Alas, Poor Villain: Difference between revisions

{{trope}}

 

So, there's a villain. Right. Murdering, world-conquering type. The series is ending, so it's time to get rid of him. So he goes out with...a final touching quote and a [[One-Woman Wail]]?

Note that performing one of these incorrectly feels like a cop-out, and usually results in a variation of [[Karma Houdini]]. A few well-chosen [[Last Words]] are often used to create this feeling.

 

 

{{deathtrope}}

{{examples}}

== [[Anime]] and [[Manga]] ==

* ''[[Witchblade (anime)|Witchblade]]'' with Maria, a cloneblade. After failing to get the Witchblade from Masane, she is stabbed by her. While dying, she sees a hallucination of her biological mother Reina Soho, and asks her "mother" to tell her that she loves her.

* ''[[Manga/Battle Angel Alita|Battle Angel Alita]]'' had Zapan, a bounty hunter cyborg whose problems can [[What the Hell, Hero?|all be ultimately traced back to Alita]]. Exposition time: Alita beat him up and humiliated him for not wanting to serve as cannon fodder for her quest against a brain-eating cyborg. From there, he tries to stop her from helping a wanted fugitive escape, at which point, Alita dupes the security bots on site into thinking that Zapan was trying to steal her proof of bounty. She ''rips his face off'' and leaves him for dead, only to be discovered with partial memory loss by a young woman named Sarah who worked at a soup kitchen. The two fall in love, and live fairly happily until Zapan sees Alita on television, gets horrific flashbacks, and has a mental breakdown, screaming "This isn't my face!" as he ''tears off most of the skin on his face.'' As he thrashed in pain, he killed several winos, and, more importantly, accidentally decapitated Sarah. He became wanted and horrifically depressed. Alita hunts him down, then, after mind-raping him ''a second time'', she lets him get devoured by cyborg dogs. Almost done: after he's resurrected and put in the super-robot-killing-machine Berserker Body, he starts wreaking havoc on Scrapyard, finally being hit by several 'Collapser' bullets from Alita, and the two are plummeting from several miles in the air, both horrifically wounded and on the verge of death. But suddenly, Zapan wakes up: he's lying on a sleeping mat in the market next to Sarah, who comforts him after he briefly recounts his horrible nightmare. She hugs him and tells him that he's not a monster like the Zapan in the dream is, and that she'll always be with him...and then he snaps out of his mortal-wounding induced hallucination, right back to where he was. He screams Sarah's name once, then continues to disintegrate, but not before flapping his wings just once, enough to break Alita's fall and save her.

** The sad fate of a sentient [[Artifact of Doom]], who requested that she be sealed before she caused any more destruction. "Right now, I'm the happiest magical tome in the whole wide world."

** The movie gives Precia an absolutely heartbreaking death scene. As she falls into an endless abyss, she remembers that Alicia wanted a sister, and realizes that she should have treated Fate as another daughter, and not as a [[Replacement Goldfish]] for Alicia, but by then, it's too late for her to make amends or even apologize.

** Ray Beams dies like this, reaching for the wedding ring on her severed arm across the room.

** Even the resident [[Big Bad]] Dewey gets this toward the end, with Holland expressing pity for his brother after the latter's suicide.

* This happens with almost ''all'' of the homunculi in the manga of ''[[Fullmetal Alchemist (manga)|Fullmetal Alchemist]]'':

** The first time Greed dies, he is somewhat sympathetic and goes out with a "screw you guys". The second time he dies (after he leaves Ling's body to incapacitate Father), he goes out with the realization that, [[Tear Jerker|in spite of his possessive personality, all he ever really wanted was friends like Ed and Ling]].

* Suitengu Choji seems like a power hungry, money obsessed [[Magnificent Bastard]] in ''[[Speed Grapher]]'', but near the end of the series, his [[Cry for the Devil|backstory is revealed]], turning him into a more sympathetic villain. Everything he had done in the anime was for revenge, against the people who had destroyed him and against the society that had allowed it. Just before the end, he [[Pet the Dog|spares his blind and helpless]] enemy, and then spends his last moments with his most faithful servant.

