History Main / LargeAndInCharge

** ''Franchise/SpiderMan'': The Big Man is a very tall and powerfully built man with a very intimidating voice, [[spoiler: but [[SubvertedTrope subverts]] this because in reality, he's Frederick Foswell, a reporter for the Daily Bugle, a small, meek individual who uses a padded suit, a mask, and a voice modifier to better look and sound the part of a criminal mastermind. In the comics, his daughter Janice later pulled the same trick as the Big Man]]. In ''WesternAnimation/TheSpectacularSpiderman'', the Big Man is ostensibly revealed as a VillainWithGoodPublicity, Tombstone, a tall, powerfully built man with an [[ScaryBlackMan intimidating voice]].

* ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyEquestriaGirls'': Celestia and Luna seem to be normal-statured as humans, and have been rather drastically demoted. Being adults around [[ShortTeensTallAdults teenagers]] does still have them taller than most of the cast whom they are still in a position of authority over.

* In ''VideoGame/{{Dragonshard}}'', the Captains are much larger than the rest of their squads.

* In ''Dragonshard'', the Captains are much larger than the rest of their squads.

* ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyEquestriaGirls'': Celestia and Luna seem to be normal-statured as humans, and have been rather drastically demoted. Being adults around [[TeensAreShort Teenagers]] does still have them taller than most of the cast whom they are still in a position of authority over.

* ''WebVideo/RatMovieMysteryOfTheMayanTreasure'': The rats are led by "[[RodentsOfUnusualSize the giant rat]] that makes all the rules".

Sometimes found in real life -- in the modern world, elected leaders are generally of average or greater height. However, this is rarely taken to the kind of extremes found in video games. Also common in the animal kingdom, where in species such as lions, the largest males become the alphas of their prides/packs.

* Subverted in Music/{{KISS}}, whose lead singer and brains of the band Paul Stanley is of fairly average height, while his number-three man, bassist Gene Simmons, is the most physically imposing thanks to his thick metal armor and stilettoed platform shoes. Actually double-subverted if you think about it, because with his instantly recognizable "kabuki lizard" face, Simmons is undoubtedly the FaceOfTheBand.

* Played straight with the late Pete Steele. Frontman and FaceOfTheBand of Music/{{Type O Negative}} who stood at a towering 6 foot 8.

** ''WesternAnimation/TheTransformers'': Optimus and Megatron were initially the tallest characters on either side, with Optimus being about double the height of the Autobot cars and Megatron being one head taller than his second-in-command Starscream (though by the end of the first season, both had been surpassed by Skyfire, the Dinobots, and Devastator). It's suggested that this is a natural part of bearing the Matrix of Leadership; when Hot Rod took the Matrix in ''WesternAnimation/TheTransformersTheMovie'', he grew to twice his original height and even picked up a trailer in the exchange.

** ''WesternAnimation/TheTransformers'': Optimus and Megatron were initially the tallest characters on either side, with Optimus being about double the height of the Autobot cars and Megatron being one head taller than his second-in-command Starscream (though by the end of the first season, both had been surpassed by Skyfire, the Dinobots, and Devastator). It's suggested that this may be enforced; when Hot Rod took the Matrix in ''WesternAnimation/TheTransformersTheMovie'', he grew to twice his original height and even picked up a trailer in the exchange.

** ''WesternAnimation/BeastWars'':
*** Particularly jarring, after Optimus Primal carries the spark of the original Optimus and his body mutates as a result. He gains several "traditional" transformer-style attributes, and he '''towers''', being about half the size of the original Autobots ''and about double the size of the Maximals'', including Rhinox, who ''turns into a rhino''.
*** Earlier seasons offer a subversion -- Dinobot was head and shoulders taller than Optimus Primal, and Rhinox was equally as large if not larger. Late Season 2, Rampage is much larger than Megatron, who really doesn't need size to be scary... it just helps.

** Miserix for the Makuta.

Can be found in art, especially B.C periods. The most prominent example is Egyptian art; almost all periods of European art before the Renaissance too. This makes sense, as people tend to pay more attention to bigger figures.

* ''Fanfic/AbraxasHrodvitnon'': In this ''Franchise/{{Godzilla}}'' Franchise/MonsterVerse fanfiction, the Many's HiveQueen [[spoiler:which is [[Characters/AbraxasHrodvitnonTitansAndOtherCreatures Keizer Ghidorah]]]] positively ''towers'' above the Many's {{Mind Hive}}s, including the {{Elite Mook|s}} [=MaNi=]/Elder Brother which is partly made of Ghidorah's detached [[MultipleHeadCase right head]].

* Played with in [[Wrestling/ImpactWrestling TNA]]'s Wrestling/AcesAndEights. TheDragon of the team (and ''de facto'' leader in many of the brawls) was early on revealed to be the massive (6'7", 291 pounds) Wrestling/DrewHankinson, a.k.a. "Director of Chaos" or "D.O.C." (pronounced like the monosyllabic slang term for a doctor). He was the first member of the gang to be publicly unmasked, and thus embodied the entire group for a number of months. However, as several other members of Aces & Eights were revealed, D.O.C. basically filled the role of DumbMuscle.

* ''ComicBook/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast'': Upon arrival in the Dark World, Link is confronted by three thieves and their "boss," a huge cyclops Hinox. They make trouble by questioning Link about a fairy they're hunting.

