Line #34 Main/TheIrredeemableException


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6	In settings that veer strongly towards idealism on the SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism, good and evil clash but evil rarely stays that way for long. Most villains there aren't truly all wicked, and with the right words and the right person to coax out their latent sympathies, even the most seemingly monstrous of people can be turned into good, because RousseauWasRight.
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8	Except ''THIS'' character. No matter what the hero says, no matter if there's no chance of winning, no matter if so many other characters who've done worse things have managed to come to the light, this {{Jerkass}} will never turn to good for as long as they live. As such, this trope often overlaps with RedemptionRejection. Expect EvenTheLovingHeroHasHatedOnes to apply to this character. If they are bad enough, they will likely be a VileVillainSaccharineShow, if not a CompleteMonster, as well. Always the despicable party of a SympatheticVillainDespicableVillain duo.
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10	Compare and often overlaps with BeyondRedemption, which is when in-universe characters deem them irredeemable.
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12	Since this trope concerns the final fates of villains, including those that involve death, '''spoilers be warned'''.
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14	For the comic book, see ''ComicBook/{{Irredeemable}}''.
15	----
16	!!Examples:
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18	[[foldercontrol]]
19	[[folder:Anime and Manga]]
20	* ''Manga/DrStone'': While all other antagonists got to experience DefeatMeansFriendship, Minister Ibara is such a HateSink he is the only person who got petrified by the heroes and was never heard of again.
21	* ''Manga/EdensZero'' has its fair share of villains all over the morality scale, and major arc villains will generally be unrepentant monsters that the heroes need to overcome... in normal timelines. When the protagonists get the opportunity to jump to a much kinder ultimate universe, most of the villains (even the warlord Draken Joe and the megalomaniac Shura) get the chance to be much better than they were in previous timelines. The lone exception to this is Doctor Muller, a MadDoctor who gleefully experimented on two children for his own selfish interest and is outright willing to endanger robotkind.
22	* ''Manga/FruitsBasket'' either reforms almost all of its antagonistic characters in the present day or at most develops them just enough so that they have humanizing qualities and are understandable. But there remain two characters beyond reach, who refuse to see the error of their ways and try for a better relationship with their family: Akito Sohma's mother, Ren, and Kyo Sohma's unnamed biological father, who blame their offsprings for all of their woes all the way to the end, their inner rage and insecurity having only made them worse.
23	* ''Anime/KillLaKill'' has nearly all its villains turn over a new leaf and joins Ryuko and the others in their fight to save Honnouji Academy and the world (or in the case of [[spoiler:Rei Hououmaru]], after the final battle). Ragyo Kiryuin and Nui Harime are the only two exceptions who remain evil and psychotic, and die on their own terms, [[SpitefulSuicide with Ragyo literally choosing to crush her own heart instead of]] [[RedemptionRejection accepting Ryuko's offer for redemption]].
24	* ''Anime/MagiaRecordPuellaMagiMadokaMagicaSideStory'': Consistent with the magical girl genre, the ''Franchise/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica'' franchise goes out of its way to [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold give all of its villains a humanizing side to them]], and the anime adaptations are no exception. [[spoiler:Kyubey's tricking of young girls into becoming Witches]] is [[NecessarilyEvil needed to save the universe]], [[spoiler:albeit with or without humanity]]; [[spoiler:Homura wants to make everyone happy]] in the end of ''[[Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagicaTheMovieRebellion Rebellion]]''; the Witches are either [[WellIntentionedExtremist well-intentioned]] or subject to AlternativeCharacterInterpretation[[invoked]]; and Touka and Nemu want to save Magical Girls from their eventual fate and [[spoiler:are redeemed in the ''Magia Record'' finale]]. Alina Gray, on the other hand, is an unfettered, AxCrazy sociopath who not only [[ItsAllAboutMe doesn't care in the slightest about anything but her own skin]], not even the Magius' well-intentioned goals, but she also is a DirtyCoward who will gleefully throw anyone under the bus to feed her MadArtist cravings, [[spoiler:her own planet included, and is completely unrepentant about her atrocities in the afterlife]].
25	* Jail Scaglietti, the BigBad of ''Anime/MagicalGirlLyricalNanohaStrikers'', is one of the only two antagonists who has defied the DefeatMeansFriendship mindset of the ''Franchise/LyricalNanoha'' series (the other being Precia Testarossa from the very first Nanoha, who in the TV series was a monster) and steadfastly refused to reform his criminal ways (as did three of his most loyal underlings, if primarily out of admiration for him than of their own conviction).
