Hello! This sandbox is for characters I plan to propose as being Magnificent Bastard.
For this proposal, I am talking about the sidekick of Kim Possible. Now before you instantly scroll down to instantly comment "No on Ron because he isn't a villain", hear me out on this first.
What's the Work?
Kim Possible is an animated series from Disney focusing on a teenage girl who becomes a hero.
Who is Ron? What Does He Do?
In most normal cases, Ron Stoppable is the bumbling sidekick of Kim Possible. He is a nice guy, but also very clumsy and prone to making mistakes (he's the one who convinced Senor Senior Sr. to become a villain). However, there are a few episodes where he actually ends up being a villain, and we are focusing on two episodes in particular. Those episodes being "Bad Boy" and "Stop Team Go".
After fighting Drakken at a villains convention to keep the evil scientist from becoming more evil with a device call the attitudinator, Ron and Drakken end up having their moralities switched by accident. In a surprising turn of events, the normally bumbling sidekick becomes a supervillain mastermind.
Is He Magnificent?
Ron is regularly a complete idiot, yet becoming evil really has him become so competent that it impresses Shego of all people to the point that she ditches Drakken for him when she witnesses his destruction.
This is further demonstrated in "Stop Team Go" where he knows how turning Kim evil is actually a smart move (not gonna lie, I actually wouldn't have minded an episode where Kim got turned evil by the attitudinator).
Is He a Bastard?
Ron is regularly a friendly and chill guy, yet becoming evil really has him become so menacing that it frightens Shego of all people to the point that she regrets ditching Drakken for him when she finds herself threatened by him. (See what I did there?)
This is further demonstrated in "Stop Team Go" where Rufus, Kim, and Shego all give an Oh, Crap! reaction the moment Ron turns evil again.
What's the Work?'
Samurai 7 is a steampunk anime adaptation of Seven Samurai. When a group of farmers are threatened by a group of bandits known as the Nobuseri, they decide to hire some samurai for protection.
Who is Kyuzo? What Does He Do?
Kyuzo is Ayamaro's bodyguard alongside a fellow samurai by the name of Hyogo. When a group of farmers arrive in the city looking for samurai with one supposedly killing a messenger resulting in all Samurai becoming wanted criminals, Kyuzo and Hyogo are sent to deal with them.
Kyuzo arrives on the scene and challenges Kanbei, the leader for the samurai to a duel. The fight proves intense with Kanbei even expressing admiration to Kyuzo's prowess. In the end, Kanbei admits defeat, but he also states that he isn't allowed to die until he has fulfilled his duty to the farmers, promising Kyuzo a rematch in the future.
Rather than kill Kanbei right there, Kyuzo takes off to continue working for Ayamaro's group for the time being. When Hyogo starts using guns though, Kyuzo decides enough is enough and joins the Samurai, telling Hyogo he "wanted to live" as he reason for switching sides. With this, Kyuzo becomes the sixth samurai of the party.
From there, Kyuzo would frequently scout ahead for any pending danger and he even protects Kirara in spite of how much she distrusts him for his past actions against the group. Even when his actions result in his right arm getting fractured, his response is that he can still fight capably with his left arm.
Eventually, when Ukyo arrives at the village the remaining Samurai (as Gorobei had already died beforehand) engage in battle, splitting into two groups with group Kyuzo's in facing Tessai. The fight proves intense, but they manage to emerge victorious. However, one mook was still alive and made an attempt on Kanbei, prompting Katsushiro to grab a gun to shoot the enemy down, accidentally killing Kyuzo in the process.
In his last moments, Kyuzo promises Kanbei that they will have their fight in the next life.
Is He Magnificent?
Kanbei certainly thinks so. From their very first fight, Kanbei couldn't help but admire Kyuzo's skills and power to the point that even though Kyuzo was with the enemy, he wanted him on their side.
Likewise, Kyuzo developed respect for Kanbei and equally saw him as a Worthy Opponent to the point that he eventually decided to join him in order to get his desired fight to the death with him. He even takes his role as one of the seven very seriously as he takes on solo missions to ensure the team is safe.
He also comes off as a lot more graceful in his swordsmanship than the other samurai, taking down Nobuseri like they are nothing.
