Names to Run Away From Really Fast/Titles

A form of Names to Run Away From Really Fast: Certain military ranks, Nobility titles, and plain old titles carry tinges of evil all by themselves. Avoid anyone with the following ranks:

See also Morally-Ambiguous Doctorate, The Baroness.

Baron
Ever since Manfred von Richthofen became the terror of the skies against the Entente in World War One, every Baron automatically catches his tinge. See also The Baroness.

Comic Books

 * Jack Kirby's Demon had a minor villain named Baron von Evilstein.
 * Baron Zemo, member of Captain America's Rogues Gallery.

Film

 * Baron and Baroness Bomburst from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.
 * Baron Von Ruthless in The Incredibles. We only have his name to go by as he didn't actually appear, but it definitely fits the trope description.
 * Baron Samedi in Live and Let Die.

Literature

 * Baron Vladimir Harkonnen from Dune.
 * Baron Soontir Fel of the Star Wars Expanded Universe is a borderline case. He serves the Empire, and from his last name you'd expect him to fall from grace--indeed, it's not clear for a while where his loyalties lie. He defects from the Empire, partly out of disgust about what Ysanne Isard and others have turned the Empire into, and joins the Rogues, but there are various hints that he may or may not turn again. After the comics didn't end, he vanished, captured by Isard... and, as it turns out in the Hand of Thrawn duology, captured because Grand Admiral Thrawn wanted him. Thrawn showed him something, implied but never stated to be the oncoming Vong invasion, and Fel joined Thrawn's Empire, which wasn't part of Palpatine's Empire at all. Ultimately Fel is one of the good guys, just not the kind to wear New Republic colors.
 * Warlord Zsinj does try to use his name, as part of an elaborate subterfuge, to misdirect and distract Wedge, but this is less because of the 'terror' in hearing his name and more because Wedge views him as one of his greatest failures. (Oh, and he's trying to find his sister, Soontir's wife.)

Video Games

 * Arguably, the entire Kingdom of Baron in Final Fantasy IV.
 * Baron Praxis of the Jak and Daxter series, commonly referred to as just "The Baron."
 * Several of them in World of Warcraft, like death knight Baron Rivendare, or in the manga, Baron Valimar Mordis.

Web Comics

 * Don't make Baron Klaus von Wulfenbach come over there.

Western Animation

 * Baron Otto Matic from Tom Slick, etc.

Live Action TV

 * Monty Python's Flying Circus did a parody of James Bond called "The Bishop."

Literature

 * In Aldous Huxley's After Many a Summer Dies the Swan, amoral scientist Dr. Obispo (Spanish for "Bishop").

Western Animation

 * Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles also has Nick Bishop. Guess what villain trope he is!

Video Games

 * Big Boss, the Big Bad of Metal Gear Solid. In Metal Gear Solid there is also his predecessor and mentor The Boss. With a name like that, you know you don't want to mess with her.

Video Games

 * The name of Lucien's top commander in Fable
 * A recurring theme throughout the Tales Series.

Commissar
Also has a particularly nasty history associated with it, particularly if preceded by the modifiers 'Political,' 'Military,' or (especially) 'People's'. In the Soviet Union during The Great Patriotic War the Commisars were the ones authorized to order the killings of Soviet troops who retreated, deserted or in other ways "sabotaged" the Soviet war effort.

Tabletop Games

 * Warhammer 40000 has the Commisariat an organization made up of many different kinds of people from those that shouldn't be feared like Ciaphas Cain to Complete Monsters whose men would stop rebelling if he just stopped flogging them.

Film

 * Count Dooku.

Literature

 * Especially Count Dracula.

Real Life

 * Count Wolf-Heinrich von Helldorf, Berlin SA leader, who also has a suitably foreboding surname.

Director
The title of choice for someone involved in a Corrupt Corporation's Mad Science department, or a secret government program. May also have a Morally-Ambiguous Doctorate that they're putting to use in the program they're directing, possibly for the creation of The Virus or Super Soldiers. It's also worth noting that this kind of Director is likely the person in charge of a number of people with Morally Ambiguous Doctorates, whether they themselves have a degree or not.

Web Original

 * The Director of Project Freelancer,, is an excellent example.

Doctor
If you get an M.D. or a Ph.D., you might as well grow a handlebar mustache and start practicing your Evil Laugh. Bonus points for insanity. See also Morally-Ambiguous Doctorate. However, if "The Doctor" is the entirety of your name (that we know of) there may yet be hope...

Anime and Manga

 * The Doctor from Hellsing. Creator of artificial vamps. Snazzy glasses. Complete insanity. Winning trifecta.
 * Doctor from Yu Yu Hakusho.