26	* ''Manga/PokemonAdventures'': Of all the members of the [[AdaptationalVillainy Kanto Elite Four]], [[EvilOldFolks Agatha]] is the only one who doesn't perform a HeelFaceTurn, and instead simply just escapes [[KarmaHoudini and gets away with her crimes]].
27	* ''Manga/RaveMaster'': The series emphasizes on having their antagonists having understandable motivations, tragic backgrounds, and redemptions. Shakuma [[spoiler:Raregroove]] on the other hand is one of the series most vile villains whose actions are part of the reason for the war in the first place. Upon learning this both Haru and Ellie see him as an irredeemable monster and show no hesitation in trying to kill him.
28	* ''Manga/TheSevenDeadlySins'': Despite most of the villains being everything from genocidal warlords to demonic harbingers, most of them either redeem themselves, are brainwashed pawns, or genuinely care for others. Not so with the Demon King, who tries to destroy all races other than demons and wipe out all of Britannia; Bellion, the demonic leader of the Six Knights of Black; and [[spoiler:the Supreme Deity, who tries to restart the Holy War after it ended]].
29	* ''Anime/YuGiOh'': Most of the main antagonists in the show had a sympathetic reason for their actions and underwent a HeelFaceTurn after being [[DefeatMeansFriendship defeated by the heroes]]. The sole exceptions were Yami Marik, the evil SplitPersonality of the more sympathetic Marik; Gozaburo Kaiba, Seto Kaiba's abusive foster father; and Yami Bakura/Zorc, the evil spirit of the Millenium Ring and the GreaterScopeVillain of the series.
30	[[/folder]]
31
32	[[folder:Film -- Animated]]
33	* ''WesternAnimation/AtlantisTheLostEmpire'': The expedition team to {{Atlantis}}, san [[TheProtagonist Milio Thatch]], are OnlyInItForTheMoney though many do give sympathetic reasons as to why (such as opening flower shops or helping out family). Thus it's easy for Milo to shame them for plundering a newly discovered living civilization that is ''dependent'' on the Heart of Atlantis they sought after (and thus will die if it is taken from them), and nearly all the named members undergo a HeelFaceTurn. The only exceptions are [[BigBad Commander Lyle Rourke]] and [[TheDragon Lieutenant Helga Sinclair]] who, along with their army of FacelessGoons, take the Heart of Atlantis regardless, resulting in a big climatic battle over the fate of Atlantis. And of those two, Rourke proves to be the worst as Helga actually does have second thoughts of her actions while Rourke casually sacrifices Helga to save himself and get more of the profit margin. By the film, [[DeathEqualsRedemption Helga uses her last breath to stop Rourke for his betrayal]], while Rourke dies as a crystallized, mindless monster.
34	* ''WesternAnimation/KungFuPanda4'': While the previous films' villains [[RedemptionRejection refused to change their ways]] in their respective films, they were still shown to be complex and layered characters that could potentially be capable of change if they chose to do so. In stark contrast, [[BigBad the Chameleon]] is shown upfront to lack any of the sympathetic or honorable traits that her predecessors displayed, and the previous villains -- particularly Tai Lung -- quickly [[EvenEvilHasStandards take a dislike to the Chameleon]] when she abducts them from the Spirit Realm and steals their kung fu abilities. After hearing Po's speech about the importance of change - which the Chameleon dismisses -- and then seeing him go through the trouble of restoring their kung fu abilities in spite of their enmity, the past villains all [[VillainRespect bow in respect to Po as the true Dragon Warrior]] and willingly [[FaceDeathWithDignity return to the Spirit Realm]], while also [[DraggedOffToHell taking the defeated Chameleon as their prisoner]].
35	* ''WesternAnimation/TheLionKingIISimbasPride'': The film's conflict centers around the war between the Pridelanders, Simba's pride, and the Outsiders, followers of [[PredecessorVillain the deceased Scar]], and it's resolved when [[StarcrossedLovers Kiara and Kovu]] convince both lion factions to end their feud and become one pride for peace and prosperity. But the only lion unwilling to change their ways is the [[BigBad Zira]], leader of the Outsiders and Kovu's mother. Fanatically loyal to Scar, Zira threatens to [[OffingTheOffspring kill her children]] for refusing to fight ([[EvenEvilHasStandards which prompts the rest of the Outsiders to turn against her]]) and then immediately attacks Simba, only to end up hanging precariously on the edge of the gorge above a torrent river. Despite [[SaveTheVillain Kiara's attempt to save her]], Zira tries to attack her but ends up [[DisneyVillainDeath falling into a torrent river]] where she is swept away and drowned. A DeletedScene would shown that [[SpitefulSuicide Zira deliberately lets go to spite Kiara]], swearing that she will never accept the aid of a Pridelander.
