It's hard to tell who the hero of a story might actually be. Sure, the author might center in on a specific character's arc, hoping we'll feel something for this person they've obviously invested a lot of time into. And, sure, we might leave the movie or finish the book thinking that character was heroic. With the passage of time, however, it becomes a little more obvious the individuall we were supposed to be rooting for was a horrific monster the entire time.
Reddit user, u/darkp25, wanted to hear who we should actually hate when they asked:
Who's wrongly portrayed as a hero?
Itsa Me, A VILLAIN.
GiphyMario. Lets Yoshi die to save himself, plays around with other women, kills thousands of Mushroom Kingdom citizens that have been turned into blocks, is a complete ahole towards his brother, etc. etc.
Cigars Can't Hide Actions Behind The Senes
Winston Churchill
The monster, the mass murderer is still portrayed as a hero in western countries.
Winston Churchill committed some atrocities to the Scottish people, but so has every other U.K. government since, so we're kind of used to it now.
To Be Fair, EVERYONE From "Watchmen" Is An Awful Human, And That's The Point.
[Rorschach] from WATCHMEN.
He's basically a realistic Batman but he's a complete sexist and homophobic a--hole. He claims to be fair but when a former ally of his said that her mom got raped by another hero called the comedian, Roarshac just shrugs it off by saying that the comedian served his country and that her mom was a whore anyways.
Heard He Was A Big Party Boy, Too
Andrew Jackson.
Violates the constitution. Defies the supreme court. Massacres the native american populace by relocating them via the trail of tears.
Gets put on the $20 bill.
This One Has Probably Been Talked To Death Online
Severus Snape. The movies watered this character down extremely. In the books, basically the only positive thing about him is that he's actually a "good" guy. He literally threatens to poison his students in book 4 to test their antidotes, and he fed a potion made by Neville to Trevor, expecting it to kill the frog and when it doesn't he punishes Hermione for helping Neville. He treated Harry horribly right from the get go simply because of his father.
He literally created a spell to make a person bleed out. He may've been on the side of the good guys but he was certainly no tragic hero like the movies made him out to be. He was a self-righteous, pompous, insufferable, arrogant prick.
It's Not Just The MCU. It's ALL Incarnations Of Odin.
If you think about it Odin from the MCU is a dick. He has covered up everything and raised Hela to be a cold-hearted killer and banished her for doing what he wanted. He also lied to Loki about being Asgardian. He made Loki think he could be king. He also got overconfident with Malekith. He also treats people who are not Asgardians like sh!t. He also stole and killed many many people. He raised Thor to be a spoiled brat and got mad at him for it and banished him. He also died when Thor and Loki needed him to help them fight Hela. He's not a hero at all.
Breaking The Law, No Matter How Funny It Is
Robin Williams' character in Mrs. Doubtfire. As a kid, I was mad at Sally Fields for ruining everyone's fun, but as an adult, holy sh-t, Robin Williams' character is the WORST. He sabotages his own career, destroys his house with zoo animals (going behind his wife's back to do so, after specifically being told not to have a crazy party), and literally tries to murder the new guy his ex-wife is dating (Pierce Brosnan's character) by serving him food he's allergic to.
Not to mention the basic plot of the movie, which is establishing a new identity to get closer to his kids whom he's not allowed to be around.
No Update Can Fix That Odor
GiphySteve Jobs. Despite being worth a tremendous amount of money, he had to be sued for child support. Choosing to not provide for your family makes you a dirt bag.
Apparently he was a smelly dirt bag. Dude never washed because he believed being a fruititarian meant he had no body odour, his coworkers very much disagreed. He was known for being a visionary, but I guess not a smellanary.
From My Point Of View...
The Jedi.
Some ancient cult that kidnapped babies to turn them in to magical wizards with laser swords. The whole order were labeled as peace keepers but just turned into war generals serving a corrupt senate run by a f-cking Sith Lord
And Just To Add Insult To Injury
Stop me if you've heard this before.
Luke Skywalker.