* The Nothing Card in the second movie of ''[[Cardcaptor Sakura]]'', a [[Woobie, Destroyer of Worlds]]. She had a sympathetic backstory, imprisoned alone beneath Clow Reed's house to act as a sponge for the negative energy the Clow Cards created. She escaped when Clow Reed's house was demolished and systematically stole the cards from Sakura Kinomoto as well as erasing parts of her hometown. Sakura managed to convince the Nothing to perform a [[Heel Face Turn]].

** Then we have Tsubaki Kasugano, the local [[Woobie, Destroyer of Worlds]] who went totally mad after years of orphanhood and [[Sex Slave|sex slavery]]. The manga had her angrily and despairedly scream as her [[Tragic Keepsake]] is used in her death, but the anime makes her look more sad than angry...

* This is ''rare and far between'' in a work such as ''[[Berserk]]'' where every [[Complete Monster|villain]] who has been presented and killed off '''[[Kick the Son of a Bitch|totally deserved what was coming to them.]]''' Except one: [[Anti-Villain|Rosine.]] Poor Rosine grew up in an abusive household and used the myths about the elves in a nearby valley as her only refuge. One day she couldn't take the abuse any longer and decided to run away to the valley in order to make her dreams come true, but unfortunately, she would learn that there were no such things as elves, [[Despair Event Horizon|making her reach her breaking point]] which in turn allowed her to {{spoiler|sacrifice her parents so that she may become her vision of an elf.}} She intended to make a paradise with the minions that she created, [[Crap Saccharine World|but it was anything but.]] Then Guts comes and brutally and relentlessly hunts Rosine and {{spoiler|eventually mortally wounds her}}. As she lay dying, it was revealed to her that there were such things as elves, but she just wasn't one of them, making her regret {{spoiler|sacrificing her parents}} and then tries to return home to them, but {{spoiler|dies mid-flight.}} It's made even more sad in that {{spoiler|both she and her parents are in no blissful afterlife, but in hell.}}

 

== [[Comic Books]] ==

* Moloch in ''[[Watchmen (comics)|Watchmen]]''. It was made more poignant because, on many levels, it had more to do with Rorschach than him. Not to mention this part:

{{quote|'''Edgar Jacobi:''' Heh. Well, you know that kind of cancer that you get better from eventually?

 

 

 

== [[Film]] ==

* ''[[Warrior Cats]]'' has a tendency to do this with most of its villains, due to its [[Gray and Gray Morality]] policy.

** Most notable for Tigerstar, at least in the first series. Firestar notes afterwards that he could have been a great and noble warrior if he hadn't let ambition control him. Not to mention the [[Cruel and Unusual Death|truly horrible death]] he suffered: being ripped open, and subsequently bleeding to death [[Cats Have Nine Lives|NINE TIMES]].

** A nice [[Foil]] to Sachiel's gloating over Rafen's [[Not Quite Dead|(presumed) death]].

* From [[Codex Alera]], for all the horror she had caused, all the death and the near destruction of the world, the Vord Queen seems, in the end, to be a sad, lonely child seeking the approval of her father.

 

 

* From ''[[Doctor Who]]'', The Master. [[Joker Immunity|Repeatedly]].

** Also, [[Lone Dalek|that one Dalek]], from the episode of the same name. Never has the word "Exterminate" been uttered with such pathos.

** After his [[Killed Off for Real|final death]], the [[Big Bad|Female Changeling]] breaks her usual [[Fantastic Racism]] to mournfully acknowledge him as "the only [[Fantastic Slur|solid]] I ever trusted."

* ''[[Star Trek: The Original Series]]'' had a few of these (in keeping with its avoidance of actually evil villains). One was Apollo (yes, [[Classical Mythology|that Apollo]]), who spent the episode trying to coerce and cajole the landing party into worshipping him so [[Gods Need Prayer Badly|he could suivive]], all to no avail because Kirk and co. have [[Outgrown Such Silly Superstitions]] and so, he fades away in a moment of [[The Woobie|Woobie]]-ness...