Comic Books

 * Doctor Doom.
 * Some fans call into question Doctor Doom's academic credentials since he was kicked out of State University after the accident that disfigured his face. Still, as ruler of Latveria he presumably had time to finish his thesis at Doomstadt University or have them award him an honorary one...
 * Doctor Cyber, Doctor Death, Doctor Destiny, Doctor Light, Doctor Moon, Doctor No-Face, Doctor Phosphorus, Doctor Psycho... DC Comics seems to like this.

Film

 * Doctor Evil

Literature

 * Doctor Victor von Frankenstein.
 * In the original novel however it is plain Victor Frankenstein who made the monster while a student and never got his doctorate.
 * Doctor Jekyll.

Live Action Television
"The Doctor: Imagine you were dying. Imagine you were afraid and a long way from home in terrible pain. Just when you thought it couldn't get worse, you looked up and saw the face of the Devil himself. Hello, Dalek."
 * Then again ... there's been a few times when The Doctor has kindly suggested that the Monster of the Week run away. And in-universe he's made the living incarnations of Space Nazi hate-hate-hate flinch. With words. Or as the Eleventh Doctor put itwhen facing down alien of the week . "Hello, I'm the Doctor. Basically Run". They wisely did. Though this trope only applies if you are evil, otherwise The Doctor falls under Names to Trust Immediately.
 * In "A Good Man Goes to War," The Doctor finds out this reputation is slowly changing the meaning of his name across time from "healer" to "warrior."
 * This quote shows just how the name "Doctor" could be a Name to Run Away From Very Fast:

Video Games

 * While Team Fortress 2's Doctor is a boon to his team-mates, his background ("From Stuttgart, at a time when the Hippocratic Oath was downgraded to a Hippocratic suggestion") and lines ("Ze hurting is more rewarding than ze healing!") suggest he's no more kind-hearted than the others.
 * "Doctor Loboto" from Psychonauts likes to extract children's brains, the name an allusion to lobotomies (which would be the destruction of part of said brains, which is almost as creepy as what he does with them).
 * The Doctor from Cave Story.

Web Comics

 * Doc Scratch from Homestuck.

Web Original

 * "All I had to do was run for president?! I wasn't even really taking this all that seriously! I even used my real name! You voted for a guy named DOCTOR INSANO!!"

Western Animation

 * Dr. Doofenshmirtz from Phineas and Ferb.
 * Smash Adams foe Dr. Decay.

Literature

 * Duke Roger of Conte, so terrifyingly powerful a sorcerer no one in Tortall would dare face him except a Determinator Action Girl protecting her prince--and he even orchestrates.

Video Games

 * You don't want to be around Duke Nukem when he starts to kick ass and chew bubble gum.
 * So many Fire Emblem villains... so many.
 * Duke Togo of Golgo 13.
 * A minigun-toting boss in Winback.

Western Animation

 * Avatar: The Last Airbender has The Duke, the nickname of one of the Freedom Fighters (we never learn his real name). It's ironic because The Duke is a tiny kid who was orphaned by the Fire Nation. The Ironic Nicknaming of his Gentle Giant friend Pipsqueak makes things even funnier.
 * When one captures one Sgt. Conrad "Duke" Hauser, it ususally does not end well. He comes back. With Friends. And tears your fortress to the ground.

General
While the lower officer ranks may have their share of heroes who risk their lives on the front lines, your average General sits in his cushy headquarters plotting the destruction of all who stand in his way.

Anime

 * General Blue in Dragonball, and General Rildo in Dragon Ball GT.
 * General Zeong, Big Bad of SD Gundam's second season.

Comic Books

 * General Zod.
 * Brotherhood of Evil member General Immortus.

Film

 * General Grievous.

Literature

 * General Woundwort.

Video Games

 * Several bosses from World of Warcraft, including General Drakkisath (a dragon), General Angerforge (a dwarf) and General Rajaxx (a giant insectoid thing).
 * General RAAM, leader of the locust hordes.
 * General Duke.
 * General Scales.
 * General Pepper averts this.
 * Generalissimo Killt in Bionic Commando.

Real Life

 * Both in fiction and in real life, you should run away from anyone holding the rank of Generalissimo.
 * Especially if you're in Taiwan, during the White Terror.
 * Except Foch, if you're not German.

Film

 * In Star Wars, the Dark Lords of the Sith. Sometimes, this title even makes its way into conversation. (Lord Vader, Lord Sidious, etc.)

Live Action TV

 * Lord Zedd
 * Lord Fear

Literature

 * Lord Voldemort.
 * Actually, if you break his name down (from french) it is hardly frightening. It literally means flight from death. Meaning he's just a big coward. Some people should research acronyms before deciding on titles that make you look foolish.
 * Fleeing from death is his stated goal. He wants to use the Horcruxes to live forever.
 * Then again, one could also interpret that as "Flight of Death". That's a tad more frightening...
 * Lord Foul the Despiser. He's every bit as pleasant as the name suggests.

