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Close your eyes and think about some of your favorite book and film characters, Pandas. What are they? Heroes, villains, antiheroes… or something else entirely? The beauty of enjoying entertainment through reading, art, and visual media is that you delight in the story from your own unique perspective. No one else sees and feels the story and characters quite like you do. The words and visuals resonate with you in a distinctive way.

However, some people firmly believe that there is an overwhelmingly ‘right way’ to interpret popular stories and characters. The crowd over on r/AskReddit feels that people generally tend to idolize way too many fictional characters without ‘getting’ the entire ‘point’ of their stories. From The Joker to Light Yagami and beyond, these redditors think that these characters deserve no sympathy at all.

Scroll down to see which fictional characters they singled out and why they believe nobody should idolize them. Do you agree or disagree with their opinions, Pandas? Let us know in the comments! And if you feel like opening up to all the other readers, why not tell us who you look up to for inspiration in media and why?

#1

30 Fictional Characters That People Idolize By Entirely Missing The Point Not a character, but as a South American, it is disgusting how drug lords are being venerated due to some media about them that have come out in recent times, especially the series Narcos.

There are people tattooing the image of Pablo Escobar! A genocina son of a b***h who is responsible for the murder of thousands of people, created a civil war for pure economic interest and only now is Colombia resurrecting the s**t that this man did. It's like getting a tattoo of Hitler.

DELAIZ , wikipedia Report

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Assassin
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1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yes I agree, there are also women who love Ted Bundy and have his sick bite marks tattooed on themselves..and they have young daughters ..I would like to be there when they try explain the reasons why

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Bored Panda got in touch with Bram Stoker Award-winning editor Doug Murano, the founder of Bad Hand Books, for a chat about villains and antiheroes. We were interested to hear his thoughts about why the audience might want to root for the 'bad guys.'

"I think we're built to relate to the thoughts and emotions villains are allowed to express, but heroes are not. We've all had times in our lives when we've felt jealousy, rage, the need for vengeance—feelings that often drive the actions of villains," he told us.

"Part of the value of indulging in fictional worlds is to give voice to the feelings we can't in real life. That's a long way to say that I think it's healthy to root for the villain sometimes. Don't feel bad about enjoying it," editor Doug said that we shouldn't feel guilty about this.

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#2

30 Fictional Characters That People Idolize By Entirely Missing The Point Your man Grey from the Fifty Shades books.

**Disclaimer** My flatmate had all 3 books and I read them as a method of procrastination from uni work. I also cleaned out all the kitchen cupboards, so that shows the frame of mind I was in.

Why is he seen as a wonderful, sexy, man of your dreams? He's a narcissistic misogynistic d******d. He targeted a young naive girl and groomed her for his own enjoyment.

MadWifeUK , Sebaso Report

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Luke Branwen
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1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

If Grey was a fat slob living in a trailer, "50 Shades" would be seen as a crime novel instead of romance.

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#3

30 Fictional Characters That People Idolize By Entirely Missing The Point Scrolled for ages and couldn’t see anyone saying Ross and Rachel from Friends, although I guess maybe it’s fair to say that the “point” of their story wasn’t that they were absolutely toxic for each other. I remember a time in the late nineties to mid noughties when every dating profile and every MySpace page had some variation of “I’m just a Rachel Green looking for her Ross Geller”. Despite the fact that Ross was a gas-lighting, possessive, jealous wanker and Rachel was a needy, stuck-up, indecisive user of people and the only one who had the balls to tell her so was Hugh Laurie in a cameo. And she clearly didn’t listen because she just kept getting worse and worse after that.

Wakkahama , NBC Report

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Bored Panda also wanted to hear about the hallmarks of a truly great villain. Here's what Doug, from Bad Hand Books, had to say about this: "Good villains have a reason for doing what they do—and they feel absolutely justified in taking those actions. That doesn't mean they need a sophisticated backstory, but a good villain is the hero of their own story," he said.

"And the best villains have motivations we can partially sympathize with. Think about Pamela Voorhees, who picks off camp counselors to avenge the death of her son. Most of us cringe at her methods, but can relate to her anger."

