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In our stilted game It's our only subtext That maturity's for nerds — Sarah the Boring , filking
He'll fight off hordes of monsters with techniques the likes of which master swordsmen would never equal. He'll wield weapons spoken of only in the oldest of legends. He'll save the world and everyone in it from destruction five times over.
And he'll do all of this while not being old enough to drive.
The Kid Hero is, as the name implies, a child. The exact age varies up and down the scale, from 8 to 17, but they're never an adult by whatever the local standards are. The "base age" seems to be 14 or thereabouts, though their numeric age may not be revealed.
Your standard Kid Hero has a strong streak of immaturity in them. They might well regard the adventure as a game, albeit one with slightly higher stakes. (Often their starting weapon is explicitly made of wood.) Expect this to be scrubbed out of them in short order, usually when the place they call home gets wiped off the map.
Most commonly seen in role-playing games, as it allows for character growth to feel natural and skips the question of why they aren't properly equipped for the job. Also appears in the vast majority of animated action-adventure, both Western and Eastern.
If particularly well executed, The Brigadier and others won't look like monsters or weaklings for sending a kid to do their heroics for them.
This is Older Than Feudalism; examples include the Biblical hero David, and several Greek and Hindu mythic heroes (e.g., Hercules, who killed two large snakes sent by Hera to kill him in his crib)
See also Child Soldiers, a much more realistic (and darker) concept.
Examples:
- Tetsunosuke in Peacemaker Kurogane.
- Nagi Springfield during his youth certainly qualifies. At age 10, he wins the Mahora Tournament, and could fly without a staff and essentially teleport. Gathering a team of badasses and becoming a war hero, he receives the title of Thousand Master at age fifteen. His son and series protagonist, 10-year-old Negi aims to be just like him - he's already led his side to victory in the Battle of Mahora "game", and was able to go toe-to-toe with one of his father's contemporaries in an all-out fight.
- Summed up in one line from Bleach; when Chad is offered the chance to end the battle and drink with Shunsui Kyōraku, he refuses. When asked why, he points out, "It's illegal for minors to drink;" it's quite easy to mistake Chad for an adult..
- In the Galaxy Angel games, the player character is 21 and only one Angel is over 18. Galaxy Angel II has a 16-year-old player character and Angels from ages 14 to 21 (not counting Nano-Nano, who, as a Robot Girl of sorts, is probably about two).
- Subverted inevitably in Neon Genesis Evangelion. 14-year old Shinji has a complete breakdown under the pressure of being the designated hero.
- Asuka suffers a similar breakdown and Rei suicides all over the place before we learn that she's actually a cloned entity of an angel and therefore, not human at all.
- Simon from Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann, like Shinji, starts out as a cowardly Cute Shotaro Boy; however, since his mentor is Kamina the Determinator, instead of Gendou the cold-hearted, borderline Magnificent Bastard, Simon later becomes a Badass Kid Hero.
- Goku is a Kid Hero for most of Dragon Ball. Child Goku was so popular in Japan, that they tried to bring him back for Dragon Ball GT by having him wished into a child with the Dragon Balls.
- Justified in Mamoru's case in Gao Gai Gar: He's the only one capable of turning a Zonder Core back into a human. The GGG aren't fools, however, and keep him back with the Ninja Police Robot until the Monster Of The Week has been dealt with.
- In Naruto, the main characters start around 12, and in part II, they're 15.
- 15-year-old Garrod Ran, an ex Street Urchin, becomes the pilot of the titular Gundam X Real Robot. His Team Dad and mentor, Jamil Neate, used to be a Kid Hero as well... but he actually had a complete breakdown after the war, which didn't let him pilot a mecha in more than 15 years.
- The Pokemon universe guarantees this since all Pokemon trainers start when they turn 10.
- Luffy from One Piece barely counts at age 17, but many people look at him as younger. Most of the early members of the crew are rather young, too. Word Of God wants to reinforce that minors still shouldn't drink.
- The Eldoran series.
- Practically every main protagonist in a Magical Girl falls under this. As of this writing, probably the only ones that are of adult age are the 26-year-old Agnes Bell from My Wife Is A Magical Girl and the 19-year-old Nanoha Takamachi from Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha StrikerS.
