| 1 | %% Image selected per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1325741342043640100 |
| 2 | %% Please do not change or remove without starting a new thread. |
| 3 | %% |
| 4 | [[quoteright:350:[[WesternAnimation/ThePowerpuffGirls1998 https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/78a4e80ba28990ac40a6880c263d4e25.png]]]] |
| 5 | |
| 6 | ->'''Azmuth:''' Are you inferring that you're smarter than me because your head is bigger?\ |
| 7 | '''Brainstorm:''' No, I'm '''''implying''''' that I'm smarter than you because my ''brain'' is bigger! |
| 8 | -->-- ''WesternAnimation/Ben10AlienForce'' |
| 9 | |
| 10 | What's a fast way to clue the audience into a character's SuperIntelligence, either inborn or suddenly-gained? Why, give them a swollen (and often hairless) cranium, apparently housing a grossly enlarged brain. Variants include the head being fissured like a human brain, or the [[PleaseKeepYourHatOn enlarged brain being exposed]]. The head may or may not pulsate, sometimes more like a heart than a brain, and the rest of the body be comparatively weak and underdeveloped. Often related to EvolutionaryLevels or dubious experiments done ForScience May involve the development of PsychicPowers if it's [[BrainCriticalMass big enough]]. |
| 11 | |
| 12 | This is also sometimes used as a generic "alien trait" and not a specific indicator of intelligence. TheGreys are a prominent example. |
| 13 | |
| 14 | While this may seem like TruthInTelevision, since animals with larger brains do tend to have a higher intellect than those with smaller cerebra, it turns out that intelligence is much more complicated than that (otherwise blue whales, with brains the size of fully-grown adult humans, would be the most intelligent species on the planet while African grey parrots, with brains the size of a walnut, wouldn't be anywhere near as intelligent as dolphins or chimpanzees). Turns out that intelligence is a function not so much of how large an organism's brain is, but how densely interconnected it is. The denser the brain tissue and the more neural pathways within an organism's brain, the higher its intellect. Obviously, however, a larger brain does have more room for such connections, but it's not as straightforward as this trope would have you believe. |
| 15 | |
| 16 | See Also ForeheadOfDoom, which may be used to show this in a more realistic light. May sometimes overlap with BrainMonster if played for horror. No relation to CranialEruption. |
| 17 | ---- |
| 18 | !!Examples: |
| 19 | |
| 20 | [[foldercontrol]] |
| 21 | |
| 22 | [[folder:Anime & Manga]] |
| 23 | * ''Manga/{{Berserk}}'': The demonic God Hand member Void has a giant, nightmarish exposed brain coming out of his head. It's not just for show, since he is the oldest, wisest, and most philosophical member of the God Hand as well as their leader. |
| 24 | * The Franchise/{{Digimon}} [[http://wikimon.net/Vadermon Vademon]] |
| 25 | * {{Inverted|Trope}} in ''Manga/DragonHalf'': [[DumbMuscle Damaramu]] has a ''small'' brain, making him not too bright. This actually works in his favor when he accidentally sticks his own LaserBlade through his head; his brain only got nicked. |
| 26 | * Guldo, the psychic member of the Ginyu Force from ''Manga/DragonBallZ'' has a large bulging head. For that matter Ginyu himself has a gigantic veiny head. [[spoiler: And turns out to have a psychic ability of his own.]] |
| 27 | * ''Anime/MacrossDoYouRememberLove'' {{retcon}}s ''Anime/SuperDimensionFortressMacross'''s Exedore/Exsedol into this, apparently to visually emphasize his role as an archivist and advisor; ''Anime/Macross7'' also uses his ''DYRL?'' design (in contrast, the ''Anime/{{Robotech}}'' continuity ignores it in favor of his original ''SDF'' design). |
| 28 | * ''Manga/OnePiece'': Doctor Vegapunk is considered the smartest man in the world and is responsible for futuristic inventions. His head is normal-sized in the present, but in the past, he had a brain that was four times bigger than the rest of his body, and a giant cranium to match. He states that this is due to him eating the Brain-Brain Fruit, which causes his brain to constantly grow to the point that his true brain is housed in a massive dome. |
| 29 | * In ''Manga/ZatchBell2'', Kanchome learns the Mo Poruku spell which allows him to convert enemies into [[BodyHorror partial clones]] of himself that he can [[PeoplePuppets manipulate with his mind]]. It also transforms him into a giant WaddlingHead, visually emphasizing how he's got the brains to control multiple kinds of distinct creatures at the same time. |
| 30 | [[/folder]] |
| 31 | |
| 32 | [[folder:Arts]] |
| 33 | * Creator/MichelangeloBuonarroti's sculpture of ''Art/{{David}}'' has an unusually large head that emphasizes his focus on the task of defeating Goliath, not by brute force, but with his intelligence and faith. |
| 34 | * Art/SistineChapel: Perhaps to communicate God's omnipotence and reason, God's robes in “The Creation of Adam” appear behind him in a way that they resemble a giant brain. |
| 35 | [[/folder]] |
| 36 | |
| 37 | [[folder:Comic Books]] |
| 38 | * ''Franchise/TheDCU'': |
| 39 | ** ''Characters/{{Batgirl}}'': In ''ComicBook/TheAttackOfTheAnnihilator'', [[https://dc.fandom.com/wiki/Kenneth_Anderson_(Earth-One) the titular villain]] has an oversized bulbous head, a hint of his fearsome psychic powers. |
| 40 | ** ''ComicBook/GreenLantern'': Hector Hammond's brain is huge -- to the point that his neck can't support it. As such, he's confined to a special chair. Over the last few years, he's gone from "unusually large, ovoid head" to "big square head twice the size of the rest of his body." |
| 41 | ** ''ComicBook/JusticeSocietyOfAmerica'': The Ultra Humanite's albino gorilla form. |
| 42 | ** The ''ComicBook/LegionOfSuperHeroes'' guest-star Evolvo Lad (Evolvo in the reboot) has a head that actually ''gets bigger and smaller'' when he uses his powers. Does Freud know about this guy? |
| 43 | ** ''ComicBook/{{Sinestro}}'': The noblewoman who ordered her personal guard to kill the Yellow Lanterns after they threatened the crowd she was in is from a tall thin species with exceptionally tall heads. |
| 44 | ** ''ComicBook/SuperboyAndTheRavers'': It turns out the aliens that accidentally killed Byron Stark's whole family look like traditional [[TheGreys greys]], including the tallish heads. |
| 45 | ** ''ComicBook/{{Superman}}'': |
| 46 | *** The fake [[http://dc.wikia.com/wiki/Action_Comics_Vol_1_256 "Superman of the Future"]] from Action Comics #256. |
| 47 | *** [[http://www.comiccollectorlive.com/LiveData/Issue.aspx?id=95ced61d-68bd-426f-be1f-930f49baa633 It happened to Jimmy Olsen.]] |
| 48 | *** [[https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/marvel_dc/images/b/bf/Lois_Lane_27.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20080410162047 And Lois Lane]], when an evolution ray made her super-intelligent. |
| 49 | *** And Batman actually. In ''World's Finest #151'', when an ancient Kryptonian device landed on Earth, it evolved Batman into a big-brained human from 800,000 years in the future. |
| 50 | *** [[https://web.archive.org/web/20150812085911/http://www.superdickery.com/beware-the-super-genius-baby/ The Super-Genius Baby.]] |
| 51 | *** [[http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qEarUlzbBcU/UfvcNmqc3WI/AAAAAAAAZc0/-owdxgBwiSo/s1600/sm+ann+2-05.jpg The Blessed]] in the Brainiac Psi-War storyline. |
| 52 | *** Cadmus' second failed attempt to clone Superman ended up creating a humanoid pink hairless figure with a large bulbous head, whose skin started blistering away. They finally managed a functional clone on their [[ComicBook/Superboy1994 thirteenth attempt]]. |
| 53 | *** Muto, a villain of one of Superman's descendants, who appeared in some few stories like ''ComicBook/ActionComics'' #338-339 and ''ComicBook/WorldsFinest1941'' #166, is a mutant with a giant, hairless yellow head and huge psychic powers as telekinesis and matter-transmutation. |
| 54 | ** ''ComicBook/TeenTitans'': Evil telepath and Fearsome Five member Psimon has his exposed brain covered by a clear shell. In ''ComicBook/SalvationRun'', [[spoiler:[[Characters/BatmanTheJoker the Joker]] can't help but smash it]]. |
| 55 | ** ''ComicBook/WonderWoman'' [[ComicBook/WonderWoman1942 Vol 1]]: Professor Andro has a misshapen large cranium and boasts of his various "mento" powers implied to be mental powers tied to his large mind. However, once Wondy catches him, it becomes clear that his human form was just a disguise that he was wearing, as he escapes the body in his true, far more alien crystalline body. |
| 56 | * ''Franchise/MarvelUniverse'': |
| 57 | ** ''ComicBook/AgeOfTheSentry'' introduces a [[UsefulNotes/TheSilverAgeOfComicBooks Silver Age]]-esque villain called Cranio, the Man With The Tri-Level Mind! Rather than having one giant brain, Cranio had a massive, elongated, transparent skull with ''three'' normal-sized brains inside. |
| 58 | ** ''ComicBook/FantasticFour'': |
