History Main / ParodySue

* An episode of the ''WesternAnimation/TheLittleMermaid'' cartoon has an old acquaintance of Sebastian who has the same problem. In a last-ditch effort to beat him at ''something'', Sebastian challenges him to pretty much tell Sebastian's life story. The old acquaintance not only does so, in perfect detail, (which, in itself is pretty damn creepy) but also manages to mix a heaping helping of [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech The Reason Sebastian Sucks]] while doing so. Cue the FlatWhat from everyone. Including the viewers. Though like the Tree excess example he admits the one thing he's not better than Sebastian at is making friends, because everybody would rather try to knock him off his high horse with contests than be his friend.

However, it takes the steady hand of a skilled writer to make this kind of character work, even if they're [[PlayedForLaughs playing it for laughs]]. [[GenreSavvy Don't be fooled]] if somebody claims [[ParodyRetcon this is what they were aiming for]] once they suffer the backlash of their storyline. And of course, just because somebody intends to make their story a hilarious parody [[SturgeonsLaw doesn't mean they'll actually succeed]] -- sometimes Parody Sue can end up [[RedundantParody just as tedious as the original]]. After all, a character that is intentionally poorly-written is still poorly-written. One could argue that it's even worse, considering how bad the character comes across can't be blamed on accident or inexperience.

* ''Webcomic/{{Chainsawsuit}}'' got a few entries, including "[[http://chainsawsuit.com/2012/03/13/brightshadow-academy-for-mary-sues/ Brightshadow Academy for Mary Sues]]". Its newest student is [[http://chainsawsuit.com/2012/03/29/brightshadows-newest-student/ Jane Peters]], who "had no [[GodModeSue unique powers]] and a [[DarkAndTroubledPast very normal past]]":

* Shadow and Chug of ''Powerup Comics'' are ([[StealthParody stealth]]) parodies of the JerkassStu model. Since they represent all of the authors' viewpoints, it's deemed acceptable for them to dismiss the recurring strawman character with a bullet to the forehead simply because he has the "wrong" opinions.

* Shadow and Chug of ''Powerup Comics'' are ([[StealthParody stealth]]) parodies of the JerkassStu model. Since they represent all of the authors' viewpoints, it's deemed acceptable for them to dismiss the recurring strawman character with a [[http://www.drunkduck.com/Powerup_Comics/index.php?p=299048 bullet to the forehead]] simply because he has the "wrong" opinions.

** Though while the story mocks the Mary Sue, it ends up sympathetic to her author -- her siblings are sick of the her ridiculous self-inserts and whine that she's telling the story wrong, but their mother defends her and tells her she made her own Mary Sue stories when she was a girl.

* Reinhard van Astrea from ''LightNovel/ReZero''. He's unquestionably the greatest swordsman in the setting, and is blessed with a miriad of abilities such as super speed, a power boost for every time of day and weather effect, the ability to see in the dark or unhindered by fog, the ability to walk on clouds and water, the guarantee that all attacks will miss him, all magic damage is reduced to only 20% it's normal power, curses can't effect him, [[WhatKindOfLamePowerIsHeartAnyway he never mixes up salt and sugar]], everything he cooks will be delicious no matter what, any clothes he makes will look good, and so on. Not only is he no holds barred the strongest character in the series, as well as the most competent at virtually any other physical task, but the light novels make a point of letting you know how graceful he looks while he does everything as well. He's also explicitly referred to as being handsome in case anyone following the series happens to be blind. His only shortcoming is that he's not good at resolving social conflicts, but he's so gosh darn amicable that he doesn't have to deal with this often. The only thing that keeps him from breaking the story is that he doesn't show up in most arcs.

* [[LoverNotAFighter He's a lover, not a fighter]], [[InvertedTrope but he's also a fighter so don't get any ideas]]. [[ManlyFacialHair His beard alone has experienced more than a lesser man's body]]. [[ArsonMurderandJaywalking He once punched a magician in the face. That's right. You heard me]]. [[CulturedBadass He can speak French... in Russian]]. [[AnalProbing Alien abductors have asked him to probe them]]. [[SerialEscalation His blood smells like cologne]]. [[OverlyLongGag If he were to punch you in the face, you would have to fight off the strong urge to thank him]]. He is... Advertising/TheMostInterestingManInTheWorld.

