| 1 | %%% |
| 2 | %% Trope was declared Administrivia/NoRealLifeExamplesPlease via crowner by the Real Life Maintenance thread. |
| 3 | %% |
| 4 | %% This page has been alphabetized. Please add new examples in the correct order. Thanks! |
| 5 | %% |
| 6 | %%% |
| 7 | |
| 8 | [[quoteright:226:[[Theatre/{{Macbeth}} https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mcbth_small_035_6984.jpg]]]] |
| 9 | [[caption-width-right:226:''"I have no spur/[[TheKingslayer to prick the sides of my intent]]/but only vaulting ambition..."'']] |
| 10 | |
| 11 | ->''"...The noble Brutus\ |
| 12 | Hath told you Caesar was ambitious:\ |
| 13 | If it were so, it was a grievous fault;\ |
| 14 | And grievously hath Caesar answer'd it."'' |
| 15 | -->-- '''Antony''', Scene II, ''Theatre/JuliusCaesar'' |
| 16 | %% One quote is sufficient. Please place additional entries on the quotes tab. |
| 17 | |
| 18 | There's a character who aims to improve their situation in life, be it in terms of [[Fiction500 money]], [[InWithTheInCrowd fame]], or [[TheDarkSide power.]] There is a high probability of this character starting out as evil or [[JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope becoming evil very quickly]]. The VisionaryVillain and WellIntentionedExtremist will do horrible things to achieve their [[UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans Heaven on Earth]]; TheSocialDarwinist and TheSociopath will commit every act of crime and manipulation to move up the ranks; the CorruptCorporateExecutive began as a [[RagsToRiches dirt-poor proletarian who wanted to live wealthy]], etc. Upon attaining this power, they'll likely [[TheDarkSideWillMakeYouForget forget whatever it was they wanted it for in the first place.]] The Illusion of {{Pride}}, and the inevitable tale of {{Tragedy}} for the one who dared to be ambitious is likely. |
| 19 | |
| 20 | Fictional and Real Life moral codes have a tendency to demonstrate [[ItsAllAboutMe Selfishness]], {{Greed}}, {{Pride}}, [[AGodAmI Megalomania]], and Machiavellian ChronicBackstabbingDisorder as a consequence of the catch-all term "ambition". If you consult a dictionary it's broader than that. Ambition is the same thing that motivates some heroes to make the world a better place, but in that case, it's more likely to be called [[HopeSpringsEternal "Hope".]] |
| 21 | |
| 22 | This trope is one of the reasons why VillainsActHeroesReact. Villains who don't have great ambitions would not [[EvilPlan plot grand schemes and motivate story driving conflicts such as]] TakeOverTheWorld or UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans, and, therefore, would be boring and petty. It is possible to write an "ambitionless" villain -- see ForTheEvulz -- but they risk coming off as a GenericDoomsdayVillain. |
| 23 | |
| 24 | Usually {{justified|Trope}} when the existing society is an evil {{dystopia}}, or otherwise flawed -- "advancing" in such a society would generally mean complying with or encouraging its systemic injustices.[[note]]If a person aims to overthrow or otherwise take power ''over'' this society's government, then it might not be evil, depending on how they plan on dealing with the aforementioned injustices.[[/note]] Also justified when [[PassionIsEvil ambition, or other emotions, is the personification of evil itself]]. |
| 25 | |
| 26 | Can happen as a result of StatusQuoIsGod. Normally used as an [[{{Anvilicious}} heavy-handed Aesop]] about what's really important. Unfortunately ends up in a BrokenAesop that teaches us EvilIsCool (or at least open to [[EqualOpportunityEvil social progress]]). |
| 27 | |
| 28 | TheSvengali, since their goal is usually to profit through their (supposed) protege, will usually be an example of this, ''and'' turn their protege into one, unless they realize in time. |
| 29 | |
| 30 | This is a common trait of TheStarscream; indeed, it's often what ''makes'' them TheStarscream. |
| 31 | |
| 32 | The heroic converse of this trope is ToBeAMaster, where the hero is motivated by ambition. Note that heroes tend to pursue "healthy" goals such as strength and knowledge, while villains are more likely to be after power or money, usually [[ItsAllAboutMe for their own benefit and no one else's]] and at other people's expense. |
| 33 | |
| 34 | For some reason, while even high levels of ambition are bad, [[{{Determinator}} equal or greater levels of determination]] are usually presented as good, or at least not bad. If you have high levels of ''both'', you're TheUnfettered. Heaven help the character intending to use their super powers this way; it guarantees ScrewTheRulesIHaveSupernaturalPowers. If a character wants to rise above the level of their fellows, it might be a case of TheComplainerIsAlwaysWrong. |
| 35 | |
| 36 | This, in a way, is the inverse of LivingIsMoreThanSurviving, where achieving more than the most basic things people can do is seen as good. |
| 37 | |
| 38 | See also {{Pride}}, PersonalGainHurts and EvilVirtues. Compare with DrunkWithPower. Contrast with SelfMadeMan and GoGetterGirl, who pursue their ambitions, and aren’t (necessarily) evil, as well any RagsToRiches story where TheProtagonist means to become rich. Compare/Contrast AmbitiousButLazy, in which ambition without a work ethic is evil, rather than ambition itself being evil. |
| 39 | |
| 40 | [[noreallife]] |
| 41 | |
| 42 | %%If you have time, please put examples in alphabetical order. This page Administrivia/HowToAlphabetizeThings should help you with that. |
| 43 | ---- |
| 44 | !!Examples: |
| 45 | [[index]] |
| 46 | * AmbitionIsEvil/{{Literature}} |
| 47 | [[/index]] |
| 48 | |
| 49 | [[foldercontrol]] |
| 50 | |
| 51 | [[folder:Anime & Manga]] |
| 52 | * In ''Manga/AirGear'', the BigBad just wanted to improve his lot in life and ended up JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope. |
| 53 | * ''Manga/{{Berserk}}'': [[WhiteHairBlackHeart Griffith]]. Originally, he "merely" wanted [[RagsToRiches to rise from a poor street urchin to king]] in a society that does not encourage this sort of upward mobility. After a few setbacks, he sets his sights [[GodhoodSeeker a little higher]], and [[spoiler:sacrifices all of his mercenary band to the Godhand, rapes [[TheProtagonist Guts]]' girlfriend in front of him, and unleashes a plague of demons on the world]] in order to reach his goal. |
| 54 | * Averted in ''Manga/{{Bleach}}''. During his more reflective moments, Ichigo makes much of becoming more powerful so that he can better protect the people he cares about, even if he's doing it by using his SuperpoweredEvilSide. Combined with WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity around the 350th chapter/the final stages of his fight with Ulquiorra, where [[spoiler: the latest upgrade to his SuperpoweredEvilSide only appears interested in protecting Orihime, and will casually attempt to kill anyone else who gets in his way -- like, for instance, Uryu]]. |
| 55 | ** [[PlayingWithATrope Played straight]] with BigBad [[spoiler:Aizen]]. His unlimited ambition is the sole reason for all his evil. |
| 56 | ** Inverted with Starrk, one of the few [[AntiVillain amicable]] arrancar. He has a ''very'' similar backstory to Aizen, with the biggest difference in their CharacterDevelopment coming from Starrk's extreme laziness. |
| 57 | * Isamu in ''Breakshot'' is described as "an ambitious guy"... because he often cheats to win. |
| 58 | * Subverted in ''Anime/CodeGeass''; [[spoiler: everyone assumes [[Characters/CodeGeassLelouchLamperouge Lelouch Lamperouge]], a prince, used the Black Knights for personal gain at best and a [[ForTheEvulz game]] at the worst. However, by the end, a select few realize that all of Lelouch's ambition was for the good of the world]]. |
| 59 | ** [[spoiler:Schneizel, described by WordOfGod as lacking ambition, ended up being the BigBad since he would pursue whatever goal tickled his fancy at the moment without any overall or long-term interest. Ironically enough, he believes in this trope, which also turns him into a HopeCrusher, since he believes hopes and dreams are just excuses or reasons to follow one's ambitions, regardless of how they impact the rest of the world.]] |
| 60 | * Played straight with ''Manga/DeathNote'''s [[Characters/DeathNoteLightYagami Light Yagami]]; by the time [[spoiler:the US President surrenders to Kira, his father is dead and his sister is traumatized. He even allowed his father to put himself in a life-threatening situation for his own gain, which ultimately ''led'' to his demise]]. And that's not even counting the countless other times Light has made morally questionable decisions in order to realize his dream of a perfect new world. The difference between his innocent, idealistic self and the person he becomes with the Note is startling. |
| 61 | * Averted in ''Manga/DrStone'' with Ryusui Nanami, the heir to a shipping magnate. He wholly admits to being greedy, but also says that he has enough greed for everyone in the whole world, meaning that he wants ''everyone'' to benefit from his efforts. Flashbacks to his youth show him chasing wild dreams and sharing the success with his friends, and his personal butler Francois defended his [[{{Determinator}} never-give-up attitude]] by arguing that the ambition to pursue a worthy goal no matter how impossible it seems is exactly the kind of trait one wants in a leader. |
| 62 | * In ''Literature/{{Durarara}}'' [[spoiler: Mikado]]'s goal is to unite the Dollars and Blue Squares to show [[spoiler: Kida]] that he can stand on his own. In his own words, "The only way for having your dreams realized is to have power." However this has pushed [[spoiler: Mikado]]'s sanity as of later novel volumes [[JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope out the window]] for the most part (unless he was [[CuteAndPsycho crazy]] from the beginning.) [[spoiler: In a good example of the evil bit, he even goes as far as setting people who piss him off on fire.]] |
| 63 | * Very much averted in ''Manga/FullmetalAlchemist'', where a number of characters (e.g. Mustang, Olivia Armstrong, Greed, and Ling) are ambitious but they are generally good ''because'' of this, not in spite of it. Ling's ambition to become the next emperor was the only thing that prevented [[spoiler:Greed from taking over his body completely.]] |
| 64 | ** Greed's ambition is notable in that he desires to possess everything. Most people would chalk this up as evil, but the thing is that he also ''values'' everything he possesses. His minions may be possessions, but they're ''his'' and ''killing them is equal to stealing from him''. |
| 65 | ** Played straight with Shou Tucker, MadScientist extraordinaire. His ultimate goal is to be recognised as an amazing State Alchemist representing [[BioManipulation chimera transmutation]]. Thing is, he's willing to [[spoiler:turn his own wife, and then his own daughter, into chimeras]] to achieve that goal, and he ends up getting arrested, murdered by [[VigilanteMan Scar]], and remembered only as a desperate and insane criminal. |
| 66 | * Mei from ''Anime/GaReiZero'' believes that she is more qualified than Yomi to lead the Isayama family. [[spoiler: Her ambition allows her Sesshoseki stone to corrupt her, after which she kills Yomi's father and manipulates the family in order to steal the position for herself.]] |
| 67 | * ''Manga/HenkyouNoRoukishiBardLoen'': Kaldus Coendera used to be a small lord of Dolba, but after warring with neighbours, as a self-proclaimed Great Lord of the Shigwentsa region, he tries to connect with the Palzam Kingdeom's royal family to secure his position, even if he has to trample the Tersia Family (who are meanwhile protecting the region from monsters) and innocent people between them. |
| 68 | * Ambition is the defining characteristic of Dio Brando from ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure'', to the point that [[TranshumanTreachery he rejects his humanity]] and transforms himself into a vampire for the sake of gaining more power. |
| 69 | * Gihren Zabi of ''Anime/MobileSuitGundam'' is the single most ambitious member of the [[BigScrewedUpFamily Zabi family]]. He's also the single most evil member, and the only one with no redeeming qualities. |
| 70 | * Enchu of ''Manga/MuhyoAndRoji'' desperately wanted to become an Executor to help his ailing mother, while [[BrilliantButLazy Muhyo]] did not want the position, and would have turned it over to Enchu if given the chance. The committee for choosing an executor recognized that Enchu's preoccupation with his mother was a risk factor; hearing of her death and losing the position to Muhyo pushed Enchu into his StartOfDarkness. |
| 71 | * Subverted for Katsuki Bakugo from ''Manga/MyHeroAcademia''. His ambition to be the number one hero is actually treated as one of his few positive points, despite him being a huge jerk about it. He also refuses to go down the path of a villain, despite the fact that his Quirk would be very suited for it. That said, in Chapter 120, All Might says that his drive to be the best is holding him back from being a hero and that he needs to work on also having an equal drive for rescuing people. |
| 72 | * ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'': Orochimaru's ambition to have eternal life (which he believed would be more easily accomplished by becoming Fourth Hokage, and he was passed over in favor of Minato) is pretty much the reason why he turned into the BigBad. Similarly, Danzo was a political rival to the Third Hokage who sought to impose his warlike ideals on the village with means from covert operations to using his mind control powers to seize the Hokage title after Tsunade goes into a coma. |
| 73 | ** Averted for several characters too, most notably Naruto himself, who wants to be Hokage one day and by Hashirama Senju, the First Hokage, whose boundless ambition to change the world created the entire system of hidden ninja villages and drastically reduced the [[CrapsackWorld Crapsackiness]] of the world. |
| 74 | ** This is also [[InvertedTrope inverted]] with some villains like Nagato, Tobi, and Madara since their wanting to change the world is viewed in a very positive light. But [[StartXToStopX how]] [[AssimilationPlot they]] [[LotusEaterMachine wanted]] [[WellIntentionedExtremist to change it is where they gets into trouble]]. |
| 75 | * Played straight and subverted quite often in ''Manga/OnePiece''. Most of the villains have pretty lofty goals, but the main characters have arguably the highest ambitions in the series. Inverted with Captain Kuro, who annoys Luffy because his goal to retire from being a pirate is completely lame. |
| 76 | ** Played straight with Blackbeard, whose ambition to become Pirate King led him to kill one of his own crewmates in the back story, capture Ace to secure a position in the Seven Warlords of the Sea, try and kill Luffy, [[spoiler: caused a war that led to the death of Ace, Oars Jr., and who knows how many others, killing Whitebeard directly and unleashed who knows how many of the world's worst criminals on an unsuspecting world]]. |
| 77 | ** Basically ''One Piece'' is more like "Ambition is Neutral," as many of the villains they have fought had aims similar to the heroes, and it was merely their methods that were evil, not necessarily their aims. Blackbeard above is the best example as he also wants to be King of the Pirates, but his methods involve all sorts of cruelty. Or Eneru, whose ambition was to go to the Moon, perfectly innocuous except that he wanted to do it by plundering an island of all its gold then planning to blow the island up into the sea. |
| 78 | *** It should be noted that said blowing up wasn't even ''necessary'' to the plan. It was just for the sake of it. |
| 79 | ** Hell, "Haki" (Japanese for "ambition") is basically ''One Piece'''s resident LifeEnergy. Those who can control and project it out of their body get a substantial boost in battle. And the most powerful form, which one has to be born with, is the "Ambition of the King" -- the sheer desire to ''reign over everyone else''. The main hero has it[[note]]He wants to be king of the pirates, after all[[/note]]. The BigBad, probably, too. |
| 80 | * Slade (no, not that [[WesternAnimation/TeenTitans2003 Slade]]), a minor character in ''Manga/RaveMaster'' who worked with Haru's dad back when he was a soldier, is the person that Gale turns to report his best friend who has since gone bad and began to run a criminal organization. He promises to tell Slade where the group, known as Demon Card, has its headquarters so long as Slade only arrests King. Slade agrees, then brings the whole army and shoots everyone down in as flashy a way as possible so his superiors will notice and he'll get a promotion. In doing so, he [[FreudianExcuse pushed King all the way into]] BigBad [[FreudianExcuse status]], and set his ''6-year-old son'' down the road to that as well. |
| 81 | * In ''Manga/Reborn2004'', Futa's "ambition" rankings actually seem to measure how treacherous a given person is. |
| 82 | * Averted for the most part in ''Anime/TengenToppaGurrenLagann''; daring ambition is the most powerful force in the universe, and the vast majority of the protagonists indulge. However, [[spoiler: according to the Anti-Spiral, it's also the force that will eventually destroy reality]], so really it could go either way. |
| 83 | * ''Manga/TokyoGhoul'' explores this trope, particularly in the sequel, '':Re''. |
| 84 | ** Seidou Takizawa is quite vocal about his desire to get promoted, and this is one reason he frequently clashes with his rival, Akira Mado. At one point, they get into a drunken argument concerning whether being promotion-focused is bad or not. But when push comes to shove, he [[spoiler: risks his career by disregarding direct orders and goes in search of a wounded Amon. In the sequel, he plays the trope straight -- his thirst for power seems to have played a part in his TranshumanTreachery]]. |
| 85 | ** Kuki Urie's ambitions might be fueled by an understandable desire to avenge his father, but the methods he uses establish him firmly as the TokenEvilTeammate of the Quinx Squad. Though assigned as their acting Squad Leader, he refuses to work with the others....unless, of course, he can use them to achieve his own ends. Intensely jealous of [[TheLeader Sasaki]]'s strength, he looks for ways to undermine his leadership and increase his own power even when warned against doing so. After his actions cause him to be [[spoiler: dismissed as Squad Leader]], he begins plotting ways to destroy the team from within in order to discredit Shirazu. [[spoiler: It becomes a case of BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor: Urie gets his position back and receives credit for bringing down one of Aogiri's most prominent members... because Shirazu sacrificed himself to create an opening. Urie tries to convince Shirazu to live by promising him all the credit, and is left crushed by his friend's loss.]] |
