Tom the Dark Lord: Difference between revisions
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{{examples}}
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* Adam, known by his more [[The Dreaded|feared]] [[Only Known by Their Nickname|nickname]] "the Millenium Earl" in ''[[D.Gray-man]]''?
==
* In the original ''[[V for Vendetta]]'' comics, Adam Susan definitely counts. However, in the film, it sorta counts, but not quite because while he's still named Adam, his surname has been changed to make him [[Adolf Hitler|Adam Sutler]].
* In the limited series ''[[Venom (Comic Book)|Venom: Lethal Protector]]'', the eponymous [[Villain Protagonist]] was captured by the Life Foundation, who used his symbiote to spawn five offspring, and then gave them to five mercenaries, hoping for a team of warriors that were as deadly as Carnage. They... didn't exactly fit the bill, emphasized by the fact that they went by their human hosts' names, Donna, Carl, Ramon, Leslie, and Trevor. Eventually, once madness took hold (a recognized side-effect of humans who bond with symbiotes) they figured they did need villain-names, calling themselves Scream, Agony, Lasher, Riot, and Phage, not that ''those'' were much better.
==
* Fandom trope [[Ron the Death Eater]].
* In the ''[[Worm]]/[[Harry Potter]]'' crossover ''[[A Wand for Skitter]]'', the only name Taylor initially ''has'' for Voldemort is "Tom", thanks to eavesdropping on a conversation between Snape and Dumbledore immediately after first arriving in Hogwarts. She is spectacularly unimpressed with both his real name and his [[Sobriquet]], and basically invokes this trope by name to mock him in her private thoughts.
== [[Film]] ==
* In ''[[Hoodwinked]]'', the villain, [[Alliteration|Boingo the Bunny, berates]] his [[Mook]] Keith.
{{quote|'''Boingo:''' ''Dolph, tie up the brat; Liesel, hold the book; Vincent, get the truck; and Keith... darn it, change your name, please. That's not scary and I'm embarrassed to say it. Boris, try that. Keith, ya know? Oooo Watch out for Keith!''/}}
** Which is ironic, considering the name "Boingo".
* In the ''[[Lilo and Stitch]]'' franchise, the main villain is a rodent-like alien named Dr. Hämsterviel, often mispronounced to sound like the not-very-threatening Hamsterwheel.▼
* Freddy from ''[[A Nightmare on Elm Street]]''.
** [[Friday the 13th|Jason]], too.
** [[Halloween (film)|
* How about ''[[Kung Pow! Enter the Fist]],'' where
* "Frank Cotton" seems like an innocent enough name, until you realize he's the sadistic and violent [[Serial Killer]] from the original ''[[Hellraiser]]'' who ''flays victims and wears their skins.''
** Also, the name usually given to the lead Cenobite - Pinhead - is a [[Fan Nickname]]. While some of his in-universe titles sound both evil and cool - like the Pope of Hell, the Engineer, and the Cold Man - his actual name is {{spoiler| Elliot Spencer}}.
* In ''[[The Babysitter]]'' and the later sequel, Bee is the only member of the cult who does not have a generic name; the other members are Max, Sonya, John, and Allison.
* Chuck De Nomolos, the [[Big Bad]] from ''[[Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey]]''; something of an [[Embarrassing First Name]] when you're trying to be an [[Evil Overlord]].
* From ''[[The Lost Boys]]'', this is true both for David, [[Dragon-in-Chief|the most visible antagonist]], and also for {{spoiler|Max, the true [[Big Bad]].}}
* The horror movie ''[[Rubber]]'' is about a living, murderous ''tire'' with [[Psychic Powers]] (no, seriously) named... Robert.
==
* [[Trope Namer]]: Voldemort from ''[[Harry Potter]]''. His real name is Tom Riddle. He hates it, in part because of this trope - though more accurately it's because it's not very interesting or unique <ref>In an aversion of [[One Steve Limit]], there
▲* [[Trope Namer]]: Voldemort from ''[[Harry Potter]]''. His real name is Tom Riddle. He hates it, in part because of this trope - though more accurately it's because it's not very interesting or unique <ref>In an aversion of [[One Steve Limit]], there is another two characters named "Tom": Voldemort's father, and the [[No Last Name Given]] owner of The Leaky Cauldron.</ref>, rather than not very evil.
