Characters / Ratchet & Clank: Villains

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All villains, main and side, who appeared in the Ratchet & Clank series.

Ratchet & Clank (2002)

Chairman Drek

Ultimate Supreme Executive Chairman [Alonzo] Drek

Debut: Ratchet & Clank (2002)
English voice by: Kevin Michael Richardson (2002 game), Paul Giamatti (2016 film), Eric Bauza (2016 game)
Japanese voice by: Tetsuo Goto

"And if you don't like it, you can take your whiny, sniveling, snot-nosed populations, form a line behind me, and kiss my–! ...We're still on? Well, turn it off, you idiot!"

^{His appearance in the Remake}

"Using highly-sophisticated technology, which you couldn't possibly understand, we will be extracting a large portion of your planet [Novalis] and adding it to our new one. Unfortunately, this change in mass will cause your planet to spin out of control and drift into the sun which will explode into a flaming ball of gas, but of course, sacrifices must be made. Thank you for your cooperation."

The villain of the first game, Chairman Drek is the leader of the Blarg. After their home world has become polluted beyond repair, he and Blarg out to find a new home for their race... by ripping apart other planets and creating a new one, destroying countless lives in the process.

Tropes applying to him in both the original game and re-imagining:

• Asshole Victim: Absolutely nobody mourns for Drek when he receives his fate at the end of the first game.
• Bad Boss: He shows complete disregard for the safety of his troops and race, and openly insults and disrespects Captain Qwark (not that you could blame him).
• Big Bad: He is the main villain of the first game.
• Bilingual Bonus: "Drek" is slang for feces in Yiddish and Slovenian. In the case of Yiddish, it's a bit more vulgar, more like "shit".
• The Cameo: Drek makes a brief appearance in Up Your Arsenal in Qwark's flashback sequence upon regaining his memories.
• Corrupt Corporate Executive: It doesn't get much more corrupt than using his company's resources to destroy planets for his own gain.
• Deader than Dead: At the end of his boss fight, the Humongous Mecha he's piloting is sent on a direct collision course towards the artificial planet he was building. Then the de-planetizer is fired at said planet, and the beam hits the very spot where Drek crashed in the first place.
• Earth-Shattering Kaboom: His apparent modus operandi. After he uses planet looting to build his new planet, he tries to use the Planet Buster Maximus bomb and then the Deplanetizer to destroy Veldin so he could move his new world into its orbit.
• Ecocidal Antagonist: He's responsible for deliberately industrializing and over-polluting his home planet to the point of rendering it uninhabitable, forcing his people, the Blarg, to pay him a fortune to construct a brand new planet for them to live on, and overseeing an army of Planet Looters who steal the best bits from other planets in the galaxy for him to use in his creation. He's also secretly planning to repeat the cycle all over again once the Blarg have settled their new planet.
• Even Bad Men Love Their Mamas: Not that it's ever mentioned in-game, but the manual for the first game says he "never forgets his mother's birthday".
• Evil Is Petty: Closer analysis shows that a lot of his Kick the Dog actions in the original game seem crueler than they should be. Why wage war with countless other worlds to create a new planet out of bits a pieces of other populated worlds when you could spend all that time cleaning Orxon of its pollution or save money by invading one world and populate that instead? Why dump hundreds of gallons of toxic waste on a tropical vacation planet instead of the significantly less hard to find uninhabited planet? Why drop a Planet Destroyer on an inhabited planet to take their orbiting space when you could just share an orbit with them? Just the fact that he rendered his own home planet uninhabitable for the money just shows how few ethics he has. Actually, the pettiness is probably also for the money. Less habitable planets left means that his will be that much more valuable.
• Evil Sounds Deep: Played straight for his original voice actor, who gives him a deep voice. Not so much in the reimagining, where Paul Giamatti and Eric Bauza's portrayals are significantly less deep.
• Faux Affably Evil: Subverted in his address to the people of Novalis; he is polite and calm when explaining his plan, including the teensy problem that the sudden change in mass will cause the planet to crash into the sun and explode, but drops it after the cut, resulting in an Is This Thing Still On? moment.
• Fighting for a Homeland: He and the Blarg are trying to build themselves a new homeworld after they had to abandon their last one (Orxon) due to pollution and overpopulation, though unlike most examples this isn't really played for sympathy. Then the Final Boss battle completely subverts it with The Reveal that Drek was the one who polluted Orxon in the first place and plans on doing it again and again in a galaxy-sized real estate scam.
• Fun with Acronyms: His full title (minus the Chairman part) spells out USED, which ties directly into his real estate scam—he played his entire race for saps by polluting his home world so they would loot other worlds to build a new one, which Drek planned to use to extort money and then recycle the whole scheme all over again.
• Final Boss: Of the first game, and a very tough one at that! Unless you bought the RYNO beforehand.
• Hate Sink: In the original game, Drek is a completely irredeemable scumbag designed to be the type of character you'll want to see dead. The re-imagining downplays this by making him a more comical villain and giving him a slightly more sympathetic backstory. That being said, he's still a remorseless, genocidal maniac who has no qualms about killing billions of lives to make a new home for his race.
• Hoist by His Own Petard: In both the 2002 game and the 2016 movie, he is killed when the Deplanetizer fires upon his new planet while he's on it.
• Irony: After being defeated his mech causes the planetizer to spin- so he desperately tries to propel himself up to avoid being crushed... but he ends up being ejected to the new Blarg homeworld—with the planetizer aiming at him, giving Clank and Ratchet the opportunity to destroy him for good.
• Jerkass: Apart from having planets destroyed, he is also verbally abusive, cruel and condescending to everyone around him.
• Jerk with a Heart of Jerk:
  • In the original game. It says a lot that the only sympathetic quality he's given is that he "never misses his mothers birthday." Even before The Reveal that he was playing his entire race for saps as part of his galaxy scale real estate scam, the game spells out in bright neon letters that he's a truly despicable person who could care less about both the people and planets he's looting and the safety of his own race, and that his ulterior motive is ultimately getting rich.
  • In the 2016 game and movie, he's slightly more sympathetic, in that he seems sincere about his goals of making a new homeworld for the Blarg and honoring his father's legacy. But he's still quite gung ho about blowing up numerous planets to make his new world at the expense of billions of lives, and not once does he show remorse over what he's doing.
• Karmic Death: Drek's abrupt, unceremonious death in highlights how he lived; as a cowardly, slimy rat undeserving of a dignified end. His mecha is sent flying out of control and crash lands on his new planet, which is immediately blown up by his own Deplanetizer weapon.
• Laser-Guided Karma: His actions end up leading to his well deserved defeat and DEATH. He is defeated by Ratchet-whom he incited to attack him (presumably with the intent of removing him off the equation) by making the Planetizer's target Ratchet's homeworld,Clank- a robot created by the program that oversees his own robot factory in his home planet with the very purpose of stopping him...Finally, he is utterly decimated along with the scam planet he created from pillaging at the hands of the same weapon he intended to destroy Veldin.
• Laughably Evil: As evil as he is, most of his behavior is done in a way that's impossible not to get a laugh out of him.
• Monochromatic Eyes: A feature common to all Blarg in the original continuity. The remake gives him and the Blarg normal-looking eyes however.
• Named by the Adaptation: The remake gives him the first name of Alonzo.
• The Napoleon: He's short and a pretty aggressive fellow.
• No-Nonsense Nemesis: Compared to the villains that came later down the line, Drek plays things rather straight in the original first game. Despite the occasional comedic moments, he's still an amoral, ruthless business tycoon who destroys planets for money.
• Not-So-Well-Intentioned Extremist: He poisoned his world in the first place to make money of the creation of a new one. Subverted in the remake, where he's not responsible for wrecking his planet.
• Planet Looters: With the added bonus of being the reason the Blarg are taking resources from others in the first place.
• Smart People Play Chess: His movie bio says "if Ratchet is checkers, Chairman Alonzo Drek is chess" when comparing Ratchet's straightforward approach to Drek's scheming.
• Smug Snake: He is a smarmy and arrogant sociopath, and gloats to Ratchet and Clank about his real estate scam and plan to blow up Veldin.
• Starter Villain: Serves as this to Ratchet in both the original game and the 2016 reimagining.
• The Sociopath: He's the one who destroyed Orxon in the first place, his plan entails the destruction of several planets and the presumed deaths of billions, and halfway through the game he starts plotting to destroy Veldin just because it's in the way. And he plans on doing it again and again, because it will make him incredibly wealthy. He does not show an ounce of guilt, regret, or remorse for any of this.
• Take That!: In a video playthrough of the first game, Insomniac CEO Ted Price said that Drek's appearance and personality was based off of executives he encountered while he made games with Universal as their distributor. He also added that he's his favorite villain in the series because of that.
• Toxic, Inc.: Whatever his business did before he started waging war with the galaxy for its resources, it seemed to generate enough toxic waste that it rendered his planet uninhabitable as he intended. Even afterwards they seem to generate tons of mutagenic waste that they dump onto the tropical vacation planet Pokitaru instead of the literal countless uninhabited planets in the universe.
• Try to Fit That on a Business Card: Parodied. He started with "Chairman Drek" and added to his title at various points through the game, eventually becoming Ultimate Supreme Executive Chairman Drek.

Tropes applying to him in the reimagining specifically include:

• Adaptational Heroism: Well, "Heroism" is a bit of a stretch. He is still a villain in the 2016 re-imagining. However, he is noticeably more well intentioned than he was in the previous game, with a genuine desire to create a new planet for his people rather than out of greed. And this time it's his father who polluted his original home planet instead of Drek himself. However (in the game, at least), he's still a Bad Boss, even if his temper is more J. Jonah Jameson-esque, and berates his employees for not killing the Galactic Rangers yet. The biggest counterpoint to him being more heroic in this game is probably a late-game line of dialogue which has him state that he wants to repeat the process of creating New Quartu, so as to create an empire of Blarg-owned planets across the galaxy:
  Drek: After I've built us a new home world, I'll make another, and another! (chuckles) Can you imagine? Dozens of Blarg-owned planets, forged not by nature, but by my company. We'll create an entire empire using your galaxy's wasted planets! I suppose this will leave many of your citizens homeless or, well, dead... but sacrifices must be made!
• Adaptational Nice Guy: Compared to his counterpart in the original game, Drek is a lot more affable in the film and its tie-in. Though he is still a mass-murderer who destroys planets without any regret, and is still willing to kill his subordinates for even minor things like texting while he is talking, or shunting an entire room of his subordinates out the airlock in an impromptu funeral for Vincent Von Ion.
• Adaptational Wimp: Plus he's less outwardly aggressive and more bumbling than cunning and he doesn't even get to fight Ratchet—he gets upstaged, transformed into a sheep and then offed by Dr. Nefarious.
• Alternate Self: The sheep staring blankly off into space at Zurkie's bar in Rift Apart is off-handedly mentioned to be the parallel dimension's version of him.
• Big Bad Duumvirate: Both he and Nefarious are this in the reboot, until Nefarious turns him into a sheep and betrays him.
• Big Bad Wannabe: He becomes this in the movie and the 2016 game. For all his big ambitions, he is actually played for a sap by Dr. Nefarious the whole time and disposed of by being turned into a sheep and rocketed to New Quartu. After crash-landing there, he returns to his real form shortly before dying with New Quartu.
• Dies Differently in Adaptation: Is betrayed and offed by Nefarious' actions, rather than by Ratchet and Clank.
• Disproportionate Retribution: He gains humorous antics, particularly in how he has a thing about his employees texting when he told them not to, punishing such acts of disobedience by throwing them through an airlock or having Victor Von Ion eat their phone.
• Fighting for a Homeland: Drek's father was the one who polluted the Blarg homeworld (which is now Quartu instead of Orxon) and Drek wants to fix his father's mistakes while still living up to his legacy, but his methods are still unjustifiable.
• Forced Transformation: Dr. Nefarious turns Drek into a sheep with the Sheepinator and sends him in a ship set to crash land on his new planet. However, it only proves to be temporary, and he changes back to his normal self long enough to watch the Deplanetizer fire upon the planet.
• Karmic Death: Much like in the original, but differently just the same. Dr. Nefarious turns him into a sheep and sends him off in a ship set on a crash course with New Quartu. He survives the landing and returns to normal—only for New Quartu to get vaporized by the Deplanetizer.
• The Unfought: Despite the destruction he's caused throughout the galaxy, he's the only villain Ratchet doesn't fight. He's replaced by Nefarious as both the Big Bad and the Final Boss.
• Unwitting Pawn: Nefarious was just using him to destroy the entire system under the Rangers' watch as revenge.
• "Well Done, Son" Guy: His father is the one who polluted the Blarg homeworld. This Drek wants to live up to his father's legacy.
• Well-Intentioned Extremist: It's his father that polluted his planet (which is now Quartu instead of Orxon) and he really does want a new world for the Blarg. However, he's still gleeful over destroying the home planet of a Galactic Ranger, and wants to eventually repeat the process to create a Blarg empire.

Captain Qwark

Captain Qwark played a more villainous role prior to his redemption in the third game. To see tropes that apply to him, go to the Heroes page.

Ratchet & Clank: Going Commando

The Unknown Thief

Unknown Thief/Angela Cross

Debut: Ratchet & Clank: Going Commando
English voice by: Rodger Bumpass
Japanese voice by: Yuki Masuda

"I see it's time to update my security."

"You have no idea what you're involved in. Return to your own galaxy immediately, or this will happen to you!"

A mysterious thief who stole the original Protopet a few weeks before the events of Going Commando. She serves as the game's main antagonist until Mr. Fizzwidget's Face–Heel Turn.

---

• Becoming the Mask: Angela is merely a vigilante trying to prevent a dangerous experiment being exposed to the public, however under her disguise, she takes a bit too much to the sinister alter ego, using her hired goons to bully uninvolved people and just generally acting like a hammy Card-Carrying Villain, to the point her unmasked form and the thief persona act like nearly two completely different people,
• The Cameo: The thief is included in the cinema crowd at the end of Up Your Arsenal, both to avoid a Late-Arrival Spoiler on her true identity and, as the Future trilogy implies, to conceal her identity from Tachyon.
• Cast as a Mask: She has a male voice actor while in her disguise to hide the fact that the thief is really a female.
• Easily Forgiven: Once her intentions are revealed, Ratchet just ignores all of her previous actions which included threatening to kill Clank.
• Gender-Concealing Voice: The Thief is secretly Angela Cross in disguise. She's voiced by Rodger Bumpass when disguised, but her real self is voiced by Kath Soucie. However, both of her identities share the same voice actress in the Japanese version.
• Good All Along: Turns out to have been trying to stop a threat to the entire galaxy.
• Heel–Face Turn: Forced into an Enemy Mine position with Ratchet and Clank when Mr. Fizzwidget seemingly pulls a Face–Heel Turn.
• The Klutz: After meeting Ratchet & Clank, she clonks her head on a hatch cover while escaping. Even the Protopet laughs. Later, an inopportune faceplant reveals her Lombax identity. She's... still pretty clumsy even without all that gear, though.
• Samus Is a Girl: The thief is actually a woman.
• Well-Intentioned Extremist: All she wanted was to stop the Protopet from being released, because its feral programming could wipe out the galaxy.