* ''Animation/PleasantGoatAndBigBigWolfTheTigerProwess'': The villains are a BigThinShortTrio headed by Lord Japper, who falls under the "big" category. [[spoiler:Or so the film leads you to think. Counsoler the gecko, the "short" member of the trio, was actually the one leading Lord Japper the whole time.]]

* ''Animation/PleasantGoatAndBigBigWolf'': In the second film, the villains are a BigThinShortTrio headed by Lord Japper, who falls under the "big" category. [[spoiler:Or so the film leads you to think. Counsoler the gecko, the "short" member of the trio, was actually the one leading Lord Japper the whole time.]]

** Princess Peach also counts, being taller than Luigi in most games.

* Garland's OneWingedAngel form in ''VideoGame/YsTheOathInFelghana''.

* Fa'Lina from ''Webcomic/DanAndMabsFurryAdventures'' is head of SAIA, and towers over most of the cast. However this is her smaller form, as Clan leaders are shown to be "naturally" much larger.
* In ''Webcomic/ElGoonishShive'', Assistant Director Leifeld is a [[http://www.egscomics.com/comic/2010-01-19 massive muscled man]] who regularly [[http://egscomics.com/comic/2017-03-01 hits the gym]] and is the superior to the head of the office of Paranormal Affairs.
* Barry Heterodyne, Baron Klaus Wulfenbach, Master Payne and the Jäger Generals from ''Webcomic/GirlGenius''. The Master of Paris tops all of them, assuming that's all really his physical body. (The man is ''very'' oddly proportioned.) Albia dwarfs all of them, but her height is ... variable.
* Harky in ''Webcomic/GuildedAge'' is huge, and leader of the trolls in the World's Rebellion. [[spoiler:Penk]] also gets larger when he [[spoiler:becomes an avatar of Tectonicus and takes leadership of the Champions]].

[[folder:AsianAnimation]]
* Noonbory, the titular hero of ''Animation/NoonboryAndTheSuper7'' is the leader of the Super Sensors, and the tallest of them all.

* ''Webcomic/LastRes0rt'' takes this to its logically ridiculous extremes by making the Vaeo Family 7-foot-tall lizards compared to the rest of the cast, and then TOP that by introducing [[AuthorityEqualsAsskicking Veled (head of the Celigan Military)]], who measures just under ''10 feet tall''. In fact, the main subversion is [[CuteBruiser Jigsaw Forte]] herself: she's the smallest Executioner of the four. The other executioners are a reasonably sized human, a large lion-like centaur, and an alien creature commonly mistaken for a Horse.

Related to AuthorityGrantsAsskicking (or, perhaps, AsskickingLeadsToLeadership). Also see HitlerCam, the camera effect that you can use to accentuate height. Contrast TheNapoleon (when he's in a leadership position).

Related to AuthorityEqualsAsskicking (or, perhaps, AsskickingEqualsAuthority). Also see HitlerCam, the camera effect that you can use to accentuate height. Contrast TheNapoleon (when he's in a leadership position).

* In ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'', King Robert Baratheon is described as "towering over lesser men" at 6'6, and being muscled like a woman's fantasy when he was in his prime. This is [[JustifiedTrope justified]] by the fact that [[AsskickingEqualsAuthority he won his crown by fighting.]] His brothers Renly and Stannis, both lords and claimants to the kingship, are also very tall and fit, though nowhere near as muscular as he was in his prime. Other examples include Gregor Clegane, a monstrously huge knight who leads a troop of soldiers on particularly vicious missions, Tywin Lannister, who is noted to be quite tall as part of his general NoHistoricalFiguresWereHarmed take on Edward I "Longshanks", and the Titan's Bastard, a giant of a sellsword who leads a mercenary company.

* Tigerstar of ''Literature/WarriorCats'' is described as a very large and muscular cat with very long, hooked claws. Inverted with Scourge of [=BloodClan=], who is so tiny that most characters wonder what the heck he's doing sitting next to Bone, who is enormous (and Scourge's [[TheDragon Dragon]]). Scourge quickly proves that his small size gives him speed and agility, which coupled with his ruthlessness make him one of the [[AsskickingEqualsAuthority most lethal combatants in the series.]]

* Played straight and heroically in two of three cases for ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'' 's Grand Companies, and definitely averted for the third. The leaders of Limsa Lominsa's Maelstrom, [[AmazonianBeauty Merlwyb Bloefhiswyn]],[[note]]Merlwyb is a downplayed case. While female Roegadyn are the tallest females in the game, and she is tall even for a female Roegadyn, and thus utterly towers over both males and females of both species, Limsa and the Maelstrom have no shortage of male Roegadyn, who are nearly as tall as she is, at a minimum, and twice as wide. Indeed, her second in command is a male Roegadyn about her height and very clearly larger. These types follow Merlwyb, when they actually DO follow her and not ignore laws and orders when they feel they can get away with it, due to varying mixes of charisma and AsskickingEqualsAuthority.[[/note]] and Ul'dah's Immortal Flames, [[BoisterousBruiser Raubahn]] are a Roegadyn and a [[GoodScarsEvilScars heavily scarred]] [[TheGiant giant of a Hyur]], respectively. The Gridanian Twin Adders' leader, [[PunctuationShaker Kan-E-Senna]], on the other hand is a diminutive Padjal who, while nowhere near as short as a [[LittlePeople Lalafell]], would barely even come up to the waist of either of her fellow leaders.