History Main / ArsonMurderAndAdmiration

* In '' VideoGame/KnightsOfTheOldRepublic'' and its sequel, the Mandalorians as a whole regarding Revan. Revan thoroughly trashed them in the Mandalorian Wars -- but far from being sore, they have instead placed Revan on a pedestal. Canderous in particular describes Revan's use of expert tactics, and ferocity on the battlefield, and even Revan's defeat of Mandalore the Ultimate in tones of admiration. By Mandalorian values, Revan was the ultimate WorthyOpponent, and to face Revan in battle was the ultimate honor win or lose. [[spoiler: And where pretty much everyone else is upset when finding out the PC is an amnesiac Darth Revan, Canderous instead becomes the Mandalorian version of TheKnightsWhoSaySquee]].

* Harry [[Literature/TheDresdenFiles Dresden]]'s magic adviser, Bob the Skull: whenever Harry appears to be acting more like Bob's BlueAndOrangeMorality, [[ProperlyParanoid paranoia]], and [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking perversion]], Bob semi-sarcastically cheers him on. Harry is rarely amused.

* WesternAnimation/TheAmazingWorldOfGumball:

--> '''Nicole, Richard, Gumball, and Anais'': [[SharedFamilyQuirks A Watterson!]] (cue GroupHug)

* Inverted on ''Machinima/RedVsBlue'': while Sarge is glad that O'Malley is killing all the Blues, he can't stand the thought that he now has a higher body count.

[[folder:Films]]
* ''Film/AddamsFamilyValues'' has the following exchange between Morticia and Debbie:
-->'''Morticia:''' You have enslaved him. You have placed Fester under some strange sexual spell. I respect that.
* ''Film/TheNakedGun 33 1/3: The Final Insult'':
-->'''Drebin''' (undercover as a gangster, to the BigBad's mother): Mrs Dillon, your son is a ruthless, sadistic, cold-blooded animal. You must be very proud of him.
-->'''Muriel Dillon''': I am.

* Jabba and Boussh in ''Film/ReturnOfTheJedi'' after the latter threatens the former into giving him more money:
-->'''Jabba:''' "[[EvilLaugh Hohoho!]] This bounty hunter is my kind of scum! Fearless and inventive!"
* Ishmael's father in ''Film/{{Kingpin}}''. The father tells Ishmael that he knows about the boozing, the gambling, and the partying... and how Ishmael got the lead character Roy to turn away from all that.
* ''Film/FleshAndBlood1985''. After Steven's wife is kidnapped by mercenaries, he and his father go to the mercenaries' former commander Hawkwood. Steven bullies him into helping get her back by threatening the woman Hawkwood is caring for. As Steven has been portrayed up till now as rather bookish and ineffectual, his father laughs and notes with approval, "You're as ruthless as I am!" Steven just replies grimly, "When I have to be."
* ''Film/TheShawshankRedemption'' has Red's narration describing Tommy Williams as a young hoodlum who was a "Young punk, Mr. Rock and Roll, cocky as hell" right before noting "We liked him immediately".
* Played with in ''Film/RushHour'', in which the chief ''pretends'' to be doing this ("Two officers were shot -- one man lost a pinkie; you destroyed half a block; you lost lots of evidence; what you did was dangerous and completely against policy; and not only that... you did a good job"), but he's actually using it to convince Carter to accept his new assignment, which he regards as an insult to the entire LAPD.

Mostly a comedy trope, this shows up as an inversion of ArsonMurderAndJaywalking with one villain complimenting another on how [[ComplexityAddiction elaborate]] their DeathTrap, EvilScheme, [[EvilGloating Villainous Monologue]], EvilLaugh, VillainSong, or they themselves are.

* ''Series/{{Arrow}}''. In "My Name Is Oliver Queen", Oliver suggests they negotiate with ComicBook/RasAlGhul by capturing his ArchEnemy Damien Darhk (the BigBad in the next season, but they didn't know that at the time) and handing him over to Ra's. [[TokenEvilTeammate Malcolm Merlyn]] comments: "That is remarkably ruthless and cold-blooded. I approve."