** [[UpToEleven The series actually takes this to 11]] -- being a Sue is ''a genuine superpower'' (called being an abnormal), and the school is part of a government program to artificially create Mary Sues. The way they test if someone's an Abnormal? They have them roll a cup of dice -- Abnormals get all 6s. When they have Medaka do it ''her dice make a tower on the table''. Medaka is so Sueish that ''she's more sueish than the sues''.

* In ''[[VideoGame/MarySkelterNightmares Mary Skelter 2]]'', we get Otsuu, who can do basically everything the other Blood Maidens can with the exception of stuff tied to their Blood Abilities, and who's mere presence in the plot saved the dead-by-backstory-in-the-first-game Little Mermaid (oh, and also, they're an OfficialCouple) on top of generally making everything seem better. And ''then'' the illusion crumbles a little with the destruction of the Liberated District, causing the deaths of many a first game ReasonableAuthorityFigure and quite a few of the girls having fallen to [[SuperpoweredEvilSide Blood Skelter]] before even getting into the party. ''[[UpToEleven And then]]'' [[spoiler:Alice is revealed to be the Mysterious Nightmare that destroyed the Liberated District in the first place, everybody aside from Otsuu and Little Mermaid ends up outright ''dead'', and Otsuu reveals that she forced herself into a sue-esque role via the Witchcraft to save Little Mermaid from her first game backstory death. She is then convinced by Little Mermaid to let go of this for the sake of letting everyone ''else'' be happy and alive, which makes her reset the timeline to the first game...'s UpdatedRerelease, [[GoldenEnding which's expanded postgame allows Otsuu to bring Little Mermaid back with far less sue-ness involved]].]]

** With Bart Simpson's favorite comic book, ''Radioactive Man'', its eponymous hero can be this sometimes; one issue has him traveling back in time, competing against Jesse Owens in the Olympics, and ''winning'', something Bart [[ProtagonistCenteredMorality views as a good thing]]. although, there's another special issue where Milhouse claims he and Fallout Boy are killed on ''every'' page, which may be an aversion to the Trope. (Or [[FridgeBrilliance maybe]] take it UpToEleven.)

* In ''VideoGame/{{Undertale}}'', the TrueFinalBoss is [[spoiler:Asriel Dreemurr. He takes the appearance of the ObviouslyEvil "God of Hyperdeath" with a [[VillainousFashionSense threatening cloak]], BlackEyesOfEvil, and HornsOfVillainy. Throughout the battle, he makes StrawNihilist remarks and explains his intention to [[OmnicidalManiac undo everything]] so you can struggle forever. He really is as powerful as he thinks, having absorbed all the other [=SOULs=] in the Undergroud. The problem is that this is not Asriel's real character -- and when you understand that, it becomes painfully obvious that he is using this power to assume the form of a sort of self-insert edgelord VillainSue. Asriel is a kind-hearted child who is concealing his kindness and childhood. He makes himself appear older, cooler, and more badass -- or at least he tries: his attempt is so over-the-top it falls flat. [[note]] "God of Hyperdeath"? It's the sort of thing a little boy would think is cool. [[/note]] He reveals how immature he is when he throws a tantrum because you refuse to let him win the "game." Despite the parody, the whole exchange is PlayedForDrama. The way to overcome Asriel is to see him for what he is: a child who is frightened, in pain, and lashing out. Instead of defeating this boss, you let him know he has a friend.]]

*** [[spoiler:Jake, the AlternateUniverse version of Jade's adoptive grandfather/biological father, deconstructs this. Like Jade, he lives alone on an island, along with Dirk's robot clone and a myriad of dangerous and exotic alien monsters, has multiple quirky or strange hobbies and personality traits, all while having a tragic backstory through the [[ConvenientlyAnOrphan death of his beloved grandmother]] who was murdered for being a threat to an all-powerful villain. Additionally, all his friends in his group are vying for his affections and apparently holds an insane amount of hidden potential, secretly making him one of the most powerful and innately intelligent characters in-canon, despite being an other general dunce. However, his own lack of self-awareness and general obliviousness ultimately backfires on him when his friends grow tired of his behavior after dealing with him in a vacuum for 6 months, culminating with his boyfriend breaking up with him and his best friend (who had been in love with him) [[CorruptTheCutie suddenly becoming]] [[BrainwashedAndCrazy an evil, physically and emotionally abusive mind controlled tyrant]], showing that Mary Sues just wouldn't work in real life.]]
** The parody really ramps up when the comic introduces the 12 trolls. Just about ''every one'' of them exhibits a few blatant Mary Sue traits, most of which are promptly played for laughs, some of which are developed or subverted.

