"The function of wisdom is to discriminate between good and evil."
— Cicero
Evil is complex.
Compare Darkness and Shadows Tropes.
Contrast Goodness Tropes and Neutrality Index.
See also Good and Evil for Your Convenience.
Note that most of these fall under No Real Life Examples, Please!, due to the controversy that would arise from them.
Tropes:
Main sub-index:
Other categories:
- Above Good and Evil: Someone believes their goals to be more valuable than good and evil.
- Academy of Evil: A school dedicated to training future villains.
- Adaptational Villainy: The adaptation makes a good character evil.
- Affably Evil: The guy may be evil, but he is cordial and well-mannered.
- Allergic to Evil
- Always Chaotic Evil: An entire race of evil people.
- Ambiguously Evil: It's hard to tell what moral alignment a character is, but some of their actions and statements hint that they may be evil.
- Ambition Is Evil
- Ancient Evil
- And That's Terrible: The work feels the need to point out to the audience when certain actions are bad.
- And Then What?: The villain hasn't considered what they'll do once their plan is successful.
- And Your Little Dog, Too!: A villain shows just how evil they are by threatening the hero's loved one.
- Anti-Villain: The villain has noble and sympathetic motivations, especially the fact that they lack villainous qualities.
- Apocalypse Hitler
- Arson, Murder, and Admiration
- Artifact of Doom
- As Long as There is Evil: As long as evil exists, the villain will always come back.
- Attention-Deficit Disciple
- Auction of Evil
- Avenging the Villain: After the hero kills the villain, the hero gets targeted by the villain's vengeful loved ones.
- A Villain Named "Z__rg": The bad guy's name contains "Zrg" or some variation thereof.
- Bad Guys Do the Dirty Work: The villains do the things that the heroes aren't willing to do.
- The Bad Guy Wins: The story ends with the villain being victorious and getting what they wanted.
- Bad People Abuse Animals: It's shown how awful the villain is by having them mistreat animals.
- Bad Powers, Bad People: Evil people have powers that are typically used destructively.
- Bad Powers, Good People: The good guys have powers that would be more appropriate for a villain.
- Bad Samaritan
- Baddie Flattery: The bad guy compliments the hero during a fight.
- Bald of Evil: The villain is bald.
- Bathe Her and Bring Her to Me
- Beard of Evil: The villain has a beard.
- Beauty Is Bad: The villain is pretty.
- Became Their Own Antithesis, when not on a Villain or an Anti-Hero.
- Being Evil Sucks: Being the bad guy has its downsides.
- Being Tortured Makes You Evil
- Better Living Through Evil
- Better the Devil You Know
- Beware the Superman: A super powered being will chose to become a supervillain by using their abilities for personal gain, rather than help those around them.
- Super Supremacist: A super powered being believes that their abilities automatically makes them better than the Muggles they look down upon, and may even use their powers to conquer and enslave those they consider inferior.
- Big Bad: The main antagonist of the work.
- Black Magic
- Blood Bath
- Bloodbath Villain Origin
- Board to Death
- Bondage Is Bad
- Bring Him to Me
- The Brute
- Burn the Orphanage
- But for Me, It Was Tuesday: The villain is confronted by one of their victims over an atrocity that they don't remember due to it being just one of many bad things they've done in their life.
- Butt-Dialing Mordor
- Card-Carrying Villain: The villain is proud of being evil and revels in it.
- Chance Meeting Between Antagonists
- Chaos Is Evil
- Chaotic Evil
- Chronic Villainy: It's impossible for the villain to be completely reformed because they keep on going back to committing evil deeds.
- Clothes Make the Maniac
- Co-Dragons: Two or more underlings who are both second-in-command to the main villain.
- Complete Monster: A villain so vile, cruel, and horrible that they have no redeeming qualities or scruples whatsoever.
- Complexity Addiction
- Conducting the Carnage
- Corrupt Church
- Creepy Jazz Music
- Creepy Souvenir
- Cross-Melting Aura
- Cute Is Evil
- The Dark Arts
- The Dark Chick
- Dark Is Evil: Sinister-looking characters are automatically evil.
