History Main / SurpassedTheTeacher

** And speaking of Matt Stover, his {{Novelization}} includes a conversation between Yoda and the ghost of Qui-Gon Jinn in which Yoda acknowledges that Qui-Gon was always the superior Jedi:

* ''VideoGame/FatalFury'': Tung Fu Rue reunites with [[{{Eagleland}} Terry]] and Andy on the ten year anniversary of their father's death, during which, he tells them their skills have already surpassed Jeff's. However, only one could become his successor. Adding that the one he chooses would have to surpass his own ability. [[AskAStupidQuestion Guess which one pulls it off?]]

* Music/MariahCarey started her career in the 80's as a backup singer for Brenda K. Starr, and Starr took on a mentor role to the young Carey. But while Carey went on to become an international juggernaut, Starr herself faded to obscurity after her third album flopped. She did find later success after retooling herself as a salsa artist and radio DJ, but Mariah Carey had surpassed her by far. Still, Carey hasn't forgotten where she came from, and her song "I Still Believe" is a cover of Starr's greatest hit and a tribute to her old mentor.

* Many of Franchise/{{Batman}}'s protegés have surpassed him in some way. ComicBook/{{Nightwing}} surpasses him as an acrobat, a leader, and at maintaining relations with other superheroes, ComicBook/{{Batgirl}}[=/=]ComicBook/{{Oracle}} (Barbara Gordon) surpasses him in intel gathering, [[ComicBook/Batgirl2000 Black Bat]] (Cassandra Cain) surpasses him as a fighter, and ComicBook/RedRobin Tim Drake will ''eventually'' become a better detective than him.
* Wally West was once the first Kid Flash, the {{Sidekick}} to the second [[Franchise/TheFlash Flash]], Barry Allen. After Barry's death, Wally lost much of his speed due to events during ''ComicBook/CrisisOnInfiniteEarths''. However, when Wally became ''the'' Flash, he eventually surpassed Barry in terms of speed and accomplishments, becoming the first speedster to enter the Speed Force and come back. Not only that, but he learned powers that Barry never, and still hasn't, possessed, such as the ability to steal speed or generate basic constructs from the Speed Force. Even when Barry returned, it was never established that he was any better than Wally at being the Flash (in fact, it was lightly implied otherwise), and DC has since settled things a few times, showing Wally outpacing Barry in terms of speed alone. All the Flashes have said it, but Wally West truly is [[RedBaron The Fastest Man Alive]].
* ''ComicBook/{{Hawkeye}}'': ''ComicBook/Hawkeye2012'' has suggested that [[Characters/HawkeyeKateBishop Kate Bishop]] has surpassed [[Characters/HawkeyeClintBarton Clint Barton]] as an archer, being able to fire five arrows at once (after which he outright ''calls'' her perfect in his mind).
* ComicBook/PoisonIvy is a meta-example. In-universe, Dr. Pamela Isley was a postdoctoral researcher whose mentor and lover was Dr. Jason Woodroe, the Floronic Man. He experimented on her, which led to her gaining her plant-based powers. As a character, Poison Ivy has become one of the best-known villains in the DC universe while the Floronic Man has been largely forgotten other than his connection to her.
* ''ComicBook/{{Robin|1993}}'': When Tim meets one of the earliest martial arts instructors he'd had while training as Robin a year later and the man assaults him, Tim easily trounces him. Not only does this display his improvement, it demonstrates that his old instructor's ideology about fighting and martial arts is wrong, which he'd kind of wanted to call out since they first met but never tried while studying under him.

** ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIIIMorrowind Morrowind]]'' has faction-associated trainers, but adds plenty of independent ones as well. Instead of all trainers training you to the same maximum, it varies depending on the trainer's level in that specific skill. Most max out in the 40s or 50s, while a few can train you to the 75-80 range. If you ask for training once your skill level has surpassed theirs, they will tell you that there is nothing more they can teach you in that skill. (Each skill also has a Master trainer who can train you all the way to 100, but the vast majority are [[GuideDangIt extremely difficult to find]].)

