“ | Bad man. Good manners. | „ |
~ Ron Stoppable's description of Señor Senior, Senior. |
“ | Professionals have standards. Be polite. Be efficient. Have a plan to kill everyone you meet. | „ |
~ The Sniper to the interviewer. |
Villains who, despite their crimes, remain genuinely polite and friendly to the heroes and everyone else they face. They will listen to what others tell them, and their friendly and considerate nature often comes as a surprise to the heroes and possibly also the viewer. That said, they are still capable of losing their temper and will sometimes (temporarily) shed their polite nature if faced with defeat. Only true Affably Evil villains will regain (and retain) their polite nature after facing their defeat and will more likely than not, respect the heroes even more.
Since friendliness is a redeeming trait, it is not uncommon for affably evil villains to be redeemed or remorseful, or at least have the potential for such.
To be genuinely Affably Evil, the following criteria must be met:
- The affable nature is not an obvious façade. Affably Evil villains really ARE that nice or at the very least, have good manners. Some Affably Evil villains are so nice that they would be good if not for their evil deeds and act like normal people when not on the clock.
- There is a difference between Affably Evil and Faux Affably Evil villains. The latter is a villain who usually sounds or pretends to be polite but a close observation reveals their willingness to throw the hero in front of a bus without a second thought (e.g. Commander Rourke, Ego, Lots-o'-Huggin' Bear, Scar, Joker, Bill Cipher, Ernesto de la Cruz, Doma, Mysterio, Judge Claude Frollo, Frank Underwood, and Dawn Bellwether). For a villain to be Affably Evil, they must not be that heedless to the lives and well-being of others, and their kindness can redeem them. Ty Lee, Akaza, Volt Luster, The Collector, Soon, Kronk, and Gabby Gabby are examples. That said, it is possible for an Affably Evil villain to become Faux Affably Evil over time and vice versa. Good examples of Affably Evil villains turning Faux Affable are Dutch van der Linde, Enrico Pucci, Grant Ward, The Plutonian, Celestia Ludenberg, Billy Butcher, Mr. Krabs, Salem, Peter Griffin, Eric Cartman, Megabyte, and Walter White. Good examples of the opposite are Vegeta, Thanos (MCU), Magolor, Joker (Harley Quinn), Edward Nygma, Damien Darhk, Negan, Dr. Nefarious, Megatron (Cyberverse), Plankton, Sideshow Bob, Sir Pentious, and King Leonard Mudbeard.
- Affably Evil villains have lines they would never cross, even if those lines are unbelievably far out. A Faux Affably Evil villain could easily act polite, but still blow up planets or kill children as a lifestyle (e.g. Isaac Ray Peram Westcott, Emperor Palpatine, Sebastian Shaw, Lord Cutler Beckett, Goku Black, Syndrome, Micah Bell, and Judge Holden). However, it is quite possible for a Chaotic Evil, Genocidal, Cataclysmic villain, or even a Harbinger for Rebirth to be Affably Evil only if they have standards, some honor, and/or lines they are not willing to cross or if they do have good intentions (e.g. Thanos, Trevor Philips, Count Bleck, Raul Menendez, Joker (2019), Accelerator, Mammoth Mogul, Eren Yeager, Jevil, and Dodge).
They are the polar opposite of heroic jerks, who are heroes (and occasionally anti-heroes and antagonistic heroes) that are genuinely rude and mean in spite of being heroes.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Pure Evil villains can NEVER qualify, because these villains are not genuinely polite or friendly to anyone, as this counts as a redeeming quality and would present the villain in a positive way, whereas Pure Evil villains are always selfish, hateful, uncaring, hostile and irredeemable. However, a Pure Evil villain can be (and is very often) Faux Affably Evil. Similarly, Pure Evil villains can also be Sophisticated and/or Friend of a Hero if they were once true friends of the hero in the past. That said, there are several examples of Pure Evil villains who used to be genuinely polite before becoming worse over time. Although, Affably Evil villains can still get away with their crimes without redeeming themselves, even if their crimes are not severe enough, and should therefore fall under Karma Houdinis instead of Redeemed.
- Due to their affable nature, it is nearly impossible for a genuinely Affably Evil villain to be a psychopath. If an Affably Evil villain does have psychopathic and horrific traits, they should be listed under paranoid and/or mentally ill instead (e.g. Nagito Komaeda, Akihiko Kayaba, Esdeath, Todd Alquist, Dexter Morgan, Tony Soprano, Hannibal Lecter, and Rick Sanchez). The only exceptions are villains who narrowly manage to be not diabolical despite their ruthless nature (e.g. Hisoka Morow, Victor Zsasz, Henry Stickmin, Black Suit, Solf J. Kimblee, Jordan Belfort, Black Shadow, Alie Peters, and Alice Morgan).