Meanwhile, when it comes to the difference between villains and antiheroes, Doug sees it in terms of selfishness vs. selflessness. "A villain's goals are centered on satisfying their own emotional needs, whereas an antihero will do things that are characteristically villainous for the greater good," he told Bored Panda.

#4

30 Fictional Characters That People Idolize By Entirely Missing The Point Joker. And all those cringe posts on Facebook that's just pictures of him saying s**t like "I got your back in the darkest times" my dude he doesn't have anyone's back that's the f*****g joker

Unknown_Captain , Warner Bros Report

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Mia Black
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1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I don't like the way He is Idealized and hyped. I think people liked the way the actors showed the role and i respect their work but i can not stand, when people party a person who is cruel on purpose. It downplays violence, even if the characters are fictional. Since they are portrayed by real people, the line between fiction and reality becomes smaller, and I'm concerned that people who aren't good at reflecting might get the wrong perception.

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#5

30 Fictional Characters That People Idolize By Entirely Missing The Point Jerry from Tom and Jerry. He's a f****r, Tom is just defending his house

PapuMsterioso , momokacma Report

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Zedrapazia
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1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Mice are cute and nice, until you have them in your house. Then you'll thank the s**t out of your cat for devouring their destructive asses

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#6

30 Fictional Characters That People Idolize By Entirely Missing The Point Romeo and Juliet

Why_So_Slow , -JvL- Report

Let’s be frank for a moment: there will always be disagreements on how to interpret certain story elements, character arcs, and what the writer/artist intended to put on the screen and on the page. It’s like asking who’s cooler, Batman, Superman, or Spiderman.

However, by getting involved in these discussions, setting up our arguments, and countering others’ opinions, we get a bit closer to the truth about what makes characters stand out, what types of stories and tropes we prefer, and why.

You’ll hardly ever come to a satisfactory conclusion in arguments over fiction (especially if you’re on the internet!), but sharing your ideas and interpretations can help you get your own thoughts in order. Things get very interesting once you move past the, ‘I don’t like character X/I think that opinion Y is wrong, and I’m the only one who’s right!’ phase.

#7

Joker & Harley are still idolized as an example of crazy passionate love despite it being clearly established as an abusive relationship. It’s a shame the movies had to cut out most of the really bad Joker abuse because then maybe the point will be driven home

TwoHeadedBoyTwo Report

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Luke Branwen
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1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I don't follow DC stuff at all, but lately I often see Harley dating Poison Ivy and I thing that's hell of an upgrade.

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#8

30 Fictional Characters That People Idolize By Entirely Missing The Point Peter Pan, he flies into kids windows and kidnaps them.

B00dle , Edward Mason Eggleston Report

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Monday
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1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

and potentially murders lost boys who get to old to still be lost boys depending on which version of the story we're talking about.

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#9

Archie Bunker - I hear boomers admiring that he didn't care if he offended people as if that's a good thing. In reality, the character was specifically written as a satire of the small-minded middle class bigots who think they're so clever when they know so little.

ststeveg Report

While a quick scroll through social media will show you a ton of extremely cringy Joker memes that should be avoided like the plague, it’d be unfair to write off the character entirely. Yes, he’s pretty much a violent psychopath who (depending on which version of the Joker you have in mind) gets up to everything from silly pranks to some truly dark and mind-breaking stuff that nobody should ever fall victim to.

He’s definitely not a hero and shouldn’t be idolized. He’s also not just a psychopath. It’s not wrong to feel at least some sympathy for villains and antiheroes sometimes. Some aspects of their character and their motivations might make them relatable. Things aren’t just black or white in modern and postmodern media unless you’re telling a very traditional Good vs. Evil story. Gotham, we feel, has enough space for some more nuance and shades of grey. If a character is written well and is more than just two-dimensional, it's normal to at least understand where they're coming from, even if you're not fully on their side.

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In the opinion of yours truly, what makes a villain compelling is that their goals and motivations resonate with us. We see a part of ourselves in them and their actions. We’re forced to come to the stark conclusion that even though we want the heroes to win and save the day, that victory isn’t as morally clear-cut as it might initially seem.