36	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Luca}}'': All the inhabitants of Portorosso are convinced to stop killing sea creatures when Luca and Alberto win the race, except Ercole Visconti.
37	* ''Franchise/{{Shrek}}'':
38	** At the end of ''WesternAnimation/ShrekTheThird'' when the villains are about to kill Shrek, Artie gives them a speech about how they don't have to be evil and can choose to do whatever they want. All of them have a HeelFaceTurn except for Prince Charming who still tries to attack.
39	** ''WesternAnimation/PussInBootsTheLastWish'': Puss faces three antagonists in his pursuit of the Wishing Star: Goldilocks (and the Three Bears), [[Characters/PussInBootsJackHorner "Big"/"Little" Jack Horner]], and [[TheGrimReaper Death]]. Puss, Goldilocks, and Jack want to get the titular wish for their own selfish desires, and Death wants to kill Puss due to how much he disregarded his previous lives. In the end, both Puss and Goldilocks give up their wish, since their journeys through the forest as well as their CharacterDevelopment have made them realize that they don't need their wishes. As for Death, he comes to realize that Puss' journey has genuinely changed the cat's outlook on life and lets him live the rest of his days in peace. The only character who never gets any sort of redemption is Big Jack Horner, who revels in his vileness throughout the entire journey, to the point that the Ethical Bug serving as Jack's "conscience" eventually gives up looking for any good in him and decries Jack as a monster, and indeed, he is the only one of the villains to die.
40	* ''WesternAnimation/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtlesMutantMayhem'': The Mutants are aiming to wipe out humanity and take over the Earth; however, they are largely AffablyEvil, being sincerely overjoyed upon meeting the TMNT and wanting to welcome them into their FamilyOfChoice. While the Turtles are able to appeal to the majority's better nature and help them realize that destroying humanity won't actually make them ''happy'', [[spoiler:Superfly]] refuses to be swayed.
41	* ''Franchise/ToyStory'': Most of the antagonists in this franchise have positive qualities and end up either turning over a new leaf, or were just [[HarmlessVillain never particularly threatening to start with]]. Sid is now a harmless and fairly well-adjusted garbage collector, Zurg and the other Buzz form a good father-son relationship, both Stinky Pete and Gabby Gabby found kids who were willing to own them and love them, Ken, Big Baby, and all the other Sunnyside toys all change their ways, the Cleric is last seen silently reconsidering his prior beliefs, and even Al gets off lightly for his misdemeanor, staying in business but as a Dollar Store now. Lotso Huggin' Bear, meanwhile, refuses to repent and rejects the chance at redemption and finding a new home with Woody and the other toys when it's offered to him, instead leaving them to burn in the incinerator. Because of this, he's hit hard with karma for his actions in the form of an ironic FateWorseThanDeath.
42	* Inverted in ''WesternAnimation/TreasurePlanet'' where BigBad John Silver, being far more sympathetic, is the only villain in the movie to actually be redeemed, while all of his ''henchmen'', especially his second-in-command, Scroop, are instead portrayed as irredeemable scumballs, though the surviving henchmen all seem to be genuinely grateful towards Jim for saving their lives despite being in custody.
43	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Trolls}}'': At the end of the movie, all the Bergens learn they can be happy without eating trolls, except Chef, who insists on eating trolls being the only way to be happy.
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45
46	[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
47	* ''Franchise/KamenRider'':
48	** ''Series/KamenRiderFourze'': Hiroki Makise/Pyxis Zodiarts is Yuki's [[PsychopathicManchild psycho]] StalkerWithACrush who uses his powers to bolster his obsession. He uses his MindOverMatter powers to toy with Yuki's emotions by seemingly destroying the locker leading to the Rabbit Hutch and later uses it to try and drive a bus full of Amanogawa school girls off of an unfinished bridge because they rejected him. It gets to the point where [[FriendToAllLivingThings Gentaro]] pointedly decides ''not'' to [[DefeatMeansFriendship offer his hand in friendship to Makise]] and [[DoWithHimAsYouWill lets the girls give Makise his comeuppance]].
