History Main / SympathyForTheDevil

* In ''Literature/ThePhantomOfTheOpera'', Christine cries with Erik/The Phantom after learning that, because of his deformity, even his own mother couldn't bear to touch him without a mask on.

* ''Fanfic/{{Luminosity}}'''s Chelsea is unquestionably evil. [[BadPowersBadPeople Her power]] is to MindControl people into [[MindRape loving people of her choosing or feeling nothing for people they once loved]], and she uses it regularly. [[StepfordSmiler Then the story goes on.]] [[spoiler:[[MadnessMantra "Everyone must love me."]]]]
* The Horde-aligned protagonist of ''Fanfic/TravelsThroughAzerothAndOutland'' has this attitude towards the Alliance.

* In the [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic MLP]] fanfic ''Fanfic/WhatHaveYouDone'' and the sequel ''Even As..'', Twilight sees ''Discord'' as just like her, another abandoned creature after she crosses the DespairEventHorizon when she is alienated from her friends and family due to the Canterlot Wedding. [[spoiler: She decides that Discord does not deserve being in stone, and uses a stone reversal spell to set him free.]]

* ''Fanfic/TheTwilightChild'': Even after all she's done to them, the Cutie Mark Crusaders try to reach out to Diamond Tiara after she's been on the receiving end of a TheReasonYouSuckSpeech. Diamond Tiara's response is to scream and swear at them until they go away.
* ''Fanfic/HopeForTheHeartless'' is about [[PurityPersonified Avalina's]] growing [[MoralityPet compassion]] towards the [[VillainProtagonist the Horned King]] as much as it's about the [[ImpossibleTask chance]] for [[RedemptionQuest redemption]] the [[ResurrectedForAJob resurrected]] BigBad of ''WesternAnimation/TheBlackCauldron'' has been given unexpectedly.
* ''Fanfic/TheUltimateEvil'': Valerie Payne cannot help but feel sad for Shendu who's trapped as a lifeless spirit in the [[PrisonDimension Netherworld]] at the end, for she acknowledges that while he has done horrible things, [[VillainousCrush he loves her]] and [[MoralityPet committed some of his acts for her]].

