History Main / BadassDamsel

* Chrome of ''Manga/KatekyoHitmanReborn'' frequently gets captured, but she does get awesome moments now and again.

* Angel from ''RockAndRule''

* Cassima from ''KingsQuestVI'' spends most of the game [[GirlInTheTower locked up in the tower]], but [[KnifeNut give her a dagger...]]

* In TheMovie of ''BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' (1992), we have Oliver Pike (Luke Perry) as a SpearCounterpart. While hardly a pacifist, Pike isn't much of a fighter or very athletic, so he has to be rescued more often than not. He's not completely useless, though: he eventually becomes competent enough to take care of himself when Buffy's not around to protect him, kills two vampires along the way (although, in true BadassBystander fashion, one of them is InTheBack), and even saves Buffy's life at one point [[SpannerInTheWorks (albeit unintentionally)]]. And he's eventually given his due when, on the night of Buffy's final confrontation with the BigBad, when Buffy has been [[AchillesInHisTent shirking her duties as the Slayer]] out of frustration after [[spoiler: the death of her mentor]], he uses his knife to [[CrazyPrepared whittle an entire sackful of stakes for her so she'll be ready to take on the vampires]] - and she grudgingly remarks that she's glad ''somebody'' has come prepared.

* In ''VideoGame/DragonAge Origins'', the ''player'' can be one if they choose the female city-elf origin.

* Lady Ribi from ''Anime/TheTwelveKingdoms'' is not an ActionGirl, and she knows it clearly. She's just TheOjou in a very dangerous time, which is marked by the intrigues of [[spoiler:Atsuyu and his disciple Kouya]] against the King that she works for and strongly believes in. Will that stop her? '''Nope.''' Ribi [[BrainyBrunette handles all of this very calmly and cleverly]], protects [[spoiler:the depowered Enki]] as much as she can, and in the end [[spoiler: she unlocks Enki's powers despite clearly knowing that taking his PowerLimiter off will produce a backlash that will kill her. She dies, yes, but she [[SpannerInTheWorks also manages to derail]] Atsuyu's XanatosGambit, and helps to cause his fall.]]

* Estelle from ''VideoGame/TalesOfVesperia''. A [[FriendToAllLivingThings gentle]], noble personality and [[SpoiledSweet sweet but sheltered]] disposition, light pink hair AND the party healer? You'd never expect her to ''also'' be a HotChickWithASword, and with such [[PluckyGirl willpower]] she's willing to [[RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething abandon her comfy life in the castle just to travel the world and help anyone in danger]].

[[caption-width-right:350:Lois Lane: Rescuing herself before Franchise/{{Superman}} arrives since 1941.]]

* [[WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfKorra Avatar Korra]] [[spoiler: gets [[PeoplePuppets kidnapped]] by Tarrlok and locked up in a metal box. Long story short, Amon and his minios showed up, Amon [[CurbStompBattle took care]] of Tarrlok, and sent Lieutenant to electrocute the box to knock her out so they could take her with them. What did she do? Used her wrist wraps to hang on to the bars on the top of the box to avoid electrocution, pretended that he did manage to knock her out, and utterly kicked their arses in the moment they opened the box, then escaped Amon himself. And this after she spent roughtly a night and a day in that box, without anything to eat or drink.]]

* Princess Zelda is probably second only to Peach in the "getting kidnapped by the BigBad" department, but she's proved herself more than capable of kicking ass in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'', the ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'' series, ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker'' and ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSpiritTracks''. She even has one ass-kicking moment in ''TwilightPrincess'', and in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'' she manages to do quite a journey all by herself. Although the latter happens off-screen. Not to mention that she's been doing this since the original ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZelda''! She was able to elude Ganon and shatter the Triforce of Wisdom and secure each piece all across Hyrule in dungeons that are difficult to traverse even with an arsenal of weapons and tools. She does this without any help from you and only ''after'' she finishes does she get captured by Ganon. Badass Damsel indeed.

[[caption-width-right:350:Lois Lane: Rescuing herself before {{Franchise/Superman}} arrives since 1941.]]

-->-- '''Megera''', ''{{Disney/Hercules}}''

Can overlap with RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap, if the girl in question was disliked by the fandom before her CMOA. Can also be a cross between ActionGirl and ProperLady or TheIngenue. Almost AlwaysFemale, and pretty much always a PluckyGirl. Be careful, however: this trope may be stretched to the point of dictating that [[UnfortunateImplications a non-fighting woman has to]] ''[[UnfortunateImplications apologize and make up to others for not being an Action Girl]]''; being kidnapped and possibly subjected to torture/coercion/rape/etc. is already bad enough, so there's no need to mock or devalue someone else's trauma via having them "make up" and "compensate" for what happened.

Compare (as said above) PluckyGirl who as the same spunk but different personality, BadassPrincess which tosses aside the DD requirement for AssKickingEqualsAuthority, LadyOfWar for a skillful and graceful fighter, SilkHidingSteel this trope prime and proper relative, {{Xenafication}} for inexplicable [[TookALevelInBadass badass leveling up]], DeliberatelyDistressedDamsel who enjoys the damsel aspect, and DecoyDamsel for an ActionGirl who pretends to be a DamselInDistress for her own benefit.

* ''{{Manga/Bleach}}''

* ''{{Manga/Berserk}}''

* ''{{LightNovel/Baccano}}'''s Eve Genoard. A sweet and polite young lady living in America, [[spoiler: who escapes her kidnappers and doesn't hesitate to grab someone else's gun and avenge her father. She may not know about the family bussiness, but she has the same iron will.]]
* [[spoiler: Sonohara Anri]] of ''{{Literature/Durarara}}'' seems very distressed all the time, what with perverts hitting on her, ganguro girls bullying her, and the Slasher coming after her. Up until she [[spoiler: stops a knife with her arm, [[ShutUpHannibal tells Niekawa Haruna that her knife is nothing but a child]], pulls out the real Saika, and takes over the army of Slashers.]] Of course, she sometimes seems to need saving afterwards, but this is just because [[spoiler: she doesn't want people to know she's the owner of Saika.]] And not to mention, there's [[BreakTheCutie the horrible emotional baggage that the poor girl has in such regards]], due to [[BrokenBird her terrible past]] as [[spoiler: a survivor of DomesticAbuse who saw her also abused mother, Sayaka, completely snap and use Saika ''to kill Anri's abusive father and then herself'']]... no wonder she's reluctant to take action until there's truly no other option.