He joins the rebellion and blows up the Death Star. Although we see it as awesome because he's the "hero", that action would have crippled the galactic economy and sent the government into a frenzy after the death of several important political figures. The Death Star took almost 20 years to build and would've been ludicrously expensive. It's like the 9/11 attacks but on a galactic scale.
And when Vader and Palpatine die, the government goes to complete anarchy after the death of their leaders. Despite the rebels being portrayed as "heroes", they're just a group of violent rebels pulling off a coup. So Luke, Leia, Han and all the rebels are violent criminals who overthrew a pretty stable government and crippled the galactic economy.
For Those In The Back: THE PUNISHER IS NOT A HERO
The Punisher.
Same probably as Rorschach from Watchmen. The Punisher is an intriguing character, but not that great of a person, and certainly not a hero. It certainly depends on the writer, Netflix Punisher for example, is a lot more sympathetic than the 2019 run of comics Punisher. I'm sure lots of people fantasize (and carry out) vigilante justice but it's just not sustainable. Add to that at times Frank seems overly sadistic and goes out of his way to torture criminals makes things a bit problematic.
Especially in the world of 2020. This was addressed last year when some cops in the comic had a little "club" with Punisher logos on their cars that supported him (ha like real life!) and the Punisher told them to f-ck off and if they wanted a role model try Captain America. Honestly IMO it might be time to retire the character, give him a noble send off and let it be. Besides, almost every Punisher story is written the same way and ends up getting stale (that's why I unsubscribed from the books).
The fact that a lot of military personnel and law enforcement still to this day wear Punisher logos is a bit disturbing when you think about who it represents.
Doesn't Matter How Many Musical Numbers There Are, Still An Awful Guy.
PT Barnum in the Greatest Showman. Dude was definitely not a nice guy and completely focused on exploiting anyone with strange features.
He touted an old black woman around as George Washington's 160 year old nurse and, when she died, had her autopsy performed live on stage for an audience.
Popular Books. Awful Person.
As a naive kid who didn't understand the concept of an unreliable narrator I thought Greg Heffley from Diary of a Wimpy Kid was pretty cool, as an adult he is a rotten little piece of sh-t.
Yeah. In real life, the way he is in the books, he would just be that one weird ahole that no one likes. Not even bullied, everyone would just hate being around him.
A Long Lineage Of Mistakes
Zeus.
Zeus is a horrible person if you look at the actual Greek myths. Hades is a pretty good dude though.
Definitely.
Zeus was disloyal to Hera and is a rapist and it's treated like a running joke. Hades was loyal to his wife and even the idea that he "kidnapped" Persephone has been mostly discredited in modern translations/interpretations. It's likely one of the most loving and consensual relationships in Greek mythology. All of the gods are flawed and jealous and everything but altogether, Hades (and Persephone) are some of the least so, while Zeus is one of the worst.
How Did We Never Notice This One Growing Up?
Jack from jack and the beanstalk
The guy literally sold his fathers cow for some beans, and then he'd break and enter into the giants home and then MURDER him
Seriously, How Can Anyone Still Idolize That Guy?
GiphyThomas Edison.
Dude was smart, but a total scumbag.
EDIT: I just felt the need to elaborate a little more on why Edison is trash. But first, some things to know:
Many people will want you to think he stole everything and invented nothing at all, but history is actually a little fuzzy on that. He was a smart man, but most of his influence stems from his vast marketing skill, and deep pockets of cash.
Many inventions that Edison is credited with, were not invented by him, but likely these things would not have been as popular, or widely used or influential without the cash and influence from Edison.
He deserves only trace amounts of credit for helping those good inventions along, because here are (a few) of the reasons Thomas A. Edison was human garbage:
- A popular technique of his was slander. Using his money and influence he destroyed many of his opponents (actual brilliant inventors and their ideas) because he cared more about money than the progression of science and technology.
- In experiments with X-rays, he resorted to irradiating his employees; thankfully he also irradiated himself and almost went blind. Bastard deserved it.