*** Gamzee. [[spoiler: a JokeCharacter who turns into a LethalJokeCharacter, his behind-the-scenes machinations are explicitly or implicitly responsible for many plot details. However, instead of a {{Chessmaster}} MaryTzu, he's a gullible idiot. By the end, he is little more than a ButtMonkey and CosmicPlaything of the real villains.]]
*** Vriska. Most of all, Vriska, because she actively ''tries'' to be a Mary Sue. She has a [[TheMostDangerousVideoGame FLARP]] character named "Marquise Spinneret Mindfang". She can put people under MindControl to manipulate them. She cheats, lies, steals and [[KarmaHoudini evades consequences]]. She inserts herself into major plot events just to seem important. She even makes romantic moves toward TheHero! She strives to fill the role of MaryTzu, JerkSue, VillainSue, GodModeSue and BlackHoleSue ''all at once,'' because that's her idea of "winning." Sometimes she succeeds, but ultimately she fails [[spoiler: and dies]]. She seems to learn a lesson from this setback... [[spoiler: then she unlearns it and tries again]].
*** While the rest are parodied for fun, Vriska is a thoroughly DeconstructedCharacterArchetype. WordOfGod confirms that Vriska is a metafictional examination of the MarySue. What kind of person would behave this way? [[spoiler: An insecure, unhappy one.]] How would others respond to her? [[spoiler: They consider her a dangerous, abusive manipulator.]]
*** WordOfGod also declares that Vriska is an [[InvokedTrope intentional attempt]] to establish a BaseBreakingCharacter. It's a resounding success, because she certainly is. Within the story, the other characters have very divided opinions on Vriska. So does the audience. Some fans think she is a dangerous, psychotic JerkAss, some adore her. Some feel both at once.

*** She's also [[spoiler:the smarter, more talented sister of the BigBad Caliborn/Lord English]], and several sources believe that she's going to be instrumental in stopping Lord English. Which would all be very Sueish except for the fact that [[spoiler:he OutGambitted her and killed her dreamself, leaving him permanently in control of their [[SharingABody shared body]] and Calliope's ghost hiding from him in a secluded corner of the Furthest Ring, with no idea what she's actually supposed to do]].

* The film ''Film/AmericanDreamer'' was about a woman who has a concussion, and wakes up believing she's a character in her favorite pulp novels, and an over-the-top female Film/JamesBond.

* In the [=PS3=] version of ''VideoGame/TalesOfVesperia'', [[ThePaladin Flynn Scifo]] is a Type 3 that is PlayedForDrama. His best friend and eternal rival, AntiHero[=/=]VigilanteMan Yuri Lowell constantly snarks about how he gets the treatment of a GodModeSue in-universe when it comes to combat and politics. However, Yuri is also aware that his friend is the single most LawfulStupid human being in existence. When his devotion to the rules [[NiceJobBreakingItHero cause him to screw up]], Yuri ''really'' lets him have it... [[CharacterDevelopment and Flynn reluctantly realizes that he's in the wrong for once when he does]].
** Being a JRPG DeconstructorFleet, the ''VideoGame/TalesSeries'' was bound to have a few of these. Another example is Colette in ''VideoGame/TalesOfSymphonia'', who is this (Type 3, [[spoiler:almost becoming a vegetable as a result]]) simply by being a deconstruction of TheChosenOne.
* Zed from ''VideoGame/WildArms'', more so in the remake ''Wild Arms Alter Code F''. He is a demon who sees himself as the incredibly awesome protagonist of the story and claims that the main characters are villainous, until he finally ditched Ziekfried and, in the remake, can eventually join the party. In the original game he also dropped the "Doom Bringer" sword which was very powerful but reduces Jack's luck the the worst possible value when he uses it - which sort of explains Zed's comic ineptitude throughout the game.

