TV Tuesday: Frenemy

[yourlibrarian]

What makes for a memorable TV antagonist? Does any kind of redemption arc play into this?

Comments

[yourlibrarian]

For me, a good antagonist has to be smart or clever. Perhaps because I recently watched the Joan Collins documentary, Alexis Carrington came to mind. Having a sense of style or sass doesn't hurt. An ideal antagonist is fun to watch.

I don't know if a redemption is necessary, however I do think that a good antagonist has to have a chink in their armor. Someone who is just irredeemably evil is just dull. It might work for a movie where they can be disposable, but for a TV show they need some characterization if they're going to be more than the villain of the week.

[jo]

Someone who is just irredeemably evil is just dull.

An antagonist doesn't have to be evil at all -- they just have to be at odds with the main character -- e.g. maybe the voice of reason if the protagonist being completely unreasonable, or an authority figure, etc. I mean, Marge Simpson is probably the antagonist in most episodes of The Simpsons.

[yourlibrarian]

Heh, that's true, though as I've been watching House of the Dragon lately it would be on my mind. I think a number of procedurals tend to include an "at odds" character, though very often they're defeated routinely which makes them a lot less memorable in my book.

[itsnotmymind]

A good antagonist needs to provide a contrast to the protagonist. They need to be noticeably similar and/or opposite from the protagonist.

I think being memorable also means that they must have something likeable about them, that they are not just bad through and through. This doesn't mean they need a redemption arc - some antagonists do have excellent redemption arcs but I don't think it is required for them to be memorable. But an antagonist who is just evil, and that's that, is not very memorable

[yourlibrarian]

Yes, a strong contrast is always a good thing. Perhaps it's most interesting when the pro and ant tend to have strengths and weaknesses that complement one another. Of course this tends to be true of partners as well, which leads to some good enemies to friends type stories 😉

[caramarie]

The ideal antagonist is a sexy middle-aged woman and she should never be redeemed 😌

(I am thinking specifically of Revenge and the kdrama Little Women.)

[yourlibrarian]

Ha, my first thought was of Killing Eve!