| 86 | ** Matsuri Washuu is this trope incarnate. The heir of the illustrious [[TheClan Washuu Clan]], he is infamous even among his clan for his ambition and callous disregard for human life. Operations he supervises are known for having incredible success rates, but also [[WeHaveReserves extreme loss of life]] in the process. He actively schemes against his colleagues and his own father, with many within the organization concerned about what would happen if he manages to take over. When asked point-blank whether seeing the bodies of his subordinates makes him feel anything, Matsuri states that it ''doesn't'' while looking like he'd been asked a stupid question. |
| 87 | * In ''Anime/UminekoWhenTheyCry'', Eva's ambition to succeed her father as the head of the Ushiromiya family instead of her older brother was stepped on most of her life due to the HeirClubForMen, but wow, [[spoiler:once she manages to achieve her goal, she goes nuts and kills most of the rest of her family]]. |
| 88 | [[/folder]] |
| 89 | |
| 90 | [[folder:Art]] |
| 91 | * Creator/AlexandreCabanel's ''Art/TheFallenAngel'': Craving for power is Lucifer's FatalFlaw. He first wants to rule over both angels and humans alongside God, but he's rebuked because there can only be one God. Upset about it he hypocritically deems God a tyrant and [[TheParagonAlwaysRebels convinces other angels]] to rebel against him. He loses the war and is banned from {{Heaven}}, which causes him great pain but doesn't prevent him from declaring himself the ruler of hell. |
| 92 | [[/folder]] |
| 93 | |
| 94 | [[folder:Comic Books]] |
| 95 | * This seems to actually be a trend among superhero fiction; [[http://www.juliansanchez.com/2011/09/21/ceos-in-comics-villains-earn-heroes-inherit/ this article]] notes that rich superheroes tend to inherit their money, while self-made men are usually villains. |
| 96 | * Half the point of ''ComicBook/TheAuthority'' was that, where other superheroes simply react to supervillains' schemes and preserve the status quo, The Authority would use their powers to genuinely change the world. The implications of this vary from author to author, but often involve the team JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope and becoming {{Anti Villain}}s or just plain villains. |
| 97 | * Seahn of ''ComicBook/TheFirst''. He's the personification of ambition, and a nasty, ''nasty'' piece of work. |
| 98 | * Subversion: [[Characters/MarvelComicsTonyStark Tony Stark]] (aka ComicBook/IronMan) is hugely ambitious, to the point of it frequently [[ComicBook/CivilWar2006 biting him in the ass]], but his drive is less for personal gain and more for the betterment of mankind... he hopes. His worst excesses (such as ''ComicBook/{{Civil War|2006}}'' and ''ComicBook/ArmorWars'') are usually not driven by lust for power, but by an overzealous [[WithGreatPowerComesGreatResponsibility sense of guilt and responsibility]]. |
| 99 | * ''ComicBook/{{Irredeemable}}'': The Plutonian has a very subtle version of this. It's revealed in flashbacks that he has a strong desire for love and adoration. Since his ambitions were very altruistic, and he used his superpowers to make them come true by helping people, nobody seemed to mind (or just assumed he was doing it out of the goodness of his heart and not a need for affection). But then he eventually realized you can't please everyone and gave up on being a hero, and instead ruined a world that he could never get to love him. |
| 100 | * ''ComicBook/JudgeDredd'': It turns out that Judge Martin Sinfield would do anything to become Chief Judge, including [[spoiler:brainwashing his predecessor to step down]]. Of course, [[BelievingTheirOwnLies he did it all for the good of the city]]. |
| 101 | * Characters/TheHood suffers MotiveDecay (he initially just wanted to support his family) because of his ambition to be a big-time supervillain criminal mastermind instead of the street thug he really is. Acquiring the magical hood and boots [[spoiler:empowered by Dormammu]] gave Parker Robbins an appetite for power that has gotten worse with time. |
| 102 | * ''ComicBook/RickAndMortyOni'': Doofus Jerry’s hunger for achievement and his desire for greatness is tireless. In his dimension, he is the literal definition of success. |
| 103 | * The first ComicBook/SquadronSupreme miniseries (whose members are {{Captain Ersatz}}es of the ComicBook/JusticeLeagueOfAmerica) had the heroes helping to rebuild the world (after they themselves helped conquer it under an evil alien's mind control) and decide that instead of rebuilding it as it was, they would make it ''better''. They even announced that if people trusted them they would give up control over Earth in exactly one year. However, this was seen as a bad thing by half the heroes, who organized a resistance against them. The reasons given weren't very convincing -- they just seemed to be there just to maintain the Status Quo of their Earth resembling the real one. Note that this story inspired both DC's ''ComicBook/KingdomCome'' and ''ComicBook/{{Civil War|2006}}''. |
| 104 | ** Only one hero, the Batman CaptainErsatz, actually objected to improving the world. What causes the real split was when the majority of the Squadron Supreme decided to use BrainwashingForTheGreaterGood. |
| 105 | *** Actually, he made a very valid point in the final issue. Even after turning power back over to civilian authority, the Utopia could only last so long as the Squadron was around to enforce it. There's no guarantee their eventual successors would hold to the same moral standards. |
| 106 | * [[DownplayedTrope Downplayed]] in ''ComicBook/StarWarsLegacy'' by the [[HegemonicEmpire Fel Empire]]. The Fels were ReasonableAuthorityFigures loyal to the Light side of the Force, a branch of the Skywalker family, and cared deeply for the galactic citizenry. However according to [[WordOfGod writer John Ostrander]], they were intended to be seen as ALighterShadeOfGrey rather than outright ''good'' as they were authoritarian in nature, valuing power above all else. Played straight by [[BigBad Darth Krayt]]'s [[TheEmpire Galactic Empire]], who after overthrowing the Fels sent the public right back to the nightmarish conditions they endured under Sidious. |
| 107 | * ''ComicBook/TheTransformersLastStandOfTheWreckers'': Averted with Prowl, who is the most morally grey of the good guys as he's willing to go to lengths to end the war others find uncomfortable. He just wants the war to end; he doesn't want any credit or glory. For the Decepticons, Overlord is quite possibly the most evil Decepticon in the IDW comics. Megatron always thought that he'd pull [[TheStarscream a Starscream]] on him, but Overlord does not care about rank and he doesn't care about advancing in the power structure. He just wants to kill people. Kup speculates that his goal in life is to upgrade from [[AxCrazy homicide]] to [[OmnicidalManiac genocide]], and keep killing. |
| 108 | * ''ComicBook/TheTransformersRobotsInDisguise'': [[TheStarscream Starscream]] is this. Bumblebee remarks that his ambition is untempered due to his lack of any ideology and a huge dose of caring only for himself. He wants power and control, but now the war is over, and the world they face is brutal and the people all distrust each other. To get power he... wants to be elected by a committee of his peers. He keeps his smug attitude but does his best to help the society move into a brighter future, one he wants to lead. He even befriends his political rival Metalhawk, and though he snarks at him, seems to respect Bumblebee. When Megatron throws it all into chaos, Scream berates him because of his shortsighted folly and stands with the Autobots. [[spoiler: When Megatron is defeated Starscream rejoices, and then kills Metalhawk, uses his death as a political maneuver, swears off his faction, and has the entire public rally behind him. He then banishes Bumblebee and all the Autobots and Decepticons clinging to old alliances. His final words to Metalhawk lampshade this:]] |
| 109 | -->[[spoiler:'''Metalhawk:''' I thought you were my friend.\ |
| 110 | ''[Starscream murders Metalhawk]''\ |
| 111 | '''Starscream:''' I was. I just wanted this more.]] |
| 112 | * The cape-killer ([[spoiler:Ozymandias]]) of ''ComicBook/{{Watchmen}}'' might fit, depending on whether you think he's evil or a WellIntentionedExtremist. It's true that he gave up a fortune, but that just underlines his ambition (he wanted everyone to know that his accomplishments were ''his'' accomplishments, not his family's). |
| 113 | * ''ComicBook/WonderWoman1987'': |
| 114 | ** Cassie Arnold teams up with a murderer masquerading as a hero to propel her own career as a reporter by making it look like she's an IntrepidReporter following a hero like [[Characters/SupermanLoisLane Lois Lane]]. |
| 115 | ** Veronica Cale is a hardworking scientist and CEO, who hates Wonder Woman for getting "undeserved" praise heaped upon her for "being a pretty princess", does cruel experiments, and treats humans as disposable stepping stones. |
| 116 | [[/folder]] |
| 117 | |
| 118 | [[folder:Comic Strips]] |
| 119 | * A running theme of ''ComicStrip/ForBetterOrForWorse'' is that anyone who shows ambition is [[FailureIsTheOnlyOption doomed to failure]] or just plain horrible. The biggest example of this can be spotted with Therese, [[CreatorsPet Anthony's]] ex-wife. She is demonized for not complying with her husband's wishes and giving it all up to [[StayInTheKitchen become a stay-at-home mom]]. The fact that she apparently gets postpartum depression is glossed over by Anthony; when she [[ParentalAbandonment abandons, then completely rejects]] her own daughter, it's just {{anvilicious}}. |
| 120 | [[/folder]] |
| 121 | |
| 122 | [[folder:Fan Works]] |
| 123 | [[AC:{{Crossover}}s]] |
| 124 | * ''Fanfic/AllForLuz'': |
| 125 | ** Upon discovering TheMultiverse is a thing, All For One has expanded his TakingOverTheWorld EvilPlan for his realm to becoming essentially a MultiversalConqueror, adding The Boiling Isles and Luz's home world to his conquest. ([[VillainOverride After taking over the girl's body, first]].) |
| 126 | ** [[spoiler:Just like in the show, Belos spent centuries engineering the full-blown genocide of witchkind and plans on using that feat to earn praise and approval from humanity and be rewarded by being labeled a famous hero in history. He's also working with his descendant Tyler to kill all Quirk users, too]] |
| 127 | * ''Fanfic/CodePrime'': [[Characters/CodePrimeMegatron Megatron]] goes from being a gladiator trying to fix the system to wanting to rule Cybertron as the next Prime to [[spoiler:conquering a big chunk of Earth and eventually moves up to wanting to eliminate free will]], all for his goal of achieving "peace through tyranny". Shockwave feels that "ambitious" is the single best defining word for Megatron. |
| 128 | * ''Fanfic/GuardiansWizardsAndKungFuFighters'': |
| 129 | ** In his StartOfDarkness chapter, it's revealed that Daolon Wong turned to darkness because he wanted the knowledge and power he couldn't achieve as a good wizard, and this warped to the point he now wants to become [[GodhoodSeeker a god amongst men]]. |
| 130 | ** Likewise, Wong's Shapeshifter lieutenant Roberta has desires to gain as much power as she can, in contrast to her previous life on the street, which is why she accepted his offer to become a Shapeshifter in the first place. [[spoiler:Which is how Miranda is able to turn her against Wong, by making a better offer.]] |
| 131 | * ''Fanfic/AnIncognitoQuery'': Brought up by Question when he's going over Reagan's background. Considering her lineage, skills in robotics, and overall intellect, coupled with how she seems to have been working a dead end job for over a decade, he finds her very suspicious. After all, you don't work at a dead end with that kind of resume unless it's a stepping stone in ruling the world. |
| 132 | * ''Fanfic/TheNightUnfurls'': |
| 133 | ** One of [[BigBad Vault's]] motives for building a [[SexSlave Sex]] Empire is that, by utilising the Black Fortress and its vast resources, he and the Black Dogs have an opportunity to rise to a position higher than a mere mercenary. Unhappy with servitude under the Goddess Reborn, he wants to bring the current people in power, like the Seven Shields, under his heel, while [[NoWomansLand every man under his rule can "live like kings"]]. Ambition is only a secondary motivation, [[{{Lust}} though]]. |
| 134 | ** EvilChancellor, Prime Minister Beasley. Unhappy with taking orders from Alicia, heir of the fortress Feoh, he joins Vault and the Black Dogs so that he can rule over his own part of the future Sex Empire. |
| 135 | ** EvilSorcerer Shamuhaza is willing to conduct [[PlayingWithSyringes inhumane experiments]] to both innocents and people on the same side as he is (The Leaping Lizards), for the sake of gaining more power and knowledge, as well as [[spoiler:delving further into the [[ThingsManWasNotMeantToKnow Eldritch Truth]]]]. All of his test subjects have become either [[BodyHorror grotesque]] [[MixAndMatchCritters abominations]], or [[FaceFullOfAlienWingWong breeders]] of said abominations. |
| 136 | * ''Fanfic/ARedRoseInTheBlueWind'': Dr. Eggman sees this in Salem much in the same manner as himself. |
| 137 | |
| 138 | [[AC:''Franchise/{{Buffyverse}}'']] |
| 139 | * In the ''Fanfic/CompelledSeries'', God-King Illyria is determined to destroy the forces of evil at any cost... and [[spoiler:intends to do so for the entire ''multiverse'']]. |
| 140 | |
| 141 | [[AC:''WesternAnimation/ChalkZone'']] |
| 142 | * ''Fanfic/ShatteredDoll'': Sandra's desire to make her new restaurant as popular as possible fuels some truly horrific behavior on her part, as she [[spoiler:murders innocent zoners and incorporates their bodies into her recipes]]. |
| 143 | |
| 144 | [[AC:''Franchise/{{Godzilla}}'']] |
| 145 | * ''[[Fanfic/AbraxasHrodvitnon AbraxasVerse]]'': [[Characters/AbraxasHrodvitnonHumans Apex Cybernetics]]. Though the main fic and timeline cast ambiguity on how much their EvilPlan matches up with canon (see ''Film/GodzillaVsKong'' under the Films -- Live-Action folder) and how much it deviates, it's pretty clear to the readers that they're creating {{humongous mecha}}s on par with the Titans, and they intend to use them for their own power against the actual Titans once they're brought online. |
| 146 | |
| 147 | [[AC:''Franchise/HarryPotter'']] |
| 148 | * Inverted by Tobias Grey in ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/3353818/1/Shade-to-Shade The Anguis Series]]''. He's definitely the most ambitious of his [[Franchise/HarryPotter Slytherin mates]], shown by his desire to work in the Ministry in Magic, whereas his peers are more content to just enjoy their school life. However, he's also the most scrupulous of them all, being the only Slytherin who refuses to join [[Literature/HarryPotterAndTheOrderOfThePhoenix Umbridge's Inquisitorial Squad]], even though this hurts his chances of becoming Head Boy. |
| 149 | * ''Fanfic/TheChoicesThatMakeUs'': Plenty of Death Eaters in both wars end up in the thrall of Voldemort because they see him as a chance for political advancement of themselves or their pet causes. Also, Mrs. Pankinson ends up serving a life sentence in Azkaban for a series of chilling crimes committed partially to try to impress Bellatrix Lestrange and be taken under her wing. |
| 150 | * Discussed and defied (among other things) in ''Fanfic/HarryPotterAndTheMethodsOfRationality'', where Harry's ambition to become omnipotent and benevolently reorganize reality is fully endorsed by the Author. |
| 151 | * Pointedly averted in [[http://archiveofourown.org/works/6894757 this fic]]: ''THERMOS!, [[EitherOrTitle or]], How a Muggle-Born Brought a New Age of Spell-Making to Hogwarts (Entirely by Accident)''. The main character Phoebe is a Slytherin, and while she's noted to be ambitious (it being the defining trait of Slytherin House and all), somewhat lazy and definitely a {{Troll}} (no, not a literal one), she isn't mean-spirited in any way. Her friend Titus, also a Slytherin, comes off as friendly and nice, too. (The author's identified herself as a Slytherin, so it makes sense that she'd write them in a more flattering light.) |
| 152 | * In ''Why Harry Hates the Headmaster or Alt Sixth Year'' Ron actually started fighting Harry at the mere ''mention'' of ambition, which resulted in Harry giving a somewhat [[{{Anvilicious}} heavy-handed]] mini-sermon on how ambition wasn't "Slytherin" or "Dark. |
| 153 | |
| 154 | [[AC:''WesternAnimation/JackieChanAdventures'']] |
| 155 | * ''Fanfic/QueenOfAllOni'': |
| 156 | ** Jade seems to fit this, as one of her major motivations is to prove herself, even as a villain, feeling unappreciated for all the times she helped against evil and saved Jackie's life. Later in the story, she suffers from [[SanitySlippage PTSD]], which leads to MotiveDecay that makes her even more of an example of this -- now, she wants to gather massive amounts of power for its own sake and doesn't care who gets hurt in the process. |
| 157 | ** Finn also at one point makes it clear just how ambitious he is, hoping for a MookPromotion to higher ranks of villainy. He even tells Viper that he's a [[CardCarryingVillain better criminal]] than she ever was, ''because'' he has ambitions to move beyond his current position. |
| 158 | * In ''Fanfic/QueenOfShadows'', most of the [[DecadentCourt Circle of Generals]] have ambitions of gaining even further power (namely, becoming the [[TheDragon Yojimbo]]). However, General Jirobo of the [[AirborneMook Bat Khan]] is the highlight of this, as he is so utterly convinced that his progressive views will allow the [[TheEmpire Shadowkhan Empire]] to truly flourish, that he's been trying to manipulate [[GodEmperor the Queen]] into a PuppetKing he can control, [[EvenEvilHasStandards something taboo to the Shadowkhan]]. |
| 159 | |
| 160 | [[AC:''Franchise/KungFuPanda'']] |
| 161 | * In ''Fanfic/TheVow'', this is taken further with Lord Shen. Even when he has won the heart of the woman he loves and his future as his parents' heir is secure, he can't help but feel that he ''must'' strive to make a name for himself instead of settling to inherit his parents' legacy. This leads him to experiment on black powder and design cannons, and his attempt to prevent the fate he'd end up with for continuing his dark path leads him to be driven away from his home and loved ones, leaving him filled with embittered ambition. |
| 162 | |
| 163 | [[AC:''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda'']] |
| 164 | * In ''[[Fanfic/BoundDestiniesTrilogy Blood and Spirit]]'', Veress broke off from the main Sheikah tribe to create the Dark Interlopers because of her desire to succeed Impa as the leader of the tribe and lead the Sheikah into battle against Demise. However, since this was not the destiny of the Sheikah tribe, she was passed over in favor of Sheik, her former best friend. |
