List of Crap #117: Top 50 Villains 2: Freddy's Revenge

[Russoguru]

Forrester! Forrester! Doctor Clayton Forrester!

[Johnny Unusual]

#4

Hans Gruber

75 Points, 4 Lists, #1 Cole Stratton

Nice Suit. John Philips, London. I have two myself. Rumor has it Arafat buys his there too.

Wanted For Terrorism

Profile

Hans Gruber is the main villain in the movie Die Hard.  A master criminal, Hans Gruber’s plot is to steal $640,000,000 in bearer bonds from the Nakatomi Plaza in LA by acting as a terrorist and having he and his men taking a Christmas party hostage.  He uses the terrorist act as a plot so the police and the FBI are unaware of what they are really after in order to trick them into completing his plan for them.  However, Gruber soon becomes aware that a New York police detective is loose in the plaza and is working to prevent him from completing his plan.

Gruber is a coolheaded and intelligent criminal, always a step ahead of most of his foes.  He’s a quick thinker when the plan changes as well and is incredibly ruthless, planning to kill a number of innocent people in order to get his money.  Though acting more of a thief in the film, Gruber does have a terrorist past, being expelled from a West German freedom fighting movement for being too extreme.  However, he seems to have no interest in using his intended wealth for continuing any terrorist campaign but simply to use it to retire.

Die Hard is a fantastic movie and spawned a lot of imitators but a lot of those imitators forgot to have a villain as charismatic as Hans Gruber.  Some try but it often feels like a copy of a copy.  Hans Gruber as played by Alan Rickman is a true match for our hero in terms of wits, intelligence and screen presence, and when the two finally meet (about two times in the film), it pays off really well.  I feel like super genius criminal has been done to death too, but while the plan here does seem as over the top, the film sells it well compared to villains who seem to think every element of the plot is just part of their plan.  We really get to see Gruber, despite having the upperhand for most of the film, still able to think on his feet when plans change, a real threatening foe for a character who, in his first movie, is actually pretty vulnerable (compared to the sequels when he becomes increasingly superhuman.)

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/TSdpRP_bVOM" target="_blank" class="new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/TSdpRP_bVOM</a>

Trivia
This was the feature film (and Hollywood) debut of Alan Rickman, who had previously only appeared onstage and on British television. Rickman was 41 at the time. As such, he was nervous about how his first Hollywood role would go over, but his outstanding success as Hans Gruber secured a lucrative career in American film.

[RVR II]

YIPPEE KAYAY MUDDER FUDDER 

[Darth Geek]

Wow, I had no idea Alan Rickman's first Hollywood role was in Die Hard. That is a hell of a way to start!

[Johnny Unusual]

#3

Megatron

95 Points, 5 Lists, #2 Pak-Man

Power flows to the one who knows how. Desire alone is not enough.

Wanted For Energon Theft, Not having a licence for himself

Profile

Megatron is a villain and often the primary antagonist of the Transformers frachise.  A robot from the distant planet Cybertron, Megatron is the leader of the faction known as the Decepticons, whose ultimate aim is to control Cybertron.  After a battle between the Decepticons and the noble Autobots ended with both parties crashed on Earth and remained unconscious for millions of years.  When finally reawakened, Megatron was given a new form to help him blend in; a gun (which, in America, is VERY helpful) and began his campaign of terror on Earth to defeat the autobots and steal energon, a sort of energy source for transformers, from the Earth.

Megatron’s form varies from different installments of the franchise from hand gun to rifle to cannon to tank.  The one consistency is that he is almost always some form of projectile weapon.  As leader, Megatron is openly ruthless and hostile, believing in acquiring power any way he can.  He is extremely arrogant, believing in his own greatness and even in the face of a space god attempts to assert his dominance (although that doesn’t work out for him).  Later on, Megatron is upgraded to Galvatron at the hands of Unicron, the aforementioned space god.  His righthand man is Soundwave, an extremely loyal boombox (that’s a unique sentence) and he often keeps the treacherous Starscream close by, confident he can quash any powerplay he attempts (he’s generally correct).

