Evil. It's everywhere. It can be the technology we're using or the faces next us. Giving evil a face creates an outlet for us human beings to focus our judgements on. Entertainment media, in all forms, almost always include a villain. The villain will disrupt and cause chaos to the protagonist's life. The soul purpose of the villain is to simply be bad. Strangely, most of us consumers love a great villain. Whether it is for their cause or means, a good-bad villain really makes or breaks a story.
This week's devious challenge by Lost_in_Translation is Villains!
The Challenge:
"What I'd like people to write about this week, are their favorite villain or type of villains. They can be from games, TV, movies, books, whatever medium works best for you. You can discuss why you prefer a singular villain, or discuss the types of villains that you like/dislike, and why. Elaborate on what about them does/does not impress you, or what you're looking for in a villain to truly love to hate them."
So I pulled my favorite villains from a variety of different entertainment media. I also had to throw in an honorable mention because the trio was just too hard not to write about! With no further ado, here are my choices:
♥ Book ♥
Nurse Ratched
Who: Nurse Ratched (in the 1975 film she is portrayed by Louise Fletcher)
Nurse Ratched is the main antagonist of this classic literature novel. She is the head administrator at Salem, Oregon State Hospital, a mental institution. She is the dictator of the ward and controls her patience by striking fear into their bones. She overseas all their therapy, medications, routines, etc. When a patients displeases her she has no trouble teaching them a lesson, she has so much power that even the ward hands turn a blind eye. Nurse Ratched does everything in her power to maintain her power, but like most books, the protagonist wins in the end.
Where: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey (1962)
Why:
She may be just doing her job, but she is as strict and sour and ruthless and was the main obstacle of the protagonist. She puts a holt to R.P. McMurphy's and all his friends' plans. I actually read the book before having to read it for one of my high school english classes (I really didn't mind having to reading it again). Nurse Ratched was cruel hearted to the acutes in the ward. However, in the analysis I wrote it made a lot of sense why [literature can be interpreted many different ways, this is mine.] The novel was written and takes place in the 1960's America, women did not have a lot of power at that time, so this little ward run by Nurse Ratched was basically her world to control. She was able to dictate the weak and powerless. but the cruel part is that she enjoyed it. All her power was fueled by the selfish agenda of being in control. Her job was to help the patients and eventually release them, however none of them dared to leave or challenge her for they were frozen with fear. She always made her presence and power clear by pushing the patients buttons without therapeutic help in mind. Inside the walls of the ward she was the head villain who needed to literally be stripped of her power.
On the flip side, outside the ward her acts of selfishness can be viewed as selflessness. She is trying to show that woman should have more power than they do, more control of their lives and more say about what happens. Taking a job at a mental ward is a risky job, a task that only brave and courageous souls would be able to handle. She is being strong in an utterly oppressive time for women.
♥ Movie ♥
Loki
Who: Loki Laufeyson (Portrayed by Tom Hiddleson)
Loki was raised to believe he was a biological son of Odin, however he quickly learned that was a lie. Everything he once knew started to fall apart, which triggered his turn (in a way). Loki is the God of Mischief, so he was always naturally talented at illusion magic. His adoptive mother Frigga taught him her tricks; Loki seemingly really only cared about her. He always knew he was second to Thor, but never really could pin point why until a run in with a Frost Giant in Jotunheim. He was immune to a would-be devastating Frost Giant touch. Thus, the unraveling of his true birth starting to come together and Odin broke the news that Loki was in fact Loki Laufeyson not Odinson. Apparently this was devastating news to Loki, thus he tried to prove his worth, but that backfired. Loki has always been a complex character, he shows vulnerability, but also shows true power. He does what he wants and doesn't really care who he hurts, as long as he benefits from the actions.
Where: Thor (2011), The Avengers (2012) and Thor: The Dark World (2013) - Marvel
Why: I will admit, I am a fan girl of Hiddleson's Loki. Besides that, I think Loki is actually a very decent villain. The comics portray him as much more cunning and evil than the films do for sure. However, I will purely just talk about the movie version of Loki. Two words sum of this God of Mischief and those are "wounded soul". I am a sucker for villains who have wounded souls, conveinently the ones who weren't initially fully evil, but then some turn of events basically just made them snap.
I thoroughly enjoyed Loki in The Dark World because he was past the whole my family betrayed me mind set, well at least he didn't constantly talk about it. Plus, he was a complete scene stealer. He used all his notorious abilities to make the entire movie, so much better than it would have been. Every scene he was is was great, from his wit to snarky comments to alternative motives. Loki was on a roll, he was pretty much an anti-hero in the film, but the ending creatively revealed his motives, what a smart cookie. What I love about Loki's personality is that he will come across as charming, but almost always has an alternative motive behind his smiles. Whenever he involves himself in something it is to benefit him alone. However, he always plays his cards with tact and precision making him a deadly villain. He lives up to his title of the God of Mischief.
♥ Television ♥
Katherine Pierce
Who: Katerina Petrova (Portrayed by Nina Dobrev)
Born Katerina Petrova in 1473 Bulgaria, this young woman had a baby girl ripped from her arms by her father at just 16. He condemned and banished her, this making her flee to England, where she learned to speak English and assimilate into that culture. In 1942 she met a vampire who introduced her to the original Elijah Mikaelson who later led her to Niklaus Mikaelson. Little did she know that she is part of a mystical bloodline of dopplegangers and was a target to Niklaus. She soon figured out her life was in jeopardy, so she fled for her survival. The same vampire who originally found her tried to help her, but instead she betrayed him and turned herself into a vampire. She was on the run from Niklaus ever since. When she came to America she changed her name to Katherine Pierce in order to hide. She posted up in the small town of Mystic Falls, however when things went array, she still felt no need to help her so called friends and did what she does best; survive.
