Friday, August 14, 2020

Character Analysis: Ladybug (Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir)


June 13th, 2022 - This blog has been updated due to the international releases of Miraculous Ladybug Season 4 episodes Psycomedian, Qilin, Kuro Neko, Penalteam, Risk, and Strikeback.

November 17th, 2021 - This blog had been updated due to the international releases of Miraculous Ladybug Season 4 episodes Dearest Family, Glaciator 2, Ephemeral, and Gabriel Agreste.

October 8th, 2021 - This blog had been updated due to the international releases of Miraculous Ladybug Season 4 episodes Hack San and Simpleman.

August 7th, 2021 - This blog had been updated due to the international releases of Miraculous Ladybug Season 4 episodes Mega Leech, Crocoduel, and Wishmaker.

July 14th, 2021 - This blog had been updated due to the international release of Miraculous Ladybug Season 4 episode Rocketear.

July 9th, 2021 - This blog had been updated due to the international release of Miraculous Ladybug Season 4 episode Sentibubbler.

May 30th, 2021 - This blog had been updated due to the international releases of Miraculous Ladybug Season 4 episodes Sole Crusher, Queen Banana, and Optygami.

May 23rd, 2021 - This blog has been updated due to the international releases of Miraculous Ladybug Season 4 episodes Mr. Pigeon 72, Furious Fu, and Guiltrip.

April 17th, 2021 - This blog has been updated due to the worldwide premiere of the Miraculous Ladybug TV movie Miraculous World: Shanghai – The Legend of Ladydragon (a.k.a. Miraculous Shanghai) and the premieres of the first 3 episodes of Season 4.

September 26th, 2020 - This blog has been updated due to the worldwide premiere of the Miraculous Ladybug TV movie Miraculous World: New York – United HeroeZ (a.k.a. Miraculous New York).

August 15th, 2020 - On December 6th, 2015, the first episode of Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir aired on Nickelodeon for viewers in the United States. This premiere was only a few months after the cartoon aired for the first time internationally. The show was a surprise for many American viewers, showcasing a female superhero as its main character. Ladybug, who's secret identity is Marinette Dupain-Cheng, tries to balance her double life as a teenage girl and a superhero. Her partner is Cat Noir, who is also secretly Marinette's crush Adrien Agreste. Together, they work together to defeat the villainous Hawk Moth, who wishes to take their Miraculouses (the source of their powers) for his own secret goal.

Miraculous was created by Thomas Astruc, who previous worked as a storyboard artist for the popular cartoons Code Lyoko, W.I.T.C.H., Wasabi, Asterix and Obelix Meet Cleopatra, and The Daltons as well as storyboard supervisor for the cartoon Totally Spies! Thomas first conceived the original concept of Ladybug in 2005 after meeting a young woman who was wearing a ladybug shirt. He played with the idea of a ladybug, later creating a design of the character on a sticky note. Thomas continued to create new drawings revolving the character, including fake comic book characters called The Mini Menace Ladybug. He even constructed a universe around her, inspired by comic universes such as Marvel. Thomas would continue to develop his idea until he met Jeremy Zag, a producer at Zagtoon. Jeremy allowed Thomas to do what he thought best with his character and ideas.

Originally, the cartoon was meant for an older audience with political stories and a darker tone, but some elements hindered the show's perception. As a result, the cartoon changed its demographic to a younger audience. In addition, the cartoon was going to be animated in 2D. Toei Animation even aired a promotion video of what the cartoon originally looked like, appearing very similar to anime. However, animation difficulties and hardships (Ladybug's spots in particular) led to the show being change to CGI animation. Despite these differences made during production, Thomas Astruc's ideas and inspirations were still the same. Ideas and concepts are still drawn from Franco-Belgian comics, American comics, and Japanese animation while Ladybug is still inspired by Amélie Poulain, Spider-Man, and Sailor Moon.

When I first watched Miraculous on Nickelodeon, I was only 18 years old at the time and in my senior year of high school. Superheroes were popular in the United States due to the widely famous Marvel Cinematic Universe. I haven't spent much time watching television as I would often get my entertain online by watching anime, content made by Team Four Star, and Rooster Teeth's popular shows Red vs. Blue, RWBY and Death Battle. One day, I decided to turn my TV on to find something to watch. Appearing on my screen was a new cartoon being aired by Nickelodeon, Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir. The episode being played was Stormy Weather, an episode where the main characters had to fight a villain who can control the weather with her parasol. I wasn't sure why at the time, but for some reason, the show caught my interest.

And since then, I became a huge fan of the show and watched every episode that was aired on Nickelodeon. After the networked stopped airing the cartoon, I began checking on Twitter to see when I can watch new episodes online. At the same time, I became a frequent member of the VS community, which debates simulated fights between fictional characters. I joined a forum and a few servers dedicated to Death Battle, the most popular VS show on the internet. In addition, I became a frequent guest on the G1 Death Battle Fan Blog, which produces prediction blogs for upcoming episodes of Death Battle. And because of my time in the community, I became more knowledgeable in VS debating and how it works as well as making new friends.

Therefore, I decided to make this character analysis blog on Ladybug, the main character of Miraculous. With a better understanding of VS debating and a lot of time on my hands, I believe now is the best time to make this blog. As of right now, only 3 seasons of Miraculous has aired, but it's confirmed that there's still more content waiting to come out. Seasons 4 and 5, a few hour-long TV specials, and a musical film retelling the origin episodes have already been confirmed. While this character analysis blog will contain Ladybug's in-canon backstory, equipment, abilities, feats, and many other information, it'll be continuously updated whenever new content gets released.