49	** ''Series/KamenRiderZiO'': Most of the Another Riders in the original series that aren't previous villains from the franchise turn out to have been nice people or at least not eager for world domination, merely being brainwashed by the Anotherwatches. Even the villains who set them up to begin with, the Time Jackers, eventually turn good or at least mellow out despite everything once they get exposed to the idea of a normal life through various means. However, Hiryu Kakogawa/Another Zi-O stands out as the sole exception; despite initially being a victim of BigBad Swartz's manipulations, it becomes clear that he does not actually care about being a pawn and spends the entire series critically wounding the (now-freed) Anotherwatch holders and using Swartz to alter history to power himself up out of pure, NotBrainwashed spite towards protagonist Sougo Tokiwa. After his final defeat in the main series, he is last seen knocked out cold, with both sides completely apathetic to his well-being. When he returns in the AlternateContinuity stage show ''Final Stage'', he is portrayed as a BornInTheWrongCentury loser on top of all of his previous crimes and personality traits that Sougo decides to ''kill outright'' after he tries to power up one last time.
50	** ''Series/KamenRiderRevice'': Among the Deadmans trio, Olteca is the only one not given any redeeming qualities and his reason for villainy doesn’t make him sympathetic. As such, while Aguilera and Julio are EasilyForgiven and allowed to become atoners, Olteca gets locked away in prison for the rest of the show, escaping in the post-show media.
51	* ''Series/OddSquad'': A majority of the series' {{Big Bad}}s tend to be redeemed by the end of their respective seasons, with Odd Todd going through a HeelFaceReturn, Otis's adoptive duck family reforming and apologizing to him, The Shadow reconciling with her sister and departing with her to fix the damage she caused, and Olando deciding to stay in the present time instead of going back to the past. The only BigBad who ''doesn't'' get reformed, however, is Ohlm, who, after being defeated by Olympia, Oona, Otis, and Oprah, declares his intent to never stop until Odd Squad is down on its knees and [[GoToYourRoom gets dragged straight home to be grounded]] as a result.
52	* In ''Series/OnceUponATime'', the {{Big Bad}}s are almost always either [[HeelFaceTurn redeemed outright]] or go unredeemed while still having [[FreudianExcuse tragic backstories]] that make you understand them and positive traits such as [[EvenEvilHasLovedOnes love for others]]. That is, ''except'' for Peter Pan, who [[spoiler:is just a selfish manchild who abandoned his child to make a DealWithTheDevil to gain eternal youth, always resented said child because he irrationally blamed him for his wife's supposed death which saddled him with the responsibility of parenthood, and is gleefully willing to manipulate, hurt or kill anyone, even his own family members, to get what he wants]].
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54
55	[[folder:Video Games]]
56	* ''VideoGame/BlueArchive'' has Beatrice. While most of the villains in the game are either too comedic, too tragic, are too detached from reality itself or have redeeming qualities, Beatrice is one of the vilest villains to ever come out from a waifu gacha, taking [[BreakTheCutie breaking the cuties]] to extremes by [[spoiler:turning the students of Arius into horrific, heartless killers through frequent physical ''and'' verbal abuse. At the end, she even seeks to sacrifice Atsuko to ascend to godhood]]. It's telling when the other members of [[spoiler:Gematria decide to execute her when they find out she's working with the Chroma]].
57	* ''VideoGame/DanganronpaAnotherEpisodeUltraDespairGirls'': [[EnfantTerrible The Warriors of Hope]] are all established to be [[AbusiveParents horrifically abused by their families]] to the point that [[DrivenToSuicide they once planned a group suicide]], and all of them are eventually treated sympathetically by the narrative and become allies of the Future Foundation by the end. That is, except for Monaca, who boasts about having no intention of going through with her companions' SuicidePact, is the most gung-ho about continuing to spread the ideals of the [[NebulousEvilOrganization Ultimate Despair]], and is openly condemned by both the protagonists and her own former allies.
58	* ''VideoGame/DragaliaLost'': When it comes to most of the villains of the main campaign, almost all of them end up redeeming themselves in the end (Morsayati at least has an excuse for not doing so, being MadeOfEvil and all). All of Euden's siblings end up changing their ways and learning to become better people and actually start to aid Euden in the end. [[EvilTwin Nedrick]] is quite sympathetic, and eventually comes to a common ground to become the EleventhHourRanger. Even the Agito and Beren are implied to have undergone {{Heel Face Turn}}s in the end. The only antagonist from the main campaign who never redeems himself is [[BigBad Xenos]], who is stuck in his own personal opinions of how HumansAreBastards and that [[TheEvilsOfFreeWill taking away their free will is the only way for people to prosper]]. Euden repeatedly tells him that not every single human is evil and that they can come together with him. Xenos refuses to listen, and when he inevitably gets defeated, Euden says that it's because no matter what he did, Xenos just wouldn't bond with humans, and that his refusal to see humanity for the good that it really is is what led to his downfall.
