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Welcome to a special kind of morality where [[Moral Myopia|otherwise evil actions are considered okay]] because [[Asshole Victim|the victims deserved it]]. Of course, this can be [[Family-Unfriendly Aesop|played straight]], [[What the Hell, Hero?|subverted]], [[He Who Fights Monsters|deconstructed]], or [[Black and Gray Morality|left disquietingly gray]] depending on the author. Occasionally shares space with [[Evil Versus Evil]]... it's the Evil who ''only'' does this one that's supposed to be rooted for as opposed to the Evil that does this to innocents. This one's very common with [[Revenge]] stories in general, since revenge at its core is essentially Paying Evil Unto Evil.
Expect an extra heavy [[Villain Ball]] complete with [[Kick the Dog|kicking
Sometimes this is done ''retroactively.'' If the hero does something incredibly horrible to someone, it will ''then'' be revealed that this person was really evil all along.
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It is also a common and effective way to give a [[Sympathetic POV]] to a [[Villain Protagonist]] in works with [[Grey and Black Morality]].
Contrast with [[If You Kill Him You Will Be Just Like Him]] and [[The Farmer and the Viper]]. May overlap with [[Disproportionate Retribution]]. When a character takes this Trope too far, it becomes [[Knight Templar]].
See also [[Vigilante Man]], [[Exclusively Evil]], [[Just Like Robin Hood]], [[He Who Fights Monsters]], [[Serial Killer Killer]]
{{examples}}
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* Lina Inverse of ''[[Slayers]]'' uses this trope to justify blowing up bandits and taking their cash. Many in her world consider her ''worse'' than the bandits because of the resulting of property damage, to the point her friends are never too surprised when she actually does get in trouble with the authorities.
** At the very beginning ''Slayers Revolution'', she actually takes her bandit-hunting to the high seas, hunting ''pirates'' instead, because bandits are now quite literally on the verge of extinction and it's hard for her to find any more to hunt.
** To illustrate the last sentence above, that series ''also'' begins with her being arrested for the crime of "being Lina Inverse," and no one sticks up for her. (It isn't as if they can deny the charge, though.)
* ''[[Lupin III]]'' lives and breathes this.
* Alucard in ''[[Hellsing]]'' is a perfect example (especially in the manga/OVA). He's a complete monster, and he acknowledges it, even reveling in it; sometimes he actively prolongs someone's death, just for the fun of it. However, Integra frequently tells him to destroy anything in his way, even though she knows his methods. Admittedly, fewer people would have qualms about doing horrible things to Nazis. {{spoiler|Or Enrico Maxwell and his Iscariot agents.}}
* ''[[Ranma ½]]'' is full of [[Jerkass]] characters, so there's rarely a shortage of [[Asshole Victim|asshole victims]]. One particular instance occurs after Ranma has mastered the Hiryuu Shoten-Ha, which he's trying to use against Happousai. Mousse, Kuno, Principal Kuno and Gosunkugi all charge into the battle to take on Ranma as well; nice guy that he is, Ranma hesitates to use his new attack out of concern they'll all be caught in the massive blast. ''Then'' Ranma remembers how the same four characters had earlier viciously ganged up on him when he was too weak to defend himself. He promptly launches the attack.
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* In ''[[Transformers: Dark of the Moon]]'' the Wreckers tore a Decepticon pilot limb from limb, said Con was vaporizing civilians for several seconds before.
* In ''[[Let the Right One In]]'', the bullies who have tormented Oskar throughout the movie are joined by the older brother of one of them who plans to force Oskar to stay underwater for three whole minutes in the school swimming pool -if he can't, they'll cut Oskar's eye out with a knife. After a minute of this, Eli crashes into the swimming pool through the skylight and literally rips them apart. The audience never considers Eli to be evil for doing this. She was saving Oskar's life and the bullies had previously shown themselves to be [[Complete Monster|sadistic bullies]] who enjoyed hurting Owen simply because they could.
