Basic Trope: The woman prefers the strong man over the scrawny man.
- Straight: Alice dates Bob because Bob is bulky and strong, unlike Charlie.
- Exaggerated:
- Alice dates Bob because he's Mister Universe.
- Bob is popular among ladies because he can bench press planets.
- Downplayed:
- Alice appreciates Bob's strong bulk but it isn't an essential feature she needs in partners.
- Bob is just slightly above average when it comes to muscular strength.
- Justified:
- Alice once was assaulted because the weaker Charlie couldn't protect her, so she seeks out partners that can ensure her safety in a crisis.
- Alice likes muscles and abs.
- Alice wants strong genes in her family so she needs a strong man to make the difference.
- Women that date strong imposing men have higher status in society.
- Alice likes it rough.
- Inverted:
- Alice prefers little and/or thin men instead of muscular men.
- Bob dates Alice because she is bulky and strong.
- Subverted:
- Alice doesn't want a strong man because she doesn't want to be threatened by him.
- Alice decides she wants Delia, a strong woman, because she's lesbian.
- Alice doesn't mind having Charlie as a boyfriend because he makes up for it with his brains.
- Double Subverted
- Alice dates a strong man anyway on condition he doesn't use his bulk to threaten her.
- Delia comes out as transgender, thus becoming a strong man.
- Alice convinces Charlie to work out more and gain some bulk so that she gets the best of both worlds.
- Parodied: Alice dates a variety of bulky masculine men... each of which is strong enough to lift the RMS Titanic all by their lonesome.
- Zig Zagged: Alice dates a combination of stronger men and weaker men and can't decide which ones she bonds with more.
- Averted: Alice doesn't care about physical strength when it comes to partners.
- Enforced: "You need to date a strong man. Somebody who can beat up thugs in an alley, who can lift a car if its about to go over a cliff and who looks like a literal superhero."
- Lampshaded: "You know, my muscles don't define my entire personality, lady."
- Invoked: Alice would date strong men... if she wanted to have a relationship.
- Exploited: Alice's parents set her up with a professional wrestler, knowing that Alice will be drawn to his muscles and strong demeanor.
- Defied:
- Alice refuses to date anybody solely because of physical appearance.
- Bob refuses to be Alice's girlfriend just because he's muscular, citing they would still hate each other.
- Discussed: "We all know why Lois likes Superman. If you were a woman, who wouldn't want the strongest boyfriend in the world?"
- Conversed: "So like, you're really something, big guy. Wanna be my big guy?"
- Implied: Alice walks into her house, trailed her her seven foot husband that's dragging a bear corpse into her living room.
- Deconstructed:
- Alice feels pressured to date a stronger man because all her girlfriends talk about how you need to date a big guy if you want to look special to boys. She acknowledges that she could date Bob even though he is kind of dumb and careless, but she likes Charlie who himself is deemed an "unpopular" kid in the high school. She's constantly torn between dating the partner she likes vs the partner the school likes.
- Charlie starts to feel bad about himself, and gives up trying to get Alice's attention.
- Reconstructed: Alice realizes that while Charlie may be nice on the outside, internally he's passive aggressive, sexist and has been seeking her out solely for his own personal gain. Bob, while not the smartest kid, is genuinely nice to her and has a soft spot that Alice falls in love with.
- Played For Comedy: Alice calls out a bunch of nerds for being shrimpy cowards who couldn't last a minute against her boyfriend in a fight. When they try to gang up on Bob he awkwardly stands there as the nerds exhaust themselves trying to attack him. Bob comments on why Alice did that only for her to reply that she wanted to prove why she picked Bob against everyone else.
- Played For Drama: Alice dates Bob as she was drawn to muscular men. Over time, their relationship becomes strained as Bob uses his size to abuse her, making her feel powerless. She tries to bulk herself up which leads to disastrous results as one of their fights results in mutual injuries to both sides. They get a divorce and Alice is reminded on why you can't judge a book based on its cover.
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