History Main / MemeticLoser

** ''ComicBook/CaptainAmerica'': ComicBook/BuckyBarnes used to vie with Robin for the position of the proverbial lame sidekick. Then Creator/EdBrubaker brought him back in ''ComicBook/CaptainAmerica2005'' as the titular character in ''ComicBook/CaptainAmericaWinterSoldier'' and [[{{Retcon}} revealed]] he was essentially a ChildSoldier and brought him back as a BrainwashedAndCrazy assassin. Because of AdaptationDisplacement, his original portrayal tends to be mostly overlooked by this point.

** ''ComicBook/CaptainAmerica'': ComicBook/BuckyBarnes used to vie with Robin for the position of the proverbial lame sidekick. Then Creator/EdBrubaker brought him back as the titular character in ''ComicBook/CaptainAmericaWinterSoldier'' and [[{{Retcon}} revealed]] he was essentially a ChildSoldier and brought him back as a BrainwashedAndCrazy assassin. Because of AdaptationDisplacement, his original portrayal tends to be mostly overlooked by this point.

** ''Franchise/{{Batman}}''

** Though canonically one of the strongest Franchise/{{Green Lantern}}s, Hal Jordan is treated as this in some circles, mostly for the anomalous number of 50s and 60s comics where a guy who's battled entire alien warfleets gets hit on the head and knocked out by a random thug. Given his frequent cases of {{Idiot Ball}}s, those same circles tend to assume he's developed brain damage.
** While not ''as'' maligned as Aquaman or (Gi)Ant-Man, you'll find very few people outside of the fanbase willing to stick up for any version of ComicBook/{{Hawkman}}. If anything, it can be somewhat harder to find people willing to stick up for him, because while the others have HeartIsAnAwesomePower on their side, Hawkman is physically a BadassNormal and his "main" power of flight (and only when using a wing pack) is too straightforward and commonplace to really eke any special uses out of. These three share the same general problem: most people only know of them through team books, which more often than not have lineups based on PopularityPower[[note]]As well as its inverse; for most of its history, in fact, ComicBook/JusticeLeagueOfAmerica was thought of as a rest-home for heroes that couldn't hold a steady solo book.[[/note]] instead of any real synergy. As a result, you'd often have at least two characters with overlapping powers/fighting styles, and whichever one had the better powers and the bigger fanbase would often reduce the other guy to a PoorMansSubstitute[[note]]This was an especially big problem in [[UsefulNotes/TheSilverAgeOfComicBooks the Silver Age]], where your average comic-book writer could ''maybe'' write two-and-a-half distinct personalities[[/note]]. As the Western Animation section below notes: why give Hawkman any respect when Superman has all your FlyingBrick needs ''and then some?''

** ComicBook/CaptainAtom is, on paper, one of the strongest active heroes in the DC Universe, being the original inspiration for [[ComicBook/{{Watchmen}} Doctor Manhattan]] and having absorbed a lot of elements in return, [[DependingOnTheWriter at his strongest being]] a nigh-omnipotent EnergyBeing with full mastery of atomic power encased in a shell of unbreakable metal. Unfortunately, in the alternate-universe story ''ComicBook/KingdomCome'', his main impact on the story was dying when he got split open by Parasite, in a play on "splitting an atom", and with [[FantasticNuke similarly destructive results.]] After that point, he became a major-league victim of TheWorfEffect, especially whenever featuring in an ExpendableAlternateUniverse, with him getting his suit ruptured and exploding in virtually every such story he appears in, and in many such cases, only appearing in those stories so that someone can break him open and blow him up. When combined with lengthy periods of him being OutOfFocus in the "main" universe, it's become a joke that his only ''real'' power is exploding.

** [[ComicBook/AntMan Hank Pym]] will forever be known as the lame guy that [[NeverLiveItDown hit his wife that one time]] and [[WhatKindOfLamePowerIsHeartAnyway has the not-so-useful power to controls ants and reduce his size]], regardless of his portrayals in later comics or the fact that, [[HeartIsAnAwesomePower when his powers are well portrayed]], he's nothing short of [[FridgeHorror terrifying]]. He started to grow out of it a bit, however, thanks to his appearances in ''ComicBook/DarkReign'', his portrayal as a BadassPacifist in ''WesternAnimation/TheAvengersEarthsMightiestHeroes'' (among other things, he went toe to toe with Frost Giants, guys who usually give Thor trouble, and impressing Sif and the Valkyries in the process), and more recently his well-received appearance as [[GrumpyOldMan a grumpy yet badass old man]] and [[RetiredBadass former superhero]] who mentors Scott Lang in the ''Film/AntMan1'' film.
** ComicBook/BuckyBarnes used to vie with Robin for the position of the proverbial lame sidekick. Then Creator/EdBrubaker brought him back as the titular character in ''ComicBook/CaptainAmericaWinterSoldier'' and [[{{Retcon}} revealed]] he was essentially a ChildSoldier and brought him back as a BrainwashedAndCrazy assassin. Because of AdaptationDisplacement, his original portrayal tends to be mostly overlooked by this point.
** ''ComicBook/{{Hawkeye}}''. In canon, Hawkeye is ''the'' BadassNormal of the Avengers, trained by Captain America in close-quarters combat, an expert swordsman good enough to be able to pass for a ninja, and is literally the world's greatest marksman. In spite of this, thanks to his goofy sense of humour, his colourful costume, being BookDumb, and a less-than-impressive depiction in ''Film/{{The Avengers|2012}}'' (which was his first real introduction to mainstream audiences), he's often regarded as a joke, dismissed as the weakest Avenger, if not weakest Superhero in general, and given serious disrespect. His portrayal in ''Film/AvengersAgeOfUltron'' made things better for some, but he still struggles to get respect outside of his fanbase.
*** Making matters worse, the critically acclaimed Matt Fraction/David Aja run on his ongoing acted as a deconstruction of BadassNormal characters and explored a realistic take on Hawkeye's character; though he's still depicted as a competent fighter, it demonstrated how being a OneManArmy won't last long if they have enough mooks. However, fans and critics exaggerated it to the point Hawkeye appears completely incompetent, leading to accusations of BadassDecay. The following run by Jeff Lemire then made things worse by taking this interpretation and making it canon, with Clint now completely incompetent.

