Favorite Villain Traits?
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Favorite Villain Traits?
Favorite Villain Traits?
Please vote to provide helpful feedback for the future. Posting with additional details will also help a great deal!!! The better the information that you provide, the more I can ensure that you have good villains that you can enjoy in the future!
You can have multiple answers! Thank you! ^.^
You can have multiple answers! Thank you! ^.^
Re: Favorite Villain Traits?
I think some of the best villains, or interesting character are often those who are rather neutral in position and do things according to what advantage them. The most recent villain I liked has been Hisoka from Hunter x Hunter. His character have obviously a serious problem of screw loose in the head, he's creepy, but can be sweet at times depend.
Though in his case he's probably more of a neutral then a full bad guy. He's still wise about all of his decision regardless of being a tiny bit insane(I mean a lot xD). The psycho villains are always my favorites usually.
Though in his case he's probably more of a neutral then a full bad guy. He's still wise about all of his decision regardless of being a tiny bit insane(I mean a lot xD). The psycho villains are always my favorites usually.
HikariKuragari- VIP
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Posts : 7028
Re: Favorite Villain Traits?
I have to say my top villain trait would be the well-intentioned one. It makes them believable as a character, and I can get into their shoes and understand why they're doing what they're doing. It also makes it deliciously heartbreaking when you have to stop/kill them. :3
Holsety- VIP
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Posts : 8820
Re: Favorite Villain Traits?
I often find that the best villains are the ones that think they're right, even if they're not.
Re: Favorite Villain Traits?
The guys who have good intentions but always have that sarcastic sense about them...They always want to do the good stuff but for the wrong reasons.
Re: Favorite Villain Traits?
I chose "Other" because, good lord, where do I begin? I don't really have any one preferred trait in any villain. As a comic book lover, I find that any variety of villain can be done to excellent effect.
The well-intentioned villain is one I don't tend to write as often, primarily because other people have such a ball doing it that I don't really want to clutter everything up with it. But it does become particularly interesting and Holesty does have an excellent point. It does become particularly devastating when the hero has to stop them... provided it's done well. If they're well intentioned but their actions are down right evil, then I don't particularly feel the same level of sympathy as if their actions are more along the lines of desperate. Mr. Freeze, for example. His actions aren't particularly outright evil. The man is just plain desperate to get back the love of his life. As opposed to someone else who may claim that what they're doing is for the best but, in actuality, they're just deluded. Even Magneto's actions aren't purely evil. He's looking out for his own. He's just an extremist.
I've written a character by the name of Zanothur, who claims that his actions are well intentioned. But then you realize that those actions would involve mass (and indiscriminate) genocide. You find out the guy's just a vengeful psychopath and not even the main villain of the series like he's let on to be. Speaking of vengeful, that can also make a really interesting villain. Take Venom, for example. Eddie Brock, as a villain, is motivated simply by an overpowering hatred of Spider-Man. That hatred has spawned an unquenchable (and misplaced/misguided) thirst for vengeance. But the punishment should fit the crime, I believe. If someone just did something that hurt you, then your revenge probably shouldn't be to kill the person. Otherwise what sympathy I had for the situation is gone. That's why I like Venom. His revenge has nothing to do with killing Spider-Man. Eddie feels that Pete ruined his life. He, in return, wants to ruin Pete's. But far worse. He wants to take away everything that Peter ever cared about and leave him alive to feel that kind of pain. A terrifying notion.
You wanna know what else is terrifying? Insanity. What is more terrifying than the unknown? That's why the insane types are so deliciously frightening. They're downright unpredictable. The Joker being the prime example, these guys tend to just be the embodiments of chaos. They strike absolute fear into even their most formidable foes and, by extension, the reader/viewer/player. What are they going to do next? You don't know. That's a scary thing to think about.
Speaking of thinking, what trumps a villain with a good ol' Genius IQ? The villains who are smart tend to have staying power. Doesn't get much smarter than Brainiac. The embodiment of intellect is a villain motivated by the sheer notion of intelligence. That's just really intriguing.
