History Main / UnlockingTheTalent

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Compare BrilliantButLazy, where the person's fault is laziness and this may not be "fixed" by the end of the work, especially when they aren't the main character. Contrast BunnyEarsLawyer where the flaw isn't overcome but ignored or incorporated. May lead to a FamilyUnfriendlyAesop if the character in question is bullied into something they don't want to do, especially if the character doesn't like the end result.

A character who is brilliant or otherwise skilled, but isn't out using their skill- perhaps they are unnoticed/underappreciated, lazy, or just plain crazy. Perhaps they don't even know how skilled they are. They might just be an AlmightyJanitor. Generally this is the main character of the work.

* In ''Manga/DemonSlayerKimetsuNoYaiba'', Zenitsu is of the lazy and extremely self-depreciative variety, he was brought in by a sword master by pure chance, as Zenitsu was piled with debts after eloping with a woman who didn’t care for him until his master rescued him from that predicament thus Zenitsu never really saw himself becoming demon slayer, it just happened. Zenitsu endured the hard training imposed on him but it seemed Zenitsu had no talent at all, he just couldn’t learn any Thunder Breathing form beyond the first one, said to be the most basic and easiest to learn, however as the series progresses Zenitsu slowly but surely is pushed by those who care for him to break through his mental blocks and show that he has some talent underneath; Zenitsu has pushed the most basic Thunder Breathing form to unseen heights, making it a terrifying technique against demons, [[spoiler:and later he creates his own form: the 7th Style - Flaming Thunder God, which is quite the battle finisher move]].

* Tora Ziyal from ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine''. Subverted. Due to a harsh life, she was late to art and characters and the audience don't learn for even longer that she was being mentored until after she'd earned a prestigious university place by merit (she didn't want her father pulling strings for her). Experts considered her art to be a callback to both a great Bajoran artist and a great Cardassian artist. Her dream was to use her [[NonhumanHumanoidHybrid mixed heritage]] and the fact people could see both Cardassian techniques and Bajoran techniques in her work as a way of trying to bring the two enemy worlds together. The university professors even thought she had the talent to pursue that dream. And then she's murdered.

* In ''Manga/DemonSlayerKimetsuNoYaiba'', Zenitsu is of the lazy and extremely self-depreciative variety, he was brought in by a sword master by pure chance, as Zenitsu was piled with debts after eloping with a woman who didn’t care for him until his master rescued him from that predicament thus Zenitsu never really saw himself becoming demon slayer, it just happened. Zenitsu endured the hard training imposed on him but it seemed Zenitsu had no talent at all, he just couldn’t learn any Breath of Thunder form beyond the first one, said to be the most basic and easiest to learn, however as the series progresses Zenitsu slowly but surely is pushed by those who care for him to break through his mental blocks and show that he has some talent underneath; Zenitsu has pushed the most basic Breath of Thunder form to unseen heights, making it a terrifying technique against demons, [[spoiler:and later he creates his own form: the 7th Style - Flaming Thunder God, which is quite the battle finisher move]].

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* Nathaniel Ayers from ''Film/TheSoloist''
* Akeelah Anderson from ''Film/AkeelahAndTheBee''
* Will Hunting from ''Film/GoodWillHunting''
* Chris Gardner from ''Film/ThePursuitOfHappyness''

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* Agatha Heterodyne from ''Webcomic/GirlGenius'', though that was thanks to a RestrainingBolt.

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A character who is brilliant or otherwise skilled, but isn't out using their skill- perhaps they are unnoticed/underappreciated, lazy, or just plain crazy. Perhaps they don't even know how skilled they are. They might just be an AlmightyJanitor. Generally this is the main character of the work.

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* Former ''American Football'' kicker Martin Gramatica grew up playing soccer, and didn't try out as a kicker until his senior year in high school. He ended up being a decent NFL kicker, and was selected to a Pro Bowl and won a ''Super Bowl'' ring.

* Liara T'soni from ''MassEffect'', starts out as a simple archeologist with the same amount of biotic training as every other member of her species. After being influenced by Shepard, she winds up as a powerful and deadly information broker.
* In ''DieAnstalt'', Lilo appears at first to be a dimwitted autistic, having difficulty solving a jigsaw puzzle with only two pieces. But as you treat him, you'll find that he's capable of solving advanced algebra problems. Only his psychological trauma prevents him from doing so.

