Why make the villains sympathetic?

I have to be honest, i'm not sure if i ever fully understood the idea of making villains characters we can relate to. Isn't the antagonist the person we're supposed to be rooting against, the one we want to lose? Why make them sympathetic? Why make us feel sorry for the people trying to kill our hero/heroine?

I ask because i'm in the process of (emphasis on process) writing a fan fiction. In it, there are two main villains (one more major than the other) and one of them is an Evil Twin of the hero. He possesses all of the hero's memories and has nothing but hatred for those who the hero secretly feels betrayed him or let him down. The bigger bad is the one who helped fan the flames of this anger and pointed out reasons why the Evil twin should hate the aforementioned people, mainly because he feels that he and the hero have gone through similar trials and tribulations.

At the moment, i'm slightly at a loss here, because right now, i'm almost leaning towards the main villain wanting to help the hero get through his problems by showing him how he coped with his; making other people suffer. I'm still tossing ideas around, but if i go with the whole "All i want is to help you" thing, then how is this character still truly a villain? I was also hoping to avoid the whole "I tried to recruit you, but you said no, so i'll have to kill you now" thing, as it didn't work for me the last time i saw it on TV

The objective of making a villain sympathetic is not to make them look like a 'good guy', as you're saying. Here, 'sympathetic' does not necessarily mean making readers want to root for them rather than the hero; it means making the villain a multifaceted, complex person with understandable motivations and characterization aspects beyond their role as a villain.

With regards to your Bigger Bad's motivation, they could still have the 'all I'm trying to do is help you' thing, but their idea of 'help' just might not line up with what the hero considers help.

I have a question, though. What about the hero caught this Bigger Bad's eye, aside from them having similar problems?

edited 19th Feb '14 3:23:10 PM by CrystalGlacia

Sympathy as such is in the eye of the beholder, but one-dimensional characters are usually pretty boring.

Answer: because even the most vile scumball Jerkasses have qualities that would be good or even admirable in other circumstances, and reasons in their backstory and psychology that make them behave the way they do. Characters who don't are cardboard, and cardboard is boring to eat and boring to read.

First of all, i'm pretty sure all i was asking was what's wrong with making the villain a total monster devoid of any redeeming qualities, isn't that basically what a villain is, a bad guy?

Second, let me see if i can get what i'm saying about my fanfic across more clearly -

The main character has had a lot of strife in his young life and some of that stems from the people in his life. So much so, that when his evil twin is conceived through a combination of science and sorcery, the evil streak within this twin has left him feeling nothing but anger and hatred towards those who he feels wronged him (he hates his family for not being there for him and using him, he hates his mentor for not understanding him and he thinks that his friends have begun to desert him). The Bigger Bad, having been the one who conceived this doppelganger in the first place, served as a mentor to this evil twin; he pointed out the reasons why the evil twin's frustrations are justified and claimed that he went through a similar troubled time in his own youth. This is actually why he's interested in the hero, because he sees a kindred spirit, it's led me to started viewing this villain as someone who just wants to help the hero reach their "true potential", which the bigger bad feels he will never achieve under the guidance and influence of the rest of the "good" cast. If this coincides with his own plans, then so be it.

The truth of the matter is, the evil twin's existence in this story is actually just so i can voice how i felt about the way the main character was treated in the actual show. As for the main villain himself, originally, i was going with the whole "He's just using his minions as a means to an end" thing, with him only needing the hero alive for a much grander plan. But after eventually deciding to, more or less, go with the Star Wars and Teen Titans technique of "the villain legitimately wanting to help the hero by converting them", i wanted to give a reason why he wanted to help protagonist, in this case, because he sees a lot of himself in him.

This has started to backfire on me though, because initially, i wanted the main villain to be the most sadistic and cruel foe that the hero ever faced. But if he's trying to help the hero in his own way, how can he be sadistic or cruel. I tried to rectify that by having the villain suggest to the hero that the only way to make his misery stop is to make those responsible for it suffer (which actually what he told the evil twin too), but i just don't know anymore. I also wanted the Bigger bad to be very charismatic and manipulative, with a touch of creepy to him, but now i'm worried that i'm imagining him to be too nice, as i gave him a daughter that he legitimately cares for and a sense of honor that won't allow him to break a promise, none of which is befitting for a villain.

