Villains you felt sympathy for, but felt you weren't meant to?

[Relish in Chaos]

Which villains in fiction (whether it be in comic books, TV, film, whatever) have you felt sympathy for, but felt that you weren't meant to?

[HARD CANDY SPOILER ALERT]

I personally felt some strange sense of sympathy (or maybe it was pity) for Patrick Wilson's character in Hard Candy. I think it was just the way he portrayed him so humanely and believably, despite being a child molester who'd murdered, or at least born witness to the murders of sexually abused young girls.

I guess the fact that we never saw his criminal actions, since they took place before the film, is partly due to this. And at first glance, he's just this ordinary handsome photographer before being both physically and psychologically tortured by Ellen Page's character (who, to be honest, didn't garner much sympathy from me, probably due to the fact that we knew nothing about her other than that she was supposedly smart). And that faked castration scene...

Anyway, what are your thoughts?

 

[Esotera]

The colonel in Pan's Labyrinth. He's obviously a massive dick and commits war crimes, but at least he is efficient at what he does, and isn't afraid to fight with his men. He had a lot of issues with his father, and although that's not an excuse it did get him some of my sympathy.

 

[Thaluikhain]

Any villain who gets defeated by heroes who deserve to lose.

If the heroes spend their time whining, mucking about, and only win due to being designated heroes, I want the villain to kill them.

 

[Aurgelmir]

Which villains in fiction (whether it be in comic books, TV, film, whatever) have you felt sympathy for, but felt that you weren't meant to?

[SPOILER ALERT]

I personally felt some strange sense of sympathy (or maybe it was pity) for Patrick Wilson's character in Hard Candy. I think it was just the way he portrayed him so humanely and believably, despite being a child molester who'd murdered, or at least born witness to the murders of sexually abused young girls.

I guess the fact that we never saw his criminal actions, since they took place before the film, is partly due to this. And at first glance, he's just this ordinary handsome photographer before being both physically and psychologically tortured by Ellen Page's character (who, to be honest, didn't garner much sympathy from me, probably due to the fact that we knew nothing about her other than that she was supposedly smart). And that faked castration scene...

Anyway, what are your thoughts?

This is sort of off topic, but I feel a need to say it.

Adding a spoiler alert without pointing out WHAT you are spoiling isn't helping anyone.
How do I know if you are spoiling something I have seen/read before or not?

 

[Imthatguy]

Any Eldritch abominations. What? The just want to destroy the very fabric of reality.

Alex Mercer is kinda a weird case hes supposed to be sympathetic but it really falls hard on its face but I thought at the very least his story is tragic. (Then again the Marine whos soul Alex just ate is probably a more tragic) Blackwatch may be the psychopaths that made the virus but in the end what their doing is in the interest of everyone.

Also OP Hard Candy was set up to humanize him. The conventional role of protagonist and antagonist is hard to apply to Hard Candy indeed all you can pick between is a pedophile and a serial killer in the making. (I still think Ellen Page's character is better. I simply recognize how the film is set up.)

 

[Eclipse Dragon]

Galbatorix from Eragon.
Dude is hardly ever mentioned, we never actually SEE him doing anything evil. How do I know he did everything he's rumored to do? Maybe it's all just dragon rider propaganda.

Maybe he has a renegade general on the loose and that's why his minions are slaughtering villages.

(Apparently he does something evil in the final book, which I haven't read, but could probably chalk up to a nervous breakdown due to the heroes bugging him so much).

 

[BathorysGraveland]

The Grandmaster of the Order of the Flaming Rose, in the first Witcher game. Unlike Letho in the 2nd, I don't think you're meant to be sympathetic towards the grandmaster at all. However to me, he was simply a deluded man with good intentions, just an incorrect way of going about them. Like a scientist who is developing a cure for cancer, but is using live human test subjects who die in order for the research to progress - good intentions, just a bad way of doing it. I really believe the grandmaster loved humanity, and just wanted to help in the only way he thought possible.

 

[DJjaffacake]

The Sith are a big one for me. Since the Jedi's position is basically, "What is this thinking for yourself? Emotion? Pah!" and the Sith's seems to be, "I kind of like emotion to be honest." Plus there's the whole "bringing balance to the force" thing that suggests the Sith are just as valuable to the force as the Jedi. Not that Lucas would ever think that making a well thought out argument that makes his films much more mature part of the canon would be a good idea.

If you're still not understanding why I would like the Sith, this is the Jedi Code:
There is no emotion, there is peace.
There is no ignorance, there is knowledge.
There is no passion, there is serenity.
There is no chaos, there is harmony.
There is no death, there is the Force.