* In the ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'' fanfic ''Heptagonal Ring'', during a battle the protagonists attempt to empathize with Keira, a Gardevoir who is incapable of feeling empathy. Due to her inability to feel it, she openly reprimands them for even trying and convinces them attacking her is the only way for them to get what they want.
-->'''Keira''': Shed no tears for the devil, for she shall shed no tears for you. You want your happy ending? Then show me you deserve it.
* ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/10086097/1/Only-human Only Human]]'': In this ''WesternAnimation/{{Frozen|2013}}'' fanfic, while Elsa, Anna, and Kristoff acknowledge that Hans has done horrible things to them, the fact that his family would casually condemn him to slave merchants [[EveryoneHasStandards is downright sickening]], [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone and they begin to question if sending him back to such an abusive household was really a good idea.]] As a result, they feel pity for him.
* Downplayed in ''Fanfic/{{Infinity}}''. Lindy hates Precia for all the horrible things she did to Fate, but she gives her a single glance of sympathy when she learns that [[spoiler:[[BigBad Enlil]] is possessing the corpse of Precia's daughter Alicia ([[IHaveYourWife essentially holding her hostage]]).]]
* Victoria pities [[VideoGame/DragonAgeInquisition Calpernia]] during their one and only meeting, in ''[[Fanfic/TwiceUponAnAge All This Sh*t is Twice as Weird]]'', when she realizes that the other woman is actually quite well-meaning and thoroughly devastated by the betrayal that Victoria reveals to her. They part company, each leaving the other unharmed.
* In ''Fanfic/FalloutEquestriaProjectHorizons'', Blackjack, saint of the Wasteland, often spares people against her better judgement based on their sob stories. She gets it thrown in her face a lot, especially by her friends, who note that she gets backstabbed a ''lot'' more than the average pony. When it finally comes to an absolute, unredeemable ''bastard'', she finally snaps and melts him.
* ''Fanfic/BelatedBattleships'': New Jersey has no love for communists whatsoever, but even she admits to admiring the way the People's Liberation Army Navy suffered massive losses holding the line while the Chinese evacuated inland.
* Invoked in the ''Film/{{Descendants}}'' fic "[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13333410/1/The-Heart-of-Auradon-A-Descendants-One-Shot The Heart of Auradon]]", looking at the death of Carlos de Vil; once the initial grief has passed, Ben immediately asks to make arrangements for Cruella to be allowed off the island at least long enough to attend his funeral, and his mother agrees that it would be too cruel to deny a mother the chance to say goodbye to her son no matter what she's done in the past.
* In ''Fanfic/MyMother'', regardless of what she learns about Anakin's actions as Darth Vader, Padme refuses to stop loving the good man her husband was before his fall to the Dark Side.
* ''Fanfic/LovedAndLost'': Despite all the cruelties he puts everyone through, the heroes, especially the three alicorn princesses, are saddened in the epilogue that they were unable to redeem [[spoiler:Princess Cadance's [[EvilAllAlong all along rotten]] cousin Prince Jewelius]] before he received his [[KarmicDeath well-earned end]] [[JustDesserts in the teeth of]] the vengeful [[spoiler:Changelings]].
** When [[KnightTemplar Commander Hildread]] is defeated, Shining Armor feels sorry for the mare who hates him, for despite being sadistic and delusional, she does believe in keeping Equestria safe through extreme methods.
--->'''Shining Armor''': [[YouCouldHaveUsedYourPowersForGood You really could've been a good protector of Equestria.]] Maybe someday, you'll learn the error of your ways and I'll be waiting.
* ''Fanfic/TheManyDatesOfDannyFenton'': [[spoiler: Tucker and Jazz have some degree of sympathy for [[WesternAnimation/{{Animaniacs}} Katie Kaboom]], even though they feel Danny was in the right with what he said.]]
* In ''Fanfic/TheNewManAnAdamSmasherSI'', the tile character's music career manages to make Kerry Eurodyne somewhat sympathetic towards him despite having killed his old friend Johnny Silverhand out of a misguided belief that the full-borg is a soulful individual whose sudden music career is his way of expressing decades of emotional pain. The same goes for Red Menace of the Us Cracks, who happens to think that [[SilverFox his new look is pretty hot]].
* ''Fanfic/ARabbitAmongWolves'': Blake mourns Adam's death at the hands of Jaune, believing he still could've changed his ways, and curses the latter for doing the deed.
* ''Fanfic/UsAndThem'': Jessie from ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'' starts to get this after spending time with [[spoiler: Rufus]], finding out they share some of the same interests, [[spoiler: and getting hints about the abuse he suffered at the hands of his father]].
* In ''Fanfic/YourAlicornIsInAnotherCastle'', a ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'' and ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'' CrossoverFic by Creator/{{Estee}}, when Bowser begins to explain how his "Princess Kidnapping Business" works to Twilight Sparkle, he starts by showing her his "Cutie Mark": a crown wrapped in chains and ready to be dragged away. The implications utterly horrify Twilight.
-->She wanted to cry. [[RageAgainstTheHeavens She wanted to find whatever had been responsible for inflicting that kind of future upon him and kick it into the lava]], with her tears adding steam to the plumes of ash. "...I'm ''sorry''... I'm so '''sorry'''..."
* In the ''VideoGame/FireEmblemThreeHouses'' fic ''[[https://archiveofourown.org/works/20672084/chapters/49094528 Who We Are, And What We Are Meant To Be]]'', when the time comes to besiege Shambhala, Claude can't help but feel pity for the Agarthans who spent over a millennium being raised on nothing but hatred and vengeance. He hopes to try to reintegrate them into Fódlan society after the war.