* Teaser posters for the American film version of ''[[The Millennium Trilogy|The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo]]'' feature the tagline [https://web.archive.org/web/20130423074808/http://www-movieline-com.vimg.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/girlwithdragontattoouk.jpg "Evil Shall With Evil Be Expelled"].
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* In [[Tom Clancy]]'s ''Without Remorse'', John Kelly is an ex-Navy SEAL who falls for an ex-prostitute/drug mule and rehabilitates her, only to see her raped and murdered by her former pimp. He spends the next year hunting down and brutally executing the entire drug ring, working his way up the chain one pusher/pimp at a time. This comes to the attention of the CIA, who are simultaneously recruiting him for a Vietnam rescue mission; when they find out what he did, they arrange for his "Kelly" identity to die in an apparent suicide, and they give him a new identity as "John Clark". Much later in the series, the President of the United States pardons him.
* The later ''[[Sword of Truth]]'' books feature, among other things, the hero leading a charge ''through'' peace protesters with, essentially, this justification (said protesters, it should be noted, were guarding an army of [[Complete Monster|complete monsters]], but Richard could have made an ''effort'' to [[Take a Third Option]]), and sending his army to attack cities and other settlements that are supporting the Imperial Order, basically a strategy of total war. The justification given is that it would be impossible to beat the Order in a straight up fight, since they're outnumbered 100 to 1. Richard notably orders his troops '''''not''''' to kill civilians if it can be avoided, but that they should still make them afraid of the D'Haran troops.
* In ''[[
** Gryffindors also take the opportunity to pay evil unto the oft-deserving Slytherins, James and Sirius bully the racist and dark-magic-obsessed Snape, and Hagrid and Fred and George punish Harry's bullying cousin Dudley with jinxes, although Arthur Weasley doesn't find his sons' behavior funny. Also, Sirius treats Kreacher quite nastily, an odd case as Kreacher is one of the most unlikeable victims in the series, but also served as one of the examples where the good perpetrator was seriously criticized for his bad actions, because Sirius is in a position of authority over Kreacher (Kreacher, as a house elf, is magically impelled to obey him).
*** Sirius' behavior is explained, but not justified, as the fact that Kreacher isn't just a complete asshole of a servant; he's also a reminder of Sirius' unhappy upbringing (including having physically punished Sirius on his parents' orders), and the fact that he's also a supporter of the backwards, bigoted values that upbringing taught makes him doubly so.
** Hermione hexes the girl who sold out the DA, and in doing so left Hogwarts under the control of a sadistic teacher who tortured children, by raising pimples on her forehead which spell out that she's a traitor, and last for several months at the least. [[J. K. Rowling]] confirmed that Marietta's pimples faded but left a few scars. Hermione ''also'' lures said sadistic teacher into being attacked by centaurs, although admittedly that went further than Hermione had originally intended. She also blackmails Rita Skeeter for writing a false article that caused Hermione to be showered with hate mail. Don't mess with Hermione Granger - she's got a ruthless side.
** Arguably how Harry decides to deal with Dolores Umbridge in ''Deathly Hallows'', which also overlaps with [[Laser-Guided Karma]]
* The [[Sherlock Holmes]] story ''[[wikipedia:The Adventure of the Devil's Foot|The Adventure of the Devil's Foot]]''. Holmes lets the murderer go free when he realizes what a complete monster the victim was.
** Conan Doyle uses this trope several times, when his sympathies lie with the criminal rather than the victim. Other stories that use it include ''[[wikipedia:The Adventure of the Abbey Grange|The Adventure of the Abbey Grange]]'' (The murdered husband habitually battered his wife.) and ''[[wikipedia:The Adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton|The Adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton]]'' (because he knows who the killer is, why Milverton was murdered, and that he was a blackmailer of the vilest sort, he declines to even assist the police.)
