Line #9 Main/UnintentionallySympathetic


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6	->''"When a TV show makes you feel sorry for potential child rapists, you know it's doing something wrong."''
7	-->-- '''Creator/CharlieBrooker''', ''[[UsefulNotes/BritishNewspapers The Guardian]]'', on ''[[Series/{{Dateline}} To Catch a Predator]]''
8
9	A case of MisaimedFandom. When a character is Unintentionally Sympathetic, it means they get a lot more sympathy from the audience than the writers were expecting. But unlike DracoInLeatherPants, this isn't a case of audience members downplaying their flaws because they think the character is sexy, cool, or funny. Rather, something about the narrative itself -- the character's motivations, their actions, the others' response to said actions, the framing of the scenario, etc. -- does the job for them. On the low end, you have characters the audience still acknowledges is in the wrong, but think the punishment they received [[KarmicOverkill outweighs whatever the wrongdoing was]]. On the high end, not only is the audience wholeheartedly on the side of the wrongdoer, but they've now started hating the "heroes" instead for punishing or opposing the character when said character is either harmless, not at fault for the actual problem, or completely justified in their actions. Plus they donate to charities and help out the community, so where's the part we're supposed to hate?
10
11	Possible reasons for unintentional sympathy include:
12	* CryForTheDevil or AlasPoorVillain is in play, but the author succeeds too well.
13	* [[DesignatedHero The supposed hero]] is [[GoodIsNotNice a dick]] or/and a {{jerkass}}.
14	* The character [[DesignatedVillain may not seem that villainous]] if you think about it, and the author may not have.
15	** Alternatively, they ''are'' villainous, but they're so bad at it that [[IneffectualSympatheticVillain you can't help but feel sorry for them]].
16	** Or, whatever villainy they are supposedly guilty of is either an InformedFlaw or part of a NoodleIncident / RiddleForTheAges that is never really explained to the audience. So the audience might end up giving the villain the benefit of the doubt because they aren't given a ''real reason'' to hate and/or root against them.
17	* The character is TheResenter, and his reasons for his resentment seem [[StrawmanHasAPoint perfectly justified]].
18	* The character wasn't fully in control of their heinous actions, be it through [[BrainwashedAndCrazy brainwashing]], TheCorruption or whatever.
19	* The character gets their LaserGuidedKarma, but their actions [[InformedWrongness weren't as bad as the story makes them out to be]], so the [[KarmicOverkill "karma" feels a bit extreme]]. Thus, the story's attempts to paint them as an AssholeVictim fall short, especially if BlamingTheVictim is in play somehow.
20	* The reasons you must hate the character carry UnfortunateImplications.
21	* The character may be a villain in their own right, but they've [[BadGuysDoTheDirtyWork killed off and/or punished]] a character [[EvilerThanThou who is even more despicable]] or that the audience hates even more (i.e. a HateSink, TheScrappy, a {{Jerkass}}, a CompleteMonster, or a CreatorsPet, to name a few). Bonus sympathy points if they actually [[EvenEvilHasStandards have a moral compass or some principles]] compared to [[AssholeVictim their victim]].
22	* ValuesDissonance: Ideals that are unacceptable at one time or place are more acceptable at another.
23	* The character has some objectively [[StrawmanHasAPoint good points]] (for which their "crimes" may seem minor compared), but neither [[TheComplainerIsAlwaysWrong the story]] nor [[ProtagonistCenteredMorality the heroes]] really seem to consider them.
24	* The character is an AntiVillain but for one reason or another the work treats them as a straight villain (this is more common in adaptations and Fan-Fics, but not exclusive to them).
25	* While many a PropagandaPiece will try to make the villain as unlikable and flawed as possible, others curiously make the villain an otherwise good person who doesn't conform to the author's beliefs. This is probably intended to show "Xism alone can make somebody evil" but often backfires spectacularly, especially if the character in question [[AssociationFallacy doesn't actually]] ''[[AssociationFallacy do]]'' [[AssociationFallacy anything with these beliefs]].
26	* The NonMaliciousMonster was just about to get the hug they needed to stop their rampage or even turn face, [[InterruptedCooldownHug but then some idiot pressed shoot]].
27	* The character is finally [[WhosLaughingNow having their big moment]] after being [[ButtMonkey put through so much abuse]].
28	* The story went through a rewrite (possibly with a different author at the helm this time) and was originally going to be more nuanced if not straight GreyAndGreyMorality. This can result in a lot of the above situations if the villain's original redeeming points don't get removed, reworked, or acknowledged.
29	* A fantastic element that makes a viewpoint that's widely considered reprehensible in real life far more valid in-universe. A common example is a character who is meant to come off as [[FantasticRacism bigoted for not trusting a race with supernatural powers]], or even a verifiable natural inclination to harm people.
30	* Inversely, a viewpoint presented as wrong can be seen as far more valid without the fantastic elements. Doubly so if there is a [[TheMasquerade masquerade]] going on and the character isn't fully aware of the implications of their actions.
31	* The characters in question are {{Mooks}} or BitPartBadGuys, but [[PunchClockVillain they're not particularly evil]] or are [[JustFollowingOrders just simply doing their jobs]]. But then the so-called [[DesignatedHero "hero"]] [[MookHorrorShow kills them in a particularly gruesome and horrifying manner]]. This is especially true for SlaveMooks who are forced to serve a villain against their will but get brutally slaughtered anyway.
32	* A FreudianExcuse portrayed as [[FreudianExcuseIsNoExcuse insufficient]] has more ground to stand on than the story or characters claim.
33	* The author themself is morally reprehensible and holds viewpoints that most people would consider to be closer to a villain than a hero, so the work is presented through their deeply skewed perspective.
34
35	Remember that different people have different standards, and the author can't necessarily account for every audience member's reaction: some people are going to sympathize with the villain no matter how unspeakably vile you try to make them. In adaptations, especially ones made [[ValuesDissonance long after the source material]], it's not uncommon to see these characters re-interpreted as outright {{Tragic Villain}}s. It is also worth noting that the '''un''' part of the title is important here. Characters only belong on these lists if they were intended for the audience ''not'' to like them. If it is ''intended'' for the villain to be sympathetic, you have CryForTheDevil.
36
37	Compare with StrawmanHasAPoint, where a character who is intended to be unsympathetic makes a point that's better than the author's own, and who doesn't necessarily become more sympathetic in the process (although the two may overlap); KarmicOverkill, when audiences feel they deserved punishment but what the narrative treated as fair was excessive; JerkassWoobie, for characters who were supposed to be seen primarily as {{Jerkass}}es but are instead more seen as {{Woobie}}s by many fans; and UnpopularPopularCharacter, where a character isn't liked in-universe, but has plenty of fans in the real world. Contrast with its inversion, UnintentionallyUnsympathetic, although both are very likely to occur together. For example, if a character is written to be cheered by the viewers but fails to do so, the character who's meant to be unfavored for opposing them tends to be Unintentionally Sympathetic. Both tropes, particularly together, often result in an EsotericHappyEnding.
