ETERNAL
Personally my favourite kinds of villains are the type that are evil, but at least have some good qualities to them.
Knight Templar type characters are right up my alley as well as Mercenary In It For The Money types and people who just don't care.
"You'd never do something as irrational as dying."
Oh that's simple David Xanatos. No I don't mean the charming,clever villain who loses gracefully. I mean a 100% clone of David from his hair to his most subtle of mannerisms.
Yes.
edited 11th Jun '12 3:53:15 PM by zam
Uniocular
I prefer villains to be either completely batshit, or really good at explaining their views.
"It's so hard to be humble, knowing how great I am."
I am interested in monstrously evil villains, who are so because they have gone wrong somewhere in their emotional development.
edited 13th Jun '12 4:19:27 PM by NathanielTheSeeker
Oh My
I rather like the looming, never dealt with villain/evil. Though this can be done very badly.
My favorite villain is Kefka. For two reasons. One, he's an asshole who did what he did because he is a selfish asshole and he wanted to it. He didn't have mother issues, he wasn't out for revenge, and he didn't see humanity as something that needed to be extinguished to save existence. He was just a douche with a god complex. Two, he won. Yes the heroes beat him in the end but not before Kefka gets everything he wanted. He becomes God, he beats the piss out of our heroes and scatters them through the world, he takes over the world and burns it to the ground out of sheer boredom and need for amusement. And he gets to reign supreme for some time. He doesn't almost succeed or get stopped while he is making plans. He does succeed and he gets away with for a while. He's only beaten after he's wrecked the fuck out of the world and ruled over it as a tyrant god.
edited 13th Jun '12 4:11:49 PM by Aondeug
If someone wants to accuse us of eating coconut shells, then that's their business. We know what we're doing. - Achaan Chah
![[up]](https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/smiles/arrow_up.png "[up]"){kind=icon}
Thank you for evoking feelings of nostalgia. Recall when I played FF 6. I was so young.
I could play it again.
Also, villains, who are evil not because of a typical Freudian Excuse, but because of some seemingly trivial detail growing hideously disproportionate in their psyches, into grotesque abysses marking their inner landscape.
Adveho in mihi Lucifer
I like villain that are evil, but selfless. The Knight Templar filled with Moral Sociopathy is therefore my favourite.
Bonus if Light Is Not Good. I hate Dark Is Evil; so cliché.
A single phrase renders Christianity a delusional cult
Shut up!
Magnificent Bastards who aren't above teaming up with their enemies to achieve their goals, always have a back-up plan and always get away. Examples include Todd the Wraith, Sterling (the guy NEVER loses), Ba'al, Scorpius and Gul Dukat.
I also like villains that are just plain fun to watch. Like Chuck's Daniel Shaw, or Loki, or Lex Luthor.
edited 13th Jun '12 5:13:04 PM by resetlocksley
Fear is a superpower.
I kinda have a taste for villains who can show they're not new to the whole villain game. Any villain worth his salt probably has more heroes on his case than just the protagonist.
Villains, who have swagger, success to back it up and don't turn stupid at the right moment.
'80s TV Action Hero
Dukat is my favourite villain. I think I like him even more than Vader.
'All he needs is for somebody to throw handgrenades at him for the rest of his life...'
If we're going strictly "villain" here, Complete Monsters who you know feel no remorse for what they're doing and are in fact enjoying every minute of it. They could have an army with them, but if they're so powerful, smart, and/or charismatic and manipulative that they're a significant threat by themselves gives them a truly "holy crap, we're doomed" factor that really makes a villain for me.
Another one I like is having the villain be intangible, a concept. Maybe even a part of the hero. Maybe the hero hears voices in his head that tell him to do terrible things and he tries to argue with them. That could actually be a really effective way to make people distrustful of the hero, no one will follow behind a guy who keeps yelling at the air, or fighting with himself. If there's already an established, tangible villain, nobody's going to confide in the guy who has his own personal demons that he hasn't defeated yet. Unless they're really desperate or he's the "chosen one". And while I'm on that, there needs to be more "chosen ones" who aren't shining paradigms of purity or who have serious problems which may or may not exist purely from being the chosen savior of the world.
...What was I talking about, again?
edited 19th Jun '12 2:02:10 PM by AwesomeZombie22
Usually here.
Large Hams, entertaining Complete Monsters (for example, Zolf J. Kimblee), non-invincible Magnificent Bastards, villains who sing, and villains who are defeated by someone other than the main character.