* Melfina of ''Anime/OutlawStar'' gets this when she stomps on and kills the evil mind-control cactus, force-feedbacking Harry's hacking attempt so damn hard that it blows out his arm, fights back and escapes him when he tries to kidnap her and rejects his advances.

* ''{{Franchise/Superman}}''. LoisLane.[[hottip:*:the PostCrisis (1987) incarnation anyway]] Full stop. This is a woman who gets caught by villains all the frickin' time, but only because she's GenreSavvy enough to know that if she does so, she'll not only get the scoop on the front page story, but also somehow survive to write it. And not just by getting rescued -- if Superman doesn't know/is depowered/is busy, she'll pretend to fall in love with the drug lord who captured her, then blast herself out of their wedding, veil, gown, and all, with a {{Mook}}'s stolen machine gun.\\\

* ''{{Franchise/Batman}}'': Barbara Gordon a.k.a. Batgirl/Oracle can hold her own in fights and if she gets kidnapped, she is defiant to the very end and will some way to lay the smackdown as she escapes.

* Disney's ''{{Disney/Aladdin}}'' had BadassPrincess Jasmine. She and Aladdin save each other's skins more than once throughout the course of the movie, making them a BattleCouple.

* Rapunzel from ''{{Disney/Tangled}}''.

* Modern versions of ''{{Literature/Cinderella}}'' often turn the heroine into this, subverting her original Princess Classic / Purity Sue characterization.

* ''{{Film/Spaceballs}}'': What happens when Princess Vespa's hair is caught in enemy crossfire? She grabs a laser gun and mows those suckers down!

* There's a blink-and-you'll-miss-it moment in ''Film/RaidersOfTheLostArk'': If you look closely as they disembark from the submarine you'll notice that the Nazi soldier guarding Marian is heavily bandaged ''and'' he has an arm in a sling.

* Zula in ''{{Literature/Reamde}}''.

* EdgarRiceBurroughs's heroines often have their moments, being brave and able to endure hardship, and sometimes even wading into the fray.

* Guinevere from ''{{Series/Merlin}}'' probably has the highest amount of kidnappings and captures on the show, but (as actress Angel Coulby has said in interviews) is also the strongest emotionally. The writers have also admitted that [[OnlySaneMan she's got the most]] [[WomenAreWiser common sense.]] Her ability to keep her wits around her, whether by bluffing her captors or keeping track of what's happening on a battlefield, has kept her and others alive more than once.

* ''{{Series/Firefly}}'': River Tam spends a significant amount of time in [[DamselInDistress serious danger]], between the villagers threatening to burn her alive, Feds putting guns to her head, and the [[ThoseTwobadGuys Hands of Blue]]. But then [[TookALevelInBadass remembers]] [[WaifFu she]] [[SuperSoldier can]] [[PsychicPowers fight]] [[OneManArmy back.]]

* [[PerkyGoth Abby]] the LabRat, from ''{{Series/NCIS}}'', once she's at the bad guys' lair.

* ''{{VideoGame/Persona}}''
** Rise Kujikawa from ''{{VideoGame/Persona 4}}'', TheChick of the FiveManBand, is the one who needs less time to rest and recover after the battle against her Shadow, and [[spoiler: immediately takes Teddie's MissionControl spot with her Persona, Himiko.]]
** In a similar case, Fuuka Yamagishi from ''{{VideoGame/Persona 3}}'', pre-getting her Persona, manages to survive several days being stuck in Tartarus avoiding Shadows, and then awakens to her Persona (Lucia) and like Rise, [[spoiler: she and Lucia immediately take over as MissionControl.]]

* Elena and Chloe from ''{{VideoGame/Uncharted}}''.
* In ''{{VideoGame/World of Warcraft}}'', a dwarf named Fanny Thundermar is captured by ogres during an Alliance-side quest chain in the Twilight Highlands. When you go to rescue her, you find her [[PintSizedPowerhouse surrounded by dead ogres]] who had [[IHaveYouNowMyPretty tried to cop a feel]].

* In ''{{Webcomic/Erstwhile}}'', [[http://www.erstwhiletales.com/maidmaleen-07/#.T290zNm6SuI when Maid Maleen realizes that they will not be let out, she determines that they must get out on their own.]]

* In TheMovie of ''BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' (1992), we have Oliver Pike (Luke Perry) as a SpearCounterpart. While hardly a pacifist, Pike isn't much of a fighter or very athletic, so he has to be rescued more often than not. He's not completely useless, though: he eventually becomes competent enough to take care of himself when Buffy's not around to protect him, kills two vampires along the way (although, in true BadassBystander fashion, one of them is InTheBack), and even saves Buffy's life at one point [[SpannerInTheWorks (albeit unintentionally)]]. And he's eventually given his due when, on the night of Buffy's final confrontation with the BigBad, when Buffy has been [[AchillesInHisTent shirking her duties as the Slayer]] out of frustration after [[spoiler: the death of her mentor]], he uses his knife to whittle an entire sackful of stakes for her so she'll be ready to take on the vampires - and she grudgingly remarks that she's glad ''somebody'' has come prepared.

* [[WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfKorra Avatar Korra]] [[spoiler: gets [[PeoplePuppets kidnapped]] by Tarrlok and locked up in a metal box. Long story short, Amon and his minios showed up, Amon [[CurbStompBattle took care]] of Tarrlok, and sent Lieutenant to electrocute the box to knock her out so they could take her with them. What did she do? Used her wrist wraps to hang on to the bars on the top of the box to avoid electrocution, pretended that he did manage to knock her out, and utterly kicked their arses in the moment they opened the box, then escaped Amon himself.

