TV characters abound who are driven by revenge at some point throughout their storylines. Unless you need something other than melatonin to fall asleep at night, there are too many boring unknowns to list.
After all, shows that last more than one season usually have a revenge arc somewhere. No, these characters often crawl into bed with a vengeance, or bask in the darkness of revenge.
It’s hard not to cheer for the path of revenge, even if the opponent is someone determined to take it. Anyone whose car has ever been hit by a shopping cart in a parking lot can attest to the rage of revengeful thinking.
Revenge does not arise from forgetfulness. Carefully crafted events that negatively impact a character create empathy, even if that character is not the hero of the story.
RELATED: TV Characters Who Rocked the Dance Floor
There is a certain joy in watching the dedication, pursuit, and ultimate joy of fighting spirit unleashed. Only certain revenge-seeking characters are capable of presenting this dark Cimmerian gift to fans.
Here they are, in all their angry and often violent glory.
Frank Castle – The Punisher
No revenge story is complete without Frank Castle.
Frank’s first foray into the Marvel Universe was actually before the Marvel Universe, in Netflix’s Daredevil series, long before Disney decided to buy the entire world.
Anyone familiar with Castle’s backstory would have a hard time placing the blame on him. Violence and Frank are close friends, thanks to his time in the Marine Corps as a troop reconnaissance sniper.
However, it was the Mafia’s attack on his family that resulted in the death of his wife and children that drove him to become a vigilante serial killer.
Frank is one of the most popular revenge-obsessed characters on this list and many others.
James Reese – Terminal List
Rhys and Frank Castle have a lot in common, even though Rhys’ world is based on realism. There’s no one chasing Reese in red and blue spandex as he unleashes his innermost obligation.
The terminal inventory follows the tried and true old formula, with clear lines and demarcations everywhere. It’s the same path the Punisher has walked and thousands of others before him.
RELATED: 13 Characters Who Hit Rock Bottom
Nothing is stronger than the insatiable need to avenge the loss of a family member and the pain that comes with losing a family member. This is the easiest way to create empathy and get your audience invested.
This time, Reese is no longer a scout, but a SEAL who is as efficient at killing people as most people are taking out the trash. Chris Pratt effectively sheds the role of Peter Quill and replaces him with a ruthless killer, making for a fun, predictable film.
Stevie Griffin – “Family Guy”
Stewie’s dynamic on Family Guy may vary from episode to episode, but his overall character is one of revenge, usually against the person or animal currently rebelling against him.
Of course, it’s easy to overlook Stewie’s revenge shenanigans when he does things like inject the DNA of the family’s talking dog into himself.
Stewie is one of those characters who takes revenge to epic heights, even crossing over into The Simpsons to wreak havoc on Bart Simpson’s bully.
Attempting to assassinate his own mother, committing murder, and forcing Brian to eat feces from Stewie’s diapers are some of Stewie’s lesser depravities. There are a lot of vengeful characters in “Fosse,” but Stevie is better than that.
Uhtred of Bebbanburg – The Last Kingdom
As the eldest son of a father who was killed in battle, Uhtred is in a prime position to inherit his father’s keep and lands, when the attacking Danes decide to capture him and adopt him as one of their own.
His uncle Ælfric attempted to purchase Uhtred from the Danes, if only to kill him and seize the seat of Bebbanburg for himself. Thus begins the long and bloody story of Uhtred Ragnarson, a warrior and rightful lord of his father’s throne.
Related: 15 Value-Oriented Series from the ’90s Worth Revisiting
Although Uhtred’s journey to serve King Alfred has been full of twists and turns, his goal has always been to avenge his uncle and take back what is rightfully his.
However, it took him 5 seasons and one movie to get there. Luckily, all five seasons and the movie are worth watching.
Arya Stark – “Game of Thrones”
Arya suffered a similar fate to Uhtred, watching her father die at the hands of her enemies and having her ancestral home change hands multiple times (mostly to her enemies) Standing by helplessly.
