Line #134 Main/AdvantageBall


1	->''"The men look to you to lead them. When they see you laying waste to the demon hordes, they are heartened. As you go, so does this battle. Always remember that."''
2	-->-- '''Haedrig''', to the Nephalem at Bastion's Keep, ''VideoGame/DiabloIII''
3
4	Conflict, of all types, is chaotic. There are many forces and interests that can come into play, any of which may be entirely incomprehensible or unforeseen, and any action may ultimately prove beneficial or harmful to the one who takes it.
5
6	This is not what the audience wants. People instinctively expect the world to be a sensible and just place, and we expect it to be portrayed as such in fiction. From this expectation comes the idea that RightMakesMight, and the [[TheGoodGuysAlwaysWin deserving are always victorious]]. But that's not dramatic, either. A hero whose virtue makes him invincible [[InvincibleHero quickly becomes boring]], and an ineffectual villain likewise. Moreover, conflict depicted in this way is not realistic, and rings false to the viewer.
7
8	One trope that lies in the middle ground [[SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism between the idealistic view and the cynical one]] is the Advantage Ball.
9
10	This is a status that is bestowed to one side at a time in conflict. Whoever holds the Ball is not necessarily invincible, but certainly more effective, more skilled than usual, [[PlotArmor less likely to fall prey]] to bad luck or DiabolusExMachina. Similarly, their adversary is confused, fallible, [[ATeamFiring less accurate in their attacks]], more likely to make mistakes.
11
12	Ownership of the Ball is determined primarily by morale. Whichever side is more confident has the advantage. This tends to result in HollywoodTactics: using your resources strategically is not as important as making a show. If you can [[DespairGambit break the spirit of your enemy]], you are probably going to win even if they greatly outnumber you and have a far superior position. On an individual scale, if a combatant is unsure of either his chances or his reasons, he will fare poorly. [[EpiphanyTherapy But once he has an epiphany]], [[HeroicResolve is reminded of what he's fighting for]], [[YouAreBetterThanYouThinkYouAre receives supportive words]] [[YouAreNotAlone from his allies]], wins the respect of a neutral observer, or gets news that [[TheCavalry help is on the way]], he will [[HeroicSecondWind instantly become much stronger]], even to the point of [[HollywoodHealing forgetting previous injuries]]. A well-placed NoMoreHoldingBackSpeech or TheReasonYouSuckSpeech can render his enemy demoralised and weakened. In media dealing with sound, a ThemeMusicPowerUp is almost required for these occasions.
13
14	Visually, this trope often expresses itself in a PendulumWar, with the side in possession of the Ball advancing and the other clearly retreating. Once conditions change, the Ball may bounce elsewhere and those who were advancing suddenly find themselves falling back. It's noteworthy that it happens at both large and small scales, with whole armies or just two combatants.
15
16	When one side holds the Advantage Ball throughout an entire fight, it's a CurbStompBattle.
17
18	-----
19	!!Examples:
20
21	[[foldercontrol]]
22
23	[[folder:Anime and Manga]]
24	* Most fights that aren't a straight up CurbStompBattle in later episodes of ''Anime/DragonBallZ'' are a match of 'who has the most transformations'. Every time a character turns into a new form, they hold the Advantage Ball until their opponent does likewise. In one case, being changed into a piece of candy counts as turning into a new form... at least if you're Vegetto.
25	* This follows naturally in ''Anime/TengenToppaGurrenLagann'', where, thanks to Spiral Energy, confidence ''is'' combat ability. Except for wild cards like the Mugann, the Ball is in the court of whoever is delivering a BadassBoast at the moment.
26	* ''Manga/{{Bleach}}'' plays with this a lot. In most fights, the ball even gets tossed between combatants at times. Very often strategic use of the Advantage Ball (by the author) results in wins or losses the fandom did not expect.
27	* ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'' has a bunch of advantages when he has to fight [[PersonOfMassDestruction Pain]], including [[{{Mons}} a bunch of strong toads to fight alongside him]], a new SuperMode, the [[SuperpoweredEvilSide Ninetails]], information on Pain's abilities, and Pain's temporary loss of his GravityMaster powers.
28	** His earlier fight against Sasuke followed the ''Anime/DragonBallZ'' approach of passing the Advantage Ball for a few rounds by unlocking increasingly more power.
