Everything the Joker is. He is insanity born in human flesh, and I love him! In all honesty their needs to be motive, determination, a bit of insanity, and overall overpowered factor. Not really sure what else, all my favorite comic book characters are crazy, guess it's because I lost sense of my own sense of reality some time ago. Now if you excuse me, I promised the Artist formally known as Prince that I'd meet him on Martian plains of Cydonia to duel for the release of Micheal Jackson from the prison of Molten Helm.
What do you think there needs to be, to make a great villain?
- Thread starter Smithburg
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For me what needs to be there to make a villain really stand out is a decent motive (or decent reason to have a lack of a real motive), a tragic backstory, cool powers and they need to be really in the characters' faces and actually do some really bad things to make them really feel like an actual villain, not just some sinister dude that gets smacked around by the main character/s, and to make you yourself want to get rid of them. Looking awesome helps too.
wooty said:
I was going to say these, but after thinking about it, will go with determination instead. Both of your answers are fantastic and I agree that a great villain needs both of those.TheBobmus said:
I just think that determination is the most important thing a great villain needs. The villain needs to be able to hop on the bike every time they fall off or are pushed off by the hero. My favorite villains have always been very good at staying on the bike no matter what. Bowser for example, is still determined to defeat Mario and take over the worlds despite losing many many many times.
A truly great villain needs to have motivations that make them feel relatable.
Basically, we need to look at the villain and think "Wow, I can kind of understand/pity him. I might have done what he did if I were put through what he went through.". A truly amazing villain makes you feel insecure about yourself, reminds you of the darkness that you could become if the wrong things happen to you, and makes you doubt the heroes, even for a moment.
Basically, we need to look at the villain and think "Wow, I can kind of understand/pity him. I might have done what he did if I were put through what he went through.". A truly amazing villain makes you feel insecure about yourself, reminds you of the darkness that you could become if the wrong things happen to you, and makes you doubt the heroes, even for a moment.
I hate the concept of villains as it is. I prefer characters who simply have a mutual dislike towards each-other or are morally ambiguous such as the case with Mr. Freeze. He's a good guy, who does bad things, to neutral people, for good reasons.
They need to be an actual challenge to the protagonist, for starters. Nothing kills a story faster than a lame villain who can't stand up to the hero. Also, they need depth, so that even if you hate them for being bad, you understand what their reasons are. A bad guy who's bad just because (in most cases) isn't cool. I also like it when the villain's motivations aren't entirely evil or bad. Ambiguity can stir things up a bit when it comes to bad guys.
know what i think?
1. theme tune.
2. suave, gentlemanly attitude. including cane and typical british accent.
3. intelligence.
4. backstory that isn't depressing.
last but certainly not least: PRESENTATION!
like in Megamind.
also, i think the joker is actually mentally unwell, that's his motive.
1. theme tune.
2. suave, gentlemanly attitude. including cane and typical british accent.
3. intelligence.
4. backstory that isn't depressing.
last but certainly not least: PRESENTATION!
like in Megamind.
also, i think the joker is actually mentally unwell, that's his motive.
xanatos gambits and grey v gray morality. yeah i just pulled tvtropes out of my ass. but the point still stands,if you have a clever villian who you can almost support, or at least understand, you have a good villian. thats why my favorite villian is gerard butler in lawabiding citizen as clyde. still felt jamie fox's character should've died too.
Plenty. Where to begin...?
To actually go into depth about it would take about an hour of writing, since a well-thought-out VIllain panel at a convention eats up at least that much through talk and discussion.
The quick and dirty of it is that you need to have at least SOME...style, wit, motivation (if even insanity), cool ability (if even mortal ability expressed well), and competence.
Let me take a very human example from the old animated series of Batman: THE CLOCK KING. Temple Fuget is an aged obsessive-compulsive man who worked at a successful firm ruined by one day when the later-to-be Mayor of Gotham told him to take his afternoon break fifteen minutes later than usual...and then terrible things befell him. How much it was the Mayor's fault, one cannot say. Perhaps his court date would've been settled properly if he hadn't stepped out of his inflexible range for a moment or perhaps not. We don't know.
Fast forward to years later, a man is sabotaging the Mayor's career and then ultimately plotting to kill him, foiling and fighting against BATMAN with nothing more than a few weapons, stuff that anybody can get off the counters or learn anywhere, and his OCD. The Clock King has a charm for being almost justifiable in his outrage and exceptionally cool in how he operates. He doesn't even look flashy, so it's easy to lose him in a crowd.
I think that's a good summary of a good villain.
To actually go into depth about it would take about an hour of writing, since a well-thought-out VIllain panel at a convention eats up at least that much through talk and discussion.
The quick and dirty of it is that you need to have at least SOME...style, wit, motivation (if even insanity), cool ability (if even mortal ability expressed well), and competence.
Let me take a very human example from the old animated series of Batman: THE CLOCK KING. Temple Fuget is an aged obsessive-compulsive man who worked at a successful firm ruined by one day when the later-to-be Mayor of Gotham told him to take his afternoon break fifteen minutes later than usual...and then terrible things befell him. How much it was the Mayor's fault, one cannot say. Perhaps his court date would've been settled properly if he hadn't stepped out of his inflexible range for a moment or perhaps not. We don't know.
Fast forward to years later, a man is sabotaging the Mayor's career and then ultimately plotting to kill him, foiling and fighting against BATMAN with nothing more than a few weapons, stuff that anybody can get off the counters or learn anywhere, and his OCD. The Clock King has a charm for being almost justifiable in his outrage and exceptionally cool in how he operates. He doesn't even look flashy, so it's easy to lose him in a crowd.
I think that's a good summary of a good villain.