'''Kirk:''' So do I. They gave us so much. The Greek civilization, much of our culture and philosophy came from a worship of those beings. In a way, they began the Golden Age. [[What the Hell, Hero?|Would it have hurt us, I wonder... just to have gathered a few laurel leaves?]] }}

** Another was Dr. Richard Daystrom, whose [[Motive Rant]] about being laughed at behind his back and underestimated is legitimately heartbreaking. The fact that Daystrom is portrayed by William Marshall - an amazingly talented black actor who was undoubtedly kept out of roles by racism - adds an excruciating [[Reality Subtext]].

** Played straight, however, with [[Taking You with Me|Hector]] and (arguably) Gus in the next season.

* Nick Cutner in ''[[Being Human (UK)]]''. Especially after the flashbacks. He was just desperate for approval from people who treated him so horribly, including [[Friendly Neighborhood Vampire|Hal]]. In the scene where the Old Ones utterly cut him down his down his devastation is heartbreaking. Then he gets cooked.

 

== [[Multiple Media]] ==

* Makuta Krika in ''[[Bionicle]]''; he was the [[Noble Demon]] of the Makuta with a [[Monster Sob Story]], who only went along with the plan of the Makuta of Metru Nui because he saw it as a "damned if you do, damned if you don't" scenario. He made a genuine effort to help the Toa (the heroes) at the end of the Karda Nui arc, and then, when he learned that the Makuta were about to [[You Have Outlived Your Usefulness|outlive their usefulness]], he tried to warn them, and was rewarded by slowly becoming so intangible that all of his atoms flew apart - the kicker of his death was that it was caused by his own power being forced out of control by his brethren, who thought he was lying.

 

 

== [[Theater]] ==

* [[Romeo and Juliet|Tybalt]]. After all, the hero had just murdered him for what had ultimately been an accident.

** Of course, as this is Shakespeare, the validity of this is really up to the [[Alternate Show Interpretation|director and]] [[Alternate Character Interpretation|the actor.]] Paris would also be a good example. He's often displayed in a negative light, but ultimately, is simply a man trying to woo a girl he's in love with in the typical fashion of that era, and he's killed while trying to arrest a dangerous criminal who had killed the cousin of the woman he loved, and, for all he knew, drove her to suicide.

 

== [[Video Games]] ==

* Most of the bosses in the ''[[Metal Gear Solid]]'' series gets this, including Psycho Mantis, Vulcan Raven, Sniper Wolf, Fortune, The End and even Vamp.

** Solidus's defeat was also somewhat pitiful on his part: He ended up killed by the Patriots via Raiden, after working hard to re-establish America as how the Founding Fathers founded it with liberty, especially when he literally had nothing else to leave behind other than this. This is best demonstrated by his final actions: After falling from Federal Hall, his last visible action is him reaching up to a statue of George Washington in longing, as he attempted to redo America the way Washington originally founded it.

* Interestingly, ''[[Cave Story]]'' doesn't do this for the [[Big Bad]], but for the little guys. In the [[Multiple Endings|standard ending]], the cutscene features a slow pan over the various levels of the game and all the enemies in them, set to sad music. Then, the floating island they're on crashes.

** Also, Misery, except in the [[Multiple Endings|perfect ending]].

** An even better example is Echidna Iisaki, one of Lamia's sisters. Thought to be personality-less as the W Numbers are suppose to be, in the end, she's revealed to be completely sentient when she disobeys orders to come back alive at all costs in order to take a fatal blow for her Mistress's boyfriend, Axel. When asked why, she responds that it would make her Mistress sad if Axel was killed, as, while she can be replaced as many times as needed, humans are gone when they die. Lamia begs her to eject so they can help her, but the dying Echidna defiantly proclaims "I am not... Echidna Iisaki! I... am... W16...". Axel's reaction on both occassions counts for this trope. While the original had him cursing over how a doll he hated saved his life, you feel sorry for Echidna dying and still being treated like trash by her superiors; the remake had Axel lamenting over how her death will end up demoralizing the whole Shadow Mirror army.

