Villains that are better than the Hero.

[Kari Kamiya]

Left field, but The Fairy Godmother in Shrek 2. I've never watched a movie where I wanted 'the villain' to win more.

Ooh, that is left field. Honestly think she's the best villain in all of the Shrek franchise. Rumplestiltskin was good, but Fairy Godmother had actual connections to the characters through Fiona's father. If she wasn't in the picture, Fiona I don't think would be where she is today, therefore Shrek would still be stuck alone on his swamp. Rumplestilskin has his motives, of course, but he was more of a "last resort" compared to "Fairy Godmother, what should we do about this?" and making that deal to have Fiona and Prince Charming's arranged marriage. Her plan was brilliant, too.

God, that sequel was just so perfect. Now I'm curious what it'd been like had she won, like if Prince Charming had actually gotten there. Lord knows what he was doing that he couldn't get to the tower in time.

 

[Guts Gets Some]

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I thought this guy was the best character in the movie

And James Lynch
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But Kane & Lynch were the 'heroes' (at least the ones the audience were sided to root for) in their own games..... So, I'm not sure if this works.

 

[The Nothingness]

When you were written as one-dimensional villain in a blatant environmental-themed movie but a still image of you drinking coffee becomes a meme and Mike Nelson comes up with a song for your cartoonishly large knife.

 

[Chad Nasty]

But Kane & Lynch were the 'heroes' (at least the ones the audience were sided to root for) in their own games..... So, I'm not sure if this works.

They were death row inmates who killed a bunch of police.

 

[TerribleIdeas™]

Handsome Jack did NOTHING wrong

And the annoying brat in BL3 needs to die a horrible death, but apparently, despite everyone telling the devs the little piece of shit is the worst character in the whole fucking series, the devs are supposedly going ahead with a DLC entirely centred around her.

 

[Guts Gets Some]

They were death row inmates who killed a bunch of police.

That's not the topic though. This isn't best anti-hero protagonists; it's better antagonists than the protagonists.

You can have evil protagonists (as in Kane and Lynch), and then have good (IE, the law) or other evil antagonists (other criminals) to be their foil. The morality of the protagonists has nothing to do with it.

 

[Chad Nasty]

That's not the topic though. This isn't best anti-hero protagonists; it's better antagonists than the protagonists.

You can have evil protagonists (as in Kane and Lynch), and then have good (IE, the law) or other evil antagonists (other criminals) to be their foil. The morality of the protagonists has nothing to do with it.

So the police trying to stop them wouldn't count as good guys because why? They are a pretty integral part of the whole plot and the feel of playing out the criminal.

 

[Guts Gets Some]

So the police trying to stop them wouldn't count as good guys because why? They are a pretty integral part of the whole plot and the feel of playing out the criminal.

But do you like the police in those games better than Kane and Lynch? Because that's what this topic is asking.
Even though they're textbook criminals and questionably amoral, the fact is Kane AND Lynch are the protagonists of their own games. The topic is asking for characters who are the antagonists in whatever work that are better than the protagonists.

That's the best I can hope to describe it to you.

 

[Chad Nasty]

But do you like the police in those games better than Kane and Lynch? Because that's what this topic is asking.
Even though they're textbook criminals and questionably amoral, the fact is Kane AND Lynch are the protagonists of their own games. The topic is asking for characters who are the antagonists in whatever work that are better than the protagonists.

That's the best I can hope to describe it to you.

"Fellow kiwi's, name any bad guy that are more likeable/interesting/ or just better that the good guy. This applies to all forms of media. Be them from a Book, TV Show, Movie, Cartoon or Manga." - OP

I think James Lynch, the bad guy is better than the cops pursuing him which are the good guy.

 

[Guts Gets Some]

"Fellow kiwi's, name any bad guy that are more likeable/interesting/ or just better that the good guy. This applies to all forms of media. Be them from a Book, TV Show, Movie, Cartoon or Manga." - OP

I think James Lynch, the bad guy is better than the cops pursuing him which are the good guy.

In your own weird way, I guess that makes enough sense. But I think it's a bit off from what everyone else is posting.

 

[Cyril Sneer]

Uncle Phil did nothing wrong.

The man is practically a saint for not strangling his nephew to death out of sheer irritation.

When you were written as one-dimensional villain in a blatant environmental-themed movie but a still image of you drinking coffee becomes a meme and Mike Nelson comes up with a song for your cartoonishly large knife.

"...And above your tomb, the stars will belong to us."

Spoiler

 

[Maggots on a Train v2]

Almost every film with Vincent Price, Peter Cushing, or Christopher Lee as the villain, especially if the hero is some generic pretty boy. The worst one is House of the Long Shadows, that features all three up against Ricky Ricardo's son. It's terrible.

The Desi Arnaz Jr. role was obviously written as a knockoff of Bill Murray, but Arnaz's delivery completely fails in every scene. It's physically painful to watch. The full film is free on YT, nobody will claim this turd.

 

[Pokemonquistador2]

Almost every film with Vincent Price, Peter Cushing, or Christopher Lee as the villain, especially if the hero is some generic pretty boy. The worst one is House of the Long Shadows, that features all three up against Ricky Ricardo's son. It's terrible.