- The Dark Side
- The Dark Side Will Make You Forget
- Dead Guy on Display
- Decadent Court
- Deface of the Moon: The villain's scheme is to vandalize the moon.
- Deliver Us from Evil
- Despotism Justifies the Means
- Detect Evil
- Dick Dastardly Stops to Cheat: The villain cheats during a race even though the hero has no chance of winning, which ironically gives the hero time to beat them to the finish line.
- Digital Piracy Is Evil
- Disney Villain Death: The villain dies by falling to their doom.
- Divine Chessboard
- Doomsday Device
- The Dragon: The villain who is the Big Bad's right-hand man.
- Dragon Ascendant: The villain's second-in-command becomes top banana after their boss is defeated.
- Dragon-in-Chief: The second-in-command is a more capable and active threat than the main villain.
- Dread Zeppelin
- Dress-Coded for Your Convenience
- Driven to Villainy
- Dystopia Justifies the Means
- Easy Road to Hell: Doing any bad thing at all is enough to condemn you to Hell.
- Enemy Civil War
- Enemy Within
- Enlightened Antagonist
- Equal-Opportunity Evil: An evil organization invites everyone regardless of what race, gender, etc.
- Even Evil Can Be Loved: Just because the villain's evil doesn't mean there are no people who care about him.
- Even Evil Has Loved Ones: Even the villains have people they love and care about.
- Even Evil Has Standards: There are some misdeeds that even the bad guys refuse to do or are disgusted by.
- Even Mooks Have Loved Ones
- Evil All Along: A villain's true colors are revealed via plot twist.
- Evil Brit: A British villain.
- Evil Cannot Comprehend Good: The villain misinterprets or is unable to understand why the good guys do what they do.
- Evil Cannot Stand Cuteness
- Evil Costume Switch: Upon becoming a villain, the person switches to more sinister apparel.
- Evil Counterpart: When the villain is an evil version of the hero.
- Evil-Detecting Baby
- Evil-Detecting Dog
- Eviler Than Thou: A villain proves themselves to be more evil than the other villain.
- Evil Evolves: Villains will learn new tricks.
- Evil Eyebrows
- Evil Feels Good: The villain is evil because they like being evil.
- The Evil Genius
- Evil Gloating
- Evil Has a Bad Sense of Humor
- Evil, Inc.
- Evil Is Angular: How to get across you're evil? Be imposing. How to be imposing? Start by removing every smooth and rounded shape in your design.
- Evil Is Bigger
- Evil Is Cool: Even villains deserve respect.
- Evil Is Deathly Cold
- Evil Is Easy
- Evil Is Hammy
- Evil Is Not a Toy
- Evil Is Not Pacifist
- Evil Is Not Well-Lit
- Evil Is One Big, Happy Family
- Evil Is Petty
- Evil Is Sexy: The fans finds the villains to be most attractive.
- Evil Is Sterile
- Evil Laugh: The villain laughs maniacally.
- Evil Makeover
- Evil Makes You Monstrous
- Evil Makes You Ugly
- Evil Me Scares Me
- Evil Mentor
- Evil Nerd
- Evil Only Has to Win Once
- Evil Orphanage Lady
- Evil Overlord
- Evil Overlord List
- Evil Pays Better: A character turns to crime because they find it more profitable than earning money the honest way.
- Evil Plan: The villain's scheme to do something evil.
- Evil Power Vacuum
- The Evil Prince
- Evil Redhead: A bad guy with red hair.
- Evil Running Good
- Evil Slinks
- Evil Smells Bad: The villain smells horrible.
- Evil Sounds Deep: The villain has a deep voice.
- Evil Sounds Raspy: The villain has a raspy voice.
- Evil Tainted the Place
- Evil Tastes Good
- Evil Twin
- Evil vs. Evil: A conflict between two people or groups who are both villainous.
