Creation, arguably ''the'' most powerful individual Dragon-Blooded alive now that the Empress is gone, a skilled politician and manipulator, the head of a Great House, and an extremely clever and cunning person all around. It is hinted many times that there are not many things in the Realm she could ''not'' do if she wanted to, including seizing the scarlet throne, but that so many people hate her, oppose her or are shitless scared of her that it would likely drive the Realm to civil war if she did so. |
| 314 | [[/folder]] |
| 315 | |
| 316 | [[folder:Theatre]] |
| 317 | * Madame Leonora Armfeldt from ''Theatre/ALittleNightMusic'' has numbered kings among her lovers, takes no shit from her grown daughter, and has accumulated a great amount of wealth and [[DeadpanSnarker snarky wit]] over the years, both of which she shares with her granddaughter Fredrika. She's the one character who seems to always know what she's doing. |
| 318 | * Berthe, the title character's grandmother in ''Theatre/{{Pippin}}'', gets a great song about enjoying life while you can. It's [[OneSceneWonder her only scene]], but damn is it awesome. |
| 319 | [[/folder]] |
| 320 | |
| 321 | [[folder:Video Games]] |
| 322 | * Eileen the Crow of ''VideoGame/{{Bloodborne}}'' is an old Hunter who's in the same age range as Retired Hunter Djura. Yet she still kicks ass and proves it by hunting other Hunters. You can help her to kill Henryk if you want to see her in action. She's also one of the ''very'' few friendly characters in the game, giving your rookie character a pep talk in your first meeting, [[DareToBeBadass saying that it's okay to have fear but that it shouldn't stop you from slaying beasts]], and [[PetTheDog even offers you advice and a gift]]. [[spoiler:Unfortunately, her quest ends badly if you don't help her, as she goes crazy and attacks ''you'' instead, putting you on the receiving end of her abilities. Even if you avoid that path and help her, she ends up meeting her match in the Bloody Crow of Cainhurst, who subjects her to an off-screen CurbStompBattle leaving you to pick up the pieces. [[TheComputerIsACheatingBastard Good]] [[BossInMookClothing luck!]] Thankfully, if you do beat the Bloody Crow, Eileen seemingly survives and retires, but not before PassingTheTorch to you as the new Hunter of Hunters.]] |
| 323 | * ''VideoGame/Borderlands2'' brings us Grandma Flexington, who looks a lot like her grandson (that is, [[BrawnHilda large and muscular]]). She plays ECHO sims, keeps [[AirborneMooks rakk]] as pets, and once wrestled a whale-squid named Blowhole the Apocalypse. [[NeverMessWithGranny She won]]. |
| 324 | * In the video game version of ''VideoGame/TheDarkness'', one of your main contacts is your 'auntie', a dear old lady who became involved with the Mafia when she fell in love with a young 'Don'. Eventually, her resistance against the current Don, 'Uncle Paulie' becomes too obvious for him to ignore, and he sends a horde of gun-tooting {{mooks}} after her. While you are expected to do most of the killing, she's no slouch either, juggling a HandCannon with one hand while supporting herself on a cane with the other. |
| 325 | * Wynne, resident OldMaster of ''VideoGame/DragonAgeOrigins'', is a kindly old woman who appoints herself TeamMom... and is one of the most powerful mages in the land, who survived a disastrous battle and demon onslaught ''before'' joining the party. |
| 326 | ** Especially true if you give her the [[MagicKnight Arcane Warrior]] specialization and develop her spell list in the areas of [[StuffBlowingUp Fireball]]. |
| 327 | ** And unfortunately subverted if your actions turn her against the party (you have to make some really evil choices for that to happen): Wynne becomes a laughably easy enemy to dispatch. |
| 328 | * ''VideoGame/{{Evolve}}'' has Ida Lennox, a genius engineer whose response to an invasion by gigantic alien monsters was to build a MiniMecha and take the fight to them. |
| 329 | * ''Franchise/FarCry'': |
| 330 | ** Adelaide Drubman from ''VideoGame/FarCry5''. Apart from being the mother of series mainstay [[GunNut Hurk]] [[IdiotHero Drubman]] [[StoutStrength Jr.]], she's a SilverVixen with a low voice, [[AllWomenAreLustful as unapologetically sex-obsessed]] as her son, and she brings her own helicopter with heavy-artillery guns into battle against the Project at Eden's Gate. |