Thugs-4-Less Leader

Thug Leader

Debut: Ratchet & Clank: Going Commando
English voice by: Steve Blum
Japanese voice by: Jin Yamanoi

"Pay for six hits and the seventh is free!"

"Thugs-4-Less! If it ain't broke, we'll break it!"

The leader of Thugs-4 Less, hired by both the thief and Fizzwidget at different points during Going Commando. Not so much a villain, as he's only in it for the bolts.

---

• Affably Evil: Looks out for all the men in the Thugs ensuring they are well cared for (offering pizza parties to the squad that bags Ratchet) and his prison even caters for vegetarians.
• Benevolent Boss: Treats his employees rather well, such as offering pizza parties to anyone who captures Ratchet as well as taking them out on picnics as bonding exercises, much to the Thief's frustration.
• The Determinator: He never gives up on trying to kill Ratchet but his determination only leads to defeat.
• Even Evil Has Standards: Subverted; upon learning of MegaCorp's intentions with the Protopet, he himself states that they're clearly up to no good and intends to confront them to... demand a bigger cut of the action.
• No Name Given: He is only known as the leader of Thugs-4 Less.
• Punch-Clock Villain: Though his enmity with Ratchet crosses the line into It's Personal later on.
• Recurring Boss: Is fought three times throughout Going Commando; the first time in an attack helicopter on Endako, the second time in a Humongous Mecha on the Lunar City moon orbiting Dobbo, and the final time on Snivelak at the controls of an even bigger mech with Angela held hostage.

Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal

Dr. Nefarious

Dr. Nefarious

Debut: Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal
English voice by: Armin Shimerman
Japanese voice by: Fubito Yamano

^{Click here for his Rift Apart appearance}

"ANNIHILATE HIM!"

"What did you expect!? I'M A SUPER VILLAIN! MWAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

The main villain of the Ratchet and Clank franchise, Dr. Nefarious is a nefarious Mad Scientist who is out to wrong all the rights in the galaxy and rid it of all organic lifeforms so he can rule over a robotic utopia with an iron fist.

Tropes applying to him in both the original continuity and the 2016 re-imagining:

• Affably Evil: He can actually be jovial, goofy, and perfectly happy to be polite towards his enemies when he isn't being aggravated. Doesn't stop him from being a pretty Bad Boss and childish jerk whenever he is angry though.
• And I Must Scream: Downplayed and Played for Laughs. At the end of Up Your Arsenal, he and Lawrence are left stranded on an asteroid with literally nothing to do but sit and wait for them to be in range of a planet, which took years. Though Nefarious claimed it was mostly boring, it definitely didn't help his mental state.
• Anti-Villain: Implied to be sliding into this role thanks to the events of All 4 One. But not really. He's just faking it to get on the heroes' good side while they've got him outnumbered. However, Rift Apart implies he really is developing into one by comparing him to the more selfish and ruthless Emperor Nefarious.
• Arch-Enemy:
  • In the third game, Nefarious seems to see Qwark as his archnemesis, but by the time A Crack in Time rolls around, he's shifted that honor to Ratchet. That said, he admitted in Up Your Arsenal he already saw Ratchet as a much more Worthy Opponent than Qwark.
  • Into the Nexus also refers to his profile as "Galactic Enemy #1", indicating that he has solidified this position in-universe as well.
• Ax-Crazy: Even before he became a genocidal Killer Robot, he planned to have his pets destroy all life on a planet because its inhabitants called him out on being crazy.
• Bad Boss: As Lawrence can attest, he's a headache and a half to work for at best. He has his minions participate in a rehearsal of his screenplay, which may or may not end with them getting shot. Downplayed in Rift Apart, where he's shown to actually take paying his minions seriously, and lets Lawrence skip out for paternity leave.
• Badass Bookworm: He's extremely smart, and can take multiple hits from Ratchet's heaviest weapons before going down.
• Be Careful What You Wish For: His desire to have a reality where the heroes always lose actually comes true in Rift Apart, where he lands in an alternate dimension that has Nefarious always succeed in his endeavors. Unfortunately for him, this universe has its own Nefarious who doesn't think very highly of him nor is he interested in sharing any of the power he's consolidated. Moreover, interacting with Emps allows him to see that always winning isn't all it's cracked up to be.
• Being Evil Sucks: Has moments of this in All 4 One and Rift Apart, being very aware that he has no friends and is constantly losing despite his ambitions.
• Berserk Button:
  • The mere sight or mention of Qwark alone is enough to make him go ballistic to the point of short circuiting.
  • Minor inconveniences and Lawrence’s general antics sets him off quite a bit as well
• Beware the Silly Ones: In cutscenes, he's a bumbling fool. When it's time to actually fight him though, he's more than capable of kicking ass, and most of his schemes are well-executed.
• Big Bad: The most prominent antagonist in the series, and the only villain to claim the role of Big Bad multiple times. He specifically serves as this for Up Your Arsenal, A Crack in Time, and the 2016 reimagining. He returns as the Disc-One Final Boss for Rift Apart before being upstaged... by an alternate version of himself, Emperor Nefarious.
• Big Bad Duumvirate: Forms an alliance with his alternate self in Rift Apart, though the Emperor is clearly dominant.
• Big Bad Ensemble: Nefarious is the main villain for most of A Crack in Time and is responsible for much of the conflict in that game, but it turns out that Alister Azimuth also wants to use the Great Clock to undo the extermination of the Lombaxes, risking all of reality in the process.
• Big Bad Wannabe: In Rift Apart, he steals the Dimensionator and sends the heroes and himself into an alternate dimension where he succeeded, and runs the show impersonating his alternate self, Emperor Nefarious. When the real Emperor returns, he’s not happy that his prime counterpart impersonated him and embarrassed him by being defeated by Rivet, but Dr. Nefarious convinces him to make use of his genius, leading the doctor to be Demoted to Dragon for the rest of the game.
• Black Eyes of Crazy: Every incarnation of Nefarious' robot form has burning eyes in dark sockets, but some lean further into this than others; All 4 One gives him subtly lighter "pupils"◊, while his redesign in Rift Apart, which replaces the solid lenses with glowing orange filament-like apertures in wide black rings, makes him look positively deranged◊.
• Blade Below the Shoulder: His Annihilator Blades in All 4 One.
• Boomerang Bigot: Of sorts. He has a seething hatred for organic lifeforms even though it's revealed he was organic until his body was destroyed and replaced with his current robotic one.
• Breakout Villain: After Up Your Arsenal, he has become the most recognizable villain in the series, returning as the Big Bad for A Crack in Time and one of the protagonists for All 4 One. He's even one of the villains of the reboot alongside Drek, albeit in his original squishy form. Even so, he still usurps the title of Big Bad away from Drek by backstabbing him.
• Came Back Strong: Nefarious had seemingly fallen to his death in an old encounter with Qwark (as depicted in one of the Vid-Comics) or, in the reboot, falling into a supernova, but somehow survived, but was almost completely rebuilt as a very powerful robot.
• Came Back Wrong: While his transformation into a robot made him a force to be reckoned with, it's implied that it kind of messed him up mentally, and included a bizarre defect that shorts him out (and tunes in to soap operas) if he gets too flustered. Interestingly, by Rift Apart, it seems like this particular flaw has been ironed out, considering he gets worked up plenty in that game but never shorts out.
• Cannot Tell Fiction from Reality: Thought Agent Clank was real, and it is why he abducted Clank to try and sway him to his side. Of course, Clank immediately corrects him, and after a moment of denial, Nefarious gets around to also considering Clank his nemesis along with Ratchet and Qwark.
• Card-Carrying Villain: With a name like Dr. Nefarious, he absolutely revels in being a villain. This boils beneath the surface in Up Your Arsenal, but his final plan in A Crack in Time is to use the Orvus Chamber to alter time and create a world where heroes always lose.
• Catchphrase Insult:
  • Prefers to call people "morons."
  • He’s also very fond of labeling things and people as "pathetic."
  Dr. Nefarious (loudspeaker): What are you going to do if you escape, Clank? I doubt that pathetic heli-pack is strong enough to fly you all the way to Polaris. I'll make you a deal. You show me how to get into one tiny, insignificant room. And I'll let you keep that pathetic tangle of frayed wires that you call a brain.

• Character Catchphrase:
  • "LAWWWWWWREEEENNCCCCEEEE!"
  • "ANNIHILATE THEM!"

