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{{quote|"''I can't believe what that clown is doing to [[Pagliacci|Leoncavallo]]! [[Even Evil Has Standards|And they call]] '''[[Even Evil Has Standards|me]]''' [[Even Evil Has Standards|a murderer]]!''"|'''Sideshow Bob''', ''[[The Simpsons (Animation)|The Simpsons]]''}}
 
It's not that [[Evil Is Cool]]. Rather, this is more like "Evil is Intellectual." Evil is smart, wicked, sarcastic with a biting sense of humor. Evil is smooth and eloquent, if not outright suave. Evil [[Man of Wealth and Taste|dresses well]], has a [[Sesquipedalian Loquaciousness|polysyllabic lexicon]], quotes [[Shakespeare]], sips [[A Glass of Chianti|fine wine]], listens to Beethoven and Brahms, and in general is shown to be cultured if not necessarily civilized. This can apply to any villain, [[Anti -Villain]], or associated character types.
 
May overlap with [[Dumb Is Good]], but it doesn't have to. The hero of the story can easily be a more rugged intellectual, or he reads/writes poetry, which is almost never perceived as an "evil" form of culture. Closely related to the [[Magnificent Bastard]], whose sheer tactical and strategic brilliance often sets him inside the trappings of [[Wicked Cultured]]. May overlap with [[Faux Affably Evil]] when the villain combines charming manners with vicious behavior.
 
When [[Aristocrats Are Evil]], they almost always follow this trope; when enough of them do, you get [[Deadly Decadent Court]]. They are likely to practice [[Brains and Bondage]] without any trace of [[Safe, Sane, and Consensual]].
 
Compare the less sinister [[Villains Out Shopping]], [[Villainous Fashion Sense]], [[Evil Is Stylish]], and [[Man of Wealth and Taste]]. The exact opposite of this is a [[Gentleman and A Scholar]] (unless he is [[Affably Evil]]).
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[[No Real Life Examples Please]].
{{examples|Examples:}}
 
== Anime and Manga ==
* In between various [[Kick the Dog|dog-kicking acts]] (and occasionally [[Moral Event Horizon|burning them]]) and sending his [[Ax Crazy]] minions after the heroes, Dio Brando of ''[[Jo JosJo's Bizarre Adventure (Manga)|Jojo's Bizarre Adventure]]'' enjoys literature, music, and classic art.
* ''[[Monster (Anime)|Monster]]'': Johan Liebert, [[Complete Monster|the title character]], is always perfectly dressed, well-spoken, blends in perfectly with high society and is a smart intellectual.
* The Major from ''[[Hellsing]]'' is a textbook example: he dresses immaculately, always ready for [[A Glass of Chianti]], is well-read, refined, eloquent, frighteningly intelligent, but... He's totally, batshit insane and has "''EVIL''" written on him in two-foot letters. In blood.
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* M'Quve from ''[[Mobile Suit Gundam]]'' is a ruthless [[Smug Snake]] under the orders of [[Lady of War|Princess]] [[Evil Redheads|Kycilia]] [[Evil Genius|Zabi]], whom he's fiercely devoted to. He's also an extremely cultured, polite, soft-spoken man who adores art and souvenirs. {{spoiler|His last thoughts as he died in battle were of both his Princess and an old porcelain vase that he wanted to offer to her as a gift.}}
* [[Umineko no Naku Koro Ni]]: "Madame, your [[Evil Laugh|laugh]] lacks elegance."
* Crocodile from ''[[One Piece]]''. Drinks wine while the Straw Hats are imprisoned (in addition to a [[No, Mr. Bond, I Expect You to Dine]] scene with Vivi), names his criminal organization after Renaissance architecture, and dresses in a fashion akin to a mafia ringleader.
* ''[[Black Butler (Manga)|Black Butler]]'s'' Sebastian Michaelis is the perfect butler: he can cook the finest cuisine from any country, perform beautifully on the violin, and recite quotes from virtually any body of literature. Oh, by the way, he's a demon.
** Since this is from manga and anime, to be clear: drag-your-soul-to-Hell demon, not "generic supernatural creature" demon.
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*** This was [[Lampshaded]] once when Deadshot asked him why, if he was classically trained and had a genuine Strad violin, why he called himself the Fiddler, like "...an inbred hick".
** Weather Wizard also fancies himself something of an intellectual.
** Let's not forget the Shade. A Victorian era gentleman who has stopped aging thanks to his darkness superpowers, he is droll, well-dressed, cultivates roses, and enjoys fine art and food. Though he basically only did crime because he was [[Who Wants to Live Forever?|Bored With Immortality]], and eventually did a [[Heel Face Turn]].