#10

30 Fictional Characters That People Idolize By Entirely Missing The Point Walter White. You're not supposed to root for the murderous, ruthless, self-centred, ego maniac drug lord by the end of the series. People do.

NDStars , Tim SnellSony Pictures Television Report

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Deborah B
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1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I thought the point of the series was that America is a distopia that pushes people into destructive and/or criminal behaviour by denying them basic human rights. Such as life-saving medical care.

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#11

30 Fictional Characters That People Idolize By Entirely Missing The Point I'm ready for the downvotes, but my honest opinion is Snape. Dude was a jealous, racist, and condescending a*****e. Dude was straight up bullied and we get his perspective so we feel sympathy for him, but the dude was straight up in the wizarding world's kkk. Somehow he's loved because he loved Harry's mom, switched sides, and was a double agent. I get the whole redemption arc but he was still acting selfishly and I don't get why people think he's such a hero. He's a complete a*s to Harry for no reason other than 'your father was an a*s to me so f**k you.'


The guy literally walked over his unrequited love's HUSBANDS dead body to sob over her death. Could you imagine if you knew a guy in high school who joined the kkk, had the most incel crush on you, and was so obsessed with you that he cradled your dead body after walking over your husband's dead body?

frustrated_pen Report

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Monday
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1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

We should note though that said "unrequited love's husband" was the bully that tormented him less than 5 years ago. I would totally step over my bully's corpse without a second thought. And although Snape was very much an a*****e the whole "wizard KKK" thing happened when he was like 20. Young people are often dumb, we don't judge them solely for the c**p they did in the past. Was Snape a hero though? Absolutely not. That's the point. He's just a dude who ended up doing the right thing after doing a bunch of wrong things.

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#12

30 Fictional Characters That People Idolize By Entirely Missing The Point Holden Caulfield, The Catcher in the Rye. He wasn’t being refreshingly rebellious, he was crying out for help. He was probably mentally ill, and definitely emotionally scarred by his brother’s death and the unhealthy way his parents handled that tragedy.

GoingOn2Perfection , Heather Salter and Keith Dromm Report

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Adam Belaire
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1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

"I don't buy them a copy of Catcher in the Rye and then lecture them with some seventh grade interpretation of how Holden Caulfield is some profound, intellectual. He wasn't! He was a spoiled brat!" -Glen Quagmire, Family Guy. S8 Ep 7 "Jerome Is the New Black"

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Real life is messy, chaotic, and complicated. People are incredibly rarely purely good or evil. Stories and characters that manage to capture a fraction of that while keeping the audience entertained can go very far.

You could argue that just as much as fictional characters shouldn’t be idolized, they also shouldn’t be immediately demonized. Besides, it’s often hard to know what the ‘point’ of a particular story is when we don’t have access to the unfiltered thoughts and intentions of the creators. Moreover, once you finish a story and let it loose upon the world, it’s no longer just your creation. Everyone who reads or watches it adds to the worldbuilding whenever they share their interpretations.

So, yes, to put it bluntly, evil characters obviously shouldn’t be idolized… but perhaps the reason they are is that they’re written so well that they work like mirrors, reflecting a part of the audience and society back at them. A part that may be uncomfortable for many to even think about.

Psychologist Lee Chambers told Bored Panda during an earlier interview that part of the reason why people enjoy watching entertainment that covers the darker side of humanity is due to our evolutionary journey as human beings.

“For the majority of our existence, we were prey and always hyperaware of threats to our safety, which created a negativity bias that we are drawn towards. But in today's safe and often sanitized world, we are rarely threatened significantly, and the ability to explore evil, frightening and gruesome entertainment is one of the few ways we can visit this part of humanity while remaining safe and comfortable,” he shared his thoughts about forms of entertainment like the spectacularly popular true crime genre.

“There is a level of novelty to it, it removes boredom quickly, and it helps us to discover our emotional limits while understanding the minds of those who go beyond social norms and potentially gaining knowledge of how we might avoid being victims ourselves. They also offer closure, with many stories ending with the mystery being solved, and the criminal being brought to a level of justice.”

#13

30 Fictional Characters That People Idolize By Entirely Missing The Point Scarface. So many wannabe gangstas and rappers with Scarface shirts and posters.

