http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Evil%20Spock.jpg
[[caption-width:151:You can probably tell if this is the good or evil Spock.]]

-> ''Under the nightmare of Communism, moustaches were, of course, compulsory.''
-->''Tomorrow Stories'', written by AlanMoore

-> ''To have a beard is to rehearse\\
A battle with the universe.''
-> Picnicface, ''[[http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=na37dOc_XSQ Beard no Beard]]

It used to be that things were simple: {{Heroes}} had faces smoother than a baby's bottom and {{Villains}} had long, thin, oily moustaches to twirl after tying the DistressedDamsel to a [[ChainedToARailway set of train tracks]]. Then along came the grizzled [[TheDrifter Drifter]] with his five o'clock shadow, TheGunslinger with his proud beard, and other {{Antihero}}es who broke out of old archetypes. Thanks to these brave pioneers in the fight for facial follicle freedom it's been okay for heroes to have beards, villains to be clean-shaven, and {{Antihero}}es to blur the lines. However, much like superhero costumes there are still guidelines for who can get away with what.

By default {{Heroes}} tend towards clean shaves, whether it's because of artistic inertia or simple cultural popularity is up for grabs. Sometimes movies made in countries or/of eras that are friendlier to facial hair have a higher number of heroes and extras with beards and mustaches, though it is still very common to find anachronistically clean shaven male main characters. A full, thick, and above all '''well trimmed''' beard is almost always a sign of the good guys (Dwarfs, Santa, mentor characters, etc). TheObiWan often has one. You will never, ever see a good character with a [[YellowPeril Fu Manchu]] mustache, nor one with a pencil thin moustache. [[PermaStubble Stubbles]] are an exception, as they're usually a sign of [[AntiHero Anti Heroism]] and {{Badass}}itude.

Speaking of which, any moustache resembling Hitler's is off-limits (see the example below), even to villains, and can only be used to mock a character by photoshopping said moustache onto them.

{{Villains}} with beards tend to either have long wispy ones, short fancy ones, or wild and unkempt ones. This depends entirely on [[EvilMakeover what flavor their villainy has.]] Sophisticated villains tend towards clean shaves and 'devil' goatees and will almost always be very fastidious about their appearance. Savage villains are likelier to have a full on uncontrolled beard, possibly with braids or dreadlocks. Back alley thugs or unsavory types are likely to keep thin and scraggly beards, in line with their ratty appearance.

An {{Antihero}}, of course, can go either way, although they rarely have the wispy beards. One pop culture extreme is to get incredibly elaborate patterns in a full beard. Again, this depends on if the Antihero is the grungy unkempt kind or is going for a Blade like extravagance.

For EvilMinions and foot soldiers one of the few perks they enjoy is complete freedom to go overboard with their beards: long braids, intricate patterns, pencil thin flame designs and more are common. The punk/grunge/barbarian image their intricate styles boast is an excellent cue that they'll soon be wishing they'd spent less time grooming and more practicing to dodge an OffhandBackhand.

Ironically, the {{Spock}} shown above was actually the only "good" character in the alternate universe.

Whether a woman's hairstyle is good or evil depends on when the show was filmed. The "good" hairstyle of 2009 - long, sexy, but not too smooth - would have only been seen on a CompleteMonster (like Cruella Deville) fifty years earlier. In contrast, the "bad" hairstyle of 2009 - big, teased, with floofy bangs - was the "good" hairstyle of 1985. The implication is that heroines are slaves of fashion while villains are dowdy and out of date.

See also ExpositoryHairstyleChange, ExpressiveHair, FunnyAfro, HairColors, HairReboot, ImportantHaircut, BeardOfEvil and BaldOfEvil. Compare GoodScarsEvilScars.
----
Examples of characters who exemplify particular facial hairstyles:

[[foldercontrol]]

[[folder: Heroes ]]

* TheObiWan and other mentors often have a neat '''full beard''' - especially if they are [[TheDumbledore a wise old wizard]].
** [[StarWars Obi Wan]] himself of course.
** [[HarryPotter Albus Dumbledore]]
** [[TheLordOfTheRings Gandalf]]
** [[AvatartheLastAirbender Avatar Roku]]
** Professor Henry Jones, father of IndianaJones.
** Another professor, Maximilian Arturo in ''{{Sliders}}.''
** The entire [[OurDwarvesAreAllTheSame stock fantasy race]] of Dwarves, usually ''priding themselves'' on the fullness and thickness of their beards and sometimes styling them elaborately.
** A famous example in Commander William Riker's beard in ''StarTrekTheNextGeneration'' which not only signalled the moment when he was a Kirk clone no more but also created the trope GrowingTheBeard marking when the series started improving to become the television classic it would be.
** The first example is Merlin, King Arthur's famous advisor, who is always drawn/filmed/described as having a long beard, which was copied by Gandalf and Dumbledore making this OlderThanPrint.
** [[{{Invisibility}} Claude's]] beard on ''Series/{{Heroes}}'', though this may have something to with being a HomelessHero and a HomelessPigeonPerson.
** [[CoolOldGuy Bobby]] [[OnlySaneMan Singer]] on ''{{Supernatural}}''.