| 59 | *** Uatu the Watcher. In his first appearance, his head was only slightly out of proportion with the rest of his body, but his design evolved until he was a tall skinny man whose head made up half his body mass.[[note]]At least one issue of ''ComicBook/{{Quasar}}'' suggests that Watchers are capable of {{voluntary shapeshifting}} to an unknown extent when one tries to intimidate the eponymous hero by "assuming a more formidable aspect".[[/note]] |
| 60 | *** Natalie X is a psychic mutant member of a team from a BadFuture that confronted the Fantastic Four in an attempt to save refugees from that future. After resolving it with a move to an artificial Earth, she took a serum to increase her telepathic powers that had the side effect of increasing the size of her brain. It's very grotesque; she eventually becomes the HiveQueen of the colony they established and her head becomes big enough to fill out ''[[Characters/MarvelComicsGalactus Galactus]]' helmet''. |
| 61 | *** Reed Richards did this to himself once in ''Fantastic Four: 1234'' by Creator/GrantMorrison. In order to defeat [[Characters/MarvelComicsDoctorDoom Doctor Doom]] in a [[SmartPeoplePlayChess 4-dimensional chess game]] that was threatening to destroy the Fantastic Four, Reed used his [[RubberMan stretching powers]] to literally grow new structures in his brain in order to out-think Doom. |
| 62 | *** Similarly, in the BadFuture of ''ComicBook/EarthX'', Reed expanded his brain in order to use Professor X's Cerebro helmet. |
| 63 | *** [[ComicBook/UltimateFantasticFour The Maker]], a villainous version of Reed Richards from the ''ComicBook/UltimateMarvel'' universe, uses the same brain-stretching technique in general to enhance his intellect at all times. He normally covers it up with an elongated helmet construct, as others find the result [[BodyHorror hideous and disfiguring]]. |
| 64 | ** ''ComicBook/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy'': The villainous [[PsychicPowers telepathic]] mutant Mind-Scan (who, considering her usual tactic, could have just as appropriately been called [[MindRape Mind-Rape]]) appears to have a red BeehiveHairdo in her first few appearances. At one point, she has to remove her wig... [[http://www.comicvine.com/mindscan/4005-26627/ revealing a swollen, lumpy, veiny skull underneath.]] ''Ewww''. |
| 65 | ** ''ComicBook/TheIncredibleHulk'': |
| 66 | *** Yuri Topolov, a [[SovietSuperscience Soviet scientist]], was mutated into a big-headed dwarf and, becoming an EvilGenius, called himself the Gargoyle. Bruce actually managed to cure him, though, and a grateful Topolov [[RedemptionEqualsDeath sacrificed himself]] to ensure Banner's safe return to America. |
| 67 | *** Yuri's [[LegacyCharacter son Kondrati]], who inherited his father's deformity (and capacity for EvilGenius), chose to [[MisplacedRetribution blame the Hulk]] for his father's death, and became the villainous Gremlin. As the second Titanium Man, he died during ComicBook/IronMan's ''ComicBook/ArmorWars'' rampage. |
| 68 | *** The Leader, whose ''ComicBook/UltimateMarvel'' version combines this with [[GeniusCripple a totally useless body]]. Sometimes, he is even shown needing a metal frame to keep his head from snapping his neck. While other [[RadiationInducedSuperpowers gamma-radiation mutated]] characters had their physical strength enhanced, the Leader instead was given SuperIntelligence. |
| 69 | ** M.O.D.O.K. of [[Characters/MarvelComicsAIM A.I.M.]] (a [[GeneticEngineeringIsTheNewNuke genetically enhanced human]] designed as a [[WetwareCPU biological super-computer]]) takes this to an extreme -- [[{{Cephalothorax}} most of his "body" is actually his head and the power chair which holds it steady]]. He proves to be so intelligent that he [[PhlebotinumRebel takes over the organization that enhanced him]]. |
| 70 | ** Brainchild, the ringleader of the [[Characters/MarvelComicsSavageLand Savage Land Mutates]]. He's also short, skinny, and physically feeble. |
| 71 | ** The Futurist and Alpha the Ultimate Mutant were both [[EvolutionaryLevels hyper-evolved]] into big-headed superintelligence. Incidentally, when they were both prisoners of [[TheCollector the Stranger]], they became fast friends. |
| 72 | ** Lobe, a minor nemesis of the ComicBook/XMen, has an enlarged and hairless cranium. The source of his name most likely comes from "brain lobe". |
| 73 | * The Mekon of Mekonta, arch-villain of the British ''ComicStrip/DanDare'' comics (once the page image), specially bred to be his civilization's Supreme Scientist and ruler, exemplifies this trope with his huge head and withered body. |
| 74 | * An early storyline in Bongo's ''ComicBook/TheSimpsons'' comics had [[MassSuperEmpoweringEvent most of the cast becoming superheroes]]; Maggie became "Brainbaby". |
| 75 | * ''[=DNAgents=]'' villains Ape-X and Doctor Vlasov both had huge craniums; Vlasov's was under a huge glass bubble helmet for full {{Squick}}y visibility. |
| 76 | * ''ComicBook/EMan'''s first foe, The Brain From Sirius, was ''nothing but'' a gigantic BrainInAJar the size of a house! |
| 77 | * Appropriately, this is the appearance of [[spoiler:Veidt's fake alien]] in ''ComicBook/{{Watchmen}}''. |
| 78 | * One of Charon's "ligis-bearers" in ''Negation'' has a big brain. By an amazing coincidence, he's also the team's telepath. |
| 79 | * Miguel Angel Martin's ''[[https://www.becomix.me/becomix/static/images/c_uploads/c_release_image.thumbnail/98/c_release_image.thumbnail.98db16c2f976b523.8ac0cd3f5cd47458.jpg Brian the Brain]]'' is the story of a boy born with a huge, exposed brain. The comic focuses on Brian's sense of alienation and the difficulty of fitting in due to a combination of his [[ChildProdigy high intelligence]], PsychicPowers and his peers' reaction to his physical deformity. |
| 80 | * ''ComicBook/{{Zombo}}'': Mr. Critic on the TV satellite has an oversized head because he had his brain replaced with a supercomputer. |
| 81 | * Zodon from ''ComicBook/PS238''. |
| 82 | * The cover story in issue 93 of ''Tales of the Unexpected'' involved this guy who invented an "evolution-devolution" ray then accidentally got caught in both beams at once, resulting in his head "evolving" into larger and more grotesque versions while his body was "devolving" into that of a prehistoric man/ape/etc. Eventually, his brain became so super-advanced that he was able to repair the broken device telepathically. |
| 83 | * In ''ComicBook/AllFallDown'', IQ and IQ Squared had extra-large heads while they were super-geniuses. Their craniums were reduced to normal in The Fall. |
| 84 | * A one-panel graphic joke of "7(th) Rebolling Street", first published in Spanish comic magazine ''Guai!'' #81 (1987), depicts a pedestrian whose headtop literally reaches the 2nd floor of the nearby building. He explains he had used a so-called brain development stimulator product. |
| 85 | * Played straight in ''ComicBook/{{Invincible}}'' with Angstrom Levy, after an accident left him with brains bulging out of his skull (and two more on his ''shoulders'', though he had those removed with surgery). |
| 86 | * In ''ComicBook/BigBangComics'', the Pantheon of Heroes mirrors the Legion of Super-Heroes; their equivalent of Brainiac 5 is Brain Boy, whose bald head holds a huge brain. Thinking hard enough makes it get even bigger. |
| 87 | * This happens to Dr. Boifard, one of the two creators of Frank Einstein, aka ''ComicBook/MadMan'', when he starts using an intelligence increasing drug of his own design. Unfortunately, this ends up in BodyHorror levels when his entire head becomes a massive swollen blob of brain-tissue that needs medical technology to preserve his life and which can't communicate with anybody because his body is too weak to use his vocal cords. |
| 88 | * In Creator/AlanMoore's "Abelard Snazz" stories in ''[[Comicbook/TwoThousandAD 2000 AD]]'', Snazz is known as "The Man With The Two-Storey Brain" (also "Multi-Storey Mind" and "Double-Decker Dome"). He does have [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abelard_Snazz#/media/File:Abelard_snazz.png hair on his enlarged cranium]] though, as well as ExtraEyes. |
| 89 | * ''ComicBook/{{Squee}}'': Wobbly-Headed Bob's freakishly overdeveloped brain only brings him only sadness and contempt for his fellow beings. |
| 90 | * ''ComicBook/{{Zagor}}'': A MonsterOfTheWeek was a wanted criminal known as the "Mutant" because of his oversized, bald cranium and psicokynetic powers. According to the Mutant himself, his cranium is so large because he has a "second brain" which allows him to perform telekinesis. |
| 91 | * ''ComicBook/DangerUnlimited'': Doc Danger has enhanced intelligence, and his brain grows over time. In the comic book's timeline, he looked normal when he gained his powers in 1959, he had a ForeheadOfDoom in the mid-sixties, and in the twenty-first century he's a giant head on a mechanical support a la [[Characters/MarvelComicsAIM M.O.D.O.K.]] |
| 92 | * ''ComicBook/{{Suspense}}'': In Issue #14, "[[http://thehorrorsofitall.blogspot.com/2009/06/death-and-doctor-parker.html Death and Doctor Parker]]", the far-future humans have gigantic heads mounted on spindly necks and slender bodies, signifying how they're moved as far beyond modern humanity as its has moved beyond its ancestral apes. |