Can overlap with RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap, if the girl in question was disliked by the fandom before her CMOA. Can also be a cross between ActionGirl and ProperLady or TheIngenue. Almost AlwaysFemale, and pretty much always a PluckyGirl. Be careful, however: this trope may be stretched to the point of dictating that [[UnfortunateImplications a non-fighting woman has to]] ''[[UnfortunateImplications apologize and make up to others for not being an Action Girl]]''; being kidnapped and possibly subjected to torture/rape/coercion/etc. is already bad enough, so there's no need to mock or devalue someone else's trauma via having them "make up" and "compensate" for what happened.

* Cassima from ''VideoGame/KingsQuest 6'' spends most of the game locked up in the tower, but [[KnifeNut give her a dagger...]]

Can overlap with RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap, if the girl in question was disliked by the fandom before her CMOA. Can also be a cross between ActionGirl and ProperLady or TheIngenue. Almost AlwaysFemale, and pretty much always a PluckyGirl. Be careful, however: this trope may be stretched to the point of dictating that [[UnfortunateImplications a non-fighting woman has to]] ''[[UnfortunateImplications apologize and make up to others for not being an ActionGirl]]''; being kidnapped and possibly subjected to torture/rape/coercion/etc. is already bad enough, so there's no need to mock or devalue someone else's trauma via having them "make up" and "compensate" for what happened.

** When at her boldest, Orihime Inoue would also try her hand at this ([[DeconstructedTrope with various results, not all of them being positive]]). Some examples are: reasoning with her Hollowfied older brother Sora, standing up for herself an Tatsuki in front of Numb Chandelier, biting a Shinigami whe he tries carrying her away for her own safety and later joining the fight with her BarrierWarrior abilities, de-brainwashing Rukia via a CooldownHug in the anime fillers, slapping [[spoiler: Ulquiorra]] when he insults her friends (though this is also a subversion [[GenreSavvy since he was likely counting on it]]), and [[spoiler: reviving Loly and Menoly after they tried to kill her]]. OTOH, considering how she handled [[spoiler:Shishigawara and Tsukishima]] and later [[spoiler: Riruka and Ginjou]], she may have graduated into PluckyGirl status while playing this trope straighter.

* [[spoiler: Sonohara Anri]] of ''{{Literature/Durarara}}'' seems very distressed all the time, what with perverts hitting on her, ganguro girls bullying her, and the Slasher coming after her. Up until she [[spoiler: stops a knife with her arm, [[ShutUpHannibal tells Niekawa Haruna that her knife is nothing but a child]], pulls out the real Saika, and takes over the army of Slashers.]] Of course, she sometimes seems to need saving afterwards, but this is just because [[spoiler: she doesn't want people to know she's the owner of Saika.]] And not to mention, there's the emotional baggage that the poor girl has in such regards, due to [[BrokenBird her horrible past]] as [[spoiler: a survivor of DomesticAbuse who saw her also abused mother, Sayaka, completely snap and use Saika ''to kill Anri's abusive father and then herself'']]... no wonder she's reluctant to take action until there's truly no other option.

* Chrome of ''Manga/KatekyoHitmanReborn'' frequently gets captured but she does get awesome moments now and again.
* Aoshika of ''Manga/WolfGuyWolfenCrest''. It was already astounding that after all of the brutality that was dished out to her, Aoshika was able to pick herself up again. It was even more remarkable when [[spoiler:Aoshika is holding an unconscious Inugami when Haguro's men come in only to find him dead, demanding an explanation. When Aoshika tries to persuade her way through, they threaten to ''rape her to death'' in front of Inugami. But instead of being frightened, Aoshika gets '''pissed'''.]] [[BadassDamsel Wow lady.]]

[[caption-width-right:350:Lois Lane: Rescuing herself before {{Superman}} arrives since 1941.]]

-->--'''[[ThePollyanna Colette Brunel]]''', ''VideoGame/TalesOfSymphonia''

-->--'''Megera''', ''{{Disney/Hercules}}''

!!Examples:

[[folder: Anime and Manga ]]
* As of chapter 57 of ''Manga/BlackButler'', [[DistressedDamsel Elizabeth]] [[DeliberatelyDistressedDamsel Middleford]] turned out to be a [[BadassAdorable quintessential example]] of this trope, proving just how much she deserves the [[BadassFamily Middleford title]] [[spoiler:by initially trying to hide her badass side and doing a very good job of it due to the fact that she didn't want Ciel to see her [[CuteBruiser "uncute"]] side, and then finally when Ciel despite his best efforts ends up [[DistressedDude injured and unable to save her]] Elizabeth [[WaifFu leaps into the air]] and [[LittleMissBadass stabs down]] the zombies with [[DualWielding swords in both hands]]. [[CrowningMomentOfAwesome "This time, I will protect you!"]] [[KnightInShiningArmor Indeed]].]]
** [[spoiler: [[http://www.kuroshitsujimanga.com/57/28/ Oh]]. [[http://www.kuroshitsujimanga.com/57/31/ so]]. [[http://www.kuroshitsujimanga.com/57/33/ much]].]]
* Nia Teppelin of ''TengenToppaGurrenLagann'' will tell you she's not going to die. To your face. [[BadassDamsel While you're shoving a pistol into her forehead. Or about to snap her in half with your claws. Or about to dematerialize her.]] She may not be able to fight you, but she ''will'' tell you to fuck off ([[{{Keigo}} only very]] [[IFeelAngry politely]]), because Simon's on his way, and that's a wave of pain you don't want to happen.
* Rukia Kuchiki from ''{{Bleach}}'', even when she was in captivity, would smack talk back with [[TheHero Ichigo]], resulting in a hilarious LampshadeHanging of the trope.

