History Main / SympatheticVillainDespicableVillain

* ''Franchise/StarWars'' has Emperor Palpatine as the series' BigBad, but his [[TheDragon dragon]], Darth Vader, appears more. The prequel trilogy reveals Vader has a [[TragicVillain tragic backstory due to Palpatine's manipulations.]] In the end, Vader reforms through his love for his son Luke and, to save his life, turns on his master and kills him, sacrificing himself in the process.

* ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsTheCloneWars'': Many of the villains on the CIS side of the war have less sympathetic qualities; [[Characters/StarWarsGeneralGrievous General Grievous]] is a CardCarryingVillain who only seeks the extermination of all the Jedi (his more sympathetic ''Legends'' backstory having been discarded from canon), the entire Separatist Council and military leaders like Nute Gunray and Riff Tamson only exist to serve [[Characters/StarWarsCountDooku Count Dooku's]] whim and fulfill their own desires, and the traitorous Jedi Pong Krell is a HateSink who seeks only to gain standing in the new order. By contrast, Count Dooku (as elaborated upon in ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsTalesOfTheJedi'') was a genuinely good man who turned to villainy because his efforts to fight the corruption within the Republic and the Jedi Order failed and allowed himself to be swayed by [[Characters/StarWarsEmperorPalpatine Darth Sideous]], Asajj Ventress had a DarkAndTroubledPast where she was taken from her family, enslaved, and taken in by the Jedi until her master was killed and turned to the Dark Side as a result, and former Senator Lux Bonteri was once a staunch supporter until Dooku killed his mother for daring to try and bring about a peace treaty and had a HeelFaceTurn after a brief alliance with Death Watch fell through. This also holds true for the independent villain, [[Characters/StarWarsDarthMaul Darth Maul]], the former apprentice to Darth Sidious, who [[Film/ThePhantomMenace apparently died on Naboo over a decade ago]] and miraculously survived his bisection to seek revenge on Obi-Wan Kenobi. Despite going to such lengths as killing Obi-Wan's old lover, Duchess Satine of Mandalore, and enslaving her entire planet to his whim, he still had sympathetic motives due to the horrors he suffered in the years between his apparent death and his discovery at the hands of his brother Savage Oppress. Even as he builds a crime empire, he genuinely desires to stop his former master's plans to reshape the galaxy into an Empire, even if it's for revenge for his abandonment and the death of Savage.

* ''WebAnimation/RedVsBlue'' features Locus and Felix, two mercenaries supposedly on opposing sides of a civil war introduced during the Chorus Trilogy. Initially, Locus is portrayed as what he considers a true soldier -- emotionless, ruthless, and solely dedicated to his orders, while Felix is sarcastic and wise-cracking, yet friendly. As the Trilogy goes on, more and more about the two gets revealed, making it clear who's who in their dynamic:
** Seasons 12 and 13 reveal that Felix is the '''Despicable Villain''' between them. After he reveals himself to the Reds and Blues to be a traitor and has also been involved in escalating the war for his and Locus' employer, he gradually brings out the person he truly is: A sadistic, narcissistic, and overall remorseless megalomaniac who does what he does purely to make a profit for himself. He shows he has zero qualms with manipulating and using deceit against his former allies, lacking anything remotely resembling compassion or humanity. Additionally, his former UNSC background presented him as stern and merciless, which is only exacerbated in the present day as he lets free his true self.
** Meanwhile, Season 13 reveals Locus as the '''Sympathetic Villain'''. His "true soldier" ideology is revealed to be a coping mechanism to hide his experiences with the UNSC, while also revealing he was once a compassionate and empathetic person in the past. In the present day, these past traits are brought back to the fold, the more his stoic persona gradually breaks down. As he is forced to come to terms that his ideology has made him more akin to a slave, he begins to see his actions have not made him a soldier, but a monster. After he opts to betray Felix and leave him for dead, he vows to right his wrongs.

* ''WesternAnimation/AdventureTime'': the two main antagonists of the early seasons function as this. The Ice King is an IneffectualSympatheticVillain whose worst crimes are blindly attempting to freeze people and admittedly creepy capture of Princesses that is eventually revealed to have a horrifically tragic backstory and not be really culpable for his actions, whereas The Lich is a dead-serious, sadistic, sociopathic force of chaos and destruction that seeks nothing but to annihilate all life itself.

** Harley Quinn is an adorable, bubbly henchwoman that is motivated to help the heroes and tries to reform, is depicted tragically for being the TropeNamer of MadLove and [[spoiler: eventually comes to regret her villainous actions as an elderly woman.]] The Joker on the other hand, is nothing but a PsychopathicManchild enraptured by his own ego and seeking mass chaos and destruction, and [[spoiler: tortures the third Robin, Tim Drake, so violently that he is nearly driven insane before performing a GrandTheftMe on him 40 years later.]]

* ''VideoGame/MasterDetectiveArchivesRainCode'':[[BigBadEnsemble Makoto Kagutsuchi and Yomi Hellsmile serve as the main antagonists of the game]], both seeking to take control of Kanai Ward for their own reasons. [[IOwnThisTown While Yomi just wants to be in power]] and doesn't care who gets hurt or killed so long as he gets what he wants, [[WellIntentionedExtremist Makoto just wants to provide a safe place for the homunculi but crosses some ruthless lines in order to do so]]. [[EvilVsEvil They're both equally at odds with each other]], but it's Makoto who ends up outwitting Yomi and becomes the sole antagonist. While Yomi undergoes a VillainousBreakdown after he's exposed as a criminal and [[WeWillMeetAgain vows revenge on those who opposed him]], Makoto is able to come to an agreement with Yuma and reveal the truth to the populace, allowing them to come up with the solution to their problem as he works to [[TheAtoner atone for his actions]].

* ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'': Of the two main villains in "[[Recap/BatmanTheAnimatedSeriesE14HeartOfIce Heart of Ice]]", Mr. Freeze is a ruthless but poignant TragicVillain, who was trying to save his terminally-ill wife by putting her in cryogenic stasis while he worked on curing her, and a lab accident caused when he was defending his frozen wife from being effectively sentenced to death anyway rendered him unable to survive outside of sub-zero temperatures. The perpetrator who caused Freeze's accident and who Freeze is now motivated to take revenge on is Ferris Boyle, a sociopathic CorruptCorporateExecutive who callously ordered that Freeze's wife be taken off life support in front of Freeze while the latter was pleading, who attacked Freeze ''as the latter was standing down'' at the onset of the accident, and who left both Freeze and his wife to die. Tellingly, Batman sympathizes with Freeze even if he firmly opposes the latter's willingness to endanger innocent people, but Batman leaves Boyle to writhe in agony in a half-frozen state (a fate that Batman wouldn't leave Freeze's own unfortunate mook to earlier) while spitting at Boyle in disgust, "Goodnight, [='=]''humanitarian''[='=]."

** The GreaterScopeVillain of ''Film/MissionImpossible1996'', Max, is an ArmsDealer who is nevertheless [[AffablyEvil polite and respectful to everyone]] and [[FriendlyEnemy is genuinely fond of Ethan]]. TheHeavy, Jim Phelps, is a vicious [[TheMole mole]] who murders his own colleagues - including his ''wife'' - with no remorse and is entirely motivated by greed.

* ''Literature/BarnabyRudge'': Whilst neither character is the BigBad- that honour goes to [[AristocratsAreEvil Lord]] [[RabbleRouser George]] [[HistoricalDomainCharacter Gordon]]- Mr. Geoffrey Haredale and Sir John Chester serve as antagonists to their niece Emma and son Edward, respectively, by keeping them [[StarCrossedLovers separated]], purely because Haredale and Sir John are [[FeudingFamilies enemies]] due to their different religions. However, Mr. Haredale, despite his HairTriggerTemper and [[GoodIsNotNice bluntness]], genuinely cares for his niece [[LikeASonToMe as though she were his own daughter]], comes to [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone regret separating her from Edward]], along with putting his life in danger to save several innocents from the brutal Gordon riots. Additionally, he goes through a TraumaCongaLine that makes the viewer sympathize with him- the murder of his brother twenty years ago, the heartbreak and kidnapping of Emma, and his house being burnt to the ground. Sir John, on the other hand, is a FauxAffablyEvil [[TheSociopath sociopath]], who cares only for [[TheHedonist his own pleasures]], takes pride in having kept Haredale a lifelong bachelor by [[EvilIsPetty stealing his fiancee]], and tries to coerce Edward into marrying a rich heiress [[GoldDigger just so he can use her money to maintain his lifestyle and pay off his debts]]. Further proof of his moral vileness lies in the fact that he is implied to have given the rioters the idea of burning down Haredale's house and that in the past, he seduced, impregnated, and then abandoned a HotGypsyWoman, who was then hanged for theft, but not before giving birth to his BastardBastard son, [[TheBrute Hugh the ostler]]. Despite happily recruiting Hugh as an agent in his mission to ruin the Haredales' lives, [[JerkWithAHeartOfJerk Sir John ultimately treats him no better than he treated his legitimate son]] once he [[LukeIAmYourFather discovers their relation]]. If anything, he treats him even worse, refusing to try rescuing him from the gallows near the climax, or even come to see him. Needless to say, Sir John is a far fouler man than Mr. Haredale, which makes it [[KarmicDeath all the more appropriate]] that Haredale kills him in a duel by the end of the story.

* ''WebAnimation/RedVsBlue'' features Locus and Felix, two mercenaries supposedly on opposing sides of a civil war introduced during the Chorus Trilogy. Initially, Locus is portrayed as what he considers a true soldier - emotionless, ruthless, and solely dedicated to his orders, while Felix is sarcastic and wise-cracking, yet friendly. As the Trilogy goes on, more and more about the two gets revealed, making it clear who's who in their dynamic:

* ''Franchise/TheKingOfFighters'': The NESTS Chronicles features the two Zeros as prominent antagonists, both [[VideoGame/TheKingOfFighters2000 the clone]] and [[VideoGame/TheKingOfFighters2001 the original]]. Clone Zero is the "Pure Evil", [[TheStarscream betraying NESTS solely to become a world conqueror himself]] and destroying a city via KillSat, and meets an unceremonious end via being shot dead by Whip. Original Zero is the "Sympathetic", [[ScrewTheRulesImDoingWhatsRight finding time to raise children despite his own organization torturing them en masse]], and dies with dignity, [[GoingDownWithTheShip staying on board his collapsing blimp and allowing his enemies to escape]].

[[folder:Web Originals]]
* ''WebAnimation/RedVsBlue'' features Locus and Felix, two mercenaries supposedly on opposing sides of a civil war introduced during the Chorus Trilogy. Initially, Locus is portrayed as what he considers a true soldier - emotionless, ruthless, and solely dedicated to his orders, while Felix is sarcastic and wise-cracking, yet friendly. As the Trilogy goes on, more and more about the two gets revealed, making it clear who's who in their dynamic:
** Seasons 12 and 13 reveal that Felix is the '''Despicable Villain''' between them. After he reveals himself to the Reds and Blues to be a traitor and has also been involved in escalating the war for his and Locus' employer, he gradually brings out the person he truly is: A sadistic, narcissistic, and overall remorseless megalomaniac who does what he does purely to make a profit for himself. He shows he has zero qualms with manipulating and using deceit against his former allies, lacking anything remotely resembling compassion or humanity. Additionally, his former UNSC background presented him as stern and merciless, which is only exacerbated in the present day as he lets free his true self.
** Meanwhile, Season 13 reveals Locus as the '''Sympathetic Villain'''. His "true soldier" ideology is revealed to be a coping mechanism to hide his experiences with the UNSC, while also revealing he was once a compassionate and empathetic person in the past. In the present day, these past traits are brought back to the fold, the more his stoic persona gradually breaks down. As he is forced to come to terms that his ideology has made him more akin to a slave, he begins to see his actions have not made him a soldier, but a monster. After he opts to betray Felix and leave him for dead, he vows to right his wrongs.
[[/folder]]

** ''[[Film/Spiral2021 Spiral]]'': Downplayed between Schenk and Fitch. Although Schenk is painted as being a WellIntentionedExtremist with his backstory and desire to make Zeke join his cause, the number of progressively detestable things he does in his goal to cleanse the Metropolitan Police Department of all its corrupt cops makes him quite hateable. That said, whereas most of Schenk's other victims either genuinely feel remorseful for their corruption or are otherwise fairly approachable, Fitch is a huge jerk who always treats Zeke like shit, will commit any possible crime to get his way, and once almost got Zeke killed during a past shootout, [[PragmaticVillainy only going to help him]] because he was aware that Marcus (the then-Chief of Police and Zeke's father) [[PapaWolf would have gotten furious with him if Zeke died because of him]].

