Board 8 > Johnbobb ranks 113 User-nominated Villain Songs [THE RANKING]

(+) Yeah! (+)

It's actually a bit weird for me to hear the Pillar Men theme now without subconsciously adding Lil John to it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sblR0eIRW-I

Also happy I made the top 100 without dropping anything. Up There will score low on villainy, so I don't think that will rank too high.

GavsEvans123 posted...

It's actually a bit weird for me to hear the Pillar Men theme now without subconsciously adding Lil John to it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sblR0eIRW-I

It's a shame that's not the version that was in the show, that would've probably ranked higher

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sergiocornaga posted...

Obviously the best solution here would have been to secretly slip in Actual Cannibal Shia LaBoeuf.

Clearly, and evidently you should attribute it to me since I'm now kicking myself for not thinking of it during nominations when I had plenty of open slots.

In all seriousness, I'm enjoying reading these rankings so far, and especially your awesome banners!

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99. Resurrection
Source: Wake Up, Girls!
Villain: NEXT STORM
Nominator: UF8 (3 left)
Favorite lyric: Everything is crumbling down / What's left is this fist / I reach out but grasp nothing

https://youtu.be/WG8G73PFog0

Villainy: 1
Characterization: 2
Melody: 7
Total: 10/30

It hasn't come up before now, but yes, I'm listening to whatever version of a given song was nominated, but looking up English translations for lyrics (because there's no way I can judge characterization otherwise). Now I know UF8 mentioned when nominating this that NEXT STORM barely qualified as a rival group, and yeah, there's definitely nothing I can give this as far as villainy, because it's ultimately just a song by a rival, not really a villain song. It's a pretty melacholic love song at that. And while it doesn't tell us much about who this girl group is aside from "people who experience love and loss," I won't say I disliked the lyrics. It's honestly pretty well written, and what's craziest of all, I really dig this song. There are certainly people I'm afraid to admit it in front of, but I kinda really dig Babymetal, and this is... literally exactly that. It's a genre of music that feels like it shouldn't work on paper, but somehow just does. Do I like it enough to watch Wake Up, Girls!? Probably not, but I'll definitely listen to it now and again.

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At this rate you could attribute it to "everyone" and not be far off.

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98. Troll Toll
Source: It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia - The Nightman Cometh
Villain: The Troll aka Frank Reynolds
Nominator: BetrayedTangy (4 left)
Favorite lyric: You want the baby boy's soul / You gotta pay the Troll Toll

https://youtu.be/aDhAEmODyzw

Villainy: 4
Characterization: 3
Melody: 3
Total: 10/30

It truly pains me to place anything from Always Sunny, and ESPECIALLY from The Nightman Cometh, this low on the list. Bias aside, however, it's also not something I can justify putting any higher. It's barely a song. It's enjoyable for the like minute of song that's there, and not because Danny DeVito is a great singer. What does this tell you about The Troll? Well, he's a troll, who requires a toll, but instead of guarding a bridge, he guards a boy's... soul. And yes, I'm gonna have to go by soul, because as much as it SOUNDS LIKE something else, those are Charlie's official lyrics, so it's canon. What does that mean? Well... who the fuck knows. We know he was a boy, then he becomes a man, but unfortunately the only thing we get to fill in the gaps are... implications. Now I certainly give those implications some evil points, but without a clearer explanation of what it means, I can't go higher.

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Johnbobb posted...

98. Troll Toll

At least the rape scene was classy

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i might as well note the real lore reasons i picked out the wake up girls song for this for the many people who have and will not watch wake up girls

so basically, the "villain" group in the show is this bizarre proxy for akb48 called the i-1club (possibly also a salty jab at a-1 pictures). at some point the central figure in that group (who herself stole that position from the person who became the leader of wake up girls itself) has their position usurped and they're kicked out of the group entirely for no real reason besides drama. so the next storm group is basically just her, no longer relevant, coming back with a vengeance against i-1. the funny thing is though that her new group next storm is comedically dark and edgy to the point that they appear to be set up as the villains even though they're the underdogs, and this song certainly does not help even though it's secretly pretty great actually

oh yeah and the three groups end up competing in a movie and that song only plays for like 5 seconds, that's how little they actually qualify as a rival group

truthfully, i was originally going to pick another show by rock song instead except most of them don't have lyrics posted anywhere whereas this song somehow did

Haha I'm just happy it cracked the Top 100.