Sure, he gets killed rather unceremoniously by Katsushiro, but to be fair, that was moment that caught everybody off guard as Katsushiro was gunning down somebody who was trying to kill Kanbei. Not even Kyuzo or Kanbei could have anticipated that. Kyuzo just happened to be behind the guy at the worst possible time. He doesn't even show any contempt against Katsushiro for this in his last moments, instead promising Kanbei that they would have their fight in the afterlife.
Is He A Bastard?
I mean he did initially start out working for Ukyo's side and tried to kill Kanbei. Not just that, but his reason for joining the samurai wasn't out of a change of heart or any sense of actual selflessness. He switched sides, because he wanted to be the one to defeat Kanbei in a fight to the death.
Alright. So When I saw this character, I couldn't help but consider how clever he was. He also has some charm to him... but he is still very much a bad guy.
What's the Work?
Helluva Boss is an animated web series by Vivsiepop about a group of assassins from Hell.
Who is Andrealphus? What does he do?
Is He Magnificent?
When one pairs him with his sister Stella (Not like that), it is clear he is the brains of the duo as he rightfully points out how killing Stolas right away would end with Stella getting nothing. He even manages to convince his sister not to kill him and instead wait it out. He does this all while remaining calm and collected too.
Is He a Bastard?
Now while he does talk Stella out of killing Stolas in that moment, that doesn't mean he isn't completely against killing Stolas. He's just telling her to wait for the opportune moment. That's not even to get into detail of his incestuous feeling with Stella (ew). That being said, never is the talk of killing Octavia (who would be the one to inherit Stolas's belongings on death) ever brought up, so this indicates there are lines even he wouldn't cross. With this, I'd say he isn't too much of a bastard.
Game mods! Love them! Here's the scoop on one.
What's the Work?
Lily In Grave is a mod of Friday Night Funkin' which involves a zombie pop star.
Who is Mommy Mearest? What Does She Do?
Mommy Mearest is the wife of Daddy Dearest and mother of Girlfriend. She's also the one who invited Lily Engrave to a party hosted by her husband. Neither Lily nor Daddy Dearest knew about this, and neither did Lily's agent given how she spoke negative of Mommy Mearest just as much as Daddy Dearest.
Basically, Mommy Mearest and Daddy Dearest have a small role in the mod with Mommy Mearest attending the party with her husband. Then Lily Engrave arrives with interest to speak to Daddy Dearest. The moment she states her stage name and her real name, Daddy Dearest lets her through to hear her out. When Lily asks to sing with him just once, he immediately assumes her to be another egotistical singer wanting to take advantage of him while Lily's agent tries to drag her away.
Mommy Mearest then speaks up and point out how harmless Lily looks, convincing Daddy Dearest to do one song with her. After the song, Daddy Dearest tells them to leave due to them not being dressed appropriately. He also deduces that Mommy Mearest was the one who invited them as he didn't recall inviting them at all. Mommy Mearest admits to it as she had noticed Lily's last name of Twilight and knew that she had to get the girl to meet Daddy Dearest.
She effectively points out how Lily's mother was one of the few musicians that Daddy Dearest had respect for.
Is She Magnificent?
As the one who invited Lily, she is essentially the one responsible for the young idol and Daddy Dearest meeting, and it's made clear that it was her intention.
Is She a Bitch?
There are established rumors that Lily's manager details, and she does inform Daddy Dearest of Boyfriend which gets him to order a hit on him. So it is clear she is bad like in canon. That said, the rumors are still very much rumors and while she does tip off that their daughter is dating somebody to motivate her husband, we don't see the extent of things said about them to truly confirm how serious they were, so she isn't too horrible.
Here I have a one-shot character who proved herself so clever that I wished she appeared more.
What's the Work?The Emperor's New School is a Disney animated series that serves as a continuation of The Emperor's New Groove with Kuzco having to attend high school in order to maintain his rulership.
Who is Miss Ni? What does she do?