29	** Sasuke relies heavily on this in his battle against Deidara. He happens to have the correct chakra nature to overcome Deidara's bombs, the Sharingan to see through nano-sized bombs, and when he still has a tough time, the author throws him PlotArmor in the form of [[AssPull The Great Snake Escape]].
30	** Choji uses colored pills during his battle with Jirobo, who during the battle counters this by using his cursed seal. Unfortunately for Jirobo, he only has two stages of his cursed seal while Choji had three pills.
31	* Much like ''Manga/DragonBall'', ''Anime/PokemonTheSeries'' passes the ball whenever a mon evolves and/or learns a new move. This doesn't necessarily mean coming back with a new move though.
32	* PlayedWith in ''Manga/RanmaOneHalf'''s [[AngstNuke Shi Shi]] [[KamehameHadoken Hokodan]] arc. [[ButtMonkey Ryoga]] learns the titular technique and uses it against Ranma. DeconstructiveParody [[InvertedTrope Inversion]] PlayedForLaughs when Ranma understands the technique and [[BeatThemAtTheirOwnGame adapts it]]; the fight becomes a {{Wangst}} contest, which Ryoga eventually wins due to having [[DeusAngstMachina more true angst]]. Ranma then decides to use a modified variant powered by confidence (the Moko Takabisha), which comes far more naturally to him. The stage looks set for him to inflict a CurbStompBattle. {{Subversion}} and [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome reality ensues]] (relatively speaking, given that they're using KiManipulation) when Ryoga learning that Ranma has a counter-technique only fuels his depression; his Shi Shi Hokodan becomes even stronger, breaking Ranma's confidence-powered Moko Takabisha technique. Then Ryoga revealed that he had been working to master an even stronger "perfected" variant of the Shi Shi Hokodan. [[spoiler: Ranma ultimately wins in [[DistractedByTheSexy an unrelated and anticlimactic way]].]]
33	* ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure'' uses this trope in an interesting way: While the battles can be physical in nature, they rely mostly on smarts and finding a way out of your current situation. In order to keep things exciting, whoever loses the advantage ball automatically gets to be the POV character of the following chapters, as it's now his or her turn to turn the tides of battle.
34	* In the Battle of Doldrey in ''Manga/{{Berserk}}'', in terms of confidence the battle starts off fairly evenly matched, with the Tudor forces having all the material advantages (overwhelming numbers, a fortified position) and the Hawks having grit, determination, and the knowledge that Griffith has A Plan([[TradeSnark TM]]). After Guts goes StraightForTheCommander and Casca's unit takes the castle by sneak attack (a purely symbolic victory as they've had no time to dig in and fortify the place), the Hawks firmly grasp the Ball and the Tudor's DecapitatedArmy beats a hasty retreat despite still having overwhelming numbers and a more-or-less equal playing field to use them.
35	[[/folder]]
36
37	[[folder:Comic Books]]
38	* Franchise/{{Batman}} almost always holds the Ball in direct conflict. Three guys with knives or a dozen Mooks with machine guns, it makes no difference. Therefore, the general method of his rogue's gallery to deal with him is to attack him indirectly, especially by undermining what he believes in and threatening those he values. One notable exception is in ''ComicBook/BatmanTheDarkKnightReturns.'' Batman does ''not'' hold the advantage in his first fight with the much younger and stronger leader of the Mutants, and is almost killed before Carrie rescues him. Batman learns his lesson and the next time they fight, ''he'' chooses the battleground and pulls out [[CombatPragmatist every dirty trick in the book]] to beat him. This time the Ball is firmly in Batman's court and he wins decisively.
39	[[/folder]]
40
41	[[folder:Fan Works]]
42	* In ''FanFic/TheFifthAct'', Cloud consistently has the advantage over the other characters due to having a decade of experience, better weapons and better equipment. [[spoiler: Although he loses this when he gives the [[MacGuffin Rib]][[NoSell bon]] to Kunsel, allowing Genesis to take Cloud down without killing him.]]
43	* In ''Fanfic/TomRiddlesSchooldays,'' [[Literature/{{HarryPotter}} Tom]] usually holds this, although he occasionally passes it to Marca.
44	[[/folder]]
45
46	[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
47	* The Ball is carefully minded throughout ''Film/AKnightsTale''. At the beginning, William and Adhemar are evenly matched, and the latter wins by his greater experience. In the final, decisive joust, Adhemar holds the Ball at first due both to the efforts of his herald and copious amounts of cheating, but after Creator/GeoffreyChaucer gives an impassioned speech, the audience changes sides and William wins ''without even his armour''.
