Do you ever feel sympathy for the villains?

Meepman

Arogance is bliss
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    I'm not sure if this is in the right section, and if it isn't feel free to move it. Well what I mean by sympathy is sort of like do you ever feel like they should have won or gotten away with it? For example I was just watching an episode of pokemon, where team rocket just stole a few of the characters pokemon in the middle of the night, and I'm thinking "yes I can see it all now, by the time the heroes wake team rocket will already be miles away, assuming they left behind nothing with their scent on it tracking them will be impossible, marill not being rare or powerful will most likely be exterminated, while elekid and piplup will be tortured into submission then trained into electivire and empoleon to be used for even more nefarious deeds". :paranoid: .... Or maybe I'm just screwed up beyond belief.
     
    No it's cool, I totally get what you mean. In some movies, the villains' story lines are well-developed so the audience sometimes can't help but feel for the bad guy at certain points in the film. Star Wars is a great example. Now that George Lucas has shown how little Anakin became Darth Vader, both fans and non-Star Wars fans finally understand the pain and grief that the guy went through.
     
    Oh my goodness, yes. Star Wars is a great example.
    Perhaps also in a film you may not have heard of, The Illusionist, the Prince is shown as the bad character, and he is a horrible person, but by the end you do feel sorry for him because he's been tricked and he really was just doing what he thought was right. I'll say no more in case I spoil it.
    In Doctor Who I often feel sorry for the enemies. Much like Meepman, I usually feel sorry for Team Rocket.

    Ocean's Eleven? I mean, they're villains! XD

    xX
     
    I always tend to empathise more with villains than with heroes, so yes, I understand what you mean. In the DC-Universe I absolutely adore The Riddler, Mirror Master II and Psycho Pirate II, who are all my favourite characters and who I tend to root for whenever Batman or the Justice League gets on their tail XD. I also like Pariah/Kel Mossa (obscure character reference weeeeell before the events of Blackest Night anyway ftw!) who was something of a villain before he went and destroyed the Multiverse and felt kinda bad for doing so lol.
     
    I usually sympathize with villains that are made severely underpowered in comparison to the heroes of whatever the medium is. One old show that comes to mind is Gigantor. Every episode I've seen usually involves very little being done by Jimmy Sparks and Gigantor. Another show that comes to mind is the original TOm and Jerry series (although Tom did get a few breaks). But I also sympethize with villains who are actually developed. The Joker comes to mind (and not just from The Dark Knight).
     
    It's hard not to feel a little sympathy when they show the villain's fall into villainy. It reminds you that they were normal (or somewhat normal) people once and had, if not good, at least understandable reasons to turn to crime/evil/etc. Plus, it's fun to imagine things from the bad guys' side.

    I don't feel much sympathy for villains without a backstory or any apparent motivation other than to be evil. I still like them, but I'm happy when they get their comeuppance.
     
    no way being the bad guy is the best part til the end. sometimes after too. well...
    except in v for vendetta
     
    The Riddler puts so much planning into his schemes and his trademark riddles, it's hard for me not to feel a little sorry for him every time Batman foils him and starts going BIFF! ZAP! SOCK! to him...

    Team Rocket is another story though. They put almost NO thought into their plans aside from some creepy Meowth boss fantasy. I'm glad those clowns get pwned.
     
    I tend to sympathise (i hope thats the right one) with villains mostly when you can understand why they are doing whatever, and even more so when they are doing what is right (from their perspective anyway), a favorite example of this is most of Organization 13 in Kingdom Hearts, they only wanted a heart!

    The bad guys are generally the most interesting character, unless they are annoyingly buffoonish.
     
    Haha, oh yes all the time. xD

    For some reason I always end up having a soft spot for the villian. For example in the last Harry Potter book I really wanted Voldemort to win or turn from his evil ways. Perhaps it's just wishful thinking. :)
     
    I feel sorry for the Joker. I love him so much and I personally think there should be a spin off comic or movie where he wins.
    And Harley Quinn, because I just can't help but love her.
    And Ivy... and well, all of the Batman Villians.
     
    Ah, this is a great topic.

    Sympathy for a villain character is something that comes only when the director is able to properly develop a sense of attachment to even the evil characters. They have to intentionally make you feel badly for them.

    I agree, Star Wars is one of the best examples of this. One other that I found sympathy for the devil-so to speak-would be Resident Evil: Apocalypse. By the end of the movie, you feel bad for Nemesis. You can look at Sweeney Todd as feeling bad for the villain as well.

    I find it much more satisfying however when the villain gets what's coming to him in the end. Sweeney Todd, The Punisher, District 9, and Avatar were great examples of that.
     
    Yes, because, I'm sick and tired of Good guys always winning. I mean, you know it's going to happen, but come on! Villains deserve some spotlight...
     
    I'm watching the movie Gladiator right now, with Russell Crowe and Joaquin Phoenix, and it made me think of this thread. xD I feel so bad for Joaquin Phoenix's character in the movie, who's the villain. He thinks his father doesn't love him and doesn't want him as a son, and it definitely seems that way in the movie. He has "other" problems, because he's just kinda crazy, but I still feel sympathy at the beginning for him.

    Like JustinDestruction said, definitely Sweeney Todd too. :D

    I guess, as far as Pokemon goes, I always feel bad for Team Rocket just because I love them, especially when they're actually TRYING to help and they get blown away anyway.
     
    There are times when I do care about the villain, and then there are those times when I don't give much of a thing for the villain. I guess an example of this would be Detective Conan. There aren't many, but there is a murderer here and there when I actually feel sorry for them, and how they much have felt in the past.
     
    Unless the villain is messed up to the extreme, I will pity them. Their attempt at gaining whatever it was have been failed by the hero. I kinda feel what they're feeling then.
     
    Yeah some times i can't help but to feel bad for villans when they die or lose. One that comes to mind is magneto from the X-men movie.
     
    I feel sorry for all the bad guys that weren't made to be hated.

    A lot of villains were made in such a way that you just have to hate them for some reason or another.
     
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