Line #206 Main/EvilWearsBlack


1	[[quoteright:350:[[WesternAnimation/SnowWhiteAndTheSevenDwarfs https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/snow_white_and_evil_queen_41.jpg]]]]
2	[[caption-width-right:350:Careful, [[PrincessClassic Your Highness]]. Her robe is a clue that eating that apple is ''not'' a good idea.]]
3
4	->''''Film/{{Ironclad}}'' shows us the familiar Hollywood image of medieval times in which all peasants are covered in mud, and everyone wears brown--Unless they're baddies, in which case they wear black.''
5	-->--'''WebVideo/{{Lindybeige}}''', "''Ironclad'': Part Two - costumes"
6
7	Black is perhaps the most typical color for evil, or at least the antagonists, to wear. Thus in many stories, the villains will wear largely black clothing most of the time, in contrast to the colors worn by neutral and good characters (which will be at least moderately lighter).
8
9	This is because, in many cultures, black is the color of darkness, decay, and death. Thus ''even though wearing black doesn't make someone evil, being evil makes it more than likely one is going to wear black''.
10
11	It doesn't matter if it's all the villains, the BigBad and a few others, or just a group of {{Mooks}} that appear for a few episodes, if they wear a large amount of black (even just one noticeable part of their clothing), you know it's this trope. This is also why black is a common color for an EvilCostumeSwitch.
12
13	Heck, some EvilerThanThou villains might wear black when the "lesser" evils don't.
14
15	There's some [[http://www.cracked.com/article_18956_5-scientific-reasons-dark-side-will-always-win.html science behind this.]] There are studies that show that people that wear black are more aggressive than people who don't. They've also found that black isn't only associated with evil, but also contamination and sickness. These associations give people an instinctive cue that the person wearing black is dominant, and somebody you don't want to mess with. [[note]]Note that these associations may be cultural, as historically other colours, including [[VillainInAWhiteSuit white]], had these connotations instead, and in some cases still have, while black is associated with neutrality and even outright heroism in some cultures.[[/note]]
16
17	TheWestern genre tradition of the bad guys wear the black hat was not as [[LostInImitation common as later writers would think]]. However, some certainly held to it, such as ''Film/OnceUponATimeInTheWest'' and ''Film/{{Shane}}'', and you'd probably never imagine Creator/LeeVanCleef without one.
18
19	This trope very often involves a good chunk of ColorCodedForYourConvenience -- whereas villains are dressed in black, heroes or innocent characters will wear white or light and bright colors.
20
21	Now since some think EvilIsCool, then black can also become a cool color, but ''those don't cover this trope, nor does this trope come into play if the heroes also wear black''. This ''can'' come into play with a VillainProtagonist though.
22
23	!!Trope relations:
24	[[AC:A SubTrope of:]]
25	* DarkIsEvil (since dark is usually shown as black)
26	* DressCodedForYourConvenience (since this is about clothing color)
27	* GoodColorsEvilColors
28
29	[[AC:A SuperTrope to:]]
30	* BlackKnight (as wearing black armor is part of the trope)
31	* BlackCloak
32
33	[[AC:A SisterTrope to:]]
34	* BlackEyesOfEvil
35	* PaintItBlack (which isn't limited to this color)
36	* RedAndBlackAndEvilAllOver (which often involves clothing)
37
38	[[AC:Compare:]]
39	* EvilCostumeSwitch
40	* GrayscaleOfEvil
41	* BrightIsNotGood (bright, brilliant colors associated with a villain)
42	* PurpleIsTheNewBlack
43
44	[[AC:Contrast:]]
45	* BlueIsHeroic and RedIsHeroic
46	* DarkIsNotEvil
47	* GoodWearsWhite
48	* LittleBlackDress (wearing black is stylish instead of evil)
49	* MovieSuperheroesWearBlack (because they are still heroes)
50	* MysteriousPurple
51	* VillainInAWhiteSuit (when evil wears white)
52
53	[[noreallife]]
54	----
55	!!Examples:
56
57	[[foldercontrol]]
58
59	[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
60	* While black is present in most of the character designs in ''Manga/BungouStrayDogs'', a lot of it seems disproportionately centered around the Port Mafia. Notably, Dazai's HeelFaceTurn prior to the series is marked by a change from a mostly black wardrobe to lighter colors like tan.
61	** It's stated in-universe that [[TheMentor mentors]] in the mafia gifted their new students with a piece of black clothing (or weapon).
62	* ''Manga/DeathNote'':
63	** Misa, despite her childlike behavior and appearance, is secretly evil and wears Gothic clothing, especially a Gothic lolita-like maid outfit.
64	** Mello, the AntiHero of the second half of the series, wears black pants and a black shirt.
65	** The only outfit we see Ryuk wearing is compiled of black, chains, and all sorts of other things. Oh, he's a Shinigami, which tips you off that he's evil.
66	** The VillainProtagonist, Light, typically wears a black shirt and upgrades to a black suit in the Mello/Near arc.
67	* ''Franchise/DragonBall'':
68	** [[Anime/DragonBallZTheTreeOfMight Turles]], Goku's EvilCounterpart, wears all black and has much darker skin than Goku to match the armor.
69	** ''Anime/DragonBallSuper'' has Goku Black, some kind of mass-murdering EvilTwin of Goku who dons a black gi. It's Future Bulma who came up with the name, specifically because of his wardrobe, which might be short for "Goku in Black".
70	* The [[FallenAngel Fallen Angels]] from ''Literature/HighSchoolDXD'' have black wings and are dressed in black, although they still use [[LightIsNotGood light-based powers]].
71	%%* ''Manga/HighSchoolOfTheDead'': Koichi Shido wears black, complete with ScaryShinyGlasses and pale white skin.%%Evil how?
72	* [[ZigZaggingTrope Zig-zagged]] in ''Franchise/LyricalNanoha'': in the original incarnation of the series, Chrono Harlaown was the bad guy and wore black clothes with SpikesOfDoom. As the concept of the series evolved, Chrono became an [[SpacePolice interdimensional law officer]] but kept his black attire, which was instead retrofitted as the uniform of the Enforcers, top-ranked dimensional police. Fate Testarossa took Chrono's place as the main character's rival and resident DarkMagicalGirl and also wore black from the onset, but the series went the DarkIsNotEvil route, and Fate turned out to be the most LawfulGood character in the show, while still wearing mostly black because it suited her--and because she eventually rose up to join the ranks of the Enforcers, just like Chrono.
73	* In ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'', one of the Akatsuki's distinguishing traits is that each member wears a black cloak.
74	* ''Anime/PrincessTutu'':
75	** Princess Kraehe as a nemesis, who wears a black dress opposing Tutu's white dress, although she is a DarkMagicalGirl, [[spoiler:with the typical HeelFaceTurn]].
76	** Mytho dons a black outfit after his FaceHeelTurn.
77	* ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagicaTheMovieRebellion'': [[spoiler:[[FaceHeelTurn Homura becomes the devil]], making her already dark color scheme even darker as she turns evil.]]
78	* In ''{{Manga/Yaiba}}'' the Moon Princess Kaguya wears black clothes (although shaded purple in the anime), which still counts despite including a PlayboyBunny outfit [[PrettyInMink trimmed with white fur]].
