History Analysis / DracoInLeatherPants

We often hold the heroes to a [[TheParagon higher standard]], because we expect them to be good and to put in their all to be that good. Since villains do not have any sort of moral obligation, we won't call them out for doing something minor like we would the hero. Because of this lax double standard the villains are more free to be the LargeHam or be cool, sexy, or interesting in other ways, because, unless they cross the MoralEventHorizon we are less likely to disdain them for doing something morally questionable ([[Captain Obvious they're already bad]]) than we are to the heroes.

We often hold the heroes to a [[TheParagon higher standard]], because we expect them to be good and to put in their all to be that good. Villains do not have any sort of moral expectation, we won't call them out for doing something minor like we would the hero. Because of this double standard the villains are more free to be the LargeHam or be cool or interesting in other ways.

!!6. DoubleStandard and female villains

!!7. Visual Aspect of Attraction, Objectification, and Internalization of Stereotypes

* Some villain archetypes, such as the SmugSnake (because of their off-puttingly arrogant personality), female villains (they '''may''' even [[RealWomenDontWearDresses be hated]] for [[DoubleStandard exactly the same actions]]), {{AntiHero}}es, {{AntiVillain}}s, and the CompleteMonster (because of the severity of their evil deeds) are rarely susceptible to this. But it can still happen.

* It is possibly a real-life example of AllGirlsWantBadBoys (most victims of this trope are male). Characters of this type are also often prime repositories for FetishFuel, so softening their darker aspects may, in some cases, be a fan's self-justification for her own PerverseSexualLust.

It's true for men. {{Femme Fatale}}s and [[TheVamp Vamps]] are often considered "hot" by {{Fan Boy}}s. While the heroine may look pretty, she doesn't ooze sexuality like villainesses tend to do, since, as we all know, a [[MyGirlIsNotASlut sexually active woman is not wife-material]]. Since this is [[AManIsNotAVirgin inverted for males]], the sexiness male villains ooze is often inherent and switches on many girls' desire to be dominated and literally owned by a bad man. {{Love Martyr}}dom often involves Sex Martyrdom and other kinds of unsavoury things. All of this is nullified if the villain is physically unattractive, though.

* Many villains also imply with their actions that they are physically strong/healthy/fit (at least strong enough to become a serious problem for the heroes), and physical strength and the possibility of becoming an alpha male is always a trait which makes people physically attractive in a biological way.

[[AmbitionIsEvil Villains are often ambitious]]. Since most of them often become kings, emperors, or have some form of authority, girls dream about being the respected dark queen at their side, whose high status ensures that no one will ever be disrespectful to her or disobey any order she may give as a the DarkLord's lady. In other words, the freedom of being a bitch and not getting any flack for it. Series/{{House}} proves that many men like being jerks and get away with it. Women are no different.

The [[InvertedTrope inverse]] of #2, in this case it's the feeling that the girl's (or guys as well) love is capable of changing the Draco.

As one can notice, we mostly talk about girls and women when it comes to people who invoke the trope. The reason? Count the female villains who get sexialised for the same deeds compared to the male ones. It seems {{Fanboy}}s are hardly as sensitive to the DracoInLeatherPants effect as {{Fangirl}}s are. If a female villain is sexy enough, she may be turned into a LustObject but rarely will boys and men wax eloquent about marrying or changing her. And, as one could expect, girls and women will just hate her for being an evil bitch when most of them would be fapping at the sight of a sexy man doing the exact same thing.

Attraction to a potential mate's physical appearance is the main factor in human mate selection, male or female. If a character is hot people are going to want them. There is no question that male fans lust after attractive female villains just as much as female fans lust after attractive male villains. The difference is that male fans objectify the female villain, which is to say they view her purely as a sex object, making her personality irrelevant. Female fans, on the other hand, feel the need to justify their attraction by finding or inventing personality traits that would make the villain lovable or worthy of a real relationship. This could be explained by our culture's widespread objectification of female bodies (men are used to enjoying the sight of women without having to think about the women in question as people), as well as the stereotypes that boys and men are highly visual and only interested in sex, while women and girls are less visually oriented (studies show that women are actually more turned on, faster, and by a much wider variety of visual stimulus than men) and only interested in relationships (explained by both upbringing, and the quality of sex men are willing to provide based on their relationship to the woman involved). The over-valuing of romance and stigma attached to sexuality which is ingrained in girls from infancy leads them to confuse sexual attraction for romantic interest, and thus teen girls (who write a huge percentage of fanfic) have an unfortunate tendency to think they are in love with every cute guy they see.

* Many villains also imply with their actions that they are physically strong/healthy/fit (at least strong enough to become a serious problem for the heroes) and physical strength and the possibility of becoming an alpha male is always a trait which makes people physically attractive in a biological way.

