Automoderated users, Autopatrolled users, Bureaucrats, Comment administrators, Confirmed users, Forum administrators, Interface administrators, Moderators, Rollbackers, Administrators
116,199
edits
Villain by Default: Difference between revisions
reorganized page, rationalized headers
m (Dai-Guard moved page Villain By Default to Villain by Default: Lowercase prepositions) |
Looney Toons (talk | contribs) (reorganized page, rationalized headers) |
||
| (6 intermediate revisions by 3 users not shown) | |||
Line 1:
{{trope}}
{{quote|''...And there's this Nazi, who's a bad guy! Why is it that Nazis are always the bad guys?''|'''[[Bum Reviews
Close relatives of [[
Essentially, this is a way to supply ready-made antagonists and [[Evil Minions]] without sacrificing screen time. [[Evil Minions]], [[The Dragon|Dragon]], and members of the [[Quirky Miniboss Squad]] are more dependent on this trope than the [[Big Bad]], since the [[Big Bad]] usually has enough screen time to more clearly establish their motives.
Nazis and neo-Nazis are possibly the ultimate example of modern cinematic
Other common examples of
* [[The Aggressive Drug Dealer|Drug dealers]]
** Some drug ''users'' might also count (see "People who are psychotic" below)
* [[Necromancer
* Racial supremacists (unless they have a ''really'' good [[Freudian Excuse]])
* Satanists
Line 21:
* People who are [[Insane Equals Violent|psychotic]] (liable to [[Unfortunate Implications]])
** Unless they're [[Inspirationally Disadvantaged]]
* Anyone or anything in a [[Sci Fi]] show that claims to be a deity, [[No Such Thing
* [[Our Goblins Are
* Especially if the hero is poor, [[Aristocrats Are Evil|aristocrats]] (especially [[The Grand Vizier]]) and [[Corrupt Corporate Executive|the rich]] are often this way (also [[Unfortunate Implications]])
* [[Knight Templar|Religious Fanatics]]
* Debt collectors
* Bandits
* Soldiers, who are often portrayed as either as explicitly this or as a [[Noble Profession]], depending on setting and often on the author's politics. When the former, they will either be [[Axe Crazy]] or faceless mooks. Of course, what side they are on will also be a huge factor. In the majority of post-Vietnam media, soldiers on either side who participate in combat missions are portrayed as an example of [[Grey and Grey Morality]].
* Teachers, bosses, and other authority figures in a school or office setting.
* [[Psycho for Hire|Mercenaries]].
* Type 1 [[Pirate
* Political "advisors" from other countries in a [[Banana Republic]] settings, who are more interested in creating their own little fiefdom than actually helping the people
If the protagonist of the story is an [[Anti-Hero]], such as a vigilante or mob boss, or is [[Clear My Name|wrongly accused]], then any form of law enforcement will be the villains. Whether this is because they are ineffective, corrupt, [[Inspector Javert|well-meaning-but-misinformed]], or just in the protagonist's way depends on the specific story.
Naturally, whenever a group is cast as Villains By Default without additional justification there will be a part of the audience that's going to [[Alternative Character Interpretation|disagree with the assessment]]. This is particularly true of works that are [[Pandering to
'''Demonization'''
See also [[Acceptable Targets]] and [[Designated Hero]]. Compare [[Sympathetic POV]]
Line 42 ⟶ 46:
{{examples}}
== Basic implementation ==
=== [[Anime]] and [[Manga]] ===
* Significant aversion: One episode of ''[[
* The Abh from ''[[Crest of the Stars]]'' [[Your Mileage May Vary|subvert this trope]] (though they seem to embrace it at first). They have an interstellar empire acquired through conquest and they ban space travel for everyone but the Abh, claiming it's all for good reason; i.e., trying to prevent a vast and destructive conflict.
** Subverted only to a degree as the world of CotS is bit [[Grey and Grey Morality|grey]].
* Subverted to hell and back again on ''[[
=== [[Comic Books]] ===
* The [[Anti-Hero
** Marv has fought hitmen, a police death squad, a corrupt cardinal and a silent and deadly cannibal whose proclivities the cardinal shared.
** Dwight took on a vicious abuser who {{spoiler|turned out to be a ''hero'' cop}}, a team of Irish "rented terrorists", and a syndicate bent on enslaving the girls of Old Town.
