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Pay Evil Unto Evil: Difference between revisions
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Is this the new [[Big Bad]]? No! It's the Hero! ...oh wait, did I forget to mention that it was a settlement of bandits? Right. [[Laser-Guided Karma|So it's okay then.]]
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
Expect an extra heavy [[Villain Ball]] complete with [[Kick the Dog|kicking dogs]] by the [[Asshole Victim]] if the author especially wants you to know it's okay. Also the plot often tries to justify this as "people whom the law let get away." Expect [[What the Hell, Hero?]] when [[Lampshade Hanging|lampshaded]]. The villain may also call out a [[Not So Different]] speech at the [[Sociopathic Hero|"hero"]] as a final insult.
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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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* 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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* 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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