History Main / DragoninChief

See also HyperCompetentSidekick, DragonAscendant, TheStarscream and especially the BigBadWannabe, whom Dragons-in-Chiefs usually work for. Compare/Contrast TheHeavy, which is usually simply TheDragon to an off-screen GreaterScopeVillain, but not necessarily a Dragon-In-Chief in themselves.

The Dragon-in-Chief is a version of TheDragon who serves as the ''de facto'' BigBad of the story, even if they're supposedly not the one in charge. They're nominally subordinate to another villain, but typically [[HyperCompetentSidekick so much smarter, stronger or more skilful]], and just as evil if not more so (and almost always scarier) that it's clear who's really the bigger menace. This character tends to have almost no respect for the Big Bad due to their comparative lack of {{vision|aryVillain}}, [[VillainousValour courage]] or [[PragmaticVillainy common sense]].

* ''Film/ThePatriot''. Colonel William Tavington takes his orders from General Cornwallis and his direct subordinate, but he's by far the biggest threat in the film to Martin and the militia as the British troops' field commander, a more vile villain, and much better at hunting them down.

** [[MoralGuardians Sheila Broflovski]] is this to Bill Clinton. Although Clinton presides over America during its war against Canada and persecution of Canadian-Americans, he only shows up in a single scene in the entire film, a televised speech where he announces the declaration of war against Canada, the execution date of Terrence and Phillip, and appoints Mrs. Broflovski as his "Secretary of Offense". However, as soon as Clinton makes the announcement, Shelia Broflovski immediately steals the spotlight from him. Even before her appointment as Secretary of Offense, Mrs. Broflovski was a more plot-relevant antagonist than Clinton, as the founder and leader of "Mothers Against Canada", where she was the one who riled up Americans against Canada in the first place during her VillainSong, "Blame Canada". Unlike Clinton, Mrs. Broflovski was physically present during the FinalBattle, [[spoiler:where she personally kills Terrence and Phillip. After Satan and Saddam Hussein are unleashed, they both hold ''her'' responsible for enabling their return]].

** The original Broly was kept in check by his father, Paragus, using a mind-control device, due to the former's much greater fighting prowess combined with an extreme thirst for destruction; this led to Paragus deciding to use his mind-controlled son as a way to rule the universe. Upon meeting Goku, Broly's intense hatred enabled him to begin bypassing the device's workings over an extended period of time, ultimately destroying it and freeing him from Paragus's control entirely. Soon after that, Broly would [[SelfMadeOrphan kill Paragus]] when the latter attempts to pull a ScrewThisImOuttaHere

* ''Anime/FushigiYuugi'': Nakago serves the Emperor of Kutou who ''seems'' to be the BigBad. However, it is Nakago who commands the Seiryuu warriors against the heroes, Nakago who is easily the biggest threat to the heroes physically and strategically, and Nakago whose schemes drive the story forward (both the overall story of the war between kingdoms and the personal story of the heroine Miaka). The Emperor is ''so'' irrelevant as a threat that [[spoiler:it turns out the entire war was part of a scheme Nakago enacted so that ''he'' could kill the Emperor himself, which makes so little difference to the threat facing the heroes that they are not even aware when Nakago succeeds.]]

* ''Fanfic/ResonanceDays'' establishes right out the gate that the supposed BigBad Oblivion is simply a figurehead, and the true villain is her second-in-command, the incubator Reibey. In the prologue, the previous Oblivion kills herself, and Reibey gloats that he'll replace her soon enough. By the time the fic proper starts up, the new Oblivion is an easily manipulated young girl. That said, however, it's implied that there might be more to the story; The original Oblivion, who's been missing for the past who knows how long, was [[VillainousFriendship a genuine friend of Reibey]], until they had a falling out. He supposedly became a lot worse after she disappeared, so there might be some aspect of ReplacementGoldfish too.

* ''Literature/TheDawnOfYangchen'': [[spoiler: Although the Unanimity combustionbenders (Thapa, Yingsu, and Xiaoyun) are working for Zongdu Henshe, it's made very clear that the three of them hold the real power as Henshe's ineffectual on his own. They even force Henshe to increase their payment ''twentyfold'' or else they'll sell him out to the Earth King.]]

