5 pop culture villains we love to hate

MANILA, Philippines – There’s no Mara without Clara, Snow White without the Evil Queen, or Luke Skywalker without Darth Vader.

The kontrabida, or villain, is the reason why leading characters become awesome – you can fight us on this, but think about it: without an adversary, how would the poor maiden’s values shine? How would the brave prince prove his loyalty, if he didn’t have to go through hell and high water to fight for his true love?

Sometimes, it’s even more entertaining to watch villains than heroes: the kontrabidas of 2017 have gripping origin stories, they may take a turn for good, and they bring to the story so much more than slaps and hair-pulling moments. Yep, we hate that we love them so much.

Below, take a look at some of our favorite villains*, old and new alike.

*In alphabetical order

Emilia Ardiente-Torillo in Wildflower

You may know her from that “choke” meme going around the Internetz, but do you know why she was attempting to serve that poisoned drink in the first place? Emilia can’t help but mistrust those who surround her family – she grew up in a corrupt household herself. She ordered her bodyguard to rape and kill Camia, the mom of protagonist Ivy Aguas. Then she also hired a different set of men to rape and kill Ivy. In fact, any person who gets in the way of her plans isn’t safe. Fortunately, Ivy is tough enough to stand up to her and to foil her evil plans. But we heard that Emilia now has a new weapon against Ivy – her back-from-the-grave mother, Helena Montoya, aka Red Dragon.

Renato Hipolito in Ang Probinsyano

Cardo Dalisay has seen his fair share of death-defying moments throughout Ang Probinsyano’s two year run, but his ongoing ordeal with Renato Hipolito is one that’s giving us real chills: Renato’s a mastermind whose next move is always a mystery even to his most powerful cohorts. Hipolito infiltrated the Pulang Araw rebel group to stage acts of terrorism,  with the intent of using these events to launch his career in the Senate. Now that Cardo is also part of the group (under a disguise), their biggest face-off may soon happen. We’re waiting, popcorn in hand, just for that!

Sandrino Villalobo in La Luna Sangre

La Luna Sangre satisfies our never-ending thirst for vampires, blood, and mystical creatures (pun intended). In LLS, Sandrino is king of the vampires, and his sole mission is to dominate the country, then the world. In the underworld and in the real world, his powers are unparalleled and fortified by a stronghold of loyal subjects. He preys on the weak and the power hungry and manipulates them to carry out his attacks against Malia and the rest of the La Liga Unida. Fortunately, Malia isn’t alone in her quest to overpower Sandrino – her strongest ally might actually be Sandrino’s biggest weakness right now.

Thanos in Guardians of the Galaxy

What’s a villain appreciation listicle without a Marvel entry? Thanos has been a villain in the Marvel’s comic books since the 70s, but our first glimpse of this Titanian mutant and eternal super-being on the big screen was in 2014’s Guardians of the Galaxy. His adoptive daughter, Gamora, was ordered by Ronan to acquire the Infinity Stone from Quill. However, Gamora ended up turning against Thanos because she realized that he wanted to use the Infinity Stone for evil. Thanos’ quest for power continues in the animated TV series – in its first season, the Guardians and Thanos are on a race to get the Cosmic Seed, a powerful substance that can create and destroy entire universes.

Ursula in The Little Mermaid

We can’t end this story without giving a nod to a member of the OG bad guys squad – Ursula. No villain in the Disney universe is as simultaneously fascinating and scary as Ursula the sea witch. When Ariel arrives at her cave with a desire to be part of the human world, Ursula tricks her into giving up her beautiful voice in exchange for a pair of legs. What Ariel doesn’t know is that Ursula actually wants Ariel to become her prisoner forever. Ursula even disguises herself as Vanessa, and uses Ariel’s voice to woo Prince Eric and fulfill the curse.

These classics and newcomers continue to reign on our primetime screens, and now, on our phones and tablets too. Watching teleseryes have become synonymous with getting our much-needed escape from reality. On any given rush hour, you’re 100% sure to spot us with our earphones plugged in, catching up on our favorite series through streaming services like iWantTV or iflix. Can you relate? Or, like others, would you rather wait until the weekend to indulge in your favorite series? Whichever you prefer, you can stream whenever wherever with the help of Smart Video Time.

Do you watch these shows, or do you have another favorite kontrabida that you think should be on this list too? Let us know in the comments. – Rappler.com

Watch anytime you want with Smart Video Time! More details here: smart.com.ph/pages/videotime