59	* [[SmugSnake Livius Erimond]] in ''VideoGame/DragonAgeInquisition'' stands out among the game's {{arc villain}}s in being a total HateSink; while the rest of them, even those who do despicable things, have some sympathetic motivations or chance at redemption, Erimond gets no such treatment. He is notably the only one who cannot be recruited by the Inquisition at his judgment under any circumstances. It's also telling that ''no one'' in your party will disapprove of your decision to execute him.
60	-->'''Cassandra:''' What of magister Erimond? Do you sense a secret pain in him?\
61	'''[[EvenTheLovingHeroHasHatedOnes Cole]]:''' [[PrecisionFStrike No. Erimond is an asshole]].
62	* ''VideoGame/FireEmblemThreeHouses'' is a game about people having different motives and justifiable reasons to be against each other. Every main character has a route dedicated to them so you can side with them and see their perspective. ''Except'' for the underground organisation "Those who slither in the dark", who have no route dedicated to them and are generally nothing more than evil conflict starters. Though they might've had some sympathy back around one-thousand years ago, it has completely disappeared by the time the game takes place, where they view humanity living on the surface as below them in their quest for revenge and use them for their own gains, such as killing in mass slaughter to enact instability or perform experiments on them, especially [[WouldHurtAChild children]].
63	* ''VideoGame/HyruleWarriorsAgeOfCalamity'' features a playable roster of characters that are primarily unlocked through the game's narrative, which culminates to all playable characters partaking the FinalBattle against Calamity Ganon and his dark forces of demons. This means that villains like [[spoiler:Master Kohga, Sooga, and the Yiga Clan]] have underwent a HeelFaceTurn to [[EnemyMine fight a common enemy with the Hyrulean forces]]. The sole exception is Astor, Ganon's evil prophet of doom. Despite having a unique moveset in the game, he is not playable in any fashion due to being an irredeemable, treacherous bastard who sticks with Ganon to the very end. Even Calamity Ganon, the BigBad of the game, can be unlocked as a playable character, albeit in the post-story mode with in-game text hinting it's a [[CapturedSuperEntity sealed and somewhat tamed version of Ganon]] serving the Hyrulean forces.
64	* ''VideoGame/InazumaEleven'': While the majority of the antagonists, from rival teams to the {{Arc Villain}}s themselves get redeemed or at least grow to appreciate the fun of soccer more and show more respect to the main heroes, a couple of them like [[BigBad Garshield Bayhan]], Kenzaki Ryuuichi and all the members of Makai Gundan Z (led by Desuta) remain evil until the end.
65	* ''Franchise/{{Kirby}}''
66	** ''VideoGame/KirbySuperStar'': Out of all the {{final boss}}es in each sub-game, [[spoiler:Marx from ''Milky Way Wishes'']] is the only character who's actually evil. King Dedede is [[TheRival Kirby's rival]], Dyna Blade is [[MonsterIsAMommy trying to feed her babies]], Wham Bam Rock and Wham Bam Jewel are just bosses without characterization, Meta Knight is [[WellIntentionedExtremist trying to make Dream Land a better place]], and even [[spoiler:Galacta Knight]] is only AmbiguouslyEvil [[spoiler:and turns out in ''VideoGame/SuperKirbyClash'' to have been a legendary hero before he was sealed away]]. By contrast, this character is [[spoiler:a gleefully mischievous {{Jerkass}} who manipulates the sun and moon into fighting so he can [[TreacherousQuestGiver trick Kirby]] into summoning Nova, who can grant his wish to [[TakeOverTheWorld take over Planet Popstar]] and wreak as much havoc as he pleases]]. When he reappears in ''VideoGame/KirbyStarAllies'', he is a TokenEvilTeammate, and only aligns himself with Kirby because the BigBad happens to be [[EvilVersusOblivion even worse than he is]].
67	** Most of the "New Era" Kirby games (starting with ''VideoGame/KirbysReturnToDreamland'') feature a character who is the primary or secret antagonist who is defeated at the end and is accepted by Kirby as a [[DefeatMeansFriendship friend]]; Magalor, [[VideoGame/KirbyTripleDeluxe Taranza]], and [[VideoGame/KirbyAndTheForgottenLand Leongar]] are some examples. And then there's [[VideoGame/KirbyPlanetRobobot Susie]]. Susie is openly antagonistic to Kirby, corrupts and takes over [[TheStarscream her own boss]], and only does anything moral out of [[PragmaticVillainy pragmaticism]], choosing to [[ScrewThisImOutOfHere escape]] once the bigger threat has been dealt with. When she reappears in ''VideoGame/KirbyStarAllies'', she, like [[spoiler: Marx]], is only doing it [[EvilVersusOblivion out of threat of destruction]], and it's implied she'll be perfectly willing to continue roboticizing planets once she can.
