History Main / InstantExpert

* The original ComicBook/MisterTerrific. As a result of his natural raw intellect and physical ability, Terry Sloane instantly masters anything, ''anything'', he tries--shaming even lifelong experts. [[{Deconstruction}} Because every single thing he puts his hand to comes so easily to him, by the age of twenty Terry had become jaded and depressed, ultimately planning to drive his car off of a bridge]]. However a chance encounter led to him realizing that turning his talents toward helping others as a costumed hero would provide him with the fulfillment and novelty he was seeking in life. He and his successor share the tagline "The Man of 1,000 Talents".

* The second Mr. Terrific, Michael Holt, from the ''ComicBook/JusticeSocietyOfAmerica''. It's not an explicit metahuman power -- he just has a natural talent for learning. Before he became a superhero, he had ''14'' Ph.D.s on top of being a gold medal-winning Olympic decathlete. The original Mr Terrific, Terry Sloane, had this as well; he was a former TeenGenius who graduated college at 13, and became a superhero in his twenties because he'd already achieved all his other ambitions. His tagline was "The Man of 1,000 Talents".

** Psychics are also very good at this too, picking up languages incredibly quickly, and being able to upload and download information with ease - something Harry also demonstrates.

* Another science fiction story invoking this trope is ''Galactic Odyssey'' by Creator/KeithLaumer, in which the protagonist is put to work sorting indistinguishable glorm-bulbs... which turns out to give him the ability to learn essentially anything with a single run-through.

* When the refugees from a high-tech society end up living off the land in Creator/OrsonScottCard's ''Literature/HomecomingSaga'', they need to relearn things like making/using bows and arrows. So they go to their computer god and ask. Unfortunately, transferring thoughts from one mind to another is painfully impossible, so they end up receiving muscle memory instead, as that's just reflex rather than conscious thought.

* In Creator/JaneAusten's ''Literature/LoveAndFreindship'', [[ParodySue the narrator]].

* Peter F Hamilton's ''Literature/TheNightsDawnTrilogy'' thrives on this. Everyone with neural nanonics can partake of 'Didactic Learning', which basically embeds any knowledge they might need. They might not be quite as good as someone who's been doing it for years, but they can certainly operate complex objects or understand the local phlebotinum competently. It has basically abolished school. If only we had this tech.

* Subverted in the Isaac Asimov short story ''Profession''. Nearly everyone, on reaching their majority, gets an instant education implanted into their brains for the occupation that they are best suited for, based on aptitude testing. There is a downside to this, though: people who receive their education this way become incapable of much in the way of original thought. Only a selected few, with the aptitude to learn the hard, old-fashioned way, are capable of developing new technologies.
* Subverted in Creator/VernorVinge's novel ''Literature/RainbowsEnd'', where JITT (Just-in-Time Training) allows anyone to become an Instant Expert in anything, but [[spoiler:with the added complication of "JITT-stick", which essentially turns the character into a semi-permanent idiot savant in the area they received JITT in. JITT-stick plays a significant role in the novel's conclusion.]]
* ''[[Literature/GentlemanBastard Red Seas Under Red Skies]]'': Thoroughly (and realistically) averted when Jean and Locke are forced to pose as naval officers. While their years of work as con men allows them to realistically act the part, they lack the knowledge and skill of sailors. Despite weeks of intensive training, they are only able to learn the very basics. As soon as they are in a situation without their HyperCompetentSidekick to cover for them, it is immediately apparent to everyone that they have no idea what they're doing.

* Doctors in JamesWhite's ''Literature/SectorGeneral'' stories can, if of sufficient mental health, have the entire medical knowledge of a master-surgeon of an alien species temporarily downloaded into their heads, to allow them to operate on that species without having to spend years learning their anatomy. With the downside that the donor being's personal quirks, racial traits, nightmares, sexual fantasies, and concepts of what makes a good lunch are also stuffed in there...
* In ''Semper Fi'', the first novel in W.E.B. Griffin's The Corps series, Malcolm "Pick" Pickering's flight instructor nearly brings him up on charges after his orientation flight, as Pick is so comfortable in the cockpit (and can easily fly and land the aircraft) that it implies that he lied when he wrote "none" in the previous flight experience box on his application.
* In the ''Franchise/StarWarsExpandedUniverse'', this is explicitly one of Luke Skywalker's abilities, extrapolating out from the movies. After all, he was able to deflect blaster bolts he couldn't even see within minutes of practicing with a lightsaber for the first time. Combined with the authorial tendency to give him NewPowersAsThePlotDemands, he can be a very ShowyInvincibleHero. Though if you are rebuilding the Jedi Order after having had no more than a few months' training, it doesn't hurt to be a quick study.