** The Death Eater who betrayed Harry's parents to Voldemort was named "Peter".
* From ''[[Discworld]]'': Dr. Hix, the University [[Most Definitely Not a Villain|totally-not-a-necromancer]], whose real name is actually [[Xtreme Kool Letterz|Hicks]]. However, he's not really a threat, as his acts of evil fall squarely into [[Poke the Poodle]] territory [[Running Gag|by university statute]].
** There is also the horse of Death, who would not be seen as nearly as ominous if more people knew his name was Binky.
* Randall Flagg from ''[[The Stand]]'' and ''[[The Dark Tower]]'' books by Stephen King. Even better, that's not even his real name. His real name is Walter Padick, and has been known as Walter o' Dim in the past. Real intimidating...
* ''[[The Saga of Darren Shan]]'' has the evil {{spoiler|Lord of the Vampaneze}}, revealed at the end of book 9 to be
* ''[[The Empire of the East]]'' contains a partial example: the [[Big Bad|Emperor]] of All [[The Empire|the East]] is a rather ordinary-looking man named John. It's a partial example because his surname is the rather ominous-sounding "Ominor."
* In ''[[Good Omens]]'' the eleven-year-old [[Anti Christ|Antichrist]] is named [[Meaningful Name|Adam]].
* In E. E. "Doc" Smith's ''[[Lensman|Triplanetary]]'', the human characters are menaced by an [[Abusive Precursors|Abusive Precursor]] who introduces himself as "Roger". That's not his real name (it's Gharlane), but still it's oddly funny to have the crew of the ''Boise'' stumble across him on a random planet and go "[[Oh Crap]], it's Roger!".
==
* A minor villain from the third season of ''[[Lexx]]'' had the name Fifi. It's worth mentioning that this villain is male.
* Among the [[Big Bad]]s of ''[[Buffy the Vampire Slayer]]'' there are Richard Wilkins III (The [[Mayor Pain|Mayor]]) and Adam. Also in ''Buffy'', there is The Trio, consisting of three generally pathetic guys whose lair is a basement. Their names are Jonathan, Andrew and Warren.
* John Sheppard of ''[[Stargate Atlantis]]'' [[Invoked Trope|played]] this trope with the Wraith whether they wanted it or not, which gave us such villains as Steve, [[Big Bad|Michael]], [[Everything's Better with Bob|Bob]], Todd and Kenny.
* BOB, also known as "Killer BOB", the [[Big Bad]] of ''[[Twin Peaks]]''.
* ''[[Supernatural (TV series)|Supernatural]]'', Death is simply called Death (occassionally called by his titles, the Pale Horseman and the Angel of Death). His servants, however, called Reapers, adopt normal sounding names. Known Reapers include Ajay, April, Betty, Billie, Bobby, Jessica, Tessa, Martin, Maurice, Merle, and Violet.
==
* ''[[Bob, Lord of Evil]]'', a [http://www.peregrine-net.com/PGS_PGN_PRODUCTS/Bob_Lord-of-Evil.html Bob,
* The Primarchs from ''[[Warhammer 40,000]]'', the gene-sons of the Emperor of Mankind himself, aren't necessarily ''evil'' (by this grimdark universe's standards, unless they're among the ones who defected with Horus), they're still the chief enforcers of a rabidly genocidal anti-alien empire that can and will strong-arm human populated worlds into serving their father and will destroy them outright if things get bad enough. Most of them have impressive, dignified names fitting of their station like Sanguinius, Rogal Dorn, and Roboute Guilliman (which admittedly ''is'' a fancy way of saying Robert William, but still)... but then there's Lion El'Jonson. He ''does'' go by "the Lion" which takes the edge off, but it doesn't change the fact that his full name still attracts plenty of snickers from the fans since he's a powerful genetically-enhanced demigod named Lionel Johnson.
▲* [http://www.peregrine-net.com/PGS_PGN_PRODUCTS/Bob_Lord-of-Evil.html Bob, Lord of Evil]
* The most significant villain in ''[[Final Fantasy X]]'' is named Seymour. The name's not treated as embarrassing in the story
▲== Video Games ==
▲* The most significant villain in ''[[Final Fantasy X]]'' is named Seymour. The name's not treated as embarrassing in the story, it's not a completely plain name even if it is in use in real life, and it's not an ironically cute name. But it probably still fits this trope.
