Thanks for stopping by—I know I haven’t been the most consistent with these posts, but I’m trying my best. This week I decided to discuss a topic that isn’t contentious, but is a strongly held personal preference. Today’s topic is heroes or villains: which one do you prefer?
I’m a big fan of reading series, and the ones that I choose tend to have staunch fandoms. These fandoms commonly tend to favor either the hero or the villain. I’ve been a fan of either, depending on the story and the character. But I have to admit that I’m curious to find out the reasons that someone might choose one or the other, so I’m going to talk a little about what appeals to me in a hero and a villain.
When it comes to a hero, we have the person who is willing to risk everything to save the day. Since I read a lot of fantasy, there is a chosen one trope that features heavily in these books. This person often starts out as an unwilling hero, which I can empathize with, being forced into a role that you didn’t ask for and certainly don’t want, but feel enough responsibility to take on in order to avoid bigger problems down the line. That’s automatically appealing to me, so as long as the character has a good personality, I’m pretty much sold. The character who saves the day is an easy one to ship. You can see people root for the good guys in various series. Some examples include: Peeta from The Hunger Games, Aelin from Throne of Glass, Elspeth in One Dark Window, and Jon Snow in A Song of Ice and Fire,
But sometimes the villain, or antihero, is so much more appealing. They flout the rules, do what they feel like, don’t care what others think, and aren’t afraid to chase what they want. It’s the bad-boy appeal, and the villain/antihero brings that in spades. And let’s be honest—sometimes the hero is just kind of blah, while the villain has charisma. Other times, the villain is the narrator of some or all of the book, making it easier to empathize with them. Finally, the villain doesn’t always start out as a villain, and it’s difficult to change how I feel about a character when they change allegiances. You can see people loving the bad guys in a number of series. Some examples include: The Darkling in Shadow and Bone, Rin from The Poppy War series, Ren from The Mask of Mirrors, and Victor in Vicious.
So which appeals more to you—the hero or the villain? Why?
Categories: Sunday Bookish Discussion
Leah's Books 
Always the villain. Devil may cry kinda guy. I think because then villains path seems more believable, more reflective of human nature. Heroes depict what’s best in us, the ideal. Hence they’re given so many “advantages” to set them apart. But the reality of the fiction (😜) is, the bad guys have all the fun. While the good guys have all the nice toys. I choose fun Everytime.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I like the unflinching honesty, and I can see where you’re coming from. The hero is who we can aspire to be, but the villain is more accurate of who people truly are if allowed to be themselves. And yeah, they do seem to have more fun, but they get more consequences too!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Unfortunately. 😊 I guess it’s worth the risk. That buzz to feel alive, feel relevant, if only for a moment.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Another basic human drive.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Indeed.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I like both depending on the story and as you said sometimes antihero or villains are even more interesting like Darkling in Grishaverse. I never liked Mal in it. And now I would like to read other books you mentioned.
LikeLiked by 2 people
It’s funny because I was never Team Darkling, and I was in the teeny tiny crew of Team Mal in the Grishaverse! But I’m curious to see what you think of the other books, and whether we end up liking the heroes or the villains/antiheros.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I love an antihero, or even a straight-up villain. Sometimes I love them because they’re well-written, complicated, flawed and interesting characters, and sometimes I just love them out of spite. Like if the writing is annoyingly preachy I might end up rooting for the bad guy!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes! To all of this! It’s like the villains and antiheroes are given all of these elaborate backstories and multilayered personalities, and have these complex interactions that we just don’t always see with a hero. And other times, the hero is just irritating, or I don’t connect with them as a reader, and find the antihero to be more my speed. But if the writing is annoyingly preachy, I’m more likely to DNF, to be honest 🙈
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s fair enough, I’m notoriously bad at DNFing. That’s also true about the complex interactions, I love it when you see a moment of vulnerability from them or connection with a “good” character. Hooray for villains!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’ve had to work to get better at it, but it’s worth it to avoid that feeling I get at the end of “why didn’t I DNF? It was such a waste and it didn’t get any better.”
LikeLiked by 1 person
The hero- don’t know fully why (but I know I struggle to like villains)
LikeLiked by 1 person
I think there’s something about either the hero or an antihero that speaks to something in us, you know? Everyone gets to like who they like!
LikeLike
I’m going to go with the antihero, when he is a villain overall but a hero for you.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes! I love that, and looking at it through that perspective.
LikeLike