* ''WebComic/{{NIMONA}}'': VillainProtagonist Ballister Blackheart is an AntiVillain who opposes a corrupt institute that more or less threw him under a bus. His new henchman, Nimona, meanwhile, is more interested in outright causing chaos and destruction.

** ''Film/SawII'': John isn't necessarily depicted as being sympathetic in this film (which mainly comes into play in the following films), repeatedly taunting Eric and being willing to [[WouldHurtAChild put Eric's teenage son Daniel in danger]]. However, he fares in comparison to Xavier, the direct threat to the other Nerve Gas House victims, who's an apathetic {{Jerkass}} and won't hesitate to kill anyone (including Daniel), to escape from the house.

Every story needs a good villain. But sometimes, writers struggle to decide whether the villain should be sympathetic, perhaps [[HeelFaceTurn capable of reform]], or a completely [[MoralEventHorizon irredeemable]], [[ForTheEvulz pure evil villain]]. This trope occurs when the writer decides, hey, why not both?

When defining the sympathetic and pure evil villain, there must be a clear contrast between them. They may be [[{{Foil}} Foils]] of one another, with either one's traits serving to highlight the other's traits. At first, the [[BigBadDuumvirate two villains may be working together]], but as the story continues, one villain may be more hesitant to annhilate the heroes and destroy the world than the other. The sympathetic may be given a [[TragicVillain tragic backstory]] that depicts them as WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds to appeal to the audience. In contrast, the other will never sway from their position once, and will likely become a GreaterScopeVillain. The sympathetic will be unlikely to help them in this destruction towards the end, usually either [[HeelFaceTurn joining the heroes to fight them]], [[EvilVersusEvil fight the other villain without explicitly joining the heroes side]], or bowing out half-way through, leaving their position ambigious.

* WellIntentionedExtremist

* ''Anime/PokemonTheSeries'': This is a recurring gag whenever Team Rocket, the series resident GoldfishPoopGang, ends up coming to a new region and meets their local villain group. The Team Rocket Trio, at best, are incompetent thieves who wallow in misery trying to steal one measly Pikachu and never get anywhere in life, but the series has demonstrated time and again that things would be better for them if they gave up the criminal life and went straight -- even then they do love and care for their Pokémon, and would draw the line at [[EvenEvilHasStandards doing certain abhorrent deeds]]. However, Team Aqua, Team Magma, Team Galactic, Team Plasma, and Team Flare consist entirely of sociopaths and psychopaths (especially their leaders, notably Cyrus, Ghetsis, and Lysandre) who are out to reshape or destroy the world no matter who pays the price and will happily eliminate anyone who gets in their way. Even worse, they will use Pokémon (typically the Legendaries of each region) and force them to carry out their dastardly schemes, no matter how harmful it is. Consequently, the Team Rocket Trio will happily throw their lot in with Ash and company and team up with them to bring the EvilerThanThou villains down.

* ''VideoGame/DragaliaLost'': After [[DiskOneFinalBoss Morsayati]] is defeated, Nedrick and Xenos act as the two main villains of the main campaign. Nedrick is sympathetic, as due to his abnormal birth conditions, he never felt like he had a normal life. He died shortly after his birth but was resurrected by Bahamut. However, this came at a price, and Bahamut wanted to use Nedrick to further his own ambitions. This made Nedrick feel like he never had a choice in his life, and he secretly wants to forge his own path. Xenos, on the other hand, is literally a heartless being who views any and all humans as tools for him to use and wishes to create a world in which he gets to decide everything that happens, whether the humans like it or not.

* ''VideoGame/Persona5'': Shido and Akechi are the ones behind the murders plaguing Tokyo, with the former ordering the hits and the latter carrying them out. However, though Akechi's crimes are deemed unforgivable, he is revealed to have been manipulated by Shido and the Phantom Thieves ultimately see him as a fellow victim of society. In contrast, Shido is a corrupt politician responsible for much of the suffering the Thieves endure, for no deeper motive than a lust for power.

* ''VideoGame/SonicFrontiers'': While the game's initial villain is Sage, who works for long-time villain Dr. Eggman, she's simply following her prime directive to save Eggman, who reciprocates with fatherly love. However, misunderstandings between her and Sonic allow a bigger threat to emerge. Said threat, The End, is a sadistic destroyer of civilizations.
* ''VideoGame/SuperPaperMario'': Count Bleck is the initial main antagonist who created The Void to destroy all worlds. But he has the [[TragicVillain tragic backstory]] thinking his lover was killed, and realizing she is still alive, wants Mario's party to kill him to end the prophecy. Only, his former minion, Dimentio, takes the position of the true Dark One, and he is arguably the most evil Mario villain, a psychopath lacking any of Bleck's tragic or sympathetic qualities. In the end, Dimentio is killed, but [[HeroicSacrifice Bleck has to sacrifice himself to stop Dimentio's final attempt at destroying all worlds.]]
* ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles'': The initial antagonist is Egil, who commands the Mechon and their attacks on the Homs. We later learn that this is part of a revenge plan against the evil god Zanza, who slaughtered many of his people. Egil eventually realizes the error of his ways and sacrifices himself, while Zanza is one of the two most evil characters in the game (other being Mumkhar), an arrogant god intending to slaughter all Homs (and turns the sentient High Entia into mindless beasts called Telethia to carry this out) to perpetuate his existence (rather than be friends with them as Meyneth did), and Shulk destroys him during the final battle.
* ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles3'': Although Z is the game's true BigBad, N is the most antagonistic of the Moebius, and acts as TheHeavy for most of the game. N is genuinely sympathetic since he is an alternate version of [[TheHero Noah]], which means that N was once just as kind as his heroic counterpart. However, N grew tired of his lifestyle of constantly fighting war and living incredibly short lives, which meant that [[StarCrossedLovers he could never be with the love of his life, Mio/M]]. N eventually decided to become Moebius purely so that he could be with M. On the other hand, Z is a being that is MadeOfEvil and is the one who is forcing everyone to live these terrible lives, and as such, is mainly just treated as a force that needs to be stopped.

