The Villians You Love To Hate

In talking some more with a friend of mine about the Big Love show on HBO and the two villians (well there are more than one, but the main ones) and how now that the old villian is in dire straights and may die and his son, the other villian may take over how we both hope that Roman (the old villian) recovers just to put his son in his place----why?

Roman is THE VILLIAN YOU LOVE TO HATE. He's got reason behind his villany. They're the wrong reasons to do something--BUT he BELIEVES in them. It's in his heart that he's doing the right thing. You can understand where this comes from even though you understand it is wrong. It's not based on simple lust, greed, or self gratification which are all of his's sons reasons for doing things. That kind of villian you just hate because he's evil through and through. More often in real life even bad people have their good points, and things that their friends and families love about them. LOL They have some inner believe that justifies what they do.

It's wrong

It may even be evil

BUT THEY BELIEVE in their priciples.

Good villians in any stories we write should have more of a basis to them than just lust, greed, or self gratification. Sure that can all play in, but for a TRULY great villian there has to be some inner sanction for the actions. A belief system.

Take Stalin as a for instance. Pretty evil guy, and did LOTS of bad things.

Hitler too.

Both of those nut cases are real life people, and most would agree villanous. BOTH of them truly believed deep down that they were abiding by a deeper logic, and loftier goals. They believed that what they did was for a higher purpose.

They were wrong, of course, and we know it, but the reason that so many did follow those people is because their beliefs were infectious. They could, under the right circumstance even sound true.

Great villians come from somewhere deep inside a thought that has a broad implication and resonation. Something many people can understand, even if they don't agree with it.

Make your villians great.