- The student meisters and Weapons in Soul Eater are mostly around the age of 13, which is either stated or can be deduced from various comments and flashbacks. Those who are noticeably older are the Thompsons (Liz, at least) and Tsubaki. Thunder and Fire are by far the youngest Weapons, or at least it appeared so until the latest chapter 'aged' them via a power-up.
- Stan Lee took a wild shot by making the Spider-Man the
first second third true teen superhero (i.e. non-sidekick; there was the Star-Spangled kid back in WWII, but he didn't sell as well). The eventual widespread popularity of Spider-Man quite possibly is the root of the trope within the West.
- Years before, the prepubescent Billy Batson became Captain Marvel, and subsequently the most popular character in comic books. A lawsuit from DC eventually ended his reign, but the incident proved that children, like so many demographics, react best to people like themselves.
- Of course, Captain Marvel has the twist that he becomes an adult in his super powered form.
- One retelling of Captain Marvel's origin deconstructed this somewhat. Big Bad Doctor Sivana got some intel that Billy Batson (homeless and living in a subway tunnel at the time) was Captain Marvel and sent assassins after him. Billy defeated them, but his best friend was fatally shot in the process. Billy was so enraged that he nearly violated Thou Shalt Not Kill with regards to Sivana. When Superman confronted him about it, Billy decided to show him his true nature.
Billy (after reverting back): My name's Billy Batson. But maybe it's too dangerous to be Billy anymore.
- Needless to say, Superman was pissed and he called out Shazam for handing all of the responsibility and danger that comes with life as a superhero to a little boy.
Superman: He's a little boy. He should be worrying about homework and school and the crush he has on the girl sitting next to him in class! Not worrying about assassins killing his best friend! He's just a boy. This is a burden meant for men.
- Also pre-dating Spidey by some years was Superboy ("the adventures of Superman when he was a boy"), who debuted in More Fun Comics #101 in 1945, and soon moved to a lengthy run as the lead feature in Adventure Comics, plus gaining his own self-titled series (Superboy) in 1949.
- The Marvel Universe superteam Power Pack all got their powers before the age of thirteen, and one of them had already retired from adventuring (more than once) by the time she was seventeen.
- Most of the cast of Runaways are teenage superheroes, though Molly Hayes probably epitomizes this trope best. She's 11 years old and has super-strength, plus invulnerability. However, like a young child, she tires easily and has to take naps when she's over-exerted. (In other words, she could probably go a round or two with the Hulk, but would probably fall asleep mid-battle.) Her idea for a superhero name? Princess Powerful (Hey, she's 11, give her a break!).
- Anakin Skywalker, who single-handedly (if accidentally) won the Battle of Naboo at the age of eight. (Some would also call Luke a Kid Hero as well, even though he was 19 at the time of A New Hope)
- What, we're not including Jacen, Jaina and their group of friends in the Young Jedi Knights series? Going further down the timeline, we have Ben Skywalker, though his hero's journey puts a lot more emphasis on spirituality rather than saving the galaxy.
- Spy Kids
- The title character from Kirikou And The Sorceress is actually a BABY hero.
- Tamora Pierce's protagonists grow up with the books, but
- All installments of The Never Ending Story.
- Ender's Game - except becomes a partial subversion when Ender has a massive mental breakdown after discovering that the game was real.
- Garion from David Eddings' Belgariad kills a god at the age of sixteen. And then marries the spoiled princess, which is at least as daunting.
- Harry Potter had his first adventure at the age of eleven and in the last book he defeated Lord Voldemort at seventeen. In additon to Harry himself, the series includes Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, Neville Longbottom, Ginny Weasley, Luna Lovegood and the list goes on. On the other side, Draco Malfoy became an official Death Eater at sixteen.
- Done somewhat differently in the Grey Griffins book series, in that while the main heroes are four children, adults frequently end up having to rescue them or help out, and are also the ones who do the overwhelming majority of the actual fighting. On the other hand, the kids tend to do much adventuring on their own, usually using their wits.
- The Young Wizards series. Justified by several reasons:
- The younger a wizard, the more raw power they have available.
- A wizard is first offered his/her power by the Powers That Be when s/he is the best (or the only) solution to a particular problem, a problem which was directly or indirectly caused by the Lone Power, the Big Bad of the series. Thus, whatever a wizard does after first getting his/her powers is always important, and often dangerous.
- Peter Pan. Period.