I do really like how the Troll is just a flat out representation of Frank. As he often uses Charlie just to make some money.

As far as the actual Nightman stuff goes, the full lore/fan theories connected to it are incredibly disturbing. And I almost nominated the original Nightman song instead, but I think it sort of suffers from the same problem. Where Charlie doesn't exactly view him as a villain.

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UF8 posted...

truthfully, i was originally going to pick another show by rock song instead except most of them don't have lyrics posted anywhere whereas this song somehow did

the lyrics are pretty fucking dark tbh. It's a well-written song

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97. Secret of Survival
Source: Wind in the Willows
Villain: The Weasels
Nominator: paulg235 (3 left)
Favorite lyric: Ready to attack you, you're a snack you'd better run! / Don't come walking in The Wild Wood if you haven't got a gun.

https://youtu.be/au_tL122R6g

Villainy: 4
Characterization: 4
Melody: 3
Total: 11/30

I'm suddenly realizing the weasels in that banner aren't actually the weasels portrayed in the nominated video. Whoops. I don't particularly like this song. It's mostly inoffensive, I'll give it that, but it's lyrically pretty dull and the voices of the weasels themselves can be kind of grating. It gives you a decent enough idea of what the weasels are though; creatures that inhabit the wild woods, but prioritize survival above all else. They're not particularly evil themselves, but they also don't give a shit about you or anyone else (although they're giving a warning about the dangers of the woods, so maybe they do care? Ah well, it's not really worth looking that far into).


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96. Special
Source: Avenue Q
Villain: Lucy the Slut
Nominator: Uglyface2 (2 left)
Favorite lyric: I can tell just by looking that you've got it hard / For me!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jrjQi9cI6sI

Villainy: 2
Characterization: 5
Melody: 4
Total: 11/30

Showtunes can sometimes be a little hit or miss for me, and I think Special is a good example of a song that I can definitely respect for the local prowess it requires (UF2 specifically suggested the Julie Atherton performance, and she does an excellent job embodying the character) even if it's not something I can see myself putting on my personal playlists. Lucy doesn't seem evil by any means, unless you consider prostitution to be evil #RespectSexWorkers. A tiny bit devious maybe, as she does use a little manipulation and specifically encourages a man to cheat on his girlfriend, but ultimately she seems like she's just trying to advertise her services. In doing so, you get a fair grasp on who Lucy is. Yeah, her main draw is that she's promiscious, but she's also clever and confident.

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Ah, Special. I like Lucy's part in There is Life Outside Your Apartment a lot, but I don't find the whole song as interesting. It's not the type of song I enjoy, particularly the melody.

Though seeing a muppet with exaggerated boobs is quite funny.

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I really need to see Avenue Q

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95. Distant Image
Source: Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney
Villain: Dahlia Hawthorne
Nominator: Zyxyz (2 left)
Favorite lyric: N/A

https://youtu.be/rDrciJ2lVYY

Villainy: 1
Characterization: 2
Melody: 8
Total: 11/30

I can fully admit, in the context of the game, Dahlia's theme works extremely well. It's a great melody. Not victorious or sinister, primarily just very pensive and a little sad. It fits Dahlia's character effectively and can easily trigger your emotions when it plays in game. As a villain song, without the context of the game, however, it tells me extremely little about the character and definitely doesn't sound villainous. The only thing this gives to an objective outsider is maybe a hint of melancholy; without the context of the situation, it's simply a pleasant melody.

