History Main / WickedWitch

Welcome to the dark side of the classic witch, step lightly or [[ImAHumanitarian you may get eaten]].

The wicked witch archetype is a classic staple of {{Fairy Tale}}s everywhere. It used to be that just about every witch was wicked, and if a non-evil female magic user appeared in folklore, she'd be referred to with a term like "sorceress" or "fairy godmother" instead, but in modern times that's not always the case. A lot of the trappings of a wicked witch are shared by her good or neutral counterpart the WitchClassic, such as [[FlyingBroomstick Broomstick riding]] and wearing [[RobeAndWizardHat pointy hats]]. Still there are some red flags to watch out for to decide if the witch you're dealing with is good or may in fact be wicked.

* Franchise/DisneyAnimatedCanon

** Ursula from ''WesternAnimation/TheLittleMermaid1989''--also a member of a fairy race, but is considered a wicked witch to merfolk, as evidenced by Sebastian and Scuttle both referring to her as "the sea witch".
** Mother Gothel from ''WesternAnimation/{{Tangled}}'' ''might'' count--she's plenty wicked, but she doesn't exhibit magical powers of her own beyond her knowledge of magical incantations.

* '''Habits''': This character tends to [[SolitarySorceress live alone in isolated environments]], especially creepy forests or [[TheHedgeOfThorns thorny wastelands]] where it's easy to find your way in and never find your way back out. Sometimes her house is ObviouslyEvil, but it's just as likely she lives in a GingerbreadHouse or other attractive building, so as to lure in her favorite prey: children. Sometimes [[ChildEater she eats them]], or sometimes she [[PoweredByAForsakenChild uses them]] as HumanResources for her magic, but even if she does neither, most evil witches seem inexorably [[ChildHater destined to give kids the worst—and last—days of their lives]]. This character also has an unusually [[CreepyHighPitchedVoice high-pitched]] and/or [[EvilSoundsRaspy raspy]] voice. She loves to [[EvilLaugh cackle]] and she may say something along the lines of [[Film/TheWizardOfOz "I'll get you my pretty!"]], and is likely to be [[AxCrazy psychotic]]. And while [[AllWitchesHaveCats witches in general love black cats]], the wicked ones also have a thing for [[WhatMeasureIsANonCute creepy]] and evil animals like [[SpidersAreScary spiders]], [[SnakesAreSinister snakes]], [[CreepyCrows crows]], [[GoodAnimalsEvilAnimals toads or bats]].

** [[{{Irony}} Hilariously enough]], [[spoiler:Philip Wittebane/Emperor Belos actually has a lot more in common with the 17th-century definition of a Witch than the residents of the Boiling Isles do despite Belos himself being a puritanical Witch ''Hunter'', whose goal is the genocide of all Witches. He's an elderly outcast who cut a deal with a powerful entity in exchange for powerful magic he fuels by devouring the flesh of innocents (The Collector and the Palismen) and hides his hideous true from behind a kindly mask he uses to manipulate the righteous into his clutches. "[[Recap/TheOwlHouseS2E16HollowMind Hollow Mind]]" makes the parallel even more obvious, having him disguise himself as a seemingly helpful and innocent creature to deceive two children into following him into an extremely foreboding forest (the depths of his mindscape) until they're far away from rescue and he reveals his true evil nature while cackling madly.]]

* '''Powers''': While a good witch tends to be an [[GreenThumb earthy nature child]], the bad version practices BlackMagic and TheDarkArts and probably [[HollywoodSatanism trucks with the devil]] [[ReligionOfEvil or some other]] [[DarkSide power of evil]]. A good witch might brew a potion to [[UtilityMagic make your laundry smell nice]], but a wicked one might brew a potion with a [[EyeOfNewt Dead Man's Toe]] to give you hives. They are also especially prone to throwing around {{Curse}}s at people they don't like or [[GypsyCurse really just anyone that happens to cross their path]]. [[ForcedTransformation Turning people into animals]] (in particular [[BewitchedAmphibians frogs/toads]]) seems to be a favorite, as far as curses go [[note]] Which likely hearkens back upon the legend of Circe turning men into pigs. [[/note]].

** Terra Snapdragon is an [[EvilOldFolks elderly]] female magic user who brews dubious concoctions, wields formidable and vicious magic, wears a thinly-veiled facade over her cruel disposition, and "[[Recap/TheOwlHouseS2E21KingsTide King's Tide]]" gave her a [[EvilLaugh creepy cackle]] to round it out.