79	* In ''Anime/MobileSuitZetaGundam'', most of the prominent villains wear black. The Titans wear it as a PuttingOnTheReich way of emphasizing their StateSec status and dictatorial ways. Haman Karn, EvilChancellor of the Neo-Zeon faction based on the asteroid colony Axis, also wears black throughout ''Zeta'' and sequel series ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamZZ'' to go along with her ambitions of Earth Sphere domination.
80	* ''Manga/ResidentEvilHeavenlyIsland'': Zi Li is the only major female character who wears a black swimsuit, and is probably one of the evilest women in the franchise.
81	* ''Manga/VideoGirlAi'': Mai, a character created to be the titular character's destroyer, wears a lot of black and a bustiér, miniskirt and a cool cape.
82	* Spacytchi of ''Anime/{{Tamagotchi}}'' wears a primarily black outfit and, along with his brothers Pipospetchi and Akaspetchi, wants to [[TakeOverTheWorld take over Tamagotchi Planet]].
83	* The Homunculi of ''Manga/FullmetalAlchemist'' often include black clothes in their human forms, and Pride's true form is a black shadow with numerous eyes.
84	* In ''Anime/{{Moldiver}}'', Isabelle frequently wears black clothes and is working for the BigBad, Professor Amagi/Machinegal.
85	[[/folder]]
86
87	[[folder:Arts]]
88	* Art/SistineChapel: "The Temptations of Christ" makes it obvious which character is Satan by putting him in a giant black cloak while standing next to a Christ covered in [[PrimaryColorChampion bright primary colors]].
89	[[/folder]]
90
91	[[folder:Comic Books]]
92	* ''ComicBook/ElfQuest'': Winnowill wears a black dress (trimmed with white fur) most of the time in her initial appearances and tops that off by having long, black hair. Even the warning nickname later given to her, "The Black Snake", contains the color, and her harmful magic is referred to as "Black Sending".
93	* ''ComicBook/JurassicStrikeForceFive'': Master Zalex wears nothing but black. The only part of his outfit or body that isn't black is his eyes, which are red.
94	* ''ComicBook/JusticeLeagueOfAmerica'': Crime Syndicate member Superwoman, ComicBook/LoisLane's evil doppelganger from another universe, wears black.
95	* ''ComicBook/{{Pafman}}'': The main antagonist is the Enmascarado Negro ("The Black Masked"), a guy who is always totally dressed and masked in black. Lampshaded at the end of a short story in which Pafman, disappointed with being a hero, joins the villains and declares: "I've even dyed my suit black so I'll look more evil".
96	* ''ComicBook/{{Shazam}}'': ComicBook/BlackAdam predominantly wears a black and yellow uniform.
97	* ''ComicBook/SpiderMan'': The symbiote costume, known for [[WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity corrupting Spidey]] and later being worn by supervillain ComicBook/{{Venom}}, is a black version of the regular Spider-Man costume.
98	* ''ComicBook/{{Superman}}'':
99	** Several ComicBook/{{Supergirl}}'s evil counterparts wear black. Dark Supergirl in "ComicBook/GirlPower" wears a black version of Kara's regular costume, and Satan Girl in "ComicBook/TheCondemnedLegionnaires" wears a black bodysuit, cape and cowl.
100	** Divine, a clone of ComicBook/PowerGirl created by Dr. Sivana and Maxwell Lord in ''ComicBook/PowerGirl2009'', wore black and even had [[EvilBrunetteTwin black hair]] in contrast to Power Girl's blonde hair.
101	* ''ComicBook/UltimateFantasticFour'': Upon turning evil, Reed Richards discards his Fantastic Four jumpsuit for a black shirt with red Tron Lines. After becoming The Maker, he goes for a black jumpsuit instead.
102	* ''ComicBook/UltimateXMen'': Mastermind uses a black leather jacket and black glasses.
103	[[/folder]]
104
105	[[folder:Comic Strips]]
106	* ''ComicStrip/TheFarSide'': One strip features "Professor [=DeArmond=]--the epitome of evil butterfly collectors," who wears an all-black outfit and carries a black butterfly net.
107	* Most of ComicStrip/TheAddamsFamily wears black whenever they're seen.
108	[[/folder]]
109
110	[[folder:Fan Works]]
111	* In the ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' of Creator/AAPessimal, the Guild of Assassins still wears black with all its associations. But younger, late-entry or otherwise non-traditional Assassins [[note]]The new generation of female ones[[/note]] are rising to prominence. One rising star dispenses with the Black altogether [[note]]She is careful to respect the formal dress code when concluding a professional contract, however[[/note]], preferring to wear the comfortable veldt-khaki of her [[UsefulNotes/SouthAfrica homeland]]. Other new young Assassins are even wearing previously-disdained camouflage outfits for those occasions where it works better than Black.
112	* ''Fanfic/RainbowDoubleDashsLunaverse:'' A group of not-cultists in ''Nightmares Yet to Come'' wear black hooded cloaks over black fur and black manes. One of Trixie's first thoughts on seeing them is that Rarity would probably object to their limited fashion sense. [[spoiler:Later chapters show they don't ''always'' look like this, and one of them explains to a victim that they mainly do it for iconography's sake.]]
113	* Parodied in ''Fanfic/MaterialDays''. Material-L thinks Chrono is obviously evil because he wears black.
114	-->'''Material-L:''' "I KNEW you were evil! Evil spikes, black clothes and now having people to enforce your will!"
115	* ''Fanfic/HellsisterTrilogy'': [[EnemyWithout Satan Girl]], a murderous and psychopatic ComicBook/{{Supergirl}}'s duplicate wears a all-black bodysuit, plus a black cape and a black cowl.
116	* ''Fanfic/DungeonKeeperAmi'': What the fairies think Underworld garb looks like, as said in Cornering the Duke:
117	-->"Do you see any black? Of course you don't! It doesn't look like Underworlder garb at all!"
118	[[/folder]]
119
120	[[folder:Films -- Animated]]
121	* Franchise/DisneyAnimatedCanon:
122	** The Evil Queen of ''WesternAnimation/SnowWhiteAndTheSevenDwarfs'' wears a black OminousOperaCape over her [[PurpleIsPowerful purple dress]]. Following her transformation into a hideous witch, she wears all-black, hooded robes; this transformation provides the page image.
123	** Maleficent, the evil fairy of ''WesternAnimation/SleepingBeauty'', wears a long black cloak with black horns. She even calls herself the "Mistress of all evil".
124	** Frollo from ''WesternAnimation/{{The Hunchback of Notre Dame\|Disney}}'' dresses in black robes and a hat, with purple and red adornments.
125	** The villain of ''WesternAnimation/BigHero6'', Yokai, wears a black trench coat and a black zip-up suit, further emphasized by the bright colors that the heroes wear.
126	** Subverted ''WesternAnimation/Frozen2013''. In order to throw off the audience, [[spoiler:Prince Hans]] wears light colors while the other characters (Elsa, Anna, Kristoff, Sven, and the Duke of Weselton) wear darker colors. The spoilered individual is a subversion of the PrinceCharming trope Disney is known for, [[spoiler:selfishly betraying Anna so he can seize the Arendellian throne]].
127	* Instead of his [[VillainInAWhiteSuit typical white suit]], the ''WesternAnimation/SpiderManIntoTheSpiderVerse'' version of Kingpin wears a black suit, giving him a more villainous and intimidating look.