68	* ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'' games tend to have sympathetic villains, quite a bit of whom turn good by the end, but occasionally a game will have one particular villain who refuses to change.
69	** Almost every villain in the ''VideoGame/PokemonMysteryDungeon'' series, no matter how bad, does a HeelFaceTurn in the end and becomes recruitable by the party. The BigBad of ''Explorers'', [[spoiler:Darkrai]], is the exception; a cold-hearted sadist who creates a BadFuture in which time and space are frozen and everyone suffers under his regime. [[spoiler:While he is capable of joining the party, it's only after he has lost his memories and become a completely different person.]]
70	** In the ''VideoGame/PokemonBlackAndWhite'' duology, every leader of [[AnimalWrongsGroup Team Plasma]] and a fair amount of the {{Mooks}} genuinely want to protect Pokémon and are capable of being persuaded to abandon their criminal ways -- except for their true leader, Ghetsis Harmonia, who [[NotSoWellIntentionedExtremist just wants]] to TakeOverTheWorld and is last seen being driven into a VillainousBreakdown before being taken away by the Shadow Triad.
71	** ''VideoGame/PokemonLegendsArceus'': Of the antagonists, [[spoiler:Commander Kamado]] just wanted to protect his village and makes up with you, the Miss Fortune gang never poses a serious threat and even are said to help people sometimes, and [[spoiler:Giratina]] lets go of its revenge crusade and becomes a protector of space time. [[spoiler:The merchant Volo]], however, is a GodhoodSeeker who just wants to selfishly destroy and remake the world InTheirOwnImage, and simply flees when defeated, swearing revenge.
72	* ''VideoGame/{{Psychonauts}}'': The major antagonist characters are almost all able to be redeemed thanks to Raz jumping in their minds and defeating their inner demons -- [[spoiler:Coach Oleander, Dr. Loboto, and Maligula]] all heal from their traumas and stop their evil ways because of this. But the BigBad of ''2'', [[spoiler:Gristol Malik]], is the one villain who Raz cannot change, because he is fully in control of his mental faculties and just wants to [[spoiler:make himself ruler of Grulovia and then TakeOverTheWorld]] so he can be IdleRich again. When defeated, he is imprisoned in the Psychonauts HQ and, in a post-game conversation, shows that he has refused to learn the error of his ways.
73	* In the ''VideoGame/{{Rosenkreuzstilette}}'' duology, almost every member of [[TheRevolutionWillNotBeCivilized RKS]] and [[CorruptChurch the Orthodox Church/Schwarzkreuz]] starts out antagonistic, but is eventually convinced by the heroines to stop their aggression and change their ways. However, there are a handful of exceptions:
74	** Count Michael Zeppelin, the leader of RKS and BigBad of the first game, is a more tragic and sympathetic variation. He is so devoted to protecting his beloved daughter, Iris, and the rest of his fellow Magi from the empire that neither Spirita or Grolla can dissuade him from his mission that endangers innocent lives. Ultimately, [[spoiler:he gets killed by his own daughter, and revived in the sequel even more bloodthirsty and [[OmnicidalManiac wanting to destroy and remake the world]] on Iris' behalf; he's only stopped when Freudia and Pamela kill him for good]].
75	** [[spoiler:Iris Zeppelin herself, TheManBehindTheMan in both games,]] is a sadistic {{chessmaster}} who goes out of the way to personally destroy the lives of everyone and pits RKS and the Empire against each other, never changing despite Spirita believing it possible, and [[spoiler:Freudia declares her BeyondRedemption in ''Freudenstachel'' before imprisoning her in an ice crystal for eternity]].
76	* In the ''VideoGame/SenranKagura'' series, every single evil shinobi and other human antagonist turns out to be a good person deep down who eventually befriends the heroines -- except for Dōgen, the DiabolicalMastermind controlling [[ThugDojo Hebijo Academy]] who, in all continuities, stands as the only BigBad to actively remain evil and is ultimately killed.
77	* One of the main distinguishing features of ''VideoGame/{{Undertale}}'' is that it's "the friendly RPG where nobody has to die", allowing you to make peace and become friends with with every single character despite nearly all of them serving as an antagonist at some point or another. The one and only exception to this rule is the Fallen Child, as they're a PosthumousCharacter. During any route where your goal is to spread peace and make friends, their story will have ended long before the events of the game with a failed SuicideAttack against their home village (and possibly [[KillAllHumans the rest of the human race]], as they went to their grave a MisanthropeSupreme) that also took their brother down with them. Conversely, if you choose to play the game as violently as possible, the Fallen Child will be resurrected in a ''[[CameBackWrong significantly]]'' [[HumanoidAbomination worse]] [[OmnicidalManiac state]] and destroy the world so utterly that [[TheFourthWallWillNotProtectYou the game will no longer be playable by conventional means]]. In other words, the closest thing you can give them to a path to redemption is just not making one specific series of choices that will cause them to become ''worse''.
