Basic Trope: Challenging the bully.
- Straight: Lovable Nerd Pete Perkins has had enough of the Barbaric Bully Flash Young, and challenges him to a fight.
- Exaggerated: Not only Flash, but Pete also High-School Hustler Eddie Roque, Privileged Rival Harry Oswalt, Alpha Bitch Gwynn Tracey, Beta Bitch Marian James Wickermann, Nerdy Bully Alicia P. Navarro, Jerk Jock Clay T. Finnigan, The Gadfly Ulysses Smalls, Spicy Latina Adelita Diaz (ironically a Bully Hunter herself), Husky Russkie Maximilian Khan, Bruce Lee Clone Sean Li, and just about every bully and/or jerkass characters out there... All to a one-versus-many street brawl.
- Downplayed: Pete challenges Flash to a Game of Chicken.
- Justified: Pete had just reached his Rage Breaking Point. It's only fair that he challenges the one who pissed him off the most: That being Flash Young.
- Inverted: Flash is the one issuing the challenge.
- Subverted: Pete thinks about this, but waves it off.
- Double Subverted: Flash hammers down hard on Pete's Berserk Button, and now Pete's out for blood.
- Parodied: Pete, in a World of Jerkass, decides to challenge the world itself (if not the entire multiverse of jerkass).
- Zig-Zagged: ???
- Averted: Pete doesn't even think of challenging Flash.
- Enforced: Pete needs some Character Development, and can't remain a wimp forever. Time to pit him against Flash.
- Lampshaded:
- (Played Straight) "Look, I know that this might be crazy, but I'm going to stand up to Flash. He's done pushing me around for so long!"
- (Exaggerated) "I'm sick of everyone pushing me around for so long! If I'm going to have to stand up to everyone who's treated me like dirt, then I don't care if it's an uphill battle, I'm taking everyone on!"
- Invoked:
- Badass Teacher Bryce Baxter tells Pete to stand up for himself, and urges him to beat Flash in a fight.
- Flash wants to get Pete to challenge him to a fight for some reason, and bullies him in order to get him to do that.
- (Exaggerated) Pete has had enough of everyone picking on him for whatever reason, and so issues a challenge. See exploited 2.
- Exploited:
- Pete exploits this in two ways as part of a Xanatos Gambit (and enforces a Morton's Fork on Flash's end):
- If Flash wins, then he's outed as a big, arrogant bully who throws his weight around and picks on those weaker than him.
- If Pete wins, then he's praised and hailed as some badass who can kick the ass of anyone even bigger than him.
- Pete exploits this in two ways as part of a Xanatos Gambit (and enforces a Morton's Fork on his enemies' ends):
- If Pete loses, then everyone would consider him The Woobie and would also band together to beat up all of his bullies.
- If Pete wins, then he's praised and hailed as some badass who can kick the asses of anyone even bigger than him.
- Pete exploits this in two ways as part of a Xanatos Gambit (and enforces a Morton's Fork on Flash's end):
- Defied: Bryce realizes that Flash is the same kind of guy who's perfectly willing to starve himself to over 70 pounds under his natural weight and still be as much of a threat, and urges Pete not to challenge Flash.
- Discussed:
- This exchange between Pete, Eddie Roque, and Harry Oswalt (this obviously isn't within the Exaggerated version):
Harry: You sure that you can handle yourself, Pete? Flash isn't just some Thin-Skinned Bully!Eddie: Yeah, we tried setting him against a bear and that fucker knocked it out with one clean left cross!Pete: (See lampshaded 1)- Pete talking to Professor Bryce Baxter about having to deal with his bullies (this is within the Exaggerated version)
Pete: (See lampshaded 2)Bryce: Okay, Peter, would you mind listing off your... Ahem... "Rogues Gallery"?Pete: Flash Young, Eddie Roque, Harry Oswalt, Gwynn Tracey, Marian James Wickermann, Alicia Palencia Navarro, Clay Tanner Finnigan, Ulysses Smalls, Adelita Diaz, Maximilian Khan, Sean Li... And that's not limited to those who I named in this list.Bryce: ...Goodness. Not only are you quite the Bully Magnet, but if you think you're going to take them all on alone, then you've surely got some screws loose. I suggest I come along with you so we can solve this problem. - Conversed: ???
Challenging the Bully!? Are you crazy!? He's going to rip you in half!
