Villains who are the opposite of what many expect from an antagonistic "boss"; they genuinely care for another being. Whether it be paternal/maternal, romantic, or simply a "matter of principle", these villains will not only treat their minions well, but often go into a rage when their minions are threatened or harmed and they are willing to go out of their way to save them at their own risks (e.g. Blitzo).

Sometimes, this can be because the minions are relations to the villain, the villain's lovers, friends, or (as mentioned above) the villain genuinely values those who aid them.

IMPORTANT: Pure Evil villains CANNOT be in this category, because they do not care about the well-being or safety of anyone (except for themselves). Even if in some cases, they seemingly show care to someone, it is only because they have interests behind or for convenience; furthermore, they are not willing to save others lives by altruism because they lack empathy. (e.g. Lord Voldemort cared about Nagini only because she was one of his horcruxes; otherwise he would have killed her, Blackbeard cared about Angelica only because she was helping him reach the Fountain of Youth to save his own skin, Ego cared about Quill only because he had the Celestial genes so he can help him to realize the Expansion unlike all others kids of the Celestial who ended up killed, William Afton cared about his daughter Elizabeth only because he can have her as his successor; otherwise he would've left her to die, Judge Claude Frollo cared about Quasimodo only because of his fear of God's wrath and he could still be useful to him; otherwise he would have dropped him down the well, Mysterio saved Peter and his friends only because it would boost his own ego and fame; plus his actions led getting Peter and his friends endangered in the first place, Koba cared for the Ape colony only because they would be loyal servants to him in his war against the humans, the Saxon Master only cared for his Missy incarnation because she was his future self and still killed her when he didn't like the person he would become, and Boris the Animal only spared his past self because he cared for his own safety).

However, despite the fact a genuinely protective villain is never purely evil, some of them can still be psychopaths if their protectiveness towards certain people doesn't contradict their lack of empathy toward everyone else (e.g. Jack Welker, Penguin (Batman Returns), Rumpelstiltskin, Randall, Tommy DeVito, Ursula (Disney), Alexia Ashford, William Birkin, Professor Ratigan, Agamemnon, Queen Witch, and Aaron the Moor). On the other hand, it can be a redeeming quality to some villains if they are willling to change for the person they're protective of (e.g. Ken, the Beast, Heinz Doofenshmirtz, John Silver, Loki Laufeyson, Nebula, and Yondu Udanta).

Also, DO NOT add characters like these even if they are not Pure Evil:

• Villains who have genuine care for another but aren't shown to be protective of them, making it minimal (e.g. Lord Shen, Thanos, Sergeant Major Gross, Isabel Aretas, Henry J. Waternoose III, King K, Rool, Sephiroth, and Captain Gutt).
• Villains whose care is extremely twisted, making it too ambiguous as to whether their care is genuine or not (e.g. Eric Cartman, Chris McLean, Norman Osborn, Sofia Lamb, and King Vortigern).
• Villains who have a soft side for their deceased loved ones or family but they are not shown onscreen (e.g. Hopper, Commander Tartar).
• Villains who are protective of others solely for pragmatic reasons such as power, evil goals, or greed (e.g. Ghirahim, Madame Medusa, Pristine Figg, Cackletta, Antasma, Fawful, and Clay Varris).
• Villains who were protective of others but dropped it once the person they protected opposed their goals (e.g. Ernesto de la Cruz, All For One, Kai Chisaki, Vincent, and Charles Muntz).
• Villains who show romantic desire, but it is only for selfish reasons and not out of genuine love (e.g. Gaston LeGume, Mrs. Tweedy, Orin Scrivello, Vandal Savage, Malty S. Melromarc, and Biff Tannen).
• Villains who used to be genuinely caring of another, but not anymore (e.g. Dabi, Montgomery de la Cruz, Jack Merridew, PAL, Doma, and Randall Boggs).

This category is ONLY for villains who still have genuine care for the well-being of people, animals, etc. For villains who protect things or places (including those labeled as Pure Evil), see the Guardians category instead.