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79
80	[[folder:Visual Novels]]
81	* ''VisualNovel/SpiritHunter'': In regards to the titular spirits, most of them are {{Vengeful Ghost}}s who, with enough effort, can be pacified by the heroes, allowing them to pass on without their grudges. But there are a few exceptions:
82	** [[spoiler:Mary Kujou]], the BigBad of ''VisualNovel/SpiritHunterDeathMark'', is the creator of the other spirits and the one spirit Kazuo cannot save; all he can do is seal away the monstrous, sadistic entity before anyone else gets hurt.
83	** ''VisualNovel/SpiritHunterNG'':
84	*** Kakuya, the BigBad, is this like her predecessor; she is completely unrepentant in creating the spirits and causing mass death and suffering, and has to be sealed away to stop her rampage.
85	*** Masaru Ishimaru, one of the many spirits who make up the [[MindHive Demon Tsukuyomi]], is the only one of Kakuya's creations who cannot be saved, because his wish (to bring his mom back to life) is impossible; instead, he has to be destroyed by Killer Peach. This is also the only time destroying a spirit will not result in a companion dying.
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87
88	[[folder:Web Animation]]
89	* ''WebAnimation/EtraChanSawIt'': The episode called "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VV0QL-KcdpM Some people change, others don't...]]" features Tachibana, Akamatsu, and Hiiragi as a trio of delinquents who drink and smoke. Hiiragi convinces the other two to start shoplifting. Tachibana eventually feels guilty and gets himself a job to make an honest living and Akamatsu follows his example. Hiiragi is the only one who feels no remorse for his actions, committing a deliberate hit-and-run ten years later, while Tachibana and Akamatsu successfully turn their lives around.
90	[[/folder]]
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92	[[folder:Western Animation]]
93	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Amphibia}}'' has most of its villains see redemption in the end. [[DiskOneFinalBoss Sasha and Grime]] both end up seeing the errors of their ways and become genuinely admirable leaders to Amphibia, Marcy ends up realizing her mistake of trying to cling to the past and move on, and most of the humans that antagonized Anne and the Plantars while on Earth end up helping them when the planet is invaded. Even [[TheDragon Andrias]] learns to step out of his father's shadow, and that he does not need to be evil like him. The Core, meanwhile, never learns. It completely refuses to acknowledge change, and still believes that the world must always be the same, no matter how much everyone argues against it.
94	* ''WesternAnimation/InfinityTrain'':
95	** [[KillerCop Reflection Police Officer Mace]] in Season 2 isn't a passenger but stands out as the only major antagonist, ''not'' to have any kind of redeeming qualities or HiddenDepths, simply being a [[PoliceBrutality vicious cop]]. Even during a ChainedHeat scenario with Mirror Tulip, the person Mace is trying to kill, Mace is consistently hostile and refuses to work with MT, even after [[SaveTheVillain she goes out of her way to keep him alive]]. In the end, [[spoiler:MT is reluctantly forced to kill Mace after he tries to kill them both in a suicidal maneuver]].
96	** {{Downplayed\|Trope}} in Season 3. The point of the train is for people to improve themselves and make up for their mistakes; they have a number on their hand representing their flaws, and as they become better, the number goes down. Reach zero, and you get to get off the train and go home. Whilst WordOfGod clarifies, the train is [[BlueAndOrangeMorality very flawed and many people die on it]] without ever improving themselves. All the protagonists we have seen in the show have made it off the train, even characters who have made ''very'' big mistakes with big numbers to match (such as Amelia, the dictator of the train in the first season, who has a number that ''goes up to her neck'') can start working on themselves any time they want, and their number will go down accordingly. That said, Simon is the first character we see fail the train. The third season, stars Simon and Grace, Simon's best friend and boss, as the {{Villain Protagonist}}s at the start of the third season. The two have been on the train for years without any sort of explanation for it, they eventually come to the conclusion that the denizens on the train are AlwaysChaoticEvil and that the point of the train is to raise your number and never leave. Grace slowly finds out they were wrong about the nature of the train, and having numbers that go up their arms is ''not'' a good thing, she makes a HeelFaceTurn and vows to dismantle the Apex, a {{cult}} she created. Simon, however, digs in his heels and [[IRejectYourReality refuses to accept that the ideology Grace was created was wrong]], even trying to murder Grace twice. By the time he meets his FamilyUnfriendlyDeath, his number covers his whole body, including his face, while the last scene of the season shows Grace's number slightly decreasing as she begins to take steps to atone for her past actions. It's made very clear that he was never inherently irredeemable and at several points, Simon shows progress and signs of doubt about the ideology he is in. However he doesn't progress due to a combination of a DetrimentalDetermination, some bad luck, and being failed by the mentor that was supposed to help him. One example of the latter being that Simon was told by his former ParentalSubstitute, not to trust Amelia, no matter what. Hence he doesn't believe Amelia when she tells him and Grace they were wrong about the train.
