#10.
John Silver from Disney’s “Treasure
Planet”
John Silver from the classic Novel Treasure Island has always
been a staple in the line of complex villains, and it this portal from Disney’s
adaption that always stuck with me the most. At first
he’s just a greedy pirate that’s only concerned with getting treasure, but then
he meets our lead hero named Jim Hawkins, and things begin to change. John
Silver begins to take the place of a father that was never there for Jim, and
even teaches him some good moral values. Then we see John Silver struggling
between his obsession of getting his hands on the gold and honestly wanting to
help Jim with his personal problems. He see’s in Jim the young man he used to
be and genuinely wants to help Jim make a good future for himself instead of
wasting it on greed like he has. This makes John Silver a more dimensional
character than most of Disney’s classic villain’s and his reformation at the
end is about as touching as they get.
#9
The Grinch from “How the Grinch Stole
Christmas”
He was as cuddly as a cactus, as charming as an eel, and the
biggest monster that would stop at nothing to ruin everyone’s favorite holiday,
just for the sake of being nasty. Of course he reaches an epiphany in the end
and realizes just how wrong he was in judging the holiday and those who celebrate
it. Seeing this miserable creature open up to the light of Christmas is simply
one of the warmest feel good moments I’ve ever seen any character go through,
and it makes him a more then welcome addition for my countdown.
#8
Doctor Octopus from “Spider-Man 2”
The Spider-Man series has had several touching tails of hero’s turned good including
Harry Osborn’s reformation in “Spider-man
3” and even Venoms reformation in the animated Spider-Man series from the
90’s. But the most touching and memorable in my opinion is that of Doctor
Octopus from “Spider-Man 2”. He did
all the evil things you’d associate with an super villain, but somewhere deep
down is a good scientist with a continence, and one willing to give his own life
to save the city from the very dooms day weapon he created. It’s really the subtlety
of this villain’s transformation that really gets to me. Before making his big sacrifice
play, he and Spider-Man exchange a look which just sums up every “I’m sorry for
what I’ve done” and “Thank you for saving me” all at once, and I personally
think it’s one of the most powerful moments of the series.
#7
Megamind from DreamWorks “Megamind”
He was once a super villain that did every sinister thing a super villain could
do, and worse, right down to killing the superhero who protects the city from
evil. Once the city belongs to him, he realizes that he losses a part of
himself, and when he unintentionally creates a new super villain who's even
worse, Megamind has more than a change of heart, he has a serious change of
character as he takes the place of a superhero. It’s a change of heart story
that’s every bit as touching as it is clever and funny.
#6
Apollo Creed from the “Rocky series”
In the beginning Apollo was just an ego driven celebrity that just wanted
fame, attention and the chance to humiliate his boxing rival Rocky Balboa.
However, over the course of the series, Apollo has more than a change of
attitude, he actually begins to respect Rocky so much that he becomes the boxer’s
new instructor, personal continence and lifelong friend. It’s one of the most
touching and downright cheerful tails of enemy turned ally, and more then
fitting for this countdown.
#5
Scrooge from “A Christmas Carol”
No matter which version you go by, the story of Ebenezer Scrooge is one of the
most enduring and downright heartwarming redemption tails of all time. This
grumpy old miser just couldn’t get into the spirit of the holiday and made sure
that everyone was just as miserable as her was. Through some serious soul
searching from his past, present and future he was finally able to let the
warmth of the holiday touch his soul, and everyone turned out better for it. It’s
such a timeless tail, with a rich message and one of the most famous literary characters
of all time.
#4
Magneto from the “X-Men Franchise”
Villains don’t get any better than Magneto, he’s a
formidable opponent with an awesome power but beyond all of that, this is a
very special kind of villain that honestly believes he’s doing the right thing
and that these are the actions that all his fellow mutants should be doing. It
doesn’t justify what he does but it makes you except the fact that there are no
limits to the things he can do, get away with and why he doses them. However, he’s
also one of the phew villains who doesn’t hate his adversaries, in fact it
tares him up inside to go to war against some of his closest friends. So when
he finally abides by the rules of “if you can’t beat them join them”, it makes
for a very special reunion between long lost friends. The resent movie “X-Men: Days of future Past” is the
perfect example of how whiling he was to follow the X-Men and their cause just to
be there at the side of his closest friend Professor X. In both the animated TV
series and many of the comics, Magneto has been depicted as taking over
leadership of the X-Men after the fall of Professor X, just to ensure the his
friends legacy and goals didn’t die with him.
#3
The T-800 Terminator from the “Terminator
Franchise”
One of cinemas most legendary villains turned hero comes in
the form of a robotic assassin with a strong sense of humanity. In the
original, the T-800 had one mission in life, and that was to mercilessly kill anyone
that was a threat to his future in which robots dominated the world. But then
in the sequel, this violent cyborg discovered the value of human life, become a
father figure to the young boy he was supposed to kill, and in the tradition of
any hero, he valiantly gives up his life for the good of all man kind ... now
that’s what you call a bad guy turned good.
#2
Darth Vader from the “Star Wars”
franchise
Like I even need to go into much detail about Darth Vader. For
three movies strait, he was the galaxy’s greatest threat, then turned a new
leaf and ultimately saved the whole universe at large while sacrificing his own
life in the process. His transformation from good to evil is still one of the
greatest story arc’s in film history, and one that still touches audiences on a
deep and meaningful level. I really don’t think I need to say any more, I mean
come on ... it’s Darth Vader.
Before
I reveal my Number 1 pick, here are my Honorable
mentions ...
Quicksilver & Scarlet Witch from "Avengers: Age of Ultron"
Diago from "Ice Age"
Terra from "Teen Titans"
Snape from "The Harry Potter series"
Fletcher Reed from "Liar Liar"
Quicksilver & Scarlet Witch from "Avengers: Age of Ultron"
Diago from "Ice Age"
Terra from "Teen Titans"
Snape from "The Harry Potter series"
Fletcher Reed from "Liar Liar"
Now
I could have easily put either Darth Vader, Magneto or the Terminator in the #1
spot, as their all disserving of it, but that would have also been really
predictable, so I’m giving the honorable #1 spot to a lesser known character
who deserves the honor just as much as any of the previous characters, and here
he is ...
#1
Prince Zuko from “Avatar the Last Air
Bender”
Taking the top spot on my list is one of my favorite animated
characters of all time, from one of the greatest TV shows of all time. Prince Zuko is the main antagonist of the first season of “Avatar: The Last Air Bender”, and was a
bad as they got as he pursued the shows hero’s in an effort to hunt down and
kill “The Chosen One”. His soul reasoning is to restore his honor after a
mistake that forced him to be exiled from his family. While I’ve seen tragic
villains before, there’s so much more substance and intrigue that goes into this
character. He dose bad things but with honorable intentions instead of greed,
and throughout the show we see him go through some huge changes. In season two
he becomes an anti hero who just needs to find his place in the world while
also battling his personal demons that corrupt his soul. Then in season 3 he
becomes a hero who gradually gains friendship among our hero’s. Watching this
banished prince go from menacing villain, to anti hero, to champion has been an
awesome experience, and I just loved watching him slowly gain acceptance and
friendship among the shows team of protagonists. It’s one of the shows biggest
highlights, and one of the most captivating stories of evil turned good I’ve
ever seen.
End
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