In the episode, "Evil and Eviler", Yzma decides to hire a mercenary that specializes in exterminating emperors to get rid of Kuzco. As such she hires Miss Ni (namely because all the other candidates sucked). Miss Ni makes it clear that she is a professional and analyzes every possible outcome. She also states her fees to be quite high, which Yzma promises to pay her in full upon becoming empress before preparing to give ideas. Ni brushes off Yzma's ideas as she rightfully points out that she wouldn't have been hired if they were any good.
She also declares her need to properly plan as she boots Yzma from her own office. Later, Yzma has Ni serve as the vice principal of the school to allow her to work on campus without suspicion. Kuzco starts mocking her surname. Ni keeps her cool while pointing out how she will keep an eye on Kuzco since he makes his status as a troublemaker clear.
Afterward, Kuzco prepares to pull pranks on Ni. While he succeeds, this act is actually a part of Ni's plan as she uses it as an excuse to send Kuzco to solitary detention where she would have him dealt with permanently. She then boots Yzma from the office again, frustrating the series regular.
Once Kuzco walks into the trap with Malina attempting to stop him upon finding out it was a trap, the two are locked in a room with some crocodiles. They are ultimately saved by Yzma and Kronk.
After that bit, Yzma fires Miss Ni. However, Ni reveals she anticipated this outcome as she rightfully points out that Yzma had a change of heart and rescued Kuzco. Yzma is shocked that Ni knows this, which Ni states that in her business, she knows that everybody (even somebody like Yzma) has some good in them. After which, she gives Yzma the bill for her services, and the bill is LONG! Even the evil plumber from the rejected candidates (who charged Yzma for services he didn't even provide) states the bill to be so big that it is evil.
Is She Magnificent?
She effectively pulls off a Xanatos Gambit on Yzma. That's enough to make it clear that she didn't care if her plan to kill Kuzco was successful or not. What mattered to her was what Yzma would owe her in the end, and she made sure to charge accordingly. I'd say that's enough to prove how magnificent she is.
Is She a Bitch?
She's a mercenary hired by Yzma to kill Kuzco, and she puts together a plan that makes it where she actually comes closer to killing Kuzco than Yzma ever did.
What's the Work?
Who is Kara? What Did She Do?
Is She Magnificent?
She might not be the most vocal individual proposed here, but she definitely has sass. When she notices how many are after Nobert, she chooses to wait until they wear eachother down before jumping in.
Is She a Bitch?
Fontaine is now out in Genshin and the cast is amazing so far. Wouldn't you know it? The first playable five star from Fontaine stood out to me.
What's the Work?
Genshin Impact is a game by Hoyoverse about a traveler on a journey to save their sibling. (It feels like I use this description a lot)
Who is Lyney? What does he do?
Fontaine is the land of the Hydro Archon. There, law is taken somewhat seriously... and by that, I mean they have their trials presented on stage with an audience like some sort of entertainment... so yeah. That doesn't sound very serious.
Entertainment is a big deal in Fontaine, and one of the most popular forms of entertainment comes for Fontaine's local magician, Lyney (who is often accompanied by her sister Lynette who serves as his assistant). However, as popular as they are, they didn't exactly have the easiest of lives.
When they were kids, Lyney and Lynette were orphans on the streets having to steal to survive. They eventually learned magic from a man named Cesar, who showed concern for them in the ten days he knew them for. Lyney and Lynette looked up to him... but Cesar ended up getting killed in an accident when a dangerous magic trick goes wrong and exposed as a thief known as the Phantom Weasel. However, they were soon separated by a greedy noble who only kept Lyney for his talent in magic while giving Lynette away to Human Traffickers. Naturally, Lyney did not tolerate this and went to save his sister.
This act would result in the two of them becoming part of the House of the Hearth, which is a division of the Fatui. From there, the two of them were given various tasks to carry out, eventually leading to Lynette gaining a vision. However, Lyney was not too happy about gaining this power as it meant he and Lynette had to split up on separate missions. He even tried to get a delusion in order to narrow the gap in their powers, but was rejected while being told he needed to discover himself. Eventually, A botched mission puts Lynette in danger, prompting Lyney to spring to her protection, resulting in him getting a vision of his own.