- Evil Versus Oblivion
- Evil Virtues
- Evil Weapon
- Evil Wears Black: Villains wear black clothing.
- Evil Welcomes Defectors: Evil factions are very welcoming to traitors and defectors.
- Evil Will Fail
- Excessive Evil Eyeshadow
- Exotic Entree
- Face–Heel Turn: A good guy becomes evil.
- Face of an Angel, Mind of a Demon
- Fade Around the Eyes
- Fallen Hero: The villain used to be a hero, but their reputation has sunk.
- Family Values Villain: The villain cares about things being family-friendly.
- Fangs Are Evil: Villains have fangs.
- Fantasy Axis of Evil
- Fascist, but Inefficient
- Faux Affably Evil: The villain's still a bad person, their politeness is merely an act.
- Femme Fatalons
- Filler Villain
- Final Solution: A villain devises a plan to drive a group, race or species they have targeted to extinction.
- Finger-Lickin' Evil
- Finger-Tenting
- Flaying Alive
- Flies Equals Evil
- Flying Cutlery Spaceship
- Forced into Evil
- Forced to Watch: The villain forces someone to watch someone they love die or go through hell.
- For the Evulz: The villain commits their bad deeds just because.
- Four Is Death
- Freaky Electronic Music
- From Nobody to Nightmare: The most feared villain started out as an insignificant loser.
- Fun-Hating Villain: The villain actively goes out of his way to prevent other people from enjoying themselves.
- Game Face
- Genocide from the Inside: The villain has exterminated his own race.
- Glamour Failure
- A Glass of Chianti
- Gloved Fist of Doom
- Glove Snap
- God and Satan Are Both Jerks: God and the devil are both antagonistic towards humanity.
- God Is Evil: God is not benevolent in the least.
- God of Evil: A deity of pure evil.
- Good Girl Gone Bad
- Good Hurts Evil
- Good Powers, Bad People: The villain has powers more suited for good guys.
- Good Running Evil
- The Good, the Bad, and the Evil
- Got the Whole World in My Hand
- Grayscale of Evil
- Grim Up North
- Hand Rubbing
- Hearing Voices
- The Heavy
- High Collar of Doom
- Hobbes Was Right: Humanity defaults to evil. A very cynical worldview.
- Hope Crusher
- Hope Spot
- Horns of Villainy: The villain is horned.
- Humans Are Bastards
- Humans Are the Real Monsters: Humans are regarded as worse than the beings considered monsters.
- Human Sacrifice
- Human Shield
- I Can Rule Alone
- I Control My Minions Through...
- If You're So Evil, Eat This Kitten: A person is asked to commit an atrocity to prove how evil they are.
- Ignored Epiphany: The villain briefly considers renouncing their ways, but decides not to.
- I Have You Now, My Pretty: The villain has the girl in his grasp and doesn't even try to deny having unsavory intentions with her.
- The Imp
- In Their Own Image
- Inbred and Evil
- Industrialized Evil
- It's All About Me: The villain only cares about themselves.
- I Will Punish Your Friend for Your Failure: A villain motivates their underling by threatening the underling's loved ones.
- Karma Houdini: The villain gets off scot-free for their actions.
- Kick the Dog: It's established how rotten the bad guy is by having them do something mean just to prove what a cruel asshole they are.
- Kick the Son of a Bitch: The bad guy does something cruel to a person who deserved it anyway.
- Kill the Poor
- Killing Intent
- Kingpin in His Gym
- Kinslaying Is a Special Kind of Evil: Villains who murder their own family are seen as especially vile.
- Kneel Before Zod
- Knight Templar: A villain convinced of their own righteousness, but whose methods are far too vicious to be truly good.
- Lack of Empathy: The villain has no empathy for other people.
- Laughably Evil: The villain is humorous.
- Laugh with Me!
- Lawful Evil
- Lean and Mean: Skinny characters who are evil.
- Leonine Contract
- Light Is Not Good: The villain has a deceptively benign appearance.
