History Main / EvilEvolves

** However, the trope is played straight in a way that mixes with FridgeBrilliance. Before Voldemort came along, Grindelwald was considered the most dangerous wizard in existence (being that he had the Elder Wand). In a way, the Dark Arts are like an EvilPowerVaccum, with a greater dark force replacing the one that fell. Of course, [[FridgeHorror based on that logic, there's a chance a more terrible wizard than Voldemort will rise.]]

* The Krillatane from ''DoctorWho'' absorb traits from species they conquer via DNA absorption.

* As a meta-example, many villains evolve throughout the decades to better reflect their adversaries and the time. Lex Luthor has gone from insane scientist to politician to business man to reflect the changing views of society and many of Batman's villains have ceased to be gimmicky tricksters into dark and insane psychopaths. In the Dark Knight the Joker himself is described as a terrorist, playing on the recent fear of terrorism striking the west over the the last decade.

If the forces of evil didn't constantly mutate and get better at what they do (fight, steal, sabotage, blackmail, or whatever), the forces of good would've destroyed them eons ago. Simply put, evil, its shape, forms, powers and so on are dynamic, constantly changing and subject to survival of the the fittest. This is what the SocialDarwinist is talking about, and it's definitely what the EvilutionaryBiologist is going to use against you. If you're lucky, they'll [[EvolutionaryLevels evolve according to a predictable pattern]] and you'll be able to anticipate any changes in tactics and equipment you'll need.

* Debatable whether they're evil or not, but bacteria and viruses apply this trope literally.
** They have no free will, therefore they can't be evil. [[TrueNeutral They're just living creatures doing what they have to in order to survive.]]

* [[DigitalPiracyIsEvil Hackers.]] Every time companies come out with new ways to prevent theft, the hackers just try again and get sneakier.

[[caption-width-right:322: Kill 'em all and they come back for more.]]

->Always after a defeat and a respite, the Shadow takes another shape and grows again.\\
-'''Gandalf''', ''[[LordOfTheRings The Fellowship of the Ring]]''

->The Dark Arts are many, varied, ever-changing and eternal. Fighting them is like fighting a many-headed monster, which, each time a neck is severed, sprouts a head even fiercer and cleverer than before. You are fighting that which is unfixed, mutating, indestructible.\\
--'''[[HarryPotter Professor Severus Snape]]'''

-> "Evil always finds a way." \\
--'''Gnarl''', ''{{Overlord}}''.

* The quote in the heading by Severus Snape oddly leads to a subversion. The respected Evil aka Lord Voldemort turns out SO unimaginative, predictable and unflexible that the most preposterous XanatosRoulette ever instrumented by the good guys works like a charm.

* The Hollows of ''{{Bleach}}''. By eating other hollows, they gain power, and evolve through a [[EvolutionaryLevels distinct series of forms]]. Ichigo's inner hollow has also gotten more powerful between the instances we see him. It is theorized that he is subject to normal hollow evolution, despite being suppressed by a shinigami.

** [[YourMileageMayVary YMMV]] whether this is evil or Chaotic Neutral.
*** Not. There is clear line between malicious or just chaotic neutral. But no matter what you do, some hacker somewhere WILL find a way through and exploit it.Then s/he will spread the word.
*** To clear up: Hacking/breaking protection system is ok if you do it to your own software, but voids warranty. Breaking protection and redistributing program/method of breaking is illegal.

* All serious criminal are like this. Gangs, conmen, forgers, embezzelers, launderers and so on. As the police learn new ways to track, stop and prevent their activities they learn a dozen new tricks.

If the forces of evil didn't constantly mutate and get better at what they do (fight, steal, sabotage, blackmail, or whatever), the forces of good would've destroyed them eons ago. Simply put, evil, its shape, forms, powers and so on are dynamic, constantly changing and subject to survival of the the fittest. This is what the {{Darwinist}} is talking about, and it's definitely what the EvilutionaryBiologist is going to use against you. If you're lucky, they'll [[EvolutionaryLevels evolve according to a predictable pattern]] and you'll be able to anticipate any changes in tactics and equipment you'll need.

* The Krillatane from ''DoctorWho'' absorb traits from species they conquer via DNA absorption.

[[{{Warhammer40000}} http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/rarr_nids.jpg]]
[[caption-width:322: Kill 'em all and they come back for more.]]

-->Always after a defeat and a respite, the Shadow takes another shape and grows again.\\

-->The Dark Arts are many, varied, ever-changing and eternal. Fighting them is like fighting a many-headed monster, which, each time a neck is severed, sprouts a head even fiercer and cleverer than before. You are fighting that which is unfixed, mutating, indestructible.\\
-'''[[HarryPotter Professor Severus Snape]]'''

--> "Evil always finds a way." \\
-'''Gnarl''', ''{{Overlord}}''.

* In the ''LegionOfSuperheroes'' cartoon after his apparent death Brainiac takes on a new, seemingly partially organic form and proclaims:

* A trademark of the ''ResidentEvil'' games is the constantly evolving enemies, probably best reflected by the final boss of Resident Evil Zero- every time you "kill" him he just evolves into his next form, so you have to "kill" him about a half dozen times in just as many forms.

Compare VivaLaEvolution

* The Phyrexians of ''Magic: The Gathering'' are constantly improving upon their mechanical fighters, and they recycle the flesh of fallen enemies to create new soldiers (called ''newts'').

[[caption-width:322: Kill 'em all and they come back for more]]

* The Brood from the Marvel Universe are giant wasp-like aliens. Their Queen lays eggs inside their victims, which keep their hosts alive until they hatch. When this happens, the host and the symbiote merge into a fully grown Brood with the host's special genetic abilities. The process is almost flawless, as the Queen was very surprised when Wolverine's HealingFactor kills the symbiote she implanted in him.

* Sylar from ''{{Heroes}}''.

* WarningForever has enemy ship that constantly grows according to how you destroyed it last time. Attacked from behind? It grows more armor on back. Attacked from side? Same thing. Hit it from the blind spot? It grows missile launcher. And it never ends.

<<|EvilTropes|>>

[[folder:Manga and Anime]]
* Naraku, the main villain of ''InuYasha'', is constantly adding new demons to his body, which is the bodies of hundreds of demons thrown together in a blender and solidified.
** While not technically evil, InuYasha's sword is also capable of absorbing powers from the demons he slays with it.
* The Hollows of ''{{Bleach}}''. By eating other hollows, they gain power, and evolve through a [[EvolutionaryLevels distinct series of forms]]. Ichigo's inner hollow has also gotten more powerful between the instances we see him. It is theorized that he is subject to normal hollow evolution, despite being suppressed by a shinigami.
* While the Kyuubi isn't getting stronger, the seal holding him inside {{Naruto}} was getting weaker, and more and more tails popped out everytime his power was used.
* Frieza from ''{{Dragonball}} Z'' goes through three transformation sequences before reaching his ultimate form. Even then, he gets a power upgrade later on by becoming a cyborg, though this does surprisingly little good as he gets prompty curb stomped almost immediately afterward. On the absorption side of things, Cell and Buu (especially Buu) also qualify as this trope.
[[/folder]]

*WarningForever has enemy ship that constantly grows acoring to how you destroyed it last time. Attacked from behind? It grows more armor on back. Attacked from side? Same thing. Hit it from the blind spot? It grows missile launcher. And it never ends.

*** Not. There is clear line between malicious or just chaotic neutral. But no matter what you do, some hacker somehwere WILL find a way through and exploit it.Then s/he will spread the word.