* ''Series/CobraKai'': Terry Silver is this to John Kreese in both ''Film/TheKarateKidPartIII'' and his long reappearance in ''Series/CobraKai'' Season 4. While ''Part III'' is all about Kreese's revenge on Daniel and Mr. Miyagi, it's Silver that does all the work on his war buddy's behalf (i.e., hiring Mike Barnes as Daniel's rival and tormentor, Silver himself tormenting Daniel through torture as his EvilMentor). ''Cobra Kai'' makes things a bit more complicated; Kreese wants to remain as the current Cobra Kai's main sensei despite re-recruiting Silver as a "partner", going as far as to use guilt-tripping and Vietnam War flashbacks to assert control over his war buddy. Silver himself over time becomes a much bigger threat due to his greater access to resources still as a wealthy businessman, his more pragmatic approach when it comes to fighting (as proven through his victory by proxy in a sparring match featuring Robby against Kenny), his combat skill vastly surpassing Kreese (given his bout against Johnny), and ultimately his influence in the tournament going being everyone's back in bribing the referee to guarantee Cobra Kai's victory. All of this reaches its peak with Silver betraying Kreese and moving forward with his ultimate plan: expanding Cobra Kai.

* ''Series/DoctorWho'': PlayedWith. Davros is little more than a pet for the Supreme Dalek upon his return in Series 4, but it's his plan for the Reality Bomb his creations are following. Also, Dalek Caan needed him to recreat his species. All of this, combinated with his personal enmity with the Doctor, makes Davros effectively the face of the Dalek threat.

** ''[[VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoViceCity Vice City]]'': It’s own VillainProtagonist Tommy Vercetti starts out as one top enforcers for the antagonist Sonny Forelli, and was sent to Vice City in the first place to run a drug trade on Forelli's behalf. Throughout the game, Tommy branches off on his own, becoming the kingpin of Vice City, while Forelli spends most of the game in Liberty City, being duped over by Tommy. When Forelli finally goes after Tommy for branching out, Tommy kills Sonny almost as soon as he shows up. It also turns out Sonny threw Tommy under the bus years earlier, ''because'' he feared Tommy would turn against him and had growing power and reputation in Liberty City's underworld; [[SelfFulfillingProphecy which ironically cemented Tommy's disloyalty to Sonny]].

* ''VideoGame/LANoire'': The Suburban Redevelopment Fund is a conspiracy to extort millions from the Government by Leland Monroe. While Monroe is the leader of their syndicate, his new recruit Dr. Harlan Fontaine, quickly becomes the syndicates key planner, and is less afraid to get his hands dirty than Monroe; arranging for homes to be set on fire to buy out their lands, and one of LA's top drug distributors. Fontaine is more level headed and ruthless than Monroe, and keeps nearly everyone in the dark about his involvement; Monroe is considerably ineffective when he goes after the protagonists, being put out of commission by Jack Kelso, almost immediately after trying to have him killed.

* ''Franchise/TouhouProject''
** ''VideoGame/TouhouEiyashouImperishableNight'': Eirin Yagokoro serves under Kaguya Houraisen, but is the [[BigBad mastermind]] behind the game's events and is much stronger than Kaguya, although she holds back her power out of respect for her mistress. She even has [[GameplayAndStoryIntegration a tougher boss fight]] than Kaguya in-game.

* ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'': Played With regarding Adam Taurus. While he’s below White Fang’s High Leader, Sienna Khan, Adam was the ''de-facto'' face of the organization, overshadowing her as a “hero” to the Faunus. While Sienna initially encouraged Adam's violence, Adam became a lot more extreme than Sienna, opting for Faunus supremacy over Kahn’s goals for equality. When Sienna tries to rein him in, Adam murders her and usurps the White Fang completely. Where this gets played with is, while Adam is a lot more ruthless than the pragmatic Sienna, he’s not as competent. Prioritizing his vendetta against Blake over the actual cause, Adam being hot headed and short sighted, as well as his betrayals selfishness leads to him being ousted from the White Fang, entirely.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons''.