48	* This is well demonstrated by the {{Flynning}} in ''Film/ThePrincessBride'', where the advantage is determined solely by who [[IAmNotLeftHanded most recently switched hands]].
49	** The Man In Black[[spoiler:/Westley]]'s MaskOfPower functions as an equippable Advantage Ball. With it he beats a swordsman in a fencing duel, grapples a giant into submission and outwits a schemer. Without it he barely beats a RodentOfUnusualSize, gets captured, [[spoiler:is rendered OnlyMostlyDead and saves Buttercup only with help and a giant bluff.]]
50	* The Battles of Helm's Keep and Minas Tirith from ''Film/TheLordOfTheRings'' saga. In addition to [[HollywoodTactics many other lapses in tactical realism]], advantage in battle seems to be principally a matter of who makes the most [[BigEntrance badass entrance]], regardless of such matters as numbers and equipment.
51	* Throughout ''Film/TheMatrix'', agents are unstoppable, due both to their superior programming and the [[TheDreaded terror the other side has for them]]. But after Neo's awakening as The One, he can dispatch them with ease (and his team can at least hold their ground). Justified in the first and most of the second. The third doesn't even try to justify Neo's god-like abilities.
52	* ''Film/TransformersRiseOfTheBeasts'': The ball is held very definitively by the Terrorcons in their first battle with the Autobots. While they never go down too far in threat as the movie goes on, at the museum they have levels of competency and strength that they don't display again. Scourge overpowers Optimus Prime with one hand with little effort but in all other confrontations expends much more energy keeping up with the Prime.
53	* Handed out by Kevin Flynn in Film/TronLegacy. At one point he enters a club where an apparently civilian resistance is fighting- and getting slaughtered by- Clu's enforcers. All he does is kneel and touch the ground, and the momentum of the battle ''immediately'' shifts in favor of the civilians (and visibly and audibly; there's an accompanying in-universe shift in the scene's lighting and music). Justified in that he ''is'', effectively, the god of the computer universe.
54	[[/folder]]
55
56	[[folder:Literature]]
57	* In the ''Franchise/StarWarsLegends'' there's Jedi Battle Meditation: an ''in-universe'' Advantage Ball. The side supported by the meditating Jedi is filled with confidence and clarity, while the opposing side is assaulted with despair. [[TheChessmaster Grand Admiral Thrawn]] once quantified this; apparently, supported by battle meditation, his fighters performed up to 40% better in every category of pilot performance. He also suspects that this is why the Imperial Remnant was so seemingly incompetent for much of the civil war after the Emperor died; they had unknowingly become completely dependent on it.
58	* The Church Knights of the ''Literature/TheElenium'' and ''Tamuli'', being [[ThePaladin Paladins]], have superlative training and political support. Moreover, they have a fierce (deserved) reputation, very large war-horses and armour which not only [[LuckilyMyShieldWillProtectMe protects them]], but is also intimidating at the same time. Combining this with the [[PlotArmor extra plot protection]] that the [[NominalImportance named protagonists enjoy]], the Knights have the ability to steamroll over practically any force, almost regardless of the opposition's numbers, tactics or equipment. This is taken even further at the climax of the Elenium, when Sparhawk is driven into an UnstoppableRage and kills probably dozens of [[{{Mooks}} enemy combatants]] without effort or personal damage. Soon after, however, he faces TheDragon, a man with considerable anthropic weight, and barely defeats him in single combat. In ''Tamuli'' there is some discussion on the topic, with the knights having trouble with keeping up with [[ProudWarriorRace Atan]] levels of physical conditioning, recent advantages in crossbows and dealing with the overwhelming heat during the campaign in Cynesga. Vanion specifically mentions feeling near-obsolete, but concludes that he can still pull his weight, at least.
59	* In the ''Literature/{{Belgariad}}'', Garion realises that the battle between him and Torak is one of wills, not strength, and that Torak has been dealt a mighty mental blow by Polgara's refusal of him. All Garion has to do is defy him, and the dark god loses all control and is defeated with relative ease.
60	* In Literature/TheBible, the Israelites' success in any conflict is based on how faithful they're being to God at the time. When they're faithfully worshiping Him, they wipe out hordes of Canaanites with a couple hundred men, and suffer no losses. When they're ignoring God or worshiping Ba'al or some other being other than God, they tend to get conquered, looted, and generally knocked around by any nation that cares to fight them. In one battle it's determined by whether Moses is holding his staff in the air, which he quickly needs help to maintain.
