Wiendish Fitch

Show of hands: who wants the Ewoks to make a comeback in the latest Star Wars flick to aid our heroes in defeating Kylo Ren?

I've always felt kind of bad for Ormond, because she was one of those actresses the powers that be tried mold into the latest "It Girl", or "The Next So and So", and it kind of sank her career for a while. She bounced back admirably (she's done pretty well for herself), but I think it was still an unfair thing for her to deal with. There will never be another Audrey Hepburn. Or Katharine Hepburn. Or Ingrid Bergman. Or any of the greats of yesteryear. They were unique, that's why they're great.

Hopping aboard the Eve "Love to Hate" train! She's a fabulous villainess: manipulative, two-faced, ruthless, and cares nothing about the destruction in her wake. A textbook sociopath, and I really love Anne Baxter's portrayal of her. Some have criticized her acting, saying that Eve as an actress is no match for Margo. To that I say: I think that's the point. Margo is a great actress, but she's also fully human. Eve, on the other hand, is basically an empty shell. A character I've always likened to Eve is Rupert Pupkin from The King of Comedy, but it disturbs me that so many consider Rupert a "lovable underdog" as opposed to the deranged, obsessive, narcissistic, basement dwelling menace that he is! Seriously, what is "lovable" about hounding a celebrity, stalking him, kidnapping him, and then holding him hostage so you can host his show because you don't want earn fame and success the hard way?! Rupert is on par with all the toxic fanboys/fame-whores who contaminate our culture on a daily basis!

Even today, people tend to underrate Cyndi Lauper and the depth of her talent. "Sally's Pigeons" is a haunting, utterly heartbreaking song based on a real friend of hers. Note: That's young Julia Stiles in the music video.

C.S. Lewis deserves mounds of praise for giving Edmund Pevensie a reason and motivation for his actions ... but never once justifies them. For unlikable characters, it's often better to aim for empathy, not sympathy. Though I must say, Edmund still manages to be an infinitely more mature and sympathetic character than that pouty space doofus with Opera Man hair. Edmund sincerely apologizes to his siblings, feels true remorse, fights alongside them, and nearly dies on the battlefield. Now that's a redemption arc, because he's earned it. Oh, and he's a kid, not a grown-ass man who should know better. Kylo Ren has done diddley squat to earn redemption. If he's still alive at the end of the third movie, I will be royally pissed.

A compromise: Finn, Rey, and the friggin' Ewoks* kick Kylo Ren's ass, and Poe finishes the job in an epic, badass way that reverberates throughout the cinematic world. *Why the Ewoks? Because I happen to love them and, again, it would be humiliating for Kylo Ren, and I want that hateful little puke to suffer physically and emotionally.

Or better yet, have Finn take him out. Not only would it be extra humiliating for Kylo Ren to have his ass handed to him by an ex-stormtrooper, but it would conclude Finn's character arc in an especially satisfying way (well, to me, anyway).

Re: Kylo Ren I normally love Jenny Nicholson's videos, but this one really irked me. I can't tell if she's being sarcastic or not (which is usually part of her appeal), and while she makes some, at best, okay points, for the most part I seriously disagree with her. Darth Vader's redemption works because, while he was redeemed, he wasn't absolved. He'd lived too long on the Dark Side and committed too many atrocities to just be handed a clean slate. He died for his son, which was nice and all, but it was still too late, as it should be. Kylo Ren idolized Vader because he's an idiot, and went out of his way to be as much like him as possible, even if it meant committing patricide. No, I don't care if his body count pales in comparison to Vader, Sulky McShagcut doesn't get another chance. One willful, deliberate murder against an unsuspecting, undeserving victim is still one too many. Edmund in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe committed a horrific sin by betraying his siblings to the White Witch, but Aslan forgave and absolved him, as did Edmund's siblings, and I'm 100% okay with that. Why? 1. Edmund is a child. 2. It's not made apparent in the movie, but in the book, CS Lewis informs us that the Turkish Delight Edmund eats is laced with mind control properties. 3. Edmund wasn't even wholly successful in his endeavor; he didn't actually take his siblings to the White Witch as he'd promised, he merely told her where they were (they were long gone by the time she found their location). To be clear, I think that maybe Edmund had some unconscious pangs of uncertainty/guilt over what he was doing, which is why he half-assed it. I don't think messing up an evil assignment automatically makes it all right, I'm just saying that might have been a contributing factor. 4. Unlike Kylo Ren, Edmund is genuinely remorseful for his actions, and goes the extra mile to redeem himself in battle instead of blandly coasting on others' good will (he even brings up his misdeed in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader).

The season 3 finale of She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (I know, I know, I normally hate reboots with a passion, but this one is all right). Our heroine Adora is duking it out with her evil former friend Catra (who has literally caused the apocalypse). Catra is doing the insufferable villain thing of smugly accusing the hero of being responsible for everything that's gone wrong in the villain's life (um, Adora didn't cause the apocalypse, bitch), and is seriously handing Adora's ass to her. Adora, who has been betrayed, backstabbed, hurt, captured, and sabotaged by this treacherous monster, who has consistently tried to forgive Catra and give her another chance, finally-FINALLY- snaps and delivers this awesome kiss-off: Catra: You broke the world and it is all your fault. Adora: No, it's not. I didn't make you pull the switch. I didn't make you do anything. I didn't break the world! But I am going to fix it! And you? You made your choice. (Catra snarls, then leaps to attack) Adora: NOW LIVE WITH IT! (Adora punches Catra in the face, knocking her out cold.) Sigh, if only every villain could get that speech.

The good folks at Trope Talk get it.

I miss gleefully uncomplicated villains like Ratigan from The Great Mouse Detective. There's no damage, no backstory, he's just a delightful megalomaniac who's evil and thrilled to be so!

Lady Tremaine tends to get underrated because she's not flamboyant or magical, but I consider her one of the great villains because she's so real: there are abusers like her in real life. They are only happy when they're making some poor soul as miserable as possible. The scene where she serenely stands by as Anastasia (who unforgivably gets the woobie treatment in those crappy sequels) and Drizella tear Cinderella's dress to pieces right off her body is the stuff of nightmares.

Ursula's my gal. That bitch got shit done. And bonus points for having competent henchmen! As for Cruella, that new movie had better not give her some bullshit tragic backstory. Cruella is a raging psycho who must be stopped, and that's why we love to hate her.

Hey, he's a giant friggin' shark who only obeys the laws of nature and his own appetite, all else be damned, of course he's terrifying! We don't need to know why or how, because he's a wild creature and that's what they do! I love how thoroughly evil Cleopatra in Freaks is. She's a stone cold bitch with an evil plan, and receives the most poetic comeuppance in horror film history.

The trend of villain apologia and why we hate it popped up in the Unpopular Opinions thread, and it got me to thinking that we should have thread for our favorite (and least favorite) cinematic baddies! Who sends chills up your spine? Who has you rolling your eyes at their lameness? Who gives you impish delight in being engaged in their fiendish plans? And who makes you thrilled to see their defeat? Discuss motive, portrayals, and why we love to hate (or hate to love) the thorns in heroes' sides. And, yes, we can also discuss our feelings about villain apologia and, as always, respect each others' opinions. Note: In case it wasn't obvious, the topic name is from a lyric from the Elvis Presley song "Trouble" (Because I'm evil/My middle name is misery...).