* [[CopShow Cops]], private eyes and ''plumbers'' are pretty likely to have a '''[[PornStache thick mustache]],''' though this is the hardest hair to pin down. This is something of a JustifiedTrope insofar as before 1980, the dress codes of many urban police departments in France and the US mandated mustaches for men, as there was a perception that they made cops look older and more authoritative. Even now "moustache" is a French slang term for "policeman." In British shows [[TheBrigadier senior military personnel]] will often have a moustache for similar reasons, probably a Kitchener-style handlebar.
** MagnumPI had Rick -- his mustache is legendary.
** [[SuperMarioBros Mario and Luigi]] are two of the more iconic mustachioed heroes, as a simple mouth on the primitive game sprites wouldn't show as well.
*** In ''Mario & Luigi Superstar Saga'', "Stache" is the statistic with the functions normally associated with "Luck".
** Rembrandt "Crying Man" Brown from ''{{Sliders}}'', a musician with more soul than any mere soulpatch could carry.
** Captain Bosch from ''C.H.U.D.'' had a moustache.
** Kai Kitamura from ''SuperRobotWars Original Generation''. The SuperRobot Soulgain also sports a metal moustache, though its pilot Axel Almer doesn't sport one. And yes, he's still a military man.
** Colonel Stephon Ely, from the ''{{Crusader}}'' series of games, has a thick moustache and chomps a cigar (which he never actually smokes, probably because the actor didn't).
**''The'' [[TheBrigadier Brigadier]], in ''DoctorWho''.
** Soichiro Yagami in ''DeathNote'' - subject to a LampshadeHanging about he is "obviously a cop".
***With the exception of the live action movies.
** Captain Gordon from ''Godzilla: Final Wars'' sported a badass moustache, which suited a character so awesome he only spoke English in a Japanese movie (that and he was willing to take on Godzilla in a ''fistfight'').
** Detective Walsh from ''StrangersInParadise''.
** CommissionerGordon in most versions of ''{{Batman}}''.
** Dupont & Dupond (a k a Thomson & Thompson) from ''{{Tintin}}''. One has a slight curl to his mustache, which seems to be the only way to tell them apart.
** ''{{Monk}}'''s Captain Stottlemeyer sports this distinctive mustache.

* '''[[RapunzelHair Very Long, Flowing Hair]]''' is a sign of femininity, both in women and in {{White Haired Pretty Boy}}s: try to name a fairytale princess with short hair. In anime it's a staple of the YamatoNadeshiko. [[HimeCut Add some perfectly level bangs]] and it also suggests an air of courtly, stately grace.
** As stated, almost every Disney princess ever, though averted by [[SnowWhiteAndTheSevenDwarfs Snow White]] and {{Cinderella}} who have shorter 30's/50's hairstyles, and Tiana from the upcoming ''ThePrincessAndTheFrog'' who lives in TheRoaringTwenties.
** In [=RPG=]s, it's usually the StaffChick who has the longest tresses.
*** Unless it's ''FinalFantasyVII'', where StaffChick Aeris has more-or-less long hair kept in a ponytail, but ActionGirl Tifa keeps it even ''longer''.
*** And BigBad Sephiroth keeps it longer than ''anyone else'' in the game.
*** Subverted pretty thoroughly in the ''ForgottenRealms''-based Drizzt Do'Urden novels. Catti-brie, warrior woman and budding mage; Drizzt, deadliest fighter in the series; and Wulfgar, seven-foot hulk of a man all have very rather long hair for people who mix it up in close quarters.
*** Also subverted by the perceptions of the ancient Spartans, who considered their warriors as the pinnacle of masculine beauty with their muscles and long hair.
**** There's a story that Spartan law required men to wear their hair long, as it made the handsome ones look even more handsome and the ugly ones even uglier.
** On ''{{Smallville}}'' every single one of Clark's love interests have long hair, Lana in particular; contrast with his UnluckyChildhoodFriend Chloe, whose hair never goes past her shoulders.
** Subverted in ''{{CodeGeass}}'', where several female charas have hair like this (Nunnally, Marianne, Shirley), but the one with the longest and wavier hair is... a ''CuteShotaroBoy'' named V.V.
** Midna from ''TheLegendOfZelda: Twilight Princess'' wears her hair in a very long ponytail (so that it can [[PrehensileHair act as a hand]]); she is, however, a {{tsundere}} instead. [[spoiler:In her true form, she has an odd form of PrincessCurls, which are joined at her neck like bonnet strings.]]

* '''[[WildHair Unkempt, shaggy, or long hair]]''' on a man often indicates that he is a NatureHero, or otherwise close to nature.
** InuYasha.
** Wolfriders in ''ElfQuest''.