Frank Welker is known more these days for doing animal voices but he has a long history of doing characters and Megatron is one of his best.  Evil robots are a dime a dozen but Megatron is pretty up there, from his cool design to the fact that he lets his men use him as a weapon.  I mean, it’s pretty ballsy when you let a man who has repeatedly tried to usurp you use you as a weapon.  Megatron is a confident guy.  Also a shout out to Beast Wars Megatron, who was counted separately in the rankings but was a fun villain as well.  And another shout out to Transformers Vs. GI Joe.  It’s so good.

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/gisNllos7Zk" target="_blank" class="new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/gisNllos7Zk</a>

Trivia
In 2009, a Canadian man was arrested after a three-hour standoff with police, during which he wielded only an "80s-style" Megatron toy

[Russoguru]

 I don’t know if you’re ever going to find a list Anywhere besides here that includes both Hans Gruber and Megatron.

[linszoid]

Honestly though this may have been the most random list I've seen.

[PsychoGoatee]

"This list... still functions!" - to paraphrase the great Megatron.

It comes up on every list possible, rightfully so, I gotta give love to Transformers: The Movie (1986). One of the best movies ever made. A cool franchise in general, the various comics, toons, toys, but that movie in particular is just a masterpiece to me. Megatron and Optimus Prime's rivalry and showdown in the first half hour or so of the movie is maybe the most epic thing ever captured on film/celluloid.

And Rickman always rocked.

[Russoguru]

"This list... still functions!" - to paraphrase the great Megatron.

It comes up on every list possible, rightfully so, I gotta give love to Transformers: The Movie (1986). One of the best movies ever made. A cool franchise in general, the various comics, toons, toys, but that movie in particular is just a masterpiece to me. Megatron and Optimus Prime's rivalry and showdown in the first half hour or so of the movie is maybe the most epic thing ever captured on film/celluloid.

And Rickman always rocked.

There are SO many ways Transformers the movie could have failed as a work of art. Even 33 years later it still manages to captivate movie fans and Transformers fans alike, and of course I'll always be the first to say that aside from Bumblebee, Transformers the movie is easily the best Transformers movie.

[Johnny Unusual]

#2

The Joker

98 Points, 7 Lists, #1 Johnny Unusual

The real joke is your stubborn, bone deep conviction that somehow, somewhere, all of this makes sense! That's what cracks me up each time!

Wanted For Mass murder/whoopie cushioning.

Profile

The Joker is a villain in the DC Universe and the arch-villain of Batman.  The Joker’s true origin has never been revealed, though some stories posited that he was a member of the Red Hood Gang and that a fall in a vat of chemicals changed his complexion.  However, this has been unverified in most versions and the Joker himself stated that he views the past as “multiple choice” meaning it is difficult to know where the truth lies.  He first encountered Batman and Robin as he was declaring who his murder victims were, killing them at the time he stated and stealing their valuables.  Since then, the Joker has been Batman’s greatest foe, one of the few men who could outthink him, all the while treating it as a game (or in some cases, a work of art).

The Joker is a criminal whose ultimate motivation seems to be his own entertainment.  He doesn’t seem to care much for money or revenge in most stories, though there are many where he avenges his own vanity or reputation.  His modus operandi tends to be humour, joke and clown themed crimes, themselves often designed to be elaborate and humourous, at least to him.  The Joker’s natural skin color is chalk white (presumably due to some form of accident) and his hair is green, giving him a clownlike appearance.  He is a genius chemist as well, creating a poison called Joker Venom that kills victims and leaves them with a rictus grin.