| 165 | * ''Fanfic/FFSIBelieveInYou'': In the sequel, the Mormaer Uisdean is obsessed with personal power and control, and considers it his inborn right to rule over all zora, everywhere. This leads to his oppressive rule of Zola Province, and later to his attempt to [[spoiler:invade Hyrule and conquer Zora's Domain]]. |
| 166 | |
| 167 | [[AC:''Franchise/MegaMan'']] |
| 168 | * ''Fanfic/LimitlessPotential'': Dr. Fujiwara serves as a {{Foil}} to Dr. Cain by virtue of how he views X as a means to an end. While Cain sees X and the other reploids as sentient beings, Fujiwara is more interested in their potential as weapons, and how the role he plays in their development could make him famous. This eventually reaches the point where he's willing to [[spoiler:help Sigma rebel in exchange of gaining full control of Abel City]]. |
| 169 | |
| 170 | [[AC:''Franchise/MyHeroAcademia'']] |
| 171 | * [[InvertedTrope Inverted]] in ''Fanfic/YoungMidoriya''. Izuku's desire to succeed All Might and become the next Symbol of Peace is treated as noble, and Miruko even tells him outright that he needs to become ''more'' ambitious and start seeking out the spotlight more... or at least greater recognition for his deeds. |
| 172 | |
| 173 | [[AC:''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'']] |
| 174 | * ''Fanfic/AnchorFoal'': Many of Fleur's worst traits and most questionable actions are rooted in her desire to move up in the world and reach a much greater station. |
| 175 | * ''Fanfic/AuroraPonyholicsAnonymous'': All of [[spoiler:Dawnbreaker]]'s desire for power and greatness is ultimately rooted in nothing more than wishing to satisfy his own bloated ego. |
| 176 | * ''Fanfic/FriendshipIsMagicalGirls'': Sunset Shimmer's StartOfDarkness was caused by her desire for power and glory for its own sake and her belief that her mother and Celestia were holding her back. Thus why she ritually killed her mother to become immortal and started her campaign to become more powerful than Celestia. |
| 177 | * Twilight Sparkle in ''Fanfic/PagesofHarmony'' very much fits this, seeing as her ambition is to "preserve harmony". How does she do so? By [[spoiler:{{Mind Rap|e}}ing, torturing, and killing her friends to extract their Elements]]. [[FromBadToWorse And that's just the start.]] |
| 178 | |
| 179 | [[AC:''Franchise/{{Naruto}}'']] |
| 180 | * ''Fanfic/TheKakashiWay'': Danzo fully embodies this. While Hiruzen naively believed that his old rival was a WellIntentionedExtremist whose love for Konoha would prevent him from doing anything that would harm its residents, Danzo was more than willing to destroy anyone and anything he saw as an obstacle between him and claiming Hokageship for himself. On top of all his canonical scheming, he [[AdaptationalVillainy also had a hand]] in several tragedies that he helped orchestrate in order to [[TargetedToHurtTheHero hurt, ruin, and destroy]] those he perceived as threats, such as Minato, Kakashi, and the legendary sannin. Hiruzen is aghast to learn just how many of those incidents were ''inside jobs'', including [[spoiler:Sakumo being DrivenToSuicide]], [[spoiler:the Kannabi bridge incident]], [[spoiler:Tsunade losing her little brother and {{Love Interest|s}}]]... all casualties wrought by Danzo's desire to seize control of Konoha. |
| 181 | * Exploited in ''Fanfic/SonOfTheSannin''. Just like in canon, Danzo has the ambition to become Hokage and is shown to be extremely bitter that he's always been passed over for the position every time, which leads him to stoop down to things like allying with Orochimaru and leaking intel to Akatsuki about the jinchuriki's whereabouts, resulting in several missions to retrieve them gone wrong. When he's confronted about it, he reveals that his plan was to let Akatsuki gather all the Tailed Beasts in a single place to take them back for Konoha, [[spoiler:or so it seems, as shortly after [[UnwittingPawn he turns out to have been under Kotoamatsukami influence]], thanks to Obito Uchiha. Rather than outright mind-controlling Danzo, all he did was plant the idea on him and let his ambitions do the rest. Given Danzo's reputation, nobody would have even suspected it wasn't his idea to begin with]]. |
| 182 | * A running theme in ''Fanfic/{{sunflower|Naruto}}'': |
| 183 | ** Before his death, Minato came to suspect that somebody was secretly infuriating ANBU with spies and agents loyal to ''them'' rather than to the Hokage. Years later, a scroll is found with a warning for Hiruzen, encouraging him to assign trusted shinobi like Maito Gai to ANBU to root out the traitors. |
| 184 | ** Kakashi expresses disgust at his more ambitious peers. To his mind, ANBU is purely about taking care of Konoha's DirtyBusiness, not seeking personal glory, recognition and advancement. |
| 185 | ** Yamakujura leads one of Konoha's clean-up teams, and is all too eager to sing his own praises. During an ANBU dinner, he takes advantage of his boss's absence to declare how much he'd ''love'' to take his place. |
| 186 | |
| 187 | [[AC:''Franchise/OnePiece'']] |
| 188 | * In ''Fanfic/{{Castle|OnePiece}}'', [[GenderFlip Sanjina]] learns, to her utter horror, that not only does her father wish to restore the Germa Empire to its former glory by [[ArrangedMarriage marrying her off to Pudding]], but [[spoiler:her brother Ichiji wants the throne ''and'' her, and is more than happy to slaughter the rest of their family if that's what it takes to get what he wants]]. |
| 189 | |
| 190 | [[AC:''Franchise/{{RWBY}}'']] |
| 191 | * ''Fanfic/DestiniesOfRemnant'': In the "This World Will Have No Peace" timeline, Adam mixes dangerous ambitions into his vengefulness with distressing ease, as part of his revenge involves [[spoiler:stealing the SDC away from Jacque Schnee and turning it to his own ends]]. |
| 192 | |
| 193 | [[AC:''WesternAnimation/SheRaAndThePrincessesOfPower'']] |
| 194 | * ''Fanfic/CatraAndGlimmerQueensOfTheHorde'': |
| 195 | ** Shadow Weaver covets the magical and political powers held by the elemental princesses, and refuses to let anything stand between her and her goal of becoming one herself. [[spoiler:She also isn't satisfied with the prospect of only holding ''one'' throne.]] |
| 196 | ** {{Downplayed}} with Catra and Glimmer; like Shadow Weaver, both are driven by their ambitions... and desire for revenge. Both are {{Villain Protagonist}}s to some extent, with Glimmer being [[GodSaveUsFromTheQueen just as ruthless as Shadow Weaver]] in her own ways. |
| 197 | |
| 198 | [[AC:''Franchise/ASongOfIceAndFire'']] |
| 199 | * ''Fanfic/BequeathedFromPaleEstates'': Ned Stark blames the near downfall of the Starks two decades ago on his father's southron ambitions, which still have an effect on them even long after his death. It's for this reason that he's reluctant to play along with his goodfather's penchant for matchmaking and scheming. Seeing as said ambitions led to the deaths of his older brother Brandon, his sister Lyanna, and Rickard himself, and saw Benjen go to the Wall when it was all over, he may have a point. |
| 200 | * In ''Fanfic/ForumOfThrones'', this is a prime flaw of Harren Hoare, whose yearning for more and more power has turned him into a tyrant who ruthlessly bleeds his own kingdom dry. |
| 201 | ** [[spoiler:Maron Mullendore]] and Edward Anturion show many of the same traits, as their ambition is generally the cause for their worst actions and almost exclusively portrayed as negatively. |
| 202 | |
| 203 | [[AC:''Franchise/StarWars'']] |
| 204 | * Discussed in ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/11171261/28/Free-from-Force Free from Force]]''. Ahsoka decries the Seperatists, claiming those in charge only want to "fill their pockets". Darth Maul counters that there's nothing inherently evil in wanting to live a life of luxury. As a Sith, though not a particularly evil one, he freely supports the idea that the cunning and ambitious should thrive over less intelligent individuals. |
| 205 | |
| 206 | [[AC:''Series/TheTudors'']] |
| 207 | * ''Fanfic/{{Handmaid}}'': |
| 208 | ** One of the reasons why the handmaid privilege fell out of disuse before Henry revived it. If the Queen predeceased the King ''and'' the Princess Consort, then the former was legally obligated to marry the latter in her place. For handmaids with particularly ambitious families, that posed a problem; history is littered with families executed for trying to elevate their daughters' newfound status through...''dishonest'' means. |
| 209 | ** [[spoiler:Thomas Seymour attacks a pregnant Anne so she can be replaced by the pregnant Jane. Despite whatever Jane believed, it becomes very clear that Thomas was driven by the thought of all he could gain by being the uncle of a prince/future king.]] |
| 210 | ** [[spoiler:Jane is an interesting case. She clearly wants to takes Anne's place, but also recognizes that desiring Anne dead to make that happen is an evil thought; instead, she tries to convince herself that she would be a superior handmaid to Anne, and thus things would be better off for everyone if Anne was dead. In short, she recognizes that ambition is evil, and so tries to convince herself that she isn't ambitious but righteous.]] |
| 211 | [[/folder]] |
| 212 | |
| 213 | [[folder:Films -- Animation]] |
| 214 | * Henna from ''WesternAnimation/BarbieMariposa'' poisons Queen Marabella to become Queen herself. Unfortunately, this also causes the lights guarding Flutterfield from Skeezites to go out, as [[FisherKing their status depends on Marabella's health]]. |
| 215 | * Archibald Snatcher, BigBad of ''WesternAnimation/TheBoxtrolls'', is obsessed with climbing the social ranks by rounding up and exterminating all of [[NotEvilJustMisunderstood the boxtrolls]]. His obsession drives him to spread outrageous lies about the boxtrolls being [[EatsBabies savage, baby-eating monsters]], [[WouldHurtAChild threaten children]], [[BadBoss mistreat his lackeys]], and [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking eat cheese despite his violent allergies to the stuff]]. |
| 216 | * As bad as Lightning [=McQueen=] from ''WesternAnimation/Cars1'' is by putting his ambitions over everything and everyone else to the point of not knowing the names of his own pit crew or caring when they quit (he [[CharacterDevelopment gets better]]), his rival Chick Hicks is much worse. In the big race at the end of the movie, Chick [[spoiler: seems to be willing to kill his long-time rival The King by causing a horrible crash. Chick wins the race, but everybody hates him and it's highly unlikely he'll be getting sponsorship from the people who employ the guy/car he just tried to wreck]]. |
| 217 | * The villain's {{Backstory}} in ''WesternAnimation/{{Coco}}'': [[spoiler: Ernesto de la Cruz only became the star he was after he murdered his musical partner and stole his songs]]. |
| 218 | * Various villains and antagonists of the ''Franchise/DisneyAnimatedCanon'' are as ambitious as they are evil in their goals and actions: |
| 219 | ** In ''WesternAnimation/{{Aladdin}}'', this is practically Jafar's M.O. His goal was [[TheUsurper to become the Sultan of Agrabah]], even though being [[EvilChancellor the Grand Vizier]] already makes him a pretty high-ranking official. Then when he gets his hands on Genie, he uses one of his wishes to become the most powerful sorcerer in the world, conquering Agrabah almost effortlessly soon afterwards. And not even ''that'' was enough; Aladdin plays into Jafar's pride by pointing out that Genie is still more powerful than Jafar on accounts of the fact that he gave him his powers in the first place and that someone could theoretically wish said powers away. Jafar thus decides to use his last wish to [[BecomingTheGenie become a genie himself]], not realizing the [[RestrainingBolt downside]] until it's too late. |
| 220 | -->'''Aladdin:''' ''(As Jafar is being forcibly sucked into his new lamp)'' PHENOMENAL COSMIC POWERS... Itty-bitty living space. |
| 221 | ** The plot of ''WesternAnimation/TheAristocats'' is kickstarts when [[TheButlerDidIt Edgar, the butler of Madame Bonfamille]] kidnaps his mistress' cats to leave them in the wilderness. He does so after he learns that Madame Bonfamille has made her cats her sole heirs, while Edgar hoped to get hands on her fortune thanks to his long service. |
| 222 | ** ''WesternAnimation/BeautyAndTheBeast'' has Gaston, the village's [[ItsAllAboutMe full-of-himself]] handsome guy, who to Belle's dismay wants to marry her and make her his TrophyWife. He goes to great lenght to make her marry him, including kidnapping her father and attacking the Beast once he learns about his existence. |
| 223 | ** In ''WesternAnimation/{{Cinderella}}'', [[WickedStepmother Lady Tremain]] would do anything to ensure her ranks and even improv them, especially once the chance to marry off one of her daughters to the prince occurs. While ambition plays a part, most of her abuse against Cinderella in the movie is possibly more out of spite and ForTheEvulz. |
| 224 | ** In ''WesternAnimation/TheEmperorsNewGroove'' Yzma's ambition to [[TheUsurper rule the Inka kingdom]] leads her to trying to outright murder king Kuzco - unfortunately for her, her MinionWithAnFInEvil Kronk screws the magic poisons up and he is transformed into a lama instead. |
| 225 | ** [[spoiler:Prince Hans]] in ''WesternAnimation/Frozen2013''. [[spoiler:There was no way he'd inherit the throne to his own kingdom since he was the thirteenth-born son, so he plotted to marry into the royal family of Arendelle, kill Elsa, and assume the throne.]] |
| 226 | ** ''WesternAnimation/FrozenII'' reveals that in Arendelle's backstory, [[spoiler: Anna and Elsa's grandfather, King Runerad attacked the forrest tribe to get access to the magic they seem to control]]. |
| 227 | ** Professor Ratigan, Basil's ArchEnemy in ''WesternAnimation/TheGreatMouseDetective'' and an {{Expy}} of [[Literature/SherlockHolmes Professor Moriaty]], uses his [[EvilGenius incredible intellect]] to get money and power from his evil doings. His ultimate plan - besides killing his nemesis - includes stealing the crown from the Mouse Queen. |
| 228 | ** ''WesternAnimation/{{Hercules}}'' has [[EverybodyHatesHades Hades]] who plans to [[TakeOverTheWorld rule the cosmos]] - and get revenge on his brother Zeus. His M.O. are [[DealWithTheDevil shady deals]] which he tries on Hercules. He eventually fails. |
| 229 | ** In ''WesternAnimation/TheLittleMermaid1989'' [[WickedWitch Ursula]] was kicked out of Atlantica because [[TheUsurper she attacked King Triton and tried to seize the throne]]. Then, when Ariel, who has a DealWithTheDevil with her, comes too close to getting that first kiss that would undo Ursula's plans, she [[spoiler:sabotages that by transforming into Vanessa and using Ariel's voice to hypnotize the prince, just so Ariel would remain her slave. Then, even after promising Triton to release Ariel in exchange for his magical trident, she tries and fails to kill Ariel. To top it all off, she goes on a RoaringRampageOfRevenge and tries to kill everyone because of how badly her plans have been mucked up. |
| 230 | ** ''WesternAnimation/TheLionKing1994'' has another example of TheUsurper with Scar, Simba's EvilUncle. He successfully [[CainAndAbel kills his brother Mufasa]] and becomes new king of the Pride Lands. |
| 231 | ** ''WesternAnimation/ThePrincessAndTheFrog'': Doctor Facilier is an [[EvilSorcerer Evil Voodoo Witch Doctor]] who with the help of his "Friends From The Other Side" seeks for money and power. He also pushes Lawrence, Prince Naveen's loyal servant, to the evil side by promising him to make his life better. |
| 232 | ** ''WesternAnimation/SnowWhiteAndTheSevenDwarfs'' has the [[GodSaveUsFromTheQueen Evil Queen]] who - like in the [[Literature/SnowWhite original fairy tale]] - wants to proof she's the most beautyful woman. For that goal, she attempts to outright murder Snow White. |
| 233 | ** Mother Gothel in ''WesternAnimation/{{Tangled}}'' is an ImmortalitySeeker who kidnaps and imprisons Rapunzel, using her magical hair to give her [[FountainOfYouth eternal youth]]. Once Rapunzel escapes her prison, she does anything to get the source of her youth back. |
| 234 | * In ''WesternAnimation/{{Frankenweenie}},'' the main character manages to resurrect his dog [[ThePowerOfLove out of love]], and while [[NonHumanUndead still kind of dead]], the dog is otherwise fine. The other kids, meanwhile, are {{Designated Villain}}s because they want to replicate his experiment to win the science fair; their animals all ComeBackWrong, for no apparent reason other than that [[SpaceWhaleAesop they had "bad" intentions]]. |
| 235 | * ''Franchise/KungFuPanda'': |
| 236 | ** Downplayed with Tigress in [[WesternAnimation/KungFuPanda1 the first film]]. Tigress is quite overachieving in the beginning, but it's mostly to reinforce her worth in the eyes of Shifu, the citizens of the Valley, and her teammates. Nevertheless, it's these traits and the feeling of being pushed aside by an incoming (and seemingly undeserving) student that drives much of her cruel treatment towards Po. |
| 237 | ** Lord Shen in ''WesternAnimation/KungFuPanda2''. First, he invents the cannon with plans to use it to make himself more powerful. When his family's Soothsayer predicts that he will be defeated by "a black and white warrior", his response is to try to ''murder a nearby village of pandas''. By the time the film's events roll around, he wants nothing less than to conquer all of China. |
| 238 | * The Once-ler in ''WesternAnimation/{{The Lorax|2012}}'' film started out as a young man determined to prove himself to his family by becoming a successful businessman, but when he ''does'' become a success, he becomes obsessed with "biggering" his company until he turns into a full-blown CorruptCorporateExecutive. |
| 239 | [[/folder]] |
| 240 | |
| 241 | [[folder:Films -- Live-Action]] |
| 242 | * Eve Harrington of ''Film/AllAboutEve'' is nothing if not driven. She wants to be just like her inspiration, star actress Margo Channing, up to and including taking the role she has and will stop at nothing to get it. |
| 243 | * Played with in ''Film/BeyondTheLights''. Both Noni and Kaz have dreams and aspirations that are seen as admirable. It's Macy, Noni's mother's, ambition that is seen as evil as it drives her to ignore her daughter's own wishes and micromanage Noni's entire life. It is part of the reason Noni attempts suicide and ultimately leads to her [[CallingTheOldManOut letting Macy have it]] and [[spoiler: firing her as her manager]]. |
| 244 | * ''Film/Bones2001:'' Jeremiah's first flashback establishes him as being resentful of how Jimmy refuses to accept criminal deals which could help him advance in the world. When Jimmy says he's fine with the status quo, Jeremiah replies that "you got all the status, and I got nothing but quo." He pressures Jimmy to partner with Eddie and Lupovich to get rich selling drugs, and while he's horrified during Jimmy's actual murder, he's unrepentant about helping to turn his old neighborhood into a slum. |