* Good '''goatees''' are rare, but not unheard of. They often indicate that the character is mysterious or an outsider.
** Gordon Freeman of ''HalfLife'' fame mixes the mentor's full beard with a more compact cut when battling oppression and {{Eldritch Abomination}}s.
** Worf of ''StarTrek: The Next Generation'' brought honor to the goatee and little else.
*** Likewise, Captain Sisko looked pretty BadAss with his facial hair in ''Deep Space Nine.''
** Telemachus Rhade from ''{{Andromeda}}'' is another WarriorPoet who carried a goatee.
** The Prince in the ''PrinceOfPersia'' series sports a goatee, but is a fairly classic hero much of the time.
** Ronon Dex of ''StargateAtlantis'' is another goateed ProudWarriorRaceGuy.
** ''Regenesis'''s Carlos Serrano, who's also balding.
** Can we count [[{{Discworld}} Lord Vetinari]] as on the Hero team?
*** No, but you can count the heroes on the [[MagnificentBastard Vetinari Team]]...
** Both Comicverse and Movieverse versions of TonyStark have been known to rock the goatee.
** Lets not forget DoctorStrange who usually sports a goatee.
*** Doctor Strange has had only a moustache and no goatee for most of his existence though. The goatee is a new addition.
** DCComics hero GreenArrow has a big bushy goatee (but he was clean-shaven on ''{{Smallville}}'', where only Lionel Luthor may have facial hair).
***Oliver Queen started out clean-shaven in the comic-books as well. When Denny O'Neil started writing him and he became a hippie(Queen, that is, not O'Neil. I don't think there ever was a point where O'Neil was not a hippie)he grew his goatee in part to signify that he was 'hip' and 'sticking it to [[TheMan The Man]].
** Hinjo from ''{{Order of the Stick}}'' sports a goatee. He's also a ''paladin'' and is consistently portrayed to be a reasonable, sensible and above all noble person.
** Paul Denton, brother of the hero of DeusEx
** It's debatable whether he's a "good" character, an AntiHero or just a MagnificentBastard, but Willy Wonka sports a goatee. At least, in the book he does- both films have him appear clean-shaven.
*** In the book this troper read, the illustrations had him look a bit like Uncle Sam. Coincidence? So or so, Uncle Sam is another example.
** Ironically, the very goatee styled as "Very Evil" in the picture above sat one the only non-evil character in his entire universe - Mirror Spock, who was at worst an anti-hero and more likely a hero with a bad start.
** Jack and Will both sport goatees in ''PiratesOfTheCaribbean''. The "van Dyck" style goatee was popular in the era the films were set.
** Marcus Cole of {{Babylon 5}} has very villain-typical black hair and facial hair, despite being heroic, self-sacrificing, and occasionally outright silly.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Villains ]]

