History Main / ExtraordinarilyEmpoweredGirl

* NotWearingTights: A character who is for all intents and purposes a {{Superhero}}, but does not have the visual trappings of a superhero and is not referred to as such in-universe

* LittleMissBadass: A young girl character who is well trained in at least one of a variety of ways of killing,

[[quoteright:350:[[Series/JessicaJones2015 https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/jessica_jones_3.png]]]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Jessica Jones demonstrates one kind of empowerment.]]

There is a niche between the ordinarily powered heroine and the superpowered {{superhero}}ine. She has a little extra something that most humans don't have, but is nowhere near the territory of TheCape.

She is independent and strong willed, but vulnerable. Her little extra something isn't powerful enough that she won't have to use her brains to solve a problem, but she can occasionally call on that something for a solution most people couldn't use.

She is essentially a fantastic expression of "Girl Power", whatever that means for the show's target generation.

See also: MagicalGirl, ActionGirl, CuteBruiser. PluckyGirl is the 'non-superpowered, but gets the job done anyway' version.

[[JustForFun/IThoughtItMeant Not to be confused with]] a girl with an extraordinary amount of the MostCommonSuperpower.

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!!Examples:
[[foldercontrol]]

[[folder:Anime and Manga]]
* In the first part of ''Manga/SoulEater'', Maka is this. Her only ability is to ''not'' go insane, and uses this as creatively as possible. This is no longer a characteristic of her after she [[spoiler: learns to fly]], however.
* Haruko from ''Anime/{{FLCL}}''. She's from outer space, wields a gasoline-powered Rickenbacker bass guitar as a weapon, and plays baseball improbably well.
* Mikura from ''Anime/MezzoForte'' supplements her un-paralleled hand-to-hand fighting and weapon skills with a touch of PsychicPowers: at times she is able to gain mysterious [[{{Seers}} glimpses into the future]]. The same also applies to [[spoiler:her sister, YakuzaPrincess Momomi Minoi]].
* Ino Yamanaka from ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'' evolves into this in the Shinobi war.
* The girls from Anime/WindyTales with their Wind Manipulation powers.
* Miki, Mozu, Sakaki, and [[spoiler:Kei]] in ''Manga/{{Akira}}''.
* Mio Mizumori from ''Manga/TenYoriMoHoshiYoriMo'' evolves into this.
* The protagonists in ''Manga/MagicKnightRayearth'' are each given elemental magic and {{Evolving Weapon}}s (as well as HumongousMecha) but they still need to rely on each other and their ingenuity to survive their journey through Cephiro.
* Played for laughs in ''Manga/UruseiYatsura'' with Asuka Mizunokoji and her mom. Both characters have SuperStrength for literally no reason other than just a quirk of genetics, and the trait is exclusive to women, as Asuka's brother Tobimaro lacks it entirely. Additionally, Asuka mainly uses her superhuman strength to throw fearful temper-tantrums at the sight of men or ladle out exaggeratedly [[AndCallHimGeorge painfully overbearing affection]] to the few men she trusts, mostly her brother.
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[[folder:Comic Books]]
* Since Comicbook/{{Empowered}}'s suit doesn't always work well, she has to think up other ways of defeating supervillains. Like ramming them with an SUV going 70 miles per hour.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Fan Works]]
* Helen Bennett from the ''WesternAnimation/RiseOfTheGuardians'' fic ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/8751000/1/Guardian-of-Light Guardian of Light]]'' is this. She has the ability to create/control light, which comes in handy when fighting Pitch, the personification of darkness.
* Lucille Harewood, the girl shown at the beginning of ''Film/StarTrekIntoDarkness'', becomes this in the fic ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/9694363/1/Safe-and-Sound Safe and Sound]]'', after Khan's blood turns her into an augment. Although because she's still only eight, she does need a bit of help on occasion.
* In ''Fanfic/ChildOfTheStorm'', Carol Danvers becomes a SuperSoldier thanks to a temporary PlotRelevantAgeUp - and, though she reverts afterwards, she is noted earlier as being both clever and an extraordinarily talented athlete. Like, 'arm wrestles the entire football team, in succession, and wins' talented. Despite this enhancement and natural ability, however, she ends up dealing with monsters capable of matching three similarly aged up characters, Harry, [[spoiler: Diana]] and Uhtred. The first two are classic [[FlyingBrick Flying Bricks]], and Uhtred is a straight up Brick. This means that she has to rely more on her [[TheStrategist smarts]]. She does, and much butt kicking ensues. [[spoiler: It turns out that the mountain only enhanced/woke up what was already there-namely, her latent super-soldier genes from her great-grandfather, Steve Rogers]].
* In the ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' of Creator/AAPessimal, Creator/TerryPratchett's recurring theme of extremely tough attitudinal women characters is taken a step further, with good reason. Girls who graduate from the Guild of Assassins' school needed to have something a little bit special in the first place. Seven years of ''very'' thorough training, delivered by tutors and role-models like Miss Alice Band, Johanna Smith-Rhodes and others, tends to create a Graduate Assassin with skills, aptitudes and determination to succeed which isn't far short of an SAS trooper or a MOSSAD agent. Indeed, in the tale ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12321109/1/Gap-Year-Adventures Gap Year Adventures]]'', a [[BadassIsraeli Cenotian]] graduate actually ''is'' headhunted for her country's equivalent of the MOSSAD. In [[Fanfic/GapYearAdventures a voyage of cheerfully distributed mayhem across an entire continent]] not unlike Africa, she and a [[UsefulNotes/SouthAfricansWithSurfaceToAirMissiles Rimwards Howondalandian]] best friend demonstrate their training and competences. Many times.
* ''Fanfic/InfinityTrainBlossomingTrail'': Chloe Cerise starts off as a girl with a donut holer but in Act 2, she gains two artifacts that lets her cast fire and summon demons. This helps out in a lot of ways but she still uses her fighting skills and keen mind against the baddies like the Organ Man. Delirium, The Bogeyman and Walter and Henry.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Literature]]