| 93 | [[/folder]] |
| 94 | |
| 95 | [[folder:Comic Strips]] |
| 96 | * ''ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes'': In one arc this is an "unanticipated physiological consequence" of the thinking cap Calvin uses to give himself an intelligence boost. Strangely, this doesn't seem to alarm his parents. Then again, they never notice anything, anyway (it was also probably just his imagination). |
| 97 | * ''ComicStrip/{{Dilbert}}'': |
| 98 | ** Dogbert once tried to invoke this. He ended up tying meat to his sides to fake it. |
| 99 | --->''"This slab of liver has an MBA from Harvard, you pointy-haired fool!"'' |
| 100 | ** The representative of UsefulNotes/{{Mensa}} is naturally big-brained. |
| 101 | ** And let's not forget Brainella: the reference-librarian whom Dilbert took on a date once. |
| 102 | ** Wally has a dream in which he mocks the PointyHairedBoss to his face for urging his staff to "work smarter, not harder." Wally says he never realized he could simply will himself to become smarter. "Watch me add a few brain cells right now," he says, flexing and grunting. His cranium grows, and he's [[ScrewLearningIHavePhlebotinum suddenly able]] to speak [[SmartPeopleKnowLatin Latin]]. Then he grows his brain some more, and decides he's too smart to work there and should be a consultant instead. |
| 103 | * ''ComicStrip/TheFarSide'': |
| 104 | ** One comic had the cops rushing into the villain's headquarters, which had your typical example as well as some huge-bodied, tiny-headed mooks and shouting, "Who's the brains of this operation?" And [[http://grottoazzurro.typepad.com/the_blue_grotto/images/2007/09/03/far_side.jpg here it is.]] |
| 105 | ** In another strip, Larson [[InvertedTrope inverted]] it, by having a student with a head half the size of everyone else asking to be excused from class because his "brain was full". |
| 106 | ** And in another inversion, a stegosaurus lectures other dinosaurs: |
| 107 | --> "The picture's pretty bleak, gentlemen. ... the world's climates are changing, the mammals are taking over, and we all have a brain about the size of a walnut." |
| 108 | * ''ComicStrip/FoxTrot'' shows us [[http://www.gocomics.com/foxtrot/2003/05/25 the dangers of finals week.]] Bonus points for Jason managing to [[InvokedTrope invoke]] [[MySkullRunnethOver two]] [[YourHeadASplode more]] tropes and make a ShoutOut in a single sentence. |
| 109 | ** Parodied in a sequence where Paige lets Jason tutor her in math. Jason shows up wearing an "external brain" hat, much to Paige's annoyance. ("Your brain'll be external, all right...") |
| 110 | * ''ComicStrip/{{Drabble}}'': Drabble's father Ralph can't figure out how to turn on their new TV so he starts reading books. As a result [[http://www.gocomics.com/drabble/2013/03/07#mutable_894717 his head starts expanding]] [[http://www.gocomics.com/drabble/2013/03/08#mutable_895250 to accommodate his expanding brain.]] [[http://www.gocomics.com/drabble/2013/03/09#mutable_895632 Unfortunately he gets so smart that he learns how to turn on the new TV and he loses his expanded brain/head.]] |
| 111 | * A one-panel comic had a UsefulNotes/{{Mensa}} convention with two guys enraptured with a woman's large head, and she is saying "Ahem, guys -- [[MyEyesAreUpHere my breasts are down here]]." |
| 112 | [[/folder]] |
| 113 | |
| 114 | [[folder:Fan Works]] |
| 115 | * ''Fanfic/{{Kitsune}}'': Tome. Highly intelligent, a wizard, a psychic, and having an extra four to six inches of cranium over the normal. |
| 116 | [[/folder]] |
| 117 | |
| 118 | [[folder:Films -- Animation]] |
| 119 | * ''Anime/DoraemonNobitaAndTheTinLabyrinth'': The main villain, Professor Napogistra, has a huge brain that takes up around one-third of his entire body. Justified since his brain is a neural link to his entire robot army. |
| 120 | * ''WesternAnimation/HelpImAFish'': Played for horror. In the climax, [[spoiler:as Joe drinks more and more of the fish-to-human potion to make himself more intelligent, his brain outgrows his cranium and bursts out of his forehead]]. |
| 121 | * ''WesternAnimation/TheIceAgeAdventuresOfBuckWild'': Orson's brain is so enormous that it protrudes from the back of his head behind his enormous frill. |
| 122 | * ''WesternAnimation/{{Megamind}}'': The most obvious outward sign of Megamind's superintelligence is his enromously enlarged cranium. |
| 123 | [[/folder]] |
| 124 | |
| 125 | [[folder:Films -- Live-Action]] |
| 126 | * ''Film/ThisIslandEarth'': |
| 127 | ** The iconic Metalunan Mutants. |
| 128 | ** Their humanoid masters might also qualify as a more subdued example of the "super-smart" type, or possibly an inversion, as the Mutant didn't seem to be very smart. |
| 129 | * ''Film/InvasionOfTheSaucerMen'': The [[LittleGreenMen Saucer Men]] have the bulbous, veiny variety. |
| 130 | * ''Film/MarsAttacks'': Explicitly {{invoked|Trope}}. The {{Martians}} have big heads due to their brains. Professor Kessler thinks that they ''must'' be peaceful because of their intelligence but is unfortunately proven [[AliensAreBastards horribly wrong]]. |
| 131 | * ''Film/SkyHigh2005'': Dr. Medulla, who teaches Mad Science, has a huge head. |
| 132 | * ''Film/{{Coneheads}}'': The Coneheads are extremely intelligent and have huge heads shaped like cones. |
| 133 | * ''Film/TheBrain1969'': Creator/DavidNiven plays the role of the master criminal known as "The Brain". While his head isn't any larger than normal, his brain is apparently so heavy that when he is stressed out, his head falls to one side. |
| 134 | * ''Film/JoeDirt'': Although we never actually see it, it's the reason for Joe's mullet -- his skull is malformed due to a birth defect, leaving a small bit of brain exposed. A hairpiece was used to conceal it, [[{{Squick}} and his soft spot just kind of grew over part of the wig]]. |
| 135 | * ''Film/TheTimeMachine2002'': Rather than having the usual huge head, the Über-Morlock's brain extends down his neck and lower back. |
| 136 | * ''Film/StarshipTroopers3Marauder'': The huge brain bug that takes up an entire planet, "Brain of Brains", also known as "Behemecoatyl". |
| 137 | -->''"[[{{Understatement}} The bug is big]]."'' |
| 138 | * Dementor, the arch-enemy of ''[[ShowWithinAShow Turbo Man]]'' from ''Film/JingleAllTheWay'', whose massive brain can be seen inside his transparent helmet. It's later [[LampshadeHanging lampshaded]] [[PlayedForLaughs for laughs]] by [[BigBad Myron]], who dresses up as Dementor near the end. |
| 139 | * ''Film/SuperMarioBros1993'' does this both ways on the [[DevolutionDevice Devo Machine]]'s monitors: when a humanoid gets devolved into a Goomba, the brain shrinks considerably; when Spike and Iggy get hit with the "Advanced" setting, their brains become larger. |
| 140 | [[/folder]] |
| 141 | |
| 142 | [[folder:Gamebooks]] |
| 143 | * ''Literature/LoneWolf'': The Beholder of Yanis in Book 11 has a very frail body and can't move by himself, having to be carried around by a servitor. He's gifted, however, with immense PsychicPowers and has an appropriately over-sized skull to contain his huge brain. |
| 144 | [[/folder]] |
| 145 | |
| 146 | [[folder:Literature]] |
| 147 | * ''Literature/BookOfBrownies'': One of the worlds visited by the brownies is the Land of Clever Folk, led by the Very Wise Man whose brain is several times larger than his head, to signify his intelligence over the other folks. The accompanying illustrations in certain reprints of the book doesn't dissapoint either, with the 1980s version depicting his cranium as watermelon-sized. |
| 148 | * Debra from ''Literature/ConstanceVeritySavesTheWorld'' is the result of Siege Perilous' psychic super-soldier experiments; a blue-skinned woman in a spider-legged chair and a giant head. |
| 149 | * In Creator/EdmondHamilton's "Literature/TheManWhoEvolved", a scientist has [[ArtisticLicenseBiology accelerated his own evolution]]. Five examples are shown; first a giant human, then two cases of the trope, then a naked brain. |
| 150 | * ''Literature/LastAndFirstMen'': |
| 151 | ** Taken to its logical conclusion where the Fourth human species were basically giant, immobile brains. They were created as the equivalent of computers, [[AIIsACrapshoot and naturally rebelled against their creators.]] But in an interesting subversion, having wiped out the Third species they realized that their intellectual powers were crippled by the lack of bodies and created a Fifth species that was closer to natural humanity. |
| 152 | ** Earlier in the novel, we meet the Second human species early in their evolution, when they had evolved larger brains than the First Men (that would be us) but unfortunately hadn't yet evolved larger skulls. It basically drove their entire species insane and almost wiped them out, leaving behind only a very twisted literary corpus for future generations. |
| 153 | * ''Literature/JohnCarterOfMars'': |
| 154 | ** One of the books, ''Chessmen of Mars'', gave us the Kaldanes, who look like oversized heads with crab legs and tend to travel around on rykors, creatures that look like idealized human bodies without heads. The result appears as this trope. |