Line 56 ⟶ 60:
* Intentionally averted in ''[[V for Vendetta]]'', at least the comic book. [[Alan Moore]] initially intended to write his Nazi antagonists as straight-up cardboard villains, as per typical views of Nazis, before reflecting that Fascists are people, too, who usually have reasons for their actions a little more complex than [[For the Evulz|evil for evil's sake]]. Usually that they're pathetic losers who have become control freaks to hide their issues. Adam Susan is sexually frustrated and gets off on his [[Master Computer]], for example. Inspector Finch is a [[Sympathetic Inspector Antagonist]] because his experiences in the riots that preceded the fascist government persuaded him that tyranny was better than chaos - so he helped them hunt down minorities because that was what they demanded in exchange for a stable government. The result is lots of [[Grey and Gray Morality]]. The movie, however, plays the trope dead straight - except for Finch, who not only abandons fascism, but in the end permits V's final act of terrorism out of disgust for the government.
=== [[Film]] ===
* The Nazis in the ''[[
** Interestingly, at least in ''[[
*** They were still Punchclocks in ''[[
** In another ''Last Crusade'' scene, Indy's father tells the [[Big Bad]] that he is slimy and evil not strictly because he is a Nazi sympathizer, but because he is an ''American'' Nazi sympathizer (i.e., he is betraying his country). Unlike the German soldiers, he had a choice in the matter.
* In ''[[Star Wars]]'', any military officer of the Galactic Empire is treated as thoroughly evil, even in situations where it's clear they are [[Punch Clock Villain|only doing their jobs]]. Note that in ''[[
** Another ''[[Star Wars]]'' example: The bounty hunters in ''[[
** The irony being that Palpatine himself is not a racial supremacist. Though he has no problems enforcing racism (albeit with special and usually secret exemptions for particularly useful non-humans) just because humans are the majority population, and thus validating the racism of others helps him stay in power, which isn't exactly an improvement. Of course, the only necromancer is [[The Messiah|Luke Skywalker]], so it's partially subverted.
*** He actually considers non-human races not as inferior but as rather carriers of different cultures and thus a hindrance or even a potential threat to the [[The Empire|unified, militaristic, centralized statist totalitarian government]].
**** Which is interesting, because - by definition - in order to have an empire in the first place, you ''need'' people from other cultures, if only so you'll have subject populations on whom you can impose your ''own'' values.
=== Literature ===
* [[Grand Vizier
* The Stormwings in [[Tamora Pierce]]'s ''[[Tortall Universe
** The tauroses count too. They're known for brutally raping women, but [[Friend to All Living Things|Daine]] is the only one who realizes they have no choice ''but'' to do this, because whoever created them didn't bother to give them females of their own species.
=== [[Tabletop Games]] ===
* In ''[[Dungeons
** The problem with this particular example of D&D (in 3rd and 3.5 editions) is that a necromancer who can't or won't cast spells with the [evil] subtype loses a good portion of the spells available from it, mostly the ones that [[Evil Is Cool|you'd want to be a necromancer for,]] any way.
** Likewise in the ''Warcraft'' universe, at least until the new ''[[World of Warcraft]]'' expansion pack, which will let players play renegade death knights (necromancer-warriors).
** In a similar vein, [[The Elder Scrolls]] game ''Oblivion'' has Necromancy as the one sort of magic that the player cannot use, and Necromancers are pretty much the [[Designated Villain
*** Its predecessor ''Morrowind'' was a bit more reasonable with it. Necromancy was a technically legal but widely shunned branch of magic that was practiced by a few minor NPCs, none of which really qualifies as "evil". Oh, and practically every tomb has a few skeletons guarding it, and nobody cares. Of coarse the undead were members of the family (that the tomb belongs too) who [[All There in the Manual|were people not looked upon favorably by their family in life bound to this duty in the afterlife]]
** Averted in ''[[Diablo]]''. Necromancers there are innately Neutral, and, in ''Diablo II'', are on the side of the heroes and a PC option because the demons have no respect for the Balance of Life and Death, indiscriminately killing people and animating the dead. It's also implied that all magic ''except'' necromancy is innately corruptive and risks turning its user evil if they aren't cautious.
** Also averted in ''[[The Venture Brothers]]''; Doctor Orpheus, a necromancer, is one of the ''least'' evil characters on the show.
* Quite simply ''everyone'' in ''[[Warhammer
** And it's not only human POV. For example, Eldars consider humans childish and ignorant at best while sharing humanity's views on other aliens.
=== [[Video Games]] ===
* You can pretty much count that any non-human robot in the ''[[Mega Man X]]'' and ''[[Mega Man Zero]]'' series are down-and-out Mavericks, no exceptions; they're always either infected by [[The Virus]], criminally insane, or just plain fed up with humanity and aren't going to take it, anymore. Of course, this could also be considered a case of demonization; several Mavericks have called out the main characters as hunting them with little provocation, simply because the humans are paranoid and don't need a reason to point at a robot not doing what they think they should be doing and calling them "Maverick". And then they die at the protagonists' hands, anyway.
