History Main / RookieRedRanger

* ''Manga/UchiNoMusumeNiTeODasuNa'': Clara is the newest member of N.U.D.E.[[note]]acronym for: "Next Ultimate Defense Exports"[[/note]], having been with them for about a year by the time the series starts. She's the new "Eighth Wonder" and strives to live up to the original's legacy; not knowing the original was her mother. In fact, she's the only one in the organization who doesn't. Still, despite her naivety and relative inexperience, she's the strongest superheroine they have; making her their best chance [[NebulousEvilOrganization against Blowjob.]]

* Invoked in ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/11577880/1/Train-Of-Consequences Train of Consequences]]'', where Carter convinces the other Red Rangers to have [[Series/PowerRangersWildForce Cole Evans]], which was the most recent team, as the leader of the mission to stop the Machine Empire, as a way of showing that no matter the amount of experience, a ranger can make the difference.

** ''Series/DoubutsuSentaiZyuohger: Yamato Kazakiri was human who stumbled across the world of Zyuland, and met four guardians who had the training and skills to fight against the Dethgaliens.

* It is becoming increasingly common in the US and similar countries for major political parties to nominate younger and/or less experienced members to major leadership positions, the [[UsefulNotes/DonaldTrump current]] and [[UsefulNotes/BarackObama former]] presidents being major examples. This is mostly due to the fact that more junior politicians and outsiders are unlikely to have been involved in any major party scandals and won't be seen as "tainted" by the voting public.

** Daisuke Motomiya of ''Anime/DigimonAdventure02'' is a zigzagged example. He was introduced as the first of the new generation to receive a digimon partner and a digimental, and even [[TheIdolsBlessing received Taichi's goggles as a blessing]] and an act of PassingTheTorch. Despite this, the show also frequently cast him as a NoRespectGuy and ButtMonkey and introduced several new members alongside him so he was not the only NaiveNewcomer. Despite this, however, he remains the group's most consistent driving force and their Determinator in chief.

** Davis of ''Anime/{{Digimon Adventure 02}}''. He was pretty much thrust into the leader role from the beginning despite the fact that Kari and T.K. [[Anime/DigimonAdventure had already done most of this before]], whereas Davis hadn't. Tai even symbolically gives Davis [[GogglesDoNothing his old goggles]] in a PassingTheTorch moment as part of this.
*** In fairness, Davis was the only one to get a Digi-Egg in the first episode, making this more of an inversion of the trope. Kari and T.K. remained [[SoLastSeason unable to do anything significant]] until the third episode.
*** Another issue is that despite [[InNameOnly being told]] Davis is the leader, until the finale he never once gave the rest of the team orders. [[NoRespectGuy That they listened to, at least.]] [[ButtMonkey They even leave him behind on pretty important missions without him knowing.]]

** There are only three defense team-centered series that avert this: the original ''Series/{{Ultraman}}'' (Hayata was Science Patrol's NumberTwo), ''Series/UltramanTiga'' (Daigo was already a member of GUTS at the beginning of the series, though he was the last member to join barring [[MissionControl Yazumi]]), and ''Series/UltramanX'' (Daichi was already a member of Xio, but generally worked in the scientific division instead). Musashi Haruno from ''Series/UltramanCosmos'' is a subversion as he was already a member of EYES' parent organization SRC when the series starts but joined EYES in the second episode.

** Sometimes the Ultras themselves are this in their title series. Asides from Mebius mentioned above, Series/UltramanTaro, Series/UltramanGeed and Series/UltramanTaiga are good examples as well. Series/UltramanLeo is another, both as an Ultra and as Gen Ohtori (human host), much like Seven but without the combat experience or genre savviness.

[[folder: Toys]]

* ''Anime/Zoids:NewCentury'': Bit Cloud was introduced as a drifter who collected scrapped Zoid parts, while the Blitz Team was long since formed for who knows before he joins them. Even though he is inexperienced as a Zoid pilot, Bit proves to the Blitz Team's best pilot. Plus, he's the only one of them that can pilot the Liger Zero, a Zoid that refused to be piloted by anyone else.