Table of Contents

  1. Background
  2. Equipment
  3. Abilities
  4. Forms
  5. Unification
  6. Feats
  7. Debunking Misinformation & Misconceptions
  8. Weaknesses
  9. Overall
  10. Most Wanted Opponent


Background


Marinette Dupain-Cheng is a 15 year old girl living in the city of Paris, France. More than 2 years prior, she was secretly gifted a pair of earrings by an old man she rescued from traffic. When she later discovered them at home, Marinette found out that they weren’t ordinary earrings. They were a Miraculous, a magical jewel that transforms the wearer into an animal-themed superhero with a special power. In addition, the Miraculous contains a Kwami, a divine, sprite-like being who are born from and utilizes "abstract" concepts and helps a Miraculous wearer transform into their alter-ego. Marinette's earrings are the Ladybug Miraculous which contains Tikki, the Kwami of Creation who serves as a guide to whoever wears the earrings.

When the supervillain Hawk Moth, wielder of the Butterfly Miraculous, created the villain Stoneheart in order to draw out Miraculous users, Marinette was hesitant in becoming a superhero. She was too afraid and lacked self-confidence. However, she didn't have much of a choice due to already transformed with no way on how to undo it. During this first encounter as a superhero, Marinette met her new partner Cat Noir, who is the wielder of the Black Cat Miraculous. At first, the two new superheros managed to defeat Stoneheart, but Marinette failed to capture the Akuma (a corrupt butterfly Hawk Moth sends to transform civilians into villains) that created Stoneheart.

This mistake resulted in the Akuma multiplying and later infecting multiple civilians into becoming Stoneheart, including the original. This new problem devastated Marinette, causing her to lose confidence in herself and give up in being a superhero. But after witnessing the destruction caused by the numerous Stoneheart creatures, the endangerment of her friends and classmates, and Cat Noir getting captured, Marinette realized that only she's capable of using the Ladybug Miraculous to save her friends and all of Paris. With her confidence renewed, Marinette dons the earrings to become Paris' new superhero Ladybug.

Ever since then, Ladybug and Cat Noir declared their stand against the villainous Hawk Moth, who wishes to capture their Miraculouses for his own personal goal. Hawk Moth would constantly use his powers to create new villains under his command, but Ladybug and Cat Noir would work together to defeat them. Eventually, Ladybug would meet the man who gave her the Ladybug Miraculous, Master Wang Fu. Master Fu is the last Great Guardian of the Miraculouses and would constantly assist Ladybug in her war against Hawk Moth by lending her more Miraculouses to create new superhero allies, though this war would get difficult when Hawk Moth himself gained a new ally in the form of the Peacock Miraculous user Mayura and later unified the Peacock Miraculous with the Butterfly Miraculous to become Shadow Moth. Despite this, Ladybug continues to fight for the safety of Paris and eventually became Master Fu's successor as Guardian of the Miraculouses.

Equipment


Ladybug Miraculous

As stated before, a Miraculous is a magical jewel that transforms the wearer into an animal-themed superhero with a special power. The Ladybug Miraculous in particular is a pair of earrings. In order to transform, the user has to wear their Miraculous and yell out their transformation phrases to activate and deactivate the jewels. For the Ladybug Miraculous, Marinette needs to yell out the phrase "Spots On" to transform into Ladybug and yell out the phrase "Spots Off" to transform back into her civilian self.

While a Miraculous wielder is transformed into their superhero attire, their Kwami powers the Miraculous. As long as they don't use their superpower, the wielder can remain transformed indefinitely. However, as soon as the superpower is used, the wielder loses power and the transformation wears off in about approximately five minutes, though a wielder will eventually lose this weakness once they become a grown adult as evident by Hawk Moth and Bunnyx. After a wielder's transformation wears off, their Kwami must consume food in order to recharge. The earrings, along with every other Miraculous, also have the ability to give the wielder the costume they truly desire.

According to the android superhero Uncanny Valley in the Miraculous New York TV movie, the quantum masking of Ladybug's suit confuses human minds to prevent people from figuring out Ladybug's identity. This indicates that other Miraculous suits also possesses the same quantum masking that confuses human minds to prevent Miraculous users from having their identities be easily figured out. However, this quantum masking doesn't affect the minds of androids such as Uncanny Valley herself.

If the Ladybug Miraculous and Cat Miraculous are used together while also using a special invocation, the holder will achieve ultimate power. The person wielding them can make a wish that can alter reality. However, because the universe must maintain balance, every action has a reaction. In the episode Ephemeral, it is revealed what will happen when a wish is made using both miraculouses: the end of the world happens. Imagine that the world is your notepad. Everything is written in blue, but you want it to be red instead. Before anyone rewrites in the color they want, it is necessary to erase what was already written. In other words, when a wish is made, the universe is completely destroyed and rebuilt in accordance to that wish. However, Ladybug knows the consequences of making that kind of wish and vowed never to make one.

Yo-yo

Every Miraculous user gains a weapon whenever they transform. For Marinette as Ladybug, she gains a yo-yo which she uses offensively and defensively. For offensive purposes, Ladybug can use her yo-yo as a projectile to hit enemies or tie them up with its wire like a lasso. For defensive purposes, Ladybug swings her yo-yo in a circle very quickly and creates a pink shield to deflect and withstand strong attacks.

The yo-yo can also be used as a grappling hook for Ladybug as a way to swing from building to building like Spider-Man, allowing her to travel far distances. In addition, Ladybug's yo-yo's wire has an indefinite length and is stated to be unbreakable, though some of Hawk Moth's villains had possess abilities that could affect those magical properties. It's strong enough to hold a falling helicopter and cut through metal and other durable materials. With enough strength, it can even cut through the Eiffel Tower.

