History BewareTheNiceOnes / LiveActionTV

---->''Nog''': I feel sorry for the [[ProudWarriorRaceGuy Jem']][[SuperSoldier Hadar]]

** ...who in "The Chute" managed to hand beatdowns to hardened prison inmates in defense of his {{Heterosexual Life Partner|s}} Tom Paris, before finally snapping and turning on Paris himself. He was on aggression-enhancing drugs, but still.
** There was also his HeroicBSOD at the end of "Timeless," which resulted in [[spoiler:'''the successful destruction of an entire timeline''']].
** There was the way he almost single-handedly figured out how to fuck up the Hirogen occupation in "The Killing Game." And capped it off by telling them to [[DefiantToTheEnd go straight to hell]] when they figured it out.

** ...who in "The Chute" managed to hand beatdowns to hardened prison inmates in defense of his {{Heterosexual Life Partner|s}} Tom Paris, before finally snapping and turning on Paris himself. He was on aggression-enhancing drugs, but still.** There was also his HeroicBSOD at the end of "Timeless," which resulted in [[spoiler:'''the successful destruction of an entire timeline''']].

** And ''[[Series/StarTrekVoyager Voyager]]'' gave us perpetual newbie and resident ButtMonkey Ensign Harry Kim... who in "The Chute" managed to hand beatdowns to hardened prison inmates in defense of his {{Heterosexual Life Partner|s}} Tom Paris, before finally snapping and turning on Paris himself. He was on aggression-enhancing drugs, but still. There was also his HeroicBSOD at the end of "Timeless," which resulted in [[spoiler:'''the successful destruction of an entire timeline''']], as well as the way he almost single-handedly figured out how to fuck up the Hirogen occupation in "The Killing Game." And capped it off by telling them to [[DefiantToTheEnd go straight to hell]] when they figured it out.

*** Basically, one way to look at it could be to say that humans are basically, in the 'Trek century, a bunch of fairly genuine pacifists who would rather use words than weapons, but know that their weapons back up the force of their words. Then when enemies like the Borg come along and terrify the life out of us... well, then you get movies like ''First Contact''. Essentially, speak softly and pilot spacefaring death.

*** Quark feels this way about humans, and by proxy the Federation itself, despite bordering on a MarySueTopia particularly in the early series. Sure, as a whole the human race is a pretty decent bunch, but that's only during peace time. Push them too hard and you'll have some of the nastiest hitters in the galaxy. The Federation is about peaceful coexistence, scientific research and exploration, but they explore with heavily-armed vessels that can stand toe-to-toe with the dedicated warships of their contemporaries, and despite outwardly decrying intelligence machinations, they have their Section 31, the Federation's very own Tal Shiar & Obsidian Order. S31 was willing to commit genocide when the Dominion threatened the security of the Alpha Quadrant. When the Federation finally built a dedicated warships, it's was a tiny, spartan, ''[[PintsizedPowerhouse Escort Vessel]]'', and it was capable of destroying much larger enemy warships.

*** Quark feels this way about humans, and by proxy the Federation itself, despite bordering on a MarySueTopia particularly in the early series. Sure, as a whole the human race is a pretty decent bunch, but that's only during peace time. Push them too hard and you'll have some of the nastiest hitters in the galaxy. The Federation is about peaceful coexistence, scientific research and exploration, but they explore with heavily-armed vessels that can stand toe-to-toe with the dedicated warships of their contemporaries, and despite outwardly decrying intelligence machinations, they have their Section 31, the Federation's very own Tal Shiar & Obsidian Order. S31 is willing to commit genocide when the Dominion threatened the security of the Alpha Quadrant. When the Federation finally built a dedicated warships, it's was a tiny, spartan, ''[[PintsizedPowerhouse Escort Vessel]]'', and it was capable of destroying much larger enemy warships.

** Doctor John Watson is an unassuming, gentle soul who lets Sherlock order him around on their adventures. It's so easy to forget that [[RetiredBadass he has recently seen active service in Afghanistan,]] and shot a serial killer dead, between two buildings, through two windows, with a handgun, in the ''first episode'' of the show. And shows absolutely no remorse about it. Two major bad-guy deaths over the first three Sherlock episodes, BOTH of them were killed by John Watson. The second being in "The Blind Banker", [[spoiler: where he successfully offs a Chinese gangster trying to simultaneously kill both Sarah and Sherlock]] by one movement of his leg. Which happens to be tied to a chair at the time. It's a pretty bad idea to insult Sherlock in front of John. Just ask [[WhatAnIdiot the Chief Superintendent of Scotland Yard]]. You will wind up with a bloody nose, though at least you'll get it fixed. That is, ''if'' he chooses to. But piss him off ''so much'' by messing with his friend, and he'll calmly, coldly KILL YOU.

** Doctor John Watson is an unassuming, gentle soul who lets Sherlock order him around on their adventures. It's so easy to forget that [[RetiredBadass he has recently seen active service in Afghanistan,]] and shoots a serial killer dead, between two buildings, through two windows, with a handgun, in the ''first episode'' of the show. And shows absolutely no remorse about it. Two major bad-guy deaths over the first three Sherlock episodes, BOTH of them were killed by John Watson. The second being in "The Blind Banker", [[spoiler: where he successfully offs a Chinese gangster trying to simultaneously kill both Sarah and Sherlock]] by one movement of his leg. Which happens to be tied to a chair at the time. It's a pretty bad idea to insult Sherlock in front of John. Just ask [[WhatAnIdiot the Chief Superintendent of Scotland Yard]]. You will wind up with a bloody nose, though at least you'll get it fixed. That is, ''if'' he chooses to. But piss him off ''so much'' by messing with his friend, and he'll calmly, coldly KILL YOU.

