Yeah, like me.

What makes a great villain? Usually it’s a wickedly tough adversary that the hero(s) must go up against in order to protect the innocent. In many superhero stories, there are usually quite a few different archenemies. Each of them is colorful in their own way.

Let’s take Batman for example. He fights criminals all over Gotham City, but the only villains who are most popular are the colorful ones, such as Joker, Penguin, Cat Woman, Riddler, etc. because they stick out from the rest as much as the superhero. 

Dick Tracy is another perfect example. The criminals he fights all have various quirks, which they are named after, like Mumbles, Flat Top, Prune Face, Itchy, etc. I’ll tell ya, if it wasn’t for that, Dick Tracy would never have made it as an icon, no matter how heroic he was. 

From an artistic perspective, a great villain is an enemy who is not only colorful, but is evenly matched to the hero. That way it appears more like a 50/50 chance on who will come out on top. 

I have here a top five list of my most favorite match-ups that help explain my point. 

#5) He-Man vs. Skeletor from He-Man and the Masters of the Universe: Skeletor’s motive is simple, he wants to rule the world. He-Man is the only one who can stop him and maintain peace in Eternia. It sounds a little one-sided at first, but now I understand that it’s merely a power struggle between the strongest beings representing good and evil. 

#4) Obi-Won Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) vs. Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christensen) from Star Wars Episode 3: Revenge of the Sith: These two Jedi warriors used to be partners. With the seduction of Darth Sidous and unfair treatment of the Jedi counsel, Anakin had completely turned rogue. That soon led to their exciting one on one battle, but what was really touching was when after Obi-Won won the fight, he still felt devastated from Anakin’s betrayal just as any mentor would feel if their protégé turns on them. 

#3) John Spartan (Sylvester Stallone) vs. Simon Phoenix (Wesley Snipes) from Demolition Man: The motives for these two need no introduction, cop vs. convict. However, the relationship goes deeper when Phoenix gets Spartan arrested with him. The battle scenes between them became more intense when Phoenix develops some new combat skills, which challenges Spartan even more. 

#2) Buffy (Sarah Michelle Gellar) vs. Faith (Eliza Dushku) from Buffy the Vampire Slayer: These two are both slayers and used to be friends. Although Faith was troubled to begin with, her reason for turning rogue was different. She wanted to live on the wild side and be free, but Buffy knows better. That soon caused some friction between them as to how the slaying should be done. On the other hand, don’t you just love a good cat fight? 

#1) Xena (Lucy Lawless) vs. Callisto (Hudson Leick) from Xena: Warrior Princess: Let’s certainly not forget this classic match-up. Years ago when Xena was evil, she conquered Callisto’s home village and killed her family. That drove her to become more like Xena in every way possible while vowing revenge. Callisto had definitely succeeded, even from beyond the grave, if you know what I mean. As beautiful as she was, it’s really Callisto’s psychotic persona that makes her a favorite of mine. 

Basically a good villain is one who is worthy of the title. Whether it’s personal grudges or being consumed by a dark power, villains have goals, but it’s their evil intent that gives them bad karma, which is also enjoyable to watch at times.