| 155 | ** In "The Giant of Mars", the novella forming the first half of the final book in the series, this trope is inverted with Pew Mogel, an EvilGenius ArtificialHuman, who keeps his brain elsewhere and thus has a ridiculously tiny head. |
| 156 | * Used horrifically in ''Literature/ThatHideousStrength'', in which the evil scientists [[spoiler:have taken the head of an executed criminal and are keeping it alive(-ish) it to channel demonic forces; they've removed the top of the head and its "augmented" brains are bulging out over the top, pulsating under membrane]]. |
| 157 | * Creator/HGWells favored this trope for his other-worldly creatures: |
| 158 | ** The invading Martians from ''Literature/TheWarOfTheWorlds1898'' have huge heads meant to contain extra-large brains. Curiously, the Martians seem to have missed wheels and axles in all their machinery, relying purely on articulated appendages. |
| 159 | ** The Grand Lunar from ''Literature/TheFirstMenInTheMoon'' has a brain so large that it takes up most of the ceiling space in his cathedral-like throne room. Many winged Lunars flutter near it, spraying that giant brain with water to keep it moist. There are also large-brained attendants that memorize facts that the Grand Lunar doesn't need to keep in mind. |
| 160 | ** In an article predating both, ''Man of the Year Million'', he speculated that humanity would eventually evolve to this, with huge brains much bigger than our limbs could support, kept alive by machinery. |
| 161 | * It's a plot point in ''Evolution's End'', a 1941 short story by Robert Arthur. In a far future, humans have evolved into huge-headed, hyperintelligent and [[StrawVulcan emotionally devoid]] beings. One of them invents a machine that accelerates evolution, tries it on some volunteers and is horrified to discover [[spoiler:that in 100,000 years human brains will grow big enough to collapse under their weight]]. Also a textbook example of EvolutionaryLevels. |
| 162 | * The Franchise/StarWarsExpandedUniverse has the [[http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Columi Columi,]] a species with giant heads, tiny bodies, and limbs so small and useless they need hoverchairs just to move around. When Columi explorers first reached human-populated worlds, they immediately returned home [[HumansAreMorons in disappointment at having found no intelligent life]]. |
| 163 | * ''Literature/JeevesAndWooster'': Jeeves's head bulges out slightly at the back, and Bertie believes that this is a sign of his intelligence. He also attributes the size of Sir Roderick Glossop's head, which resembles "the dome of St. Paul's", to his vast intellect: "I suppose he must have taken about a nine or something in hats. [[GoodIsDumb Shows what a rotten thing it is to let your brain develop too much]]." |
| 164 | * Similarly, in "The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle", Franchise/SherlockHolmes deduces that the owner of a certain hat must be an intellectual because his head is bigger than Holmes's. |
| 165 | -->''"It is a question of [[ScienceMarchesOn cubic capacity]]. A man with so large a brain must have something in it."'' |
| 166 | * {{Averted|Trope}} in ''Literature/{{MARZENA}}'' -- don't go thinking that you can just build up a giant robotic brain and create super-intelligence, warns Anika From Bremen in one of her many scientific proses. Giant brains only mean more coordinations between data; to become more intelligent, one needs to raise the ratio of astroglial cells in the cortex, which doesn't have anything to do with size. |
| 167 | * Super-mutant Ribald Corello in ''Literature/PerryRhodan'': big head, child-sized body, physically pretty much helpless without his glider chair that's all but a self-contained vehicle complete with life support and weapons, but acknowledged as one of the most powerful psychics mankind ever produced. Starts as a villain obsessed with conquest and his dead-but-preserved mother, but pulls a HeelFaceTurn later. |
| 168 | * Nocturnomaths in Creator/WalterMoers' ''Literature/{{Zamonia}}'' novels are a variation: they have multiple brains, which make them highly intelligent and telepathic to boot. The actual number of brains varies between individuals: three is the norm, but very brilliant nocturnomaths may have four or five, and Professor Abdullah Nightingale -- arguably the greatest genius in Zamonian history -- is rumored to have seven. |
| 169 | * In the ''Literature/RevelationSpace'' series, the larger heads of those who've chosen to enhance their intelligence are actually due to the need to cool the faster-running brain, hence a dinosaur-like heat fin on their head. |
| 170 | * One of the step-capable hominids from ''Literature/TheLongEarth'' series acquires the nickname "lollipops", because their cranial capacity is so great that their heads appear spherical. A subversion, as the creatures aren't any more ''intellectual'' than humans, but use the extra brain-power to navigate the Long Earths; also a deconstruction, as it's stated that their females ''only'' survive giving birth because they step over to the next parallel world and leave the infant behind, rather than try to expel a huge-headed fetus. In the last book [[spoiler:the Next have genetically engineered their own "lollipops", who ''are'' extremely intelligent (much more intelligent than regular Next, who are themselves much smarter than regular humans)]]. |
| 171 | * In ''Literature/TheEggMan'', Megabrains like the epynomous Egg Man have been outfitted with massive brains that are too big to fit inside their craniums. They serve as a sort of [[WetwareCPU human computers]] that host an ArtificialAfterlife. |
| 172 | * Creator/PhilipKDick: |
| 173 | ** In ''Minority Report'' (and a few other stories that mention them in passing), precogs are mutant humans with enormous brains and wasted bodies; they, however, have very low intelligence (to the point of not being able to feed themselves) as much of the brain is occupied by an "ESP lobe" that lets them [[{{Seers}} predict the future]]. |
| 174 | ** In the future Earth of ''Literature/TheThreeStigmataOfPalmerEldritch'', if you want to be smarter, you can actually grow brainier. Special genetic tampering called E Therapy can give anyone a huge frontal lobe. |
| 175 | * ''Literature/TheSecretsOfDrearcliffGrangeSchool'': In the Purple, where the Unusuals' appearances change to reflect their natures, the psychic Dora Paule appears with an oversize cranium and undersized rest of her body. |
| 176 | * In ''Literature/TheHampdenshireWonder'', the ChildProdigy Victor's head is so big that during his infancy, everyone who sees him thinks he has hydrocephalus. |
| 177 | [[/folder]] |
| 178 | |
| 179 | [[folder:Live-Action TV]] |
| 180 | * In the ''Series/ANTFarm'' fantasy Halloween episodes, Olive's monstrous form is a mad scientist with a massive bald cranium. |
| 181 | * ''Series/BlakesSeven''. In "Ultraworld", said PlanetVille is a MechanisticAlienCulture controlled by the Core, a huge brain at its centre. |
| 182 | * ''Series/DoctorWho'': |
| 183 | ** The Cyber-Controller in the original series has an extended dome rising from its head, highlighting its status as the most intelligent member of the lot. |
| 184 | ** In [[Recap/DoctorWhoS18E7Logopolis "Logopolis"]], the residents of the titular planet have giant brains that protrude out the backs of their heads, and are so intelligent that they've become {{Reality Warper}}s purely through an ultra-advanced form of mental mathematics called "block-transfer computation," which they use to keep the universe from being swallowed up by entropy. |
| 185 | ** This is PlayedForDrama in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS23E2Mindwarp "Mindwarp"]]. The Mentors are being artificially transformed into more advanced, more intelligent beings by Dr. Crosier, and as a result of this, their leader, Kiv, is on the verge of death thanks to his brain becoming too big for its own skull. The bulk of the plot revolves around Dr. Crosier having to transplant Kiv's brain into another organism with a larger head. |
| 186 | ** In [[Recap/DoctorWhoS29E4DaleksInManhattan "Daleks in Manhattan"]]/[[Recap/DoctorWhoS29E5EvolutionOfTheDaleks "Evolution of the Daleks"]], Dalek Sec becomes a Dalek/Human hybrid with a large exposed brain. In this form, he becomes intelligent enough to realize that the Daleks' violent, ethnonationalist philosophy is ultimately self-defeating, which results in the other Daleks killing him. |
| 187 | ** [[Recap/DoctorWhoS30E8SilenceInTheLibrary "Silence in the Library"]] has the Doctor suggest this trope while he's berating himself for missing a vital piece of information. "Ah! I'm thick! Look at me, I'm old and thick! Head's too full of stuff! I need a bigger head!" |
| 188 | * This is one of the forms of John Crichton in the ''Series/{{Farscape}}'' episode "[[Recap/FarscapeS02E10MyThreeCrichtons My Three Crichtons]]". The hyper-evolved future Crichton has a brain that seems to extend beyond his skull. Not the nicest guy, either, but pretty smart. |