- He did indeed kill elephants, but on top of that, he killed dogs, cats, and other neighborhood pets. He's pay kids in the neighborhood to bring him animals so he could electrocute them to show just how dangerous his competitors' technology was.
- Speaking of electrocution, we have Edison to thank for the electric chair. Another smear campaign to harm a competitor. The first execution took 8 minutes, multiple attempts, and the prisons skin bled and burned. Smell was so bad it's noted in many accounts. According to Edison, 'all the excitement had caused some bungling'
Mid-World War I, Tesla was working on radar. A piece of technology that could've saved many lives, and improved allied military intelligence.(Tesla's theories and research for radar, and further development was rejected, not radar itself.) When presented to the US Navy's head of Research & Development (none other than the pile of trash we call Thomas Edison) prevented the further R&D of radar. Later on this research would be the backbone for the actual development of radar in the 30's.
I'm sure there are more stories, but these are the ones I am aware of. I hope history will one day look upon Edison in the way he deserves.
I think back to my third grade class where we learned how important his contributions were, and how he gave us the lightbulb! Hogwash. The man was scum, and glorifying him is a gross misrepresentation of his impact.
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I have never wanted children. Best decision ever. But y'all do you if you feel differently. How do we feel?
Restless
3. Taking a lot of napsGiphy"I like sleep too much."
CrinkleCutWotsit
"I took two naps today.. definitely couldn't do that with kids."
yawnfactory
The Unquittable
"I don’t want to be a parent."
ConnieLingus24
"This is reason enough."
Move4me
"I am a parent. One of my friends told me she didn’t want kids and said she hoped she hadn’t offended me by saying so. I said absolutely not, no one who doesn’t want to be a parent should be one. It’s an unquittable job. You have to want it for the long term."
lohype
Freedom
"I don't want kids because they're expensive and I don't have any free time. I have yet to break it to them though. Maybe after soccer practice tonight."
discostud1515
"I miss having free time. I can't hang out with friends last minute after work because I have to pick up my kid and feed her and get her to bed."
Detronyx
The Mess
"It can really wreck you physically and emotionally. Even if it's an easy pregnancy, your whole body/hormonal makeup changes wildly. People act like it's 9 months of sitting in a field, making flower crowns and serenely stroking your growing belly."
"Nah bro, it's mood swings, having your guts kicked from the inside, your hair changes, eyesight might change, all kinds of crap I had no idea about until my friends started popping out kids. Like I knew it was intense before, but I had no idea how intense."
outerspaceteatime
HOT AF!!
Cool Down Season 2 GIF by FriendsGiphy"A two person income with no children is too sexy to pass up on."
TheOllieTrollie
Kids are EXPENSIVE! I like $$$ too much as well.
Grocery Store Reaction GIF by TravisDNA
"I'm barely capable of taking care of myself, so I definitely shouldn't be responsible for a child. I also think it would be a crime to make a child using my DNA."
Maintenance_Person
"I commend this sentiment so much, and I wish more people would follow. My brother is 40 years old and never had kids, simply stating he knows he wouldn't be capable of taking care of them. There's so many unwanted kids in this world because people don't think this through before having them."
UrsulaVanTentacles
High Anxiety
"I got a cat and the amount of anxiety and panic I regularly have over being responsible for an animal that doesn't need to be taught to walk is nuts."
NortheasternWind
"I don’t even have any pets, but I watch my sisters dog and a friends cat every few weeks, and the amount of time I spent staring at them when they’re sleeping to make sure they’re still breathing is too high."
are_u_sure_aboutthat
Poor us...
"I grew up poor so u bet ur a** I'm enjoying my money not having to worry about diapers and baby formula."
HeadAd9745
"I feel this so much. I was the kid who never had the money to go to the movies or the concert or whatever it was my friends wanted to do. I make decent money but am so stuck in poverty mindset I'm terrified to spend it and I genuinely don't feel like I will ever feel financially stable enough to feel comfortable supporting a kid."
bgood_xo
Best ideas
Sacha Baron Cohen Thumbs Up GIF by Amazon Prime VideoGiphy"Wouldn't make a good parent. I'm 56. I don't see myself changing my mind on this one."