Attraction to a potential mate's physical appearance is the main factor in human mate selection, male or female. If a character is hot people are going to want them. There is no question that male fans lust after attractive female villains just as much as female fans lust after attractive male villains. The difference is that male fans objectify the female villain, which is to say they view her purely as a sex object, making her personality irrelevant. Female fans, on the other hand, feel the need to justify their attraction by finding or inventing personality traits that would make the villain lovable or worthy of a real relationship. This could be explained by our culture's widespread objectification of female bodies (men are used to enjoying the sight of women without having to think about the women in question as people), as well as the stereotypes that boys and men are highly visual and only interested in sex, while women and girls are less visually oriented and only interested in relationships. The over-valuing of romance and stigma attached to sexuality for girls leads them to confuse sexual attraction for romantic interest, and teen girls (who write a huge percentage of fanfic), have an unfortunate tendency to think they are in love with every cute guy they see.

Attraction to a potential mate's physical appearance is the main factor in human mate selection, male or female. If a character is hot people are going to want them. There is no question that male fans lust after attractive female villains just as much as female fans lust after attractive male villains. The difference is that male fans objectify the female villain, which is to say they view her purely as a sex object, making her personality irrelevant. Female fans, on the other hand, feel the need to justify their attraction by finding or inventing personality traits that would make the villain lovable or worthy of a real relationship. This could be explained by our culture's widespread objectification of female bodies (men are used to enjoying the sight of women without having to think about the women in question as people, as well as the stereotypes that boys and men are highly visual and only interested in sex, while women and girls are less visually oriented and only interested in relationships. The over-valuing of romance and stigma attached to sexuality for girls leads them to confuse sexual attraction for romantic interest, and teen girls (who write a huge percentage of fanfic), have an unfortunate tendency to think they are in love with every cute guy they see.

As one can notice, we mostly talk about girls and women when it comes to people who invoke the trope. The reason? Count the female villains who get sexialised for the same deeds compared to the male ones. It seems {{Fanboy}}s are hardly as sensitive to the DracoInLeatherPants effect as {{Fangirl}}s are. If a female villain is sexy enough, she may be turned into a LustObject but rarely will boys and men wax eloquent about marrying or changing her. And, as one coulkd expect, girls and women will just hate her for being an evil bitch when most of them would be fapping at the sight of a sexy man doing the exact same thing.

!!2. The high status of female {{Love Martyr}}s among females (and, sometimes, among males).

Let's be honest, girls love to drown themselves in a sea of hormonal emotions. Most {{Fan Fiction}}s featuring a DracoInLeatherPants often make him a BastardBoyfriend who turns into a [[ReformedRakes Reformed Rake]] in the end, through ThePowerOfLove. Many teenage girls want be on an emotional rollercoaster and feel constant insecurity about whether or not their boyfriend loves them. It makes them feel alive and gives them the feeling that they have a purpose in life. ''Being strong enough to love a man forever, no matter what he puts you through or what he does to other people makes you a respectable and admirable woman'', according to many teenage girls. Hence the glorification of {{Love Martyr}}dom, which is what most villains guarantee.

* Some villain archetypes, such as the SmugSnake (because of their off-puttingly arrogant personality), female villains (they '''may''' even [[YouSayGirlLikeABadThing be hated]] for [[DoubleStandard exactly the same actions]]), {{AntiHero}}es, {{AntiVillain}}s, and the CompleteMonster (because of the severity of their evil deeds) are rarely susceptible to this. But it can still happen.

* Many villians also imply with their actions that they are physically strong/healthy/fit (at least strong enough to become a serious problem for the heroes) and physical strength and the possibility of becoming an alpha male is always a trait which makes people physically attracktive in a biological way.

!!5. [[LoveRedeems I Can Change Him]].

* And sometimes, it simply proves that some girls (and some guys...) will completely ignore someone's horrid deeds and personalty, simply if they find them sexually attractive.

[[AmbitionIsEvil Villains are often ambitious]]. Since most of them often become kings, emperors, or have some form of authority, girls dream about being the respected dark queen at their side, whose high status ensures that no one will ever be disrespectful to her or disobey any order she may give as a the DarkLord's lady. In other words, the freedom of being a bitch and not getting any flack for it. {{House}} proves that many men like being jerks and get away with it. Women are no different.

Very simple and the younger the FanGirl, the truer it becomes. Villains often show the dominance, the rugged and wild physique and the aloof {{Jerkass}} attitude that most teenage girls crave and that Heroes are much less likely to have. They wish to become the villain's DarkMistress so they can feel protected and validated in their worth for having been able to inspire love in a monstrous man's heart. Being accepted by such a man means you're worthier than any other woman on earth.

!!2. The high status of female {{Love Martyr}}s among females (and sometimes among males).