I've gradually come to learn I have a soft spot for Laughably Evil (if they're not also a Harmless Villain), Wicked Cultured and Affably Evil.
hero of another story
Tragic villains are my fave. I also often like smug snakes and magnificent bastards, if things don't get too over the top. Ashur in Spartacus was awesome in season 1, in season 2 he mutated to survive on so much luck and second-third-fiftyfouth chances, it wasn't funny anymore.
I really like the kind of villains that are Morbidly Fascinating. The kind that are horribly, viciously evil, but they're just so brilliant, terrifying, charismatic, hilarious or just plain Bad Ass that you can't look away. I also like villains who aren't petty.
Well said,though I do like Evil Is Petty if it's Played for Laughs or the otherwise sympathetic Anti-Villain is supposed to be materialistic.
Both Noble Demon types, and (especially when paired for contrast) mercenaries or assassin who're in it just for the money. So, idealistic villain / pragmatic villain.
Likes many underrated webcomics
Must Keep The Web Intact
Though seriously, I like diversity in my villains. I don't expect all of them to be the same, and I can deal with an idiotic villain.
For instance, Simon Gruber,Jean-Baptiste Emmanuel Zorg and Horus are my favorite villains.
The Great Northern Threadkill.
If anyone's interested, my Top Five Villains are:
- 5 'The Meta' from Red vs Blue
- 4 'Abridged!Freeza' from Dragon Ball Abridged
- 3 [[The Order of the Stick/The Empire Of Blood 'General Tarquin']] from The Order of the Stick
- 2 'Sovereign' from Mass Effect 1 & 'The D-Reaper' from Digimon Tamers
- 1 'The Joker' from The Dark Knight & [[Characters/Sherlock 'Jim Moriarty']] from Sherlock
KVLFON
Hamtastic, Obviously Evil over-the-top types. But my favourite video game (minor) villain is Firkraag from Baldur's Gate II, not so hammy, but all that a dragon should stand for.
"Atheism is the religion whose followers are easiest to troll"
I don't have all time favorites,but here are some that I do like
Outright Villains
- The Joker (like I said except for The Silver Age where he has to be Harmless or Affably Evil,almost anything goes. But it's more points if they take an It Amused Me / Faux Affably Evil approach and not trying to deliver Hannibal Lecture after Hannibal Lecture. Yup the Jack Nicholson Joker just can't be beat since that version has all those qualities)
- Alex
- Caulder from Advance Wars
- Elder Toguro from Yu Yu Hakusho
- Impmon from Digimon Tamers
- Gollum from The Lord Of The Rings
- Tarrlok
edited 17th Jul '12 4:29:30 PM by terlwyth
Another very epic villain I forgot to mention, is 'Lucemon' from the Digimon Tamers Fan Fic Gardens of Babylon. Who is quite possibly the KING of the Not So Harmless Villains as shown by this hilarious/awesome scene: (dont worry, there aren't any spoilers).
Once again, it was a sight he was already plenty used to. It was only amazing when he was eight years old, innocent and impressionable.
And just as usual, Lucemon elegantly crossed his right leg over the left as he regally claimed his throne once more, wearing an undeniably charming smile on his flawless child-like face.
"I have returned, Takato."
"About frigging' time," Takato scolded. "I was actually beginning to miss you."
The angel's small body suddenly perked up, wings and all, at the same time a lovely pink hue colored his milky cheeks.
"Wha ... rea-really?" Lucemon sounded almost elated by the idea.
"Of course not, idiot angel!" Takato growled. "You know I just want to get this stupid game ... wait, are you blushing?"
The small Demon Lord's lapis eyes grew wide, and the pink of his cheeks changed into a lively, passionate red.
"Bu-buh, bu ... huh, of, of course not! Just what do take me for, Takato! Don't be stupid! Idiot! Gogglehead!"
Takato was making a very ugly face by this point.
"Okay, now you're definitely blushing. And don't call me Gogglehead, you idiot angel!"
"Shut up! I call you whatever the hell I want! And I'm not blushing!" Lucemon's lips trembled, adding to the adorable image he made at the moment. "It's ... it's ... anger! Yes! I'm currently raging at the unbelievable depths of your insolence!"
"What's with that unbelievable excuse!" Takato spat back. "And stop it with that weird reaction, it's creepy! And I know creepy!"