• The Chessmaster: Nefarious is a nutcase, but he's far from stupid. One notable example is in Crack in Time. Realizing that it would be fruitless to take apart Clank's memory in the Mmenonic station, he decides to let Clank run around the Great Clock while having Lawrence follow him, correctly deducing that Clank would eventually find the Orvus Chamber on his own. Later, when Qwark, in the Paper-Thin Disguise of a nurse, tries to infiltrate the evil lair of Nefarious, he just plays along so he could trap Ratchet, Clank and Qwark. Were it not for the Zoni's intervention, he would've won.
• Chronic Backstabbing Disorder: In A Crack In Time, he tells his computer to remind him to betray both the Valkyries and Flint Vorselon when he's done with his plans.
• Combat Pragmatist: Nefarious does not fight fair. He'll summon enemies, have Lawrence assist him, and even pull an I Surrender, Suckers to escape if need be.
  • All 4 One takes this even further. His special gadget in the game is the Cloaker, which turns him invisible and lets him strike an opponent from behind.
  • The 2016 reimagining has him shooting Drek in the back with a Sheepinator and launching him into space. Also, he fights Ratchet and Clank in a giant robot.
• Creepy High-Pitched Voice: A Mad Scientist with a screechy voice. Even when he was organic.
• Demoted to Dragon: In Rift Apart, he becomes his Alternate Self's lieutenant and advisor.
• Diabolical Mastermind: He gets away with his schemes thanks to being too powerful for even the Galactic Rangers to take down. Even after Ratchet keeps beating him, Nefarious blackmails entities weaker than himself to get what he wants.
• Didn't Think This Through: In Rift Apart, Nefarious steals the rebuilt Dimensionator and uses it to travel to a dimension where he always wins and rules over the universe as its emperor. However, he clearly didn't think about what would happen when the real Emperor Nefarious finally shows up and Dr. Nefarious almost gets blasted by the Dimensionator himself before he pledges himself to his counterpart.
• Disc-One Final Boss:
  • Despite driving the conflict of A Crack in Time, Nefarious's defeat does not mark the end of the game, as Alister Azimuth takes his place as the Final Boss.
  • He kicks off the plot for Rift Apart by stealing the Dimensionator Clank rebuilt, but he's ultimately upstaged and Demoted to Dragon by Emperor Nefarious in the second half.
• Disney Villain Death: Qwark did away with Nefarious this way when he was still organic, but Nefarious somehow survived and was transformed into a robot afterward.
• Ditzy Genius: Nefarious is a goofball, but he still managed to build some truly impressive tech; Case in point, the Biobliterator and that mech the size of a building in A Crack In Time. But he's still a goofball.
  Lawrence: Even drooling imbeciles can achieve success in certain fields, sir. Mad Science, for example.
• The Dog Bites Back: Quite a cathartic bite, too. After spending most of Rift Apart treating him like crap, Emperor Nefarious pathetically begs for his alternate counterpart to save him, suddenly big on working together. The good doctor is having none of it, and kicks him to his doom.
  Emperor Nefarious: Please! We... we can win this together!
  Dr. Nefarious: What do you know about winning?
• Does Not Understand Sarcasm: Nearly every last one of Lawrence's Stealth Insults fly by him. He did eventually land him a nasty sucker punch after he got too cocky however.
• Emperor Scientist: An evil scientist and a Galactic Conqueror.
• Enemy Mine: Returns in Ratchet And Clank: All 4 One as a Playable Character. Though there, it's more because he has little choice but to work with them.
• Even Evil Has Loved Ones: For the heaps of abuse he pours on him, he does care about Lawrence. Rift Apart reveals he gave him paternity leave.
• Even Evil Has Standards:
  • While he does want to wipe out organics, he draws the line at slaughtering the entire universe. He was against the Loki Master in All 4 One because of this, and he was shocked when Emperor Nefarious wanted to invade his universe.
  • Even he's disgusted at Emperor Nefarious' pathetic Villainous Breakdown. As much of a Psychopathic Manchild as Dr. Nefarious is he never takes his losses too hard and learns from his mistakes — this is directly contrasted with how much of a spoiled, entitled baby Emperor Nefarious is when he loses once.
• Evil Cannot Comprehend Good: In All 4 One, he's completely stunned when Qwark, of all people, saves him from falling to his death and asks him why he did that. Qwark merely responds by saying that he'd do the same for him, to which Nefarious gives a yeah for lack of a better answer.
• Evil Genius: Easily one of the smartest characters in the series. Despite all outward appearances, he's a fairly sadistic and cunning planner, he just loves being a Card-Carrying Villain so much that it often bites him in the end.
• Evil Is Hammy: Thanks to his massive ego he loves to go into over-the-top speeches, and he's equally over the top when angry. Even in a World of Ham, he manages to out-ham everyone else thanks to his tendencies to be Obviously Evil.
• Evil Is Petty: His first act of villainy was attempting to wipe out an entire planet because some of its inhabitants called him insane.
• Evil Has a Bad Sense of Humor: Nefarious' idea of a joke is horribly mean-spirited, and his jokes are just terrible in general.
• Evil Laugh: Any Large Ham Mad Scientist isn't complete without some exceptionally evil laughs, and Nefarious has some incredibly bombastic ones, especially in A Crack in Time. It seems like Armin Shimerman puts all the strength of his Squishy vocal cords into them.
• Evil Plan: His initial motivation in Up Your Arsenal is to exterminate all organic life by turning them into robots with the Biobliterator. In A Crack in Time, this has changed to using the Great Clock to create a universe in which the heroes always lose.
• Evil Virtues: Determination and maturity, ironically for a Psychopathic Manchild. As he realizes as he gets to know his eviler, hyper-successful Emperor counterpart, it's shown that for all of his hammy raging about defeat, he ultimately knows how to suck it up, learn from his mistakes, and be satisfied with the victories he does get - which ultimately causes him to look down on Emperor Nefarious as a lazy brat.
• Fantastic Racism: After being turned into a robot, he began to hate all organic life, referring to organic beings as "squishies."
• Final Boss: Twice, in Up Your Arsenal (in two stages) and the 2016 reboot.
• Flight: Thanks to rockets in his feet and wings to help keep his balance in midair.
• Flunky Boss: Summons enemies during the fight with him in A Crack In Time.
• Fragile Speedster: In battle, Nefarious can fly faster than Ratchet on his hoverboots and can throw out powerful energy blasts, but he can't take many hits in return.
• From Nobody to Nightmare: Started out as a nerdy high school student who was bullied by Qwark. Nowadays he’s considered to be the #1 villain in the galaxy and arch-nemesis to the famous heroic duo, Ratchet and Clank.
• Galactic Conqueror: Attempts this in Up Your Arsenal, trying to conquer the Solana Galaxy.
• Good Scars, Evil Scars: He gets one in A Crack in Time after a time traveling Ratchet throws a bomb at his face, also wrecking his left eye. He still has it in All 4 One, although his eye appears to have been fixed.
• Greater-Scope Villain:
  • Before taking the reigns of Big Bad once again in A Crack in Time, he makes brief appearances in both Deadlocked and Quest for Booty to build up to his return.
  • On a lesser note, Up Your Arsenal reveals that the ameboids, a race of Blob Monsters that act as recurring Mooks throughout the series, was his creation back before he was turned into a robot.
• Hair-Trigger Temper: He'll be calm and collected one moment, then blowing steam out of his proverbial ears at the slightest frustration.
• Hand Blast: His main form of attacking is shooting rocket-like blasts from the palms of his hands.
• The Heavy: Of Most games he has appeared in he is almost always the one who causes the events in motion.
• Hidden Depths:
  • As much as he acts like a Saturday morning cartoon villain, he proves himself to be quite wise at times. Most recently was him pointing out to his alternate self that the Emperor finds no joy in life because he equates happiness with success.
  • While distraught after his first defeat, his flashback reveals that his first instinct was to just improve himself rather than lash out at the universe, taking fongoid meditation, yoga, and several anger management classes.
  • It's hinted that his issues with Qwark when he was a nerd and the latter was a bully drove him to lash out and value himself less, becoming a villain when Qwark first became a hero. After he reinvents himself he views robotics as superior for saving his life, which leads to his master plan in his first appearance. In Rift Apart his scheme isn't so much fueled by ambition as it is wanting to feel like a winner and have the duo feel what it's like to fail. When the use of the Dimensionator works, he's elated and enjoys the perks, sending his forces and bounty hunters mainly so that this victory sticks. Contrast Emperor Nefarious, who achieves a total conquest but feels no joy in it.
• Hypocrite:
  • Hates organic life forms, even though he used to be one. He's just that petty and vindictive.
  • He claims that he does what he does out of the belief that Mechanical Lifeforms are oppressed by organic life, or "squishies", and that the situations would be reversed under his rule. Ignoring the fact that this oppression seems to be largely a delusion on his part, his Bad Boss tendencies extend to both his robotic and organic underlings. It seems that while he talks about being an egalitarian to his fellow robots, his Mecha-Mooks are just as expendable to him as his organic minions.
• Iconic Sequel Character: Despite being Ratchet and Clank's most recognizable foe these days, Dr. Nefarious wasn't actually introduced until Up Your Arsenal, three whole games in.
• Jaded Washout: When he was first introduced, Dr. Nefarious was a Laughably Evil supervillain with a lot of eccentricities, but he was still treated as a genuine threat to the galaxy and proves himself to be a formidable foe to Ratchet and Clank. By the events of Rift Apart, he had lost so many times to them that they had since stopped taking him seriously, so desperate for a win that he steals the Dimensionator just so he could find a place somewhere in the multiverse where he does.
• Jerkass: From his Fantastic Racism to his berating of his minions, Dr. Nefarious is a rather unpleasant fellow.
• Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Horrifically downplayed on the “heart of gold” part, but Nefarious has actually proven himself to being capable of decency. All 4 One shows he actually valued the time he spent with Ratchet, Clank, and Qwark, the latter of whom he comforted and saved. In Rift Apart, it is revealed the reason Lawrence isn't currently involved in his latest scheme is because Nefarious gave him paternity leave.
• Jerk with a Heart of Jerk: At the end of All 4 One, where it looks like all of the moments Nefarious had bonding with the heroes was fake as he leaves them to rot by hijacking their ship with Lawrence. Potentially subverted in that he fondly and sadly looks at a picture he had taken with them, implying that he did actually care.
• Just Between You and Me: Subverted when Ratchet first speaks to him via video in A Crack In Time he asks Nefarious what he's up to. Nefarious says that part him wants to let Ratchet live long enough to find out, and the other half wants to kill him. The latter half won out.
• Large Ham: Even in a World of Ham like Ratchet and Clank, Nefarious manages to be the biggest ham of them all. He constantly shouts as loud as he can, is a gleeful Card-Carrying Villain of the first order, and has very exaggerated movements all the time. It's actually quite impressive how hammy he is, given his competition.
• Laughably Evil: Oh so much. He's so over-the-top, Obviously Evil, and oddly-mannered that he's just as funny as he is evil.
• Lean and Mean: He's evil and very emaciated.
• Leitmotif: Regardless of what game he's in, his presence is almost always accompanied with theremin sounds playing in the background, calling back to Nefarious' retro-futuristic inspirations. Really helps emphasize his outlandish personality and role as an alien robot Mad Scientist.
• A Lighter Shade of Black: For all his villainy, he is much more personable than others due to being a more competent Saturday morning cartoon personality than other tragic, or irredeemable antagonists, which is most notably implied in Rift Apart during his stint impersonating his double. He's much more personable with his minions and the locals (i.e, letting the secretary laugh along with him - a trait Emps seems not to engage in too much, and one of his "fans," who smiles despite being stood on for a pose in a cutscene), Contrast with Emps, who's all business and who's funny moments are more to highlight how outlandishly snobby and cruel he is to everyone in comparison.
• Loony Fan: To "Secret Agent Clank," whom he apparently thinks is real. Not that this keeps him from trying to destroy Clank once the latter refuses his offer to join him.
• Mad Scientist: Of the Omnicidal Maniac variety.
• Make Wrong What Once Went Right: His goal in A Crack In Time is do this through all of history and thwart the victory of every hero who ever lived.
• Misanthrope Supreme: Outright despises organic lifeforms and wishes to create a universe full of robots.
• My Brain Is Big: Even back when he was organic, his cranium was absolutely massive.
• Names to Run Away from Really Fast: Dr. Nefarious certainly lives up to his name.
• Near-Villain Victory: He comes terrifyingly close to winning in both Up Your Arsenal and A Crack in Time. The only reason Ratchet and Clank are still alive are last minute rescues.
• No Challenge Equals No Satisfaction: Despite his never ending frustration at dealing with Ratchet and Clank, he seems to come to this realization upon meeting Emperor Nefarious and realizing just how empty (and insufferable) he would be if he constantly won.
• No Indoor Voice: Just about every sentence Nefarious says will, at some point, have him shouting AS LOUD AS HE POSSIBLY CAN!
• Not Distracted by the Sexy: Isn't attracted to Courtney Gears at all. In fact, he seems to be annoyed by her constant flirting despite how desirable she is.
• Not Helping Your Case: When the inhabitants of a planet called him mad, he responded by…planning to have his pets destroy all life on said planet. Lawrence lampshades it with his usual snark.
• Not Quite Dead: Word of God says Lawrence went back to save him at the last minute in A Crack in Time. Sure enough, he's back for All 4 One. He also gets crushed under a derelict Humongous Mecha after the battle with Emperor Nefarious in Rift Apart, but pops back up in the closing credits. Could be justified, since he's a robot.
• Not So Above It All: When the Loki leader makes a last-ditch attempt to possess Qwark while on the brink of defeat, Nefarious steps in with a jaw-shattering bitch slap to both finish the beast and save Qwark. Seems Dumbass Has a Point, after all. In addition, The Stinger for All 4 One reveals he really might want to be friends with Ratchet and co. when he gets time to think about it.
• Not-So-Harmless Villain: As goofy and comedic as he is to the audience, he has come close to committing genocide against organics and the heroes take him very seriously as a result.
• Not-So-Well-Intentioned Extremist: In his first appearance only. Dr. Nefarious claimed he was fighting for equal rights among robots and wanted to kill organic life for oppressing them. Ignoring the fact there isn’t any actual evidence of Robot Oppression, Nefarious clearly only gives a damn about himself and it's revealed the reasons for his desire to commit Final Solution on organics are ridiculously petty. After that, he doesn't even bother pretending he cares about robots.
• Obviously Evil: Another reason he was blatantly a Not-So-Well-Intentioned Extremist in his first appearance. What kind of equal rights activist would call himself Dr. Nefarious?!
• Omnicidal Maniac: He attempted to wipe out an entire planet. By the present he wants to wipe out organic life in an entire galaxy. He only succeeded in Kerwan, which was eventually reversed. In the 2016 game, he attempted to deplanetize Umbris which would result in the Solana System's destruction. He also gets noticeably excited in Rift Apart when Emperor Nefarious orders his battlecruisers to destroy Sargasso with their Destruct-O Beams.
  Dr. Nefarious: Planetary devastation! FINALLY!!
• The Only One Allowed to Defeat You: One of the reasons he takes offense to Emperor Nefarious invading his dimension. That's his universe to conquer, not the Emperor's.
• Overshadowed by Awesome: Played with regarding Emperor Nefarious. While the Emperor has won more often than the Doctor, it's implied that his universe was much easier to conquer than the mainstream universe. That being said, Doctor Nefarious coming close to winning in the past regardless would imply that the two are actually closer in power and competence than the story depicts.
• Percussive Maintenance: When he gets especially frustrated, he'll freeze in place and start playing really cheesy soap operas. It takes a good whack to the head (from either Lawrence, Courtney Gears, or a Hypersonic Brainwave Scrambler) to bring him back.
• Pet the Dog: Nefarious is an unrepentant villain and galactic tyrant, but has demonstrated moments of decency on occasion:
  • When Qwark thinks he is dying in All 4 One, Nefarious offers him some words of comfort and gives him a wrench to act as his Intergalactic Tool of Justice award. He also saves Qwark at the end of the game.
  • Despite seemingly pulling a Jerk with a Heart of Jerk at the end of the above mentioned game, the ending shows he actually did value his time with Ratchet and the others.
  • He gave Lawrence paid paternity leave in Rift Apart and when he takes time to visit him during the end credits, he's surprisingly happy for him and his family.
• Psychopathic Manchild: His genuine brilliance aside, Nefarious is incredibly volatile and prone to childish fits of anger when things don't go his way even slightly, which is pretty much all the time, but this is often Played for Laughs as a major source of humor for the games he appears in. That being said, he's far more mature than his Emperor counterpart, as Doctor Nefarious at least knows how to take defeat on the chin and try again, whereas Emperor Nefarious throws a Suicidal Cosmic Temper Tantrum over losing once.
• Red Eyes, Take Warning: Although before he was a robot, it looks like he had gray eyes.
• Revenge: Subverted. When Clank meets Dr. Nefarious again in A Crack in Time, he assumes the villain is out for vengeance against him and Ratchet. But this time, Nefarious has loftier ambitions.
  Dr. Nefarious: Vengeance? You think I went to all this trouble for mere vengeance? And they say I'm egomaniacal.
• Running Gag: When Nefarious gets especially worked up, something in his brain short-circuits, causing him to suddenly stop all movement and start playing audio from a cheesy soap opera. It takes a good whack to the head to get him to move again, immediately where he left off. Weirdly enough, it's not present in Rift Apart, despite him getting pretty worked up in that game as well.
  Nefarious: QWAAAAAAAAAA- *ZZTZ*
  "I don't have the capacity for love, Janice! I was cursed by a tribe of gypsy ninjas when I was a kid!"
  "I know, Lance. I was in that tribe of gypsy ninjas!"
  Nefarious: (gets smacked) -AAAAAARRRRRK!!!
• Sadist: While not to the same extent as Courtney Gears, he still enjoys seeing organic lifeforms get exterminated along with the suffering of his enemies in general.
• SkeleBot 9000: His design is subtly very skeletal - skull-like face, bony fingers, and ribcage-like tubes on his torso.
• Take Over the World: He's initially seen trying to conquer an entire galaxy before changing it to the "heroes always lose" goal. Ratchet lampshades this in A Crack in Time during their first conversation.
• They Called Me Mad!:
  Nefarious: To think, they called me 'insane,' Lawrence! We'll see who's insane when my pets have exterminated all life on this miserable planet!
  Lawrence: That should clear things right up, sir.
• To Create a Playground for Evil: His endgame in A Crack in Time. Having noticed that The Good Guys Always Win, he wants to use the Great Clock not only to reverse his own defeat, but the defeats of all other villains.
• Token Evil Teammate: In All 4 One.
• Took a Level in Badass: Going by his backstory, he wasn't much of a threat while he was fighting Qwark. By the present, he's one of the most dangerous villains in the universe.
• Unwilling Roboticisation: His ultimate goal in Up Your Arsenal. And in fact his origin story if the Qwark vidcomics are telling the truth: he was a scientist of the same race as Qwark, who was dropped into a pit while fighting him and roboticised.
• Villain Has a Point: When Emperor Nefarious expresses dismay at how his seeming ultimate victory feels empty, Doctor Nefarious points out that since Emps has always equated happiness with success, achieving total victory has robbed his life of all joy and meaning. Emps does not take this well.
• Villainous Breakdown: He gets quite a few of them, especially in A Crack in Time where Ratchet's time-travelling damages his circuitry. Also, Nefarious is prone to randomly shorting out and playing soap operas if he gets too hammy with his breakdowns... which is to say, all the time.
• Villainous Rescue: After being saved by Qwark earlier in All 4 One, Nefarious steps in to return the favor at the end of the game.
• Villains Out Shopping: As shown in A Crack in Time, he keeps himself quite busy when he's not actively plotting evil misdeeds.
  Dr. Nefarious: Aaaand... action! "You'll never take me alive, Qwark! Time is under my control!"
  Lawrence: ...Oh, am I interrupting?
  Dr. Nefarious: Lawrence! I'm rehearsing my epic romantic action comedy space opera!
• Worthy Opponent: Contrary to his rivalry with Qwark, he considers Ratchet this.