* From Seasons 1-3 of ''Series/TheWire'', Stringer Bell. Stringer is technically second-in-command to Avon Barksdale (in their drug-trafficking operation) but is the brains of the organization and as early as the first season he is often (but not always) controlling the direction that their criminal empire goes. Some of the Barksdale's underlings liken [[ChessMotifs Stringer to the Queen and Avon to the King in Chess]], calling Stringer the "get shit done piece" who gets his hands dirty to keep Avon out of danger. During Avon's incarceration from the end of Season 1 until midway through Season 3, Stringer takes full control of all operations, and takes a number of actions that Avon would have never approved of while keeping Avon in the dark about what is happening. These orders include the secret murder of [[spoiler:Avon's nephew D'Angelo, and making a treaty with Avon's hated enemy "Proposition Joe" Stewart]]. However after Avon gets out of prison in the third season and especially in the last few episodes, it's shown that Stringer is not as thoroughly in-control as he had imagined.

* From Seasons 1-3 of ''Series/TheWire'', Stringer Bell. Stringer is technically second-in-command to Avon Barksdale (in their drug-trafficking operation) but is the brains of the organization and as early as the first season he is often (but not always) controlling the direction that their criminal empire goes. During Avon's incarceration from the end of Season 1 until midway through Season 3, Stringer takes full control of all operations, and takes a number of actions that Avon would have never approved of while keeping Avon in the dark about what is happening. These orders include the secret murder of [[spoiler:Avon's nephew D'Angelo, and making a treaty with Avon's hated enemy "Proposition Joe" Stewart]]. However after Avon gets out of prison in the third season and especially in the last few episodes, it's shown that Stringer is not as thoroughly in-control as he had imagined.

* ''Series/DoctorWho'': Davros is little more than a pet for the Supreme Dalek upon his return in Series 4, but it's his plan for the Reality Bomb his creations are following. Also, he was this for Dalek Caan, because he needed him to recreat his species. All of this, combinated with his personal enmity with the Doctor, makes Davros effectively the face of the Dalek threat.

* ''Series/DoctorWho'': PlayedWith. Davros is little more than a pet for the Supreme Dalek upon his return in Series 4, but it's his plan for the Reality Bomb his creations are following. Also, he was this for Dalek Caan, because he needed him to recreat his species, also his personal enmity with the Doctor, makes Davros effectively the face of the Dalek threat.

* ''Series/DoctorWho'': PlayedWith. Davros is little more than a pet for the Supreme Dalek upon his return in Series 4, but it's his plan for the Reality Bomb his creations are following. Dalek Caan saved him from the Time War because he needed him to recreat his species, also his personal enmity with the Doctor, makes Davros effectively the face of the Dalek threat.

%%* Cecile in ''VideoGame/WinBack''. Also TheStarscream.

* ''Film/TheLastOfTheMohicans'': Magua technically works for the French General Montcalm, but his vendetta against the family of Colonel Munro is central to the film's plot as it pits him against the main characters, the Mohicans. For the film's third act, Montcalm drops out of the film when Fort William Henry falls, allowing Magua to take center stage.

* ''Film/TheLastBoyScout'': Marcone is the BigBad, [[NonActionBigBad but he's a pudgy old man who prefers to stay on the sidelines and never battles the heroes head-on.]] He's dwarfed in both screentime and threat level by his right-hand man Milo, a psychopathic mercenary who has a personal hatred for Joe and a violent streak a mile wide.

* ''VideoGame/RedDeadRedemptionII'': While the game's key conflict is the downfall of the Van Der Linde gang, especially their leader Dutch, Micah Bell ends up being the ultimate antagonist. Micah is the most vicious of the Van Der Linde gang, lacking any of their virtues, whilsest manipulating the increasingly unstable and short sighted Dutch following his partner Hosea's death. Besides being the proverbial Devil on Dutch's shoulder, all but running the gang through a despondent Dutch, Michah plans on selling the gang out to the Pinkerton's, before branching out and starting his own gang. While Michah is soon killed by John Marston, the aftermath of his betrayals and manipulations carry on well after his death, with former members such as Dutch, Bill and Javier are but murderous shadows of their former selves.

** ''[[VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoIII III]]'': The game’s VillainProtagonist Claude, is a pretty effective enforcer for his bosses, be it [[TheDon Salvatore Leone]], [[TheYakuza the Kasen's]] or Donald Love. However it's implied that Claude is using them more as a means to his own ends - his revenge quest against Catalina - than the other way around. Notably, he helps Donald Love start a war between the Yakuza and the Cartel and has a tendency to turn against and even kill some of his bosses. When Asuka Kasen learns of Claude's history and vendetta towards Catalina, it becomes more like the Yakuza are helping Claude in his fight than the other way around.