* In many ''[[Legion of Super-Heroes (Comic Book)|Legion of Super-Heroes]]'' continuities, Brainiac 5's unfathomable intelligence causes him to start out as an [[Insufferable Genius]], then slowly becoming more and more sinister.
* [[Fantastic Four|Doctor Doom]] had five Rembrandts. Then he had one burned because he didn't like it.
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* ''[[Scanners (Film)|Scanners]]'': Darryl Revok has a really nice apartment with some modern art here and there.
* Many, ''many'' ''[[James Bond (Film)|James Bond]]'' villains have taste and class, often used to contrast against the somewhat less (though still quite) cultured secret agent:
** [[Dr. No (Film)|Dr. No]] spent one million dollars on an underground fish tank, and even [[Historical in In-Joke|stole]] [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dr._No_(film)#Filming Goya's portrait of Wellington].
** Auric [[Goldfinger (Film)|Goldfinger]] likes his things golden. Even his [[Squick|women.]] And his [[Unfortunate Implications|servants.]]
** Ernst Stavro Blofeld (''[[From Russia With Love (Film)|From Russia With Love]]'', ''[[You Only Live Twice (Film)|You Only Live Twice]]'', ''[[On Her Majesty's Secret Service (Film)|On Her Majesty's Secret Service]]'', ''[[Diamonds Are Forever (Film)|Diamonds Are Forever]]'') likes living with class and style. One of his demands in the third is to be given the title of Comte de Bleuchamps, for no reason other than the prestige.
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* In William King's ''[[Warhammer 40000]]'' [[Space Wolf]] novel ''Wolfblade'', when Torin fills Ragnor in on the ambitions and [[Chronic Backstabbing Disorder|conflicts]] of the Naviagator Houses, he observes of one particularly ambitious and ruthless one:
{{quote| ''a great patron of the arts -- all the great lords are.''}}
* Captain Hook of ''[[Peter Pan]]'' is generally portrayed as cultured, and often something of an [[Anti -Villain]]. Peter, by contrast, is a feral tyrant, ruling by whim but setting strict rules for the Lost Boys. (In some adaptations this is taken farther: Peter is incapable of learning or memory, and murders the Lost Boys if they don't follow his rules.)
** In Disney's otherwise very loosely adapted version, he speaks pleasantly to Wendy while switching to a prettier gold (with ruby ring!) hook to play the piano -- looking quite dashing in a villainous way.
* In [[Graham McNeill]]'s ''[[Warhammer 40000]]'' [[Horus Heresy]] novel ''Fulgrim'', the Emperor's Children, already artistically inclined, and their remembrancers, take a turn for the decadent after visiting a [[Religion of Evil|xenos temple]]. Only those who did not visit it seem to notice.
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* ''[[The Phantom of the Opera]]''. Despite being a homicidal maniac, he has decidedly highbrow hobbies. This is carried over to the Lloyd-Webber show, although his talents as a musician being somewhat lacking.
* In [[Kim Newman]]'s ''[[Swellhead]]'', part of the ''Diogenes Club'' series, there's a heavy subversion; the villain is massively intelligent and knows pretty much everything, but a) his cultural leanings are decidedly cheesy (he likes Burt Bacharach, and has muzak versions of MOR songs playing in his [[Elaborate Underground Base]]) and b) he is actually ''defeated'' by his lack of knowledge of the younger generation's pop culture. Not "as a consequence of"; By. {{spoiler|After failing to name the singer who had a hit with "I Should Be So Lucky", his head explodes. Or, if you prefer, goes [[Stealth Pun|pop]].}}
* O'Brien from George Orwell's ''[[Nineteen Eighty -Four|1984]]''.
* Lucius Malfoy from ''[[Harry Potter]]''. He's well dressed and well spoken, and he's also implied to be heavily involved in wizarding cultural affairs (on the board of Hogwarts, donates to St. Mungo's). And damn, is his [http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f395/barguestspirit/normal_HP5-SP-4883r.jpg pimp cane] awesome or what?
* ''[[Star Wars Expanded Universe]]''
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* In Vladimir Nabokov's [[Lolita]], [[Villain Protagonist|Humbert Humbert]] is a well-educated, cultured professor of French poetry. He is also a pedophile who marries a woman planning to kill her so he can molest her 12-year-old daughter.