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94. Solitude of Judgment
Source: Show By Rock
Villain: Bud Virgin Logic
Nominator: UF8 (2 left)
Favorite lyric: Who wants to understand crabs? (which is almost definitely a terrible Google translation but it made me laugh to hard to leave out)

https://youtu.be/5oxnb0z1ayE

Villainy: 6
Characterization: 2
Melody: 4
Total: 12/30

You know how fucking hard it was to figure out the English lyrics to this song? Well... not like crazy hard, but certainly inconvenient. I found an English voiceover for part of the song and had to use Google Translate for the rest of the lyrics (which didn't work particularly well, obviously) but for the most part, I think I've gotten the gist of the song, and man, it's kind of dark. It basically calls for the destruction of the world by some unseen force, and while it's never really clear as to why this band of anime girls wants the world to be destroyed (at least not that I could make out) there's no denying the pure malic behind the lyrics. In fact, this is easily the most evil song this far in the ranking I believe (though it's DEFINITELY not the evilest we'll see). Unlike NEXT STORM's "Resurrection," I didn't really get all that into Solitude of Judgment. It sounded more like what I'd expect an anime girl rock band to sound like, and not in a great way. It has its moments (I loved the sudden jump from acoustic ballad to metal about 30 seconds in) but it's not my thing overall.

I'm definitely not going to fault UF8 for nominating the original at all either, because the English version is definitely worse.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Pi9Z_HtvwA

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Tag

Also want to praise the banners.

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93. Battle! Ghetsis
Source: Pokemon Black/White
Villain: Ghetsis
Nominator: Hbthebattle (1 left)
Favorite lyric: N/A

https://youtu.be/ktqqE5cmE8M

Villainy: 2
Characterization: 3
Melody: 7
Total: 12/30

Hbthebattle posted...

Damn, now I gotta nominate 4 VG songs to prove you wrong smh

I want to apologize to you for having eliminated 3 of your songs already, but in my defense, that's kind of what you get for directly trying to fight the suggestions laid out in the nomination topic. I get it. This is a solid boss theme, especially by Pokemon boss standards. The horns are heavy and intimidating, and you definitely get the feel, even without having played the game, that this is the moment you go up against the big bad. They are a huge threat to you, whoever you are, but why? Who the fuck knows. Again, boss themes do not necessarily = villain songs. This left me knowing very little about WHY we're battling Ghetsis, or even if he is truly the villain in this situation.

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92. You're Only Second Rate
Source: Aladdin: The Return of Jafar
Villain: Jafar
Nominator: GavsEvans123 (3 left)
Favorite lyric: You know, your hocus-pocus isn't tough enough / And your mumbo-jumbo doesn't measure up / Let me pontificate upon your sorry state / You're only second rate!

https://youtu.be/Jhj25HnpSRU

Villainy: 3
Characterization: 4
Melody: 5
Total: 12/30

So is this just... the best moment in any straight-to-DVD Disney sequel? I mean that's not a super high bar, but it might be a fair statement (though there's definitely some good stuff in Kronk's New Groove imo). Now Jafar got a brief villain song in the original Aladdin with the Prince Ali (reprise) and I never thought it got enough love, regardless of how short it was. Here he finally gets his own real solo, and while Jonathan Freeman's singing voice isn't the BEST, I still can't help but bop along to this song, especially when he gets his moments to flex his vocab wordplay (this has to be the only Disney song to ever feature the words "pontificate" and "discombobulate"). You get a good enough grasp of who Jafar is from this as well (as if any of you didn't know already). He's cocky, he's clever, and he seems to have the means to back it up. Does that make him evil? Meh. He comes across more as rude here than anything.

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Best moment in any direct to video? Nah, that's this one

https://youtu.be/CwQrEUZDJCk

Have been greatly enjoying the topic, kicking myself for not finding the nom topic in time to throw in some sublime K Rool DKC cartoon songs.