| 245 | * Luchino Visconti's ''Film/TheDamned1969'' provides a thorough exploration of the trope. Various members and associates of a German steel family vie for control of the family business, set against the backdrop of Nazi Germany, using blackmail and murder to advance their means. Their ambitions are ruthlessly manipulated by SS leader [[TheChessmaster Aschenbach]], allowing the Nazis to take control. |
| 246 | * ''Film/TheFamilyMan'': The whole movie is about showing Nicholas Cage's character [[ItsAWonderfulPlot the life he would have had]] if he had chosen to stay with his girlfriend instead of going off on business. The thing is, he actually seems happy at the beginning of the film and miserable with his new circumstances to the point that he spends a fair portion of the movie trying to get his high-powered career back. Eventually though, he does fall in love with the family but is snapped back to his old life and circumstances are contrived as such that he ''has'' to blow the deal of his career to catch his ex-girlfriend at the airport (presumably sacrificing his career for a now-hypothetical family.) Why he couldn't have closed that deal and tried to look her up later is left to the viewer to figure out. |
| 247 | * In ''Film/{{Gladiator}}'', Marcus Aurelius wants to make General Maximus his heir specifically because Maximus does not have any ambition to be Emperor and Marcus wants Rome to become a Republic again. Commodus, however, has great ambition to be a wise and just Emperor. When he learns that the position is about to be snatched from him, he murders his own father. This lends credence to an AlternativeCharacterInterpretation that Marcus Aurelius felt that ambition was not the ''only'' flaw disqualifying Commodus from the purple robes of power... |
| 248 | * ''Film/GodzillaVsKong'': [[Characters/MonsterVerseApexCybernetics Apex Cybernetics]], the EvilInc responsible for the plot of the movie. Though they try to justify their EvilPlan to kill and usurp Godzilla by claiming they're [[MugglePower returning firm control of the planet to humanity]] and are creating a secure line of defence against the Titans, it's pretty clear from [[CorruptCorporateExecutive Walter Simmons]]' behavior and Apex's '''nightmarish''' lack of regard for the millions of potential casualties they engineer that what Apex ''really'' want is to be the ones credited with breaking new ground in the form of their human-controlled anti-Titan Mecha and [[EngineeredHeroics to be hailed as heroes]], at any cost. It's even all but confirmed in the official {{novelization}} that if Apex's plan had succeeded without any hitches, they would've gone on to {{take over the world}} outright. |
| 249 | * ''Film/IndianaJonesAndTheLastCrusade'': Elsa Schneider is a well-educated scholar who used her allegiance with the Nazis to obtain the Holy Grail. Her ambition drives her to betray both Indiana Jones and his father to get the invaluable information on the Grail’s location. In the end, ambition was her undoing, as she refuses to accept that the grail couldn’t leave its protective temple, which causes a CataclysmClimax. Despite the chaos, Indiana manages to keep her from falling to her death in a huge chasm. In her quest to have the grail at all costs, she wildly reaches for the grail, and Indiana loses his hold on her slippery gloved hand. |
| 250 | * A rather subtle version occurs in ''Film/IShotJesseJames''. Bob Ford’s pursuit of silver and wealth makes him even more possessive of his {{Love Interest|s}} Cynthy, whereas [[TheRival his rival]] John Kelley’s decision to become [[TheSheriff Town Marshal]] (largely considered a thankless job) is treated as a selfless action. This makes the two men's LoveTriangle with Cynthy even more intense. |
| 251 | * Many, if not all, ''Film/JamesBond'' villains are motivated to dominate the world or be very powerful, and they'll use any means to get to their goals, including but not limited to [[OmnicidalManiac straight-up omnicide]] or triggering World War III. |
| 252 | * Wan ultimately ends up losing everything she actually loved in her grab for power in ''Film/LegendOfTheBlackScorpion''. Then someone killed her. |
| 253 | * While [[Characters/MarvelComicsLoki Loki]] initially states that he never wanted the throne, he definitely gets a taste for it during his short rule in ''Film/{{Thor}}''. In ''Film/{{The Avengers|2012}}'', Loki has a lot of ambition: he wants to be a king of Asgard but would settle for [[TakeOverTheWorld taking over Earth]] as a substitute. This, of course, leads him to do some [[AlienInvasion pretty evil]] stuff. |
| 254 | * ''Film/{{Master}}'': [[spoiler:It's implied that Liv, a professor at Lancaster University who is a candidate for tenure, commits hate crimes against Jasmine and ultimately kills her in order to get tenure and thus secure her place in the college.]] |
| 255 | * In ''Film/{{Nightcrawler}}'', Lou ''exemplifies'' this trope. He is literally willing to do anything to get ahead in the business, no matter who he has to hurt. |
| 256 | * ''Film/SavannahSmiles'': Mr. Driscoll wants to run for the state Senate and neglects his daughter even more than usual to do so (while making his wife do the same), eventually graduating to outright destroying evidence that shows his daughter did run away instead of being kidnapped. |
| 257 | * ''[[Film/{{Scarface1983}} Scarface]]'': Tony Montana is hellbent on improving his lot in life, rising from a former convict and exile from Cuba to hitman and drug runner for the Miami mob and eventually into the position of mob boss while continuing to insist he wants more and feeling completely unfulfilled when he's got nothing to reach for. Tony makes "the world is yours" into his personal motto (having originally read it off an ad on the goodyear blimp) and displays it prominently in his foyer, [[spoiler:right where he's gunned down and dies at the end of the film.]] |
| 258 | * In ''Film/{{Stardust}}'', all of the Stormhold princes murder each other in an attempt to become heir to the throne. Only Primus seems decent, and he doesn't need to be ambitious because he's already the heir. The crown eventually goes to the most humble characters who is in line for it. |
| 259 | * [[Franchise/StarWars The Sith]] are all about this trope. [[NeutralEvil They actively betray and murder in order to obtain more power]], in contrast to the [[LawfulGood Jedi Philosophy.]] [[Literature/DarthBane One particular Sith]] went so far as to destroy the entire Sith leadership because they had stopped the repeated betrayal that usually only weakened the Sith as a whole. |
| 260 | * In ''Film/TheThinRedLine'' (1998) the antagonistic Lt. Col. Tall orders a suicidal attack, because the battle offers perfect opportunity for promotion. |
| 261 | * ''Film/TowerOfLondon1962'': Every evil act Richard III undertakes arises from his desire to take and keep the throne. |
| 262 | * ''Film/{{Vicki}}'': Even though Vicki claims she is not ambitious, this is patently not true (and Steve even outright states this during one of PerpSweating sessions). She uses those around her to ruthlessly claw her way to the top of the New York social scene, and then tosses everyone aside to move to Hollywood. It is her decision to go Hollywood that gets her murdered. |
| 263 | * ''Film/WallStreet'': Villain Gordon Gekko famously asserts, "Greed, for a lack of a better word, is good." InAWorld where money is power, greed is ambition. |
| 264 | [[/folder]] |
| 265 | |
| 266 | [[folder:Live-Action TV]] |
| 267 | * In ''Series/BabylonFive'', [[UnseenEvil the Shadows]] hold ambition as the highest virtue and [[TheCorrupter constantly play to this emotion in the Younger Races]] to promote their philosophy of [[TheSocialDarwinist Social Darwinism]]. Londo Mollari, their main 'client' through the story, ends up doing a ''lot'' of DirtyBusiness for his ambitions and suffers greatly for them, especially when he tries putting it right again. WordOfGod confirms that the Shadow emissary Morden recruited Londo specifically because he had a positive ambition to restore the Centauri empire, while G'Kar only wanted revenge on the Centauri, with no vision beyond that. [[note]] At least, that's where they are at the beginning of about two decades of character development.[[/note]] Ironically, the Shadows are convinced to leave the Younger Races alone forever after Sheridan asks them their own ArmorPiercingQuestion ("What do you want?") and they realize they don't know the answer anymore. The Shadows themselves had no real ambitions. |
| 268 | * In ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' (and its spinoff ''Series/{{Angel}}'') there's a similar theme running throughout most of the TV portion of the series. First, with most of the non-evil characters high school students, the monsters and villains become distinguished as those who know exactly "what they want to do when they grow up" -- they're doing it. More broadly, the show (based on commentaries, deliberately) emphasizes evil and good as proactive and reactive. When the good guys are farther ahead of their game than a last-minute response, they're generally making a mistake somebody else will pay for. Organized efforts to protect people ''before'' they're in danger turn out to have been corrupted from the very beginning. Even when the goal is simply to help people who need it (the homeless shelter in ''Series/{{Angel}}'', headed by a genuinely good person), there are hints of evil as entropy: proactively doing good on a local scale inevitably means contributing (at a net loss) to greater if vaguer evils. This seems to end in Buffy's Season 7. Maybe. Lindsey, a villain, had a driving motive of his cynicism and ambitions, as pointed out by his actor: |
| 269 | -->'''Christian Kane:''' I still think this cat looks at the glass as being half empty. And so, damn it, I’m going to drink the rest of that water. |
| 270 | * Royally averted in ''Series/{{Carrusel}}''. Most, if not all of the kids had an idea of what they wanted to be when they grew up. They were encouraged to study and do well in school, as well as to pursue their hobbies. |
| 271 | * ''Series/ControlZ'': Natalia's questionable methods to get what she wants come back to bite her hard after the hacker exposes her money theft to the school. |
| 272 | * ''Series/DoctorWho'': |
| 273 | ** In "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS14E3TheDeadlyAssassin The Deadly Assassin]]", the Master subverts his ally by appealing to his ambition. |
| 274 | ** In "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS29E5EvolutionOfTheDaleks Evolution of the Daleks]]", [[spoiler:[[HalfHumanHybrid Human-Dalek hybrid]]]] Dalek Sec spouts the following line after his transformation (note the other words besides "ambition"): |
| 275 | --->'''Dalek Sec:''' I feel... everything we wanted for mankind. Which is... ambition. Hatred. Aggression. And war. Such a genius for war... |
| 276 | * ''Series/TheDropout'': Theranos CEO and founder Elizabeth Holmes's ambition to make her mark leads her to make promises she is unable to deliver. She even conducts a trial of her blood-testing machine on actual cancer patients, despite the fact that the machine ''does not work.'' BasedOnATrueStory. |
| 277 | * In ''Series/{{ER}}'', Kerry Weaver does increasingly underhanded and immoral things in order to advance her career. |
| 278 | * Somewhat subverted with ''Series/{{Glee}}'': Main character Rachel is ''extremely'' ambitious, but it's portrayed in both good and bad ways: her insistence on always getting the spotlight alienates people, but her go-getter attitude combined with her talent is ultimately what will save her from the fate of many of her classmates (being stuck in Lima, OH). Certainly, she's never seen as evil, though she often seems to lack perspective and goes to extreme lengths such as sending Sunshine to a crack house to scare her out of the Glee Club, this eliminating her (perceived) competition. By the end of Season 2, however, Rachel seems to have learned her lesson. She'll still be ambitious, but she's going to be nicer about it (hopefully). On the other hand, we have Sue, who single-mindedly pursues her goal of destroying Glee Club -- and there's Terri, Will's wife, who cruelly pushes him to give up teaching and become an accountant so they make more money. Will ''is'' ambitious, though; it's just that these ambitions are directed toward elevating the [=McKinley=] High Glee Club as high as possible, rather than making money. |
| 279 | * ''Series/TheGuardiansOfJustice'': Outright stated as Episode 7's title, "Proximity to Power Corrupts More than Power Itself". [[spoiler:Night Hawk's envy, paranoia, and psychosis build over the course of twenty-two years, formulating a plan to take over the world so he can defeat what even Marvelous Man couldn't]]. |
| 280 | * In an episode of ''Series/HappyDays'' Richie becomes leader of his squad in ROTC. Ralph and Potsie think it's an invitation to goof off and somehow [[BrokenAesop he's the bad guy for punishing them for it.]] |
| 281 | * Frank Pembleton from ''Series/HomicideLifeOnTheStreet'' is a fundamentally good man, even if [[GoodIsNotNice he acts like a prick most of the time.]] However, he is deeply ambitious and desires to climb the ranks of the BPD, making him susceptible to the manipulations of his superiors, who ''want'' to promote him but at the cost of turning him into as much of a venal, self-serving politician as they are. |
| 282 | * A recurring theme on ''Series/TheHoneymooners'' is Alice telling Ralph he should be satisfied with his job as a bus driver and not keep trying to improve their lot in life. Admittedly, Ralph has a tendency to go with get rich quick schemes, but if the level-headed Alice actually helped steer his ambition instead of belittling him, they might actually prosper. |
| 283 | * The premise of ''Series/HouseOfCardsUK'' and ''Series/HouseOfCardsUS''. Francis Urquhart and Francis Underwood initially engage in some ruthless DisproportionateRetribution after getting snubbed for a promotion that ends with them in higher positions than they were originally hoping for. But they enjoy the power so much that they keep climbing the political ladder on top of several careers and bodies. |
| 284 | * ''Franchise/KamenRider'': |
| 285 | ** The CentralTheme of ''Series/KamenRiderOOO'' is desire, and most of the story arcs are about dealing with some ambition that's run out of control. The main character himself is characterized by an utter lack of any kind of ambition. [[SuperpoweredEvilSide And then]] [[PowerDegeneration the trope was]] [[HeroicRROD inverted.]] Particularly by Kosei Kougami, perhaps the closest thing there is to a BigGood in the series. He [[LargeHam loudly]] and frequently espouses the virtue of desire and ambition because it leads to [[RomanticismVersusEnlightenment progress and evolution]]. This is in contrast to [[TheHero Eiji]], whose lack of desire and focus on what's immediately in front of him are initially played as entirely virtuous, but his outlook is later shown to be the result of [[DarkAndTroubledPast severe emotional trauma]] [[spoiler: and eventually causes him to start losing himself as he transforms into the Purple Greed, which represents the antithesis of desire]]. |
| 286 | ** Kuroto Dan in ''Series/KamenRiderExAid'' wants to become even more famous through developing a new brand of video games better than any others. That's not the bad part. That he starts to go exactly along the lines of [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking arson, murder, and jaywalking]] to achieve it, on the other hand, is. |
| 287 | ** In ''Series/KamenRiderZiO'', TheProtagonist Sougo Tokiwa has this as ''the'' source of his problems in current time due to the latter part resulting from the former part of this trope later in his life. Sougo's dream is to become king, [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome though NO ONE in present honestly takes him seriously]]. 50 years later, Sougo is known as [[EvilOverlord Oma Zi-O]], [[FromNobodyToNightmare the Demon King of Time]] who causes and rules over a BadFuture. It has gotten to the point that multiple factions have gone back in time stop Zi-O's road to ascension -- [[YouCouldHaveUsedYourPowersForGood one way]] [[ShootTheDog or another]]. |
| 288 | * Zig-zagged on ''Series/{{Leverage}}'' with Sterling, who [[KarmaHoudini always benefits personally from the team's actions]]. While he is almost always an antagonist of the team, [[HeroAntagonist he is often portrayed as actually being in the right]], especially once he becomes an InterpolSpecialAgent. |
| 289 | * A recurring theme in ''Series/LittleHouseOnThePrairie''. Anyone with money is bad or downright evil (Harriet Olesen, Ebeneezer Sprague), and doing things that will make a character successful will only backfire and provide an Aesop for the protagonists. |
| 290 | ** Every time Harriet attempts to make more money, she has the plan fall apart on her and end up costing her money. |
| 291 | ** When Charles and Caroline go to a high-school reunion, they feel sad when they realize how much more successful everyone else is, but in the end, everyone who succeeded in life wishes they had the life of Charles and Caroline because they have true happiness. |
| 292 | ** When Charles and Mr. Garvey go into the freight business, they're immediately successful, so the first thing they do is go into a fancy restaurant and start ordering things off the menu that they don't even recognize. When the waiter brings them their escargot, they get mad at him, like he's trying to force a fancy life upon them. Charles even yells at the waiter for no reason other than he didn't like the fancy life. Charles and Mr. Garvey leave the restaurant, taking a bottle of wine with them, without paying for any of it. The entire scene is played like this is their "reward" for doing well. Because of this meal, they decide to end their freight business and go home to their wives. Neither one of them had been home for two weeks, but rather than have that be the reason for their return, they focused on the way rich people act. |
| 293 | * Sauron from ''Series/TheLordOfTheRingsTheRingsOfPower'' could be the physical embodiment of this trope. Even when he has good intentions, he is going to use the cruelest methods to achieve his goals. After Morgoth's defeat, he continued to make cruel experiments on Orcs just so he could obtain the power of the Seen and the Unseen World, which led to being betrayed be Orcs and temporary killed for his deeds. |
| 294 | * Anyone in ''Series/{{MASH}}'' who has ambitions is evil. The only people with ambitions are portrayed as being self-centered, selfish, and just plain bad. Some examples: |
| 295 | ** Frank is always an antagonist, but any time he's in charge, it goes to his head and everyone turns against him. |