To put it simply, i was originally going for a cruel and sadistic monster who is not only hated for all he's done to the main heroes, but would gladly slaughter thousands just for fun. However, instead, i'm getting a person who genuinely cares for others, including his own child and has a sense of honor, that's not a villain.

What's more, i wanted this character to be someone who makes his minions cringe in fear whenever there in his presence. But i ended up making him someone who respects his henchmen and hardly, if ever raises a finger towards them

Can anyone help me?

Eh, I was answering the question in the title. Sorry if that wasn't clear enough.

On your villain, I would agree that unless you want him to be a full-on Anti-Villain, he should be somewhat more sympathetic. (I usually like anti-villains, but that doesn't seem to be what you're shooting for in this case.)

I'd say that you could a) pare back on his good traits one by one to see if that changes anything- one or two makes a villain sympathetic, a whole lot makes him ambiguously villainous. Making him much less honest and somewhat petty towards his henchmen could help.

Route b) is to twist his good intentions and admirable traits into villainous qualities. Sure he cares for his daughter and wants to help the hero, but his idea of what's good for them and what will make them happy might be radically different from theirs, like Crystal Glacia said. Being mean to minions will help them in the long run by teaching them courtesy and discipline, unleashing destruction on people is the only way for the hero to stop being taken for granted, etc. Or he could just be a hypocrite, which I find makes people much less sympathetic.

Out of idle curiosity, may I ask what original show this is based off of?

I don't think there is necessarily anything wrong with making a villain an irredeemable monster with no good qualities if that sort of character fits into the story you're writing. However, I think your definition of the term 'villain' is too narrow. The term 'villain' is broad enough to describe many types of characters, including some who can be quite sympathetic.

I'm not sure most writers even go about trying to make sympathetic villains, rather, the sympathetic qualities just emerge in the process of creating a complex, believable character. The reason such characters are seen as a good thing, as mentioned above, is that complex characters tend to be more interesting then flat ones.

As for your character, personally I don't see anything wrong with making your villain more sympathetic. It sounds like its just happening naturally as you're fleshing them out. Nothing wrong with that, if its coming about naturally. However if you find that you don't want that sort of character in the story you're writing, I'd second Kesar in suggesting toning down the admirable qualities you've given him, or suggest writing the story in such a way that his more admirable traits are only hinted at or not present at all from the reader's perspective.

@ Kesar

American Dragon: Jake Long

I suppose the biggest thing to watch out for is Draco in Leather Pants, or Designated protagonist.

The former can happen even if there's absolutely no reason for you to like the villain better —so he can be a rancid dick, and still be loved by Fangirls— since it's pretty much something decided by fans.

The latter can happen if the Main characters is cliched, seen as a Mary Sue or Invincible Hero who never loses, or doesn't do things very heroic, or if the villain comes off as smarter, stronger, cooler and just better.

In fact, lately, I've noticed a tendency to make villains too sympathetic, and heroes way too flawed, leading to the audience cheering the former, and booing the latter.

edited 20th Feb '14 1:01:31 PM by HandsomeRob

Personally, I don't think Draco in Leather Pants is even worth worrying about. Because it usually has no relation to anything in the story, it's just one of those things to file under "fans be crazy, yo". There's no point in wasting time trying to avoid or fight it - if it happens, just ignore it and move on.

edited 19th Feb '14 8:29:53 PM by nrjxll

After putting some thought into the matter, I've decided to do what i wanted to do a while ago; write a profile for the villain i mentioned, his name is Orpheus C. Wraithe by the way.

Profile - Not much is known about Wraithe's past, save only the parts that he himself has revealed. But based on the events of his life that he has mentioned, it can be assumed that he had a very rough childhood, one that left him traumatized all the way to adulthood. This caused him to become slightly unstable at some point, as he began to believe that the only way to truly get over his anger, sadness and/or depression was to make others suffer something even worse, particularly the people responsible for his pain (either by killing them or by making them wish they were dead). Wraithe spent much of his later life leaving a trail of chaos and disorder everywhere he went, but in time, it became less about him wanting to sooth his inner turmoil and more about him just enjoying the pain and suffering of others. Eventually, Wraithe decided to make it his life's goal to find new ways to spread chaos and destruction on a grand scale, just for his amusement, even if it led to the annihilation of humanity and/or the destruction of the Earth itself.