-->'''Annie:''' (''looking over Abed's calculations'') Abed, this is so intrusive - and so ''accurate!''
* ''Series/{{Dexter}}'' again (this time only the TV show) admits, at least at first, that he admires Trinity for his success in maintaining the life he's led. Downplayed in that Dexter still has every intention of KILLING him, but not before he can learn how to do the same with his own life.

--->'''Imperial Scientist #1:''' These experiments the Republic's been conducting--xenophobia, genocidal conditioning...I can hardly believe it.\\

'''Imperial Scientist #2:''' You--wait, what?\\

* Likewise in ''WebAnimation/TeenGirlSquad''.

---> Hey, on a more personal note – good job! Don’t EVER do it again, but good job. All the managers have listened to it, and we were all rolling with laughter – we couldn’t believe that you stood up to him like you did. Just... you know; don’t do it again.” *wink*

--> '''Joker:''' Pop psychology at its worst: her theories are unfounded, her professional manner's a joke, and her training -- if ANY -- is shoddy at best! ({{beat}}) I LOVE this show! The girl's more screw-loose than ''me''!

-->'''Prof. Farnsworth''': Why did you boys do all this?
-->'''Dwight''': [''sobbing''] We just wanted you to be... proud of us...
-->'''Hermes''': Proud of you?! You ruined us with sleazy business practices and a complete disregard for human decency! [''{{beat}}''] Of ''course'' we're proud of you!
-->'''Prof. Farnsworth''': Damn right we are.

* ''Film/FleshAndBlood'' (1985). After Steven's wife is kidnapped by mercenaries, he and his father go to the mercenaries' former commander Hawkwood. Steven bullies him into helping get her back by threatening the woman Hawkwood is caring for. As Steven has been portrayed up till now as rather bookish and ineffectual, his father laughs and notes with approval, "You're as ruthless as I am!" Steven just replies grimly, "When I have to be."

* On ''WesternAnimation/TheVentureBrothers'', when Dr. Richard Impossible becomes evil--well, more evil than he had been up to that point--he exploits his former brother-in-law's [[Comicbook/FantasticFour Johnny Storm]]-like ability to burst into flames as a PowerSource for his Manhattan office building. Unlike Johnny Storm, however, the victim has no ability to control his powers and is in constant agony whenever he's conscious. Phantom Limb praises this as the most evil thing he's ever seen.

-->'''Hondo:''' Traitors! Scum! I am so proud.

* ''VideoGame/TheCurseOfMonkeyIsland'': Edward Van Helgen's reaction to [[GuileHero Guybrush]] shooting his banjo out of his hands with his own pistol to screw up their competition is thus: "Of all the low-down tricks! I've never even heard of something so low! I've completely misjudged you. [[FiveAcesCheater You]] ''[[FiveAcesCheater are]]'' [[FiveAcesCheater a pirate, after all]]!"

* ''Literature/{{Dexter}}'' greatly admires the artistic merits of the Ice Truck Killer's scenes. In the second book, he also admits to respecting the spoke of turning people into "yodeling potatoes".

-->''I first met the Doctor when I was 25 years old. He was [[Creator/ColinBaker a maniacal, arrogant man]] [[ImpossiblyTackyClothes in a ridiculous overcoat with a pattern mimicking a circus tent]] and an umbrella like a color wheel. [[InsufferableGenius Loud, caustic, short tempered, self-absorbed, stubborn]] [[JerkAss and in general a horses arse.]] I liked him immediately.''

* ''Series/{{Arrow}}''. In "My Name Is Oliver Queen", Oliver suggests they negotiate with ComicBook/RasAlGhul by capturing his ArchEnemy Damien Darhk (the BigBad in the next season, but they didn't know that at the time) and handing him over to Ra's. [[TokenEvilTeammate Malcolm Merlyn]] comments: "That is remarkably ruthless and cold blooded. I approve."

