Line #34 Main/NerdInEvilsHelmet


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10	[[quoteright:340:[[Film/{{Spaceballs}} https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/darkhelmet_dolls.png]]]]
11	[[caption-width-right:340:"[[InsistentTerminology They're not dolls. They're]] '''[[LessEmbarrassingTerm action figures]]'''!"]]
12
13	->'''Target:''' ''[thought bubble]'' Her eyes... so lifeless. Her cybernetic augmentations have robbed her of her soul. Emotionless. Hollow. She's the ''perfect killer''.\
14	'''Space Dread:''' ''[thought bubble]'' I'm glad that it's raining and nobody can tell that I'm crying over a broken laptop right now.
15	-->-- ''Webcomic/ValAndIsaac'', [[https://tredlocity.tumblr.com/post/186586902755 "Machine"]]
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17	This villain comes across as really imposing, and they probably have real power to back it up. However, they are really nerdy underneath.
18
19	They are trying to hide it, behind a tough façade. So it's a big surprise when the nerd is revealed. This surprise can come to other characters, the audience or both.
20
21	The classical façade to hide behind is a literal helmet. But it can be something else.
22
23	Nerds are ''not'' always wimps. Not a total one at least. However, the villain might exploit such stereotypes and pull a WoundedGazelleGambit or similar after his nerdy side has been revealed, even if he actually is a badass.
24
25	For a genuinely intelligent villain see EvilGenius. Can be the same kind of dissonance as VillainsOutShopping. Compare and contrast with EvilNerd -- this trope is when a villain's nerdy nature is juxtaposed with their menacing demeanor, while an EvilNerd's nerdiness is the ''foundation'' for their evil.
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27	----
28	!!Examples:
29
30	[[foldercontrol]]
31
32	[[folder:Anime and Manga]]
33	* Emperor Pilaf from ''Manga/DragonBall'' is almost a HarmlessVillain -- while he acts as if he is king of the world all because of his "toys" (mech-suits and torture chambers), in reality he's a tiny {{Manchild}} in over his head and is terrified of genuine evil such as Piccolo. Pilaf was even horrified when Bulma assumed he would [[IHaveYouNowMyPretty molest]] her when she was captured.
34	* Jagi from ''Manga/FistOfTheNorthStar'', in spite of all his violent actions and AwesomeEgo, boils down to a PaperTiger who was jealous that his vastly stronger younger brother Kenshiro became the successor Hokuto Shinken. Also, despite boasting of his strength, Jagi cheats all the time and uses Kenshrio's reputation to intimidate people, and beneath his CoolHelmet, he's just a disfigured loser.
35	* The Major, the BigBad of ''Manga/{{Hellsing}}'', has been described by the mangaka as an "{{otaku}}", and he is a stereotypical fat, bespectacled geek. Despite being absolutely obsessed and in love with war, he's personally pathetically useless at combat -- at one point he opens fire on a minion who [[YouHaveFailedMe failed]] at point-blank range with at least five guns attached to his chair... and '''misses'''.
36	* Double-subverted in ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventureSteelBallRun''. Blackmore is given a not-necessarily-evil Holy Corpse part, and briefly sees [[spoiler:Jesus Christ himself]]. By how he acts, Blackmore is ''definitely'' a nerdy guy, and though it still happens, he is not in much a position of authority and it is only for a short moment.
37	* Ratchet from ''Anime/OnePiece'' [[Anime/TheGiantMechanicalSoldierOfKarakuriCastle Movie 7]], unlike the other villains who are usually powerhouses, is a scrawny SpoiledBrat who wants world domination and besides his [[HumongousMecha mecha suits]] is barely a threat to the Straw Hats. It's telling that after Luffy beats him, Rachet is literally scolded by his mother.
38	[[/folder]]
39
40	[[folder:Fanfiction]]
41	* Lonnie Machin a.k.a. ComicBook/{{Anarky}} in ''Batman: Anarchy for All'' is simultaneously this trope and its inversion "Evil in a Nerd's Helmet". The persona Lonnie uses for his [[DoNotAdjustYourSet hacktivism broadcasts]] is an imposing and eloquent man in a mask, when he's really a fourteen year-old geek with a cute chiptune ringtone. [[ForegoneConclusion When they're revealed as one and the same]], however, the fact a high schooler with ParentalNeglect issues and an obsession with Batman is behind Anarky's terrorism [[TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior only makes him scarier]].