The yo-yo also possesses other functions that makes it extra useful for Ladybug. It can act as a smart phone, allowing Ladybug to keep in contact with Cat Noir and communicate with him. It also possesses internet access for Ladybug to look up information online or view the news. Other functions include a camera with a zoom function, a GPS tracker, a map, breathing apparatus, a timer, earpieces for communication, and being able to store one or more objects larger than the yo-yo itself such as Marinette's special macaroons or other miraculouses. The yo-yo is also a vital tool in purifying Akumas and activating the Lucky Charm.

In Season 4 after becoming the new Guardian of the Miracle Box, Ladybug learned a new trick where she can take out any of the other Miraculouses the Miracle Box contains from within her yo-yo. However, the yo-yo can only give her access to Miraculouses that the Miracle Box contains, meaning that Ladybug can't use her yo-yo to access the Black Cat, Butterfly, and Peacock Miraculouses.

Macaroons

Season 2 of Miraculous introduced the concept of power ups through miraculous potions, which are magical potions that can modify a Kwami's powers and provide extra abilities to Miraculous users. However, these extra powers only last for a single transformation. There are various potions that each provides unique abilities. When the power up transformation is activated, the holder gains the extra powers and a new suit with attributes that correspond to the extra abilities.

Since macaroons are one of Tikki's favorite foods, Marinette baked a special batch that contains the Miraculous potion. Ladybug would always carry the batch with her in case a situation involving an akumatized villain calls for a specific power up. Marinette can gain these extra abilities by either having Tikki eat a macaroon before transformed or by eating a macaroon while transformed as Ladybug. There are 7 types of macaroons that can provide extra abilities.
  • Green - Aqua Powers: This macaroon allows a Miraculous user to breathe underwater, as well as swim more effectively and at greater speeds.
  • Blue - Ice Powers: This macaroon grants a Miraculous user resistance to freezing temperatures and greatly enhanced ice skating abilities.
  • Red - Currently Unknown
  • Yellow - Currently Unknown
  • Orange - Currently Unknown
  • Purple - Space Powers: This macaroon allows a Miraculous user to gain a space suit, allowing them to fly and breathe in space.
  • Pink - Currently Unknown

Miracle Box

At the end of Season 3, Master Fu sacrificed his memories by declaring Ladybug to be his successor as the new Guardian of the Miracle Box. The miracle box contains multiple other Miraculouses for storage as well as a a pocket dimension/parallel universe where the Kwamis can gather and live in. Ladybug can open the box by clicking one of the spots of which Miraculous she intends to give out or use. The miracle box is supposed to hold up to 19 Miraculouses, but only 3 of them (Black Cat, Butterfly, Peacock) are unavailable to Marinette. Therefore, Marinette has access to 15 other Miraculouses besides the Ladybug. Marinette can even combine one of these Miraculouses with the Ladybug together via Unification, gaining the abilities and powers of both Miraculouses. However, she wouldn't carry the box into battle due to the chance of it being stolen by Hawk Moth or his akumatized villains.