128	* In ''WesternAnimation/TheThiefAndTheCobbler'', the EvilChancellor Zigzag wears a mostly pitch black robe, with minor gold edges.
129	* To the extreme in the Italian cartoon ''WesternAnimation/WestAndSoda'', which parodies the SpaghettiWestern: when Johnny, the good guy, finally goes on his revenge spree, he changes his clothing from white (the standard good guy outfit) to black.
130	[[/folder]]
131
132	[[folder:Films -- Live Action]]
133	* In ''Film/ThreeHundred'', the Persian [[EliteMooks warrior elite]] known as the Immortals wear all-black uniforms with [[FacelessGoons creepy silver masks]]. They're the most dangerous of all of Xerxes's warriors and are soon revealed to ''literally'' be monsters. In ''Film/ThreeHundredRiseOfAnEmpire'', the whole Persian navy is wearing black.
134	* ''Film/BasicInstinct'': Roxy, a murderer and PsychoLesbian, is usually seen in dark-colored clothes.
135	* ''Film/TheBookOfRevelation'': The three women who had kidnapped, imprisoned and raped Daniel all wore black concealing outfits.
136	* In ''Film/{{Casper}}'', [[BigBad Corrigan]] wears mostly black outfits.
137	* The villains of the ''Film/CharliesAngels2000'' and ''Film/CharliesAngelsFullThrottle'' are shown wearing black. In both cases, this coincides with TheReveal to the angels and the audience that they ''are'' villains in the first place.
138	* In the ''Film/ChildrensPartyAtThePalace'', several villains such as Burglar Bill, the Child-Catcher, and the Grand High Witch wear black.
139	* ''Film/ConanTheBarbarian1982'' and ''Film/ConanTheDestroyer'', all villains are fond of black leather armour. [[TheDragon Rexor]] also wears a black fur cape during the opening raid on Conan's village.
140	* Franchise/DCExtendedUniverse:
141	** In, ''Film/ManOfSteel'', General Zod and his crew wear black Kryptonian skinsuits and don black armors when venturing outside their ships.
142	** Black Manta's armor is, well, black in ''Film/{{Aquaman\|2018}}''.
143	** Some of Roman "Black Mask" Sionis' suits in ''Film/{{Birds of Prey\|2020}}'' are black. And there's his mask too, of course.
144	** ComicBook/{{Darkseid}} wears a black {{sleeve\|s Are For Wimps}}less armor in modern-day in ''Film/ZackSnydersJusticeLeague''. Both Steppenwolf and Superman are {{inver\|ted trope}}sions meanwhile, as the New God wears a silvery and shiny armor while wanting to terraform the Earth and the Man of Steel wears a black suit while he's TheParagon.
145	** In ''Film/TheSuicideSquad'', resident HateSink Dick "Blackguard" Hertz wears all-black body armor, in direct contrast to his more sympathetic and colorfully-dressed compatriots. Meanwhile, MadScientist Gaius "The Thinker" Grieves spends most of his screen time wearing a casual all-black ensemble (blazer, Hawaiian shirt, jeans and sneakers).
146	* In the ''Film/{{Dracula\|1931}}'' adaptation starring Creator/BelaLugosi, his black OminousOperaCape with a HighCollarOfDoom became iconic of villains and the ClassicalMovieVampire.
147	* ''Film/EndOfDays''. After Satan takes a TallDarkAndHandsome host, he walks around in a [[BadassLongcoat black longcoat]] and later appears in a BlackCloak during the Satanic bedding ceremony.
148	* In ''Film/TheGreatRace'', Professor Fate and Max wear black (and their car is also black). Although this is a comedy, they are still the villains.
149	* In the BlackComedy ''Film/{{Heathers}}'', the trenchcoat-wearing J.D. is given the [[ColorCodedCharacters signature color black]] to show him as the villain. Played with in that it's used more for the badass associations at first as he seems like [[AllGirlsWantBadBoys a cool outsider from the female protagonist's perspective]]. It only gradually becomes clear that he's actually a homicidal lunatic.
150	* ''Film/TheHolyOffice'': Most characters wear colorful 16th century clothing except the inquisidors, who dress in all black. Justified in that black dye was expensive and thus reserved for people with higher positions.
151	* In ''KarateAMuerteEnTorremolinos'', the ninjas are completely dressed in black.
152	* ''Film/TheKarateKid'': The Cobra Kai members who bully Daniel wear black martial arts uniforms.
153	* ''Film/KungFuHustle'': The Axe Gang wears stylish black suits.
154	* ''Film/TheLastStarfighter'': Xur wears black, in contrast to his father and the other Rylians, whom he betrayed, wearing white.
155	* ''Film/TheLegendOfFrenchieKing'': The outlaw Louise and her gang of sisters always deck out entirely in black when committing their robberies. Morally speaking, they are still ALighterShadeOfBlack compared to the also black-clad, inhumane Dr. Miller.
156	* In ''Film/TheLordOfTheRings'' films, the main minions of Sauron tend to favor black, whether it be the robes of the Ringwraiths or the armor of the Orcs, in contrast to the bright and/or earthy colors favored by the good guys. That said, Sauron's ''human'' minions seem to favor gold and scarlet. In a slight subversion, the Guards of the Citadel in Gondor also wear black, albeit with silver highlights.
157	* ''{{Film/Maleficent}}'': The title character starts the movie wearing a tan dress, then switches to the iconic black robe after her StartOfDarkness. [[spoiler:She later pulls a HeelFaceTurn, but continues to wear the black robe.]]
158	* ''Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse'':
159	** HYDRA of course in ''Film/CaptainAmericaTheFirstAvenger'', but inverted when Steve Rogers wakes up in the future; when he starts getting aggressive the door opens and black-clad SHIELD {{mook}}s enter. Steve naturally assumes the worst and throws them through the wall.
160	** ''Film/ThorRagnarok'': Hela's outfit is a combination of black with green patterns. Even without her pitch-black helmet on she looks remarkably gothic.
161	* Franchise/MonsterVerse:
162	** ''Film/GodzillaKingOfTheMonsters2019'': [[Characters/MonsterVerseEcoTerrorists Alan Jonah]] almost-consistently wears dark colors when he can, and after escaping Antarctica, he wears a pitch-black top. This is in contrast to his WellIntentionedExtremist partner-in-crime, who prefers light-colored clothes, showing that Jonah is [[NotSoWellIntentionedExtremist far less genuine in his well-intentions]] to "save the planet" by releasing the Titans to cull humanity's self-destruction, and he's unwilling to make any attempt to stop King Ghidorah once it begins creating an extinction event.
163	** ''Film/GodzillaVsKong'': Amongst the three human antagonists who represent [[Characters/MonsterVerseApexCybernetics Apex Cybernetics]]; Ren Serizawa is the biggest offender with his pitch-black overcoat and pitch-black casual shirt, but Walter Simmons and his daughter Maia also favor wearing at least one black or partly-black garment during almost all of their screentime. Where the Evil comes in is that they're [[spoiler:deliberately engineering Godzilla's rampage and all the loss of life it causes so they can murder Godzilla and take control of the Titans for their own desires]], using MugglePower to justify otherwise entirely selfish or FreudianExcuse motivations.
164	* ''Film/TheMummyReturns'': Imhotep wears a BlackCloak for most of the film, before ditching it for a WalkingShirtlessScene.