38
39	On the SlidingScaleOfCharacterAppreciation, these guys fall under "Villains we sympathize with"
40
41	Not to be confused with RootingForTheEmpire, which is about liking characters ''in spite of'' the fact that they're explicitly bad guys, although they can overlap. Contrast RightForTheWrongReasons, for when someone is intended to be in the right for different reasons than argued.
42	-----
43	!!Examples:
44	[[index]]
45	* UnintentionallySympathetic/{{Advertising}}
46	* UnintentionallySympathetic/AnimeAndManga
47	* UnintentionallySympathetic/FanWorks
48	* [[UnintentionallySympathetic/AnimatedFilms Films — Animation]]
49	* [[UnintentionallySympathetic/LiveActionFilms Films — Live-Action]]
50	* UnintentionallySympathetic/{{Literature}}
51	** ''UnintentionallySympathetic/AndThenThereWereNone''
52	* UnintentionallySympathetic/LiveActionTV
53	* UnintentionallySympathetic/ProfessionalWrestling
54	* UnintentionallySympathetic/VideoGames
55	* UnintentionallySympathetic/WebComics
56	* UnintentionallySympathetic/WesternAnimation
57	** ''UnintentionallySympathetic/LooneyTunes''
58	** ''UnintentionallySympathetic/TheLoudHouse''
59	** ''UnintentionallySympathetic/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic''
60	[[/index]]
61
62	[[foldercontrol]]
63
64	[[folder:Comic Books]]
65	* ''ComicBook/ChickTracts'':
66	** Many [[StrawCharacter Strawman Political]]. [[DisproportionateRetribution Particularly those who end up in hell when they have not done anything really wrong]] other than [[InformedWrongness disagreeing with the protagonist]]. The missionary couple in [[http://www.chick.com/reading/tracts/0041/0041_01.asp "Flight 144"]] are the most infamous example. Most of Chick's {{Designated Villain}}s are at least given ''some'' genuine vices, but these two are genuinely good people and devout Christians themselves, and yet we are supposed to root against them simply because they ''aren't'' subscribers to Chick's far-right brand of Christianity. Granted, there's likely intended to be a certain level of tragedy involved when good people go to Hell, but it often seems as though God is being unfair in those cases.
67	** Esau. Apparently, not fully appreciating his birthright and [[LeonineContract trading it for some food when he's (most likely literally) starving]] is bad enough for God to hate him, even if he's largely a victim of his brother Jacob's trickery. He later reconciles with Jacob, but apparently, this, like the conflict between Isaac and Ishmael, is meant to be a parallel to the Israel-Palestinian conflict in Chick's eyes.[[note]]It is unlikely that Chick knew about this or cared, but Literature/TheTalmud retcons Esau’s character to be ''much'' worse than we actually see in the Book of Genesis, being allegedly guilty of such things as lying about forgiving Jacob (and actually trying to kill him when they kiss and make up), being an UngratefulBastard, disrespecting Jacob even after his brother’s death, and ''raping and murdering a girl''. Of course, going only by Genesis there is no textual evidence for any of this whatsoever, and the ancient rabbis seem to have just made it up centuries after the fact because of Esau’s ''descendants'' were hostile to the Israelites, and Chick would reject it because he’s a ''sola scriptura'' Protestant, so it’s weird that he would go for such an unfavorable interpretation.[[/note]]
68	* ''ComicBook/ElfQuest'': Rayek comes off as this in the first book. Yeah, he's an arrogant JerkAss, but Cutter won the trial of wits by openly cheating, and the judge let him skate on a flimsy technicality based on the fact that he ''didn't know any better''. Nothing breeds sympathy like watching a competitor being unfairly mocked because he had the audacity to follow the rules while his opponent was ruled the winner for being ignorant.
69	** The other two trials aren't any better. The first trial is a hand-to-hand, blindfolded wrestling match, where Rayek is a hunter for a peaceful village that has no enemies, and Cutter is a seasoned veteran of an endless conflict between humans and elves for his entire life. In the third, Savah lays it out that Rayek's fear of losing is a more difficult one than Cutter's fear of heights to overcome, but she chose a contest for both that only tested a fear of heights ''and'' made Cutter go first, meaning that the best Rayek could do in that trial was tie for winner, depending on whether Cutter succeeded or failed.
70	** However, it's not really fair to say Cutter cheated in the Trial of Wits. The Trial of Wits required him to retrieve his sword from a crevice where it was out of reach, without using magic. He did it by using Skywise's magnetized lodestone that Skywise had lent him for luck. No magic involved, although it looked enough like magic that most of the onlookers, and Rayek, thought it ''was'' magic. But Suntoucher, who was judging the contest, apparently knew enough basic physics to know it was not.
71	** Similarly, the Trial of Hand ''is a Sun Folk game''. If anyone had the advantage, it should have been Rayek. It's hardly Cutter's fault that Rayek challenged him to a contest where Cutter's natural advantages were enough to overcome Rayek's experience.
72	* ''ComicBook/TheIncredibleHulk'': Writers have a habit of painting anyone who reacts negatively to the Hulk's destructive temper as being in the wrong. [[GeneralRipper Thaddeus Ross]] is the most frequent victim of this but even other superheroes aren't immune:
73	** ''ComicBook/WorldWarHulk'': The decision of the Illuminati (Iron Man, Mr. Fantastic, Black Bolt, Charles Xavier and Dr. Strange) [[ComicBook/PlanetHulk to shoot the Hulk into outer space]] is treated as an unforgivable crime and a terrible betrayal of a close friend, ally and hero. Except the impetus for the Illuminati's decision was the Hulk going on a rampage which killed 26 people. This was also a period in which [[ComicBook/CivilWar2006 anti-superhero political forces were just LOOKING for an excuse to enact registration laws]]. Exiling him was being pretty lenient, and arguably doing him a favor since "Leave Hulk alone" is one of the Hulk's catchphrases. That's not even getting into the fact that the Illuminati meant for the Hulk to land on a peaceful uninhabited planet, only for the ship to accidentally crash on [[CrapsackWorld Sakaar]], something none of them could have predicted. And while the Hulk's RoaringRampageOfRevenge was caused by the ship later exploding and killing his wife, the Illuminati had nothing to do with that, since it was the Hulk's rivals on Sakaar who planted a bomb in the first place. Worse, one of the Hulk's new allies was aware of this and chose to keep it a secret so the Hulk would become the World Breaker.
74	** ''Giant-Size Hulk #1'': The story "Green Pieces" has the Champions of Los Angeles (Black Widow, Iceman, Hercules, Darkstar, Ghost Rider and Angel) about to be recommended for freeing the U.S from the mind control of Dr. Doom in an older story when they receive word that Banner is back in town. Knowing what tends to happen when the Hulk is around, they scout the city for him. Angel encounters him first when Banner [[HulkingOut hulks out]] in the middle of a traffic jam. The Hulk throws a car door at Angel who has to intercept it from hitting a nearby couple. The other Champions arrive and engage the Hulk until he decides to leave for a hospital and turn over a woman who was in the car to the doctors. This woman turns out to be Jennifer Walters (best known as She-Hulk), Banner's cousin, and after her surgery she explains that Bruce was trying to get her to the hospital because her appendix burst. When Hercules asks why the Hulk did not simply explain his troubles, Jen responds that the Champions never tried to ask him what his problem was. The story tries to make it look like the Champions jumped to conclusions and attacked the Hulk without cause but the Hulk did not make himself look sympathetic by attacking the first person who approached him and endangering nearby civilians. And considering that Jen was ''in the car'' when Banner hulked out, it's a miracle she was still alive when he got her to the hospital.