* '''Contrasted with'''
* A despicable villain ''clearly designed'' with little to no redeeming qualities whatsoever, which in itself can serve to increase audience sympathy for the sympathetic villain, [[{{Foil}} as contrasted against this greater evil.]] This character evokes ''audience hatred.'' They do not have to be a CompleteMonster, but they must lack redeeming qualities, especially when contrasted with the sympathetic party.

* ''VideoGame/PokemonBlackAndWhite'' has N and Ghetsis; both of them are leaders of Team Plasma, an AnimalWrongsGroup who want to liberate Pokemon from humans, but while the former is a WellIntentionedExtremist who genuinely believes in the cause and makes a HeelFaceTurn when he realizes just how corrupt his organization is. Meanwhile, Ghetsis is a StrawHypocrite who created Team Plasma out of a desire for power and becomes even worse in [[VideoGame/PokemonBlack2AndWhite2 the sequel]]. In addition, N sees his Pokemon as friends and only owns them temporarily out of a misguided belief that owning Pokemon is a form of abuse; Ghetsis views Pokemon as mere tools and is [[BadPeopleAbuseAnimals heavily implied to abuse them]].

* ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'': Of the two main villains in "[[Recap/BatmanTheAnimatedSeriesE14HeartOfIce Heart of Ice]]"; Mr. Freeze is a ruthless but poignant TragicVillain, who was trying to save his terminally-ill wife by putting her in cryogenic stasis while he worked on curing her, and a lab accident caused when he was defending his frozen wife from being effectively sentenced to death anyway rendered him unable to survive outside of sub-zero temperatures. The perpetrator who caused Freeze's accident and who Freeze is now motivated to take revenge on is Ferris Boyle, a sociopathic CorruptCorporateExecutive who callously ordered that Freeze's wife be taken off life support in front of Freeze while the latter was pleading, who attacked Freeze ''as the latter was standing down'' at the onset of the accident, and who left both Freeze and his wife to die. Tellingly; Batman sympathizes with Freeze even if he firmly opposes the latter's willingness to endanger innocent people, but Batman leaves Boyle to writhe in agony in a half-frozen state (a fate that Batman wouldn't leave Freeze's own unfortunate mook to earlier) while spitting at Boyle in disgust, "Goodnight, [='=]''humanitarian''[='=]."

** Ozpin (Sympathetic), though he's easily one of the most callous and despicable incarnations of the character that author Creator/CoeurAlAran has ever written; is ultimately acting because he's desperate beyond human comprehension to bring his EndlessWar against Salem, which he's fought for millennia in the defence of all humanity, to a permanent end, and he's discovered that Amber has a unique Semblance which he believes can accomplish that by nullifying Salem's CompleteImmortality. Ozpin also knows that Jaune will never join him nor allow Ozpin to groom Amber into a weapon, so he figures that Jaune has to die.

Compare TheGoodTheBadAndTheEvil for when the two evil sides come to oppose the other. Compare BlackAndGrayMorality in a similar vein. Can overlap with NobleTopEnforcer, where the villain's top agent is comparatively noble, and TheStarScream, where a potentially worse lackey of the sympathetic villain betrays them to become the pure evil. Can overlap with MoreHateableMinorVillain. Compare and contrast ContrastingSequelAntagonist, when the sympathetic villain and the despicable villain appear in a separate installment from one another. This trope can be achieved through the introduction of a VilerNewVillain. SubTrope of {{Foil}}.

** The GreaterScopeVillain of ''Film/MissionImpossible1994'', Max, is an ArmsDealer who is nevertheless [[AffablyEvil polite and respectful to everyone]] and [[FriendlyEnemy is genuinely fond of Ethan]]. TheHeavy, Jim Phelps, is a vicious [[TheMole mole]] who murders his own colleagues - including his ''wife'' - with no remorse and is entirely motivated by greed.

Compare TheGoodTheBadAndTheEvil for when the two evil sides come to oppose the other. Compare BlackAndGrayMorality in a similar vein. Can overlap with NobleTopEnforcer, where the villain's top agent is comparatively noble, and TheStarScream, where a potentially worse lackey of the sympathetic villain betrays them to become the pure evil. Can overlap with MoreHateableMinorVillain. Compare and contrast ContrastingSequelAntagonist, when the sympathetic villain and the despicable villain appear in a separate instalment from one another. This trope can be achieved through the introduction of a VilerNewVillain. SubTrope of {{Foil}}.