* '''Fu Manchu mustaches''' or wispy beards are usually villains and are usually Asian
** FuManchu, obviously, has the Fu Manchu moustache (but only since the film adaptations, not in the original books)
** [[BigTroubleInLittleChina David Lo Pan]] had the stereotypical Asian long and wispy beard.
** As did half the villains from ''[[JourneyToTheWest Monkey]]''
** Since it was based on ''JourneyToTheWest'', so do quite a few villains from the original ''{{Dragonball}}''.
** Mandarin, a YellowPeril supervillain from the MarvelUniverse, has a very prominent Fu Manchu.
** [[FlashGordon Ming the Merciless]] - the name says it all.
** Many Klingons sported one, especially in ''StarTrekTheOriginalSeries''.
** Ra's al Ghul - One of Comicbook/{{Batman}}'s arch-nemeses.
** Pai Mei in ''KillBill'' is one of the few Asian heroes with one.
*** Granted, he was kind of a dick.
** Gilbert and Sullivan's operetta ''Ruddigore'' is probably the master of this trope: Sir Despard Murgatroyd, the evil Baron of Ruddigore, usually has an evil goatee. Upon his HeelFaceTurn, he shaves it off, whilst his brother Ruthven grows a twirly mustache and does a simultaneous FaceHeelTurn, also donning a monocle and top hat. Upon Ruthven's HeelFaceTurn at the end, he discards these. Also, Ruthven's sidekick Old Adam's beard usually gets much scruffier when he is evil.
** Scourge from the original [[TransformersGenerationOne Transformers]] has a metal Fu Manchu, as do his clones.
*** Averted as well with Wreck-Gar.
** Averted in the webcomic ''OrderOfTheStick'', where Soon the paladin sports a Fu Manchu.
*** Played straight, however, with [[{{the evil prince}} scheming noble]] Daimyo Kubota.
**** Even [[LampshadeHanging lampshaded]] by Vaarsuvius in [[http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0596.html this comic]].
**** Of course, in an Eastern-flavored setting, it would be far more likely for there to be a lot of men sporting such facial hair.
** In ''TheAuthority'', Asian dictator/terrorist Kaizen Gamorra is depicted with one.
** EvilChancellor Magon from ''SluggyFreelance'' sports one of these. Torg even uses it as one of the criteria for [[http://www.sluggy.com/daily.php?date=990705 determining whether he's a bad guy]].
** Subversion: many of the "wise old mentors" from B kungfu movies sport thse. So do a lot of the bad guys, though.
* The male EvilTwin will invariably have a '''goatee.'''
** The evil goatee originated with one of the most memorable episodes from ''StarTrekTheOriginalSeries'', ''Mirror Mirror'', with a trip to a MirrorUniverse of evil duplicates. Spock's duplicate had the goatee; ironically, he was the only one who wasn't really evil.
** As a homage to the above, in ''WorldOfWarcraft'' the gnome transporter can malfunction giving you the "Evil Twin" debuff, but the only effect is a black goatee. Even if you have a female character.
** Another ''Mirror, Mirror'' homage comes from {{MST3K}}, in which Crow gets transported into an alternate dimension version of Deep 13 run by an Evil Mike. Evil Mike has a goatee.
** ''KidsNextDoor'' contains the same {{Homage}} in the MirrorUniverse episode, giving the 10-year-old evil leader negative Number 4 a goatee: "It makes me look ''[[CardCarryingVillain e-e-e-eviler]]''!"
** This was subverted in ''{{Futurama}}'', when Bender's goateed twin Flexo turned out to be the good Bender, while Bender was the evil Bender.
** Likewise, everyone from the evil parallel dimension in the ''SouthPark'' episode "Spookyfish" has a goatee, including the alternate version of Cartman, who is much nicer than the normal Cartman.
** The Master from ''DoctorWho'' sports a goatee in the incarnations played by both Roger Delgado and Anthony Ainley.
** ''OrderOfTheStick'' played this one straight: Elan's evil twin Nale sports a goatee -- and Haley, being GenreSavvy, suspected he was evil well before it was actually revealed for exactly this reason. Nale later takes advantage of this by [[spoiler:cutting off his own goatee and sticking it to Elan's chin with Sovereign Glue]]. Nale also later admits he sports a goatee in honour of this trope, saying it is not just for show, it is a part of the Linear Guild's whole evil opposites theme.
** In the ''{{Stargate SG-1}}'' episode "Point of View", Apophis in the AlternateUniverse had a goatee, as did Teal'c (who, in this universe, was still his First Prime). In the fourth season, "our" Teal'c himself sported a goatee (actually it was more like a chin caterpillar) for a short while.
*** Perhaps inspired by ''Mirror, Mirror'' (Spock and Teal'c are both TheStoic of their teams), the alternate universe Teal'cs seem to be exactly the same ''except'' for their varying hair styles.
** In ''Megas XLR'''s yet-another-parody-of the-Star-Trek-episode episode "Rearview Mirror Mirror", the evil alternate Coop has, you guessed it, a goatee.
***Then again, so does regular Coop. Evil Coop's primary difference was that he was ''skinny''.
** Dave Davenport of ''{{Narbonic}}'' had one, blurring the line due the the main characters being [[VillainProtagonist Villain Protagonists]].
** In [[http://www.darthsanddroids.net/episodes/0039.html this]] ''DarthsAndDroids'' webcomic, Governor Sio Bibble, Queen Amidala's trusted advisor, is described as having a goatee, although it actually seems to be just a beard. Based the description, the players immediately decide he can't be trusted. Bonus points for linking to both this page and EvilChancellor.
** In the evil mirror universe of ''DinosaurComics'', the protagonists all have goatees. Even being big reptiles. The arc begins [[http://www.qwantz.com/index.php?comic=34 here]]
** The Fire Lords of ''AvatarTheLastAirbender'' all have goatees. Ozai ''really'' should have read the EvilOverlordList Item # 35...
** In one film version of ''RomeoAndJuliet'', the villain Tybalt sports a soul patch that ends up having the same effect as a goatee would.
** In the ''Shattered Glass' {{Transformers}} miniseries, the mirror universe. Rodimus Prime has a goatee. [[http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Image:Rodimus_goatee.jpg It looks about as silly as it sounds.]]
** In one episode of SushiPack, the Pack was sent to a mirror universe where all the males had goatees and all the females had heavy eyeshadow, regardless of whether they were good or evil.
** ''BuzzLightyearOfStarCommand'': Buzz's evil twin.

* [[RedScare Communists]] and other cold war era baddies will often have a Lenin '''open goatee,''' Stalin '''full mustache,''' or a full-on '''Marx beard.'''
** Many JamesBond supporting characters fall into this, although no BigBad in any Bond film was bearded until Hugo Drax in ''Moonraker''.
** Yuri in the videogame ''CommandAndConquer: Red Alert 2'' can almost be mistaken for Lenin. That is, if you ignore the tattoo and the psychic amplifier bolted to his head.
*** And then we have ''Red Alert 3'', which has TimCurry.
** In Hitchcock's ''Topaz'', most Cubans had Fidel Castro's beard, and even uniform, maybe suggesting a personality cult or anything. They were sometimes hard to differenciate; the main villain, fortunately [[{{ColourCodedForYourConvenience}} was red-bearded]]. Fortunately, female Cubans did not sport beards.