| 331 | ** Nana from ''VideoGame/FarCryNewDawn'' has survived the nuclear bombing of Hope County and serves as a resistance fighter for the villagers at Prosperity and is a [[ImprobableAimingSkills gifted]] FriendlySniper. |
| 332 | ** Jayma from ''VideoGame/FarCryPrimal'' is a master huntress who's lived long enough to have grey hair- an impressive feat in the prehistoric Oros Valley- and is first introduced [[TwangHello putting an arrow into a post]] right next to [[PlayerCharacter Takkar's]] hand. |
| 333 | * Niime from ''VideoGame/FireEmblemTheBindingBlade'' is a caustic, powerful druid famous throughout Elibe as the [[HermitGuru "Hermit on the Mountain"]] and, according to supports in [[VideoGame/FireEmblemTheBlazingBlade the prequel]], wrote a book on dark magic so high-quality that [[GentlemanAndAScholar the very well-read Pent]] is shocked by its existence. Gameplay-wise, she starts out with an A in both dark magic and staves as well as a whopping 21 in Magic, which is helpful considering she wields the hardest-hitting magic type in the game. |
| 334 | * Obaba from ''VideoGame/GoldenSunTheLostAge'' takes time out from nagging her grandson and [[CutenessProximity cooing over her great grandson]] to [[NeverMessWithGranny pick a fight with the player characters on behalf of her family]]... and then she finds out that our heroes were in the right, apologizes for the inconvenience (because she can tell her giant seemingly-invincible fire salamander only ''inconvenienced'' them), and [[TheBlacksmith helps them reforge a legendary artifact]]. [[spoiler: She returns to help you more in ''Dark Dawn'', taking over ItemCrafting... in a darkened city menaced by superpowered monsters, which she refused to evacuate with everybody else. Forget TooCoolToLive, this lady's just too awesome to die!]] |
| 335 | * Auntie Poulet from ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAuto:ViceCity'' is an 86 years old woman who is the leader of the Haitian gang, and uses voodoo magic to put Tommy in a trance in order to work for her. For a series with so few old powerful people, Auntie Poulet really stands out. |
| 336 | * Amelia's great-aunt Esme from ''VideoGame/LoveAndPies'' may be a kooky, [[DirtyOldWoman dirty-minded]] FortuneTeller who used to be a circus performer, but she's happy to help fix up the café after her van crashes into it. Her old age also doesn't stop her from [[GamerChick playing online games]] such as ''[[FictionalVideoGame Battle Dwarves]]'' with Kate. |
| 337 | * From ''VideoGame/MassEffect2'': ''Matriarch'' Aethyta, the bartender on Ilium, who is about a millennium old, extremely {{dirty|OldWoman}}, and just full of interesting stories. Usually, matriarchs serve as honored advisors back on the Asari homeworld. Nobody listened to Aethyta's advice (apparently they "laughed the blue off her ass"), so she left. It's too bad because the advice (like designing their own [[PortalNetwork mass relays]]) was ''remarkably'' good in hindsight. It also turns out she's [[spoiler:Liara's [[OneGenderRace father.]]]] |
| 338 | ** Like most Asari, she is [[BizarreAlienReproduction half-alien]]. In her case, half-[[spoiler: [[BloodKnight Krogan]]]]. Which makes [[spoiler:Liara quarter-Krogan, and [[TookALevelInBadass actually explains quite a lot]]]]. |
| 339 | ** Also Dr. Chakwas, particularly after a little Serrice Ice Brandy. |
| 340 | ** Samara, to some degree. Rather than settle down in her older years, she instead dedicates her life to bringing justice to the galaxy and hunting down her sociopathic murdering daughter. Despite this and her powerful biotics, she's a very peaceful person, never showing even the slightest hint of being angry or unsettled. |
| 341 | * EVA "Big Mama" of ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid4GunsOfThePatriots'': Even at age 78 she still rides her motorbike like hell and leads her own private army from the front. And she's the only known person who did Big Boss. |
| 342 | * Ana Amari from ''VideoGame/{{Overwatch}}'' was not only one of the founding members of the titular organization decades ago, but she's also still fighting well into her 60s [[BadassFamily alongside her daughter, Pharah.]] Not even a sniper shot ''[[EyeScream to the eye]]'' was able to put her into more than a TenMinuteRetirement. While she's a support hero, her arsenal comes equipped with a sniper rifle that doubles as a HealingShiv, allowing her to both shoot down enemies and heal her teammates from a distance. |