The Desi Arnaz Jr. role was obviously written as a knockoff of Bill Murray, but Arnaz's delivery completely fails in every scene. It's physically painful to watch. The full film is free on YT, nobody will claim this turd.

Aw man, that looks depressing, but is it Hillbillies in a Haunted House depressing?

(I believe this was Basil Rathbone's last film, and Lon Chaney Jr. looked like he had one foot in the grave as well...)

 

[Maggots on a Train v2]

Aw man, that looks depressing, but is it Hillbillies in a Haunted House depressing?

(I believe this was Basil Rathbone's last film, and Lon Chaney Jr. looked like he had one foot in the grave as well...)

I guess it truly depends on what you think is worse, cardboard set sixties schlock that barely makes any sense, or a low budget eighties movie that would actually have been funny if they had paid for the real Bill Murray.
I found these very telling factoids on IMDB.

This movie ran out of money three weeks into shooting.

Vincent Price turns up forty minutes in.

Sir Christopher Lee turns up forty-nine minutes in.

This movie took five weeks to shoot and cost just under one million pounds sterling.

Producers Yoram Globus and Menahem Golan never read the script.

To their credit, the movie looks good, the only fault is that you will spend the whole film praying for somebody to knife the protagonist.

 

[JohnLenin]

Simon Phoenix.

I was channel surfing when I saw demolition man and tuned in to this scene needless to say I was disappointed to find out Simon Phoenix was not the main character. Would've made a better and interesting protag tbh.

 

[knightlautrec]

For that matter, the bad guy in Frozen turning into a wannabe murderer didn't make sense, and dealing with Elsa is like the humans dealing with mutants in X-Men comics - there comes a point where the level of power this one person holds breaks down any analogy to real-world discrimination and just becomes a sensible reaction to their overwhelming powers.

I still attest that Hans did nothing wrong in Frozen. Both leaders fucked off and left their kingdom to rot in eternal winter where else Hans stayed around and helped out the people AKA as a ruler should.

Also, his face heel turn is an afterthought I believe. I think originally there was no villain (aside from Elsa's lack of leadership) and they shoehorned white handsome man into being the bad guy which made very little sense. And even if he'd truly been the villain all along he didn't seem as dumb initially as to reveal his plans to Anna outright. But he does. For some stupid reason. The smart thing to do would have been to fake concern and kiss her then act horribly upset when it didn't save her. Then he would have had hers and the courts sympathy as he carried her cold frozen body out as evidence that Elsa killed her sister and committed murder.

 

[Sweet and Savoury]

I'm going to go a little old school here...

Back in the 90's there was this little late night show on CBC up here in Canukistan called Forever Knight. It's about a vampire (before they were all turned into sparkly faggots) who's a cop in Toronto tying to kinda make up for all the bad shit he's done over the last 800 years. It was a really great show powered by some amazing actors and if your into that kinda shit look it up.

Anyhoo...the main character Nick Knight (ugh) has a "father" in a character named LaCroix who loves his wayward "son" dearly but doesn't understand why he wants this redemption shit and just wants his family back the way it was. Now LaCroix is a evil motherfucker in every regard who tries to set Nick up in various ways usually involving some poor unlucky human so that he'll "come back into his proper senses". He also has a radio show where he speaks to Nick every night waxing philosophically about the nature of good and evil, it sounds stupid but works rather well. The father's day episode is rather brilliant in this regard.

The complexity of LaCroix makes him far more interesting then any of the shows hero's who are humdrum in most ways. In the end Nick comes to the conclusion that he must kill LaCroix to be free to live his new life and the final fight is very intense as LaCroix is far more powerful but is ham-stringed by not really wanting to hurt his son or daughter and in the end they find a way to kill him and the parting lines as the trio stalk each other are amazing.

As much as I hate to say this the Jap's are really good at writing great villains as well.


Also Q from Star Trek...how can you not love that omnipotent bastard.

 

[SnowBall]

The Misfits from Jem and the Holograms. They were far more interesting and were the best part of every episode they were in. Also their songs are better. I am glad the IDW Jem series gave them a lot of love and even their own spin off series.

 

[Sayon]

I still attest that Hans did nothing wrong in Frozen. Both leaders fucked off and left their kingdom to rot in eternal winter where else Hans stayed around and helped out the people AKA as a ruler should.

Also, his face heel turn is an afterthought I believe. I think originally there was no villain (aside from Elsa's lack of leadership) and they shoehorned white handsome man into being the bad guy which made very little sense. And even if he'd truly been the villain all along he didn't seem as dumb initially as to reveal his plans to Anna outright. But he does. For some stupid reason. The smart thing to do would have been to fake concern and kiss her then act horribly upset when it didn't save her. Then he would have had hers and the courts sympathy as he carried her cold frozen body out as evidence that Elsa killed her sister and committed murder.

The villain was Elsa before Let It Go. Since the movie started as an adaptation of the Snow Queen with Proto-Elsa being the titular character, Proto-Anna as Gerda, Proto-Kristoff as Kai. Pre-Let It Go Elsa had been an outcast from her subjects rather than hiding her powers until the movie gets moving.

You can even see it in her art on advertisements. She's smug and arrogant looking.

 

[Ruin]

In Elfin Lied the Dicons are dangerous as fuck and it's established that even the good ones periodically snap and go on mass killing sprees. The bad guys are genocidal yes but can you blame them?