After one of the most important events in Game of Thrones, the Red Wedding, Arya seeks vengeance to overthrow her lord, changing the balance of power across Westeros. She’s one of the few characters to have a very long revenge arc, spanning eight seasons.
Arya wasn’t the type to turn pale at the sight of blood. Of all the characters on this list, save for the insane Stewie, murder is the least bothersome to her.
It’s hard to say how much humanity she had left in the end. Death, violence, and retribution consume her conflicted, overly friendly character, as revenge so often does.
Emily Thorne aka Amanda Clark – Revenge
As revenge stories develop, it’s often close family members who point to Room Temperature as the inciting incident. In the case of revenge, Amanda’s father didn’t have to die. Instead, the FBI kicked down the door to their home and arrested him for a crime he didn’t commit.
In Amanda’s case, her father was just the catalyst, and the next four seasons of revenge missions were more about the consequences of what Amanda experienced.
RELATED: Will ABC Doom Will Trent and Rookies With Long Suspensions?
Forced into institutional care by a conspiratorial psychiatrist, Amanda did not experience a healthy upbringing. The foster care system was notoriously sketchy, and Amanda ended her childhood as a teenager.
It’s not hard to imagine what happened next. After all, foster care and juvenile detention facilities are very fun and loving places to grow up.
Add to that Takeda’s apprenticeship, training her in all the loving and caring arts of revenge, and Amanda becomes Emily Thorne.
Suffice to say, Emily Thorne is not the kind of woman who enjoys hugs and romantic fireside chats.
Assane Diop – Lupin
Who says the best revenge stories only come from Hollywood? Lupine is a French suspense thriller well worth watching, even if you have to read the subtitles. In many ways, Assane’s story is similar to Amanda Clark’s.
Fourteen-year-old Assane is alone. His father died in prison due to a theft. Assane grew up on the streets, learned the art of thievery and became a master of his craft.
Fortunately for Assane, a lifetime of thievery prepared him for revenge against the Pellegrini family, who were behind his father’s arrest, imprisonment and eventual death.
The three-part series about Assane’s comeuppance is Netflix’s most-watched non-English series. It’s really that good.
Phara Keaen – Foundation
Nothing ignites a thirst for revenge like bombing your home planet with neutron bombs. Of course, the Galactic Empire tends to do this sort of thing.
Despite losing an eye and losing a lot of blood, Parra managed to survive. As you can imagine, Pala held a pretty deep grudge against the Empire and spent the rest of her life fighting against them at every opportunity.
RELATED: Presumed Innocent Renewed for Season 2 on Apple TV+
Being a war huntress certainly helps, and Farah puts her sharp tactical mind to good use. Unfortunately, her path to revenge, chaos, and violence blinds her to disloyalty, betrayal, and micropolitics.
Revenge tends to do that, and while Farrah had a very valid reason for pursuing the destruction of the Empire, those reasons evaporated with her in Terminus.
Billy Butcher – The Boys
Karl Urban fans will be happy to see him donning his infamous SWAT helmet again.
But alas, now Billy Butcher has to do just that. Billy’s catalyst for revenge is pretty morbid. After all, in The Boys , almost everything is pretty morbid.
The Butcher is the quintessential avenger, the monkey-on-back antihero who transforms into what he hates and destroys what he hates. It’s confusing, but somewhat understandable, if not entirely condoning.
Billy is the leader of “The Boys,” a team of revenge-minded vigilantes. Homelander effectively destroyed Billy Butcher’s family by raping his wife and impregnating her.
As the mother of a future super leader, she was secretly given birth to and raised a child. This leads Billy to believe she is dead or missing.
As you can imagine, this didn’t please Billy, who soon turned his ill will toward Walt.
Revenge arcs are sympathetic when written well. This is why Thanos is considered one of the best villains in the Marvel Universe. Having lost his hometown, what drives him is understandable, even understandable.
It makes the protagonist the ultimate hero and antagonist, an evil some may find reason to support.
what do you think? Are there any characters bent on revenge that should be on the list? Let us know in the comments below.
