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Anime and Manga
"Also, in this country, we don't call people who overpower motor vehicles 'little girls.' We call them mountain gorillas."
— Gin, Gintama
Comic Books
"That proves I have super-strength too, just like my cousin Superman!"
— Supergirl after bending a steel bar, The Supergirl From Krypton (1959)
Fan Works
"You have to be kidding me." she whispered. The blonde had hit with enough force to shatter three feet of concrete.
Kara struggled in her captor's hold, writhing as his arms tightened, until she screamed and, completely on instinct, hitched up her back, lifting the man up and throwing him over her body to one of the trees. His body had been thrown with such force that it broke through the tree trunk, ripping it in half. He continued to skid across the ground before his back hit another tree, and remained there motionless, either unconscious or dead.
She pushed herself off of nothingness, and speeded towards one of those moons, quickly passing light velocity several times over. Satan Girl kept picking up speed, her arms crossed before her face. The white, crater-pocked surface loomed before her, filling her range of vision.
She hit it.
There would have been a tremendous boom, if the moon had had an atmosphere. But it did not, and there was only silence and an awesome impact of body with lunar matter.
Satan Girl had struck the moon at an angle to spin it free of its orbit. She ricocheted away from it, unharmed.
She hit it.
There would have been a tremendous boom, if the moon had had an atmosphere. But it did not, and there was only silence and an awesome impact of body with lunar matter.
Satan Girl had struck the moon at an angle to spin it free of its orbit. She ricocheted away from it, unharmed.
Kitty nodded, then her already-wide eyes seemed to bulge even more as Clark walked past her, carrying her heavy suitcases as if they were empty.
"...how?"
"Multiple powers." Clark smiled as he paused at the bottom of the ramp. "Super strength. You coming?"
"...how?"
"Multiple powers." Clark smiled as he paused at the bottom of the ramp. "Super strength. You coming?"
She forced her eye open and she saw, through the Eva's eyes, as the impossible happened. The Angel stopped in its tracks, great spindly arms flailing, as if it were confused. For a moment, she wondered how, why the creature would stop in its relentless advance, stop trying to murder her and reach its goal. Then she spotted the tiny blue figure pushing against it, pushing it back. She willed the Eva and Eva answered her, tightening her view. This was not possible.
There was a person, and he was pushing the Angel back with his bare hands. She gasped, the pain momentarily forgotten, as the tiny figure wound up, drew a fist back, and punched the Angel full on in the face. To her shock, it moved, it actually moved, he was pushing it back.
There was a person, and he was pushing the Angel back with his bare hands. She gasped, the pain momentarily forgotten, as the tiny figure wound up, drew a fist back, and punched the Angel full on in the face. To her shock, it moved, it actually moved, he was pushing it back.
Olga had never seen so quick a man, or one so insanely strong as to crush the barriers of a sorceress of her caliber.
No one should be that insanely strong.
No one should be that insanely strong.
"My hyper-alloy exogirdle gives me the strength of ten men (provided they have sixteen less limbs)."
— Annika-709, Plan 7 of 9 from Outer Space
Carol, not budging from her stand, ducked between them, swung her own fist up and across and tagged Rogue again with another blow. It had enough foot-pounds of force to cave in an elephant's skull.
Then the building on the screen moved, trembling like it was caught in a mild earthquake. Which wouldn't have been hard to believe—Japan often experienced seismic activity, after all—except it was the only building to move like that.
She and the rest of the staff on the command center watched silently as the building trembled again, then began to rise up into the air. Bits of it fell off and struck the ground as it ascended, but an impressive amount of it remained intact. It had been designed to move after all, just not quite like this.
"No way," Makoto breathed. "Can it really be her?"
The faux skyscraper went higher and higher, slowly rising above all the other buildings in the area around it. As the dust and debris that had fallen from the structure as it had been brought upwards dispersed, one of the cameras NERV had around the city finally managed to capture the image. A blue and red blur was buzzing around the bottom of the structure, too quickly to ever see clearly.
Not that there was any real question as to what it was, of course.
"What in the world...?" Misato muttered.
"The structure's not designed to have all of its weight resting on one spot," Aoba spoke up, sounding dazed. "It would collapse. She must be moving from place to place on the building, pushing it up... and doing it at such extreme speed it's like she's supporting its entire base."
"I know Supergirl is fast and strong," Maya said quietly. "But this...?"
She and the rest of the staff on the command center watched silently as the building trembled again, then began to rise up into the air. Bits of it fell off and struck the ground as it ascended, but an impressive amount of it remained intact. It had been designed to move after all, just not quite like this.