* ''Anime/CastleInTheSky'': Dola at first appears as the sole villain in the story, as she and her crew attempt to steal Sheeta's necklace and she and Pazu must escape from her. However, [[VillainRespect their success in this impresses Dola]], and she allows them onto her ship. She shows a kinder side, and has a [[MirrorCharacter moment with Sheeta that shows they aren't so different.]] She is also shown to care deeply about her crew, who also double as her family. It is even pointed out by Pazu that she [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold isn't as mean as she pretends to be.]] Muska is later revealed to be the true BigBad, who wants to use Laputa's power as a weapon of war to [[TakeOverTheWorld conquer the world.]] His role as the despicable villain is further solidified when he murders the soldiers who accompanied him, as well as threatening to [[WouldHurtAChild shoot Sheeta and Pazu.]] He is one of the only [[Creator/HayaoMiyazaki Miyazaki]] villains who is a complete HateSink with no redeeming qualities.
* ''Anime/PokemonTheSeries'': This is a recurring gag whenever Team Rocket, the series resident GoldfishPoopGang, ends up coming to a new region and meets their local villain group. The Team Rocket Trio, at best, are incompetent thieves who wallow in misery trying to steal one measly Pikachu and never get anywhere in life, but the series has demonstrated time and again that things would be better for them if they gave up the criminal life and went straight -- even then they do love and care for their Pokémon, and would draw the line at [[EvenEvilHasStandards doing certain abhorrent deeds]]. However, Team Aqua, Team Magma, Team Galactic, Team Plasma, and Team Flare consist entirely of sociopaths and psychopaths (especially their leaders, notably Cyrus, Ghetsis, and Lysandre) who are out to reshape or destroy the world no matter who pays the price, and will happily eliminate anyone who gets in their way. Even worse, they will use Pokémon (typically the Legendaries of each region) and force them to carry out their dastardly schemes, no matter how harmful it is. Consequently, the Team Rocket Trio will happily throw their lot in with Ash and company and team up with them to bring the EvilerThanThou villains down.
* ''Anime/SSSSGridman'': Anti, Akane Shinjo and Alexis Kerib play a rare 3-part variant on this trope, with the villains ranging from most sympathetic to most despicable in that order. Anti starts out as a {{Kaiju}} created by Akane to ruthlessly destroy the protagonists, only to end up pull a HeelFaceTurn after the latter's string of physical and verbal abuses wore him down in contrast to the heroes' acceptance of him despite his backstory. Akane herself starts out as a colossal misanthrope with little remorse for [[DisproportionateRetribution unleashing monsters on those who've wronged her in the slightest]], but deep down, is just a lonely, manipulated girl [[SaveThisPersonSaveTheWorld who needs Gridman's help to escape the virtual world she's created]]. Finally, Alexis Kerib starts out as an AffablyEvil father figure to Akane but is really just a horrible person who is manipulating Akane's emotions for his own sadistic ends.

* ''Fanfic/{{Null}}'': Jaune Arc, in his quest to save all of his missing family-members, overall faces off against ''two'' very powerful conspiracy leaders who have a lot of sway and influence across Remnant: Matthew Fields (who kidnapped Jaune and his family to be experimented on, and still ruthlessly uses his influence to hunt Jaune in the hopes of recapturing him), and [[AdaptationalVillainy Ozpin]] (who re-kidnaps Jaune's youngest sister Amber Arc for his own ends, seeks Jaune's death so that the latter can't reclaim her, and turns his back on his allies and his own student when the latter is in nightmarish peril).
** Fields (Despicable) is a CorruptCorporateExecutive without any real empathy, running a GovernmentConspiracy that kidnaps hundreds of people, mercilessly uses them like livestock and labrats while experimenting on them to replicate their Semblances or Silver Eyes, and then kills them or uses them as breeding stock for child experiments. Furthermore, Fields is planning to "solve" the socio-political problems of Faunus racism and the White Fang by covertly committing total genocide against the Faunus via Remnant-wide forced sterilization.

* ''WesternAnimation/ChickenRun'': Mr. and Mrs. Tweedy are the two main villains of the movie. Mrs. Tweedy is the mostly evil because she kills chickens when they don't lay eggs anymore and attempt to turn them into chicken pies. Mr. Tweedy is more sympathetic because he gets abused by his wife and never believes him about the chickens being organized. He eventually stands his ground against her and ''crushes'' her with the barn wall.
* ''WesternAnimation/TheMagicRoundabout2005'': The two antagonists are the evil ice wizard Zeebad, and his NobleTopEnforcer Soldier Sam. Sam isn't inherently malicious, balks when ordered to do some particularly reprehensible things, and he's been manipulated by Zeebad into believing the [=MacGuffins=] which he's helping Zeebad claim are the latter's property. Zeebad on the other hand is a CardCarryingVillain who revels in hurting others at every opportunity, he wants to engulf the Earth in eternal winter by freezing the sun, and cares for absolutely no-one but himself at the day's end. Ultimately, Zeebad cruelly leaves an injured Sam to die alone in a frozen waste (rubbing the fact in Sam's face just before he departs), and when Sam later attempts to amend his previous misguided deeds by challenging Zeebad, Zeebad strikes him down and temporarily "kills" him in cold blood.

** Their respective motivations for the wish also illustrates this. Goldilocks wants, what she considers, a real, human family. She only reveals this in a moment of anger to her bear family, and although they are hurt, they love Goldie so much they will get what she wants. Jack Horner, on the other hand, just wants all the magic in the world for himself.
** Meanwhile, The Big Bad Wolf (a.k.a. Death) fits somewhere in between, disguising as a bounty hunter while trying to get Puss to appreciate his lives that he had wasted.

* ''WesternAnimation/WreckItRalph'' is a PunchClockVillain who only wrecks the building because, as a video game character, it is literally his job to do so. Sadly, since he is associated with the villainous role, the Nicelanders [[AllOfTheOtherReindeer unjustly treat him poorly]]. This is why Ralph game-jumps, so that he can get a medal to hopefully earn some respect. King Candy/Turbo is not too different, since he also game-jumped to try to get some respect from others. However, unlike Ralph, who is a genuinely nice guy who just wants respect simply so that people will treat him better and nothing more, Turbo wants respect simply because [[ItsAllAboutMe he's egotistical]], and is more-than willing to make others suffer to make it happen.

