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

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26. The Plague's Song
Source: Figment
Villain: The Plague
Nominator: KCF0107 (ELIMINATED)
Favorite lyric: Black Death, red nose and green gills / A pharmacy of bitter pills / Drenched in sweat and with a scream / You wake up from my fever dream

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1yr0-Wv06NI

Villainy: 7
Characterization: 7
Melody: 7
Total: 21/30

Congrats KCF, your one nomination managed to be the lucky song to get the only 777 of the whole contest! If there's one thing I can really appreciate, it's an indie game going the extra mile by including fun, unique songs like this (anyone who's been around me for the last few weeks can attest to this as I've been singing "It's Bugsnax" nonstop). I absolutely adore how into the song the singer gets, going full ham with no hesitation. The Plague reminds me a lot of Hexxus, but more goofy and ridiculous on top of his disgusting cruelty. While he comes across as silly, the pain he wants to inflict is surprisingly real, as he goes into heavy detail about how he wants to cause pain and suffering.

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Oh cool, you really ended up liking the song as well. I figured it would score high in the other two categories, but this is definitely a divisive song in terms of likability. Did I finish the highest among those who only nominated one song?
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KCF0107 posted...

Oh cool, you really ended up liking the song as well. I figured it would score high in the other two categories, but this is definitely a divisive song in terms of likability. Did I finish the highest among those who only nominated one song?

Honestly his enthusiasm was what really drove it home for me.

And you did! Though azuarc also deserves some special mention for only nominating 2 and still being in

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team rocket appearing twice

truly it was double trouble

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Johnbobb posted...

And you did! Though azuarc also deserves some special mention for only nominating 2 and still being in

Looks like there were 4 people with one and 4 people with two?

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25. Brand New Day
Source: Dr. Horrible's Sing Along Blog
Villain: Dr. Horrible
Nominator: Janus5k (ELIMINATED)
Favorite lyric: It's a brand new day / Yeah the sun is high / All the angels sing / Because you're gonna die

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GVda8HD7rg8

Villainy: 6
Characterization: 7
Melody: 8
Total: 21/30

I mentioned my love of Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog back with My Freeze Ray, but this song just steps in up in about every way. It's a better song and it's probably the darkest moment for Dr. Horrible (at least until Penny's death). The whole musical is pretty comical, but at its core is a very dark idea. Dr. Horrible is essentially the shy kid being bullied by Captain Hammer, and while he always identifies as the villain, this is the moment he truly becomes a villain. He's snapping, deciding that he's going to kill Captain Hammer. And it's still somehow a little sad, because you can tell he really just wants to be respected and appreciated.

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24. Friends on the Other Side
Source: Princess and the Frog
Villain: Dr. Facilier
Nominator: Great Paul (1 left)
Favorite lyric: Don't you disrespect me little man / Don't you derogate or deride / You're in my world now, not your world / And I got friends on the other side

https://youtube.com/watch?v=g00kEcGh4j8

Villainy: 6
Characterization: 7
Melody: 8
Total: 21/30

This is a hard one to drop, but we're in the big leagues now. Friends on the Other Side is an excellent villain song, and frankly one of Disney's best. It's no secret that Keith David just has an incredible voice which naturally embodies Facilier's devious nature. I mentioned a while back, but I definitely think Facilier's trickery is a little more straightfoward than someone like Ursula. She was straightforward with Ariel, even gave her a contract and everything, but Facilier is just classic "play on words" trickery, getting the naive prince to agree to become a frog because he wants "the green" and freedom to "hop" from place to place. It's kind of funny, because he does actually give Lawrence what he wants without tricking him. There's still the sense of mystery over Dr. Facilier though. It's obvious from the beginning that he's up to something, but at this point we have no idea what exactly that is. I definitely have issues with PatF as a movie, but Dr. Facilier certainly isn't one of them.

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Those last two to drop are both top tier, and Friends on the Other Side would have probably been my number one pick.

23. Other Friends
Source: Spinel
Villain: Steven Universe: The Movie
Nominator: Toxtricity (1 left)
Favorite lyric: Who am I? Who am I? What are you even saying? / I'm the loser of the game you didn't know you were playing

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvjtCqNA5E0

Villainy: 5
Characterization: 8
Melody: 8
Total: 21/30

I meantioned during the write-up for "What's the Use of Feeling (Blue)?" that the song makes me actually want to go watch Steven Universe, and that probably goes triple for Other Friends. I've heard a couple Steven Universe songs, and they're usually pretty good, but then this fucking electroswing bop comes along, and I can't help but jam along. Ultimately I really wanted more of it, because the song itself is extremely short, especially considering a good chunk of it is just the characters talking in the middle. There's only so much characterization that can come through that fast, but it overall does a fantastic job with it. Spinel has a long-lasting hate for Steven Universe's group, the heroes that she's been stuck hearing about while she's been completely forgotten. While she's definitely angry and violent, she also doesn't come across as evil, just lashing out.