*** ComicBook/{{Cyclops}} gets this in some form; while certainly a badass, and a strategist on par with Captain America, he still stands next to [[MemeticBadass Wolverine]]. He has a rather justified reason to be moody or angsty, and his dislike for Wolverine spending time with his wife is understandable given that Wolverine is constantly hitting on her, but some fans flanderize this as him being a real whiner baby; ''Twisted Toyfair Theatre'' being notable examples. He is also considered this by his actual fans, who seem to enjoy mocking his {{Accidental Innuendo}}s, lack of social skills and general dorkiness, but (for at least a few of them) these are qualities that they view as adorable; still it's not uncommon for fans to say they like him because he's a badass but bad at being one.
*** ComicBook/{{Apocalypse}} has been considered this in some circles due to how many times he [[TheWorfEffect gets beaten by weaker mutants]] such as Magneto, being manipulated by the Celestials and his reliance on their tech, and his relative unimportance in the grand scheme of things compared to other villains like ComicBook/{{Thanos}} or ComicBook/{{Ultron}}. In the ''ComicBook/HouseOfM'' continuity, he even cowers before Comicbook/BlackBolt and gets vaporized by a whisper from him. Thanos, in comparison, takes a full-on scream from Black Bolt and only gets his armor destroyed and a couple gashes. It doesn't help that he's easy to beat in ''VideoGame/XMenVsStreetFighter'' and [[VideoGame/MarvelSuperHeroesVsStreetFighter its sequel]].

* ''WesternAnimation/XMenTheAnimatedSeries'': Jean Grey is mocked for being utterly [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hzc5VHL1bPM&t=61s useless.]] She constantly needs to be saved and she faints every time she does anything. The absurdity of it gets to the point where she loses to a '''power cord'''. It's often joked that Scott [[SayMyName screams]] her name out of his frustration with her instead of concern. Fortunately, ''WesternAnimation/XMen97'' rectifies this buy having her take [[TookALevelInBadass several levels in badass]], with many impressive demonstrations of her power.

* ''WesternAnimation/XMenTheAnimatedSeries'': Jean Grey is mocked for being utterly [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hzc5VHL1bPM&t=61s useless.]] She constantly needs to be saved and she faints every time she does anything. The absurdity of it gets to the point where she loses to a '''power cord'''. It's often joked that Scott [[SayMyName screams]] her name out of his frustration with her instead of concern.

** ''Film/{{Suicide Squad|2016}}'': Creator/JaredLeto's Joker, for a ''variety'' of reasons ranging from his actor's [[MethodActing creepy on-set behavior]] (send co-stars used condoms and dead animals and becoming an extreme annoyance to Creator/WillSmith) to a character design that some have mocked as [[WTHCostumingDepartment ridiculous]], to Leto's pretentious hyping up of the character, to his [[AdvertisedExtra extremely limited screentime]] to his [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking laugh being unsatisfactory]]. The character has been subject to wide derision in contrast to the character's [[ToughActToFollow iconic and much-beloved portrayals]] in ''Film/TheDarkKnight'', ''Film/Batman1989'', ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'' and even Jerome Valeska in ''Series/{{Gotham}}''. Some people have even said that the ''Creator/CesarRomero'' version was more intimidating. He has spawned [[http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/jared-leto-s-joker a series of memes]] across the Internet dedicated to mocking him as well as more specific sub-memes on Website/FourChan, with [[PokeThePoodle the most]] [[{{Manchild}} popular]] being "times you acted like the Joker" threads. The unanimous critical acclaim that Creator/JoaquinPhoenix received for yet another portrayal of the exact same character in [[Film/Joker2019 the self-titled movie]] did nothing to diminish the Leto version's reputation as the weak link in the character's on-screen history. While Leto's Joker appearance in ''Film/ZackSnydersJusticeLeague'' was better received, his new design still received [[WTHCostumingDepartment mockery]] and did little to make people forget about his initial portrayal.

* ''Literature/{{Dracula}}'': Dracula ''himself'' fell victim to this trope on Website/{{Tumblr}} thanks to the popularity of Dracula Daily. Many a joke has been made at his expense over the centuries he spent planning his campaign to take over London, only to get driven out in the span of a few months by one small group of people. These include the solicitor that he tormented at the start of the novel, the solicitor's BadassBookworm wife, and an American cowboy who managed to shoot him through a window. It did not help that Dracula chose to wear a straw hat as his disguise while escaping London.