Adoptive muscle memory
| Adoptive muscle memory | |
|---|---|
 Monica replicates a difficult gymnastics move. | |
| Held by: | Monica Dawson |
| Ability to: | Replicate any physical action |
| Examples of adoptive muscle memory | |
Adoptive muscle memory, also referred to as muscle mimicry, is the ability to replicate any physical action after seeing it performed once.
Characters
- Monica Dawson is the only character known to have this ability. (The Kindness of Strangers)
Limits
Monica's ability requires that she actually sees the action performed, though not necessarily in person. Monica is able to use her ability with or without active concentration. She has cut a tomato into a rose without consciously thinking about it while watching the said action. Monica was also surprised after she performed a wrestling move against a robber instinctively. Also, in Fight or Flight, she states that she's unable to play the piano while playing the piano. Micah realized Monica was playing before she realized it herself.
It is currently not clear whether Monica retains an acquired skill permanently or "forgets" it after a period of time.
Selected Examples
-
Monica carves a tomato into a rose after seeing the action performed by a cooking show host.
(The Kindness of Strangers) -
Monica sees a wrestler perform a move...
-
...and later knocks back a robber with it.
(The Kindness of Strangers) -
Monica learns double dutch after watching another girl..
-
..and copies it perfectly.
(Fight or Flight) -
Monica replicates several advanced martial arts moves after seeing Jason Scott Lee do the same moves in Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story.
(Fight or Flight) -
-
..from her ipod.
(Truth & Consequences)
Memorable Quotes
"I shouldn't be able to do this. I saw it on TV."
Notes
- In a CBR Q&A session, Joe Pokaski and Aron Coleite elaborated on Monica's powers. "Monica can only do things within her physical limit. Now as an athletic 20-year-old girl, there are a lot of things within her limit. But, no--if she saw Nathan fly, she couldn't fly."
- Micah identifies St. Joan, from a 9th Wonders! comic, as a muscle mimic. (Fight or Flight)
- Heroes: Survival describes Miles Lecomte as having an ability called "memory theft", which seems to have some similar (and some different) aspects as Monica's ability.
See Also
- For other uses of memory, see memory (disambig).
- For other uses of mimic, see mimic (disambig).