* Female Communists may have '''helmet hair'''.
** For example, the Soviet agent in the new ''IndianaJones'' film.
** Not quite the same role, but the same do- [[{{Alias}} Sydney Bristow]] has such a wig when she pretends to be a Russian soldier.

* The MadScientist wears the wise wizard's '''long beard''', but unkempt from mania.
** Dr. Morbius of ''ForbiddenPlanet'', who turned his id into a jealous monster.
** Gandalf's former peer and friend [[TheLordOfTheRings Saruman]] after his FaceHeelTurn. TheMovie even shows how his beard gradually dishevels itself.
** Dr. Reinhardt in the Disney movie ''TheBlackHole'' - he gave the crew of his science vessel a [[TheVirus fate worse than death]] when they wanted to go home.
** Daniel Curry's character Shepherd in the movie ''C.H.U.D.'' had a scraggly beard and wild hair, and yet was one of the film's heroes. He ran a homeless shelter.
** Brent Spiner's character Dr. Brackish Okun in ''IndependenceDay'' gets gradually less clean shaven and much wilder hair.
* Because it fits best here...there's a MSTing of an Internet post based around ''the link between facial hair, evolution, and aliens''. Read it [[http://groups.google.ca/group/alt.tv.mst3k/msg/4a1fc5459a36e1d1 here]]. Definitely a SoBadItsGood, or at least it will be SoBadItsGood if anyone can actually understand it.

* Today, the '''toothbrush mustache''' is so linked to AdolfHitler that the only person that mainstream media will dare show wearing it that style positively nowadays is Charlie Chaplin. Even Chaplin took advantage that growing stigma in his lifetime when he made fun of the Führer in ''TheGreatDictator''. Especially ironic since Hitler was an ''admirer'' of Chaplin and chose to grow his toothbrush mustache because he liked his films. Otherwise, if you see a character with such a mustache, outside of older versions of ''SpiderMan'''s J. Jonah Jameson, assume he is one of ThoseWackyNazis.
** Zorg in TheFifthElement takes the Hitler 'stache and puts it on his chin.
** Oliver Hardy had a mustache like this.
** It was also included as a wearable item in the Nintendo DS version of {{Animal Crossing}}.
** Kosaka Shintarou from WitchHunterRobin however is a ''good guy'' with the mustache.
** SoulEater features a librarian who looks suspiciously similar to Charlie Chaplin.
** RealLife evil genius Robert Mugabe seems to take this style to its not-so-logical extension: a ''philtrum 'tache''. [[http://abigailedge.files.wordpress.com/2008/12/mugabe.jpg Looks as weird as it sounds.]]
***Evil ''genius''? Really? The first half of that phrase fits, but apparently the standards for what is considered 'genius' have slipped something terrible.
* The '''Pencil Mustache''' is a classic for black hat villains in [[TheWestern Wild West]] serials. Other than Hercule Poirot, it's hard to imagine anyone but a villain or a SmugSnake with one of these. Extra points if it's curled into twin spirals.
** One [[ShowWithinAShow short]] for ''DextersLaboratory'' had Dexter artificially grow a super beard and pair up with Action Hank to fight a [[MilkmanConspiracy cartel of evil bearded men]], all of whom use [[MartialArtsAndCrafts "beard fu"]]. After beating the rasta and long bearded henchmen, Hank and Dexter face off against the BigBad french chef, who along with his pencil mustache had a ''sheathed'' sword-sharp goatee!
** Oddly, inverted in ''{{LazyTown}}'' by Sportacus, who wears a pencil mustache so sharp it looks like it could double as a [[AfraidOfNeedles scalpel.]]
*** This is further inverted by HarmlessVillain Robbie Rotten, who is clean shaven to the point you wonder if the actor isn't wearing a rubber mask (actually, he kind of '''is'''). His otherwise meticulous good grooming is also a bit off on the [[EvilMakeover evil-dress-o-meter]], but being in a [[ColorCodedForYourConvenience dark purple color scheme]] helps.
** Alfred, {{Batman}}'s butler, is sometimes depicted with a pencil mustache, but that's the only heroic example [[RealSlimShadowen this troper]] can think of.
** Averted by Det. Steve Crosetti in ''HomicideLifeOnTheStreet''.
** Parodied by Sheriff Buford T. Justice in the ''SmokeyAndTheBandit'' movies.
** Captain Hook is usually portrayed with a wax-tipped pencil mustache, with or without the curls. See Disney's ''PeterPan'' and the live-action ''Hook''.
** Also averted by the Mexican comediant Mario Moreno "Cantinflas": always sporting a pencil mustache, always the good guy.
** [[GoneWithTheWind Rhett Butler]]
** {{John Waters}}, hero to [[RefugeInVulgarity some]], villain to [[MoralGuardians others]].
** [[PGWodehouse Bertie Wooster]] once grew one of these, hoping it would give his appearance more ''diablerie''. [[TheJeeves Jeeves]] told him it looked like a stain of tomato soup.
** Subversion in TheFilmOfTheBook of Bram Stoker's {{Dracula}}: one of the good guys sports one.
** BumblingDad Richard Moore / Mouri Kogoro of CaseClosed has such a mustache. (In his younger days, he looked a bit like [[AceAttorney Phoenix Wright]].)

