Line #15 PlayingWith/NonActionGuy


1	'''Basic Trope''': A male counterpart to a female adventurer who lacks fighting skills.
2	* '''Straight''': Bob frequently tags around the ActionGirl Alice on her various adventures, but he's useless in a fight and seemingly has no reason to join Alice.
3	* '''Exaggerated''': Bob is a totally pathetic and useless guy who never helps Alice and [[TheLoad hinders her quests]] more than the ''villain(s).''
4	* '''Downplayed''':
5	** Alice is the superior fighter, but Bob can hold his own in a pinch.
6	** Bob does not fight in combat. Instead, he is a sniper who assists Alice by shooting down several enemies while Alice handles the rest.
7	** Bob is a TechnicalPacifist who only uses violence as last resort which is to say, only occasionally.
8	** Bob may have [[RetiredBadass been a fighter]] once upon a time, but is now [[FeelingTheirAge getting old]] and is not as capable as he once was.
9	* '''Justified''':
10	** Bob has other skills whose values are not immediately visible. Or ''are'' immediately visible, but are unrelated to combat.
11	** Bob and Alice are in a relationship, and both enjoy the time together, whether Bob is of much use or not.
12	** Alice is Bob's bodyguard. If she wasn't more capable of protecting him than he was of protecting himself, it would defeat the entire point of ''having'' a bodyguard.
13	** Bob is TheSmartGuy and doesn't usually get physical, but he's still a tech genius who helps out the crew.
14	* '''Inverted''': Bob is a BadassBookworm adventurer who is constantly having to bail Alice, a FauxActionGirl, out of trouble.
15	* '''Gender Flipped:''' In a WorldOfActionGirls where every Tam, Di, and Harriet has battle prowess, Alice is a rare Non-Action Girl whose skills lie elsewhere. For extra contrast, she is paired with Bob, a rare battle-hardened male character in the setting.
16	* '''Subverted''':
17	** Emperor Evulz kidnaps Alice and corners Bob. He's expecting a quick victory, but Bob [[LetsGetDangerous pummels the crap out of him]] with more force than Alice could ever muster.
18	** Bob is normally a quiet LovableCoward, but when Alice, an ActionGirl, is finally beaten, he [[TheBerserker loses it and pummels the crap out of everyone in the room]].
19	** Bob was TheMole. He was only pretending to be a non-action guy, so no one would suspect he was behind all those murders.
20	* '''Double Subverted''':
21	** It is made explicitly clear that the asskicking was a one-time thing and was Bob's fight-or-flight response working.
22	** It is then revealed that Alice doubles as Bob's LivingEmotionalCrutch to keep him as his "typical" quiet LovableCoward self.
23	* '''Parodied''': Bob is completely incapable of doing anything, and would lose a fight to a malnourished three-year old.
24	* '''Zig Zagged''': Bob starts out as TheLoad, until Alice gets tired of him and leaves him. But then Bob returns after [[TookALevelInBadass becoming a better fighter,]] that is, until he suffers severely from TheWorfEffect, but Alice decides that she likes him anyway.
25	* '''Averted''': From the outset, Bob is established as having at least some fighting ability.
26	* '''Enforced''': "This is the 2000s, so people are expecting a female hero with a useless male sidekick!"
27	* '''Lampshaded''': "Alice, this is your new partner, Bob. He's...well, he does...OK, he does nothing."
28	* '''Invoked''': DaChief, seeing that Alice is heading towards CowboyCop territory, intentionally gives her a useless partner to rein her in.
29	* '''Exploited''': The villain(s) constantly attack and kidnap Bob, knowing that he can't defend himself.
30	* '''Defied''':
31	** After a few adventures in which he only survives by the skin of his teeth, Bob decides to TakeALevelInBadass.
32	** Bob does his best to avoid situations in which he'd need someone else to protect him.
33	* '''Discussed''': "As long as we take out Alice, we won't have to worry about anything -- Bob is worthless."
34	* '''Conversed''': "Do you notice those shows where the girl is badass and the guy is totally useless?"
35	* '''Deconstructed''':
36	** Having to both save the world and rescue Bob all the time puts an undue amount of strain on her - this causes her to leave the hero business for good.
37	** Alternatively, Alice realizes that Bob is useless and abandons him at the first convenient opportunity.
38	** Bob knows he can't fight, but feels like he'll never be respected unless he's part of the action. Because of this, he tries to hold off TheDragon, who kills him with no more effort than it would take to swat a fly.
39	** Bob ends up becoming TheLoad and begins to [[TheScrappy be hated]] in universe and by the fans.
40	* '''Reconstructed''':
41	** Alice enjoys keeping Bob around because she's taken a shine to him, or he helps her [[MoralityPet keep a sense of perspective]].
42	** Bob can contribute in other ways.
43	** Bob may have been killed, but the research he left behind proves crucial to Alice's quest, and the desire to avenge him keeps her focused and motivated.
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45	Back to NonActionGuy
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47	%% Optional items, added after Conversed, at your discretion:
48	%%
49	%%* '''Implied''': ???
50	%%* '''Plotted A Good Waste''': ???
51	%%* '''Played For Laughs''': ???

Context PlayingWith / NonActionGuy