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91. Pain for Pleasure
Source: Sum 41
Villain: Satan
Nominator: Scare (3 left)
Favorite lyric: A killing spree through eternity / the devil stabs you in the back

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Bl08yf0hOU

Villainy: 8
Characterization: 3
Melody: 2
Total: 13/30

This song could've been the start of something great. For that to be the case, however, it'd have to be done by someone that's not Sum 41, because Sum 41 just isn't a good band. The song's nice for about 30 seconds, then those Whibley vocals come in and it's just... *groan*. It's like someone attempted to do a mediocre cover of an Iron Maiden song, and then gave up less than two minutes in. Lyrically, the song is about Satan, and kinda cheezes its way to getting high villainy points. I mean, the whole thing (what little is there) is about Satan loving to kill and torture people forever. The only thing keeping it from scoring higher villainy-wise is that there's nothing more to it. It doesn't really portray Satan as an actual looming figure, but more like a loose folk tale that essentially equates to "watch out for the boogeyman, he's gonna get ya!"

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You did the exact banner I was hoping for

It was a great nomination for that alone

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90. Sloprano
Source: Conker's Bad Fur Day
Villain: The Great Mighty Poo
Nominator: Underleveled (1 left)
Favorite lyric: My Buuuuuuuuutt!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fexAY_t4N8U

Villainy: 6
Characterization: 4
Melody: 3
Total: 13/30

Look, I get the whole thing this is going for is gross out humor, and that's just... not my thing. I feel like this NEEDS the context and the nostalgia to make it enjoyable, because out of context, it's mostly either eyeroll-worthy or downright unpleasant. Again, I KNOW that's the point, but that doesn't mean I want to hear it. Throw in the "GRAUGH" noises in between verses (which I assume were from the actual boss fight?) that only detract from an already-weak song, and Sloprano was looking to get a 1 score on melody. I will give it one thing though; The Poo can sing. The singer kinda nails that operatic style the song's going for, and hearing him belt out some of these lines salvaged the song a bit. So what does this tell us about the Poo? Well, not much more than his name. He's shit. He thrives off of disgust, he's agressive and angry, and... I guess he himself has a butthole? While his vague threat of "Do you really think you'll survive in here?" could be taken as murderous intent, what really makes him a despicable villain is his very nature, throwing his shit and threatening to... fuck it, I don't even want to finish this thought.

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Johnbobb posted...

throwing his shit and threatening to... fuck it

No, I don't think that's how the song goes, thankfully.
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Wow, I won't accept this Sum 41 hate.

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Xeybozn posted...

No, I don't think that's how the song goes, thankfully.

Hah!

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Snake5555555555 posted...

Wow, I won't accept this Sum 41 hate.

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Snake5555555555 posted...

Wow, I won't accept this Sum 41 hate.

sorry, I'm already in too deep

it's another casualty of society

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Johnbobb posted...

sorry, I'm already in too deep

it's another casualty of society

Just fall in line

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89. Scorpio
Source: The Simpsons
Villain: Hank Scorpio
Nominator: Uglyface2 (1 left)
Favorite lyric: But beware of his generous pensions / Plus three weeks paid vacation each year

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9QEsjd1WZuY

Villainy: 2
Characterization: 6
Melody: 5
Total: 13/30

Much like Dr. Zaius, Scorpio (the song, not the villain) is really just a short parody that serves as little more than a post-episode joke, but it's a still a very fun parody. The whole thing sounds like a Bond villain theme, only instead of focusing on what makes Scorpio such a wicked mastermind, it instead focuses on Scorpio's incredible treatment of his employees. The song is actually kind of heroic. It still gets a TINY bit of villain credit simply because, yeah, he still wants to rule the world, but at the same time, that doesn't sound half bad. I would LOVE three weeks paid vacation each year, goddamn. It's kind of amazing how the song manages you to tell you as much as it does about Hank Scorpio in such a short time.