Leeser , Universal Pictures Report

#14

30 Fictional Characters That People Idolize By Entirely Missing The Point Homelander from The Boys comes to mind

What I am referring to is that there was an article that was published about some fans who genuinely thought Homelander, who is supposed to represent white supremacy ideology and toxic masculinity ideals, was actually a good guy in the show. It took them until the third season to find out that he was actually the bad guy and people were big mad about it. It blew my mind that they went through two seasons and thought Homelander was a good guy......

So that was who came to mind first with this prompt.

biochemnerd12 , Fenixlord23 Report

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Bernd Herbert
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1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

dude blew up a commercial airplane in season 1 and people still thought he was the good guy?? WTF?

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Dash Junior
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1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Some people thought that Homelander was a hero? He was a goddamned monster early on if I remember correctly.

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Annette_
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It was known form the first minute of the show. Wtf people?

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Mistiekim
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yeah pretty obvious from the get go he was a villain. That’s really the point of the show. The superheroes are the bad guys, but the public only sees the illusion.

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Amy Watkins
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1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I only watched the first episode, and it was clear that he was not good!

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Meh
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1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Wtf? It was pretty bloody obvious from the get go wasn't it?

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LeeAnne B
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I always thought he was an intimate water-based cleaning apparatus.

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Ueda
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1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Hence why the parallel with the agent orange is spot on.

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Joy
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1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Anthony Starr plays him frighteningly well. For me that's always been the paradox of a violently disturbed mind in that the person knows what they're doing and gets a kick out of it yet has zero awareness of why. Homelander is banal, petty and a repulsive inhuman stench but he is entertaining to watch. Same with the snake-eyed JR in Dallas. In real life Larry Hagman was a sweetheart. The good guys play the bad guys best.

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Melanie Burlock
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1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

He raped Butcher’s wife, Rebecca. Who the hell thought he was a good guy???

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Omiyaru
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

boring a hole into a woman's head wasn't enough? What about crushing a guy's skull while making out with superpowered nazi?

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Anjelika
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

What?? Since season 1 its shown what kind of person he is I think he's a parody of superman

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Barbara Skolly
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I figured out he was evil in episode 1 having never followed the comics. Some people are really slow lol

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Wysteria_Rose
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1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

...don't you realize he's like the worst bad guy after only the first episode of season one???

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Dre Mosley
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1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

So blowing up a plane and leaving a plane full of people to die didn't tip them off?

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Jos Tiguidou
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1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Homelander is not a good person but the real villain is 100% Vought

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JayWantsACat
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Those same people called the show "woke" as a crticism in after season 3. Were they even watching the same show as the rest of us?

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Jordi Sharpe
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Even without watching the show, I knew from his alias that he was going to be a bad guy. Why not just call him Fatherlander?

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Kimberley Gayle Thomas
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Ever since I started watching this show I've hated that character among all the other "good guys". I had to slowly wait for their comeuppance. They're all bad in their own way. Even Sexist Bad Aquaman whatever his name is. I almost stopped watching after episode 1 but I'm glad I hung on. Especially when the Daddy shows up. In addition to when the others temporarily gain powers.

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Nicole Holt
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1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I literally watched the first episode of the first season with hubby last night: Dude blew up a plane with a kid in it. Definitely not a good guy. Sorry.

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Laura Mandado Cacho
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1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I hate that show, watched the first episode and decided it wasn't for me

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Mia Black
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1 year ago

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CalicoKitty
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1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

You can make it 100% clear that someone's the bad guy and people would still idolise them. I've floated around a certain anime's fandom long enough to know you can portray as much /literal abuse/ as you like and people will still claim the character has done nothing wrong, ever. And conversely, people will assign negative traits to characters they have prejudice against, even if they're very clearly a good guy. People are just awful sometimes, I think, and it's hardly surprising that, for instance, dudebros watching the gritty superhero series would think Homelander is a cool dude. After all, he's just like them. In my opinion, it's important to have these sorts of characters floating around without a big flashing sign, because people's opinions on them can be an excellent indicator of whether you should run for the hills or not.