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* Maybe not evil ''per se'', but Extirpon's means of dealing with the scumbags he battles is pretty extreme, being a [[Reality Warper]] and all. Probably the best example of him crossing a line is when he slits a child rapist's throat and then makes a large container appear out of nowhere in the apartment. He promptly locks his victim in the container, then floods it to drown him. Turns out, the victim was the same guy that had [[Stuffed Into the Fridge|drowned and later decapitated one of Extirpon's past lovers]]. This is ''after'' forcing the [[Mooks]] to cough up [[Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?|green mambas]], which bite and kill them.
* ''Sisterhood'' series by [[Fern Michaels]]: Overuse of this trope is a major cause in losing all sympathy for the Sisterhood. ''Vendetta'' has the Sisterhood capture the Chinese ambassador's son who drunkenly killed Barbara Rutledge and her unborn child in a hit and run, and was not punished due to [[Diplomatic Impunity]]. They punish him for this, by ''skinning him alive'', and then shrugging it off afterward! He was a creep and not a nice guy, but he simply did not deserve ''that'' level of punishment! The author actually tries to justify all this by saying that the law is unable to punish criminals, and seriously expect you to cheer on the Vigilantes when they inflict terrible punishments on their targets! It's too bad you find yourself feeling sorry for their targets instead of the protagonists themselves!
* In [[Robert A. Heinlein]]'s ''[[The Number of the Beast]]'', the Burroughs' discover an [[Alternate History]] United States
== Live
* ''[[Dexter]]'' is a serial murderer who only kills other murderers. He identifies himself as a monster though.
* Omar Little of ''[[The Wire]]'' is a renowned stick-up man who only robs from people involved in the drug trade. The police pretty much turn a blind eye to this.
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'''Maid''': How did you find him?
'''Vastra''': [[Mathematician's Answer|Stringy, but tasty all the same]]. I won't be needing dinner. }}
== Music ==
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* ''[[Lightning Warrior Raidy]]'' features an erotic version of this with the boss battles in both games. Raidy always encounters level bosses in the middle of sexually tormenting a kidnapped NPC in a variety of ways; if she loses the ensuing boss battle, the game over sequence features the boss subjecting Raidy to this treatment, but if Raidy wins, she gives them a taste of their own medicine.
* In ''[[Might and Magic]] 2'' characters who entered certain valleys could discover peaceful goblin villages. They could then choose to attack them and slaughter them all, likely leaving any surviving children who hid from your murderous rampage orphans who will vow vengeance upon humanity for your actions; but since they're monsters and you're heroes it's okay!
* Alec Mason in ''[[Red Faction]] Guerrilla'' spends most of the game causing property damage in the hundreds of millions, bombing industrial centers and troop barracks, and breaking many, many people in half through sledgehammer-induced blunt force trauma. There's no disguising the fact that he's functionally a terrorist...except that he's facing off the oppressive, thuggish, and violent EDF, who harass and abuse workers, shoot miners with little provocation, who finally pushed the [[
* Many sidequests in ''[[The Godfather (video game)|The Godfather]] 2'' involve you dealing injury to the person or property of those who have done injustice against the quest-givers.
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{{quote|'''Katara''': I don't know if I want that kind of power...
'''Hama''': It doesn't matter whether you want it. The power exists. They tried to WIPE US OUT, Katara. This is war and you have to use whatever weapons are available to you. }}
* Matrix, from the third and fourth seasons of ''[[ReBoot]]'', tends towards this. Immediately after his age-up, he was a Type IV [[Anti-Hero]] who believed that all viruses should be eradicated. Later in the season, he cooled down a bit, even {{spoiler|sparing Megabyte's life at the end.}}
* In ''[[The Fairly OddParents]]'', Timmy eventually wishes Vicky was young enough for him to be her babysitter so he could get his revenge, doing the exact same kind of things she did to him to her. Now if Vicky had actually been the same person she was as an adult, it'd have been well deserved...but it feels awful because she's at an age where she wasn't evil and is just a poor five year old girl. This further backfires when Vicky gets Cosmo and Wanda due to how bad Timmy made her feel and uses them to take her own revenge on him. Ultimately, Timmy learns his [[Aesop]] and decides, before returning her to normal, [[Crowning Moment of Heartwarming|giving her a great day.]]