** [[{{Irony}} Hilariously enough]], [[spoiler:Belos actually has a lot more in common with the 17th-century definition of a Witch than the residents of the Boiling Isles do. He's an elderly outcast who cut a deal with an evil spirit in exchange for powerful magic he fuels by devouring the flesh of innocents (The Collector and the Palismen) and hides his hideous true from behind a kindly mask he uses to manipulate the righteous into his clutches. "[[Recap/TheOwlHouseS2E16HollowMind Hollow Mind]]" makes the parallel even more obvious, having him disguise himself as a seemingly helpful and innocent creature to deceive two children into following him into an extremely foreboding forest (the depths of his mindscape) until they're far away from rescue and he reveals his true evil nature while cackling madly.]]

* Mordred from DC's old anthology horror series, ''The Witching Hour'', fits the bill. To a lesser extent so does her daughter, Mildred, but not her granddaughter, Cynthia, who is more of a HotWitch. These three were later adapted into aspects of the Furies in ''ComicBook/TheSandman'' by Creator/NeilGaiman.
* ''Franchise/WonderWoman'' foe Circe is a powerful human hating SolitarySorceress who routinely turns people into animals and monsters. She's also a shapeshifter who usually looks like a HotWitch, but she alters her appearance constantly.

* Marge and her sisters appear as Wicked Witches in ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' in the "Easy-Bake Coven" segment of "WesternAnimation/TreehouseOfHorror VIII".

* ''WesternAnimation/ThePowerpuffGirls2016'' episode [[Recap/ThePowerpuffGirls2016S03E20WitchsCrew Witch's Crew]], one of three {{Halloween Episode}}s in the series, had the girls become wicked witches, thanks to [[SpoiledBrat Princess]] [[RichBitch Morbucks]] trying to create a potion that'll make her more beautiful and powerful than the girls, only for it to backfire and spill, causing not only their transformation, but also turning Morbucks into a real ogre and a trick-or-treating Mojo Jojo into [[BecomingTheCostume a real cat]]. With the girls [[TemporarilyAVillain becoming villains temporarily]], Mojo and Morbucks end up playing the roles of [[VillainProtagonist unwilling protagonists]] as they find a way to reverse the spell.

* The Witch in ''Theatre/IntoTheWoods'' is a subversion of sorts: her evil deeds happened in the backstory and during the story itself she does more to help the protagonists than hinder them. They blame her nevertheless.

* ''Literature/TheCourtshipOfPrincessLeia'': Gethzerion is quite ugly due to facial deformities caused by her use of the Dark Side and lives in isolation with her fellow wicked witches at the Imperial prison on Dathomir, which they took over. She and they use their powers for evil, chiefly by hurting people (Gethzeron tortures Han with Force telekinesis near the end).

* '''Powers''': While a good witch tends to be an [[GreenThumb earthy nature child]], the bad version practices BlackMagic and TheDarkArts and probably [[HollywoodSatanism trucks with the devil]] [[ReligionOfEvil or some other]] [[DarkSide power of evil]]. A good witch might brew a potion to [[UtilityMagic make your laundry smell nice]], but a wicked one might brew a potion with a [[EyeOfNewt Dead Man's Toe]] to give you hives. They are also especially prone to throwing around {{Curse}}s at people they don't like or [[GypsyCurse really just anyone that happens to cross their path]]. [[ForcedTransformation Turning people into animals]] (in particular [[BewitchedAmphibians frogs/toads]]) seems to be a favorite, as far as curses go.

* ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' and related game systems like ''Pathfinder'' have the "Hag" monster type. It's a range of evil, magic-using, AlwaysFemale cannibalistic MageSpecies that resembles hideous old women.
* ''TabletopGame/NentirVale'': ''Heroes of the Feywild'' introduces a Witch class. While they can be as good or evil as any class, they were the first true magic users, and the gods still have a vendetta against them. As such they tend to be viewed as this trope and act in secret.

* In ''TabletopGame/WitchGirlsAdventures'', there's a condition called Hag's Syndrome that makes the setting's {{Hot Witch}}es and {{Cute Witch}}es look as close to the part as they can -- when their powers first manifest, their skin and hair turn green and their eyes red -- and, in a ShoutOut to ''Literature/TheWonderfulWizardOfOz'', water melts their skin. Actually a subversion, as a witch that has this isn't necessarily wicked -- their spells are more powerful than other witches, but it's entirely possible for a good witch to have the condition.
* [[https://www.db.yugioh-card.com/yugiohdb/card_search.action?ope=2&cid=12101 Kozmool Wickedwitch]] in the ''TabletopGame/YuGiOh OCG'', who's a combination of Darth Maul and the Wicked Witch.

** Ursula from ''WesternAnimation/TheLittleMermaid''--also a member of a fairy race, but is considered a wicked witch to merfolk, as evidenced by Sebastian and Scuttle both referring to her as "the sea witch".