| 343 | * ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'': Any of the trainer classes depicted as old ladies are still competent Pokémon Trainers. Special mention goes to [[VideoGame/PokemonRedAndBlue Agatha]], [[VideoGame/PokemonDiamondAndPearl Bertha]] and [[VideoGame/PokemonXAndY Drasna]], who are all members of the ''Elite Four.'' Drasna even uses Dragon-types, to boot. |
| 344 | * In ''VideoGame/PotionPermit'', Opalheart may be getting on with her years, but she didn't become a legendary blacksmith for nothing. Many other residents come to her for her expert smithing, and she's training her daughter Runeheart to be the next in line for her shop. |
| 345 | * ''VideoGame/SurvivorFire'': Zigzagged for the grandmother. She makes good brownies but lets them burn and accidentally starts the fire. However, she links to a fire safety website at the end of the game. |
| 346 | * The PlayerCharacter Tiger Bai from ''VideoGame/{{Tradewinds}} Legends''. |
| 347 | -->'''CaptainsLog''': Fought [[KrakenAndLeviathan kraken]]. [[BondOneLiner Looking for good calamari recipe]]. |
| 348 | * ''VideoGame/TelepathTactics'' has Scarlet Etolie, a retired [[HorseOfADifferentColor mantis]] knight. She still has a strong sense of duty and honor -- [[KnightTemplar at times too strong]] -- and is one of your [[StoneWall toughest]] and most reliable party members despite her gray hair. |
| 349 | * In ''VideoGame/AWitchsTale'', Babayaga helps Liddell out, gives her advice, and sells potions and items. |
| 350 | [[/folder]] |
| 351 | |
| 352 | [[folder:Webcomics]] |
| 353 | * In ''Webcomic/BoyAndDog'', Rowan thinks his grandmother Vickie is cool because she gives him candy. |
| 354 | * ''Webcomic/TheContinentals'': In the steampunk mystery/adventure The Continentals both Dame Victoria Ellesworth Poole is the coolest Gran'Mama in 19th century England. Find it [[http://www.theduckwebcomics.com/The_Continentals here]]. |
| 355 | * ''Webcomic/GirlGenius'': Mamma Gkika. Besides helping "her boyz" out in times of distress, she's a Jaegergeneral herself. As for how old she is- [[http://girlgenius.wikia.com/wiki/Mamma_Gkika/ tch,dot's an impolite qvestion.]] |
| 356 | * ''Webcomic/GrandmotherBeetroot'': The titular old lady is a strange [[FunnyAnimal humanoid borzoi woman]] who may look {{creepy|good}}, but is a very nice and kind soul who gives little stick-dolls to children in exchange for beets (her TrademarkFavoriteFood), and will gladly help you out with whatever problems you may have, even if her methods may seem sinister at first (such as giving a man [[EyeScream a tincture that burned his eyes]] to help him see his wife's beauty; only his wife's apron could wipe away the tincture and stop the burning, causing the man to quickly realize that he married a wonderful woman). That said, you should BewareTheNiceOnes, as [[DomesticAbuse one abusive husband]] found out when Granny Beets used her magic to disguise herself as his wife; after one demeaning comment too many, [[ImAHumanitarian he got himself devoured]], [[AssholeVictim though he certainly deserved it]]. |
| 357 | %%* ''Webcomic/{{Homestuck}}'': [[AlternateUniverse Post-Scratch]] [[LaResistance Jade Harley]] counts, as does [[SupremeChef Nanna]][[OurGhostsAreDifferent sprite]]. |
| 358 | * ''Webcomic/TheInexplicableAdventuresOfBob'': Abigail Primrose She's an ex-schoolteacher, and now Generictown's sweet little old recluse. Most of her best friends are [[OurDragonsAreDifferent dragons]] [[RecycledInSpace from space]] and she owns her own ''Anime/BubblegumCrisis''-styled PoweredArmor. |
| 359 | * Mrs. N. the OCStandIn for [[Franchise/PiratesOfTheCaribbean James Norrington's]] mother in ''Webcomic/{{Roommates}}''. [[TheGadfly Trolls]] / [[InterspeciesRomance romances]] [[TheFairFolk immortals]] (or at least the Erlkönig), gives [[IfYouEverDoAnythingToHurtHer shovel talks]], knows all, sees all, ''dares all'', [[BreakingTheFourthWall breaks the fourth wall]] (OK. That isn't such a [[MediumAwareness big]] [[NoFourthWall thing]] here...) and can still appear as the proper Irish lady. |
| 360 | * ''Webcomic/QuestionableContent'': While on the young end of this trope, Mrs. Augustus is a happy empty-nester who plays ShipperOnDeck for her children, practices bass guitar, uses the odd bit of marijuana, and hooks up with a college-age man who LikesOlderWomen. [[spoiler:From what's been said about her ex-husband, there are hints that she's unwinding after leaving a very unhappy relationship.]] |