Tropes specifically applying to him in the 2016 re-imagining:

• Adaptation Origin Connection: Nefarious is now Drek's chief engineer prior to becoming a robot.
• Adaptational Villainy: In the reboot, Nefarious is portrayed as far more malevolent than he is in the original series, willing to kill billions instead of converting them into robots. Ironically, he has a far more sympathetic backstory than in the original timeline.
• Big Bad: Upstages Drek so he can destroy the galaxy.
• Disproportionate Retribution: Seeing what a jerk Qwark can be, Nefarious is justified in wanting to knock him down a peg. But blowing up the whole galaxy just to spite him and the Galactic Rangers is not.
• The Dragon: To Drek.
• Dragon Ascendant: Nefarious was only worked with Drek so he can destroy the galaxy.
• Eviler than Thou: To Drek. He turns him into a sheep and ejects him in a shuttle.
• Fallen Hero: He used to be the Galactic Ranger's tech support, until he snapped from Qwark's constant belittling.
• Foreshadowing: Nefarious has been acting as Drek's chief engineer and scientist. He was responsible for creating Clank, built the Warbots and Deplanetizer, and manipulated Drek into targeting Umbris, which will destroy the entire solar system, meaning he was the real main antagonist the whole time.
• The Man Behind the Man: Drek has no idea about Nefarious' true plan.
• Mistreatment-Induced Betrayal: His constant deriding by Qwark and the rangers drove him insane.
• Omnicidal Maniac: He is willing to destroy the entire solar system to get back at the Galactic Rangers.
• The Starscream: To Chairman Alonzo Drek.
• Villain Has a Point: He derides Qwark over betraying the Galactic Rangers just because he was jealous of Ratchet and scoffs at Qwark valuing his fame over being a hero.
• You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: He hits Drek with a Sheepinator, shoves him into a shuttle and sends it on a crash course with the planet he was making once he gets what he wants out of him.

Lawrence

Lawrence

Debut: Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal
English voice by: Michael Bell
Japanese voice by: Nobuaki Fukuda

"You put the wit in 'twit', sir."

"Even drooling imbeciles can achieve success in certain fields, sir. Mad science, for example."

Dr. Nefarious' passive-aggressive butler. His main role in the games is to usually make his boss look like an idiot, menial offscreen stuff like washing Nefarious' underwear, and dealing with his employer's malfunctions.

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• Affably Evil: Despite his snark, he's loyal to Dr. Nefarious and is polite to his enemies, as well.
• Beleaguered Assistant: Downplayed. While Doctor Nefarious is pretty competent in his chosen fields, it's pretty clear it's really Lawrence who is the one keeping things running smoothly, as he handles everything else, including keeping Nefarious repaired. For his part, Lawrence seems to very much enjoy not enjoying his position.
• Bunny-Ears Lawyer: He plays bass in a band when off-duty.
• Co-Dragons: With Courtney Gears in Up Your Arsenal, and Vorselon and Cassiopeia in A Crack in Time. He outlives all of them, by the way.
• The Dragon: As Dr. Nefarious' butler, Lawrence is his most recurring right-hand man.
• Easter Egg: When you're working on a time puzzle with Clank in Crack in Time, take a moment to check out the windows, particularly the ones in corners. You'll usually find Lawrence hanging out on a windowsill, occasionally looking in to spy on you.
• Even Evil Has Loved Ones: Yes, he does care about Dr. Nefarious, enough to go out of his way to save him whenever his boss is defeated. In Rift Apart, he is revealed to be on paternity leave to spend time with his wife and newborn son.
• Hates Everyone Equally: Everyone's fair game for his snark.
• Hyper-Competent Sidekick: Without Lawrence to provide support and occasional doses of common sense, Nefarious' schemes would likely fall apart quickly.
• Number Two: To Nefarious.
• Screw This, I'm Outta Here: He seems to do this once per game, only to invariably return to save his boss anyway.
• Servile Snarker: Nefarious's butler, and snarky at every opportunity.
• Stealth Insult: He's an absolute master at backhanded compliments, which is helped by how oblivious his boss is. Though once, he does earn an Offhand Backhand from Nefarious when he goes too far.
• Undying Loyalty: For all his snarking and backhanded compliments, he'll always be there to help his boss with his schemes, repair him, and get him out of a jam.
• The Unfought: Never fought directly as a boss, though he does provide backup for Nefarious during his Boss Fights.
• Written-In Absence: Doesn't appear in Rift Apart, though Nefarious mentions giving his assistant paid paternity leave, and during the credits he's shown with a female robot that resembles him and a baby robot.

Courtney Gears

Courtney Gears

Debut: Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal
English voice by: Melissa Disney (Up Your Arsenal), Nika Futterman (Deadlocked)
Japanese voice by: Chigusa Ikeda

"Don't be afraid, Ratchet. The transformation doesn't hurt... much."

This goes out to all you robots 'cross the galaxy
It's time for you and me to rise up and strike back
Don't stop until we dominate, won't you feel great
When we exterminate... all organic life!

—Courtney Gears, Robots of the Galaxy

An Idol Singer in Up Your Arsenal who was aligned with Nefarious.

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• Absolute Xenophobe: She gleefully endorses robot supremacy, and desires a Final Solution against organic life forms.
• Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: In her musical videos and in public, Gears appears to be sweet and innocent^well...except for that one with the "oof doof moof", but in reality, she's a sadistic, self-serving bitch who's willing to help Dr. Nefarious commit mass genocide.
• Death Glare: She gives one to Clank right at The Reveal before she attacks and kidnaps him.
• The Dragon: To Dr. Nefarious in Up Your Arsenal until her Karmic Death.
• Evil Diva: The mind control in her songs only works on robots (though not Clank, apparently).
• Eye Beam: Gears uses this to disable Clank right after The Reveal.
• Face of an Angel, Mind of a Demon: She's a sadist and an Omnicidal Maniac, but looks too cute to be evil.
• Fantastic Racism: Gears despises organic creatures with a burning passion and would like nothing more than to have them all killed.
• Fembot: Ratchet gushes about her figure, and Clank says her specs are "remarkable".
• Fur and Loathing: Says Ratchet would make a nice fur coat.
• Gold Digger: Implied to be the only reason why she got back together with Reactor following his ascension to an Exterminator in DreadZone. Though then again, it was a documentary, and she was only playing a role, it could be false.
• Hate Sink: Unlike Dr. Nefarious, Courtney Gears, as a Soft-Spoken Sadist who abuses her good publicity for cruel intentions, has no redeeming factors, and is up there with Tachyon as one of the most evil characters in the franchise.
• It's Personal: Gears enters Villainous Breakdown after Ratchet kills her favorite dancer/mook.
• Karmic Death: She was torn apart by Ratchet in payback for Skidd's Unwilling Roboticisation. She gets repaired, but is presumed to have died onboard DreadZone Station, probably because she released two more albums to slander Ratchet even more and being involved in a Holo-Vid scandal.
• Kick the Dog: Gears signs Skidd's t-shirt, and then captures him while he brags about it to Ratchet. We don't see how she captures him, but given that Klunk reacted in horror, it was probably not pretty. And then when he acts like a Loony Fan during her biobliteration of him, she callously asks if he ever shuts up.
• Laser-Guided Karma: Her outing as a villain caused her agent to replace her with Skidd, the same person she turned into a robot, and drive her to work with DreadZone, a criminal organization known to slander and kill heroes.
• Manipulative Bitch: When asked by Ratchet and Clank about her knowledge of Dr. Nefarious, she tells them that she'll only give them what she knows in exchange for her guest starring in a Secret Agent Clank episode. There, she captures Clank and sends the Tyrrhanoids to kill Ratchet. And when that fails, she deploys a Clank lookalike to lure Ratchet (and Qwark) into a trap, albeit after she is killed.
• The Mole: Gears is the first of two in Up Your Arsenal; the other being Klunk.
• Monster Fangirl: She acts like one towards Dr. Nefarious, even if she happens to be the bigger monster of the two. Cassiopeia even points this out during "Unnecessarily Evil Initiative Omega 91".
• No Celebrities Were Harmed: She's modeled after Britney Spears, down to her singing style, apparently-former "good girl" appearance as a pop star, and dialogue. Some of her Boss Banter after dealing damage is "Oops, I did it again," the name of one of Spears' Signature Songs. She's also an expy of Koda Kumi in the Japanese version.
• Omnicidal Maniac: She's Dr. Nefarious' biggest supporter for the complete genocide of all organic life forms, and has even allowed him to use her lab to test the Biobliterator.
• The Reveal: At first, it would assume that Nefarious simply hired Gears to perform a song for his plans. But it then turns out that she was Evil All Along and captures Clank.
• Sadist: Some of her battle quotes can prove this very well. As does her pre-battle liner.
  Gears: Don't be afraid, Ratchet. The transformation doesn't hurt... *chuckles* much. [teleports Ratchet into battle arena] Besides, I think you'll enjoy being a robot.
  Ratchet: Let's see if you can fight better than you can sing!
• Slasher Smile: Gears spots one in the pre-boss cutscene and even throughout the boss battle.
• The Sociopath: Gears is highly racist towards organic life forms and sponsors their genocide, exploits her fanbase to be used as test subjects to the Biobliterator, shows sadist glee towards those she fights or tortures, and dates unsuspecting gladiators for their money.
• Soft-Spoken Sadist: She never loses her cool even in her boss battle and after Ratchet kills her favorite dancer.
• Spin Attack: Her ultimate attack is spinning across the battlefield. Shared with her Mooks.
• Stealth Pun: She's literally a manufactured popstar.
• Summon Backup Dancers: During her boss battle.
• Superpowered Robot Meter Maids: Her Spin Attack makes sense—she dances, after all—but the energy blasts and teleportation are a bit much for a robotic musician.
• This Is Unforgivable!: Even Ratchet acknowledges in-universe that Courtney Gears is beyond redemption, and attacks her.
• Unexplained Recovery: Got repaired in Deadlocked, courtesy of Gleeman Vox. Possibly justified since unlike other robotic foes, she simply keeled over when defeated instead of exploding.
• Villainous Breakdown: She snaps after her favorite dancer is killed.
  Courtney Gears: Melissa! She was one of my best dancers! You're gonna pay for that!
• Villain Song: Death To Squishies, a pop song about organic genocide.
• Villain with Good Publicity: Gears uses her "hottest pop star in the galaxy" status to hide her true colors from the general public.
• Wham Line: "I have a better idea. Why don't you ask him yourself?"
• What Happened to the Mouse?: Deadlocked did not make any mention on Gears' fate after Vox's defeat, as she subsequently only got a mention by Cassiopeia in A Crack in Time and appears in a poster in the comics. It's generally assumed by fans that she died onboard the DreadZone Station when it was destroyed.

Klunk

Klunk

Debut: Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal
English voice by: David Kaye
Japanese voice by: Tōru Ōkawa

"If he's a such a "hero", why was it so easy to swap his helmet for my mind-control device and have him steal the Eye of Infinity for me?"

"One disposable pop star disposed. Eheeheeheeheeheehee!"

An evil robotic duplicate of Clank created by Dr. Nefarious.

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• Beard of Evil: Bizarrely, in Secret Agent Clank, he sports a metallic goatee.
• Big Bad: Of Secret Agent Clank.
• Bus Crash: Dr. Nefarious tried to start a memorial for Klunk in A Crack in Time, but his lawyers prevented him from doing so. We don't get much statement on what became of him after Size Matters, since Secret Agent Clank is in an Alternate Continuity, although Nefarious may've simply assumed Klunk perished and never learned of what really happened to him.
• Easter Egg: In Size Matters, He's mentioned to have survived the battle against Ratchet in Up Your Arsenal and since taken up the job of a factory assembly line robot making hi-tech toilet seats. Although he's said to have quit the day Ratchet & Clank defeated Otto Destruct.
• Engineered Heroics: His plan in Secret Agent Clank is to dismantle the Eye of Infinity after it had already destroyed several planets and present himself as the savior of the galaxy so that its residents would cater to his every whim.
• Even Evil Has Standards: Subverted. Though a robotic duplicate of Clank who's only purpose is to lure Ratchet into a trap, Klunk's reaction to Skidd being captured by Courtney Gears is of genuine horror, however after he removes his disguise, he shows he's just as vile as her and still supports Nefarious' plan of wiping out all organic life.
• Evil Knockoff: He's an evil version of Clank built by Dr. Nefarious.
• Fantastic Racism: In Secret Agent Clank, he's inherited his creator's penchant for calling organics "squishies".
• Fate Worse than Death: After being defeated in Secret Agent Clank, he is released into Ratchet's custody, who turns Klunk into a vacuum cleaner.
  Clank: Looks like it sucks to be him.
• Good Colors, Evil Colors: He has red eyes instead of Clank's green ones. Also, in Secret Agent Clank, he wears a gold tuxedo as apposed to Clank's black.
• No Honor Among Thieves: He has no issue helping Ratchet fight Courtney Gears despite them technically being allies, and he even makes a joke after she's beaten.
• Smug Snake: He's this in spades in Secret Agent Clank after he's revealed to be the Kingpin and constantly taunts Clank during the final battle.
• The Man Behind the Man: He's revealed to be the Big Bad of Secret Agent Clank after having used a fake identity known as "The Kingpin" throughout the game.
• The Mole: He impersonates Clank to dupe Ratchet.

Ratchet: Deadlocked

Gleeman Vox

Gleeman Vox

Debut: Ratchet: Deadlocked
English voice by: Michael Bell
Japanese voice by: Naomi Kusumi

"It's time to turn that dial to something a little more dangerous. Time for some real action. IT'S TIME TO BLOW $#!% UP!"

"Note the deadlock collar securely fastened around your neck. This collar cannot be broken or removed. Should you stray into any restricted area the collar will administer an extremely painful shock. Should a contestant become uncooperative or worse, boring, his or her collar can be detonated at any time with the push of a button. Well, there you have it! Nothing to lose your head over."

