I need an example of a badly written antagonist...

[triggrhappy94]

(Please disregard if this ends up as a double post. My internet's acting up and it looks like my first attempt at posting this did work. Thanks for understanding)
Well, after my original example was destroyed in a different post, I now need a poorly written antagonist. I need someone whose motives come down to "Just cause" or something like that. Someone who acts without reason. This can be from movies or books.

 

[TheIronRuler]

Any one dimensional villain can do the trick.
Especially if he reveals his motives at the beginning, and they involve world domination.
In my opinion a good piece of.... book/video-game/tv series/movie needs a compelling villain that sometimes is more developed and fleshed out than the actual main protagonist.
You'll root for the person that's trying to kill the one the camera is situated behind, or at least find it hard to see the difference between good and bad.

 

[Kahunaburger]

Galbatorix from eragon haha. Movie or books.

 

[triggrhappy94]

The Joker.

Well he's crazy and more a chaotic evil.

 

[TheIronRuler]

The Joker.

Well he's crazy and more a chaotic evil.

What do you need this for?

 

[Canid117]

Without reason can still be a compelling villain. Take the Joker from the Dark Knight for example. What you need is them doing it without reason and giving no character explanation.

 

[CM156_v1legacy]

Bishop from Neverwinter Nights 2

Spoiler

He is a prick for no reason other than being a prick. He also burned down his village when he was younger because he hated them for no good reason. What's worse is that you have to put up with him for a good portion of the game. He is Chaotic Evil, but did not get the "Evil isn't stupid" memo. He is also a cheater and has better stats than you can legally have for a PC (Pointbuy of 40 rather than 36)

 

[triggrhappy94]

The Joker.

Well he's crazy and more a chaotic evil.

What do you need this for?

I need to write a soapbox speech (***** about stuff) for an english class, and I chose to write about how a lot of vilians in popular books and movies don't have (good) motives.

Any one dimensional villain can do the trick.

Do you have any names that I could use?

 

[Pompey71]

Lex Luthor exclusively from Superman Returns. Nero from the Star Trek reboot and The Evil Sun Dude from Sunshine.

All of them have motives but you kinda have to fill them in. Their motives within the films are given in throw-away sentences that don't really elaborate on their true intentions and causes for being that way. Lex was poorly written in that as a stand alone film, you wouldnt have a CLUE why he was making a continent or wanted to kill Superman, Nero in Star Trek just seems like a cry baby and a total repeat of Khan and the Sunshine dude, well... who the hell IS he?!

 

[Pompey71]

oh... and Sauron from Lord of the Rings! Why is he evil... who knows?!

 

[TheIronRuler]

The Joker.

Well he's crazy and more a chaotic evil.

What do you need this for?

I need to write a soapbox speech (***** about stuff) for an english class, and I chose to write about how a lot of vilians in popular books and movies don't have (good) motives.

Any one dimensional villain can do the trick.

Do you have any names that I could use?

Have you seen 'The Watchmen'?
Then I'm referring to the James Bond villains that tell their plans while James can still stop them.
Also are villains that want the youth&immortality combo, i.e. Frieza and the like.

You can write about ANYTHING. Why talk about villains?

 

[clipse15]

When I think of poorly written antagonists I think about the main antangonisr from the book The Kiterunner. He is almost cartoonishly evil since he's a half Afghanistan half German nazi sympathizer who is a child rapist and eventually leads a section of the Taliban. At one point in there early childhood he also gives the protaganist a copy of Hitler's biograpghy. Its so bad.

 

[ReservoirAngel]

The Joker.

I object. His motives do some from "just cause" but unlike other such antagonists, that's why he works so well. Other antagonists that just do stuff for fun come across as stupid and pointless, but the Joker is just written so well that even the "just cause" motivations make him so deep and complex, with many theories about why he keeps pulling stuff on Batman.

For example, the theories range from "he's terminally deranged" all the way to "he's in love with Batman". And everything in between.

 

[Random Argument Man]

What about Ultmecia from FF8? http://www.cosplayisland.com/files/costumes/4603/44379/Ultimecia%201.jpg

She want to "compress time" because....because...heck I don't remember...

 

[NinjaDeathSlap]

Blofeld from the old Bond films. He was in like 4 of them and I still never worked out what his beef was to begin with.

 

[ScoopMeister]

This guy.

But that's what makes him so awesome.

 

[Arsen]

The Dark Tower, book seven, The Crimson King.

We go all the way through Stephen King's universe, see his various henchmen, see the nefarious deeds he has committed, and lo' and behold...after several books of foreshadowing and walking across the abandoned wastelands of Discordia, where he stands on his fortress, biding the destruction of the universe...

Spoiler

He's basically a crazy looking Santa Clause. Oh, and he's throwing homing grenades at our central protagonist while shouting the phrase "EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEeeeeeeee!".

There was no demigod of malevolence lurking there...just...THAT.

Edit - If this isn't what you are looking for, and you're true question is Could you please provide me with an example of a one dimensional villain?, then by all means word the question in a better manner. Poorly written and poorly executed have two very different meanings.

 

[Soviet Heavy]

oh... and Sauron from Lord of the Rings! Why is he evil... who knows?!

Everyone who read the appendices knows. All three of them.