| 361 | -->'''Clinton:''' [[https://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=3718 My mom gets 2am booty calls. My mom is cooler than me]]. |
| 362 | * ''Webcomic/Rain2010'': In the "Chapter C" [[BonusMaterial bonus chapter]], Rudy and Maria are revealed to have a supportive, laidback, and sassy grandma. |
| 363 | * In ''Webcomic/WithoutMoonlight'' Grandma Pelagia is a tough old lady who by virtue of being Basil's grandmother, is a grandmother to all the kids he is protecting too. |
| 364 | * ''{{Webcomic/Zukahnaut}}'''s Nanma once [[http://zukahnaut.com/2013/06/15/032-motorthreads/ rubbed elbows with the biggest rock stars in the world.]] Now she lives [[http://one-shots.zukahnaut.com/comic/036-fearless/ without fear]] in a world that falls further into chaos every day. |
| 365 | * ''WebComic/PocketPrincesses'': Leia is old enough to be the mother or, in some cases, grandmother to the rest of the cast, but still effortlessly participates in all their hijinks and can sling both blasters and snark with the best of them. |
| 366 | [[/folder]] |
| 367 | |
| 368 | [[folder:Web Original]] |
| 369 | * [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CtIgmFqnSvs Dr. Collins,]] may have seem to be a fairly [[GrannyClassic classic granny.]] But with over 4528 subscribers... Yeah. She was full of good advice to. |
| 370 | * Team [[http://www.grannystrike.com GrannyStrike]], a knitting circle turned ''VideoGame/CounterStrike'' club. An interview video with a member claims that young people should not play ''VideoGame/CounterStrike''... because they cheat and use aimbots. |
| 371 | * [[https://www.youtube.com/user/smillasmum Food4dogs]], a gaming [=YouTuber=] specializing in [=JRPGs=], visual novels, and other genres popular with OccidentalOtaku. She's shown to be incredibly knowledgeable about the history of various niche game franchises, even though she started gaming much later in life than most. |
| 372 | * Similarly, there's [[https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzkY7wa8Ksxv4M5NyUYgTmA Shirley Curry]] AKA "[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsVSkyrim Skyrim Grandma]]". [[FandomVIP Bethesda even confirmed they are going to include her as an NPC in the next Elder Scrolls game!]] |
| 373 | * [[Literature/WhateleyUniverse Elizabeth Carson]] is in her 70s ([[OlderThanTheyLook but doesn't look it]]), and is also a part-time superheroine, capable of taking on one of the world's top-ranked supervillains in a fight, and the headmistress of a school for mutants. |
| 374 | * ''Webanimation/{{RWBY}}'' has Maria Calavera, a short lady with mechanical eyes who is a voice of reason, [[NervesOfSteel keeps herself calm in terrible situations]], offers helpful lessons to the protagonist, [[AcePilot flies an airship with expertise]], and has a sassy personality that doesn't take crap from anyone. As a bonus, she was the greatest Huntress in all the land prior to being blinded in combat and thus forced to retirehide. |
| 375 | * Nancy [=McGunnel=] in WebOriginal/SeventeenThousandSevenHundredSeventySix was in her seventies when humanity stopped aging. When we first see her, she's playing football. Carrying the ball through the state of Nebraska (which acts as the field). And uses a tornado to gain competitive advantage. |
| 376 | * ''Literature/BritsuneGarden'' has Queen Lilie, an eccentric and fun-loving corgi gijinka in her 70s who is pretty articulate and active for someone her age, though she is half this trope and half of a GrannyClassic [[note]] Yes, she's ''that'' eccentric. [[/note]]. However, she tends to show this trope's side more, and she has shown that she is fond of modern culture in many ways, including some casual language she spoke in (such as when she uttered "Yeah!"). |
| 377 | [[/folder]] |
| 378 | |
| 379 | [[folder:Western Animation]] |
| 380 | * ''WesternAnimation/AdventuresOfTheGalaxyRangers'': Had a fondness for this trope, starting with [[WitchDoctor village shaman]] Mistwalker, who used her knowledge of the [[DeathWorld local flora and fauna]] to make an invading gang of criminals very sorry. Second was Arizona [=McGee=], a blowtorch-wielding sculptor who made statues of giant bugs and cold-cocked a crook half her age. Lastly, there was Ariel, Niko's mentor. A cheerful trickster, she turned the tables on SealedEvilInACan several times over, culminating in paraphrasing Sun Tzu and blasting it with all she had. |