* A few of ''[[Redwall]]'''s less barbaric villains; Tsarmina, Ublaz, Vilu Daskar, and Badrang come to mind.
* Several characters from ''[[The Count of Monte Cristo]]'', starting with the Count himself, who has impeccable taste and if not an outright villain, is a ruthless [[Well -Intentioned Extremist]]. There's also the bandit leader, Luigi Vampa, who is a polite, nice guy who reads Caesar's ''Commentaries'' for fun. He's also a strong believer in punctuality, and if a ransom is not paid on time, he will calmly stab the kidnappee to death or shoot them in the head. And there's also Benedetto, a young career criminal who has no trouble posing as a cultured aristocrat.
* Parodied in ''[[The Hitchhikers Guide to The Galaxy]]'' with the Vogons, who love writing poetry. And then reading it to their captives as a form of excruciating torture.
* Count [[Dracula]], being a Voivode and all, comes across as a fairly refined, rich old gentleman before he's revealed as a vampire.
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* In the [[Gentleman Bastard]] series, Capa Barsavi of Camorr was once a literature professor...and one of his former students is a pirate captain, who loves to discuss classical literature when he can find someone who shares his interest.
* [[Nightrunner|Lynn Flewelling]] apparently is ''in love'' with them.. "Nightrunners" gives us first Lord Mardus. Gentleman, with high intellect and large interests, which are just as broad as the ones of one main character. Extraordinarily well mannered. Polite even to the prisoner he plans to bloodily sacrifice. Really, if you didn't know {{spoiler|he aspires becoming the Avatar of a God of Destruction}} you'd really like him. Later Ulan (who starts out not really a villian but extremely pragmatic. And sadly if the main characters achieved their goal his clan would suffer, [[Nothing Personal|so]] {{spoiler|Later it turns out that not only HE is responsible for the mess of Seregil's life, he also doesn't hesitate supporting rather nasty experiments just to prolong his life.}} ... and then we met Yakobin. Nice fellow. Has a good taste of tea. And dislikes beatin up his sleves more than neccessary - actually he is REALLY civilized and intelligent. Oh, have I mentioned he is an {{spoiler|alchemist who creates [[Creepy Child|child-like clones of you]] to brew some medicine of them and kills them when they wont fit your expectiations? Just to make you suffer the whole creation process once again?}}. The ''Tamír'' triad again gives us Nyrin. Court wizard. Soft spoken. Well mannered. Handsome. Apparently a good lover if you happen to be his mistress. Oh... and aspiring ruling from the shadows. And more or less directly responsible for countless assassinations of female members of the royal blood line.
* [[Flashman]] villain John Charity Spring was on the Oxford don career path before getting booted out and seeking an alternate career in the slave trade. Spring is a brilliant classical scholar who constantly throws [[Gratuitous Latin]] tags into his conversation, but he's also a psychopath with a [[Hair -Trigger Temper]]. While there isn't a [[Good Is Dumb]] contrast (since Flashman is a [[Villain Protagonist]]), there is a contrast in intellect, since Flashman is [[Book Dumb]] and while he's an [[Omniglot]] when it comes to learning to speak living languages, he could never pick up Ancient Greek and Latin.
* General Zaroff from ''[[The Most Dangerous Game]]'' is your typical aristocratic big game hunter, with an eloquent manner and a taste for the final things in life. He's also a depraved serial killer.
* [[Scaramouche]]: The Marquis is an honorable, educated, well-read noble. He is also a ruthless killer.
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* Lodz on ''[[Carnivale]]'' was erudite, charming, and persuasive. He was also remarkably evil and showed some signs of [[Nazi]] sympathies.
* Angelus in ''[[Buffy the Vampire Slayer]]'' and ''[[Angel]]''. A lot of older vampires in general, really. But...
** Subverted with Spike, a punkish Mockney yob <s>with a strong resemblance to</s> [[Historical in In-Joke|who inspired]] Billy Idol. Then [[Double Subversion|double-subverted]] when we meet him pre-vampire...as a [[Stylistic Suck|"bloody awful" would-be poet]] of [[British Accents|implicitly upper middle-class origin]].
** Played straight with most of the Wolfram and Hart villains. They're normally a bunch of attractive, human (although occasionally soulless) lawyers who play golf, (sometimes with the devil) go to fancy parties (and {{spoiler|[[What the Hell, Hero?|get butchered]]}}) and drink wine. They're usually played as a contrast with the rougher, lower-class heroes. In fact, when Lindsey {{spoiler|leaves W&H}}, he immediately goes back to his roots in a poor, Southern family.