61	* Happens in [[{{Literature/Truancy}} Truancy Origins]] when Umasi reaches his resolve. This allows him to defeat Zen in battle after being defeated easily in the last fight and not training at all, unlike Zen.
62	* In ''Literature/TheRedemptionOfAlthalus'' by Creator/DavidEddings, the protagonists are a tightly-knit group of FireForgedFriends (a family in all but blood), they have the full support of a major goddess and full access to her extradimensional house, and several armies of the best soldiers in the world on their payroll (and stationed in said house so they could be deployed anywhere at any time). The antagonists mirror all this at first glance, but their core group all hate and distrust each other, their sponsoring god commands them with terror (which is the only reason they even work with each other), their house is a terrifying hell full of fire, and their armies are primitive to the point of being at a stone age level (solely due to the aesthetic preferences of their commander). It's a credit to the author's writing skill that the series didn't end after the first battle.
63	* [[Literature/{{TheDresdenFiles}} Harry Dresden]] starts grabbing this after having been through one too many {{Indy Ploy}}s. In ''Literature/TurnCoat'' and ''Literature/SkinGame'' he knows that he's going to be outnumbered and out-powered, so he [[spoiler: does a sanctum invocation, allying with the GeniusLoci of a powerful island]] and uses a XanatosGambit and GambitRoulette in the first instance, and [[spoiler: gets Odin's advice and recruits Goodman Grey]] before even starting out in the second.
64	[[/folder]]
65
66	[[folder:Live Action TV]]
67	* In Seasons 7 and 8 of "Series/GameOfThrones", the advantage ball is passed back and forth between Cersei and Daenerys's armies. Witness Cersei's ally Euron curbstomping Dany's fleet and killing Rhaegal in "[[Recap/GameOfThronesS8E4TheLastOfTheStarks The Last of the Starks]]" before Dany on Drogon wipes out the entirety of said fleet plus most of Cersei's army in the very next episode.
68	* ZigZagged in episode 6 of ''Series/TheLordOfTheRingsTheRingsOfPower'' during the battle of Tirharad between the Orcs and the Southlanders. The Southlanders are the native peasants of the Southlands and have little to no experience combat, fighting the invading hordes of Orcs led by Adar. At first the Southlanders seemingly win the battle against Orcs who have both proper weapons and battle experience, simply because they are the wronged party trying to defend their homes. But they realize too late that Adar pulled a DisguisedHostageGambit, and they fought their own people dressed as Orcs. After this, a second round of attack from the Orcs comes, and they defeat the Southlanders with little resistance. Then the Numenorian army, all clad in [[LightIsGood white]] and [[BlueIsHeroic blue]], appears out of nowhere and defeats the Orcs. Captured by Galadriel, Adar argues with her that Orcs have the right to a home too, the narrative passing the moral high-ground from the Southlanders and Numenorians to Orcs in this scene. Unbeknownst to anyone, Adar pulled a last Gambit in secret and sends Waldreg in secret to activate a mechanism which can trigger the eruption of Orodruin. Said and done, Orodruin erupts and turns the Southlands into Mordor. Adar and his Orcs win and the surviving Southlanders and Numenorians retreat.
69	[[/folder]]
70
71	[[folder:Professional Wrestling]]
72	* A few schools of pro wrestling teach that best matches are not the most realistic, technically sound or athletically spectacular, but those that get the most "heat" without burning out the audience. Every audience being different means that basing a match on responses can result in anything from an extended one-sided affair with a few {{hope spot}}s (Wrestling/RickySteamboat and RickyMorton of Wrestling/TheRockNRollExpress were famous for it), a dizzying see-saw of advantages (Wrestling/TheRock was well known for these but it was almost literal in a ladder match between Wrestling/RobVanDam and Wrestling/ChristianCage), {{Heroic Second Wind}}s or {{villainous underdog}}s becoming increasingly frustrated/frightened as baby {{face}}s keep shaking off their 'clever' strategies (Wrestling/RicFlair, Wrestling/TerryFunk). Hold for hold (Wrestling/KurtAngle vs Wrestling/EddieGuerrero), blow for blow (Kazuchika Okada vs Wrestling/HiroshiTanahashi or Wrestling/AJStyles), counter for counter (ACH vs Ta'Darius Thomas or Cedric Alexander) rarely last long in a bout, and the term "back and forth" is rarely as literal as it is in other "genres" of fighting. Some multiple fall matches such as Perro Aguayo Jr vs El Hijo Del Santo had "advantage" shift each decision, and [[GimmickMatches match types]] like War Games run on it.