Where: The Vampire Diaries (2009-present) - The CW
Why: Katherine is by far one of the most selfish characters I've seen on TV. She's mean, witty, and classy. Being 539 years old she's had a lot of experience with the world and knows how to manipulate situations to her liking. She's an extremely cold blooded vampire who has no problem with feeding on citizens. Her attitude and attire fit her persona extremely well, the phrase "if looks could kill" fit Katherine very well. She is a selfish character and has rarely shown vulnerability. Even when she became a human again, she did what she had to to survive. The only time Katherine has shown a vulnerability was to Stefan Salvatore (mostly because there was so witchy mojo drawing them together), Elijah Mikaelson (possibly because she was afraid of him and he enjoyed her when she was a human back in 1492) and her long lost daughter Nadia. Nadia Petrova really was the only person who loved her, she spent centuries searching for the mother that gave her away, but Katherine wanted her daughter more than anything. Even in death (again) Katherine went out with a bang, she was always one step ahead of the game and her selfish attitude made her a pleasure to watch. She used her tongue as a gun and never looked back. I wish more characters were as ruthless as this chick, she was never portrayed as a hero, not even an anti-hero, she simply was a villain!
♥ Animation ♥
Azula
Who: Princess Azula of the Fire Nation
Born into royal blood, Azula is the second child of Fire Lord Ozai. Her older brother Zuko and her are complete opposites, where he has an open heart and hers is basically cold as stone. Azula was always a naturally talented fire bender, showing great promise even when she was a child. She also was a bully as a child and her ruthlessness stayed with her to her teens. She is tactful and smart when it comes to war conflicts, regular teenage drama not so much. Unlike most firebenders, her flames are blue to match her cold-hearted personality. Her quest for power was her main focus, she had no issue going to hunt down the Avatar and stopping anyone in her way, including her older brother. Azula also learned the advanced form of fire bending, the ability to bend lightening which is a deadly strike.
Where: Avatar: The Last Airbender (2005-2008) - Nickelodeon
Why:
Simply, this chick is a bad*ss. She is ruthless, unloving (well the ending I had some feels), and crazy strong. She firebends like it is her life and enjoys showing off her power. When her father asked her to do what her brother failed, she didn't feel the need to hesitate. She shared the same dream as her father which was to take over the world. (However, in the end she felt betrayed and alone from both parents.) Azula's ruthlessness and countless epic battles made her a thrill to watch. Every time she came on screen she was planning something with cruel intentions. I could only imagine her as an adult...
♥ Video Game ♥
Handsome Jack
Who: Handsome Jack
We will apparently be learning about Handsome Jack's backstory in Borderlands: The Prequel, which is releasing later this year. We're also apparently suppose to sympathize with him, I'm curious what his true backstory will be.
In Borderlands 2 though, Handsome Jack is the main antagonist and he's a pretty big d-bag.
Where: Borderlands 2 (2012) & Borderlands: The Prequel (2014)
Why:
He took over Hyperion corporation, which provides New-U Station and is a chief weapons manufacturer. He also named himself to be the dictator of Pandora. He uses a geostationary moon base to keep an eye on the Vault Hunters along with sending troops and supplies to Pandora. He also stole all the credit for finding The Vault, sometimes going as far as taking credit for defeating The Destroyer. He also used his own daughter for evil motives in both Borderlands 1 and 2. The guy is pretty terrible and didn't have a kind bone in his body. To our knowledge, his motives were all greed (enter Borderlands: The Prequel!)
♥ Honorable Mention ♥
Team Rocket
Who: Jessie, James and Meowth
Jessie was born to a high ranking Team Rocket member, however when her mother disappeared while on a mission Jesse was then put into foster care. When she became of age; either she could not afford or did not meet the requirements to go to nursing school, so instead she went to a Pokémon Nursing School (intended for Chansey). Regardless she failed to graduate and then went on to attend trainer's academy. She met her current partner James there, although they did not join Team Rocket at the same time. During the Hoenn and Sinnoh arc, Jessie participated in many Pokemon Contest and seemed to enjoy being a Pokemon Coordinator.
James was born to a wealthy family. His Pokemon partner was Growlie (the Growlithe) which he loved dearly as a kid; their bond continued when he came back for an episode. James' family arranged a marriage for him, but he wasn't having any of that so he left his wealth, Growlie and family behind. James later joined Team Rocket.
Meowth was like any other Meowth, he walked on four legs and talked in Pokemon language. When he was young he saw a movie that influence him to go to Hollywood thinking it would be like paradise. However, he constantly found himself getting into trouble for stealing food. He joined a gang lead by a Persian until one day when he became love struck over a female Meowth named Meowzie. In order to impress the human loving Meowth, he tried to make himself more human by learning how to talk and walk like them, however she still rejected him. The first word Meowth learned was rocket, so he went to seek out Team Rocket.
Where: Pokémon (1997-present)
Why: Probably the strangest troupe of villains, but this trio is on a mission to ruin a ten year old's journey and steal his beloved Pikachu. Being a part of Team Rocket, their job is to steal or capture rare/powerful Pokemon. The forest episode they appear in they notice how strong Pikachu is (probably is a perfect IV Pokemon) and have made it their life's mission to capture it. From that point on, every episode they appear in they have pretty much attempted to capture and take Pikachu away from Ash Ketchum. How mean is that, picking on a ten year old boy, quite unethical in my opinion. Now this trio themselves isn't as rotten as other members (ie. Butch and Cassidy, the boss Giovani), I mean if you think about their original motto they would come across as do-gooders not villains. Regardless, this trio is the ongoing antagonist of the series.
I've already read a bunch of weekly themes for this challenge and they're all great!
So tell me (briefly),
Who's your favorite villain and why?