* Infinite from ''VideoGame/SonicForces'' has many VillainSue traits. He's faster than FastestThingAlive Sonic and effortlessly curb stomps him, beats up powerful heroes like Silver and Omega easily, recruits a LegionOfDoom consisting of some of the franchises most powerful villains subservient to himself, is single-handedly responsible for Eggman's takeover of the world, and every other sentence he speaks is about how awesome and powerful he is. Fans have also noted he checks off a lot of boxes for edgy OC villains produced by the fandom from broad ones like his dark color scheme and asymetrical design to fandom specific ones like being a species of animal not seen in the series yet, a common fan character trait. [[spoiler:He's actually nothing more than a sadistic bully whose one ''real'' power is YourMindMakesItReal illusions that make him ''appear'' all powerful and the other villains are just illusionary copies. Once ways around it are found, he's not nearly as invincible as he likes to pretend he is and Eggman could dispose of him whenever he saw fit, which he ultimately does.]] Notably, he spends a lot of the game in direct opposition (and as a Foil to) the Avatar, a much more straightforward (and far less extreme) Original Character archetype and one who has a flaws and a character arc.
* ''VideoGame/KidIcarusUprising'' features Dark Pit, an edgy, brooding PaletteSwap of Pit who has all his powers, and can fly without divine intervention. He has all the makings of a VillainSue from an uninspired fanfic... [[LeaningOnTheFourthWall and the rest of the cast know it]], [[NoRespectGuy and mercilessly mock him for it]]. As the game progresses, he realizes he isn't actually all that evil, just slightly more sarcastic than the other characters (which admittedly is [[WorldOfSnark a lot]]), and ends up begrudgingly becoming a good guy. [[spoiler:And to add insult to injury, he was only able to fly because Pandora was possessing his wings, so as soon as she ditches him, [[RedemptionDemotion he can't do anything that Pit can't already do]].]]
* In ''[[VideoGame/MarySkelterNightmares Mary Skelter 2]]'', we get Otsuu, who can do basically everything the other Blood Maidens can with the exception of stuff tied to their Blood Abilities, and who's mere presence in the plot saved the dead-by-backstory-in-the-first-game Little Mermaid (oh, and also, they're an OfficialCouple) on top of generally making everything seem better. And ''then'' the illusion crumbles a little with the destruction of the Liberated District, causing the deaths of many a first game ReasonableAuthorityFigure and quite a few of the girls having fallen to [[SuperpoweredEvilSide Blood Skelter]] before even getting into the party. ''[[UpToEleven And then]]'' [[spoiler:Alice is revealed to be the Mysterious Nightmare that destroyed the Liberated District in the first place, everybody aside from Otsuu and Little Mermaid ends up outright ''dead'', and Otsuu reveals that she forced herself into a sue-esque role via the Witchcraft to save Little Mermaid from her first game backstory death. She is then convinced by Little Mermaid to let go of this for the sake of letting everyone ''else'' be happy and alive, which makes her reset the timeline to the first game...'s UpdatedRerelease, [[GoldenEnding which's expanded postgame allows Otsuu to bring Little Mermaid back with far less sue-ness involved]].]]
* ''VideoGame/FridayNightFunkin'' gives us Senpai, the main enemy of Week 6. He's a parody of shallow DatingSim protagonists who effortlessly win over the hearts of their love interests. Since Boyfriend doesn't follow the rules of the game, he's able to easily defeat Senpai in a singing contest, at which point Senpai flies into a rage because he didn't effortlessly get Girlfriend.
* ''VideoGame/HyruleWarriors'' has a rare cross between this and a BigBad. Cia is a strikingly beautiful and powerful sorceress who is in love with the hero Link, defeated the perennial ''Zelda'' villain Ganondorf, and bends the antagonists of other games to her will. The deconstruction comes with the gradual relevation that Cia is a [[PsychopathicManchild Psychopathic Womanchild]] who was driven insane over being forced into the thankless task of maintaining the timelines for eternity, and for all her power, is completely unable to change the ''Zelda'' canon on her own. [[spoiler: By the end of the game, her followers grow sick of her and makes way for Ganondorf to return]].