In his initial appearance, the Joker was to be killed off but editors quickly changed their minds, having the Joker barely survive and creating one of the most iconic villains of all time.  He’s a very malleable character, allowing for sillier and more humourous stories (like many of Paul Dini’s) to outright grim horror tales.  If Batman is a man trying to put order into the universe, the Joker, for whatever reason, is trying to destroy it.  I think that’s why despite the fact that there are some good origin tales for the character, his strength is that he is sort of unknowable.  It also helps that his flamboyance allows for fantastical set pieces and plots that a regular plainclothes criminal could not.  He’s been played by some great actors over the years, including Caesar Romero, Jack Nicholson, Mark Hamill and Heath Ledger to name a few and is even getting his own movie this year.  The Joker has had a lot of approaches but in the end what makes him a delight is that he’s the one guy who always keeps the world’s greatest detective on his toes.

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/rDXHWWLGzN8" target="_blank" class="new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/rDXHWWLGzN8</a>

Trivia
The Joker was visually inspired by the 1928 film The Man Who Laughs.

[George-2.0]

I didn't vote for Joker because I'm so fracking sick of him. Geeze DC, give him a rest... every damn Batman special or arc has to have this asshat show up. The overkill has caused me to stop buying Bat-books.

But he must be generating sales or they wouldn't use him to death the way they do, which means I'm in the great minority here.

And for a villains list, he deserves the high ranking.

[Johnny Unusual]

I definitely get being sick of him.  He's my number one because when he is used well, he is very good.  But it is sort of like Wolverine or Deadpool where the character often has to appear EVERYWHERE.

I prefer the Paul Dini version the best.  A lot of writers have him be this be-all end-all of evil but Dini's version could range from silly to truly terrifying while remaining fundamentally the same character.  But yeah, DC has like 6 Joker books announced, one with three Jokers in it.  That's too much of a good thing.

[Russoguru]

I don't mean to hurry you or anything Johnny but will the top spot be revealed today or Monday?

[Johnny Unusual]

#1

Darth Vader

119 Points, 7 Lists, #3 Russoguru & RVR II

The circle is now complete. When I left you, I was but the learner. Now I am the master.

Wanted For Being a high ranking imperial officer, killings younglings (they seriously went with younglings.  WHY?)

Profile

Darth Vader is the villain in the original Star Wars trilogy and one of the main characters in the prequel trilogy, but let us not dwell on that.  Darth is a servant of the fascistic and evil Galactic Empire and one of its most powerful agents.  Originally a Jedi named Anakin Skywalker, he was tempted by the power of the dark side of the Force and allied himself with the empire to become more powerful.  He was later opposed by his son and a band of rebels looking to free the galaxy from the Empire’s control. 

Darth Vader was nearly fatally injured in battle, resulting in him replacing many of his body parts with mechanical ones.  The injury also inhibited his breathing requiring him to use a machine that creates a unique and loud sound when he breathes.  He is also a direct student of the Emperor, a powerful Sith Lord and is one of the most powerful force users, aided by both Jedi and Sith training as well an intuitive connection to the Force.  He’s a skilled swordsman and pilot as well, and an accomplished military leader.  Though he has a calm exterior, he often uses violence to get his way and even murders his own underlings when they fail him, usually by choking them with the force.

Darth Vader is one of screendom’s most iconic villain, thanks to his cool, unique look (his cape, plastic black suit and train-like mask) and the performances of David Prowse and James Earl Jones.  While Prowse might be bitter that his… less than fitting voice was removed from the movie, he lends an imposing air with his body language that implies cold power and strength.  Jones, meanwhile, gives Vader’s voice a real weight and when he makes a threat or a promise, it feels that what he says is not mere talk.  Vader is a man who intends to keep his promise.  Even though he only appeared for 12 minutes in the first film, he made such an impact, it is harder to imagine doing those films with merely the relatively bland military villains like Grand Moff Tarkin (a decent villain but you aren’t exactly scared or excited to see him show up.)  Star Wars has a lot of amazing characters but this villain might be the first thing that pops into your head when the franchise is brought to mind.

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Trivia
Darth Vader was originally a rather minor character, and early drafts actually have him spending most of the movie without his iconic suit. He was even going to be killed off during the trench run at the end.

[linszoid]

Someone feels slighted...