42	* Darth Vulcan, from ''Fanfic/TheRiseOfDarthVulcan'', was a full-core cosplaying, roleplaying, comic book fan geek, who abandoned all his fandoms and deliberately began roleplaying as a "cool kid"/jerk in order to survive high school. Then he found the Alicorn Amulet and everything went downhill from there...
43	* The fan-made ''Film/RevengeOfTheSith'' parody "Film/StarWarsALostHope" plays up Anakin Skywalker's [[PsychopathicManchild childlike personality]] from the prequels. The first scene has Palpatine putting Darth Vader into his iconic armor, only to have Vader/Anakin immediately pull off the helmet and shout, "This helmet is totally chaffing my eyebrows! I swear!". Later, there is a fight between Vader and Mace Windu where Windu breaks Vader's prop lightsaber, to which Vader/Anakin complains, "You swing too hard, ass! I swear!".
44	[[/folder]]
45
46	[[folder:Film -- Animation]]
47	* ''WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles1'': Syndrome starts out as a superhero fanboy, then ascends to supervillain after being (sort of) rejected by his idol. Syndrome is more of an inversion -- Evil in a Nerd's Helmet. He is clearly a PsychopathicManchild with a serious LackOfEmpathy who's even willing to murder children without batting an eyelid, and there is little to indicate that, beneath it all, he was all that much different when he was a kid (e.g. he doesn't seem to notice or care when one of his stunts nearly causes a train crash). Most important and scarily, though, Syndrome thinks he is ''the hero'', when he actually is just using EngineeredHeroics and is willing to kill dozens of heroes and endanger thousands of lives because he is a GloryHound.
48	* Tempest Shadow from ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyTheMovie2017'' is the hardened and violent [[TheDragon second hand]] of the warlord Storm King. While she's legitimately dangerous [[TakenForGranite as the Princesses found out]], behind her ruthless and cynical image is a candy-colored unicorn [[PsychopathicManchild who never grew up past losing her horn and friends]]. [[spoiler:It turns out her real name is ''[[FluffyTheTerrible Fizzlepop Berrytwist]]'', making her a Nerd with Evil's Alias]].
49	[[/folder]]
50
51	[[folder:Film -- Live-Action]]
52	* ''Film/EightMM'' has "Machine", a sadistic killer in a leather mask. When the mask comes off, he's shown to be very schlubby looking and produces a pair of glasses to finish the ensemble. This is very much PlayedForDrama, as it shows how a mild-mannered looking guy (who doesn't even have a FreudianExcuse) can be such a bastard.
53	* Franchise/DCExtendedUniverse: Creator/JesseEisenberg's Lex Luthor in ''Film/BatmanVSupermanDawnOfJustice'' [[AdaptationalWimp isn't]] the MagnificentBastard of the comics, but rather an obsessive rich dweeb who feels worthless with a person like Superman around and convinces himself that Supes is the DarkMessiah and needs to be killed by "The Bat". Worse still, this Lex creates a MonstrousHumanoid just so he can kill Superman without even considering what's going to happen to everyone once Supes is killed and the monster left unchallenged. By the time of ''[[Film/ZackSnydersJusticeLeague Justice League]]'', he seems to have changed and gained more composure in addition to now being bald.
54
55	* Before the final confrontation of ''Film/KillBill'', Creator/DavidCarradine's [[AntagonistTitle eponymous villain]] shoots his attacker with a dart loaded with {{truth serum\|s}}, then confesses that he got the idea from comic books and launches into some ConversationalTroping about {{superhero}}es. Elle Driver, played by Creator/DarylHannah, also shows shades of this when she [[AnimalAssassin kills someone with a black mamba hidden in a suitcase full of money]] and proceeds to gush about how dangerous the snake is in a monologue that she ''wrote down beforehand in a little notebook!''
56	* Donald Pierce in ''Film/{{Logan}}'' is a ruthless PsychoForHire who also happens to be a fan of Wolverine and the comics he was featured in.
57	-->'''Donald:''' ''[sheepishly]'' By the way, I'm a fan.
58	* In ''Film/MacheteKills'', Luther Voz is one of the few villains who can fight on par with Machete. He's also a guy totally obsessed with ''Franchise/StarWars'' and ''Franchise/StarTrek'', and at the climax of the film, he fights Machete with a bat'leth.