* All of ‘’Series/TheMusketeers’’ are arguably this as though they range in [[TheStoic levels of]] [[NiceGuy friendliness]] [[AnOfficerAndAGentleman they are all polite and honourable men]] who care about others. Mess with France, an innocent or one of their loved ones and you’ll quickly find out why their [[BadassCrew regiment is so elite]] [[MasterSwordsman and why they’re feared and]] [[LivingLegend respected as the best of the best.]]

* Leo of ''Series/{{Charmed|1998}}''. He is a peaceful healer who often gives words of advice to the Charmed Ones. But people forget that he was a medic during UsefulNotes/WorldWarII and if anyone threatens Piper or his sons, he will kill.
** He has killed an Elder and even helped a magical group wipe out free will.

** Werewolves in general seem to be this in Being Human, especially George and Tom. Both really nice, friendly guys, but George rips Herrick to shreds, and Tom has spent his entire life being taught how to hunt and kill vampires.

*** In [[Recap/DoctorWhoS19E6Earthshock "Earthshock"]], the Fifth Doctor spends much of the story trying to talk the Cyberleader out of destroying the earth, but then when that fails... he attacks him with Adric's gold-edged badge, then shoots him. Twelve times. Just to be sure.

** Wesly is a nice, proper English Watcher. And then at the end of Season 3, Justine had Angel locked in a coffin and tossed in the ocean. Come next season, Wesley has her in chains and a SlaveCollar in a cage. At one point he halts an escape attempt with a single emotionless sentence.
--->"I'll take away your bucket"

%% This page has been alphabetized. Please add new examples in the correct alphabetical order.

* ''Series/BlueBloods'' Police Commissioner Frank Reagen hardly ever raises his voice, and for the most part his days of tossing & cuffing perps are long behind him. He's still capable of dealing out .38 caliber death to anyone who threatens his family. An unrepentant serial [[spoiler: rapist who attacks Erin]] learns this the brain-splattery way.
* ''Series/BreakingBad'': There's quite a couple of AffablyEvil characters in the show that turn out to be capable of extreme violence. But probably no character exemplifies this trope like Todd from season five. He's a quiet and seemingly rather shy guy who is always nice and apologizes a lot, but the entire new drug operation starts to turn into a disaster when [[spoiler:he pulls a gun after stealing chemicals from a train to shot a 14-year-old boy who saw them]]. He then arranges for [[spoiler:the murder of Gus' nine henchmen in prison through his uncle's gang]] and finally stops his uncle from executing Jesse [[spoiler:because he first wants to torture him to learn what he told the DEA]]. He even seems nice when helping Jesse to get up and walk [[spoiler:to his next torture session]].

** Willow full stop. After Riley gets her to help court Buffy she threatens to beat him to death with a shovel if he hurts her. This was after she wanted to ax murder Parker when he hurt Buffy. When Glory messes with her girlfriend she tries her very best to ''kill'' the attacker. This culminates into becoming season 6's BigBad after [[spoiler: Tara's murder]]. [[spoiler:Warren, Tara's killer,]] gets ''flayed'' after she did some ColdBloodedTorture on him. This transformation is foreshadowed a number of times: in the Season Three episode "Doppelgangland": the vampire version of Willow is sadistic; vampire personalities reflect the human's inner selves, with no soul.

** Quiet, stuttering, somewhat bumbling Giles efficiently beats the crap out of [[spoiler:Ethan Rayne]], then kicks him to get information. He goes after [[spoiler:Angel]] with a flaming bat. He stabs [[spoiler:the mayor]] in the chest with a sword. He delays Buffy so [[spoiler:Principal Wood]] can beat [[spoiler:Spike]] to death with his bare hands. He physically and professionally threatened Principal Snyder into readmitting Buffy back into Sunnydale High. He really proves it in season five. First, when a recalcitrant servant of the BigBad refuses to talk, he tells the girls to get some rope; the camera follows them and we hear a noise; whip pan back to a now very talkative demon. He manhandled Spike while ordering him to get over his obsession with Buffy and move on. In "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS5E22TheGift The Gift]]", he [[spoiler:suffocates innocent and long-suffering Ben]] in order to kill Glory. After all, Giles used to go by the name Ripper.

** Shirley's a good Christian woman, but don't let that make you think she won't mess you up in paintball. And not just in paintball - "that thing about the jukebox was way too specific to be improvised."

* Will and Finn on ''Series/{{Glee}}'' are the epitome of {{Nice Guy}}s. The two spend the first half of season one in TheBabyTrap by their women and when they find out...whoo boy. Will goes borderline psychotic upon realizing his wife's fake pregnancy and it almost appears like he is going to hurt ''her''. Finn meanwhile finds out his girlfriend's baby is really his best friend's and the second he hears it runs after him, attacks him, and proceeds to beat the living daylights out of him, be held back by several football players, and manages to chuck a chair on his way out.