* ''Fanfic/DannyPhantomStranded'': Despite Richard being disgusted with his wife's actions during "Visited" and seeing how much Beatrice acted like an AbusiveParent to both their daughter and granddaughter. This includes Beatrice trying to forcefully set their granddaughter Star with Donovan Loadman, a Jerkass who was willing to hit her and take Donovan's side over they are granddaughters' side Star. As well as Beatrice mistreats Danny, Star's ACTUAL boyfriend, due to him being middle class, going so far as to take Donovan's side when he hits Star and Danny tries to defend Star. And how Beatrice also previously abused their former son-in-law, Johnathan, and refuses to believe that she did anything wrong, Richard still refuses to divorce his wife.
** Richard admits that he feels some responsibility for Beatrice because he believes that his being a HenpeckedHusband is what led her to run wild as she did. He refuses to divorce her because he believes he holds partial responsibility for her actions and has old-fashioned views on marriage. However, he does admit that he pities his wife, noting that for all her talk and obsession over wealth, class, and status, Beatrice never seemed to be truly happy or satisfied with what she had. Even with the many luxuries she had and his giving her anything she asked for, she was rarely happy, and even to this day, she is still not content or happy.

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheMouseholeCat'' Mowzer comes to pity the Great Storm Cat after realising how lonely he must be.

--->'''Unico:''' I'm sorry that you're full of.. [[ThePowerOfHate so much hate]].

* Similarly, ''Manga/BlackLagoon'' is full of sympathetic devils. The only exceptions that come to mind are the Neo-Nazis (who are misguided and comical) and Chaka.
* [[spoiler:When Aizen is finally defeated]] in ''Manga/{{Bleach}}'', Ichigo is only able to feel pity for him [[spoiler:after sensing the soul-crushing loneliness that ultimately drove Aizen's delusions of godhood.]]
** Before that, there was [[TheStoic Ulquiorra's]] intense, emotional death scene, during which his (now former) captive [[MessianicArchetype Orihime]] [[spoiler: reassures him that she's not afraid of him and tries to hold his hand as he disintegrates.]] This is reinforced a few chapters later when Ichigo notes that she's been rather upset about the Arrancar's death, especially when compared to his surviving comrade (whose reaction can be summed up as "oh, he's dead?").

''I'll pray for you tonight''\\

* In the original ''VideoGame/ShadowHearts'', as Yuri and the party find out more about Roger Bacon[[spoiler:'s impostor, Albert Simon]], they start to feel this way towards him. The final battle with him is as rivals deciding the course the world should take, rather than a showdown between Good and Evil... and when he loses, he uses the last of his power before dying to send Yuri and his friends to destroy the Meta God, keeping his word that, win or lose, both sides would accept the consequences and there would be no hard feelings.
** The sequel takes it even further, with most of the antagonists being at least somewhat sympathetic. The Final Boss, in fact, could probably have finished his plans without interference if he hadn't told Yuri and company when and where to meet him.

* ''Manga/{{InuYasha}}'': After [[EmotionlessGirl Kanna]] dies as part of her [[SuicideMission final mission]] from Naraku, Kagome cries for her, having realized that Kanna truly had emotions and didn't want to die.
* Jonathan Joestar in Part I of ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure'' had every reason to hate Dio Brando. Despite everything, he still shed tears when he apparently defeated Dio. Even after Dio mortally wounded him, Jonathan's last act was to embrace Dio's head, acknowledging that he still considered Dio his brother.

* ''Anime/YuGiOhARCV'':

* ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'': In Season 4, Willow ends up feeling this way for Spike after he's [[RestrainingBolt chipped]] by [[CreatureHunterOrganization the Initiative]], rendering him unable to harm humans or hunt for blood, to the extent that in "Doomed," she refuses to let him [[DrivenToSuicide stake himself]]. A stark contrast to Buffy and Xander, who have absolutely NoSympathy for Spike and actively enjoy taunting him; Buffy even asks Willow ''why'' Spike staking himself would be a bad thing.

* ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'': In the episode "Skin of Evil", both Picard and Troi express their sympathy for Armus for spending untold eons on a dead planet in pain and rage after his creators abandoned him, while nevertheless acknowledging that he is a [[MadeOfEvil malevolent liquid of pure evil]].