** When at her boldest, Orihime Inoue would also try her hand at this ([[DeconstructedTrope with various results, not all of them being positive]]). Some examples are: reasoning with her Hollowfied older brother Sora, standing up for herself an Tatsuki in front of Numb Chandelier, biting a Shinigami whe he tries carrying her away for her own safety and later joining the fight with her BarrierWarrior abilities, de-brainwashing Rukia via a CooldownHug in the anime fillers, slapping [[spoiler: Ulquiorra]] when he insults her friends (though this is also a subversion [[GenreSavvy since he was likely counting on it]]), and [[spoiler: reviving Loly and Menoly after they tried to kill her]].
*** OTOH, considering how she handled [[spoiler: Shishigawara and Tsukishima]] and later [[spoiler: Riruka and Ginjou]], she may have graduated into PluckyGirl status while playing this trope straighter.
* Kagome Higurashi from ''InuYasha'' would find herself in captivity rather often in the earlier arcs, having not been trained in martial arts before she got TrappedInAnotherWorld. Nonetheless, she still managed to help Inuyasha out a lot and even talked back at her captors frequently. Then she TookALevelInBadass and became TheArcher.
* [[GundamWing Relena, oh Relena Peacecraft]]. Sure, she can't fight as well as other girls, but she can talk her way out wonderfully and pulls more than one badass GoThroughMe to defend her friends, her Kingdom, or her beliefs.
** And again in TheMovie where she steals the villain's communications in order to encourage the {{Muggles}} to stop HoldingOutForAHero and do something themselves.
* [[{{Yu-Gi-Oh}} Kisara]], the WhiteHairedPrettyGirl that Kaiba's preincarnation falls in love with, is a perfect example of this trope. Seto may have saved her first, but MAN, does she [[{{NowLetMeCarryYou}} repay the favor]] [[{{HeroicSacrifice}} in spades]]. It doesn't hurt either that her soul is the [[{{BFG}} Blue Eyes White Dragon]].
** Anzu Mazaki from ''Yu-Gi-Oh!'' also pulled this more than once, specially when [[spoiler: she managed to free Mokuba from Malik's henchmen at the cost of her own safety. In return, Kaiba himself saves her later]].
*** She also, at times, reveals that she is not that bad of a duelist; beating Mai and the Penguin dude from the Big 5, and at the start of the series beat Joey 5 times in a row.
* [[spoiler: Asuna and Anya]] from ''MahouSenseiNegima'' aren't halfway bad at this, but '''the''' example is actually [[spoiler: Ako Izumi]]. She's the very proof that you don't ''have'' to be an invincible, smartass and emotionless ActionGirl to be {{badass}}.
* Hitomi Kanzaki from ''VisionOfEscaflowne'' bounces between this and ActionSurvivor.
* Gentoku Ryuubi, and later Sonken Chuubou in ''IkkiTousen''. They can't exactly fight (if we don't count Ryuubi's SuperpoweredEvilSide), but Hell if they're gonna abandon their friends because of that.
* [[BarajouNoKiss Yamamoto Anis]] will not take any of these dimension warping shenanigans sitting down, thank you very much! She may have just been informed that her [[ArchnemesisDad father]] intends to sacrifice her to a seal of unknown demonic origin and otherwise make her life hell, but she is not going to just sit around and mope. No. She is going to kick her Knights' collective asses into gear. And you ''will'' obey or you will get the rose thorns of doom.
* Lady Ribi from TheTwelveKingdoms is not an ActionGirl, and she knows it clearly. She's just TheOjou in a very dangerous time, which is marked by the intrigues of [[spoiler: Atsuyu and his disciple Kouya]] against the King that she works for and strongly believes in. Will that stop her? '''Nope.''' Ribi [[BrainyBrunette handles all of this very calmly and cleverly]], protects [[spoiler: the depowered Enki]] as much as she can, and in the end [[spoiler: she unlocks Enki's powers despite clearly knowing that taking his PowerLimiter off will produce a backlash that will kill her. She dies, yes, but she [[SpannerInTheWorks also manages to derail]] Atsuyu's XanatosGambit, and helps to cause his fall.]]
* ''{{Berserk}}'': [[spoiler: After the horrors she suffered from the Eclipse [[GoMadFromTheRevelation that robbed her of her sanity]]]] poor Casca's mind [[AdultChild was regressed to that of a small child]], making her very vulnerable to predation from monsters and humans alike and is in constant need of care and supervision. However, sometimes she finds herself on her own, but in such dire moments we see that Casca's former [[ActionGirl badass self]] isn't ''completely'' gone. The most prominent example to date was when [[spoiler: she ran away from Guts out of fear and ran into some bandits, who then tried to gang rape her... but by the time Guts found her, Casca was naked and covered in her would-be rapists' blood after she slashed all of their throats.]] She also shows glimpses of her pre-Eclipse [[FragileSpeedster agility and acrobatics]].

* At the climax of ''TigerAndBunny'''s second cour, the BigBad decides it's a good idea to take Kotetsu's daughter, Kaede, hostage. [[spoiler:She doesn't just rescue herself -- she ends up rescuing ''every other hero''. SuperpowerfulGenetics sure come in handy.]]
* ''LightNovel/{{Baccano}}'''s Eve Genoard. A sweet and polite young lady living in America, [[spoiler: who escapes her kidnappers and doesn't hesitate to grab someone else's gun and avenge her father. She may not know about the family bussiness, but she has the same iron will.]]
* [[spoiler: Sonohara Anri]] of ''Literature/{{Durarara}}'' seems very distressed all the time, what with perverts hitting on her, ganguro girls bullying her, and the Slasher coming after her. Up until she [[spoiler: stops a knife with her arm, [[ShutUpHannibal tells Niekawa Haruna that her knife is nothing but a child]], pulls out the real Saika, and takes over the army of Slashers.]] Of course, she sometimes seems to need saving afterwards, but this is just because [[spoiler: she doesn't want people to know she's the owner of Saika.]] And not to mention, there's the emotional baggage that the poor girl has in such regards, due to [[BrokenBird her horrible past]] as [[spoiler: a survivor of DomesticAbuse who saw her also abused mother, Sayaka, completely snap and use Saika ''to kill Anri's abusive father and then herself'']]... no wonder she's reluctant to take action until there's truly no other option.
* Ranma, the resident [[GenderBender Genderbender]] of the [[RanmaOneHalf Ranma 1/2]] series, gets kidnapped a lot in the manga by men who want to marry his girl side. (Even though {{Fanon}} would swear that [[OvershadowedByAwesome Akane]] is the only one who gets captured.) This guy punched out a man with the power of a demigod and has destroyed mountains. Damn straight he'll [[CurbStompBattle kick your weakling ass]] if he's unhappy about you kidnapping him.
** Whenever she ''does'' get captured Akane tends to play the damsel until she either sees her advantage or someone (usually Ranma) ''really'' pissed her off. Then it's clobberin' time, and often even her would-be rescuers don't survive unscathed.