** Dan, whose conversion as an Ultimate Insider in season 3 is in full bloom in season 4. It was either "adapt or die". Usually, something happens to remind him that he has a moral compass before he goes off the deep end.
* ''Series/{{Grimm}}'': Monroe is a bookish, awkward watchmaker / clock repairman with a passion for Old Europe, cooking, wine, and the finer things in life... and a werewolf who could - and sometimes does - tear people apart. Nick is a genuinely good cop who will leave you alone if you haven't done anything illegal, no matter who or what you are... but he will smash your face with a warhammer if you threaten his friends or family. Juliette, a veterinarian and thus a friend of all living things, but when an ogre breaks into her home she doesn't hesitate to throw a pan of boiling water in his face, and when her friend is being abused by her husband she beats the cr@p out of him using common kitchen utensils ([[spoiler:taken UpToEleven once she becomes a Hexenbiest]]). Indeed, it is hard to think of any of the regulars or semi-regulars who ''don't'' fit this trope to a greater or lesser extent! Even the meek Fuchsbau Rosalee; you do NOT want to mess with her husband, or she'll literally tear your throat out, even if you're a big mean Blutbad.

*** Adam himself, arguably. He comes across as a friendly guy, decent, and caring (at least in modern times; in the past, he's been a mercenary on at least four separate occasions) - he just happens to want to wipe out billions of people and choose who survives to live in his new perfect world, is all. Hiro's too much of a [[TheCape Cape]] to do that for pure revenge - this is a guy the world does ''not'' need to have turning up again.

** From the graphic novels, Linda Tarvara. A friendly, personable young girl with a caring demeanour who is often polite to people. She's dedicated and takes pride in her work. She also murders people by RIPPING OUT THEIR SOULS so she can FEED on their abilities. Her first human victim? A sweet, lovely old woman who she tricks, traps, and murders, all while acting kind and considerate. This girl makes Sylar look like a candidate for sainthood (Season 1 Sylar mind you, the emotionless murder machine, not the "Morally Grey" character of Season 3)

* In ''Series/{{House}}'', Dr. James Wilson seems deeply kind, caring, and eternally compassionate to his patients, and nearly as much so to his friends. And he is, until he gets pushed far enough to reveal that deep down, he can be just as much of a cold, snarky manipulative bastard as House - maybe even more so. He just chooses not to be because it seems healthier.

* ''Series/ScarecrowAndMrsKing'': Don't mess with season 4's quirky antiquarian T.P. Aquinas, who has spent years plotting his revenge against the drug lord who murdered his wife and young son. He succeeds when he detonates the car that the drug lord is riding in.

* Similarly, Clark Kent from ''Series/{{Smallville}}'' (at least before a nonsensical transformation at the end of Season Eight) is a shy, humble, unassuming young man, generally avoiding the limelight and talking his way out of battles; even when he does fight, he'd rather use defensive maneuvers to defeat his foes. But when ''anything'' bad happens to a member of his family, from his parents to his friends to Lana, all bets are off.

* ''Series/SpartacusBloodAndSand'' has the generally quiet and meek Aurelia, wife of Varro. She seems to be the only delicate flower in a ludus filled with gladiators, guards, and soldiers. Then we learn that she castrated her rapist. In the final episode, she brutally [[spoiler:stabs to death the teenager who callously ordered Varro's death]]. Even Sparty and Doctore (you know - the deadliest gladiator in the republic, and the man who trained him) are kind of squicked by her rage when they arrive on scene.

** And while [[Series/StargateSG1 Dr. Daniel Jackson]] really wants to get to know you and your culture, is a very sweet and gentle guy, and would [[ReluctantWarrior prefer not to fight]], if he has to, he will mess you up at least as badly as his career-military teammates because of his fierce determination to do the right thing. The man will NOT give up, even if he has to sacrifice himself to do it. And then he will somehow turn up alive again because he's just that kind of person. He also calmly threatened to kill Apophis if he didn't tell him where Sha're was. The whole of the first 5 seasons is basically his equivalent of a RoaringRampageOfRevenge. He's so nice, he barely even raised his voice, he just embarked on the genocide of the species that took his wife from him. We get a first glimpse of this in a first season episode, where he and Carter are standing over an incubator of Goa'uld children. He comments that the Goa'uld will grow up and enslave humans, and Carter responds with "Yes, but if we kill them now then we're no better than they are." Jackson, after pausing for a second, seems to accept it, starts to walk away... and then he spins and fires a submachine gun burst into the incubator, killing the Goa'ulds. That's for my wife, bitch.

* ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'': Sam Winchester - he's always got a kind word for someone shell-shocked from a brush with the supernatural, prefers to do research rather than pick locks and break faces, and will most certainly fuck you up if you even think about hurting his older brother. Just ask Gordon Walker [[spoiler:(beheaded with barbed wire)]] or the Crossroads Demon [[spoiler:(shot in the head)]].

* ''Series/BreakingBad'': There's quite a couple of AffablyEvil characters in the show that turn out to be capable of extreme violence. But probably no character exemplifies this trope like Todd from season five. He's a quiet and seemingly rather shy guy who is always nice and apologizes a lot, but the entire new drug operation starts to turn into a disaster when [[spoiler:he pulls a gun after stealing chemicals from a train to shot a 13-year-old boy who saw them]]. He then arranges for [[spoiler:the murder of Gus' nine henchmen in prison through his uncle's gang]] and finally stops his uncle from executing Jesse [[spoiler:because he first wants to torture him to learn what he told the DEA]]. He even seems nice when helping Jesse to get up and walk [[spoiler:to his next torture session]].