* In Season 5 of ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'', [[{{Satan}} Lucifer]] tries this multiple times: with Sam at the beginning of the season [[spoiler:after appearing as Jess, Sam's dead girlfriend]], with Dean when Zachariah [[Recap/SupernaturalS05E04TheEnd sends him]] into the [[BadFuture future]], and with Castiel in "[[Recap/SupernaturalS05E10AbandonAllHope Abandon All Hope...]]" while he has Cas trapped in a ring of holy fire. Subverted in that none of these attempts work. Dean even name-drops the trope when calling Lucifer out on his "sympathy for the Devil crap". He does succeed when he pulls this on Nick to get him to say yes, since he couldn't get Sam -- the episode itself was aptly named "Sympathy for the Devil".

-->'''Riku''': [[spoiler:Goodbye, father.]]

-->I kinda liked your son, you know. [[TheFamilyThatSlaysTogether All things considered]], he was [[WhiteSheep a pretty decent kid]]. And it grinds me that no one ever spoke up for him. Seems to me that now nobody ever will.[[/folder]]

* AllLovingHero Astro has this for several villains in the [[Anime/AstroBoy 2003 series]], most notably Guff, Atlas, and Pluto. Astro's kindness is a big factor in several characters having a HeelRealization.

* This causes Emi a great deal of grief in ''LightNovel/TheDevilIsAPartTimer''. She's spent most of her life training to slay the demon lord, only to find out that he's genuinely a nice guy and has become a productive member of society upon ending up in Japan. Over the course of the light novels, she comes to view him as a friend [[spoiler: and eventually falls in love with him]].

[[folder:Films — Animation]]
* [[InvokedTrope Invoked]] in ''WesternAnimation/TheBadGuys''. When the gang is arrested for attempting to steal the Good Samaritan Award, Mr. Wolf claims nobody had ever given him and his friends a chance to be anything other than criminals. Professor Marmalade, the award's recipient, takes pity on them and comes up with the idea to have the gang rehabilitated at his compound instead of going to jail. Mr. Wolf is playing him, hoping to use the pretense to get another chance at stealing the trophy.

** Loki often tries to make people feel sorry for him to get away with a lot. He's also a user of NotMeThisTime, [[SocietyIsToBlame blame the Asgardians]], and [[YouCantFightFate I'm unworthy/sorry/cursed, forgive me]].

* ''Series/JessicaJones'':

* ''Film/GodzillaVsDestoroyah'' : The titular King of Monsters has absorbed too much radiation from an explosion in Film/GodzillaVsSpaceGodzilla, and his body is now melting down. After going through a TraumaCongaLine with his son dying, his body being frozen, and a couple rounds with the monster Destoroyah, he finally reaches the breaking point and [[SuperpowerMeltdown melts down]]. Despite all of the destruction Godzilla has caused over the years, the human protagonists can't help but feel remorse for his passing.
--> '''Miki Saegusa''': I think this is going to be Godzilla's last fight.

* ''Webcomic/KillSixBillionDemons'': Mammon is a mighty dragon who controls more wealth than anyone else in the Multiverse... [[spoiler:And is a broken old man suffering from dementia and blindness. He spends all his time counting the money in his vault, trying to remember why he cared about it and wallowing in guilt over destroying his family to get it, to the point [[PleaseKillMeIfItSatisfiesYou that he willingly offers his throat to Allison]].]] All of his followers are adventurers who came to his vault to slay or rob him, only to find him so sad and pathetic that they couldn’t go through with it, to Mammon’s confusion.

* In ''Fanfic/TheNewManAnAdamSmasherSI'', the tile character's music career manages to make Kerry Eurodyne somewhat sympathetic towards him despite having killed his old friend Johnny Silverhand out of a misguided belief that his soulful music reveals deeper feelings to the full-borg. The same goes for Red Menace of the Us Cracks, who happens to think that [[SilverFox his new look is pretty hot]].