165	* ''Film/NightNurse'': Nick, the child killing chauffeur, wears a daunting black (almost Gestapo-looking) uniform.
166	* ''Film/APerfectMurder'': Murderous Steven always dresses in black whereas his wife Emily whom he intends to have killed is usually dressed in white.
167	* In ''Franchise/PiratesOfTheCaribbean'', it's played straightest with [[Film/PiratesOfTheCaribbeanOnStrangerTides Blackbeard]]. Other evil characters, notably Ian Mercer, have largely black outfits, but ''everything'' Blackbeard wears matches his facial hair.
168	* ''Film/{{The Princess\|2022}}'': BigBad Julius wears a lot of black, as do many of his men.
169	* ''Film/PromNight1980'': During the third act, the killer wears all-black clothes to blend in with the dark environment of a school after-hours: a black shirt, matching slacks and shoes, and a glittery black ski mask.
170	* ''Film/RaidersOfTheLostArk'': Sadistic TortureTechnician Toht wears a black suit and matching longcoat and hat as his main ensemble, even in the broiling Egyptian desert.
171	* ''Film/RedSonja'': The villain's army wears black armour, complete with SpikesOfVillainy.
172	* ''Film/{{Replicant}}'': Serial killer Edward "The Torch" Garrote dresses in all black clothes, whereas his 'good' clone is dressed in more heroic colors like blue and brown.
173	* ''Film/RolliAmazingTales'': The Trashers all wear black cloaks that resemble waste bags as well as black helmets/hats.
174	* ''Film/SavagesCrossing'': Serial killer Phil wears a dirty black suit.
175	* In ''Film/ScannerCopII'', Carl Volkin is notably the only villain in this entire series to go around entirely in black.
176	* ''Franchise/StarWars'':
177	** The Sith wear black cloaks, and Darth Vader wears all black. The "good" Jedi prefer brown robes and white tunics.
178	** Averted by Luke in ''Film/ReturnOfTheJedi'', though he was embracing his inner darkness and defeating it. Played with later in that when he rejects the Dark Side, his shirt is torn and the white underneath is exposed.
179	** Imperial uniforms go back and forth on this. At the top are Darth Vader and the Emperor, who do indeed wear black. Below them are the officer corps, who favour a dark grey. Below them are the white-armoured Stormtroopers and the black-armoured TIE Pilots. First Order forces in ''Film/TheForceAwakens'' add shiny chrome armour for high-ranking stormtroopers and paint the TIE fighters black.
180	** The color motifs in ''Star Wars'' (at least in ''Film/ANewHope'') seem to reflect the MagicVersusScience conflict more so than simple morality. While the Empire wears washed-out, clinical whites, blacks and grays that reflect their dependence on technology, characters like Luke and Obi-Wan wear warmer brown and cream colors to reflect [[Creator/HenryDavidThoreau their connection to nature]] through the Force. This was before the prequels [[{{Flanderization}} flanderized]] Jedi and Sith cultures at least, having all the Jedi dress exactly like Obi-Wan, and all the Sith decked out in black robes.
181	* In ''Film/SupermanII'', the TerribleTrio of Ursa, Non, and General Zod all wore black, contrasting with the white of other Kryptonians, and Superman's PrimaryColorChampion outfit. Zod's outfit also has [[RedAndBlackAndEvilAllOver very dark red]] metallic accents.
182	* The killer in ''Film/{{Valentine}}'' wears a black coat with matching gloves and slacks, which creates a disconcerting effect when coupled with his FallenCupid mask.
183	* In the western comedy ''Film/TheVillain'', the eponymous outlaw Cactus Jack Slade wears black.
184	* The eponymous villain in ''Film/Warlock1989'' is the only character to wear completely black attire, which only makes his blond hair more noticeable.
185	* In ''Film/WarlockTheArmageddon'' the next Warlock kills a side character and steals his clothing, noting with approval that it's black.
186	* Judge Doom sports a black suit, hat and sunglasses in ''Film/WhoFramedRogerRabbit''. Pretty [[ObviouslyEvil on-the-nose]], but [[spoiler:Toons aren't exactly known for subtlety]]...
187	* ''Film/{{Willow}}'': All of Bavmorda's men wear black armour. General Kael complements his with a scary bone mask.
188	* In all ''Literature/{{Winnetou}}'' [[FilmOfTheBook film-of-the-book]] movies. Winnetou wears beige clothes with blue ornaments and Old Shatterhand wears light brown clothes. All the bandits wear very dark clothes, and one item is usually black, be it a hat, trousers or a shirt. The main antagonist tends to have a completely black outfit in each part of the movie series, though perhaps not for all his scenes. In ''Winnetou I'', Old Shatterhand and Winnetou are not friends yet and Old Shatterhand has to fight with the Apaches. He wears a sky blue shirt, and his friends sport bright colours as well. It was crystal clear he's a good guy, and not only because it's a prequel to ''[[Film/DerSchatzImSilbersee Treasure of Silver Lake]]'' and everybody in Germany and Eastern Europe knows that those two pals are HeterosexualLifePartners.
189	* In ''Film/TheWizardOfOz'' the Wicked Witch of the West wears black. This is in contrast to Glinda the "good" witch we meet who wears pink.
190	* Azazel in ''Film/XMenFirstClass'' wears a black suit at all times. His boss [[BigBad Sebastian Shaw]] alternates between [[VillainInAWhiteSuit white suits]] and black suits, as well as a black Nehru jacket.
191	[[/folder]]
192
193	[[folder:Literature]]
194	* ''Literature/AlienHunters'': The skelkrins are a race of tall, red-skinned aliens who wear black armor covered in spikes. They also happen to be very hostile and desire to rule over or wipe out all other species in the galaxy.
195	* ''Literature/{{Deryni}}'': Deryni Alaric Morgan (a good guy with ZeroPercentApprovalRating) deliberately wears all black. The fact it is his heraldic color doesn't excuse him.
196	* In ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'', black is the required color for members of the [[MurderInc Assassins' Guild]], whose members have included the very evil [[Literature/{{Hogfather}} Teatime]] and the AntiVillain Lord Vetinari, who still wears shabby black robes. Though the trope is played with as the Guild are sometimes shown as neutral, a source of BlackComedy, or even an actual force for good in the world. It's also averted by the witches, who wear black (well, [[GranolaGirl Magrat]] and [[CuteWitch Tiffany]] don't) but are even more of a force for good in the world.
197	* The Vitalizer from "Literature/ClockpunkAndTheVitalizer" is dressed head to toe in black, save his gray mask. Contrast [[DarkIsNotEvil Clockpunk]], also wearing black (though lined with silver).
198	* ''Literature/HonorHarrington'': In ''Shadows of Freedom'', one (solarian) character is somewhat amused by the tendency of repressive dictatorships to outfit their jackbooted thugs in all black uniforms. This is also a bit of HypocriticalHumor, since the Solarian League's own jackbooted enforcers, the Gendarmerie, wear black uniforms too.
199	* Firmly averted in ''Literature/TheLordOfTheRings'' (and Franchise/TolkiensLegendarium more generally): although Sauron's forces often wear black, black is also the traditional colour of Gondor.
200	* ''Literature/TheQuestOfTheUnaligned'':
201	** Crown Prince Alaric wears a black security uniform and has black hair, despite being TheHero. [[http://phillipsauthor.tumblr.com/post/68571474355/savvy-saturday-tropes-themes-and-more This]] WordOfGod post confirms that this was an explicit and deliberate InvertedTrope.