However, in Season 4 after becoming the new Guardian of the Miracle Box, Ladybug learned a trick where she can obtain the other Miraculouses from the Miracle Box without needing to carry it. Instead, Ladybug can take out any of the other Miraculouses inside the Miracle Box from her yo-yo, making them standard equipment since she can access them anytime she wants as Ladybug. Here are the powers of some of the known Miraculouses within the Miracle Box:
  • Turtle Bracelet: Grants a nigh-unbreakable shield that can be thrown. "Shell-ter" creates a large green forcefield that shown to be able to burn through traps. (Stolen by Gabriel Agreste at the end of Season 4 Episode 26 "Strikeback (Shadow Moth's Final Attack - Part 2)". Ladybug's goal in Season 5 is to retrieve the stolen miraculous from Monarch.)
  • Fox Necklace: Grants a flute/short staff. "Mirage" can create elaborate illusions that dissipate on contact--they can even span entire cities. (After Season 4 Episode 13 "Optygami", Ladybug made Alya Césaire a permanent holder of the Fox miraculous. Later in Season 4 Episode 26 "Strikeback (Shadow Moth's Final Attack - Part 2)", Alya renounced the Fox miraculous and gave it back to Ladybug. However, at the end of the same episode, Gabriel Agreste stole the Fox miraculous. Ladybug's goal in Season 5 is to retrieve the stolen miraculous from Monarch.)
  • Bee Hair Comb: Grants a spinning top with a thread that might also be infinitely long. "Venom" freezes those who are stung with it for a long time. (Stolen by Gabriel Agreste at the end of Season 4 Episode 26 "Strikeback (Shadow Moth's Final Attack - Part 2)". Ladybug's goal in Season 5 is to retrieve the stolen miraculous from Monarch.)
  • Snake Ouroboros Bracelet: Grants a lyre with the ability to fire sonic attacks. "Second Chance" allows the wearer to indefinitely rewind time back to the point of the ability's activation. (Stolen by Gabriel Agreste at the end of Season 4 Episode 26 "Strikeback (Shadow Moth's Final Attack - Part 2)". Ladybug's goal in Season 5 is to retrieve the stolen miraculous from Monarch.)
  • Horse Glasses: Grants a horseshoe boomerang. "Voyage" can create a wormhole leading anywhere, even hundreds of thousands of lightyears away. (Stolen by Gabriel Agreste at the end of Season 4 Episode 26 "Strikeback (Shadow Moth's Final Attack - Part 2)". Ladybug's goal in Season 5 is to retrieve the stolen miraculous from Monarch.)
  • Monkey Circlet: Grants a long staff. "Uproar" turns the staff into a random toy that can be thrown, depowering the wielder of any object it touches by transforming it into another harmless toy. (Stolen by Gabriel Agreste at the end of Season 4 Episode 26 "Strikeback (Shadow Moth's Final Attack - Part 2)". Ladybug's goal in Season 5 is to retrieve the stolen miraculous from Monarch.)
  • Dragon Choker: Grants a sword. "Water Dragon," "Wind Dragon", and "Lightning Dragon" lets the wearer turn to and from water, mist, and lightning, respectively. (Stolen by Gabriel Agreste at the end of Season 4 Episode 26 "Strikeback (Shadow Moth's Final Attack - Part 2)". Ladybug's goal in Season 5 is to retrieve the stolen miraculous from Monarch.)
  • Rabbit Pocket Watch: Grants an umbrella. "Burrow" lets the user create a portal that leads into a pocket dimension known as the rabbit burrow. In this space, there are many portals, through which, anyone can view and travel to any point in the past, present, or future as well as to any place they desire in the present. The user can go back to participate in events of the past, while not necessarily changing the future the user came from, but can still suffer from changes in the timeline. (Stolen by Gabriel Agreste at the end of Season 4 Episode 26 "Strikeback (Shadow Moth's Final Attack - Part 2)". Ladybug's goal in Season 5 is to retrieve the stolen miraculous from Monarch.)
  • Mouse Pendant: Grants a jump rope. "Multitude" lets the user shrink down to an incredibly tiny size (small enough to fit in a Kwami's mouth and go inside a person's head) and duplicate themselves over a dozen times over. (Stolen by Gabriel Agreste at the end of Season 4 Episode 26 "Strikeback (Shadow Moth's Final Attack - Part 2)". Ladybug's goal in Season 5 is to retrieve the stolen miraculous from Monarch.)
  • Pig Pearl Anklet: Grants a tambourine. "Present" allows the user to conjure a magical gift box. When the box is opened, it reveals an image of the deepest wish in the target's heart. (Stolen by Gabriel Agreste at the end of Season 4 Episode 26 "Strikeback (Shadow Moth's Final Attack - Part 2)". Ladybug's goal in Season 5 is to retrieve the stolen miraculous from Monarch.)
  • Tiger Panjas Bracelet: Grants a bolas. "Clout" charges the user's fist with a powerful golden aura, allowing them to unleash a devastating punch. When they punch something with the energy, they overpower the targeted person or object and send it flying. Purple Tigress was able to perform this feat, which was calculated from 10.23 kilotons of TNT to 3.77 megatons of TNT. However, users of other Miraculous cannot scale to feats performed with "Collision" since it is a superpower exclusive to holders of the Tiger Miraculous. (Stolen by Gabriel Agreste at the end of Season 4 Episode 26 "Strikeback (Shadow Moth's Final Attack - Part 2)". Ladybug's goal in Season 5 is to retrieve the stolen miraculous from Monarch.)
  • Dog Collar Necklace: Grants a ball. "Fetch" allows the user the ability to fetch and return any arbitrary object that has been touched by their ball. (Stolen by Gabriel Agreste at the end of Season 4 Episode 26 "Strikeback (Shadow Moth's Final Attack - Part 2)". Ladybug's goal in Season 5 is to retrieve the stolen miraculous from Monarch.)
  • Rooster Thumb Ring: Grants a fountain pen. "Sublimation" lets the user gain any ability they desire. While Sublimation can bestow powers such as flight or super strength, it cannot take the form of a wish such as the ability to discover the identities of superheroes or recreate the world. (Stolen by Gabriel Agreste at the end of Season 4 Episode 26 "Strikeback (Shadow Moth's Final Attack - Part 2)". Ladybug's goal in Season 5 is to retrieve the stolen miraculous from Monarch.)
  • Goat Hair Pins: Grants a paint brush. "Genesis" allows the user to create any object they desire, but those objects will lack any real superpowers or magic. (Stolen by Gabriel Agreste at the end of Season 4 Episode 26 "Strikeback (Shadow Moth's Final Attack - Part 2)". Ladybug's goal in Season 5 is to retrieve the stolen miraculous from Monarch.)
  • Ox Nose Rings: Grants a mallet. "Resistance" gives the user gives the user immunity to any other abilities. (Stolen by Gabriel Agreste at the end of Season 4 Episode 26 "Strikeback (Shadow Moth's Final Attack - Part 2)". Ladybug's goal in Season 5 is to retrieve the stolen miraculous from Monarch.)

Abilities


Enhanced Physicality

Every Miraculous user receives a boost in their physical capabilities whenever they transform. This includes enhanced strength (hurting and moving building-sized akumatized villains), enhanced speed and agility (reacting to lightning and light-based attacks), and enhanced durability (surviving falls from large heights and hits from akumatized villains capable of destroying the Eiffel Tower and greater). These physical enhancements are consistently proven throughout the series by Ladybug, Cat Noir, and other Miraculous users.

Lucky Charm

The Lucky Charm is a special superpower granted by the Ladybug Miraculous to its wielder. Ladybug must toss her yo-yo into the air to create an object that'll aid her in battle. Once the object has been created, Ladybug has to observe the area around her and make a plan for how to use said object to achieve her desired goal. The Lucky Charm doesn't just give Ladybug the object she desires. Instead, the Lucky Charm summons a random object in which Ladybug has to figure out how to use it to solve the current situation/battle. Because of it, there has been moments where the Lucky Charm hasn't really worked. While Lucky Charm is a very helpful superpower, Ladybug must make sure to use it at an appropriate time. She can only use it once before transforming back into her civilian form five minutes later. In addition, the Lucky Charm can only be used for a specific conflict.