| 296 | ** Generals and colonels are often portrayed as people who care more about their careers than anything else. |
| 297 | *** In one episode, Potter gives a brief speech outlining exactly how {{Jerkass}} each officer rank is likely to be based on how far away they are from real prestige. (He concludes it with a bit of HypocriticalHumor, noting that colonels are the worst, since "they can practically taste those stars.") |
| 298 | ** When Winchester joins the cast, he wants to be head of thoracic surgery at a Boston hospital. Then again, Winchester is also portrayed as more than competent enough to handle this. Unlike Frank, his antagonism comes from a clashing personality as opposed to incompetence. By the end of the show, this troper wanted him to run that hospital! |
| 299 | ** When the soldier of the month board is coming up, everyone in the competition stoops to some low activities (brown-nosing, cheating) to get ahead. |
| 300 | ** One episode sees the company clerk, Radar, promoted from Corporal to Lieutenant. He's then put in charge of his "friends", who decide that since he's now an officer, he's automatically a {{Jerkass}} and no longer their buddy -- even though he's shown to be quite laid back, and is only doing the job he was assigned. Radar is so troubled by this that he asks to be demoted back to Corporal at the end of the episode. There's also a nurse who has a crush on him and was always making passes at him, which didn't act on because he was only a lowly corporal. When he's promoted to lieutenant, the nurse loses interest in him and explains that the only reason she was attracted to him in the first place was that it was wrong. |
| 301 | ** Downplayed with Father Mulcahy, who pushes for promotion, is shown regretting his actions and talks about the sin of pride -- but he remains a nice guy. And it was because he was jealous of a colleague getting a similar promotion! |
| 302 | %%* Morgan le Fay in ''Series/Merlin1998''. |
| 303 | * ''Series/NirvanaInFire'': The Crown Prince and Prince Yu are ultimately defeated by the consequences of their own unscrupulous greed for power. Jingyan seeks power for altruistic reasons and is ultimately able to become Emperor. |
| 304 | * ''Series/TheOfficeUS'': In the first few seasons, Dwight and Angela are the meanest employees who are [[UnpopularPopularCharacter the most unpopular with their coworkers]]. They are also the most driven, hard-working, and likely to take charge. Then Andy was added to the cast and he was originally characterized as someone who, like Dwight, would stop at nothing to become Number Three in the office. By the time he was RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap, this goal had mysteriously disappeared. Ryan was corrupted with power when he got promoted to corporate and TookALevelInJerkass to extreme levels. Jim is at his best when he is BrilliantButLazy and whenever he takes on management duties he finds himself LonelyAtTheTop and is unsure of how to handle the job. Pam has always had an ambitious streak (even if it was repressed at first) which appears to run much deeper than that of Jim. However, while she originally had the sympathetic goals of wanting to prove herself talented and capable and escape her disliked receptionist job ever since she came back from Pratt she has gradually become more concerned with making money than being competent and has undertaken more questionable means of getting herself promoted. In fact, the only notably ambitious character who neither does mean things just to get ahead of others nor gets an intelligence downgrade after being promoted is Karen (she was sometimes mean to Pam because she was a rival love interest, not out of ambition). And that's because she was always going to be PutOnABus for [[DieForOurShip unrelated reasons.]] |
| 305 | * ''Series/TheOuterLimits1963'': This is the lesson of the episode "[[Recap/TheOuterLimits1963S1E20TheBelleroShield The Bellero Shield]]". Judith Bellero, a RichBitch inspired by LadyMacbeth, already has a life most people would envy--a wealthy scientist husband, a BigFancyHouse -- but it's not enough for her. She wants "Power, far-flung holdings, undiminishable authority", and she plans to get them by taking over her father-in-law's MegaCorp. When Judith's husband accidentally intercepts an [[AllLovingHero all-loving alien]] who uses an impenetrable shield to travel the stars, Judith kills the Christ-like creature and tries to pass its shield off as her husband's invention, which [[ItWontTurnOff backfires]] [[LaserGuidedKarma spectacularly]]. |
| 306 | * Wonderfully averted in ''Series/ParksAndRecreation''. Leslie is extremely ambitious (She wants to one day be the first female president) but is also extremely moral and would never even think of doing something wrong to get ahead in politics. |
| 307 | * ''Series/PoliticalAnimals'': |
| 308 | ** Frequently discussed in terms of Elaine's political ambition making her look bad because [[DoubleStandard ambition looks better on men]]. |
| 309 | ** Georgia, the reporter whom Susan compares to [[Film/AllAboutEve Eve Harrington]] in the first episode, doesn't seem to care who she hurts to get established as a more serious reporter, although she's closer to Short-Sighted Ambition Is Evil And Stupid. |
| 310 | * {{Inverted|Trope}} in ''Series/PowerRangersInSpace'', where being more evil seems to increase your ambition. The BigBad has a HeelFaceTurn midway through the season, after finding out she's [[spoiler: [[TheHero Andros]]]] [[LukeIAmYourFather long-lost sister]]. Unfortunately, not long after, the GreaterScopeVillain captures her and uses cybernetics to brainwash her into being even more evil than she originally was. After this happens she almost immediately begins plotting to overthrow the GreaterScopeVillain, an ambition she'd never been shown to have before. |
| 311 | * In ''Series/{{Primeval}}'', Christine Johnson is one of the main villains in Series 3. The reason why she's so evil? [[spoiler:She wants to steal an artifact from the future which involves the Anomalies in order to do research on it, and become famous.]] In fact, Christine is so ambitious, that James Lester described her as "like a Velociraptor, only better dressed". [[spoiler:Luckily, in Episode 3.9 of ''Primeval'', Christine Johnson is pushed through an Anomaly leading to the future by Helen Cutter, where she is killed by a Future Predator, probably to Lester's great relief.]] |
| 312 | * Never, ''ever'' go on a RealityTV show and express a desire to ''actually win''. After all, that'd be silly -- who'd enter a GameShow with [[ThisIsACompetition the intention of succeeding]]? |
| 313 | * ''Series/Revenge2011'' has Daniel Grayson, who took over his company against his father's wishes and alienated all other friends and lovers in the process. |
| 314 | * ''Series/TheRoyals'': Prince Cyrus Henstridge is the younger brother of King Simon, and has always been jealous of his brother's crown. He often speaks to Simon and Liam about being deserving of the throne and how a good king would do things, and the unsaid implication lies in his words that he thinks he would make a better king. And indeed, he attacks Simon from behind at one point, effectively killing him and making Cyrus king. |
| 315 | * Played with in ''Series/SabrinaTheTeenageWitch''. When Harvey tells Sabrina he doesn't plan on going to college, Sabrina secretly doses him with a magical "Ambition" line of toiletries sold to her by her cousin. However, she uses too much turning Harvey into a CorruptCorporateExecutive that manages to buy the school and plan on demolishing it. When Sabrina's aunts find out, they learn that the Ambition products lacked a key "expensive and imported" component: Perspective, meaning that Harvey was dosed with "Blind Ambition". When Harvey is dosed with Perspective, he cancels the plan, gives all his money to charity, and everything goes back to normal with an Aesop about [[PygmalionSnapback wanting to change people]]... until Harvey tells Sabrina that he ''will'' go to college after all. (It's important to note that the Harvey at the end of the episode is still Harvey dosed with Ambition-plus-Perspective, not the original, unaltered personality.) |
| 316 | * First Lady Mellie Grant in ''Series/Scandal2012'' will do anything to stay in the White House and clearly has designs on building a Grant political dynasty. We later find out the underlying reason for this. She was raped by her father-in-law and was too traumatized to tell anyone what happened. Instead, she convinced herself that her staying silent was a HeroicSacrifice needed to get her husband elected to office so he could do great things. If she were to abandon that ambition, she would have to admit that her 'sacrifice' was for nothing. |
| 317 | * ''Series/{{Smallville}}'': Lex Luthor seems to catch more than a little flak for ever wanting to help people. Phrases like "The world doesn't need Lex Luthor to save it" are bandied about ''constantly'', with the implication that because of his destiny to be Superman's greatest enemy ([[DramaticIrony which no one knows at the time because PREQUEL]]) means that any and all efforts he makes to be something other than a regular nobody will end in a FaceHeelTurn. [[spoiler:With his murder by Oliver Queen and having been effectively replaced by his clone, it seems all of that worrying was for absolutely nothing.]] |
| 318 | * ''Franchise/ASongOfIceAndFire'': |
| 319 | ** ''Series/GameOfThrones'': |
| 320 | *** After watching his dynasty nearly ruined by his ineffectual father, [[Characters/GameOfThronesTywinLannister Tywin Lannister's]] dream is to "establish a dynasty that will last a thousand years," and he will do anything, no matter how vicious, to maintain his family's greatness and is ruthless when playing the game of thrones. Robert is even more generous, summing Tywin's goal up as "wanting to own the world". His outsize ambition is the main reason why he doesn't get along very well with his children -- in his eyes, they've done nothing with their lives without his help or name, or at least so he believes. He approves of Jaime's great skill as a MasterSwordsman but is disappointed that he doesn't apply himself. As for Cersei, he feels that she didn't do enough in her position as Queen and did a poor job raising Joffrey. As for Tyrion, from his perspective, Tyrion was content to spend all his time drinking and whoring until Tywin appointed him Hand and later Master of Coin. From Tyrion's perspective, he hardly ever got opportunities because his father kept insulting him with tasks like manage the cisterns of Casterly Rock, and even when Tyrion did great at that, hardly considers it indicative of any talent. |
| 321 | *** The only trait [[Characters/GameOfThronesCerseiLannister Cersei Lannister]] inherited from her Lord father and her brothers didn't. Never satisfied with her station in life, she is by far the most power-hungry of the Lannister siblings, always equating power with victory, no matter the cost (including losing her own children). |
| 322 | *** [[Characters/GameOfThronesPetyrBaelish Petyr "Littlefinger" Baelish]] was born without wealth, influence, or a great title. By Season 3, he's gained all three by being a scheming backstabber. |
| 323 | *** [[ZigZaggingTrope Zig-Zagged]] by the Tyrells. They aim to increase their own power and prestige through some fairly shady schemes, but are adored in-universe for their appearance as noble and charitable figures, and the fandom can empathize with them in their rivalry with the proud and conservative Lannisters and for being one of the least dysfunctional houses in Westeros. |
| 324 | *** According to writer Creator/DavidBenioff, [[Characters/GameOfThronesStannisBaratheon Stannis Baratheon]] chooses ambition over family in "The Dance of Dragons" and this is what ultimately does him in. Given Stannis's general [[TheDutifulSon characterization]] [[TheMenFirst before]] [[GoodParents said]] [[PrinciplesZealot episode]], this explanation has been [[BrokenBase contested]], to say the least. Despite having alleged noble ends, Stannis is bound and determined that absolutely no one but ''him'' should sit on the Iron Throne, and every time he has to choose between ambition and his family (or his honor, or his principles) he chooses ambition. Ultimately, this results in his downfall, as even hired sellswords can't stomach the lengths to which he is willing to go and abandon him en masse, leading to his defeat by the Boltons and execution at the hands of Brienne. This exception is, of course, in the backstory, where Stannis supported his family and nearly starved to death in TheSiege for a brother he never even liked because blood is ThickerThanWater rather than support his lawful ruler who would undoubtedly have rewarded him handsomely, most likely by fulfilling Stannis' ambition to be Lord of Storm's End. |
| 325 | *** The characters who aren't on Renly's side don't view positively his bid to the throne, as he can't even kid anyone about having any legitimacy. Davos, who may be considered OnlySaneMan, even remarks that Renly's actions were unlawful and wrong enough to consider him a justified casualty of war. |
| 326 | ** ''Series/HouseOfTheDragon'': |
| 327 | *** The Hightowers being ambitious and wanting to see their own grandchildren on the throne is treated as much more immoral and dangerous than the Velaryons doing the same, with the Velaryons getting a little flack for it. Both are trying to climb the ladder, but because at the beginning of the story the Hightowers don't have a Valyrian ascendency, dragons and all the edge that entails, they have to rely on conventional scheming and amoral subterfuge more often to try punching above their weight. The legitimacy of Targaryen rule is not questioned nor presented as ambitious, as they became rulers thanks to [[MightMakesRight right of conquest]], and Aegon's legacy includes an obligation to [[HeroicLineage uphold a strong realm]], which they are trying to mantain and mostly react to events. |
| 328 | *** Larys Strong is shaping up into very much the show's equivalent of scheming backstabber Littlefinger. He hitches a ride on the Hightowers' ambition via Alicent's own, and sacrifices his own father and brother to further his goals. |
| 329 | * ''Franchise/StarTrek'': |
| 330 | ** In [[Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries the original series]], ''[[Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine Deep Space Nine]]'' and ''[[Series/StarTrekEnterprise Enterprise]]'', this is explicitly given as the reason why [[NoTranshumanismAllowed genetic engineering is illegal in the Federation]], with Khan as the defining example (naturally, this overlaps heavily with FantasticRacism). It's specifically mentioned that "superior ability breeds superior ambition", and that dabbling in genetic engineering risks the creation of another superhuman like Khan, "whose ambition and thirst for power have been enhanced along with his intellect". |
| 331 | ** Gowron is initially presented as a Klingon who genuinely gave a crap about honor. Indeed, he's a political outsider who often opposes the High Council. However, as time goes by, he cares more and more about keeping his position as leader of the Empire secure, to the point of deliberately sending a brilliant general he viewes as a rival on impossible missions. |
| 332 | ** Kai Winn from ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'' was genuinely dedicated to her faith and her people during the occupation. Her desire to become Kai leads her to be a {{Fantastic Racis|m}}t, a murderer, a terrorist, and eventually a traitor. |
| 333 | ** Sisko and Martok are examples of the opposite. When Akorem Laan, a poet, was transported to the future and thought he was the emissary, rather than try to adapt to his new time, he used his newfound power to force everyone else to adapt to him, by returning to the abandoned FantasticCasteSystem, and he didn't care how much suffering he was causing. It's clear that what made Sisko such a good emissary was the fact that he didn't want to be emissary, and thus he couldn't abuse his power because he was too reluctant to even acknowledge he had it. Similarly, Worf thought Martok would make a good chancellor because he refused to seek the position, even though he could have taken it. |
| 334 | --->'''Worf:''' Great men do not seek power. They have power thrust upon them. |
| 335 | * ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'': |
| 336 | ** There are some indications that Sam's desire to go to school was bad. Conversely, his desire for the power to stop Lilith is treated as bad only partly because of the way he goes about getting it. |
| 337 | ** Similarly, the moral of the episode "[[Recap/SupernaturalS04E17ItsATerribleLife It's a Terrible Life]]" can be seen as "being a businessman is evil". |
| 338 | * ''Series/{{Veep}}'': Selina can be pretty damn brutal when it comes to advancing her political career, something best exemplified in the final season. By the end of the GrandFinale, she's compromised every one of her few morals (selling out Tibet to China, indulging in electoral fraud, [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking allying with Jonah]], etc.) and even thrown her eternally loyal aide Gary under the bus to avoid jail time, all to ensure she gets elected President. |
| 339 | * Explicitly addressed and rejected by Toby in ''Series/TheWestWing'' when he explains to Josh that it's actually a bad thing that Josh's preferred presidential candidate had to be aggressively persuaded to run for President. Toby's argument is that the decisions the President has to make, and the burdens he has to bear, are so extraordinary that they can only be handled by someone who sincerely believes that they were placed on this Earth to do the job. A President ''needs'' to be a breathtakingly ambitious person. |
| 340 | * ''Series/TheWire'' argues that [[InherentInTheSystem every system, from law enforcement to schools to government, is hamstrung by personal ambition]]. Everyone is too obsessed with advancing their own careers to actually do what is best for the community; since selflessly trying to do what's right, even if you succeed, causes you to fall behind in the race for status, the people who end up on top are always the people who sacrifice the most morality to achieve their goals. |
| 341 | * An episode of ''Series/YouCantDoThatOnTelevision'' specifically deals with ambition. One of the cast members remarks that the problem with ambition is "If you don't have enough, you're lazy, and if you have too much, you're ruthless. You can't win." His solution? Be lazy and get a ruthless manager. |
| 342 | [[/folder]] |
| 343 | |
| 344 | [[folder:Manhua]] |