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jeez I can see we're getting into the high tiers

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yea I haven't watched Steven Universe but Other Friends is a bop

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Ive been waiting on Other Friends to drop. God its amazing! You should definitely watch Steven Universe. Love the last three songs.

Johnbobb posted...

she also doesn't come across as evil, just lashing out.

Yeah that's pretty accurate. Though she does have a pretty good reason for doing so

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Other Friends on the Other Side.. something something
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22. Stained, Brutal Calamity
Source: Terraria Calamity
Villain: Supreme Calamitas
Nominator: Hbthebattle (ELIMINATED)
Favorite lyric: Are you sure you want to lose your mind from a legend whose power could salvage mankind?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MT6HTpY_OyE

Villainy: 2
Characterization: 10
Melody: 9
Total: 21/30

why the fuck is terraria so intense? I was surprised to find out these lyrics were in English my first listen through; I had to actually read the lyrics while listening to understand it as I'd previously just assumed it was like Latin or something. The setup of this song is really interesting, and it took quite a few listens (and some wiki reading) to really figure out what was happening here. The song is broken into 4 sections that all play during the game's hardest boss battle. The first section is from the perspective of Calamitas, desperate to take down the player but questioning her own morals. The second is the perspective of the player, intent on taking down Calamitas but questioning if the quest is worth it. The third and fourth seem to be an objective outsider, narrating the climax of the battle until the end. The whole thing is fascinating and just a real pleasure to listen to, with the only real holdup as far as this ranking is concerned being that it's a little hard to think of it as a villain song given how sparced out it is. Calamitas doesn't seem wholly unreasonable here (despite appearing to be a giant demon eyeball or something) and this is more about the battle itself than her as a villain.

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DM DOKURO is GOAT

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20. Devourer
Source: Warhammer 40K (fan song by StringStorm)
Villain: The Tyranids
Nominator: Pirateking2000 (ELIMINATED)
Favorite lyric: Our evolution is impeding, this universe will end / It's purpose is served as we ascend

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_iRwdfZw5y0

Villainy: 10
Characterization: 9
Melody: 3
Total: 22/30

It might be hard to believe given how high it's placed, but Devourer is one of the biggest disappointments of the entire ranking, and ultimately that's what's kept it just out of barely in the top 20. The first like 25 seconds of the song are intense and powerful and immediately got me hyped. I only had a very vague idea of what Tyranids were but could right away picture the giant, horrifying army approaching to the heavy synth. And then those vocals come in. If not for those vocals, this would've been a top 10 song easy. The lyrics do an excellent job portraying the Tyranids as this nearly unfathomable enemy that won't halt until it's destroyed all of civilization. They aren't just mindless killers either; these are monsters in their purest form, unstoppable and wreaking havoc and destruction with full malice. They're the embodiment of creeping death. And those vocals are just so goddamn bad. Everything else about the song is excellent. The instrumentals are creepy and exciting and they're just ruined by these high-pitched, tone-deaf, double-layered vocals that feel completely out of place within the rest of the song. It honestly just blows my mind that this was the direction they decided to take what was otherwise a top-tier fan song.

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Johnbobb posted...

Source: Spinel
Villain: Steven Universe: The Movie

Just noticed this part. Steven Universe: The Movie's song was pretty good in Spinel.

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Welp, I fucked up

So, Devourer was actually #20; I accidentally skipped #21

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oh, hope I didn't start celebrating top 20 too soon

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21. Your Reality
Source: Doki Doki Literature Club
Villain: Monika
Nominator: Shonen Bat (ELIMINATED)
Favorite lyric: What do you call love in your reality? / And in your reality, if I don't know how to love you / I'll leave you be

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CAL4WMpBNs0

Villainy: 1
Characterization: 10
Melody: 10
Total: 21/30

Man, I'm so sorry I can't put this higher, that villainy score just really, really held back what is otherwise one of my favorite villain songs. Unlike some of the other 1s like Defying Gravity and Roar of the Jungle Dragon, which are ultimately heroic, and Distant Image and Awaken, which weren't specific enough to the character to be villainous without context, Your Reality loses almost all its points because of where this lands in the story. Similar to Still Alive, the villain has already been defeated. Unlike Still Alive, however, this isn't the villain mocking the protagonist, this is her basically explaining why she did everything she did. It's not malicious, but instead it's kind of heartbreaking. It's a love song written by someone who knows her love is manufactured and impossible, but who is still desperate for that love. In the end, she finally doe accept it though, and that last line of "I'll leave you be" hits incredibly hard.