Miraculous Ladybug

The Miraculous Ladybug is a secondary special superpower granted by the Ladybug Miraculous to its wielder. After the crisis has been resolved, Ladybug throws the object created by the Lucky Charm into the air and yells "Miraculous Ladybug!". This generates an explosion of pink energy that transforms into a massive swarm of ladybugs that fly around the damaged area and fix any and all damage done since the crisis began.

This includes healing those who were hurt, fixing broken items whose destruction caused the crisis, and even repairing anomalies in the space-time continuum. This power is even capable of bringing back people who have been gone for almost 200 years or were killed by an akumatized villain's powers. The Miraculous Ladybug not only restores damage caused by the crisis, but also any damage caused by the heroes themselves. If Ladybug can't use her Lucky Charm object or doesn't have one, she can use her yo-yo to invoke it. While using Lucky Charm causes her to start losing power, using Miraculous Ladybug does not since it's an optional power she can use before she transforms back into Marinette.

There are some conditions, however, that are not subject to the restoration power. It can only go as far as the damage range the akumatized or amokized champions have caused. The Miraculous Ladybug cannot do the following:
  • Retrieve lost Miraculouses
  • Restore a destroyed Sentimonster
  • Revert anything on a mental and/or emotional state (unless directly caused by the crisis)
  • Restore anything that has nothing to do with the recently solved crisis
  • Restore a former guardian's memories when they pass their role due to the Guardian's Code
  • Be used to fix multiple akuma or amok related conflicts separate from one another at the same time
The Miraculous Ladybug has been able to fix amazing amounts of destruction caused by a crisis such as reversing Paris getting flooded by Syren, returning Paris back to normal after Stormy Weather froze it, fixing the moon after it was broken by Cat Blanc, and putting the Earth back into orbit. However, it should be noted that Ladybug DOES NOT SCALE to the Miraculous Ladybug. She never has shown to perform feats at that level by her own, and there's no evidence to suggest that she does scale. In addition, the Miraculous Ladybug DOES NOT APPLY to attack potency. It has never been used to harm anyone. In fact, it can't harm anyone. The purpose of the Miraculous Ladybug is to repair and fix any collateral damage and harm created during a fight with akumatized or amokized champions. A more detailed explanation regarding this information is provided down below.

Purification

One of the most important abilities of Ladybug's is her ability to purify any object or animal that has been corrupted, with the akuma butterflies and amok feathers being the most noteworthy. Ladybug usually performs her purification with her yo-yo, using it to capture the infected animal or object before healing and cleaning it back into its pure, ordinary form.

Magical Charms

In Season 4, Ladybug realized that because her powers are creation, she can create objects on her own with her only limit being the limits she makes for herself. To prevent people from being akumatized over and over again, Ladybug decided to create magical charms for victims of akumatization after returning them to normal. These magical charms are designed to protect individuals from negative emotions and ward off akumatization as long as they keep the charms with them at all times. In addition to creating the magical charms, Ladybug also receives a modified costume.


Forms


Aquabug

By having Tikki eat the green macaroon or by eating it herself as Ladybug, Marinette can transform into her aqua form. As Aquabug, Marinette gains the ability to breathe underwater without the need of her yo-yo and possesses enhanced swimming capabilities due to the fins on her feet

Lady Ice

By having Tikki eat the blue macaroon or by eating it herself as Ladybug, Marinette can transform into her ice form. As Lady Ice, Marinette gains the ability to handle extremely low temperatures, as well as move freely and quickly on the ice with her ice skates.

Cosmic Bug

By having Tikki eat the purple macaroon or by eating it herself as Ladybug, Marinette can transform into her space form. As Cosmic Bug, Marinette possesses the ability to safely breathe in space thanks to her helmet as well as the power of flight. Adrien states that as Astro Cat (his own space form), he can quickly fly from New York to Paris once an akuma attack occurs. This should apply to Cosmic Bug due to both forms sharing the same abilities from the power up.

Unification


Multifox

Marinette can simultaneously activate and wield the Fox and Mouse Miraculouses at once through unification, giving herself access to the powers of both. From the Fox Miraculous, Multifox gains the superpower Mirage. By playing her flute, she can produce an orange ball of energy and use it to create a hyper-realistic illusion. The illusion will disappear when touched or when Multifox undoes it by shouting out "Reality". From the Mouse Miraculous, Multifox gains the superpower Multitude. With it, she has the ability to divide herself into smaller clones.

Multibug

Marinette can simultaneously activate and wield the Mouse and Ladybug Miraculouses at once through unification, giving herself access to the powers of both. From the Mouse Miraculous, Multibug gains the superpower Multitude. With it, she has the ability to divide herself into smaller clones. From the Ladybug Miraculous, Multibug retains the standard abilities it possesses. This includes the Lucky Charm, Miraculous Ladybug, and purification.

Dragon Bug

Marinette can simultaneously activate and wield the Ladybug and Dragon Miraculouses at once through unification, giving herself access to the powers of both. From the Ladybug Miraculous, Dragon Bug retains the standard abilities it possesses. This includes the Lucky Charm, Miraculous Ladybug, and purification. From the Dragon Miraculous, Dragon Bug gains its special superpower and a sword. With the superpower, Dragon Bug can transform herself into the natural elements of a storm by activating one of three transformations. Wind Dragon allows Dragon Bug to transform into a large cloud of air as well as generate and control strong winds. Water Dragon allows Dragon Bug to  transform into a deluge of water as well as generate and control massive amounts of water. Lightning Dragon allows Dragon Bug to transform into a bolt of lightning. In addition, Dragon Bug can combine the elements with the Ladybug yo-yo to make a shield.

