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Not all villains are born evil - some are made that way. Join us as we explore the animated antagonists with tragic backstories that make us question who the real monsters are! From heartbroken scientists to rejected assistants, these characters show us that villainy often comes from a place of pain, not pure malice.
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00:00It's only us. You're my daughter. I'll never forsake you.
00:07Welcome to Ms. Mojo, and today we're diving into the top 10 cartoon characters who are initially presented as outright evil,
00:16but have a lot more depth upon further investigation. Beware of spoilers!
00:21You and your mutants protect the humans who seek to destroy us. Why?
00:26Number 10. Mr. Freeze. Batman. The Animated Series.
00:32It's easy to root for Batman while hating the villains he faces. After all, he's the hero.
00:38When a villain like Mr. Freeze comes along, cold and seemingly heartless, it's even easier.
00:43This is a personal vendetta. It doesn't concern you. It's my concern now.
00:50Since you ally yourself with my enemies, you leave me no choice.
00:55Once you dig into his backstory, however, things aren't so black and white.
01:00Victor Freeze wasn't always a villain. He used to be a caring husband trying to save his terminally ill wife.
01:07He placed her in cryogenic stasis, hoping to find a cure.
01:11Then, Ferris Boyle, the corrupt CEO of GothCorp, pulled the plug. Literally.
01:16It's your only chance. This is my equipment. Mine. I have every legal right to use it or not use it as I see fit. I say this project ends now.
01:27In the chaos, Freeze was blasted with chemicals that altered his body and robbed him of his emotions.
01:33Still, he lost his wife. So, when he turned that pain into vengeance, was he truly evil or just a broken man pushed too far?
01:41I wish there were another way for me to say it. I cannot. I can only beg your forgiveness and pray you'll hear me somehow.
01:53Number 9. The Ice King. Adventure Time.
01:56This wacky cartoon follows the adventures of Finn and Jake as they battle monsters, explore strange lands, and sometimes clash with the Ice King.
02:05At first, this misunderstood character seems like the perfect goofy villain, obsessed with kidnapping princesses and forcing them to marry him.
02:14I'm starting to worry that all these entries sound exactly the same, and that my life is just me running in place on some giant hamster wheel.
02:23Easy to hate, right? Well, once the show drops his backstory, the way you view him suddenly changes.
02:30But everything changed when I came into contact with this item.
02:35The Ice King.
02:40The Ice King was once Simon Petrikov, a kind and brilliant man undone by a mysterious crown that drove him mad.
02:48That means all his creepy, chaotic behaviours were never his fault. He was merely the victim of a curse.
02:54And then maybe Betty, my princess, maybe you will love me again. Please love me again, Betty.
03:01The Ice King.
03:05Now that you know this, does it make you think twice about how quickly you judged him?
03:10Number 8. Mojo Jojo. The Powerpuff Girls.
03:13It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say no character in The Powerpuff Girls faced rejection quite like Mojo Jojo.
03:20I wasn't born a supervillain champ with an oversized brain, you know. Evil geniuses are
03:25made, not born. Before becoming the big-brained villain we know, he was Professor Utonium's
03:31well-meaning, if clumsy, lab assistant. However, once the three kindergarten-aged girls arrived,
03:38he was pushed aside like he never mattered. You were the worst lab assistant I ever had.
03:43All you ever did was break everything you got your grimy little paws on.
03:46You haven't changed one bit. I was finally forced to throw you out when the girls were born.
03:51Even after an accident disfigured him, no one cared. And that's when resentment truly took
03:56hold of him. Can you blame him? He was forced to survive on his own and even shunned by other
04:02monkeys like him. Yet, Mojo Jojo wasn't inherently evil. He was born out of rejection, with a desperate
04:09need to be respected. Plus, we can't forget the times he actually saved the world. Behind all that
04:15chaos, he's simply a tragic character. Number 7. Plankton. SpongeBob SquarePants.
04:30There's no doubt about it, Mr. Plankton is one truly hateable character. From endlessly scheming
04:37to steal the Krabby Patty formula, to dreaming of world domination, to manipulating SpongeBob,
04:43he seems to have no redeeming qualities. You just want to be friends so you can get your
04:47hands on a Krabby Patty. And I bet it's not even your birthday tomorrow. Gee, and I thought
04:52you were stupid. Dig deeper though, and he's not so one-dimensional. For starters, Plankton
04:58was actually part of the original creation of the Krabby Patty. After a nasty fallout with
05:03Mr. Krabs, he was cut out of its success. Now we understand his frustration. Our little squabble
05:09only got me part of the recipe. Gosh, Mr. Plankton, that doesn't sound like the Mr.
05:15Krabs story at all. On top of that, imagine being as tiny as Plankton, stepped on every
05:20time you step out. Wouldn't that make you a little bitter towards the world? Sure, none
05:25of this excuses his actions, but it does make him surprisingly relatable. It's all I ever really
05:31wanted. To get back to the way it used to be. You and me against the world. How about a hug,
05:40Krabs old pal?
05:41Number 6. Dr. Hines Doofenshmirtz
05:43Phineas and Ferb
05:45Though Dr. Hines Doofenshmirtz might be presented as the series' antagonist,
05:50it's hard not to feel sorry for him once you learn his backstory. His childhood was nothing short of
05:55tragic, from neglect and abuse at the hands of his parents, to being incessantly mocked by other
06:02kids. At one point, his family even forced him to serve as the lawn gnome. Can you imagine? With
06:15that kind of upbringing, it's no wonder Doofenshmirtz grew bitter and determined to prove himself.