202	** Gaithim wears a black robe and is a hoshek or mage of [[DarkIsEvil Darkness]].
203	* In ''Literature/TheWheelOfTime'', all the [[HumanoidAbomination myrddraal]] wear black, as do some of the Forsaken, most notably Ishamael and Semirhage. Inverted by a couple of the ''other'' Forsaken, Lanfear and Demandred, the former of whom wears white and silver all the time, and the latter of whom shows up for [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt the Last Battle]] decked out in armor of those colors.
204	* In the ''Literature/MagisterTrilogy'', pure black is the symbol of the titular Magisters, as a pure black can only be created by magic, and no witch would waste precious ''[[CastFromLifespan athra]]'' to [[MundaneUtility dye their clothes]]. So only the Magisters, who steal ''athra'' from others to survive and fuel their powers, can afford to wear black.
205	* In ''Literature/TheCloakSociety,'' the titular supervillain group naturally wears black uniforms (with silver embellishments). Also PlayedForLaughs--Alex wears civilian clothes when he sneaks out to meet the superhero Kirbie, but she jokes that he still only ever wears black, something that Alex had not even noticed. The third time he's about to leave and realizes that he's ''still'' in all-black, so he digs around his dresser until he finds a shirt that "looked a little lighter than the others."
206	* ''Literature/{{City of Bones\|1995}}'' by Creator/MarthaWells: Charisat's condemned criminals, including the Warder-turned-lunatic-murderer Constans, are made to wear black, though Constans and his acolytes do it as a badge of pride. {{Subverted\|Trope}} when [[spoiler:Constans turns out to be correct about the main conflict and the white-robed Warders are shown to be {{Unwitting Pawn}}s of a major villain.]]
207	* The Inner Party members in ''Literature/NineteenEightyFour'' wear black boiler suits and are the tyrannical leading minds of Oceania, while the lower-ranked and more oblivious Outer Party members wear blue boiler suits.
208	* ''Literature/BazilBroketail'': [[TheEmpire Padmasa]]'s human soldiers wear black uniforms, along with its sorcerers.
209	* ''Literature/TheChroniclesOfDorsa'': The Order of Taghren witch assassins all wear black, living in service to the books' main villain.
210	* ''Literature/TalesOfTheKettyJay''. An InvokedTrope by [[PirateGirl Trinica Dracken]], who's given herself white hair and pale skin, which along with her all-black outfit and [[BlackEyesOfEvil black contact lenses]] gives her a ghoulish appearance. Having clawed her way up from SexSlave to SkyPirate captain, she believes [[SoBeautifulItsACurse her beauty has only brought her pain]], and the mostly male pirates would instinctively undermine an attractive female leader, so she makes herself a [[TheDreaded figure of fear and awe instead]].
211	[[/folder]]
212
213	[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
214	* ''Series/{{Arrow}}''. Oliver Queen wears a green outfit (in homage to his mentor Yao Fei, who trained him on a jungle island) even though it's pointed out that black would blend in better. So naturally his Season One EvilCounterpart the Dark Archer wears black in contrast, later revealed to be the standard outfit of the League of Assassins. The trope is then zigzagged over the course of the series as both heroes and villains wear black. The ComicBook/BlackCanary wears all black leather, but Sara Lance started off as a former League of Assassins DarkActionGirl, and anyone who takes up the Canary mantle copies her style. Scenes where Thea Queen is drawn to her supervillain father Malcolm Merlyn will usually have her wearing black clothes, as opposed to her black-and-red superhero outfit. And in ''Series/CrisisOnEarthX'' Oliver finds himself up against the Dark Arrow, an evil Nazi version of himself backed by plenty of black-clad GasmaskMooks.
215	* ''Series/{{Blackadder}}'', Prince Edmund Plantagenet and Duke of Edinburgh adapts an all-black outfit once he becomes The Black Adder. Most of his descendants likewise attire themselves in black, though much of the time they are just {{Jerkass}}es and some characters that [[LightIsNotGood are easier to define as flat out ''evil'' are not dressed in black or even dark colors]]. In fact, the fourth one is never seen in black, rather wearing a soldier's tan uniform.
216	* ''Series/BlakesSeven''. The Federation GasMaskMooks wear black overalls, black gasmasks and carry black weaponry. [[TheDragon Travis]] wears [[HellBentForLeather all black leather]], and even when he's [[RogueAgent forced to leave the military]] is usually seen wearing black clothes. Avon, the most morally ambiguous member of the heroes, is often seen in black leather as well. However it was deliberately averted by actress Creator/JacquelinePearce who decided to have Servalan, the BigBad of the series, wear white (though she [[WidowsWeeds changes to black]] halfway through the series).
217	* ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'':
218	** Evil Faith wears black outfits.
219	** When Xander and Willow become vampires in Wish!verse, they wear black leather. When the real Willow pretends to be vampire!Willow she steals the latter's black clothes. Also, in the last three episodes of Season Six, Willow dons black clothes and "dyes" her hair black as she embraces black magic.
220	** Caleb, TheDragon in Season 7, wears black as he's a [[SinisterMinister fallen priest]]. However, he also points out that it's slimming.
221	* ''Series/{{Charmed\|1998}}'': The sheer majority of demons on the show are basically human-looking goons who throw Fireballs and wear black. In fact, pick any episode and there's a good chance the MonsterOfTheWeek is a (usually male) demon or warlock in black clothing.
222	* ''Series/{{Community}}'':
223	** In "[[Recap/CommunityS2E23AFistfulOfPaintballs A Fistful of Paintballs]]", a mysterious shooter called only the Black Rider appears, "network television handsome" guy played by Josh Holloway dressed in all black with badass stuff like a black cowboy hat or [[BadassBandolier bandolier]] with paintball bullets who takes one student after another. He was hired by the City College, Greendale's nemesis.
224	** There is a RunningGag that Abed keeps referring to six timelines that were created when Jeff used rolling a dice to decide who will go to get pizza. In the darkest timeline, they all wear black, which was at first a sign of mourning. Later the study group turns evil and they transform into supervillains who wear black, mostly leather. Abed is still a good guy underneath, but he looks like the others and wears a long black robe. His look is completed with a black [[BeardOfEvil evil goatie]].
225	* ''Series/DoctorWho'' Classic:
226	** The Master as portrayed by Roger Delgado and Anthony Ainley wears all-black unless he's in disguise. Even the Master's TARDIS console room is identical to the Doctor's, but with black surfaces.
227	** The villain in "The Five Doctors" deliberately changes into black clothes when putting his evil plot into action.
228	* The Peacekeepers from ''Series/{{Farscape}}'' wear black armour or uniform. The villain Scorpius is dressed all in black, as well.
229	* This is very common among evil speedsters in ''Series/TheFlash2014''.
230	** Eobard Thawne still wears a yellow Reverse-Flash costume like his comic book counterpart, but it has black leggings and gloves on the show. When out of costume, he almost exclusively wears black.
231	** Zoom wears a pitch-black costume covering him from head to toe.
232	** Edward Clariss/The Rival wears a black suit similar to Zoom's, but it's covered in dark orange lines.
233	** Savitar usually wears a dark silver set of PoweredArmor, but he has a black zip-up jacket and a black pair of trousers beneath it.