59	* Loki from the ''Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse'' can be threatening when he wants, but otherwise he's a shrimpy, bookish, BigBadWannabe MommasBoy who just wants recognition and worship after living in his brother Film/{{Thor}}'s shadow for so long. Even when [[Film/TheAvengers2012 armed with a powerful scepter and army]], Thor sees through Loki immediately and questions who controls "the would-be king", much to Loki's fury. ''Film/ThorRagnarok'' takes this even further as when Loki gets his wish of ruling Asgard (in the guise of Odin), he builds a statue of himself and orchestrates a play about his "heroics" which he watches while eating grapes and drinking wine on a couch.
60	* Lyutsifer Safin in ''Film/NoTimeToDie'' has an oddly dorky and hesitant manner in most interactions with other people, and is capable of restrainedly nerding out in his obsession with poisonous plants. This doesn't prevent him from being one of the most dangerous Franchise/JamesBond villains ever, since he [[spoiler:manages to cause the deaths of both Ernst Stavro Blofeld and '''James Bond himself''']].
61	** [[InvertedTrope Inverted]] with [[MadScientist Dr. Valdo Obruchev]] from the same film. At first, Obruchev appears to be a meek cowardly scientist who couldn't be much of a threat to anyone. While he may be a [[DirtyCoward coward,]] Obruchev is in fact a dangerous and incredibly evil scientist who is fully capable of genocide. [[spoiler:During the final act of the film, he goes as far as to threaten to reprogram his [[SyntheticPlague Heracles superweapon]] to [[PoliticallyIncorrectVillain kill all West Africans on the face of the earth.]] Needless to say, [[DeathByRacism he dies soon after.]]]]
62	* Ogre in the ''Film/RevengeOfTheNerds'' series is revealed to be this at the end of the second movie. Then, [[spoiler:at the end of the third film, Stan (who led the JerkJock fraternity in the first film) does a HeelFaceTurn and reveals that he is a ClosetGeek, too, dropping the evil scheme he was bullied into trying]].
63	* In ''Film/{{Spaceballs}}'', Creator/RickMoranis gives us the unforgettable Darth Vader {{Expy}} Dark Helmet, as seen in the trope image. The surprise comes to the audience only, since his staff already knew him (and pretend they don't know he's playing with dolls).
64	* Symbiote Peter Parker of ''Film/SpiderMan3'' infamy. Like in the comics, the Venom symbiote enhances Spider-Man's powers at the cost of increased aggression. However, this movie's interpretation of "increased aggression" is a dorky nerd's conception of machismo suave. Instead of coming off as the cool anti-hero you'd expect, the audience is treated to Peter getting an emo hair makeover, spouting awkward one-liners, and goofily dancing in the street while women pass him by in disgust. However, this doesn't stop him from having legitimate accomplishments such as exposing a plagiarist, getting "the staff job, double the money" from his boss, and besting his RivalTurnedEvil Harry Osborn in a CurbStompBattle. For all these reasons, "Bully Maguire" has become a [[MemeticMutation meme]]. Venom had a similar effect on Eddie Brock, the aforementioned plagiarist. Instead of the badass AntiHero fans of the comics and animated series were accustomed to, this incarnation of Venom remained a petulant CardCarryingVillain {{manchild}} incapable of accepting responsibility and who [[SelfDisposingVillain does himself in]] by being unwilling to give up the symbiote like a drug when Peter blows it up. Director Creator/SamRaimi [[CreatorsPest didn't like Venom]], and it shows.
65	* ''Franchise/StarWars'': Kylo Ren from ''Film/TheForceAwakens'' publicly dresses and acts like Darth Vader, but underneath that helmet is a pale, gangly guy who [[TheyLookJustLikeEveryoneElse doesn't look threatening in the least]]. Moreover, in private, he shows a fanboyish obsession with Vader (which explains his fashion choices) and [[PsychopathicManchild behaves like an angsty teenager]]. ''Series/SaturdayNightLive'' had a field day with this ([[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FaOSCASqLsE "Star Wars Undercover Boss: Starkiller Base"]]), as did the "{{Emo\|Teen}} Kylo Ren" [[https://twitter.com/kylor3n page]] on Website/{{Twitter}}. In ''Film/TheLastJedi'', he starts moving out of the shadow of his influences, but is still very dorky. Note, however, that his nerdiness does ''not'' make him any less dangerous.
66	[[/folder]]
67
68	[[folder:Literature]]
69	* In Creator/NeilGaiman's ''Literature/AmericanGods'', the "technology kid" acts tough, and does a lot of things which ''should'' be intimidating, but are so clearly rehearsed other characters can see it and find it kind of pitiful.