The villain of Deadlocked, Gleeman Vox is a sadistic, money-grabbing billionaire owner of an underground media empire in the lawless Shadow Sector. He operates DreadZone, a holovision program where heroes are forced to fight each other to the death.

---

• Bad Boss: He constantly abuses the test robots working under him, blowing up their heads to demonstrate the deadlock collars to Ratchet, sends them to be disintegrated when disappointed by merchandise sales, and is pretty verbally abusive to Ace as well.
• Big Bad: Of Deadlocked.
• Big "NO!": He lets out one of these when Ratchet escapes with his pet before the DreadZone Station explodes.
• Big "WHAT?!": He says this when Clank shows up in a shuttle to rescue Ratchet after boasting about how both him and Ratchet will die together on live holo-vision.
• Beard of Evil: He sports a pencil-thin mustache, marking him quite thoroughly as a villain.
• Corrupt Corporate Executive: He hosts DreadZone, a television event dedicated to forcing contestants to fight to the death and profit from it, so this is an obvious one.
• Cyborg: He has an artificial left arm. It's the only part of him to survive the destruction of DreadZone.
• Driven to Madness: No thanks to Ratchet being more popular than Ace. When the former refuses his offer to become the new Exterminator captain, he... takes it rather poorly.
• Dying Alone: His ultimate fate, thanks to Clank and Ratchet evacuating everyone (even his pet) from the DreadZone Station before it explodes. Serves him right, too.
• Evil Cannot Comprehend Good: After Ratchet defeats Ace, Vox immediately assumes that Ratchet will jump at the chance to replace him as the captain of the Exterminators, and the center of his new merchandise lines. He is baffled when Ratchet refuses.
• Evil Is Petty: He thinks Ratchet just isn't worth the marketing publicity and demonizes him as another disposable asset in the DreadZone. When Ace Hardlight merchandise sales decline because Ratchet's continued survival makes him out as the heroic underdog, Vox straight up tries to have Ratchet killed "legitimately" by any means possible out of spite, and when Ace goes down and Ratchet rejects a new licensing deal plan, Vox attempts to blow up the entirety of the Battledome, his own staff and faculty, and everything that isn't himself as one final, tantrum-throwing Rage Quit.
• Faux Affably Evil: He tries to act Affably Evil on his commercials and when attempting to make a deal with Ratchet, but his mask slips fairly easily.
• Hair-Trigger Temper: He's a bloodthirsty lunatic, and it doesn't take much to set him off, especially if he isn't getting his way.
• Karmic Death: After all the heroes he killed so he could profit from their deaths, he ends up being blown up along with DreadZone HQ. Even better, he was the only one blown up with the station, despite his main motivation for rigging it to explode in the first place being to make a Grand Finale out of blowing up everyone involved with the show (including Ratchet, his entire staff and a large chunk of his fanbase) except for himself.
• Knight of Cerebus: He's the main villain of Deadlocked, which is notably darker and more dangerous in tone than earlier games in the series. That said, he does has his comedic moments.
• Lack of Empathy: Best illustrated in this interaction with Ratchet:
  Vox: If Ratchet doesn't disarm the detonator before time runs out, the Battledome will be blown into a trillion pieces!
  Ratchet: That's insane!
  Vox: Au contraire! If I were still on the Battledome, then it would be insane. But I happen to have a truly lovely view of the action... from a remote location.
• Large Ham: He gets hammy at some points, especially when he's annoyed or shooting a commercial.
  Vox: Then it's time to turn that dial to something a little more dangerous... time for some real action... *jumps up on a table* It's time to BLOW $#!% UP!!!
• Laughably Evil: He's a despicable Corrupt Corporate Executive, but his hamminess and over the top villainy make him utterly hilarious.
• No Kill Like Over Kill: At the end of Deadlocked, he sets the arena to explode using six gigatons of nitroglycerin. It does overkill him though.
• Red Right Hand: A golden cybernetic hand he uses to display holograms.
• Right-Hand Cat: Has an alien variation in the form of his pet, Slugha.
• Shark Man: Look at the picture again.
• Suspiciously Similar Substitute: Downplayed. He's a Corrupt Corporate Executive whose only endgoal is cash and satisfying his own bloodlust, and had a former hero on his payroll, much like Drek, but aside from that, he interacts with the heroes to a greater extent, is much less faux-professional, and isn't anything else but clearly evil.
• Threatening Shark: He looks like a human/shark hybrid.

Ace Hardlight

Ace Hardlight

Debut: Ratchet: Deadlocked
English voice by: André Sogliuzzo
Japanese voice by: Naoya Uchida

"When I'm through with that furry freak, nobody's even going to remember who he was."

"That's exactly what it is, furball. And you're going to be the star of my highlight reel. Hmph. I'll see you soon, Lombax."

Vox's right hand man and the leader of the Exterminators, DreadZone's elite warriors.

---

• Adaptational Heroism: In the manga adaptation, Ace remains heroic and is allies with Ratchet and Clank. He mainly serves as the comic relief.
• Blood Knight: Enjoys fighting and killing, with little regard as to who the target is.
• Contrasting Replacement Character: To Captain Qwark prior to his Heel–Face Turn. Both were human-looking Captain Space-style superheroes who turned corrupt and became the top enforcers to Corrupt Corporate Executives that want Ratchet and Clank dead, and end up ruining their reputations as heroes due to their wildly unheroic actions. The difference is that Qwark was a green-clad poltroon who would run away from any fight he didn't have an advantage in, and worked under Drek purely for fame and merchandising potential while being ordered to kill Ratchet and Clank and was unwilling to just do it himself. Ace, on the other hand, dresses in red, delights in the carnage he gets to inflict on others as a DreadZone gladiator, and makes perfectly clear he wants to kill Ratchet only to be refused from doing so by Vox, who preferred it if Ace was more marketable. Furthermore, while both ended up losing their status as heroes once their true colors were exposed to the public, Qwark at least valued his reputation enough to put on a facade to make everyone see him for how he wished to be seen until his alliance with Drek was revealed, Ace had long since abandoned whatever scruples he once had by the time he's first introduced and is regarded with utmost contempt by the audiences of DreadZone for his despicable nature.
• Creator's Pet: An In-Universe example, as Vox tries to promote him as a hot-shot who the fans should love, despite the fact the audience clearly prefers Ratchet.
  Vernon (when asked by Vox if he'd like an Ace Hardlight action figure): Yeah whatever, that guy's a tool.
• Cynicism Catalyst: It was the destruction of his home planet, and the orphanage he cared for so much, that caused Ace's Start of Darkness.
• Despair Event Horizon: In his backstory, Ace had become a legendary superhero and the leader of the Sonic 7, but fell into despair when his home planet Bolden 3 was destroyed in an accident.
• Disney Death: While Deadlocked strongly implies that Ratchet killed him, the Future games revealed that he survived the fight and DreadZone's destruction, and did time in Zordoom Prison.
• The Dragon: To Gleeman Vox.
• The Hero: Ace was once the leader of the Sonic 7 during his glory days, but left the group after the destruction of his home planet.
• Evil Counterpart: Ace is pretty much what could've happened to Ratchet had he not experienced a Heel Realization over Gorda City, or Qwark if he succeeded with his goal in the Bogon Galaxy. And even when Ace has his own Heel Realization upon his defeat, it is far too late for him to atone for his crimes, and is thrown in prison after being declared dead.
• Fallen Hero: Like most DreadZone contestants, Ace was once a great hero, before the fame and thrill of DreadZone corrupted his sanity.
• Hated by All: He is hated by not only everyone in-universe, but also by his own boss. Considering what a bloodthirsty, sadistic psychopath he is, it's easy to see why he is so loathed.
• Hate Sink: He's an arrogant, cocky, cold blooded and sadistic scumbag who willingly sold out his heroism, all for the thrill of fame and fortune and the chance to kill or maim whoever he wanted for kicks. His sympathetic origins are never brought up in-game. He has nothing remotely likable or humorous about his personality. This applies In-Universe as well—everybody hates him, even his own boss, and he's so unpopular that Vox can't even give away his merchandise. When Ratchet (seemingly) kills him, absolutely nobody mourns his loss except Dallas and Juanita (who are really only doing it because they're asskissers to Gleeman Vox, and an unused line has Juanita call Ace an "arrogant brat" and actually being glad when Ratchet is destroying his memorial, implying she disliked him all along). On the other hand, Ace was remorseful in the end, showing he does have some redeeming qualities in spite of what he became.
  Gleeman Vox: It's because my fans can't STAND Ace Hardlight!!! He's a pompous *** with the charisma of Blarggian gnat cheese!!!
• Heartwarming Orphan: Ace in his youth before his Despair Event Horizon and Face–Heel Turn.
• Heel–Face Turn: He's remorseful for selling himself out to Vox for fame, and his final words to Ratchet were to not go down the same path. Speculated by two commentators in a Space Radio program in A Crack in Time.
• Hero Killer: Personally killed Captain Starshield, and likely several other heroes as well during his time in DreadZone.
• It's All About Me: Ace is just as much an egomaniac as Qwark is, even if he does have the skills to back up his boasts. Two lines during his tournament battle with Ratchet further show the main reason he hates Ratchet so much is because the audience likes him way more than they'll ever like Ace.
  Ace: This is as far as you go Lombax! I'M the star around here!
  Ace: Let's see whose action figure they buy NOW Lombax!
• Jacob Marley Warning: After Ratchet defeats him, Ace urges Ratchet not to follow the same dark path he did.
• Me's a Crowd: He can summon up holographic copies of himself in his boss fight.
• My God, What Have I Done?: In his (seemingly) final moments, Ace finally realizes that he has let greed and the lust for power control him, and warns Ratchet to not end up like him.
• My Greatest Failure: Ace cared for the orphanage he grew up in, and when it was destroyed along with the rest of Bolden 3, he blamed himself for not being able to save everyone in it.
• No Cure for Evil: Averted. He uses medpacks to heal himself in battle when needed. However, he only carries three and once he runs out there's nothing he can do about it.
• Not Quite Dead: He's briefly mentioned in Tools of Destruction over the PA of Zordoom Prison.
• Retcon: He's heavily implied to have died after his boss fight, but in Tools of Destruction, he's offhandedly mentioned as a denizen of Zordoom Prison, and Crack in Time indicates he's recently been released from Zordoom.
• Shout-Out: "Ace" and "Hard-light" are both terms that are sometimes used to describe another particularly unpleasant character who thinks he's braver and more popular than he actually is.
• Start of Darkness: The destruction of Bolden 3 triggered Ace to leave the Sonic 7 and join DreadZone.
• Surprisingly Realistic Outcome: Despite being the champion of Dreadzone and Vox's efforts to market him, Ace's arrogant and loathsome personality has made him so hated by everyone, his merchandise won't sell to the point that Vox rants he can't even give it away.
• Suspiciously Similar Substitute: He used to be a hero, but ended up under the payroll of Gleeman Vox, acting as his right hand, much like Captain Qwark with Drek. He does have a more serious temperament than Qwark does, and he is definitely not incompetent.
• Villain with Good Publicity: Subverted. Gleeman Vox repeatedly tries to promote Ace as someone everyone should adore and therefore buy merchandise of, to little avail; Vox complains at the beginning of Deadlocked that Ace is so unpopular that he can't even give Ace products away. One of the DreadZone courses is a Ace Hardlight toy plant they had to shut down due to the abysmal sales of his merchandise.
• X-Pac Heat: In-universe. Ace has had a fantastic run (13 straight Exterminator kills in one season) and should be a reliable fan favorite, but the guy's loathsome personality has made him immensely hated across every demographic, no matter how hard DreadZone pushes him as the darling of their roster; meanwhile, Ratchet is climbing his way to the top in spite of an extended smear campaign by the network. Vox even begins electrocuting kids when they won't pick Ace Hardlight merch during product testing and say they'd prefer toys of Ratchet.
  Vox: Ace Hardlight is the perfectly manufactured celebrity, straight from the presses of the Gleeman Vox media empire. So tell me... why is it...
  [Camera dollies back to reveal boxes upon boxes of unsold Ace Hardlight merch taking up space in his office]
  Vox: That I can't GIVE THIS STUFF AWAY?!

Ratchet & Clank: Size Matters

Otto Destruct

Otto Destruct

Debut: Ratchet & Clank: Size Matters
English voice by: Jim Ward
Japanese voice by: Naoki Tatsuta

Otto: You actually bought that cheesy story? This isn't about credit for our work or respect or whatever nonsense you have come to believe. This is about power! And what is more powerful than intelligence?
Ratchet: ...the RYNO?

The Technomite emperor, and the main antagonist of Ratchet & Clank: Size Matters.

---

• Big Bad: He's the main antagonist of Size Matters.
• Corrupted Character Copy: Otto appears to be an evil version of Geppetto, as he creates robots and gadgets (including a puppet) for his own selfish desires, and doesn't care about others taking credit.
• Godhood Seeker: His actual motivation is to rule the universe by absorbing the intellect of the smartest people in it, therefore being revered for being the smartest being in existence.
• Green-Eyed Monster: Appears to be his motivation towards those who take credit for technology, but this is later subverted.
• Laser-Guided Karma: When Qwark finds out Otto's technology was responsible for his parents' deaths, he tries to transfer his intelligence into Otto and make him stupid. But as fate would have it, Otto ends up with Skrunch's intelligence, turning him into a monkey.
• Not-So-Well-Intentioned Extremist: Much like Drek, at first it seems like he only wants his race to be acknowledged for their work, but in reality, he only seeks power for himself.

Luna

Luna

Debut: Ratchet & Clank: Size Matters
English voice by: Nicole Sullivan
Japanese voice by: Satomi Koorogi

"But... I haven't had a chance to tell all my "friends"... about your heroic deeds."

A villainous robotic puppet built to resemble a little girl controlled by the Technomites and created by Otto Destruct.