* ''Manga/TimeStopBrave'': Swordmaster Leafa Colby surpassed her teacher, Swordmaster Magnus, when she was a small child. Unfortunately, [[ArrogantKungFuGuy this made her arrogance go off the charts]].

* This a major theme in several of the games of the ''VideoGame/{{Atelier}}'' franchise. Particularly in the latter games of the series, which are trilogies, it is not unusual for the star of the next game to have the previous game's lead character as their alchemy teacher. They will then go on to achieve feats that the teacher never even could have imagined.

* ''ComicBook/{{Hawkeye}}'': ''ComicBook/Hawkeye2012'' has suggested that Kate Bishop of the ComicBook/YoungAvengers has surpassed Clint Barton as an archer, being able to fire five arrows at once (after which he outright ''calls'' her perfect in his mind).

* Matt Fraction's ''ComicBook/{{Hawkeye}}'' series has suggested that Kate Bishop of the ComicBook/YoungAvengers has surpassed Clint Barton as an archer, being able to fire five arrows at once (after which he outright ''calls'' her perfect in his mind).

* In ''Anime/{{Pokemon}}'', Ash owns and trains a Froakie, a ninja-frog Pokémon. Over the course of his journey through Kalos Ash meets up with Sanpei, who hails from a Ninja Village and trains a Frogadier, Froakie's evolved form. Sanpei and Frogadier (who later on becomes a Greninja) take on the role of mentor to Ash and Froakie and help them learn new moves such as Double Team. By the time Ash's Froakie [[spoiler: reaches it's Greninja stage, however, Ash's Greninja]] becomes TheAce of the Kalos series as a whole and even gets [[spoiler:a powerful SuperMode]] because of his close bond with Ash, while Sanpei and his Greninja fall victim to TheWorfEffect.

* ''ComicBook/RobinSeries'': When Tim meets one of the earliest martial arts instructors he'd had while training as Robin a year later and the man assaults him, Tim easily trounces him. Not only does this display his improvement, it demonstrates that his old instructor's ideology about fighting and martial arts is wrong, which he'd kind of wanted to call out since they first met but never tried while studying under him.

* ''Franchise/DragonBall''
** PlayedWith at the beginning of the series. Goku's mentor, Master Roshi, disguises himself to participate without getting known at a tournament. The viewer expects this trope to appear, as Goku manages to evade all of Roshi's tactics to defeat him. However, Goku loses to him after he's goaded into a final jump-kick, receiving the brunt of the injury. There's also the fact that because Goku didn't know he was fighting Roshi, he never knew how strong his master actually is. There are some hints that Roshi is much more skilled than he lets on in the series, though it becomes clear that Goku has surpassed him by the 22nd World Tournament. This is PlayedForDrama in the King Piccolo Saga. After losing to Piccolo, Goku goes to Korin and asks him to train him again. Korin can only tell Goku that the latter has already surpassed him and he can teach Goku nothing. By the end of the original ''Dragon Ball'', Goku has surpassed all his teachers, including Kami. At the beginning of ''Anime/DragonBallZ'', he needs to become stronger than King Kai just to have a remote chance against the Saiyans since they're stronger than him.

* In ''Literature/JonathanStrangeAndMrNorrell'', Strange starts as Norrell's pupil almost totally ignorant of magic, but his intuitive grasp of it and having creativity Norrell sorely lacks means he surpasses him in some areas almost immediately and in most quite quickly. While Norrell's knowledge of magical theory and history remains vastly greater, this is not ss important as the scholarly Norrell would like, magic being both simpler and less categorizable than anything in his books. When Norrell misinterprets a comment of Strange's as calling Norrell the greater magician he admits he no longer considers himself as such - causing Strange to laugh, amused by the idea either of them might think that. In the closest thing to a direct confrontation between them Strange easily escapes Norrell's labyrinth, a magic with which he was previously unfamiliar, and promptly copies it with improvements to trap Norrell.