** Xander is always helpful and brave, but being non-superpowered, is not a formidable hand-to-hand fighter. Demons and vamps typically don't have to worry too much about him. But if you mess with someone he loves, you'll find yourself on the wrong end of his berserker rage. In "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS1E6ThePack The Pack]]" he is released from his hyena curse and the first thing he sees is the crazed zoo-keeper attacking Willow. Xander attacks and strikes first, with Buffy finishing the job. Despite previously stating that he hides until danger leaves when backed into a corner while protecting Buffy [[spoiler:he threatens Angelus, one of the most dangerous vampires in history, and warns that he will be there to see him staked. Angelus actually takes him seriously and leaves.]] In "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS4E10Hush Hush]]" Xander sees a bloody jowled Spike leaning over a napping Anya, his point of view suggesting that Spike had attacked her. Xander immediately launches a what-should-be-a-suicidal-attack-against-what-he-thinks-is-a-restored-vampire and starts pounding Spike. In "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS5E22TheGift The Gift]]", [[DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu he sucker-punches an evil goddess]] ''[[MugglesDoItBetter with a wrecking ball]]''. After [[spoiler:Willow is put into a coma in "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS2E1WhenSheWasBas When She Was Bad]]", to Buffy: "If Willow dies, I will kill you."

-->'''Josh:''' ''(points at Drake)'' You!\\

'''Drake:''' [[FlatWhat What?]]\\

* ''Series/{{Oobi}}: In a particularly memetic scene, Oobi goes berserk when Uma breaks his toy car after promising to be careful with it.

* ''Series/{{Alphas}}''. Dr. Rosen, with his Mr. Rogers' sweaters, scruffy beard, soft voice, and herbal remedies seems like a flower-child gone to seed; one can imagine him in his youth leading peace rallies. However, when those he loves are threatened, or worse HURT... watch out!

** Fred was usually sweet and gentle but on a few occasions she had her inner badass released.

** Welsly is a nice, proper English Watcher. And then at the end of Season 3 Justine had Angel locked in a coffin and tossed in the ocean. Come next season, Wesley has her in chains and a SlaveCollar in a cage. At one point he halts an escape attempt with a single emotionless sentence.

* Russell Glasser of ''Series/TheAtheistExperience'' is often seen by theist callers as the safest one to talk too. This is a misconception as his comments cut deeper and deeper as he slowly loses his patience with you.

** Vir Cotto is just about the sweetest, kindest and most dorkily cute character in the series. However, when driven into action he can become a terrifying force. His acts of badassery include, but are in no way limited to: [[DidYouJustFlipOffCthulhu flipping off Cthulhu]], assassinating an insane Emperor, staring down a demon (it was a hologram, but he had no way of knowing that at the time), and demolishing a market stall belonging to a Drazi spy with one of Londo's duelling swords.

* Annie of ''Series/{{Being Human|UK}}''. A ghost who is generally sweet and shy, who's never actually been in a fight, and comes across as being the most soft and kind of the threesome (the others are a vampire and a werewolf). But then she remembers [[spoiler:her ex-fiancée killed her]]. At first her attempts to spook him meet with epic fail. Then she corners him, reveals what her flat mates are. And then she whispers something so horrifying to him that he breaks down in tears, runs screaming and BEGS the police to protect him. Bear in mind [[spoiler:her ex]] had previously been completely unrattled by coming face to face with a ghost and was a monstrous SmugSnake with no redeemable traits... and she reduces him to a whimpering mess with a few words. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t5hZEIxgGKQ DO NOT get on this girl's bad side.]]

* ''Series/TheBill'': PC Honey Harman to be very specific. She can be very nice to members of the met. However she can take down criminals with her impressive judo moves if they mess with her.

* ''Series/BreakingBad'': There's quite a couple of AffablyEvil characters in the show that turn out to be capable of extreme violence. But probably no character exemplifies this trope like Todd from season five. He's a quiet and seemingly rather shy guy who is always nice and apologizes a lot, but the entire new drug opperation starts to turn into a disaster when [[spoiler:he pulls a gun after stealing chemicals from a train to shot a 13 year old boy who saw them]]. He then arranges for [[spoiler:the murder of Gus' nine henchmen in prison through his uncles gang]] and finally stops his uncle from executing Jesse [[spoiler:because he first wants to torture him to learn what he told the DEA]]. He even seems nice when helping Jesse to get up and walk [[spoiler:to his next torture session]].

** Quiet, stuttering, somewhat bumbling Giles efficiently beats the crap out of [[spoiler:Ethan Rayne]], then kicks him to get information. He goes after [[spoiler:Angel]] with a flaming bat. He stabs [[spoiler:the mayor]] in the chest with a sword. He delays Buffy so [[spoiler:Principal Wood]] can beat [[spoiler:Spike]] to death with his bare hands. He physically and professionally threatened Principal Snyder into readmitting Buffy back into Sunnydale High. He really proves it in season five. First, when a recalcitrant servant of the BigBad refuses to talk, he tells the girls to get some rope; the camera follows them and we hear a noise; whip pan back to a now very talkative demon. He manhandled Spike while ordering him to get over his obsession with Buffy and move on. In "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS5E22TheGift The Gift]]", he [[spoiler:suffocates innocent and long suffering Ben]] in order to kill Glory. After all, Giles used to go by the name Ripper.
** Xander is always helpful and brave, but being non-superpowered, is not a formidable hand-to-hand fighter. Demons and vamps typically don't have to worry too much about him. But if you mess with someone he loves, you'll find yourself on the wrong end of his berserker rage. In "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS1E6ThePack The Pack]]" he is released from his hyena curse and the first thing he sees is the crazed zoo-keeper attacking Willow. Xander attacks and strikes first, with Buffy finishing the job. Despite previously stating that he hides until danger leaves, when backed into a corner while protecting Buffy [[spoiler:he threatens Angelus, one of the most dangerous vampires in history, and warns that he will be there to see him staked. Angelus actually takes him seriously and leaves.]] In "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS4E10Hush Hush]]" Xander sees a bloody jowled Spike leaning over a napping Anya, his point of view suggesting that Spike had attacked her. Xander immediately launches a what-should-be-a-suicidal-attack-against-what-he-thinks-is-a-restored-vampire and starts pounding Spike. In "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS5E22TheGift The Gift]]", [[DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu he sucker-punches an evil goddess]] ''[[MugglesDoItBetter with a wrecking ball]]''. After [[spoiler:Willow is put into a coma in "[[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS2E1WhenSheWasBas When She Was Bad]]", to Buffy: "If Willow dies, I will kill you."