Personality-wise, Wraithe is a very mysterious and enigmatic man; he prefers to lurk in the shadows and manipulate things and people from a distance, instead of advertising who is and what he's after. However, just because he uses Hench-people, that is not to say that he is against doing his own dirty work, in fact, he is actually very proficient in that regard, especially in combat. Wraithe is also shown to be very calculating and patient; he will plan for every scenario, he will wait for as long as it takes until his plans are ready, and even when it looks like his scheme has failed, he will always have a contingency plan waiting in the wings. Despite his sadistic and twisted nature, Wraithe is surprisingly a very calm and collected man; he always speaks with eloquence and intelligence in his voice and he is not so easily angered, this makes it quite easy for him to manipulate and play on other people's emotions. However, because he is so surprisingly calm most of the time, those around him find him to be somewhat unpredictable, as they are rarely, if ever, sure of what he's thinking or planning.

In spite of all of his despicable qualities however, Wraithe does have some good ones as well (good being a relative term). He is always respectful towards his minions and gives them sincere praise and congratulations when proper, though, when all is said and done, he views most of them as expendable. He will also become aggressive towards them if they question his plans in a disrespectful tone and will even resort to torturing and killing them if they fail him too many times. This actually subtly prompts his minions to always be proficient at what they do and to always be respectful to their master. Wraithe is perfectly willing to give his opponents a fighting chance against him, mainly because he believes that by fighting an enemy on a fair playing field, victory will have all the more meaningful. However, if he requires his enemies to be out of the way, if only for a moment, he will resort to trickery if need be. Wraithe has a daughter that he loves dearly, mainly because he wants to prove that he can be a better father than his own, hence his reasons for trying to connect with his own child. Fortunately, his daughter, Christine, is just as sadistic as Wraithe himself, which makes it easy for the two of them to bond.

When Wraithe encounters someone who he feels has potential or could be useful in his plans, he is quick to study them. And, if they live up to his expectations, he will insist that they be kept alive (he would not see them wasted).

What do you think? It's still sort of a work-in-progress.

I initially intended for the character to be one of the most evil villains of all time, but if i add things to make him sympathetic, won't that ruin that image?

Also, in regards to the "Evil Twin" idea, like i said, i wanted a way to voice how i felt about the way the main character was treated. But if i'm basically behind the villain's perspective, how can i make the heroes the ones in the right?

The trope Moral Myopia is a thing for this reason. Villains having sympathetic traits sometimes only serve to make them even more of a hypocrite (say, a genocidal overlord having a soft spot for his daughter but then killing his dragon's daughter because "it makes him weak" or some such). You can make your villain sympathetic in this way, making him a bit of a hypocrite, which Works to enhance his monstrosity.

Also, I have discovered that an easy way to dodge Draco in Leather Pants is making your villain aesthetically ugly. You'd be surprised how shallow crazy fandoms can be. Practical example: Davy Jones from pirates of the caribbean is by far one of the most tragic villains in recent memory, but the trope is very rarely applied to him (contrast Loki from Thor, who is just as tragic but has the trope waaay more in his way because he is pretty) because he looks like Cthulhu in a pirate costume.

Also, in regards to the "Evil Twin" idea, like i said, i wanted a way to voice how i felt about the way the main character was treated. But if i'm basically behind the villain's perspective, how can i make the heroes the ones in the right?

Writers need to practice seeing things from multiple viewpoints. The villain has had X experiences and Y beliefs, therefore he does Z. The hero has had X experiences, but has A beliefs, and does B instead.

What you have here is an excellent chance for the hero to reexamine his reasons for doing good. Yes, bad things happened to him, he was treated unfairly, life sucks. But he has core principles that do not allow him to choose evil even if it would be easier or more profitable in the short run. What are those principles, and how can he apply them to this situation?

For the moment, all i have is stuff like this:

The evil twin believes that the hero's little sister is the bane of his existence. And while the hero himself is frequently annoyed by his younger sibling, his fraternal instincts ultimately outweigh any anger he carries.

The evil twin believes that the hero's mentor never cared for him or his needs, and while the hero himself does get frustrated by the way his mentor trains him, he truly believes that it's just his way of showing that he cares.

The evil twin shares the hero's love for a specific woman, but while the hero wants to get to know the woman as a person and is willing to let her go if it makes her happy, the evil twin wants to do everything he can just to keep her in his life (ex. mind-control)