"It's ... I'm not ... it's your fault for saying those things!" Lucemon quipped with a disturbingly high-pitched voice.
Takato's hands gripped the edges of the armrests fiercely, as if readying himself to jump off and scram any second now.
"And why do you even care!" Takato was struck mute; his mouth rendered half open yet unable to say any other word.
After five years, he thought he had seen all of Lucemon's expression. It seemed he was oh-so-very wrong.
The fallen angel's face had become the canon example of the allegorical deer in headlights.
And, of course, because things always work this way, Lilithmon chose that very moment to emerge from the shadows carrying a tray with tea and cookies.
"Tea is ready, my darlings ... milord?"
"Meep!"
Lilithmon blinked. Had the Great Lord Lucemon just ... squeaked?
"With all due respect, my liege, you look just like my maid when I caught her masturbating."
"Buh!" Both angel and young boy blurted out simultaneously. It did not help matters for the radiant angel, like, at all.
edited 18th Jul '12 7:17:22 PM by Lunacorva
A tired-looking Takato stared at the childishly stubborn angel, who was very focused on looking away from the other two people in the room with arms crossed and the most adorable pout.
"Oh, for the love of all gods, you just said 'tsun'." Takato's voice was as expressive as his grimace. He looked up at Lilithmon. "He just said 'tsun', didn't he?"
The demoness only nodded, a little wary of the potential consequences of voicing her agreement.
Regardless, that was how whatever respect Takato and Lilithmon had for the greatest of the Maou died a swift, pathetic death.
It would not last long.
__________
It began the way it always began.
With alarms blaring in the massive dark room.
Exactly eight seconds later, Mitsuo Yamaki burst through the double doors, temporarily allowing light from outside to leak into this digital bulwark, ever cloaked in darkness and dim blues.
"What's the situation?" he bellowed, even if he already knew the answer.
"A Wild One is breaching through!" Onodera Megumi cried from her seat by the interception console. Short blonde hair danced as she shook her head wildly. "I can't intercept it; it's already too late!"
"We didn't see it at all" Ootori Reika spoke more calmly from the second seat. "It literally appeared out of nowhere"
"Tch," was the most emotion Yamaki allowed himself to display in these circumstances.
It should not be happening. Shaggai was supposed to have sealed all possible routes of access to the human world. They had sacrificed the Tamers' Digimon for that! Separating them from those children, for the sake of saving the world!
And it was for the very same reason that their monitoring of the Digital World had relaxed in the time since D-Reaper. The huge group of Digimon from almost two weeks before would have taken them completely by surprise if it had not being so large.
Not for the first or last time in the past two weeks, Yamaki wondered just where these Digimon were coming from, and how did they reach through the boundary between worlds so quickly as to render their tracking and interception system completely useless.
"Pinpoint the location of the Digital Field!" he commanded.
"Yes!" Megumi responded, somewhat grateful for being allowed to divert her attention to tracking the Wild One instead of futilely trying to stop it. "Got it! I have the ... ah!"
The alarm's blaring stopped, filling the dark room with a tense silence.
"what is it?"
"The Digital Field" Reika explained. "it has disappeared."
Yamaki bit the inside of his left cheek. It was not the first time this happened.
It was just like the one which attacked Matsuda Takato in the hospital. These Digimon not only breached through the barrier between worlds with ridiculous ease; they also fully Realized themselves in the world of carbon-based creatures at an outrageous speed.
edited 18th Jul '12 7:20:39 PM by Lunacorva
I find that this is a good counter to the favorite types of heroes,...but the problem with heroes is that ultimately,...they must follow the "good" side of morality and that's already very limiting for making an interesting character
As such I usually give and say,"make them a Jerk with a Heart of Gold and don't make 'em the ideal hero,do whatever the heck you want with 'em after that"
But villains can follow any type of morality as the writer pleases,with all those options,I get picky
My personal favorites include the Type I and II Anti-Villain s,Chaotic Evil,and the Complete Monster
Faux Affably Evil is the best mannerism to convey such positions
It Amused Me is the best retort
Drunk on the Dark Side is a great side effect
Xanatos Gambit is what they should pull off at least once
So yeah The Joker is probably the best example,at least when he isn't in the Silver Age. And Palpatine for that matter.
Admiral Zhao is a good example of a bad example
edited 16th Jul '12 10:55:30 PM by terlwyth