** Chuck seems harmless, friendly, dorky and charming, but if you threaten his friends or family, expect him to destroy you.

* ''Series/CovertAffairs'': Auggie is a good example of this trope. He's a sweetheart most of the time, but he has some unresolved anger issues that can occasionally make him violent. In the past three seasons he's...

** ...and got himself temporarily kicked out of Langley after he put Henry Wilcox in a choke hold.

** Her best friends and teammates Reid and Garcia too. The latter is a [[TheHeart bubbly]], pacifist and civilian [[AwesomeByAnalysis tech analyst]] who will destroy your live with a few clicks of her [[PlayfulHacker keyboard]] if you piss her off. The former is an adorable, [[NiceGuy kind-hearted]] former [[ChildProdigy child prodigy]] who uses his [[BadassBookworm genius]] [[TheSmartGuy intellect]] to track and outsmart serial killers, child rapists, assassins and various other nasty people, has straight up talked various dangerous people out of killing him and [[TalkingTheMonsterToDeath screwing themselves over]] and has a knack for giving some very effective [[ReasonYouSuckSpeech Reason You Suck Speeches]]. He’s also learnt to be pretty handy with a gun. Essentially no matter how bad the situation is for Reid it’ll eventually end up worse for whoever’s crossed him.
* ''Series/{{CSI}}'': D.B.Russell. He's normally kind of laid back, rather quirky and has a weird sense of humor sometimes, but when former undersheriff [=McKeen=] got his granddaughter kidnapped, he got out his gun and was on the edge of taking the kidnappers out himself. Brass had to rein him in a couple of times during the search.

* ''{{Series/Deadwood}}'': Seth Bullock runs up against the edge of "nice" (mixing this trope with HairTriggerTemper) but in general he's an honorable, hard working, polite man who helps out troubled widows, acts as law keeper for Deadwood, and [[BreadEggsMilkSquick always arranges a proper funeral for people who've tried to kill him]]. But push him a little too far — mess with his friends, or call him out on [[spoiler:his extramarital affair]] — and you'll find out why his temper is considered literally ''psychotic'' even by cold-blooded murderers, often coming close to killing the offending party with his bare hands.

*** The Tenth Doctor hits an all new level at the end of [[Recap/DoctorWhoS30E16TheWatersOfMars "The Waters of Mars"]]. After getting tired of everyone dying around him, [[spoiler: he decides to throw away the laws of time, declares himself the "Time Lord Victorious" in a speech that makes his attitude in "The Runaway Bride" look sane, and saves a woman who was supposed to die. When confronted with his darker side, she kills herself in order to stop him.]]

*** The Daleks, a race of aliens genetically engineered to be nothing but pure hatred, completely devoid of mercy, pity, or remorse, serve as one of The Doctor's series long arch nemeses. There are billions of them and only one of him, and while they may not exactly fear him as such (since they're incapable of it), they certainly have a healthy respect for just how dangerous he is to them. They refer to the Doctor as "[[NamesToRunAwayFromVeryFast The Oncoming Storm]]" and "[[AlwaysABiggerFish The Predator of the Daleks]]".

** Professor Chronotis in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS17E6Shada "Shada"]] is repeatedly described by the other characters as "such a nice old man" — and he is, with a bit of old-man irascibility to balance it out. In reality he's a Time Lord outlaw possessing the unique psychic ability to forcibly rewrite other people's personalities with his own, and likely also a CharmPerson. In the final moments of the story, the Doctor wonders to Romana that maybe someday people will look at him and describe him as "such a nice old man".

** Captain Jack Harkness of ''Doctor Who'' and ''Series/{{Torchwood}}''. Normally cheerful, flirty and friendly. Hurt his team and he will do something horrible to you. Such as shoot you repeatedly with a pump action shot gun. In the knee caps.

** Amy Pond, who fits ViolentlyProtectiveGirlfriend to perfection. Mess with Rory, and she will not hesitate to crush you. In [[Recap/DoctorWhoS32E13TheWeddingOfRiverSong "The Wedding of River Song"]], when the Silence are preparing to kill Rory mid Heroic Sacrifice (in an alternate timeline), taunting him that Amy will never come back, she remembers who he is to her and does indeed come back. With a fully loaded G-36 assault rifle. And opens fire, killing all of the Silence on the spot. Then, when Madame Kovarian begs Amy to save her from her malfunctioning eyedrive:

** Rory Williams, who started out a nice fellow and a good nurse, and then got turned into an [[spoiler: Auton with all of Rory's memories... and love for Amy]]. He guarded the Pandorica for two thousand years and then went hand-to-eyestalk with a Dalek that was threatening the Pandorica (and therefore Amy). The Dalek didn't come out of that one on top. And a note to any Cybermen reading this, '''DON'T''' make him repeat the question!