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#15

30 Fictional Characters That People Idolize By Entirely Missing The Point Vito Corleone, and by extension, Michael.

Vito had to flee his home as a little boy to escape a mafia boss who wanted him dead. He gets to the US, but because of discrimination against Italians and another mafia boss stealing his job for his nephew, he's forced into crime so he can take care of his family. He joins The Life, and he's good at it.

But because of that life:

- Sonny is murdered
- Michael goes into exile
- Michael's first wife is murdered
- Fredo has a breakdown
- Connie goes off the rails after her abusive husband is killed
- Michael's second wife leaves him
- Fredo betrays Michael
- Michael has him killed
- Michael's daughter is killed
- Michael's son hates him

Even more tragic? MICHAEL ALMOST ESCAPED THAT LIFE.

EDIT: 90% of y'all are agreeing with me and the other 10% are proving my point.

fangirlandproudofit , Wikipedia Report

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Gabriele Alfredo Pini
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1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I hate the Mafia: in Italy we have so much controls and laws because of those wankers!

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"It [the story] can take us on an emotional rollercoaster, have us trying to solve the puzzle and test our fear in a controlled way. The permission to explore evil is powerful, as we so rarely get the chance elsewhere, and in itself, it is healthy and normal in moderation," the psychologist told Bored Panda.

"The challenge we face is the fact that consuming too much of this can desensitize us, and cause us to become less empathetic to the suffering of others, more fearful of our own environment, and potentially be more likely to use aggression ourselves. It can also cause us to be triggered by our own previous adverse experiences, make it harder to manage our own emotional balance, and increase our stress levels, so moderating our consumption is something we should have front of mind, even when we get embroiled in the latest series that is pulling us in."

#16

30 Fictional Characters That People Idolize By Entirely Missing The Point Patrick Bateman.

The memes today are undermining how brutally narcissistic, inhuman and soulless he really is. The novel made me puke every few pages.

He himself admitted the only emotions he was left with was greed and disgust.

He is among the peak consumerist in a consumerism driven society.

rukthor , wikipedia Report

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Hex Gurls
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1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

which is exactly the point. he’s a satire of businessmen who are the ideology of consumerism. i almost vomited when i looked him up when watching the movie for the first time and there were so many articles titled, ‘how to be patrick bateman’. he has zero redeeming qualities what the f**k is there to emulate if u don’t want to be a sociopath

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#17

30 Fictional Characters That People Idolize By Entirely Missing The Point Not actually fictional but- The Wolf of Wall Street

Infinite_Occasion , Paramount Pictures Report

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Ines Olabarria-Smith
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1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Never seen that film after reading an interview of the daughter of the man it was based on. Her life was ruined by his father’s doing and she hated the idea of him being celebrated.

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#18

Ferris Bueller. Looking back he just seems like a lazy manipulative teenager who bullies his suicidal friend into riding and eventually crashing an expensive car, not to mention harassing his principal who was a jerk but was just trying to do his job.

LuvClue Report

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Mistiekim
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I wouldn’t call him lazy - I mean the kid set up elaborate schemes in order to get out of school. And Rooney was absolutely determined to catch him. He could’ve stayed at the school and nothing would’ve happened to him other than being mad. He’s the one that went out to track Ferris.

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#19

30 Fictional Characters That People Idolize By Entirely Missing The Point I teach high school computer science. My first year was the year Rick and Morty came out. Every one of my students was convinced that they were Rick. I’m so glad they’ve moved to all being weebs now. The Rick gang was insufferable

mofukkinbreadcrumbz , MEDIODESCOCIDO Report

#20

30 Fictional Characters That People Idolize By Entirely Missing The Point Light Yagami.

So many people forget that Death Note basically shredded whatever redeeming qualities he had for the sole purpose of spreading the message that power corrupts/absolute power corrupts absolutely. The only thing that anyone really seems to talk about regarding his character is that he’s awesome, handsome, and polite, and even the former was a facade.

More___Yogurt Report

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Monday
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1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Same with L on the flipside. He's childish, selfish and willing to sacrifice people if it means getting the information he needs on whoever he's hunting. They were lovely counterparts to watch going up against each other, but the real heroes were the poor cops just doing their jobs.