| 189 | * {{Invoked|Trope}} in an episode of the ''Series/HoneyIShrunkTheKids'' TV series. One of Wayne's inventions gives his son Nick the ability to [[LiquidAssets absorb other people's intelligence]], and the extra smarts [[DumbIsGood obviously]] turn him into an EvilGenius. At a point, Nick reverses his dad's ShrinkRay to enlarge his brain, as he needs extra room for all the stolen brainpower. |
| 190 | * The Bighead tribe in ''Series/TheLegendOfDickAndDom'' all have huge heads; their society is ordered by intelligence, and the leader's head is so big he has to have minions supporting it. |
| 191 | * ''Series/LoisAndClark'' has Dr. "Fat Head" UsefulNotes/{{Mensa}}, who uses [[NinetyPercentOfYourBrain Ninety Percent of His Brain]]. |
| 192 | * "[[Recap/TheOuterLimits1963S1E5TheSixthFinger The Sixth Finger]]" episode of ''Series/TheOuterLimits1963''. |
| 193 | * Happens temporarily to [[ButtMonkey Xander]] as the result of a "spell of intelligence" in ''Series/PowerRangersMysticForce''. It was depicted with a fishlens effect distorting part of the actor's head instead of prosthetics. |
| 194 | * Parodied with The Head in the sci-fi comedy ''Series/{{Quark}}'', the huge-headed alien who gives Quark his assignments. He appears to have no body at all, and frequently complains about the big headaches that accompany being a big thinker. |
| 195 | * In the ''Series/SpaceCases'' episode "Both Sides Now", Davenport becomes incredibly intelligent and gains psychic powers after downloading the ship's infocore, which leaves her with a massive swollen (and hairless) cranium. |
| 196 | * The Asgard from ''Series/StargateSG1''. |
| 197 | * ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries'' |
| 198 | ** The Talosians from the first pilot "[[Recap/StarTrekS1E0TheCage The Cage]]" have very visible bigger brains (with pulsating veins!), which give them great mental power of illusion and mind reading. The effect was enhanced by casting female actors, so their lighter builds would suggest that the Talosians had allowed their bodies to atrophy while instead choosing to concentrate on advanced brain development. |
| 199 | ** In "[[Recap/StarTrekS3E12TheEmpath The Empath]]", the alien Vians are much more intelligent than Earthlings and have the bulging heads to prove it. |
| 200 | * ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'' gives us the ([[TheGhost never-seen]]) Gallamite race, said to possess brains twice the size of humans'. Which are visible through their [[{{Squick}} see-through skulls]]. |
| 201 | * A recurring skit on ''Series/TheTonightShow'' during Creator/JayLeno 's run was "Mr. Brain", in which Jay would answer audience questions in the character of a very smart person. He was shot with a lens that distorted his head to make it look much bigger. |
| 202 | [[/folder]] |
| 203 | |
| 204 | [[folder:Magazines]] |
| 205 | * The December 1953 edition of ''MechanixIlustrated'' magazine. In the article "How Nuclear Radiation Can Change Our Race", Otto Binder speculated that the radiation from a nuclear war might cause mutations that could lead to the creation of a new species, Homo Superior. Among other differences, they would have brains (and heads) 50% larger than a normal human's. See the original article here: [[https://web.archive.org/web/20150724043454/http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/binder1-620x467.jpg page 1,]] [[https://web.archive.org/web/20150724043456/http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/binder2.jpg page 2,]] [[https://web.archive.org/web/20150724043457/http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/binder3.jpg page 3]] and [[https://web.archive.org/web/20150421033127/http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/binder4.jpg page 4.]] |
| 206 | [[/folder]] |
| 207 | |
| 208 | [[folder:Pinballs]] |
| 209 | * The alien leaders in ''Pinball/{{Firepower}}'' have oversized wrinkled heads. |
| 210 | * Both ''Pinball/AttackFromMars'' and ''Pinball/RevengeFromMars'' feature four-armed aliens with wrinkly oversized heads. |
| 211 | [[/folder]] |
| 212 | |
| 213 | [[folder:Tabletop Games]] |
| 214 | * ''TabletopGame/{{Champions}}'': In the adventure ''V.O.I.C.E. of Doom'', the supervillain Le Maistre has a bulging head, is highly intelligent and has psychic powers. |
| 215 | * ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'': |
| 216 | ** Aboleths start out life with brains contained in the usual manner within their craniums, but which include four tendril-like lobules that grow as they accumulate memories and psionic power, eventually extending internally from gaps in the back of the aboleth's skull all the way to the base of the tail. |
| 217 | ** Cerebreliths are psionic demons whose powerful PsychicPowers are fueled by enormously overgrown brains. A cerebrelith's cranium extends backwards and fuses with its spine, with the brain within it visible through gaps between vertebrae and stretching well into the creature's hunched back. |
| 218 | * ''Franchise/{{Ghostbusters}}'': In the RPG adventure ''Hot Rods of the Gods'', if a Ghostbusters fires his proton pack at Meera at the same time as Meera shoots at him with the red devolvo ray, it will [[ReversePolarity reverse the polarity]], causing the Ghostbuster to evolve into a superior being with increased intelligence and a large head. |
| 219 | * ''TabletopGame/{{GURPS}}'': Using Brain Tissue Grafts from the ''Bio-Tech'' sourcebook to increase your intelligence has the side effect of giving you a bulgy forehead. For a more cinematic option, there's the Genius Machine in Warehouse 23; the higher setting replaces the user's cranium with a big transparent dome, giving others a good view of his pulsating rebuilt brain. |
| 220 | * ''TabletopGame/{{Pathfinder}}'' and ''TabletopGame/{{Starfinder}}'' have a species (playable in the latter) called contemplatives, whose body mass is roughly 90% gray matter, causing them to resemble nothing so much as giant, floating brains attached to vestigial bodies. |
| 221 | * ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'': |
| 222 | ** This is very common among psychic Tyranid organisms: |
| 223 | *** Maleceptors are psychic powerhouses used to overwhelm foes with raw Warp-power. To aid in this, they are implanted with enormous masses of neural tissue in their torsos that can be seen poking through holes in the chitin on their sides. |
| 224 | *** Zoanthropes have stunted bodies with tiny vestigial limbs and a {{xenomorph|xerox}}-like head with extra brain sticking out the back. They use their psychic powers to float around and act as psionic artillery. |
| 225 | *** A Genestealer Patriarch's brain and cranium become visibly engorged and distended as its telepathic powers grow. |
| 226 | ** {{Double Subver|sion}}ted with the Orks. Their brains are bigger but they are less intelligent than humans. However, [[LargeAndInCharge the larger ones]] are more intelligent than the smaller ones. |
| 227 | [[/folder]] |
| 228 | |
| 229 | %%[[folder:Toys]] |
| 230 | %%* ''Franchise/GarbagePailKids'': Brainy Janey. |
| 231 | %%[[/folder]] |
| 232 | |
| 233 | [[folder:Video Games]] |
| 234 | * Mad Rocket Slave "Grosshirn der Krankheit" from ''VideoGame/NineteenSeventeenTheAlienInvasionDX'', an alien giant whose forehead takes up most of his body. Fittingly he can use PsychicPowers to spam projectiles as a boss. |
| 235 | * Blitzkreig from ''VideoGame/FreedomForce vs The Third Reich'' not only has pulsing veins across his head, they [[PowerGlows glow]] due to his PsychicPowers. |
| 236 | * The Psilons ([[Series/BattlestarGalactica1978 no relation]]) from the ''VideoGame/MasterOfOrion'' series. |
| 237 | * Averted in the ''Franchise/ResidentEvil'' series. Lickers have a large, exposed brain but while they're more intelligent than the zombies they were made from (to the point where they can follow orders), this isn't saying much. |
| 238 | * ''VideoGame/{{Doom}}'' has the Spider Mastermind who ''is'' a giant brain [[{{Cephalothorax}} with a face]] in a spider-shaped cybernetic body with an infinite ammo. In ''VideoGame/Doom2016'', [[spoiler:the BigBad of the game wishes for power and becomes the new Spider Mastermind.]] Her children, the Arachnotrons, who are common enemies in ''VideoGame/DoomII'', ''VideoGame/Doom64'' and ''VideoGame/DoomEternal'', are also literal big brains in a spider-shaped cybernetic body, even if they use a plasma gun instead. |
| 239 | * The BFB from ''VideoGame/MDK2''. |
| 240 | * Two of the cosmetic head items for [[TheSmartGuy the Engineer]] in ''VideoGame/TeamFortress2'' are a large, bulging Frankenstein Monster-style head, and a hairstyle which exposes his brain connected to machines and valves. |
| 241 | * ''Franchise/{{Metroid}}'' has Mother Brain, who is the leader of the Space Pirates in the installments where she shows up, and she's a giant BrainInAJar. |
| 242 | * The Elderjel from ''VideoGame/MonsterSanctuary'' is a giant jellyfish whose brain takes up most of its body. It's certainly an intelligent species, because they ruled over the Earth's oceans in prehistoric times and created multiple species to do their bidding. |