| 381 | * ''WesternAnimation/TheAdventuresOfPaddington'': Mrs. Bird, who lives with the Brown family, is a mentor of sorts to the family, including Paddington himself. |
| 382 | * ''WesternAnimation/{{Amphibia}}'' |
| 383 | ** Sadie Croaker appears to be your typical sweet old lady, but don't let that fool you; in her past, she was a spy for the Amphibian government and still retains a lot of her skills, [[spoiler: enough to serve as the field commander for the Resistance in season 3.]] |
| 384 | ** Hop-Pop's girlfriend Sylvia Sundew is no slouch in a fight herself, capable of throwing down with the giant monsters that roam Amphibia despite her age. |
| 385 | -->'''Sylvia:''' Get back to the briny depths of filth where you belong, you son of a sea slug!\ |
| 386 | '''Anne:''' Wow, HP. That's a ''lot'' of woman.\ |
| 387 | '''Hop Pop:''': Heh heh. Don't I know it. |
| 388 | * ''WesternAnimation/AngelaAnaconda'': Angela's grandmother. She's so wild even Angela is unnerved by her...and it's implied that this is Angela's [[GenerationXerox future.]] |
| 389 | * ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'': About the only thing that changed for [[LittleMissBadass Toph]] between the original series and ''WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfKorra'' is that she's now 85 and not twelve; her [[HairstyleInertia hair]], [[LimitedWardrobe outfit]], and [[BoisterousBruiser personality]] are all still intact. |
| 390 | -->'''Korra:''' You were tossing me around like a ragdoll...\ |
| 391 | '''Toph:''' ''I know!'' And I'm an old lady! Imagine me in my prime... I would have ''DESTROYED'' you! |
| 392 | * ''WesternAnimation/AtomicBetty'': Betty's grandmother Beatrixo, a former Galactic Guardian. |
| 393 | * ''WesternAnimation/BigCityGreens'': Alice Green definitely fits the bill. Although there are a few times that show off her true age, she’s just as active and adventurous as the rest of her family. One time, Alice passed a health exam with flying colors, and the doctor was so impressed that he decided to hang the records up on his wall. |
| 394 | * ''WesternAnimation/DannyPhantom'': Sam's grandmother thinks her parents are a little hard on her, so she lets the girl out when they've grounded her and is usually the first to defend her actions, having been a non-conformist herself during her youth. It's no surprise that Sam gets along better with her than her parents. |
| 395 | * ''WesternAnimation/{{Daria}}'': Aunt Amy, while not "old" in the usual sense, is a splitting older image of the titular character with a more laid back personality. Understandably, she is the most beloved of Daria's relatives and a fan favourite. |
| 396 | * ''WesternAnimation/DaveyAndGoliath'': Davey's Grandma in the EasterSpecial "Happy Easter" definitely counts, going as far as to help Davey perfect his baseball skills. [[spoiler: No wonder Davey was so depressed when she died later in the episode.]] |
| 397 | * ''WesternAnimation/DennisTheMenace'': In the episode, "So Sorry!", Mr. Wilson gets roped into a Sumo wrestling match after he is stripped down to his underwear, due to Dennis getting his clothes wet chasing after a kite that snagged his wallet. Mr. Wilson loses, but when Mrs. Wilson finds out from Dennis, she single-handedly defeats the Sumo Wrestler and wins the championship Sumo wrestling belt. |
| 398 | -->'''Mr. Wilson:''' I'd better watch myself with her. |
| 399 | * ''WesternAnimation/{{Doug}}'': Doug's Grandma Opal from "Doug on the Wild Side" may have odd taste in fashionable gifts, but she rides a motorcycle (and shows off family photos to a scary, leather-clad biker, [[BruiserWithASoftCenter who responds in kind]]), encourages Doug to try sushi, and gives him advice on how to talk to Patti when he's feeling shy. Doug starts out wishing she was more of a GrannyClassic but eventually comes to appreciate her for who she is. |
| 400 | * ''WesternAnimation/HeyArnold'': Arnold's grandmother is a mix of this and {{Cloudcuckoolander}}. |
| 401 | * ''WesternAnimation/TheJetsons'': Rosey can be seen as a robot version of this trope, especially in her debut episode where she plays football with Elroy and helps Judy do her homework. And clobbers Mr. Spacely with an Upside-down cake. |