Whereas the Sith Code is this:
Peace is a lie, there is only passion.
Through passion, I gain strength.
Through strength, I gain power.
Through power, I gain victory.
Through victory, my chains are broken.
The Force shall free me.

The Sith one is just better.

 

[if_then_else]

Which villains in fiction (whether it be in comic books, TV, film, whatever) have you felt sympathy for, but felt that you weren't meant to?

[SPOILER ALERT]

I personally felt some strange sense of sympathy (or maybe it was pity) for Patrick Wilson's character in Hard Candy. I think it was just the way he portrayed him so humanely and believably, despite being a child molester who'd murdered, or at least born witness to the murders of sexually abused young girls.

I guess the fact that we never saw his criminal actions, since they took place before the film, is partly due to this. And at first glance, he's just this ordinary handsome photographer before being both physically and psychologically tortured by Ellen Page's character (who, to be honest, didn't garner much sympathy from me, probably due to the fact that we knew nothing about her other than that she was supposedly smart). And that faked castration scene...

Anyway, what are your thoughts?

I hear you.

I love that movie so much, and part of it is because of what you said. The movie fucks with your head so much that you really don't know how to fell for either character.

Spoiler

You can't certainly think what Hayley is doing is right, but then you remember that he is the monster. Or is he? You can't even be sure because the movie doesn't really show you anything and he is always in denial. Even at the end, when Jeff confesses and hangs himself I can't stop felling pity for him.

 

[Hero in a half shell]

Any character played by Tim Curry

Spoiler

It's the smile.

 

[PsychicTaco115]

I always felt bad for Joffrey Baratheon.

Spoiler: Game of Thrones Spoilers

I mean, his supposed father almost beat him to death, he shows the symptoms of a personality disorder and was born simply for the mother to gain power to the throne. I can't sympathize with his actions, but I still feel bad for the guy :/

 

[Alternative]

Galbatorix from Eragon.
Dude is hardly ever mentioned, we never actually SEE him doing anything evil. How do I know he did everything he's rumored to do? Maybe it's all just dragon rider propaganda.

Maybe he has a renegade general on the loose and that's why his minions are slaughtering villages.

(Apparently he does something evil in the final book, which I haven't read, but could probably chalk up to a nervous breakdown due to the heroes bugging him so much).

He stops Eragon trying to murder him :/
thats the big evil thing he does from what i remember.
he didnt want to die and that's evil.

OT: Jigsaw from saw.
by the 7th movie i found him the most likable character simply because he died 4 movies ago and was the only one out of all 7 movies not to act like a complete retard..

 

[Glademaster_v1legacy]

I feel a lot of Chaos Space Marines are quite a misunderstood bunch and aren't as bad as they are made out to be. Maybe just led a little astray.

 

[Lord Garnaat]

I remember watching a movie called "What About Bob?", where Bill Murray plays a neurotic mental patient who ends up stalking his therapist and ruining his life. And you were supposed to sympathize with Murray's character.

It was one of those horrible sadist movies that I hate more than anything else, where the entire premise is one guy being horribly, horrifically punished for an hour-and-a-half, and which never work because no matter how much of a jerk the character in question is there will always be a point where I no longer feel he deserves it.

For example, in the movie the therapist is portrayed as being a somewhat stuck-up person who doesn't spend enough time with his kids. And for that the film believes that it's justified for Bill Murray to get his children to hate his guts, turn everyone he knows against him, ruin his career, cause him to lose all of his money, blow up his house, and then marry his sister. I was disgusted watching it, and was rooting for the supposed "bad guy" to get some sort of reprieve the whole time, but it never came.

 

[Desworks]

Any Eldritch abominations. What? The just want to destroy the very fabric of reality.

I'm with you on this one. They don't even want to destroy the very fabric of reality, it's just something they do simply by being. On a similar front, Galactus. Guy just wants to eat.

 

[VoidWanderer]

The big reveal for the Criminal minds episode featuring Malcolm from Malcolm in the Middle, name currently escapes of actor).

Episode name was True Night, I believe.

Very good episode.

 

[Dastardly]

Recently re-watched an episode of Dollhouse, where Patton Oswalt appeared. He was a client of the titular Dollhouse, thus dealing in human trafficking and quasi-slavery... but when you learn his reasons, it really gets hard not to feel for the guy.

 

[major_chaos]

The Helghast(SP?) from Killzone, sure they are space Nazis but that is kinda the ISA's fault, in fact the ISA just seems to be a bunch of twats in general, and the player character seemed to have been invented by taking every complaint about the main cast of other shooters and mixing them into one utterly hateful individual.