| 243 | * Dr. Brain from ''VideoGame/NotDyingToday'', whose enlarged brain protrudes out of his skull and is encased in a glass dome. Taken even further when he went OneWingedAngel, turning into a [[BrainInAJar brain monster inside a forcefield bubble]]. |
| 244 | * ''Franchise/RatchetAndClank'': |
| 245 | ** Dr. Nefarious, before he was a robot, at least. |
| 246 | ** Also, the Terachnoids from ''VideoGame/RatchetAndClankFutureACrackInTime'' ... Who actually have multiple brains. They've been voted smartest race in the universe for 3,000 years, and weakest race for 4,000 years. |
| 247 | ** The B2 Brawler and Scorpio are giant robots with [[BrainInAJar giant organic brains inside]]. |
| 248 | * ''VideoGame/HalfLife1'': [[PlayingWithATrope Played with]] in regards to the [[BigBad Nihilanth]] and its lesser cousins the Alien Controllers: they have disproportionately large heads and great psychic abilities, but [[BizarreAlienBiology whatever that organ is]], it's probably not where they keep their brains. Their heads are capable of opening up like a fleshy flower and inside is a glowing orange crystal rather than brain matter. |
| 249 | * Heimerdinger in ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends'' has this in quite ridiculous proportion since he is a very small humanoid with a very large brain. |
| 250 | * Dr. Edgar George Zomboss in ''VideoGame/PlantsVsZombies'' has a massive brain. |
| 251 | * In ''VideoGame/PajamaSam: No Need to Hide When It's Dark Outside'', the titular Sam can mix up some chemicals to create a potion that increases his intelligence - and his brain size, to the point that it weighs too much for him to lift his head from the table. |
| 252 | * ''VideoGame/CrashBandicoot'': Dr. Neo Cortex and Dr. Nitrus Brio have large heads, according to Cortex's model sheet his giant head was supposed to signify his intelligence and was inspired by the Brain of ''Pinky and the Brain'' in Western animation below. |
| 253 | * ''VideoGame/StarFox64'': "Only I have the [[{{Pun}} brains]] to rule Lylat!" says Andross after assuming his giant brain form. |
| 254 | * ''VideoGame/PlanescapeTorment'': Cranium rats have large brains partly sticking out of their skulls. They also form psychic networks when near each other. [[spoiler:One of the sort-of {{Big Bad}}s of the game is a colony of THOUSANDS of these rats, aptly named "Many as One."]] |
| 255 | * ''VideoGame/XCOMEnemyUnknown'': You can tell a Sectoid Commander from a regular Sectoid by looking for the following traits: 1) Their skins has an orange tint, rather than dull gray. 2) Their cranium is significantly larger. 3) They know [[PsychicPowers psionics]]. |
| 256 | * ''VideoGame/LegacyOfKain'': Nupraptor the Mentalist has a large, green, pulsating brain. This is a fitting trait for the corrupted Guardian of the Pillar of the Mind. |
| 257 | * ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker'': The younger of the two retired swordfighting brothers, Sturgeon, has become a MiniatureSeniorCitizen a gigantic swollen head that's nearly 70% of his body's total mass. While he doesn't have any psychic powers, he's the more intelligent and well-learned of the two brothers, although Orca is actually a fair bit more calm than Sturgeon. |
| 258 | * ''VideoGame/TheSecretWorld'': [[PsychicChildren Jung]] sports a highly-domed skull to match his intellect and psychic ability. Of course, given how readily people bullied him about it in the past, [[BerserkButton he's very sensitive about people staring at it]]. |
| 259 | * ''VideoGame/EndlessSpace:'' Horatio was born like this, with an oddly elongated head of the sort usually seen for this trope. While it's only addressed as leading to bullying and thus Horatio going mad and getting a galaxy-shattering, fill-all-worlds-with-clones-of-myself-sized ego, it's implied his brain is huge still; despite all the weird looks and discrimination, he's both a cloning genius and a SelfMadeMan trillionaire. |
| 260 | * ''VideoGame/PokemonUranium'': The fishlike Pokémon Brailip and Brainoar are noted for their intelligence and PsychicPowers, and have giant exposed brains to match. |
| 261 | * ''VideoGame/KirbyAndTheForgottenLand'': [[spoiler:The BigBad, Fecto Forgo, is an eldritch, [[TelepathicSpacemen psychic alien]], and they resemble a gigantic embryonic rat with a brain that takes up most of their body]]. |
| 262 | * ''VideoGame/WildcatGunMachine'' has the Unthinkable Horror, a giant monster whose brain is growing outside it's head and takes up more than half it's upper body. Said brain grants it PsychicPowers to attack you with. |
| 263 | [[/folder]] |
| 264 | |
| 265 | [[folder:Web Animation]] |
| 266 | * In ''WebAnimation/BravestWarriors'', Mr. Tezuka has a transparent cranium that allows everyone to see his brain. |
| 267 | [[/folder]] |
| 268 | |
| 269 | [[folder:Webcomics]] |
| 270 | * ''Webcomic/GirlGenius'': Kleegon the Battlemaster, a project of the defeated Spark the Count of the Iron Ski who now works for the Baron, has had the top of his head removed and replaced with a foot tall cask to make room for his extra grey matter. His eyes were part of the lost bit and have been replaced by a single centered red one. |
| 271 | * {{Parodied|Trope}} in ''Webcomic/MobPsycho100'', where a powerful telekinetic with a ridiculously tall BeehiveHairdo shows up and some characters assume he's hiding a huge brain under it. Turns out he's just wearing a wig. |
| 272 | * Parodied in [[http://www.smbc-comics.com/index.php?db=comics&id=1 this]] ''Webcomic/SaturdayMorningBreakfastCereal'' strip. The big brain is only good if the ''useful'' parts get bigger. Although it can still have [[http://www.smbc-comics.com/index.php?db=comics&id=321#comic other]] uses. |
| 273 | * The "Brain Digbot" from ''Webcomic/SluggyFreelance'' is designed to look like the lobes of the brain, even though, as a robot, there'd be no reason for it to have a human-like brain. |
| 274 | [[/folder]] |
| 275 | |
| 276 | [[folder:Web Original]] |
| 277 | * ''WebVideo/FrenchBaguetteIntelligence'': In ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q-mVFSd1TKA Another Typical French vs English Debate]], when Bowl brags about the average IQ in the UK being 'one mighty point above France's', the size of his head increases as he says 'U.K is Big Brain, FC. BIG BRAIN.'. |
| 278 | * ''Website/{{Mortasheen}}'': |
| 279 | ** Subverted with the [[http://www.bogleech.com/mortasheen/abcoulix.htm Abcoulix]], which has a giant brain not for purposes of intelligence, but rather for the purpose of generating electricity, as the Abcoulix was designed as an organic battery. |
| 280 | ** This is played straight, however, for [[http://www.bogleech.com/mortasheen/krankenhyde.htm Krankenhyde.]] |
| 281 | ** [[https://bogleech.com/mortasheen/booman-drane.htm Drane]], TheSmartGal of the elite mercenary known as the Boo Men, has a towering veiny head presumably hosting an enormous brain. |
| 282 | * Several [[MemeticMutation memes]] are based around this, including [[https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/yeah-this-is-big-brain-time Yeah, this is big brain time]], [[https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/galaxy-brain Galaxy Brain]], and [[https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/tfw-too-intelligent-2smart TFW too intelligent]]. |
| 283 | * ''Website/OrionsArm'': {{Invoked|Trope}} by the [[http://www.orionsarm.com/xcms.php?r=oaeg-view-article&egart_uid=47ed99bea6c67 Highbrows]], a [[SuperIntelligence super-intelligent]] HumanSubspecies genetically engineered to have massive brains, as well serious body plans and metabolism upgrades to sustain their brains' energy consumption. They are thought to have originated as a joke since, in the ''Orion's Arm'' universe, biological brains are much less efficient than AI and nanotechnology for obtaining superintelligence. However, they have since become a statement on how biological intelligence still has untapped potential. |
| 284 | * ''Literature/WhateleyUniverse'': Mephisto uses the [[PowerCrystal Cosmic Crystal]] to become 'Cerebrex, Master of the Mind', and over time his body dwindled as his brain continued to grow. Or so it seemed: true to his usual modus operandi, it was all done through a mix of ThePowerOfActing, his [[CharlesAtlasSuperpower advanced mental training]], and the illusion-casting powers of the crystal, starting with an oversized costume headpiece (which hid a RayGun), and later using an animatronic drone to allow him to be somewhere else entirely while the heroes were occupied. While the original goal was to get the heroes to take him seriously as a villain again after his long trek through skid row (he couldn't be much of a distraction if he weren't dangerous, after all), but when he realized how ridiculous the new generation of superheroes and supervillains were in the 1960s, he decided to just keep the trick rolling so he wouldn't have to personally put up with them as often. |
| 285 | [[/folder]] |
| 286 | |
| 287 | [[folder:Western Animation]] |
| 288 | * ''WesternAnimation/TheAdventuresOfJimmyNeutronBoyGenius'': |
| 289 | ** The titular character has a large cranium. |