--> "It's very un-Jedi-like of me, but I want to break his record."

* PlayedForLaughs in ''Literature/{{Touch2017}}.'' [[BlowYouAway James]] is trying to learn a technique to control his magic. His teacher notes that it took him weeks to figure out his approach, his grandfather took a full winter, and his grandmother is rather smug that she only took four days. All this confuses [[TheEmpath Caspar]], who is only slightly more experienced than James and did this in an earlier chapter without much fanfare.

* Malena of [[https://www.deviantart.com/theothersarshi/art/The-Translator-244964530 “The Translator”]] can learn any new language instantly. Her first words are in Spanish followed immediately by the translation in Tupi... ''and she knows which is which'', distinguishing her from normal kids who grow up in a bilingual environment. When she’s in preschool, a traveler seeks her out to learn Tupi, and she ends up learning fluent English and German from the man without even trying, somehow picking up the parts of those languages that he never utters in her presence, and she is amazed that [[IThoughtEveryoneCouldDoThat the man is having so much trouble]]. Once she does enter school, she perfectly masters French after a single lesson and then [[MundaneUtility uses that class as a free period on all succeeding days]]. She’s even able to learn Chinese by skimming through a book in that language.
* ''Literature/{{Twilight}}'': After becoming a vampire, Bella is instantly good at hunting, has no bloodlust, has perfect control, is almost as beautiful as Rose, is a perfect mother, and has all the same wonderful strengths as the other Cullens. She also learns how to perfectly control her mental shield within days despite basically everyone else with a power taking ''years'' to perfect their powers.

* In ''High Wizardry'', the third book of the ''Literature/YoungWizards'' series, [[spoiler: Dairine has the entirety of magical knowledge downloaded into her mind, which, combined with the massive amount of raw power she has, allows her to single-handedly fight the [[BigBad Lone Power]] to a standstill. Then the BigBad pulls an AndYourLittleDogToo, giving her the motivation to instantly devise a massively complex spell which actually ''defeats'' the BigBad.]]

** Xander kept his military knowledge for a couple of years after the Halloween incident where everyone became their costume. By season 4, two years after the initial incident, his soldier memories were pretty much gone.

** Inverted in "Earshot". Buffy gains telepathy by coming in contact with a demon and suffers PowerIncontinence. She doesn't overcome it and learn to control it; instead, it keeps getting ''worse''. She's unable to stop herself from overhearing thoughts at all, and goes from merely eavesdropping on the thoughts of the people physically closest to her, which is often fun, to suffering increasing mental trauma from hearing dozens and dozens of thoughts all going on at once across town. She only gets better when her friends manage to cure the condition completely, meaning that she never learns how to control her newfound, short-lived telepathy power.
** Lampshaded when Buffy was teaching Dawn about slaying; Dawn says that the vampire they were using for training shouldn't know all the kung-fu that most of them do since he was only recently turned.
* As the carrier of the latest version of the [[OmniscientDatabase Intersect]], ''Series/{{Chuck}}'' can do about anything that a World Class Spy can do, and then some.

* It's never drawn attention to but Dharma from ''Series/DharmaAndGreg'' is repeatedly shown to master complex skills in a matter of hours. All of them are forgotten by the end of the episode.

** When Rory is [[spoiler:quasi-resurrected through a Nestene duplicate]] as a Roman soldier in the first century, he mentions that he just woke up one day in Rome, his head full of "Roman stuff." He spends the episode fitting in with the Romans without any difficulty at all and displays the same weapons training that they do.
** Clara gains super hacking powers instantly courtesy of BrainUploading shenanigans in "The Bells of Saint John".