* ''Franchise/{{Saw}}'': The sympathetic/despicable dynamic often comes into play between the Jigsaw killers as the Sympathetic and certain antagonistic victims of theirs as despicable. While the killers tend to be main threat, said victims are usually tested for doing acts [[EvenEvilHasStandards the killers find despicable]], and some actively seek to cross more lines in the games they find themselves in. Furthermore, even the killers themselves vary in sympathy and loathesomeness:

** ''Film/SawIV'': Among the victims present in Rigg's trial, which were once again wanted by John, are Brenda (a ruthless pimp who sold out many women into prostitution), Ivan (a serial rapist) and Rex (a domestic abuser), all of whom were able to get out of their own crimes thanks to Art defending them (although he isn't drawn as unsympathetic too for doing so). Rigg in particular shows NoSympathy to Ivan when he finds material of the women he raped, and forces him into the Bedroom Trap (as he was otherwise instructed) without any remorse.

* ''Film/SpiderMan3'': The two villains that Spider-Man faces in the movie are Venom and the Sandman. While Sandman has a young daughter who he cares for very much and feels remorse for shooting Uncle Ben years ago,Venom on the other hand wants revenge on Spider-Man for getting him fired from his job as a reporter for the Daily Bugle and threatens the life of Sandman's daughter in order to ensure his cooperation.

* ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'': A majority of the characters written to oppose the main characters the Stark family are given nuanced characterization and sympathetic traits, some of whom later become POV characters themselves (The Lannisters, Stannis and Renly Baratheon, Theon Greyjoy etc). The only exception to this is Ramsay Snow (later legitimize as Ramsay Bolton), who KickTheDog in every single chapter he appeared in.
* ''Literature/BarnabyRudge'': Whilst neither character is the BigBad- that honour goes to [[AristocratsAreEvil Lord]] [[RabbleRouser George]] [[HistoricalDomainCharacter Gordon]]- Mr. Geoffrey Haredale and Sir John Chester serve as antagonists to their niece Emma and son Edward, respectively, by keeping them [[StarCrossedLovers separated]], purely because Haredale and Sir John are [[FeudingFamilies enemies]] due to their different religions. However, Mr. Haredale, despite his HairTriggerTemper and [[GoodIsNotNice bluntness]], genuinely cares for his niece [[LikeASonToMe as though she were his own daughter]], comes to [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone regret separating her from Edward]], along with putting his life in danger to save several innocents from the brutal Gordon riots. Additionally, he goes through a TraumaCongaLine that makes the viewer sympathize with him- the murder of his brother twenty years ago, the heartbreak and kidnapping of Emma, and his house being burnt to the ground. Sir John, on the other hand, is a FauxAffablyEvil [[TheSociopath sociopath]], who cares only for [[TheHedonist his own pleasures]], takes pride in having kept Haredale a lifelong bachelor by [[EvilIsPetty stealing his fiancee]], and tries to coerce Edward into marrying a rich heiress [[GoldDigger just so he can use her money to maintain his lifestyle and pay off his debts]]. Further proof of his moral vileness lies in the fact that he is implied to have given the rioters the idea of burning down Haredale's house, and that in the past, he seduced, impregnated, and then abandoned a HotGypsyWoman, who was then hanged for theft, but not before giving birth to his BastardBastard son, [[TheBrute Hugh the ostler]]. Despite happily recruiting Hugh as an agent in his mission to ruin the Haredales' lives, [[JerkWithAHeartOfJerk Sir John ultimately treats him no better than he treated his legitimate son]] once he [[LukeIAmYourFather discovers their relation]]. If anything, he treats him even worse, refusing to try rescuing him from the gallows near the climax, or even come to see him. Needless to say, Sir John is a far fouler man than Mr. Haredale, which makes it [[KarmicDeath all the more appropriate]] that Haredale kills him in a duel by the end of the story.

* ''Literature/TheFolkOfTheAir'': The series features a BigBadDuumvirate between TheEvilPrince Balekin Greenbriar and ColonelKilgore General Madoc. Balekin is a slimy, smug piece of crap who slaughters his own family with glee and would gladly sacrifice his own people if it meant he could get the crown. In contrast, while Madoc enjoys war and conflict, he sincerely cares about the land of Elfhame, loves his children and even takes his defeat very well.

** ''Series/PowerRangersInSpace'' has Ecliptor and Darkonda. While both are [[CardCarryingVillain Card-carrying villains]], Ecliptor is a NobleDemon with positive traits such his UndyingLoyalty towards Astronema, who he [[EvenEvilHasLovedOnes treats like a daughter]]. Darkonda, by contrast is a HateSink who [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder holds no loyalty towards anyone]], and even tries [[TheStarscream overthrowing]] [[BigBad Dark Spectre]].

* ''Series/{{Psych}}'': Shawn Spencer's arch-nemesis is the father-daughter duo of Mr. Yin and Mr. Yang, the latter first appearing in the Season 3 finale and the former debuting in the Season 4 finale. Despite her insanity, Mr. Yang is AffablyEvil and likes Shawn, saving his life twice (the second time at the cost of her own life). Mr Yin, on the other hand is a remorseless psychopath who tries to kill Abigail, Jules, and Gus just to hurt Shawn, and views his daughter as nothing more than a tool.

** For Season 13, the above roles are reversed between Lucifer, and Michael's EvilDoppelganger from the AlternateUniverse called Apocalypse World. For most of the season, Lucifer is somewhat humanized by his efforts to reach out to and bond with his half-human son Jack, and by how lost and pitiful he spends a good chunk of the season being; whereas the alternate Michael is a barbaric, monstrous, genocidal warlord who turned his native world into a horrific hellhole, gleefully tortured and slaughtered his own archangel brothers, and aspires to be a MultiversalConqueror, with the extent of his evil and barbarism appearing to shock even Lucifer. Somewhat {{subverted}} in the SeasonFinale, when Lucifer reacts to Jack rejecting him by attempting to force Jack and the latter's adoptive family to kill each-other and intending to dismantle the entire universe, all as a massive and morbid hissy-fit, which forces Dean to strike up an EnemyMine with the alternate Michael.

