History Main / TheWoobie

[[caption-width-right:322:Life is already hard enough when [[SuccessfulSiblingSyndrome you live in the shadow of your]] [[WesternAnimation/MickeyMouse famous younger sibling]].]]

A story with the Woobie allows the audience to vicariously experience relief from some pain by fantasizing about relieving the Woobie's pain. (No, not ''[[IntimateHealing that]]'' way! Well, okay, [[RuleThirtyFour sometimes]].) Woobification can also tie into a disturbing hurt/comfort dynamic, in which fans enjoy seeing the Woobie tortured so they can wish the hurt away. This is often explored in HurtComfortFic.

* IronWoobie: Despite how much their life sucks, this character [[{{Determinator}} refuses to give up and just keeps carrying on]].
** StoicWoobie: An miserable character who [[TheStoic tries their hardest to hide how much they're really hurting on the inside]].

** WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds: When someone's misery drives them towards a path of evil and destruction.

!!Sub-tropes:

* IronWoobie
** StoicWoobie
* JerkassWoobie
** WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds
* WheelchairWoobie
* WoobieFamily
* WoobieOfTheWeek
* WoobieSpecies

* Woobie/{{Advertising}}

* Woobie/{{Literature}}

* Woobie/{{Music}}

* Woobie/{{Theatre}}

* Woobie/{{Webcomics}}

* StoicWoobie

* WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds

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!!Example subpages:
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Also, it's pronounced /'wʊbi/ ("WUH-bee"), not /ˈwuːbi/ ("WOO-bee").

Also, [[ItsPronouncedTropay it's pronounced]] /'wʊbi/ ("WUH-bee"), not /ˈwuːbi/ ("WOO-bee").

The difference between the Woobie and a character that TastesLikeDiabetes as the LittlestCancerPatient is that the audience actually finds the Woobie compelling rather than pathetic. Where you draw the line is sometimes a matter of opinion.

The difference between the Woobie and such SickeninglySweet characters as the LittlestCancerPatient is that the audience actually finds the Woobie compelling rather than pathetic. Where you draw the line is sometimes a matter of opinion.

[[caption-width-right:322:Life is already hard enough when you live in the shadow of a [[WesternAnimation/MickeyMouse famous younger sibling]].]]

Sometimes a Woobie goes OmnicidalManiac and seeks to destroy the world in a bid to make the pain stop, in which case you're dealing with a WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds. Sometimes it's possible to bring such a woobie back from the edge, but other times, only his or her destruction in a ShootTheDog moment will stop things.

!!Examples:

** ''Woobie/BeybladeBurst''
** ''Woobie/{{Bleach}}''
** ''Woobie/CodeGeass''
** ''Woobie/{{Danganronpa}}''
** ''Woobie/{{Digimon}}''
** ''Woobie/DragonBall''
** ''Woobie/FairyTail''
** ''Woobie/{{Gundam}}''
** ''Woobie/HetaliaAxisPowers''
** ''Woobie/HighSchoolDXD''
** ''Woobie/KaguyaSamaLoveIsWar''
** ''Woobie/MyHeroAcademia''
** ''Woobie/OnePiece''
** ''Woobie/{{Pokemon}}''
** ''Woobie/SailorMoon''
** ''{{Woobie/Strider}}''
** ''Woobie/SwordArtOnline''
** ''Woobie/YuGiOh''

** ''Woobie/{{Tintin}}''

** ''Woobie/TheConversionBureauTheOtherSideOfTheSpectrum''
** ''Woobie/TheFlashSentryChronicles''
** ''Woobie/UltraFastPony''
** ''Woobie/WeightOfTheWorld''

** Woobie/{{Disney}}

** Woobie/MarvelCinematicUniverse
** Woobie/StarWars

** ''Woobie/ASongOfIceAndFire''
** ''Woobie/TheBabySittersClub''
** ''Woobie/EarthsChildren''
** ''Woobie/HarryPotter''
** ''Woobie/TheDresdenFiles''
** ''Woobie/WarriorCats''

** ''Woobie/BigBrother''
** ''Woobie/CriminalMinds''
** ''Woobie/DoctorWho'' (includes spin-offs ''Series/{{Torchwood}}'' and ''Series/TheSarahJaneAdventures'')
** ''Woobie/{{ER}}''
** ''Woobie/GameOfThrones''
** ''Woobie/KitchenNightmares''
** ''Woobie/KamenRider''
** ''Woobie/StrangerThings''
** ''Woobie/{{Supernanny}}''
** ''Woobie/{{Survivor}}''
** ''Woobie/TheVampireDiaries''

** ''Woobie/BlazBlue''
** ''Woobie/CriminalCase''
** ''Woobie/{{Danganronpa}}''
** ''Woobie/DarkSouls''
** ''Woobie/DeusEx''
** ''Woobie/DragonQuest''
** ''Woobie/{{Fallout}}''
** ''Woobie/FinalFantasy''
** ''Woobie/FireEmblem''
** ''TheWoobie/IdentityV''
** ''Woobie/LeagueOfLegends''
** ''Woobie/MassEffect''
** ''Woobie/MortalKombat''
** ''Woobie/{{Overwatch}}''
** ''Woobie/{{Persona}}''
*** ''Woobie/{{Persona 5}}''
** ''Woobie/{{Pokemon}}''
** ''Woobie/{{Strider}}''
** ''Woobie/TalesSeries''
** ''Woobie/TouhouProject''
** ''Woobie/{{Undertale}}''

** ''Woobie/InanimateInsanity''
** ''Woobie/{{RWBY}}''
** ''Woobie/RedVsBlue''

** ''Woobie/SCPFoundation''
** ''Woobie/WeAreAllPokemonTrainers''

** ''Woobie/BojackHorseman''
** ''Woobie/{{Disney}}''
** ''Woobie/EdEddNEddy''
** ''Woobie/GravityFalls''
** ''Woobie/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic''
** ''Woobie/SamuraiJack''
** ''Woobie/TheSimpsons''
** ''Woobie/SouthPark''
** ''Woobie/StarVsTheForcesOfEvil''
** ''Woobie/StarWarsTheCloneWars''
** ''Woobie/StevenUniverse''
** ''Woobie/TotalDrama''
*** ''Woobie/TotalDramaPresentsTheRidonculousRace''
** ''Woobie/YoungJustice''

** ''Woobie/AceAttorney''
** ''Woobie/KatawaShoujo''

* Woobie/{{Other}}
** ''Woobie/AceAttorney''
** ''Woobie/KatawaShoujo''

If the character is TheChewToy, a {{Jerkass}}, or a HateSink, he is not the Woobie ([[JerkassWoobie unless the character is also meant to be sympathetic]]). If the character [[IronWoobie doesn't let bad events faze him,]] he is not the Woobie. A small, one-off bad event does not make the character the Woobie, though it may qualify as a TearJerker.

** ''Woobie/AxisPowersHetalia''

If the character is TheChewToy, a {{Jerkass}}, or a HateSink, he is not the Woobie ([[JerkassWoobie unless the character is also meant to be sympathetic]]). If the character doesn't let bad events faze him, he is not the Woobie. A small, one-off bad event does not make the character the Woobie, though it may qualify as a TearJerker.

** Woobie/TheConversionBureauTheOtherSideOfTheSpectrum
** Woobie/TheFlashSentryChronicles
** Woobie/UltraFastPony
** Woobie/WeightOfTheWorld