06:20I would stand for hours. All through the cold night, as the Spitzenhound howled,
06:28my only companion was the moon. Even though he talks about taking over the tri-state area,
06:35his plans backfire in such hilarious ways, it's hard to see him as a threat. Beneath all the
06:41dramatic villainy, what we really see is an insecure man craving love and attention.
06:46We actually made it home alive, but yes, it's possible, not every part of you isn't good.
06:53Number 5. Vicky, the Fairly Odd Parents
06:56Some villains barely have any redeeming qualities, but that doesn't mean you can't sympathize with
07:01them. At least a little. Take Vicky from the Fairly Odd Parents. On the surface,
07:06she's the nightmare babysitter. Cruel, selfish and often outright evil to Timmy.
07:11Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Turner! I'm Vicky, the Babysitter!
07:18Anybody else notice the lightning?
07:21But the show drops hints that there's more to her than pure malice. Some episodes suggest that
07:26Vicky had a rough childhood, and the arrival of her younger sister may explain why she takes
07:32out her frustration on younger kids. On top of that, we learn she was once dumped by a boyfriend
07:37who only wanted her money. Feel like another rousing game of hide my cash?
07:43Yeah, with my new wife, who is way richer than you!
07:47None of this excuses her wickedness, but it makes you wonder. Maybe Vicky isn't just heartless.
07:53Maybe she's a frustrated teenager, lashing out against an unfair world.
07:57So we're going steady now, right?
07:59Oh, heavens no! You're still not a cheerleader. Can't have that, can we?
08:05Ta-ta! Scones, Benny Hill, Big Ben, Yellow Teeth and all that.
08:08No!
08:09Number 4. Amman. The Legend of Korra. This dark figure built his revolution on lies,
08:15using fear and deception to rally people against pro-benders.
08:18We weren't rich, and none of us were benders. This made us very easy targets for the firebender
08:26who extorted my father. But can you really blame him for hiding his true identity? As a child,
08:32he was forced into a nightmare no kid should endure. His father, a crime lord, used Amman and his brother
08:38as pawns, teaching them the terrifying art of bloodbending. Amman eventually fought back,
08:44striking his father before running away. Yet, no matter how far he ran, he couldn't escape
08:49what he's been molded into.
08:51Our father set us on this path. Fate caused us to collide. I should have left with you when we were boys.
09:00Leave with me now.
09:01By the time Korra unmasks him, we see the truth. Amman is a broken man, trying to outrun a destiny
09:08he never wanted, only to become something equally terrifying. If that doesn't make you feel sorry
09:13for him, what will?
09:15The two of us together again. There's nothing we can't do.
09:20Yes, Noatak. Noatak. I had almost forgotten the sound of my own name.
09:26Number 3. Silco. Arcane.
09:29In Arcane, Silco stirred up every emotion. Anger, disgust, sympathy, even admiration,
09:35and that's the mark of a brilliantly written villain.
09:37We came from a world where there was never enough to go around.
09:42Finn.
09:46That is why we fight.
09:48His dream was for Zorn's unity and freedom from Piltover's grip, a vision we understood.
09:54With time, though, Silco grew into more than just the ruthless crime lord of the Undercity.
10:00He became father to Jinx, and that bond reshaped him into one of the show's most layered characters.
10:05When forced to choose between Zorn's independence and Jinx's freedom, he chose her.
10:11All we ever wanted. The boy didn't even haggle. And what do I lose but problems?
10:21Oh, it all makes sense now, brother.
10:23That decision turned him from a monster into a sympathetic figure. In the end, Silco didn't die
10:29a man consumed by his cause. He died a father, willing to sacrifice everything for his child.
10:34I never would have given you to them. Not for anything.
10:42Don't cry. You're perfect.
10:46Number 2. Prince Zuko. Avatar. The Last Airbender.
10:50What a great transformation Prince Zuko went through.
10:53He evolved from a bitter, angry boy into an honorable man worthy of ruling the Fire Nation.
10:59Let's be honest, at the start, when he stood against Aang, he was unbearable.
11:04I've spent years preparing for this encounter. Training. Meditating.
11:09You're just a child.
11:11Well, you're just a teenager.
11:13But given the harsh upbringing he endured as the son of the Fire Lord, it's easy to understand where he was coming from.
11:19What else would I expect to hear from the laziest man in the Fire Nation?
11:23The only way to regain my honor is to find the Avatar.
11:30So I will.
11:31Little did we know that he would surprise us by defying everything he was taught and fight for what was right.
11:37Despite his trauma, Zuko was willing to risk everything, including his life, for the people he loved.
11:44Honestly, this redemption arc isn't just powerful, it's one of the greatest ever written.
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12:13Number 1. Magneto. X-Men The Animated Series.
12:19What do you do when you come face to face with evil?
12:22For Magneto, his response was often violence, putting him in direct conflict with Professor Xavier's views.
12:29The years have been kind to you, Charles. A pity they haven't brought you wisdom.
12:35Your wisdom? You find wisdom in this destruction.
12:38But, with his past as a Holocaust survivor, it's easy to say where his bitterness and distrust in humanity comes from.
12:45Yet, Magneto wasn't evil for evil's sake. His mission was to protect mutants from a world that feared and hated them.
12:52Yes, his methods were extreme, but that's part of what makes him a compelling character.
12:57When I was a child, my people talked while others prepared for war.
13:02They used reason while others used tanks, and they were destroyed for their trouble.
13:08Over time, though, he proved he was more than just rage and vengeance, even leading the X-Men and sparing lives.
13:15Above all, Magneto proved that redemption was possible, even for those who walk the darkest paths.
13:21You're all fools. Heroic fools.
13:28The brave are always the first to die.
13:33Who is the most complex cartoon villain you've ever come across?
13:36Let us know in the comments section.
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