Let's be honest, girls love to drown themselves in a sea of hormonal emotions. Most {{Fan Fiction}}s featuring a DracoInLeatherPants often make him a BastardBoyfriend who turns into a [[ReformedRakes Reformed Rake]] in the end, through ThePowerOfLove. Many teenage girls want to feel an emotional rollercoaster and constant insecurity about whether or not their boyfriend loves them. It makes them feel alive and gives them the feeling that they have a purpose in life. ''Being strong enough to love a man forever, no matter what he puts you through or what he does to other people makes you a respectable and admirable woman'', according to many teenage girls. Hence the glorification of {{Love Martyr}}dom, which is what most villains guarantee.

[[AmbitionIsEvil Villains are often ambitious]]. Since most of them often become kings, emperors or have some form of authority, girls dream about being the respected dark queen at their side, whose high status ensures that no one will ever be disrespectful to them or disobey any order she may give as a the DarkLord's lady. In other words, the freedom of being a bitch and not getting any flack for it. {{House}} proves that many men like being jerks and get away with it. Women are no different.

It's true for men. {{Femme Fatale}}s and [[TheVamp Vamps]] are often considered "hot" by {{Fan Boy}}s. While the heroine may look pretty, she doesn't ooze sexuality like villainesses tend to do since, as we all know, a [[MyGirlIsNotASlut sexually active woman is not wife-material]]. Since this is [[AManIsNotAVirgin inverted for males]], the sexiness male villains ooze is often inherent and switches on many girls' desire to be dominated and literally owned by a bad man. {{Love Martyr}}dom often involves Sex Martyrdom and other kinds of unsavoury things. All of this is nullified if the villains are physically unattractive though.

* It is possibly a real-life example of AllGirlsWantBadBoys (most victims of this trope are male). Characters of this type are also often prime repositories for FetishFuel, so softening their darker aspects may in some cases be a fan's self-justification for her own PerverseSexualLust.
* It's also true that many villains (especially nowadays) come with [[FreudianExcuse some story attached that does make them seem more sympathetic]]. This can sometimes cause fans to zero in on such stories and forget that the characters are still supposed to be villains.
* In fairness, more than a few authors have written morally ''ambiguous'' characters, then acted surprised when sections of a fandom embraced them as heroic. The personal nature of morality means that actions one person finds to be [[KickTheDog equatable to dog-kicking]] will seem [[IDidWhatIHadToDo perfectly justified]], even pragmatic to another, especially if it's of the DesignatedEvil variety. This is especially common with the MagnificentBastard and the DesignatedVillain. This can be especially true if the setting is the CrapsackWorld or WorldHalfEmpty: in a state of moral ambiguity, if the heroes are not good, and the bystanders are not innocent, audiences will naturally root for the coolest character.
* Some villain archetypes, such as the SmugSnake (because of their off-puttingly arrogant personality), female villains (they '''might''' even [[YouSayGirlLikeABadThing be hated]] for [[DoubleStandard exactly the same actions]]), {{AntiHero}}es, {{AntiVillain}}s and the CompleteMonster (because of the severity of their evil deeds) are rarely susceptible to this. But it still could happen.
* And sometimes it simply proves that some girls (and some guys...) will completely ignore someone's horrid deeds and personalty, simply if they find them sexually attractive.
* Many villians also imply with their actions that they are physically strong/healthy/fit (at least strong enough to become a serious problem for the heroes) and physical strength and the possibility of becoming an alpha male is also allways a trait which makes people physically attracktive in a biological way.

* It is possibly a real-life example of AllGirlsWantBadBoys (most victims of this trope are male). Characters of this type are also often prime repositories for FetishFuel, so softening their darker aspects may in some cases be a fan's self-justification for her own PerverseSexualLust.
* It's also true that many villains (especially nowadays) come with [[FreudianExcuse some story attached that does make them seem more sympathetic]]. This can sometimes cause fans to zero in on such stories and forget that the characters are still supposed to be villains.
* In fairness, more than a few authors have written morally ''ambiguous'' characters, then acted surprised when sections of a fandom embraced them as heroic. The personal nature of morality means that actions one person finds to be [[KickTheDog equatable to dog-kicking]] will seem [[IDidWhatIHadToDo perfectly justified]], even pragmatic to another, especially if it's of the DesignatedEvil variety. This is especially common with the MagnificentBastard and the DesignatedVillain. This can be especially true if the setting is the CrapsackWorld or WorldHalfEmpty: in a state of moral ambiguity, if the heroes are not good, and the bystanders are not innocent, audiences will naturally root for the coolest character.
* Some villain archetypes, such as the SmugSnake (because of their off-puttingly arrogant personality), female villains (they '''might''' even [[YouSayGirlLikeABadThing be hated]] for [[DoubleStandard exactly the same actions]]), {{AntiHero}}es, {{AntiVillain}}s and the CompleteMonster (because of the severity of their evil deeds) are rarely susceptible to this. But it still could happen.
* And sometimes it simply proves that some girls (and some guys...) will completely ignore someone's horrid deeds and personalty, simply if they find them sexually attractive.