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@Shonen_Bat I am so so sorry I love you

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Had a feeling Melody would be where it'd end up beefing it given earlier rankings. Was just a matter of what number it was. The one idea of the vocal being the voice of the hivemind (or what it bothers with) could be a bit interesting and add a potential eerieness to some (disappointment to others). It sounding like a somewhat regular guy who sees you as nothing and is out to destroy and eat everything.

Still it'd probably would have done way better than it did (and hey top 20 is pretty damn great) if it was a chorus to better play with the swarm and the genestealer cultists thing (yes Tyranids are fucking scary).

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Your Top 20!
Scare - Moana - Shiny

Great Paul - Hunchback of Notre Dame - Hellfire

Uglyface2 - Pink Floyd - Waiting for the Worms

Snake5555555555 - Slayer - Dead Skin Mask

Xeybozn - The Who - Behind Blue Eyes
Xeybozn - Hamilton - You'll Be Back

Toxtricity - The Lion King 2: Simba's Pride - My Lullaby

BetrayedTangy - Starship - Kick It Up a Notch

Bane - Anastasia - In the Dark of the Night
Bane - clipping. - Run for Your Life

TheArkOfTurus - Ayreon - Day Sixteen: Loser
TheArkOfTurus - The Mountain Goats - Werewolf Gimmick

Jesse Custer - Talking Heads - Psycho Killer

Zyxyz - Ar tonelico Qoga - XaaaCi

cakophon - Be More Chill - Be More Chill (Pt. 1)

Player 0 - Wander Over Yonder - I'm the Bad Guy
Player 0 - Eminem - Stan

UF8 - Umineko - Egurite

Pirateking2000 - Warhammer 40K (fan song) - Devourer

azuarc - Phantom of the Opera - Music of the Night

gee who wants to bet on which top 20er drops first

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it's all good, I couldn't be happier with that score since it I knew it was getting a 1 in villainy

Monika the best, always.

Love the banner too, it's simple but it's exactly what it should be

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Johnbobb posted...

gee who wants to bet on which top 20er drops first

I'm going to go with...anyone but Pirateking2000.

Also, wow the balance in Devourer is terrible. Did they really intend for the vocals to completely drown out the backing?

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Clearly he goofed again and it was actually 19

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Im actually kind of surprised my remaining nomination is still in. That one just jumped into my head when I needed to come up with a last nomination, but I guess it worked!

Psycho Killer. Cous-cous, yay. Om nom nom nom, om nom nom nom nom nom.

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whoa, was not expecting to make it to the top 20! nice!

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Oh hell yea 2 in top 20, I'll take that

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My Lullaby #1

Im really curious where Waiting for the Worms will end up. Theres a lot to unpack from the album, but Pinks mindset is definitely villainous at that point.

Shiny is either next or top 3 im calling my shot

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Fastbreak posted...

Shiny is either next or top 3 im calling my shot

19. Shiny
Source: Moana
Villain: Tomotoa
Nominator: Scare (ELIMINATED)
Favorite lyric: Maui man, you could try, try, try / But you can't expect a demi-god / To beat a decapod

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=93lrosBEW-Q

Villainy: 8
Characterization: 8
Melody: 6
Total: 22/30

I fuckin love Moana. Easily one of the best things Disney has done in a long time. Shiny is a really fun moment that briefly breaks from the main story to face off against a giant David Bowie crab, and it's overall just a good time. Jermaine Clement does a better Bowie impression than probably anyone else out there, and this is essentially Bowie for kids. Reading the lyrics tells a different story though, and one I don't think I appreciated enough until doing this ranking. Tomotoa initially comes off like the normal random Disney villain who just wants to eat, kinda like Kaa in Jungle Book. But that's not the case, is it? Tomotoa is evil. He goes over how he gets fed; his shiny shell brings in fish whole schools at a time, so that he never goes hungry. He literally eats during the song. So why's he going after Maui and Moana so hard? Because fish are dumb. He's not in this for the food, he's in this for the thrill of devouring intelligent life and mocking his prey along the way. He's not some random enemy after all, he has a long, antatgonistic history with Maui, but since we're following Moana's perspective, we only get the brief, frightening glimpse of it.