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88. One Winged Angel
Source: Final Fantasy VII
Villain: Sephiroth
Nominator: @ScareChan (2 left)
Favorite lyric: Sephiroth! Sephiroth!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CSXj_FjjMAw

Villainy: 4
Characterization: 5
Melody: 4
Total: 13/30

Sorry Scare, gotta drop another one of yours again already. Guess you should've bribed me a little more, huh? Anyway, did you guys realize One Winged Angel had lyrics beyond just "Sephiroth"? Probably! It's an easy thing to overlook, since they're repetitive and, you know, in Latin. They essentially translate to "Burning inside with violent anger," "Fate - monstrous and empty," Come, come, O come, do not let me die," and, of course, "Sephiroth!" While this doesn't tell you much about Sephiroth directly, it does key you in on key aspects of his character fairly effectively, and in only a few sentences worth of lyrics, you both fear Sephiroth just a bit and feel for him. While this type of tune isn't the type of music I go for on my own, nor is there any nostalgia there for me, I get the appeal.

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With all the boss themes I'm surprised no one went for Dancing Mad. It does a wonderful job of describing Kefka without lyrics.

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What, that ghostly laugh doesn't count as lyrics?

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87. The Great Detective Knows
Source: Umineko (fan song)
Villain: Erika Furudo
Nominator: FL81 (2 left)
Favorite lyric: (which apparently translates to: "I am that person who is a girl and also am also known as that person")

https://youtu.be/IoRCmJ4NZ74

Villainy: 2
Characterization: 5
Melody: 6
Total: 13/30

So without reading up on tons and tons of lore, what I can gather from this song is that Erika Furudo is a detective, and a bit of a cocky one at that. This song seems to be her displaying her immediate understanding of the mystery at hand, what clues she picks up on, while also giving herself a pat on the back for doing so. It's another one of the fan songs that adds lyrics on top of the character's instrumental theme, and ultimately I think it works very well. The singer's voice holds a tone that almost sounds like she's plucking at the words, and it makes for a very pleasant song. It's not exactly evil, coming across just a little arrogant (likely toward the protagonist) but overall harmless (in the song at least, I can't speak for the game).


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86. Intro
Source: I.M. Meen
Villain: I.M. Meen
Nominator: FL81 (1 left)
Favorite lyric: Very scary and confusing! / Destination of my choosing! / The magic labyrinth of I.M. Meen!

https://youtu.be/GN15aZVneSg

Villainy: 6
Characterization: 5
Melody: 3
Total: 14/30

so I typically just try to talk about the song itself and not any videos with them, since I'm only ranking these on the songs, but this video looks like someone took the movie Foodfight! and put it in a cheap 90s pc edutainment game. It's both enthralling and painful to watch. I.M. Meen as a villain is about as subtle as you'd expect given that name, and like most edutainment villains, he really hates education, so you can only defeat him by learning! These typically make for shallow characters with dumb motivations, and while he's kind of that, he also... straight up kidnaps these children with magic like David Bowie in Labyrinth. I mean, it's hard to take his villainy all that seriously given the vibe of the song, but kidnapping still has a pretty high minimum.

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The girl also looks very uncomfortable and pitiable when I.M. Meen pulls out her hair ribbon, and considering he's a grown man invading her personal space like that, it's got to count as being at least a little villainous.

Ah, I finally found this topic!

• Special is the kind of song somebody has to own in order to make it work. Julie does a wonderful job; I've also seen performers who weren't entirely comfortable with it (outside of an Avenue Q production), and you can tell the difference.
• Scorpio's just good comedy if you're familiar with 007 or other spy movies.

I'm hoping for good things with Pink Floyd.