70	* {{Inverted\|Trope}} in ''Literature/TheSupervillainySaga'' as, despite his intimidating attire, everyone assumes Merciless is a dorky everyman within five minutes of meeting him. [[NotSoHarmlessVillain Then he proceeds to trash much-much more powerful villains than himself and often leave a large trail of bodies behind him]].
71	* ''Anime/TransformersCybertron'': The textstory "Force of Habit" had Hardtop, top Decepticon sniper, and comic book collector. He collects comics [[KlingonsLoveShakespeare from Earth]] and other organic planets. While he insists on calling them Graphic Novels, he's quite open about his habits, and quite particular about not letting them get damaged. At the end of the story, all the Cons are marooned on a planet waiting for rescue, Hardtop lets all of the other Decepticons read his comics, but continues to insist that they be careful with them.
72	* ''Literature/VampirosDoRioDouro'': Sétimo is the strongest and most dangerous of the Seven, a group of vampires with demonic powers granted by Satan himself, and among his brothers (who can [[OneManArmy easily take on the army by themselves]]), he is spoken of in [[TheDreaded complete and total dread]], with them calling him "the devil on Earth" and "evil incarnate", and considering how evil themselves they are, that is ''saying something''. Sétimo is later revealed to look like a teenage boy who is a [[VillainsOutShopping total dork with technology]], which even the protagonists find jarring how can someone so unimposing could be terrifyingly evil.
73	[[/folder]]
74
75	[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
76	* In Season 6 of ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'', the [[TerribleTrio Trio]] desperately tried to be this trope. Sometimes they pulled it off for a little while in the eyes of various characters, but never the audience. Well, Warren came close, insofar as he was the only one who was actually ''evil'', being a genuine ManipulativeBastard with a [[HeManWomanHater hatred for women]] who actually kills one of the hero characters whilst putting Buffy in the hospital, even though that earned him a painful death. [[spoiler:Though since he CameBackWrong in the sequel comics, he's even worse than before.]] Unfortunately for him, he's still a SmugSnake BigBadWannabe, and the fact that he's a total bastard makes him far less likeable, but not much scarier.
77	* ''Series/DoctorWho'': Luke Rattigan from "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS30E4TheSontaranStratagem The Sontaran Stratagem]]" and "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS30E5ThePoisonSky The Poison Sky]]" is a self-proclaimed TeenGenius who [[InsufferableGenius considers himself smarter than everyone else]]... but he's actually just a pathetic douchebag. [[spoiler:Until his HeroicSacrifice, that is]].
78	%%* Arcane, [[spoiler:revealed to be Clyde Randolph]] in the ''Series/{{Dollhouse}}'' episode "The Attic".
79	* The end of ''Series/TheITCrowd'' special "The Internet is Coming" ends with the Anonymous hacker (who, as per usual, was wearing a Guy Fawkes mask and had their voice distorted) is revealed to be a young-faced teenager, when [[AmazinglyEmbarrassingParents his parents bust into his room]], take down his white backdrop and remove his mask.
80	* ''Series/KamenRiderBuild'': [[BigBad Night Rogue]] created a cool name for himself and [[SlouchOfVillainy lounges]] in a ridiculously tacky chair when observing the work of his underlings. In his free time, he eats sweets, sings karaoke and dresses up in atrocious [[FashionVictimVillain outfits]]. He is also the sociopathic [[AsskickingLeadsToLeadership leader]] of the terrorist organization [[DealWithTheDevil Faust]], which conducts (sometimes lethal) experiments on human subjects.
81	* ''Series/KamenRiderZiO'': Time Jacker Heure made up many of the most creative and terrible [[MonsterOfTheWeek Another Riders]] in the story like a zombie apocalypse, an unkillable mirror monster, puppeteered corpses and [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking stinkin']] [[AGodAmI Kuroto]] [[MadScientist Dan]]. Enjoying the mayhem his creations cause doesn't change anything about the fact he is the "[[EvilIsPetty diet evil]]" to his [[HateSink sociopathic co-villains]] and keeps on failing to impress them. In the end, he is nothing more than a deeply disturbed child with a need for approval from the wrong sort of people.
82	* ''Series/KamenRiderRevice'': Julio/Tamaki Go is an efficient DumbMuscle for an anarchist cult and has indulged in wanton cruelty a plenty. Without the cult's influence, he is actually harmless, painfully nerdy kid who plays card games and wears stupidly big glasses.
