Everybody loves heroes. The one who saves the day and takes home the love of their lives and lives happily ever after. The perfect happy ending. But there are a few characters who prefer to embrace their dark sides. Those who want to let go of their inhibitions and see what limits they can reach to achieve their goals. These are called villains, who sometimes feel a bit too relatable to us for our own good. And there sure isn’t a lack of compelling bad guys on the small screen. Here are five such villains in TV shows who we sometimes related to, more than the heroes:
1. Moriarty from Sherlock:
Although he is an invention of Arthur Conan Doyle, Andrew Scott’s portrayal of Sherlock Holmes’ archnemesis in BBC’s Sherlock made us fall in love with the character for the umpteenth time. Jim Moriarty is the perfect antithesis of Sherlock, rivaling him in intellect and ingenuity. He is the good old-fashioned villain that every story needs, and the one we certainly love.
Related: Robert Downey Jr. Plans To Reboot Sherlock Holmes On HBO Max – Animated Times
2. Gus Fring from Breaking Bad:
Arguably the best TV show villain of the 21st century, Giancarlo Esposito’s Gus Fring is as chilling as he is terrific. A creation of Vince Gilligan and the other writers on Breaking Bad, Gus Fring is always two steps ahead of his rivals, whoever they may be. And apart from being an international meth kingpin, he is also a successful restaurateur. Talk about multitasking. Los Pollos Hermanos certainly have a fan in all of us
Related: Breaking Bad: The Cast – Then vs. Now
3. Wilson Fisk from Daredevil:
Our favorite gang-lord was a welcome surprise when he jumped into the Marvel Cinematic Universe through Marvel Studios’ 2021 show Hawkeye. Displaying a welcome complexity to comic-book black-and-white morality, the great Vincent D’Onofrio had a performance to remember in Marvel’s first Netflix show, Daredevil. Fisk is not just a merciless killer, but a family man who cared about his mom and his girlfriend Vanessa. And don’t we love a villain with layers and complexities?
Related: Mistakes In Netflix Daredevil Series The MCU Daredevil Reboot Must Avoid
4. Azula from Avatar – The Last Airbender:
What happens when a genocidal maniac raises a sociopath. The answer is Azula. She is cool and collected as she is menacing and terrifying. But beyond her evil ways, is the pain in her eyes. The pain of not being loved by her own mother. And wasn’t it refreshing to watch a female character being so scary and hell-bent on destroying everyone in her path? Kudos to the makers of ATLA for not shying away to include some difficult themes in what many would consider being a kids’ show.
Related: 6 Reasons Avatar: The Last Airbender Is The Best-Written Animated Show Of All Time
5 Cersei Lannister from Game of Thrones:
Cersei is one of those rare characters in TV shows history who can be deemed as a threat to your life even if you are sharing a room with her. She is calculative, she is threatening and she will take revenge against every single person who ever wronged her. Cersei Lannister is one of the primary reasons that made Game of Thrones the global phenomenon it became. She was definitely an evil person for killing thousands, including Margaery Tyrell, just to get back at the High Septon she handpicked for power, but you must admit she was a pretty awesome one at that.
Related: Most Unexpected Things To Happen In Game of Thrones – Animated Times