Varna_av_Vargarna
"My older brother got a vasectomy at like 27, no kids. He knew it was a very good idea. I actually agreed (I have three myself, he, ummm, probably wouldn't have been a killer dad). They're not for everybody, and you have to really spoil 'em if you expect a decent nursing home someday."
mcarterphoto
Kids aren't for everybody. That is truth and that's ok.
Welcome to America. A few beginner rules...
No Money
Bribing Season 3 GIF by NETFLIXGiphy"Do not under any circumstances try to bribe a cop depending on where you come from that might seem odd but trust me you will get in trouble if you try."
DanHN2002
Stay Seated
"Don't get out of your car if you're pulled over by the police unless directed to do so. Police here take their own safety very seriously so they may see someone quickly getting out of the car as a sign of aggression. Coupled with the fact they carry guns and generally don’t have a track record of deescalation, it’s possible you might get shot."
bboe
Cold as...
"Drinks come with ice by default."
RoofedSpade
"And refills! Soda is cheap as hell. No one's coming to pour it into a glass for you, it's made on the spot and you can have as much as you want."
sckurvee
"And everybody wants to put lemon in them but they never wash the lemons you have to ask specifically for no lemon in your water."
WolfThick
Extra
"If the price says for example $5, you need to be aware that is $5 plus taxes."
Mariuxpunk007
"Plus extra recycling taxes on plastic water bottles in certain states (like California) So that pack of water bottles listed for $3 will cost over $5 after taxes."
BobbiestofDs
"That’s literally false advertising. If a product is advertised (say on television) at a certain price, that’s how much you pay."
Arkady2009
Music Video Mv GIF by Lady GagaTip. Tip. Tip. And tip properly. 20%.
Eat Up
diner dancing GIF by Justin TimberlakeGiphy"24 hour Diners. According to stuff I read in Reddit, our diners are legendary. ETA: I’m American and I eat at them a lot. I was just surprised how much visitors from other countries love our diners so much."
Revolutionary-Tree18
Road Issues
"I think it’s really funny that the CA DMV official drivers manual says, 'do NOT make eye contact with another driver, this will make them MORE angry.'"
oof-floof
"If you screw up while driving put your hand up as a way to say sorry/my bad to the other driver. It diffuses situations because it shows them you didn’t mean to do that. Many times drivers think something was intentional when really it’s just human error."
pantsRrad
"I live in SoCal, and the Los Angeles area has the most brutally aggressive drivers I know. Sure, other countries like Vietnam etc. are a free for all, but Los Angeles drivers literally want you dead."
User Deleted
Don't Listen
"The CD is not free, never accept something from someone on a street."
Portland-to-Vt
"People will follow you around and thrust the CD (usually their mixtape) in your hand and then as you’re walking away with a CD you didn’t even ask for they start telling you you need to pay for it and then they refuse to accept the CD back so they make you pay for it or they keep harassing you. Happened to me in Venice beach."
rosiegirl8903
Nature Hunt
"GO TO NATIONAL PARKS!"
AmIADelusionalArtist
"But be respectful! Our parks are beautiful, but often dangerous! Stick to set paths, look up local wildlife, and get an idea of common dangers. A park in the northeast will have drastically different dangers than Utah. And always have plenty of water with you. States often have very gorgeous state parks, too."
whichwitch9
break the chain
Applebees GIFGiphy"Do not eat exclusively at chain restaurants then go home and talk about how American food sucks."
Mastr_Blastr
So much to do and see. What would you add to this list? Let us know in the comments below.
The world is full of crazy people.
It feels like that more and more as I meander in my local shopping center.
But a little crazy I can deal with.
I want to discuss the people who leave an imprint of fear.
The people who lack empathy, remorse... and a soul.
You met many of those?
Redditor playmesomethinnice wanted to see who would fess up and discuss the person or persons that leave us shook.They asked:
"What type of people are you scared of?"
