selenak

Name your five favorite evil characters.

Now often one person's evil character is another misunderstood one's, so it's a given this choice is subjective. My personal criteria for favourite evil character, as opposed to favourite villain (different thing, really) is that this character does not have a redemption arc and/or sacrificial death. (This excludes types like my beloved Darla. If you argue that killing yourself for your offspring does not redeem four hundred years of gleeful mass murder, I hear you, but still, both her acceptance of her mortal death at the end of Trial just before Dru came in and her final death for Connor in Lullabye push her out of this category for me.) Also, I'm excepting characters like Al Bester (Babylon 5) or Scorpius (Farscape), or even Kai Winn (DS9), who definitely do evil things but not only believe they're doing this for the greater good (many a villain does that) but are capable of putting their own lives on the line for the goal and/or other people. No, my people below are resolutely "me first" minded.

1.) Servalan (Blake's 7). My favourite evil overlady. Let me put it this way: I'd rather face Aeryn Sun armed with a gun than Servalan in high heels and seemingly unarmed. With Aeryn, I'd have a chance to argue why I shouldn't die. Servalan even if she'd spare me for the moment because I'm useful would screw me over sooner or later. Also? Servalan survives anything. Ask Avon.

2.) Lucas Buck (American Gothic). He might or might not be the devil (personally, I'm voting for minor demonic entity, that's more interesting), he's charming, he's witty, smart, and yes, some of the time there are worse alternatives for top dog in Trinity around, plus his usual modus operandi is giving other people enough rope to hang themselves instead of offing them himself, but still: evil. (Ask Merlyn and her mother.) And hence qualified for this top five, as I'm really fond of him.

3.) Shakespeare's version of Richard III. (As a Ricardian and Yorkist, I have to specify, because I like the very different historical version as well.) Nobody does family murders and crown usurpation as stylishly and with as much glee. Still one of the dream roles for actors, and the scene where he seduces Anne over the body of her dead father-in-law and husband was a thousand times imitated and never bettered.

4.) Livia (as interpreted in I, Claudius). I almost left her out because Livia believes she does it all for Rome as well, if her monologue to her dying husband is anything to go by, but then we never see her really sacrifice something, let alone her life, for either Rome or anyone else, so she is in, and I'm glad, because she's truly a magnificent character, smart, ruthless, witty, and so masterly manipulative that when she's dying, she manages to make both the audience and one of her victims who know exactly what she did still feel sorry for her, root for her, and give her the immortality she craves. For that, Livia wins over the other near-best evil person of I, Claudius, Caligula.

5.) The Master (Doctor Who). I have my preferences among his various regenerations, Delgado!Master heading the lot, but if you try to tell me he wasn't "really" evil back then, you must have missed the part where in reply to the Doctor's question why he'd want the Sea Devils to wipe out humanity if he can't rule them anyway, he says "because you like them so very, very much". (Also, the plastic daffs in Autons might might have looked gloriously ridiculous but they did the killing job quite efficiently.) So yes, he always regarded genocide as a satisfying means to work out his issues with his ex boyfriend. Definitely evil, but in the right episodes ever so entertaining and part of one of the few DW pairings I actively 'ship. (Meaning that I'm not just okay with the on screen canon but seek out fanfic and vids, which is my personal qualifier for 'shipping .)