* Kitaniji from ''[[The World Ends With You]]'' fits this well. He, upon realising he has failed to save Shibuya, leaves it in Neku's hands, accepting his fate for Shibuya's sake.

* Surprisingly, vicious and psychotic villain Revas in ''[[The Chronicles of Riddick]]: Assault on Dark Athena'' manages this as she is suspended over an elevator shaft, just moments before her death:

{{quote|'''Revas''': You know what? It doesn't fucking matter anyway. [Looks down the shaft with an expression of fear] Just don't forget me... [Lets go]}}

* The Great Wolf Sif in ''[[Dark Souls]]''. He can't really even be called a villain—Sif is just having a knee-jerk reaction to someone trespassing near his friend's grave. Near the end of the battle, Sif even starts ''limping in pain'' as he valiantly struggles to protect Artorias' grave from an Undead monster (i.e. you). Sadly there's no way to spare him since you need Artorias' ring to proceed with your quest, and the only way to get the ring is by killing Sif.

* [[You Gotta Have Blue Hair|Shinji Matou]] in ''[[Fate Extra]]''. A Jerkass and a [[Smug Snake]] who is constantly treating everybody as if they were below him. But once he loses, [[Never My Fault|he immediately starts lashing at his Servant for being weak and you for beating him]]; all while whining [[And You Thought It Was a Game|he does not want to die]]. Then, [[Makes Sense in Context|we get]] [[Wham! Line|his last words]]: {{spoiler|“I’m only eight years old!”}}.

* ''[[Dragon Age II]]'' has two major examples: {{spoiler|Meredith and Anders (if you choose to kill him)}}. Both started out as reasonable people who were corrupted by a combination of {{spoiler|supernatural forces and their own prejudice or anger}} and both have tearjerking death scenes: {{spoiler|Anders tells your [[Player Character]] "I'm glad it was you" before s/he kills him, with a look of anguish and remorse both before and after being stabbed. Meredith turns herself to stone in the midst of her [[Villainous Breakdown]], permanently frozen in a nightmarish expression of rage and fear.}}

 

* Miko's death in ''[[The Order of the Stick]]''. It's still debated on the forums whether or not she deserved it.

** In [http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0830.html strip 830], it's ''really'' hard not to pity Tsukiko—an unrepentant [[Card-Carrying Villain]] who [[The Quisling|sold out her own city to Xykon]]—when Redcloak usurps control over her wights, who she'd treated like her own children, to prove that undead are little more then automatons for necromancers of any stripe. And then he has them drain her to death. And then eat her. She was a sick, twisted, self-confessed necrophiliac who was obsessed with ''[[Complete Monster|Xykon]]'' because [[Freudian Excuse|every living person she ever met in her entire life treated her like crap.]] What puts her solidly in Alas Poor Villain territory is that ''she really and truly loved him'', and only died because she discovered concrete proof that Redcloak is manipulating Xykon, and that the [[MacGuffin]] they're after won't get Xykon the power he wants. The point really gets hammered home when the only person to mourn is the Monster in the Darkness, who points out that in the end, Tsukiko just wanted to be loved.

== [[Web Original]] ==

* Happens quite often in ''[[Survival of the Fittest]]'':

* In the tradition of its [[Metal Gear|source material]], ''[[Stray]]'' does this for one of its villains - the [[Tyke Bomb]] Patriot agent Esau.

* ''[[Mega 64]]'' Version 3 ends with the legitimately tragic death of Dr. Poque, who started the series as the main antagonist.

** Ditto for Scorponok in ''[[Transformers Energon]]''.

** Also, Demolishor, although he got better.

{{quote|'''Batman (Terry)''': Freeze, you have to get out of here! The whole place is coming down!

'''Freeze''': Believe me... you're the only one who cares. }}

'''Hawkgirl''' (A confirmed atheist): Grundy, I don't belie- (stops herself) ''Yes.'' It's waiting for you.