234	* ''Series/GameOfThrones'':
235	** Intimidating Tywin Lannister, the patriarch of House Lannister, wears black, mostly leather with metal accents. It's especially notable since his family colours are red and gold which is how his children usually dress. He's one of the main antagonists to House Stark who are more of heroes with just cause.
236	** Tywin's daughter Cersei Lannister abandons her family colours for some black leather numbers that look a lot like DistaffCounterpart versions of what [[RuleOfSymbolism her father wore]] when she commits mass murder by destroying the Sept of Baelor and crowning herself Queen Regnant.
237	* In ''Series/GoodOmens2019'', the demon Crowley (although he's more a NobleDemon than a truly evil one) always wears black clothes [[GoodColorsEvilColors in contrast]] with the angel Aziraphale who always wears white or beige-colored clothes.
238	* ''Series/HerculesTheLegendaryJourneys'':
239	** Ares, god of destructive war, favors a black leather get-up.
240	** Any and all servants of Hera (an antagonist to Hercules) are most likely wearing black leather and skull-motif armor.
241	* BigBad Rufus in ''Series/HouseOfAnubis'' wears the same black coat, black turtle neck and black pants in virtually all his appearances.
242	* ''Series/KamenRiderExAid'' loves this trope:
243	** Early on, the heroes are menaced by a villain who looks like a black version of the title character, and simply refer to him as "the black Ex-Aid" before they finally learn his name: [[spoiler:Kamen Rider Genm, AKA Kuroto Dan, president of Genm Corporation and supposedly their ally]].
244	** Later in the series, the BigBad Kamen Rider Cronus gets two of the heroes to FaceHeelTurn and join his side. One of them ([[spoiler:Hiiro Kagami/Kamen Rider Brave]]) switches from his white lab coat to a black business suit; the other ([[spoiler:Kiriya Kujo/Kamen Rider Lazer]]) wears a black version of his normal clothing and gains a new Rider form with more black armor pieces.
245	*** [[spoiler:Hiiro]] later turns out to be an inversion as Cronus gives him a new SuperMode that's predominantly white and gold with an angelic motif; [[spoiler:ironically, his last SuperMode had a "demon king" motif and used darker colors like maroon and black because it represented a FallenHero, while this new one represents the same hero finding redemption and becoming good again.]]
246	** Subverted with Taiga Hanaya, so-called [[RedBaron Dark Doctor]], who wears black military clothes or black scrubs. He starts out as {{Jerkass}} with a massive ego, but time and MoralityPet softens him into JerkWithAHeartOfGold. He went through so much crap that pretending to be a jerk is essentially his way of keeping it together.
247	** Parado wears a black coat and mostly acts like a PsychopathicManchild operating on BlueAndOrangeMorality. Another Ending movie trilogy has Another Parado, his Evil Twin [[note]]''Ex-Aid'' is such a story that it gives (former) DistaffCounterpart their own DistaffCounterpart and an EvilTwin matching a ([[spoiler: former]]) EvilTwin.[[/note]] whose outfit is a PaletteSwap that turns it completely black.
248	* ''Series/TheLordOfTheRingsTheRingsOfPower'': Adar has jet black hair and dark clothing, and is the leader of the Orc horde gathering in the Southlands. He stands out among Orcs for being the only one wearing black.
249	* From ''Series/OnceUponATime'': Black features [[http://images.wikia.com/onceuponatime8042/images/e/e3/2PromoQueen5.png prominently]] in the Evil Queen's wardrobe. After her Storybrooke counterpart Regina tries to redeem herself to its citizens, this is reflected in her wardrobe changes: she wears more gray shades and more color.
250	* In ''Series/PowerRangersInSpace'' the surviving PsychoRangers briefly take on (never before seen) human form. To remind us that they're evil, they're wearing black leather jackets and black pants. [[ColorCodedSecretIdentity And colored undershirts so we know which one is which]], so Psycho Black is wearing ''only'' black.
251	* ''Franchise/StarTrek''
252	** While various VillainOfTheWeek types wear black, there's also a low-key version in {{Alternate Reality Episode}}s where the protagonists are portrayed as evil, so wear dark undershirts and black gloves (see VOY "Living Witness") or black assault vests (see ENT "In A Mirror, Darkly") with their standard Starfleet uniforms.
253	** ''Series/StarTrekPicard'': Romulan siblings Narek and Narissa (when she's not posing as a Starfleet officer) are always dressed in black, and they're Zhat Vash operatives. Their organization's death squads have an all-black uniform, including opaque black helmets. The traditional hooded robe of the female leaders is black.
254	* ''Series/{{Supernatural}}''
255	** In the episode [[Recap/SupernaturalS02E22AllHellBreaksLoosePartTwo "All Hell Breaks Loose, Part Two" (S02, E22)]], the Yellow-Eyed Demon wears a black shirt, black jacket, and dark jeans.
256	** Crowley wears a black suit over a black shirt, although with a blue tie. He was a human but after death became a powerful demon.
257	* ''Series/TheWalkingDead2010'': Negan, the leader of a large group of hostile survivors called the Saviors, wears a black leather jacket.
258	* An InvokedTrope in ''Series/{{Westworld}}'' whereas their final piece of apparel, guests have a choice of a white hat or a black hat, indicating their choice to play either a hero or a villain.
259	** [[NiceGuy William]] chooses the white hat, but his amoral and hedonistic brother-in-law Logan wears the black hat.
260	** The Man in Black is an experienced guest who revels in rape and cold-blooded murder, is dressed in black and has a black horse. [[spoiler:He is eventually revealed to be William thirty years later, and a sign that he is SlowlySlippingIntoEvil is when William swaps his white hat for a black one.]]
261	** Hector Escaton, a host who plays a stereotypical 'bad boy' outlaw, naturally dresses in all-black leather.
262	* ''Series/ThievesOfTheWood'' has an evil mayor who wears black suits.
263	* Negatus, main villain of ''Series/{{Yonderland}}'', dresses entirely in black, complete with black nail polish and eyeliner.
264	[[/folder]]
265
266	[[folder:Music]]
267	* While he didn't always wear black, Music/DoctorSteel did on occasion wear a black PVC outfit with top hat and cape.
268	* Cowboys From Hell by Music/{{Pantera}}: "Bad guys wear black, we're tagged and can't turn back."
269	* In the music video for "Music/HoldingOutForAHero" by Bonnie Tyler, the evil outlaw cowboys dress up in black and threaten her with neon whips.
270	* UsefulNotes/BlackMetal is shaped by this trope.
271	* "Timebomb" by Rancid is about a young man growing up around crime and who is shot dead at the last verse.
272	--> black coat, white shoes, black hat, [[NiceCar Cadillac]]\
273	the boy's a time bomb.
274	[[/folder]]
275
276	[[folder:Professional Wrestling]]
277	* {{Face}} or {{Heel}}, a demonic gravedigger like Wrestling/TheUndertaker definitely qualifies.
278	* Combined with EvilCostumeSwitch, everyone who joined the Wrestling/NewWorldOrder traded colors with the traditional black and white shirt.
279	** A year before the nWo formed, this was played with to one of the founding members, Wrestling/HulkHogan, after the Wrestling/DungeonOfDoom shaved off his mustache. Hogan wore all black and was presented as the "Dark Side of Hulkamania."