But equally as intriguing is the villain motivated purely by ego. In other words, these are your villains that are just plain evil. These are where the villains get larger than life and really fun. No better example of this than Dr. Doom, really. Doom wants to take over the world for one reason, and one alone. He's Doom. He's better than you, he knows he's better than you, and he'll do everything in his power to make sure you know he's better too. He's not racist, sexist, or prejudiced in any regard. He's Doom. He's better than you BECAUSE he's Doom. Doom IS. And if you have a villain charismatic enough, like Dr. Doom, like Darkseid, like Megatron, and so-on, that notion can be more than enough.
On the flip side of that, however, is the insecure villain. This is where Lex Luthor comes into play. Lex Luthor is literally a super villain because he's jealous of Superman. That is all this is to it. If Superman had never rolled in, Lex would just be a corrupt businessman. A genius for certain, but little else. He's jealous of Superman's power. He's jealous of the admiration Superman gets. He doesn't originally have a vengeance drive. The man is just insecure. And that insecurity has led him to become one of the absolute most dangerous people on the planet.
But sometimes the story doesn't call for a villain's threats to be on a global level. Sometimes they're much more personal. And I've said it before, I'll say it again. As long as there is a Spider, there will be... a Goblin. The Green Goblin has cause more personal trouble for Spider-Man than ANY other villain. Even Venom. From the death of Gwen Stacy to the legacy carried on by Peter's best friend, Harry, the Green Goblin has done what most villains fail to do. He hit Peter where he lives... literally. That's a really admirable trait. The villain that hits home.
And another awesome personal trait for a villain to have is to be a dark reflection of the hero. A character who the hero can look into the mirror and see themselves in. A villain who, if the hero had taken just one, minuscule, little step in life differently, then it'd entirely possibly they could have wound up as. Enter Captain America and Baron Zemo. A hero/villain pair that couldn't be more alike. They lead by example. They inspire their followers. They're diligent. They have the same powers. There's only a split hair of a difference between them. Cap took the road less traveled.
And all of these things capture one thing for me. ANY good villain has one thing particularly in common with every other villain. Staying power. Would you want to see more stories with them, provided they survive their encounters with the good guy or the good guy doesn't make them see the error of their ways? Would they be as entertaining to see again a second time, and a third? If not, then they're probably not that great a villain. All of the villains I just used as examples have that element. They endure for those reasons. But even with staying power there's one thing any villain should do. Escalate. If they're going to come back, then they'd better be even worse the second time around. And thus comes the embodiment of the returning villain: Ultron. Whenever Ultron comes back, he doesn't just come back with a new scheme. He comes back better than he did before. He's upgraded himself, using the data from his last encounter with the Avengers, he makes it literally impossible to defeat him the same way twice. Heck, Ultron would have defeated the Avengers the second time, had Vision not turned on him. That's how to make a recurring villain memorable and keep them coming back.
The well-intentioned villain is one I don't tend to write as often, primarily because other people have such a ball doing it that I don't really want to clutter everything up with it. But it does become particularly interesting and Holesty does have an excellent point. It does become particularly devastating when the hero has to stop them... provided it's done well. If they're well intentioned but their actions are down right evil, then I don't particularly feel the same level of sympathy as if their actions are more along the lines of desperate. Mr. Freeze, for example. His actions aren't particularly outright evil. The man is just plain desperate to get back the love of his life. As opposed to someone else who may claim that what they're doing is for the best but, in actuality, they're just deluded. Even Magneto's actions aren't purely evil. He's looking out for his own. He's just an extremist.
I've written a character by the name of Zanothur, who claims that his actions are well intentioned. But then you realize that those actions would involve mass (and indiscriminate) genocide. You find out the guy's just a vengeful psychopath and not even the main villain of the series like he's let on to be. Speaking of vengeful, that can also make a really interesting villain. Take Venom, for example. Eddie Brock, as a villain, is motivated simply by an overpowering hatred of Spider-Man. That hatred has spawned an unquenchable (and misplaced/misguided) thirst for vengeance. But the punishment should fit the crime, I believe. If someone just did something that hurt you, then your revenge probably shouldn't be to kill the person. Otherwise what sympathy I had for the situation is gone. That's why I like Venom. His revenge has nothing to do with killing Spider-Man. Eddie feels that Pete ruined his life. He, in return, wants to ruin Pete's. But far worse. He wants to take away everything that Peter ever cared about and leave him alive to feel that kind of pain. A terrifying notion.