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#21

30 Fictional Characters That People Idolize By Entirely Missing The Point Alex from A Clockwork Orange.

The point of the book (to my reading) was that you can't force natures hand. All the rehabilitation in the world couldn't make Alex grow up, only Alex could. And he did. In the end, it was not a glorification of violence.

zCYNICALifornia , Dr Umm Report

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RP
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1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

If I recall correctly, the film basically cut the final chapter of the book in which we see him grow-up which has led to a lot of misinterpretations of the work. It has been awhile since I saw it though, so I could be wrong

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#22

30 Fictional Characters That People Idolize By Entirely Missing The Point The Punisher

Nonsenseinabag , Netflix Report

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Nicole Weymann
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1 year ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Vigilantism in general is not the heroic deed it's made out to be. The image of heroes single handedly cleaning up may be nice in comics, but in real life for every attempted Batman/Robin Hood there's a thousand Judge Dredds/lynch mob members whose actions can best be summarized by "Oops! But how was I to know that he was innocent?".

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#23

30 Fictional Characters That People Idolize By Entirely Missing The Point Greg heffley. Guys a little sh*thead.

Unable_Violinist3966 , From Diary of a Wimpy Kid Wiki Report

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Strawberry Pizza
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1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

In the first Movie Diary, Jeff Kinney actually addresses this. Greg was meant to be a bit of a jerk - it was intentional.

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#24

Phantom of the Opera. Rejection does not give a person a free pass to manipulate someone into loving him or her. Don't get me wrong; I don't hate him- in fact, I sympathize with him because no one likes rejection and abuse, of course. Boy, is the musical character a hero compared to his portrayal in the book, though, and the character is actually far darker than any adaptation may be able to portray accurately! (Not to knock on Lord Andrew Lloyd Weber, of course; I'm just stating that the Phantom is far darker than I think *anyone* would be able to capture completely.)


ETA: 1.5K karma??? Oh, boy, I had no idea Lord Webber's work was *that* controversial as compared to the book, but I did know the real Phantom was a lot darker....

ENFJPLinguaphile Report

#25

30 Fictional Characters That People Idolize By Entirely Missing The Point Woody from toy story. Guy's ego is larger than the moon

Torqyboi , Pixar Animation Studios Report

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B.Nelson
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

That's the point of the story. His ego and anger get the better of him and he has to journey into darkness in order to make up for what he has done.

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#26

30 Fictional Characters That People Idolize By Entirely Missing The Point Tyler Durden, hands down.

sazerrrac , wallpaperim.net Report

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Wintermute
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1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is an excellent example of the hero you deserve rather than the hero you need. Sort of fighting fire with fire, except the fire is toxic culture. The point of Tyler Durdin is that he's an antihero, not meant to be easy to categorize as good or bad - the false duality of lazy writers.

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#27

30 Fictional Characters That People Idolize By Entirely Missing The Point Michael Scott? I mean, I know people don't "idolize" him. But overall he's so damn likeable that we all like him, and probably all think he's actually a caring, loving boss.

But in reality he throws his people under the bus quite a bit and always puts himself first.

That said, I can't help but love the guy.

NaughtSleeping , NBC Report

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#29

30 Fictional Characters That People Idolize By Entirely Missing The Point Love Quinn from You.

I can’t believe how many people worship her character. I have to tell myself that the people praising her actually KNOW she’s an insane, psychopathic, manipulative murderer, and their admiration of her is actually rooted in how well developed her character is and how refreshing it is to see a female villain instead of just another innocent victim. I have to tell myself that to sleep at night. Because there’s no way people actually admire HER, as in who her character was. There’s no way they can justify her actions or want to be anything like her. Right? Lol.

DirtStreet3135 , Rothcolucifer Report

#30

30 Fictional Characters That People Idolize By Entirely Missing The Point Thomas Shelby Peaky Blinders.

Phillyfrom312 , Terry Kearney Report

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Deborah Harris
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1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I don't think the point of his story was missed at all. The whole sets of series showed his flaws and those of his family. His character was idolised because of his family values and the way he protected his own

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Note: this post originally had 37 images. It’s been shortened to the top 30 images based on user votes.