280	* After joining Wrestling/TheCorporation, the Wrestling/BigBossman returned to the WWF wearing black SWAT gear instead of his blue police shirt.
281	* Wrestling/{{Melina}}'s second run as a WWE villainess saw her compete in an all-black outfit, and she donned all black as a heel in matches against Wrestling/{{Velvet Sky}} at Northeast Wrestling. In her 2015 appearance at MCW Ladies' Night, Melina dressed entirely in black while appearing as an evil enforcer.
282	* Wrestling/{{Layla}} donned a long black evening gown on the August 2, 2013, episode of ''Smackdown'': the night that Layla turned heel and betrayed Wrestling/{{Kaitlyn}}.
283	[[/folder]]
284
285	[[folder:Sports]]
286	* In the UsefulNotes/MixedMartialArts competition show ''Series/TheUltimateFighter'', Chael Sonnen very obviously chose to play the role of {{heel}} in his season against champion Jon Jones. His team wore black jerseys, and he repeatedly described them as "the bad guys."
287	* The Oakland Raiders were long considered the "bad guys" of the [[UsefulNotes/NationalFootballLeague NFL]], and of course they wear black.
288	[[/folder]]
289
290	[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
291	* When it comes to wizards in ''TabletopGame/{{Dragonlance}}'', the Black Robes are, [[CardCarryingVillain by definition]], evil (they draw their magic from the dark moon of Nuitari, the god of evil magic), and are [[ColorCodedForYourConvenience contrasted]] with the Red Robes of neutrality and White Robes of good... though, that having been said, this in no way hinders some Black Robes from being [[AffablyEvil surprisingly decent people]], and their general tendency towards PragmaticVillainy (encouraging that over other kinds of villainy is one of the main reasons they are tolerated) has made Black Robes the TokenEvilTeammate of good groups more than once.
292	* ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'':
293	** The Black Legion, arguably the most powerful and evil Chaos SpaceMarine Legion whose color of choice is written on their name.
294	** The Slaanesh-devoted Emperor's Children, whose colors are black and... [[PsychoPink hideous hot pink]] (or purple DependingOnTheArtist). Due to centuries of self-inflicted sensory abuse, clashing colors are one of the few things that still grab their attention.
295	** Averted by the Deathwatch (the Imperium's elite anti-xenos SpaceMarine squads who forgo their Chapter colors for all-black armor) and the Black Templars, who are firmly on the side of good--[[BlackAndGrayMorality on the Imperium's side]].
296	[[/folder]]
297
298	[[folder:Theatre]]
299	* Played with in the 2008 ''Theatre/{{Chess}} in Concert''. The Soviets are coded black and the Americans white, and the protagonist, Anatoly, is Soviet, so black is good, or neutral at worst. [[spoiler:At least for the first act. Anatoly defects late in Act I, and the Soviets are the antagonists from that point onward, so black is evil. This is pointed up by the fact that Viigand, the Soviet antagonist of Act II, wears the exact same shades of black that Anatoly wore in Act I.]]
300	[[/folder]]
301
302	[[folder:Toys]]
303	* The ''Franchise/GIJoe'' franchise has seen many versions of Destro and TheBaroness wearing black. Many versions of Cobra Commander himself, including [[ComicBook/GIJoeARealAmericanHeroMarvel the Marvel comics]] in the HesBack moment, have traded his blue outfits in for black versions.
304	[[/folder]]
305
306	[[folder:Video Games]]
307	* The BigBad of ''Franchise/BlazBlue'', Yuuki Terumi, wears a black suit and hat as his alter ego Hazama, and keeps wearing the former under the orange cloak he's better known for. His true identity, [[spoiler: Takehaya Susano'o-no-Mikoto, is an animated suit of black armor]].
308	* Some of the playable characters in ''VideoGame/DeathSmiles'' are, or used to be, evil, such as Casper and Sakura, who both wear black outfits.
309	* In ''VideoGame/DragonAgeII'', when [[spoiler:Anders commits to a plan of blowing up the Kirkwall Chantry to incite all-out war between mages and Templars]], [[spoiler:his]] outfit [[EvilCostumeSwitch changes from its normal colors]] to black.
310	* ''VideoGame/FZero'' has Black Shadow. As if his name wasn't already a clue, he is the ruler of the ominous [[NebulousEvilOrganisation Black Shadow Group]] and his outfit looks a lot like [[Franchise/{{Batman}} Batman's]], except with big, demonic horns just to drive the point further home.
311	* ''VideoGame/{{Fallout 3}}'', the evil mercenary armies of Talon Company wear a custom variant of Combat Armor painted black.
312	* In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIV'' Golbez wears variable dark blue or black armor DependingOnTheArtist. [[spoiler:He continues to wear his dark armour even after his HeelFaceTurn.]]
313	* In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'', Sephiroth wears a black outfit with steel touches. He wears this prior to his FaceHeelTurn and seems to be a fairly common colour choice for SOLDIER, who are, on a whole, a PunchClockVillain group.
314	* In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIX'', EvilOverlord Garland wears a futuristic suit of black armor with matching cape. This is in sharp contrast to Kuja being a man dressed in white.
315	* ''Franchise/KingdomHearts'', Master Xehanort's clothing is primarily black and grey, while the members of the Organization wear black cloaks.
316	* In ''VideoGame/GwentTheWitcherCardGame'' the banner and uniform of Nilfgaard is black with a gold sun emblem. Basically every other faction hates Nilfgaard for their spying, treachery, constant warring, and general habit of trying to conquer everything it touches.
317	* Ganondorf of ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda'' almost always wears black in his Gerudo form, whether it's [[TinTyrant a suit of armor]] or [[BadassLongRobe a flowing robe]].
318	* ''VideoGame/MysteryCaseFiles'':
319	** The Shade, the main antagonist in ''Mystery Case Files: The Countess'', gradually took the shape of lady Gloria Codington while draining her creativity over the years and now appears as a dark doppelgänger of hers wearing an entirely black version of her dress.
320	** There is also [[MagnificentBastard Alister]] and [[AxCrazy Charles]] Dalimar, some of the most prominent baddies in the ''Mystery Case Files'' franchise, that always wear black in their appearances.
321	* Contrast to the rest of the character designs for students, the Goth-Punks of the ''VideoGame/{{Pico}}'' game mythos all wear black, or if they're lacking have some shade of black on their body. The lone exception is Hanzo, a HighlyVisibleNinja.
322	* ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'':
323	** Team Rocket's members wear black with red "R" emblems, while Giovanni is depicted in the games wearing black suits. In the anime, he wore orange at first but switched to black in ''Best Wishes'' when he and Team Rocket became major antagonists again.
324	** Jessie and James, two of the main antagonists of the anime adaptation, wore white uniforms and were mostly used as comical relief in the seasons before ''Best Wishes''. In that season, they get noticeably more competent and evil, and of course, they switch to black clothing. When they switched back to their regular white-and-red uniforms, they get noticeably less competent.
325	** A faction split from Team Plasma in ''VideoGame/PokemonBlack2AndWhite2''. In the original Gen 5 games, they weren't this, but since they split from the main group as they supported Ghetsis instead of N, they changed to be like so in the sequels as a way to show that they were now just blatantly evil and not even pretending to be {{Well Intentioned Extremist}}s. It's especially blatant with Ghetsis's costume change in the same games too.
