Middle-earth Bad Popularity Cup

[Andsigil]

Dante reserved the Second Round of the Ninth Circle of Hell (Antenor) especially for traitors to political entities, such as party, city, or country. Maeglin deserves to be boiled in pitch in some particularly awful spot in Mandos's Halls for betraying Gondolin to Morgoth.

++Witch King because I despise him less.

[Aganzir]

++Maeglin

I suppose I've always had a liking for proud losers.

[Thinlómien]

++Maeglin

He's cool.
He's a charming, proud bad boy.

He's not a simple villain or hero.

I pity him.

(And besides, his name is nice and it sounds a bit like the name of someone really cool... )

As for the W-K, his doings in Angmar are cool, the Nazgûl are cool and it would be interesting to know how they were before they became evil (I've always wanted to do an RPG on that topic), but somehow, I don't know, he's just pretty lame. I just don't find him very interesting. (The Nazgûl lose 90% of their scariness after FotR anyway.)

In short, if you put me to choose between an interesting, tragic half-villain and a villain who's simply a villain (or maybe was less so in some distant past of which we're told nothing), my choice is clear.


edit: xed and agreed with Agan

[Macalaure]

Maeglin is not a simple villain, but merely a poor little boy whose cruel cousin would not marry him because of some feigned "incest" reason.
She would belong in here!

The Witch King, however, is the Witch King. The Witch King! He's the ruddy Witch King people!

The! Witch! King!

++WitchKing


(-- nasty little hobbitses witch nasty little magic swords)

[Durelin]

++The Witch King/Lord of Angmar/Captain of Despair/etc.

Why? Besides the obvious...

1. Because he has so many awesome names/titles for a reason.
2. He had to be killed by a woman (yeah yeah, had something to do with some silly hobbit and his silly Westernesse blade or whatever, too (right?), but meh).
3. He is the only being I truly have reason to be jealous of, as my love is obsessed with the guy.

[skip spence]

I love to pile it on the ungrateful son, Maeglin. Dante's got it right, there's nothing worse than a filthy traitor.

++The Witch King

[Thinlómien]

Originally Posted by skip spence

I love to pile it on the ungrateful son, Maeglin. Dante's got it right, there's nothing worse than a filthy traitor.

And who says WK didn't betray anyone when he became a ringwraith?

[Legate of Amon Lanc]

Originally Posted by Thinlómien

And who says WK didn't betray anyone when he became a ringwraith?

He better would! Otherwise, he does not deserve as much of my vote.

Somebody said here WK is not as great as Nazgul - true, Khamul is for example far better and far more fascinating! He is the coolest, actually, one among the coolest folks in M-E. (Hey, now I just thought, where is Gothmog? I don't mean the balrog... although that could be as well... but the other one, Lieutenant of Morgul... anyway...)

But Maeglin is boring!!!

[skip spence]

Originally Posted by Thinlómien

And who says WK didn't betray anyone when he became a ringwraith?

He probably did. But the WiKi, using Morth's abbreviation which makes him sound like a high-tech gadget, is one of the bad guys through and through and though he was incompetent, at least he was loyal to his team. That said, I wish I could change my vote. This is the bad popularity thread after all and Maeglin is indeed a much better villain.

[Nogrod]

Originally Posted by Thinlómien

As for the W-K, his doings in Angmar are cool, the Nazgûl are cool and it would be interesting to know how they were before they became evil (I've always wanted to do an RPG on that topic), but somehow, I don't know, he's just pretty lame. I just don't find him very interesting. (The Nazgûl lose 90% of their scariness after FotR anyway.)

Here I must agree with Lommy wholeheartedly.

And then just think about the fact that the Nazgûl were the scariest and most interesting in the FotR but they were also just incompetent losers who couldn't even win a party of a ranger and four hobbits in the middle of nowhere!

So not are they only a bit lame as characters but they are ones Tolkien flip-flopped to no limit. So what does it tell one? They were not actual dramatic characters or persons but just filled a role in the storyline, puppets of the plot and nothing more.

Although I agree with many that it would have been interesting to learn more about their past deeds especially as human kings. But that wish only betrays the problem: they are not full-grown characters.

So therefore:

++ Maeglin

(Who sure is a character!)

And also because of trying to make this a contest and not just a walk-through for the WK.

[Groin Redbeard]

Originally Posted by Nogrod

And then just think about the fact that the Nazgûl were the scariest and most interesting in the FotR but they were also just incompetent losers who couldn't even win a party of a ranger and four hobbits in the middle of nowhere!

Well if you want to look at it like that than Maeglin is an egotistical brat who wants what he can't have and breaks so it that nobody can have it. Hmph

The Nazgul as a whole might lose their scariness after tFotR, but certainly not the Witch King. His evil personality is great before and after tFotR. Besides, I think that we can all agree that the Nazgul, for that short period, were terrifying and spectacularly portrayed. The question is: how much did it impress you. For me it was a lot, therefore The Witch King gets my vote.

[Groin Redbeard]

Originally Posted by Andsigil

++Witch King because I despise him less.

My sentiments exactly! Sic Semper Tyrannis!

Besides, The Witch King makes up some of the most interesting parts of Middle-earth history ever. The rise of Angmar and the fall of the Northern Kingdom is amazing to read!

++Witch King

EDIT:

Originally Posted by Lommy

(I've always wanted to do an RPG on that topic)

I heard that!