75	* ''ComicBook/InfiniteCrisis'': ComicBook/WonderWoman. The story portrays Diana killing Maxwell Lord as cold-blooded murder. However, this ignores that Max had taken control of ComicBook/{{Superman}} and was trying to use him to start a war between humans and metahumans by having him kill thousands of innocent people. Diana herself had begged Max to cease his villainous actions, had used the Lasso of Truth to determine that the only way to stop Max was by killing and was doubtful she could survive if she continued to fight Superman; Diana killing Max was less her committing cold-blooded murder and more her being backed into a corner and taking the best option available to her. This wasn't even the first time Diana had killed a villain before but it was the first time she [[WhatMeasureIsANonHuman killed one who looked human]]... [[FantasticRacism which doesn't paint the people angry at her in a good light]]. Not helping things was the fact that on the verge of defeating [[AIIsACrapshoot Brother Eye]], the rogue satellite projected footage of the death scene worldwide in an attempt to [[TakingYouWithMe drag her reputation down with itself]]. Some of the heroes that still took her side, like Superman and ComicBook/{{Batman}}, were upset for a different reason, regardless of how bad a man is, [[ThouShaltNotKill heroes don't kill, period]]. Ultimately, the incident causes Wonder Woman to turn right around and convince Batman to spare Alexander Luthor Jr. when the villain puts ComicBook/{{Nightwing}} in a coma in what was [[WhatCouldHaveBeen originally intended to be the hero's death scene]].
76	* ''ComicBook/JusticeLeagueOfAmerica'': The narrative of ''ComicBook/JusticeLeagueTheRiseOfArsenal'' was specifically trying to make sure Roy Harper was JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope following the loss of his arm by Prometheus and his daughter being violently crushed to death in ''ComicBook/JusticeLeagueCryForJustice'', with him verbally lashing out at his loved ones when they try to help before he relapses into his heroin addiction and becomes a violent antihero. Roy fans are still arguing about how sympathetic he comes off in this story due to criticisms over how his friends handled his situation (such as allowing him to be kept on a heavy amount of pain medication while he was comatose despite knowing his history, which coupled with the infection in his arm, led to him waking up already hallucinating and emotionally unstable on top of his grief). The scene in the second issue where he attacks Mia Dearden at Lian's funeral was ''meant'' to show him being unreasonable and horrible as he drives Mia to tears, blaming her for leaving Lian alone when she did. It instead comes across as a grieving father enraged that the person culpable in his child's death chose his daughter's funeral, of all places, to vainly attempt to beg his forgiveness for what happened. The fact that everyone else sides with Mia instead of asking why in God's name she genuinely thought this was a good time to approach Roy to apologize for her actions makes his anger at her and them a lot more understandable (even if his insult at Donna Troy about how ''her'' son died because "she was whoring in space with Kyle Rayner" is indeed harsh).
77	* ''ComicBook/TheRedTen'':
78	** Androika, from what little is established of her due to being the first to die, was said to have killed her creators. Messages between the two revealed one was worried she was having an existential breakdown regarding her existence, but that and the deaths are all we know. It's never confirmed as to what exactly happened, making it vague if she deliberately killed them. As such, it makes her a bit more sympathetic due to the idea that she might not have been to blame for what happened.
79	** Mold. The narrative specifies that Mold isn't technically alive and has no will of its own, so you can't really hate a puppet. You can very much hate its pedophilic creator, but knowing Mold had no choice in the actions it took being used as a weapon by everyone, it's easy to feel sorry for the creature when it had no control over of its life only to die as a puddle of goo.
80	* ''ComicBook/TheSpectre'': There is a very old comic story starring the Spectre back when he was just a normal superhero and not the personification of the wrath of God, which opens with [[DecoyProtagonist a scientist]] who receives telepathic messages telling him to build a rocket and follow the source. He does, only to be tricked into freeing the villain, and is rewarded by [[AndIMustScream being immobilized forever by the ray which had trapped the villain]]. And [[OffscreenInertia he isn't freed at the end]], since the villain never tells anyone how he escaped. The scientist asks for a reward immediately after freeing him, so he’s ''meant'' to come across as an AssholeVictim who only helps people for selfish reasons. However, we see so little of his personality and his punishment is so disproportionate to his vice that readers just feel sorry for [[VictimizedBystander the guy]].
81	* ''ComicBook/TeenTitans'': Terra from the storyline ''ComicBook/TheJudasContract'' is referred to repeatedly as an insane, unrepentant monster who has no one to blame but herself for her behavior. It's hard to believe this one-sided characterization for her. There are several signs towards {{Freudian Excuse}}s for her. She had a bad home life, was ran out of her home country, and ultimately met Deathstroke. Their sexual relationship is supposed to make ''Terra'' seem [[SlutShaming gross]], however instead many view Deathstroke (who is at least thirty years older than her and an adult) as grooming and manipulating the vulnerable teenager. Not helping is that Beast Boy, the teammate most romantically interested in her, was very much an immature womanizer towards her [[ProtagonistCenteredMorality yet received no consequence for it]]. Terra being unintentionally sympathetic is a large reason why DC {{retcon}}ned her later on, with a [[WesternAnimation/TeenTitansTheJudasContract movie]] and several [[WesternAnimation/TeenTitans2003 later]] [[WesternAnimation/YoungJustice2010 cartoons]] applying outright AdaptationalHeroism to make her sympathy more intentional (often with a dose of AdaptationalVillainy for Deathstroke's manipulative nature), complete with her making a HeelFaceTurn, though the former two works make use of RedemptionEqualsDeath (outright in the film and [[NeverSayDie depicted as]] [[TakenForGranite petrification]] in the ''Teen Titans'' cartoon), and the latter cartoon had her survive but [[spoiler:her brother Geo-Force replaces her in the villains' schemes]]. A 2000s issue implies that Deathstroke drugged her into being how she was, which was demonstrated to also have happened to [[ComicBook/Batgirl2000 Cassandra Cain]], while ''Rebirth'' depicts Deathstroke seducing Terra as a MoralEventHorizon.
82	* ''ComicBook/{{Watchmen}}'': Creator/AlanMoore was genuinely surprised to find out that everyone loved Rorschach. This is despite the fact that he wrote the character as a paranoid nutcase and exactly the opposite to Creator/AlanMoore politically. The most likely explanation is that, 1) even though Rorschach's methods are excessive, [[DoNotDoThisCoolThing they're still cool to watch]], 2) Walter Kovacs is [[FreudianExcuse very clearly traumatized]], and 3) most of the people he fights [[BlackAndGrayMorality are even worse than he is]].[[note]]Key word being ''most''-- the cops who apprehend him are just doing their jobs.[[/note]]
83	** Actually, Alan Moore intended for [[GodNeverSaidThat Rorschach to be sympathetic yet flawed]], and even mentioned in interviews at the time Watchmen was released that Rorschach was his favorite character. What he never intended was for some readers to [[DracoInLeatherPants uncritically accept all of Rorschach's viewpoints]]. There is also a bit of FlipFlopOfGod involved, as Moore got more critical of superheroes and their fans over time.