* At the ending of ''Fanfic/TheUltimateEvil'', Valerie Payne cannot help but feel sad for Shendu who's trapped as a lifeless spirit in the [[PrisonDimension Netherworld]], for she acknowledges that while he has done horrible things, [[VillainousCrush he loves her]] and [[MoralityPet committed some of his acts for her]].

* Thanks to their OddFriendship and FriendlyRivalry, Sherlock Holmes of ''Manga/MoriartyThePatriot'' wants to stop Professor William James Moriarty from murdering people to save William from the weight of his own sins.

* Simon and Viral in ''Anime/TengenToppaGurrenLagann'', particularly in the final arcs.
** Not to mention both pre-timeskip Lord Genome and the Anti-Spiral, who, despite being mortal enemies, are both using the same basic strategy of tyranny to protect what they love (humanity from the Anti-Spiral for Lord Genome, the universe from humanity for the Anti-Spiral).

* Unico the Baby Unicorn from Creator/OsamuTezuka's ''Unico'' series, is an AllLovingHero who strongly prefers being non-violent and encouraging kindness, love, and happiness with others. This even extends to antagonists and villains where the protagonist would openly pity them (especially after learning their backstory or their purpose) and tries being friends with them. Even apologizing after [[MartialPacifist reluctantly forced to use violence as a last resort]] usually when Unico's close to death. As seen in the 2000 short ''Anime/SavingOurFragileEarthUnicoSpecialChapter'', he expresses sympathy for a demon monster made out of humanity's carelessness with the environment and successfully befriends him. When he's almost crushed to death, he's forced to burn the demon's hand to free himself to have a peaceful conversation with him. Fortunately, Unico manages to convience the demon "That not all humans are careless with the enviroment" and gives humanity a second chance, but wishes him that they shall never meet again.
--->'''Unico:''' Poor thing. (starts burning his arm)
* Yuya of ''Anime/YuGiOhARCV'' is pretty empathetic of other people, given his role as an entertainer. Many of the villains are ChildSoldiers, or victims that live their lives by the whims of the villains, so Yuya tries to bring them joy and entertainment. This is most notable during the Battle Beast arc, where he encourages the titular Beast to turn against his oppressors and live a peaceful life, without suffering.

* In ''Manga/YuYuHakusho'', Koenma expresses sympathy for Younger Toguro after the latter chooses a hellish afterlife followed by CessationOfExistence due to lingering SurvivorGuilt. He wonders if beneath the BloodKnight exterior, Younger Toguro was just a sad man with a broken dream.

* Comes at the climax of ''ComicBook/AnyasGhost.'' Unpopular high-school girl Anya has discovered that the teen ghost girl Emily she met in the bottom of a well, who claims that she was chased into the well by her family's murderer and fell to her death, actually was chased into the forest by an angry mob after [[IfICantHaveYou locking the man who rejected her and his lover in their cabin and setting it ablaze,]] and fell to her death in the well. Emily claims that [[NotSoDifferentRemark the two of them are the same in that they both are selfish when it comes to getting what they want, whether it be love or good grades or popularity,]] but Anya [[ShutUpHannibal pulls her back down into the well by dropping one of Emily's bones into the hole.]] When Emily takes over her own skeleton and drags herself out, Anya pauses, stops running away, and admits to Emily that they actually ''are'' similar, but only because they assume the people they're envious of have perfect lives, despite not being able to know what's actually going on inside someone else's mind. She tenderly tells Emily that what she wants, the chance to live again vicariously through Anya, doesn't even exist. [[TearsOfRemorse Emily sheds silent tears]] and dissipates herself into the night sky.