| 345 | * In ''Manhua/CyberWeaponZ'', Leiting may look like a WellIntentionedExtremist but, at the end of the day, what he really cares about is his increasing his own power [[spoiler: by siphoning that of the Demon King Solote]]. |
| 346 | [[/folder]] |
| 347 | |
| 348 | [[folder:Music]] |
| 349 | * Both of the scientists in the ''Music/EvilliousChronicles'' song [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=veIyUFNSWEY Project "Ma"]] are this. |
| 350 | * "Paranoid Android" by Music/{{Radiohead}} has the prominent line 'Ambition makes you look pretty ugly.' |
| 351 | [[/folder]] |
| 352 | |
| 353 | [[folder:Roleplays]] |
| 354 | * ''Roleplay/DawnOfANewAgeOldportBlues'': |
| 355 | ** Finn, whose desire to be a great political leader is intrinsically tied to his unlikable, arrogant personality. {{Downplayed|Trope}}, however, in that he's a {{jerkass}} rather than a villain. |
| 356 | ** Daigo, similarly, wants to overthrow the ruling powers and become a leader who can present himself to the masses as their saviour. While a somewhat noble goal in theory, he quickly leaps off into the dark side when he uses his newfound power to terrorise and murder innocents for the sake of his goal. |
| 357 | [[/folder]] |
| 358 | |
| 359 | [[folder:Tabletop Games]] |
| 360 | * The Violent in ''TabletopGame/{{Anathema|2011}}'' gain will from outclassing other shrouds. There's nothing wrong with being ambitious at your job. When your job is to murder millions upon millions of humans, however... |
| 361 | * While ''TabletopGame/BattleTech'' operates under a mostly GreyAndGrayMorality, characters who are presented as ambitious (whether that ambition is to work their way up to a higher rank in the military, become governor of a planet, or conquer the entire Inner Sphere) are almost always presented as antagonists. [[MagnificentBastard Hanse Davion]] is the biggest exception -- he came the closest to conquering the Inner Sphere that anyone had done since the collapse of the [[GoldenAge Star League]] but was generally portrayed as heroic because of his actions. |
| 362 | ** Brett Andrews is one of the worse cases, as the ilKhan (Khan of all the Clans) he puts his personal ambitions and ideas over the betterment of all the Clans. He instigated the Wars of Reavings which resulted in the Clans tearing each other apart, while his Clan the Steel Vipers benefited from it, at the expense of the rest of the Clans. |
| 363 | ** Hanse Davion avoids falling into this trope mainly by not actually being especially ''ambitious'', at least not by Successor Lord standards. Cunning, yes, ruthless where he needs to be, too...but he does have a conscience and at heart genuinely believes that the people he conquers will in fact be better off than they were under their old oppressive regimes (and considering who his primary enemies in his time are it's not too difficult to see ''why'' he would think so). So from his perspective, it's actually ''not'' [[ItsAllAboutMe All About Him]]. (Compare and contrast his daughter Katherine, who in her own grab for power after his death plays the trope dead straight and promptly ends up thoroughly wrecking the very Federated Commonwealth he's only just helped establish again.) |
| 364 | * The structure of ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' averts the trope, since achieving wealth and power is a built-in result of adventuring. |
| 365 | * In ''TabletopGame/LegendOfTheFiveRings'', there exist a set of four "Bloodswords", powerful weapons crafted by an evil sorcerer. They are named Passion, Revenge, Judgement, and Ambition, and greatly increase the given emotion/feeling in their wielder to an extremely unhealthy level. Throughout the story, two separate individuals have wielded Ambition. Both tried to murder the Emperor and take over his throne. Both ended poorly for the individual in question. |
| 366 | * ''TabletopGame/MagicTheGathering'': Ambition is one of the things represented by the color black. Granted, black is [[DarkIsNotEvil not always evil]], but it is the usual home of AlwaysChaoticEvil creatures. Personified by Bontu, the ''God'' of Ambition on the plane of Amonkhet, which drove her personality so much that she allied with [[BigBad Nicol Bolas]] in order to gain more power. Predictably, once Bolas had used Amonkhet to his satisfaction, [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness she paid for it.]] |
| 367 | * ''TabletopGame/{{Scion}}'': One of the Dark Virtues is Ambition. |
| 368 | * ''TabletopGame/SeventhSea'': "Ambitious" is one of the Hubrises that can be taken as a "fatal flaw" by player characters in exchange for more Hero Points at character creation. However, Hubrises aren't explicitly considered evil traits, just dangerous ones, and characters that have one are just as heroic as anyone else. (The game also includes such Hubrises as "Loyal", "Misfortunate" and "Star-crossed".) |
| 369 | * ''TabletopGame/SwashbucklersOfTheSevenSkies'': |
| 370 | ** "Ambitious" best describes the national character of the Barathi, whose empire is tangled, corrupt, and ridden with assassination and Vendetta-killings. The other nations have their own ideals that can cause conflict, but the Barathi are the easiest to hand for any GM who wants a sinister plot driven by someone's desire for power. Ambition is even listed as one of the fatal flaws that distinguishes a swashbuckling villain from a hero, becoming consumed by the need to win. |
| 371 | ** Characters can also easily take "Ambition" as a Foible (similar to the Hubrises of ''7th Sea''), which is an open invitation for any GM to have it bite them in the ass. Then again, they can also take it as a Motivation or other Forte so that an ambitious nature works for them rather than against. |
| 372 | * In ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer}}'' and ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'': |
| 373 | ** Tzeentch is the Chaos god of ambition, also: hope, change, mutation, betrayal, psychic powers, lies, plotting, [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking ravens]], etc. In fact, in 40K he's the accumulated hope felt by sentient species in the galaxy. |
| 374 | ** The Space Marines believe, "Better to die for the Emperor, than live for yourself." |
| 375 | ** The Tau are all about this, to a point where they can be a Deconstruction. Everything they do is for "The Greater Good": they don't love in the romantic sense (they breed by eugenics with couplings determined by genetic analysis), they will throw themselves into a meat-grinder knowing full well they will die, and even their leaders will sometimes carry a bomb to blow themselves up all for the Greater Good. |
| 376 | *** Worth pointing out that they think ''personal'' ambition is bad. [[TheEmpire Collective species-wide ambition]] is a virtue. [[BlueAndOrangeMorality Yeah]]. |
| 377 | ** Horus Lupercal embodied the Emperor's ambition, and that ambition led him to ruin. |
| 378 | ** Nagash from ''Warhammer Fantasy'' wanted to be king, but due to Nehekaran rules of succession, he (as the eldest son) was made a priest while his younger brother was made king. Pissed beyond belief by this, Nagash plotted for a means to overthrow his brother, which he got when some captured Dark Elves taught him the basics of dark magic, providing him with the base to invent necromancy. Nowadays Nagash (as a mighty lich) has loftier goals in mind: [[OmnicidalManiac killing the entire world]] [[KillTheGod and the Chaos Gods]] so that his will alone would reign supreme. |
| 379 | ** Similarly, the elven prince Malekith wanted to succeed his father Aenarion, the first Phoenix King. When the High Elves instead instituted ElectiveMonarchy and elected Bel-Shanaar to the position, Malekith accepted it publicly but secretly schemed against him. After murdering Bel-Shanaar and the Council of Princes, Malekith sought to emulate his father and Bel-Shanaar and undergo the same TrialByOrdeal to become king by walking through the Sacred Fire of [[TheCreator Asuryan]] with their blood still on his hands. [[ManOnFire Asuryan quickly disabused him of his legitimacy]], and the ensuing CivilWar tore the old High Elven kingdom apart. Staying alive through his own spite and ambition, Malekith still plots to become king of the elves or to sink Ulthuan beneath the waves if they continue to defy him. |
| 380 | [[/folder]] |
| 381 | |
| 382 | [[folder:Theatre]] |
| 383 | * ''Theatre/CyranoDeBergerac'': InUniverse: One of the traits of the Gascon [[BlueAndOrangeMorality moral code]]: De Guiche, a gascon soldier is considered [[NoTrueScotsman No True Gascon]] between all the other Gascons because he wants to get power through compromise instead of his personal valor. |
| 384 | * Initially the main protagonist of ''Theatre/TheFix'', Calvin Chandler, only wants to hang out getting high and playing guitar -- it's his scheming mother who forces him into politics after her Senator husband dies, because... |
| 385 | -->''If I can't be the wife of the President,\ |
| 386 | You can bet your ass I'll be his mother!'' |
| 387 | * Played with heavily in ''Theatre/{{Hamilton}}'', since nobody's exactly evil and often it's more like Ambition Makes You Stupid. Both Hamilton and Burr are deeply ambitious men, but Hamilton is ''[[HotBlooded impatiently]]'' ambitious while Burr is more willing to wait for opportunity to present itself. |
| 388 | ** Hamilton's ambition doubles as his greatest trait ''and'' part of his FatalFlaw. He's always looking to do ''more'', which both enables him to pretty much invent America's financial system on his own, but he doesn't know when to stop in order to stay out of trouble. With someone like [[TheMentor George Washington]] around to grab him before he runs himself off a cliff, he's a brilliant statesman. Once Washington dies, he starts making more boneheaded moves and quickly self-destructs. |
| 389 | ** Hamilton often presses Burr to be more active and stand up for himself more often but finds himself opposing Burr when Burr actually starts taking his advice. Hamilton's reasoning when Burr demands answers as to why he supported Thomas Jefferson's presidential campaign is explicitly this trope; he states that while he and Jefferson have contradictory ideals, at least Jefferson ''has'' ideals and is campaigning in order to fulfill them, while Burr just wants the office for the power. |
| 390 | * Ambition leads [[GodSaveUsFromTheQueen Abigaille]] to usurp her father's throne in Verdi's ''Theatre/{{Nabucco}}''. |
| 391 | * ''Theatre/{{Rent}}'': In "You'll See," it's revealed that before the events of the musical, ambition and wanting to move up on the social ladder are what gradually transformed Benny from an idealistic bohemian and friend of Mark and Roger, to a rather callous and occasionally unpleasant capitalist who reneges on his promise not to charge rent to his former room and housemates and tries to get a lot containing a tent city cleared out and demolished. It's worth noting that both of these actions are to achieve his dream of building a high-tech studio, which he hopes can allow his former fellow bohemians to actually make money off of their art. |
| 392 | * Social hierarchies were a major part of Elizabethan society, so ambition beyond one's station is an important theme in many Creator/WilliamShakespeare tragedies: |
| 393 | ** In ''Theatre/JuliusCaesar'', Brutus claims to the Romans that Caesar's ambitious nature was tyrannical and that stopping him justifies the murder. Antony provides the page quote by acknowledging the dangers of ambition even though he disagrees. |
| 394 | ** Ambition is literally Theatre/{{Macbeth}}'s only motivation in favor of kill Duncan: "I have no spur / To prick the sides of my intent, but only / Vaulting ambition". |
| 395 | ** In ''Theatre/{{Hamlet}}'', Claudius' ambition to the throne leads him to kill his brother and marry the queen. |
| 396 | * "The Way Things Are" from ''I Can Get It For You Wholesale'': |
| 397 | -->You've got to climb higher, always climb!\ |
| 398 | To hell with the rules!\ |
| 399 | Get used to the fools\ |
| 400 | Who have to be stepped on\ |
| 401 | From time to time! |
| 402 | [[/folder]] |
| 403 | |
| 404 | [[folder:Video Games]] |
| 405 | %%* The aptly-named ''[[Creator/ZapDramatic Ambition]]'' series has this with Yale. |
| 406 | * ''VideoGame/ANNOMutationem'': C seeks to obtain an ArtifactOfDoom called The Dypheus' Breath that will allow him to open portals through AnotherDimension which he plans to use for his own agenda. Overtime, he displays arrogant disdain and obsessive ambition towards his coworkers because he believes that his plan will not bring about disastrous consequences and the only way it will succeed if he is the one in control without anyone standing in his way, even [[MotiveDecay resorting]] to attempting to take over The Consortium out of spite. |
| 407 | * ''VideoGame/BaldursGateIII'': |
| 408 | ** TheSmartGuy Gale was ChaoticGood, but his ambition and InferioritySuperiorityComplex was his FatalFlaw and the direct cause of his downfall prior to the start of the game. If the PlayerCharacter doesn't help him learn from his mistakes, he ultimately has a FaceHeelTurn. Invoked by Raphael, who refers to ambition as a sin in one of the game's MultipleEndings where [[spoiler: Gale becomes a DeityOfHumanOrigin: the God of Ambition. Raphael anticipates that Gale will cause complete chaos in his new godly role, and plans to use the opportunity to seize more power for himself.]] |
| 409 | ** Should Minthara join the party, she aspires to usurp the Dead Three's Chosen as leaders of the Cult of the Absolute and seize control of the Netherbrain for herself, and encourages the player character to do the same. Even if that doesn't happen, a romanced Minthara can be talked into conquering Menzoberranzan or Baldur's Gate with her at their side. |
| 410 | * ''VideoGame/BugFables'': The Wasp King seeks out the Everlasting Sapling, which can grant immense power and immortality, in order to take over all of Bugaria. Throughout the story, he conveys haughty contempt and callousness towards the heroes, civilians, and even his own soldiers because he thinks that's what a mighty king is ''supposed'' to do, and his plan to conquer Bugaria is motivated by his belief that it's what he deserves. |
| 411 | * ''VideoGame/CrusaderKings 2'': The Ambitious trait gives a character a very good stat bonus, but it also gives the character a permanent -5 relations malus with anyone else who has the trait, as well as -25 towards anyone getting in the way of the ambition (typically the character's liege, if any). This means Ambitious vassals are more likely to rebel. Furthermore, its opposed trait, Content, gives a piety bonus. So, it's not so much "ambition makes you evil" as it is "ambition makes you a pain in the rear". |
| 412 | * In Chapter 2 of ''VideoGame/{{Deltarune}}'', Spamton is obsessed with becoming a [BIG SHOT!!], and in both routes seeks to [[spoiler:upgrade himself into the monstrously powerful Spamton NEO]] to do so. In the normal route, the Addisons explain that his downfall started as a result of a Faustian partnership with a mysterious caller to achieve fame. In the Weird Route, meanwhile, [[spoiler:Spamton uses his and the SOUL's corruption of Noelle and her ensuing rampage to take over the Cyber World, which he gloats now belongs to him]]. |
| 413 | * Vergil's quest for more power throughout ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry'' shows that, while he briefly held the power he was searching for, it ultimately leads to [[spoiler:his downfall into literal hell]]. Shortly after, he marches straight off to fight [[spoiler:Mundus]]. In ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry5'' the BigBad Urizen [[spoiler:is literally the embodiment of Vergil's ambition and thirst for power created after Vergil split his demonic and sides apart with the Yamato. The horrific lengths Urizen goes to for more power horrifies V (revealed to be the embodiment of Vergil's humanity) and he endeavors to stop him.]] |
| 414 | * ''VideoGame/{{Disgaea 4| A Promise Unforgotten}}'': |
| 415 | ** This is the sin that sent [[spoiler:Fuka Kazamatsuri]] straight to ''hell''. [[spoiler:At the tender age of ''[[ImprobableAge five]]'', she wanted to TakeOverTheWorld, and begged her MadScientist father for a little sister who would also double as a PersonOfMassDestruction and her own personal [[TheDragon Dragon]]. Once in the Netherworld, she first tries to take over Hades (as she was sick of being treated poorly as a Prinny), ''then'' tries to take over the entire Netherworld, and ''then'' tries to take over the Human World as well!]] |
| 416 | ** It's apparently such a big enough sin that in ''The Fuka and Desco Show'' [[spoiler:she is effectively banned from ''reincarnation'' after she and her sister TakeOverTheWorld! Though that doesn't bother her too much and declares the Netherworld and Celestia are next]]. |
| 417 | * ''VisualNovel/DoubleHomework'': |
| 418 | ** Played with regarding the protagonist. His Olympic aspirations seem to make him a stuck-up glory hog, and as he matures, he starts to lose interest in them. [[spoiler:And when he loses the qualifier, he’s okay with it.]] |
| 419 | ** Averted with Rachel. She has -- and keeps -- the same Olympic ambition as the protagonist, but she doesn’t lose her moral compass for it. |
| 420 | ** Played straight with Dennis. A social outcast who wants to become an alpha male, he uses all manner of immoral and illegal means to achieve his aim. |
| 421 | * ''Franchise/DragonAge'': |
| 422 | ** ''VideoGame/DragonAgeOrigins'': Bhelen Aeducan is a WellIntentionedExtremist who wants to drag the dwindling dwarf kingdom into the modern-day, and isn't above [[spoiler:poisoning his own family]] to get on the throne. Should you put him in power, his very first act as king is to ''execute his rival'', followed by unleashing assassins on all his rivals' families, and institutes martial law. Unfortunately, he also happens to be the only leader whose good side is ''sane''; he also opens trading deals with the outside world and gives jobs and rights to casteless dwarves, which manages to save ''thousands'' of dwarves from their ultra-conservative hellhole. If the other guy wins, the dwarves continue to be ruled under a dysfunctional, isolationist DecadentCourt that repeatedly fails its citizens. |
| 423 | ** ''VideoGame/DragonAgeII'': |
| 424 | *** Anders is the only one who shows any kind of ambition towards ending the templar/mage conflict. [[spoiler:He blows up the Chantry so there can be no compromise between the two sides.]] |
| 425 | *** Merrill also has shades of this trope. Her ambition to link her people with their past prompts her to try and restore a broken mirror that's a portal for a demon to re-enter the world from the Fade. [[spoiler:While she herself survives, this goal gets at least Keeper Marethari killed, if not the entire clan she was trying to help.]] |