- Likable Villain
- Love Makes You Evil: Villainy moitvated by love.
- Love to Hate: The villain is popular among the fandom precisely because of how despicable they are.
- Loves the Sound of Screaming
- Made of Evil
- Mage in Manhattan
- Magic Is Evil
- Make-Up Is Evil
- Malevolent Mugshot
- Malicious Slander
- Man of Wealth and Taste
- Maniac Monkeys: Monkeys and apes are the bad guys.
- Marital Rape License
- Mark of the Beast
- Meaningless Villain Victory: The villain wins, but their victory is rendered pointless by something happening or being revealed at the last minute.
- Memory Gambit
- Mental Handicap, Moral Deficiency
- Mental Monster: Your inner demons made flesh.
- Million Mook March
- Missing Reflection
- Mistreatment-Induced Betrayal: The villain's minions turn on him in retaliation for his mistreating them.
- Monster Fangirl: A fangirl of a depraved criminal.
- Monstrous Cannibalism
- Monument of Humiliation and Defeat
- Moral Event Horizon: The one bad deed so despicable that any ounce of sympathy for a villain is gone, and redemption is out of the question.
- Morality-Guided Attack
- Moral Myopia: The villain considers something an atrocity only if it happens to them.
- Moral Pragmatist
- Mordor
- Murder by Suicide
- Murder Into Malevolence
- Murder Is the Best Solution
- Near-Villain Victory: The villain gets close to succeeding, but is beaten at the last minute.
- Neutral Evil
- Never Hurt an Innocent: The villain will only harm people who are directly confronting them. Innocents who did nothing to him are to be spared.
- No Cure for Evil: Evil does not get healing powers, at least not for anyone but the user.
- No Delays for the Wicked
- No Honor Among Thieves: Evildoers are prone to betraying each other.
- No, Mr. Bond, I Expect You to Dine
- No Sympathy Between Mooks
- Nothing but Skulls
- Number of the Beast: 666 as a number associated with evil.
- Obliviously Evil: A villain who is completely unaware that their actions are wrong.
- Offing the Mouth
- Old Man Marrying a Child
- Orcus on His Throne: The bad guy mostly just sits around and lets his minions do all the work.
- Ordered to Die
- Outscare the Enemy
- Overlord Jr.
- Past Victim Showcase
- Peer Pressure Makes You Evil
- Pitiful Worms
- Playing with Puppets
- Poison Is Evil
- Poke the Poodle: The bad guy's attempts at doing an evil deed come off as more like harmless pranks than anything.
- Politically Correct Villain: The bad guy cares about political correctness.
- Politically Incorrect Villain: The bad guy happens to be a bigot.
- Post-Rape Taunt: A rapist taunts their victim's loved ones about the act.
- Pragmatic Villainy: The bad guy refuses to do a bad deed for practical reasons rather than finding the misdeed inexcusable.
- Primal Stance
- Privilege Makes You Evil
- Protagonist Journey to Villain
- Put the "Laughter" in "Slaughter"
- Pyrrhic Villainy
- Rape Is a Special Kind of Evil: Rape is regarded as the worst crime possible.
- Red Eyes, Take Warning: The villain has red eyes.
- Red Right Hand: The villain is identified by a deformity.
- Redemption Rejection
- Regularly Scheduled Evil
- Religion of Evil
- Reminiscing About Your Victims
- Reptiles Are Abhorrent: Evil reptiles.
- Repressive, but Efficient
- Revenge by Proxy
- Revenge Through Corruption
- Right-Hand Cat: The bad guy has a cat.
- Rock Me, Asmodeus!
- Rotten Rock & Roll: Evil rock musicians.
- Royal Brat
- Rushmore Refacement: The villain's scheme is to add their face to Mount Rushmore.
- Satanic Archetype: A villain is the representation of the Devil in the story's universe.
- The Savage South
- Scary Teeth
- Schmuck Banquet
- Secret Circle of Secrets
- Selective Slaughter
- Self-Constructed Being
- Self-Recovery Surprise
- Sensible Heroes, Skimpy Villains: Good guys dress modestly while villains wear revealing clothes.
