History Main / PayEviluntoEvil

Sometimes this is done ''retroactively.'' If the hero does some incredibly horrible to someone, it will ''then'' be revealed that this person was really evil all along.

* ''DeathNote'': Light Yagami. This is a guy who freely murders people on a daily basis in spasms of Unholy Satanic Glee because they're criminals... or because they were trying to catch him (and hence are ''evil'')... '''or because they're lazy''' (and not contributing positively to society).

* ''TheBoondockSaints'' believe in this. It's arguable whether their actions and success are a result of divine intervention or just plain dumb luck - but either way, you don't mess with Irish twins.

* Subverted (albeit in a rather {{Narm}}y way) in ''StarWars Episode II'', where Anakin's massacre of a Sand People settlement (women and children included) is considered [[DesignatedEvil a very bad thing]]. The Sand People are presented in the film series as AlwaysChaoticEvil raiders, but the viewers are expected to understand that Anakin's UnstoppableRage is path to the Dark Side. In the expanded universe, the Sand People are portrayed more sympathetically, supporting Anakin's grief over his actions.

* Soddom and Gamorah. The Ten Plagues. The Flood. Samson killing 3,000 Philistines. Judas' death, er, the one where he didn't kill himself. The slaughter after the Israelites were found worshiping idols.

** The entire series ''{{Firefly}}'' is one big example. The main characters spend the entire first season robbing almost anybody, so long as that person is the government, corporate supporters of the government, slavers, or anybody else not approved of by the main characters.

--->'''Linkara:''' [[{{Lampshading}} That is a stupid plan!]]
--->'''Angry Joe:''' A stupid plan, for a stupid man!
--->'''Linkara:''' [[CrowningMomentOfFunny Are you high?!]]

<<|TruthInTelevision|>>

->'''Bob''':"Guilty, with an explaination, your honnour."

->Judge Alice:"You stand accused of murder by torture. How do you plead?"
->Bob:"Guilty, with an explaination, your honnour."
->Alice:"Fire away."
->Bob:"I caught him [[RapeIsASpecialKindOfEvil raping a schoolgirl]]."
->Alice:"Aquittal of all charges." (bangs gavel)

->Judge Alice:"You stand accused of murder. How do you plead?"

* Moses sent twelve scouts into the land of Israel. Ten of them came back with a report that the people living there were unbeatable, and despite the protests of the other two spies, the Israelites formed a mob and turned on Moses and Aaron. After saving them, God decreed that the Isrealites would never set foot in the Promised Land until after every adult—except the two good spies—who left Egypt had died. He then afflicted the other ten spies with a very painful and fatal illness.

* In ''Dead Man's Shoes'', the AntiHero Richard comes back to his town to take bloody revenge on the people who bullied his brother when they were younger, [[RoaringRampageOfRevenge killing them brutally one by one.]] The film is interspersed with disturbing flashbacks showing what they did, any of which could explain the extent of Richard's fury, culminating in the most horrific: [[spoiler:they drive him out into the country, literally torture him and abandon him with a rope around his neck that he uses to hang himself. The brother, who had appeared as a a character throughout the film, was DeadAllAlong.]] However, whilst the bullies were indeed monstrous, we're not entirely expected to agree with Richard's actions - and in the final scene, Richard acknowledges that the things he's done have been terrible.

* Moses sent twelve scouts into the land of Israel. Ten of them came back with a report that the people living there were unbeatable, and despite the protests of the other two spies, the Israelites formed a mob and turned on Moses and Aaron. After saving them, God decreed that the Isrealites would never set foot in the Promised Land until after every adult—except the two good spies—who left Egypt had died. He then afflicted the other ten spies with a very painful and fatal illness.

* In ''ShutterIsland'', one of the things that haunts Teddy is the massacre of the surrendered guards at the death camp. He basically says that it was sheer murder what they did, but the press called them heroes for it because it was Nazi's.

* Moses sent twelve scouts into the land of Israel. Ten of them came back with a report that the people living there were unbeatable, and despite the protests of the other two spies, the Israelites formed a mob and turned on Moses and Aaron. After saving the leaders, God decreed that all of the adult Israelites who had left Egypt had to die in the desert, never to set foot in the Promised Land, except for the two good scouts. He then afflicted the other ten spies with a very painful and fatal illness.

* Daredevil does this to [[spoiler: Bullseye]] when he attacks Hell's Kitchen again. His solution? Break his arms and impale him with a sai. [[Also functions as a KarmicDeath after what happened with Elektra.]]

* In ''Shutter Island'', one of the things that haunts Teddy is the massacre of the surrendered guards at the death camp. He basically says that it was sheer murder what they did, but the press called them heroes for it because it was Nazi's.

* The protagonist of ''Grosse Pointe Blank'' uses this as justification for his career as a hitman.

** Granted the Guy ''is'' {{Axe Crazy}}, so we're not suppose to think it's okay.

* [[DeathNote LIGHT. FUCKING. YAGAMI.]] This is the man who ''murders people'' on a ''daily basis'', showing no emotion about it ''whatsoever'', just because they're criminals - or because they were trying to catch him (which makes them 'evil' in his book), or because ''they're lazy'' (which means they're 'not contributing positively to society) - for fuck's sake!.
** This is totally untrue. Unholy Satanic Glee is definately an emotion.
** Even worse in that there are ''three'' other people in the same universe - the same ''country'', even - that are willing to do this.