* Melfina of ''OutlawStar'' gets this when she stomps on and kills the evil mind-control cactus, force-feedbacking Harry's hacking attempt so damn hard that it blows out his arm, fights back and escapes him when he tries to kidnap her and rejects his advances.
* Chrome of ''KatekyoHitmanReborn'' frequently gets captured but she does get awesome moments now and again.
* Aoshika of ''WolfGuyWolfenCrest''. It was already astounding that after all of the brutality that was dished out to her, Aoshika was able to pick herself up again. It was even more remarkable when [[spoiler: Aoshika is holding an unconscious Inugami when Haguro's men come in only to find him dead, demanding an explanation. When Aoshika tries to persuade her way through, they threaten to ''rape her to death'' in front of Inugami. But instead of being frightened, Aoshika gets '''pissed'''.]] [[BadassDamsel Wow lady.]]

[[folder: Comics ]]

* LoisLane.[[hottip:*: the PostCrisis (1987) incarnation anyway]] Full stop. This is a woman who gets caught by villains all the frickin' time, but only because she's GenreSavvy enough to know that if she does so, she'll not only get the scoop on the front page story, but also somehow survive to write it. And not just by getting rescued — if Superman doesn't know/is depowered/is busy, she'll pretend to fall in love with the drug lord who captured her, then blast herself out of their wedding, veil, gown, and all, with a {{Mook}}'s stolen machine gun.
** Even in the early days, Lois had quite the nerve. In some of the earliest Fleischer cartoons (now public domain) she pulls such stunts as trying to sabotage a getaway vehicle, climbing onto the back of a mechanical monster to see where it was going, blasting away with a submachine gun at would-be train robbers, and disguised herself as a Nazi to warn the American fleet of a U-boat threat(Well, it WAS the early forties).
* Mary Jane Watson. Well, In the comics anyway. She has beaten villains and would be rapists with baseball bats, took fighting lessons from [[CaptainAmerica CAPTAIN AMERICA!]] And became the most Badass of any Spidey love interest. There's a reason so many people hate JoeQuesada for One More Day.
* [[{{Batman}} Barbara Gordon AKA Batgirl/Oracle]] can hold her own in fights and if she gets kidnapped, she is defiant to the very end and will some way to lay the smackdown as she escapes.

[[folder: Film -- Animated]]

* Disney's ''Disney/{{Aladdin}}'' had BadassPrincess Jasmine. She and Aladdin save each other's skins more than once throughout the course of the movie, making them a BattleCouple.

* Again, Barbara Gordon: in ''[[BatmanAndMisterFreezeSubZero Batman and Mr. Freeze: Sub Zero]]'' is the most badass damsel ever. She talks back to Mr. Freeze when he kidnaps her, attacks him with the same chains she's shackled with, tries to reason with him once she learns about his IllGirl wife Nora (so she'll be able to help him save her ''without losing her organs'' [[spoiler: and later it turns out her blood is enough]]), saves his KidSidekick, tries to save ''him'' too...
* ''{{Shrek}}'' has Princess Fiona. She seems to be every cliche about a Princess in need of rescue, until she meets somebody REALLY ANNOYING...
--> "Hold the phone!"
** One might argue that she was a captive to begin with at the start of the story, though in her defense she was an unarmored woman facing a fire-breathing dragon thirty times her size. [[BadassDamsel Both]] [[DamselInDistress tropes]] played and subverted, perhaps, because she goes downright [[TheMatrix Trinity]] when she's in a situation that's at all reasonable to handle herself.

[[folder: Film -- Live Action]]

-->'''Flower Belle:''' There he goes, [[LudicrousGibs in a shower of feathers!]]
-->'''Gunman:''' Nice shootin'!
-->'''Flower Belle:''' [[IBrokeANail I almost broke one of my fingernails.]]
** Though it '''is''' a comedy film (starring W.C. Fields, no less), so ValuesDissonance may apply here-- the scene was probably meant to seem unrealistic.
* Danielle of ''Film/EverAfter'' averts the "alas, I am but a pitiful female" personality pretty well throughout the movie, but TookALevelInBadass near the end when [[spoiler:Monsieur Le Pieu has essentially kidnapped her, and is getting rather creepy. She threatens him with a sword, and has quite successfully rescued herself by the time Henry arrives]].
** That whole spiel she delivers during said scene was just a MomentOfAwesome.
** Also when she punched her wicked stepsister in the face.
* Modern versions of Cinderella often turn the heroine into this, subverting her original Princess Classic / Purity Sue characterization. In addition to the Ever After example above, there's also:

* Elizabeth Swann from PiratesOfTheCaribbean is like this in the first movie, in the second and third, she graduates to ActionGirl.
* Princess Leia of ''StarWars''. Luke and Han come to rescue her, the rescue doesn't quite work out, so she blasts a hole in the wall, proclaiming "''Somebody'' has to save our skins!"
** Not to mention, she did what she could to keep the secret of the rebel hideout and had lots of guts when facing Darth Vader. [[spoiler: Too bad Alderaan still got blown up despite her efforts.]]