No Sense
Seth Meyers Lol GIF by Late Night with Seth MeyersGiphy"It's a bit hard to categorize, but for me it's people who can't be reasoned with."
Existent-Being42
"Like flat earthers. I met one in the wild last summer and it was the weirdest experience. My friend slept with him anyway and I'm still mad at her for it, like don't reward him????"
Sapphire_Bombay
True Psycho
"People who are manipulative liars. Who get you to care about them and then play the victim just to watch you suffer."
ExcellentSnake
"This. It scarred me so much I lost faith and trust in humanity. I was not the target but I’ve seen it with my eyes on a dear friend of mine."
Jona_cc
"Had an ex who lied about having cancer and a twin sister who died in a car wreck, makes no sense to me we were in high school at the time lol."
DirtySquirties
Anything
"There is an odd category of people who seem to be able to get away with anything they do. May it be with their looks, skills, wits, power and everything in between. Them. I'm afraid of them."
ily-bc-yes
"My ex husband is this type. I witnessed him get away with crimes, and not just get away like not get caught... like he got caught, went to court, and somehow convinced the prosecution and judge to drop all charges. It was at that moment I knew real fear from that man."
jokersmile27
Lacking in Brain
"The dangerously stupid. F**king up and hurting others but come out unharmed to sheer luck."
KingZaneTheStrange
"Oh like my father in law who was torching weeds right by his shed that then caught fire and spread to an electrical box, deck, tree, and outdoor bar and then laughed about it cause 'I did something just like this at our old house too.'"
dawgthebountyhunter4
Certain
Happy Daffy Duck GIF by Looney TunesGiphy"I don't remember who said it but, 'It's not the people that are unsure that bother me, it's the people that are so certain that scare the hell out of me.'"
Mo_Jack
It's all about sanity levels. Or lack thereof.
Drunk On One GIFFuses
"People with a short temper."
SuvenPan
"I would add people with a short and unpredictable temper. Those kinds of people who can be totally fine one second, then you do something that doesn't even cross your mind could be 'wrong' and suddenly they're yelling at you. People who explode at seemingly random stuff, no consistency, and particularly at moments you wouldn't expect."
"That's the worst. I'm not particularly used to being yelled at and I'm also rather non-confrontational, so I just don't know what to do when someone does yell at me when I'm absolutely not expecting it. Those people scare the sh*t out of me. I'm constantly on edge when I'm around them and I always feel like I have to walk on eggshells."
ElsaKit
Refusal
"People who refuse to take responsibility for their mistakes."
Silly-Goose-is-Loose
"They think it keeps them out of trouble, failing to recognize it causes so much more trouble for them in long run. A former friend of mine seems to have their brain constantly working on writing excuses for everything (to the point they can't keep their owns tory straight much of the time)."
"With the idea that any decision they make has to be the fault of others. They convince themselves that their every move was beyond their control and they were forced into it by others and then if they still suffer consequences they think it just means they are the victim of injustice. Tragically failing to realize they effectively deprive themselves of any control over the decisions."
QueenElsaArrendelle
Unacceptable...
"People who who are unwilling to accept the limits of their knowledge."
adrunktherapist
"I hate that my limits are there. I want to know more. And I wake up in the middle of the night wondering about James Joyce books and the NASCAR jeopardy questions I don't know."
"My boss hates me but said I'm the only person who is the best on all the machines. I suck at people, but I'm the machine whisperer. I'm the skinny *itch who can tell an autoclave to behave. A DSD to suck it up Sally. I'll even help the front desk with Bob Marley printer."
"Because he be jamming, not my job, but I have a personal vendetta against that machine. I fixed a Gameboy that was sitting in water for 2 weeks. Nintendo does make them good. Yet, I cannot for the life of me can't use an automatic car. Stick or nothing."
hyperfat
Be Scared
the exorcist father merrin GIFGiphy"Be scared of the man who has nothing to lose. Be very scared."
sourceshrek
"With money diminishing more people are feeling trapped and in a corner."
novA69Chevy
I believe I've met all of those people. God help me.