Lady Bee

Marinette can simultaneously activate and wield the Bee and Ladybug Miraculouses at once through unification, giving herself access to the powers of both. From the Bee Miraculous, Lady Bee gains the superpower Venom. With it, she has the ability to immediately immobilize a target with her stinger. From the Ladybug Miraculous, Lady Bee retains the standard abilities it possesses. This includes the Lucky Charm, Miraculous Ladybug, and purification.

Pegabug

Marinette can simultaneously activate and wield the Horse and Ladybug Miraculouses at once through unification, giving herself access to the powers of both. From the Horse Miraculous, Pegabug gains the superpower Voyage. With it, she has the ability to open portals that she can travel and exit through at any location she desires. From the Ladybug Miraculous, Pegabug retains the standard abilities it possesses. This includes the Lucky Charm, Miraculous Ladybug, and purification.

Pennybug

Marinette can simultaneously activate and wield the Horse, Rabbit, and Ladybug Miraculouses at once through unification, giving herself access to the powers of all three. From the Horse Miraculous, Pennybug gains the superpower Voyage. With it, she has the ability to open portals that she can travel and exit through at any location she desires. From the Rabbit Miraculous, Pennybug gains the superpower Burrow. With it, she can create a portal that leads into a pocket dimension known as the rabbit burrow. In this space, there are many portals, through which, anyone can view and travel to any point in the past, present, or future as well as to any place they desire in the present. Pennybug can go back to participate in events of the past, while not necessarily changing the future the user came from, but she can still suffer from changes in the timeline. From the Ladybug Miraculous, Pennybug retains the standard abilities it possesses. This includes the Lucky Charm, Miraculous Ladybug, and purification.

Feats


Overall

  • Constantly saved Paris by defeating numerous akumatized villains and sentimonsters with Cat Noir
  • New guardian of the miracle box
  • Led the Miraculous superhero team to victory in the Battle of the Scarlet Army
  • Defeated Miracle Queen and her mind controlled Miraculous users
  • Fought Hawk Moth and Mayura
  • Defeated Puppeteer, Rogercop, Lady Wifi, Evillustrator, and a possessed Cat Noir all by herself
  • Fixed the Eiffel Tower multiple times
  • Placed the Earth back into orbit with the Miraculous Ladybug
  • Repaired the destruction that occurred in an alternate future timeline using the Miraculous Ladybug
  • Is able to wear multiple Miraculouses without much strain on her mind and body
  • Tamed a dragon
  • Met and fought Santa Claus
  • At the top of Santa's list of best-behaved kids
  • Helped in stopping a world war from happening
  • Helped save New York City and Shanghai from destruction
  • Helped Alya and her mother Sabine break free from their akumatizations as Lady Wifi and Qilin in separate episodes
  • Fought and defeated Psycomedian while blindfolded
  • Voted "Couple of the Year" with Cat Noir
  • Defeated Strikeback and restored Paris from their rampage

Strength

Speed


Durability


Debunking Misinformation & Misconceptions

In the Miraculous Ladybug section under Abilities, I stated that the Ladybug doesn't scale to her Miraculous Ladybug and that the Miraculous Ladybug doesn't equal to attack potency. The reason I wrote those states is because there's a lot of misinformation and misconceptions regarding Miraculous and its characters within the VS community. People in the community have heard certain feats in the show and mistakenly assumes Ladybug, Cat Noir, and even Hawk Moth scale to these feats. The reason why people make these assumptions is because they've heard these feats without any context behind them and/or haven't watched Miraculous to understand how powers and abilities work in the show. Therefore, I'm going to address some misinformation and misconceptions that have been around for a while.

The Miraculous Ladybug fixed all the damages caused by supervillains, even putting the Earth back into orbit! Shouldn't she scale to the Miraculous Ladybug, making her planet level?

No. As stated before, there isn't any evidence that supports or even suggests that Ladybug scales to the Miraculous Ladybug. It's a one-time superpower that even Ladybug herself can't summon on her own. She always needed to use her yo-yo or her Lucky Charm for that superpower. In fact, the Lucky Charm is often just as durable and strong as its everyday equivalent, and the yo-yo has never been shown any AP or strength feats that matches the Miraculous Ladybug. So no, Ladybug wouldn't be able to scale to the Miraculous Ladybug and therefore isn't planet level.

Even if Ladybug herself doesn't scale to the Miraculous Ladybug, it's still her superpower though. Couldn't it at least translate to attack potency?

The answer is simple: It doesn't. Ladybug has never shown the capability to harm people or destroy objects with the Miraculous Ladybug. In fact, the superpower is specifically for cleaning up messes caused by a conflict. While it does move people around on occasion, the Miraculous Ladybug only safely plops them back where they were before the incident occurred. The same thing is true for buildings, storms and even planets.

Stormy Weather summoned a volcano and used it to push the Earth out of orbit. Cat Blanc broke the moon and was going to destroy the universe. Ladybug defeated those villains, so shouldn't she scale to them?

No. While Ladybug defeated almost every villain she faced, she doesn't scale to all the villains she defeated. In fact, Ladybug didn't defeat a lot of villains via overpowering them or beating them into submission. Instead, Ladybug defeated most of her villains through exploitation and by breaking a specific object that wasn't always tied to the powers of their owners. Whenever Ladybug defeated her villains through exploitation (which happens a lot), it was usually through elaborate traps she sets up or by tricking her villains into becoming their own downfall.