| 402 | * ''WesternAnimation/KimPossible'': Kim's Nana started as an overprotective granny until she started kicking Kim's ass in Kung Fu. |
| 403 | * ''WesternAnimation/TheMagicKey'': Gran, the grandmother of Biff, Chip, and Kipper. She’s OneOfTheKids, rides a motorcycle, and even got a pet snake in one episode. |
| 404 | * ''WesternAnimation/MiraculousLadybug'': Marinette's paternal grandmother, Gina Dupain, is a SilverFox biker who travels the world. It's downplayed at first, as her constant traveling has left her out of touch with what Marinette likes, but it's played straight after they reconcile at the end of her debut episode. Her brief appearance in the season 2 finale pushes her up another level, when she takes part in the fight against Hawk Moth's akuma army. |
| 405 | * ''WesternAnimation/MollyOfDenali'': Auntie Midge, the Tribal Chief of Qyah, is "remarkably spry" for being in her 70s. |
| 406 | * ''WesternAnimation/MyDadTheRockStar'': Rock's mother presents as a sweet little old lady but is really a hard-rockin' biker chick when she can get away with it. |
| 407 | * ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'': Granny Smith. While she doesn't get much screen time and has definitely seen better days both mentally and physically, she still plays along with hyperactive foals well, and was apparently quite the badass in her youth; in "Family Appreciation Day", she relates how she ventured into [[EnchantedForest the Everfree Forest]] to find Sweet Apple Acres' famous Zap Apples and how, thanks to those apples, the town of Ponyville grew around her family's farm. |
| 408 | ** The comics introduce Professor Inkwell, Celestia's old comrade in arms and Twilight's old magic teacher. She's senile now but even so is still a powerful mage and font of unexpected wisdom, a few years back (when she was still ancient) she was very much the CoolTeacher. |
| 409 | * ''WesternAnimation/TheOwlHouse'': Eda the Owl Lady. While she's only actually in her mid 40s - somewhat prematurely aged by spoilery conditions - her character design and speech style channel Phylis Diller, while being a LovableRogue with witchcraft. Luz describes her as, "Magical, sassy, [[SilverVixen surprisingly foxy for her age]]." |
| 410 | ** Her gray hair's ''really'' meant to make her look like a ''[[WitchClassic traditional]]'' witch, and she's voiced by 70-year-old Creator/WendieMalick, the modern Creator/MargaretHamilton. |
| 411 | ** [[spoiler:It's later revealed that she's YoungerThanSheLooks. She's actually somewhere in her mid 40s, but her curse caused her to prematurely age.]] |
| 412 | * ''WesternAnimation/TheProudFamily'': Suga Mama is a sassy black version of this trope. She even wrestled professional wrestlers. |
| 413 | * ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'': |
| 414 | ** Homer's mother Mona, especially in contrast with Homer's father. She's a hippie, educated and cultured, and she bonds with her grandchildren, especially book-smart Lisa who finally feels she is a Simpson. |
| 415 | ** "Cool" might be a stretch, but Agnes Skinner is definitely edgier and more worldly than her clueless son. While her constant meanness to Seymour makes her zig-zag the trope, she has an acerbic sense of humor and even gets along with Bart on occasion. |
| 416 | * ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'': Grand Maul Granny is one of the three members of the Drasticals, and even having a prosthetic hip, she partakes in extreme sports on a regular basis. |
| 417 | * ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitans'': The True Master from the episode "The Quest". (In fact, she seems to have been based, at least partially, on Mr. Miagi from ''Film/TheKarateKid'' movies, who clearly fit the CoolOldGuy Trope.) |
| 418 | * ''WesternAnimation/{{WITCH}}'': Yan Lin, a former guardian who helps the girls get accustomed to their powers. |
| 419 | * ''WesternAnimation/WordGirl'': Granny May. For one thing, she has a big robotic supersuit... |
| 420 | * ''WesternAnimation/WorkItOutWombats'': Grandma Super acts both as a parent and a leader of the Treeborhood, and makes impressive inventions. She's also open-minded and lets a ''lot'' slide; as long as the wombats clean up the messes that they create. |
| 421 | [[/folder]] |
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