mall ninja

Originated in several 2000-2001 discussions on Internet forums devoted to firearms, in which a poster bragged about his firearm expertise while claiming to be a "Sergeant of a three-man Rapid Tactical Force" at an American mall, trained in "ninjitsu". He was soon nicknamed "the mall ninja".^[1]

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mall ninja (plural mall ninjas)

1. (derogatory, informal) A person who brags about being a weaponry expert and connoisseur, but exposes their ignorance by making improbable claims about their experience or skill.
   • 2002 September 13, "Rawhide Clyde", “Re: Are Striders worth their price?”, in rec.knives‎^[2] (Usenet):

     I own a Strider [knife]. Nope, I'm not a mall ninja or secret squirrel but it gives me pleasure to own them.

   • 2005 April 30, Mike Kelly, “Re: I got to stay out of the politic groups...”, in talk.politics.guns‎^[3] (Usenet):

     I too abandoned those groups. Granted, I was one who had my mind made up for the most part, but not entirely. I just grew frustrated with the kindergarten sophistry, mall ninja bravado, and so on.

   • 2007, Patrick Sweeney, The Gun Digest Book of the AR-15, Volume 2‎^[4], Gun Digest Books, →ISBN, page 219:

     No big deal, unless you're anal about being mil-spec "correct" to impress your mall ninja buddies.

   • 2008 March 6, "WuzYoungOnceToo", “Re: Hey pickle! try again”, in rec.gambling.poker‎^[5] (Usenet):

     You know...like the delusion that you were ever a LEO [law enforcement officer], while you sound far more like a frustrated mall ninja.

   • 2016, Bryce M. Towsley, Prepper Guns‎^[6], Skyhorse Publishing, →ISBN:

     A compound bow is much better [than a crossbow] in every respect, expect maybe for exciting those mall ninjas who, when they are not watching The Walking Dead, hide in their mom's basement and fantasize about Lara Croft.