* While ComicBook/CaptainAmerica is the most famous leader of ''ComicBook/TheAvengers,'' it's often a surprise to both readers and occasionally other characters that he wasn't a founding member in the core Marvel timeline (he actually didn't join until issue #4). The reader confusion is helped by his being a founding member in most other timelines, such as ''ComicBook/TheUltimates'' or in the various animated series. Justified since he honed his skills in WWII and is the most natural leader, despite being a relative newcomer.

[[folder: Web Animation]]
* In ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'', both team RWBY and [[{{Deuteragonist}} JNPR]] are led by their least experienced member, Ruby Rose and Jaune Arc, respectively. A bit more justified than most, as both of them showed the most competent leadership skills during the team assignment test by being able to analyze the situation and use their teammates' respective strengths.
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* When the PlayerCharacter of ''VideoGame/{{Persona 3}}'' is named official field leader of SEES, he (or she, in the PSP UpdatedRerelease) isn't ''quite'' the newest member, but might as well be thanks to being a NewTransferStudent on top of being new to SEES and the concepts of Personas and the Dark Hour.
** After Akihiko heals up, he opts to let things stand, partially because he wants to focus on training against the shadows, and partially because he admits to having very little experience in fighting as a group. The matter isn't even brought up by the time Mitsuru joins the front lines, as the MC has been leading the team for several months, and doing a darn good job at it. Mitsuru still acts at the ''strategic'' leader, but follows orders in the combat team.

* On ''WesternAnimation/YoungJustice'', Miss Martian joins the Team [[AffirmativeActionGirl after their first adventure]], and at that point had only been on Earth [[NaiveNewcomer for about a month]]. Nevertheless she has [[SuperPowerLottery the most superpowers]] and is eventually revealed to have psychic abilities [[UnskilledButStrong even greater]] than the norm of her species. [[RotatingProtagonist She's not really the protagonist more than anyone else, though]].

[[folder: Toys]]
* Generally Averted in ''Toys/{{BIONICLE}}''. Of the three Toa Teams the story follows, all the members were either equally experienced (The Toa Mata/Toa Nuva, who retained their skills in spite of their amnesia), or equally inexperienced (The Toa Metru/Toa Hordika, none of whom had any combat experience). In the case of the Toa Inika/Toa Mahri, their leader, Jaller, was actually one of the ''[[InvertedTrope most]]'' experienced, being a military veteran; the only member of that team to without some kind of adventures to their name [[note]] The others included another soldier, a famous athlete, a former chronicler, and an inventor who built the weapons that helped win the Bohrok War [[/note]] was Matoro, a former translator, and the [[AnIcePerson Toa of Ice]].
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* Lance-Constable Carrot of the Ankh-Morpork City Watch in ''Discworld/GuardsGuards'' fits the "most powerful member" aspect, being a very muscular new recruit to a fairly unfit Watch, who comes with his own CoolSword. And it only takes him [[Discworld/MenAtArms two books]] to become Captain Carrot, and outrank everyone except Commander Vimes (and that was only because he specifically asked for someone else to be put in charge because he worried that it would be too easy for him to command them).

** Sometimes the Ultras themselves are this in their title series. Asides from Mebius mentioned above, Series/UltramanTaro, Series/UltramanGeed and Series/UltramanTaiga are good examples as well.

** In ''Series/PowerRangersSPD'', Sky, Bridge and Syd had been going through training for a good while before [[JustLikeRobinHood Jack and Z]] were drafted into the Ranger program as the Red and Yellow Rangers. Justified since Sky, who would otherwise have been first in line for leadership, failed a SecretTestOfCharacter and the guy assigning morphers realized he'd go on an ego trip if he ''did'' become leader. It takes him quite a while to get over it. It should also be noted that Jack didn't even realize that being the Red Ranger meant he was supposed to be the leader at first, and Cruger doesn't hesitate to temporarily relieve him of command when he lets that realization send him on an ego trip himself. [[spoiler:In the epilogue, after Jack retires because he prefers charity work, Sky [[PassingTheTorch becomes the new Red Ranger]].]]