| 290 | ** When Sheen gained superintelligence (and eventually PsychicPowers [[AGodAmI which made him think he was a god]]), he gets a swelled head both figuratively and literally. Eventually, it was going to split his head open. |
| 291 | * Lactose the Intolerant from ''WesternAnimation/TheAdventuresOfSamAndMaxFreelancePolice''. Subverted when [[spoiler:Max lobotomizes him into submission]]. Or did he? |
| 292 | -->'''Lactose:''' ''*[[MundaneUtility heating cafeteria meals with his heat vision]]*'' "It may not look like much, but in two weeks they promote me to fries! ...'''''Then'' they'll pay.'''" |
| 293 | %%* A character named Brainchild was one of the villainous Supertroopers from ''WesternAnimation/AdventuresOfTheGalaxyRangers''. His entire head was shaped like a brain. |
| 294 | * Happens to Dagget in ''WesternAnimation/TheAngryBeavers'' after ingesting a potion that was ''supposed'' to make him stupider. [[DontExplainTheJoke It didn't work because he was ''already'' pretty stupid to begin with.]] |
| 295 | * An episode of ''WesternAnimation/AquaTeenHungerForce'' revolves around the Aqua Teens' attempts to defeat Wayne "The Brain" [=McClain=] in a sports bar trivia contest. Results in MySkullRunnethOver. |
| 296 | * [[http://www.medinnus.com/AEMH/images/leader_01.png The Leader]] from ''WesternAnimation/TheAvengersEarthsMightiestHeroes'', much like his comic book version. Notably, in his first appearance [[spoiler:he's exposed to gamma radiation at the moment of his defeat, enlarging his brain further to the point he can't stand up]]. |
| 297 | * ''WesternAnimation/BeavisAndButtHead'': In one episode, a student is conducting an experiment to try and make himself smarter. It seems to be working at first, as his head swells up, invoking this trope. This backfires though when the computer program he is using to conduct the process is shut off midway through, causing his head to deflate and for him to be reduced to a braindead idiot who thinks the capital of France is Jupiter and 1 + 1 = 37. |
| 298 | * ''Franchise/Ben10'': |
| 299 | ** The super-intelligent Omnitrix aliens Grey Matter and Brainstorm respectively, have proportionally larger heads than Ben's other forms. Brainstorm can actually open the top of his head to shoot lightning from his brain as his main mode of attack, and its brain makes up something like 90% of its body. |
| 300 | ** FridgeLogic actually makes Grey Matter more of an inversion: his eyeballs are so huge in comparison to the rest of his face that there can't be that much room for a brain left over. Ben as Brainstorm lampshades this when he implies that he's smarter than Azmuth due to his brain being bigger (which isn't much of an achievement considering [[{{Lilliputians}} Galvans are 5 inches tall on average]]). |
| 301 | * A few episodes of ''WesternAnimation/BigGuyAndRustyTheBoyRobot'' had a scientist testing his mind reading machine on a dangerous setting that spider got into. This mutated him into a big headed spider-like monster driven to vampirize the intelligence of other scientists. With each brain that he absorbed, his head got bigger. Apparently this became a permanent effect of the machine, as a later episode had Dr. Donovan's nephew exposed to it and, although his mutation was far less conspicuous, still gave him the same proboscis and drive to vampirize intellect, his head growing bigger with each feeding. |
| 302 | * ''WesternAnimation/BikerMiceFromMars'': |
| 303 | ** Lawrence Limburger's MadScientist lackey Dr. Karbunkle had a large head to indicate his intelligence. |
| 304 | ** In "Last Stand at the Last Chance", the MonsterOfTheWeek is Cat Scan, a felinoid alien with mental abilities who also has a large and exposed brain. |
| 305 | * ''WesternAnimation/BumpInTheNight'' featured a pair of aliens named Sleemoth and Gloog as minor recurring villains. Both of them had visible brains and Sleemoth, the one with the larger brain, was fittingly the more intelligent of the pair. "Comfort Schmumfort" even had Sleemoth enlarge his own brain to make himself smarter, but this led to his undoing when Molly Coddle defeated him by making his brain so large that it exploded. |
| 306 | * ''WesternAnimation/CaptainSturdy'' featured a highly intelligent superhero with an enormous brain named Cerebro. |
| 307 | * Occurs in one episode of ''WesternAnimation/CatDog'' where Dog becomes super-intelligent. And Cat's brain shrinks to compensate. |
| 308 | * The titular ''WesternAnimation/{{Chowder}}'' after an overdose of Brain Grub. It even stretched out his hat! |
| 309 | * Dr. Badvibes from ''WesternAnimation/COPS1988'' has a clear dome over the (missing) top of his head, allowing everyone to see his brain. |
| 310 | * Invoked in ''WesternAnimation/DawnOfTheCroods'', where Grug gets bitten in the head by a spider-ant, causing his head to swell up leading everyone to assume he is the smartest person around and turn to him to advice, but his advice is still fairly terrible. |
| 311 | * ''WesternAnimation/DextersLaboratory'': |
| 312 | ** Dexter is a genius whose head is huge compared to the rest of his body. In a musical retelling of his birth, [[LampshadeHanging his father worries he has some sort of birth defect]], but the doctors assure him Dexter isn't only fine, they diagnose him as "clinically genius". |
| 313 | ** His rival Mandark also has a proportionally enormous head, except emphasized by [[LeanAndMean a very slim body]] instead of a short one. |
| 314 | ** In one dream sequence, Dexter gets so smart his brain starts expanding outside of his head. |
| 315 | * Happens to Skeeter during an ImagineSpot in "WesternAnimation/{{Doug}}'s Brainy Buddy" because Doug didn't understand any of his attempt to explain Kant's ''A Critique of Pure Reason'', and also it never occurred to him (or anyone else) that Skeeter was ''that'' smart. |
| 316 | * The Neo Mega sub-brood of Neosapiens in ''WesternAnimation/ExoSquad''. |
| 317 | * Yugopotamians on ''WesternAnimation/TheFairlyOddParents'', of the "generic alien" variety. |
| 318 | * ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'': Stewie is a BrainyBaby and has a noticeably swollen head (both literally and [[InsufferableGenius figuratively]]). |
| 319 | -->'''Stewie:''' I say, it appears my cranium has doubled in size! |
| 320 | ** Another one: |
| 321 | --->'''Stewie:''' Good lord, [[CallingParentsByTheirName Lois]], either I was a C-section or you're Franchise/WonderWoman. |
| 322 | * ''WesternAnimation/{{Freakazoid}}'': |
| 323 | ** The Lobe. |
| 324 | ** Also {{subverted|Trope}} by [[MeaningfulName Mo-Ron]], an alien who turns out to be a (literally) fat-headed imbecile. |
| 325 | * ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'': |
| 326 | ** Morbo is likely a parody of the "generic alien" version, although his head is shown [[BizarreAlienBiology inflating and deflating in hot weather...]] |
| 327 | ** Also from ''Futurama'': "Our calculations are always correct, for we are gigantic brains." |
| 328 | ** And again: [[http://theinfosphere.org/File:Braino.png Braino,]] from Professor Farnsworth's collection of busts of great geniuses. |
| 329 | * In ''WesternAnimation/TheGrimAdventuresOfBillyAndMandy'', the class has a report due the next day, and the excessive research causes everyone's brain to engorge as a result... everyone that is, except for Billy, who procrastinated the entire evening and never finished his report. |
| 330 | * ''WesternAnimation/InvaderZim'': |
| 331 | ** Subverted when Dib faces continuous ridicule concerning his "big head" (a [[RunningGag gag]] in and of itself, since [[InformedDeformity it isn't actually any larger than the other characters]]'). |
| 332 | ** Also parodied with Throbulator, a creature of pure headache! |
| 333 | * ''WesternAnimation/MenInBlackTheSeries'': |
| 334 | ** Brainard is a subversion. Although his huge brain gives him considerable psychic power, it doesn't keep him from being [[DumbMuscle very dumb.]] |
| 335 | ** Also, J's own cranium expands when using forbidden alien tech boosts his brain power and helps him deal with a time-warping menace. Sadly, [[BlessedWithSuck unless the process is reversed, his head will soon split apart like an overripe casaba melon]]. |
| 336 | * Professor Zygote of ''WesternAnimation/MightyMax'' evolved himself into an example of this trope. |
| 337 | * The titular superhero team made up of racial stereotypes in ''WesternAnimation/{{Minoriteam}}'' is led by Dr. Wang, Chinese Human Calculator. Dr. Wang has a high forehead, both because he's the brains of Minoriteam and to underscore the fact that he represents the stereotype of Asians being highly intelligent. |
| 338 | * In ''WesternAnimation/ThePenguinsOfMadagascar'', Kowalski invents a device to make himself smarter, and it gives him an inflated cranium. Unfortunately, not only is the effect temporary, it actually deflates his head entirely, leaving him a dimwitted pinhead. |
| 339 | * In ''WesternAnimation/PhineasAndFerb Hawaiian Vacation'', Doofenshmirtz turns his De-Evolution-Inator into an Evolution-Inator and uses it on himself, causing his head to grow so huge he falls over under its weight. |