Sometime later, Lyney and Lynette would meet the Traveler and Paimon the moment the duo arrive in Fontaine. He greets them personally, shaking the Traveller's hand and giving Paimon a pat on the back. However, this was a trick as the moment the Hydro Archon Furina presents herself, she declares the Traveler and Paimon criminals for releasing a flying object on the first days of the month (said flying object being Paimon). However, Lyney has them covered by revealing the trick he pulled on them, having attached a string to them to make Paimon look like a ballon and thus not a flying object, getting them off the hook.
After that, he begins to give them a tour of Fontaine, only having a brief pause when they notice a thief. While they recover the good said thief dropped, the thief got away.
Eventually, Lyney invites the Traveler to see one of his shows. There he performs where he and a volunteer from the audience enter two different boxes on seperate sides of the room. The intent is that they would switch places upon entering, even making it appear as if Lyney slips up by exiting his box too early so as to further give the guise of the illusion (in actuallity, the Lyney popping out in this moment was actually Lynette). However, the trick goes wrong as the tank from an earlier trick comes crashing down, killing one one of the stage assistants, name Cowell. The volunteer ends up being missing. With the missing volunteer being female, Lyney is accused of being the culprit in a case regarding similar disappearances along with killing Cowell.
Lyney chooses to have the Traveler defend him... but it turns out that Furina is well aware of his background and reveals his Fatui connections, forcing Lyney to come clean to the now skepticle Traveler. While he does live to the code that a good magician never reveals their secrets, he does understand that exceptions have to be made and allows the Traveler and the court to investigate to clear his name. Eventually, it is revealed that the missing volunteer Halsey is actually the thief from earlier, her real name being Liliane.
Not only that, but it turns out that Cowell was and unintented kill as he had tried to dissolve Liliane using primordial water (failing due to Liliane not actually being a Fontaine native) and was forced into the box that led to his death.
While Lyney is grateful for the Traveler clearing him, he also shows to understand that the Traveler doesn't trust him and hopes the two of them can become friends again.
Later, word gets out that the Phantom Weasel is active again on account of a flyer saying they would strike during one of Lyney's shows. When the Traveler confronts Lyney about it, Lyney claims the Phantom Weasel to be challenging him, and the two of them work together to find who the Phantom Weasel is. Lyney explains how Cesar was accused in the past and how he hopes to clear his name.
Eventually, the truth comes out when they find proof that Cesar's former apprentice Lorenzo is the Phantom Weasel, and they have him arrested... except that was also not the case. Turns out, Cesar's fiance is actually the Weasel and Lyney was the one who wrote the note to lure her out of hiding. He even knows that she actually did love Lorenzo and puts her in a position to choose between keeping everything she gained while being without Lorenzo or giving it all up and turning herself in to be with Lorenzo. In the end, Jemma confessed to her crimes, and thus, Lyney manages to successfully avenge Cesar with the Traveler's help.
Is He Magnificent?
He is a master magician who is able to pinpoint skilled thieves as he managed to effortlessly deduce Liliane and Jemma as the culprits behind thefts while also figuring out that Lorenzo was Jemma's accomplice covering for her.
He also managed to hide the fact that he was fatui rather well. It isn't his fault that thr court exposed that detail. Even then, he makes it clear the reason he hid such a detail, and his reason proves valid as the Traveler immediately stops trusting him, and just to remind you, the Traveler immediately didn't trust Tartaglia for being Fatui, and Tartaglia was actually open about it.
Is He a Bastard?
At first he comes off as a nice guy who doesn't have anything to call him a bastard. However, keep in mind that he and his sister Lynette are a part of the Fatui which is a global criminal organization, and it is established that he and Lynette have partaken in some Fatui related crimes. Granted though, he doesn't do anything horrible onscreen.
If that isn't enough to consider him Baddie though, there is the whole ordeal with his story quest. He plays off the Phantom Weasel note as somebody challenging him. However, it is revealed that he was the one who planted that note in order to lure the real Phantom Weasel out of hiding, which is entrapment (which itself is a crime). Again though, he did this to catch an actually bad person, so he still isn't too much of a bastard.
Verdict
[tup] to this brilliant magician.
Time to look back at an underrated work.
What's the Work?
