Logical Weakness: Difference between revisions

These guys aren't allergic to [[Weaksauce Weakness|arbitrarily chosen household items]], nor [[Kryptonite Factor|strange items related to their origin story]]. ''Their'' weaknesses are, in fact, a direct result of their particular superpowers. For example, a character who can [[Playing with Fire|summon fireballs]] may find themselves powerless during a rainstorm (or a [[Shock and Awe]] hero might find themselves at risk of electrocuting ''themselves'' in the rain). Sometimes this can stem from a lack of [[Required Secondary Powers]], like a hero with [[Super Speed]] but not [[Super Reflexes]] finding themselves going [[Too Fast to Stop]].

 

 

Not related to the [[Puff of Logic]]. May be an aversion of [[Required Secondary Powers]].

 

{{examples}}

== Anime and Manga ==

* [[Naruto]]'s Rasen-Shuriken attack is essentially a flechette bomb that attacks organisms' individual cells. It has a tendency to do this to the person who is holding it as well as the target.

* ''[[One Piece]]'' Devil Fruits can frequently fall into this. Examples include Luffy's rubber body, which makes him more or less immune to blunt force but renders him no less vulnerable to blades than he ever was. Sir Crocodile's ability to turn into sand can be hampered by becoming wet. God Eneru's lightning-based powers had no effect on rubber, thus allowing Luffy to harm him.

* ''[[Nanoha Force|Magical Record Lyrical Nanoha FORCE]]'' introduces the Huckebein family, carriers of the [[Cursed with Awesome|Eclipse virus]] which grants them ridiculously powerfull [[Anti-Magic]] abilities [[Super Strength|among]] [[Healing Factor|other]] [[Swiss Army Weapon|things]]. by themselves they're pretty strong but for most or them the only reason they can fight against the obliterating magical powers of the main cast. Lampshaded mercilessly with the fight of [[Lady of War|Signum]] Vs. [[Smug Super|Cypha]] where the latter was receiving a sound beating until she activated her full [[Anti-Magic]] hax.

* In ''[[Mirai Nikki]]'', police detective Keigo Kurusu's future diary feeds him data from whatever investigation he's currently conducting. The solution? {{spoiler|Expose his [[Dirty Cop]] ways and get him kicked off the force, meaning he's not on any investigation, totally bricking his diary.}}

** {{spoiler|As of New Testament, he cannot deflect [[Hollywood Voodoo]] because there are no vectors to redirect.}}

 

== Comic Books ==

* In ''[[Runaways]]'' Victor is a cyborg and can't pass through metal detectors without setting them off.

* [[Plastic Man]], because of his rubber based powers, is been known for having a vulnerability with extreme temperature changes and (in some incarnations) being in contact with acetone.

** Of course, this doesn't stop him in any story that requires him to travel by plane. At least once this has been played for laughs, with Wolverine and another character walking out of an airport while she comments on how she's always wondered how he got through metal detectors and now she knows. The reader, of course, is not privy to this information.

** Once, he walked into the Pentagon, and showed a medical certificate stating he has metallic prosthesis due to war injuries. Not far from the truth.

* Humorous example verging on a [[Weaksauce Weakness]]: the Sandman was first defeated when [[Spider-Man]] ''vacuumed him up.''

** He also once teamed up with Hydro-Man, until they realized that if they touched, they combined into a sort of sludge.

* Having witnessed the fiery deaths of his family, along with the rest of his species, the [[Martian Manhunter]] now suffers from pyrophobia. (The pyrophobia of the ''other'' Martians is handwaved as being a psychic block implanted by the Guardians of the Universe to stop them becoming too evil or something, but with J'onn [[Fridge Brilliance|it makes sense]].)

* While not his most prominent weakness, [[Superman]] is at least hurt by high powered sonics. His super senses and invulnerability seem to roughly cancel each other out in this instance.

 

== Film ==

* Violet in ''[[The Incredibles]]'' can be seen while invisible if you throw something other than her suit on her. It has to be her custom-made supersuit too. Her regular clothes stay visible when she vanishes.

** Frozone, also from ''[[The Incredibles]]'', relies on the water in the air to use his ice powers. When he's in a place with no water, like an apartment fire, he's useless.

 

== Literature ==

* In the ''[[Wild Cards]]'' books, Philip "Fadeout" Cunningham can turn invisible, but he can't see if unless his eyes are visible (as, like anyone, his vision depends on light contacting pigment molecules in his retinas). Fortunately (for him) he can turn parts of himself invisible while leaving others opaque, so he counts on the fact that a pair of floating eyes are hard to spot at a distance, especially in dimly lit areas (plus, he can always make his eyes vanish if hiding is more important than seeing his surroundings).