** ''[[VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoViceCity Vice City]]'': It’s own VillainProtagonist Tommy Vercetti starts out as one top enforcers for the antagonist Sonny Forelli, and was sent to Vice City in the first place, to run a drug trade on Forelli's behalf. Throughout the game, Tommy branches off on his own, becoming the kingpin of Vice City, while Forelli spends most of the game in Liberty City, being duped over by Tommy. When Forelli finally goes after Tommy for branching out, Tommy kills Sonny almost as soon as he shows up. It also turns out Sonny threw Tommy under the bus years earlier, ''because'' he feared Tommy would turn against him and had growing power and reputation in Liberty City's underworld; [[SelfFulfillingProphecy which ironically cemented Tommy's disloyalty to Sonny]].

* ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsRebels'': Grand Admiral Thrawn is, on-paper, a subordinate to Governor Pryce. However, due to [[TheChessmaster Thrawn's]] peerless strategic genius, he ends up being the far bigger threat to the nascent Rebel Alliance. Later on, when Pryce makes a mistake that has the potential to irreparably derail Thrawn's long-term plan for victory in the war, and then throws a parade to distract from it, he throws all pretenses about being her subordinate out the window, [[TranquilFury seething]] that she ''will'' be dealt with by him in time.

* ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry3DantesAwakening''[='=]s Vergil to [[spoiler:Arkham. While Arkham manipulates Vergil, and does out-gambit him, it's blatantly obvious in the storyline that he was nothing without Vergil backing him. As soon as Arkham makes his move and gains Sparda's power...he degenerates from a copy of Sparda into a near-mindless demonic blob. His powers are easily destroyed by both Sparda twins and he's summarily shot by Lady]].

* ''Film/JohnWickChapter3Parabellum'' has Zero, an assassin hired by the Adjudicator and acts as the main physical muscle for the High Table in their war against John Wick. [[DragonWithAnAgenda He also doesn't seem to care all that much about the High Table, focusing mostly on fighting and killing John Wick]].

* ''Film/RockNRolla'': Archy is initially Mob Boss Lenny Cole's intelligent, competent, pragmatic, loyal, NobleTopEnforcer, and a major player in Lenny's everyday operations. [[spoiler:However, having witnessed several instances of Lenny's abhorrent conduct, after being betrayed by Lenny, Archy finally retaliates against his employer and usurps him.]]

* An interesting VillainProtagonist example in ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoV''. The two main antagonists, Steve Haines and Devin Weston are virtually helpless without the protagonists on their side. What makes them the antagonists is that they also make a mistake of turning against two of the protagonists, Michael and Trevor. The conflict between Michael and Trevor has more effect on the plot then either antagonist. It should be noted, [[spoiler: the only way Steve or Devin can win is if Michael or Trevor dies, and even then they need help from the third protagonist, Franklin, who ''can'' TakeAThirdOption and agree to kill them and two other antagonists, Stretch who had backstabbed Frankling and his friend Lamar and Wei Cheng who had a personal rivalry with Trevor and attacked Michael thinking he was Trevor's lover]].

* In ''Film/TheAccountant'', while Lamar may be the BigBad, the mercenary he hired, Braxton, serves as the biggest threat in the film. He is the one who does all {{the heavy}} lifting, is responsible for the planning, and is also the only one who can match Wolff, his brother, in hand to hand combat, while Lamar stays out of his way and remains a NonActionBigBad. Braxton himself doesn't really like Lamar at all and lets his brother shoot him without a fuss after they've both fought each other to exhaustion.

* ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsRebels'': Grand Admiral Thrawn is, on-paper, a subordinate to Governor Pryce. However, due to [[TheChessmaster Thrawn's]] peerless strategic genius, he ends up being the far bigger threat to the nascent Rebel Alliance. Later on, when Pryce makes a mistake that has the potential to irreparably derail Thrawn's long-term plan for victory in the war, and then throws a celebration for it, he throws all pretenses about being her subordinate out the window, [[TranquilFury seething]] that she ''will'' be dealt with by him in time.