83	* ''Series/KikaiSentaiZenkaiger'': Stacy/Stacaesar's failure to kill Kaito/Zenkaiser is definitely not for lack of trying on his part. No one dares to understate the danger he poses, but no one deigns to give him the respect such a threat should have either. This is largely because a hammy, baby faced JerkassWoobie like him realistically has the intimidation factor of a chihuahua and throwing in the habits of a petty, ice cream loving {{Manchild}} does not help his case either.
84	* The ''Series/SaturdayNightLive'' sketch mentioned in the {{Film}} section above ([[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FaOSCASqLsE "Star Wars Undercover Boss: Starkiller Base"]]) riffs on Kylo Ren's dorkiness in ''Film/TheForceAwakens''.
85	[[/folder]]
86
87	[[folder:Music]]
88	* From Devin Townsend's Ziltoid concept album: "But, Captain Spectacular has seen through Ziltoid's façade and now sets out to expose Ziltoid for what he really is...a nerd."
89	[[/folder]]
90
91	[[folder:Video Games]]
92	* Vergil in ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry3DantesAwakening'' is unmistakably threatening, powerful, and obsessed in seeking the power of his father Sparda, but he's a bookworm [[HiddenDepths underneath]] even if it's just [[DownplayedTrope rarely shown]]. His opening cutscene in the ''Special Edition'' shows him reading a book in the library, and when Arkham tries to interrupt his reading, Vergil responds by pointing his katana. ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry5'' expands on this a bit; [[spoiler:even if he's nearly dying by that point]], Vergil still takes a time to quote Creator/WilliamBlake's "Earth's Answer" before [[spoiler:splitting himself as a last resort to regain his strength]]. Later on, the story and the "Old Man's Diary" document reveals Vergil is a {{fanboy}} of Blake poetry ever since his childhood. He is also possessive of what he owns, so he had to write his name on the poetry book given to him just because he and Dante fought over things so often.
93	* [[spoiler:Hyness]] from ''VideoGame/KirbyStarAllies'' is revealed to be this [[spoiler:after his hood falls off, where he's revealed to be some sort of creature with bulging eyes and a massive nose. In a fashion [[{{Expy}} suspiciously]] similar to that of Zant, above, his personality certainly doesn't help him in this case, as he's flailing wildly, ranting and generally being so hyper you'd think he just did a pound of meth. None of this stops him from being the leader of an ApocalypseCult seeking to summon an EldritchAbomination to cause the end of the world. At this point he starts '''using the other members of his cult as [[GrievousHarmWithABody bludgeoning weapons]] and [[HumanShield living shields]]'''. In context, his face comes off as more of an creepy thing than even remotely humorous, and his frantic flailing really helps sell just how deeply insane Hyness really is, exactly the kind of person who might genuinely believe that summoning Void Termina is a good idea]].
94	* Zant, the EvilSorcerer who nearly conquers Hyrule in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'', is a tall figure dressed in black robes with a creepy chameleon-shaped helmet. But once he removes the scary helmet, you see why he usually keeps it on -- he's no more imposing than your average Twili, and a PsychopathicManchild to boot.
95	* In ''VideoGame/MaxPayne2TheFallOfMaxPayne'', Max has to [[EscortMission escort]] gangster boss Vinnie Gognitti, who has a bomb strapped to his head. Vinnie suggests that they head back to his place, where Max discovers that he has a room full of merchandise from the popular SaturdayMorningCartoon, ''Captain Baseball-bat Boy''. (Funnily enough, [[RunningGag he's actually right about that]].)
96	-->'''Vinnie:''' [[DefensiveWhat What?]] I'm a collector! There's nothin' nerdy about it, I'm a collector! Lots of tough guys are into this stuff!
97	* The BigBad from ''VideoGame/RatchetAndClankFullFrontalAssault'' hides his real face behind a mask to keep it hidden that [[spoiler:he's the Qwark Fanboy from a side mission in ''[[VideoGame/RatchetAndClankGoingCommando Going Commando]]'']].
98	* Albert Wesker from ''Franchise/ResidentEvil'', while very strong, evil and genuinely scary at times, is still at the end of the day just a scientist DrunkWithPower. It's more apparent in ''[[VideoGame/ResidentEvil5 RE5]]'', as Wesker's sneaky plans give way to world domination and [[TheSocialDarwinist purging the weak from mankind to save the environment]]. Chris Redfield, sick of Wesker's insane beliefs, points out how ridiculous he is in a ShutUpHannibal moment.
99	-->'''Chris:''' Do you take all your plans from comic book villains?
