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What makes these villains likeable is not their sad sob story, not their tragic childhood, nor their fatal flaw. They keep audiences captivated because they do have positive traits. And this is how you make any character likeable -- by giving them positive traits.
One scale is the Good vs Evil scale. Villains are necessarily evil. On this scale, they lie closer to Evil than they do to Good. And all protagonists (the ones we are supposed to root for, no matter how morally grey they are) lie closer to Good on this scale than all the villains in the story. This is how we tell heroes and villains apart.
Not to say that you can't write stories about evil characters. Each character is the hero of his own story. In the mind of a villain, reality is distorted, and good actions are perceived as being bad. A writer can do the same in their novel. As long as a morally good character's actions are perceived as evil by most of the characters in the story, their actions are evil. Perception is a powerful tool in the hands of a writer, and any character can be demonized.
The issue arises when a writer tries to create empathy for an evil character. How do you do that without making the character any less evil? Writers who rely only on the Good vs Evil scale are tempted to create a Draco in Leather Pants or make their villain character Pet the Dog a few too many times, which ultimately leads to Wimpification where the villain is not really a threat anymore and all the conflict in the novel is gone. Then they have to create new villains to make up for the wimpified one.
Thankfully there is another way to make your villain likeable without reducing him to mush. You can use another scale. If a character's level of Evil is set in stone, that doesn't mean the other scales are fixed. "Good" and "Evil" aren't the only character traits in existence. The following traits have no effect on how morally good a character is. For instance, a villain could be very determined in achieving his evil plot and extremely loyal to his evil overlord. He'd still be a villain, still be evil. His determination or his loyalty would not make him any less of a villain.
Humor
Sarcasm
Playfulness
Curiosity
Creativity
Inventive
Patience
Cautiousness
Careful
Bravery
Honesty
Modesty
Idealism
Enthusiasm
Intelligence
Clever
Wisdom
Mature
Responsible
Reliable
Loyalty
Determination
Perseverance
Inner Strength
Mental Stability
Emotional Intelligence
Intuition
Psychological Insight
Persuasiveness
Perceptiveness
Observant
Originality
Eccentricity
Open-mindedness
Spontaneity
Activeness
Diligence
Industrious
Obedience
Politeness
Diplomatic
Thick Skin
These traits (and some others not listed here) don't belong on the Good vs Evil scale. These traits are morally neutral and can be used to great effect to make the most horrible character at least a little lovable.
Part two:
One scale is the Good vs Evil scale. Villains are necessarily evil. On this scale, they lie closer to Evil than they do to Good. And all protagonists (the ones we are supposed to root for, no matter how morally grey they are) lie closer to Good on this scale than all the villains in the story. This is how we tell heroes and villains apart.
Not to say that you can't write stories about evil characters. Each character is the hero of his own story. In the mind of a villain, reality is distorted, and good actions are perceived as being bad. A writer can do the same in their novel. As long as a morally good character's actions are perceived as evil by most of the characters in the story, their actions are evil. Perception is a powerful tool in the hands of a writer, and any character can be demonized.
The issue arises when a writer tries to create empathy for an evil character. How do you do that without making the character any less evil? Writers who rely only on the Good vs Evil scale are tempted to create a Draco in Leather Pants or make their villain character Pet the Dog a few too many times, which ultimately leads to Wimpification where the villain is not really a threat anymore and all the conflict in the novel is gone. Then they have to create new villains to make up for the wimpified one.
Thankfully there is another way to make your villain likeable without reducing him to mush. You can use another scale. If a character's level of Evil is set in stone, that doesn't mean the other scales are fixed. "Good" and "Evil" aren't the only character traits in existence. The following traits have no effect on how morally good a character is. For instance, a villain could be very determined in achieving his evil plot and extremely loyal to his evil overlord. He'd still be a villain, still be evil. His determination or his loyalty would not make him any less of a villain.
Humor
Sarcasm
Playfulness
Curiosity
Creativity
Inventive
Patience
Cautiousness
Careful
Bravery
Honesty
Modesty
Idealism
Enthusiasm
Intelligence
Clever
Wisdom
Mature
Responsible
Reliable
Loyalty
Determination
Perseverance
Inner Strength
Mental Stability
Emotional Intelligence
Intuition
Psychological Insight
Persuasiveness
Perceptiveness
Observant
Originality
Eccentricity
Open-mindedness
Spontaneity
Activeness
Diligence
Industrious
Obedience
Politeness
Diplomatic
Thick Skin
These traits (and some others not listed here) don't belong on the Good vs Evil scale. These traits are morally neutral and can be used to great effect to make the most horrible character at least a little lovable.
Part two:
Lovable Villains: Agent SmithPart one of my Lovable Villains series can be found here:
In this second part I will elaborate on what makes villains lovable with a set of examples from multiple fiction genres. Starting with Agent Smith from the Matrix movies,
Agent Smith is a computer program, created by the machines to maintain the status quo of the fictional reality they made to enslave humans. Smith is sufficiently dehumanized to make him unrelatable to the audience, and (as his goals are diametrically opposed to the goals of the protagonists) he is a functional villain, serves a clear purpose in the story, and generates much conflict. Since he stands for the oppression of humankind, the audience automatically dislikes him, and perceives him as being 'evil'. He doesn't hesitate to use violence, is ruthless in his pursuits, and places no value in human life.
The dark concealing glasses Smith wears convey a powerful messag
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