*** She rewards the same number of Good Masters in Meereen with the same agonizingly slow death that they gave one hundred and sixty three slave children. By nailing them to posts to die of dehydration and exposure. Yikes.

** Arya is sweet and nice at the beginning of the series, but learns to take vengeance dead seriously. When Jaqen offers to kill three people for her, she takes him up on his offer.
** At first glance, Varys is a effeminate, benevolent sycophant, but the reality is very different. It takes serious balls (so to speak) for Varys to pull off his manipulations the way he does. He traps the sorcerer who castrated him as a child in a box after stitching up his mouth, and even straight-up disagrees with Joffrey. It may sound like a small thing, but Pycelle would never have the guts, nor Littlefinger the moral standards, to do such a thing.

** Arya at one point encounters a prisoner transport with three men in cages. One is a rapist and serial killer. One is a cannibal who doesn't speak, but tries to bite anyone who comes near. The third is a bland-looking, quiet, polite and soft-spoken man... who reduces the guards, the rapist and the cannibal to whimpering wrecks with a glance. Ladies and gentlemen, meet Jaqen H'qar, Faceless Man.

** Kevan Lannister is considerably more mild mannered than Tywin but he can hold his own in tirades and has actually schooled Cersei when she assumed him as a YesMan.

* ''Series/GetSmart'': KAOS has created an evil robot and CONTROL's robot, Hymie, must stop him. Hymie decides he wants to be nice, and tries to make friends with the enemy robot. It does not work and the evil robot finally goes too far. At that point Hymie notes, "Hey! Nice is nice, but enough is enough!" and fights the robot and defeats it with the help of Maxwell Smart.

*** They have a very similar reaction when Blaine gets hit by a [[EyeScream rock salt filled slushie]] by Sebastian, his StalkerWithACrush and put into the hospital. All of them look ready to go start a fist fight, and Mike even says that they want an eye for an eye. They're ''very'' protective of their own.

* ''Series/{{Grimm}}'': Monroe is a bookish, awkward watchmaker / clock repairman with a passion for Old Europe, cooking, wine and the finer things in life... and a werewolf who could - and sometimes does - tear people apart. Nick is a genuinely good cop who will leave you alone if you haven't done anything illegal, no matter who or what you are... but he will smash your face with a warhammer if you threaten his friends or family. Juliette, a veterinarian and thus a friend of all living things, but when an ogre breaks into her home she doesn't hesitate to throw a pan of boiling water in his face, and when her friend is being abused by her husband she beats the cr@p out of him using common kitchen utensils ([[spoiler:taken UpToEleven once she becomes a Hexenbiest]]). Indeed, it is hard to think of any of the regulars or semi-regulars who ''don't'' fit this trope to a greater or lesser extent! Even the meek Fuchsbau Rosalee; you do NOT want to mess with her husband, or she'll literally tear your throat out, even if you're a big mean Blutbad.

*** Adam himself, arguably. He comes across as a friendly guy, decent and caring (at least in modern times; in the past he's been a mercenary on at least four separate occasions) - he just happens to want to wipe out billions of people and choose who survives to live in his new perfect world, is all. Hiro's too much of a [[TheCape Cape]] to do that for pure revenge - this is a guy the world does ''not'' need to have turning up again.

** From the graphic novels, Linda Tarvara. A friendly, personable young girl with a caring demeanour who is often polite to people. She's a dedicated and takes pride in her work. She also murders people by RIPPING OUT THEIR SOULS so she can FEED on their abilities. Her first human victim? A sweet, lovely old woman who she tricks, traps and murders, all while acting kind and considerate. This girl makes Sylar look like a candidate for sainthood (Season 1 Sylar mind you, the emotionless murder machine, not the "Morally Grey" character of Season 3)
** Matt Parkman. Good natured, loving surrogate father to Molly and a man who desperately wants to be the best husband he can. But: Mess with his family or friends and expect trouble, as the fascist soldiers under the command of Emile Danko learned when Matt forced them to slaughter each other.
*** Or with Sylar. [[spoiler: Locking him in a prison within his own mind, an empty world where ''years'' pass for every hour of real time, and then sealing his body behind a brick wall]] should do the trick. [[spoiler: For two episodes, anyway]]. Mind you, Sylar borrowed Claire's HealingFactor, and used his newfound shapeshifting ability to ''move'' the part of the brain that can be attacked to disable it, so it's not like [[WhyDontYaJustShootHim a bullet]] will bother him. That's the thing about some MoralDissonance in ''Series/{{Heroes}}:'' some of these villains are so powerful that you ''have'' to get creative to be ''sure'' they won't be back to relieve you of your gray matter someday. Notice that ''even these things almost never work!''

* ''Series/HoratioHornblower'': Lieutenant Archie Kennedy has a sunny disposition and is never seen being too strict on his men when he's in command. However he really does not like seeing Midshipman Wellard abused in Series Two; this probably has a great deal to do with the suffering he endured as a midshipman. When Randall, one of the lower-deck sailors and below Wellard in rank, calls the latter "little boy" and mocks him, Archie gives him a pretty epic shout-down. And when Captain Sawyer has Wellard beaten multiple times for no good reason, the rest of the lieutenants are angry at the injustice but Archie is positively seething.

