What Makes For An Entertaining Complete Monster?

As in one that is meant to horrify the audience with her actions yet is still too entertaining to not watch. All the while keeping her unsympathetic. Would it be too much to have her force an entire planet into a massive world war just so she can spare the winner but leave them to die off because there aren't enough survivors to effectively repopulate the planet? Or would having her hold a televised tea party in the midst the final battle with the factions' leaders just so the world can watch their troops die be enough? Should I provide her a backstory or just have her seemingly come into existence out of nowhere?

You want an example of a funny Complete Monster? One word.

Iruel.

I'm not thinking of funny, just fascinating to watch.

I think the idea of an "entertaining Complete Monster" is rather missing the point of what a Complete Monster is supposed to be. They're not supposed to be "love-to-hate" villains, they're supposed to be villains that you just hate (though not in The Scrappy sense). While not totally impossible, the idea of things like the "Favorite Complete Monster" thread and this really misunderstands the trope.

So, in other words, you're looking for a character that's Evilly Affable.

You can't go to the extent of Complete Monster with a character who's Evilly Affable and still make them affable.

I wouldn't call this villainess polite. She's creepy, intelligent, and overpowered. The only reason she holds a tea party during the battle was as a sign of power that she could do as she pleased.

edited 16th Sep '11 1:28:14 PM by SandJosieph

I... did not realize that they changed the definition.

Well, I think what you mean is a character who devoid of redeeming qualities, but still entertaining to watch. But when doing that, you can't make them veer too much into Complete Monster, because Complete Monsters are not fun to watch.

The best Complete Monsters are those that are pretty much well-aware of it and Genre Savvy.

Making them funny is a matter of making them witty. A funny Complete Monster who's got a knack for inappropriate (but hilarious) Gallows Humor in gruesome situations he has himself created is a sure bet. If you avoid cheap jokes and stick to actual cynical wit, it's effective.

Giving the Complete Monster a realistic (not necessarily good) motivation helps make them believable. A character can have motivations and still be a Complete Monster: Wanton, gratuitous or pointless cruelty , disregard for the well-being of others, a penchant for remorselessly harming others for selfish motives, y'know the drill.

Would a Matchmaker work as an entertaining Complete Monster?

You know, to be a Complete Monster, I guess his matchmaking would involve forcibly getting together the people he shipped.

Well, there's The Joker (you know which version I'm referring to), Johan Liebert, and Kimblee that you might take some notes from.

I figure that the best way to make an CM entertaining is to add some dark humor in any reprehensible things s/he does. That, or make them very badass.

Again, Iruel. One of his notable moments involves breaking out into song and dance (with a stage and backup dancers no less) right before trying to strangle Asuka to death. This all takes place in a Mind Rape scenario while in the outside world Iruel is preparing to launch a subterranean nuclear attack underneath a major population center as retribution for a week of humiliation while he was stuck in Sleep-Mode Size.

Oh yah, and he gave us this brilliant line:

"I should've figured you Lilim had found a way to weaponize batshit at some point. So what, your mind's so fractured you can go full-bore party time on my ass? Alright, I can work with that."

edited 16th Sep '11 4:46:41 PM by KSPAM

Oh God yes.

I'm imagining a Super-Yandere who could never find true love herself, so makes living vicariously through her pairings her entire reason for existing, is willing to coldly execute anyone she ships who decides to get with someone else instead, and murders hypotenuses left and right.*

I think it would be much better in a Comedic Sociopathy setting than a realistic one, though.

A truly reprehensible and horrifying villain can be incredibly amusing if you make their modus operandi unusual enough or their demeanour absurd enough. Of course, this ultimately makes what they do far more repulsive, but that's kind of an added bonus.

(This is coming from someone who threw a psychopathic barber-surgeon with an opera addiction into his work for the sake of humour, mind you...)

edited 17th Sep '11 12:36:49 PM by JHM

I saw a really good article that tells you how to do a Complete Monster well: http://www.biggsbooks.net/lessons-villain.html

Obviously, the Complete Monster would be the Pure Evil Villain.

edited 17th Sep '11 12:43:30 PM by tropetown

"Entertaining" does not necessarily mean "funny". Witty, perhaps. Classy or eccentric, maybe.

Beyond that, it depends on what you consider "entertaining". Some people like to be grossed out in one way or another.

Good writing.

Slade from Teen Titans.

Col. Hans ‘The Jew Hunter’ Landa: a villian who was fun to watch, and yet he didn't get his nickname for nothing.

Bill AKA Snakecharmer: he had is pregant girlfriend murdered on her wedding day.

Gogo Yubari: Ax-Crazy teen assassin, Giggling Villain