** In ''Series/PowerRangersBeastMorphers'', Devon has some martial arts skills and is able to hold his own against Blaze in a fight, but he only became Red Ranger by being in the right place at the right time. In contrast, Ravi was actually picked to be a Ranger and had been trained as such, and Zoey was a candidate for the position even if she came up short in the final selection. But when villains attack and incapacitate two of the three people that were actually designated to be Rangers, you work with what you've got. Devon becomes team leader when the others concede the position to him, after he confronts them on the fact that their bickering over trying to claim the job has started getting in the way of their duties.

** ''Series/ZyudenSentaiKyoryuger'': Daigo was the last to tame his Zyudenryu partner, yet he's the one who manages to make the Kyoryugers work as a team by getting through to them.

** ''Series/SamuraiSentaiShinkenger'' deconstructs this trope, but not with Takeru. [[spoiler: As it turns out, he's just the BodyDouble to the REAL 18th head of the Shiba Clan, Kaoru, who enters late into the conflict and formally takes over. This was expected from the very beginning, so Takeru doesn't fight for the position, but now loses purpose in life, as well as the vassals he had come to call his friends. The morale of the vassals themselves suffer hard, primarily with the loss of Takeru and [[SixthRanger Genta]].[[note]] She didn't kick him out of the team for not being an actual vassal, but her {{Jerkass}} retainer badmouthed him and Takeru, rubbing the whole issue in, making him storm off to find Takeru.[[/note]] It doesn't take long for Kaoru to realize all of this and see that she was naive to think she could just slip into Takeru's role without problem. Since it was Takeru, not her, who showed up to meet the vassals at the very start, their teamwork and strength were built around ''him''. After getting Genta back into the team, and earning his forgiveness and respect, Kaoru later reinstates Takeru as leader, even legally adopting him to make it official, despite the fact that he's older than her.]]

** ''Series/PowerRangersTimeForce'': Wes didn't even appear until the second part of the two-part season premiere (and didn't officially join the team until the episode after that); the rest of the team were trained TimePolice. The only reason they bothered involving him was because they needed a DNA match for the previous Red Ranger. Played with in that while Wes leads the charge in the field, Jen the Pink Ranger is the official leader and the one who directs the team's activities.

** In ''Series/PowerRangersSPD'', [[TheLancer Sky]], [[CloudCuckoolander Bridge]] and [[SpoiledSweet Syd]] had been going through training for a good while before [[JustLikeRobinHood Jack and Z]] were drafted into the Ranger program as the Red and Yellow Rangers. Justified since Sky, who would otherwise have been first in line for leadership, failed a SecretTestOfCharacter and the guy assigning morphers realized he'd go on an ego trip if he ''did'' become leader. It takes him quite a while to get over it. It should also be noted that Jack didn't even realize that being the Red Ranger meant he was supposed to be the leader at first, and Cruger doesn't hesitate to temporarily relieve him of command when he lets that realization send him on an ego trip himself. [[spoiler:In the epilogue, after Jack retires because he prefers charity work, Sky [[PassingTheTorch becomes the new Red Ranger]].]]

* Too many to list. [[TropesAreTools Often but not always]] a sign of favoritism or MarySue.

** Sometimes the Ultras themselves are this in their title series. Asides from Mebius mentioned above, Series/UltramanTaro and Series/UltramanGeed are good examples as well.

** In ''Series/PowerRangersMysticForce'', while the entire team was new to magic and superheroics, Nick was TheDrifter passing through Briarwood, while the other four were already a tight group of friends. Nick was also the last one to activate his powers.

* Neo is this trope in ''Film/TheMatrix''

* The Reboot ''Film/StarTrek2009'' has Kirk acting in this role.

* Lance-Constable Carrot of the Ankh-Morpork City Watch in ''Discworld/GuardsGuards'' fits the "most powerful member" aspect, being a very muscular new recruit to a fairly unfit Watch, who comes with his own CoolSword. And it only takes him [[Discworld/MenAtArms two books]] to become Captain Carrot, and outrank everyone except Commander Vimes.