The fact that the author is trying to revamp a story that didn't work in the past should count by itself. But for specific examples:
- Lightning Dawn and Crystal manage to fight off the cragadile in Amethyst Bog without any training.
- During the incident, Lightning's power awakens and he blasts the cragadile away with his dormant magic. It's this incident that brings the Grand Ruler to him.
- The Grand Ruler's Establishing Character Moment where he takes on a group of bandits and hands them their rear ends. The best part is when an ogre takes a swing at him with his ax...and the weapon is the only thing that's dented.GR: Are you done, yet? You could have torn my cape.
The ogre just stands there, silent while the alicorn takes a battle stance.
GR: Looks like your combat instincts are as finely tuned as your craftsmanship. Permit me to give you a crash course.
He then proceeds to take the ogre out in two hits.- After that, he catches their leader as he's charging at him, proceeding to give him a "The Reason You Suck" Speech before taking him on board.
- Lightning and Crystal swooping in and saving Team Trifecta from Nadir's wrath, resulting in the former's power awakening again. It also makes him feel the most pain he's ever had in a long time, forcing him to rethink his strategy.
- A villainous example, but Nadir taking on the most elite warriors on the force and delivering a Curb-Stomp Battle without breaking a sweat is nothing short of this.
- Even if the team failed to take Nadir out, they put up one heck of a good fight. Hocus even shields his allies from Nadir for a brief period of time despite his injuries. No wonder they're considered elites.