** It's probably worth mentioning that in Japan Western names are considered exotic in much the same way that Eastern names are in the US. The renaming of Tina to Terra in ''[[Final Fantasy VI]]'' was a way to avert this; in the case of ''Final Fantasy X'' they simply may not have cared. In addition, Seymour's initial appearances are benign, and a clear villain name would have spoiled the surprise later.
* Fleming, Lord of the Demons from ''[[Shadows of the Damned]]''.
* In the ''[[Mass Effect]]'' series, The Illusive Man -- the leader of the pro-human rogue paramilitary group Cerberus and part of the [[Big Bad Ensemble]] with Harbinger in ''[[Mass Effect 3]]'' -- never has his name revealed in-game. However, if you read the tie in comics, it's revealed that his name is actually
* The main villain of ''[[Silent Hill 4]]'' is... Walter Sullivan. Common name for a guy who looks pretty average most of the time, but he's a [[Serial Killer]] and an insane cultist.
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ut-veXpy5Fo The trailer for] the [[Nintendo Switch]] [[Updated Rerelease]] of ''[[Miitopia]]'' shown during the February 17th Nintendo Direct features a literal Dark Lord named Stan.
* Two of the most dangerous and influential people in ''[[Honkai Impact 3rd]]'' are named Kevin and Otto.
* While he's only a villain to the [[Scary Dogmatic Aliens]] trying to [[Kill All Humans]], one [[Enemy Chatter]] line in ''[[Halo Infinite]]'' expresses incredulity that the real name of [[The Dreaded]] [[One-Man Army]] slaughtering them is John.
* The public leader of world controlling criminal gang The Grapplers in ''[[Metal Saga|Metal Max]] 2'' is named Ted Broiler. Ted being a crazy, dual flamethrower wielding giant with a giant red mohawk and metal implanted in his head that kills a group of the world's strongest bounty hunters (including the main character's mother) in the intro and [[Bad Boss|roasts his own minions alive for retreating]]. Early concept art suggests he was originally intended to be "Mad Broiler", but for whatever reason the developers went with "Ted" instead.
* Alice from ''[[Monster Girl Quest]]'' {{spoiler| subverts this, as "Alice" is short for Alipheese Fateburn XVI. And while she is a Dark Lord, [[Dark Is Not Evil|she's actually a benevolent one]].}}
** Played straight however, in Witch Hunt Village. The place has a lot of nasty foes with nasty-sounding names, including Suck Vore, Worm Villager, and Iron Maiden. Their leader is... Lily.
* The app game ''[[Hero Wars]]'' has quite a few Bosses, including the ogre chieftan Gro Bulgor, the tree-demon Skrump, and the undead dragon Morth Chrone. At any time, the player can scroll to the map of Chapter 15 of the campaign and see that the final challenge, should he get there, is an eerie shadow concealing a boss, the shadow an "Eternal Darkness". {{spoiler| Should he actually get there, he finds that the [[Big Bad]] of the game is a renegade Titan named... Seymour.}}
==
* From ''[[Looking for Group]]'', there is a character whose titles include "Chief Warlock of the Brothers of Darkness, Lord of the Thirteen Hells, Master of the Bones, Emperor of the Black, Lord of the Undead, King of the Dance, Mistress of Magma (he's a... man... he's undead, but he was a man in life) and mayor of a little village up the coast (read that as "village of flesh-eating, undead hell-beasts in humanoid form")." The character's name? Richard. This is constantly mocked in the comic. The protagonist Cale is fond of referring to him as Dick just to get on his nerves.
* In ''[[Sluggy Freelance]]'' we have "Chaz
* ''[[Exterminatus Now]]'' gives us the Conspirator, Greater Daemon of the Patterner... Kevin.
{{quote|'''Jamilla:''' Wait, ''Kevin?''
Line 71 ⟶ 73:
'''Morth:''' Actually, it ''is'' his real name.