%%* [[AwesomeMcCoolName ADMIRAL Awesome Yonasomun Armageddon]] from ''Fanfic/TwilightSparklesAwesomeAdventure''.

* [[AwesomeMcCoolName Smolder Bravestone]] in ''Film/JumanjiWelcomeToTheJungle''. He's a famous AdventurerArchaeologist who has amazing strength and speed, looks like Creator/DwayneJohnson, and is listed as having ''no'' weaknesses unlike the other characters who all have at least one weakness. The parody part comes from him being a video game character "[[FreakyFridayFlip played]]" by Spencer who's a germophobic and socially awkward teenager in real life, which leads to this incredibly buff and tough-looking man cowering in fear from squirrels and repeatedly whining that he doesn't want to do the dangerous stuff the game expects him to.

* Varhram from ''LightNovel/AvestaOfBlackAndWhite'' plays this for drama. Throughout the story he is portrayed as a typical GodModeSue and BlackHoleSue, someone [[TheAce who accomplished the most insane feats to perfection]] and [[HundredPercentAdorationRating who is endlessly popular and well liked]] to the point that anyone who doesn't is looked at with suspicion or even pity. [[spoiler:As the story progresses however it is made clear that this popularity is closer to some kind of madness, a CultOfPersonality centered entirely around Varhram like a blind religion fueled by pure zealotry. And when the man himself finally makes an appearance it is clear that his perfection have caused him to become detached from humanity, [[TheSociopath unable to see people as anything more than characters in a book with himself as the reader, free to do with them however he pleases]]. But underneath all these layers it is revealed that he has been chained by his own perfection, endlessly feeling forced to accomplish greater and more insane feats in order to live up to the outlandish ideals everyone has of him just so that he can feel that he has a reason to exist. More than anything, he just wants to be as flawed as everyone else, tired of the loneliness his perfection has brought him]].

* ''[[http://www.deviantart.com/art/The-Quintessential-Mary-Sue-251827667 The Quintessential Mary-Sue]]'' was intentionally written to hit as many points on the litmus test as possible. Before the story even starts, [[CosmicHorrorReveal she has turned the setting into Cosmic Horror]]. It only gets ''[[FromBadToWorse worse]]'' in later chapters, especially since there is a HopeSpot before her complete and total victory.

* From the discontinued ''VideoGame/FridayNightFunkin'' mod ''[[VideoGame/VSSky VS Sky]]'', Sky herself can count as this. Her design makes her a DistaffCounterpart to Boyfriend, minus her purple eyes. She is a reality warper who has a (unrequited) crush on Boyfriend and wants to be with him by any means necessary, despite the fact he already has a girlfriend (named, well, [[ADogNamedDog Girlfriend]]). She is also meant to be a parody of people who make MarySue-like OCs and ship them with canon characters.

* Lila from ''WesternAnimation/HeyArnold'' is effectively a [[TastesLikeDiabetes sickeningly sweet]] parody of a MarySue, as is Helga's older sister Olga. Interestingly, both of them started as {{deconstruct|edTrope}}ions of the idea (Lila was smart, funny and charming but had a horrible home life and poor self-esteem, while Olga was a BrokenAce who was both neurotic and naive), before the writers evidently realized that ramping their TastesLikeDiabetes perfection UpToEleven was funnier. Given "Big Sis" - the episode that puts them both together - it's hard to disagree.

* Infinite from ''VideoGame/SonicForces'' has many VillainSue traits. He's faster than FastestThingAlive Sonic and effortlessly curb stomps him, beats up powerful heroes like Silver and Omega easily, recruits a LegionOfDoom consisting of some of the franchises most powerful villains subservient to himself, is single-handedly responsible for Eggman's takeover of the world, and every other sentence he speaks is about how awesome and powerful he is. Fans have also noted he checks off a lot of boxes for edgy OC villains produced by the fandom from broad ones liek his dark color scheme and asymetrical design to fandom specific ones like being a species of animal not seen in the series yet, a common fan character trait. [[spoiler:He's actually nothing more than a sadistic bully whose one ''real'' power is YourMindMakesItReal illusions that make him ''appear'' all powerful and the other villains are just illusionary copies. Once ways around it are found, he's not nearly as invincible as he likes to pretend he is and Eggman could dispose of him whenever he saw fit, which he ultimately does.]] Notably, he spends a lot of the game in direct opposition (and as a Foil to) the Avatar, a much more straightforward (and far less extreme) Original Character archetype.