84	* ''ComicBook/WonderWoman1942'' [[ComicBook/WonderWoman1942 Vol. 1]]: While it's pretty easy to feel uncomfortable at Wondy having any of her villains locked in a [[GettingSmiliesPaintedOnYourSoul Venus Girdle]], Byrna Brilyant (Snowman/Blue Snowman) really gets the short end of the stick. Her initial crime is attacking and holding an entire community for ransom using "blue snow" which does not actually ''harm'' any of her victims physically. She's then taken, without trial, to Reformation Island and locked in a Venus Girdle indefinitely alongside serial killers and horrific war criminals. She never falls completely under the Girdle's mind controlling sway so while she has no choice but to follow every order given to her and can tell the thing is forcing her to act happy about it she's horrified and doing everything she can to escape. When she joins Villainy Inc. with new armor she secretly made while imprisoned her anger feels extremely justified.
85	* ''ComicBook/XMen'': Marvel spent a lot of effort to destroy ComicBook/{{Cyclops}}'s legacy as a hero during their push of ''ComicBook/TheInhumans'' as essentially a replacement for ''X-Men'', which all came to a head during the infamous Terrigen Mists storyline. Essentially, the Inhumans' Terrigen Mists got released into Earth's atmosphere, creating two large clouds that floated around the Earth. Terrigen Mists caused two things to happen. Firstly, they unlock superpowers in any human that has the Inhuman gene, making the Mists important (and even holy) to the Inhumans as a whole. Secondly, they cause infertility and eventually death in anyone who has the mutant X-gene. Over the course of several months, many mutants died from the Mist. Cyclops, in an attempt to save the rest of mutantkind, led a mission which ultimately destroyed one of the clouds. In retaliation, Black Bolt and Medusa killed him on the spot. Then somehow, society as a whole came to see Cyclops as a monster for this act, with one character explicitly comparing him to Hitler for destroying the cloud. That's right; the character ''opposed'' to gassing innocents to death is compared to Hitler. And it's clear that the audience is supposed to agree, even though the Mists were killing Mutants while the Inhumans didn't really care at all. And to top it off, the Inhumans don't ''need'' the Mists to survive. They can live their whole life without ever being exposed, they simply don't develop any powers.
86	** The worst part is that Cyclops didn't even do these supposedly-terrible acts; he'd actually died from Terrigen poisoning early on, and the "Cyclops" seen afterwards was secretly just a mental projection by Emma Frost. Even after this revelation becomes public knowledge, other characters still talk badly about Cyclops.
87	* ''ComicBook/XanaduVickyWyman'': Vicky Wyman later admitted that she didn't establish Reginald Plume as a villain clearly enough in the series' beginning, such as Empress Alicia was rightly concerned he had designs on the throne. After all, he was responsible for the Ever-Changing Palace's security and thus was justified to chase down Tabbe for breaking into it. Furthermore, Tabbe technically raped his girlfriend, Fatima (It was more like he seduced her, albeit without the explicit option of declining, and she admitted to Plume's face that he was very gentle about it) while in the commission of that trespass and some readers note that one would understand Reginald would really want to make him pay for that. The facts that Tabbe and Jonathan thwarted him, Fatima didn't mind her encounter with Tabbe to the point of falling in love with the cat, and Plume was suddenly saddled with a dragon warrior from the Golden Realm to enhance security that he is not trusted by the Empress to manage as he sees fit are further insults that you'd half understand the villainous deeds he does next.
88	* ''ComicBook/{{Zenith}}'': The titular character is supposed to be a spoiled brat for refusing to become a superhero, despite all the horrible shit going on. Putting aside the fact Zenith is a teenager that everyone treats as if he's an adult, Zenith has [[StrawmanHasAPoint very good reasons for not wanting to be a superhero]]: he has no actual training in being a superhero, his superpowers are unreliable since they wax and wane in power meaning he might be not powerful enough to save the day, his parents were superheroes who disappeared and were assumed to have to die during a mission, and, during the first story arc, witnesses [[spoiler: Red Dragon being horribly killed by [[{{Ubermensch}} Masterman]].]] Even when Zenith actually heroic, everyone are still assholes to him. Not helping is [[spoiler: how most of the surviving superheroes are actually evil EldritchAbomination who intend to destroy entire universes as part of their plane to take over the multiverse.]] As such, Zenith wanting to focus on his pop star career is very understandable.
89	[[/folder]]
90
91	[[folder:Music]]
92	* "På låven sitter nissen" is a Norwegian {{Christmas Song\|s}} about a ''nisse'' who angrily refuses to share his porridge with the rats in the barn, and sics the cat on them when they keep trying to get some. It's not uncommon that people feel sorry for the rats, who just wanted to enjoy a little porridge. It helps that the song presumably takes place near Christmas, so you'd most likely expect to see some generosity.
93	** There have in fact been several parodies and "unofficial" sequels where the ''nisse'' either gets his comeuppance for his selfishness (he ends up getting a stomachache because he ate too much) or feels bad about his behavior and makes sure to give the rats some food. The most popular one is probably the Danish song "Søren Banjomus" (sung to the tune of the song "Skidamarink"), in which the rats (in this song presented as mice) wait until the ''nisse'' and the cat have fallen asleep and then raid the pantry.
94	* "Before He Cheats" by Carrie Underwood tells the story about her or her self-insert taking revenge by destroying her boyfriend's truck after he cheats on her...yet, when you look at the lyrics, its clear she has no hard evidence ("Right now, he's probably..." Is a common line starter) and comes off like she's acting violently on her own fear and paranoia while destroying a truck her boyfriend clearly has a fondness for.
95	[[/folder]]
96
97	[[folder:Mythology & Religion]]
98	* Modern audiences usually view most of the gods of Myth/ClassicalMythology as JerkassGods. Both of the gods often viewed as sympathetic by modern audiences, namely [[EverybodyHatesHades Hades]] and Hephaestus, were TheScrappy to the Ancient Greeks. Hades was so hated and feared that there were no temples officially named for him, Greeks would [[HeWhoMustNotBeNamed avoid speaking his name]], and they'd turn away if they ever had to make offerings towards him. Why? Because he's the ruler of the underworld, the place where the dead go, and the Greeks didn't like dying. Hephaestus was hated simply because... he was an ugly cripple (the Greeks were big believers in BeautyEqualsGoodness). Poor guy.
99	** Not limited to modern times: Ares was originally one of three gods of war, the others being his sisters Enyo (who rarely got a big role) and Athena (who was the goddess of war ''strategy'' in particular). Of the two more well-known gods, Athena was the skilled general and protector, and Ares was a slavering bloodthirsty madman that just wanted to see the world burn... and he usually lost when the two came into conflict.[[labelnote:*]]As for Enyo, she was even more erratic than Ares, and never took sides in war because she purely enjoyed the bloodshed.[[/labelnote]] In fact, he usually lost in basically any interaction with any other god, and occasionally with mortals. However, the Romans later came to identify Ares with their own god Mars who had both aspects in his portfolio, along with being the protector of soldiers, farmers, and Rome itself (among many other things). This caused them to see the character in a much more positive light.