As for specific examples, Stormy Weather's parasol grants her the ability to create natural disasters, but only through means which aren't strongly proven to scale to its durability. Ladybug has also never been shown to really survive attacks from Stormy Weather that have the same properties (her main method is through lightning). In Cat Blanc's case, he has only shown his level of power through his enhanced Cataclysm and not through his own physical might, which is at best slightly above Ladybug. The only way she even defeated him was by tricking him into a false sense of security and then breaking his bell.

Cat Noir was able to perform lots of powerful and destructive feats with his Cataclysm. Shouldn't he scale to it? Since she's at the same level as him, can Ladybug scale as well?

Definitely not. Cat Noir's ability is moreso a potent form of hax. When his own Cataclysm was used against him, it DID result in a broken rib. However, it's implied (via Hawk Moth's renouncing of his Miraculous when akumatizing himself) that a miraculous holder is resistant to their own abilities. Aside from that, Cat Noir hasn't displayed any feats that match the potency of his own Cataclysm, such as when he destroyed Pixelator's dimension or when Plagg crumbled a whole city block of Paris. He's been manhandled by characters on par with Ladybug multiple times and has even been beaten up by Ladybug herself. Due to not being a user of the Black Cat Miraculous, Ladybug won't survive Cataclysm being used against her. Plus, Cataclysm is an ability exclusive to wielders of the Black Cat Miraculous. And just like Cat Noir, Ladybug hasn't displayed any feats that match the potency of Cataclysm. All of these arguments regarding Cat Noir and Cataclysm can also apply to Cat Blanc.

Hawk Moth akumatized Cat Noir into Cat Blanc, who later was going to destroy the universe with his amped up Cataclysm. Shouldn't Hawk Moth be universe level as a result?

No. Hawk Moth enhancing a butterfly to transform it into an akuma doesn't seem to require any physically scalable energy output. As shown with Gigantitan, he doesn't actually send off an akuma with a specific ability. Instead, he just chooses what powers he wants to give to someone the moment they land on a target. This fact that Hawk Moth gives people entirely different powersets than his own should be enough of an indicator. Not only that, but literally the only thing stopping the akumatized villains from turning on him is his ability to undo the akumatization itself. He can also induce pain to them, but it's implied in the cartoon to be a kind of durability-negating ability exclusive to his villains.

Hawk Moth's power is weird, but he doesn't exhaust any energy applicable to AP to imbue an akuma. It's actually implied that the akuma's imbued energy is just the whole "linking your mind to Hawk Moth so you know you're gonna be a villain that his mind wants you to be". For example, in the episode Gigantitan, Hawk Moth was initially going to akumatize Adrien's bodyguard. However, the bodyguard was calmed down when Adrien was in his presence by the time the akuma arrived. Afterwards, the akuma found a baby's negative emotions, and Hawk Moth was all, "Fuck, I didn't want this. Uh... how do I go about this... uh, yeah I'll just make you a giant." and the baby becomes a giant.

And while Hawk Moth does grants his victims powers, it's not power in terms of a VS sense. It's just actual superpowers. Just like the Miraculous Ladybug, Hawk Moth's superpower hasn't been shown to have any proven scalability to his own actual physical prowess, and he hasn't been shown to use this energy offensively. Also, Hawk Moth isn't always capable of controlling his villains. He wasn't able to get Gigantitan to follow his orders the first time around, was nearly killed by Robostus, and should at least downscale to the likes of Gorizilla.

And speaking of Cat Blanc, both Hawk Moth and Ladybug were actually obliterated by him when he broke the moon. The fact that Cat Blance killed him is a clear indication that Hawk Moth can't really scale to his Akuma victims. Therefore, Hawk Moth is not universe level.

TL/DR: Hawk Moth imbuing his akumas with energy doesn't seem to be applicable to physical AP/durability, and he can't completely control his victims as well as he'd like.

In the Miraculous Ladybug comics, there's a panel where Tikki stated that she and the other kwamis used to travel across the universe. Shouldn't that mean Ladybug scales and therefore should be massively faster than light (MFTL)?

No for various reasons. While Tikki did state in the panel that she and the other kwamis used to travel across the universe, it's still pretty vague. Nothing about the statements gives any indication of whether they traveled everywhere in the universe or just literally from one end to the next. In addition, the panel never gave a valid timeframe of how long the kwamis traveled the universe. Due to the lack of a valid timeframe, speed can't be calculated for this feat. While the panel did state that the miraculouses were created "thousands of years ago", it still didn't help provide a valid timeframe. In the Season 1 episode "The Pharaoh", it was revealed that there was a Ladybug in Ancient Egypt 5,000 years prior. However, it was never stated whether that Ladybug was the first carrier of the ladybug miraculous or not, meaning that there still isn't an exact timeframe that can be validated.

However, there are also various other reasons why Ladybug or any other miraculous holder can't scale to the kwamis traveling the universe. For one thing, it was well established in the show that kwamis' powers are way out of control without a host. Examples being Plagg's Cataclysm caused the extinction of the dinosaurs, the sinking of Atlantis, and other cataclysmic events, Kaalki's Voyage accidentally teleporting buildings and monuments to any parts of the universe, Trixx's Mirage causing large, strange illusions, and Sass' Second Chance messing up time by creating time distortions. Another reason is that neither Ladybug or Cat Noir have ever shown any kind of scaling to these feats like this one when transformed. Lastly, the continuity of the Miraculous Ladybug comics are different from the show's continuity, and the show itself is the primary source material.