* ''VideoGame/DragaliaLost'': After [[DiskOneFinalBoss Morsayati]] is defeated, Nedrick and Xenos act as the two main villains of the main campaign. Nedrick is sympathetic, as due to his abnormal birth conditions, he never felt like he had a normal life. He died shortly after his birth, but was resurrected by Bahamut. However, this came at a price, and Bahamut wanted to use Nedrick to further his own ambitions. This made Nedrick feel like he never had a choice in his life, and he secretly wants to forge his own path. Xenos, on the other hand is literally a heartless being who views any and all humans as tools for him to use, and wishes to create a world in which he gets to decide everything that happens, whether the humans like it or not.
* ''VideoGame/FiveNightsAtFreddysSecurityBreach'' has [[NeverSmileAtACrocodile Montgomery Gator]] and [[SavageWolf Roxanne Wolf]]. While both are BrainwashedAndCrazy, it's strongly implied that Monty murdered Glamrock Bonnie in order to replace him ''before'' getting brainwashed, and that he was plotting to kill Glamrock Freddy in order to become the lead star. He also has a HairTriggerTemper and a habit of smashing things. In contrast, Roxy is a TragicMonster who has an InferioritySuperiorityComplex and gets a HumanizingTears scene. In the sequel DLC ''Ruin'', Roxy becomes a WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds as she pursues Gregory for stealing her eyes, even after snapping out of her brainwashing, and stops when she almost kills [[MoralityPet Cassie]], eventually pulling a HeelFaceTurn to save the latter from danger. Monty, on the other hand, remains homicidal, and is eventually electrocuted to death.

* ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles3'': Although Z is the game's true BigBad, N is the most antagonistic of the Moebius, and acts as TheHeavy for most of the game. N is genuinely sympathetic, since he is an alternate version of [[TheHero Noah]], which means that N was once just as kind as his heroic counterpart. However, N grew tired of his lifestyle of constantly fighting war and living incredibly short lives, which meant that [[StarCrossedLovers he could never be with the love of his life, Mio/M]]. N eventually decided to become Moebius purely so that he could be with M. On the other hand, Z is a being that is MadeOfEvil, and is the one who is forcing everyone to live these terrible lives, and as such, is mainly just treated as a force that needs to be stopped.

* ''WebAnimation/RedVsBlue'' features Locus and Felix, two mercenaries supposedly on opposing sides of a civil war introduced during the Chorus Trilogy. Initially, Locus is portrayed as what he considers a true soldier - emotionless, ruthless, and solely dedicated to his orders, while Felix is sarcastic and wise-cracking, yet friendly. As the Trilogy goes on, more and more about the two get revealed, making it clear who's who in their dynamic:

** Meanwhile, Season 13 reveals Locus as the '''Sympathetic Villain'''. His "true soldier" ideology is revealed to be a coping mechanism to hide his experiences with the UNSC, while also revealing he was once a compassionate and empathetic person in the past. In the present day, these past traits are brought back to the fold the more and more his stoic persona gradually breaks down. As he is forced to come to terms that his ideology has made him more akin to a slave, he begins to see his actions have not made him a soldier, but a monster. After he opts to betray Felix and leave him for dead, he vows to right his wrongs.

** The first season has two major antagonists. [[Characters/AvatarTheLastAirbenderZuko Prince Zuko]] was exiled for refusing to fight his father after he spoke up against a plan that would sacrifice loyal soldiers. He seeks the Avatar in an attempt to regain his father's favor, all the while showing a sense if honor. Zhao, on the other hand, is a conquerer who is willing to throw the world out of balance, all to be remembered as the man who slays the moon.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheOwlHouse'': The second half of the series sets up two big threats in [[Characters/TheOwlHouseEmperorBelos Emperor Belos]] and [[Characters/TheOwlHouseTheCollector The Collector]]. Belos is a OmnicidalManiac who only cares about being "the hero of his own delusion." While The Collector caused a lot of damage, both alongside and separate from Belos, they're ultimately a child yet to gain a full grasp on death and morality, making a HeelFaceTurn given the opportunity.

* ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsTheCloneWars'': Many of the villains on the CIS side of the war have less sympathetic qualities; [[Characters/StarWarsGeneralGrievous General Grievous]] is a CardCarryingVillain who only seeks the extermination of all the Jedi (his more sympathetic ''Legends'' backstory having been discarded from canon), the entire Separatist Council and military leaders like Nute Gunray and Riff Tamson only exist to serve [[Characters/StarWarsCountDooku Count Dooku's]] whim and fulfill their own desires, and the traitorous Jedi Pong Krell is a HateSink who seeks only to gain standing in the new order. By contrast, Count Dooku (as elaborated upon in ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsTalesOfTheJedi'') was a genuinely good man who turned to villainy because his efforts to fight the corruption within the Republic and the Jedi Order failed and allowed himself to be swayed by [[Characters/StarWarsEmperorPalpatine Darth Sideous]], Asajj Ventress had a DarkAndTroubledPast where she was taken from her family, enslaved, and taken in by the Jedi until her master was killed and turned to the Dark Side as a result, and former Senator Lux Bonteri was once a staunch supporter until Dooku killed his mother for daring to try and bring about a peace treaty and had a HeelFaceTurn after a brief alliance with Death Watch fell through. This also holds true for the independent villain, [[Characters/StarWarsDarthMaul Darth Maul]], the former apprentice to Darth Sideous, who [[Film/ThePhantomMenace apparently died on Naboo over a decade ago]] and miraculously survived his bisection to seek revenge on Obi-Wan Kenobi. Despite going to such lengths as killing Obi-Wan's old lover, Duchess Satine of Mandalore, and enslaving her entire planet to his whim, he still had sympathetic motives due to the horrors he suffered in the years between his apparent death and his discovery at the hands of his brother Savage Oppress. Even as he builds a crime empire, he genuinely desires to stop his former master's plans to reshape the galaxy into an Empire, even if it's for revenge for his abandonment and the death of Savage.

[[/folder]]

* ''VideoGame/PokemonBlackAndWhite'' has N and Ghetsis; both of them are leaders of Team Plasma, an AnimalWrongsGroup who want to liberate Pokemon from humans, but while the former is a WellIntentionedExtremist who genuinely believes in the cause and makes a HeelFaceTurn when he realizes just how corrupt his organization is. Meanwhile, Ghetdis is a StrawHypocrite who created Team Plasma out of a desire for power and becomes even worse in [[VideoGame/PokemonBlack2AndWhite2 the sequel]]. In addition, N sees his Pokemon as friends and only owns them temporarily out of a misguided belief that owning Pokemon is a form of abuse; Ghetsis views Pokemon as mere tools and is [[BadPeopleAbuseAnimals heavily implied to abuse them]].

