Thursday, April 2, 2015

In Celebration of Villains

Thank you so much The Book Rat & A Backwards Story for hosting this.

I remember the time when I used to fall firmly on the side of the 'heroes'. The 'white hats'. You know - before. Before I started sympathizing with the villain. Before I started finding them fascinating. Before I started actually liking them - sometimes more than the hero.

The question is, where would the story be without a good villain? There's this saying: villains act; heroes react.

In most stories, villains are the driving force behind - well - everything. Where would the Beast be without the villain? (Okay, that might not be the best example…) He surely wouldn't have met Beauty, though! How about Cinderella without the Evil Stepmother? Probably never even wanted to go to the ball.


One of my favorite things about retellings is how the villains can change. Maybe they were irredeemable in the original - but now they're a big teddy bear. (But shh. They still don't want it to get out.) Or, now they're the love interest. (Scarlet, anyone?)

While the heroes get their (much needed, usually) character development, the villains get a chance to show what they're truly made of too. Maybe they're as irredeemably evil as they first appeared. Maybe they have a history, a past (a Freudian Excuse, if you will). Maybe they are simply misunderstood (and face it, they generally are).

For a tv show that does villains right, check out Once Upon A Time. Sure, all their villains start out delightfully villainous, but after time, character development and the advent (sometimes) of their own true love, they start looking a lot more like people and a lot less like 'evil villains'.

It's easy enough for me to say why I started liking villains in all stories (so much more interesting and, dare I say, cool than the heroes) but in fairy tales, it's a little different. A lot of the villains in fairy tales, at least the Disney versions that I've seen, are female - and they are so much more gutsy and proactive than the damsels that are our 'heroines'.

Villains: Are they all that bad? Article in The Washington Post has some interesting things to say about this.

Want to find out which fairy tale villain you are? (And, honestly now, who doesn't want to know?) Check out this fun, quick little quiz over at quizsocial. Which Fairy Tale Villain Are You? (Me? I was The Big Bad Wolf. ;))

Comments (6)

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Villains are definitely more interesting! The best is when a hero becomes a villain, or a villain becomes a hero, because their actions define their moral leanings.
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1 reply · active 519 weeks ago
Yeah! I love when a villain slowly starts becoming a hero. Really slowly and certainly more of an anti-hero than straight up hero works best for me. I've not had much experience with heroes becoming villains, but that would be such an interesting character study.
I love Once Upon a Time! Well..ok I'm actually not really loving this season. But the first two seasons were UHmazing. (Rumple and Regina may be my favourite characters OF ALL TIME.) Well written villains are definitely the most interesting characters by far!
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1 reply · active 518 weeks ago
Yup, I love well written villains. They're always so interesting. (Even the over-the-top evil villains can be a lot of fun when they're being a big ham.)

This season of Once, you mean season four? (I don't get to watch it on TV, I have to buy the DVD's or borrow them.) I thought season one was good, season two only improved on it and I loved the first half of season three. By the time I reached the second half though...I don't know. Something wasn't working for me. I am looking forward to season four, but I'm not as confident in the show as I used to be. Regina is without a doubt, my favorite of the main characters - and she's one of my favorite characters I've seen in a long time.
YAAAASSSS! I love a good villain. They're often the most fascinating characters!
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1 reply · active 517 weeks ago
That's it exactly. I couldn't agree more. Well written villains are always so much fun.

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