'''Grundy''': Then Grundy... gets his reward. }}

* While Cobra Commander was always an ineffectual coward in ''[[G.I. Joe]]'', one can't help but feel for him in [[The Movie]] where he is lying on the ground, in agonizing pain, having been exposed to virulent spores that are mutating him into a snake, and [[Villainous Breakdown|slowly losing his mind]].

* Though she doesn't actually die there, [[Gargoyles|Demona's]] defeat at the end of "City of Stone" certainly counts, as a broken Demona, [[Ignored Epiphany|for a brief moment]], realizes and regrets the evil she's done over her thousand-year life, and then gives the heroes the password they need to shut down her scheme. It doesn't hold, but for a moment, you stop hating her and just feel sorry for her.

{{quote|'''Demona''': The access code is... 'alone'.}}

** Especially since, when you stop to consider who is actually responsible for what, Demona is actually only the 4th most responsible individual for the original slaughter of the clan, preceded by Hakon (the guy who actually did the smashing), Princess Katherine (the racist brat whose contempt for the beings safeguarding her and her people went beyond [[Broken Aesop]]), and the Captain (who combined her betrayal with passing up the opportunity to risk himself to stop Hakon from smashing the sleeping gargoyles), and she's just ahead of...Goliath himself, whose ready acceptance of Katherine's abuse resulted in the injustice shown to his own clan's children. The only people living who really had a reason to hate her at that point were the surviving kin of the few people she killed during "City of Stone".

* Hard not to feel a little bad for Azula by the end of the finale of ''[[Avatar: The Last Airbender]]''. You may remember her from works such as that time she [[Shock and Awe|fried Aang]], that time she inexplicably gave Zuko credit for it, or that time she ruined an invasion -- [[Brought Down to Badass|without firebending]]—using only her natural skills in acrobatics, [[Manipulative Bastard|taunting, and sarcasm]]. [[Villainous Breakdown|The past few weeks haven't been so good]]; she [[Backstabbing the Alpha Bitch|lost all her friends]], she got [[Daddy's Little Villain|rejected by dad]], [[Paranoia Fuel|she banished all her servants]], she [[Important Haircut|chopped off a bunch of her hair]], she [[Sanity Slippage|hallucinated her mother]] simultaneously [[Machiavelli Was Wrong|shattering her worldview]] and saying she loves her, and she lost to her [[Failure Hero|loser brother]] and a peasant. Once an [[The Vamp|irresistably sinister]] and [[The Chessmaster|brilliant]] prodigy, she is left [[Break the Haughty|chained to the ground]], [[Ax Crazy|madly]] [[The Woobie|wailing, sobbing,]] and [[Pyromaniac|breathing fire at the sky]]. Well, [[Fate Worse Than Death|at least she can still firebend]].

* General Shiva in ''[[Exo Squad]]''; imprisoned for not slaughtering the Australian Resistance to the last man, he is given a chance to "redeem himself" by retaking Venus, which he knows to be a suicide mission. But, being a good soldier, he gives it a go anyways. When he gets shot down, even the [[Scout Out|Exoscouts]] who find him see it as a tragedy.

* In the ''[[Fantastic Mr. Fox]]'', all the animals are saddened by the death of Rat, even Fox himself (who dealt the killing blow), despite his being the traitorous head of security for farmer Bean. In fairness, Rat did manage to come to his senses in his few final moments when he revealed that he had turned traitor because he had become too addicted to the apple cider of Bean.

* The death of [[Evil Twin|Spider]]-[[Omnicidal Maniac|Carnage]] in ''[[Spider-Man: The Animated Series]]''. He was a demented, [[Axe Crazy]] loon who was trying to set of a [[Apocalypse How|Class Z apocalypse]], but when he has a [[Heel Realisation]] and kills himself it's all but impossible not to feel bad. There's just something about seeing someone with the face of the show's hero brought so low that not only does [[Driven to Suicide|suicide seem like a good idea]], ''it's the best option that there is''.

 

== [[Real Life]] ==

 

{{reflist}}

[[Category:Death Tropes]]

[[Category:Dying Moment of Awesome]]

[[Category:Villains]]