* In ''Series/HouseOfAnubis'', Fabian is often believed to be one of the nicest people in the house, as well as an EndearinglyDorky ExtremeDoormat. But if you threaten or insult Nina in his presence, he ''will'' lash out at you for it, with varying degree of anger depending on what (he thinks) you did. One of the most famous examples is when he got ''violent'' with Eddie ,after having been led to believe Eddie did something to Nina. Alfie, despite being strong, could barely hold him back, and he only stopped when Eddie promised to tell him the truth.

* In ''Series/{{Ideal}}'' Steve is part of a small gang and is the buttmonkey. At one point he snaps cuts off Cartoon Head's ear (he's got a mouse face glued on his head so think more plastic, less blood) and knocks out Psycho Paul and becomes the leader of the gang for a few episodes. It turns out he just can't keep up the tough guy facade and tries to get everybody back to normal by apologising and asking for Paul to become leader again. Paul accepts but not before removing one of his eyes. Did I mention the show is a comedy.

* Yuka Osada from ''Series/KamenRiderFaiz'' also fits into this trope at times. Normally shes quiet and polite but hurt her friends or be a bully and it won't be pretty.
* ''Series/KamenRiderZiO'''s title character, Sougo Tokiwa, is a flaky and strange high school student who wants to be a king. Despite his odd characteristics, he is genuinely a nice guy for the most part. When he discovers that his future self 50 years into the future is an EvilOverlord who rules the world with an iron fist, he does everything in his power to avert that future. Too bad the BigBad of the series doesn't allow that and wants him to go down that path so that he can steal all his potential power to become the ruler of all of time and space. To this end, he masterminds one horrible event after another to push Sougo past his DespairEventHorizon. In the final episode he succeeds in doing so and awakens all of his power. He quickly regrets that decision when he realizes that Sougo's power far exceeds his imagination and proves [[TooSpicyForYogSothoth too powerful to be stolen]], in desperation he tries to run. He doesn't get very far before Sougo sends him to the grave.

** Ben isn't ''nice'' per-see, but he certainly is [[AffablyEvil polite and well spoken]], if a little power hungry. However, mess with the people he cares about or ''dare'' try to harm the island or his people and he will get... [[UnstoppableRage ANGRY]] ([[PsychoForHire Keamy]] found this out when he killed his daughter)

* ''Series/MadMen'': Lane Pryce is quite the calm fellow, but if you press his buttons too hard, like Pete did in season 5, he will challenge you to a fist fight and he'll beat you. Pete found that out the hard way.

** Merlin. Adorable, loyal, but [[OhCrap God help you if you ever try to kill anyone he cares about, because that is the last thing you will ever do.]] His anger is sudden and his powers are fierce and he ''will'' blast you off the face of the Earth. Keep in mind that this is ''the most powerful sorcerer the world has ever known.'' If he wants to tear mountains apart, ''he can do it''. Please don't make him. He also has the highest body count in the series, can pretty much stop time, and can kill you just by looking at you. And do it with absolutely no emotion. In-Universe, he's a LethalJokeCharacter.

** Special mention must go to Aramis who is probably the friendliest, most open-minded and forgiving. He even prays for his enemies. Threaten someone he cares about (especially if that someone is [[HeterosexualLifePartners Porthos]], [[RescueRomance Queen Anne,]] [[PapaWolf the Dauphin or another child)]] and you’ll be reminded, painfully if not fatally, that he’s still a [[DanceBattler skilled, veteran soldier]],[[DualWielding a capable swordsman]] and [[FriendlySniper widely considered the best shot in France]].

** Jack Halford is a quiet, softly-spoken and wise old cop who acts as a mentor to the rest of the team... who possesses, if sufficiently roused, a fierce and at times even violent temper. Do not taunt him about his dead wife, either.

** Kimberly. A tiny wisp of a creature who doesn't appear to weigh 100 pounds, she acts like a 80s ValleyGirl more times than not, but when threatened she becomes one of the toughest rangers ever. Made even more obvious with her weapon, The Power Bow. Her arrows have been shown to be able to turn corners and navigate through trees, meaning she has what amounts to a portable rocket launcher at her disposal. Anyone watching the first season quickly rediscovers a season-long running theme. Whenever Kimberly shows up looking angry, the monster ''dies''. In one example, Kimberly arrives to find the other five Rangers incapacitated. So she single-handedly annihilates an entire army of putties ''by shooting them one-by-one with her bow'', then takes out the monster seconds later.

** Molly is generally TheQuietOne, but she called Sherlock out on his rude behavior, and calls him out on his [[WhatAnIdiot stupidity for his doing drugs. Again.]] which leads to (you guessed it) ''everyone'' being annoyed. Including John!

* ''Series/SpartacusBloodAndSand'' has the generally quiet and meek Aurelia, wife of Varro. She seems to be the only delicate flower in a ludus filled with gladiators, guards, and soldiers. Then we learn that she castrated her rapist. In the final episode she she brutally [[spoiler:stabs to death the teenager who callously ordered Varro's death]]. Even Sparty and Doctore (you know - the deadliest gladiator in the republic, and the man who trained him) are kind of squicked by her rage when they arrive on scene.

