Top 5 Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Sam@Thoughts on Tomes over on Goodreads. This week’s theme is: favorite villains. I’ve thought a lot about villains this week. What makes a character a villain? Where’s the line between villain and anti-hero? And most importantly what makes a villain great? I think the most important thing is motivation. A villain must have a goal that contradicts the hero’s goal and that goal has to make sense. They have to be driven by their own ambitions and desires, not just getting in the hero’s way for no reason.
1. Marissa Coulter – His Dark Materials
Listen, I have a lot of feelings about Marisa Coulter. She’s such a compelling character. An intelligent, well-educated and ambitious woman who’s risen to a position of power in a incredibly male-dominated field. But while she has a lot of admirable qualities she’s also a cunning liar and master manipulator who uses her charm and beauty to lure people in, only to stab them in the back when it serves her interests.
2. Bellatrix Lestrange – Harry Potter
Of all the fantastic villains in the Harry Potter series, Bellatrix will always be my favorite. She doesn’t get the most page or screen-time, but she steals every scene she’s in. She’s just so completely unhinged: wild, sadistic and dangerous. A true example of chaotic evil – and I love it. Voldemort wishes he was this viscous.
3. Jadis, The White Witch – Narnia
While putting together this little list I noticed a pattern: I have a thing for villains who have a strong aesthetic, it just makes them more memorable to me. And if there’s one villains who’s aesthetics game is on point it’s The White Witch, with her pale skin, white furs and crown of ice crystals. There’s a lot of evil queens and wicked witches in fairytales and fantasy fiction, but Jadis takes it to another level, freezing Narnia for a hundred years and turning her enemies into statues. The movie got one thing wrong though. She 100% would’ve turned them into marble. It matches her walls.
4. The Darkling – The Grisha Trilogy
Of course The Darkling’s had to be on the list. He’s one of the most popular villains of all time and one of the most polarizing. But whether you wanted Alina to kiss him or kill him, I think we can all agree on one thing: The Darkling is an incredibly compelling character. With his aura of mystery and power, he commands any scene he’s in. He proves that the road to villainhood is often paved with good intentions and big ambitions.
5. Thiago, The White Wolf – Daughter of Smoke and Bone
At first glance Thiago might not seem like the most interesting villain, he’s just a general fighting an impossible war. He’s caught in a cycle of hate and violence, driven solely by his hate for the enemy. To the point where he’ll do anything to destroy the Seraphim, even sacrifice the very people he claims to be fighting for. His ability to make good people rally behind his cause, despite of this, makes him a great villain.
Mrs. Coulter is definitely one of my favorite villains! I’m happy to see other people still talking about His Dark Materials; I love those books so much 🙂
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I love them too, definitley one of my favorite fantasy series 😊
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It has been a long time since I read ADOSAB that I forgot about Thiago ❤
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I reread the series a few months ago, I love it so much ❤️
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Yes yes yes to The Darkling! Literally one of my all time favorite villains ever! ❤
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He’s so fascinating! ❤️
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Bellatrix give me the creeps, she’s so scary!!
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She’s totally terrifying!
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Bellatrix is an amazing villain! I love her but I hate her too 😊
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Agreed! I love villains who take it to the next level with their wickedness!
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Bellatrix and Jadis are great villains! I think Jadis is my favourite from the list (but then I haven’t read the other three) although I have Daughter of Smoke and Bone lined up. I’m like you – I like my witches!
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Witches are the best! More witches for everyone! I hope you enjoy Daughter of Smoke and Bone 😊 It has some of the best world-building and characters in YA fantasy! I love it so much.
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Oooh I love the aesthetics on this post!! I love Bellatrix for the exact same reasons you do, and I wish she had more page/screen time!
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Thank you so much 😊 I wish she did too, she’s so entertainingly wicked!
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These are all some of my favourite villains!! Excellent choices!
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Thank you so much 😊 I’m glad you agree!
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I adore the aesthetics!! You always make great ones!
I should get around to reading all these books. I honestly can’t say I’ve found a favorite book villain, most of my favorites are from movies and shows lol.
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Thank you! I’m so happy you like them 😊
I love all these books a lot, so I totally recommend them! A lot of my fave villains are from shows too, a lot of of my favorite characters in general tbh!
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OMG! The Darkling is my husband! I didn’t want Alina to kiss or kill him, though. I wanted him all to myself, lol. These aesthetics are really good, too. 🙂
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The Aesthetics are 💕💗❤😍 I’m in love!!!
I’m 100% with you on the Darkling, he was such a compelling character and one of the best villains I have come across so far! I loved that you could actualy root for him despite all the horrible things he did … somehow I could see why he was this way!
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I love the pics you chose for Belatrix ❤ I knew exactly who it was before reading the name 😀 And she is pretty viscous!
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Thank you so much! 😊💕
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Oo, I love this, and the mood boards for each one are excellent! I always think villains are really alluring, and they do seem to have time to get some awesome fashion sense, haha!
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Thank you so much! 😊 I find villain’s super alluring too, and I lowkey want to raid their closest, lol!
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