73	[[/folder]]
74
75	[[folder:Roleplay]]
76	* ''Roleplay/DestroyTheGodmodder'': Lots of it, usually swings around as new summons hit the field, although not always.
77	** There are a handful of players the advantage ball likes to gravitate towards, things generally get very interesting very fast when those players clash.
78	[[/folder]]
79
80	[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
81	* This is the usual justification for the turn-based structure of wargames.
82	* Explicitly modelled in the optional rules for "Swashbuckling Duels" in the ''Fate System Toolkit''. In such a duel, only the combatant who currently has the "upper hand" actually gets to ''attack'' the other, and gaining the upper hand is a matter of succeeding with style at using some ''non''-combat skill in a relevant fashion. More generally, [[LuckManipulationMechanic fate points and free aspect invocations]] can be seen as a straightforward implementation of this in the Fate system, period -- as long as you still have some (and especially if you have more than your opponent) you still have the ball, but making actual use of it ''expends'' them and getting them back or building up a good supply in the first place requires effort and probably taking some lumps. Thus how tight anyone's grip on the ball is at any given moment will naturally vary over time.
83	* The 4th Edition of ''TabletopGame/BigEyesSmallMouth'' introduces Edges and Obstacles, a mechanic similar to ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' 5th Edition's Advantage and Disadvantage. Whereas a normal skill check uses 2d6, with an Edge you roll 3d6 and keep the two highest dice, while with Obstacles you keep the lower two. There are also Major Edges and Obstacles, where you roll ''four'' dice and keep the highest or lowest two.
84	* ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' uses a system of advantage and disadvantage in combat and for skill checks which translates to "roll two die and use the highest/lowest". In combat this is most often seen by two allies surrounding an enemy, and many abilities and items involve forcing disadvantage on a roll (pack-hunting creatures only need to be next to each other to gain advantage, bards can insult a target to make them more likely to miss, heavy armor makes stealthy movement harder, etc.).
85	[[/folder]]
86
87	[[folder:Video Games]]
88	* This actually comes up in ''VideoGame/DynastyWarriors'' and, to a lesser extent, ''VideoGame/SamuraiWarriors''. When you accomplish specific tasks, your side gains morale, which buys you more time and progress to defeat the enemy general, by adding or removing soldier units from the battlefield. Especially in Dynasty Warriors, even if you're being completely creamed, if you get over 1000 soldier kills, you get unlimited morale. Then you have hundreds of troops rush in and push back the enemy, for no particular reason than that you're now so cool.
89	* Any video game with a story that ping-pongs the narrative between characters like the new ''Franchise/MortalKombat'', many ''Franchise/{{Transformers}}'' games and ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry4'' gives the ball to whoever is under player control. Oftentimes because victory is the only way to proceed thus the player has to overcome obstacles and enemies that may have once been under player control.
90	* In ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry'' the ball is always in Dante's court, the only person to bat it out of his hands was his EvilCounterpart Vergil [[spoiler:a fact actually used against the both of them once]]. Its telling when Nero has the player ball in the fourth game, Dante still has his own ball that easily eclipses his.
91	* The final battle of ''VideoGame/MetalGearRisingRevengeance'' minds the ball back and forth. At first [[spoiler:Armstrong]] is invulnerable to both sword and hand to hand. When [[spoiler:Sam's sword]] becomes available, Raiden is able to face him on even footing with or without it - in fact, the easiest way for the player to take off a large chunk of his health is to trigger a quick-time event that causes [[spoiler:Sam's sword]] to fly out of Raiden's grasp and forces him to punch [[spoiler:Armstrong]] several times.
92	* In ''VideoGame/DiabloIII'', this is more of a story fluff than a real effect. In theory there are other people fighting the forces of Hell, but because success in the game is dependent entirely on the actions of the player's character, the game makes the [=NPCs=] seem to have some significance by showing their effectiveness be proportional to the progress of the hero, specifically because it gives them hope.
93	* Insult Sword Fighting in the ''VideoGame/MonkeyIsland'' games implicitly relies on this. Fencing requires a certain amount of underlying skill, but what really matters is throwing a withering comment at the opponent that will sap their morale. Depending on a player's skill level, they might be curb-stomped, go back-and-forth for ages, or easily crush their opponent with the right combination of insults and comebacks.