** River is implied to be one of these. Aside from being a gifted savant, she also possesses literal mind-reading powers, enabling her to pull complex knowledge from other people's minds, and it is implied that she had this ability even before she [[PlayingWithSyringes ended up in the Academy.]]

** Sylar's main power is the ability to "understand how things work," which goes towards explaining how he's able to rapidly master all his stolen abilities. And even he has to take a few days to iron out the kinks in particularly cumbersome abilities, such as superhearing (high pitched noises become a WeaksauceWeakness) or shapeshifting (involuntary shapeshifting due to major psychological issues).

** Ted Sprauge has no control over his nuclear-based powers for most of the first season and constantly emits radiation (which kills his wife via cancer) or explodes when under stress. While Sylar is instantly able to control his power near perfectly, Peter is not so skilled and nearly blows up New York

** After House fires him from the diagnostic team, Chase goes on to work in the OR. Not only does he quickly become a surgeon within a couple of months, but he's also suddenly Plainfield's '''best''' surgeon, and House's go-to both off the team and after rejoining it. Another fellow, Taub, was hired in part because he was a trained (cosmetic) surgeon, so this displacement causes him some angst, which [[DoctorJerk House]] loses no opportunity to play on.

* The title character of ''Series/JohnDoe'' is a perfect example of this - he can look up any piece of information at any time, making him an expert in every field. This is consistently shown as he flies a helicopter with no training, is a capable doctor, makes significant profits in the stock market, and pulls off Series/{{MacGyver|1985}}-esque stunts. One episode has him lose his "walking encyclopedia" ability. With it, he loses all the skills he picked up from that, including such things as DrivingStick. He ends up losing most of his fortune due to a bad investment since his broker is so used to doing everything John tells him instead of making the calls himself. Presumably, he makes it back the moment his ability returns.

** In "Leech," Jonathan points out to Clark (who has recently been BroughtDownToNormal) that it took him 12 years to learn how to use his powers properly. In the same episode, the guy who gained Clark's powers masters them in the space of about a day.
* In ''Series/StargateAtlantis'', season 5, "The Prodigal," Michael and his hybrids are immediately able to use the Atlantis computer systems with ability similar to experts like [=McKay=] or Zelenka. When Michael was on Atlantis, he was never allowed to learn how to use their computers, nor were any of his hybrids exposed to Atlantis's computers. It is not credible that they would be able to use the Atlantis computers to lock everyone out or to set a destruct, or even use them at all without some prior training in human and Atlantean computers.
* In ''Series/StargateSG1'', "Prometheus Unbound" the enemy character, Vala Mal Doran, not only can take over the ship, which is not possible the way she did it, but she instantly knows how to use the Prometheus' computers and can lock Jackson out and to run the ship. This is not possible, as it's the enemy's first exposure to human technology. She wouldn't even be able to read English using the Latin alphabet, never having been exposed to it before.

* ''Series/StarTrekEnterprise'', "In a Mirror Darkly", has four individuals who become instant experts on running a Starfleet vessel, the U.S.S. Defiant, 100 years more advanced than they are used to. They can get it up and running and into combat within ten minutes. This would be like naval officers in 1912 trying to run a 2012 nuclear-powered aircraft carrier. They might be able to navigate the carrier, but they would have no clue of what most of the systems on the carrier would be. Fission didn't exist back in 1912, nor did the electronics, nor did the weapons systems. It would take a week just to crack open the manuals and find out what the major systems did. Starting up the reactors and running them would be impossible without a knowledgeable crew. Learning the basics of arming and firing the weapons would take days. Ironically, Archer and company could easily do it if the timeline was anything like the original one that Roddenberry wanted (the 1980 book Star Trek Spaceflight Chronology is based on that timeline) as the technology of the Defiant would about roughly 20 years more advanced than what they were used to. The Baton Rouge Class of the STSC of 20 or so years before the Constitution Class is roughly the equivalent of the NX Enterprise (except it had shields but no phasers) but it would not be that much of a stretch for a Baton Rouge crew to start up and operate a Constitution Class like the U.S.S. Defiant in the manner shown in those few minutes

*** Oliver Queen, even in the island flashbacks, was able to perform a complicated counterattack with just 10 days of training. In the third season, he was able to beat ComicBook/RasAlGhul in a sword duel despite only being trained for three weeks while Ra's is a centuries-old MasterSwordsman who even curb-stomped Oliver earlier in the series.