| 340 | ** In "Cranius Maximus", Baljeet wears a thinking cap that increases his intelligence. When the cap [[https://web.archive.org/web/20181230083144/http://www.bubbleblabber.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/momattractor.jpg comes off,]] his brain has grown to a huge size (although it returns to normal in a few seconds). |
| 341 | --->'''Buford:''' Oh! Oh! Oh, that is so gross! But it's kind of awesome... |
| 342 | * The Brain and Snowball from ''WesternAnimation/PinkyAndTheBrain'' have giant foreheads to show their intelligence, though Brain's is a slightly less extreme design than most. |
| 343 | * Mojo Jojo from ''Franchise/ThePowerpuffGirls'' is a super-intelligent chimpanzee who can speak. He was originally a normal baby chimp until a lab accident caused his brain to grow. He keeps it under a dome-shaped hat most of the time. |
| 344 | * [[http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_h5El_bULuPc/Rt-0aD55beI/AAAAAAAAAM4/ggqCGdvpwCw/s1600-h/brain-child.jpg Brainchild]] on ''WesternAnimation/TheRenAndStimpyShow''. |
| 345 | * The evolved mice from ''JustForFun/TheItchyAndScratchyShow'' episode "Planet of the Aches", in ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons''. |
| 346 | * Cybron from ''WesternAnimation/SkysurferStrikeForce'' complete with glass dome head. Only the brain is cybernetic and stolen from his old job, an A.I. lab. |
| 347 | * In ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'', Creator/{{Amazon}} CEO Jeff Bezos is portrayed as a Talosian from Star Trek whose gigantic pulsating brain allows him to communicate through telepathy. |
| 348 | * [[WesternAnimation/GeorgeOfTheJungle Super Chicken]] had a villain like this called the Noodle; when he had to think of a plan, he'd [[LiteralMetaphor "use his noodle"]]. |
| 349 | * ''WesternAnimation/{{Superfriends}}'': |
| 350 | ** 1973/74 episode "The Menace of the White Dwarf". The brilliant scientist supervillain Raven has an enlarged bald skull. |
| 351 | ** In one episode a scientist turns himself into a megalomaniac "man of the future" complete with swollen bald head. He also zaps Wonder Woman with the device and she [[TranshumanTreachery becomes his accomplice]]. |
| 352 | * Charles/Brainchild from ''WesternAnimation/TheTick''. He replaced his normal skull with a transparent dome so that everyone can see he has a big brain just by looking at him. |
| 353 | * ''WesternAnimation/TotallySpies'': |
| 354 | ** One plot involved the villain transmitting the intelligence of Nobel Prize winners into his son. The [[https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMjM3NzA3MzUzOV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwMjYwMjU1MjE@._V1_.jpg results?]] |
| 355 | ** Also the villain Margie, who had the intelligence of several geniuses transferred into her brain. But we don't see it because she keeps it hidden under a BeehiveHairdo. |
| 356 | * ''WesternAnimation/TUFFPuppy'' villain Bird Brain is a highly intelligent avian with an enormous cranium. |
| 357 | * ''WesternAnimation/TheVentureBros'': |
| 358 | ** The supervillain Brainulo. |
| 359 | ** Master Billy Quizboy is a subversion. While he constantly refers to himself as a "Boy Genius" and credits his intelligence to his overly large head, he's really a middle-aged little person with hydrocephaly. In all fairness, though, he's a competent surgeon and good with mechanical prosthetics. |
| 360 | ** Guild villain Think Tank appears for one episode of season 6. When out of his Tank he has trouble standing. Clearly a parody of MODOK. |
| 361 | * The titular character of ''WesternAnimation/WhateverHappenedToRobotJones'' is very intelligent and has a huge round lightbulb in his head for a brain. |
| 362 | [[/folder]] |
| 363 | |
| 364 | [[folder:Real Life]] |
| 365 | * This has been the cause of much dispute among the scientific community about whether or not [[DoesThisRemindYouofAnything size really does matter.]] On one hand humans have a larger brain than most of the world's creatures, then again, so do sperm whales and elephants.[[note]] Although humans have most vertebrates beat in brain-to-body mass ratios.[[/note]] Then again, Whales and Elephants are hardly ''stupid''. |
| 366 | * Subverted by Neanderthals: While they had a brain size comparable and even slightly larger than those of modern humans, the shape of the skull was significantly lower than ours, and the visual effect was the opposite of this trope. |
| 367 | ** Ironically, what seems to have made the difference in the 'Homo Sapiens vs Neanderthal brainoff' wasn't quantitative, but qualitative. A dip in the brain pan directly below what we term the language center of the brain allowed us to develop linguistic thought; a new mode of abstract thinking that allowed unprecedented levels of communication, and lead to the development of writing. Writing itself was revolutionary simply because it makes knowledge and experience cumulative rather than transitory. Rather than expiring with an individual's death, knowledge could begin to accrue. It could easily be argued that said tiny dip ultimately lead to the creation of human civilization. |
| 368 | * An old theory credits this trope with why the Industrial Revolution occurred in Europe. Since Europeans are outsized by the Xhosa, Buryats, Iroquois, Eskimos, and Mongols, it's obviously long since been discredited. |
| 369 | * The ''Corvidae'' (crows and ravens) have brains the size of a walnut, yet are almost as intelligent as the great apes. Which just shows that the Brain/Body ratio is a lot less reliable when applied to non-mammals. (Also, why you shouldn't say "bird brain" to mean "stupid".) Birds use different brain regions for "thinking" than other creatures, so you really can't judge them by the size of their frontal lobes. |
| 370 | ** The brain has to process the sensory input from the whole body, and elaborate an appropriate motor response. Seeing that cell size and cerebral cortex structure don't change with body size, and that larger animals have quite a bunch more of sensorial structures; the brain has to be larger and with an even more folded surface just to process the incoming information. Doesn't take away the fact that Hominids, Elephantids, Delphinids or Corvids have larger than expected brains and extensive processing areas. |
| 371 | ** And this doesn't even get into animals which use a distributed intelligence. For example: the Octopus’s brain to body ratio is fairly standard but unlike most vertebrates, a good portion of its nervous system outside the brain pulls double duty in thinking. In other words, its brain is very big because most of its body is part brain. |
| 372 | * This is often a consequence of hydrocephalus, which is caused by cerebrospinal fluid being prevented from draining out of the brain. This enlarges the ventricles that normally hold the fluid and pushes the rest of the brain outwards. If it occurs during development, the skull enlarges to accommodate the larger brain. However, the buildup of pressure actually ''compresses'' the brain tissue and in severe cases can cause mental retardation. |
| 373 | * Creator/ConanOBrien, who self-deprecatingly refers to his "big fat Irish head", studied history at Harvard and wrote a thesis on the use of children as symbols in the works of Creator/WilliamFaulkner and Flannery O'Connor. |
| 374 | * In his book ''The Dragons Of Eden'', Creator/CarlSagan notes that the species with large brain-mass to body-mass ratios tend to be those that most biologists think of as the most intelligent. Then again, this is based on subjective perception (scientists still disagree about how to measure animal intelligence), so another possible interpretation is that humans are subconsciously WrongGenreSavvy. |
| 375 | * Research has shown that [[UsefulNotes/{{Autism}} autistics]] can have as many as 60% more neurons in their brains than most people. A major theory is that the "pruning" of excess neurons that normally occurs in development around age 2 or 3, either doesn't happen or happens less with autistic children, leading to excessive sensory input and less ability to process and organize it, thus causing problems with social situations. [[CursedWithAwesome Conversely, autists can capitalize on the increased neuronal connections to perform tasks demanding high levels of intelligence and/or concentration.]] |
| 376 | * In one case where having a big brain is a bad thing, a genetic defect in approximately a third of Cavalier King Charles Spaniels causes them to have skulls that are too small for their brains. |
| 377 | * To an extent, a big brain helps a species of smaller mammals (below 10 kg or so) avoid extinction when the environment changes, according to a study reported in an [[http://www.nature.com/news/mostly-the-big-brained-survive-1.11027 article]] in ''Nature''. |
| 378 | * One author -- Dougal Dixon? -- suggested that could be the future of our species: a huge brain, so big that it would not be surrounded by the skull, and one small -- in comparison -- undeveloped body, with thin limbs. |
| 379 | [[/folder]] |
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