TL/DR: Ladybug isn't MFTL. This is a single, vague panel that provides no valid timeframe to the kwamis traveling the universe and doesn't even apply to the main heroes. With no valid timeframe, a legitimate calculation for speed cannot be made. In addition, no miraculous holder has been ever shown to be capable of achieving a feat of this level or scale to a similar one. Lastly, the continuity of the Miraculous Ladybug comics contradicts the continuity of the Miraculous Ladybug cartoon (a.k.a. the primary source material).

In the episode Dearest Family, Tikki created a giant galette that was larger than the Earth. Shouldn't Ladybug be at the same level of power?

No. This is another case where a kwami's powers are way out of control without a host. In the same episode, Marinette states that a kwami that uses their powers without an owner always results in a disaster. This isn't the first time in the show that this is said, and it's backed up by Master Fu, a miraculous guardian who lived for 200 years. As mentioned above, there has been many instances where disastrous consequences occur when a kwami uses their powers without a holder. A miraculous limits a kwami's power, making it more manageable for a holder to use when transformed. In addition, Tikki can create whatever she wants with the lucky charm (but it includes disastrous consequences), while Ladybug's lucky charm is random (with no disastrous consequences involved).

Then how do we know how strong Miraculous characters are?

It's simple. Just watch the show. A lot of impressive feats are posted around online, but there's hardly any context provided for those feats. People hear all these talks about Ladybug being planet level or above planet level, but no one tells them anything that supposedly makes her at that level. Only nameless feats are brought up, and no one ever looks into them to check if they're actually legitimate in making her "_ level". There's also the fact that people don't have a full understanding of how her powers work whenever they bring up impressive feats. They just see these feats and assumes Ladybug scales to them. To put it simply, Miraculous has a lot of feats that out of context seem like "oh yeah that totally works out" and then you actually watch the show and you're like "Woah. This is worthless."

TL/DR: Watch Miraculous to gain a full understanding of Ladybug's powers and what she actually scales and doesn't scale to.

Weaknesses

Even with lady magic and lady luck, Ladybug is far from perfect. While she uses her earrings to transform into her superhero alter ego, forcibly removing them would change her back to Marinette Dupain-Cheng in an instant. After all, the Ladybug earrings are what grants Marinette her powers. In addition, Ladybug will be forced to transform back into Marinette 5 minutes after the moment she summons her Lucky Charm.

And while the Lucky Charm will provide any object that'll be the solution to any current conflict, it can only be used once per transformation. In addition, the Lucky Charm is more of a riddle or puzzle for Ladybug to solve rather than an actual weapon. She needs to figure out how to use it to defeat an enemy and would sometimes have Cat Noir or another ally to give her time to set up a plan. However, this can prove detrimental in a one on one fight as she won't have any allies to help her as well as her opponent not giving her a chance to set up her plan with the Lucky Charm.

In addition, Ladybug can sometimes crack under pressure if the odds are heavily stacked against her, resulting in a fear of failure as a superhero. This can cause her to lose focus during battle or lose confidence in herself. The worst possible scenario is not being able to figure out how to use her Lucky Charm. While Ladybug had to experience intense pressure and the fear of failure more than once, she would always pull through in the end. Lastly, she has this unhealthy obsession with her crush Adrien Agreste. A really unhealthy obsession.

Overall

  • Strength/Durability: Multi-City Block+ level; Small Town level (If you scale her to the Eiffel Tower explosion); Town level (If you accept her statement of being able to stop a meteor from destroying Paris)
  • Speed: FTL (Faster than light)
  • + Can remain transformed as a superhero for an unlimited amount of time unless she summons her Lucky Charm
  • + Lucky Charm will provide an object that can be used to solve a conflict
  • + Unification and Miracle Box provides access to other superpowers
  • + Forms via the macaroons will allow her to gain extra abilities and adapt to certain environments
  • - Forced removal of earrings will transform Ladybug back to Marinette
  • - Will be forced to transform back into Marinette 5 minutes after summoning the Lucky Charm
  • - Object summoned via the Lucky Charm is random and requires thinking
  • - Needs time to set up a plan or trap with the Lucky Charm object

Most Wanted Opponent


Spider-Man

My most heavily request opponent for Ladybug to fight, especially in Rooster Teeth's Death Battle, is none other than Marvel Comic's friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. It can be weird for some to see Ladybug face the character who was the inspiration for her creation, but it's definitely the match-up I want to see the most. The creator of Death Battle, Ben Singer, has stated to have seen some requests by fans for this match-up, and it isn't difficult to know why. Both characters have started their superhero journey as a teenager, having to balance their school life with their superhero life. They both adopted a persona related to bugs, they both fight a colorful rogues gallery, they both protect major cities (New York City and Paris), and they both have love interests wearing black cat costumes with powers relating to bad luck. In addition, this fight has a lot of potential as both characters can swing from building to building, and they can perfectly play off from one another in terms of dialogue. So I do hope Death Battle decides to do this match-up as a future episode.

October 2nd, 2020 - As of today, I co-commissioned a "What If" soundtrack from Death Battle's official composer Brandon Yates for Spider-Man VS Ladybug. The soundtrack is titled Amazingly Miraculous, and it can be found on my YouTube channel and later on Brandon Yates' YouTube channel.


Resources:
Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir
Miraculous Ladybug Wiki
VS Battles Wiki (For calculations specifically)

Special Thanks To:
TheShinBoy
Speedy (also known as SpeedyCal)
Twice
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