*** Felicity Smoak was able to perfectly fly ComicBook/TheAtom's PowerArmor despite it being twice her size and the actual user still having issues flying it (though it ''may'' be in auto-pilot mode).
** ''Series/LegendsOfTomorrow'': Ray's [[PowerArmor ATOM suit]] is extremely easy to use. While it's fitted perfectly to him, meaning anyone who is too far off his body type can't wear it properly, if they can wear it, they can figure out the rest easily. This causes problems when he lands in feudal Japan and the suit is stolen by a local warlord.

** A more literal and weaponized example comes from the prequel ''LightNovel/FateZero''. The servant Berserker, the Black Knight, whose ability, Knight of Owner, can turn ''anything even remotely usable as a weapon'' into a Noble Phantasm and use them to their fullest extent, even better than Shirou and his Projection magic. [[spoiler: This ability brings to mind one of the tales with the figure he's based on (Sir Lancelot) winning a duel armed with only a twig of wood.]] Combined with his "Eternal Arms Mastery" (which allows him to keep all of his prodigious fighting skills even when under the effects of [[WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity Mad Enhancement]]) he turns out to be a nearly unstoppable combatant who only loses due to a sudden loss of mana supply -- ''and all this despite being insane the whole time''. Among other things, Berserker is shown picking up and kicking ass with a street lamp, the mythical weapons of other legendary heroes, [[CoolPlane an F-15 fighter jet]], and ''[[MoreDakka the gun from that same jet.]]''

* ''LightNovel/TheFamiliarOfZero'':

* ''LightNovel/HaruhiSuzumiya'':

* In episode 5 of ''LightNovel/ThePetGirlOfSakurasou'', local IdiotSavant Mashiro scores zeroes on all of her tests, including English, which Sorata wonders how that could have happened in the first place since she lived in Britain for most of her youth. Later she's given some study sheets, and [[PhotographicMemory instantly remembers all of the information on it]], which Sorata briefly tests her on. She laters scores all 100's when she takes the tests again.

* ''LightNovel/{{Katanagatari}}'': [[spoiler: Nanami]] is an unparalleled prodigy capable of learning any technique after seeing it once, and mastering it after seeing it twice. She never learned the family fighting style because her father was too afraid of what she'd be like if she did (and then she learned it anyway). She goes from a powerless waif to the strongest in Japan after she kills her way across the country, gaining the powers of everyone she killed. Unfortunately, she's also a) an antagonist, meaning the hero has to fight her, and b) a DeathSeeker, meaning she's trying desperately to die in battle, but is so superhumanly tough that she can't lose a fight.
* Zigzagged in ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica.'' Despite having no combat experience, Sayaka manages to be a capable swordfighter on her earliest missions, even [[ThrowingYourSwordAlwaysWorks hurling her weapons]] with a surprising amount of accuracy (however, she's [[OvershadowedByAwesome still considered to be subpar by Puella Magi standards]]). Homura, on the other hand, remained physically weak and uncoordinated upon first contracting, being exhausted by less than a minute of physical activity.

* In ''LightNovel/WorldBreakAriaOfCurseForAHolySwordsman'', Moroha learns how to use Isurugi's super-speed after watching him a few times. The latter meanwhile states that it took him two years to master that move.

* PlayedForLaughs in an episode of ''WesternAnimation/SpongebobSquarepants'', where [=SpongeBob=] decides to attend Squidward's art class. To Squidward's [[GreenEyedMonster utter fury,]] [=SpongeBob=], despite no apparent experience, demonstrates the ability to draw perfect circles and photorealistic pencil sketches, create sophisticated origami and collage art, and chisel a marble statue reminiscent of Michelangelo's ''David.'' Squidward continually denigrates and nitpicks [=SpongeBob=]'s efforts despite them being far superior to his own, causing [=SpongeBob=] to quit in shame. Unfortunately, when a wealthy art collector comes by and likes [=SpongeBob=]'s art, leading Squidward to try to talk Spongebob into helping him out, [=SpongeBob=] has already taken Squidward's teachings to heart and become just as much of a TerribleArtist.