100	* Plenty in ''Literature/TheBible'', due to ValuesDissonance.
101	** Ishmael and his mother Hagar are treated badly by Sarah because Ishmael is Abraham's bastard son, despite his conception having been Sarah's idea in the first place, and because Hagar rubbed her pregnancy in Sarah's face. Because their presence caused tension in the community, they are forced to leave. Fortunately, they are not forsaken by everyone, and God helps them both survive in the wilderness.
102	** Leah, Rachel's older sister, is forced to marry a man she knows does not love her (her father tricked Jacob into marrying her instead of Rachel, who Jacob really loved, because of a custom that the oldest daughter must be married first) and is forever TheUnfavourite, despite giving Jacob six sons and one daughter as opposed to Rachel's two (the other four sons were the children of Leah and Rachel's handmaids). None of this is her fault, and she can come across very sympathetically to modern audiences. Though, to be fair, God also sympathized with her and made sure she had kids while Rachel was barren to try to get Jacob to treat her better. Not only that, but two of her sons were Judah and Levi--the fathers of the Royal and Priestly tribes, respectively.
103	** Famously, Judas Iscariot given how he almost immediately regretted his betrayal of Jesus to the point of [[DrivenToSuicide hanging himself]] which the narrative plays as a [[SuicideIsShameful shameful end]] rather than an AlasPoorVillain. It doesn't help that his betrayal was part of God's plan of salvation, that the Gospel of John has Jesus telling him "What you are about to do, do quickly" or that the Gospel of Luke implies that he was [[DemonicPossession possessed by the Devil]] yet verses like Mark 14:21 still implies that he went to Hell after his death.
104	* For that matter, in modern religions, there are people with genuine (and sometimes literal) SympathyForTheDevil. This may actually have some roots in earlier mythologies. In Classical Mythology, Prometheus was a hero who challenged the gods and stole fire (forbidden knowledge) for humanity and in effect allowed humanity to progress beyond what the gods would have us do. As a result, Prometheus was punished by the gods for all eternity. Many parallels exist in the story of the devil, but with the obvious exception that he's not supposed to be viewed as the hero.
105	** [[AccidentalPun Hell]], there's an entire sub set of Christianity that operates on this belief referred to as Gnosticism, that believes that there are in fact two gods, the evil Demiurge that created the world and the true god Aeon that blessed man with knowledge of right and wrong with the serpent as his avatar.
106	** Doesn't really help that, depending on which of the Abrahamic Religions you believe in, The Devil's role can change entirely and the context for why he's doing things changes along with it. For example, Muslims seem to lean towards him being DELIBERATELY placed in his position and is actually a loyal servant (in that his job is to tempt humans and punish the wicked, and he obeys this, and thus is obeying the laws set down by God), and the Bible is full of parts where the Jews themselves had BAD short-term attention spans when it came down to worshipping God - despite everything - and would often go off and worship some other pagan deity instead, the most infamous case of this being Moses (he was only gone for A SINGLE DAY on the mountain before the rampant paganism over the golden bull started spreading).
107	** Regardless of the form of Satanism, in Satanism Satan is seen as the original free thinker, and thus respected and sometimes revered by Satanists as the conceptual idea of rebellion, disobedience and free-thinking. Some forms of Satanism believe in a literal Satan, and take the viewpoint that Satan is a HeroWithBadPublicity fighting against the demands of a cruel, selfish and egotistical God thanks to Yahweh's control of the narrative and the fact that The Bible really doesn't refute these views of Yahweh. Alternatively, atheistic Satanists don't believe in a literal Satan (because that inherently would require a God), but take on the moniker and honor the conceptual Satan as the metaphorical spirit of rebellion and free-thinking and take the term Satanist either out of this honor, because they subscribe to the philosophies of a Satanic "faith" or just to troll those they see as enemies of these ideals. This philosophy's most public appearance can be seen in the activism of the Satanic Temple, who promote liberty, tolerance and rationalism above all else (which has led to everything from demanding Baphomet statues when courts erect the Ten Commandments under freedom of religion laws, fundraising for scientific activism, a Toys for Tots type program, to helping out in free speech lawsuits and doing a "Pink Mass" over the then-leader of the Westboro Baptist Church Fred Phelps's mother's grave to turn her gay in the afterlife because Phelps made it clear that he subscribed to a ClapYourHandsIfYouBelieve mindset). The now all but defunct Church of Satan (the classic Satanism from the 1960s founded by UsefulNotes/AntonLaVey and originally espoused in The Satanic Bible) promoted an ideology very similar to Libertarianism, with self-interest being the number one ideal, but generally had more restrictions on the behavior that was acceptable in the name of this.
108	** Later Greek writers had a similar reaction to Prometheus, seeing him as much more heroic than the original tellers intended. Thus in later versions of the tale he's eventually rescued from his torment by Heracles, and Athens even had a shrine to him.
109	* The part where Zhu Bajie is recruited to join the pilgrims in the ''Literature/JourneyToTheWest'' can be uncomfortable to modern and/or Western audiences, because the crux of the incident is Sun Wukong being hired by Zhu Bajie's father-in-law to drive him away or kill him because "it's undignified to have a monster for a son-in-law". Even though, as the man admits, Zhu Bajie's superhuman strength and stamina has only made the farm prosper, as the disgraced spirit can do the work of dozens of men at a time. The worst that can be said of Zhu Bajie's behavior is that he will not let his wife speak to her parents, and even that could be cast as him punishing them for their FantasticRacism. Because Xuanzang agrees with the man, Son Wukong promptly beats Zhu Bajie to a pulp and would have killed him had Zhu Bajie not revealed he was one of the redeemed monsters that Xuanzang was supposed to take with him on the pilgrimage for protection. It's telling that many adaptations try to make Zhu Bajie less sympathetic; ''Series/{{Monkey}}'' portrays him as becoming a drunken wastrel after his marriage and this is why his in-laws want him gone, whilst his counterpart in the early arcs of ''Manga/DragonBall'' Oolong is a pervert and thief who was introduced abusing his shapechanging powers to bully innocent villagers.
110	[[/folder]]
111
112	[[folder:Newspaper Comics]]
113	* ''ComicStrip/BigNate'':
114	** Mrs. Godfrey is depicted as an often SadistTeacher who often targets and is harsh with Nate, but Nate often does things that would seem just as bad to her when looked at from her perspective, such as drawing mean cartoons and blatantly disrespecting her in front of class.
115	** Big Nate himself as the strips are meant to show him as a jerk who deserves everything bad that comes to him, but the comics end up presenting it as a KafkaKomedy with Nate continuously being manhandled by Kim [[KarmaHoudini with her suffering no consequences]], his friends being toxic and no better than his enemies, and even random background characters beating on Nate for petty reasons.