* Sometimes trouser-wearing Alice of ''Literature/TheWitchWatch'' can summon fire, but the process is incredibly draining and will lead to her fainting after two or three attempts, so she normally ends up having to rely on her brains or on her [[HiddenWeapons little gun]].
* In the ''Literature/{{Animorphs}}'' prequel book ''The Hork-Bajir Chronicles'' heroine Aldrea is this. She's the only character in the book to possess the morphing ability, at a time when the technology was still brand new.
* Literature/AnitaBlake in the first few novels, before rampant PowerCreep kicked in.
* Literature/{{Matilda}} has the power to move small objects with her mind.
* Literature/TheEmpiriumTrilogy: The Blood and Sun Queen are human girls who can manipulate all seven of the available elements, as well as a few other powers no elemental can claim.
* Jane Doe from ''Literature/TheBrightFallsMysteries'' is a weredeer who solves mysteries.
* ''Literature/ThreePartsDead'': Cat is a mouthy, but otherwise pretty normal junkie who can take care of herself and use her brains when she's not currently suffering from withdrawal. She's also an agent of Justice, meaning when she dons the Blacksuit she becomes stronger, faster and and able to think completely logically. The downside is that she then loses her individual thoughts and becomes part of Justice's HiveMind, so she spends most of the book avoiding that to be better able to think for herself.
* Marasi in ''Literature/WaxAndWayne'' is a Pulser, an Allomancer with the power to create a bubble of time that moves slower than the world around her. Her abilities tend to require niche situations (such as trapping criminals and waiting for backup, or [[MundaneUtility not waiting for a play to start]]), and most of her contributions have to do with her detective and gun skills.
* Maggie Hoskie of ''Literature/TrailOfLightning'' has clan powers of lethal instincts and super-speed that must be consciously activated and wears off like an adrenaline surge into exhaustion. She is vulnerable to surprise attack and has only normal human durability.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
* ''Series/OutOfThisWorld1987'': One of the earliest [=EEGs=] was Evie Garland from this 80s SitCom, who derived her extraordinary powers from her [[HalfHumanHybrid half-alien heritage]]. All Anterians have a variety of powers, including the ability to "Gleep", or to will simple, non-mechanical objects into existence. As Evie is only half-Anterian, her powers are less refined than a full-blooded Anterian. Evie's main power is the ability to freeze and unfreeze time by placing her fingers or palms together, respectively. Later in the show, on her sixteenth birthday, she gets the ability to teleport.
* Ta'ra, from the short lived series, ''Series/SomethingIsOutThere''.
* ''Series/SabrinaTheTeenageWitch'' used a similar formula, substituting "alien" for "witch". It should be noted Sabrina has been around since the 60s.
* Creator/JossWhedon has admitted to [[AuthorAppeal having a thing for]] this trope, noting after ''Series/{{Firefly}}'' that he "can't seem to create a show without an adolescent girl with superpowers" in it.
** The title character of ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'', Whedon's most well-known TV creation, for instance, was one of the most notable instances on TV of this {{archetype}}.
** However, she's by ''far'' not the last Whedon character to fit the trope: in addition to other Slayers seen throughout the Buffyverse (especially but not exclusively in the comics, such as ''Fray'' or ''Buffy Season Eight''), there's also [[PsychicPowers psychic]] WaifFu user River Tam from his shorter-lived cult hit ''Series/{{Firefly}}''.
** He "has a thing" to the point that his ''Astonishing X-Men'' run that, while mostly universally acclaimed, was also criticized by some circles for overusing Kitty Pryde, a character who was one of Whedon's favourite growing up and his main inspiration for a lot of his EEG characters.
** He also wrote an arc of ''ComicBook/{{Runaways}}''. Admittedly, the EEG characters weren't his creation (except the two he added), but we're pretty sure they're the reason he likes that comic enough to write it anyway.
** Even non-Slayer women in the Buffyverse may end up as [=EEGs=]. Case in point: Willow, most of the time. She took a trip to "super" status on a few occasions. When you get down to it, Willow is the most powerful human in the Buffyverse. Too bad WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity.
* Max of ''Series/DarkAngel''.
* All three of the main trio of ''Series/BirdsOfPrey2002'' were this at one point, although ComicBook/{{Batgirl}} only in flashback on account of paralysis.
* ''Series/TheSecretWorldOfAlexMack'': Alex Mack.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Video Games]]
* [[VideoGame/PsychoSoldier Athena]] [[VideoGame/TheKingOfFighters Asamiya]] isn't normally this, but in the AlternateUniverse game ''VideoGame/AthenaAwakeningFromTheOrdinaryLife'' she ''doesn't'' start as an ActionGirl. So as her PsychicPowers awaken and her world goes upside down, Athena has to train herself physically ''and'' mentally.
* ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil6'' upgrades Sherry Birkin into this, after having been the TagAlongKid of the second game. As a grown woman, she's a trained government agent with some decent combat skills at her disposal...but still notably smaller and physically weaker than most of the other [[OneManArmy playable characters]] of the franchise. She makes up for this with her [[CombatPragmatist keen intellect]] and [[spoiler: a stabilized G-Virus infection, granting her a powerful HealingFactor while retaining her humanity]].
* [[GreenSkinnedSpaceBabe Krystal]] from ''Franchise/StarFox'' is [[MagicKnight a trained warrior who wields a magic staff]], and [[TelepathicSpacemen has some telepathic powers]], but she's nowhere near invincible. She's just as deadly, and just as mortal as the rest of Star Fox.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Web Comics]]
* ''Webcomic/ImpureBlood'': Dara's psychic powers appear to have less to do with her ActionGirl status than her upbringing by warrior monks
* ''Webcomic/TheWitchsThrone'': Agni and her potions provide quite the fight, but sometimes they aren't enough.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Western Animation]]
* The title character of ''WesternAnimation/TheLifeAndTimesOfJuniperLee''.
[[/folder]]