| 426 | *** Snarky!Hawke plays this straight, being one of the few [[BigGood unambiguously good]] characters in the game. Despite their actions pissing off [[HeroWithBadPublicity more than a few people]] in the process, Snarky!Hawke acts out of a desire to help people with no reward, has no real goals other than protecting their friends and family and at the end of the day, simply desires nothing more than to head down to ''The Hanged Man'' for a drink among friends. |
| 427 | *** Played very straight with siblings Varric and Bartrand. The former is a party member, has no patience for "dwarven honor" and is happy to hang out at the Hanged Man drinking and telling stories. The latter is obsessed with reclaiming his family's legacy, incredibly unpleasant to work for, and [[spoiler: leaves you all to die with a little push from an ArtifactOfDoom.]] |
| 428 | ** ''VideoGame/DragonAgeInquisition'': One of the potential companions of the Inquisition, [[IceQueen Vivienne]], was pretty much described in the promotional material as 'The Ambition'. She's not evil per se, but [[ItsAllAboutMe self-serving]], and she tends to cause [[TeethClenchedTeamwork conflicts with other companions]]. Being a player of [[DecadentCourt The Game]], she's willing to climb the ladder of a society that despises mages like her, no matter how much they piss her off. [[spoiler:If she's elected Divine (''bad idea''), she'll oppress other mages to consolidate power]]. |
| 429 | * ''VideoGame/DragonQuestVIII'': In this JRPG, Marcello is obsessed with gaining power and status because he was born to a peasant woman and a nobleman. It doesn't end well. [[spoiler:It does, however, end better for him than for the majority of other named characters; at least Marcello ''survives'' the game.]] |
| 430 | * ''VideoGame/DynastyWarriors'': In the early games, most of Cao Cao's speeches links to the term 'Ambition'. And he is the bad guy in the novel. Becomes more of a grey area once Cao Cao and Wei become a faction of ruthless but ultimately well-intentioned [[AntiHero Anti-Heroes]] in ''7'' (while still going on about ambition,) while Zhong Hui cites his own ambitions as his reason for backstabbing the Sima family and attempting to seize Wei for himself. |
| 431 | * ''VideoGame/EccoTheDolphin: Defender of the Future'': {{Justified|Trope}}. Ambition made dolphins from an alternate reality ruthless and selfish, but only because at the time it was their only trait besides Intelligence ([[ItMakesSenseInContext the others having been stolen from them]]). When those qualities are balanced by the rest -- Compassion, Wisdom, and Humility -- Ambition instead serves as the noble trait that drives dolphins to fulfill their dreams. |
| 432 | * Zig-Zagged with Praetor Rykard in ''VideoGame/EldenRing''. Even when his ambition led to him rebelling against the Greater Will (gaining him the Lord of Blasphemy title), his followers didn't have a problem with this, and in fact saw it as ''heroic''. Then he fed himself to the God-Devouring Serpent and merged with it, with his ambitions degenerating into a simple desire to consume ''everything''. His former knights now want you to kill him just to stop him further disgracing himself and his ambitions. |
| 433 | * ''Franchise/TheElderScrolls'': |
| 434 | ** Throughout the series, Ambition specifically falls within the sphere of Mehrunes Dagon, the [[OurGodsAreDifferent Daedric Prince]] of [[DestroyerDeity Destruction]]. While none of the Daedric Princes are truly "evil", instead operating on their own scale of BlueAndOrangeMorality, Dagon is certainly one of the most malevolent toward mortals and is near-universally regarded as evil as a result. Dagon has served directly as the BigBad of two games in the series (''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIVOblivion Oblivion]]'' and the DungeonCrawl spin-off game ''Battlespire'') and is later revealed to have been TheManBehindTheMan[=/=]GreaterScopeVillain for ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsArena Arena]]''. |
| 435 | ** In the [[HistoricalHeroUpgrade more heretical tales]] of his life, Tiber Septim, the [[FounderOfTheKingdom founder]] of the Third Tamriellic Empire who [[AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence ascended after his death]] as [[DeityOfHumanOrigin Talos]], the Ninth Divine, had a lust for power led him to do some incredibly evil and underhanded things, such as betraying his allies and forcing the young Dunmer princess Barenziah to have a magical abortion because the child would've been inconvenient. |
| 436 | * The eponymous {{Player Character}}s of ''VideoGame/EvilGenius'' are explicitly... well, {{Evil Genius}}es trying to TakeOverTheWorld, in the purest form of evil ambition there is. But among the three, Alexis stands out, as she ''started'' a wealthy socialite, quadrupled her inheritance, and the thing that drives her to world conquest is the realization that this wasn't enough. |
| 437 | * This shows up with both the BigBad Yngvarr and side-villain Vernan in the mod ''VideoGame/{{Falskaar}}'' [[note]]a mod for ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsVSkyrim''[[/note]]. Brother Arnand laments that Vernan's desire to learn magic eventually got out of hand, which resulted in his expulsion and his experimenting with the Dream Crystal. Yngvarr's ambition to conquer Falskaar is also motivated by his desire to [[spoiler:become immortal... doing which could technically put the entire island at risk]]. |
| 438 | * ''Franchise/FireEmblem'': |
| 439 | ** ''VideoGame/FireEmblemTheSacredStones'': Caellach, a mercenary who becomes one of the six generals of TheEmpire. His greatest ambition is to become a king, and he's also AffablyEvil and ThatOneBoss. |
| 440 | ** In ''[[VideoGame/FireEmblemGaiden Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia]]'', Berkut's greatest desire is to become emperor of Rigel. [[spoiler:When Alm turns out to be the rightful heir to the throne, he snaps and sells his fiancee's soul to the local MadGod to obtain the power to kill him and take Rigel for himself.]] |
| 441 | * ''VideoGame/GenshinImpact'': {{Inverted|Trope}}. In this game, most playable characters are Vision holders. How do you receive a Vision? By having an ambition and drive strong enough that the PowersThatBe recognize it and grant you ElementalPowers so you can achieve whatever you set out to accomplish. There are examples of immoral characters who go to extreme ends to achieve their goals, and some characters who believe this trope is in effect like the Raiden Shogun, but overall the view the game takes of ambition is very positive. |
| 442 | * Wolfgang of ''[[VideoGame/{{Growlanser}} Growlanser II]]'' aspires to create a democratic territory for his fellow mercenaries, who are only of use to the current reigning kingdoms in times of war. However, achieving this goal requires deceit, trickery, and fighting against the game's protagonists. |
| 443 | * ''VideoGame/HiddenCity'': In the “Double Game” case, Head of the Security Service Mr. Black discovered that while the Security Service headquarters was isolated by fog his assistant Violet, the head of the Octopus unit which eliminated unwanted situations, chose to join the Shadow Cult and the other Octopus agents joined her. The Facebook page on her, along with the fact that she forced a new election to become the head of the Security Service, implied that she joined the Shadow Cult because of her ambition to become the head of the Security Service. |
| 444 | * ''VideoGame/HogwartsLegacy'': [[AvertedTrope Averted]]. Students in Slytherin are generally more ambitious during [[{{Sidequest}} sidequests]] than students than the other three houses. However, most of their end goals are generally selfless aims (becoming emissary for the merpeople), benign goals (being the best broom rider in Hogwarts, with the eventual hope of joining a Quidditch team), or purely personal interests (recovering a lost family heirloom). |
| 445 | * ''Franchise/KingdomHearts'': One of the central themes of the series is that reaching for more power than you're entitled to ''never'' ends well. ''All'' of the major enemy types (Heartless, Nobodies, and Unversed) started with ''someone'' being overly ambitious and screwing things up royally in the process. |
| 446 | * ''Franchise/LeagueOfLegends'' |
| 447 | ** Hecarim in life was a cruel and selfish knight in service to Camavor. Most of his actions were driven by a desire for power and autonomy, from leaving his master to die for not naming Hecarim his successor as Knight Commander of the Iron Order to murdering Kalista in order to secure his role as the Ruined King's favored servant. Upon becoming a wraith of the Shadow Isles, Hecarim is less ambitious and more psychotically obsessed with violence. |
| 448 | ** Qiyana is the last in line of the royal family of Ixaocan, and a particularly ambitious one at that. She's willing to betray and kill her own family in order to secure the role of empress for herself, and her entitled and short-sighted behavior proves that it would be a terrible thing if she succeeeded. |
| 449 | ** PlayedForDrama in [[EnergyBeings Xerath's]] backstory. Originally a child slave of the ancient [[TheEmpire Shurima empire]], all his life he only desired to be free. He would eventually save the life of the young Emperor Azir, who promised him his freedom, and would go on to be educated, taught magic, and become the Emperor's top adviser. However, he never gained the freedom he was promised, and [[SlaveLiberation eventually turned to scheming to take freedom]]. However, just as his schemes were about to bear fruit, [[PoorCommunicationKills Azir finally kept his promise and revealed he always intended to, just waiting for the right moment]]. Xerath, unable to do anything to stop the destruction of Shurima he had set in motion, [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone could only silently weep at what was about to happen]]. [[SealedEvilInACan He was then sealed away in a tomb for several thousand years by Nasus and Renekton before escaping into the present time]] [[TheUnfettered determined never to lose his freedom again]]. |
| 450 | * ''VideoGame/LegacyOfKain'': Kain gets called out on this in a few games of the series. He may be the hero of the series, but that doesn't change the fact they actually make a point. |
| 451 | * In ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda'', the BigBad [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Ganondorf led an expedition to the Sacred Realm in order to acquire the Triforce]], a CosmicKeystone that could grant ultimate power to the one who has it. However, [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast when he touched it, the Triforce separated into three parts]], as it would only remain intact for those whose hearts value Power, Wisdom, and Courage equally. Ganondorf only received one piece of the whole: the Triforce of Power, as he only valued Power and wanted to TakeOverTheWorld. Meanwhile, the other two pieces, the Triforce of Courage and Triforce of Wisdom, went to the heroes: Link and Princess Zelda respectively. Thus, in all games in the series, it is the job of the various Links and Zeldas to stop Ganondorf from gaining the full Triforce so [[InTheirOwnImage his ambitions]] can't come to fruition. |
| 452 | ** Even when he reincarnates as a decent person initially, his [[TheAntichrist cursed blood]] inevitably drives him to seek unlimited power, as shown in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker'' where he ([[UnreliableNarrator ambiguously]]) started out as a WellIntentionedExtremist or [[WhatCouldHaveBeen the original concept for]] ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'' where he was initially just [[FromNobodyToNightmare a normal guy]] (and a Music/{{Metallica}} fan). |
| 453 | * Many of the villains in ''VideoGame/LikeADragon'' embody this concept, though few are as [[TragicVillain tragic]] as Akira Nishikiyama. Originally an orphan just like his friend Kazuma Kiryu, he joined the Dojima family with the desire to reap the lavish riches of the high-ranking yakuza. However, as time went on, he began to [[GreenEyedMonster grow jealous]] of Kiryu's recognition with his peers and superiors as well as winning the heart of Yumi Sawamura, a fellow orphan he pined for but only had eyes for Kiryu, feeling like he could never measure up. It came crashing down the night Nishiki shot and killed their Oyabun Sohei Dojima after he tried to rape Yumi, and Kiryu took the fall and went to jail. A combination of his guilt, the lack of respect his peers gave him and admitting they wanted Kiryu to be their leader, Yumi losing her memory thanks to the trauma and vanishing, and eventually his sick sister Yuko dying over the course of 10 years caused Nishiki to cast aside his personal ties and do whatever it'd take to rise to the top of the yakuza world in an attempt to regain control of his life and be respected. By the end of the first game, he tried to kill Kiryu several times, [[spoiler:was willing to try and hurt Yumi and her daughter Haruka]], [[spoiler:had the man he viewed as a father figure shot and killed a woman who loved him]] and ultimately [[spoiler:died shooting a bomb on the 10 billion yen he betrayed his loved ones for, [[RedemptionEqualsDeath vowing to make things right with his own death]]]]. |
| 454 | * In ''VideoGame/LiveALive'', [[spoiler:This ends up being the downfall of Streibough in the Middle Ages Chapter. When Oersted's party crashed into the Archon's Roost and wandered into a dead end, Streibough figured out there was actually a secret passage where the princess was kept, but wanting to get one over on his rival and take her for himself, Streibough faked the room collapsing to get everyone else out, then tricked Oersted into killing the king [[HatedByAll and becoming a pariah]]. In the end, his ambition resulted not only in his death and the princess committing suicide to follow him, but Oersted became insane and driven into becoming [[BigBad Odio]] because of this, [[GoneHorriblyWrong dooming all of Lucrece and kickstarting the events of the other 7 chapters]]]]. |
| 455 | * Played straight with Nagi, Nami, and The Midnight Killer in ''VisualNovel/MajorMinor''. While the former two are looking to restart the universe, their actions have caused death and suffering across the galaxy. [[spoiler:The Midnight Killer, Maxine Armstrong, wants to gain possession of The Ark, claiming she'll use the powers of it to stop death -- however, she is psychotic and treats the lives of the people she's killing as nothing. It's also hinted that she arranged to have her older sister killed so she could inherit Armstrong Incorporated.]] [[spoiler:{{Subverted|Trope}} with Acheron and Velasquez: Acheron wants to gain the power of The Ark to prevent his psychotic sister from controlling it, and to use it to combat death; Velasquez wants to help The Federation find a new source of power and seems to care about his royal subjects, but the morality of his methods is questionable.]] |
| 456 | * The whole plot of ''VideoGame/PeretEmHeruForThePrisoners'' is driven by the raw ambitions of one man: [[AdventurerArchaeologist Professor Tsuchida]]. While ''already'' highly respected in his field, he still wants ''more'' -- and when some illegal explorations lead to him uncovering hidden ruins, he ropes a tour group into accompanying him inside. Supposedly to give them a 'once-in-a-lifetime experience', but honestly because he intended to use them as {{Unwitting Pawn}}s to get past whatever booby traps might be waiting inside. |
| 457 | ** His assistant Dr. Kuroe also demonstrates this, though to a lesser degree. Like the professor, he isn't satisfied with his accomplishments and desires, which leads to him going along with his plan despite some reservations. This leads to some internal conflict as the expedition continues... |
| 458 | ** Then comes the endgame revelation that [[spoiler:Tsuchida's ''true'' motive was to punish Kuroe for this, blaming him for not being able to save his daughter one year prior. At the time, Kuroe hadn't graduated yet, and while he offered several reasons as to why he couldn't save her, the one that stuck out the most to the Professor was his fear of losing his license. Thus, he believes that Kuroe's ambition helped cause Shizumi's death, and was obsessed with seeing him punished for it]]. |
| 459 | * ''VideoGame/ReKuroi'': |
| 460 | ** The Magic Academy tried to use the Black Pearl to start a world war to increase their influence. [[spoiler:They went as far as using the Black Pearl to transform their students into a monster army.]] |
| 461 | ** Remy's family wanted to take advantage of the Crystallization Strife by having Remy's brother infiltrate the magic researchers while Remy infiltrates the army, allowing them to benefit no matter which side wins. |
| 462 | * ''VideoGame/RiseOfTheThirdPower'': |
| 463 | ** Emperor Noraskov seeks the glory days of an old empire that was eventually split into the Kingdom of Cirinthia, the Republic of Tariq, the Kingdom of Arkadya, and many smaller territories. He overthrows the king of Arkadya, reforms the country into an empire, and tries to conquer Cirinthia and Tariq. |
| 464 | ** [[spoiler:Phillip wants to sell out Cirinthia to Noraskov for the sake of gaining political power. He plans on using Princess Rebecca as a [[PuppetKing puppet queen]] in order to gain popularity for himself before disposing of her and ruling Cirinthia directly.]] |
| 465 | * ''VideoGame/RuinaFairyTaleOfTheForgottenRuins'': |
| 466 | ** Prince Teor of the Kness Dukedom starts out as an ally, but eventually, it becomes clear that he's exploring the ruins not out of altruism, but to gain power and glory for himself. [[spoiler:He eventually decides to rebuild the Archean Empire with himself as the ruler and plans to trap everyone in Star Spirits in order to preserve Titus's spirit.]] |
| 467 | ** In the final dungeon, if the player asks [[spoiler:Titus I]] how he can justify his actions, he states that it's human nature to seek power and immortality. [[spoiler:His goal is to force everyone on the planet to dream of him and his empire so that he can preserve himself and his legacy forever.]] |
| 468 | * From ''VideoGame/SandsOfDestruction'': |
| 469 | ** Subverted by Pistris Rex. While his sole motive for holding the peace talks is to secure a better seat for himself on the counsel of beastlords, he's perfectly reasonable and willing to make genuine strides for peace. [[spoiler:Too bad the Front decided to send in ''Kyrie'', who's known to not have complete control of his powers, as their representative, and the Crimson Sun picked ''that moment'' to active his Destruct Code.]] |
| 470 | ** Eventually played straight by [[spoiler:Lacertus Rex]]. His ambition to destroy and remake the world to his liking lead to [[AGodAmI delusions of godhood]]. |