* PlayedForLaughs in an episode of ''WesternAnimation/SpongebobSquarepants'', where Spongebob decides to attend Squidward's art class. To Squidward's [[GreenEyedMonster utter fury,]] Spongebob, despite no apparent experience, demonstrates the ability to draw perfect circles, create photorealistic pencil sketches, create sophisticated origami and collage art, and chisel a marble statue reminiscent of Michelangelo's ''David.'' Squidward continually denigrates and nitpicks Spongebob's efforts despite them being far superior to his own, causing Spongebob to quit in shame. Unfortunately, when a wealthy art collector comes by and likes Spongebob's art, leading Squidward to try to talk Spongebob into helping him out, Spongebob has already taken Squidward's teachings to heart and become just as much of a TerribleArtist.

** Played with when Sokka learns to use the sword in a matter of days. On one hand, not even TrainingFromHell would be able to give normal people any passable sword skills in that manner of time -- and Sokka seems to spend just as much time doing calligraphy and feng shui as actual sword practice during said days. On the other hand Sokka only became a decent swordsman (certainly not an ''expert'' by any sense of the term) and already had considerable experience in combat and with using a boomerang and club. Furthermore, while he holds his own against Piandao one-on-one, it becomes clear Piandao was merely testing him -- as soon as he's had enough he ''effortlessly'' disarms and defeats Sokka... ''while blinded''.

* Deconstructed hard in ''[[https://archiveofourown.org/works/31237946 The Outbreak]]''. Felicity does manage to use the ATOM suit to save Oliver, but wrecks it in the process. [[NiceJobBreakingItHero This leaves them with no way to distribute the vaccine for the Alpha and Omega virus]], leading to many deaths. Ray even chews her out for thinking she could use it no training.

** Whenever Shirou uses Projection to replicate a weapon, he will instantly gain all experience of battles the weapon itself has gone through, allowing him to wield it (or, depending on interpretation, for it to wield itself with his body following its lead) with ease as if he were a complete master.

* The antagonists of [[Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventureBattleTendency Part II]] of ''Franchise/JoJosBizarreAdventure'', the Pillar Men, are the remnants of a race of superhumans who can learn new things very quickly. The first Pillar Man, Santana, can grasp the basics of modern language after overhearing a few conversations and immediately figures out how to disassemble a machine gun all after waking up from a 4,000 year hibernation. The other three Pillar Men are even stronger and smarter than Santana and can converse normally using modern language after overhearing a few words.

** Lana Lang learned kung fu in three days. She also learned how to successfully run her own coffee shop instantly and while still in high school. The big issue with her was that she kept knowing how to do things someone in her situation ''would not know'' to keep her plot-relevant. The coffee shop was to explain why she kept getting involved in things-the whole school hung out there, Clark included. The kung-fu and so-called "military training" were because the writers had finally listened to all the DistressedDamsel complaints about her character. The second she needed to know something, it was known so they could say she was still relevant.

* The antagonists of [[Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventureBattleTendency Part II]] of ''Franchise/JojosBizarreAdventure'', the Pillar Men, are the remnants of a race of superhumans who can learn new things very quickly. The first Pillar Man, Santana, can grasp the basics of modern language after overhearing a few conversations and immediately figures out how to disassemble a machine gun all after waking up from a 4,000 year hibernation. The other three Pillar Men are even stronger and smarter than Santana and can converse normally using modern language after overhearing a few words.

Compare PossessionImpliesMastery, SuddenlyAlwaysKnewThat, UniversalDriversLicense. Contrast HowDoIShotWeb. See also LikeADuckTakesToWater, which is this Trope for non-super skills.

* Used in ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'' when Bender temporarily becomes captain of the Planet Express, much to Fry's annoyance. When Fry lambastes him and accuses him of not knowing the first thing about being a captain, Bender instantly reads the entire manual and then uses the info to chastise Fry. Justified in this case as Bender is a robot.