** And while [[Series/StargateSG1 Dr. Daniel Jackson]] really wants to get to know you and your culture, is a very sweet and gentle guy, and would [[ReluctantWarrior prefer not to fight]], if he has to, he will mess you up at least as badly as his career-military teammates because of his fierce determination to do the right thing. The man will NOT give up, even if he has to sacrifice himself to do it. And then he will somehow turn up alive again, because he's just that kind of person. He also calmly threatened to kill Apophis if he didn't tell him where Sha're was. The whole of the first 5 seasons is basically his equivalent of a RoaringRampageOfRevenge. He's so nice, he barely even raised his voice, he just embarked on the genocide of the species that took his wife from him. We get a first glimpse of this in a first season episode, where he and Carter are standing over an incubator of Goa'uld children. He comments that the Goa'uld will grow up and enslave humans, and Carter responds with "Yes, but if we kill them now then we're no better than they are." Jackson, after pausing for a second, seems to accept it, starts to walk away... and then he spins and fires a submachine gun burst into the incubator, killing the Goa'ulds. That's for my wife, bitch.

** Jean-Luc Picard is often underestimated when compared to other ''Franchise/StarTrek'' Captains. Sisko is a rough and tumble young Commander who evolves into a battled hardened warrior who gets his hands dirty on the ground just as well as on his custom built battleship, Janeway is always willing to step into the line of fire for her crew and Kirk is a heroic alpha male who relishes personal combat. Then you have this skinny, bald, tea drinking Frenchman who can recite Shakespeare and is one of the Federations utmost diplomats & historians. You can forgot that he has managed to:
*** Survive interacting with the highest echelons of the Klingon's deadly palace intrigue, and killed Klingons bare-handed.

** Despite having the strength of ten men and the ability to calculate frankly incredible statistics in mere seconds, ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration''[==]'s Lt. Commander Data is generally a nice, good natured, pacifistic guy, and it takes a lot to get him riled due to the whole [[TinMan no emotions thing]]. Anyone who doubts his ability to totally kick ''ass'' when necessary, however, should really, really watch the episode "Descent I & II". And "Redemption". And "The Most Toys", for that matter. Seriously just... ''don't screw with him'', okay?

---->'''Ch'Pok''': For the record, Chief O'Brien has been in two hundred and thirty five separate engagements, and Starfleet has decorated him fifteen times. I would like to have him declared an expert in the area of starship combat.\\

*** Garak is uncompromisingly polite, highly cultured, an erudite speaker but does not exude the military braggadocio that many of the Starfleet, Cardassian and Klingon officers we see on the series do. However Garak is an expert intelligence agent, willing to go well beyond what the military types see as acceptable conduct in order to fulfil his missions & goals. Garak is noted as an immensely skilled interrogator who doesn't need to rely on physical torture & assaults to unlock the secrets he desires. He is no slouch in combat however. He once held up against Worf in hand to hand combat, and when required he will not hesitate to kill anyone who stands in his path, in the most efficient manner possible.

** In "Scientific Method", there's a group of aliens that have invaded the ship un-beknown to the crew and are using them to experiment on for new advances in medical science. Janeway though is treated to headaches so painful it's like having needles boring into her brain, which there are for her. The aliens wanted to see the result of making the sweet and controlled captain, snap. The result - her taking control of the entire ship and driving it through a star to destroy the ship with the aliens on it, forcing them to leave. The crew survives, though.

* ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'': Sam Winchester - he's always got a kind word for someone shell-shocked from a brush with the supernatural, prefers to do research rather than pick locks and break faces, and will most certainly fuck you up if you even think about hurting his older brother. Just ask Gordon Walker [[spoiler:(beheaded with barbed wire)]] or the Crossroads Demon [[spoiler:(shot in the head)]] .

** Nobuharu Udo/Kyoryu Blue of ''Series/ZyudenSentaiKyoryuger'' may be the show's PluckyComicRelief but in battle he's probably the most vicious fighter on the team. Within the first couple of episodes we see him shoot {{Mooks}} to death while they're struggling on the ground and stabbing them [[GroinAttack in the crotch]] with the nasty metal spikes on his shield.

* ''Series/TerminatorTheSarahConnorChronicles'': Just about everyone who encounters the Connors ends up thinking that [[RobotGirl Cameron]] is an odd but otherwise docile girl. And she stays that way, unless someone threatens the Connors. Then she shows them just why she is known as a Terminator.

** In the South American Adventure Special, James points out: 1) He is afraid of heights, 2) He doesn't like it when the others deliberately rear-end him, 3) they will be driving along a very narrow road adjacent to a very long drop, and 4) he is carrying a 3' long machete, which adds up to 10) [[spoiler:if one of them rear-ends him on that road, he will castrate the offending party]]. Then Jeremy rear-ends him accidentally, the great oaf....

* Stefan and Bonnie of ''Series/TheVampireDiaries''. They may be nice, caring and compassionate, but don't mess with them and the people they care about.

** On a geo-political level, don't mess with people who are weaker than you or President Bartlet will remind you that most of the world is weaker than the United States Military.

* Eric Gotts from ''Series/{{Wonderfalls}}'' was by far the nicest, least obnoxious and least ridiculous of the main characters, but when his cheating ex-wife turned up, he was downright vicious to her, including throwing a glass across the room, narrowly missing her head.

->'''Josh:''' ''(points at Drake)'' You!\\

* ''Series/DrakeAndJosh'': Josh Nichols is the series ButtMonkey, but very decent and caring. But give him an authority of power like a teacher and see [[SadistTeacher what he can become]], as Megan learned. In another episode, when Drake makes him miss his important chemistry exam, [[UnstoppableRage he angrily tries to beat him up on the spot]].

* ''Series/DrakeAndJosh'': Josh Nichols is the series ButtMonkey, but very decent and caring. But give him an authority of power like a teacher and see [[SadistTeacher what he can become]], as Megan learned.