All items (9191)
- A Pimp Named Slickback
- A.R.O.N.A
- AAARRRGGHH!!!
- Aaron Burr (Hamilton)
- Aaron Davis (Earth-42)
- Aaron Davis (Marvel Cinematic Universe)
- Aaron Dingle
- Aaron Helzinger
- Abbot Emmanuel
- Abby (Let Me In)
- Abby and Martha Brewster
- Abby Anderson
- Abdulla
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- Abel Gideon
- Abel Walker
- Abhorash
- Abhoth
- Abi Branning
- Abidos the Third
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- Abigail Gregory
- Abigail Hobbs
- Abigail Roberts
- Abigail, Amy and Sebastian Van Oddly
- Abner
- Abominable Snow Monster
- Abominable Snowman (Goosebumps 2015 film)
- Abomination (Marvel Cinematic Universe)
- Abraham Kane
- Abraham Reyes
- Abraham Van Helsing (Hotel Transylvania)
- Abram Tarasov
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- Absorbing Man (Marvel)
- Abyss (Pro Wrestler)
- Abzorbaloff
- Accelerator
- Accord
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- Ace Hardlight
- Ace Rothstein
- Acha and Kocha
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- Ack (Creepwood)
- Acqua of the Back
- Acro
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- Ada Tucker
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- Adam "Kane" Marcus
- Adam (Dark)
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- Adam (Silent Hill)
- Adam Barlow
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- Adam Stanheight
- Adam the Clown
- Adam Warlock (Marvel Cinematic Universe)
- Adar
- Adda
- Adelaide Wilson
- Adil Hoxha
- Adina
- Adipose
- Admiral Belleza
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- Admiral Gregorio
- Admiral Piett
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- Admiral Yarofev
- Admiral-General Aladeen
- Adolf Hitler (Downfall)
- Adolf Hitler (Dragon Ball)
- Adolf Hitler (Reincarnation no Kaben)
- Adolf Hitler (Super Science Friends)
- Adolf Hitler (The Cleveland Show)
- Adolf Hitler (The King's Speech)
- Adonis (Kamen Rider Ghost)
- Adria
- Adrian Doorbal
- Adu Du
- Aegon I Targaryen
- Aegon II Targaryen
- Aelfric Dahlman
- Aeon the Terrible
- Earl Unger
- Agent 14
- Agent 33 (Marvel Cinematic Universe)
- Agent 47
- Agent Bishop
- Agent Jack Burns
- Agent Jackson (Key and Peele)
- Agent Johnson (K.C. Undercover)
- Agent Kalaschnikov
- Agent Kallus
- Agent Liberty (Supergirl)
- Agent Peters
- Agent Red
- Agent Stone (Sonic the Hedgehog)
- Agent Whiskey
- Aggie Prenderghast
- Agnes Mary Winstead
- Agnes Skinner
- Agnese Sanctis
- Agni and Rudra
- Agony (Marvel)
- Agâh Beyoğlu
- Ah Ling
- Ah-Puch (The Storm Runner)
- Ahab
- Ahmed & Salim
- Ahri
- Ai (Yu-Gi-Oh!)
- Aichi Sendou
- AIDAN
- Aiden O'Malley
- Aiden Price
- Aileen Greene
- Aileen Rao
- Ainz Ooal Gown
- Air Force One Angel
- Aisrehdar
- AJ Styles
- Aja Salisbury
- Ajax (The Warriors)
- Aji Min
- Ajunta Pall
- Akagi (Azur Lane)
- Akane Hiyama
- Akari (Hello? Hell...o?)
- Akari Abe
- Akasha (Dragalia Lost)
- Akashic
- Akaspetchi & Pipospetchi
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- Akaza
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- Akihiko
- Akihiko Kayaba
- Akiko Yonehara
- Akira (Akira)
- Akira Kiyosumi
- Akira Konoe
- Akira Nishikiyama
- Akito Hyuga
- Akomaru
- Akoya Matama
- Akron
- Akuma (Street Fighter)
- Akuma Shogun
- Al Chapman
- Al Neri
- Al Roker (The Proud Family)
- Al'Akir
- Alain
- Alan (Alantutorial)
- Alan (Game Over, Man!)
- Alan and Ann
- Alan Richard
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- Alana Bloom
- Alarak
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- Alastair Adana
- Alastor (Hazbin Hotel)
- Albatross Sanctos
- Albert (Johnny Test)
- Albert James Moriarty
- Albert Simon
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- Albert Wesker (Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City)
- Alberto Ranieri
- Albinass
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- Albus and Horace
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- Aldous Leekie
- Aldrin Klordane
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- Alec Baldwin (Team America: World Police)