As much as everybody loves a good romance or a good plot twist on TV, everyone loves a good villain. There's nothing like a really shitty personality to get you into a show, and TV has produced some real bad guys over the years. Here's a rundown on some of the best or worst, depending on your point of view...
SIDESHOW BOB (The Simpsons)
Voiced by Kelsey Grammer, or Fraiser to some (or Frajer - click here to get the reference), Sideshow Bob is one of The Simpsons most prolific villains and, in our opinion, eclipses (see what we did there?) Monty Burns. Hellbent on killing Bart Simpson, he's even got 'Die, Bart, Die' tattooed on his chest. Except that it's 'The, Bart, The'. Which is German. Because nobody who spoke German could be evil.
KING JOFFREY (Game of Thrones)
One of the great things about Game of Thrones is that there's a real sense of moral ambiguity from all the characters. There's no out and out villain, as such. Some of the heroes do terrible things the same way some of the supposed "villains" do honourable things. Then there's Joffrey Baratheon who's just an absolute shithead. He revels in torturing people, is (spoiler) a product of incest and has a whiney-as-hell voice that makes us want to smack him right in the gob. Played by actually dead sound Jack Gleeson, Joffrey Baratheon has in recent years become the character we love to hate.
NIDGE (Love / Hate)
It's interesting to see how the public has, more or less, gotten behind 'King' Nidge and his shenanigans. From being something of a peripheral character in the first season, he's come full circle and is now the front-and-centre star of the show. That's all down to Tom Vaughan-Lawlor's visceral and authentic performance as the crime boss. Last season saw Nidge locked down and screaming into the camera and next season looks set to see the repercussions of his actions.
SYLAR (Heroes)
In the first and best season of Heroes, Sylar was the big baddie. Nobody was exactly sure of who he was or what he was up to, but we knew he was bad. Real bad. Bodies started turning up with their heads removed and Sylar just seemed to be standing in a permanent shadow. It was pretty great. Then, as well we know, the show just went straight to crap and Sylar was revealed to be actually a goodie. Sigh. But still, for that first season, Heroes and, by extension Sylar, was really cool.
LORD ZEDD (Power Rangers)
Have you ever actually gone back and watched Power Rangers? It's really one of those shows - like Barney or possibly even Zig & Zag - where we're almost certain that the writers were on various drugs and hallucinogens. And what exactly was he up to? Did anyone ever figure that out? Did anyone even care? The 90's were weird, man.
GEORGE HEARST (Deadwood)
Deadwood was one of those TV shows that people may not be immediately familiar with, but those who are and have seen it, love it. The show's quality inspires that kind of loyalty from it. In the third and sadly final season of Deadwood, the town was invaded by mining magnate George Hearst. Played by veteran character actor Gerald McRaney, the character was equal parts capitalist and psychopath. Orchestrating fights in the middle of town for his amusement, destroying hotels and chopping off index fingers, Hearst was not a man, but a beast.
GUS FRING (Breaking Bad)
Although nobody disputes the fact that Walter White was an absolute shit, he learnt his trade from Gus Fring. The mild-mannered restaurateur who always seemed pleasant and polite was, in reality, a criminal kingpin with a global empire. The similarities were there between Walter and Gus, namely their outer shell belying something much darker underneath. But what made Fring stand out was his absolute lack of giving a fuck. Check this out below.
ERIC CARTMAN (South Park)
The thing about Cartman was that, in reality, everybody remembers someone like him. Growing up, there was always that friend who would order you what to buy for their birthday, would tell on you if suited and was just an all-round asshat. Cartman is the embodiment of that ideal.
NEWMAN (Seinfeld)
...Newman.
VICTORIA GRAYSON (Revenge)
It's clear from the offset that Revenge is borrowing heavily from TV shows like Dynasty and Dallas in terms of the outlandish plots and the awful dialogue. Madeline Stowe's made an art-form out of passive aggression and it's kind of amazing to look at. Whether it's raining down abuse on those around her, or doing that looking off into the middle distance thing that's big on daytime soaps, Victoria Grayson is pure evil.
JOHNNY SACK (The Sopranos)
Trivia time - the actor who played Johnny Sack, Vince Curtola, is also a rock singer and has appeared many times with yacht-rock legends Chicago. The character of Johnny Sack was the photo-negative to James Gandolfini's Tony Soprano. Where Tony was raw emotion, Johnny was cold and calculated. Where Tony was unfaithful and would mount anything that moved, Johnny was a doting husband. It was this dichotomy between the two that made him such a memorable villain.
THE TRINITY KILLER (Dexter)
It's true, Dexter really jumped the shark after this, but John Lithgow's performance as the Trinity Killer was the show's crown jewel. Much like Dexter himself, Trinity was all about appearances. His idyllic family life - which Dexter craved - was a sham as Trinity's evil couldn't be contained. One particular scene truly showed what he was like and it's horrifying to look at. Lithgow's played villains in the past and he always does it with a certain amount of flair and pomp - Cliffhanger being the prime candidate. Here, however, he was more restrained and tightened which made it all the more terrifying to look at.