1. AllGirlsWantBadBoys. Very simple and the younger the FanGirl, the truer it becomes. Villains often show the dominance, the rugged and wild physique and the aloof {{Jerkass}} attitude that most teenage girls crave and that Heroes are much less likely to have. They wish to become the villain's DarkMistress so they can feel protected and validated in their worth for having been able to inspire love in a monstrous man's heart. Being accepted by such a man means you're worthier than any other woman on earth.

2. The high status of female {{Love Martyr}}s among females (and sometimes among males). Let's be honest, girls love to drown themselves in a sea of hormonal emotions. Most {{Fan Fiction}}s featuring a DracoInLeatherPants often make him a BastardBoyfriend who turns into a [[ReformedRakes Reformed Rake]] in the end, through ThePowerOfLove. Many teenage girls want to feel an emotional rollercoaster and constant insecurity about whether or not their boyfriend loves them. It makes them feel alive and gives them the feeling that they have a purpose in life. ''Being strong enough to love a man forever, no matter what he puts you through or what he does to other people makes you a respectable and admirable woman'', according to many teenage girls. Hence the glorification of {{Love Martyr}}dom, which is what most villains guarantee.

3. Reverberation of high status. [[AmbitionIsEvil Villains are often ambitious]]. Since most of them often become kings, emperors or have some form of authority, girls dream about being the respected dark queen at their side, whose high status ensures that no one will ever be disrespectful to them or disobey any order she may give as a the DarkLord's lady. In other words, the freedom of being a bitch and not getting any flack for it. {{House}} proves that many men like being jerks and get away with it. Women are no different.

4. EvilIsSexy. It's true for men. {{Femme Fatale}}s and [[TheVamp Vamps]] are often considered "hot" by {{Fan Boy}}s. While the heroine may look pretty, she doesn't ooze sexuality like villainesses tend to do since, as we all know, a [[MyGirlIsNotASlut sexually active woman is not wife-material]]. Since this is [[AManIsNotAVirgin inverted for males]], the sexiness male villains ooze is often inherent and switches on many girls' desire to be dominated and literally owned by a bad man. {{Love Martyr}}dom often involves Sex Martyrdom and other kinds of unsavoury things. All of this is nullified if the villains are physically unattractive though.

2. The high status of female {{Love Martyr}}s among females (and sometimes among males). Let's be honest, girls love to drown themselves in a sea of hormonal emotions. Most {{Fan Fiction}}s featuring a DracoInLeatherPants often make him a BastardBoyfriend who turns into a [[ReformedRakes Reformed Rake]] in the end, through ThePowerOfLove. Many teenage girls want to feel an emotional rollercoaster and constant insecurity about whether or not their boyfriend loves them. It makes them feel alive and gives them the feeling that they have a purpose in life. ''Being strong enough to love a man forever, no matter what he puts you through or what he does makes you a respectable and admirable woman'', according to teenage girls. Hence the glorification of {{Love Martyr}}dom, which is what most villains guarantee.

4. EvilIsSexy. It's true for men. {{Femme Fatale}}s and [[TheVamp Vamps]] are often considered "hot" by [[Fan Boy]]s. While the heroine may look pretty, she doesn't ooze sexuality like villainesses tend to do since, as we all know, a [[MyGirlIsNotASlut sexually active woman is not wife-material]]. Since this is [[AManIsNotAVirgin inverted for males]], the sexiness male villains ooze is often inherent and switches on many girls' desire to be dominated and literally owned by a bad man. {{Love Martyr}}dom often involves Sex Martyrdom and other kinds of unsavoury things. All of this is nullified if the villains are physically unattractive though.

2. The high status of female {{Love Martyr}}s among females (and sometimes among males). Let's be honest, girls love to drown themselves in a sea of hormonal emotions. Most {{Fan Fiction}}s featuring a DracoInLeatherPants often make him a BastardBoyfriend who turns into a [[ReformedRakes Reformed Rake]] in the end, through ThePowerOfLove. Many teenage girls want to feel an emotional rollercoaster and constant insecurity about whether or not their boyfriend loves them. It makes them feel alive and gives them the feeling that they have a purpose in life. Being strong enough to love a man forever, no matter what he puts them through or what he does makes you a respectable and admirable woman, according to teenage girls. Hence the glorification of {{Love Martyr}}dom, which is what most villains guarantee.

* And sometimes its simple prove that some girls (and some guys...) will completely ignore someone's horric deeds and personaltiys, simply if they find them sexually attractive.

* And sometimes its simple prove that a girl (and some guys...) will completely ignore someone's horric deeds and personaltiys, simply if they find them sexually attractive.