The movie Jaws was hailed as a thriller masterpiece for its camerawork, using the camera as the shark's perspective, slowly creeping in on the unsuspecting swimmers while the musical score builds up. We never see the shark until near the end, when its head suddenly lifts from the water and is nearly as wide as the boat the protagonists are on.372Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP4uMl65M0V
Gaunter O'Dimm in CD Project Red's Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt remains one of my favorite enigmatic villains of all time because he is a terribly powerful being, but he operates on rules that we only ever slightly comprehend. We never get resolution on who or what he is and are left to guess amongst ourselves.372Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdqUIMbjPuh
Every book I've ever read that involves an organization working from the shadows feels like a tremendous threat to the protagonist(s) because I as the reader have no idea just how pervasive the organization is. How long is their reach? What are they capable of? Are the rumors about them true?372Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgnw8yvuegl
When I first saw the movie Star Wars: The Force Awakens (when it first released years ago, before the train-wreck that followed) I was actually rather taken with the villain that was Kylo Renn. He was faceless. Powerful enough to stop a blaster shot. Angry. I had no idea what he was capable of, no clue of his thoughts or emotions, and no idea what to expect from him. Even when we discovered that he was Han Solo's son I still didn't know what to expect.372Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUk8PWGT9jK
Then he took off his mask and my anxiety evaporated.372Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKBHgmkaYEN
I have a friend of mine who I thoroughly enjoy speaking with when it comes to dissecting stories and everything story-related. The other day we were briefly discussing the notion of, 'the monster you know vs. the monster you don't know,' and both came to an agreement that the greatest thrills and horror are felt when it is left up to the audience's imagination. The threat we don't know about is more dangerous than the one we do.372Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHd3WEsAkZd
This left me with a question, though: are there exceptions? Are there villains who are just as compelling as the ones we don't know much about?372Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXFNQNwsbwT
The first threats that came to mind are beings who act as "forces of nature." We know exactly what these antagonists can and will do, we know that they will never stop coming no matter what the protagonists throw at them, and we know that they demonstrate a coldness and unyielding cruelty. Beings like Darth Vader, Michael Myers, the T-1000, or Thanos (with an honorable mention to Hela from the MCU, she was a great villainess but I can't equate her with the snap.) The episode where Azula and her team from Avatar: the Last Airbender relentlessly hunt down Aang and his friends in a steam-car comes to mind.372Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnRXHLvo15y
Listing Darth Vader and Michael Myers is half-cheating, though, because even then they are faceless antagonists that the audience can impose their imagination on. But how would the audience feel about slowly learning the backstory behind a creature like Gaunter O'Dimm? To learning the rules he abides by and the hidden game he plays? To knowing the secrets of the world that he, and no other, seems to understand? Would he be just as threatening?372Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQandliM3K0
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I would argue that yes, he would be, but he'd be threatening in a different way. He would transition from the mysterious being that he is to the force of nature that we know will never stop coming. A threat to avoid at all costs, or to tread carefully around should we cross paths. For even if the protagonists understand him and how to deal with him, they still have to deal with him. He has his own strengths, his own wiles, his own cruelty, and that doesn't just go away because the protagonists have gained some power.372Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1uSpMO7HOC
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I may toy with this concept in my writing going forward and attempt to create an eldritch character who remains just as threatening when the audience learns of their "rules," or the rules of their world, but at the end of the day it is just so much fun to wonder. To theorize with friends. To sort through the pieces and clues we know in order to assemble the big picture. (Shout out to Dark Souls and Hollow Knight.)372Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZoXhhzu0Wc
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After all, who wouldn't get chills at this scene? (1:58)372Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKlhA2VOBYk
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Happy writing,372Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7YFWlBBX2r
Chris372Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRZeAKb8VVg