---

• Ambiguous Gender: Whether the male voice Luna speaks with before his/her boss fight is actually his real one or if it was the Technomites talking through her is never addressed....
• Ambiguous Situation: ...as is the question of whether Luna's actually a sentient robot or just a Mobile Suit Alien.
• Baby Talk: Luna fakes it while undercover, by pronouncing "s" with "th".
• The Brute: The video Ratchet sees while escaping the Medical Outpost not only confirms that Luna is The Dragon, but he is also the lieutenant of the Technomite army.
• Classic Villain: A bitterly envious villain who manages to befriend the heroes before capturing them and cloning one of them? Luna definitely qualifies.
• Children Are Innocent: Averted and subverted. Luna is purely evil, and he isn't even a real girl at all (and he's not even female in the first place).
• The Cutie: Luna sets himself up to be an innocent and endearing child.
• Cute Is Evil: His cuteness only belies how vile he truly is.
• Deliberately Distressed Damsel: Fakes his own kidnapping to lure Ratchet into a trap.
• Disney Villain Death: Falls to his death after his floating tractor is destroyed.
• The Dragon: He is Otto's main subordinate.
• Dude Looks Like a Lady: If one considers Luna to be a male, then his appearance is (intentionally) misleadingly feminine.
• Emergent Human: Though not looking human, Luna is new to acquiring sentience.
• Enfant Terrible: Averted. Luna has the appearance of a little girl, but isn't one himself.
• Evil All Along: Reveals his true alliance upon his rescue, by speaking in an adult woman's voice and shocks Clank.
• Expy: Luna is one to Pinocchio, in that they are both living puppets loyal to their creators, with the major difference is that Luna is willingly evil and manipulative, while Pinocchio is just naïve. The technomites inside his head could also be evil counterparts to Jiminy Cricket from the Disney adaptation, in that they guide Luna to commit evil (and possibly took control of his body briefly before the boss battle).
• Face of an Angel, Mind of a Demon: Luna is without a doubt a kidnapper, homicidal lieutenant, and brute in the shape of an adorable girl. No doubt his appearance was what kept Ratchet fooled.
• Faked Kidnapping: Does this throughout the first third of the game.
• Mobile-Suit Human: Well, more like Mobile Suit Alien, but Luna's still a robot piloted by Technomites.
• The Mole: Luna is this in the first mission, before "her" (his) Faked Kidnapping.
• No Biological Sex: Despite looking like a female, and even being referred to as one by the titular duo, Luna is genderless due to being a puppet and a warship. And when his secret is exposed, Luna speaks with a male voice.
• Perverse Puppet: You bet he is! Even if he was never a toy in the first place.
• Red Eyes, Take Warning: Luna's eyes become red when he begins to speak with a male voice.
• Robot Girl: Luna is revealed to be one on Challax. Not that he's actually female in the first place; just built like one.
• The Smurfette Principle: Defied. Luna is genderless, but his appearance and the lack of other females outside of a few nurses in the Medical Outpost Omega makes him appear to be the only female involved with the plot.
• Spaceship Girl: The Technomites also use Luna as a warship, as one cutscene shows a whole army boarding him and taking off to the Dani Moon. Again, Luna is not even female.
• Speech Impediment: He speaks this way while undercover.
• Vocal Dissonance: Has a child voice at first, then a woman's voice, and finally, a man's.
• Walking Spoiler: He's a villain. And he's a fake.

Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction

Emperor Tachyon

Emperor Percival Tachyon

Debut: Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction
English voice by: Andy Morris
Japanese voice by: Hiroshi Iwasaki

"See the crown? See the scepter? The giant walking throne and legion of loyal robotic commandos? EMPEROR!"

"Emperor Percival Tachyon, crown prince of the Cragmites, conqueror of space and time, and (pending the obliteration of a few insubordinate species) ruler of the universe!"

The villain of Tools of Destruction, Tachyon is the last of the Cragmites, an Always Chaotic Evil race defeated by the Lombaxes years ago. As a result, he has a grudge against Ratchet's race.

---

• 0% Approval Rating: Tachyon is so hated by everyone in Polaris, that he will use his Drophyd army to frighten them into obedience at the threat of death. It probably has to do with everyone being forced to show "appreciation" to him, which was recently extended to pretty much every single day of the year.
• Absolute Xenophobe: He only cares about the Cragmites. Everyone else, especially lombaxes, are targets for genocide.
• Arch-Enemy: A definite one to Ratchet. Having getting rid of all the Lombaxes, and also being the one who killed Ratchet's father.
• Berserk Button: Making fun of his name or height will earn you the death penalty in his empire. And when Ratchet scoffs at his name in person, he's very quickly set off.
• Big Bad: For Tools of Destruction. He's intent on ushering the return of the Cragmites to conquer the universe.
• Big "NEVER!": Tachyon yells this to Ratchet that the Lombaxes will never be safe before falling into a black hole.
• Card-Carrying Villain: Tachyon is proud to be a cragmite, and is proud to be evil. He even calls himself a "dictator" to the population of Stratus City.
• Creepy High-Pitched Voice: He has a very shrill and loud voice. It's fitting, considering his stature.
• Disney Villain Death: He falls into a black hole at the end of the game. The comic revealed he survived, now stuck on a planet fragment in another dimension along with Artemis Zogg.
• Don't You Dare Pity Me!: One of Tachyon's major grudges against the Lombaxes.
  Tachyon: Those... filthy creatures had the gall to pity me!
• Embarrassing First Name: "Your name is Percival?!"
• The Emperor: Technically, the Crown Prince, but seeing as he's the only Cragmite left in the universe, no one is going to dispute him on that.
  Tachyon: Emperor! See the crown? See the scepter? The giant walking throne and the legion of loyal robotic commandos? EMPEROR!
• Establishing Character Moment: Tachyon uses his first scene to call himself the ruler of the universe pending the extinction (read: genocide) of a few races. Even before he appears, he's willing to level an entire city and murder it's trillions of inhabitants (among them Sasha, who's the mayor, and Big Al) if it means getting to Ratchet.
• Evil Counterpart: In some ways, he's this to Ratchet. Both are the last of their respective races and gifted individuals. However, while Ratchet's skills were earned from hard work and used for the good of others, Tachyon repurposed Lombax technology to wage his genocidal war on them and went on to become a self-obsessed Galactic Conqueror.
• The Farmer and the Viper: Upon discovering his heritage as a Cragmite, he immediately gets to work on wiping out the entire Lombax race (the ones who raised him from a hatchling, in spite of what he was) and coercing the Drophyds into helping him take over the galaxy and bring about the return of said Cragmites. Ratchet rightfully calls him on it.
• Final Solution: One of Tachyon's main goals is to wipe out the lombaxes and all traces of their existence out of pure hatred towards them.
• Galactic Conqueror: By the time Ratchet and Clank arrive, Tachyon's taken over most of the Polaris Galaxy. And once he brings back the Cragmites, he becomes an Omnicidal Maniac bent on killing everyone who doesn't support him, namely, the entire universe.
• Genocide from the Inside: Not only was Tachyon raised by Lombaxes, he tried to kill them all using Lombax-engineered tech.
• Greater-Scope Villain: For the entire original continuity. His genocide of the Lombaxes is central to Ratchet's backstory and the catalyst behind Azimuth's actions in A Crack in Time.
• Hate Sink: Unlike any of the previous villains sans Courtney Gears and Ace Hardlight (and even he had a few redeeming traits), he largely lacks any really admirable or funny qualities, and due to his quotes tending to repeat themselves, comes off as intentionally trying to annoy the player to motivate them to get rid of him.
• Hypocrite: He takes great pride in his Cragmite heritage, but was actually raised by the Lombaxes. He also wholeheartedly admits in the penultimate levels that he reverse-engineered Lombax technology to create his empire, meaning that without the Lombaxes he's trying to wipe out, he wouldn't be anywhere.
• It's All About Me: You should see how many days are called "Tachyon Appreciation Day" in Polaris (it was so popular, that it was extended by infinity plus one days). Gets worse when the Cragmites are brought back.
• Knight of Cerebus: Downplayed. The humor doesn't disappear from the franchise, but due to him personally knowing the Lombaxes, he starts up the main plot of the Future trilogy, which causes Ratchet to take more interest in knowing about the past of his race.
• Laser-Guided Karma: Tachyon wanted to use the Dimensionator to bring the Cragmites back to this universe to destroy it. In the end, he ends up banishing himself into a lifeless universe with only Zogg as a companion.
• The Napoleon: Making fun of Tachyon's stature warrants the death penalty.
• Made of Evil: He is a Cragmite after all, and given what Cragmites are...
• A Nazi by Any Other Name: Tachyon's crimes include building a cult around himself, Putting on the Reich with his Drophyd army, and the genocide of the lombaxes.
• Omnicidal Maniac: Tachyon is already genocidal when the game begins, but by the penultimate planet, he's successfully summoned the Cragmites, and they are in the process of destroying Meridian City and killing everyone in it, and has plans to repeat the progress with all the other planets in the universe.
• Sadist: Tachyon seems to love killing innocent people, regardless of their crimes. Genocide appears to be his favorite hobby.
• Self-Made Orphan: Taken up to eleven. Not only did he kill the lombaxes that raised him, he tried to purge the entire race over what they did to the cragmites.
• The Sociopath: He has no regard for sentient life, and attempted genocide against the Lombaxes, including the last one. Tachyon has no sympathy, guilt, or remorse, and will gladly exterminate anyone who stands in the way. And he took a lot of pleasure killing Ratchet's father.
• Ungrateful Bastard: Tachyon attempted to wipe out the Lombaxes that raised him for the crime of pitying him.
• Villainous Legacy: Tachyon's betrayal and genocide of the lombaxes plays a large role in the backstory for both Ratchet (who was sent to Veldin by his deceased father) and Alister Azimuth (who gave Tachyon access to lombax technology).
• White Sheep: In an absolute irony, the Smugger considers Tachyon to be this when compared to the Cragmites in general. Given how much of a monster Tachyon is, who knows how bad his predecessors were.
• Would Hurt a Child: Tachyon wanted to kill Ratchet when the latter was still only a baby. Tachyon is also implied to have killed all the children in an orphanage on Planet Mukow so that he could build a gladiator arena in its place.

Captain Slag

Captain Romulus Slag

Debut: Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction
English voice by: Robin Atkin Downes
Japanese voice by: Katsuhisa Hoki

"You wouldn't begrudge an old pirate his booty, would ye?"

"Ahoy there, young scallywags! This be Cap'n Slag, Scourge of the Galaxy! Surrender yer vessel, or be cast to the depths of the universe!"

The scourge of Polaris, the grog-drinking captain of large crew of space pirates and a thorn in Ratchet and Clank's side in Tools of Destruction. In Quest for Booty, Rusty Pete managed to salvage his head and revive him by attaching it to Captain Darkwater's body.

---

• Arc Villain: He's the primary recurring threat for a while in Tools of Destruction, and the main antagonist alongside Darkwater in Quest for Booty, which was more of a DLC than a main series installment.
• Big Bad Duumvirate: With Captain Darkwater in Quest for Booty.
• Chronic Backstabbing Disorder: He murdered Darkwater and usurped his position as Captain of the space pirates, and admits that even if you gave him grog, he'd still kill you. Tachyon also feared that he and the space pirates would betray him, which probably contributed to him abandoning them.
• Fat Bastard: He's a pretty hefty robot.
• Heterosexual Life-Partners: He and Rusty Pete, though some fans see it differently.
• Losing Your Head: He is reduced to this after he is defeated, and again after his second defeat in Quest for Booty.
• Sharing a Body: With Captain Darkwater.
• Space Pirate: He's the captain of a crew of robotic space pirates.
• The Starscream: To Captain Darkwater.
• Ungrateful Bastard: During his Decapitated Villains radio ad, he mentions that even if someone would donate grog to him, he would still kill them would he encounter them.
• Where Are They Now: Into The Nexus confirms that Slag has retired from piracy and is now a semi-professional beat boxer in Stratus City.

Rusty Pete

"Rusty" Pete

Debut: Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction
English voice by: Wally Wingert
Japanese voice by: Toru Nara

Captain Slag's first mate and best friend.

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• Ambiguously Gay: His loyalty and devotion toward Captain Slag do make one wonder.
• Batman Gambit: He successfully manages to dupe Ratchet into leading him to Captain Darkwater's body, so he can use it to revive Captain Slag.
• Break the Haughty: Pete took Slag's death very hard, and his first scene in Quest for Booty is lamenting on how Slag was his only friend.
• Cloudcuckoolander: He's a pretty odd individual.
• Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: In Quest for Booty, he manages to trick Ratchet into helping him resurrect Captain Slag. If you listen to Pirate Radio in A Crack in Time, you might have heard this gem, to back the theory up: "And you're projecting your anger on me to cover an unconscious but deep-seated resentment toward a patriarch who never hugged you. Hic."
• Defeat Means Friendship: As soon as Slag is defeated, Pete makes Ratchet his new captain. Mainly so that he can gain Ratchet's trust if it means getting to Darkwater's body.
• Don't Explain the Joke: That's a good one, captain! You made a rhyme! Ha ha ha!
• The Dragon: He is Slag's right-hand man.
• Heel–Face Revolving Door: Starts out as a lackey of Captain Slag, ends up aiding Ratchet, then turns on him to resurrect Slag. By Rift Apart he’s on good enough terms with Ratchet & Clank to cohost a parade for them.
• Minion with an F in Evil: He isn't incompetent, per se, but he doesn't really seem too interested in evil. Come his resurrection of Slag, he and the captain retire from villainy altogether.
• Pet the Dog: Even when Pete feigns a Heel–Face Turn, he still allows Ratchet to take the Dimensionator. When Qwark takes it for himself to make himself look like a hero again, Pete tells Ratchet exactly where the escape pod Qwark escaped in will go. And once he revives Slag, his first action is to apologize for double-crossing Ratchet, and gives him two weapons.
• Space Pirate: He's part of a crew of robotic space pirates.
• Undying Loyalty: To Slag.
• Wham Line: "After all, you're the boob, and here's the trap!

Ratchet & Clank Future: Quest for Booty

Captain Darkwater

Captain Angstrom Darkwater

Debut: Ratchet & Clank Future: Quest for Booty
English voice by: Dave B. Mitchell
Japanese voice by: Jin Urayama

"I got a spot saved for ya on me crew, lombax! All ya have to do is die!"

Former captain of the Space Pirates of Merdegraw, until he was overthrown by his first mate, Romulus Slag. He bound his soul to his body so he could defend his treasure even in death.

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• Big Bad Duumvirate: With Captain Slag in Quest for Booty.
• Noodle Incident: We don't hear anything much about his encounter with the Zoni, but he must have been on reasonably friendly if they gave him the Obsidian Eye.
• Ninja Pirate Zombie Robot: He's a zombie robot pirate.
• SkeleBot 9000: He plays this straighter than any other pirate (or either Nefarious, for that matter).
• Space Pirate: Another robot pirate who ventures through space.