* ''[[The Simpsons]]'' seems considerably fond of this trope. "22 Short Films About Springfield" ends with a grown man Nelson made fun of pulling down Nelson's pants, ordering him to walk down the street with his pants down, telling everyone on the street that now is their chance to make fun of Nelson, and everyone in town pointing and laughing at him at the same time. [[Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking|And then Bart and Milhouse pour ketchup and mustard on Nelson's face.]]
* Very much the subject of [[Batman: Under the Red Hood]]. The villain, Red Hood, {{spoiler|who is actually Jason Todd, the 2nd Robin}} is trying to prove to Batman that his [[Thou Shalt Not Kill|code against killing]] is inadequate and he can be a better crime-fighter by just murdering criminals.
* Terry does this often in ''[[Batman Beyond]]'', clearly not having the same moral code his mentor does. A good example of this is the episode "Final Cut". Mutro Botha (a notorious and unrepentant [[Professional Killer| assassin]]) is marked by fellow assassin Curare, and seeks help from Batman, the one man who was able to outfight her. Terry at first refuses to help and is unswayed by his claim she'll go after him next ("Thanks for the warning," says Terry before turning to leave) and only agrees to help once Botha reveals he has a bomb planted in Gotham. Ultimately, Botha is still taken down by Curare, who uses a poison that reduces him to a vegetative state. Max is upset about this, but Terry gives a brief argument on the justification of the Trope:
{{quote|'''Terry:''' Listen, Max, ever hear the expression 'live by the sword die by the sword'? Mutro was an assassin, he made his own bed.}}
* ''[[The Powerpuff Girls]]'' did this occasionally, notable times being "Beat Your Greens" (where they defeat the invading Broccoloids by ''eating'' them) and "Getting Twiggy With It" (when they initially want to punish [[The Bully|Mitch]] for abusing Twiggy by letting Twiggy eat him).
== Real Life ==
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* The [[Real Life]] sport of "mugu baiting." The objective is to string along a 419 scammer, getting them to waste as much time and money as possible and utterly humiliate themselves in their attempts to complete the scam, before finally breaking off contact. Embarrassing photos and emails will often be posted on baiting websites as trophies.
** Don't forget ''a lot'' of 419 scams start off with "I'm the former dictator/corrupt official of [Insert Horribly Misgoverned Country Here] please help me get my embezzled wealth out of this country before it gets taken back by the people I stole it from." Certainly, the people who fall for this are more stupid than evil, but it's clear that even if the offer was legitimate, you'd still be willingly assisting the recovery of blood money.
* While serving in Afghanistan, Prince Harry was reported to have worn a baseball cap with the slogan "[https://web.archive.org/web/20090204133201/http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/article860997.ece We do bad things to bad people]" on it. The phrase is a common unofficial slogan for armed forces regiments.
* The motto of the [[Dirty Cop|CRASH anti-gang squad]] that was at the heart of the 1990's [[Los Angeles]] Police Department Rampart scandal: "We Intimidate Those Who Intimidate Others."
* The traditional punishment for child molesters in some Native American cultures is reputed to have been: stripping the offender naked, coating him in tar, seating him on a log, nailing his offending organ to the log, handing him a dull knife, and then ''setting the log on fire''. Either he [[To the Pain|castrated himself very slowly]], or else he was burned alive. Either way, the punishment was considered appropriate to the crime.
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{{reflist}}
[[Category:Revenge Tropes]]
[[Category:Villain Ball]]
[[Category:Morality Tropes]]
▲[[Category:Pay Evil Unto Evil]]
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