- In Sandy Mitchell's Ciaphas Cain novel Cain's Last Stand, the students at the schola. Starting with Sprie who is piloting Cain's shuttle when the attack comes and analyzes it for Cain. At one point, Cain observes that the schola could pass for an Imperial Guard post if the faces weren't so young.
- Most of the ''Oz'' books have a child as at least one of the protagonists. Dorothy Gale is the most famous, but the books also include Tip, Princess Ozma (when she takes part in the action), Betsy Bobbin, Ojo the Unlucky, and others.
- All the half-bloods and Grover in Percy Jackson And The Olympians. It's debatable whether or not the Hunters of Artemis count too - technically they are immortal and therefore mostly in their thousands, but physically are prepubescent.
- Robb Stark from A Song Of Ice And Fire. The guy commands a good percentage of the continent's armed men while barely old enough to grow a beard.
- Eragon in The Inheritance Cycle, though, in fairness, Eragon really isn't too far off from what his people consider the age of maturity when the series begins.
- Gratuity in The True Meaning Of Smekday, though she is a bit more mature at the start of the book than most Kid Heroes.
- Pick a Japanese console RPG. Any Japanese console RPG.
- Crono from Chrono Trigger and Serge from Chrono Cross. Both still living at home with their mommies (and said home surprisingly does not blow up.
- Sora from the Kingdom Hearts series; he starts puberty between the first and second games.
- Apparently immediately after the first one, if you go by his voice in Re: Chain of Memories. Although naturally that has to do with the fact that Haley Joel Osment only recorded it after Kingdom Hearts II.
- Ryu from Breath Of Fire 3.
- As well as Breath Of Fire 2's Ryu, who starts the game (along with Bow) as a young tyke literally equipped with a tree branch. His attacks even do a measly one damage to rub it in.
- Most heroes — as well as most party members — of the Tales Series are in their mid-teens. Tales Of Symphonia features two party members who're 12 physically. Tales Of The Abyss takes it to new extremes with a major character who's only 7. Luke, because he's a clone. Tales Of Vesperia stands out for having the party led by a 21 year old, the youngest human member is still 12 though (their is a 4 year old but he's a dog, so still an adult).
- On the other hand, the early Final Fantasy games usually have heroes in their early to mid 20s.
- Exceptions being Rydia (first third of the game) and Porom and Palom in Final Fantasy IV, and Relm and Gau in Final Fantasy VI.
- But we also have the 17 year-old Squall, Zidane, Tidus, and Vaan.
- Also, Luso and Marche from the Final Fantasy Tactics Advance games.
- Relatedly, in the world of Final Fantasy VII, several known characters joined (or tried to join) SOLDIER at 14. Cloud was on the front lines as a Shinra soldier at 16.
- Yuffie was only 9 in Crisis Core, and grew up to 16 for FFVII proper.
- Several of the main characters from the Suikoden series of games.
- Both Justin and Sue from Grandia - with a surprising dose of realism thrown in towards the end of the game, when Justin is forced to realize the seriousness of his quest, and Sue is forced to leave the party and return home after becoming ill, thanks to being unable to cope with the exhausting pace of the adventure.
- Grandia II however mostly subverted this trope, with 12-something-year-old Roan having to be saved by monsters and is often treated like a kid however he certainly can hold his own in a fight and at the end becomes King to leads his people during the apocalypse.
- Any and every protagonist in Pokemon is ten years old, from the game's heroic mimes, to the anime's star Ash, to the many manga protagonists - about the only ones to be even in their late teens are Wes from Pokémon Colosseum and the original characters of Pokémon Special by the time of the Emerald arc.
- In this troper's opinion, Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time seems to mock the concept by making Baby Mario and Baby Luigi two of the heroes who you control, along with their older counterparts, Time Travel and all. Of course it has to start with a Lampshade Hanging moment with Baby Mario rescuing Baby Peach by stomping Baby Bowser.
- Tecmo's Secret of the Stars for the SNES had its action divided between a group of warrior children tasked with saving the world, the Aquatallion, and a group of adults, the Kustera, whose only purpose is to provide support for them.
- Alex in Lunar.
- Ratix in Star Ocean, Claude in Star Ocean: The Second Story, Fayt in Star Ocean: Till the End of Time... notice a trend?
- Dean in Wild ARMs 5 and Jude in Wild ARMs 4. Wild ARMs is actually pretty good about not abusing this trope in general.