Ratchet & Clank Future: A Crack in Time

Lord Vorselon

Lord Flint Vorselon

Debut: Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction (alluded to) Ratchet & Clank Future: A Crack in Time (physically appears)
English voice by: David Boat
Japanese voice by: Yasuhiro Mamiya

A former Terraklon assassin and mercenary, Vorselon now works under Dr. Nefarious in A Crack in Time in order to keep his new robotic body.

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• Co-Dragons: With Lawrence and Cassiopeia for A Crack in Time.
• Early-Bird Cameo: Mentioned as a Zordoom inmate in "Tools of Destruction". He's also mentioned in Stratus City, indicating that he was once The Dragon to Tachyon.
• Invisibility: He will try to sneak and try to ambush you by appearing right in front of you.
• Large Ham: ABSOLUTELY. It's even lampshaded by Ratchet and Clank when they face him for the final time.
• Load-Bearing Boss: When defeated for the final time, his ship will activate the "Sore Loser Protocol" in order to destroy Ratchet and Clank, requiring the two to escape before they get caught in the explosion.
• Losing Your Head: He was reduced to a disembodied head after a fight with Drophyds.
• Luke, I Am Your Father: Subverted. At first it looks like he's telling Ratchet that he is his father, then he ends with "Accountant".
• Optional Boss: Fought by collecting all 40 Zoni.
• Shock and Awe: Many of his attacks are electric based.
• Sore Loser: As evidenced by his ship activating its Self-Destruct Mechanism should he die in battle. It's even called the "Sore Loser Protocol".
• Taking You with Me: Attempted with the "Sore Loser Protocol" after getting killed off in the final confrontation with him.
• Zero-Effort Boss: He becomes this at the end of Ratchet's final rematch against him. After you finish the real part of the fight, his suit completely falls apart and he's reduced to a disembodied head. At this point, he can't attack and the only way to lose the fight is by quitting or getting a power outage. You don't even have to attack him—Ratchet kills him by simply stepping on him. He's as easy to beat as Bob the Goldfish.

Cassiopeia

Cassiopeia

Debut: Ratchet & Clank Future: A Crack in Time
English voice by: Kath Cressida
Japanese voice by: Yukie Maeda

A Valkyrie and one of Nefarious' subordinates in A Crack in Time.

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• Brawn Hilda: She's a strong woman the size of a house.
• Disney Villain Death: Cassiopeia ends up falling to her death following her defeat.
• The Dragon: To Dr. Nefarious until her death, officially replacing Vorselon.
• Foil: She serves as one for Courtney Gears. Both are robotic female villains working for Dr. Nefarious, and are known to have flirted with him on several occasions. Both also have other female villains under their command, and have some part in Clank being captured. Gears is a sadistic sociopath who Nefarious sees as just another lackey. Cassiopeia cares for her fellow Valkyries, views Ratchet as a Worthy Opponent, and Nefarious shows some romantic feelings for her.
• Kick the Dog: During the boss battle against Cassiopeia, she constantly mocks Ratchet's attempts to save Clank and even his dead parents.
  • Well, she was pretty upset about him killing her sisters.
• Unholy Matrimony: Cassiopeia and Nefarious.

Carina and Libra

Carina and Libra

Debut: Ratchet & Clank Future: A Crack in Time
English voice by: Kari Wahlgren (Carina), Fred Tatasciore (Libra)
Japanese voice by: Hana Takeda (Carina), Masafumi Kimura (Libra)

Cassiopeia's two sisters, who lead the Valkyrie army along with her. They work to wreak havoc in the Polaris Galaxy, and help Nefarious in his quest for the Great Clock in exchange for getting their race's original colony back.

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• Brawn Hilda: Like their sister, they are very large and brawny women.
• It's Personal: Carina stays behind to fight Ratchet while Azimuth goes for Valpedia out of anger for Libra's death. She dies almost right away.
• Space Pirate: A rival, all-female faction, despite the name.
• This Cannot Be!: Carina's last words, though she is Killed Mid-Sentence.
• Vocal Dissonance: Libra has a deep masculine voice in spite of being female.
• We Hardly Knew Ye: Both don't have much screen time. Not long after they are introduced by Nefarious, Libra ends up killed by Ratchet in a space fight, while Carina later meets the same fate.

The Final Boss (UNMARKED SPOILERS)

Alister Azimuth becomes a villain towards the end of the game. Go to his folder on the Heroes page for details on them.

Ratchet & Clank: All 4 One

Loki Master

Loki Master/"Mr. Dinkles"

Debut: Ratchet & Clank: All 4 One
English voice by: Steve Blum

The Big Bad of Ratchet & Clank: All 4 One, who used the spaceship Emphemerus to bring multitudes of dangerous creatures to the planet Magnus.

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• The Dog Was the Mastermind: When we meet him, he's possessing Dr. Croid's pet Mr. Dinkles.
• Grand Theft Me: How his kind survive. Without special equipment, however, they can only possess smaller creatures.
• The Man Behind the Man: Forced Dr. Nevo to build his equipment and weapons at gun-point.
• Omnicidal Maniac: "No longer will our kind remain trapped on this primitive planet! No, we will spread out, and rip this universe apart! Planet by planet, star by star, until nothing but dust remains!"
• One-Winged Angel: Possesses a Rykan V Grivelnox in the final battle.

Ratchet & Clank: Full Frontal Assault

Stuart Zurgo

Stuart Zurgo/"Qwark Fanboy"

Debut: Ratchet & Clank: Going Commando
English voice by: Ben Diskin (Going Commando), Richard Steven Horvitz (Full Frontal Assault)
Japanese voice by: Setsuji Sato (Going Commando), Kensuke Tamura (Full Frontal Assault)

Zurgo: I was in a different place back then. All I wanted was to be just like you. Then I watched as you were involved in scandal after scandal, and every time the Galaxy just FORGAVE YOU! You're nothing but one big epic fail, and this time you're going to pay! Colon, Closed Parentheses :). I'm out.

The main antagonist of Full Frontal Assault.

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• Ascended Extra: He goes from a minor role in Going Commando to a main villain.
• Ascended Fanboy: Through becoming a villain to antagonize his former hero.
• Basement-Dweller: He apparently still lives with his mother. Even the achievement trophies mock him for it.
• Broken Pedestal: He became a villain out of disguist for Qwark's fall from glory in the early games.
• Early-Bird Cameo: Zurgo's actual debut was in Going Commando, as the Qwark-obsessed nerd.
• Fan Boy: Even after becoming a villain, he has tendencies of this.
• Fate Worse than Death: Although he survived his fall at the end of Full Frontal Assault, he was sentenced to fifty years house arrest with his mother, a fate worse than Zordoom Prison.
• Nerd in Evil's Helmet: Wears a helmet to appear intimidating early in the game.
• Villain Has a Point: While going full villain over it may have been a disproportionate response, his reasons for his hated of Qwark are understandable. In the first and second game, Qwark was a scumbag at best and downright villainous at worst. And even after he turned over a new leaf, he's still a very incompetent and dimwitted excuse for a hero that has to rely on Ratchet to get much done.
• A Villain Named "Z__rg": He's an antagonist whose surname contains "Zurg".

Ratchet & Clank: Into the Nexus

Vendra Prog

Vendra Prog

Debut: Ratchet & Clank: Into the Nexus
English voice by: Nika Futterman
Japanese voice by: Mariya Ise

The apparent main antagonist of Into the Nexus. She and her brother Neftin were sent from the Netherverse to the Polaris galaxy at a young age, and years of feeling abandoned and bullied left her resentful. One day, she met someone who revealed her true origins, which drove her to find a way to reunite herself and Neftin with the Nethers, at any cost.

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• Huge Guy, Tiny Girl: The tiny girl to Neftin's huge guy.
• Humiliation Conga: After Neftin helps save her from the Netherverse and they help stop the Nethers, Neftin drags her off to jail, since he agreed that both of them were going to jail in exchange for Ratchet's help.
• Mind over Matter: She's got psychic powers. She demonstrates her use of them when she tries to crush Ratchet with an elevator near the beginning, and when she sends the blast to force Mr. Eye back to the Netherverse, which apparently exhausts her powers if her failed attempts to prevent Neftin from turning them both in are anything to go by.
• The Unfought: Despite being the cornerstone of the plot, and a space witch to boot, Ratchet never exchanges actual battle with her, only avoids her actions.
• Unwitting Pawn: Her efforts to bring the Nethers to her were not for the purposes of reunion— the Nethers just used her so they could take over another universe.

Neftin Prog

Neftin Prog

Debut: Ratchet & Clank: Into the Nexus
English voice by: Fred Tatasciore
Japanese voice by: Taiten Kusunoki

Vendra's brother and partner in crime. When Vendra sought to bring the Nethers to the Polaris galaxy, he helped any way he could, out of sibling loyalty.

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• Epic Flail: He uses two of these when you fight him.
• Enemy Mine: Reluctantly teams up with Ratchet after Vendra is captured by the Nethers.
• From Nobody to Nightmare: He was actually a lot smaller, but at some point Vendra modified him so he could act as her right-hand man.
• Genius Bruiser: He's rather smart and is an excellent strategist.
• Huge Guy, Tiny Girl: The huge guy to Vendra's tiny girl.
• I Gave My Word: After he and Ratchet rescues Vendra, he willingly turns himself and his sister into the authorities, as he promised.
• Punch-Clock Villain: He mentions that he's only going along with what Vendra does because she's his sister.

Nether Leader

"Mr. Eye"/Nether Leader

Debut: Ratchet & Clank: Into the Nexus
English voice by: Fred Tatasciore

The true main antagonist of Into the Nexus.

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• Big Bad: He had actually been manipulating the Prog twins this whole time in order to free himself and the Nethers.
• Black Speech: It specks in a language only Vendra can understand.
• Eldritch Abomination: Of the Nether race.
• Final Boss: He is the last boss fought in Into the Nexus.

Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart

Emperor Nefarious (UNMARKED SPOILERS)

Emperor Nefarious

Debut: Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
English voice by: Robin Atkin Downes

"Do you know what that sound is? Listen closely...is it fear? Hope? The slow inevitability of death? No. It's me. Winning."

"Why don't we make this interesting? A home game, perhaps?"

The true main antagonist of Rift Apart. After being impersonated by his alternate self while he was away researching the means to bridge worlds, the Emperor returns with a vengeance and forcefully reclaims his throne, dragging Dr. Nefarious along as he seeks the ultimate prize — to conquer every dimension imaginable.