116	* Calvin from ''ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes'' is meant to be a BrattyHalfPint, but the things that his UnintentionallyUnsympathetic parents, Hobbes, and Susie can sometimes do in retaliation tend to be rather nasty as well, and sometimes he doesn't even do anything wrong but still gets screwed over. For example, one storyline has him asking Hobbes to tie him to a chair so that he can escape, dubbing himself "the Great Calvini". And then his mom calls him down for dinner. Calvin finds himself unable to escape, and Hobbes is no help at all, then proceeds to [[{{Jerkass}} just stand there reading Calvin's cub scout manual and taking his sweet time while Calvin begs him to find the part about knots and untie him]]. As if that wasn't enough, Hobbes [[NeverMyFault acts as though he's not at fault in the slightest]]. Eventually, Calvin's dad walks in and sees Calvin tied up, and berates him for somehow getting himself tied to a chair (granted, Hobbes' MaybeMagicMaybeMundane nature means Calvin's dad has no reason to think that the stuffed animal did it, but still). The storyline ends with Hobbes mocking Calvin as the boy angrily rubs his sore rear end, the implication apparently being that his father [[CorporalPunishment spanked him]]. It's really hard to blame Calvin for being ticked off.
117	* Therese, [[CreatorsPet Anthony's]] ex-wife in ''ComicStrip/ForBetterOrForWorse'', is portrayed as being a needlessly vindictive harpy toward Liz, openly expressing discomfort whenever Anthony even tries to speak to her for a few minutes. Her rudeness seems bad, except... well, it's obvious to anyone reading between the lines that there's still latent attraction between the two, which is confirmed when Anthony asks Liz to "wait for him" when the marriage seems to be going south. Unusual among examples in that Lynn Johnston later devotes a few weeks to strips explicitly making her sympathetic -- it's in these that we find out that Anthony and her parents pressured her into having a child when she really didn't want one, and that she had suffered from post-partum depression after the birth.
118	** Note that the above was revealed by ''Anthony'' while begging Liz to wait for him -- he even explains that he made false promises to Therese so she'd have his child, assuming [[BabiesMakeEverythingBetter having a baby would make]] her [[StayInTheKitchen fall into line]]. He thinks this makes him ''more'' sympathetic.
119	** As TheUnfavourite, April also falls into this. [[InformedFlaw Supposedly a]] rebellious teen, she constantly gets the short end of the stick and is supposed to be grateful for it. One week-long arc involves April not immediately going downstairs when Elly announces that dinner is ready. Is she playing video games or chatting with her friends? Looking at Internet porn? Shooting heroin? Nope - she's ''finishing her homework''. Elly [[FelonyMisdemeanor reacts like this is the end of the world]] and sends John to loom threateningly over April until she comes down and apologizes.
120	** After her grandfather was committed to a nursing home, April was the only member of her immediate family to make any effort to visit him on a regular basis. Her parents and older siblings were regularly shown griping about these visits, as she was the only one without a driver's license and they disliked having to drop her off and pick her up. As far as the rest of the Pattersons were concerned, he effectively didn't exist... right up until they found his late wife's wedding dress in a crawlspace and became obsessed with the notion of Elizabeth wearing it to her wedding.
121	* Cobra in ''Rip Haywire''. It's highly likely the only reason she's evil is because people hate her and mistreat her. It's possible that she wouldn't be so bad if she was treated with more respect.
122	[[/folder]]
123
124	[[folder:Radio]]
125	* In ''Radio/TheMenFromTheMinistry'', the General Assistance Department's boss Sir Gregory is a BadBoss to the core, being a mean and unnecessarily cruel as well as occasionally violent towards his underlings. However the General Assistance Department is also the most incompetent office in the whole of Whitehall, so his anger is often more than justified.
126	[[/folder]]
127
128	[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
129	* A recurring problem for orcs, goblins, kobolds, and other [[AlwaysChaoticEvil evil]] races in ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' is that they can end up being this. Many of these races live in caves and wastelands and swamps, with limited technology and magic and no stable society, making their habits of raiding and conquering seem less like brutality and more like survival. They [[FantasticRacism hate Good races]], sure, but the Good races hate them right back. It's hard not to look at them and see an oppressed minority driven to extremes by circumstance, even in the cases where the "good guys" aren't wiping them out for the sake of XP. Add in decades of players mining "[[MySpeciesDothProtestTooMuch good member of an evil race]]" for drama with their MonsterAdventurers, and feats and prestige classes and abilities dedicated to murdering those races [[UnfortunateImplications start to look pretty suspect]]. Because of the ValuesDissonance, material released after the 80s has begun rolling with the sympathy, showing these races with detailed cultures and personal values on their own terms - even if the average member isn't someone you'd want to have a drink with, it doesn't excuse genocide.
130	** That said, it's not always rolled with; it heavily depends on the setting being used as a base and the group in question as well as the sourcebook in question. The ''TabletopGame/ForgottenRealms'' based "Volo's Guide to Monsters" portrays kobolds in a very sympathetic light and fleshes out orcs a fair bit, but has the ''least'' sympathetic portrayal of [[HeinousHyena gnolls]] of virtually any edition to date.
131	* ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'':
132	** Though basically the Gestapo 5.0, The Inquisition is often seen as this. Despite their motto, "Innocence Proves Nothing", [[Characters/Warhammer40000Inquisition downright batshit crazy inquisitors of note]] and seemingly liberal use of [[PlanetDestroyer Exterminatus]]. in a [[CrapsackWorld galaxy that's cranking out a new horror almost every week]] and the insidious corrupting nature of Chaos, such actions and cast are much easier to justify. Not to mention, the Inquisition has a recruitment policy that makes the "Greater Good" look downright intolerant by comparison; literally ANYONE, including mutants, psykers, nameless factory workers or planetary governors can be recruited as "acolytes" and [[AllAPartOfTheJob (provided they survive around 10 years of getting shot at on a daily basis)]] become an Inquisitor and drag even High Lords of Terra to court. It also helps that consistently throughout Warhammer 40K lore, it's the Inquisition that's often the only ones actually doing their freaking job and actually getting results. They're also the only faction in Warhammer 40K who are consistently shown to not only [[ShootTheDog realize what the consequences of their actions will cost the Imperium, in spite of their necessity]] but [[LaserGuidedKarma actually be subject to the backlash of their own actions]], such as when the Space Wolves space marine chapter [[WhatTheHellHero declared a short war on them for purging an entire planet to hide the existence of the Grey Knights]] or when the Inquisitor who first reported the existence of the planet-devouring Tyranids to the Imperium was kicked out for [[SenselessSacrifice simply planning to let 100 worlds be eaten to stop the Tyranids]].
133	** This also applies to the Imperium as whole; while it's intentionally composed of every dystopian idea cranked up to 11 ("the bloodiest regime imaginable"), the genuine heroism and faith of the soldiers the story usually focuses on makes it easy to forget they're bad guys. It doesn't help that so much of what we see is in-universe Imperial propaganda (usually heavily based on Nazi and Soviet examples); it's easy to forget how ludicrous the justifications are and get swept up in the theatricality. Much of this owes to the fact that it's easy to get on board with xenophobia and military-worship when the aliens really do want to murder everyone and the army includes actual {{Super Soldier}}s, and it's easy to get on board with thoughtcrime and persecution when thinking bad thoughts or following different beliefs literally summons demons.