97	* In ''WesternAnimation/MiraculousLadybug'', almost all of the Akumatized villains show themselves to be nice (or [[{{Jerkass}} not nice]], but not in the "[[PutThemAllOutOfMyMisery set Paris ablaze]]" way) people who were pushed over the edge and subsequently BrainwashedAndCrazy... the sole exceptions being Lila Rossi and Chloé Bourgeois ([[UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom who's also often the cause of said akumatizations in the first place]]), who expose themselves as [[JerkWithAHeartOfJerk Jerks with a Heart of Jerk]] by ''willingly'' accepting being akumatized. The chief difference between them is that [[spoiler:Lila is revealed to be just one of many identities of someone who was already a supervillain prior to ever being akumatized, whereas Chloé is a regular person who just [[RedemptionRejection stubbornly refuses to change her ways]]]].
98	* ''WesternAnimation/SantaClausIsCominToTown'' has the [[BigBad Burgermeister Meisterburger]], the miserly ruler of Sombertown and a cruel ChildHater with a ZeroPercentApprovalRating who, unlike most other Rankin-Bass villains, never gets any redemption or forgiveness in the story. Instead, [[spoiler:he quietly dies offscreen and is forgotten by all, with no one sorry to see him go.]]
99	* ''WesternAnimation/SheRaAndThePrincessesOfPower'': In the final season, nearly every significant villain achieves redemption in some manner. Catra breaks out of her self-destructive cruelty to save the people she loves, Entrapta comes around to prioritizing other people over herself, Shadow Weaver [[DeathEqualsRedemption chooses to die in the act of]] saving the children she abused, and even the BigBad of the prior 4 seasons Hordak finds true love and prevents conquest. The one exception is [[Characters/SheRaAndThePrincessesOfPowerHordePrime Horde Prime]], the Big Bad of the last season, who's so steeped in his centuries of xenocide and brainwashing that he has no desire to change. As such, She-Ra exorcises him from his last clone body without a hint of regret.
100	* By the end of ''WesternAnimation/StarVsTheForcesOfEvil'', pretty much all major and minor antagonists that weren't killed off, even Ludo and the ghost of Solaria, have found some form of redemption. The only exception being Mina Loveberry, who is too far gone to change [[FantasticRacism her ways]] and flees the scene, declaring that [[AsLongAsThereIsEvil even if she is gone, there will always be someone else]] to keep the CycleOfHatred between Mewmans and Monsters going.
101	* ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse'': Nearly every antagonist Steven encounters is swayed by his compassion into reforming, whether they be agents for planetary harvest, an EldritchAbomination, or the planetary harvesters themselves. Some of the more belligerent enemies like [[BloodKnight Jasper]] or the rogue Lapis Lazulis are at least intimidated into a ceasefire. The remaining enemy who still desires harm on Steven is Bluebird Azurite, the fusion of two gems who bonded over their hatred for Steven. In fact, it's their only shared trait that allows them to fuse, and otherwise they can't stand each other. The two of them block their ears when Steven tries to persuade them with a merciful spiel like he's done with so many other villains, and they're last seen fleeing while vowing revenge.
102	* The GrandFinale of ''WesternAnimation/TangledTheSeries'' implies that [[BigBad Zhan Tiri]] and her followers (including Mother Gothel) are the only truly irredeemable villains in the entire franchise
103	* In ''WesternAnimation/WanderOverYonder'', Wander, being the AllLovingHero that he is, reforms pretty much every villain he comes across. Even resident BigBad Lord Hater has his redeeming moments. However, the one glaring exception is Lord Dominator, who becomes the biggest threat to the galaxy in season two. She does leave the galaxy in the end, but not before calling everyone "a bunch of dorks". She does take Wander's peace offering in a very {{Tsundere}} fashion, [[LeftHanging but that's still the last time]] we [[CutShort ever see her]] ([[ScrewedByTheNetwork as that was the last episode the show got]]).
104	[[/folder]]

Context Main / TheIrredeemableException