* '''Slicked-Back Hair'''
** Patrick Bateman, psycho, ''AmericanPsycho''
** Gordon Gekko, greedy businessman, ''WallStreet''
** {{Dracula}}, blood-sucking vampire
** Agent Smith, ''TheMatrix''
** Shinobu Sensui, ''YuYuHakusho''
**[[spoiler:Sousuke Aizen]] of ''{{Bleach}}'' slicks his hair back after TheReveal.
** As does the actor who plays the Nickel Samurai in ''PhoenixWright''.
*** You know, to go with his [[GoodScarsEvilScars evil scar]] and his [[AGlassOfChianti glass of something that looks like chocolate milk but probably isn't]].
** ArtemisFowl, because he's a VillainProtagonist ([[HeelFaceTurn sort of]]).
** Made fun of in [[http://www.theonion.com/content/news/nations_slicked_back_hair_men this]] Onion article.
** The oily and arrogant Cardassians of ''StarTrek''.
** Averted to a degree by Cleric Preston from ''{{Equilibrium}}''; he starts out as a bad guy with slicked hair, [[spoiler:does a HeelFaceTurn, and keeps his badass hair.]]
** In DevilMayCry, Vergil, Dante's evil twin and main villain of the third game, has slicked back hair. The game even includes two dramatic cutscenes of him slicking back his hair.
** Brian J. Mason [[spoiler:and later Largo]] in ''BubblegumCrisis''.
** Seifer of FinalFantasyVIII, a RivalTurnedEvil.
**Vlad Masters from ''DannyPhantom''. Tied back to a ponytail, but slicked back nonetheless.
* Mark Trail villains are easily recognized by their hair; sideburns, long hair, mullets, anything but short and trim and they'll get a [[ViolenceReallyIsTheAnswer face full of fist]] sooner or later. [[MSTing Made famous]] by ''[[http://joshreads.com the Comics Curmudgeon]]''
* In Louise Marley's ''The Maquisarde,'' the dictator of the Northern Hemisphere, a Card Carrying Villain, has hair that is described as "plastered to his skull."
* In ''BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' you can usually tell how villainous or sympathetic Spike is meant to be in a given episode by where his hair is on the spectrum between tousled (AntiHero) and slick (CompleteMonster).

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Antihero ]]

* {{Antihero}}es tend to have a '''Soulpatch''' (the tuft right under the lower lip), as do normal heroes in [[{{Dystopia}} dystopian futures]].
** Future Hiro from ''Series/{{Heroes}}'' has one of these. Unlike the energetic past Hiro, though, he fights in a dystopian future, and has stained his hands with enough blood to count as an AntiHero.
** Marcus Fenix from ''GearsOfWar'' also sports a soul patch, and is also a soldier from a SciFi dystopia.
** Tommy Oliver, the most renowned SixthRanger from ''PowerRangers'' history, who through the early seasons went back and forth between good and evil, also sports an anti-heroic soul patch.
** [[Film/{{Alien}} Private William Hudson]] had one.
**Morbius the Living Vampire from ''[[Comicbook/{{Spider-Man}} Spider-Man]]'' (who started out as a TragicHero antagonist, but became a NinetiesAntiHero) is occasionally shown with one, most notably in ''SpiderManTheAnimatedSeries''.
** Jak acquired one in the switchover from the relatively innocent and idealistic ''JakAndDaxter'' to the much grittier JakII, with corresponding change in personality.
** Oddly enough, the male {{Bratz}} dolls depicted as being 'bad boys' have cute, boy band esque painted-on/flocked soul patches, though the female characters they pursue romantically are supposed to be... preteens? Seventh graders? Mind you, though, it's ''possible'' -- uncommon, but possible -- to have seventh graders with full grown beards.
** RealLife: George Strombolopoulous, former Muchmusic VJ and current host of the CBC talk show ''TheHour'', sports one of these. Since The Hour is seen by some as a transparent attempt by the CBC to appear hip and draw in younger viewers, George's anti-hero status is disputed.
*** Much as this troper finds Strombolopoulous's "hipster" persona shallow and too cute by half, he is a damn-fine interviewer, much better than most of his older and more formally groomed colleagues on the other networks. If competence is a prerequisite for anti-herodom, Strombolopoulous meets it.
**Jason Spades in the webcomic ''LastResort'' has one, though he straddles the line between "dystopian hero" and JerkAss.
*** White Noise sports an impressive tuft himself, but it just seems to highlight his BadassGrandpa qualities.
** For added strangeness, one of my church's former priests sported the soul patch....