134	* In ''TabletopGame/WitchGirlsAdventures'', the organization Malleus Maleficarum are supposed to be a FantasticRacism murder-cult who have dedicated their lives to [[FinalSolution the complete extermination of all Witches]], even small children -- the power can awaken in 6 year olds at the youngest. The problem is that, thanks to the source material's extremely UnintentionallyUnsympathetic portrayal of witches, killing them all actually comes off as the most rational thing to do.
135	[[/folder]]
136
137	[[folder:Theatre]]
138	* It's really, really hard not to be sympathetic to Harry Beaton in ''Theatre/{{Brigadoon}}'', given that all he wants to do is leave a village where he is utterly miserable - he can't marry the girl he loves, and he can't go to seek a better life elsewhere - and in which he has been essentially imprisoned for all eternity ''without'' his consent.
139	* In 2018, Christiano Chiarot viewed ''Theatre/{{Carmen}}'' as this, misinterpreting the applause after the opera's grim finale as the audience approving of it. For context, Carmen is a HotGypsyWoman [[RoguishRomani who loves and leaves men]]. Don José, a NiceGuy soldier, falls in love with her, only to become a CrazyJealousGuy ''because'' he's too attached to her. Carmen doesn't like that and resolves to leave Don José. Towards the end of the opera, she falls in love with a laid-back matador named Escamillo, much to Don José's chagrin. When Don José confronts her for it, Carmen [[DefiantToTheEnd defiantly refuses to return to him]]! In the end, [[IfICantHaveYou she is killed by Don José]]. By 2018, in the context of the #[=MeToo=] movement, Chiarot mistakenly believed that the audience's praise of the singer's art was approval of DomesticAbuse, so he created a controversial production that ended with [[spoiler: Carmen shooting Don José, who in turn is [[AdaptationalVillainy vilified as a domestic abuser from the start]]]].
140	* In ''Theatre/LesMiserables'' Javert is presented as being, well, an InspectorJavert when he refuses to let our hero go look after Cosette, instead insisting that Valjean has to come with him now. Of course, Valjean has already tried to escape prison (multiple times) and did violate the terms of his parole, so it's hardly surprising that Javert refuses the request.
141	* Shylock from ''Theatre/TheMerchantOfVenice'' to modern readers, who are much more prone to sympathize with an oppressed Jew getting some payback on an antisemitic society and see his final fate--losing most of his wealth as a result of the court's judgment against him and his daughter stealing from him, and being forced to convert to Christianity--as quite tragic. While Shakespeare gave Shylock some sympathetic motivation, he very possibly did not intend the audience to root for him. Shylock is, after all, a heathen who wants to murder a Christian over injured pride.
142	** In modern productions, he is often intentionally portrayed as sympathetic and sometimes even as the victim.
143	** There are those who believe that Shakespeare may have intended exactly this interpretation, having written the play as a veiled attack on anti-Jewish bigotry.
144	** One possible source of inspiration theorized is Rodrigo Lopez, Portuguese physician to Queen Elizabeth who had Jewish ancestry (he left Portugal after the Inquisition had accused him of secretly practicing Judaism). He was then accused of treason (with confessions by his supposed accomplices, plus Lopez himself, gained by torture or the threat), convicted and executed. Anti-semitism, unsurprisingly, played a large role in this. Even so, Lopez declared his love for Christ before dying, only to be mocked by the onlookers. Queen Elizabeth herself appears to have had doubts about his guilt, because she delayed signing his death warrant for three months, and returned for his family nearly all of his estate (the crown kept it all usually in treason cases). Since ''The Merchant Of Venice'' was written only a couple years later, the inspiration is plausible, and even that Shakespeare intended for ''some'' sympathy towards Shylock (he had villains similar to this in other plays after all). He's allowed to deliver a long speech denouncing anti-semitism and basically says it's this treatment which induced his desire for vengeance, supporting the idea of intended sympathy.
145	* In the original run of ''Theatre/MissSaigon'', Kim's fiancee Thuy is portrayed as a violent {{Jerkass}} who, among other things, attempts to murder [[AsianBabymama Kim's part-American infant boy who she had with the soldier Chris]]. On the other hand, Thuy REALLY gets the short end of the stick. [[YourTerroristsAreOurFreedomFighters He's a Vietnamese guerrilla fighter]] who hasn't seen his fiancee in a ''long'' time because of said war, and [[KissingCousins since he and Kim are also related]]. NEITHER of them have any family left. Combined with how Kim is one of ''many'' young women who had [[AbandonedWarChild mixed-race children with departed soldiers]], and the revival's portrayal of Thuy as much more sympathetic than the original run made him, it's easy to wonder if Thuy's actions are actually [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome a result of untreated PTSD]].
146	* ''Theatre/MyFairLady'': When it was first made, Eliza Doolittle came across as much more unacceptably uncouth to theater-goers, and therefore just as bad as Henry Higgins. But nowadays, it's getting more and more common to see Eliza as being put down by Henry the misogynistic, snobbish villain. Basically, they're both meant to be a JerkWithAHeartOfGold, but current values don't look favorably on characters like Higgins.
147	* ''Theatre/ThePhantomOfTheOpera'': Carlotta is hated by lot of fandom, just like intended, but some fans have pointed out that she is harassed and physically attacked by the Phantom, then lashes verbally Christine - falsely but genuinely thinking that Christine is in cahoots with her tormentor - and is then "punished" for this crime.
148	* In ''Theatre/RichardIII'' the VillainProtagonist is by far the most interesting character, having been reviled for his whole life for his disability and, especially if you have read/seen the prequel ''Theatre/HenryVI'' - he's arguably the OnlySaneMan in the Yorkist court. Yes, he [[TheFateOfThePrincesInTheTower murders his nephews]], his wife and arranges his brother's execution, but even if you don't know that the real UsefulNotes/RichardIII was a pretty good king, the play's version is remarkably competent compared to every other character in the play and probably would rule better than any of them
149	* In ''Theatre/TakeMeOut'', a play about Major League Baseball player Darren coming out as gay, the main antagonist is Shane, a racist, homophobic teammate who's an expy of [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Rocker John Rocker]], a player who came under fire for making blatantly bigoted comments in a ''Sports Illustrated'' interview in 1998. However, the play exaggerates Shane's "dumb hick" personality to such an extent that he instead comes off as [[HollywoodAutism autistic]]: withdrawn and asocial even when directly approached, excelling at one specific skill and nothing else, having certain rituals that he ''must'' perform on game days, and a complete lack of social grace. When Shane leads the team to victory, he's interviewed by the press and he makes a comment about being on a team with "coloreds, spics, and showering with a faggot." This is based on John Rocker's comments about New York City, but whereas Rocker knew exactly what he was saying, Shane's odd behaviors make him sound less like a bigot and more like someone on the spectrum who genuinely didn't realize the impact of his words due to his upbringing, especially since he never directly harasses Darren or the other teammates. When Shane returns to the team after getting suspended, it's hard not to feel sorry for him when he finally reaches out and begs someone to talk to him (which no one does because they all hate him). And when Darren angrily confronts Shane in the shower and plants a kiss on him, the intention was to "freak out the redneck," but instead it seemed more like ''sexually assaulting a mentally-challenged person''. Shane had every reason to hate him after that.