"No way," Makoto breathed. "Can it really be her?"
The faux skyscraper went higher and higher, slowly rising above all the other buildings in the area around it. As the dust and debris that had fallen from the structure as it had been brought upwards dispersed, one of the cameras NERV had around the city finally managed to capture the image. A blue and red blur was buzzing around the bottom of the structure, too quickly to ever see clearly.
Not that there was any real question as to what it was, of course.
"What in the world...?" Misato muttered.
"The structure's not designed to have all of its weight resting on one spot," Aoba spoke up, sounding dazed. "It would collapse. She must be moving from place to place on the building, pushing it up... and doing it at such extreme speed it's like she's supporting its entire base."
"I know Supergirl is fast and strong," Maya said quietly. "But this...?"
There was no thought involved in what she did. Before she could register it, Katherine de Ka'an was out of the cloudbank and into the open air, a barely-perceptible streak flying at hypersonic speed.
The wall of the sky-high apartment from which the scream came was of the toughest building material available. Before her, it gave like paper.
The force of her entry and the shock of her impact, as well as the hurtling material and air blast, knocked both the room’s occupants off their feet. Thankfully, the wall fragments shattered into gravel-size nodules and bounced off the two with little harm.
The wall of the sky-high apartment from which the scream came was of the toughest building material available. Before her, it gave like paper.
The force of her entry and the shock of her impact, as well as the hurtling material and air blast, knocked both the room’s occupants off their feet. Thankfully, the wall fragments shattered into gravel-size nodules and bounced off the two with little harm.
Bubbles knew that while she and her sisters were strong enough to lift over ten tons, they were only a little stronger than a normal human when bound, unable to move. Blossom explained it once, saying that they didn't actually have super strength, but some sort of energy field that magnified their momentum. If the girls were bound, whether in metal shackles or a monster's claws, they couldn't break free unless they had wiggle room.
Kara went with her original plan and, flying to the top of the towers, put her hands on one of them, exerted her reduced strength, and, with a great wrenching of metal from ferroconcrete, tore it out of the roof.
Then she did the same to the other tower. All over Chicago, TV screens would be going blank. Perhaps that would be a blessing.
She glanced for an instant at Buffy. The Slayer girl was in the midst of the foe, slamming home stakes, brandishing her crucifix, kicking out, dodging bullets. What Kara was doing had to be done quickly, if she was to survive.
Supergirl grasped the top of the left-hand tower and, flying upward, began to haul both towers and M'nagaleh into space.
Then she did the same to the other tower. All over Chicago, TV screens would be going blank. Perhaps that would be a blessing.
She glanced for an instant at Buffy. The Slayer girl was in the midst of the foe, slamming home stakes, brandishing her crucifix, kicking out, dodging bullets. What Kara was doing had to be done quickly, if she was to survive.
Supergirl grasped the top of the left-hand tower and, flying upward, began to haul both towers and M'nagaleh into space.
Films — Live Action
Random bystander: He was holding a half-million-pound jet, for cryin' out loud!
Lex Luthor: This is impossible. Do you have any idea how many laws of physics this defies? All of them.
Lex Luthor: This is impossible. Do you have any idea how many laws of physics this defies? All of them.
Live-Action TV
"See that? That's why you don't stand a chance. [Beat] He's actually left-handed."
— The Doctor to the villain after Grant has just caught an overloading spaceship with his right hand and is facing his crush, Doctor Who, "The Return of Doctor Mysterio"
Magazines
"I got talent! Not everyone can punch their way through a mountain! Especially with their head!"
— Captain Marbles, MAD, "Superduperman!"
Tabletop Games
Potence allows vampires to leap tremendous distances, lift massive weights and strike opponents with terrifying force. Even the lowest ranks of this power gift the kindred with physical might beyond mortal bounds. More powerful immortals have been known to leap so far they seem to be flying, toss cars aside like tin cans, and punch through concrete as if it were cardboard.
Webcomics
"Okay, sometimes I forget that things have weight."
— Maxima, Grrl Power
"Except for my own body, there is no material in existence that I cannot bend, or break, or manipulate like wet clay."
— Jones, Gunnerkrigg Court, p.1116
Web Video
"My voice gives me super strength."
— Tristan, Yu-Gi-Oh! The Abridged Series
Western Animation
Mr. Earth: I told you I was strong!
Nozone: But not superhumanly strong!
Nozone: But not superhumanly strong!
— Toxic Crusaders, "Mr. Earth — Superhero!"