* A milder variation in the ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'' SeriesFinale, "All Good Things...". The Enterprise and a Romulan ship are facing a temporal anomaly in the Neutral Zone, when Picard recommends to the Romulan commander Tomalak that they pursue a joint investigation rather than "stare at each other from across the Neutral Zone".

* In ''VideoGame/DisgaeaHourOfDarkness,'' Etna uses VillainProtagonist Laharl as bait to get what she wants from BigBadWannabe Maderas, without either of them knowing. After Laharl finds out what Etna's intentions were, does he get angry at her for using him? ...no, he compliments her on how devious she is and promotes her to his right hand demon.
* Due to their lack of any actual morality, some Asurans in ''VideoGame/GuildWars'' come off as somewhat evil. In one case the actions of the Asuran Tekks has instigated a war between two aboriginal frog-tribes. Her rival, Giriff, comments he would be impressed if he thought she'd done it on purpose.

* In ''Franchise/MassEffect'', virtually everyone you fight with who comes across Cerberus (including one or two of the people who work for them) expresses disgust at their nasty experiments, human-supremacist agenda and [[spoiler:resorting to the use of Reaper tech in the third game]]. On the other hand, they did build the [[CoolStarship Normandy SR-2]], which has earned praise from certain characters for its superior engineering compared to the old Normandy. This includes Tali'Zorah, who comes from a species highly adept at technology, and Engineer Adams, who served on the old Normandy SR-1.

* ''Webcomic/EightBitTheater'' has Evil Princess Sara be "this close" to being proud of Garland after he got a villain upgrade with dark colored SpeechBubble. He's still a {{nice|Guy}}, {{Harmless|Villain}}, AffablyEvil IneffectualSympatheticVillain though, which explains the almost.
* Inverted in ''Webcomic/LookingForGroup'', where [[OmnicidalManiac Richard]] is criticized on not being evil enough. But then it ''was'' from a KangarooCourt set up by TheLegionsOfHell...

* In ''Webcomic/TalesFromThePit'', [[http://markrosewater.tumblr.com/post/5867433154 Mark Rosewater receives hate-mail]] from an angry ''TabletopGame/{{Magic|TheGathering}}'' player who accuses him of having "sytematically destroyed everything that was awesome about ''Magic''" immediately before asking how to get a job in R&D.

* On ''WesternAnimation/TheVentureBrothers'', when Dr. Richard Impossible becomes evil--well, more evil than he had been up to that point--he exploits his former brother-in-law's [[Comicbook/FantasticFour Johnny Storm]]-like ability to burst into flames as a PowerSource for his Manhattan office building. Unlike Johnny Storm, however, the victim has no ability to control his powers, and is in constant agony whenever he's conscious. Phantom Limb praises this as the most evil thing he's ever seen.

* At the beginning of ''VideoGame/MarioAndLuigiSuperstarSaga'', [[BigBad Cackletta]] ambushes Mario, Luigi, and Bowser (who is involved in an EnemyMine with the Bros.). Bowser's mad at her, not because of her evil plan, but because said plan was cool.

* ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft''

* In ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'', when you complete a quest in Ashenvale, Durak says this:
-->'''Durak:''' Tainting the Forest's Heart? How ruthless... an utterly vicious blow... I adore the idea!
* In the beginning of ''VideoGame/MarioAndLuigiSuperstarSaga'', [[BigBad Cackletta]] ambushes Mario, Luigi, and Bowser (who is involved in an EnemyMine with the Bros.). Bowser's mad at her, not because of her evil plan, but because said plan was cool.

* One episode of ''Series/{{Community}}'' has the women of the group discover that [[TheRainMan Abed]] has been charting their menstrual cycles, solely by observing which days of the month his CloudCuckoolander tendencies seemed to annoy them the most.

When two villainous (or at least, {{Token Evil|Teammate}}) characters fight, the [[EvilerThanThou less evil one]] will rail about how EvenEvilHasStandards, they've crossed the MoralEventHorizon and [[ThisIsUnforgivable what they've done is unforgivable...]] and it was a nice touch to put [[FrickinLaserBeams lasers]] on the [[KillerRabbit carnivorous hamsters']] heads.