** Her own mother, Padme, was also like this in ''AttackOfTheClones''. As she faces execution alongside Anakin and Obi-Wan, she gets out of her handcuffs ''before'' the two Jedi and begins fighting back!
* What happens when [[{{Spaceballs}} Princess Vespa's]] hair is caught in enemy crossfire? She grabs a laser gun and mows those suckers down!
-->'''Barf''': "Not bad...for a ''girl''."
-->'''Dot''': "Hey, that was pretty good for {{Rambo}}!"
* Elektra King in "The World is not Enough" [[spoiler: escapes her kidnapper by shooting three men and then proceeds to manipulate her kidnapper into suffering reverse Stockholm syndrome going so far as to even die for her scheme.]]

* In the Live-Action version of ScoobyDoo, Daphnie has a moment where she's being held and fights her way out by beating up the [[TooDumbToLive one guard that's supposed to guard her.]]
-->'''Daphnie:''' Who's the damsel in distress now?
-->'''Guard:''' (whimper) Me.
-->'''Daphnie:''' [[PreAssKickingOneLiner Straight up.]] (Knocks Guard through a vent)
* Dana in TrueLies was in the end save by her father, but before that, she stole the key that the terrorists need to detonate their nuclear bomb.

[[folder: Literature ]]

* Holly Short in ''ArtemisFowl''. In the first book, when she was captured by Artemis, [[spoiler: she uses a cot to smash through concrete, plants an acorn she snuck in, uses a loophole in an eye-to-eye command to go around the house, neutralizes Juliet with the mesmer and punches Artemis in the face.]]
* The unnamed "maiden fair" in the ballad ''The Outlandish Knight''. [[spoiler: The knight convinces her to run away with him, then tells her he's going to drown her in the ocean, as he's done to six other maidens. Then, she convinces him to turn his back on her. "Six pretty maidens have you drowned here/And the seventh has drowned thee.]]
* Escalla in Paul Kidd's trilogy '''White Plume Mountain''' '''Descent Into The Depths Of The Earth''', and '''Queen Of The Demonweb Pits'''. Sure, she gets captured a couple of times in the first book (once by the HERO, even), and gets her ass handed to her at one point in the last book, but mostly she's somebody you don't want to mess with. She's the one who [[spoiler: actually kills Lolth, the god of the Drow, permanently. That's right kiddies, she's a GODSLAYER.]] She finishes the last book by running an insane IndyPloy against a GOD to get her best girlfriend back from the afterlife.

* Zula in {{Reamde}}.
* Any High Lady in the CodexAlera is there at least in part on account of how unbelievably badass she is with Furycraft.
** Kitai keeps having to remind Tavi of this. [[spoiler: Even when she's pregnant. Bad. Ass.]]
* Murphy of the DresdenFiles. She's five-nothing, petite, has earned her way to the head of a sub-department of cops known for its turnover rate, and works with Harry on a regular basis. She's chainsawed a demon, led more assaults than is entirely fair, it's implied that she's [[spoiler: a suitable candidate for being a Knight of the Cross]], has instagibbed a living god, has served as the mouthpiece of capital-g God, raided Arctis Tor with Harry... in fact, when she subverts this trope ''at all in any way'', it's because she's sending Harry a message that she's playing the part, and not actually cowed.
** Harry has a chivalrous rush-to-women's defense impulse. It nearly gets him killed a number of times. He does get a bit genre savvy, eventually.
* The SwordOfTruth. Despite the latent mysogeny of, well, pretty much everyone in that world, the Confessors, Sister of the Light, Sisters of the Dark, Mord-Sith, various other magic-imbued women... lampshading this, Richard has to lose his protect-women impulse, because they're just as much a threat to his life as men.

[[folder: Live Action TV ]]

* Uhura of ''[[StarTrekTheOriginalSeries Star Trek: The Original Series]]'' can be quite intimidating when she chooses - one notable moment being when MirrorUniverse Sulu is [[HilariousInHindsight making advances]], and she pulls a dagger on him.
* Carter, Vala, and Tela are some of the more obvious examples from the {{Stargate}} franchise. However, let us not forget the other ladies. Such as Doc Langford, Doc Fraiser, and Elizabeth Weir, sure they're not trained in combat, but they can be just as BadAss.
* ''{{White Collar}}'': Elizabeth Burke, as of the season three midseason premiere. [[spoiler: She concocts a brilliant escape plan with nothing but a dog bite, thermostat, diamond ring, and some crazy chair swinging skills.]]

* [[Series/{{Firefly}} River Tam]] spends a significant amount of time in [[DamselInDistress serious danger]], between the villagers threatening to burn her alive, Feds putting guns to her head, and the [[ThoseTwobadGuys Hands of Blue]]. But then [[TookALevelInBadass remembers]] [[WaifFu she]] [[SuperSoldier can]] [[PsychicPowers fight]] [[OneManArmy back.]]
* In ''Series/DoctorWho'', Jo Grant is essentially this, lying in the middle between Damsel-in-Distress and Action Girl.
** Quite a few companions fit this to varying degrees due to the fact that juggling the DistressBall is in the job description.
* Lampshaded in ''FraggleRock''. When Mokey is putting on a play with Red in the DistressedDamsel role and Gobo, who's supposed to rescue her, doesn't show up Red proposes a rewrite:
-->"Ha! I'll rescue myself!"

* [[PerkyGoth Abby]] the LabRat, ''Series/{{NCIS}}'', once she's at the bad guys' lair.

[[folder: Play By Post Games ]]

* Anya Warbeck on ''HonorableHogwarts'' has been kidnapped twice, had her child threatened, been generally threatened/taunted in several threads by the site's first BigBad, and was recently raped. But through it all, she's managed to very quietly but [[{{Determinator}} determinedly]] ''kick ass'', and has only needed her husband to rescue her twice (the second kidnapping and the rape).
** A case could be made for Madeline Frost as well, although she's only successfully been kidnapped once, and never raped. One of her kidnappers suffered a compound fracture of the leg before she was finally subdued, and then she told off the BigBad who had orchestrated the kidnapping without showing any fear.
* DCNation: Fauna was captured by some thugs employed by Lex Luthor (the guy who experimented on her in the first place). Once she is able to undo the collar, she's in mid-escape when Black Canary (her boss) shows up to spring her. Thinking Canary is in trouble, Fauna's [[SuperpoweredEvilSide bestial side]] kicks in....

