Basic Trope: Original creation faces off with its successor.
- Straight: The Fighter Kaiser is used to fight its mechanically superior successor Lord Kaiser.
- Exaggerated: Bob, the original superhuman soldier, has to face off the near omnipotent Emperor Evulz made from the same project.
- Downplayed: Drake, though a Homunculus improved on Bob's abilities, isn't notably more powerful than him.
- Justified: Bob and Evulz' powers can't be countered by any others, thus Bob is the only one who can defeat Evulz.
- Inverted: The builders of the Lord Kaiser search tirelessly for the Fighter Kaiser, wanting it for its unique traits.
- Subverted: Bob and Drake seem ready to fight each other, except they spotted invisible soldiers.
- Double Subverted: ...Once they deal with the invisible soldiers, Bob and Drake turn their attention onto each other before fighting.
- Parodied: The stone wheel and a modern automobile are pitted against each other. Despite all common logic, the stone wheel somehow wins.
- Zig Zagged: Bob and Drake seem ready to fight each other, but they actually spotted invisible soldiers. Once defeating them, though, Bob and Drake quickly start fighting each other. Then it turns out the two of them are simply training, yet the next time they meet they go all out. Still...
- Averted: Prototypes are either never engaged in combat, or their upgrades never fight them.
- Enforced: "What better way to show Bob really is the hero by having him successfully best a foe that improved upon his powers?"
- Lampshaded: "What's the point of engaging the Prototype? You already know you're better."
- Invoked: Bob has Drake created so he can have a worthy opponent.
- Exploited: Combat data is obtained to make new and better Upgrades by pitting them against their Prototypes to spot design flaws.
- Defied: The Upgrade or Prototype ends up defeated before the other can even fight them.
- Discussed: "Why does Drake always lose to Bob?" "Though Drake is technically better than Bob, Bob is more skilled with their shared powers. Thus Bob wins because he's more cunning."
- Conversed: "What's the point in Upgrade versus Prototype fights anyways?" "Well, it is definitely a good way to show that pure function isn't enough, that you need a skilled user as well."
- Implied: Bob and Drake have very similar powers, though as they're common powers nobody thinks too deeply about the functional resemblance between their versions.
- Deconstructed: With the Lord Kaiser being soundly defeated by the Fighter Kaiser and Evulz bested by Bob, people don't see the point in improving upon the Prototype's design. Thus advancement grinds to a halt as people simply focus on what the Prototypes provide instead of trying to improve them.
- Reconstructed: Though the Upgrades were resoundly defeated by their Prototypes, the failures of the Upgrades are compensated for in their own successors. Thus while the Prototypes are capable of defeating their Upgrades, each defeat just presents a new flaw to be corrected with the next Upgrade.
- Played For Laughs: The Lord Kaiser is boasted as superior to the Fighter Kaiser "Because it has cupholders loser!"
- Played For Drama: Emperor Evulz, frequently described as the Ultimate Life Form by his creators, isn't able to handle his defeat by Bob. Growing gradually crazier as he tries winning against Bob, Evulz is eventually reduced to a crazed madman that does anything he can to spite and enrage Bob.
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