* A '''five o'clock shadow''' or PermaStubble is a classic way of saying "gritty".
** Chuck Norris' perma-stubble is so tough it can sand wood to a fine finish.
** JerkWithAHeartOfGold Luke Danes of ''GilmoreGirls'' has a stubble that is scientifically proven to always be 5.5 millimeters long.
** IndianaJones apparently shaves when lecturing students but gets instant perma-stubble when adventuring.
** [[Comicbook/{{X-Men}} Wolverine's]] face is pretty consistently fuzzy while rarely ever being clean shaven; one almost wonders if it's one of his [[HairReboot mutant powers.]] Yet he never acquires a real beard beyond those sideburns.
*** Wolverine is also notable for his super-hairstyle, which always forms two neat peaks at the sides, just like his mask. He once disguised himself beyond recognition by shaving his head.
*** As a matter of fact, his hairstyle ''is'' a function of his regenerating ability, according to some sources. Notice how his hair returns to normal after he's ''reduced to a skeleton''.
**** In the Weapon X limited series by Barry Windsor-Smith, the crew at Weapon X remove all of Logan's hair before the procedure. However, just a few minutes in they notice its growing back at a highly accelerated rate.
** The mercenary drow elf Downer, titular {{Antihero}} of the [[http://paizo.com/store/comics/downer comic]] by Kyle Hunter, sports tousled hair and shaggy side-burns despite the fact that D&D elves usually have no facial or body hair. But then, Downer is a tough-as-nails loveable rogue and proven loser who only survives by wit, reflexes, dark gallows-humour and a lot of fast-talking his way out of situations. (Except when he actually dies, which happens a couple of times, and is brought back from the dead by magic, usually to punish him further.)
** The titular character from ''The Adventures of Briscoe County, Jr.'' always had a five o'clock shadow. In fact, it was once included in his description on a wanted poster.
** Gregory House of ''{{House}}'' usually has this. In fact, being shaved in a 5th season episode was an indication that he is a bit OutOfCharacter.
** Dr. Cox of ''{{Scrubs}}'' sometimes falls into this one. Usually head first.
** Wesley Wyndham-Pryce of ''{{Angel}}'' gained a permanent stubble when he TookALevelInBadass and started DatingCatwoman. Lampshaded in that he had a reason to suddenly stop shaving - his throat had been cut, and the wound rather got in the way.
** Max Carrigan of ''AcrossTheUniverse'' isn't precisely in the antihero category (more like the leftovers in the TwoGuysAndAGirl setup) but features something resembling perma-stubble in his earlier scenes and something closer to a scruffy hippie beard in the later.
** The legendary Solid Snake, from ''MetalGearSolid'' is known for his excellent five o'clock shadow.
** Jack Shepherd, from ''{{Lost}}'', not only has five o'clock shadow, it DOESN'T GROW FOR [[OneHundredAndEight 108 DAYS]]. After he leaves the island, though, he is shown with a BeardOfSorrow after three years. Think of all the money he saves on razors.
***They did actually show him shaving with scavenged razors at least once while on the Island. Most of the men of the show had surprisingly permanent shadows for a long time, although some did advance into full on beards.
** Averted with Henry of ''SilentHill4'', whose perma stubble just makes him look sloppy, and Walter's unshaven mug adds to the AxCrazy.
** Dean Winchester and Castiel have this on ''{{Supernatural}}''.

* The '''pompadour''', or reagent, is a hairstyle long associated with greasers in America, and with {{delinquents}} in Japan.
** Yusuke and Kuwabara in ''YuYuHakusho''
** Parodied in the ''ExcelSaga'' episode "Butt Out, Youth!", where all the delinquents have ridiculous pompadours. The toughest of them all, Binbou, has a pompadour that extends about ''fifteen feet''.
** Ditto Amamiya Ryu aka Bokuto no Ryu from ''ShamanKing'', who not only has a six-foot pompadour, but also a six-foot-long pompadour-shaped ''motorcycle helmet''. He's also [[UnstoppableRage VERY pissed off]] when one of his rivals cuts his pompadour in half.
** Hanamichi Sakuragi from ''SlamDunk'' has one of these in the first part of the series. [[spoiler: He [[ImportantHaircut shaves it later]] as self-punishment for the loss against Kainan.]]
** In at least one case, ''{{Film/Spider-Man}} 3'', the eponymous hero fixes his hair to match the evilness imparted by his badass new black suit. Taken from a thread discussing the movie: ''"Evil hair. Because that's what people do when they give in to the forces of evil and hatred. They mess up their hair."''
** There is, in fact, one of ''{{The Simpsons}}'' Halloween specials wherein Snake, the notorious white trash criminal, gives his hair to be donated after he has been executed. It is given to Homer, and the Evil Hair makes him kill Apu, Moe, threaten Bart, and otherwise epitomize Bad.
** [[KatamariDamacy The King of All Cosmos]] had a pompadour as a teenager, as do most of the teenage boys you roll up in the game.
** Crimson Viper from ''StreetFighter IV'' boasts a pompadour. Not surprisingly, she possesses a very duplicitous nature, working as a ruthless DoubleAgent for both S.I.N. and the CIA.
** Inverted by Franky from ''OnePiece''. It also functions as {{Expressive Hair}}.
** Winston Payne, of all people, has a pompadour in the flashback chapter of AceAttorney (but loses it in spectacular fashion).
** Himekawa Zaibatsu of {{Beelzebub}} has an impressive example although some believe it has to be a wig. He denies this.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Varies ]]