[[folder: Video Games ]]

* Elaine Marley of the ''MonkeyIsland'' series. She frequently needs rescuing from [=LeChuck=], but most other times, she can perfectly take care of herself.
* Yuna from ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyX'', the sweet, shy, innocent YamatoNadeshiko who gets kidnapped a couple of times... and is also a {{Guile Hero}}ine like no other. Heck, both times she gets captured lead to a CrowningMomentOfAwesome on her part. Not to mention she TookALevelInBadass in the sequel.
* Tifa Lockhart from ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'' is a shy YamatoNadeshiko who CannotSpitItOut. She's also a brutally effective martial artist and BadassNormal who's arguably TheBigGuy of Cloud's FiveManBand. One could argue that Aeris/Aerith Gainsborough is one as well. She gets kidnapped a few times, but she can smack talk with the best of them, and is ultimately the only real threat to Sephiroth's lunatic plans.
* In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIII'', Rinoa spends a significant part of the game in danger in one form or another. When she's ''not'' being kidnapped, captured, or hanging for dear life from a cliff, she's actually a quite powerful party member with some strong {{Limit Break}}s. Then, late in the game, she [[spoiler: becomes a Sorceress]] and pretty much transforms into a walking GameBreaker.

* GenderFlipped in ''{{Disgaea 3}}'' with Almaz and Princess Sapphire. He might be able to hold his own as a swordsman, but he's still been made Mao's slave, is slowly turning into a demon and is generally in over his head. The Princess is, however, [[ChainsawGood rather]] [[AnAxeToGrind protective]] [[ViolentlyProtectiveGirlfriend of him]].
* [[SuperMarioBros Princess Peach]]. Despite being the most famous DistressedDamsel in video games, she's been proving herself capable in combat since ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros2''.
* Princess Zelda is probably second only to Peach in the "getting kidnapped by the BigBad" department, but she's proved herself more than capable of kicking ass in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'', the ''SuperSmashBros'' series, ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker'' and ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSpiritTracks''. She even has one ass-kicking moment in ''TwilightPrincess'', and in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'' she manages to do quite a journey all by herself. Although the latter happens off-screen.
** Not to mention that she's been doing this since the original ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZelda''! She was able to elude Ganon and shatter the Triforce of Wisdom and secure each piece all across Hyrule in dungeons that are difficult to traverse even with an arsenal of weapons and tools. She does this without any help from you and only AFTER she finishes does she get captured by Ganon. Badass Damsel indeed.
* Princess Lilina of Ostia from FireEmblem 6 starts as this, as you find her locked in a room of her own castle. As soon as Roy meets up with her, though, he hands Lilina a Thunder tome and tells her to fight with him... and she does so without any hesitation. It gets even better when she's promoted into Sage, then she can potentially become the most powerful magic user of the whole game.
** Princess Tana of Frelia serves a similar role in ''VideoGame/FireEmblemTheSacredStones'' (although she only starts out captured in Ephraim's route), and like Lilina, she's the best in her class (in this case, Falconknight/Wyvern Knight, although on the latter she might have competition from Cormag for that title.)
** Nanna of Nodion from FireEmblemThracia776 also keeps her cool when she and her friend Mareeta are kidnapped, to the point of openly telling Leaf to not give himself up to the Empire when in a HostageSituation. When freed, she joins the group to be their mounted WhiteMagicianGirl, and can upgrade to a LadyOfWar.
* [[ResidentEvil Rebecca Chambers]].
* When [[MassEffect Commander Shepard]] first meets [[HotScientist Liara T'Soni]], she's completely immobilized and pleading for help. Then you recruit her, and she starts crushing huge robots [[MindOverMatter with her mind]]. Then in the sequel, [[spoiler: she fights through a WretchedHive to save you, [[CrowningMomentOfAwesome EVEN AFTER YOU'RE DEAD]].]]
** Shepard also finds the other female squadmates in ME1, Ashley and Tali, in conditions of substantial distress, but they're still entirely badass. Ashley is possibly the most combat capable squadmate you have, and you rescue her after the rest of her squad has been wiped out by alien robots. Tali can do some serious damage in combat with her tech abilities, after you rescue her from being betrayed by the galaxy's most powerful information broker.
* There's also [[KnightsOfTheOldRepublic Bastila]], who takes a while to lose the DistressBall, but when she does? Overrides a neural disruptor, kills her guard, uses telekenesis to break her way out of the cage and helps mop up whatever Vulkars are dumb enough to hang around after that using the dead mook's double-bladed sword.
* Siskier of ''BlazeUnion'' is extremely devoted to Garlot, has a terrible fear of heights, and is generally cute and perky with a bleeding heart. She's also a scarily competent shot with her crossbow, has an uncanny ability to sense the presence of enemies, and gets hit with the DistressBall exactly once in the whole of the game.
* In EscapeFromHorrorland Lizzie gets captured twice, but is still one of the bravest of the characters and is the one devising and setting all the traps and leading the way in the game.
* [[BeautyAndTheBeast Belle]] pulls this trope off again in ''KingdomHeartsII'' when Xaldin kidnaps her and the rose, and forces Beast to [[SadisticChoice choose]]. [[spoiler: She elbows [[ThatOneBoss Xaldin]] in the gut and [[CrowningMomentOfAwesome grabs the rose before running back.]]]]
* Rise Kujikawa from ''VideoGame/{{Persona 4}}'', TheChick of the FiveManBand, is the one who needs less time to rest and recover after the battle against her Shadow, and [[spoiler: immediately takes Teddie's MissionControl spot with her Persona, Himiko.]]
** In a similar case, Fuuka Yamagishi from ''{{Persona 3}}'', pre-getting her Persona, manages to survive several days being stuck in Tartarus avoiding Shadows, and then awakens to her Persona (Lucia) and like Rise, [[spoiler: she and Lucia immediately take over as MissionControl.]]