Looks like my strategy of just nominating the corniest songs I could find did not pay off

also the disappointment I feel in that I.M. Meen was my 2nd highest placing nomination >_>

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85. Your Contract Has Expired
Source: A Hat in Time (Man on the Internet fansong)
Villain: The Snatcher
Nominator: Pirateking2000 (3 left)
Favorite lyric: And the weird and the wild / Should have left you all beguiled / Guess that's that / You hat wearing child

https://youtu.be/fmz1p0U_sPk

Villainy: 8
Characterization: 4
Melody: 2
Total: 14/30

Hey remember that other Man on the Internet song that was nominated and how the worst thing about it was the godawful vocals? YEAH THAT'S STILL THE FUCKING CASE. And it upsets me more here, because I'm a huge fan of A Hat In Time and it's fantastic OST. This is an excellent boss theme, and the lyrics going along with it are pretty decent, and with a nice vocalist this could've been excellent. But holy shit are those vocals grating to listen to. I get he's trying to do the Snatcher's voice, but fuck, man, it just sounds bad.

Beyond that, solid enough fansong! It does a decent job capturing both the anger and manipulation of the character, coupled with his sassiness. He's basically the devil from every "deal with the devil" story out there, but with just a little more flavor to make him stand out. Fun fact, I had the characterization score as a 5/10 until the last section of the song, where it basically tells the listener to like and subscribe as part of the song. Sorry, that loses you points, no avoiding it. I don't think we need much villainy explanation here though. You threaten to kill a child and steal their soul and have them "sleep now in the fire" during the song, you're pretty goddamn villainous.

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84. See My Vest
Source: The Simpsons
Villain: Mr. Burns
Nominator: Xeybozn (2 left)
Favorite lyric: Like my loafers? Former gophers / It was that or skin my chauffers

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TyWVaZsUQjc

Villainy: 8
Characterization: 4
Melody: 2
Total: 14/30

You gotta admit, it's catchy.

Mr. Burns is like the cartoon villain to end all cartoon villains, and that's on show plenty here, where he goes full Cruella De Vil (whose song was surprisingly not nominated) but instead of parodying that song, it goes with Beauty and the Beast's "Be My Guest" because... it rhymes? This song actually kind of simplifies Mr. Burns' character into a one-note villain, which is kind of a knock against it, but at the same time, it is, like every other Simpsons song nominated, a fun joke scene first and a song second. Let's be real, Mr. Burns isn't a good singer. He's not abrasive like Man on the Internet was, but also doesn't have a great song backing him to help him out. He is, however, comically evil, bragging about the various endangered animals he's had killed and made into clothes for no reason beyond "he wanted to," going as far as to imply he was killing to kill his own employees to make into clothes (now that's tongue in cheek and definitely wasn't meant to be taken seriously, but I'll be damned if I'm not going to read into every line!). On top of that, the song's ultimate goal is expressing his desire to kill a bunch of puppies and make them into clothing, which is something literally only a cartoon character could ever think is a reasonble plan.

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Oh man if only it was sung better I'm sure See My Vest can get at least 10 places higher. It's a pretty solid parody song.


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Johnbobb posted...

85. Your Contract Has Expired
Source: A Hat in Time (Man on the Internet fansong)

I didn't realize this was nominated. I'm a fan. And the vocals don't bother me much because, yes, that's totally emulating Snatcher. Singing to 'Contract' does inherently weaken the melody itself, sure, but the song is set to is pretty great to begin with. I think I'd be inclined to put it higher, but I'm also not listening to every nom to see what you're rating it against.