I shame anyone who doesn't use a turn signal.
Gross
Basketball Wives Ugh GIF by VH1Giphy"Leaving pee on the toilet seat when you have guests."
EmeraldDouchebag69
Stay with the truth...
"Knowingly spreading lies about someone."
GolgiApparatus1
"My life was legitimately destroyed by someone knowingly spreading lies about me. I’d been in a new town just a few weeks. It’s been almost 10 years and I still can’t make friends and my kids still have issues with their friends being allowed to hang out with them over it. All over something that never happened."
pain1994
Don't Toss It
"Littering."
EveFluff
"I remember when I was a kid this guy in a 7/11 threw trash on the ground and another little girl looked at him and said 'you're littering' in that you're in trouble voice. And the guy just said something along the lines of 'I'm an adult, it's ok.'"
wanawanka
Nasty
"Entitled rudeness."
Tobybrent
"Ummmm so I’ve had a work training that I planned, for MONTHS, and we already had to move the training once because of an internal work crisis. The training was moved to today. It's in an hour."
"This morning alone, 4 people have asked me to move it and they’ve known the training date for months. It’s so disrespectful. Moving the training from our previous date was a $500 fine, and if you can’t make it, that’s on you. Your poor planning does not constitute an emergency on my behalf."
KMKO926
First Be Better
lady bird self centered GIF by A24Giphy"Selfishness that harms others."
5s-are-cool
"I think most of us do in some ways. Hopefully people might decide to try harder at minimizing the harm we do while surviving and entertaining ourselves and others."
5s-are-cool
Humans really need to be better.
Wait your turn...
Looking On Line GIF by HULUGiphy"Trying to skip a line."
Tankisfreemason
"A lady came up to me once, asking to skip 30 people in line to buy a banana for her crying daughter at Disney, and I told her I can't speak for all 30 people behind me."
MrGurns
"Especially a traffic line where it is going one way and you get every other 15 vehicles behind that will go to the middle lane just cut in line to wait behind even more traffic."
SirGamer247
Not Always Right
"Being entitled and treating customer service workers badly."
potatopride999
"I work in a restaurant and my boss will argue with you and kick you out if you don't behave, downright telling people they are the worst people are so surprised every time they get told to leave after insulting a staff member."
Jesteress
"I dealt with this hard during the early days of the pandemic at Gamestop. When we got crappy no-mask customers when I was working with my friends, we would be rude right back and borderline harass them out of the store. The next several customers would always praise us for not taking s**t. Everyone hates crappy customers, including other customers."
Dr_prof_Luigi
Faults
"Finding the fault in others while ignoring the same fault in yourself."
idrinkkombucha
"An unfortunate truth is that a lot of adults stop emotionally maturing when they’re still children. When we’re kids, we can’t really imagine that there are adults who are less mature than us, but it’s actually depressingly common. Something stunts their ability to mature and then they’re just stuck with the emotional maturity of a teenager."
"They develop physical skills just like everyone else, and seem to live successful lives. They have careers and homes and families. But they also can’t connect with people on a deep level, lack the ability to introspect (so they can’t handle any criticism of themselves), and they can’t grow as people. It’s very sad."
eggjacket
“what the hell dude?”
"Animal abusers."
rfantasy7
"I watched someone try to run over a cat with their car in the Walmart parking lot, like 3 times. It was 2 am and they were speeding and swerving trying to hit the cat. Poor thing was running away terrified. I got out of my car and shrugged at them like 'what the f**k dude?' and they drove off."
"Tried to give the cat food and be nice to it but it wouldn’t come near, I think it’s just going to be terrified forever."
"Edit: I don’t understand it at all. I can at least conceptualize evil for the sake of personal gain, but what do you get from trying to murder a cat? It’s evil for the sake of evil and it’s freaking sick."
BrokenEffect
Savage
On Air Dj GIF by The Mowgli'sGiphy"Listening to music from their phone without using earphone in a public place."
SuvenPan
Well all of those people deserve a little shame. Some... A LOT of shame! What is wrong with people?