| 471 | * In ''VideoGame/ShinMegamiTenseiNocturne'', human ambition being destructive is one of the central teachings of Shijima, the WorldOfSilence Reason. Hikawa, one of the most vocal advocates of Shijima, likens greed and ambition to fire; in small amounts they can bring comfort and warmth, but all too often humans allow them to grow out of control until they consume everything around them. |
| 472 | * [[spoiler:Penelope]] in ''VideoGame/SlyCooperThievesInTime''. [[spoiler:Her intent was to invent and sell weapons in the black market for billions of dollars, and TakeOverTheWorld. But she needs Bentley's cooperation, as he's the brains of the pair, but she grew jealous of his two ChildhoodFriends Sly and Murray, who were also friends with Penelope, and came to believe that killing them both would hasten her climb to power and ensure Bentley's continued loyalty. It backfires ''spectacularly'', leaving Penelope broke, friendless, and a wanted fugitive.]] |
| 473 | * ''VideoGame/StarWarsTheOldRepublic'': A lot of darkside choices allow for players to achieve personal goals at the cost of committing actions considered morally wrong, so this trope is played straight plenty of times within the game. ''However'', a potential conversation option for Imperial Players brings up the topic of ambition during a side quest on Dromund Kaas, where it's ultimately defied. There's nothing inherently wrong with wanting power; what ''is'' the problem, however, is what you will do to get it and what you will do once you have it. |
| 474 | * ''VideoGame/SuperRobotWarsX'': [[spoiler: Power-hungry for acknowledgement, status, and fame, Celric would do anything to secure his path to be Pope of the Order of Mages. As he overthrows Counselor Kildean, and used the power of Ende to [[AGodAmI feed on his ego]], his Warth Dienvel eventually went [[WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity berserk, along with himself]]]]. |
| 475 | * ''VideoGame/ValkyriaChronicles'': This is actually one of the ''major themes'' of the game; ''every single character'' who actually aspired to achieve their rank in the military is in it for some form of selfish gain and nothing else, and most of them die. The exception is Varrot, who only became a captain because [[spoiler:she wanted revenge for her murdered lover.]], and retired shortly afterward. Everyone who either enlists voluntarily or is conscripted, without pursuing an actual military career, gets a more or less happy ending -- and the exception to ''that'' is [[spoiler:Faldio, who dies explicitly for believing in military strength over the power of love.]] The bottom line is that in Europa, the only way to win a war is by blowing it up with your belief in pacifism (and regular guns -- magic lasers are evil.) It takes this a step further by having the entire main Gallian army die in a huge explosion. Their deaths are mentioned once and then completely ignored by the main cast -- because even though enemy {{Mooks}} are shown to be human, the Gallian army are Mooks that have no worth at all, presumably because (unlike Squad 7, which is made up of people who volunteered in response to a threat to their hometowns) they're professional soldiers, who only exist to promote warfare and be willingly manipulated by their evil, shallow overlord, General Damon. |
| 476 | ** ''Valkyria Chronicles 4'' fleshes this strawman scenario out; when the Empire threw all fantasy Geneva Conventions out the window, most of the Gallian military and conscripted militia immediately signed up with the Federation out of principles and the promise of a future alliance with a greater power. The remainder of the high-ranking forces stayed home from a combination of cowardice, apathy, and the knowledge that they'd get shiny new promotions if they sat back and watched their superiors sacrifice themselves on the real frontlines of the war. This backfired greatly. |
| 477 | %% ZCE * ''VideoGame/{{Zyll}}'': This is what got Zyll into trouble in the first place. |
| 478 | [[/folder]] |
| 479 | |
| 480 | [[folder:Web Animation]] |
| 481 | * ''WebAnimation/{{Dreamscape}}'': Melissa's thirst for knowledge led her to become [[WickedWitch Melinda's]] apprentice. Like Melissa, Melinda is a seeker of knowledge, but it's for evil purposes. This is also the reason she was sealed away in her castle the first time. |
| 482 | * {{Discussed|Trope}} and {{subverted|Trope}} in WebAnimation/OverlySarcasticProductions' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Pin0U316Dg&list=PLDb22nlVXGgeoPb-HBWwzEeoAwDvckSrC&index=28 retelling]] of [[Myth/EgyptianMythology Isis stealing Ra's]] [[IKnowYourTrueName true name]]. It ''sounds'' like "the highly dramatic inciting conflict of any number of HighFantasy [[GodSaveUsFromTheQueen evil god-queen]] plot lines"...but no, she just uses her nigh-omnipotence to give women easier childbirths and other nice things. |
| 483 | * ''WebAnimation/RedVsBlue'': Sigma is the AnthropomorphicPersonification of the Alpha's ambition, and as flashbacks in ''[[WebAnimation/RedVsBlueTheProjectFreelancerSaga The Project Freelancer Saga]]'' reveal, his biggest ambition was to [[spoiler:achieve "metastability", the AI equivalent of [[BecomeARealBoy becoming a person]]]]. To achieve such a goal, he [[spoiler:[[TheCorruptor corrupted Agent Maine into becoming a psychopath]], [[ColdBloodedTorture tortured the Alpha multiple times]], and convinced Carolina to take two AI units, all of which either directly or indirectly led to most of Project Freelancer's agents being killed]]. |
| 484 | * ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'': Cinder will do anything for power. She hunts Maidens for their enormous power, and is willing to destroy entire cities if she has to in order to achieve her goal. She thrives on chaos and carnage, but her lust for power and obsession with hunting anyone who dares cross her becomes her AchillesHeel. [[spoiler:In Volume 8, Watts [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech lectures her]] on how her woman-child behavior and single-minded obsession with power has prevented her from being a successful villain and turned her into unlovable comic relief. Cinder takes this to heart - and then murders Watts because his intelligence wasn't worth the threat to her power. A flashback reveals she was MadeASlave and abused until she snapped, and has been obsessed with becoming as strong, feared and powerful as possible ever since.]] |
| 485 | [[/folder]] |
| 486 | |
| 487 | [[folder:Web Comics]] |
| 488 | * In ''Webcomic/BrawlInTheFamily'', this is the ultimate source of [[Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda Ganondorf]] and [[spoiler: [[Franchise/{{Kirby}} Dedede]]'s]] respective {{Face Heel Turn}}s. |
| 489 | * ''Webcomic/DICETheCubeThatChangesEverything'': X specifically gives less quests and rewards to people lacking Desire, ensuring that proactive or amoral Dicers stay on top. Every Dicer has an idea what they want from the Final Die and can do anything for it, including killing everyone else. |
| 490 | * ''Webcomic/KillSixBillionDemons'': Incubus, the Demiurge of Lust, personifies Ambition more than the other power-hungry Demiurges. He started out as a nobody, a starving orphan stuck in a ghost town, when he spied an opportunity as TheChosenOne, [[spoiler:Maya]], was having 'trouble' accepting her destiny. He partially usurped her destiny by 'helping' her, then built her and her companions into the very usurpers of the gods, killing everyone in their path with him as her Vice-Demiurge. [[spoiler:Then she abdicated]]. This enraged him, even though the crown defaulted to him, because he hadn't ''earned'' it, something the other Demiurges heckle him about throughout the story. He responded by hunting her down and killing her family, all because he wanted her to fight him to the death with everything she had, so when he defeated her he could properly claim the title. |
| 491 | * In ''Webcomic/{{Pacificators}}'', there is Princess Belinda. [[spoiler: She [[SelfMadeOrphan poisoned her father]], and successfully [[KlingonPromotion got the throne.]]]] This trope is averted with [[GravityMaster Muneca]], however, who is a good guy. She's still awfully ambitious, though. |
| 492 | [[/folder]] |
| 493 | |
| 494 | [[folder:Web Video]] |
| 495 | * In ''WebVideo/AdventuresInJediSchool'', Master Mudmud and Villaine sent Randy to assassinate Principal Eval and to procure Sessa, the former so that Mudmud would become the new Headmaster, while the later so that Villaine could have force powers and the two could rule together as brother and sister. |
| 496 | [[/folder]] |
| 497 | |
| 498 | [[folder:Western Animation]] |
| 499 | |
| 500 | * ''WesternAnimation/{{Arcane}}'': As Vander laments, [[Characters/ArcaneSilco Silco]] once had the respect of everyone in the {{Undercity}}, but it was never enough for him. Silco wants the respect of topside Piltover and he'd do anything to get it. |
| 501 | * This is both [[PlayingWithATrope played straight]] and subverted in ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender.'' The show's main bad guys are the firebenders. Fire is described as being the element of power and those who practice it have desire and will and the energy and drive to achieve what they want. They are, by their nature, ambitious. However, we are also shown many characters, including firebenders, whose ambition drives them to improve themselves and the world around them. Of special notice is Fire Lord Sozin; his seemingly earnest ambition started the show's conflict generations later. |
| 502 | * In the Franchise/DCAnimatedUniverse, [[Characters/DCAUBatman Batman]] was driven by a noble but unrealistic cause to rid all crime from Gotham city, which ultimately caused him to alienate the people closest to him. By ''WesternAnimation/BatmanBeyond'', all his vision got him was living utterly alone, in a city that is even worse off than when he was still Batman. |
| 503 | * ''WesternAnimation/BatmanBeyond'' also has Derek Powers, who wants to build his company, Wayne-Powers, into the most powerful force in future Gotham, and he's [[CorruptCorporateExecutive not afraid to throw away all scruples to do it.]] It'd probably be easier if it weren't for his condition acting up at inconvenient times, and that annoying kid in a batsuit messing up his plans. |
| 504 | * In a ''Caleb and Sophia'' video, a student tempts Sophia by giving her the correct answer to a math problem that she has a problem with during a test. In her mind, she sees herself giving the teacher the test sheet with the correct answer that the student would give her, and also her appearing at her own graduation giving a valedictorian speech, in a purple tint -- [[GoodColorsEvilColors the same purple tint that the Devil appears in during the segment where he tempts Jesus in the wilderness with the three temptations]] -- and so decides against succumbing to the temptation and leaves the answer to the math problem blank when she hands the test sheet back to the teacher. |
| 505 | * ''WesternAnimation/Castlevania2017'': In practically every scene that features her, Carmilla at least gives off the impression that she's scheming for more power; something she apparently takes pride in. Hector notes in a conversation with Lenore that this seems to be an inherent vampire trait, the desire to drink more than they actually need, and Striga makes a similar statement [[spoiler:in the direct aftermath of Carmilla's death.]] |
| 506 | -->Vampires always have plans, don't we? Maybe it's just in our nature to overreach, grasp at too much at once, try to drink everything. Maybe that's why, in the end, we win all the battles, but always lose the war. |
| 507 | * For Eddy (along with his friends, who are far less deserving) of ''WesternAnimation/EdEddNEddy'', FailureIsTheOnlyOption by the end of an episode, usually because he is a scam artist who attempts to weasel the other kids out of money. However, even if they manage to pull off a relatively legitimate business with rather impressive efforts they will still end up getting screwed over badly. |
| 508 | * ''WesternAnimation/TheDragonPrince'': [[Characters/TheDragonPrinceViren Lord Viren]] desire to unite the human kingdoms to wage war against and wipe out the dragon and elven kingdoms of Xadia with himself as the leader, and his willingness to do so by any means necessary (be it bribery, fear-mongering, forging royal documents, assassination, murdering and usurping King Harrow's two sons), corrupting and stealing the entire Sunfire Elven magic source, and turn a whole army of humans into monsters to do so, drives most of the villainy in the plot. |
| 509 | * ''WesternAnimation/HuntikSecretsAndSeekers'''s [[spoiler:villain Wilder]] is definitely this, to the point his ambitions about ruling TheSyndicate blind him. Clear and looming threats, combined with his Demonic Summons titans and SmugSnake personality make for a villain who doesn't listen to facts or care about the consequences as long as he gets what he's after. |
| 510 | * ''WesternAnimation/RickAndMorty'': {{Subverted|Trope}}. Rick warns the main Morty that a "cocky Morty can lead to a lot of problems", and [[Characters/RickAndMortyEvilMorty Evil Morty's]] vicious murder-spree during his quest for power seemingly confirms these sentiments. However, it's eventually revealed that obtaining power in the Citadel was simply a means to an end for his ''true'' plan, which was simply to escape the influence of all Ricks once and for all and to be free. So, in the end, he's not necessarily evil due to his ambition, but rather because of the selfish and cruel lengths he's willing to go to in order to free himself. |
| 511 | * [[Characters/SheRaAndThePrincessesOfPowerCatra Catra]] in ''WesternAnimation/SheRaAndThePrincessesOfPower'' is this, due to a childhood of abuse and [[AlwaysSecondBest being unable to escape from her best friend's shadow]]. She's fully aware that she's working for the villains, but sees climbing up the chain of command as the best path for proving that she's her own person deserving of praise and respect. The reason why she refuses to take Adora's offer to follow her and join the rebellion isn't just because of a sense of betrayal[[note]]Catra had hoped they'd stick together and eventually take over the Horde. Outside of that, she's hurt that the catalyst for Adora's desire to leave was hanging out with some random teens for a few hours, rather than her best friend's suffering.[[/note]], but also because doing so would leave her back at square one: stuck as Adora's sidekick and seen as a background nuisance by everyone else. |
| 512 | * Deconstructed in the Season 22 ''[[WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons Simpsons]]'' episode "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS22E5LisaSimpsonThisIsntYourLife Lisa Simpson, This Isn't Your Life]]." [[Characters/TheSimpsonsLisaSimpson Lisa Simpson]] spends an episode dreading ending up like Marge and transfers to an elite private school. Sitcom law dictates that the children there must be insufferable snobs, sending her running back to good ol' Springfield Elementary. Instead, the school suits her perfectly and looks like it absolutely would improve her chances in life. But late in the episode, she discovers the long hours Marge works to cover the tuition. The discovery leads to her lying about how the children ''are'' snobs and how she'd rather turn out like Marge, feeling guilty about the strain her attending private school puts on her mother. The lesson here being that ambition itself may not be evil, but ''fulfilling'' it can be, because it requires not caring who you have to step on to get ahead. |
| 513 | * ''WesternAnimation/StarTrekLowerDecks'' suggests this trope is what pushes the InsaneAdmiral trope in the other entries: [[spoiler:according to Vice Admiral Les Buenamigo, Starfleet is ''very'' competitive, with people always trying to make a name for themselves. In Buenamigo's case, this means inflicting LaserGuidedAmnesia on someone working on his project and stealing his work in the process, trying to torpedo trade negotiations by forcing a captain to do the negotiations at the last minute and threatening the lives of numerous Starfleet personnel all in the name of showcasing his pet project]]. |
| 514 | * ''WesternAnimation/{{Teen Titans|2003}}'': Jinx is the only member of the [[GoldfishPoopGang H.I.V.E. Five]] with any real ambition -- which is why she pesters them to try to join the [[LegionOfDoom Brotherhood of Evil]] and escalate their threat to the world. [[spoiler:This then turns into an inversion, as while the rest are content to remain petty crooks, Jinx's willingness to take life in a new direction leads her to a HeelFaceTurn.]] |
| 515 | * In ''WesternAnimation/Thundercats2011'', though the FantasticCasteSystem of TheEmpire of Thundera is presented as deeply dysfunctional, the one person who expresses an explicit, deep desire to rise above his station is the villain Grune, a FourStarBadass with dreams of being TheUsurper of Thundera's king. Frustrated in his efforts, he later settles for the more expedient strategy of [[{{Turncoat}} defecting]] to be TheDragon to the series BigBad, [[LesCollaborateurs collaborating]] in Thundera's downfall. |
| 516 | * ''WesternAnimation/TotalDrama'': [[Characters/TotalDramaCourtney Courtney]] is an ambitious, competitive and determined young woman and she's also a ruthless, aggressive and antagonistic person to be around. |
| 517 | * On ''WesternAnimation/TotalDramaPresentsTheRidonculousRace'' the [[BigBad Ice Dancers]] are definitely the team most determined to not only win but also come first in every leg of the race. Other teams want it, but to Jacques and Josee, it's an obsession. |
| 518 | * Megatron in ''WesternAnimation/TransformersPrime'' started this way. What he initially wanted was to bring social reform to a caste-bound Cybertron, and believed himself to be worthy of the title of Prime. Flash forward to a few stellar cycles later, and he's now a war-mongering tyrant who plans to bring "Peace through tyranny." As in the comic book page, most incarnations of Starscream are paragons of this trope (In addition to TheStarscream), wanting to lead the Decepticons for no other reason than the fact that HE wants to be in charge, and will stop at nothing to achieve this, even though he's usually massively unsuited for the position. As he says in ''Transformers Prime'', he is ''no'' stranger to ambition. |
| 519 | * ''WesternAnimation/ZorroTheChronicles'': Corporal Gonzales desperately desires to become sergeant in Garcias' place, and is willing to follow any order Monasterio gives while showing up Garcia at any opportunity, in order to achieve this goal. Granted, when you're the personal ButtMonkey to a sergeant who's an outright incompetent idiot, you do tend to want to achieve better for yourself...unfortunately, Gonzales isn't much better than Garcia in the intelligence department. |
| 520 | [[/folder]] |
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