100	* ''Franchise/TouhouProject:'' On first impressions, Remilia Scarlet, the Scarlet Devil, is a dark, sinister, yet aristocratically elegant vampire mistress of immense power and influence. Give her long enough though, and she'll reveal herself as a bratty {{Chuunibyou}} trying way too hard to act like a dark mistress of the night that just happens to actually be an immensely powerful centuries old vampire.
101	[[/folder]]
102
103	[[folder:Web Animation]]
104	* Dark Dragon in ''WebAnimation/TheFlashTub'' cartoon ''Platform Hero''.
105	[[/folder]]
106
107	[[folder:Webcomics]]
108	* Dark Smoke Puncher from ''Webcomic/TheAdventuresOfDrMcNinja''. After seeing how his parents practically disowned his older brother for pursuing a medical degree, Sean [=McNinja=] took on a wannabe-gangsta persona and his current name to hide his intelligence and interest in robotics.
109	* In ''Webcomic/ElGoonishShive'', Not-Tengu is an international fugitive cult leader who uses mind-control magic on his victims and is introduced as an imposing monster, but he apparently spends a lot of time online, discussing magic with people who don't know he has magical abilities. He also criticizes Charlotte's web forum for its [[http://egscomics.com/comic/2013-07-15 inadequate selection of smilies and late notifications about new posts]].
110	* ''Webcomic/TheGlassScientists'' has a new, interesting take on [[Literature/TheStrangeCaseOfDrJekyllAndMrHyde Edward Hyde]]. In the original book, Dr. Jekyll was so obsessed with maintaining the image of a proper British gentleman that he invented the potion that made him into Hyde so he could go out into the night to visit strip clubs, gamble, and generally cut loose. In the webcomic, Jekyll still cares deeply about his reputation and Hyde still spends the nights with debauchery (with an even more fluid sexuality), but Jekyll's pride shines out as Hyde's SmallNameBigEgo. He's a CardCarryingVillain, but he's always [[BigBadWannabe wishing that he could be more intimidating]].
111	-->'''Rachel Pidgley:''' Oh, it's just you, Master Hyde! For a moment there I thought that I was in real danger!\
112	'''Hyde:''' Who says you're not? What could a little maid like you know of my dark ocean of depravity?\
113	'''Rachel:''' ''[giggles]''\
114	'''Hyde:''' There is no giggling in the depravity ocean!
115	* ''Webcomic/{{Homestuck}}'': Both [[SmugSnake Vriska Serket]] and [[KnightOfCerebus Eridan Ampora]] are dedicated F{{LARP}}ers -- though in [[DeathWorld Alternia]], mutually advantageous teamwork in Fatal Live Action Roleplaying leads to the both of them racking up a pretty impressive death count.
116	* ''Webcomic/{{Krakow}}'' brings us Kia's father, an intimidating man in a red cloak with glowing red eyes and horns. Under the hood, he's a standard businessman and BumblingDad with glasses... and horns.
117	* [[http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0723.html General Tarquin]] in ''Webcomic/TheOrderOfTheStick''. The surprise came to the readers as well as the characters. Despite being a ruthless tyrant and [[TheChessmaster Chessmaster]], he's also just as drama-obsessed as his do-gooder, {{Cloudcuckoolander}} son Elan. Given the nature of the world they live in, this only makes him more dangerous.
118	* Space Dread of ''Webcomic/ValAndIsaac'' is a feared intergalactic mercenary with cybernetic modifications and dark magical powers. She spends most of her time playing video games and quietly worrying about what her friends think of her on jobs. Her alias comes from an [[OnlineAlias old MMO character]], and her BadassLongcoat started life as a {{cosplay}}, which she made herself and had to do a job in when she realized she forgot about a job at a convention.
119	[[/folder]]
120
121	[[folder:Western Animation]]
122	* In ''WesternAnimation/{{Amphibia}}'', lovable nerd and [[GenkiGirl Genki Girl]] Marcy Wu gets [[TheAssimilator assimilated]] into [[BigBad The Core]] and becomes ''Darcy'', Darcy retains all of Marcy's nerdy and goofy traits but also possesses a psychopathic and evil personality. They even have a [[CoolHelmet cool helmet]]. [[spoiler:After being cut from Marcy's body, The Core's helmet grows legs and goes into Amphibia's moon to begin its back-up plan, [[ColonyDrop crash into Amphibia's surface and wipe out all life on it.]]]]
123	* ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender''
124	** [[Characters/AvatarTheLastAirbenderZuko Prince Zuko]] is genuinely handsome (despite his prominent scar) and skilled at fighting, giving orders, and anything that doesn't involve casual social interaction. But sit down and have a conversation with the guy and you'll discover his dorky side pretty quickly. [[spoiler:He does [[HeelFaceTurn join the good guys]] in the third season, but he remains at least as dorky]].