326	** Team Skull in ''VideoGame/PokemonSunAndMoon'' wear black clothing as well. Likely because they're not even trying to be remotely subtle, and pattern themselves off American gangs. Gladion is also this, due to working with them, though [[spoiler:he's actually a good person the whole time]].
327	** The [[DarkIsEvil Dark]]-type, called the Evil-type in Japan, is made up of primarily black-colored Pokémon or Pokémon with at least a little black. You can count the Pokémon with Dark as their primary type (Darkrai, Sneasel, Umbreon) on one hand. Most with Dark as their secondary type (Crawdaunt and Shiftry) are differently colored, however.
328	* Albert Wesker from ''Franchise/ResidentEvil'' doesn't start out wearing much black (in [[VideoGame/ResidentEvil1 the first game]] and ''VideoGame/ResidentEvilZero'', his shirt is blue), but after betraying S.T.A.R.S., he starts dressing more like a villain. He wears a black combat uniform in ''VideoGame/ResidentEvilCodeVeronica'', and a black suit in ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil4''. He really starts embracing this trope in the fifth installment, with a longcoat made of pure black leather, as well as black inner getups, gloves, and boots. The only thing that isn't black would be his hair and [[RedEyesTakeWarning his eyes]].
329	* In ''Franchise/StreetFighter'', Akuma by default wears either a black or dark purple gi. When Ryu becomes Evil Ryu, he's also depicted with a black gi (which becomes tattered in the fourth installment). M. Bison also wears a black cloak over his red outfit, although he tosses it off when the matches begin.
330	* Averted in ''VideoGame/StarCraftII'', where Raynor's signature skull-helmed PowerArmor is entirely black. The main human villains are colored purple (Confederacy), red (Sons of Korhal), and white (UED).
331	* ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'':
332	** The Mario Sports titles in the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch-era depict [[BigBad Bowser]] wearing black sports outfits.
333	** In ''VideoGame/SuperPaperMario'', "Mr. L" is a [[PaperThinDisguise thinly disguised]] evil version of a certain main character who wears basically the same outfit without a mask and in less black colors.
334	* Neutral Hostile units in ''VideoGame/{{Warcraft}} III'' are automatically colored black (though it's possible to make them keep their color via LevelEditor).
335	* [[CatsAreMean Wu-Long]], the BigBad of ''VideoGame/TheWayOfCinnamon'', has a primarily black outfit.
336	[[/folder]]
337
338	[[folder:Visual Novels]]
339	* Some of the culprits in ''Franchise/AceAttorney'' wear something black:
340	** ''VisualNovel/PhoenixWrightAceAttorney'': [[spoiler:Damon Gant wears a black shirt under his jacket.]]
341	** ''VisualNovel/PhoenixWrightAceAttorneyJusticeForAll'': [[spoiler:Shelley de Killer wears a black tie whenever he appears in person.]]
342	** ''VisualNovel/PhoenixWrightAceAttorneyTrialsAndTribulations'': [[spoiler:Luke Atmey wears a black tuxedo jacket.]]
343	** ''VisualNovel/ApolloJusticeAceAttorney'': [[spoiler:Kristoph Gavin wears a black waistcoat under his jacket.]]
344	* Bolt in ''VisualNovel/{{SC2VN}}'' wears a black team jacket with white stripes.
345	[[/folder]]
346
347	[[folder:Web Animation]]
348	* ''WebAnimation/MysterySkullsAnimated'': PlayedForLaughs; in contrast to the rest of her family's white, pink, and purple attire, Cayenne wears darker reds and purples and has flames painted on her cowboy boots, emphasizing what a terror she can be to the victims of her pranks.
349	[[/folder]]
350
351	[[folder:Webcomics]]
352	* ''Webcomic/CucumberQuest'': The Nightmare Knight is the BigBad of the comic, and he's a BlackKnight clad in all black armor.
353	* Richard of ''Webcomic/LookingForGroup'' is one of the protagonists, but he's also an undead sorcerer who actually needs to do evil acts to maintain his powers. He wears a black robe and hood.
354	* In ''Webcomic/ElGoonishShive'', one of the first major villians, Damien, wore black and his stripes were also black. This was [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?date=2004-07-14 a late design decision]] and his original colors were [[RedIsViolent red]] and white.
355	[[/folder]]
356
357	[[folder:Web Original]]
358	* ''MediaNotes/JennyEverywhere'': Her EvilCounterpart Jenny Nowhere is usually depicted as wearing all-black, whether that be a figure-hugging black catsuit, a black [[BadassInANiceSuit tux]], a black skirt and tank top, or (in her guise as “[[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Evil Cloak]]” in ''Webcomic/TalesToBehold'') a plain old hooded BlackCloak.
359	* In ''Series/TheCryOfMann'', Gergiev is malicious and cruel, underscored by his purely black outfit. The only color he has is the orange on his teeth and feet, while the rest of his clothes are dark.
360	[[/folder]]
361
362	[[folder:Western Animation]]
363	* In ''WesternAnimation/{{Ben 10}}'', Kevin Levin usually wears black clothing and is evil. At least in the original series. However, in the sequels, [[HeelFaceTurn he's become less evil]], but still wears black clothing.
364	* In ''WesternAnimation/CodenameKidsNextDoor'', BigBad Father's main outfit is a pitch black silhouette suit.
365	* Snidely Whiplash wore a black top hat and cape in ''WesternAnimation/DudleyDoRight''.
366	* ''WesternAnimation/FinalSpace'': The [[Characters/FinalSpaceTheLordCommandersForces Lord Commander]] wears almost all-black clothing and dark gray, and he's an incredibly vile being who wants to rule the universe and tortures his underlings for the smallest slights as well as being one of the Team Squad's prinary antagonists.
367	* In ''WesternAnimation/{{Gandahar}}'', the robotic army is all black, aside from their [[RedEyesTakeWarning glowing red eyes]].
368	* In ''{{WesternAnimation/Gawayn}}'', the Duke's outfit is dominantly black.
369	* Perhaps owing to his more evil nature, Hordak from ''WesternAnimation/SheRaPrincessOfPower'' wears black armor with a red Horde symbol emblazoned on it, as opposed to his pupil Skeletor's purple harness. His sidekick Imp also wears similar outfit, though lacking the boney decorations.
370	* In ''WesternAnimation/TheSmurfs1981'', Gargamel wears a black robe, in contrast to the (usually) white clothes(?) of the Smurfs, and the more colorful clothes of the good humans.
371	* "Devious" Diesel, one of the main antagonists of ''WesternAnimation/ThomasAndFriends'' is painted black.
372	* ''WesternAnimation/SupermanDoomsday''. When Superman returns to Metropolis to take on his evil clone, he's wearing a black Superman suit to absorb as much solar energy as possible. As per this trope, Jimmy Olsen assumes that an even more evil Superman has arrived to make things worse.
373	* In ''WesternAnimation/TotalDramaPresentsTheRidonculousRace'', the Ice Dancers, who normally wear pink and purple, wear [[EvilCostumeSwitch black versions of their outfits]] in "Shawshank Ridonc-tion".
374	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Underdog}}'': The canine hero's faced several villians who wear black, including Simon Barsinister, Battyman, and the Wicked Witch of Pickyoon.
375	* In ''WesternAnimation/WinxClub'' the Wizards of the Black Circle all wear black.
376	[[/folder]]
377

Context Main / EvilWearsBlack