'''Kevin:''' Oh, just tell everybody why don't you! }}
* The titular character from ''[[Jack (webcomic)|Jack]]'', which in life was a powerful genocidal dictator and on death was condemned to be the Grim Reaper and incarnation of the Sin of Wrath. Played with: when the story begins, he is the ''only'' person left with that name, as his infamy was such that no one wanted to be confused or identified with him, bringing what was once a common and ordinary name into extinction.
==
** Another ''
▲** Doof started an Evil League called the [[Fun with Acronyms|L]]eague [[Fun with Acronyms|O]]f [[Fun with Acronyms|V]]illainous [[Fun with Acronyms|E]]vildoers [[Fun with Acronyms|M]]aniacally [[Fun with Acronyms|U]]nited [[Fun with Acronyms|F]]or [[Fun with Acronyms|F]]rightening [[Fun with Acronyms|I]]nvestment in [[Fun with Acronyms|N]]aughtiness. Or as it's better known, [[Fun with Acronyms|L.O.V.E.M.U.F.F.I.N.]]
** Galactic Overlord Mitch. [[I Have Many Names|Some people call him "Big Mitch".]]
* [[Eldritch Abomination|Bill Cipher]], the [[Big Bad]] of ''[[Gravity Falls]]'', often called simply "Bill" by the rest of the cast. He's downright terrifying (in-universe and out) despite his many silly attributes.
* ''[[SpongeBob SquarePants]]'':
** The diabolical Plankton's first name is... [[Embarrassing First Name|Sheldon]].
** In the first movie, SpongeBob and Patrick are menaced by a sadistic and merciless [[Professional Killer|assassin]] named... Dennis. Spongebob and Patrick only escape from him because Dennis fails to see [[Always a Bigger Fish|the Cyclops]] behind him, but even being crushed by the giant's boot doesn't keep Dennis down for long.
* ''[[Yin Yang Yo!]]'' has Carl the Evil Cockroach Wizard.
* In ''[[Dave the Barbarian]]'', there is Chuckles the [[Killer Rabbit|silly piggy]].
* Simon from ''[[Trollz]]''.
* ''[[The Life and Times of Juniper Lee]]''
** The Sandman. The Vision Crafter, Given of Wishes, the Lord of the Sleep Realm, ''the King of Dreams!'' [[They Call Me Mister Tibbs|But you can call him Steven.]]
* At the third ''[[The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius|Jimmy]]/[[The Fairly OddParents|Timmy]] [[Crossover|Power Hour]]'', there was a ''male'' villain named "Shirley".<ref>"Shirley" was a male name, though, until [[Shirley Temple]] popularized it for girls almost a century ago.</ref>▼
** Overlapping with [[Ironic Name]] is the League Of Villainous Evildoers, or [[Fun with Acronyms| L.O.V.E.]]
▲* At the third ''[[The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius|Jimmy]]/[[The Fairly OddParents|Timmy]] [[Crossover|Power Hour]]'', there was a ''male'' villain named "Shirley".<ref>"Shirley" was a male name, though, until [[Shirley Temple]] popularized it for girls
** Poof's anti-fairy counterpart hated being named Foop.
* ''[[The Superhero Squad Show]]'' once had a villain mocked by MODOK and the Abomination for being named "Pete". No, he's not Disney's [[Black Pete]].
* ''[[Rick and Morty]]'' has, well, [[Villain Protagonist|Rick]]. His last name - Sanchez - is pretty common too.
* ''[[The Powerpuff Girls]]'':
** [[Knight of Cerebus|Dick Hardy]]. Despite the common name and being completely human
**
▲* In
* In ''[[The Owl House]]'', the Golden Guard is [[The Dragon]] to Emperor Belos; in his second appearance, Luz gives him [["The Reason You Suck" Speech]] where she implies he's a remorseless monster, while addressing him by his title. He tells her he does have a name - Hunter, this being the first sign that he does, indeed, have [[Hidden Depths]].
** For that matter, Belos himself, as his true name is {{spoiler|Philip Wittebane.}}
* In ''[[Helluva Boss]]'', the leader of the Exorcists ([[Knight Templar]] angels who carry out the annual purge) are led by Adam. Of course, this is due to him being [[Biblical Bad Guy| the ''actual'' Adam.]]
{{reflist}}
[[Category:{{PAGENAME}}]]▼
[[Category:Naming Conventions]]
[[Category:Villains]]
▲[[Category:{{PAGENAME}}]]
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