Best Villains of All Time (All Media)

[Darkness]

I was watching The Dark Night (2008) last evening, and it got me thinking about great villains. While I respected Health Ledger's role as the Joker and think that the screenwriter(s) did a fantastic job with his dialogue, his character did not personally appeal to my tastes. The way I envision this thread going is that you will post photos and a brief description of why you think this character is the one of the greatest all time villains. It might be fun, or the thread my be a flop. So, I encourage somebody to talk about the Joker, since he is a fascinating character and somebody who is not me should do him justice.

 

[Draka]

First one that pops to mind for me is Lord Voldemort/Tom Marvolo Riddle. For anyone who has read the books, there is no explanation necessary...there is too much to say anyway. Rowling wrote and created him so very well.

 

[Darkness]

Since my avatar and signature hosts one of my favourite all-time villains:

Albert Wesker
The primary antagonist of the Resident Evil video game series, developed by Capcom. He was the leader of the S.T.A.R.S. team and the squad captain of protagonists Jill Valentine and Chris Redfield in the first game. Wesker used his compatriots as test subjects for Umbrella's bio-organic weapons in the Arklay Mansion. It is revealed that he, in fact, was responsible for developing the flesh eating virus in the first place. Wesker is seemingly killed in the underground laboratory by Umbrella's greatest creation (the Tyrant) when he confronts Jill/Chris. After being absent from Capcom's sequels, RE:2 and RE:3 Nemesis, Wesker returns to confront Chist in RE: Code Veronica and is featured is every subsequent installment. His main role becomes that of an ancillary villain, trying to accomplish his own object, and usually at odds with the games final villain. Though, in RE:5 Wesker is featured as the final boss and is presumed dead, after he is submerged in molten lava and takes two RPG hits to the head.

In my opinion, Wesker is one of the best villains, because he blends sophistication with brute strength and physical prowess. In a sense, he is similar to Watchmen's Adrian Veidt. Wesker is super-intelligent with genetics, and speaks in a lofty manner with a dry upper-class accent, yet, he is not afraid to get down and dirty, going undercover to become the captain of S.T.A.R.S. and personally destroy whoever gets in his way. Essentially, he a super-athletic metrosexual. The always gelled hair is a dead giveaway. His resolve is unshakeable and he remains utterly fearless in the face of death. If he did not wish the destruction of 99 per cent of the human race to usher in a new age of superhumans, he would make a perfect role model. His main weakness is his arrogance. Wesker believes himself to be a god. He could easily have killed Chris and Jill, but keeps them alive to display his superiority to.

 

[Darkness]

First one that pops to mind for me is Lord Voldemort/Tom Marvolo Riddle. For anyone who has read the books, there is no explanation necessary...there is too much to say anyway. Rowling wrote and created him so very well.

For those of us who are not familiar with Harry Potter, we would appreciate an explanation of why Voldemort is such a great villain. :yes:

 

[angellous_evangellous]

Darth Vader

 

[Warren Clark]

The Ori

or

The Replicators


Stargate: SG-1, Stargate: Atlantis, Stargate: The Ark of Truth

 

[Warren Clark]

Since my avatar and signature hosts one of my favourite all-time villains:

Albert Wesker

You can play him as a character in the new Marvel V. Capcom game. He kicks ***.

 

[xkatz]

Light Yagami, the protagonist of Death Note

Why is he such a great villain? Simple, because you actually want him to suceed.

 

[Penumbra]

Man, I love villains as far as stories go. A lame villain can really ruin a movie, since in movies that utilize a villain, the villain sets the tone and pace of everything. I'll post photos since you wanted that.

The Joker- Because he's completely insane and unpredictable, and confuses even other villains, and Ledger's interpretation was phenomenal. He's not driven by the typical emotions of greed or power like most villains, he "just wants to see the world burn". So, Batman and others have no idea how to stop someone who has no reasonable motive.

Magneto- Because he's a deep villain. Sometimes he is interpreted as an anti hero rather than a villain, whereas other times he is so cold-hearted he is clearly a villain. His best friend is Xavier, his enemy/rival, who he respects dearly. As a young man, he was a Jew imprisoned in a death camp in the Holocaust, and survived. Now as a mutant, he sees the same discrimination and fear of mutants, so he strikes back hard against humans to protect mutants.

Darkseid- Because he's basically the "final" villain for things superman-related. He was the final villain for the last season of smallville, the final villain for Justice League Unlimited, etc. He's stronger than superman, has an army, and is very intelligent and manipulative. He's basically an ancient demigod. (Picture shows him in the back, with Supergirl in the front.)