* In [[Codex Alera]] furycrafters that work with one element can be disabled through relatively simple means. Aircrafters are covered in dirt, earthcrafters are suspended off the ground, watercrafters are dehydrated, firecrafters are placed in small spaces (so any fire cooks them alive), and wood/metal crafters are stripped of their respective elements. Disabling someone with multiple elements is trickier, but doable.

* The ''[[Mistborn]]'' series follows a very strong [[Magic A Is Magic A]] system, so many powers can potentially be a double-edged sword. Someone burning tin (which gives [[Super Senses]]) can be incapacitated with loud noises or flashes of light, for example, and to be any good as a Coinshot (telekinetic control of metals), you'd better have a ''really'' good understanding of elementary physics- try and Push something bigger than you are and you'll be the one flying across the room instead.

 

* ''[[The Sarah Connor Chronicles]]'' reveals that Terminators can't swim. It also reveals that they can be temporarily disabled by powerful electrical shocks, although they reboot themselves in a couple minutes. Also, they set off metal detectors.

* From ''[[Heroes (TV series)|Heroes]]'':

** The Comb allows you to stop time for ten seconds but when the effect ends you need to be perfectly still or you will suffer terrible motion sickness. The short duration of the effect means that you might have to use it repeatedly and your body will suffer the consequences.

 

* Some of the Disadvantages of characters in the "[[Champions]]" superhero RPG were of this type. For example, the insect-like alien Insectoid took damage from exposure to the insecticide malathion.

* In both ''[[Vampire: The Masquerade]]'' and ''[[Vampire: The Requiem]]'', characters can buy a power that allows them to heighten and refine their senses. Of course, if there's a sudden change in sensory input (e.g., opening a storage locker to find a rotting corpse when you've got heightened smell up), you're probably going to be reeling.

 

== Video Games ==

* Cole McGrath from ''[[Infamous (video game series)|In Famous]]'' is officially [[Overly Narrow Superlative|the first protagonist of a sandbox game that can justify]] [[Super Drowning Skills|his inability to swim.]] (In fact, he IS able to swim for a very short while, and he's perfectly fine if he steps in a small puddle, although if someone else steps in the puddle shortly afterwards they won't be so fine.)

** Chain-link fences provide perfect cover from Cole's lightning for the same reason - electricity, by its very nature, follows the path of least resistance and gets grounded by those fences.

 

== Web Comics ==

* In the [[Ciem Webcomic Series]] greater-expanded Gerosha universe, Extirpon's one weakness is - ROBOTS! Why? They have no soul, no spiritual guilt, and their pride can only be simulated by a program. With [[The Evils of Free Will|no free will and therefore no sins]], there's [[Emotion Eater|nothing to feed]] Extirpon's [[Reality Warper|power]].

 

== Western Animation ==

* Megavolt on ''[[Darkwing Duck]]'' is an electricity based villain shorted out by water.

** The Liquidator on ''Darkwing'' is intimidated by "a common cleaning sponge" and (in a [[Shout-Out]] to John Kendrick Bangs "The Water Ghost of Harrowby Hall") by being locked in a freezer, as well as by cement and pudding mix(!).

* Similarly, on a [[Cartoon Network]] bumper, Jan of the [[Superfriends|Wonder Twins]] says "I could get beaten by a sponge! It wouldn't even have to be an Evil Sponge!"

* In ''[[SpongeBob SquarePants]]'', the Dirty Bubble, archnemesis of Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy, has them trapped by his "awesome surface tension." [[SpongeBob SquarePants]] inadvertently defeats him by accidentally popping him with a pencil while asking for an autograph.

* ''[[Static Shock]]'''s protagonist had electromagnetic powers that went on the fritz along with every other gadget in the world when there was a lot of sun spot activity.

** Static also defeated a water-based villain using an electric current, thus breaking the water down into its components (he even calls the process, electrolysis, by name).

** However being splashed by water can short out his ability if he's currently charged up.

* Stitch of ''[[Lilo and Stitch]]'' is super dense and while that gives him super strength and endurance, he can't swim.

* Because [[Avatar: The Last Airbender|benders]] channel their powers through martial arts, binding or paralyzing their limbs is an effective means of defeating or imprisoning them, though sufficiently skilled benders are able to get beyond this.

** With Metalbending having become a full-fledged bending discipline by the time of ''[[The Legend of Korra]]'', the sequel series also shows the bending style's weaknesses: they are very susceptible to electric attacks due to using reels of metallic cord to attack with. They also have no means of manipulating purified metal due to manipulating earth-based impurities as opposed to the metal itself.

* In ''[[Exo Squad]]'', Neosapiens are stated to have heightened senses. Early on in the show they flashbang one to great effect.

 

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[[Category:Power At a Price]]