** Although, the animal Reploids of Mega Man Zero were evil, they weren't considered Mavericks. You're playing on the side of the Mavericks, the bosses are fighting for humanity.
* In ''[[
* Templars in [[Deus Ex: Invisible War
* Two of the bosses in ''[[The Suffering]]: Ties That Bind'' are the spirits of a slave hunter (Copperfield) and a misogynistic serial-murdering pimp (The Creeper).
▲'''Demonization:''' Oftentimes a character's occupation is not inherently evil, but has been demonized by Hollywood. Some examples would be hunters (because they're bloodthirsty killers), land developers (who "rape the environment"), [[Amoral Attorney|lawyers]] (who prey on others' misfortune, and just because they're lawyers) or [[Corrupt Corporate Executive|corporate CEOs]] (because they're money-hungry). And don't forget scientists (especially those dealing with anything nuclear or genetic), who're often depicted as [[Mad Scientist|Mad Scientists]]. Once demonized in the story, these ones are treated just as evil as a Nazi, terrorist, etc. For positions of Gods, the ones involving the Dead and Death almost inevitably [[Everybody Hates Hades|get this treatment]]. Note that this has a postmodern effect, in that many people may now actually see such professions as wicked in and of themselves; on the other hand (and in all fairness), these tend to be professions that annoy people in the first place.
=== Examples: ===▼
==
* ''The Lost World: [[Jurassic Park]]'' movie featured a [[Corrupt Corporate Executive]], although their big game hunter (Pete Postlethwaite!) was rather sympathetic, and if a [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IauEY2XoMR8 deleted scene] had been left in, (3:16 in), he would have been a full out [[Subverted Trope|subversion]]. The novel had someone who wanted to do animal testing, and considered that dinosaurs would be the perfect test subject - they already went extinct, so who's going to argue?
** By way of contrast, the original ''JP'' movie had a ''good'' hunter (technically a game warden), who died in a [[Heroic Sacrifice]], as well as a kindly grandpa CEO - although he was, admittedly, [[The Millstone]], and in the original book he was a standard
** Of course, once we saw a lawyer appear in the first movie we ''knew'' he was going to get eaten; having him sitting on a toilet at the time was just lagniappe. Whereas in the book, the lawyer was a bit more of a [[Jerkass]], but a severe [[Badass]] who punched out a raptor in one scene.
** The [[Big Game Hunter]] game warden in the first book also survives, and is much more useful. He actually kills a couple of the velociraptors, and indirectly helps Dr. Grant and the kids out when he shoots the T-Rex with a tranquilizer dart, which causes it to fall asleep long enough for them to get on a boat and escape downriver.
Line 106:
* In lighthearted works set in American high schools or similar adolescent environments, it's [[The Beautiful Elite]] (the [[Alpha Bitch]], the [[Jerk Jock]], etc.) who are usually automatically evil. This stereotype is so pervasive that even when a pretty girl or boy is not supposed to be a villain, or might even be [[The Hero]], they will still tend to be depicted as deeply flawed.
=== [[Live Action TV]] ===
* Most episodes of ''[[
* Federal officers of any kind on the various ''[[Law and Order]]'' shows. The only exception this troper can remember was a cameo by the woman from ''[[In Plain Sight]]''.
=== [[Web Original]] ===
* Being a comic book universe with a lot of [[Black and White Morality]] (as most comic book universes have), the heroes of the ''[[Global Guardians PBEM Universe]]'' have faced off against a metric buttload of bad guys who were
=== [[Western Animation]] ===
* Elmer Fudd from ''[[Looney Tunes]]'' is usually a classic "evil" hunter, albeit a stupid one.
* Many of the villains on ''[[Captain Planet and
** Hoggish Greedly was also in it for the buck, though he wasn't a billionaire like Plunder, but a less wealthy pioneer in dirty industry. However, their motives didn't remain consistent, and oftentimes, they would harm the environment out of sheer malice.
*** Makes sense, really. If you were just trying to make it rich, and a bunch of eco-terrorists summoned a ridiculous nature avatar who trashed all your shit and threw you face-first into toxic waste with a smile on his face, ''eight or nine times'', you'd probably invest in a factory that only produces plastic soda rings and immediately dumps them into the ocean, too.
=== Meta ===
* If the protagonist of any media is a cop, people from [[Internal Affairs]] are always portrayed as being stupid, hypocritical, corrupt, or just plain evil. Even if the protagonist really ''is'' a [[Dirty Cop]].
** And, don't expect local, state, and federal police bodies to get along, especially if there is a jurisdiction conflict. If a protagonist belongs to one of those forces, the others will be shown as resentful and obstructive (smaller force) or arrogant and dismissive (larger force).
Line 126:
{{reflist}}
[[Category:Characters As Device]]
[[Category:
| |||