* Tora Ziyal from ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine''. Tragically subverted. Due to a harsh life, she was late to art and characters and the audience don't learn for even longer that she was being mentored until after she'd earned a prestigious university place by merit (she didn't want her father pulling strings for her). Experts considered her art to be a callback to both a great Bajoran artist and a great Cardassian artist. Her dream was to use her [[NonhumanHumanoidHybrid mixed heritage]] and the fact people could see both Cardassian techniques and Bajoran techniques in her work as a way of trying to bring the two enemy worlds together. The university professors even thought she had the talent to pursue that dream. And then she's murdered.

* Chris Gardner from ''TFilm/hePursuitOfHappyness''

* Nathaniel Ayers from ''TheSoloist''
* Akeelah Anderson from ''AkeelahAndTheBee''
* Will Hunting from ''GoodWillHunting''
* Chris Gardner from ''ThePursuitOfHappyness''

A character who is brilliant or otherwise skilled, but isn't out using their skill- perhaps they are unnoticed/underappreciated, lazy, or just plain crazy. Perhaps they don't even know how skilled they are. They might just be an {{Almighty Janitor}}. Generally this is the main character of the work.

Compare {{Brilliant but Lazy}}, where the person's fault is laziness and this may not be "fixed" by the end of the work, especially when they aren't the main character. Contrast {{Bunny Ears Lawyer}} where the flaw isn't overcome but ignored or incorporated. May lead to a {{Family Unfriendly Aesop}} if the character in question is bullied into something they don't want to do, especially if the character doesn't like the end result.
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* Tora Ziyal from ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine''. Tragically subverted. Due to a harsh life, she was late to art and characters and the audience don't learn for even longer that she was being mentored until after she'd earned a prestigious university place by merit (she didn't want her father pulling strings for her). Experts considered her art to be a callback to both a great Bajoran artist and a great Cardassian artist. Her dream was to use her [[NonhumanHumanoidHybrid mixed heritage]] and the fact people could see both Cardassian techniques and Bajoran techniques in her work as a way of trying to bring the two enemy worlds together. The university professors even thought she had the talent to pursue that dream. And then she's murdered.

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* Liara T'soni from ''MassEffect'', starts out as a simple archeologist with the same amount of biotic training as every other member of her species. After being influenced by Shepard, she winds up as a powerful and deadly information broker.

* Agatha Heterodyne from ''GirlGenius'', though that was thanks to a RestrainingBolt.

* Tora Ziyal from StarTrekDeepSpaceNine. Tragically subverted. Due to a harsh life, she was late to art and characters and the audience don't learn for even longer that she was being mentored until after she'd earned a prestigious university place by merit (she didn't want her father pulling strings for her). Experts considered her art to be a callback to both a great Bajoran artist and a great Cardassian artist. Her dream was to use her [[NonhumanHumanoidHybrid mixed heritage]] and the fact people could see both Cardassian techniques and Bajoran techniques in her work as a way of trying to bring the two enemy worlds together. The university professors even thought she had the talent to pursue that dream. And then she's murdered.

* Liara T'soni from ''MassEffect'', who develops her biotics after Shepard recruits her.

* Tora Ziyal from StarTrekDeepSpaceNine. Tragically subverted. Due to a tragic back story, she didn't know until around the age of 20 how good an artist she really was. Even then, the show's characters (and audience) don't learn for even longer that she was being mentored until after she earned a prestigious university place by merit (she didn't want her father pulling strings to get her a place by connections). Experts considered her art to be a callback to both a great Bajoran artist and a great Cardassian artist. Her dream was to use her [[NonhumanHumanoidHybrid mixed heritage]] and the fact people could see both Cardassian techniques and Bajoran techniques in her work as a way of trying to bring the two enemy worlds together. The university professors even thought she had the talent to pursue that dream. And then she's murdered.

* ''RealGenius''. Lazlo Hollyfeld is a brilliant former student at Pacific Tech who had a mental breakdown when he learned that his research was being used to design weapons. He ends up helping the protagonist Mitch.

* Former ''American Football'' kicker Martin Gramatica grew up playing soccer, and didn't try out as a kicker until his senior year in high school. He ended up being a decent NFL kicker, and was selected to a Pro Bowl and won a ''Super Bowl'' ring.

* Former "American Football" kicker Martin Gramatica grew up playing soccer, and didn't try out as a kicker until his senior year in high school. He ended up being a decent NFL kicker, and was selected to a Pro Bowl and won a "Super Bowl" ring.

Compare {{Brilliant but Lazy}}, where the person's fault is laziness and this may not be "fixed" by the end of the work, especially when they aren't the main character. Contrast {{Bunny Ears Lawyer}} where the flaw isn't overcome but ignored. May lead to a {{Family Unfriendly Aesop}} if the character in question is bullied into something they don't want to do, especially if the character doesn't like the end result.

* Agatha Heterodyne from ''GirlGenius''