125	** Zuko's sister [[Characters/AvatarTheLastAirbenderPrincessAzula Azula]] is a frighteningly competent [[MagnificentBastard Magnificent Bitch]], but when she tries to [[VillainsOutShopping act normal]], she fails spectacularly.
126	* ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'': The episode "[[Recap/BatmanTheAnimatedSeriesE18BewareTheGrayGhost Beware The Grey Ghost]]" features this trope. A mysterious bomber has been destroying buildings using remote-controlled cars which Batman recognizes as props from the long-lost TV series ''The Grey Ghost'', and enlists the help of actor Simon Trent (famously voiced by Creator/AdamWest), who played the main character. After a good deal of drama, Trent realizes that only one man can be the Mad Bomber: the nerdy comic store owner who bought his old show memorabilia. When Batman and Trent corners him, he reveals himself to be obsessed with toys to the point of psychosis, and the only reason he's been extorting Gotham is to buy ''more'' toys.
127	* The first episodes of ''WesternAnimation/{{Bonkers}}'' deal with the Collector, a {{toon}} with a creepy mishmash appearance. He collects other toons by sealing them in plastic with a device called "the Laminator". However, when his glove is ripped off, it turns out he has ''five'' fingers [[FourFingeredHands instead of four]], and when his mask comes off afterward, he is fully outed as a geeky-looking human (though the fact that he's animated in the same style as the rest of the show makes it hard to tell).
128	* [[BigBad Father]] in ''WesternAnimation/CodenameKidsNextDoor'' wears glasses and suspenders underneath the black silhouette suit generated by his powers, but still manages to be intimidating without it considering that he could be BurningWithAnger at a moment's notice.
129	* An episode of ''WesternAnimation/CowAndChicken'' had this. The new bully in town turned out to be a wimpy kid in an inflatable suit. [[MindScrew (Along with everyone else.)]]
130	* Played with in an episode of ''WesternAnimation/GarfieldAndFriends'' featuring the Masked Mauler, a pro wrestler so bloodthirsty that nobody will wrestle him because he never follows the scripts. When he ropes Jon into a match against him, Garfield saves Jon by discovering that [[WeaksauceWeakness the Masked Mauler is allergic to cat hair]], making him sneeze so hard that his mask flies off, revealing his "nerdy" face. But he doesn't act like a nerd, so...[[note]]That said, he doesn't take it well when the crowd begins ''laughing'' at him upon being unmasked.[[/note]]
131	* Xanatos from ''WesternAnimation/{{Gargoyles}}'' has shades of this trope.
132	** Under normal circumstances he's a suave, composed, AffablyEvil MagnificentBastard. When his plans call for him to act like the stereotypical CardCarryingVillain, however, he'll show a ''much'' nerdier side as well. Quoth Xanatos after helping bring the FrankensteinsMonster-esque Coldstone to life:
133	-->'''Xanatos:''' It's alive, ALIVE! You know, IAlwaysWantedToSayThat.
134	** The whole reason he's involved in the plot is because he believed a magical story he read in a thousand-year-old book. Of course he's a nerd at heart.
135	** And when he ''finally gets'' Elisa and Co. stuck in a genuine DeathTrap, he casually asks, "It's my first real stab at clichéd villainy. How am I doing so far?".
136	* One episode of ''WesternAnimation/JohnnyBravo'' has Johnny accidentally replacing the captain of a ''Franchise/StarTrek''-esque ship, where he ends up encountering and making an enemy of a hulking, menacing galactic warlord, who facially resembles Carl, and is implied to be some sort of genetic ancestor to said character. When Johnny meets him in battle on a nearby planet, the warlord removes his armor... and is revealed to be just as weak and wimpy as his earthly descendant underneath.
137	* Dark Vegan on ''WesternAnimation/JohnnyTest'' comes off as a parody of [[Film/{{Spaceballs}} Dark Helmet]].
138	* One of the New Looney Tunes shorts in the ''WesternAnimation/TheLooneyTunesShow'' invokes this and is a music video of Daffy Duck imagining himself as an all-powerful EvilSorceror, although in that case it's more nerd fantasizing himself in evil's helmet.