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Amphibia}}'': [[Characters/AmphibiaKingAndrias King Andrias]] is a conqueror seeking to destroy other planets to gain their resources. However, at heart, he's a friendly goofball manipulated by the Core, including his [[AbusiveParents father]], to close off his heart for [[Characters/AmphibiaTheCorethe Core's]] selfish desires.

* ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsTheCloneWars'': Many of the villains on the CIS side of the war have less sympathetic qualities; [[Characters/StarWarsGeneralGrievous General Grievous]] is a CardCarryingVillain who only seeks the extermination of all the Jedi (his more sympathetic ''Legends'' backstory having been discarded from canon), the entire Separatist Council and military leaders like Nute Gunray and Riff Tamson only exist to serve [[Characters/StarWarsCountDooku Count Dooku's]] whim and fulfill their own desires, and the traitorous Jedi Pong Krell is a HateSink who seeks only to gain standing in the new order. By contrast, Count Dooku (as elaborated upon in ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsTalesOfTheJedi'') was a genuinely good man who turned to villainy because his efforts to fight the corruption within the Republic and the Jedi Order failed and allowed himself to be swayed by Darth Sideous, Asajj Ventress had a DarkAndTroubledPast where she was taken from her family, enslaved, and taken in by the Jedi until her master was killed and turned to the Dark Side as a result, and former Senator Lux Bonteri was once a staunch supporter until Dooku killed his mother for daring to try and bring about a peace treaty and had a HeelFaceTurn after a brief alliance with Death Watch fell through. This also holds true for the independent villain, [[Characters/StarWarsDarthMaul Darth Maul]], the former apprentice to Darth Sideous, who [[Film/ThePhantomMenace apparently died on Naboo over a decade ago]] and miraculously survived his bisection to seek revenge on Obi-Wan Kenobi. Despite going to such lengths as killing Obi-Wan's old lover, Duchess Satine of Mandalore, and enslaving her entire planet to his whim, he still had sympathetic motives due to the horrors he suffered in the years between his apparent death and his discovery at the hands of his brother Savage Oppress. Even as he builds a crime empire, he genuinely desires to stop his former master's plans to reshape the galaxy into an Empire, even if it's for revenge for his abandonment and the death of Savage.

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Amphibia}}'': King Andrias is a conqueror seeking to destroy other planets to gain their resources. However, at heart, he's a friendly goofball manipulated by the Core, including his [[AbusiveParents father]], to close off his heart for the Core's selfish desires.

** The first season has two major antagonists. Zuko was exiled for refusing to fight his father after he spoke up against a plan that would sacrifice loyal soldiers. He seeks the Avatar in an attempt to regain his father's favor, all the while showing a sense if honor. Zhao, on the other hand, is a conquerer who is willing to throw the world out of balance all to be remembered as the man who slayed the moon.
** The series finale is complete with two showdowns. Fire Lord Ozai is a ruthless leader who seeks to commit genocide on the Earth Kingdom. While his daughter, Azula, was the one to suggest the idea, it's made clear that her upbringing stunted her ability to do the right thing, and she's devestated upon failing to stand up to her father's pressure.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheOwlHouse'': The second half of the series sets up two big threats in Emperor Belos and The Collector. Belos is a OmnicidalManiac who only cares about being "the hero of his own delusion." While The Collector caused a lot of damage, both alongside and separate from Belos, they're ultimately a child yet to gain a full grasp on death and morality, making a HeelFaceTurn given the opportunity.
* ''WesternAnimation/SheRaAndThePrincessesOfPower'': [[CompleteMonster Horde Prime]] is a genocidal galactic conqueror who only cares about himself and leads an [[CloneArmy army of clones of himself]] that he regularly brainwashes and abuses. He repeats the same process on the inhabitants of the places he conquers. His defective clone Lord Hordak, despite being the BigBad of most of the show, is shown to be reasonable and somewhat fair from very early on, has a FreudianExcuse, and is redeemed at the end of the show.
* ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsTheCloneWars'': Many of the villains on the CIS side of the war have less sympathetic qualities; General Grievous is a CardCarryingVillain who only seeks the extermination of all the Jedi (his more sympathetic ''Legends'' backstory having been discarded from canon), the entire Separatist Council and military leaders like Nute Gunray and Riff Tamson only exist to serve Count Dooku's whim and fulfill their own desires, and the traitorous Jedi Pong Krell is a HateSink who seeks only to gain standing in the new order. By contrast, Count Dooku (as elaborated upon in ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsTalesOfTheJedi'') was a genuinely good man who turned to villainy because his efforts to fight the corruption within the Republic and the Jedi Order failed and allowed himself to be swayed by Darth Sideous, Asajj Ventress had a DarkAndTroubledPast where she was taken from her family, enslaved, and taken in by the Jedi until her master was killed and turned to the Dark Side as a result, and former Senator Lux Bonteri was once a staunch supporter until Dooku killed his mother for daring to try and bring about a peace treaty and had a HeelFaceTurn after a brief alliance with Death Watch fell through. This also holds true for the independent villain, Darth Maul, the former apprentice to Darth Sideous, who [[Film/ThePhantomMenace apparently died on Naboo over a decade ago]] and miraculously survived his bisection to seek revenge on Obi-Wan Kenobi. Despite going to such lengths as killing Obi-Wan's old lover, Duchess Satine of Mandalore, and enslaving her entire planet to his whim, he still had sympathetic motives due to the horrors he suffered in the years between his apparent death and his discovery at the hands of his brother Savage Oppress. Even as he builds a crime empire, he genuinely desires to stop his former master's plans to reshape the galaxy into an Empire, even if it's for revenge for his abandonment and the death of Savage.