You wanna know what else is terrifying? Insanity. What is more terrifying than the unknown? That's why the insane types are so deliciously frightening. They're downright unpredictable. The Joker being the prime example, these guys tend to just be the embodiments of chaos. They strike absolute fear into even their most formidable foes and, by extension, the reader/viewer/player. What are they going to do next? You don't know. That's a scary thing to think about.
Speaking of thinking, what trumps a villain with a good ol' Genius IQ? The villains who are smart tend to have staying power. Doesn't get much smarter than Brainiac. The embodiment of intellect is a villain motivated by the sheer notion of intelligence. That's just really intriguing.
But equally as intriguing is the villain motivated purely by ego. In other words, these are your villains that are just plain evil. These are where the villains get larger than life and really fun. No better example of this than Dr. Doom, really. Doom wants to take over the world for one reason, and one alone. He's Doom. He's better than you, he knows he's better than you, and he'll do everything in his power to make sure you know he's better too. He's not racist, sexist, or prejudiced in any regard. He's Doom. He's better than you BECAUSE he's Doom. Doom IS. And if you have a villain charismatic enough, like Dr. Doom, like Darkseid, like Megatron, and so-on, that notion can be more than enough.
On the flip side of that, however, is the insecure villain. This is where Lex Luthor comes into play. Lex Luthor is literally a super villain because he's jealous of Superman. That is all this is to it. If Superman had never rolled in, Lex would just be a corrupt businessman. A genius for certain, but little else. He's jealous of Superman's power. He's jealous of the admiration Superman gets. He doesn't originally have a vengeance drive. The man is just insecure. And that insecurity has led him to become one of the absolute most dangerous people on the planet.
But sometimes the story doesn't call for a villain's threats to be on a global level. Sometimes they're much more personal. And I've said it before, I'll say it again. As long as there is a Spider, there will be... a Goblin. The Green Goblin has cause more personal trouble for Spider-Man than ANY other villain. Even Venom. From the death of Gwen Stacy to the legacy carried on by Peter's best friend, Harry, the Green Goblin has done what most villains fail to do. He hit Peter where he lives... literally. That's a really admirable trait. The villain that hits home.
And another awesome personal trait for a villain to have is to be a dark reflection of the hero. A character who the hero can look into the mirror and see themselves in. A villain who, if the hero had taken just one, minuscule, little step in life differently, then it'd entirely possibly they could have wound up as. Enter Captain America and Baron Zemo. A hero/villain pair that couldn't be more alike. They lead by example. They inspire their followers. They're diligent. They have the same powers. There's only a split hair of a difference between them. Cap took the road less traveled.
And all of these things capture one thing for me. ANY good villain has one thing particularly in common with every other villain. Staying power. Would you want to see more stories with them, provided they survive their encounters with the good guy or the good guy doesn't make them see the error of their ways? Would they be as entertaining to see again a second time, and a third? If not, then they're probably not that great a villain. All of the villains I just used as examples have that element. They endure for those reasons. But even with staying power there's one thing any villain should do. Escalate. If they're going to come back, then they'd better be even worse the second time around. And thus comes the embodiment of the returning villain: Ultron. Whenever Ultron comes back, he doesn't just come back with a new scheme. He comes back better than he did before. He's upgraded himself, using the data from his last encounter with the Avengers, he makes it literally impossible to defeat him the same way twice. Heck, Ultron would have defeated the Avengers the second time, had Vision not turned on him. That's how to make a recurring villain memorable and keep them coming back.
Re: Favorite Villain Traits?
The ones that strongly believe in their ideals and have the drive to do what they need to make it happen are, in my opinion, the better Villains.
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