* ''[[The Wire]]'': Brother Mouzone is a [[Badass Bookworm]] who dresses in the traditional Nation of Islam suit and bowtie, and reads heavy and serious intellectual books and magazines between gang killings. Stringer Bell was desperately trying to climb out of the gutter and get to this trope, before {{spoiler|he was killed by Mouzone and Omar Little}}. The police are stunned when they search his apartment and find an immaculate office that wouldn't look out of place on Wall Street.
{{quote| '''McNulty''': "Who the fuck was I chasing?"}}
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* The Gravemind from ''[[Halo]]'' always speaks in trochaic [[Arc Number|heptameter]]. He explained to Cortana in ''Human Weakness'' that he simply grew fond of poetry after he consumed enough poets from different races and cultures.
** You could say [[Incredibly Lame Pun|he developed a taste for it]].
* Played with in ''[[Super Robot Wars Original Generation]] 2''. Archibald Grims, [[Smug Snake]] and [[Card -Carrying Villain|card-carrying]] [[For the Evulz|terrorist without a cause]], invites his most cultured subordinate for a spot of tea. He takes this time to explain that he doesn't actually ''like'' tea, but he likes to drink red tea [[Don't Explain the Joke|because it kind of looks like blood]]. Meanwhile, his subordinate notices that he's using a teabag, so he can't even get the "cultured" part right.
* The Spy from ''[[Team Fortress 2 (Video Game)|Team Fortress 2]]'' initially appears this way, especially in his Meet the Spy video. It kind of falls apart in-game, though, when he winds up shouting insults like a 12 year old and laughing until he snorts.
** Heavy, meanwhile, definitely counts. He has a Ph.D in Russian Lit. and enjoys himself a nice Peach Bellini. This, in-between screaming at the top of his lungs, chewing through people with a giant mini-gun, and telling stories about choking an Engie with his own wrench as if it were [[Russian Humor|some kind of bawdy anecdote]].
*** [[Eloquent in My Native Tongue|Even more so in the Russian translation.]]
** Between bouts of administering "accidental" not-medicine and blowing up hearts [[For Science!]], Medic's a violinist.
*** The Engineer, to Blutarch Mann's personal care attendant, regarding a painting in Blutarch's mansion: "[[Sophisticated As Hell|Say, ain't that an original]] [[Captain Ersatz|Kicasso?"]]
* Ganondorf. One particular example would be in ''[[The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time]]'', wherein he is playing the organ while awaiting Link's arrival at the castle {{spoiler|to rescue Princess Zelda}}.
* ''[[Mass Effect (Video Game)|Mass Effect]]'':
** [[Well -Intentioned Extremist|The Illusive Man]] of ''[[Mass Effect 2 (Video Game)|Mass Effect 2]]'', drinks well, dresses well, is infallibly polite even in the face of setbacks, and [[Hey ItsIt's That Voice|in a past life was]] [[Martin Sheen|President of]] [[The West Wing|the United States]].
** Donovan Hock from the "Kasumi's Stolen Memories" DLC is also an example, being a ruthless criminal who owns several rare sculptures, including the Lady Liberty's head and Michelangelo's David. Hock even shouts a [[Big No]] if Shepard [[Shut UP, Hannibal|shoots one of his precious sculptures]].
* [[Batman Arkham City]]: Subverted with this version of The Penguin - he's [[Jabba Table Manners|a thoroughly coarse]] [[Fat Bastard|and unpleasant]] [[The Bully|individual]], [[Small Name, Big Ego|even if he'd like to think otherwise]].
* Also subverted with Chatterbox, the [[Monster Clown|clown-faced Soho mob boss]] in the videogame version of ''[[The Warriors (Video Game)|The Warriors]]''. He fancies himself a [[Mad Artist|great artist]] (so much so that he ''kills'' anyone besides himself who tries to create anything resembling art in his neighborhood) - but he's [[Fat Bastard|grotesquely fat]], [[Cluster F -Bomb|foul-mouthed]], [[Bad Boss|cruel to his own men]], and on the whole obnoxious and buffoonish.
* Relius Clover in ''[[Blaz Blue]]'' while being an utterly ruthless [[Complete Monster]], conducts himself with extreme suave style, dresses very well, his hobby is watching opera shows, and the things he dislikes are just 'disorganized book shelves'. He doesn't use crude language while showing off just how deprived evil he is, as opposed to [[Troll|Hazama]].
* De Killer from [[Ace Attorney]]
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