Video Games

 * Fallout New Vegas awards the player the achievement title "Lord Death of Murder Mountain" for killing 1000 of anything over the course of the game.
 * Darth Nihilus, the Lord of Hunger.
 * Lord Saddler in Resident Evil 4.

Web Comics

 * Lord English from Homestuck.

Western Animation

 * Lord Dregg, the Big Bad of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 1987 following Cerebus Syndrome.
 * If someone is the Firelord, you just know they're not going to be very nice. It gets worse once Firelord Ozai becomes

Anime and Manga

 * Hellsing's Big Bads are all referred only by title, and the sheer insanity of his voice makes him qualify.
 * Don't forget The Major, from Ghost in The Shell. One of a handful in the world who can hack directly into your soul.

Comic Book

 * Major Disaster

Film

 * Major Payne from, well, Major Payne

Master
Especially "The Master".

Comic Books

 * The Maestro, an evil alternate universe version of The Hulk.

Film

 * The Master has his own page, of wHiCh He woUlD apProvE.

Live-Action TV

 * Both Doctor Who and Buffy the Vampire Slayer have examples of evil beings named "The Master".

Video Games

 * Grandmaster Meio in Strider.
 * Master D in Bionic Commando.

Web Original

 * Used a lot on The Erotic Mind Control Story Archive.

Mister
Even a humble honorific can intimidate if the character has no first name.

Comic Books

 * Mister E from Vertigo Comics
 * Mister Sinister from Marvel Comics

Film

 * Mister Book and Mister Hand in Dark City.
 * All of the Strangers address each other this way.
 * Mr. Glass in Unbreakable.

Literature

 * Mister Monday from the Keys to The Kingdom series.
 * Not to mention Mister Croup and Mister Vandemar from Neverwhere.
 * And Mr Town, Mr Wood, Mr Stone, Mr Road and Mr World from American Gods.
 * Mr. Hyde
 * Commander Vimes is known by some as 'Mister Vimes'.

Tabletop Games

 * The archetypal "Mr. Johnson" from Shadowrun

Professor
When academics, or at least would-be academics, go bad.

Literature

 * Professor Moriarty for one obvious note.

Live Action TV

 * Professor Yana seemed like a kindly old guy, until his true personality came through...

Western Animation

 * Professor Chaos, bringer of destruction and doom, is the latter.
 * Kim Possible villain Professor Dementor

Other
Captain, Commander and other high ranks are good too, either for villains but more so for antiheroes (or just straight up good-guy heroes). Anything lower tends to lack oomph. After all, nobody's scared of a Private. Sergeants, on the other hand...

Literature

 * Visser Three/One from Animorphs Also Jake depending on whose side you're on.
 * Bonus points for being evocative (if not derivative) of a title that's almost always evil.
 * Charles Dickens once wrote a short story called Captain Murderer.
 * The Great Houses in Faction Paradox. Bonus points for their home planet simply being called the Homeworld, due to it more deserving of the name than whatever planet anyone who argued was on. They're such a humble people.

Anime and Manga

 * Just look at Millennium's Captain.
 * Fuhrer King Bradley from Fullmetal Alchemist. Your Mileage May Vary as to whether calling himself "Fuhrer" makes him sound even more threatening or is just a silly use of Godwin's Law. And oddly, "King" is his first name, not part of his title.

Tabletop Games

 * Typhus Host Of The Destroyer Plague possibly the only name to include three of the major categories out of five words and have a name that is still sinister.

Video Games

 * Wild Arms 2. Brad Evan's Character Class is "Prisoner 666".
 * Commander Shepard. Full stop. Renegade or Paragon doesn't matter. If you're in his/her way, you -will- regret it.
 * Tyrants in the Resident Evil series.

Web Comics

 * Captain DuPree from Girl Genius.

Western Animation

 * Commander-turned-Admiral Zhao from Avatar: The Last Airbender.
 * The Legend of Korra gives us Chief Bei Fong, leader of Republic City's Metalbending Police. She's the daughter of Toph from the original show, so you know she's a Badass.
 * Spongebob SquarePants: "That's Mister Doctor Professor Patrick to you!"

Real Life

 * The swedish name of the Eurasian Bullfinch is "Domherre", litterly meaning Judgement Lord.
 * The title Fuehrer has been pretty much taken out of the German lexicon, except for such constructions as Reisefuehrer (meaning, roughly "travel guidebook") due to... you know who. No self-respecting German leader would dare allow the word to be applied to them these days. Any title that would have used the word prior to 1946 now uses the word Leiter in its place.