- Perhaps taken to its extreme in Dragon Quest V, where the protagonist begins his heroic career at the age of five. And that's before getting into the Fridge Logic of why stores stock steel weapons and iron plate armor for children that age.
- There's some argument over whether Link was a Kid Hero or not in the early Legend Of Zelda games, but he definitely starts as one in Ocarina of Time, and remains one in Majora's Mask, Oracle of Ages/Seasons, The Minish Cap, Wind Waker, and Phantom Hourglass.
- Not really any argument about the early games at all. The manual for Zelda II: The Adventure of Link states that he is 16 years old, and that the events of that game take place within a year or two of the conclusion of the first game.
- The strategy guide for Twilight Princess gives Link's age in that game as 17.
- Subversion, sort of: In Fallout 2, it is possible to design a character as young as 16. This has no bearing on the rest of the game, though, and the character is still very capable of performing the things other characters can. These things include drinking, doing drugs, having sex for various reasons, having a shotgun wedding, and becoming a pornstar (or fluffer, if lacking in talent). Oh, and killing your way through the game by various, interesting means.
- The entire main cast of Earthbound appear to be somewhere in the junior-high age group.
- The heroes in Golden Sun are another example. Isaac, Garet, Jenna and Mia are 17 years old and Ivan only 15. They're referred to as "children" by most of Weyard's populace.
- Kirby, from the eponymous series of games, is described as being a "little boy" (though his age is never directly given). In the anime, it's explicitly stated that Kirby is a baby.
- Sonic is 15 and some of his pals haven't reached 13 yet, including Tails and Amy Rose.
- Tails did...before it was retconned away, like half of the stuff that made sense.
- The Kid in I Wanna Be The Guy.
- Brian of Quest 64 is said to be 10 years old...or 5 years old according to the time period in which it took place.
- The lords in the Fire Emblem saga are more often than not over 18, but some are young enough to be kid heroes:
- Roy from Fire Emblem 6 is 15 years old an has to command his trope after his father, Eliwood, falls gravely sick and cannot do that himself. Some of his companions like Straight Arrow Wolt and Sue, Fragile Speedster Thany, Staff Chick Clarine and Magic Warrior Lilina, are around his same age.
- Lyn is the youngest of the three lords in Fire Emblem 7, and her original age in the Japanese version is 15. She was 17 going on 18 in the NA release, though.
- On the same league, Celice from Fire Emblem 4 is 16 years old when he becomes the leader of La Resistence against The Empire. In addition, almost all of Celice's companions are around his age: his cousin Leaf (the hero in FE 5), his best friend Rana, etc..
- Orta in Panzer Dragoon Orta is only an early- to mid-teenager. Iva Demilcol is even younger (not even ten) and he was recruited into the Imperial army.
- Both Mega Man Battle Network and Mega Man Star Force follow this trope, with the main characters Lan and Geo being both fifth-graders (this also goes for their friends, especially in Battle Network's case).
- Cartoon example: Ben 10 has a ten-year old protagonist named Ben Tennyson, who gains the power to turn into ten (or more) different aliens. However, he rarely acts more mature than usual for that age. If anything, he conspicuously appears to be going backwards in maturity.
- Aang on the Asian-influenced Avatar The Last Airbender: that with tasks such as confronting a supreme monarch and restoring the political balance of the world, it seems almost cruel that such a burden should be placed upon a 12-year-old boy. To an end, this was essentially his initial reaction when presented with the entire concept, and most Avatars don't even start anything like this until they're 16. Fortunately, thanks to the series' focus on Character Development, he’s moved forward a bit from being an irresponsible, self-centered, blissfully carefree, stereotypical 12-year-old kid who uses the word "fun" in every other sentence. He does however occasionally get depressed by how much he is responsible for being the Avatar. Can't blame him though, because after all, he didn't have much of a choice in the matter.
- The Teen Titans source material actually had the heroes as young adults overcoming the fact that they weren't kids anymore and continuing their heroic exploits regardless. However, since the cartoon series was being directed towards children, they all lost a good ten years, putting them at their tweens.
- Tweens? Robin and Cyborg are both old enough to drive, and it's unlikely the rest are much younger.
- Dave, in the Veggie Tales episode Dave and the Giant Pickle.
- Blinky Bill
- Zak Saturday. Of course, in the second season finale, he's revealed to be the reincarnation of a malevolent, world-ending god...
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