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• Ain't Too Proud to Beg: As he's being dragged into a rift by a kraken, he begs Dr. Nefarious to save him, tempting him with We Can Rule Together. His counterpart shares some choice words before kicking him to his fate.
  Emperor Nefarious: Please! We — we can win this together!
  Dr. Nefarious: What do you know about winning?
• Alternate Self: To our main Dr. Nefarious.
• Armor-Piercing Response: When he discovers that his seeming ultimate victory feels empty, Dr. Nefarious points out that since Emperor Nefarious has always equated happiness with success, by achieving absolute victory he has nothing left to achieve, so his life feels empty and devoid of meaning. This marks the first time that we see the Emperor become well and truly angry, showing that this one statement hit home.
• Arch-Enemy: The Emperor is Rivet’s sworn enemy, and she was never able to defeat him until Ratchet and Clank came along.
• Ax-Crazy: Underneath his elegant design and personality is a vicious, petty child willing to destroy all of reality in an act of spite.
• Bad Boss: Towards his own counterpart, no less. In contrast to how most of the friendly meetings between the counterparts go, Emperor Nefarious is nothing but an ungrateful bully towards Doctor Nefarious, which makes it all the more satisfying when the latter has enough of his trash and kicks him to his doom.
• Big Bad: For Rift Apart. While Dr. Nefarious is largely responsible for the plot happening in the first place, Emperor Nefarious proves to be the more dangerous of the two by the story's climax where he intends to use the Dimensionator to conquer Ratchet's dimension.
• The Bully: Strip away his title and this is Emperor Nefarious at heart. He happily insults, humiliates, and terrorizes those weaker than him for fun and to make himself feel big. Fittingly, when those he oppresses gain the will to fight back and win, he breaks down and begs for mercy.
• Cold Ham: While Dr. Nefarious serves his ham piping hot, Emperor Nefarious serves it up freezing cold. He does start to devolve into Dr. Nefarious's hammy rants during his Villainous Breakdown however.
• Deconstructed Character Archetype: Of the Invincible Villain. Having conquered his own dimension, Emperor Nefarious has discovered that his victory feels hollow. As Dr Nefarious points out, since Emperor Nefarious has always equated happiness with success, by achieving absolute victory he has nothing left to achieve, so his life feels empty and devoid of meaning. Also, because he's known nothing but victory his entire life, he's incredibly arrogant and cannot fathom the possibility that he can actually lose. So during the final boss fight, as Ratchet and the heroes bring down his mech suit and decimate his army, giving him his first taste of true failure, Emperor Nefarious completely loses his mind and ultimately attempts to destroy all of reality in a fit of childish rage, all because his fragile ego simply cannot handle the prospect of defeat.
  Emperor Nefarious: [As Ratchet destroys the Power Suit's heart] Why will they NOT JUST... SUBMIT?!
  Dr. Nefarious: See? This is why my dimension is hard to take over! It's not because of me!
• Disproportionate Retribution: His ego is so big and fragile that he considers misspelling his name an equal offense to rebelling against his rule, as revealed through background information.
• Dirty Coward: Behind the bravado, Emperor Nefarious is this to the core. While a very powerful capable fighter, it's clear he only fights battles he's confident he can win. Two instances occur that reveal his true colors.
  • The first is when he recognizes Kit is the Warbot charging at him and reacts with shock and even fear. He doesn't move to defend himself, leaving Dr. Nefarious to dispatch her with the Dimensionator.
  • The second is at the end of the game. After nearly destroying all of reality in a Suicidal Cosmic Temper Tantrum, when he's being dragged away by the kraken, he pathetically begs the counterpart he mistreated to save him. Dr. Nefarious is having none of it and kicks him to his doom.
• Dramatically Missing the Point: Even after successfully conquering his entire universe, Emperor Nefarious still feels empty and unfulfilled, which Doctor Nefarious deduces as Emps equating happiness with success and since he's already achieved success and there's nothing left to succeed at, life is meaningless. Rather than realize that he should stock happiness in more than just conquest, Emperor Nefarious concludes that he isn't happy because he hasn't conquered all the other dimensions, and thus hasn't truly won yet.
• The Emperor: The tyrannical Evil Overlord of his dimension's universe, and one that he rules with an iron fist. Literally.
• Evil Is Bigger: Almost twice as tall as the other Nefarious, more strongly built, and able to carry him with a single hand.
• Evil Brit: In contrast to Dr. Nefarious's croaking rasp, the Emperor speaks with a cultured, mellifluous accent.
• Fantastic Racism: It’s heavily implied that like Dr. Nefarious, Emperor Nefarious also has a dislike towards biological beings, but in a different way: A majority of citizens in Nefarious City are robots, and organics are treated as second-class citizens rather than destroyed on the spot. Any who refuse to comply with Emperor Nefarious’ law are roboticized. Additionally, his robot troops refer to organics as “Squishies”.
• Faux Affably Evil: He speaks in a polite tone, but is a megalomaniac of the highest order and everything that comes out of his mouth is condescending at best, or downright nasty at worst.
• Final Boss: Of Rift Apart. Like his counterpart, he comes in two stages, one in a Humongous Mecha and one against the Emperor himself.
• Foil: For Dr. Nefarious. On a superficial level, Emperor Nefarious is everything Dr. Nefarious wants to be, but once their true characters come to light, both can't stand the other. While both are galaxy conquering villains with egos the size of ten supernovas, Emperor Nefarious is treated as a genuine Knight of Cerebus to contrast his counterpart's mustache-twirling brand of evil. Their personalities continue to diverge as the Emperor shows himself to be even more egotistical and self-absorbed, and when stripped of his power is really a Dirty Coward who has never experienced defeat to the point he's unsatisfied with it while Dr. Nefarious is so familiar with defeat, he's elated just to get one victory, has some genuine appreciation for Lawrence, and is much more bold when the time comes for him to get his own hands dirty.
• Hate Sink: Far more unlikable than Dr. Nefarious. He is a smug, arrogant, and sadistic tyrant who treats everyone, including his alternate counterpart, like garbage.
• Humongous Mecha: Emphasis on the humongous! During the final battle he pulls out all the stops, including a skyscraper-sized robot.
• Ignored Epiphany: When he achieves what he believes to be total victory, yet feels nothing from it, Dr. Nefarious points out that since Emps has always equated happiness with success, achieving absolute victory robs his life of any future joy and meaning. Emps' expression makes it clear that this statement hits home, shocking him, then infuriating him for the first time in the game. However, rather than accepting that fact and reevaluating his life choices, Emps doubles down and decides that the reason he isn't feeling anything is that there are still other dimensions to conquer and he just needs to conquer all of them to feel something.
• Irony: You'd think someone as successful as he is would know a thing or two about winning, but he only has a superficial understanding of it, that being "winning feels good". So, when there's nothing else to win at, he's at a loss of what to do, which Dr. Nefarious lampshades as him equating happiness with success, which is an incredibly shallow and poor way to go about life.
• It's All About Me: He surpasses Doctor Nefarious in egotism, making the entire universe bow to him, and everything in it revolves around him. His desire to conquer all of reality stems from his entitlement that he should rule them purely because he's Emperor Nefarious and destined to rule over others.
• Jerkass: Just like Dr. Nefarious, he's a huge jerk though in a different way compared to Dr. Nefarious' overt obnoxiousness. Having known nothing but victory his entire life, Emperor Nefarious has grown insufferably smug and condescending towards everyone around him. To Dr. Nefarious' displeasure, that includes him as well, who Emperor Nefarious is incredibly dismissive of and unappreciative towards.
• Kneel Before Zod: During the final sequence of boss fights, he commands the heroes to bow before him. They don't. In fact, part of his Villainous Breakdown is being unable to comprehend the fact that they're putting up this much resistance.
  Emperor Nefarious: Why! Won't! They! Just! KNEEL?!
• Knight of Cerebus: While he has a comical moment or two, for the most part he's deadly serious and extremely capable, and his arrival marks the point where the story gets darker and the stakes much higher.
• Large and in Charge: He's even taller than Dr. Nefarious (who's already roughly twice the size of Ratchet).
• Laughing Mad: He occasionally laughs maniacally during his final fight with Rivet, having gone into his Villainous Breakdown.
• Leitmotif: Emperor Nefarious is often accompanied by a short, dramatic, Imperial March-esque fanfare. It also plays at the beginning of his Villain Song, "Join Me at the Top."
• Light Is Not Good: The Emperor's body is mainly white to contrast his main counterpart's darker colors, but is a far more dangerous villain.
• Machiavelli Was Wrong: The reason why Emperor Nefarious has trouble taking over Ratchet’s universe? Because people won’t let fear get in the way. They’d rather die fighting than to bow before him.
• Mind over Matter: In cutscenes he effortlessly tosses around our heroes with an orange energy field, though in his boss battle he only uses it to pick up Exploding Barrels and throw them.
• Multiversal Conqueror: After capturing the leaders of the Resistance and Pirates he decides he's conquered his whole home dimension, and decides to use the Dimensionator to take over all the others.
• Normal Fish in a Tiny Pond: Inverted. It's implied that beneath the pageantry and robot armies, Emperor Nefarious is no different than Dr. Nefarious, his successes being more a matter of just being in an "easier" universe than his mainstream counterpart. When we're first introduced to him, Emperor Nefarious had conquered most of the galaxy and the rebels are fighting an uphill battle against him, Captain Quantum placing a bug on him more a matter of luck than anything else. When he tries launching his campaign of conquest into Ratchet and Clank's dimension, he is surprised by how much of a fight the native heroes are able to put up with the rebel's help and loses his cool in the process.
  Emperor Nefarious: Why will they not just SUBMIT?!
  Dr. Nefarious: SEE?! THIS is why my dimension is hard to take over! It's not because of ME.
  Emperor Nefarious: That remains to be seen.
• Not So Above It All:
  • During their invasion of Sargasso, Dr. Nefarious makes an evil pun at the planet's expense and Emperor Nefarious gives out an Evil Laugh before composing himself, getting an undignified rush from his counterpart's hammier villainy.
  • When he believes he's finally conquered the galaxy, he makes a public address where he stands up on his desk and begins to boogie down before suddenly cutting the feed — not because he feels ridiculous, but because he's not enjoying his victory as much as he'd hoped. He also waves his assistant away when she brings him what looks like a beer bottle, suggesting that he really intended to party.
  • Over the credits, he duets with Dr. Nefarious in a hammy song about how he's lonely ruling the galaxy by himself and wants a partner in crime — or would, if the Doctor wasn't such a loser. Based on Dr. Nefarious's reactions, the Emperor clearly composed it himself and is forcing his other self to recite parts written for him.
• Omnicidal Maniac: When he realizes that he's that close to losing due to realizing that there's no one left to fight for him, meaning that all his conquests would soon be in vain, the Emperor overclocks the Dimensionator in an attempt to destroy the entire multiverse by collapsing it into "a vapid, empty void".
• Psychopathic Manchild: Just like his mainstream counterpart, but in a different and far less amusing way. He carries himself with a more composed, sophisticated air befitting an Emperor, but is really just a spoiled brat who thinks he deserves to rule all of reality simply because he thinks he should, and that's not even getting into how much of a Sore Loser he is when things stop going his way for once.
• Rage Quit: As the Final Boss battle starts falling out of his favor and he's confronted with the possibility that he'll actually lose for once, and to the Lombax he's so used to defeating no less, he decides to overclock the Dimensionator to destroy all of reality. He's that much of a Sore Loser.
• SkeleBot 9000: His white color scheme makes him look even more explicitly skeletal than the mainline Nefarious.
• Smug Snake: Because he's so used to victory, he's very self-assured that no matter what direction things swing, he'll always come out on top. He was right, until he set foot in Ratchet's dimension, where he experienced his first true defeat and he doesn't like it one bit.
• The Sociopath: Lacks all of Doctor Nefarious' redeeming qualities. He's arrogant, smug, couldn’t care less about the suffering of others, and meets the "Need for stimulation" requirement by realizing he doesn't feel whole conquering his home dimension, but thinks he will when he conquers all others.
• Sore Loser: Having known only victory his whole life, he really doesn't take it well when he's finally defeated. See the trope below for specifically how he reacts.
• Suicidal Cosmic Temper Tantrum: When his soldiers are all destroyed or have deserted him after his boss battle, he tries to overclock the Dimensionator in a crazed, last-ditch effort to destroy causal reality.
  "ENOUGH! I will collapse EVERY dimension, into NOTHINGNESS! A VAPID, EMPTY VOID! Say GOODBYE!"
• Undignified Death: This tyrant who attempted to become a Multiversal Conqueror is killed by…a kraken. It's what makes his defeat all the more cathartic.
• Victory Is Boring: After apparently conquering his entire dimension and defeating all of his enemies, Emperor Nefarious bemoans how he doesn't feel any different despite this. Dr. Nefarious correctly points out that he equates happiness with success and since he's known nothing but success, the sensation has lost its luster. Moreover, by completely conquering his dimension's galaxy, he has effectively achieved absolute victory and by doing so robbed himself of any future successes, robbing himself of all future joy or meaning in his life. When he realizes there are other dimensions he can conquer, he reasons that he hasn't experienced true victory yet because he isn't in control of every other dimension.
• Vile Villain, Saccharine Show: He may have his moments that bring to mind Dr. Nefarious' antics, but the moment he's introduced, it's clear that such moments are few and far between. In other words, while Dr. Nefarious is a goofy villain who does vile things, Emperor Nefarious is a vile villain who does goofy things.
• Villain in a White Suit: His outer shell is a ghostly off-white with orange and black accents. Doubles as Everything Is an iPod in the Future, as his design also looks much more luxurious and high-tech, and he color-coordinates his forces in the same hues.
• Villainous Breakdown: As Ratchet and Clank bring down his power suit and Rivet and Kit decimate his army, the cracks begin to show during the Final Boss fight with him. His demeanor shifts from an assured, confident galactic conqueror to a childish, screaming madman who's experiencing his first taste of true failure. He even tries to destroy all of reality by overclocking the Dimensionator simply because he can't handle the fact that he lost. By the end, he's humiliated, about to be dragged away by a kraken, and desperately begging for help from Dr. Nefarious, the counterpart he once thought so beneath him.
  "You...you think you can defeat ME?!! I will bring in ALL my armies, ALL my followers! YOU WILL BOW BEFORE ME!!
• Villain Song: In the second half of the end-credits, you get to hear "Join Me at the Top", a rather bombastic and self-aggrandizing one with Dr. Nefarious (reluctantly) providing some supporting vocals. According to the end-credits art, they even have it recorded on a vinyl record which Rivet found while rummaging around the Emperor's office.
  Alone at last
  Stuck, at the top
  If I ever lost, I think
  I'd just drop
  My never-ending story of success
  Is a lonely refrain, so I've one request...
  Join me, at the top — why don'tcha
  Join me, where the stars all shine
  Join me, at the top — why won'tcha
  Join me; let our powers combine
  You know I can't resist a ditty,
  So join me — oh, wait, well, what a pity
  Looks like I forgot
  'Cause I'm everything you're not!
• We Have Become Complacent: Tying into his Fatal Flaw, Emperor Nefarious has been so used to defeating his enemies that he's started holding onto the Villain Ball because he assumes that he can't lose.
• White and Red and Eerie All Over: In contrast with Dr. Nefarious' striking purples and greens, Emperor Nefarious is mostly white and red (with some black parts as well), characterizing him as more malevolent and serious than his counterpart.

Emperor's Assistant

Debut: Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
English voice by: Kimberly Brooks

"Witness my power!"

"You are a fool for underestimating me!"

A small, diminutive robot who acts as Emperor Nefarious's assistant.

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• All There in the Manual: Her real name, F-44, is only mentioned in the game's artbook.
• Dragon with an Agenda: Subverted. Her Gallery bio reveals she secretly craves universe-dominating power of her own, yet still remains loyal to her Emperor — not just because he controls everything already and could easily crush her, but because she wants to. As a reflection of her competence, Emperor Nefarious has also given her a taste of power by appointing her the new Warden of Zordoom Prison, which she rules with an iron fist.
• Flat Character: She doesn't get much characterization outside of being the Emperor's assistant.
• Foil: To Lawrence, Dr. Nefarious's usual right-hand, as she's a small robot who acts as a Yes-Man to the Nefariouses, unlike Lawrence, who's a Servile Snarker.
• Karma Houdini: While she does get thoroughly beaten and humiliated by Rivet in Zordoom Prison, unlike her master, she manages to survive the game relatively unscathed. It's shown via the credits that Phantom and Mrs. Zurkon are hunting her, though she escapes them as they're closing in.
• Villainous Breakdown: As Rivet tears through Zordoom Prison, the Assistant rapidly begins losing her cool before unleashing the prison's entire arsenal on her in a mad fury.

Master Virus

Debut: Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart

The progenitor of the Zeta Virus Glitch encounters in her missions.

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• Arc Villain: For Glitch's missions. The Zeta Virus and all the havoc it wreaks can be traced back to her.
• As Long as There Is Evil: Her last words to Glitch describe her as being from another dimension, and as long as the dimensions continue to collapse, then the Zeta Virus will come back. This is rendered moot, however, since the heroes are already on the verge of putting a stop to the Dimensional Cataclysm by that point.
• Optional Boss: Only three of Glitch's missions are story-relevant. The last two are completely optional.

Comic Books

Artemis Zogg

Artemis Zogg

Debut: Ratchet & Clank (2010)

The Big Bad of the comic series and a ruthless tyrant, Artemis Zogg uses his technology to "steal" planets and relocate them to his own "Artemis Galaxy".

• Became Their Own Antithesis: He essentially becomes no different than Tachyon. Becomes obvious when he becomes stranded in a meteor with him by the end.
• Big Bad: He is the main villain of the comic series.
• Broken Pedestal: Becomes embittered by Qwark after he ran for president instead of aiding Zogg's campaign like he promised.
• Fan Boy: Zogg was this towards Qwark before his disillusionment. Shows shades of this towards Ratchet, even near the end.
• Fat Bastard: Becomes an evil fat guy after his Start of Darkness.
• Galactic Conqueror: Despite his insistence on being a "president", he's clearly taking over planets by force.
• Pimped-Out Cape: His cape is pretty snazzy.
• Start of Darkness: The third issue reveals what caused him to become the tyrant he is today.
• Well-Intentioned Extremist: In his eyes, he's only doing what is necessary to ensure peace among the galaxy.

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