%%** Ophiuchus The Great claims to be a rainbow drinker with three blood types and two hearts, who is also the "secret leader" of "The Main Twelve" (i.e. the canon trolls). In reality, he's an insane yellow-blooded hacker who's amazingly good at stalking people, but hilariously bad at [[CriticalResearchFailure figuring out what's actually going on]].

-->...he had already engaged in real battle with real Atheists: [[CriticalResearchFailure Muslims]].

* ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'' gives us Pyrrha Nikos, whose main problem is the unfailing, [[TheAce completely]] [[IdealHero justified]] admiration of everyone around her...well, okay, it's played [[AttractivenessIsolation more realistically]] than ''that'', but it still qualifies for this trope. The writers avoided the obvious problems with this trope by making her a second-string character [[spoiler:and killing her off in the story's third volume.]]

* Momoi Taro from ''Series/AvataroSentaiDonbrother'' may be one. He has has been able to do anything perfectly since he was a child, but eing better than everyone else has caused people to dislike him to the point that all of his neighbors moved away to get away from him when he was a child. He also CannotTellALie, which results in BrutalHonesty and him always losing when he plays Rock Paper Scissors because his opponents can just ask him what move he will throw. He also is way more powerful and skilled at fighting than the rest of the Donbrothers and somehow is able to SummonBackupDancers for his BigEntrance when he transforms.

* Infinite from ''VideoGame/SonicForces'' has many VillainSue traits. He's faster than FastestThingAlive Sonic and effortlessly curb stomps him, beats up powerful heroes like Silver and Omega easily, recruits a LegionOfDoom consisting of some of the franchises most powerful villains subservient to himself, is single-handedly responsible for Eggman's takeover of the world, and every other sentence he speaks is about how awesome and powerful he is. Fans have also noted he checks off a lot of boxes for edgy OC villains produced by the fandom. [[spoiler:He's actually nothing more than a sadistic bully whose one ''real'' power is YourMindMakesItReal illusions that make him ''appear'' all powerful and the other villains are just illusionary copies. Once ways around it are found, he's not nearly as invincible as he likes to pretend he is and Eggman could dispose of him whenever he saw fit, which he ultimately does.]] Notably, he spends a lot of the game in direct opposistion (and as a Foil to) the Avatar, a much more straightforward (and far less extreme) Original Character archtype.

* The page image comes from [[http://interrobangstudios.com/comics-display.php?strip_id=988 comic 988]] of ''Webcomic/EnsignSueMustDie'', where Ensign Mary Amethyst Star [[Fanfic/MyImmortal Enoby]] Aiko [[Series/StarTrekEnterprise Archer]] [[Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration Picard]] [[Series/StarTrekVoyager Janeway]] Sue has been unleashed on the ''Film/StarTrek2009'' universe. But her life isn't all perfect; she suffers from a horrible case of [[ExpoSpeakGag Pedal Transient Paresthesia]].

* Ice King of ''WesternAnimation/AdventureTime'' turns into one of these in the episodes [[spoiler:"Fionna and Cake" and "Bad Little Boy"]], which makes sense since these episodes are parodies of badly written FanFiction, with every narrative focus on Fionna and Cake being less about adventure and more about shipping.

* In the episode of ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'' parodying ''Franchise/StarTrek'' fandom, they produce an episode of ''Star Trek'' based on an [[EnergyBeing alien energy cloud's]] fanscript, wherein members of the regular cast fall in love with and are overwhelmed with admiration for the alien energy cloud.

** [[TwoWordsObviousTrope Two Words]]: Crimson Comet.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheAmazingWorldOfGumball'': Alan is an impossibly gentle, selfless and kind person who is Gumball's SitcomArchNemesis. His focus in "The Saint" has him act untroubled by whatever awful thing Gumball does to him and automatically forgive him easily. At the end of the episode, LaserGuidedKarma grants him not only everything he lost, but also more, including 20 million in cash because he gave a homeless man 20 dollars. The single time he is angry is just to make Gumball feel better about himself.