* In [[https://www.deviantart.com/slifofinadragon SlifofinaDragon]]'s ''VideoGame/SengokuBasara'' fanfics, we've got Kagehime/Hitomi Kira, the daughter of UsefulNotes/ToyotomiHideyoshi and Nene, both who are dead before she (Kira) makes an appearance. How she's part of this trope involves being skilled in rather frightening levels of BlackMagic (such as [[CastingAShadow umbrakinesis]] and [[{{Necromancer}} necromancy]]) and wearing a [[RedAndBlackAndEvilAllOver red and black]] kimono. Heck in [[https://www.deviantart.com/misakiyu misakiyu]]'s illustrations, she appears as a cross between a CuteWitch and a HotWitch, but makes [[PsychoticSmirk intimidating]] [[SlasherSmile faces]] that make one question her [[AxCrazy sanity]].

* ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'' has [[PlayingWithFire Koume]] and [[AnIcePerson Kotake]]. Their combined form, Twinrova, is [[HotWitch young and pretty]], though. In either case, they're evil witches who manipulated their fellow [[OneGenderRace Gerudo]] to be DesertBandits and raised [[BigBad Ganondorf]] to be [[SorcerousOverlord what he is]].
** Subverted in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask Majora's Mask]]'' -- unlike their counterparts in the main ''Zelda'' universe, Termina's Koume and Kotake are kindly and helpful (though still hideous) crones, rather than wicked witches.
** The witches Twinrova appear in all their evil glory in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOracleGames Oracle of Seasons and Ages]]''. In a fully linked game, [[HijackedByGanon they're the power behind the big villains of those games]].
* Probably Cackletta in ''[[VideoGame/MarioAndLuigiSuperstarSaga Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga]]''.
** Kammy Koopa in the ''VideoGame/PaperMario'' games. Bedlam from ''[[VideoGame/PaperMarioTheThousandYearDoor The Thousand Year Door]]'' also sports the Wicked Witch look, crossing over into LivingShadow territory for the rest of her character, as does the game's final boss, the [[OurDemonsAreDifferent Shadow Queen]].

* '''Powers''': While a good witch tends to be an [[GreenThumb earthy nature child]], the bad version practices BlackMagic and TheDarkArts and probably [[HollywoodSatanism trucks with the devil]] [[ReligionOfEvil or some other]] [[DarkSide power of evil]]. A good witch might brew a potion to [[UtilityMagic make your laundry smell nice]], but a wicked one might brew a potion with a [[EyeOfNewt Dead Man's Toe]] to give you hives. They are also especially prone to throwing around {{Curse}}s at people they don't like or [[GypsyCurse really just anyone that happens to cross their path]]. [[ForcedTransformation Turning people into animals]] seems to be a favorite, as far as curses go.

* Clow Reed's PsychoExGirlfriend in the dubbed version of the first OVA to ''Manga/CardCaptorSakura''. In the original, she was merely a water-diviner whose business was disrupted by Clow Reed, and who was sealed up voluntarily. She was also not actually his girlfriend, though she did have feelings for him that may or may not have been reciprocated. [[note]] She is described as his lover, which implies that they [[DidTheyOrDidntThey probably]] at least slept together once.[[/note]] In the dub, she was formerly Clow Reed's student, and eventually his long-term girlfriend, until she decided she wanted more power and headed on over to TheDarkSide, and Clow Reed broke up with her and sealed her away because she was dangerous.

* In [[https://www.deviantart.com/slifofinadragon SlifofinaDragon]]'s ''VideoGame/SengokuBasara'' fanfics, we've got Kagehime/Hitomi Kira, the daughter of UsefulNotes/ToyotomiHideyoshi and Nene, both who are dead before she (Kira) makes an appearance. How she's part of this trope involves being skilled in rather frightening levels of BlackMagic (such as [[CastingAShadow umbrakinesis]] and [[{{Necromancer}} necromancy]]) and wearing a [[RedAndBlackAndEvilAllOver red and black]] kimono. Heck in [[https://www.deviantart.com/misakiyu misakiyu]]'s illustrations, she appears as a cross between a CuteWitch and a HotWitch, but makes [[NightmareFace intimidating]] [[SlasherSmile faces]] that make one see her as [[AxCrazy crazy]].

* ''WesternAnimation/ThePowerpuffGirls2016'' episode [[Recap/ThePowerpuffGirls2016S03E20WitchsCrew Witch's Crew]], one of three {{Halloween Episode}}s in the series, had the girls become wicked witches, thanks to [[SpoiledBrat Princess]] [[RichBitch Morbucks]] trying to create a potion that'll make her more beautiful and powerful than the girls, only for it to backfire, causing not only their transformation, but also turning Morbucks into a real ogre and a trick-or-treating Mojo Jojo into [[BecomingTheCostume a real cat]]. With the girls [[TemporarilyAVillain becoming villains temporarily]], Mojo and Morbucks end up playing the roles of [[VillainProtagonist unwilling protagonists]] as they find a way to reverse the spell.