* Cassima from ''KingsQuest'' 6 spends most of the game locked up in the tower, but [[KnifeNut give her a dagger...]]
* In ''DragonAgeOrigins'', the ''player'' can be one if they choose the female city-elf origin.
* Elena and Chloe from ''{{Uncharted}}''.
* In ''WorldOfWarcraft'', a dwarf named Fanny Thundermar is captured by ogres during an Alliance-side quest chain in the Twilight Highlands. When you go to rescue her, you find her [[PintSizedPowerhouse surrounded by dead ogres]] who had [[IHaveYouNowMyPretty tried to cop a feel]].
* [[SonicTheHedgehog Amy Rose]].
* From ''VideoGame/MassEffect3'', Eve full stop. The mission she's introduced in, she spends the entire time in containment with you escorting her and Mordin/Padok through numerous Cerberus assaults. When Wrex/Wreav gets her out of containment, the first thing she sees is two Cerberus troopers running at them. Without even hesitating she pulls the shotgun out of Wrex/Wreav's hands and blows them both away, [[FiringOneHanded with one hand]].
-->'''Eve:''' I can handle myself Wrex.
-->'''Wrex:''' Women.

[[folder: Web Comics ]]

* In ''ThistilMistilKistil'', Hedda is less brash than the usual version. Nevertheless, after being drugged, [[http://tmkcomic.depleti.com/comic/ch05-pg16/ she overpowers two grown men]] to escape HumanSacrifice.

* In ''{{Erstwhile}}'', [[http://www.erstwhiletales.com/maidmaleen-07/#.T290zNm6SuI when Maid Maleen realizes that they will not be let out, she determines that they must get out on their own.]]

* In ''WesternAnimation/SupermanTheAnimatedSeries'' there is one episode where Superman is being beaten by a non-kryptonite holding villain, Lois Lane shows up, grabs a metal rod and joins in the attack.
* In the ''LooneyTunes'' short "TheDoverBoys", Dora Standpipe beats up the villainous Dan Backslide ''as'' she calls for help. By the end it's Backslide who calls for help.
* In ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'', Rarity is one of the [[TheChick girliest]] ponies on the show, a prissy fashion designer with an extreme dislike for physical work, dirt or getting her mane even slightly mussed. Put her in a fight however and she doesn't [[GuileHero handle herself too badly]]. This is best shown in the episode [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TW9PSHRfe1M "A Dog and Pony Show,"]] where she gets captured by a group of dogs who want her to dig up gems for them by hoof. She spends the rest of the episode driving her [[PityTheKidnapper ponynappers insane]] in a calculated manner with constant nit-picking, complaining, and the [[MostAnnoyingSound worst whining sound you will ever hear.]] When our heroes finally reach the ponynappers, they are more than happy to let her go.
** In the second episode of the series, Rarity immediately jumps up and kicks a manticore in the face. [[spoiler:It turns out that it just had a thorn in its paw and Fluttershy just needed to pull it out, but still, can you imagine the nerve of a tiny white unicorn to kick a screaming hellbeast five times its size IN THE FACE?]]
** Fluttershy also counts here, another girly pony (in fact, Rarity's best friend), a {{Friend To All Living Things}}, [[HiddenDepths has considerable fashion knowledge herself]], [[ApologisesALot apoloplegic]], very polite, and recognized in-universe as graceful, she has tamed monsters like the aforementioned manticore, a cockatrice, and a dragon; and she also snapped the neck of a bear! [[spoiler:The last one was only for a massage, but it shows she has the strength to mow anyone down when she has to.]]

* MinnieMouse is sometimes portrayed like this, particularly in the 1933 short "Building A Building" and the 1995 short "RunawayBrain".
* [[MsFanservice Princess Teegra]] from ''WesternAnimation/FireAndIce''. Don't let the thong bikini fool you...
* Roll from the WesternAnimation/MegaMan cartoon gets captured a couple times, but usually manages to make trouble for her captors—and she's an ActionGirl in combat.

* [[MsFanservice Princess Teegra]] from ''FireAndIce.'' Don't let the thong bikini fool you...

* [[SuperMarioBros Princess Peach]]. Despite being the most famous DistressedDamsel in video games, she's been proving herself capable in combat since SMB 2.
* Princess Zelda is probably second only to Peach in the "getting kidnapped by the BigBad" department, but she's proved herself more than capable of kicking ass in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'', the ''SuperSmashBros'' series, ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker'' and ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSpiritTracks''. She even has one ass-kicking moment in TwilightPrincess, and in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'' she manages to do quite a journey all by herself. Although the latter happens off-screen.

* [[BeautyAndTheBeast Belle]] pulls this trope off again in ''KingdomHeartsII'' when Xaldin kidnaps her and the rose, and forces Beast to choose. [[spoiler: She elbows [[ThatOneBoss Xaldin]] in the gut and [[CrowningMomentOfAwesome grabs the rose before running back.]]]]

* In DragonAgeOrigins, the ''player'' can be one if they choose the female city-elf origin.

* In WoW, a dwarf named Fanny Thundermar is captured by ogres during an Alliance-side quest chain in the Twilight Highlands. When you go to rescue her, you find her [[PintSizedPowerhouse surrounded by dead ogres]] who had [[IHaveYouNowMyPretty tried to cop a feel]].

* In ''Superman: The Animated Series'' there is one episode where Superman is being beaten by a non-kryptonite holding villain, Lois Lane shows up, grabs a metal rob and joins in the attack.

* Princess Zelda from ''WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfZelda'' animated series actually preceded all the above-mentioned game installments in this department. There were more episodes featuring her battling alongside Link wielding a bow and arrow than there were of Link rescuing her -- and she actually had to save him in one.