* In the ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' of Creator/AAPessimal, Creator/TerryPratchett's recurring theme of extremely tough attitudinal women characters is taken a step further, with good reason. Girls who graduate from the Guild of Assassins' school needed to have something a little bit special in the first place. Seven years of ''very'' thorough training, delivered by tutors and role-models like Miss Alice Band, Johanna Smith-Rhodes and others, tends to create a Graduate Assassin with skills, aptitudes and determination to succeed which isn't far short of an SAS trooper or a MOSSAD agent. Indeed, in the tale ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12321109/1/Gap-Year-Adventures Gap Year Adventures]]'', a [[BadassIsraeli Cenotian]] graduate actually ''is'' headhunted for her country's equivalent of the MOSSAD. In [[Fafic/GapYearAdventures a voyage of cheerfully distributed mayhem across an entire continent]] not unlike Africa, she and a [[UsefulNotes/SouthAfricansWithSurfaceToAirMissiles Rimwards Howondalandian]] best friend demonstrate their training and competences. Many times.

* In the ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' of Creator/AAPessimal, Creator/TerryPratchett's recurring theme of extremely tough attitudinal women characters is taken a step further, with good reason. Girls who graduate from the Guild of Assassins' school needed to have something a little bit special in the first place. Seven years of ''very'' thorough training, delivered by tutors and role-models like Miss Alice Band, Johanna Smith-Rhodes and others, tends to create a Graduate Assassin with skills, aptitudes and determination to succeed which isn't far short of an SAS trooper or a MOSSAD agent. Indeed, in the tale ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12321109/1/Gap-Year-Adventures Gap Year Adventures]]'', a [[BadassIsraeli Cenotian]] graduate actually ''is'' headhunted for her country's equivalent of the MOSSAD. In a voyage of cheerfully distributed mayhem across an entire continent not unlike Africa, she and a [[UsefulNotes/SouthAfricansWithSurfaceToAirMissiles Rimwards Howondalandian]] best friend demonstrate their training and competences. Many times.

* Chloe Cerise of ''Fanfic/InfinityTrainBlossomingTrail'' starts off as a girl with a donut holer but in Act 2, she gains two artifacts that lets her cast fire and summon demons. This helps out in a lot of ways but she still uses her fighting skills and keen mind against the baddies like the Organ Man. Delirium, The Bogeyman and Walter and Henry.

* All three of the main trio of ''Series/BirdsOfPrey2002'' were this at one point, although [[ComicBook/{{Oracle}} one of them]] only in flashback on account of paralysis.

* Ta'ra, from the short lived series, ''Something Is Out There''.