- Serial-Killer Killer
- Sex Is Evil
- Shoot the Builder
- Shoot the Messenger
- Shoulders of Doom
- Shut Up, Hannibal!: The hero gives a counter to the villain's speech on why their heroic efforts are worthless.
- Shut Up, Kirk!: The villain gives a counter to the hero's speech on why they'll lose in the end.
- Silence, You Fool!
- A Sinister Clue: The villain is left-handed.
- Sinister Geometry
- Slavery Is a Special Kind of Evil
- Sliding Scale of Villain Threat
- Slouch of Villainy
- Slowly Slipping Into Evil
- Sorting Algorithm of Evil
- Soviet Superscience
- Spare a Messenger
- Spikes of Villainy: The villain has spikes.
- Spoiled Brat
- The Starscream: An underling who plans to overthrow the main villain.
- Start of Darkness
- Stock Evil Overlord Tactics
- Straight Edge Evil
- Stupid Evil: The villain commits evil deeds in spite of them being ridiculously impractical.
- Stupid Jetpack Hitler
- Sugary Malice
- Suicidal Cosmic Temper Tantrum
- Superpowered Evil Side
- Surrounded by Idiots: The villain complains about their minions' incompetence.
- Take Over the City
- Take Over the World: The villain plans to take over the world.
- Tested on Humans
- Then Let Me Be Evil
- The Paragon Always Rebels
- This Cannot Be!
- This Is Your Brain on Evil
- Threw My Bike on the Roof
- Tin Tyrant
- To Create a Playground for Evil
- Token Evil Teammate: The one member of the hero team who's actually evil in spite of being on their side.
- Too Funny to Be Evil
- Trapped in Villainy
- Treachery Is a Special Kind of Evil
- Two-Faced: The villain's face is asymmetrical.
- Ultimate Evil
- Unholy Ground
- Unholy Matrimony: Two villains who are married.
- Unicorns Are Sacred
- Used to Be a Sweet Kid: The villain was much nicer when they were younger.
- Usurping Santa
- Vader Breath
- Viler New Villain: The villian stands out as more evil than the other villain.
- Villain Ball: The villain loses because of an inability to restrain the urge to keep doing bad deeds.
- Villain Cred
- Villain No Longer Idle: The villain leaves his throne to take matters into his own hands.
- Villainous Breakdown: The bad guy goes berserk and flies into a rage over their plan failing.
- Villainous BSoD
- Villainous Cheekbones
- Villainous Crush
- Villainous Demotivator
- Villainous Face Hold
- Villainous Incest
- Villainous Plan Inertia
- Villainous Valor
- Villainous Widow's Peak
- Villain Pedigree
- Villains Blend in Better
- Villains Never Lie
- Villain Song: The villain sings about their villainy.
- Villains Out Shopping: The villain is currently taking a break from being evil and is just doing the same things normal people do.
- Villain Takes an Interest
- Villain World
- Villainy Discretion Shot
- Virtue Is Weakness
- Walk into Mordor
- Wardens Are Evil
- Weakened by the Light
- We Can Rule Together: The villain makes the offer that the hero can join him in their conquest.
- Welcome to Evil Mart: A store that exclusively caters to villains.
- What Is Evil?: The concept of good and evil has no meaning to the villain.
- White Hair, Black Heart
- Wicked Cultured: Villains have a taste for the finer things in life.
- Wicked Pretentious
- Would Hurt a Child: The villain is willing to hurt children.
- You Can't Thwart Stage One
- You Cloned Hitler!: Someone makes a clone of Adolf Hitler.
- You Could Have Used Your Powers for Evil: A villain sees the hero using their powers for good as a waste of their true potential for evil.
- You Have Failed Me: The villain kills their minion as punishment for failing too often or too severely.
- You Have No Chance to Survive
- You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: The villain kills a minion after they've completed their task.
- Your Approval Fills Me with Shame