* PowerHair is the usual symbol of a female politician.
* '''Crew Cuts''' are associated with male YanksWithTanks and other militaries.
* '''The Mullet'''. [[NoJustNo No.]] [[GogglesDoNothing Just]] [[NoJustNo No.]]
** Unless you're {{MacGyver}}.
** Or [[MetalGear Solid Snake]].
** Or [[EscapeFromNewYork Snake Plissken]].
** Or CaptainPlanet.
** Or [[{{Ghost}} Patrick Swayze]]
** Or [[XMenEvolution Lance "Avalanche" Alvers]]
** Or you sell popsicles in Chile. The Chilean name for the mullet is [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chocolito_Panda "Choco Panda"]], because of one of the most popular popsicles there. As you can see,
** Plus, stating something like that sounds like something a [[TheLibby Libby]] would say...
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'''Curly hair''', particularly if black/dark brown, often suggests evil and/or {{Ax Crazy}} tendencies in adults. However, it can also convey extreme innocence, particularly if seen on [[ChildrenAreInnocent children]] or {{hobbits}} .

For the innocent side:
* {{Shirley Temple}}
* According to Tolkien's Appendices to ''{{Lord of the Rings}}'', almost all {{hobbits}} have curly hair.
* Nyssa in ''DoctorWho''.
** OK, the [[DoctorWho Fourth Doctor]] doesn't quite count as innocent, but definitely on the side of the good guys.
* Athos, from the [[TheThreeMusketeers Musketeer trilogy]]. He's about as LawfulGood as you can get.
* Hermione Granger of the ''HarryPotter'' [[TheVerse book universe]], who is [[InsufferableGenius n]][[{{Tsundere}} o]][[BadassBookworm t]] innocent, but definitely ''is'' LawfulGood. Straight-haired Emma Watson, however, (whose hair has been getting smoother year by year!) plays her in the film franchise.
* Blake and Gan from BlakesSeven both have curly hair and are both (initially) the most innocent characters - Gan is literally inacapable of killing anyone in a LifeIsCheap universe and Blake remains a comparatively innocent idealist in a crew comprised of convicted criminals - he is the only one innocent of the charges against him.
* Chuck Bartowski from the NBC series {{Chuck}} sports curly hair, and either an ear to ear smile, or a sad kicked puppy face.

On the evil side:
* Bellatrix Lestrange, as played by Helena Bonham Carter in the ''HarryPotter'' films.
** Pretty much ''every'' character ever played by Helena Bonham Carter in a {{Tim Burton}} film, with the exception of Emily (whom she voiced) in ''The Corpse Bride''.
* Male example: Sweeney Todd in ''SweeneyTodd''
* Lynda Day of ''PressGang''.
* Magenta, ''TheRockyHorrorPictureShow'', is a spectacular example.
**Likewise, [[TimCurry Dr. Frank N Furter]] himself has curly hair. In one scene, we even see his hair in curlers.
* Drusilla, from ''{{Buffy}}''
** Ironically, Faith had curly or wavy dark hair by default, yet when she had her FaceHeelTurn and she became a little AxCrazy in the third season her hair was worn straight.
* The vampires Lestat and Claudia of ''InterviewWithTheVampire'' both have long blond/e curly hair.
** In the film, becoming a vampire actually causes Claudia's hair to curl itself.
* This troper believes that Fran Drescher of ''TheNanny'' belongs firmly in this category.
* Mad Meg, and a number of other Insane Heroines in the {{Gilbert and Sullivan}} tradition, are usually portrayed with spectacularly frizzy curly hair.
* Sabine from ''{{The Order of the Stick}}'' is one of the very few curly-haired characters in the comic, although it's her red leather outfit that actually tips off the {{genre savvy}} Haley to the fact that she's evil...
* Darla Dimple from ''CatsDontDance'', who's a [[NoCelebritiesWereHarmed thinly-veiled]] evil version of Shirley Temple. She has an...interesting (if painful-looking) [[http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=PbWblYZC3U8 way of curling it]], too.
* [[ThePrisonerOfZenda Rupert of Hentzau]].
* Rue in ''PrincessTutu'' has wild, curly hair, which makes sense as she's the DarkMagicalGirl. [[spoiler:However, she later goes through a HeelFaceTurn and keeps the curls.]]
* Johnathan Teatime from ''Discworld/{{Hogfather}}'' has boyish blond curls... and is also [[CareerKillers an assassin]] [[PsychoForHire so depraved]] [[EvenEvilHasStandards he scares the other assassins]].
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