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Honestly the way he incorporated the like and subscribe wasn't the worst, but I get it

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whoops I've been really slacking on these write-ups the last couple days

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83. Outer Science
Source: Kagerous Project
Villain: Snake of Clearing Eyes
Nominator: cakophon (3 left)
Favorite lyric: It's because you wanted too much, so serve your sins! / The empty miracle collapsed as it was split open

https://youtu.be/E0q7B1W6ANs

Villainy: 8
Characterization: 4
Melody: 2
Total: 14/30

These kind of songs are a little difficult to rank, because, at least for me, it requires you to be in a very specific mood to really appreciate them. If this caught me on just the right day, maybe I'd jam out to it a little, but for the most part, I'd never want to listen to this on my own terms. It's just... a lot. Like the vocals are all but competing against the music itself, and both are just all over the place. When I hear this, all I can picture is that viral video of the cybergoth rave under the bridge

https://imgur.com/8fuD6Fk

While it's not my thing, I definitely get why it appeals to people, and this song in particular is really dark. It seems as though it's being told from the perspective of a killer, though the lyrics are just vague enough to make it unclear what exactly is happening. The opening line of "The knowledge of living a miserable life will haunt you once you are dead" is immediately striking and sets the tone for the rest of the song, which seems to focus on themes of death, rebirth and misery. Story-wise, I only wish I could grasp a little more what it's just to say, but I feel like I'm definitely missing a great context to tie it together that would've gone a long way.

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82. King Herod's Song
Source: Jesus Christ Superstar
Villain: King Herod
Nominator: Raka Putra (3 left)
Favorite lyric:I only ask what I'd ask any superstar / What is it that you have got / That puts you where you are?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1jH0OhG3DRg&t=1m18s

Villainy: 4
Characterization: 4
Melody: 6
Total: 14/30

So I know we're obviously supposed to side with Jesus here, given that it's, you know, Jesus, but King Herod raises a good point! I mean, kind of, even if he's a total, condescending and hateful ass about it all. Having doubts that this man who claims to be the son of god is telling the truth and asking for him to provide evidence isn't particularly unreasable for a person in a leadership position! But it's the way he chooses his wording and emphasizes certain words to mock Jesus that just really makes you want to hate the guy. King Herod's song has all the makings of a solid villain song. It's catchy as hell, while giving you a reasonable explanation of the subject's ideas and position (in this case, that he thinks Jesus is a fraud deserving imprisonment) while ultimately giving you a reason to hate them.


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81. Blumenkranz
Source: Kill la Kill
Villain: Ragy Kiryin
Nominator: Zyxyz (1 left)
Favorite lyric: I remove withered flowers / Why do you look so sad?

https://youtu.be/pdAoYar8Y0c

Villainy: 2
Characterization: 6
Melody: 6
Total: 14/30

I haven't seen Kill la Kill and don't know much about Ragyo Kiryuin, and as such going off strictly this song makes her seem surprisingly sympathetic. She appears to be violent and aggressive, sure, but not evil. Instead, she seems as though she believes violence is necessary ("It is advisable to remove withered flowers") simply as part of nature, but has no understanding of why what she does is wrong ("This world is cruel, it is sad but true" / "Why do you look so sad?") You kind of feel for her a bit. It simultaneously humanizes her as a character while also establishing her as a necessary antagonist. As far as the song itself, it only adds to the sad tone of the lyrics. The vocals are powerful, the music is pleasant, and while it doesn't leave the strongest impression on me, it's certainly effective at what it tries to do

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Johnbobb posted...

Story-wise, I only wish I could grasp a little more what it's just to say, but I feel like I'm definitely missing a great context to tie it together that would've gone a long way.

yeah, that's fair--kagerou project is tied together in a way that makes it difficult to grasp the overarching story without listening to most of the songs and absorbing certain extraneous media
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My memory of Kill la Kill is pretty spotty, but I don't remember Ragyo being remotely sympathetic in the way her song presents. Also they used only a tiny snippet of her song for her introduction that made it seem more menacing than the full song actually is, so it's not a great representation.

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Sceptilesolar posted...

My memory of Kill la Kill is pretty spotty, but I don't remember Ragyo being remotely sympathetic in the way her song presents. Also they used only a tiny snippet of her song for her introduction that made it seem more menacing than the full song actually is, so it's not a great representation.

Yeah that's kind of the impression I got from trying to find context for it. I don't assume the actual villain is nearly as sympathetic as the song presents

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