139	* Two instances in ''WesternAnimation/MyLifeAsATeenageRobot'':
140	** In "This Time with Feeling", Jenny battles a knockoff named Himcules voiced by Creator/BruceCampbell who also happens to be a sexist PoliticallyIncorrectVillain that grows stronger from others' pain. After beating the robot to a pulp (because she had installed a robot nerve system that was accidentally switched to feeling excruciating pain), Jenny switches to "tickle" and reduces Himcules to a "90-pound weakling" when Jenny and the town's laughter drains his power.
141	** In "Ear No Evil", Jenny (who had enormously large robotic ears installed to impress a group of {{Rich Bitch}}es but only caused her intense humiliation) battles the "Lancer", a large imposing knight who steals everything in the city. After destroying his armor and weapons, Lancer is revealed to be a tiny elf-like man with ears comically larger than Jenny's.
142	* [[Characters/TheOwlHouseTheGoldenGuard The Golden Guard]] from ''WesternAnimation/TheOwlHouse'' is a formidable fighter and TheDragon to Emperor Belos himself. Underneath the mask, the Golden Guard is Hunter, a scrawny, pale teenager with NoSocialSkills, who enjoys {{Info Dump}}ing about topics he's studied and has a soft spot for animals. [[spoiler:Once he pulls a HeelFaceTurn, Hunter fully embraces his dorky side by learning to sew, becoming obsessed with wolves, and getting so invested in [[WhereNoParodyHasGoneBefore this world's version of Star Trek]] that he makes himself a character costume and tries to wear it in public]].
143	* The Dominator from the fifth season of ''WesternAnimation/SamuraiJack'' [[https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/samuraijack/images/5/5b/Dominator_face.png looks like an imposing and powerful robot]] at first, but moments before his defeat, is unmasked and revealed to be [[https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/samuraijack/images/5/55/The_Dominator.png an incredibly ugly and unimpressive man]] wearing PoweredArmor. Aside from that, though, he's a {{Sadist}} who WouldHurtAChild and [[IHaveYouNowMyPretty acts really creepy and perverted]] towards Ashi, making him undeniably far more evil than nerdy.
144	* Obligatory example from ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'': in "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS11E4TreehouseOfHorrorX Treehouse of Horror X]]", the second segment takes this trope to its logical extreme by having Comic Book Guy turn into a literal superhero-comicbook-esque supervillain, The Collector, whose main gimmick is based on collecting ''people''.
145	* ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark''
146	** On several occasions, [[Characters/SouthParkButtersStotch Butters Stotch]] has adopted the alter-ego of the supervillain Professor Chaos. But given that this is ''Butters'' we're talking about, Professor Chaos is a pretty {{harmless\|Villain}} and pathetic baddie whose idea of "evil" falls squarely under PokeThePoodle.
147	** The episode "[[Recap/SouthParkS10E8MakeLoveNotWarcraft Make Love, Not Warcraft]]" has the boys fighting a {{griefer}} who keeps killing them in ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft''. He's an imposing foe in the game, but in real life... well, [[http://3.images.southparkstudios.com/images/shows/south-park/clip-thumbnails/season-10/1008/south-park-s10e08c05-the-slaughter-16x9.jpg?quality=0.8 just take a look at this picture]].
148	* ''WesternAnimation/WanderOverYonder'':
149	** When Lord Dominator's helmet's faceplate is down and her armor is up, she [[TopHeavyGuy looks]] and [[EvilSoundsDeep sounds]] like a fairly typical GalacticConquerer. Underneath, however, is an excitable GreenSkinnedSpaceBabe who'll gush over her how cool her latest villainous acts were as soon as she's alone. However, the trope is played with in that Lord Dominator is still a complete sociopath, even when she's in private.
150	** Lord Hater himself starts out as a prime specimen of this: his [[ShockAndAwe electrokinesis]] and his imposing EvilOverlord persona hide the fact that he's a socially-awkward, overly-emotional PsychopathicManchild who is easily distracted, struggles to talk to women and plays action figure games with his equally-dweeby [[TheDragon Dragon]] as they plan out their conquest of the week. Thanks to his obsession with besting [[TheTrickster Wander]], he's suffered in-universe VillainDecay by Season 2 and everyone's very aware of what he's really like.
151	** Speaking of Hater's Dragon, Commander Peepers defines EvilNerd and even gets his ProudToBeAGeek speech in when he's bullied in classic style by [[EvilVersusEvil rival evildoer]] Emperor Awesome.
152	* Elmer Fudd in ''WesternAnimation/WhatsOperaDoc'', wearing a magic helmet instead of his usual hunter cap.
153	[[/folder]]

Context Main / NerdInEvilsHelmet