Legato- A bad guy from Trigun. His character differs between the anime and manga, and I like the anime version. He was sort of the secondary bad guy, but his personality made him mostly the primary villain. He's completely calm and exceptionally evil, and his final plan is extremely dark and creative.

Vincent Volaju- from the Cowboy Bebop movie. He was a soldier driven insane, and now is delusional and wants to end the world. He doesn't feel pain, and is very cold and calm.

The Operative- The unnamed primary villain of the movie Serenity. He is cold and calm at all times, and very smart. He's interesting because he honorably fights for what he thinks is the right thing, and yet is the villain. For a villain he has an oddly selfless motive- he is trying to build a better world, and is removing people that don't belong in that world, and admits that this includes himself because he does such evil things for its purpose. "I'm a monster. What I do is evil. I have no illusions about it, but it must be done."

 

[Penumbra]

Aizen- from Bleach. He was neat because he was so overconfidence and calm, it made one wonder what he has up his sleeve all the time. At no point did he show even the slightest hint that he could fail.

Scar- The villain from Lion King was very well-voiced by Jeremy Irons. He basically plays the role of Claudius from Hamlet. He's creepy and evil, and his voice is great.

Hans- from Diehard. Because it's Alan Rickman, and he's the perfect villain actor that sadly doesn't do enough villains.

Agent Smith- Because Hugo Weaving does the best creepy monologues ever.

Azula- from Avatar. Because without her, Avatar wouldn't have been as good of a series. Her brother was a good villain too, but her father the primary villain was so lame.

 

[Gjallarhorn]

This guy:

[youtube]xKBOHZiOkz8[/youtube]

 

[Otherright]

I was watching The Dark Night (2008) last evening, and it got me thinking about great villains. While I respected Health Ledger's role as the Joker and think that the screenwriter(s) did a fantastic job with his dialogue, his character did not personally appeal to my tastes. The way I envision this thread going is that you will post photos and a brief description of why you think this character is the one of the greatest all time villains. It might be fun, or the thread my be a flop. So, I encourage somebody to talk about the Joker, since he is a fascinating character and somebody who is not me should do him justice.

Really? I thought the character was an absolute brilliant twist on the Joker. I found him to be a very dark and terrifying presence. Simply beyond psychotic. It seemed like he was out of control and in control at the same time, like every move was brilliantly orchestrated, but the character's psychosis constantly flirted with disaster.

 

[Otherright]

But for my money, the greatest villain of all time has to go to Megatron. Read Megatron Origins sometime. Its a four part comic by IDW that is part of the official continuity (if TF can be said to have that). It tells the story of how he became who he is, and it is brutal and graphic.

You get to see him in another light. You see why he hates the Senate (autobots). You see that he is striving for change the only way he knows how, and losses that path quickly.

It has been my observation that while other "bad guys" either fail to get the schemes off the ground, or have limited success, while he always manages to stay one step ahead until the end, especially in the current continuity.

He's brilliant, brutal, effective, and terrifying. As an idealist, he isn't beyond destroying anything in his path to see his will done. If it weren't for the "good guys have to win" staple in storytelling, this guy would have conquered his universe a long time ago. \

Absolutely great villain.

 

[Mister Emu]

 

[Panda]

Sephiroth from Final Fantasy 7

He is just weird, creepy and you know when his theme tune plays bad stuff is going to happen. Plus his relationship with the main character Cloud gives an interesting story.

I also like Randall Flagg (or Walter O'Dim) as a bad guy. I like his best in The Stand and The Dark Tower series. I think you really need to read King's work to understand.

 

[Dirty Penguin]

My all time favorite is Lord of Darkness from the movies Legend. Played by Tim Curry
[youtube]lz58tiqZK5g[/youtube]
YouTube - ‪Hollywood depiction of satan/devil - the lord of darkness from the movie legend‬‏

 

[HiddenDjinn]

Saruman
The Lord of the Rings Characters: Saruman
(had to use a movie site to show you who it is, book is still copyrighted)

 

[ninerbuff]

Doctor Doom and Dr. Evil.

 

[Revoltingest]

[youtube]BjGpcEA-FyE[/youtube]
YouTube - ‪Hannibal Lecter - Fava Beans and Chianti‬‏

 

[Skwim]

Because he epitomizes the gross stupidity that makes all evil and wicked scoundrels into villains.