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Edited by Mrph1 on Jul 29th 2024 at 3:09:00 PM
My problem with Stane was always that he is so obviously evil that I don't get how Tony and Rhodey ever trusted him. That's what makes Alexander Pierce a so much better villain. I just knew that he would be the bad guy, but not because of his actions, but because he was the most likely candidate from a narrative pov, and I actually doubted the assessment a couple of times, wondering if he might be a red herring.
Thing is, I love the various Marvel villains for different reasons. I love Alexander Pierce because his story is so relatable, I actually believe that he started out with good intentions. I love Loki because he is so complex, and because his internalized racism and self-hatred is such an unusual motivation. I love Ego because I freaking hate him! When he revealed what he had done, I wanted to jump through the screen and trottle him! I NEVER felt that way about any villain, ever. And then he went and destroyed the cassette tape! That Monster! I love Zemo, because he is a smart villain, and I love smart villains. And I love successful villains. That's what I always had a weak spot for Xanathos, too, and Zemo is kind of like him, but without the self-preservation and driven by revenge. I love Vulture because, well, frankly because his connection to Spider-Man is interesting. And I am saying that as someone who didn't want another villain with a personal connection to Spider-Man, but this one was so well done!
And they are all played by excellent actors.
Kaecilius was less offensive than Malekith since A. he wasn't literally beaten by the hero's elderly mother and B. he's not the villain in Doctor Strange. Dormammu is.
Killain's fine. He has one really good scene (the opening contemplating suicide one) and doesn't really ever live up to that potential again. But in the kingdom of the bland the man with one interesting scene is king.
edited 22nd Apr '18 11:41:01 AM by Sigilbreaker26
"And when the last law was down and the Devil turned round on you, where would you hide, the laws all being flat?"I don't care if she's a badass. If the villain needs to be bailed out so early on in the film it makes him laughable.
Also, Kaecillius's motivations are "I don't want to die" which is at least basically comprehensible if wholly one dimensional, and therefore above Malekith's "I want to turn the world into a darkness dimension."
But he's not the main villain. Dormammu is. Kaecillius is just The Heavy.
"And when the last law was down and the Devil turned round on you, where would you hide, the laws all being flat?"My only problem with the Frigga thing is that it was so obvious that they were only focusing on her more so that the audience would care at least a little when she died.
If I remember correctly, Kaecilius hated death because his family was killed. So it falls into the Killian/Malekith/Yellowjacket/Etc idea of "well I kind of get their motivation. It's just a really bland, cliché, and underdeveloped motivation."
We saw Malekith’s people dying, and the whole “they existed before this universe and want their world back” thing kinda made sense to me.
Kaecilius is the biggest anatagonist in Strange, but he’s got no clear motivation to me. We know nothing about his supposed dead family; nothing about who he lost or how he lost them or why he decided Dormammu was the answer. So he doesn’t work for me.
edited 22nd Apr '18 11:51:13 AM by wisewillow

I mean there are villains who are close, Kaecilius, Yellowjacket, etc. But Malekith probably takes the cake for sheer boredom and generic.