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18. Be More Chill (Pt. 1)
Source: Be More Chill
Villain: The SQUIP
Nominator: cakophon (ELIMINATED)
Favorite lyric: Maui man, you could try, try, try / But you can't expect a demi-god / To beat a decapod

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ocJ-TaG2mUw

Villainy: 4
Characterization: 9
Melody: 9
Total: 22/30

Fun fact, while I had never seen Be More Chill while doing the ranking, I actually saw it for the first time this week. To be fair, it was a kinda subpar student version on YouTube, not the Broadway that I assume would've been considerably better, though either way I've got some issues with the plot itself that kind gets significantly worse in the second half but ANYWAY the idea behind the Squip is kinda cool. It's basically Upgrade (2018) but instead of being designed to survive, it's made to survive high school. In Be More Chill (the song), the Squip is consistently funny and steals the scene (his first scene) while also being a cocky jerk. Not evil (not yet anyway), just mean and manipulative, primarily to Jeremy, though that's his entire point. He's breaking down Jeremy's already low-confidence in order to prevent Jeremy from getting in his own way, and, of course, in the Squip's way. The song is all over the place; it's funny and one of the most memorable songs from the musical.

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Johnbobb posted...

Jermaine Clement does a better Bowie impression than probably anyone else out there

https://youtu.be/yc4efBM_9JM

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Be More Chill is great! I too listened to it fairly recently. From what I've heard the original Chigaco cast is the best version.

I think Upgrade is probably my favorite song featuring the Squip

https://youtu.be/1fD5bAqKsAM

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I really wish I'd nominated "Meant to Be Yours" from Heathers and "I'm Alive" from Next to Normal. I'd still have stuff in this ranking maybe!

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Johnbobb posted...

19. Shiny
Favorite lyric: Maui man, you could try, try, try / But you can't expect a demi-god / To beat a decapod

Johnbobb posted...

18. Be More Chill (Pt. 1)
Favorite lyric: Maui man, you could try, try, try / But you can't expect a demi-god / To beat a decapod

:thinking:

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Be More Chill favorite lyric:

Oh, everything about you is so terrible / Whoa, everything about you makes me wanna die

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17. Day Sixteen: Loser
Source: Ayreon
Villain: Father
Nominator: TheArkOfTurus (1 left)
Favorite lyric: I came here to watch you bleed, oh how I love to gloat / If you had any balls at all, you'd grab me by the throat

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TkOBgT0KT40

Villainy: 5
Characterization: 8
Melody: 9
Total: 22/30

This album instantly earned itself a spot on my list to listen to in full. From what info I could gather, the concept album follows a man in a coma dealing with emotions and memories in his head, and it honestly seems really intriguing. I'm more than excited to check it out if any of it sounds like this song, which is fantastic. Musically it's all over the place, at times sounding like celtic music, metal, and even a 70s rock epic. The father (whose perspective is told for the majority of the song) is just a horrible, horrible person, blantantly mistreating his son and bragging about his own achievements. It's ironic too, as we learn he's essentially achieved nothing and is just projecting his own insecurity of being a loser onto his son, who in turn responds with almost incomprehensible rage in the end.

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Human Equation is definitely a real great album. Also, I'm pretty sure 100% of Loser is from the father's perspective.
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Such a great song. Devin Townsend's vocals at the end are just superb.

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yes I realize it's frustrating that Day Sixteen was in seventeenth place but them's the breaks



16. Behind Blue Eyes
Source: The Who/Lifehouse
Villain: Jumbo
Nominator: Xeybozn (1 left)
Favorite lyric: But my dreams, they aren't as empty / As my conscience seems to be / I have hours, only lonely / My love is vengeance that's never free

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

Villainy: 3
Characterization: 9
Melody: 10
Total: 22/30

Behind Blue Eyes is a surprisingly difficult one to rate without bringing in context. This is a song that was originally meant to be part of a rock opera as the villain's main theme, before the idea was scrapped and select songs from it were made part of Who's Next, one of the best albums of all time. In the greater context of the planned rock opera, Jumbo (the villain) controls The Grid, which for lack of a better explanation is essentially a Matrix that only he seems to exist outside of, where he decides everyone's lives and emotions. That's where this gets tricky, because MOST of that requires outside knowledge and doesn't come through in the song. What does come through in the song is a very sad man who feels lonely and abandoned, but unlike some of the more sympathetic villains on this list, there's definite deflection and resentment that are easy to pick out here. He's acting as though he's all but innocent, and blaming his own subjects for his misery. It's a complex and interesting song that I'm glad was nominated because I never would've read into it as much as I did otherwise. It's also just a fuckin fantastic song the whole way through and I would kill to see Lifehouse actually made.

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ngl wasn't expecting to see The Who out quite yet

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Bane_Of_Despair posted...

ngl wasn't expecting to see The Who out quite yet

If they're down now, Pink Floyd can't be far behind. That will all come down to whether Johnbobb has any sympathy for Pink or whether he lets him have it in the villainy score.

I feel like I remember Pink Floyd being one of his favorite bands so that might be good for a bit

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