94	[[/folder]]
95
96	[[folder:Web Comics]]
97	* Most stretches of dialogue in ''Webcomic/GirlGenius'' can be described according to this, with the butt of the jokes being the ones not currently possessing the humorous Advantage Ball.
98	-->Tarvek [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20120210 grabs the ball!]] Gil struggles, but [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20120217 Tarvek gets in a solid jab!]] But who's that? Bangladesh Dupree [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20120222 tackles Tarvek]] from out of nowhere, grabs the Ball and starts piling on the humiliation... But then [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20120224 Vole appears,]] charming Bang's pants off with a bloodthirsty Villainous Rant, and picks up the ball. Ball occupied, Gil and Tarvek are able to have a conversation on equal terms, until Othar Trygvassen, GENTLEMAN ADVENTURER!, gets the drop on Vole! But what's this?! Gil goes for the dropped ball, [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20120305 grabs it with both hands,]] runs with it AND HE SCORES, dropping three of his opponents down a trapdoor to a long fall, and wounds the last - Bang - with a [[http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20120307 vicious playground taunt!]] What a game, ladies and gentlemen, what a game!
99	[[/folder]]
100
101	[[folder:Web Original]]
102	* Tex's ability to handle the ball in ''WebAnimation/RedVsBlue'' is subject to the RuleOfFunny, she will beat entire teams into the ground when its funny and nothing is on the line and fail miserably when something actually is. [[spoiler:This turns out to be a part of her character, she's an artificial intelligence based on a woman who died in the line of battle.]]
103	* In ''WebAnimation/DeathBattle'', because the fights are made after the research is made and are for viewing purposes only, the ball is passed around like a hockey puck between the combatants.
104	** An exception is Rainbow Dash vs. Starscream, where Rainbow holds the Advantage Ball for pretty much the entirety of the fight. Its noted its almost a character trait of Starscream not to hold the ball regardless of circumstances.
105	** Another exception is in "Scrooge [=McDuck=] vs. Shovel Knight", where [[spoiler:Shovel Knight]] holds the Advantage Ball for almost the entire fight countering or even {{No Sell}}ing his opponent's attacks against him, up until the end [[spoiler:where Scrooge whips out his Anti-Inertia and Neutra-Friction Rays to turn the match completely in his favour]].
106	** A point in Goku vs Superman is that Superman consciously keeps his strength at just enough to win the fight. As Goku powers up, Superman holds back less and less and [[spoiler:in using the Solar Flare and blasting him to the sun Goku actually handed Superman the ball a few times.]]
107	[[/folder]]
108
109	[[folder:Western Animation]]
110	* In ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague'' the ball usually goes to whoever has the greatest impact and investment to the plot. Superman almost never has the ball, one notable instance involving John Stewart's old friend turned into Metamorpho. Metamorpho was able to turn his body into kryptonite despite it being explicit that he must know the chemical mixture to turn into something. His lack of being able to hold the ball is such that when in an EnemyMine with Luthor to stop Darkseid, he makes a NoMoreHoldingBackSpeech and really starts giving it all he's got while Lex goes on a vague mission to the outer reaches of the universe. Who do you think stopped Darkseid?
111	* Many MerchandiseDriven shows hand the ball to the new character to shill the toy. The Tfwiki actually notes this under the ''To Sell Toys'' page, showing what the character did with the ball when first introduced and losses taken after losing the ball.
112	* The second season of ''WesternAnimation/TransformersPrime'' had the ball being minded back and forth. With the acquisition of powerful relic after relic, the ball was handed to whoever got the newest one. Notably in the finale a full assault was carried out by the team despite Optimus still holding the same weapon Megatron himself viewed as the Decepticons' "darkest hour" when he got it.
113	* In the ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'' episode [[Recap/BatmanTheAnimatedSeriesE25TheClockKing "The Clock King"]], we have the eponymous villain, a middle-aged efficiency expert, fighting Batman. This should have been a CurbStompBattle, but Fugate has studied footage on Batman's fighting, so he knows [[LudicrousPrecision that it takes Batman exactly 1/20 of a second to throw a punch.]] As improbable as it sounds, Fugate manages to fight Batman to a standstill with using BlockingStopsAllDamage, NonchalantDodge and DeadlyDodging.
114	[[/folder]]

Context Main / AdvantageBall