150	* Many fans of the musical ''Theatre/{{Wicked}}'' think of the Wizard as sympathetic and think that [[AlternativeCharacterInterpretation Madame Morrible is the real villain]]. It's not entirely without reason; his songs are entirely about how he wants to make people, including Elphaba, happy, and he's genuinely heartbroken when it's revealed that [[spoiler:[[IAmYourFather he was Elphaba's father]]]]. Plus, his FantasticRacism towards the animals is actually a GenghisGambit. Therefore, it's hard to determine if he even qualifies here and was actually meant to be sympathetic despite his antagonist status.
151	[[/folder]]
152
153	[[folder:Web Animation]]
154	* Platform/GoAnimate:
155	** The troublemakers in the infamous "X Gets Grounded (or otherwise punished)" videos made with the program. While one can't deny that many of these troublemakers [[AssholeVictim have it coming]], in other cases the punishment is too [[DisproportionateRetribution disproportionate]]. A character getting grounded for an absurdly long time over doing something like hitting their schoolteacher, breaking a car, or [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking turning their peers into Kirby characters]] could still be funny. A character being ''executed'' for saying something stupid or causing a mess on accident? Not so much.
156	** Some fairly more specific examples would be anyone who is a "[[PeripheryHatedom baby show]]" character such as WesternAnimation/{{Caillou}} or WesternAnimation/DoraTheExplorer. Yes, they have [[TookALevelInJerkass taken levels in Jerkass]], and yes, oftentimes they truly have their groundings coming. But in some videos, the DisproportionateRetribution that the "Grounded" videos are famous for gets too disproportionate, if it isn't just extremely mean-spirited towards Caillou and others of his ilk. In still other videos, everyone in the world, including their own families, hate their guts just for existing and will be all to happy to punish or even ''kill'' them for the pettiest of slights. Add the fact that some users' interpretations of their parents, family, and friends are just as jerkish as them, if not worse, and it makes sense why Caillou and Dora are considered {{Jerkass Woobie}}s to some facets of the fandom (both ironic and non-ironic).
157	** Macusoper, while he does have a bit of a temper problem, he frequently suffers back luck, nobody listens to him, and he has an abusive dad, so it's easy to see why he has a temper problem in the first place.
158	* ''WebAnimation/HappyTreeFriends'':
159	** While Sniffles is going out of his way to devour the Ants, he ends up becoming the lesser of two evils compared to them since they often [[ColdBloodedTorture retaliate by torturing him in such painful and horrific ways]] that [[DisproportionateRetribution go far beyond self-defense]]. Two occasions has Sniffles just minding his own business until ''they'' provoke him, either by [[ItMakesSenseInContext stealing his cookies]] or [[TongueTrauma causing him to trip and have his tongue stuck on ice]].
160	** While Sniffles did eventually get episodes outside of his ants-conflict and has moments of intentional sympathy, Lifty and Shifty don't catch a break. While the audience is presumably supposed to view them as villainous thieves, the twin raccoons are shown to be poor and are usually stealing food more than money. This doesn't stop them from dying in nearly every appearance they make.
161	* ''WebAnimation/HelluvaBoss'': In "[[Recap/HelluvaBossS2E5UnhappyCampers Unhappy Campers]]", While Moxxie can be viewed as a {{Woobie}} in this episode, his constant [[AttentionWhore attention-seeking]], narcissism, and jealousy make it clear he's mostly meant to be viewed in the wrong. However, some fans actually ended up sympathizing with Moxxie ''a lot'' more than Millie's pleas of finally feeling appreciated beyond being an assassin. This likely stemmed from how Moxxie's insecurities, backstory, and ButtMonkey status have been shown and explored fully in previous episodes, while Millie's own insecurities were only really ''hinted'' at with minuscule foreshadowing, making some viewers think that it [[AssPull came out of nowhere]] and in turn not be as sympathetic for her. Furthermore, it did not help in the slightest that Moxxie was [[HumiliationConga put through the wringer moreso than usual]], coming off more mean-spirited rather it being karma for his behavior.
162	* ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'': Ozpin in Volumes 6-7. [[spoiler:He didn't tell the group that the Relics attract Grimm or that Salem is immortal and apparently can't be killed. However, the group only learns the latter by watching his greatest regrets and mistakes play out in front of them, including having to watch the love of his life become a monster and his children die. Being forced to relive the trauma drives him to tears; in spite of knowing this though, Yang and Qrow (and later Jaune) tear into him while the others just watch in disapproval. Although he tried to explain why he kept secrets, they don't let him speak, resulting in them denouncing him [[ProperlyParanoid just as he feared]]. A lot of fans, therefore, think the group is too hard on Ozpin, and that he was justified in his behavior, which is reinforced during Volume 7. Namely after Ruby repeats Ozpin's lie to Ironwood, and Oscar later admits that Ozpin's [[DespairEventHorizon true fear]] was that the truth would [[HopeCrusher destroy people's hope]], which has been the case for almost every character who found out: [[TheSocialDarwinist Raven]], [[DirtyCoward Leo]], [[BrokenPedestal Qrow]], and [[KnightTemplar Ironwood]].]]
163	* ''WebAnimation/TerribleWritingAdvice'': The "Grimdark" episode has a rare InUniverse example of this. The villain is supposed to come across as worse than the hero, but he ends up coming across as more sympathetic than him, as the villain was actually given some depth and redeeming qualities. Naturally, the author should respond by making the villain a HateSink who randomly crosses the MoralEventHorizon.
164	[[/folder]]
165
166	[[folder:Web Video]]
167	* From ''WebVideo/{{Dragonbored}}'': while [[TheScrappy you'll be hard-pressed to find anyone who actually likes]] the main character Carl, because he is a rather unpleasant person, many viewers nevertheless believe that, even if he was kind of a douche, he really didn't deserve the HumiliationConga [[spoiler:and eventual AndIMustScream FateWorseThanDeath]] that he ended up getting. The reasons for this are threefold: first, while other characters [[InformedFlaw repeatedly pay lip service]] to how [[LazyBum lazy]], [[ItsAllAboutMe selfish]], and [[ManChild irresponsible]] Carl supposedly is, [[OffscreenVillainy the audience doesn't get to see very much evidence of that]] aside from Carl's addiction to video games. Even then, he's only ever shown playing a very specific video game that we are explicitly shown was designed to make people addicted. Second, while Carl is a jerk, the other characters are hardly any better: Jessica is a stereotypical StrawFeminist who drops Carl like a sack of hammers once the new guy comes along, [=LeBron=] is a MeanBoss, Carl's friends (with the sole exception of [[TokenBlackFriend Taylin]]) don't really seem to care about his wellbeing at all, and Jimbroth, aside from stealing Carl's life and [[spoiler:callously abandoning him to his fate]], is shown to be emotionally manipulative, destructive, [[DeliberateValuesDissonance painfully old-fashioned]], and [[KarmaHoudini commits quite a few serious crimes for which he is never punished]], and everyone [[EasilyForgiven forgives him]] because of his [[TheCharmer charisma]] and FishOutOfWater status. Third, Carl is meant to be a caricature of obsessed nerds, but he's too handsome, sociable, well-groomed, and gainfully employed to be convincingly sold as the pathetic waste-of-space the writers want us to think he is.
168	[[/folder]]

Context Main / UnintentionallySympathetic