Counterspell is a sprite animated series by Smashbits that formerly aired on Machinima. The series has since been uploaded by Smashbits on their own channel. It follows two RPG dungeon bosses who leave their designated area due to not wanting to die to the heroes.
Who is Lady Shiv? What Does She Do?'
Two dungeon bosses had broken the status quo. Rather than fight and die to the heroes, they decided to run away. Eventually arriving in a village, they get into trouble that they are saved from due to triggering a world boss that devours all of the villagers.
However, the world boss wasn't the only one to show up. A thief had arrived as well. She introduces herself as Lady Shiv, and she has already figured out that the disaster that befell the village was on the two dungeon bosses. Rather than berate them for upsetting the balance (though she does point it out to them), she offers to act as a bodyguard for them, telling them that she is maxed out in the assassin skill tree. While the Black Mage is bothered, Bruiser becomes interested and hires her.
This proves to be a trick though as the moment the two fall asleep, Lady Shiv steals everything they had taken from the village for herself while leaving a note telling them that she was actually had her skill points in thievery with a couple points in "lying bitch".
Although she manages to get away briefly, she notices the two caught up with her when they start killing people hunting her down. Realizing just how murderous they can be when pissed off, she decides it best to make them an offer in exchange for them to stop trying to punch her head off, even offering them a Mega Phoenix Down. However, Bruiser was still in too much of an adrenaline rush that he punches her all the same, causing her to drop the item and unintentionally use it on the duo. She of course lets them know that their stunt basically means they wasted an item that could have saved them as it revives their whole party (unaware that the duo had a dead Red Mage back at the dungeon who was revived as a wraith because of it).
In spite of this brief falling out, Lady Shiv decides it best to continue travelling with them. After all, even if she can't steal their stuff, with how destructive they are, she can take advantage to gain loot elsewhere. She also decides to make good on being an ally for them as she warns them of the dangers ahead. She lets them know of the Titan Triplets (who would have been dangerous if the bosses didn't trigger them so early), and even follows them to Dagara's castle.
With the trio now having nowhere left to run, Black Mage begins to lose hope of survival. Lady Shiv wasn't having it though as she rightfully points out that the Mage needs to get ready for battle as they have nowhere left to run. She even tells them how Morpho can help them in the fight as could Dagara, letting them know that with those two, they effectively have a full party now and the key to victory is to divide and conquer.
With Black Mage and Bruiser motivated, they await the arrival of the heroes. Morpho disposes of the Monk while Bruiser delivers a No-Holds-Barred Beatdown on the Paladin. The Ranger tells White Mage to work on reviving their teammates, but she too is taken out by Lady Shiv who stabs her, leaving the Ranger to be killed by Black Mage and Bruiser.
Is She Magnificent?
I mean she does manage to con the show's protagonists out of the loot they stole and she also proves to be a good sport when they catch her by offering them a mega phoenix down. Even afterward, she opts to stay with them to take advantage of their carnage to loot the towns they destroy. She's also practically the one who motivates Black Mage and Bruiser to finally fight the heroes after spending the entire series running from them.
She also shows to know the terrain well as she lets the duo know how dangerous the Titan Triplets are (though because of their actions, the Triplets end up fighting eachother instead due to Atma being ill prepared for an early arrival). She is very much a strategist as she details how the duo can beat the heroes by pointing out that the three of them and Morpho make a full party (with Dagara being potential help as well).
Is She A Bitch?'
Lady Shiv is a thief who tricked Black Mage and Bruiser into letting her join them so that she could steal the stuff they stole. While it was a very magnificent move, is was also very much a bitch move. While there isn't anything that states she had a part in causing the destruction that Black Mage and Bruiser do, it is made clear that she is taking advantage of it. She even states near the end that she stuck with them for the loot, showing how greedy she is. That being said, she does at least have some bit of honor as she remains calm and collected even when the duo are threatening to kill her for tricking them. There is also nothing indicating she knew that killing the heroes would result in Dagara awakening Dredge and casting the world into darkness, so that can't be held against her. So she is very much a bitch, but not too much of one.
Oh, and she outright states she has a couple points in "Lying Bitch" which check given how she tricked the bosses, so yeah. She outright admits to being a bitch.