* A one-shot story by Jim Starlin has ComicBook/{{Daredevil}} and ComicBook/BlackWidow go up against a serial killer named Rose who has murdered at ''least'' 40 telepaths. When Rose captures Natasha, it is revealed that Rose is a telepath herself and that as a child she was sexually abused by her father while her mother refused to believe her. Eventually, Rose's mother was killed by her father which caused Rose to snap and use her powers to make him commit suicide. When she discovered other telepaths existed she began a killing spree because she "wanted to be special". Despite the depravity of Rose's crimes, the fact that one of her victims was an old friend of Natasha's and that Natasha herself kills Rose, the Russian spy cannot help but shed tears over how a little girl was twisted and broken into becoming such a monster. That Rose was sharing her memories with Natasha telepathically might have contributed to Natasha's reaction.
* Franchise/TheDCU: First shown in Creator/NeilGaiman's ''ComicBook/TheSandman'' and then later confirmed in [[ComicBook/{{Lucifer}} his own title]], [[{{Satan}} Lucifer]], the Prince of Hell, is actually not that bad a guy once you get to know him. Sure, he's bitter about how God's treated him over the last several billion years, he's arrogant, he's a bit of an [[{{Jerkass}} asshole]], but he's not the soul-stealer Christianity and Islam would have you believe he was.
* An ambiguous case appears in ''ComicBook/LexLuthorManOfSteel''. After the events of the series, Lex Luthor confronts Superman, who looks as if he's barely restraining himself from attacking Luthor, and delivers TheReasonYouSuckSpeech about how everyone in Metropolis wanted to see [[spoiler: Toyman]] be killed for his (suspected) actions, and how the fact that Superman in fact rescued him will be enough to turn people against him. He doesn't say anything, but for just one panel Superman's angry expression disappears and he looks at Luthor with sadness. It's never made clear whether Luthor's speech has hit a nerve or whether Superman, for just a moment, pities Luthor for his nihilistic and ultimately bleak view of humanity.
* Marvel's Loki uses this trope all the time to get away with a lot, although he's genuinely sympathetic (as jerks go). He's also a user of NotMeThisTime, [[SocietyIsToBlame Blame the Asgardians]], and [[YouCantFightFate I'm unworthy/sorry/cursed, forgive me]]. Ironically, he's usually at least mostly honest.
** ''ComicBook/TheMightyThor'' cries for his ArchEnemy and [[CainAndAbel adopted little brother]] when Loki sacrifices himself at the end of {{ComicBook/Siege}} to save Asgard from his own backfiring scheme.
** This goes even further when Loki gets a HeelFaceTurn that involves dying, resurrecting as a child, stealing said child's body, and more. During this chapter, Loki's antagonised by an older version of themselves who, they find out, is Loki in the future after having given up on their HeelFaceTurn due to a perceived ReformedButRejected status. Despite the fact they literally torture Loki, publicly humiliates them and outs their worst crime, inducing the aforementioned rejection early, and generally ruins Loki's life, Loki ends the series comforting their older self, who will now no longer exist because Loki has avoided turning into them. They understand that all Old "King" Loki wanted was to be loved but was so hurt by the world they felt ThenLetMeBeEvil was necessary, and Loki spares them from non-existence by merging part of them into themselves.

* In Season 10 of ''Machinima/RedVsBlue'', the Reds and Blues spend the entire season trying to take down [[BigBad the Director]] and even [[spoiler: fight an army of Tex robots to get to him.]] When [[spoiler: Carolina and Church]] finally reach him, however, [[spoiler: Carolina finds him so broken and miserable that she can't bring herself to kill him.]] This may have more to do with [[spoiler: him being a terrible father and her allowing herself to let go of her own demons than actually granting him mercy,]] but it is certainly an example of this when [[spoiler: he asks her to leave [[DrivenToSuicide him her pistol]] and she does so with barely a word.]]

* Unico the Baby Unicorn from Creator/OsamuTezuka's ''Unico'' series, is an AllLovingHero who strongly prefers being non-violent and encouraging kindness, love, and happiness with others. This even extends to antagonists and villains where the protagonist would openly pity them (especially after learning their backstory or their purpose) and tries being friends with them. Even apologizing after [[MartialPacifist reluctantly forced to use violence as a last resort]] usually when Unico's close to death. As seen in the 2000 short ''Anime/SavingOurFragileEarthUnicoSpecialChapter'', he expresses sympathy for a demon monster made out of humanity's carelessness with the enviroment and successfully befriends him. When he's almost crushed to death, he's forced to burn the demon's hand to free himself to have a peaceful conversation with him.